Don’t know what to read next? Looking for YA book recommendations? Welcome to the Book Chat with the Young Adult Team. Every month, the YA Team each recommends a favorite book from our YA collection. We cover fiction, non-fiction, manga, comics, and graphic novels, so there is something for everyone! There is also a mixture of new releases and old favorites, so keep an eye on our posts for books to add to your TBR.
GENEVIEVRE RECOMMENDS VERITY VOX AND THE CURSE OF FOXFIRE BY DON MARTIN
Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire is a debut novel by Don Martin, which follows a witch in training named Verity. The book starts out similar to Kiki’s Delivery Service, as the young witch leaves behind a bakery where she made deliveries. That and her black cat are about where the similarities end, however. The story quickly takes a dark turn when Verity is summoned to the town of Foxfire, a fictional town based on a real place in rural West Virginia, where something sinister is lurking deep within the woods of the Appalachian mountains.
Verity and Jack, her shape shifting black cat familiar, are tested to their limits as they are tasked with taking on a magical salesman, who has cursed and isolated the town and its inhabitants. But is this truly the work of a tricky salesman? Or is something much more sinister lying in wait for Verity as she tries to unwind the curses placed upon everything and everyone within the village?
If you’re a fan of witch stories, folklore, cryptids, monsters lurking in the woods, and folk horror, this book is for you. It does move a little slower than traditional monster stories though since it greatly emphasizes relationships between the characters and builds cozy vibes even in the midst of tragedy. If you don’t mind that slower build up, it’s the perfect read for transitioning into fall.
NICOLE RECOMMENDS GHOST ROAST BY SHAWNELLE GIBBS & SHAWNEE GIBBS
Ghost Roast is a fun, gorgeously illustrated graphic novel about a teenage girl named Chelsea who is forced to work with her father over the summer break exorcising ghosts. Turns out Chelsea has a unique gift when she learns that she’s able to see and speak with these ghosts. This puts her in a predicament: does she help her dad eliminate the friendly, cute ghost of an old mansion owner, or does she try to find a way to instead peacefully lay him to rest? At its heart, Ghost Roast is a paranormal story about the relationship between a teenager and her father and the peer pressures of fitting in at high school, with a tiny bit of romance sprinkled throughout.
KAYLEIGH RECOMMENDS GIRLS ON THE VERGE BY SHARON BIGGS WALTER
Rather than going to the prestigious theater program she’s been dreaming of for years, Camille finds herself having a very different summer experience—road tripping to the Texas-Mexico border in order to buy pills to self-manage an abortion. She’s in the car with Anabelle, a theater acquaintance she barely knows but has still volunteered to drive her hundreds of miles, and her sheltered, Christian best friend Bea who joins at the last minute after almost ending their friendship because of Camille’s decision to seek out abortion.
As the miles pass and the tensions grow, we start to understand what brought Camille to this point. Her friendships with Bea and Anabelle both are tested and grow stronger, and Camille herself learns how to stand by her choices despite what others think. This story is empathetic in its portrayal of both Camille and Bea, but doesn’t pull the punches when showing how difficult it can be to access abortion care and make decisions about your own body, even before the fall of Roe v. Wade.
KELLI RECOMMENDS BEASTS BY INGVILD BJERKELAND
This Norwegian story was a wonderful blend of survival and horror with the “beasts”
being vague enough for your mind to come to its own conclusions. I really enjoyed Abdi
protecting his little sister Alvi throughout the journey, and it made me think of my little
brothers. The entire story was very similar to the movie A Quiet Place with the number of
near misses and overall suspenseful moments throughout the book. I look forward to more
of Bjerkeland’s work in the future.
BETH RECOMMENDS A BEAUTIFUL AND TERRIBLE MURDER BY CLAIRE M. ANDREWS
Let me start by saying I am a HUGE Sherlock Holmes fan. This new story about his origins in Oxford is quite good. It is always difficult to take a well known character and write his pre-famous life, but Ms. Andrews did a pretty good job. There is a mystery a foot at Oxford where some of the elite class are being killed off. It is up to Sherlock and his roommate to solve the mystery but what is the real mystery with the roommate? Has a sinister ancient secret society reared it’s ugly head once again or it is something else entirely? Well, in the spirit of the game… it’s elementary if you read carefully.
LAUREN RECOMMENDS WE WON’T ALL SURVIVE BY KATE ALICE MARSHALL
In this book you can’t trust anyone because they are all shady in their own way. I love a book that has me suspicious of everyone and everything down to the way they put on their socks and shoes in the morning. After surviving a mall mass shooting Mercy Gray has a lot of trauma and a lot of medical debt. When she is approached by a billionaire with a wild idea of creating a survivalist reality show offering a large cash prize, she jumps at the chance to compete. From the very moment they enter the arena something is wrong and she must use all of her skills to outsmart, outwit and outlast someone who is actively trying to make the game less reality show and more of actual reality.
ADRIANE RECOMMENDS BETTER THAN THE MOVIES BY LYNN PAINTER
Liz has been looking for that guy that is ‘the one’ just like in all the romance movies she loves to watch. When Michael moves back into the area, she is sure he is the one she has been looking for. She enlists the help of her annoying next door neighbor Wes to help her catch Michael’s attention. But, since Wes is no longer tormenting Liz, he is starting to look cuter by the day. If you are looking for a fun, easy rom-com movie, this is it! My favorite part was that each chapter starts off with a quote from a movie. When I finished it had me wanting to watch some of my favorite rom-com movies to go along with the book!
MIRISSA RECOMMENDS GIRLMODE BY PAULINA GANUCHEAU
This graphic novel checks all the boxes of a high school story: navigating friendships, parental drama, and a little romance. Phoebe is the new girl at school—and, as a transgender teen, she’s also new to being a girl. Fortunately for her, it-girl Mackenzie has decided that Phoebe is her new best friend. She’ll show her the ropes on what it takes to make it not only in an LA high school but in life in general. But what happens when the rules to success Mackenzie gives her leave Phoebe feeling not-so-successful? Follow along through the highs and lows of the school year, and keep an eye out for enemies in unexpected places. (P.S. – As a bonus, the author was raised right here in Richmond and attended VCU!)
TEEN RECOMMENDATION: PRANSHU RECOMMENDS HAZARDOUS TALES: ABOVE THE TRENCHES BY NATHAN HALE
I loved this book and have read many books from this series and the author’s many other creations like The Mighty Bite, which I also have written a review of. I love how the book makes it humorous with cute animals while also slightly keeping it accurate to history. It truly was a great story, and it also kept the legacy of the heroes who sadly passed away protecting us and this land. It also captures how Americans wanted to fight in the war and how they had to travel to another country and keep this sacred land safe. We might know how the US was during WW1, but the part most people missed was that they joined the war very late. This book also highlights some of the greatest engineers in history.
Want more book suggestions? Stay tuned for future recommendations from our team! If you’re a teen who likes to read, you can also submit book recommendations from our collection. Find out more here.
