New Reviews: Young Adult

Merissa Czyz narrates a YA romance that takes place over the course of 24 hours. Darcy believes in love at first sight but has never experienced it--until she is stranded at a bus station and meets Russell. Czyz captures the giddiness Darcy feels at meeting a cute boy who actually seems to like her back. As Darcy gets to know Russell, it's clear they have much in common, but... Read More

This outstanding audiobook opens with an impassioned introduction narrated by its author, LaDarrion Williams. Listeners will be invested from the very first line. Narrator Jalyn Hall introduces Malik, whose mother disappeared the same night he discovered he has magical powers he can't control. Since then, he has lived in foster care and kept his abilities a secret. Now 17,... Read More

Tony Award-winning actor Cynthia Erivo brings her considerable talent to the long-anticipated final installment of Tomi Adeyemi's groundbreaking fantasy, Legacy of Orisha. With a rich tonal range and depth of feeling, Erivo conveys Zélie's anguish beautifully, projecting the complex emotions of her capture by King Baldyr. Erivo's narration is powerful and nuanced as she voices... Read More

Golden Voice Kevin R. Free portrays Calvin Greene's mix of paranoia and anger when his African American family demands that he pass as white in a segregated Pennsylvania community in 1955. Free expresses the longing Kevin feels for his sister, who was killed by racial violence. While pretending to be a white person, he also misses his best friend, his estranged brother, and... Read More

Narrator Angel Pean voices Jerusalem, an 18-year-old with powers that make her fearless. She hates the vampires that tortured her and joins the Union army to fight against them, even if it means being trained by another vampire, a Russian named Alexi. While youthful voices suit the teenage characters, a Russian vampire with an American accent and slight inconsistencies in... Read More

Narrator Michael Crouch's accent plunges the listener into the Ozarks setting of this YA novel. Willie is most comfortable in his older brother's shadow. He's also at a loss over his parents' separation. Crouch gives listeners a soft-spoken and thoughtful young man whose tone is full of his yearning to better understand his place in the world. At first, the phone game Manifest... Read More

Four narrators depict intergenerational Filipino sons and fathers over the course of a century. Ramón de Ocampo portrays young Francisco, who works tirelessly on California farms in the 1930s, occasionally regretting having left his Philippines home. JB Tadena captures angry Emil, who lives and works in poverty after Francisco, now an adult, deserts his family to pursue... Read More

Rukhmani K. Desai fully expresses the many facets of 1992 Stanford freshman Gita Desai. Humorous sarcasm and success in her pre-med studies communicate Gita's intelligence. Desai also voices Gita's uncertainty about her developing sexuality and first girlfriend relationships. Desai moves easily between English and Indian terms. Her voice resonates as Gita wonders about why her... Read More

Robb Moreira's appealing and empathetic performance anchors listeners in Tucson teenager Brett's point of view. Brett is creative and funny and has a great vocabulary, thanks to his adoptive mother, Evelyn--and his life is spinning out of his control. Brett tries to escape his grief by making and distributing new issues of his Kid Condor comic book, watching THE KARATE KID,... Read More

Avi Roque emanates fierce, Latine energy as they voice these fabulous gay boys in Texas during the summer after their junior year of high school. Mac has never had the close-knit friend group he craves. All that changes when he hears Flor discuss performers Valentina and Ariana Grande on the last day of English class. The tight group of joyful Mac, good-hearted Flor, tumultuous... Read More

This lively audio adaptation of Huda Fahmy's hilarious graphic novel will delight listeners. Huda's having a crisis. Her family's just moved from a small town to Dearborn, Michigan, and suddenly her identity can no longer be "the hijabi girl" because she's not the only one anymore. Fahmy's wry narration captures the humor and the many ups and downs of her freshman year in a new... Read More

Sarah Skaer's bubbly narration captures Natalie Nakada's delight at times spent with her best friend, Imogene. But all too soon, Skaer reveals Natalie's lingering grief a year after Imogene's death. Her feelings of loss cast a pall over her senior project, a retreat at one of their favorite places, the haunted Harlow Hotel. There Natalie hopes to film paranormal activity that... Read More

