March 10, 2026

March 10, 2026

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In this newsletter, you will find books releasing the weeks of March 9th and March 16th 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 special contest for THE MOTHER-DAUGHTER BOOK CLUB by Susan Patterson and James Patterson, which releases on April 20th and is a follow-up to THINGS I WISH I TOLD MY MOTHER. We are awarding a copy of the book to 25 readers and giving them the chance to share their comments about it with us.

Winning means that you are committed to reading the book and giving us your feedback on it by Friday, April 17th, as well as submitting a question for Susan Patterson that could be part of an upcoming interview that Carol Fitzgerald plans to conduct with Susan. The deadline for your entries is Friday, March 20th at noon ET.

In addition, we have FOUR other contests to tell you about, as well as our Favorite Monthly Lists & Picks and our March book preview afternoon event happening TOMORROW. Scroll further down the newsletter for all the details.

Enjoy!

Join Us Tomorrow Afternoon for Our 
“Bookaccino Live” Book Preview Event!

Enter Our Bookreporter Contest for
WHEN THE CRANES FLY SOUTH
by THIS Friday at Noon ET!

Enter Our Reading Group Guides Contest for
LAST CALL AT THE SAVOY
by NEXT Monday at Noon ET!

This Week's Bonus News: Our Special Contest for
THE MOTHER-DAUGHTER BOOK CLUB
by Susan Patterson and James Patterson
Enter to Win One of 25 Copies, Share Your Feedback
on the Book, and Ask Susan a Question!

Upcoming Virtual Book and Author Events

Here are three upcoming virtual book and author events that you may be interested in attending. Click on the links for more info and to register.

Wednesday, March 11th at 2pm ET: “Bookaccino Live” Book Preview Afternoon Event: Carol Fitzgerald will present titles releasing between March 10th and March 31st, along with a few from the second half of April, plus May, that we would like to get on your radar. Included will be fiction; historical fiction; thrillers and mysteries; and memoirs, biographies and other nonfiction.

Wednesday, March 11th at 7pm ET: “Friends & Fiction”: Join “Friends & Fiction” for a conversation with Lucy Score, whose smash hit THINGS WE NEVER GOT OVER captured millions of hearts. In MISTAKES WERE MADE, Lucy invites readers back to Story Lake for a swoon-worthy new small-town romantic comedy.

Tuesday, March 17th at 9pm ET: Killer Author Club: Kimberly Belle, Heather Gudenkauf and Kaira Rouda will talk to Will Dean about his new novel, ADRIFT, a high-tension thriller about a family’s descent into darkness that is perfect for fans of Dennis Lehane and Lisa Jewell.

On Sale the Week of March 9th in Hardcover

March 9th

JUDGE STONE by Viola Davis and James Patterson (Legal Thriller)
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. 
Little, Brown and Company | 9780316579834 

March 10th

ADULT BRACES: Driving Myself Sane by Lindy West (Memoir/Humor)
Through SHRILL --- the book and then the Hulu series --- Lindy West became an inspiration. To this day, she is stopped on the street and hailed as a beacon of empowerment by women who felt badly for not conforming to a narrow set of societal norms --- thin, straight, compliant. But behind the scenes, Lindy never felt like she was the self-actualized woman fans made her out to be. When she found herself in the throes of a deep depression, with her marriage and sense of self-worth hanging in the balance, she knew she needed to make a change. In ADULT BRACES, Lindy shares the story of her rock bottom and the journey she took to claw her way out of it.
Grand Central Publishing | 9780306831836 

ALL THE WORLD CAN HOLD by Jung Yun (Fiction)
It’s Sunday, September 16, 2001. Franny and her husband have traded in their elegant Park Avenue co-op for a suite on board the Sonata, a once-glittering cruise ship with a complicated history now long past its prime. Though they’re not “cruise people,” Franny is determined to host the trip as planned because it’s her mother’s 70th birthday, or chilsun, a major rite of passage celebrated by Korean families. But as her husband keeps pointing out, Franny and her mother aren’t close, and it is surreal --- even wrong --- to be on a cruise as the death toll from the attacks on 9/11 continues to rise. ALL THE WORLD CAN HOLD explores how we balance our needs and our wants, as well as the regrets we live with and the chances to set them right.
37 Ink | 9781668200599 

THE BEST DOG IN THE WORLD: Essays on Love edited by Alice Hoffman (Essays)
Anyone who has ever been fortunate enough to share their life with a dog knows that the experience is both profound and transformative. Here, in this charming collection of essays, 15 celebrated authors share unforgettable tales of the dogs who left their pawprints on their hearts. With contributions from Isabel Allende, Chris Bohjalian, Bonnie Garmus, Roxane Gay, Emily Henry, Ann Leary, Tova Mirvis, Jodi Picoult, Elizabeth Strout, Amy Tan, Adriana Trigiani, Nick Trout, Paul Yoon and Laura Zigman, THE BEST DOG IN THE WORLD captures the full range of the canine-human connection --- from the joy of welcoming a new puppy to the heartache of saying goodbye to a beloved friend.
Scribner | 9781668209028 

THE COMPLEX by Karan Mahajan (Fiction)
In a sprawling complex in Delhi, the sons and daughters of SP Chopra, one of India's political architects, live together vying for influence in a family shaped by the great man's legacy. By the late 1970s, his descendants are scrambling to define their own futures in a still-young nation on the brink of transformation. Sachin Chopra leaves for America, with his bride Gita following not long after, as the newlyweds are eager to forge their own lives beyond the pressures of the family compound. Yet Delhi remains an inescapable force, one that keeps pulling them back, even as Gita is menaced by Sachin’s predatory uncle, Laxman. Meanwhile, Vibha, his sister, tries to keep the peace and the reputation of the family intact even as she wrestles with her own exile.
Viking | 9780593832905 

THE DARK TIME: A Peter Ash Novel by Nick Petrie (Thriller)
Katelyn Thorsen, known as KT to her friends and enemies, is an independent journalist who receives a very specific death threat. Fortunately, Peter Ash has arrived in town to protect KT at the request of his girlfriend, June Cassidy. From the moment of his arrival, he’s thrown into a maelstrom of violence trying to protect KT and her daughter and discover the source of the death threat. Even after June and Peter’s best friend, Lewis, arrive in Seattle to help, this challenge may be too much for them --- with enormous consequences should they fail.
G.P. Putnam's Sons | 9780593540589 

