Ashley Hawkins has always felt at home when she’s outside in nature. She’s grown up around the mountains and trails of Tennessee, and wilderness survival skills run in her blood. She even earned the nickname “Ass-kicker Ashley” from her old friend Davey—before he mysteriously disappeared on a solo hiking trip.

Unlike many of her friends, Ashley is intimately aware of the woods’ pragmatic ruthlessness, not just their potential for keggers and drunken hookups. Against her better judgment, Ashley agrees to go to the Smoky Mountains with friends for a weekend of hiking and partying—only to stumble upon her new boyfriend in a compromising position with his ex. 

Stunned and heartbroken, Ashley flees into the night, completely alone, without her backpack, phone or even her shoes. When she suffers a fall in the darkness and her injuries cause her to become increasingly disoriented, the forest that’s always been a place of solace for her becomes instead a site of mortal danger. Will Ashley suffer the same fate as Davey? 

Be Not Far From Me, a brutal survival tale from Edgar Award-winning author Mindy McGinnis (A Madness So Discreet, This Darkness Mine), doesn’t pull any punches when it comes to the harsh realities Ashley encounters in the woods or the excruciating decisions she must make in order to stay alive. As Ashley summons reserves of strength she didn’t know she had, she also comes to terms with the difficult circumstances of her past that have made her stronger—and given her the resilience she will need to keep going. 

Readers will be utterly captivated by Ashley’s harrowing, hopeful fight to survive. 

In her second novel, Ashley Woodfolk (The Beauty That Remains) offers a powerful close-up view of what it means to lose a best friend and to feel like you’re facing the world alone. 

For years, best friends Cleo and Layla were everything to each other. But over the summer, Layla began to drift in a new direction, leaving Cleo behind bit by bit. Then, nearly a month before the start of the novel, in a rash moment of anger, frustration and vengefulness, Cleo imploded what remained of the friendship. 

Anchorless and distraught, Cleo begins to form friendships with other classmates (and a budding romance with Dom, the gorgeous new boy in school). Despite these steps forward, she has been shaken to the core by what happened. The experience has left her unable to truly trust others until she learns to forgive Layla—and herself.

In Cleo’s voice, Woodfolk captures the raw, messy emotions that accompany the unique heartbreak of expired friendships. The book’s chapters alternate seamlessly between “then” and “now,” whisking readers along through Cleo’s and Layla’s intense journeys. In effortless prose, Woodfolk illustrates the depth of their friendship, the chaos of its unraveling and the devastation of its aftermath as Cleo tries to pick up the pieces and find a way forward without her other half.

When You Were Everything is a beautiful ode to friendship in all its stages: brand new, breaking apart and weathered. Its exploration of love and loyalty is sure to resonate with any reader who’s experienced the loss of a friend.

In Jenny Lee’s retelling of Leo Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina, wealthy East Coast teen Anna K trades her staid, old-money lifestyle for ever-increasing risks and romance.

Anna’s longtime boyfriend, Alexander W., is perfect, if a bit stuffy. Independent-minded Anna doesn’t mind that he’s away at college. Her horses and show dogs keep her occupied in Greenwich, away from the rich-kid antics often led by her brother, Steven, in New York City. But when Steven’s girlfriend discovers he’s been cheating on her, Anna rushes to the city to run interference. 

At the train station, she encounters the notorious playboy Alexia “Count” Vronsky, and the trajectory of her life, which she has planned out in meticulous detail, begins to wobble. As other dramas unfold around them, Anna and Vronsky are powerless in the face of their intense chemistry. In a world where reputation is everything, will Anna survive her life-changing love story?

TV writer and middle grade novelist Lee skillfully weaves beats of the classic Russian novel into the contemporary plot of her first YA novel, but readers will need no previous knowledge of Tolstoy to appreciate the social stakes, heartbreak, humor and moral complexity of Anna K. Wonderfully observed details of characters’ clothing, music, technology and slang add to the immersive, effortless flow of these teens’ glittering world, and secondary characters shine as they deal with their own family issues. 

While its melodrama is high and the tragedy of the source material looms large, Lee’s version, tweaked and updated for today’s teens, makes for addictive reading.

Pippa Fitz-Amobi’s senior project is ambitious and risky. She wants to research the crime that rocked her small town five years ago, a crime from which the community still hasn’t completely recovered. When Andie Bell disappeared, suspicion fell on Sal Singh. His death by suicide seemed to close the case, but Sal’s family—and Pippa—never doubted his innocence. Revisiting it all will be painful, and there’s no guarantee of what she’ll find. This is A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder.

