Y’all. Making this list of my most anticipated YA books for 2022 was SO DIFFICULT — even worse than last year for me. It’s been painstaking task to narrow down agonizing to narrow down because there are SO many new young adult books coming out in 2022 that I was interested in.
As painful as the process has been to not have this list be 150 picks long, it’s also great because a few years ago I seemed to really go through a lull with the new teen books coming out where I really wasn’t that excited about many of them. So, silver lining right?
I also read more YA books last year than I had in the past couple so it’s about 50/50 adult and YA reads now. Many years ago it was 90% YA and then from like 2018-2020 it was like 80% adult books. So we seem to be evening out here.
I’m finding that for 2022 I’m really excited about fantasy still and witches. I am also excited because I have quite a few more historical picks than in other years as historical is a genre I struggle with on the YA front and typically just read adult historical fiction.
As always, this list is MY most anticipated YA reads for 2022 — not what I think is going to be the hottest or the most popular. It’s tailored to my reading tastes — which are eclectic but mine nonetheless. I think that’s the beauty in perusing all these different lists from different people — different tastes and trends people are excited about.
I typically pick books to add to my must read books list for the year if 1) it’s a favorite author that I’m looking forward to reading new stuff from 2) if I read the description and think OMG I MUST HAVE THIS NOW and can’t stop thinking about it 3) if I had a publishing/librarian/reviewer friend already read it and rave about it.
My taste runs pretty wide so there’s something on this list for everyone and I’m sure you’ll find quite a few things to be excited about.
Stay tuned because I will have some more genre specific lists to share EVEN more that I’m excited about. That’s how I get around not being able to talk about everything I want to haha.
Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links which means that if you click on a link and purchase something I’ve talked about or recommended, I’ll receive a very small percentage of the sale. Please see my disclosure policy for more info.
A Little Tip…
Below you’ll see Bookshop.org mentioned. Bookshop.org is a fantastic place to buy books online that supports local bookstores. If you are looking to shop small when it comes to your books, I personally buy my books from here (when I can’t shop in person) and highly recommend! Local bookstores are the heart of communities and Bookshop.org makes it SUPER easy to support them.
Must-Read New YA Releases For The First Half of 2022
As a reminder this list is only a list about young adult books to read in 2022 for the first half of the year so January through June. I will add my second half of the year posts later on in the year so bookmark my website to check back later.
I have it broken down into genres — fantasy, contemporary, mystery/thriller, historical, sci-fi and all things supernatural. You can click on the genre to take you to want you want if there are genres you don’t prefer. I also have my top 10 picks if you are looking for what is must-read for me!
JUMP tO:
Too overwhelmed by the whole list? Here’s my 16 most anticipated books off this list:
- This Woven Kingdom by Tahereh Mafi
- Only A Monster by Vanessa Len
- A Magic Steeped in Poison by Judy I. Lin
- This Vicious Grace by Emily Thiede
- Our Crooked Hearts by Melissa Albert
- All My Rage by Sabaa Tahir
- I Kissed Shara Wheeler by Casey McQuiston
- See You Yesterday by Rachel Lynn Solomon
- Zyla & Kai by Kristina Forest
- A Year to the Day by Robin Benway
- This Golden State by Marit Weisenberg
- I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys
- Waking Romeo by Kathryn Barker
- All That’s Left in the World by Erik J. Brown
- Alone Out Here by Riley Redgate
- Deep in Providence by Riss M. Neilson
2021 Most Anticipated YA Fantasy Books To Read
There is some incredible new teen books to read in the fantasy genre that it really was hard to pick which ones I was MOST excited about out of all the upcoming YA books. Lots of unique offerings and lots of mythology inspired ones that are exciting.
Echoes and Empires by Morgan Rhodes
Out January 4, 2022
Looking for a fantasy read that blends fantasy and sci-fi while still having a modern-day feel? I know that sounds confusing but IYKYK.
A socialite gets in the middle of a robbery gone wrong at the Queen’s gala and suddenly finds she is infected with a dangerous piece of magic. She knows she needs to extract it ASAP as magic is illegal and will corrupt her soul but finding someone to help her extract the magic is tricky because the cost of doing magic is death if anyone finds out. That’s until a wanted criminal offers to extract the magic in exchange for possession of the magic itself.
