The 24 hottest debuts of 2023 so far

From the moment I first dove into this listen, I knew that Wade in the Water would deliver a story just as mesmerizing as its gorgeous cover. Offering imagery to swoon for chapter after chapter, Nyani Nkrumah’s poignant debut paints a vivid portrait of life on both sides of the tracks in a small town in rural Mississippi, along with the rampant colorism that permeates its stark racial divide. I absolutely adored listening to narrators Eboni Flowers and Teri Schnaubelt, who complement each other beautifully and bring each and every character across this community-driven novel to life with clarity and nuance. Like the spiritual for which it is named, this story will echo in your ears long after its conclusion. —Haley H.

This brilliant debut novel has it all: a central mystery and a bloody trail of vengeance, a vivid setting in a gossipy Indian village, and a cast of inventive characters so acerbic you won’t be surprised to learn the writer was inspired by The Golden Girls (as well as India’s real-life bandit queen, Phoolan Devi). Purred to perfection by Soneela Nankani, The Bandit Queens follows Geeta, whose questionable reputation for killing her husband inspires other wives to enlist her help disposing of their own … problems. “We are facilitators of karma,” says Sonali, Geeta’s scene-stealing frenemy and partner in crime. The novel explores serious themes of misogyny, domestic abuse, and the brutality of the caste system with a deft, unorthodox touch that’s part comic relief and all human. —Kat J.

Jessica George’s flawless debut explores a young British Ghanaian woman grappling with delayed adulthood and the burden of family secrets. Maddie Wright has earned the nickname Maame (“the responsible one”) by taking care of her Parkinson’s-afflicted father while her mother stays in Ghana and her brother James lives his life unbothered. Her mother’s return signals Maddie to move out, but her awkward steps toward newfound independence lead to new hurts and complicated truths. Heather Agyepong voices Maddie with the perfect mix of sharpness and vulnerability, making Maddie’s blossoming a delight to listen to—my heart hurts when hers breaks, and I can’t help but cheer alongside her moments of triumph and joy. —Margaret H.

From the moment I hit play on Really Good, Actually I was struck by the “realness” of Maggie’s voice, the central character in this tender and bittersweet comedy. My immediate thought was, “I know this woman,” and it wasn’t just hearing the familiar voice of narrator Julia Whelan (who is true Audible royalty). I can see why Julia was drawn to this role—I can just imagine how much fun she had in the recording booth! And I’m all in for a story told via the hilarious, revealing, and life-affirming internal voice of a character who feels like a friend. It’s an amazing first novel, and I can’t wait to hear what Monica Heisey comes up with next. —Tricia F.

I am all about a listen where I feel immersed into the story, and the slow buildup in Julia Bartz’s debut novel, The Writing Retreat, did just that. Alex and Wren are former best friends who had a bad falling out. When their favorite horror novelist, Roza Vallo, announces that she will be hosting an exclusive writing retreat, they’re both dying to attend—and are ultimately invited. What ensues next is chaos. From the one-month deadline to write a complete novel, to Roza’s strange behavior and the disappearance of a fellow writer, The Writing Retreat had me on the edge of my seat and I couldn’t wait to see what would happen, or when the next twist would be. Bartz has a stunning and impressive debut, which has left me, headphones in hand, waiting and wanting to listen to her next novel. —Patty R.

Argentine author Mariana Enriquez has been on a stratospheric trajectory ever since her breakout English-language short story collections, Things We Lost in the Fire and The Dangers of Smoking in Bed. Our Share of Night, her first full-length novel to be translated into English, brings her stunning perspective to a brand new audience, and is without a doubt one of this year’s best listens so far. Enriquez weaves a supernatural tale about a father who will stop at nothing to prevent his son’s unfortunate destiny. The backdrop of Argentina’s military dictatorship years, when as many as 30,000 people were killed or disappeared, just adds more to the intense storytelling. Sure, Our Share of Night at 27 hours is a demanding listen (and well worth a credit!), but Enriquez’s narrative grips the listener from the first few moments and doesn’t let go. Listeners, we have a classic here! — Edwin D.

