Don’t you love a good YA book with a shocking plot twist? You know, the kind that leaves your jaw hanging open for two days straight because you just can’t believe THAT actually happened. The kind of twist you did NOT see coming that leaves you sobbing.
I love these kind of books so much and I recently realized that… well, I haven’t read that many books that really shocked me, with a twist I didn’t see coming from a million miles away, for a little while, now and… I miss it. I really do.
So, friends, I really need your recommendations. I’ve been craving for books that surprise me and make me fall off my chair, so, if you have any books like that, please share them in comments!
In the meantime, I compiled a little list of YA books I read and enjoyed with plot twists that left me crying, screaming, throwing the book across the room and more.
A word of advice: don’t read many reviews about these books before getting into them, to keep the surprise! 😉
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10 YA Books With Shocking Plot Twists
Vanishing Girls, Lauren Oliver
Vanishing Girls is about two sisters who used to be very close… up until a serious car accident drove them apart. Filled with mystery and family drama, this book is kind of addictive to read and I certainly didn’t see the plot twist coming. I loved this book so much.
Find on Goodreads ☂️ Buy on: Amazon – Book Depository – Bookshop – Blackwell’s
The Loneliest Girl in the Universe, Lauren James
Romy’s the only survivor on a spaceship, traveling to another planet to establish a second home for humanity. Her only communication is through emails, with a boy that just left Earth. Honestly, it’s best to go into this book as blind as possible and it’s NOTHING like I expected it to be. With a slightly creepy atmosphere, this book takes you on a rollercoaster ride you won’t forget.
Find on Goodreads ☂️ Buy on: Amazon – Book Depository – Bookshop – Blackwell’s
Girls With Sharp Sticks, Suzanne Young
Beautiful, well-behaved girls schooled in a private Academy, raised to be the very best…. up until the characters slowly uncover the Academy’s terrifying secrets. This book shook me, honestly. I was hooked from page one and didn’t see the plot twists coming, at all. This is an excellent feminist YA science-fiction tale and one of my favorite books.
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We Were Liars, E. Lockhart
If you’re fortunate enough not to have heard much about We Were Liars, do yourself a favour: keep it that way. The less you know, the better with this book that made me fall off my chair. For real. It’s about a beautiful, rich family, a private island and a group of friends… and that’s all. Read it if you want to know more.
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The Ones We’re Meant To Find, Joan He
Sorry not sorry, but The Ones We’re Meant To Find broke me. Like, really. It’s a story about two sisters. Kasey, a STEM prodigy, is desperate to find her sister after 3 months’ disappearance. Meanwhile, Celia, her sister, is stranded on a deserted island with no memory… and as desperate to find her sister again. This book is mind-blowing, really.
Find on Goodreads ☂️ Buy on: Amazon – Book Depository – Bookshop – Blackwell’s
This Is Not The Jess Show, Anna Carey
What a surprise this book was! It’s about Jess, an ordinary teenager going through life in her ordinary small-town in the late 90s…. up until things start to get weird. That’s honestly all I want to say and all you should know to be surprised by this book as much as I was.
Find on Goodreads ☂️ Buy on: Amazon – Book Depository – Bookshop – Blackwell’s
More Happy Than Not, Adam Silvera
More Happy Than Not is a book you’ll need tissues for, if you’re anything like me. It’s a queer YA contemporary with a sci-fi twist and, despite its title, it’s not a happy book. We follow Aaron, a teenager in the Bronx struggling with his father’s suicide. It’s honest, raw, real and has a plot twist that I did not see coming, at all.
Find on Goodreads ☂️ Buy on: Amazon – Book Depository – Bookshop – Blackwell’s
Sanctuary Bay, Laura J. Burns & Melinda Metz
Sanctuary Bay is, if you ask me, a way too underrated YA thriller. It’s about Sarah Mercer, getting the chance to attend the most prestigious boarding school in the country… and slowly uncovering the school’s dark secrets. It’s addictive, atmospheric and I couldn’t stop reading it!
Ace of Spades, Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé
Ace of Spades is about the only two Black teens at an elite rich school, always fighting to be the very best, when they suddenly get blackmailed by an anonymous bully… Exciting, thrilling, with a twist that made me gasp out loud, this YA thriller deserves all of the praise it’s been getting and more!
Find on Goodreads ☂️ Buy on: Amazon – Book Depository – Bookshop – Blackwell’s
The Wicked Deep, Shea Ernshaw
A cursed town where, centuries ago, three sisters were sentenced to death for witchery and drowned. Now, the legend says the three sisters come back each summer to haunt the town, its people and seek revenge… this is a really compelling, atmospheric tale that will take you into this village, make your skin crawl and surprise you by the end of it all.
Find on Goodreads ☂️ Buy on: Amazon – Book Depository – Bookshop – Blackwell’s
Enjoyed this list? See a book you’d like to read? Order them through these retailers below!
For more YA book recommendations, check out these blog posts:
- 10 of the best dystopian YA novels to read (these will blow your mind!)
