Dec 232025
 

Publishers Weekly: A secret stalks the survivors of a catastrophic class trip in Faubion’s harrowing Pacific Northwest–set horror novel. Local legend says that within Hollow Lake sits Dead Refuge Island, which can only occasionally be seen, and only by some. “People who look for the island don’t ever come back,” so when Evie Williams and seven other teen girls vanish during a Shady Cove High–sponsored outing to Hollow Lake National Park, people fear the worst. Forty-six days later, however, Evie and four fellow “Lost Girls” return home. When questioned, the quintet falsely claim that they and the still-missing trio got separated while lost in the trees; the nightmarish truth is hardly believable, and telling fictions allows them to forget it. Evie and company agree to steer clear of each other, until somebody starts texting them recorded threats from a girl they know to be dead, forcing them to band together and investigate. Evie’s unfiltered first-person narration alternates between the present-day mystery and the events she experienced at Hollow Lake. Despite an arbitrary-feeling denouement, Faubion delivers a riveting tale that’s both affecting and petrifying, juxtaposing psychological and supernatural terrors with tender queer romance and a heartwarming human-canine bond. Characters are intersectionally diverse.

Dec 162025
 

School Library Journal: A captivating story about the girls who returned from Hollow Lake National Park’s Dead Refuge Island. Eight girls on a school trip decide to adventure to the island, which no one can see, and no one has ever returned from. Only five return, but the island has haunted each girl from the moment they were saved. When the girls reintegrate into society, friends and teachers who were affiliated with the missing ones are killed. No one knows who this serial killer may be, but all hands are pointing to Evie. Eighteen-year-old Evie shares her perspective of the events, starting from the present day and going back to her time on the island, explaining how she survived, but remains haunted. Navigating the love for their newfound freedom becomes harder for all the girls than fighting on the island for their survival was. Faubion’s (The Sun and the Moon) prose captivates readers from start to finish; each turn of the page is surprising as Evie processes what happens to her on the island, and the other surviving girls manage their own grief, anger, sadness, and fear. This story is best suited for older readers, since it contains graphic details about gore as well as harsh and explicit language. Evie is white, and her love interest, Sunny, is Asian American. VERDICT A fast, enthralling mystery.

Dec 122025
 

Congratulations to all the DMLA authors selected to be on Library Journal’s Stellar Selections Best Books of 2025!

SUSPENSE
Thompson, Aggie Blum. You Deserve To Know. Forge. Mar. 2025.

HORROR
Starling, Caitlin. The Graceview Patient. St. Martin’s. Oct. 2025.
Starling, Caitlin. The Starving Saints. Harper Voyager. May 2025.

SCIENCE FICTION
Bear, Elizabeth. The Folded Sky. (White Space, bk. 3). Saga. Jun. 2025.

FANTASY
Addison, Katherine. The Tomb of Dragons. (Chronicles of Osreth, bk. 3). Tor. Mar. 2025.
Bennett, Robert Jackson. A Drop of Corruption: An Ana and Din Mystery. (Shadow of the Leviathan, bk. 2). Del Rey. Apr. 2025.
Bishop, Anne. Turns of Fate. (Isle of Wyrd, bk. 1). Ace. Nov. 2025.

Dec 092025
 

Morgan is being ghosted by her ex. No, really. It’s sad Zach died and became a ghost. But Morgan and Zach only ever went on the one date, and now she’s being haunted by him. Zach has no desire to spend eternity with Morgan, but he can’t recall his past and doesn’t know how to move on.

At a support group for humans and their haunters, Morgan and Zach run into Sawyer, whose fiancée-turned-ghost has started to fade. Unlike Morgan, Sawyer isn’t ready to part ways with his ghost. Although they face opposite issues, Morgan and Sawyer decide to work together to solve their problems.

As Morgan and Sawyer try to solve their paranormal conundrums together, they find something even more surprising—a tender, growing affection between them that threatens any unfinished business they’re seeking to close. The ghosts of their past might be there in spirit, but the connection between Morgan and Sawyer is as alive as anything they’ve ever felt.

Nov 302025
 

Brazilian Portuguese rights to Ursula K. Le Guin Prize for Fiction winner Vajra Chandrasekera’s RAKESFALL, to Editora Companhia das Letras, by Cristina Purchio at International Editors’ Co. in association with Michael Curry.

