In Episode 184, Susie (@NovelVisits) and I close out the year with our Best Books of 2024 Genre Awards. We reveal our Overall Best Books (Fiction and Nonfiction) and our full breakdown by genre, including: Best Literary Fiction, Best Romance, Best Brain Candy, Best Genre Mash-Up, and more! Plus, we’re sharing the winners for these same genres as chosen by the Sarah’s Bookshelves Live Patreon community!

This post contains affiliate links through which I make a small commission when you make a purchase (at no cost to you!).

CLICK HERE for the full episode Show Notes on the blog.

Announcements

• My 2025 Reading Tracker is out! Plus, this year we’ve added another option — a LITE Tracker. Once again, the Tracker is ONLY available to Superstars patrons (i.e., no longer available as a separate purchase for $14.99 here on my website). Also, to avoid Apple’s 30% fee, be sure to join directly from Patreon’s site, mobile or desktop. Become a Superstars Patron here!
• Instructions for how to give an SBL Patreon membership as a gift.

Highlights

• Podcast reflections from 2024 — including top episodes based on download stats.
• A brief overview of Susie’s and Sarah’s 2024 year in reading.
• Our favorite books of the year: overall and by genre, including the SBL Patreon Community’s picks.

2024 Genre Awards [16:45]

Sarah

• Leaving by Roxana Robinson | Amazon | Bookshop.org [16:52]
• Margo’s Got Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [21:21]
• Anna Bright is Hiding Something by Susie Orman Schnall | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [24:12]
• The Sequel by Jean Hanff Korelitz | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [28:42]
• The Wealth of Shadows by Graham Moore | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [32:26]
• JFK Jr. by RoseMarie Terenzio and Liz McNeil | Amazon | Bookshop.org [36:25]
• Be Ready When the Luck Happens by Ina Garten | Amazon | Bookshop.org [40:42]
• How To End a Love Story by Yulin Kuang | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [46:11]
• Real Americans by Rachel Khong | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [50:46]
• Victim by Andrew Boryga | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [57:26]
• The God of the Woods by Liz Moore | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [59:40]
• Sipsworth by Simon Van Booy | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [1:04:24]
• Nuclear War by Annie Jacobsen | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [1:07:09]
• Same As It Ever Was by Claire Lombardo | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [1:08:47]

Susie

• Wolf at the Table by Adam Rapp | Amazon | Bookshop.org [17:59]
• Sandwich by Catherine Newman | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [22:05]
• Interesting Facts About Space by Emily Austin | Amazon | Bookshop.org [25:42]
• What Happened to Nina? by Dervla McTiernan | Amazon | Bookshop.org [29:43]
• The Women by Kristin Hannah | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [33:41]
• The Message by Ta-Nehisi Coates | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [38:16]
• One Day I’ll Grow Up and Be a Beautiful Woman by Abi Maxwell | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [41:47]
• Funny Story by Emily Henry | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [47:23]
• Beautyland by Marie-Helene Bertino | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [51:54]
• The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [54:02]
• The Husbands by Holly Gramazio | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [58:18]
• Wandering Stars by Tommy Orange | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [1:00:14]
• Perris, California by Rachel Stark | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [1:02:44]
• Liars by Sarah Manguso | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [1:05:18]
• Nuclear War by Annie Jacobsen | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [1:07:09]

Patrons

• James by Percival Everett | Amazon | Bookshop.org [19:55]
• Margo’s Got Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe | Amazon | Bookshop.org [27:43]
• The God of the Woods by Liz Moore | Amazon | Bookshop.org [31:16]
• The Women by Kristin Hannah | Amazon | Bookshop.org [35:35]
• The Small and the Mighty by Sharon McMahon | Amazon | Bookshop.org [40:10]
• Be Ready When the Luck Happens by Ina Garten | Amazon | Bookshop.org[43:33]
• Funny Story by Emily Henry | Amazon | Bookshop.org [48:59]
• Annie Bot by Sierra Greer | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [53:28]
• The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [56;10]
• You Like It Darker by Stephen King | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [56:39]
• Victim by Andrew Boryga | Amazon | Bookshop.org [58:58]
• Twenty-Four Seconds From Now by Jason Reynolds | Amazon | Bookshop.org [1:01:54]
• Piglet by Lottie Hazzell | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [1:03:22]
• The Husbands by Holly Gramazio | Amazon | Bookshop.org [1:06:16]

