Twining seasonal and sensate perceptions across a four-part narrative, this serene and arresting picture book from Weinberg (What Is Color?) offers readers a full-bodied education in encountering the natural world. A mountain introduces itself with unhurried brevity: “I am rocks. I am old. I am wise. I am dirt.” An entity that senses but doesn’t see visitors, it invites readers to follow suit and explore its changing rhythms without utilizing sight. Winter is for touch (“Feel where the sun isn’t”), spring for smell (“the rain... the mud”), summer for hearing (a “newt crawling”), and autumn for ample tastes (“sweet bites, sour bites”). In each section, subtle shifts conveyed in gentle imperatives (“Feel the shadows shrink.... Feel the snowflakes land”) playfully culminate in a rhetorical turn (“See?”) in which the mountain’s revelations circle back to a different kind of seeing: understanding. Along the way, sumptuous watercolors offer plenty to savor visually in landscapes that vary between atmospheric abstraction, impressionism, and field-sketch-like detail. Flakes riot like confetti across a blue-gray background, snow melts within a stand of mud-season trees, a bright yellow “BOOM!” heralds a summer thunderstorm, and an autumn forest appears in olive and russet slashes. The result is a profoundly layered narrative that practices what it preaches, urging readers to slow down, attend with every sense, and appreciate the myriad ways a terrain’s riches reveal themselves. Ages 4–8. Agent: Marcia Wernick, Wernick & Pratt. (June)

Reviewed on 03/13/2026 | Details & Permalink

Lines from and musings about the tale of Orpheus and Eurydice ground this breathtaking graphic novel romance about loss and moving forward. When musician Franny transfers into outdoorsy Sam’s Pennsylvania mill town high school, the teens bond and soon fall blissfully in love, despite their personal struggles opening up to other people. While driving together one stormy night, Franny crashes into an elk; though she dies on impact, an injured Sam is rushed to the hospital. Overcome with grief, Sam becomes depressed, his only solace being his nightly dreams of Franny. Sam grows obsessed with these brief dreamscape meetings, believing that, through his lucid visions, he can reconnect with Franny on the astral plane between life and death. Debut author Lee expertly captures Sam’s feelings of isolation and emotional intensity as he processes his grief via kinetic storytelling that’s amplified by Pham (Lunar New Year Love Story), whose fluid illustrations set the somber tone with a moody, grayish-blue color palette that incorporates warm, uplifting buttery tones during key moments. The result is an immersive and hopeful story that will incite both heartache and radiant joy. Ages 14–up. Illustrator’s agent: Holly McGhee, Pippin Properties. (May)

Reviewed on 03/13/2026 | Details & Permalink

Love and heartbreak prove transformative experiences for an introverted Seattle teen who struggles to connect with others in this emotionally potent novel about healing. When anxious high school junior Margaret Vittorio meets Mars Zevon Rivers, the teens unexpectedly bond over astronomy, music, and the Golden Record, a time capsule launched on the 1977 Voyager probe. But as their love grows, so too does Margaret’s anxiety, prompting her to keep their relationship a secret out of fear that her sexist father’s volatile temper and her mother’s eating disorder will push Mars away. At the same time, she reflects on their deepening romance and inventories her boyfriend’s possible red flags—until tragedy strikes, compelling Margaret to take to heart Mars’s life motto about trusting in the restorative power of connection. Swoony romance segues into poignant reflections on grief via Margaret’s fervent first-person narration. Chapters open with catalogs of objects stored in the Golden Record, eventually shifting to lists of items meaningful to Mars and Margaret’s relationship. This intimate book by Caletti (True Life in Uncanny Valley) contains multitudes: come for the movingly voiced, starry-eyed joy, but keep tissues on standby for the gut-wrenching moments in between. The protagonists cue as white. Ages 14–up. Agent: Michael Bourret, Dystel, Goderich & Bourret. (June)

