Love is a pretty incredible force. Across history, it’s managed to transcend cultural divides, binary systems, and create empathy among people with different life experiences. It has the power to not only change the lives of the people in the relationship, but also the perceptions and understandings of their larger communities—love is basically a superpower in this way. But it’s not without some challenges.
Today, interracial relationships are in our own lives, playing out across our screens, and within the tales of our bookshelves. So it’s hard to imagine that only half a decade ago, interracial marriages were officially legalized across the United States following the 1967 Supreme Court ruling in Loving v. Virginia. As reported by the U.S. Census Bureau, over 10.2 percent of married-couple households in the United States are interracial, a percentage that includes both marriages between white and BIPOC individuals, and marriages between two BIPOC individuals from different racial backgrounds.
Every relationship comes with the merging of each person’s unique identities and backgrounds. In this respect, these relationships are a celebration of both individuals learning about each other’s traditions, world views, and experiences. But these relationships can also be eye opening in seeing firsthand the obstacles (and privileges) your partner encounters in their daily life. It’s important for people in interracial relationships to acknowledge and communicate these imbalances of privilege, and how that impacts their partnership.
In celebration of the empathy, complexities, and love that blossoms from these relationships, we’re spotlighting some of our favorite stories featuring interracial couples where their love and desire to support one another triumphed over the challenges that came from two different lived experiences. Any you’d like to add? Let us know in the comments below!
Books With Interracial Relationships
LOVE IS LOVE
1. If I Have To Be Haunted by Miranda Sun
Cemetery Boys meets Legendborn in this thrillingly romantic, irresistibly fun YA contemporary fantasy debut following a teenage Chinese American ghost speaker who (reluctantly) makes a deal to raise her nemesis from the dead.
Cara Tang doesn’t want to be haunted.
Look, the dead have issues, and Cara has enough of her own. Her overbearing mother insists she be the “perfect” Chinese American daughter—which means suppressing her ghost-speaking powers—and she keeps getting into fights with Zacharias Coleson, the local golden boy whose smirk makes her want to set things on fire.
Then she stumbles across Zach’s dead body in the woods. He’s even more infuriating as a ghost, but Cara’s the only one who can see him—and save him.
Agreeing to resurrect him puts her at odds with her mother, draws her into a dangerous liminal world of monsters and magic—and worse, leaves her stuck with Zach. Yet as she and Zach grow closer, forced to depend on each other to survive, Cara finds the most terrifying thing is that she might not hate him so much after all.
Maybe this is why her mother warned her about ghosts.
Delightful and compulsively readable, this contemporary fantasy has something for every reader: a snarky voice, a magnetic enemies-to-lovers romance, and a spirited adventure through a magical, unpredictable world hidden within our own.
2. The Luis Ortega Survival Club by Sonora Reyes
From the bestselling author of the National Book Award Finalist The Lesbiana’s Guide to Catholic School comes a revenge story told with nuance, heart, and the possibility of healing. An ideal next read for fans of Laurie Halse Anderson.
Ariana Ruiz wants to be noticed. But as an autistic girl who never talks, she goes largely ignored by her peers—despite her bold fashion choices. So when cute, popular Luis starts to pay attention to her, Ari finally feels seen.
Luis’s attention soon turns to something more, and they have sex at a party—while Ari didn’t say no, she definitely didn’t say yes. Before she has a chance to process what happened and decide if she even has the right to be mad at Luis, the rumor mill begins churning—thanks, she’s sure, to Luis’s ex-girlfriend, Shawni. Boys at school now see Ari as an easy target, someone who won’t say no.
Then Ari finds a mysterious note in her locker that eventually leads her to a group of students determined to expose Luis for the predator he is. To her surprise, she finds genuine friendship among the group, including her growing feelings for the very last girl she expected to fall for. But in order to take Luis down, she’ll have to come to terms with the truth of what he did to her that night—and risk everything to see justice done.
3. If I Can Give You That by Michael Gray Bulla
For fans of Kacen Callender and Mason Deaver comes a heart-tugging coming-of-age YA debut that takes a poignant look at gender identity, sexuality, friendship, and family—both the one we’re born into and the one we find for ourselves.
Seventeen-year-old Gael is used to keeping to himself. Though his best friend convinces him to attend a meeting of Plus, a support group for LGBTQIA+ teens, Gael doesn’t plan on sharing much. Where would he even start?
