Sometimes you are not ready to say goodbye to your favorite characters and the world you are very intertwined into. Luckily, some authors are not ready to let go too. Sometimes a new book from your favorite series will pop out of nowhere. I stumbled upon some of those myself and want to share some of my favorite upcoming books with very promising plots.
Today we will travel in the future and uncover the best new young adult books coming out later in 2023.
Night Angel Nemesis (The Kylar Chronicles) by Brent Weeks
Release date: April 25
If you have not yet read the Night Angel series by Brent Weeks, leave this post, drop what you’re doing, skip class, take a PTO, and just go and read it.
Perfect for fans of assassins and good haste, Night Angel World is a fantasy every YA reader will enjoy. You can read more about it in our ya assassin fantasy roundup, but to recap, the book is freaking amazing, full of magic, danger, a battle of good, evil, not so good good, and not so evil evil and so much more!
This new installment will follow the events after the original trilogy. Loose threads will be untangled and we will once again see our favorite characters.
In the wake of a devastating war that left him shattered and isolated, Kylar Stern vows to never take a life again. However, as an upcoming amnesty threatens to release the one killer he cannot forgive, Kylar finds himself faced with a difficult choice. Reluctantly, he decides that one final mission is necessary to settle the scores from his past and put his old life to rest once and for all.
The third Night Angel book has so many unanswered questions, and so many possible good stories left to be told. If this book is half as good as the original trilogy, trust me, you won’t regret spending your time on it. Get ready for adventure, possibly and most certainly mind-blowing fights, battles, and stories of love and friendship masterfully told by Brent Weeks.
A Soul of Ash and Blood (Blood and Ash) Jennifer L. Armentrout
Release date: July 18
Those of you familiar with smutty Booktalk and Bookstagram would probably have at least heard about Miss Jennifer L. Armentrout.
Blood and Ash world-building is enticing. A curse upon a kingdom, a disease that no one can defeat, creatures born from it, threatening doom for everyone. In the middle of it all is a Maiden, an ordinary girl chosen from birth to usher the Ascended and raised to serve the great destiny of the gods.
Throughout four books, Poppy, the Maiden, goes through radical metamorphosis and so does the world-building of the book. Great primal power will rise and the forces beyond imagination will be in play and the fate of all will be hanging by a thread.
This book began as friends to enemies to lovers, between the Maiden and a Royal Guard, but in this new book, we will see those characters develop into true kick-asses and the series itself into one of the most anticipated ya books of 2023.
The Chalice of the Gods (Percy Jackson and the Olympians) by Rick Riordan
Release date: September 26
Those of you, who have been following our previous posts, will already be familiar with the journeys of Percy Jackson. After the original series, Percy has made multiple appearances in other Riordon book series, but this will be the first after The Last Olympian from the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series and the first one in years, where the original trio, Percy, Grover, and Annabeth will reunite.
We see Percy grow in each book and after years of following his adventures from the time he was 12, it is time for him to go to college.
Applying to college is stressful enough, trust me, I know. You have to get ready for the exams, find a good school and get letters of recommendation. Unfortunately for Percy, it will be ten times harder, because he has to get those from actual gods, not your normal English language teacher Karen.
In order to get the letters of recommendation from Mount Olympus, Percy has to go on quests. The first quest is to help Zeus’s cup-bearer retrieve his goblet before it falls into the wrong hands. But can Percy, Grover, and Annabeth find it in time?
Throne of The Fallen by Kerri Maniscalco
Release date: October 3
One of the best YA fantasy books of 2020, Kingdom of the Wicked, came to an end last year. But that doesn’t mean the author is done with the Kingdoms of Hell and its dashing princes.
This time, the author will drop all restrictions and write her book for an Adult audience. Knowing my homegirl Kerri, the book will be full of mischief and spice!
It will follow the side character from the Kingdom of the Wicked, Prince Envy.
“Sinner. Villain. Ruthless.”
These are the wicked titles Prince Envy embraces, a constant reminder that he is no angel. When a mysterious note heralds the start of a perilous game, he realizes he’ll be called far worse before it concludes.
“Talented. Darling. Liar.”
The problem with rogues and scoundrels is their utter lack of honor, a lesson Miss Camilla Antonius learns the hard way. One impulsive misstep leaves her at the mercy of the notorious rake and satire sheet legend, Lord Phillip Vexley. Soon, she discovers that Vexley isn’t the only rogue trying to get her unique artistic talents.
