Most Anticipated LGBTQ+ Young Adult Fiction: January-June 2026
I, in the Shadows by Tori Bovalino (January 13th)
Maybe this is possession; maybe this is truly what it is to be haunted.
There’s a ghost hanging out in Drew Larpin’s new room. He’s a fellow Pine Hollow high schooler named Liam, and technically, it’s his old room. Now he’s stuck haunting it―unsure of how he died or why he hasn’t moved on to the afterlife. Drew knows she has to help him. . . .…
Red, White, & Royal Blue meets The West Wing in Jasper Sanchez's electric and insightful #ownvoices YA debut, chronicling a transmasculine student's foray into a no-holds-barred student body president election against the wishes of his politician father.
Optics can make or break an election. Everything Mark knows about politics, he learned from his father, the Congressman who still pretends he has a daughter and not a son.
Mark has promised to keep his past hidden and pretend to be the cis guy everyone assumes he is. But when he sees a manipulatively charming candidate for student body president inflame dangerous rhetoric, Mark risks his low profile to become a political challenger.
The problem? No one really knows Mark. He didn't grow up in this town, and his few friends are all nerds. Still, thanks to Scandal and The West Wing, they know where to start: from campaign stops to voter polling to a fashion makeover.
Soon Mark feels emboldened to engage with voters—and even start a new romance. But with an investigative journalist digging into his past, a father trying to silence him, and the bully frontrunner standing in his way, Mark will have to decide which matters most: perception or truth, when both are just as dangerous.
Personal Opinion: In this microcosm of today’s society, we witness the political landscape of high school. Except, instead of a popularity contest, there are real stakes involved. Mark is trans and going stealth, he has been going under the radar ever since transitioning. However, after a homophobic bullying incident not only goes unpunished but the victim got suspended, Mark decides to run for president so he can change the school. With his wonderful found family and a whole diverse student body behind him, will Mark be able to win against his opponents? Read it to find out and see because I guarantee the results won’t disappoint.
Do I Own This Book? Nope.
Spoilers Below For My Likes & Dislikes:
Likes:
- First of all, praise to all of the diversity in this group of friends here. Mark is pansexual and trans. His love interest, Ralph, is Jewish and has severe anxiety. Ralph’s twin sister is dating a demigirl, Nadia, who happens to be Muslim. The best friends are Jenny Chu (Chinese and aro) and Pablo Navarro (Hispanic and ace). Their underclassman Benji is a high-femme gay who lives with unabashed pride in himself that he may be the coolest guy ever. We have Christian and Luis who are freshmen gays with a robot baby. Beatriz, the Latina captain of the girl’s champion soccer team. Vinh is an Asian American influencer and Kai is an indigenous dude on the wrestling team. There’s even a Korean teacher, ZP (short for Zielinski-Pak). There is such a variety of different voices and faces that it just felt so refreshing to read.
- Second of all, the intelligence of these characters is beyond incredible. Even with people like Henry McIver and Clary Cassandra. They discuss all sorts of talking points such as philosophy, theology, politics, and more. And the debates are so well thought out that even the nonsensical cringey ones rooted in white supremacy feels just so authentically real. It’s crazy that all of these characters just know so much and it’s clear that their school is for nerds but since the main characters are on the IB track, they’re like the cream of the crop.
- Mark is a good person. He struggles a lot with that view of himself as Ralph claims. And likewise, Ralph struggles to see himself as good too. But that’s probably why they have such good chemistry together. They can see past the faults and the ways they try to hide, digging deeper and holding each other’s hands through all the tough parts. They’re cute together and I love that.
- Going back to Mark, he cares so much about other people. And he believes that the world can be better if they just work toward that. So it pissed me off when his dad and Henry just claimed it was for his vanity. They made their assumptions about him because their own worldview is twisted into the mindset that people are always selfish. So I get why they acted the way they did in that sense when they called out Mark on his so-called hypocrisy. But it is just wild that they couldn’t even begin to recognize that the people they were describing were themselves, not Mark. At the end of the day, even if he chose to ran for less than selfless reasons, he is still the best presidential candidate of the three choices. Because he’s aware of his shortcomings and wants to do what’s best for others in the end. Even if he is a privileged rich white kid. He understands that everyone, no matter the differences, deserve to be treated with respect.
- Nadia is such a cool person. She kept assuring Mark that the numbers were there when the votes were coming in. She really did have her finger on the pulse of their school. She knew everyone. And she also did great convincing Mark to participate with the stoners to get their vote. His speech to them was truly something else.
- Amber Carr is an enigma for me but I respect the fuck out of her. She’s so passionate about journalism. She also doesn’t out people for a juicy headline. What she did to Jenny was so awful though and I’m glad that Mark questioned her ethics on that but I respect her because she truly does want what’s best for the school in the end and she clearly respects Mark a lot. When he was about to come out to her and she shut off the camera, my heart went out to her. I think she’s also black? Not sure but if she is, it is another check in the diverse column for this book.
