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Latest Update on Our GoFundMe Campaign
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As part of our new "Bookreporter Talks To" series, Carol interviews Jean Kwok, author of SEARCHING FOR SYLVIE LEE, which is this month's Today Show Book Club pick and is a Bets On selection.
Carol also interviews Wendy Walker, author of THE NIGHT BEFORE. It, too, is a Bets On pick.
Carol read THE ISLANDERS by Meg Mitchell Moore, who she will interview on Wednesday,
June 19th (more details below). It will be a Summer Reading prize book next week and a Bets On title.
On the right, Carol talks about this week's update.
Carol will be moderating the next Book Club Girl "Night Out" event this Wednesday at 6:30pm ET.
Her author guests will be Joshilyn Jackson and Meg Mitchell Moore. Those who aren't able to attend the event can watch a Facebook Live broadcast on Book Club Girl's Facebook page.
Carol seems not to have pruned her hydrangea bushes correctly. Thus the sticks coming from
the top of them remind her of the sticks on the back of the "Game of Thrones" throne.
I wrote this newsletter as the NBA Finals game was playing in the background. Note that this was the first basketball game that I watched all year, if watching means that I occasionally looked at the score. Why not wait until the last one, right? Whenever I can, I write the newsletter on Thursday nights after I go to a fabulous yoga class at Onyx Yoga. The class ends with a relaxing savasana, which I find totally relaxes and also energizes me, which is a great combo. It gives me some distance from the week before I write.
Last weekend, I had the joy of discovering an author who is new to me: Meg Mitchell Moore. I thoroughly enjoyed her latest novel, THE ISLANDERS, which is set on Block Island. We had two gorgeous weekend days of no rain, which may not seem like a big deal, but it’s the first time we had no rain on a weekend since the first weekend in April. Thus I found myself sitting in a lounge chair doing something I love: summer reading. Meg wove in a lot about the geography of the island to her storytelling, making it a character of sorts, and it made me want to explore Block Island. The storyline has three characters whose stories weave together; one of them is an author, and so there is a storyline about books and the world of publishing. Meg is an author to keep an eye on. THE ISLANDERS will be a Bookreporter.com Bets On selection, and it’s also one of our Summer Reading contest titles next week.
I am interviewing Meg and Joshilyn Jackson (author of NEVER HAVE I EVER, which releases on July 30th) this Wednesday night at the Book Club Girl "Night Out" event at the HarperCollins offices at 6:30pm ET. Click here to purchase your tickets. If you can’t make it to the event in person, you can watch a Facebook Live broadcast on the Book Club Girl Facebook page and post your questions for the authors in the comments section.
Speaking of author interviews, this week we are sharing two new “Bookreporter Talks To” interviews. The first is one that I did last week with Wendy Walker, where we talked about her new thriller, THE NIGHT BEFORE, which was a Bets On selection. My Long Hill Book Group is going to be chatting with Wendy via Skype on Monday night.
The second was shot this week with Jean Kwok, where we talked about her new novel, SEARCHING FOR SYLVIE LEE, which has the pacing of a thriller. It is Jenna Bush Hager’s Today Show Book Club pick for June and is my latest Bets On selection. Click here for my commentary. We also have a discussion guide for the book on ReadingGroupGuides.com, which you can take a look at here. I thoroughly enjoyed doing these interviews.
We are ramping up our video production. Helen Kornbluth, the daughter of Bookreporter’s co-founder, Jesse Kornbluth, joined us this week to work on intros, outros and editing. I am so happy to have her on board, and we have more plans for the rest of the summer. We also bought a new video camera with a boom mike that we will be breaking out next week, as well as a tripod. Greg and Helen have very steady hands, but this should make taping easier. If all goes as planned next week, we will be interviewing an author who I have wanted to meet for years as she is in town from Australia.
At Book Expo, I had the pleasure of interviewing Jennifer Weiner about her newly released book, MRS. EVERYTHING, which explores the lives of two sisters from the 1950s to the present as they struggle to find their places --- and be true to themselves --- in a rapidly evolving world. We have our review this week from Pamela Kramer, who says, “MRS. EVERYTHING might be Jennifer Weiner's most ambitious novel yet...[and] will cause readers to think about their own lives and relationships.” Also, be sure to check out the discussion guide on ReadingGroupGuides.com here. We'll have my Bets On commentary next week!
