YA New Releases for June 2012
Woefully late on this, as per usual, but we honestly have a good excuse (y’know, apart from the whole ‘we’re getting fabulous books ready for publishing’ reason!) The first week of June we spent over in New York and pretty much offline! Although, yes, that doesn’t really provide the excuse for *this* week….. Well, better late than never – here are the 50 books we’ve found being published in June. Some real corkers amongst them, we think you’ll agree! Give us some comment love and let us know what you’re looking forward to most!
1) A Bad Day for Voodoo – Jeff Strand

Of course, Tyler doesn’t believe in voodoo. He’s just humoring his friend. But after he jabs the doll with a pin during class, he becomes an immediate believer. Not only does the doll work, it’s more powerful than he could have ever imagined, and now Tyler has a dead history teacher.
Then, due to circumstances a bit too convoluted to get into here (but trust us, they’re extremely entertaining), Tyler ends up with a voodoo doll of himself. Which gets stolen. And now Tyler, his girlfriend Kelley, and Adam must race across the city to get the doll back…before Tyler shares Mr. Click’s gruesome fate!
2) Blazing the Trail – Deborah Cooke

Zoë is just about ready to breathe fire, especially once she uncovers a new threat that targets her friends. Although Zoë thought the Mages were defeated, they’re back and have invoked an old spell to give them new power—they plan to eliminate all shape shifters on the night of the big dance. Now, Zoë must lead an alliance of young shifters to battle the Mages and figure out exactly what—and who—she wants, before it all goes up in smoke…
3) Burn Mark – Laura Powell

And then on the same day, it hits them both. Glory and Lucas develop the Fae—the mark of the witch. In one fell stroke, their lives are inextricably bound together, whether they like it or not . . .
4) The Circle – Sara B Elfgren

In that derelict fairground an ancient prophecy is revealed. They are The Chosen Ones, a group of witches, bound together by a power, one which could destroy them all. But they soon learn that despite their differences they need each other in order to master the forces that have been awakened within them.
High school is now a matter of life and death. Because the killing has only just begun.
5) Dark Frost – Jennifer Estep

Everyone at Mythos Academy knows me as Gwen Frost, the Gypsy girl who uses her psychometry magic to find lost objects—and who just may be dating Logan Quinn, the hottest guy in school. But I’m also the girl the Reapers of Chaos want dead in the worst way. The Reapers are the baddest of the bad, the people who murdered my mom. So why do they have it in for me?
It turns out my mom hid a powerful artifact called the Helheim Dagger before she died. Now, the Reapers will do anything to get it back. They think I know where the dagger is hidden, but this is one thing I can’t use my magic to find. All I do know is that the Reapers are coming for me—and I’m in for the fight of my life.
6) Dust Girl – Sarah Zettel

Along the way she meets Jack, a young hobo boy who is happy to keep her company — there are dangerous, desperate people at every turn. And there’s also an otherworldly threat to Callie. Warring fae factions, attached to the creative communities of American society, are very much aware of the role this half-mortal, half-fae teenage girl plays in their fate.
7) False Covenant – Ari Marmell

Not for Davillon, and not for a young thief who calls herself Widdershins.
It’s been over half a year since the brutal murder of Archbishop William de Laurent during his pilgrimage to Davillon. And in all that time, Widdershins has truly tried her best. She has tried to take care of Genevieve’s tavern and tried to make a semihonest living in a city slowly stagnating under the weight of an angry and disapproving Church. She has tried to keep out of trouble, away from the attentions of the Davillon Guard and above the secrets and schemes of the city’s new bishop.
But she’s in way over her head, with no idea which way to turn. The Guard doesn’t trust her. The Church doesn’t trust her. Her own Thieves’ Guild doesn’t trust her.
Too bad for everyone, then, that she and her personal god, Olgun, may be their only real weapon against a new evil like nothing the city has ever seen.
8) Serpent’s Kiss – Melissa de la Cruz

He begs Freya to keep his presence a secret, even from their own family, but somehow the irascible Freddie is still able to conduct many affairs with the town’s young lovelies from his self-imposed exile. Until he falls for the wrong girl.
While Freya tries to keep her brother from exacting revenge on the man she loves, Ingrid has her own problems. Her human boyfriend, Matt Noble, becomes entangled in a complicated investigation, and when the magical creatures at the center of it come to Ingrid for help, she has a difficult choice to make.
To top it off, a dead spirit is trying to make contact with Joanna – but does it mean to harm or warn the witches? All hell breaks loose at the family reunion over Thanksgiving, and much mayhem ensues, but when the culprit behind Freddie’s imprisonment is finally revealed, it may already be too late to staunch the poison that’s been released by the serpent’s kiss.
9) Silver – Rhiannon Held

