It's book review time! I was aiming to have a solid five here, but regrettably the busy season at work got away from me. Regardless, I've got three absolute bangers: a love-at-first-sight romance with a musical twist, a coming-of-age story by way of RuPaul's Drag Race and Ariana Grande, and an Appalachian murder mystery with a healthy dose of magic. Thanks to the authors and publishers who share their review copies with me!

THE BALLAD OF DARCY AND RUSSELL
by Morgan Matson
Now Available

Darcy Milligan has a fine, albeit messy, life. Raised by a single father and named for his favorite song by his (and now her) favorite band, she's about to leave her hometown of LA for a college she barely knows anything about in Connecticut. Before that, she's hit a Nevada music festival to see said favorite band perform. But when she gets stranded at a bus station with no phone charger, she meets Russell Henrion—a handsome, witty aspiring Broadway composer who knows the source of her name and happens to love the same obscure book she does. Suddenly, she's wrapped up in a whirlwind one-night romance like the ones in the movies. At first.

A few bad late-night decisions later, Darcy discovers that Russell Henrion is actually Russell Sanders—son of Wylie Sanders, lead singer of that aforementioned favorite band. Between the shock of being in her favorite celebrity's Nevada home and trying to figure out whether Russell is the love of her life or a big liar, she barely has time to cope with that other problem: the whole college thing. But as the long weekend goes on, both Darcy and Russell start coming to terms with college, family, and and whether love at first sight is a real thing.

The Ballad of Darcy and Russell employs my least favorite romance trope (miscommunication), but it's the exception that proves the rule. Rather than being a drama of errors where people willfully misunderstand each other or walk past the wrong door at the wrong time, it's an exercise in understanding each other and embracing difficult parts of ourselves and our lives. Both Darcy and Russell are figuring out who they are, both in the context of their families and themselves. Despite their very different lives, they have very similar fears. And the lack of communication that kicks the story off is the whole point: opening up, breaking down their own insecurities, and allowing themselves to communicate more freely.

HOT BOY SUMMER
by Joe Jiménez
Now Available

Besides Cammy, his one gay friend, Mac has come out to his sister and his dog. As he coasts into his final high school summer, he's looking for more chances to be himself. And thanks to two new friends—the fabulous Flor and Mac's crush Michelangelo (a.k.a. "Hot Mikey")—he might just have that chance. As summer kicks off, it looks like the new friend group will be spending a fierce summer marathoning Drag Race, choosing their pride lewks, and maybe even hitting up an Ariana Grande concert. Best of all, Mikey seems to reciprocate Mac's feelings.

But things start to fall apart as Cam doesn't share in Mac's feeling of freedom. Cam and Flor can't stand each other, and Mac's first gay bestie seems convinced that his first gay relationship won't work out. What started as the perfect summer becomes a series of ups and downs: some of Mac's best days ever interspersed with potentially friendship-destroying fights. And in the midst of it all, Mac's sister is going away to college, leaving him alone with his less-than-understanding father.

Hot Boy Summer is everything it purports to be on the back cover, but it's so much more than that, too. It's a story of someone trying to find his place in the world—and the fact that finding Your People is not always as cut-and-dried as one might hope. It's also an important reminder that toxicity can come from unexpected fronts—as can kindness.

ROOT AND BONE
by Jessica Raney
Available May 14

As anyone from the Appalachians knows, magic is still very much alive there. The Spencer sisters—Jewel Spencer and Leona Monroe—know this better than just about anyone in their little town of Ames. Both are trained in healing and witchcraft, and Leona has a special aptitude for seeing and speaking to ghosts. And all of those skills will come in handy when a gruesome murder plagues the tiny town.

The ritualistic killing isn't just gory to look at: it's affected the ghost of its victims and other ghosts in the vicinity. This could potentially extend to Cale, Leona's long-time ghostly confidant and (according to many) ill-advised crush. But things grow more complex as more players enter the field: a charismatic preacher and his ghoulish brother, a band of werewolves to whom Leona's abusive husband is indebted, and a second murder victim. And Halloween is just around the corner, meaning magic and danger will both be in the air.

This intro to the world of the Spencer Sisters is equal parts delightful and terrifying. Folk magic blends with small-town police procedural, and the rules of this supernatural world are laid out in full (with a few variants from the norm). Most intriguing, though, is the lurking threat of magic use, as Leona balances her desire to do good with her understandably turbulent emotions. The ending leaves the door open for more adventures for the sisters... but not everyone makes it out of the first book alive.