Arcana Academy, Book 1, by Elise Kova

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Unique take on magical cards!

Enemies to lovers!

Clara has been in prison for creating tarot cards, which is illegal for anyone not at the Arcana Academy. When Prince Kaelis discovers that Clara’s sister Arina gave her the tools to ink the cards, Clara worries for Ariana’s safety. She escapes from prison to warn Arina at the academy, only to have to be rescued from the water when she passes out. Clara wakes up and discovers she’s now inside the academy and is shocked when Kaelis tells of his plans for her to become his bride.

Clara now has to take the challenge of the Chalice, choose one of three pieces of her future, and fight it. If she wins, she’ll become an academy student. If she loses, she’ll be branded and sent to the mill to work until a hard death takes her.

The Dagger and the Flame by Catherine Doyle, Book 1 of The City of Fantome series

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Is lightfire legend or truth?

In Fantome, Shade magic rules all. Daggers use Shade to destroy and rule. Cloaks use Shade to protect and steal. When a man kills Sera’s mother and burns down their home, she runs to the only place she’s been told to go if she’s in danger, the Cloaks guild in the city of Fantome. Sera’s mother told her to flee to the Cloaks if anything ever happened to her and she was no longer able to protect Sera. Sera’s sure a Dagger killed her mother and set their house on fire, destroying everything, and she swears to seek revenge. Monsters with unknown origins are taking over Fantome and no one knows where they came from or how to get rid of them. Sera’s mother left her a teardrop charm on a necklace and Sera thinks it’s only a token until it explodes into light and saves her life when a monster corners her. Could her mother’s gift be the answer to all?

Likes/dislikes: The twists are so good! My library patrons will love the enemies to lovers theme, with the charming and cute flirting that goes along with it. I love the mystery behind the whole story. Sera has spunk and perseverance. The interesting legend and backstory are fun to dive into.
Mature Content: PG-13 for petting.
Language: R for 153 swears, 35 f-words.
Violence: PG-13 for bloody violence and deaths.
Ethnicity: Sera is white. Sera’s friends: Val has brown skin, Theo has golden brown skin, and Bibi has pale skin. The opponent Dagger, Ransom, has olive skin.

A Tempest of Tea by Hafsah Faizal, Book 1 of Blood and Tea

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Do you ever truly know someone?

Arthie has been on her own since she was ten. She eventually found another orphan named Jin and took him under her wing. Together they built Spindrift, a tea house by day for proper society and a blood house by night for vampires who want to be civilized and not harm others. When Spindrift is threatened, Arthie tries using her blackmailing skills to keep her place safe. When that doesn’t work, Arthie and Jin recruit other outcasts to pull of a scheme that will knock the threat to its knees!

Likes/dislikes: Arthie is mysterious and keeps to herself but she has fierce loyalty to those she cares about. Jin is a charming, fun character and adds a lot of life to the story. The mystery and scare of the half vampire, the Wolf of White Roaring, is extremely interesting.
Mature content: PG kissing.
Language: PG for 11 swears, no f-words.
Violence: PG-13 for bloody gunshot wounds.
Ethnicity: predominantly white with a mix of races as the main characters

The Meadowbrook Murders by Jessica Goodman

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Will the killer be found?

At the Meadowbrook Boarding School, Amy is enjoying the senior week before the underclasses arrive on campus. She’s looking forward to spending time with her best friend Sarah and her boyfriend Joseph, who attends school in town. After a party the night before, Amy wakes up and knocks on Sarah’s door. When there’s no answer, Amy opens up the door to find Sarah and her boyfriend Ryan dead in a bloody bed. The school is shocked to the core and every student is terrified that they’re going to be the next victim. Amy is moved to room with Liz, the school newspaper journalist, who has high ambitions for reporting the news, on and off campus. Will the killer be found? Will the killer be stopped?

Likes/dislikes: I like how the characters each found a true friend when they didn’t expect to at all. It just shows that you never know where you’ll find a friend. Liz meets her journalistic hero and she learns quite a lot from her. Great character development.
Mature content: PG-13 for implied sex and underage drinking.
Language: R for 66 swears and 19 f-words.
Violence: PG-13 for bloody death.
Ethnicity: Jewish, Black, White are all mentioned.

Warrior of Legend by Kendare Blake

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Heroes and Villains!

After losing her hero, Reed has thrown herself head first into serving the Aristene. She has sent three heroes to their glorious death in less than a year. When her fellow Aristene, Lyonene, is called to help a hero, she begs Reed to take her place. Lyonene wants to stay with her hero, prince, and husband Alsander. What Reed and Lyonene don’t know is how much this one decision will change their lives.

