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Saturday, January 1, 2022


LGBTQ+ January 2022 Releases

DISCLAIMER: I have tried my best to make sure that release dates are accurate but sometimes they change without my notice. My apologies if any information is incorrect.

Here are all the LGBTQ+ books I found that are being published in January 2022. They are sorted by publishers in alphabetical order with books being independently published at the very bottom. If you click on the covers they will take you to a preorder link.



Acacia Moon Pub



Title: Cinder the Fireplace Boy: and other Gayly Grimm Tales

Author: Ana Mardoll

Publication Date: January 4, 2022

Summary: Once upon a time there lived... a beautiful prince who kissed a frog. A cinder-smudged child who hid a secret. A princess who climbed a long braid of golden hair for love. A thumb-sized boy with the courage of a giant. And a valiant little tailor whose wit was as sharp as her needle.

These stories and many more await you in this delightful collection of classic fairy tales, lovingly retold and featuring characters who receive wonderfully queer happily-ever-afters! Let these new takes on the Brothers Grimm warm your heart and nurture your yearning to see yourself reflected in beloved favorites.

Features eight original illustrations by artist Alex Dingley.



Anansi Press



Title: The Swells

Author: Will Aitken

Publication Date: January 4, 2022

Summary: In this darkly hilarious satire by the inimitable Will Aitken, class war erupts aboard a luxury cruise ship.

A boatload of white privilege, The Emerald Tranquility is the most luxurious cruise liner afloat, its passengers some of the richest people in the world. Meanwhile the ship's crew, overworked and underpaid, live packed tightly together in airless below-deck cabins.

Briony Paget, globetrotting luxury travel writer, emulates the rich -- though homeless and penniless herself -- as she hops from gig to all-expenses-paid gig.

The passengers encounter a great number of cataclysms at sea, but no matter the catastrophe, the great ship always sails on.

On her own personal voyage, Briony encounters Mrs. Moore, an enigmatic old woman clandestinely fomenting a mutiny on this bountiful ship. With the captain overthrown, roles quickly reverse: the crew become the ship's new leisure class and the aged passengers learn how to mop floors and scrub toilets.

Briony, confused and terrified by the resultant chaos, must decide which lot to cast her fate with, in this savage satire of the way we live now.



Bella Books



Title: Despite Chaos

Author: Stacy Lynn Miller

Publication Date: January 18, 2022

Summary: Alexandra Castle hides the brightest part of herself. As the heir-apparent to the Castle Resort empire, her only fault--according to her controlling father--is that she's gay.

Keeping her sexuality hidden seems a small price to pay for upholding the family image. When Alex's father pits her against her twin brother in a high-stakes competition to choose who will take over the company upon his retirement, Alex knows she's got what it takes to win. Until an ex-lover reappears and threatens to destroy her life.

Tyler Falling hides the darkest part of herself. On the surface, she's a put-together middle-class wife and mother. In reality, she's broken from a sexual assault twelve years earlier. When Tyler unexpectedly comes face-to-face with her rapist, a deep family secret surfaces and jeopardizes the life she's created.

With both their worlds crumbling, Alex and Tyler escape to Napa where a brief, anonymous encounter sparks a mutual infatuation, changing the trajectory of their lives. Living a lie is no longer an option, but can an improbable romance bloom amid embezzlement, blackmail, and self-exploration?


Title: The Raven and the Banshee

Author: Carolyn Elizabeth

Publication Date: January 18, 2022

Summary: It's the early 1700's and sixteen-year-old Julia Farrow, spirited daughter of a shipping company owner, lives and loves on her own terms. With a sharp mind and sharper tongue, she constantly defies family and society expectations with no regard for the consequences. Branna Kelly, only child of an Irish immigrant sailor, is hopelessly in love with Julia and imagines their life together as captains of their own fate. Left brokenhearted after Julia's rejection, she embarks on a journey to chart a new shipping route to the Caribbean. Before Julia can explain her decision, Branna's ship is overrun by merciless pirates. All hands are presumed lost. Fifteen years later, Julia is running the Farrow Company and sailing with the crew on her newest ship when an encounter with pirates leaves her the lone survivor to be rescued by the infamous Raven, hard-hearted captain of the mercenary ship, Banshee. Julia is shocked to discover her rescuer wears a familiar face. The Raven and the Banshee is a passionate tale of vengeance, forgiveness and second chance love in a swashbuckling adventure on the high seas.


Title: The Seductress Trap

Author: Jac Sherry

Publication Date: January 18, 2022

Summary: After losing the love of her life, sex with no strings is the only thing that Angel Lux is interested in. Seducing straight women seems the best way to keep her plan from going sideways. But this time she's gotten herself involved with another man's fiancé. And he's hell-bent on getting revenge. Soon Mike has convinced his friend Chris to help set a trap to steal away his ex-fiancé and teach Angel a lesson. At first reluctant, Chris soon finds herself knee deep in the scheme, complete with high heels, lipstick, and a sexy red dress. What starts as a ruse for one and a game for the other quickly turns to a connection neither Chris nor Angel expected. The chemistry between them might just finally be a force strong enough to heal Angel's broken heart. If Chris's lies don't come between them first.