We found out this week that MRS. EVERYTHING is this month’s Barnes & Noble Book Club selection. Barnes & Noble will be selling a special Exclusive Book Club Edition of the novel, along with hosting a free Book Club Night to discuss it, in stores across the country on Tuesday, July 16th at 7pm local time. Click here to sign up for the event.
We’re awarding the audio versions of MRS. EVERYTHING (read by Ari Graynor and Beth Malone) and Mary Alice Monroe's THE SUMMER GUESTS (read by Cassandra Campbell) in this month’s Sounding Off on Audio contest. Let us know by Monday, July 1st at noon ET what audiobooks you’ve listened to for your chance to win both these audio titles. Next week, I will be sharing a video where I talk about audiobooks and why I enjoy them.
Other books we’re reviewing this week include RECURSION, a thriller about time, identity and memory from Blake Crouch, the author of DARK MATTER and the Wayward Pines trilogy; THIS STORM, James Ellroy’s massive novel of World War II Los Angeles; THE DARWIN AFFAIR by Tim Mason, a Victorian-era thriller in which the controversial publication ON THE ORIGIN OF SPECIES sets off a string of unspeakable crimes; and THE FAVORITE DAUGHTER, Patti Callahan Henry’s novel about the power of memory, the meaning of family and learning to forgive, which will be a Summer Reading prize book in July.
THE SUMMER OF SUNSHINE AND MARGOT by Susan Mallery is our latest New Release Spotlight title. Margot is an etiquette coach whose latest client is Bianca, an aging movie star. Schooling Bianca on the fine art of behaving like a proper diplomat’s wife requires intensive lessons, forcing Margot to move into the monastery turned mansion owned by the actress’s intensely private son. Alec’s stony exterior hides secret depths Margot would love to explore, but will he trust her enough to let her in? Sunshine has always been the good-time sister, abandoning jobs to chase after guys who used her, then threw her away. This time, though, she will finish college, dedicate herself to her job as a nanny, and not screw up her life again by falling for the wrong guy. Especially not the tempting single dad who also happens to be her boss.
We gave away THE SUMMER OF SUNSHINE AND MARGOT in this week’s Summer Reading contests, along with KICK-ASS KINDA GIRL: A Memoir of Life, Love, and Caregiving by Kathi Koll, SHE WAS THE QUIET ONE by Michele Campbell, and TIME AFTER TIME by Lisa Grunwald, the latter of which we review this week. Next week’s prizes will be the aforementioned THE ISLANDERS by Meg Mitchell Moore and THE NIGHT BEFORE by Wendy Walker, along with SISTERS OF SUMMER’S END by Lori Foster and THE STATIONERY SHOP by Marjan Kamali (an upcoming Bets On pick). The first contest of the week will be up on Monday, June 17th at noon ET.
This is your last newsletter reminder to enter our special contest for PRETTY GUILTY WOMEN by Gina LaManna, in which four women confess to having committed the same crime --- alone. The book doesn’t release until September 3rd, but we’re giving 75 readers the chance to win an advance copy and give us their feedback on it. To enter, please fill out this form by Thursday, June 20th at noon ET.
Congratulations to the winners of our Father's Day contest! Five lucky readers received all five of our featured titles. Many thanks to all who entered!
The aforementioned SEARCHING FOR SYLVIE LEE is one of our current Word of Mouth prizes; the other is THE LAST HOUSE GUEST by Megan Miranda, which we’ll review next week. Submit your comments about the books you’ve read, and you’ll be in the running to win both these titles. The deadline for your entries is Friday, June 21st at noon ET.
Our poll continues to ask which of 20 fiction titles releasing in June you are planning to read, if any. Click here to cast your votes. We love to see what you want to read, so do weigh in and let us know!
Nancy Sharko, one of our longtime readers, attended the Maplewood-South Orange Book Festival in South Orange, NJ, last weekend and was kind enough to share her experiences with us in this blog post. Many thanks to Nancy for her diligent reporting!
Our 8th Annual Book Group Speed Dating event at Book Expo was a huge success. 240+(!) readers heard from 23 publishers about upcoming titles that are perfect for book groups. As we know many of you could not join us, we have added PDFs of the slide presentation to ReadingGroupGuides.com, as well as an Excel sheet that lists the books both by publisher and by title. We hope you take the opportunity to peruse these lists.
