Best of 2024: 15 of the Best Books by Latinx Authors Published This Year

What a year it has been for Latinx books and diversity in publishing. There has been a great increase in Latinx representation in publishing but of course, there’s always more work to do to share more of our stories, cultures, and experiences. It’s because of Latina writers like Prisca Dorcas Mojica Rodriguez, María Alejandra Barrios Vélez, and Vanessa Angélica Villarreal doing groundbreaking work in various genres – including adult fiction, memoir, and nonfiction – that brings more diversity and inclusivity to the publishing world. From Tias and Primas by Mojica Rodriguez to Badass Bonita by Kim Guerra to The Cemetery of Untold Stories by Julia Alvarez, these books have made us feel seen and represented. Read on to learn more about 15 of the best books by Latinx authors that were published in 2024 that you should read.

Tias and Primas: On Knowing and Loving the Women Who Raise Us by Prisca Dorcas Mojica Rodriguez

Prisca Dorcas Mojica Rodríguez became known for her groundbreaking book For Brown Girls with Sharp Edges and Tender Hearts. Now she’s back with her newest book Tías and Primas, influenced by her large, close-knit family in Nicaragua where she grew up surrounded by women who showed her that women contain multitudes and all are deserving of love and understanding. These tías and primas were both blood relatives and chosen family members who fundamentally shaped her view of the world – but so did the labels that were used to talk about, define, and diminish them. From the tía loca who is shunned because of her defiance of gender roles, to the pretty prima who is exalted for her European-like features, to the matriarch who, despite being the sacred core of her community, is forced to hide her pain, these archetypes affect us all. Exploring intergenerational trauma, colonization, sexism, and patriarchy, Mojica Rodríguez creates a love letter to family and community in an effort to heal and accept how these archetypes affect and shape us and who we are.

American Negra by Natasha S. Alford

American Negra by award-winning journalist Natasha S. Alford is a powerful memoir about multi-ethnic experiences, race, culture, gender, class, and the search for identity. Based in upstate New York, Alford had a difficult childhood growing up in a working-class family as the daughter of an African American father and Puerto Rican mother. She is the darkest in her family, doesn’t speak Spanish fluently, and struggles to love her hair which is both “good” and “bad” depending on who’s looking at it. Things worsen when she goes to Harvard University where she is surrounded by privilege and wealth and forced to define her ethnic identity, battle imposter syndrome, and deal with a shocking medical diagnosis. But everything changes when she studies abroad in the Dominican Republic, forever changing her views of Afro-Latinidad and her own Latin roots and setting her on a path to the newsroom as a journalist. Interspersed with cultural analysis and research, this is a spotlight on Afro-Latin identity, Black experiences in the U.S., and the wider history of the African diaspora.

Anita de Monte Laughs Last by Xochitl Gonzalez

 Anita de Monte Laughs Last  is the second novel by Xochitl Gonzalez whose debut novel, Olga Dies Dreaming, was critically acclaimed. This book follows Anita de Monte, an artist on the rise who is found dead in 1985 in NYC, and Raquel, an art history student at College Hill preparing her final thesis in 1998. Surrounded by privilege, Raquel feels like a fish out of water, as students of color like her are pressured to work twice as hard. But when she falls for a well-connected older art student, she suddenly finds herself on the path to her own success, even as she continues to straddle two worlds. When she stumbles on Anita and her story, she becomes hyper-aware of the eerie similarities between them including the uneven power dynamics and the quick rise to fame. Alternating between the two women, Gonzalez returns to explore power, love, art, remembrance, and elitism in this refreshing and insightful read.

The Waves Take You Home by María Alejandra Barrios Vélez 

The Waves Take You Home by María Alejandra Barrios Vélez follows Violeta Sanoguera, a woman who has always done what she’s been told, leaving the man she loved in Colombia to please her mother and grandmother, and fleeing to New York City to create a better life. Pursuing an education with a new partner, she finally feels like she’s made a new life for herself on her own terms. But everything changes when her grandmother dies, and Violeta returns to Colombia as the ghost of her grandmother sends her messages. When she lands, she learns that she’s the heir of the family restaurant, leading her back to her home, her grandmother, her dreams, her past, and the flame of an old love. While sad in some parts, it’s a story that will have you cheering at the end.

