The ABCs of YA Book Boyfriends

We love when young adult books have romance. It doesn’t matter if it’s a fantasy, thriller, mystery or contemporary. Bring us the romance and the swoonworthy book boyfriends. Below you’ll find some of our favorite guys in YA!

Unfortunately, we haven’t found guys for the letter I, U, V and Y. If you can think of YA guys whose names start with any of these four letters let us know in the comments. 

A. Ash, Killing November by Adriana Mather

We loved Ash in Killing November and Hunting November. He’s sweet, a total badass and always there for November. The two don’t have the easiest time since someone is always out to get them, but they protect each other no matter what. We loved Ash’s quick wit and ability to read people. He’s the perfect YA book boyfriend for a thriller. 

B. Brooks, Sunkissed by Kasie West 

Sunkissed, West’s latest YA book, did not disappoint. Brooks and Avery had instant chemistry, but it took them a while to build trust. Brooks is a total sweetheart and he’s in a rock band. It doesn’t get much better than that for a contemporary. 

C. Cal Calore, The Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard 

Cal and Mare didn’t get too much alone time in Red Queen, despite having some chemistry. It took until Glass Sword for them to finally break down each other’s walls. A lot of people were team Maven in book 1, including us. But Cal slowly won us over with his commitment to Mare and his desire to stop his brother’s tyranny. 

D. Dax Miller, By Your Side by Kasie West

The ultimate bad boy with a heart of gold. Autumn Collins is trapped in a library for the weekend with none other than Dax Collins, the guy everyone is afraid to be around. Slowly the two spend more time together and build a connection. Dax is such a great guy. He’s there for Autumn and is so understanding of her anxiety. We love their slowburn chemistry and recommend this book to anyone who wants to read a YA contemporary. 

E. Etienne St Clair, Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

How could anyone forget the French guy with a British accent? Anna and the French Kiss is a YA classic about living at a Parisian boarding school. Anna has feeling for Etienne right away. Too bad he has a girlfriend. When the two start exploring Paris together, their connection is undeniable. We loved Etienne’s sense of humor and outgoing personality. 

F. Fletcher Scott, Breaking the Ice by Julie Cross

Fletch is not a typical YA book boyfriend. He tends to keep to himself a lot, despite being on the varsity hockey team. When popular Haley happens to be sitting next to him in summer school, Fletch originally has no interest in making friends. He had a lot of character growth when learning about how to let people in and give them a chance. He also had severe food allergies, which was an interesting aspect to his story. 

G. Gregory Bolton, The Ivy by Lauren Kunze 

Gregory Bolton: the ultimate intellectual bad boy. Callie Andrews hated Gregory when she first met him at Harvard. But his good looks, charm and surprising knowledge of Jane Austen eventually won her over. Gregory goes through major growth over the four-book The Ivy series. He never fails to wow us with his wit. Plus, he’s super loyal to his friends. 

H. Hayden Reynolds, The Fill-In Boyfriend by Kasie West 

Hayden Reynolds and Gia Montgomery had us swooning from the first chapter.  The Fill-In Boyfriend is tied for our favorite West book. Hayden agrees to pretend to be Gia’s ex-boyfriend Bradley for the Prom, so she doesn’t have to go alone. That event sparks a hilarious and heart-warming relationship about two people who were never supposed to meet. Their banter deserves an A+. 

J. Jason Brody, Whatever Life Throws at You by Julie Cross

Jason Brody is the hot rookie pitcher for the Kansas City Royal. He’s also completely off limits for Annie, the daughter of the pitching coach. We love a good forbidden romance, especially when it’s set around baseball. Brody is a lot more than the guy plastered all over the tabloids.

K. Kaz Brekker, Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo 

Kaz Brekker was basically the main reason we picked up Six of Crows before Shadow and Bone! Kaz is beloved by the YA Goodreads scene and we needed to know why. And now we do! He’s a total badass with the most brilliant mind and quick wit. His story was definitely the most interesting and we had to know what motivated him in his pursuit for revenge.

L. Luca Falcone, Vendetta by Catherine Doyle

Sophie Gracewell had no interest in Luca in the first book of the Blood For Blood series. Instead, she dated his younger brother Nic. However, somehow, Luca and Sophie keep getting thrown together in dangerous mafia situations. The more the two spend time together, the more Sophie sees that Luca is just as reluctant to be in this mafia world. From his broody personality to his cutting wit and dreamy eyes— what’s not to love?

