I’ll be honest, I enjoy YA fiction under specific circumstances. I am obviously no longer the targeted demographic for such novels, and sometimes that’s painfully obvious when I try to read them and find myself agreeing with the adults over the teen protagonist. And that’s why I try not to review them too much around these parts. They aren’t written for me anymore, like for almost two decades …a while. You know what, let’s not get into specifics about ages and dates. Those are all technicalities.

Sometimes, I can feel a bit weird when I’m interested in reading a YA novel. A sense of “I know I’m 30-something, but please don’t judge me for reading this” can wash over me. But then I remind myself that all books are for all people because books are how we experience situations we might otherwise never be in; that expands our empathy and worldview. It’s probably why right-wingers really don’t read. But I digress…

I try to let myself like what I like. The term “guilty pleasure” shouldn’t really exist because if it brings you pleasure why do we need to feel guilt about it? Unless, like, what brings you pleasure is something really fucked up on the dark web or whatever. Stop that. Get some therapy.

Anyway, I remain dedicated to my search for an amazing YA mystery-thriller that I will LOVE the same way I LOVE some adult thrillers. One that feels honest and genuine and manages to pull some real twisty punches has so far been hard for me to find. But in honour of #YAWeek, I’m going to be taking a look at the YAnovels floating around my TBR pile, giving me good vibes.