My Favorite Reads of 2024
Books I'd go to bat for
I would class 2024 as a good reading year. Perhaps not an all-time reading year but a good one. I wound up reading most of the books I really loved in the first half of the year, which skewed my memory a little bit when I first started plotting out this post, but I was pleasantly surprised when I started going back through my Storygraph. One of my favorite things about my reading this year was reading multiple books from a variety of authors, from my Louise Erdrich/Maggie O’Farrell project to tearing through the Murderbot series by Martha Wells to curling up with Chloe Liese’s cozy Bergman Brothers series. I’ll also be putting together a post with all of my 2024 recommended reads, arranged by genre, in early January but these are my very favorites.
I’ve arranged my romance favorites in alphabetical order, because ranking would be too much of a struggle, but I will say that when I was making this list, three romances came to mind instantly: The Other Side of Disappearing by Kate Clayborn, The Ex Vows by Jessica Joyce, and You Should Be So Lucky by Cat Sebastian. So think of them as my unofficial top three, if you like. This list is all 2024 releases and they’re all books that I finished and wanted to get other people to read immediately. They spill over with tenderness and compassion. They have characters that I adored and writing that I relished. And they showcase what this genre I love so much is capable of.
Romance favorites:
The Other Side of Disappearing by Kate Clayborn
Years after her mother disappeared with a notorious con man, reserved Jess Greene finds herself agreeing to accompany her younger sister, a podcast host, and quietly thoughtful, handsome producer Adam Hawkins in search of her. A romance, a mystery, and a sister story, this features stunning line-level writing and rich characterization. I adored the soft, slow way that Adam and Jess open up to each other and the absolute mastery that Clayborn has of her craft.
At First Spite by Olivia Dade
This romance about a woman who moves into a tiny spite house, only to find that she’s living next to her ex-fiance’s brother (who convinced him to dump her), showcases both Dade’s giddy sense of humor and thoughtful, grounded approach to writing about characters going through hard things. A soft, sincere, and funny love story.
The Ex Vows by Jessica Joyce
A second chance romance about estranged exes drawn back together in an attempt to save their mutual best friend’s wedding that’s pretty close to perfect. I loved this one so much—the yearning, the way Joyce writes about friendship, the chemistry, the flawless Northern California setting—that I texted all my friends about it as soon as I finished.
How You Get the Girl by Anita Kelly
A deeply kind and thoughtful sapphic sports romance between Julie, the sunshine-y coach of a high school basketball team, and retired college basketball star Elle. A celebration not just of romantic love, but of familial love, of friendship, and of the love of basketball and a story that knows you can be figuring it all out and find your happy ending anyway.
How to End a Love Story by Yulin Kuang
A messy, gloriously angsty romance about two people bound together by tragedy who meet again in a Hollywood writers’ room. I loved the sharpness of Kuang’s writing and the space she allows Grant and Helen to mess up and find their way back to each other, as well as the behind-the-scenes Hollywood details.
The Lily of Ludgate Hill by Mimi Matthews
A second-chance romance between confirmed spinster Lady Anne Deveril and the roguish gentleman who still harbors feelings for her. This is the slowest of slow burns, where even the smallest movement of Anne’s skirts is freighted with meaning. Matthews writes with such care and feeling, her prose undeniably elegant, and Anne and Felix’s connection feels hard-fought and achingly true.
Not Here to Make Friends by Jodi McAlister
Set behind the scenes of a Bachelor-inspired reality dating show, this friends-to-lovers romance features two scheming, conniving people who also happen to be perfect for each other. (And are ultimately using their powers for good? Mostly.) A funny, smart treat of a book with crackling chemistry between its two leads.
This Could Be Us by Kennedy Ryan
A powerful, emotional romance about a woman rebuilding her life after a devastating betrayal. Soledad was one of my favorite romance heroines of the year, both strong and vulnerable, smart and endlessly compelling. The love story between her and Judah is a downright electric slow burn and so is Soledad’s love story with herself.
You Should Be So Lucky by Cat Sebastian
This historical romance between a baseball player in the worst slump of his life and the grieving journalist assigned to cover his spectacularly terrible season is written with wit, warmth, and the perfect balance of compassion and ferocity. It’s marvelously New York-y and it’s 2% plot and 98% Big Feelings in a way only Sebastian could pull off.
