There’s a reason relationship experts will tell you to marry your best friend. When a pair of close friends move toward becoming a couple, you know that their attraction is rooted in a deep sense of care. No insta-love to be found here! Read on for some of our favorite examples of friends who realize that there might be another, more romantic element to their connection.

When a story takes place over the course of 24 hours (or fewer!), you know that every single moment is going to be important. Even though quarantine means more of us than ever are relating to Bill Murray in the movie Groundhog Day, we don’t mind these one-day books repeating in our hearts forever.

Books That Take Place Over 24 Hours

1. We Are the Wildcats by Siobhan Vivian

The Wildcats hockey team has a tradition. Every year, on the night before their first big game, they host an epic sleepover, sneak out after dark, and get up to good-natured mischief that strengthens their bonds as a team. But this year’s night of shenanigans is different. Several players are coming to separate realizations that their charismatic coach might not be treating them fairly, and when the events of the night reveal their shared simmering distrust, they have until morning to do something about it—as a team.

2. Today Tonight Tomorrow by Rachel Lynn Solomon

Rowan and Neil have spent their entire high school careers competing against each other. So when Neil beats her out for valedictorian, Rowan has one last chance to go out on a win. A ruthless, all-night scavenger hunt around Seattle will crown one senior class victor, and Rowan is determined that it will be her. Due to unforeseen and highly regrettable circumstances, Rowan soon agrees to team up with Neil until they’re the last players left. But the more time they spend together, the more Rowan realizes that the two of them have a lot in common. Maybe Neil could be more than a rival after all.

3. Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds

Forget 24 hours—this novel in verse takes place during a 60-second elevator ride. Will gets on the elevator at the seventh floor with a gun tucked into his waistband. When he gets to the bottom, he plans to shoot the guy who murdered his brother. But at each stop, someone connected to his brother gets on and tells Will a piece of a bigger story. The cycle of revenge will be doomed to repeat again, over and over, unless Will changes his plans before he reaches the ground floor.

4. This Lie Will Kill You by Chelsea Pitcher

Five teens are summoned to a spooky old mansion. The lure? A cash prize for participating in an innocent game. The truth? Revenge. Someone is very angry about the part they all played in the death of a classmate last summer, and they mean to scare out the confessions they so desperately need to hear. But as the terror escalates, the five teens fight to live through the night—even as they start to doubt each other.

5. A Complicated Love Story Set in Space by Shaun David Hutchinson

Okay, this one is cheating. It takes place over the course of many days. HOWEVER. There is a collection of chapters in the middle of the book in which Noa, our protagonist trapped on a space station with no idea how he got there—gets stuck in a time loop. He must replay over and over the day a sweet boy plans a surprise picnic date for him. The first time this happened, he panicked and bailed. But the time loop gives him the chance to replay those 24 hours over and over and see what happens if he makes another choice.

Looking for more? Check out these standalone novels you can read in one sitting!

If you’ve read Neal Shusterman’s Arc of a Scythe series, you know that it is truly unforgettable. In the future he’s imagined, all diseases can be cured, all injuries can be healed, and even old age can be reversed. Death is no longer inevitable, but must be inflicted by Scythes to keep the population under control. These books combine so many fascinating genres (speculative fiction, dystopian, horror, political thriller, high-stakes action/adventure), and they leave you desperate for more. Here are some places to start!

Series to Read if You Love Neal Shusterman’s Arc of a Scythe

1. The Skinjacker trilogy by Neal Shusterman

Before Neal Shusterman wrote Arc of the Scythe, he gave us the Skinjacker trilogy, and it won’t surprise you to know that it also has a lot to do with death. In the Skinjacker trilogy, kids who die linger in Everlost, a limbo made up of all of the things and places that no longer exist in the living world. It’s a magical, dangerous place where bands of lost kids run wild. If you were intrigued by Neal Shusterman’s speculative takes on life and death in Arc of a Scythe, you’ll love to see the beginnings of those ideas here.

2. The Program series by Suzanne Young

In Arc of a Scythe, no amount of self-inflicted harm can kill a person. In fact, “splatting” is a fun hobby for thrill seekers. But in The Program series, teen suicide is an epidemic, and the dystopian solutions are potentially even more threatening to humanity as we know it. If discussions about how we process life and death appeal to you, The Program should be your next read.

3. The Diabolic trilogy by S. J. Kincaid

The Scythedom was always ruled by twisty politics, and it reminds us of the brutal court politics in The Diabolic Trilogy. This series follows Nemesis, a bodyguard created to protect the daughter of a galactic senator, as she takes the place of her charge in a court filled with schemers and liars, trying desperately to keep her identity a secret. It’s Red Queen meets The Hunger Games in a fast-paced series you won’t be able to put down.

