Hello, it’s Amanda, the dedicated book enthusiast at Fat Girls Guide. I’m thrilled to unveil my highly anticipated Books for 2024, ranging from the latest instalment of Sarah J. Maas’s Crescent City series to Jennifer Saint’s compelling Herra. There’s a literary delight awaiting every reader!
Funny Story: Emily Henry
Daphne always loved the way Peter told their story. That is until it became the prologue to his actual love story with his childhood bestie, Petra. Which is how Daphne ends up rooming with her total opposite and the only person who could possibly understand her predicament: Petra’s ex, Miles.
As expected, it’s not a match made in heaven – that is until one night, while tossing back tequilas, they form a plan. And if it involves posting deliberately misleading photos of their adventures together, well, who could blame them?
But it’s all just for show, of course, because there’s no way Daphne would actually start her new chapter by falling in love with her ex-fiancé’s new fiancée’s ex . . . right?
House of Flame and Shadow: Sarah J Maas
Bryce Quinlan is stranded in a strange new world. She’s going to need all her wits about her to get home again and return to everything she loves. But that’s no easy feat when she has no idea who to trust.
Meanwhile, Hunt Athalar is back in the Asteri’s dungeons. Stripped of his freedom and the happiness he’d fought so hard for, he’s without a clue as to Bryce’s fate. Hunt is desperate to help his mate, but until he can escape the Asteri’s chains, his hands are quite literally tied.
In this breathtaking sequel to the #1 bestsellers House of Earth and Blood and House of Sky and Breath, Midgard is brought to the brink of collapse, and the fate of the world rests on the hope of rebellion. But the fight for survival, freedom, and love may cost everything Bryce and Hunt have
The Familiar: Leigh Bardugo
In a shabby house in the new capital of Madrid, Luzia Cotado uses scraps of magic to get through her days of endless toil. But when her scheming mistress discovers her scullion is hiding a talent for little miracles, she demands Luzia use those gifts to win over the royal court.
Determined to seize this chance to better her fortunes, Luzia plunges into a world of power-hungry nobility, desperate kings, holy men and seers, where the lines between magic, science and fraud blur. With the pyres of the Inquisition burning, she must use every bit of her wit and resilience to win fame and hide the truth of her ancestry – even if that means enlisting the help of an embittered immortal familiar, whose own secrets could cost her everything.
The Book of Elsewhere: Keanu Reeves and China Miéville
The legendary Keanu Reeves and inimitable writer China Miéville team up on this genre-bending epic of ancient powers, modern war, and an outcast who cannot die.
Women of Good Fortune: Sophie Wan
Lulu has always been taught that money is the ticket to a good life. So, when Shanghai’s most eligible bachelor surprises her with a proposal, the only acceptable answer is yes, even if the voice inside her head is saying no. His family’s fortune would solve all her parents’ financial woes, but Lulu isn’t in love or ready for marriage.
The only people she can confide in are her two best friends: career-minded Rina, who is tired of being passed over for promotion while her male colleagues are rewarded; and Jane, a sharp-tongued, luxury-chasing housewife desperate to divorce her husband and trade up. Each of them desires something different: freedom, time, beauty. None of them can get it without money.
Lulu’s wedding is their golden opportunity. The social event of the season, it means more than enough cash gifts to transform the women’s lives. To steal the money on the big day, all they’ll need is a trustworthy crew and a brilliant plan. But as the plot grows increasingly complicated and relationships are caught in the cross fire, the women are forced to face that having it all might come at a steep price…
The Concierge: Abby Corson
Nothing’s too much trouble – until a body turns up . . .
I suppose it would be fitting to explain that I am talking into a dictaphone and the lovely Helen will be typing out my story for you to read . . . This is my account of the Cavengreen Hotel murder. Best we get that bit in early on.
The peaceful setting of Cavengreen Hotel has been shattered by a shocking murder. The killer could be anyone, but when once-trusted concierge Hector Harrow finds himself accused of the crime, he turns detective in order to clear his name. Could the real perpetrator be a member of the bridal party who were staying at the hotel? Or the hotel manager, perhaps? Or maybe its brash new owners, who were also visiting at the time of the incident?
As suspicions fall on guests and staff alike, Hector must navigate a web of secrets to uncover the truth . .
Knife: Meditations After an Attempted Murder: Salman Rushdi
On the morning of 12 August 2022, Salman Rushdie was standing onstage at the Chautauqua Institution in upstate New York, preparing to give a lecture on the importance of keeping writers safe from harm, when a man in black – black clothes, black mask – rushed down the aisle towards him, wielding a knife. His first thought: So it’s you. Here you are.
What followed was a horrific act of violence that shook the literary world and beyond. Now, for the first time, and in unforgettable detail, Rushdie relives the traumatic events of that day and its aftermath, as well as his journey towards physical recovery and the healing that was made possible by the love and support of his wife, Eliza, his family, his army of doctors and physical therapists, and his community of readers worldwide.
Knife is Rushdie at the peak of his powers, writing with urgency, with gravity, with unflinching honesty. It is also a deeply moving reminder of literature’s capacity to make sense of the unthinkable, an intimate and life-affirming meditation on life, loss, love, art – and finding the strength to stand up again.
Come and Get It: Keily Reid
Everything comes at a price. But not everything can be paid for.
Millie wants to graduate, get a job and buy a house. She’s slowly saving up from her job on campus, but when a visiting professor offers her an unusual opportunity to make some extra money, she jumps at the chance.
