Category: New Books

Happy Tuesday! August may be halfway over, but the plethora of wonderful new releases never ends! I was lucky enough to read several good books coming out today, and you can hear about more awesome reads on this week’s episode of the All the Books! María Cristina and I discussed The Whisper Man, Into the Planet, Color Me In, and more great books. And I am most excited to get my hands on Girls and Their Cats by BriAnne Wills and Elyse Moody, Coventry: Essays by Rachel Cusk, and The Trojan War Museum: and Other Stories by Ayse Papatya Bucak.

Thanks so much for reading and enjoy your week! XOXO, Liberty

Echoes: The Saga Anthology of Ghost Stories edited by Ellen Datlow

Datlow, the author and editor extraordinaire responsible for tons of amazing anthologies, is back with several of today’s incredible writers with stories of the supernatural to stand your hair on end, just in time for fall and Halloween. Includes contributions from Aliette de Bodard, Seanan McGuire, Indrapramit Das, Stephen Graham Jones, and Alice Hoffman.

Backlist bump: The Best Horror of the Year Volume Ten by Ellen Datlow

The Translator’s Bride by João Reis

I am not going to lie: this book is not going to be to everyone’s liking. I don’t mean that in a bad way, but it is a bit quirky. It’s about a translator in an unnamed city who is trying to win back his bride, who has left him. It’s told in his rambling thoughts, which are indeed paragraph after paragraph of run-on sentences. It’s fun to read but also a little bit of work. But it’s weird and interesting, too!

Backlist bump: History. A Mess. by Sigrún Pálsdottír, Lytton Smith (Translator) (Okay, this isn’t really backlist, because it came out a month ago, but it’s great, and it’s in paperback, so that’s something.)

Meet Me in the Future: Stories by Kameron Hurley

Two new Kameron Hurley books in one year–how did we ever get so lucky?!? This is a collection of amazing SF/F stories, set in brutal worlds, that deliver a fantastic, smart punch to your brain!

Backlist bump: How Long ’til Black Future Month?: Stories by N. K. Jemisin

See you next week!

Okay, I know it’s the second Tuesday of the month, but there were so many good books on my list that I couldn’t choose, so instead I decided to share them all! It’s a win-win: I get to avoid making a decision like a grown up, you get to hear about SO MANY books. I made you a big shiny list below, and you can hear about more amazing books on this week’s episode of the All the Books! Kelly and I talked about gods with a little g, The Memory Police, The Yellow House, and more.

(And like with each megalist, I’m putting a  next to the books that I have had the chance to read and loved. It has been slow reading for me the last few months, so I haven’t read as many as I wished, but I did get to a few of today’s books. And there are soooo many more on this list that I can’t wait to read!)

gods with a little g by Tupelo Hassman 

Nobody’s Victim: Fighting Psychos, Stalkers, Pervs, and Trolls by Carrie Goldberg

Play with Fire (A Breen and Tozer Mystery) by William Shaw 

Below the Line: A Charlie Waldo Novel by Howard Michael Gould

An American Sunrise: Poems by Joy Harjo

The Mage-Fire War (Saga of Recluce) by  L. E. Modesitt Jr.

The Blessing: A Memoir by Gregory Orr

Science Comics: Cats: Nature and Nurture by Andy Hirsch 

We Are the Ghosts by Vicky Skinner

The Dearly Beloved by Cara Wall

Cherry on Top: Flirty, Forty-Something, and Funny as F**k by Bobbie Brown and Caroline Ryder

The Catholic School: A Novel by Edoardo Albinati, Antony Shugaar (translator)

Cooking with Fernet Branca by James Hamilton-Paterson

Knock Wood: A Memoir in Essays by Jennifer Militello

The Oysterville Sewing Circle by Susan Wiggs

How to Be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi 

Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead: A Novel by Olga Tokarczuk, Antonia Lloyd-Jones (Translator) 

The Hidden Things by Jamie Mason

The Heart of the Circle by Keren Landsman

Normal Sucks: How to Live, Learn, and Thrive Outside the Lines by Jonathan Mooney

