Hardcover

Nothing but Blackened Teeth is kind of the perfect ghost story. Right from the beginning, it establishes a sense of dread that only grows with every page. Five friends, with fraught histories of their own, rent out a haunted Japanese mansion for a wedding. In order to provide a welcoming environment for the ghosts, the group lights a hundred candles to blow out one by one as each person tells a ghost story. When the last candle goes out, things go from tense to hostile.

If you’re looking for science fiction that will reach into your chest and grab onto your heart, you can always depend on Cat Valente. Decades after the Polar Ice Caps melt, Tetley Abednego lives in Garbagetown, a floating patch of garbage that has been shaped into its own continent. This book brings joy to a future that feels bleak, and grapples with how fragile hope is. Like much of Valente’s work, this book perfectly balances wit and humor with lines that made me put the book down and stare at the wall. You won’t want to miss out on this journey through a post-apocalyptic wasteland.

This book fulfills the Mulan trope while actually going full in on the gay. Zhu Chongba may have practical reasons for disguising herself as a boy and taking her brother's fate, but the way her identity gets tangled up with his and her feelings on gender are nothing short of unique to her.

This book is a queer magical retelling of The Great Gatsby, and is one of the most compelling books I’ve ever read. Vo infuses the story with magic in such a way that I find myself going “oh, the 1920’s were just Like This.” She has captured the essence and atmosphere of the original novel while crafting the characters into more compelling versions of themselves. The prose is in turns witty and breathtaking, the dramatic irony of retelling such a classic story is woven in beautifully, and the ending made me gasp out loud.

I've been struggling to find the right words to describe just how much this book meant to me. I could have used a book like this as a sixteen year old. Wyatt, in all his sharp, awkward glory, reflects my soul in a way few other characters have. But I'm just as happy I get to read it now. Every character in this book is their own disaster, and every character, good or bad, is so tenderly and sharply real in a way that makes you understand them, even when they're making choices that make you want to shake them.

A smart, inclusive contemporary read for fans of Sarah Dessen. Lara's story of self-discovery is compelling and very relatable. I wish I'd had it as a teenager. -Rebecca

Murderbot is back! Fugitive Telemetry is another fantastic, funny entry in the Murderbot saga. More, please! -Rebecca

A hilarious dark comedy in multiple acts, The Rock From the Sky will bring readers through an entire range of emotions before the final page. Sharp and funny, this is sweetly absurdist and sure to be enjoyed by adults just as much as children. -Marika

Dazzling and gritty, Astrid sees all is a love letter to 1980 NYC. Gritty and dazzling, with Standiford's expected quirk, this book will have it's 15 minutes of fame. -Marika

Atmospheric Southern fiction -- social class is almost a character in this book -- with a gripping, unpredictable plot and a twist that grapples with toxic masculinity. -Sarah