What parent wants to hand their teen a bloody tale when they thought it was a clean young adult thriller? But in all honesty, it’s really hard to find clean and fabulous YA thrillers. Too often I find myself faced with gothic horror content, excess profanity, and blood running off the pages of what should have been a “clean Christian book”.
Toning down the gore doesn’t mean flattening the stakes and characters to Goldilocks-and-the-Three-Bears kind of drama. What it does mean is looking past the genre’s stereotypes to find books and authors who are skilled enough to write suspenseful young adult thrillers without a gory copout.
Below are five YA thriller series written by four different authors whose writing I absolutely love. Every single series includes a complete list of Noteworthy Elements (view in The Library) for parents to read and determine whether this series is one they want their teenager reading.
Ready to dive in? Here we go…
Ages 12-14
The Wars of the Realm
Ever since his dad died when he was twelve, Drew Carter has wanted nothing but a normal life. When an accident during a physics experiment at college leaves him blind, and one of his best friends missing, Drew is certain that normalcy can never be reached. But as his sight begins to miraculously come back, Drew is faced with the reality that he can see into another dimension. As a battle wages, visible to him and hidden to others, Drew is forced to maintain his sanity while trying to prove to others that this battle has the power to affect the fate of America, and the whole world.
Ages 15+
High Water Series
Parker Buckman is the son of a park ranger, living near Everglades National Park. When he’s attacked by an alligator in the swamp, Parker barely survives and is fully convinced he will never return to the Everglades. But when a friend’s life is in danger, can Parker overcome his fear and reenter the swamp?
Ages 15+
The Homelanders
Charlie West was just a normal American high schooler until the day he woke up in a terrorist’s torture chamber with no memory of the last year of his life. And when he learns that he’s been convicted as a murderer and the police are hunting him, remembering what happened in the missing year becomes integral to stopping a terrorist invasion on America.
Ages 15+
Code of Silence
When Cooper, Gordy, and Hiro witness the robbery of their favorite restaurant and the murder of the restaurant’s owner, they find themselves hunted by the villains as the only witnesses to the crime. Together, they swear a Code of Silence to keep what they saw a secret to protect their family’s lives. But as time runs short and the kids find themselves hesitant to go to the police, can they bring the criminals to justice, or will the Code of Silence be their undoing?
Ages 15+
The Chase Runner Series
Willis Thompson has only ever been trained to be the world’s champion racer at the annual Chase, the single event that allows a commoner to make one change to the Law. But when betrayal, threats, and questions begin to arise, Willis must decide for himself what the future holds before he too ends up dead.
