โ[The] only way to understand the world as something other than a tale of loss is to see it as a tale of change.โ – Daniel Mason, North Woods
American Crown: From Revolutionaries to Royalty: The Story of Prince William’s American Ancestors by Stephanie Green
nonfiction / history / biography.
In this fresh and perspective-shifting narrative, American Crown is an absorbing blend of American history and royal biography that brings to life the past generations who will shape the Prince of Walesโs role in the future of Britain, America and the world. For the first time, Britain will have a monarch whose ancestors fought against the very crown he bears.
It all goes back to the roots of Diana, Princess of Wales whose Spencer family has a friendship with the Washington clan of Sulgrave Manor that produced the founding father of America, but more fascinating is Dianaโs maternal side whose American ancestors fought in the Revolution in New England, became successful in the new nation, and then (like many Gilded Age families) sent a daughter across the ocean to marry into the British elite. Other Spencers on the British side had bucked social trends in the 1770s and even raised funds for the American rebels themselves. Embodying more interconnected history than any of his predecessors, Williamโs sense of his own role in the world is markedly different from anyone whoโs ever held the throne.
With sweeping locations from battlefields to Buckingham Palace and featuring grand personalities like Nathan Hale, Cornelius Vanderbilt, Winston Churchill, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth II, Stephanie Greenโs American Crown tells the story of a very new kind of royal familyโone with the potential to bring two countries closer together in times of turmoil and bring the โspecial relationshipโ into next century.
“A lively family history.” – Kirkus Reviews
“Fascinating and lighthearted, this is ideal for royal enthusiasts and anyone who enjoys uncovering unique historical connections.” – Erin Sommers, Booklist
“…captivating… A well-researched, lively, and engaging book that explores the American ancestry of the future King of England and what that might mean for his future.” – Lucy Heckman, Library Journal
Babylon: The Biography of a Metropolis by Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones
nonfiction / history.
“Babylon” is a name that has a double life: it denotes the great ancient Mesopotamian city with a long and complex history, and it is also a fictive allusion with a wide variety of connotations, from the Hebrew bible’s Tower of Babel, through the New Testament’s “Whore of Babylon” to the iconic song “The Rivers of Babylon” in the 1970s.
The first royal dynasty of Babylon was founded by an Amorite interloper named Sumu-la-El a thousand years after the fall of the great Sumerian city states of Ur and Uruk, creating a new superpower in the Near East. Clinging close to the mighty River Euphrates, the city quickly grew in size and, thanks to its military prowess, soon expanded its territories, sweeping down to the Persian Gulf and advancing north into Syria.
The kingdom of Babylonia came in to being and, governed from mighty Babylon, setting the agenda for what civilization meant. This fascinating book explores Babylon’s reputation as a city with a dual legacy by exploring its rich ancient past and its astonishing mythic legacy.
“An authoritative examination of ‘the Mother of All Cities.'” – Kirkus Reviews
“Llewellyn-Jones guides the reader through labyrinthine streets, frenzied shopping for gewgaws, taverns that functioned as love hotels, Rabelaisian eating and drinking, raucous popular songs. Rich with meticulous scholarship, illuminated by sharp wit, and full of subtle judgment, Babylon is quite simply enthralling.โ – Rupert Christiansen, The Telegraph
“Llewellyn-Jones delves deeply into Babylonian culture, limning the ways war was integral to the society as a sacred charge of the gods and exploring the sources and results of the Babylonian fixation on such pleasures as sex and food. An excellent and accessible tome that expertly explores the rich history of the famed ancient city.” – Kristine Huntley, Booklist
The Brides by Charlotte Cross
fiction / horror / fantasy / historical fiction.
“Come to me, and be mine for eternity.”
1884. When Mafalda journeys to Budapest to care for her grieving aunt, her secret love, Lucy, hurries from London to comfort her, with chaperone and ladyโs maid in tow.
But ladyโs maid Alice, blessed and cursed with the Sight, is tormented by terrifying visions. When chaperone Eliza falls prey to a disturbing wasting illness, the women hope to seek the healing waters of Transylvania. At a noblemanโs invitation, they set out for Castle Dracula.
In the depths of the forest, miles from civilization, their host reveals his true intentions; a monstrous ambition which will tear the women apart.
And not all of them will survive.
