Sometimes when real life gets tough, it’s fun to escape into a different world through a book. It’s nice to concentrate on other people’s problems once in a while. Here are some worlds to escape to that will leave you feeling like our real world isn’t quite so bad after all.

9 Dystopias & “Utopias” You Must Read

1. Girls with Sharp Sticks by Suzanne Young

The carefully controlled existence of a group of girls at an elite boarding school may not be quite as it appears to be. As Mena and her friends uncover the dark secrets of what’s actually happening – and who they really are – the students of Innovations Academy will learn to fight back. The Handmaids Tale meets WestWorld in this new book from The Program author Suzanne Young.

2. This Mortal Coil by Emily Suvada

This Mortal Coil by Emily Suvada

Catarina Agatta is a hacker. She can cripple mainframes and crash though firewalls, but that’s not what makes her special. In Cat’s world, people are implanted with technology to recode their DNA, allowing them to change their bodies in any way they want.

3. Last Star Burning by Caitlin Sangster

Last Star Burning by Caitlin Sangster

Sev is branded with the mark of a criminal. A star burned into her hand is the penalty for being the daughter of the woman who betrayed their entire nation.

4. Light Years by Emily Ziff Griffin

Light Years by Emily Ziff Griffin

Luisa’s life is thrust into chaos as a deadly virus sweeps across the globe, killing thousands and sending her father into quarantine. When Lu receives a cryptic message from someone who might hold the key to stopping the epidemic, she knows she must do something to save her family—and the world.

5. Scythe by Neal Shusterman

Scythe by Neal Shusterman

A world with no hunger, no disease, no war, no misery: humanity has conquered all those things, and has even conquered death. Now Scythes are the only ones who can end life—and they are commanded to do so, in order to keep the size of the population under control. Don’t miss book 2, Thunderhead, in this edge-of-your-seat series!

6. Want by Cindy Pon

Want by Cindy Pon

Jason Zhou survives in a divided society where the elite use their wealth to buy longer lives. The rich wear special suits, protecting them from the pollution and viruses that plague the city, while those without suffer illness and early deaths.

7. Ruse by Cindy Pon

Jason Zhou, his friends, and Daiyu are back in the sequel to Cindy Pon’s sci-fi thriller Want.

After the events of the last book, Jin, the ruthless billionaire and Daiyu’s father, is out for blood and has Jany, a childhood friend of Linyi, murdered and steals the tech that Jany refused to sell him. Lingyi is now the only one who has access to the encrypted info, putting her own life is now in jeopardy.

8. Perfect Ruin by Lauren DeStefano

Perfect Ruin by Lauren DeStefano

Morgan Stockhour knows getting too close to the edge of Internment, the floating city and her home, can lead to madness. Then a murder, the first in a generation, rocks the city. With whispers swirling and fear on the wind, Morgan can no longer stop herself from investigating, especially once she meets Judas.

9. Uglies by Scott Westerfeld

Uglies by Scott Westerfeld

Everybody gets to be supermodel gorgeous. What could be wrong with that?

Tally is about to turn sixteen, and she can’t wait—to turn pretty. In Tally’s world, your sixteenth birthday brings an operation that turns you from a repellent ugly into a stunningly attractive pretty and catapults you into a high-tech paradise where your only job is to have a really great time.  Once you’ve finished Uglies, check out the rest of the books in the series.

Want some more out of this world reads? Try these 5 books!