I have a sneaking suspicion that for many of us, 2025 has been an exceedingly difficult year. Though I can’t speak for everyone, I can say with confidence that I am not alone in my eagerness to reach January 1st, 2026. In the first year of a political reboot—which, in the grand tradition of cinematic reboots, has managed to be far worse than the original—this year’s best novels have occupied an essential place in our collective literary imagination.
Katie Kitamura’s Booker Prize finalist, Audition, is the sort of slim novel that quietly injects itself into one’s veins, consuming readers, forcing them to navigate the friction between what is said, what is unsaid, what is fixed, and what is fluid. Angela Flournoy’s The Wilderness, which I think might be the Great Millennial Novel, chronicles the friendship and sisterhood of four Black women growing into adulthood over two decades, and all the things they carry into their next era. And Dominion, by Addie Citchens, one of many spectacular debuts published this year, plunges heart—and headfirst—into the drama, humor, and tenderness of small-town Mississippi. These are but a few of the masterful books that populate this list.
While my own debut novel, When the Harvest Comes, published in April, is not eligible for consideration by EL because of a clear conflict of interest, it’s my great pleasure to celebrate so many wonderful novels that were published in a year of truly excellent literary fiction. Every book on the list does what a great novel is supposed to do, particularly during times of shared grief and political turmoil. Each book reminds us of our shared humanity, the aspiration of empathy, and the simple fact that our world is not confined, solely, to the here and now. Our stories must continue to be more imaginative, more expansive, and more beautifully, wondrously, spectacularly human.
—Denne Michele Norris, Editor-in-Chief, Electric Literature
Top 5 Novels of the Year
Audition by Katie Kitamura
A performance, a love triangle, and an unnamed actress quietly dissecting her internal world. These are the constituent parts of Katie Kitamura’s Booker Prize-shortlisted fifth novel, which opens with a young man declaring himself the nameless narrator’s long-lost son. Quickly, the book plunges into the murky territory of identity, where nothing is quite fixed or true. With sentences sharp as knives, Audition does everything possible to slip up the reader, asking: If identities transform, why shouldn’t stories transform too? Kitamura discussed the volatility of relationships and the reader’s input in her novel with EL here.
Beings by Ilana Masad
Ilana Masad’s brilliant novel follows an interracial couple confronted by an extraterrestrial while driving along a New Hampshire road in 1961. Separately, a lesbian writer of science fiction grapples with alienation and queer yearning in a series of letters she pens to her lover. And, finally, in the present day, an archivist attempts to make sense of those letters alongside the testimony of the first alien abductees. Braiding three interconnected narrative threads, Beings is ambitious, haunting, and filled with heartache and tenderness. You can read an excerpt in Recommended Reading of Masad’s most-loved work yet.
Dominion by Addie E. Citchens
This extraordinary debut begins with the Reverend Sabre Winfrey Jr., his wife, Priscilla, and the youngest of their five sons, Emanuel, also known as Wonderboy. Wonderboy is beloved by everyone in Dominion, Mississippi—no one runs faster, or turns more heads. Caught off guard after an interaction with a stranger, Wonderboy is confronted with questions he’s never considered, and his response sends shock waves through the community. A soaring, yet intimate novel exploring how shame and secrets control and stifle our humanity, Dominion grapples with these forces, illuminating a different, freer path forward.
Flashlight by Susan Choi
There’s a special excitement when a National Book Award winner releases a new book. Will it deliver? Won’t it? Flashlight, Choi’s sixth novel, does. It opens with Louisa, a ten-year-old girl, walking with her father, Serk, by the sea. Later, she is found, hypothermic, barely alive, and alone. What follows this strange, quiet tragedy is a multigenerational epic that explores Serk’s broken childhood, moving from Korea to Japan during World War II, to the aftermath of his death, considering the lives touched by such violent change. It is a novel that manages to burrow into the consciousness of a child estranged by geographic displacement and parental loss, while cracking open some of the twentieth century’s most horrific crimes and tragedies.
The Wilderness by Angela Flournoy
Sweeping from 2008 to today, this is a story of five Black women navigating the urban landscape of New York and LA, as well as the indelible interior landscapes that define every coming of age. Desiree and Danielle, sisters, alongside January, a banking analyst turned graphic designer, Monique, an aspiring influencer, and Nakia, a budding chef, navigate the acute precarity emblematic of millennials as they step into the proverbial wilderness of adulthood, moving together and apart in a choreography of friendship, chosen family, and familial strife.