DARKENING SONG by Delphine Seddon (Fiction)
Eva is just 18 years old and interning at a record label when she discovers 16-year-old Alora online. Never has she heard a voice like Alora’s, and when it’s clear there isn’t anyone at the label interested in hearing this phenomenal talent, Eva takes matters into her own hands. On a whim, Eva offers Alora representation as her manager without knowing the first thing about artist management or what’s about to happen to both of them. Alora is swiftly catapulted into the spotlight of major superstardom, and as the two navigate the whirling vortex of fame, they form a deep bond. But when Alora’s dark and mysterious past begins to infiltrate her present, and Eva’s ambition and success blind her to the obvious signs that her client and, most importantly, her friend is in trouble, their lives unravel with disastrous consequences.
Saturday Books | 9781250373229 

A DAY OF JUDGMENT: An Inspector Ian Rutledge Mystery by Charles Todd (Historical Mystery)
July, 1921: England is suffering a heatwave, and the coast of Northumberland, just across the border from Scotland, is filled with holiday-makers bird watching and enjoying the beaches. Pilgrims also come to visit the home of Saints Cuthbert and Aiden --- the founders of Christianity in England --- located on the “Holy Island” of Lindisfarne, accessible by a causeway at low tide. When the murdered body of a local man washes ashore just south of Lindisfarne, the government and the Church of England are concerned about protecting both the reputation of the Church and the sacred sites that are a destination for hundreds of pilgrims at this time of year. With his ability to move in the highest social and political circles, Inspector Ian Rutledge is sent by Scotland Yard to solve this crime and dispel any association with the Church.
The Mysterious Press | 9781613167236 

FATHERLAND by Victoria Shorr (Historical Fiction)
Martin and Lora Brier, with three young children, possess all the trappings of a perfect life…except Martin is having yet another affair. Without warning, he abandons the family for his mistress and a new house on the other side of town. Set in a prosperous midwestern town in the 1950s, FATHERLAND is a story about the effect of convenient lies and discovered truths. While Martin’s abandonment throws up new difficulties for bewildered Lora, a housewife who now must find a way to nurture and provide for herself and their children, it unleashes a swirl of emotions in their daughter, Josie, who struggles to come to terms with his absence. The novel follows Josie from this fateful event, across many decades and milestones and through the phases of her tenuous, emotionally fraught relationship with Martin.
W. W. Norton & Company | 9781324117551

THE FOX AND THE DEVIL by Kiersten White (Gothic Fantasy/Historical Romance)
Anneke has a complicated relationship with her father, Abraham Van Helsing --- doctor, scientist and madman devoted to the study of vampires --- until the night she comes home to find him murdered, with a surreally beautiful woman looming over his body. A woman who leaves no trace behind, other than the dreams and nightmares that now plague Anneke every night. Spurred by her desire for vengeance and armed with the latest forensic and investigatory techniques, Anneke puts together a team of detectives to catch this mysterious serial killer. There’s a trail of victims across Europe, and Anneke is certain they’re all connected. But during the years spent relentlessly hunting the killer, Anneke keeps crucial evidence to herself: infuriatingly coy letters, addressed only to her, occasionally soaked in blood, and always signed Diavola.
Del Rey | 9780593724439 

THE GOLDEN BOY by Patricia Finn (Fiction)
After an involuntary retirement from his high-flying Hollywood career, Stafford Hopkins has retreated to a luxury estate on Maui, along with his wife Agnes, both grimly resigned to life in a paradise where neither feels fully at home. Stafford is ready to retreat into himself, too, when a letter arrives with shocking news. He has been named guardian of four children he didn’t know existed: the grandchildren of his late childhood friend, Bobby Shepherd, whose ghost he can no longer ignore. Returning to both the hardscrabble farming town and the dark secret he’d tried to forget for decades, Stafford is forced to confront his past in order to rebuild his future --- and to redirect the fates of his family and the four young people suddenly in his care.
Cardinal | 9781538776186 

HOW TO SURVIVE IN THE WOODS by Kat Rosenfield (Psychological Thriller)
Raised by a doomsday prepper and hardened by the startup world, Emma Sharp has learned how to endure --- especially in her marriage to Logan Grant, a charismatic tyrant who keeps her under tight control. When Emma forms an unexpected bond with Logan’s former girlfriend, the two women devise a plan to help Emma take her life back. Destination: the punishing final stretch of the Appalachian Trail known as the Hundred Mile Wilderness. After all, bad things happen in the woods all the time. As the three venture deeper into Maine’s backcountry, desire and dread curdle into something unpredictable, dark and deadly. Someone is lying. Someone is watching. And in the remote heart of the forest, someone is about to be lost…or found.
Harper | 9780063467484 

IT GIRL by Allison Pataki (Historical Fiction)
At the dawn of the 20th century, New York’s streets teem with change: electricity, automobiles, the brash young President Teddy Roosevelt --- and the It Girls. As artists’ muses and working models, these independent young women soar to stardom because of their talent, charisma and irresistible beauty. While working as a shopgirl, the young Evelyn Talbot is recruited as a studio model and soon catches the eye of the preeminent artists of the age. When Broadway comes calling, Evelyn solidifies her status as the first self-made American female celebrity: the iconic Gibson Girl. When Evelyn finds herself at the center of a murder of passion declared “the Crime of the Century,” she is blamed for the acts of the men in her life. In the media frenzy that spirals around her, Evelyn realizes that to survive, she will have to write her own ending.
Ballantine Books | 9780593873410 

JUDY BLUME: A Life by Mark Oppenheimer (Biography)
Judy Blume’s influential novels turned classics touched the lives of tens of millions of readers. For more than 55 years, her work has done something revolutionary: it rewired the world’s expectations of what literature for young people can be --- frank, candid, earthy, and unafraid to show the messier sides of humanity. But little is known about the real woman behind the iconic persona, and the unlikely journey of her literary ascension, until now. In JUDY BLUME, longtime Blume aficionado Mark Oppenheimer pens a beautiful, multidimensional portrait of the acclaimed author through extensive interviews with Blume herself, invaluable access to her papers and correspondence, and thoughtful analysis of Blume’s beloved novels, including early, unpublished works that shed light on the pathbreaking writer she would become. 
G.P. Putnam's Sons | 9780593714447 