To evade Vexley’s grasp and a potentially disastrous scandal, Camilla strikes a dangerous bargain with Waverly Green’s enigmatic newcomer, Lord Ashford ‘Syn’ Synton. Little does she know, his wicked game will not only challenge her cunning but also awaken her true nature.
Kerri Maniscalco is a mastermind of mystery, her books are a strange mix of Agatha Christie detectives and Sarah J Maas fantasy romances. Her characters are so interesting and the vibe she creates takes you to those old-style novels with a modern twist.
Envy is very closed off, protecting his true nature with the guise of not caring, but has a great capacity to do so. I am very excited to watch this distant, mischievous, and cocky prince fall in love. I have not met Lady Camilla yet, but based on her other female characters like Emilia (Kingdom of the Wicked) and Audrey Rose Wadsworth (Stalking Jack the Ripper), she will make you fall in love with her too.
The Night Hunt Alexandra Kristo
Release date: October 7
“In this YA fantasy romance, a heroine who feeds on fear and a boy without a past combine forces to hunt down the Gods who destroyed both their worlds.” -Publisher Weekly
You know it’s gonna be something when a girl has horns and the book smells of enemies to lovers trope.
Alexandra Kristo conquered my heart with her standalone YA book, To Kill A Kingdom. From pirates, heart-wrenching (literally) sirens, and evil witches, the author moves on to the world of Gods and Demons.
Meet Atia, a fearsome being who thrives on fear itself. As the last of her kind, she dwells in the shadows, desperate to evade the capricious Gods’ fury. Then there’s Silas, a Herald burdened with delivering messages and shepherding the dead as penance for a past he cannot recall. Stripped of his true name, he longs to reclaim his identity.
The thought of joining forces with someone like Silas would never cross Atia’s mind. But when she breaks a sacred law and causes the Gods’ wrath, monstrous hunters are sent after her. It is then that Silas presents an irresistible offer: in exchange for her assistance in breaking his curse and regaining his humanity, he’ll help her exact vengeance on those who have wronged her and confront the Gods now pursuing her. To achieve their goals, they must kill three creatures: a vampire, a banshee, and one of the very Gods responsible for their shattered lives.
Spirit of the Wood (Green Rider) Kristen Britain
Release date: November 7
The way Kristen Britain writes, with a tint of old fantasy-style books, takes you back to your childhood, the feel of fairy tales and magic. Wonderful world-building and the author’s love for nature transform you into another timeline.
In this world, you will find ancient wizards, griffins, bards and storytellers, bandits and noble kings, and an evil force lurking in the shadows. But what sets this one away from other fantasy books is the Green Riders, people blessed with small magical abilities, who work as the King’s messengers.
It doesn’t really matter if you are new to the Green Riders and the realm of Sacoridia, as the story is a prequel to the original books, telling the story of Lieutenant Rider and her adventure filled with danger, bandits fighting, and love. You don’t need to worry about being lost in the plot.
Years of battling the relentless Darrow Raiders have led Lieutenant-Rider Laren Mapstone to construct an impenetrable fortress around herself, hiding her emotions and the scars that mark her. As she takes on the role of mentor to Tavin Bankside, an eager Green Rider trainee on his first mission, her frosty and distant demeanor quickly earns her the nickname “Ice Lady.”
Fate takes a twisted turn when Laren is gravely injured during an ambush on the North Road by a group of bandits, including vengeful ex-Darrow Raiders. As the fortress around her heart crumbles, she and Tavin find solace in a Rider waystation, seeking protection from the looming danger. Tavin, gifted with natural empathy, struggles to shield himself from the torrent of Laren’s emotions. He must now learn to harness his empathic abilities in order to save Lieutenant Mapstone’s life and avoid being consumed by her emotional turmoil.
Unknown to them, an ancient power slumbers deep within the Green Cloak, ready to either aid or hinder their cause.
In Conclusion
This year, a lot of our old time favorite authors are reviving their books and offering more adventures with the characters we’ve come to love over the years. I think 2023 will be a very promising year for us, bookworms. Lots of questions will be answered and new adventures will begin.
Please share your thoughts and expectations and remember, that you can wait out the hype of a new book with us in the Library of Eleanor Rigby!
