6 must-read historical fiction books like The Brightwood Code by Monica Hesse

Cover of The Brightwood Code by Monica Hesse

The Brightwood Code

By: Monica Hesse

3.83

Format: 336 pages, Hardcover

Seven months ago Edda was on the World War I front lines as one of two hundred “Hello Girls,” femal…

If you liked the historical fiction plot in The Brightwood Code by Monica Hesse , here is a list of 6 books like this:

Cover of Promchanted by Morgan Matson

1. Promchanted

By: Morgan Matson

3.69

Format: 384 pages, Hardcover

Two modern teens. One classic fairy tale. Absolutely no cell service. Stella Griffin doesn’t b… read more

Similar categories in Morgan Matson's Promchanted book and Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code

  • fiction
  • young adult
  • audiobook
"Whenever I tried to wear a low ponytail, I inevitably looked like a Founding Father. And not the attractive ones, like Hamilton."

-Morgan Matson, Promchanted

"Promise,' Nisha had agreed. She'd held out her pinky and we'd linked them to get and shaken, entering what every fourth-grader knows is a binding contract."

-Morgan Matson, Promchanted

"If you like someone, I realized in one incandescent flash, you liked them in a disgusting dungeon next to a literal pile of bones. You liked them everywhere. Because it wasn't about the setting-it wa…"

-Morgan Matson, Promchanted

"You can't stop people from things that hurt and are hard, Stella. You can't reroute to avoid pain at all costs. You can't plan your way around everything. Sometimes, you just have to go through with …"

-Morgan Matson, Promchanted

Cover of Have You Seen This Girl by Nita Tyndall

2. Have You Seen This Girl

By: Nita Tyndall

3.64

Format: 272 pages, Hardcover

Fans of Courtney Summers and Tess Sharpe will devour this standalone YA thriller following a nonbin… read more

Similar categories in Nita Tyndall's Have You Seen This Girl book and Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code

  • mystery
  • fiction
  • young adult
  • audiobook
Cover of Love, Off the Record by Samantha Markum

3. Love, Off the Record

By: Samantha Markum

4.16

Format: None pages, Hardcover

The Hating Game meets Alex, Approximately in this smart, chemistry-filled teen rom-com about two ri… read more

Similar categories in Samantha Markum's Love, Off the Record book and Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code

  • fiction
  • young adult
  • audiobook
Cover of The Night War by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

4. The Night War

By: Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

4.04

Format: 288 pages, Hardcover

From the two-time Newbery Honor-winning author of The War That Saved My Life and Fighting Words com… read more

Similar categories in Kimberly Brubaker Bradley's The Night War book and Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code

  • historical
  • war
  • fiction
  • historical fiction
  • audiobook
Cover of Beastly Beauty by Jennifer Donnelly

5. Beastly Beauty

By: Jennifer Donnelly

3.69

Format: 324 pages, Hardcover

From New York Times bestselling, award-winning author Jennifer Donnelly comes a revolutionary, gend… read more

Similar categories in Jennifer Donnelly's Beastly Beauty book and Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code

  • fiction
  • young adult
"If you want to know a person, don't ask to hear their truth. Listen to their lies."

-Jennifer Donnelly, Beastly Beauty

"You must do one thing and one thing only--become the person you were meant to be. No matter how daunting that task may be. Otherwise, your life is not a life; it is merely a long, protracted death."

-Jennifer Donnelly, Beastly Beauty

Cover of Artifice by Sharon Cameron

6. Artifice

By: Sharon Cameron

4.13

Format: 416 pages, Hardcover

A dramatic story of duplicity and resistance, betrayal and loyalty, set against the backdrop of Wor… read more

Similar categories in Sharon Cameron's Artifice book and Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code

  • historical
  • war
  • young adult
  • fiction
  • historical fiction
  • audiobook
Cover of The Kill Factor by Ben  Oliver

7. The Kill Factor

By: Ben Oliver

3.85

Format: 368 pages, Hardcover

A brand-new game show that offers young criminals the chance at freedom has been greenlit. Little d… read more

Similar categories in Ben Oliver's The Kill Factor book and Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code

  • fiction
  • young adult
  • audiobook
Cover of The Brightwood Code by Monica Hesse

8. The Brightwood Code

By: Monica Hesse

3.83

Format: 336 pages, Hardcover

Seven months ago Edda was on the World War I front lines as one of two hundred “Hello Girls,” femal… read more

Similar categories in Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code book and Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code

  • world war i
  • historical
  • war
  • young adult
  • mental health
  • fiction
  • historical fiction
  • mystery
  • young adult historical fiction
  • audiobook
Cover of Thirsty by Jas Hammonds

9. Thirsty

By: Jas Hammonds

4.16

Format: 336 pages, Hardcover

It’s the summer before college and eighteen-year-old Blake Brenner and her girlfriend, Ella, have o… read more

Similar categories in Jas Hammonds's Thirsty book and Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code

  • audiobook
  • fiction
  • young adult
  • mental health
Cover of This Book Won't Burn by Samira Ahmed

10. This Book Won't Burn

By: Samira Ahmed

4.28

Format: 384 pages, Hardcover

From the New York Times bestselling author of Internment comes a timely and gripping social-suspens… read more

Similar categories in Samira Ahmed's This Book Won't Burn book and Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code

  • fiction
  • young adult
  • audiobook
"Book banning has long been used to silence those who want to speak out, those who are unwilling to be gaslit into thinking they're living in the best of all possible worlds."

