Melmoth by Sarah Perry, TP $23.99

My book of the year has been difficult to nail down, as I’ve had the chance to read so many enjoyable books this year. The one that stands out the most is Sarah Perry’s Melmoth which tells the story of a woman named Helen who becomes entangled in the search for a mythical creature, Melmoth. Perry’s invention of Melmoth, a woman cursed to wander the earth and bear witness to humanity’s failings, raises questions about morality, accountability, and compassion. The narrative jumps between the accounts of Melmoth that Helen reads, suspecting that she will be visited by Melmoth soon because of her own mistakes. It's intense, encourages readers to be introspective, and Perry's interpretation of the gothic genre in a modern light is bewitching. As a ghost story and a story of human cruelty, Melmoth kept me up at night.