A friend mentioned this listen to me after hearing I had devoured My Dark Vanessa. While the two share similarities, this debut from Daisy Alpert Florin resonated with me even more. Poverty, grief, and the complexity of consent are the main themes for this coming-of-age listen. Set at the peak of the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal, we follow Isabel, a Jewish senior in college who experiences a series of events including a nonconsensual sexual encounter with a person she considered a friend, and an affair with a married professor, which leaves her not only realizing what it means to be a woman in this society, but weighing the differences between right and wrong. With little help from the adults around her, Isabel concludes that life is messy, and everyone is trying to figure it out just as much as she is. Sarah Bierstock's narration is perfect for this story of grit, determination, and self-acceptance. —Patty R.

I’ll be honest, even though it’s been almost three years, I’m still battling my pandemic-induced listening rut. It’s not that I don’t listen anymore, it’s that without all the time I spent listening on-the-go in the “before times,” I’ve had to be a lot more precious with how I choose my listens. But let me tell you, halfway through reading the description of this one, I was all in. What Happened to Ruthy Ramirez is a story about family and the generational trauma one is forced to carry throughout life. Add in that bit of suspense evident in the title and you have a listen that’ll grab you from the jump, and may just be one of your favorites of the year. —Aaron S.

I know that Kashana Cauley had a good time writing this book because I had a good time listening to it. Aretha, her main character, lives in one of the Brooklyn neighborhoods I grew up in. I also know the halal truck on Sixth Avenue near where Aretha mentions. Its aromas were swirling in my head. Cauley’s storytelling made it easy for me to just crawl into this listen and hang out with her words, observations, and characters (including the optimized-soy-protein-eating, bunker-building roommates who give The Survivalists its title). That the uber-talented uber-narrator Bhani Turpin was onboard must have been a dream come true for this debut novelist—make that a coup. I have only one thing to ask of Kashana Cauley: more, more, more! —Yvonne D.

The Lower East Side is back, baby, equipped with every eccentricity Slate editor Dan Kois captures so perfectly in his debut novel. As I listened, I relished every chance I found to follow in the footsteps of Eileen Stevens’s compelling performance, which led me to Ukrainian eatery Veselka, Tompkins Square Park, and past street corners that I have almost certainly crossed in audiobooks before. Still, I quickly fell in love with the many routes this story takes to prove that existing in perpetual motion often correlates to a life lived in the right time and place. Vintage Contemporaries—a reference itself to the influential publishing series that highlights emerging writers alongside the greats—is a heartfelt ode to the storytellers who endlessly draw inspiration from New York City’s ambiguities. —Haley H.

The 2021 winner of the PEN/Bellwether Prize for Socially Engaged Fiction, Jamila Minnicks is a writer to watch. Moonrise Over New Jessup examines the issue of segregation versus integration from the perspective of a fictional all-Black town in 1957 Alabama. At the center of the story is Alice Young, who flees her hometown, getting on a bus with dreams of finding her sister in Chicago. But when the bus makes a stop in New Jessup, Alice never gets back on. She is in a Black-only town, founded by freed slaves many years before. Through its lyrical prose, the story reveals a fascinating history through the eyes of an unforgettable central character, so warmly portrayed by narrator Karen Chilton. —Tricia F.

Combine a pinch of Agatha Christie, a dash of The Great British Baking Show, and a heaping measure of intrigue, and voilà, you’ve got The Golden Spoon, a truly tasty mystery with a cozy flair and vibrant cast of cooking show contestants-turned-suspects. Eyebrows begin to raise when the normally congenial competition grows cutthroat. And when the sabotage escalates from ingredient and burner subterfuge to murder, neither host nor home baker is above suspicion. This fun, single-setting debut really shines in audio, with a full cast of talent bringing the perspective of each dynamic personality to life, be it obsessive mathematician Gerald, apathetic billionaire Pradyumna, or Bake Week’s longtime host, Betsy Martin, who isn’t quite as sugar-and-spice as her public persona proclaims. —Alanna M.

