,

Here's a list of Sci-Fi / Space Opera stories written specifically for the Young Adult audience since YA became a recognized book category. 'YA Space Opera' is defined as a science-fiction based novel STARRING A YOUNG ADULT PROTAGONIST (age 12-17) on an extra-planetary or galactic scale which has a heavy emphasis on character development and (usually) beating overwhelming odds in addition to the worldbuilding and science. YA Space Opera tales that include contemporary YA issues and concerns, relationships, and other story lines which appeal to YA sensibilities are welcome. Earth-bound dystopia is explicitly disqualified unless it contains a significant space element such as an alien invasion, alien first-contact, or a quest to get into outer space.

This listopia is maintained by the Space Opera Fans community. Come join us! https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/...

We maintain MANY listopias in many space-opera sub-genres ... just visit our community to find the right 'fit' for your Space Opera sweet tooth.

AUTHORS: these listopias are a pain-in-the-butt to update (requires grovelling to Goodreads administration), so you will not endear yourself to the very small and intimate community of avid sci-fi readers you hope to reach if you are a jerk and spam this list with irrelevant crap or every...single...book in your series. You will quickly find yourself blacklisted from people's reading lists if you act like a jerk, so please be polite and follow the rules. If you want to get to know us, come visit us and interact as a READER.
1

by
4.12 avg rating — 1,004,515 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
2

by
4.40 avg rating — 401,546 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
3

by
4.23 avg rating — 457,657 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
4

by
4.24 avg rating — 160,546 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
5

by
3.77 avg rating — 119,287 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
6

by
really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 478,031 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
7

by
3.94 avg rating — 153,713 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
8

by
3.89 avg rating — 71,467 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
9

by
4.43 avg rating — 80,938 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
10

by
4.01 avg rating — 55,055 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
11

by
4.15 avg rating — 9,180 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
12

by
4.06 avg rating — 34,380 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
13

by
3.83 avg rating — 148,917 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
14

by
4.44 avg rating — 5,381 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
15

by
3.84 avg rating — 5,745 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
16

by
4.37 avg rating — 230 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
17

by
4.31 avg rating — 1,464,580 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
18

by
3.71 avg rating — 1,892 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
19

by
3.88 avg rating — 23,575 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
20

by
4.09 avg rating — 73,616 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
21

by
3.84 avg rating — 1,195,376 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
22

by
4.44 avg rating — 57,404 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
23

by
4.27 avg rating — 725,599 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
24

by
3.71 avg rating — 14,193 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
25

by
3.85 avg rating — 13,523 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
26

by
4.29 avg rating — 32,414 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
27

by
3.95 avg rating — 73 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
27

by
3.73 avg rating — 1,031 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
29

by
4.10 avg rating — 803 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
30

by
4.13 avg rating — 2,321 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
31

by
4.18 avg rating — 245 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
32

by
4.30 avg rating — 1,769 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
32

by
4.07 avg rating — 44,107 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
34

by
3.84 avg rating — 79,849 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
35

by
3.94 avg rating — 22,209 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
36

by
4.06 avg rating — 5,310 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
37

by
4.10 avg rating — 14,862 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
38

by
4.26 avg rating — 58,630 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
39

by
3.87 avg rating — 8,435 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
40

by
4.11 avg rating — 5,842 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
41

by
3.60 avg rating — 2,405 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
41

by
3.78 avg rating — 515 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
43

by
3.80 avg rating — 6,595 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
44

by
4.13 avg rating — 3,123 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
45

by
3.53 avg rating — 14,686 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
46

by
3.76 avg rating — 2,222 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
47

by
3.75 avg rating — 9,643 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
48

by
3.69 avg rating — 1,575 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
49

by
4.39 avg rating — 377 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
50

by
4.39 avg rating — 234 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
51

by
3.64 avg rating — 2,280 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
51

by
3.55 avg rating — 622 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
53

by
4.34 avg rating — 80 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
54

by
3.40 avg rating — 8,117 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
55

by
3.73 avg rating — 1,437 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
56

by
3.54 avg rating — 616 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
57

by
3.58 avg rating — 79 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
58

by
4.41 avg rating — 308,528 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
59

by
3.53 avg rating — 13,672 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
59

by
3.82 avg rating — 12,306 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
61

by
3.99 avg rating — 704 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
62

by
3.93 avg rating — 351,174 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
63

by
3.99 avg rating — 81 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
64

by
3.75 avg rating — 1,638 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
65

by
4.16 avg rating — 2,886 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
65

by
3.45 avg rating — 848 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
67

by
3.51 avg rating — 105 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
68

by
4.07 avg rating — 855 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
69

by
really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 224 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
70

by
really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 224 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
71

by
really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 224 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
72

by
4.22 avg rating — 2,760 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
73

by
3.90 avg rating — 1,154 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
74

