Mackenzi Lee is reader, writer, bookseller, unapologetic fangirl, fast talker, and perpetually-anxious badass. She holds an MFA from Simmons College in writing for children and young adults, and her short fiction has appeared in Inaccurate Realities, The Friend, and The Newport Review. Her young adult historical fantasy novel, This Monstrous Thing, won the PEN-New England Susan P. Bloom Children's Book Discovery Award, as well as an Emerging Artist Grant from the St. Botolph Club Foundation.
She loves Diet Coke, sweater weather, and historical fiction. On a perfect day, she can be found enjoying all three. She currently calls Boston home.
Medici Heist (2024) Caitlin Schneiderhan "I can't remember the last time I had as much fun with a book as I did with MEDICI HEIST. Caitlin Schneiderhan takes readers on a wild, sumptuous tour of historical Florence, packed with cinematic action and helmed by a gang of lovable misfits and outsiders who come together to pull off an impossible heist. I couldn't put this down!"
The Phoenix Bride (2024) Natasha Siegel "Poetic, romantic, and steeped in seventeenth-century London, The Phoenix Bride is historical fiction at its best. Natasha Siegel's prose had me hypnotized, and I savored every page of this breathless, forbidden love story."
The Manor House Governess (2023) C A Castle "A queer, atmospheric reimagining of the classic English gothic novel, paying homage to writers like E M Forster and Charlotte Bronte while also bringing a modern sensibility and contemporary spin. In turns spooky, funny, and romantic, C. A. Castle's debut novel is sure to be a hit."
By Any Other Name (2023) Erin Cotter "By Any Other Name is a high-stakes, high-drama mystery set in a vividly rendered Shakespearean London. Erin Cotter takes readers on a journey from the slums to the theaters to the palaces of Elizabethan England, led by a plucky, determined hero I would have followed anywhere. I devoured this romantic, delightful romp!"
Murder for the Modern Girl (2022) Kendall Kulper "An engaging, page-turning mystery that crackles with the wit and shimmering style of the 1920s. Shiny and dark, funny and grim, and populated by lovable, charming characters that leap off the page, grab you by the hand, and lead you onto the dance floor. The most fun book about murder you'll ever read."
If This Gets Out (2021) Cale Dietrich and Sophie Gonzales "If This Gets Out is the perfect book.... It deftly explores the dark side of fame [and] the giddy thrill of first-and forbidden-love."
Like Other Girls (2021) Britta Lundin "Like Other Girls boldly takes on the ultimate system of patriarchy--high school football---and spins a feminist revolution into a critique of the way women are pitted against each other and certain expressions of gender and femininity are valued over others. Britta Lundin has created a flawed, sharp, and absolutely magnificent roster of girls learning about themselves and each other, and how to treat both with more empathy and compassion. Like Other Girls encapsulates the claustrophobia of rural American life, the struggle to be true to yourself in spite of the external forces trying to define you, and the way none of us are ever as alone as we think. Britta Lundin is a force of nature, and a thrilling, honest advocate for not only being yourself, but letting others be theirs."
Fire with Fire (2021) Destiny Soria "Fire With Fire is the dragon slaying urban fantasy sister story I didn't know I needed and now can't stop thinking about!"
In Deeper Waters (2021) F T Lukens "In Deeper Waters is a delightful, big-hearted romp that delivers an old-school fantasy feel while also upgrading your favorite genre tropes. Come for the fantasy adventure, stay for the soft romance between a prince and a pirate! An absolute joy from cover to cover."
Muse (2021) (Muse , book 1) Brittany Cavallaro "Uncooperative, riotous women reclaim history in Brittany Cavallaro's complex reimagining of the 1893 World's Fair, set in an alternate American monarchy on the brink of war. An electric reclamation of America's past, and a warning for the future if we continue to underestimate the strength of young women and their power to control their own narratives, and the world."
A Neon Darkness (2020) (Bright Sessions, book 2) Lauren Shippen "X-Men by way of Salinger, A Neon Darkness is a vivid picture of found family and the fraught, complex ties that bind them."
The Bone Houses (2019) Emily Lloyd-Jones "A dark, mesmerizing fairytale reminiscent of the Grimm Brothers, the Brontes, and Neil Gaiman in turn. The Bone Houses is a haunting and hypnotic novel that I drank deeply and savored. Emily Lloyd-Jones is an author who should be on everyone's radar."
Like a Love Story (2019) Abdi Nazemian "For warriors, divas, artists, queens, individuals, activists, trend setters, and anyone searching for the courage to be themselves."
The Disasters (2018) M K England "A clever, cosmic thrill ride packed with nonstop action and starring a motley crew that won me over from page one. Just too much fun!"
An Assassin's Guide to Love and Treason (2018) Virginia Boecker "An Assassin's Guide to Love and Treason is a thrilling, immersive romp through Shakespeare's London, and all the intrigue, alliances, and politics that shaped it. Helmed by two feisty leading players who I fell in love with as they fell for each other, and with snappy, energetic prose that will appeal to both fans of historicals and contemporaries, there's something here for everyone. I devoured this book with ravenous joy. Bravo!"
The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein (2018) Kiersten White "In the hands of master storyteller Kiersten White, the bones of a familiar story are reconstructed to form an inventive, grotesque, and completely unexpected reimagining of Frankenstein. Mary Shelley would be proud."
Blood Water Paint (2018) Joy McCullough "Tragically relevant and unflinchingly feminist, Blood Water Paint is the kind of book all historical fiction should aspire to be."