M. Matthew Fairchild, The Last Hours by Cassandra Clare

Yes, we know everyone ships James Herondale and Cordelia Carstairs together. But Matthew Fairchild is so much better! He’s a bit self-destructive, but we found ourselves cheering for his happy ending. He’s a total sweetheart and he deserves love in Chain of Thorns. Plus, he would do anything for Cordelia and is always concerned about her happiness. 

N. Noah Williams, London Prep by Jillian Dodd

We’ve already read the first four books in this series and there are at least two more. We’re still in the middle of a Mallory, Noah and Harry love triangle and we’re team Noah all the way! Noah’s a quiet, brooding artist/soccer player. Noah and Mallory have so much chemistry it’s insane. Dodd has a knack for writing steamy scenes with boat loads of tension. We loved watching Noah’s character development and seeing how he puts himself out there. We can’t wait for book 5 so we can read more Noah scenes!

O. Ocean James, A Very Large Expanse of Sea by Tahereh Mafi

Though in the beginning of the book Ocean James was naïve about the realities of Shirin’s life at their school. Shirin faced a lot of prejudice being a Muslim-American after 9/11. But Ocean he grew to be empathetic and genuinely tried to stand with Shirin when she was bullied by her peers. Their romance is extremely slowburn, which made sense for the story. Ocean just wanted to be there for Shirin and show her not everyone is bad.

P. Porter Roth, Alex, Approximately by Jenn Bennett

Alex, Approximately is easily our favorite book from Jenn Bennett. Bailey Rydell can’t stand Porter Roth when they meet while working at a museum. Porter is basically an ass, but at the same time, is just afraid of being judged by the girl he thinks is out of his league. Once they start spending time together, Bailey learns there’s a lot more to this surfer boy. We loved that they connected over classic movies and other unique interests. Porter is hilarious and the two have some of the best banter we’ve seen in YA. 

Q. Quentin “Q” Jacobsen, Paper Towns by John Green

Q had a crush on his neighbor Margo Roth Spiegelman most of his life. One night together and he thinks he’s finally going to get the girl…until she disappears. While this is not a typical YA romance, we found ourselves cheering for Q from the beginning. He’s quirky, relatable and willing to go on an insane adventure with his friends, in order to find Margo. 

R. Reid Diggory, Serpent & Dove by Shelby Mahurin 

What happens when a witch and a witch hunter get married? Reid doesn’t know that Lou is a witch at the beginning. All he knows is that he has to spend forever with a girl he can’t stand. Serpent & Dove was our favorite release of 2019 and largely because of the amazing romance. Mahurin used both the hate to love and forbidden love trope and we couldn’t have loved it more. Reid is stubborn, but super loyal to Lou, no matter what happens to them. Their scenes are especially steamy for YA. 

S. Stellan Korolev, The Conspiracy of Us by Maggie Hall 

Stellan Korolev is our favorite Russian dream boat. The Conspiracy of Us series is one of our favorites— you’re probably tired of hearing us gush about it by now. We admit we were unsure about Stellan in the first book, but he quickly won us over in Map of Fates. From his blond hair, blue eyes and perpetual smirk, who wouldn’t want to be on the run from a secret organization with Stellan? 

T. Thomas Cresswell, Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco 

Thomas Cresswell and Audrey Rose Wadsworth had the best witty banter, and it was great to see Audrey knock him down a peg or two during their arguments. Thomas is your typical overconfident, charming male love interest and Audrey is a brilliant, sarcastic lead. But Thomas isn’t intimidated by a smart girl and loves Audrey’s passion for science and forensics. The two make a great team when solving cases.

W. Will Herondale, The Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare

Our favorite book series also has our favorite book boyfriend. Will Herondale cannot be beat in YA. Seriously, you can’t find a better boyfriend and we love everything about him. He has the best lines, unparalleled wit and dreamy black hair and blue eyes. Tessa and Will have so much chemistry from the start, even if it take them a while to admit it. They also banter about books, which had us swooning through the entire series.

X. Xander Spence, The Distance Between Us by Kasie West

Caymen Myers thought she had rich people figured out. Enter Xander Spence: the charming son of a wealthy hotel owner. Just like Caymen, Xander feels stuck. The two set out on adventures to help each other figure out career opportunities. Xander is so sweet and patient with Caymen, even when she’s being judgmental. We loved his thoughtfulness and willingness to try new things.  

Z. Zach Goode, Gallagher Girls by Ally Carter 

We can’t forget the YA favorite Gallagher Girls series. Zach came into Cammie’s life in the second book, just as she is getting over a break up. We loved his ability to challenge Cammie during her training and push her to be the best spy possible. Zach and Cammie understand each other better than anyone else could and have an unstoppable romance in the rest of the series.