Debut author Holly Jackson gives readers a stake in the investigation, as the story unfolds in a mix of narrative chapters interspersed with interviews and case documents. By the time Pippa makes a wall chart with red string to connect potential leads, we’re right there with her, trying to figure out what really happened. Pippa reaches out to Sal’s brother, Ravi, and he quickly gets involved in the search for the truth. His family members have been treated like pariahs since Andie’s disappearance, and he wants to not only clear his brother’s name but also wake people up to their cruelty.

The mix of case files and crime story keeps the plot moving at a steady clip, but there’s quality time spent with Pippa’s friends and family as well. When she begins to get notes warning her away from the investigation, she’s eager to protect the people close to her, but also worried that one of them may be trying to throw her off the trail. 

Fans of true crime will be hooked by the hunt for a killer, but there’s more to this Guide than just a whodunit. It’s a story of families, community and the ways a crisis can turn them against one another in the blink of an eye.

A young woman learns that politics and love can be ruthless games in Alexa Donne’s The Stars We Steal. 

Centuries in the future, humanity lives on national fleets of spaceships, some in luxury, others starving to death on overcrowded heaps of junk. Princess Leo Kolburg, her sister Carina and their father, a bankrupt royal, make their home on the Scandinavian, thanks to the generosity of its commander, Captain Lind, who happens to be Leo’s aunt. While on board, Leo and Carina must participate in the Valg, an antiquated matchmaking event. Leo has no desire to marry, but if she can’t find an investor for her water-filtration system, she might not have a choice. 

When Leo’s ex-fiancé, Elliot Wentworth, arrives on the Scandinavian, wealthier and wiser than when they parted, she must unpack her complicated feelings toward him, even as her sister and cousin vie for his affections. In the meantime, Captain Lind runs for reelection in a bid to preserve her ship’s luxury status. 

At first glance, The Stars We Steal seems like a mere sci-fi retread of Jane Austen’s Persuasion, but Donne has rooted her story in a thoughtful exploration of how politics and corruption remain intertwined even hundreds of years in the future. Like today’s teens, Leo and Elliot are forward-thinkers who find themselves at odds with the establishment, and they’re willing to fight any change that comes at the expense of the impoverished and disenfranchised. 

Add in a murder, blackmail and betrayal, and readers are in for one heck of an interstellar ride. 

Del has had a crush on Kiera for forever. So when Kiera joins a group at First Missionary Church and takes a purity pledge—promising to abstain from sex until marriage—Del stands up and joins, too. The pledge group will have classes and activities together, so it’ll be a great way for Del to spend time with Kiera, right? Between working at his fast-food job and secretly running a sexual-health Q&A service, Del throws himself into memorizing scripture—and dodging questions about his romantic escapades, about which he’s been intentionally lying for years. 

Two-time Edgar Award finalist Lamar Giles tells two stories at once in Not So Pure and Simple. One is a comedy of errors, as Del’s attempts to spend time alone with Kiera go increasingly awry. The other is a story of whether clever schemes are the best way for a young man to get closer to a young woman. Where does the line fall between appropriate and inappropriate attention? 

When Del’s sister’s YouTube channel becomes a social media sensation amid online pushback against the prevailing discourse surrounding a series of local teen pregnancies, Del realizes he may not be alone in having some learning to do. Perhaps First Missionary Church and Del’s small-town community could all benefit from a shift in perspective.

Dialogue between Del and his father, older sister and other characters gives readers a view of gender politics from balanced perspectives without interfering with Del’s authentic narrative voice. Sharp readers will find Easter egg references to some of Giles’ favorite contemporary books and authors embedded in the text, providing pointers for what to read next. 

Giles successfully integrates social justice themes into Del’s story while maintaining a genuinely engaging and often hilarious tone.

ALSO IN BOOKPAGE: Lamar Giles talks toxic masculinity, teen sex ed classes and his love for ’80s rock ballads.

David is a popular senior, class president, on the fast track to college and part of a power couple with A-list girlfriend Sharon. After being home-schooled until eighth grade, Jamie is a loner sophomore who has never been kissed and who is still grieving the loss of her father. These two seemingly mismatched teens meet when David’s usually manageable cystic fibrosis lands him in the hospitable indefinitely and Jamie, a Smile Awhile volunteer, makes her rounds on his floor. In Just Breathe, Cammie McGovern (A Step Toward Falling) traces the development of their tenuous relationship in alternating perspectives.

David and Jamie’s interactions begin with light banter, making origami and watching classic movies. But they turn to deeper discussions as David must confront life-or-death decisions. While ruminating about his future, David decides what really matters in the time he has left. At the top of his growing list is spending more time with Jamie.

At the beginning of this authentic novel, made all the more gripping by David and Jamie’s candid conversations, readers may get the impression that David’s dilemma is the story’s focus. But as they discover more about Jamie’s background, they’ll realize that Jamie is no stranger to being a hospital patient either, and that there’s more going on behind her ability to connect with David’s need for healing.