- 10 Fast-Paced, Addictive YA Books To Get You Out Of A Reading Slump
- 10 YA books that would be hits on Netflix
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What are some of your favorite books with plot twists that really shocked you? Give me your recommendations so I can add them to my TBR please?
Did you read any of these books? I’d LOVE to hear from you in comments!!
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I was just thinking about The Loneliest Girl in the Universe the other day! What a crazy book!
Ahhh right? I was blown away, I didn’t expect that plot twist, at all!
Thank you for your comment, Angela! 🥰
The Wicked Deep is one of my favorite books ever. I also really enjoyed More Happy Than Not. Most of these are on my tbr but there is a few I hadn’t heard of.
I’m happy I could make your TBR grow! thank you so much! 🥰
I’ve read a few of these! I think I’ll always remember the twist in The Ones We’re Meant To Find. That was a good one.
Ahhh yes me too, such an incredible, unexpected plot twist! Thank you so much for your comment! 🥰
Ace of Spades’ plot twist was super shocking! It was a great read. I also very much enjoyed We Were Liars, though it’s been eons since I’ve read it.
I’m so glad you enjoyed Ace of Spades as well, such a fantastic read! Thank you for your comment, Emily 🙂
So if you liked both We Were Liars and Vanishing Girls, I have an adult rec for you. It’s called The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry. It’s one I would go in blind with. I actually read it before these two, but I loved how it had some similar characteristics.
Oooh thank you so much for the recommendation, I’ll check it out! 🙂
Girls With Sharp Sticks and The Jess Show – yes! The Ones We’re Meant to Find didn’t surprise me as much – the twist was similar to a show I’d watched so I kind of figured that’s the direction it was going. Still, it was a nice one.
AH YAY so glad you liked these! I get that, we can’t be surprised by everything 🙂 Thank you so much for your comment!
The Vanishing Girls twist made me gasp soooooo loud, and I was kinda scared afterwards.
Me too! I was so surprised and shook. Such a fantastic read!
What a fun list idea! I literally forgot the twist in Wicked Deep though and am sitting here wondering what that could have been since apparently I recall nothing from that plot.
The Ones We’re Meant to Find broke me though when it finally was revealed. So good!
Thank you so, so much, Kal! 🥰 Oh I get that feeling so much, there are so many books I forget after a while 😂😂 and yes! the ones we’re meant to find broke me. I adore that book!
YA twists just do it better tbh!
Agree!
This is such a great post, Marie! I love a good plot twist, so I really appreciate these recommendations. I was shocked by the twist in The Vanishing Girls, We Were Liars and Ace of Spades! I need to check out the rest of your recommendations. 😀
Oh thank you so, so much Veronika! I hope you’ll enjoy these books 😀
Legit, the first line of my review for Vanishing Girls was, “Wow! I did not see that coming.” So, obviously, I agree with you on that one. We Were Liars was surprising as well. I just remember the pain I felt when the full truth of the situation was revealed.
Yes! I’m so glad you agree, I didn’t see that coming, AT all, with Vanishing Girls or We Were Liars. Such great twists!
Thank you so much, Samantha! 🙂
The Loneliest Girl in the Universe has been on my TBR for a long time, but I may have to read it sooner rather than later now that I know it’s creepy and has a good plot twist 😀
AHH yes, I hope you will! It’s such a great read, I almost read it in one sitting, I was so captivated by the story as a whole… and curious to see what would happen, next!
We Were Liars had a great twist and I am so glad that bloggers kept tight lipped about it even though I saw it recommended everywhere.
Agree! I’m so glad people were sensible enough not to share the twist everywhere (at least, not that I know of, ahah!). Thank you for your comment, Alicia! 🙂
I have only read we were liars and the jess show, and the endings to both of them shocked me. I can’t wait to read some of the other ones on this list xx
Melina | http://www.melinaelisa.com
Ahh yay, I hope you will love them!! 🙂
I absolutely love YA books with twists. And I’m trying to remember one I read about a year or so ago. It’s YA, and I can’t remember the title or author. I’ve been searching and searching for the last month, and I feel so frustrated because I’m a Librarian! Arg!
I hope this makes sense, but I remember throughout the book the 4 friends usually meet up one-on-one, like 2 of them go to a coffee shop, or 2 of them hang out at one of their houses, etc.
I am horrible at explaining but let’s label the girls 1, 2, 3 & 4.
1 meets up with 2.
3 gets together with 1.
4 hangs out with 2.
3 and 2 go to a coffee shop.
Etc
But the Twist at the end when 3 tells 1 that 2 has been dead for over a year, 1 is confused and says that can’t be right because 2 told her that she (2) and 3 went to the coffee shop a few weeks ago. 3 looks at her confused and says “No. You and I went to the coffee shop. 2 died over a year ago.”
Then 1 is all freaked out. She doesn’t know what’s going on. She’s remembering all the times she and 2 were together the past year, the conversations they had. But in reality, because of the trauma of her best friend’s death a year ago, she (1) developed Dissociative identity disorder, not realizing she was “becoming” 2 at certain times over the past year.
Please help!
Jenny