Other books by this author: Falling Kingdom series, Spirits and Thieves trilogy
Nightrender by Jodi Meadows
Out January 11, 2022
A new high fantasy book (with reality-bending elements) from Jodi Meadows! WOO! I’m just going to leave the actual summary here instead of even trying to summarize.
“In the middle of nothingness is the Island of Salvation.
Reality bends easily here. Villages disappear. Forests burn forever. Pockets of inconsistent time are everywhere, their boundaries strung with yellow ribbon. And the three kingdoms of Salvation have been at war for a thousand years.
But the greatest threat is the Malice, an incursion from the demon plane slowly tearing its way through the world’s weakest seams. Seams that—once split—will lead to the total unraveling of night and day, light and dark, life and death.
Not that the human world takes much interest. Of more concern is the upcoming marriage of Rune Hightower, Prince of Caberwill, and Johanne Fortuin, Princess of Embria—the serpent bride, a girl of famous cunning—which offers a possible end to the ancient conflict. But Rune has noticed the growing darkness, and he is determined to summon mankind’s only defense: Nightrender, the hammer of the gods, an immortal warrior more weapon than girl.
There is only one problem. The last time she was summoned, she slaughtered every royal in Salvation, and no one knows why. Will she save humanity from the Malice… or plunge it deeper into the fires of eternal war?”
Other books by this author: Newsoul trilogy, The Orphan Queen, Fallen Isles trilogy, My Lady Jane
This Woven Kingdom by Tahereh Mafi
Out February 1, 2022
When will I not be excited for a new Tahereh Mafi book?? Never, I tell you. The woman has range! Her newest offering is the first in a new romantic, epic fantasy rooted in Persian mythology.
If you like court intrigue fantasies, forbidden romances and long lost heirs to the throne ready to pounce and take what is theirs, add this to your must-read new YA book release list for 2022!
Other books by this author: Shatter Me series, A Very Large Expanse of Sea, Furthermore, An Emotion of Great Delight
The Girl Who Fell Beneath The Sea
Out February 22, 2022
Like your fantasy to be fairytale-like and a dash of Studio Ghibli? Check out this Korean mythology-inspired fantasy standalone.
Believing the Sea God has cursed them, the people of Mina’s homeland offer up a maiden to the sea in hopes to appease him with a true bride to end the suffering.
When the beloved of Mina’s brother is chosen and her brother tries to save her, Mina sacrifices herself to the sea to protect her brother from the death sentence he’d get for interfering. She is whisked off to the Spirit Realm, a place humans can only live for a short time, and finds the Sea God in an enchanted sleep.
With the help of a mysterious man, she sets out to wake up the Sea God and hopefully end the suffering of her homeland.
Other books by this author: XOXO, Rebel Seoul
Only A Monster by Vanessa Len
Out February 22, 2022
A family of monsters! Girl meets boy! Boy is a renowned monster slayer! Seriously please tell me you’ve already added it to your list of new young adult books to read in 2022!
I am so excited for this first book in a planned trilogy about a girl making the best of a summer where she is sent to live with her eccentric family in London – an eccentric family she finds out are actually monsters with terrifying powers.
And that boy she’s been crushing on at her summer job? A monster slayer that could destroy her and her family!
Other books by this author: none at this moment
Gallant by V.E. Schwab
Out March 1, 2022
It’s no surprise Gallant is one of my most anticipated YA books of 2022 because I love Victoria Schwab! And then they had to go and say “The Secret Garden meets Crimson Peak.” UM EXCUSE ME.
It looks like a fantastic dark fantasy with a dash of The Haunting of Bly Manor. Cannot wait to watch the main character unravel all her family secrets and the mysteries lurking at the manor.
Other books by this author: The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, Vicious, A Darker Shade of Magic, This Savage Song, The Near Witch, The Archived, City of Ghosts
You May Also Like: Books for Fans of The Hunger Games
The Lost Dreamer by Lizz Huerta
Out March 1, 2022
A YA fantasy inspired by ancient Mesoamerica?? Set in a patriarchal society, it’s about two girls – both part of a lineage of woman seers and both hiding big secrets – who will resist the new King who seeks to destroy them.
