Books like 'Leslie's Journal'
Readers who enjoyed Leslie's Journal by Allan Stratton also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
contemporary romance realistic high-school drama dark crime coming-of-age
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Drama High: Second Chance by L. Divine
Rated: 4.57 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsBack for another dose of high drama, Compton’s sassiest, Jayd Jackson, is about to discover it really is a different world when she starts dating South Bay High's finest white boy…All Jayd Jackson wants is a drama-free year at South Bay High, a.k.a. Drama High. But it doesn't seem she's going to get it... -
Looking for Alaska / An Abundance of Katherines / Paper Towns / The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsFour critically acclaimed, award-winning modern classics from #1 New York Times-bestselling author John GreenThis John Green deluxe box set includes Printz Award–winning Looking for Alaska, Printz Honor book An Abundance of Katherines, Edgar Award–winning Paper Towns, and #1 New York Times–bestselling The Fault in Our Stars... -
Traffick by Ellen Hopkins
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsFive teens victimized by sex trafficking try to find their way to a new life in this riveting companion to the New York Times bestselling Tricks from Ellen Hopkins, author of Crank... -
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This is All: The Pillow Book of Cordelia Kenn by Aidan Chambers
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsSubtitled The Pillow Book of Cordelia Kenn this is the story of Cordelia from the time she is 15 until she is 20. She is pregnant and plans to give this account to her daughter on her 16th birthday so that they can share their youth together...Categorized as:
coming-of-age drama high-school realistic bildungsroman book contemporary epistolary -
A Rose for Melinda by Lurlene McDaniel
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsTold in letters, journal entries, e-mails, doctors’ reports, and instant messages, the heartbreaking story of an aspiring ballet dancer battling leukemia. From: Melinda Skye To: Readers Subject: Jesse Hi! I can’t believe it. What a surprise from Jesse... -
Prosper by Paula Marinaro
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsProsper Worthington is a decorated war hero, a convicted felon, and the ex-cellmate and road companion of his best friend, Jack Winston. Different as two men can be, Prosper is rough, hot-headed, focused, and driven. He’s also had more than enough of Jack’s spur-of-the-moment decisions, faulty reasoning, and Peter Pan-like existence... -
Just Me by L.A. Fiore
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsLark O'Bannion learned early that life isn't really like a fairy tale. Parents don't always love their children unconditionally, damsels, or even terrified and lonely little girls, are usually left to deal with their distress alone, Prince Charming rarely, if ever, comes riding to the rescue, and happily-ever-afters are a lovely concept but, in reality, are few and far between...Categorized as:
coming-of-age dark high-school book contemporary fiction friends-to-lovers new-adult -
Falling to Pieces by Jamie Canosa
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsSuffering the bitter tongues of her alcoholic mother and cruel boyfriend, Jade struggles just to look at herself in the mirror. She hates her life, her insecurities, her ineptitudes, but most of all . . . Jade hates herself. She wants nothing more than to disappear, and everyone seems happy to let her. Until Kiernan Parks moves back into town... -
The Sister Switch by Jane B. Mason, Sarah Hines Stephens
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsAndie and Caitlin are identical twins who couldn't be less alike. Fed up with being lumped together, the girls can't wait to start junior high. There, they'll finally be able to pave their own way. But it turns out that being mistaken for each other might work in their favor... -
Snitch by Allison van Diepen
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsIn a school run by gangs, staying out was harder than joining. We knew who our friends were, and were careful what we said. If people thought we were haters, it would only be a matter of time....Lines are clearly marked at South Bay High School. It's mixed territory for the Crips and the Bloods, which means the drama never stops. Julia DiVino wants none of it... -
Streiker's Bride by Robin Hardy
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsHe had a lot to offer, but his terms were high... -
Love & War by Jackie Chanel
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsBorn and raised in Miami, Florida, Caprice was on the fast track to becoming a young CEO. Raised by her former supermodel mother, Caprice was supposed to follow the path that her mother’s stilettos left. Until a letter from her father, mafia don; Domani Bonatelli, changed the course of her life... -
Empire of Lies by Kylie Kent
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsThirty years ago, I left Italy. I left him behind to marry another man. I thought I was leaving alone; I didn’t know I was carrying a piece of him with me... -
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The Kings of Nowhere by C.G. Drews
Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsAvery Lou has given up stealing houses — now he’s meant to build them. Forced to stay with the De Lainey family until Sam’s return from juvie, Avery feels like he’s drowning. He hates that Sam chose the De Laineys instead of running away with him. And he hates working in their construction company while Vin, the thief who hurt Sam, still walks free. Avery wants revenge... -
Love is Blind by Shayna B.