News & Pop Culture
Reader Mail:
Cathy wrote about winning THE SUMMER OF SUNSHINE AND MARGOT in our aforementioned Summer Reading contest: “Thank you very much for this wonderful news! I'm looking forward to reading THE SUMMER OF SUNSHINE AND MARGOT! I enjoy visiting the Bookreporter site and seeing what others are reading. Susan Mallery has only been recently recommended to me by a friend, so I've not read many of her books yet, but have enjoyed those that I have read. Thank you for all the work you do keeping this site updated and up and running for all of us who enjoy reading!”
Kathleen wrote, “I have been a huge fan of Lisa See for years, and when I read in your newsletter that she had a new book coming out (THE ISLAND OF SEA WOMEN), I could hardly wait to read it. I was so unfamiliar with her story of the haenyeo and the Japanese occupation of Korea that I felt totally transported to another time and place. I’ve just finished reading WHITE CHRYSANTHEMUM by Mary Lynn Bracht and recommend it highly. Once again, it tells the story of the haenyeo and Jeju island during the same time. The difference is that it focuses on the plight of the Comfort women. Two great reads.
Denise wrote about some book-themed chocolates: “To expand and refine our chocolate knowledge, this is the place I mentioned in New York at the Speed Dating event. Their chocolate is delicious, and I love the concept. I wonder if they can keep it as a thriving business. (I wondered the same thing when chocolate chip cookie kiosks opened!)”
Kathryn wrote with this news that I had missed: “Authors Lee Child and Joanna Trollope were made CBEs (Commander of the British Empire) on the Queen's annual Birthday Honors list."
"Good Morning America": The aforementioned Jennifer Weiner suggested four books "to spice up your summer."
"Chernobyl": I watched the final episode this week. If I did not know better, I would think I was watching some dystopian show instead of something that really happened.
We have decided that we need a truckload of mulch delivered here instead of umpteen bags of it. I am trying to figure out how we can have them drive the truck slowly over a section at the front of the house so it is spread by truck. Also, I seem not to have pruned our hydrangea bushes correctly. Thus there are sticks coming from the top of them that appear to me like the sticks on the back of the "Game of Thrones" throne; you know, the one that was whooshed away in the final episode (whooshed does not make that a spoiler). I cannot tell you how much time I have spent pruning them, but it looks like I barely have started. If someone has good hydrangea growing advice, I would love to hear it. Are they supposed to be cut back every year? They have been slow to grow and bud here this year; maybe because it was winter forever and now it rains…a lot!
We’re celebrating Father’s Day with my dad and mom on Sunday, and my niece, Sara, will be joining us. I still am tinkering with the menu. I am planning to make something strawberry rhubarb, as ‘tis the season for rhubarb, from the supermarket. My rhubarb plants would give enough rhubarb for a tiny compote...in a ramekin. While they are here, maybe I can give them each some shears to help me prune the hydrangeas.
Happy Father’s Day to those who are celebrating. And for those of you who are without your dad, wish you were a dad or recently lost a child to celebrate with, my thoughts are with you. Be kind to yourself. I know many people who will be spending their first Father’s Day without their dad, and my heart goes out to them.
Next Thursday night, I am doing a Summer Reading program at the Rockville Centre Public Library on Long Island at 7pm. I hope to see some of you there. On Friday, June 28th at 6pm, I will be at the Avalon Free Public Library in New Jersey.
Read on, and have a great week.
Carol Fitzgerald (Carol@bookreporter.com)
P.S. For those of you who are doing online shopping, if you use the store links below, Bookreporter.com gets a small affiliate fee on your purchases. We would appreciate your considering this!
Featured Review: MRS. EVERYTHING by Jennifer Weiner Barnes & Noble’s Latest Book Club Selection
and an Upcoming Bookreporter.com Bets On Pick
MRS. EVERYTHING by Jennifer Weiner (Fiction)
Audiobook available, read by Ari Graynor and Beth Malone
Growing up in 1950s Detroit, Jo and Bethie Kaufman live in a perfect “Dick and Jane” house, where their roles in the family are clearly defined. But the truth ends up looking different from what the girls imagined. As their lives unfold against the background of free love and Vietnam, Woodstock and women’s lib, Bethie becomes an adventure-loving wild child who dives headlong into the counterculture and is up for anything (except settling down). Meanwhile, Jo becomes a proper young mother in Connecticut, a witness to the changing world instead of a participant. Neither woman inhabits the world she dreams of, nor has a life that feels authentic or brings her joy. Is it too late for them to finally stake a claim on happily ever after? Reviewed by Pamela Kramer.