KIDS, WAIT TILL YOU HEAR THIS!: My Memoir by Liza Minnelli, as told to Michael Feinstein (Memoir)
KIDS, WAIT TILL YOU HEAR THIS! is the autobiography of EGOT icon Liza Minnelli. This fascinating, untold story reveals the intimate truth of the only child born to Hollywood legends Vincente Minnelli and Judy Garland. For the first time, here is Liza up close. Liza decided at the age of 16 that “sympathy is my mother’s business. I give people joy.” That veil of joy, however, masks a lifelong struggle with Substance Use Disorder, boundless love to give and an equal need to receive it, broken marriages, multiple miscarriages and hospitalizations. Despite every challenge, Liza’s is a life wrapped in laughter and her tremendous capacity to give and receive love. Today at nearly 80, she opens her heart, mind and memories, sharing secrets we never knew.
Grand Central Publishing | 9781538773666

NO FRIEND TO THIS HOUSE by Natalie Haynes (Historical Fiction)
Jason and his Argonauts set sail to find the Golden Fleece. The journey is filled with danger, for him and everyone he meets. But if he ever reaches the distant land he seeks, he faces almost certain death. Medea --- priestess, witch, and daughter of a brutal king --- has the power to save the life of a stranger. Will she betray her family and her home, and what will she demand in return? Medea and Jason seize their one chance of a life together, as the gods intend. But their love is steeped in vengeance from the beginning, and no one --- not even those closest to them --- will be safe. Based on the classic tragedy by Euripides, this is Medea as you've never seen her before.
Harper | 9780063258440 

NONESUCH by Francis Spufford (Historical Fiction)
It’s the summer of 1939, and the air in London is thick with the tension of impending war. Iris Hawkins, a fiery young financial secretary, has a chance encounter with Geoff, a genius engineer from the new technology of television. What was supposed to be one night of abandon draws her instead into a nightmare of otherworldly pursuit --- into a reality where time bends, spirits can be summoned, and history hangs by a thread. Soon there are Nazi planes droning overhead. In a time when all the men are away in uniform, the defense of the city is in the hands of its women. But Iris has more to contend with than just the terrors of the Blitz. Over the rooftops of burning London, a fascist fanatic is traveling with a gun in her hand, and only Iris can stop her from altering the course of history forever.
Scribner | 9781668214374 

NORTH OF ORDINARY: How One Woman Left It All Behind for Wilderness and Wonder in Alaska's Frozen Frontier by Sue Aikens with Michael Vlessides (Memoir)
In the raw, untamed wilds of Alaska, only a rare few figure out how to survive. Sue Aikens, the breakout star of National Geographic's long-running TV show “Life Below Zero,” is one of them. At her remote outpost 200 miles north of the Arctic Circle, she weathers more than just brutal winters and hungry bears. Sue battles isolation, injury and the ghosts of a turbulent past, forging a life in a place most people wouldn't last a day. Left to fend for herself as a child, Sue's fight to survive began long before she ever set foot in Alaska. In NORTH OF ORDINARY, she tells the unforgettable story of abandonment, grit and fierce independence --- from navigating deadly storms and surviving a horrific bear attack to learning how to build a life, a home and a sense of self where most would see only desolation.
Sourcebooks | 9781464242564 

ONCE AND AGAIN by Rebecca Serle (Fiction)
The women of the Novak family were each born with a gift: they can, just once, turn back time. Lauren has known since she was 15 that her mother, Marcella, saved Lauren’s father from a deadly car accident. Dave is alive and happy, and out on the Malibu waves. But ever since, Marcella has lived in fear of what she won’t be able to reverse. One summer, Lauren’s husband takes a job in New York, and she moves back into her childhood home. Lauren looks forward to surfing with her dad again and perhaps repairing an unspoken fracture in her relationship with her mother. What she doesn’t expect is for the boy next door to return home as well: Stone, who broke her heart nearly a decade before. As Lauren falls into familiar patterns, she finds herself thinking about all the choices that have brought her to this moment. And wondering, finally, if one of them should be undone.
Atria Books | 9781668025918 

PARTIALLY DEVOURED: How Night of the Living Dead Saved My Life and Changed the World by Daniel Kraus (Performing Arts/Memoir)
Daniel Kraus first saw George A. Romero's Night of the Living Dead when he was five years old. Through watching it approximately 300 times since, Kraus discovered the many ways the film is tied to his childhood trauma and how its influence has carried into his adulthood. He couldn't help but wonder: Are there other admirers of the movie out there who feel the same? PARTIALLY DEVOURED uses a frame-by-frame deep dive into Night of the Living Dead to produce a kaleidoscopic cultural investigation of the film's importance and to examine the author's early life of rural isolation and local violence.
Counterpoint | 9781640097155 

SERVED HIM RIGHT by Lisa Unger (Psychological Thriller) 
Ana Blacksmith has gathered her closest friends and sister, Vera, for a brunch to celebrate her recent breakup from her boyfriend, Paul. But when shocking news about Paul arrives, all eyes are on Ana, the angry ex with a bad reputation. Suspicions only intensify when Ana’s best friend falls deathly ill after the brunch. But Ana is not the only one who had a score to settle with Paul. As the investigation unfolds, rumors of a secret network that uses ancient methods to obtain justice begin to emerge. Vengeance is sweet, but it also can be deadly. Ana and Vera are determined to find the truth before Ana takes the fall and their own long-buried history comes to light.
Park Row | 9780778360056 

THE SHADOW CARVER: An Inspector Anjelica Henley Thriller by Nadine Matheson (Mystery/Thriller) 
When a string of grisly murders begins painting the city in terror, DI Anjelica Henley soon realizes that a vigilante killer is scalping their victims before leaving them for dead. Henley is thrust into a web of secrets, unraveling connections between the victims while battling demons from her own past. As the killer raises the stakes, the line between predator and prey begins to blur. With time slipping away and her own life in jeopardy, Henley must outwit a psychopath who views murder as an art form. Can she hunt them down before the final stroke of the scalpel closes the case forever?
Hanover Square Press | 9781335000354 

