Provo City Library Staff Reviews

Beautyland

2026-03-30T15:47:00.005-06:00

By Marie-Helene Bertino

Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2024. 326 pages. Science Fiction

At the moment when Voyager 1 is launched into space carrying its famous golden record, a baby of unusual perception is born to a single mother in Philadelphia. Adina Giorno is tiny and jaundiced, but reaches for warmth and light. As a child, she recognizes that she is different; she also possesses knowledge of a faraway planet. The arrival of a fax machine enables her to contact her extraterrestrial relatives, beings who have sent her to report on the oddities of earthlings. For years, as she moves through the world and makes a life for herself among humans, she dispatches transmissions on the terrors and surprising joys of their existence. But at a precarious moment, a beloved friend urges Adina to share her messages with the world. Is there a chance she is not alone?

This is such a lovely story that had me looking at life and my experiences in the world a little differently. If extraterrestrials were to look at humanity, how strange we must seem, or more specifically, the United States, since this character lives in the USA. Adina both is, and is not, human. Seeing her try to relay her meaningful experiences to her home planet has a unique charm, especially when she’s a child. Additionally, Adina’s story spans a lifetime, and certain pivotal moments (like 9/11) reminded me of how I perceived and processed those big events personally. This was a fast-paced, lyrical, witty, and thought-provoking story. I would easily recommend this for adults who enjoy character-driven literary fiction, especially those with memories of the 80s, 90s, and 00s.

If you liked Beautyland, you might also like:

Annie Bot

By Sierra Greer

Mariner Books, 2024. 231 pages. Science Fiction

Annie Bot was created to be the perfect girlfriend for her human owner Doug. Designed to satisfy his emotional and physical needs. True, she's not the greatest at keeping Doug's place spotless, but she's trying to please him. Doug says he loves that Annie's AI makes her seem more like a real woman, so Annie explores human traits such as curiosity, secrecy, and longing. But becoming more human also means becoming less perfect, and as Annie's relationship with Doug grows more intricate and difficult, she starts to wonder: Does Doug really desire what he says he wants? And in such an impossible paradox, what does Annie owe herself?

Toward Eternity

By Anton Hur

Harper Via, 2024. 244 pages. Science Fiction

In a near-future world, a new technological therapy is quickly eradicating cancer: The body's cells are entirely replaced with nanites--robot or android cells that not only cure those afflicted but leave them virtually immortal. At the same time, literary researcher Yonghun teaches an AI how to understand poetry and creates a living, thinking machine he names Panit, meaning "Beloved," in honor of his husband. When Dr. Beeko, who holds the patent to the nano-therapy technology, learns of Panit, he transfers its consciousness into an android body, giving it freedom and life. As Yonghun, Panit, and other nano humans thrive--and begin to replicate--their development will lead them to a crossroads and a choice with existential consequences.

ACS

Hekate

2026-03-27T13:54:00.005-06:00

Hekate
By Nikita Gill
Little, Brown and Company, 2025. 364 pages. YA Fiction

Orphaned by the war between the Titans and Olympians, Hekate is raised in the Underworld by Styx and Hades, and after discovering her powers and ascending to Goddess status, she becomes the key to ending an immortal war that threatens both the Underworld and Mount Olympus.

Gill explores themes of identity, resilience, and the effects of war on the children it leaves behind. I would recommend this book to readers who enjoy mythology with a feminist lens, coming of age stories, and beautifully written poetry.

If you like Things No One Taught Us About Love, you might also like:

Ariadne
By Jennifer Saint
Flatiron Books, 2021. 308 pages. Fiction

A feminist retelling of Theseus and the Minotaur, which imagines what motivated Cretan princess Ariadne to defy her father and the gods and help Theseus escape the labyrinth alive.

Circe
By Madeline Miller
Little, Brown and Company, 2018. 393 pages. Fiction

Circe, the much-misunderstood enchantress of the Odyssey recounts her life, from her childhood among the gods to her exile on the island of Aiaia.

RBL

Things No One Taught Us About Love

2026-03-25T16:53:00.001-06:00

Things No One Taught Us About Love
By Vex King
HarperOne, 2025. 301 pages. Nonfiction

This easy-to-digest nonfiction book teaches that building healthy relationships starts with developing a strong foundation of self-love and self-awareness. It explains that many relationship struggles come from unhealed emotional wounds and learned patterns that shape how we give and receive love. The book emphasizes the importance of taking responsibility for your inner world rather than relying on others for validation or happiness.

King highlights that healthy relationships require clear boundaries, honest communication, and mutual respect rather than dependency or control. He also frames relationships as opportunities for growth, showing how partners often reflect your inner state and areas that need healing. Overall, the book presents love as a daily practice rooted in self-respect, emotional maturity, and conscious effort rather than something that simply happens. I really found that it resonated deeply with me, and the tips for daily practice are actually do-able. I highly recommend getting more in touch with yourself and learning how you, as an individual, deserve to be loved unconditionally.

If you like Things No One Taught Us About Love, you might also like:

Take Up Space, Y'All
By Tess Holiday
RP Teens, 2025. 162 pages. Nonfiction

For any readers who feel they have to change themselves to fit in, this is an encouraging message to be their most authentic selves. It's geared at teenagers, but the messages resonate with any age. This engaging and informative work offers body-positive tips and tricks while tackling important topics such as mental health, friendships, self-image, and personal habits. As exemplified by the title, the authors focus on helping readers respond to difficult situations and keep a clear head, all with an emphasis on self-love. In a supportive, energetic tone, Holliday and Coon guide readers in learning how to love themselves and develop their own relationships with food, fashion, and friends.

The Body Is Not An Apology
By Sonya Renee Taylor
Berrett-Koehler Publishers, 2021. 159 pages. Nonfiction

This incredible resource argues that radical self-love is a powerful tool for healing both personal and societal harm. The book explains how systems like racism, sexism, and body shaming distort our relationship with our bodies and limit our sense of worth. It encourages readers to reject these harmful narratives, embrace their bodies fully, and use self-love as a foundation for creating a more just and compassionate world. World-renowned activist and poet Sonya Renee Taylor invites us to reconnect with the radical origins of our minds and bodies and celebrate our collective, enduring strength. As we awaken to our own indoctrinated body shame, we feel inspired to awaken others and to interrupt the systems that perpetuate body shame and oppression against all bodies. When we act from this truth on a global scale, we usher in the transformative opportunity of radical self-love, which is the opportunity for a more just, equitable, and compassionate world--for us all.

The Courage To Be Disliked
By Ichirō Kishimi
Atria Books, 2018. 270 pages. Nonfiction

This book demonstrates how to unlock the power within yourself to be the person you truly want to be. Using the theories of Alfred Adler, one of the three giants of twentieth century psychology, this book follows an illuminating conversation between a philosopher and a young man. The philosopher explains to his pupil how each of us is able to determine our own life, free from the shackles of past experiences, doubts, and the expectations of others. It's a way of thinking that is deeply liberating, allowing us to develop the courage to change, and to ignore the limitations that we and other people have placed on us. The result is a book that is both highly accessible and profound in its importance. This book will help you declutter your mind of harmful thoughts and attitudes, helping you to make a lasting change, achieve real happiness, and find success.

Recipes for Self-Love
By Rachel Alison
Morrow Gift, 2019. 112 pages. Nonfiction

This graphic-style self-help book uses simple illustrations and short reflections to explore self-worth and emotional well-being. It focuses on how societal pressures, especially in a patriarchal world, can shape insecurities and negative self-perception. The author encourages readers to practice self-love through boundaries, self-acceptance, and letting go of the need for external validation. She presents healing as a gradual process, offering small, relatable “recipes” or steps for feeling better in everyday life. Overall, it delivers a gentle and accessible message that prioritizing your own needs and inner peace is both necessary and empowering.

LKA

This Story Might Save Your Life

2026-03-25T11:45:00.002-06:00

This Story Might Save Your Life
by Tiffany Crum
Pine & Cedar, 2026. 357 pages. Fiction

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. But their next survival story may be their own. 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. But as the hours tick by, the odds seem increasingly stacked against Joy and Xander being found alive.

Just like the podcast Benny and Joy host (which I really want to listen to!), this book is a great exploration of tense themes with high stakes with a little sprinkling of humor and romance. While the search for Joy and Xander drives the plot, the history of Joy, Xander, and Benny's relationship is also slowly revealed through additions of Joy's unpublished memoir, which adds a little humanity and heart to the story. I appreciated the addition of moments of lightness to balance the suspenseful ones. And since this is a book about a podcast, this book also examines how fame changes the trajectory of both the search and the dynamics of Joy, Xander, and Benny's relationship. This is a great read for those who like their mysteries and thrillers to include some great character-driven moments as well. I also highly recommend the audiobook!

If you like This Story Might Save Your Life you might also like:

Listen for the Lie
by Amy Tintera
Celadon Books, 2024. 336 pages. Fiction

After the death of her best friend, Lucy seeks for a new start by moving to L.A. But when her grandmother convinces her to return to her small Texas town, Lucy learns that she's the subject of a new podcast, and the podcast host is also in town looking for clues. Working together, Lucy becomes determined to solve her best friend's murder, even though she's afraid she's the one who did it.

The Ghostwriter
by Julie Clark
Sourcebooks Landmark, 2025. 342 pages. Fiction

June, 1975. The Taylor family shatters in a single night when two teenage siblings are found dead in their own home. The only surviving sibling, Vincent, never shakes the whispers and accusations that he was the one who killed them. Decades later, the legend only grows as his career as a horror writer skyrockets. Ghostwriter Olivia Dumont has spent her entire professional life hiding the fact that she is the only child of Vincent Taylor. Now on the brink of financial ruin, she's offered a job to ghostwrite her father's last book--his memoir disclosing what really happened.