Bloomsbury



Title: A Previous Life

Author: Edmund White

Publication Date: January 25, 2022

Summary: A daring, category-confounding, and ruthlessly funny novel from National Book Award honored author Edmund White that explores polyamory and bisexuality, ageing and love.

Sicilian aristocrat and musician, Ruggero, and his younger American wife, Constance, agree to break their marital silence and write their Confessions. Until now they had a ban on speaking about the past, since transparency had wrecked their previous marriages. As the two alternate reading the memoirs they've written about their lives, Constance reveals her multiple marriages to older men, and Ruggero details the affairs he's had with men and women across his lifetime-most importantly his passionate affair with the author Edmund White.

Sweeping outward from the isolated Swiss ski chalet where the couple reads to travel through Europe and the United States, White's new novel pushes for a broader understanding of sexual orientation and pairs humor and truth to create his most fascinating and complex characters to date. As in all of White's earlier novels, this is a searing, scintillating take on physical beauty and its inevitable decline. But in this experimental new mode-one where the author has laid himself bare as a secondary character-White explores the themes of love and age through numerous eyes, hearts and minds.


Title: Spin Me Right Round

Author: David Valdes

Publication Date: January 4, 2022

Summary: From lauded writer David Valdes, a sharp and funny YA novel that's Back to the Future with a twist, as a gay teen travels back to his parents' era to save a closeted classmate's life.

All Luis Gonzalez wants is to go to prom with his boyfriend, something his "progressive" school still doesn't allow. Not after what happened with Chaz Wilson. But that was ages ago, when Luis's parents were in high school; it would never happen today, right? He's determined to find a way to give his LGBTQ friends the respect they deserve (while also not risking his chance to be prom king, just saying...).

When a hit on the head knocks him back in time to 1985 and he meets the doomed young Chaz himself, Luis concocts a new plan-he's going to give this guy his first real kiss. Though it turns out a conservative school in the '80s isn't the safest place to be a gay kid. Especially with homophobes running the campus, including Gordo (aka Luis's estranged father). Luis is in over his head, trying not to make things worse-and hoping he makes it back to present day at all.

In a story that's fresh, intersectional, and wickedly funny, David Valdes introduces a big-mouthed, big-hearted queer character that readers won't soon forget.



Bold Strokes Books

All BSB books release January 1st on Bold Strokes Books site.


Title: #shedeservedit

Author: Greg Herren

Publication Date: January 11, 2022

Summary: Liberty Center High School's football team has a long history of success, and the dying small town has nothing else to cling to. But when Lance, the star quarterback, is found dead, Alex Wheeler becomes the prime suspect in his best friend's murder. Alex thought he was the only one who shared Lance's biggest secret--but someone else found out. How well did Alex really know Lance, and what else did he keep hidden?

To prove his innocence and figure out what really happened to Lance that last night, Alex starts connecting the dots and finds that everything leads back to the recent death of a cheerleader who may have been sexually assaulted at a team party. Did online bullying drive her to suicide? Or was she murdered?

Alex must come to terms with his own secrets and soon finds his future may be at risk, as he gets closer and closer to the horrifying truth about how far Liberty Center will go to protect their own.

Content advisory: This work contains references to sexual assault.


Title: Always

Author: Kris Bryant

Publication Date: January 11, 2022

Summary: Peri Logan's first client is dead, but not in a morbid way. When her great-grandmother passes, her estate bequeathed Peri a piece of jewelry, a stack of cash, and a note that simply reads "find her." As a newly licensed private investigator, Peri travels to Italy to find the mysterious woman whose photo was perfectly preserved in the heart-shaped locket. What she doesn't expect is to be given the runaround from a beautiful stranger who offers to help and does anything but.

Camila Barnes is bored. Nothing exciting ever happens in the small town of Sequina, Italy. When a pushy American shows up demanding to meet the woman in Camila's artwork, instead of introducing her to her great-grandmother, Camila decides to lead her on a wild goose chase all over town. Nobody messes with her family, especially people who won't tell her why.

When the truth is finally revealed, Peri and Camila realize they are a part of something greater than they ever expected. Attraction is fleeting and true love touches only a few. Do they take the easy road home, or do they fight the odds and give love the chance to last for always?


Title: Exes and O's

Author: Joy Argento

Publication Date: January 11, 2022

Summary: Ali Daniels is a successful writer. Too bad she can't say the same for her love life. After yet another failed relationship, she decides it's time to dig deep and find out what she's doing wrong. Contacting her exes with a questionnaire seems like a piece of cake, until she gets to her high school sweetheart and the girl who shattered her heart, Madison Parker.

