Entertainment Books The Best Books of 2023 So Far (Updated February 2023) PEOPLE compiled the most page-turning, attention-capturing books we've loved so far this year — and we're just getting started By People Staff Published on February 3, 2023 09:15 AM Share Tweet Pin Email Trending Videos Photo: Amazon (5) 01 of 24 A Dangerous Business by Jane Smiley Knopf This enveloping historical drama set in 1850s Monterey centers on Eliza, recently widowed and working as a prostitute. But she's content; far better to be an independent woman than married to an abusive man. When someone starts killing other prostitutes, she and her best friend, Jean, set out to solve the mystery no lawman seems to care about. Mischievously upending old-fashioned narratives of fallen women, Smiley brings time and place alive. Buy It: Bookshop.org 02 of 24 Screaming on the Inside by Jessica Grose Mariner Books Moms were over-worked and under-appreciated even before the pandemic laid bare the need to reevaluate family life. Journalist Grose weaves together history, memoir and interviewswith hundreds of women to persuasively propose a saner future for all. Buy It: Bookshop.org 03 of 24 Scatterlings by Rešoketšwe Manenzhe Harper In 1927 South Africa, an unhappily married couple find their family endangered by the new so-called Immorality Act, which outlaws sex between the races. This haunting debut chronicles the lives of Alisa, Abram and daughter Dido during the chillingearly steps toward apartheid. Buy It: Bookshop.org 04 of 24 The Circus Train by Amita Parikh G.P. Putnam's Sons Parikh's debut is a sweeping love story set amid a traveling circus and the horrors of WWII. Young, disabled Lena, the daughter of haunted illusionist Theo, falls in love with another outsider, tortured Jewish refugee Alexandre. As the Nazis encroach, the performers struggle to survive betrayals andheartbreaking loss, all leading to a spinning-plates grand finale with an irresistible message: Finding your true self (and true love) is the greatest wonder of all. Buy It: Bookshop.org 05 of 24 The Villa by Rachel Hawkins St. Martin's Press After her marriage collapses, Emily and her "bestie" decide to vacation in an Italian villa known for a gruesome 1974 murder. Flashing between past and present, Hawkins weaves an engrossing tale about betrayal, sisterhood and the power of telling your own story. Captivating! Buy It: Bookshop.org 06 of 24 The Color of Family by Jerry McGill Little A In sparkling slivers of stories set from the 1960s to the early 2000s, fortune batters a wealthy Black family of Connecticut, whose six children initially seem set for stardom in sports and beyond. A car wreck, a drug bust, illicit passions and long-kept secrets will change all that. Buy It: Bookshop.org 07 of 24 Sam by Allegra Goodman The Dial Press An irresistible coming-of-age portrait of Sam, a young rock climber torn between achieving the better life her financially struggling mom pushes and embracing the reckless freedom of her adored but mostly absent addict dad. But what about what Sam wants for herself? A profound and gorgeously written gem about the tough, tender route Sam must navigate—grappling with friendships, love, insecurities and burgeoning womanhood—to chart her own course. Buy It: Bookshop.org 08 of 24 Small World by Laura Zigman Ecco Growing up with a disabled middle sister who died young has left siblings Joyce and Lydia Mellishman fragile and distant in adulthood. When both women divorce and move in together, red flags are everywhere. Zigman's quirky novel confronts the most painful family issues and is equally knowing—and funny—about what brings comfort and grace. Buy It: Bookshop.org 09 of 24 The Survivalists by Kashana Cauley Soft Skull Aretha's built a great life as a high-profile lawyer when she meets Aaron, an entrepreneur with potential. As their relationship deepens, his preparation-obsessed housemates push Aretha down a darker path. Cauley's sharp wit tracks Aretha's descent into survival mode. Buy It: Bookshop.org 10 of 24 Really Good, Actually by Monica Heisey HarperCollins Ph.D. student Maggie is a bit of a mess. Only 29 and divorced after 608 days of marriage, she finds comfort in late-night burgers, a fantasy of encountering her ex while she's out with Harry Styles, and the transient pleasure of dating apps. Meanwhile, her friends remind her to shower and try to persuade her not to bleach her hair. This savvy TV writer's debut novel is a cringe-filled, funny—and surprisingly poignant—look at one woman's self-discovery after heartbreak. Buy It: Bookshop.org 11 of 24 Wade in the Water by Nyani Nkrumah Amistad Vividly bringing to life rural 1980s Mississippi, Nkrumah's fearless debut unfurls the fraught friendship between an unhappy 11-year-old Black girl and a White researcher studying the effects of the civil rights movement—but hiding a nefariouspersonal connection. Buy It: Bookshop.org 12 of 24 The Chinese Groove by Kathryn Ma Counterpoint This modern coming-of-age tale brims with heart, ambition, drama and a protagonist whose naivete makes him splendidly endearing. Ma thoughtfully navigates family dynamics and firstlove. It's guaranteed to have