New Chapter Books

All the blues in the sky

Watson, Renée.


School Library Journal starred, February 2025. Booklist starred, January 2025. Horn Book Starred, March 2025. Publishers Weekly, November 2024. Kirkus Starred, January 2025. When thirteen-year-old Sage's best friend dies, Sage struggles with grief and feels that she is at fault, but when she joins a grief group, she slowly learns to heal.
Date Published:2025

Amari and the despicable wonders

Alston, B. B.,


Booklist Starred Reviews, Horn Book Guide, Kirkus Review, Publishers Weekly Starred, School Library Connection, School Library Journal Starred, Left powerless, Amari faces her greatest challenge yet as the conflict between the League of Magicians and rival Bureau of Supernatural Affairs reaches a breaking point. Elaine Harlowe has manipulated her way into becoming prime minister, using her mind control ability to force the Bureau to take up her vicious grudge against magiciankind, while Dylan Van Helsing, the newly crowned leader of the League of Magicians and Amari's former partner, is on a mission to possess a destructive new power to ensure the magicians victory. When Amari and her friends learn that the only way to stop Dylan is to find powerful magical inventions known as Wonders, they embark on a dangerous quest to locate them before it's too late.
Date Published:2025

Booklist Starred Reviews, Horn Book Guide, Kirkus Review, Publishers Weekly Starred, School Library Connection, School Library Journal Starred, Left powerless, Amari faces her greatest challenge yet as the conflict between the League of Magicians and rival Bureau of Supernatural Affairs reaches a breaking point. Elaine Harlowe has manipulated her way into becoming prime minister, using her mind control ability to force the Bureau to take up her vicious grudge against magiciankind, while Dylan Van Helsing, the newly crowned leader of the League of Magicians and Amari's former partner, is on a mission to possess a destructive new power to ensure the magicians victory. When Amari and her friends learn that the only way to stop Dylan is to find powerful magical inventions known as Wonders, they embark on a dangerous quest to locate them before it's too late.

Date Published:2025

Away

Freeman, Megan E.,


"An Alone novel." "Companion to: Alone"--Dust jacket. Told from multiple points of view, four kids relocated to the same evacuation camp investigate the mysterious threat that forced the large-scale exodus.
Date Published:2025

Better than revenge

West, Kasie,


When seventeen-year-old Finley discovers her boyfriend Jensen used her pitch for their school's podcast team, she plots revenge while unexpectedly discovering her talent for football and a deeper connection with Jensen's rival, Theo.
Date Published:2024

The better to eat you with

Mejia, Tehlor Kay,


School Library Journal starred, August 2025. Publishers Weekly, June 2025. Booklist, August 2025. Bulletin (Center for Children's Books), October 2025. Kirkus Review, August 2025. "As her parents head toward divorce, twelve-year-old Evan spends her summer with her best friend Billie, but everything begins to fall apart as Billie drifts away, her mother's health obsession intensifies, and a growing hunger consumes her, just as a sinister presence in the woods emerges, leaving her to wonder if the real monster is inside her"--OCLC.
Date Published:2025

School Library Journal starred, August 2025. Publishers Weekly, June 2025. Booklist, August 2025. Bulletin (Center for Children's Books), October 2025. Kirkus Review, August 2025. "As her parents head toward divorce, twelve-year-old Evan spends her summer with her best friend Billie, but everything begins to fall apart as Billie drifts away, her mother's health obsession intensifies, and a growing hunger consumes her, just as a sinister presence in the woods emerges, leaving her to wonder if the real monster is inside her"--OCLC.

Date Published:2025

Black girl power : 15 stories celebrating Black girlhood /


"Freedom Fire." "From fifteen . . . Black female authors comes a collection of stories and poems about the power we find in the everyday and the beauty of Black girlhood"--Provided by publisher.
Date Published:2024

Black star

Alexander, Kwame,


Booklist Starred Reviews, Horn Book Guide, Kirkus Reviews Starred, School Library Journal Starred, Twelve-year old Black girl Charley, who dreams of becoming the first professional female pitcher, must navigate adolescence during the turbulent segregation era and the beginning of the Great Migration.
Date Published:2025

Blood in the water

Jackson, Tiffany D.,


"Brooklyn girl Kaylani McKinnon is thrust into an intricate web of lies when a shocking murder on Martha's Vineyard threatens to expose dangerous secrets"-- "Brooklyn girl Kaylani McKinnon feels like a fish out of water. She's spending the summer with family friends in their huge house on Martha's Vineyard, and the vibe is definitely snooty. Still, there are beautiful beaches, lots of ice cream, and a town full of fascinating Black history. Plus a few kids her age who seem friendly. Until the shocking death of a teenage boy. Was it a drowning? A shark attack? Or the unthinkable -- murder? Kaylani is determined to solve the mystery. But her investigation uncovers shattering secrets that could change her own life as she knows it... if she survives. --
Date Published:2025

