Lies Between Us by Jessica Goodman

“Do you ever really know the people you love?

For the Gold sisters and Silver brothers, life has been idyllic, growing up in side-by-side waterfront mansions in a town where doors are never locked and the police do little more than issue speeding tickets. The Golds and Silvers have known each other their entire lives, as neighbors, as friends, as family.

But one carefree summer takes a dark turn when a beach party ends in tragedy and their perfect world cracks wide open. Suddenly, the bonds that tie these families together are strained by suspicion and fear. Painful secrets surface, revealing the fragile truths they've all been hiding.

Lucy, the oldest Gold girl, harbors a crushing secret from her boyfriend, one of the Silver boys. Millie, the middle sister, quietly yearns for the one person she can't have. And the youngest, Frankie, uncovers something that could blow their island apart.” - taken from Goodreads.

A summer of secrets between the Silver boys and the Gold girls explodes when the body of Billy Godwin is discovered. The youngest gold sister, Frankie takes it upon herself to play detective to find out what happened to Billy Godwin. Told between the present day and the uncovering of the events that occurred on the night of the party that Billy died, Readers will be kept on the edge of their seats until the very end to discover what really happened and who was to blame.

Visit Jessica Goodman’s website.

Breakout by Dhonielle Clayton, Tiffany D. Jackson, Nic Stone, Angie Thomas, Ashley Woodfolk, and Nicola Yoon

“For Thurgood Marshall Academy's best and brightest--five friends who've been thick as thieves since kindergarten--this spring break is all about forgetting: they want nothing more than to wash away last year's tragedy, and the human-shaped hole it left in their friend group.

It's a hole the new kid, Anthony Brooks, seems to fit right into. So when he invites the Five to join him on a private island for a week at his dad's luxury resort, they agree with zero hesitation. No one's counting on a freak tropical storm swooping in and killing the vibe. And speaking of killing, they're also ill-prepared for the mounting collection of dead bodies... including (another) one of their own.

As their dream trip unravels, everything they tried to leave behind--secrets, lies, betrayals, dead best friends--seems to be washing up on the shore of their lives for everyone to see. Will any of them make it out alive?” - taken from Goodreads.

This book is the third collaboration between this team of six authors. Instead of a set of interconnected love stories like the previous two titles, breakout is a spring break trip that goes horribly wrong. Six teens head to a private island but become stranded when a hurricane hits and soon the dead bodies begin to pile up that have nothing to do with the aftermath of the storm. The trails, lies, and secrets are uncovered leading up to the end of the book. Readers will be guessing at who makes it off the island alive.

Better in Black by Cassandra Clare (Shadowhunter Chronicles book 22)

The Good Storm  Tessa and Will Herondale are on their honeymoon in Paris, after the events of The Infernal Devices. 

The Beautiful Ajatara 

Cordelia and James Herondale as well as Cordelia’s parabatai/James’s sister Lucy are tricked into thinking Lucie’s unfinished story will be published. The demon Ajatara 

Who the Wolves Love 

Luke Garroway writes a love letter to Jocelyn Fray while she is in a coma in The Mortal Instruments series. 

Zachary’s Day Out 

Alistair Carstairs and Thomas Lightwood have been living together for a year now and they are recruited into babysitting Alistair’s 18-month-old brother Zachary. 

The Judgment of King Kieran

It’s been a while since I read The Dark Artifices, so I had forgotten Kieran, Mark, and Cristina’s little love triangle: King Kieran and his two consorts. Mark and Cristina are summoned to the Unseelie Court where Kieran is tasked with choosing the next Lord of All Storms as the previous one was slain

A Surfeit of Annas 

In this story, Anna Lightwood and Ariane (Ari) Bridgestock deal with challenges to their relationship in the aftermath of the events in The Last Hours a year ago. 

Bred in the Bone 

Emma Carstairs and Julian Blackthorn encounter an “Endarkened” version of Emma from the alternate timeline of Thule. 

City of Broken Hearts 

Simon Lewis and Isabelle Lightwood investigate the actions of the jilted greater demon named Ajatara

The Time of Two 

Jace and Clary set out to find Max Trueblood, Jace‘s adoptive mother Maryse Lightwood’s brother. 

Too Wise to Love 

Nene, a faerie who vows to never love anyone, tells us this “faerie tale”. This is Ash Morgansternś origin story.

Visit Cassandra Clare’s website.

Visit Shadowhunters.com

Drop Dead Famous by Jennifer Pearson

“When global singing sensation Blair Baker rises on a platform high above the stage for the opening number of her triumphant hometown concert, the crowd erupts in applause. But their joy quickly turns to horror when they realize Blair is dead. The shocking revelation that music's brightest star has been murdered rocks the world. But for her younger sister, Stevie, the tragedy is more than a headline - it's personal.

