by Jay Wilburn
One of my new favorite things is recommending books to anyone and everyone who asks for book recommendations anywhere in the world or online. Particularly on Twitter, it has replaced the space and time that political arguments would normally take up.
I enjoy seeing what a reader has asked for and what they say about themselves in their profile and then seeing if I’ve read a book they might like. It’s my new online puzzle game.
I’ve decided to make myself a maven for readers and authors. A self-appointed expert on the books I read, but also a full-throated supporter of authors who put out great books.
We’re getting to the time of year when people start doing their lists of favorite movies, favorite books, favorite memes, favorite everything from the year. I’m going to post mine early in December because there is still time to buy these books for Christmas presents. No offense, but you people need to read more, and not just because you are stupid (talking to the other people reading this, not you *wink*), but also for many other noble reasons too rich to list off here.
So, here are my top twenty books/authors I recommended the most this year. This is not to say all these books were written this year. It just means I recommended them a lot this year. If your book or name is not listed this time, I’m sure you were number twenty-one and I’ll include many of you in a monthly list next time.
Fire fighters vs. dragons. The sequel Ash Kickers is also good. Grigsby is not new to writing, but relatively new to the publishing world. He’s a bombastic personality and that comes through in his storytelling. This book in particular reflects his style well which tends to be a voice that blends genres. You get a gritty noir pulp style mixed with the elements that people tend to look for in fantasy and sci fi storytelling. I’ve also recommended Daughters of Forgotten Light by this same author. It is a sci fi novel that takes risks in pushing boundaries many sci fi fans aren’t expecting, but I’m tired of stories that give me what I expect.
Southard is not new to writing or publishing, but may be new to some of you. I was looking back at one of the first anthologies I was ever published in years ago and I found a story by Wesley Southard. His star has had a recent surge in its rise though, so maybe more of you are noticing him and his work. This one is a band on a road trip from, to, and through Hell. This story kept its rough edges and I don’t mean that as an insult to the story or the author. Extreme horror and splatterpunk can be done badly a lot of ways from most often losing the story in the gimmick or painting with blood by the numbers to give a story that tries too hard to land with the intended audience. Southard manages to avoid both those things by not smoothing out the edges of the storytelling, but not losing the story either. It’s the kind of book that makes me want to read more from him. He has a short story collection coming out I’m curious to dig into.
Young is new on the scene in terms of his publishing career. This book delivers good things and promises good things for the future. It captures rural/country/sometimes southern feel I like to see in stories when it is used well for setting, characterization, or story vehicle. I enjoy it when it is done respectfully and I like it when it is exploited too as long as the storytelling delivers. Young knows what he’s doing in a story that oozes with horror and violation of the rules of the natural world.
I fell in love with this story in an earlier iteration of the core story and world. I love what’s been added to this book, too. McHugh invents a world and a new punk subgenre that is elevated high above its niche. Fantasy readers, alternate history fans, and everyone who loves magical storytelling should love this. I’ve also recommended The Green Kangaroos, Rabbits in the Garden, the sequel to Rabbits, The Train Derails in Boston, and her young adult series The Darla Decker Diaries novels. Close your eyes and pick a Jessica McHugh book. You’ll be good.
It was actually House of Sighs that I read from him first. It blew me away and I’ve raved about that book and him many places through the year. The numerated book here was my next read from him and took the spot for the one I ended up recommending from him most. The relationship between the brother and sister is so fully utilized. The journey and the settings don’t follow any old patterns or tropes. What does it take to find a truly original story these days? Read a book by Aaron Dries.
Everything a fantasy sword and sorcery reader secretly wants, everything a horror reader could desire, and more. Shrewsbury has created a character, world, and mythology on par with the scope of the Conan stories, but that takes the storytelling to new heights. He is the undisputed torchbearer for the tradition created by the Conan stories. If Shrewsbury were tragically lost in a universe purging snap, Keene would have the chops to pick up that torch from Shrewsbury. Together they’ve created a book and its sequels that have blown away the readers I’ve convinced to check it out.
It’s a supernatural thriller about coffee. Oddly that’s usually all I have to say when I find someone I think might like it. Other books I’ve recommended by Rosamilia include but are not limited to his Dirty Deeds crime thriller series, his Dying Days Family Ties Young Adult book, and A View from my Seat wherein he follows a minor league baseball team for a season, gathers their stories, and shares his own stories growing up as a baseball fan. All good stuff.