Rule of Capture by Christopher Brown 

Have You Eaten Grandma?: Or, the Life-Saving Importance of Correct Punctuation, Grammar, and Good English by Gyles Brandreth

The Gurkha and the Lord of Tuesday by Saad Z. Hossain 

Set the Controls for the Heart of Sharon Tate by Gary Lippman

The Retreat by Sherri Smith 

Dead Blondes and Bad Mothers: Monstrosity, Patriarchy, and the Fear of Female Power by Sady Doyle

21 | 19: Contemporary Poets in the Nineteenth-Century Archive by Alexandra Manglis, Kristen Case, et al.

Socialist Realism (Emily Books) by Trisha Low

A Killer Edition (A Booktown Mystery) by Lorna Barrett

The Doll Factory: A Novel by Elizabeth Macneal 

The Yellow House by Sarah M. Broom 

Thirteen by Steve Cavanagh (Halfway through this, but so far, so good.)

First You Write a Sentence: The Elements of Reading, Writing . . . and Life by Joe Moran

The Swallows: A Novel by Lisa Lutz 

A Keeper by Graham Norton

Black Light: Stories by Kimberly King Parsons 

The Plateau by Maggie Paxson

I Heart Oklahoma! by Roy Scranton

Hard Mouth by Amanda Goldblatt 

Consent: A Memoir of Unwanted Attention by Donna Freitas

The Bells of Old Tokyo: Meditations on Time and a City by Anna Sherman

The Winemaker’s Wife by Kristin Harmel

Things You Save in a Fire by Katherine Center

Black Card by Chris L. Terry 

Do You Dream of Terra-Two? by Temi Oh (I haven’t read all of this, but I like what I’ve read so far!)

The Accidentals by Minrose Gwin

Chase Darkness with Me: How One True-Crime Writer Started Solving Murders by Billy Jensen 

The Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa and Stephen Snyder 

The Downstairs Girl by Stacey Lee

White Noise by Suzan-Lori Parks

The Bitterroots by C.J. Box

Heaven’s Breath: A Natural History of the Wind (New York Review Books Classics) by Lyall Watson

Dahlia Black by Keith Thomas

Campusland by Scott Johnston

Miami Midnight (Pete Fernandez) by Alex Segura

Inland by Téa Obreht 

Devotion by Madeline Stevens

The Perfect Son by Lauren North

When the Plums Are Ripe by Patrice Nganang, Amy B. Reid (translator)

Blood Truth (4) (Black Dagger Legacy) by J.R. Ward

That’s it for me today! If you want to learn more about books new and old, or tell me about books you’re reading, or books you think I should read (I HEART RECOMMENDATIONS!), or see pictures of my cats (who are trying to kill me), you can find me on Twitter at MissLiberty, on Instagram at FranzenComesAlive, or Litsy under ‘Liberty’!

Thanks so much for reading!

Liberty

It’s the first Tuesday of the month! You know what that means: it’s time to cram more titles into your TBR! Woohoo. Best day is best. There are a lot of great things to check out today. And because I love you, I made you a big shiny list below, and you can hear about more amazing books on this week’s episode of the All the Books! Rebecca and I talked about Hollow Kingdom, The Right Swipe, The Vexations, and more.

(And like with each megalist, I’m putting a  next to the books that I have had the chance to read and loved. It has been slow reading for me the last few months, so I haven’t read as many as I wished, but I did get to a few of today’s books. And there are soooo many more on this list that I can’t wait to read!)

