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First Novels

Description: Author's first novels that are worth reading.

Based on tag: debut novel

Members: 12 participating members (show all)

All members' list: [1] 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13Sort: Score | Title | Author | Date
4
Jane Eyre
by Charlotte Brontë
47,356 members, 765 reviews
4.23 stars (4.23 stars)

Lists: rfebrer, sturlington, kara.shamy, Chris.Wolak, ahef1963

5
Frankenstein
by Mary Shelley
32,208 members, 588 reviews
3.81 stars (3.81 stars)

Lists: ahef1963, hipdeep, sturlington, Chris.Wolak, kara.shamy

6
The Thirteenth Tale
by Diane Setterfield
15,248 members, 850 reviews
4 stars (4 stars)

Lists: rfebrer, Chris.Wolak, sturlington, kara.shamy, ahef1963

7
Wuthering Heights
by Emily Brontë
40,320 members, 569 reviews
3.9 stars (3.9 stars)

Lists: sturlington, ahef1963, kara.shamy, merrystar

8
Neverwhere
by Neil Gaiman
21,632 members, 502 reviews
4.11 stars (4.11 stars)

Lists: ahef1963, sturlington, hipdeep, merrystar

9
A Time to Kill
by John Grisham
10,286 members, 126 reviews
3.83 stars (3.83 stars)

Lists: KimarieBee, sturlington, ahef1963, dara85

10
The Mysterious Affair at Styles
by Agatha Christie
6,247 members, 204 reviews
3.74 stars (3.74 stars)

Lists: kara.shamy, sturlington, merrystar, ahef1963

11
Burial Rites
by Hannah Kent
2,882 members, 233 reviews
4.01 stars (4.01 stars)

Lists: kara.shamy, KimarieBee, sturlington, ahef1963

12
The Hobbit
by J. R. R. Tolkien
74,268 members, 995 reviews
4.27 stars (4.27 stars)

Lists: sturlington, ahef1963, merrystar

13
The Catcher in the Rye
by J. D. Salinger
59,242 members, 944 reviews
3.81 stars (3.81 stars)

Lists: sturlington, ahef1963, merrystar

14
The Kite Runner
by Khaled Hosseini
45,164 members, 1,172 reviews
4.2 stars (4.2 stars)

Lists: dara85, kara.shamy, ahef1963

15
Lord of the Flies
by William Golding
39,829 members, 624 reviews
3.72 stars (3.72 stars)

Lists: sturlington, ahef1963, kara.shamy

16
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
by Mark Haddon
38,834 members, 1,232 reviews
3.89 stars (3.89 stars)

Lists: ahef1963, dara85, sturlington

17
The Time Traveler's Wife
by Audrey Niffenegger
35,470 members, 1,182 reviews
4.1 stars (4.1 stars)

Lists: KimarieBee, ahef1963, sturlington

18
The Picture of Dorian Gray
by Oscar Wilde
30,540 members, 520 reviews
4 stars (4 stars)

Lists: sturlington, merrystar, kara.shamy

19
Sense and Sensibility
by Jane Austen
30,295 members, 421 reviews
4.13 stars (4.13 stars)

Lists: sturlington, merrystar, kara.shamy

20
Treasure Island
by Robert Louis Stevenson
25,074 members, 352 reviews
3.82 stars (3.82 stars)

Lists: hipdeep, ahef1963, sturlington

21
One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest
by Ken Kesey
20,243 members, 245 reviews
4.16 stars (4.16 stars)

Lists: ahef1963, hipdeep, sturlington

22
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
by L. Frank Baum
16,378 members, 366 reviews
3.88 stars (3.88 stars)

Lists: merrystar, sturlington, dara85

23
Things Fall Apart
by Chinua Achebe
16,056 members, 353 reviews
3.75 stars (3.75 stars)

Lists: kara.shamy, thorold, ahef1963

24
The Secret History
by Donna Tartt
14,896 members, 432 reviews
4.07 stars (4.07 stars)

Lists: kara.shamy, ahef1963, sturlington

25
The Time Machine
by H. G. Wells
14,278 members, 286 reviews
3.72 stars (3.72 stars)

Lists: KimarieBee, sturlington, ahef1963

26
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
by Betty Smith
13,252 members, 372 reviews
4.32 stars (4.32 stars)

