We’re only a few years into the 2020s, yet the decade has already delivered an incredible number of unforgettable books. From viral BookTok sensations to literary standouts, this era of reading has been anything but quiet. That’s why Goodreads has already taken on the ambitious task of highlighting the 40 must read books of the 2020s so far and the list is packed with must-read titles.

Yes, we know, it’s still early. The decade isn’t even halfway over. But the sheer volume of standout novels across every genre makes now the perfect moment to celebrate the books that have already left a mark. Some of these titles may eventually be overshadowed by future releases, which makes appreciating them now even more important.

And when it comes to trusted book recommendations, there’s no better place to turn than Goodreads. With the largest reading community in the world, Goodreads has become a go-to source for discovering what readers truly love. While this list may look very different by the time the decade wraps up, these are the books defining the 2020s right now.

Below, you’ll find Goodreads picks, followed by highlights from some of the most talked-about books on the list.

Goodreads 40 Must Read Books of the 2020’s

The Midnight Library

The Midnight Library by Matt Haig
The Midnight Library

Matt Haig’s The Midnight Library is one of those novels that can make you think differently about your own life long after you finish reading it. Published in 2020, the novel became a massive bestseller and remains one of the most recognizable books of the decade.

At the center of the story is Nora Seed, a woman overwhelmed by regret and convinced that her life has gone wrong. She suddenly finds herself in a mysterious library located between life and death. Every book on its shelves represents a different version of the life she could have lived if she had made different choices.

Nora gets the opportunity to step into these alternate lives and discover what might have happened if she had pursued another career, stayed in a relationship, moved somewhere new, or followed a completely different path.

At first, the possibility seems incredible. Who wouldn’t want the chance to correct their biggest regrets?

But Nora quickly discovers that even the lives that look perfect from the outside come with problems of their own.

That is what makes The Midnight Library so effective. Haig takes a fascinating fantasy concept and uses it to explore regret, happiness, depression, relationships, and the pressure we place on ourselves to live the “right” life.

The novel’s message is simple but powerful: we rarely know what would have happened if we had made a different choice, and constantly imagining a better alternate life can prevent us from appreciating the one we actually have.

Readers who enjoy emotional novels with philosophical ideas and a touch of speculative fiction will find plenty to appreciate here. The Midnight Library is ultimately a hopeful story about learning to accept your choices and recognizing that even an imperfect life can still contain extraordinary possibilities.

I’m Glad My Mom Died

ICarly star Jennette McCurdy's book
I’m Glad my Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy

Few memoir titles from the 2020s have generated as much immediate attention as I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy. The title is deliberately shocking, but readers quickly discover that there is much more behind it than controversy.

McCurdy, best known for starring in Nickelodeon’s iCarly and Sam & Cat, gives readers an unfiltered look at her childhood, acting career, complicated relationship with her mother, and eventual decision to leave acting behind.

Her mother dreamed of Jennette becoming famous, even though acting was never truly Jennette’s dream.

As a child, she learned to associate success with making her mother happy. That pressure shaped nearly every part of her life, from her acting career to her relationship with food and her understanding of her own identity.

What makes I’m Glad My Mom Died such a powerful memoir is McCurdy’s willingness to examine painful experiences without losing her sense of humor. Some moments are heartbreaking, while others are surprisingly funny, and that balance makes the book difficult to put down.

McCurdy also explores what happens when someone finally begins questioning the version of life they have been taught to accept.

For years, she believed she needed to satisfy her mother’s expectations. Slowly, she begins realizing that creating a life of her own may require walking away from those expectations entirely.

The result is one of the most memorable celebrity memoirs of recent years.

Readers do not need to have watched iCarly to appreciate the book. At its heart, I’m Glad My Mom Died is about control, family, fame, grief, identity, and the difficult process of learning how to live for yourself.

Fourth Wing

Fourth Wing
Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros

Few fantasy novels have exploded in popularity as quickly as Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros.

Since its release in 2023, the first installment in the Empyrean series has become one of the defining books of the romantasy boom, attracting fantasy readers, romance fans, and countless new readers drawn in by its dragons, dangerous competitions, and addictive relationships.

The novel follows Violet Sorrengail, a young woman who spent most of her life preparing to become a scribe.

Instead, her commanding mother forces her to enter the brutal Riders Quadrant at Basgiath War College, where candidates train to become dragon riders.

There is only one problem: Violet is physically smaller and more fragile than many of the other cadets.

At Basgiath, weakness can get you killed.

Violet must survive deadly training exercises, rival students, dangerous dragons, and a military system where competitors are sometimes more interested in eliminating one another than working together.

Then there is Xaden Riorson, one of the most powerful and intimidating riders at the school—and someone Violet has every reason not to trust.

Yarros combines fantasy, romance, military-school competition, political intrigue, and dragons into an extremely fast-paced story. That combination helped turn Fourth Wing into a publishing phenomenon and made the Empyrean series one of the biggest fantasy franchises of the decade.

