Teen Book Lists

For seventeen-year-old pirate Aster Oberon and her family, life at sea has been a refuge from Nightweavers - mystical beings with elemental powers that rule the land.

But when the Oberons are finally defeated in an epic battle that shatters Aster's world, they are thrust into a new life, to live among the very beings they hate.

Handsome Nightweaver Will shows Aster uncharacteristic mercy, by offering the Oberons employment on his family's opulent estate.

Despite her hatred for his kind, Aster finds her attraction to Will growing by the day. Will this illicit romance and the chilling secrets that hide at the heart of Bludgrave Manor unravel everything she's ever known, loved and fought for. . . ?

From #1 New York Times bestselling author/illustrator Brian Selznick, a profoundly romantic YA novel about two boys finding each other and falling in love over one summer in Rome.

"I'm going to call you Danny. What are you going to name me?"

"Angelo."

Danny is spending his sixteenth summer in Rome. As his mother spends the day at work in a mysterious museum, he wanders the ancient sites and streets. Soon after his arrival, he encounters a shadow... who becomes a voice... who becomes a boy his age. Angelo.

Soon Danny and Angelo are spending as much time as they can together, piecing together stories of the city while only gradually letting their own histories be shared. Attraction leads to affection, and affection leads to both an intimate closeness and a profound fear of what happens next. Danny has never really had a home, or known the love of another boy. Angelo seems to have more experience... but he also has secrets just out of Danny's reach.

Run Away With Me is a stunning creation, weaving words and illustration to tell the story of a transformative love over the course of one Roman summer.

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind meets Past Lives in this gripping, emotional story of two childhood friends navigating the fallout of one erasing their memory of the other, from acclaimed author Sarah Suk.

Seventeen-year-old Yena Bae is spending the summer in Busan, South Korea, working at her mom's memory-erasing clinic. She feels lost and disconnected from people, something she's felt ever since her best friend, Lucas, moved away four years ago without a word, leaving her in limbo.

Eighteen-year-old Lucas Pak is also in Busan for the summer, visiting his grandpa, who was recently diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. But he isn't just here for a regular visit--he's determined to get his beloved grandpa into the new study running at the clinic, a trial program seeking to restore lost memories.

When Yena runs into Lucas again, she's shocked to see him and even more shocked to discover that he doesn't remember a thing about her. He's completely erased her from his memories, and she has no idea why.

As the two reconnect, they unravel the mystery and heartache of what happened between them all those years ago--and must now reckon with whether they can forge a new beginning together.

Diego Benevides works hard. His single mother encourages him to stay focused on school, on getting into college, on getting out of their crumbling neighborhood. That's why she gave him her car.

Diego's best friend, Lawson, needs a ride-because Lawson is dealing. As long as Diego's not carrying, not selling, it's cool. It's just weed.

But when Lawson starts carrying powder and pills and worse, their friendship is tested and their lives are threatened. As the lines between dealer and driver blur, everything Diego has worked for is jeopardized, and he faces a deadly reckoning with the choices he and his best friend have made.

Award-winning memoirist and poet Rex Ogle's searing first novel-in-verse is an unforgettable story of the power and price of loyalty.

For fans of Sarah J. Maas and Holly Black, The Forest King's Daughter is an enemies-to-forbidden-lovers romance from the New York Times bestselling author of Frostblood.

Once upon a time, among the bloodred trees of Thirstwood, a young forest princess became friends with a lonely boy from underground. He gifted her an amber ring, a worthless trinket--or so he thought--because no sooner did he slide it onto her finger than the queen of the underground and the forest king declared war.

Years later, Cassia is a crucial force in her father's army, wielding her ring of light that can blind and disorient hundreds of enemies at a time. Then battle-hardened Zeru abducts her, planning to steal the ring back to fix his costly childhood mistake. Exhausted, terrified, and more than a little mistrusting, Cassia is forced to travel with Zeru to a place they both believed only existed in storybooks, one where their childhood friendship slowly rekindles into something much more. But it's only a matter of time before the war they escaped comes for them, and a hidden threat to forest and underground folk alike grows in the shadows.

From the author of the Frostblood Saga comes the first book in an enchanting, adventure-filled fantasy series about the daughters of the powerful forest king, sure to leave readers breathless and desperate for more.

From author Elisa A. Bonnin comes Lovely Dark and Deep, a YA dark academia novel exploring magic, loneliness, and the power of found family.

"A truly thoughtful, engaging reflection on the dark academia genre." —BCCB, starred review

Hidden off the coast of Washington, veiled in mist, there is an island that does not appear on any map. And on that island is Ellery West.