Sara Novak expressively narrates this young adult novel featuring diverse characters in the UK. Mara and Nico's relationship has always been uneven, with Mara seemingly more invested and interested in Nico than she is in Mara. After an accident causes Nico to have amnesia, Mara wonders if they have a second chance to have a healthy relationship--and if they're doomed when... Read More

Christopher Gebauer narrated the tragic novel ORBITING JUPITER and now delivers its companion; both stories are told in the voice of an eighth-grader named Jack. Gebauer also reflects the silliness of 3-year-old Jupiter and the cheer and warmth of Jack's family, who are planning to adopt her. Gebauer expresses Jack's rage and grief as Jupiter's adoption is challenged by her... Read More

An ensemble of narrators delves into this audiobook in which a Blackfeet girl's murder is tied to four teens. Loren, whose sister went missing months ago, is voiced by Katie Anvil Rich. Mara, voiced by Julie Lumsden, is new to the reservation. Brody, voiced by Shaun Taylor-Corbett, is a jokester with a crush. And Eli, voiced by Jordan Waunch, is full of secrets and spends a lot... Read More

Coauthor and narrator Lexi Underwood brings high schooler Jordyn to life in this young adult audiobook about the power of art. Jordyn wants a fresh start at her new school. But when an anonymous podcaster reveals intimate secrets about students, including a piece on Jordyn's past, she teams up with her new friends to take down the podcast for good. Underwood primarily narrates,... Read More

Shiromi Arserio narrates a fantasy set more than 400 years in the future. After a gangster destroys her home, Adya must work with a despised rival to save her sister--and the world. Adya has led a difficult life, and her anger, resentment, and general mistrust are highlighted in Arserio's portrayal. Princess Imral has led a sheltered life, and Arserio's portrayal is a... Read More

Ellen Quay narrates a new series, The Fae Dynasty, which begins with Thea's story. Each year a new queen is chosen from the mortals and is whisked off to the fae realm. Thea learns quickly that mortal queens never go back home; in fact, they seem to vanish. She is determined not to let that happen to her. At first, Quay portrays Thea as naïve; even though her life hasn't been... Read More

In this gentle YA novel, Austin Ku voices the perspective of a high school junior, who lives in New York City. Felix Ma's college admissions coach (hired by his parents) is pushing him to create an Ivy League-worthy project to describe in his applications. So he works on his own film with his new friends, Gaspard and Cassie. While Felix is platonically drawn to Cassie, his... Read More

Narrators Imani Jade Powers, Yinka Ladeinde, Krysta Gonzales, Victoria Connolly, Matt Bridges, and Andy Garcia bring together the interwoven stories of three mothers and their children. This intergenerational plot questions the long reach of personal choices and whether history is doomed to repeat itself. Mina, Penny, and Sheryl navigate the complexities of unexpected... Read More

Narrator Elisa Melendez delivers this LGTBQIA story in a solid voice. While it deals with sensitive topics, the main character, Daya Keane, has a resilience and self-assurance that are illuminated by Melendez. Queer high school junior Daya cannot believe it when her longtime crush, Beckett Wild, speaks to her at a party neither one should have attended. Since her father left... Read More

Art equals resistance in this dystopia set in 1991 America and voiced by Lee Osorio. Narrating from the grave, 18-year-old drama geek Max recounts the events leading up to his murder and those that follow. Osorio's rough-edged baritone modulates from pitch-perfect teen snark to deep regret as Max describes life under the huckster turned dictator whose purge of all anti-American... Read More

Karissa Vacker differentiates this audio's alternating viewpoints so distinctly that it seems like there are two narrators. Maddy has gone missing on a senior trip, and Grace, her elder sister by less than a year, has suffered a head wound and has only vague memories of her sister's disappearance. In narrating their journal entries, Vacker voices Maddy's social awkwardness in... Read More