The Cemetery of Untold Stories by Julia Alvarez

If you loved How García Girls Lost Their Accents and In the Time of the Butterflies, be sure to check out Julia Alvarez’s latest novel, The Cemetery of Untold Stories. We follow Alma Cruz, a celebrated writer who does everything she can to avoid ending up like her fellow novelist friend who went insane trying to finish a book. She goes so far as to return to her homeland in the Dominican Republic and take possession of a small plot of land. She turns it into a burial ground for her untold stories, burying manuscript drafts and revisions, and characters who continue to haunt her. Soon, they come to life, from Bienvenida, the abandoned second wife of DR’s dictator Rafael Trujillo, to Manuel Cruz, a doctor who fought in the Dominican underground. But against Alma’s wishes, they begin to defy her, talking back to her, talking behind her back, rewriting and revising themselves. It will be up to Alma to find the meaning they yearn for in the stories of their lives.

Oye by Melissa Mogollon

Oye by Melissa Mogollon follows Luciana, a high school senior who is used to being the baby of her Colombian American family and shuttled to the sidelines. But when their South Florida town is hit by a hurricane warning and her grandmother is given a troubling medical diagnosis, she finds herself becoming the caretaker, translator, secret keeper, and leader of the pack carrying all the responsibility while her older sister Mari is away at college. Structured as a series of humorous and relatable one-sided phone calls to Mari, Luciana begins to narrate her frustrating, complicated life, from when Abue moves into her bedroom and starts throwing out unreasonable demands, to when all of her attempts to sneak out and meet girls are shut down. Heartfelt and moving, this is one phone call you won’t want to miss out on eavesdropping on.

The Seventh Veil of Salome by Silvia Moreno-Garcia 

The Seventh Veil of Salome is the latest novel from Silvia Moreno-Garcia, who is known for her gothic novel Mexican Gothic and is now delving into a historical epic about film and love. Set in 1950s Hollywood, every major actress wants to play the historic figure Salome in the next big-budget movie. But unexpectedly, the film’s director casts Vera Larios, an unknown Mexican actress, in the lead role, spurring gossip, scandal, and jealousy, especially from star Nancy Hartley, who is determined to do anything to get back in the spotlight after a stalled career. Alternating between the stories of these two women, we also learn the story of the princess Salome herself, longing for a prophet who predicts the downfall of her stepfather Herod and torn between duty and love. This is a tantalizing Technicolor saga you’ll want to read before the curtain comes down.

Where the Library Hides by Isabel Ibañez

Where the Library Hides by Isabel Ibañez is the stunning conclusion to the fantasy duology that started with What the River Knows. The novel follows Inez Olivera, who has traveled to Egypt seeking answers or at least resolution to her parents’ strange and mysterious deaths. But all she’s managed to procure is heartache, betrayal, dangerous magic, and more questions than she knows what to do with. So when her uncle issues an ultimatum about her inheritance, she is forced to consider marrying former British solider Whitford Hayes, who also happens to be her uncle’s aide de camp and one-time nemesis. And it turns out, he has his own reasons for staying in the country. Unfortunately for Inez, she may be forced to bind her fate to the one person whose secrets could ruin her.

Badass Bonita: Break the Silence, Become a Revolution, Unearth Your Inner Guerrera by Kim Guerra

Badass Bonita by poet and therapist Kim Guerra centers on a single Spanish phrase: calladita te ves más bonita, or, “you look most beautiful when you are silent.” It’s a phrase almost every Latina has heard, that has been rooted in centuries of machismo and generational trauma which Guerra writes about from her own life. This is a memoir that documents Guerra’s journey of coming into her power, learning to use her voice, listening to her inner niña, and unearthing her inner guerrera. But it also functions as a guidebook that teaches readers how to find their own guerrera and heal the stories and wounds that have long kept us silent and complacent. Exploring machismo, mental health, gender norms, and identity, readers will learn how to recognize the underlying source of wounds and trauma, transform self-silencing into revolutionary self-love, build confidence, and bring positive change to relationships, family, and community. Written in Kim’s poetic, Spanglish style, this is the ideal read for mujeres everywhere who are ready to spread their wings.

Magical/Realism: Essays on Music, Memory, Fantasy, and Borders by Vanessa Angélica Villarreal

Magical/Realism by Mexican American poet Vannesa Angélica Villareal is an essay collection that uses music, fantasy, and pop culture as a way to examine her marriage, her relationships, her family history, her experiences with migration and colonialism, and her assimilation into mainstream American culture. Structured in chapters that re-imagine and contextualize what has been lost, she spans a wide range of topics, from the gender performativity of Nirvana and Selena, to a racial reading of Jon Snow in Game of Thrones. Other times, she gets more personal, reflecting on her childhood, eldest daughter traumas, and her divorce and finding a new way to remember her stories. Ultimately, this is a wholly original read full of fantasy, hope, and magic.   

