Looking for book club recommendations on the most anticipated ya books 2021? Just choose one of these top 31 new YA books for 2021.
If I’m being honest, I could easily write pages upon pages about how excited I am to read all of the most anticipated YA books for 2021. This upcoming year is filled with loads of stories we can get lost in. We can explore, go on adventures, and fall in love with so many different characters.
Nevertheless, instead of getting too heartfelt about the countless opportunities, here are 31 upcoming YA books here for you to add to your TBR. Let’s have these new YA releases speak for themselves. After all, that is what you really came here for, not to read about me and my sappy feelings.
Interested yet? Keep scrolling for all of the most anticipated ya books 2021!
Keep up with all the upcoming book releases here.
Most Anticipated YA Books 2021
One of the Good Ones by Maika Moulite and Maritza Moulite
Release date: January 5, 2021 – When teen social activist and history buff Kezi Smith is killed under mysterious circumstances after attending a social justice rally, her devastated sister Happi and their family are left reeling in the aftermath. As Kezi becomes another immortalized victim in the fight against police brutality, Happi begins to question the idealized way her sister is remembered. Perfect. Angelic. Read More→
Lore by Alexandra Bracken
Release date: January 5, 2021 – Every seven years, the Agon begins. As punishment for a past rebellion, nine Greek gods are forced to walk the earth as mortals, hunted by the descendants of ancient bloodlines, all eager to kill a god and seize their divine power and immortality. Read More→
Be Dazzled by Ryan La Sala
Release date: January 5, 2021 – Raffy has a passion for bedazzling. Not just bedazzling, but sewing, stitching, draping, pattern making―for creation. He’s always chosen his art over everything―and everyone―else and is determined to make his mark at this year’s biggest cosplay competition. If he can wow there, it could lead to sponsorship, then art school, and finally earning real respect for his work. There’s only one small problem… Raffy’s ex-boyfriend, Luca, is his main competition. Read More→
Release date: January 5, 2021 – Sixteen-year-old Tessa Johnson has never felt like the protagonist in her own life. She’s rarely seen herself reflected in the pages of the romance novels she loves. The only place she’s a true leading lady is in her own writing—in the swoony love stories she shares only with Caroline, her best friend and #1 devoted reader. Read More→
Concrete Rose by Angie Thomas
Release date: January 12, 2021 – If there’s one thing seventeen-year-old Maverick Carter knows, it’s that a real man takes care of his family. As the son of a former gang legend, Mav does that the only way he knows how: dealing for the King Lords. With this money he can help his mom, who works two jobs while his dad’s in prison. Read More→
You Have a Match by Emma Lord
Release date: January 12, 2021 – When Abby signs up for a DNA service, it’s mainly to give her friend and secret love interest, Leo, a nudge. After all, she knows who she is already: Avid photographer. Injury-prone tree climber. Best friend to Leo and Connie…although ever since the B.E.I. (Big Embarrassing Incident) with Leo, things have been awkward on that front. Read More→
Tales From The Hinterland by Melissa Albert
Release date: January 12, 2021 – Before The Hazel Wood, there was Althea Proserpine’s Tales from the Hinterland… Journey into the Hinterland, a brutal and beautiful world where a young woman spends a night with Death, brides are wed to a mysterious house in the trees, and an enchantress is killed twice―and still lives. Read More→
We Free the Stars by Hafsah Faizal
Release date: January 19, 2021 – The battle on Sharr is over. The Arz has fallen. Altair may be captive, but Zafira, Nasir, and Kifah are bound for Sultan’s Keep, determined to finish the plan Altair set in motion: restoring the hearts of the Sisters of Old to the minarets of each caliphate, finally bringing magic to all of Arawiya. But they are low on resources and allies alike, and the kingdom teems with fear of the Lion of the Night’s return. Read More→
Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo
Release date: January 19, 2021 – Seventeen-year-old Lily Hu can’t remember exactly when the question took root, but the answer was in full bloom the moment she and Kathleen Miller walked under the flashing neon sign of a lesbian bar called the Telegraph Club. Read More→
The Girls I’ve Been by Tess Sharpe
Release date: January 26, 2021 – Nora O’Malley’s been a lot of girls. As the daughter of a con-artist who targets criminal men, she grew up as her mother’s protégé. But when her mom fell for the mark instead of conning him, Nora pulled the ultimate con: escape. Read More→
