Last year, after the Best Debut Books of 2022 came out, someone asked me what makes a debut book stand out. I responded, like I often do on the podcast, that it’s all about the vibe. Does it make me feel cozy? Do I want to live in the world for one reason or another? Whether it’s a dystopian horror or a sex-fueled romp, it’s really all about the writing. Is it damn good? That’s what I want.
I also have to have read it. I think often times readers view lists as a monolith of what the best books of the year were. Debutiful’s list will be very different from other lists because it’s Debutiful’s POV that is captured here. There are hundreds of debut books published and, on average, I can read around 150 titles. This list isn’t the end all be all, but if you read and listen to Debutiful, I think these are the best debuts that people who discover debut authors via Debutiful will enjoy.
This year’s best debut debut books feature a wide variety of style, tone, and genre.
You can support Debutiful by purchasing the books listed from our Bookshop.org page.
The Debutiful Dozen
The All-Night Pharmacy by Ruth Madievsky
Listen to our interview with the author.
Sex, drugs, sisterhood, and Los Angeles nightlight. Ruth Madievsky masterfully navigates the protagonist’s search for self in an atmospheric coming-of-age perfect for the new millennium. The journey dances through a wide range of themes but still maintains precision focus through concise and beautiful prose. Despite everything going on, it remains an understated novel that feels dreamlike from page to page. – Purchase your copy.
We Are a Haunting by Tyriek White
Read an excerpt of the book.
In his expansive, multi-narrator, multi-generational story about the working class in NYC from the 1980s to now, Tyriek White never misses a beat. He seamlessly integrates literary and visual references, brand names, and a mixtape-like element to vividly portray grief, resilience, legacy, and hope. It is a novel that shows us we can learn from the past while always pushing the boundaries of what we can do now and in the future. – Purchase your copy.
Company by Shannon Sanders
Listen to our interview with the author.
The complexity that Shannon Sanders allows her characters to inhibit in the pages of her stories make this collection stand out. The collection portrays an extended family with such emotional intelligence and sensitivity without ever pulling punches. Every story is fully formed and every character is allowed to be warm as well as cold. Sanders understands character better than most. – Purchase your copy.
Chain Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah
Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah has now produced two perfect, dystopian, twisty books. First his story collection Friday Black which came out before Debutiful’s launch, and now his full-length novel debut Chain Gang All-Stars. He taps into an imagination so vivid and wild to pull out plots that will make readers viscerally react. He does so with a one-two knockout of precise pace and wonderful writing. Adjei-Brenyah is The Writer right now. – Purchase your copy.
Sea Change by Gina Chung
Listen to our interview with the author.
A poignant exploration of life’s complexities, relationships, and the journey to self-discovery that resonates long after the final page is turned. Gina Chung taps into what makes us tick and how we are driven to care about anything in this world. She balances offbeat humor with tender and thoughtful moments from a sexy octopus to coming to terms with childhood trauma. Chung perfectly weaves through the highs and lows of life. – Purchase your copy.
Every Drop is a Man’s Nightmare by Megan Kamalei Kakimoto
Listen to our interview with the author.
Weird, wonderful, and wacky are the most frequently used words to describe Megan Kamalei Kakimoto’s stunning collection. It is all of those things but it’s also a masterclass in sexual desire, Hawaiian mythology, gender, class, and colonialism. The wide-ranging topics in this story collection never feel thin. Kakimoto understands how to captivate her readers with exquisite confidence. – Purchase your copy.
Where There Was Fire by John Manuel Arias
Listen to our interview with the author.
John Manuel Arias has added a rich and enchanting novel to the family saga canon. He follows a family’s desires and secrets while tackling corporate greed with a steady hand and words that sing off the page. He grabs readers by the collar and doesn’t let them go. – Purchase your copy.
House Gone Quiet by Kelsey Norris
Listen to our interview with the author.
An astonishing and skillful collection of stories filled with vivacious voices and stunning satire. Kelsey Norris writes about place with a unique perspective throughout the collection, which gives each story a truly lived-in experience. She dazzles across genre and offers up a delicious bite for all kinds of readers. – Purchase your copy.
Kill For Love by Laura Picklesimer
Read an excerpt from the book.
Laura Picklesimer’s debut novel is an electrifying story about reckless abandon and chaos. The roller coaster of a plot with an unhinged sorority girl at the center is jaw-dropping in every sense of the word. There is an eerie sense of connection readers will feel with the main character and that all hinges on Picklesimer’s ability to write so damn well. – Purchase your copy.
I Keep My Exoskeletons to Myself by Marisa (Mac) Crane
Read an excerpt from the book.
This speculative novel about crimes, motherhood, and loss is truly unlike anything else you’re read this year. Marissa (Mac) Crane deftly navigates the darkness our future can hold with breathtaking and engrossing prose. There is no doubt this book should be taught throughout the education system as a new classic to high school students as well to those in writing seminars. – Purchase your copy.
Sink by Joseph Earl Thomas
Listen to our interview with the author.
A gut punch of a memoir that explores the writer’s life from childhood to reckoning with toxic masculinity. Joseph Earl Thomas is tender and tough in this no holds barred reflection of his life. What truly makes this book special is the narrative form. He fearlessly breaks boundaries, like he did all of his life, to create a new kind of memoir. – Purchase your copy.
Thirst for Salt by Madelaine Lucas
Listen to our interview with the author.
Madelaine Lucas’ engrossing page-turner is tender and seductive. It’s a gripping tale of intoxicating love and navigating boundaries that readers will see familiar tropes twisted and refreshed. It’s a timeless story that is observed under a modern lens. – Purchase your copy.
The Rest of the Best, presented alphabetically
You can purchase your copy of the books listed below at Debutiful’s Bookshop.org page.
- The Berry Pickers by Amanda Peters
- Carmen and Grace by Melissa Coss Aquino (listen to an interview)
- Chlorine by Jade Song (listen to an interview)
- Deep as the Sky, Red as the Sea by Rita Chang-Eppig (listen to an interview)
- Dykette by Jenny Fran Davis (listen to an interview)
- Flux by Jinwoo Chong (read an excerpt)
- Here in the Night by Rebecca Turkewitz (read an excerpt)
- Hijab Butch Blues by Lamya H (listen to an interview)
- Holding Pattern by Jenny Xie
- I Meant It Once by Kate Doyle (listen to an interview)
- Jonathan Abernathy You Are Kind by Molly McGhee (listen to an interview)
- Let’s Go Let’s Go Let’s Go by Cleo Qian (read an excerpt)
- The Lookback Window by Kyle Dillon Hertz (listen to an interview)
- Maeve Fly by CJ Leede (listen to an interview)
- The Men Can’t Be Saved by Ben Purkert (listen to an interview)
- My Last Innocent Year by Daisy Alpert Florin (listen to an interview)
- The Night Parade by Jami Nakamura Lin (listen to an interview)
- The Nursery by Szilvia Molnar (listen to an interview)
- Please Report Your Bug Here by Josh Riedel (listen to an interview)
- The Sea Elephants by Shastri Akella (listen to an interview)
- The Sorrow of Others by Ada Zhang
- Upcountry by Chia-Sun Lin (listen to an interview)
- What Napoleon Could Not Do by DK Nnuro
You can support Debutiful by purchasing the books listed from our Bookshop.org page.
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