Like all the years before and all the ones to come, 2024 has brought a new year of reading and for that, I am lucky. This list is a snapshot of the fifteen releases I am currently most excited to read this year; please join me on the journey as we discover what is and what is not worth an hour of our time in 2024. Here is to another year of good vibes and good books, let's find our next adventure below!
Disclaimer: Aster's Book Hour is an Amazon Associate. It earns a small commission from qualifying purchases attached to the Amazon affiliate links in this post.
Zara Jones believes in magic. If she didn't, then her sisters' murder truly was by the hands of a serial killer and there is nothing she can do. But magic is real, and Zara is willing to do anything to bring her back even if it means becoming involved in the occult.
Jude Wolf is cursed. She may be seen as a wealthy and carefree daughter of a billionaire, but after her deal with a demon went horribly wrong, her soul is becoming necrotic. Flowers and insects die when she is near and monsters taunt her nights. If she can't find someone to fix her mistake, she fears death is imminent.
The solution to both their problems is Emer Bryne: daughter of a witch who specialises in spells for those so desperate they are willing to sell a part of their soul in exchange for power. For just enough magic to change their lives. Despite her own power, Emer also has a dark past of her own and when her newest clients are murdered one after another, she knows it came with her to London. Together, Jude, Zara, and Emer must team up and stop the killer - or they will be next.
I genuinely thought The Invocations was being released in June 2023. I was obviously wrong. I wish it had been released in 2023, because then I could have read it earlier! I have slightly high expectations for The Invocations as one of Krystal Sutherland's other works - House of Hollow (read review) - is one of my favourite reads. It is gothic and atmospheric, it blew me away and that is what I want from The Invocations - now that it is finally being released!
1906, in the vibrant city of San Francisco, two women find themselves hoping for a change in fortune. Soprano singer Gemma, with her golden-hair and melodious voice, is desperate to revive her career and Chinatown embroideress, Suling, is determined to break free from her arranged marriage. Two very different women whose lives cross paths when they are drawn to Henry Thornton, an alluring man with a breathtaking collection of Chinese antiques, including the fabled Phoenix crown.
Henry's support is what they require to change their futures, but none of them could have predicted the devastating earthquake that ripped apart their hometown and the subsequent disappearance of Thornton who left behind a mystery beyond anyone wildest dreams. When the Phoenix Crown resurfaces in 1911, paraded around an opulent Parisian costume ball, its appearance draws Gemma and Suling together for a final fight for justice.
I have not read any of Janie Chang's works, but I have read a plethora of Quinn's and I would categorise her novels are some of my favourite - my current favourite is The Diamond Eye (review en route) - historical fiction novels. I have high expectations for The Phoenix Crown based on her previous works. The Phoenix Crown seems to set up a story about powerful women with inquisitive qualities and determination. Apart from expecting a well-written and captivating story, I don't have any expectations on how the plot will go or how the story will be told. I'm pretty stoked, and I hope The Phoenix Crown is as good as I expect it to be.
I am stoked for this release. I sound like a broken record stating how excited I am for each release, but that's why they are on this list - because I am excited! And more often than not, I am excited for the read because I have enjoyed the author's other works and this novel is no exception. What Moves the Dead (read review), the first in the Sworn Soldiers series, is one of my favourite novels (what a surprise), and a story I highly recommend reading and that way, when February rolls around you can join me in reading What Feasts at Night. What I want from this instalment is the continuation of gothic imagery and for my spidey senses to tingle. I personally hope there will be more fungi, but as long as the story reads well, I'll be happy with anything.
A chilling new adventure awaits for retired soldier, Alex Easton. Having just survived a harrowing experience at Usher Mansion, Alex craves rest, routine, and sunshine. Instead, they find themselves heading to their family hunting lodge nestled deep within the cold and damp forests of their homeland, Galacia. The visit, a favour for Angus and Miss Potter, was meant to provide the tranquility they were craving but the unkempt lodge, eerie silence, and very dead body that greets them upon arrival squashes their plan.
