Books like 'Frankie & Bug'
Readers who enjoyed Frankie & Bug by Gayle Forman also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
historical mystery historical-fiction realistic north-america california lgbtq usa season-summer family
-
The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles
Rated: 4.32 of 5 stars · 41 ratingsThe bestselling author of A Gentleman in Moscow and Rules of Civility and master of absorbing, sophisticated fiction returns with a stylish and propulsive novel set in 1950s AmericaIn June, 1954, eighteen-year-old Emmett Watson is driven home to Nebraska by the warden of the work farm where he has just served a year for involuntary manslaughter...Categorized as:
coming-of-age family friendship historical-fiction north-america realistic season-summer usa -
Echo by Pam Muñoz Ryan
Rated: 4.32 of 5 stars · 28 ratingsAn impassioned, uplifting, and virtuosic tour de force from a treasured storyteller!Lost and alone in a forbidden forest, Otto meets three mysterious sisters and suddenly finds himself entwined in a puzzling quest involving a prophecy, a promise, and a harmonica...Categorized as:
bullying children coming-of-age family friendship historical-fiction latinx-mc poc-mc -
This Was a Man by Jeffrey Archer, Susanna Tuomi-Giddings
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsIn Whitehall, Giles Barrington discovers the truth about his wife Karin from the Cabinet Secretary. Is she a spy or a pawn in a larger game? Harry Clifton sets out to write his magnum opus, while his wife Emma completes her ten years as Chairman of the Bristol Royal Infirmary, and receives an unexpected call from Margaret Thatcher offering her a job... -
The Attic Child by Lola Jaye
Rated: 4.35 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsA hauntingly powerful and emotionally charged novel about family secrets, love and loss, identity and belonging.Two children trapped in the same attic, almost a century apart, bound by a shared secret. Early 1900s Taken from his homeland, twelve-year-old Celestine spends most of the time locked away in the attic of a large house by the sea...Categorized as:
historical-fiction poc-mc family social-commentary fiction historical mystery audiobook -
-
The Dance in the Dark by Sophie Cleverly
Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsSomething is brewing in the halls of Rookwood School... For twin sisters Scarlet and Ivy, boarding school has been a horrid mix of murderous headmasters, painful punishments, and vicious classmates. But it's a new year, and things are looking up. The kindly Mrs. Knight is in charge, their classmates have been civil, and the weather is even brightening up...Categorized as:
children family historical-fiction law-enforcement action-adventure book children-books fiction -
The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett
Rated: 4.24 of 5 stars · 81 ratingsFrom The New York Times-bestselling author of The Mothers, a stunning new novel about twin sisters, inseparable as children, who ultimately choose to live in two very different worlds, one black and one white.The Vignes twin sisters will always be identical...Categorized as:
coming-of-age family historical-fiction lgbtq poc-mc realistic season-summer social-commentary -
The Whispers in the Walls by Sophie Cleverly
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsWhen the walls begin to speak, it is unwise to ignore what they have to say...At the bidding of their cold-hearted stepmother, twin sisters Scarlet and Ivy are sentenced to board for a year at Rookwood School. The headmaster is cruel, the hallways are drafty, and there seems to be a thief afoot...Categorized as:
children family historical-fiction law-enforcement realistic action-adventure boarding-school book -
The Orphan Keeper by Camron Wright
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsBased on a remarkable true story of Taj Rowland. Seven-year-old Chellamuthu's life is forever changed when he is kidnapped from his village in India, sold to a Christian orphanage, and then adopted by an unsuspecting couple in the United States. It takes months before the boy can speak enough English to tell his parents that he already has a family back in India...Categorized as:
coming-of-age family friendship historical-fiction realistic action-adventure audiobook book -
The Lost Twin by Sophie Cleverly
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsIvy, I pray that it's you reading this. And if you are, well, I suppose you're the new me...When shy Ivy's troublemaking twin Scarlet vanishes from Rookwood boarding school, Ivy is invited to "take her place." But when Ivy arrives, she discovers the school's true intention; she has to pretend to be Scarlet. She must think like Scarlet, act like Scarlet, become Scarlet... -
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 104 ratingsTo Kill A Mockingbird The unforgettable novel of a childhood in a sleepy Southern town and the crisis of conscience that rocked it, To Kill A Mockingbird became both an instant bestseller and a critical success when it was first published in 1960. It went on to win the Pulitzer Prize in 1961 and was later made into an Academy Award-winning film, also a classic... -
