“To love a place is not enough. We must find ways to heal it.” – Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass
American Bulk: Essays on Excess by Emily Mester
nonfiction / essays / memoir / sociology.
Americans are caught up in bulk. We guiltily watch Amazon boxes pile up on the porch, wade through endless reviews to find the perfect product, and crave the comforting indulgence of a chain restaurant. In American Bulk, Emily Mester intertwines cultural critique and personal history to explore how the things we buy, eat, amass, and discard become an intimate part of our lives. With humor and sharp intellect, she reflects on the joys and anxieties of family Costco trips, how a seasonal stint at Ulta Beauty taught her the insidious art of the sale, and what it means to get Mall Sad. In a nuanced examination of diet culture and fatness, Mester recounts her teenage summer at fat camp and the unexpected liberation she finds there. Finally, she ventures to Storm Lake, Iowa, to reckon with her grandmother’s abandoned hoard, excavating the dysfunction that lies at the heart of her family’s obsession with stuff. American Bulk introduces readers to a striking new literary talent from the American heartland, one who dares to ask us to regard consumption not with guilt but with grace and empathy.
“[Mester] achieves considerable depth, exploring the complexities of American consumerism with insight and nuance. A thought-provoking view of our relationship with consumption and excess.” – Kirkus Reviews
“It’s so refreshing to read cultural critique written by someone who’s in the trenches with the rest of us. American Bulk is the essay collection we need as we’re bombarded by algorithmically intelligent ads and our one-click-buy existences.” – Laurel Kane, The Indie Next List
“…inquisitive and deeply observed… American Bulk presents an affable and humble study of the senses that consumption can satisfy (‘I would’ve lived there if I could, inside the getting…’) and the ones it can’t (‘When you ask for ease, comfort, and stability and receive it in enormous quantities, you are then left to wonder whether you even wanted it in the first place. Then you must find new things to want.’) In a late-stage capitalism heaving with choice, Mester assumes the role of a millennial Virgil with both style and grace.” – Dave Wheeler, Shelf Awareness
Cher: The Memoir, Part One by Cher ★
nonfiction / memoir / music / television / film.
The extraordinary life of Cher can be told by only one person… Cher herself.
After more than seventy years of fighting to live her life on her own terms, Cher finally reveals her true story in intimate detail, in a two-part memoir.
Her remarkable career is unique and unparalleled. The only woman to top Billboard charts in seven consecutive decades, she is the winner of an Academy Award, an Emmy, a Grammy, and a Cannes Film Festival Award, and an inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame who has been lauded by the Kennedy Center.
She is a lifelong activist and philanthropist.
As a dyslexic child who dreamed of becoming famous, Cher was raised in often-chaotic circumstances, surrounded by singers, actors, and a mother who inspired her in spite of their difficult relationship.
With her trademark honesty and humor, Cher: The Memoir traces how this diamond in the rough succeeded with no plan and little confidence to become the trailblazing superstar the world has been unable to ignore for more than half a century.
Cher: The Memoir, Part One follows her extraordinary beginnings through childhood to meeting and marrying Sonny Bono—and reveals the highly complicated relationship that made them world-famous, but eventually drove them apart.
Cher: The Memoir reveals the daughter, the sister, the wife, the lover, the mother, and the superstar.
It is a life too immense for only one book.
“[A] deeply personal look at the early years of her life and career.” – Shannon Carlin, Time
“…even though this is only half her life, Cher’s still got stories: memories of her wild childhood, struggles in relationships and Hollywood, and many celebrity run-ins.” – Justin Cutro, Vulture
“[A] confident, confiding new autobiography… these 400 pages show the mettle behind the Mackie. Here’s to a sequel with sequins, expected in 2025.” – Alexandra Jacobs, New York Times
“Turns out that the alluring woman gracing the book’s cover is the same one who appears in these pages: intelligent, sensitive and engaging… Cher: The Memoir, Part One, is a fun read, a candid and well-written book that will justifiably make her legion of fans excited for the release of the second volume. Like Barbra Streisand, who recently penned a 970-page memoir, Cher is one of the handful of artists whose extraordinary life merits the extra ink.” – Marc Ballon, Los Angeles Times
Citizen: My Life After the White House by Bill Clinton
nonfiction / memoir / politics.
