Top 10 Best Fiction Books of 2015

Dear BookBrowsers

With the holiday season kicking into high gear, we continue our rollout of the most noteworthy books of 2015.

Here, we present the top ten novels, as voted by BookBrowse subscribers like yourself. This, together with the two previously announced lists for non-fiction and young adult books, complete our 2015 BookBrowse Favorites.

Next week we'll reveal the award winners in four classes:

• Best fiction
• Best nonfiction
• Best YA
• Best debut

Check out our reviews and perhaps add some books to your reading and shopping list. Wishing you a season filled with reading!

Your editor,
Davina

The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah Hardcover & ebook Feb 2015. Paperback March 15 2016. 448 pages. Published by St. Martin's Press Thirty BookBrowse members reviewed Kristin Hannah's first foray into historical fiction before it published for our First Impressions program, and they rated it a whopping 4.8 average out of 5 stars. One reviewer summed up the opinion of many saying, "Kristin Hannah has reached a new level with this strong and enduring cast of characters and themes. I would challenge anyone to read The Nightingale and not feel deeply moved by its message. Relevant today and always this story will stay with me a long time. It has my strongest recommendation."  More info including, for a limited time, the full review and backstory

A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara Hardcover & ebook Mar 2015, paperback Jan 26 2016. 736 pages. Published by Doubleday Our reviewer gave A Little Life 5 stars and opened her review saying: "The past is a foreign country. They do things differently there." These memorable opening lines might belong to another brilliant novel (The Go-Between, by L. P. Hartley) but they could well form the essential scaffolding for A Little Life, a wrenching yet illuminating exploration of how child abuse can exert a suffocating grip on adulthood.   More info including, for a limited time, the full review and backstory

Our Souls at Night by Kent Haruf Hardcover & ebook May 2015. 192 pages. Published by Knopf In his sixth and final novel, Haruf returns one last time to the fictional town of Holt, Colorado, the setting for all his books. Haruf died of lung disease late last year before Our Souls at Night was published, but his editor says that he had finished all his revisions, and had even gone through the copy editing. More info

Bull Mountain by Brian Panowich Hardcover & ebook Jul 2015, Paperback June 7 2016. 304 pages. Published by Putnam Books From a remarkable new voice in Southern fiction, a multigenerational saga of crime, family, and vengeance. Our reviewer writes, "Bull Mountain is an absolute winner; I haven't enjoyed a novel this much in years. Readers who can tolerate violent scenes will find a brilliant story and top-notch writing buried under the gore. Highly recommended." More info including, for a limited time, the full review and backstory

When the Moon Is Low: A Novel by Nadia Hashimi Hardcover & ebook Jul 2015. Paperback April 26 2016. 400 pages. Published by William Morrow The Moon is Low is another book that our members discovered ahead of publication through our First Impressions program. As one reviewer wrote: "The unbelievable love, courage and tenacity of being a refugee as well as the smell of fear is all in this book. Yet, it is somehow hopeful. I learned a great deal about so much and enjoyed this book immensely. Somehow every nation must find a way to welcome and support refugees -- they are leaving a hell we can't imagine. More info including, for a limited time, the full review and backstory

Circling the Sun: A Novel by Paula McLain Hardcover & ebook Jul 2015. 384 pages. Published by Ballantine Books. Paula McLain, author of The Paris Wife, now transports readers to colonial Kenya in the 1920s. Circling the Sun brings to life a fearless and captivating woman--Beryl Markham, a record-setting aviator caught up in a passionate love triangle with safari hunter Denys Finch Hatton and Karen Blixen, author of the classic memoir Out of Africa. Once again, this was a book our members discovered ahead of the crowd through First Impressions. To quote one reader: "The writing is flawless – reading this literature is like holding a strand of pearls in your hand – silky smooth and warm." More info including, for a limited time, the full review and backstory

The Nature of the Beast: A Chief Inspector Gamache Novel by Louise Penny Hardcover & ebook Aug 2015. Paperback Jul 26 2016. 416 Pages. Published by Minotaur Books Hardly a day goes by when nine year old Laurent Lepage doesn't cry wolf and his tales are so extraordinary no one can possibly believe him. Including Armand and Reine-Marie Gamache, who now live in the little Quebec village. But when the boy disappears, the villagers are faced with the possibility that one of his tall tales might have been true. Gamache, the former head of homicide for the Sûreté du Québec, must face the possibility that, in not believing the boy, he himself played a terrible part in what happens next. More info

The Marriage of Opposites by Alice Hoffman Hardcover & ebook Aug 2015. Paperback Jul 5 2016. 384 pages. Published by Simon & Schuster A forbidden love story set on the tropical island of St. Thomas, about the extraordinary woman who gave birth to painter Camille Pissarro - the Father of Impressionism. Our reviewer says, "Without a lot of action, the novel is driven by complex and convincing relationships, and reading about the characters' cares and perceptions is quite involving. Much of the story is told in the first person, authentically relaying Rachel's interactions. The author's ability to convey Rachel's voice is a true highlight, particularly in the realistic way the character's tone ages." More info including, for a limited time, the full review and backstory

Did You Ever Have A Family by Bill Clegg Hardcover & ebook Sep 2015. Paperback May 17 2016. 304 pages. Published by Gallery Books Bill Clegg is the bestselling author of the memoirs Portrait of an Addict as a Young Man and Ninety Days. His debut novel is a powerful story about a circle of people who find solace in the least likely of places as they cope with a horrific tragedy. Interestingly, BookBrowse's reviewer found flaws in this novel resulting in a 3-star rating - but the thousands who took part in this year's voting begged to differ, rating it sufficiently high to easily make this Top 10 list. More info including, for a limited time, the full review and backstory

Descent by Tim Johnston Hardcover & ebook Jan 2015. Paperback Dec 2015. 400 pages. Published by Algonquin Books The stunning vistas of the Rocky Mountains reveal a dark and deadly side in this brilliantly conceived thriller about family ties and the fight for survival. Once again, this was a novel that our members discovered ahead of the crowd through First Impressions. As one of member wrote, "every once in a rare while a book is written that fulfills every requirement a reader is looking for. Tim Johnston has mastered that in Descent." More info including, for a limited time, the full review and backstory