11 Books to Expect to See at YALLWEST This Year
Holy cow, we leave for Santa Monica in a week! Honestly, it didn’t really click that it was right around the corner until we shipped all our books and swag earlier this week. We’re so excited to meet you all—look for the pink and blue tent, and you’ll know it’s us. If you’re still planning when you want to stop by each booth, here’s a list of all the ARCs we’re giving away at the booth this year so you know what each book is about! See you next week, NOVLers—and hey, if you’re around before and after the festival, check out some of Katrina Leno’s favorite places in Santa Monica.
The Bone Houses by Emily Lloyd-Jones
Seventeen-year-old Aderyn ("Ryn") only cares about two things: her family, and her family's graveyard. And right now, both are in dire straits. Since the death of their parents, Ryn and her siblings have been scraping together a meager existence as gravediggers in the remote village of Colbren, which sits at the foot of a harsh and deadly mountain range that was once home to fae creatures known as the Otherfolk. The problem with being a gravedigger in Colbren, though, is that the dead don't always stay dead.
The risen corpses are known as "bone houses," and legend says that they're the result of a recent curse. Ryn has always been quick to deal with this inconvenience whenever they wander too close to her graveyard, but when Ellis, an apprentice mapmaker, arrives in town, the bone houses attack with renewed purpose. What is it about Ellis that draws them near? And more importantly, how can they stop them for good?
Together, Ellis and Ryn embark on a journey that will bring them deep into the heart of the mountains, where they will have to face both the curse and long-hidden truths about themselves. Equal parts classic horror novel and original fairy-tale, The Bone Houses will have you spellbound from the very first page.
Appears during:
2:00 PM • The Witching Hour
3:00 PM • Lollipop, Lollipop
The Deep & Dark Blue by Niki Smith
After a terrible political coup usurps their noble house, Hawke and Grayson flee to stay alive and assume new identities, Hanna and Grayce. Desperation and chance lead them to the Communion of Blue, an order of magical women who spin the threads of reality to their will.
As the twins learn more about the Communion, and themselves, they begin to hatch a plan to avenge their family and retake their royal home. While Hawke wants to return to his old life, Grayce struggles to keep the threads of her new life from unraveling, and realizes she wants to stay in the one place that will allow her to finally live as a girl.
Appears during:
11:00 AM • Kids Save the World
A Match Made in Mehendi by Nandini Bajpai
Fifteen-year-old Simran “Simi” Sangha comes from a long line of Indian vichole-matchmakers-with a rich history for helping parents find good matches for their grown children. When Simi accidentally sets up her cousin and a soon-to-be lawyer, her family is thrilled that she has the “gift.”
But Simi is an artist, and she doesn’t want to have anything to do with relationships, helicopter parents, and family drama. That is, until she realizes this might be just the thing to improve her and her best friend Noah’s social status. Armed with her family’s ancient guide to finding love, Simi starts a matchmaking service-via an app, of course.
But when she helps connect a wallflower of a girl with the star of the boys’ soccer team, she turns the high school hierarchy topsy-turvy, soon making herself public enemy number one.
Appears during:
10:00 AM • Swipe Right
3:00 PM • Lollipop, Lollipop
Max Einstein: Rebels with a Cause by James Patterson, with Chris Grabenstein
Max Einstein’s typical day is not your average 12-year-old’s. She…
TEACHES classes at a New York college
Dodges KIDNAPPING attempts with her best friends
Goes on SECRET MISSIONS for her billionaire boss
Has a MYSTERIOUS CONNECTION to Albert Einstein
Just a day in the life of the Change Makers Institute’s top agent!
A village outside Mumbai is having a water crisis that only a group of kid geniuses can fix-so Max and CMI her friends book it to India. But it’s hard to save the world when you’re trying not to be kidnapped by a greedy corporation that profits when others suffer–and seems to know your every move. It’s almost like the bad guys have a spy inside the Change Makers…
Appears during:
11:00 AM • Kids Save the World
Queen of Ruin by Tracy Banghart
Banished by Asa at the end of Grace and Fury, Nomi and Malachi find themselves powerless and headed towards their all-but-certain deaths. Now that Asa sits on the throne, he will stop at nothing to make sure Malachi never sets foot in the palace again. Their only hope is to find Nomi's sister, Serina, on the prison island of Mount Ruin. But when Nomi and Malachi arrive, it is not the island of conquered, broken women that they expected. It is an island in the grip of revolution, and Serina—polite, submissive Serina—is its leader.
Betrayal, grief, and violence have changed both sisters, and the women of Mount Ruin have their sights set on revenge beyond the confines of their island prison. They plan to sweep across the entire kingdom, issuing in a new age of freedom for all. But first they'll have to get rid of Asa, and only Nomi knows how.
Separated once again, this time by choice, Nomi and Serina must forge their own paths as they aim to tear down the world they know, and build something better in its place.