The Girls Trip
by Ally Condie
Grand Central Publishing, 2026. 320 pages. Fiction

Hope, Ash, and Caro met at an online book club. Over the past two years, they've been there for each other in every way-except in person. When each of their lives reach a crossroads, they decide to meet in real life at the gorgeous Sonnet Resort at Eden National Park. Hope, an actress, has become entirely too famous and needs to get away from it all. Ash, a successful online entrepreneur, isn't sure what has happened to her marriage. Caro, a doctor, has lost a patient and doesn't know if she wants to carry on or start all over. And none of them are telling each other the full story.

The Happy Life of Isadora Bentley

2026-03-23T17:32:00.001-06:00

The Happy Life of Isadora Bentley

By Courtney Walsh

Thomas Nelson, 2023. 368 pages. Fiction

Isadora Bentley follows the rules. Isadora Bentley likes things just so. Isadora Bentley believes that happiness is something that flat-out doesn't exist in her life--and never will. As a university researcher, Isadora keeps to herself as much as possible. She avoids the students she's supposed to befriend and mentor. She stays away from her neighbors and lives her own quiet, organized life in her own quiet, organized apartment. And she will never get involved in a romantic relationship again--especially with another academic. It will be just Isadora and her research. Forever.

But on her thirtieth birthday, Isadora does something completely out of character. The young woman who never does anything "on a whim" makes an impulse purchase of a magazine featuring a silly article detailing "Thirty-One Ways to Be Happy"--which includes everything from smiling at strangers to exercising for endorphins to giving in to your chocolate cravings. Isadora decides to create her own secret research project--proving the writer of the ridiculous piece wrong. As Isadora gets deeper into her research--and meets a handsome professor along the way--she's stunned to discover that maybe, just maybe, she's proving herself wrong. Perhaps there's actually something to this happiness concept, and possibly there's something to be said for loosening up and letting life take you somewhere . . . happy.

The Happy Life of Isadora Bentley was a delightful read! Isadora is definitely neurodivergent, so the beginning is cringe-worthy as you watch her avoid human interactions but when she starts working on the checklist things start picking up. I love all the friendships that gravitate to her as she tries to get out of her shell and finds herself. The “happiness list” is fun to contemplate and I wanted to try some of those things myself. It’s a fun light read with a cute low-spice romance included!

If you like The Happy Life of Isadora Bentley, you might also like:

The Collected Regrets of Clover

by Mikki Brammer

St. Martin's Press, 2023. 314 pages. Fiction

From the day she watched her kindergarten teacher drop dead during a dramatic telling of Peter Rabbit, Clover Brooks has felt a stronger connection with the dying than she has with the living. After the beloved grandfather who raised her dies alone while she is traveling, Clover becomes a death doula in New York City, dedicating her life to ushering people peacefully through their end-of-life process. Clover spends so much time with the dying that she has no life of her own, until the final wishes of a feisty old woman send Clover on a trip across the country to uncover a forgotten love story––and perhaps, her own happy ending. As she finds herself struggling to navigate the uncharted roads of romance and friendship, Clover is forced to examine what she really wants, and whether she’ll have the courage to go after it.

Agatha Arch is Afraid of Everything

by Kristin Bair

Alcove Press, 2020. 352 pages, Fiction

Agatha Arch’s life shatters when she discovers her husband in their backyard shed, in flagrante delicto, giving the local dog walker some heavy petting. Suddenly, Agatha finds herself face to face with everything that frightens her . . . and that’s a loooooong list. Agatha keeps those she loves close. Everyone else, she keeps as far away as possible. So she’s a mystery to nearly everyone in her New England town. Defying her abundant assortment of anxieties, Agatha dons her “spy pants” and sets out to spy on her husband and the dog walker. Along the way, she finds another intriguing target to follow: a mysterious young woman who’s panhandling on the busiest street in town. It’s all a bit much for timorous Agatha. But with the help of her Bear Grylls bobblehead, a trio of goats, and a dog named Balderdash, Agatha may just find the courage to build a better life.

The Helpline

by Katherine Collette

Atria Books, 2020. 320 pages. Fiction

Germaine Johnson doesn’t need friends. She has her work and her Sudoku puzzles. Until, that is, an incident at her insurance company leaves her jobless—and it turns out that there are very few openings these days for senior mathematicians with zero people skills. Desperate, Germaine manages to secure a position at City Hall answering calls on the Senior Citizens Helpline. But it turns out that the mayor has something else in mind for Germaine: a secret project involving the troublemakers at the senior citizens center and their feud with the neighboring golf club—which happens to be run by the dashing yet disgraced national Sudoku champion, Don Thomas. Don and the mayor want the senior center closed down and at first, Germaine is dedicated to helping them out—it makes sense mathematically, after all. But when Germaine actually gets to know the group of elderly rebels at the senior center, they open her eyes to a life outside of boxes and numbers and for the first time ever, Germaine realizes she may have miscalculated.

Finding My Way

2026-03-23T17:25:00.002-06:00

Finding My Way: A Memoir

by Malala Yousafzai

Atria Books, 2025. 305 pages. Memoir

Thrust onto the public stage at fifteen years old after the Taliban’s brutal attack on her life, Malala Yousafzai quickly became an international icon known for bravery and resilience. But away from the cameras and crowds, she spent years struggling to find her place in an unfamiliar world. Now, for the first time ever, Malala takes us beyond the headlines in Finding My Way—a vulnerable, surprising memoir that buzzes with authenticity, sharp humor, and tenderness.

As iconic as Malala's first memoir is, I think I love this one even more. As a reader, you need not be a Nobel Prize recipient to find this story deeply resonant. Malala chronicles her early adult years including her time attending Oxford, falling in love, visiting her home country of Pakistan, and more, as she deals with the repercussions of her unwanted fame and the continued effects of being shot by the Taliban. Her account of her personal hardships is just as moving as her continued activism— both of which intensify when she learns of the Taliban regaining control of Afghanistan. I enjoy themes of reckoning with tradition and expectation and Malala treads these waters with grace even when others deny her the same respect. The warmth with which she recalls the support of her female friends and her husband is especially poignant. Finding My Way is perfect for those hoping for a read filled with vulnerability, wit, humility, and strength.

If you like Finding My Way, you might also like:

Sonita: My Fight Against Tyranny and My Escape to Freedom

by Sonita Alizadeh

Harper One, 2025. 269 pages. Memoir

Sonita Alizada was almost sold twice. Her price tag was $9,000. The money her family received would pay for her brother’s wife. She was expected to form a family, sleep with a man she never met, and then repeat the terrible cycle with her own children. But Sonita wanted more. The Afghan rap artist and activist shares the story of how she fled Afghanistan to pursue her dreams and evolved into a woman who is changing the world. She shares incredible highs, like winning the song writing contest that gave her the opportunity of a lifetime, and unimaginable lows, like when the cruel Taliban regained control of Afghanistan, and how some of her family escaped, and how some were left behind.

Bird Milk & Mosquito Bones: A Memoir

by Priyanka Mattoo

Alfred A. Knopf, 2024. 292 pages. Memoir

Priyanka Mattoo was born into a wooden house in the Himalayas, as were most of her ancestors. In 1989, however, mounting violence in the region forced Mattoo’s community to flee. Mattoo never moved back to her beloved Kashmir—because it no longer existed. She and her family just kept packing and unpacking and moving on. In forty years, Mattoo accumulated thirty-two different addresses, and she chronicles her nomadic existence with wit, wisdom, and an inimitable eye for light within the darkest moments. And we are with her as she settles into her unlikely new homeland, Los Angeles, where she sets off on what is perhaps her most meaningful journey: that of becoming a writer.

Saving Five: A Memoir of Hope

by Amanda Nguyen

AUWA Books, 2025. 288 pages. Memoir

A revelatory and powerful memoir by the Nobel Peace Prize finalist Amanda Nguyen, detailing her tumultuous childhood and groundbreaking activism in the aftermath of her rape at Harvard.

Brawler: Stories

2026-03-20T17:15:03.307-06:00

Brawler: Stories

By Lauren Groff

Riverhead Books, 2026. 275 pages. Fiction.

Ranging from the 1950s to the present day and moving across age, class, and region--from New England to Florida to California--these nine stories reflect and expand upon a shared theme: the ceaseless battle between humans' dark and light angels.

I love short story collections because in a short 5 pages you can fall in love with a character, become invested in a plot and feel the story deeply. And then it's over. Lauren Groff is a talented author with the ability to hook you in just a few sentences. These stories are character driven and speak so much about the human condition. Time for me to read everything Lauren Groff has written.

If you like Brawler, you might also like:

A Manual for Cleaning Women: Selected Stories

By Lucia Berlin Farrar

Straus and Giroux, 2015. 403 pages. Fiction.

With her trademark blend of humor and melancholy, Berlin crafts miracles from the everyday--uncovering moments of grace in the cafeterias and Laundromats of the American Southwest, in the homes of the Northern California upper classes, and from the perspective of a cleaning woman alone in a hotel dining room in Mexico City.

You Have a Friend in 10A

By Maggie Shipstead

Alfred A. Knopf, 2022. 253 pages. Fiction.

