Books like 'Boy Toy'

Readers who enjoyed Boy Toy by Barry Lyga also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.

contemporary  romance  psychological  north-america  usa  maryland  realistic  coming-of-age  high-school  drama 

  • Glass by Ellen Hopkins

    Glass by Ellen Hopkins

    Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars
    · 35 ratings
    Crank. Glass. Ice. Crystal. Whatever you call it, it's all the same: a monster. And once it's got hold of you, this monster will never let you go. Kristina thinks she can control it. Now with a baby to care for, she's determined to be the one deciding when and how much, the one calling the shots. But the monster is too strong, and before she knows it, Kristina is back in its grips...
    Categorized as:
    crime  dark  drama  high-school  realistic  teens  abuse  angst
  • Impulse by Ellen Hopkins

    Impulse by Ellen Hopkins

    Rated: 4.27 of 5 stars
    · 36 ratings
    Sometimes you don't wake up. But if you happen to, you know things will never be the same.Three lives, three different paths to the same destination: Aspen Springs, a psychiatric hospital for those who have attempted the ultimate act—suicide.Vanessa is beautiful and smart, but her secrets keep her answering the call of the blade...
  • Perfect by Ellen Hopkins

    Perfect by Ellen Hopkins

    Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars
    · 26 ratings
    Everyone has something, someone, somewhere else that they'd rather be. For four high-school seniors, their goals of perfection are just as different as the paths they take to get there.Cara's parents' unrealistic expectations have already sent her twin brother Conner spiraling toward suicide. For her, perfect means rejecting their ideals to take a chance on a new kind of love...
  • Tricks by Ellen Hopkins

    Tricks by Ellen Hopkins

    Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars
    · 28 ratings
    Five teenagers from different parts of the country. Three girls. Two guys. Four straight. One gay. Some rich. Some poor. Some from great families. Some with no one at all. All living their lives as best they can, but all searching ... for freedom, safety, community, family, love...
  • Smoke by Ellen Hopkins

    Smoke by Ellen Hopkins

    Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars
    · 24 ratings
    Pattyn’s father is dead. Now she’s on the run in this riveting companion to New York Times bestseller Burned, which Kirkus Reviews calls “a strong, painful, and tender piece about wresting hope from the depths of despair.”Pattyn Von Stratten’s father is dead, and Pattyn is on the run...
  • Light in the Shadows by A. Meredith Walters

    Light in the Shadows by A. Meredith Walters

    Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars
    · 24 ratings
    In the bestselling sequel to Find You in the Dark, A. Meredith Walters continues the emotional story of Maggie, Clay, and the power of unconditional love.How do you keep going when you feel like your life is over?Maggie never thought she’d see Clay again. So, she attempts to put her life back together after her heart has been shattered to pieces...
  • After Ever After by Jordan Sonnenblick, Nick Podehl

    After Ever After by Jordan Sonnenblick, Nick Podehl

    Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars
    · 25 ratings
    Even though the cancer should be far behind him, Jeffrey still worries that it will return. He's got normal teen stuff to deal with, too - friends, parents, girls, school.Normally, he'd ask his older brother, Steven, for advice. But Steven, always the trusty, responsible one, is finally rebelling and has taken off to Africa to join a drumming circle and 'find himself.'Jeffrey feels abandoned...
  • The Way I Used to Be by Amber Smith

    The Way I Used to Be by Amber Smith

    Rated: 4.18 of 5 stars
    · 28 ratings
    In the tradition of Speak, this extraordinary debut novel shares the unforgettable story of a young woman as she struggles to find strength in the aftermath of an assault.Eden was always good at being good. Starting high school didn’t change who she was. But the night her brother’s best friend rapes her, Eden’s world capsizes.What was once simple, is now complex...
  • The Only Alien on the Planet by Kristen D. Randle

    The Only Alien on the Planet by Kristen D. Randle

    Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars
    · 16 ratings
    New town, new school, new friends. It was difficult for Ginny at first, but her senior year is finally starting to feel kind of normal. That is, until she sees him—the beautiful mystery in her English class. He has never spoken a word to anyone. He moves through each day at school without making eye contact. His name is Smitty Tibbs, but everyone calls him the Alien...
  • Lesson In Trust: Part Two by Kay Elle Parker

