Books Publishing This Week
Books Publishing This Week: May 26 - June 1
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As May draws to a close and the warm embrace of summer begins to envelop the world, you find yourself eagerly reaching for a fresh book, ready to embark on a new literary journey. There's something special about starting a new book at the end of May, as if the turning of the calendar page signals the perfect moment to dive into a world of words and imagination.
You pick up the book with a sense of anticipation, running your fingers over the smooth cover, feeling the texture of the pages beneath. It's a moment of quiet excitement, like standing on the threshold of a new adventure, uncertain of what wonders await you within the pages.
As you crack open the book, the scent of freshly printed ink wafts up to greet you, mingling with the scent of blooming flowers and the promise of summer in the air. There's a sense of possibility that comes with starting a new book, a feeling that anything is possible within its pages.
You settle into your favorite reading spot, whether it's a cozy armchair by the window, a sun-dappled spot in the garden, or a hammock swaying gently in the breeze. The world around you fades away as you lose yourself in the words, letting them carry you away to distant lands and times long past.
With each page you turn, you feel yourself becoming more and more immersed in the story, as if you're stepping through a portal into another realm. You laugh with the characters, cry with them, and cheer them on as they face challenges and triumphs along their journey.
The hours slip by unnoticed as you lose track of time, completely absorbed in the world of the book. Outside, the sun sets in a blaze of colors, painting the sky with hues of pink, orange, and gold, but you hardly notice, so engrossed are you in the story unfolding before you.
At last, you reach the final pages of the book, and a bittersweet feeling washes over you. On one hand, you're eager to discover how the story ends, to see what fate awaits the characters you've come to know and love. But on the other hand, you're reluctant to say goodbye, to leave behind the world you've inhabited for so long.
You linger over the last few pages, savoring each word as if it were a precious morsel, reluctant to let go. And then, with a sigh, you reach the final sentence, the final word, and the journey comes to an end.
But even as you close the book and set it aside, the memories linger, like echoes of a dream. You carry them with you, tucked away in the corners of your mind, ready to be revisited whenever you need a reminder of the magic that lies between the pages of a book.
And so, as May comes to a close and June dawns on the horizon, you find yourself already looking forward to the next adventure, the next book that will sweep you away on a journey of the imagination. For in the world of books, there is always another story waiting to be told, another adventure waiting to be had. And you, dear reader, are always ready to dive right in.
The Editor by Sara B. Franklin
Legendary editor Judith Jones, the woman behind some of the most important authors of the 20th century—including Julia Child, Anne Frank, Edna Lewis, John Updike, and Sylvia Plath—finally gets her due in this intimate biography.
When twenty-five-year-old Judith Jones began working as a secretary at Doubleday’s Paris office in 1949, she was wading through manuscripts in the slush pile until one caught her eye. She read the book in one sitting, then begged her boss to consider publishing it. A year later, Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl became a bestseller. It was the start of a culture defining career in publishing.
Over more than half a century as an editor at Knopf, Jones became a legend, nurturing future literary icons such as Sylvia Plath, Anne Tyler, and John Updike. At the forefront of the cookbook revolution, she published the who’s who of food writing: Edna Lewis, M.F.K. Fisher, Claudia Roden, Madhur Jaffrey, James Beard, and, most famously, Julia Child. Jones celebrated the art and pleasures of cooking and culinary diversity, forever changing the way Americans think about food.
Her work spanned the decades of America’s most dramatic cultural change. From the end of World War II through the Cold War; from the civil rights movement to the fight for women’s equality, Jones’s work questioned convention, using books as a tool of quiet resistance.
Now, her astonishing career is explored for the first time. Based on exclusive interviews, never-before-seen personal papers, and years of research, The Editor tells the riveting behind-the-scenes narrative of how stories are made, finally bringing to light the audacious life of one of our most influential tastemakers.
