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Alluring love stories, psychological thrillers with questionable narrators, heartbreakers, and comedic relief: These are our 2021 favorites (so far), plus five not new but noteworthy reads that we found deeply compelling. And while you’re here, what an opportune time to join goop Book Club—we’ll be celebrating our current pick and announcing our next read on March 1 during a live chat with author David Hopen.
New 2021 Releases
Witty and Engulfing
Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason
Sorrow and Bliss is a modern love story that’s funny and dark, sharp and tender, hopeful and hard to put down. It has a brooding Sally Rooney vibe (but explores a slightly older and more mature slice of life) with exceptional inner monologue and palpable chemistry among the characters.
Must Text Friends About
The Push by Ashley Audrain
Blythe Connor is a woman who finds motherhood scary. Part of what unsettles her is that her daughter, Violet, doesn’t behave the way most children do. But Blythe’s husband, Fox, tells her that she’s imagining things—everything is fine. Until it’s not, of course. This is a twisted, tight, and exhilarating drama.
Piercing
The Prophets by Robert Jones, Jr.
Poised to be one of the most memorable books of the year, The Prophets is a stunning love story about two young men, Samuel and Isaiah, who are enslaved on a plantation in antebellum Mississippi. It’s written by the iconic Robert Jones, Jr.—aka @thesonofbaldwin.
Voice-Driven
Detransition, Baby by Torrey Peters
Torrey Peters’s debut constructs and deconstructs a love triangle. Its protagonist is Reese, who was building her life in a trans community in Brooklyn that included her girlfriend Amy, until Amy detransitioned and became Ames. It is, unexpectedly, Ames’s new girlfriend, Katrina—his boss and a cis woman—who brings Ames back into Reese’s life. This is a voice-driven story with poignant, highly underlinable passages on relationships and intimacy. Also: lots of sex and nudity.
Poetry for Laughs
God I Feel Modern Tonight by Catherine Cohen
The table of contents alone is amusing, with titles including, “poem I wrote after I went to Tuscany to journal about my toxic guitar teacher,” “poem I wrote after I decided that all I need to do to be in a good mood is spend six hours alone in my apartment every day,” “poem I wrote after I ordered a waffle as a side dish,” and “poem I wrote after I listened to my Spotify top songs of 2019 and it undid all the work I did in therapy last year.”
Dark and Gripping
Dark Horses by Susan Mihalic
If you can stomach picking it up, this novel will make your heart pound. It tells the story of Roan Montgomery, a fifteen-year-old competitive equestrian who is forbidden to leave a dark relationship with her abusive father and the narrow world he defines for her. But when Roan starts developing a relationship with a boy from school, a crack opens up.
Gives You a Boost
Hungry Hearts edited by Jennifer Rudolph Walsh
This gem of a collection includes deeply personal, restorative, and funny essays by some magical people: Amena Brown (who is leading an upcoming In goop Health session) on her period playlist, Cameron Esposito on the horrors of fitting in and group fitness, Ashley C. Ford on what can come after heartbreak, Austin Channing Brown on the time the word “ambitious” hit differently, Priya Parker on the wisdom of a group and the wisdom of the self, Jillian Mercado on losing and gaining your freedom, Natalie Guerrero on dismantling silence, and more.
History by Chorus
Four Hundred Souls edited by Ibram X. Kendi and Keisha N. Blain
Ibram X. Kendi (writer, professor, and founding director of the Boston University Center for Antiracist Research) and Keisha N. Blain (historian, professor, and writer) brought together ninety different writers to collaborate on a remarkable community history of African America. Each writer covers a five-year period, beginning in 1619 and ending in 2019. There are historical essays, short stories, memoir-like passages, and poems. The audiobook is read by a full cast.
Coming Soon
A Literary Masterpiece
Infinite Country by Patricia Engel
You can also expect to see Infinite Country on many best-of lists come the end of 2021. In less than 200 pages, Patricia Engel tells the urgent story of a mixed-immigration-status family as they navigate their lives together and apart. (Out March 2.)
Fun Suspense
Who Is Maud Dixon? by Alexandra Andrews
Florence Darrow dreams of being a famous writer. When she gets fired from her entry-level publishing job, she begins working as an assistant for a famous writer. But she can’t tell anyone about it. Her new boss, Helen Wilcox, is known to the rest of world by her pen name Maud Dixon. On a trip to Morocco, where Helen’s new novel is to be set, Helen disappears, and her identity is up for grabs. Or so Florence thinks. (Out March 2.)
On Obsession
Acts of Desperation by Megan Nolan
An unnamed narrator falls into a disturbing relationship with a man that possesses her and fills her with longing. The writing is raw and hungry. (Out March 9.)
