25 of the Best Self-Improvement Books to Read in 2024
Plus: Recommended YA Books by Trans Authors, Winter-themed bookmarks, shocking first lines of mysteries, and more.
Today’s The Best of Book Riot is brought to you by: Author Rachel Rener, Internationally-Bestselling Author of the Gilded Blood series
Winner of the 2023 Bookfest Women's Fantasy Gold Medal Award and one of Book Riot's 2023 Featured Books for both Cozy & Romantic Fantasy!
When your smoking-hot boss tells you never to touch the cache of deluxe tattoo ink locked away in his office, you listen to him… Until the day you run out of your own ink, your squirming client is on the verge of peeing his pants, and your boss is nowhere to be found. Now, tattoos are springing to life, my body's lit up like a glowing Hanukkah Bush, and worst of all, my quiet, reserved boss isn't the man I thought he was. Turns out, he's not a man at all. He's an incubus, and he needs help. Unfortunately for the both of us, I'm the only "help" he's got.
Read the complete Gilded Blood series, on sale now! Find out more about Author Rachel Rener, Internationally-Bestselling Author of the Gilded Blood series here!
25 of the Best Self-Improvement Books to Read in 2024
Here, I chose 25 of the best self-improvement books either published in the last quarter of 2023 or to be published sometime in 2024. The majority of these are self-help, but there are several on meditations and reflections that are absolutely worth a read. I believe that each and every one of these will offer valuable lessons for you to take into this new year.
8 of the Best YA Books by Trans Authors To Read in 2024
In addition to linking the book titles to their listings, I’ve also linked the author’s name to where they’ve publicly mentioned that they’re trans/nonbinary, which includes bios, interviews, and social media posts.
The 10 Absolute Best Science Fiction Books of 2023
This might be the hardest annual best-of list that I’ve ever curated. I’ve been doing this for a while, but 2023’s crop of science fiction novels really filled my bookshelves with some spectacular speculative reads with way more than 10 great novels. But for brevity, I’ve narrowed it down to the top 10 best science fiction books you’re sure to see on awards lists soon.
Winter Bookmarks for Cozy Reading
If you’re looking for a little reset this year or just something to make you smile during winter, then look no further than these winter-themed bookmarks! Not only are they cute, but they’re very practical, and they’ll make you smile every time you save your place in your book. Some of them are just gorgeous little pieces of art, and they might just remind you of the beauty to be found in winter…or in sitting inside with a giant stack of books!
The Most Shocking First Lines of Mystery Novels
Mysteries and thrillers can also have truly shocking beginnings that suck you in immediately. Usually, there are a lot of questions that result (as seen in the example above). Of course, what is considered shocking is going to be subjective, depending on the point of view of the person and/or the time period in which the list was made. For me, the most startling lines seemed to be conventional at first, and then there was a twist at the end. Or the sentence is so quick and neat, like lightning.
New Year, Newish Reading Goals
In my reading life, the overarching goal is to have more fun, and that requires some very intentional shifting when a thing you love becomes a thing you do for work. Here are four low-stakes goals I’ve set for myself to help me find more joy in books this year.
Proposed Anti-Book Ban Bills Presented in Massachusetts
Citing the statistics that 20% of Massachusetts librarians reported harassment online or in person, alongside the data that there were more challenges to books in the state in the last year than the prior nine years combined, Representative Frank Moran and Senator Julian Cyr presented companion bills in the state that seek to curb book challenges and protect librarians and educators. House Bill 4229 and Senate Bill 2528 would ensure that books could not be removed from schools or libraries due to personal or political beliefs. The power to determine book selection in the library would lie in the hands of the trained professionals.