Goodreads reveals the most read books of 2024 with ‘romantasy’ book filled with dragons and very steamy scenes taking the top spot

Goodreads have unveiled their most read books of 2024 – and some surprising contenders have made the cut. 

The literary review platform, which is owned by Amazon, put together a list of the 50 books most commonly marked as ‘finished’ from the start of the year to December 15. 

The site revealed that the most read book of the year was Fourth Wing by American author Rebecca Yarros, a ‘Romantasy’ sensation filled with very steamy scenes on more than 500 pages, attracting more than a million readers.

Its sequel, Iron Flame, took second place with 999,000 readers, telling the story of the second year at Basgiath War College. 

Mother-of-six Yarros started writing while her husband was deployed in Afghanistan and has now sold millions of books. 

Speaking of her whirlwind rise to fame in an interview with The Times, she confessed: ‘It’s not anything I’m used to yet and we’re adapting the best we can.’ 

The top 50 books were also dominated by American author Sarah J. Mass’s A Court Of Thorns And Roses (ACOTAR) series, which has also dominated BookTok. 

The ACOTAR series held half of the places in the top 10, with A Court Of Mist And Fury, Wings And Ruin, Silver Flames and Frost And Starlight featuring.  

Beloved on TikTok, the ‘Romantasy’ genre – a blend of romantic and fantasy fiction – has taken the world by storm. 

The books feature faeries, mythical kingdoms and dragons – and, most importantly, very detailed sex scenes – to the extent that the genre has been dubbed ‘fairy porn’.

Winner Fourth Wing, has been described as ‘The Hunger Games meets 50 Shades Of Grey’, featuring morally grey love interest Xaden Riorson. 

The main character Violet has the power to wield lightning, and does so during intense moments of intimate activity. 

Meanwhile ACOTAR features a protagonist called Feyre and her love interest High Lord faerie Tamlin. Even more dastardly and alluring is the lord of the Night Court – Rhysand, the epitome of tall dark and handsome, with spades of sex appeal.

Also heavily present in the top 50 was thriller author Frieda McFadden with The Housemaid at number four, as well as The Teacher, Never Lie, The Inmate, The Boyfriend and two more books in The Housemaid series. 

TikTok sensation Emily Henry took seventh place for her novel Funny Story, and 22nd for Happy Place, published last year. 

The title is based on the way the novel’s lead Daphne, fell in love with her ex-fiancé Peter – and the ‘funny story’ of how they met, over a castaway hat on a windy day. 

In the novel’s present, Daphne deals with the chaos of her break-up with Peter and the fact he’s ditched her for his childhood best friend Petra. 

When Daphne ends up as a roommate to Petra’s own ex Miles, both are swamped by dealing with their respective break-ups. But despite their complicated situations, Daphne and Miles begin to grow closer in what comes as a surprise to them both. 

Henry is also author of Beach Read, People We Meet On Vacation and Book Lovers and has gained a cult following thanks to people reviewing her works on TikTok. 

Goodreads named Kristin Hannah’s ‘The Women’ as the ‘it’ book of the year claiming the spot as the most-read new book this year, with nearly 900,000 readers. 

The most read new non-fiction was The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt. 

Further down the list were Coleen Hoover’s It Ends With Us, Yellowface by Rebecca Kuang and The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid. 

It comes after Goodreads announced their winners of the best book awards, with Alison Espach’s The Wedding People taking first place. 

To be applicable for the Goodreads Choice Awards awards, books must be published in the United States in English. They can also include works in translation and re-releases. 

The books are nominated from the millions that readers have added and reviewed on the platform within the past year, with the winners announced yesterday. 

The Wedding People tells the story of Phoebe Stone, who arrives at a grand beachside hotel on Rhode Island – but not all is as it seems as she has the sole intention of killing herself while she’s there. 

She’d dreamed of visiting the hotel for years and is mistaken for one of the wedding guests. 

But Phoebe is divorced and depressed and unsure how to go on. She soon meets the bride, Lila, who is furious at the threat to her happy wedding. 

But as the book goes on, both women find their plans derailed and find an unlikely confidante in one another, as Phoebe finds reasons to enjoy life once more.