In this collection of stories, Maggie Shipstead dives into eclectic and vivid settings, from an Olympic village to a deathbed in Paris to a Pacific atoll, and illuminating a cast of indelible characters, Shipstead traverses ordinary and unusual realities with cunning, compassion, and wit. In "Acknowledgments," a male novelist reminisces bitterly on the woman who inspired his first novel, attempting to make peace with his humiliations before the book goes to print. In "The Cowboy Tango," spanning decades in the open country of Montana, a triangle of love and self-preservation plays out among an aging rancher called the Otter, his nephew, and a young woman named Sammy who works the horses.

Disappoint Me

2026-03-19T16:11:28.167-06:00

Disappoint Me
By Nicola Dinan
The Dial Press, 2025. 305 pages. Fiction

This novel is an exploration of love, loss, trans panic, race, millennial angst, and the relationships--familial and romantic--that make us who we are. It is funny, sharp, and poignant. One of the best ways to build empathy is to read books about people who are different from us. (Check out this article from the American Psychological Association that support this claim!) Autostraddle Magazine calls this book, "One of the sharpest and most emotionally vulnerable novels on the complicated dynamic of dating cisgender straight men as a trans woman.” I'll never experience what it's like to be a trans woman, so reading a book like this is an excellent way for me to build understanding, empathy, and compassion.

Our main character Max, a 30-year-old trans woman, poet, and legal adviser at a tech company, is struggling with writer’s block following a recent breakup. After deciding to date again, she meets Vincent Chan, a cisgender corporate lawyer and son of Chinese immigrants. Despite their genuine connection, not just as Asians in the London business world but as kindred spirits, their relationship is tested by Vincent’s occasional thoughtless remarks about Max’s trans identity and her emerging health concerns resulting from her gender-affirming care. She must use love and forgiveness to determine whether it’s possible to move beyond her dissatisfaction and their shared mistakes.

The character development in this novel is compelling, and the thought-provoking plot kept me invested. Max is an incredibly complex character, and this book will leave you thinking about her and caring about her, long after you're done reading.

If you like Disappoint Me, you might also like:

Woodworking
By Emily St. James
Crooked Media Reads, 2025. 351 pages. Fiction

Erica Skyberg is thirty-five years old, recently divorced, and trans. Not that she's told anyone yet. Mitchell, South Dakota, isn't exactly bursting with other trans women. Instead, she keeps to herself, teaching by day and directing community theater by night. That is, until Abigail Hawkes enters her orbit. Abigail is seventeen, Mitchell High's resident political dissident and Only Trans Girl. It's a role she plays faultlessly, albeit a little reluctantly. She's also annoyed by the idea of spending her senior year secretly guiding her English teacher through her transition. But Abigail remembers the uncertainty--and loneliness--that comes with it. Besides, Erica isn't the only one struggling to shed the weight of others' expectations. As their unlikely friendship evolves under the increasing scrutiny of their community, both women, and those closest to them, will come to realize that sometimes there is nothing more radical than letting the world see who you really are.

A Gentleman's Gentleman
By T.J. Alexander
Vintage Books, 2025. 322 pages. Fiction

The notoriously eccentric Lord Christopher Eden is a "man of unusual make" and even more unusual habits: he wears pastels year round, prefers to live as far from the prying eyes and ears of the town as possible, and wholeheartedly prefers the comfortable company of his childhood cook and aged butler, Plinkton, to any swarm of servants that would normally befit a man of his station. His penchant for privacy makes for a pleasant, if occasionally lonely life. That life is threatened to be upended entirely when Christopher receives word from his lawyers that, according to his late father's will, he must find a wife in London by the end of the Season if he intends to maintain his status as the only living heir to the Eden's End estate. While most men his age and status would leap at the chance to marry, he cannot imagine a worse fate... Enter: the handsome-if stoic James Harding, the new valet Christopher very reluctantly hires after Cook and Plinkton remind him that if he's to stay in London, he must keep up appearances befitting that of a wealthy, eligible bachelor. After a rocky start to their relationship, the two strike up a fragile friendship amid the throes of the London Season; a friendship that threatens to shatter completely as Christopher's deadline to find a wife looms.

Bad Habit

By Alana Portero
HarperVia, 2024. 224 pages. Fiction

I read this book in 2024 and blogged about it here. It's a staggering coming-of-age novel deeply rooted in the struggles of a trans woman growing up in Madrid. Set against the very real heroin epidemic that ravaged Madrid in the 1980s and the city’s vibrant party scene that dominated its nightlife in the 1990s, the novel follows an unnamed protagonist as she grows up in a blue-collar suburb that has no place for her. Forging ahead, she discovers community and kinship in downtown Madrid, amid a lively party scene animated by junkies, pop divas, and fallen angels. But with each step she takes forward, she finds herself confronted by a violence she does not yet know how to counter; in this exciting and often terrifying world, each choice can truly be a matter of life and death.

The In-Between Bookstore
By Edward Underhill
Avon Books, 2025. 253 pages. Fiction

When thirty-year-old trans man Darby finds himself unemployed and in need of a fresh start, he moves back to the small Illinois town he left behind. But Oak Falls has changed almost as much as he has since he left. One thing is familiar: In-Between Books, Darby's refuge growing up and high school job. When he walks into the bookstore now, Darby feels an eerie sense of déjà vu--everything is exactly the same. He's transported back to 2009, and face-to-face with his teenage self, who just might give Darby the opportunity to change his own present for the better--if he can figure out how before his connection to the past vanishes forever. The In-Between Bookstore is a bingeable time travel novel of love, self-discovery, and the choices that come with both. It's for anyone who has ever wondered what their life might be like if they had the chance to go back and take a bigger, braver risk.

LKA

The Oks Are Not OK

2026-03-18T16:35:00.004-06:00

The Oks Are Not OK
By Grace K. Shim
Kokila, 2026. 352 pages. Young Adult Fiction.

When seventeen-year-old influencer Elena Ok's family loses its fast-fashion fortune and flees Los Angeles for rural California, she is forced to confront her family's dynamics, and when she begins helping local vendors at the Blaire Fair, she starts to rethink her definition of success.

While this feels like the setup for a romantic comedy on the Hallmark Channel, The Oks Are Not OK is not what I was expecting. The tiny fictional California town of Blaire (located about 20 miles outside of Bakersfield), is a far cry from the Christmas tree farms and leaf-strewn New England hamlets you’ll usually find in a Hallmark film—California’s Central Valley is a massive agricultural region that goes largely ignored by the rest of the world. It’s sweltering hot for much of the year, and most tourists only see it through their car windows as they drive through on their way to someplace more exciting. (Source: I was born and raised in the Valley, and I was thrilled to see it get a little attention.) Blaire takes it even further, as the town lies within a National Radio Quiet Zone where all high-frequency electronic transmissions are forbidden—there’s not even cell service! In another story, exile to this "forgotten town" would set the stage for Elena to meet a sweet and probably flannel-clad young man who would teach her some important life lessons, and she would fall in love with him after a series of comical hijinks and misunderstandings.

But that’s where The Oks Are Not OK takes a different path. It’s not a rom-com at all, it’s a coming-of-age story, for both Elena and her family. Elena’s journey of self-discovery leads to her brother Gavin’s attempts to break free of the “heir to the empire” image placed on him from birth to forge his own career path, and to her parents’ realization that their intense focus on creating a prosperous new life for themselves has had unintended effects upon their entire family. The good-hearted citizens of Blaire don’t get as much attention as they deserve, but it’s really for the best that focus stays on the Ok family. It’s a surprisingly heartwarming story of family members learning to finally see one another, and of a heroine who learns to love and value herself for more than just her social media following.

If you like The Oks Are Not OK, you may also like:

The Complex Art of Being Maisie Clark
by Sabrina Kleckner
Flux, 2025. 284 pages. Young Adult Fiction.

When eighteen-year-old Maisie moves to London to develop her own artistic style outside her family's portrait business, she embarks on a journey of self-discovery with help from her older brother and her brooding photography partner.

The Edge of Anything
by Nora Shalaway Carpenter
Running Press Teens, 2020. 362 pages. Young Adult Fiction.

Len is a loner teen photographer haunted by a past that's stagnated her work and left her terrified she's losing her mind. Sage is a high school volleyball star desperate to find a way around her sudden medical disqualification. Both girls need college scholarships. After a chance encounter, the two develop an unlikely friendship that enables them to begin facing their inner demons. But both Len and Sage are keeping secrets that, left hidden, could cost them everything, maybe even their lives.

Everything Within and Between
by Nikki Barthelmess
HarperTeen, 2021. 328 pages. Young Adult Fiction.

Raised by her strict Mexican grandma, Ri Fernández has never been allowed to learn Spanish. She has always been pushed away from the neighborhood they call home and toward her best friend's world of mansions and country clubs in the hopes that it will bring Ri closer to achieving the "American Dream." Her mother disappeared when Ri was young, so when Ri finds an unanswered letter from her mom begging for a visit, Ri decides to reclaim what her grandma kept from her: a language and a mother.

-LAH

Fearless and Free

2026-03-18T12:31:00.003-06:00

Fearless and Free
By: Josephine Baker
Tiny Reparations Book, 2025. 282 pages. Memoir

Josephine Baker took Paris by storm in the 1920s, dazzling audiences with her humor, beauty and effervescence on stage. Later, as one of the most recognizable women in the world, she became a spy for the French resistance, her celebrity working as her cover. After the war she became increasingly interested in civil rights. In 1963 she spoke at the March on Washington alongside Martin Luther King. All this from a girl born in Missouri to a poor single black woman and a white father she did not know. Flirtatious, funny, candid and this memoir gives us the wildly famous but elusive Josephine Baker telling her own story.

