If you’re anything like us, you couldn’t get enough of the first Black Panther film. The beautiful world of Wakanda, the action and adventure, and the artfully created characters truly sealed a place in our hearts. With the upcoming film Black Panther: Wakanda Forever arriving in theatres on 11/9, it won’t be long before we can immerse ourselves once again.
One especially exciting aspect of Black Panther was the introduction of fierce female characters into the film. From Princess Shuri to Okoye to Nakia, these women each bring their own skills, struggles, and strengths that we can’t help but root for.
You don’t have to stay strictly in Wakanda to find such awesome characters—YA books are filled with plenty of them! Below, we’ve gathered a few of our favorites that feature strong female protagonists, many of which remind us of our favorite Black Panther women. We get the feeling you will be just as enamored with them as we are.
Books to Read If You Love the Women of Black Panther
1. An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir
If you are drawn to the incredible female warriors of Wakanda, you’ll be equally as enthralled with both Helene and Laia in An Ember in the Ashes.” Helene’s physical strength and power and Laia’s loyalty to her family highlight characteristics we grew to love in our favorite Wakanda women.
Laia is a slave. Elias is a soldier. Neither is free.
Under the Martial Empire, defiance is met with death. Those who do not vow their blood and bodies to the Emperor risk the execution of their loved ones and the destruction of all they hold dear.
It is in this brutal world, inspired by ancient Rome, that Laia lives with her grandparents and older brother. The family ekes out an existence in the Empire’s impoverished backstreets. They do not challenge the Empire. They’ve seen what happens to those who do.
But when Laia’s brother is arrested for treason, Laia is forced to make a decision. In exchange for help from rebels who promise to rescue her brother, she will risk her life to spy for them from within the Empire’s greatest military academy.
There, Laia meets Elias, the school’s finest soldier—and secretly, its most unwilling. Elias wants only to be free of the tyranny he’s being trained to enforce. He and Laia will soon realize that their destinies are intertwined—and that their choices will change the fate of the Empire itself.
2. A Song of Wraiths and Ruin by Roseanne A. Brown
Karina is another strong woman that reminds us of our favorite Wakanda women. She holds a strong connection to royalty within her African heritage–the story is based on West African folklore. Karina may have her moments and setbacks, but she isn’t afraid to do what she must to protect her loved ones. Despite her initial hesitation to take the throne, she proves to be a fearless leader—much like the remarkable women in Wakanda.
The first in a gripping fantasy duology inspired by West African folklore in which a grieving crown princess and a desperate refugee find themselves on a collision course to murder each other despite their growing attraction—from debut author Roseanne A. Brown. This New York Times bestseller is perfect for fans of Tomi Adeyemi, Renée Ahdieh, and Sabaa Tahir.
For Malik, the Solstasia festival is a chance to escape his war-stricken home and start a new life with his sisters in the prosperous desert city of Ziran. But when a vengeful spirit abducts his younger sister, Nadia, as payment to enter the city, Malik strikes a fatal deal—kill Karina, Crown Princess of Ziran, for Nadia’s freedom.
But Karina has deadly aspirations of her own. Her mother, the Sultana, has been assassinated; her court threatens mutiny; and Solstasia looms like a knife over her neck. Grief-stricken, Karina decides to resurrect her mother through ancient magic . . . requiring the beating heart of a king. And she knows just how to obtain one: by offering her hand in marriage to the victor of the Solstasia competition.
When Malik rigs his way into the contest, they are set on a heart-pounding course to destroy each other. But as attraction flares between them and ancient evils stir, will they be able to see their tasks to the death?
3. The Wrath and the Dawn by Renée Ahdieh
Reflecting the fierceness and bold personality that we are captivated by with the heroines of Black Panther, you can’t help but root for Shahzrad. A bold personality and a bit of stubbornness, this story follows her as she attempts to avenge the murder of her best friend–however, as she moves further into her plan, she finds that things aren’t always as they appear. Her quick wit and charisma remind us of Shuri, but truly she would fit right in with any of the women of Wakanda.
One Life to One Dawn.
