Realistic Fiction For Teens

Cuban American Camila Núñez has always been afraid of the future. She’s been working hard to keep her anxieties in check, but with so many new experiences―her first queer love, trouble with her dog walking job, her mother’s judgments about her body, learning to drive, her father being...

Noche is a Lechuza by night, an ethereal jet-black owl who guides the dead to the after. Except now, Noche cannot bring herself to escort her dead girlfriend, whose soul is fading the harder Noche holds on—an aching romance about first and second loves and finding the strength to let go...

For fans of Frankly in Love and Tokyo Ever After comes a romantic dramedy about finding love and reconnecting with your culture in the most surprising ways. Taiwanese American Catie Carlson has never fit in with her white family. As much as she loves her stepmom and stepsister, she yearns to...

A road trip through gender identity, self-expression, and the thorny process of figuring out where you fit after high school as an out-and-proud transgender teen. Lucy imagines college as more than a chance to party with other drama nerds and be roommates with her best friend Callie. College...

From the authors of NATIONAL BESTSELLER Sanctuary comes a haunting near-future companion tale about undocumented immigrants subjected to deadly experiments in a government labor camp and the four courageous rebels who set into place a daring plan to liberate them. The year is 2033, and in this...

Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants goes to the French Open in an emotionally honest and openhearted novel for fans of Yamile Saied Méndez and Mary HK Choi. Three teen girls compete at an elite tennis tournament for a shot at their dreams—if only they knew what their dreams were. Alice is on...

From James Beard Award–winning author Michael Ruhlman, a coming-of-age story about finding a new life and love in the kitchen…and trying not to get burned along the way. When high school football star Theo Claverback breaks his leg just weeks after a devastating break-up, he’s forced to...

There are more than 10 things to hate about prom, but the worst is having to convince your BFF that you’re the one he should take—a sweet friends-to-lovers teen rom-com from the author of Caught in a Bad Fauxmance “A love story meant for the movies, with cheeky and charming nods to our...

With its clever snark and searing perspective, Cancelled is a funny, fearless novel about the realistic pitfalls and unforgettable moments high school has to offer, perfect for fans of Jenny Han and Emma Lord. Not to brag, but Brynn Whittaker is basically killing her senior year. She's got the...

A wistful coming-of-age story with a haunting twist about four friends who spend their summer learning to become invisible—but disappearing comes at a cost. Four girls. Four girls skating home, both sides of the road, fearless. Four girls at the mouth of an infinite ocean, sugared and salted...

What does it mean when your best friend is dead and your instinct is relief? A stunningly immersive debut about toxic friendships, grief, romance, and new beginnings. Friendship, at least for me, has never been anything but complicated. Before: One year ago, best friends Nora and Julia were...

When a Korean American teenage artist gets sucked into the world of her own web comic, she must find a way out with the help of a cute boy all while facing off against a villainous corporation. Inspired by the A-ha's "Take on Me" music video, this entertaining YA novel is a grounded speculative...

"A riveting page-turner."--Kirkus reviews Girl in Pieces meets Cracked Up to Be in this raw and candid look at trauma about a girl who is being haunted and stalked by her definitely dead ex-boyfriend. Charlotte survived the car crash that killed her boyfriend Jerry, but that night, everything...

A debut young adult novel that’s Pride & Prejudice with a dash of magic, about a booksmart teen who spends the summer in Mexico City, meets two very cute boys, attempts to learn Spanish, and uncovers a family secret that changes her life forever. Lola Espinoza is cursed in love. Well, maybe...

A gorgeous contemporary romance about two ex-best friends, Cass and Syd, on a life-altering road trip following the reunion tour of the Darlas—the band Cass’s mom was in when she died. Perfect for fans of Nina LaCour, Mary H.K. Choi, and Jandy Nelson. After their high school graduation...

Acclaimed author Gloria Chao creates real-world magic in this luminous romance about teens who devote themselves to granting other people's wishes but are too afraid to let themselves have their own hearts' desires—each other. Liya and Kai had been best friends since they were little kids, but...

In the sequel to Tracy Andreen's debut romantic comedy So, This Is Christmas, we follow Finley and Arthur back to Barrington Academy for a swoony semester. Perfect for fans of Tell Me Three Things and Anna and the French Kiss! Finley and Arthur are back at boarding school and neither quite knows...

From the award-winning author of A Heart in a Body in The World comes a gorgeous and fiercely feminist young adult novel. When a teen travels to Hawaii to track down her sperm donor father, she discovers the truth about him, about the sunken shipwreck that’s become his obsession, and most of...

A tender and heartfelt queer YA novel about the multiplicities of grief, deeply held family secrets, and finding new love. Isaac Griffin has always felt something was missing from his life. And for good reason: he's never met his dad. He'd started to believe he'd never belong in this world, that...

Finding her voice takes on a whole new meaning when fourteen-year-old Azar Rossi sets out to win her local Battle of the Bands contest in this heartfelt and hilarious contemporary YA. Fourteen-year-old Azar Rossi’s first year of high school has mostly been silent, and intentionally so. After...