Other books by this author: none at this time
You May Also Like: Best YA Book Club Books
A Magic Steeped in Poison by Judy I. Lin
Out March 29, 2022
I swear I didn’t just add this book to my most anticipated new releases list because of it’s cover! I mean, the cover definitely did something for me but, y’all, this premise and the promise of lush writing and magic tea!!
Inspired by Chinese mythology, it’s about a young tea-maker who travels to the capital city to take part in a cutthroat magical competition that could be the key to saving her sister’s life from the same tea, served by the young tea-maker, that was unknowingly poisoned and killed her mother.
But the competition won’t be that simple with backstabbing competitors, dangerous court politics and a mysterious, secretive boy – it might even put her in danger.
Other books by this author: none at this time
So This Is Ever After by F.T. Lukens
Out March 29, 2022
This small sentence from the summary was all I had to read to instantly add this to the YA books I was excited about for 2022. Like I legit read no further in the summary. Plus it is best friends to lovers queer romance!
“Carry On meets Arthurian legend in this funny, subversive young adult fantasy about what happens after the chosen one wins the kingdom and has to get married to keep it — and to stay alive.”
Other books by this author: In Deeper Waters, Broken Moon trilogy, The Rules and Regulations for Mediating Myths & Magic
Hotel Magnifique by Emily J. Taylor
Out April 5, 2022
For fans of The Night Circus and Caraval – so aka some dark, atmospheric fantasy?? HERE FOR IT.
Set in a Belle Époque-inspired hotel, this story follows a young woman who applies and gets chosen to be part of the staff on the traveling, enchanted Hotel Maqnifique.
Once she’s whisked away she realizes she’s stuck in an unbreakable contract and there are ugly secrets hiding being the whimsical facade of this hotel which sets her on a dangerous path trying to sort out the mystery of this hotel so she can get home.
Other books by this author: none at this time
Forging Silver Into Stars by Brigid Kemmerer
Out May 3, 2022
This is not a drill! A brand new trilogy set in the Cursebreakers world!
“The story takes place four years after the events of the Cursebreaker trilogy, and Tycho is now a Lord. Meanwhile, friends Jax and Callyn struggle to survive with the difficult hands fate dealt them. Together Tycho, Jax, and Callyn find themselves embroiled in a world of shifting alliances, brewing rebellion, and ancient magic”
Other books by this author: Defy the Night, Cursebreakers trilogy, Letters to the Lost, Elemental series, Call It What You Want
You May Also Like: Best YA Book Series To Binge
This Vicious Grace by Emily Thiede
Out June 28, 2022
Ooooh a girl whose gift from the gods was SUPPOSED to amplify a partner’s magic not kill them.
This gift is supposed to save her people from a doomsday invasion of demons and the people are starting to doubt if she’s really the chosen one for the job – so much so that her own people become convinced by a powerful priest that she needs to be assassinated in order to save the island.
She hires a dangerous outcast as her personal bodyguard to keep her alive and buy her time to figure out how to harness her gift not knowing he may hold the secret to her gift.
Other books by this author: none at this time
Our Crooked Hearts by Melissa Albert
Out June 28, 2022
Witches! I spy witches and witchcraft! I saw it pitched as The Craft meets Neil Gaiman sooo combine that with Melissa Albert’s writing and wow I’m going to need to sit down.
“This YA contemporary fantasy centers on a teen whose summer break kicks off with an unsettling series of events, and on her mother, whose own 16th year included a descent into increasingly lawless witchcraft and magic”
A mother/daughter story intertwined, too?? And we get the mom’s perspective as a 16 year old? This is going to be good.
Other books by this author: The Hazel Wood
New Young Adult Realistic Teen Fiction Books For 2022
When You Get The Chance
Out January 4, 2022
I’ve always loved soft, heart-warming and even potentially silly/implausible books but even more since March 2020 I have really leaned into this kind of book more than ever.
Combine that with the fact Emma Lord’s books have become really solid reads for me in the contemporary YA space and you’ll understand why this book is on this list of anticipated new YA books for 2022.
It’s about a girl with Broadway aspirations, raised by her single dad, who really needs to get her dad on board with her plan to leave home to attend a theater program that could be a stepping stone to her dreams.
