There is no easier way to stress me out than to ask me what my favorite book is. To me my "favorites" are a highly subjective and constantly rotating list based on my current mood and frame of mind. I dread the yearly wrap-up/favorite books posts I feel compelled to make every January, so this year we're doing things a little differently.

This year I'd like to nominate my most notable books of 2024.

So what exactly is the difference between notable and favorite? While these books might not all have been perfect 5 star reads they are some of the first books I think about when I think of my 2024 reading year. They're also books that I found myself constantly recommending at the book store or featuring in book clubs or just generally shouting about online.

Basically, while they may not have been immediate 5 star books, they're ones that have stuck with me enough to climb their way to the top of my list. And that's pretty impressive, in my opinion.

Overall Stats

This year I read 87 books, which was 109% of my goal of 80 books. These books accounted for 29,688 pages which is slightly below my goal of 30,000 pages for the year.

This was clearly the year of audiobooks. Between a 45 minute driving commute, long international flights, and several roadtrips, I had a lot of listening minutes this year. Out of 87 books, 59 of them were audiobooks. PS: If you're someone who thinks that audiobooks aren't reading, please see yourself out.

And, per usual, my biggest genre was fantasy with a total of 51 fantasy books. Followed up by 24 literary fiction reads.

Now, without further ado, here are my most notable books of 2024...

Someone You Can Build A Nest In

This was my first 5-star rated read of the year and, honestly, what a great way to start off 2024. This one is cutest/grossest/weirdest pieces of fantasy I have ever read and I loved every minute of it. It's a monster love story that's both wicked and wondrous, and it is absolutely filled to the brim with guts, gore, and heart(s). Read this if you're in your in your queer, cozy villian era.

Whale Fall

I think this is one of the few books of 2024 that I read in one day. Not to be confused with the thriller by Daniel Kraus–this Whale Fall is a quiet little moment of a novel. It's a meticulous character study of a young girl stuck in the liminal space between fiercely loving what you have and wanting for more. It's beautiful and subtle, yet overwhelmingly emotional. Read this if you would walk beside an ocean cliffside while pining for what you can't have.

The Other Valley

I really love this novel. Like, really, really love this novel, but I will never forget my book club's complete fixation on the strangest detail–linoleum flooring. Yes. Apparently the fact that the houses have linoleum flooring completely broke the time travel theory for some and this has now become a running joke anytime we feel like there's a plot hole in a book. Okay, but for real... The Other Valley is a genre-defying novel that puts ideas of destiny, free will, obligation under a microscope. Somehow Alexander-Howard has told the story of a complex, dystopian-adjacent society through the eyes of a teenage girl without losing the magical, awkwardness of adolescence. Read this if you listened to Funeral by Arcade Fire way too much as a teen.

The Ministry of Time

The Ministry of Time was my first official obsession of 2024. The speed in which this book took up residence in my brain was honestly impressive. The Ministry of Time is a perfect balance of well-researched history and science fiction that somehow manages to tell an invaluable, heartfelt story about our present circumstances. I came for the time-travel, but stayed for the utter sincerity and warmth each character brings to the page. Read this if you would melt into a puddle at the pet name "little cat".

Where the Dark Stands Still

My first heartbreak of 2024 and I still haven't recovered. When it started off it felt like Howl's Moving Castle, but then it had to go out and completely betray me. Where the Dark Stands Still is a dark Polish fairytale with a coming-of-age story steeped in heartbreak. It's so good I flew home with an italian copy in September. Read this if you never forgave Margaret Rogerson for the ending of A Sorcery of Thorns.

The Angel of Indian Lake

The end of an era. I knew this book was going to emotionally wreck me, but I still wasn't prepared. The book world did not deserve Jade Daniels, but Stephen Graham Jones decided to gift her to us anyway. There has never been a horror series with so much heart and, honestly, I'm not sure there ever will be again. Read this if you want to relive Bob Newby's death over and over and over and over.

The Safekeep

This one was the biggest surprise of 2024. I picked this one up because the cover is so overwhelmingly sensual I couldn't help but feel intrigued. I'm not usually one for WWII historical fiction, but I could not put it down. It feels like it's constantly pacing the border between violence and tenderness and I couldn't figure out which way it was going to fall. I will likely never stop thinking about this one. Read this if you wished Killing Eve was actually a romance.

Hum

This was my most anticipated book of 2024, because Helen Phillips is an all time favorite author, but this book messed me up so badly. Oh my god. I read this on a plane and I feel so bad for my neighbor because I couldn't stop squirming because I was so stressed. This one is all about surveillance, climate change, and artificial intelligence and it feels disconcertingly topical. Read this if you thought the 2008 film Eagle Eye was actually a horror movie.

Lady MacBeth

I want ever edition of this book that has ever been created. I want to be buried with this book. I want this entire novel tattooed on my brain. It is one of the most beautifully written retellings I have ever encountered and it made me like a story that I've hated since middle school. Ava Reid is one of the most gifted writers of our generation. Read this if have ever felt even a little moved by tumblr poetry and aren't afraid to admit it.

The Nightmare Before Kissmas

I NEVER read contemporary romance. Not because I have anything against it, but because there is something about cellphones/texting in fiction that makes me want to just throw a book across a room. However, I took a chance on this one and I am so glad I did. I was kicking my feet. I was giggling. I was sobbing. I love a good villainous love interest, but there was something about these cinnamon rolls that made me want to reevaluate my entire reading life. Read this if you believe "don't tell anyone" excludes your three-person group chat.

Heir

Look... y'all already know... and if you don't, we've clearly just met. I love teen fantasy. I think teen fiction in general is one of the most important genres out there and this was an exceptional piece of teen fiction. It is complex while remaining accessible. It is poignant, especially when viewed through the lens of today's world. And it has some of the best and healthy conversations about sex that I have read in a long time. Sabaa Tahir deserves every accolade she has ever received and then some. Read this if you resent the NYT's editor's complete disregard of children's/young-adult literature.