Looking for some good books for teens for yourself or for the young adult in your life? Well, look no further because this list of 50 books has everything you could possibly want in a wide variety of genres. So we’ve got everything whether you love romance books or sci-fi novels. Check it out now!
Good Books For Teens: Romance
The Fault in Our Stars – John Green
Get your tissues ready! This book explores the funny, tragic and thrilling sides of being alive and in love. Hazel has terminal cancer, with not long left to live, but she meets Augustus Walters and her story is about to be rewritten.
Heartless – Marissa Meyer
In the world of Wonderland, the notorious Queen of Hearts is cold and evil. But before she was the Queen of Hearts, Catherine Pinkerton was a girl who just wanted to fall in love. She wanted to own a bakery – even though her mother tells her that the goal is unthinkable for a young woman. And she really doesn’t want to marry the King of Hearts. Then Cath meets Jest. Handsome and mysterious, Cath is ready to fall in love on her own terms.
Eleanor & Park – Rainbow Rowell
Eleanor is the new girl in town. With her mismatched clothes and messy red hair, she couldn’t stand out more if she tried. Then she sits next to Park on a bus. He’s quiet, cool and knows that to fly under the radar is how to get by. Slowly, over late-night conversations and mix-tapes, Eleanor and Park fall in love.
Opposite of Always – Justin Reynolds
Jack falls in love with Katie as soon as he meets her at a party. Then she dies. That should be the end of their story, but Jack is sent back to their first meeting. Now he has the chance to save her, but his actions are not without consequences.
‘Read this one, reread it, and then hug it to your chest.’ – Becky Albertalli
It Only Happens in the Movies – Holly Bourne
Audrey is done with love. With her parents’ divorce and break-up of her own, she has every reason to feel cynical. And then she meets Harry, her coworker at the local cinema.
“Audrey and Harry’s relationship sings with witty banter, electric heat, and feverish emotion, but Audrey’s journey to self-discovery reaps even more rewards.” – Kirkus Reviews
This Lullaby – Sarah Dessen
Remy is cynical when it comes to love. Let down by her absent musician father and witness to her mother’s four failed marriages, Remy doesn’t ever intend on falling in love. So when Dexter crashes into her life, why is it so hard for Remy to follow her own rules? Especially when he’s everything that she hates.
All the Bright Places – Jennifer Niven
Theodore Finch is fascinated by death, every day he thinks of ways he can kill himself, and Violet Markey is counting down the days until graduation so she can escape the town and the grief of her sister’s recent death. They meet on a ledge of the bell tower at school – six stories from the ground. It’s unclear who saves who, but they know that they need each other to finally be able to live.
Everything, Everything – Nicola Yoon
Maddy is allergic to the world – stepping outside the sterile rooms of her house could kill her. But then the new handsome neighbour, Olly, moves next door. And Maddy is ready to risk everything for a chance to fall in love.
‘Loved this book!’ – Zoella
To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before – Jenny Han
What happens when secret love letters you wrote for every boy you’ve ever been in love with gets mailed to them? Lara Jean is about to find out and her love life spins from imaginary to out of control.
Five Feet Apart – Rachael Lippincott, Mikki Daughtry & Tobias Iaconis
A love story between two teens who can’t get within six feet of each other without risking their lives. Stella needs a lung transplant, so she needs to avoid infections at all costs, but when she meets Will, six feet doesn’t feel like safety anymore. It feels like a punishment.
Good Books For Teens: LGBTQ+
They Both Die at the End – Adam Silvera
Prepare some tissues – this one’s another sad one. Death-Cast calls them to tell them they are going to die today. Two complete strangers, Mateo and Rufus, meet through an app called Last Friend, where they plan to spend their final day together. Even though the ending is given away in the title, you can’t help but wish that Mateo and Rufus get their happily ever after.
