Weather is chilly and the month is almost over, yet our TBR keeps getting bigger. But who can blame us when so many amazing books are coming out this month?
From fantasy from Leigh Bardugo (Grishaverse, anyone?) to romance, this week’s picks have us craving more shelf space. Read on and make room!
King of Scars by Leigh Bardugo
 In this epic fantasy, Nikolai Lantsov has always had a gift for the impossible. No one knows what he endured in his country’s bloody civil war, and he intends to keep it that way. Now, as enemies gather at his weakened borders, the young king must find a way to refill Ravka’s coffers, forge new alliances, and stop a rising threat to the once-great Grisha Army.
Yet with every day a dark magic within him grows stronger, threatening to destroy all he has built. With the help of a young monk and a legendary Grisha Squaller, Nikolai will journey to the places in Ravka where the deepest magic survives to vanquish the terrible legacy inside him. He will risk everything to save his country and himself. But some secrets aren’t meant to stay buried, and some wounds aren’t meant to heal.
This dramatic novel set in Leigh’s impressive Grisha world will have you wanting to revisit her past novels and get ready for what’s to come next.
A Curse So Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer
In this Beauty and the Beast retelling, it once seemed so easy to Prince Rhen, the heir to Emberfall. Cursed by a powerful enchantress to repeat the autumn of his eighteenth year over and over, he knew he could be saved if a girl fell for him. But that was before he learned that at the end of each autumn, he would turn into a vicious beast hell-bent on destruction. That was before he destroyed his castle, his family, and every last shred of hope.
Nothing has ever been easy for Harper Lacy. With her father long gone, her mother dying, and her brother barely holding their family together while constantly underestimating her because of her cerebral palsy, she learned to be tough enough to survive. But when she tries to save someone else on the streets of Washington, DC, she’s instead somehow sucked into Rhen’s cursed world.
A prince? A monster? A curse? Harper doesn’t know where she is or what to believe. But as she spends time with Rhen in this enchanted land, she begins to understand what’s at stake. And as Rhen realizes Harper is not just another girl to charm, his hope comes flooding back. But powerful forces are standing against Emberfall, and it will take more than a broken curse to save Harper, Rhen, and his people from utter ruin.Â
This novel is a strong debut to a series that will surely capture your heart.
The Love & Lies of Rukhsana Ali by Sabina Khan
In this contemporary novel, Seventeen-year-old Rukhsana Ali tries her hardest to live up to her conservative Muslim parents’ expectations, but lately she’s finding that harder and harder to do. She rolls her eyes instead of screaming when they blatantly favor her brother and she dresses conservatively at home, saving her crop tops and makeup for parties her parents don’t know about. Luckily, only a few more months stand between her carefully monitored life in Seattle and her new life at Caltech, where she can pursue her dream of becoming an engineer.
But when her parents catch her kissing her girlfriend Ariana, all of Rukhsana’s plans fall apart. Her parents are devastated; being gay may as well be a death sentence in the Bengali community. They immediately whisk Rukhsana off to Bangladesh, where she is thrown headfirst into a world of arranged marriages and tradition. Only through reading her grandmother’s old diary is Rukhsana able to gain some much needed perspective.Â
Rukhsana realizes she must find the courage to fight for her love, but can she do so without losing everyone and everything in her life?
Enjoy this coming-of-age story and indulge in a a novel that is truly unique by adding this to your TBR!
What romantic, fantastic and intriguing YA reads are you looking forward to? Let us know on Twitter or IG (@onfrolic) for a chance to have them featured in #LoveYA.
