New YA Intrusion Fantasies

 Last year I introduced the concept of intrusion fantasy, a subgenre of fantasy fiction in which fanciful events intrude on an otherwise normal world.   Once again I am recommending three intrusion fantasy novels that I enjoyed. The Prince and the Apocalypse by Kara McDowell finds a high school senior, who meets a runaway prince, enlisting his help to return home before a comet hits the earth. I'll Stop the World by Lauren Thoman is a time travel mystery where a young teen tries to prevent his grandparents' deaths and thus change the trajectory of his life. Always Isn't Forever by J.C. Cervantes introduces Ruby and Hart, teens whose future is derailed when he is killed in a boating accident. When his soul is reinstated in another dying boy's body, it is up to Hart to win Ruby back without telling her who he really is. 

In The Prince and the Apocalypse Wren Wheeler is on her senior-year trip to London.  The much anticipated trip is turning out to be a disaster.  Hoping to end on a high note, she goes to The World's End restaurant, only to find it closed. But there she meets Prince Theo, who is on the run from the palace and his mother. When Wren helps him escape, he gives her his number and offers to return the favor, which she uses when her flight home is cancelled.  A comet is heading toward earth, and the world is ending in eight days.  Prince Theo offers to take her to Santorini and send her home on the family's private jet.  Traveling through Europe by boat, train and an accidentally stolen automobile, trying to avoid the paparazzi,  Wren and Theo develop a bond that only seems threatened by the apocalypse. The undeniable chemistry and amusing banter make this a fun read, albeit the dire consequences. 

I'll Stop the World, a genre-bending mystery, introduces Justin Warren, whose life has always been overshadowed by his grandparents' deaths.  His orphaned mother is now an alcoholic, who had him out of wedlock. Stan, her live-in boyfriend is obsessed with the murders. When Justin drives off a bridge and lands in 1985, he has an opportunity to redirect his future. He meets Rose Yin, a do-gooder who becomes his ally, and together they attempt to solve the murders before it's too late. The story unfolds over the course of one week in a world 38 years before the present. Solving the mysteries of his complicated family history, as well as his time travel, make for an entertaining read with a satisfying ending. 

In Always Isn't Forever soul mates Hart Augusto and Ruby Amanté are planning a future together when he dies trying to save a child in a boating accident  As Ruby is struggling with her grief, Hart finds himself negotiating with Lourdes, an angel who mistakenly took him before he was actually dead.  She offers to bring him back to life in another body, and he requests to be near Ruby. Bad boy Jameson Romanelli, Ruby's nemesis, is near death after a motorcycle accident and Lourdes places Hart's soul in his body.  Now it is up to Hart, who is forbidden from telling anyone who he really is, to win Ruby back. Ruby is confused as to why she is suddenly drawn to Jameson and why he reminds her so much of Hart.  Will their love be strong enough to bridge the distance and give them a new chance at a future together?

New Young Adult Mysteries

 Mysteries are arguably the most popular genre in fiction. In teaching the mystery genre, analyzing the author's use of classic mystery techniques: clues, suspects, red herrings, foreshadowing, and cliff hangers among others, can help students understand why mysteries are such page turners. I am recommending five new young adult mysteries this month. I'll Stop the World by Lauren Thoman is a genre-bending mystery which finds the main character traveling back in time to solve his grandparents' murder. Marie Lu's new series opener Stars and Smoke is a spy novel which teams up a pop star and his bodyguard. Three Drops of Blood by Gretchen McNeil is a Hitchcock inspired murder mystery where the protagonist witnesses a murder while looking out the window, but no one will believe her. Royal Blood, the first in a new trilogy by Aimee Carter, introduces Evan Bright, the illegitimate daughter of the British King, who becomes a murder suspect when she goes to Britain to meet her family.   The Night in Question, the second in the Agathas series by Kathleen Glasgow and Liz Larson, is a closed circle mystery, where Alice and Iris attend a party on an island where a murder occurs. 

In I'll Stop the World Justin Warren travels back in time to find out who set the high school fire that killed his grandparents and to try to stop them.  Justin's life has always been overshadowed by his grandparents' deaths.  His orphaned mother is now an alcoholic, who had him out of wedlock. Stan, her live-in boyfriend, is obsessed with the murders. When Justin drives off a bridge one rainy night and lands in 1985 prior to his grandparents' deaths, he has an opportunity to change the trajectory of his life.  He meets Rose Yin and together they attempt to solve the murders before it's too late. This coming-of-age second chances novel was published by Mindy Kaling's new book studio. Time travel books are tough to pull off and this one with a story line that unfolds both over the course of one week and 38 years has an amazingly satisfyingly ending. 

Stars and Smoke finds a secret agent teaming up with a pop star to bring down a crime syndicate boss. Winter Young, a Chinese American superstar, is recruited by the Panacea Group, an espionage organization, when he is invited to play at crime boss Eli Morrison's daughter's birthday extravaganza.  Winter and Sydney Cossette, a Panacea spy who is posing as his bodyguard, must infiltrate Eli's inner circle and find out about a chemical weapon he is developing.  Although Sydney dismisses Winter as just another pretty face, she soon discovers there is more to him than meets the eye. Their backstories and budding romance are secondary to the action adventure which spy novel fans will love.

In Three Drops of Blood plus-size actress Kate Williams lands a co-starring role on Dirty Pretty Teens, opposite former Disney star Belle Masterson.  Just as Kate makes the decision to skip college and pursue acting, Belle gets caught in a compromising position with the 38-year-old showrunner, and the series is cancelled.  Kate's parents are determined to change Kates mind about college and start charging her for food and rent, so she takes an evening job, filing at her best friend Rowan's dad's law firm. One night she is looking out the window and witnesses a double murder. Nobody wants to believe her except Rowan's brother Ty, whose heart she broke the previous year.  Kate  struggles to be taken seriously, both as an actress looking for roles other than the fat funny sidekick, and as the witness to a serious crime.  Inspired by Hitchcock's Rear Window, this is a page turning thriller and sweet romance with an unconventional protagonist. 

The first book in the Royal Blood trilogy introduces Evan Bright, the illegitimate American daughter of Britain's King Alexander.  After being expelled from her ninth boarding school for setting it on fire, the king's personal secretary spirits her away to Windsor Castle, where her half sister and stepmother greet her with cold shoulders. Evan wants to go home to her mother Laura, who is schizophrenic, but because of the disease, Evan is not allowed to live with her.  Her 18th birthday, when she can make her own decisions, is only a month away. But during her time in England, Evan is assaulted by Jasper Cunningham who ends up murdered with Evan being the prime suspect She and the king's nephew Kit attempt to clear her name.   Readers who enjoy everything royal will find this a unique take on the genre.

The Night in Question, the second book in the Agathas mystery series, finds Alice Ogilvie and Iris Adams attending a Sadie Hawkins dance at Levy Castle, the site of one of Castle Cove's unsolved murders.  Mona Moody, a classic film star, died in the island castle almost a century ago. Alice, who is wandering around looking for clues about Mona's death, walks into a new crime scene.   Rebecca Kennedy is lying in a pool of blood, and Helen Park is standing over her holding a letter opener, the presumed murder weapon.  Although the police think it is an open and shut case, Alice and Iris suspect that Helen is innocent and set out to prove it. Quotes from Agatha Christie's mysteries, as well as fictious quotes from Mona Moody movies, open each chapter. This book comes out May 4, 2023.