In a land ruled by a murderous boy-king, each dawn brings heartache to a new family. Khalid, the eighteen-year-old Caliph of Khorasan, is a monster. Each night he takes a new bride only to have a silk cord wrapped around her throat come morning. When sixteen-year-old Shahrzad’s dearest friend falls victim to Khalid, Shahrzad vows vengeance and volunteers to be his next bride. Shahrzad is determined not only to stay alive, but to end the caliph’s reign of terror once and for all.
Night after night, Shahrzad beguiles Khalid, weaving stories that enchant, ensuring her survival, though she knows each dawn could be her last. But something she never expected begins to happen: Khalid is nothing like what she’d imagined him to be. This monster is a boy with a tormented heart. Incredibly, Shahrzad finds herself falling in love. How is this possible? It’s an unforgivable betrayal. Still, Shahrzad has come to understand all is not as it seems in this palace of marble and stone. She resolves to uncover whatever secrets lurk and, despite her love, be ready to take Khalid’s life as retribution for the many lives he’s stolen. Can their love survive this world of stories and secrets?
4. Warcross by Marie Lu
Emika’s character is the perfect amalgamation of Shuri’s technical brilliance and Nakia’s remarkable undercover skills—and the stakes in this book have never been higher.
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Marie Lu–when a game called Warcross takes the world by storm, one girl hacks her way into its dangerous depths.
For the millions who log in every day, Warcross isn’t just a game–it’s a way of life. The obsession started ten years ago and its fan base now spans the globe, some eager to escape from reality and others hoping to make a profit. Struggling to make ends meet, teenage hacker Emika Chen works as a bounty hunter, tracking down Warcross players who bet on the game illegally. But the bounty-hunting world is a competitive one, and survival has not been easy. To make some quick cash, Emika takes a risk and hacks into the opening game of the international Warcross Championships–only to accidentally glitch herself into the action and become an overnight sensation.
Convinced she’s going to be arrested, Emika is shocked when instead she gets a call from the game’s creator, the elusive young billionaire Hideo Tanaka, with an irresistible offer. He needs a spy on the inside of this year’s tournament in order to uncover a security problem . . . and he wants Emika for the job. With no time to lose, Emika’s whisked off to Tokyo and thrust into a world of fame and fortune that she’s only dreamed of. But soon her investigation uncovers a sinister plot, with major consequences for the entire Warcross empire.
In this sci-fi thriller, #1 New York Times bestselling author Marie Lu conjures an immersive, exhilarating world where choosing who to trust may be the biggest gamble of all.
5. Akata Witch by Nnedi Okorafor
While this one has been out for a bit, it’s certainly worth a read if you were caught up in the uniqueness (both of the worldbuilding and the characters) of Wakanda. It’s a modern classic that is certainly worth a place on your bookshelf.
Sunny Nwazue lives in Nigeria, but she was born in New York City. Her features are West African, but she’s albino. She’s a terrific athlete, but can’t go out into the sun to play soccer. There seems to be no place where she fits in. And then she discovers something amazing—she is a “free agent” with latent magical power.
And she has a lot of catching up to do.
Soon she’s part of a quartet of magic students, studying the visible and invisible, learning to change reality. But just as she’s finding her footing, Sunny and her friends are asked by the magical authorities to help track down a career criminal who knows magic, too.
Will their training be enough to help them against a threat whose powers greatly outnumber theirs?
6. Night of the Raven, Dawn of the Dove by Rati Mehrotra
Truthfully, there is no argument that the Dora Milaje were a hugely compelling part of the Black Panther storyline. With leader Okoye certainly capturing out attention, it’s hard not to be captivated by the entire army. While the protagonist of this story, Katyani, is a little more forced into her role, her dedication and skills as a guardswoman mirror the bravery we admire from not just Okoye, but the other women of the Black Panther series, too.
To learn what she can become, she must first discover who she is.
Katyani’s role in the kingdom of Chandela has always been clear: becoming an advisor and protector of the crown prince, Ayan, when he ascends to the throne. Bound to the Queen of Chandela through a forbidden soul bond that saved her when she was a child, Katyani has grown up in the royal family and become the best guardswoman the Garuda has ever seen. But when a series of assassination attempts threatens the royals, Katyani is shipped off to the gurukul of the famous Acharya Mahavir as an escort to Ayan and his cousin, Bhairav, to protect them as they hone the skills needed to be the next leaders of the kingdom. Nothing could annoy Katyani more than being stuck in a monastic school in the middle of a forest, except her run-ins with Daksh, the Acharya’s son, who can’t stop going on about the rules and whose gaze makes her feel like he can see into her soul.