by
3.88 avg rating — 98 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
75

by
4.17 avg rating — 462 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
76

by
3.60 avg rating — 1,024 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
77

by
4.67 avg rating — 3 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
77

by
4.12 avg rating — 2,530 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
77

by
4.25 avg rating — 4 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
77

by
3.86 avg rating — 587 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
77

by
3.54 avg rating — 48 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
77

by
really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 11 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
77

by
4.47 avg rating — 38 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
77

by
really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 2 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
77

by
3.81 avg rating — 36 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
77

by
4.67 avg rating — 12 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
77

by
3.93 avg rating — 31,233 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
77

by
3.94 avg rating — 23,354 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
77

by
3.67 avg rating — 39 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
77

by
4.05 avg rating — 27,636 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
77

by
4.13 avg rating — 12,250 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
77

by
3.75 avg rating — 3,602 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
77

by
4.14 avg rating — 711 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
77

by
3.58 avg rating — 1,064 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
77

by
3.84 avg rating — 267 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
77

by
really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 5 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
77

by
4.38 avg rating — 53 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
77

by
4.40 avg rating — 78 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
77

by
4.64 avg rating — 25 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
77

by
3.86 avg rating — 7 ratings
Rate this book
Clear rating
51 likes · 
Lists are re-scored approximately every 5 minutes.


Anna 344 books
358 friends
Betsy 2608 books
28 friends
Charlotte 514 books
29 friends
Shannon 2154 books
17 friends
Kate 1249 books
73 friends
Clare 8397 books
346 friends
Soumya 1374 books
38 friends
Sarah 2149 books
95 friends

More voters…


Comments Showing 1-6 of 6 (6 new)

dateUp arrow    newest »

message 1: by Erin Lynn (new)

Erin Lynn Does The Fifth Wave really count? I don't see it as a space opera because it takes place on Earth...


message 2: by Anna (last edited Mar 12, 2015 07:45AM) (new)

Anna Erishkigal Erin Lynn wrote: "Does The Fifth Wave really count? I don't see it as a space opera because it takes place on Earth..."

I take a very expansive view of Space Opera when it comes to the paltry amount of decent sci-fi out there for teens. It involves an alien invasion, so from the alien's point of view, yeah... it's space opera-ish (sorta).

The alternative is to have our community members keep shoving a 1950 edition of Heinlein into kid's faces and then get miffed about 'youth today' when the kid shoves it right back :-P


message 3: by Kate (last edited Jun 21, 2015 07:29AM) (new)

Kate Any recs that don't have much romance (or have a queer romance, I'd like that), don't involve war, and involve friendly aliens?


message 4: by Anna (last edited Jun 21, 2015 10:27AM) (new)

Anna Erishkigal Kate wrote: "Any recs that don't have much romance (or have a queer romance, I'd like that), don't involve war, and involve friendly aliens?"

Hi Kate!

I took the liberty of looking at your bio and noticed you have both telepathy and cats listed in your interests, so based on that I think you'd enjoy the following series:

Frontier Series by Leonie Rogers - empathic sentient black panthers on a colonized planet

Frontier Resistance by Leonie Rogers Frontier Incursion by Leonie Rogers

Star Kingdom series by Jane Lindeskold and David Weber telepathic six-legged sentient cats on a colony planet

A Beautiful Friendship (Honorverse Stephanie Harrington, #1) by David Weber Fire Season (Honorverse Stephanie Harrington, #2) by David Weber Treecat Wars (Honorverse Stephanie Harrington, #3) by David Weber

Now as for a queer romance, we have a folder within our Space Opera Fans community where our member share book recommendations, including alternative lifestyles. I have not read these books myself, but am basing it off our members recommendations:

Stolen Time by J.M. Brink

Discussion thread is HERE: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Saga, Volume 1 by Brian K. Vaughan Saga, Volume 2 by Brian K. Vaughan Saga, Volume 3 by Brian K. Vaughan Saga, Volume 4 by Brian K. Vaughan

A lot of community members report liking the Saga space opera/alien graphic novel series, but it has some MATURE topics in it.

The Girls From Alcyone (The Girls from Alcyone #1) by Cary Caffrey

Has mature topics in it.


I hope you find these helpful? Happy reading!


message 5: by Kate (new)

Kate Anna wrote: "Kate wrote: "Any recs that don't have much romance (or have a queer romance, I'd like that), don't involve war, and involve friendly aliens?"

Hi Kate!

I took the liberty of looking at your bio an..."


Thanks! I've read Saga and the first Stephanie Harrington book, and the rest look really good! I'm going to check out the Frontier series.


cathedralwindow85 of BRISEIS I think that these books should be added to a hyped-up type of Accelerated Reader!, maybe called Starship Accelerated Reader! with a space ship on the book jacket sticker. Just a thought. Along with Ursula K. LeGuin, etc.
--cathedralwindowgirl85.


back to top