Urban Fantasy YA/MG

Hi!
I'm reading up myself, though mostly because I love the stuff. (I'm sure you'll recognize a lot on my list.)

For MG, or lower YA, I suggest:
Skulduggery Pleasant (Derek Landy)
The Wall and the Wing (Laura Ruby)
Flora Segunda (Isabeau Wilce) which is off-world and not precisely contemporary, but atmospherically in the same vein
Artemis Fowl etc. (Eoin Colfer)
Spiderwick Chronicles (Black/DeTerlizzi)
The Black Tattoo (Sam Enthovan) which may be YA, I guess
Stone Heart,too (Charlie Fletcher)
The Shadow Thieves (Anne Ursu)


For YA:
The Blue Girl and Dingo (Charles De Lint)
So This is How it Ends of the Avatars series (Tui T. Sutherland)
Wicked Lovely (Melissa Marr)
Valiant (Holly Black)
Golden, etc. (Jennifer Lyn Barnes)
Glass Houses, first of The Morganville Vampire series (Rachel Caine)
Jinx (Meg Cabot)
Beastly (Alex Flinn)
The Extraordinary Adventures of Alfred A. Kropp, (Rick Yancey) more a thriller, but some fantastic stuff, I think

C. E. Murphy's Urban Shaman isn't technically YA, but it's a great one for studying the humorous, quirky narrator voice and pacing of a good YA

Did I miss anything, everyone? ^_^

I'm sure I did...

I think this might get more replies up in the YA forum, so I'll send it up there.

Pragmatic_Dreamer:
I'm looking to read books in the Urban Fantasy genre MG to YA, mostly to familiarize myself with what is available on the market right now. I am currently reading books of this description I found using Google. If anyone here can recommend a couple of titles I can read, I would appreciate the feedback.

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Redaelf's stolen (stolen, I say!) many of the suggestions I'd make, but I'd add the following:

- Skulduggery Pleasant: Playing With Fire by Derek Landy (it's the sequel to Skulduggery Pleasant, in case the title doesn't give it away )

- Tithe and Ironside by Holly Black (they're part of a trilogy with Valiant);

- City of Bones and City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare (the final book in the trilogy - City of Glass is due out this year);

- Magic or Madness, Magic Lessons and Magic's Child by Justine Larbalestier (it's a trilogy set in New York and Sydney and one of the best examples of urban fantasy I've read);

- Un Lun Dun by China Mieville (it's a bit of a weird one this because it's urban fantasy set in an alternate London, but it was one of my favourite reads of last year);

- Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse and Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer (I know that these polarise people as to whether they're any good or not and even though they weren't my cup of Earl Grey, they do fall within the urban fantasy genre so you might want to check them out);

- The Name Of This Book Is Secret by Pseudonymous Bosch (this is more a middle grade book and it's a sort of fantasy/mystery/suspense, but it's entertaining enough);

- The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman (it's not something you'd automatically think of as urban fantasy, but anything by Gaiman is worth a look and it does involve a town);

- Raven's Gate, Evil Star, Night Rise and Necropolis by Anthony Horowitz (they're part of a series with the last book still to come but I prefer them to his Alex Rider series - they're pretty dark and take place around the world, so you get a variety of urban locations).

MM

I'd second City of Bones and City of Ashes. They're a little cliche from time to time, but the whole mythology Cassandra Clare built around the Shadowhunters is pretty cool. Plus they're hilarious.

Blood and Chocolate is a good werewolf UF.

I'd also second Twilight. These are the kind of books you either love or you hate, but they'll give you a good idea of the market.

A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray is kind of historical UF, but it's still cool.

I'll add any more if I think of any.

There's an adult book called "Urban Shaman," but I'm pretty sure it doesn't fall anywhere near the young adult category. Haven't read it though, so I wouldn't know. It's probably still worth reading, though, if you're looking for that.

Pragmatic_Dreamer:
BTW does anyone know any UF books dealing with Shamans (Not wizards!) or Elementals?

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There's nothing that's automatically springing to my mind in the YA/MG markets ... I think there may be a passing reference to Elementals in Jonathan Stroud's Bartimaeus Trilogy but I couldn't swear to it without checking (and it's certainly not the focus of the book).

In fact, the only UF book I can think of that features Elementals is Rachel Caine's Weather Warden series for adults.

MM

"Elementals" comes into Skulduggery Pleasant.

Hm. I'm sure there's got to be others.
I know Orson Scott Card had a short story in one of the Firebird Anthology books--Stonefather. Those are excellent ones for finding a variety, actually: Firebirds, Firebirds Rising, the new one I haven't read....

Another necessary addition I forgot is "The Keys to the Kingdom" series by Garth Nix, starting with Mr. Monday. His YA Sabriel/Lirael books have some interesting magic, as well.

Elementals, though...still thinking.

Pragmatic_Dreamer said:

Hey guys, thanks for the awesome suggestions. Signing out books from my local library, and reading like crazy here. BTW does anyone know any UF books dealing with Shamans (Not wizards!) or Elementals? The ones I know about are all TV series.

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The Weather Warden series by ummm, Rachel Caine has characters who harness earth, air, fire, or water (or more than one of the above). They are organized into a global network to mitigate casualties from disasters like hurricanes, fires, and earthquakes.