Archives de catégorie : Speculative Fiction

IMAGINE US PERFECT de Jas Hammonds

Sold in a heated US auction, this speculative YA standalone fuses the grounded future setting of Black Mirror and the lurking horror of generative AI, with an added twist of toxic wellness culture. A girl spends an explosive weekend at at a high-brow wellness retreat that is supposedly designed to bring families back together…but continues to break her own apart.

IMAGINE US PERFECT
by Jas Hammonds
Random House, Fall 2027
(via Writers House)

Photo Credit: Kay Ulanday Barrett

Fifteen-year-old Mel Cooke is bummed when her parents whisk the family away on an impromptu trip at the beginning of winter break. She’d planned on spending the vacation devising a plan to come out as queer to her family with the help of her best friend. But tension has been building in the Cooke family for months—especially between Mel and her older sister, Maya–and Mel’s parents are insistent that this getaway is necessary.

When the Cooke family arrives at the remote Figment Falls Wellness Center, Mel quickly realizes this is no ordinary vacation. Mel’s parents have signed up for an experimental therapy program designed to bring families closer. Everyone will get a chance to privately share how they wished their family members looked and acted against a backdrop of their perfect day. The scenarios will then be uploaded to a simulation for the entire family to experience together. But to ensure everyone has the opportunity to live their truth, only the person who constructed the day is free to speak and act as they wish—everyone else is beholden to the constructor, a bit like puppets, and must save their opinions until the day is over. As they work through the scenarios, the family is assigned a grade to reflect how “healed” they’re becoming, with the ultimate goal being a perfect 100%.

Mel’s earlier apprehension is suddenly replaced with excitement. This could be the perfect opportunity to come out to her family and fix her fragile relationship with Maya. So, during her intake session, Mel constructs a day where she comes out as queer and her family accepts her. She even starts to see Figment Falls as the magical place it promises to be—undoubtedly influenced by Audrey, a cute girl who is also undergoing therapy and is constantly singing Figment Falls’ praises. Mel becomes obsessed with making sure her family comes out as a shining example of an “A+” family.

But as the days unfold and everyone’s expectations and dreams are revealed, Mel realizes everyone in her family wants her to be someone she’s not. Buried secrets are dragged to the surface as the line between Mel’s real life and the simulations becomes increasingly blurred. When Mel’s parents reveal their time at Figment Falls is their last-ditch effort before divorce, Mel must decide if fixing her family is worth shrinking herself—or if the illusion of perfection is good enough.

Praise for Jas Hammonds:
Coretta Scott King John Steptoe Award for New Talent Winner
People Magazine Best Book of the Year
Kirkus Best Book of the Year
School Library Journal Best Book of the Year
Reader’s Digest Best Book of the Year
A Goodreads Choice Awards Nominee
A Junior Library Guild Selection
An ALA Rainbow Book List Pick
A YALSA Top 10 Fiction Book

Jas Hammonds (they/them) was raised in many cities and between the pages of many books. They have received support for their writing from Art Omi, Baldwin for the Arts, Boyds Mills and more. They are also a Lambda Literary Fellow and a MacDowell James Baldwin Fellow. Their bestselling debut novel, We Deserve Monuments, won the Coretta Scott King – John Steptoe Award for New Talent. Their second novel, Thirsty, was a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection. They live in New Jersey.

Les romans de la série Shatter Me de Tahereh Mafi bientôt à l’écran

Mafi: ABC News/ »Good Morning America” / HarperCollins

Les droits d’adaptation cinématographique de la série pour jeunes adultes de Tahereh Mafi, « Shatter Me », ont été acquis par Warner Bros qui comptent en faire un long métrage. Tahereh Mafi sera productrice executive du film aux côtés des maisons de production Temple Hill, Sunswept Entertainment et Langley Park Pictures. Aucune date de sortie n’a pour l’instant été annoncée.
[Lire l’article complet de Variety]

Le premier tome de la série de romans, sorti il y a quinze ans, a rencontré un succès phénoménal sur BookTok et les réseaux sociaux, avec plus de 15 millions d’exemplaires vendus à travers le monde.

Les romans, publiés en France chez Michel Lafon, mettent en scène Juliette Ferrars, une adolescente dont le simple contact est mortel, qui vit enfermée dans une forteresse sans pouvoir parler ni toucher quelqu’un. Son monde est régi par un organisme tout-puissant, le Rétablissement. Le fils du leader, Warner, l’a observé en cachette avant d’en faire sa captive. La malédiction de la jeune femme est pour lui une force. La série suit le parcours de Juliette alors qu’elle découvre son pouvoir et apprend à connaître sa force dans un monde dystopique mêlant romance et rébellion.

