• Genre Guide
  • Staff-Created List

Science-Fiction and Fantasy - Rainbow Reads - Teens

Imaginations go wild in these fantasy and sci-fi books featuring characters from across the rainbow spectrum (and often written by authors who are, too). Richly detailed worlds, spellbinding magic, and incredible adventure await! This list is loosely ordered from 'light' to 'gritty' reads. A Christchurch City Libraries' list.

Christchurch City Libraries Ngā Kete Wānanga o Ōtautahi

21 items

  • Dive into this entertaining paranormal read about two ex-girlfriends forced to team up to save their coven. When Hannah discovers evidence of a blood ritual at the end-of-school-year bonfire, she fears a Blood Witch has come to Salem,…
    BookNew York : Razorbill, [2019] — YOUNG ADULT FICTION
  • This is a spooky, queer, modern-day retelling of Macbeth set in an exclusive boarding school. Ultimate power couple Maria and Lily have their future all planned out, and one thing stands in their way - golden child Delilah, who is all but…
    BookMira Ink, 2016. — YOUNG ADULT FICTION
  • Princess Dennaleia has been betrothed since childhood to the prince of a neighboring kingdom - a marriage that will secure a politically important alliance. But she holding onto a secret, and as she learns the ways of her new home she must…
    BookNew York; : Balzer + Bray, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers; [2016]; ©2016 — YOUNG ADULT FICTION
  • Carry on

    the Rise and Fall of Simon Snow

    Rowell, Rainbow
    Carry On' brings all of the joy and fun of fanfiction as it puts a queer twist on series like 'Harry Potter'. Simon Snow is not a good magician and an even worse Chosen One. If that wasn't bad enough, his girlfriend has dumped him and…
    BookNew York : St. Martin's Griffin, 2015. — YOUNG ADULT FICTION
  • This high fantasy series is packed with political intrigue and complex, rich world-building. Falconry is at the heart of all parts of life in Uztar, but while Brysen strives to become a falconer and claim glory for their family, his twin…
    BookNew York : Farrar Straus Giroux, 2018. — YOUNG ADULT FICTION
  • A charming, character-driven story that pokes a little fun at classic otherworld fantasy novels. When 13-year-old Elliot discovers a wall no-one else can see on a class trip, he crosses over to the Borderlands for a chance to attend a…
    BookEasthampton, Massachusetts : Big Mouth House, [2017] — YOUNG ADULT FICTION
  • What if magic was an unpopular afterschool activity? Magic Club is what holds Sam, Delia, and James' friendship together but as senior year starts the pressure of the big competition and the future places strain on the trio. Sam is…
    BookNew York : HarperTeen, [2020] — YOUNG ADULT FICTION
  • With its clues, planet hopping, and snarky characters, this duology is perfect for fans of 'The Disasters' by M.K England or 'Ready Player One'. Aylssa is an adventurer at heart so she never wanted to inherit her dying uncle's throne. When…
    BookNew York : HarperTeen, [2020] — YOUNG ADULT FICTION
  • Aliens have given Henry an ultimatum: push a big red button or the world will be destroyed. There's just one problem, Henry's not sure that the world is worth saving. His mother is struggling, his drop-out brother has accidentally got…
    BookNew York : Simon Pulse, 2016. — YOUNG ADULT FICTION
  • In an alternate future earth that has magic, Noam survives a spell gone terribly wrong and becomes a technopath, someone who can control technology. Transported from unwanted refugee to magical elite, Noam is taught by the minister of…
    BookSkyscape, c2019. — YOUNG ADULT FICTION
  • This fantasy advernture series is a twist on classics like 'Eragon' and 'The Song of the Lioness'. A war between two sister queens led to the fall of the legendary Phoenix Riders. Sixteen years later, animage Veronyka reels from her…
    BookNew York : Simon Pulse, 2019. — YOUNG ADULT FICTION
  • A mystery whose creepy, tense atmosphere will have you on edge and fearing the woods. Natasha's sister is missing and the only clue is her car, abandoned at the local nature preserve known as the Bend. Della's family have drawn magic from…
    BookNew York : HarperTeen, [2021] — YOUNG ADULT FICTION
  • 'We Set the Dark on Fire' is fantasy-dystopian series in the vein of 'The Handmaid's Tale' exploring immigration and class. Daniela Vargas has kept her impoverished upbringing a secret in order to graduate as the top student of Medio…
    BookNew York : Katherine Tegen Books, [2019] — YOUNG ADULT FICTION
  • More than a space romance, 'The Darkness Outside' is a gripping and existentialist queer scifi that will have you reaching for the tissue box. Coordinated Endeavour is a rescue mission to Titan but when Ambrose awakes on the ship with…
    BookNew York : Katherine Tegen Books, [2021] — YOUNG ADULT FICTION
  • A dark enemies-to-lovers fantasy that's lush and atmospheric. Alicia Jasinka beautifully depicts the sinking island of Cadella as the inhabitants prepare for the annual sacrifice on St. Walpurga's Eve that will hopefully spare them from…
    BookMelbourne : Penguin Random House Australia, 2020. — YOUNG ADULT FICTION
  • 'The Scapegracers' is a love letter to teenage friendship and the weird girls. Outcast lesbian Sideways Pike is hired by the popular girls to add some witchcraft to their Halloween party. Yates, Daisy, and Jing are more than mean girls…
    BookNew York : Erewhon Books, 2020. — YOUNG ADULT FICTION
  • An exploration of gender and sexuality spread throughout three realities. In one world Quinn is openly genderqueer, surviving in a world overrun with monsters. In another they're female presenting, trying to survive conversion therapy. In…
    BookNew York : Quill Tree Books, [2020] — YOUNG ADULT FICTION
  • Featuring asexual and trans main characters, a magical premise and a dark mystery. Children have always found doorways into different words – rabbit holes, wardrobes, magic mirrors... But what happens to the children who come back? This is…
    BookNew York : Tom Doherty Associates, 2016. — FANTASY
  • The house of Berethnet has ruled for a thousand years and Queen Sabran must protect her realm from destruction. This is an epic female driven fantasy tale filled with dragons, betrayal and adventure! If you liked the world of 'Lord of the…
    BookNew York : Bloomsbury Publishing, 2019. — FANTASY
  • This South-East Asian inspired fantasy series is lush with world and relationship building. Lei, a girl of the lowly Paper caste, has been chosen to be one of the king's eight consorts. Alongside the other girls, Lei must develop her…
    BookLondon : Hodder & Stoughton. 2018. — YOUNG ADULT FICTION