The Ultimate YA Summer Reading List
by Dena McMurdie
Summer is the perfect excuse to get comfortable with a big stack of young adult books. My teens and I love spending warm, lazy afternoons on our patio with a good book and a pitcher of cold lemonade. Whether it’s feel-good rom-coms or an exciting adventure to escape into, find the best YA books to read this summer.
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Nothing Bad Happens Here
Available from:Crack open this book for a chilling summer adventure filled with murder and mystery set in beautiful Nantucket. When Lucia and her mother arrive on the idyllic island for the summer, she quickly becomes friends with three wealthy teen girls. But after finding a dead body on the beach, Lucia realizes something sinister hides beneath the island’s picture-perfect facade.
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Bones at the Crossroads
Preorder from:Head back to Caiman University with this sequel to the bestselling series opener, Blood at the Root. Summer is over, and Malik returns to the magical school, where he joins a secret society to study ancient magic. Just as things start looking up, Malik realizes that the problems at the school and in the society are getting worse, and it’s up to him to fix them.
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The Scorpion and the Night Blossom
Available from:To save her dying mother’s life, Àn’yīng enters the Immortality Trials. If she completes the trials, she will earn one pill of eternal life. During the Trials, Àn’yīng forms an unlikely alliance with a mysterious boy and learns that her life and the fate of the kingdom depend on the outcome of the Trials. This action-packed fantasy novel is a must-have this summer!
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Night Swimming
Available from:Fall in love with this eerie and romantic novel about two teens trying to swim in every pool in town. When their quest takes them to a little-known pond in the woods, they quickly fall under its spell. Soon, the lines between reality and fantasy start to blur, and the teens find themselves on the cusp of something extraordinary and unsettling.
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The Education of Kia Greer
Available from:Kia's life as a reality star’s daughter is anything but normal. When a fake romance with teen heartthrob Cass starts to feel real, she faces the messy truth about fame, identity, and first love. A fearless, heartfelt story about finding yourself beyond the spotlight.
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The Counselors
Available from:Goldie Easton calls Camp Alpine Lake home. This summer, she and her two besties, Ava and Imogen, are counselors. But then a camper dies by the lake, and it wasn’t an accident. Here’s the twist: Goldie went into the summer with a dark secret — but so did her friends. Can she trust Ava and Imogen? Perfect for fans of Holly Jackson and Karen M. McManus, this thrilling mystery novel needs to find a spot on your TBR list ASAP!
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I Love You S’more
Available from:Head to summer camp with the characters in this adorable sapphic enemies-to-lovers romance novel. After a nasty breakup, Ivy wants to escape her grief, so she signs up as a camp counselor. The only problem is that one of the other counselors is her childhood nemesis. But the summer has several surprises in store for the girls, including their growing feelings for each other.
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Rick Riordan Presents: It Waits in the Forest
Available from:Selina doesn’t believe in magic, but ever since a tragedy left her father dead and mother in a coma, she has pretended to have psychic powers. A string of murders on her island and the return of her ex-boyfriend push Selina to search for answers and justice. But to find them, Selina must also find the root of the island’s evil. This thriller inspired by Carribean mythology will send chills racing down your spine!
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This Thing of Ours
Available from:A torn ACL sends Ossie’s dreams of playing basketball out the window. He feels lost until a teacher invites him to join her writing program. While he excels in the program, his new passion comes under fire when some students make a viral “anti-woke” video. Now, Ossie must decide whether to accept defeat again or put his newfound passion to good use.
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A Forgery of Fate
Available from:Get lost in a magical world filled with romance, curses, and treason with this retelling of Beauty and the Beast. To save her family from ruin, Truyan marries a dragon lord and uses her unique ability to paint the future to help him overthrow the tyrannical king. Whether you’re a longtime fan of Elizabeth Lim’s books or just discovering them, you don’t want to miss this one!
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Beach Cute
Available from:No YA summer reading list is complete without a Beth Reekles novel on it. From the bestselling author of The Kissing Booth series comes a charming new beach read that will have you swooning and laughing in equal measure. Three strangers meet at the same vacation resort and experience an unforgettable summer filled with romance, drama, and friendship.
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Very Dangerous Things
Preorder from:At a prestigious school’s annual murder mystery game, one student ends up truly dead — and all eyes are on his ex. With secrets, suspects, and tension running high, two ex-best friends must team up to solve the crime before the killer strikes again.
(On sale: 7/29/2025)
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Murder Between Friends
Available from:When Grace’s testimony sent a killer to prison, her best friends Henry and Ally turned against her. Now, as the killer gets a second chance at freedom, the three teens must face each other, their past, and their memories. But nothing is as it seems, and everyone has secrets. The ex-friends must learn to trust each other again and find out what really happened on the night of the murder.
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Wicked Darlings
Available from:After her sister dies under suspicious circumstances during a summer internship at a New York society newspaper, Noa wants answers. She infiltrates the city’s high society, getting pulled into the glamorous world of parties, gossip, and secrets. Noa must work quickly to find out what happened to her sister before the world of high society swallows her up, too.
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Summer Girls
Available from:Opposites attract in this summery, sapphic YA romance set in an idyllic beach town. Cass refuses to date the wealthy girls who overrun her hometown every summer. When her dad recruits her to keep his boss’s rebellious daughter, Birdie, out of trouble, Cass believes her summer is over before it starts. However, as the girls spend more time together, Cass begins to rethink her “no summer girls” rule.
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Lying in the Deep
Available from:A jealous ex-girlfriend stalks her former best friend and boyfriend during a semester-long cruise in this spine-tingling thriller. But when her classmates start dropping dead one by one, June must find the real killer before she either takes the blame for the murders or shares the victims’ fate.
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Sunkissed
Available from:When you want a feel-good story with cheerful summer vibes, you can’t go wrong with a Kasie West novel. Head to a family summer camp in this rom-com for Dirty Dancing fans. Avery is less than thrilled to be at the camp until she meets the handsome Brooks, an off-limits staff member. For Avery, the summer brings first love, self-discovery, heartache, and beauty.
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Looking for summer reading ideas for younger kids? Check out our 2024 lists for Kids Ages 3 – 5, Ages 6 – 8, and Ages 9 – 12.