15 YA Books We Can't Wait For This Summer

500 days of (quarantine) summer — or at least that’s what it feels like.

The summer of 2020 isn’t shaping up to be what many of us expected. But when the going gets tough, the tough curl up with a book and start reading. I *think* that’s the original saying. From original debut fantasy worlds to sweet romances, there are some gems launching this summer. Here are a few to keep an eye out for.

1. A Song of Wraiths and Ruin by Roseanne A. Brown

Balzer + Bray, Ashley Hirasuna

Release date: Jun. 2, 2020

What it's about: I am ready for a brand-new hate-to-lovers obsession. In Roseanne A. Brown's debut fantasy, Malik and his family are refugees looking for a new life in the prosperous city of Ziran. But when an evil spirit abducts his younger sister, Malik offers to do anything to get her back. The cost? He has to kill the new queen Karina. But Karina has problems of her own: She suspects the entire city is against her. In a moment of desperation, she makes a deal to resurrect her dead mother. Her cost? The heart of a king. Luckily for Karina, she offers her hand in marriage to the winner of the city's competition without realizing the refugee meant to kill her has entered the tournament.

Get it from Bookshop for $17.46, Barnes and Noble for $18.99, or from a local bookstore through Indiebound here.

2. A Song Below Water by Bethany C. Morrow

Tor Teen, goodreads.com

Release date: Jun. 2, 2020

What it's about: Tavia is a mermaid living in Portland, Oregon — a place where there are few Black people or sirens, and she happens to be both. In Bethany C. Morrow's world, mermaids are out of the seashell and living in public. At least she has Effie, a best friend she can navigate high school with. After a public murder trial involving a siren, Tavia's and Effie's world turns upside down — and it turns out the seaweed is not always greener in somebody else's lake. (I'm sorry). While celebrities are revealing they are sirens, and tensions are rising among the locals, nothing is familiar and neither girl is safe.

Get it from Bookshop for $16.54, Barnes and Noble for $14.39, or from a local bookstore through Indiebound here.

3. You Should See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson

Scholastic, Reece T. Williams

Release date: Jun. 2, 2020

What it's about: If you're looking for a bright teen romance full of high school drama, look to Leah Johnson's debut, You Should See Me in a Crown. When Liz Lighty's financial aid to the super-elite Pennington College falls through, she has one last-ditch effort: try to become prom queen. In her prom-obsessed small town, prom is a huge deal and the reigning king and queen get full rides to school. She'll put up with anything: the humiliating events, her fear of being in the spotlight — even falling for her competition, the beautiful Mack.

Get it from Bookshop for $16.55, Barnes and Noble for $17.99, or from a local bookstore through Indiebound here.

4. Hunted by the Sky by Tanaz Bhathena

Penguin Teen, Nettie Photography

Release date: Jun. 23, 2020

What it's about: Heat up your summer with some forbidden fantasy romance inspired by medieval India. Tanaz Bhathena's new series follows Gul, a girl with a star-shaped birthmark that sets her apart — girls with that mark go missing and their parents are killed. Gul's life is changed when she's taken in and trained by a group of rebels called Sisters of the Golden Lotus. Now all she wants is revenge for the life she lost. In another part of the kingdom, Cavas is trying to improve his life by enlisting in King Lohar's army, the same army that was responsible for the death of Gul's parents. When Gul meets Cavas in the capital's bazaar, their attraction is undeniable, and their future impossible.

Get it from Bookshop for $17.47, Barnes and Noble for $18.99, or from a local bookstore through Indiebound here.

5. Seasons of the Storm by Elle Cosimano

HarperTeen, goodreads.com

Release date: Jun. 23, 2020

What it's about: Cool off with a romantic fairy tale fantasy about the seasons. When Jack chooses to become the physical embodiment of Winter on Earth, he has to hunt down and kill the season who precedes him. Summer kills Spring. Autumn kills Summer. Winter kills Autumn. And Spring kills Winter. But when Spring (AKA Fleur) falls in love with Jack, they throw the natural order into chaos, and the greater forces of nature are prepared to break them apart.

Get it from Bookshop for $16.54, Barnes and Noble for $17.99, or from a local bookstore through Indiebound here.

6. The Princess Will Save You by Sarah Henning

Tor Teen, goodreads.com

Release date: Jul. 7, 2020

What it's about: What if Buttercup had gone on an adventure instead of Wesley? Sarah Henning reimagines the classic novel The Princess Bride and puts her own twist on the princess who loved a farm boy. Princess Amarande of Ardinia is forced into a political marriage when her true love, Luca, is kidnapped as blackmail. She risks everything to rescue him and protect her kingdom from civil war.

Get it from Bookshop for $16.55, Barnes and Noble for $17.99, or from a local bookstore through Indiebound here.

7. Faith: Taking Flight by Julie Murphy

Harper Collins Publishers, Christy Archibald / Christy Archibald Photography (www.christyarchibald.com)

Release date: Jul. 7, 2020

What it's about: Move over Wonder Woman, there's a new hero in town. #1 New York Times bestselling author Julie Murphy is taking flight with the origin story of Faith, a plus-sized superhero from the Valiant Entertainment comics. Faith Herbert is a regular girl with regular friends — except, she's discovered she can fly. When her favorite TV drama, The Grove, begins to film in her town, Faith's life gets even more impossible when The Grove's star Dakota Ash becomes interested in her. Superpowers and a new crush might be all the rage, but when a new designer drug pops up in her school, and townspeople begin to vanish, Faith has to put her new abilities to the test.

