My Favorite Multi-POV Novels

Writing multi-POV novels is a tough business. Between writing a fully-formed plot with multiple characters who are all (somewhat) equally involved and invested in the narrative (and thus deserving of their perspective), keeping all the voices distinct, making sure the multiple character arcs line up, and everything else involved, it can be a lot. I've already written posts on how to write multi-POV novels, dual-POV writing tips, choosing POV characters, etc., but one tip I give a lot is to read what you want to write. So if you want to write multi-POV novels, reading them can be really helpful.

I haven't, however, really talked much about multi-POV novels I've enjoyed, so I'm going to fix that now with a list. So if you're looking for multi-POV books, take a look at these:

Six of Crows duology by Leigh Bardugo

What's extra great about this one (besides, you know, everything) is Bardugo mastered not only third-person multi-POV, but she did it while also honing each POV character's distinct voice. It is excellent.

Illuminae Files trilogy by Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman

This one's an interesting example, because there are SO many POV characters. In Illuminae, there's Kady, Ezra, AIDAN (the AI), people transcribing video files, and probably more than I'm forgetting. The trilogy is told in a found materials format, which is unusual, and awesome, and the way multiple POVs are balanced and played with makes for super interesting reading.

Shades of Magic trilogy by V.E. Schwab

Another excellent multi-POV in third person trilogy. Also I just really love V.E. Schwab's third person voice like whoa.

Across the Universe trilogy by Beth Revis

This is the first dual-POV YA I read and wow, I loved it. It's an old example but remains the book that taught me how effective first person dual-POV can be, so I will continue recommending it forever.

Otherbound by Corinne Duyvis

This is a great one because not only is it dual-POV chock full of great representation, but the two POV characters literally live in different worlds. So that's pretty neat.

The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater

This book is really beautifully written and another great example of distinct YA third person dual-POV voices.


Others (both that I've read and haven't): The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey, Carry On and Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell, The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare, Faking It by Cora Carmack, Starbound trilogy by Amie Kaufman, Under the Never Sky trilogy by Veronica Rossi, Legend trilogy by Marie Lu, This is Where it Ends by Marieke Nijkamp, and Mind Games by Kiersten White.

What are some of your favorite multi-POV novels?

Twitter-sized bite:

What are some of your favorite multi-POV novels? @Ava_Jae shares some picks & kicks off the discussion on her blog. (Click to tweet)