Let’s Call it a Doomsday by Katie Henry

Outfox by Sandra Brown

Agrippina: The Most Extraordinary Woman of the Roman World by Emma Southon

Girl on the Block: A True Story of Coming of Age Behind the Counter by Jessica Wragg

The American Dream?: A Journey on Route 66 Discovering Dinosaur Statues, Muffler Men, and the Perfect Breakfast Burrito by Shing Yin Khor

The Dutch Maiden by Marente de Moor, David Doherty (translator)

In Other Words: An Illustrated Miscellany of the World’s Most Intriguing Words and Phrases by Christopher J. Moore

Hollow Kingdom by Kira Jane Buxton 

The Dragon Republic by R. F Kuang

Summerlings: A Novel by Lisa Howorth

Heaven’s Breath: A Natural History of the Wind (New York Review Books Classics) by Lyall Watson

Swipe Right for Murder by Derek Milman

A Particular Kind of Black Man: A Novel by Tope Folarin 

When I Was White: A Memoir by Sarah Valentine

Haben: The Deafblind Woman Who Conquered Harvard Law by Haben Girma

The Right Swipe: A Novel by Alisha Rai 

Life and Other Inconveniences by Kristan Higgins

Nottingham by Nathan Makaryk

Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge A Crash of Fate by Zoraida Cordova

Mitz: The Marmoset of Bloomsbury by Sigrid Nunez and Peter Cameron

The Hotel Neversink by Adam O’Fallon Price 

A Swirl of Ocean by Melissa Sarno

The Runaway by Hollie Overton

I Know Everything by Matthew Farrell

Be Recorder: Poems by Carmen Giménez Smith

To the Wren: New and Collected Poems by Jane Mead

The Gossamer Mage by Julie E. Czerneda

The Long Accomplishment: A Memoir of Struggle and Hope in Matrimony by Rick Moody

The Women of the Copper Country by Mary Doria Russell

A Pure Heart: A Novel by Rajia Hassib

Berta Isla: A novel by Javier Marías

The Dishwasher (Biblioasis International Translation Series) by Stéphane Larue and Pablo Strauss

The Pretty One: On Life, Pop Culture, Disability, and Other Reasons to Fall in Love with Me by Keah Brown

All the Water in the World: A Novel by Karen Raney

The Perfect Wife: A Novel by JP Delaney

Ziggy, Stardust and Me by James Brandon

The Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware

Sea Witch Rising by Sarah Henning

White Flights: Race, Fiction, and the American Imagination by Jess Row

A Nice Cup of Tea by Celia Imrie

The Wolf Wants In: A Novel by Laura McHugh

Lost You: A Novel by Haylen Beck

Our Women on the Ground: Essays by Arab Women Reporting from the Arab World by Zahra Hankir and Christiane Amanpour

House of Salt and Sorrows by Erin A. Craig

Valerie: A Novel by Sara Stridsberg, Deborah Bragan-Turner (translator)

Because You’re Mine: A Novel by Rea Frey

First Cosmic Velocity by Zach Powers

Ellie and the Harpmaker by Hazel Prior

Trick Mirror: Reflections on Self-Delusion by Jia Tolentino

Is There Still Sex in the City? by Candace Bushnell

Hunter’s Moon: A Novel in Stories by Philip Caputo

The Remainder by Alia Trabucco Zerán, Sophie Hughes (translator)

We Are All Good People Here: A Novel by Susan Rebecca White

Hello Girls by Brittany Cavallaro and Emily Henry

In the Country of Women: A Memoir by Susan Straight

Mayflower Lives: Pilgrims in a New World and the Early American Experience by Martyn Whittock

The Birthday Girl: A Novel by Melissa de la Cruz

Keeping Lucy by T. Greenwood

Love at First Like by Hannah Orenstein

He by John Connolly

Cornelius Sky by Timothy Brandoff

Say You Still Love Me: A Novel by K.A. Tucker

Careful What You Wish For: A Novel by Hallie Ephron

Without a Prayer: The Death of Lucas Leonard and How One Church Became a Cult by Susan Ashline

King of King Court by Travis Dandro

Travel Light, Move Fast by Alexandra Fuller

City of Windows by Robert Pobi

Motherland: A Memoir of Love, Loathing, and Longing by Elissa Altman

How the Light Gets In by Katy Upperman

That’s it for me today! If you want to learn more about books new and old, or tell me about books you’re reading, or books you think I should read (I HEART RECOMMENDATIONS!), or see pictures of my cats (How do I make them stop growing?!?), you can find me on Twitter at MissLiberty, on Instagram at FranzenComesAlive, or Litsy under ‘Liberty’!