Electric Lit’s Additional Favorite Novels
Good Girl by Aria Aber
Among the swastikas that litter the walls of the public housing where she’s raised, Nila—born in Germany to Afghan parents—develops a love of photography, philosophy, and sex. As she repeatedly disappoints her parents, she continues to search for her own voice as an artist. After meeting American-born writer Marlowe in the haze of Berlin’s party scene, she is quickly absorbed into his tightly controlled orbit as racial tensions grow. Eventually, Nila is forced to face herself and her future, and figure out who she wants to be. A powerful story of love, family, and surviving the foils of youth, Good Girl is a can’t-miss debut of 2025. Aber discusses the transcendence of hiding in nightlife here.
Hot Girls with Balls by Benedict Nguyễn
Lydi Conklin calls Hot Girls with Balls a “sharp, funny, lively book about the wildly horrifying transphobic, conservative politics of contemporary American society.” With its witty discussions of athletics, romance, and internet culture, Benedict Nguyễn’s debut novel is compelling, humorous, and genuinely fun to read.
The Grand Paloma Resort by Cleyvis Natera
An “unforgettable story of class, family, and community,” The Grand Paloma Resort is another compelling commentary on the wealth, entitlement, gentrification, and luxury associated with tourism and the resort industry. Fans of The White Lotus—which Natera discusses as being in conversation with the book—and Saint X will be stunned by Cleyvis Natera’s suspenseful second novel and its deeply accurate insight into the sinister mechanisms of inequality and exorbitant privilege.
Stop Me If You’ve Heard This One by Kristen Arnett
Intelligent and articulate, Stop Me If You’ve Heard This One is further proof that Kristen Arnett always has something insightful to say. In her newest novel, Arnett has become a true magician with a knack for spinning comedic gold and creating a thoroughly entertaining narrative that levitates with the power of its humor and honesty. You can read an excerpt of the book in Recommended Reading.
Heart the Lover by Lily King
In Heart the Lover, a college student finds herself in the pull of two young men—a witty, ambitious, passionate pair of best friends—who break open her world. What could be a familiar campus story takes an unexpected turn in Lily King’s hands, launching off campus and into the future, a topic she discusses in her interview with EL. King’s mastery of complex, utterly unique characters and brilliant dialogue shines in this aching novel of love, the passage of time, and how those we meet in our youth continue to stay with us, even when we think we’ve moved on.
Homeseeking by Karissa Chen
For admirers of epic historical narratives that sweep readers into another era, Homeseeking is a layered, fresh take on writing across decades. Bringing together themes of friendship, love, separation, and second chances, Karissa Chen has crafted a detailed debut that poignantly meditates on remembrance and moving forward.
Minor Black Figures by Brandon Taylor
While considering the place of Blackness in an art world entranced by the white gaze, Brandon Taylor’s Minor Black Figures simultaneously paints a compelling portrait of a deeply intelligent and inquisitive artist. This novel celebrates the deep, unique connections and perspectives that can be forged through authentic creativity. In an interview with EL, Taylor talks about his writing process, love of realism, and the inspiration he pulls from the art world.
Big Chief by Jon Hickey
When Mitch’s political and economic influence are threatened by a well-known activist aided by Mitch’s estranged sister, a political struggle plunges their homeland and tribe into disarray. The complexities of self-definition, power, politics, and family ties are at the center of this thrilling, quick-moving debut.
The Edge of Water by Olufunke Grace Bankole
As a Nigerian immigrant who once lived in New Orleans, Hurricane Katrina prompted Olufunke Grace Bankole to consider the impact of a devastating disaster on those living far away from home in a storm-ravaged city. The Edge of Water is a result of this consideration and the narrative explores fate and destiny in multiple voices and registers. Folklore, tradition, prophecy, and expansive generational narratives populate this epically complex debut novel, which Bankole discussed in an interview with EL.
Blob: A Love Story by Maggie Su
As Vi Liu attempts to fit into her small town, her life is altered when she is presented with the opportunity to make a perfect boyfriend out of a sentient blob. With Blob, Maggie Su has crafted a narrative that insightfully intertwines the practicality of everyday routines with the shapeshifting nature of experimental surrealism. Readers of this hilarious and deeply intelligent novel will feel a sincere connection to Vi as she earnestly attempts to achieve love, acceptance, and self-knowledge. Read Maggie Su’s EL interview about Blob here.