4. Girls with Sharp Sticks series by Suzanne Young

Arc of a Scythe is all about imagining what it would be like to live under totally outlandish social rules that begin to feel normal. In the Girls with Sharp Sticks trilogy, Westworld meets The Handmaid’s Tale when the girls at a boarding school begin to realize that there is more to their strict environment than meets the eye. And once the dark secrets are revealed, the girls must learn to fight back. Read the first two books now to get ready for the finale, GIRLS WITH REBEL SOULS, in March 2021!

5. Liars series by Jack Heath

If Arc of a Scythe’s high-stakes action scenes thrilled you, the Liars series will be the perfect next step. When Jarli builds an app that listens in on your conversations and tells you when someone is lying, he becomes an overnight sensation. But fame can be dangerous, especially when you’re in the business of exposing deep, dark secrets.

6. The Mara Dyer trilogy by Michelle Hodkin

Since Arc of a Scythe is all about life and death, it has an inherent spookiness to it. If that was your favorite part, you should check out the Mara Dyer series, which amps up the eerie and also the romance. Mara can’t remember the night her friends died. All she knows is that the abandoned asylum collapsed and she was the only survivor. But now she’s seeing things that can’t possibly be real, and a boy at school seems to know more about her past than she does.

7. This Mortal Coil series by Emily Suvada

Speculative fiction can get too real sometimes—or just real enough. Cat is a gifted gene-hacker, and when her brilliant geneticist father is kidnapped, it is up to her to hack the vaccine he was working on, end a terrible plague, and save humanity. But everyone around her has an agenda, and Cat will have to decide whom to trust when even her own integrity is suspect. This near-future world that has been twisted by one small change will appeal to readers who love the speculative elements of Arc of a Scythe with plenty of action on the side.

8. Rot & Ruin series by Jonathan Maberry

The Rot & Ruin series is another great pick for anyone who appreciated the speculative/horror/adventure combination from Arc of a Scythe. Benny trains as a zombie killer with his big brother, and killing the undead may—somehow—lead to discovering what it means to be human.

Looking for more? Check out these completed YA series that you can start right now!

Still looking for that perfect LGBTQIA+ book to read next? We’ll we’re here to help! Take our quiz and find out what book you should dive into (or add to your TBR)!

I can’t resist a personality test. Zodiac, Myers-Briggs, Hogwarts house—I’ve thought about them way too much, and I have long answers about where I fit in each one and why. But one test stands out from the others: the Enneagram. There are a few reasons for this.

1. Yes, you can take a test, but ultimately you choose which type best describes you.
2. It’s expansive! There are nine types, three subtypes for each, and two possible wings for each.
3. It can be genuinely helpful in understanding where other people are coming from.

Hey, I’m a Six. I find good systems to be very comforting.

If you know your Enneagram type, read on to find a book rec perfectly tailored to you! If you’re still mystified by all these numbers, these books will help you find your best fit.

What Books Your Enneagram Type is Telling You to Read Next

To figure out your Enneagram type you can find more info here or click here to take the test.

1. Five Feet Apart by Rachael Lippincott

Type 1: The Reformer

Ones are total perfectionists with a strong sense of right and wrong. But they can be rigid in their views, and their drive for perfection can overwhelm them.

Stella from Five Feet Apart craves control. Her cystic fibrosis means that there’s a huge part of her life that she can’t control at all, but she’s determined to try anyway. She meticulously organizes her pills and follows the doctors’ instructions to the letter. Will, the handsome CF patient down the hall, doesn’t have this same drive, and Stella can’t stand the fact that he isn’t taking care of himself as well as he should. She intervenes, and their connection is more than she bargained for.

2. The Boy and Girl Who Broke the World by Amy Reed

Type 2: The Helper

Twos are generous, compassionate souls who feel driven to take care of everyone around them, but when they go too far, they can forget to take care of themselves or start to feel that they are owed for their kindness.

Billy Sloat in The Boy and Girl Who Broke the World is an incredibly sensitive, caring person who feels the need to look after all of the dysfunctional people in his life, because they sure aren’t going to do it for themselves. He rubs the feet of his neglectful aunt, brings endless supplies to his rock star uncle hiding out in the attic, and pulls off a life-changing anonymous act of kindness for his new—and only—friend. As much as we love Billy’s sweetness, we cheer for those moments when he draws boundaries with people who would take advantage of him.

3. The Unexpected Everything by Morgan Matson

Type 3: The Achiever

Threes are high-achievers with tons of ambition, and their charisma means that they have no shortage of friends and admirers. But they can get too caught up in their work and their image and forget to take time to smell the roses.

