(3) YA Black Witch Chronicles series. Elloren has unofficially broken with her oppressive home country, joining a united undercover rebellion with her brothers and school friends. Every day, it's a race to evacuate all those she cares about while personally battling her attraction to two powerful men as well as her grandmother's destructive witch legacy. This sequel to The Black Witch is once again a timely portrayal of gender and racial oppressions.

Reviewer: Jeannie Coutant

(3) YA When sixteen-year-old Emma finds out her boyfriend is seeing someone else, she tries online dating and records her cringeworthy experiences on her private blog. Seager's debut novel--related anecdotally through Emma's blog posts, messages, and tweets--is thoroughly engaging as witty, angsty Emma tackles relationships, friendship drama, and family problems with the help of the internet (and a lot of British humor).

Reviewer: Lana Barnes

(4) YA High-school senior Lena loves her tight group of girlfriends and (secretly) loves her best guy friend, Sebastian. Then her life is shattered when she survives a drunk-driving accident that kills three of her friends (and that Lena feels complicit in). Lena's emotional recovery is raw and intense if generic; there are more nuanced depictions of survivor's guilt out there.

Reviewer: Jessica Tackett MacDonald

(4) YA Sixteen-year-old Sorina, "The Girl Who Sees Without Eyes," heads the "Gomorrah Festival Freak Show," of which the other performers are all her created illusions. When someone begins the presumed-impossible task of systematically murdering the illusions, Sorina must use every available resource--even an insufferable but attractive festival poison-worker--to find the killer. An intriguing narrative conjures many special effects but without much lasting substance.

Reviewer: Jeannie Coutant

(3) YA Elloren physically resembles her iconic Black Witch grandmother but lacks her powerful magic. At elite Verpax University, Elloren encounters unsolicited trials as well as other races her kind historically distrusts. Gradually illustrating overt and institutional bigotry, readers dive deep into the fantasyland's history and social politics as the novel chronicles Elloren's progression from a position of prejudice to one of more openness.

Reviewer: Jeannie Coutant

(4) YA Sammy doesn't think she'll ever leave Lake Bittersweet, Oklahoma, but at least summer is looking up after she meets charismatic visiting city-boy Brayton. Then Sammy's ex-con father disappears, and the teen sets out for answers and vengeance while trying to keep her six-year-old half-sister--and Brayton--in her life. Two-dimensional characters nevertheless have a roughness that feels at home in the well-evoked gritty setting.

Reviewer: Lisa Catherine Findlay

(3) YA Runebinder Chronicles series. In an America ravaged by elemental magic and the evil creatures created by its misuse, Tenn joins other humans--including alluring Jarrett--to survive. The immediate, intense connection between the young men becomes a liability when incubus Tomás attempts to recruit Tenn for the dark side. The unabashedly steamy (and welcome) same-sex love triangle that ensues distinguishes this high-stakes fantasy/dystopia from others in the genre.

Reviewer: Katie Bircher

(4) YA The dystopic world Speth grew up in requires people to pay Rights Holders for every spoken word or gesture after they turn fifteen. Speth's refusal to ever speak again unexpectedly positions her as the silent force behind a rebellion. Despite its two-dimensional antagonists, dire threats and the increasingly painful consequences of Speth's complex moral dilemma propel readers through the narrative.

Reviewer: Rebecca Fox

(3) YA After the sudden death of their friend Isaac, three Australian teens--Ryan, "the swimmer"; Harley, "the rebel"; and Miles, "the nerd"--sort through their complicated relationships with Isaac and with one another. Told in three long sections, from each boy's first-person point of view, the story feels authentically complex and emotionally true.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz

(4) YA Everlife series. Ten Lockwood (Firstlife) begins her Everlife in Troika. As war escalates between Troika and Myriad, Ten's supernatural ability as a light conductor becomes crucial to her realm's survival; meanwhile, she struggles with her romantic feelings for Myriad Laborer Killian, whose allegiance remains unclear. Though action-filled and quick-paced, this complicated supernatural novel may be confusing for readers unfamiliar with the first book.

Reviewer: Carolyn Shute

(4) YA Blood of Gods and Royals series. Prince Regent Alexander and his enemies regroup and search for allies after their first battle in Legacy of Kings. But converging outside forces threaten to blindside both. Lack of clarity in the eight alternating points of view muddles the timeline. Herman lays the groundwork for this historical fantasy's next installment, deepening not only the political intrigue but also the magic and her characters' emotional toil.

Reviewer: Lauren Chambers

(3) YA Seventeen-year-old Lucy lives in her prestigious family's isolated estate, historically a site of troubling events. Recently, her aunt's disappearance and cousin's increasingly worrying behavior become overshadowed by the voices coming from the walls. This creepy, particularly bloody horror tale has some harsh language and disturbing depictions of Lucy's self-harm.

Reviewer: Jeannie Coutant

(4) YA Thunder Road series. Easily overlooked good girl Breanna is determined to stand out. After a cyberbullying incident, however, she needs help from bad boy and Reign of Terror motorcycle-club member Razor, who himself needs help investigating his mother's death. The emotional depth of the opposites-attract story helps offset its stereotypes; fans of Nowhere but Here will enjoy the overlaps with this standalone companion.

Reviewer: Norah Piehl

(4) YA Everlife series. Teenager Ten Lockwood has spent the past year in a desolate asylum for refusing to choose a side for her Everlife (a.k.a. afterlife): warring realms Troika or Myriad. With agents from both sides wooing her, Ten struggles to discover her importance to both, and prevent war from spreading to Firstlife. There's some over-explanation, but the inventive premise and fast-paced plot are engaging.

Reviewer: Jenn Matters

(4) YA Kali, heir to the floating continent of Ashra, falls over the edge onto the monster-filled planet beneath, where she discovers humans and dark secrets about her home. Despite some missteps--the politics of the conflict are confusing and Kali is unconvincingly accepting of her father's role in committing genocide--this is a familiar formula engagingly executed, with a star-crossed romance and a sympathetic, scrappy heroine.

Reviewer: Claire E. Gross

(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

(3) YA Teen Pagan, a 1960s Hollywood star, is given a second chance by her movie studio after she kills her family in a drunk driving accident. She's taken to the divided city of Berlin, where she finds herself in a situation more sinister than the typical film shoot. This historical spy thriller combines Cold War politics with a sixties ambiance.

Reviewer: Rita Soltan

(3) YA Sarcastic Lark Noble and her dead twin sister, Wren, must use their spiritual connection to save their new friends from the horrifying ghost of a serial killer who is haunting them. The book's fast-paced, hair-raising plot manages to balance gruesome spiritual battles in the Shadow Lands with a dose of earthly high-school angst and a light dab of romance.

Reviewer: Siena Leslie

(3) YA Blood of Gods and Royals series. In an alternate ancient Greece, several teens--Alexander the Great, a young sorceress named Kat, Alexander's Persian fiancée, and others--find themselves drawn into a political and magical conflict destined to change the world. The richly imagined setting, intense political intrigue, and large cast of characters make this series-starting historical fantasy a solid choice for Game of Thrones fans.

Reviewer: Barratt Miller

(4) YA Thunder Road series. Seventeen-year-old Emily reluctantly plans a visit to her biological father, who chose his motorcycle-club family over being a real dad. During her extended stay, she falls in love with aspiring Reign of Terror member Oz while searching for clues to her own past. A steamy love story helps overcome a somewhat thin suspense plot in this series-opener.

Reviewer: Norah Piehl