Look on the Bright Side by Kristan Higgins
Lark Smith was planning a fairy-tale wedding to her high school sweetheart when, in the blink of an eye, everything she dreamed of was suddenly gone. That day, Lark decided the best way to deal with loss was to prevent others from ever having to. Five years later, her goal of becoming a doctor—the best doctor—is just within reach when, without warning, she’s fired.
Now getting back on track means making a deal with the devil. Well, not exactly, even if they do call renowned surgeon Lorenzo Santini “Dr. Satan” behind his back. He’ll use his influence to get her back in the program. But first, Lark has to pose as his significant other all summer…his sister is getting married, and he doesn’t want his ninety-nine-year-old grandmother spending her precious time worrying over his single state. What Lark doesn’t realize is she’s already met Lorenzo’s brother Dante, the firefighter who was there on Lark’s worst day. The brothers couldn’t be more different…which is becoming a problem, because the last thing Lark wants is to fall in love again.
While spinning white lies during one unforgettable Cape Cod summer, Lark is exposed to the truth: when life throws you in the dark, love, friends, and family are there to help you look on the bright side.
The Only Light Left Burning Erik J Brown
What If It's Us meets They Both Die at the End in this sequel to the beloved postapocalyptic queer YA adventure romance All That's Left in the World by USA Today bestselling author Erik J. Brown.
Perfect for fans of Adam Silvera, Alex London, and Heartstopper by Alice Oseman.
After a long and treacherous journey south, Andrew and Jamie have finally found safety in the Florida Keys. But they soon learn that safety doesn't always mean happily ever after.
Settling into life in the Islamorada colony with other survivors of the bug, Andrew believes they've finally found themselves a home, even a family. But anxious Jamie is less comfortable in their new community and is eager to return north to keep the promise they made to their friend Henri—to bring her to the colony and reunite her with her daughter. Besides, would it really be so bad to find someplace just for the two of them?
When a hurricane and a shocking betrayal force them to leave the colony in search of new shelter, it brings their tensions to a head—and puts them in the path of some old enemies. Andrew and Jamie must set aside their differences to survive once more and find a new home. But what if "home" means different things to each of them?
First Frost by Craig Johnson
Following the events of The Longmire Defense, we return to find Walt and our familiar cast of characters from Abaroska county tasked with solving a crime even more challenging than the last.
Walt Longmire returns in this twentieth installment of the award-winning and bestselling series that has been a hit on both the page and the screen. Set in the unspoiled countryside of Wyoming, Sheriff Walt Longmire has to navigate his own increasingly complicated personal life with the ever-changing and often violent underworld that encroaches on what was once referred to as the Old West. This time, he is up against a sinister plot that could hurt the people closest to him and forever change the way he sees his beloved Wyoming.
Almost Family by Ann Bancroft
Liz Millanova has stage four cancer, a grown daughter who doesn't speak to her, and obsessive memories of a relationship that tore apart her marriage. She thinks of herself as someone who'd rather die than sit through a support group, but now that she actually is going to die, she figures she might as well give it a go.
Mercy's Thriving Survivors is a hospital-sponsored group held in a presumably less depressing location: a Nordstrom's employee training lounge. There, Liz hits it off with two other patients, and the three unlikely friends decide to ditch the group and meet on their own. They call themselves the Oakland Mets, and their goal is to enjoy life while they can. Together, Dave, a gay Vietnam vet, Rhonda, a devout, nice woman who's hiding a family secret and finds peace in a gospel choir, and snarky Liz plan outings to hear jazz, enjoy nature, and tour Alcatraz. In the odd intimacy they form, Liz learns to open up and get close, acknowledge and let go of the dysfunction in her marriage, and repair her relationship with her daughter. They joined forces to have a good time--but what they wind up doing is helping one another come to grips with terminal cancer and resolve the unfinished business in their lives.
The Paris Affair by Maureen Marshall
A queer historical romantic suspense novel about a young engineer working for Gustave Eiffel caught in a web of deceit that could destroy both him and the famous tower.
