Archives par étiquette : Writers House

THE BLOODSTONE THIEF de Sabina Khan

Inspired by Islamic mythology, this hilarious and richly-woven middle-grade fantasy sparkles with humour, magic, friendship, and heart—perfect for fans of Skandar and the Unicorn Thief and Percy Jackson.

THE BLOODSTONE THIEF
by Sabina Khan
Scholastic, September 2025
(via Writers House)

Laila Habib is having the worst birthday ever, as she’s just discovered that her family’s two-year stay in Houston, Texas, is going to be extended . . . indefinitely. With one foot in her current life and one foot back in her old home in Mumbai, she doesn’t feel like she truly belongs anywhere.

But her day only gets worse from there. Opening up what she thinks is a hidden birthday present, Laila unleashes an evil jinn from a magical amulet. Trapped there long ago by Laila’s father, the jinn is eager for revenge, and drags Laila’s father back to the magical world of Qaf.

To save her father, Laila must travel to Qaf, where she discovers that there’s only one hope for freeing him. She must find the Bloodstone, an object that gives the holder absolute power. But doing so will require a quest that changes everything Laila ever thought she knew about who she is, what she believes, and who she can trust. Not fully belonging in the jinn world or our own, Laila has to create her own community, forge friendships, and fight for her family-no matter who or what they are.

Sabina Khan is the author of The Love & Lies of Rukhsana Ali (Scholastic, 2019). She is an educational consultant and a karaoke enthusiast. After living in Germany, Bangladesh, Macao, Illinois and Texas, she has finally settled down in beautiful British Columbia, Canada, with her husband and three daughters, one of whom is a fur baby.

THE CHISMOSAS ONLY BOOK CLUB de Laekan Zea Kemp

Won in a highly competitive US auction, this special and beautifully written new series sits perfectly alongside classics like The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, The Babysitters Club, and The Princess Diaries. Follow Cat, Sofia, Mari and Ana as they embark on their first year of high school—each facing their own trials and tribulations, but always maintaining their fierce love for one another.

THE CHISMOSAS ONLY BOOK CLUB
by Laekan Zea Kemp
Putnam, Spring 2026
(via Writers House)

Catarina (AKA Cat) Rubio is the great-great-great-granddaughter of the namesake of the local enchanted bookstore Milagro’s Books, which her family still runs. As Cat and her friends begin 9th grade, Cat is inspired to begin The Chismosa’s Only Book Club to hold her best friends close. The book club is the perfect place for Cat and her friends to gossip about first kisses and stories with happy endings—but is it possible that her own family’s success story could be at risk? And when her family hires a new bookstore employee, does she need a new friend, or will other friends only get in the way?

Sofia has grown up closeted with her strict Catholic grandmother and loving but oblivious mother. High school feels like the first safe space for her, where she can be herself at last. Excited about finally being out, even if it’s only at school, Sofia joins Prism, the on-campus GSA club, where she meets the older, more mysterious girl of her dreams. But can she risk her grandmother finding out her truth?

Meanwhile, Mari and her mother, who is a truck driver, share sketches and stories while during the long stretches when work separates them. But there’s one secret Mari’s mother has never shared with her before, and when Mari learns the truth, her entire world comes apart at the seams. Mari’s sections will include black and white interior artwork.

The last member of this chaotic quartet is Ana, and she’s in need of an escape just as much as Mari is. Afflicted with Oldest-Daughter-Syndrome, Ana is carrying the weight of the world. She works at her family’s restaurant, cares for her ‘Lita and her younger siblings, and is a straight A student. But as her accomplishments continue to stack higher and higher, her worsening anxiety signals that it’s all about come crashing down.

The store—and Milagro, herself—is there to watch over Cat, Sofia, Mari and Ana as their lives grow and change—it’s Milagro who will guide the girls towards the stories they need the most, and who will help them hold each other close as their worlds shift and threaten to tear them apart.

Laekan Zea Kemp is a writer living in Austin, Texas. Her debut novel, Somewhere Between Bitter and Sweet was a 2022 Pura Belpré Honor recipient and her most recent novel, An Appetite for Miracles won the Jean Flynn award for YA fiction. She has three objectives when it comes to storytelling: to make people laugh, cry, and crave Mexican food. Her work celebrates Chicane grit, resilience, creativity, and joy while exploring themes of identity and mental health.

