Two new young adult novels open in Boulder, Colorado, and find their teen protagonists in the wilderness—struggling to save themselves or someone they love.

With a host of deftly drawn characters, Emily France’s Zen and Gone is a paean to the multicultural mountain mecca of Boulder.

With no father, a stoner mom who burns through boyfriends like cigarettes and a little sister to look after, Essa is not a carefree teenager. Determined to give her little sister, Puck, the stability and attention she so desperately needs, Essa spurns drugs and dating for the clean thrills of orienteering and the practical wisdom of Zen Buddhism. Everything changes when a Chicago transplant named Oliver arrives in Boulder for the summer, and Essa’s self-imposed no-dating rule is put to the test. But when the couple signs up for a survival game in the Rocky Mountains, Puck breaks the rules and tags along—and promptly goes missing in the Colorado wilderness.

Though Zen and Gone toggles back and forth between Essa’s and Oliver’s viewpoints, with the latter struggling to come to terms with his sister’s schizophrenia, this story belongs to Essa. And as she searches for Puck, it becomes a tale of faith as much as anything else.

While France’s promotion of mindfulness and her foregrounding of Buddhist principles make Zen and Gone a unique contribution to the YA canon, its vivid rooting in place and its granular depiction of present-day Boulder is its greatest achievement.

Kathy Parks’ Notes from My Captivity also features a complex female protagonist who is thrust into the unknown, but Parks favors quick-witted dialogue over detailed description, resulting in a story filled with high-energy prose and off-kilter humor.

When Adrienne leaves Boulder to join her anthropologist stepfather in the Siberian wilderness on a mission to find the elusive and possibly mythical Osinov family, she quickly finds herself out of her depth. In a matter of pages, their entire search party dies and Adrienne is captured by the Osinovs. The only eligible woman for miles around, Adrienne decides her best shot at surviving rests with the Osinovs’ youngest son, Vanya. If she can make him fall for her, then she might be able to survive long enough to convince him to smuggle her back to civilization. Though it begins as a ploy, their real attraction threatens to develop into something else entirely.

When Adrienne learns that the Osinovs can communicate with the dead, her focus turns from her budding romance and dreams of escape to her deceased father. She would give anything to speak to him just one more time, but if it means losing Vanya and forgoing the chance of returning to her home, will she go through with it? With a touch of magic and a heavy dose of humor, Notes from My Captivity is a fast-paced summer read sure to thrill.

This article was originally published in the July 2018 issue of BookPage. Download the entire issue for the Kindle or Nook.

So much of teenage life is about looking forward—to college, first jobs or living away from home. Two new YA graphic novels with LGBTQ+ storylines artfully play with this idea. In one, looking too far forward could mean missing an amazing present, and the other shows how hard it is to move on when the past is filled with secrets and lies.

In Kevin Panetta’s Bloom, Ari is ready for his real life to begin. An apartment in the city with friends and the chance for his band to break out are all Ari can focus on, to his parents’ dismay. Their family bakery needs his help to stay afloat, but Ari is so determined to go that he posts a flyer advertising his bakery job as available. Only one applicant, Hector, has an aptitude for baking, and while Ari trains him, the two begin to grow close. Can Ari reconcile his dream for his future with his new reality?

Artist Savanna Ganucheau’s illustrations show us the charm of the seaside town Ari is so ready to bail on; you can practically hear the surf in the background and see the tourists wandering past. The fracture lines in his friendships grow as his focus on work is renewed and his feelings for Hector become more serious. Readers see Ari’s focus changing, but it stings when his friends seem to be moving on without him.

Viewed one way, Bloom tells a small story of two boys who meet and fall in love while beginning to face adulthood. But because it’s set at a time in life when being totally self-obsessed (while lacking any self-awareness) is the norm, it feels bigger than the sum of its parts. Long scenes of Ari and Hector simply baking together are deeply romantic, and they each have complex backstories (including family, exes and friends you love but sometimes want to slap silly) that make us care more about their happiness. Grab a red velvet cupcake and take a bite of this sweet story.

Kiss Number 8 is a story with a hairpin turn that readers will not see coming—and which will not be spoiled here. Rather than wanting to move on like Ari, Mads is in the sweet spot—happy at her Catholic school, a regular at Sunday mass and has friends who keep her grounded (Laura) and appeal to her wilder side (Cat). She’s kissed a bunch of thoroughly “meh” guys before realizing her idolization of Cat might be something more than friendship. Then things start getting complicated.