Past Present Future by Rachel Lynn Solomon
Technically YA, this sequel to 2020’s Today Tonight Tomorrow finds its leads now in college and navigating a long-distance relationship. A wonderful, smart, empathetic depiction of the first year of college in all its awkward glory, the struggles of long-distance communication, and the real work that comes after an HEA.
My non-romance favorites are a mix of frontlist and backlist and include a mix of fantasy, literary fiction, historical fiction, and nonfiction. It has some of the buzziest books from this year and a book published over 30 years ago. These are the books that I found totally absorbing, that kept on popping into my head over the course of the year, and that swept me away, whether that was to a magical realm, to the past, or just to someone else’s head.
Good Material by Dolly Alderton
After a devastating breakup, stand-up comic Andy is left to wallow, make some questionable choices, and maybe even learn his ex-girlfriend’s side of the story. Alderton is funny, sharp-eyed, smart, and our premier chronicler of relationships both romantic and platonic. I love the way she writes about friendship just as much as the way she writes about love.
Joan by Katherine J. Chen
A spellbinding reimagining of the life of Joan of Arc that's modern without ever feeling anachronistic. I was captivated by this version of Joan, a stubborn survivor with a gift for battle, and transported to the 1400’s by Chen’s writing. A reflection on heroism, faith, power, and the making of a legend that feels fresh and exciting.
Monsters by Claire Dederer
An incredibly smart, thought-provoking reflection on what we do with the art of monstrous men, what makes a monster, and what it means to love a piece of art that blends cultural criticism and memoir. Rewarding, challenging, and one of the books I haven’t been able to stop thinking about since I first read it.
The Plague of Doves by Louise Erdrich
A beautifully designed puzzle of a book that plays in a wide variety of genres and masters them all, as Erdrich explores the repercussions of the unsolved murder of a farm family and the bloody revenge taken on the Ojibwe in response. Reading Erdrich’s backlist was a highlight of my year and I think this luminous, tragic, marvelous book might have been my favorite.
James by Percival Everett
The book of the year and deservedly so. This bold retelling of Huck Finn through Jim’s perspective is somehow both a propulsive romp and an incredibly rich exploration of language, narrative, and American history. I have a feeling there’s still about twelve more layers to this book that I still have to explore.
The Bright Sword by Lev Grossman
A sweeping Arthurian epic set after the death of King Arthur that brings a cast of side characters center-stage for one more adventure and effortlessly braids together centuries worth of Arthurian mythology. Modern and mythical at the same time, this is a proper door-stopper of an epic and I loved every dazzling page of it.
Piglet by Lottie Hazell
A darkly funny, perceptive take on appetite, ambition, and the shapes society demands women contort themselves into. This story of a woman whose husband-to-be confesses a horrible betrayal two weeks before their wedding features luscious food writing, a razor-sharp eye for the nuances of class, and a heroine who felt like one of my friends by the end of the book.
The Cazalet Chronicles by Elizabeth Jane Howard
Yes, I’m including the whole series! This sprawling saga follows a well-off British family from the 1930’s to the 1950’s, as both they and the country transform. Howard manages a huge cast of characters with a deft hand and spending thousands of pages with the Cazalets and co was one of the best parts of my year.
A Sorceress Comes to Call by T. Kingfisher
A loose reimagining of The Goose Girl with a richly developed cast of unconventional heroes, a dash of found family, and a very creepy horse. Kingfisher strikes the perfect balance between the darkness that lurks at the heart of fairy tales and the warmth necessary to craft a happy ending anyway.
Doomsday Book by Connie Willis
Gripping, tragic, and hopeful, this is an exploration of humanity and history that rewards the patient reader. The story of a historian who travels back to the Middle Ages, it brings a distant time period to full life with an amazing level of detail and made me feel so deeply. I wanted to recommend it to other readers as soon as I finished it.
Let me know if we share any 2024 favorites!
Currently reading: Make the Season Bright by Ashley Herring Blake, because it’s still holiday romance season.
Recommendations, miscellany, and little bits of joy:
Not Sorry Productions, who make my beloved Hot and Bothered, have released a new podcast analyzing Taylor Swift’s songs and I was there immediately.
A Real Pain, the new Jesse Eisenberg film about a pair of cousins touring Poland in honor of their recently deceased grandmother. It’s funny, smart and features two fantastic performances from Eisenberg and Kieran Culkin.
Hani’s Bakery in the East Village, home of a truly fabulous peanut butter crunch cake.