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The Best Books of 2021: Teenage & Young Adult

Posted on 15th November 2021 by Mark Skinner

Whether it's racing through a magical incarnation of Edwardian London with Cassandra Clare, investigating a sinister boarding school mystery with Zoe Sugg and Amy McCulloch or embarking on hilarious body swap mayhem courtesy of Candice Carty-Williams, this year's young adult literature has revelled in thrilling adventure and confronting timely and challenging themes. Discover the best of the best with our invaluable guide to the class of 2021.

Any Way the Wind Blows - Simon Snow (Hardback)

Rainbow Rowell

£14.99

Hardback

In stock

Usually dispatched within 1-2 days

A pulsating conclusion to Rowell’s bestselling Simon Snow series, Any Way the Wind Blows finds the gang back in England and contemplating friendship, the future and the end of the world.

They Both Die at the End: Exclusive Edition (Hardback)

Adam Silvera

£12.99

Hardback

Out of stock

Discovering they have less than 24 hours to live, two young strangers embark on an adventure of a life-time – within the confines of one day – in this moving and unforgettable bestseller from Adam Silvera.

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Medusa (Hardback)

Jessie Burton, Olivia Lomenech Gill

£14.99

Hardback

10+ in stock

Usually dispatched within 1-2 days

The author of the bestselling The Miniaturist breathes fresh life into an ancient myth of passion and betrayal in this powerful feminist retelling, adorned with stunning illustrations by Olivia Lomenech Gill.

Endgame: Signed Edition (Hardback)

Malorie Blackman

£14.99

Hardback

In stock

Usually dispatched within 1-2 days

A breathtaking conclusion to Malorie’s Blackman’s groundbreaking Noughts and Crosses dystopia, Endgame absorbs the real-world issues of the previous few years to provide a blisteringly topical and exciting read.

The Last Hours: Chain of Iron - The Last Hours (Hardback)

Cassandra Clare

£14.99

Hardback

In stock

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The second instalment of the Last Hours develops the enthralling action of Chain of Gold, as Cordelia and the Merry Thieves pursue a vicious killer through the streets of Edwardian London, all the while battling with their own inner demons.

Aurora's End: The Aurora Cycle: Signed Edition (Hardback)

Amie Kaufman, Jay Kristoff

£14.99

Hardback

In stock

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The rip-roaring, side-splitting sci-fi adventure cycle from bestselling authors Kaufman and Kristoff concludes in typically irresistible style as the assorted misfits of Squad 312 face their deadliest foe yet in a battle to save the galaxy.

Lyra's Oxford: Illustrated Edition (Hardback)

Philip Pullman

£14.99

Hardback

5+ in stock

Usually dispatched within 1-2 days

Pullman’s magnificent His Dark Materials novella gets a stunning full-colour gift edition boasting breathtaking illustrations from Chris Wormell that bring the story to vibrant and dramatic life.

Lore Olympus: Volume One - Lore Olympus (Hardback)

Rachel Smythe

£24.00

Hardback

10+ in stock

Usually dispatched within 1-2 days

Already a word-of-mouth sensation online, Rachel Smythe’s smart, sexy, Eisner Award-winning webcomic gets its welcome print debut, bringing readers the first volume of her modern take on the Persephone myth.

Terciel and Elinor - The Old Kingdom (Hardback)

Garth Nix

£16.99

Hardback

In stock

Usually dispatched within 1-2 days

A must for Garth Nix fans, his long-awaited return to The Old Kingdom series is a typically adventure-packed and darkly comic journey that follows Sabriel’s parents in a dangerous battle against forces from the other side of death.

This Poison Heart - This Poison Heart (Paperback)

Kalynn Bayron

£8.99

Paperback

10+ in stock

Usually dispatched within 1-2 days

Briseis’s control over flowers and plants wreaks dangerous consequences as she discovers long buried secrets in the garden of her rambling inherited home in this gripping, empowering fantasy from the author of Cinderella is Dead.

The Gilded Ones - Gilded (Paperback)

Namina Forna

£8.99

Paperback

10+ in stock

Usually dispatched within 1-2 days

Set in a West African-inspired Ancient Kingdom under oppressive patriarchal rule, Forna’s breathtaking novel follows sixteen-year-old Deka and her quest to discover her destiny as a near-immortal with magical powers.

