2024 Book Highlights.
By popular demand, here are my favorite books published in 2024. These works represent a spectrum of genres and voices, each leaving a lasting impression. Whether you’re seeking literary depth, thrilling stories, or new perspectives, I know you’ll find something on this list to add to your own.
“We fell in love and it was like...you know when all of a sudden there’s meaning. Actual true meaning and purpose.” “Like color in the dark,” Patch said.”
Best Of The Best.
fiction
James
by Percival Everett
In this brilliant and provocative reimagining of Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Percival Everett gives voice to Jim, the enslaved man whose courage and intellect have long been overshadowed. Facing the devastating prospect of being sold away from his family, Jim escapes to Jackson Island, where his path intersects with Huck Finn, who is fleeing his own troubled life. Together, they embark on a harrowing journey down the Mississippi River, navigating storms, deception, and peril in pursuit of freedom.
While Everett preserves key moments from Twain’s classic—encounters with conmen like the Duke and Dauphin, and brushes with both tragedy and fortune—he reframes the narrative through Jim’s perspective, illuminating his agency, intelligence, and deep humanity.
Darkly humorous, richly layered, and unflinchingly honest, James challenges readers to reconsider a cornerstone of American literature. Everett’s lacerating wit and soulful storytelling make this novel a landmark achievement, destined to reshape how we engage with our literary past.
Don’t miss this one. Steven Spielberg is set to adapt it into a movie.
All The Colors of The Dark
by Chris Whitaker
It’s 1975 in Monta Clare, Missouri, a small town unsettled by change and haunted by fear as young girls begin to disappear. Amidst this tension, Patch, a local boy from a hardscrabble background, becomes an unlikely hero when he rescues the daughter of a wealthy family. His courageous act reverberates through the community, but it also brings unexpected heartache and entangles Patch in a web of danger and despair.
Whitaker masterfully blends a missing-person mystery, a serial killer thriller, and a tender love story in this deeply evocative novel. As Patch and those closest to him search for answers, they find themselves confronting the delicate boundary between triumph and tragedy, hope and obsession.
With its richly drawn characters and unrelenting suspense, All The Colors of The Dark is both a chilling portrait of the shadows that lurk in the human heart and a moving exploration of resilience and connection. Whitaker’s ability to balance darkness with light makes this novel unforgettable.
Martyr!
by Kaveh Akbar
Cyrus Shams is a poet and addict navigating a life shaped by loss and longing. His mother perished in a tragic accident when her plane was shot down over the Persian Gulf, and his father’s life in the Midwest was defined by the grueling monotony of a factory farm. Now, Cyrus’s fascination with martyrdom sends him on a quest to untangle his family’s enigmatic past: to an uncle who roamed Iranian battlefields as the angel of death and to a painting in a Brooklyn gallery that challenges everything he thought he knew about his mother’s identity.
Akbar’s debut novel is a lyrical exploration of displacement, belonging, and the search for meaning in a fractured world. Martyr! vibrates with the joy of language, weaving a tapestry of faith, addiction, and self-discovery. With unflinching honesty and emotional depth, Akbar illuminates the ways we seek to understand our histories and ourselves, creating a work that is as transformative as it is transcendent.
Intermezzo
by Sally Rooney
Sally Rooney is back and at her best! Peter and Ivan Koubek are brothers bound by blood but divided by temperament and circumstance. Peter, a polished Dublin lawyer in his thirties, appears to have it all—career success and romantic intrigue with two women: Sylvia, his enduring first love, and Naomi, a carefree college student. Yet beneath the surface, he is unraveling in the wake of their father’s death, numbing himself with medication and questioning the stability of his life.
Ivan, on the other hand, is a 22-year-old chess prodigy and self-described misfit, preferring the solitude of his intellect to social engagement. Grieving the same loss, he encounters Margaret, an older woman with her own turbulent past. Their unexpected connection shakes his sense of identity, drawing him into a relationship both electrifying and fraught.
Set during a fleeting moment of transformation, Intermezzo is an exploration of grief, desire, and the fragile connections that shape our lives. Rooney captures the tension between what binds and divides us, weaving a story that is intimate, insightful, and profoundly human. With her signature precision and emotional depth, she crafts a narrative that lingers long after the final page.
The Tainted Cup: Shadow of the Leviathan #1
by Robert Jackson Bennett
In the far reaches of the Empire, in Daretana’s grandest mansion, an imperial officer meets a horrifying and impossible death—killed by a tree erupting from his body. It’s a crime that defies explanation, even in a world where the blood of leviathans creates bizarre magical phenomena. Enter Ana Dolabra, a reclusive detective whose genius is matched only by her peculiarities. Rumored to wear a blindfold at all times, Ana is renowned for solving the unsolvable without ever leaving her home.