Loca by Alejandro Heredia
Over the course of a year, the lives and dreams of Charo and Sal expand, shift, and adapt as they search for happiness in New York City. Throughout the novel, characters are given opportunities to find joy and resilience amidst instances of love, heartbreak, desire, and struggle. Loca considers what it means to be someone who breaks norms, chases dreams, and reconsiders tradition, as Heredia discussed in an interview with EL
The High Heaven by Joshua Wheeler
The High Heaven traces the winding life of Izzy Gently—from her orphan childhood in New Mexico to a present existence haunted by the past. Wheeler’s debut novel considers the relationships between exploration and expansion, humanity and the universe, set against the breathtakingly mystical landscape of the American West. Read an excerpt of The High Heaven in Recommended Reading.
These Memories Do Not Belong to Us by Yiming Ma
Imagine memory is a commodity—something that can be bought, sold, shared, edited, and manipulated. Imagine too, that some memories, the stories and truths they attest to, are banned. They’re too dangerous, too subversive. This is the world of These Memories Do Not Belong to Us. Set in a future dominated by the Qin Empire, Ma’s debut follows a young man who has inherited a collection of forbidden memories from his mother. The memories might be the death of him, but they might also sow the seeds for the empire’s downfall. Read Ma’s discussion of his book’s fragmented cover and the frightening pace of modern technology with EL here!
A/S/L by Jeanne Thornton
A/S/L tells the stories of Lilith, Sash, and Abraxa, who connect online while creating a video game dubbed “Saga of the Sorceress.” While living separate lives as adults, the game continues to influence the friends as an integral part of their lives. The Internet is a source of joy and camaraderie throughout this nostalgic novel, perfect for fans of Gabrielle Zevin’s Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow. Read Jeanne Thornton’s thoughts about the intersection between trans identity and the magic of online spaces here!
Middle Spoon by Alejandro Varela
In Middle Spoon, a heartbroken narrator struggles to cope after being dumped by his boyfriend while simultaneously attending to his husband and children. Described as “visceral” in an EL interview, this epistolary novel will inspire readers to consider the restraints they place on themselves as they witness Varela’s characters remake, rework, and reconsider the limits of life and love.
The Summer House by Masashi Matsuie
The Summer House is a novel about Japanese architects quietly building a library. In it, a recent university graduate gets the unexpected honor of an appointment with a prestigious firm led by a Frank Lloyd Wright disciple. The aging master and his team relocate to the titular summer house, as they do every summer, and there, under the shadow of an active volcano, design a building for a competition to construct the National Library of Modern Literature. Locked in this story of quiet observations and fleeting romances is a tale of creation, destruction, and grandeur. Catch a tantalizing snippet of it excerpted in Recommended Reading!
Fulfillment by Lee Cole
When Emmett moves home to Kentucky and takes a job at Tempo, a fulfillment warehouse resembling another familiar eCommerce giant, his trajectory clashes with his half-brother’s, whose marriage is falling apart. While meditating on class, power, and privilege, Cole’s novel explores desire and the process of building a meaningful, fulfilling life. Read an excerpt of this layered narrative in Recommended Reading.
Awakened by A.E. Osworth
After a group of powerful witches welcome Wilder into their fold, they are threatened by an AI entity that has the capability to upend the world. Together, the coven considers how to stay united and fight against forces that wish to do them harm. Dedicated to “everyone who feels betrayed by J.K. Rowling,” Awakened is a novel that celebrates its queer and trans characters through magical prose and a fascinating narrative. Read about the creation of its wonderfully witchy cover here.
Sky Daddy by Kate Folk
While others seek romance through dating apps, Linda, who believes it is her destiny to marry an airplane, quenches her lust for love through air travel. This hilariously scandalous novel investigates the turbulent juxtaposition between the merits of achieving our true desires and the risks of encouraging our own self-destruction. Readers should buckle their seatbelts to experience this high-flying story, which Kate Folk discussed in an EL interview.
The Payback by Kashana Cauley
In Kashana Cauley’s The Payback, the Debt Police are after Jada Williams, but she refuses to go down without a fight. A revenge plot—complete with collective action and plans to erase student debt—ensues. Described as “urgent” and “deeply felt” in Cauley’s EL interview, readers who enjoy heist movies, humorous social critique, and cheering for the antihero will be thrilled with this brilliant sophomore novel.
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