Madison has made a neat little life for herself in her small hometown, whose only claim to fame is being an hour from the beach. She's content running the donut shop her father left her and hanging with her sister and niece. The last thing she expects is for Ali to drop back into her life. After the way Ali left town twenty years ago without so much as an explanation, Madison really shouldn't be feeling any sort of attraction, but she can't seem to help herself.

After all this time, Ali and Madison really only have one thing in common. The girl who broke their heart may be the only one who can put it back together.


Title: One Verse Multi

Author: Sander Santiago

Publication Date: January 11, 2022

Summary: For the last ten years, Martin King has been a rift repair technician for the Multi-verse Protection Corporation (MVP), closing gaps between universes. But he is ready for a change and joins a research team tasked with answering some exciting questions. "Exciting" quickly becomes "troubling" as the team learns that the multi-verse is on the fast track to a collision event that could destroy everyone and everything. MVP is there to help, right? Maybe not. Everything changes when Martin is kidnapped by an anti-MVP group who claims MVP is secretly propelling the collision.

And if the multi-verse issues weren't enough, several men make Martin rethink what it means to be single or even monogamous. Martin's growing feelings for Luca, the data manager on his research team, and Tidus from the FOX universe, help him understand what's truly at stake. Only one thing is certain, Martin must figure out how to keep the multi-verse and his love life from collapsing into chaos.


Title: Paris Rules

Author: Jaime Maddox

Publication Date: January 11, 2022

Summary: Dr. Paige Waterford is struggling with a strained marriage and trying to find her stride after finishing her residency and beginning her career in the ER. When she meets Carly Becker, the fog begins to lift, and she feels a connection like none she's ever known.

Carly Becker has been searching for the perfect woman all her life, but no one ever seems to be just right. She must be fun and adventurous, love travel and theater, and most importantly, golf. Paige checks all the boxes, except the most important one--she's married.

Through their mutual passion for golf, a friendship grows, and Paige finds the courage to separate from her husband. Then, on a group trip to Paris, they rewrite the rules. Under Paris Rules, they explore their feelings. But is Paige brave enough to fall in love when they return home?


Title: Shadow Dancers

Author: Suzie Clarke

Publication Date: January 11, 2022

Summary: Security specialist Rachel Portola and her wife, Claire, have begun to rebuild their lives and hope for their future. Rachel has made a promise to stay far away from danger, but her loyalties are tested when two of her team go missing while searching for Eshee Yumiko, the woman who will stop at nothing to see Rachel suffer. Rachel must find a way to become the hunter rather than the hunted and put an end to Eshee's vendetta. But all Claire sees are Rachel's broken promises, and her obsession to keep them safe by putting herself in peril may be the very thing that tears them apart for good.

Third and final book in the Moon Shadow series.


Title: The Ghost's Host

Author: Cathleen Collins

Publication Date: January 11, 2022

Summary: Renee Chambers is a burgeoning germaphobe in search of a new job—something less stressful than her last job, teaching high school students. When her supposedly psychic best friend, Ellen, points her toward an odd little bookstore and a strange, otherworldly woman, Adrianne, Renee is thrown for a loop. One awkward interview and an even stranger psychic encounter later, Renee gets the job. Then Ellen’s psychic dabbling has unintended consequences when Renee meets a pushy new friend, Katherine, a jealous ghost who's convinced they are soul mates.

A casino trip, a drunken drag show, an old beater of a car, and a pair of dinosaur panties push Renee to the edge, but the real kicker is when Katherine starts getting more insistent and borrowing bodies. All Renee wants is a peaceful, fledgling hermit existence, but that’s unlikely unless she can figure out her true connection to Katherine, Ellen, and Adrianne. To discover the truth, she must come to terms with her past and learn how to embrace the future.


Title: The Kiss

Author: C.A. Popovich

Publication Date: January 11, 2022

Summary: Kate Willis's marriage to a possessive, abusive woman is the biggest mistake of her life. Worried about her three-year-old daughter's emotional state, Kate attempts to convince her wife they need marriage counseling, fails, and files for divorce. Moving from Ohio to start a new life, she settles near her sister in Michigan and joins a hiking group where she meets Leslie, and they share the most incredible kiss ever.

Leslie Baily runs the family restaurant she'll one day own. On days off, she hikes. The last thing she expects is to meet an intriguing woman she can't stop thinking about, let alone be kissed senseless.

Kate has a child to support, is waiting for her ex to sign divorce papers, and has absolutely no business falling for Leslie. When her wife refuses the divorce and begins to stalk her, threatening not only her chance at happiness but her life, Kate realizes to protect Leslie she has to let her go, even if it breaks her heart.


Title: The Wedding Setup

Author: Charlotte Greene

Publication Date: January 11, 2022

Summary: Ryann is thrilled when her friend Stuart asks her to help him plan his last-minute wedding. He moved across the country over a year ago, and she misses him like crazy. As an executive with event planning experience, Ryann's the best person to help him fulfill his wildest wedding dreams.