Whispers among the village suggest a mythical creature, capable of stealing one's breath, has taken residence at Easton's home and whilst Eason remains skeptical of local superstitions, the feeling that something is not quite right lingers within their home... and in their dreams.
The home within the primeval Polish forest belongs to Irena Ray and it is where eight translators from all over the world have just arrived. Together, they will work to translate her greatest accomplishment, Gray Eminence. Except Irena disappears within days of their arrival leaving them alone in the home with her curious belongings and intoxicating mould. It's only their reverence for her that pushes them to continue working on the masterpiece whilst investigating her disappearance. They never expected the investigation would reveal the secrets and betrayals of their beloved author. The translators are soon stuck in a fever dream of isolation and obsession, desperate to escape the ancient home before the rising paranoia destroys their work and the very woman that brought them there.
The Extinction of Irena Ray sounds like a mysterious read. I wouldn't mind there being only natural elements at play causing their delusions/paranoia, but I also think it would be pretty cool if Irena had lured them there for a ritual to bless her greatest work or something similar. If I am lost in the story like I was the cover, then I'll be content. PS - did you see the fungi on the cover? Love! Maybe it will have a bigger impact than I anticipate, that would be a positive surprise.
Tru's town is famous for two things: the cerulean freshwater springs and the decades old cold case of the murdered best friends, Bailey and Celeste. Their deaths casted a permanent cloud over Mount Orange, Florida and Tru has always lived in its shadow. Set to head to FSU with her boyfriend in the fall, Tru can't stop thinking about the unsolved murders - and her sister's death. Only deep within Hidden Glen Springs can she breathe.
When a stranger arrives in town determined to find the murderer, Tru can't help involving herself in the investigation and the thrill of potentially solving the case - and the familiar hum of attraction she has to Rio. As temperatures rise, the spark between the two continues to brighten... along with their otherworldly connection to the dead best friends. When someone begins to watch their every move, they're convinced the killer has returned and if they continue to investigate, it might be their blood staining the springs.
Putting a broken record on, Dark and Shallow Lies (read review), is another novel I enjoyed and I hope One Last Breath evokes a similar taste of satisfaction from a compelling mystery with a good ending.
Set in Victorian-era Louisville, the Home for Friendless Women aims to reform those that have fallen into pious mothers and wives. For Ruth, the Home is purgatory. Having been expelled from campus after a sexual assault, she's aching for to get her normal life back. For Belle, the Home is a safer place to rest then the brothel whilst she tracks down her missing lover.
And for Minnie, daughter of the religious founders of the charity, the Home is her mother's cautionary tale.With party preparations in full swing, Minnie finds herself questioning the true cost of the Home whilst navigating a terrible secret which has the power to unravel everything her parents have worked tirelessly to create.
In A Home for Friendless Women, I anticipate unrequited love, deceit, and comeuppance for the parental figures. I am postulating that there is something more to this home and that that is the secret Minnie must keep. But is it a secret worth keeping? Guess I will have to read A Home for Friendless Women to find out!
Step aboard the Grand Abeona and experience luxury with unparalleled service, fine food, and unbelievable views of the galaxy. But don't forget! The ship is a magnet for mystery like the love poems in the lobby inbox, or the Imperial spies aboard, and whose driving the ship?
From guests to staff, all aboard have their own secrets and at the apex of it all is Carl, longtime manager of the floating hotel, dedicated to caring for the place he loves and calls home. As forces beyond his control begin to dominate the Abeona, Carl must ask himself - when is it time to let go?
I am excited for Grace Curtis's debut. I anticipate it being an easy read and I am hypothesising that Carl may have more to do with the ship than what is being shown (ie - maybe he is the one driving it?).
Returning home late one night, Lauren is shocked to be greeted by her husband, Michael, especially since she never married. But according to the photos on her phone, her friends, and the altered décor, she's been with Michael for years. As Lauren attempts to wrap her head around this surprise discovery, Michael goes to change a lightbulb in the attic, and a new man emerges in his place slightly altering life around her once again.