- Click here to read more about the book.
- Click here for the discussion guide.
- Visit the Barnes & Noble Book Club page and sign up for their free Book Club Night to discuss MRS. EVERYTHING.
Click here to read the review.
MRS. EVERYTHING will be a Bookreporter.com Bets On pick.
Don't miss Carol's commentary in next week's newsletter.
Bookreporter.com Bets On:
SEARCHING FOR SYLVIE LEE by Jean Kwok
A “Read with Jenna” Today Show Book Club Pick
SEARCHING FOR SYLVIE LEE by Jean Kwok (Fiction)
Jean Kwok’s SEARCHING FOR SYLVIE LEE untangles the complicated ties binding three women --- two sisters, Sylvie and Amy, and their mother --- in one Chinese immigrant family, and explores what happens when the eldest daughter disappears and a series of family secrets emerge. The story unfolds with pitch-perfect pacing from the moment that Amy receives a call from the Netherlands that Sylvie is missing. She first searches Sylvie’s New York apartment, and what she sees there has her hasten her way to the Netherlands to track down those who last saw her older sister. And from there, the quest to find Sylvie gets more and more tangled.
Sylvie has been known as the older, more together daughter, the one who Amy admired. But Sylvie has held a lot inside from the days when she was sent away from her home in New York to live with her relatives overseas, and readers will quickly see that she is searching for who she is, as well, giving the story a whole new dimension. We hear from Sylvie in her chapters, which unfold beginning in the month before she disappeared. What happened to her when she returned to the Netherlands to visit her dying grandmother? There is lots of action here, as well as old emotions rushing to the surface --- ones that she does not want to deal with.
- Click here to read more about the book.
- Click here to read a review.
- Click here for the discussion guide.
- Click here to watch Carol's interview with Jean Kwok.
Click here to read more of Carol's commentary.
New Release Spotlight: THE SUMMER OF
SUNSHINE AND MARGOT by Susan Mallery
THE SUMMER OF SUNSHINE AND MARGOT by Susan Mallery (Fiction)
Audiobook available, read by Tanya Eby
The Baxter sisters come from a long line of women with disastrous luck in love. But this summer, Sunshine and Margot will turn disasters into destiny.
As an etiquette coach, Margot teaches her clients to fit in. But she’s never faced a client like Bianca, an aging movie star who gained fame --- and notoriety --- through a campaign of shock and awe. Schooling Bianca on the fine art of behaving like a proper diplomat’s wife requires intensive lessons, forcing Margot to move into the monastery turned mansion owned by the actress’s intensely private son. Like his incredible home, Alec’s stony exterior hides secret depths Margot would love to explore. But will he trust her enough to let her in?
Sunshine has always been the good-time sister, abandoning jobs to chase after guys who used her, then threw her away. No more. She refuses to be “that girl” again. This time, she’ll finish college, dedicate herself to her job as a nanny, and she 100 percent will not screw up her life again by falling for the wrong guy. Especially not the tempting single dad who also happens to be her boss.
Master storyteller Susan Mallery weaves threads of family drama, humor, romance and a wish-you-were-there setting into one of the most satisfying books of the year!
- Click here to read an excerpt.
- Click here to read Susan Mallery's bio.
- Click here to visit Susan Mallery's website.
- Connect with Susan Mallery on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest.
Click here to read more in our New Release Spotlight.
Special Contest: Enter to Win an Advance Copy of PRETTY GUILTY WOMEN by Gina LaManna
and Share Your Comments on It
A man is dead at the Banks wedding, and four different women rush to offer confessions, each insisting that they committed the crime alone. Why would they confess to the same murder? Only they know --- and they’re not telling. We have 75 advance copies of PRETTY GUILTY WOMEN by Gina LaManna to give away to those who would like to preview the book, which releases on September 3rd, and share their comments on it. To enter, please fill out this form by Thursday, June 20th at noon ET.
PRETTY GUILTY WOMEN by Gina LaManna (Mystery/Thriller)
Something has gone terribly wrong at the Banks wedding. A man is dead. Four different women rush to offer confessions, each insisting that they committed the crime --- alone.
Ginger is holding her family together by a thread, and this wedding weekend is not the fabulous getaway she anticipated.
Kate has enough money to buy her way out of anything. Well, almost anything.
Emily can’t shake her reputation or her memories, and she’s planning to drown this whole vacation in a bottle.
