The 2020’s have been an amazing decade for books so far and we aren’t even halfway through. And with so many amazing novels released in this decade, we decided to look at the best books of the 2020’s according to Goodreads. Keep reading to find out Goodread’s 50 best books of the 2020’s!
You may be wonder that this list is too early and we would nornally agree with you. But we didn’t want to wait 6 more years to see this list With the amount of amazing books that have already been released, we knew this list would be amazing.
And from what we see from this list, that is exactly what happened. Goodread’s list is a pretty solid and one I would recommend to book lovers that want to read new releases. This list will look different once the 2020’s have come and gone. But do expect a lot of these books to still make an appearance.

Looking at these books gives us a good idea of what is trending now and what people are reading. Finding new books to read an be a challenge for many. Hopefullt this list makes it a little easier. You can see the full list below!
Goodreads 50 Best Books of the 2020’s
- The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab
- The House in the Cerulean Sea (The House in the Cerulean Sea, #1) by T.J. Klune
- The Midnight Library by Matt Haig
- Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
- The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett
- Piranesi by Susanna Clarke
- My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell
- House of Earth and Blood (Crescent City, #1) by Sarah J. Maas
- I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy
- The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (The Hunger Games, #0) by Suzanne Collins
- Beach Read by Emily Henry
- A Court of Silver Flames (A Court of Thorns and Roses, #4) by Sarah J. Maas
- The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood
- Fourth Wing (The Empyrean, #1) by Rebecca Yarros
- Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus
- Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid
- American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins
- The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah
- The Inheritance Games (The Inheritance Games, #1) by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
- Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin
- The Guest List by Lucy Foley
- Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
- Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell
- Babel by R.F. Kuang
- A Deadly Education (The Scholomance, #1) by Naomi Novik
- House of Sky and Breath (Crescent City, #2) by Sarah J. Maas
- Under the Whispering Door by T.J. Klune
- Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson
- Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro
- The Thursday Murder Club (Thursday Murder Club, #1) by Richard Osman
- Heartstopper: Volume Three (Heartstopper, #3) by Alice Oseman
- Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner
- Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel
- Book Lovers by Emily Henry
- Network Effect (The Murderbot Diaries, #5) by Martha Wells
- One of Us Is Next (One of Us Is Lying, #2) by Karen M. McManus
- Loveless by Alice Oseman
- From Blood and Ash (Blood and Ash, #1) by Jennifer L. Armentrout
- Carrie Soto Is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid
- Bell Hammers by Lancelot Schaubert
- Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt
- The Glass Hotel by Emily St. John Mandel
- People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry
- Chain of Gold (The Last Hours, #1) by Cassandra Clare
- Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi
- Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart
- Untamed by Glennon Doyle
- A Promised Land by Barack Obama
- Heartstopper: Volume Four (Heartstopper, #4) by Alice Oseman
- Writers & Lovers by Lily King
The House in the Cerulean Sea

I decided to read The House in the Cerulean Sea because it has a beautiful book cover. But when I started reading it, I fell in love with the fantasy world that Klune creates. The characters are interesting and they come to life with Klune’s descriptions. The family bonds and the pursuit of happiness are on ull display in these novel.
The Midnight Library

The Midnight Library by Matt Haig is a beautiful and well written story about coming to terms with your choices. It came out in 2022 and made several end-of-year lists for good reason. It is about regrets and how small choices can have a big impact on your life. The protagonist gets to live various lives, trying to find the one that will truly make her happy.
I’m Glad My Mom Died
As someone who doesn’t read nonfiction books much, I do find myself reading a few because of great reveiws. That is why I ended up reading I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy and after reading it, I can understand the title of the memoir. McCurdy opens up about being forced to become a child actor and pleasing her mom even by always doing what she wanted. This is a story that will reshape how you think of child actors and that you never really know someone’s story.
Fourth Wing

Violet is a 20-year-girl who is forced to enter the Rider Quadrant even though she was supposed to become a scribe. Now, she has to survive against all odds in the war college and become a dragon rider as other contestants try to kill her. This novel has taken the literary world by surprise and already has a large following in less than a year.
Babel
Babel is a historical fiction and fantasy novel by R.F. Huang that takes readers back to the 1800s. Robin Swift is an orphan from Canton and is raised by Professor Lovell who trains Robin in Latin, Ancient Greek, and Chinese in preparation of enrolling to Oxford University’s Royal Institute of Translation, which is also known as Babel.
Conclusion
These are Goodread’s 50 best books of the 2020’s list. How many of these books have you read or plan to read? I have read some of these book and will be checking out a few more of these books in the near future. Happy reading!
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I haven’t read many of these. Oh my. I loved “House by the Cerulean Sea,” and I have “Fourth Wing” on my Kindle. Thanks for the list.
I’ve read just about 50% of this list and I’ve liked the books I read…however, aside from a few of the titles I don’t think they are close to being the best books…
I just don’t get Goodreads.