“[A] velvety, epistolary gothic that has the chilling atmosphere of Peter Straubโs Ghost Story, simply with more fangs and decadence… a novel that feels as though it has been stored for a century in a dusty writing desk before being pressed into my eager hands.” – George Dunn, FanFiAddict
“…the writing does roll the reader along in the spirit of Stokerโs page-turner. Iโm sure this novel will send many readers, old and new, back to where it all began, to meet those women haunting Draculaโs castle with perhaps more compassion and curiosity. Cross reminds us they were once human.” – Louise Tree, Historical Novel Society
“…unique and memorable… [the] between emotional depth and gothic tension works very well… absolutely worth the read.” – Heather Drake, The Gloss
Country People by Daniel Mason โ
fiction / historical fiction / comedy.
Miles Krzelewski is a devoted husband, a doting father beloved for his outlandish bedtime stories, and the proud owner of a truffle-hunting dog in a land with no truffles. He is also a bit lost, twelve years late with his PhD on Russian folktales and increasingly haunted by a sense that heโs become a disappointment to his family. So when his wife, Kate, accepts a visiting professorship at a prestigious college in the faraway forests of Vermont, he decides that this will be the year to finally move forward with his life.
But Miles is a man of many enthusiasms, one who possesses, in Kateโs words, a great capacity โto fall in with anyone, anywhere.โ And no sooner does he arrive than he finds himself entangled with a cast of characters as colorful as those of any of his folktales, from a ghostly tree surgeon to a scythe-mad biochemist, from a Shakespearean temptress to a photographer of snowflakes obsessed with chronicling, on thousands of index cards, the worldโs delusions in an Inventory of Wrong Ideas.
The new friends, the enchanted woods, the histories: sure, no PhD, but all good fun. Until Miles stumbles upon a bizarreโperhaps ridiculousโlocal legend, which, he soon suspects, might not be just a legend after all.
Joyous, absurd, and life-affirming, Country People is a luminous exploration of marriage and parenthood, the nature of belief and the power of stories, and the ways in which we find connection in an increasingly fragmented world.
“I loved Masonโs North Woods and, while this novel has the same beautiful descriptions of nature, itโs a more traditional narrative and much funnier.” – Joanne Finney, Good Housekeeping
“Entering the magical world of Daniel Mason is discovering the most perfect illustration of literature. The characters are quirky, the plot is inventive, and the landscape defies convention. Loved every page from beginning to end.โ – Mary McBride, The Indie Next List
“Mason delivers a wickedly funny, whimsical, and tender portrait of a man caught between his real-life responsibilities and an imagined world that comes to life below him. With conversational yet erudite prose full of laugh-out-loud observational humor and surprising tenderness, this novel explores themes of parenthood, marriage, belief, storytelling, and the vastness of American life and offers a sincere look into how secrets grow between two people, not through deliberate concealment but through the passive act of remaining silent.” – Claire Warr, Library Journal, STARRED REVIEW
“This story of self-delusions, bizarre eccentrics, and absurd antics is narrated in an arch, long-suffering voice that brings out the comic flavor like salt on caramel. Think of it as a companion to Andrew Sean Greerโs Villa Coco. One comic novel this good feels lucky; two in the same summer feels like cheating… Mason has written a comedy about a man who canโt quite secure his place above ground but senses the wonder lurking just beneath our feet. That and a beloved Italian dog who digs through every pillow, sofa, and floor are all you really need for a book to make the world feel a little lighter, a little warmer.” – Ron Charles, Ron Charles
Everything Was Beautiful and Nothing Hurt by Ben Reeves โ
fiction / fantasy.
Travis is Death in the modern world. He lives with his cat in a small, gray town. His job is to offer people comfort in their final hours of life, which he does without complaint or judgement. Heโs stoic, gentle, and a little naive, despite who he is, but he never tries to change anyoneโs fate. He is responsible for maintaining the balance of nature, and every life must eventually end.
Then Travis meets Dalia, a midwife, and her boisterous eight-year-old daughter Layla, who live across the hall, and despite his best attempts to keep his distance, he finds himself wholeheartedly embraced by other people for the first time. So it is with this seemingly unremarkable family that Travis begins to understand what it means to be truly aliveโand what might be irrevocably lost in death.
Written with radiant warmth, wisdom, and compassion, Everything Was Beautiful and Nothing Hurt is a timeless and ultimately uplifting story about appreciating life, accepting its end, and finding our place in the universeโespecially when it feels most impossibleโthat will resonate with anyone who has ever loved and lost or worried about timeโs passing.
