What books are similar to The Inheritance Games?

The 10 closest matches to The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes on ReadingList include The Naturals, Twilight, Check & Mate, One of Us Is Lying, and Eat Your Heart Out. Each is scored on shared themes (new york times bestseller), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 9–12), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.

Are books like The Inheritance Games reading-level appropriate?

Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 9–12), so the picks stay grade-appropriate. See how ReadingList judges text difficulty on the /standard methodology page.

How does ReadingList choose similar books?

Matches are ranked by shared themes, shared award and reading-program lists (two books picked for the same state award were chosen by the same committees for the same readers), same genre, comparable Lexile and grade band, and publication decade — computed from cited public curriculum data, not editorial opinion or AI-generated summaries.

Books like The Inheritance Games

If you liked The Inheritance Games, read The Naturals, Twilight, or Check & Mate — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes, shared award lists, and reading level.

Closest match: The Naturals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

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Looking for books like The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes (Mystery · grades 9–12)? It’s most often read for its themes of new york times bestseller. The 10 titles below are the closest matches in the ReadingList database — each scored on shared themes, shared award lists, genre, and reading level, and each linked to the curricula, states, and grades where it’s assigned, with primary sources.

These are reading-level matches, not just topical ones — so the picks stay grade-appropriate for a grades 9–12 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

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Why each is a match

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The Naturalsgrades 9–12: Is by Jennifer Lynn Barnes, the same author, both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, and same genre (Mystery). Amazon → books like this →
Twilightgrades 9–12: Shares themes of new york times bestseller, both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list (+2 more shared lists), and overlapping grades (9–12). Amazon → books like this →
Check & Mategrades 9–12: Shares themes of new york times bestseller, both on the Mountain Laurel Book Award (Pennsylvania) list, and overlapping grades (9–12). Amazon → books like this →
One of Us Is Lyinggrades 9–12: Both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list (+1 more shared list), same genre (Mystery), and overlapping grades (9–12). Amazon → books like this →
Eat Your Heart Outgrades 9–12: Both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, same genre (Mystery), and overlapping grades (9–12). Amazon → books like this →
Loregrades 9–12: Shares themes of new york times bestseller, both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, and overlapping grades (9–12). Amazon → books like this →
How to Survive Your Murdergrades 9–12: Both on the Virginia Readers' Choice list, same genre (Mystery), and overlapping grades (9–12). Amazon → books like this →
That's Not My Namegrades 9–12: Both on the Virginia Readers' Choice list, same genre (Mystery), and overlapping grades (9–12). Amazon → books like this →
Truly Deviousgrades 9–12: Both on the Mountain Laurel Book Award (Pennsylvania) list, same genre (Mystery), and overlapping grades (9–12). Amazon → books like this →
Good Girl's Guide to Murdergrades 9–12: Both on the Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award list, same genre (Mystery), and overlapping grades (9–12). Amazon → books like this →

Books like The Inheritance Games for younger readers (K–2)

Closest matches whose grade range overlaps K–2— same scoring, different audience.

Shark vs. Train by Chris Barton · grades K–3 — Shares themes of new york times bestseller and both on the Mountain Laurel Book Award (Pennsylvania) list.
Baby Monkey, Private Eye by Brian Selznick · grades K–3 — Both on the Nebraska Golden Sower Award list and same genre (Mystery).
Piggins by Jane Yolen · grades K–3 — Both on the Nebraska Golden Sower Award list and same genre (Mystery).
In a Dark, Dark Room by Alvin Schwartz · grades K–3 — Both on the Virginia Readers' Choice list and same genre (Mystery).
We Are in a Book by Mo Willems · grades K–3 — Shares themes of new york times bestseller and both on the Virginia Readers' Choice list.

Books like The Inheritance Games for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

Closest matches whose grade range overlaps 3–5— same scoring, different audience.

The Dollhouse Murders by Betty Ren Wright · grades 4–7 — Both on the Rebecca Caudill Young Readers' Book Award list and same genre (Mystery).
Parachute Kids by Betty C. Tang · grades 3–7 — Both on the Mountain Laurel Book Award (Pennsylvania) list (+1 more shared list) and the same era (2020s).
Shark vs. Train by Chris Barton · grades K–3 — Shares themes of new york times bestseller and both on the Mountain Laurel Book Award (Pennsylvania) list.
The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan · grades 3–8 — Shares themes of new york times bestseller and both on the Mountain Laurel Book Award (Pennsylvania) list.
When Stars Are Scattered by Victoria Jamieson · grades 5–8 — Both on the Mountain Laurel Book Award (Pennsylvania) list (+2 more shared lists) and the same era (2020s).

Books like The Inheritance Games for middle school (grades 6–8)

Closest matches whose grade range overlaps 6–8— same scoring, different audience.

The Dollhouse Murders by Betty Ren Wright · grades 4–7 — Both on the Rebecca Caudill Young Readers' Book Award list and same genre (Mystery).
Parachute Kids by Betty C. Tang · grades 3–7 — Both on the Mountain Laurel Book Award (Pennsylvania) list (+1 more shared list) and the same era (2020s).
The Name of This Book Is Secret by Pseudonymous Bosch · grades 6–8 — Shares themes of new york times bestseller and both on the Mountain Laurel Book Award (Pennsylvania) list.
The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan · grades 3–8 — Shares themes of new york times bestseller and both on the Mountain Laurel Book Award (Pennsylvania) list.
When Stars Are Scattered by Victoria Jamieson · grades 5–8 — Both on the Mountain Laurel Book Award (Pennsylvania) list (+2 more shared lists) and the same era (2020s).

Books like The Inheritance Games for high school & teens (grades 9–12)

Closest matches whose grade range overlaps 9–12— same scoring, different audience.

Daughter of the Stars by Phyllis A. Whitney · grades 9–12 — Both on the Virginia Readers' Choice list, same genre (Mystery), and overlapping grades (9–12).
Fake ID by L. R. Giles · grades 9–12 — Both on the Virginia Readers' Choice list, same genre (Mystery), and overlapping grades (9–12).
Plague Year by Stephanie S. Tolan · grades 9–12 — Both on the Virginia Readers' Choice list, same genre (Mystery), and overlapping grades (9–12).
The House in the Cerulean Sea by T. J. Klune · grades 9–12 — Shares themes of new york times bestseller, both on the Virginia Readers' Choice list, and overlapping grades (9–12).
The Man in the Woods by Rosemary Wells · grades 9–12 — Both on the Virginia Readers' Choice list, same genre (Mystery), and overlapping grades (9–12).

Common questions

What books are similar to The Inheritance Games?: The 10 closest matches to The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes on ReadingList include The Naturals, Twilight, Check & Mate, One of Us Is Lying, and Eat Your Heart Out. Each is scored on shared themes (new york times bestseller), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 9–12), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.
Are books like The Inheritance Games reading-level appropriate?: Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 9–12), so the picks stay grade-appropriate. See how ReadingList judges text difficulty on the /standard methodology page.
How does ReadingList choose similar books?: Matches are ranked by shared themes, shared award and reading-program lists (two books picked for the same state award were chosen by the same committees for the same readers), same genre, comparable Lexile and grade band, and publication decade — computed from cited public curriculum data, not editorial opinion or AI-generated summaries.

Book data last updated 2026-09-05. Matches are computed from each book’s cited attributes — see the methodology.

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