THIS STORY MIGHT SAVE YOUR LIFE by Tiffany Crum (Domestic Thriller/Mystery)
Benny Abbott and Joy Moore host one of the most beloved podcasts in the world. Each week, they delight listeners with a different “against all odds” survival story, gleefully finding the weird, life-affirming humor in near-death experiences. Since their first episode on Joy’s experience with severe narcolepsy, they’ve been the best friends everyone wants to befriend --- and thanks to the meticulous management of Joy’s husband, Xander, they’ve built a lucrative empire. When Benny arrives at Joy and Xander’s one morning to record, he finds shattered glass and an empty house. The one clue shedding light on the couple’s disappearance is the incomplete, previously unseen first draft of Joy’s memoir. Benny is desperate to find them, even when the police soon zero in on him as their prime suspect.
Flatiron Books: Pine & Cedar | 9781250395238 

VANISHED IN THE CROWD: A Molly Murphy Mystery by Rhys Bowen and Clare Broyles (Historical Mystery)
New York is busier than ever as two million visitors come to the city to witness the Hudson-Fulton celebration in 1909, marking the 300th anniversary of Henry Hudson's discovery of the Hudson River. Molly Murphy Sullivan and her family, along with their friends Sid and Gus, are excited to enjoy the festivities. But Molly is secretly dealing with financial troubles. She is too proud to ask her friends for a loan, but when they want to hire her as a detective, she jumps at the chance. Sid and Gus are hosting fellow Vassar graduates to take part in one of the parades, but one of the women, a brilliant scientist, never shows up. When Daniel asks Molly to spy on her friends and find out just what they are planning, she finds her loyalties horribly divided. Then the parade turns deadly, and only Molly has the tools to find out the truth.
Minotaur Books | 9781250399359 

WHIDBEY by T Kira Madden (Fiction)
Birdie Chang didn’t know anything about Whidbey Island when she chose it. She’s a woman on the run, desperate for an escape from the headlines back home and the look of concern in her girlfriend’s eyes --- and from Calvin Boyer, the man who abused her as a child and now has resurfaced. But Birdie isn’t the only girl Calvin harmed back then. There’s also Linzie King, a former reality TV star who recently wrote all about it in her bestselling memoir. Though the two women have never met, their stories intertwine. Once Birdie arrives on Whidbey, she finally cracks the book’s spine, only to find too much she recognizes in its pages. Soon after, Calvin’s mother, Mary-Beth, receives a shocking phone call from the police: her only son has been murdered. Calvin’s death sets into motion a series of events that sends each woman on a desperate search for answers.
Mariner Books | 9780063289680 

On Sale the Week of March 9th in Paperback

March 10th

33 PLACE BRUGMANN by Alice Austen (Historical Fiction)
On the eve of the Nazi occupation, in the heart of Brussels, life for the residents of 33 Place Brugmann is about to change forever. Charlotte Sauvin knows all the details of the building and its people --- including the distinct knock of her dear friend, Julian Raphaël. Then the Raphaëls disappear, leaving everything behind but their priceless art collection, which has simply vanished. All else that’s familiar fractures when whispers of German occupation become reality, and the lives of the residents grow increasingly intertwined. Charlotte’s godmother, Masha, deepens her risky affair with a wartime compatriot of Colonel Warlemont --- a man far more calculating than his neighbors believe. When a Nazi functionary with an interest in the Raphaëls moves into the building, knowing who can and cannot be trusted becomes a matter of life and death.
Grove Press | 9780802166982

ALL THE WATER IN THE WORLD by Eiren Caffall (Science Fiction/Dystopian Thriller)
ALL THE WATER IN THE WORLD is told in the voice of a girl gifted with a deep feeling for water. In the years after the glaciers melt, Nonie, her older sister and her parents, and their researcher friends have stayed behind in an almost deserted New York City, creating a settlement on the roof of the American Museum of Natural History. The rule: Take from the exhibits only in dire need. They hunt and grow their food in Central Park as they work to save the collections of human history and science. When a superstorm breaches the city’s flood walls, Nonie and her family must escape north on the Hudson. They carry with them a book that holds their records of the lost collections. Racing on the swollen river towards what may be safety, they encounter communities that have adapted in very different and sometimes frightening ways to the new reality.
St. Martin’s Griffin | 9781250353542

ATAVISTS: Stories by Lydia Millet (Fiction/Short Stories)
The word atavism, coined by a botanist and popularized by a criminologist, refers to the resurfacing of a primitive evolutionary trait or urge in a modern being. This inventive collection from Lydia Millet offers overlapping tales of urges ranging from rage to jealousy to yearning. The titular atavists include an underachieving, bewildered young bartender; a middle-aged mother convinced that her gentle son-in-law is fixated on geriatric porn; a bodybuilder with an incel’s fantasy life; an arrogant academic accused of plagiarism; and an empty-nester dad determined to host refugees in a tiny house in his backyard. As they pick away at the splitting seams in American culture, Millet’s characters shimmer with the sense of powerlessness we share in an era of mass overwhelm.
W. W. Norton & Company | 9781324123552 

THE DEMON OF UNREST: A Saga of Hubris, Heartbreak, and Heroism at the Dawn of the Civil War by Erik Larson (History)
On November 6, 1860, Abraham Lincoln became the fluky victor in a tight race for president. Southern extremists were moving ever closer to destroying the Union, with one state after another seceding and Lincoln powerless to stop them. Slavery fueled the conflict, but somehow the passions of North and South came to focus on a lonely federal fortress in Charleston Harbor: Fort Sumter. Erik Larson offers a gripping account of the chaotic months between Lincoln’s election and the Confederacy’s shelling of Sumter --- a period marked by tragic errors and miscommunications, inflamed egos and craven ambitions, personal tragedies and betrayals. Lincoln himself wrote that the trials of these five months were “so great that, could I have anticipated them, I would not have believed it possible to survive them.”
Crown | 9780385348768