However, things in Colorado are not what she expects, especially Maddie, the maid of honor for the other groom. Maddie is attractive, and while she's certainly Ryann's type, she has some different ideas about the wedding. Also, flirting with her is incredibly distracting, especially when Ryann just wants to keep things professional. With just two weeks to the big event on Valentine's Day, can Ryann help Stuart to wedded bliss, and avoid his well-intentioned attempts to set her up with Maddie?


Title: Velocity

Author: Gun Brooke

Publication Date: January 11, 2022

Summary: When Holly Crowe, an outsider in Dennamore, learns of the extraordinary discovery of alien artifacts, she stuns the inner circle of the space mission set out to unlock their mysteries by claiming she is meant to be their captain.

Claire Gordon lives for fixing cars in her father's workshop, hiking the Adirondacks, and reading science fiction, but it's not enough. Desperate to find meaning in her life, Claire stumbles upon the secret space mission and may have finally found her purpose.

As Holly and Claire work toward an uncertain future, only one thing is for certain--they will have to risk their lives and their hearts to discover the truth.


Title: Wildflower Words

Author: Sam Ledel

Publication Date: January 11, 2022

Summary: Hazel Thompson prides herself on being a beacon of earnest goodwill in Cedar Springs, Utah, where she works alongside her mother as a cook in a raucous restaurant and dance hall. But lately, Hazel wonders if she hasn't clipped her own wings by always putting her family and neighbors first, leaving no time for her own wants.

Lida Jones, the daughter of roving Eastern European immigrants, treks West with her father in search of a better life on the rapidly developing American frontier. To help make money, Lida takes a job in the Pack Horse Library and gets to know the rowdy, tough residents of Cedar Springs. Getting close to anyone is a waste of time, though. She won't be here long.

Hazel and Lida can't help but get to know one another as Lida travels through on her route. When Lida's father begins to struggle at work, Lida fears she'll have to leave Cedar Springs--and Hazel--behind. But how can she when, finally, she's found a place, and a person, to call home?



Bywater Books



Title: Faux Queen: A Life in Drag

Author: Monique Jenkinson

Publication Date: January 25, 2022

Summary: Faux Queen: A Life in Drag follows the fierce and fabulous journey of Fauxnique, the first cis-woman to win a major drag queen pageant.

This is a memoir about how a little Ballet-obsessed girl moved to San Francisco from the suburbs and found her people at the drag club. It joyously chronicles Monique Jenkinson's journey through one of the most experimental moments in queer cultural history and her rise through the nightlife underground to become a drag empress.

Jenkinson finds authenticity through the glee of drag artifice and articulation through the immediacy of performing bodies. She pens a valentine to gay men and their culture while relaying the making of an open-minded feminist. Faux Queen finds deep healing in irreverence and posits that it might be possible for all of us to come together in glorious difference on the dancefloor.



Disney-Hyperion



Title: The Temperature of Me and You

Author: Brian Zepka

Publication Date: January 25, 2022

Summary: Sixteen-year-old Dylan Highmark thought his winter was going to be full of boring shifts at the Dairy Queen, until he finds himself in love with a boy who's literally too hot to handle.

Dylan has always wanted a boyfriend, but the suburbs surrounding Philadelphia do not have a lot in the way of options. Then, in walks Jordan, a completely normal (and undeniably cute) boy who also happens to run at a cool 110 degrees Fahrenheit. When the boys start spending time together, Dylan begins feeling all kinds of ways, and when he spikes a fever for two weeks and is suddenly coughing flames, he thinks he might be suffering from something more than just a crush. Jordan forces Dylan to keep his symptoms a secret. But as the pressure mounts and Dylan becomes distant with his closest friends and family, he pushes Jordan for answers. Jordan's revelations of why he's like this, where he came from, and who's after him leaves Dylan realizing how much first love is truly out of this world. But if the attraction between them defies the laws of physics, love may be the only thing that can keep Jordan and Dylan together.

THE TEMPERATURE OF ME AND YOU is the story of first love, and the lengths we'll go to figure out our hearts. What starts as an electric, chance encounter at a Dairy Queen quickly evolves into a heated romance, a journey of trust and identity, and a ticking clock for survival.



Hachette Books Group



Title: Love & Other Disasters

Author: Anita Kelly

Publication Date: January 18, 2022

Summary: Recently divorced and on the verge of bankruptcy, Dahlia Woodson is ready to reinvent herself on the popular reality competition show Chef's Special. Too bad the first memorable move she makes is falling flat on her face, sending fish tacos flying--not quite the fresh start she was hoping for. Still, she's focused on winning, until she meets someone she might want a future with more than she needs the prize money.

After announcing their pronouns on national television, London Parker has enough on their mind without worrying about the klutzy competitor stationed in front of them. They're there to prove the trolls--including a fellow contestant and their dad--wrong, and falling in love was never part of the plan.

