Spring is finally here, and there's no better way to celebrate the change of seasons than by diving into March's best YA books [1]. Whether you're looking to escape into the latest chapter of Leigh Bardugo's Grishaverse or dive into a warm coming of age tale, this month's selection of new releases has you covered. There's also an LGBTQ+ romance that will make your heart skip a beat, an #OwnVoices thriller [2] that's set to be one of the year's best books, and the highly anticipated sequel to Adam Silvera's Infinity Son — and that's just for starters. Prepare yourselves YA fans, because March's best new YA books [3] are all instant must-reads.
Home Is Not a Country by Safia Elhillo
Told in verse, Home Is Not a Country [4] by Safia Elhillo is a mesmerising novel about one young woman's struggle to find her place in the world. For Nima, there's nowhere she feels she fits in — not with her mother, who didn't grow up in America, and not with her peers who make her feel like she's always on the outside looking in. But when Nima is confronted with the different path her life could have taken, she'll have to fight to keep the identity she's never fully accepted.
Out March 2
I Think I Love You by Auriane Desombre
I Think I Love You [5] by Auriane Desombre is a hate-to-love rom-rom that's perfect for cinephiles. Emma and Sophia have always seen each other as the competition, but when they both end up in contention for the top prize at a Los Angeles film festival, the two teens realise they might not hate each other as much as they originally thought.
Out March 2
Infinity Reaper by Adam Silvera
Infinity Reaper [6], the sequel to Adam Silvera's bestselling fantasy novel Infinity Son, is finally here, and the stakes are higher than ever before for Emil and Brighton. This time around the brothers are once again fighting for their very survival as the political intrigue in the alternate New York heats up.
Out March 2
Once Upon a Quinceanera by Monica Gomez-Hira
If you're still mourning the end of the To All the Boys [7] trilogy on Netflix, then Monica Gomez-Hira's debut novel Once Upon a Quinceañera [8] should be your next read. This sweet and funny rom-com follows Carmen Aguilar, whose summer isn't going great after she ends up in an unpaid internship that involves her wearing a ball gown in the Miami heat. But even though her summer isn't what she expected, Carmen may still find love and a new appreciation for her family.
Out March 2
Yolk by Mary H.K. Choi
Yolk [9] by Mary H.K. Choi is a story about the complicated bond between two estranged sisters. Jayne and June Baek have nothing in common aside from their parents, but when June is diagnosed with cancer, Jayne has to find a way to be there for her sister — and in the process, she'll have to face an issue that she's been avoiding, too.
Out March 2
Perfect on Paper by Sophie Gonzales
Darcy Phillips is an expert at giving dating advice to her classmates in Sophie Gonzales's Perfect on Paper [10]. However, her own love life is a mess thanks to her crush on her best friend, Brooke, and things only become more complicated when the hottest guy in school blackmails Darcy into giving him dating advice to win back his ex.
Out March 9
Bones of a Saint by Grant Farley
Bones of a Saint [11] by Grant Farley will transport you to 1970s California where 15-year-old RJ Armante struggles to break free from The Blackjacks, a gang with an iron grip on his small town. If RJ can defy The Blackjacks, he may just be able to save himself and the rest of the town's kids from an endless cycle of violence, but nothing about his plan will go smoothly.
Out March 16
Firekeeper's Daughter by Angeline Boulley
Angeline Boulley's Firekeeper's Daughter [12] is sure to be on one of the year's best YA novels. This intense thriller finds an 18-year-old Native teen, Daunis Fontaine, drawn into the FBI's investigation into a dangerous drug that's plaguing the Ojibwe reservation. But the deeper Daunis goes undercover, the more she begins to wonder whether or not the FBI has any interest in protecting her community at all.
Out March 16
The Follower by Kate Doughty
Triplets Cecily, Amber, and Rudy are famous thanks to Instagram and their parents' home renovation show, but their fame comes at a cost in Kate Doughty's chilling thriller The Follower [13]. As the triplets settle into the latest house their parents are renovating, they begin to receive threats from someone known only as "The Follower," and it quickly becomes clear someone out there wants to see their family torn apart.
Out March 23
The Secret Recipe for Moving On by Karen Bischer
The Secret Recipe for Moving On [14] by Karen Bischer is the book equivalent of a warm hug. Ellie Agresti's senior year kicks off with her boyfriend dumping her for someone else, and things only get worse when she ends up in a life skills class with him and his new girlfriend. But just when Ellie thinks she'll never be able to get over her ex, she finds herself embroiled in a competition with a group of misfits that might just save her senior year.
Out March 23
Rule of Wolves by Leigh Bardugo
Leigh Bardugo's Grishaverse stories continue in Rule of Wolves [15], the sequel to King of Scars. This time around, Nikolai, Zoya, and Nina will have to put everything on the line to keep their world from descending into darkness — even if it means acting against their own best interests.
Out March 30
She's Too Pretty to Burn by Wendy Heard
Summer turns deadly in Wendy Heard's expertly plotted thriller She's Too Pretty to Burn [16]. Set against the backdrop of San Diego's art scene, best friends Nico and Veronica find themselves captivated by Mick, their perfect muse. However, what begins as an intense romance soon leads to a fire, two murders, and more trouble than anyone could have possibly anticipated.
Out March 30