Iron Widow (Hardback)

Xiran Jay Zhao

£14.99

Hardback

Not available

Currently not available to order

Recasting the true story of the only female Chinese emperor as a thrilling space opera, Iron Widow follows a young concubine-pilot determined to dismantle the patriarchal system following the brutal death of her sister.

Rule of Wolves (King of Scars Book 2) - King of Scars (Hardback)

Leigh Bardugo

£14.99

Hardback

10+ in stock

Usually dispatched within 1-2 days

Following the captivating and conflicted Ravkan ruler Nikolai Lantsov in the bewitching world of the Grishaverse, this powerful tale of desire and revenge brings the King of Scars duology to a majestic conclusion.

Afterlove (Paperback)

Tanya Byrne

£7.99

Paperback

10+ in stock

Usually dispatched within 1-2 days

After Ash is killed in a car accident she must choose between becoming a Reaper gathering souls for the afterlife or seeing her first love Poppy again, in this impossibly quirky and affecting supernatural romance.

Defy the Night - Defy the Night (Paperback)

Brigid Kemmerer

£8.99

Paperback

10+ in stock

Usually dispatched within 1-2 days

The author of the bestselling Cursebreakers trilogy returns with a thrilling new fantasy adventure set in a plague-riddled kingdom where a young vigilante must assassinate a cruel monarch so that his subjects can survive.

Gods & Monsters - Serpent & Dove (Hardback)

Shelby Mahurin

£14.99

Hardback

Not available

Currently not available to order

Events take a thrillingly dark turn in the enthralling conclusion to Mahurin’s Serpent and Dove series as Lou returns home to claim what is hers – at any cost.

Lore (Paperback)

Alexandra Bracken

£9.99

Paperback

10+ in stock

Usually dispatched within 1-2 days

The blazing imagination behind the Darkest Minds series delivers a rollicking read centred on a deadly game played by Zeus on the Greek Gods and one young competitor who is determined to survive.

Gilded - Gilded (Paperback)

Marissa Meyer

£8.99

Paperback

10+ in stock

Usually dispatched within 1-2 days

Bringing together the stunning world building, romance and fairy tale enchantment you’d expect from the bestselling author of Heartless, this reworking of the Rumpelstiltskin fable curses a miller’s daughter with the gift of a golden tongue and plunges her into the dark centre of the Erlking’s dangerous court.

Kaleidoscope (Hardback)

Brian Selznick

£14.99

Hardback

In stock

Usually dispatched within 1-2 days

From the bestselling author of The Invention of Hugo Cabret and Wonderstruck comes a mesmerising tale about the power of imagination and the nature of love and loss, in which two people connect with each other through memory and dreams.

The Upper World: Exclusive Edition (Paperback)

Femi Fadugba

£7.99

Paperback

Out of stock

Effortlessly blending the gritty social realism of South London’s streets with brilliantly judged fantastical flourishes, Fadugba’s assured debut centres on a boy who can see glimpses of the future and a girl desperately seeking answers about her parents.

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Witches Steeped in Gold (Paperback)

Ciannon Smart

£8.99

Paperback

5+ in stock

Usually dispatched within 1-2 days

Perfect reading for fans of Children of Blood and Bone and The Gilded Ones, Smart’s evocative fantasy sets two rival witches on a mission to destroy the powerful ruler who threatens both their worlds.

Bridge of Souls - City of Ghosts (Paperback)

V. E. Schwab

£7.99

Paperback

In stock

Usually dispatched within 1-2 days

Facing down a servant of death with her spectral best friend Jacob, Cass investigates the ghostly goings on in New Orleans in the latest spine-tingling instalment of the City of Ghosts series.

Heartstopper Volume 4 - Heartstopper 4 (Paperback)

Alice Oseman

£12.99

Paperback

10+ in stock

Usually dispatched within 1-2 days

Nick and Charlie may officially be boyfriends but that doesn’t mean an end to the drama in this warm-hearted and emotionally generous fourth instalment of Alice Oseman’s phenomenally successful graphic novel series.

Empress & Aniya: Signed Exclusive Edition (Paperback)

Candice Carty-Williams

£7.99 £4.00

Paperback

10+ in stock

Usually dispatched within 1-2 days

Body swap mayhem makes for a hilarious and moving debut YA novel from the author of Queenie, as two friends in a South London school accidentally cast a spell with far-reaching consequences.

