The Best New YA Books of December 2024
The end of the year is a strange time in publishing. Everyone’s year-end best-of lists often start dropping as early as mid-November and the entire industry then immediately pivots to looking toward the bevy of most anticipated titles arriving in the months ahead. December, despite containing the biggest gift-giving holiday of the year, is generally treated as an afterthought, and there are relatively few new releases hitting shelves this month. The YA genre has a more expansive list of December titles than most, largely thanks to its diversity in terms of genres and subject matter.
So, yes, December may be a “slow” month. But it still includes several new YA thriller and horror titles, a rom-com, a fresh twist on a vampire story, and more.
Here are the best YA books hitting shelves in December.
Dust: A Novel by Alison Stine
Release Date: December 3 from Wednesday Books
Why You’ll Love It: A speculative coming-of-age tale about a deaf girl whose extremist father uproots her family to a homestead in Colorado where no modern clothing, internet access, or library books are allowed. Because the family needs money, Thea is allowed to work at a small cafe where she slowly begins to connect with her larger community and question the understanding of the world she’s been taught. But as dust storms, locusts, and water shortages start to threaten the farm and her parents refuse help, a struggle to survive ensues.
Publisher’s Description: After her father has a premonition, Thea and her family move to the Bloodless Valley of southern Colorado, hoping to make a fresh start. But the rivers are dry, the crops are dying, and the black blizzards of Colorado have returned. Much like the barren land, Thea feels her life has stopped growing. She is barely homeschooled, forbidden from going to the library, and has no way to contact her old friends―all due to her parents’ fear of the outside world’s dangerous influence.
But to make ends meet, Thea is allowed to work at the café in town. There, she meets Ray, who is deaf. Thea, who was born hard of hearing, has always been pushed by her parents to pass as someone who can hear. Now, with Ray secretly teaching Thea how to sign, she begins to learn what she’s been missing―not just a new language but a whole community and maybe even a chance at love.
My Fairy God Somebody by Charlene Allen
Release Date: December 3 from HarperCollins
Why You’ll Love It: A teenager’s investigation into her own complicated family history is at the center of this story of self-discovery, which sees Clae use her new summer journalism internship to look for information about the deadbeat dad she’s never met.
Publisher’s Description: The way Clae’s mom tells it, her dad took off when Clae was a baby, end of story. Ever since, it’s just been the two of them, living in the coastal city of Gloucester, where Clae is one of the only few Black girls. But when Clae discovers clues about a mysterious person she calls her fairy god somebody, she’s determined to know more.
Her chance comes when she’s accepted into a summer journalism program in New York City, where her parents lived before she was born. With a couple of leads and a steel resolve, Clae leaves home for the first time to find out about her history.
New York is as full of magic as it is mystery, not to mention romance. From Brooklyn to Broadway, Clae and her new friends, Nze and Joelle, explore neighborhood haunts and hustles, discovering a family trail that someone’s tried hard to bury. So who is the fairy god somebody? And can Clae use her sleuthing skills to find out the truth?
The Party by Natasha Preston
Release Date: December 10 from Delacorte Press
Why You’ll Love It: If you’re a person who loves YA thrillers, you’re probably already familiar with the twisty, entertaining work of Natasha Preston. Her latest novel, The Party, follows a group of teens invited to an exclusive secret fete at a remote castle in the beautiful English countryside. But when one of the guests turns up dead, things take an unexpectedly dark turn.
Publisher’s Description: In the heart of the English countryside, Bessie and her closest friends gather at a remote castle for a secret party destined to make this the best spring break ever. But when the first of them dies, the party takes a lethal turn.
As the body count continues to rise, Bessie and her friends must contend with a deadly storm and growing internal suspicion, all while trapped inside with a killer.
You’re Dead to Me by Amy Christine Parker
Release Date: December 10 from Delacorte Press
Why You’ll Love It: Described as a mix of Gossip Girl and Happy Death Day, You’re Dead to Me follows the story of Ruby, an social media influencer who must solve her own murder before prom night. After she’s outed as the person behind a popular anonymous gossip blog, Ruby and her friends will have to figure out who’s got it out for her, as they dig up some of their town’s darkest secrets along the way.
Publisher’s Description: Ruby is a scholarship senior at elite Oleander High School with a chip on her shoulder and an attitude to match—which she puts to good use as the infamous local anonymous gossip blogger ReputationKiller. When she’s outed as the voice behind the account, the entire town turns against her.
But after she’s scared witless by a vision of her own ghost dressed in a blood-splattered prom dress, she is faced with an awful truth. Someone out there doesn’t just hate her—they want her dead.
With less than a week until the prom, Ruby starts investigating. Turns out Oleander Bay isn’t the picture-perfect resort town it appears to be. With so many secrets, scandals, and people hell-bent on covering them up at all costs, the murderer could be anyone. Can Ruby beat the clock counting down to prom—and her death—and survive the night?
What the Woods Took by Courtney Gould
Release Date: December 10 from Wednesday Books
Why You’ll Love It: The latest atmospheric YA horror from the author of The Dead and the Dark, What the Woods Took is described as Yellowjackets meets Girl, Interrupted and that is more than enough for me.