A Vow So Bold And Deadly by Brigid Kemmerer
Release date: January 26, 2021 – Emberfall is crumbling fast, torn between those who believe Rhen is the rightful prince and those who are eager to begin a new era under Grey, the true heir. Grey has agreed to wait two months before attacking Emberfall, and in that time, Rhen has turned away from everyone–even Harper, as she desperately tries to help him find a path to peace. Read More→
Written in Starlight by Isabel Ibanez
Release date: January 26, 2021 – Catalina Quiroga is a condesa without a country. She’s lost the Inkasisa throne, the loyalty of her people, and her best friend. Banished to the perilous Yanu Jungle, Catalina knows her chances of survival are slim, but that won’t stop her from trying to escape. Her duty is to rule. Read More→
The Project by Courtney Summers
Release date: February 2, 2021 – Lo Denham is used to being on her own. After her parents died, Lo’s sister, Bea, joined The Unity Project, leaving Lo in the care of their great aunt. Thanks to its extensive charitable work and community outreach, The Unity Project has won the hearts and minds of most in the Upstate New York region, but Lo knows there’s more to the group than meets the eye. She’s spent the last six years of her life trying―and failing―to prove it. Read More→
Everything That Burns by Gita Trelease
Release date: February 2, 2021 – Camille Durbonne gambled everything she had to keep herself and her sister safe. But as the people of Paris starve and mobs riot, safety may no longer be possible… Read More→
The Iron Raven by Julie Kagawa
Release date: February 9th 2021 – Robin Goodfellow. Puck. Prankster, joker, raven, fool… King Oberon’s right-hand jester from A Midsummer Night’s Dream. The legends are many, but the truth will now be known, as Puck finally tells his own story and faces a threat from a time before Faery began. A threat that brings him face-to-face with a new enemy…himself. Read More→
The Gilded Ones by Namina Forna
Release date: February 9, 2021 – Sixteen-year-old Deka lives in fear and anticipation of the blood ceremony that will determine whether she will become a member of her village. Already different from everyone else because of her unnatural intuition, Deka prays for red blood so she can finally feel like she belongs. Read More→
Most Anticipated YA Books of 2021
Hot British Boyfriend by Kristy Boyce
Release date: February 9, 2021 – After a horrifying public rejection by her crush, Ellie Nichols does what any girl would do: she flees the country. To be more precise, she joins her high school’s study abroad trip to England. While most of her classmates are there to take honors courses and pad their college applications, Ellie is on a quest to rebuild her reputation and self-confidence. And nothing is more of a confidence booster than getting a hot British boyfriend. Read More→
Wings of Ebony by J. Elle
Release date: February 21, 2021 – “Make a way out of no way” is just the way of life for Rue. But when her mother is shot dead on her doorstep, life for her and her younger sister changes forever. Rue’s taken from her neighborhood by the father she never knew, forced to leave her little sister behind, and whisked away to Ghizon—a hidden island of magic wielders. Read More→
Sing Me Forgotten by Jessica S. Olson
Release date: March 9, 2021– Cast into a well at birth for being one of the magical few who can manipulate memories when people sing, she was saved by Cyril, the opera house’s owner. Since that day, he has given her sanctuary from the murderous world outside. All he asks in return is that she use her power to keep ticket sales high—and that she stay out of sight. For if anyone discovers she survived, Isda and Cyril would pay with their lives. Read More→
Sweet and Bitter Magic by Adrienne Tooley
Release date: March 9, 2021 – Tamsin is the most powerful witch of her generation. But after committing the worst magical sin, she’s exiled by the ruling Coven and cursed with the inability to love. The only way she can get those feelings back—even for just a little while—is to steal love from others. Read More→
Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angeline Boulley
Release date: March 16, 2021 – Eighteen-year-old Daunis Fontaine has never quite fit in, both in her hometown and on the nearby Ojibwe reservation. She dreams of a fresh start at college, but when family tragedy strikes, Daunis puts her future on hold to look after her fragile mother. The only bright spot is meeting Jamie, the charming new recruit on her brother Levi’s hockey team. Read More→
