(3) YA To improve her chances of Ivy League admittance, Ji-Su's parents send her from South Korea to San Francisco for senior year, where she must also continue attending seons, or arranged dates. Though initially resentful, Ji-Su enjoys American life--including the attention from two different guys. The international-student perspective and glimpse into Korean culture distinguishes this breezy story from other genre titles.

Reviewer: Rachel L. Smith

(4) 4-6 Descendants series. Uma (daughter of Ursula) is bitter that she wasn't chosen to go to Auradon like Mal, Evie, and Carlos. When she hears that King Triton's magical trident is nearby, Uma immediately goes after it; Mal and friends race to rescue the trident first. Setting the stage for the Disney Channel movie Descendants 2, this is the third strictly commercial tie-in about Disney villains' reformed offspring.

Reviewer: Lisa Catherine Findlay

(4) 4-6 Descendants series. Someone is sending Mal, Evie, Carlos, and Jay threatening messages. Afraid that their notorious super-villain parents are hatching a new plot, the reformed kids must return to their seedy homeland to find out. This follow-up to Isle of the Lost is similarly unoriginal, but devoted Disney fans who were left wanting more after the tie-in Disney Channel movie Descendants will be pleased.

Reviewer: Lisa Catherine Findlay

(3) YA Jasmine's family moved from the Philippines to the U.S. when she was nine. Now a senior, she's thrilled to win the prestigious National Scholar Award. But Jas's parents tell her she can't accept--the whole family is actually undocumented. Weaving in a love story featuring a congressman's son, the novel explores worthy, all-too-realistic social issues en route to its fairy-tale ending.

Reviewer: Sian Gaetano

(4) YA Summer on East End series. Mardi and Molly, seventeen-year-old twin daughters of Thor, battle over boyfriends and meet their previously unknown mother, a global tennis star. As they embrace their burgeoning powers, strange and violent events lead the young witches to question their mother's sudden appearance. Despite flat, stereotypical characters, references to designer brands and cocktails may draw the Gossip Girl crowd to this Hamptons-set supernatural tale.

Reviewer: Megan Lynn Isaac

(4) YA Heart of Dread series. In this series conclusion (Frozen; Stolen), heroine Nat and love interest Wes battle multiple villains (including Wes's sister) to create a new world from the wreckage of the old one, a task which may only be accomplished through Nat's unique magic. The seemingly nonstop fight scenes grow wearisome, but the themes of fate and sacrifice are compelling.

Reviewer: Claire E. Gross

(4) 4-6 Ashley Project series. The "Ashleys," an elite group of girls who dominate the social stratosphere of Miss Gamble's Prep School in San Francisco, are all about being at the top of the food chain. Part Mean Girls, part Gossip Girl, these novels about the social pressures of tweendom are superficial and familiar but may satisfy middle-school girls looking for candy-like reads. Review covers the following Ashley Project titles: Birthday Vicious and Popularity Takeover.

Reviewer: Meredith M. Sittman

(4) 4-6 Mal, Evie, Carlos, and Jay just want to please their parents--who are all notorious Disney villains. The kids go on a quest and, against their parents' wishes, help one another and even form friendships. There's not much that feels original in this prequel to a Disney Channel movie, but devoted Disney fans will enjoy how the movie stories mesh together into one universe.

Reviewer: Lisa Catherine Findlay

(3) YA Jet-setting immortal teen witches Molly and Mardi wake up after a Manhattan penthouse party to find that two classmates are dead, and they're the prime suspects. The twins' father (the god Thor) banishes them to sleepy North Hampton, Long Island, until they can control their powers and prove their innocence. This YA Witches of East End spinoff will appeal to fans of Gossip Girl and supernatural romance.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano

(3) YA In an alternate Franco-British court, Princess Marie, facing a political marriage to Prussian Kronprinz Leopold, begs her mage companion Aelywn to magically take her place; penniless American Ronan arrives seeking a rich husband; Leopold's scorned lover Isabelle attempts revenge; and second-in-line-to-the-throne Wolf desires an unconventional match. Glamour, romance, and magic keep this alt-history fantasy humming with guilty-pleasure intrigue.