The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store by James McBride
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 28 ratingsThe new novel from the bestselling, National Book Award-winning, Oprah Book Club-picked, Barack Obama favourite James McBride.In 1972, when workers in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, were digging the foundations for a new development, the last thing they expected to find was a skeleton at the bottom of a well...Categorized as:
north-america usa historical-fiction poc-mc friendship family social-commentary pennsylvania -
Smiling at Heaven by Karen J. Hasley
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsIn the fall of 1919, Thea Hansen’s world seems to spiral out of control. First, her dearly loved father dies suddenly from the influenza epidemic sweeping across the globe. Then her brother, Lloyd, returns from The Great War transformed into a brooding stranger. Could it get any worse? Yes, indeed... -
The Lost Girls of Devon by Barbara O'Neal
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsIt’s been years since Zoe Fairchild has been to the small Devon village of her birth, but the wounds she suffered there still ache. When she learns that her old friend and grandmother’s caretaker has gone missing, Zoe and her fifteen-year-old daughter return to England to help.Zoe dreads seeing her estranged mother, who left when Zoe was seven to travel the world...Categorized as:
bullying coming-of-age family friendship historical-fiction realistic adult audiobook -
Dreamland Burning by Jennifer Latham
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsSome bodies won't stay buried.Some stories need to be told. When seventeen-year-old Rowan Chase finds a skeleton on her family's property, she has no idea that investigating the brutal century-old murder will lead to a summer of painful discoveries about the present and the past...Categorized as:
coming-of-age family friendship historical-fiction lgbtq poc-mc realistic social-commentary -
-
Hetty Feather by Jacqueline Wilson
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsLondon, 1876 and Hetty Feather is just a tiny baby when her mother leaves her at the Foundling Hospital. The Hospital cares for abandoned children - but Hetty must first live with a foster family until she is big enough to go to school.Life in the countryside is hard but with her 'brothers' Jem and Gideon, she helps in the fields and plays imaginary games...Categorized as:
children coming-of-age family friendship historical-fiction realistic 21st-century action-adventure -
The Great Brain by John D. Fitzgerald, Mercer Mayer
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsThe best con man in the Midwest is only ten years old. Tom, a.k.a., the Great Brain, is a silver-tongued genius with a knack for turning a profit. When the Jenkins boys get lost in Skeleton Cave, the Great Brain saves the day...Categorized as:
children family friendship historical-fiction north-america realistic usa 20th-century -
Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson
Rated: 4.16 of 5 stars · 25 ratingsIn this moving debut novel, two estranged siblings must set aside their differences to deal with their mother's death and her hidden past—a journey of discovery that takes them from the Caribbean to London to California and ends with her famous black cake. We can't choose what we inherit...Categorized as:
california coming-of-age family historical-fiction lgbtq north-america poc-mc realistic -
The Quarry Girls by Jess Lourey
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 31 ratingsMinnesota, 1977. For the teens of one close-knit community, summer means late-night swimming parties at the quarry, the county fair, and venturing into the tunnels beneath the city. But for two best friends, it’s not all fun and games.Heather and Brenda have a secret. Something they saw in the dark. Something they can’t forget. They’ve decided to never tell a soul...Categorized as:
north-america usa historical-fiction coming-of-age minnesota mystery fiction suspense -
The Velvet Room by Zilpha Keatley Snyder
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsRobin was always wandering off (her mother's words) to get away from the confusion she felt inside her. It was not until Robin's father found a permanent job at the McCurdy ranch, after three years as a migrant worker, that Robin had a place to wander to... -
The Parker Inheritance by Varian Johnson
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsThe letter waits in a book, in a box, in an attic, in an old house in Lambert, South Carolina. It's waiting for Candice Miller.When Candice finds the letter, she isn't sure she should read it. It's addressed to her grandmother, after all, who left Lambert in a cloud of shame. But the letter describes a young woman named Siobhan Washington. An injustice that happened decades ago...Categorized as:
bullying children coming-of-age family friendship historical-fiction law-enforcement lgbtq -
A Sky Painted Gold by Laura Wood