As London and Dahlia get closer, reality starts to fall away. Goodbye, guilt about divorce, anxiety about uncertain futures, and stress from transphobia. Hello, hilarious shenanigans on set, wedding crashing, and spontaneous dips into the Pacific. But as the finale draws near, Dahlia and London's steamy relationship starts to feel the heat both in and outside the kitchen--and they must figure out if they have the right ingredients for a happily ever after.



Hansen House



Title: Elixir: Stories of Hope and Healing

Edited by: Elizabeth Jeannel

Publication Date: January 14, 2022

Summary: Hansen House’s first ever anthology, Elixir-Stories of Hope and Healing, featuring stories by Shawna Barnett, Cate Pearce, Hester Steel, Toni Mobley, Mel Miranda, Lea Falls, Arianna Emery, Jonathan Fuller, Evalyn Broderick, and Amber Denwood.



Harlequin



Title: D'Vaughn & Kris Plan a Wedding

Author: Chencia C. Higgins

Publication Date: January 25, 2022

Summary: D'Vaughn and Kris have six weeks to plan their dream wedding.

Their whole relationship is fake.

Instant I Do could be Kris Zavala's big break. She's right on the cusp of really making it as an influencer, so a stint on reality TV is the perfect chance to elevate her brand. And $100,000 wouldn't hurt, either.

D'Vaughn Miller is just trying to break out of her shell. She's sort of neglected to come out to her mom for years, so a big splashy fake wedding is just the excuse she needs.

All they have to do is convince their friends and family they're getting married in six weeks. If anyone guesses they're not for real, they're out. Selling their chemistry on camera is surprisingly easy, and it's still there when no one else is watching, which is an unexpected bonus. Winning this competition is going to be a piece of wedding cake.

But each week of the competition brings new challenges, and soon the prize money's not the only thing at stake. A reality show isn't the best place to create a solid foundation, and their fake wedding might just derail their relationship before it even starts.


Title: His Fresh Start Cowboy

Author: a.m. arthur

Publication Date: January 25, 2022

Summary: Two cowboys will have to risk their hearts—again—to find a home on the ranch.

Hugo Turner's boots haven't touched Texas soil in almost a decade, and he's not sure they should now. Being in the state is complicated, but Hugo can't resist going back for a job working with his teenage crush. His best friend's hot older brother is now the ranch's foreman, so he'll be Hugo's boss. Inappropriate? Probably. Will it stop Hugo? Probably not.

Brand Woods isn't ready for the return of Hugo Turner. He decided long ago to keep his bisexuality private and to focus his life on running the ranch. Working next to the most dangerously tempting man he’s ever known stirs up questions Brand thought he'd put to rest.

The sparks that send their hearts galloping lead to a deeper passion than either man expects. But by giving in to the chemistry without taking a risk and committing to each other—or, more importantly, to themselves and living the lives they've always wanted—Brand and Hugo might lose their second chance at true love.



Kensington Press



Title: Survivor's Guilt

Author: Robyn Gigl

Publication Date: January 25, 2022

Summary: Attorney and LGBTQ+ activist Robyn Gigl tackles the complexities of gender, power, public perception, and human trafficking with a ripped-from-the-headlines plot in her second legal thriller featuring Erin McCabe, a protagonist who, like the author, is a transgender attorney. Now she and her law partner are drawn into a dark world of offshore bank accounts, computer hacking, murder, and the devastating impact of sexual abuse...

At first, the death of millionaire businessman Charles Parsons seems like a straightforward suicide. There's no sign of forced entry or struggle in his lavish New Jersey mansion--just a single gunshot wound from his own weapon. But days later, a different story emerges. Computer techs pick up a voice recording that incriminates Parsons' adoptive daughter, Ann, who duly confesses and pleads guilty.

Erin McCabe has little interest in reviewing such a slam-dunk case--even after she has a mysterious meeting with one of the investigating detectives, who reveals that Ann, like Erin, is a trans woman. Yet despite their misgivings, Erin and her law partner, Duane Swisher, ultimately can't ignore the pieces that don't fit.

As their investigation deepens, Erin and Swish convince Ann to withdraw her guilty plea. But Ann clearly knows more than she's willing to share, even if it means a life sentence. Who is she protecting, and why?

Fighting against time and a prosecutor hell-bent on notching another conviction, the two work tirelessly--Erin inside the courtroom, Swish in the field--to clear Ann's name. But despite Parsons' former associates' determination to keep his--and their own--illegal activities buried, a horrifying truth emerges--a web of human exploitation, unchecked greed, and murder. Soon, a quest to see justice served becomes a desperate struggle to survive...



Macmillan



Title: Icebreaker

Author: A. L. Graziadei

Publication Date: January 18, 2022

Summary: A. L. Graziadei's Icebreaker is an irresistible YA debut about two hockey players fighting to be the best--and the romance that catches them by surprise along the way.

Seventeen-year-old Mickey James III is a college freshman, a brother to five sisters, and a hockey legacy. With a father and a grandfather who have gone down in NHL history, Mickey is almost guaranteed the league's top draft spot.

