Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme that currently resides at The Artsy Reader Girl and feature bloggers sharing lists on various book topics. As we roll into the new year I am going to list my absolute favourite books of 2024, which is something I look forward to every year. This is a continuation of several lists I have done in recent weeks that highlighted the authors and books that have most impressed me this year. Previous lists looked at topics like my favourite pre-2024 novels, as well as my favourite audiobooks, sequels, and new-to-me authors of 2024. However, this list is the big one as it covers my absolute favourite releases of the year, of which there are quite a few.
I think we can all agree that 2024 has been another rollercoaster year for the world, but thankfully readers got a little bit of solace as this was an amazing year for books, with a huge range of incredible releases coming out across the genres. Not only did several outstanding new series start but we had some exceptional debuts, and some big continuations of established works. I have had an amazing time reading or listening to some outstanding books this year and quite a few releases have become instant favourites. I must admit that I somewhat struggled to pull this list together, as there were so many books that deserved to be mentioned. Therefore, because I am a very soft touch, and because the quality of the books I read this year was so impressive, I have decided to expand this list out to 20 entries (just like I have the last five years, I’m a very soft touch). These 20 books are my absolute favourites from 2024, and I would strongly recommend every one of them to anyone interested in a great read.
To make it onto this list a book only needed to be released here in Australia during 2024. I have naturally excluded anything I have not read yet, even though there were quite a few awesome-sounding books I sadly didn’t squeeze into my reading schedule. I decided to leave off my usual Honourable Mentions section as the extra 10 entries make it unnecessary. There will be a bit of crossover between the below entries and some of my previous lists. For example, several of these novels appeared on my Top Ten Favourite Audiobooks of 2024 list and my Top Ten Favourite Books from the First Half of 2024 list, which I ran back into July. Overall, I am very happy with how this Top 20 list turned out and I think it contains a pretty good range of novels that showcase the different types of books that I chose to read this year. So, without further ado, here is the list.
Top Twenty List:
The Dragon in Winter by Jonathan Maberry
Let’s start this list off with the exceptional fantasy novel, The Dragon in Winter by Jonathan Maberry. The third and final book in the Kagen the Damned trilogy, The Dragon in Winter follows on from the exciting and impressive reads, Kagen the Damned (one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2022) and Son of the Poison Rose (one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2023). Featuring an outstanding and action-packed dark fantasy storyline that saw the damned and damaged series protagonist attempt to finally get his vengeance during the final battles of a brutal war. Intense, powerful and loaded with some dramatic character moments, The Dragon in Winter was an awesome end to one of my favourite fantasy trilogies and I was enthralled the entire way through this great book.
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We Solve Murders by Richard Osman
Richard Osman has really become a notable fixture on these end of year lists thanks to his brilliant and hilarious Thursday Murder Club books (The Thursday Murder Club, The Man Who Died Twice, The Bullet That Missed and The Last Devil to Die). This year he presented readers with a new treat in the standalone thriller, We Solve Murders. Featuring the exceptional humour and fantastic writing that made the Thursday Murder Club books so much fun, We Solve Murders is a clever and addictive international thriller focused on a great new group of protagonists. Witty, charming and extraordinarily compelling, We Solve Murders was another incredible novel from Osman that I cannot recommend enough.
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Warhammer 40,000: Above and Beyond by Denny Flowers
2024 proved to be an outstanding year for Warhammer 40,000 fiction, and I had the pleasure of reading multiple fantastic novels from this franchise. One of the best was the captivating and cynical novel, Above and Beyond. The sequel to one of my favourite Warhammer 40,000 novels, Outgunned, Above and Beyond reunites Flower’s damaged protagonists, a broken propaganda expert and a crass heroic pilot, for another outrageous adventure. Cleverly examining the role propaganda plays in the wars of the grim future, Above and Beyond ended up being a very exciting and powerful thriller that I could not get enough off. An incredible novel from one of the fastest rising Warhammer authors (make sure to also check Flower’s novella in Da Red Gobbo Collection).
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The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett
Earlier this year I had the great pleasure of reading The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett. An intriguing combination of fantasy and crime fiction, The Tainted Cup focussed on an unusual investigative duo in a monster besieged fantasy kingdom as they attempt to uncover the truth behind a series of brutal magical killings. The Tainted Cup proved to be an exceptional and intelligent novel I could not put down as Jackson effortlessly combined complex fantasy elements with his brilliant murder mystery narrative. One of the most inventive books of 2024, The Tainted Cup was something truly special, and I cannot wait to dive into the sequel, A Drop of Corruption, in the new year.
