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March 26, 2024

In this newsletter, you will find books releasing the weeks of March 25th and April 1st that we think will be of interest to Bookreporter.com readers, along with Bonus News, where we call out a contest, feature or review that we want to let you know about so you have it on your radar.

This week, we are calling attention to our "What's Your Book Group Reading This Month?" contest on ReadingGroupGuides.com. Three book groups will win up to 12 copies of Kate Morton's latest New York Times bestseller, HOMECOMING, a Bookreporter.com Bets On selection that releases in paperback on April 2nd. The deadline for your entries is Wednesday, April 10th at noon ET.

March 26, 2024

This Bookreporter.com Special Newsletter spotlights a book that we know people will be talking about this spring. Read more about it, and enter our Spring Preview Contest by Wednesday, March 27th at noon ET for a chance to win one of five copies of THE TRUTH ABOUT THE DEVLINS by Lisa Scottoline, which is now available. Please note that each contest is only open for 24 hours, so you will need to act quickly!

Téa Obreht, author of The Morningside

After being expelled from their ancestral home in a not-so-distant future, Silvia and her mother finally settle at the Morningside, a crumbling luxury tower where Silvia’s aunt Ena serves as the superintendent. Silvia knows almost nothing about the place where she was born and spent her early years, nor does she fully understand why she and her mother had to leave. But in Ena, Silvia finds a person willing to give glimpses into the folktales of her demolished homeland. Enchanted by Ena’s stories, Silvia begins seeing the world with magical possibilities and becomes obsessed with Bezi Duras, the mysterious older woman who lives in the penthouse of the Morningside. Silvia’s mission to unravel the truth about this woman’s life, and her own haunted past, may end up costing her everything.

Chris Bohjalian, author of The Princess of Las Vegas

Crissy Dowling passes her days by the pool in a private cabana, and each evening she transforms into a Princess, performing her musical cabaret inspired by the life of the late Diana Spencer. Some might find her strange or even delusional, an American speaking with a British accent, living and working in a casino that has become a dated trash heap. On top of that, Crissy’s daily diet of Adderall and Valium leaves her more than a little tipsy, her Senator boyfriend has gone back to his wife, and her entire career rests on resembling a dead woman. Yet her fans see her for the gifted chameleon she is. But when Crissy’s sister, Betsy, arrives in town with a new boyfriend and a teenage daughter, and when Richie Morley, the owner of the Buckingham Palace Casino, is savagely murdered, Crissy’s carefully constructed kingdom comes crashing down all around her.

Allison Pataki, author of Finding Margaret Fuller

After Margaret Fuller accepts an invitation from Ralph Waldo Emerson, the celebrated Sage of Concord, to meet his coterie of enlightened friends, she becomes “the radiant genius and fiery heart” of the Transcendentalists. However, Margaret craves more than poetry and interpersonal drama, and her restless soul needs new challenges and adventures. When legendary editor Horace Greeley offers her an assignment in Europe, Margaret makes history as the first female foreign news correspondent. But it is in Rome that she finds a world of passion, romance and revolution, taking a Roman count as a lover --- and sparking an international scandal. Evolving yet again into the roles of mother and countess, Margaret enters the fight for Italy’s unification.

Rebecca Serle, author of Expiration Dates

Daphne Bell believes the universe has a plan for her. Every time she meets a new man, she receives a slip of paper with his name and a number on it: the exact amount of time they will be together. Daphne has been receiving the numbered papers for over 20 years, always wondering when there might be one without an expiration. Finally, on the night of a blind date at her favorite Los Angeles restaurant, there’s only a name: Jake. But as Jake and Daphne’s story unfolds, Daphne finds herself doubting the paper’s prediction and wrestling with what it means to be both committed and truthful. Because Daphne knows things Jake doesn’t --- information that would break his heart if he found out.

Editorial Content for The #1 Lawyer

Contributors

Reviewer (text)

Ray Palen

The writing machine that is James Patterson continues to roll forward with bestseller after bestseller. Add to that number his latest release, a stand-alone thriller that he wrote with Nancy Allen. Read More

Teaser

Stafford Lee Penney is a small-town lawyer with a big-time reputation for winning every case he tries. In his sharp suits and polished Oxford shoes, Penney is Biloxi, Mississippi’s #1 Lawyer and top local celebrity. Just as Penney notches his latest courtroom victory, his wife is scandalously killed. He spirals into a legal and personal losing streak, damaging his reputation and ruining his career. That’s when Penney makes a bold decision. He stops trading on his power-lawyer identity and creates a new one: lawyer lifeguard. Moonlighting at the beach, showing up to court in flip-flops, and mentoring a law student, the new Penney is at first unrecognizable. It’s said that a lawyer who represents himself has a fool for a client. But when Penney is accused of murder, the #1 Lawyer will find a way to triumph.