The acclaimed school for magic has always been home for Faith. After an international move and a childhood spent adjusting to a new culture and a new language, Faith feels like Ellery is the only place she can be herself. That is, until Faith and another student walk into the forest, and only Faith walks out.

Marked with the Red Stripe across her uniform that designates all students deemed too dangerous to attend regular classes, Faith becomes a social pariah, an exile of Ellery West. But all she has to do is keep her head down for one more year so she can graduate, and get to keep her magic. Because when students fail out of Ellery West, they have their magic taken away. Forever. And Faith can't let that happen.

Except terrifying things are happening to students, and the dark magic that was unleashed in the forest still seems to be at work. To stop it, Faith and the other Red Stripes will have to work together, risking expulsion from the magical world altogether.

From acclaimed author K. Ancrum comes a queer romantic thriller in which the lives of Hollis, a boy in search of meaning, and Walt, a spirit with unfinished business, collide when Walt takes possession of Hollis's body...and maybe his heart. For fans of Adam Silvera and Aiden Thomas!

Hollis Brown is stuck. Born to a blue-collar American Dream, Hollis lives in a rotting small town where no one can afford to leave. Hollis's only bright spots are his two best friends, cool girls Annie and Yulia, and the thrill of fighting his classmates.

As if his circumstances couldn't get worse, a chance encounter with a mysterious stranger named Walt results in a frightening trap. After unknowingly making a deal at the crossroads, Hollis finds himself losing control of his body and mind, falling victim to possession. Walt, the ghost making a home inside him, has a deep and violent history rooted in the town Hollis grew up in and he has unfinished business to take care of.

As Walt and Hollis begin working together to put Walt's spirit to rest, an unspeakable bond forms between them, and the boys begin falling for one another in unexpected ways. But it's only a matter of time before Hollis's best friends begin to notice that something about Hollis isn't quite...right.

With the threat of a long-overdue exorcism looming before them, will Walt and Hollis be able to protect their love and undo the curse that turned their town from a garden of possibility into a place where dreams go to die?

The Corruption of Hollis Brown has already received four starred reviews!

"Ancrum's tight writing style is perfect for this gritty thriller: simultaneously clipped and lyrical...The novel's rich tenderness for the town, its residents, and their ghosts makes it a must-read. Queer resilience at its finest." --Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

"A psychologically thrilling and emotionally intimate tribute to bettering one's own circumstances--and those of one's community--and the selflessness of love." --Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"Walt and Hollis's romance is as intense, stark, and heartfelt as the romances in Ancrum's previous works...their growth as people is both genuine and rewarding to watch." --ALA Booklist (starred review)

"A knack for creating characters who are bigger on the inside is on full display here...as Ancrum's two-boys-one-body setup rests on a delicate balance of voice that never falters...A profoundly beautiful, strange, and introspective love story, at turns soothing and scalding." --School Library Journal (starred review)

"This is a magnificent piece of speculative fiction that will have readers waiting for more from this author." --The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

Bestselling Rebel of the Sands author Alwyn Hamilton is back with a glittering fantasy thriller about a glamorous media darling, a surprise heiress, and the magical competition of a lifetime.

This gorgeous hardcover first edition features emerald hued edges, creating a lush look for this stunning fantasy.

At sixteen, Honora "Nora" Holtzfall is the daughter of the most powerful heiress in all of Walstad. Her family controls all the money—and all the magic—in the entire country. But despite being the center of attention, Nora has always felt like an outsider. When her mother is found dead in an alley, the family throne and fortune are suddenly up for grabs, and Nora will be pitted against her cousins in the Veritaz, the ultimate magical competition for power that determines the one family heir.

But there's a surprise contestant this time: Lotte, the illegitimate daughter of Nora's aunt. When Lotte's absent mother retrieves her from the rural convent she'd abandoned her to, Lotte goes from being an orphan to surrounded by family. Unfortunately, most of them want her dead.
And soon, Nora discovers that her mother's death wasn't random—it was murder. And the only person she can trust to uncover the truth of what happened is a rakish young reporter who despises everything Nora and her family stand for.

While the dangers of the Veritaz competition threaten each of the Holtzfall girls, and the stark class differences turns political outrage to terrifing violence—the new cousins must fight to stay alive, no matter what.

Incredible tests, impossible choices, and deadly odds await both girls. But there can only be one winner.