On January 20, 2001, after nearly thirty years in politics—eight of them as president of the United States—Bill Clinton was suddenly a private citizen. Only fifty-four years old, full of energy and ideas, he wanted to make meaningful use of his skills, his relationships with world leaders, and all he’d learned in a lifetime of politics, but how? Just days after leaving the White House, the call came to aid victims of a devastating earthquake in India, and Clinton hit the ground running. Over the next two decades, he would create an enduring legacy of public service and advocacy work, from Indonesia to Louisiana, Northern Ireland to South Africa, and in the process reimagine philanthropy and redefine the impact a former president could have on the world.
Citizen is Clinton’s front-row, first-person chronicle of his postpresidential years and the most significant events of the twenty-first century, including 9/11 and the runup to the Iraq War, the Haiti earthquake, the Great Recession, the January 6 insurrection, and the enduring culture wars of our times. With clarity and compassion, he also weighs in on the unprecedented challenges brought on by a global pandemic, ongoing income inequality, a steadily warming planet, and authoritarian forces dedicated to weakening democracy. Yet Citizen is more than a political memoir. These pages capture Clinton in a rare and unforgettable light: not only as a celebrated former president and a foundation leader, but as a father, grandfather, and husband. He recounts his support for Hillary Clinton during her time as senator, secretary of state, and presidential candidate, and shares the frustration and pain of the 2016 election.
In this landmark publication, the highly anticipated follow-up to the best-selling My Life, Clinton pens an illuminating account of American democracy on a global stage, offering a frank reflection on the past and, with it, a fearless embrace of our future. Citizen is a self-portrait of equal parts eloquence, insight, and candor, a testament to one man’s unwavering commitment to family and nation.
“This sequel to My Life will inspire as well as inform.” – Bethanne Patrick, Los Angeles Times
The City and Its Uncertain Walls by Haruki Murakami; translated by Philip Gabriel ★
fiction / fantasy.
We begin with a nameless young couple: a boy and a girl, teenagers in love. One day, she disappears… and her absence haunts him for the rest of his life.
Thus begins a search for this lost love that takes the man into middle age and on a journey between the real world and an other world – a mysterious, perhaps imaginary, walled town where unicorns roam, where a Gatekeeper determines who can enter and who must remain behind, and where shadows become untethered from their selves. Listening to his own dreams and premonitions, the man leaves his life in Tokyo behind and ventures to a small mountain town, where he becomes the head librarian, only to learn the mysterious circumstances surrounding the gentleman who had the job before him. As the seasons pass and the man grows more uncertain about the porous boundaries between these two worlds, he meets a strange young boy who helps him to see what he’s been missing all along.
“Astonishing, puzzling, and hallucinatory as only Murakami can be, and one of his most satisfying tales.” – Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW
“…intoxicating… an astonishing achievement.” – Publishers Weekly, STARRED REVIEW
“[A] masterpiece… At times a meditation on romance, reality vs. fantasy, ghosts, and the power of written words, this metaphysical novel examines the questionable value of timekeeping while thoroughly exploring unconditional love, self-imposed constraints, and deaths of one’s body and soul.” – Lisa Rohrbaugh, Library Journal, STARRED REVIEW
“The City and Its Uncertain Walls, Murakami’s first novel in six years, is also one of his best. It feels at once sweeping and intimate, grand and tender, quiet and charged with feeling… a paean to books, reading, and libraries, an investigation into the relationship between romance and realism, and a timely fable about how relationships, societies, and communities both protect themselves against threats and foster beauty and truth… works both as timeless parable and as vividly particularized bildungsroman.” – Priscilla Gilman, Boston Globe
City of Night Birds by Juhea Kim ★
fiction / historical fiction.
On a White Night in 2019, prima ballerina Natalia Leonova returns to St. Petersburg two years after a devastating accident that stalled her career. Once the most celebrated dancer of her generation, she now turns to pills and alcohol to numb the pain of her past.
She is unmoored in her old city as the ghosts of her former life begin to resurface: her loving but difficult mother, her absentee father, and the two gifted dancers who led to her downfall.
One of those dancers, Alexander, is the love of her life, who transformed both Natalia and her art. The other is Dmitri, a dark and treacherous genius. When the latter offers her a chance to return to the stage in her signature role, Natalia must decide whether she can again face the people responsible for both her soaring highs and darkest hours.