"Brooklyn girl Kaylani McKinnon is thrust into an intricate web of lies when a shocking murder on Martha's Vineyard threatens to expose dangerous secrets"-- "Brooklyn girl Kaylani McKinnon feels like a fish out of water. She's spending the summer with family friends in their huge house on Martha's Vineyard, and the vibe is definitely snooty. Still, there are beautiful beaches, lots of ice cream, and a town full of fascinating Black history. Plus a few kids her age who seem friendly. Until the shocking death of a teenage boy. Was it a drowning? A shark attack? Or the unthinkable -- murder? Kaylani is determined to solve the mystery. But her investigation uncovers shattering secrets that could change her own life as she knows it... if she survives. --

Date Published:2025

Boy 2.0

Baptiste, Tracey,


School Library Journal starred, August 2024. Booklist, September 2024. Kirkus Review, September 2024. Publishers Weekly Annex, September 2024. When thirteen-year-old African American Coal discovers he can turn invisible, he searches for answers about his past with the help of his friends and his new foster family.
Date Published:2024

Brewed with love

Page, Shelly,


Booklist, Kirkus Review, Publishers Weekly, School Library Journal, Teenage witch Sage Bishop is perfecting a heartbreak tonic that she hopes will be the key to helping her grandmother's apothecary--the one she plans to take over one day--compete with a big box magic store that's just opened up. When she learns her grandmother has hired her ex-best friend and first crush Ximena Reyes, Sage leaves the store in a rush and feels responsible for the resulting theft of her tonic by an intruder. To save the shop, Sage must partner with Ximena to find the culprit and finds her feelings for Ximena growing as they get closer to solving the case.
Date Published:2025

Booklist, Kirkus Review, Publishers Weekly, School Library Journal, Teenage witch Sage Bishop is perfecting a heartbreak tonic that she hopes will be the key to helping her grandmother's apothecary--the one she plans to take over one day--compete with a big box magic store that's just opened up. When she learns her grandmother has hired her ex-best friend and first crush Ximena Reyes, Sage leaves the store in a rush and feels responsible for the resulting theft of her tonic by an intruder. To save the shop, Sage must partner with Ximena to find the culprit and finds her feelings for Ximena growing as they get closer to solving the case.

Date Published:2025

Bright red fruit

Elhillo, Safia.


"Samira is determined to have a perfect summer filled with fun parties, exploring DC, and growing as a poet--until a scandalous rumor has her grounded and unable to leave her house. When Samira turns to a poetry forum for solace, she catches the eye of an older, charismatic poet named Horus. For the first time, Samira feels wanted. But soon she's keeping a bigger secret than ever before--one that that could prove her reputation and jeopardize her place in her community"--Provided by publisher.
Date Published:2024

"Samira is determined to have a perfect summer filled with fun parties, exploring DC, and growing as a poet--until a scandalous rumor has her grounded and unable to leave her house. When Samira turns to a poetry forum for solace, she catches the eye of an older, charismatic poet named Horus. For the first time, Samira feels wanted. But soon she's keeping a bigger secret than ever before--one that that could prove her reputation and jeopardize her place in her community"--Provided by publisher.

Date Published:2024

The Brightwood code

Hesse, Monica,


Booklist, Horn Book Guide Starred, Kirkus Review, Publishers Weekly Starred, School Library Journal Starred, Seven months ago Edda was on the World War I front lines as one of two hundred "Hello Girls," female switchboard operators employed by the US Army, where she spent her nights memorizing secret connection codes to stay ahead of spying enemies and her days connecting calls between army generals and their men. But when her actions led to a terrible tragedy, she returned home to Washington, D.C., where she is now working as an American Bell Telephone operator. Soon, her past comes back to haunt her when Edda receives a panicked phone call from someone who utters the fateful code word "Brightwood," and she realizes someone knows about her mistake. With the help of Theo, a young man with his own World War I scars, Edda finds herself in a race against the clock to uncover the truth about the secrets that followed her back home.
Date Published:2025

Booklist, Horn Book Guide Starred, Kirkus Review, Publishers Weekly Starred, School Library Journal Starred, Seven months ago Edda was on the World War I front lines as one of two hundred "Hello Girls," female switchboard operators employed by the US Army, where she spent her nights memorizing secret connection codes to stay ahead of spying enemies and her days connecting calls between army generals and their men. But when her actions led to a terrible tragedy, she returned home to Washington, D.C., where she is now working as an American Bell Telephone operator. Soon, her past comes back to haunt her when Edda receives a panicked phone call from someone who utters the fateful code word "Brightwood," and she realizes someone knows about her mistake. With the help of Theo, a young man with his own World War I scars, Edda finds herself in a race against the clock to uncover the truth about the secrets that followed her back home.