CALL OF THE DRAGON de Natasha Bowen

Eragon meets African mythology in a kingdom where dragon gods rule the earth and sky—until the gods are betrayed, and one girl embarks on a journey to save the world from war and ruin. From the New York Times bestselling author of Skin of the Sea.

CALL OF THE DRAGON Book 1
by Natasha Bowen
Random House, February 2026
(via Writers House)

Moremi has only ever known of two dragon gods watching over a prosperous Kingdom of Kwa. It is thanks to the great dragons, after all, that an unspeakable evil is kept at bay. But when someone tries to claim the gods’ power for their own, the process goes dreadfully wrong. The dragons are injured and flee . . . and the world’s darkest shadows are released.

Overnight, Kwa’s ancient tales of monsters become all too real. Yet as death comes for those around her, Moremi suddenly finds herself magically connected to both dragon gods—a feat that should be impossible. However, Moremi is now Kwa’s only hope for restoring the gods to full strength—setting off whispers that she is meant to save the kingdom and rule over them all.

But will Jagun, the mysterious prince, let her anywhere near the gods? And how does her childhood friend, Nox, feel about it all? In any case, if Moremi fails her quest, then she risks the earth caving in and the sky crumbling down. . .

Natasha Bowen is a writer, a teacher, and a mother of three children. She is of Nigerian and Welsh descent and lives in Cambridge, England, where she grew up. Natasha studied English and creative writing at Bath Spa University before moving to East London, where she taught for nearly ten years. Her debut book was inspired by her passion for mermaids and African history. She is obsessed with Japanese and German stationery and spends stupid amounts on notebooks, which she then features on her secret Instagram. When she’s not writing, she’s reading, watched over carefully by Milk and Honey, her cat and dog.

THE METHOD de Matthew Quirk

From the author of The Night Agent (the basis of the blockbuster Netflix series, whose second season launches in early 2025) comes Matt Quirk’s next big thriller.

THE METHOD
by Matthew Quirk
William Morrow, January 2026
(via Writers House)

TV actress Anna Hutton has played roles of bad-ass cops and other action parts—so she’s put in countless hours of martial arts and stunt training to learn how to handle herself in a fight, with a gun, or behind the wheel. When her real-life best friend goes missing, though, she uses some of the tradecraft she learned for her performances to break into her friend’s apartment, where the clue she finds leads her down a twisty path of real-world espionage and murder.

Matthew Quirk is the New York Times bestselling author of Red Warning, Hour of the Assassin, The Night Agent, The 500, The Directive, Cold Barrel Zero, and Dead Man Switch. He spent five years at The Atlantic reporting on crime, private military contractors, terrorism prosecutions, and international gangs. He lives in San Diego, California.

MEET ME AT THE CROSSROADS de Megan Giddings

From the award-winning, critically-acclaimed author of Lakewood and The Women Could Fly, a dazzling new novel about two brilliant sisters and what happens to their undeniable bond when a mysterious and possibly perilous new world beckons.

MEET ME AT THE CROSSROADS
by Megan Giddings
Amistad, June 3, 2025
(via Writers House)

On an ordinary summer morning, the world is changed by the appearance of seven mysterious doors that seemingly lead to another world. People are, of course, mesmerized and intrigued: A new dimension filled with beauty and resources beckons them to step into an adventure. But, perhaps inevitably, people soon learn that what looks like paradise may very well be filled with danger.

Ayanna and Olivia, two Black Midwestern teens—and twin sisters—have different ideas of what may lie in the world beyond. But will their personal bond endure such wanton exploration? And when one of them goes missing, will the other find solace of her own? And will she uncover the circumstances of what truly happened to her once constant companion and best friend?

Megan Giddings brings her customarily brilliant and eye-opening powers of storytelling to give us a story that dazzles the senses and bewitches the mind. MEET ME AT THE CROSSROADS is an unforgettable novel about faith, love, and family from one of today’s most exciting and surprising young writers.

Megan Giddings is an assistant professor at the University of Minnesota. Her novel, Lakewood, was one of New York Magazine’s 10 best books of 2020, one of NPR’s best books of 2020, a Michigan Notable book for 2021, a nominee for two NAACP Image Awards, and a finalist for a 2020 Los Angeles Times Book Prize in The Ray Bradbury Prize for Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Speculative Fiction category. Her second novel, The Women Could Fly, was named one of The Washington Post’s Best Science Fiction and Fantasy novels of 2022, one of Vulture’s Best Fantasy books of 2022, and was a New York Times Editors’ Choice.