One of the best parts of my job is ordering new books for the Edge–reading the reviews, seeing what popular authors come up with next, or finding out about an upcoming sequel to an old favorite. Read on to find out about some of the new YA fiction titles coming to our shelves this month.

-Kat Carroll, Teen Services Librarian

When the Mapou Sings by Nadine Pinede
Grades 8 and up
Library Catalog

“Sixteen-year-old Lucille comes of age in 1930s Haiti. Following the death of her mother during childbirth, Lucille has been cared for by her woodworker father and maternal aunt. Lucille can hear the sacred mapou trees sing, although a teacher chides: ‘The Church or the spirits, / you can’t serve them both.' Lucille and best friend Fifina dream of opening their own school for girls, one that centers nature and creativity, but ongoing conflict in Haiti poses an obstacle.” –Kirkus Reviews

My Fairy God Somebody by Charlene Allen
Grades 9 and up
Library Catalog

“A teenage girl begins a journey of radical self-discovery as she investigates her family history. McCauley ‘Clae' Mitchell has always felt like a part of her was missing. Raised in the predominantly white town of Gloucester, Massachusetts, by a single mom, Clae has many questions about her estranged dad that her mom has repeatedly dismissed. Before Clae’s uncle Wendell passes away, he gives Clae a class ring that belonged to her dad. The ring, inscribed with the name of the New York City high school he attended in the early 2000s, is the first clue to solving a perplexing mystery. The second is the Brooklyn address of an unknown benefactor who’s been sending money to her mom for years—a person Clae believes is a paternal relative. When she earns a scholarship to a top summer journalism program, she trades New England for the Big Apple, and with the help of new friends Joelle and Nze, who form the rest of “the Black girl contingent,” she slowly but surely uncovers the truth.” –Kirkus Reviews

The Rules of Royalty by Cale Dietrich
Grades 9 and up
Library Catalog

“Jamie Johnson is just a regular American high school kid—until his adoptive mom upends his life. It turns out that Mom knows more about Jamie’s bio parents than she originally let on: He is, in fact, a prince of the kingdom of Mitanor. King Alexander invites Jamie, his mom, and his stepdad to spend the summer with the royal family, and what follows is a wholesome reunion filled with patience, respect, and love. After the news of Jamie’s royal status is leaked to the press, Prince Erik of Sunstad becomes his tutor, teaching him the rules of royalty and preparing him for his first press conference.” –Kirkus Reviews

Dust by Alison Stine
Grades 9 and up
Library Catalog

“A 16-year-old girl living in a slightly alternate history faces coercive control and a new Dust Bowl. Back in rural Ohio, Thea was already different—deaf in one ear and homeschooled. But now her father has moved the family to a farm in a dry, dusty Colorado valley, and her so-called unschooling consists mainly of working on the farm, where her father allows no modern clothing, internet access, or library books. But the family needs money, so Thea is allowed to work at the tiny cafe in town, where she secretly begins to connect with the wider community, including Ray, a Deaf boy her age.” –Kirkus Reviews

The Glass Girl by Kathleen Glasgow
Grades 9 and up
Library Catalog

“Glasgow (The Night in Question) ruminates on substance reliance, mental illness, and recovery with the help of support networks in this powerful novel. Fifteen-year-old Bella relies on alcohol consumption to cope with her parents’ divorce, the pressures of school, the responsibility of helping raise her sisters, and the death of her beloved grandmother. For Bella, ‘drinking gives you a voice and a person to be. Adds color to what was just plain and ugly.' After attending a party on Thanksgiving (‘Why are there so many kids here on Thanksgiving? Maybe their parents don’t love them, either'), she wakes up in a hospital, having nearly died from alcohol poisoning. Forced by family and friends to attend rehab, Bella must reckon with the events that drove her to this point and find a better way to move forward.” –Publisher's Weekly

Sequel:

Stranger Skies by Pascale Lacelle
Grades 9 and up
Library Catalog

“Emory and Baz find themselves separated across time and space in this sequel to Curious Tides (2023). Following the events in the Dovermere sea caves, Emory Ainsleif and Romie Brysden follow in the footsteps of their favorite book, Song of the Drowned Gods, and cross into the Wychwood. Cut off from their friends back at Aldryn College, Emory and Romie befriend a young witch named Aspen Amberyl in hopes of finding another magical door and continuing their journey toward the sea of ash. As the girls travel farther down the starlit path between worlds, they face heightened perils. Back in Emory and Romie’s home world, things aren’t much better.” –Kirkus Reviews

The first book in the series, Curious Tides, can be found here.