The Best Books Of 2024 For Every Genre & Interest

For book lovers, 2024 has been a very good year. Publisher's markets were ripe with new releases in a swath of genres. There were tempting romances, exciting mystery novels, and compelling memoirs. The literary fiction market had a rich harvest, as did the world of self-help literature. There was no shortage of compelling young adult literature, as well as bizarre science fiction books that jolted us to other planets. In fact, there was such a magnificent bounty of new releases that we were left wondering how to get at them all. While there are easy ways to read more, we also found it a useful practice to cull the list a little to make sure that readers delved into the best of each genre. After all, reading time is precious and sometimes rare for all of us, and we want to make the most of those special hours devoted to books. With that in mind, we've selected the best book in each genre to help bookworms everywhere enjoy the crème de la crème of 2024's literary releases. 

While there were several contenders, Christina Lauren's "The Paradise Problem" was the best romance novel of the year. The novel features free-spirited artist Anna Green, who marries Liam "West" Weston just to get family housing while she's a student at UCLA. They plan to divorce as soon as graduation hits, creating the perfect marriage of convenience. However, Weston, an heir to a large grocery store chain, suddenly discovers that his grandfather's will has a curious stipulation; Weston won't receive his inheritance unless he's been married for five years. Suddenly, their post-graduation divorce plan won't work. Weston has to bring Green to his family's estate to convince them that their sham marriage is real enough to honor the will. However, as Weston sees Green engage with his ruthless, corrupt family, he realizes that she's the woman he's wanted all along. 

The delicious novel dominated 2024. It earned a 4.11 out of 5 on Goodreads, with readers raving about the spark between Green and Weston. "I loved the perfect chemistry between Anna and Liam and the natural progression of their relationship," one reviewer began. "They're truly meant to be! They've become one of my favorite book couples, and this book is not only my favorite Christina Lauren novel but also my favorite romance book of 2024." If this book isn't enough, fear not. 2025 is slated to be chockablock with steamy new romance novels, so there's no end to the bliss. 

Louise Penny's 2024 release "The Grey Wolf" was everything that a mystery novel should be. Filled with strange events, a murder, and a frightening hunt, the novel centers around Chief Inspector Armand Gamache. Set in a bucolic village in Québec, Gamache doesn't want to get involved in the troubling case, until too many bizarre occurrences propel him and his team to stop a sinister force that is so much more than a single murder. "The Grey Wolf" is the 19th novel in Penny's incredible Armand Gamache series, so fans of thematic mysteries will love this.

The mystery earned 4.32 out of 5 stars on Goodreads, solidifying itself as a worthwhile read amongst the many mystery novels published in 2024. "Mystery novels truly don't get much better than this," a reviewer began. "The plot winds through a multitude of settings from Three Pines to Montreal to isolated [coastal] monasteries to the US to Italy and beyond. The excitement and pace never lets up." On TikTok's literary vein, BookTok, readers could not say enough. One happy reader called it "a masterpiece of suspense." Another joked that their To Be Read pile would have to wait because "The Grey Wolf" arrived. It was rave reviews all around. 

Rachel Khong's "Real Americans" captures so much in one book. As the best literary fiction choice for 2024, her breathtaking novel grapples with race, class, and the concept of family. Set in New York City, the novel introduces Lily Chen, who's struggling to make ends meet. She meets pharmaceutical heir Matthew, and despite their differences, the two begin a relationship. The novel then jumps ahead to 2021, where Lily's son Nick Chen is in search of his biological father. The story follows three generations of a Chinese family and encompasses all of the hardships and love that come with any family, including secrets. 

Readers were utterly engrossed. The novel earned a 4 out of 5 on Goodreads, and fans urged others to pick it up. "Real Americans might end up being my favorite book from all of 2024," one reviewer began. "It's the kind of book that I loved so much, it's hard to put it into words without falling over myself saying, 'It's so good, just read it, it's so good.'" The characters are rich and compelling. "I don't think I've universally felt so much empathy for each main character in a story before," another wrote. "I have only positive things to say! I loved the ending." It also made it on the Read With Jenna book club, which is huge praise. 

Brianna Madia's memoir "Never Leave the Dogs Behind" stood out against other reads in 2024. In her epic memoir, Madia deals with what's important in life when stripped of all modern comforts. Madia follows up on her first memoir "Nowhere for Very Long" in this second book, describing life in a van, living in complete isolation save for her four dogs. Madia moves from her van into a simple trailer on the outskirts of a town in a desert in Utah. With such a pared-down way of living, Madia gets at the very marrow of life. 

Readers gave this book a 4.19 out of 5 on Goodreads, praising the austerity and honesty of the book. Plus, for dog lovers, this is a must. "This is not a memoir just about her dogs (though they are such a huge part of her life and a part of each story) – it's also about mental health, adventure, finding yourself, and adjusting when life isn't what you expected it would be," a happy reader wrote. Madia has a huge following on social media, and so many readers were eagerly anticipating her second memoir. Even before "Never Leave the Dogs Behind" came out, BookTok was already busy anticipating it, and clearly, they have not been disappointed. 