Thanks so much for reading!

Liberty

Hellooooooo and welcome to another Tuesday of good books! I can’t believe July is pretty much over, but at least we got lots of books out of it. I have a few amazing new books to tell you about, and you can hear about more awesome reads on this week’s episode of the All the Books! Alice and I discussed Marilou is Everywhere, Rotherweird, Speaking of Summer, and more great books.

Thanks so much for reading and enjoy your week! XOXO, Liberty

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Sponsored by Forge Books

Nestled in Alabama lies the little town of Wicklow, where Anna Kate has returned to bury her beloved Granny Zee, owner of the Blackbird Café. It was supposed to be a quick trip to close the café and settle her grandmother’s estate, but she finds herself inexplicably drawn to the quirky Southern town her mother ran away from, and the mysterious blackbird pie everybody can’t stop talking about. As the truth about her past slowly becomes clear, Anna Kate will need to decide if this lone blackbird will finally be able to take her broken wings and fly.

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Goodnight Stranger by Miciah Bay Gault

This quiet psychological mystery just made the Man Booker long list! It’s about a sister and brother who live a secluded, yet comfortable life, on Wolf Island. Lydia has cared for Lucas since their mother’s death a decade earlier. But when a stranger enters their lives, nothing will be the same. Lucas is convinced Cole is the reincarnation of their baby brother, while Lydia is drawn to him in different ways. She will have to face her fears to learn his truth.

Backlist bump: Everything You Never Told Me by Celeste Ng

For Black Girls Like Me by Mariama J. Lockington

This is a powerful #OwnVoices debut about a young girl who longs to fit in. Makeda June Kirkland is eleven years old, adopted, and Black. Her parents and big sister are white, leaving Makeda to often feel left out and wondering what her life would be like if she had a family that looked like her. She has one Black friend in Maryland, Lena, but when her family moves to New Mexico, she loses her best friend and seems unable to make new ones. Missing Maryland, and a family she never knew, Makeda wonders how she will find her way if she doesn’t know where she’s been. This is an important novel about transracial adoption that is essential for middle grade libraries.

Backlist bump: When the Black Girl Sings by Bil Wright

Chances Are . . . by Richard Russo

His first stand-alone novel in a decade! This one is about three college friends who revisit the disappearance of a girl they all loved forty years ago, and learn they may not know as much about each other – or themselves – as they thought. There’s something so comforting about reading new work by an author who has been reliably great for decades now. It’s relaxing, really.

Backlist bump: Nobody’s Fool by Richard Russo

See you next week!

Happy Tuesday! The heatwave may have broke, but there are still a lot of hot new releases today! I have a few amazing new books to tell you about, and you can hear about more awesome reads on this week’s episode of the All the Books! Vanessa and I discussed Gods of Jade and Shadow, Theme Music, The Marriage Clock, and more great books.

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Sponsored by We Love Anderson Cooper by R.L. Maizes, published by Celadon Books

In We Love Anderson Cooper, characters are treated as outsiders because of their sexual orientation, racial or religious identity, or simply because they look different. A young man courts the publicity that comes from outing himself at his bar mitzvah. When a painter is shunned because of his appearance, he learns to ink tattoos that come to life. A paranoid Jewish actuary suspects his cat of cheating on him—with his Protestant girlfriend. In this quirky, humorous, and deeply human short story collection, R.L. Maizes reminds us that even in our most isolated moments, we are never truly alone.

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Beijing Payback: A Novel by Daniel Nieh

After Victor Li’s father is murdered, he receives a letter written by his father, confessing that he was secretly a part of an international crime organization. Furious and seeking revenge for his father’s death, Victor travels to China to confront the very group that was responsible for his murder. Beijing Payback is a fast-paced thrill ride from beginning to end.

