teens

The Kiss Bet

by Farrah Penn

Based on the graphic novel by Ingrid Ochoa

coming February 3, 2026

(4 / 5)

Thank you to Wattpad Books and NetGalley for the free review copy of this book! All opinions are completely my own.

I’ve read The Kiss Bet on WEBTOON, so it was really fun to read this novel based on the comic. It actually follows the comic pretty closely and had a very similar feel.

The book was a quick and easy read that I overall enjoyed. There’s a lot of high school drama so it might not be the right fit for readers looking for something more mature, but I think teens and fans of the web comic will enjoy it. At times Sara, the FMC, felt annoyingly impulsive and irresponsible, but I also couldn’t help but root for her. Most of the characters felt similar to their comic versions, though I think I liked Patrick more in this version, maybe because I was able to understand his viewpoint better.

This novel covers season one of the comic, so it does end on a cliffhanger. Hopefully there will be more novels to continue the story!

Never Seen the Stars

by Kate Korsh

(4 / 5)

Many thanks to Scholastic Press and NetGalley for the free review copy of this book! All opinions are completely my own.

I went into this book knowing it was going to pull at the heartstrings. How could it not when our main character, Hattie, has just lost her friend in a drowning accident and she’s struggling with the fact that she will eventually go blind, just like her dad. The first chapter starts with a funeral and feels very somber, though the mood does pick up as the book continues. The main characters took some warming up to… Hattie was pretty angsty and Mason struck me as a bit obnoxious, but then it also felt realistic for teenagers and gave room for the characters to grow. I was happy to see how much Hattie improved communicating with others and facing her grief. The book focused heavily on different kinds relationships between both peers and adults/teens, and I thought it was done in a positive way. I liked the representation of vision impairment and how people might react to going blind. When I found out that the author has retinitis pigmentosa herself, it made that part of the story feel even more authentic.

November 6, 2025 by danimae1981 Fiction Kindle Young Adult 0

Torchfire

The Torch Trilogy #2

by Moira Buffini

coming October 28, 2025

(4.5 / 5)

Thank you to HarperCollins Children’s Books, Storytide, and NetGalley for the free review copy of Torchfire! All opinions in my review are completely my own.

Torchfire continues the story from Songlight and is the 2nd book in a trilogy, so you’ll definitely want to read the first book before this one. I really enjoyed this book! It packs in the drama and felt very immersive. Sometimes things moved in unexpected directions or caught me by surprise. I was very invested in the story. We’re following six different points of view, which sounds like a lot but actually works really well. It’s interesting to view this world from different angles and see how it all intertwines. Sometimes it’s a while before we come back to a character, but I think it allows us to see what’s going on without feeling redundant or drawn out. The character relationships are complicated, and I like seeing how different characters react to their circumstances even if their choices are frustrating at times. This story is very much not over, leaving us at some cliffhangers when the book ends. I’ll be watching for the next book, because I can’t wait to see what happens next!

October 22, 2025 by danimae1981 Fantasy Fiction Kindle Young Adult 0

Songlight

The Torch Trilogy #1

by Moira Buffini

(5 / 5)

Songlight tells the story of a futuristic dystopia in a post-apocalyptic world where society as we know it today has collapsed. It reminded me a lot of The Handmaid’s Tale but still felt different, especially with multiple characters having songlight, which is essentially a type of telepathy.

I really enjoyed this book and could not put it down. The characters were in such desperate situations that I could really feel. There’s a lot of characters, including 5 different protagonists, but I was able to keep things straight well enough. I especially enjoyed seeing how our different protagonists’ stories were intertwined yet gave us very different perspectives on this world. The story really packs in the drama too. I can’t wait to read the next book!

October 17, 2025 by danimae1981 Audiobook Fantasy Fiction Kindle Young Adult 0

The Weaver Bride

by Lydia Gregovic

coming September 30, 2025

(4.5 / 5)

Thank you to Random House Children’s Books, Delacorte Press, and NetGalley for the free review copy of The Weaver Bride! All thoughts and opinions are completely my own.

I really enjoyed it this book! I was a bit unsure in the beginning but then got caught up into the story and didn’t want to put it down. The atmosphere of this book was incredibly immersive, with intricate writing and lots of detail. I enjoyed the characters, especially since so many were morally gray. I was constantly wondering who I could trust, especially with multiple betrayals along the way. Our protagonist, Lovett, had a lot of spark to her, and I enjoyed her determination. A forbidden romance brews, with a lot of intensity and tension between the characters. They really pushed each others’ buttons, but it just worked well. I think my favorite thing about this book was that it was filled with mysteries. I was constantly guessing and making theories, yet I was still shocked about how it ended. While most plot points were resolved by the end, it was open ended enough that I am not ready for this story to be over yet. I sure hope this book was the start of a series!

September 14, 2025 by danimae1981 Fantasy Fiction Kindle Young Adult 0

Wish You Were Her

by Elle McNicoll

coming August 26, 2025

(4 / 5)

Thank you to Wednesday Books, St. Martin’s Press, and NetGalley for the free review copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are completely my own.

In Wish You Were Her, we follow a young actress, Allegra, who is taking a break and spending her summer in a small town, where she meets a grumpy bookseller, Jonah. It’s dual POV, which gives us the opportunity to see things from both Allegra and Jonah’s perspectives. Since the author is Scottish, the book is written in British English.

