My Favorite Books of 2024

In his debut novel, Gareth Brown tells a story about a young woman named Cassie who comes into possession of a book that allows her to go practically anywhere she wishes by opening any available doorway and stepping through. Brown expertly tells Cassie’s story of coming into possession of The Book of Doors, and her experiments to learn where she can, and can’t, go using it. Brown provides all of the fantasy characters readers expect in this type of story: a mentor, a sidekick, unexpected allies, and a villain who must be overcome. In every way, The Book of Doors is a successful fantasy novel about a magic book, Brown, however, doesn’t stop there. The Book of Doors is, at its core a meditation on grief. Brown portrays several characters who are grappling with grief and regrets. Brown sensitively portrays their regrets, explores the origins of their grief, and illustrates how grieving is often a process that takes time, sometimes years, to work through. Brown also demonstrates how grief and regret may leave scars with which one must learn to live, actively choosing not to allow it to hold one back.

Chuck Tingle is back and his new novel, Bury Your Gays, was well worth the wait!

Misha Byrne is a talented screenwriter and, with a string of hits, a successful one too. His last meeting at Harold Bros. Studio, however, could have done better. Misha is working on the script for the season finale of his successful television series Travelers. Misha has used the entire season to build up to a finale where his lead characters (finally) admit that they are attracted to each other and begin to explore a relationship. Studio executives are suddenly not on board and give Misha a choice: he must remove the romance, or he can keep it only if both characters die by the end of the episode.

Misha refuses, saying that he won’t participate in another "gay tragedy" in film or television. The studio executive with whom he is meeting clearly threatens Misha with legal action and subtly implies that there may be even worse consequences. How far will the studio go to convince Misha to write the episode that they want?

In Bury Your Gays, Chuck Tingle takes readers into what must be every Horror writer’s nightmare: what if you had to confront the monsters you created when you were writing? And what if the creativity you used while writing them, where you provided your script’s victims with no easy way to defeat them, left you essentially defenseless? Throughout this story, Tingle expertly weaves in commentary on the current state of the entertainment industry, the importance of representation in media, and how writers often draw from their own experiences in their creative pursuits. The result is a tense and terrifying novel that is ultimately more than a bit fun and hopeful (Tingle LOVES to ridicule, poke at, and subvert established tropes). This is another marvelous follow-up!

Anthony Horowitz returns to his Hawthorne series about disgraced former Detective Inspector Daniel Hawthorne and Horowitz himself (a character in his own novels) who plays Watson to Hawthorne’s Holmes. In Close to Death, Horowitz is being pressured by his agent to provide the next novel in the series in spite of the absence of a recent crime for Hawthorne to investigate. Hawthorne agrees to give Horowitz the files on a case he solved prior to their partnership. The case involved, at first, a single murder in an exclusive London development.  Horowitz reviews the case files and then strikes out on his own investigation of the years old crime to gather the information he needs, along with Hawthorne’s memories, to turn the case into a proper novel.

Horowitz (the real one!) presents a clever crime that echoes the work of Agatha Christie and morphs from a set of circumstances reminiscent of Murder on the Orient Express into a classic locked room mystery. The book is filled with twists, turns, scandalous revelations, and a wonderfully satisfying conclusion.

Like Clark’s earlier works, The Dead Cat Tail Assassins doesn’t neatly fit into a single genre. It involves undead assassins, each with their own unique identity and who are beholden to a vengeful god, science, magic, questions about identity, memory, and the paradox of doing something that seems right while clearly also breaking established rules. It is also an adventure filled with fight scenes, chases, and nearly cataclysmic confrontations. The novel’s protagonist, Eveen, is obsessed with the pulp novels of her world, something that seems clear she shares with Clark. The Dead Cat Tail Assassins is, in essence, a pulp novel where Clark has taken elements of adventure, horror, sci-fi, and fantasy pulp stories and expertly mixed them into a rousing tale. Eveen could easily stand in for The Shadow from the 1930s if The Shadow was an undead woman of color who fancied knives over guns. And she faces a cavalcade of opponents, members of her own assassin’s guild, who are as varied and fascinating as any of Dick Tracy’s or Batman’s rogues' galleries.

