ETA: it has been brought to my attention that It’s Not Like It’s a Secret by Misa Sugiura is racist against Latinx people (see this Twitter thread), so I have crossed it out. Please let other people know about this issue and mention it to people who are giving the book buzz.
It took me forever to narrow this list down, but here it is! I’ve put the cover illustration (if it has one out), the release date (if it’s been set), and a quick bulleted rundown of what each book features. Links take you to the Goodreads page. (I’m making a separate post for middle grade books, so keep an eye out for that if you like MG.)
History Is All You Left Me by Adam Silvera (January 17th)
- #ownvoices
- Contemporary
- M/M romance
- Main character with OCD
American Street by Ibi Zoboi (February 14th)
- #ownvoices
- Contemporary
- Magical realism
- Haitian American main character
The Education of Margot Sanchez by Lilliam Rivera (February 21st)
- #ownvoices
- Contemporary
- Family drama
- Latina main character
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas (February 28th)
- #ownvoices
- Contemporary
- Inspired by real life issues, #BlackLivesMatter
- Black main character
The Ship Beyond Time (The Girl From Everywhere #2) by Heidi Heilig (February 28th)
- #ownvoices
- Time travel
- Biracial Chinese main character
- Persian love interest
Queens of Geek by Jen Wilde (March 14th)
- #ownvoices
- Contemporary
- Geek Convention
- Autistic main character
- Bisexual main character (she’s Chinese-Australian, but the author is not Chinese)
A Crown of Wishes (The Star-Touched Queen #2) by Roshani Chokshi (March 28th)
- #ownvoices
- Fantasy
- Inspired by Indian folklore
- Political intrigue
The Takedown by Corrie Wang (April 11th)
- Near Future
- Elite clique
- Social Media Scandal
- Asian American main character (probably Chinese based on last name; author is white though)
Always and Forever, Lara Jean (To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before #3) by Jenny Han (May 2nd)
- #ownvoices
- Contemporary
- Romance
- Korean American main character
Noteworthy by Riley Redgate (May 2nd)
- #ownvoices
- Contemporary
- Cross-dressing and a cappella
- Bisexual Chinese American main character
It’s Not Like It’s a Secret by Misa Sugiura (May 9th)
#ownvoices (ethnicity-wise, not sure if author is queer)F/F romanceJapanese American main characterLatina love interest
I Believe in a Thing Called Love by Maurene Goo (May 30th)
- #ownvoices
- Contemporary
- Romantic Comedy
- Korean American main character
When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon (May 30th)
- #ownvoices
- Contemporary
- Arranged marriage
- Indian American main characters
Want by Cindy Pon (June 13th)
- #ownvoices
- Near Future Thriller
- Taiwanese main character
- Class conflict, corporate corruption
Girl on the Verge by Pintip Dunn (June 27th)
- #ownvoices
- Contemporary
- Thai American main character
- Female friendship
The Library of Fates by Aditi Khorana (July 18th)
- #ownvoices
- Fantasy
- Inspired by Indian folklore
- Female friendship, feminist themes
Little & Lion by Brandy Colbert (August 8th)
- #ownvoices
- Contemporary
- F/F romance
- Black Jewish main character
- Mental health and sibling relationship
Shadowhouse Fall (Shadowshaper #2) by Daniel Jose Older (September 12th)
- #ownvoices
- Contemporary
- Afro-Latina main character
- Protest novel fighting state violence, school to prison pipelines
Wild Beauty by Anna-Marie McLemore (September 26th)
- #ownvoices
- Magical realism
- Latinx main characters
- Garden estate hiding secrets
27 Hours by Tristina Wright (October 3rd)
- #ownvoices
- Science fiction
- Queer main characters
- War between human colonists and native beings on a distant moon
Forest of a Thousand Lanterns by Julie C. Dao (October 3rd)
- #ownvoices
- Fantasy
- Snow Queen retelling
- Inspired by Asian mythology and folklore
Warcross by Marie Lu (October 3rd)
- Science fiction
- Virtual reality video games, teenage bounty hunters, hackers
- Japanese American main character
- Racially diverse cast of characters
My So-Called Bollywood Life by Nisha Sharma (TBA)
- #ownvoices
- Contemporary
- Complicated love triangle
- Film geeks
- Indian American main character
Walking on Knives by Maya Chhabra (TBA)
- Fantasy
- The Little Mermaid retelling
- F/F romance
- Sea Witch’s sister falls in love with the Little Mermaid
Rebel Seoul by Axie Oh (TBA)
- #ownvoices
- Science Fiction
- Secret weapons project
- Genetically modified humans
- Futuristic Korea
And that’s the end! If I made an errors in my descriptions, feel free to correct me. Comment with your own anticipated reads (link to a blog post/video is cool, too)!
READING (AS)(I)AN (AM)ERICA 