Painting a vivid portrait of the Russian ballet world, where cutthroat ambition, ever-shifting politics, and sublime artistry collide, City of Night Birds unveils the making of a dancer with both profound intimacy and breathtaking scope. Mysterious and alluring, passionate and virtuosic, Juhea Kim’s second novel is an affecting meditation on love, forgiveness, and the making of an artist in a turbulent world.
“Written in sumptuous prose, Kim’s novel is a feast for the senses.” – Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW
“A story of art, love and ambition, this is a dazzling tale of the meteoric rise and fall of a Russian ballerina.” – Isabelle McConville, B&N Reads
“…vivid and intimate… a glamorous character study.” – AudioFile
“Kim delivers all the juicy drama readers have come to expect from a ballerina’s tale… but what distinguishes the work is its treatment of the dilemma at the center of many books about artistic obsession: Is it all worth it?” – Laura Warrell, Los Angeles Times
The Collaborators by Michael Idov ★
fiction / mystery / suspense.
Combining realistic thrills with sophisticated spycraft and witty dialogue, The Collaborators delivers a gut-punch answer to the biggest geopolitical question of our time: how, exactly, did post-Soviet Russia turn down the wrong path?
Crisscrossing the globe on the way to this shocking revelation are disaffected millennial CIA officer Ari Falk, thrown into a moral and professional crisis by the death of his best asset; and brash, troubled LA heiress Maya Chou, spiraling after the disappearance of her Russian American billionaire father. The duo’s adventures take us to both classic and surprising locales—from Berlin, to Latvia, Belarus, and an abandoned technopark outside Moscow.
Dynamic, fast-paced, and filled with captivating details that provide a window into a secretive world, The Collaborators is a first-rate thriller “with a propulsive plot and fantastic twists” (Chris Pavone, author of The Expats) that pays homage to both meanings of “intelligence.”
“Sharp, freshly conceived, thoroughly entertaining spy fiction.” – Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW
“If you are in the mood for a high-stakes global espionage novel, with secret agents jet-setting all over the world, you have come to the right place… cleverness and subterfuge abound, followed by a believable, real-world sort of denouement. PS: Idov is a screenwriter in addition to being a novelist, and this book has silver screen written all over it.” – BookPage
“What the ever expanding world of espionage fiction needs, it turns out, is a Yale-educated Millennial field operative who dresses in Weezer t-shirts and knows his way around a semi-automatic… [The Collaborators is a] slim, well-paced, deceptively complex novel of American and Russian intelligence… a novel as cool as it is accomplished, that knits together action, tradecraft and quippy dialogue with flair.” – Taylor Antrim, Vogue
“[A] ripping gem of a novel… Propulsively paced, and containing as much humor, romance, philosophy, and whimsy as classic spy-thriller action, this brilliant novel will charm readers and linger long after its final pages… Idov’s intelligent, emotive spy novel is funny and sweet, as well as blood-soaked; clever and riveting in its plot twists; and focused on idiosyncratic characters first and foremost… Entertaining, rocketing, and unforgettable, The Collaborators is not to be overlooked.” – Julia Kastner, Shelf Awareness
Darkly by Marisha Pessl
fiction / young adult / mystery / suspense / horror.
Arcadia “Dia” Gannon has been obsessed with Louisiana Veda, the game designer whose obsessive creations and company, Darkly, have gained a cultlike following. Dia is shocked when she’s chosen for a highly-coveted internship, along with six other teenagers from around the world. Why her? Dia has never won anything in her life.
Darkly, once a game-making empire renowned for its ingenious and utterly terrifying toys and games, now lies dormant after Veda’s mysterious death. The remaining games are priced like rare works of art, with some fetching millions of dollars at auction.
As Dia and her fellow interns delve into the heart of Darkly, they discover hidden symbols, buried clues, and a web of intrigue. Who are these other teens, and what secrets do they keep? Why were any of them really chosen? The answers lie within the twisted labyrinth of Darkly—a chilling and addictive read by Marisha Pessl.