“Unique, heartbreaking, and profound. This novel broke me in half but left me with immense gratitude for life, even for the toughest of times. You will want to share this with everyone you know.โ – Barb Rascon, The Indie Next List, #1 PICK
“Heartwarming and tender, this unforgettable debut grapples with mortality from the perspective of Death himself… The rhythmic, poetic writing is both beautiful and hypnotizing, giving the book a timeless, fable-like feel.” – Book of the Month
“Be prepared to reflect on what makes a well-lived life and to shed some tears before sending a copy to a friend. A good suggestion for fans of Matt Haig, Gabrielle Zevin, or Marcus Zusak.” – Stacey Hayman, Booklist, STARRED REVIEW
“An evocative, kaleidoscopic affirmation of life from the perspective of Death.” – Kirkus Reviews
The Exquisite Torment of Loving Your Enemy by Brigitte Knightley โ
fiction / fantasy / romance.
Osric is a member of the Fyren Order, a guild of assassins who gleefully murder for money. Aurienne is a Haelan, a scholar-healer whose Orderโs motto is Harm to none. Clear-cut absolutes separate them: good and bad, right and wrong, light and dark. . .
Until they donโt.
When Osric first bribed Aurienne to heal him, he never imagined those lines would begin to blur. But every healing session draws them closer together. He finds himself developing unwanted feelings for Aurienne as her capable hands heal his bodyโand his heart.
Aurienneโs perfect life has been flung into chaos in the form of a devastatingly handsome assassin. She should be in her research lab, not illicitly healing a Fyren every full moonโnor wrestling an attraction to him that threatens to slip into something else.
Things go superbly sideways when Osric and Aurienne discover more about the deadly Pox deliberately unleashed through the Tฤซendoms. The plague may be the work of another Orderโan Order far nastier than either of them can handle.
As the lines between Osric and Aurienne continue to blur, the balance between peace and war, and love and hate, trembles, shifts, and hinges on a heartbeat.
โFor fear of waxing rhapsodic, I’ll simply say I LOVED the second part of this story. The overarching world and plot, the romance, the yearning, the fight scenes, the adventure โ this book was magic!โ – Destinee Hodge, The Indie Next List
“Knightley has done the unthinkable and written an exceptional sequel that is so dazzling in its world building, so delightfully irreverent, and so undeniably sexy that readers are certain to love it as much as (or more than!) the first book in the series… The book ties a delightful bow on a perfectly executed duology that will resonate far past the last page.” – Judith Utz, Booklist, STARRED REVIEW
“The Exquisite Torment of Loving Your Enemy is packed with the same flirtatious banter and forced proximity that make everyone question their allegiances. Itโs time to see prejudices pushed to one side, bringing us a love story that we can grasp with both hands and dream about for the rest of the summer… Knightley continues to capture everything that made us fall in love with this couple in the first place.” – Alexandra Ingham, Parade
“Osricโs melodramatic tendencies and Aurienneโs intelligence and sharp wit create a biting humor and riotously fun romance, that when countered with genuinely tender moments and deadly intrigue, makes the second and final Dearly Beloathed book nearly impossible to put down” – Eve Stano, Library Journal, STARRED REVIEW
Fabulous Bodies by Chuck Tingle โ
fiction / horror / suspense.
Poppy Stringer was born to be a star.
An aspiring fashion influencer by day, Poppy moonlights as a grave robber to make ends meet, wheeling and dealing dead bodies across Palm Springs.
When her hero, the flamboyant, piano-slamming rockstar Eddie Michaels, unexpectedly dies, Poppy gets a call to retrieve his body from the medical examinerโs office for a lucrative sum. It could be the last job sheโll ever needโif everything goes to plan. But the nightโs delivery quickly veers off course when Eddie wakes up.
Now Poppy must fight for her life if she hopes to survive this blood-soaked joyride of carnage and extravagant entertainment.