She’s Too Pretty to Burn by Wendy Heard
Release date: March 30, 2021 – The summer is winding down in San Diego. Veronica is bored, caustically charismatic, and uninspired in her photography. Nico is insatiable, subversive, and obsessed with chaotic performance art. They’re artists first, best friends second. But that was before Mick. Delicate, lonely, magnetic Mick: the perfect subject, and Veronica’s dream girl. The days are long and hot―full of adventure―and soon they are falling in love. Read More→
The Cost of Knowing by Brittney Morris
Release date: April 6, 2021 – Sixteen-year-old Alex Rufus is trying his best. He tries to be the best employee he can be at the local ice cream shop; the best boyfriend he can be to his amazing girlfriend, Talia; the best protector he can be over his little brother, Isaiah. But as much as Alex tries, he often comes up short. Read More→
Most Anticipated YA Books of 2021
These Feathered Flames by Alexandra Overy
Release date: April 20, 2021 – When twin heirs are born in Tourin, their fates are decided at a young age. While Izaveta remained at court to learn the skills she’d need as the future queen, Asya was taken away to train with her aunt, the mysterious Firebird, who ensured magic remained balanced in the realm. Read More→
Witches Steeped in Gold by Ciannon Smart
Release date: April 20, 2021 – Divided by their order. United by their vengeance. Iraya has spent her life in a cell, but every day brings her closer to freedom—and vengeance. Jazmyne is the Queen’s daughter, but unlike her sister before her, she has no intention of dying to strengthen her mother’s power. Read More→
Meet Cute Diary by Emery Lee
Release date: May 4, 2021 – Noah Ramirez thinks he’s an expert on romance. He has to be for his popular blog, the Meet Cute Diary, a collection of trans happily ever afters. There’s just one problem—all the stories are fake. What started as the fantasies of a trans boy afraid to step out of the closet has grown into a beacon of hope for trans readers across the globe. Read More→
Excuse Me While I Ugly Cry by Joya Goffney
Release date: May 4, 2021 – Quinn keeps lists of everything—from the days she’s ugly cried, to “Things That I Would Never Admit Out Loud” and all the boys she’d like to kiss. Her lists keep her sane. By writing her fears on paper, she never has to face them in real life. That is, until her journal goes missing . . . Read More→
Where the Rhythm Takes You by Sarah Dass
Release date: May 11, 2021 – Seventeen-year-old Reyna has spent most of her life at her family’s gorgeous seaside resort in Tobago, the Plumeria. But what once seemed like paradise is starting to feel more like purgatory. It’s been two years since Reyna’s mother passed away, two years since Aiden – her childhood best friend, first kiss, first love, first everything – left the island to pursue his music dreams. Read More→
Tokyo Ever After by Emiko Jean
Release date: May 25, 2021 – Izumi Tanaka has never really felt like she fit in―it isn’t easy being Japanese American in her small, mostly white, northern California town. Raised by a single mother, it’s always been Izumi―or Izzy, because “It’s easier this way”―and her mom against the world. But then Izumi discovers a clue to her previously unknown father’s identity…and he’s none other than the Crown Prince of Japan. Which means outspoken, irreverent Izzy is literally a princess. Read More→
The Unpopular Vote by Jasper Sanchez
Release date: June 1, 2021 – Optics can make or break an election. Everything Mark knows about politics, he learned from his father, the Congressman who still pretends he has a daughter and not a son. Mark has promised to keep his past hidden and pretend to be the cis guy everyone assumes he is. But when he sees a manipulatively charming candidate for student body president inflame dangerous rhetoric, Mark risks his low profile to become a political challenger. Read More→
How We Fall Apart by Katie Zhao
Release date: August 3, 2021 – Nancy Luo is shocked when her former best friend, Jamie Ruan, top-ranked junior at Sinclair Prep, goes missing, and then is found dead. Nancy is even more shocked when word starts to spread that she and her friends–Krystal, Akil, and Alexander–are the prime suspects, thanks to “the Proctor,” someone anonymously incriminating them via the school’s social media app. Read More→
What January 2021 Book Releases are you looking forward to most in 2021?
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I love that my TBR list grows so much when I read your blog! Thank you. So many of these look great.
I’m so happy you’re here. 2021 seems to be the year for books. Maybe authors had a bit more time to write in 2020 and now they are giving us all the goodies!