Lists: dara85, merrystar, ahef1963

27
The Night Circus
by Erin Morgenstern
12,556 members, 1,066 reviews
4.08 stars (4.08 stars)

Lists: KimarieBee, sturlington, ahef1963

28
The Girl on the Train
by Paula Hawkins
11,819 members, 904 reviews
3.63 stars (3.63 stars)

Lists: kara.shamy, KimarieBee, ahef1963

29
Little House in the Big Woods
by Laura Ingalls Wilder
11,630 members, 222 reviews
4.13 stars (4.13 stars)

Lists: merrystar, dara85, sturlington

30
Snow Falling on Cedars
by David Guterson
11,298 members, 169 reviews
3.75 stars (3.75 stars)

Lists: KimarieBee, ahef1963, sturlington

31
The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao
by Junot Diaz
11,173 members, 428 reviews
3.86 stars (3.86 stars)

Lists: sturlington, kara.shamy, ahef1963

32
The White Tiger
by Aravind Adiga
8,181 members, 381 reviews
3.77 stars (3.77 stars)

Lists: kara.shamy, thorold, ahef1963

33
I Capture the Castle
by Dodie Smith
7,831 members, 264 reviews
4.12 stars (4.12 stars)

Lists: thorold, merrystar, ahef1963

Explanations:

thorold (10): Great book, but Smith wasn't exactly a new author when she wrote it, she had a lot of successful plays to her credit.

34
Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore
by Robin Sloan
6,529 members, 603 reviews
3.82 stars (3.82 stars)

Lists: merrystar, sturlington, ahef1963

35
The Chosen
by Chaim Potok
6,016 members, 87 reviews
4.14 stars (4.14 stars)

Lists: dara85, ahef1963, sturlington

36
Deja Dead
by Kathy Reichs
5,462 members, 133 reviews
3.57 stars (3.57 stars)

Lists: KimarieBee, sturlington, ahef1963

37
Still Life
by Louise Penny
4,595 members, 323 reviews
3.83 stars (3.83 stars)

Lists: kara.shamy, ahef1963, sturlington

38
Catch-22
by Joseph Heller
33,957 members, 447 reviews
4.11 stars (4.11 stars)

Lists: hipdeep, sturlington

39
Memoirs of a Geisha
by Arthur Golden
32,191 members, 504 reviews
4.01 stars (4.01 stars)

Lists: dara85, sturlington

40
Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch
by Terry Pratchett
27,560 members, 663 reviews
4.26 stars (4.26 stars)

Lists: hipdeep, sturlington

Explanations:

hipdeep (15): Gaiman was widely published before this one, but not in novel form.

41
Anne of Green Gables
by L. M. Montgomery
21,318 members, 456 reviews
4.32 stars (4.32 stars)

Lists: merrystar, ahef1963

42
Gone with the Wind
by Margaret Mitchell
19,450 members, 393 reviews
4.29 stars (4.29 stars)

Lists: dara85, merrystar

43
Interview with the Vampire
by Anne Rice
19,255 members, 280 reviews
3.83 stars (3.83 stars)

Lists: ahef1963, sturlington

44
Neuromancer
by William Gibson
19,133 members, 306 reviews
3.93 stars (3.93 stars)

Lists: hipdeep, sturlington

45
A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man
by James Joyce
17,851 members, 177 reviews
3.7 stars (3.7 stars)