“Don’t overlook this one because it’s a young adult title; it’s full of atmospheric thrills.” – Bethanne Patrick, Los Angeles Times
“Twists and connections are satisfying and surprising in this high-stakes thriller by Pessl, who takes familiar YA tropes and turns them on their head using confident prose.” – Publishers Weekly, STARRED REVIEW
“…mesmerizing, improbable, deeply compelling, and best enjoyed after dark. Pessl’s impeccably controlled prose plays with ideas about presentation and storytelling on a meta level even as Dia grapples with the same ideas (as well as the concepts of destiny and determination) in Veda’s life and her own. Roll the die, flip the card: We have a winner.” – Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW
Freedom by Angela Merkel
nonfiction / memoir / politics / history.
For sixteen years, Angela Merkel was Chancellor of Germany and at the forefront of European and international politics. In her memoir, she looks back on her life in two German states—East Germany until 1990, and reunified Germany thereafter. How did she, coming from the East, rise to the top of the Christian Democratic Union to become the first woman to hold the office of chancellor? And how did she then become one of the most powerful heads of government in the Western world? What guided her?
In Freedom, Angela Merkel recounts daily life in the chancellor’s office as well as the dramatic days and nights when she made far-reaching decisions in Berlin, Brussels, and beyond. She traces the long lines of change in international cooperation and reveals the pressure politicians face when seeking solutions to complex problems in a globalized world. Here, she takes us behind the scenes of international politics, demonstrating both the importance of personal conversations and, crucially, their limits.
Reflecting on politics in a time of increasing confrontation and division, Angela Merkel’s memoir offers a unique insight into the inner workings of power—and is a determined and timely plea for freedom.
Ghosts of Panama: A Strongman Out of Control, a Murdered Marine, and the Special Agents Caught in the Middle of an Invasion by Mark Harmon & Leon Carroll
nonfiction / history.
Panama, 1989. The once warm relationship between the United States and Gen. Manuel Noriega has eroded dangerously. Newly elected President George Bush has declared the strongman a drug trafficker and a rigger of elections. Intimidation on the streets is a daily reality for U.S. personnel and their families. The nation is a powder keg.
Naval Investigative Service (NIS) Special Agent Rick Yell has worked the job in Panama since 1986, and lives there with his wife Annya and infant child. Like most NIS agents, he’s a civilian with no military rank with a specialty in working criminal cases. The dynamic changes suddenly when Yell inadvertently develops an intelligence source with unparalleled access to the Noriega regime. Now the agent is thrust into a world of spy-versus-spy, of secret meetings and hidden documents.
Yell’s source – known as “The Old Man” – warns when Cuban military personnel arrive and identifies anti-American officers within the Panamanian Defense Forces, provides information about an imprisoned CIA asset and helps track Noriega’s movements, agitating for the dictator’s kidnapping. The reports created by Yell and his NIS colleagues shape the decisions made in Washington D.C., CIA headquarters in Langley and the innermost sanctums of the Pentagon.
The powder keg is lit on December 16, 1989, when a young U.S. Marine is gunned down at a checkpoint in Panama City. Yell and his cadre of trusted agents deploy immediately to investigate the killing, and what they determine will decide the fate of two nations. When President Bush hears the details they uncover, he orders an invasion that puts Yell’s family, informants and fellow agents directly in harm’s way.
Using a blend of research and interviews with the NIS agents who were directly involved, Ghosts of Panama reveals the untold, clandestine story of counterintelligence professionals placed in a pressure cooker assignment of historic proportions.
Ghosts of Waikīkī by Jennifer K. Morita
fiction / mystery / suspense.
After the newspaper she works for folds and the freelance assignments no longer pay the bills, Maya Wong reluctantly returns to her native Hawaiʻi to ghostwrite controversial land developer Parker Hamilton’s biography. But when the Hamilton patriarch is found dead under suspicious circumstances, Maya is unwittingly drawn into the investigation.
Maya’s family and friends aren’t happy about her work for Hamilton. And now, with her ex, Detective Koa Yamada, on the case, she’s forced to contend with the very person she was determined to avoid.
All too soon, Maya is dodging assailants and digging for clues while juggling girls’ nights out with her old BFFs and weekly family dinners. Convinced the police are after the wrong man, Maya is determined to stop the killer before it’s too late.
Exploring timely issues in Hawaiʻi, including locals getting priced out of paradise, Ghosts of Waikīkī is an engrossing mystery in the vein of The Verifiers.