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsHailey Baker was a normal teenager- friends, the occasional party and a great boyfriend. But that all changes one night when an accident kills her parents and leaves Hailey with a serious back injury. Seven months after the accident, Hailey has struggled to learn to walk again and is now about to start at a new school after moving in with her uncle...Categorized as:
coming-of-age high-school realistic book contemporary disability fiction womens-fiction -
Takedown by Allison van Diepen
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsA teen infiltrates a drug ring to settle a vendetta in this fast-paced novel from the author of Street Pharm and Snitch .Darren took the fall for Diamond Tony, the notorious head of the city’s drug cartel. Two years later, Darren’s finally out of juvie—and determined to get even.Working as an informant for the police, Darren infiltrates Diamond Tony’s operation... -
Ethan Between Us by Anna Myers, Julia Laserna
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsEthan is different. He is gorgeous, easy to talk to, and a uniquely gifted pianist. But his musical talent is both a gift and a curse. The doctors label him a schizophrenic, as he claims to have been taught by a long-dead, 19th-century composer... -
Savage Devotion by Ajme Williams
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsIt’s crazy that I felt safer in the arms of a mob boss than I ever did with my ex-boyfriend... A life of abuse is all I've known when I finally run from it.Damian stares into my scared eyes as he holds me close.Little do I know that a man as dangerous as him will end my troubles....and bring new enemies into my life.But I can tolerate danger so long as I have him holding me... -
Enlightened by J.P. Barnaby
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsLittle Boy Lost is the story of Brian McAllister, the boy next door. Brian goes to school, does his homework, and helps his foster parents around the house. Brian also has a secret: he is in love with his best friend, Jamie. But in Crayford, Alabama, being in love with another boy is the worst kind of sin. Brian and Jamie will discover just how deep their emotional bond runs, and at what cost... -
Street Pharm by Allison van Diepen
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsIf a brother wanna get ahead, he gotta use every minute to better himself. Everything I did made me better -- tougher, stronger, richer, smarter -- or I didn't do it. Take high school. A waste of time. Nobody there taught me what I needed to survive on the streets.... Ty Johnson knows survival... -
Float by Kate Marchant
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsA heartfelt summer read for fans of Sarah Dessen and Jenny Han about holding on and letting go.Waverly Lyons has been caught in the middle of her parents’ divorce for as long as she can remember. This summer, the battle rages over who she’ll spend her vacation with, and when Waverly’s options are shot down, it’s bye-bye Fairbanks, Alaska and hello Holden, Florida to stay with her aunt...Categorized as:
high-school realistic coming-of-age romance young-adult contemporary fiction season-summer -
Too Young to Die by Lurlene McDaniel
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsAt sixteen, Melissa Austin has always worked hard to make things go her way. As the school year begins, her grades are up and she's even landed a coveted spot on the high school Brain Bowl team. She and her best friend, Jory Delaney, are determined to have the best junior year ever.Then suddenly Melissa must face some devastating news about her health... -
One on One by Tabitha King, Stephen King
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsA high school basketball star and a defiant outcast discover a profound love that sustains them through a triumphant but painful year... -
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My High School Life by angellover254
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsMeet Isabella Ace, a 300 pound girl who was voted the 'ugliest girl' at Woodway Prep; a school for the rich. Sick of all the bullies, mostly Thomas Reed, she decided to change. Eight months later she's back, better than ever, and ready for revenge. Throw in a teasing jock, a jealous cheerleader, a goth best friend, a childhood best friend, a hot trainer, and an overprotective brother... -
A Year In Europe by Rachel Hawthorne
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsMEET THE GIRLS of "A Year in Europe, "a collection of three interconnecting novels about the adventures of traveling abroad. Robin: Her junior year abroad in London takes a surprising turn when she falls for British hottie Kit. Dana: Paris is the City of Love, and Dana's on a mission to find a gorgeous French boyfriend. Carrie: She's crazy about Antonio, her Italian dream guy... -
Surviving High School by M. Doty
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsWhat's the secret to surviving your freshman year of high school? Emily Kessler thinks she has it all figured out. She eats, sleeps and trains for competitive swimming. All she has to do is keep her grades high and swim times short -- short enough to live up to her sister Sara's. But walking the crowded maze of unfamiliar high school hallways is like diving headfirst into shark-infested waters... -