Jesse Aaronson and the author's sister, Georgia Garrison, narrate a story of teenagers in their last year of high school and their dreams of the future. Best friends since third grade, Caplan and Mina have both been raised by single mothers on the same cul-de-sac. Cap is the golden boy prom king, while Mina is valedictorian and is expected to attend her father's Ivy League alma... Read More

Robin Miles narrates this intricate fantasy steeped in Nigerian folklore of the Urhobo tribe. Despite her traditional upbringing, Naborhi chafes at the duties looming before her--marrying a man chosen by her family, having his children, and keeping his home. When a chance encounter with a magical fox sets her on an exciting and dangerous new path, she must find courage and... Read More

Joniece Abbott-Pratt narrates this gripping origin story of Ororo before she became Storm of the X-Men. Orphaned in Cairo, Ororo has had years to hone her skills as a thief, hiding her conspicuous white hair beneath a scarf. Desperate for answers about her heritage, she joins young T'Challa of Wakanda on a journey across Africa. But staying anonymous becomes harder as her... Read More

The vocal talents of Victoria Villarreal and Skyler Gallun give life to former stepsiblings Kat and Liam, who are horrified to meet for the first time in 12 years at billionaire Ross Sutherland's birthday party. While prepared for their own parents' plan to run a con, neither is ready to deal with the extreme challenges of being drawn into it. As a believable teenage boy,... Read More

Alexandra Hunter and Michael Crouch narrate the alternating perspectives of two talented teens, Jude and Florence. Together, they celebrate "sunrise night," a tradition of their Michigan arts camp. Hunter's portrayal of Florence has an undercurrent of sarcasm that is illuminated when Florence reveals that her dancing may end due to a worsening eye condition. Crouch presents the... Read More

Kausar Mohammed passionately narrates this timely story of book banning, homophobia, and racism. Recently abandoned by her father, 18-year-old Indian American Noor Khan has been uprooted from her Chicago home and gone to live in a small town far away with her mom and younger sister. Noor is one of only a few Muslim students at her new high school, where she learns that the... Read More

In this updated retelling of Shakespeare's TWELFTH NIGHT, the classic tale of false identities and gender-swapping is enhanced by the talented narrations of Alexandra Palting and Kevin R. Free. Their youthful and energetic performances bring to life injured football player Jack Orsino and geeky tabletop gamer Viola Reyes, who meet up in an MMORPG (massively multiplayer online... Read More

Dual narrators narrate the alternating viewpoints of teens Ruby and Sean, who are studying French in Paris. Rebecca Soler captures Ruby's eagerness to create content for her YouTube channel and her reticence to sneak out of the hotel for an illegal party with three more daring friends. Soler's narration increases the tension when Ruby and her friends become lost in Paris's... Read More

This performance by a five-narrator cast is truly special. The Fall children harness unique powers. Wynton can warm a room, Miles can hear dogs, and Dizzy sees spirits. When a magical rainbow-haired girl they have all seen once in their lives returns, she reveals her connection with the family, thus beginning a whirlwind of secrets that will either break the family apart or... Read More

Anton Treuer does double duty as narrator of his debut novel, set largely in the wilderness surrounding the Nigigoonsiminikaaning First Nation, north of the Ontario-Minnesota border. Working with Grandpa Liam on his trapline, 15-year-old Ezra Cloud grapples with grief at the recent loss of his mother. It's an affecting story, but, sadly, Treuer is less gifted as a narrator of... Read More

Rebecca Soler narrates this feminist story of 16-year-old Rhiher's traumatic past. Rhi unexpectedly moves in with her gentle, caring uncle. While working at a wildlife preserve, she is shocked to find four feral girls whose guardian, a man named Mother, has recently died. Mother claimed to be a prophet and said the girls would return to the kingdom of Leutheria when they found... Read More

Narrators Jesse Vilinsky, Pete Cross, and Matthew Frow bring this YA horror story to life. Eighteen-year-old Wyatt, portrayed by the talented Vilinsky, returns to her family's farm to burn it down. As a child, she spent summers there with her friends Peter and James. While pouring gasoline throughout the house, she discovers Peter chained to a wall. Learning that her father was... Read More