Reviewer: Anita L. Burkam

(4) 4-6 Ashley Project series. The "Ashleys," an elite group of girls who dominate the social stratosphere of Miss Gamble's Prep School in San Francisco, are all about being at the top of the food chain. Part Mean Girls, part Gossip Girl, these novels about the social pressures of tweendom are superficial and familiar but may satisfy middle-school girls looking for candy-like reads. Review covers the following Ashley Project titles: Birthday Vicious and Popularity Takeover.

Reviewer: Meredith M. Sittman

(4) YA Heart of Dread series. In this second installment set in a toxic, post-apocalyptic ice world, Nat hones her skills as a drakonrydder while love interest Wes searches for his long-lost sister. The story is told in a somewhat disjointed split narrative, and when the protagonists eventually unite, their romantic woes distract from larger conflicts. Still, the unveiling of a new villain effectively escalates the plot.

Reviewer: Claire E. Gross

(4) YA Heart of Dread series. In this well-developed landscape, a world of ice a hundred years after most of humanity perished, sixteen-year-old Nat follows the voices in her head to an unknown location that could spell her doom--or the salvation of all. The characters don't quite hit their strides in this first book, but the gripping pace, nicely timed plot twists, and breathtaking climax mostly compensate.

Reviewer: April Spisak

(4) YA Illustrated by Michael Johnston. This companion guide to the Blue Bloods teen vampires/fallen angels books uses the vampires' Repository records as a vehicle to convey the series' cosmology, character sketches, backstories, and a few original vignettes pertaining to the narrative arc. The convoluted relationships don't lend themselves to untangling here, but die-hard fans will enjoy the tantalizing sneak peeks.

Reviewer: Anita L. Burkam

(4) YA Schuyler Van Alen, one of New York's vampire elite, is on the run with Oliver after being accused of murdering her own grandfather. They're pursued by Jack, a vampire promised to another, who still holds Schuyler's heart. Soap-opera plot twists abound in this saga of love and power. The series' shallow materialism recedes as the vampires-as-fallen-angels conceit ratchets up.

Reviewer: Anita L. Burkam

(4) YA Brought together by the addictive online social network TAP, gritty Taj and prepster Nick fall in love. When they try to escape TAP's clutches, they find it isn't so easy. Following Taj's and Nick's alternating perspectives, readers slowly learn of TAP's sinister roots and relationship to missing teens. The plot is far-fetched, but the action's fast paced.

Reviewer: Lauren Maggio

(4) YA Au Pairs series. Jacqui, Mara, and Eliza spend their fourth summer together in the Hamptons. Eliza's career as a fashion designer takes off; Jacqui begins modeling with the help of a famous Australian photographer; and Mara writes a blog about her life. This installment, full of the usual parties, boys, and brand names, doesn't offer anything more substantial than the previous books did--but like those trifles, it's just as hard to put down.

Reviewer: Rachel L. Smith

(4) YA Au Pairs series. This sequel to The Au Pairs is just as salacious as the first book. While Mara and Jacqui are again nannying, Eliza has gotten a job at the newest hot club in the Hamptons. Secret trysts, sexy clothes, and friendships on the line make this a trite, though enjoyable, guilty pleasure.

Reviewer: Jeannine M. Chapman

(4) YA "Fresh off the boat" from Manila, Vincenza slowly adjusts to a San Francisco lifestyle, but with strict cultural rules, a small family budget, and few friends her transition is anything but easy. Vincenza's true character is too often buried under a clutter of themes, including culture shock, mother/daughter misunderstandings, and an unrequited crush; however, she's a lively and funny narrator.

Reviewer: Lauren Maggio

(4) YA Three teenage girls, each with a different reason for wanting to spend the summer in the Hamptons, sign up for a summer job as nannies for four kids under the age of ten. While much of the book is filled with characters who are stereotypes and who attempt to be super-trendy, the hot parties, hot boys, and hot (literally) setting are sure to attract readers.

Reviewer: Jeannine M. Chapman