These Best mystery books for teens are not to be missed, whether you’re a reader who likes to read by the fire or on the edge of your seat.
This collection includes stories from the past, present, and future, so there’s something for everyone. So put on your deerstalker hat and magnifying glass and get ready to investigate.
Who wants to solve a murder with a group of true crime fans? It’s a fictional murder, so you can have all the joy of cracking a case without having to deal with the dead bodies.
Unless you’re in the business of solving real-life murders? In that case, thank you very much. But there’s a lot about mystery books that keep your teen wanting more.
There are fascinating, untrustworthy characters, high stakes from start to finish, and the joy of attempting to figure out the plot for ourselves. It’s like a Law & Order: S.V. episode (YOU).
Here are our best mystery books for teens.
1. The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman
Four friends gather in an expensive English retirement village every Thursday to explore unsolved homicides.
However, when a terrible death occurs right outside their door, they find themselves in the middle of their first real case. Will they be able to apprehend the killer before it’s too late?
It’s easy to see why this cozy crime caper has become so popular. Additionally, it’s funny, charming, and full of personality.
It’s one to read now if you haven’t already, with more installments on the way.
2. Pretty Girl-13 by Liz Coley
Pretty girl is one of the best mystery books for teens. When she went to Girl Scout Camp with her buddies, Angie was thirteen years old and lost in the woods.
She is sixteen when she returns home from camp and has no recollection of the years that have passed. What went wrong?
Additionally, she still acts thirteen, as if she’s just returned from camp. However, everyone claims she is sixteen years old and has been gone for three years.
What went wrong with her? Why hasn’t she remembered anything? What is it that she is attempting to forget?
3. The Box In the Woods by Maureen Johnson
Stevie Bell, an amateur sleuth, desperately needs a good murder. She’s back at home for a typical (read: boring) summer after arresting a killer at her high school.
However, she receives a message from the owner of Sunny Pines, formerly known as Camp Wonder Falls, the location of the infamous unsolved Box in the Woods Murders.
Additionally, four camp counselors were murdered in the woods outside of Barlow Corners in 1978, and their remains were left in a horrific display.
Meanwhile, the new owner extends an invitation to Stevie to come to the camp and assist him in producing a true-crime podcast about the case.
4. Started Early, Took My Dog by Kate Atkinson
Started Early, Took my dog is one of the best mystery books for teens. This intriguing title stars semi-retired private detective Jackson Brodie, who witnesses an unexpected event in a Leeds retail center.
What follows is an investigation into a historical crime that has repercussions today.
Additionally, a moving and fascinating state-of-the-nation story that incorporates humor and grim issues. There’s more to appreciate in this fourth installment of the Jackson Brodie series once you’re hooked!
5. The Arsonist by Stephanie OAKES
A mystery binds Molly, Pepper, and Ava, three youngsters. Molly receives a parcel one day that transports her to Pepper—a secret with it.
Ava was assassinated in 1989, and her death resulted in the fall of the Berlin Wall. But something isn’t quite right, and Molly and Pepper must figure it out. Moreover, they set out to achieve just that with the help of Ava’s diary.
However, they aren’t getting the whole truth from everyone. Someone is anxious to uncover the riddle, and someone is trying to stop them.
6. A Good Girl Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson
A good girl guide to murder is one of the best mystery books for teens. Andie Bell, a popular high school senior, was murdered by her lover, Sal Singh, who then committed himself.
Everyone was talking about it. And now, five years later, Pip observes how the catastrophe still haunts her town.
But she can’t eliminate the notion that something more happened that day. Since she was a child, Sal had been a friend of hers, and he had always been very nice to her. He couldn’t have been a murderer, could he?
Additionally, now a senior, Pip chooses to revisit the closed case for her final project, ostensibly disproving the initial findings. But she soon uncovers a trail of dark secrets that could prove Sal’s innocence.
And the line between past and present blurs. Someone in Fairview doesn’t want Pip looking for answers, and her life is now in jeopardy.
7. A Dying Fall by Elly Griffiths
Dr. Ruth Galloway, a forensic archaeologist who is used to death, is taken aback when she discovers that her friend and ex-colleague Dan Golding was killed in a house fire.
However, Ruth becomes sure that someone was out to get Dan after receiving a letter from him the day before the fire, informing her that he had made a groundbreaking discovery that might transform archaeology forever.
Additionally, Ruth is lured into the case by DCI Harry Nelson to seek justice for Dan. However, this is an excellent pick for any book club, as it contains all of the elements of a Galloway classic, including a thrilling final fight.
8. A Spy in The House by Y.S. Lee
A spy in the house is also on our list of best mystery books for teens. A Spy in the House is set in Victorian London and tells the story of orphan Mary Quinn. Mary is rescued and sent to a finishing school after being caught stealing.
This appears to be a bizarre turn of events—and it’s only going to get stranger. Meanwhile, Miss Scrimshaw’s Academy for Girls is revealed to be a front for The Agency, a top-secret all-female crime-fighting team.
Furthermore, Mary goes undercover as a lady’s companion after being taught. To investigate some missing merchandise, she infiltrates the family of a wealthy merchant. This house, however, hides many secrets, and nothing is as it seems.
9. The Diviners by Libba Bray
Evie O’Neill has been deported from her dull old hamlet and transported to the frantic streets of New York City, and she is positively giddy.
New York was teeming with speakeasies, Ziegfeld girls, and rakish pickpockets in 1926. The only catch is that she’ll have to share her home with her uncle Will and his sick occult preoccupation.