Hani and Ishu’s Guide to Fake Dating – Adiba Jaigirdar
Hani Khan is easy-going and well-liked, making her one of the most popular girls at school. When she comes out as bisexual to her friends, they don’t believe her – saying that she can’t be bi if she’s only dated guys. Panicked, Hani blurts out that she’s in a relationship with a girl her friends can’t stand: Ishu Dey. Ishu is the polar opposite of Hani, but she wants to be head girl and that’s basically a popularity contest that she cannot win. So, pretending to date Hani might not be such a bad idea after all.
Labyrinth Lost – Zoraida Córdova
Alex is a bruja, the most powerful witch in a generation, but she hates magic. And at her Deathday celebration, she performs a spell to get rid of her powers. But it backfires and now all of her family has disappeared.
“Enchanting and complex. Every page is filled with magic.”—Danielle Paige, New York Times best-selling author of Dorothy Must Die
Cemetery Boys – Aiden Thomas
Bestowed by the ancient gods of death, Yadriel and the gifted members of his Lantix community can see spirits. Women – bruja – can heal bodies and souls, whilst men – brujo – can release lost spirits to the afterlife. Yadriel, trans boy, wants to prove to his family that he is a brujo, so he summons a ghost.
Meet Cute Diary – Emery Lee
A swoon-worthy, heartfelt story of a transgender teen’s first love challenges his ideas about relationships. Noah Ramirez thinks he’s an expert on romance. He runs a blog where he writes a collection of trans happily ever afters. But they’re all made up stories. When the blog is exposed as fiction, Noah begins to unravel. He needs to prove the stories are real, which is where Drew comes in. Drew is willing to fake date Noah to save his blog. But Noah begins to fall in love for real.
Good Books For Teens: Fantasy
Throne of Glass – Sarah J. Maas
Celaena Sardothien is a beautiful but deadly assassin. When she gets caught in the act, Captain Westfall offers a proposition: represent the Prince in a to-the-death tournament in exchange for her freedom. What she doesn’t expect is to develop feelings for the two men protecting her.
A Court of Thorns and Roses – Sarah J. Maas
Feyre is a huntress, but killing the wrong wolf changes her life forever. She’s taken away from her family by a man in a jewelled mask named Tamlin. As her feelings for Tamlin turn from hostility to passion, Fayre learns the land of the faerie are much more dangerous than she realized.
City of Bones – Cassandra Clare
Clary was just a normal girl, until she witnessed a murder at a nightclub and suddenly she’s swept up into the world of Shadowhunters. It’s because of this that she meets Jace and Clary can’t stop herself from falling in love with him, despite the fact that he acts like a jerk.
“Prepare to be hooked” – Entertainment Weekly
Wicked Fox – Kat Cho
Eighteen year old, Gu Miyoung has a secret. She’s a gumiho, a nine tailed fox who must devour the energy of men to survive. With so many evil men who no one will miss, Seoul makes for the perfect hunting ground.
Shadow and Bone – Leigh Bardugo
Orphaned and expendable, Alina Starkov is a soldier who knows she may not survive her first battle. But when her regiment is attacked, Alina unleashes a dormant power she didn’t know she had.
Cinderella is Dead – Kalynn Bayron
Sophia knows the story. Every young girl does. And they know they only have one chance at the royal ball for choosing. For the lives of those not chosen by a man at the ball are forfeit. But Sophia doesn’t want to be chosen.
The Cruel Prince – Holly Black
One terrible morning, Jude and her sisters see their parents murdered in front of them. Kidnapped by the assassins to the land of the Faeries, Jude is installed in the Royal Court.
Miss Peregrine’s Home For Peculiar Children – Ransom Riggs
Sixteen year old Jacob finds himself on the remote island off the coast of Wales. There’s a crumbled old building, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. As he explores the ruins, it becomes clear that they were more than peculiar. And that they’re still alive.
An Ember in the Ashes – Sabaa Tahir
Defiance is met with death. Those who do not vow their blood and bodies to the Empire risk the destruction of all they love and hold dear. Laia is a slave and Elias is a soldier, but neither are free.