Confession: I sometimes judge a book by its cover. And thankfully for me, the story of The Davenports is every bit as beautiful as the cover promises. Krystal Marquis’s debut novel, which began on a dare during National Novel Writing Month, is based on the real-life story of the Patterson family in early 20th century America. The Davenports are a beautiful and wealthy Black family living in high society in Chicago, where their daughters (and their friends) are gearing up for a new social season with the hopes of finding a match. Joniece Abbott-Pratt’s performance invites the listener in to this little-known piece of our nation’s history, and while yes, this is a romance, I was equally swept up in the historical detail and politics of the time. And I’m thrilled that The Davenports actually kicks off a series—which means we’ll be hearing more from Marquis in the years to come. —Katie O.

Eleanor Shearer puts a human face on one of the most enduring horrors of slavery in her stirring debut, River Sing Me Home. Former slave Rachel has had five children torn away from her and sold, never to be heard from again. After escaping from a Barbados sugar plantation, she sets out across the Caribbean to find her missing children, encountering a cast of characters who help with her search. Narrator Debra Michaels gives Rachel and each person she meets their own distinct voice, creating a harmony of authentic accents with singsongy lilts that was music to my ears. —Margaret H.

Lending fresh, Indigenous perspective to a genre that so often relies upon its characters to trust their intuition, Jessica Johns illuminates the wisdom that thrives where dreams begin and reality (supposedly) ends throughout Bad Cree, which opens up to a chilling scene. From the moment Mackenzie first finds the crow’s skull from her nightmares staring back at her, she knows it can only mean one thing. She must return to the family she left behind, and face her mother’s pointed wake-up call: In their culture, “you aren’t ravens, you are crows,” meaning “you travel together everywhere.” Still, as narrator Tanis Parenteau (of Plains Cree descent) reveals throughout her tender performance, the realities of processing grief are rarely so straightforward. —Haley H.

The premise alone of this debut novel sets my nerves on fire: a society where those who have committed crimes are sentenced to a second shadow—a looming reminder of their misdeeds. Marisa Crane’s poetic prose is sharp and sardonic, and it elevates this dystopian vision into a meditation on grief, parenthood, queerness, and justice. As a new(ish) parent who could not have survived those first few months without a partner, I was shaken; as a person living in an always-connected world, I was terrified; and as a listener, I was captivated. —Sam D.

For those of us who worked in the burgeoning tech industry of the 2010s, Josh Riedel’s debut novel, Please Report Your Bug Here, hits almost a little too close to home. The story follows burnt-out, debt-burdened elder-millennial Ethan Block (performed by the hyper-listenable Torian Brackett) as he violates his legally binding non-disclosure agreement to share his traumatizing experience working as a content reviewer for a new app called “DateDate.” Riedel’s timely prose captures the emotional rollercoaster of joining a promising new venture—and spotting more bugs than you can handle. At its core, this workplace thriller with an eerie sci-fi twist illuminates the value of humanity in a digital world. —Rachael X.

I am not a fan of reality dating shows—I am, however, a fan of layered novels and darkly comic coming-of-age stories. After listening to Julia Argy’s debut novel, The One, I’m wondering if I need to re-evaluate my relationship with dating shows. On the heels of losing her admin job, Emily is approached by casting assistant Miranda and asked to appear on a Bachelor-esque style TV show that she’s never seen before. Once on set, and at the hands of her producer, Emily finds herself reiterating lines and views that do not reflect her as a person—there’s just one problem though: Emily doesn’t know who she really is. Argy’s use of dual POVs paired with insanely detailed descriptions and insights on reality show friendships, politics, business, ageism, and work/life balance have left me rooting to see more work from this fellow Massachusetts native. —Patty R.