The packs in North America have a live-and-let-live attitude, and try not to overlap with each other. But Silver represents a terrible threat to every Were on the continent.
Andrew and Silver will join forces to track down this menace while discovering their own power and their passion for each other.
10) Transcendence – C J Omololu

As their feelings grow, Griffon reveals their common bond as members of the Akhet—an elite group of people who can remember past lives and use their collected wisdom for the good of the world. But not all Akhet are altruistic, and a rogue is after Cole to avenge their shared past. Now in extreme danger, Cole must piece together clues from many lifetimes. What she finds could ruin her chance at a future with Griffon, but risking his love may be the only way to save them both.
11) Rapture – Lauren Kate

Like sand in an hourglass, time is running out for Luce and Daniel. To stop Lucifer from erasing the past they must find the place where the angels fell to earth. Dark forces are after them, and Daniel doesn’t know if he can do this—live only to lose Luce again and again.
Yet together they will face an epic battle that will end with lifeless bodies . . . and angel dust. Great sacrifices are made. Hearts are destroyed. And suddenly Luce knows what must happen.
For she was meant to be with someone other than Daniel. The curse they’ve borne has always and only been about her—and the love she cast aside. The choice she makes now will be the only one that truly matters.
In the fight for Luce, who will win?
12) Blood Moon – Alyxandra Harvey

13) Arise – Tara Hudson

14) Stunning – Sara Shepard

After Alison DiLaurentis tried to kill them, Spencer, Aria, Emily, and Hanna tried to get their lives back on track. But these girls just can’t stay out of trouble. First there was their disastrous trip to Jamaica, and their summer breaks were no less eventful. Now a new A is stalking them, taunting them with the very secrets these pretty little liars have been trying to forget. But this A doesn’t just want to blackmail the girls—this A is out for blood.
15) Flirting in Italian – Lauren Henderson

16) For Darkness Shows the Stars – Diana Peterfreund

Elliot North has always known her place in this world. Four years ago Elliot refused to run away with her childhood sweetheart, the servant Kai, choosing duty to her family’s estate over love. Since then the world has changed: a new class of Post-Reductionists is jumpstarting the wheel of progress, and Elliot’s estate is foundering, forcing her to rent land to the mysterious Cloud Fleet, a group of shipbuilders that includes renowned explorer Captain Malakai Wentforth—an almost unrecognizable Kai. And while Elliot wonders if this could be their second chance, Kai seems determined to show Elliot exactly what she gave up when she let him go.
But Elliot soon discovers her old friend carries a secret—one that could change their society . . . or bring it to its knees. And again, she’s faced with a choice: cling to what she’s been raised to believe, or cast her lot with the only boy she’s ever loved, even if she’s lost him forever.
17) The Reckoning – Alma Katsu

“Lanny, what is it?” Luke asked.
I clutched his lapel desperately.
“It’s Adair. He’s free.”
FOR 200 YEARS SHE’S BEEN HIDING
He gave her immortality.
She tried to destroy him.
Now he is searching for her.
They must not meet.
Or there will be a RECKONING
18) Timepiece – Myra McEntire

Kaleb Ballard’s relentless flirting is interrupted when Jack Landers, the man who tried to murder his father, timeslips in and attacks before disappearing just as quickly. But Kaleb has never before been able to see time travelers, unlike many of his friends associated with the mysterious Hourglass organization. Are Kaleb’s powers expanding, or is something very wrong?
Then the Hourglass is issued an ultimatum. Either they find Jack and the research he’s stolen on the time gene, or time will be altered with devastating results.
Now Kaleb, Emerson, Michael, and the other Hourglass recruits have no choice but to use their unusual powers to find Jack. But where do they even start? And when? And even if they succeed, it may not be enough…
19) Monument 14 – Emmy Laybourne

Only, if it’s the last time you’ll ever see your mother, you sort of start to wish you’d stopped and did those things. Maybe even missed the bus.
But the bus was barreling down our street, so I ran.
Fourteen kids. One superstore. A million things that go wrong.
20) A Want so Wicked – Suzanne Young

After that episode, her life takes a bizarre turn. She’s experiencing unexpected flashes of insight into people’s lives—people she’s never met before. Strangers frighten her with warnings about the approaching Shadows. And although Elise has never had a boyfriend, she suddenly finds herself torn between two handsome but very different young men: Abe, the charming bad boy whose effect on her both seduces and frightens her, and the mysterious Harlin, who’s new to town but with whom Elise feels an urgent, elemental connection—almost as if they are soul mates.
Now Elise begins to question everything about her life. Why do these guys both want her so desperately? What are the Shadows? Why does the name Charlotte inspire a terrifying familiarity? And who is Elise, really?
21) My Life in Black and White – Natasha Friend

