Searching for your next read? Check out all my favorite books from 2024 for inspiration! With everything from coming-of-age-stories to dystopian tales to family dramas, there's a five star novel here for everyone!

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Is it still January?! This year is off to quite the start. I wanted to share this list sooner, but I've found it difficult to focus on work when the news has been filled with tragedy after tragedy ... and don't even get me started on politics. 😭
Reading has always been my favorite escape though, so before we get tooo far into the new year, I wanted to share a roundup of my favorite books from 2024! If you're looking for a great book to read in 2025, this list is a great place to start.
There are few things I enjoy more than disappearing into a wonderful novel, and according to Goodreads, I read 108 books last year, which was equal to 36,358 pages. The shortest book I read was Small Things Like These (128 pages), and the longest was The Bee Sting (736 pages), two books I really loved and would highly recommend (although they didn't quite make the cut for this list lol).
I like to read across different genres, from light-hearted romances to twisty thrillers. The books that I tend to rate highest are often pretty dark though. I'm not sure what this says about me (ha), but I love a book that I can't stop thinking about it long after I've finished reading it!
Speaking of ... my favorite book this year was The Safekeep by Yael van der Wouden! This book takes places in the aftermath of WWII, and it just blew me away. I read this novel in October, and I still think about it constantly. You can read more about it below, along with all of my other 2024 favorites!
My Favorite Books from 2024
Okay, are you ready for a little bookspiration? I've rounded up the 13 books that I rated five stars in 2024 below! Each book has a short overview and a review, and the list is organized in the order that I read the books (most recent is last). At the very end, I've also included a few honorable mentions that didn't quite make the five star cut, but that I thoroughly nevertheless.
Below the reviews, you'll find links to the books so you can find them out for yourself! If you'd like to see all of these novels in one place, don't miss the round ups that I created for on Amazon and for Bookshop.org.
Happiness Falls by Angie Kim
ABOUT THE BOOK: A father disappears in Happiness Falls! Mia isn't too concerned when her father and brother Eugene don't return home from a walk. Maybe they lost their phone, or they went on an errand. But when Eugene comes running home bloody and alone, it's clear that her father has gone missing. Eugene, who has Angelman syndrome (a rare genetic condition), is the only witness, and he can't speak. As the clock ticks on the investigation into their beloved husband and father's disappearance, family secrets that might lay at the heart of why he's missing are revealed.
WHY I LOVED IT: I can't resist a family drama, especially one with a mystery aspect, and Happiness Falls did not disappoint! The characters were so well drawn, the story was full of depth, and there were many twists and turns. Including one very unexpected twist that shocks Mia's family, and that will have you questioning your own presumptions. I've seen this book described as a thriller, but I think it's more of a slow burn. While the story is a page turner, you will want to read slowly so you can savor the writing.
Commitment by Mona Simpson
ABOUT THE BOOK: A single mother's collapse threatens her family in Commitment. Diane Aziz has worked hard to secure her three children's futures, and she believes that they can achieve all the things she hasn't. But after dropping off her eldest son at UC Berkeley, she falls into a deep depression and enters a state hospital, leaving a close friend to keep the children safe and her dreams for them alive. At Berkeley, Walter discovers a passion for architecture, but his lack of funds may cut his college career short. Back in LA, his younger sister Lina, works in an ice cream shop while her wealthy friends make plans to attend Ivy League colleges. Meanwhile, their beloved little brother Donny begins coding, gaming, and hiding in plain sight, while drifting into an escalating relationship with drugs.
WHY I LOVED IT: I could not put down Commitment, which is a cross between a family drama and a coming-of-age story. The story was so compelling and heartbreaking, and each of the siblings were so well written and unique. They were all affected differently by their mother's issues. I found myself rooting for them all, and I enjoyed following their stories from CA to the East Coast. With its 1980s setting, the novel was also an interesting look at how much the U.S.mental health care system has changed and at the institutions that were once prevalent.
Good Material by Dolly Alderton
ABOUT THE BOOK: Good Material starts after a breakup. Andy can't understand why his girlfriend Jen stopped loving him. Their breakup has left him without a home, and to make matters worse, his career is floundering, and his friends have all grown up when he wasn't looking. If only he can figure out what ruined his relationship, then maybe he can get Jen back. Andy has a lot to learn, not the least of which is Jen's side of the story.
WHY I LOVED IT: I absolutely adored this book! The story is mainly told through Andy's point of view, and he's definitely a sad sack type of character. Although I empathized with him, I also wanted to shake him and say, "get it together man!" Near the end, the book switches to Jen's perspective on the breakup. Which I thought was brilliant way to wrap things up and put the whole story in perspective.