In The Dead Cat Tail Assassins, multiple award-winning author P. Djèlí Clark again illustrates why he is one of the most compelling and fascinating fantasy writers working today. His worlds are carefully crafted and filled with marvels and wonders. His characters are smart, brash, and almost fearless (they know when to back up when they are about to cross the line). The dialogue is whip-smart, and there is an impish sense of humor that runs throughout the novella. It seems clear that Clark is having as much fun writing as his readers will have reading his work. This makes The Dead Cat Tail Assassins, on top of everything else, fun! It is a great read for readers looking for fun, adventure, and a wicked sense of humor.

In her latest novel, after 2019’s excellent The Night Tiger, Yangsze Choo tells another historical tale, rich in setting and culture, filled with marvelous characters and infused with just a bit of magical realism. Choo mines the centuries of Asian folklore and mythology about foxes who may, or may not, be able to assume human form to tell a sweeping period drama.

Choo’s lush prose evokes a world on the brink of change as the Qing dynasty ends, revolution is in the air, and established norms are challenged by a widening world and an influx of science and technology. Her characters are marvelously drawn and wonderfully complex. Many of them have connections that may surprise readers as they are revealed.

While Choo introduces fantastical elements to the story, ultimately The Fox Wife is an all too human story of grief. It is a story about learning to live with the losses you experience, and that you must make the most of the time you have while you live (even if you are a fox with the potential of living a century).

The Fox Wife is the opposite of an Oreo cookie. While an Oreo cookie has a hard surface encasing or surrounding a creamy filling, this novel is a beautiful, almost dreamlike, story that surrounds some hard won, immediate, and not always palatable truths. And, like an Oreo cookie, it is equally delicious!

Horror. Some people love it! Some people don't! And, generally speaking, people tend to have strong feelings about the genre, falling into one camp or the other. In a bit of irony, there are people who are 'afraid' of Horror as a genre. Yep, they are afraid of the genre people seek out purposefully to cause them to feel fear. Within this group of people, there are those who are afraid of Horror but are also curious. They wonder why others enjoy the idea of feeling scared or disturbed, and they may be ready to take the plunge and begin to explore. It is for this group of people, possibly fearful and definitely, to a degree, adventurous, that Emily C. Hughes has written her new book: Horror for Weenies: Everything You Need to Know About the Films You're Too Scared to Watch.

Hughes, who now regularly writes about Horror, has provided the perfect entry point for those interested but unsure how to proceed. She recounts a brief history of Horror cinema and describes how and why she has chosen the films she examines. The rest of the book closely examines films released from 1960 through 2018, providing in-depth synopses, production notes, cultural context, and suggested reading for potential viewers who still may not find themselves ready to watch. The result is an infinitely readable and enjoyable book that will be interesting for both established Horror film fans and a practical and fun guide for those looking for a place to challenge their comfort zones and take the plunge.

As Hughes' experiences illustrate how Horror can be an acquired taste, Horror for Weenies may not be for everyone. But Horror for Weenies may be the perfect way for some to take the plunge into Horror cinema.

Debut author Kristen Perrin tells a tale with one foot firmly planted in the past and the other in the present. She alternates chapters, moving from the perspective of Frances as she describes events from over half a century earlier through a journal kept at the time. Perrin then shifts to the perspective of Annie, Frances’ Great Niece, who has been thrust into a mystery and feels a responsibility to her Great Aunt, Mother, and the residence of Castle Knoll to find the solution.

How to Solve Your Own Murder is a page-turner with plenty of atmosphere, macguffins, red herrings, secrets, and revelations to propel along the plot. And Perrin seems to leave just enough wiggle room at the end to intimate that readers may get the chance to join Annie, and possibly Great Aunt Frances, on another case, which would be a delight.

How to Solve Your Own Murder is a charming debut that will leave readers wondering when Kristen Perrin’s next book will be available.

Meg Shaffer, the author of last year’s marvelous The Wishing Game, is back with another masterful blend of the fanciful and the perilous, acknowledging how one rarely exists without the other.

The Lost Story is a self-described modern-day fairy tale, both relying on tropes that are tried and true, while also subverting and challenging them. Shaffer also illustrates how art and creation can be therapeutic in working through trauma and grief. She also highlights how even the smallest gesture at the right time, to the right person, can be life altering.

Through all of this, Shaffer emphasizes the need for hope. The hope that things can, and will, develop as they should. She also illustrates that one can find, or create, the family that they need.