Between butting heads with her dad and battling her annoyingly cute drama club rival, she finds a tab open on her dad’s computer that sends her on a mission to find her birth mom using clues from her dad’s Livejournal from 2003 to find potential candidates.
Other books by this author: Tweet Cute, You Have A Match
Ophelia After All by Racquel Marie
Out February 8, 2022
If you like realistic coming of age stories of self-discovery – with an emphasis on the messiness of figuring out ones sexuality – and books with fantastic friend groups, check this one out.
It’s about a girl who, as she is coming to the end of her high school career, realizes she may not be the boy-crazy girl everyone (including herself) have always thought she was as she finds herself crushing on a cute, quiet girl in her school – in addition to the fleeting crushes on boys in her orbit.
If being confused about her sexual identity wasn’t enough, add prom and her friend group fracturing and approaching the end of her high school journey.
Other books by this author: none as of right now
All The Right Reasons by Bethany Mangle
Out February 15, 2022
This YA romcom sounds so cute and I love the premise!
17-year-old Cara and her mother are cast as leads on a new dating show for single parents where they must narrow a field of suitors down to one winning pair. Drama behind the scenes, clashes with her mom over which contestants to keep and falling for a contestant’s son!
Other books by this author: Prepped
All My Rage by Sabaa Tahir
Out March 1, 2022
As much as I love Sabaa as a writer of brutal YA fantasy, I am VERY excited for her first contemporary YA book! Ready to be emotionally destroyed especially because I know this novel is deeply personal to her.
It’s a multi-generational story and follows two teens named Noor and Salahudin, best friends and outcasts in their small town, as well as the story of Sal’s parents and their immigration to the U.S. after a tragedy.
After a fight that crumbles their friendship, the two are on their own to deal with their respective family hardships until Sal’s mom’s health takes a turn for the worst and they come back together to make it through the rest of the high school together.
Other books by this author: An Ember in the Ashes series
Being Mary Bennet by JC Peterson
Out March 15, 2022
Sucker for a charming, tender-hearted romcom?! It’s about a girl who wants to reinvent herself to become the main character of her life instead of the unforgettable side character. She wants to be more of a Lizzie Bennet than the Mary Bennet she realizes she actually is!
Pride & Prejudice love! Boarding school! A meet cute! Big family shenanigans! Cute dogs!!
Other books by this author: none as of right now
The Wolves Are Waiting by Natasha Friend
Out March 22, 2022
This looks like a searing and emotional novel that is going to resonate as it explores rape culture, the toxic structures that allow it and the soul of the #metoo movement.
It’s about a girl whose life is forever changed after an attempted assault and who, after the fact, grapples with whether or not she should speak up about the incident while also trying to put together all the pieces of the night.
Told in multi POV’s – that of the main character, her best friend, her brother and the boy who stopped the assault.
Definitely going to be an important and timely read – a must-read, new teen book for 2022!
Other books by this author: Perfect, Lush, Bounce, For Keeps, My Life in Black and White, Where You’ll Find Me, The Other F-Word, How We Roll
You May Also Like: Best YA Novels In Verse
Message Not Found by Dante Medema
Out March 29, 2022
Okay you all know I am a sucker for a grief book but also a book about friendship WITH a mystery element?? This is one new young adult book I need ASAP in 2022.
It’s about a girl whose best friend dies in a car accident on her way home – except her car wasn’t anywhere near where she should have been. Grieving the loss of her best friend and wanting answers, she decides to create a chat bot of her bff that uses all their texts, emails and all her social media posts.
Little by little it feels like she is talking to her friend again but soon the bot starts dropping hints that could put together the pieces of where her friend was going that night.
Other books by this author: The Truth Project
Some Mistakes Were Made by Kristin Dwyer
Out April 26, 2022
Every year there comes a contemporary YA book whose summary is really vague and I couldn’t REALLY tell you why I’m propelled to a state of great anticipation but I just AM – it’s a gut feeling for the type of contemporary YA I really like. This was then confirmed by a great review from a trusted librarian friend!
First love! Broken hearts! Found family! Complicated families!
A rash decision throws Ellis’s life into chaos, as well as her previously unbreakable friendship with Easton, she is forced to move halfway across the country to finish her senior year. The two friends haven’t spoken in a year when Ellis returns home for a visit and everything from the past that she tried to leave behind– the heartache, betrayal and anger – comes rushing back.