Between supporting his mother through her bouts of depression, dealing with his estranged father, and navigating senior year as a transgender boy at a conservative Tennessean high school, his life is a lot to unload on strangers.
But after meeting easygoing Declan, Gael is welcomed into a new circle of friends who make him want to open up. As Gael’s friendship with Declan develops into something more, he finds himself caught between his mother’s worsening mental health and his father’s attempts to reconnect.
After tragedy strikes, Gael must decide if he can risk letting the walls around his heart down and fully opening up to those who care for him.
4. She Drives Me Crazy by Kelly Quindlen
After losing spectacularly to her ex-girlfriend in their first game since their break up, Scottie Zajac gets into a fender bender with the worst possible person: her nemesis, the incredibly beautiful and incredibly mean Irene Abraham. Things only get worse when their nosey, do-gooder moms get involved and the girls are forced to carpool together until Irene’s car gets out of the shop.
Their bumpy start only gets bumpier the more time they spend together. But when an opportunity presents itself for Scottie to get back at her toxic ex (and climb her school’s social ladder at the same time), she bribes Irene into playing along. Hijinks, heartbreak, and gay fake-dating scheme for the ages. From author Kelly Quindlen comes a new laugh-out-loud romp through the ups and downs of teen romance.
5. While You Were Dreaming by Alisha Rai
It’s a classic story: girl meets boy, girl falls for boy, boy finally notices girl when he sees her in a homemade costume. At least, that’s what Sonia Patil is hoping for when she plans to meet her crush at the local comic-con in cosplay.
But instead of winning her crush over, Sonia rescues him after he faints into a canal and, suddenly, everything changes. Since she was in disguise, no one knows who the masked do-gooder was . . .but everyone is trying to find out. Sonia can’t let that happen—her sister is undocumented, and the girls have been flying under the radar since their mother was deported back to Mumbai.
Sonia finds herself hiding from social media detectives and trying to connect with her crush and his family. But juggling crushes and a secret identity might just take superpowers. Can Sonia hide in plain sight forever?
6. Café Con Lychee by Emery Lee
Theo Mori and Gabriel Moreno have always been at odds. Their parents own rival businesses—an Asian American café and a Puerto Rican bakery—and Gabi’s lack of coordination has cost the soccer team too many games to count.
Stuck in the closet with soccer as his beard, Gabi sees his parents’ shop as his future. Stuck under the weight of his parents’ expectations, Theo’s best shot at leaving Vermont means first ensuring his parents’ livelihood is secure.
So when a new fusion café opens in their small town, Theo and Gabi realize an unfortunate truth—they can only save their parents’ shops by working together. But can they put aside their differences long enough to cook up an underground bakery operation to save their parents’ shops or will the new feelings between them boil over?
7. Her Good Side by Rebekah Weatherspoon
A swoony, heart-melting YA romance from beloved author Rebekah Weatherspoon about two awkward teens who decide to practice dating in order to be good at the real thing. Perfect for fans of Nicola Yoon and Jenny Han.
Sixteen-year-old Bethany Greene, though confident and self-assured, is what they call a late-bloomer. She’s never had a boyfriend, date, or first kiss. She’s determined to change that but after her crush turns her down cold for Homecoming–declaring her too inexperienced–and all her back-up ideas fall through, she cautiously agrees to go with her best friend’s boyfriend Jacob. A platonic date is better than no date, right? Until her friend breaks up with said boyfriend.
Dumped twice in just two months, Jacob Yeun wonders if he’s the problem. After years hiding behind his camera and a shocking summer glow up, he wasn’t quite ready for all the attention or to be someone’s boyfriend. There are no guides for his particular circumstances, or for taking your ex’s best friend to the dance.
Why not make the best of an awkward situation? Bethany and Jacob decide to fake date for practice, building their confidence in matters of the heart.
And it works–guys are finally noticing Bethany. But things get complicated as their kissing sessions–for research of course!–start to feel real. This arrangement was supposed to help them in dating other people, but what if their perfect match is right in front of them?
8. This Place is Still Beautiful by XiXi Tian
The Flanagan sisters are as different as they come. Seventeen-year-old Annalie is bubbly, sweet, and self-conscious, whereas nineteen-year-old Margaret is sharp and assertive. Margaret looks just like their mother, while Annalie passes for white and looks like the father who abandoned them years ago, leaving their Chinese immigrant mama to raise the girls alone in their small, predominantly white Midwestern town.