Andie from The Unexpected Everything is the daughter of a politician, so her whole life has been lived in the spotlight. Over the summer, she’s planning to attend a prestigious youth program at Johns Hopkins University, because she already knows she wants to be pre-med in college. Although she has had a string of short-term boyfriends, she’s reserving her heart for someone with equally high ambitions. But when her summer plans fall through, Andie is suddenly staring down a lot of quality time with her dad and a gig as a dog-walker. It’s quite the challenge for a Three, but it might be exactly what Andie needs to find balance.

4. City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

Type 4: The Individualist

Fours are sensitive, expressive, and creative, and they perceive themselves to be different from most people. While this means that they are very in touch with their own emotions, however dark, it also means that they have to avoid becoming self-absorbed and/or developing a victim mindset.

Jace Wayland from Cassandra Clare’s Shadowhunters series thinks of himself as the best Shadowhunter who ever lived, yet also experiences a profound self-doubt. Dramatic and passionate, he’s a soul in constant torment, and this is the epitome of the Four profile.

5. SLAY by Brittney Morris

Type 5: The Investigator

Fives are insightful, curious, and highly capable. As collectors of knowledge, they often have one or more areas of deep expertise. Their ideas can be bold, visionary, and even revolutionary. Others might perceive them as a little eccentric, and they run the risk of detaching from reality and retreating to their fascinating inner worlds.

Kiera from SLAY is intensely passionate and knowledgeable about Black culture. She designs an immersive video game world that is Black Panther meets World of Warcraft, in which Black gamers can have meaningful interactions with each other. Even more impressive, Kiera runs the game out of her bedroom in her spare time. Externalizing her detailed inner world and sharing it with others who validate her vision from afar is very rewarding for a Five.

6. Scythe by Neal Shusterman

Type 6: The Loyalist

Sixes are loyal to people, communities, and ideas that give their lives structure and purpose. That purpose can be traditional, revolutionary, or somewhere in between. They crave security and support, and they are great at bringing people together. While their tendency to question everything allows them to spot problems before they arise, they can also spin an issue around in their minds until it leads to insecurity and undue suspicion.

Citra from the Arc of a Scythe trilogy get wrapped up in an extreme social structure when she is recruited to become a scythe. In a world without natural death, it will be her responsibility to kill a certain number of people each year. When the system makes sense to her, Citra follows it. But when a cadre of sinister scythes rise to power, Citra is quick to speak out against them and gather a force to oppose them.

7. To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han

Type 7: The Enthusiast

Sevens are spontaneous, fun-loving, optimistic, and always enthusiastic about something new. They are a joy to be around, and they attract plenty of admirers. But they can overextend themselves and become scattered if they don’t remember to take a moment every now and then to sit still, which does not come naturally to a playful and impulsive Seven.

Peter Kavinsky from the To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before trilogy is always confident, a big jokester, and likes to do fun things at the spur of a moment. He’s open-minded and likes to try new things—even movies that Lara Jean picks that he wouldn’t have considered himself.

8. The Nowhere Girls by Amy Reed

Type 8: The Challenger

Eights are assertive, confident, and protective of those they care about. They carry themselves with strength and authority, and they make natural and decisive leaders. In times of stress, they can struggle with anger issues, and they hate feeling disempowered.

Rosa from The Nowhere Girls papers the walls of her bedroom with posters of snarling, swaggering punk women whom she idolizes. She dreams of moving out of her small town and fronting a punk band of her own. But when her classmate is sexually assaulted, then shamed into moving away, Rosa is enraged by the injustice. She teams up with two similarly fed up classmates to change their school’s toxic culture.

9. Save the Date by Morgan Matson

Type 9: The Peacemaker

Nines are peaceful, accepting, and easygoing. They often find themselves playing the diplomat, helping to find common ground and avoid confrontations. However, their deep-seated discomfort with conflict leads them to numb themselves to negative feelings, and if held in too long, they can burst out all at once.

Charlie from Save the Date is preparing to be a bridesmaid in her sister’s wedding. She’s gotten into a prestigious college program, but instead she thinks she might enroll in the local college where her dad teaches. The wedding means that all of her siblings will reunite for the first time in a while, and her heart fills with joy at the thought of them spending time together. When the family receives news of a last-minute change of plans, Charlie doesn’t freak out. She just grabs another donut and assures everyone that it’ll be fine.

Looking for more? Check out what books you should read based on your Myers-Briggs personality type!

Classics are great, but each time an author comes out with a clever retelling that’s set in a new world or in modern day I have to read it. So if you are a fan of the classics with a clever YA twist then take this quiz to find out which retelling you should read next!

Looking for more? Check out these YA books with unique legends!