Thanks! I'd forgotten about Nick & Norah's and I've had it on my TBR pile for years, so now sounds like a great time.
Get Yer YA Recommendations Here!
- Thread starter cherita
- Start date
Thanks! I'd forgotten about Nick & Norah's and I've had it on my TBR pile for years, so now sounds like a great time.
edutton - I'm late to the party and don't know if you're still looking, but I'd rec Humanity for Beginners by Faith Mudge. It's a novella and not YA (doh!) but it's suitable for a 16-year-old and a good story.
Awesome, thanks! I specified YA mostly to rule out the more sex-heavy stuff.
Last edited:
Just finished reading We Were Liars by E. Lockhart. It was great. It's one of those books that when you finish you immediately flip to the start and look for all the clues that pointed to the twist at the end.
- Joined
- May 18, 2017
- Messages
- 97
- Reaction score
- 12
Unless you guessed the twist immediately
Heh. I've noticed that, compared to most other people, I seem to be REALLY BAD at guessing twists, which sometimes makes me think I must be kind of dumb. On the other hand, I feel like maybe it's a good failing to have, because it means I get to be surprised a lot and enjoy twists LOL.
In all seriousness, though, I think I'm just the kind of reader that doesn't try to figure things out too much as I go. I was listening to a Writing Excuses podcast once where they were talking about why the mystery genre is enjoyable, and that it was because you can try and figure it out as you go. And Brandon Sanderson pointed out that there are people who enjoy reading mysteries but don't really try to figure it out as they go, and everyone else on the podcast thought that was the craziest thing. But that's me. I might think about it a little as I go, but not too much.
Anyhow. I have to admit I've been in a bit of a draught with finding good YA books lately, though that's probably because, with the market so flooded, I've gotten a lot pickier with what I'm looking for and my standards have really gone up. I think the last really good YA book I read was SIX OF CROWS by Leigh Bardugo. I'm going to reread it soon because I'm writing a heist story myself, and also because I haven't read the sequel and want to refamiliarize myself with it. I think it's a really great example of diverse fantasy, and I like that it's truly an ensemble cast, rather than a single protagonist, which you don't see a lot in YA, even in fantasy.
everybody!
My 12-year-old is looking for recommendations for YA paranormal/horror. She has enjoyed Katie Alender, but has exhausted her catalog and is hoping to branch out. She likes ghost stories, and what she terms "ocean horror" - sea monsters, mythic or otherwise, or people trapped underwater with ghosts.
She says she likes something that gets right down to business. I quote: "I don't need two chapters of fluffy bunny happiness before the bad things start."
She prefers stuff based in our world (no second-world fantasy, although alt-history might be all right), and while she doesn't mind a little romance, she doesn't like it as the focus of the story.
She's enjoyed some short stories, so short story collections would also work.
All ideas welcome, and thanks.
Maybe the Shades of London series by Maureen Johnson? It's about ghost hunters. I really liked the first one, but the second and third = not so much.
It's MG, but Artemis Fowl is pretty cocky. Boy-genius, evil mastermind. (author = Eoin Colfer)
I didn't know the third was out. That's a bit of a pattern with her, I notice - I felt the same way about the two "envelope" books.
Anyone have any good YA books with black and Latino characters NOT from an underprivileged background. Few I can think of off-hand, but harder than I thought it was gonna be.
Labyrinth Lost (Latinx), Not Otherwise Specified (AA)... They're not rich, by any means, but not in poverty either.
I'm having a hard time coming up with Comps for a contemporary YA thriller with slight science fiction elements? Anyone have any suggestions for things I should read?
- Joined
- Dec 16, 2015
- Messages
- 10,310
- Reaction score
- 5,280
- Location
- Melbourne
- Website
- www.lanifrank.com
You might try DON'T TURN AROUND by Michelle Gagnon. It's been a while since I read it, but it's a YA thriller with both hackers and sci fi elements.
Last edited:
Hello! I'm looking for YA books that feature vikings. Either historical or based on Norse mythology. Thanks.
Last edited:
Not vikings, but valkyries: Valkyrie Rising, by Ingrid Paulson. A 16-year-old girl, visiting her grandmother in Norway, discovers a family secret...
Dunno if that counts.
- Joined
- Jan 17, 2011
- Messages
- 2,467
- Reaction score
- 313
Odd and the Frost Giant by Neil Gaiman. It's a bit younger than YA, but I think a YA would like it.
Just please note that Norse did not knit. Ignore the knitting Norsewoman in the corner.
I like to read MG too, and I like what I've read so far by Neil Gaiman, so will probably check this out. Thanks.
The Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard books by Rick Riordan has lots of Norse Mythology going on. Book 3 is due out sometime later this year. It's not out yet but I've heard that Berserker by Emmy Laybourne has an updated take on Norse mythology too.
If anyone has any fast-paced YA novel recs, I'd love to hear them! I've been in a bit of a reading slump lately, and have been finding too many contemporary YA books (my go-to genre) to be slow paced and too easy to stop reading, if that makes sense. I'm open to fantasy/adventure/really anything, as long as it's nearly impossible to put down. Thanks!
- Joined
- Dec 16, 2015
- Messages
- 10,310
- Reaction score
- 5,280
- Location
- Melbourne
- Website
- www.lanifrank.com
Try ILLUMINAE by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff. Best YA page-turner I've read in ages.
(You have to read it in actual paper book-form, though. Its unique formatting means it doesn't really work as an ebook).
- Joined
- Jan 17, 2011
- Messages
- 2,467
- Reaction score
- 313
Try Code Name Verity. Bonus--You can read it twice and it's a different book the second time.
Last edited:
Throwin' out a few random ones:
Ink and Bone, by Rachel Caine - In an alternate world where all knowledge is controlled by the Great Library, the son of a family of book thieves applies for a library position, discovering more corruption inside than among the criminals he grew up with. Interesting world, decent characters, and good pacing with a fairly intense story. First of a series.
Bloody Jack, by L. A. Meyer - First of a historical adventure series. The early ones could qualify as upper MG, but the main character (Mary "Jack" Faber) grows up during the series. An 18th century girl escapes starvation on London's streets as a ship's "boy", posing as Jack. Thus begins a larger-than-life adventure...
Arabella of Mars, by David D. Levine - This one's in a gray area, as I've seen it in regular SF and YA SF sections of the bookstore. An alternate, somewhat fantastic historical world has sailing ships plying the starways and complex clockwork automatons integrated with daily life. Reluctantly sent to Earth with her mother's family, Arabella learns of a cousin's dark plot to take over the family's Martian tree plantation, and must race back home to protect her unsuspecting brother. Sort of like Horatio Hornblower crossed with Edgar Rice Burrough's Barsoom. First of a series.
Every Heart a Doorway, by Seanan McGuire - An award-winning novella about a boarding school for kids and teens who went to fantastic worlds and were returned to Earth, helping them cope and adapt to the mundane world. McGuire has written a spinoff, Down Among the Sticks and Bones, about characters encountered here; I wouldn't be surprised if she plans more.
Vengeance Road, by Erin Bowman - In the vein of True Grit, a Western tale of revenge, growing up, and a lost, cursed mine. Starts fast and rarely lets up. A standalone.