When their house is vandalized with a shocking racial slur, Margaret rushes home from her summer internship in New York City. She expects outrage. Instead, her sister and mother would rather move on. Especially once Margaret’s own investigation begins to make members of their community uncomfortable.
For Annalie, this was meant to be a summer of new possibilities, and she resents her sister’s sudden presence and insistence on drawing negative attention to their family. Meanwhile Margaret is infuriated with Annalie’s passive acceptance of what happened. For Margaret, the summer couldn’t possibly get worse, until she crosses paths with someone she swore she’d never see again: her first love, Rajiv Agarwal.
As the sisters navigate this unexpected summer, an explosive secret threatens to break apart their relationship, once and for all.
This Place Is Still Beautiful is a luminous, captivating story about identity, sisterhood, and how our hometowns are inextricably a part of who we are, even when we outgrow them.
9. Only On the Weekends by Dean Atta
Fifteen-year-old Mack is a hopeless romantic—likely a hazard of growing up on film sets thanks to his father’s job. Mack has had a crush on Karim for as long as he can remember and he can’t believe it when gorgeous, popular Karim seems into him too.
But when Mack’s father takes on a new directing project in Scotland, Mack has to move away, and soon discovers how painful long-distance relationships can be. It’s awful to be so far away from Karim, and it’s made worse by the fact that Karim can be so hard to read.
Then Mack meets actor Finlay on set, and the world turns upside down again. Fin seems fearless—and his confidence could just be infectious.
Award-winning author Dean Atta crafts a beautifully nuanced and revelatory story in verse about the exquisite highs and lows of first love and self-discovery.
10. Kween by Vichet Chum
A searing, joyful YA debut about a queer Cambodian American teen’s journey to find her voice and step into her legacy, perfect for fans of Ibi Zoboi and Elizabeth Acevedo.
Soma Kear’s verses have gone viral. Trouble is, she didn’t exactly think her slam poetry video through. All she knew was that her rhymes were urgent. On fire. An expression of where she was, and that place…was a hot mess.
Following her Ba’s deportation back to Cambodia, everything’s changed. Her Ma is away trying to help Ba adjust to his new life, and her older sister has taken charge with a new authoritarian tone. Meanwhile, Soma’s trending video pushes her to ask if it’s time to level up. With her school’s spoken word contest looming, Soma must decide: Is she brave enough to put herself out there? To publicly reveal her fears of Ba not returning? To admit that things may never be the same?
With every line she spits, Soma searches for a way to make sense of the world around her. The answers are at the mic.
From debut author Vichet Chum comes a celebration of Khmer identity, queerness, and embracing the complicated histories that shape who we are and want to be.
11. If I See You Again Tomorrow by Robbie Couch
A swoony, heart-melting YA romance from beloved author Rebekah Weatherspoon about two awkward teens who decide to practice dating in order to be good at the real thing. Perfect for fans of Nicola Yoon and Jenny Han.
Sixteen-year-old Bethany Greene, though confident and self-assured, is what they call a late-bloomer. She’s never had a boyfriend, date, or first kiss. She’s determined to change that but after her crush turns her down cold for Homecoming–declaring her too inexperienced–and all her back-up ideas fall through, she cautiously agrees to go with her best friend’s boyfriend Jacob. A platonic date is better than no date, right? Until her friend breaks up with said boyfriend.
Dumped twice in just two months, Jacob Yeun wonders if he’s the problem. After years hiding behind his camera and a shocking summer glow up, he wasn’t quite ready for all the attention or to be someone’s boyfriend. There are no guides for his particular circumstances, or for taking your ex’s best friend to the dance.
Why not make the best of an awkward situation? Bethany and Jacob decide to fake date for practice, building their confidence in matters of the heart.
And it works–guys are finally noticing Bethany. But things get complicated as their kissing sessions–for research of course!–start to feel real. This arrangement was supposed to help them in dating other people, but what if their perfect match is right in front of them?
12. Every Variable of Us by Charles A. Bush
After Philly teenager Alexis Duncan is injured in a gang shooting, her dreams of a college scholarship and pro basketball career vanish in an instant. To avoid becoming another Black teen trapped in her poverty-stricken neighborhood, she shifts her focus to the school’s STEM team, a group of self-professed nerds seeking their own college scholarships.