Appears during:
4:00 PM • YAAAS QUEEN
The Revolution of Birdie Randolph by Brandy Colbert
Dove "Birdie" Randolph works hard to be the perfect daughter and follow the path her parents have laid out for her: she quit playing her beloved soccer, she keeps her nose buried in textbooks, and she's on track to finish high school at the top of her class. But then Birdie falls hard for Booker, a sweet boy with a troubled past...whom she knows her parents will never approve of.
When her estranged aunt Carlene returns to Chicago and moves into their apartment above the family's hair salon, Birdie notices the tension building at home. Carlene is sweet, friendly, and open-minded-she's also spent decades in and out of treatment facilities for substance abuse. As Birdie becomes closer to both Booker and Carlene, she yearns to spread her wings. But when long-buried secrets rise to the surface, everything she's known to be true is turned upside down.
Appears during:
10:00 AM • Swipe Right
3:00 PM • Lollipop, Lollipop
Rise by Ellen Goodlett
Sisters Akeylah, Ren, and Zofi are all a step closer to their dying father's throne, a step closer to the crown that will allow one of them to rule over Kolonya. But the sisters' pasts continue to haunt them. Each hides a secret marked with blood and betrayal, and now their blackmailer is holding nothing back. When King Andros discovers the sisters' traitorous pasts, the consequences will shake the entire kingdom to its core.
As Kolonya's greatest threat stalks closer and closer, weaving a web of fear and deceit around Ren, Zofi, and Akeylah, even the people they love are under suspicion. If the sisters are going to survive, they'll have to learn to trust each other above all else and work together, not only to save themselves, but to protect everyone and everything they hold dear.
With shocking reveals and suspenseful storytelling, this breathtaking sequel to Rule will keep you guessing until the very last page.
Appears during:
4:00 PM • YAAAS QUEEN
Supernova by Kass Morgan
With a galaxy on the brink of war and loyalties divided, the friendship of four Quatra Fleet cadets will be tested as their greatest enemy closes in.
Arrested for espionage, Orelia's future is looking bleak . . . until the Quatrans make her a surprising offer that could save her life -- and the lives of everyone in the galaxy. Reeling from a betrayal, Arran finds comfort in a sympathetic boy from Loos, someone who understands how hard it can be to fit in. But is it enough for Arran to forget his heartbreak? Meanwhile, Cormak's position at the Academy is in jeopardy when someone discovers his own treasonous secret, putting everything he's fought for in peril. And Vesper is on the brink of becoming the superstar officer she always dreamed she'd be . . . until she uncovers a conspiracy that shakes her faith in the Quatra Fleet to its core.
As secret machinations come to light, these cadets will be forced to overcome their differences and band together to restore peace to their worlds.
Kass Morgan, the bestselling author of The 100, once again delivers pulse-pounding action and glittering romance in this sequel to Light Years.
Appears during:
10:00 AM • Swipe Right
Swipe Right for Murder by Derek Milman
Finding himself alone in a posh New York City hotel room for the night, Aidan does what any red-blooded seventeen-year-old would do–tries to hook up with someone new. But that lapse in judgement leads him to a room with a dead guy and a mysterious flash drive…two things that spark an epic case of mistaken identity that puts Aidan on the run–from the authorities, his friends, his family, the people who are out to kill him–and especially from his own troubled past.
Inspired by a Hitchcock classic, this whirlwind mistaken-identity caper has razor-sharp humor, devastating emotional stakes, and a thrilling storyline with an explosive conclusion to make this the most compelling YA novel of 2019.
Appears during:
10:00 AM • Swipe Right
Teeth in the Mist by Dawn Kurtagich
Seventeen-year-old Zoey has been fascinated by the haunted, burnt-out ruins of Medwyn Mill House for as long as she can remember—so she and her best friend Poulton decide to explore the ruins. But are they really alone in the house?
In 1851, sixteen-year-old Roan arrives at the Mill House as a ward—one of three, all with their own secrets. When Roan learns that she is connected to an ancient secret, she must escape the house before she is trapped forever.
This haunting horror and captivating mystery redefines the horror and fantasy space.
Appears during:
2:00 PM • The Witching Hour
When We Were Lost by Kevin Wignall
Tom Calloway didn’t want to go on a field trip to Costa Rica, but circumstances had him ending up sitting in the back of the plane–which was the only part that was intact after the crash in the remote South American wilderness. Tom and a small group of his classmates are fortunate to be alive, but their luck quickly runs out when some of them fall prey to the unfamiliar threats of the jungle–animals, reptiles, insects, and even the unforgiving heat. Every decision they make could mean life or death.
As the days go by and the survivors’ desperation grows, things get even more perilous. Not everyone can cope with the trauma of seeing their friends die, and a struggle for leadership soon pits them against each other. And when they come across evidence of other people in the middle of the rainforest, does that mean they’re safe–or has their survival come to an even more vicious end?
Appears during:
4:00 PM • Lollipop, Lollipop
