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The 25 Best Young Adult Book Series Ever Written

Dive into stories of romance, science fiction, fantasy, and more.

Looking for a read that will keep you enthralled? A young adult series is the way to go. While a trilogy is enough to be considered a series, many YA series consist of many more books that that—sometimes there's even multiple-book series within a larger franchise. So, if you want some true escapism and to really delve into another world for a while, that's what you'll get.

There are many popular young adult fantasy and science fiction series, but there are also gossipy dramas, love-filled romances, and intriguing mysteries. Plus, as you'll see, many of the series below have been adapted into popular TV shows and movies. Read on to learn more about 25 of the best young adult book series on the shelves.

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1
Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone cover
Scholastic

Starting off with the most obvious, we have the bestselling book series of all time. The seven-book series is about Harry Potter, an 11-year-old boy who finds out that he is a wizard and gets to attend a school to learn magic. Unfortunately for him, it's not as fun as it sounds, because he also has to fight off the dark wizard Voldemort, who killed his parents and with whom he shares a special bond.

2
To All the Boys I've Loved Before by Jenny Han

Too All the Boys I've Loved Before cover
Simon & Schuster

The To All the Boys trilogy follows Lara Jean Song Covey, a teenage girl who writes letters to her crushes to get her emotions out but does not actually mail them. Her life changes when her little sister sends the letters, and Lara Jean sets off on a fake-turned-real romance with classmate Peter Kavinsky.

3
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

The Hunger Games cover
Scholastic

Dystopian worlds are popular when it comes to YA, and one of the most notable in that genre is The Hunger Games. The book trilogy is about Katniss Everdeen, a teenager who is a "tribute" in the Hunger Games—a battle to the death in which one girl and one boy from each of the nation of Panem's districts compete for food and money for their community. There are is also a prequel book, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, with another prequel on the way.

4
The Shadowhunter Chronicles by Cassandra Clare

City of Bones cover
Margaret K. McElderry Books

The Shadowhunter Chronicles are a series of series, essentially: five (soon to be six) series of novels, with each series consisting of at least three books. Overall, the franchise is about a group of humans known as Shadowhunters, who are tasked with keeping a secret world of demons, werewolves, vampires, and other supernatural beings apart from normal humans, who are known as "mundanes." One of the best-known series within the series is The Mortal Instruments, which was adapted into a film and TV show.

5
Fear Street by R.L Stine

Fear Street The New Girl cover
Simon Pulse

Goosebumps author R.L Stine created a series for slightly older readers with the YA horror books Fear Street. There are over 50 books in the original series, which began in 1989, as well as several spinoff series. The books are all based in the fictional city of Shadyside and about teenagers coming across murder mysteries and supernatural occurrences.

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6
Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo

Shadow and Bone cover
Henry Holt and Co.

The Shadow and Bone fantasy trilogy is about Alina Starkov, a teenage orphan who finds out that she is a Grisha, a person who can harness the power of the elements to their own advantage. But, while learning about her powers and seeing where she fits in, Alina learns that her true enemy is the Darkling, the leader of the Grisha. There is also a wider "Grishaverse" from writer Leigh Bardugo, which includes multiple spinoff books.

7
Divergent by Veronica Roth

Divergent cover
Katherine Tegen Books

The Divergent series is focused on Beatrice "Tris" Prior, a teen girl living in a post-apocalyptic Chicago. In Tris' world, people are divided into five factions based on their personalities, and she is labeled a "divergent" because she tests into multiple factions. The books involve the factions conflicts with each other, as well as Tris' romantic relationship with Four, another member of her chosen faction.

8
Twilight by Stephenie Meyer

Twilight cover
Little Brown

The four Twilight books and their spinoffs are about a teenager named Bella, who falls in love with a vampire, Edward, who appears to be a teenager but is actually over 100 years old. The series follows the challenges of their relationship, which include a jealous werewolf, Edward keeping his true identity a secret, and eventually, Bella deciding whether to become a vampire herself.

9
Uglies by Scott Westerfeld

Uglies cover
Simon & Schuster

The Uglies series includes three books, as well as one companion book that features a different lead character. The primary trilogy is about Tally Youngblood, who lives in a future world in which all 16-year-olds receive plastic surgery to become "Pretties" and enter the next phase of their lives. Tally finds out, though, that the surgery isn't only about appearance and that people are also being controlled in an effort to keep society functioning in only one way.

10
The Maze Runner by James Dashner

The Maze Runner cover
Delacorte Press

The Maze Runner is about a group of teens who are being used as test subjects in a dystopian world. The group, known as Gladers, are placed inside of a facility with their memories wiped out and are given one chance per day to try to figure out a maze that surrounds the place where they live. Things change for the Gladers thanks to new members named Thomas and Tessa, who begin to reveal how big the plot they are subjected to really is.

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11
Gossip Girl by Cecily von Ziegesar

Gossip Girl cover
Little, Brown and Company

Before it was a hugely popular TV show, Gossip Girl was a series of novels. The books are about frenemies Blair Waldorf and Serena van der Woodsen, who are both wealthy New Yorkers attending the fancy Constance Billard School for Girls. Their relationship to each other, friendships with other students, and dating lives are all covered, with an anonymous blogger named Gossip Girl stirring up trouble for everyone.