-Samira Ahmed, This Book Won't Burn

Cover of Wander in the Dark by Jumata Emill

11. Wander in the Dark

By: Jumata Emill

4.11

Format: 400 pages, Hardcover

In this new pulse-pounding thriller from the author of The Black Queen, two brothers must come toge… read more

Similar categories in Jumata Emill's Wander in the Dark book and Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code

  • mystery
  • fiction
  • young adult
  • audiobook
Cover of Such Charming Liars by Karen M. McManus

12. Such Charming Liars

By: Karen M. McManus

3.83

Format: 320 pages, Hardcover

The newest mystery from the author One of Us Is Lying, the Queen of thrillers, Karen M. McManus! Wh… read more

Similar categories in Karen M. McManus's Such Charming Liars book and Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code

  • mystery
  • fiction
  • young adult
  • audiobook
Cover of Stay Dead by April Henry

13. Stay Dead

By: April Henry

3.86

Format: 313 pages, Hardcover

New York Times  bestselling author April Henry delivers a thrilling murder mystery featuring a teen… read more

Similar categories in April Henry's Stay Dead book and Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code

  • mystery
  • fiction
  • young adult
Cover of Ariel Crashes a Train by Olivia A. Cole

14. Ariel Crashes a Train

By: Olivia A. Cole

3.99

Format: 464 pages, Hardcover

“A gorgeously kind, wonderfully gentle, and unfailingly compassionate depiction of OCD...bursting w… read more

Similar categories in Olivia A. Cole's Ariel Crashes a Train book and Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code

  • fiction
  • young adult
  • mental health
"Parents set themselves up for failure by giving their kids names that mean too much. Some people put so much weight in names, and how is a baby supposed to carry anything so heavy as their parents’ d…"

-Olivia A. Cole, Ariel Crashes a Train

Cover of Four Eids and a Funeral by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé

15. Four Eids and a Funeral

By: Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé

3.71

Format: 321 pages, Hardcover

Ex-best friends, Tiwa and Said, must work together to save their Islamic Center from demolition, in… read more

Similar categories in Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé's Four Eids and a Funeral book and Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code

  • fiction
  • young adult
  • audiobook
Cover of Looking for Smoke by K.A. Cobell

16. Looking for Smoke

By: K.A. Cobell

4.27

Format: 416 pages, Hardcover

Since moving to the Blackfeet Reservation with her parents, Mara Racette has felt like an outsider,… read more

Similar categories in K.A. Cobell's Looking for Smoke book and Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code

  • mystery
  • fiction
  • young adult
  • audiobook
Cover of Six Truths and a Lie by Ream Shukairy

17. Six Truths and a Lie

By: Ream Shukairy

3.97

Format: 400 pages, Hardcover

Six Muslim teens are falsely accused of a deadly attack in this timely and harrowing examination of… read more

Similar categories in Ream Shukairy's Six Truths and a Lie book and Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code

  • mystery
  • fiction
  • young adult
  • audiobook
Cover of Mid-Air by Alicia D. Williams

18. Mid-Air

By: Alicia D. Williams

4.34

Format: 320 pages, Hardcover

A tender-souled boy reeling from the death of his best friend struggles to fit into a world that wa… read more

Similar categories in Alicia D. Williams's Mid-Air book and Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code

  • fiction
  • young adult
  • audiobook
Cover of Wild About You by Kaitlyn Hill

19. Wild About You

By: Kaitlyn Hill

3.95

Format: 384 pages, Paperback

Two total opposites. One race through the Great Outdoors. In this grumpy-sunshine teen romance from… read more

Similar categories in Kaitlyn Hill's Wild About You book and Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code

  • audiobook
  • fiction
  • young adult
  • mental health
Cover of The Calculation of You and Me by Serena Kaylor

20. The Calculation of You and Me

By: Serena Kaylor

4.00

Format: 304 pages, Paperback

A calculus nerd enlists her surly classmate’s help to win back her ex-boyfriend, but when sparks st… read more

Similar categories in Serena Kaylor's The Calculation of You and Me book and Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code

  • fiction
  • young adult
  • audiobook
Cover of Heiress Takes All by Emily Wibberley

21. Heiress Takes All

By: Emily Wibberley

3.56

Format: 368 pages, Hardcover

The Inheritance Games meets Ocean's 11 in this thrilling YA adventure about a teenager determined t… read more

Similar categories in Emily Wibberley's Heiress Takes All book and Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code

