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Ifueko's mesmerizing debut stuns as it weaves a tale of loyalty, fate, destiny, family, and revenge. Moreover, it places a dark skinned heroine front and center, who is beautiful and powerful, deadly and compassionate, and vulnerable and tough, giving YA literature more of the diverse representation teens need. Sixteen-year-old Tarisai was born to serve the wrath of The Lady (her mother), a purpose ensured by a magical wish and having a powerful ehru (djinn) for a father. When Tarisai comes of age, The Lady sends her to Aritsar to win a position on the Crown Prince's Council of 11, earn the prince's trust, and slay him. Bound by her mother's wish, she must obey the command, though she desperately wants to choose her own path. To earn liberation, Tarisai embarks on a journey through the realms of Aritsar to unearth the details of its treacherous, sordid history. Ifueko's prose is effortless and poetic from the very first sentence. She whisks readers into a lush story that instantly gives one chills with its sweeping fantasy setting, arresting landscapes, extraordinary magic, and wondrous beings. Hand this to fans of Tomi Adeyemi or Sabaa Tahir and to seekers of adventurous fantasy.

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A charismatic 17-year-old boy used to hustling his way through life meets his match. Henri Haltiwanger, who is Haitian American, has a face for everyone—the wealthy owners of the dogs he walks under his guise of a business, the rich kids he attends Fine Arts Technical Education Academy with on Manhattan's Upper West Side, and anyone else who can help further his dream of attending Columbia University. He takes pride in his charm until Corinne—classmate and neighbor—blackmails him into helping her fix her reputation for being excessively intense and lacking in social graces. This is the last thing he needs after the disappointment of a lackluster Columbia interview, but Henri agrees, knowing their friendship can be mutually beneficial. As the pair grows closer, he realizes that he could fall for Corinne. Under the enormous pressure that befalls many first-generation Americans, Henri will do whatever it takes for a dream he is beginning to question, leading him to take a risk that just may cost him everything. This humorous, first-person narrative with a conversational, almost conspiratorial, tone will captivate readers even with the almost-too-neat ending. The author breathes life into each character, giving those in Henri's circle depth and investing readers in their stories. The novel demonstrates the pressure many face to be accepted into their dream colleges and thrive after high school. Corinne is black. A satisfyingly amusing read.

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The final weeks of high school for a wealthy, black teen are marked by the Los Angeles riots. Ashley and her family are well off—she lives in a large house, has a nanny, and attends a private school with little diversity in the student body. Although there are 12 other black students at her school, she doesn't hang out with them. Her friends are rich, white, and free with microaggressions. During the last weeks of senior year, their primary concerns are dates for prom, hanging out, and waiting for college acceptance letters. On TV, the trial of four of the police officers who beat Rodney King plays incessantly. When the officers are acquitted and the city erupts in violence, Ashley's sister joins in the protests, her uncle desperately tries to save her grandmother's business in the heart of the hot zone, and Ashley struggles to make sense of it all. Before the incident of police brutality toward Rodney King and subsequent lack of justice, Ashley had not explored what it meant to be a young black woman in the social sphere she was traveling in and in the world. U nfortunately, despite this catalyst she remains an underdeveloped character. Even with the memorable setting and explosive moment in time, the novel's struggles with pacing weaken the tension. However, the explorations of race and socio-economic privilege are valuable and will speak to readers who have not previously confronted or thought about these issues. A timely exploration of '90s Los Angeles during racial upheaval and one girl's awakening.

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The all-too-possible future in this suspenseful dystopian novel amplifies the undocumented immigrant experience in the U.S. In 2032, the violent death of a young girl at the Great American Wall near San Diego gives the authoritarian, xenophobic president the right moment to enact a media shutdown and launch the Deportation Force (DF), a brutal extension of ICE that operates outside the law. Eleventh-grader Vali has lived safely with her mami and eight-year-old brother, Ernie, in Vermont since her father was deported back to Colombia. But now the DF is closing in. When Mami's counterfeit wrist identification chip malfunctions, Vali and Ernie must leave her behind to survive. Vali trusts a coyote to drive them to California, which has declared itself a sanctuary. At the halfway mark they are on foot, hunted by drones, and barely escape an attempt to force Vali into prostitution. Death edges closer every hour as hunger, thirst, and injury sap their energy. This intense, realistic novel never lets up, even as Vali flashes back to the love and sacrifices that sustain her.

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Rooted in the working-class neighborhoods of Oakland, California, this is a tale of youth of color, diverse in sexuality and gender, organizing to challenge state-sanctioned violence. Black teenager Moss Jeffries is still grieving from the loss six years earlier of his father by the trigger finger of a police officer. Moss struggles with self-doubt and anxiety-induced panic attacks, finding comfort in his emerging relationship with Javier, a Latinx boy who's just as tender as he is bold. As the school year begins, the school resource officer assaults Moss' friend Shawna, claiming to suspect drugs—but the young people know that it's really about her decision to fully embrace her black trans identity. When the administration installs metal detectors, resulting in a tragic injury for their friend in a wheelchair, Moss and his circle organize to dismantle the system of violence at their school, beginning with a wildcat student walkout. They demonstrate that there will continue to be resistance wherein aggrieved communities gather in solidarity to build meaningful lives of collective joy, heartful struggle, and deep love. Moss' mother, Wanda, offers, "Anger is a gift. Remember that….You gotta grasp on to it, hold it tight and use it as ammunition. You use that anger to get things done instead of just stewing in it."