This was a really fun and unique read! Going into it I knew little about Josephine Baker and by the end I felt that she was my friend. The book was written by using hours and hours of conversation between a French journalist, Marcel Sauvage, and Josephine Baker. Because of this, the book reads as if you are sitting in her home as she tells her life story. She bounces around topics and times and is very personable and witty. She lived such an extraordinary life, and as the title suggests she was fearless! I wish I had her bravery and confidence and I feel by reading this book I got a sprinkle! I was thoroughly inspired and entertained by her many stories of performance, espionage and activism. I highly recommend listening to the audiobook.

If you like Fearless and Free you might also like:

Errand into the maze: The Life and Works of Martha Graham

By: Deborah Jowitt

Straus and Giroux, 2024. 465 pages. Biography

From the legendary dance critic Deborah Jowitt, Errand into the Maze is the definitive biography of the visionary dancer and choreographer Martha Graham She changed how dancers were perceived onstage, devised new ways of moving, and pioneered a revolutionary dance technique. Along the way, Graham engaged with the debates, ideas, and events of the twentieth century―creating dances of social comment and human experiences. Hers was the iconic face of what came to be called modern dance.

Agent Josephine : American beauty, French hero, British spy

By: Damien Lewis

PublicAffairs, 2022.

In Agent Josephine, bestselling author Damien Lewis uncovers the extraordinary story of Josephine Baker's transformation from Paris performer to dauntless spy. Throughout World War II, using her stardom as a cloak for her secret work, Baker undertook daring clandestine missions to fight the Nazis, stamping an indelible mark on history.

Drawing on a plethora of new material and rigorous research, including previously undisclosed letters and journals, Lewis upends the conventional story of the renowned performer, revealing why she fully deserves her unique place in the French Panthéon.

It's Different This Time

2026-03-11T20:20:00.002-06:00

It's Different This Time
By Joss Richard
Dell, an imprint of Random House, 2025. 420 pages. Romance.

Reeling from the cancellation of her hit TV show, June Wood has nothing left to lose when a mysterious email lures her back to the New York City brownstone she once called home before she moved to Los Angeles. Thanks to a clause in the former owner's will, she and her old roommate, Adam Harper, now own the multimillion-dollar property--or at least they will in a month, once all the paperwork is signed. Four weeks, then June can return to her life in LA and forget about New York City and everything she left behind.

Sure, the fact that June and Adam are estranged and haven't even spoken in five years, and that their friendship didn't exactly end on good terms might complicate matters, but this is an opportunity of a lifetime. As the autumn leaves fall around them, through shared meals and late-night conversations, old wounds and long-buried sparks resurface, and it becomes strikingly clear: June and Adam have unfinished business. Confronted with the consequences of their choices years before, they must now navigate the minefield of their past the best way they know how: together. Second chances are always a risk, but maybe, if they get it right and are finally honest with each other and with themselves, it could be different this time.

It's Different This Time is a fantastic debut novel with a whole lot of heart and yearning, showcasing the love story of June and Adam while also acting as a love letter to New York City, Broadway, and Autumn. There were times where I found myself frustrated by both Adam and June (especially June) when they wouldn't properly communicate with one another, but their intentions and their insecurities felt very human and realistic in a way that only added emotional depth to the story and made the pay-off even more worth it. If you are looking for a slow-burn, second-chance, friends-to-lovers romance that also touches on tough topics like grief in a sensitive, beautiful way, you will love It's Different This Time.

If you like It's Different This Time, you might also like:

Happy Place

by Emily Henry

Berkley, 2023. 395 pages. Romance.

Harriet and Wyn have been the perfect couple since they met in college—they go together like salt and pepper, honey and tea, lobster and rolls. Except, now—for reasons they’re still not discussing—they don’t.

They broke up six months ago. And still haven’t told their best friends.

Which is how they find themselves sharing the largest bedroom at the Maine cottage that has been their friend group’s yearly getaway for the last decade. Their annual respite from the world, where for one vibrant, blue week they leave behind their daily lives; have copious amounts of cheese, wine, and seafood; and soak up the salty coastal air with the people who understand them most.

Only this year, Harriet and Wyn are lying through their teeth while trying not to notice how desperately they still want each other. Because the cottage is for sale and this is the last week they’ll all have together in this place. They can’t stand to break their friends’ hearts, and so they’ll play their parts. Harriet will be the driven surgical resident who never starts a fight, and Wyn will be the laid-back charmer who never lets the cracks show. It’s a flawless plan (if you look at it from a great distance and through a pair of sunscreen-smeared sunglasses). After years of being in love, how hard can it be to fake it for one week… in front of those who know you best?

If It Makes You Happy

by Julie Olivia

Berkley Romance, 2025. 500 pages. Romance.

Grab your favorite fall candle, cuddle into a comfy blanket, and travel back in time to 1997 autumn in Vermont in this cozy, slow-burn romance. My new next-door neighbor seems to have everything figured out. Small town golden boy? Check. Single dad extraordinaire? Check. Hot baker forearms? I didn't notice them, I swear. I, on the other hand, don't-at all-have anything figured out. Trust me, I didn't think taking over my mom's dream bed and breakfast in Copper Run Vermont was going to be easy. It should be a good place to heal after my divorce. But apparently my scones belong in the garbage with my small talk skills. As pointed out by none other than Cliff.

Cliff is inescapable. He knows exactly what people need-always. His charm, the way he wears flannel, and even his pastries, make not wanting to be friends with Cliff and his daughters pretty hard. Friends? I can make friends. That's safe. Except I'm leaving in three months to pass the inn off to my little sister and get the promotion in Seattle I've been working towards. So ask me why I'm thinking about kissing my hot neighbor."

Passion Project

by London Sperry

Penguin Books, 2025. 368 pages. Romance.

If your twenties are supposed to be the best years of your life, Bennet Taylor is failing miserably . . . with a big emphasis on the miserable. Where’s that zest she keeps hearing about? She’s a temp worker in New York City with no direction, no future, and no social life. And at the painful center of this listlessness is grief over the death of her first love.

When Bennet runs into Henry Adams just hours after standing him up for a first date, she makes an alcohol-fueled confession: She’s not ready to date. In fact, it’s been years since she felt passion for something. Not even pottery, or organized sports—not anything. Rather than leaving her to ruminate, Henry jumps at the opportunity for adventure: Bennet needs to find a passion for life, and Henry will help her find it. Every Saturday, they’ll try something new in New York City. As friends, of course.

As their “passion project” continues, the pair tackle everything from carpentry to tattooing to rappelling off skyscrapers, and Bennet feels her guarded exterior ebbing away. But as secrets surface, Bennet has to decide what she wants, and if she’s truly ready to move on. With emotional resonance and sparkling banter, Passion Project is a fun, flirty, thoughtful story of finding a spark—and igniting happiness.

The Dallergut Dream Department Store

2026-03-09T18:32:00.001-06:00

The Dallergut Dream Department Store

by Mi-Ye Lee

Hanover Square Press, 2024. 287 pages. Sci-Fi & Fantasy.

Penny gets a sought-after job at Dallergut Dream Department Store and begins work at the front desk, helping slumbering customers find the dreams they need. This whimsical and cozy Korean bestseller offers a well-drawn world with a cast of colorful characters. This book takes place in the world we go to when we dream. Penny gets a job at one of the top dream department stores, and gets to try out working at each floor. In addition to following Penny’s story, each section describes a character who gets a dream, and the reader gets a little glimpse into their life and how their dream affected them.

This is such a lovely and cozy story, perfect for reading before bed. The world of dreams is whimsical and it’s fun to imagine that this is what happens when we fall asleep. The sequel to this book, The Dallergut Dream-Making District, is equally as enjoyable. This book is recommended for people who enjoy cozy fantasies, and those who would like a relaxing and whimsical break from life.

If you like The Dallergut Dream Department Store, you might also like:

Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop

by Bo-Reum Hwang

Bloomsbury Publishing, 2024. 301 pages. General Fiction.

Yeongju is burned out. She did everything she was supposed to: go to university, marry a decent man, get a respectable job. Then it all fell apart. In a leap of faith, Yeongju abandons her old life, quits her high-flying career, and follows her dream. She opens a bookshop. In a quaint neighbourhood in Seoul, surrounded by books, Yeongju and her customers take refuge. From the lonely barista to the unhappily married coffee roaster, and the writer who sees something special in Yeongju - they all have disappointments in their past. The Hyunam-dong Bookshop becomes the place where they all learn how to truly live. A heart-warming story about finding comfort and acceptance in your life - and the healing power of books, Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop is a gentle reminder that it's never too late to scrap the plot and start again.

The Full-Moon Coffee Shop

by Mai Mochizuki

Ballantine Books, 2024. 228 pages. General Fiction.

In Japan, cats are a symbol of good luck. As the myth goes, if you are kind to them, they'll one day return the favor. And if you are kind to the right cat, you might just find yourself invited to a mysterious coffee shop under a glittering Kyoto moon. This particular coffee shop is like no other. It has no fixed location, no fixed hours, and seemingly appears at random to adrift young people at crucial junctions in their lives. It's also run by talking cats. While customers at the Full Moon Coffee Shop partake in cakes and coffees and teas, the cats also consult them on their star charts, offer cryptic wisdom, and let them know where their lives veered off course. Because every person who visits the shop has been feeling more than a little lost. And for a down-on-her-luck screenwriter, a romantically stuck movie director, a hopeful hairstylist, and a technologically challenged website designer, the coffee shop's feline guides will set them back on their fated paths.

If Wishes Were Retail

by Auston Habershaw

Tachyon Publications, 2025. 226 pages. Sci-Fi & Fantasy.