The only person standing in his way is Jaysen Caulfield, a contender for the #1 spot and Mickey's infuriating (and infuriatingly attractive) teammate. When rivalry turns to something more, Mickey will have to decide what he really wants, and what he's willing to risk for it.

This is a story about falling in love, finding your team (on and off the ice), and choosing your own path.


Title: Love Somebody

Author: Rachel Roasek

Publication Date: January 11, 2022

Summary: A sparkling YA debut rom-com about a popular high-school girl, her ex-boyfriend-turned-best-friend, and the girl they both fall for--perfect for fans of Becky Albertalli or Casey McQuiston.

Sam Dickson is a charismatic actress, ambitious and popular with big plans for her future. Ros Shew is one of the smartest people in school--but she's a loner, and prefers to keep it that way. Then there's Christian Powell, the darling of the high school soccer team. He's not the best with communication, which is why he and Sam broke up after dating for six months; but he makes up for it by being genuine, effusive, and kind, which is why they're still best friends.

When Christian falls for Ros on first sight, their first interaction is a disaster, so he enlists Sam's help to get through to her. Sam, with motives of her own, agrees to coach Christian from the sidelines on how to soften Ros's notorious walls. But as Ros starts to suspect Christian is acting differently, and Sam starts to realize the complexity of her own feelings, their fragile relationships threaten to fall apart.

This fresh romantic comedy from debut author Rachel Roasek is a heartfelt story about falling in love--with a partner, with your friends, or just with yourself--and about how maybe, the bravest thing to do in the face of change is just love somebody.


Title: Love, Violet

Author: Charlotte Sullivan Wild

Publication Date: January 4, 2022

Summary: Perfect for Valentine's Day, Love, Violet by Charlotte Sullivan Wild and Charlene Chua is a touching picture book about friendship and the courage it takes to share your feelings.

Only one person makes Violet's heart skip

Of all the kids in Violet's class, only one leaves her speechless: Mira, the girl with the cheery laugh who races like the wind. If only they could adventure together! But every time Violet tries to tell Mira how she feels, Violet goes shy. As Valentine's Day approaches, Violet is determined to tell Mira just how special she is.

Charlene Chua's luminous watercolors bring to life this sweet and gentle picture book about friendship, love, and the courage it takes to share your heart.


Title: The Greatest Thing

Author: Sarah Winifred Searle

Publication Date: January 25, 2022

Summary: This tender YA comic is perfect for fans of Raina Telgemeier's Drama and Shannon Hale and LeUyen Pham's Real Friends who are ready to graduate to their first teen graphic novel.

It's the first day of sophomore year, and now that Winifred's two best (and only) friends have transferred to a private school, she must navigate high school on her own.

But she isn't alone for long. In art class, she meets two offbeat students, Oscar and April. The three bond through clandestine sleepovers, thrift store shopping, and zine publishing. Winifred is finally breaking out of her shell, but there's one secret she can't bear to admit to April and Oscar, or even to herself--and this lie is threatening to destroy her newfound friendships.

With breathtaking art and honest storytelling, rising star Sarah Winifred Searle delivers a heartfelt story about love, friendship, and self-acceptance.

NYU Press



Title: Keeping It Unreal

Author: Darieck Scott

Publication Date: January 18, 2022

Summary: Explores Black representation in fantasy genres and comic books

Characters like Black Panther, Storm, Luke Cage, Miles Morales, and Black Lightning are part of a growing cohort of black superheroes on TV and in film. Though comic books are often derided as naïve and childish, these larger-than-life superheroes demonstrate how this genre can serve as the catalyst for engaging the Black radical imagination.

Keeping It Unreal: Comics and Black Queer Fantasy is an exploration of how fantasies of Black power and triumph fashion theoretical, political, and aesthetic challenges to-and respite from-white supremacy and anti-Blackness. It examines representations of Blackness in fantasy-infused genres: superhero comic books, erotic comics, fantasy and science-fiction genre literature, as well as contemporary literary "realist" fiction centering fantastic conceits.

Darieck Scott offers a rich meditation on the relationship between fantasy and reality, and between the imagination and being, as he weaves his personal recollections of his encounters with superhero comics with interpretive readings of figures like the Black Panther and Blade, as well as theorists such as Frantz Fanon, Eve Sedgwick, Leo Bersani, Saidiya Hartman, and Gore Vidal. Keeping It Unreal represents an in-depth theoretical consideration of the intersections of superhero comics, Blackness, and queerness, and draws on a variety of fields of inquiry.

Reading new life into Afrofuturist traditions and fantasy genres, Darieck Scott seeks to rescue the role of fantasy and the fantastic to challenge, revoke, and expand our assumptions about what is normal, real, and markedly human.



Penguin Random House



Title: Coming Back

Author: Jessi Zabarsky

Publication Date: January 18, 2022

Summary: A beautiful graphic novel fantasy romance that follows two young women who have to go on their own separate adventures to discover the truth about themselves and about each other.

Preet is magic.

Valissa is not.