Miracle Creek by Angie Kim
ABOUT THE BOOK: A close-knit group is torn apart in Miracle Creek! In small town Virginia, a group of parents and patients have gotten to know one another at a special treatment center with a hyperbaric chamber that's used to treat conditions ranging from infertility to autism. But after the chamber explodes and kills two people, it becomes clear that the explosion wasn’t an accident. Who was responsible: a careless mother, an angry protester, the owners hoping to cash in the insurance policy, or was it someone else? As the case is tried in court, evidence is gathered, alliances shifts, and secrets are slowly revealed.
WHY I LOVED IT: The minute I finished Angie Kim's second book Happiness Falls (see my review above), I added Miracle Creek (her first book) to my TBR list. And it didn't disappoint. In fact, I think I liked it even more than Happiness Falls! This is such an amazing book on so many levels. First of all, the hyperbaric chamber aspect is fascinating, then there are the finely developed characters (each with their own motivations and secrets), the legal setting, and finally the mystery of it all: who really caused with the explosion? I did have an inkling of whodunit early on, but I questioned this assumption throughout the book as more was revealed. If you like more literary mysteries, this book is a must read!
Searching for Sylvie Lee by Jean Kwok
ABOUT THE BOOK: A family's secrets are revealed in Searching for Sylvie Lee! The Lee family has two daughters: Sylvie and Amy. Sylvie (the brilliant, beautiful older daughter) was raised by distant relatives in the Netherlands, and she didn't rejoin her family in America until she was nine. Amy (the baby of the family) has always looked up to Sylvie, but she was too young to remember the time when her parents were new immigrants and too poor to keep Sylvie. When Sylvie travels back to the Netherlands to visit her dying grandmother one last time, and then vanishes, Amy and her parents become desperate for answers. Sylvie always looked out for the family, but now it's Amy's turn to help. But when Amy flies to the Netherlands, she doesn't find simple answers, and the truth about Sylvie reveals more about Amy's complicated family than she ever could have imagined.
WHY I LOVED IT: This poignant mystery / family drama had me gripped from the start ... I listened to the audiobook (the narrator did a wonderful job), and I kept looking for excuses to keep going! The story is a really tender portrait of the Lee family, and it also spotlights the difficult choices immigrant families have to make, not only to survive in a new country, but also to adjust to (and fit into) their new home. The cracks in Sylvie's perfect life are slowly revealed as the book progresses, and you really feel for both her and Amy. I loved both characters, but especially Amy. She starts out very shy and self-doubting, but she grows so much as she's forced to take charge.
skin & bones by Renée Watson
ABOUT THE BOOK: skin & bones is a story of heartbreak and healing. At 40, Lena Baker's life is steady and stable: she's happy and in love, enjoys wine nights with her two best friends, and her wedding is just weeks away. But a confession on her wedding days shifts everything, leaving Lena unmoored and grieving. As Lena tries to teach her daughter about self-love, while struggling to love herself, she questions everything she knows about dating, friendship, and motherhood. All while working tirelessly to bring the oft-forgotten black history of Oregon to the masses, and dealing with well-meaning co-workers who don't understand that their good intentions are often offensive and hurtful.
WHY I LOVED IT: This book was wonderful and filled with so many ups and downs and challenges. I loved reading Lena's story, and there was so much to think about, from fat acceptance to challenging relationships with family and friends to the casual racism she often faced. I definitely found myself crying more than once, especially through some of the parts with Lena's daughter, which just hurt my heart. I can't wait to read more of this author's work! Fun Fact: Renée Watson is an acclaimed children's author, and skin & bone was her first book for adults.
The Alternatives by Caoilinn Hughes
ABOUT THE BOOK: A sister goes missing in The Alternatives! When their parents died under tragic circumstances, the four Flannery sisters were prematurely plunged into adulthood. Now in their thirties, and the sisters are all attempting to do something meaningful in a rapidly floundering world. They lead distant lives, one teaching in Connecticut, another catering glamorous parties in London, until one day the oldest sister (a geologist who is tormented by a terrible awareness of the earth's future) disappears from her work and home. Together for the first time in years, the sisters descend on the Irish countryside in search of a sister who doesn’t want to be found, and they must confront old wounds and an uncertain future.