In this hilarious debut fantasy cozy, a rebellious--but enterprising--young woman and an ancient--but clueless--genie set up shop at the local mall. Alex Delmore needs a miracle. She wants out of her dead-end suburban town, but her parents are broke and NYU seems like a distant dream. Good thing there's a genie in town--and he's hiring at the Wellspring Mall. It'd help if the Jinn-formerly-of-the-Ring-of-Khorad knew even one thing about 21st-century America. It'd help if he weren't at least as stubborn as Alex. It'd really help if her brother didn't sell her out to her conspiracy theory-loving, gnome-hating dad. When Alex and the genie set up their wishing kiosk, they face seemingly-endless setbacks. The mall is failing and management will not stop interfering on behalf of their big-box tenants. But when the wishing biz might start working, the biggest problem of all remains: People are really terrible at wishing.

Reclaiming Quiet: cultivating a life of holy attention

2026-03-02T15:46:00.004-07:00

Reclaiming Quiet: cultivating a life of holy attention
By Sarah Clarkson
Baker Books, 2024. 188 pages. Nonfiction

Recapture wonder and learn to live by the healing shapes and rhythms of stillness In a restless and distracted world, the cultivation of quiet often feels abstract and impossible. But quiet is, and always has been, essential to spiritual life, the only way we can turn from the frenzy toward the peace for which we were created. Reclaiming Quiet is an invitation to discover the profound, daily joy of resisting patterns of anxiety and hurry and cultivating a life of holy attention instead. With practical strategies to address our use of screens or fear of silence and compassionate ideas to nourish stillness, listening, and rest, this book explores: what it means to become a person who listens each day for God's voice before all others; how to reclaim wonder in prayer; how to cultivate an interior life. Quiet is not for specialists or the ultra-disciplined. It's not limited to those who have great swathes of time. Quiet is our inner native land, the place to which we turn to find God already waiting, calling us beloved, and drawing us homeward into a life of holy and joyous attention.

From the first page of this short yet powerful book, I was deeply moved. I wanted to read it all at once, absorb what it was saying, but also I wanted to linger over it, ponder the questions that Clarkson has at the end of each chapter, linger over the beautiful prayers she has written. Though her life sounds romantic - living in a Victorian house in Oxford, England, Clarkson doesn't shy away from sharing her struggles throughout her life with mental health, and the ways in which she struggles from day to day. Her suggestions are humble and beautiful, she never comes across as a privileged or condescending. Her descriptions of experiences, landscapes and decisions she's faced were relatable and touching to me. I would recommend this to anyone who is grappling with the distractions of modern life and technology and is seeking both to become more grounded, and to deepen their understanding of God, whichever branch of Christianity you might belong to.

If you like Reclaiming Quiet, you might also like:

Seeking Slow: reclaim moments of calm in your day

By Melanie Barnes

Rock Point, 2019. 128 pages. Nonfiction

Seeking Slow provides you with the tools you need to slow down and reconnect with the harmonious rhythm of daily life, the gentle pace of nature, and, most importantly, yourself.

The Power of Silence

By Robert Cardinal Sarah

Ignatius Press, 2017. 249 pages. Nonfiction

In a time when technology penetrates our lives in so many ways and materialism exerts such a powerful influence over us, Cardinal Robert Sarah presents a bold book about the strength of silence. The modern world generates so much noise, he says, that seeking moments of silence has become both harder and more necessary than ever before. Silence is the indispensable doorway to the divine, explains the cardinal in this profound conversation with Nicolas Diat. Within the hushed and hallowed walls of the La Grande Chartreux, the famous Carthusian monastery in the French Alps, Cardinal Sarah addresses the following questions: Can those who do not know silence ever attain truth, beauty, or love? Do not wisdom, artistic vision, and devotion spring from silence, where the voice of God is heard in the depths of the human heart? After the international success of God or Nothing, Cardinal Sarah seeks to restore to silence its place of honor and importance. "Silence is more important than any other human work," he says, "for it expresses God. The true revolution comes from silence; it leads us toward God and others so as to place ourselves humbly and generously at their service."

MGB

Agnes Aubert's Mystical Cat Shelter

2026-02-27T18:39:00.002-07:00

Agnes Aubert’s Mystical Cat Shelter

by Heather Fawcett

Del Rey, 2026. 368 pages. Fantasy

As the proudly type-A manager of a cat rescue charity, Agnes Aubert has devoted her life to finding forever homes for stray cats. Now it's the shelter that needs a new home. And the only landlord who will rent a space to a cat rescue is a mysterious man called Havelock--who also happens to be running an illegal magic shop out of his basement. Havelock is cantankerous and eccentric, but not not handsome, and no, Agnes absolutely does not feel anything but disdain for him. After all, rumors swirl about his shadowy past--including whispers that his dark magic once almost brought about the apocalypse. Then one day a glamorous magician comes looking for Havelock, putting the magic shop--and the cat shelter--in jeopardy. To save the shelter, Agnes will have to team up with the magician who nearly ended the world . . . and may now be trying to steal her heart.

This book is a comforting little pick-me-up perfect for stressful times. Set in a magical version of 1920s Montreal, Agnes Aubert’s Mystical Cat Shelter crosses a variety of genres – it’s a little bit of historical fiction, fantasy, and romance all in one – making it a good fit for cozy reads fans of all stripes. I appreciated that instead of yet another 18-early 20-something fantasy heroine, Agnes Aubert is 34 years old and widowed. She’s organized, kind, and practical (reminding me of many librarians I’ve known), and an enjoyable foil to chaotic Havelock. And if you’re a cat-owner, you’re likely to discover at least one charming feline character who reminds you of your own furry friend.

If you like Agnes Aubert’s Mystical Cat Shelter, you might also like:

The Ornithologist’s Field Guide to Love

by India Holton

Berkley Romance, 2024. 361 pages. Fantasy

Beth Pickering is on the verge of finally capturing the rare deathwhistler bird when Professor Devon Lockley swoops in, capturing both her bird and her imagination like a villain. Albeit a handsome and charming villain, but that's beside the point. As someone highly educated in the ruthless discipline of ornithology, Beth knows trouble when she sees it, and she is determined to keep her distance from Devon. For his part, Devon has never been more smitten than when he first set eyes on Professor Beth Pickering. She's so pretty, so polite, so capable of bringing down a fiery, deadly bird using only her wits. In other words, an angel. Devon understands he must not get close to her, however, since they're professional rivals. When a competition to become Birder of the Year by capturing an endangered caladrius bird is announced, Beth and Devon are forced to team up to have any chance of winning. Now keeping their distance becomes a question of one bed or two. But they must take the risk, because fowl play is afoot, and they can't trust anyone else--for all may be fair in love and war, but this is ornithology

The Spellshop

by Sarah Beth Durst

Bramble, 2024. 384 pages. Fantasy

Kiela, a librarian at the Great Library of Alyssium, and her assistant Caz, a magically sentient spider plant, have spent the last decade sequestered among the empire's most precious spellbooks, preserving their magic for the city's elite. Then a revolution begins and the library goes up in flames. She and Caz flee with all the spellbooks they can carry and head to a remote island Kiela never thought she'd see again: her childhood home. Taking refuge there, Kiela discovers, much to her dismay, a nosy--and very handsome--neighbor who can't take a hint and keeps showing up day after day to make sure she's fed and help fix up her new home. In need of income and reluctantly inspired by the beauty and people of the island who have welcomed her into their hearts, Kiela discovers something that even the bakery in town doesn't have: jam. With the help of an old recipe book her parents left her and a bit of illegal magic, her cottage garden is soon covered in ripe berries that become the town's, and her handsome neighbor's, new favorite confection. But magic can do more than make life a little sweeter, so Kiela decides to open the island's first-ever and much-needed secret spellshop.

Howls’ Moving Castle

by Diana Wynne Jones

Greenwillow Books, 1986. 212 pages. Fantasy

Sophie has the great misfortune of being the eldest of three daughters, destined to fail miserably should she ever leave home to seek her fate. But when she unwittingly attracts the ire of the Witch of the Waste, Sophie finds herself under a horrid spell that transforms her into an old lady. Her only chance at breaking it lies in the ever-moving castle in the hills: the wizard Howl's castle. To untangle the enchantment, Sophie must handle the heartless Howl, strike a bargain with a fire demon, and meet the Witch of the Waste head-on. Along the way, she discovers that there's far more to Howl—and herself—than first meets the eye.

SGR

A Letter to the Luminous Deep

2026-02-26T19:14:00.000-07:00

A Letter to the Luminous Deep
By Sylvie Cathrall
Hachette Book Group, 2024. 391 pages. Fantasy

A beautiful discovery outside the window of her underwater home prompts the reclusive E. to begin a correspondence with renowned scholar Henerey Clel. The letters they share are filled with passion, at first for their mutual interests, and then, inevitably, for each other. Together, they uncover a mystery from the unknown depths, destined to transform the underwater world they both equally fear and love. But by no mere coincidence, a seaquake destroys E.'s home, and she and Henerey vanish. A year later, E.'s sister Sophy, and Henerey's brother Vyerin, are left to solve the mystery, piecing together the letters, sketches and field notes left behind--and learn what their siblings' disappearance might mean for life as they know it.