Academics have never been her thing, but Alexis is freshly motivated by Aamani Chakrabarti, the new Indian student who becomes her friend (and crush?). Alexis begins to see herself as so much more than an athlete. But just as her future starts to reform, Alexis’s own doubts and old loyalties pull her back into harm’s way.
13. Jay’s Gay Agenda by Jason June
There’s one thing Jay Collier knows for sure—he’s a statistical anomaly as the only out gay kid in his small rural Washington town. While all his friends can’t stop talking about their heterosexual hookups and relationships, Jay can only dream of his own firsts, compiling a romance to-do list of all the things he hopes to one day experience—his Gay Agenda.
Then, against all odds, Jay’s family moves to Seattle and he starts his senior year at a new high school with a thriving LGBTQIA+ community. For the first time ever, Jay feels like he’s found where he truly belongs. But as Jay begins crossing items off his list, he’ll soon be torn between his heart and his hormones, his old friends and his new ones . . . because after all, life and love don’t always go according to plan.
14. Meet Cute Diary by Emery Lee
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.
When a troll exposes the blog as fiction, Noah’s world unravels. The only way to save the Diary is to convince everyone that the stories are true, but he doesn’t have any proof. Then Drew walks into Noah’s life, and the pieces fall into place: Drew is willing to fake-date Noah to save the Diary. But when Noah’s feelings grow beyond their staged romance, he realizes that dating in real life isn’t quite the same as finding love on the page.
In this charming novel by Emery Lee, Noah will have to choose between following his own rules for love or discovering that the most romantic endings are the ones that go off script.
15. They Hate Each Other by Amanda Woody
Jonah and Dylan get along like oil and water. Until a fake dating ploy gives them new perspective, and they realize that “falling for your enemy” isn’t as impossible as it seems.
There are plenty of words Jonah Collins could use to describe Dylan Ramírez. “Arrogant,” “spoiled,” and “golden boy” to name a few. Likewise, Dylan thinks he has Jonah accurately labeled as an attention-seeking asshat who never shuts his filthy mouth. Their friends are convinced Jonah’s and Dylan’s disdain for one another is just thinly veiled lust–a rumor that surges like wildfire when the two wake up in one bed after homecoming.
Mutually horrified, Dylan and Jonah agree to use the faux pas to their advantage by fake dating. If they can stay convincing long enough to end their “relationship” in a massive staged fight, they can prove their incompatibility to their friends once and for all. But the more time they spend together, the more their plan begins to fall apart–and the closer they come to seeing each other clearly for the first time.
16. You Bet Your Heart by Danielle Parker
A riveting, swoon-worthy teen romance centered on two high achievers fighting for the title of high school valedictorian and falling in love along the way, from debut author Danielle Parker.
Sasha Johnson-Sun might not know everything–like how to fully heal after her dad’s passing or how many more Saturdays her mom can spend cleaning houses. But the one thing Sasha is certain of? She will graduate this year as Skyline High’s class valedictorian.
At least, she was sure before the principal calls Sasha and her cute, effortlessly gifted ex-best friend, Ezra Davis-Goldberg, into his office to deliver earth-shattering news: they’re tied for valedictorian and the scholarship attached…
This outcome can’t be left to chance. So, Sasha and Ezra agree on a best-of-three, winner-take-all academic bet. As they go head-to-head, they are forced not only to reexamine why they drifted apart but also to figure out who they’ve become since. With her future hanging in the balance, Sasha must choose: honor her family’s sacrifices by winning (at all costs) or give her heart a shot at finding happiness?
17. Happily Ever Afters by Elise Bryant
Filled to the brim with Black Girl Magic, this debut romantic comedy follows 16-year-old Tessa Johnson, a writer who has never felt like the protagonist in her own life. She has rarely seen herself reflected on the pages of the romance novels she loves and so, she takes up the pen herself, sharing her swoon worthy love stories only with her best friend and #1 devoted reader Caroline.
When Tessa is accepted into the creative writing program of a prestigious art school, she’s excited to let her stories shine. But when she arrives for her first class, the words are just … gone. The solution, cooked up by her forever cheerleader Caroline, is for Tessa to experience her own happily-ever-after – in the name of art, of course – and cast as her prince charming is her classmate Nico, a brooding artist who looks like he walked directly out of one of Tessa’s stories. But the more she tries to create her own epic love story, the more Tessa finds herself questioning if the sacrifices she’s making for “happily ever after” are really the ones she wants after all.