“Tingle unwaveringly commits to the bit, masterfully juxtaposing intense horror, witty observation, and genuine emotion. Though not for the faint of heart, this is unforgettable.” – Publishers Weekly, STARRED REVIEW
“Gruesome, intelligent, and full of biting commentary about parasocial relationships with celebrities, clout and wealth chasing, social media influencing, body image and how self-absorbed we can be when we limit our world to whatโs on our phones.โ – Jennifer Tidwell, The Indie Next List
“A dazzling glam-rock music video directed by David Cronenberg, Fabulous Bodies is yet another outrageously entertaining entry from Tingle… A campy, glorious elegy which bundles you into its passenger seat and refuses to stop until the tank is empty, Chuck Tingle remains one of the most interesting characters in contemporary horror and whilst completely satisfied I am in a constant state of wanting more.” – George Dunn, FanFiAddict
“Fabulous Bodies is a queer, bizarre, glitter and gore-soaked horror story for fans of CJ Leede, Grady Hendrix, and Tim Burtonโs Beetlejuice… It is funny, gory, scary, shocking, and maybe the most entertaining book youโll read this year. Itโs also the best presentation of Tingleโs message and manifesto to the world: love is real, even if you have to go through hell to realize it… By the end of the novel, Tingle has reached emotional depths that I would have never bet on… This is such a rich and layered tapestry of horror from an author that truly seems to be getting better and better with every book. Donโt miss Fabulous Bodies, everyoneโs going to be talking about it.” – Adam Allen, Cemetery Dance
The Great Wherever by Shannon Sanders โ
fiction / historical fiction.
At thirty-two, Aubrey Lamb is stumbling through adulthood. An underpaid gig worker in Washington, DC, sheโs grieving the end of a serious relationship and the recent loss of her father. When Aubrey learns she has inherited his stake in a sizable Tennessee farm she sees an opportunity to get out of the cityโand to erase a mounting pile of debt.
Watching her arrival with great interest are four ghostsโAubreyโs ancestors, whoโve staked their own claims to the farm and who never hesitate to pass judgment on the mistakes made by the living, whether romantic, financial, or sartorial. As Aubrey reconnects with her living family, another story unfolds in parallel: the history of the land, beginning with its purchase by Thomas, Aubreyโs great-grandfather and one of the first Black landowners in his community. Though Thomas hopes to give his children a homestead on which they could flourish, the land proves to be a burdensome inheritance. Over the years, it turns the Lambs against one another, culminating in a catastrophic tragedy that splinters the family and echoes through the decades.
Now, as the clock ticks on a potential sale of the farm, the ghosts fear expulsion from the home theyโve made, and Aubrey must weigh the hopes and burdens of her forebears with the very real needs of her future.
An expansive family saga told with a wry and distinctly modern voice, The Great Wherever is at once grand and intimate; it explores the ways we learn to define ourselves through and against our families, how we carry on after loss, and how the past lives on in all of us.
“A bighearted triumph.” – Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW
โSanders is a sublime writer with unparalleled talent. I could read her writing all day, every day.โ – Adam Vitcavage, Debutiful
“[A] gripping multigenerational epic of land, home, and inheritance… Sanders poses timely questions of ownership and ancestry, and she packs the novel with indelible imagery, as when Thomas paces the land before buying it, passing through a ‘wall of oaks’ to a pond, where he finds the ghost of his great-grandmother. This resonates.” – Publishers Weekly, STARRED REVIEW
โAfter winning the LA Times Book Prize for her story collection Company, expectations were running high for Shannon Sanders’ first novel. A playful and poignant intergenerational saga about a haunted farm in which ancestors watch over and critique the living for posterity and entertainment, The Great Wherever leaps over that bar… inventive and new… I was hooked from the first sentence.โ – Carole V. Bell, NPR
Heartstopper: Volume Six by Alice Oseman โ
fiction / graphic novel / young adult / romance.
Boy meets boy. Boys become friends. Boys fall in love.
The final installment in the bestselling LGBTQ+ graphic novel series about life, love, and everything that happens in between.
Everyone in school knows Nick and Charlie. Everyone knows theyโre going to be together forever. But Charlieโs busy with his bid to become Head Boy. And while Nick is preparing to leave for college, heโs starting to wonder who heโll beโฆ without Charlie.
“I would have happily followed these boys for another six volumes but Iโm very pleased with the ending we get here.” – Chelsea, The Geeky Waffle
“The pacing of Volume 6 feels intentional; it doesnโt rush toward the ending but lingers in the small, quiet moments that made us fall in love with Nick and Charlie in the first place… If there is any critique, itโs that we simply arenโt ready to let go, making every page feel both precious and fleeting.” – John Jo, Anwar Library
“Heartstopper: Volume 6 is the perfect, heartfelt ending to a series that has meant absolutely everything to me… Heartstopper will forever hold a special place in my heart, and Iโll never stop recommending it. Whether youโre reading it for the first time or revisiting it, itโs one of those series that stays with you long after you turn the last page.” – @chels_reads_05
Helpless by Jessica Knoll โ
fiction / suspense / mystery / horror.
