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We’ve rolled right into the last month of the year. It’s very possible that, despite the calendar still saying that it is autumn, you may have already seen your first snowfall or very frigid temperatures of the season. We’ve gotten both here in the upper midwest. But rather than despair, this has been such an opportunity to really get the candles glowing, the warm beverages pouring, and the reading a-going.
I’ve been spending some of my free time not only reading but also building up my database of 2026 releases I’m looking forward to both reading and talking about. That’s helped make these slower release months, for sure, as it’s becoming clear there will be some huge release weeks in the coming months.
One thing that’s true of these slower release weeks, though, is that there’s really an opportunity to highlight the books that often get overlooked in the end-of-year shuffle. This week one of my most-anticipated books and collaborations is out, and you better believe I’m going to be getting my hands on it as soon as I possibly can. We’ve also got a lot of new books hitting shelves in paperback this week, and while there is definitely a gap in diverse representation this week (and the remainder of 2025), it’s not zero. This is a result of fewer book releases and does not represent YA more broadly.
Grab your TBR and get excited to sink into one or more of this week’s new YA book releases.
New Hardcover YA Releases This Week
The Last Vampire by Romina Garber
If you love Jane Austen and you love vampires, this book brings the two of them together in an unexpected way.
Lorena Navarro is so excited to enroll in a brand new boarding school that’s just opened up in a formerly condemned Victorian home in the New Hampshire woods. She sees it as romantic–Lorena is a huge Jane Austen fan–and an opportunity to meet her own Mr. Darcy.
But instead of finding love immediately, Lorena stumbles upon a coffin. She’s now accidentally awakened the last vampire in the world. Whoops.
William Pride is glad to be awake after three centuries but he’s confused, to say the least. He wants to find his family and wants to understand the world around him; he’s relying heavily on Lorena for it. It only seems to make sense he enroll in this new school, too, as it could be his way to reintegrate into the world.
Things seem to be okay, right? Except William then discovers he’s the last of his kind that could help keep his kind alive. Now he’s got to choose between protecting and integrating with the humans at his school or working to save his legacy. That he’s wildly in love only makes the choice so much harder.
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Persephone’s Curse by Katrina Leno
The four Farthing sisters have been told from a young age that they’re descended from Persephone, Goddess of the Dead. It seems plausible, too. They’re the only ones who can see the ghost named Henry living in their attic.
So when one of the sisters begins to fall in love with Henry and another sister banishes him to the underworld, they’ll need to test the truth of their legacy. Do they go try to save Henry? Do they try to instead save each other and the relationships that are cracking under this magic (or curse)?
This one is pitched as Laini Taylor meets The Hazel Wood.
There’s Always Next Year by Leah Johnson and George M. Johnson
This is a powerhouse, absolute dream of a writing duo. That they’re teaming up to write a holiday rom-com makes my dark heart light up.
Andy was going to shed her too-serious persona on New Year’s Eve, but everything she planned fell apart after she got her car stolen, threw up on the person she’s been crushing on, and lost her phone in a fish tank. It’s now time to hurry to do everything she can to save the family business from local gentrification, fix everything that happened the night before, and figure out how she feels about new girl next door.
Then there’s Dominique, who is about to score a major brand deal in his influencing work. It’s the kind of deal that would help secure the future of him and his family. But then some unresolved feelings about a former best friend bubble up, and he can’t hide them from anyone. It’s tough living in a small town and being close to people like his cousin Andy, who has always seen Dominique’s most authentic self. Can Dominique score this deal without selling himself or anyone else out?
This is a novel with two points of view and two different romances that emerge. It’s also a story about living as your true self and honoring what it is you really want–not what others expect of you.
New Hardcover Series Releases:
New Paperback YA Releases This Week
Death at Morning House by Maureen Johnson
Marlowe has had a disastrous few months and decides to take a summer job at Morning House. Morning House is is a 1920s mansion built on an island and then abruptly abandoned. Marlowe will be giving tours of it.
The problem is Morning House has a host of secrets and the person who brought Marlowe in for the job has gone missing. Now Marlowe has to solve the mystery of the House’s secrets — and find the person who has gone missing.
This one’s set in the Thousand Islands region of New York.
Finding Her Edge by Jennifer Iacopelli
This YA fake dating romance published a few years back, and it’s hitting paperback in anticipation of its Netflix series adaptation. It sounds like a fun one for readers who love sports romances.
Adriana comes from a family of figure skaters. Her parents were gold medalists, and her sister is is also supremely talented. Adriana is eager to carry on the legacy and win the Junior World Championships.
There are a couple of catches, and they’re big ones. The biggest: her parents’ skating rink is struggling financially, meaning that everything she and her family have worked for could fall completely apart. Adriana realizes as she’s training with her new partner Brayden one thing they could do in addition to showing off their moves on the ice is to pretend they’re in a relationship. This’ll really keep their fanbase engaged and excited.
But then Adriana begins to really fall for Brayden, and those feelings are made more complicated when the first crush she ever had–the boy who happened to be her former skating partner–is back in the picture. How can Adriana navigate old feelings, new feelings, keeping her skating career in tip-top shape, and working to save her family’s rink?
New Paperback Series Releases:
More Paperback YA Releases This Week:
If you haven’t yet, spend some time checking out the Best YA Books of 2025. It’s a wide array of titles spotlighting what made 2025 special in the world of YA.