New Releases I’m Excited About: Late 2021 Speculative & Youth Fiction

Hello again! We’re down to the last two posts in our look at this new season of upcoming releases! Tomorrow we’ll finish the week with nonfiction but today I’m diving into Late 2021 Speculative & Youth Fiction New Releases (September-December). I usually group these together because they are smaller categories as far as books I want to read.

Here is the schedule of posts for the week so you can zero in on your fave genre!

Tuesday: Contemporary Fiction (non-Amish & non-suspense)
Wednesday: Historical Fiction (non-Amish & non-suspense)
Thursday: Mystery/Suspense (non-Amish)
Today: Amish Fiction
TODAY: Speculative/Youth
Sunday: Non-Fiction

This certainly isn’t all the speculative & youth fiction releasing in Mid 2021 but it is the selection of books I most want to read & the ones I can verify for sure are clean. A book is featured probably because the cover or author pulled me in and then the blurb confirmed it. I’ll also include links to all the September-December 2021 releases, each in their own list by month. You can also keep up with 2021’s new books as I learn about them by bookmarking the ‘2021 Releases‘ page on my blog menu & checking it periodically!

I’m breaking down this list into three categories: Children’s, Young Adult, and Speculative just to more clearly define the genres represented here.

spotlight on titles i’m most giddy about

(click on book title to go to its goodreads page if available)

children’s books

WALTER DOES HIS BEST
Eva Pilgrim
Thomas Nelson / Sept 7, 2021

What does it mean to be a good neighbor? From Central Park to Broadway to Times Square, Walter the French Bulldog is on a mission of kindness in this hilarious dog adventure story from ABC’s Good Morning America’s Eva Pilgrim. Walter’s heart is full of kindness, but this little dog’s efforts to help his neighbors don’t go as planned. Journalist Eva Pilgrim’s charming narrative and Jessica Gibson’s vibrant illustrations make Walter Does His Best a wonderful way to introduce kids ages 4-8 to new adventures in kindness.

HAVE YOU SEEN THIS BOOK?
Angela DiTerlizzi
Philomel Books / Sept 28, 2021

A hilarious, interactive book that breaks the fourth wall about a boy confronts a book thief when his favorite story is stolen. Perfect for fans of Don’t Push the Button and There’s a Monster in Your Book! When a boy discovers that his favorite book is missing, he asks you if you’ve seen it. But with every description he gives and every page you turn, you realize that his missing book is in YOUR hands! So what do you do? And what does HE do when he figures it out?

TWIRL
Emily Lex
Harvest Kids / October 5, 2021

This simply delightful story from watercolor artist Emily Lex encourages children (ages 4-8) to become exactly who God created them to be, living freely and lightly for Him. Each of us have been exquisitely designed by God to receive his love and reflect it in our own one-of-a-kind, never-ever-to-be-duplicated way. Help your children celebrate their specialness as you share this sweet story about a girl who discovers the truth of who God made her to be, with a little help from her adorable animal friends.

MADE BY GOD
Tony Evans
Harvest Kids / October 5, 2021

Dr. Evans explains in simple terms that we all are created in the image of God. We may look different, come from different places, and have a little or a lot, but God loves and values us equally. Therefore, we should love and value others as He does. Made by God also introduces children to the concepts of diversity, unity, and racism from a Christian worldview and gives them practical suggestions on how they can stand up for what’s right when they see injustice occurring.

WHAT SOUNDS FUN TO YOU?
Annie F. Downs
Revell / October 19, 2021

No one knows how to have fun like kids do. But sometimes, even kids can use some fresh ideas for finding the fun in their lives. Fun is everywhere, and with this charmingly illustrated children’s book, Annie F. Downs wants to help children ages 3 to 8 find it!

GO ASK OZZIE
Patricia Polacco
Simon & Schuster / October 19, 2021

There’s nothing worse than a rotten redheaded older brother who is the most embarrassing brother in the Elwood school district in Oakland, California. Even three years older, Richie makes Patricia’s life miserable, and there is nowhere to hide in their small town. Richie is gross—tangled hair, sloppy room, and messy clothes. And he doesn’t even care—not one bit! And now that they’re both in middle school, Richie does everything he can to mortify Patricia in front of her friends. Ozzie at the lunch counter says there will come a time when the two siblings will be friends, but that can’t be right…can it?

