Richard Russo’s masterful new essays consider how life and art inform each other and how the stories we tell shape our understanding of the world around us. In “The Lives of Others,” Russo reflects on the implacable fact that writers use people, insisting that what matters, in the end, is how and for what purpose. In “Stiff Neck,” he writes of the exasperating fault lines exposed within his own family as his wife’s sister and her husband --- proudly unvaccinated --- develop COVID. In “Triage,” he details the terror of seeing his seven-year-old grandson in critical condition. And in “Ghosts,” he revisits Gloversville, the town that gave rise to the now-legendary fictional town of North Bath, and confronts the specter of its richly populated past and its ghostly present.

Richard Russo’s masterful new essays consider how life and art inform each other and how the stories we tell shape our understanding of the world around us. In “The Lives of Others,” Russo reflects on the implacable fact that writers use people, insisting that what matters, in the end, is how and for what purpose. In “Stiff Neck,” he writes of the exasperating fault lines exposed within his own family as his wife’s sister and her husband --- proudly unvaccinated --- develop COVID. In “Triage,” he details the terror of seeing his seven-year-old grandson in critical condition. And in “Ghosts,” he revisits Gloversville, the town that gave rise to the now-legendary fictional town of North Bath, and confronts the specter of its richly populated past and its ghostly present.

A marvelous new essay collection from the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of SOMEBODY'S FOOL and THE DESTINY THIEF.

Life and Art. These are the twin subjects considered in Richard Russo’s 12 masterful new essays --- how they inform each other and how the stories we tell shape our understanding of the world around us.

In “The Lives of Others,” Russo reflects on the implacable fact that writers use people, insisting that what matters, in the end, is how and for what purpose. How do you bridge the gap between what you know and what you don’t, and sometimes can’t, know? Why tell a story in the first place? What we don’t understand, Russo opines, is in fact the very thing that beckons to us.

In “Stiff Neck,” he writes of the exasperating fault lines exposed within his own family as his wife’s sister and her husband --- proudly unvaccinated --- develop COVID. In “Triage,” he details with heartbreaking vividness the terror of seeing his seven-year-old grandson in critical condition. And in “Ghosts,” he revisits Gloversville, the town that gave rise to the now-legendary fictional town of North Bath and confronts the specter of its richly populated past and its ghostly present.

Sharp, tender, extraordinarily intimate reflections on work, culture, love and family from one of the great writers of our time.

Audiobook available, read by Richard Russo

Following a nasty divorce, Rayna Dumont came to Amsterdam for a fresh start. She’s never been the type for a one-night stand, but Xander is more than willing to go along for the ride. Until the morning after, when Rayna finds him dead on the shower floor and millions of dollars’ worth of diamonds missing from his safe. From her lavish home in the heart of the city, Willow Prins is captivated by the news. Her husband is Xander’s former boss and heir to a diamond house, and the scandal strains their already-rocky marriage. As the house comes under scrutiny, Willow wonders if her life is about to implode --- and how much of the blame she can place on Rayna. Soon, Willow and Rayna are dragged into the dark and dangerous underbelly of the diamond market, where they’ll have to uncover the truth to survive.

Following a nasty divorce, Rayna Dumont came to Amsterdam for a fresh start. She’s never been the type for a one-night stand, but Xander is more than willing to go along for the ride. Until the morning after, when Rayna finds him dead on the shower floor and millions of dollars’ worth of diamonds missing from his safe. From her lavish home in the heart of the city, Willow Prins is captivated by the news. Her husband is Xander’s former boss and heir to a diamond house, and the scandal strains their already-rocky marriage. As the house comes under scrutiny, Willow wonders if her life is about to implode --- and how much of the blame she can place on Rayna. Soon, Willow and Rayna are dragged into the dark and dangerous underbelly of the diamond market, where they’ll have to uncover the truth to survive.

An American expat's startling discovery plunges her into the glamorous but deadly world of Amsterdam’s diamond industry.

Following a nasty divorce, Rayna Dumont came to Amsterdam for a fresh start. She’s never been the type for a one-night stand, but this move is all about adventure, and Xander is handsome and successful and more than willing to go along for the ride. Until the morning after, when Rayna finds him dead on the shower floor and millions of dollars’ worth of diamonds missing from his safe.

From her lavish home in the heart of the city, Willow Prins is captivated by the news. Her husband is Xander’s former boss and heir to a diamond house, and the scandal strains their already-rocky marriage. As the house comes under scrutiny, Willow wonders if her life is about to implode --- and how much of the blame she can place on Rayna. Soon, Willow and Rayna are dragged into the dark and dangerous underbelly of the diamond market, where they’ll have to uncover the truth to survive.