Lexi has always been stunning. Her butter-colored hair and perfect features have helped her attract friends, a boyfriend, and the attention of a modeling scout. But everything changes the night Lexi’s face goes through a windshield. Now she’s not sure what’s worse: the scars she’ll have to live with forever, or what she saw going on between her best friend and her boyfriend right before the accident. With the help of her trombone-playing, defiantly uncool older sister and a guy at school recovering from his own recent trauma, Lexi learns she’s much more than just a pretty face.
22) Lies Beneath – Anne Greenwood Brown

23) One Moment – Kristina McBride

Maggie Reynolds remembers hanging out at the gorge with her closest friends after a blowout party the night before. She remembers climbing the trail hand in hand with her perfect boyfriend, Joey. She remembers that last kiss, soft, lingering, and meant to reassure her. So why can’t she remember what happened in the moment before they were supposed to dive? Why was she left cowering at the top of the cliff, while Joey floated in the water below—dead?
As Maggie’s memories return in snatches, nothing seems to make sense. Why was Joey acting so strangely at the party? Where did he go after taking her home? And if Joey was keeping these secrets, what else was he hiding?
24) It’s Our Prom (So Deal With It) – Julie Anne Peters

Facing heavy opposition and admittedly clueless about prom logistics, the three friends are nonetheless determined to succeed — if Luke’s and Azure’s secret crushes on Radhika don’t push the committee members, and their friendships, to the breaking point first.
25) Surrender – Elana Johnson

Raine has always been a good girl. She lives by the rules in Freedom. After all, they are her father’s rules: He’s the Director. It’s because of him that Raine is willing to use her talent—a power so dangerous, no one else is allowed to know about it. Not even her roommate, Vi.
All of that changes when Raine falls for Gunner. Raine’s got every reason in the world to stay away from Gunn, but she just can’t. Especially when she discovers his connection to Vi’s boyfriend, Zenn. Raine has never known anyone as heavily brainwashed as Vi. Raine’s father expects her to spy on Vi and report back to him. But Raine is beginning to wonder what Vi knows that her father is so anxious to keep hidden, and what might happen if she helps Vi remember it. She’s even starting to suspect Vi’s secrets might involve Freedom’s newest prisoner, the rebel Jag Barque…
26) All These Lives – Sarah Wylie

27) Unraveling – Elizabeth Norris

But her reincarnation, and Ben’s possible role in it, is only the first of the puzzles that Janelle must solve. While snooping in her FBI-agent father’s files for clues about her accident, she uncovers a clock that seems to be counting down to something—but to what? And when someone close to Janelle is killed, she can no longer deny what’s right in front of her: Everything that’s happened—the accident, the murder, the countdown clock, Ben’s sudden appearance in her life—points to the end of life as she knows it. And as the clock ticks down, she realizes that if she wants to put a stop to the end of the world, she’s going to need to uncover Ben’s secrets—and keep from falling in love with him in the process.
28) The Selection – Kiera Cass

But for America Singer, being Selected is a nightmare. It means turning her back on her secret love with Aspen, who is a caste below her. Leaving her home to enter a fierce competition for a crown she doesn’t want. Living in a palace that is constantly threatened by violent rebel attacks.
Then America meets Prince Maxon. Gradually, she starts to question all the plans she’s made for herself- and realizes that the life she’s always dreamed of may not compare to a future she never imagined.
29) The Golden Lily – Richelle Mead

30) Grave Mercy – Robin LaFevers

Ismae’s most important assignment takes her straight into the high court of Brittany—where she finds herself woefully under prepared—not only for the deadly games of intrigue and treason, but for the impossible choices she must make. For how can she deliver Death’s vengeance upon a target who, against her will, has stolen her heart?
31) Taken by Storm – Jennifer Lynn Barnes

32) Something Deadly This Way Comes – Kim Harrison

33) Storm – Brigid Kemmerer

And now that she knows the truth, so is Becca.
Secrets are hard to keep when your life’s at stake. When Hunter, the mysterious new kid around school, turns up with a talent for being in the wrong place at the right time, Becca thinks she can trust him. But then Hunter goes head-to-head with Chris, and Becca wonders who’s hiding the most dangerous truth of all.
34) Scarlet – A C Gaughen

It’s only her fierce loyalty to Robin—whose quick smiles and sharp temper have the rare power to unsettle her—that keeps Scarlet going and makes this fight worth dying for.
35) Shine – Jeri Smith-Ready

As the first in a generation that can see ghosts, Aura is convinced she has a connection to the Shift. She’s trusted Zachary, ever patient and ever by her side, with all that she knows. But when the government threatens his life in an attempt to learn Aura’s secrets, she will stop at nothing to protect herself and the one she loves…even if that means betraying her own heart.
36) Last Rite – Lisa DesRochers

Their best defense is the power Frannie has been struggling to master, but her attempts to hone her skill go horribly awry. If Frannie doesn’t learn fast, the consequences could be devastating–even apocalyptic.
What happens when you can’t outrun Hell…or trust the ones you love?
37) After the Fall, Before the Fall, During the Fall – Nancy Kress

