This post was last updated on September 5th, 2025 at 10:52 pm
What gives certain young adult fantasy series that X-factor—that unputdownable quality that grabs you from the first sentence, doesn’t let go, and leaves you with a book hangover that lasts for days or maybe weeks?
In case you didn’t know, a book hangover is that feeling of emptiness or longing after finishing a truly epic book, accompanied by an inability to move on and read a new book. If you’ve ever had one, you know what it is. If you haven’t had the pleasure (or displeasure, haha!) of experiencing one, you’ll know right away when it happens.
Is there an unwritten law circulating in the literary universe stating that the epically great reads of our time contain certain qualities that make them what they are—unputdownable? The answers may surprise you!
This post is about several unputdownable young adult fantasy series.
Young Adult Fantasy Series
Relatable Characters
We want characters who are believable and relatable. This relatability especially applies to the protagonist since we’ll assume their viewpoint throughout the book (unless the novel is written in omniscient third person).
Teens who think and act like teens are a must. However, they shouldn’t be written through a stereotypical viewpoint either as sulking misfits who hate adults and have no sense of direction or responsibility. Just as most adults wouldn’t fit that description, neither would most adolescents.
One of the reasons that some of the best YA series appeal to readers of all ages is that the great authors of this genre write characters so relatable, so real, you can’t help but love them and root for them all the way to the end of their near-perilous quest.
We can relate to Aerial in The Darkangel, book one of the Darkangel Trilogy by Meredith Ann Pierce. The reader and Aeriel become one because of her humility and helplessness. However, Aeriel’s ability to dig deep within herself and summon the courage to help her only friend appeals to our moral compasses.
While this isn’t a new book, this classic from 1982 was “an ALA Best Book for Young Adults, a New York Times Notable Children’s Book, a Parents’ Choice Award Superbook, and a Booklist Best Book of the Decade.”
A Fantasy World That’s Exciting and Magical, But Believable
When the author’s world-building stacks up to give us believable laws and concrete rules that we know their universe follows to the letter, they’re setting us up for a great read. At first glance, this might seem fairly straightforward, but there are a few things to keep in mind.
The magic system must have precise rules and boundaries. There has to be enough in place to give us a story, yet not so much freedom with power that winning becomes too easy. The same holds true for creatures (and, of course, this depends on the subgenre and story arc, too).
The author must make the creatures and their behavior fit the world they’ve artfully introduced us to and familiarized us with. Reading the novel should feel like we’re peering through a window into another world and absorbing each new glimpse with every page turned. We don’t want lists of rules or surprises that don’t fit the story.
Marissa Meyer packed her book Cinder (The Lunar Chronicles Book 1), with great dystopian world-building. Cinder is a cyborg who meets Prince Kai at the market. Earth is facing a war with the Lunars (people living on the moon), and those on Earth (the Earthens) have just been hit with a plague. The Cinderella retelling is well done and makes sense within this universe—one in which cyborgs are looked down on.
In the Best YA Fantasy Series, the Romance Is Real
The story’s romance should mirror love in real life as closely as possible. No one likes insta-love that feels forced or superficial. Readers also don’t want to be strung along forever with a connection that never seems to go anywhere. The balance? It should feel natural and draw you in while remaining appropriate to the genre.
Some of the best young adult fantasy series also feature the best romance. A good example is Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard. The author has understated the romance but presents it. While there’s technically a “love triangle,” it’s not the usual.
Serpent and Dove by Shelby Mahurin
Another one of the best YA fantasy romance books is Serpent & Dove by Shelby Mahurin. Of the book, Sarah J. Maas, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the A Court of Thorns and Roses series, writes:
“A brilliant debut, full of everything I love: a sparkling and fully realized heroine, an intricate and deadly system of magic, and a searing romance that kept me reading long into the night. Serpent & Dove is an absolute gem of a book.”
While the romance element is powerful, the fantasy side is just as strong.
A Strong Inner Issue
A protagonist with a solid and distressing inner issue is the fuel that propels them into action (or lack thereof) in every situation. An inner issue is an internal conflict that keeps them from solving their external ones—yet they must solve the external problems to finally solve the inner issue. Without this element, there is no real character. There is no real story. While the author usually doesn’t directly state the inner issue anywhere in the book, a properly created character always has one, and we, as the readers, know what it is.
