Top new literary-fiction books in May 2024
Last updated:
May 31, 2024
May 2024 featuring new releases by Kevin Kwan, Stuart Turton, Mark T. Sullivan, Natalie Jenner, Janet Skeslien Charles, Monica Wood, Steven Rowley, Sarah Perry, Jessica Shattuck, Helen Simonson and many more.
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Lies and Weddings by Kevin Kwan
From the iconic internationally bestselling author of the Crazy Rich Asians A forbidden affair erupts volcanically amid a decadent tropical wedding in this outrageous comedy of manners from the iconic author of Crazy Rich Asians...romance · fiction · humor · contemporary · royalty · literary-fiction · fantasy · family · female-mc · book -
![The Last Murder at the End of the World by Stuart Turton]()
The Last Murder at the End of the World by Stuart Turton
Solve the murder to save what's left of the world.Outside the island there is the world destroyed by a fog that swept the planet, killing anyone it touched. On the island it is idyllic. 122 villagers and 3 scientists, living in peaceful harmony. The villagers are content to fish, farm and feast, to obey their nightly curfew, to do what they're told by the scientists...mystery · fiction · sci-fi · dystopia · crime · suspense · post-apocalyptic · murder · literary-fiction · amateur-sleuth -
![All the Glimmering Stars by Mark T. Sullivan]()
All the Glimmering Stars by Mark T. Sullivan
Inspired by a true story, two teens kidnapped by an African warlord find salvation through love in a powerful and healing historical novel from the #1 bestselling author of Beneath a Scarlet Sky and The Last Green Valley.Anthony Opoka and Florence Okori are coming of age in Uganda in the 1990s... -
![Every Time We Say Goodbye by Natalie Jenner]()
Every Time We Say Goodbye by Natalie Jenner
The bestselling author of The Jane Austen Society and Bloomsbury Girls returns with a brilliant novel of love and art, of grief and memory, of confronting the past and facing the future.In 1955, Vivien Lowry is facing the greatest challenge of her life...europe · south-europe · italy · urban · vatican · england · romance · historical-fiction · fiction · historical -
![Miss Morgan's Book Brigade by Janet Skeslien Charles]()
Miss Morgan's Book Brigade by Janet Skeslien Charles
The New York Times and internationally bestselling author of the “captivating, richly drawn” (Woman’s World) The Paris Library returns with a brilliant new novel based on the true story of Jessie Carson—the American librarian who changed the literary landscape of France...historical-fiction · fiction · historical · ww1 · war · female-mc · romantic-love · literary-fiction · friendship · 20th-century -
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![How to Read a Book: A Novel by Monica Wood]()
How to Read a Book: A Novel by Monica Wood
A charming, deeply moving novel about second chances, unlikely friendships, and the life-changing power of sharing stories.Our Reasons meet us in the morning and whisper to us at night...north-america · usa · maine · romance · fiction · contemporary · literary-fiction · family · animals · womens-fiction -
![The Guncle Abroad by Steven Rowley]()
The Guncle Abroad by Steven Rowley
From the nationally bestselling author of The Guncle comes the much-anticipated sequel, in which Patrick O’Hara is called back to his guncle duties…at a big, family wedding in Lake Como, Italy.Patrick O’Hara is finally in a league of his own…professionally...fiction · lgbtq · contemporary · humor · family · season-summer · audiobook · literary-fiction · book · adult -
![Enlightenment by Sarah Perry]()
Enlightenment by Sarah Perry
A dazzling new work of literary fiction from the author of The Essex Serpent, a story of love and astronomy told over the course of twenty years through the lives of two improbable best friends. Thomas Hart and Grace Macaulay have lived all their lives in the small Essex town of Aldleigh...fiction · historical-fiction · literary-fiction · fantasy · historical · religion · lgbtq · audiobook · family · horror -
![Last House by Jessica Shattuck]()
Last House by Jessica Shattuck