A second-chance queer romance about two teens whose in-world D&D characters fall in love, but in IRL . . . things are more complicated, perfect for lovers of Ashley Poston and Becky Albertalli.

Harper Reid's summer is not off to a great start. After the death of her grandpa, she moves across the country, leaving her friends and Dungeons & Dragons group behind. She wasn't exactly planning to start her senior year on the farm where she spent her childhood summers, but running into Ollie Shifflet--former best friend and first crush--makes things much better. When Harper discovers Ollie and her friends are starting a new D&D campaign, she quickly joins the group. As Harper and Ollie reconnect in the real world, romantic tension begins to build between Harper's brash barbarian and Ollie's proud paladin, but it's all just part of the game . . . right?

Ollie's future depends on keeping her bisexuality private while Harper's dreams include an out-and-proud life in their rural town, but as their feelings continue to grow with each gaming session, their relationship begins threatening everything they've worked so hard to build. As the school year comes to a close and the campaign's final boss looms on the horizon, Harper and Ollie must decide: are their feelings more than just a fantasy? Because if they want a second chance at love, they'll have to fight for it, both in-game and in real life.

Perfect for fans of Mason Deaver and Becky Albertalli, this tender, raucous novel follows a rule-following, perfectionist teen who starts an underground GSA club at her conservative Catholic high school, from the acclaimed author of Kings, Queens, and In-Betweens.

Cassie Perera is a star student in St. Luke's junior class. But the new school year brings an unwelcome surprise--the return to St. Luke's of Cassie's former friend, Ben, who left a few years ago after a homophobic bullying incident Cassie knows she didn't do enough to prevent.

Still harboring guilt from her inaction, Cassie decides, in her usual, overzealous way, to team up with the neighboring public school to found an underground Gender and Sexuality Alliance--as a complicated strategy for making things up to Ben. Secretly, Cassie is also tempted by the possibility of opening up about her own sexuality for the first time.

As Cassie's new friends urge her out of her comfort zone, she unlocks a kind of joy and freedom she's never felt before--even as she struggles to balance these experiences with her typical tightrope of being the perfect daughter, student, and Catholic.

Cassie's perfectly curated life unravels into turmoil, but can she embrace the mess enough to piece together something new?

A Good Morning America YA Book Club Pick! An instant #1 New York Times bestseller, Publishers Weekly bestseller, and indie bestseller!

Lose yourself in this exhilarating return to the #1 global bestselling Shatter Me universe, the first book in a new series set ten years after the fall of The Reestablishment. This breathtaking custom deluxe edition features:

• Shimmery jacket with holographic foil
• Gorgeous designed endpapers
• Foil case design with a quote from the novel
• Stunning holographic edges

Quantities are limited for this deluxe edition so be sure to order now!

James Anderson had a plan. Or half of one. All that matters is that he managed to do what his older brother, the famous Aaron Warner Anderson, never did: infiltrate Ark Island, the last refuge of The Reestablishment. In the past decade no outsider has breached the stronghold of the authoritarian regime, but James is in. In a prison cell, sure, but as far as James is concerned, a win is a win.

It's been ten years since the fall of The Reestablishment. Ten years since the notorious duo--Juliette Ferrars and Aaron Warner Anderson--led a worldwide rebellion and established the New Republic of the West. But after a decade of unsettling quiet, The Reestablishment is ready to make a devastating move, and they have the perfect person for the job.

Rosabelle Wolff had a plan. She always has a plan. On Ark Island, where constant surveillance is packaged as security, even emotions must be experienced with caution. A trained assassin, her every movement is monitored by synthetic intelligence--and when she's given an order to kill, she never hesitates.

Brimming with pulse-pounding action and torturous romance, Watch Me is an explosive journey through a dystopian landscape where enemies-to-lovers has never felt more impossible. Step into a beloved and breathtaking world that demands an answer to a desperate question--

Who are we when no one is watching?

The laugh-out-loud YA romance by two award-winning and bestselling authors, Erin Entrada Kelly and Kwame Mbalia, that's perfect for fans of To All the Boys I've Loved Before or When Dimple Met Rishi

When Pacy Mercado and Cecil Holloway spot each other during the first week of freshman year, it's love at first sight. Well, more like love at first fleeting, injury-riddled glance, since the moment is ruined thanks to clumsiness and a criminal case of IBS.

Despite their total lack of game, Pacy and Cecil are drawn to each other. Seven seconds of eye contact turns into days of yearning and stress as they make the mistake of following misguided advice from their friends, dysfunctional families, and strangers on the internet.