Fin Tighe is clinging to respectability by his nail-bitten fingers: an illegitimate son of an English earl with a meager engineer’s salary to support him and his cousin Aurelie. While Aurelie is at constant risk from groping, leering men who assume any dancer (even the ones in the corps de ballet) is a prostitute in training, Fin’s evenings spent in the clandestine gay community leave him equally vulnerable. When given the opportunity, Fin jumps at the chance for financial security by helping his employer, Gustave Eiffel, fund a 300-meter tower that will dominate the Parisian skyline.
Enter Gilbert Duhais, a charming, wealthy, and well-connected individual who persuades Fin to masquerade as his father’s heir—which couldn’t be further from the truth—and introduces him to every nouveau riche speculator in the city. Each provocative interaction heightens Fin's risk of exposure, but also brings him closer to his dream.
When a dear friend of Fin’s is murdered above a covert gay club, the stakes rise even higher. Fin must untangle the disparate threads of his past—and his current romantic gamble—before they become his noose.
Summer Fridays by Suzanne Rindell
You’ve Got Mail for a new generation, set in the days of AOL and instant messenger banter, about a freshly engaged editorial assistant who winds up spending her “summer Fridays” with the person she least expects
Summer 1999: Twentysomething Sawyer is striving to make it in New York. Between her assistant job in publishing, her secret dreams of becoming a writer, and her upcoming wedding to her college boyfriend, her is plate full. Only one problem: She is facing an incredibly lonely summer as her fiancé has been spending longer and longer hours at work . . . with an all-too-close female colleague, Kendra.
When Kendra’s boyfriend, Nick, invites Sawyer to meet up and compare notes about their suspicions, the meeting goes awry. She finds Nick cocky and cynical, and he finds her stuck in her own head. But then Nick seeks out Sawyer online to apologize, and a friendship develops.
Soon, Sawyer’s lonely summer takes an unexpected turn. She and Nick begin an unofficial ritual—exploring New York City together every summer Friday. From hot dogs on the Staten Island Ferry and Sea Breezes in a muggy East Village bar to swimming at Coney Island, Sawyer feels seen by Nick in a way that surprises her. He pushes her to be braver. To ask for what she wants. Meanwhile, Sawyer draws Nick out of his hard shell, revealing a surprisingly vulnerable side. They both begin living for their Friday afternoons together.
But what happens when the summer is over?
Summer Fridays is a witty and emotional love letter to New York City that also captures the feeling of being young and starting out, uncertain what to do on your summer Friday. It’s also perfect for readers who remember when “going online” meant tying up the phone line, and the timeless thrill of seeing a certain someone’s name in your inbox.
Walk the Dark by Paul Cody
Oliver Curtin grows up in a nocturnal world with a mother who is a sex worker and drug addict, and whose love is real yet increasingly unreliable. His narration alternates between that troubled childhood and the present of the novel, where he is serving the last months of a thirty-years-to-life sentence in a maximum-security prison in upstate New York, for a crime he committed at age seventeen. His redemption is closely allied with his memories, seen with growing clarity and courage. If he can remember, then life in the larger world is possible for him.
A Good Life by Virginie Grimaldi
Emma and Agathe are sisters. They were thick as thieves when they were young but have always been as different as can be. Agathe, the younger sister, is disorderly, chaotic, and fiery. Five years older, Emma has always been the more mature sister, the defender, the protector, the worrier. Their relationship as adults is scarred by a tragedy that transformed their happy, ordinary childhoods into something much more complex and challenging. For a long time, Emma hasn’t wanted to be involved in Agathe’s life. But then they must return together to the Basque Country, to the house of their adored grandmother, to empty out her home and in the process to reconcile, to remember, and to pour out what is in their hearts.
The story alternates between Agathe and Emma’s childhood and their present day, with everything in between, and readers see them as young girls, teenagers, young women, mothers, wives, partners, individuals, sisters. This is a story that encompasses whole lives, complex lives, women’s lives, asking all the while how the scars of the past can be healed and what, in the end, is a good life.