Author Colleen AF Venable’s story pivots in ways that recall the classic TV show “My So-Called Life.” Mads’ dad has a secret that drives a wedge between them, and Mads convices steadfast Laura to help her research what he’s hiding. Cat starts to enter into more adult spaces where she gets drunk, kisses more boys, and ignores her feelings about it all. If you’re concerned as to how a Catholic kid will fare in what turns out to be a very queer story, you should be; religion is the family’s safety net right up until it threatens to rip and drop them all.

Sometimes high school friendships fade, and sometimes an action that can’t be taken back blows them to smithereens. But Mads has family who are ultimately able to see what’s important and support her, even as they struggle to reconcile their feelings about the secret she uncovers. Kiss Number 8 is honest about how hard it can still be to come out, and it reflects on the grief felt by generations for whom it was never an option, but this story is ultimately hopeful.

Adriana Mather’s Killing November opens as November Adley, an unassuming 17-year-old, wakes up at the Academy Absconditi. She was dropped off at this peculiar boarding school, which is housed in a medieval castle in an undisclosed European location, by her ex-CIA father with little explanation, other than the fact that she is there for her own safety. 

But November feels anything but safe; in fact, one of the calculating and conniving students punches her in the face on her first day. And the administration? They simply encourage November to retaliate in an equally violent fashion. This is all a bit alarming, but soon November learns that she is a member of an ancient family of powerful assassins and tacticians. Without realizing it, November has been training for this school her whole life. But when a student at the academy is murdered, the blame immediately falls on November, and she’ll need to count on her survival instincts to find the truth.

Unlike her highly suspicious classmates, November is an optimist who refutes cynicism—even in the face of life-and-death conflict. What might be most refreshing for readers is the academy’s egalitarian ideals: There are no limitations placed on any student, regardless of gender. And November proves she can handle the most challenging task with aplomb, securing her place in this school of renegades.

Suzanne Young’s Girls With Sharp Sticks is also a tale of female empowerment but with a sci-fi spin. At Innovations Academy, the student body is a homogeneous group of intelligent and beautiful teenage girls who study gardening, etiquette and decorum in a repurposed factory. They are all graded on manners, beauty and compliance. This is the norm for Innovations student Philomena.

She doesn’t know what it’s like to have bodily autonomy or freedom, and she doesn’t question life at the academy until one of her friends goes missing. Suddenly, the academy’s all-male staff doesn’t seem like it has the girls’ best interests at heart. But any girl who doesn’t behave and comply with the staff’s orders gets a dose of impulse control therapy, which affects their memories. Even more disturbingly, a sweet budding romance between Philomena and a local boy is juxtaposed against the unsettling advances of the much older staff. As Philomena and the other girls discover what they’re really being groomed for, they begin to defy orders.

Girls With Sharp Sticks is a thrilling story about a sisterhood smashing the patriarchy. Philomena and her friends resort to subversion in order to protect one another, relying on the same tribal instincts that were encouraged in their education. While this novel reads like a feminist manifesto, it’s also a reflection of modern movements to end sexual harassment.

Both Killing November and Girls With Sharp Sticks are fast-paced and gripping female-centered stories in which the class curriculum centers on survival. But be prepared—they’re both perfectly primed for sequels.

Two new female-helmed YA fantasy novels draw from South Asian folklore and traditions. Whether you’re looking for a romantic and roguish tale set in an alternate India or a magical warring djinn story set along the Silk Road, these stories will keep readers on the edges of their seats.

In The Tiger at Midnight, Swati Teerdhala’s first installment in a new series, an assassin and a soldier cross paths on a fateful night, setting off a tense game of cat and mouse. Esha is the Viper, a legendary killer for the Dharkan rebels, and her target is General Hotha, leader of the Jansan army. When Esha arrives to find the general already mortally wounded, she realizes she is being framed. Esha rushes to escape the crime scene, and she is followed by a select crew of Jansan soldiers. Most of these young men are at the disadvantage, not knowing that the Viper is a woman, except for Kunal. Kunal was raised by his uncle, the General, since the rest of his family’s death in the coup 10 years ago. He already suspects that the Viper is the compelling girl he met outside the fort on the night of his Uncle’s murder, and he soon determines that his hunch was correct. Her identity discovered, Esha and Kunal cross paths throughout Jansa, engaging in banter and developing a delicate code of honor as they fight, save, betray and escape one another.

While journeying, Kunal’s eyes are opened to the growing environmental disaster and spread of poverty in Jansa’s towns, causing him to doubt the work of the military he’s spent his life serving. Meanwhile, Esha struggles with feeling that her self-identity has been consumed by the personality of the Viper, and wonders if there’s hope for a life untethered from death and deception. A fascinating world with a landscape dependent on a mystical blood bond between humans and nature surrounds the characters, but the reality of the environmental disaster isn’t woven into the plot as well as it could be. A hint of intriguing myth and history runs through this debut, but most of the novel is spent on an enemies-to-lovers romance. Whether readers love or loathe this trope will determine their enjoyment of this #ownvoices debut.