But when Katyani and the princes are hurriedly summoned back to Chandela before their training is complete, tragedy strikes and Katyani is torn from the only life she has ever known. Alone and betrayed in a land infested by monsters, Katyani must find answers from her past to save all she loves and forge her own destiny. Bonds can be broken, but debts must be repaid.
7. The Gilded Ones Namina Forna
Another must-read if you couldn’t get enough of Okoya and the Dora Milaje. Similar to the fierce female army of Wakanda, Deka finds herself in a position to join an all girl army due to her newly discovered abilities and protect the empire—and realize that everything might not be what it seems underneath the surface.
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.
But on the day of the ceremony, her blood runs gold, the color of impurity–and Deka knows she will face a consequence worse than death.
Then a mysterious woman comes to her with a choice: stay in the village and submit to her fate, or leave to fight for the emperor in an army of girls just like her. They are called alaki–near-immortals with rare gifts. And they are the only ones who can stop the empire’s greatest threat.
Knowing the dangers that lie ahead yet yearning for acceptance, Deka decides to leave the only life she’s ever known. But as she journeys to the capital to train for the biggest battle of her life, she will discover that the great walled city holds many surprises. Nothing and no one are quite what they seem to be–not even Deka herself.
The start of a bold and immersive West African-inspired, feminist fantasy series for fans of Children of Blood and Bone and Black Panther. In this world, girls are outcasts by blood and warriors by choice.
8. The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevado
While not set in a fantasy realm, there is no mistaking that when it comes to powerful women, physical strength aren’t the only defining characteristics—just like Xiomara in The Poet X. If you were drawn to the strong, remarkable, and unwaverable spirit the women of Wakanda possessed, you will find those same strengths in Xiomara as she struggles to use her voice in a world that is all too eager to keep her silent.
Fans of Jacqueline Woodson, Meg Medina, and Jason Reynolds will fall hard for this astonishing New York Times-bestselling novel-in-verse by an award-winning slam poet, about an Afro-Latina heroine who tells her story with blazing words and powerful truth.
Xiomara Batista feels unheard and unable to hide in her Harlem neighborhood. Ever since her body grew into curves, she has learned to let her fists and her fierceness do the talking.
But Xiomara has plenty she wants to say, and she pours all her frustration and passion onto the pages of a leather notebook, reciting the words to herself like prayers—especially after she catches feelings for a boy in her bio class named Aman, who her family can never know about.
With Mami’s determination to force her daughter to obey the laws of the church, Xiomara understands that her thoughts are best kept to herself. So when she is invited to join her school’s slam poetry club, she doesn’t know how she could ever attend without her mami finding out. But she still can’t stop thinking about performing her poems.
Because in the face of a world that may not want to hear her, Xiomara refuses to be silent.
9. Okoye to the People: A Black Panther Novel by Ibi Zoboi
While this book actually features Okoye herself, this story opens up parts of her life not exclusively delved into in the Wakanda films—and is a great understanding as to how she became part of of the Doja Milaje to begin with.
Ibi Zoboi, a National Book Award Finalist and New York Times best-selling author, joins Marvel Universe storytelling with this heartfelt novel that takes Okoye to America for the very first time.
Okoye is a new recruit for T’Chaka’s royal guard: the Dora Milaje. Known for their loyalty and warrior abilities, the Dora are respected and revered in Okoye’s home country of Wakanda. But when Okoye is sent on her very first mission—to America—she’ll learn that her status as a Dora means nothing to New Yorkers and her expectations for the world outside of her own quickly fall apart. Chosen to accompany King T’Chaka on a humanitarian mission, Okoye finds herself trying to help teens dealing with addiction and gentrification in a forgotten neighborhood in Brooklyn.
Caught between duty to her country and listening to her own heart, Okoye must find her own way and determine the type of Dora Milaje—and woman—she wants to be.