Lists: ahef1963, kara.shamy

46
The God of Small Things
by Arundhati Roy
16,744 members, 303 reviews
3.88 stars (3.88 stars)

Lists: kara.shamy, ahef1963

47
The Name of the Rose
by Umberto Eco
16,457 members, 259 reviews
4.2 stars (4.2 stars)

Lists: merrystar, sturlington

48
The Outsiders
by S. E. Hinton
15,458 members, 527 reviews
4.03 stars (4.03 stars)

Lists: ahef1963, sturlington

49
The Joy Luck Club
by Amy Tan
15,116 members, 166 reviews
3.87 stars (3.87 stars)

Lists: ahef1963, sturlington

50
High Fidelity
by Nick Hornby
13,565 members, 175 reviews
3.92 stars (3.92 stars)

Lists: ahef1963, sturlington

51
The Phantom Tollbooth
by Norton Juster
13,527 members, 375 reviews
4.31 stars (4.31 stars)

Lists: merrystar, sturlington

52
Ready Player One
by Ernest Cline
12,011 members, 992 reviews
4.12 stars (4.12 stars)

Lists: hipdeep, sturlington

53
The House of the Spirits
by Isabel Allende
11,700 members, 199 reviews
4.08 stars (4.08 stars)

Lists: merrystar, hipdeep

54
The Martian
by Andy Weir
11,606 members, 967 reviews
4.26 stars (4.26 stars)

Lists: sturlington, ahef1963

55
Carrie
by Stephen King
11,313 members, 236 reviews
3.72 stars (3.72 stars)

Lists: ahef1963, sturlington

56
The Hunt for Red October
by Tom Clancy
9,222 members, 98 reviews
3.99 stars (3.99 stars)

Lists: KimarieBee, hipdeep

57
The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter
by Carson McCullers
9,040 members, 204 reviews
3.96 stars (3.96 stars)

Lists: ahef1963, sturlington

58
The Big Sleep
by Raymond Chandler
8,303 members, 235 reviews
3.98 stars (3.98 stars)

Lists: sturlington, ahef1963

59
In the Woods
by Tana French
8,020 members, 500 reviews
3.77 stars (3.77 stars)

Lists: KimarieBee, sturlington

60
The Sparrow
by Mary Doria Russell
6,513 members, 348 reviews
4.19 stars (4.19 stars)

Lists: KimarieBee, sturlington

61
The Wasp Factory
by Iain Banks
6,035 members, 173 reviews
3.8 stars (3.8 stars)

Lists: ahef1963, sturlington

62
Housekeeping
by Marilynne Robinson
5,242 members, 170 reviews
3.94 stars (3.94 stars)

Lists: ahef1963, sturlington

63
A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian
by Marina Lewycka
5,122 members, 219 reviews
3.39 stars (3.39 stars)

