Shepherd’s been asking writers, including me, for their favorite books of 2023. I like to spread the love around, so my list included my favorite adult, YA, and MG books of last year. I chose Monstrilio by Gerardo Sámano Córdova, Starlings by Amanda Linsmeier, and Peril At Price Manor by Laura Parnum. All horror or horror-adjacent, I might add. If you haven’t already read these, please do!

I have no idea how I’ll pick my 2024 favorites. Normally I don’t read a lot of books in the year that they’re published. I mean, I buy the books–my groaning bookshelves and bursting-at-the-seams Kindle is proof of that–but for a long time, I treated my TBR stack as a chronological issue. I’d just pick up the next book on the pile and move forward. Since being part of the 2024 debut group, however, I’ve read a lot of ARCs belonging to the folks in the group, and the books have been overwhelmingly great. I’m in the middle of Lockjaw by Matteo Cerilli right now (and admittedly, have been for over a month–not because of the book, but because Italian class and Lake Monsters stuff, coupled with a really busy time at my day job, has made my brain hurt too much to read a lot), and I have four or five ARCs waiting behind that. This year really is the year of fantastic debut horror and thrillers!