WHY I LOVED IT: Relationships between sisters are so complex, and The Alternatives does such an amazing job of capturing the love, the hate, the envy, etc.! I really enjoyed getting to know each sister in this book. They're are all quite unique (as are their relationships with one another), and they're also passionate about the different issues affecting the world today, but each in their own way. I'd classify this book as a combination between a family drama and environmental fiction (two genres I love), and while it is a bit of a challenging / experimental read in spots, it's so worth it.
Whale Fall by Elizabeth O'Connor
ABOUT THE BOOK: The outside world clashes with a traditional culture in Whale Fall. When a dead whale washes up on a remote Welsh island in 1938, Manod sees it as harbinger of doom, as well as a sign of what may lie beyond the island's shores. The young woman has spent her entire life on the island that her family has lived on for generations, yet she can't escape a desire to explore life beyond her beautiful, but harsh home. So when two English ethnographers arrive to study the island culture, it feels like a glimpse of life beyond her community and a means of escape. The longer the ethnographers stay, the more Manod feels pulled towards them, despite her misgivings that the community is being misconstrued and exoticised.
WHY I LOVED IT: This beautifully written book is a fascinating look at a fading culture and at a particular point in time, told through the eyes of lonely, isolated Manod. As someone who grew up in a rural area, I found Manod's yearning to be somewhere else so relatable, even though the circumstances were obviously quite different. She's so smart, yet also naive, and I really felt for her as her relationship with and view of the ethnographers changed throughout the story. Tip: If you enjoyed this book, don't miss Clear by Carys Davies, which deals with similar issues. It's one of my favorite from 2025 so far!
Shred Sisters by Betsy Lerner
ABOUT THE BOOK: Shred Sisters weaves a complex tale of family, mental illness, and the unbreakable bonds between two sisters! Meet the Shred family. Old sister Olivia steals the spotlight, until her stunning confidence becomes erratic and unpredictable, leaving a hurricane of wrecked people in her wake. Younger sister Amy is cautious and studious to the core, believing in facts, proof, and the empirical world. None of which can explain what's happened to Ollie, whose beauty and charisma hide the mental illness that will shatter Amy's carefully constructed life. As Amy comes of age and finds her place in the world through work and a series of troubled relationships, each step brings a collision with Ollie, who slips in and out of the Shred family without warning. Yet neither sister can escape the inextricable knot that bonds them.
WHY I LOVED IT: This was such a moving story and an evocative look at how mental illness can affect a family, both as a whole and as individuals. The story takes place over an extended timeline, and it was interesting to see how the sisters' relationship evolved as they moved from children to adults. I sympathized with Amy, whose personality seemed to be drawn in such sharp contrast to Ollie's. It made me wonder about how much our lives are shaped in opposition to our circumstances (vs. what we might actually choose for ourselves with a little more perspective). If you like family dramas and stories about sisters, make sure to check this one out!
The Safekeep by Yael van der Wouden
ABOUT THE BOOK: The legacy of WWII lingers in The Safekeep. It's 1961, and in the rural Dutch province of Overijssel, bomb craters have been filled, buildings reconstructed, and the war is truly over. Isabel lives alone in her late mother’s country home, and her days a filled with routine and discipline. But everything is upended when her brother Louis leaves his graceless new girlfriend Eva on Isabel’s doorstep. Eva is Isabel's opposite: she sleeps late, she's loud, and she touches things she shouldn't. Isabel soon develops a fury-fueled obsession, and when small things start disappearing around the house, her suspicions begin to spiral. When her paranoia gives way to infatuation, a discovery unravels everything Isabel has ever known. The war may not be well and truly over, and neither Eva nor Isabel's house, are what they seem.
WHY I LOVED IT: The Safekeep was, by far, my favorite book from 2025! It was shortlisted for the Booker Prize, and I have not been able to stop thinking about this story since finishing it. From Eva and Isabel's fraught relationship to the novel's historical aspect, there are just so many levels to this intricate, dark, and amazing book. It's hard to talk about the story without giving anything major away, but I will say that it made me realize how little I know about the aftermath of WWII, and it has sent me down a bit of a rabbit hole wanting to learn more. A must read!
The House We Grew Up In by Lisa Jewell
ABOUT THE BOOK: Tragedy ripples through a family's life in The House We Grew Up In. Meet the picture-perfect Bird family: pragmatic Meg, dreamy Beth, and twins Rory and Rhys, one an adventurous troublemaker, the other slighter and more sensitive. Their father is a sweet, gangly man, and their beautiful, free spirited mother Lorelei is truly the center of the family. One Easter weekend, a devastating event begins to slowly tear the family apart. As the years pass, the children become adults and scatter, and Lorelei becomes a hoarder, living as a recluse and alienating her husband. When the Bird family is finally drawn back together, they begin to unravel the events of that fateful Easter and to unearth the many secrets hidden in their childhood home.
