As the leaves change this season, so does our reading! Fall is a great time for tweens and teens to go to their local library or bookstore and find their new favourite novel.
If you enjoy great middle-grade and young adult novels like coming-of-age contemporaries, fantasy adventures or spooky dark tales, CBC Books has got you covered!
Here’s our list of Canadian novels for middle-grade readers ages 8-12 and YA readers 12 and up.
Songs for Ghosts by Clara Kumagai
Partly inspired by Puccini’s opera, Madama Butterfly, Songs for Ghosts is a haunting YA novel about a young man uncovering the history of a young woman long gone. After Adam and his boyfriend breakup, Adam is not ready to spend a summer at home with his family. When Adam finds boxes tucked away in his attic, he finds a diary detailing the life of a woman living in Nagasaki in 1911. As he reads further, the more her spirit comes forth, in this ghostly tale of lost love and Japanese history.
Songs for Ghosts is for ages 14 and up and is out now.
Clara Kumagai is a writer from Vancouver, who has also lived in Japan and Ireland. Her first book, Catfish Rolling was shortlisted for a Yoto Carnegie award in 2024. She currently lives in County Louth, Ireland.
This Place Kills Me by Mariko Tamaki, illustrated by Nicole Goux
This Place Kills Me is a YA mystery graphic novel set at the prestigious Wilberton Academy, home of the elite and exclusive Wilberton Theatrical Society. Elizabeth Woodward is a talented and popular thespian who is starring as Juliet in the Society’s performance of Romeo and Juliet. But Elizabeth is found dead the morning of opening night, and transfer student Abby is the last person to see her alive.
Abby gets pulled into the mystery of Elizabeth’s death and what is really going on at her new prep school. This Place Kills Me is told through letters, diary entries, news articles and comics.
This Place Kills Me is for ages 14 and up and is out now.
Mariko Tamaki is a Toronto-born writer. Her other books include the YA novels (you) Set Me On Fire and Saving Montgomery Sole. She’s also the author of many superhero comics for DC Comics, Darkhorse and Marvel. In 2024, she won three Eisner Awards for the graphic novel Roaming, created with her cousin Jillian Tamaki, and in 2025 she won the Eisner Award for best limited series for Zatanna: Bring Down the House, which she created with Spanish artist Javier Rodriguez.
Nicole Goux is an Eisner-nominated illustrator and cartoonist based in Los Angeles.
Bad in the Blood by Matteo L. Cerilli
Bad in the Blood is a murder mystery teen fantasy set in the 1920s-infused city of Puck’s Port. Gristle Senan Maxim Junior is a private investigator, like his father before him, looking into a murder at the docks that everyone expects to be the fey. Gristle’s sister, Hawthorne Stregoni is fey herself, which means she carries an untenable magic.
In their world, feyism is often mistrusted, so Gristle and Hawthorne must work together to crack the case and save her reputation.
Bad in the Blood is for ages 14 and up and is out now.
Matteo L. Cerilli is a transmasc writer and activist based in Toronto. He is the author of the YA horror novel, Lockjaw and the middle-grade novel, Something’s Up with Arlo. A founding member of the city-wide, student-led organization Students for Queer Liberation in Toronto, he also works with the No Pride in Policing Coalition.
Fierce Voice by Susan Currie
In the sequel to the YA novel, Iz the Apocalypse, Iz has found a good foster home and has been accepted into the music school of her dreams. Fierce Voice follows a teenage girl trying to fit in and hoping that the secrets of her past stay hidden. When she joins her classmates in an outreach program to teach younger kids about music she is taken aback by the unruly group of kids she now has to teach. Can Iz follow through and ultimately learn when it’s important to raise her voice?
Fierce Voice is for ages 12 and up and is out now.
Susan Currie is a YA writer and elementary school teacher based in Brampton, Ont. Prior to teaching, she worked within the music industry as an accompanist, choir director and more. Currie is also an adoptee and learned of her Haudenosaunee heritage in adulthood. Her other YA novel, Iz the Apocalypse, was nominated for the Forest of Reading White Pine Award.
Sisters in the Wind by Angeline Boulley
In Sisters in the Wind Lucy Smith is a foster teen on the run five years after the death of her father. Distrusting of the state, Lucy has spent the past five years treading cautiously and following her instincts. When she meets Mr. Jameson and his “friend-not-friend”, Lucy is skeptical about their interest in her case and then they tell her the truth about her heritage. Her father never told her that she is Ojibwe and has a lot of family out there. As her past threatens to come back for her, her future looms in the distance, giving Lucy a sense of hope and a determination to chase it.
Sisters in the Wind is for ages 14 and up.
