And we’re back with Part 2 of my top 10 books to read in 2024! I won’t give you much preamble, except to say if you haven’t read Part 1, you can check it out here. This list takes us through June, which means I’ll be back with a new list of books in late summer to take us through the rest of 2024. For now, here are the next five books on my 2024 TBR.
6. Icarus by K. Ancrum (March 26)
The story of Icarus feels like one that has remained largely unexplored in the realm of retellings. In this version, K. Ancrum writes Icarus as a young art thief who falls in love with the son of the man who has been his primary target for thievery. While I love a good heist, I suspect Ancrum is going to break our hearts with this one, much like she did with The Wicker King. Ancrum has a talent for writing devastating relationships, and I can’t wait to see what she does with this one.
“Icarus adheres to his own strict rules to keep people, and feelings, at bay: Don’t let anyone close. Don’t let anyone touch you. And, above all, don’t get caught.”
7. Like Love by Maggie Nelson (April 2)
If you’ve read Bluets, then the fact that this is more from Maggie Nelson will be enough. If you haven’t, what are you waiting for? Like Love is a collection of essays and conversations, which is truly all you need to tell me about this book to get me to read it. I love a good essay collection, but more importantly, I just want to know what Maggie Nelson has to say about everything. And I can never get enough of artists and writers talking about culture and craft.
“Like Love is a momentous, raucous collection of essays drawn from twenty years of Maggie Nelson’s brilliant work.”
8. The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley (May 7)
This one just sounds fun. I love a good time travel romp, for the strangeness and mind-bendingness of it all. In The Ministry of Time, people who have travelled from the past to the present day have been paired with a person called a “bridge” who is tasked with helping these people adjust to life in the future. And of course one of these pairings fall in love. It all sounds a little Kate and Leopold, but that’s working for me right now. I’m here to have a good time with this one.
“A time travel romance, a spy thriller, and an ingenious exploration of the nature of power and the potential for love to change it all.”
9. My Darling Dreadful Thing by Johanna van Veen (May 14)
Some more queer horror for us, thank you, Johanna van Veen. In My Darling Dreadful Thing, our main character, Roos, has a corpse-like spirit companion that only she can see. Her mother organizes back-room séances, one of which crosses her path with that of Agnes, a young widow who invites Roos to live with her in her crumbling manor house. Attraction blooms between Agnes and Roos, but then someone dies, and Roos appears to be the culprit. Truly, they had me with the weird spirit companion, but throw in séances and haunted houses and a lesbian romance? Where do I sign up?
“Roos knows spirits are real; she’s loved one of them. She’ll have to prove her innocence and her sanity, or lose everything.”
10. Private Rites by Julia Armfield (June 6)
And now for the book that is at the very tippy top of my 2024 reading list. I’ve kept this list chronological in order of release date to keep with tradition, but it’s likewise had the effect of saving the best for last. I have needed this book since I finished reading Our Wives Under the Sea last fall. This time Armfield is giving us weird religious rituals at the end of the world, estranged sisters, and more queer love stories. I absolutely plan to drop everything as soon as it’s released. Everyone is going to be so annoyed with me in June because I’m about to make this book my entire personality.
From Macmillan:
“A speculative reimagining of King Lear, centering three sisters navigating queer love and loss in a drowning world.”
The Top 10 Books to Read in 2024 Have Everything
I’m sure no one is surprised that this list is very queer and very spooky, but I know what I like, okay? And truly, 2024 is gifting us some incredible stories. Each of these books has a unique hook that had me slamming that ‘To Read’ button on The Storygraph as soon as I saw the synopsis. This is only a small selection of the 2024 publication roster, so now I want to know, which 2024 release are you most excited to read?