This may be the most original vampire novel I’ve ever read. It has a fantasy novel broadness. It has horror grittiness. It is in a category all its own with a unique story and a unique voice. Kozeniewski also nails horror sci fi with Hematophages. Haven’t read a bad book by him, so check out these or this is another author you can pick a book at random.
Has Johnathan Janz ever written a bad book? Has he ever had a bad hair day? Is he on the list one spot ahead of Stephen Kozeniewski by coincidence or is it a cruel trick of the universe? Some questions can’t be answered, but this book is great. It combines everything great about possession stories and serial killer stories. I’ve also recommended the books Children of the Dark and The Dark Game a lot this year. Janz is another author you won’t go wrong picking any book he has written.
She is the modern standard bearer for cosmic horror in my opinion. *pause for gasps* This story captures the existential terror of oblivion possibly better than any book I’ve ever read. It stands alone, but the whole series is good, too. I’ve also recommended Behind the Door and all the books in that paranormal investigator series a lot.
A couple switches houses for a reality show. When they return, everything looks the same, but something isn’t right. This book more than any other captures the difference Stephen King defined between plain horror and the idea of terror. I’ve also recommended Kill Hill Carnage which captures and elevates the 80’s and 90’s slasher film into a book. A love letter to the genre. Limbs is a horror love story for the ages. In The House of Mirrors is a novel full of delightful dread and horror. Lords of the Deep (coauthored with Patrick Lacey) and Primal Terra were excellent monster stories I recommended a lot this year.
Anyone who says they are trying to get back into reading, I usually recommend short stories from a particularly good anthology or collection. This is the one I recommended the most because it is a rare anthology in that every story and every author in it is great. Most of the best anthologies or collections have a few stories that are just passable or even poor. Not just good, every story in this anthology is great.
She is an undisputed leader in extreme and transgressive fiction. I came to this story late in the year, but made up for it in recommendations in that time. I’ve also recommended Cockblock by the same author often, to those who seem like they have the personality to handle it. She does not handle the reader lightly. Only venture here if you are prepared for intensity and a great story.
She is relatively new to publishing. This book has so many wonderful layers. The female lead is strong and flawed in the most perfectly realistic ways. The family drama is good. The movements of the story and the acts are great. This is a strong recommendation.
This book and this whole series is great. It’s Supernatural meets the Wild West. It is so far above the uneven niche that is the weird western subgenre that it is not even worth categorizing it as such. I’ve also recommended Pay Up and Die a lot from this author this year.
Great steampunk author, great Afro-futurist author, great horror author, great storyteller. If you don’t check out the book based on the title, I question what fills the empty space inside you where your soul is supposed to be. I’ve also recommended Buffalo Soldier, his story collection The Voices of Martyrs, Devil’s Marionette, and a children’s book about race The Usual Suspects.
I’ve been going on about this book all year. It has the gritty feel of the best crime fiction and then the masterful grasp of horror storytelling both these authors bring to the table. I recommend it to everyone. Also, by these authors, I’ve recommended Mat Hayward’s What Do Monsters Fear? and The Faithful. And from Bob Ford I’ve recommend a laundry list of books, but I’ll just say here to check out Rattlesnake Kisses, too, coauthored with John Boden.
Nonfiction. About creativity and finding inspiration in anything you pursue. I’ve recommended it to more nonwriters than writers. It’s that universal and that good. Urbancik has some unique perspectives in this one.
I haven’t ever recommended a werewolf book before this one. It has great characters, great dialogue, and great action. It explores what you would be willing to believe and to do for a friend in real trouble. It was the one book that really surprised me this year. I also recommended The Nightly Disease by the same author which may be one of the greatest books ever written. Yes, that’s what I said, and I meant it.
May be some of the best crime fiction I’ve read in a long time. This story and its telling are amazing. It’s like a spell written in pulp fiction prose that hypnotizes you into the world. He is new to the publishing world, but this book stands up against any veteran writer’s work you can name. I’m looking forward to Blacktop Wasteland coming soon from this same author.
Buy and read some books. These are the ones I recommended the most.
— Jay Wilburn, rabid reader, American treasure, the maven, writing for his life
Jay's Patreon Page | Purchase Signed Books