The best YA murder mysteries

Reading lists

Young Adult murder mysteries to read at any age

Lessons in Power

This mystery thriller by the Number One bestselling author of The Inheritance Games is a gripping story of high stakes, betrayal, and unpredictable twists. Perfect for fans of A Good Girls Guide to Murder. Knowledge is power, but secrets can kill . . . 
 
 For Tess Kendrick, a student at the elite Hardwicke School, making problems disappear runs in the family. But Tess has another legacy, too, one that involves power and the making of political dynasties. When Tess is asked to run a classmate's campaign for student council, she agrees. But when the candidates are the children of Washington D.C. elite, even a high school election can have life-shattering consequences. 
 
 What starts out as a friendly competition soon turns into a deadly struggle for control. Tess knows better than most that power is currency, but she's about to discover firsthand that power always comes with a price and no one can be trusted . . . 
 
 Previously published as The Long Game.

Jennifer Lynn Barnes is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of more than twenty acclaimed young-adult novels, including The Inheritance Games series, Little White Lies, Deadly Little Scandals, The Lovely and the Lost, and The Naturals series. Jen is also a Fulbright Scholar with advanced degrees in psychology, psychiatry, and cognitive science. She received her Ph.D. from Yale University in 2012 and was a professor of psychology and professional writing at the University of Oklahoma for many years. She invites you to her online at www.jenniferlynnbarnes.com or follow her on Twitter @jenlynnbarnes.

Glorious Rivals

FIVE PLAYERS REMAIN. 
 
Seven Players arrived on Hawthorne Island to play a billionaire's game. Now only five remain, and the race to the finish line is on. 
 
EVERYONE IS A LIAR. 
 
The heat turns up on the competition - and between the players - and it becomes increasingly clear that no one will emerge from the Grandest Game unscathed. 
 
AND SOMEONE IS WATCHING. 
 
Millions are at stake, but so are hearts - and lives. 
 
THE GAME IS ON. 
 
The stakes get higher, the game gets twistier, and everything heats up in this newest instalment in the TikTok sensation Inheritance Games Saga - now over 6 MILLION COPIES sold.

The Inheritance Games

Gorgeous deluxe clothbound hardback editions with two metallic foils on the cover designs, sprayed edges, unique designed endpapers and ribbon markers. These deluxe collector editions ooze as much romance, glamour and luxury as the Hawthorne family! 
 
The perfect addition to any book collector’s shelf – and a must-have for all Inheritance Games fans! 
 
She came from nothing. 
Avery has a plan: keep her head down, work hard for a better future. Then an eccentric billionaire dies, leaving her almost his entire fortune. And no one, least of all Avery, knows why. 
 
They had everything. 
Now she must move into the mansion she's inherited. It's filled with secrets and codes, and the old man's surviving relatives - a family hell-bent on discovering why Avery got 'their' money. 
 
Now there's only one rule: winner takes all. 
Soon she is caught in a deadly game that everyone in this strange family is playing. But just how far will they go to keep their fortune? 
 
PRAISE FOR THE INHERITANCE GAMES SERIES: 
 
Barnes is a master of puzzles and plot twists.’ E. Lockhart, author of We Were Liars 
 
‘Impossible to put down’ Buzzfeed 
 
“The romance in this had me freaking out over the littlest things! I’m obsessed!” - reader review 
 
“Richly dark and has all the elements of a classic mystery but with a fresh, modern twist.” - reader review 
 
“A five-star read that I was unable to put down until every question was answered.” - reader review

Gorgeous deluxe clothbound hardback editions with two metallic foils on the cover designs, sprayed edges, unique designed endpapers and ribbon markers. These deluxe collector editions ooze as much romance, glamour and luxury as the Hawthorne family! 
 
The perfect addition to any book collector’s shelf – and a must-have for all Inheritance Games fans! 
 
 
She came from nothing. 
Avery has a plan: keep her head down, work hard for a better future. Then an eccentric billionaire dies, leaving her almost his entire fortune. And no one, least of all Avery, knows why. 
 
They had everything. 
Now she must move into the mansion she's inherited. It's filled with secrets and codes, and the old man's surviving relatives - a family hell-bent on discovering why Avery got 'their' money. 
 
