2018 is shaping up to be a good year for books. With thousands of new releases slated for the new year, I took it upon myself to scavenge through the lists to compile the best of the best. So here you have it: the top 18 books you need to read in 2018!
1. The Outsider by Stephen King
Genre: Horror, Thriller
Release Date: June 5
King's latest novel explores how a community reels when a much-loved member is accused of a hideous murder. The premise reminds me a bit of ITV's Broadchurch in the way a young child's death is the catalyst to a slew of dark secrets bubbling to the surface in an idyllic small town, and with Stephen King's characteristic flair for the horrific, this is a novel I don't dare to miss.
2. The Cruel Prince by Holly Black
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult
Release Date: January 2
Holly Black's work has always been hit or miss for me, especially her fae stories; while I strongly disliked Tithe, her novel The Darkest Part of the Forest sufficiently wooed her back into my good graces. I can't say from the blurb alone whether I'll enjoy the book, but if you're feeling ambivalent, I think it's worth a look.
3. The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult
Release Date: January 30
Dark, twisted fairy tales? Delving into a cruel supernatural world thought only to exist in stories to rescue a kidnapped family member? If either of those fantasy staples appeal to you, The Hazel Wood will be right up your alley.
4. Heart Berries by Therese Marie Mailhot
Genre: Nonfiction, Memoir
Release Date: February 6
In an era where our illustrious president has placed the needs of corporations over the needs of Native peoples, we need to pay attention to Native voices now more than ever. Heart Berries is a powerful memoir about Mailhot's experiences growing up on the Seabird Island Indian Reservation in the Pacific Northwest.
5. Freshwater by Akwaeke Emezi
Genre: Fiction
Release Date: February 13
I couldn't decide how to describe the genre of Emezi's debut novel. It is a book about a woman with a fractured self, both literally and figuratively, and how she tries to forge together the pieces of her identity. Swamped with positive reviews, if you've been meaning to diversify your reading, Freshwater is a good place to start.
6. The Line Becomes a River: Dispatches from the Border by Francisco Cantu
Genre: Nonfiction, Memoir
Release Date: February 6
American politics being what they are, this memoir about the experiences of a third-generation Mexican American who joins the Border Patrol and confronts the structural violence of U.S.-Mexico border relations is a must-read for 2018.
7. How to Stop Time by Matt Haig
Genre: Fiction, Fantasy, Historical Fiction
Release Date: February 6
I love novels about immortality, and Haig's How to Stop Time promises to deliver a heartrending story about what it means to live in the present, as told by a man who has lived for centuries. A definite addition to my To Be Read list.
8. Love, Hate and Other Filters by Samira Ahmed
Genre: Contemporary, Young Adult
Release Date: January 16
Love, Hate and Other Filters is an own voices novel about an Indian-American Muslim teen who confronts Islamophobia in her community, and the conflict between her parents' traditional expectations and her star-spangled dreams. If you've also been crying out for more diversity in YA, Ahmed's novel is worth your time.
9. When They Call You a Terrorist: A Black Lives Matter Memoir by Patrisse Khan-Cullors and asha bandele
Genre: Nonfiction, Memoir
Release Date: January 16
The Black Lives Matter movement has remained strong in the post-Trump era. While race relations in the United States are as tense and fraught as ever, we can come to understand the movement through this powerful memoir from its co-founders, which cries out for us to realize the BLM is not about hate, but about love for the most vulnerable among us.
10. Let's Talk About Love by Claire Kann
Genre: Fiction, Contemporary
Release Date: January 23
A cute romance novel with a black lead? A black biromantic asexual lead? What sorcery is this? I cannot tell you how excited I am to see an alloromantic asexual in fiction, especially with both bisexuality and asexuality being the most "invisible" sexualities in media. Finally, a romance novel I can get behind!
11. The Sky Is Yours by Chandler Klang Smith
Genre: Fiction, Fantasy, Science Fiction
Release Date: January 23
This one's all for me. A burnt-out dystopia set in a world plagued by a pair of dragons that circle the skies, The Sky Is Yours promises to deliver a delightfully grotesque, strange experience that captures the heart of why I love the fantasy genre. Hit me with everything you've got, Smith.
12. Not That Bad: Dispatches from Rape Culture edited by Roxane Gay
Genre: Nonfiction, Essay, Anthology
Release Date: May 1
The #MeToo movement, denouncing sexual assault and harassment, exploded this past October, and on its heels comes this timely anthology that tackles the reality of women's experiences with violence and aggression in a patriarchal society where they are still routinely gaslit and blown off. "Not That Bad" is no longer good enough.
13. Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult
Release Date: March 6
Tired of the same old pseudo-medieval European fantasy? Look no further. The Children of Blood and Bone is a richly detailed, beautifully plotted, imaginative and purely magical addition to the high fantasy genre—or at least, so say the many, many 5-star reviews. If I had to pick one book on this list to read next year, it would be this one.
14. The Future of Humanity: Terraforming Mars, Interstellar Travel, Immortality, and Our Destiny Beyond Earth by Michio Kaku
Genre: Nonfiction, Science
Release Date: February 28
I'm by no means a scientist. However, with climate change a growing—and still blatantly ignored—hot-button issue, Kaku's The Future of Humanity caught my eye as a down-to-earth (pardon the pun) exploration of how humankind may one day find itself among the stars.
15. Everything Here is Beautiful by Mira T. Lee
Genre: Fiction
Release Date: January 16
Lee's debut novel is a sensitive depiction of one woman's struggle with mental illness and how it impacts not only her life, but the lives of the people close to her, with especial emphasis on her bond with her sister. I have a weakness for stories about sacrifice and learning to let go when the people you love refuse to help themselves, and Everything Here Is Beautiful promises to deliver.
16. The Boat People by Sharon Bala
Genre: Fiction
Release Date: January 9
There are 65.6 million forcibly displaced people worldwide. Of those, 22.5 million are refugees. The Boat People tells the story of two of them, father and son, who escape civil war in Sri Lanka only to discover another, different war being waged on the shores of Vancouver: the war against terror. At a time when 10 million people are stateless, Bala's debut reminds us to show compassion to those seeking asylum far from home.
17. Red Clocks by Leni Zumas
Genre: Fiction, Dystopia
Release Date: January 16
In the same vein as Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale, Red Clocks imagines an America where women's reproductive rights are stripped away and all embryos are granted rights of life, liberty and property. For those of us concerned by current legislative trends, this one is worth a read.
18. A Girl Like That by Tanaz Bhathena
Genre: Contemporary, Young Adult
Release Date: February 27
A Girl Like That is a book about the tragic death of a vivacious young girl in Saudi Arabia. Already highly rated on Goodreads, this is the sort of story that lingers in your mind long after you've closed its pages.