Who killed Xander? Where are the missing diamonds? And who can you trust in a strange and unfamiliar city thousands of miles from home?

Audiobook available, read by Jennifer Jill Araya and Marni Penning

Cardinal Thomas Wolsey’s rise from humble beginnings coincided with young Henry VIII’s ascension to the throne in 1509, and they grew to be cherished friends. By 1515, Wolsey --- now a cardinal --- had become the controlling figure in all matters of church and state. Wolsey operated on an international stage and worked hard to broker universal peace. All was going dazzlingly well until Henry fell in love with Anne Boleyn and sought to end his marriage to his first wife, Katherine of Aragon. Swept up in the maelstrom of “the Divorce,” Wolsey, who successfully had given his master everything he wanted, found himself in an impossible situation. As he drew the ire of the future queen, the cardinal found his privileged life and his relationship with Henry crumbling around him.

Cardinal Thomas Wolsey’s rise from humble beginnings coincided with young Henry VIII’s ascension to the throne in 1509, and they grew to be cherished friends. By 1515, Wolsey --- now a cardinal --- had become the controlling figure in all matters of church and state. Wolsey operated on an international stage and worked hard to broker universal peace. All was going dazzlingly well until Henry fell in love with Anne Boleyn and sought to end his marriage to his first wife, Katherine of Aragon. Swept up in the maelstrom of “the Divorce,” Wolsey, who successfully had given his master everything he wanted, found himself in an impossible situation. As he drew the ire of the future queen, the cardinal found his privileged life and his relationship with Henry crumbling around him.

In this “immersive tale of Tudor intrigue” (Publishers Weekly), the New York Times bestselling author of THE LAST WHITE ROSE explores the rise of Thomas Wolsey, who was Henry VIII’s chief adviser --- until the king accused him of treason.

Cardinal Thomas Wolsey enjoyed one of the most meteoric careers in history. His rise from humble beginnings coincided with young Henry VIII’s ascension to the throne in 1509. The two grew to be cherished friends. And by 1515, Wolsey, now a cardinal, had become the controlling figure in all matters of church and state.

Wolsey operated on an international stage and worked hard to broker universal peace. All was going dazzlingly well until Henry fell in love with Anne Boleyn --- the woman whom Wolsey would one day call “the night crow” --- and sought to end his marriage to his first wife, Katherine of Aragon. Swept up in the maelstrom of “the Divorce,” Wolsey, who successfully had given his master everything he wanted, found himself in an impossible situation. As he drew the ire of the future queen, the cardinal found his privileged life and his relationship with Henry crumbling around him.

Alison Weir’s poignant novel tells the story of Wolsey the man --- his incredible rise to power and his tragic fall. She delves beyond the splendor and political machinations of the Tudor court to reveal the secrets of Wolsey’s private life, the mistress and children he was devoted to, and the tragedy that overtook them. It is a tale of two women, one who loved him and one who hated him --- and also a tale of two men, king and commoner, the special, deep-rooted bonds that brought them together and the forces that drove them apart.

Audiobook available, read by Rosalyn Landor 

1861: THE LOST PEACE is the story of President Lincoln’s difficult and courageous decision to go to war against the Confederacy at a time when the country wrestled with deep moral questions of epic proportions. Through Jay Winik’s singular reporting and storytelling, readers will learn about the extraordinary Washington Peace Conference at the Willard Hotel to avert cataclysmic war. They will observe the irascible and farsighted Senator JJ Crittenden, the tireless moderate seeking a middle way to peace. Readers will glimpse inside Lincoln’s cabinet, which rivaled the executive in its authority --- a fact too often forgotten --- and witness a parade of statesmen frenetically grasping for peace rather than the spectacle of a young nation slowly choking itself to death.

1861: THE LOST PEACE is the story of President Lincoln’s difficult and courageous decision to go to war against the Confederacy at a time when the country wrestled with deep moral questions of epic proportions. Through Jay Winik’s singular reporting and storytelling, readers will learn about the extraordinary Washington Peace Conference at the Willard Hotel to avert cataclysmic war. They will observe the irascible and farsighted Senator JJ Crittenden, the tireless moderate seeking a middle way to peace. Readers will glimpse inside Lincoln’s cabinet, which rivaled the executive in its authority --- a fact too often forgotten --- and witness a parade of statesmen frenetically grasping for peace rather than the spectacle of a young nation slowly choking itself to death.