Now there's only one rule: winner takes all. 
Soon she is caught in a deadly game that everyone in this strange family is playing. But just how far will they go to keep their fortune?

The Grandest Game

Seven tickets. An island of dreams. The chance of a lifetime. 
 
Welcome to the Grandest Game, an annual competition run by billionaire Avery Grambs and the four infamous Hawthorne brothers, whose family fortune she inherited. Designed to give anyone a shot at fame and fortune, this year's game requires one of seven golden tickets to enter. With millions on the line, those seven players will do whatever it takes to win. 
 
Some of the players are in it for the money. Some for power. Some for reasons all their own. Every single one of them has secrets. Amidst it all is Grayson Hawthorne, tasked with a vital role in this year's game. But as tensions rise and the mind-bending challenges push the players to their limits-physically, mentally, and emotionally-it soon becomes clear that not everyone is playing by the rules. 
 
Do you have what it takes to play?

The Lovely and the Lost

A FORGOTTEN PAST. 
Kira vividly remembers the moment Cady Bennett and one of her search and rescue dogs found her as a child, living alone in the wild, with no memories of her life before. Years later, now adopted into the Bennett family, Kira has spent most of her life training in search and rescue herself. 
 
A MISSING GIRL. 
So, when Cady’s estranged father appears with news of a missing child out in the wilderness, Kira vows to bring the girl home. 
 
A DARK SECRET. 
As the search intensifies, danger mounts and long-buried secrets begin to come to light. To find one missing child, Kira will have to question everything she thinks she knows.

A mystery-thriller from the number one bestselling author of The Inheritance Games. 
 
A FORGOTTEN PAST. 
Kira vividly remembers the moment Cady Bennett and one of her search and rescue dogs found her as a child, living alone in the wild, with no memories of her life before. Years later, now adopted into the Bennett family, Kira has spent most of her life training in search and rescue herself. 
 
A MISSING GIRL. 
So, when Cady’s estranged father appears with news of a missing child out in the wilderness, Kira vows to bring the girl home. 
 
A DARK SECRET. 
As the search intensifies, danger mounts and long-buried secrets begin to come to light. To find one missing child, Kira will have to question everything she thinks she knows. 
 
Praise for The Lovely and the Lost: 
 
‘A propulsive mystery-thriller . . . You will cling to this book until you reach the end.’ - Maureen Johnson

Games Untold

Romance, luxury, and secrets abound in this thrilling new collection that takes readers deeper into the world of the #1 bestselling Inheritance Games series. 
 
There is nothing frivolous about the way a Hawthorne man loves. 
 
An amnesiac playboy and the woman with every reason to hate him. A daredevil, his favorite heiress, and three nights in Prague. An unlikely pairing between a cowboy and a goth. Four brothers with an inescapable bond, strengthened by the family they chose, in a house of wonders that promises to always deliver one more secret. 
 
Discover their stories of love and loss, power, puzzles, and life-and-death secrets in this mind-blowingly romantic collection that proves that when you love the way Hawthornes love, there is no going back. 
 
This collection includes:· That Night in Prague (novella)· The Same Backward as Forward (novella)· The Cowboy and the Goth· Five Times Xander Tackled Someone (and One Time He Didn’t)· One Hawthorne Night· What Happens in the Treehouse· $3CR3T $@NT@· Pain at the Right Gun

There is nothing frivolous about the way a Hawthorne man loves. 
 
An amnesiac playboy and the woman with every reason to hate him. A daredevil, his favourite heiress, and three nights in Prague. An unlikely pairing between a cowboy and a goth. Four brothers with an inescapable bond, strengthened by the family they chose, in a house of wonders that promises to always deliver one more secret. 
 
Discover their stories of love and loss, power, puzzles, and life-and-death secrets in this mind-blowingly romantic collection that proves that when you love the way Hawthornes love, there is no going back.

Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Books by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Series by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

The Debutantes2 Books

The Fixer2 Books

The Grandest Game2 Books

The Inheritance Games7 Books

The Inheritance Games Deluxe Collector’s Series4 Books

Articles featuring Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Young Adult murder mysteries to read at any age

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