Chinese (simplified) rights to New York Times bestselling author Martha Wells’ ALL SYSTEMS RED, ARTIFICIAL CONDITION, ROGUE PROTOCOL, EXIT STRATEGY, NETWORK EFFECT, FUGITIVE TELEMETRY, SYSTEM COLLAPSE, and PLATFORM DECAY, eight books in The Murderbot Diaries, to Yilin, by Yichan Peng at Grayhawk Agency in association with Michael Curry for Jennifer Jackson.

German rights to New York Times bestselling author Martha Wells’ PLATFORM DECAY, the eighth installment in the Murderbot Diaries series, to Heyne, by Sarah Knofius at the Thomas Schlueck Agency in association with Michael Curry for Jennifer Jackson.

German rights to Emily Blackwood’s Golden City series, to Mondlicht Verlag, in a three-book deal, by Sarah Knofius at Thomas Schlueck Agency, on behalf of Katie Shea Boutillier.

German rights to New York Times bestselling author Jim Butcher’s TWELVE MONTHS and MIRROR MIRROR, Books 18-19 in the Dresden Files series, to Blanvalet, by Sarah Knofius at the Thomas Schlueck Agency in association with Michael Curry for Jennifer Jackson.

German rights to Melissa K. Roehrich’s The Legacy series to Vajona, at auction, in a four-book deal, by Sarah Knofius at Thomas Schlueck Agency,on behalf of Katie Shea Boutillier.

Spanish rights to Vonda N. McIntyre’s DREAMSNAKE to Crononauta, by Elena Rodriguez at International Editors & Yanez, on behalf of Katie Shea Boutillier for Jennie Goloboy.

Spanish rights to Robert McCammon’s SWAN SONG to RBA by Elena Rodriguez at International Editors & Yanez, on behalf of Katie Shea Boutillier for Cameron McClure (world Spanish).

Nov 252025
 

A Destiny to Defy

Tessalyn Ausra has been betrayed at every turn, but she’s also dealt betrayals of her own. With the consequences of her choices hanging over her, she’s done letting others define her purpose, but choosing that path could prove costly. Theon has sent her away, and Luka is wrestling with his own destiny, unsure if that still includes her. The rest of Tessa’s companions are wary now that everyone has tasted her vengeance and experienced her chaos. Maybe they should be. Maybe balance has always been an illusion. And maybe she stands at the same crossroads she has been at from the very beginning: salvation or destruction?

A Fate to Outrun

Theon St. Orcas is no stranger to sacrifice. He has spent his entire life ensuring the ones he loves are safe. Preparing to face the Fates and the destruction of their realm, he only wants to spend the time he has left with the family that remains in Devram. But as he prepares to find his brother, more than one secret comes to light that has him questioning everything. Were the sacrifices all for nothing in the end?

A Future to Change

Just when he thought he was adjusting to his new life in the Underground, Axel St. Orcas finds himself thrust into a battle with the dark and depraved. With Kat at his side, they set about building alliances with the other Districts. But everywhere he looks, there’s sabotage, not to mention the kingdoms fracturing beyond the Underground. He refuses to bend a knee to injustice, but can he really change the future for those who have been wronged?

Nov 242025
 

Cover for HE SEES YOU WHEN YOU'RE SLEEPING by Alta Hensley. A black background with holly leaves. A green holiday ornament with a skull and candy cane crossbones.Congratulations again to Alta Hensley as HE SEES YOU WHEN YOU’RE SLEEPING rings in at #103 on the USA Today Bestseller list!

Why choose between naughty or nice in this steamy, suspenseful Christmas-themed stalker romance that’s perfect for dark romance readers seeking a spicy, festive read.

Nov 172025
 

Cover for HE KNOWS WHEN YOU'RE AWAKE by Alta Hensley. Featuring a white snowflake with a skull at the center against a crimson red background.Congratulations to DMLA author Alta Hensley as HE KNOWS WHEN YOU’RE AWAKE hits the New York Times Bestseller list!

This Christmas, it’s all about getting what you really want in this dark billionaire stalker romance sequel to He Sees You When You’re Sleeping. Stalking in a winter wonderland…

Nov 132025
 

Cover for HE KNOWS WHEN YOU'RE AWAKE by Alta Hensley. Featuring a white snowflake with a skull at the cneter against a crimson red background.Congratulations to DMLA author, Alta Hensley, as HE KNOWS WHEN YOU’RE AWAKE rings in at #63 on the USA Today Bestsellers List!

This Christmas, it’s all about getting what you really want in this dark billionaire stalker romance sequel to He Sees You When You’re Sleeping. Stalking in a winter wonderland…