Family History
Of Women and Salt by Gabriela Garcia
A sweeping debut that moves through several generations of women in a family with roots in Cuba and America. It’s a story about memory, motherhood, displacement, betrayal, and the resiliency of the human spirit. (Out March 30.)
Falling in Love
Open Water by Caleb Azumah Nelson
Caleb Azumah Nelson’s lyrical debut, written in the second person, explores the depths of romantic love through a relationship between two best friends and artists (he a photographer and she a dancer). You will fall for them quickly. (Out April 13.)
ICYMI
LOL
Wow, No Thank You by Samantha Irby
Samantha Irby is a treasure, and her latest collection of essays is funny and freeing. Her take—on skin-care routines, avoiding nights out, Hollywood, mental health at midlife, and the idiosyncrasies of American culture—is most welcome.
Quirky
Divide Me by Zero by Lara Vapnyar
As she approaches forty, Katya Geller tries to make sense of her childhood in Soviet Russia, her lovers, and her mathematician mother. This is a deeply honest novel written in a playful style, with mathematical and self-help notes from the characters scattered throughout the story.
How Clever
My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite
Oyinkan Braithwaite’s sharp novel was nominated for the 2019 Booker Prize and the 2019 Women’s Prize. Korede, her main character, is tasked with cleaning up after her younger, the stops-traffic-beautiful sister Ayoola. And that includes cleaning up her murder scenes—Ayoola has a tendency to stab her boyfriends. How could a plot this wild remain so taut and polished? Braithwaite is a writer to be studied and delighted by.
Plot Twist
Goodnight Beautiful by Aimee Molloy
For psychological thriller fans looking to get hooked: Goodnight Beautiful is about an enviable couple who leaves New York City for a quiet town in Upstate New York, where the psychiatrist husband goes missing. But before then, his sessions with patients are overheard through an unexpected vent in his office ceiling.
Witty and Engulfing
Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason
Sorrow and Bliss is a modern love story that’s funny and dark, sharp and tender, hopeful and hard to put down. It has a brooding Sally Rooney vibe (but explores a slightly older and more mature slice of life) with exceptional inner monologue and palpable chemistry among the characters.
Must Text Friends About
The Push by Ashley Audrain
Blythe Connor is a woman who finds motherhood scary. Part of what unsettles her is that her daughter, Violet, doesn’t behave the way most children do. But Blythe’s husband, Fox, tells her that she’s imagining things—everything is fine. Until it’s not, of course. This is a twisted, tight, and exhilarating drama.
Piercing
The Prophets by Robert Jones, Jr.
Poised to be one of the most memorable books of the year, The Prophets is a stunning love story about two young men, Samuel and Isaiah, who are enslaved on a plantation in antebellum Mississippi. It’s written by the iconic Robert Jones, Jr.—aka @thesonofbaldwin.
Voice-Driven
Detransition, Baby by Torrey Peters
Torrey Peters’s debut constructs and deconstructs a love triangle. Its protagonist is Reese, who was building her life in a trans community in Brooklyn that included her girlfriend Amy, until Amy detransitioned and became Ames. It is, unexpectedly, Ames’s new girlfriend, Katrina—his boss and a cis woman—who brings Ames back into Reese’s life. This is a voice-driven story with poignant, highly underlinable passages on relationships and intimacy. Also: lots of sex and nudity.
Poetry for Laughs
God I Feel Modern Tonight by Catherine Cohen
The table of contents alone is amusing, with titles including, “poem I wrote after I went to Tuscany to journal about my toxic guitar teacher,” “poem I wrote after I decided that all I need to do to be in a good mood is spend six hours alone in my apartment every day,” “poem I wrote after I ordered a waffle as a side dish,” and “poem I wrote after I listened to my Spotify top songs of 2019 and it undid all the work I did in therapy last year.”
Dark and Gripping
Dark Horses by Susan Mihalic
If you can stomach picking it up, this novel will make your heart pound. It tells the story of Roan Montgomery, a fifteen-year-old competitive equestrian who is forbidden to leave a dark relationship with her abusive father and the narrow world he defines for her. But when Roan starts developing a relationship with a boy from school, a crack opens up.
Gives You a Boost
Hungry Hearts edited by Jennifer Rudolph Walsh
This gem of a collection includes deeply personal, restorative, and funny essays by some magical people: Amena Brown (who is leading an upcoming In goop Health session) on her period playlist, Cameron Esposito on the horrors of fitting in and group fitness, Ashley C. Ford on what can come after heartbreak, Austin Channing Brown on the time the word “ambitious” hit differently, Priya Parker on the wisdom of a group and the wisdom of the self, Jillian Mercado on losing and gaining your freedom, Natalie Guerrero on dismantling silence, and more.
