Rombklove day 11 is hosted by Melinda. Melinda like me is one of the co-hosts of Rombkpod and great friend.

I love Young Adult romance - I know not everyone does but I’m a sucker for complicated and messy characters and what’s more complicated and messy than teenagers!?? Nothing! I’m more forgiving of behaviors in YA than I am in adult characters because the audience they’re writing for is *not* me - and that’s okay! Here are a few of the YA romance I’ve loved the last few years.

I Love You So Mochi by Sarah Kuhn

I loved this sweet book that features a girl, Kimi, going to Japan to visit her grandparents that have been estranged from her family for most of her life. This book is a perfect example of what I love about YA as Kimi is on a really deep personal self-discovery that’s a blend of family, art, and what she wants to do with her life. But! There’s also a really great romance with a med student, Akira, and it’s definitely a Happy-For-Now ending which is appropriate for a YA. This is truly such a great book for everyone.

Love From A to Z by S.K. Ali

This book was one of my top favorite books of 2019, not just of YA, I loved it so much. It’s delightful and painful at turns and I can’t recommend this book highly enough to people. Zayneb is experiencing incredible Islamophobia and racism at home in the U.S. and on a trip to Qator meets Adam who is going through his own pain after a MS diagnosis.

So, obviously this is not a light book by any means. But it’s 100% a romance - it’s unflinching with how it looks at these teenagers going through completely different but both difficult things, but also falling for each other. There’s hope, and pain, and love, and just...gah. I love it.

CW: Islamophobia, parental death from MS and then child has the same disease, grief, death of a grandparent by drone strike, on-page MS flare-up

Not Your Sidekick by CB Lee

This book is just pure FUN. Jess is the daughter of superheroes but doesn’t have any herself, she has a big crush on a girl at school, there’s a mysterious super-villain...it’s just so fun, I can’t say it enough. The entire cast of characters is fully fleshed out and I loved them all so much. I know this takes place with superpowers but the characters all felt real because they are people that populate actual daily life - bisexual, Vietnamese-Chinese, trans, Black - and it made everything feel even more realistic. I highly rec this book for middle grade and up - and the audio is great.

Sick Kids in Love by Hannah Moskowitz

Like anyone who sees this title I was immediately worried that someone dies in this book! But rest assured, I would NEVER do that to you, because I am not a monster. This book...phew, it blew me away. Isabel and Sasha are both Jewish kids who have chronic illnesses. That’s it, that’s the whole plot, sounds boring, right? Not so much.

As someone who lives with a chronic illness I related to so many moments in this book - even without having the same illnesses and if I could give ONE book to people to help them understand? It would be this one. The romance is sweet and while they’re both Jewish I absolutely love that they have different experiences with their faith and discuss it so openly. The same happens with their illnesses. I can’t rec this one enough and I want everyone to read this and laugh and cry with happiness with me at this book.

CW: divorce, parental death in the past, medical emergency

Have you read any of these books? Are there any YA romance books that you love?

#Rombklove 2020 Day 11: YA ain’t just for teens. Which YA romance would you recommend to readers of any age? What were your fave romance stories when you were younger? @MelindaEdits suggests some of the best YA out there.

#Rombklove 2020, día 11: El romance juvenil no es solo cosa de adolescentes. ¿Qué libros juveniles recomendarías a lectores de cualquier edad? ¿Cuáles eran tus romances favoritos cuando eras más joven? @MelindaEdits recomienda algunos de los mejores romances juveniles.

Day 11 Archive https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1mSlKT-sPoFcZKHNhJ8wmsoSN8fo6sGXt49ZdDkgMz1c/edit?usp=sharing

GR Lists: 

https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/148047.RomBkLove_2020_Young_Adult_Romance_1

https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/148103.RomBkLove_2020_Young_Adult_Romance_2

How to participate?

Readers: Respond to the prompts! Share your favorite books, characters, scenes, or thoughts on tropes.  Make sure to include the #RomBkLove hashtag with your tweet! If you have read and loved a book by LGBTQIA+, Disabled, and/or  Authors of Color that fits the prompt please, please mention it.  You might think everyone has heard of the book but I can guarantee you there are lots of people who still need to hear about it.  

Authors: You are welcome to participate too, as fellow readers. The tag is not meant for self-promotion. Boost fellow authors, celebrate the community but do so in a way that respect reader spaces. Respect the conversation.   Join in to rec the books you love that fit the theme/trope/prompt. Yes, you can say “I wrote a book with this trope” but please don’t spam the hashtag with generic promo. 

For a list of all of these month's prompts and archives go to: https://www.anacoqui.com/2020/04/rombklove-2020-celebrating-inclusive-romance-during-a-pandemic.html