12
Noughts & Crosses by Malorie Blackman

Noughts & Crosses cover
Simon & Schuster

Noughts & Crosses is an alternative history series that explores race and racism. In this fictional version of the U.K., there are two classes: noughts, who are light-skinned people formerly enslaved by crosses, who have darker skin. While slavery is over, the two groups are still segregated, which is a major issues for the main characters of the first book, Sephy and Callum, a cross and nought who fall in love.

13
Camp Half-Blood Chronicles by Rick Riordan

The Lightning Thief cover
Miramax Books

Like The Shadowhunter Chronicles, Camp Half-Blood Chronicles consists of multiple book series in one overarching franchise. The three book series are Percy Jackson & the Olympians (which is the most famous), The Heroes of Olympus, and The Trials of Apollo. There are also short stories and graphic novels. Overall, the franchise gives a new take on Greek mythology with the ancient gods existing in the modern day.

14
A Good Girl's Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson

A Good Girl's Guide to Murder cover
Ember

A Good Girl's Guide to Murder is a mystery about Pip Fitz-Amobi, a teenage true crime fan who takes it upon herself to investigate the murder of a student from her town. In the sequel books, Pip stars a podcast and takes on additional cases.

15
Sweet Valley High by Francine Pascal

Sweet Valley High Secrets cover
Random House

The Sweet Valley High series began in 1983, focusing on twins Jessica and Elizabeth Wakefield dealing with high school drama. The franchise then expanded to include spinoffs such as Sweet Valley Junior High and Sweet Valley High: Senior Year. Over 20 years, nearly 200 books were released, and while some were ghostwritten, they're all published under the name of creator Francine Pascal.

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16
Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin

A Wizard of Earthsea cover
Parnassus Press

The classic fantasy series Earthsea, also called The Earthsea Cycle, began in 1968 with the book A Wizard of Earthsea. The first book follows Ged, a young wizard, who gets to study magic at a special school. Ged lives in Earthsea, a world that consists of various small islands surrounded by one large ocean in a society that is similar to the Iron Age.

17
Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

Throne of Glass cover
Bloomsbury Publishing

Throne of Glass is another fantasy series. This one is about Celaena Sardothien, an 18-year-old assassin who lives in the Kingdom of Adarlan. Celaena enters a competition to become the King's Champion, or his personal assassin, but while participating in the various tasks she's assigned in the hopes of getting the job, she learns about magic and mysteries involving her kingdom.

18
Arc of a Scythe by Neal Shusterman

Scythe cover
Simon & Schuster

The Arc of a Scythe series is about a future world in which all of humanity is peacefully ruled by an artificial intelligence called Thunderhead, and people are immortal thanks to scientific advancements. However, it's been determined that there still needs to be death to give life meaning and to control the population. So, a group of people called Scythes are responsible for killing others. The first book focuses on a teenage boy and girl who are chosen to become Scythe apprentices.

19
Alex Rider by Anthony Horowitz

Alex Rider Stormbreaker cover
Philomel Books

The titular character of the Alex Rider books is a teenage spy who works for British intelligence agency MI6. The 14 books in the series see Alex take on missions involving nuclear weapons, biological warfare, stolen ancient sculptures, and much more.

20
Heartstopper by Alice Oseman

Heartstopper cover
Hachette Children's Group

Heartstopper is a graphic novel series about the romantic relationship between two schoolmates, Nick Nelson and Charlie Spring. It also covers their relationships with their friends—and their friends' own love lives—as they attend Truham Grammar School. This series is notable for featuring many LGBTQ+ characters.

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21
The Inheritance Cycle by Christopher Paolini

Eragon cover
Knopf

The Inheritance Cycle consists of four books, starting with Eragon. The series is about a boy named Eragon, who finds and learns to take care of a dragon while also facing off against King Galbatorix, who wants the dragon for himself. The fantasy series is set in a world known as Alagaësia.

22
Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead

Vampire Academy cover
Razorbill

Vampire Academy is focused on Rosemarie, a half-vampire-half-human, and her best friend Lissa, who is a type of vampire that is mortal. Rosemarie is being trained to be a protector for Lissa, and the two both attend a boarding school called St. Vladimir's Academy.

23
Pretty Little Liars by Sara Shepard

Pretty Little Liars cover
HarperTeen

Pretty Little Liars is a mystery series about four friends, who begin receiving messages from an anonymous person called "A" after the leader of their clique dies. The group then have to figure out who "A" really is and how they know so many of their secrets.

24
The Selection by Kiera Cass

The Selection cover
HarperTeen

The Selection is set in a society in which people are divided into eight different castes with "Ones" being the elite, including royalty, and "Eights" being the poorest. A young woman named America, who is a Five, joins a process for a prince to select a wife, which leaves her divided between her love for Aspen, her ex-boyfriend who is a Six, and Prince Maxon, a One, for whom she begins to develop real feelings.

25
Confessions of Georgia Nicolson by Louise Rennison

Angus Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging cover
HarperTeen

The Confessions of Georgia Nicolson series is about a teenage girl in England, who is dealing with typical adolescent issues, including dating, jealousy, friendships, annoying family members, and puberty. By the way, Angus is her cat and "snogging" means kissing.

Lia Beck
Lia Beck is a writer living in Richmond, Virginia. In addition to Best Life, she has written for Refinery29, Bustle, Hello Giggles, InStyle, and more. Read more
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