New Fiction
Judge Stone by Viola Davis & James Patterson
The most respected citizen in Union Springs, Alabama (population 3,314), is Judge Mary Stone. She holds two responsibilities sacred: running her family farm and presiding over her courtroom. It's there she draws the most controversial case in the history of the South.
Criminally, it’s open-and-shut. Ethically, there is no middle ground. Essentially, it’s a choice between life and death. No judge can satisfy everyone. It would be dangerous to try. But Judge Stone is willing to fight to bring justice to the people and place she loves.
Starside by Alex Aster
A woman’s quest for revenge against the gods leads her to enter a deadly competition—and into the path of the man who betrayed her.
A devastating war has split the land in two. Starside is home to the magically gifted, while Stormside is for mortals who can only dream of achieving a shred of wealth and power. Every 50 years, 50 Stormside inhabitants are given the chance to reach a magical wellspring accessible only to Starside’s godly descendants. Their goal is not guaranteed, as the journey to the pool is perilous. Aris, a blacksmith’s apprentice, is determined to be one of the Stormside challengers, but first she’ll have to pass the Culling, a deadly contest in which the king decides who is worthy to venture on. Aris isn’t after magic, though. Instead, she hopes her access to Starside will allow her to exact revenge on the goddess who burned down her village and murdered her family. Also participating in the Culling is Harlan Raker, the cold and calculating head of the king’s guard. There’s no love lost between Aris and Raker—plus, guards are known to have the king’s support and Aris doesn’t trust Raker’s motives for entering the Culling. This romantasy hits all the familiar notes: an enemies-to-lovers romance, a dangerous trial, a main character with a tragic backstory who’s coming into her own power.
Ruins by Lil Brooks-Dalton
Professor Ember Agni is a rising star in archeology, trying to balance an unfulfilling career in academia and a crumbling marriage, all while pursuing her true passion: unearthing a lost empire that no one else believes existed.
Just as she’s about to give up on the ambitious expedition she spent a decade trying to fund, a message arrives from overseas. A former student claims to have found something extraordinary—an artifact that hints at the forgotten world lying beneath history’s tidy surface. With vindication finally within reach, Ember risks everything for the sake of discovery and undertakes an odyssey that will either make her name or ruin her.
Grace by A.M. Shine
A haunting, atmospheric modern Gothic horror tale based on traditional Irish mythology, from the author of smash hit The Watchers. Ancient evil is awakened on a lonely isle off the coast of Ireland. Off the west coast of Ireland lies a lonely island, isolated and willfully forgotten. Some say there hasn't been a child born on the island for thirty years. Others speak of strange deaths there, decades ago. But no one really knows what happened. Locals believe that the dark times are behind them.
They are mistaken.
Mrs. Endicott's Splendid Adventure by Rhys Bowen
Blindsided by betrayal in pre-WWII England, a woman charts a daring new course in this captivating tale of resilience, friendship, and new love.
No Man's Land by Richard K. Morgan
A compelling standalone dark fantasy set in a gritty post-WWI Britain that has been overrun by the fae. The Great War was supposed to be the war to end all wars—and maybe it would have been, had an even greater, otherworldly foe not risen to extinguish the conflict. Overnight, as guns blazed in France and Flanders, village after village in the quiet British countryside was swallowed by the Forest. And within the Forest lurk the Huldu—an ancient fae race, monstrous in their inhumanity, who have decided that mankind’s ascendency over the world can endure no longer.
New Nonfiction
How to Build a Haunted House by Caitlin Blackwell Baines
A critical look at the haunted house, its rise, and its continued grip on our imagination. In her debut, art historian and podcaster Blackwell Baines explores the haunted-house phenomenon through eight homes—five in England, three in the U.S.—tracing how a loosely defined building type became a remarkably stable cultural symbol, a space that “subvert[s] our expectations of the house (or ‘home’) as a place of safety and privacy.” Each dwelling anchors a different chapter and wider inquiry: The birth of Gothic revivalism is examined in a chapter on Strawberry Hill House, the “glimmering white miniature castle” where Horace Walpole wrote The Castle of Otranto (1764); and a chapter on Chillingham Castle, marketed as “the Most Haunted Castle in Britain” with its “candlelit ghost tours” and “spooky overnight stays,” explores Victorian spiritualism through the story of Leonora Bennett, a “relatively ordinary upper-middle-class American” who married into British aristocracy and became the mistress of Chillingham. Blackwell Baines explains how spiritualism offered a “tantalising opportunity to reconnect with lost loved ones,” a desire especially acute after the staggering death tolls of the Crimean and Civil Wars. The chapters on plantation tourism in the American South and Sarah Winchester as a convenient lightning rod for contemporary anxieties about firearms and westward expansion are especially sharp. The author is a personable and engaging guide, comfortable in archives and attics alike. She mines letters, legal records, and architectural plans but also interviews tour guides, descendants, and modern “ghost guides,” occasionally inserting herself into the narrative. During a visit to Hampton Court, the onetime residence of Henry VIII, she notes that her ability to assess the supernatural qualities of the Haunted Gallery was hampered by a “nasty cold.” She neither endorses nor dismisses the supernatural, treating ghosts as meaningful cultural artifacts rather than subjects for belief or debunking. A cultural history with a pleasurable chill.
