10 YA books we can’t wait to dive into this July

Teen Titans: Raven – Kami Garcia

With the DC Icons series and recent Buffy-inspired Slayer doing so well, it seems that young adult crossover novels are in high demand these days. And young adult author Kami Garcia is venturing into the Teen Titans world for the latest of them, reimagining what Raven Roth’s teenage years might have looked like.

Teen Titans: Raven opens when seventeen-year-old Raven’s foster mother passes away in an accident, leaving Raven with no memory and no option but to pack up and move to New Orleans. She’s to finish out her senior year while living with her foster mother’s relatives there, but she soon realizes that starting high school over is a daunting prospect — one made even more difficult by the fact that she doesn’t know anything about herself anymore.

Passing her classes and completing basic tasks comes easy to Raven, but trying to determine what she likes and who she is is another story. And even when a series of strange events begins revealing her past self to her, she’s left to decide whether she can actually face it — especially after she’s begun to forge a new life for herself in New Orleans.

Fans of Teen Titans and Garcia’s Caster Chronicles will enjoy the author’s fresh and dark take on a fan-favorite character, especially from the vantage point of Raven’s teenage years. In addition to the thrilling story, there are gorgeous illustrations by Gabriel Picolo to look forward to, and who doesn’t love some stunning artwork alongside a compelling story?