Books with Characters in Their 20s

by Kiley Reid

Emira, 25-years-old

The story focuses on the intertwined relationship between Alix Chamberlain, a successful white blogger in her early 30s, and Emira Tucker, who babysits Alix's toddler, Briar.

Emira is about to turn 25, is struggling to find direction in her career, and is about to be kicked off her parents' health insurance. Babysitting for the Chamberlains provides extra money that she needs to get by. One evening when Emira takes the toddler shopping at the high-end grocery store in Alix's neighborhood, an overzealous security guard believes she kidnapped Briar. The encounter between Emira and the guard is filmed, making Emira both angry and embarrassed. Alix is also upset and determined to do something about it, whether Emira wants her to or not.

This book provides piercing social commentary on race and privilege and addresses current social justice issues head-on.

The Book Girls Say... While this book alternates perspectives between 30-something Alix and 20-something Emira, we continue to learn more about Emira and her circumstances through Alix's chapters. Alix is determined to get to know Emira, even if doing so requires invading her privacy.

by Katherine Center

Cassie, 26-years-old

As a firefighter, Cassie has seen her share of emergencies and is good at dealing with other people's tragedies. But when an incident forces her to leave her Austin firehouse, and the timing coincides with her estranged mother needing her help, Cassie finds herself moving across the country to take a new job at a very different department in Boston. Unfortunately, her new firehouse is badly underfunded with a very old-school atmosphere.

The men at the new firehouse are not thrilled to have a "lady" working with them, and they aren't shy about letting her know. Can Cassie manage to gain the respect of her crew and repair her relationship with her mother? Or will breaking the one rule from her old captain - don't date firefighters - jeopardize everything?

The Book Girls Say... Katherine Center has written several other novels featuring strong twenty-something women, all of which are worth reading. In What You Wish For, Samantha is a school librarian who loves her job and her students, but the new principal is an unwelcome flashback from her past, and he sows chaos throughout the school community. In How to Walk Away, Margaret's plans are all dashed in an instant when an accident lands her in a hospital bed with a very uncertain future.

Katherine has also written a short story - titled The Girl in the Plane - that ties together the characters from Things You Save in a Fire and How to Walk Away. You can download it directly from her website, and it's also included at the end of the paperback version of How to Walk Away.

How to Walk Away and Things You Save in a Fire are both currently free with Kindle Unlimited.

Warning: Katherine Center's novels could come with a list of trigger warnings, but telling you what they are would be a spoiler for each book. Keep in mind that her writing captures the bittersweet struggles of real life, but that the stories are ultimately uplifting, and her writing always leaves us feeling warm and fuzzy inside.

by Will Leitch

Daniel, 26-years-old

Daniel lives in Athens, Georgia, but unlike most twenty-somethings in this college town, he's confined to his home most of the time due to his Type 2 Spinal Muscular Atrophy that has left him unable to speak or to move without a wheelchair. Nonetheless, he leads a full life. He has a couple of close friends, loves the excitement of college football, and works online for a regional airline.

When Daniel isn't dealing with unhappy airline customers, he spends hours watching the world go by outside his window. One young woman passes by so often that she's become part of Daniel's daily routine. One day, he's almost certain he sees her being abducted. He wants to tell the police what he knows, but he wonders if they'll believe him. So Daniel decides to take the investigation into his own hands.

The Book Girls Say... Reviewers describe this book as funny, optimistic, and entertaining, but it's also suspenseful with scary moments. This book uses curse words liberally, so skip it if that bothers you.

If you want a book that also involves a little neighborhood spying without the thrill factor, consider the fast-paced and funny This Won't End Well by Camille Pagan (which is currently available free with Kindle Unlimited). A bad boss forced 27-year-old Annie to walk away from her career. Then her fiancé walked away, saying he needed some space. She's vowed to let no new people into her life because they just end up causing trouble. But when Harper moves in next door, Annie is intrigued and finds herself spying on her. Soon she's teaming up with another amateur detective to keep Harper safe - but does Harper really need their help at all?

by Uzma Jalaluddin

Hana, 24-years-old

Hana Khan is a young Muslim woman born and raised in Toronto, Canada to immigrant parents. Like many 20-somethings, she works numerous jobs while trying to make her own dream a reality. Hana interns at a local radio station, anonymously runs a podcast, and works part-time at her family's struggling halal restaurant. However, her true ambition is to have her own radio show where she can highlight her fellow Muslims' life stories.

