July 16, 2024
- Publisher: Tor Teen
- Reading age: 13 – 18 years
- Grade level: 10 – 12
13 SCARY STORIES. 13 AUTHORS OF COLOR. 13 TIMES WE SURVIVED… THE FIRST KILL.
The White Guy Dies First includes thirteen scary stories by all-star contributors and this time, the white guy dies first.
Killer clowns, a hungry hedge maze, and rich kids who got bored. Friendly cannibals, impossible slashers, and the dead who don’t stay dead….
A museum curator who despises “diasporic inaccuracies.” A sweet girl and her diary of happy thoughts. An old house that just wants friends forever….
These stories are filled with ancient terrors and modern villains, but go ahead, go into the basement, step onto the old plantation, and open the magician’s mystery box because this time, the white guy dies first.
Edited by Terry J. Benton-Walker, including stories from bestselling, award-winning, and up-and-coming contributors: Adiba Jaigirdar, Alexis Henderson, Chloe Gong, Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé, H. E. Edgmon, Kalynn Bayron, Karen Strong, Kendare Blake, Lamar Giles, Mark Oshiro, Naseem Jamnia, Tiffany D. Jackson, and Terry J. Benton-Walker.
A collection you’ll be dying to talk about… if you survive it.
- Publisher: Wednesday Books
- Reading age: 13 – 18 years
- Grade level: 10 – 12
In this contemporary update of Sense and Sensibility, Margaret Dashwood is setting sail on an adventurous summer cruise―unless love sinks her first.
Margaret Dashwood lives her life according to plan, and it involves absolutely zero heartbreak, thank you very much. Five years ago, love tore her family apart, and since then, she’s kept her own heart as safe as possible. It hasn’t been easy, especially since her sister Marianne―the world’s biggest romantic―has conveniently forgotten that love burned her so badly she literally almost died. So when their oldest sister Elinor invites Margaret along for a Marianne-free summer cruise, she can’t wait to soak up every scheduled moment with sensible Elinor before heading off to college.
But just before they set sail, a newly-single Marianne announces that she’s crashing their vacation. Suddenly, Margaret’s itineraries are thrown overboard, and the ship’s cabin feels even tinier with her sister wailing about her breakup from the bottom bunk. The only solution? Find Marianne a dose of love to tide her over until they reach land.
With help from Elinor, her husband Edward, and Gabe―a distractingly handsome new friend on the crew―Margaret sets out to create a series of elaborate fake dates that will give Marianne the spontaneously curated summer romance of a lifetime. But between a chaotic sister, the growing storm of feelings between Margaret and Gabe, and an actual storm on the horizon, this summer is destined to go off course. Margaret will have to decide what’s more important―following the plan, or following her heart.
- Publisher: Amulet Books
- Reading age: 14 – 18 years
- Grade level: 9 and up
Jennifer Yu’s Grief in the Fourth Dimension is a moving and unique speculative YA novel about the afterlife and the unexpected connections that can be made in death.
In life, high school classmates Caroline Davison and Kenny Zhou existed in separate universes—Caroline in one of softball practices and family dinners; Kenny in one of NASA photo books and late-night shifts at his parents’ Chinese restaurant.
But after their deaths, they find themselves thrown together as roommates in a mysterious white room—one that seems to exist outside of time and space, shows them their loved ones’ lives on a large hi-def TV, and grants their wishes with a sardonic sense of humor.
As Caroline and Kenny watch life continue to unfold back on Earth, they realize they can influence events through radio signals, psychic mediums, and electromagnetic interference. In their efforts to console their families, they also start to understand the tragic depth of how their lives and deaths were connected and how to help their families—and themselves—heal from the losses.
- Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.
- Reading age: 14 – 18 years
- Grade level: 10 – 12
A missing sister. A mysterious boy. And a painting that holds the truth beneath its peeling edge…
Inez is missing, but missing things can always be found.
Mae knows this as a fact, even though the police investigation has come to a standstill, even though her parents are moving on. But when she goes to clear out her older sister’s studio, she finds a mess of research and a white canvas that seems even older than the ornate frame it is set in. The closer Mae gets to the canvas, the more difficult it is to pull her eyes away from its mottled surface, its heavy layers of white paint, its peeling top corner she is tempted to pull to see what’s beneath. But she doesn’t. Not yet.
Mae decides to trace her sister’s last steps in the hopes of finding answers, certain that Inez’s disappearance is related to the painting. And she knows she is desperate enough to let the strange boy who claims to have been Inez’s neighbor tag along. Even if his good looks don’t help distract from his avoidance of her questions. So begins a scavenger hunt piecing together what they can find from what Inez left behind. One that leads to centuries-old questions best left unasked and secrets best kept in the dark.
From the author of A Guide to the Dark comes another romantic and eerie mystery about the lengths we are willing to go for the truth and the ones we love.
- Publisher: HarperTeen
- Reading age: 13 – 17 years
- Grade level: 8 – 9
Perfect for fans of Ace of Spades and The Taking of Jake Livingston, this young adult horror debut follows a group of teens as they visit an abandoned reform school—and then return two years later to confront the supernatural evil they awoke there.
Two years ago, four friends went into the abandoned religious reform school Dominic House.
Only three came out.
Riley still bears horrific scars from that night. He doesn’t speak to his friends anymore. And he’s haunted by the truth: Riley’s boyfriend, Ethan, didn’t disappear…Something in that house took him.
Now, alongside TV’s most famous ghost hunter, Jordan Jones, Riley is returning, determined to find out what happened to Ethan.
But as the night wears on, Riley realizes he isn’t just revisiting the most terrifying night of his life—he’s reliving it. And this time, whatever lives in Dominic House will make sure they all stay.
With an eerily elegant voice, dual timelines that slowly unravel a chilling ghost story, themes of religious trauma, and secrets in every corner, Trespass Against Us is the kind of horror story that will keep you up long into the night.
- Publisher: Quill Tree Books
- Reading age: 13 – 17 years
- Grade level: 8 – 9
Perfect for fans of Ben Philippe and Mary H. K. Choi, this charming, insightful YA novel follows two high school students who form a complicated, ground-shifting bond while filming a movie.
High school junior Felix Ma wants to prove to his parents that he’s not a quitter. After crashing out of piano lessons and competitive ping-pong, Felix starts a film club at his school in a last-ditch attempt to find a star extracurricular for his college applications.
Then he meets Cassie Chow, a bubbly high school senior who shares Felix’s anxieties about the future and complicated relationship with parental expectations. Felix feels drawn to Cassie for reasons he can’t quite articulate, so as an excuse to see her more, he invites Cassie to star in his short film.
The project starts out as a lighthearted mockumentary. But at the urging of Felix’s college admissions coach, who wants to turn the film into essay material, it soon morphs into a serious drama about the emotional scars that parents leave on their kids. As Felix and Cassie uncover their most painful memories, Cassie starts to balk at opening her wounds for the camera.
With his parents and college admissions coach hot on his heels, Felix discovers painful truths about himself and his past—and must decide whether pleasing his parents is worth losing his closest friend.