A story about friendship, surprise connections, and self-discovery, Happily Ever Afters is perfect for readers who loved To All the Boys I’ve Ever Loved.
18. The Lesbiana’s Guide to Catholic School by Sonora Reyes
Sixteen-year-old Yamilet Flores prefers to be known for her killer eyeliner, not for being one of the only Mexican kids at her new, mostly white, very rich Catholic school. But at least here no one knows she’s gay, and Yami intends to keep it that way.
After being outed by her crush and ex-best friend before transferring to Slayton Catholic, Yami has new priorities: keep her brother out of trouble, make her mom proud, and, most importantly, don’t fall in love. Granted, she’s never been great at any of those things, but that’s a problem for Future Yami.
The thing is, it’s hard to fake being straight when Bo, the only openly queer girl at school, is so annoyingly perfect. And smart. And talented. And cute. So cute. Either way, Yami isn’t going to make the same mistake again. If word got back to her mom, she could face a lot worse than rejection. So she’ll have to start asking, WWSGD: What would a straight girl do?
Told in a captivating voice that is by turns hilarious, vulnerable, and searingly honest, The Lesbiana’s Guide to Catholic School explores the joys and heartaches of living your full truth out loud.
19. My Mechanical Romance by Alexene Farol Follmuth
Bel would rather die than think about the future. College apps? You’re funny. Extracurriculars? Not a chance. But when she accidentally reveals a talent for engineering at school, she’s basically forced into joining the robotics club. Even worse? All the boys ignore Bel–and Neelam, the only other girl on the team, doesn’t seem to like her either.
Enter Mateo Luna, captain of the club, who recognizes Bel as a potential asset–until they start butting heads. Bel doesn’t care about Nationals, while Teo cares too much. But as the nights of after-school work grow longer and longer, Bel and Teo realize they’ve made more than just a combat-ready robot for the championship: they’ve made each other and the team better. Because girls do belong in STEM.
In her YA debut, Alexene Farol Follmuth, author of The Atlas Six (under the penname Olivie Blake), explores both the challenges girls of color face in STEM and the vulnerability of first love with unfailing wit and honesty.
20. Yes No Maybe So by Becky Albertalli and Aisha Saeed
Jamie and Maya never intended to spend their summer together, but then again, they never expected to spend their summer canvassing for their local state senate candidate either. As Jamie takes on his fear of talking to strangers, and Maya grapples with her parents’ impending separation and a Ramadan that is anything but stellar, this unlikely duo finds themselves connecting in ways neither could have imagined. But while they find common ground mastering local activism, they question if their different cultures and upbringings will cause their relationship to end before it even has a chance to begin.
A book about the power of love and activism, Yes No Maybe So is a celebration of the learnings and connections we make with people we never expected to cross our paths.
21. The Gravity of Us by Phil Stamper
Cal wants to be a journalist and is well on his way when his pilot father is selected for a highly-publicized NASA mission to Mars. Within days, Cal and his parents have moved from Cal’s beloved Brooklyn to Houston, and along the way, become the center of a media frenzy surrounding the upcoming launch. As Cal’s family begins to struggle under the expectations of presenting the perfect American family, Cal befriends Leon, whose mother is another astronaut on the mission. The two fall head over heels, finding an oasis in one another amongst the frenzy. But when secrets are revealed about ulterior motives behind the space mission, Cal must find a way to get to the truth without hurting the people he loves the most.
Named a Goodreads Choice Award Finalist, The Gravity of Us is a heart-warming debut perfect for fans of Becky Albertalli (Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda) and Adam Silvera (They Both Die in the End).
22. Permanent Record by Mary H.K. Choi
On paper, college dropout Pablo Rind doesn’t have a lot going for him. His graveyard shift at a twenty-four-hour bodega in Brooklyn is grueling, he’s up to his eyes in credit card debit, and let’s not even begin to think about his student loans. Pop juggernaut Leanna Smart has enough social media followers to populate entire countries. Her brand is unstoppable. Having grown from child star into an international icon, Leanna’s adult life is a blur of private plans, aspirational hotel rooms, and fans screaming her name everywhere she goes. When Pablo and Leanna meet at 5 a.m. in the bodega on a winter morning, it’s nearly impossible to imagine them as “A Thing.” But as they discover who they are, who they want to be, and how to defy the deafening expectations of everyone else, Lee and Pab turn to each other. Which of course is when things get really complicated.
