2025 Round Up: Favourite Debut Fiction

Resolve to read new authors. In 2025, these authors debuted with their first novels.

Updated January 9, 2026
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This is not a ghost story : a novel
Amerie
Paper Book
"A beautiful and subversive take on the afterlife, as razor-sharp as it is deeply moving." --Jamie Ford, New York Times bestselling author of The Many Daughters of Afong Moy Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Amerie's dazzling, satirical adult debut tells the story of a...
Palm Meridian : a novel
Flahive, Grace
Paper Book
"A riotous novel about a farewell party that celebrates all of life's emotions--big and small--while marking the arrival of an exciting new voice in fiction." --Steven Rowley, New York Times bestselling author of The Celebrants A rollicking, big-hearted story of...
The White Hot
Hudes, Quiara Alegria
Paper Book
The story of a runaway mother's ten days of freedom--and the pain, desire, longing, and wonder we find on the messy road to enlightenment--from Pulitzer Prize winner Quiara Alegría Hudes. "The White Hot has the effect of pressing your hand to a barbed live wire. April's is one...
The maiden and her monster
Martinez, Maddie
Paper Book
"A dark and endlessly enchanting fairy tale.... I adored every page."--#1 New York Times bestselling author Ava Reid An instant USA Today bestseller!Most Anticipated at Goodreads | Medium | LGBTQReads | Reactor | and more! ...
A killer wedding : a novel
O'Leary, Joan
Paper Book
*A NATIONAL BESTSELLER* "Fans of The White Lotus and Knives Out will gobble up this whip-smart whodunit... Good luck solving this especially twisty mystery before the big reveal--you'll need it."--Marie Claire  "The Riptons are American...
To the moon and back : a novel
Ramage, Eliana
Paper Book
A REESE'S BOOK CLUB PICK: "A breathtaking debut about family, identity, and love across generations." --REESE WITHERSPOON "Eliana Ramage will break your heart and take you to the stars. From painfully accurate depictions of adolescence to effortless jumps through time...
Kill the beast
Swift, Serra
Paper Book
The Witcher meets Howl's Moving Castle in this debut original faerie tale of revenge, redemption, and friendship--for fans of T. Kingfisher, Naomi Novik, and cozy fantasy with a dash of gritty adventure. The night Lyssa Cadogan's brother was...

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