Angeline Boulley is a member of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians. Bouuley writes about her Ojibway community in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. She is a former Director of the Office of Indian Education at the U.S. Department of Education. Her debut novel, Firekeeper’s Daughter, was a Reese Witherspoon book club pick and is being adapted for TV by the Obamas’ Higher Ground production company. Boulley lives in southwest Michigan.
7 Generations by David A. Robertson
In the 15th anniversary edition of 7 Generations: A Plains Cree Saga, all four graphic novels in the YA series are combined and revitalized with a new preface from author David A. Robertson. Spanning three centuries and seven generations, the graphic novels follow one Cree family through Edwin, a teenage boy who longs to feel connected to his heritage.
7 Generations is for ages 15 and up and is out now.
Robertson, a member of the Norway House Cree Nation, has released 33 titles since 2010, including picture books, graphic novels, fiction and memoir. He is a two-time winner of the Governor General’s Literary Award and is currently based in Winnipeg.
A Summer of Dragonflies by Natasha Deen
When Guppie Persaud’s dad is chosen for a teacher exchange program, the entire family packs up for a road trip from Calgary to their new home in New York City. In the middle-grade novel A Summer of Dragonflies, Guppie wants to leave her shyness behind and be her own person so she plans to sneakily enter an online photography contest. The prize? Cellphones that Guppie’s parents can’t say no to. The only problem is that she has three weeks, they are all on the road without A/C, phones or an escape from her family. Can Guppie prevail in her personal hero’s journey?
A Summer of Dragonflies is for ages 9-12 and is out now.
Natasha Deen is a Guyanese-Canadian writer of books for kids and adults. Her books include the YA novels In the Key of Nira Ghani and The Signs and Wonders of Tuna Rashad. She also teaches in the creative writing program with the University of Toronto’s School of Continuing Studies. She currently lives in Edmonton.
The Bloodstone Thief by Sabina Khan
A middle-grade fantasy inspired by Islamic mythology, The Bloodstone Thief is an adventure story with a young girl at its centre. Laila Habib is struggling to accept that she and her family will be staying in Houston, Texas, instead of going back to her old life in Mumbai. When she opens what she thinks is a birthday present, Laila accidentally releases an evil jinn from an amulet once trapped by her father. When the jinn captures Laila’s father and brings him to a world called Qaf, Laila must save him. With her world turned upside down, Laila must find a magical Bloodstone that gives her the power to send them both back to their world.
The Bloodstone Thief is for ages 9-12 and is out now.
Sabina Khan is a B.C.-based writer born in Germany, who has lived in many places like Bangladesh and Texas. She writes about Muslim teenagers who move between cultures and her other books include What a Desi Girl Wants and Zara Hossain Is Here.
The Others by Cheryl Isaacs
In the sequel to the YA horror novel, The Unfinished, the supernatural stories that lurked in the black water of the town of Crook’s Falls are seemingly gone. In The Others, Avery is excited to spend the summer with her boyfriend, Key, but the trauma of the lake is just beneath the surface. As Key begins to pull away and Avery is haunted by her memories, they’re left to question if they have truly moved on from the Kanyen’kehá:ka (Mohawk) stories they were told.
The Others is for ages 13 and up and is out now.
Cheryl Isaacs is an Indigenous writer of the Kanien’kehà tribe in Ontario. Her literary work has appeared in numerous Indigenous publications and she was named one of CBC Books’ 30 writers to watch in 2024. Her first YA novel was The Unfinished.
Qallupilluit by Louise Flaherty, Neil Christopher and illustrated by Megan Kyak-Monteith
Qallupilluit: The Takers of Children is an illustrated Inuit folktale written in both English and Inuktitut. Children in the Arctic grow up hearing about the qallupilluit, creatures that live just under the ice, and they know to tread cautiously. When David goes to play on the ice, a webbed creature emerges and he must fight his way back home. When he realizes that his younger brother had followed him out and is now missing, David must go back to save him and face the chilling creatures below.
Qallupilluit is for ages 12 and up and is out now.
Louise Flaherty is a writer and the co-founder of Inhabit Media Inc., an independent Inuk publishing house focused on books and resources by Inuit writers and illustrators. She is from Clyde River, Nunavut. Qallupilluit is co-written by Flaherty’s co-founder, Neil Christopher. He is also an educator who lives and teaches in Resolute Bay, Nunavut.
Megan Kyak-Monteith is an Inuk illustrator from Pond Inlet, Nunavut. She now lives in Halifax.
Time Surfers by Kevin Sylvester
Time Surfers is a middle-grade adventure following Caleb Fisher and his father John as they travel across time and space looking for lost artifacts. Finding crown jewels and priceless artwork along the way, they keep to a strict code — never bring back anything or anyone that would rewrite history. When John loses his wife, he decides to stay in the past longer and tells Caleb to stay behind, only that he doesn’t. As the Fishers spiral further into the past, will their futures be irrevocably changed?