"An ambitious historical epic that doubles as an intimate family saga. Jessica Shattuck captures and connects it all—the imperial ambitions of the postwar generation, the rebellion of their offspring in the Sixties, and the fallout we’re still sifting through today. . . . This is a wide-ranging novel to savor...historical-fiction · fiction · historical · political-intrigue · 20th-century · literary-fiction · family · book · adult -
![The Hazelbourne Ladies Motorcycle and Flying Club by Helen Simonson]()
The Hazelbourne Ladies Motorcycle and Flying Club by Helen Simonson
"Constance Haverhill is without prospects. Her mother has just passed away, her brother is newly married, and now that the Great War is over, she has been asked to give up managing the estate she helped to run when the men all joined the army. It is suggested to her that she become a governess. But first, she will act as caretaker to Mrs...europe · british-isles · united-kingdom · england · romance · historical-fiction · fiction · historical · feminism · drama -
![All the Colors of the Dark by Chris Whitaker]()
All the Colors of the Dark by Chris Whitaker
From the New York Times bestselling author of We Begin at the End comes a soaring thriller and an epic love story that spans decades.“Impeccably crafted, deeply emotional, entirely shattering. I was captivated from page one.” ―Bonnie Garmus, New York Times bestselling author of Lessons in Chemistry1975 is a time of change in America. The Vietnam War is ending. Mohammed Ali is fighting Joe Frazier...mystery · fiction · crime · suspense · historical-fiction · contemporary · thriller · audiobook · kidnapping · friendship -
![The Silence Factory by Bridget Collins]()
The Silence Factory by Bridget Collins
From the acclaimed author of the #1 international bestseller The Binding—a captivating story of gothic suspense about a powerful family, the magical and dangerous silk their fortune is built upon, and the exploitative history they are desperately trying to hide...fantasy · historical-fiction · gothic · fiction · historical · magical-realism · mystery · lgbtq · spooky · audiobook -
![A Good Life by Virginie Grimaldi, Hildegarde Serle]()
A Good Life by Virginie Grimaldi, Hildegarde Serle
Laughter, tears, the transformative power of love, unexpected revelations, and striking natural these are the ingredients that combine to make best-selling author Virginie Grimaldi’s English debut the feel-good read of 2024. Grimaldi is among France’s top ten contemporary authors and her uplifting, unputdownable literary novels have quickly garnered her millions of adoring fans...romance · fiction · contemporary · literary-fiction · audiobook · family · season-summer · coming-of-age · female-mc · book -
![Lovers and Liars by Amanda Eyre Ward]()
Lovers and Liars by Amanda Eyre Ward
Three wildly different sisters reunite for a destination wedding at an English castle in this heartfelt and rollicking novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The Jetsetters.Once upon a time, the Peacock sisters were little girls who combed each other’s tangled hair. But decades of secrets have led them to separate lives—and to telling lies, to themselves and to one another...romance · fiction · cozy · contemporary · womens-fiction · literary-fiction · female-mc · family · book · adult -
![I Hope This Finds You Well by Natalie Sue, Nasim Pedrad]()
I Hope This Finds You Well by Natalie Sue, Nasim Pedrad
12 hours, 3 minutes In this wildly funny and heartwarming office comedy, an admin worker accidentally gains access to her colleagues’ private emails and DMs and decides to use this intel to save her job—a laugh-till-you-cry debut novel you’ll be eager to share with your entire list of contacts, perfect for fans of Anxious People and Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine...romance · fiction · contemporary · humor · womens-fiction · audiobook · comedy · realistic · season-summer · mental-illness -
![The Twelve Saints of Christmas by Karen Baugh Menuhin]()
The Twelve Saints of Christmas by Karen Baugh Menuhin
Murder, mystery and a dog of distinction. Heathcliff Lennox investigates.Book 12 in the Heathcliff Lennox seriesTwelve Saints, who are not true saints at all. They are the great and the good, although none are entirely great, nor good - indeed one is a murderer...law-enforcement · mystery · cozy · crime · literary-fiction · historical · humor · amateur-sleuth · fiction · satire -