In their first collaboration, award-winning author SJ Rozan and debut author John Shen Yen Nee tell a story that has its roots in the past, both historical and literary, with a strong cinematic quality and the perfect blend of thoughtful examination of the mystery in need of a solution and incredibly choreographed action sequences (the authors enlisted the expertise of Kung Fu fight choreographers to realize their vision). To all of this, throw in marvelously drawn post-WWI London, including the near mania that was affecting the country over anything associated with the exotic far-east, and just a tad of the British penny-dreadfuls thrown in for good measure. The result is a rollicking, page-turning novel filled with wonderful characters (some of whom, like the novel’s two protagonists, are based on actual historical figures), edge of your seat action, and a challenging mystery.

The Murder of Mr. Ma is the first of a new series featuring Judge Dee Ren Jie and Lao She and readers will be ready for the sequel the moment they turn the last page. Let’s hope the wait is not long...

In the 2nd entry in the Hollywood Mystery series, Marjorie McCown takes readers back on the set to follow Joey Jessup as she does her best to get the job done, on time and under budget, while also identifying another murderer.

As in last year’s Final Cut, McCown takes readers behind the curtain and illustrates how some of the magic seen on movie screens is actually accomplished. She also provides enough information for those unfamiliar with the controlled chaos of a movie set to understand the methods in the madness (or recognize that some of how things are done is simply mad!) while also continuing to provide knowing "winks" to those in the industry who will recognize them. She also shows how, since each production is a new collection of professionals gathered to create a project, it is truly the people who make the difference between a functional and dysfunctional workplace during a shoot.

Star Struck is also another compelling mystery with just enough twists, turns, and Macguffins to keep readers guessing until the end. It will also leave readers wondering where McCown will take us next and what’s next in store for Joey Jessup!

In her debut novel, The Reading List, Sara Nisha Adams celebrated reading, stories, and the joy that comes when one moves from reading being a solitary pursuit to one that is shared and celebrated. In The Twilight Garden, Adams takes readers outside, as she celebrates gardens, gardening, and, again, how much better both are when shared.

Adams creates a marvelous cast of characters to populate the London neighborhood of Stoke Newington. She accomplishes this in two separate time periods, decades apart, with just a bit of overlap. Her characters are as diverse as London’s population and are recognizable and relatable.

The Twilight Garden is a gentle novel that encourages us to reach out and connect with those in our immediate vicinity. It celebrates community and illustrates how both the ups and downs of living are made better shared. And don’t be surprised if, after reading the last page, you feel a strong urge to find a place where you can try your hand at planting some seeds or bulbs and waiting to see what develops. Hopefully, doing it with a friend, old or new.

In her debut, Genoveva Dimova tells a story spread across two novels, Foul Days and Monstrous Nights, about the cities of Chernograd from Belograd. Chernograd is surrounded by a magical wall that keeps its citizens inside the city. It also keeps the monsters inside as well. Once a year, beginning on New Year’s Eve, the barrier between the human world and the monster world is at its thinnest and Chernograd is besieged with monsters. It is the job of Kosara and witches like her to protect her city and its citizens during the "Foul Days" (the first12 days of the new year) while the monsters run rampant.

With a bit of magic, adventure, a touch of romance, and Monsters(!!!) drawn from Slavic folklore, The Witch’s Compendium of Monsters novels are a marvelous debut from an author to watch.

In The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years, Shubnum Khan draws from several well-established genres (ghost stories, haunted houses, gothic romance, coming of age), infuses them with the locale of South Africa and the culture of East India and populates it with fascinating and memorable characters. The result is a lush, complex, funny, and heartbreaking novel.

While the novel deals with some truly horrific occurrences, including potentially malevolent spirits and some truly upsetting imagery as the house expresses its displeasure, Khan never lingers in the dark, only using it to emphasize the trauma the house and its earlier residents endured.

Ultimately, The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years is a celebration of life. Of defying convention to create the life you want with the person with whom you wish to share it. Of striking out into the unknown to start your life over again or begin a young life for the first time. Reconciling the past so one can create one's own future. And of recognizing and rejoicing with those with whom you find yourself sharing your journeys. For all of these reasons, The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years is my favorite book of 2024, and I can’t think of a better book to start 2025 reading!