Kill All Happies

May 8, 2017
With high school graduation out of the way, Vic Navarro is ready to ditch her desert town of Rancho Soldado, but not before throwing an epic—and forbidden—graduation party at Happies, a kitschy restaurant and local institution that is about to close. Beyond being a raging sendoff, the party is also the best possible revenge against the Happies-hating Annette Thrope: teacher, realtor, town council chair, and longtime nemesis of the town’s teens. Cohn (Emergent) returns to her roots writing realistic teen fiction with snappy dialogue, a sassy go-getting lead character, a hard-to-attain crush, and best friends for life. Though Happies—and its long-closed nearby amusement park—is a memorable setting for a final hurrah, the misunderstandings, betrayals, and solutions play out predictably. Cohn’s rowdy humor and quirky cast are entertaining, but the story’s cutesiness can start to feel exhausting: nicknames abound, including the too-clever Miss Ann Thrope for the reviled teacher, and Vic and her friends are known as the Cuddle Huddle for their three-way hug sessions, a decade-long habit. Like Vic’s party, it winds up being a bit much. Ages 14–up. Agent: Jennifer Rudolph Walsh, William Morris Endeavor.

September 4, 2017
Cohn sets her rowdy YA novel in the town of Rancho Soldado in Arizona. With graduation looming, high school senior Vic Navarro is feeling lost. She does not know what to do with the rest of her life, since she didn’t get into college. She is especially distraught to learn her favorite restaurant, Happies, a local institution for generations, is closing. Vic decides to channel her frustrations and lack of direction into throwing an over-the-top party at Happies for the senior class, but she has to do it secretly to avoid the wrath of the vengeful Miss Ann Thrope, a sadistic high school teacher and head of the city council. When bus loads of fellow Happies enthusiasts show up to join the out-of-control revelry, Vic can only hang on and try to contain the ensuing chaos. Actor Ezzo gleefully throws herself into the farce, milking the over-the-top comedy. Her Vic is melodramatic yet immensely likable; Vic’s love interest, Jake, sounds every bit the gorgeous-but-dimwitted hunk he is; and Miss Ann Thrope hisses and shrieks like a cartoon villain. It’s a fun, rollicking listen. Ages 14–up. A Hyperion hardcover.