July Debut YA Novels

Written by: Kelly on July 20, 2015.

It’s time for another round-up of debut YA novels of the month.

Like always, this round-up includes debut novels, where “debut” is in its purest definition. These are first-time books by first-time authors. I’m not including books by authors who are using or have used a pseudonym in the past or those who have written in other categories (adult, middle grade, etc.) in the past.

All descriptions are from WorldCat, unless otherwise noted. If I’m missing any debuts out in July from traditional publishers, let me know in the comments. As always, not all noted titles included here are necessarily endorsements for those titles.

Pretending to be Erica by Michelle Painchaud: Violet has been preparing her entire life to step into the shoes of the missing heiress Erica Silverman, in order to pull off the biggest inside job in Las Vegas history. She doesn’t count on having a conscience.

You and Me and Him by Kris Dinnison: Maggie Bowers thinks she knows what to expect her junior year of high school, but when she and her out-of-the-closet best friend Nash have feelings for the same boy she wonders if winning someone’s heart means losing her soulmate.

Jillian Cade: Fake Paranormal Investigator by Jen Klein: A seventeen-year-old girl runs a fake paranormal detection agency, but when she takes a case involving a non-paranormal missing person, things start to get strange and her feelings for partner Sky Ramsey start to grow.

Damage Done by Amanda Panitch: Julia Vann has a new identity after being forced to leave town because of her twin brother’s terrible crime. Julia is the only survivor but she can’t remember what happened–at least, that’s what she tells the police.

Ruthless by Carolyn Lee Adams: When Ruth is kidnapped, she’s determined not to become this serial-killer’s next trophy. After she’s able to escape, her captor begins stalking her through the wilderness.

Stone Rider by David Hofmeyr: A young man who seeks revenge and redemption from his past joins a brutal race to win a chance to escape his dying world.

Forever For A Year by B. T. Gottfred: Two young teens fall in love for the first time, and discover it might not last forever.

Written by: Kelly on July 16, 2014.

Ready for your monthly round-up of debut YA novels? If you’ve missed any of the prior editions from this year, you can find earlier debuts through the debut authors label here.

As usual, all of these are books by first-time authors. These are their very first published books, rather than their first foray into YA or their first YA novel within a particular YA genre or their first YA novle under a different name. Descriptions come from WorldCat unless otherwise noted.

July tends to be a quieter month in publishing, so there aren’t a whole lot of debuts to talk about. But if I’ve missed any traditionally published debuts coming out this month, let me know in the comments.

Extraction by Stephanie Diaz: When she proves Promising enough to be “extracted” from the planet Kiel’s toxic Surface to the much safer Core, sixteen-year-old Clementine learns that the planet’s leaders are planning to exterminate Surface dwellers, including Logan, the boy Clementine loves.

The Fire Wish by Amber Lough: When a princess captures a jinn and makes a wish, she is transported to the fiery world of the jinn, while the jinn must take her place in the royal court of Baghdad.

Illusive by Emily Lloyd-Jones: After a vaccine accidentally creates superpowers in a small percentage of the population, seventeen-year-old Ciere, an illusionist, teams up with a group of fellow high-class, super-powered thieves to steal the vaccine’s formula while staying one step ahead of mobsters and deadly government agents.

Between by Megan Whitmer: When a supernatural freak of nature forces her family to separate, seventeen-year-old Charlie Page must turn to her frustrating (yet gorgeous) neighbor, Seth, to help reunite them. Seth whisks Charlie to Ellauria–a magical world filled with the creatures of myths and legends–and tells her of the Fellowship, the group charged with protecting mystical beings from human discovery. (All except Bigfoot: that attention whore is a total lost cause.) But when Charlie learns that she’s under the Fellowship’s protection herself, well, stressed is an understatement. Ellauria should be the safest place for Charlie while the Fellowship works to find her family, but things in the mystical realm aren’t what they seem. Magic is failing, creatures are dying, and the Fellowship insists Charlie holds the key to saving everyone. With her family still missing and the danger in Ellauria growing, Charlie doesn’t know who she can trust. She’s dealing with a power she never asked for, falling for a guy she can’t have, and being forced to choose between her destiny and her heart. And if she chooses wrong, she could destroy magic forever. Charlie may be in over her head.

Dream Boy by Madelyn Rosenberg and Mary Crockett Hill: The day after Annabelle dreams of the perfect boy, he walks into her science class and whispers her name as he brushes past her, and suddenly she has a wonderful boyfriend and a prom date, just like a dream come true–until the dreams stop and the nightmares begin.

Midnight Thief by Livia Blackburne: Kyra, a highly skilled seventeen-year-old thief, joins a guild of assassins with questionable motives. Tristam, a young knight, fights against the vicious Demon Riders that are ravaging the city.

Copper Magic by Julia Mary Gibson: The year is 1906, and twelve-year-old Violet Blake unearths an ancient talisman–a copper hand–beside the stream where her mother used to harvest medicine. Violet’s touch warms the copper hand and it begins to reveal glimpses of another time. Violet is certain that the copper hand is magic–and if anyone is in need of its powers, it’s Violet. Her mother and adored baby brother are gone, perhaps never to return. Her heartbroken father can’t seem to sustain the failing farm on the outskirts of Pigeon Harbor, on the shores of Lake Michigan. Surely the magic of the copper hand can make things right for Violet and restore her fractured family. Violet makes a wish. But her ignorant carelessness unleashes formidable powers–and her attempts to control them jeopardizes not only herself, but the entire town of Pigeon Harbor. In Copper Magic, land and waters are alive with memories, intentions, and impulses. Magic alters Violet and brings her gifts–but not always the kind she thinks she needs.

(This skews maybe more middle grade than YA, but I’m including it anyway since the main character is 12.)

The Half Life of Molly Pierce by Katrina Leno: Molly, a seventeen-year-old girl who suffers from dissociative identity disorder, has played host to Mabel, a completely distinct personality, for most her life. When Molly faces a crisis Mabel doesn’t know she can handle, Mabel lets Molly in on her secrets.

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