Lately, defense lawyer Andy Carpenter has been involved in a county prison program where inmates help train dogs the Tara Foundation has rescued to make them more adoptable. One of the prisoners Andy has been working with is Brian Atkins, who has 18 months left on a five-year term for fraud. Brian has been helping to train Boomer, an adorable fox terrier the Tara Foundation rescued from a neglectful owner. But one day, Andy arrives at the prison to discover that Brian has used Boomer to make an ingenious escape. The next day, the man on whose testimony Brian was convicted is found murdered. Brian is caught and arrested for the crime, though he forcefully protests his innocence.
Tanya Kagan, a rising specialist in Russian art at a top New York auction house, is trying to entice Russia's wealthy oligarchs to bid on the biggest sale of her career, The Order of Saint Catherine, while making sense of the sudden and unexplained departure of her husband. As questions arise over the provenance of the Order and auction fever kicks in, author Irina Reyn takes us into the world of Catherine the Great, the infamous 18th-century empress who may have owned the priceless artifact and who, it turns out, faced many of the same issues Tanya wrestles with in her own life.
Forensic sculptor Eve Duncan risked it all to protect Cara Delaney from the enemies who want her dead. The journey has led them from California to a remote mountain in the Scottish highlands --- and earned Eve the distinction of becoming their next target. When, despite all precautions, Cara is taken, Eve must hunt down the very people who want to kill her in order to save the young girl. At a time in her life when she has more at stake than ever before, she unhesitatingly puts it all on the line in a pulse-pounding mission of rescue and survival.
Chief of Police Kate Burkholder is called upon by the sheriff's department in rural, upstate New York to assist on a developing situation that involves a reclusive Amish settlement and the death of a young girl. Unable to penetrate the wall of silence between the Amish and "English" communities, the sheriff asks Kate to travel to New York, pose as an Amish woman and infiltrate the community. In the coming days, she will unearth a world built on secrets, a series of shocking crimes, and herself, alone...trapped in a fight for her life.
It begins when a meth-addicted grave robber unearths the death mask of Montezuma, setting off a violent struggle. There is the drug lord who employs him, who would kill for that mask. There is the respected curator who, for a fee, will provide provenances for his country’s looted artifacts. And his long-suffering housekeeper, a lesbian in a culture of machismo, who despises her patron. There is Salvador, sensual and mercurial. And there is the grave digger himself, running for his life. Above all, there is Anna Ramsey, an American with a history of bad choices. For her, the mask is a means of restoring her father’s damaged reputation and perhaps recovering the love she knew when her family was still whole.
Late summer, 1921: Disgraced former lightweight champion Pepper Van Dean has spent the past two years on the carnival circuit performing the dangerous “hangman’s drop” and taking on all comers in nightly challenge bouts. But when he and his cardsharp wife, Moira, are marooned in the wilds of Oregon, Pepper accepts an offer to return to the world of wrestling as a trainer for Garfield Taft, a down-and-out African American heavyweight contender in search of a comeback and a shot at the world title. At the training camp in rural Montana, Pepper and Moira soon realize that nothing is what it seems: not Taft, the upcoming match or the training facility itself.
When a former high school cheerleader is found walking a back road completely engulfed in flames, the entire state of Mississippi focuses on Tibbehah county, wanting answers. The light soon shines on several people: the girl’s father, a worthless drunk; a pair of teenage thugs with grand ambitions to control north Mississippi; and a red-headed truck stop madam who has her own problems. As Quinn Colson and acting Sheriff Lillie Virgil uncover old secrets and new lies, the entire town turns against them, and they learn that the most dangerous enemies may be the ones you trust most.
Ruso and Tilla's excitement at arriving in Rome with their new baby daughter is soon dulled by their discovery that the grand facades of polished marble mask an underworld of corrupt landlords and vermin-infested tenements. Ruso thinks he has been offered a reputable medical practice only to find that his predecessor has fled, leaving a dead man in a barrel on the doorstep and the warning, “Be careful who you trust.” Distracted by the body and his efforts to help a friend win the hand of a rich young heiress, Ruso makes a grave mistake, causing him to question both his competence and his integrity.
Madeleine is trapped in an unhappy marriage and a life she never wanted. When she finds a diary detailing her grandmother Margie’s bold, romantic trip to Jazz Age Paris, she meets the grandmother she never knew. Despite her unhappiness, when Madeleine’s marriage is threatened, she stays with her critical, disapproving mother. In that unlikely place, shaken by the revelation of a long-hidden family secret and inspired by her grandmother’s bravery, Madeleine creates her own Parisian summer. Margie and Madeleine’s stories intertwine to explore the joys and risks of living life on our own terms, defying the rules that hold us back from our dreams, and becoming the people we are meant to be.
Louisa Clark takes a badly needed job working for ex–Master of the Universe Will Traynor, who is wheelchair-bound after an accident. Will has always lived a huge life and is pretty sure he cannot live the way he is. Louisa refuses to treat him with kid gloves, and soon his happiness means more to her than she expected. When she learns that Will has shocking plans of his own, she sets out to show him that life is still worth living.
We have listed 13 of Carol’s previous Bookreporter.com Bets On picks that are now or soon to be in paperback. Which of these books have you read or do you plan to read? Please check all that apply.
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 July 24th to August 7th at noon ET, three lucky readers each will be randomly chosen to win a copy of THE AMATEUR by Chris Bohjalian and CITY OF WIDOWS by Nadia Hashimi.
Our major goal for 2026 is to redesign Bookreporter and the rest of the sites in The Book Report Network. How can you help? We have launched a GoFundMe campaign and are asking for donations. Any level of donation that you would be comfortable with is sincerely appreciated. If you would prefer donating via check, please send to:
The Book Report, Inc.
16 Mt. Bethel Road, Suite 365
Warren, NJ 07059
Click here to read more about our plans and to donate.
Coming Soon
Curious about what books will be released in the months ahead so you can pre-order or reserve them? Then click on the months below.
July's Books on Screen roundup includes the films Reading Lolita in Tehran and The Odyssey; the series premieres of "The Five Star Weekend" on Peacock, "Little House on the Prairie" on Netflix, and "Elle" on Prime Video; the season premieres of AMC's "The Walking Dead: Dead City" and Apple TV's "Silo"; the conclusion of "Cape Fear" on Apple TV and "The Listeners" on STARZ; the season finale of AMC's "The Vampire Lestat"; the continuation of "House of the Dragon" on HBO; and the DVD/Blu-ray releases of The Devil Wears Prada 2, Animal Farm and All You Need Is Kill.