The novel may appeal especially to readers who enjoyed books such as The Hunger Games, Divergent, or fantasy stories built around magical academies and competitive training environments.

But the biggest attraction is unquestionably the dragons.

They are powerful, unpredictable, intelligent, and central to the world’s magic system. Once the bonding process begins, Violet quickly discovers that surviving Basgiath may depend on far more than physical strength.

Fourth Wing is dramatic, entertaining, romantic, and extremely easy to binge. It is easy to understand why so many readers have become obsessed with the series.

Mexican Gothic

Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia gothic horror novel book review
Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia book review

Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia is one of the most atmospheric horror novels of the 2020s and a perfect example of how classic Gothic fiction can be reinvented for a modern audience.

The story follows Noemí Taboada, a glamorous and outspoken young woman living in 1950s Mexico City.

Her life changes when her family receives a disturbing letter from her cousin Catalina, who recently married into the mysterious Doyle family. Catalina claims that her husband may be poisoning her and desperately asks for help.

Noemí travels to the family’s isolated mansion, High Place, located near the small mountain town of El Triunfo.

Almost immediately, something feels wrong.

The house is cold, decaying, and strangely oppressive. The Doyle family follows rigid rules, and Noemí is frequently discouraged from asking questions or exploring the property.

Then the dreams begin.

As Noemí investigates Catalina’s condition, she starts uncovering disturbing secrets about High Place and the family that has controlled it for generations.

Moreno-Garcia excels at atmosphere. The mansion almost feels like another character, filled with fog, mold, darkness, strange noises, and a growing sense that something terrible is hiding beneath its walls.

But Mexican Gothic is more than a haunted-house story.

The novel explores colonialism, race, class, exploitation, eugenics, and the way powerful families attempt to preserve their influence across generations.

Noemí is also an excellent protagonist. She is intelligent, fashionable, stubborn, and unwilling to simply accept the explanations she is given.

As the mystery becomes increasingly bizarre, she must decide whom she can trust and whether escaping High Place is even possible.

For readers who enjoy Gothic horror, unsettling mysteries, isolated mansions, and stories packed with dark family secrets, Mexican Gothic is an easy recommendation.

Babel

Book cover of 'Babel: An Arcane History' by R.F. Kuang, featuring an intricate illustration of a tower and birds in flight
Babel

R. F. Kuang has established herself as one of the most ambitious voices in modern speculative fiction, and Babel: Or the Necessity of Violence may be her most intellectually fascinating novel.

Published in 2022, Babel blends historical fantasy, dark academia, linguistics, colonialism, and political conflict into a story unlike almost anything else in contemporary fantasy.

The novel follows Robin Swift, an orphan from Canton who is brought to England by the mysterious Professor Lovell.

Robin spends years studying languages, particularly Latin and Ancient Greek, in preparation for admission to Oxford University’s prestigious Royal Institute of Translation, commonly known as Babel.

But Babel is not simply a school for translators.

In Kuang’s alternate version of history, the British Empire has built much of its power around silver-working, a magical system that uses differences in meaning between translated words to create supernatural effects.

Translation is therefore much more than an academic discipline. It is one of the foundations of Britain’s economic and political power.

Robin initially sees Oxford as an extraordinary opportunity. He finds friendship, intellectual freedom, and access to knowledge he could never have imagined as a child.

But the more he learns, the harder it becomes to ignore an uncomfortable reality.

The institution that has given him everything is also helping Britain exploit countries like the one he came from.

That conflict becomes increasingly important as tensions rise between Britain and China.

Robin is ultimately forced to confront a devastating question: can he continue benefiting from an institution that contributes to the oppression of his own people?

Kuang uses fantasy to explore colonialism, language, translation, privilege, resistance, and the relationship between education and political power.

One of the most impressive aspects of Babel is the role language itself plays in the story. Etymology, translation, and differences between words are not simply background details, they are essential to the novel’s world building and magic system.

That makes the book unusually rewarding for readers interested in languages, history, academia, and political fantasy.

The novel can be dense at times, but that ambition is also what makes it memorable.

Babel is not merely a fantasy adventure set at Oxford. It is a novel interested in asking difficult questions about who benefits from powerful institutions, what people owe to the cultures they came from, and whether meaningful change is possible without confronting the systems responsible for injustice.

For fans of dark academia and thought-provoking fantasy, Babel is one of the standout novels of the decade.

Conclusion

That is at Goodreads 14 best books of the 2020’s list. I think is is a phenomenal list and one I will keep revisiting for book recommendations. This list has a variety of books from all genres that most book lovers will be a fan of.

How many of these books have you read or plan to read? I have read a bunch of these books and will keep reading more in the coming months. With so much positive reviews, I know these books will live up to my expectations. Until next time, happy reading!

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