FLOAT UP, SING DOWN: Stories by Laird Hunt (Fiction/Short Stories)
Candy Wilson has forgotten to buy the paprika. Turner Davis needs to get his zinnias in. Della Dorner told her mother she was going to the Galaxy Swirl, but that's not where she's really headed on her new Schwinn five-speed. FLOAT UP, SING DOWN is the story of a single day. But in that day, how much teeming life! The residents of this rural town have their routines, preferences, joys, grudges and regrets. Gossip is paramount. Lives are entwined. Retired sheriffs climb corn bins and muse on lost love, French teachers throw firecrackers out of barn windows, and teenagers borrow motorcycles to ride the back roads. Each of these 14 stories follows one character's day in the life in one of Laird Hunt's most beloved and enduring landscapes.
Bloomsbury Publishing | 9781639738274

GIRL FALLING by Hayley Scrivenor (Mystery/Thriller)
Torn between her girlfriend, Magdu, and her best friend, Daphne, Finn is looking forward to a day of rock climbing and bonding for the three women on the soaring cliffs near their Australian town. But nothing goes as she planned, and in a horrific accident, Magdu falls to her death. Rocked by grief, Finn tries to pinpoint where it all went wrong. Did Magdu die because of Finn’s friendship with overbearing Daphne, who has never wanted Finn to change or leave her? Can Finn trace it all the way back to the tragic childhood loss of her sister? What about Magdu’s family, who never would have accepted their relationship? When the police suspect foul play in Magdu’s death, Finn begins to search for the shocking truth about her relationships and what has been in front of her all along.
Flatiron Books: Pine & Cedar | 9781250362193

GODDESS COMPLEX by Sanjena Sathian (Fiction)
Sanjana Satyananda is trying to recover her life. It’s been a year since she walked out on her husband, a struggling actor named Killian, at a commune in India, after a disagreement about whether to have children. Now, Sanjana is struggling to resurrect her busted anthropology dissertation and crashing at her annoyingly perfect sister’s while her well-adjusted peers obsess over marriages, mortgages and motherhood. Sanjana needs to move forward --- and finalize her divorce ASAP. There’s just one problem: Killian is missing. As Sanjana tries to track him down, she’s bombarded with unnerving calls from women seeking her advice on pregnancy and fertility. Soon, Sanjana comes face to face with what her life might have been if she’d chosen parenthood. And the road not taken turns out to be wilder, stranger and more tempting than she imagined.
Penguin Books | 9780593489796

KATE & FRIDA: A Novel of Friendship, Food, and Books by Kim Fay (Fiction)
Twenty-something Frida Rodriguez, the daughter of LOVE & SAFFRON’s own Joan Bergstrom, comes to Paris in 1991, relishing the city’s butter-soaked cuisine and seeking her future as a war correspondent. But when she writes to a bookshop in Seattle, she receives more than just the book she requests. A friendship begins that will redefine the person she thought she wanted to become. Seattle bookseller Kate Fair is transformed by Frida’s free spirit, spurred to kiss her handsome coworker, to believe in herself as a writer, and to find beauty even in loss. Through the most tumultuous years of their young lives --- personally and globally --- Kate and Frida’s friendship sustains and nourishes them as they show each other how to overcome self-doubt and the necessity of embracing joy even through our darkest hours.
G.P. Putnam’s Sons | 9780593852408

A LADY FOR ALL SEASONS by TJ Alexander (Historical Romance)
Paperback Original
Verbena Montrose must marry to save herself and her odious family from abject poverty. When she hears an alarming rumor about her very dear, very queer friend Étienne that could ruin him, she comes to his aid with a proposal --- for a marriage of convenience, that is. But when Verbena discovers that a mysterious and celebrated poet by the name of Flora Witcombe has been publishing verses that hint she is onto their scheme, Verbena has no choice but to pretend to be a poet herself to confront her in a local salon. And --- unexpectedly --- be charmed by her. Flora, in turn, is terrified by and smitten with Verbena in equal measure. But she holds a secret of her own: he is also William Forsyth, a struggling novelist and fifth son of a minor noble family. And if circumstances don’t allow Flora to woo Verbena, perhaps William can.
Vintage | 9798217007288

THE MAILMAN by Andrew Welsh-Huggins (Thriller)
Mercury Carter is a deliveryman who takes his job very seriously. When a parcel is under his care, he will stop at nothing to deliver it directly to its intended recipient. Not even, as in the current case, when he finds a crew of violent men at the indicated address who threaten his life and take the woman who lives there hostage. That’s because Carter has special skills from his former life as a federal agent with the postal inspection service. After Carter dispatches the goons sent to kill him, he enters a home besieged by criminals --- but the leader of the gang escapes with attorney Rachel Stanfield before the mailman can complete his assignment. With Rachel’s husband, Glenn, in tow, Carter takes off in pursuit of the kidnapper and his quarry. Along the way, he slowly picks off members of the crew and uncovers a far-reaching conspiracy and a powerful crime syndicate.
The Mysterious Press | 9781613167519

THE MAN NOBODY KILLED: Life, Death, and Art in Michael Stewart's New York by Elon Green (True Crime)
At 25 years old, Michael Stewart was a young Black aspiring artist, deejay and model, looking to make a name for himself in the vibrant downtown art scene of the early 1980s New York City. On September 15, 1983, he was brutally beaten by New York City Transit Authority police for allegedly tagging a 14th Street subway station wall. Witnesses reported officers beating him with billy clubs and choking him with a nightstick. Stewart arrived at Bellevue Hospital hog-tied with no heartbeat and died after 13 days in a coma. This was, at that point, the most widely noticed act of police brutality in the city's history. THE MAN NOBODY KILLED recounts the cultural impact of Michael Stewart’s life and death.
Celadon Books | 9781250898241

O SINNERS! by Nicole Cuffy (Fiction)
After the death of his father, a young journalist named Faruq Zaidi takes the opportunity to embed himself in a mysterious cult based in the California redwoods and known as “the nameless,” whose strikingly attractive members adhere to the 18 Utterances, including teachings such as “all suffering is distortion” and “see only beauty.” Shepherding them is Odo, an enigmatic Vietnam War veteran who received “the sight” --- the movement’s foundational principles --- during his time as an infantryman. Through flashbacks that recount the cult’s wartime origins, we see four soldiers contend with the existential struggles of combat and with their responsibilities to each other. By the end of the novel, we learn which one becomes Odo.
One World | 9780593597460