Here are a couple of examples:
In The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, Katniss Everdeen is never able to trust anyone because of her past. Yet, her survival and that of her family depend on her being able to trust certain people, at least a little.
The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey
In The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey, Cassie doesn’t trust her own judgment due to a decision she made in the past. However, like Katniss, life constantly forces her to make decisions to survive and (she hopes) find her brother.
From the blurb: After the 1st wave, only darkness remains. After the 2nd, only the lucky escape. And after the 3rd, only the unlucky survive. After the 4th wave, only one rule applies: trust no one.
Now, it’s the dawn of the 5th wave, and on a lonely stretch of highway, Cassie runs from Them. The beings who only look human, who roam the countryside killing anyone they see. Who have scattered Earth’s last survivors. To stay alone is to stay alive, Cassie believes, until she meets Evan Walker. Beguiling and mysterious, Evan Walker may be Cassie’s only hope for rescuing her brother–or even saving herself. But Cassie must choose: between trust and despair, between defiance and surrender, between life and death. To give up or to get up.
Best YA Series Recommendations
Are you still looking for your next great read? Here are some recommendations for unputdownable YA fantasy books.
Goodreads ranks Christopher Paolini’s Eragon: Book I (The Inheritance Cycle 1) as number 9 in this “best of list,” one of the best YA fantasy series of the 2000s.
Liz Rosenberg of The New York Times Book Review gives us evidence of Eragon being an authentic “book hangover” inducing book as she writes:
“An authentic work of great talent . . . I found myself dreaming about it at night and reaching for it as soon as I woke.”
Another of the top 100 YA fantasy books is Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas. From relatable characters to a believable world, this series has it in spades.
“Readers seeking the political intrigue of Kristen Cashore’s Graceling and its sequels or the deadly competition at the heart of The Hunger Games will find both in Maas’s strong debut novel. . . . The verve and freshness of the narration make for a thrilling read.” ―Publishers Weekly, starred review
“A teenage assassin, a rebel princess, menacing gargoyles, supernatural portals, and a glass castle prove to be as thrilling as they sound. . . Celaena is still just a teenager trying to forge her way, giving the story timelessness. This commingling of comedy, brutality, and fantasy evokes a rich alternate universe with a spitfire young woman as its brightest star.” ―Kirkus Reviews
“Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas is a tale full of surprises and shadows, where deadly seeds are sown with the promise of more danger to come. A fascinating glimpse into the dark side of Cinderella.” ―Colleen Houck, the NYT Bestselling author of the Tiger’s Curse series
YA Fantasy Series 2000s
Another YA fantasy series from the 2000s with all the right stuff is The Cruel Prince by Holly Black.
Emily Moore from the Camden County Library System in NJ writes:
“Gr 9 Up—Human Jude has been raised along with her twin, Taryn, and half-sibling, Vivi, in Faerieland by Madoc, the faerie who murdered her parents. This intricate realm is filled with beautiful, bloodthirsty, playful, and powerful faeries who seem to have no patience or use for humans beyond enslaving them with magic. Despite this, Jude is determined to earn respect and a place in it all by becoming a knight. First in a planned trilogy, this YA fantasy features a political scramble reminiscent of Game of Thrones, with spies, manipulation, romance, swordplay, betrayal, and an intoxicating darkness that manages to enrapture Jude and readers. Black has created a brutal and captivating world, filled with complex characters and their intricate and layered relationships…
VERDICT: Another fantastic, deeply engaging, and all-consuming work from Black that belongs on all YA shelves.”
Young Adult Fantasy Series: Red Winter by Annette Marie
Red Winter by Annette Marie will also keep you reading into the wee hours.
FLYLeF Reviews calls Red Winter “An enchanting tale of fantastical magic, supernatural creatures, mysterious heroes, and forbidden romance, [set] against a wildly gorgeous and exotic backdrop.”
“While our heroine may not wield a sword (ahem, she has people for that), her self-determination in the face of a seemingly impossible fate is a message that will speak to the hearts and minds of readers … a feast for the imagination.” —WTF Are You Reading
Happy reading, and when you choose your next adventure in print, may the odds be ever in your favor!
This post was about several unputdownable young adult fantasy series.
You may also enjoy the Copper and Cobalt Trilogy, a fantasy series set in North Wales. Click here for all eReader formats: Universal Book Link and here for Amazon Kindle and paperback: Amazon
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