38) The Highgate Vampire – Asa Bailey

39) What Boys Really Want – Pete Hautman

So Adam would never sell copies of a self-help book before he’d even written it. And Lita would never try to break up Adam’s relationship with Blair, the skankiest girl at school. They’d never sabotage their friends Emily and Dennis. Lita would never date a guy related to a girl she can’t stand. They’d never steal each other’s blog posts. And Adam would never end up in a fist fight with Lita’s boyfriend. Nope, never.
Adam and Lita might never agree on what happened, but in this hilarious story from Pete Hautman, they manage to give the world a little more insight into what boys and girls are really looking for.
40) Tokyo Heist – Diana Renn

Her father’s newest clients, the Yamada family, are the victims of a high-profile art robbery: van Gogh sketches have been stolen from their home, and, until they can produce the corresponding painting, everyone’s lives are in danger — including Violet’s and her father’s.
Violet’s search for the missing van Gogh takes her from the Seattle Art Museum, to the yakuza-infested streets of Tokyo, to a secluded inn in Kyoto. As the mystery thickens, Violet’s not sure whom she can trust. But she knows one thing: she has to solve the mystery — before it’s too late.
41) The False Prince – Jennifer Nielsen

As Sage moves from a rundown orphanage to Conner’s sumptuous palace, layer upon layer of treachery and deceit unfold, until finally, a truth is revealed that, in the end, may very well prove more dangerous than all of the lies taken together.
42) Emma Hearts LA – Keris Stainton

Soon Emma begins to find herself torn between two boys and reconsidering her entire future.
Maybe LA’s not that bad after all.
43) Hollyweird – Terri Clark

Lucky for us, Dakota’s super-cute personal assistant, Jameson, is a fallen angel trying to get his wings back, and he’s working undercover to squash his demon boss’s plan. If Jameson hadn’t taken me under his wing I’d be in serious trouble, because I’m a total newb when it comes to conquering evil. But, truth be told, that sexy angel’s got me all aflutter and may be one temptation I can’t resist.
44) Temptation – Karen Ann Hopkins

45) Geekhood – Andy Robb

46) A Brighter Fear – Kerry Drewery

This debut novel is the story of Lina, a teenage girl from Baghdad, and it starts as the bombs fall in 2003. It is a love story: for a country, and for a person too. There is an object that is lost, but may yet be found again.
We can’t say much more without giving away what happens in this
beautiful, contemporary fairytale. Suffice it to say that it will break your heart… but then will put it back together again.
47) Before I Wake – Rachel Vincent

48) Clarity – Kim Harrington

And a curse.
When a teenage girl is found murdered, Clare’s ex-boyfriend wants her to help solve the case—but Clare is still furious at the cheating jerk. Then Clare’s brother—who has supernatural gifts of his own—becomes the prime suspect, and Clare can no longer look away. Teaming up with Gabriel, the smoldering son of the new detective, Clare must venture into the depths of fear, revenge, and lust in order to track the killer. But will her sight fail her just when she needs it most?
49) Mirage – Kristi Cook

50) My Life Next Door – Huntley Fitzpatrick

The Garretts are everything the Reeds are not. Loud, numerous, messy, affectionate. And every day from her balcony perch, seventeen-year-old Samantha Reed wishes she was one of them . . . until one summer evening, Jase Garrett climbs her terrace and changes everything. As the two fall fiercely in love, Jase’s family makes Samantha one of their own. Then in an instant, the bottom drops out of her world and she is suddenly faced with an impossible decision. Which perfect family will save her? Or is it time she saved herself?
So there you have it! A quick canter through the biggest and best releases of June – are there any that have caught your eye?

Comments
Some really great books out this month! My Goodreads to-read list just jumped.
Excellent stuff, nice haul! I’m particularly excited for the following:
– The Transcendence – the Akhet sound just like my sort of supernatural collective and I love just about anything set in or around the Tower of London.
– For Darkness Shows the Stars – authoritarian removal of technology is a frightening premise. Love it.
– Scarlet – I have a complete weakness for retellings of myth, legend and/or classic tales. Cannot wait!
The Transcendence does look fabulous, but I also enjoyed Leigh Bardugo’s Shadow & Bone which didn’t make the list. It’s the first book in her Grisha trilogy and a strong start.
Monument 14 and All These Lives look somewhat interesting (if only I wasn’t totally skint and unable to buy books at the moment).
Before I Wake sounds … intriguing, but I’m not sure it’s entirely my thing :D
At the moment, my ‘To Be Read’ list is overflowing as result of all these book meme posts!
Oooh! A new Nancy Kress and it looks intriguing!
Book blurbs so rarely do the books justice. From the blurb, I would never have read The Selection and yet it was quite enjoyable fluff.