    Lesson In Trust: Part Two by Kay Elle Parker

    Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
    · 6 ratings
    Is this a fairytale or is it reality?From one strength to another, Callie’s relationship with her Daddies is growing exponentially. Not only has she found the kind of love she’s always dreamed of, it seems that love is contagious, connecting both Elias and Evander together as well.Balanced between her Dark Daddy and her Golden one, she finds peace in their embrace, safety in their kisses...
    Categorized as:
    age-gap  dark  crime  lgbtq  romance  steamy  reverse-harem  mlm
  • I Am Grey by Jane Washington

    I Am Grey by Jane Washington

    Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars
    · 12 ratings
    “Me and you. It’ll never happen. Not today, not tomorrow, not five years from now. Not when some idiot breaks your heart, or when you realise what your little sundresses do to everyone. Not when you’re thirty, not when you’re fifty. I’m going to push your limits, break you down, make you cry, and in the end … I’ll save you...
  • Suicide Watch by Kelley York

    Suicide Watch by Kelley York

    Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars
    · 14 ratings
    18-year-old Vincent has spent his entire life being shuffled from one foster home to the next. His grades sucked. Making friends? Out of the question thanks to his nervous breakdowns and unpredictable moods. Still, Vince thought when Maggie Atkins took him in, he might've finally found a place to get his life--and his issues--in order.When Maggie dies, it all falls apart...
  • It's Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini

    It's Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini

    Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars
    · 43 ratings
    Like many ambitious New York City teenagers, Craig Gilner sees entry into Manhattan's Executive Pre-Professional High School as the ticket to his future. Determined to succeed at life--which means getting into the right high school to get into the right college to get the right job--Craig studies night and day to ace the entrance exam, and does. That's when things start to get crazy...
  • At the Edge of the Universe by Shaun David Hutchinson

    At the Edge of the Universe by Shaun David Hutchinson

    Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars
    · 18 ratings
    From the author of We Are the Ants comes “another winner” (Booklist, starred review) about a boy who believes the universe is slowly shrinking as the things he remembers are being erased from others’ memories.Tommy and Ozzie have been best friends since the second grade, and boyfriends since eighth. They spent countless days dreaming of escaping their small town—and then Tommy vanished...
  • Crank by Ellen Hopkins

    Crank by Ellen Hopkins

    Rated: 4.18 of 5 stars
    · 41 ratings
    In Crank, Ellen Hopkins chronicles the turbulent and often disturbing relationship between Kristina, a character based on her own daughter, and the "monster," the highly addictive drug crystal meth, or "crank." Kristina is introduced to the drug while visiting her largely absent and ne'er-do-well father...
  • The Girl of Diamonds and Rust by Andrea McKay

    The Girl of Diamonds and Rust by Andrea McKay

    Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars
    · 6 ratings
    “Maybe this is love. Protecting the part of yourself most important to you and knowing when to let go so that you can keep a small piece of that person alive and real in your heart.”~~Chrissie Parker “He will never need you the way I need you. He will never want you as I want you. He will never love you the way I love you. I don’t care if you are in love with Alan. I am in love with you...
  • The Girl of Tokens and Tears by Susan Ward

    The Girl of Tokens and Tears by Susan Ward

    Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars
    · 8 ratings
    “I should never had fallen in love with Alan. He is like a drug, my secret addiction, and I am trapped in the hold of him.” ~Chrissie Parker “When I call, you’ll come. You won’t be able to stop yourself. We’re spending the rest of our lives together in bed, Chrissie. Get used to the idea.” ~Alan Manzone “We’re both in love with people who are not good for us. People we can’t be with...
  • Stronger Than You Know by Jolene Perry

    Stronger Than You Know by Jolene Perry

    Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars
    · 10 ratings
    After police intervention, fifteen-year-old Joy has finally escaped the trailer where she once lived with her mother and survived years of confinement and abuse. Now living with her aunt, uncle, and cousins in a comfortable house, she’s sure she’ll never belong. Wracked by panic attacks, afraid to talk to anyone at her new school, Joy’s got a whole list of reasons why she’s crazy...
  • Mistrust by Margaret McHeyzer

    Mistrust by Margaret McHeyzer

    Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars
    · 12 ratings
    NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING YA NOVEL I'm the popular girl at school.The one everyone wants to be friends with.I have the best boyfriend in the world, who's on the basketball team.My parents adore me, and I absolutely love them. My sister and I have a great relationship too.I'm a cheerleader, I have a high GPA and I'm liked even by the teachers...
  • Girl Against the Universe by Paula Stokes