The Default World by Naomi Kanakia
Years after fleeing San Francisco and getting sober, Jhanvi has made a life for herself working at a grocery co-op and saving for her surgeries. But when her friend (and sometimes more) Henry mentions that he and his techie festival-goer friends spent $100,000 to transform a warehouse basement into a sex dungeon, Jhanvi starts wondering if there’s a way to exploit these gullible idiots. She returns to San Francisco, hatching a plan to marry Henry for his company’s generous healthcare benefits.
Jhanvi enters a world of beautiful, decadent fire eaters and their lavish sex parties. As her pretensions to cynicism and control start to fade, she develops a Gatsby-esque attraction to these happy young people and their bold claims of unconditional love. But do any of her privileged new friends really like or accept her? Her financial needs expose the limits of a community built on limitless self-expression, and soon she has to choose between doing what’s right, and doing what’s right for her.
This darkly funny novel skewers privileged leftist millennial tech culture and asks whether “found family” is just another of the twenty-first century's broken promises.
Head Fake by Scott Gordon
Mikey makes everything a joke, even the clinical depression he’s struggled with for years. After a run of failed jobs, he becomes the unlikely basketball coach at a high school for high-risk offenders who are experiencing mental illness. The position suddenly becomes available after the team tried to strangle their last coach.
Every instinct tells Mikey to get as far away from this school as possible. Coaching these kids, who have been arrested for who-knows-what, would be difficult for a normie. For Mikey, it could cause another breakdown and force him right back to living on the street. But he knows that if he has any chance to make his twenty-sixth birthday, he needs to keep this job, even if the school board wants him fired, and the students would rather fight each other than play ball.
This poignant, hilarious, and sometimes uncomfortable novel proves that even the most damaged of us can emerge victorious.
Lake County by Lori Roy
Set in the 1950s, this Southern Gothic thriller by Edgar Award–winning author Lori Roy reimagines the life of Marilyn Monroe, tying her fate to a dreamy teenager whose boyfriend runs afoul of the mob.
Desperate to break free of small-town Florida, Addie Anne Buckley dreams of following in the path of her glamorous aunt Jean—known to the world as Marilyn Monroe. When Aunt Jean plans a trip to Hollywood for Addie’s eighteenth birthday, Addie sees her chance to escape.
One thing stands in her way: her boyfriend. Truitt Holt is Addie’s first and only love and will be joining her in California. But days before Addie’s due to leave, Truitt does an about-face and gives her a painful ultimatum: stay and marry him, or they’re through. Addie chooses her dream.
Hurt and angry, Truitt unwittingly exposes the illegal bolita game he’s been running in mob territory. Now the Tampa mafia is after him, and he has until midnight to cut a deal that will save his life and Addie’s. What he doesn’t know…his trouble with the mob has already found Addie and her family. She’s already in a fight for her life.
The Curious Secrets of Yesterday by Namrata Patel
A woman’s ambitions clash with familial expectations in a captivating novel about generational secrets and self-discovery by the bestselling author of The Candid Life of Meena Dave.
Raised by her mother and grandmother and tutored in the healing wonders of spices, Tulsi Gupta is expected to carry on the ancestral tradition from her family’s Salem spice shop. Restless and reluctant, Tulsi yearns to follow her own path―destiny has other plans.
When Tulsi finds a letter written by her grandmother, addressed and never sent, that speaks of a long-ago betrayal, she decides to unravel the mystery as a distraction. But Tulsi stumbles into much more than she bargained for. With each new discovery, she learns there’s much more to her mother and grandmother than their expertise in the remedial aromas of coriander and cloves. When an attractive neighbor begins renovating the shuttered deli next door, Tulsi finds the courage to break her routine and chase the unexpected.
As Tulsi digs into the past and secrets come to light, she’s determined to heal old family wounds and find her true purpose―and maybe even love―every step of the way.