It isn't your typical night discovering your attic has an infinite supply of husbands and it leaves Lauren grappling with an enormous question: if you can change your life as easily as you can change a lightbulb, how do you know which lightbulb is the right one? And when do you stop switching them out for something that could be better and start living the life you have?
The Husbands is giving me The Midnight Library (read review) vibes and wouldn't that be lovely if this read provided the same emotional catharsis? I won't set my expectations that high, but with a novel that questions multiple universes and the what-ifs, I do hope for introspective narrative with an optimistic ending. Even without that type of ending, I think I will enjoy The Husbands - as long as it is captivating!
The Fellowship of the Puzzlemakers is a joyous story about friendship, found family, and the ties that link us together - three things I love to read about. I am anticipating The Fellowship of the Puzzlemakers to deliver on that prompt and hopefully have a cry upon finishing the read.
Abandoned at birth on the steps of the Fellowship of Puzzlemakes, Clayton's upbringing by a group of enigmatologists was eccentric and now in his twenties, he finds himself part of a dwindling institution. When Pippa Allsbrook, esteemed crossworder and maternal presence in Clayton's life passes away, she leaves behind a final puzzle for him to solve.
The puzzle promises to prepare him for life outside the commune and answer questions about his parentage. One final puzzle that begins Clayton's journey to uncover the truth - truth that will change not only him, but the Fellowship - forever.
Coined as a cross between The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue and Life of Pie, is new debut novel - A Short Walk Through a Wide World. Focusing on a stubborn nine-year-old girl, the story explores a mysterious curse that threatens to destroy her life if she stops moving and the subsequent adventurous life she lives because of it.
On her way home from school, Aubry finds a wooden puzzle ball and immediately tosses it over the fence only to find it in her backpack later that night. Days later, she begins to bleed to death. When the doctors make her worse, Aubry escapes to the edge of the city where she discovers that moving makes her better, thus beginning her unusual life.
Only able to stay in one place for a few days at a time and never allowed to return, Aubry travels. She must survive in a world without answers whilst trying to make her life truly worth living. The longer she cannot stay, the more desperate she becomes to share her life with others and it soon becomes clearer to her, that for others, the world is not quite the same as it is for her.
A Short Walk Through a Wide World by Douglas Westerbeke is poised to be a dazzling debut. I am anticipating fantastical elements in the places she visits (an underground and limitless library absolutely poses to be magical), where each stop leaves an impact and eventually, to answers and what Aubry craves.
All she wanted was a fresh start. One where here boyfriend treated her properly and one with a solid plan to move off the reservation she grew up on, exactly like her Uncle did before her. Things were looking up for Noemi Broussard - until news of her boyfriend's suicide shatters her fresh start. But, her boyfriend, Roddy's, "suicide" doesn't feel right and Noemi isn't the only one to suspect there may be something more to his death.
After a surprise return after more than a decade away from the reservation, Uncle Louie brings with him a past of secrets, horror, and clues to what might actually be Roddy's true cause of death. And together, Noemi and Louie, begin to search for answers but as they inch closer to the truth, Noemi is beginning to wonder if some secrets are best left buried.
For some reason, I am really drawn to the Indian Burial Ground book cover - I like it, and that's that. It was initially why I was drawn to the novel and after reading the premise, I knew I wanted to read Indian Burial Ground. It promises excitement, horror (I am really hoping for some detailed descriptions), and potentially an escape - which I would adore only if it fits within the story. If it spooks me, I'll be happy.
For fans of libraries and historical adventure (me!) comes a captivating read about an American librarian that revolutionised the literary landscape of France.
In 1918, as the rage of the Great War captures the world, New York Librarian Jessie Carson, makes a brave decision: to leave her position at the New York Public Library and work for the American Committee for Devastated France, a committee of international women that help rebuild French communities devastated by the war.
Upon arrival in France, Jessie wants to build something the French have never seen in their communities - children's libraries. She makes fast work of her goal, transforming abandoned trains into the first French female libraries and old ambulances into bookmobiles. Then she disappears.
