Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme that currently reside at The Artsy Reader Girl and features bloggers sharing lists on various book topics.  The official topic for this week’s Top Ten Tuesday involved listing books with your favourite colour on the cover.  While this is an interesting topic which I might come back to later, I had already decided in advance that this week I would take this opportunity to celebrate the fact that we are into the second half of 2024 by highlighting some amazing books from the first half of the year.

2024 has already proven to be a fantastic year for books, and I have already read some incredible new releases, including impressive standalone books, amazing entries in established series and fantastic debuts.  Because of this, I thought that I would take the time to work out what my top ten favourite books from the first half of 2024 were.  To be eligible, a book had to be a particularly epic novel released in the first half of this year.  I have excluded any books released during this period that I have not so far read, although a couple of releases I have my eye on might have appeared on this list if I had read them in time.

Coming up with this list proved to be a rather bigger task than I originally intended, as I ended up amassing nearly 20 releases, all of which I consider to be outstanding reads.  I was eventually able to whittle this down to an acceptable Top Ten list, although I did include my typical generous honourable mentions section.  I am rather happy with how this list turned out, although I am surprised at some of the great recent books that ended up being excluded.  Still, the entries below represent what I considered to be some of the best books from the first half of 2024, and I would strongly recommend each and every one of them.

Honourable Mentions:

Warhammer 40,000: Deathworlder by Victoria Hayward

One of the darkest and most compelling Warhammer 40,000 novels I have had the pleasure of reading.

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Crucible of Chaos by Sebastien De Castell

An outstanding fantasy murder mystery from the very end of 2023 that I am sneaking into the honourable mentions due to how good it was.

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Devil’s Kitchen by Candice Fox

One of Australia’s best thriller authors once again wowed me with the epic and moving Devil’s Kitchen.

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The Girl in Question by Tess Sharpe

An awesome sequel to the amazing young adult thriller The Girls I’ve Been.

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Top Ten Tuesday:

The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett

The first book I want to highlight was the delightfully compelling and intriguing fantasy murder mystery The Tainted Cup.  The start of a cool new series by Robert Jackson Bennett, The Tainted Cup saw a fun pair of investigators attempt to uncover the truth behind an impossible magical murder in a land constantly under siege from giant monsters.  A relentlessly entertaining novel with a fantastic mystery behind it, The Tainted Cup was an early favourite of 2024 that I cannot recommend enough.

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The Gathering by C. J. Tudor

Another excellent book that blended the genres together was The Gathering by acclaimed author C. J. Tudor.  A compelling murder mystery set in an alternate world where vampyrs exist, The Gathering sees the protagonist travel to an isolated Alaskan town to investigate whether a murder was committed by a local vampyr colony or something far darker.  A unique tale that sets up an intriguing new world from Tudor, The Gathering was an addictive read that really impressed me.

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Play of Shadows by Sebastien De Castell

Sebastien De Castell continues to expand his exceptional Greatcoats universe in a big way with Play of Shadows, the first book in the author’s new Court of Shadows series.  Play of Shadows was a particularly clever and entertaining novel that followed a cowardly actor who taps into magical forces that allow him to reveal ancient secrets while on the stage.  Thrust into a series of battles and intrigues, this resulted in a very fun and compelling story that I deeply enjoyed, and which made me seek out more books from this amazing author.

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Extinction by Douglas Preston

I had to include Extinction by Douglas Preston on this list, mainly because it was so damn entertaining and exciting.  Focussed on a series of murders occurring in a park full of clone megafauna, Extinction was instantly addictive, and I loved just how crazy the story got at times.  The last third of Extinction was so damn bonkers and I had such a brilliant time watching the chaos unfold.  A very fun book that proved impossible not to enjoy.

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The Silverblood Promise by James Logan

Debuting fantasy author James Logan burst onto the scene with the amazing first novel, The Silverblood Promise.  Set in a cool new fantasy world and following a disgraced heir trying to uncover his father’s murderer, The Silverblood Promise featured a fast-paced and highly enjoyable narrative loaded with intrigue, adventure and mysteries.  I absolutely powered through this awesome book and I cannot wait to see what fantasy stories Logan produces in the future.

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The Mercy Chair by M. W. Craven

A last-minute addition to this list is the epically dark crime fiction novel, The Mercy Chair by M. W. Craven.  This distinctive murder mystery sees the ritual stoning of a controversial religious figure turn into a haunting tale from the past for two unique investigators.  I really got stuck into this story, especially as Craven cleverly layers twists upon twist for the reader to discover.  I honestly cannot believe how much darker each reveal made this story as Craven leads the reader down a terrible path of betrayal, secrets and lies.  Easily one of the best crime fiction novels of 2024.

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Da Big Dakka by Mike Brooks

One of the most entertaining Warhammer books of 2024 is the insane and hilarious read, Da Big Dakka by Mike Brooks.  The follow-up to his previous novels, Brutal Kunnin and Warboss, Da Big Dakka follows an ork horde as they attempt to destroy the infamous city of the Drukhari, with nothing going the way anyone planned.  An excessively fun and action-packed novel that mixes subtle humour with the outrageous actions of his alien protagonists, and which showcases why Brooks is one of the best current authors of Warhammer fiction.

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The Chaos Agent by Mark Greaney

Mark Greaney continues one of my favourite spy thriller series with the new Gray Man novel, The Chaos Agent.  Setting his iconic spy protagonist against a dangerous new enemy, The Chaos Agent had a great story behind it that proceeded to get very crazy once some memorable weapons technology is unleashed.  An amazing entry in one of the best thriller series out there, The Chaos Agent was fun from start to finish and leaves the reader on a very interesting cliffhanger.

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Point Nemo by Jeremy Robinson

One of the best authors of the science fiction thriller, Jeremy Robinson, returns with an impressive new novel, Point Nemo.  Set on a mysterious island formed from alien material, Point Nemo is a gripping and thrilling adventure that blends unique science with dark and twisted moments.  A very compelling book that I could not get enough of, especially in its audiobook format, Point Nemo comes very highly recommended and is really worth a read.

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You Like it Darker by Stephen King

The final book I want to highlight on this list is the exceptional short story collection You Like It Darker by the legendary Stephen King.  Featuring 12 short stories from King, You Like It Darker was a horror-themed thrill ride from start to finish as the author wowed me with his versatility and unique narratives.  This book contains some particularly noteworthy short stories, including a sequel to Cujo and a unique story about the downsides of psychic visions, all of which grabbed imagination and refused to let go.  You Like It Darker was so damn good and I loved every second I spent with it.

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Well, that’s the end of this latest list.  As you can see, I have already read some amazing and epic books so far in 2024 and we are only halfway through the year.  I am pretty happy with how this list turned out, and it will be interesting to see which of these books ends up being amongst my top reads of the year.  All the novels above come very highly recommended, and you are guaranteed to have a wonderful time reading them.  Let me know what your favourite releases for the first half of the year are in the comments below and make sure to check out my two most anticipated reads lists for the second half of 2024 (fantasy and science fiction and other).