![The Stellar Debut of Galactica Macfee by Alexander McCall Smith]()
The Stellar Debut of Galactica Macfee by Alexander McCall Smith
The latest installment in the warm and welcoming 44 Scotland Street series finds all our favorite residents of Scotland's most celebrated address navigating their enchanting and eventful lives. Angus Lordie is approached in the park by a shadowy, Deep Throat-like figure with government secrets to share, who mistakes him for a journalist...fiction · humor · audiobook · friendship · philosophy · mystery · literary-fiction · cozy · contemporary · comedy -
![All Fours by Miranda July]()
All Fours by Miranda July
The New York Times–bestselling author of The First Bad Man returns with an irreverently sexy, tender, hilarious, and surprising novel about a woman upending her lifeA semifamous artist announces her plan to drive cross-country, from LA to New York...fiction · contemporary · literary-fiction · lgbtq · feminism · personal-growth · drama · female-mc · humor · family -
![Nero by Conn Iggulden]()
Nero by Conn Iggulden
From this New York Times bestselling author, the first novel in a new trilogy that finds Empress Agrippina and her young son, Nero, fending off ambitious rivals while shaping their own destiny—if Nero is to become the most feared and notorious emperor of them all.The story begins with a hand curled around another man’s throat... -
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![Better Left Unsent by Lia Louis]()
Better Left Unsent by Lia Louis
So many ways to torpedo your career and your love life…So little time.A woman accidentally reveals all her secrets in this witty and charming novel from the author of Eight Perfect Hours.Two years ago, thirty-year-old receptionist Millie Chandler had her heart spectacularly broken in public...romance · womens-fiction · fiction · contemporary · workplace · audiobook · literary-fiction · female-mc · humor · book -
![Return to the Irish Boarding House by Sandy Taylor]()
Return to the Irish Boarding House by Sandy Taylor
Mary Kate takes a deep breath as she stands outside 24 Merrion Square with its red front door and pretty rose garden. Grieving from her recent heartbreak, will returning to the Irish boarding house be the second chance she so desperately needs?Dublin, 1956: When Mary Kate Ryan loses the love of her life, she’s not sure how she can keep going...historical-fiction · small-town · literary-fiction · historical · family · fiction · female-mc · epic · romance · book -
![The Night Nanny by Nelle Lamarr]()
The Night Nanny by Nelle Lamarr
“Please don’t worry, Ava. Your baby is safe with me. I’m going to take care of her like she’s my own…”Ever since my daughter Isa was born, I’ve been struggling. I can’t remember anything, and my brain is in a fog. So when my husband Ned suggests we hire a night nanny, I leap at the chance.As soon as she walks into our home, I feel a wave of relief...psychological · thriller · murder · fiction · contemporary · literary-fiction · female-mc · book · adult -
![Exhibit by R.O. Kwon]()
Exhibit by R.O. Kwon
From bestselling author R. O. Kwon, an exhilarating, blazing-hot novel about a woman caught between her desires and her life.At a lavish party in the hills outside of San Francisco, Jin Han meets Lidija Jung and nothing will ever be the same for either woman...romance · fiction · lgbtq · contemporary · literary-fiction · wlw · poc-mc · poc-author · anthologies · friendship -
![Blue Ruin by Hari Kunzru]()
Blue Ruin by Hari Kunzru
From one of the sharpest voices in fiction today, a profound and enthralling novel about beauty, power, and capital’s influence on art and those who devote their lives to creating it.Once, Jay was an artist. Shortly after graduating from his London art school, he was tipped for greatness, a promising career already taking shape before him...fiction · contemporary · literary-fiction · audiobook · 21st-century · epidemy · friendship · book · adult -
![Skin & Bones by Renée Watson]()
Skin & Bones by Renée Watson
