A Look Inside the Homes of a Fashion Icon and More of the Very Best Books Coming Out in January

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This month, pile your nightstand with a thrilling story of international intrigue, a rare look inside the homes of the late fashion icon Karl Lagerfeld, a memoir about fashion designer B Michael's years-long collaboration with Cicely Tyson, and so much more. Here are T&C's picks for the best books of January 2024.

Ilium

When a young woman's long-held dreams to escape the life she's always known finally, blissfully, come true, it seems at first like perhaps her days of longing are behind her. Not so fast. In this smart, compelling thriller from T&C contributing editor Lea Carpenter, a newlywed is thrown into a world of power, deceit, and international consequences among some of the world's least trustworthy characters—albeit in some of its most alluring destinations. The writer's sharp style elevates it from your average espionage epic, however her talent for plot twists assures your pulse will race just the same.

Karl Lagerfeld: A Life in Houses

From Paris to Rome, Hamburg, and beyond, the places Karl Lagerfeld lived were as considered and compelling as the clothes he designed. Here, the late fashion impresarios homes are opened (some for the first time) to showcase the imaginative and incredible ways he lived. If you never scored an invitation to dinner, this might just be the next best thing.

Muse: Cicely Tyson and Me: A Relationship Forged in Fashion

It was 2005 when the fashion designer B Michael began working with the legendary actress Cicely Tyson, dressing her for red carpets, awards shows, glittering galas and more. The pair developed a strong friendship and a legacy of beautiful gowns in the years that they collaborated, and in this new visual memoir, Michael—along with contributors Lenny Kravitz, Bridget Foley, Susan Fales Hill, and Valerie Simpson—looks back at the impact of Tyson's fashion as well as the private moments that made theirs a friendship for the ages.

Come and Get It

Kiley Reid, author of Such a Fun Age, returns with another incisive novel everyone will be talking about this month. In Come and Get It, set at the University of Arkansas in 2017, the wall between the room of Millie, a Black RA, and a suite of five undergraduates, is thin—such that Millie can hear their conversations. Enter Agatha, a visiting professor, who proposes Millie let her eavesdrop on the students. What results is a riveting and fascinating tale.

Anna O

When a seemingly non-violent 25-year-old woman kills two people while she's still asleep—and then proceeds to not wake up again—the case becomes a sensation. But beyond the headlines, a doctor is tasked with trying to stir the suspect from her slumber so she can stand trial, all the while attempting to keep the fascinating case from overtaking his own complicated life.

Filterworld: How Algorithms Flattened Culture

How much of what we like—from restaurants to hotels, stores, and clothes—do we really like, and how much are we being told we do? This new book from T&C contributor Kyle Chayka dives deep into how the algorithms that power social media inform and exploit our taste, and what we can do to unsubscribe from it.

Martyr!

Cyrus Shams is in my ways shaped by the history of his family—which has been difficult, strange, and at times tragic. But what if he doesn't know his own story as well as he thinks? In this smart, charming, and exceedingly clever novel, Cyrus is forced to grapple with the events that have shaped who he is today, and uncover the truth about who he might become.

You Dreamed of Empires

In this gripping novel, Álvaro Enrigue (translated by Natasha Wimmer) imagines the day conquistador Hernán Cortés arrives in the great Aztec city of Tenochtitlan (present day Mexico City) in 1519. You Dreamed of Empires vividly brings history to life, bringing the reader through various perspectives, including Jazmín Caldera, Cortés's third in command, the Aztec princess Atotoxtli, and Moctezuma himself.

The Storm We Made

Vanessa Chan's debut is a historical novel taking place in Malaya (present day Malaysia) during, in the lead-up, and the aftermath of the Japanese invasion of the country during World War II. A Malayan mother, Cecily, becomes an unlikely spy, putting her family in danger—and she sets out to do anything to save them. Told from Cecily's perspective and her three children, The Storm We Made is a searing look at the impacts of colonialism, the horrors of war, and the power of a mother's lov

My Friends: A Novel

Pulitzer Prize winner Hisham Matar returns with My Friends, a stunning novel about Khaled, a Libyan man who leaves his home of Benghazi to study in the UK. When he attends a protest in London, things go awry, and he soon realizes he can never return home. It's a poignant tale of friendship, exile, and family.

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