Promo

Stafford Lee Penney is a small-town lawyer with a big-time reputation for winning every case he tries. In his sharp suits and polished Oxford shoes, Penney is Biloxi, Mississippi’s #1 Lawyer and top local celebrity. Just as Penney notches his latest courtroom victory, his wife is scandalously killed. He spirals into a legal and personal losing streak, damaging his reputation and ruining his career. That’s when Penney makes a bold decision. He stops trading on his power-lawyer identity and creates a new one: lawyer lifeguard. Moonlighting at the beach, showing up to court in flip-flops, and mentoring a law student, the new Penney is at first unrecognizable. It’s said that a lawyer who represents himself has a fool for a client. But when Penney is accused of murder, the #1 Lawyer will find a way to triumph.

About the Book

Biloxi’s best criminal defense attorney has never lost a case. Then his client’s beautiful wife is murdered, and America’s #1 lawyer suddenly becomes its #1 suspect.

Stafford Lee Penney is a small-town lawyer with a big-time reputation for winning every case he tries. In his sharp suits and polished Oxford shoes, Penney is Biloxi, Mississippi’s #1 Lawyer and top local celebrity.

Just as Penney notches his latest courtroom victory, his wife is scandalously killed. He spirals into a legal and personal losing streak, damaging his reputation and ruining his career.

That’s when Penney makes a bold decision. He stops trading on his power-lawyer identity and creates a new one: lawyer lifeguard. Moonlighting at the beach, showing up to court in flip-flops, and mentoring a law student, the new Penney is at first unrecognizable.

It’s said that a lawyer who represents himself has a fool for a client. But when Penney is accused of murder, the #1 Lawyer will find a way to triumph.

Audiobook available, read by Kevin Stillwell

Editorial Content for American Spirits

Contributors

Reviewer (text)

Harvey Freedenberg

Barring some additional posthumous works, AMERICAN SPIRITS will be the final book from the esteemed American writer Russell Banks, who died in January 2023 at age 82. If that’s the case, this volume of three taut and often shocking long stories is a fitting summing up of important preoccupations of Banks’ long and prolific career. Each travels deeply into the lives of ordinary people, while illuminating some of the fissures in contemporary America. Read More

Teaser

A husband sells property to a mysterious, temperamental stranger and is hounded on social media when he publicly questions the man’s character. A couple grows concerned when an enigmatic family moves next door, and the children start sneaking over to beg for help. Two dangerous criminals kidnap an elderly couple and begin blackmailing their grandson, demanding that he pay back what he owes. AMERICAN SPIRITS explores the hostile undercurrents of our communities and American politics at large, as well as the ways local tragedies can be both devastating and, somehow, everyday.

Promo

A husband sells property to a mysterious, temperamental stranger and is hounded on social media when he publicly questions the man’s character. A couple grows concerned when an enigmatic family moves next door, and the children start sneaking over to beg for help. Two dangerous criminals kidnap an elderly couple and begin blackmailing their grandson, demanding that he pay back what he owes. AMERICAN SPIRITS explores the hostile undercurrents of our communities and American politics at large, as well as the ways local tragedies can be both devastating and, somehow, everyday.

About the Book

From one of America’s most celebrated storytellers comes three dark, interlocking tales about the residents of a rural New York town and the shocking headlines that become their local mythologies.

A husband sells property to a mysterious, temperamental stranger and is hounded on social media when he publicly questions the man’s character. A couple grows concerned when an enigmatic family moves next door, and the children start sneaking over to beg for help. Two dangerous criminals kidnap an elderly couple and begin blackmailing their grandson, demanding that he pay back what he owes.

Suspenseful, thrilling and expertly crafted, AMERICAN SPIRITS explores the hostile undercurrents of our communities and American politics at large, as well as the ways local tragedies can be both devastating and, somehow, everyday. Ushering the reader through the town of Sam Dent, Russell Banks has etched yet another brilliant entry into the bedrock of American fiction.

Audiobook available, read by Danny Campbell

Editorial Content for I Promise It Won't Always Hurt Like This: 18 Assurances on Grief

Contributors

Reviewer (text)

Rebecca Munro

Clare Mackintosh, the bestselling author of such thrillers as HOSTAGE and THE LAST PARTY, invites readers into --- and out of --- her deeply personal grief in I PROMISE IT WON’T ALWAYS HURT LIKE THIS, a meditative collection of essays on grief, healing and remembrance. Read More

Teaser

When Clare Mackintosh lost her five-week-old son, she soon discovered there are no neat, labeled stages of grief like so many books insist. The shape of each loss is different; when a parent, relative or friend passes, we grieve the person in all their beauty, humanity and imperfections. For Clare, there was no preparing for the anger and excruciating ache of knowing her child's life would remain unlived. This is the book she needed then. Inspired by a viral Twitter thread Clare wrote on the anniversary of her son's death, this deeply honest, compassionate memoir will bring solace and encouragement to anyone who finds themselves walking with grief, whether for a season or for several years.