When a new family with a handsome son named Aydin, arrives in town with plans to open an upscale halal restaurant that threatens to put her family out of business, Hana is determined to do whatever it takes. In a You've Got Mail-esque storyline, she turns to one of her podcast listeners for advice.

Things are complicated further by a hate-motivated attack on the neighborhood and Hana's growing attraction to her rival, Aydin.

The Book Girls Say... While this book is squarely in the rom-com genre, it also provides insight into the young Muslim experience. Uzma Jalaluddin is also the author of Ayesha at Last, a modern Muslim retelling of Pride and Prejudice that is also set in Toronto.

If you love books that introduce you to new food flavors and leave you hungry, consider also reading Arsenic and Adobo, a cozy mystery by Mia Manansala. The main character, Lila, is a twentysomething who moves home after a breakup to help save her Tita Rosie's failing restaurant and winds up in the middle of a murder investigation.

The More You Know: If you are not familiar with the term halal, it means lawful or permitted under Islamic law, and in the context of food it is similar to the concept of kosher in Judaism. Halal does not refer only to meat, but in that context, it refers to meat that has been slaughtered in a particular manner. You can read more and find links to some halal recipes here.

by Reyna Grande

Reyna, early twenties

This memoir is a follow-up to The Distance Between Us, which covers Reyna’s childhood as her family immigrated to the United States. In A Dream Called Home, she covers the next chapter in her life as she experiences college as a first-generation Latina student.

Her parents aren’t helpful, and she has few resources, but her love of reading and writing provided the knowledge and skill she needed to attend UC Santa Cruz. However, she quickly learned that being accepted was only the first barrier. Often her progress was driven by the pure determination to become a writer.

Read along as she defies the odds by transitioning from undocumented immigrant to college graduate and bestselling author. 

by Colleen Oakley

Jubilee, 27 years old

From the ages of 17 to 27, Jubilee has lived in a world of solitude because of a rare allergy to human touch. Her last experience in the world lead to a major anaphylactic shock during her first kiss, so it's safest at home. However, when she loses her mother, she decides to reenter the world.

She finds employment as a librarian, and there she meets Eric. He's a divorced father with custody of a troubled 10-year-old son, Aja, and a 14-year-old daughter who lives with her mom and won't speak to him. Jubilee, Eric, and Aja bond over books at the library, and each begins to find their own healing.

Their stories are endearing, quirky, and more humorous than you might expect based on each character's difficult circumstances. 

by Suleika Jaouad

Suleika, throughout her 20s

In this moving memoir of illness and recovery, Suleika tells the story of nearly losing her life in her twenties and then learning how to live all over again.

The summer after graduating from college, Suleika was getting ready for her "real life" to begin. She moved to Paris to pursue her dream of becoming a war correspondent but found a different type of war waiting for her. Just before her 23rd birthday, she was diagnosed with leukemia and given just a 35% chance of survival.

She flew home to New York for treatment and spent the majority of the next four years in a hospital fighting for her life while writing about her experience in a column for the New York Times. Finally, after 1,500 days, Suleika was considered cured - but after being focused on mere survival for so long, she realized that she had no idea how to begin her life again.

She decided to start with a 100-day, 15,000-mile road trip across the country to meet some of the many strangers who had written to her in the hospital over the years - among them, a teenage girl recovering from cancer; a teacher grieving the death of her son; and even a death-row inmate.

by Candice Carty-Williams

Queenie, 25-years-old

Queen Jenkins is a young Jamaican British journalist living in London. She is constantly straddling two cultures without ever really feeling like she fits in anywhere. At work, she finds herself continually comparing herself to her middle-class white peers.

A nasty breakup with her longtime boyfriend, Tom, leaves her searching for comfort in all the wrong places, and she makes a lot of questionable and self-destructive decisions while trying to navigate the dating scene.

Like so many twenty-somethings, Queenie constantly asks herself "Who do you want to be?" This is never an easy question to answer, but it is made especially difficult when paired with racism, anxiety, and the challenges of social media and dating-app culture.

The Book Girls Say... Queenie is a very lovable but complex character, who you may not always agree with, but who you will come to deeply understand. This book has been billed a modern-day Bridget Jones Diary, but that description seems to set the wrong expectations. Reviewers describe this book as "snort-your-tea-out funny" one moment, but dark and heartbreaking the next.

Warning: This book addresses mental health issues and includes graphic descriptions of violent sexual encounters, which play a pivotal role in the story.

by Cheryl Strayed

Cheryl, 26-years-old

At only 22, Cheryl Strayed was in the midst of a crisis. Her mother passed away, and her marriage was already falling apart. At 26, after many bad decisions, she had nothing more to lose and impulsively decided to walk over 1000 miles along the Pacific Crest Trail.