The Comeback by Marlene Perez
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsA novel about ruling high school, being exiled, and fighting your way back to your rightful throne.Sophie Donnelly is one half of the most popular and powerful couple in school, until new girl Angie Vogel shows up and compromises everything. Angie steals Sophie's starring role in the school play, and, worse, her super-popular boyfriend...Categorized as:
coming-of-age high-school realistic book contemporary fiction friendship womens-fiction -
Sorrow Woods by Beckie Stevenson
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 6 ratings“How did you even get here?”I blink at him, confused by his question. “We live here.”“You live here, in these woods?” When Kaiden stumbles across Serena Scott whilst hunting in Sorrow Woods he thinks all of his birthdays have come at once. Finally, the girl that’s haunted and intrigued him and his parents for the last fourteen years is standing in front of him. And she’s alive... -
Toxic by Raquel Valldeperas
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsI didn't mean to let everything get so bad. I never had control over the variables in my life, and that was okay. That's just the way it was. But the drugs were supposed to be my constant, my escape, my refuge. They weren't supposed to pull me under and hold me down, bring me to the brink of death and keep me in that in-between state... -
Safer Outside by Kristina Renee
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsWhen Liz moves to a new high school, she hopes for a fresh start. School is her escape from the violence at home and her only hope at breaking the cycle of poverty she was born into. Trying to shield her siblings from her stepfather's fury gets harder each day so when she meets Logan, she thinks it will be a harmless distraction from the fear. She's Wrong... -
Outrunning The Darkness by Anne Schraff
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsThemes: Hi-Lo, High school, neighborhoods, family, loyalty, friendship, urban teen fiction, self esteem, teen relationships, unrequited love. Written for young adults, the Urban Underground series confronts issues that are of great importance to teens, such as friendship, loyalty, drugs, gangs, abuse, urban blight, bullies, and self-esteem to name a few... -
The Art of Insanity by Christine Webb
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsHigh 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...Categorized as:
realistic high-school coming-of-age drama romance mental-illness young-adult contemporary -
A Matter of Heart by Amy Fellner Dominy
Rated: 3.90 of 5 stars · 10 ratings“Will make your heart pound — anxiously, joyfully, triumphantly.” — New York Times bestselling author Lauren Myracle Readers will happily dive into this emotionally grounded, contemporary young adult novel about the sudden end of one girl’s Olympic swimming dreams and the struggles she endures before realizing there are many things that express who we are... -
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Audible Love by Maggie Dallen
Rated: 3.88 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsLove is blind? This starlet doesn't believe it. Then again...she's never been starstruck. As a child star turned teenage diva, Avery has played a lot of roles in her lifetime. Not one of them was as difficult as pretending to be an ordinary girl at a normal high school. Well, relatively normal. Trudale is a boarding school for the arts, catering to the elite...Categorized as:
high-school coming-of-age realistic romance young-adult contemporary fiction female-mc -
Sever by J.M. Miller
Rated: 3.83 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsOne simple decision can end a future. One simple persuasion can sever a life. The moment Annisyn Kane slips her rake pick into the lock of a stranger's door, the straight life she's led the last few years is scratched out. In the past, the goal was never theft. It was to escape. From life. From death. To quiet the dreams that replayed an affliction she longed to forget... -
Revenge of the Geek by Piper Banks
Rated: 3.83 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsSome people have to learn the hard way-don't mess with a geek. Miranda Bloom, girl genius, is totally psyched to start her junior year at Geek High. Too bad her boyfriend, lacrosse player Dex McConnell, is off to boarding school in Maine. Miranda thought she could count on her best friends, Finn and Charlie, to cheer her up, but they're caught up in their own issues..Categorized as:
coming-of-age high-school realistic book contemporary female-mc fiction womens-fiction -
The Fifth Rule by Don Aker
Rated: 3.83 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsFormer young offender Reef Kennedy is back in Halifax for the funeral of his mentor, Frank Colville. He has no intention of staying long -- memories of Frank compete with memories of Leeza and the terrible way their relationship ended. And then there's the restraining order against him, which Leeza's mother has renewed.... Leeza, in the meantime, id feeling stifled by her mother's "concern... -
The Death of Lila Jane by Teresa Mummert