    Girl Against the Universe by Paula Stokes

    Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars
    · 18 ratings
    Maguire is bad luck.No matter how many charms she buys off the internet or good luck rituals she performs each morning, horrible things happen when Maguire is around. Like that time the roller coaster jumped off its tracks. Or the time the house next door caught on fire. Or that time her brother, father, and uncle were all killed in a car crash—and Maguire walked away with barely a scratch...
  • Clean by Juno Dawson

    Clean by Juno Dawson

    Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars
    · 18 ratings
    I can feel it swimming through my veins like glitter ... it's liquid gold.When socialite Lexi Volkov almost overdoses, she thinks she's hit rock bottom.She's wrong. Rock bottom is when she's forced into an exclusive rehab facility.From there, the only way is up for Lexi and her fellow inmates, including the mysterious Brady...
  • Letting Ana Go by Anonymous

    Letting Ana Go by Anonymous

    Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars
    · 20 ratings
    In the tradition of Go Ask Alice and Lucy in the Sky, a harrowing account of anorexia and addiction.She was a good girl from a good family, with everything she could want or need. But below the surface, she felt like she could never be good enough. Like she could never live up to the expectations that surrounded her. Like she couldn’t do anything to make a change...
  • If There's No Tomorrow by Jennifer L. Armentrout

    If There's No Tomorrow by Jennifer L. Armentrout

    Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars
    · 24 ratings
    Lena Wise is always looking forward to tomorrow, especially at the start of her senior year. She's ready to pack in as much friend time as possible, to finish college applications and to maybe let her childhood best friend Sebastian know how she really feels about him. For Lena, the upcoming year is going to be epic—one of opportunities and chances...
  • Words on Bathroom Walls by Julia Walton

    Words on Bathroom Walls by Julia Walton

    Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars
    · 24 ratings
    Adam is a pretty regular teen, except he's navigating high school life while living with paranoid schizophrenia. His hallucinations include a cast of characters that range from the good (beautiful Rebecca) to the bad (angry Mob Boss) to the just plain weird (polite naked guy). An experimental drug promises to help him hide his illness from the world...
  • The Rise by Shari King, Shari Low

    The Rise by Shari King, Shari Low

    Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars
    · 18 ratings
    When we bury our secrets, they always come back to haunt us...Their rise was meteoric.Only a few years before, they had been three friends from Glasgow, just trying to survive tough lives of danger and dysfunction.But on one Hollywood evening in 1993, they were on the world’s biggest stage, accepting their Oscar in front of the watching world.That night was the beginning of their careers...
  • One Boy's Shadow by Ross A. McCoubrey

    One Boy's Shadow by Ross A. McCoubrey

    Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars
    · 6 ratings
    "Fifteen-year-old Caleb Mackenzie doesn’t put up a fight when his father announces the family is moving to Stapeton, Nova Scotia. In fact, Caleb looks forward to a fresh start in the scenic little area. Their new home, Wakefield House, sports large rooms, a big barn where Caleb can work on cars, and acres of forested land for privacy. But it also has a troubling past...
  • Roam by Anna Brooks

    Roam by Anna Brooks

    Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars
    · 8 ratings
    She was my daughter’s best friend. She stood next to me and held my hand while my little girl’s pink casket was lowered into the ground. The last time I saw her she was chasing me down the street as I left the town that was slowly suffocating me to death. But now she’s a woman and she needs my help. So I’ll save her and ask for nothing in return...
  • Not What It Seems by Nicky James

    Not What It Seems by Nicky James

    Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars
    · 8 ratings
    They say I killed them. They say I’m sick. They’re wrong. Nothing is as it seems. Renowned psychiatrist Dr. Cyrus Irvine takes his job and his life very seriously. He is well-respected in his field and has worked hard to get where he is. But he’s lonely. When called in to do a mental health evaluation on a murder suspect, the last thing he expects to find is the man he slept with a few months ago...
  • I Will Save You by Matt de la Peña

    I Will Save You by Matt de la Peña

    Rated: 4.07 of 5 stars
    · 14 ratings
    Kidd is running from his past and his future. No mom, no dad, and there’s nothing for him at the group home but therapy. He doesn’t belong at the beach where he works either, unless he finds a reason to stay.   Olivia is blond hair, blue eyes, rich dad. The prettiest girl in Cardiff...
  • What I Lost by Alexandra Ballard

    What I Lost by Alexandra Ballard

    Rated: 4.05 of 5 stars
    · 19 ratings
    A searing yet ultimately uplifting young adult novel about a teenage girl's recovery from anorexia.Sixteen-year-old Elizabeth has honed a dangerous skill: starving herself. Even when her parents send her to a treatment center, she can't stop. Then she begins receiving packages from someone she doesn't know...
  • Rumble by Ellen Hopkins