Daughter of Fire by Sofia Robleda 

Daughter of Fire by Sofia Robleda follows Catalina de Cerrato, a young Guatemalan woman in 1551 who is being raised by her widowed father Don Alonso. As a ruling member of the oppressive Spanish hierarchy, he holds ultimate power over the lower class of Indigenous communities. His wife and Catalina’s mother was a Maya noblewoman and Catalina struggles to honor her divided heritage. Her mother gave her the responsibility of preserving the lost sacred text of the Popol Vuh, the treasured and now forbidden history of the K’iche’ people. Encouraged by her mother’s voice from the afterlife, Catalina uses her gift of committing the invaluable stories to memory to embark on a secret quest to rewrite them. In her pursuit, she finds an ally in Juan de Rojas, the captivating lord whose rule was compromised by the Spanish invasion. As their love blooms and Don Alonso’s tyranny and power only grow stronger, it will be up to Catalina alone to confront her blood heritage and secrets in order to complete her dangerous quest to the end. This is a historical fiction novel that is as mystical as it is empowering and beautiful.

There Is a Rio Grande in Heaven by Ruben Reyes Jr.

There Is a Rio Grande in Heaven: Stories is Ruben Reyes Jr.’s debut story collection that seeks to uncover the truth behind Central American identity through dreamlike worlds, blurred boundaries, and strange happenings. In one story, a regular man wakes up to discover that he’s a famous reggaetón star. In another, an abuela slowly transforms into a marionette puppet. Featuring a whole cast of characters including mango farmers, ex-guerilla fighters, and cyborgs, these are stories about hard choices and the longing to be heard in a world that only wants to silence you.

My Mother Cursed My Name by Anamely Salgado Reyes

My Mother Cursed My Name by Anamely Salgado Reyes follows Angustias, the latest in a line of generation of Olivares women who have sought to control their daughters’ destinies, starting with their names. First, there is Olvido, the strict and cold grandmother; Felicitas, Olvido’s carefree daughter who has discovered she’s pregnant and leaves her mother’s home in search of her home; and Angustias, Felicitas’s daughter who meets Olivido too late, after she’s already dead. Now Olvido’s convinced that her spirit can only cross over if she helps Angustias improve her life and Felicitas is the only person who can see or hear her. Over time, Angustias begins to notice that everone in town seems to be conspiring to set her up with every eligible bachelor in town, offer her jobs, and invite her and Felicitas to church every Sunday. Felicitas, meanwhile, struggles to hide her ability to see the dead – and for once, all three Olivares girls are forced to learn how to actually listen to one another.

Defectors: The Rise of the Latino Far Right and What It Means for America by Paola Ramos

Defectors by Paola Ramos is a nonfiction book where Ramos takes a critical look at the shift in political demographics in the Latinx community. For years, Democrats have been able to rely on a near-total Latinx vote but the past few elections have proven them wrong. In 2016 and 2020, Trump won an unprecedented percentage of the Latinx vote despite his anti-immigrant rhetoric and border policies. Traveling around the country to cities and rural towns, Ramos pulls back the curtain on these voters to uncover their political motivations and reasons for supporting issues that seem so at odds with their self-interest. From pastors to war crusaders, congresswomen to journalists, ordinary people and communities across the country show how tribalism, traditionalism, and political trauma have radicalized and converted conservative Latinx voters who are fearful of losing their place in American society and who may come to define the future of American politics.

First in the Family: A Story of Survival, Recovery, and the American Dream by Jessica Hoppe

First in the Family is a memoir by Jessica Hoppe that explores what it means to interrupt and rework cycles of harm. This is an account of what happened during the first year of quarantine when drug overdoses spiked to historical levels, which included one of Hoppe’s cousins. Turns out, there was a long and difficult history of substance use disorder in her family, including Hoppe herself, who’d been in recovery for nearly four years without telling anyone. The first in her family to share her addiction journey, she goes on an extraordinary investigation of her family history, her relationship with the American Dream, and the erasure of BIPOC from recovery institutions and narratives. Ultimately, this is a powerful portrait of legacy, survival, and hope.