Children of Blood and Bone – Tomi Adeyemi
Defiance is met with death. Those who do not vow their blood and bodies to the Empire risk the destruction of all they love and hold dear. Laia is a slave and Elias is a soldier, but neither are free.
Good Books For Teens: Dystopian
Divergent – Veronica Roth
One choice changes your future. Beatrice Prior’s society is divided into five fractions. She can either choose to stay with her family or transfer. Her choice to transfer shocks her community and herself. But the new life she chooses has surprises in the form of the handsome man named Four.
Cinder – Marissa Meyer
A retelling of the classic Cinderella. Only Cinder is a gifted mechanic and a cyborg. She’s reviled by her step-mother and blamed for her sister’s illness. But when her life intertwines with Prince Kai’s, she finds herself caught in intergalactic struggles and a forbidden attraction. No one, not even Cinder, knows just how big of a part she needs to play to save Earth.
The Hunger Games – Suzanne Collins
There’s only one rule in the games: kill or be killed. Katniss Everdeen steps forward to take her sister’s place in the games and she sees it as a death sentence. But Katniss has been close to death before and survival is second nature to her.
The Maze Runner – James Dashner
Thomas can only remember his name when he wakes up in a life surrounded by boys who have also lost their memory. The towering walls around them are a never-ending, ever-changing maze. It’s the only way out, but no one has ever made it through alive.
Delirium – Lauren Oliver
Love is a dangerous disease. Everyone who turns eighteen must be immunised with the Cure. Lena is looking forward to having a safe, predictable life that the Cure promises. Until she meets Alex, an enigmatic boy from the Wilds.
Uglies – Scott Westerfeld
Tally lives in a world where on your sixteenth birthday all your flaws are removed in an operation, turning you into a Pretty or Ugly. Being Pretty means a life of a supermodel appearance and having a good time, which is something Tally is looking forward to. But then she meets Shay, who has a very different view on life.
Red Queen – Victoria Aveyard
The Reds are commoners ruled by the Silvers. Mare Barrow is a Red who finds herself working in the Silver Place. There, she discovers that she possesses a deadly power. One that threatens to destroy the balance of power.
Dry – Neal Shusterman & Jarrod Shusterman
The drought – or the Tap-Out – has been going on for a while now. It brought along with it endless rules: don’t water the lawn, don’t fill up your pools, don’t take long showers. Until the taps run dry. Alyssa’s quiet suburban street becomes a warzone as everyone hunts for water.
Matched – Ally Condie
Cassia has lived following the Society all her life. What to read, what to watch, what to believe. So when at her matching ceremony, Xander’s face appears Cassie knows that he is her ideal mate. Until she sees Ky Markham’s face appear for an instant. The Society says it’s a glitch, a rare malfunction. But Cassia begins to doubt the Society.
The 5th Wave – Rick Yancey
After the first wave, there’s darkness. The second wave meant that only the lucky escape. Only the unlucky survive for the third wave. And the fourth wave means that you can trust no one. Now it’s the dawn of the fifth wave.
Good Books For Teens: Sci-Fi
Ready Player One – Ernest Cline
It’s the year 2044 and the world has become an ugly place. But there’s an escape: the OASIS. A sprawling virtual utopia where you can be anyone you want to be, go anywhere you want to go and love whoever you want to love. Wade Watts is interested in one thing, the promise to be in control of OASIS and a massive fortune granted to whoever can solve the puzzles left behind by the late founder.
Illuminae – Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff
The year is 2575 and two mega-corporations are at war over a planet that’s little more than an ice covered speck. But no one decided to warn the people living on it. Ezra and Kady need to make their escape on the evacuating fleet. However, the trouble has only just begun – there’s a deadly plague on the ship and no one will say what is going on.
Warcross – Marie Lu
Warcross isn’t just a game, it’s a way of life. Struggling to make ends meet, teenage hacker Emika Chen works as a bounty hunter, tracking down players who bet illegally on the game. But then she takes a risk and hacks into the opening game of the international Warcross Championships. Only to accidentally glitch herself into the action.
