New young adult books for January 2024
by Sophie Green
Looking for some new YA titles to read this January? Take a look at our top picks, from a Shakespearean fae-hunting alchemist to a supernatural killer who's murdering witches in a small town.
Find more recommendations for young adults.
Northern Soul, by Phil Earle
Up until now, Marv's uneventful life has revolved around playing football with his best mate, Jimmy. But things take a turn for the dramatic with the arrival at school of new girl Carly Stonehouse. Marv falls in love at first sight, but there's no way a girl like Carly will ever look at him. Unless, perhaps, he enlists help from a very unusual source. Follow Marv on his hilariously agonising quest for love, featuring his Croc-loving dad, a fast-food addicted musical idol from the past and some of the most cringeworthy song lyrics you might ever have heard.
Lunar New Year Love Story, by Gene Luen Yang and Leuyen Pham
She was destined for heartbreak. Then fate handed her love. Val is ready to give up on love. It's led to nothing but secrets and heartbreak, and she's pretty sure she's cursed - no one in her family, for generations, has ever had any luck with love. But then a chance encounter with a pair of cute lion dancers sparks something in Val. Is it real love? Could this be her chance to break the family curse? Or is she destined to live with a broken heart forever?
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That Self-Same Metal, by Brittany N. Williams
Sixteen-year-old Joan Sands is a gifted craftswoman who creates and upkeeps the stage blades for William Shakespeare's acting company, The King's Men. Joan's skill with her blades comes from a magical ability to control metal - an ability gifted by her Head Orisha, Ogun. Because her whole family is Orisha-blessed, the Sands family have always kept tabs on the Fae presence in London. Usually that doesn't involve much except noting the faint glow around a Fae's body as they try to blend in with London society, but lately, there has been an uptick in brutal Fae attacks. After Joan wounds a powerful Fae and saves the son of a cruel Lord, she is drawn into political intrigue in the human and Fae worlds.
This Tale is Forbidden, by Polly Crosby
Nesta and her grandmother live in the woods, safe and far away from the City, where women live under the oppressive regime of the Authorities. When her grandmother is taken, Nesta must go to the City to save her. Along the way Nesta discovers she has the power to uncover the true stories of the past - and that makes her dangerous.
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The Invocations, by Krystal Sutherland
Five women are dead. The killer leaves no fingerprints, no DNA. Police are utterly stumped. In a world where only women can use magic and the men who know about it seek to eradicate them, three lonely teenage girls - one cursed, one hunted, one out for revenge - will team up to track down and take out a brutal supernatural killer. At the apartment of the fifth victim, Jude and Zara meet by chance, and there they find a clue that brings their paths crashing together: A strange business card bearing three words. Emer Byrne. Cursewriter.