Written by Melissa Platt
The young adult genre has certainly grown substantially over the last two decades in terms of both readership, books, and sub-genres. From the crazes of paranormal and dystopian, to the growing representation of diversity being included within these novels, there has certainly been many up’s and down’s. That being said, there will always be some books and series that will stand out to readers depending on the age and year they were introduced to the genre.
We’ve found fourteen YA series from over the past two decades that certainly shows the evolution of the genre, and although some may be a little ‘cringe-worthy’ these days, they’re almost seen as a “classic” in some ways for the genre.
Read on to discover some of the YA series you should have read by now, and if you haven’t, give them a go just for curiosity’s sake and fun!
Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi
Goodreads
This series is talked about quite frequently, but there are many that don’t appreciate or like them. However, they are incredibly captivating because of the great adventure inside! The Shatter Me series follows a 17-year-old girl who has a lethal touch. She is locked into a cell for accidentally killing someone, but when they world is crashing down she could be a weapon or a warrior. Four books have been published in this series and there are two more are on the way!
The Program series by Suzanne Young
Goodreads
The hype this series doesn’t receive is saddening! In a world where suicide is an international epidemic, there is the program, used to treat kids to not kill themselves. However, the program doesn’t just take that urge, but it also takes memories and it makes you forget. For young Sloane, along with her boyfriend James, they are running and hiding from them. This series will not let you put it down until you are finished and even though there are only six books in the series, you’ll probably be finished in a day.
Fallen series by Lauren Kate
Goodreads
A somewhat ‘classic’ YA series, Fallen follows a girl named Lucinda (Luce) Price who is sent to a new school called Sword and Cross after being accused of murdering a boy by starting a fire. This school isn’t a normal one and it’s there that she meets a boy named Daniel, but she has a feeling they have met before. This series is super engaging and it’s full of twists and turns. It has angels and will make you fall in love with them. Lauren Kate’s writing is spectacular; she has a way of pulling you in through all 4-6 books, depending if you read the extras.
Illuminae series by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff
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This series is an extremely unusual kind of read with the story told from a series of emails, letters, and reports. There are three books and each follows different characters with each set of characters living in space because the planet is no longer habitable. Again, this series has such a unique of writing that really intrigues the reader and a truly epic story.
Hush Hush series by Becca Fitzpatrick
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This is another series about angels and Becca Fitzpatrick makes you fall in love with them. Nora Grey is just an average teenager making her way through high school along with Patch, an annoying boy, who always seems be where she is. Nora then finds out who Patch really is, a fallen angel, and starts to wonder about her angelic heritage. This series is a page-turning leap into the world of fallen angels that will change your views of good and bad.
Matched series by Ally Condie
Goodreads
Let’s face it, we all love a good dystopian and this series is definitely one to consider picking up! In this world there is a tightly-controlled society that chooses peoples life partners at the young age of 17. Our main character Cassia is matched to her best friend, Xander, however, she soon realises there is another. Cassia is then faced with the decision of following government rules or setting herself free. This series was all the rage when it first came out, but has died down since, however it still deserves all of the hype it received.
Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor
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This trilogy is completely different from other YA books out there and it certainly deserves more appreciation. Karou is just a normal girl who is trying to live life, but she was raised by chimaera, who are creatures of different human and animal attributes. The chimaera she lives with demand teeth in exchange for wishes, and send Karou to fetch them, which leaves Karou to wonder about what she is doing. Laini Taylor portrays this universe extremely well and that is what makes a good book that deserves to be read.
A Series of Unfortunate Events series by Lemony Snicket
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This series has previously been made into film and a Netflix series last year. The series follows the Baudelaire children who have just lost their parents and home in a fire, but Count Olaf is trying to take their fortune. The children are sent from guardian to guardian just trying to escape from Olaf. This series is very intriguing because of how it narrated and it has 13 books in the entire series.
Asylum series by Madeleine Roux
Goodreads
The Asylum series is a paranormal YA trilogy that needs to be read by all. Dan Crawford has gotten the chance of a lifetime to go to the school he wants, but when he gets there he, and his new friends, end up staying at Brookline Dorm, which used to be a psychiatric hospital. Throughout the story he and his friends find out what really happened at the psych ward and discover their attachments to it. This series will have you on the edge of your seat, just don’t read it in the dark!
To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before series by Jenny Han
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Lara Jean Song Covey is 16 years old and she has a box that contains letters to all the boys she’s loved before and these boys don’t know she loved them. However, one night her little sister sends all the letters out creating a whirlwind for Lara Jean. This trilogy sees Lara Jean weave her way through love, heartbreak and family. This series is so heartfelt and real, which makes them a great page-turner.
Taken series by Erin Bowman
Goodreads
This dystopian series follows a government that takes boys on their eighteenth birthday, and nobody knows where they go, but you can’t run. There’s no place to run because going just over the wall is a suicide mission. Gray is almost eighteen and he needs to decide what he will do to survive. The Taken trilogy is very captivating and will cause readers to feel full of emotion.
Let the Sky Fall series by Shannon Messenger
Goodreads
Shannon Messenger is a spectacular storyteller in this fantasy series! The main character Vane Weston should’ve died in a tornado that killed his parents, but he didn’t and has no memories of what happened. However, he has dreams of a girl that isn’t human, and Vane is baffled when one day she walks by him real as can be and starts to discover the truth about himself.
The Selection series by Kiera Cass
Goodreads
This series is a little more royal than everything else on this list. It follows a competition to become the prince’s betrothed. It takes place in a world like ours where places, such as the United States, have been overthrown and renamed. This series is set up a little differently with the first three books told in a different point of view in comparison to the last two.
Shadow and Bone series by Leigh Bardugo
Goodreads
Leigh Bardugo has beautifully crafted a very intriguing world called the Grisha Verse. This trilogy is the first of this series and it is so amazing that it’s unbelievable. Alina grew up in an orphanage with her friend Mal, they were both tested to see if they were Grisha, but neither of them were. However, fast forward many years Alina thought she was normal until one day she proved she wasn’t. Many other books by Bardugo are popular, such as Six of Crows, but this series has been kind of downgraded, but shouldn’t be because it started this awesome universe.
The summer I turned pretty trilogy is also one!