The Uncool by Cameron Crowe
In this deceptively breezy memoir, Crowe recounts his upbringing in San Diego and his teenage adventures as a rock journalist. In a series of short, lively chapters, many of which open with an aphorism from his mother, Crowe lovingly portrays his parents and siblings without shying away from his oldest sister’s depression, institutionalization, and suicide.
He also reflects on his first record reviews written for an underground newspaper, his subsequent work for Rolling Stone, and his brushes with everyone from Kris Kristofferson to the Ramones. Always the prodigy, Crowe was painfully aware of his youthful innocence, which paradoxically helped him cover the hedonistic rock scene of the 1970s. He also developed a knack for self-deprecating humor, which he deploys throughout the memoir, beginning with its title.
(After rock critic Lester Bangs reminded Crowe how uncool he was, his nerdiness became a badge of honor.) Following his journalistic triumphs at Rolling Stone, Crowe wrote Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982), which launched his film career. He eventually wrote, directed, and landed an Oscar for Almost Famous (2000), the winsome coming-of-age story that his memoir often evokes and fleshes out.
Crowe has relatively little to say about his Hollywood years, and he is tight-lipped about his own marriage and children. The memoir opens and closes with the stage adaptation of Almost Famous, whose 2019 opening in San Diego coincided with his mother’s demise. She was obsessed with the play, Crowe tells his readers, but its topic clearly preoccupies him as well.
“All of this will be forgotten,” David Bowie told Crowe while driving through Los Angeles in the 1970s, when the Eagles took flight. Crowe’s love letter to that place, time, and music puts Bowie’s prophecy to the test.
How to Avoid Falling in Love with a Jerk by John Van Epp, Ph.D.
Based on years of research on marital and premarital happiness, How to Avoid Falling in Love with a Jerk will help you break destructive dating patterns that have kept you from finding the love you deserve.
Inside Bridgerton by Shonda Rhimes and Betsy Beers
Inside Bridgerton is the intimate behind-the-scenes story of the hit Shondaland series on Netflix. Inside Bridgerton is the official book about the show, and includes never-before-seen photographs, firsthand accounts on casting, insight into the decisions behind the costumes and sets, directors’ accounts on filming your favorite scenes, and more from the creative minds that launched a cultural phenomenon.
Why the Romantics Matter by Peter Gay
Guiding readers through the history of the romantic movement across Britain, France, Germany, and Switzerland, Gay argues that the best way to conceptualize romanticism is to accept its complicated nature and acknowledge that there is no “single basket” to contain it.
New Young Adult
On the Bright Side by Anna Sortino
A hopeful novel about love, disability, and the inevitability of change. Two teens find each other while dealing with disability and ableism. Ellie, an 18-year-old Deaf girl, must move back in with her family when her residential Deaf school closes. Now she faces the ableism of her public-school classmates, an unprofessional and incompetent interpreter, and living with her hearing (and prejudiced) family members, who don’t understand how to respect her Deafness. Jackson is another senior at Amber High. He’s a disgraced soccer star who cost his team the state championship when he unexpectedly collapsed on the pitch. His dad has dangerously high expectations for him, both in athletics and in life, and his mom thinks everything can be cured with alternative medicine, including Jackson’s mysterious and worsening symptoms. One thing Ellie and Jackson do have is each other. This story is, most simply put, a sweet, well-written romance with just a touch of drama for excitement.