Just when David and Jamie’s relationship is about to flourish, reality strikes, leaving both teens’ health in precarious situations. The effect is intense, and it pushes the boundaries of friendship and love. Although the future is uncertain for David and Jamie, McGovern leaves readers with a sense of hope in the face of adversity.

As high school student Rosella Oliva rekindles a friendship with her childhood friend Emil, she notes how “in his house, fairy tales were neither just the sparkle of fairy lights nor blood on glass slippers. They were beautiful and dangerous all at once, the glossed candy red of a poison apple.”

Indeed, in Dark and Deepest Red, Anne-Marie McLemore’s riveting retelling of Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Red Shoes,” a fairy tale seems to have possessed Rosella, who belongs to a Mexican American family of shoemakers. During her town’s annual autumn week known as the Glimmer, when mysterious things always happen, a pair of red shoes suddenly attach themselves to Rosella’s feet, making her dance wildly and igniting her passion for Emil.

Emil, the son of two history professors, tries to avoid history at all costs, while keeping his own Romani heritage secret from fear of hateful repercussions. Nonetheless, his family’s past seems to be “reaching across five centuries to grab hold of him” as he begins having visions of a young woman in medieval Strasbourg. That young woman is Lavinia, who finds herself in the midst of Strasbourg’s 1518 dancing plague. Romance blossoms between orphaned Lavinia, who is also Romani, and Alifair, a trans boy her aunt has taken in. As Rosella and Emil try to navigate these strange events, they both begin to realize that Rosella “was the girl the red shoes had come for, and that some thread of the dancing plague had come back for.”

McLemore skillfully weaves together these parallel medieval and modern tales in alternating chapters. The resulting novel is not only fascinating but one that seamlessly and thoughtfully explores themes of heritage, prejudice and sexual identity while racing toward its tension-laced yet satisfying ending.

In a powerful author’s note, McLemore, who identifies as nonbinary and whose husband is trans, writes, “Girls like me were here five hundred years ago. So were boys like the one alongside me right now. Much has changed in five hundred years. And so much has held. Both the good in the human heart, and the vicious insistence on finding someone to blame.”

Dark and Deepest Red’s provocative, insightful collision of fairy tale and history is a powerful demonstration of McLemore’s immense talent.

ALSO IN BOOKPAGE: Read our interview with Anna-Marie McLemore.

When she signs up for an elective radio broadcasting class, Nina expects that she will earn an easy A. After all, her father is a well-known radio DJ, so radio must be in her blood, right? But when her class’s group project spins out of control, Nina and her team learn more about radio—and family, friendship and loyalty—than they ever anticipated.

The story centers on Nina, who is juggling family drama, friendships and the general anxiety of senior year, none of which is helped by the fact that her neighbor and former best friend, Jamie, has come hurtling back into her life as the fourth member of her radio class team. But Mills’ vivid character development doesn’t end with her protagonist. Nina’s two sisters, her mother, her soon-to-be stepfather and all of her friends are colorful and complex creations who are fully capable of stealing the show. (Nina’s broadcasting team members Joydeep and Sasha nearly do—repeatedly.)

The slow burn of Nina and Jamie’s rekindled friendship-turned-adorable-romance adds an extra layer of depth to Lucky Caller that readers of contemporary romantic comedies will love. But Nina and her team’s efforts to create an exciting new radio show—and all that goes wrong along the way—are what readers will really find irresistible. Emma Mills (First & Then, Foolish Hearts) delivers a quietly heartwarming story of complicated family dynamics, forgotten friends and first loves in Lucky Caller.

Acceptance to an elite university and a bright future beyond—what more could a teenager want? As Ever Wong discovers in Abigail Hing Wen’s debut novel, Loveboat, Taipei, there’s a whole lot more to life than traditional notions of success.

Ever would rather do anything than spend the summer after her senior year of high school studying in Taipei, Taiwan. But when her parents decide it’s time for her to learn about her culture, Ever reluctantly travels across the globe to attend Chien Tan, an academic program for high-achieving students. Prepared for a summer of boredom, Ever is shocked to find that Chien Tan—nicknamed “Loveboat” because of its notoriety for romance and matchmaking—promises anything but.

Thrilled at her first taste of freedom, Ever is swept up into a world of parties, romance and a healthy dose of rebellion. As she learns the ropes of Loveboat, she encounters plenty of obstacles, and her understanding of her own identity begins to develop. Her summer in Taipei brings her deeper knowledge of her culture, recognition of her passions and the chance to build strong and moving relationships. By the time she leaves Taipei, Ever is a more empowered and passionate version of herself, and she’s brought readers along for her journey. 

