Penn Badgley, Blake Lively, Taylor Momsen, Leighton Meester, Jessica Szohr, Chace Crawford, and Ed Westwick in Gossip Girl (2007)
(The CW)

All ‘Gossip Girl’ books ranked worst to best

Do you like reading about the glamorous lives of New York City’s most elite crop of high schoolers? Do you also like reading good books that are also bad? Then you’ll love Cecily von Ziegesar’s Gossip Girl books. Much like the beloved show it inspired, Ziegesar’s Gossip Girl series follows a group of teenagers behaving so badly it would make Sex and the City’s Samantha blush.

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The novels aren’t exactly highbrow, but great for when you want a trashy beach read. If you’re anything like me, a connoisseur of “so bad it’s good” literature, you realize such stories can easily cross the line and become just plain bad more quickly than Nate Archibald can cheat on Blair Waldorf. To save you from a fate of reading books you don’t like, I present to you a ranking of all the Gossip Girl books from worst to best. 

12. Would I Lie to You?

Cover Art for 'Would I Lie to You'
(Little, Brown, and Company)

The Gossip Girl cast has finally graduated from high school, but sadly not from rehashing the same tired drama. Any character development is thrown out the window (Serena “realizing” she’s in love with Nate? Bruh.), and Dan’s attempt at exploring his sexuality is only used to fuel homophobic jokes at his expense. This book ain’t it. 

11. Nothing Can Keep Us Together

Cover Art for 'Nothing Can Keep Us Together'
(Little, Brown, and Company)

In this book, it takes over 200 pages for nothing to really happen. Graduation happens, Jenny gets into Waverly, Blair becomes jealous of Serena, and Nate cheats (again). You can skip this one. 

10. Only in Your Dreams

Cover Art for 'Only In Your Dreams'
(Little, Brown, and Company)

Only in Your Dreams wraps up what little loose ends were left after the last book, and then, guess what happens? The characters are exactly where they left off two books ago! At least this one made me laugh, and Blair’s parents actually do something parental for once and curb her excessive spending habits.

9. You’re the One That I Want

Cover art for 'You're the One That I Want'
(Little, Brown, and Company)

Is this a good book? No. Did I laugh because Dan became a rock star with the song “Kill Tooter,” inspired by his hatred for a flatulent ferret? Yes. That’s enough to merit a higher ranking than the previous books. 

8. Nobody Does It Better

Cover Art for 'Nobody Does It Better'
(Little, Brown, and Company)

Things I like about this book: Blair gets into the college of her dreams; we love to see a woman win! Things I don’t like about this book: the rest of it.

7. I Will Always Love You

Cover art for 'I Will Always Love You'
(Little, Brown, and Company)

The long-awaited end to the book series is a bit anticlimactic and very polarizing. It spans each winter break throughout the main characters’ college careers, and this clever framing allows the author to cover a lot of ground quickly, showing us just how much — and how little — the cast has changed since leaving high school. It’s a bit of a slog at first, but I wasn’t mad at the ending. Good riddance, Nate!

6. I Like It Like That

Cover art for 'I Like It Like That'
(Little, Brown, and Company)

I like when spring break finally starts and things finally get moving, but the beginning is slow. Like the twin wardens say in Persona 5, this book is “not terrible, but not impressive.” 

5. It Had to Be You 

Cover Art for 'It Had to Be You'
(Little, Brown, and Company)

This Gossip Girl prequel covers why Serena ended up going to boarding school, as well as the summer tryst that started the most aggravating love triangle in fiction. It’s still an enjoyable read, albeit longer than it needs to be. 

4. All I Want is Everything

Cover art for 'All I Want is Everything'
(Little, Brown, and Company)

A famous musician falls in love with Serena when he sees her in the audience. Blair experiences even more family drama and has more tension with her new stepbrother than the two leads in Life With Derek. The above storylines are silly fun, but I don’t love the slut-shaming storylines involving Dan, Vanessa, Nate, and Jenny. Dan seriously needs to get a life. 

3. Because I’m Worth It 

Cover Art for 'Because I'm Worth It'
(Little, Brown, and Company)

Some of the best storylines happen in this book. Nate faces his drug problem and goes to rehab, where he meets Georgina Sparks, who sadly isn’t as calculating, nor as fun, as her TV show counterpart. Blair chops all her hair off (love that for her!) and tries to get with a man her father’s age (yikes!). Serena becomes a model and opens NYFW, because why not? This would rank higher, but Dan aggravates me. 

2. Gossip Girl 

Cover Art for 'Gossip Girl'
(Little, Brown, and Company)

The first book remains one of the best, if only because it introduces us to these messy characters and their world. Yes, the characters are all horrible people, but I still found myself rooting for Blair and Serena regardless. I support women’s rights, but also women’s wrongs. Except for choosing Nate, that I cannot support.

1. You Know You Love Me 

Cover art for 'You Know You Love Me'
(Little, Brown, and Company)

Now that the introductions are out of the way, we can really get into the drama. You Know You Love Me only improves on the series debut by becoming even messier. Dan is tempted yet again to step out on Blair, Serena effortlessly beats her former bestie despite how hard Blair works to be the best, and Dan’s at his most likeable with Vanessa in this one. Despite the book doubling down on the characters being objectively awful people, they still manage to be relatable and charming in their own way. 


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Staci White
Staci (she/her) is a contributing writer at the Mary Sue, specializing in music, anime, fashion, and whatever pop culture moment we’re currently obsessed with. She began a career in digital media in 2017 and her work has been published on sites like We Got This Covered and Poptized Magazine. When she’s not writing, you can find her hanging out at local coffee shops, rewatching Sailor Moon, or working as an actor and singer in her home of Los Angeles. You can find her on most social media as @stvciw.