We were dazzled by Sarah Smarsh's essay collection "Bone of the Bone: Essays on America by a Daughter of the Working Class." The collection deals with socioeconomic class in the United States, highlighting friction between those who inhabit urban spaces and those who live in rural areas. Smarsh tackles political tensions across the country as well as environmental concerns that are particularly impacting the American landscape. The book is timely, and grapples with major issues concerning the United States. Anyone with an interest in politics and class conflict will find this an enriching read. 

The book was very well received on Goodreads, earning a whopping 4.41 stars out of 5. Readers felt challenged by Smarsh's essays and were left with a lot to think about. "Wow. She hits it out of the park again, with essays detailing how hard it is for a working-class citizen to make ends meet. Terrifying in its truth," a reviewer wrote. "This was my first Nonfiction November pick and coming in right after the election, it couldn't have been better timing," another reviewer began. "Sarah Smarsh explains what it is to be invisible amidst extreme classism in the United States, and how that invisibility affects our political landscape." Much needed, Smarsh's collection will engage and stimulate any reader. 

Natasha Pulley's Sci-Fi novel "The Mars House" is an engaging and epic tale, earning its place as the best book in its genre for 2024. The novel is set in Tharsis, a community on Mars, and follows protagonist January, whose body is not accustomed to the habitat on the new planet, making him an Earthstronger. January is treated as an outsider and a cultural pariah. Politician Aubrey Gale proposes a surgery where all Earthstrongers have to be naturalized so that they can live in Tharsis without difficulty. The problem is that the surgery is extremely dangerous, even fatal. But Gale and January cross paths, and due to a turn of political events, decide to get married for the optics. However, after they wed, January realizes that Gale is in danger, and he might be able to help. 

The novel is not just a Sci-Fi tale. It's also an LGBTQ+ romance, and the relationship between Gale and January fills the pages with a poignant richness. Best of all, readers couldn't put it down. On Goodreads, "The Mars House" earned 4.01 stars out of 5, with happy reviews galore. "This book swallowed me whole and refused to let me go for 4 days," one reader admitted. "My favourite author wrote science fiction! In Mars! And there's a marriage of convenience?!I don't think I'm ever going to stop thinking about this book," another wrote. It's a hit. 

The best young adult fiction of 2024 is "The Reappearance of Rachel Price" by Holly Jackson. While it's technically for younger readers, adults also loved this book. The novel centers around Bel, 18, who is reckoning with her mother's unexpected disappearance years before; the family assumed that she died. The Price family agrees to be featured in a true crime documentary, and inexplicably, Bel's mother, Rachel Price, shows up. The shady part is that Rachel's story doesn't seem to add up to Bel, and the clever daughter feels as though there are some holes in her mom's strange tale of disappearance. 

The exciting novel earned a 4.11 out of 5 on Goodreads and also garnered a huge following on BookTok. Book reviewer @bookswith_tori raved about the book. "You cannot stop reading this," she warned, admitting that once she opened "The Reappearance of Rachel Price," she could not put it down. Another reviewer, @genevieve.reads, deemed it Jackson's best book so far. "I loved the insane tension in this," she began, "and once I thought I figured out a plot twist, I was wrong and the plot twist kept on twisting." This novel is absolutely epic. 

Our favorite self-help book of the year was "The PLAN: Manage Your Time Like a Lazy Genius" by Kendra Adachi. The clever book offers usable time management skills for highly productive people who are feeling burnt out from their many demands. Adachi's book focuses less on chasing the workhorse and more on making the most of the precious time in each day. Her advice is kind, encouraging, and resists the hustle mindset of more is more. Adachi also focuses largely on an AFAB (assigned female at birth) readership, accounting for certain biological factors such as hormones. 

Readers loved and appreciated Adachi's book. It earned a 4.08 out of 5 on Goodreads and fans couldn't say enough good things. "93% of time management books are written by men for men, so believe me when I say that The Plan by Kendra Adachi is unlike any other time management book I've read," a reviewer noted. "This is a book written for women, and the overarching theme for me is that life doesn't have to be perfect to be good," another reader wrote. "This was absolutely fantastic. Funny, smart, accessible, and quintessentially Kendra — bringing her Big Sister energy to give us guidance we need and permission to make it work," someone else added. It's a very special self-help book. 

There were a few crucial decisions made to create this list of the best books in each genre for 2024. Since we're Women.com, we're celebrating all things women, so we chose female authors only for our list. Secondly, we made sure that other readers had good things to say about the books, and crowdsourced feedback on each of them. Every book had to earn a 4 out of 5 or higher on Goodreads. Plus, we looked for awards, TikTok reactions, and robust feedback online, to show that many readers had engaged positively with the text. We looked for books that grappled with big topics that speak to the human condition; books that took on major themes of life, relationships, politics, the environment, and more. We wanted curious readers to feel as though we had narrowed the list to ensure that their precious reading time was well spent. We all know how hard it can be to carve out time to read, and it can be helpful to have some of the grunt work done for you! Lastly, the book had to be published in 2024, so that readers could feel abreast of the latest hits in the publishing world.