Carmela's Books

A stunning debut from Nina Varela, Crier’s War is full of political intrigue, vibrant worldbuilding, and a slow-burn romance for the ages. Following the lives of Ayla and Crier, two girls on different sides of a species war, this book revives the rebel girl trope and amps it to levels of honesty and complexity YA rarely touches on.  After the War of Kinds ravaged the kingdom of Rabu, the Automae, designed to be the playthings of royals, usurped their owners’ estates and bent the human race to their will. Now Ayla, a human servant rising in the ranks at the House of the Sovereign, dreams of avenging her family’s death…by killing the sovereign’s daughter, Lady Crier. Crier was Made to be beautiful, flawless, and to carry on her father’s legacy. But that was before her betrothal to the enigmatic Scyre Kinok, before she discovered her father isn’t the benevolent king she once admired, and most importantly, before she met Ayla. Now, with growing human unrest across the land, pressures ...

I remember losing it when the Teen Titans YA graphic novel series was announced years ago, especially when Gabriel Picolo, my favorite illustrator, signed on to do it. Fast forward and I’ve finally gotten around to reading Beast Boy and let me tell you, Kami Garcia and Picolo have a way of bringing your childhood characters to life in ways that make you feel like a kid discovering storytelling again.  Garfield Logan has spent his entire life being overlooked. Even in a small town like Eden, Georgia, the 17-year-old with green streaks in his hair can’t find a way to stand out–and the clock is ticking. Senior year is almost over. If Gar doesn’t find a way to impress the Chosen Ones–the social elite at Bull Creek High School–he will never know what it’s like to matter. Gar’s best friends, Stella and Tank, don’t understand why he cares what other people think. They miss their funny, pizza-loving, video game-obsessed best friend. Then Gar accepts a wild dare out of the blue. It impresse...

Hold Still is a simultaneous punch in the gut and pat on the back to anyone who’s ever been impacted by suicide. This book made me choke up and cry more than anything else I’ve ever read. Nina LaCour, the queen of grief stories, has created a pseudo-memoir for anyone still struggling, showing us all we’re not alone in our loss.  In words and illustrations, Ingrid left behind a painful farewell in her journal for Caitlin. Now Caitlin is left alone, by loss and by choice, struggling to find renewed hope in the wake of her best friend's suicide. With the help of family and newfound friends, Caitlin will encounter first love, broaden her horizons, and start to realize that true friendship didn't die with Ingrid. And the journal which once seemed only to chronicle Ingrid's descent into depression, becomes the tool by which Caitlin once again reaches out to all those who loved Ingrid—and Caitlin herself. This is the second Nina LaCour book I’ve read, and while I didn’t really en...

It’s honestly a crime that I don’t often see this book on queer Bookstagram/BookTok. I rarely read books that make me this happy for this long. Well-written and bursting at the seems with unapologetic queer joy, Sophie Gonzales’s Only Mostly Devasted is just that—devastatingly amazing. Will Tavares is the dream summer fling ― he's fun, affectionate, kind ― but just when Ollie thinks he's found his Happily Ever After, summer vacation ends and Will stops texting Ollie back. Now Ollie is one prince short of his fairy tale ending, and to complicate the fairy tale further, a family emergency sees Ollie uprooted and enrolled at a new school across the country. Which he minds a little less when he realizes it's the same school Will goes to... except Ollie finds that the sweet, comfortably queer guy he knew from summer isn't the same one attending Collinswood High. This Will is a class clown, closeted ― and, to be honest, a bit of a jerk. Ollie has no intention of pining after...

Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone have ushered in a groundbreaking addition to the speculative fiction meta-narrative, and they’ve done it with absolute pizzazz. This is How You Lose the Time War is an ode to everything wacky, weird, and wondrous, and has cemented its place in my recommendations for anyone wanting to peek their head out of contemporary works and into the unknown.  Among the ashes of a dying world, an agent of the Commandant finds a letter. It reads: Burn before reading. Thus begins an unlikely correspondence between two rival agents hellbent on securing the best possible future for their warring factions. Now, what began as a taunt, a battlefield boast, grows into something more. Something epic. Something romantic. Something that could change the past and the future. Except the discovery of their bond would mean death for each of them. There's still a war going on, after all. And someone has to win that war. This book is off the walls weird in the best way possible...

A Cuban Girl’s Guide to Tea & Tomorrow is a love letter to anyone who’s ever driven off the beaten path. Laura Taylor Namey’s writing is bold and bright, and Lila’s story proves that just because we plan our futures one way doesn’t mean we don’t have other options. For Lila Reyes, a summer in England was never part of the plan. The plan was 1) take over her abuela’s role as head baker at their panadería, 2) move in with her best friend after graduation, and 3) live happily ever after with her boyfriend. But then the Trifecta happened, and everything—including Lila herself—fell apart. Worried about Lila’s mental health, her parents make a new plan for her: spend three months with family friends in Winchester, England, to relax and reset. But with the lack of sun, a grumpy inn cook, and a small town lacking Miami flavor (both in food and otherwise), what would be a dream trip for some feels more like a nightmare to Lila…until she meets Orion Maxwell. A teashop clerk with troubles of ...

  Perfect for fans of Sarah Dessen, Freya Sampson’s The Last Chance Library is touching and colorful, a great start for anyone wanting to dip their toes into the chick-lit genre.  Lonely librarian June Jones has never left the sleepy English village where she grew up. Shy and reclusive, the thirty-year-old would rather spend her time buried in books than venture out into the world. But when her library is threatened with closure, June is forced to emerge from behind the shelves to save the heart of her community and the place that holds the dearest memories of her mother. Joining a band of eccentric yet dedicated locals in a campaign to keep the library, June opens herself up to other people for the first time since her mother died. It just so happens that her old school friend Alex Chen is back in town and willing to lend a helping hand. The kindhearted lawyer's feelings for her are obvious to everyone but June, who won't believe that anyone could ever care for her in that w...