Dear Book Friends,
Happy Monday! This is the week I leave for Hawaii, so the next time you hear from me, it’ll be from the beach (probably). I’m excited to go, but also kind of bummed to be leaving the PNW fall weather. I’ve been enjoying all the crunchy leaves. How about you? How is your fall going? You wanna hear about some book stuff? Let’s go.
Book Deals and Reveals
 |
We have some exciting cover reveals to start this week off. Check out the cover of Ibi Zoboi’s upcoming novel Nigeria Jones. The cover design is by Nettrice R. Gaskins. This one is coming at you on May 9, 2023!
Scary mermaids? Heck yes. Tor Nightfire calls Cassandra Khaw’s horor novella The Salt Grows Heavy “dark and deliciously twisted.” Feast your eyes on it here. It’s out on May 2, 2023.
Eric LaRocca’s debut novel is coming soon! The author tweeted a picture of the ARC, writing, “It feels really weird to hold an ARC of my debut novel for the first time. I feel like I might unravel from all this joy???” We can expect a cover reveal in the next two weeks.
If YA romance is more your thing, then get excited about Ananya Devarajan’s debut YA romance novel Kismat Connection. Here’s the cover reveal. This one’s releasing from Inkyard Press on June 13, 2023.
Another cover reveal from Inkyard Press: A Song of Salvation by Alechia Dow. The author tweeted, “Wanna read a space adventure featuring a reincarnated god, a grumpy pilot & a beloved space dj with lots of intergalactic action?” Um, yes please. A Song of Salvation hits shelves on July 11, 2023.
According to an anonymous source, Al Pacino is in talks to sell his first memoir to Penguin Press.
Speaking of memoirs, actress and Red Table Talk host Jada Pinkett Smith will be publishing a currently untitled memoir in 2023.
Netflix’s feature film adaptation of Emma Donoghue’s The Wonder, directed by Sebastián Lelia and starring Florence Pugh, has released its first trailer. The wonder will be out on the streaming platform on November 16th.
Paramount+ has shared a first look at the adaptation of their new drama series The Flatshare, based on the bestselling novel by Beth O’Leary.
The 2022 National Book Awards finalists were announced for the award’s five categories. Find out which books made it.
The Swedish Academy has awarded the 2022 Nobel Prize in Literature to acclaimed and beloved French writer Annie Ernaux.
Book Riot Recommends
I’m a Contributing Editor at Book Riot, I write the Today in Books newsletter, and I’m a Bibliologist for Book Riot’s Tailored Book Recommendations subscription service. I also have a PhD in English, so I’m basically a doctor of books. Books are my life, in other words, so in this section of the newsletter, let me share with you some upcoming books I’m super excited about. And I think you will be too!
Prepare Your Shelves!
We Deserve Monuments by Jas Hammonds (Roaring Book Press, November 29)
Here’s a YA debut coming out in November that I think everyone is going to be talking about. And just look at that cover! I’m absolutely in love. Teen Vogue called this one “a gripping portrayal of the South’s inherent racism and a love story for queer Black girls.” Intrigued? Read on.
Seventeen-year-old Avery Anderson’s life is turned upside down when she’s forced to leave DC and move with her family to live with her terminally ill grandmother, Mama Letty, in Bardell, Georgia. The tensions between Avery’s mom and Mama Letty make things uncomfortable as soon as they get there, and whenever she tries to find out more about what’s going on between them, she gets turned away.
But not everything is terrible in Avery’s new life. She makes two new friends: her next door neighbor Simone Cole and Jade Oliver, the daughter of the town’s most prominent family. As the three girls become closer, Avery and Simone’s friendship starts to grow into something more. And the mystery of Jade’s mother’s death has Avery looking into the dark, racist history of Bardell. Meanwhile, Mama Letty’s health continues to deteriorate, and Avery will ultimately have to decide if her hunt for the truth is worth destroying the friendships and connections she’s built for herself in Bardell.
Want to read books from this newsletter? You can, for free! Get three free audiobooks with a trial to Audiobooks.com. Claim your 3 free audiobooks now!
What I’m Reading This Week
 |
The Witch and the Tzar by Olesya Salnikova Gilmore
Uzumaki by Junji Ito (for the Halloween vibes)
The Getaway by Lamar Giles
Our Wives Under the Sea by Julia Armfield
Scorched Grace by Margot Douaihy
Hokuloa Road by Elizabeth Hand
Monday Memes
This week, my favorite meme comes from Book Riot’s Instagram account. I couldn’t help but share this one because it’s 100% my definition of self-care.
And Here’s A Cat Picture!
 |
Anyone with a cat is probably familiar with pictures like this. Cats and boxes go together like peanut butter and jelly. I’m finally, finally, getting to unpacking the last few boxes from our move, and Murray is loving the empty box carnage.
And that’s a wrap on this Monday’s Book Radar! I hope you have a wonderful week, friends.