Boston Book Festival

So many families seem picture perfect, but what happens once that camera goes away? Learn about three very different families whose teens all have secrets bubbling underneath the smooth surface, and they might just be at their breaking points! Patricia Park’s What’s Eating Jackie Oh? tells of Jackie’s desire to throw off the yoke of being your model minority while trying to keep her cool dealing with the expectations of her Korean-American parents as well as the cutthroat competition to win a cooking show. Chilling horror tale A Family of Killers by Bryce Moore depicts the cold and murderous Bender Family, alongside Warren, the teenage son of one of the Benders’ victims, determined to avenge his father. Desmond Hall’s Better Must Come follows the stories of Deja and Gabriel, two Jamaican teens aiming to find a way out for themselves while protecting the people they love most. Come hear these three authors discuss their characters’ different cultural expectations and circumstances in dealing with the funny, the treacherous, and the oh-so-real pressure to be picture-perfect. Simmons University Professor Cathryn Mercier moderates.

Join us for a series of chilling tales where the past and present collide, dark secrets are revealed, and courage is tested. From haunted houses to the wayward web, characters must land in uncharted territories to face their demons! In Ciera Burch’s Something Kindred, Jericka Walker’s summer plans take an unexpected turn when she’s sent to Coldwater, Maryland to care for her dying grandmother. As Jericka explores eerie Coldwater, she encounters Kat, a ghostly girl eager to escape. The town holds a chilling grip, revealing haunting truths about Jericka’s family and blurring the lines between the living and the dead. Will Jericka unravel Coldwater’s secrets before its sinister past consumes her? Kelly Andrew’s Your Blood, My Bones follows Wyatt Westlock, who’s inherited her family’s farmhouse and has one goal: to destroy it. However, her plans come to a shocking halt when she discovers someone from her past who is bound to the farm. As ancient forces gather, the two must work together and dare to overcome their mutual mistrust in order to survive and repair the property’s protective spells. Tatiana Schlote-Bonne’s Such Lovely Skin tells the story of Viv, a chronic liar and avid gamer haunted by guilt of her sister’s death. When she returns to Twitch streaming in hopes of redemption, she accidentally summons a demonic mimic by revealing her darkest secret. Infamously known as a liar, Viv struggles to convince others of her doppelganger’s existence. To save herself and those she’s wronged, she must confront her dark past and all-consuming lies once and for all. Hannah Robinson, Porter Square Books bookseller, moderates.

What’s the magic that makes a story worth coming back to over and over again? And what sparks a writer to consider turning a classic into something fresh and bold? Come meet three authors who take inspiration from ancient myths, the middle ages, and the not-so-long ago English countryside to spin radically contemporary tales. Anne Camlin’s Mismatched, takes the drama, romance, and matchmaking of Jane Austen’s Emma and brings it into the social media age with Instagram influencer Evan Horowitz. Award winning author Sajni Patel fuses Medusa with Indian mythology in A Drop of Venom. With A Tale of Two Knights, James Persichetti rounds out the panel with a Queer graphic novel retelling of Arthurian legends, and the twists that happen at the Round Table! Join the conversation to learn what inspired these authors to revisit old stories, and create new adventures. Simmons University Professor Amy Pattee moderates.

Good and Evil hang in the balance in these three new books–and only one can win. Join us as we explore the worlds and trials of these fantasy protagonists, all possessing powerful magic that can save or ruin their worlds as they know it. Now, Conjurers by Freddie Kölsch centers on Nesbit, who finds the dead body of his secret boyfriend (and secret witch) in the woods outside their Massachusetts town. The rest of the North Coven, including Nesbit, will have to discover what dark evil caused the killing and defeat it before it attacks anyone else in the town. In LaDarrion Williams’s debut novel Blood at the Root, Malik has been hiding his powers from the day he discovered them—the same day his mother disappeared. While raising his younger brother and going to college, Malik begins to learn more about love, his powers, his heritage, and the dark evil growing since the Haitian Revolution. Kendare Blake completes her Heromaker Duology with Warriors of Legend. Reed earned her place amongst the immortal Aristene, but the order is fracturing and all her heroes trade their lives for victories on the battlefield. When her old flame is trying to court her new hero, she has to decide exactly who she needs to be. This discussion about choices and personal power set in fantastical worlds will be moderated by literary agent and YA author Rebecca Podos.