Week of June 1, 2020
Hold on to your hats: The authors who brought you theย New York Timesย bestsellerย My Plain Jane, whichย Booklistย praised as โdelightfully deadpanโ (starred review) andย Publishers Weeklyย called โa clever, romantic farceโ (starred review), are back with another irreverent historical adventure.
Welcome to 1876 America, a place bursting with gunslingers, outlaws, and garouโbetter known as werewolves.
And where there are garou, thereโre hunters: the one and only Calamity Jane, to be precise, along with her fellow stars of Wild Billโs Traveling Show, Annie Oakley and Frank โthe Pistol Princeโ Butler.
After a garou hunt goes south and Jane finds a suspicious-like bite on her arm, she turns tail for Deadwood, where thereโs talk of a garou cure. But rumors can be deceivingโmeaning the gang better hightail it after her before theyโre a day late and a Jane short.
In this perfect next read for fans ofย A Gentlemanโs Guide to Vice and Virtue, bestselling authors Cynthia Hand, Jodi Meadows, and Brodi Ashton bring their signature spark to the side-splittinโ, whopper-filled (but actually kind of factual?) tale of Calamity Jane.
The first in a gripping fantasy duology inspired by West African folklore in which a grieving crown princess and a desperate refugee find themselves on a collision course to murder each other despite their growing attractionโfrom debut author Roseanne A. Brown. Perfect for fans of Tomi Adeyemi, Renรฉe Ahdieh, and Sabaa Tahir.
For Malik, the Solstasia festival is a chance to escape his war-stricken home and start a new life with his sisters in the prosperous desert city of Ziran. But when a vengeful spirit abducts his younger sister, Nadia, as payment to enter the city, Malik strikes a fatal dealโkill Karina, Crown Princess of Ziran, for Nadiaโs freedom.
But Karina has deadly aspirations of her own. Her mother, the Sultana, has been assassinated; her court threatens mutiny; and Solstasia looms like a knife over her neck. Grief-stricken, Karina decides to resurrect her mother through ancient magic . . . requiring the beating heart of a king. And she knows just how to obtain one: by offering her hand in marriage to the victor of the Solstasia competition.
When Malik rigs his way into the contest, they are set on a heart-pounding course to destroy each other. But as attraction flares between them and ancient evils stir, will they be able to see their tasks to the death?
Bethany C. Morrow’sย A Song Below Waterย is the story for todayโs readers โ a captivating modern fantasy about black mermaids, friendship, and self-discovery set against the challenges of today’s racism and sexism.
In a society determined to keep her under lock and key, Tavia must hide her siren powers.
Meanwhile, Effie is fighting her own family struggles, pitted against literal demons from her past. Together, these best friends must navigate through the perils of high schoolโs junior year.
But everything changes in the aftermath of a siren murder trial that rocks the nation, and Tavia accidentally lets out her magical voice at the worst possible moment.
Soon, nothing in Portland, Oregon, seems safe. To save themselves from drowning, itโs only Tavia and Effieโs unbreakable sisterhood that proves to be the strongest magic of all.
โAn enthralling tale of black girl magic and searing social commentary ready to rattle the bones.โ โ Dhonielle Clayton,ย New York Timesย bestselling author ofย The Belles
Fromย Theย New York Times-bestselling author ofย The Mothers, a stunning new novel about twin sisters, inseparable as children, who ultimately choose to live in two very different worlds, one black and one white.
The Vignes twin sisters will always be identical. But after growing up together in a small, southern black community and running away at age sixteen, it’s not just the shape of their daily lives that is different as adults, it’s everything: their families, their communities, their racial identities. Many years later, one sister lives with her black daughter in the same southern town she once tried to escape. The other secretly passes for white, and her white husband knows nothing of her past. Still, even separated by so many miles and just as many lies, the fates of the twins remain intertwined. What will happen to the next generation, when their own daughters’ storylines intersect?
Weaving together multiple strands and generations of this family, from the Deep South to California, from the 1950s to the 1990s, Brit Bennett produces a story that is at once a riveting, emotional family story and a brilliant exploration of the American history of passing.ย Looking well beyond issues of race,ย The Vanishing Halfย considers the lasting influence of the past as it shapes a person’s decisions, desires, and expectations, and explores some of the multiple reasons and realms in which people sometimes feel pulled to live as something other than their origins.
As with herย New York Times-bestselling debutย The Mothers, Brit Bennett offers an engrossing page-turner about family and relationships that is immersive and provocative, compassionate and wise.
On a cold Sunday evening in early 1957, Sarah Dewhurst waited with her father in the parking lot of the Chevron gas station for the dragon heโd hired to help on the farmโฆ
Sarah Dewhurst and her father, outcasts in their little town of Frome, Washington, are forced to hire a dragon to work their farm, something only the poorest of the poor ever have to resort to.
The dragon, Kazimir, has more to him than meets the eye, though. Sarah canโt help but be curious about him, an animal who supposedly doesnโt have a soul but who is seemingly intent on keeping her safe.
Because the dragon knows something she doesnโt.ย He has arrived at the farm with a prophecy on his mind.ย A prophecy that involves a deadly assassin, a cult of dragon worshippers, two FBI agents in hot pursuitโand somehow, Sarah Dewhurst herself.ย
Liz Lighty has always believed she’s too black, too poor, too awkward to shine in her small, rich, prom-obsessed midwestern town. But it’s okay — Liz has a plan that will get her out of Campbell, Indiana, forever: attend the uber-elite Pennington College, play in their world-famous orchestra, and become a doctor.
But when the financial aid she was counting on unexpectedly falls through, Liz’s plans come crashing down . . . until she’s reminded of her school’s scholarship for prom king and queen. There’s nothing Liz wants to do less than endure a gauntlet of social media trolls, catty competitors, and humiliating public events, but despite her devastating fear of the spotlight she’s willing to do whatever it takes to get to Pennington.