It’s been twelve years since Faye Heron broke Henry Spalding’s heart. Henry was her college boyfriend, her first love, but Faye was in danger of being subsumed by him and the intensity of their connectionโa connection that took her beyond boundaries she’d only dreamed of crossing.
Now, Faye is one half of a power-producing duo with her Hollywood husband. Henry is a married father running the family business. On the surface, both of their lives have essentially gone to plan.
When a former and beloved college professor suddenly passes away, Faye and Henry find themselves back on campus for the funeral, circling something old and dangerous. Something, if Faye is honest with herself, she has been trying to duplicate for years. But Henry is one of a kind.
The kind who delivers a hypnotic apology for the way things ended.
The kind who suggests they go back to the hotel for a drink.
The kind who drugs and kidnaps her.
When Faye comes to Henryโs remote mountain cabin, sheโs beside herself. Has Henry brought her here to punish her? She did, after all, write and star in a lauded episode of television based on their indelicate appetites and vicious breakup. As her week of captivity unfolds, Henryโs wanton demands intensify, and Faye finds herself pulled back into his irresistible gravity. But as Faye and Henry spiral into their old dynamic, a sprawling, years-old mystery begins to take shapeโone that will rewrite history as Faye remembers it and reveal an astounding, cataclysmic truth.
โ[A] smart thrillerโฆ This is the book to grab if youโre craving a prickle of fear. Be forewarned, the ending is a doozy.โ – Elisabeth Egan, New York Times
“[A] nuanced and unapologetic portrait of an unconventional relationship without judgment. Puts the ‘erotic’ back in ‘erotic thriller.'” – Kirkus Reviews
“Knoll is a master of ambitious, cool-headed heroines who know exactly how to package their pain. But in Helpless, she lets one of them get seriously hot and botheredโฆ Unapologetically kinky and almost diabolically twisty, this thriller keeps making you rethink who is using whom, and why. Also: Your book club will need at least two meetings to unpack the ending.” – Charley Burlock, Oprah Daily
“This twisty and twisted story of college love, adult success, and the complex ways in which peopleโs pasts are written into their futures is perfect for fans of Gillian Flynnโs Gone Girl and other psychological thrillers where womenโs sociosexual desires are presented in prismatic, shifting ways.” – Emily Bowles, Library Journal
Hotel Exile: Paris in the Shadow of War by Jane Rogoyska
nonfiction / history.
Since its opening in 1910, the Hotel Lutetia has been a grand Paris institution, a meeting place for artists, intellectuals, musicians, and politicians. Andrรฉ Gide took his lunch here, James Joyce lived in one of its rooms, Picasso and Matisse were regular guests. But the hotel has a darker history, tooโfrom the years before, during, and after the second World War. In this short period, the Lutetia witnessed some of the most dramatic and terrible events in recent history.
In Hotel Exile, Jane Rogoyska evokes in novelistic prose the emotions, dilemmas, and fates of the hotelโs patrons. In the 1930s, Europeโs bohemian artists and political activists, forced to flee their homes when Hitler came to power, met at the Lutetia with the hope of forming an alternative government. But when war came, Paris was occupied, and the hotel became the headquarters of the German military intelligence serviceโand the center of their operation to root out enemies of the Reich. In 1945, the Lutetia was requisitioned once more, this time transformed into a reception center for Holocaust survivors who sought refuge after the Liberation. Rogoyska explores what it meant for these three profoundly different groups to live in exile, under the shadow of the dark ideology that dictated the course of their lives.
A masterpiece of empathy and concision, Hotel Exile is about what happens at the edges of a war, passing through the doors of a normally functioning hotel, a site under occupation, and, finally, a shelter and place of healing. Jane Rogoyskaโs extraordinary new book offers us a vision of individual human beings desperately trying to find a path through some of the twentieth centuryโs most devastating events.