I enjoyed reading this book and had a hard time putting it down. While there wasn’t anything super surprising about the plot, it didn’t really take away from my enjoyment of the book. The relationship between Allegra and Jonah could be a bit explosive but was fun to watch it evolve. We meet a variety of characters, with some very likable and others having a darker side.

A big topic in this story is autism, and we meet a couple autistic characters along the way. I thought it was all very insightful, with great descriptions of how characters felt. It was portrayed in an optimistic and uplifting way while still showing the obstacles characters faced. Allegra was an especially interesting character since we could see what it was like to be famous, the challenges that came with it, and how her autism affected that experience, sometimes in a very positive way.

This was a quick, fun read, and I look forward to seeing more from the author!

August 21, 2025 by danimae1981 Fiction Kindle Young Adult 0

Soul of Shadow

by Emma Noyes

coming July 29, 2025

(4 / 5)

Review updated: February 16, 2026

*Thank you to St. Martin’s Press, Wednesday Books, Macmillan Audio, Macmillan Young Listeners, and NetGalley for the free review copies of this book and audiobook. All opinions are completely my own.*

Soul of Shadow is the first book in a new series that brings us to a town in Michigan where teens are mysteriously disappearing. Our main character, Charlie finds herself drawn to a new boy in town who has some very dark secrets.

This book drew me in right from the start with its mysterious, eerie feel and detailed descriptions. It ends up diving into a lot of Norse mythology, which I was only somewhat familiar with before. I enjoyed the magical beings and hidden world that were revealed. Elias, the new boy, was an intriguing character with a magnetic pull, especially when it came to him and Charlie. He was one of those characters who you wanted to love and hate at the same time. The story took some unexpected turns a few times. Sometimes I started to piece things together a bit before they were revealed, but other times I didn’t see it coming at all. I enjoy it when things are unpredictable. The book ends without feeling completely finished, or at least with a feeling that there are mysteries that we can dive deeper into. It definitely left me wanting to continue with the series – I look forward to continuing when the next book becomes available.

For my 2nd time reading the book, I was able to listen to the audiobook version. I really enjoyed the audiobook and think that the narrator did a fantastic job. I’m really happy that the next book will have the same narrator!

July 9, 2025 by danimae1981 Audiobook Fantasy Fiction Kindle Romance Young Adult 0

Soulmatch

by Rebecca Danzenbaker

coming July 29, 2025

(5 / 5)

Thank you to Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers and NetGalley for the free review copy of this book. All opinions in my review are completely my own.

Soulmatch brings us to a future where souls can be identified, linking you to your previous lives and the benefits or consequences that come with it. Dystopian fiction has been one of my favorite genres for years, and this book did not disappoint. While the initial premise reminded me of some other popular series I’ve read, the idea of reincarnated souls was thought-provoking and different. I was honestly surprised at how quickly I was pulled into this world. It was a great blend of action, thrills, mystery and romance. Everything was so complex and intricate, keeping me guessing and second guessing about what would happen and how it all tied together. It was one of those books where when I finished, I felt an itch read it again right away just to see everything from the new perspective of knowing how it ends. It’s hard to believe this is the author’s debut novel, because it just felt so well done – I look forward to reading more of her books in the future!

June 29, 2025 by danimae1981 Fiction Kindle Sci-Fi Young Adult 0

Codebreaker

by Jay Martel

coming July 22, 2025

(4 / 5)

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press, Wednesday Books, and NetGalley for the free review copy of this book. All opinions and thoughts are completely my own.

Codebreaker was a fast-paced, high-stakes story full of puzzles, conspiracies, action, and excitement. I thought the book was a lot of fun to read. It’s full of puzzles and codes, and one thing that I especially liked was the inclusion of a symbol indicating when you could stop reading and attempt to solve the puzzle yourself. There was usually enough information that it wasn’t too difficult, and I had fun working out some of the puzzles on my own. The story also breaks it down with the characters solving the puzzle, so reader puzzle-solving isn’t a requirement, just a fun perk. I’ll admit, many of the scenarios in the story were a bit unbelievable, and the main character tended to solve the puzzles remarkably quickly, but there was plenty going on throughout the story that kept me invested and wanting to keep reading. I was pretty surprised with the directions things went a few times, so it kept me on my toes. I liked both of the main characters and their interactions with each other. I thought Logan provided great comic relief that lightened up some of the more intense scenes. I’ve seen some comparisons of this book to National Treasure and The Da Vinci Code, and I definitely got that vibe as well.

May 22, 2025 by danimae1981 Fiction Kindle Young Adult 0

Daedalus

The Nabukko Trilogy #2

by K.R. Gadeken

(4 / 5)

Thank you to BooksGoSocial and NetGalley for the free review copy of Daedalus. All opinions are completely my own.

Daedalus is the 2nd book in The Nabukko Trilogy and picks up pretty close to where the first book left off. I think I actually liked Daedalus even more than the first book. It continues the feeling of mystery, with a lot of questions still not answered by the end of the book. I definitely have some theories though, and there’s a lot of clues along the way, so it kept my interest well. This book adds in an element of adventure that I really enjoyed. There was plenty of action and drama leaving me on the edge of my seat. It made the book really hard to put down. I also enjoyed the relationships between characters. I’m looking forward to reading the next book and a bit bummed I’ll have to wait a while to see what happens next.