Celebrate Young Adult Books!

I've recently read a novel called What's Good Is Easy To Get by Aurora Peralta. I would call it YA because it is about a young woman in London leaving care and getting through Covid and starting university. I can't find it on here but the ISBN is 9798846507111. I will ask the librarians to add it then I'll do a review. It's definitely worth 5 stars. Fascinating central character who's been through a pretty bad time in the care system but is resilient and has a great bunch of female friends. I won't spoit the plot but it's got a few surprises.

Most of the popular YA's I've read suck tbh. I'm currently reading The Cruel Prince and I'm struggling just to finish the last forty pages because of how much I don't care about any of the characters, the plot, the abysmal world building, or the laughably perverse "romance". Also why is it that almost every YA fantasy book or series has to have a romance anyway? I want a fantasy STORY, not a teen's wet dream with a fantasy setting.

Dana wrote: "Most of the popular YA's I've read suck tbh. I'm currently reading The Cruel Prince and I'm struggling just to finish the last forty pages because of how much I don't care about any of the characte..."

I was actually curious about The Cruel Prince, but I think I will pass. I don't know if you read this yet, but I'm currently reading the Poppy War trilogy and if you want a good fantasy story with "no romance" (I'm not finished yet so I cannot be sure) you will probably like this one :)

I can't help feeling I'm growing out of the YA genre and yet I couldn't help looking at this list because maybe I'm just not reading the write stuff, and I'm not ready to let go of this genre yet. Too much love and too many happy hours reading.

LittleFear wrote: "Dana wrote: "Most of the popular YA's I've read suck tbh. I'm currently reading The Cruel Prince and I'm struggling just to finish the last forty pages because of how much I don't care about any of..."

heyyyyyy i just put the first poppy war book on hold at my library and im gonna get it tmr!!! what are the odds lol 😂

I'm an adult and I like the occasional YA mysteries/horror, such as Karen McManus and authors like Kit Frick. I read a lot growing up and will occasionally get pulled back into the genre.

As of now, I've been reading Crier's War. It started a little slow but I beginning to get into it now. I like YA fantasy with romance.

"I was actually curious about The Cruel Prince, but I think I will pass. I don't know if you read this yet, but I'm currently reading the Poppy War trilogy and if you want a good fantasy story with "no romance" (I'm not finished yet so I cannot be sure) you will probably like this one :)"

Thanks for the rec! I've actually searched up The Poppy War before and while it sounded interesting I had to give it a pass since I'm not comfortable with gods as characters (being a religious person). I don't mind it when characters have their own religion or believe in other gods but not when gods (rather than God) are like, confirmed to exist.

A Night to Die For
The book that actually got me into reading was YA and it was called A Night to Die For, by Lisa Schroeder. It was kind of like a Good Girls Guide to Murder. It was a 5 star for me I definitely recommend.

Knight wrote: "As of now, I've been reading Crier's War. It started a little slow but I beginning to get into it now. I like YA fantasy with romance."
YA fantasy romance is peak, crier's war was really good imo, the slow burn could have been handled better, which was ultimately why the second book was kind of a let down, i would have really loved to see the romance between ayla and crier be dragged through a trilogy at least, and the world had all the elements to keep me hooked for three books! i remember setting my alarm to wake up earlier just to keep reading xD but yeah overall really liked the story but wish the main romance had been developed more, especially since its wlw

I'm in the target audience for YA, and I have to say I agree with some of the negative things people said about YA here. Popular YA fantasy/sci-fi is almost always terrible, and I really can't understand why anyone reads them. Most of the good YA novels I've read aren't very popular, are older, and don't have dramatic romances in them. Some YA romances can be good, but honestly, half the time they are pointless and just added because people think that's what teens want. There are certainly good YA books out there, but they are probably not the one's everyone talks about.

I'm old but still read teen novels for their "PG" rating. I can't stand swearing and sex scenes. I enjoy reading to be entertained not to be reminded of every day life.

I still read YA, and I'm happy to see the new stories coming up.

