Top Ten Tuesday: New-to-Me Authors I Discovered in 2023

Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah

First of all, his debut novel is one of the best things I’ve read in years—it’s intentionally controversial, will push buttons for every reader (not necessarily the same ones)—both those you want pushed and those you don’t—painstakingly researched, and incredibly entertaining.

He was almost certainly going to be on this list just from the work, but then I attended a “conversation with” the author and a reading—and the amount of work he put into the book (even if he was exaggerating for effect occasionally), blew me away. I’m not saying “he worked really hard so I like him.” It was the way he described the work, his approach to the craft that added to my appreciation of the results. Also, his ability in person to be silly and serious in a brief period of time was great. I liked both him (even if we’d disagree on many things—not that I’d care to debate him, he’d wipe the floor with me without trying) and his work.

In case you’re curious about what I said about the book that put him on this list, click here.

Mark Billingham

I’ve heard I don’t know how many interviews with Billingham on various podcasts—both those where he was a guest and those where he was a host—but it wasn’t until this new series that I finally got around to actually reading him. It took me no time at all to see why people kept putting a microphone in front of him. His work is distinctive, careful, and all-around great. He knows how to tell a story, how to draw you in, and populates the work with characters drawn so sharply that they’ll linger in your mind for a long time. I was pretty sure I was missing out before, now I know.

Bruce Borgos

Borgos reads like a guy who’s been pumping out thrillers and mysteries for years (and who knows, maybe he has without bothering to publish them). His debut is so confident that you have to take notice. He’s able to immerse you in two complex plots and make you root for people who ought to be “the bad guy.” His debut was FX’s The Americans + Johnson’s Walt Longmire books—leaving you with a great sense of place and a better understanding of under-reported history wrapped up in an entertaining ride—anyone who can pull that off is someone to keep an eye on.

In case you’re curious about what I said about the book that put him on this list, click here.

I hadn’t played RPGs in years (okay, fine, decades), but Ewington made me want to again with his celebration and send-up of character types, tropes, settings, etc. But it’s also a crafty little novel that sneaks a plot and character development in without you noticing because you’re too busy giggling. The Hero Interviews was an atypical novel from a clearly atypical mind—and one I look forward to encountering again.

Being a friendly and generous guy—and you’ve seen some of his generosity in his participation with various things here last year—doesn’t hurt, either.

In case you’re curious about what I said about the book that put him on this list, click here.

Adam Holcombe

There’s no way you look at the title and/or cover of Holcombe’s debut novella and think “ho-hum, this again.” You also probably get curious about the contents—which turn out to be as cozy and warm as they are dark. A neat trick to pull off—between his magic system, his protagonists, and his style, Holcombe quickly became an author I’m stalking*.

* in the nicest, most respectful, least creepy way.

In case you’re curious about what I said about the works that put him on this list, click here.

Ausma Zehanat Khan

Khan’s new series (and I really should go plunder her backlist) takes on our cultural discussion of policing (over and under) and shoves it into a police procedural that would be worth the read even without the socio-political commentary (that’s delivered in a way that even some who are skeptical can enjoy). When you combine the commentary and the storylines? It’s a fantastic combination and the skill shown in balancing the two—plus some personal storylines for the lead characters—tells me that Khan is someone that I’ll be reading for years to come.

In case you’re curious about what I said about the book that put her on this list, click here

Quenby Olson

I both read and listened to Olson’s Miss Percy’s Pocket Guide (to the Care and Feeding of British Dragons) and somehow haven’t written a post about it. It boggles my mind that it’s possible. Her style—forget whatever story she’s telling—is the kind that I can read or listen to for hours without wanting to stop. It’s comfortable, strange, universal, and charming—she never uses one word when she can find a dozen to use instead—and it (almost) never makes me impatient. In the hands of practically any other author that I can think of, that would result in a quick DNF with prejudice from me. But Olson draws me in instead. I’ll save the discussion of the book (sure, now I start to think of ways to talk about it) and leave it there—I want more of her style. Thankfully, it’s available.

H.B. O’Neill

Something tells me that O’Neill’s approach to writing (down to the syllable) is very similar to Adjei-Brenyah’s, and the results are similarly outstanding. The number of things this man made me feel in a few pages…I can’t even begin to tell you. The voice of his first novel, the characters, even the premise…all of these tell you that you’re not reading your typical novelist (definitely not someone the big publisher would want to touch)—but it’s the way he delivers these, the prose style, the pacing, the poetry of the whole kit and kaboodle, that really makes you stand up and pay attention to him.

I’d love to point you to what I said about the book that put him on this list, but you can’t until Friday. You should click here then for that.

Amy Maren Rice

Rice’s MG/younger-YA novel hits all the points that the 10-13-year-old in me wants to see. You’ve got mystery, tension, some heartwarming family moments (and understandable sibling conflict), and magic—plus silly humor, a healthy amount of which is flatulence-based. I really can’t think of a book better designed for that age group. The execution is pretty solid, too. How this doesn’t make fans out of anyone in the target audience, habitual reader or not is beyond me.

Also, she’s one of the nicest people you could meet. I walked away from meeting her at a local event excited to see what kind of book someone like her would produce—and I was pretty close to being right. It was playful, imaginative, and silly in all the right ways—while heartfelt and compelling. I’ve run into her a couple of times since then, and look forward to doing so again almost as much as I do for the sequel to her book.

In case you’re curious about what I said about the books that put her on this list, click here.

Jesse Q. Sutanto

If you take a quick glance at Sutanto’s backlist, you’ll think “not for HC.” At least, I did—even if they looked promising. But the premise of Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers—heck, just the title—pulled me in. Like Olson, her narrative voice alone is enough to keep me going. But it’s her characters, the way she brings them to life—particularly the titular Vera—that put her on this list. Seriously, I’d read just a mealtime conversation with some/all of the core characters in this book, I really don’t need a plot (incidentally, Ms. Sutanto, there’s a quick way to pull in some Patreon dollars—one of those a month would get you a healthy number of subscriptions).

In case you’re curious about what I said about his work that put her on this list, click here.