“Morita’s breezy whodunit captures the flavor of her tropical setting and nicely balances the relatable dilemmas of Maya’s personal life with her sleuthing. A brisk and appealing mystery that could easily blossom into a series.” – Kirkus Reviews
Growing Up Urkel: A Memoir by Jaleel White
nonfiction / memoir / television.
At the tender age of twelve, Jaleel White auditioned for the role of Steve Urkel, the socially inept genius, who was in love with his next-door neighbor, Laura.
Though Steve Urkel was intended to be in only one episode, Jaleel’s indelible performance catapulted Urkel into the pantheon of American pop culture. But success can cost as much as it pays. After nine years on the popular sitcom Family Matters, Jaleel is twenty-one, a UCLA undergrad, and adjusting to a world and industry that sees him as the nasally nerd in high water pants, suspenders, and coke bottle glasses.
In this wise and witty memoir, Growing Up Urkel takes you on a memorable journey through the peaks, valleys, and plateaus of fame and fortune.
“In this memoir, White tells his story with a charming and witty flair for words… A candid and surprisingly touching memoir from the actor who created one of television’s most memorable characters.” – Claire Sewell, Library Journal, STARRED REVIEW
“Conversational in tone and just dishy enough, Growing Up Urkel will appeal to nostalgic readers looking for a show business insider’s story.” – Susan Maguire, Booklist
“At its best, Growing Up Urkel is an emotionally incisive exploration of what it’s like when a former child star is no longer a child nor a true star.” – Richard Propes, The Independent Critic
The Half King by Melissa Landers
fiction / fantasy / romance.
The Great Betrayal changed everything for the Allied Realm. Long ago, the kingdom’s noble houses rose up against the goddess… and for their treachery, the firstborn of each noble family was cursed.
One with perilous beauty.
One with destructive knowledge.
One with insatiable bloodlust.
But the royal house Mortara received the worst affliction of all. For while the king exists during the day, he fades into nothingness at night… until his twenty-first birthday, when he will be lost to the shadows forever.
Now an acolyte has arrived at court. Like all the second-born children of the Allied Realm, she’s destined to serve the goddess and become a Seer… only Cerise Solon has no gift of foretelling. In fact, she has no magical gift at all.
Instead, she’s surrounded by courtiers and priests—smiling sycophants whose hearts are filled with secrets and lies. And at the center of it all sits His Majesty Kian Hannibal Mortara, with his haunting eyes, sharp tongue, and an unerring ability to send her pulse skittering at the worst possible moments.
Falling for him is unthinkable. Because the king is the last of his line, and as the specter of his twenty-first birthday—and the full force of his curse—approaches, the kingdom holds its breath.
But there’s only one way to save a dying king… and it lies with the one person who’s hiding the biggest secret of all. Cerise.
“An engaging adventure and a promising beginning to a new fantasy series.” – Kirkus Reviews
“Landers brings a mythic fairy tale aesthetic to this new adult romantasy, crafting a complex world and vivid characters… Fortunately, a sequel seems to be in the cards. Readers will be eager for its arrival.” – Publishers Weekly
Hotel Lucky Seven by Kotaro Isaka; translated by Brian Bergstrom
fiction / mystery / suspense.
In Bullet Train, underworld operative Ladybug was tasked by his handler Maria with retrieving a suitcase from a high-speed train in Japan. The job did not go according to plan, to the delight of millions of readers and movie fans around the world.
Will the unluckiest assassin in the world will find things easier this time around? All he has to do is deliver a painting to a hotel guest, a portrait made by his daughter. Easy enough, except when Ladybug makes the delivery, he realizes that the guest is clearly not the guy in the painting. Then he attacks Ladybug, they fight, and the guest ends up dead. How can such simple jobs always go wrong?
Internationally acclaimed author Kotaro Isaka spins another outrageously entertaining thriller in Hotel Lucky Seven. This is a stylish, masterful book, again featuring outsized characters, gripping action, plot twists, and surprise identities.
“A perfect, propulsive, and fun thriller.” – Olivia Rutigiliano, CrimeReads
“Isaka takes readers on a furious cat-and-mouse race through the luxury hotel… strategically paced [and] expertly plotted… this is a near-perfect thriller” – Christine Tran, Booklist
Is She Really Going Out with Him? by Sophie Cousens ★
fiction / romance / comedy.