I'm finishing Laini's Taylor Dreamer series right now, and I'll be reading next.

Young adults can gain new perspectives by reading books. Some great books that have characters with disabilities: Out of My Mind by Sharon M. Draper and Just Like Other Daughters by Colleen Faulkner. Terry Trueman has 3 great books with recurring characters - Cruise Control, Stuck in Neutral, and Life Happens Next.

Hi all. I'm a high school English teacher - and our book room is full of old novels from the 80's. The kids are suffering. Could I have some recommendations so I can read and potentially buy for the school?

Ash

Ash wrote: "Hi all. I'm a high school English teacher - and our book room is full of old novels from the 80's. The kids are suffering. Could I have some recommendations so I can read and potentially buy for th..."

Juliet was Wrong

I want to write a YA novel that has a realistic science fiction setting, not fantasy or horror or something too far out. Looking for opinions - would YA readers be interested?

William wrote: "I want to write a YA novel that has a realistic science fiction setting, not fantasy or horror or something too far out. Looking for opinions - would YA readers be interested?"

I'm not really into YA anymore so you can take this with a grain of salt, but I don't think hard science fiction and YA mix well. YA audiences tend to care more about plot, action, characters, and relationships than logical world building, realism, and long, elaborate explanations.
That said, if you're passionate about this and know you have good ideas, go ahead. I'm sure there will be interested YA readers and you could find your own niche. But overall, if commercial success is the goal, I think this kind of genre is better suited for adult readers.

William wrote: "I want to write a YA novel that has a realistic science fiction setting, not fantasy or horror or something too far out. Looking for opinions - would YA readers be interested?"

Hi William, I wrote just such a story. A little tech-heavy as it takes place about 100 years from now. At the start of the story, the MC is young, and at the end, she's in her 80s. She lives aboard a ship in space and we see her life growing up.

Book sales are doing very well, so yes, it can be done. No swords, magic, or hunky hunks. Just write the story you want and find your market. If you write it, they will read it.

Lindsey wrote: "Ash wrote: "Hi all. I'm a high school English teacher - and our book room is full of old novels from the 80's. The kids are suffering. Could I have some recommendations so I can read and potentiall..."
Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds(his brother is shot but it's not graphic), Muted by Tami Charles, Out of the Easy by Ruta Sepetys(anything by her actually) and anything by Alan Gratz. I can't leave out Mary's Monster by Lita Judge, a free verse graphic novel with beautiful, at times a bit disturbing illustrations. Free verse novels are the bomb! Hope this helps!

Doug Dalton wrote: "I'm old but still read teen novels for their "PG" rating. I can't stand swearing and sex scenes. I enjoy reading to be entertained not to be reminded of every day life."

Keep reading ! I love the YA genre too .

Ash wrote: "Hi all. I'm a high school English teacher - and our book room is full of old novels from the 80's. The kids are suffering. Could I have some recommendations so I can read and potentially buy for th..."

Hi Ash, Ellen Oh's list aboveof 60 suggested new/diverse books for high schoolers (here's a direct link as well) sounds like exactly what you're looking for!

It has been a long time since I was a young adult but I still really enjoy reading YA.

I enjoy reading YA books, especially with the boom of queer characters in YA books, which makes me happy to read. So I bounce back and forth from adult mystery/thrillers to YA gay romance when I need to cleanse my soul. lol

Michael R. E. Middleton has a debut novel - Dark Lands; Kingdom of Othelnyl Book 1 - that is adult/YA and it's fantastic! I cannot wait for book 2 to come out! It doesn't have a lot of reviews on Amazon and Goodreads, but the reviews is does have are all awesome!
You can find it on a ton of platforms on Books2read dot com / Darklands (I can't put an actual link in my comment so I had to type it out literally.)
You can also find it here: Dark Lands

Dana wrote: "Most of the popular YA's I've read suck tbh. I'm currently reading The Cruel Prince and I'm struggling just to finish the last forty pages because of how much I don't care about any of the characte..."

I agree with you on the first book (TCP) but the second and third books get so so so SO much better!