Backlist bump: IQ by Joe Ide

Lady in the Lake by Laura Lippman

The alliteration! Lippman is back with a noir set in 1960s Baltimore, about a housewife-turned-journalist named Maddie who is determined to find out who killed a young Black woman found in a city lake. No one else seems interested in the case, but as Maddie digs deeper into the story, her own problems and the complications in her life will slow down her best efforts, and lead to tragedy.

Backlist bump: Little Deaths by Emma Flint

The Lager Queen of Minnesota: A Novel by J. Ryan Stradal

A delightful, heart-squeezer about three generations of women. Edith is stunned when her father dies and leaves everything to her younger sister, Helen, who uses her inheritance to build a successful brewery. Edith has her own troubles, having to raise her granddaughter, Diana. As the years go by, the women will learn that sometimes even the strongest people need help, and the softest among them have a strength in them they never believed possible.

Backlist bump: Kitchens of the Great Midwest by J. Ryan Stradal

Thanks so much for reading and enjoy your week! XOXO, Liberty

See you next week!

It’s that time again – time to make your TBR scream “Uncle!” I’m really looking forward to getting my hands on Tell Me Everything by Cambria Brockman today. And I have a few other amazing new releases to tell you about, and you can hear about more awesome reads on this week’s episode of the All the Books! María Cristina and I discussed The Nickel Boys, Turbulence, Body Leaping Backward, and more great books.

Thanks so much for reading and enjoy your week! XOXO, Liberty

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Sponsored by Monkfish Publishing

Part memoir, part inspiring guide, Spiritual Rebel urges, “How can we uncover the most meaning in our lives?” Through powerful, thought-provoking anecdotes, Sarah confesses her challenges with her birth religion, descent into addiction, and recovery into a life where everything can be sacred, offering readers easy practices for experiencing more meaningful moments in their own lives. “Sarah’s experience will resonate with so many who, like me, have experienced religious trauma and yet still yearn for a deeper connection. The daily practices are practical, powerful, and enlightening.” – Karla Kamstra

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Stubborn Archivist by Yara Rodrigues Fowler

A young British Brazilian woman from South London tries to make sense of her place in the world, her heritage, her identity, and her sexuality, through the various women in her life.It’s a tremendous debut.

Backlist bump: Chemistry by Weike Wang

 

Costalegre by Courtney Maum

A compelling novel about an American heiress and modern art collector, who brings an elite group of surrealists to Costalegre, a mysterious resort in the Mexican jungle, after Hitler declares war on the arts. It’s freshly original and unusual. And that cover!

Backlist bump: I Am Having So Much Fun Here Without You by Courtney Maum

The Oddmire, Book 1: Changeling by William Ritter

This is the delightful beginning to a new series about goblins who seek to restore magic to the Wild Wood. To do so, they must swap a human baby for a goblin baby. But when the exchange goes wrong, both babies are left to be raised as twins, and nothing unusual is suspected until they turn 13 and receive a mysterious message. (Related: If I was a goblin, I could totally see myself botching a baby swap.)

Backlist bump: Jackaby by William Ritter

This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone

Oh, what fun! Two time-traveling agents from opposite sides of a future war looking to help their side win begin to exchange letters, leading to a romance that could cost them their lives if they are ever discovered, at any time.

Backlist bump: The Winged Histories by Sofia Samatar

If You Want to Make God Laugh by Bianca Marais

Okay, this one is going to kick your feels in the teeth, but it’s worth it, I promise. It’s about three women in post-Apartheid South Africa and an abandoned baby. The discovery and then mystery of the baby causes their paths to cross. It’s a heartbreaking, beautiful story of family and love.

Backlist bump: Hum If You Don’t Know the Words by Bianca Marais

See you next week!

Happy Tuesday! There are a lot of great books coming out today. I am particularly excited to get my hands on several sequels, including Hope Rides Again, Null Set, and The Stories You Tell. I have a few other amazing new releases to tell you about today, and you can hear about more awesome reads on this week’s episode of the All the Books! Kelly and I discussed The Need, A Prayer for Travelers, The Chain, and more great books.

