Debut Novels

Playing Books & Bites Bingo? Try these debut novels.

Updated August 11, 2025
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Legends & lattes : a novel of high fantasy and low stakes
Baldree, Travis
Paper Book
An Instant New York Times Bestseller A Barnes & Noble Best Book of 2022 A Library Reads Pick An Indie Next Pick A Goodreads Best Fantasy Choice Award Nominee The much-beloved BookTok sensation, Travis Baldree's novel of high...
The ministry of time
Bradley, Kaliane
Paper Book
ONE OF BARACK OBAMA'S FAVORITE BOOKS OF SUMMER 2024 * A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * HUGO AWARD FINALIST FOR BEST NOVEL * WINNER OF THE GOODREADS CHOICE AWARD FOR SCIENCE FICTION * A GOOD MORNING AMERICA BOOK CLUB PICK * A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: NPR, VANITY FAIR, ESQUIRE<...
The book of doors : a novel
Brown, Gareth
Paper Book
A debut novel full of magic, adventure, and romance, The Book of Doors opens up a thrilling world of contemporary fantasy for readers of The Midnight Library, The Invisible Life of Addie Larue, The Night Circus, and any modern story that mixes the wonder of the unknown...
Loneliness & Company : a novel
Dyroff, Charlee
Paper Book
"An inventive and perceptive story about human connection and being alive." - Emily Austin, author of Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead "Sharply etched and strangely propulsive" - Leslie Jamison, New York Times bestselling author of The Empathy...
All that life can afford
Everett, Emily
A REESE'S BOOK CLUB PICK "An effervescent debut chock full of Austenian nods. Swoonworthy!" --Sarah McCoy, New York Times bestselling author of Mustique Island "All That Life Can Afford is about love, ambition, and the cost of belonging, and I cannot...
Lessons in chemistry. [large print]
Garmus, Bonnie
Paper Book
#1 GLOBAL BESTSELLER WITH MORE THAN 8 MILLION COPIES SOLD * Meet Elizabeth Zott: "a gifted research chemist, absurdly self-assured and immune to social convention" (The Washington Post) in 1960s California whose career takes a detour when she becomes the unlikely star of a ...
The husbands
Gramazio, Holly.
Paper Book
AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER | A READ WITH JENNA BOOK CLUB PICK | AN NPR BOOKS WE LOVE PICK FOR 2024 | A CHATELAINE BEST BOOK OF SPRING 2024 This exuberant debut, praised by Gabrielle Zevin as a "time-bending gem," asks: how do we navigate life, love and...
We used to live here
Kliewer, Marcus
Paper Book
From an author "destined to become a titan of the macabre and unsettling" (Erin A. Craig, #1 New York Times bestselling author), a haunting debut--soon to be a Netflix original movie--about two homeowners whose lives are turned upside down when the house's previous residents...
The life cycle of the common octopus : a novel
Knight, Emma
Paper Book
INSTANT #1 BESTSELLER A witty, warm and brilliantly told debut that is at once a love story, a story of female friendship and motherhood, and an irresistible mystery surrounding an extraordinary British family. Arriving at the University of Edinburgh for her first...
River east, river west : a novel
Lescure, Aube Rey
Paper Book
SHORTLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION Set against the backdrop of developing modern China, this mesmerizing literary debut is part coming-of-age tale, part family and social drama, as it follows two generations searching for belonging and opportunity in a rapidly changing world-...
Oye : a novel
Mogollon, Melissa
Paper Book
A coming-of-age comedy. A telenovela-worthy drama. A moving family saga. All in a phone call you won't want to hang up on. "A portrait of love, heartache, and hilarity that transcends its medium."--Elle (The Best Literary Fiction Books of 2024, So Far) "Brilliant...
How to solve your own murder : a novel
Perrin, Kristen
Paper Book
A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A Jimmy Fallon's Book Club Finalist for 2024 | A Goodreads Choice Awards Finalist | A GMA Buzz Pick | A USA Today Bestseller One of Jimmy Fallon's favorite books for Spring 2024, The Top LibraryReads pick for March 2024, A...
Greta & Valdin
Reilly, Rebecca K.
Paper Book
A TIME MUST-READ BOOK OF THE YEAR * A NEW YORK TIMES EDITORS' CHOICE * AN NPR BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR * A KIRKUS REVIEWS BEST FICTION BOOK OF THE YEAR "A heartfelt portrait of a complex family." --People * "Laugh-out-loud-funny." --Harper's Bazaar *...
Lincoln in the bardo : a novel
Saunders, George
Paper Book
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * WINNER OF THE MAN BOOKER PRIZE The "devastatingly moving" (People) first novel from the author of Tenth of December: a moving and original father-son story featuring none other than Abraham Lincoln, as well as an unforgettable cast...
White teeth.
Smith, Zadie
Paper Book
One of the most iconic fictional debuts of all time turns 25 this year! 'What's past is prologue...' First published in the year 2000, Zadie Smith's White Teeth was one of the most celebrated novels of the new millennium. Adored by critics and readers alike...
The secret history. [large print]
Tartt, Donna
Paper Book
Listen for the lie
Tintera, Amy
Paper Book
A New York Times Bestseller * A Good Morning America Book Club Pick * An NPR Best Book of the Year * A Washington Post Best Thriller of 2024 "I read this in one sitting! Such a fun and engaging read, with an ending that blew my mind!" --<...
The dictionary of lost words. [online electronic audiobook]
Williams, Pip, 1969-
Audiobook
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * REESE'S BOOK CLUB PICK * "Delightful . . . [a] captivating and slyly subversive fictional paean to the real women whose work on the Oxford English Dictionary went largely unheralded."--The New York Times Book Review "A marvelous...
The safekeep
Youden, Yael van der.
Paper Book
WINNER OF THE WOMEN'S PRIZE 2025 SHORTLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE 2024 SHORTLISTED FOR THE DYLAN THOMAS PRIZE 2025 SHORTLISTED FOR THE WALTER SCOTT PRIZE 2025 LONGLISTED FOR THE WINGATE PRIZE 2025 An exhilarating tale of twisted desire, histories and...

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