Emely’s Staff Picks

Emely's Staff Picks July 2026

We caught up with our Summer Intern, Emely, to see what she’s been reading! Check out her top 5 recent reads below.

Carl’s Doomsday Scenario

Matt Dinniman

Emely says, “I have been enjoying the Dungeon Crawler Carl books so much! They are fun, and Matt Dinniman can write touching moments just as well as tense, action-filled scenes.”

Join Carl and his ex-girlfriend’s cat, Princess Donut, as they fight fantastical creatures and deadly mobs to make it to the next level and build the kind of fan following the dungeon masters can’t ignore in the second book in the smash-hit Dungeon Crawler Carl series—now with bonus material exclusive to this print edition.

Also available in Spanish: El juicio final de Carl

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Room to Breathe

Kasie West

Emely says, “I adore the way Kasie West can write angsty romances! Plus, the former best friends storyline in this book was done so well that it is now my favorite of hers.”

In this swoony young adult romance from the acclaimed author of Sunkissed, Indy and Beau’s friendship is shattered, but getting accidentally locked in a bathroom together just might be what’s needed to reconnect.

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Listen to a Clip from the Audiobook

Five Survive

Holly Jackson

Emely says, “As much as I love A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder, I think Holly Jackson did a phenomenal job with Five Survive. The tense atmosphere as the characters are stuck in an RV while a killer looms outside makes this book the perfect summer thriller.”

From the author of the bestselling A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder series comes a new blockbuster thriller about a road trip that turns deadly.

Eight hours. Six friends. Five survive.

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Listen to a Clip from the Audiobook

Something is Killing the Children Vol. 1

James Tynion IV

Emely says, “This is another reread as I catch up to the latest volume in the series. I love a good secret society story, and this universe delivers with an enticing monster-hunting order and the different houses you could belong to if you dared.”

GLAAD Award-winning writer James Tynion IV (The Woods, Batman: Detective Comics) teams with artist Werther Dell’Edera (Briggs Land) for a haunting series about staring into the abyss . . . and what happens when the abyss stares back.

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Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees

Patrick Horvath

Emely says, “I recently reread this graphic novel in preparation for the sequel coming out very soon (out July 21st), and it is still as tense and nerve-wracking as the first time I read it. Don’t let the amazing artwork fool you, though, because this story is very dark but so thrilling and worth the read if you like horror!”

Live, laugh, shed blood. Dexter meets Richard Scarry’s Busy, Busy Town in this twisted debut graphic novel!

Don’t. Murder. The locals.

Click to Read an Excerpt