Thanks so much for reading and enjoy your week! XOXO, Liberty

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Sponsored by Book Riot’s Amazon store. Shop our favorite summer reads (including some of our favorite books of 2019 so far), bookish accessories, deals, and more.

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The Bookish Life of Nina Hill by Abbi Waxman

If you ask me, Nina Hill has pretty much the best life. She’s a bookstore employee who likes to spend her free time at home reading with her cat. But her life changes when the father she never knew about dies, and Nina discovers she has a big family near by. Does she come out of her book fugue to get to know them, or should she keep things exactly as they are? This is a charming book for people who love books more than people, or love cats more than people, or love everything and want a charming read.

Backlist bump: The Garden of Small Beginnings by Abbi Waxman

Say Say Say by Lila Savage

And for my next recommendation: something completely different! This is a character-driven novel of about compassion and care for ourselves and others. Ella is hired by Bryn to care for his wife, Jill, who sustained brain damage in a car accident years earlier. Ella learns about love and tenderness as she watches Bryn and Jill together as Jill’s health declines, and it teaches her things about herself and her relationship with her girlfriend Alix. This novel is a slow burn, and it’s heartbreaking, but so beautiful.

Backlist bump: Idaho by Emily Ruskovich

The Survival of Molly Southbourne by Tade Thompson

This is another of the sequels I am so excited about today! You have to read the first one before you read this, but I wanted to include it so you would pick them up. I LOVE the premise. It’s not for the squeamish, but it’s awesome! Molly Southbourne is born with an unusual condition: any time she sheds a drop of blood, it grows into a homicidal version of her, which she then has to dispose of. SO COOL, RIGHT?!? It’s a lot harder than you realize not to shed any blood, so Molly has a lifetime of murdering to do. I can’t really tell you about the second, because it will spoil the first, so you’ll just have to trust me.

Backlist bump:  The Murders of Molly Southbourne by Tade Thompson

See you next week!

It’s the first Tuesday of the month, which means it’s time for another megalist! We are into summer now, which means publishing slows down the new releases, but there’s still a ton of great stuff to read. And because I love you, I made you a big shiny list below, and you can hear about more amazing books on this week’s episode of the All the Books! Rebecca and I talked about The Way Through the Woods, Lock Every Door, Symptoms of a Heartbreak, and more.

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Sponsored by Forge Books 

Spencer Quinn’s Heart of Barkness is the latest in the New York Times bestselling series that the Los Angeles Times called “nothing short of masterful”… Chet the dog and P.I. Bernie encounter heartache and much worse in the world of country music. They’re working the most puzzling case of their career, a case that takes them back in time in search of old border-town secrets, and into present-day danger where powerful people want those secrets to stay hidden. Chet and Bernie find themselves sucked into a real-life murder ballad where there is no one to trust but each other.

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(And like with each megalist, I’m putting a  next to the books that I have read and loved. It has been slow reading for me the last few months, so I haven’t read as many as I wished, but I did get to a few of today’s books. And there are soooo many more on this list that I can’t wait to read!)

Growing Things and Other Stories by Paul Tremblay 

Sealed by Naomi Booth

The Way Through the Woods: On Mushrooms and Mourning by Litt Woon Long and Barbara J. Haveland

Under the Cold Bright Lights by Garry Disher

Layover by David Bell

Surfside Sisters: A Novel by Nancy Thayer

Temper by Layne Fargo 

Betrayal in Time: A Novel (Kendra Donovan Mysteries) by Julie McElwain

The Tribe (Paperbacks from Hell) by Bari Wood

The Twelve by Cindy Lin

The Plus One by Sarah Archer

Unsung Heroine (Heroine Complex) by Sarah Kuhn

Whisper Network by Chandler Baker

Buzz, Sting, Bite: Why We Need Insects by Anne Sverdrup-Thygeson 

American Predator: The Hunt for the Most Meticulous Serial Killer of the 21st Century by Maureen Callahan