    Rumble by Ellen Hopkins

    Rated: 4.05 of 5 stars
    · 20 ratings
    Can an atheist be saved? The New York Times bestselling author of Crank and Tricks explores the highly charged landscapes of faith and forgiveness with brilliant sensitivity and emotional resonance."There is no God, no benevolent ruler of the earth, no omnipotent grand poobah of countless universes. Because if there was ..
  • Some Boys by Patty Blount

    Some Boys by Patty Blount

    Rated: 4.05 of 5 stars
    · 20 ratings
    Some boys go too far. Some boys will break your heart. But one boy can make you whole.When Grace meets Ian she's afraid. Afraid he'll reject her like the rest of the school, like her own family. After she accuses the town golden boy of rape, everyone turns against Grace. They call her a slut and a liar. But...Ian doesn't. He's funny and kind with secrets of his own...
  • Under Rose-Tainted Skies by Louise Gornall

    Under Rose-Tainted Skies by Louise Gornall

    Rated: 4.05 of 5 stars
    · 22 ratings
    Norah has agoraphobia and OCD. When groceries are left on the porch, she can't step out to get them. Struggling to snag the bags with a stick, she meets Luke. He's sweet and funny, and he just caught her fishing for groceries. Because of course he did. Norah can't leave the house, but can she let someone in? As their friendship grows deeper, Norah realizes Luke deserves a normal girl...
  • Bad Romance by Heather Demetrios

    Bad Romance by Heather Demetrios

    Rated: 4.03 of 5 stars
    · 18 ratings
    A heart-wrenching novel about a sixteen-year-old girl trapped in an abusive relationship—and the path she takes to freedom and happiness, from award-winning author Heather Demetrios.“Like Speak, it is one of those rare books that can have a real, lasting impact on readers, and can start important conversations.” —Adi Alsaid, author of Let’s Get Lost and Never Always SometimesGrace wants out...
  • Hate List by Jennifer Brown

    Hate List by Jennifer Brown

    Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars
    · 33 ratings
    Five months ago, Valerie Leftman's boyfriend, Nick, opened fire on their school cafeteria. Shot trying to stop him, Valerie inadvertently saved the life of a classmate, but was implicated in the shootings because of the list she helped create. A list of people and things she and Nick hated. The list he used to pick his targets...
  • Hold Still by Nina LaCour, Nina Schindler

    Hold Still by Nina LaCour, Nina Schindler

    Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars
    · 27 ratings
    An arresting story about starting over after a friend’s suicide, from a breakthrough new voice in YA fiction.dear caitlin, there are so many things that i want so badly to tell you but i just can’t.Devastating, hopeful, hopeless, playful . . . in words and illustrations, Ingrid left behind a painful farewell in her journal for Caitlin...
  • Collision Course by S.C. Stephens

    Collision Course by S.C. Stephens

    Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars
    · 24 ratings
    Lucas had it all—popularity, a devoted girlfriend, a brotherly best friend, and a loving mother who would do anything for him. His life was right on course to be successful and fulfilling…until the crash changed everything.Late at night, during a sudden downpour, three young lives are lost and Lucas, the lone survivor, is left to face the consequences...
  • The Rose Petal Beach by Dorothy Koomson

    The Rose Petal Beach by Dorothy Koomson

    Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars
    · 20 ratings
    Every love story has a dangerous twist. Tamia Challey is horrified when her husband, Scott, is accused of something terrible – but when she discovers who his accuser is, everything goes into freefall. Backed into a corner and unsure what to think, Tamia is forced to choose who she instinctively believes...
    Categorized as:
    crime  drama  friendship  lgbtq  adult  audiobook  book  contemporary
  • Lucy in the Sky by Anonymous

    Lucy in the Sky by Anonymous

    Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars
    · 20 ratings
    A riveting first-person tale of addiction, in the tradition of Go Ask Alice and Jay’s Journal.The author of this diary began journaling on her sixteenth birthday. She lived in an upper middle class neighborhood in Santa Monica with her mom, dad, and Berkeley-bound older brother. She was a good girl, living a good life...but one party changed everything...
    Categorized as:
    coming-of-age  dark  drama  high-school  lgbtq  realistic  teens  book
  • Drowning Instinct by Ilsa J. Bick