The only thing that makes it halfway bearable is the new girl in school, Mack. She’s smart, funny, and just as much of an outsider as Liz. But Mack is also in the running for queen. Will falling for the competition keep Liz from her dreams . . . or make them come true?
The Wedding Planner meets The Bachelor in Save the Date, the third standalone laugh-out-loud rom com in the Wild Wedding series.
Rebecca Halstead has never been a bridesmaid, but she can certainly relate to the expression โalways a bridesmaid, never a bride.โ As one of Chicagoโs top wedding planners, Rebecca has had a front row seat to countless ceremonies, yet her own walk down the aisle has started to feel like nothing more than a little girlโs fantasy. Sheโs the wallflower who, thanks to a clean bill of health from her oncologist, wants to live life to the fullest. If only she knew how.
Brody Dixon hasnโt heard the word โnoโ since he was drafted by the NFL. With cover model looks and an arm thatโs earned him two Super Bowl MVPs, Brody can have his pick of women. But as the next celebrity bachelor on American Sweetheart, both his agent and publicist want him to clean up his image before the show begins. If only he knew how.
Then fate, and an impulsive wager, bring these two opposites together until an unlikely alliance is formed. For the next two months, Brody will get a crash course in romance. In return, he agrees to help Rebecca break out of her carefully constructed shell. On paper it makes perfect sense. But as they struggle to teach each other, Brody and Rebecca just might discover that falling in love is the most important lesson of all.
A wedding celebration turns dark and deadly in this deliciously wicked and atmospheric thriller reminiscent of Agatha Christie from theย New York Timesย bestselling author ofย The Hunting Party.
The brideย โย The plus oneย โย The best manย โ The wedding plannerย ย โย The bridesmaidย โย The body
On an island off the coast of Ireland, guests gather to celebrate two people joining their lives together as one. The groom: handsome and charming, a rising television star. The bride: smart and ambitious, a magazine publisher. Itโs a wedding for a magazine, or for a celebrity: the designer dress, the remote location, the luxe party favors, the boutique whiskey. The cell phone service may be spotty and the waves may be rough, but every detail has been expertly planned and will be expertly executed.
But perfection is for plans, and people are all too human. As the champagne is popped and the festivities begin, resentments and petty jealousies begin to mingle with the reminiscences and well wishes. The groomsmen begin the drinking game from their school days. The bridesmaid not-so-accidentally ruins her dress. The brideโs oldest (male) friend gives an uncomfortably caring toast.
And then someone turns up dead. Who didnโt wish the happy couple well? And perhaps more important, why?
From theย USA TODAYย bestselling author ofย Pretty Revengeโa โgripping tale of subterfuge, betrayal, and retributionโ (Liv Constantine, bestselling author ofย The Last Mrs. Parrish)โcomes the story of a journalist obsessed with finding a crime novelist who disappears after a deadly attack on her beloved daughter.
As a mother and a famous author, Ward DeFleur has it all. She lives in a beautiful estate in picture-perfect Connecticut, along with her teenage daughter, Stevie, whereย nothing can go wrong. Until, one night, when Stevie is brutally murdered and Wardโs entire world is shattered. Consumed by panic and grief, Ward vows never to put pen to paper again.
Enter Bree Bennett.
Bree is a recently-divorced, former-journalist-cum-housewife, desperate to fill her days with something other than Pilates classes and grocery shopping. So she decides to start writing for the town newspaper. What begins as Breeโs effort to tell Wardโs tragic narrative turns into a fixation with finding her favorite author. Unfortunately, Ward doesnโt want to be found. Even worse, Stevieโs killer is still on the looseโฆ
This harrowing tale of one womanโs infatuation and another womanโs fear is full of explosive surprises, perfect for fans ofย The Night Olivia Fellย andย Then She Was Gone.
This Knight of the Crown is driven by a painful past and a patient furyโฆ and his entire life is a lie.
Sir Carlton Morley is famously possessed of extraordinary will, singular focus, and a merciless sense of justice. As a man, he secured his fortune and his preeminence as Scotland Yardโs ruthless Chief Inspector. As a decorated soldier, he was legend for his unflinching trigger finger, his precision in battle, and his imperturbable strength. But as a boy, he was someone else. A twin, a thief, and a murderer, until tragedy reshaped him.
Now he stalks the night, in search of redemption and retribution, vowing to never give into temptation, as itโs just another form of weakness.
Until temptation landsโquite literallyโin his lap, taking the form of Prudence Goode.
Prim and proper Pru is expected to live a life of drudgery, but before she succumbs to her fate, she craves just one night of desire. On the night she searches for it, she stumbles upon a man made of shadows, muscle and wrathโฆ And decides he is the one.
When their firestorm of passion burns out of control, Morley discovers, too late, that he was right. The tempting woman has become his weakness.
A weakness his enemies can use against him.
Did you ever hear the joke about the guy whose wife cheated on him with his best friend? So he quit his job, moved into his parentsโ basement, and gained fifty pounds?
No? Because that wasnโt a joke. It was my life.
Four years later, I’m back with a dream job, a killer apartment, and a set of abs that are better than ever.
So, when Maggie Light, a stunning, snarky blonde moves in next door, and we spend the hottest weekend of our lives together, I think this could be the greatest comeback story ever.
That is until I realize Maggie has moved to town to do one thingโsteal my job.
Maybe this isn’t a comeback story after all. Maybe this is warโone I intend to win.
What I never anticipated was that maybe Iโd rather winย her.
Perhaps, if Iโm lucky, the universe has finally run out of jokes and I can somehow win both.
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