SILENT AS THE GRAVE: A Molly Murphy Mystery by Rhys Bowen and Clare Broyles (Historical Mystery)
With a newborn and two children, Molly Murphy Sullivan is tackling motherhood. Her husband, Daniel, is off to work in Washington as Easter break begins in New York. Her dear friend and writer, Ryan O’Hara, is shooting a movie and invites her and the children to visit the set. When one of the actresses is fired, Molly’s adopted daughter, Bridie, is called to replace her in the scene. It turns out she is a natural and is asked to star in the rest of the film. The movie industry is still experimenting with ways to get the best shot. But soon, their special effects start to malfunction. After a few mishaps where no one is hurt, the special effects turn deadly. With rumors of a feud between studios, Molly believes these malfunctions are sabotage. She is invited to go undercover on set to investigate the burgeoning film war.
Minotaur Books | 9781250890832

On Sale the Week of March 16th in Hardcover

March 17th

THE ANTIQUE HUNTER'S MURDER AT THE CASTLE by C. L. Miller (Domestic Thriller/Mystery)
Hot on the heels of an art forger, a member of the Lockwood Antique Hunter’s Agency disappears while investigating an isolated castle deep in the Scottish countryside. Freya and Aunt Carole race to her last known location and arrive in the wintry, snow-covered Scottish Borders. At the castle, they discover that a murdered laird in the vegetable garden and his priceless collection of silverware has been stolen. Local police believe that Freya’s missing team member was involved with the robbery and murder...but where is she now? As a snowstorm descends on the castle, Freya and Carole call in back-up to help uncover what happened that fateful night. As each question is met with more mystery, the clock is ticking to find their friend and the murderer before they are cut off from the outside world.
Atria Books | 9781668032060 

BLACK BAG by Luke Kennard (Fiction/Humor) 
A penniless and out-of-work actor picks up a job working for Dr. Blend, a university professor who is conducting a psychological experiment. How will Dr. Blend’s students react to someone zipped into an oversized bag, sitting at the back of the lecture hall over a series of Fall lectures? The role, eagerly accepted, soon has unexpected consequences. A professor of post-humanism develops research questions of her own --- in particular, can you love someone secreted away inside a black bag? --- and the actor’s childhood friend forms a vision for monetizing this new situation.
Zando | 9781638933380 

BLOODLUST by Sandra Brown (Romantic Suspense) 
Two years ago, Detective Mitch Haskell lost his wife to a vicious act of retribution, and he has since attributed her murder to two men. Roland Malone is a ruthless executioner and drug dealer who fronts as a restaurant owner. He performs his handiwork at the biddings of Oz, the faceless kingpin of a drug trafficking operation whose name alone evokes terror. Detective John Bowie has forced Mitch to get therapy to sort himself out. Dr. Dylan Reede is immediately empathetic to the pain she senses beneath Mitch’s cavalier attitude and wisecracking. But from the moment he breezes into her office, Dylan finds it a struggle to maintain the professional and personal boundaries that keep her own tragic past at a safe distance. As Mitch begins to close in on Oz and Malone’s operation, they’re prepared to stop him by any means necessary. 
Grand Central Publishing | 9781538743027 

EVERYONE IN THIS BANK IS A THIEF by Benjamin Stevenson (Mystery)
I’ve spent the last few years solving murders. But a bank heist is a new one, even for me. I’ve never been a hostage before. The doors are chained shut. No one in or out. Which means that when someone in the bank is murdered, everyone is a suspect. The bank robber. The manager. The security guard. The kid. The film producer. The priest. The receptionist. The patient. The caregiver. Me. It turns out that more than one person planned to rob the bank today. You can steal more from a bank than just money. Who is stealing what? Are they willing to kill for it? And can I solve the crime before the police kick down the door and rescue us?
Mariner Books | 9780063434387 

FINLAY DONOVAN CROSSES THE LINE by Elle Cosimano (Mystery/Humor)
Finlay Donovan’s nanny and partner-in-crime, Vero, has been extradited from Virginia to Maryland, where she’s facing criminal charges for a theft she swears she didn’t commit. A prisoner to an ankle bracelet as she awaits her trial, Vero is forced to live with her overbearing mother and nosy aunt. Threatening messages keep arriving on her mother’s door, demanding that Vero “turn over the money…or else.” But proving her innocence might be an impossible feat. Vero was the treasurer of her sorority when the money went missing --- one of the only people who had access to the cash. And her alibi is a date who ghosted her. With her court date quickly approaching, and her mysterious stalker on her tail, she needs to clear her name fast. Finlay sets off on a mission to suss out the real thief and bring Vero home.
Minotaur Books | 9781250337597 

THE FOUNTAIN by Casey Scieszka (Fantasy) 
Vera Van Valkenburgh hasn’t been home in 188 years. But now Vera, forever 26 and able to heal from any wound, has returned to the Catskills. Whatever made her family immortal happened here, and if she can uncover it, maybe she can reverse it. After nearly two centuries --- an endless sequence of unnoticed, meaningless lives and a soul-shaking incident in the desert --- she longs to be released. Posing as a newly arrived forest ranger, she quickly blends into the upstate community and learns of something curious and disturbing. A mysterious, well-funded company is snapping up local property. But when her brother, a fellow immortal, shows up --- accompanied by a woman whose face is incredibly familiar to Vera --- the purpose for her return gets clouded. Vera is in a race against time to find out what has caused her condition before someone else does.
Harper | 9780063393400 

INNAMORATA by Ava Reid (Gothic Fantasy/Romance)
Once there was an island where the dead walked the earth, and seven noble houses ruled by the arcane secrets of necromancy. A conqueror’s blade brought them low, burning their libraries, killing their lords, and extinguishing their eldritch magic. But defiant against the new order stands the House of Teeth and its last living members: Marozia, the heiress to the House, and her cousin, Lady Agnes. Though she has not spoken a word in seven years, Agnes is the true carrier of the House’s legacy. She must recapture the secrets of death magic and avenge her family’s fallen honor. She must arrange the betrothal of her beloved cousin, Marozia, to Liuprand, heir to the conqueror’s throne, for access to the forbidden library in his grotesquely grand castle. Revenge burns in Agnes’ heart but so do stranger passions --- and it is Liuprand, the golden prince, who speaks to her soul.
Del Rey | 9780593722596

