The best young adult speculative fiction books with strong female protagonists

Set in a world that is at once familiar, yet without grounding in time or space, Daniels’ fable of an anonymous girl who escapes to reclaim her life after many years in the belly of a great snake, is fanciful and spellbinding.

It is a story that guides the reader through dark themes such as loss, grief, abuse, denial, and isolation; capturing the very essence of detachment that is the uneven road to recovery from great trauma. Daniels’ prose is beautiful and eerie, and her protagonist’s journey from victim to survivor is nothing short of sublime. 

The first book in Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy introduces a rich multiverse that draws theological parallels with Christianity and the inferred contradictions of humanity, morality, and social order.

These contradictions are firmly embedded in protagonist Lyra Belacqua, whose main skill is to use complex and convoluted untruths to protect herself. During the series, Lyra adapts her craft of artifice so that others may benefit, and in this act gives readers an insight into how subterfuge can change, depending upon the moral compass the character who applies it.

Lyra’s character is feisty yet incredibly intelligent, providing a robust role model, who is not completely wholesome, but is driven by the powerful will to help her friends, and deliver justice. 

Bacon is a masterful storyteller known for creating surreal and obtuse landscapes and characters.

Broken Paradise is an intriguing tale of deception and sibling rivalry, featuring gods and magi, who engage in a cat-and-mouse battle beneath the oceans of the world. The primary message of the book leaves the reader questioning the strength of families, be that the power of unity, or its propensity for self-destruction.

The protagonist is Samaki—the goddess of water—who must divide herself into four parts to escape the wrath of her murderous brother. As Samaki hides, so she must learn to protect herself, growing and honing her powers under the tutorage of Mae, the enigmatic owner of her submersible home.  

Collins’ hugely successful trilogy was given solid foundations in this, the first outing.

As with all memorable dystopian books, detailed and solid worldbuilding is in abundance; where differing sections of future society (or in this case, districts) are pitched against each other in a television fight-to-the-death, with the champion winning food for their famished communities.

Katniss Everdeen, principal protagonist, and reluctant champion, is staunch and principled, determined to undermine the games that cause so much pain to participants and society overall. As the series progresses, Everdeen’s rise from Hunger Games champion to hardened freedom fighter, is one of the most satisfying story arcs in YA dystopian fiction ever!  

An extension of Maberry’s Rot And Ruin zombie series for Young Adults, Broken Lands tells the story of the ongoing search for a cure in a world overrun by undead hordes, and very human monsters.

Protagonist Gabriella ‘Gutsy’ Gomez and a wide variety of memorable characters ensure the reader becomes totally immersed in the series from the get-go. Maberry is a master of the action set-piece, making sure that this is a book that will not only have people rooting for the characters, but also leave them breathless from the fast-paced narrative and action sequences.

There are also moments of poignancy that will also have the reader asking philosophical questions as to the fluidity of morality, and what it means to be human in a changed, dysfunctional world.