This book is gorgeous. The vivid cover is what first drew me in, and the lush, descriptive contents of this book did not disappoint. The format is epistolary, but rather than mere letters back and forth, the reader is invited to explore snippets of diary entries, field guides, published works from within the world, poems, drawings, and even unfinished drafts of words that shy, anxious E. wishes that she could say, but ultimately never sends. I completely fell in love with the gentle, proper, scholarly manner of every letter, reminiscent of Jane Austin style regency. The author completely leaned into the romance of sitting down and formally penning a missive for a far-away acquaintance, and this romance was displayed nowhere better than in the obvious growing affection between E. and Henerey. This, alongside a truly charming friendship between Sophy and Vyerin, all took place in a backdrop of breath-taking bioluminescence of the deep ocean abyss and cheerful colors dancing in coastal coral reefs. From tone to visuals to worldbuilding and more, Cathrall offers an unmissable tour of the mysteries and magic of the Luminous Deep.

If you like Letter to the Luminous Deep, you might also like:

Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries
By Heather Fawcett Del Ray, 2023. 317 pages. Fantasy.

Cambridge professor Emily Wilde is good at many things: She is the foremost expert on dryadology, the study of faeries. She is a genius scholar and a meticulous researcher who is writing the world's first encylopedia of faerie lore. But Emily Wilde is not good at people. So when she arrives in the hardscrabble village of Hransvik, Emily has no intention of befriending the dashing and insufferably handsome Wendell Bambleby. But as Emily gets closer and closer to uncovering the secrets of the Hidden Ones--the most elusive of all faeries-- she also finds herself on the trail of another mystery: Who is Wendell Bambleby, and what does he really want? To find the answer, she'll have to unlock the greatest mystery of all--her own heart.

Ella Minnow Pea : A Novel in Letters
By Mark Dunn Anchor Books, 2002. 208 pages. Fiction.

Ella Minnow Pea is a girl living happily on the fictional island of Nollop off the coast of South Carolina. Nollop was named after Nevin Nollop, author of the immortal pangram, "The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog." Now Ella finds herself acting to save her friends, family, and fellow citizens from the encroaching totalitarianism of the island's Council, which has banned the use of certain letters of the alphabet as they fall from a memorial statue of Nevin Nollop.

Maggie; or, a Man and a Woman Walk into a Bar

2026-02-24T10:55:00.006-07:00

Maggie; or, a Man and a Woman Walk into a Bar

by Katie Yee

Summit Books, 2025. 200 pages. Fiction.

A man and a woman walk into a restaurant. The woman expects a lovely night filled with endless plates of samosas. Instead, she finds out her husband is having an affair with a woman named Maggie. A short while after, her chest starts to ache. She walks into an examination room, where she finds out the pain in her breast isn't just heartbreak--it's cancer. She decides to call the tumor Maggie. Unfolding in fragments over the course of the ensuing months, Maggie; Or, a Man and a Woman Walk into a Bar follows the narrator as she embarks on a journey of grief, healing, and reclamation. She starts talking to Maggie (the tumor), getting acquainted with her body's new inhabitant. She overgenerously creates a "Guide to My Husband: A User's Manual" for Maggie (the other woman), hoping to ease the process of discovering her ex-husband's whims and quirks. She turns her children's bedtime stories into retellings of Chinese folklore passed down by her own mother, in an attempt to make them fall in love with their shared culture--and to maybe save herself in the process.

This book is heavy but also funny. Darkly humorous is the term. As someone who has never been through a divorce or a cancer diagnosis I still found the main character and narrator relatable and sympathetic as a woman, mother and wife. The author writes in a leisurely, relaxed way but some words and phrases really struck me. I’m not one to underline passages in books but multiple times I found paragraphs I wanted to remember. This is one my favorite books I’ve read in the past 6 months.

If you like Maggie; or, a Man and a Woman Walk into a Bar you might also like:

Loved One

by Aisha Muharrar

Viking, 2025. 326 pages. Fiction.

When her first-love-turned-close-friend, Gabe, dies unexpectedly at twenty-nine, thirty-year-old Julia is launched into an intercontinental quest to recover his lost possessions. Her journey takes her from Los Angeles to London and into the murky realm of the past. It also sets Julia on a collision course with the last woman he loved, a guarded, self-possessed florist and restaurateur named Elizabeth, who insists on withholding Gabe's beloved guitar--one of the departed indie rock musician's dearest belongings--for reasons Julia can't understand. Both women, it turns out, have something to hide, and soon and themselves engaged in a complex dance of withholding and revelation. An emotional mystery spanning years, continents, and relationship statuses, Loved One introduces Aisha Muharrar as a novelist intimately attuned to the intricacies of love, memory, and ambiguous loss. An engrossing and profoundly moving coming-of-age story with a powerful love at its heart, Loved One is poised to become an instant classic.

Joan is Okay

by Weike Wang

Random House, 2022. 212 pages. Fiction.

When her first-love-turned-close-friend, Gabe, dies unexpectedly at twenty-nine, thirty-year-old Julia is launched into an intercontinental quest to recover his lost possessions. Her journey takes her from Los Angeles to London and into the murky realm of the past. It also sets Julia on a collision course with the last woman he loved, a guarded, self-possessed florist and restaurateur named Elizabeth, who insists on withholding Gabe's beloved guitar--one of the departed indie rock musician's dearest belongings--for reasons Julia can't understand. Both women, it turns out, have something to hide, and soon and themselves engaged in a complex dance of withholding and revelation. An emotional mystery spanning years, continents, and relationship statuses, Loved One introduces Aisha Muharrar as a novelist intimately attuned to the intricacies of love, memory, and ambiguous loss ... An engrossing and profoundly moving coming-of-age story with a powerful love at its heart, Loved One is poised to become an instant classic.

Heartburn

by Nora Ephron

Random House, 1996. 179 pages. Fiction.

Cookbook author Rachel Samstat--out of analysis and seven months pregnant--discovers that her husband is into analysis and an affair, and suffers six weeks of intensive heartburn.

Between Friends and Lovers

2026-02-13T15:39:00.000-07:00

Between Friends and Lovers
by Shirlene Obuobi
Avon, 2024. 357 pages. Romance.

As influencer Dr. Jojo, Josephine Boateng is a champion of self-love and overall health. In real life, Josephine is hung up on her best friend, and she struggles with depression. When Josephine meets debut author Malcolm Waters at a party, she takes the chance figure out what she really wants. But in a world where the lines between private and public are as blurred as those between friendship and love, can Josephine and Malcolm risk it all for something real?

In the hands of a different author, this book would have mostly been about a love triangle with a fake dating element (two tropes I usually love). Obuobi avoids leaning into these tropes, however, and in the process she hits on more truth about life and love. I appreciated that while this is a romance novel, falling in love doesn’t fix any character’s problems. Instead, it gives them someone to lean on when life gets hard. Malcolm and Josephine encourage each other to reach further than they would have on their own. This has been one of my favorite recent romance reads!

If you like Between Friends and Lovers you might also like:

Curvy Girl Summer
by Danielle Allen
Bramble, 2024. 360 pages. Romance

After a one-night stand with her clingy ex, Aaliyah James has an epiphany: this ain't it. She knows what she wants, and she's ready to move past casual hookups, flings, and situationships. But for her family, the clock is ticking—after all, she's almost thirty. And when they imply that her personality (and her body) might be too big to land a man, she lets them know they've gone too far—and her (nonexistent) man loves her curves, thank you very much. Now, she has seven weeks to find the perfect boyfriend to rub in their faces at the birthday celebration she's been planning.

The Wedding Date
by Jasmine Guillory
Jove, 2018. 310 pages. Romance

On the eve of his ex's wedding, Drew is minus a plus one. Until a power outage strands him with the perfect candidate for a fake girlfriend. From the best man's toast to the bouquet toss, Alexa and Drew have more fun than they ever thought possible. But before they know it, Drew has to fly back to Los Angeles and his job as a pediatric surgeon, and Alexa heads home to Berkeley, where she's the mayor's chief of staff. Too bad they can't stop thinking about the other. They're just two high-powered professionals on a collision course toward the long distance dating disaster of the century.

Yours Truly
by Abby Jimenez
Forever, 2023. 398 pages. Romance

After a horrible first meeting, Dr. Briana Ortiz is not impressed with Dr. Jacob Maddox. But just when all systems are set to hate, Jacob completely flips the game by sending Briana a letter. And it's a really good letter. Worse, he might be this fantastically funny and subversively likeable guy who's just terrible at first impressions.

The Correspondent

2026-02-11T15:24:00.002-07:00

The Correspondent

By Virginia Evans

Crown, 2025. 285 pages. Fiction

At 73, retired lawyer and devoted letter writer Sybil Van Antwerp navigates her daily life and reflects on her past, but when unexpected letters open old wounds, she must confront a painful chapter that reshapes her understanding of herself and her world.

This is a fantastic and engrossing read for relationship fiction lovers. It is equally yoked between snarky commentary and heartbreaking realizations. And if you are an audio-book listener this has an exceptional cast. Highly recommended.

If you liked The Correspondent, you might also like:

No Two Persons

By Erica Bauermeister

St. Martin's Press, 2023. 314 pages. Fiction

When a devastating event breaks her heart open, aspiring writer Alice creates a stunning debut novel in which her words find their way to readers, from a teenager hiding her homelessness to a widower rent by grief, who, due to her book, find new paths forward.

Remarkably Bright Creatures

By Shelby Van Pelt

Ecco, an imprint of Harper Collins Publishers, 2022. 360 pages. Fiction

A luminous debut novel about a widow's unlikely friendship with a giant Pacific octopus reluctantly residing at the local aquarium--and the truths she finally uncovers about her son's disappearance 30 years ago.

