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

Games Untold: An Inheritance Games Collection by Jennifer Lynn Barnes (Inheritance Games book 4.5)

 

SPOILER ALERT! If you haven’t started this series, Stop! I don’t want to ruin the story for you.

“There is nothing frivolous about the way a Hawthorne man loves.

An amnesiac playboy and the woman with every reason to hate him. A daredevil, his favorite heiress, and three nights in Prague. An unlikely pairing between a cowboy and a goth. Four brothers with an inescapable bond, strengthened by the family they chose, in a house of wonders that promises to always deliver one more secret.

Discover their stories of love and loss, power, puzzles, and life-and-death secrets in this mind-blowingly romantic collection that proves that when you love the way Hawthornes love, there is no going back.” - taken from Goodreads.

That Night in Prague (novella) - a Jameson and Avery story

The Same Backward as Forward (novella) - the story of how Toby Hawthorne and Hannah/Sarah (Avery’s mother) met and fell in love.

The Cowboy and the Goth - inside look at two of the least known characters in the book, Nash and Libby 

Five Times Xander Tackled Someone (and One Time He Didn't) - complete hilarity via Xander 

One Hawthorne Night - in which Grayson must atone for ignoring his brothers, karaoke style 

What Happens in the Treehouse - the brothers Hawthorne throw Nash a unique bachelor party

$3CR3T $@NT@ - Christmas with a Hawthorne twist

Pain at the Right Gun - a surprising revelation to what really happened in Prague.

Book two in the Grandest Game spin-off, Glorious Rivals, is expected on July 29, 2025.

Visit Jennifer Lynn Barnes’ website.

Gleanings: Stories from the Arc of the Scythe (Arc of the Scythe book 3.5)

 

SPOILER ALERT! If you haven’t read the first three books in the series, Stop! This collection of short stories may not make sense.

“There are still countless tales of the Scythedom to tell. Centuries passed between the Thunderhead cradling humanity and Scythe Goddard trying to turn it upside down. For years humans lived in a world without hunger, disease, or death with Scythes as the living instruments of population control.

Neal Shusterman—along with collaborators David Yoon, Jarrod Shusterman, Sofía Lapuente, Michael H. Payne, Michelle Knowlden, and Joelle Shusterman—returns to the world throughout the timeline of the Arc of a Scythe series. Discover secrets and histories of characters you’ve followed for three volumes and meet new heroes, new foes, and some figures in between.” - taken from Goodreads.

First swing / Joelle Shusterman -- Formidable -- Never work with animals / co-authored with Michael H. Payne -- Death of many colors -- Unsavory row -- Martian minute -- The Mortal canvas / co-authored with David Yoon -- Cirri -- Anastasia's shadow -- Persistence of memory / co-authored with Jarrod Shusterman and Sofía Lapuente -- Meet Cute and Die -- Perchance to Glean / co-authored with Michelle Knowlden -- A Dark Curtain Rises.

Martian Minute was by far my favorite story of this collection. Underscythe Xenocrates made a spectacular appearance. The ending was a true bomb drop and spectacular in its delivery. Anastasia’s shadow takes place between the second and third books and deals with Citra’s brother Ben. Meet Cute and Die was hilarious and an enjoyable read.                                     

A great return to the Scythe world for fans of the series. 

Visit Neal Shusterman’s website.

Snow in Love by Melissa de la Cruz, Nic Stone, Aimee Friedman, & Kasie West

“What's better than one deliciously cozy, swoon-worthy holiday story?

Four of them, from some of today's bestselling authors.

From KASIE WEST, a snowy road trip takes an unexpected detour when secrets and crushes are revealed.

From AIMEE FRIEDMAN, a Hanukkah miracle may just happen when a Jewish girl working as a department store elf finds love.

From MELISSA DE LA CRUZ, Christmas Eve gets a plot twist when a high school couple exchange surprising presents.

From NIC STONE, a scavenger hunt amid the holiday crowds at an airport turns totally romantic.