Ellen Poe by Diana Peterfreund
A rumored descendant of Edgar Allan Poe helps his ghost unravel hidden codes from the author’s lost writings. Ever since moving to Aunt Marie’s carefully curated Edgar Allan Poe–themed bed-and-breakfast, 16-year-old Ellen Reynolds has suffered recurring nightmares about the dead. One morning, she’s bewildered by the appearance of Eddy, the ghost of Edgar Allan Poe, and the discovery of an old leather journal bearing the initials “E.A.P.” In her English class at Evergreen Prep, Ellen is shocked to meet new student Gus Davenport, one of the dead people from her nightmares. She exclaims, “You’re dead!”, leaving Gus convinced she’s psychic because he’d had a near-death experience. Eddy asks for Ellen’s help cracking the ciphers in his journal, leaving her occasionally exasperated by his cryptic communication style: “When the proper time arrives, all that the gentleman intended, and all that he did not intend, will be brought to light.” With Gus’ help, Ellen works to resolve both the nightmares and Eddy’s request so she can sell his journal, help the struggling B&B, and save for college.
Under A Fire-Red Sky by Geraldine McCaughrean
Thrown together by chance, four English teenagers become unlikely friends during World War II. As war erupts on the continent, the British government launches Operation Pied Piper, evacuating children in urban centers to safer rural areas. In the carriage of a train bound for Wales, Gemmy, Olive, Lawrence, and Franklin wonder what life holds for them. But when Gemmy jumps off the train before it leaves the station, the other three follow suit. Bonded through this act of disobedience, they explore their home base of Greenwich and its environs, and brilliant Lawrence regales them with stories from history. The teens spin a tale to explain their continued presence to their parents. Gemmy lives in a broken-down van to escape her alcoholic father; Franklin is determined to become a fireman; Lawrence, misunderstood by his parents, works on a mechanical project; and Olive tries to be a dutiful daughter. The four navigate the bombs, shock, fear, and utter senselessness of the Blitz as best they can.
The Naturals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Seventeen-year-old Cassie is a natural at reading people. Piecing together the tiniest details, she can tell you who you are and what you want. But it's not a skill that she's ever taken seriously. That is, until the FBI come knocking: they've begun a classified program that uses exceptional teenagers to crack infamous cold cases, and they need Cassie. What Cassie doesn't realize is that there's more at risk than a few unsolved homicides-especially when she's sent to live with a group of teens whose gifts are as unusual as her own. Soon, it becomes clear that no one in the Naturals program is what they seem. And when a new killer strikes, danger looms close. Caught in a lethal game of cat and mouse with a killer, the Naturals are going to have to use all of their gifts just to survive.
New Children's
Don't Trust Fish by Neil Sharpson
An absurdly laugh-out-loud funny picture book about the villainy of fish
Escargot and the Search for Spring by Dashka Slater
A cute French snail sets off on a springtime adventure with an adorable bunny in this laugh-out-loud picture book
Spring Stinks by Ryan T. Higgins
Ruth the bunny is excited to share the smelly springtime smells of spring with Bruce! But what will Bruce think of all that stink?
Grumpy Monkey Spring Fever by Suzanne Lang
When Jim runs through the jungle laughing and shouting with glee, the other animals are very concerned. This just isn’t the grumpy Jim they know. Soon Norman diagnoses Jim with a bad case of spring fever and tells Jim that he needs to find a cure. The other jungle animals offer suggestions: Take a calming breath! Sniff lavender! Take a nap! Try a time-out! Jim tries everything to get his grump back, but when nothing works, it becomes contagious and the other animals catch spring fever too. Soon the jungle erupts into a silly celebration of springtime as they all join in the fun.
Impossible Creatures by Katherine Rundell
The day that Christopher saved a drowning baby griffin from a hidden lake would change his life forever.
It’s the day he learned about the Archipelago—a cluster of unmapped islands where magical creatures of every kind have thrived for thousands of years, until now. And it’s the day he met Mal—a girl on the run, in desperate need of his help.
Mal and Christopher embark on a wild adventure, racing from island to island, searching for someone who can explain why the magic is fading and why magical creatures are suddenly dying. They consult sphinxes, battle kraken, and negotiate with dragons. But the closer they get to the dark truth of what’s happening, the clearer it becomes: no one else can fix this. If the Archipelago is to be saved, Mal and Christopher will have to do it themselves.
The Midwatch Institute for Wayward Girls by Judith Rossell
A whimsical, adventure-filled mystery about a young orphan at the edge of society who finds herself at the center of a city's secrets.