Lulu has ex-husbands to spare, and another on the way --- as soon as she figures out what the devil the current husband is up to behind her back.
Why would they confess to the same murder? Only they know --- and they’re not telling. This page-turning novel explores the depths of friendship and the truths we love to ignore.
- Click here to read an excerpt.
- Click here to read Gina LaManna's bio.
- Connect with Gina LaManna on Facebook and Twitter.
Click here to enter the contest.
Featured Review: RECURSION by Blake Crouch
RECURSION by Blake Crouch (Science Fiction/Thriller)
Audiobook available, read by Jon Lindstrom and Abby Craden
New York City cop Barry Sutton is investigating the devastating phenomenon the media has dubbed False Memory Syndrome --- a mysterious affliction that drives its victims mad with memories of a life they never lived. Neuroscientist Helena Smith already understands the power of memory. It’s why she’s dedicated her life to creating a technology that will let us preserve our most precious moments of our pasts. As Barry searches for the truth, he comes face-to-face with an opponent more terrifying than any disease --- a force that attacks not just our minds but the very fabric of the past. And as its effects begin to unmake the world as we know it, only he and Helena will stand a chance at defeating it. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.
- Click here to read more about the book.
Click here to read the review.
Featured Review: THIS STORM by James Ellroy
THIS STORM by James Ellroy (Historical Mystery)
Audiobook available, read by Craig Wasson
It is January 1942. Torrential rainstorms hit L.A. A body is unearthed in Griffith Park. The cops rate it a routine dead-man job. They're grievously wrong. It's a summons to misalliance and all the spoils of a brand-new war. Elmer Jackson is a corrupt Vice cop. He's a flesh peddler and a bagman for the L.A. Chief of Police. Hideo Ashida is a crime-lab whiz, caught up in the maelstrom of the Japanese internment. Dudley Smith is an LAPD hardnose working Army Intelligence. He's gone rogue and gone all-the-way Fascist. Joan Conville was born rogue. She's a defrocked Navy lieutenant and a war profiteer to her core. They've signed on for the dead-man job. They've got a hot date with History. They will fight their inner wars within The War with unstoppable fury. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.
- Click here to read more about the book.
Click here to read the review.
Featured Review: THE DARWIN AFFAIR by Tim Mason
THE DARWIN AFFAIR by Tim Mason (Historical Thriller/Mystery)
Audiobook available, read by Derek Perkins
London, June 1860: When an assassination attempt is made on Queen Victoria, and a petty thief is gruesomely murdered moments later --- and only a block away --- Chief Detective Inspector Charles Field quickly surmises that these crimes are connected to an even more sinister plot. Was Victoria really the assassin’s target? Are those closest to the Crown hiding something? And who is the shadowy figure witnesses describe as having lifeless, coal-black eyes? Soon, Field’s investigation exposes a shocking conspiracy in which the publication of Charles Darwin’s controversial ON THE ORIGIN OF SPECIES sets off a string of murders, arson, kidnapping and the pursuit of a madman named the Chorister. Reviewed by Kate Ayers.
- Click here to read more about the book.
Click here to read the review.
Featured Review: THE FAVORITE DAUGHTER
by Patti Callahan Henry
THE FAVORITE DAUGHTER by Patti Callahan Henry (Fiction)
Audiobook available, read by Joshilyn Jackson
Ten years ago, Lena Donohue experienced a wedding-day betrayal so painful that she fled the small town of Watersend, South Carolina, and reinvented herself in New York City. Though now a freelance travel writer, the one place she rarely goes is home --- until she learns of her dad’s failing health. Returning to Watersend means seeing the sister she has avoided for a decade and the brother who runs the family’s Irish pub and has borne the burden of his sisters’ rift. While Alzheimer’s slowly steals their father’s memories, the siblings rush to preserve his life in stories and in photographs. As his secret past brings Lena’s own childhood into focus, it sends her on a journey to discover the true meaning of home. Reviewed by Melanie Reynolds.
- Click here to read more about the book.
- Click here to read an excerpt.
Click here to read the review.
Bookreporter.com's Summer Reading
Contests and Feature
Summer will be here before you know it! At Bookreporter.com, this means it's time for us to share some great summer book picks with our Summer Reading Contests and Feature. We are hosting a series of 24-hour contests for these titles on select days through August 23rd, so you will have to check the site each day to see the featured prize book and enter to win. We also are sending a special newsletter to announce the day's title, which you can sign up for here.