“[An] almost cinematic account that will, for many readers, connect figures and episodes in a new way.” – Mark Mazower, Financial Times
“Hauntingly vivid… Rogoyska proves such a fresh, astute and unaffected writer that thereโs not a dull page.” – Rupert Christiansen, Literary Review
“[The] remarkable story of a wartime institution… outstanding… Rogoyskaโs book soars to great heights.” – Kathryn Hughes, The Guardian
Love You More by Emily Giffin
fiction / romance.
Billie has built the perfect life. Her medical practice in New York City is thriving, and sheโs finally found the right partner in Dean after years spent trying to move on from her high-school sweetheart, Mick. Their young love had been intense and true, but distance and ambition pulled them apart when she left Wisconsin for medical school.
Then one morning, just after sheโs accepted Deanโs romantic marriage proposal, Billieโs phone rings. Itโs Mickโcalling for the first time in nearly a decade. His news is urgent and in a moment, everything changes.
As Billie boards a plane back to Wisconsin, her past comes rushing inโher hometown friendships, the love she and Mick shared, and the choices that shaped them all. What awaits her is a reckoning with what sheโs lost, what sheโs built, and what she still wants.
Gripping and deeply moving, Love You More is a story about the plot twists life throws at usโand how love, in all its forms, has the power to change everything.
“[A] must-read.” – Patty Bontekoe, Woman’s World
“A deliciously dramatic look at how one womanโs past influences her future.” – Kirkus Reviews
“…Giffin will once again galvanize her legions of readers with another of her engrossing signature tales in which there are no easy answers.” – Kristine Huntley, Booklist
Most Ardently Yours by Freya Sampson
fiction / romance / fantasy.
Zoe Knight, a struggling romance writer, has sworn off men for good. At leastโฆ the ones in real life. Once a believer in a happily ever after, she now curbs her loneliness with the help of the best book boyfriends in literature โ and there is no better man than Jane Austen’s Mr. Darcy. So when she stumbles into a classic London bookshop and argues with the annoyingly attractive store owner, Nick, who refuses to sell romance novels, she decides to liberate him of a dusty copy of Pride & Prejudice abandoned on a top shelf.
But this is no ordinary book.
After reading from the pages, Zoe finds herself in a remarkable situation: she has accidentally summoned Mr. Darcy to the real world. Now, she’s face-to-face with the man she’s loved forever, and he’s everything she dreamed he would be. Handsome? Check. Brooding? Check. Talks like he swallowed a thesaurus? Check and check. But even in all his regency perfection, can he ever be as good as in the novel? And if he’s here, in her London apartment trying to figure out how to work a shower, what will happen to the literary world he came from? With Nickโthe last man she could ever be prevailed upon to work withโurging her to send the fictional Darcy back to his own story, Zoe will have to decide what she really wants from a happy ending, before it’s too late.
“[A] charmer.” – Susan Maguire, Booklist
“Austen fans rejoice! Any romance reader who thinks that a book boyfriend is better than the real thing will love this modern-day romp with the โrealโ Fitzwilliam Darcy…” – Terry Gilman, The Indie Next List
“A charmingly absurd romance made for anyone who ever wished their book boyfriends could come to life.” – Kirkus Reviews
A Real Animal by Emeline Atwood โ
fiction.
A Real Animal follows Lucy through the decade dividing college and real adulthood, as she navigates three distinct romantic relationships, reckons with the false promise of family intimacy, and seeks connection with the sublime and natural worlds. Lucy wants her life to be extraordinary. But this desire never seems to graft easily onto the smallness of her world. As a senior in college struggling to quell the destructive effects of a sexual assault, she gets a glimpse of a different plane of existenceโmore wild, physical, animal. She moves away from home, breaks up with her long term boyfriend, stops speaking to her mother, and starts dating a complicated, violent man.
As she changes cities, friends, and partners, there is a persistent sense of wildness in Lucy and in her world thatโs only ever barely being controlled. The thrum of a nonhuman existential force in the back of her mind urges her to reject the ordinary, but also reminds her that she is alone in the world. She feels it in the depths of the ocean while deep sea diving, in the cold silences on phone calls with her sister and her mom, in the misunderstanding gaze of a man she thought would love her forever.
Guided by Emeline Atwoodโs lightspeed, suspenseful prose, we follow Lucy across states, jobs, relationships, and stages of intimacy with her family, witnessing both moments of horrific pain and quotidian happiness. The years pass by seamlessly, bringing her to the edge of her twenties and back to an altered, barren version of her childhood home, where she must finally come to terms with the fear that being human itself might mean feeling alone, and wild, and unknowable.
