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Thalamus

Ursula Poznanski

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Similar in characterization + relationships

These books are ranked using the characterization + relationships labels extracted for Thalamus. Books rank higher when they are close on every selected axis.

Characterization labels used: teen protagonist, injured protagonist, mute protagonist, disabled protagonist, sympathetic protagonist, teen patients, friend group, mysterious patient, troubled patient

Relationships labels used: friendship, trust issues, patient bonds, peer group, power imbalance, isolation, dependency

This does not mean the books share the same plot, setting, quality, or difficulty. It means their characterization + relationships embeddings are close.

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متلازمة فريجولي

منال معشي · 2023 · متلازمة فريجولي

A young psychologist is assigned to a rare psychiatric case, and the patient and hospital secrets quickly entangle them both.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: psychologist · teen patient · antihero doctor · angry protagonist · guarded protagonist · traumatized character · childlike character · loner · prickly personality · supportive friend · mysterious antagonist · morally gray

Relationships labels: doctor-patient · fractured friendship · protective bond · mutual healing · sibling-like bond · trust building · power imbalance

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1324

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Hatch

Kenneth Oppel · 2020 · The Overthrow

Trapped with other hybrid teens, three survivors face new alien horrors, secret experiments, and shifting loyalties.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: teen protagonists · hybrid children · chosen ones · transformation arc · identity crisis · physically changing · emotionally strained · insecure teens · morally ambiguous adults · sadistic scientist · troubled outsider

Relationships labels: friendship under strain · group dynamics · betrayal · shifting alliances · trust issues · forced isolation · power imbalance · family separation · romantic tension · crushes

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1328

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Dragon Head, Volume 1

Minetarō Mochizuki · 2006 · ドラゴンヘッド [Dragon Head]

A school train trip turns into a nightmare when a tunnel collapse traps three teens underground with no clear way out.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: teen protagonists · school students · fragile sanity · protective lead · unhinged survivor · helpless victim · reactive character · survival instincts · psychological deterioration · flat characters

Relationships labels: classmates · peer conflict · group survival · protective bond · dependency · gendered power dynamics · friendship under stress · betrayal risk · rivalry

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1352

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Ultraviolet

R.J. Anderson · 2011 · Ultraviolet

A teen in a psychiatric ward tries to prove she’s sane while the truth behind a missing classmate keeps changing.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: teen girl protagonist · vulnerable protagonist · relatable protagonist · strong heroine · unreliable narrator · isolated protagonist · misunderstood character · suspicious doctor · sympathetic patient group · popular rival · psychologist · scientist

Relationships labels: mother-daughter conflict · romantic tension · mentor relationship · doctor-patient dynamic · friendship · rivalry · family estrangement · institutional power imbalance · trust issues · forbidden romance

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1378

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Minecraft: The Crash

Tracey Baptiste · 2018 · Official Minecraft Novels

After a car crash leaves her hospitalized, a teen enters a VR Minecraft world that turns fear, grief, and hope into a quest.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: impulsive protagonist · teen protagonist · tough heroine · best friends · side characters with trauma · glitching avatar · emotionally guarded · grief-stricken · uncertain protagonist · supportive allies

Relationships labels: best friends · friendship · loyalty · teamwork · hospital camaraderie · grief bond · dependency

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1402

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Shiny Happy People

Clay McLeod Chapman · 2025

A traumatized teen investigates a viral party drug that makes her town eerily perfect—and dangerously not themselves.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: teen girl protagonist · adopted protagonist · anxious protagonist · straight-edge protagonist · outsider protagonist · new kid ally · mysterious outsider · perfectionist · smart protagonist · controlling protagonist · traumatized protagonist · loner

Relationships labels: adoptive family · best friends · brother-sister relationship · romantic tension · friendship under pressure · peer pressure · trust issues · community conformity · family trauma · protective alliance

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1425

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Cover of The End and Other Beginnings: Stories from the Future – A Masterful Illustrated Sci-Fi Anthology for Teens about Friendship, Hope, and Technology by Veronica Roth

The End and Other Beginnings: Stories from the Future – A Masterful Illustrated Sci-Fi Anthology for Teens about Friendship, Hope, and Technology

Veronica Roth · 2019 · Carve the Mark

Six illustrated YA sci-fi novellas explore future worlds where love, grief, and hope collide with strange technologies.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: teen protagonists · young adults · tortured characters · emotionally damaged characters · grieving characters · mentally ill characters · self-reflective · feisty heroine · loyal sibling · isolated outsider

Relationships labels: friendship · romance · siblings · family dynamics · parent-child conflict · estranged friends · best friends · community bonds · sibling rivalry

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1429

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This Is Not a Test: The Definitive Edition with Please Remain Calm

Courtney Summers · 2026 · This is Not a Test

Six teens barricaded in a high school face zombies outside and trauma, fear, and survival instincts inside.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: suicidal teen · abused protagonist · traumatized teens · flawed characters · damaged characters · reluctant survivor · de facto leader · brooding characters · complicated teens · unreliable self-protection

Relationships labels: sibling bond · sibling abandonment · abusive parent · group conflict · forced proximity · alliances · romantic tension · classmate bonds · power struggles · betrayal

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1441

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Atlas Alone

Emma Newman · 2019 · Planetfall

A traumatized gamer on a colony ship hunts Earth’s killers through VR, uncovering a deadly conspiracy.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: traumatized protagonist · flawed protagonist · isolated protagonist · gamer protagonist · vengeful protagonist · unlikeable protagonist · morally compromised protagonist · complicated protagonist · trust issues · emotionally armored · corporate slave · indentured worker · non-person

Relationships labels: friendship · power imbalance · manipulation · betrayal · co-conspirator · mistrust · dependence · shipboard hierarchy

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1452

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Thief!

Malorie Blackman · 2004

After being framed at school, a bullied girl is hurled into a bleak future where her choices have changed everything.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: young female protagonist · new girl · little brother · bullied child · likeable protagonist · vulnerable protagonist · framed victim · tyrant · queen bee · heroic child · bitter future self · corrupted future self

Relationships labels: sibling bond · friendship · peer pressure · bullying · school clique · betrayal · family support · friendship fallout · community hostility · power imbalance

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1461

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Boy 7

Mirjam Mous · 2009 · Best of YA | XS

An amnesiac teen follows clues in his backpack to uncover his identity, and a secret experiment tied to his forgotten past.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: teen protagonist · hacker · naive protagonist · resourceful protagonist · suspicious protagonist · helpful girl · antagonists · flat secondary characters · moral ambiguity

Relationships labels: trust issues · girl helper · friendship · betrayal · group captivity · family connection · romance avoided · ally turns enemy

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1466

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We Are the Ants

Shaun David Hutchinson · 2016 · We Are the Ants

A bullied, grieving queer teen must decide whether to save the world when aliens give him 144 days and a red button.

Why this is here

Characterization labels: troubled teen · nihilistic protagonist · witty narrator · depressed protagonist · scientific thinker · flawed characters · bullying victim · abusive sibling · grieving teen · popular bully · mysterious new boy · supportive friend · teacher figure · dementia-afflicted grandparent · suicidal bereavement

Relationships labels: family dysfunction · friendship · romance · bully-victim dynamic · queer relationship · best-friend betrayal · sibling conflict · parent-child tension · grief bond · supportive friendship

Semantic match: ranked by characterization + relationships

Distance: 0.1504

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