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Beauty in Books: Your Most Highly Anticipated YA Reads of 2025

Abigail McAvoy Student Contributor, University of Illinois - Urbana-Champaign
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The sci-fi and fantasy genre has been taking over as readers’ most consumed genre in recent years. In the YA realm, 2025 is the year of huge releases for some of the most popular series in the genre:

Sunrise on The Reaping (A Hunger Games Novel)

By: Suzanne Collins

It was over a decade ago that Suzanne Collins released her magnum opus The Hunger Games. Since 2008, over 100 million copies have been sold from the publisher, and the numbers only continue to climb. After the conclusion to the main series in Mockingjay (2010), the books had been adapted into blockbuster hit adaptations. But it didn’t stop there. Collins began her prequel escapade in 2020 upon releasing Song Birds and Snakes, a story about the main antagonist of the main series that had immediately been adapted into a film starring West Side Stories, Rachel Zegler, raking in over 349 million dollars worldwide. Sunrise on The Reaping, will prove to be no different. Another prequel focusing on the beloved character Haymitch Abernathy, is set to release on March 18th, along with an already announced film adaptation set to hit theaters in late 2026.

Fearless (A Powerless Novel)

By: Lauren Roberts

books and iphone
Original photo by Hannah Hagie

The third and final installment to the overnight success that is the Powerless novel is set to release on April 8th. Lauren Roberts originally blew up overnight, thanks to the likes of TikTok. Her marketing of her independently published book Powerless caught readers’ attention, especially young adults that were fans of the popular subgenre romantasy. The New York Times Bestselling series has since been taken under the publishing company of Simon and Schuster and has only grown in popularity since. Fans of the series highly await the conclusion to the fantasy-rich story as well as the fate of the highly cherished characters Paedyn Gray and Kai Azer.

Oathbound (A Legendborn Cycle Novel)

By: Tracy Deonn

Deonn continues The Legendborn Cycle in the third installment of her hit series that focuses on elevating black characters’ stories in the sci-fi, fantasy genre. The highly praised series has received over a dozen accolades for its entrancing charm. Set in the American university of UNC-Chapel Hill, the author blends real world with the aspects of magic many readers can’t get enough of. The best-selling series is set to be adapted into a Netflix Original series by showrunner Felicia D. Henderson, starting with the first novel Legendborn, released back in 2020. The release of Oathbound on March 4th, has readers buzzing with anticipation for the continuation of Deonn’s highly praised series.

2025 is set to be one of the biggest years for traditionally and indie-published YA novels alike. While these are only a few of the upcoming releases, there are vast numbers of books readers are anticipating for this year.

Abigail McAvoy

Illinois '27

Hello!
My name is Abigail and I'm a communications student at UIUC. I am always looking to talk about books, movies and pop culture in general. Finding a community revolving around particular interests is so important to me and luckily I have been able to find that through writing! As I continue my efforts in communications and literature, I'm excited about the possibilities in publishing and digital media. I'm committed to staying current with industry trends and contributing to the evolution of storytelling!