Amazon Books Editors have once again emerged from the literary battlefield, crowning "Wild Dark Shore" by Charlotte McConaghy the "Best Book of the Year So Far."
Around the halfway point every year, the Amazon Books editorial team of eight gathers in Seattle to read, argue and craft a Top 20 list, advocating for their favorite titles published from January to June. They’re looking for books that resonate, the ones “you want to hand to everybody that you know,” says Al Woodworth, senior editor at Amazon Books.
"Wild Dark Shore" was a clear example of the community-building power of books, Woodworth says – it was an "easy" winner for the team because they just couldn't stop talking about it.
Unlike Amazon’s bestseller list, this one is curated based on editorial judgment, not sales data. A team of former publishing reps, booksellers, writers, journalists and agents read hundreds of books to prepare. Their most beloved make it to the overall Top 20 list, and they create additional genre-specific lists with favorites in nonfiction, romance, history, sci-fi and more.
What it’s about: A family on a remote island fiercely protecting the land’s seed bank encounters a mysterious woman who washes ashore.