Columnist Anna Appleby has left her love life behind after a painful divorce. Who needs a man when she has two kids, a cat, and uncontested control of the TV remote? Besides, she’d rather be single than subject herself to the hell of online dating. But her office rival is vying for her column, and no column means no stable source of income. In a desperate attempt to keep her job, Anna finds herself pitching a unique angle: seven dates, all found offline, chosen by her children.
From awkward encounters to unexpected connections, Anna gamely begins to put herself out there, asking out waiters, the mailman, and even her celebrity crush. But when a romantic connection appears where she least expected it, will she be brave enough to take another chance on love?
“A supremely satisfying love story with all the charm readers have come to expect from Cousens.” – Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW
“[A] refreshing novel that takes readers on an unexpected journey… With a cast of well-developed and memorable characters, Cousens expertly weaves together themes of self-discovery, romance, motherhood, and friendship, resulting in a rich story that is engrossing to the end, and has high appeal for women’s lit readers.” – Patricia Smith, Booklist, STARRED REVIEW
“Another bright and gratifying love story from Cousens. She tackles the enemies-to-lovers trope with characteristic humor and thoughtfulness, while injecting it with complex characters and realistic situations.” – Kellie Tilton, Library Journal, STARRED REVIEW
“While the happily ever after is never in doubt, Cousens fills the path there with laughter and surprises, and strikes a good balance between romance and family life. This is a charmer.” – Publishers Weekly
A Legend in the Baking by Jamie Wesley
fiction / romance.
August Hodges was supposed to be the silent partner in Sugar Blitz Cupcakes. Emphasis on silent. That is until his impromptu feminist rant about how women bakers are the backbone of the industry and baking cupcakes isn’t a threat to masculinity goes viral, making him the hottest bachelor in town. With a new location in the works, August and his partners decide to capitalize on this perfect opportunity to help cement their place in the community. But the hiring of his best friend’s younger sister, the woman who has haunted some of his best dreams for years, was as much of a shock as his new-found fame.
Social media manager Sloane Dell fell hard for her brother’s best friend the moment she met him more than a decade ago, but that teenage infatuation cost her dearly. Still, she accepts her brother’s request to revamp the bakery’s social media presence to take advantage of August’s newfound popularity, knowing it’s the big break her fledgling career needs. She’ll just ignore the fact that August is still August, i.e. sexier and sweeter than any man has a right to be. And that he drives her crazy with his resistance to all her ideas.
They vow to leave the past in the past. But when an explosive make-out session makes it clear their attraction burns hotter than ever, Sloane and August are forced to reconsider what it means to take a risk and chase your dreams.
As they’re both about to find out, all’s fair in love and cupcakes.
“…sweet and hot, with a sexy cinnamon-roll hero and a determined, strong-willed heroine.” – Heather Miller Cover, Library Journal
“…Sloane and August have great chemistry… A fun twist on the culinary romance with both characters reliving a lot of past regrets and discovering the need to work on themselves if they are to find their happily-ever-after…” – C.L. Quillen, Booklist
“Wesley delivers a delectable mash-up of rom-com tropes in her adorable follow-up to Fake It Till You Bake It… Readers will have no trouble rooting for these two to fall in love.” – Publishers Weekly
The Mirror by Nora Roberts
fiction / romance / fantasy / mystery / suspense.
When Sonya MacTavish inherits the huge Victorian mansion on the coast of Maine, she has no idea that the house is haunted. The footsteps she hears at night, the doors slamming, the music playing, are not figments of her imagination. In her dreams she sees glimpses of the past. In the present she finds portraits of brides. And when she has visions of an antique mirror, she is drawn to it, sensing it holds dark family secrets.
Then one night the mirror appears and Sonya glides through this looking glass, into the past—and sees a bride murdered on her wedding day, the circle of gold torn from her finger. It is a scene that will play out again and again—a centuries-old curse that must be broken—and a puzzle she must solve if there is any hope of breaking the curse.