She hadn’t trained or prepared but decided to set out alone anyways. This memoir shares her experiences on the trail, and her reflections on what she learned along the way.

The Book Girls Say…Don’t go into this expecting to learn how to successfully hike the PCT. She makes reckless choices in both life before the trail, and along the way.  

Farrah Rochon

Samaih, 28-years-old

When three women realize they all think they're exclusively dating the same man, they become friends instead of enemies and decide that they should spend time reaching their own goals instead of trying to find a husband.

Their plan goes well until a hot new guy appears at Samaih's job. But is he who he says he is?

The Book Girls Say… While a light read, The Boyfriend Project also highlights what it's like to be a black woman in the tech industry, along with highlighting the challenge of 20-somethings trying to balance a job, a dream, and personal life in the 2020s.

Melissa read and enjoyed this book and is excited to check out the sequel, The Dating Playbook, which is rated even higher.

by Morgan Rogers

Grace, 28 years old

While most coming-of-age stories feature characters in their teens or early twenties, Grace was too focused on school to spend time finding herself and experiencing life outside the classroom. With her Ph.D. finally finished, she still finds herself crushed under the weight of her dad's expectations.

A girl's trip to Vegas to celebrate is the perfect way for her to finally relax and have fun. Except that fun comes with lasting consequences when she marries a woman whose name she doesn't even know. Instead of annulling the marriage, she finally makes a decision that is for herself and not for her father. So she heads to New York for the summer with the wife she barely knows!

Throughout the book, you'll find her dealing with all the messiness that can come with adulthood, including dealing with mental illness, racism, and homophobia.

The Book Girls Say…This book is available as a Book of the Month add-on! It's on the shorter side at 241 pages, so a quick read if you're rushed this month.

by Alexandra Andrews

Florence, 26-years-old

Despite her small-town upbringing, Florence believes she will become a well-known author. Although she isn't thrilled about this, she must pay her dues first, including working as an assistant for "Maud Dixon," which is the pseudonym for a bestselling writer whose real identity is unknown to the world.

While it isn't easy working for Helen, Florence is learning a lot and hopes this path will take her closer to her big dreams. But unfortunately, something happens on a trip to Morroco that could either crush Florence's hopes or help her realize her biggest goal overnight.

by Hank Green

April, 23-years-old

As April wanders the street one night, the last thing she expects to encounter is a new statue that looks like a ten-foot-tall Transformer wearing a suit of samurai armor. So she does what any 23 year old would do. She names him Carl and has her friend upload a video of her with the statue to his YouTube channel.

When she wakes up the following day, her life is suddenly a viral video. Beyond that, her Carl is no longer the only one. Statues have appeared around the globe, and everyone wants to talk to her about them. She’s left trying to figure out what the Carls are and what they want.

The Book Girls Say…Twenty-year-olds in the 2020s have grown up with social media impacting so many facets of their life. While this book includes sci-fi characteristics, it’s also a great look at what happens when an ordinary person goes viral overnight. This book also has a sequel titled A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor.

by Sally Hepworth

Fern and Rose, 28-Years-Old

The book has alternating narration between two twin sisters, Fern and Rose. Fern thrives on routine and must avoid crowds and noise. She does all she can to avoid getting upset because that has led to tragedy in the past.

Rose is her rock, so when Fern finds out Rose can’t have a baby, she decides to get pregnant and give Rose her baby to pay her back for always taking care of her. In her mind, this is a straightforward plan. But the plan ends up revealing layers of dark secrets along the way.

The Book Girls Say… Wow. This one has some incredible twists and turns that will keep you reading to find out what will happen next! Melissa listened to it on audio and enjoyed the narration. She also loved that it was very suspenseful without being scary.

by Elizabeth Gilbert

Vivian, entire 20s

This female coming-of-age story reads like a memoir. It’s narrated by the main character in her 90s, Vivian Morris, as she writes a letter to an off-page character, Angela, explaining her life including triumphs and mistakes. Angela’s relationship with Viv isn’t shared until the end of the book and you’ll find yourself guessing until the connection is revealed.

The story begins after nineteen-year-old Vivians’s lackluster freshman performance at Vassar College. She has no desire to return to school and her affluent parents are at a loss with what to do with their underperforming daughter. They agree to send her off to her Aunt Peg in New York City, who runs the Lily Playhouse on the ground floor of the grand, but aging building she lives in.