History by Chorus
Four Hundred Souls edited by Ibram X. Kendi and Keisha N. Blain
Ibram X. Kendi (writer, professor, and founding director of the Boston University Center for Antiracist Research) and Keisha N. Blain (historian, professor, and writer) brought together ninety different writers to collaborate on a remarkable community history of African America. Each writer covers a five-year period, beginning in 1619 and ending in 2019. There are historical essays, short stories, memoir-like passages, and poems. The audiobook is read by a full cast.
-
A Literary Masterpiece
Infinite Country by Patricia Engel
You can also expect to see Infinite Country on many best-of lists come the end of 2021. In less than 200 pages, Patricia Engel tells the urgent story of a mixed-immigration-status family as they navigate their lives together and apart. (Out March 2.) -
Fun Suspense
Who Is Maud Dixon? by Alexandra Andrews
Florence Darrow dreams of being a famous writer. When she gets fired from her entry-level publishing job, she begins working as an assistant for a famous writer. But she can’t tell anyone about it. Her new boss, Helen Wilcox, is known to the rest of world by her pen name Maud Dixon. On a trip to Morocco, where Helen’s new novel is to be set, Helen disappears, and her identity is up for grabs. Or so Florence thinks. (Out March 2.) -
On Obsession
Acts of Desperation by Megan Nolan
An unnamed narrator falls into a disturbing relationship with a man that possesses her and fills her with longing. The writing is raw and hungry. (Out March 9.) -
Family History
Of Women and Salt by Gabriela Garcia
A sweeping debut that moves through several generations of women in a family with roots in Cuba and America. It’s a story about memory, motherhood, displacement, betrayal, and the resiliency of the human spirit. (Out March 30.) -
Falling in Love
Open Water by Caleb Azumah Nelson
Caleb Azumah Nelson’s lyrical debut, written in the second person, explores the depths of romantic love through a relationship between two best friends and artists (he a photographer and she a dancer). You will fall for them quickly. (Out April 13.)
ICYMI
-
LOL
Wow, No Thank You by Samantha Irby
Samantha Irby is a treasure, and her latest collection of essays is funny and freeing. Her take—on skin-care routines, avoiding nights out, Hollywood, mental health at midlife, and the idiosyncrasies of American culture—is most welcome.
-
Quirky
Divide Me by Zero by Lara Vapnyar
As she approaches forty, Katya Geller tries to make sense of her childhood in Soviet Russia, her lovers, and her mathematician mother. This is a deeply honest novel written in a playful style, with mathematical and self-help notes from the characters scattered throughout the story.
-
How Clever
My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite
Oyinkan Braithwaite’s sharp novel was nominated for the 2019 Booker Prize and the 2019 Women’s Prize. Korede, her main character, is tasked with cleaning up after her younger, the stops-traffic-beautiful sister Ayoola. And that includes cleaning up her murder scenes—Ayoola has a tendency to stab her boyfriends. How could a plot this wild remain so taut and polished? Braithwaite is a writer to be studied and delighted by.
-
Plot Twist
Goodnight Beautiful by Aimee Molloy
For psychological thriller fans looking to get hooked: Goodnight Beautiful is about an enviable couple who leaves New York City for a quiet town in Upstate New York, where the psychiatrist husband goes missing. But before then, his sessions with patients are overheard through an unexpected vent in his office ceiling.
LOL
Wow, No Thank You by Samantha Irby
Samantha Irby is a treasure, and her latest collection of essays is funny and freeing. Her take—on skin-care routines, avoiding nights out, Hollywood, mental health at midlife, and the idiosyncrasies of American culture—is most welcome.
Quirky
Divide Me by Zero by Lara Vapnyar
As she approaches forty, Katya Geller tries to make sense of her childhood in Soviet Russia, her lovers, and her mathematician mother. This is a deeply honest novel written in a playful style, with mathematical and self-help notes from the characters scattered throughout the story.
How Clever
My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite
Oyinkan Braithwaite’s sharp novel was nominated for the 2019 Booker Prize and the 2019 Women’s Prize. Korede, her main character, is tasked with cleaning up after her younger, the stops-traffic-beautiful sister Ayoola. And that includes cleaning up her murder scenes—Ayoola has a tendency to stab her boyfriends. How could a plot this wild remain so taut and polished? Braithwaite is a writer to be studied and delighted by.
Plot Twist
Goodnight Beautiful by Aimee Molloy
For psychological thriller fans looking to get hooked: Goodnight Beautiful is about an enviable couple who leaves New York City for a quiet town in Upstate New York, where the psychiatrist husband goes missing. But before then, his sessions with patients are overheard through an unexpected vent in his office ceiling.
We hope you enjoy the books recommended here. Our goal is to suggest only things we love and think you might, as well. We also like transparency, so, full disclosure: We may collect a share of sales or other compensation if you purchase through the external links on this page.
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