Stone Cold Heart: A Novel by Caz Frear 

Maggie Brown & Others by Peter Orner

We Went to the Woods: A Novel by Caite Dolan-Leach

The Wind That Lays Waste by Selva Almada

Never Look Back by Alison Gaylin 

The Ghost Clause by Howard Norman

The Big Book of Classic Fantasy by Ann Vandermeer and Jeff VanderMeer

The Gifted School: A Novel by Bruce Holsinger 

In Oceans Deep: Courage, Innovation, and Adventure Beneath the Waves by Bill Streever

Pretty Revenge by Emily Liebert

Girls Like Us by Cristina Alger 

They Could Have Named Her Anything: A Novel by Stephanie Jimenez

Mixed-Race Superman: Keanu, Obama, and Multiracial Experience by Will Harris

Lock Every Door: A Novel by Riley Sager 

Deep River by Karl Marlantes

Big Cabin by Ron Padgett

Very Nice: A Novel by Marcy Dermansky

We Came Here to Forget: A Novel by Andrea Dunlop

A Girl Returned by Donatella Di Pietrantonio, Ann Goldstein (Translator)

Chimes of a Lost Cathedral (Revolution of Marina M.) by Janet Fitch

Tell Me Who We Were by Kate McQuade

Dragonslayer (The Dragonslayer) by Duncan M. Hamilton

Symptoms of a Heartbreak by Sona Charaipotra 

In the Valleys of the Noble Beyond: In Search of the Sasquatch by John Zada

The Flight Girls by Noelle Salazar

Second Sight: A Novel by Aoife Clifford 

The Best Lies by Sarah Lyu

Across the Void: A Novel by S.K. Vaughn

Pan’s Labyrinth: The Labyrinth of the Faun by Guillermo del Toro,  Cornelia Funke

That’s it for me today! If you want to learn more about books new and old, or tell me about books you’re reading, or books you think I should read (I HEART RECOMMENDATIONS!), or see pictures of my cats (How do I make them stop growing?!?), you can find me on Twitter at MissLiberty, on Instagram at FranzenComesAlive, or Litsy under ‘Liberty’!

Thanks so much for reading!

Liberty

Hello, sunshines and happy Tuesday! It’s time for another game of “OMG I’LL NEVER READ EVERYTHING I WANT BEFORE I DIE.” It’s a fun game, in which there are no losers, because trying to read everything is fun. (I mean, yes, ultimately our mortal coils shuffle off, that’s a drag. But that’s like 100, maybe 150 years from now, so don’t sweat it.) For today, I have a few amazing new releases to tell you about. And you can hear about more awesome reads on this week’s episode of the All the Books! Rincey and I discussed The Gone Dead, Evvie Drake Starts Over, Big Sky, and more great books.

Thanks so much for reading and enjoy your week! XOXO, Liberty

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Sponsored by The Daughters of Temperance Hobbs, the new book from New York Times bestselling author Katherine Howe. On sale now from Henry Holt.

A magical bloodline. A family curse. Can Connie break the spell before it shatters her future? The new book from Katherine Howe, bestselling author of The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane. “There’s real magic in this book.” –Kathleen Kent. New York Times bestselling author Katherine Howe returns to the world of The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane with a bewitching story of a New England history professor who must race against time to free her family from a curse.

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The Snakes by Sadie Jones

This is a slow-burning mystery to kick off the summer, with an ending that you’re either going to love or hate. Newly married Bea and Dan decide to drop in on Bea’s brother, Alex, while driving through France. They find him in a strange situation, living alone in an empty hotel with a nest of snakes. And then Bea’s parents appear. Dan doesn’t understand why Bea has kept her parents from meeting him, but it appears their wealth may lie at the root of her issue. Whatever the reason, this is not going to be a fun family reunion for anyone.

Backlist bump: Listen to Me by Hannah Pittard

How Could She by Lauren Mechling

After a terrible break-up, Geraldine decides to leave Toronto and move to New York City, to be near her two oldest friends, Sunny and Rachel. But what looked like her friends having it all from her vantage in Toronto seems a lot more messy and boring up close. And as all three women struggle to make their lives work, the cracks in their friendship begin to show. It’s a funny, biting novel and the perfect summer read about frenemies!

