Looking for a great first novel by an author

1. Beloved — Toni Morrison 1987
   Actually her fifth, but the breakthrough.
2. White Teeth — Zadie Smith 2000
   Twenty-something Smith, north London.
3. Gilead — Marilynne Robinson 2004
   Iowa pastor writes to his son.
4. Everything I Never Told You — Celeste Ng 2014
   Family, Ohio, a daughter dies.
5. The Secret History — Donna Tartt 1992
   Vermont college, Greek class, murder.
6. Bel Canto — Ann Patchett 2001
   Hostage party, Lima, opera.
7. The God of Small Things — Roy 1997
   Kerala, twins, a tragedy.
8. The Sympathizer — Viet Thanh Nguyen 2015
   Spy novel, Saigon to LA.
9. Pachinko — Min Jin Lee 2017
   Korean family across four generations in Japan.
10. Homegoing — Yaa Gyasi 2016
    Ghana, then America, fourteen generations.