Publisher’s Description: Devin Green wakes in the middle of the night to find two men in her bedroom. No stranger to a fight, she calls to her foster parents for help, but it soon becomes clear this is a planned abduction―one everyone but Devin signed up for. She’s shoved in a van and driven deep into the Idaho woods, where she’s dropped off with a cohort of equally confused teens. Finally, two camp counselors inform them that they’ve all been enrolled in an experimental therapy program. If the campers can learn to change their self-destructive ways―and survive a fifty-days hike through the wilderness―they’ll come out the other side as better versions of themselves. Or so the counselors say.
Devin is immediately determined to escape. She’s also determined to ignore Sheridan, the cruel-mouthed, lavender-haired bully who mocks every group exercise. But there’s something strange about these woods―inhuman faces appearing between the trees, visions of people who shouldn’t be there flashing in the leaves―and when the campers wake up to find both counselors missing, therapy becomes the least of their problems. Stranded and left to fend for themselves, the teens quickly realize they’ll have to trust each other if they want to survive. But what lies in the woods may not be as dangerous as what the campers are hiding from each other―and if the monsters have their way, no one will leave the woods alive.
We Are the Beasts By Gigi Griffis
Release Date: December 10 from Delacorte
Why You’ll Love It: Based on the unsolved mystery of the Beast of Gévaudan, this historical YA horror story is a cathartic tale of angry young women who must come together to save themselves. For all that it’s set in 18th century France, We Are the Beasts’s takedown of the patriarchy feels surprisingly modern.
Publisher’s Description: When a series of brutal, mysterious deaths start plaguing the countryside and whispers of a beast in the mountains reach the quiet French hamlet of Mende, most people believe it’s a curse—God’s punishment for their sins.
But to sixteen-year-old Joséphine and her best friend, Clara, the beast isn’t a curse. It’s an opportunity.
For years, the girls of Mende have been living in a nightmare—fathers who drink, brothers who punch, homes that feel like prisons—and this is a chance to get them out.
Using the creature’s attacks as cover, Joséphine and Clara set out to fake their friends’ deaths and hide them away until it’s safe to run. But escape is harder than they thought. If they can’t brave a harsh winter with little food… If the villagers discover what they’re doing… If the beast finds them first…
The Rules of Royalty by Cale Dietrich
Release Date: December 10 from Wednesday Books
Why You’ll Love It: A loose, queer retelling of The Princess Diaries is probably just what the doctor ordered for many of us given, you know, everything in the world right now and this warm, gooey slow-burn tale of a romance between two princes gets every emotional beat exactly right.
Publisher’s Description: Jamie Johnson has never been the center of attention, and he’s perfectly okay with that. His entire world unravels as a hidden truth emerges: he’s the heir to the throne of Mitanor, a sun-drenched southern European country, and the press is ready to expose this secret to the world. An invitation to spend the summer in his father’s palace arrives, giving Jamie a chance to get to know the man he never thought he’d meet.
Meanwhile, in a northern European kingdom known for its cold climate and stoic royals, Erik Lindstrom, the spare prince, grapples with the upcoming marriage of his golden-boy elder brother. With the country’s spotlight trained on his family more than ever, Erik feels sidelined and tightly controlled. So when he receives an offer to tutor the newly found American prince in the ways of royalty, he accepts without hesitation.
At a magnificent summer palace, Erik guides Jamie through the intricacies of royal etiquette, politics, and history. What neither prince anticipates is the connection that sparks between them―one that challenges both of their futures. Now each must make a choice: follow their hearts, or the time-honored royal path where crown and country reigns supreme, no matter the personal cost.
A Cruel Thirst by Angela Montoya
Release Date: December 17 from Joy Revolution
Why You’ll Love It: A forbidden romance between a vampire hunter and a recently turned vampire is at the heart of this 1830s-set story that mixes in elements of Mexican history and a fresh approach to long-existing lore.
Publisher’s Description: Carolina Fuentes wants to join her family in hunting the bloodthirsty vampiros that plague her pueblo. Her father, however, wishes to marry her off to a husband of his choosing, someone who’ll take her away from danger.
Determined to prove she’d make a better slayer than wife, Carolina vows to take down a monster herself. But when she runs into un vampiro who is somehow extremely attractive and kind, her plan crumbles.
Lalo Villalobos was content leading a perfectly dull life until un vampiro turned him. Now forced to flee his city, he heads to the pueblo where he believes the first vampiro was made. Surely its residents must know how to reverse this dreadful curse. Instead of finding salvation, Lalo collides with a beautiful young woman who’d gladly drive a dagger through his heart.
Fortunately, Lalo and Carolina share a common enemy. They can wipe out this evil. Together. If his fangs and her fists can stay focused, they might just triumph and discover what it feels like to take a bite out of love.
Lacy Baugher Milas is the Books Editor at Paste Magazine, but loves nerding out about all sorts of pop culture. You can find her on Twitter @LacyMB