From robot assassins and tradwife satire to slow-burn romances and Daphne du Maurier retellings—this year’s fiction picks defy easy categorization.
Two rival actors form a unique bond after tragedy strikes in this scintillating sapphic thriller. Nadine and Harper have been at odds since they first met at a London drama school in 1992. Both are back in London for the BAFTAs when Harper shows up at Nadine's hotel after the ceremony, covered in blood and seeking help. Fitzgerald's rendering of the thorny relationship between her leads will hook readers from the first page.
This magnificent novel begins with the canine narrator, a shepherd mix raised happily on a coastal farm, being conscripted and trained to sniff out land mines and disarm enemy soldiers for an American unit aiding his unnamed country's war effort. When the war ends, Etna travels the country, hoping to recover his sense of self. Yoon pulls off a fresh take on well-worn Homeric themes and convincingly captures a dog's perspective.
After screwing up at his IT job and getting dumped by his cheating boyfriend, Canadian 20-something Daniel impulsively flies to China to see his bestie. She's away when Daniel arrives but has booked him a private tour of the Great Wall with guide Yang, a PhD student. Plenty of sightseeing, fabulous meals, and tender moments add up to a slow-burning romance tailor-made for armchair travelers.
There's plenty to enjoy in this rollicking caper about a woman who gets roped into a potential smuggling scheme. Adora, a philosopher on fellowship at a museum in New York City, begins a romance with Digby, who soon reveals they met not by chance but because he was following her. Initially convinced Digby is attempting to recover a stolen artwork from the museum's collection, Adora investigates, and a series of alarming misunderstandings ensue.
In this tour de force told in alternating narration, two motherless girls from rural Honeysuckle, La., follow very different paths into adulthood. Niecy is orphaned as an infant and raised reluctantly by her free-spirited aunt. Before Niecy learns to talk, she befriends her neighbor Annie, who lives with her grandmother. The best friends' lives diverge when Niecy leaves for Spelman College and Annie sets out to search for her mother, but through the years, they remain the most important person to the other.
This lovely near-future foray brings hope and humor to a postapocalyptic world. The nameless narrator is a former robot assassin who secluded themself at the abandoned New York Botanical Garden for 20 years. When they venture out, they discover that all is not as it should be in the world outside. Joined by charming companions, the narrator must confront their past if they hope to achieve their dream of an equitable future.
The comedic fantasy series Discworld, which comprises 41 novels and takes place in a flat, circular world atop the backs of four elephants, is full of fantastical creatures. Series devotees will eat up this lavishly illustrated compendium by Kidby—Pratchett's longtime artist—which provides a field guide to beasts including the Terrible Man-Eating Sloth of Clup ("Being eaten by it is a drawn-out, horrible and somewhat tedious experience") and the Inflatable Mongoose ("benign but unpleasant").
This smart, simmering sapphic love story reimagines the origins of Daphne du Maurier's Rebecca. Danni, a Polish-born Jewish seamstress, recalls the summer of 1936, when she became housekeeper at the Cornish estate that, in Tremain's telling, inspired Rebecca's setting of Manderley. When du Maurier comes to visit, she and Danni are undeniably drawn to each other. It's an intimate portrait of desire and creativity.
To her millions of Instagram followers, Natalie is a "flawless Christian woman" leading an idyllic life on the self-sustaining Yesteryear Ranch with her hardworking husband, Caleb, and their five kids. In reality, the family's remote Idaho farm is a money pit. When Natalie wakes one morning in a rustic facsimile of her home, it appears that she's traveled back in time to 1855. This tradwife satire is ripe for anyone who missed out on one of the year's most buzzed-about novels.
With Poppy in stasis, Casteel must lead without her and Kieran shoulders a kingdom as gods and mortals drift apart in this Blood and Ash novella set before The Throne of Bone and Ash.
Seraphena was promised to the Primal of Death before birth. Her secret mission: make him love her, then kill him to save her kingdom. Book 1 of Flesh and Fire, in a special edition.
Everyone knew Sully and Dru were meant to be. But Sully is battling demons he hides from everyone, especially Dru, and for her it's all or nothing. Book 8 of the River Rain series.
“A profound love story” (New York Times) that is both a novel and a poem, an unconventional re-creation of an ancient Greek myth and a wholly original coming-of-age story set in the present.
Return to Austenland at Christmastime in this delightfully charming romance by bestselling author Shannon Hale, now available in a festive deluxe edition with ivy-patterned edges!
Chosen as the Maiden, Poppy has never been allowed a life of her own, until her guard Hawke awakens forbidden desire as an ancient enemy rises. Book one of the Blood and Ash series.
Ancient temples, haunted bridges, and spectral women—discover 87 tales where Kyoto’s history and Buddhist lore entwine with restless spirits, Hungry Ghosts, and the rituals that keep them at bay.
Grab some loot with this LitRPG fantasy epic full of magic, monsters, and humor, where a snarky underdog takes on everything from corrupt aristocrats to literal gods. A NEW YORK TIMES Bestseller!
Jason Asano is just getting used to his new life as an interdimensional wizard adventurer when a terrifying old enemy comes after Jason and his friends. A NEW YORK TIMES Bestselling series!
An aspiring LA actress and a disciplined pro baseball player are drawn together by a shared lucky number. But can love survive their demanding careers? A sweet, heartfelt romance.
When her famed father dies, Elizabeth DuBois returns to New Orleans, where secrets, rivalries, and forbidden relationships threaten to unravel her family’s legacy and the empire holding them together.
In 1920 New York, Samantha Parkington must uncover the truth behind her stolen inheritance, risking everything to protect her family's legacy and secure her future.
Ex-Marine Logan Murdoch can't afford to fall for Connor Harcourt, heir to the luxury resort where he works security. But a scandal threatens Sapphire Cove and throws them back together.
After Gettysburg, three lives converge in the ruin: a free Black farmer, an untrained nurse, a Union spy. Something older than time watches, wearing a dead soldier's face.
Sunny, a shadow-ability wielding young man, navigates a brutal world where humanity must battle terrifying creatures in a nightmare realm to survive. A gritty, dark fantasy, now a deluxe hardcover!
WHAT IF the 'historical' Jesus of Nazareth was reborn in our time, unaware of who he might be.
Jonathan Cahn’s gripping new thriller blends history, prophecy, archaeology, and suspense in a global quest to uncover the chilling mystery behind the ancient Altar of Pergamon and its darkest legacy.
Celebrate 20 years of the Brothers with a new Wrath and Beth novella, where-are-they-now interviews, fan-favorite features, and J.R. Ward's reflections on her legendary series.
Military widow Vanessa's search for her family's lost WWII Christmas ring leads to a small-town antique shop, and to a second chance at love with its guarded owner, Ben.
From Bethlehem to a small Texas town, Max Lucado's heartwarming Christmas tales, featuring angels, Joseph, and a missing baby Jesus, celebrate the wonder and hope of God's greatest gift.
Recovering people-pleaser Chloe vows to collect ten nos by Christmas, but charming out-of-towner James says YES to every wild request, and his secret reason could break both their hearts.
Two years after one unforgettable Italian holiday, Olivia lands her dream design job in Milan; unaware ruthless billionaire Enrico Ferrara arranged it. He wants her. His legacy forbids it.
Magellan Billet agent Luke Daniels must stop a Russian-American conspiracy rooted in a secret deal hidden in the 1867 purchase of Alaska, in a new thriller from Steve Berry.
Journalist Sin Sackey returns to DC to start over, until a new lead pulls her back into the story that nearly ruined her and a too-good-to-be-true man tempts her heart.