Backlist bump: Rich and Pretty by Rumaan Alam

Murder in the Crooked House by Soji Shimada, Louise Heal Kawai (translator)

Rincey talked about this when we recorded the podcast last week, and it sounded so bananas, I had to check it out for myself. And I can confirm: it’s bananapants. It’s like if the 1977 Japanese film House and the 1985 film Clue had a baby, and its nanny was Agatha Christie…on acid. I won’t lie, it’s not going to make sense, and despite the fact that the author tells you about 3/4 of the way in that you have what you need to know to solve it, no one will. But it’s a lot of fun getting there.

Backlist bump: The Tokyo Zodiac Murders (Pushkin Vertigo) by Soji Shimada, Ross Mackenzie (translator)

See you next week!

Welcome back to another Tuesday, book fans! That’s another fantastic reading weekend under my belt. I read a ton of great stuff, my favorite being The Monster of Elendhaven by Jennifer Giesbrecht. I can’t wait to discuss its disturbing delightfulness! But that’s in the future. For today, I have a few amazing new releases to tell you about. And you can hear about more awesome reads on this week’s episode of the All the Books! María Cristina and I discussed Fleishman Is in Trouble, One Night in Georgia, The Poison Thread, and more great books.

Thanks so much for reading, and I hope you enjoy your week! And may we all be as relaxed as Zevon. XOXO, Liberty

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Sponsored by Fix Her Up by New York Times bestselling author Tessa Bailey, published by Avon

She’s looking to make some updates to her interior.
He’s ready to flip his whole lifestyle.
Love wasn’t in the blueprints…

Georgie Castle ditched her family’s renovation business to become a children’s party planner…and no one’s taken her seriously since. Determined to prove she’s NOT a joke, she enlists the help of Travis Ford – notorious ladies’ man, ex-pro baseball player, and her brother’s best friend – because who better to help demolish her “little girl” image? For Travis, having Georgie around is good for him, and his career; she’s basically America’s Sweetheart. But all too soon he realizes that the girl he used to tease is definitely not a kid anymore, and there’s nothing fake about how much he wants her…

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P.S. And if you’re looking to learn about more fun stuff, check out Book Riot’s Amazon storefront–we’ve put together a selection of our favorite books and bookish stuff for summer!

The Tenth Muse: A Novel by Catherine Chung

This is a beautiful historical fiction novel about identity and intelligence. From a young age, Katherine has always had a way with numbers. But being a mathematician in post-WWII America is not an easy thing for her, as the only woman and person of color at school and in her field. And then she discovers the things she thought she knew about her family were not true. The book is told from Katherine’s point of view as she looks back over her struggles and search for identity. This is a beautiful novel that would be a perfect read for book clubs!

Backlist bump: Pachinko by Min Jin Lee

A Philosophy of Ruin: A Novel by Nicholas Mancusi

This is a darkly humorous novel about loss and family. Philosophy professor Oscar Boatwright receives the news that his mother has died while returning from vacation. As if that isn’t shocking enough, his father informs him that they also recently lost all their savings to a self-help guru. A combination of grief and disillusionment with life sends Oscar off on a self-destructive spiral that gets him involved in a job with the campus drug lord. It’s a mordant, generous look at losing ones bearings, and the all-too-human wrongs we do to make things right.

Backlist bump: The Ask by Sam Lipsyte

All City: A Novel by Alex DiFrancesco

In a bleak, near-future America, a serious storm drives most of New York City’s inhabitants out of town to shelter. The people left behind, including Makayla, a convenience store worker, and Jesse, a genderqueer anarchist, come together to form their own little community in an abandoned condo building. But when beautiful murals began mysteriously appearing all over the area, the city once again may become the place to be, ruining their new situation. All City is a fresh, interesting take on climate change, dystopia, and, well, landlords.

Backlist bump: Damnificados: A Novel by JJ Amaworo Wilson

See you next week!