Cover Crush: All That Shines by Ellen Hagan

All That Shines by Ellen Hagan has such a sweet pretty cover! You might recognize the illustrator’s work in quite a few of my favorite YA covers! I am clearly a big fan of Jeff’s work! I love this nighttime scene, we so rarely get one on a contemporary book, and of course the Kentucky sky depicted is very central to the story line. This book has that Riches to Rags trope, a la Schitt’s Creek, motel and all – but make it YA! And with an Ellen Hagan book you can expect it will be very poetic as it is written in verse. You will want to add this on to your Fall TBR with the September 5th release.

Cover illustration: Jeff Ostberg

Thank you to Bloomsbury YA for the advance copy!

All That Shines

by Ellen Hagan
Published by: Bloomsbury YA
on September 5 2023
Genres: Contemporary, In Verse, Young Adult
Bookshop
Goodreads

A contemplative novel in verse that questions what it means to lose everything you once treasured and rediscover yourself, falling in love along the way.

Chloe Brooks has only ever known what it's like to have everything. Her parents' wealth and place in society meant she had all she wanted, and friends everywhere she turned. Until it all crashes down: Her father is arrested in the middle of the night, under investigation for fraud.

Bankrupt and facing foreclosure, Chloe must forgo her lavish summer plans as she and her mom are forced to move into one of the rundown apartments they still own, just outside Lexington, Kentucky. Without her riches, Chloe loses her friends, her comfort, her confidence, and her sense of self, unsure of who she is and if she is even worth anything if she nothing to offer.

To Chloe's surprise, she bonds with her neighbors, Clint, Skye, James, and Natalia, and they introduce her to the side of Kentucky she's long ignored. Her new friends are the only ones who see her for who she truly is, but will they stay by her side once they discover her family's true identity, or will Chloe lose them, too?

In her signature captivating verse, Ellen Hagan encapsulates the hesitant joy of reshaping your identity and rediscovering yourself.