Other books by this author: none at this time
Places We’ve Never Been by Kasie West
Out May 1, 2022
It’s always a good year if we get a new Kasie West just in time for beach read season – she’s a go to for cute, feel-good YA romcoms. Plus this one has a road trip plot which makes me excited.
It’s about a girl who is excited to be reunited with her former best friend, whose relationship has been kind of distant since he moved, on a joint family RV trip. That excitement is put on the back burner when he arrives and the same enthusiasm is not returned. Can this friendship turned rivalry survive the road trip and maybe turn into something more?
Other books by this author: Pivot Point, The Distance Between Us, The Fill-In Boyfriend, On The Fence, P.S. I Like You (and many more if you love sweet YA romcoms!)
You May Also Like: Books For Fans Of To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before
I Kissed Shara Wheeler by Casey McQuiston
Out May 3, 2022
Casey McQuiston’s YA debut is definitely going to be one of the new YA books coming out in 2022 that will be on all the lists!
The only thing that has gotten Chloe through the years at her religious and ultra academically competitive town has been her intense battle to win the valedictorian title with the perfect Shara Wheeler.
Shara goes missing the day after prom, where an unexpected kiss between she and Chloe took place, and Chloe attempts to put together the series of clues Shara left behind to find her once biggest rival – all with the help of an unlikely alliance of two other people Shara kissed.
Other books by this author: Red White & Royal Blue, One Last Stop
See You Yesterday by Rachel Lynn Solomon
Out May 3, 2022
Looking for a book set in college? Errr well the first DAY of college only – played out over and over again? Yes that’s right – a time loop! I’m putting this under contemporary section even though there’s a time loop because it feels more of a realistic set story.
It’s about a freshman who has to relive her absolutely disastrous first day of college over and over again. This fate is made even worse by the fact that her arch-nemesis who humiliated her on her first day is ALSO stuck in the time loop with her and she’ll need to work with him if they want to get out of this time loop.
Other books by this author: The Ex Talk, Today Tonight Tomorrow, We Can’t Keep Meeting Like This, You’ll Miss Me When I’m Gone, Our Year Of Maybe, Weather Girl
The Summer of Bitter and Sweet by Jen Ferguson
Out May 10, 2022
This summer-time coming of age story of an Indigenous teen grappling with friendship, family secrets, love, sexuality, and a letter from her biological father in jail sounds so up my alley! It looks like it will pack an emotional punch!
Other books by this author: none at this time
How We Ricochet by Faith Gardner
Out May 24, 2022
Woo this one is going to be an emotionally devastating one. It’s an unflinching look at the after effects of a mass shooting on a young teen girl and her family who were there and survived.
Searching for answers and closure in the aftermath as she tries to feel safe after the shattering of her safety as she knew it, she finds the brother of the shooter and together they both find understanding and comfort in one another.
Other books by this author: Girl on the Line, The Second Life of Ava Rivers
Zyla & Kai by Kristina Forest
Out June 7, 2022
Definitely one of my must-read teen books for 2022 – it sounds SO interesting AND it was inspired in part by Wes Anderson’s Moonrise Kingdom!
It’s about a runaway couple who have shocked everyone by taking off together considering they had broken up months ago and nobody thought they’d last anyways because they were so different.
Their love story unravels – alternating in past and present – from how they met to what led them to run away together.
Other books by this author: I Wanna Be Where You Are, Now That I’ve Found You
You May Also Like: New YA Books By Black Authors
Home Field Advantage by Dahlia Adler
Out June 7, 2022
Fancy a f/f sports romance? Amber, a cheerleader with head cheerleader ambitions, falls for the new quarterback – the same quarterback that the football team AND cheerleaders want out because she’s a girl.
The two squads make a plan to get her out which becomes difficult as Amber and Jack have begun to fall for one another putting both her ambitions and heart on the line as she decides if she will help her squad or stick up for Jack.
Other books by this author: Cool For The Summer, Just Visiting, Behind The Scenes, Last Will & Testament
A Year to the Day by Robin Benway
Out June 21, 2022
I am such a big fan of Robin Benway and I’m so over-the-moon happy we get a new one from her this year! This one looks so emotional and normally I’d balk at any comparison to I’ll Give You The Sun (an all time fave) but I trust Robin’s storytelling and writing.