Our next prize book will be announced on Monday, June 17th at noon ET.
This year’s prize books include:
Click here to read all the contest details.
See the prize books that were awarded in May
and that will be awarded in June, July and August.
Great Book Club Picks for Fall/Winter 2019
At Book Expo, we had a chance to meet some of our readers at the Speed Dating session that we ran on Friday, May 31st. We know that many of you were not able to join us in New York, and we want to give you the opportunity to see all of the wonderful titles that were presented at the event. To give you an easy way to mark what you want to suggest at your future book group meetings, we are providing a spreadsheet with all the featured titles here, which lists the books both by publisher and by title.
We also have made PDFs of all the titles presented. Due to the large size of the file, we have divided it up by publisher.
Click here to access the PDFs of great book club picks you will want to discuss.
THE KENNEDY HEIRS: John, Caroline, and the New Generation - A Legacy of Triumph and Tragedy by J. Randy Taraborrelli (Biography)
Audiobook available, read by Robert Petkoff
A unique burden was inherited by the children of President John Fitzgerald Kennedy and his celebrated siblings, Senators Robert and Ted Kennedy. Raised in a world of enormous privilege against the backdrop of American history, this third generation of Kennedys often veered between towering accomplishment and devastating defeat. In his revelatory new book, acclaimed Kennedy historian J. Randy Taraborrelli draws back the curtain on the next generation of America’s most famous family. Reviewed by Barbara Bamberger Scott.
PLACES AND NAMES: On War, Revolution, and Returning by Elliot Ackerman (Memoir)
Audiobook available, read by Mark Deakins
Toward the beginning of PLACES AND NAMES, Elliot Ackerman sits in a refugee camp in southern Turkey, across the table from a man named Abu Hassar, who fought for Al Qaeda in Iraq and whose connections to the Islamic State are murky. At first, Ackerman pretends to have been a journalist during the Iraq War, but after establishing a rapport with Abu Hassar, he reveals that in fact he was a Marine special operation officer. It turns out that they had shadowed each other for some time, a realization that brought them to a strange kind of intimacy. The rest of Ackerman's memoir is in a way an answer to the question of why he came to that refugee camp and what he hoped to find there. Reviewed by Harvey Freedenberg.
TIME AFTER TIME by Lisa Grunwald (Historical Fiction)
Audiobook available, read by Erin Bennett
On a clear December morning in 1937, at the famous gold clock in Grand Central Terminal, Joe Reynolds, a hardworking railroad man from Queens, meets a vibrant young woman who seems mysteriously out of place. Nora Lansing is a Manhattan socialite whose flapper clothing, pearl earrings and talk of the Roaring Twenties don’t seem to match the bleak mood of Depression-era New York. Captivated by Nora from her first electric touch, Joe despairs when he tries to walk her home and she disappears. Finding her again --- and again --- will become the focus of his love and his life. Reviewed by Roz Shea.
BUNNY by Mona Awad (Fiction/Humor)
Audiobook available, read by Sophie Amoss
Samantha Heather Mackey couldn't be more of an outsider in her small, highly selective MFA program at New England's Warren University. She is utterly repelled by the rest of her fiction-writing cohort, a clique of unbearably twee rich girls who call each other "Bunny." But everything changes when Samantha receives an invitation to the Bunnies' fabled "Smut Salon," and finds herself inexplicably drawn to their front door --- ditching her only friend, Ava, in the process. As Samantha plunges deeper and deeper into the sinister yet saccharine world of the Bunny cult and starts to take part in their ritualistic off-campus "Workshop," where they magically conjure their monstrous creations, the edges of reality begin to blur, and her friendships with Ava and the Bunnies are brought into deadly collision. Reviewed by Sarah Rachel Egelman.
EVERYTHING IN ITS PLACE: First Loves and Last Tales by Oliver Sacks (Science/Essays)
Audiobook available, read by Dan Woren
Oliver Sacks, scientist and storyteller, is beloved by readers for his neurological case histories and his fascination and familiarity with human behavior at its most unexpected and unfamiliar. EVERYTHING IN ITS PLACE is a celebration of Sacks' myriad interests --- from his passion for ferns, swimming and horsetails, to his final case histories exploring schizophrenia, dementia and Alzheimer's --- told with his characteristic compassion and erudition, and in his luminous prose. Reviewed by Pauline Finch.
