Archives de catégorie : Children’s Books

THAT GIRL WON’T DIE de Jumata Emill

At Prentiss Everton Academy, the past doesn’t stay buried. . . and survival is the ultimate status symbol. Gossip Girl meets The Count of Monte Cristo in the new YA thriller from acclaimed author Jumata Emill.

THAT GIRL WON’T DIE
by Jumata Emill
Delacorte, January 2027
(via Writers House)

When Tessa Edmond steps onto the campus of Prentiss Everton Academy—the most exclusive all-Black boarding school in South Georgia—she’s immediately singled out. Students whisper. Teachers stare. Because Tessa looks exactly like Whitney Templeton, the super popular, well-connected golden girl of the school, who died three months ago in a so-called accidental drowning.

Tessa’s gone from rags to riches overnight, dropped into a world of privilege, power, and ruthless social hierarchies. At Prentiss Everton, reputations are everything—and Whitney’s former friends, rich, connected, and dangerous, don’t know what to make of the girl who looks like a ghost.

But no one suspects that Tessa and Whitney were estranged cousins, and that Tessa came to Prentiss Everton with a mission. She’s there to find out what really happened to Whitney. Because Whitney’s death certainly wasn’t an accident—and someone at the school knows it.

As secrets unravel and tensions explode, Tessa digs deeper into Whitney’s inner circle, using their lies against them. But the closer she gets to the truth, the more bodies start turning up, and soon Tessa realizes the same people who killed her cousin may be coming for her next.

Jumata Emill is the critically acclaimed author of The Black Queen, Wander in the Dark, and I Don’t Wish You Well. He earned his B.A. in mass communications from Southern University and A&M College, and now works as a journalist covering crime and politics. He’s a Pitch Wars alum and member of Crime Writers of Color. When he’s not writing about murderous teens, he’s watching and obsessively tweeting about every franchise of the Real Housewives.

REGINA AND THE KNAVES de Bonnie Maisen

In Bonnie Maisen’s thrilling middle-grade debut, an accomplished amateur thief must join forces with the knaves—the most infamous thieves in all of Solaris—in order to reclaim the magical heritage that’s been kept from her.

REGINA AND THE KNAVES
by Bonnie Maisen
Aladdin/Simon & Schuster, Spring 2027
(via Writers House)

Meet thirteen-year-old Regina Fletchley: orphan, powerless Golden, and one of Solaris City’s most wanted thieves. As « The Prince, » she’s built her reputation by breaking into the supposedly impenetrable mansions of the Golden class. But despite her talents—and she’d be the first to tell you they’re considerable—one prize remains out of reach: her lumencoin, the key to both her dormant magic and last connection to her parents. The one heist Regina most longs to pull off is to steal back her lumencoin—but that task is impossible to pull off. Or at least it’s impossible to pull off alone…

 Enter the Knaves: the only thieves in Solaris whose reputation eclipses Regina’s own. They make an offer Regina can’t refuse: if she can help them pull off an ambitious job, they’ll consider hitting the archives where her birthright is hidden next. As Regina struggles prove herself to the crew, something unexpected happens: she begins to feel like a part of something for the first time ever. But when her recklessness put the Knaves in jeopardy, Regina will need to orchestrate her boldest scheme yet to save her newfound family.

Bonnie Maisen writes stories of magic and mayhem for her three sneaky children. She has published flash fiction at GoHavok.com and is a former editor of their Mystery Monday genre.

TOMMY FROM THE MOON de Daisy Garrison

A romantic coming-of-age novel set during a Broadway production of Romeo and Juliet, about an unknown actress whose co-star is her longtime celebrity crush.

TOMMY FROM THE MOON
by Daisy Garrison
Flatiron, December 2026
(via Sterling Lord Literistic)

Grace Franklin was never supposed to be Juliet. When she shows up to audition for the new Broadway production of Romeo and Juliet, she’s just there as a dancer. But the director, fed up with the big-name actresses auditioning, calls Grace in for a cold read, and changes her life. Then, she meets her Romeo: Miles Drake, cultural icon and the star of Grace’s childhood dreams.

As Grace and Miles are swept up in the thrilling whirlwind of rehearsals, their onstage chemistry is electric, and their immediate friendship evolves into something deeper. But Miles’ fame weighs on him in ways Grace can’t understand. And Grace is keeping a secret from him, too, about her connection to his first big break. As opening night draws closer, it becomes increasingly difficult to separate acting from reality, and Grace and Miles begin to spin out of control. Everyone knows how Romeo and Juliet ends, except Romeo and Juliet. Will Grace and Miles be able to write their own ending, or are they destined to be star-crossed, too?