THE BURGLAR’S BALL
(Jane Austen Investigates #2)
Julia Golding
Lion Hudson / October 22, 2021

When the headmistress invites her past favourite pupil to attend their end of term ball, Cassandra brings her younger sister, Jane, along too. Cassandra plunges into the feverish excitement of preparing for the biggest event of the year – the dresses, the dances and the boys expected from the neighbouring school. Feeling rather excluded, sharp-witted Jane unearths the reason for the fuss – the headteacher wants to impress a rich family returned from India as the school is at risk of going bankrupt. Jane also befriends the dancing master’s assistant, a former slave, called Brandon, who is as quick to notice things as she. At the ball, a diamond necklace is stolen from a locked room and they are propelled into a race to uncover the burglar and save Brandon from gaol.

SHE PERSISTED: MARIA TALLCHIEF
(She Persisted series)
Christine Day
Philomel Books / November 2, 2021

Maria Tallchief loved to dance, but was told that she might need to change her Osage name to one that sounded more Russian to make it as a professional ballerina. She refused, and worked hard at dancing her best, becoming America’s first prima ballerina. Many famous American ballets were created for Maria!

young adult books

THE ONE WHO KNOWS ME
(Sovereign Love #1)
Joan Embola
Love Qualified Press / Sept 10, 2021

Bullies and family disasters have left eighteen-year-old Teeyana Sparks filled with anxiety and doubt. She feels pressured to believe in God, but as she embarks on her college journey in the hope of one day working at Google as a graphic designer, the only thing she believes in is controlling her own life. Things change when she meets Jayden Williams—the guy with a charming smile and kind heart.  Struggling with grief and recovering from a season of depression, nineteen-year-old Jayden is determined to help Teeyana believe in God’s goodness again. Teeyana and Jayden must wrestle with uncomfortable truths, and the pride in their hearts, in order to face their biggest giant—God’s sovereignty over both triumph and tragedy.

WOLF SOLDIER
(Lightraider Academy #1)
James R. Hannibal
Enclave Escape / October 12, 2021

The knights of the Lightraider Order disappeared nearly two generations past. Now, the Keledan have withdrawn behind their barriers, and the Dragon Lands of bordering Tanelethar are overrun with dark oppression. The people are living in disobedience to the Rescuer who freed them long ago. A shepherd boy, Connor Enarian, and four young initiates rekindle the fires of the Lightraider Order in the hope of striking out across the mountains into the Tanelethar to destroy a portal and stop an impending invasion. Once in the Dragon Lands, Connor learns that the key to success lies with a missing Lightraider spy and his lifelong companion, a talking silver wolf. Can Connor and his friends find the spy before the portal grows too large to destroy? Or will a local young woman—or Connor’s own family history—betray them?

ENAMORED
(Knights of Brethren #1)
Jody Hedlund
Northern Lights Press / November 9, 2021

Having been raised by her childless aunt and uncle, the king and queen, Princess Elinor finds herself the only heir to the throne of Norvegia. As she comes of age, she must choose a husband to rule beside her, but she struggles to make her selection from among a dozen noblemen during a weeklong courtship. With aspirations to become the wisest man in the land, Maxim is summoned home by his father Rasmus, a Royal Sage. Reunited with Elinor, once his closest friend, Maxim is quickly enamored with her even though he can never be considered a prospect for her husband. Elinor’s feelings for Maxim are rekindled too . . . until she learns he has been unwillingly drawn into Rasmus’s scheme to take control of the throne. With the kingdom under attack both from within and without, can Elinor and Maxim overcome the deceit spinning around them? Or will it destroy their love once and for all? The real story of Excalibur.