Assisting her is Din Kol, a newly assigned aide who has been magically altered to complement Ana’s brilliance. Din is both bewildered and exasperated by Ana’s eccentric methods, but as the investigation deepens, he finds himself in awe of her uncanny intellect. Together, they unravel a conspiracy that could destabilize the entire Empire, even as Din struggles to keep his own secrets safe from Ana’s penetrating insight.
Bennett deftly combines intricate world-building with the sharp wit and twists of detective fiction to deliver a novel that is both familiar and refreshingly original. The Tainted Cup is a fiendishly clever mystery brimming with charm, humor, and a gripping exploration of loyalty, power, and the cost of brilliance.
Quickly hop on this one because the second book in the Shadow of the Leviathan series—A Drop of Corruption—is coming in 2025!
The Women
by Kristin Hannah
In 1965, twenty-year-old Frances “Frankie” McGrath hears a simple yet profound truth: women can be heroes. Raised in the idyllic confines of Southern California by conservative parents, Frankie has always followed the rules. But as the world around her shifts, so does her vision for her future. When her brother ships out to Vietnam, Frankie defies convention, enlisting in the Army Nurse Corps and following him into the heart of a war that will change her life forever.
Arriving in Vietnam green and unprepared, Frankie is thrust into a maelstrom of chaos and destruction. Amid the horrors of war, she forges deep bonds with fellow nurses and soldiers—bonds that are as fragile as the lives they strive to save. Yet surviving the war is only half the battle. Returning to a fractured America, Frankie faces the disillusionment of a divided country, angry protests, and the silence that surrounds Vietnam’s veterans, especially its women.
With unforgettable characters and a richly layered narrative, The Women illuminates the courage, sacrifice, and resilience of the women who served in Vietnam, often overlooked in history. Frankie’s journey—from the idealism of youth to the harsh realities of war and homecoming—captures an era and honors the unyielding spirit of those who dared to challenge expectations. Hannah delivers a poignant and powerful tribute to the unsung heroes of war.
The God of The Woods
by Liz Moore
In August 1975, at an idyllic summer camp nestled in the Adirondacks, a discovery shatters the morning calm: Barbara Van Laar, the 13-year-old daughter of the camp's owners, has vanished from her bunk. Her disappearance ripples through the camp and surrounding community, especially because it echoes a haunting family tragedy—her older brother disappeared from the same camp 14 years earlier and was never found.
As the search for Barbara unfolds, Moore crafts a layered narrative that explores the hidden lives of the Van Laar family and the tight-knit, working-class community that depends on them. The investigation peels back decades of secrets, betrayals, and complex relationships, revealing how privilege and power intersect with the aspirations and struggles of those living in their shadow.
The God of the Woods is perhaps Moore’s most ambitious novel to date, intertwining a suspenseful mystery with a deeply human exploration of class, family, and the weight of legacy. With its richly drawn characters and evocative setting, this novel is a haunting and powerful meditation on loss, resilience, and the unseen connections that bind us together.
The Ministry of Time
by Kaliane Bradley
In a near-future world, a young civil servant accepts a dream salary, only to learn her new position comes with an extraordinary assignment. She must act as a "bridge," tasked with living alongside, assisting, and monitoring historical figures plucked from their timelines as part of an ambitious government project investigating the feasibility of time travel. Her housemate: Commander Graham Gore, a British naval officer believed to have died in the Arctic during the ill-fated Franklin expedition of 1845.
Thrust into the modern world, Gore struggles to reconcile himself with the unfamiliarity of washing machines, Spotify, and the decline of the British Empire. His gruff charm and insatiable curiosity endear him to both the civil servant and a cast of chaotic fellow time travelers. Over time, their awkward coexistence transforms into a profound and unlikely romance. But when the Ministry’s true intentions come to light, the civil servant must confront impossible decisions about love, loyalty, and the ethical limits of rewriting history.
Bradley’s debut is a thrilling fusion of genres: part time-travel romance, part workplace comedy, and part spy thriller. With wit, heart, and a profound exploration of power and human connection, The Ministry of Time is an inventive and unforgettable journey. It poses the tantalizing question: If history lived in your house, what would it teach you about the future?