- The speech Mark gave was honestly inspiring. I would’ve definitely voted for him had I heard it. About how no one should vote for him unless they believe in him, truly. I wish we got to see Henry’s smug face fall when the gym applauded for him.
- Pablo is so cool too. He’s so chill and knows how to stay in his lane and also knows how to be present for his friends when they need him. And his parents are cool too. The way they’re okay with the kids drinking as long as they stay under their roof. That’s how you raise a kid properly. I see where Pablo gets it from. I hope he finds the perfect partner for him in the future, the Swiftie sap.
- Love and respect Mark’s mom though. She really was a queen in this. Supporting and choosing her son without hesitation. And encouraging him to run. Staying in touch with the father because she knew that’s what Mark had wanted at the time. And saying Mark reminds her of the man his father once was, the kindhearted and down-to-earth politician that he used to be.
- Anyway, Mark Adams for prez of the United States of America: 2048.
Dislikes:
- Henry McIver is an enigma to me. He’s clearly not phobic in any sense of the word. He didn’t participate in verbally assaulting Benji like his teammates did. And he apologized to Mark once he found out that Mark was not, in fact, a cisgendered man. But his rhetoric is so similar to white supremacists that it makes me cringe. And he was still a bystander when Trevor and Kevin were bullying Benji. But his fanbase worships him, how can he not stop them? Is he that afraid of ruining his own popularity? I get that he’s dirt poor and doesn't have the “privilege” to be himself but I don’t get it. I don’t get why he “has to” do some of the things he does to survive in this school. If he’s queer in some aspect and Benji knows because they went out or hooked up or something, then maybe that’s it? He’s scared of the guys on his team turning on him? And maybe his parent(s) are super homophobic. Who the fuck knows. But I wish we had more perspective on him since I do not get him.
- Fuck Kevin Guo. I know Trevor is the one who punched Benji and fuck him too, but it bothers me that one of the biggest bigots in the school is an Asian dude. And the fact that h shares my name bugs me so much. How dare he! This complaint is personal and has no bearing on the overall rating of this book. I just gotta voice it.
- I mentioned that I don’t get why Amber slut-shamed Jenny like that. Is it just a commentary on the inherent sexism? How Jenny got villified while Dante Gomez, the guy she slept with and also a political candidate, continued running unaffected? If that’s it, I do think it needs to be a bit more heavyhanded in its execution.
- Jenny being all moody and mad toward Mark for like a whole week bugs me a lot too. I mean, I get it on some level and I’m glad she still cares so much for him when he wanted to quit. But girl, you need to do some actual communicating. Life is not like a television show. You told him to remove you from the ticket so he wouldn’t lose and he did! She should have been proud of him for winning, not sulking in her corner.
- I also think Ralph’s reaction to Mark revealing his father’s still alive was way overblown. Mark was clearly in distress so obviously his dad is not a good person even though Mark said he used to look up to him. Like, it should’ve been much more obvious that Mark’s whole relationship with his dad sucked but Ralph didn’t listen. I’m glad he acknowledged it though and also apologized. Plus, given his own relationship with his deceased father, I do think his reaction was somewhat justified. He’s human.
- Fuck Mark’s dad. I’m glad we know the author is transmasc but holy shit, every time Mark’s dad uttered that deadname, I actually physically cringed. It was just so bad. And overall he’s just such an entitled asshole who doesn’t get that Mark’s life doesn't revolve around him. If he had accepted his son for who he is in the first place, his campaign for governor would’ve been fine. I know it. I don’t care what he thinks. The fact that he said Mark was just playacting his gender is just so gross too. I’m glad Mark gave him a real verbal dressing down at his hotel. He deserved it. Fuck that guy to high heaven.
Vaseline on the teeth makes a smile shine. It’s a cheap stunt, but Mark Adams knows it’s optics that can win or ruin an election.
Everything Mark learned about politics, he learned from his father, the congressman who still pretends he has a daughter and not a son. To protect his father’s image, Mark promises to keep his past hidden and pretend to be the cis guy everyone assumes he is. But when he sees a manipulatively charming candidate for student body president inflame dangerous rhetoric, Mark decides to risk the low profile he assured his father and insert himself as a political challenger.
One big problem? No one really knows Mark. He didn’t grow up in this town, and he has few friends; plus, the ones he does have aren’t exactly with the in-crowd. Still, thanks to countless seasons of Scandal and The West Wing, these nerds know where to start: from campaign stops to voter polling to a fashion makeover. Soon Mark feels emboldened to get in front of and engage with voters—and even start a new romance. But with an investigative journalist digging into his past, a father trying to silence him, and a bully front-runner who stands in his way, Mark will have to decide which matters most: perception or truth, when both are just as dangerous .