AYESHA AT LAST by Uzma Jalaluddin (Romance)
Audiobook available, read by Roshni Shukla
Ayesha Shamsi’s dreams of being a poet have been set aside for a teaching job so she can pay off her debts to her wealthy uncle. She lives with her boisterous Muslim family and is always being reminded that her flighty younger cousin, Hafsa, is close to rejecting her 100th marriage proposal. Then she meets Khalid, who is just as smart and handsome as he is conservative and judgmental. She is irritatingly attracted to someone who looks down on her choices and who dresses like he belongs in the seventh century. When a surprise engagement is announced between Khalid and Hafsa, Ayesha is torn between how she feels about the straightforward Khalid and the unsettling new gossip she hears about his family. Reviewed by Norah Piehl.
WE WERE KILLERS ONCE by Becky Masterman (Thriller)
Audiobook available, read by Kate Harper
Retired FBI agent Brigid Quinn and her husband Carlo, a former priest and university professor, are trying to enjoy each other in this new stage in their lives. But a memento from Carlo's days as a prison chaplain --- a handwritten document hidden away undetected in a box of Carlo's old things --- has become a target for a man on the run from his past. Jerry Beaufort has just been released from prison after decades behind bars, and though he'd like to get on with living the rest of his life, he knows that somewhere there is a written record of the time he spent with two killers in 1959. Following the path of this letter will bring Jerry into contact with the last person he'll see as a threat: Brigid Quinn. Reviewed by Stuart Shiffman.
INTO THE JUNGLE by Erica Ferencik (Thriller)
Audiobook available, read by Jayme Mattler
Lily Bushwold thought she’d found the antidote to endless foster care and group homes --- a teaching job in Cochabamba, Bolivia --- but unfortunately that gig falls through. Tired of hustling and already world-weary, crazy love finds her in the form she least expected: Omar, a savvy, handsome local man who’d abandoned his life as a hunter to try his hand at city life. When Omar learns that a jaguar has killed his four-year-old nephew in Ayachero, he gives Lily a choice: Stay alone in the unforgiving city, or travel to the last in a string of ever-more-isolated river towns in the jungles of Bolivia. She follows Omar to this ruthless new world of lawless poachers, bullheaded missionaries, and desperate indigenous tribes driven to the brink of extinction. Reviewed by Christine M. Irvin.
THE SHALLOWS: A Nils Shapiro Novel by Matt Goldman (Mystery)
Audiobook available, read by Macleod Andrews
A prominent lawyer is found dead, tied to his own dock by a fishing stringer through his jaw, and everyone wants private detective Nils Shapiro to protect them from suspicion: The unfaithful widow. Her artist boyfriend. The lawyer’s firm. A polarizing congressional candidate. A rudderless suburban police department. Even the FBI. Nils and his investigative partners illuminate a sticky web of secrets and deceit that draws national attention. But finding the web doesn’t prevent Nils from getting caught in it. Just when his safety is most in peril, his personal life takes an unexpected twist, facing its own snarl of surprise and deception. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.
JUST ONE BITE by Jack Heath (Thriller)
Audiobook available, read by Christopher Ragland
Timothy Blake, ex-consultant for the FBI, now works in body disposal for a local crime lord. One night he stumbles across a body he wasn’t supposed to find and is forced to hide it. When the FBI calls Blake in to investigate a missing university professor, Blake recognizes him as the dead man in his freezer. Then another man goes missing. And another. There’s a serial killer in Houston, Texas, and Blake is running out of time to solve the case. His investigation takes him to a sex doll factory, a sprawling landfill in Louisiana and a secret cabin in the woods. As they hunt the killer together, FBI agent Reese Thistle starts to warm to Blake --- but she also gets closer and closer to discovering his terrible secret. Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub.
Next Week’s Notables:
Noteworthy Books Releasing on June 18th
Below are some notable titles releasing on June 18th that we would like to make you aware of. We will have more on many of these books in the weeks to come. For a list of additional hardcovers and paperbacks available the week of June 17th, see our “On Sale This Week” newsletter here.
THE BURNING CHAMBERS by Kate Mosse (Historical Thriller)
France, 1562. War sparks between the Catholics and Huguenots. Meanwhile, 19-year-old Minou Joubert receives an anonymous letter at her father’s bookshop that contains just five words: She knows that you live. Before Minou can decipher the mysterious message, she meets a young Huguenot convert who will need Minou’s help if he is to stay alive.