But Aunt Peg doesn’t live in the building alone. Other charismatic theater employees from showgirls to Olive, the no-nonsense secretary that keeps everyone in line, have their own spaces. Vivian loves fashion and is a talented seamstress, which is perfect for making clothes for the Lily dancers on and off the stage.

The main setting of the book is 1940s New York City, spanning the years before the US entered WW2, along with the war years. Vivian reflects on the events of those years, including a personal mistake that almost ruined the course of her life in a moment.

The Book Girls Say… While this book spans Vivian entire life from 19 years old through her senior years, 75% of it focuses on her life from 19 through 29 so you get to see her evolve throughout her formative twenties.

by Colleen Hoover

Kenna, 26-years-old

Five years ago, Kenna made a tragic mistake that sent her to prison and separated her from her daughter. When her sentence is complete, she returns to town and finds that only one person will give her another chance. Everyone else has shut her out entirely and is determined to keep her away from her daughter.

Bar owner Ledger is her only remaining link to her daughter, and as she gains his trust, they both know that they risk losing everything if the others find out they are talking. As their connection grows, Kenna must also continue growing as an individual to build a future and find forgiveness.

The Book Girls Say…While this book meets the challenge by featuring a 26-year-old, you also get extra credit for reading a book by Colleen Hoover, who is currently profoundly beloved by many, many 20-something readers.

Reading it might give added insight into the minds of what this age group enjoys in novels. We choose this book for the list because it’s her newest release and has a phenomenal rating, but several of her other books also have main characters in their 20s if you can’t get your hands on this one.

This book is included with Kindle Unlimited as of Feb 18th, 2022.

by Chad Harbach

Henry, junior in college; Owen and Mike, fellow teammates

Henry is a baseball player at Westish College, a small Wisconsin school on the shore of Lake Michigan. By his junior year, he's attracting attention from MLB scouts. He's also on the verge of breaking an NCAA record when a throw goes wrong and changes everything for him and his teammates. Self-doubt creeps in and threatens to ruin his feature in baseball.

This book also centers around the stories of Henry, Owen's roommate and teammate, and Mike, the team captain, and Henry's best friend. Other storylines include the president of the college and his daughter, who has come to stay with him.

As the baseball season nears its end, these five are forced to confront their hopes, anxieties, and secrets.

The Book Girls Say... Many people spend their early 20s in college, so we wanted to be sure to include a book set on a college campus. Keep in mind that this is a longer book, at more than 500 pages, so plan accordingly if this is your pick.

Numerous reviews have drawn comparisons between this book and Jeffrey Eugenides' The Marriage Plot, which, though set in a different decade (the 1980s), also takes place on a college campus and centers around students about to graduate.

by Christina Lauren

Holland, 25; Calvin, 27

This rom-com is perfect for theater lovers! Holland Bakker has a major crush on Calvin, the street musician who plays in the subway station near her apartment, but she's never had the nerve to talk to him. Fate brings them together one night when he saves her from a drunken attacker, but then he disappears when the police arrive. Holland wants to find a way to repay Calvin, so she gets him an audition with a Broadway musical director uncle.

The audition goes very well, but Calvin's Broadway debut is in jeopardy because his student visa expired years ago and he's been in the country illegally ever since. So, hoping to help both her uncle and Calvin, Holland proposes a scheme in which she'll marry Calvin without letting him know about her long-held infatuation with him.

Soon Calvin is a Broadway star, but when will Holland finally stop acting?

by Nita Prose

Molly, 25-years-old

Molly has always been different from her peers. She struggles in social situations and is only communicates very literally, both in her understanding of others and in her verbal communication back to them. Thanks to her Gran, she’s still managed to have a good life. However, after her beloved Gran dies, she loses the one person who understood both Molly and the world.

She’s still excellent at her job as a hotel maid, with her penchant for perfection making this the ideal role. One day, she’s shocked to find the wealthy and infamous guest, Charles Black, dead in his room.

When the police question her, her unusual communication is interpreted as deception, and Molly becomes a prime suspect.  She must figure out which of the hotel staff and guests are her friends, and which have alternative motives. And all this while trying to figure out how to pay the rent because she already trusted the wrong person with her money once. 

This 2022 new release is available as a BOTM add-on.

by Steven Rowley

James, late twenties

After spending most of his twenties struggling to make it as a writer, James has sold his first book - a semi-autobiographical novel about his dysfunctional relationship with his mother. He's shocked to find out that the editor who has purchased his book is none other than Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis.

