Gateway Reviews

  Best                      First Place:             Firekeeper's Daughter           Angeline Boulley                                         ⭐ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ⭐ In this #OwnVoices mid-2000s crime thriller, Daunis dreams of college, where she can finally do more than straddle the line between her white mother and her native father, but before she can set out, Daunis witnesses a shocking murder that upsets the world as she knows it. Full of tough choices and very real stakes, Angeline Boulley creates a world both vibrant and tangible. Though it's a slow burn, this exploration of race, culture, and belonging is worth it in the end. Runner-Up:          The Project                                                       Courtney Summers                                         ⭐ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ In this contemporary psychological thriller, the accident took Lo's mother, her father, and most importantly, it took her sister Bea. But Bea is still alive. Not afraid to showcase a brut

Heart of the Impaler Blurb Vlad Dracul knows his brother is weak. He doesn't have the passion, the drive, the intelligence to lead a kingdom, not like Vlad himself does. But that's what Mircea has set for him: the army, the kingdom, the prestige. And, most importantly, the girl. Because Ilona is engaged to Mircea--Vlad's Ilona. Vlad will do anything to win her heart, to secure her as his wife, and even as the Ottomans threaten the land, Vlad knows he can secure victory--victory over the invading army, over his brother, and most certainly over Ilona's heart. 

Briar Girls Blurb Lena has a secret: her touch kills. She has never had real friends. She has never even had close acquaintances. It's just too risky. Cursed by a witch before she was even born, this has been Lena's reality all of her life. Until now. Now, she and her father have moved to the edge of the Silence, the mysterious forest that borders their world. The Silence drives people insane. It is dangerous. It is deadly. Lena knows that, but she can't help but feel it contains something more. And she's right, because one night she sees something that shouldn't exist: she sees a girl at the edge of the Silence. And Miranda isn't crazy. No, Miranda has a story to tell, a story of a wicked sorcerer and his witch daughter, of a sleeping princess who will wake to save the Silence--a story of the origin of Lena's magic. Lena doesn't want to feel like a monster anymore, and the Silence is calling louder than it ever has before. 

The Big Reveal Blurb Addie knows she has what it takes to be a professional dancer, even without conforming to dancer body standards. She knows it--and others know it, too. She wouldn't have been accepted into the prestigious Angles dance program otherwise. The only problem is, this program is as expensive as it is prestigious, and she didn't get the scholarship she needs along with her acceptance. Addie knows this is the gateway to her future, and she's not going to give up on her dreams--even if that means putting on a secret, invitation-only burlesque show with her best friends to raise the funds. But when their secret gets out, Addie finds herself on display like never before, and not everyone is as accepting of her confidence--and her body--as she is.

You've Reached Sam Blurb It was her fault. She knows it was her fault. Sam wouldn't have even been on the road the night he died if it wasn't for her and their stupid argument. Now the only thing Julie can do is forget, move on, erase Sam from her life completely. It's just too hard to think about him. But before she can get rid of him, she has to hear his voice one more time. So Julie calls him, just to hear the recording on his answering machine before they shut it off. That's all she wants--his voice one more time. But instead of the answering machine on the other end of the line, Sam himself picks up. 

Gilded Blurb Serilda is a storyteller, and everybody knows, though some choose to call her a liar instead. Daughter of a miller, the townspeople say she's cursed, though her father always called her blessed by the gods. She's bad luck: they say that, too. But she's never believed it--never believed herself cursed, never believed herself unlucky--and her stories are just stories, nothing more. Not until the night the Wild Hunt comes to her door. Caught where she shouldn't be, the Erlking himself has questions. But Serilda can answer questions easy enough, and so she spins him a tale: the tale of a gold-spinner who needs to harvest straw under the full moon. And he accepts her statement as fact, at first. But when the full moon rises again, the Erlking returns, and this time he has no questions. He's got a task instead: a room full of fresh straw and a spinning wheel. Serilda must prove herself a gold-spinner or die. And not even the best liar can spin straw into gold