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsThe Great Gatsby meets I Capture the Castle in this gorgeously dreamy coming-of-age romance perfect for fans of A Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue.It is the summer of 1929. Lou Trevelyan is a small-town girl with big dreams of becoming a writer. Then she meets the Cardew siblings: the bubbly Caitlin and her handsome, enigmatic brother, Robert...Categorized as:
coming-of-age friendship historical-fiction lgbtq realistic season-summer 20th-century audiobook -
Legacy by Clifford Riley
Rated: 4.16 of 5 stars · 19 ratingsThe first of seven brand new 39 clues stories, leading up to one explosive reveal.Time is running out for Grace Cahill as she struggles to make the most important choice of her life: a decision that will shape the future of the Cahill family... and the world at large...Categorized as:
children family historical-fiction realistic action-adventure book children-books fiction -
Our Last Days in Barcelona by Chanel Cleeton
Rated: 4.15 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsWhen Isabel Perez travels to Barcelona to save her sister Beatriz, she discovers a shocking family secret in New York Times bestselling author Chanel Cleeton’s new novel.Barcelona, 1964. Exiled from Cuba after the revolution, Isabel Perez has learned to guard her heart and protect her family at all costs. After Isabel’s sister Beatriz disappears in Barcelona, Isabel goes to Spain in search of her... -
A Splendid Ruin by Megan Chance
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsA spellbinding novel of dark family secrets and a young woman’s rise and revenge set against the backdrop of the devastating 1906 San Francisco earthquake.The eve of destruction. After her mother’s death, penniless May Kimble lives a lonely life until an aunt she didn’t know existed summons her to San Francisco. There she’s welcomed into the wealthy Sullivan family and their social circle...Categorized as:
california coming-of-age family friendship historical-fiction north-america usa 20th-century -
-
The Black Book of Buried Secrets by Mallory Kass, Rick Riordan
Rated: 4.12 of 5 stars · 25 ratingsFor the past five hundred years, the Cahills have silently dominated the world. Their desperate hunt for the 39 Clues lies behind some of history’s biggest enigmas – the curse of the Hope diamond, the race to summit Mt. Everest, the wild life and death of Harry Houdini. And now – finally – the secrets are out...Categorized as:
children family historical-fiction law-enforcement realistic action-adventure book children-books -
The Girls in the Stilt House by Kelly Mustian
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 28 ratingsSet in 1920s Mississippi, this debut Southern novel weaves a beautiful and harrowing story of two teenage girls cast in an unlikely partnership through murder—perfect for readers of Where the Crawdads Sing and If the Creek Don't Rise.Ada promised herself she would never go back to the Trace, to her hard life on the swamp and her harsh father...Categorized as:
north-america usa historical-fiction coming-of-age friendship family season-summer mississippi -
The Cursed Ground by T.R. Simon
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsA powerful fictionalized account of Zora Neale Hurston’s childhood adventures explores the idea of collective memory and the lingering effects of slavery.“History ain’t in a book, especially when it comes to folks like us. History is in the lives we lived and the stories we tell each other about those lives... -
When the Ground Is Hard by Malla Nunn
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsIn this stunning and heartrending tale set in a Swaziland boarding school, two girls of different castes bond over a shared copy of Jane Eyre.Adele Joubert loves being one of the popular girls at Keziah Christian Academy. She knows the upcoming semester at school is going to be great with her best friend Delia at her side...Categorized as:
bullying coming-of-age family friendship historical-fiction law-enforcement poc-mc realistic -
Mail Order Mystery by Robin Deeter
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsLeigh Hawthorne, a widow and local farmer in Beckham, Massachusetts, enlists the services of Elizabeth Miller, the creator of the nationally published, Groom’s Gazette, to find a husband. Leigh is a strong woman, who knows her own mind, and she’s willing to travel across the country to Oklahoma to in the hope of finding love again... -
The Promise of Rain by Vasundra Tailor
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsA treasured necklace that could unlock a family mystery. But why has it been hidden away for sixty years?With her thirtieth birthday on the horizon, Anna Kotze has accepted that there are some family secrets she’ll never know. While her mother’s Zimbabwean roots are woven into her life, all her father will say is that he was adopted...Categorized as:
family coming-of-age historical-fiction friendship fiction audiobook mystery female-mc -
Fireworks by Clifford Riley