LIFE: A LOVE STORY by Elizabeth Berg (Fiction)
As 92-year-old Florence "Flo" Greene nears the end of her life, she writes a letter to Ruthie, the woman who grew up next door to her, describing the items Flo is leaving Ruthie in her will. But as it goes on, telling surprising stories about those “little” things Flo will leave behind, an unforgettable portrait of the life she has lived emerges. The letter starts off as an autobiography in things, but it turns out to do much more than that: ultimately, it will transform Flo and those around her. In the time she has left, Flo decides to take herself up on tiny dares. As these adventures lead her to make new friends, Flo helps them find the fulfillment that living a full life has led her to understand.
Random House | 9780593446829

MOTHER IS WATCHING by Karma Brown (Dystopian Horror/Science Fiction) 
Mathilde "Tilly" Crewson, a 39-year-old mother and art conservator, is tasked with restoring The Mother. The painting, believed to be the work of a female surgeon-turned-artist after a personal tragedy, is the rumored fourth piece in a collection of only three known works. But this newly discovered painting, scarred by fire, holds more than meets the eye. Soon after receiving the painting, Tilly discovers she’s unexpectedly pregnant, and strange, inexplicable occurrences begin: terrifying insect swarms, eerie visits from her long-deceased mother, and sinister whispers that invade her mind. As these malevolent forces intensify, Tilly comes to a harrowing realization: the only way to sever the perilous bond she shares with the painting is to destroy it. But The Mother has plans of her own --- and they’re darker than Tilly ever could imagine.
Dutton | 9798217045716 

PARADISO 17 by Hannah Lillith Assadi (Historical Fiction)
Born in Palestine on the precipice of 1948’s Nakba, Sufien is forced to leave the only home he’s ever known. In the dusty, oil-rich desert of Kuwait, he meets his first love and decides he must leave his family. In a small Italian university town, he spends his youth wrapped up in the sweet promise of the West and the forgetful assurance of wine. When life takes him to a gritty New York, he discovers his true vocation and falls for a Jewish woman born into a wholly different world. Sufien’s life spans friendships lost and maintained, a stint selling leathers at a tanner’s stall, the ineffable company of cats, and the freedom of the open road, the glowing pride of fatherhood, Sufi myths, prophetic dreams, and visions of the afterlife --- and always the sweet, treacherous song of a balcony urging him to fly, to fall, to fall.
Knopf | 9780593804056 

THE SHOCK OF THE LIGHT by Lori Inglis Hall (Historical Fiction)
As World War II takes hold across Europe, twins Tessa and Theo are eager to do their part. Theo is recruited by the RAF and disappears into the skies, while Tessa jumps at the chance to join the Special Operations Executive, devoted to spying and sabotage behind enemy lines. Two years later, Theo comes home. Tessa does not. A wounded Theo is broken by the loss of his fellows and his sister. He’s a clandestinely gay man at a time when homosexuality was illegal --- and he will pay a price for pursuing answers about Tessa’s fate. Decades later, PhD candidate Edie is deep into her research on the Special Operations Executive during the war. When she finds Theo in London, they form an unlikely partnership, and together they finally uncover the truth about Theo’s beloved sister.
Pamela Dorman Books | 9780593834251 

STAY ALIVE: Berlin, 1939-1945 by Ian Buruma (History)
In 1939, when Ian Buruma’s epic opens, Berlin has been under Nazi rule for six years, and its 4.3 million people have made their accommodations to the regime, more or less. When war broke out with Poland in September, what was most striking at first was how little changed. Unless you were Jewish. Then life, already hard, was soon to get unfathomably worse. Buruma gives tender attention to the Jewish experience in Berlin during the war, weaving its thread into the broader fabric of this marvelously rich and vivid mosaic of urban life. The distillation of a broad-gauged reckoning with a vast trove of primary sources, including a surprising number of interviews with living survivors, STAY ALIVE is a study in extremes --- depravity and resilience, moral blindness and moral courage, pious bigotry and unchecked hedonism.
Penguin Press | 9780593654347 

On Sale the Week of March 16th in Paperback

March 17th

THE ANTIDOTE by Karen Russell (Historical Fiction)
THE ANTIDOTE opens on Black Sunday, as a historic dust storm ravages the fictional town of Uz, Nebraska. But Uz is already collapsing --- not just under the weight of the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl drought but beneath its own violent histories. Karen Russell’s novel follows a "Prairie Witch,” whose body serves as a bank vault for people's memories and secrets; a Polish wheat farmer who learns how quickly a hoarded blessing can become a curse; his orphan niece, a basketball star and witch’s apprentice in furious flight from her grief; a voluble scarecrow; and a New Deal photographer whose time-traveling camera threatens to reveal both the town’s secrets and its fate.
Vintage | 9780593688366

BIG BREATH IN by John Straley (Mystery)
Diagnosed with terminal cancer, retired marine biologist Delphine is on the brink of throwing in the towel. She has outlived her PI husband and worries that she’s become a burden to her son and his growing family. One night, while contemplating how to go on, she witnesses a violent argument between a man and his girlfriend. When Delphine discovers that the woman has gone missing along with her young child, she embarks on a quest to find them. What begins as a chance encounter balloons into a rescue mission across the Pacific Northwest. Along the way, Delphine encounters the dregs of humanity --- grappling with schemers, kidnappers and murderers --- as well as its joys. With the help of a few friends, a retired PI and a queer biker gang, she is determined to see her mission through...knowing full well that it may be her last.
Soho Crime | 9781641297394

THE CUT by C. J. Dotson (Supernatural Thriller/Horror)
A historic hotel long past its prime and huddled along The Cut, a questionable Lake Erie beach, isn’t Sadie Miles’ ideal place to raise a toddler while also navigating her second pregnancy. After finally fleeing her abusive ex-fiancé, though, Sadie’s new housekeeping position and free room at L’Arpin Hotel are the best she can manage. On her first night, Sadie runs to help a guest struggling in the hotel’s pool only to find the water calm and empty when she gets there, leaving her with a lingering unease. When a guest then goes missing and her manager insists they simply left without checking out, Sadie suspects he’s covering up darker goings-on in the hotel. Everything isn't as it seems within the dim hallways of L’Arpin.
St. Martin’s Griffin | 9781250336576