CURSE OF THE MIDNIGHT KING
(Tales of Faerie Land #1)
Yakira Goldsberry
Illuminate YA / November 9, 2021

In this retelling of the Twelve Dancing Princesses and Cinderella, Faye must sacrifice herself to save her sisters, or risk them being trapped in the Underworld forever, suffering from the curse she helped create. After being separated for three years from her sisters except when she dances with Pathos, the Midnight King, at midnight on a full moon, Faye finally sees a chance to rescue them all. But things are not as easy as they appear. Pathos, the midnight king, is determined to keep her in the Underworld with him.

A HEART AS RED AS PAINT
(Winter Souls #2)
Jennifer Kropf
Winter Publishing House / November 10, 2021

Helen Bell has changed since facing off with Mara Rouge in the Quarrel of Sword and Bone. But so has Winter. When a Timepiece crosses the intersect to give Helen a set of three warnings in the form of a puzzle, she’s forced to re-enter the world she thought she might never see again to solve it before she meets a deadly end. But things are different in Winter. Things that were once proudly colourful have been painted red, and the Patrolman who swore to always be there for her has his own demons to face. Helen is forced to hide in plain sight by impersonating a Red Kingdom celebrity, all to follow the leads and solve the Timepiece’s puzzle before she’s taken and Winter’s last Carrier of Truth is silenced forever.

THE WINTER CHARLATAN
(Storytellers #3)
Victoria McCombs
Parliament House Press / December 7, 2021

The sole heir to the kingdom is destined to sleep for a hundred years. To hide this liability, the queen left her cursed daughter in the care of a trusted lord, while taking his son as her own. Rowan grew up hating the boy who had her crown and vowed to one day reclaim her place as queen. But when a neighboring king threatens a war they won’t survive, Rowan must work with the fraud prince to save Elenvérs. She pledges herself as his spy in the enemy court and lives in the heart of danger. If she can’t save her kingdom before the curse hits, there may be nothing left to wake up to.

ENTWINED
(Knight of Brethren #2)
Jody Hedlund
Northern Lights Press / December 7, 2021

After growing up on a remote farm, Lis learns she is the rightful heir to the throne of Norvegia. Even as she does her part to thwart a dangerous plot against the king, she resists pursuing her new identity and resigns herself to a simple life helping her elderly father with their farm. With the king losing his mind, Sir Ansgar, the highest knight in the land, is desperate to save the sovereign he’s sworn to protect. But before Ansgar can uncover what is causing the king’s demise, he finds himself falsely accused of treason and dismissed from court. In danger of losing his life, Ansgar takes refuge on Lis’s farm. Love soon blossoms between Ansgar and Lis, even as they realize a future together is impossible.

speculative fiction (adult)

BLOOD FROM A STONE
(The True Lies of Rembrandt Stone #5)
David James Warren
TriStone Media / October 5, 2021

It’s Rembrandt Stone’s last chance to get things right–and to apprehend a killer who promises tragedy for him in the future. But one mistake in the past might cost him everything he’s worked so hard to save.

ALL THAT’S FAIR
(No Less Days #3)
Amanda G. Stevens
October 5, 2021

Cady Schuster can’t die. Unable for the last century to grow old or succumb to injury, Cady Schuster has lost a lot of people, some more recently than others. She’s trying to find new belonging in Harbor Vale, Michigan, among a welcoming little group of fellow ageless folk. Then she meets Paige, a mortal woman who needs a friend-and might need help. Paige’s husband rules their church with an authority unquestioned by his congregation. When Paige suddenly severs all communication, Cady determines to find her. Churchgoers warn her off, and the behavior of Paige’s husband proves a still bigger warning. Is this friend lost too, or can Cady help her? And how far should an ageless woman involve herself in the conflicts of mortals?

HEART OF STONE
(The True Lies of Rembrandt Stone #6)
David James Warren
TriStone Media / November 23, 2021

Rembrandt Stone can’t believe the world he’s returned to. It must change. But he’ll have to break time’s rules and undo his past to create a future he can live with.

add these to your wish list

all the new releases by each separate month
(amazon affiliate links used)

my favorite covers?

Make sure to like & comment on this post and enter my monthly giveaway for THREE books of your choice from my duplicates stash! After you’ve liked & commented, claim your entries HERE.

What about you? Which Late 2021 Speculative & Youth Fiction New Releases are you most anxious to read? Which covers are your favorites?