Time Surfers is for ages 8-12 and is out on Sept. 30.
Kevin Sylvester, is a broadcaster and the award-winning illustrator and writer of middle-grade books such as the Neil Flambé Capers series, the MiNRS space adventure series and the Governor General’s Award–shortlisted book The Fabulous Zed Watson!, co-written with Basil Sylvester. He is currently based in Toronto.
The Dark Cove Theatre Society by Sierra Marilyn Riley
The Dark Cove Theatre Society is a gothic YA novel set in the highly intense atmosphere of an arts boarding school. Violet Costantino dreams of being on-stage, but after last semester’s final performance goes awry, she knows she’s on borrowed time at the academy. When she’s unexpectedly cast in a leading role for the Halloween play, she falls for the allure of the theatre again. Violet’s former crush and another incredibly talented student being cast as her love interest also might have something to do with it. All is going to plan until she remembers the curse of the society, a rumour that one cast member is said to drop out mysteriously every year.
The Dark Cove Theatre Society is for ages 12 and up and is out on Oct. 7.
Sierra Marilyn Riley is a queer Italian-Canadian writer and actor who has starred in Hallmark’s Mistletoe Murders and Amazon Prime’s Motorheads. She is currently based in Toronto and The Dark Cove Theatre Society is her debut novel.
Wavelength by Cale Plett
In the YA novel Wavelength, a young pop star and the lead singer of an alt-rock band are drawn to each other. Sasha is a 17-year-old nonbinary artist, famous by name but kept anonymous because of the way they cover their face during performances. When Sasha decides to finish out their senior year of high school in a midwestern city, they meet Lillian, the lead singer of Wavelength. As Sasha and Lillian contend with their growing feelings for each other, Sasha worries what will happen if everyone finds out who they really are.
Wavelength is for ages 12 and up and is out on Oct. 7.
Cale Plett is a nonbinary, genderfluid writer from Winnipeg. They are a Lambda Literary fellow and have participated in the Emerging Writers Residency at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity. Wavelength is their debut novel.
A Promise to Protect by Nikki Bergstresser
In grieving the loss of her aunt, 13-year-old Sidney also learns that the old-grown forest along the edge of her town might soon be destroyed. A Promise to Protect is a middle-grade novel about Sidney’s fight to save the forest and preserve the natural environments of the Pacific Northwest. With her youngest brother, Riley and her best friend by her side, Sidney approaches the Elders of her community and together they bring awareness of the forest, as well as the stories old and new that it holds. Will all of their efforts be enough to preserve the land?
A Promise to Protect is for ages 8-12 and is out on Oct. 14.
Nikki Bergstresser is a children’s writer based in B.C. Her picture books include Lila Lou’s Little Library and Seasons for Stones. A Promise to Protect is her first middle-grade novel.
A Riddle of Thorns by Sarena Nanua and Sasha Nanua
A Riddle of Thorns is a YA fantasy set in an alternate Edwardian period Paris where the reverence for Roman gods continued. When Sana Gupta finally returns to her gothic French home to claim her inheritance, she meets three peculiar strangers waiting for her. Fox is a prodigy, Isabelle shares a tenuous past with Sana and Minho is a handsome genius. At Razorthorn Manor, Sana is set on detangling the mysteries of the estate — why her mom disappeared long ago and where a suspected mystic treasure hides.
A Riddle of Thorns is for ages 14 and up and is out on Oct. 14.
Sasha and Sarena Nanua are YA authors and twin sisters based in Ontario. Born minutes apart from each other, they grew up loving stories about twins, magic, friendship and ghosts, and began writing books together at a young age. Their novels include Sisters of the Snake and sequel, Daughters of the Dawn.
He’s So Possessed With Me by Corey Liu
In the satirical YA horror novel He’s So Possessed With Me, Ren thinks he’s truly in love. When best friends Ren and Colin sneak into a club they know they are too young to be in, a series of mysterious events lead to a terrifying nightmare. They only remember pieces of the evening: a thick fog, the boys who harassed them as they left the club and an eerie figure coming out of the woods.
The next day, Ren is completely changed, and a new guy claiming to be interested in him only draws Colin into further suspicion. As the truth about what happened comes to fore, Colin realizes he has to save his best friend from the literal demon set on his heart.
He’s So Possessed With Me is for ages 14 and up and is out on Oct. 14.
Corey Liu is a Vancouver author and screenwriter. He has worked on TV shows like Family Law, Pinecone & Pony and recently co-executive produced for Gangnam Project, a Kpop series. He’s So Possessed With Me is his debut novel.