Skyward – Brandon Sanderson
Spensa’s world has been under attack for hundreds of years. An alien race called the Krell leads onslaught from the sky in the never-ending campaign to destroy humanity. The only defence humanity has is to take fleets of ships into the sky and fight.
The Knife of Never Letting Go – Patrick Ness
Prentisstown isn’t like other towns. Everyone can hear everyone’s thoughts in a constant, overwhelming Noise. There’s no privacy, no secrets. Until Todd Hewitt stumbles on a spot of complete silence, which should be impossible. And now he needs to run.
Good Books For Teens: Mystery
A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder – Holly Jackson
Pretty and popular high school senior was murdered by her boyfriend, Sal Singh, who then killed himself. It was all anyone could talk about. Everyone knew the story. Five years later, Pip sees how the tragedy still haunts her town. And she’s convinced that something else happened. So she decides to investigate.
Two Can Keep A Secret – Karen M. McManus
Ellery’s aunt went missing from Echo Ridge when she was seventeen. And five years ago, a homecoming queen was killed there. Now Ellery needs to move to Echo Ridge with her grandmother. The town is picture-perfect, but it’s hiding secrets. And most people aren’t good at keeping them.
Paper Towns – John Green
Q has always loved Margo. So when she climbs through his window and summons him on an all-night road trip of revenge, he can’t help but follow. But the next day, she’s not at school. And she’s still missing after a week. Q soon learns that there are clues to her disappearance and following them takes him on a road trip across America.
We Were Liars – E. Lockhart
A beautiful and distinguished family and a private island. A brilliant, damaged girl and a passionate, political boy. And a group four friends – the Liars – whose friendship turns destructive. A revolution, an accident and a secret. Lies upon lies. But where is the truth?
Monday’s Not Coming – Tiffany D. Jackson
Monday Charles is missing and only Claudia seems to notice. Claudia and Monday have always been inseparable, more sisters than friends. So when Monday doesn’t turn up for the first day of school, Claudia notices. No one – not even Monday’s mother and sister – are of any help. And no one seems to remember the last time they saw Monday.
Good Books For Teens: Other
The Book Thief – Markus Zusak
It’s 1939 in Nazi Germany. Liesel, a nine-year-old girl, is living with a foster family on Himmel Street. The first book she steals is the Gravedigger’s Handbook, which starts her love for books and words. She takes books from wherever she can – the Nazi book-burnings, the mayor’s wife’s library. But these times are dangerous and when her family start hiding a Jew in their basement, nothing will ever be the same again.
Speak – Laurie Halse Anderson
From my first day at Merryweather High, I know this is a lie. No one will even talk to me, let alone listen. And all because I called the cops on an end-of-summer party. But if only I could tell them why I called the police. If only I could speak.
‘With the rise of women finding their voices and speaking out about sexual assault in the media, this should be on everyone’s radar… Powerful, necessary, and essential.’ – Kirkus
The Poet X – Elizabeth Acevedo
Xiomara Batista feels unheard and unable to hide in her Harlem neighborhood. She lets her fists and fierceness do most of the talking. But she has plenty she wants to say – especially when she falls in love with the boy in her bio class, Aman, who her family can never know about. So she writes down her passion and frustration onto the pages of her leather notebook.
Looking for Alaska – John Green
Miles Halter is fascinated by famous last words and bored of his life at home. He leaves for boarding school to seek what the dying poet François Rabelais called the “Great Perhaps.” He meets Alaska Young who pulls him into her labyrinth and catapults him into the Great Perhaps.
The Perks of Being a Wallflower – Stephen Chbosky
Shy and intelligent beyond his years, caught between trying to live his life and trying to run from it, Charlie is attempting to navigate through the uncharted territory of high school. Standing on the fringes of life Charlie has a unique perspective of the world around him, but there comes a time to stop being a wallflower and see what it looks like from the dance floor.
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