Best Literary Fiction Books of 2023

It’s time for Barnes & Noble’s end of the year round up for the Best Literary Fiction Books of 2023! Our booksellers have narrowed down the list to the best of the best including the latest from award winning authors, Alice McDermott, Zadie Smith and Paul Harding. A skeleton is unearthed in a small town in our Barnes & Noble Book of the Year, The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store. Fans of historical fiction will delight in Zadie Smith’s latest book The Fraud, set in Charles Dickens’ Victorian England during the time of the Tichborne Trial. Ladies’ Lunch features hilarious and heartbreaking short stories on aging and life in the slow lane from 95 year old national treasure, Lore Segal. There are classic survival stories such as The Vaster Wilds and multigenerational family sagas like The Covenant of Water. You won’t want to miss these addictive and heartfelt books in our list of the Best Literary Fiction Books of the Year!

Get lost in aisles of the Heaven and Earth Grocery Store, Barnes & Noble’s Book of the Year, a captivating read about small town secrets and the community ties that sustain us. Jews & African Americans live side by side in a poverty-stricken neighborhood in small town Pennsylvania. When a skeleton is unearthed, it opens the door wide on events that happened decades earlier. This exceptional tour-de-force from author James McBride reminds us that even in the darkest of times, love and community have the power to bring us together.

Set against the rich backdrop of South India, The Covenant of Water (Oprah’s Book Club) is a gorgeous and unforgettable novel about a family who is cursed to lose one member each generation to drowning. Powerful and transportive, it follows the currents of the characters as they seek to find the cause of "the condition." An exploration in grief, ambition and forgiveness, it is a tribute to the sacrifices that we make for future generations to come.

Pulitzer Prize finalist Daniel Mason brings us North Woods, an immersive and expansive book exploring the connection between the land and the lives of the people that inhabit it. As time goes on, each story builds upon the last in masterful vignettes telling a cross-centuries tale with the house as its focal point.

Absolution is the latest from National Book Award Winning Author Alice McDermott. It flips the history of the Vietnam War on its head with the other half taking the frontlines. This evocative masterpiece depicts the folly, grace, absolution and sacrifice of the American wives in Saigon, casting a spotlight on the obligations of women in the 1960s.

Get swept away by compelling characters and gorgeous narratives in our Best Literary Fiction Books of 2023. If you are yearning for more from the genre, check out our complete list of literary fiction books at Barnes & Noble! We have the latest releases including bestselling literary fiction and our list of bookseller favorites. Looking for the perfect gift for your booklover? Browse our holiday gift guide for the best literary fiction books and more!

10 Best Literary Fiction Books of 2023:

Death Valley by Melissa Broder
The Vaster Wilds by Lauren Groff
This Other Eden by Paul Harding
North Woods by Daniel Mason
The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store (2023 Barnes & Noble Book of the Year) by James McBride
Absolution (Barnes & Noble Book Club Edition) by Alice McDermott
Ladies’ Lunch: And Other Stories by Lore Segal
The Fraud by Zadie Smith
The Covenant of Water (Oprah’s Book Club) by Abraham Verghese
Let Us Descend (Oprah’s Book Club) by Jesmyn Ward

(Books are listed in alphabetical order by author)