Agatha is a writer, recovering from a break-up while researching attitudes towards weddings and money for her new book. She strikes gold when interviewing the girls in Millie’s dorm, but her plans take a turn when she realises that the best material is unfolding behind closed doors.
As the two women form an unlikely relationship, they soon become embroiled in a world of roommate theatrics, vengeful pranks and illicit intrigue – and are forced to question just how much of themselves they are willing to trade to get what they want.
I’m F*cking Amazing: Anoushka Warden
Hers used to work perfectly. It found her fingerings, orgasms and love. But now, as she moves into her thirties completely committed to Serious Boyfriend Number Three…
It can’t get wet.
It hurts.
It might be broken.
Surely there must be some way to get it going again?
Setting off on a desperate quest to fix her fanny, there’s no limit to what she’ll try. But nothing seems to be working…
What becomes of happily-ever-after for a woman who can’t stand sex with the best guy ever?
Hera: Jennifer Saint
When Hera, immortal goddess and daughter of the ancient Titan Cronus, helps her brother Zeus to overthrow their tyrannical father, she dreams of ruling at his side.
As they establish their reign on Mount Olympus, Hera suspects that Zeus might be just as ruthless and cruel as the father they betrayed.
She was always born to rule, but must she lose herself in perpetuating this cycle of violence and cruelty? Or can she find a way to forge a better world?
Often portrayed as the jealous wife or the wicked stepmother, this retelling captures the many sides of Hera, vengeful when she needs to be but also compassionate and most importantly, an all-powerful queen to the gods.
Until August: Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Sitting alone, overlooking the still and blue lagoon, Ana Magdalena Bach surveys the men of the hotel bar. She is happily married and has no reason to escape the world she has made with her husband and children. And yet, every August, she travels here to the island where her mother is buried, and for one night takes a new lover.
Amid sultry days and tropical downpours, lotharios and conmen, Ana journeys further each year into the hinterland of her desire, and the fear that sits quietly at her heart.
Constantly surprising and wonderfully sensual, Until August is a profound meditation on freedom, regret, and the mysteries of love, from one of the greatest writers the world has ever known.
Anita de Monte Laughs Last: Xochitl Gonzalez
1985. Anita de Monte, a rising star in the art world, is found dead in New York City; her tragic death is the talk of the town. Until it isn’t. By 1998 Anita’s name has been all but forgotten–certainly by the time Raquel, a third-year art history student is preparing her final thesis. On College Hill, surrounded by privileged students whose futures are already paved out for them, Raquel feels like an outsider. Students of color, like her, are the minority there, and the pressure to work twice as hard for the same opportunities is no secret.
But when Raquel becomes romantically involved with a well-connected older art student, she finds herself unexpectedly rising up the social ranks. As she attempts to straddle both worlds, she stumbles upon Anita’s story, raising questions about the dynamics of her own relationship, which eerily mirrors that of the forgotten artist.
Moving back and forth through time and told from the perspectives of both women, Anita de Monte Laughs Last is a propulsive, witty examination of power, love, and art, daring to ask who gets to be remembered and who is left behind in the rarefied world of the elite.
Sanctuary of the Shadow: Aurora Ascher
For humans, the circus is a place filled with wonder and amazement. For Harrow, it’s a place to hide from those who slaughtered her entire clan. Disguising her abilities as part of her act has kept her true identity safe for years.
Until he arrives.
A strange new attraction with no name, no memory of who – or even what – he is, let alone an explanation for his odd yet deadly powers. But beneath the layers of anger and isolation, one glimpse into his inky eyes reveals a soul that calls out to the loneliness in her own.
And so, she chooses him.
Harrow is drawn to the darkness, to her insatiable need to soothe the beast who threatens their very existence. But with every secret she unlocks from his past, another from hers is revealed – luring enemies who will stop at nothing to get their final revenge on Harrow. And she’s afraid she’s given them the perfect weapon against her because he’s not what he seems.
But maybe it’s time they finally learn neither is she…
Jaded: Ela Lee
Jade isn’t even my real name. Jade began as my Starbucks name, because all children of immigrants have a Starbucks name.
Jade has become everything she ever wanted to be.
Successful lawyer.
Dutiful daughter.
Beloved girlfriend.
Loyal friend.
Until one night after a work event she suffers an unspeakable attack.
As she tries to confront what happened to her, she finds herself caught between her parents who can’t understand, her boyfriend who feels betrayed, and her job that expects silence.
The world Jade has constructed starts to crumble.
This raw, darkly funny novel explores the ‘grey-area’ of consent and recovery that’s far from linear, and will leave you asking yourself: what would you have done in Jade’s situation?
Come Together: The Science (and Art) of Creating Lasting Sexual Connections: Emily Nagoski
What does it really take to create lasting sexual connections in long-term relationships?
Most couples struggle at some point to maintain their sexual connection. But a lot of the advice we are given on sex is either not very good or steeped in cultural assumptions and expectations that can end up hurting us.
In Come Together, leading sexual wellness educator, Dr Emily Nagoski, takes on one of the most misunderstood subjects of all time – sex in long-term relationships – and shows us that most of what we’ve been taught about enjoying sex is wrong.
Featuring inclusive stories and examples from a wide range of couples and individuals, you’ll find out what great sex really looks like and the best way to overcome obstacles – including relationship conflicts, gendered beliefs about how sex ‘should be’ and body image worries.
With insight, humour and empathy, Come Together will radically transform the way you approach sex and desire, and empower you to create long-term, fulfilling sexual connections.
RELATED: 6 Erotica and Romance Books That Should Be On Your Radar
What books are you reading this year?
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