Nafiza Azad’s The Candle and the Flame is a magical tale based on Arab and Muslim djinn folklore that is set in a vibrant city spanning two climates and encompassing a multitude of faiths and peoples. When Fatima was very small, the Shayateen, a race of chaotic djinn, attacked her family’s caravan along the Silk Road. Years later, the Shayateen launched an unprecedented attack within the walled city of Noor, killing every human but Fatima, her adopted sister and an elderly woman. Fatima and her companions survived because Fatima’s blood proved deadly to the Shayateen, though Fatima has never known why. After that night, the maharajah has relied upon the aid of the Ifrit, the djinn of order, who have controlled half the city of Noor—and protected the whole of it—ever since.

Now a young woman, Fatima spends her days working as a delivery girl and studying with an elderly djinn bookseller, Firdaus. But when disaster befalls Firdaus, Fatima realizes he was not just any djinn and Fatima is then reborn as something new. Pulled into a world of politics, ancient grudges and magic, Fatima struggles to hold onto loved ones while becoming closer to the Ifrit, especially Zulfikar, the Emir of Noor City.

Utilizing multiple narrative points of view with an excellent supporting cast (including djinn and humans), Azad shows a deep understanding of the folklore and culture that inspires her plot. Readers are immersed in both the human and djinn culture, and they are trusted to follow along without unnecessary exposition in this mature and sure-handed debut. A satisfying ending will allow Fatima’s story to stand alone, but intriguing open-ended plot points make it possible for Azad to continue the story of Noor and its world. Readers looking for fresh plots, enticing settings and strong female characters will sincerely hope she does.

In decades past, the world of queer YA literature comprised cautionary tales and sob stories. Thankfully, these two novels stand out for their uplifting and romantic perspectives.

Sometimes there’s nothing better than a funny, sweet romantic comedy, and How (Not) to Ask a Boy to Prom by S.J. Goslee delivers.

Sixteen-year-old Nolan Grant would be content to secretly crush on the handsome Si while making art, working at the gardening store and hanging with his adoptive family during their board game tournaments and pancake marathons. But his older sister, Daphne, has other plans. 

When Nolan is pressured into a very public promposal orchestrated by Daphne, things go horribly wrong. Instead of asking Si, Nolan accidentally asks Ira “Bern” Bernstein, a bad boy everyone (including Bern himself) thinks is straight, as he recently split with his girlfriend. When Bern accepts, Nolan finds himself in a pickle. To keep up appearances, he has to pretend to date Bern until prom night. Meanwhile, the Gay-Straight Alliance—which Nolan reluctantly joins in his ongoing effort to impress Si—taps Nolan’s art talents for the prom after-party, and the situation between Nolan and Bern might be on its way to becoming real.

As the prom approaches, art projects go awry, siblings squabble and a budding romance overturns everyone’s expectations. Will prom night be everything Daphne has in mind for Nolan, or will nothing go as planned? And when everything starts to go wrong, does that mean that everything’s actually going right? Comedy, romance and feel-good family dynamics combine in what’s sure to be one of this summer’s most fun YA reads.

Things take a turn toward the fabulous in Tanya Boteju’s Kings, Queens, and In-Betweens. Biracial teen Nima Kumara-Clark anticipates another boring summer of working, hanging out with her best friend and hoping to win the affections of her crush, Ginny. But when Nima takes a chance and sees an unusual act featuring drag queens at her town’s annual festival, she meets the mesmerizing Winnow and is instantly smitten. 

Hoping to see Winnow again, Nima follows her to a drag show, where she connects with Deidre, a drag queen who takes Nima under her wing. What follows is a summer that’s anything but what Nima expected. Attending drag shows awakens her, and soon she’s ready to do more than just watch. 

As Nima learns the art of being a drag king—a woman who dresses and performs as a man—she also gains new knowledge about long-hidden family secrets, her friends and even herself. Why did her mother leave her family, with only the briefest of notes, a year and a half ago? Why has Gordon, once a friend, become so bitter and distant? And why, if Nima’s confident that she likes girls, does being labeled a lesbian feel so awkward?

Boteju uses her own life experience in the world of drag to tell a story filled with glitter, feather boas, lip-syncing and dancing, where gender identity is flexible and performance is the embodiment of joy.