Reviewed on 03/13/2026 | Details & Permalink

Grieving young grifters plot revenge in this YA debut from O’Donnell Tubb (Fowl Play), an exuberant historical fantasy set in 1912 New York City. Seventeen-year-old clairvoyant Stella Bodhan ekes out a living reading fortunes and holding seances until “true believer” Pax Princip, 20, recruits her to a nascent bureau of psychics. The bureau’s stated mission is to ease sorrow by facilitating communication with the dead, but that changes after Stella and Pax meet Nirav, a soothsayer who paints his prophetic visions. Stella and Pax each lost a sister in the 1911 Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire, a tragedy for which factory owner Max Blanck was recently exonerated, and one of Nirav’s paintings places Pax and Stella at Blanck’s upcoming victory celebration. Upon learning that Harry Houdini, Arthur Conan Doyle, and the world-famous Hope Diamond will also appear at the event, Pax and his intersectionally diverse band of mystics hatch a plan to infiltrate it and ruin Blanck. Convoluted character backstories make the tale feel a bit overstuffed, but burgeoning romance and rollicking hijinks elicit continued reader engagement. Stella and her dead sister, Daisy, take turns narrating, their tones breezy despite some dark subject matter, including the factory fire and the Titanic’s sinking. Ages 14–up. Agent: Josh Adams, Adams Literary. (June)

Reviewed on 03/13/2026 | Details & Permalink

Two teens from different worlds and with conflicting motives set out on a perilous adventure across the Fae realm in this lighthearted sapphic romantasy from Pacton (The Absinthe Underground). Unlike her older half sisters, High Fae Princess Hyacinth Bramblefen did not develop magic on her 17th birthday, but she conceals her lack of magical ability by wearing a pair of cumbersome fake wings and carrying an inventory of enchanted items. Accompanied by her stablehand friend Chloe Wreckersfind, 18, Hyacinth steals away from the palace to uncover the whereabouts of and track down her father, who has been missing for 15 years. The girls’ search points them toward the Labyrinth, a distant and treacherous magical library. Unbeknownst to Hyacinth, however, Chloe is a disguised human trapped in the Fae realm, and the Labyrinth’s rumored portals to other worlds could be her ticket home. As they confront myriad trials along their quest, Hyacinth and Chloe must rely on each other and navigate their mutual attraction, even as Chloe agonizes over potentially leaving the Fae realm—and Hyacinth—behind forever. Though danger is always around the corner, the stakes are never too high, making for a cozy jaunt enlivened with whimsical Fae world details and a hint of beguiling darkness. Hyacinth has pale purple skin; Chloe reads as white. Ages 14–up. Agent: Kate Testerman, KT Literary. (June)

Reviewed on 03/13/2026 | Details & Permalink

Peñalba spotlights the complexities of public perception and identity in a thoughtful debut that centers an aromantic and asexual teenage pop star navigating fame, friendship, and firsts. To the world, Los Angeles native Sasha, 19, is Sassy, a Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter whose chart-topping ballads of love and heartbreak invite endless speculation into who inspires her music. She keeps her aroace identity a secret from everyone except her inner circle, as it directly conflicts with the hopeless romantic image her label eagerly markets. As pressure from her calculating manager mounts, Sasha is pushed toward a carefully curated narrative, including a publicity-friendly rekindling with fellow creative Kai, a once close confidant and Sasha’s first romantic partner. Meanwhile, distance strains her bond with her best friend Mia, now away at college in New York, and the arrival of actor Asher, scion of a high-profile acting dynasty, further complicates Sasha’s already tangled emotional landscape. Peñalba deftly interrogates the assumptions audiences place on artists, and explores the dissonance between reputation and authenticity. Balancing universal challenges of emerging adulthood with the rarified pressures of celebrity, it’s a nuanced, affirming portrayal of aroace identity and the many forms love and partnership can take. The cast is intersectionally diverse. Ages 13–up. Agent: Uwe Stender, Triada US. (May)

Reviewed on 03/13/2026 | Details & Permalink

The murder of an international pop star sends the victim’s teenage sister on a quest to find the perpetrator in debut author Pearson’s tense and intricately plotted thriller. Eighteen-year-old Stevie is attending her school’s highly anticipated homecoming concert starring her 21-year-old, Grammy-winning sister, Blair—a global pop sensation reminiscent of Taylor Swift—when tragedy strikes: as the performance begins, Blair is found dead onstage. The shock is compounded by Stevie’s unresolved grief over the disappearance of her niece Mia three years prior. Determined to uncover the truth behind Blair’s death, Stevie launches her own investigation, reluctantly enlisting help from acquaintance Colby, a fan-page administrator with potential leads on Blair’s killer. Together, the girls comb through a long list of suspects, keeping readers guessing as the mystery unfolds. Sharp, witty prose balances suspense with humor, as Stevie and Colby’s banter provides levity amid the deadly stakes. The finale delivers a satisfying cascade of twists and revelations while centering grounding interpersonal moments surrounding Stevie’s shifting friendships and simmering romance with a protective young police officer. The result—a credible, fast-paced whodunit with enticing characters—achieves high marks across the board. The protagonists cue as white. Ages 12–up. (May)

