Gold: The absolute best in no particular order, engaging and beautiful, would read again, would recommend.
Silver: Interesting, kept my attention, would recommend.
Bronze: Just okay, might recommend, probably would not read again.
Honorable Mentions: Any other pieces of written fiction I enjoyed this year.
Gold
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The Skin and Its Girl by Sarah Cypher
A beautifully written novel by Palestinian author Sarah Cypher about a queer girl born with blue skin. I'm an absolute sap for purple prose and magical realism and this book luxuriates in both. A deeply emotional scrap of poetry with themes of generational trauma, ingrained otherness, mental health, and family connection.
An Unkindness of Ghosts by Rivers Solomon
A frank and deeply emotional distillation of slavery, feudalism, and religion told through the eyes of Aster, a sharecropper aboard a space vessel ferreting humanity to the supposed "Promised Land". I've seen reviews calling this "the best science fiction story of all time", and you know what? Yeah, it fucking is. Provoking, character driven, straightforward, engaging.
All Things Seen and Unseen by RJ McDaniel
Haunting of Hill House style horror with a queer disabled protag. Sprinkled throughout with dread and impeccable atmosphere. A stunning commentary on mental health, trauma, and identity through the lens of a deeply relatable protagonist.
The Desert Magicians Duology by Nnedi Okorafor
After an apocalypse, a teenage girl sets off on a journey to find her father's killer and prevent the end of the world. Fantasy, sci-fi, engaging characters, myth and folklore elements in a vibrant African-futurist storyscape. These are the kinda stories science fiction and fantasy were made to tell. Stories that string you directly into the action.
Master of Djinn by P. Djèlí Clark
A fantasy novel taking place in post-colonial Egypt. The world is vibrant, the characters are phenomenal, and I need this to be a movie series right the fuck now. I need one of those fully voice acted audio books with a complete cast. Like for real. If you're sick of high fantasy novels laced with boring British aesthetics, you need this book. It's like an antidote to every complaint I've ever had about this particular genre.
The Binti Trilogy by Nnedi Okorafor
About a girl traveling off-planet to attend university. Kinda rare you get a trilogy where the second book is way better than the first. Honestly, if I'm being real? The first book feels like a loose thread to a broader story, then the second book just totally blew me into orbit. And the third book? Didn't hit me like the second, but definitely tugged at my heartstrings. Been a while since I've read a book where I absolutely loved the main character to pieces but Nnedi Okorafor has this talent for writing characters you wanna see make it out of whatever they're in. Characters you don't want to let go of after the book ends cause it doesn't feel like their lives are over just because the book is done. And a talent for weaving worlds you want to live in despite all the heartache and danger.
Mapping The Interior by Stephen Graham Jones
A story about a young indigenous boy confronting the ghost of his father. A story that tells us the many ways a house or a person can be haunted. Horrifying and deeply deeply heartbreaking.
Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler
A realistic portrait of the near future in which a young girl called Lauren attempts to navigate horrific circumstances with the help of her Earthseed movement. Terrifyingly relevant, filled with heartache and sorrow, deeply tinged with hope. If you've never read Octavia E. Butler before, start here. This is one of the most influential pieces of fiction ever written (yeah, I'm serious). One of those books everybody should read.
Silver
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Strange Pictures by Uketsu
An interconnected series of short stories about strange and unusual drawings. Been a while since I read an engaging mystery. You get to play detective, figuring out how all the pieces fit together. Every twist and turn had me completely hooked and I ended up finishing the whole book in a couple days.
After the People Lights Have Gone Off by Stephen Graham Jones
A book of short stories by renowned indigenous author Stephen Graham Jones. Can't really say much more cause there's a bunch of different stories in this collection and most of them are fucking amazing. Your mileage may vary and all that. Something about Stephen Graham Jones' writing is like. Don't even know how to explain it. There's an urgency and a realness to how he writes. You feel every line like you're being told a story, like you're around a campfire with a bunch of other people listening to some guy tell stories and you're asking him if they really happened and he just shrugs and keeps going. Best way I can phrase it honestly. This is a wonderful introduction to his writing before you read stuff like "Mapping The Interior".
Bury Your Gays by Chuck Tingle
A horror/murder mystery story about a gay scriptwriter and his friends being hunted down by monsters. This is maybe the third Chuck Tingle book I've ever read so you're gonna have to take my little review with a grain of salt. I know tons of people think this guy is just a comedy smut writer. And he kinda is, but he's got a sincerity to his writing that lends itself well to his few books that aren't erotica. This book turns a lot of the common horror tropes on their head while being just as cheesy and sincere as a decent horror movie laced with biting commentary. Like if nineties horror movies were a little more solid, a little more honest, and way more queer.
Bronze
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Audition by Ryu Murakami
A horror novel about a man staging a fake audition to search for a new wife. I've got mixed feelings about this book, cause I loved the movie. But the book? Kinda fell completely flat towards the end. The movie took a few creative liberties that really enhanced the story. The movie spent way more time in the killer's head but the book focuses almost exclusively on humanizing the misogynistic main character to the point it feels kinda forced by comparison.
Tread of Angels by Rebecca Roanhorse
A Wild West themed fantasy story about angels and demons. I can't say this is my favorite (which is why it's bronze, not gold) but the setting and characters kept me engaged to the finale. I liked the characters and there's an interesting little thread of dark fantasy romance running throughout. It wasn't really my style honestly but I can see why it would appeal to other people.
Honorable Mentions
D.I.Y and Phantom View by John Wiswell. I was searching for more John Wiswell after reading his amazing novel Someone to Build a Nest In and found these two short stories. D.I.Y is a magical realism/urban fantasy story and Phantom View is more of a ghost story. Great short reads if you wanna get a feel for his writing.
The City Born Great by N.K. Jemisin. A surreal short fantasy story about giving birth to a city.
A Dead Djinn in Cairo by P. Djèlí Clark, another entry in his Dead Djinn Universe and the first thing I read from him. A fantastic introduction to his writing style and this amazing fantasy universe before reading "Master of Djinn".