How many winning books from the 2018 Goodreads Choice Awards have you read?
The results of the 10th annual Goodreads Choice Awards are here, and the people have spoken. Readers cast over 5 million votes—up from almost 4 million votes cast in the 2017 Goodreads Choice Awards. Winning is a special honor for authors because these are the only major book awards decided by readers.
This year there were 21 categories ranging from historical fiction to humor, science fiction to fantasy, and everything in between. Two new categories were added this year: Best Debut Author and Best of the Best, a special category honoring the awards’ 10th anniversary. Best of the Best gave voters the chance to pick one standout favorite from all previous 170 winners.
As you scan through the winners, you might wonder, Wait. Didn’t Tiffany Haddish’s hilarous memoir come out last year? Shouldn’t she have been recognized in 2017, not 2018? Her book did hit shelves in December 2017, but she missed last year’s cutoff by a few weeks. According to the rules, books eligible for the 2018 Goodreads Choice Awards were published in the U.S. between November 16th, 2017 and November 15th, 2018. This also means that anything published from November 16th, 2018 and on will be eligible for next year’s awards. Them’s the rules.
More than anything, we’re thrilled to see so many women and authors of color represented among the finalists and winners. If you’re looking for some new books to read (or gift) over the holidays, consider this list your guide. How many winning titles from the 2018 Goodreads Choice Awards have you read?
Best Fiction: Still Me by Jojo Moyes
Runner-up: An American Marriage by Tayari Jones
Best Mystery & Thriller: The Outsider by Stephen King
Runner-up: The Woman in the Window by A.J. Finn
Best Historical Fiction: The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah
Runner-up: The Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris
Best Fantasy: Circe by Madeline Miller
Runner-up: The Shape of Water by Guillermo del Toro and Daniel Kraus
Best of the Best: The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
Runner-up: All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
Best Romance: The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang
Runner-up: All Your Perfects by Colleen Hoover
Best Science Fiction: Vengeful by V.E. Schwab
Runner-up: Iron Gold by Pierce Brown
Best Horror: Elevation by Stephen King
Runner-up: Baby Teeth by Zoje Stage
Best Humor: The Last Black Unicorn by Tiffany Haddish
Runner-up: Calypso by David Sedaris
Best Nonfiction: I’ll Be Gone in the Dark: One Woman’s Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer by Michelle McNamara
Runner-up: Girl, Wash Your Face by Rachel Hollis
Best Memoir & Autobiography: Educated by Tara Westover
Runner-up: Becoming by Michelle Obama
Best History & Biography: The Good Neighbor: The Life and Work of Fred Rogers by Maxwell King
Runner-up: Robin by Dave Itzkoff
Best Science & Technology: The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs: A New History of a Lost World by Steve Brusatte
Runner-up: Brief Answers to the Big Questions by Stephen Hawking
Best Food & Cookbooks: Cravings: Hungry for More by Chrissy Teigen
Runner-up: Magnolia Table by Joanna Gaines
Best Graphic Novels & Comics: Herding Cats by Sarah Andersen
Runner-up: Little Moments of Love by Catana Chetwynd
Best Poetry: The Witch Doesn’t Burn in This One by Amanda Lovelace
Runner-up: The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo
Best Debut Author: Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi
Runner-up: The Woman in the Window by A.J. Finn
Best Young Adult Fiction: Leah on the Offbeat by Becky Albertalli
Runner-up: Sadie by Courtney Summers
Best Young Adult Fantasy: Kingdom of Ash by Sarah J. Maas
Runner-up: Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi
Best Middle Grade & Children’s: The Burning Maze by Rick Riordan
Runner-up: City of Ghosts by Victoria Schwab
Best Picture Books: I Am Enough by Grace Byers
Runner-up: A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo by Marlon Bundo with Jill Twiss