Aristotle and Dante Dive Into the Waters of the World (Paperback)

Benjamin Alire Sáenz

£8.99

Paperback

10+ in stock

Usually dispatched within 1-2 days

The stunning sequel to the bestselling modern classic Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe finds the devoted couple face the challenges of forging a lasting relationship in an often hostile world.

Concrete Rose: Exclusive Edition (Paperback)

Angie Thomas

£7.99

Paperback

Out of stock

Set seventeen years before the events of the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize-winning The Hate U Give, Concrete Rose focuses on Starr’s father and his attempts to do the right thing as a young dad.

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The Yearbook (Paperback)

Holly Bourne

£7.99

Paperback

In stock

Usually dispatched within 1-2 days

The author of Am I Normal Yet? and The Places I’ve Cried in Public delivers a smart and sassy high school drama in which the editor of the yearbook serves up some incendiary truths about the school’s mean girls.

Splinters of Sunshine: Signed Edition (Paperback)

Patrice Lawrence

£7.99

Paperback

In stock

Usually dispatched within 1-2 days

The former Waterstones Children’s Book Prize category winner returns with a story of fractured family and friendships tested by fate and circumstance that is poignant and utterly gripping.

Stay Another Day (Paperback)

Juno Dawson

£7.99

Paperback

10+ in stock

Usually dispatched within 1-2 days

Perfectly crystallising the agonising tensions and niggling backchat of family Christmases and seamlessly blending some difficult subject matter with writing that is sharp, moving and very funny, Juno Dawson’s latest novel is a bittersweet taste of Christmas that makes for unmissable seasonal reading.

As Good As Dead - A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder Book 3 (Paperback)

Holly Jackson

£9.99

Paperback

10+ in stock

Usually dispatched within 1-2 days

The thrilling final instalment in the A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder trilogy sees sinister attention turn to Pip herself as she races to find a criminal before the past catches up with her in a truly page-turning finale.

You'll Be the Death of Me (Paperback)

Karen M. McManus

£8.99

Paperback

10+ in stock

Usually dispatched within 1-2 days

The queen of the YA thriller and author of One of Us Is Lying delivers another gripping, deadly mystery filled with sharply-drawn characters and countless plot twists, as a trio of friends skips class one day only to find themselves in the middle of a murder scene.

The Magpie Society: Two for Joy: Signed Edition - The Magpie Society (Hardback)

Zoe Sugg (aka Zoella), Amy McCulloch

£12.99

Hardback

Out of stock

A mesmerising follow-up to One For Sorrow, Two for Joy entangles Audrey and Ivy in another sinister mystery involving the esoteric Magpie Society and further disturbing secrets behind the respectable façade of their boarding school.

Firekeeper's Daughter (Hardback)

Angeline Boulley

£12.99

Hardback

Not available

Currently not available to order

Young Native American woman Daunis is drafted into a covert FBI operation in this gripping and brilliantly nuanced debut thriller about community, corruption and identity.

Ace of Spades (Paperback)

Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé

£8.99

Paperback

10+ in stock

Usually dispatched within 1-2 days

Buried secrets burst into the open at an exclusive high school in this explosive thriller which doubles as a blistering critique of institutionalised racism.

The Box in the Woods (Hardback)

Maureen Johnson

£14.99

Hardback

Not available

Currently not available to order

The author of the Truly Devious series delivers a compelling and darkly hilarious standalone thriller set in a summer camp which saw a gruesome multiple homicide forty years previously.

Billie Eilish (Hardback)

Billie Eilish

£25.00

Hardback

10+ in stock

Usually dispatched within 1-2 days

A pop music superstar and cultural icon like no other, Billie Eilish peels back the layers of her enigmatic persona in this lavish yet highly intimate volume boasting hundreds of previously unseen photographs.

Dreams from My Father (Adapted for Young Adults): A Story of Race and Inheritance (Hardback)

President Barack Obama, President Barack Obama

£14.99

Hardback

In stock

Usually dispatched within 1-2 days

Erudite and empowering, the 44th president of the United States' enthralling story from childhood in Hawaii to political awakening in Chicago adapted for young adult readers.

Black Joy (Hardback)

Charlie Brinkhurst-Cuff, Various

£14.99 £5.00

Hardback

In stock

Expected to be dispatched in 3-4 days

From Diane Abbott to Waterstones favourite Faridah Abike-Iyimide, this vibrant, inspiring collection of essays and stories from Black British writers and public figures makes for timely and immersive reading.

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The Best Books of 2021: Teenage & Young Adult

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