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The Chaos Agent by Mark Greaney
I had a brilliant time in 2024 continuing Mark Greaney’s awesome Gray Man spy thriller series with The Chaos Agent. Setting his iconic spy protagonist against a dangerous and terrifying new enemy, The Chaos Agent had a fantastic story behind it that proceeded to get very crazy once some memorable weapons are unleashed. An amazing entry in one of the best thriller series out there, The Chaos Agent was epic from start to finish and leaves readers on a major cliffhanger that I am looking forward to seeing resolved in 2025 with Midnight Black.
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The Gathering by C. J. Tudor
One of the more unique novels of 2024 had to be The Gathering by C. J. Tudor. A powerful and clever murder mystery set in a world where vampires exist, The Gathering follows a government vampire expert who travels to an isolated town to determine whether a recent murder was as vampire kill and whether the local colony should be exterminated. Blending a great small-town murder narrative with an inventive world history featuring vampires, The Gathering was such a compelling and dark book, and I loved every single second I spent reading it.
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Play of Shadows by Sebastien De Castell
While I have previously enjoyed some of Sebastien De Castell’s great fantasy fiction before with The Malevolent Seven, this year I dove into his Greatcoat’s universe with the relentlessly entertaining novel, Play of Shadows. The first book in his new Court of Shadows series, Play of Shadows followed a fugitive actor who gains the ability to manifest the spirt of a notorious historical villain whenever he appears on stage. Suddenly caught in a massive city-wide conspiracy, the protagonist needs to survive to tell the spirit’s true story and soon finds out just how deadly the theatre can be. A truly fantastic and fun novel that I couldn’t stop reading, Play of Shadows had such a unique and powerful story behind it that perfectly fit into the author’s existing universe. A highly recommended novel, especially when read in concert with the outstanding prequel, Crucible of Chaos, that was released just in advance of Play of Shadows.
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The Mercy Chair by M. W. Craven
Awesome crime fiction author M. W. Craven had a great 2024, as he released two books including the outrageous thriller Nobody’s Hero. However, my favourite novel of his was the sixth book in the Washington Poe series, The Mercy Chair. Following the author’s cynical protagonist and his unusual team as they investigate the brutal murder of a controversial religious leader, The Mercy Chair contained an exceptionally intense narrative as the protagonists uncover a raft of shocking secrets that will shake you to your very core. A dark and twisty British murder mystery, The Mercy Chair was a truly remarkable read that had me hooked from start to finish thanks to its barrage of clever reveals. One of the best pure murder mysteries of 2024.
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NecroTek by Jonathan Maberry
In addition to The Dragon in Winter, Jonathan Maberry also released the dark and compelling science fiction novel, NecroTek. A cool dive into pure science fiction, Maberry utilised his usual style to effectively tell a massive tale of survival in strange space as the protagonists encounter Lovecraftian horrors and must fight them using necromancy-infused alien technology. Intense, compelling, and loaded with some powerful human moments, NecroTek was another impressive novel from Maberry in 2025 that I had to feature here as well.
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The Fury of the Gods by John Gwynne
John Gwynne brought his epic Bloodsworn Saga to an end in a big way with The Fury of the Gods. The final book in the trilogy that has previously featured the amazing reads The Shadow of the Gods and The Hunger of the Gods, The Fury of the Gods was a very awesome read that saw all the various character arcs finally come together as everyone picked a side in massive war between gods and mortals. Making full use of the series’ Viking aesthetic, The Fury of the Gods was an exceptional fantasy epic from start to finish, and I deeply enjoyed how Gwynne brought everything together.
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Service Model by Adrian Tchaikovsky
This was a bumper year for Adrian Tchaikovsky as he released several amazing books across the science fiction and fantasy genres. Of the ones I have so far read my favourite was Service Model. An intriguing and captivating novel that follows a robot exploring a post-apocalyptic wasteland, this book was filled with great humour and cynical take on the future of humanity. Service Model ended up being a very highly entertaining novel that I cannot recommend enough, especially to readers looking for something particularly clever and funny.
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Usagi Yojimbo: Volume 39: Ice and Snow by Stan Sakai
A surely unsurprising inclusion on this list is the latest Usagi Yojimbo comic, Ice and Snow by Stan Sakai. One of my favourite comic series, I always make sure to grab the new Usagi Yojimbo volume each year and they always prove to be quite exceptional. Ice and Snow was a particularly epic entry in the series, as the protagonists face off against a raft of supernatural foes, including Usagi’s dark nemesis Jei. Beautifully drawn and incredibly fun to read, Ice and Snow was another brilliant and beautiful comic that I powered through the second I got my hands on it.