WHAT HAPPENED IN THE WOODS de Lily Braun-Arnold

In the vein of Wilder Girls and Sawkill Girls, WHAT HAPPENED IN THE WOODS is a dark, speculative, atmospheric thriller set on a college campus.

WHAT HAPPENED IN THE WOODS
by Lily Braun-Arnold
Delacorte, May 2027
(via Sterling Lord Literistic)

Egan, an introspective if not slightly self-conscious high school senior, travels to Ryland College to visit her best friend Jamie before Thanksgiving Break. Excited to see Jamie after months apart, but worried that their relationship has changed with distance, Egan isn’t sure what to expect of the weekend. Add to that the fact that Jamie has suddenly stopped communicating with her before the visit, and it’s a miracle that things seem normal between them when Egan arrives. Except…something is off about Ryland. Campus is virtually empty, students are acting strange, and there are crazy rumors flying around. Soon Egan can’t stop noticing everything wrong—students with mysterious bloody holes in the backs of their necks, fake smiles and vacant expressions, things moving beneath their skin. And Jamie, who seems to know more than she’s letting on…

When an illicit party in the woods takes a disastrous turn, Egan finds herself at ground zero of a deadly outbreak, fighting for survival. As time winds down, Egan must learn who to trust, and must confront the reality of her friendship with Jamie if they have any hope of getting out alive

Lily Braun-Arnold is currently an undergraduate at Smith College studying English. When she isn’t writing, she can be found working at her local independent bookstore, Watchung Booksellers, or daydreaming about living in outer space.

INVISIBLE GIRLS de Zoë Harris

Mean Girls meets Severance with shades of Never Let Me Go in this dark academia YA debut.

INVISIBLE GIRLS
by Zoë Harris
Godwin Books, Spring 2027
(via KT Literary)

The Fossbridge School for Timid Girls is a boarding school that exists outside of time and place, where girls frozen in their sixteenth year compete for their moment of triumph and freedom: Graduation. The only other way out is to Leave, but to do so is a shameful failure. Memories of the outside world fade quickly as the rigid rules and social hierarchy that dominate the girls’ days take over. Approval means survival and the right alliances are infinitely more valuable than trivial friendships.

But when shy Isra Sabri and brash Theda Keats arrive and begin to challenge and disrupt Fossbridge’s delicate ecosystem, cracks begin to show in the school’s serene facade. Whispers in their rooms at night…rumors of what really happens to girls who Leave…. The girls of lowly Tier C struggle to hold onto their faith in the only system they know. And at the center of it all stands Fossbridge’s mysterious headmistress, Miss Hainesworth, who is at once the source of all stability and the keeper of the girls’ deepest fears.

Told through the collective voice of the overlooked and unacknowledged, INVISIBLE GIRLS explores the cost of conformity and the power gained by extending inner strength outward to fortify others. With a speculative twist and timely social commentary, this dark academia novel is perfect for readers of The Grace Year and A Lesson in Vengeance.

Zoë Harris is an Australian living in Norway, where she is a UX content designer and founder of the Oslo Writers League. This is her debut novel.

WHAT ROUGH BEAST de Mindy McGinnis

Long-held grudges and ancient evils come to roost in this psychological, speculative horror that’s Don’t Let the Forest In meets Stranger Things.

WHAT ROUGH BEAST
by Mindy McGinnis
HarperCollins, October 2026

In a small town like Bethington, nothing stays buried forever…

Ava Germaine has learned her lesson: see something, don’t say something. Cast out at school, the only place she can find peace is Restoration Acres, the town’s animal sanctuary. Though the place sometimes seems more like an animal graveyard than a rehabilitation center, Ava’s job there is at least a constant distraction from the night everything went wrong—and the boy she still holds responsible.

Micah Harding is always prepared for the worst. As the sheriff’s son, he tries not to do things that reflect poorly on his family, especially since his dad helped him cover up his worst mistake yet. But he knows his secret is bound to come out.

Hailey Wagner is sick of being judged. And finally, things are going according to plan—until Ava Germaine starts talking. So if Hailey has to shut her up…she will.

As a strange entity begins to stir, ready to awaken—Ava, Micah, and Hailey find themselves wrapped in a centuries-old exchange, while barreling towards the truth of what ties their fates together.

Mindy McGinnis is the author of several young adult novels, including How Girls Are Made, Under this Red Rock, A Long Stretch of Bad Days, The Last Laugh, The Initial Insult, Heroine, The Female of the Species,and A Madness So Discreet, winner of an Edgar Award. She writes across multiple genres, including postapocalyptic, historical, thriller, contemporary, mystery, and fantasy. While her settings may change, you can always count on her books to deliver grit, truth, and an unflinching look at humanity and the world around us. Mindy lives in Ohio. You can visit her online at mindymcginnis.com.