Additionally, Evie is afraid he’ll find out about her deepest secret: a supernatural ability that has only gotten her into trouble so far.
When the police discover a murdered girl, whose body is branded with a mysterious symbol, and Will is sent to the site, Evie understands that her talent could aid in the capture of a serial killer.
Other stories develop in the city that never sleeps as Evie dives headfirst into a dance with a murderer. Furthermore, Memphis, a young man, is torn between two worlds. Theta, a chorus girl, is running away from her past.
10. My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite
My sister tries serial killer is also one of the best mystery books for teens. When Korede gets a distress call from her sister, Ayoola, she knows what she must do: bleach, rubber gloves, steel nerves, and a strong stomach. However, this will be Ayoola’s third boyfriend, killed in self-defense.
This deliciously brilliant and hilarious debut in Nigeria offers a darkly comedic family story about how blood is thicker than water – and more challenging to get out of the carpet. It’s unique and delightful, with intriguing characters who leap off the page and a fast-paced plot.
11. This is Our Story by Ashley Elston
Five friends go hunting one day. Only four people make it out of the forest alive. Grant has been shot and killed, and none of his buddies have spoken forward. They’ve agreed to remain silent to protect the killer among them.
While the lads try to keep their secrets hidden, Kate Marino, a photojournalist and DA’s office intern work to solve the case. Nothing is as it seems in This is Our Narrative, a story of privilege, retribution, and corruption.
12. You Were Never Here by Kathleen Peacock
You were never here is one of the best mystery books for teens. Since she was twelve years old, Cat hasn’t visited Montgomery Falls, the community her family created.
Additionally, she’d found over the summer that she could accomplish things that no other twelve-year-old could since she kissed Riley Fraser for the first time because she shattered their friendship. She’s back now, five years later, and Riley has vanished.
When Riley’s brother, Noah, asks for help in figuring out what occurred, Cat is divided between wanting to know the truth and keeping the secret she’s been keeping since she and Riley stopped speaking that summer. Only one option will place her in the sights of a killer.
13. Two Can Keep A Secret by Karen M.McManus
Echo Ridge is the epitome of small-town America. Ellery hasn’t visited, but she’s heard a lot about it. Her aunt went missing there when she was seventeen years old.
A homecoming queen put the town on the map only five years ago before she was killed. In addition, Ellery now has to relocate to the area to live with a grandma she has never met.
Furthermore, the village appears to be picture-perfect, but it conceals mysteries. And, before Ellery’s first day of school, someone declares homecoming open season, pledging to make it as dangerous as it was five years before. Then another girl goes missing, almost as if to confirm it.
Additionally, Ellery is well-versed in the field of secrecy. Her mother has them, as did her grandmother. And the longer she stays in Echo Ridge, the more she realizes that everyone there has something to hide.
The problem is that secrets are dangerous, and most people aren’t very adept at maintaining them. As a result, it’s the safest option in Echo Ridge.
14. My Lovely Wife by Samantha Downing
My lovely wife is one of the best mystery books for teens. Millicent and her husband have happily married parents of two adolescent children.
Still, they have a dark secret: they enjoy murdering each other to keep the flame alive in their marriage. Literally! This fascinating read tackles modern relationships and how far we’d go for the one we love, and it’s a great conversation starter.
However, it’s delectable household suspense with darkly comedic overtones. After reading it, you’ll never say “my gorgeous wife” the same way again.
15. Sadie by Courtney Summer
Sadie has had a torturous existence. Since she was a child, she’s been raising her sister Mattie in a small, secluded village, doing her best to provide a decent life for them and keep their heads above water.
However, when Mattie is discovered dead, Sadie’s entire world falls apart. Sadie is determined to find her sister’s killer after a botched police investigation, so she sets out on the road with only a few indications to help her.
Additionally, while filming a feature about minor, forgotten settlements in America, West McCray overhears Sadie’s story at a nearby gas station and gets obsessed with finding her.
Meanwhile, he launches his podcast while he follows Sadie’s trail, attempting to figure out what occurred and finding her before it’s too late.
16. The Boy from The Woods by Harlan Coben
The boy from the woods is one of the best mystery books for teens. Former soldier and security expert Wilde is attracted back to his hometown after a child goes missing, despite being shunned by his community and living off the radar.
When a human finger appears in the mail, Wilde realizes he’s in a race against time to save the child’s life while also revealing some terrible secrets from the community that pushed him out.
Additionally, Coben, the author of the blockbuster Netflix dramas The Stranger and The Woods, is as good at character development as a plot and twists.
He loads enough tension and mystery into this page-turner to keep even the most seasoned thriller fan guessing.
17. The Cheerleaders by Kara Thomas
There are no cheerleaders in Sunnybrook any longer. Then there was the car accident in which two young girls perished when their car collided with a tree on a rainy night. Not long after, the killings took place.
Those two young ladies were slain by the man next door. Because the cops shot him, no one will ever know why he did it. The final cheerleader to die was Monica’s sister.
Moreover, Sunnybrook High School disbanded the cheer squad after she committed suicide. Nobody wanted to think about the girls they’d lost. It had been five years since then.
Sunnybrook High’s faculty and students now wish to honor the fallen cheerleaders. Monica, on the other hand, finds it difficult. She only wishes to forget.
Monica’s world, meanwhile, is beginning to fall apart. There are the letters on her stepfather’s desk, an old mobile phone that has been found, and a strange new buddy at school. It doesn’t matter what happened five years ago. Some individuals