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Warhammer 40,000: Renegades: Lord of Excess by Rich McCormick
The other Warhammer 40,000 novel I wanted to include on this list was the twisted Renegades: Lord of Excess. The debut novel of Rich McCormick, Lord of Excess followed a warband of the hedonistic Emperor’s Children traitor Space Marines as they take over an isolated planet. McCormick perfectly captures the obsessive nature of his colourful characters, and I loved seeing the villain’s perspective in this deliciously dark novel. I had an incredible time with this warped and complex character driven novel, and McCormick is an impressive new talent to keep an eye on.
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The Last Shield by Cameron Johnston
After wowing me with amazing books like The Traitor God, God of Broken Things and The Maleficent Seven, Cameron Johnston continues to get even better as an author with his 2024 release, The Last Shield. Essentially a gender-bent, fantasy fiction Die Hard, The Last Shield sees a group of bandits and traitors take over a royal palace to rob its vault filled with powerful magical artifacts. The only hope the inhabitants have is the wounded commander of the palace guard, who fights back from the many hidden passages to save those she loves. Clever, compelling and loaded with so much incredible action, The Last Shield was a highly addictive read that I really couldn’t put down and Johnston is swiftly becoming one of my favourite dark fantasy authors.
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King’s Enemy by Ian Ross
Ian Ross brought his incredible de Norton historical fiction series to a gripping end with King’s Enemy. Following on from Battle Song and the other 2024 release War Cry, King’s Enemy saw the recently knighted protagonist, Adam de Norton, declared a traitor and king’s enemy for the role he played in Simon de Montford’s rebellion. Determined to fight back after losing everything, de Norton journeys towards the last bastion of resistance against the crown and finds himself engulfed in one of the most famous sieges in English history. A fantastic and captivating novel loaded with adventure, action and some fascinating historical detail; King’s Enemy was an outstanding book that is really worth checking out.
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A Tide of Black Steel by Anthony Ryan
Acclaimed fantasy author Anthony Ryan followed up his Covenant of Steel series (The Pariah, The Martyr and The Traitor) in a big way with the new book, A Tide of Black Steel. Featuring an exciting and intriguing new narrative that expands Ryan’s existing setting, A Tide of Black Steel was an epic fantasy novel that I had so much fun with, especially on audiobook.
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Darkside by Michael Mammay
Another awesome novel that is particularly cool on audiobook is Darkside by Michael Mammay. The fourth book in the author’s excellent Planetside series (Planetside, Spaceside and Colonyside), Darkside follows a maverick former military officer when he investigates a missing persons case at a mining operation on an isolated moon. Featuring intrigue, mystery and warring corporations, Darkside was another exceptional read from Mammay and one I really got hooked on.
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You Like it Darker by Stephen King
I just had to highlight the exceptional short story collection You Like It Darker by the legendary Stephen King on this list. 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 volume contains some noteworthy short stories, including a sequel to Cujo and an outstanding story about the downsides of psychic visions, all of which grabbed my imagination and refused to let go. I loved every second I spent with You Like It Darker, and I cannot wait to experience more Stephen King awesomeness in 2025, especially with the epic upcoming book Never Flinch.
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Blood Over Bright Haven by M. L. Wang
One of the most inventive and powerful fantasy novels I read this year was Blood Over Bright Haven by M. L. Wang, which, while technically released as an independent novel last year, I’m counting it as a 2024 release as that’s when it officially came out here in Australia. I have so much love for Blood Over Bright Haven, as Wang centres a complex and emotionally charged narrative around an intriguing and unique magical system. The result is an intense and memorable book that hits the reader with some amazing twists. I honestly have still not recovered from all the big reveals of this book, and it was all I needed to read to become a major fan of this awesome author.
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Deep Black by Miles Cameron
The last book I want to highlight on this list is the massive and captivating science fiction epic Deep Black by Miles Cameron. The sequel to the exceptional Artifact Space, Deep Black continues to follow a gigantic human trading space vessel as it attempts to survive a complex conspiracy to destroy it. Featuring some impressive science fiction detail, powerful action sequences, and an elaborate plot, Deep Black was an outstanding read and a worthy final entry for this best-of-2024 post.
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Well, those are my 20 favourite books of 2024. It turned out to be quite a good list in the end, and I am very glad that I was able to highlight so many fantastic books. 2025 is set to be another excellent year for amazing reads, and I will be examining some of my most anticipated books next week. In the meantime, let me know what your favourite books of 2024 were in the comments below, and make sure you all have a happy and safe New Years.
The Unseen Library 