Everyone in their village has magic in their bones, and Preet is the strongest of them all. Without any power of her own, how can Valissa ever be worthy of Preet's love? When their home is attacked, Valissa has a chance to prove herself, but that means leaving Preet behind. On her own for the first time, Preet breaks the village's most sacred laws and is rejected from the only home she's ever known and sent into a new world.

Divided by different paths, insecurities, and distance, will Valissa and Preet be able to find their way back to each other?

A beautiful story of two young women who are so focused on proving they're meant to be together that they end up hurting each other in the process. This gorgeous graphic novel is an LGTBQ+ romance about young love and how it can grow into something strong no matter what obstacles get in the way.


Title: Crema

Author: Johnnie Christmas & Dante Luiz

Publication Date: January 4, 2022

Summary: #1 New York Times Bestselling cartoonist Johnnie Christmas and Prism Award Nominee Dante Luiz bring you a haunted tale of love, ghosts, and coffee beans.

Esme, a barista, feels invisible, like a ghost... also, when Esme drinks too much coffee she actually sees ghosts. Yara, the elegant heir to a coffee plantation, is always seen, but only has eyes for Esme. Their world is turned upside down when the strange ghost of an old-world nobleman begs Esme to take his letter from New York City to a haunted coffee farm in Brazil, to reunite him with his lost love of a century ago. Bringing sinister tidings of unrequited love.

Collects the ComiXology original digital graohic novel Crema in print for the first time.


Title: Game On

Edited by: Laura Silverman

Publication Date: January 18, 2022

Summary: A charming and inclusive YA anthology all about games—from athletic sports to board games to virtual reality—from editor Laura Silverman and an all-star cast of contributors.

From the slightly fantastical to the utterly real, light and sweet romance to tales tinged with horror and thrills, Game On is an anthology that spans genre and style. But beneath each story is a loving ode to competition and games perfect for anyone who has ever played a sport or a board game, picked up a video game controller, or rolled a twenty-sided die.

A manhunt game is interrupted by a town disappearing beneath the players' eyes. A puzzle-filled scavenger hunt emboldens one college freshman to be brave with the boy she's crushing on. A series of summer nights full of card games leads a boy to fall for a boy who he knows is taken. And a spin the bottle game could end a life-long friendship.

Fifteen stories, and fifteen unforgettable experiences that may inspire readers to start up that Settlers of Catan game again.


Title: Iron Annie

Author: Luke Cassidy

Publication Date: January 11, 2022

Summary: An uncompromising, darkly humorous look at life in the criminal underworld of the Irish border from a major new Irish literary voice.

Dundalk—The Town, to locals—took Aoife in when she left home at eighteen. Now she’s gone from a small-time slinger of hash to a bona fide player in Dundalk’s criminal underworld. Aoife’s smart, savvy, and cool under pressure. Except, that is, when it comes to Annie. Annie is mysterious and compelling, and Aoife is desperate to impress her and keep her close. Unfortunately, not everyone in The Town shares Aoife’s opinion of Annie. So much so that when Aoife’s friend and associate, the Rat King, approaches her about off-loading ten kilos of stolen coke, he specifically tells her to keep Annie out of it. Aoife doesn’t want to do the job without Annie, though, so she lands on an idea. Annie has contacts in the UK, and sure it’d be better to get the coke as far away from Dundalk as possible. At first, everything goes to plan. But when Annie decides she'd like to stay in the UK, Aoife makes a decision that changes everything, and finds her whole world turned upside down.

Gritty yet tender, tragic yet hopeful, Iron Annie crackles with energy, warmth, and heart.


Title: Seven Mercies

Author: Laura Lam & Elizabeth May

Publication Date: January 25, 2022

Summary: The second book in a feminist space opera duology that follows the team of seven rebels who will free the galaxy from the ruthless Tholosian Empire--or die trying.

After an ambush leaves the Novantae resistance in tatters, the survivors scatter across the galaxy. Wanted by two great empires, the bounty on any rebel's head is enough to make a captor filthy rich. And the seven devils? Biggest score of them all. To avoid attacks, the crew of Zelus scavenge for supplies on long-abandoned Tholosian outposts.

Not long after the remnants of the rebellion settle briefly on Fortuna, Ariadne gets a message with unimaginable consequences: the Oracle has gone rogue. In a planned coup against the Empire's new ruler, the AI has developed a way of mass programming citizens into mindless drones. The Oracle's demand is simple: the AI wants One's daughter back at any cost.

Time for an Impossible to Infiltrate mission: high chance of death, low chance of success. The devils will have to use their unique skills, no matter the sacrifice, and pair up with old enemies. Their plan? Get to the heart of the Empire. Destroy the Oracle. Burn it all to the ground.


Title: The Bone Spindle

Author: Leslie Vedder

Publication Date: January 11, 2022

Summary: Sleeping Beauty meets Indiana Jones in this thrilling fairytale retelling for fans of Sorcery of Thorns and The Cruel Prince.