But the universe conspires to bring Pacy and Cecil together when they both end up on the WADS committee to plan the freshman dance (that's Wakeville's Awesome Décor Society, if you must know).

As they spend more time together, they realize that the other person might be just what they need . . . that is, if they can figure out how to be themselves and embrace the mishaps, mistakes, and hilariously awkward interactions that make up their imperfectly perfect love story.

When the members of an LGBTQ+ club find themselves accidentally framed for attempted murder, it's up to them to clear their names before it's too late in “this dark and comedic mystery [which] deftly explores the gray areas between right and wrong, successfully addressing the complexity of people’s characters.” –Kirkus

It’s kind of hard to graduate high school when you’re the prime suspect in an attempted murder.

Seventeen-year-old Eleanora Finkel just wants to finish her senior year and get the hell out of Texas. But when her LGBTQ+ club meeting inconveniently coincides with an attack on the school’s head cheerleader, she and her friends find themselves in the hot seat.

In order to clear their names and ensure the survival of their club for future queer teens, they’ll have to track down the real culprit themselves. Unfortunately, Eleanora is far from a professional detective; she’s riddled with anxiety, annoyingly attracted to the case’s cute victim, and her trusty crochet hook feels insufficient for fighting off a killer. But if her chaotic friend group can't sleuth their way out of an entire freaking murder mystery, they might just become the next targets.

Gossip Girl meets The Sopranos in this fast-paced drama about a teenage mafia heiress who would do anything to avenge her family, even join forces with her handsome enemy.

Inside the tony suburb of Scarsdale is New York's worst-kept secret: The mob runs everything, and the Nicastro family is at the center. Seventeen-year-old Tasha Nicastro lives a life of glitz and glamour, but she has no idea her family harbors a dark truth. 

Tasha might look like your classic high school mean girl, but behind the designer clothes is a sharpshooter who knows how to bring anyone to their knees. The only person who has ever gotten under her skin is her former best friend, Leo Danesi, the youngest son of the Nicastro family's rivals. After Leo returns to New York older and more handsome, Tasha thinks he'll be the worst of her problems--until the life she thought she knew takes a violent, shocking turn. When her father and beloved older sister are murdered before her eyes, Tasha learns the dark truth: Her family runs the most powerful Mafia branch in New York, and now she's set to inherit it all. 

Tasha vows vengeance on the mysterious new mob behind the hit, but she can't do it alone. She needs someone who already knows the underground world to help track them down. And that person is none other than Leo, the heir to his own family's dangerous empire. 

But Tasha is a Nicastro. She's been raised in the company of killers, and there's absolutely nothing she won't do to avenge her family. That is, if the enemy doesn't put her in gold chains first.

Perfect for fans of:

• Mafia Romances
• Second Chance Romance
• Rivals-to-Lovers
• Thrillers
• Mysteries

A REESE'S YA BOOK CLUB PICK!

"A perfectly delicious tale of greed, family, vengeance, and revenge." --Kathleen Glasgow, New York Times bestselling author of Girl in Pieces and The Agathas

Scorned in more ways than one, a former teen heiress attempts the ultimate revenge heist at her father's luxury wedding--if only her infuriatingly charming ex-boyfriend would get out of the way--in this funny and fast-paced romantic thriller. 

Seventeen-year-old Olivia Owens isn't thrilled that her dad's getting remarried ... again. She's especially not thrilled that he cheated on her mom, kicked them out of their Rhode Island home, and cut Olivia out of her rightful inheritance.

But this former heiress has a plan for revenge. While hundreds of guests gather on the grounds of the gorgeous estate where she grew up, everyone will be thinking romance--not robbery. She'll play the part of dutiful daughter, but in reality she'll be redistributing millions from her father's online accounts. She only needs the handwritten pass code he keeps in the estate's safe.

With the help of an eclectic crew of high school students and one former teacher, Olivia has plotted her mid-nuptial heist down to the second. But she didn't plan for an obnoxiously nosy wedding guest, an interfering ex-boyfriend intent on winning her back, greedy European cousins with their own agenda, or a vengeful second wife. When everything seems like it's going wrong, Olivia has to keep her eyes on what really matters: getting rich. And when she's done, "something borrowed" will be the understatement of the year.

Amidst competing schemes, nonstop twists, and a romance to root for, one high-heeled mastermind must prove to her father--and herself--that she's more ruthless than anyone expected.

Perfect for fans of:

★ The Inheritance Games

★ Ocean's Eleven

★ Second chance romance

★ Gossip Girl

★ Heist stories

★ Ally Carter