I Won’t Feel This Way Forever by Kim Spencer
I Won’t Feel This Way Forever follows Mia in the summer of 1989, as she learns what life is like without her ex-best friend Lara. What starts off as a leisurely summer watching TV and learning how to jar fish with her relatives, turns into a serious one as Mia’s grandmother’s health worsens and she’s sent to a hospital in Vancouver. When Mia, her mom and her aunties go into the city, Mia doesn’t expect to experience so many new things and new people. She joins a basketball camp and she meets a coach who inspires her to go further into her own identity as an Indigenous person.
As Mia reckons with the reality that her grandma might not recover, she grows closer to her family and her own identity.
I Won’t Feel This Way Forever is for ages 9-12 and is out on Oct. 14.
Kim Spencer is a writer and member of the Ts’msyen Nation in northwest B.C., and she currently lives in Vancouver. Her work has appeared in Filling Station magazine and was shortlisted for the Alberta Magazine Publishers Association Award. Her debut novel, Weird Rules to Follow won three prizes at the 2023 Canadian Children’s Book Awards, including the $50,000 TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award.
Kindred Dragons by Sarah Mensinga
Kindred Dragons is a middle-grade graphic novel and fantastical tale of a young girl named Alice and her obsession with dragons. Alice is upset that her parents are making her live with her strict grandmother on Prince Edward Island, but she makes do by waiting for the fairies to finally bring her a Kindred dragon egg. In the woods, Alice comes upon an old dragon named Brim, but when he gets sick Alice is determined to save her new friend.
Kindred Dragons is for ages 9-12 and is out on Oct. 14.
Sarah Mensinga is a Canadian writer and illustrator of several books for children including the Trillium Sisters series and Shimmerdark. She is currently based in Texas.
Robot Island by Cary Fagan
Willis is not excited to live in a dusty old house with his even dustier uncles Tod and when Tod gives him odd jobs to do after school, he becomes more and more miserable. That is, until he’s told to look after Mrs. Shorthouse, an old widow who lives in the mansion up the hill. When Willis comes across an abandoned 1950s-esque town nearby, he meets many mysterious robots. In an unexpected turn of events, Willis unpacks the connection between his new friend Mrs. Shorthouse and Robot Island.
Robot Island is for ages 8-12 and is out on Oct. 14.
Cary Fagan is an Ontario author of books for adults and children. He has published more than 25 books for young readers including the popular Kaspar Snit novels, the two-volume Master Melville’s Medicine, Boney and the picture book King Mouse, which was a 2019 finalist for the Governor General’s Literary award for children’s literature — illustration.
Quiet Crossings by Vivi Partridge
In the YA graphic novel Quiet Crossings, Selena lands a job at a mysterious inn. When she crashes her truck in the countryside, she makes a deal with the innkeeper to help out in exchange for room and board. The attraction of this inn? The complimentary ferryman ride that takes you beyond the present world. As each customer comes and goes, never to return, Selena grows more and more wary of what she’s gotten herself into.
Quiet Crossings is for ages 13 and up and is out on Oct. 28.
Vivi Partridge is a queer artist and writer from Toronto. A recent graduate from Seneca Polytechnic’s illustration course, they table their art across comic conventions. Their work has also been featured in galleries across southern Ontario. Quiet Crossings is their debut graphic novel.
Beautiful Brutal Bodies by Linda Cheng
Beautiful Brutal Bodies is a YA horror novel with a thrilling sapphic romance. Tian is a singer with a growing online fanbase but she is confined to an isolated mansion. Liya is Tian’s sharp-toothed childhood friend who is tasked with being her bodyguard. After a deadly incident on one of her livestreams, Tian and Liya are sent to a remote island in the South China Seas where they meet a troubled idol named Shenyu. As the wade deeper into the forest, the three realize the island is not what it seems, hiding something much more sinister.
Beautiful Brutal Bodies is for ages 14 and up and is out on Nov. 4.
Linda Cheng is a Taiwanese writer and former art director in South Carolina and Georgia. Her first novel was the YA book Gorgeous Gruesome Faces. She currently lives in Vancouver.
Always Raining Here by Hazel and Bell
In the adaptation of the webcomic by the artists known as Hazel and Bell, two gay teens fall for one another after much trial and tribulation. Always Raining Here is a YA graphic novel about Carter, a fun-loving guy determined to hook up with someone and Adrian, the now single guy Carter is set on. When Adrian realizes he’s not quite over his ex, the two decide to form a friendship, which only grows messier and deeper each day.
Always Raining Here is for ages 14 and up and is out on Nov. 11.
Hazel and Bell are two B.C.-based webcomic creators: Hazel is the illustrator and Bell is the writer. The pair have worked together on webcomics since 2011, including the ongoing project Electric Bones.