From the acclaimed #1 New York Times bestselling author comes a soulful and lyrical novel exploring sisterhood, motherhood, faith, love, and ultimately what gets passed down from one generation to the next At 40, Lena Baker is at a steady and stable moment in life—between wine nights with her two best friends and her wedding just weeks away, she’s happy in love and in friendship until a...fiction · contemporary · literary-fiction · audiobook · season-summer · parenthood · friendship · family · female-mc · black-mc -
![The Stolen Child by Ann Hood]()
The Stolen Child by Ann Hood
An unlikely duo ventures through France and Italy to solve the mystery of a child’s fate in this moving, page-turning novel from “a gifted storyteller” ( People ). For decades, Nick Burns has been haunted by a decision he made as a young soldier in World War I, when a French artist he’d befriended thrust both her paintings and her baby into his hands―and disappeared...fiction · historical-fiction · historical · audiobook · mystery · literary-fiction · war · ww2 · female-mc · 20th-century -
![The Medicine Woman of Galveston by Amanda Skenandore]()
The Medicine Woman of Galveston by Amanda Skenandore
Caught in the great Galveston Hurricane of 1900, a female doctor who’s joined a traveling medicine show to support her disabled son is forced to weather the storm and its aftermath in a town hostile to the troupe’s unconventional ways but desperate for their help...historical-fiction · fiction · historical · western · womens-fiction · medical · family · friendship · female-mc · 20th-century -
![The Second Coming by Garth Risk Hallberg]()
The Second Coming by Garth Risk Hallberg
A luminous new novel from the best-selling author of City on Fire , plunging us deep into the lives of a teenage girl and her father as they navigate love, grief, addiction, resurrection, and the restless pull of other people.When 13-year-old Jolie Aspern drops her phone onto the subway tracks in 2011, her estranged dad, Ethan, seems like the furthest thing from her mind... -
![Long Island by Colm Tóibín]()
Long Island by Colm Tóibín
From the beloved, critically acclaimed New York Times bestselling author comes a spectacularly moving and intense novel of secrecy, misunderstanding, and love , the story of Eilis Lacey, the complex and enigmatic heroine of Brooklyn , Tóibín’s most popular work twenty years later...historical-fiction · fiction · historical · literary-fiction · 20th-century · audiobook · parenthood · marriage · family · book -
![The Instruments of Darkness by John Connolly]()
The Instruments of Darkness by John Connolly
From the international and instant New York Times bestselling author John Connolly, the beloved and brilliant Charlie Parker series returns with a heart-wrenching crime only one man can solve.In Maine, Colleen Clark stands accused of the worst crime a mother can the abduction and possible murder of her child...fiction · mystery · horror · crime · male-author · suspense · paranormal · literary-fiction · supernatural · ghosts -
![Long After We Are Gone by Terah Shelton Harris]()
Long After We Are Gone by Terah Shelton Harris
An explosive and emotional story of four siblings—each fighting their own personal battle—who return home in the wake of their father's death in order to save their family's home from being sold out from under them, from the author of One Summer in Savannah . "Don't let the white man take the house." These are the last words King Solomon says to his son before he dies...north-america · usa · north-carolina · fiction · historical-fiction · contemporary · family · literary-fiction · drama · audiobook -
![The Goddess of Warsaw by Lisa Barr]()
The Goddess of Warsaw by Lisa Barr
The Goddess Of Warsaw is an enthralling tale of a legendary Hollywood screen goddess with a dark secret about her life in the Warsaw Ghetto. When the famous actress is threatened by someone from her past, she must put her skills into play to protect herself, her illustrious career, and those she loves, then and now. Los Angeles, 2005...historical-fiction · fiction · historical · ww2 · war · suspense · assassinations · new-adult · vigilante · justice -
![The Berlin Sisters by Soraya M. Lane]()
The Berlin Sisters by Soraya M. Lane