“[The] magically creative and prolific Roberts continues to cast her own spell over readers with this bewitching story. With plenty of chills and thrills, this paranormal romantic suspense tale also brilliantly celebrates the importance of family, friends, and love.” – John Charles, Booklist
“…quintessential Roberts: richly detailed wish fulfillment seasoned with the mounting tension of a carefully plotted mystery. Captivating characters and a cliffhanger ending will leave readers eager for more.” – Publishers Weekly
“Roberts is a masterful storyteller, weaving together the tales of Sonya’s ancestors, not only the murdered brides but also desperate survivors who did monstrous things to avoid the curse. It’s a fascinating look at the destructive power of ambition, greed, and weakness while Sonya marshals the power of creativity, community, and togetherness. A quiet yet mesmerizing story reveals how a family was impacted by a curse over the centuries.” – Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW
Not Too Sweet: 100 Dessert Recipes for Those Who Want More with Just a Little Less by Jessica Seinfeld
nonfiction / food / cooking.
In her five cookbooks to date, Jessica Seinfeld has shown readers that healthy eating need not be a chore or a bore. Now she’s back to show you that this truth applies even to dessert.
The recipes in Not Too Sweet allow home cooks to prepare crowd-pleasing desserts for any diet, be it vegan, gluten-free, less-sugar, no-sugar, no-nuts… or “no restrictions.” With her trademark accessibility and ingenious use of ingredients, Seinfeld provides step-by-step instructions for making all manner of treats—chocolatey, fruity, traditional, quirky—that will satisfy every (not too) sweet tooth.
Featuring gorgeous, inviting photography, and entertaining stories from the kitchen table of the dessert-obsessed Seinfeld family, Not Too Sweet is the ultimate guide to plotting a happy path to a delicious final course.
“A robust and delicious entry into healthier dessert options. A triumph for gluten-free, vegan, and other dietary-restricted cooks.” – Ron Block, Library Journal, STARRED REVIEW
The Serviceberry: Abundance and Reciprocity in the Natural World by Robin Wall Kimmerer; illustrated by John Burgoyne ★
nonfiction / nature / science / philosophy.
As Indigenous scientist and author of Braiding Sweetgrass Robin Wall Kimmerer harvests serviceberries alongside the birds, she considers the ethic of reciprocity that lies at the heart of the gift economy. How, she asks, can we learn from Indigenous wisdom and the plant world to reimagine what we value most? Our economy is rooted in scarcity, competition, and the hoarding of resources, and we have surrendered our values to a system that actively harms what we love. Meanwhile, the serviceberry’s relationship with the natural world is an embodiment of reciprocity, interconnectedness, and gratitude. The tree distributes its wealth—its abundance of sweet, juicy berries—to meet the needs of its natural community. And this distribution insures its own survival. As Kimmerer explains, “Serviceberries show us another model, one based upon reciprocity, where wealth comes from the quality of your relationships, not from the illusion of self-sufficiency.”
As Elizabeth Gilbert writes, Robin Wall Kimmerer is “a great teacher, and her words are a hymn of love to the world.” The Serviceberry is an antidote to the broken relationships and misguided goals of our times, and a reminder that “hoarding won’t save us, all flourishing is mutual.”
Robin Wall Kimmerer is donating her advance payments from this book as a reciprocal gift, back to the land, for land protection, restoration, and justice.
“Certain to be acclaimed as one of the best books of the year.” – Michael Giltz, Parade
“[A] moving meditation on what a giving tree can teach us about building a fairer society… a compelling argument for a more ethical economy.” – Shannon Carlin, Time
“…Kimmerer’s deeply rooted, wise, and inspiring reflections coalesce into a fresh approach to connecting ecology, economics, and ethics, beginning with achievable grassroots endeavors in the hope of gradually widening the circle. ” – Donna Seaman, Booklist, STARRED REVIEW
“A welcome meditation on living in harmony with the earth and fostering deeper connections with one another.” – Kirkus Reviews
The Songbird & the Heart of Stone by Carissa Broadbent
fiction / fantasy / romance.
Mische lost everything when she was forcibly Turned into a vampire–her home, her humanity, and most devastating of all, the love of the sun god to whom she had devoted her life. Now, sentenced to death for murdering the vampire prince who Turned her, redemption feels impossible.
But when Mische is saved by Asar, the bastard prince of the House of Shadow with a past as brutal as his scars, she’s forced into a mission worse than execution: a journey to the underworld to resurrect the god of death himself.