THE END OF MY LIFE IS KILLING ME: The Unexpected Joys of a Cancer Slacker by Annabelle Gurwitch (Memoir)
Paperback Original
After Annabelle Gurwitch received an out-of-the blue diagnosis of Stage 4 lung cancer, an existential dread set in. Precision medicine offered a temporary reprieve --- but instead of turning into a cancer warrior, Annabelle declared herself a cancer slacker. Her motto: no runs, no ribbons, no religion. Told with her signature wit, warmth and gimlet eye, Gurwitch draws inspiration from Greek mythology and TV comedies, Kermit the Frog and Samuel Beckett. She accidentally acquires an angel, embraces being in it “just for the sex,” and finds herself on a European van tour selling merch for a heavy metal band.
Zibby Publishing | 9798992377071

FRIENDS HELPING FRIENDS by Patrick Hoffman (Thriller)
Bunny Simpson grew up poor in Grand Junction, Colorado. Now in his 20s and working in Denver, he has simple dreams: He wants to help his uncle pay rent, save a little money, and maybe start a business one day. His best friend, Jerry LeClair, fantasizes about moving to California. The problem is they don’t have any prospects. Enter Helen McCalla, an attorney with an ax to grind against her ex-husband, who happens to be a judge in the local court. She offers the boys a deal: scare the man, rough him up a little, and she’ll give them a few thousand dollars. It’s simple --- just friends helping friends, right?
Atlantic Crime | 9780802166586

THE HAUNTING OF ROOM 904 by Erika T. Wurth (Paranormal Thriller/Horror)
Olivia Becente was never supposed to have the gift. The ability to commune with the dead was the specialty of her sister, Naiche. But when Naiche dies unexpectedly and under strange circumstances, somehow Olivia suddenly can’t stop seeing and hearing from spirits. A few years later, she’s the most in-demand paranormal investigator in Denver. She’s good at her job, but the loss of Naiche haunts her. That’s when she hears from the Brown Palace, a landmark Denver hotel. The owner can’t explain it, but every few years, a girl is found dead in room 904, no matter what room she checked into the night before. Olivia’s investigation forces her to confront a mysterious and possibly dangerous cult, a vindictive journalist, betrayal by her friends, and shocking revelations about her sister’s secret life.
Flatiron Books | 9781250908612

THE HIDING SEASON by Ava Glass (Thriller)
Paperback Original
After a painful divorce, Maya Landry is in desperate need of a fresh start, which she finds deep in the Rocky Mountains of Montana. Maya is hired as a summer keeper of billionaire-owned ski lodges left empty after snow season ends. Her new life of peace and isolation is going exactly as hoped…until she stumbles across a dead body on the living room floor of one of the lodges. There’s no cell service on the resort, and by the time she’s able to find a signal and call the police, the body is gone. Later that night, a stranger tells her that someone knows she was up on the mountain that day, someone willing to kill to keep their secrets. She’s not sure whether to believe him…until the killers come for her in the dead of night. Maya narrowly escapes, only to find that same mysterious man waiting to rush her away. But can she trust him? Can she trust anyone?
Bantam | 9780593972243

THE LOVE WE FOUND by Jill Santopolo (Fiction)
It’s been nearly 10 years since Gabe has been gone when Lucy finds a tiny piece of paper in a box of his old photos. An address in Rome. Why did Gabe keep it, and what was he doing in Italy? Lucy buys a last-minute plane ticket. Impulsive, but Gabe always brought that out in her. Lucy’s journey to uncover Gabe’s secret leads her to Dr. Dax Armstrong, a New Yorker in Italy working with an NGO. His broad shoulders and sad, intense eyes draw Lucy in. His touch reaches her in a forgotten place --- one that no one has neared since Gabe. But her old life awaits, along with an earth-shattering decision --- whether she and Darren should tell their son, Samuel, the truth about his father. How can Lucy move forward while she’s rooted in the past? Fate broke her heart once. Can finding new love set her free?
G.P. Putnam’s Sons | 9780593419229

THE PARIS EXPRESS by Emma Donoghue (Historical Fiction)
Based on an 1895 disaster that went down in history when it was captured in a series of surreal, extraordinary photographs, THE PARIS EXPRESS is set on a train packed with a fascinating cast of characters who hail from as close as Brittany and as far as Russia, Ireland, Algeria, Pennsylvania and Cambodia. Members of parliament hurry back to Paris to vote; a medical student suspects a girl may be dying; a secretary tries to convince her boss of the potential of moving pictures; two of the train’s crew build a life away from their wives; a young anarchist makes a terrifying plan, and much more.
S&S/Summit Books | 9781668082805

STILL TALKING: Stories by Lore Segal (Fiction/Short Stories)
Paperback Original
Lore Segal was a master of the short story, and this collection shows her in peak form. Profound, dark and often hilarious, Segal portrays her characters' foibles, eccentricities and passions with great compassion and exactness, as they grapple with life, aging and each other. Readers of LADIES' LUNCH will recognize the educated, urbane nonagenarian women who have been friends for a lifetime, as they tackle aging’s affronts with wit, grace and resourcefulness.
Melville House | 9781685892517

STOP ME IF YOU’VE HEARD THIS ONE by Kristen Arnett (Fiction)
Cherry Hendricks might be down on her luck, but she can write the book on what makes something funny. She’s a professional clown who creates raucous, zany fun at gigs all over Orlando. Between her clowning and her shifts at an aquarium store for extra cash, she’s always hustling. Not to mention balancing her judgmental mother, her messy love life, and her equally messy community of fellow performers. Things start looking up when Cherry meets Margot the Magnificent, a much older lesbian magician. With Margot’s mentorship and industry connections, Cherry is sure to take her art to the next level. Plus, Margot is sexy as hell. It’s not long before Cherry must decide how much she’s willing to risk for Margot and for her own explosive new act --- and what kind of clown she wants to be under her suit.
Riverhead Books | 9780593719794

THEFT by Abdulrazak Gurnah (Fiction)
At the turn of the 21st century, three young people come of age in Tanzania. Karim returns to his sleepy hometown after university with new swagger and ambition. Fauzia glimpses in him a chance at escape from a smothering upbringing. The two of them offer a haven to Badar, a poor boy still unsure if the future holds anything for him at all. As tourism, technology, and unexpected opportunities and perils reach their quiet corner of the world, each arrives at a different understanding of what it means to take your fate into your own hands.
Riverhead Books | 9780593852620

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