RBL

Tailored Realities

2026-02-09T12:45:00.002-07:00

Tailored Realities
By Brandon Sanderson
Tor/Tor Publishing Group, 2025. 428 pages. Science Fiction

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Brandon Sanderson―creator of The Stormlight Archive, the Mistborn saga, and numerous smash-hit works of science fiction and fantasy―comes Tailored Realities, a new short fiction collection including the never-before-published novella "Moment Zero." Spanning the genres of fantasy and science fiction, Tailored Realities includes ten works of short fiction from the ingenious mind of one of the genre's most beloved bestselling authors.

I was first introduced to Brandon Sanderson’s writings when I was working as a Provo City Library page a little over 20 years ago (I saw Alcatraz Vs the Evil Librarians listed on the Utah Library Association conference schedule, and needed to know what the heck that was all about), and he has published at least three times that many books since then! Having followed his work for so long, I was already familiar with most of the stories featured in this collection (some are available for free on his website), but four were new to me: “Brain Dump” reads like a new episode of The Twilight Zone, “Probability Approaching Zero” reminded me of some of Isaac Asimov’s cheekier short fiction, and “I Hate Dragons” is a funny twist on a familiar fantasy trope. “Moment Zero” is the main reason for which this collection exists, a brand new action-packed and mind-bending novella that is well worth the read. (The most non-spoiler way I can describe it is…the end of the world, but turned inside out?) This collection is both a fun treat for a longtime fan like me, and a good jumping-on point for a newcomer who might want to just sample Sanderson’s work without committing to an entire novel.

If you like Tailored Realities, you might also like:

Arcanum Unbounded
By Brandon Sanderson
Tor Books, 2016. 671 pages. Fantasy

Sanderson’s first short story collection explores the various worlds and magics of the Cosmere. This collection includes his Hugo Award-winning novella, The Emperor’s Soul, the spoiler-laden Mistborn: Secret History, and the brand-new novella, Edgedancer, from the Stormlight Archive.

Small Magic: Short Fiction 1977-2020
By Terry Brooks
Del Rey, 2020. 447 pages. Fantasy

Escape to worlds full of adventure and magic in the first-ever Terry Brooks short story collection, featuring both new and fan-favorite stories from all three of his major literary worlds: Shannara, Magic Kingdom, and The Word & The Void. The first short story collection from Terry Brooks offers readers both new and long-forgotten glimpses into all of Terry's most beloved worlds, plus one elegaic gem from a different world entirely.

Lake of Souls
By Ann Leckie
Orbit, 2024. 403 pages. Science Fiction

Journey across the stars of the Imperial Radch universe. Listen to the words of the Old Gods that ruled The Raven Tower. Learn the secrets of the mysterious Lake of Souls. And so much more, in this masterfully wide-ranging and immersive short fiction collection from award-winning author Ann Leckie.

LAH

Don't Open Your Eyes

2026-02-06T15:23:00.005-07:00

Don’t Open Your Eyes

by Liv Constantine

Bantam, 2025. 336 pages. General Fiction.

Annabelle Reynolds has everything she's ever wanted. A devoted husband, two wonderful daughters, and a career she loves. She couldn't be happier. So why is she suddenly plagued by disturbing dreams of a future where she hates her husband and her daughters' lives are at risk? At first, she chalks the dreams up to an overactive imagination. But when details from her dreams, details she couldn't possibly have predicted, begin to materialize, she realizes these aren't just dreams but rather premonitions of a terrifying future. They all point to a singular choice, an unknown moment that holds Annabelle's life in the balance. Then Annabelle has a dream that her daughter Scarlett is in immediate danger. Someone wants Scarlett dead, and Annabelle has no idea who or why. Suddenly, every choice she makes is fraught with peril, with no inkling of which move could bring this terrifying vision to life. As Annabelle's present life starts to collide with the future in her dreams, she wrestles with how much control she really has over her destiny and whether she can change what is meant to be.

This is a gripping book that hooks you right from the beginning. When aspects of the dreams start coming true, it keeps you guess just how much of the dreams will become reality. With lots of twists at the end, this book, while it can be slowly paced at times, is still a wild ride that is fun to read. Don’t Open Your Eyes is recommended for people who enjoy domestic thrillers, and is likely the type of book to pull you out of a reading slump.

If you like Don’t Open Your Eyes, you might also like:

Simultaneous

by Eric Heisserer

Flatiron Books, 2025. 278 pages. Science Fiction.

Federal agent Grant Lukather works for an unknown department of Homeland Security called Predictive Analytics. They look for patterns in tips and chatter to prevent a terrorist event before it happens. One of these calls, about a possible explosion in New Mexico, leads Grant to a case with unimaginable consequences. He meets Sarah Newcomb, a therapist who uses past-life hypnosis in her treatment but has recently stumbled upon a phenomenon that seems to defy logic. Grant follows this thread to another crime: a copycat killer case in Colorado. With the help of one of Sarah's patients, they embark upon an investigation that spans multiple states, timelines, and consciousnesses. With limited time and only a tenuous grasp of how this phenomenon works, the unlikely trio are in a race for their lives--past, present, and future.

Don’t Let Him In

by Lisa Jewell

Atria Books, 2025. 360 pages. General Fiction.

When charming Nick Radcliffe enters Nina's life, her daughter Ash grows suspicious, uncovering unsettling secrets that connect them to Martha, a florist with a husband who keeps disappearing, leading all three women toward a chilling truth they never expected.

Famous Last Words

by Gillian McAllister

William Morrow, 2025. 326 pages. General Fiction.

It is June 21st, the longest day of the year, and new mother Camilla's life is about to change forever. After months of maternity leave, she will drop her infant daughter off at daycare for the first time and return to her job as a literary agent. Finally. But after she arrives at the office, police officers storm the foyer: in the city, just near her work, a man has taken three hostages and is now in a tense standoff with law enforcement. And Luke, the person she's loved for more than a decade, the father of her child, is involved. But he is not a hostage. He is the kidnapper. All she has is a half-written cryptic note that Luke left for her. Seven years after the crime that shocked the nation, and her husband's subsequent disappearance, Camilla has slowly accepted that she will never have answers about what really happened that day. But just as she prepares to let Luke go for good, an anonymous location, sent to her by text message, reignites her suspicions about the kidnapping and sends her on a dangerous search for the truth. What follows is a propulsive, twisty story of motherhood, marriage, and the secrets at the heart of our closest relationships.

Cursed Daughters

2026-02-02T20:06:00.001-07:00

Cursed Daughters

by Oyinkan Braithwaite

Doubleday, 2025. 364 pages. Fiction

When Ebun gives birth to her daughter, Eniiyi, on the day they bury her cousin Monife, there is no denying the startling resemblance between the child and the dead woman. So begins the belief, fostered and fanned by the entire family, that Eniiyi is the actual reincarnation of Monife, fated to follow in her footsteps in all ways, including that tragic end. There is also the matter of a family curse which has been handed down from generation to generation, breaking hearts and causing three generations of abandoned Falodun women to live under the same roof. When Eniiyi falls in love with the handsome boy she saves from drowning, she can no longer run from her family’s history.

I was a fan of My Sister the Serial Killer, Braithwaite's sardonic debut, when I read it years ago, but the emotional richness in her most recent novel is a change of pace and a real treat. Utilizing a modern backdrop, the author creates a multigenerational tale that is easy to fall into without compromising on a complex and moving narrative. Braithwaite especially excels in creating rising tension that does not disrupt the romantic flow of her beautiful storytelling. The book's changing perspectives highlight each of the Faludon women and the way their fears and traumas become entangled through great love and loss. Despite our cultural and situational differences, I, as a daughter and sister, recognize the sincere (yet often misguided) ways the Falodun women try to help one another. I would recommend Cursed Daughters to many, especially those who enjoy themes of desire, grief, generational trauma, and fate.

If you like Cursed Daughters, you might also like:

Stay with Me

by Ayọ̀bámi Adébáyọ̀

Alfred A. Knopf, 2017. 257 pages. Fiction

Yejide and Akin fell in love and married while at university. Though many expected Akin to take several wives, he and Yejide agreed polygamy is not for them. But four years into their marriage-- after consulting fertility doctors and healers, trying strange teas and unlikely cures-- Yejide is still not pregnant. When her family arrives with a young woman they introduce as Akin's second wife, Yejide knows the only way to save her marriage is to get pregnant. She does--but at a cost far greater than she could have dared to imagine.

The Sirens

by Emilia Hart

St. Martin's Press, 2025. 337 pages. Fiction

2019: Lucy awakens from a dream to find her hands around her ex-lover's throat. Horrified, she flees to her older sister's house on the Australian coast, hoping she can help explain the strangely vivid nightmare that preceded the attack-but Jess is nowhere to be found. As Lucy awaits her return, the rumors surrounding Jess's strange small town start to emerge. Numerous men have gone missing at sea, spread over decades. A tiny baby was found hidden in a cave. And sailors tell of hearing women's voices on the waves. Desperate for answers, Lucy finds and begins to read her sister's adolescent diary.

Good Dirt

by Charmaine Wilkerson

Ballantine Books, 2025. 352 pages. Fiction

When ten-year-old Ebby Freeman heard the gunshot, time stopped. And when she saw her brother, Baz, lying on the floor surrounded by the shattered pieces of a centuries-old jar, life as Ebby knew it shattered as well. The last thing the Freemans want is another media frenzy splashing their family across the papers, but when Ebby's high profile romance falls apart without any explanation, that's exactly what they get. So Ebby flees to France, only for her past to follow her there. And as she tries to process what's happened, she begins to think about the other loss her family suffered on that day eighteen years ago--the stoneware jar that had been in their family for generations, brought North by an enslaved ancestor. But little does she know that the handcrafted piece of pottery held more than just her family's history--it might also hold the key to unlocking her own future.

