There’s a book that is rocking the book world a bit. And it’s full of controversy. If you’re not really on BokTok like that, or just otherwise haven’t heard of it yet, the book I’m talking about is Alchemised by SenLinYu, and there are a few reasons why it’s faced some criticism.
For one, it started off as a Harry Potter fanfic, and people are understandably against giving that franchise more publicity, given its author’s blatant trans and homophobia. On the note of it being a fanfiction, what it is a fanfiction of has also drawn some criticism. It is a (very) dark romance fantasy where the romance centers a character who believes in things like racial purity.
Yeah.
BookTokker @mynameismarines gives a great breakdown in this video. The reason I’m mentioning any of this in a newsletter centered on uplifting BIPOC voices is because the book made it onto the Indie Bestseller list that I pulled the rest of the books from, and it’s by a half Asian writer. I agree with the point Marines makes in the above video about having space to critique books, and I thought it would be better to inform those who may be curious about reading it.
Now, the rest of the hardcover BIPOC books that made it onto the Indie Bestseller List—which shows books that sell the best in independent bookstores across the country—couldn’t be more different. One author critiques the United States’ disregard for Palestinian lives, a popular chef shares her favorite recipes, and Kamala Harris details her 2024 presidential campaign.
One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This by Omar El Akkad
From his perspective as an immigrant who came to the West, El Akkad argues that while America claims to be the land of the free, its funding of violence in Palestine is one of many examples of America treating others as less than human. One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This became a New York Times bestseller, was shortlisted for the 2025 Palestine Books Awards, and was longlisted for the National Book Award in Nonfiction. — Kendra Winchester
Katabasis by R. F. Kuang
Here it finally is, one of the most anticipated books of 2025! Following up on the dark academia fantasy Babel, this new standalone novel follows two students going through hell—literally. Alice and Peter are rivals at Cambridge, but they’ll have to work together to rescue their professor from Hell after he dies in an accident. Partly because they need his recommendation to advance their careers, and partly because his death might be Alice’s fault. — Liberty Hardy
Good Things: Recipes and Rituals to Share with People You Love by Samin Nosrat
Nosrat surprised people a bit by coming out with a cookbook full of recipes after her bestseller Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat espoused learning to cook without them. The 125 recipes listed here include everything from ricotta custard pancakes to chewy focaccia, which she delivers with the warmth and creativity that has influential chefs like Alice Waters labeling her as “America’s next great cooking teacher.”
The Serviceberry: Abundance and Reciprocity in the Natural World by Robin Wall Kimmerer, John Burgoyne (Illus.)
I haven’t come across anyone who’s read Braiding Sweetgrass by Kimmerer who doesn’t recommend it emphatically. Here, the Indigenous scientist considers the gift economy and how we can better position ourselves when it comes to reciprocity and community, based on lessons from nature. Which is, of course, in direct contrast to the capitalist-driven culture of scarcity we currently live in.
Also, this has been on the Indie List for 48 weeks.
The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny by Kiran Desai
In this Booker Prize-nominated book, two people’s fates intertwine across continents and years, race, country, and class. Sonia’s loneliness comes as a result of her being a homesick writer living in Vermont. The relationship she develops with an older male artist will curse her for years to come. And Sunny’s loneliness is similarly sourced: he is also originally from India and is having a hard time understanding his American girlfriend. Then Sonia’s and Sunny’s families arrange for them to meet, and it’s so awkward and clumsy that it may drive the two away from each other before they’ve even given the thought of them a chance.
107 Days by Kamala Harris
Here, Harris details her historic career in politics as the first woman/person of color to be the vice president of the United States. She specifically homes in on how she ran the shortest presidential campaign ever in 2024.
To see the rest of the list, visit IndieBound.org.
All Access members continue below for new BIPOC books out this week
Best Wishes from the Full Moon Coffee Shop by Mai Mochizuki, Translated by Jordan Taylor
This may just check all the cozy boxes. It’s got an enchanted cafe run by cats who help people find themselves (!). It also takes place during Christmas season, if you like seasonal reading. Characters like the career-driven Satomi, the dutiful Koyuki, and the caring Junko will all learn some deep truths about themselves…from adorable little kitty cats.
Never Ever After (Never Ever After, 1) by Sue Lynn Tan
I will follow Sue Lynn Tan and her mythology/fairy tale retellings to the end of the earth. Here, she gives us fresh Cinderella, but make it also inspired by a Chinese fairy tale, have it include a ruthless prince, and even a female main character with a cute little mystery.
Tall Is Her Body by Robert De La Chevotiere
Here, the weight of colonialism, and both captive and Native traditions fall on one boy as he journeys to adulthood. Fidel’s mother is visited upon by the gadèt-zafè before she dies and his young life is changed forever. The tragedy takes him from the lush Guadeloupe that he knows to his mother’s native Dominica, and then from relative to relative. He’s jostled between loving grandmothers and hateful aunts, Catholicism and traditional Obeah, all while the violence that he’s seen—and that his ancestors have suffered—ferments inside him and those around him.
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