Other Books Mentioned

• Mercury by Amy Jo Burns [20:10]
• Tell Me Everything by Elizabeth Strout [20:13]
• All the Colors of the Dark by Chris Whitaker [20:27]
• The Wedding People by Alison Espach [20:37]
• We All Want Impossible Things by Catherine Newman [22:17]
• Bad Blood by John Carreyrou [24:27]
• She Said by Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey [24:40]
• Mrs. Quinn’s Rise to Fame by Olivia Ford [28:10]
• A Happier Life by Kristy Woodson Harvey [28:23]
• Good Material by Dolly Alderton [28:27]
• The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz [28:57]
• Nightwatching by Tracy Sierra [31:55]
• The Return of Ellie Black by Emiko Jean [32:00]
• Worst Case Scenario by T. J. Newman [32:05]
• Falling by T. J. Newman [32:20]
• Drowning by T. J. Newman [32:21]
• The Lion Women of Tehran by Marjan Kamali [36:03]
• Spare by Prince Harry [37:20]
• The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt [40:00]
• Challenger by Adam Higginbotham [40:28]
• The Wives by Simone Gorrindo [44:46]
• Sociopath by Patric Gagne, Ph.D. [45:09]
• Consent by Jill Ciment [45:15]
• The Third Gilmore Girl by Kelly Bishop [45:21]
• Grief Is for People by Sloane Crosley [45:31]
• One Way Back by Christine Blasey Ford [45:34]
• Only Say Good Things by Crystal Hefner [45:43]
• There’s Always This Year by Hanif Abdurraqib [45:48]
• People We Meet On Vacation by Emily Henry [47:10]
• Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenez [48:51]
• The Rom-Commers by Katherine Center [48:59]
• Love of My Afterlife by Kirsty Greenwood [49:02]
• Summer Romance by Annabel Monaghan [49:34]
• Slow Dance by Rainbow Rowell [49:44]
• The Other Valley by Scott Alexander Howard [53:47]
• The Book of Doors by Gareth Brown [56:12]
• Bride by Ali Hazelwood [56:27]
• Diavola by Jennifer Thorne [57:06]
• We Used to Live Here by Marcus Kliewer [57:11]
• Lula Dean’s Little Library of Banned Books by Kirsten Miller [59:17]
• Colored Television by Danzy Senna [59:22]
• I Hope This Finds You Well by Natalie Sue [59:27]
• We Are Experiencing a Slight Delay by Gary Janneti [59:35]
• There There by Tommy Orange [1:00:27]
• Anita de Monte Laughs Last by Xochitl Gonzalez [1:01:40]
• When the World Tips Over by Jandy Nelson [1:01:59]
• Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar [1:03:35]
• Dixon, Descending by Karen Outen [1:03:56]
• How We Named the Stars by Andrés N. Ordorica [1:04:11]
• The Safekeep by Yael van der Wouden [1:04:21]
• Bear by Julia Phillips [1:06:18]
• The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley [1:06:25]
• The Fury by Alex Michaelides [1:06:51]
• The Only Plane in the Sky by Garrett M. Graff [1:08:10]
• Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver [1:10:27]
• Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin [1:10:28]

Top Podcast Episodes [4:40]

• Ep. 158: Best Books of 2023 Genre Awards with Susie (@NovelVisits)
• Ep. 160: The Best Backlist Books We Read in 2023 with Catherine (@GilmoreGuide)
• Ep. 159: Winter 2024 Book Preview with Catherine (@GilmoreGuide)
• Ep. 157: Best Books of 2023 Superlatives with Susie (@NovelVisits)
• Ep. 164: Winter 2024 Circle Back with Catherine (@GilmoreGuide)
• Ep. 163: Classics & Retellings 101 with Sara Hildreth (@FictionMatters)
• Ep. 156: 2023 State of the Industry with Sarah Landis (Literary Agent)
• Ep. 162: BookTok 101 with Leigh Stein (Author & Journalist)
• Ep. 178: Behind the Scenes of Amazon’s Best Books Lists with Al Woodworth, Senior Editor & Manager of Amazon Books Editorial
• Ep. 179: From Corporate America to Indie Bookstore Owner with Gayle Weiswasser (Co-Founder of Wonderland Books)
• Ep. 167: Circling Back to 2018 in Books with Catherine (@GilmoreGuide)