Told in reverse chronological narrative, it’s about a sister grieving the loss of her older sister from an accident she can’t remember. The only person who knows what happened is her sister’s boyfriend, carrying his own heaviness from that night, who won’t tell her or talk about that night at all. As her life falls apart, the story comes together.
Other books by this author: Audrey, Wait!, Far From The Tree, Also Known As, Emmy & Oliver, The Extraordinary Secrets of April, May, & June
New YA Mystery/Thriller Releases For 2022
The Red Palace by June Hur
Out January 25, 2022
Set in 18th century Korea, this historical mystery is about a young palace nurse who secretly begins to investigate a pattern of grisly murders to clear the name of her friend and mentor who she knows couldn’t have done it.
Her investigation leads her into the path of a young inspector who is also trying to find the real killer and leads them into the darkest places of the palaces where deadly secrets lie.
If you like atmospheric historical mysteries, check this one out!
Other books by this author: The Silence of Bones, The Forest of Stolen Girls
This Golden State by Marit Weisenberg
Out March 1, 2022
Poppy has only remembered a life on the run with her parents and never staying in one place. With so little answers about who they are, her curiosity gets the best of her and she sends in a DNA test – a decision that will threaten her family’s very anonymous life.
If you need an unputdownable book on your teen reading list for 2022, check this one out!
Other books by this author: The Insomniacs, Select
You May Also Like: Best Books For Fans of Pretty Little Liars
Remember Me Gone by Stacy Stokes
Out March 22, 2022
Love a good thriller that has some speculative elements to it? I won’t lie, I instantly added this to my most anticipated YA list for 2022 when I saw “for fans of The Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.”
This one is about a girl whole family business lies in their unique ability to remove people’s painful memories. When she goes to practice memory-taking on her father, now that she’s 16 and can start training, a weird memory pops up connected to her mother’s death.
When she realizes that she has gaps in her memories she must trust a boy, who seems to know more than he should but also has some gaps in his memory, and together figure out the missing pieces.
Other books by this author: Where the Staircase Ends
All The Best Liars by Amelia Kahaney
Out April 5, 2022
Looking for a twisty, psychological thriller? This one is about 3 best friends who are all desperate to get out of where they live on the wrong side of the tracks. And they will –but not the way they all imagine it after a deadly fire which will leave one dead, one taking the fall and one lying about it all.
Other books by this author: The Brokenhearted
Dead End Girls by Wendy Heard
Out May 10, 2022
We love a good death-faking plot over here!
It’s about a girl who has spent years researching just how to do that – partly as revenge to her parents but also she wants to be free – but she’s thrown a curveball when her step-cousin she barely knows figures out her plan.
The plan will be ruined unless Frankie is allowed to come with and the two set off to stay one step ahead of the police and whoever might be looking for them.
Other books by this author: She’s Too Pretty To Burn, Hunting Annabelle, The Kill Club
Summer’s Edge by Dana Mele
Out May 31, 2022
These marketing departments really know how to make me add a book – I Know What You Did Last Summer meets The Haunting of Hill House?? I am a sucker for this!! It sounds atmospheric and thrilling.
It’s about an estranged group of friends who return to the lake house on the anniversary of their friend’s death only to be met with unexplained events. Is it their friend haunting them? Or is someone else there? Whoever it is is intent on revenge!
Other books by this author: People Like Us
New YA Historical Fiction Releases In 2022
I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys
Out February 1, 2022
Ruta Sepetys has been making me cry since that fateful day in 2011 when I decided to listen to Between Shades of Grey on audiobook during a short solo road trip (seriously if you know you know).
She seriously has written some of THE BEST young adult historical fiction out and is always unearthing stories more hidden from history.
Her newest historical offering is a historical thriller, set during communist Romania in the late 1980’s, and is about a boy who has dreams of being a writer but who instead gets blackmailed to become an informer in the citizen spy network.
He must make the impossible choice of doing what will keep his family safe or what could help undermine this dictator regime.
