What Are The Biggest YA Books for Fall?: A Look at the Blockbuster Releases

There is little science behind figuring out what books will hit it big. That statement is both one that’s true and one that’s a little bit misleading. Authors who have had breakout hits or who are reliably good or who have a history of being award winners will be pretty good bets on seeing their latest book be “big.” But beyond that, much of it comes down to what’s hot in the publishing market and how much money and publicity/marketing effort goes into any title.

In the YA world and beyond, much of that effort can be visualized through print runs and ad spending that happens even before the book is anywhere near hitting shelves. Print runs are the projected number of books to be published—it’s not always accurate nor necessarily true, but instead, a picture of anticipated interest—and advertisement on books pre-publication can be in your traditional outlets, as well as newsletters, social media, influencers, and the one that has become more and more prominent in the last several years: flashier spots in publisher catalogs on sites like Edelweiss.

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I pulled together a big roundup in the fall of 2024 of the YA books positioned to be among the biggest in the first part of 2025, and I used this as my example for how I worked a little art and a little science. You can see the print run right in the advertisement for Avatar, the Last Airbender: The Reckoning of Roku by Randy Ribay:

Let’s run with this again, but with a look at what the biggest books of fall 2025 are likely to be. These are based on the very last thing mentioned above, titles that boast a sizable print run and that have garnered more space in any given publisher catalog. If you work in any place where young people will be seeking out books, like a library or classroom, you might want to preorder these. If you’re simply a lover of all things YA, well, here’s your opportunity to get ahead of the curve with what will likely be hot at the start of the new year.

I’ve broken this down into two lists. All of the books considered for these lists are from the big five publishers for the sake of ease. It should come as little surprise that, despite better work in publishing books by people of color, they still do not get the same level of marketing/publicity cash as white author counterparts do.

In this first list, each book will have projected print runs beginning at 100,000 copies, if that information was provided. I’ve noted what was listed in each catalog entry and want to point out that some of these have significant print runs not only in their hardcover editions but in deluxe editions publishing simultaneously. A couple of paperbacks have pretty impressive numbers, too, which you’ll see.

A 100,000 print run is huge. It also doesn’t necessarily mean that that many copies will be published, but it is a pretty certain indication the intention is for that book to be a lead title.

The second is for publishers who do not provide print run information; some publishers, like Penguin Random House and Scholastic, simply don’t include this in their catalogs. I’ve pulled titles with flashy advertising in the catalog and/or are selling entire display sets of that title. That’s pre-publication spending they’re making in hopes of catching the attention of future bulk buyers.

Something noteworthy with this season’s blockbuster books: there is a LOT of money being put into romantasy. Hopefully this comes with a nice payoff, but given that earlier this month Publisher’s Weekly reported a softening in romantasy sales for adult books, there’s definitely going to be some uncertainty here. You’ll also find plenty of familiar names among the big YA books of fall 2025, as well as titles from bestselling series. I did not include titles here being reprinted or promoted again with fancy hardcover or paperback editions; I wanted this to be about the new books and not the older titles now being repackaged for the special edition audience (an example would be Sabaa Tahir’s Heir or a reissue of The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky).

By Noted Print Runs

The YA titles below all have print runs of 150,000:

• Avatar: The Last Airbender: The Awakening of Roku by Randy Ribay–this is the sixth entry into the popular tie-in series.
• Eternal Ruin by Tigest Girma–the third and final entry into a trilogy.
• Holly: A Belladonna Novella by Adalyn Grace–speaking of novellas being novel length, this one clocks in at 384 pages. There is zero reason why it’s called a novella given that heft, but alas.
• The Sleepless by Jen Williams–this is the first in a new series.
• The Ruling Class and Lessons in Power by Jennifer Lynn Barnes are reissues of “The Fixer” series, which published beginning in 2015. These paperbacks are getting 150,000 print runs each.
• A Steeping of Blood by Hafsah Faizal–this second entry into the series will land with a nice size print run.
• Roar of Lambs by Jamison Shea

The YA title below will have print runs of 125:

• Where There’s Room for Us by Hayley Kiyoko

The YA titles below all have print runs of 100,000:

• Immortal Dark by Tigest Girma–the paperback edition of book two in the series has a nice size print run.
• Never Ever After by Sue Lynn Tan–a Cinderella-inspired fantasy from a beloved writer of fantasy with plenty of romance. It’s the first in a series.
• Bitten by Jordan Stephanie Gray–a werewolf romantasy
• Starchaser by R. M. Gray–the second in a romantic adventure series.
• The Scammer by Tiffany D. Jackson–It’s Tiffany D. Jackson at her best.
• Not Today Satan by Samantha Joyce–a rompy romantic adventure read
• Rules for Fake Girlfriends by Raegan Revord
• Break Wide the Sea by Sara Holland
• Hazelthorn by CG Drews
• Blood Moon by Britney S. Lewis
• The Resurrectionist by Kathleen S. Allen–this may be one of my favorite covers in a long time.
• Witchlore by Emma Hinds
• Lemons and Lies by Alexis Castellanos
• The Leaving Room by Amber McBride–it’s nice to see McBride not only earning accolades for her outstanding writing and storytelling but seeing a big push behind her latest, too.
• Witchlight by Susan Dennard–not to be confused with the above-mentioned WitchLORE.
• The Demon and the Light by Axie Oh
• There’s Always Next Year by Leah Johnson and George M. Johnson–I don’t know about you, but this writing duo has me so excited.

Two other books I wanted to include on the big print run list but that didn’t quite make it to the 100,000 mark include Thorn Season by Kiera Azar (yes, romantasy) and Flip by Ngozi Ukazu (it’ll have a 95,000 print run between the simultaneous hardcover and paperback releases).

By Splashy Advertising and/or Display Opportunities

Here are what publishers are promoting heavily already, even if they don’t have print run numbers to share. You know they’re going to be well-positioned by bonus advertising right in Edelweiss and/or the inclusion of book displays in the publisher catalogs.

It won’t be surprising to see many familiar names here, as well as popular series and franchises.

• To The Stars and Back by Peglo–a graphic novel
• You’ve Found Oliver by Dustin Thao–the next novel by the author of the super popular You’ve Reached Sam.
• If Looks Could Kill by Julie Berry
• Last Chance Live! by Helena Haywoode Henry–pitched as Squid Game meets Dear Justyce. I get some Gretchen McNeil #MurderTrending here, too.
• Deadly Ever After by Brittany Johnson
• The Book of Dust: The Rose Field by Philip Pullman
• We Fell Apart by E. Lockhart–I bet the print run is among the top of the top, given the popularity of We Were Liars, both the book and adaptation. Note–after publication, a publicist reached out to confirm a 300,000 first printing.
• When We Were Monsters by Jennifer Niven
• And The River Drags Her Down by Jihyun Yun–this looks like a book that’ll land with fans of Trang Thanh Tran.
• The Weaver Bride by Lydia Gregovic
• Let’s Split Up by Bill Wood–the selling points in the catalog for this one note that it had huge sales in the UK, so it feels primed for a big US audience.
• The Dead of Summer by Ryan La Sala
• Coldwire by Chloe Gong
• Fake Skating by Lynn Painter

It’s going to be a busy fall, and we’re in for plenty of great reads–this only scratches the surface in what’s hitting shelves in the latter part of 2025.