  • mystery
  • fiction
  • young adult
  • audiobook
Cover of What's Eating Jackie Oh? by Patricia  Park

22. What's Eating Jackie Oh?

By: Patricia Park

3.86

Format: 336 pages, Hardcover

A Korean American teen tries to balance her dream to become a chef with the cultural expectations o… read more

Similar categories in Patricia Park's What's Eating Jackie Oh? book and Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code

  • fiction
  • young adult
  • audiobook
Cover of Break to You by Neal Shusterman

23. Break to You

By: Neal Shusterman

3.64

Format: 432 pages, Hardcover

Bestselling author of Scythe and Challenger Deep Neal Shusterman, here with coauthors Debra Young a… read more

Similar categories in Neal Shusterman's Break to You book and Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code

  • audiobook
  • fiction
  • young adult
  • mental health
Cover of Jupiter Rising by Gary D. Schmidt

24. Jupiter Rising

By: Gary D. Schmidt

4.59

Format: 208 pages, Hardcover

When Jack's P.E. coach pairs him up with Jay Perkins for the cross-country team, neither of them is… read more

Similar categories in Gary D. Schmidt's Jupiter Rising book and Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code

  • fiction
  • young adult
  • audiobook
Cover of The Color of a Lie by Kim  Johnson

25. The Color of a Lie

By: Kim Johnson

4.41

Format: 336 pages, Hardcover

In 1955, a Black family passes for white and moves to a “Whites Only” town in the suburbs. Caught b… read more

Similar categories in Kim Johnson's The Color of a Lie book and Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code

  • historical
  • young adult
  • fiction
  • historical fiction
  • young adult historical fiction
  • audiobook
Cover of Hearts Overboard by Becky Dean

26. Hearts Overboard

By: Becky Dean

4.04

Format: 364 pages, Kindle Edition

Set sail with this banter-filled rivals-to-lovers romance between a STEM-loving girl and a jock guy… read more

Similar categories in Becky Dean's Hearts Overboard book and Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code

  • fiction
  • young adult
"I love a good s’more"

-Becky Dean, Hearts Overboard

"He dumped you in public on the last day of school. You do not need him."

-Becky Dean, Hearts Overboard

"I glared at Tanner, who mouthed at me to ‘smile,’ because a guy telling a girl to do that was guaranteed to end well."

-Becky Dean, Hearts Overboard

"I'd be fine without either of them. I didn't need a guy. But was it wrong to enjoy spending time with one who made me happy and brought out parts of me I didn't know existed?"

-Becky Dean, Hearts Overboard

Cover of Sunrise Nights by Jeff Zentner

27. Sunrise Nights

By: Jeff Zentner

4.06

Format: 400 pages, Hardcover

Two young artists have a chance meeting on the last night of summer arts camp in this YA novel in v… read more

Similar categories in Jeff Zentner's Sunrise Nights book and Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code

  • audiobook
  • fiction
  • young adult
  • mental health
"Love seems to die around me."

-Jeff Zentner, Sunrise Nights

Cover of Age 16 by Rosena Fung

28. Age 16

By: Rosena Fung

4.32

Format: 312 pages, Hardcover

A powerful coming-of-age graphic novel about three generations of mothers and daughters passing dow… read more

Similar categories in Rosena Fung's Age 16 book and Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code

  • historical
  • fiction
  • young adult
  • historical fiction
Cover of Death at Morning House by Maureen Johnson

29. Death at Morning House

By: Maureen Johnson

3.89

Format: 384 pages, Hardcover

From the bestselling author of the Truly Devious books, Maureen Johnson, comes a new stand-alone YA… read more

Similar categories in Maureen Johnson's Death at Morning House book and Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code

  • mystery
  • fiction
  • young adult
  • audiobook
Cover of Trajectory by Cambria Gordon

30. Trajectory

By: Cambria Gordon

3.78

Format: 304 pages, Hardcover

The stirring and dramatic story of one young woman who must find a way to overcome her deepest fear… read more

Similar categories in Cambria Gordon's Trajectory book and Monica Hesse's The Brightwood Code

  • historical
  • young adult
  • fiction
  • historical fiction
  • young adult historical fiction
  • audiobook

30 must-read fiction books like The Brightwood Code by Monica Hesse

Transform Your Habits

Promchanted

Morgan Matson

3.69

Transform Your Habits

Have You Seen This Girl

Nita Tyndall

3.64

Transform Your Habits

Love, Off the Record

Samantha Markum

4.16

Transform Your Habits

The Night War

Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

4.04

View all the books

18 Top fiction books like Hearts Overboard by Becky Dean

Transform Your Habits

Love, Off the Record

Samantha Markum

4.16

Transform Your Habits

Witty in Pink

Erica George

4.03

Transform Your Habits

Six More Months of June

Daisy Garrison

3.85

Transform Your Habits

The Colliding Worlds of Mina Lee

Ellen Oh

3.46

View all the books

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