you and the aunties laughing and crying along. Buy It: Bookshop.org 13 of 24 Twelve Months And A Day by Louisa Young G.P. Putnam's Sons A young widow and widower, decimated by the loss of their adored spouses, are unable to move on in their lives. But they're not the only ones. The ghosts of their late partners are equally grief-stricken, but instead of succumbing to sorrow, the spirits decide to matchmake their survivors. Told through song lyrics, emails and four different points of view, this is a tender exploration of finding your way through sorrow, and a heartfelt valentine to hope. Buy It: Bookshop.org 14 of 24 Exiles by Jane Harper Flatiron Books Investigator Aaron Falk arrives in Australian wine country for his godson's christening, post-poned from last year when the community was rocked by a young woman's disappearance. There are clues they've missed, planted deftly by Harper inthe relationships and psyches of her nuanced characters. Buy It: Bookshop.org 15 of 24 This Other Eden by Paul Harding W. W. Norton & Company Apple Island's mixed-race community ignored the outside world until, in 1912, the state of Maine—impelled by misguided faith and supremacist pseudoscience—evicted the residents. At the center: a schoolteacher tries to help a talented young artist, even as his prejudices seal the islander's fates. Buy It: Bookshop.org 16 of 24 Someone Else's Shoes by Jojo Moyes Pamela Dorman Books When Sam mistakenly grabs the wrong bag on her way out of the gym, she sets in motion a delicious comedy that's an ode to middle-aged women and their friendships. As Sam finds herself tottering into a meeting in Louboutins, just-dumped trophy wife Nisha is locked out of her hotel penthouse with only Sam's clunky lace-ups. The chambermaid who rescues her is just one of a great supporting cast. Give yourself a treat with the latest from Britain's queen of women's fiction. Buy It: Bookshop.org 17 of 24 Big Swiss by Jen Beagin Scribner While transcribing therapy sessions, Greta becomes obsessed with one of her insufferable boss's patients, a married female Swiss gynecologist. Greta pretends not to recognize her voice when they meet and begin an affair. A darkly humorous satire propelled by smart character observations. Buy It: Bookshop.org 18 of 24 Central Places by Delia Cai Ballantine Books Skin-care-obsessed Audrey Zhou had not been home in more than eight years, until a visit back to rural Illinois with her fiancé, Ben. A Walmart run-in with an old crush pushes Audreyto question her choices and a lifetime of mis- communication— especially with her immigrant parents. Buy It: Bookshop.org 19 of 24 Stone Cold Fox by Rachel Koller Craft Berkley Meet Bea, the con artist extraordinaire at the center of Croft's hilarious debut. Trained by her psychotic grifter mother in the art of bringing men to their knees, Bea has adapted those skills to success as an ad exec in New York City, where she is now planning to extract a marriage proposal from her richest client. Bea's confidence is boundless, her judgment of the rich crowd she's so eager to join is merciless, and watching her scheme to land a rich husband is a total hoot. Buy It: Bookshop.org 20 of 24 My Last Innocent Year by Daisy Florin Henry Holt and Co. When the famous poet on the faculty tells Isabel she's a brilliant writer, the next step is the couch in his office. Meanwhile, she's recently accused another student of rape. This evocative, eloquent campus confidential lays out the complications of the Clinton-Lewinsky era just as you might remember them. Buy It: Bookshop.org 21 of 24 Bookworm by Robin Yeatman Harper Perennial Saddled with a loathsome husband, Victoria finds refuge in reading, but she's an unreliable narrator of her own life. When she meets a handsome man reading the same book that she is, she imagines he must be her soulmate. A book-club-perfect dark comedy. Buy It: Bookshop.org 22 of 24 I Have Some Questions for You by Rebecca Makkai Viking It's been decades since 17-year-old Thalia Keith was murdered at Granby, her New Hampshire boarding school. The man convicted of the crime— Granby's athletic director—remains in prison. But when Thalia's former classmate Bodie Kane returns to teach there in 2018, she and her students take a #MeToo-informed look at the case—and old assumptions start to crack like spring ice on the local lakes. A twisty, immersive whodunit perfect for fans of Donna Tartt's The Secret History. Buy It: Bookshop.org 23 of 24 Maame by Jessica George St. Martin's Press At 25, Londoner Maddie tries to transform her dutiful life with a new job, her first apartment and a potential boyfriend but finds herself pulled painfully back into her Ghanaian family's orbit. By turns tender and comic, this portrait of a young woman's journey to self-understanding is triumphant. Buy It: Bookshop.org 24 of 24 My What If Year by Alisha Fernandez Miranda Zibby Books Change can feel impossible with kids, a husband anda demanding career. In this charming and highly readable memoir, the author takes a year off and tackles various internships with gusto, proving that sometimes uprooting your entire life is the only way forward. Buy It: Bookshop.org