Promo

When Clare Mackintosh lost her five-week-old son, she soon discovered there are no neat, labeled stages of grief like so many books insist. The shape of each loss is different; when a parent, relative or friend passes, we grieve the person in all their beauty, humanity and imperfections. For Clare, there was no preparing for the anger and excruciating ache of knowing her child's life would remain unlived. This is the book she needed then. Inspired by a viral Twitter thread Clare wrote on the anniversary of her son's death, this deeply honest, compassionate memoir will bring solace and encouragement to anyone who finds themselves walking with grief, whether for a season or for several years.

About the Book

New York Times and internationally bestselling mystery author Clare Mackintosh makes her nonfiction debut with this deeply felt memoir of unfathomable loss and infinite hope.

"Grief has run through my life like thread through fabric; at times gossamer-thin and barely there, other times weaving thick, clumsy darns across the rips. In my grief I am a mother, a child, a sister, a wife, a woman, a friend. I am also a writer."

When Clare Mackintosh lost her five-week-old son, she soon discovered there are no neat, labeled stages of grief like so many books insist. The shape of each loss is different; when a parent, relative or friend passes, we grieve the person in all their beauty, humanity and imperfections. For Clare, there was no preparing for the anger and excruciating ache of knowing her child's life would remain unlived. This is the book she needed then.

Inspired by a viral Twitter thread Clare wrote on the anniversary of her son's death, this deeply honest, compassionate memoir will bring solace and encouragement to anyone who finds themselves walking with grief, whether for a season or for several years. It is for those who need a little voice saying, I Promise It Won't Always Hurt Like This, for the people who love them, and those who understand that great loss can be a window through which we see how powerful, and unending, love can be.

Audiobook available, read by Clare Mackintosh

Editorial Content for Bye, Baby

Book

Contributors

Reviewer (text)

Rebecca Munro

Once upon a time, Billie West and Cassie Barnwell were inseparable. Teenage girls growing up in Red Hook, New York, they dreamed of escaping their small town and disappointing families for New York City. They planned to live like their favorite romantic comedy leads, indulging in expensive takeout, mediocre dates and wine-fueled nights on their rooftop. But that all changed when Cassie finally entered the elite, privileged circle of Harvard graduates and trust-fund babies she long idolized. Read More

Teaser

On a brisk fall night in a New York apartment, 35-year-old Billie West hears terrified screams. It's her lifelong best friend Cassie Barnwell, one floor above, and she's just realized her infant daughter has gone missing. Billie is shaken as she looks down into her own arms to see the baby, remembering --- with a jolt of fear --- that she is responsible for the kidnapping that has instantly shattered Cassie’s world. Once fiercely bonded by their secrets, Cassie and Billie have drifted apart in adulthood. Cassie is married to a wealthy man, has recently become a mother, and is building a following as a lifestyle influencer. She is desperate to leave her past behind --- including Billie, who no longer fits into her world. But Billie knows the worst thing Cassie has ever done, and she will do whatever it takes to restore their friendship.

Promo

On a brisk fall night in a New York apartment, 35-year-old Billie West hears terrified screams. It's her lifelong best friend Cassie Barnwell, one floor above, and she's just realized her infant daughter has gone missing. Billie is shaken as she looks down into her own arms to see the baby, remembering --- with a jolt of fear --- that she is responsible for the kidnapping that has instantly shattered Cassie’s world. Once fiercely bonded by their secrets, Cassie and Billie have drifted apart in adulthood. Cassie is married to a wealthy man, has recently become a mother, and is building a following as a lifestyle influencer. She is desperate to leave her past behind --- including Billie, who no longer fits into her world. But Billie knows the worst thing Cassie has ever done, and she will do whatever it takes to restore their friendship.

About the Book

Every friendship has its shadow.

On a brisk fall night in a New York apartment, 35-year-old Billie West hears terrified screams. It's her lifelong best friend Cassie Barnwell, one floor above, and she's just realized her infant daughter has gone missing. Billie is shaken as she looks down into her own arms to see the baby, remembering --- with a jolt of fear --- that she is responsible for the kidnapping that has instantly shattered Cassie’s world.

Once fiercely bonded by their secrets, Cassie and Billie have drifted apart in adulthood, no longer the inseparable pair they used to be in their small Hudson Valley hometown. Cassie is married to a wealthy man, has recently become a mother, and is building a following as a lifestyle influencer. She is desperate to leave her past behind --- including Billie, who is single and childless, and no longer fits into her world. But Billie knows the worst thing Cassie has ever done, and she will do whatever it takes to restore their friendship.

Told in alternating perspectives in Carola Lovering’s signature suspenseful style, BYE, BABY confronts the myriad ways friendships change and evolve over time, the lingering echoes of childhood trauma, and the impact of women’s choices on their lifelong relationships.

Audiobook available, read by Helen Laser and Karissa Vacker