Get it from Bookshop for $17.47, Barnes and Noble for $18.99, or from a local bookstore through Indiebound here.

8. Burn Our Bodies Down by Rory Power

Delacorte Press, goodreads.com

Release date: Jul. 7, 2020

What it's about: The anticipated sophomore book from New York Times bestselling author Rory Power promises more thrills and twists. Burn Our Bodies Down follows Margot. All her life it's just been her and her mother without so much as a story about the past. But Margo wants family history and roots. When she finds a photo that leads her to the town her mother came from, Margot runs there only to try and unravel the reasons that her mother left.

Get it from Bookshop for $17.46, Barnes and Noble for $18.99, or from a local bookstore through Indiebound here.

9. The Friend Scheme by Cale Dietrich

Feiwel & Friends, goodreads.com

Release date: Jul. 28, 2020

What it's about: Cale Dietrich's sophomore novel The Friend Scheme promises thrills and romance. Matt's dad is a mobster. While his older brother is ready to follow in their father's footsteps and join the family business, Matt has other ideas and interests. Including Jason. The only problem is Jason is the police commissioner's son. With their dads on opposite sides of the law, can their newfound romance survive?

Get it from Bookshop for $16.55, Barnes and Noble for $17.99, or from a local bookstore through Indiebound here.

10. Sia Martinez and the Moonlit Beginning of Everything by Raquel Vasquez Gilliland

Simon Pulse, raquelvasquezgilliland.com

Release date: Aug. 4, 2020

What it's about: *Extreme Documentary Voice* ALIENS. Raquel Vasquez Gilliland's debut novel puts a spin on close encounters with extraterrestrials by pairing it with themes of immigration and Mexican folklore. Three years after Sia Martinez's mother disappeared, she's finally ready to move on. She believes her mom was deported, or dead. But one night, her mother reappears after crashing her spacecraft into Sia's car. She's very much alive and on the run and needs Sia's help.

Get it from Bookshop for $17.46, Barnes and Noble for $18.99, or from a local bookstore through Indiebound here.

11. Bookish and the Beast by Ashley Poston

Quirk Books, Ashley Poston

Release date: Aug. 4, 2020

What it's about: Ashley Poston expands her acclaimed Starfield universe with the third installment in the Once Upon a Con series. Bookish and the Beast is a Beauty and the Beast retelling with a nerdy twist. Following the death of her mother, Rosie Thorne is adrift. While she'd normally find comfort in her late mom's library of Starfield novels, Rosie was forced to sell the rare collection to pay hospital bills. On the other side of town, Hollywood royalty Vance Reigns seeks refuge in Small Town USA after a scandal. When he and Rosie meet, it's hate at first sight. He's rich and rude and they can't stand each other. You might even say ~every rose has its thorn~. After their encounter leads to the destruction of a rare book, Rosie is left working off to pay a debt, and in the process discovering that there might be more to Vance that she ever realized.

Get it from Bookshop for $17.46, Barnes and Noble for $18.99, or from a local bookstore through Indiebound here.

12. Star Daughter by Shveta Thakrar

HarperTeen, Lindsey Márton O’Brien

Release date: Aug. 11, 2020

What it's about: This debut fantasy is full of star magic and Hindu mythology. Sheetal is the daughter of a star and human man. Raised on Earth, she's tried her best to be ordinary and keep her power to herself. But when her magic hurts her father, she has to return to her mother's celestial court in order to find a way to save him. The quest leads Sheetal to become her family's champion in a competition that will decide which house rules the heavens next and endangers her ability to return home to save her father.

Get it from Bookshop for $16.55, Barnes and Noble for $17.99, or from a local bookstore through Indiebound here.

13. Now That I’ve Found You by Kristina Forest

Roaring Brook Press, goodreads.com

Release date: Aug. 25, 2020

What it's about: Okay, the premise of this novel is wildly entertaining and involves finding love and a recluse grandmother that's gone missing. Evie Jones is the granddaughter of a Hollywood sensation. But, after she gets blacklisted, Evie needs to save her career. She seeks the help of her grandma Gigi — the once glamorous starlet turned recluse. But when grandma Gigi makes a run for it before a big award ceremony, Evie enlists a possibly untrustworthy but definitely handsome musician named Milo to help track down the runaway star.

Get it from Bookshop for $16.55, Barnes and Noble for $17.99, or from a local bookstore through Indiebound here.

14. Where Dreams Descend by Janella Angeles

Wednesday Books, Mei Lin Barral

Release date: Aug. 25, 2020

What it's about: Moulin Rouge meets Phantom of the Opera? LOVE IS A MANY SPLENDORED THING INDEED. Where Dreams Descend is one of my highly anticipated debuts of the latter half of 2020. Set in a ruined city, a group of magicians face off to become the next headliner of the Conquering Circus. Even though magicians start to go missing, the show must go on.

Get it from Bookshop for $17.47, Barnes and Noble for $18.99, or from a local bookstore through Indiebound here.

15. Elatsoe by Darcie Little Badger

Levine Querido, goodreads.com

Release date: Aug. 25, 2020

What it's about: Rounding out the end of summer is Elatsoe by Darcie Little Badger. This debut novel imagines a different kind of America, shaped by the legends of its indigenous and immigrant peoples. There is also magic. Elatsoe has the ability to raise the dead, a skill passed down from her Lipan Apache family. When her cousin is murdered, Elatsoe uses her abilities to unravel the mysteries of a town that wants to remain secret.

Get it from Bookshop for $17.46, Barnes and Noble for $18.99, or from a local bookstore through Indiebound here.