Date Published:2025

Bye forever, I guess

Meadows, Jodi,


Eighth-grader Ingrid runs a popular blog anonymously and has online personal more popular than she is, but when a wrong-number text message offers her a chance at connection, Ingrid opens herself to the opportunity to make a real live friend.
Date Published:2025

Chronically Dolores

Van Wagenen, Maya,


Booklist starred, February 2024. Pub Weekly, December 2023. Kirkus Review, February 2024. "Dolores Mendoza is not thriving. She was recently diagnosed with a chronic bladder condition called interstitial cystitis. The painful disease isn't life threatening, but it is threatening to ruin her life. Just when things seem hopeless, Dolores meets someone poised to change her fate. Terpsichore Berkenbosch-Jones is glamorous, autistic, and homeschooled against her will by her overprotective mother. After a rocky start, the girls form a tentative partnership. Beautiful, talented Terpsichore will help Dolores win back her ex-best friend, Shae. And Dolores will convince Terpsichore's mom that her daughter has the social skills to survive public school. It seems like a foolproof plan, but Dolores isn't always a reliable narrator, and her choices may put her in danger of committing an unforgivable betrayal"--Provided by publisher.
Date Published:2025

Booklist starred, February 2024. Pub Weekly, December 2023. Kirkus Review, February 2024. "Dolores Mendoza is not thriving. She was recently diagnosed with a chronic bladder condition called interstitial cystitis. The painful disease isn't life threatening, but it is threatening to ruin her life. Just when things seem hopeless, Dolores meets someone poised to change her fate. Terpsichore Berkenbosch-Jones is glamorous, autistic, and homeschooled against her will by her overprotective mother. After a rocky start, the girls form a tentative partnership. Beautiful, talented Terpsichore will help Dolores win back her ex-best friend, Shae. And Dolores will convince Terpsichore's mom that her daughter has the social skills to survive public school. It seems like a foolproof plan, but Dolores isn't always a reliable narrator, and her choices may put her in danger of committing an unforgivable betrayal"--Provided by publisher.

Date Published:2025

Clutch time

Butler, Caron, 1980-,


Kirkus Reviews Starred, Kofi "KO" Douglas has recently been named the top AAU player in the country, and he knows he has the skills to succeed even if his Wolves team lost to the Sabres in the national championship. He believes nobody can beat him one-on-one, but everything changes when his former best friend, Ripp, whose dad plays professional basketball overseas, returns to their hometown of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Meanwhile, his home life gets complicated when he learns his father, who has been incarcerated for the last seven years, is getting out and wants to reconnect with KO and his mother. When Ripp challenges him to take part in the biggest tournament of the summer, the McNabby, KO decides to turn to Coach James and the Sabres for help even if he doesn't love the idea of playing with Tony Washington and his former teammates again.
Date Published:2025

Kirkus Reviews Starred, Kofi "KO" Douglas has recently been named the top AAU player in the country, and he knows he has the skills to succeed even if his Wolves team lost to the Sabres in the national championship. He believes nobody can beat him one-on-one, but everything changes when his former best friend, Ripp, whose dad plays professional basketball overseas, returns to their hometown of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Meanwhile, his home life gets complicated when he learns his father, who has been incarcerated for the last seven years, is getting out and wants to reconnect with KO and his mother. When Ripp challenges him to take part in the biggest tournament of the summer, the McNabby, KO decides to turn to Coach James and the Sabres for help even if he doesn't love the idea of playing with Tony Washington and his former teammates again.

Date Published:2025

Coach

Reynolds, Jason.



Date Published:2025

The color of a lie

Johnson, Kim, 1979-,


Booklist, Horn Book Guide, Kirkus Reviews Starred, Publishers Weekly Starred, School Library Journal Starred, Growing up in 1955, Calvin Greene knows how to pass for white, especially in his hometown of Chicago, Illinois, when he needs to, but after a tragedy forces the family to flee, they resettle in an idyllic all-white suburban town in search of a better life. As Calvin tries to adapt to a life where he has to hide his true self, he soon finds himself going across town where he can make Black friends who know all of him and spend more time with his new crush, Lily. But when Calvin discovers dark secrets about the white town and its inhabitants, his actions put his family at risk, and he is forced to make an impossible decision.
Date Published:2024

Booklist, Horn Book Guide, Kirkus Reviews Starred, Publishers Weekly Starred, School Library Journal Starred, Growing up in 1955, Calvin Greene knows how to pass for white, especially in his hometown of Chicago, Illinois, when he needs to, but after a tragedy forces the family to flee, they resettle in an idyllic all-white suburban town in search of a better life. As Calvin tries to adapt to a life where he has to hide his true self, he soon finds himself going across town where he can make Black friends who know all of him and spend more time with his new crush, Lily. But when Calvin discovers dark secrets about the white town and its inhabitants, his actions put his family at risk, and he is forced to make an impossible decision.

Date Published:2024

The dare

Preston, Natasha,


School Library Journal, June 2024. When a high school prank turns deadly, Marley and her friends must do everything they can to conceal the truth.
Date Published:2024

Dating and dragons

Boyce, Kristy.


After starting at a new school, high school junior Quinn joins a D&D group to make friends but finds herself torn between her feelings for a charming yet annoying teammate and the drama stirred up by ex-friends from a previous campaign.
Date Published:2024

The dead of summer

La Sala, Ryan,


Booklist Starred Reviews, Kirkus Review, Publishers Weekly Starred, Seventeen-year-old Ollie fights to survive a deadly summer on an island off the coast of Maine after it is placed under quarantine due to a long-sunken horror rising from the sea.
Date Published:2025