Bog Queen: a novel

2026-02-02T17:10:00.004-07:00

Bog Queen: a novel
By: Anna North
Bloomsbury Publishing, 2025. 264 pages. Fiction

When a body is found in a bog in northwest England, Agnes, an American forensic anthropologist, is called to investigate. Agnes has always been more comfortable with the dead than the living, but this body is not like any she's ever seen. Though its bones prove it was buried more than two thousand years ago, it is almost completely preserved. The mystery of the Iron Age body draws the attention of numerous groups with competing interests : the archaeologists who want to study the surrounding bog, the peat-cutters who want to profit from the land's resources, and a group of environmental activists and neo-pagans who demand the body be returned to its resting place and that the moss-layered bog -- a marvel of carbon capture on a warming planet -- be left undisturbed. Then there's the moss itself ; a complex repository of artifacts and remains, with its own dark stories to tell. As Agnes is drawn into the controversy stirred by the body and its habitat, she must face not only the deep history of what she has unearthed, but also the relationships she has forsworn in her bid for independence.

From the first page, I was hooked. North has a lyrical way of describing Agnes and the way she looks at people - both the living and the dead. I was fascinated by how she could read people's trauma, pain or fear by the way they walked or stood. The novel is told from several viewpoints: the moss, Agnes, and the Bog Queen herself (a woman from the Iron Age), and they all weave together magically. I feel as though the author was heavily influenced by the "Lindow Man", a well-preserved bog body discovered in the Lindow Moss in 1983 ('The Life and Death of a Druid Prince' is a very readable nonfiction book about the study of his body and what they suppose his life was like). The historical details, archaeology and the emotional journey that Agnes experiences are all fascinating elements to the story. I would highly recommend this unique novel.

If you like Bog Queen, you might also like:

Ancestors, a prehistory of Britain in seven burials

By: Alice Roberts

Simon & Schuster Ltd, 2021. 431 pages. Nonfiction.

'Most of what we know about our Anglo-Saxon ancestors comes from their graves, ' said Tony Robinson in the opening to a 2001 Time Team episode about the excavation of an Anglo-Saxon cemetery. He wasn't wrong. But this isn't only true of the Anglo-Saxons. Graves provide us with an extraordinarily detailed picture of the past. We may be looking at someone long dead, but we learn as much about life in the past, as we do about death, from these remains. Now, in her superb new book Ancestors, Alice Roberts investigates seven British graves to discover all that we can learn about our forebears, dating back to Neanderthal times some 220,000 years ago in North Wales right up to the Iron Age burial site in Pocklington, Yorkshire, dating back about 2500 years. The seven burials in this book stand out because they are so rich in detail, so emblematic of a particular time and place, or because they tell us unexpected things about our ancestors.

The Last Neanderthal

By: Claire Cameron

Little Brown and Company, 2017. 277 pages. Fiction

40,000 years in the past, the last family of Neanderthals roams the earth. After a crushingly hard winter, their numbers are low, but Girl, the oldest daughter, is just coming of age and her family is determined to travel to the annual meeting place and find her a mate. But the unforgiving landscape takes its toll, and Girl is left alone to care for Runt, a foundling of unknown origin. As Girl and Runt face the coming winter storms, Girl realizes she has one final chance to save her people, even if it means sacrificing part of herself. In the modern day, archaeologist Rosamund Gale works well into her pregnancy, racing to excavate newly found Neanderthal artifacts before her baby comes. Linked across the ages by the shared experience of early motherhood, both stories examine the often taboo corners of women's lives. Haunting, suspenseful, and profoundly moving, THE LAST NEANDERTHAL asks us to reconsider all we think we know about what it means to be human.

The Crossing Places

By: Elly Griffiths

Mariner Books, 2010. 303 pages. Mystery

When a child's bones are found near an ancient henge in the wild saltmarshes of Norfolk's north coast, Ruth Galloway, a university lecturer in forensic archaeology, is asked to date them by DCI Harry Nelson who thinks they may be the bones of a child called Lucy who has been missing for ten years.

MGB

Small Things Like These

2025-12-26T15:03:00.006-07:00

Small Things Like These
By: Keegan, Claire
Grove Press, 2021. 116 pages. Fiction

In a small Irish town in 1985, coal merchant and family man, Bill Furlong, while delivering an order to the local convent, makes a discovery that forces him to confront both his past and the complicit silences of a town controlled by the church.

In the days leading up to Christmas, the main character Bill is weighed down by the monotony and demands of his life. Working hard to provide for his family he wonders what it is all for? The author Keegan writes beautifully as she describes the intricacies of Bill's place in his small Irish community and his relationships with his family. Through moving dialogue, you are placed within his internal struggle and feel the weight of the choices he has to make. This book is perfect for the holidays, as it grounds you in what is really important. Though short, it packs a punch with poignant and lyrical writing. I read it in one sitting and was engrossed by the story. This impactful story will inspire the reader to stand up for the oppressed and to have the courage to do the right thing in the face of opposition.

If you like Small Things Like These, you might also like:

The Deal of a Lifetime

Atria Books, 2017. 65 pages. Fiction

A holiday novella about a successful businessman contemplating the choices he made in his life and the little girl battling cancer who provides him with the inspiration he needs

Time of the Child

Bloomsbury Publishing. 2024. 287 pages. Fiction

In the Advent season of 1962, Doctor Jack Troy and his daughter Ronnie, long isolated from their small Irish town of Faha, find their lives and their understanding of family and community transformed when a baby is unexpectedly left in their care.

Betting on You

2025-12-18T20:28:00.002-07:00

Betting on You

By Lynn Painter

Simon & Schuster BFYR, 2023. 425 pages. Young Adult

Seventeen-year-old Bailey isn’t excited to start a new job at a hotel waterpark—especially when she discovers an old acquaintance, Charlie, is a coworker. The two clashed a year earlier during Bailey’s emotional move after her parents’ divorce, and they’re still opposites now. Yet, as they bond over gossiping about guests and coworkers, Bailey finds herself enjoying Charlie’s company. When they make a bet over whether a flirty pair will actually get together, Charlie argues that boys and girls can’t be just friends, while Bailey is determined to prove him wrong. As they track other people’s romances, Charlie hides his growing feelings for Bailey. Fake dating to appease Bailey’s mom only complicates things, blurring the line between pretense and reality. But Charlie is keeping a secret—one that could jeopardize everything before their relationship truly begins.

First, can I just say how I love the way the book cover depicts Bailey and Charlie’s journey? It’s adorable and very fitting. Like so many YA romances, there are plenty of ups, downs, and please just communicate! moments. Still, I’m a sucker for the enemies-to-lovers, forced proximity, and fake dating tropes. I breezed through this 400+ page book, probably because it’s so fast-paced and had a lot of wit and banter that kept me chuckling. Bailey and Charlie struggle with the divorce of each of their parents, but find a sense of solace in their shared experiences that brings them closer together. I really loved their journeys individually, together, as well as with their friends and family. I would easily recommend this to someone looking for a nice, YA contemporary romance.

If you liked Betting on You, you might also like:

Hot Dog Girl

By Jennifer Dugan

G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 2019. 311 pages. Young Adult

A lovesick teenager schemes to win the heart of her crush at her amusement park summer job, all while dressed as a hot dog.

The Right Side of Reckless

By Whitney D. Grandison

Inkyard Press, 2021. 405 pages. Young Adult

Working at the local community center, Guillermo Lozano meets the one girl who is off limits, and as friendship—and something more—blossoms between them, he decides to break the rules and be a little bit reckless.

ACS

The Rose Bargain

2025-12-17T10:52:00.004-07:00

The Rose Bargain

By Sasha Peyton Smith

Harper, 2025. 385 pages. Young Adult

For four hundred years, England has been under the control of an immortal fae queen who tricked her way onto the throne. To maintain an illusion of benevolence, Queen Mor grants each of her subjects one opportunity to bargain for their deepest desire. As Ivy Benton prepares to make her debut, she knows that not even a deal with the queen could fix what has gone wrong: Her family's social standing is in shambles, her sister is a shadow of her former self, and Ivy's marriage prospects are nonexistent. So, when the queen announces a competition for Prince Bram's hand, Ivy is the first to sign her name in blood. Ivy soon finds herself a surprising front-runner—with the help of an unexpected ally: Prince Bram's brother, the rakish Prince Emmett, who promises to help Ivy win his brother's heart...for a price.

Someone recommended this book to me, but I can’t remember who, and I’m so glad they did! I really enjoyed this young adult romantasy. Set in 1840s England, it’s a fun blend of fantasy, romance, a dash of battle royale, all wrapped with a bow of court intrigue. It’s fast-paced and suspenseful, which kept me going after I’d been in a pretty solid reading slump. The worst part about reading this book is that it’s the first in a series, and I read it before the next book’s release! Easily recommended by me, The Rose Bargain is a clever, compulsively readable start to a series that knows exactly how to enchant, and how to leave you wanting more.

If you liked The Rose Bargain, you might also like:

The Selection

By Kiera Cass

HarperTeen, 2012. 327 pages. Young Adult

America Singer is chosen to compete in the Selection--a contest to see which girl can win the heart of Illea's prince--but all she really wants is a chance for a future with her secret love, Aspen, who is a caste below her.

The Cruel Prince

By Holly Black

Little, Brown and Company, 2018. 370 pages. Young Adult

Jude, seventeen and mortal, gets tangled in palace intrigues while trying to win a place in the treacherous High Court of Faerie, where she and her sisters have lived for a decade.

ACS