Yet, Mische’s punishment may be the key to her salvation. In a secret meeting, her sun god commands her to help Asar in his mission, only to betray him… by killing the god of death.
Mische and Asar must travel the treacherous path to the underworld, facing trials, beasts, and the vengeful ghosts of their pasts. But most dangerous of all is the alluring call of the darkness–and her forbidden attraction to Asar, a burgeoning bond that risks invoking the wrath of gods.
As her betrayal looms, the underworld closes in and angry gods grow restless. Mische will be forced to choose between the redemption of the sun or the damnation of the darkness.
“The fast-paced plot involves a swoonworthy enemies-to-lovers love story, drawing readers in from the first paragraph.” – Tiffany Wittman, Booklist
“[An] emotionally intense and richly detailed descent into the underworld.” – Publishers Weekly
“A beautiful story of learning to face your demons, metaphorically and physically… Fans of enemy-to-lover, expansive worlds, high fantasy, and epic journeys will want to grab this novel.” – Joseph Pietris, Horror Tree
“…set my heart and soul aflame and then remorselessly left them burnt to a withered crisp by the end… [a] exquisitely soul-stirring and divinely epic slow-burn fantasy romance full of death, desire, treachery and heart-wrenching emotions that just bleed off the page.” – Esmay Rosalyne, Grimdark Magazine
Variation by Rebecca Yarros
fiction / romance.
Elite ballerina Allie Rousseau is no stranger to pressure. With her mother’s eyes always watching, perfection was expected, no matter the cost. But when an injury jeopardizes all she’s sacrificed for, Allie returns to her summer home to heal and recover. But the memories she’s tried to forget rush in and threaten to take her under.
As a Coast Guard rescue swimmer, Hudson Ellis knows that hesitation can mean the difference between life and death. He’s always prided himself on being in the right place at the right time, especially when it came to Allie Rousseau… until the night he left for basic. After the biggest regret of his life, the secrets he keeps mean he can never be with the one woman he wants more than his next breath.
When Hudson’s niece shows up on Allie’s doorstep, desperate to find her birth mother, Allie finds herself in an unimaginable position. Allie and Hudson’s past and present might be endlessly complicated. The thread that tied them to each other all those years ago may have unraveled, but the truth could pull them back together, or drive them apart forever.
“…explosive… Yarros keeps the twists coming as her complex but lovable characters find their way back to each other in the face of impossible odds.” – Publishers Weekly
“…epic, angsty, sweet, sexy, and sweepingly romantic… So satisfying.” – Sara, Harlequin Junkie
Water, Water: Poems by Billy Collins
nonfiction / poetry.
In this collection of sixty new poems, Billy Collins writes about the beauties and ironies of everyday experience. A poem is best, he feels, when it begins in clarity but ends with a whiff of mystery.
In Water, Water, Collins combines his vigilant attention and respect for the peripheral to create moments of delight. Common and uncommon events are captured here with equal fascination, be it a cat leaning to drink from a swimming pool, a nurse calling a name in a waiting room, or an astronaut reciting Emily Dickinson from outer space. With his trademark lyrical informality, Collins asks us to slow down and glimpse the elevated in the ordinary, the odd in the familiar. It’s no surprise that The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal both call Collins one of America’s favorite poets.
“There is beauty in the mundane — Billy Collins reminds us we just need to remember to look for it. Indoors, outdoors and beyond, this collection is an ode to the wild and weird world around us.” – Isabelle McConville, B&N Reads
“Reading Collins is like entering a decompression chamber in which oxygen takes the form of wittily concentrated poems that engender a feeling of well-being, healing, and recalibration… Ever-inventive and evergreen, Collins is a warm, self- deprecating, and enrapturing poet of surprising pivots, unforeseen connections, and astute hijinks.” – Donna Seaman, Booklist
“The former United States Poet Laureate, Collins is a master at writing in ways that are both universal and intimate, familiar yet mysterious… There’s a joy that comes to life in Collins’s writing that is absolutely compelling… For Billy Collins fans, Water, Water is a must. For those new to Collins, Water, Water will be an introduction to a wonderful poet that will make you want to explore his other works.” – Richard Propes, The Independent Critic
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