10 new YA novels to make your holidays bright this December

Diamond & Dawn – Lyra Selene

The sequel to Lyra Selene’s 2018 novel Amber & Dusk, Diamond & Dawn explores the corrosions of even the most dazzling dreams, and the strength of hope amidst darkness.

Triumphant after dethroning her half sister, Mirage returns home prepared to become Empress. With the support of her friends, Luca and Lullaby, and the tentative possibility of romance with Sunday, it seems as though she has everything she ever wanted.

But it turns out that becoming a ruler is a lot easier than actually being one. After all, it’s easy to imagine what you might do if you one day had the power to do anything. It’s much more difficult when you actually have the ability to turn at least some part of that vision into a reality.

This is a quieter sort of story than its predecessor Amber & Dusk was. Which certainly makes sense, as this is a story that’s less about action and subterfuge and more about consequences and choices. Can we live up to the promises we’ve made ourselves in the past? Can we live up to the ideals we’ve espoused in the past when actually given the chance to do so? That’s Mirage’s journey in this half of the story, and it’s very different than her first.

The official synopsis offers us a few more details of Diamond & Dawn’s story.

"When the Empress Severine’s body is recovered from the battle, she is not dead after all — in a coma, she still represents a threat to Mirage’s newfound power. Worse, a distant cousin, Gavin d’Ars, Duc de Douane, appears in court to challenge both women with his blood claim, and to propose a series of trials to determine the most deserving heir. In Mirage’s fight to defend her vision for the empire, she begins to splinter all of her networks. Will the battle for control leave anyone untainted?"

Diamond and Dawn is available now.