A smart and funny romance, Permanent Record digs into the highs and lows of early adulthood, and the ways social media can influence relationships for the better and for the worst.
23. To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han
A series that has gone on to become an obsession thanks to the Netflix adaptation, To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before tells the story of Lara Jean, an Asian-American high schooler whose life turns upside down when the letters she secretly wrote and hid to her past crushes get mailed. Suddenly, Lara Jean is being confronted by the boys in her letters and, in her attempts to conceal her feelings for her sister’s ex-boyfriend, forms a fake relationship with handsome jock Peter. But soon, their feelings are anything but fake, and as Lara Jean begins to confront her past experiences in love head-on, she might find that her future is looking brighter than ever.
Prepare to melt at the hands of Jenny Han’s sweet series, and who knows, maybe it will inspire you to send out a few letters of your own.
24. This Is My Brain In Love by I.W. Gregorio
This Is My Brain In Love follows Jocelyn Wu, a high school junior with just three wishes: To make it through the school year without dying of boredom, to direct a short film with her BFF Priya Venkatram, and to get at least two months into the school year without being compared to Peggy Chang, the only other Chinese girl in her grade. When Jocelyn learns her father’s restaurant is going under, she hires fellow student Will Domenici, a writing and social media wizard, to bring A-Plus Chinese Garden into the 21st century…or at least onto Facebook. What starts as a rocky partnership soon blooms into something entirely unexpected for Jocelyn and Will. But family prejudices and the uncertainty of the future threaten to keep them apart as Will and Jocelyn give it everything they’ve got to save the restaurant and their budding romance.
Told in dual narrative between Will and Jocelyn, this YA romance explores the topics of mental health, race, and ultimately, self-acceptance as the pair explore the challenges and triumphs of their cross-cultural relationship.
25. A Very Large Expanse of Sea by Tahereh Mafi
A powerful novel about fear, first love, and the devastating impact of prejudice, A Very Large Expanse of Sea follows Shirin, a 16-year-old Muslim girl living in post-9/11 America. While marked as an extremely turbulent time politically, it’s nothing compared to the violence, the stares, and stereotyping Shirin receives on a daily basis because of her race, her religion, and the hijab she wears. To protect herself, she’s built up her walls and refuses to let anyone in. Instead, she channels her anger into music and afternoons spent breakdancing. But when she meets Ocean James, the first person in forever who has taken the time to get to know Shirin, she’s not sure if she can fully let her guard down.
A powerful, moving novel, A Very Large Expanse of Sea celebrates the connections made across diverse, and seemingly irreconcilable, worlds, and the bravery it takes to be yourself in a world that tries to keep you small.
26. The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon
With her family only 12 hours away from being deported to Jamaica, the last thing Natasha expects is to fall in love with a stranger on a crowded New York City street. She’s a person driven by science and facts, not fate or destiny. But when she meets Daniel, an Asian-American boy trying to live up to his parents’ expectations, everything changes for the two of them as they embark on one epic New York night together. The Sun is Also a Star is as much about the act of falling in love as it is about the millions of little moments that bring two people together. But of all the possible futures these two might encounter, which one will come true?
At the core of this epic romance is a celebration of two people from two different cultures opening one another’s eyes to their own worlds within New York City.
27. This is Kind of an Epic Love Story by Kacen Callender
From the author of Felix Ever After, This is Kind of an Epic Love Story follows Nathan Bird, the ultimate film buff, who absolutely does not believe in happily ever after. How can he after watching his mother unravel following his father’s death, or the demise of his own relationship to Florence, his best friend-turned girlfriend- turned-best friend again? But despite his protests, Florence is set on finding Nathan a new love, and in a twist that is rom-com worthy, along comes Oliver James Hernández, Nathan’s childhood best friend. After a misunderstanding ended their friendship, Nathan has the chance to set things right with Oliver and for the first time, open up about his true feelings. But will he find the courage to pursue his own happily ever after?
This charming rom-com is perfect for fans of Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda and To All the Boys I Loved Before.
