UKYA Published in 2015 by POC Authors

When I decided to devote all my reading in March to books with POC authors I didn't fully realise how difficult it would be to accomplish.  In fact, I don't have enough on my shelves and Kindle to cover a month's worth of reading so I've had to include books with LGBT characters/LGBT authors to boost up the numbers.  I find it eye-opening how few books I own written by POC authors and I also find it eye-opening about how few books, especially UKYA books, are being published this year by POC authors.

These are just the UKYA POC authors that I know of with books out this year. Please, let me know if I'm missing any. I'd love to be wrong about this.

In terms of YA published in the UK by POC authors, there are a few I've spotted: Talon by Julie Kagawa, My Heart and Other Black Holes by Jasmine Warga, PS I Still Love You by Jenny Han, Never Always Sometimes by Adi Alsaid, Everything Everything by Nicola Yoon, and probably more. But this blog post will be focusing on UKYA!

Sam Hepburn

If You Were Me by Sam Hepburn (2 April, Chicken House)

Not long after Aliya's family escapes Afghanistan for Britain, her brother is accused of a bomb attack. Aliya is sure of his innocence, but when plumber's son Dan finds a gun in their bathroom, what's she to think? Dan has his own reasons for staying silent: he's worried the gun might have something to do with his dad. Thrown together by chance, they set out to uncover a tangled and twisted truth.

Catherine Johnson

Curious Tale of the Lady Caraboo by Catherine Johnson (2 July, Corgi Children's)

Cassandra Worrell is beautiful, rich and very, very bored. Trapped in her parents stately home, she dreams of escape. Life suddenly becomes much more interesting with the appearance of a beautiful, disorientated young woman, who speaks a mysterious language . . . Cassandra is convinced she's found a princess from a far away land . . . Could the princess hold the key to the adventure she's been seeking? Or might the escape she desires be found in the arms of the wholly inappropriate but utterly delectable local boy, Will Jenkins?

Alex Wheatle 

Liccle Bit by Alex Wheatle (5 March, Atom)

What's worse than hiding a secret? Liccle Bit's about to find out...

Venetia King is the hottest girl at school. Too bad Lemar is the second shortest guy in his year. Everyone calls him Liccle Bit, and his two best friends, McKay and Jonah, never tire of telling him he has no chance with girls. Things aren't much better at home. His mum is permanently hassled, his sister a frustrated single mum and his dad moved out years ago. Liccle Bit wishes he could do something - anything! - to make life better. A new phone would be a start...

As a new gang war breaks out on his estate, Lemar discovers that South Crongton's notorious gang leader has taken an interest in him. Before he knows what's happening, he's running errands. When he puts his own family in danger, Liccle Bit will be forced to question his choices. How can he possibly put things right?

Taran Matharu

The Novice by Taran Matharu (5 May, Hodder Children's Books)

When blacksmith apprentice Fletcher discovers that he has the ability to summon demons from another world, he travels to Adept Military Academy. There the gifted are trained in the art of summoning. Fletcher is put through grueling training as a battlemage to fight in the Hominum Empire’s war against orcs. He must tread carefully while training alongside children of powerful nobles. The power hungry, those seeking alliances, and the fear of betrayal surround him. Fletcher finds himself caught in the middle of powerful forces, with only his demon Ignatius for help.

As the pieces on the board maneuver for supremacy, Fletcher must decide where his loyalties lie. The fate of an empire is in his hands. The Novice is the first in a trilogy about Fletcher, his demon Ignatius, and the war against the Orcs.

Tanya Byrne

For Holly by Tanya Byrne (4 June, Headline)

Lola Durand hates her stepmother. It's a cliché but it's true. 

Lola Durand can't get through to her father. He never wants to talk about the things that matter: why they had to move to Paris, why he had to marry evil Agatha, and how they can get through the heartache of her mother's death together.

If he won't listen, she'll show him. She'll show him the truth about his new wife and then her life can go back to normal, just the way she likes it. 

Lola Durand knows a secret about her stepmother. She's going to share it.

Amy Alward

The Potion Diaries by Amy Alward (2 July, Simon and Schuster)

When Nova's princess (more Kate Middleton than Rapunzel!) is poisoned by her own love potion, the city's alchemists are entered into a deadly, high-profile quest to find a cure. It's the chance of a lifetime for Sam's alchemist family, who have been mixing magic potions for generations . . . but can Sam save their crumbling reputation?
Sam must choose whether to work with or against her best friends, Anita and Arjun, and finds herself thrown towards Zain, heir to the ZoroAster synthetic potions corporation, and her arch enemy. He also happens to be the boy most likely to marry the princess . . . 
With the nation's media watching her every move, Sam overcomes incredible dangers and impossible dilemmas in order to hunt down the ingredients: a mermaid's pearl, pink jasmine, Eluvian ivy, hair from an abominable and a unicorn's tail. Tricky. Can Sam save the now dangerously powerful princess by winning the contest? And just how close are she and Zain willing to get in the meantime??