Other books by this author: Between Shades of Gray, Out of the Easy, Salt to the Sea, The Fountains of Silence
Daughters of a Dead Empire by Carolyn Tara O’Neil
Out February 22, 2022
I love love love a good alternate history book and they will almost ALWAYS end up on my list of most anticipated books. This one being set during the Russian Revolution and being a retelling of Anastasia is why it is one of the new teen books coming out in 2022 that I am MOST excited about.
Anna is on the run from the Bolsheviks, who just executed her entire family, and definitely want to finish the job. Maneuvering across her war-torn country she meets a peasant girl, who is a Bolshevik, and she pays her to help get to safety in the South without revealing her identity to her.
Other books by this author: none at this moment
This Rebel Heart by Katherine Locke
Out April 5, 2022
I loved Katherine Locke’s The Girl With The Red Balloon so I am eager to read this newest young adult historical! Katherine has this unique ability to write really strongly rooted historical fiction books that have a pinch of magic and this book sounds exactly on par with that.
It has been pitched as “The Fountains of Silence meets Spinning Silver in this rollicking tale set amid the 1956 Hungarian revolution in post-WWII Communist Budapest.”
Other books by this author: The Girl With The Red Balloon, Second Position
New YA Science Fiction Books In 2021
Waking Romeo by Kathryn Barker
Out January 4, 2022
I have a long and wonderful history with Aussie YA, as many long time readers of this blog know, and this book sounds absolutely bananas (and super unique) but in the best way.
A sci-fi, time-travel Romeo & Juliet inspired story wherein in the year 2083, time travel to the future is possible and Romeo lays in a coma with a heartbroken Jules by his side – estranged from everyone after the aftermath of their love affair.
A mysterious time traveling visitor travels back in time (something not thought possible!) with a mission to save Romeo and enlists Jules’ help.
It looks like one of those types of books that are going to break my brain along the way so I hope the payoff is worth it!
Other books by this author: In The Skin of A Monster
Cold The Night, Fast The Wolves by Meg Long
Out January 11, 2022
A sci-fi set on a frozen planet with a dangerous sled-race (think: Iditarod sled dog type race) that has to be won by the main character in order to have her passage OFF this planet paid for by a group of scientists.
Love a good survival type novel with an interesting setting!
Other books by this author: none at the time
All That’s Left in the World by Erik J. Brown
Out March 8, 2022
A postapocalyptic, queer YA adventure romance surely sounds like it needs to be at the top of your list of new YA book releases to watch out for, amiright?
Although perhaps a little too close to home after the last couple years haha. Although I’ve heard the two of them are reminiscent of Patrick and David from Schitt’s Creek (except teens) sooo you know there will be good banter and sweetness amidst the post-apocalyptic storyline.
It’s about two teen boys find unexpected romance after a deadly pathogen wipes out most of the world’s population and one nurses the other back to health after he shows up at the door of his shelter.
Their safety is threatened and the two must travel together, and trust one another, to make it to potential safe point that may or may not exist.
Other books by this author: none at the time
Alone Out Here by Riley Redgate
Out April 5, 2022
Okay this one is giving me vibes of The 100 – except like rewind to when they first leave Earth. Sidenote: maaaan this makes me miss the first couple season of The 100 and how great it was until Jason imploded it and I couldn’t even continue on it was so disappointing.
This one is set in 2072 where mankind is on the brink of a volcanic eruption that will destroy earth and a space fleet is being worked on to preserve humanity — until the disaster strikes months earlier than predicted. The First Daughter and 53 other teens with Important parents, who were touring the facility, end up on the only ship escaping Earth.
Untrained and without any adults making it on to the ship, the group must content with being the last hope for humanity’s survival while they fight for their own survival and preserve their own humanity with short supplies and not being full prepared to carry out this mission.
Other books by this author: Seven Ways We Lie, Noteworthy, Final Draft
Before Takeoff by Adi Alsaid
Out June 7, 2022
This looks ridiculously fun and like unique, wild ride – it’s pitched as JUMANJI meets The Sun Is Also A Star sooo yeah very high concept!! I really loved Adi’s debut Let’s Get Lost which completely surprised me in the BEST WAY so I have a feeling he has some tricks up his sleeve with this one.
It follows two teens who meet in the Atlanta airport during a layover and, on a dare, press a mysterious green button that unleashes a blizzard of chaos through the terminal – snowstorms, jungles sprouting up, etc.
