Best Fiction of 2012: The Top 25

by Shalom Auslander

Brutal, irreverent and very funny. An honest-to-goodness heir to Portnoy’s Complaint. Full review >

by Sherman Alexie

Whether recent or from his earliest period, these pieces show Alexie at his best: as an interpreter and observer, always... Full review >

by J.G. Ballard

Ballard writes brilliantly about the nightmarish underside of modern life, and this novel makes us poignantly aware of the... Full review >

by Richard Beard

Beard’s take on Lazarus is nothing less than astonishing—and he respects the reader by taking religion and religious... Full review >

by Chris Bohjalian

A gruesome, unforgettable exposition of the still too-little-known facts of the Armenian genocide and its multigenerational... Full review >

by Carol Rifka Brunt

There is much to admire in this novel. The subtle insight on sibling rivalry and the examination of love make for a poignant... Full review >

by Michael Chabon

The evocation of “Useless, by James Joyce” attests to the humor and ambition of the novel, as if this were a Joyce-an remix... Full review >

by Philippe Claudel ; translated by John Cullen

A technocratic Kafka nightmare—heavy on surreal diagnosis of the world’s ills, light on the traditional rewards of... Full review >

by Dave Eggers

Even so, Eggers’ fiction has evolved in the past decade. This book is firm proof that social concerns can make for resonant... Full review >

by Tan Twan Eng

Grace and empathy infuse this melancholy landscape of complex loyalties enfolded by brutal history, creating a novel of... Full review >

by Gillian Flynn

One of those rare thrillers whose revelations actually intensify its suspense instead of dissipating it. The final pages are... Full review >

by Richard Ford

At the start of the novel’s coda, when Dell explains that he teaches his students “books that to me seem secretly about my... Full review >

by Ben Fountain

War is hell in this novel of inspired absurdity. Full review >

by Lauren Groff

As a follow-up to Groff’s well-received debut (The Monsters of Templeton, 2008), this novel is a structural conundrum,... Full review >

by Tania James

At every turn, James’ prose is crisp, observant and carefully controlled; unlike the narrator of “Escape Key,” who grows... Full review >

by Howard Jacobson

Guy’s not a lucky guy, to be sure, but if there’s justice, Jacobson will enjoy best-sellerdom in his place with this latest... Full review >

by Jonas Jonasson

A great cure for the blues, especially for anyone who might feel bad about growing older. Full review >

by Alice Munro

The author knows what matters, and the stories pay attention to it. Full review >

by Robert Olmstead

An exceptionally fine study of love, war and the double-edged role of memory, which can both sustain and destroy.... Full review >

by Ron Rash

Even better than the bestselling Serena (2008), for here Rash has elevated melodrama to tragedy. Full review >

by Graham Swift

Profound empathy and understated eloquence mark a novel so artfully nuanced that the last few pages send the reader back to... Full review >

by Karen Thompson Walker

Riveting, heartbreaking, profoundly moving. Full review >

by Jess Walter

A superb romp. Full review >

by Chris Ware

A dazzling document, beautifully if most idiosyncratically drawn; in this iteration, sure to become a collector’s item,... Full review >

by Elie Wiesel & translated by Catherine Temerson

Nobel Peace Prize winner Wiesel continues to remind us of the brilliant possibilities of the philosophical and political... Full review >