CONVICTION by Denise Mina (Mystery/Thriller)
A true-crime podcast sets a housewife's present life on a collision course with her secret past in this captivating thriller for fans of "Killing Eve" and THE WOMAN IN THE WINDOW.
FLEISHMAN IS IN TROUBLE by Taffy Brodesser-Akner (Fiction)
Taffy Brodesser-Akner’s debut novel is a timely exploration of marriage, divorce and the bewildering dynamics of ambition --- for readers of Jonathan Franzen, Lauren Groff and Tom Perrotta.
THE LAST HOUSE GUEST by Megan Miranda (Psychological Thriller/Mystery)
From the acclaimed author of ALL THE MISSING GIRLS comes a suspenseful new novel about an idyllic town in Maine dealing with the suspicious death of one of their own --- and her best “summer” friend, who is trying to uncover the truth…before fingers point her way.
THE PORPOISE by Mark Haddon (Fiction)
From the Whitbread and Los Angeles Times Prize-winning author of THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME comes a fantastical novel about the theft of female agency by rapacious men and the ways in which archetypal stories can warp history and the present.
THE STATIONERY SHOP by Marjan Kamali (Fiction)
From the award-winning author of TOGETHER TEA --- a debut novel hailed as “compassionate, funny, and wise” by Jill Davis, bestselling author of GIRLS' POKER NIGHT --- comes a powerful love story exploring loss, reconciliation and the quirks of fate.
SUMMER OF '69 by Elin Hilderbrand (Historical Fiction)
In Elin Hilderbrand's first historical novel, four siblings experience the drama, intrigue and upheaval of a summer when everything changed.
Click here to see the latest "On Sale This Week" newsletter.
Our Latest Poll: June Fiction Releases to Anticipate
Which of the following fiction titles releasing in June are you planning to read? Please check all that apply.
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BACKLASH by Brad Thor
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BEYOND ALL REASONABLE DOUBT by Malin Persson Giolito
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BIG SKY by Kate Atkinson
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CITY OF GIRLS by Elizabeth Gilbert
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THE DITCH by Herman Koch
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THE FAVORITE DAUGHTER by Patti Callahan Henry
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THE FRIENDS WE KEEP by Jane Green
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THE LAST HOUSE GUEST by Megan Miranda
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MRS. EVERYTHING by Jennifer Weiner
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MURDER IN BEL-AIR by Cara Black
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MY LIFE AS A RAT by Joyce Carol Oates
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THE PORPOISE by Mark Haddon
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RECURSION by Blake Crouch
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SEARCHING FOR SYLVIE LEE by Jean Kwok
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SKIN GAME: A Teddy Fay Novel Featuring Stone Barrington, by Stuart Woods and Parnell Hall
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THE SUMMER COUNTRY by Lauren Willig
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THE SUMMER GUESTS by Mary Alice Monroe
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SUMMER OF '69 by Elin Hilderbrand
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THEIR LITTLE SECRET: A Tom Thorne Novel, by Mark Billingham
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UNSOLVED by James Patterson and David Ellis
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None of the above
Click here to vote in the poll by Friday, June 21st at noon ET.
Word of Mouth Contest: Tell Us What
You're Reading --- and You Can Win Two Books!
Tell us about the books you’ve finished reading with your comments and a rating of 1 to 5 stars. During the contest period from June 7th to June 21st at noon ET, three lucky readers each will be randomly chosen to win a copy of SEARCHING FOR SYLVIE LEE by Jean Kwok and THE LAST HOUSE GUEST by Megan Miranda.
To make sure other readers will be able to find the books you write about, please include the full title and correct author names (your entry must include these to be eligible to win). For rules and guidelines, click here.
- To see reader comments from previous contest periods, click here.
Sounding Off on Audio Contest: Tell Us What
You're Listening to --- and You Can Win Two Audiobooks!
Tell us about the audiobooks you’ve finished listening to with your comments and a rating of 1 to 5 stars for both the performance and the content. During the contest period from June 3rd to July 1st at noon ET, two lucky readers each will be randomly chosen to win the audio versions of Jennifer Weiner's MRS. EVERYTHING, read by Ari Graynor and Beth Malone, and Mary Alice Monroe's THE SUMMER GUESTS, read by Cassandra Campbell.
To make sure other readers will be able to find the audiobook, please include the full title and correct author names (your entry must include these to be eligible to win). For complete rules and guidelines, click here.
- To see reader comments from previous contest periods, click here.
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