The Sympathizer by Viet Than Nguyen: Nguyen’s first novel draws you in with the opening line: “I am a spy, a sleeper, a spook, a man of two faces.” It’s thrilling, rhythmic, and astonishing, as is the rest of Nguyen’s enthralling portrayal of the Vietnam War.
All the Old Knives: A Novel by Olen Steinhauer: Steinhauer’s thriller has a disarmingly quiet start, but good spy novels are like good spies: they draw you in, earn your trust, and then grab hold with both hands. By the last 100 pages, it’s hard not to race to the finish. And the ending? One word: brilliant.
Saint Mazie: A Novel by Jamie Attenberg: Exhibiting the same kind of wit and depth and heart of her previous novel, The Middlesteins, Attenberg weaves an astonishingly heartfelt story of poverty, loss, and unconventionality, while creating a character for the ages.
The Wright Brothers by David McCullough: Pulitzer Prize-winning historian McCullough brings his deft touch with language and his eye for detail to the unusually close relationship between a pair of brothers from Dayton, Ohio who changed aviation history.
The Book of Speculation: A Novel by Erika Swyler: Generous with well-placed detail, lyrical phrases, and mounting tension, Swyler’s bewitching tale of mermaids, deadly floods, and the silent secrets of an ancient tarot deck demonstrates a deftness and assurance rarely seen in debut novels.
Green on Blue: A Novel by Elliot Ackerman: Joining the canon of contemporary war literature, Green on Blue unravels the complexities of the Afghan war, then dissolves it all into the brutal heartache of reality—where home is a battlefield, fighting is a job, and vengeance is a moral right.