WHY I LOVED IT: Although I discovered her a bit late in the game, I absolutely adore anything and everything written by Lisa Jewell, She has a large back catalog, which I've enjoyed gradually reading through over the last few years, and The House We Grew Up In was definitely a favorite. I thought she handled Lorelei's hoarding, and its affect on the whole family (who each went down quite different paths), very well. The characters in this book are so well-developed and as the story moves along, the different layers to the story are slowly peeled away and revealed, which made it very hard to put down!
Burn by Peter Heller
ABOUT THE BOOK: Two campers emerge from the woods to a country racked by violence in Burn! Each year, childhood friend Jess and Storey travel to a remote corner of the country, where they camp, hunt, and hike. This time, they're in Maine, a state that has been racked by secession mania all summer, but they figure that's a fight best reserved for legislators. After weeks off the grid, the men emerge in a small town with a blown up bridge, burned buildings, and bombed-out cars. Trying to make sense of the sudden destruction, the men focus on finding their way home, dragging a wagon across bumpy dirt roads, scavenging food from abandoned boats and homes, and dodging armed men (secessionists or the U.S. military, they can't tell). As they seek a safe route, a startling discovery drastically alters the stakes of their escape.
WHY I LOVED IT: I'm a huge fan of dystopian tales, and this one felt especially relevant to our current, divisive times. Imagine being off the grid for a couple weeks, and emerging into a completely different world ... we're so connected at all times these days, that it almost doesn't seem possible. The story is filled with a foreboding sense of dread as the two friends struggle to figure out what happened, as well as what to do and where to go next.
Oye by Melissa Mogollon
ABOUT THE BOOK: Oye is a moving, telenovela-worthy coming-of-age story! Luciana is the baby of her large Colombian American family, but when a crisis arises, she may be the only voice of reason. A hurricane is heading straight for Miami, and Luciana's eccentric grandmother Abue refuses to evacuate. While Abue often drives Luciana nuts, they truly understand each other, so when Abue receives a shocking medical diagnosis after the storm, Luciana's world is upended. Soon, Abue moves into Luciana’s bedroom, and while Luciana would rather be skating or sneaking out to meet girls, her grandmothers wild demands and unpredictable antics are a welcome distraction from Luciana's misguided mother, absent sister, and uncertain future. Forced to step into the role of caretaker, translator, and keeper of Abue's devastating family secrets, Luciana finds herself growing up and rising to the occasion.
WHY I LOVED IT: This poignant, yet humorous novel has such an inventive structure! The story is told from Luciana's perspective through a series of one-sided phone calls between her and her older sister Mari. This made it hard to put the book down, as I found myself wanting to dive into the next call, so I would know what drama was happening next! Luciana is a senior in high school, and she's passionate and funny, struggling to find her place in the world, as well as within her family (I loved her relationship with Abue). I found this story to be equal parts humorous and heartfelt.
Honorable Mentions
Looking back at 2024, there were many other wonderful books that didn't make this short list of five star faves! I can't resist a good mystery series, and the novel Everyone in This Family Has Killed Someone by Benjamin Stevenson quickly sucked me into the world of Ernest Cunningham. The next two books in the series were just as good, and if you love a good Australian accent, I highly recommend listening to the audiobooks! I also couldn't put down The Dry by Jane Harper (coincidentally, another Australian author, although her books have a different vibe), and enjoyed reading the next two books in that series, as well. I also went down a rabbit hole this year, reading multiple books by both Freida McFadden (starting with The Housemaid) and Janice Hallet (The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels hooked me with its clever structure), two new-to-me authors.
Other books I loved included, I Hope This Finds You Well by Sue Natalie, which was so much more than I expected, and The Berry Pickers by Amanda Peters, a beautiful and heartbreaking novel. Margo's Got Money Problems by Rufi Thorpe was funny and heartwarming, and The Kamagowa Food Detectives by Hisashi Kashiwai was a cozy read that made me hungry! I also loved The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley, which was such a fascinating and unique story!
Okay, I think that wraps up my favorite books from 2024! Have you read any of these books? Let me know in the comments, I'd love to hear about your favorite books, too!
Looking for More Great Books?
Searching for more book recommendations? Check out My Favorite Books form 2023 and Everything I Read in January 2025! If you're looking for seasonal books, I've also created a list of Winter Reads on Bookshop.org. And here are a few monthly roundups of books I read last year ... clearly I need to be more consistent about this in 2025 (lol):