28. Of Curses and Kisses by Sandhya Menon
For Princess Jaya Rao, there is nothing more important than family. So when the loathsome Emerson clan steps up their centuries-old feud to target Jaya’s sister, Jaya begins to hatch her own plan of revenge: Make the Emerson heir, Grey Emerson, fall in love with her and then break his heart. But what Jaya doesn’t expect upon meeting Grey at their shared boarding school is just how much his brooding demeanor will draw her in. But Grey has a secret, a curse that will change his life when he turns 18 and has kept him isolated from the rest of the world for most of his life. As Jaya and Grey begin to form an unlikely bond, they must grapple with the secrets that hold them apart, the loyalty they share to their feuding families, and the possibility of writing their own happy ending.
A retelling of Beauty and the Beast, this novel gives one of history’s favorite love stories a memorable modern twist.
29. Anna K: A Love Story by Jenny Lee
17-year-old Anna K is at the top of Greenwich and Manhattan society. While Anna’s family has had their fair share of scandals and misadventures, Anna has always managed to gracefully float above it all, making her Korean-American father proud, and maintaining the image of her perfect (if perfectly boring) relationship with her boyfriend Alexander W. But when Anna crosses paths with notorious playboy Alexia “Count” Vronsky at Grand Central, the two fall hopelessly in love. But when a shocking revelation threatens to shatter their relationship, Anna will be forced to question how much she will sacrifice to be with Alexia and where she goes from here.
This retelling of Anna Karenina brings Leo Tolstoy’s famous novel into the twenty-first century, and captures the dizzying highs, and heart-stopping lows, of first love and first heartbreak.
30. I Wish You All the Best by Mason Deaver
When Ben De Backer comes out to their parents as nonbinary, they’re thrown out of the house and forced to move in with their estranged sister Hannah and her husband Thomas, someone they’ve never met. Struggling with an anxiety disorder compounded by their parents’ rejection, Ben just wants to get through the final months at their new high school unnoticed, a plan that is completely derailed when charismatic and charming student Nathan Allan decides to take Ben under his wing. As their friendship grows, so do their feelings for one another, and what once seemed like a hopeless situation begins to feel like a new beginning at something great. This novel is heartbreaking, joyous, and a true celebration of finding hope in the face of adversity.
31. The Henna Wars by Adiba Jaigirdar
Nishat doesn’t want to lose her family, but she also doesn’t want to keep hiding who she is, a situation made even more complicated when her beautiful and charming childhood best friend Flávia walks back into her life. So when a school competition invites students to create their own businesses, Flávia and Nishat decide to both showcase their talents as henna artists. As the competition heats up, and Nishat and Flávia’s feelings begin to deepen, Nishat must decide whether to stay close to her family or to put her differences with Flávia aside and give their relationship a chance.
32. The Truth of Right Now by Kara Lee Corthron
The Truth of Right Now follows isolated teenagers Lily and Dari, two students who meet in a privileged Manhattan high school. The pair instantly connect, hopeful that in their relationship they’ll find the answers to solve the complicated and unhappy situations of their current lives. Navigating first love and the wreckage of growing up, Lily and Dari can’t imagine that their interracial relationship will be a problem in 21st century New York City, but as they soon discover, nothing is as simple as it seems. Not shying away from topics of racism, discrimination, and police profiling, The Truth Right Now is as relevant today as it is when it debuted in 2017, honestly capturing the realities of what it means to be a Black man growing up in America.
33. The Grief Keeper by Alexandra Villasante
17-year-old Marisol has always dreamed of being an American, her fantasies inspired by afternoons watching American television at Mrs. Rosen’s home where her mother is employed as a maid. But this is before her brother is murdered, and she and her sister are forced to flee El Salvador alone under threat of death. The pair are caught illegally crossing the US border and soon find their asylum request will likely be denied. With truly no options remaining, Marisol jumps at the unusual chance to stay in the U.S. and become a grief keeper, an experimental study in which one person takes the grief of another into their own body to save a life. It’s a risky procedure, but if it means Marisol can keep her sister safe, she’ll risk anything. She just never imagined one of the risks would be falling in love, a love that may even be powerful enough to help her face her own crushing grief she’s tried to leave behind.
A story about the unexpected relationships that bind us together, The Grief Keeper is a stunning YA debut about the consequences and heartbreak that come when both love and human beings are branded as illegal.