After an embarrassing initial meeting, and despite their age difference, James and Mrs. Onassis, as she's known around the office, form an unexpected friendship. By the time his book is finally published, his relationship with his editor has changed him both as a writer and as a son.

The Book Girls Say... Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis did, in fact, work as a book editor throughout the late 1970s, '80s, and early '90s (when this book is set). It can be tricky to write fiction in which one of the main characters is such a famous, real-life person. But Steven Rowley did a fantastic job of portraying Jackie O as a private and professional woman full of heart.

by Torre DeRoche

Torre, 25 years old

Author Torre is Australian but plans a year in the US to escape a bad relationship at home.

On a night out in a San Francisco bar, she meets Ivan, a handsome Argentinian adventurer, and they have undeniable chemistry together. The only problem is that he's leaving on a long trip alone across the ocean in his small boat. This sounds like a worst-case scenario to Torre, who gets seasick and has a fear of the water.

When her only options are saying goodbye to the deep connection she's developed with Ivan or joining him on the boat, she chooses to face her fear of the water, and they set sail. This memoir chronicles the good and bad of their epic journey together as she embraces adventure in her mid-twenties.

The Book Girls Say…Melissa read this memoir as her Islands pick for the Book Voyage Challenge last year and had a hard time putting it down because you really begin to feel like you're with Torre and Ivan on the boat.

by Josie Silver

Lydia, age 28

After Lydia's fiance, Freddy, dies in a car crash on the way to her 28th birthday dinner, she wants nothing more than to be alone with her grief. But soon, she discovers that she's not alone after all - in fact, she wakes up in bed next to Freddy alive and well, but then she wakes up again, and he's gone. In this alternative reality, her life with Freddy continues toward their impending wedding.

As Lydia leads these two parallel lives, a new relationship causes her to question where she really belongs. Weaving together grief, humor, and heart, this book will give you all the feels.

The Book Girls Say... You might also consider adding Forever, Interrupted (Taylor Jenkins Reid's very first novel) to your TBR. Elsie Porter is a twentysomething who has immediate chemistry with Ben Ross. After a whirlwind romance, they elope just months after meeting. But only 9 days into their marriage, Ben is hit by a truck while riding his bike and is killed on impact. When Elsie arrives at the hospital, she comes face-to-face with Susan, the mother-in-law who doesn't even know Elsie exists.

by Alexis Hall

Luc, 28-years-old

Are you looking for a hilarious rom-com reminiscent of The Flatshare? Bitter Luc O’Donnell has excess emotional baggage after growing up in the shadow of a distant B-list celeb father and eccentric mom.

When his job at a charity is endangered after incriminating photos of him are posted online, he has to re-make his image from party boy to “the right kind of gay” by coming up with a stable boyfriend. He knows he’s not ready for a real relationship, but could he sustain a fake relationship long enough to get through a fundraiser?

The Books Girls Say...Melissa listened to the audio of Boyfriend Material, and it quickly became one of her surprise favorites for 2020. If you like snarky British characters and want a light, funny read this month, this is a great choice. For another 20-something male romance with a British lead, check out Red, White, & Royal Blue.

by Chanel Miller

Chanel, 23-years-old

This moving memoir walks you through the sexual assault of the author, including the court case of her assailant, Brock Turner. You may remember the headlines during the case because of his shockingly light sentence and disturbing comments from the judge and his father that this shouldn’t ruin his life.

During the trial, Chanel was anonymous, but she wrote an extremely moving victim impact statement that went viral on Buzzfeed. She eventually decided to reveal her identity and this book shares the full story in an honest and eloquent way.

The Book Girls Say…Melissa read this book a few years ago and was impressed with Chanel’s beautiful writing. While the subject matter will make you angry, it’s an important story to read. 

by Kevin Wilson

Lillian, 28-years-old

Lillian and Madison were boarding school roommates from very different backgrounds. They've barely spoken since a scandal forced Lillian to leave school.

A decade later, Lillian's life is not on the track she'd imagined for herself, so when she receives a call from Madison asking her to help with Madison's twin step-children who are moving in, Lillian figures she has nothing to lose.

But there is a catch: both kids spontaneously burst into flames when they are agitated. Madison needs to keep this fact somehow a secret while her husband runs for public office. Despite knowing nothing about raising kids, Lillian agrees to take on the role, and throughout a summer, she and the kids learn together how to keep their cool – literally. It may even prove to be the start of a whole new life for Lillian.

The Book Girls Say... We were both very skeptical about the premise of this book, but it's an excellent and worthwhile read!