A curse may threaten the lives of the men whom the Montrose women develop romantic feelings for, but this is one freshly brewed debut that is easy to fall in love with. For some time now, the literary world has continuously blessed us with an abundance of witchy listens, and with Black Candle Women entering the mix, I believe 2023 will be the brightest year yet for this thriving magical microgenre. Having grown up not too far from Salem, Massachusetts myself, I cannot wait to discover the occult through the distinctly vibrant lens of Diane Marie Brown’s New Orleans-rooted novel, which conjures an enchanting portrait of the powers that arise when a woman manifests her deepest desires. —Haley H.

I first fell in love with Emily Tesh’s writing in an MFA class on sci-fi & fantasy novellas. We were assigned her short story “Silver in the Wood,” and I was spellbound by not only the lovely prose, but her achingly beautiful depiction of queer love and longing. To hear she is publishing her first full-length novel—nay, not just her first novel, but a queer space opera—practically made me swoon. I cannot wait to enter the rich world she imagines through the voice of Sena Bryer—who is not a debut narrator, but a new talent who I am very excited to hear more from after her work on Charlie Jane Anders’s Unstoppable series. —Sam D.

For as long as we’ve been telling stories, coming-of-age narratives have endured, ubiquitous and universally compelling. After all, we’ve all felt that push-and-pull of adolescence and adulthood and the pressure of crafting an identity wholly our own. It’s a journey of longing and self-determination, yes, but also one of immense anxiety and overwhelming dread. In this cutting, deliciously disturbing debut, Jade Song (she/they) crafts a work that melds body horror with that desperate yearning for transformation and freedom. Their writing style is atmospheric and visceral as they unfold the story of Ren, a competitive swimmer burdened by expectations, who seeks a metamorphosis of a different kind. As feverish as it is dazzling, radiant as it is twisted, Song’s storytelling is a thing of magic. —Alanna M.

Made all the more thrilling by its propulsive audio editing, Maria Dong’s edgy debut is nothing short of an exhilarating listen. Liar, Dreamer, Thief begins with a crackling recording of what sounds an awful lot to me like a stalker’s confession (even if protagonist Katrina Kim tries to convince us otherwise). Moments later, however, her testimony is interrupted by music so sinister it could inspire television’s next best murder mystery, promptly followed by a record scratch. Through every twist and turn that followed, I couldn’t help myself from listening obsessively. On the other hand, what ultimately made me fall in love with this novel is its sensitive approach to humanizing the less understood symptoms of certain mental illnesses. —Haley H.

At first listen, I was not sure how I felt about Audrey, a newly engaged, successful, 27-year-old who takes her white fiancé, Ben, home to suburban Illinois to meet her Chinese immigrant parents for the first time. She’s a little arrogant, but I adore narrator Natalie Naudus, and there was something familiar and “girlfriendy” about Audrey, so I had hope for her. During this trip back to her hometown, Audrey is forced to reconcile her past and present selves, grappling not only with her parents (especially her impossible-to-please mother) and a life she left behind, but with lingering feelings for her high school crush, Kyle. Yes, she comes to a better understanding of her parents, but you’ll want to listen to learn what else happens. —Tricia F.

I have been obsessed with this fantastically feminist debut from the moment I heard its premise, and not just because I’m almost always roped in by stories that feature sea creatures. Julia Langbein’s sharply subversive story follows protagonist Penelope Schleeman, who is an emerging writer herself, as she ventures to Los Angeles to watch Hollywood adapt her own debut novel into a big-budget film. Throughout her experience, however, one thing becomes clear: Mermaids, who have lured many a leering sailor to his watery grave throughout history, will certainly continue to do so during the distinctly modern era of #MeToo movie-making. Brought to life by hilarious prose, American Mermaid brilliantly explores the ability of stories to take on lives of their own once released into the real world. —Haley H.