Best Of The Best.
non-fiction
The Serviceberry: Abundance and Reciprocity in the Natural World
by Robin Wall Kimmerer and John Burgoyne
In The Serviceberry, Robin Wall Kimmerer, celebrated Indigenous scientist and bestselling author of Braiding Sweetgrass, weaves a poetic and profound exploration of the natural world's lessons on gratitude, reciprocity, and community. Drawing inspiration from the serviceberry tree, which offers its fruits freely to sustain its ecosystem, Kimmerer reflects on how humans might reimagine their relationships—with nature, each other, and the systems that govern our lives.
Through vivid storytelling, she contrasts the tree's gift economy, rooted in abundance and interconnectedness, with modern systems driven by scarcity, competition, and hoarding. Kimmerer’s insights challenge us to reconsider what we value most, inviting us to cultivate wealth not through possessions, but through the quality of our relationships and the health of the communities we build. Her vision is both a critique of destructive economic practices and a hopeful guide to restoring balance in a fractured world.
Accompanied by John Burgoyne's evocative illustrations, this book is a hymn of gratitude to the Earth and a call to action for mutual flourishing. Kimmerer’s work reminds us that the path to a sustainable future lies in reciprocity—a lesson borne from nature’s most profound gifts.
Challenger: A True Story of Heroism and Disaster on the Edge of Space
by Adam Hogginbotham
From Adam Higginbotham, the New York Times bestselling author of Midnight in Chernobyl, comes a gripping, meticulously researched, and vividly told account of one of the 20th century’s most defining moments: the 1986 Challenger disaster. This minute-by-minute chronicle of ambition, innovation, and devastating failure reads with the intensity of a thriller while shedding new light on a tragedy that forever changed America’s relationship with space exploration.
On January 28, 1986, the Challenger shuttle broke apart just seventy-three seconds after liftoff, claiming the lives of its seven crew members, including Christa McAuliffe, a schoolteacher poised to become the first civilian in space. With millions watching live, the disaster was a collective heartbreak that shattered the nation’s optimistic faith in technology and exploration. Yet, as Higginbotham reveals, the story behind the tragedy is far more complex and astonishing than many remember.
Drawing on exhaustive archival research and original reporting, Higginbotham intricately reconstructs the years leading up to the accident, introducing the astronauts, engineers, and visionaries at the heart of NASA's shuttle program. He exposes the political pressures, cost-cutting measures, and ignored warnings that paved the way for catastrophe. The narrative also follows the courageous whistleblowers and investigators who fought to uncover the truth behind the disaster, revealing systemic failures that were deliberately concealed from the public.
Blending human drama with the fascinating science of spaceflight, Challenger not only honors the bravery and lives of the shuttle’s crew but also explores the broader cultural and political forces that shaped—and ultimately imperiled—the space shuttle program. A riveting and sobering masterpiece, Higginbotham’s work redefines how we understand this historic tragedy and its lasting impact on America’s space ambitions.
Good Energy: The Surprising Connection Between Metabolism and Limitless Health
by Casey Means with Calley Means
In Good Energy, Dr. Casey Means reveals a groundbreaking approach to health, showing that many of the most common and debilitating conditions—depression, anxiety, infertility, heart disease, cancer, and more—share a root cause: metabolic dysfunction. This eye-opening book explores how our cells’ ability to create and use energy is directly linked to nearly every aspect of our physical and mental well-being. The key to preventing and even reversing many chronic health conditions lies in optimizing our metabolic function, which can be controlled more easily than we think.
Through cutting-edge research and real-world examples, Dr. Means explains how our modern health challenges are often the result of poor cellular energy production. Drawing on data from the health technology company she founded, Good Energy offers readers the tools to measure and improve their metabolic health in ways that are both accessible and actionable. From identifying the five biomarkers that predict the risk of life-threatening diseases, to understanding the power of diet, sleep, and movement, Dr. Means provides a clear and empowering roadmap for a healthier, more vibrant life.
With a practical, four-week plan, Good Energy breaks down the science of metabolism and offers strategies to transform your health. It uncovers the links between circadian rhythms, sleep, and metabolism, introduces simple methods for exercise, and teaches how cold and heat exposure can build resilience. Dr. Means also provides advice on navigating the medical system to ensure you get the optimal care you need.
This book is a game-changer for anyone looking to take charge of their health and energy, offering a holistic approach to well-being that empowers you to live a long, healthy, and vibrant life. Good Energy challenges the conventional wisdom around health and offers a new, scientifically-backed framework to help you thrive.
Let me know if you pick up one of these books, and please send me any titles on your to-read list for 2025; they might show up on next year’s highlights! You can also follow my reading journey on Goodreads and check out previous years’ highlights here. Happy reading, y’all!
Metta,
Drewsome.