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsThe last of seven brand new 39 Clues stories, with an explosive secret revealed!The holidays can be hard for any family, but they're particularly tough for the Cahills. Amy Cahill is exhausted from her training. Dan can't forget the tragedies he witnessed on the Clue hunt. Ian and Natalie Kabra are trying to enjoy the London festivities, but it's hard without their parents...Categorized as:
children family historical-fiction realistic action-adventure book children-books fiction -
Clover Blue by Eldonna Edwards
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsSet against the backdrop of a 1970s commune in Northern California, Clover Blue is a compelling, beautifully written story of a young boy's search for identity. There are many things twelve-year-old Clover Blue isn't sure of: his exact date of birth, his name before he was adopted into the Saffron Freedom Community, or who his first parents were... -
Invasion by Clifford Riley
Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsDan Cahill loves hanging out with his new friend, Atticus Rosenbloom, a child prodigy whose genius IQ doesn't stop him from playing video games or practicing ninja moves. It's a relief to get to pretend to be a normal kid for once, and not worry about finding Clues or looking out for Vespers...Categorized as:
children family historical-fiction law-enforcement realistic action-adventure book children-books -
Ignition by Clifford Riley
Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThink you know what happened at Grace Cahill's funeral? Think again. This top secret report reveals what REALLY occurred on that fateful day. Follow Ian and Natalie Kabra as they travel to Attleboro and discuss their strategy. Discover what the Holts were doing before they started the fire. And learn shocking information about a special guest none of the Cahills knew anything about . .Categorized as:
children family historical-fiction realistic action-adventure book children-books fiction -
-
Crushed by Clifford Riley
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsIan Kabra has an embarrassing secret. It's not that he once accidentally ate at Burger King. It's not that he still has his childhood teddy bear, Mr Buttons. It's that he can't stop thinking about a certain grubby American orphan...Categorized as:
children family historical-fiction law-enforcement action-adventure book fiction historical -
The Best Bad Luck I Ever Had by Kristin Levine
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsThe last thing Harry "Dit" Sims expects when Emma Walker comes to town is to become friends. Proper -talking, brainy Emma doesn't play baseball or fish too well, but she sure makes Dit think, especially about the differences between black and white. But soon Dit is thinking about a whole lot more when the town barber, who is black, is put on trial for a terrible crime...Categorized as:
bullying children coming-of-age family friendship historical-fiction poc-mc realistic -
Nell and Lady by Ashley Farley
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsA heart-stirring novel of family and forgiveness from bestselling author Ashley Farley. In her grand home in Charleston, Willa Bellemore raised two girls during the tumultuous 1970s. One was her daughter, Lady. The other was Lady’s best friend, Nell—adopted after the sudden, heartbreaking death of her mother, the Bellemores’ beloved maid... -
The Last Train to Key West by Chanel Cleeton
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsIn 1935 three women are forever changed when one of the most powerful hurricanes in history barrels toward the Florida Keys in New York Times bestselling author Chanel Cleeton's captivating new novel. Everyone journeys to Key West searching for something...Categorized as:
family historical-fiction latinx-mc north-america poc-mc season-summer usa 20th-century -
The Fledgling by Elizabeth Cadell
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsVitorina's escort from Lisbon to London wore a cloak of respectability which convinced the child's father and aunts, but even before the ten-year-old girl had made her disconcerting discovery of his theft from the rich, private chapel of her home, she had begun to take his measure. Circumstances, plus some contrivance on her own part, enabled the youngster to shake him off...Categorized as:
coming-of-age family historical-fiction law-enforcement book fiction historical humor -
Rewind by Marshall Thornton
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsValentine’s Day, 1993. After years of being single, Noah is finally ready to date again. Unfortunately, things don’t end too well. After spending their first night together, he wakes up covered in blood—next to his very dead date. Already convinced Noah has an abnormal attraction to murder, Detective Wellesley believes it has tipped over to actually killing someone...Categorized as:
north-america usa california lgbtq historical-fiction law-enforcement romance mystery -
Rose and the Magician's Mask by Holly Webb
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsA precious mask of unimaginable power has been stolen from the royal palace. Rose suspects that dark magicians are at work – and that danger looms...The race to stop the evil thieves will take Rose to the mysterious city of Venice, where nothing is quite what it seems..Categorized as:
children coming-of-age family friendship historical-fiction law-enforcement action-adventure book -
The World's Greatest Detective by Caroline Carlson
Rated: 4.09 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsBy the end of our time together, someone in this house will be rich. Someone will be the World’s Greatest Detective. And someone, well, someone might be dead.Detectives’ Row is full of talented investigators, but Toby Montrose isn’t one of them. He’s only an assistant at his uncle’s crime-solving business, and he’s not sure he’s even very good at that...Categorized as:
historical-fiction children law-enforcement friendship mystery middle-grade fiction young-adult -
Secrets of Heavenly by Teresa Robison
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsOlivia's marriage to an African-American man was unacceptable to her mother Emma, Southern-bred descendant of prominent South Carolina slaveholders. Olivia assumed that bigotry was the product of her mother's loyalty to long-dead relatives, an allegiance to maintain the family's white blood line. After Emma's death though, Olivia finds a letter and an old journal among her belongings...Categorized as:
historical-fiction law-enforcement north-america poc-mc usa adult audiobook black-mc -
Nooks & Crannies by Jessica Lawson, Susan Riddell
Rated: 4.07 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsSweet, shy Tabitha Crum, the neglected only child of two parents straight out of a Roald Dahl book, doesn t have a friend in the world - except for her pet mouse, Pemberley, whom she loves dearly. But on the day she receives one of six invitations to the country estate of wealthy Countess Camilla DeMoss, her life changes forever... -
-
Hunted by Clifford Riley
Rated: 4.07 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThe Vespers are looking for new recruits and have targeted a few candidates: the Cahill children on the hunt for The 39 Clues. Uncover the Vespers' chilling plan to monitor the Kabras, the Holts, Jonah, and the Starlings, and learn who they picked as the most promising Vesper . . . and future Cahill traitor...Categorized as:
children family historical-fiction realistic action-adventure book children-books fiction -
The Greengage Summer by Rumer Godden
Rated: 4.07 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsA sixteen-year-old girl captures the dangerous attention of an older man in this New York Times–bestselling novel by the author of Black Narcissus. Soon after the end of the terrible Great War, Mrs. Grey brings her five young children to the French countryside for the summer in hopes of instilling in them a sense of history and humility...Categorized as:
children coming-of-age family historical-fiction realistic season-summer audiobook bildungsroman -
The Whiz Mob and the Grenadine Kid by Colin Meloy
Rated: 4.07 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsFrom the creators of the New York Times bestselling Wildwood Chronicles comes an original, humorous, and fast-paced middle grade novel about a band of child pickpockets—imagine The Invention of Hugo Cabret meets Oliver Twist.It is an ordinary Tuesday morning in April when bored, lonely Charlie Fisher witnesses something incredible...Categorized as:
historical-fiction children friendship realistic coming-of-age family law-enforcement middle-grade -
The First State of Being by Erin Entrada Kelly
Rated: 4.07 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsWhen twelve-year-old Michael Rosario meets a mysterious boy from the future, his life is changed forever.It's August 1999. For twelve-year-old Michael Rosario, life at Fox Run Apartments in Red Knot, Delaware, is as ordinary as ever—except for the looming Y2K crisis and his overwhelming crush on his fifteen-year-old babysitter, Gibby...Categorized as:
north-america usa historical-fiction friendship children realistic coming-of-age family -
Al Capone Does My Homework by Gennifer Choldenko
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsAlcatraz Island in the 1930s isn't the most normal place to grow up, but it's home for Moose Flanagan, his autistic sister, Natalie, and all the families of the guards. When Moose's dad gets promoted to Associate Warden, despite being an unlikely candidate, it's a big deal. But the cons have a point system for targeting prison employees, and his dad is now in serious danger... -
Whisper of the Moon Moth by Lindsay Jayne Ashford
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsFrom the author of The Color of Secrets and The Woman on the Orient Express comes a poignant novel inspired by the Hollywood legend—and the secrets of—actress Merle Oberon, famous for playing Cathy to Laurence Olivier’s Heathcliff in the film Wuthering Heights. For nineteen-year-old Estelle Thompson, going to the cinema is more than a way to pass the time…it’s a way out...Categorized as:
historical-fiction coming-of-age poc-mc realistic romance historical fiction audiobook
Or - use our amazing romance book finder to get recommendations based on your favorite content tropes and themes. Mix and match at will.