From an award-winning historian and New York Times bestselling author, a gripping, fly-on-the-wall account of the weeks leading up to Abraham Lincoln's decision to go to war against the Confederacy.

1861: THE LOST PEACE is the story of President Lincoln’s difficult and courageous decision at a time when the country wrestled with deep moral questions of epic proportions.

Through Jay Winik’s singular reporting and storytelling, readers will learn about the extraordinary Washington Peace Conference at the Willard Hotel to avert cataclysmic war. They will observe the irascible and farsighted Senator JJ Crittenden, the tireless moderate seeking a middle way to peace. Readers will glimpse inside Lincoln’s cabinet, which rivaled the executive in its authority --- a fact too often forgotten --- and witness a parade of statesmen frenetically grasping for peace rather than the spectacle of a young nation slowly choking itself to death.

A perfect read for history buffs, with timely overtones to our current political climate.

Audiobook available, read by Arthur Morey

Lloyd McNeil has just learned he has months to live. He also learns that his 20 years as a beat cop in Atlanta haven’t earned him enough money to take care of his teenage son, Bishop, after he’s gone. But when Lloyd discovers his police benefits will increase exponentially if he dies in the line of duty, he comes up with a plan. Lloyd begins to throw himself into one life-threatening situation after another to try to get himself killed and to provide for his son…but he keeps failing --- and surviving. To his shock, his accidental heroics make him an inspirational icon in the community. But time is still running out for Lloyd to get his affairs in order, to teach Bishop the lessons he needs to be a good person, and to say goodbye.

Lloyd McNeil has just learned he has months to live. He also learns that his 20 years as a beat cop in Atlanta haven’t earned him enough money to take care of his teenage son, Bishop, after he’s gone. But when Lloyd discovers his police benefits will increase exponentially if he dies in the line of duty, he comes up with a plan. Lloyd begins to throw himself into one life-threatening situation after another to try to get himself killed and to provide for his son…but he keeps failing --- and surviving. To his shock, his accidental heroics make him an inspirational icon in the community. But time is still running out for Lloyd to get his affairs in order, to teach Bishop the lessons he needs to be a good person, and to say goodbye.

From the Alex Award-winning and Edgar-nominated author of HOW LUCKY, this twisty, funny and ultimately uplifting novel follows a father in a race against time to provide for his child.

Lloyd McNeil has just learned he has months to live. He also learns that his 20 years as a beat cop in Atlanta haven’t earned him enough money to take care of his teenage son, Bishop, after he’s gone. But when Lloyd discovers his police benefits will increase exponentially if he dies in the line of duty, he comes up with a plan.

Lloyd begins to throw himself into one life-threatening situation after another to try to get himself killed and to provide for his son…but he keeps failing --- and surviving. To his shock, his accidental heroics make him an inspirational icon in the community. But time is still running out for Lloyd to get his affairs in order, to teach Bishop the lessons he needs to be a good person, and to say goodbye.

LLOYD McNEIL'S LAST RIDE is a surprising, unforgettable blend of suspense, humor and compassion. It is a novel about what we leave behind and what we learn along the way, a big-hearted and stirring story about the depths of a father’s love for his son.

Audiobook available, read by Chris Andrew Ciulla

Ukraine, 2022. Yeva is a loner and a maverick scientist who scours the country’s forests and valleys, trying and failing to breed rare snails, while her relatives urge her to settle down. Yeva already dates plenty of men --- not for love, but to fund her work --- entertaining Westerners who come to Ukraine on guided romance tours believing they’ll find docile brides untainted by feminism and modernity. Nastia and her sister, Solomiya, are also entangled in the booming marriage industry, posing as a hopeful bride and her translator while secretly searching for their missing mother, who vanished after years of fierce activism against the romance tours. Together they embark across hundreds of miles. But their plans come to a screeching halt when Russia invades.

Ukraine, 2022. Yeva is a loner and a maverick scientist who scours the country’s forests and valleys, trying and failing to breed rare snails, while her relatives urge her to settle down. Yeva already dates plenty of men --- not for love, but to fund her work --- entertaining Westerners who come to Ukraine on guided romance tours believing they’ll find docile brides untainted by feminism and modernity. Nastia and her sister, Solomiya, are also entangled in the booming marriage industry, posing as a hopeful bride and her translator while secretly searching for their missing mother, who vanished after years of fierce activism against the romance tours. Together they embark across hundreds of miles. But their plans come to a screeching halt when Russia invades.

