Nobody does revolutions and rebellions quite like young adult science fiction and fantasy. In YA, teens are always rising up against their overlords and taking down empires. Adult fiction tends to have a lot of hemming and hawing over what to do and how to do it, but YA fiction tends to get right to the overthrowing. Someone hands a kid a sword and shoves them in the direction of the imperial figurehead or the kid steals a sword and charges off of some hastily patched together plan. I don’t know about you, but I could use a little “fight the empire” energy right about now.
Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan
You want a bloody revolution? Well, here you go. There are three castes in the Kingdom of Ikhara, and your position is determined by how much demon ancestry you have. Each year the Demon King chooses eight Paper (fully human) girls to become his new concubines, and this year is Lei’s turn. Despite everything she endures at the hands of the cruel Demon King, she finds herself falling in love with another concubine, Wren. As is tradition in these sorts of fantasy romances, Wren is full of big secrets that Lei can’t help but be pulled into. Other Paper caste humans are waging a revolution, and Lei is offered the chance to join. This isn’t an easy read by any means—the constant threat of sexual violence can be overwhelming at times—but it’s a powerhouse of a YA duology. (Girls of Paper and Fire #1, Jimmy Patterson Books, 2018)
We Set the Dark on Fire by Tehlor Kay Mejia
While this duology lacks magic or spaceships, it’s dystopian enough to feel thoroughly speculative. In the land of Medio, the patriarchy rules everything. Young women from respectable families are sent to the Medio School for Girls to learn how to be either Primeras (the perfect wife who can run the household) or Segundas (the arm candy and childbearer). Dani is paired off to the son of a high-ranking military family as a Primera and of course the girl she can’t stand, Carmen, is chosen as his Segunda. But there’s more to both girls than meets the eye. Dani grew up poor, a truth that could destroy her if ever revealed; Carmen has secrets of her own, ones that connect to a burgeoning revolution. And then there’s that pesky attraction steaming between the two of them, an attraction strictly forbidden. I often recommend this as a next step for fans of The Hunger Games or The Handmaid’s Tale, especially those who want queerness and more diversity in their dystopian fiction. (We Set the Dark on Fire #1, Katherine Tegen Books, 2019)
Belle Révolte by Linsey Miller
Emilie des Marais and Annette Boucher may look alike, but their lives are very different. Emilie lives a life of luxury as a noblewoman while Annette is a poor girl who has to work for everything. In their world, magic is wielded by nobles using commoners as hacks to take the blowback. The nobility get all the power with none of the pain. In classic YA trope fashion, the girls switch places to see how the other lives. Annette gets to learn how to use magic like the nobility and Emilie gets to learn how to be a physician’s hack, a job not open to a girl in her position. With a revolution looming on the horizon, the girls must choose sides. Miller doesn’t pull her punches when it comes to showing the devastating consequences of labor exploitation and war. There is pain and suffering but also hope and queer joy. (Sourcebooks Fire, 2020)
In the Serpent’s Wake by Rachel Hartman
Tess continues her journey of self-discovery in the sequel to the excellent Tess of the Road. Here, she joins Countess Marga on her hunt for the World Serpent. While Marga is after it for colonizer reasons, Tess hopes to connect her quigutl friend Pathka with the World Serpent as a way to make up for the consequences of her actions in the first book. As they sail south, Tess confronts the horrors of colonization and her role in it as both a citizen of the empire and an individual making choices. Tess, like most teens in the real world, is never going to lead a revolution against an empire spanning continents and centuries…and she learns the hard way that not everyone wants her to try. The folks indigenous to the islands conquered by the Ninysh know what they need and want, and teach Tess that her job is to listen and support rather than center herself as the savior of all humankind. Sometimes being a good ally is a revolutionary act in and of itself. (Tess of the Road #2, Random House Books for Young Readers, 2022)
A Song of Salvation by Alechia Dow
Alechia Dow is the only traditionally published author writing sci-fi books about Black queer teens in space. The third book in her unofficial trilogy revolving around the Ilori empire. The Ilori have colonized much of the known universe, including Earth (see The Sound of Stars for that event). Zaira is the reincarnation of the creator god, Indigo, the counter figure to the god of destruction now allied with the Ilori, Ozvios. Zaira escapes execution and teams up with Wesley, a smuggler, and Rubin, a podcaster. The three teens crisscross the galaxy as she tries to get her godly powers to work before eventually joining up with the protagonists of the first two books. Stopping Ozvios won’t destroy the Ilori empire, but it will make it harder for them to maintain dominance and easier for rebellions to succeed. (Inkyard Press, 2023)