Utterly immersive, brimming with joy, wit, and heart, Tommy from the Moon is an ode to being young in New York City, the camaraderie of backstage life, and two characters on the brink of adulthood in a tale as old as time, and fresh as first love.

Daisy Garrison graduated from Northwestern University and lives in Brooklyn with her friends. This is her first novel.

MOSTLY AWFUL GROWNUPS de River Clegg & Lúthien Leerghast

In the wickedly funny tradition of Lemony Snicket and Roald Dahl, this fast-paced, illustrated middle grade trilogy introduces Cole and Willow—daring twins racing to find their missing parents while fleeing all kinds of unpleasant, mostly awful grownups on their trail.

MOSTLY AWFUL GROWNUPS
written by River Clegg
illustrated by Lúthien Leerghast
Stonefruit Studio, September 2027
(via Writers House)

Twin siblings Cole and Willow are smart, kind, and brave. But they are not safe.

When they return home to a door left ajar, the house ransacked, and their parents missing, the twins are suddenly pulled into a fast-moving mystery involving a shadowy organization called the Keepers.

Cole and Willow must face uncountable obstacles in their journey—a woefully incompetent newspaper, adults who cannot identify alpacas, a malicious (and hungry) piranha named Reginald, and worst of all, the chilling question: did they ever really know their parents?

No one is who they say they are. No one is to be trusted. The two will need their wits, their courage, and perhaps a few unlikely allies. After all, every good mystery needs someone clever enough to solve it. Might that someone be you?

River Clegg has written for The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and The Opposition with Jordan Klepper. He writes humor for outlets including The New Yorker, The Onion, and McSweeney’s Internet Tendency. He has won a Peabody and a Writers Guild of America Award and been nominated for three Emmys. MOSTLY AWFUL GROWN-UPS is his first novel. He lives in Brooklyn with his wife and two daughters.

PRETTY EVIL de Rebekah et David Ian McKendry & Tim Seeley

KPop Demon Hunters meets Buffy the Vampire Slayer in this sparkling, darkly funny young adult graphic novel following a teen pop star who must take up her missing mother’s demon-slaying mantle and battle her way through the monster-infested world of social media influencers.

PRETTY EVIL
by Rebekah and David Ian McKendry
illustrated by Tim Seeley
Margaret K. McElderry Books, September 2026
(via JABberwocky)

To her fans, Mallori (heart over the i, thank you very much) is the ultimate teen pop star: platinum albums, a massive online following, and a glittery pink lifestyle to die for. But in her own life, Mallori Martin just wants to be her own person, free from the pressures of stardom—not to mention her mom-ager’s controlling hand.

After a particularly vicious fight with said mom, Mallori wakes to find her gone, with no clue where or why. In desperation, Mallori calls the police—whose search uncovers not her missing mother but several bodies buried in the basement of their Hollywood Hills mansion.

The bodies don’t stay secret for long, not with Mallori’s legions of fans watching her every move. With rumors flying about Mrs. Martin’s secret serial-killer lifestyle, Mallori flees the public eye, only to discover her mom was indeed living a double life: as a demon slayer.

She’s been abducted, and Mallori can’t let that fight be their last conversation. So to get her back, Mallori will have to pick up where her mom left off, hacking her way through demons and boogeymen—with all her trademark sparkle.

Rebekah & David McKendry are both award-winning writers. Their most recent horror feature, Glorious (starring JK Simmons), premiered at Fantasia Film Festival and after receiving top honors from critics was certified as “fresh” on Rotten Tomato. Rebekah is also an award-winning director and her latest film, Elevator Game, came out in September 2023. Rebekah and David began their film career working for Fangoria Entertainment. Rebekah went on to become Editor-in-Chief for Blumhouse Productions, and went on to write with David for media companies like Shudder, Universal, AMP, AMC and more. Rebekah is also an award-winning podcaster currently hosting Fangoria’s Colors of the Dark Podcast, which reaches over 250,000 listeners each month. Prior podcast guests include horror icons like Jordan Peele and Jason Blum. David has published multiple books including several volumes of the Hellraiser comic book series. David is also an award-winning podcaster having written and co-hosted the show Fear Initiative for Blumhouse Productions.

Tim Seeley is one of those “slash” people…a writer-slash-artist. He has drawn a number of different comic book series including G.I Joe, Halloween, Wildcats and Exsanguine. His writing work includes NY Times bestselling Hack/Slash, Nightwing, Batman Eternal and the critically acclaimed Revival. He resides in Chicago, Illinois and works at Four Stars Studio where he is never far from his 80s action figure collection.