As nobody cane seem to figure out how to escape, the two team up to find their families and try to either figure out a way out or how to fix what they unleashed.
Other books by this author: Let’s Get Lost, Never Always Sometimes, North of Happy, Brief Chronicle of Another Stupid Heartbreak
New YA Paranormal/Supernatural/Horror 2021
Anatomy: A Love Story by Dana Schwartz
Out January 18, 2022
I’ve been following Dana on Twitter for years and I am ridiculously excited for this book plus it just sounds so good. Grave-robbing and an aspiring female surgeon and 19th century Scotland – yes 1000x yes. I really didn’t know what to categorize this as because it’s historical mystery with some fantastical elements.
A gothic mystery about an aspiring female surgeon who is ahead of her time, a resurrection man who sells bodies for a living and gives her a shot at studying them in pursuit of her dreams, and the buried secrets they must uncover together when a plague (and other dark things) befall their city.
Other books by this author: And We’re Off, Choose Your Own Disaster
Mirror Girls by Kelly McWilliams
Out February 8, 2022
A thrilling gothic horror novel set in 1959 about biracial twin sisters separated at birth – one who is now a Black activist and the other living as a white-passing heiress to a plantation – who are reunited when their grandmother dies and wants to be buried back home in Georgia.
In addition to learning about one another, one twin has been affected by a deadly curse upon learning her heritage t and the two must work to unearth family secrets and break the curse before it is too late.
Think The Vanishing Half, as it explores racism and colorism from the eyes of two twins, but make it filled with paranormal goodness in the Jim Crow South.
Other books by this author: Agnes at the End of the World
You May Also Like: New Paranormal Books To Read
Scout’s Honor by Lily Anderson
Out April 5, 2022
Oooh a prim and proper fancy lady society that is a cover for a group of hunters who protect humans for monsters!!? Sign me up!
It’s about a girl who was a third generation Ladybird Scout until she quit 3 years ago after her best friend was killed during a hunt.
Still haunted by her best friend’s death, she decided to infiltrate the Ladybird Scouts again just to get her hands on a special tea that would help her forget. She finds herself pulled back in to the group especially when a mysterious wave of demons infiltrate her town.
Other books by this author: Undead Girl Gang, The Only Thing Worse Than Me Is You, Not Now Not Ever, The Throwback List
You May Also Like: Best Teen Vampire Romances
The Drowning Summer by Christine Lynn Herman
Out April 19, 2022
Summery read but make it a witchy sapphic murder mystery!
Six summers ago Evelyn summoned a ghost to clear her father of his charges of the murder of three teens. Everyone believed him to be guilty nonetheless and Mina swore to never summon a spirit again. However, she was most definitely lying.
Years later Evelyn’s former friend Mina, who comes from a line of mediums who harness the ocean’s power to guide ghosts to their final resting place, is kicked out of the family business as the job (and the ghosts) has become more dangerous with sea levels rising.
After a summoning gone wrong, Evelyn and Mina must come together to figure out who murdered those teens long ago while also confronting their feelings for one another.
Other books by this author: The Devouring Gray, All Of Us Villains
Deep in Providence by Riss M. Neilson
Out May 31, 2022
If you aren’t huge on paranormal typically this would be a great one for you as it is grounded more in reality but does deal with some magic.
It’s about three best friends who turn, in desperation and in grief, to magic after their friend dies in a car accident and her spirit seems to be lingering.
Other books by this author: none at this time
What YA books are you excited about this year? Did you add any from this list?
Get other book recommendations here:
- Upcoming Book To Movie Adaptations
- Best Beach Reads
- Light & Easy Reads
- Best Book Club Books
- Best Halloween Books For Teens
PIN FOR LATER:
Stephanie Johnston says
Great choices on this list; I added so many to my TBR! I haven’t really sat down and really perused EVERYTHING coming up so this was super helpful. 🙂
Jamie says
Yay! I’m glad it was helpful!
Amber says
Hi, I noticed that the description for Cold the Night, Fast the Wolves is actually the description of Echoes and Empires!
Jamie says
Oh my god, thank you for telling me that! How embarrassing! Must have copied the wrong one over from my Google Doc! WHOOPS! Appreciate you lettin gme know!