Determined to uncover the truth, Stevie dives headfirst into the shadows of her sister's glittering life.

What begins as a search for answers turns into a dangerous journey through the toxic underbelly of fame, where betrayal, manipulation, and obsession thrive. Yet, as Stevie peels back the layers of who her sister really was, she begins to uncover dark secrets closer to home - secrets that someone is desperate to keep buried…” - taken from Goodreads.

This book starts off with the murder of Stevie's older sister, Blair Baker, a pop star sensation at her concert in her hometown. It isn't too long before Stevie alongside her new friend Colby, who runs a fan site about Blair dive feet first into their own investigation over her murder. As the duo begin to uncover the clues, they are warned off by someone to mind their own business. But the more Stevie discovers, will she be able to face the truth about the secrets she learns? Because frankly, most everyone is hiding something.

Visit Jennifer Pearson’s website.

Storm Breaker by Nisha J. Tuli (Storm Breaker book 1)

“For nineteen-year-old Poet Graves, New Manhattan has always promised safety―if she obeys. Raised within the ruling Houses and betrothed to a powerful heir, she enters Amery Academy knowing her future has already been decided.

But Amery is nothing like she imagined. Its trials are brutal, its loyalties conditional, and its rules designed to expose weakness. As Poet struggles to survive, she must hide the truth that could get her executed: the storms don’t fear her―they answer back.

When a dangerous outsider from beyond the city walls enters the academy, Poet is drawn to him despite everything she’s been taught to believe. He threatens the life she’s been promised. And choosing him could cost her not just her future, but her freedom.” - taken from Goodreads.

This book has all of the things that I am looking for in a great story and is the perfect mashup of The Hunger Games and Divergent. Poet is hiding a secret that will get her killed if it is discovered. Determined to get out from under her father’s control, she soon discovers that her choices have far reaching consequences that she never imagined. When the mysterious outsider Rook becomes the one person she thinks she can trust, turns out to be hiding secrets of his own, Poet makes the decision that she hopes will save her life. With plenty of romance, mystery, and intrigue, readers will be left waiting on the next book after a true cliffhanger ending.  Definitely one of my favorite reads so far this year!

Book two is expected to be out on Sept. 1, 2026.

Visit Nisha J. Tuli’s website.

To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before : the graphic novel adapted by Barbara Perez Marquez

“What if all the crushes you ever had found out how you felt about them…all at once?

Sixteen-year-old Lara Jean Song keeps her love letters in a hatbox her mother gave her. They aren’t love letters that anyone else wrote for her; these are ones she’s written. One for every boy she’s ever loved—five in all. When she writes, she pours out her heart and soul and says all the things she would never say in real life, because her letters are for her eyes only. Until the day her secret letters are mailed and, suddenly, Lara Jean’s love life goes from imaginary to out of control.

Experience Lara Jean’s story all over again in an all-new graphic novel format!” - taken from Goodreads.

Super cute graphic retelling of the story. I hope this series continues in graphic format.

To Steal a Throne by Gabi Burton

“Her magic feeds on lies.

His magic could destroy her.

Mira Kyler runs the court of Virdei from the shadows. Ever since she helped her half-brother Luc cheat his way into the role of Virdei's leader, she's used her lie-powered magic to collect secrets from members of court, then used them as blackmail to keep her brother in power.

But when newcomer Kaidren Vale shows up and challenges Luc's leadership, he threatens the stability Mira has worked so hard for. Kaidren also has magic-magic that can detect the precise nature of someone else's power with a single touch. If Kaidren so much as brushes against her, everyone will discover that Mira is the one who's been manipulating the court for years.

As Kaidren and Luc compete in three deadly challenges called The Trials, Mira realizes that no matter who wins, she'll be stuck serving a mediocre man who doesn't deserve to be in charge. She's done hiding in the shadows. She wants power of her own.

To get it, she'll have to betray both her own brother and Kaidren-but the fiercer the competition gets, the more Mira realizes that the one boy who could destroy everything is the one boy she might not be able to resist.” - taken from Goodreads.

This book sucked me right in and didn’t let me go until the last page. Mira has always been overlooked by everyone because of her scandalous birth and second class citizenship. Except when it comes to her hidden magical talents that keep her brother as the leader of the realm. When an upstart newcomer decides to challenge her brother as leader, Mira decides that she no longer wants to be controlled by others. But soon feelings for Kaidren begin to get in her way. What happens at the ending will completely take the reader by surprise and will leave them waiting for more.

After that ending, there has to be a second book on the horizon.

Visit Gabi Burton’s website.