If you love the dynamics of female competition – the good, the bad and the catty – you’re in for a treat. In honor of Mean Girls Day (“It’s October 3rd.”), we rounded up five books like Mean Girls, complete with cut-throat competition, frenemies, tight-knit cliques and back-stabbing moves. But not all mean girls end up with bad raps… some find redemption and bright futures. Others end up dead.

Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver

Samantha Kingston is at the top of the social ladder as a well-liked high school senior. On February 12, Cupid’s Day, which is meant to be a day of roses, valentines and celebrations, Samantha’s popularity takes an unexpected turn when she dies in a terrible accident. But afterlife isn’t quite what she expected. She wakes up the next day, and the rest of the week after that, with the opportunity to make slightly different choices that could reap powerful results.

This novel is a cleverly crafted depiction of the unexpected ways our lives are interconnected with others.


The Favorite Sister by Jessica Knoll

Brett and Kelly have always walked the fine line between sisterly support and rivalry. So, when Brett’s career skyrockets and she’s cast into the spotlight to star on a reality show called Goal Diggers, it’s no surprise that Kelly works her way onto the show as well. As filing progresses, challenges arise, alliances are formed, and to everyone’s surprise, the show wraps up with a murder.  Who did it? It’s anyone’s guess. And accusations are flying.

Sinister, entertaining and fast-paced – the cut-throat atmosphere on Goal Diggers will quickly become your guilty pleasure.  

Find out what the author, Jessica Knoll, reads and books to read if you love Jessica Knoll.


Pretty Things: A Novel by Janelle Brown

With a degree in hand, Nina was convinced she’d carve a life for herself far different than her con artist mother’s. But when her mother falls ill, Nina’s left with medical bills and one way out: to pull off the scam of a lifetime. So, together with her con artist boyfriend, Lachlan, Nina sets her sights on Vanessa, an Insta-famous socialite heiress, with whom Nina happens to have a hidden past. Deceit and destruction are at every turn, as the tables turn and the scammers get scammed.

You’ll love this page-turner that’s full of surprises, transforming jealousy and loathing into second chances.

Pretty Things is one of our picks for books to read if you loved Gone Girl. See what else made the list.


Afterparty by Ann Redisch Stampler

Emma’s had enough of being the good girl. So, when she meets Siobhan, she jumps at the chance to be edgy… popular… spontaneous. The stakes may be higher than she anticipated, though, and a friendship with Siobhan may be more than she can handle. Lies, loyalties and boundaries quickly blur as things spiral out of control for Emma.

Intense and wildly menacing, you’ll be hooked as the social pressures surge.


Some Girls Are by Courtney Summers

In the ultimate tale of high school mean girls, Regina Afton is sitting pretty on her social pedestal as a member of the Fearsome Five, a popular clique both feared and revered by classmates. But when a rumor spreads about Regina and her best friend’s boyfriend, she’s cast out, ostracized, and her friends are out for revenge. Her only hope at redemption is Michael Hayden, a classmate she once bullied, who is uncertain about giving her another chance.

Vicious high school relationships, frenemies and thankfully, forgiveness are all at the heart of this book like Mean Girls.