Rated: 3.83 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsFrom New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Teresa Mummert comes a cautionary coming of age tale. Lila Jane is spending her summer vacation preparing for high school. She does everything asked of her, but her parents rarely give her credit for her efforts... -
Kind of Sort of Fine by Spencer Hall
Rated: 3.83 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsSenior year changes everything for two teens in this coming-of-age story that looks at what happens when the image everyone has of us no longer matches who we really are.Senior year of high school is full of changes. For Hayley Mills, these changes aren’t exactly welcome...Categorized as:
coming-of-age realistic high-school romance young-adult contemporary mental-illness fiction -
Twisted Lies by Kai Juniper
Rated: 3.83 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsThe series is complete! Addictive. Steamy. The series you can't put down! Binge read all four books now!"You don’t belong here."That’s what they said when I showed up at Twisted Pine Academy.As if I wanted to be there. I’d do anything to go back to my life in New York instead of living in California with my egomaniac uncle and his spoiled-rotten sons... -
This Beats Perfect by Rebecca Denton, Billie Fulford-Brown
Rated: 3.83 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsAmelie Ayres has impeccable taste in music. Bowie. Bush. Bob. So when she finds herself backstage at The Keep’s only UK gig she expects to hate it; after all they are world’s most tragic band. In fact she feels a grudging respect – not (obviously) for their music, but for the work that goes in to making them megastars...Categorized as:
high-school realistic coming-of-age romance contemporary young-adult audiobook fiction -
Belong With Me by Jessica Cunsolo
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsIn the gripping sequel to BE WITH ME, Jessica Cunsolo takes us back to the world of With Me.When Siena Amato moved to King City, all she wanted to do was take care of her sister, maybe reconnect with her long-absent father, and keep her head down and her grades up... -
Never Do a Wrong Thing by Marcus Herzig
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsComing out is hard enough on its own, but if you have a crush on your best buddy, things get really complicated.Best friends since kindergarten, best friends forever. That was the plan. High school sophomores Tim and Tom know everything there is to know about each other … or at least they should, but Tim has a secret that could change everything he doesn’t want to see changed... -
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The Sweet, Terrible, Glorious Year I Truly, Completely Lost It by Lisa Shanahan
Rated: 3.86 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsIN MY FAMILY, when anyone rides the wave of their emotions, we say they're chucking a birkett. When the emotion drives out all common sense, we say they're chucking a big one. The telltale signs are: flaming cheeks, shortness of breath, bulging eyes, and a prolonged illogical outburst... -
The Law of Tall Girls by Joanne Macgregor
Rated: 3.83 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsWhen you really stand out, can you ever fit in?Seventeen-year-old Peyton Lane is a tall girl. So tall, it’s the only thing most people notice about her. On impulse, she accepts a bet to prove she can be as attractive and desirable as other girls. Now she just needs to go on four dates (including the prom) with one of the guys on her very short list of very tall boys... -
A Shot at Normal by Marisa Reichardt
Rated: 3.90 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsDr. Villapando told me to get a good attorney. He wasn't serious. But I am. I'm going to sue my parents.Juniper Jade's parents are hippies. They didn’t attend the first Woodstock, but they were there for the second one. The Jade family lives an all-organic homeschool lifestyle that means no plastics, no cell phones, and no vaccines... -
Gluttony by Robin Wasserman
Rated: 3.80 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsIt's Vegas, baby! Anything can happen. Reed has a (small) chance to win fame and fortune, thanks to his "entourage," Beth. Sick of feeling like a loser, Harper's betting she can win back her life, starting with Miranda -- whose birthday wish just might come true.... Adam's also getting lucky, with a certain ex-girlfriend. Kane, as usual, is playing hard -- and not very nice... -
The First Stone by Don Aker
Rated: 3.80 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsREEF IS AN EMBITTERED YOUNG OFFENDER, hardly able to contain his anger at the world over the death of his grandmother, the only person who had shown him any love. Seventeen-year-old Leeza is mourning the death of her older sister. A stone hurled in rage shatters both their lives and throws them together in the most unexpected way―and offers them a chance at healing... -
The Perfectly Imperfect Match by Kendra C. Highley
Rated: 3.75 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsPitcher Dylan Dennings has his future all mapped out: make the minors straight out of high school, work his way up the farm system, and get called up to the majors by the time he's twenty-three. The Plan has been his sole focus for years, and if making his dreams come true means instituting a strict " no girls" policy, so be it...
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