Set in Ukraine, an eccentric scientist breeding rare snails crosses paths with sisters posing as members of the marriage industry to find their activist mother. As Russia invades, they embark on a wild journey with kidnapped bachelors and a last-of-its-kind snail. This darkly comic novel explores survival, love and the impact of war.

Ukraine, 2022. Yeva is a loner and a maverick scientist who lives out of her mobile lab. She scours the country’s forests and valleys, trying and failing to breed rare snails, while her relatives urge her to settle down and finally start a family of her own. What they don’t know: Yeva already dates plenty of men --- not for love, but to fund her work --- entertaining Westerners who come to Ukraine on guided romance tours believing they’ll find docile brides untainted by feminism and modernity.

Nastia and her sister, Solomiya, are also entangled in the booming marriage industry, posing as a hopeful bride and her translator while secretly searching for their missing mother --- a flamboyant protestor who vanished after years of fierce activism against the romance tours.

So begins a journey of a lifetime across hundreds of miles: three angry women, a truckful of kidnapped bachelors, and Lefty, a last-of-his-kind snail with one final shot at perpetuating his species.

But their plans come to a screeching halt as Russia invades. In a stunningly ambitious metafictional spiral, ENDLING brilliantly balances horror and comedy, drawing on Reva’s own experiences tracking her family’s delicate dance of survival behind enemy lines. As fiction and reality collide on the page, Reva probes the hard truths of war: What stories must we tell ourselves to survive? To carry on with the routines of life under military occupation? And for those of us watching from overseas: can our sense of normalcy and security ever be restored, or have they always been a fragile illusion?

ENDLING is a tour de force from an author on the cutting edge of fiction, weaving a story of love, loss, humor and devastation that only she can tell.

Audiobook available, read by Max Meyers and Saskia Maarleveld

A down-on-her-luck waitress at a posh New Jersey country club, Kim Valva couldn’t be living a more different life from the carefree socialites she serves. Her live-in boyfriend recently cheated on her, her social life is in shambles, and her dog needs a life-saving surgery that she can’t afford. Then a mysterious figure called The Stranger contacts her with an offer she can’t refuse: Put a pill in the new member’s drink; when he dies, she’ll have enough money to fix her dog and her life. Her target turns out to be Tony Fiore, Kim’s bad boy ex-boyfriend from high school. Stunned to see Tony again, Kim can’t bring herself to go through with spiking his drink. Instead, it is Tony’s gorgeous fiancée, PJ Walsh, who dies horrifically at the table just as dinner ends.

A down-on-her-luck waitress at a posh New Jersey country club, Kim Valva couldn’t be living a more different life from the carefree socialites she serves. Her live-in boyfriend recently cheated on her, her social life is in shambles, and her dog needs a life-saving surgery that she can’t afford. Then a mysterious figure called The Stranger contacts her with an offer she can’t refuse: Put a pill in the new member’s drink; when he dies, she’ll have enough money to fix her dog and her life. Her target turns out to be Tony Fiore, Kim’s bad boy ex-boyfriend from high school. Stunned to see Tony again, Kim can’t bring herself to go through with spiking his drink. Instead, it is Tony’s gorgeous fiancée, PJ Walsh, who dies horrifically at the table just as dinner ends.

Living a double life always comes with a cost.

A down-on-her-luck waitress at a posh New Jersey country club, Kim Valva couldn’t be living a more different life from the carefree socialites she serves. Her live-in boyfriend recently cheated on her, her social life is in shambles, and her dog needs a life-saving surgery that she can’t afford. Then her luck seems to change when a mysterious figure identifying themself only as The Stranger contacts her with an offer she can’t refuse: Put a pill in the new member’s drink; when he dies, she’ll have enough money to fix her dog and her life.

Her target turns out to be Tony Fiore, Kim’s bad boy ex-boyfriend from high school. Fifteen years have passed, and he now goes by Anthony Fuller. He’s cleaned up, made tens of millions, and his gorgeous fiancée, 22-year-old PJ Walsh, is on his arm.

PJ had her own agenda from the second she met Anthony. Find him, trick him, marry him, kill him. It was supposed to be easy, but she finds that while living her double life, the lines blur between who she is and who she’s pretending to be.

Stunned to see Tony again, Kim can’t bring herself to go through with spiking his drink. Instead, it is PJ who dies horrifically at the table just as dinner ends. Was someone else at the club --- member or worker --- tasked with poisoning PJ just as she had been instructed to do to Tony? Who would want both of them dead? With no one to trust and The Stranger to answer to, Kim must peel back the layers of deceit to reveal a deeply buried truth, more shocking than she could ever imagine.

Audiobook available, read by Emma Love