Reviewed on 03/13/2026 | Details & Permalink

In a dark and disquieting verse novel, Irish poet Ennis melds elements of Andersen’s “The Little Mermaid” with warnings about human cruelty, ocean exploitation, and anti-fat bias. Soon after her twin sister is found dead, trapped in a fishing net, grieving mermaid Muireann, youngest of the sea king’s five daughters, makes her coming-of-age journey to the water’s surface without her twin. Always fascinated by the lure of life beyond the sea, Muireann is initially enchanted by her observations of humans, and even rescues a drowning prince. Convinced she can reason with him about the escalating overfishing that is destroying the merfolk’s food supply, she returns underwater to request a potion from her aunt, the sea witch Réaltín, that will give her a human body when on land. Once ashore, Muireann is shocked to find that the “colossal” body she has always been fiercely proud of is seen as repulsive to humans. Shortly thereafter, she is imprisoned in the prince’s dungeon, released daily only to serve as entertainment for and endure abuse from the prince and his court. Lyrical language (“shimmering scales/ that capture an/ imaginary light”) helps mitigate horrific events, while occasional shape poems add visual interest. Softly rendered b&w spot sketches from O’Hara (One Last Thing) depicting sea life are sprinkled throughout a bleak, if beautifully told, tale. Ages 12–up. (June)

Reviewed on 03/13/2026 | Details & Permalink

A teen must decide what she’s willing to risk to save her father in Lieb’s suspenseful Ghanaian folklore–inspired debut fantasy novel. It’s been one year since 17-year-old Akoma Addo’s father slipped into a coma after saving her from a mysterious ball of light. Trying to keep her grief from overwhelming her, Akoma—a detective who investigates magical crimes in San Francisco’s AfricaTown—accompanies her friends to a local hangout spot where she encounters a cryptic oracle who tells her to “follow the golden spider.” Later, Akoma is called to examine a murder that eerily resembles a story about Anansi, the spider god. Akoma’s discovery of a note at the crime scene describing the same tale solidifies her suspicion that the god may be involved. Unbeknownst to Akoma, her grandmother Esi embarks on her own parallel investigation. Crisp third-person narration follows Akoma and Grandma Esi’s alternating POVs, which are punctuated by intriguing classified transcripts relating to Akoma’s investigative work that slowly unveil the history of this alternate San Francisco and its magical residents. Ages 12–up. Agent: Ammi-Joan Paquette, Aevitas Creative Management. (June)

Reviewed on 03/13/2026 | Details & Permalink

A rapid-paced Chosen One narrative propels Korpon and Paz’s rollicking double debut, a series launch. In Cali, Colombia’s Barrio San Antonio, 13-year-old artist and superhero fanatic Tito Rodríguez endures frequent torment from bullies who mock the facial expressions and bodily movements brought about by his Tourette’s. Tito’s diagnosis—which allows him to “notice patterns everywhere”—helps him realize that an orange cat has been following him. As Tito copes with the devastating news that his papá, who immigrated to the U.S. for work, now has a new family and won’t be returning to Colombia, the cat, named Cukkito, takes the teen to a realm of talking warrior felines. There, Tito learns that he may be the Chosen One destined to save the human and cat realms from an imminent invasion of destructive spirits called Ywanch. Tension mounts when Tito’s mamá is bespelled by dark Ywanch magic. Alongside two other potential Chosen Ones, Tito must channel his beloved superheroes to eliminate the threat. Imagery-rich language depicts a vibrant backdrop (“Cali had a heartbeat, and that heartbeat was music, art, and joy”) against which vivacious and compassionate Tito utilizes his neurological condition in the fight to save the people and place he loves. Ages 8–12. (June)

Reviewed on 03/13/2026 | Details & Permalink