Over fifty years later, in 1987, another librarian of the New York Public Library and writer-to-be finds a passing mention of Jessie Carson in the archives and quickly, she is consumed by this ambiguous woman. The further Wendy Peterson delves into Jessie's past, the more she discovers they have in common, and soon their stories will intertwine in ways Wendy could never expect.
I am normally always enamoured by stories of female resilience, I hope Miss Morgan's Book Brigade tells Jessie's story in a powerful and memorable way and I continue to remain enamoured.
I think It Waits in the Forest by Sarah Dass is the novel I am most excited to read this year (you wouldn't guess it by this post). It is geared towards teenagers but the allure of Carribbean mythology, murder, and similar to the Percy Jackson series - how in the world can I not read it. Plus, the cover takes me out. All I want from this novel is for it to be good as I already have high expectations for the story which is something I loathe to do as I'd rather be pleasantly surprised than disappointed. Please be good.
For residents of St. Virgil, a tiny island in the Carribbean, magic is real. Selina DaSilva is probably the only inhabitant that knows it isn't. With her logical mind and botany skills, Selina had always wanted to leave the island to pursue Pharmacology - until a vicious attack killed her father and left her mother in a coma.
The guilt of her mother's condition overshadowed her dream, and Selina is left stuck on the island and conning tourists with useless rituals and talismans. When one of these tourists is found to be at the centre of a very strange string of murders, Selina is left to ponder a truth she previously denied.
Another thing she can't ignore is Gabriel, her ex-boyfriend and newly hired newspaper employee, ready to put his investigative skills to the test. It is her desperation to end the murders and bring justice to her parents, that Selina agrees to team up with her ex. But as long-buried secrets and feelings are revealed, there is only one place left where the answer can be - inside the forest, where evil awaits.
No one remembers that night. The security system used to keep the fog at bay wiped their memories of the night one of their beloved island scientists' was stabbed to death. To keep the murderous fog from killing what is left of the world, they have ninety-two hours to solve the murder. It was their death that caused the lowering of the security system and without its protection, their idyllic small community and the rest of mankind will be destroyed.
Someone on their island is a murderer. Time is ticking.
Ooooo, The Last Murder at the End of the World screams dystopian nightmare and I am eating it up. What I think would be really intriguing, and this is quite left field, is if this is a Truman Show type of situation where the 120 residents are on reality TV and had their memories wiped about life before the island and that the "murder" is some type of ploy to see what happens. It's a far-fetched theory, but it definitely would be a fun surprise to read! Doesn't matter if that doesn't happen, because the story is one I already want to read, regardless of if my theory pans out. What I do hope for is a good mystery and the fog playing a pivotal role somehow.
The Paramount is one of the most lavish clubs in Shanghai and it is where Jingwen works part-time as a showgirl competing ruthlessly with others for the attention of wealthy patrons. When she isn't there, she is working for her Grandma - an exclusive surgeon to the most powerful gang in the city - running money and constantly being pestered to take over the position.
When the faces of local dancers begin to be stolen, Jingwen fears she is next. And it is only when the faces of dancers begin appearing on wealthy foreign socialites that Jingwen realises the carefree luxury of Shanghai actually comes at a terrible price.
Choosing to fight not only for her own safety, but also for her most ruthless rivals and only friends, Jingwen delve's into the underbelly of Shanghai where ancient grudges, exclusive backrooms, and the power of gods thrive and are traded like yuan. Jingwen must transform into something stranger and more dangerous than her grandmother could ever imagine if she is to survive the underground and those looking to sell Shanghai's bones.
Daughter of Calamity is stated to be perfect for fans of Nghi Vo and S.A. Chakraborty. I haven't read any of Chakraborty's work, but I have read Siren Queen (read review) and I loved that story. Vo's work straddled the line between historical fiction and this ethereal "other", similar to The Last Tale of the Flower Bride (review en route), and that is where I hope the storytelling in Daughter of Calamity goes. And if so, this may end up being my favourite book of the year. Or I am not going to enjoy it one bit - there will be no between. But man, am I hoping for magical realism and intrigue.
Stay tuned for more 2024 releases. New year, new books. Yay!
What are you most eager to read this year?