Likes/dislikes: I liked the dynamic between Reed, her mentor, her hero and her fellow Aristene. This series will have more than two books. The story doesn’t end on a cliffhanger but it left me wanting to know what’s to come.
Mature content: PG-13 for off page sex and implied sex, off page.
Language: PG-13 for 15 swears, no f-words.
Violence: PG-13 for attempted sexual assault, off page murder, bloody violence and bloody deaths.
Ethnicity: white, tan, and olive skintones are mentioned.

Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst

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Feels like a warm hug!

Kiela lives in Alyssium and loves her job as a librarian. The only social interaction she gets is with Caz, the sentient spider plant that resides in the library too. When the library is burned, Kiela and Caz take as many magical books as they can and sail away to Kiela’s birthplace, Caltrey, which she hasn’t been too for a long time. They move into her parents’ abandoned cottage and hope that they won’t be found hiding the restricted magical books. Kiela has always enjoyed being alone and antisocial but her new neighbors see things differently and will try to break down her barriers any way they can.

Likes/dislikes: This is a sweet book. Charming, innocent and full of fantasy. The book was so relaxing to read and it truly was comforting.
Mature content: PG for kissing.
Language: G – no swears.
Violence: PG for prejudice.
Ethnicity: A variety of races, species and colors.

Champion of Fate by Kendare Blake

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A hero’s journey…

Reed is eight years old when raiders arrive in her village and kill everyone except her. Her family’s lodge burns and falls down and she’s hidden in the wreckage next to her mother’s body. The raiders find her and take her to be a sacrifice to their god for their safe journey home. Before the raiders leave, two strong women arrive and save Reed and take her to live among their warrior kind, the Aristenes. She’s raised to believe she will become a great warrior and find a hero that will die a glorious death so she can become an Aristene also. Reed learns that life isn’t black and white or easy.

Likes/dislikes: Reed is a strong character who believes in right and wrong. Reed has a great relationship with the two other girls being raised to become Aristene warriors alongside her, Gretchen and Lyonene. The story shows the importance of love, loyalty, strength and friendship.
Mature content: PG for kissing.
Language: PG-13 for 10 swears, no f-words.
Violence: PG-13 for deaths, bloody fighting.
Ethnicity: Ethnicity is mixed with many skin tones. Reed has tan skin.

All Better Now by Neal Shusterman

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What choice would you make?

The Crown Royale virus seems to be everywhere and it either becomes fatal or creates a happy mindset in survivors. Mariel and her mom are homeless and she believes that the virus would make life great but her mother doesn’t. Ron, the youngest of six children, hosts his rich father’s Airbnb and welcomes people to stay for four nights at the beautiful penthouse for a very cheap price. This will be the last stay before the penthouse closes. His father is wanting to live in isolation so they don’t catch the virus and give all their money to charity because they’re out of their right minds, all caused by the Crown Royale virus. Morgan reaches her internship meeting, where she meets with a very rich woman who has recently been diagnosed with Crown Royale and wants to bequeath everything to Morgan to eradicate the virus. Ron becomes an alpha-spreader, Mariel is immune, Morgan wants to do everything possible to eradicate the virus and after inheriting tons of money and partnering with Ron’s extremely rich father, she has the means to.

Likes/dislikes: I love the inclusion and representation of several different ethnicities and cultures. The stories of random people and encounters intrigued me and helped cement the nature of the virus and its effect on people. I enjoyed how the author explored the choices people made and their actions. Interesting story.
Mature content: PG for kissing.
Language: R for 65 swears and 6 f-words.
Violence: PG for death.
Ethnicity: Ron is of Spanish descent. Morgan is Eurasian, Mariel is white.

She’s Not Sorry by Mary Kubica

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Coincidence or deception?

This is a mystery with many layers that continue to unravel as the story progresses. I couldn’t put the book down!

This Song is (Not) For You by Laura Nowlin

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Updated cover!

Ramona and Sam created the band, April and Rain. Tom soon joins them. They each live their own unassuming lives and just want to enjoy their music. The three friends bond and learn from each other as they get through high school, meet their goals and make their future plans. Not everyone understands them but they understand each other and are true friends unconditionally.

Likes/dislikes: The author shows an authentic portrayal of dyslexia. The high school band and unconditional best friends are refreshing. The tidbits of wisdom from Ramona are helpful to her friends.
Mature Content: PG for kissing.
Language: R for 25 swears and 7 f-words.
Violence: Pg for bullying.
Ethnicity: falls to white.