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Back in 2015 when I was in Central America I found the first book or two of the Gossip Girl book series at a market that had used books. I’m working on a whole post about books like the Gossip Girl series, but today is all about the order of the Gossip Girl books.
And boy is it confusing! There is the main Gossip Girl series, The Carlyles series, The It Girl series, AND a manga adaptation. I’ll do a separate post about The It Girl books though.
I’m not sure how these would hold up if they were written today, but I think of them more as a nostalgic read, kind of like Pretty Little Liars. They’re just fun teen drama books.
- If you want to listen to some of these, consider trying Audible! You can get your first month free (one free book) plus tons of others they have for free. Get that Audible deal here.
- If you’re on more of a budget, try Scribd! You can get your first month free there. You can read books and listen to audiobooks. It is unlimited (especially the reading) but if you listen to tons of new audiobooks you may be restricted after a few. I don’t listen to enough to confirm this, but I do use Scribd myself and like it a lot. Sign up for Scribd here!
- Shop my collection of bookish goodies on Etsy! These aren’t my shop items, but other shops I’ve curated into a book-themed collection. Shop my Etsy bookish goodies here!
- If you want to read more on your Kindle but don’t want to buy books, Kindle Unlimited is a wonderful option. It’s $9.99 a month but if you read a lot and like to read more than just new releases, it could be worth it. Get Kindle Unlimited here!
- Get $5 off of $25 from BookOutlet! This is a great place to find new books for pretty cheap. They also have sales quite a bit, so keep an eye out for those. I tend to check here for books I want if they’re more expensive other places. They don’t have everything but they do have a lot. Shop BookOutlet here!
- Thrift Books has become my go-to when I’m looking for a book and want it cheap. It’s great if you like buying used books. With this you can get a free book after spending $30!
- Shop my book lists here! You can find every book list I have on Bookshop.org (except my monthly round-ups) and I add everything I can but they occasionally won’t have some. I do occasionally add extras though. If any lists are empty, they’ll be filled in shortly! Shop my bookshop.org book lists here.
- Shopping internationally? Check out Book Depository!
What is Gossip Girl about?
The Gossip Girls books are about a group of Manhattan’s elite teens living on the Upper East Side attending Constance Billiard School for Girls. Blair Waldorf and Serena van der Woodsen are the main focus of the books but the exploits of all the characters are chronicled by the gossip blogger, Gossip Girl.
How many books are in the Gossip Girl series?
There are twelve books in the main Gossip Girl book series, a prequel, and a parody of the first book where Blair and Serena become serial killers.
There are also four spin-off books in the series Gossip Girl: The Carlyles that were not written by von Ziegesar, but Annabelle Vestry.
There are eleven books in the other spin-off series, The It Girl, which follows Jenny Humphrey. These were also ghostwritten.
Finally, there is a manga series, The Gossip Girls: The Manga Series, with three volumes called For Your Eyes Only. These were adapted by HyeKyung Baek.
Do you need to read the Gossip Girl books in order?
Yup! The story is drawn out throughout all of the books. They are not each standalone books with minor story arcs throughout, they do need to be read in order.
Are the Gossip Girl books the same as the show?
Not really. The show is loosely based on the books and you’ll see some similarities but for the most part, they’re pretty different so it’s worth watching and reading them.
Did Cecily von Ziegesar write all of the Gossip Girl books?
She wrote most of them but books nine, ten, and eleven were ghostwritten. The It Girl series is also ghostwritten. The Carlyles series was written by Annabelle Vestry based on von Ziegesar’s idea, and the manga series was adapted by HyeKyung Baek.
Gossip Girl books in order
- It Had to Be You – Gossip Girl book 0
- Gossip Girl – Gossip Girl book 1
- You Know You Love Me – Gossip Girl book 2
- All I Want is Everything – Gossip Girl book 3
- Because I’m Worth It – Gossip Girl book 4
- I Like it Like That – Gossip Girl book 5
- You’re The One That I Want – Gossip Girl book 6
- Nobody Does it Better – Gossip Girl book 7
- Nothing Can Keep Us Together – Gossip Girl book 8
- Only in Your Dreams – Gossip Girl book 9
- Would I Lie to You – Gossip Girl book 10
- Don’t You Forget About Me – Gossip Girl book 11
- I Will Always Love You – Gossip Girl book 12
- Psycho Killer – Gossip Girl book 1 parody
Gossip Girl: The Carlyles books in order
Have you read the Gossip Girl books? What did you think of them? Have you read any of the spin-offs? Did you watch the show? Was the show or the books better?
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