One Last Stop by Casey McQuinston (St. Martin's Griffin)
Sometimes you want a fun, slightly angsty novel with a little bit of magic sprinkled in for a pleasant afternoon read. If that is the case, this is the sapphic romance novel you were looking for.
- C.B.
Rules of Civility by Amor Towles (Penquin Books)
In Amor Towles' early novel we are transported to the decadent sometimes debauched New York City of the year 1938. The sassy tone and staccato style of Katie Kontent's narrative reminds one of Fitzgerald's world of music and late nights in neighborhood decades from gentrification. The sweet finale of friends claiming friends, saying their name at the start of each day, however, recalls a more gentle voice and reminds us all that a photograph is just the first line of the story.
- H.S.
Harlem Shuffle by Colson Whitehead (Random House)
Whitehead’s colorful cast of characters come to life in 1960s Harlem. Ray is a furniture salesman with a criminal past that keeps in the shadows of his present life.
- K.F.
The Push by Ashley Audrain (Penguin Books)
This book has both suspense and depth, as Audrain explores the complex emotions of motherhood when there is a bond with one child and not with another. The reader is left to wonder whether her daughter is truly evil or if the narrator is losing her mind.
- K.F.
Malice by Heather Walter (Del Rey Books)
What if the villain fell in love with the princess? That is the story Walter tells in this queer retelling of Sleeping Beauty. An incredibly intense fantasy romance you’ll thank for breaking your heart.
- C.B.
Something Wicked by E.X. Ferras (Felony & Mayhem)
OK, it is cozy, but a deftly written cozy set in the winter in an English village. Right up my alley with a retired professor seeking respite from the redecorating of his London digs (wonderfully described) in his nephew’s all-electric cottage. The hot murder mystery contrasts with the ice of the power outage. Something Wicked by E. X. Ferras (Felony & Mayhem) is waiting for those seeking schadenfreude while living in very icy NE Ohio.
- M.W.
Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr (Scribner Book Company)
This masterfully written novel follows an array of characters across time and the world. Ultimately, when given the choice between paradise and home, what decision do we make?
- K.F.
Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi (Henry Holt & Company)
An amazing story of rebellion with an almost mythical feel to the narrative. With a sprinkle of an enemies-to-lovers plotline, you won’t be able to put it down.
- C.B.
Better Luck Next Time by Julia Claiborne Johnson (Custom House)
Take the year 1938, combining a dude ranch outside of Reno catering to women looking to shed their spouses, two too handsome ranch hands, a splash of champagne, then stir gently and pour over a narrator who is in for quite a surprise, and voila....a perfect escape-the-snow read!
- H.S.
Piranesi by Susanna Clarke (Bloomsbury Publishing)
Piranesi lives in a labyrinthian world of an infinite house with thousands of statues and an imprisoned ocean; he is visited twice a week by another character, “The Other,” who is not as he appears. A World Fantasy Awards Finalist, this novel is mysterious, intriguing, and a page-turner.
- H.S.