At the end of this month I’m going to be attending the YA book con YALC and I CANNOT WAIT. I had so many wonderful experiences last year and I hope that it will be just as fun. And for a new year, there are new authors with new and exciting books! Honestly, I’m not sure I’ll make it through this TBR before YALC, but we can always hope.
A Closed and Common Orbit by Becky Chambers I ADORED the first book in this series so shh, please don’t tell anyone I haven’t read this sequel yet. (And I believe the 3rd book is due to come out just before YALC.) Thank you to Becky Chambers for giving me the space gays I deserve!! (Note: after I wrote this post, I read this review on CandidCeillie which points out issues with the book, in particular with the disability rep.)
Hope is Our Only Wing by Rutendo Tavengerwei This is set in Zimbabwe! And it sounds excellent!
Floored by various authors I nabbed a sampler of this at last year’s YALC and found it very intriguing, so I’m keen to read the rest of the story. Also, WHAT A COLLAB?? I’ve never seen a book co-written by this many people so it’s very exciting.
A Jigsaw of Fire and Stars by Yaba Badoe I’ve barely seen anything about this one but it sounds incredible?? The MC Sante is Ghanaian and she has a pet golden eagle and there’s possible some fantastical elements? Also, the cover is beautiful.
Noah Could Never by Simon James Green I just bought this on Kindle and I am very ready. I’m not going to lie, there were some VERY cringey moments in the first book, but I know that it was supposed to be cringe haha, I’m just bad at coping. I saw Simon James Green at an event earlier this year and he made it sound very good.
The Belles by Dhonielle Clayton I know I’m super late to this one!! I really want to read it! It feels like I haven’t read a dystopia in absolutely AGES.
The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert I knew this one was on the NYT bestseller list but I still don’t really know what it’s about? A spooky forest? Anyway, I’m sad it’s not in the library but it sounds cool.
Before I Let Go Marieke Nijkamp From the blurb, I’m not sure if this will quite be my thing, but I’d really like to give some of Marieke Nijkamp’s work a try!
Starfish I’ve heard great things about this book and once again I’ve been meaning to read it for AGES. It’s actually on sale as an ebook right now if you’re interested! Alas, I think want to buy it in paperback since it’s a) super pretty and b) I love getting books signed.
How Do You Like Me Now? by Holly Bourne I very much enjoyed Holly Bourne’s other work so I’d love to read her first adult novel.
OK, in summary I just think ALLL the books sound incredible and exciting. I’m going to YALC for the whole 3 days and I’m not going with any IRL friends so do let me know if you’re going too and would like to meet up. 🙂
have you added any new books to your tbr lately? do you know any of these?
Ooooh I don’t know any of these! Other than that I always see The Belles at the library, I swear. AND I STILL NEED TO READ BECKY CHAMBERS – gays in space is my WHOLE thing and I am so excited to read it when I can. Have fun at YALC!!!!
Oh man, I WISH my library had The Belles! Alas, it takes a while for more recent books to come through. And I very much would like to see more good gay space books. After I wrote this post, I read this review on CandidCeillie pointing out the issues with the disability rep in A Long Way to a Small Angry Planet which I hadn’t picked up on. (I just added a link to the post but I thought I should mention it.)
Have a great time there, i’m very jealous! 🙂
Aw thank you so much!
YALC is always so much fun! I’m going on Sunday this year and possibly on Friday too. I’m hoping next year I can arrange it so I can go for all three days because the past two years that I have gone have been amazing.
The Hazel Wood was really great and I adored Starfish, even though it made me cry 3 times! I really want to meet both authors. Also Alice Oseman, because I love her haha.
I hope you have fun, Eve!
Oops this reply was rather late but it was so great to meet you! Hope you had a good time! I can’t wait to read Starfish; I’ve heard so many amazing things about it.
I’ve only read two of the books in this list, and I… was not a fan of either of them, eep. The treatment of queer characters in The Belles was abhorrent, and Before I Let Go was just a strange, strange book that didn’t make much sense to me, to be honest. I hope they work better for you, Eve!
I really wish there was a book con in Australia because they honestly sound so awesome?? We have writers festivals, but that’s not really the same thing. I would love an event that is all about reading, rather than writing (as much as I love that, as well!). Maybe I just need to do some travelling to awesome places for their book cons, haha.
I hope you have a lovely time!!
Ah no, that’s annoying. The Belles still seems like a really important book, but having looked into the treatment of queer characters I’ll have to think about whether I want to read it.
Yeah, I feel so lucky that I have a book con like this close to me! Argh, that’s annoying but I do hope you can go to a book con at some point. And thank you so much, I did!