Teens and technology are natural companions, in part because both are drawn to challenging limits and pushing boundaries. Two new YA thrillers set in the not-so-distant future explore the complex relationships between humans and their digital creations.

At a theme park called the Kingdom, dreams come true, ugliness is against the rules and everything ends happily ever after. Teenage Ana, a cyborg princess known as a Fantasist, lives with her sisters in the Kingdom, where she spends her days entertaining guests with her beautiful appearance, delightful manners and unfading smile. Surely a creation like Ana, designed to be flawless in every way, couldn’t be capable of murder. But when a park employee is found dead, Ana is the most likely suspect.

Starting an hour after the murder and then jumping back and forth in time, The Kingdom by Jess Rothenberg alternates between Ana’s voice and a series of interview transcripts, court documents and news clippings. Theme park aficionados might smile in recognition—or wince in pain—as their favorite attractions become instruments of dystopian horror. Could faulty settings at the Princess Palace have caused Ana to snap? Did she encounter someone on the monorail connecting Magic Land with Winter Land? Or maybe the blame lies with a quickly covered-up incident at the Mermaid Lagoon? As the Kingdom Corporation defends Ana’s inability to supersede her programming, Ana herself begins to question all she has known. Is everything in the Kingdom really as ideal as it seems? Is she able to doubt, deceive or love? The Kingdom invites readers to ponder how far technology can—or should—go in the quest to create a perfect world.

High school can be a theme park all its own, as Arvin Ahmadi’s Girl Gone Viral attests. Students at the exclusive Palo Alto Academy of Science and Technology (PAAST) build virtual reality worlds, interact with wall-size screens in their dorm rooms and grumble about using old-fashioned iPhones in their history of social media class. Opal Hopper isn’t distracted by holos, Zapps or even her college applications. She and her friends are focused on entering the Make-A-Splash virtual content creation contest. The winning team will be showered with rewards, but the prize Opal cares about most is a meeting with Silicon Valley superstar Howie Mendelsohn, who may hold the key to understanding why Opal’s father mysteriously disappeared seven years ago.

The team—Opal, Moyo, Shane and Kara—hopes that their show “Behind the Scenes” will reach top popularity in a virtual universe where success is measured in LiveTags, comment volume and number of avatars in attendance at each broadcast. Viewership of “Behind the Scenes” skyrockets, but their success has its downsides: Opal’s values are questioned at every turn, including her decision to make her budding romance with Moyo part of her public persona. Meanwhile, a presidential election pits a progressive candidate against one from the anti-technology Luddite party. College acceptances come in, friends and couples at PAAST bicker and fight and make up again, and the truth that Opal seeks lurks constantly in the background, waiting to emerge. Pick up Girl Gone Viral for a boarding school mystery with a technological twist.

These new novels can be challenging and even downright harrowing, but their authors imbue them with warmth and humor.

When Hằng arrives in Texas, she has lost everything except a filament of hope. Six years before, she helped her younger brother, Linh, get out of Vietnam as the war came to a close. But when Hằng finally follows Linh to America, she discovers that he’s grown into a young man with little to no memory of his life before. Butterfly Yellow follows their halting attempts to reconnect. 

National Book Award-winning author Thanhhà Lại (Inside Out & Back Again) spares her protagonist very little. Hằng has lost nearly all of her family, she is wracked with guilt about her brother, and her journey to the U.S. on a dangerously overcrowded boat is so traumatic that she practically folds into herself with PTSD. Her unlikely friendship with a Texas cowboy named LeeRoy allows her to find some relief. Lại writes Hằng’s dialogue phonetically, and it may take readers a while to acclimate before they can easily understand her. It’s a small choice that gives this tender story that much more of an impact.

Dove “Birdie” Randolph is beginning to yearn for some independence when Carlene, an aunt she barely remembers, shows up at her Chicago home. Birdie spends her time studying ever since her parents made her quit the soccer team, but she’s emboldened to claim a little more freedom by Booker, the guy she likes but can’t bring home yet. Meanwhile, Aunt Carlene is not only enabling but even encouraging Birdie's rebellious impulses. The Revolution of Birdie Randolph is either going to shake things up or burn it all down. 

Brandy Colbert, author of the Stonewall Book Award-winning Little & Lion, has created a world that readers will want to hang out in, from the snug apartment above the family’s beauty salon to the rooftop with its view of the city. When Birdie and her sister go to Chicago Pride, the mix of excitement and claustrophobia is palpable. There’s a big twist in the story—a bombshell of a family secret—that throws Birdie’s life into disarray, and the struggle to define herself separately from the strong women in her life has the potential to pull her apart. Thankfully, her web of friends and family form a net that won’t tear so easily.