From the bestselling author of The Secret Midwife comes a story of bravery, sacrifice and resilience in war-torn Berlin―and two sisters who will risk it all to make a difference. Berlin, 1943: Ava Müller is a proud supporter of the German war effort, working for Joseph Goebbels alongside her father, a high-ranking official in the Reich...historical-fiction · audiobook · ww2 · historical · fiction · romance · friendship · family · 20th-century · literary-fiction -
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![This Strange Eventful History by Claire Messud]()
This Strange Eventful History by Claire Messud
Over seven decades, from 1940 to 2010, the pieds-noirs Cassars live in an itinerant state—separated in the chaos of World War II, running from a complicated colonial homeland, and, after Algerian independence, without a homeland at all...historical-fiction · fiction · historical · family · literary-fiction · 20th-century · epic · book · adult -
![The Winner by Teddy Wayne]()
The Winner by Teddy Wayne
“Be prepared to fully lose yourself in The Winner—a book I started and then simply couldn’t stop reading. Teddy Wayne has written a timely, topical novel that still somehow feels like a classic.”—Liz Moore, New York Times bestselling author of Long Bright RiverConor O’Toole has never been anywhere as casually glamorous as Cutters Neck, a gated community near Cape Cod...fiction · literary-fiction · contemporary · thriller · mystery · murder · psychological · satire · dark-humor · humor -
![Joe Nuthin's Guide to Life by Helen Fisher]()
Joe Nuthin's Guide to Life by Helen Fisher
A thoroughly uplifting novel about a neurodivergent young man who unexpectedly builds a community and saves a friend in need by following—in a way only he can—his mother’s words of wisdom.Joe-Nathan likes the two parts of his name separate, just like dinner and dessert. Mean Charlie at work sometimes calls him Joe-Nuthin. But Joe is far from nothing...fiction · contemporary · audiobook · fantasy · literary-fiction · friendship · female-mc · magical-realism · low-fantasy · book -
![Tired Ladies Take a Stand by Gretchen Anthony]()
Tired Ladies Take a Stand by Gretchen Anthony
You've heard of Year of Yes. Introducing... Year of No.During one unforgettable year in their twenties, best friends Emma, Fern, Carolina, and Andi make a pact to embrace whatever life throws at them, inspiring Fern to write a memoir detailing their escapades and the magical power of saying Yes.But fast forward twenty years and they have reached their bandwidth of responsibilities...fiction · contemporary · friendship · womens-fiction · audiobook · humor · literary-fiction · satire · female-mc · book -
![Housemates by Emma Copley Eisenberg]()
Housemates by Emma Copley Eisenberg
Two young housemates embark on a road trip to discover themselves in a fractured America in this sparkling novel of love, friendship and chosen family, by the award-winning author of The Third Rainbow GirlWhat does it feel like, standing in the moments that will mark your life?When Bernie replies to Leah's ad for a new housemate in Philadelphia, the two begin an intense and defiantly...north-america · usa · pennsylvania · urban · fiction · lgbtq · contemporary · wlw · literary-fiction · journey -
![The Body Farm: Stories by Abby Geni]()
The Body Farm: Stories by Abby Geni
The long-awaited new book from the critically acclaimed author of The Lightkeepers and The Wildlands : an intense and insightful collection that examines life in decay to celebrate the horrors and joys of inhabiting our bodiesThe body cannot tell any lies. From birth to death, and through all the transitions in between, the body stores our knowledge and history, our feelings and experiences...fiction · anthologies · literary-fiction · lgbtq · non-binary-mc · lesbian-mc · outdoors · female-mc · family · adult -
![Allow Me to Introduce Myself by Onyi Nwabineli]()
Allow Me to Introduce Myself by Onyi Nwabineli
Every second of Anuri’s life has been documented on social media. Now, it's time to take back control.Anuri's stepmother, Ophelia, is the ultimate 'mumfluencer'. Throughout Anuri's childhood, she catalogued every minute, milestone and carefully curated family outing on social media, cultivating a devoted - and sizeable - following...fiction · contemporary · poc-author · audiobook · poc-mc · mental-illness · dark · humor · black-mc · literary-fiction