Fi is a bookish treasure hunter with a knack for ruins and riddles, who definitely doesn't believe in true love.

Shane is a tough-as-dirt girl warrior from the north who likes cracking skulls, pretty girls, and doing things her own way.

Briar Rose is a prince under a sleeping curse, who's been waiting a hundred years for the kiss that will wake him.

Cursed princes are nothing but ancient history to Fi--until she pricks her finger on a bone spindle while exploring a long-lost ruin. Now she's stuck with the spirit of Briar Rose until she and Shane can break the century-old curse on his kingdom.

Dark magic, Witch Hunters, and bad exes all stand in her way--not to mention a mysterious witch who might wind up stealing Shane's heart, along with whatever else she's after. But nothing scares Fi more than the possibility of falling in love with Briar Rose.

Set in a lush world inspired by beloved fairytales, The Bone Spindle is a fast-paced young adult fantasy full of adventure, romance, found family, and snark.



Scholastic



Title: Heartstopper Vol. 4

Author: Alice Oseman

Publication Date: January 4, 2022

Summary: The fourth volume in the wonderfully sweet Heartstopper series, featuring gorgeous two-color artwork!

Soon to be streaming on Netflix!

Charlie and Nick's relationship has been going really well, and Charlie thinks he's ready to say those three little words: I love you.

Nick feels the same way, but he's got a lot on his mind -- especially the thought of coming out to his dad and the fact that Charlie might have an eating disorder.

As a new school year begins, Charlie and Nick will have to learn what love really means.



Sourcebooks



Title: At the End of Everything

Author: Marieke Nijkamp

Publication Date: January 25, 2022

Summary: The Hope Juvenile Treatment Center is ironically named. No one has hope for the delinquent teenagers who have been exiled there; the world barely acknowledges that they exist.

Then the guards at Hope start acting strange. And one day...they don't show up. But when the teens band together to make a break from the facility, they encounter soldiers outside the gates. There's a rapidly spreading infectious disease outside, and no one can leave their houses or travel without a permit. Which means that they're stuck at Hope. And this time, no one is watching out for them at all.

As supplies quickly dwindle and a deadly plague tears through their ranks, the group has to decide whom among them they can trust and figure out how they can survive in a world that has never wanted them in the first place.



Independently Published



Title: The Map to You

Author: Rachel Stockbridge

Publication Date: January 25, 2022

Summary: Sasha Deforest always seems to fall hardest for girls she can't have. And she's never fallen harder than she has for her tough, stubborn best friend Kinsey. Sasha can't help all the outrageously flirty things that come out of her mouth when they're together, even if Kinsey always plays it off as a running joke. Sasha doesn't really mind, though. She likes that they're just friends. It's easy. Uncomplicated. And it means she has an excuse not to open up about her troubled family life back home.

Kinsey Han has been nursing one hell of a crush on sweet, sarcastic Sasha for the better part of the last year. Not that she'd ever let Sasha know it. Kinsey tends to express herself by frowning and ordering her loved ones around. Even if she thought Sasha meant all the flirty nonsense she's always coming up with, Kinsey could never be the kind of cheerful, outgoing woman Sasha deserves to be with. It's better for everyone if Kinsey keeps her true feelings to herself.

But when Sasha drops everything to drive Kinsey 600 miles to deal with a family emergency, things get complicated. The more time they spend together, the harder it is for Kinsey to keep her feelings for Sasha buried-and the harder it is for Sasha to remember why it's so important to keep Kinsey at arm's length. If they continue to conceal the depths of their feelings for each other, they'd be missing out on falling in love with the one person who could truly get them. But taking that chance also means opening themselves up to heartbreak. And neither is sure they're willing to risk losing the other forever.


Title: The Other Brother

Author: Jax Calder

Publication Date: January 12, 2022

Summary: Ryan has had seventeen years of being compared to Cody, part of his toxic fractured family, so you’ll forgive him for some epic eye-rolling when it comes to Mr Perfect. Although not related to him by blood, Cody has always been annoying background noise in Ryan’s life. It doesn’t help that Cody’s a high achieving musician, while Ryan’s life ambition doesn’t extend past catching the next wave.

One summer changes everything. It’s the summer when circumstances collide, and Cody and Ryan end up spending time together at Cody’s family’s beach house. It’s the summer Ryan teaches Cody to surf and Cody teaches Ryan to play guitar. It’s the summer when they become friends.

And then more than friends.

But when summer ends, Cody and Ryan are forced back to reality, where they must hide their relationship from their warring family members. And as tragedy strikes and family secrets buried deep in the past worm their way to the surface, their relationship is threatened. Can their feelings, which began in the summer sun, survive the winter ahead?

Note: This coming-of-age story contains sexual content.


Title: The Uncanny and the Dead

Author: Various Authors

Publication Date: UNKNOWN

Summary: NO CURRENT SUMMARY AVAILABLE. WILL BE UPDATED WHEN AVAILABLE.





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