April is an exciting month for new book releases, with new titles by big author names, as well as debut authors too. Here are some of my top picks that I think everyone should read this month:
What I Thought Was True by Huntley Fitzpatrick
Huntley Fitzpatrick is the author of My Life Next Door, which was published in the UK earlier this year, and What I Thought Was True is a contemporary companion novel to it. Huntley’s books are perfect to get you in the mood for summer, have great romances and are incredibly cute.
I love Huntley’s books, so What I Thought Was True is highly recommended from me. It has everything I look for in a great contemporary!
Love Song by Sophia Bennett
If you love listening to One Direction or 5 Seconds of Summer, you’ll love reading Love Song. It tells the story of a teenage girl called Nina who goes on tour with a band called The Point, as assistant to the lead singer’s fiancée. There’s the expected drama that comes along with looking after a diva, but it also offers friendship, self-discovery and adventure.
I read Love Song so quickly because I couldn’t wait to see what happened next and it’s definitely my favourite of Sophia Bennett’s books so far. Sophia Bennett is an incredibly talented UKYA writer who I love, so Love Song is a must-read recommendation from me!
When We Collided by Emery Lord
Emery Lord is another amazing contemporary writer, who also wrote Open Road Summer. When We Collided is her first novel to be published in the UK and it sounds like an emotional coming-of-age tale about mental health, as well as romance thrown in. Perfect!
Passenger by Alexandra Bracken
Alexandra Bracken is the author of the best-selling The Darkest Minds trilogy, and Passenger is her latest release post-publication of the final The Darkest Minds book. Passenger tells the story of a hunt through time; I love time travel novels so this sounds perfect for me. I can’t wait!
Chasing the Stars by Malorie Blackman
Described as an Othello retelling in outer space, Children’s Laureate Malorie Blackman returns with Chasing the Stars this month, the first YA book published since her time as Children’s Laureate. Malorie is the Queen of YA so of course Chasing the Stars is going to be phenomenal.
The Art of Not Breathing by Sarah Alexander
The Art of Not Breathing is Sarah Alexander’s debut novel and has one of the most breath-taking covers I’ve seen all year. I think the description sums it up best:
“Since her twin brother, Eddie, drowned five years ago, sixteen-year-old Elsie Main has tried to make sense of what happened – one minute he was there, the next he was gone. Eddie’s body was never found and her parents and older brother refuse to talk about it. Fed up with school and disintegrating family relationships at home, Elsie escapes to her secret hiding place – an disused boathouse – where she can eat as many Mars bars as she wants and listen to the rain. There she meets seventeen-year-old Tay McKenzie – cool, mysterious and addicted to freediving. When Tay introduces Elsie to the underwater world, she wonders if the answers she seeks are at the bottom of the sea, and she’s determined to discover the truth about that tragic day.”
The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater
The Raven King is the conclusion to Maggie Stiefvater’s The Raven Cycle series and is highly anticipated by readers all over the world. The characters feel like best friends and the plot is reaching a dramatic crescendo, so I know a lot of hearts will be broken to see it finish at the end of this month.
I’ve fallen head over heels in love with this and know I’ll be reading it as soon as I can get my hands on a copy. I do, however, know it will completely destroy me and I’m not sure what I’ll do with myself once I’ve finished it. Cry for a very long time, probably?