So grab a mug of hot cocoa, snuggle up, and get ready to fall in love…” - taken from Goodreads.com

I devoured this short collection of four holiday stories. Snow and Mistletoe by Kasie West was a cute, romantic story about secret crushes. I almost wish it had been a bit longer. Working in a Winter Wonderland by Aimee Friedman is a tale of a Jewish girl working in a Christmas shop for a special dress to impress a secret crush on New Year’s Eve. This story had a sweet twist at the end. The Magi’s Gifts by Melissa de la Cruz just didn’t do it for me. I’ve never enjoyed the original story by O. Henry. Grounded by Nic Stone took me a while to get into but I really enjoyed it.

Let It Snow by John Green, Maureen Johnson & Lauren Myracle

“Sparkling white snowdrifts, beautiful presents wrapped in ribbons, and multicolored lights glittering in the night through the falling snow. A Christmas Eve snowstorm transforms one small town into a romantic haven, the kind you see only in movies. Well, kinda. After all, a cold and wet hike from a stranded train through the middle of nowhere would not normally end with a delicious kiss from a charming stranger. And no one would think that a trip to the Waffle House through four feet of snow would lead to love with an old friend. Or that the way back to true love begins with a painfully early morning shift at Starbucks. Thanks to three of today’s bestselling teen authors—John Green, Maureen Johnson, and Lauren Myracle—the magic of the holidays shines on these hilarious and charming interconnected tales of love, romance, and breathtaking kisses.” - take from Goodreads.com

A cute collection of three short stories set at Christmas during a snowstorm that tie together at the end that take place in a small North Carolina town. Currently in development as a motion picture.

My True Love Gave to Me - Twelve Holiday Stories edited by Stephanie Perkins

“If you love holiday stories, holiday movies, made-for-TV-holiday specials, holiday episodes of your favorite sitcoms and, especially, if you love holiday anthologies, you're going to fall in love with My True Love Gave to Me: Twelve Holiday Stories by twelve bestselling young adult writers (Holly Black, Ally Carter, Matt de La Peña, Gayle Forman, Jenny Han, David Levithan, Kelly Link, Myra McEntire, Rainbow Rowell, Stephanie Perkins, Laini Tayler and Kiersten White), edited by the international bestselling Stephanie Perkins.  Whether you celebrate Christmas or Hanukkah, Winter Solstice or Kwanzaa, there's something here for everyone.  So curl up by the fireplace and get cozy.  You have twelve reasons this season to stay indoors and fall in love.” -- Barnes and Noble

My favorite story from this book was by Ally Carter. I also really likes the ones by Stephanie Perkins and Gayle Forman.

Table of Contents:

Midnights, by Rainbow Rowell; The Lady and the Fox, by Kelly Link; Angels in the Snow, by Matt de la Peña; Polaris Is Where You'll Find Me, by Jenny Han; It's a Yuletide Miracle, Charlie Brown, by Stephanie Perkins; Your Temporary Santa, by David Levithan; Krampuslauf, by Holly Black; What the Hell Have You Done, Sophie Roth?, by Gayle Forman; Beer Buckets and Baby Jesus; Welcome to Christmas, CA, by Kiersten White; Star of Bethlehem, by Ally Carter; The Girl Who Woke the Dreamer, by Laini Taylor

The Poison Eaters and Other Stories by Holly Black

In this collection of twelve short stories on which all but two have appeared elsewhere, Holly Black revisits in two of these stories the Modern Faerie Tale setting. The story "The Land of Heart's Desire" picks up at the end of Ironside and tells of an exchange between Roiben and Corny and fills in some background information about Roiben's life and what his thoughts are about Kaye.

And I love "Paper Cuts Scissors" where a library school student takes a job organizing  book collection for an older gentleman with some unexpected consequences. The flow of the story is even subdivided into headings based on the Dewey Decimal System.

Other stories have vampire and werewolves as characters.

Readers will enjoy Holly Black's Modern Faerie Tale and Curse Workers series.

Visit Holly Black's website.