Heartwarming, honest and at times hilarious, Loveboat, Taipei is a story of learning and growth. Wen has crafted a novel that is not only a warm and fuzzy feel-good read but also a beautiful commentary on identity, self-expression and love. It’s a book readers will be helpless not to fall for.

ALSO IN BOOKPAGE: Read our Q&A with Abigail Hing Wen.

The only things Ximena possessed the day she was found wandering the streets of La Ciudad Blanca were her loom and her striking resemblance to the Condesa Catalina, the last surviving member of Illustrian royalty after the Llacsan revolt. Rather than continue to live on the streets, young Ximena agreed to become Catalina’s double, to appear as Catalina in public in order to keep the real Catalina safe.

Ten years later, Ximena has lived in the Illustrian Keep alongside Catalina as her sister, confidant and loyal subject. Only Ximena and a select and trusted few know that Catalina is the real Condesa and Ximena only a decoy; most Illustrians believe Ximena to be Catalina, the leader who will take over and rule once they defeat Atoc, the false king.

So when a messenger arrives bearing the news that Atoc has demanded the Condesa’s hand in marriage, Ximena knows it’s an opportunity for her to gather crucial information for the Illustrians’ planned attack on the Llacsans. Although Ximena would prefer to practice her magical weaving than serve as a warrior or a spy, she is excited for a chance to return her beloved Catalina to the throne and for the possibility of victory after years of stalemate. But once she is among her lifelong enemies, playing the role of Catalina on the most important stage yet, Ximena’s encounters with a friendly guard, an infuriating healer and others she meets in the Llacsan court cast doubt on many of the convictions she’s held since childhood. 

Woven in Moonlight is a nuanced and empathetic fantasy inspired by Bolivian folklore, history and politics. Ximena is a kind and strong protagonist whose experiences challenge her to outgrow her prejudice and desire for vengeance. Touching on ideas of restorative justice in a unique and vivid setting, Isabel Ibañez delivers a confident, subtle and inspiring debut about what it takes to move a divided society forward.

Identities shift and glittering surfaces reveal decay at the root in Scavenge the Stars, a ferocious fantasy from Timekeeper trilogy author Tara Sim. 

A girl known as Silverfish is working amid grim conditions to buy back her freedom on the debtor ship Brackish when, disobeying orders, she throws a net to a drowning man. Her altruism extends her sentence on the ship, but the man she saves promises her wealth beyond measure if she will follow his lead. Once they find themselves back on land in Moray, he aids her in assuming a new identity (while she also tries to reclaim her birth name, Amaya), and she quickly wields authority to rival that of a queen. Or has she become a pawn in someone else’s game? As Amaya seeks to exact her revenge against the wealthy family who owns the Brackish, she also tries to discover the answer to a question that haunts her: How could her own mother sell her into servitude?

The world of Moray is full of striking contrasts. Many of its denizens lead lives of luxury, yet its gambling districts teem with night-crawlers and their addictions, and a contagious illness that costs a fortune to treat keeps some quarantined and, critically, unable to marry. Each chapter opens with an epigram cited from books that exist in the story’s universe, a touch that adds depth without weighing down the fast-moving narrative.

Scavenge the Stars is harsh, violent, sensual and chockablock with vice and corruption, but the good news doesn’t stop there. This twisted take on Alexandre Dumas’ classic swashbuckler The Count of Monte Cristo is the first book in a duology, which means readers who love this walk—and swim—on the wild side can look forward to further adventures to come in the sequel.

At the beginning of their senior year, Kat and James (her parents were convinced she’d be a boy) are inseparable. At the end? Well, the title of Amy Spalding’s latest novel is a bit of a spoiler: We Used to Be Friends. These longtime BFFs both end up bruised and bewildered by their friendship breakup. As James observes in the novel’s opening chapter, “It was easy to believe that romance was the only heartache out there.”

Kat’s year starts when, after splitting from her boyfriend, she starts to develop feelings for a girl named Quinn. Between exploring her bisexual identity, idealizing her new girlfriend and embarking on a campaign to take down the heteronormative prom king and queen competition at school, Kat doesn’t seem to have much time for James anymore. In the meantime, James hasn’t told Kat that she’s dealing with her parents’ separation and her own decision to break up with a boy with whom, once upon a time, she imagined her own happily ever after. 

James’ and Kat’s stories unfold in alternating chapters and in opposite chronologies. Kat’s narrative starts at the beginning of the school year and moves forward, while James’ story begins the summer after senior year and goes backward. Each girl’s narrative voice is unique, introspective and often funny as they each navigate this pivotal year of their lives, at first together and then increasingly on their own or with others.

By the time Kat and James meet in the middle of their timelines, readers will have developed an appreciation for the ways relationships can evolve and sometimes even end, often without any kind of crisis or anyone to blame. It’s rare to find a novel that treats friendship so perceptively and acknowledges its potential end so truthfully.