    Drowning Instinct by Ilsa J. Bick

    Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars
    · 19 ratings
    There are stories where the girl gets her prince, and they live happily ever after. (This is not one of those stories.) Jenna Lord’s first sixteen years were not exactly a fairytale. Her father is a controlling psycho and her mother is a drunk. She used to count on her older brother—until he shipped off to Afghanistan. And then, of course, there was the time she almost died in a fire...
  • Split by Swati Avasthi

    Split by Swati Avasthi

    Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars
    · 18 ratings
    Sixteen-Year-Old Jace Witherspoon arrives at the doorstep of his estranged brother Christian with a re-landscaped face (courtesy of his father’s fist), $3.84, and a secret...
  • Right Behind You by Gail Giles

    Right Behind You by Gail Giles

    Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars
    · 18 ratings
    When he was nine, Kip set another child on fire. Now, after years in a juvenile ward, he is ready for a fresh start. But the ghosts of his past soon demand justice, and he must reveal his painful secret...
  • Underwater by Marisa Reichardt

    Underwater by Marisa Reichardt

    Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars
    · 16 ratings
    In order to move on after a traumatic experience, Morgan must learn to forgive - first someone who did something that might be unforgivable, and then herself.But Morgan can't move on. She can't even move beyond the front door of the apartment she shares with her mother and little brother. Morgan feels like she's underwater, unable to surface. Unable to see her friends. Unable to go to school...
  • The Lucky Ones by Liz Lawson

    The Lucky Ones by Liz Lawson

    Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars
    · 16 ratings
    For fans of Thirteen Reasons Why, This Is How It Ends, and All the Bright Places, comes a new novel about life after. How do you put yourself back together when it seems like you've lost it all?May is a survivor. But she doesn't feel like one. She feels angry. And lost. And alone...
  • Bait by Alex Sanchez

    Bait by Alex Sanchez

    Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars
    · 15 ratings
    After Diego lands himself on probation for fighting, he doesn't trust his probation officer, Mr. Vidas. But as he begins to open up, Diego realizes that he needs Mr. Vidas's help to get his anger under control. To do that, Diego will need to face the nightmares from his past head-on and confront the memories he's been avoiding...
  • Let It Go by Mercy Celeste

    Let It Go by Mercy Celeste

    Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars
    · 12 ratings
    When alcohol and fierce tempers land two cowboys from the rodeo circuit under house arrest, it may be time to Let It Go. Can hidden secrets and a common enemy hold the key to happiness or... will they destroy them both? Creed was the main focus of Eli’s fierce temper. For ten years the two men left a trail of destruction in their wake, with rodeo, beer, and fists all they had in common...
    Categorized as:
    crime  dark  drama  lgbtq  north-america  sports  usa  abuse
  • The Red Sheet by Mia Kerick, C. Kennedy

    The Red Sheet by Mia Kerick, C. Kennedy

    Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars
    · 10 ratings
    One October morning, high school junior Bryan Dennison wakes up a different person helpful, generous, and chivalrous a person whose new admirable qualities he doesn't recognize. Stranger still is the urge to tie a red sheet around his neck like a cape.Bryan soon realizes this compulsion to wear a red cape is accompanied by more unusual behavior...
  • Someone Knows by Vi Keeland

    Someone Knows by Vi Keeland

    Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars
    · 10 ratings
    An English professor’s deadly past comes back to haunt her in this chilling and sexy thriller from #1 New York Times bestselling author Vi Keeland.As a college English professor, Elizabeth looks forward to the start of each new semester teaching her creative writing seminar. At least until she reads chapter one of The Reckoning, a tale about a high school senior who has an affair with her teacher...
    Categorized as:
    crime  dark  drama  age-gap  romance  mystery  fiction  psychological
  • Inferno by Kathryn C. Kelly

    Inferno by Kathryn C. Kelly

    Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars
    · 8 ratings
    I’m a rocker with the eyes of the world on me. Waiting for my triumph or my downfall…just waiting. Most of my life is in my hands. My destiny? That’s another story. My destiny isn’t as debt free. My band, Phoenix Rising, arrives in Houston to cut a new album. Before we perform our first concert in the city and I choose my groupies of the night, I’m thrust into debauchery...
  • The Art of Insanity by Christine Webb

    The Art of Insanity by Christine Webb

    Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars
    · 6 ratings
    High schooler Natalie Cordova has just been diagnosed with Bipolar disorder. Her mom insists she keep it secret.Putting up a front and hiding her mental illness from her classmates is going to be the hardest thing high schooler Natalie Cordova has ever done. It’s her senior year, and she’s just been selected to present her artwork at a prestigious show...
Boy Toy by Barry Lyga
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