Lists: thorold, ahef1963

64
The Windup Girl
by Paolo Bacigalupi
5,051 members, 250 reviews
3.76 stars (3.76 stars)

Lists: kara.shamy, sturlington

65
Cold Comfort Farm
by Stella Gibbons
4,963 members, 194 reviews
4 stars (4 stars)

Lists: merrystar, sturlington

66
The Horse Whisperer
by Nicholas Evans
4,776 members, 75 reviews
3.58 stars (3.58 stars)

Lists: sturlington, ahef1963

67
Behind the Scenes at the Museum
by Kate Atkinson
4,399 members, 118 reviews
3.94 stars (3.94 stars)

Lists: thorold, KimarieBee

68
Three Junes
by Julia Glass
4,100 members, 93 reviews
3.6 stars (3.6 stars)

Lists: kara.shamy, ahef1963

69
Whose Body?
by Dorothy L. Sayers
4,008 members, 148 reviews
3.68 stars (3.68 stars)

Lists: merrystar, sturlington

70
The Golem and the Djinni
by Helene Wecker
3,922 members, 279 reviews
4.13 stars (4.13 stars)

Lists: kara.shamy, sturlington

71
Presumed Innocent
by Scott Turow
3,636 members, 57 reviews
3.85 stars (3.85 stars)

Lists: dara85, sturlington

72
Sundiver
by David Brin
3,400 members, 52 reviews
3.53 stars (3.53 stars)

Lists: merrystar, sturlington

73
A Tale for the Time Being
by Ruth Ozeki
3,114 members, 193 reviews
4.07 stars (4.07 stars)

Lists: sturlington, ahef1963

74
Tinkers
by Paul Harding
3,010 members, 214 reviews
3.48 stars (3.48 stars)

Lists: kara.shamy, sturlington

75
The Sympathizer
by Viet Thanh Nguyen
2,206 members, 99 reviews
3.9 stars (3.9 stars)

Lists: kara.shamy, sturlington

76
Tea with the Black Dragon
by R. A. MacAvoy
1,287 members, 29 reviews
3.97 stars (3.97 stars)

Lists: merrystar, sturlington

77
The Meursault Investigation
by Kamel Daoud
661 members, 30 reviews
3.57 stars (3.57 stars)

Lists: thorold, kara.shamy

78
The Lovely Bones
by Alice Sebold
31,823 members, 893 reviews
3.71 stars (3.71 stars)

Lists: sturlington

79
The Bell Jar
by Sylvia Plath
23,077 members, 410 reviews
3.97 stars (3.97 stars)

Lists: sturlington

80
Madame Bovary
by Gustave Flaubert
21,386 members, 319 reviews
3.75 stars (3.75 stars)

Lists: sturlington

81
Watership Down
by Richard Adams
20,289 members, 403 reviews
4.21 stars (4.21 stars)

Lists: sturlington

82
The Memory Keeper's Daughter
by Kim Edwards
15,367 members, 452 reviews
3.46 stars (3.46 stars)

Lists: ahef1963

83
Everything Is Illuminated
by Jonathan Safran Foer
12,915 members, 235 reviews
3.87 stars (3.87 stars)

Lists: ahef1963

84
The Notebook
by Nicholas Sparks
12,676 members, 277 reviews
3.77 stars (3.77 stars)

Lists: dara85

85
World War Z
by Max Brooks
12,370 members, 632 reviews
4 stars (4 stars)

Lists: sturlington

86
The Namesake
by Jhumpa Lahiri
10,841 members, 290 reviews
3.91 stars (3.91 stars)

Lists: ahef1963

87
A Separate Peace
by John Knowles
10,702 members, 170 reviews
3.59 stars (3.59 stars)

Lists: ahef1963

88
The Devil Wears Prada
by Lauren Weisberger
10,420 members, 210 reviews
3.33 stars (3.33 stars)

Lists: ahef1963

89
Nausea
by Jean-Paul Sartre
8,119 members, 60 reviews
3.77 stars (3.77 stars)

Lists: ahef1963

90
The Bonfire of the Vanities
by Tom Wolfe
7,745 members, 113 reviews
3.81 stars (3.81 stars)

Lists: sturlington

91
Year of Wonders
by Geraldine Brooks
7,604 members, 372 reviews
3.97 stars (3.97 stars)

Lists: sturlington

92
The Lies of Locke Lamora
by Scott Lynch
7,516 members, 343 reviews
4.22 stars (4.22 stars)

Lists: KimarieBee

93
Contact
by Carl Sagan
7,310 members, 102 reviews
3.99 stars (3.99 stars)

Lists: sturlington

94
The Pickwick Papers
by Charles Dickens
7,309 members, 107 reviews
3.88 stars (3.88 stars)

Lists: thorold

95
The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie
by Alan Bradley
6,659 members, 608 reviews
3.84 stars (3.84 stars)

Lists: kara.shamy

96
The Tin Drum
by Günter Grass
6,463 members, 80 reviews
3.98 stars (3.98 stars)

Lists: thorold

97
Postmortem
by Patricia Cornwell
6,150 members, 92 reviews
3.67 stars (3.67 stars)

Lists: sturlington

98
A Man Called Ove
by Fredrik Backman
6,074 members, 485 reviews
4.29 stars (4.29 stars)

Lists: ahef1963

99
Revolutionary Road
by Richard Yates
6,043 members, 233 reviews
4.04 stars (4.04 stars)

Lists: ahef1963

100
Special Topics in Calamity Physics
by Marisha Pessl
6,009 members, 289 reviews
3.64 stars (3.64 stars)

Lists: sturlington

All members' list: [1] 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13Sort: Score | Title | Author | Date

About this list

Started by: sturlington (April 2016)

Type: Unnumbered

Related tags

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