“[An] astonishing debut with a compelling voice.” – Bethanne Patrick, Los Angeles Times
“Readers will be held captive by Lucyโs exciting voice.” – Publishers Weekly, STARRED REVIEW
“…stunning… A Real Animal depicts violence and trauma in a refreshing, often surprising wayโa captivating, remarkable debut.” – Sam Franzini, Our Culture
“A powerhouse. Atwoodโs book is simply one of the best books Iโve read since I started covering books. She perfectly writes the turbulent time when one finishes college and enters ‘adulthood’โwhatever that means.” – Adam Vitcavage, Debutiful
A Sudden Flicker of Light: A Revisionist History of Movies by David Thomson โ
nonfiction / film / history.
David Thomson has been called โthe greatest living writer on the movies.โ Here is a career capstone of sortsโa one-volume history of film and screens as illuminating and provocative as his classic Biographical Dictionary of Film. In tracing the progress, from the Lumiere Brothers to the Coens, Thomson glories in the great movies, but admits to increasing unease over what the medium has done to usโpromoting fantasy, misleading models of sexual identity, the cult of authority, power, and happy endings.
This revisionist history is as alert to technology and business as it is to art and fun in tracing our pursuit of the lifelike instead of life. By turns trenchant, lyrical, and comic, Thomson uncovers our addiction to voyeurism and villainy, and a habit of passivity that has betrayed our political and cultural identity. In a survey that reaches from Metropolis to Rear Window to Anora, this will redirect ideas about film everywhere. As The New York Times has put it, โThomson proves anew that he is irreplaceable.โ
“Nobody writes about film and television history quite like Thomson… [he] is considered a preeminent film critic and historian, and this absolutely essential, indispensable book shows us why.” – David Pitt, Booklist, STARRED REVIEW
“Thoughtful, insightful, and rather hauntingโฆ I enjoyed this book so much that I came close to missing the deadline for the review. I kept having to break off to see if a movie Thomson had wonderfully evoked was, as it ought to be, on the streaming services.” – Philip Hensher, The Spectator
“…Thomson is an impassioned, articulate, and knowledgeable threader of stories and observations. Itโs a challenging book to digest, but by a writer who believes the reader is up to that challenge. Think of it as My Dinner with David.” – Bob Ruggiero, Houston Press
“Film critic and historian Thomson delivers an insightful history of filmmaking that investigates the negative effects of the medium… Though Thomson extols the joys of movie watchingโfrom repeat viewings of The Godfather to the ‘illegal heaven’ of Jacques Tourneurโs film noir Out of the Pastโhe remains conflicted about a medium that has turned people into voyeurs to the point where ‘little happens now that is not like a movie.’ Thomson keeps the pacing swift throughout, employing a nearly Godard-like ‘jump cut’ in an analysis of Bonnie and Clyde that gives way to one of The Godfather. The result is a feast for cinephiles.” – Publishers Weekly
Traitors by Robert B. McCaw
fiction / suspense / mystery.
Robert Cooperโdeputy assistant attorney general for counterintelligence in the DOJโs National Security Divisionโhas built a storied career distinguished by high-profile arrests and prosecutions of enemy spies. One morning, heโs approached by a Russian sleeper agent looking to defect. The agent offers Cooper alarming information: Russian operatives have infiltrated the US government at its highest levels, including a mole in the senior ranks of the FBI.
Cooperโs investigations lead to the discovery of a clandestine Russian plot involving deep-cover agents in senior government positions. As Cooper and his team at the DOJ race to uncover the Kremlinโs plans and unmask the traitors, a coup in Russia brings to power a militant extremist regime seemingly intent on sidelining the US on the world stage while Russia retakes its former Soviet territories.
In Robert B. McCawโs fast-paced novel, high-stakes political intrigue mixes with riveting moments of international espionage.
“[An] exemplary political thriller… itโs the authenticity the author brings as a former lawyer and Army lieutenant that sets this espionage tale apart from its peers. Hereโs hoping it marks the start of a promising new series.” – Publishers Weekly, STARRED REVIEW
“The spy business doesnโt need the Cold War for excitement, and this nicely spun yarn proves it.” – Kirkus Reviews
“[A] nail-biter of a political thriller… Traitors offers a smart, thrilling look at loyalty under pressure and the damage caused by secrets at the top.” – Apple Books Review
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