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In this thriller, star investigative reporter Samantha Fuller joins a feisty Cape Cod fisherwoman to foil a wind farm developer’s evil plot to poison precious ocean scallop beds—and finds herself facing off against right-wing climate deniers. In Provincetown, MA, feisty scallop fisherwoman Isabella Ferreira goes up against a sleazy wind farm developer, Olaf Svensson, who wants to install wind turbines in the ocean right off the coast of Cape Cod. At a nearby scallop hatchery, marine biologists Leif and Astrid Borgen are already using the new gene editing technique CRISPR to insert a growth hormone gene into scallop embryos to make them bigger and thus more profitable—all of which is legal. But unbeknownst to the hatchery owner, Svensson is also paying the pair to insert another gene—one that causes PSP, paralytic shellfish poisoning. If this works, no one will ever eat scallops from this site again, thus freeing it up for Svensson’s turbines. Enter Pulitzer Prize–winning Boston Times reporter Samantha Fuller. Together with Isabella, she slowly uncovers Svensson’s deadly plot—but not before hundreds of people die. Along the way, love blossoms, tragedies occur, and the subtleties of the pro- and anti-wind power groups are exposed. Author: Judy Foreman Publication Date: August 11, 2026 -
For fans of Jodi Picoult and Bonnie Garmus, an illuminating novel about a mother struggling to raise a healthy neurodivergent child with a husband worn down by depression. When Julie Crawford’s whirlwind four-year-old is kicked out of preschool, suspected of having ADHD—likely genetic—her husband moans from his recliner that “even my genes are failures.” At work, Julie is a high school math teacher who requires her students to solve complex problems. But faced with an unsafe daycare home and no other daycare openings, a husband who hates the idea of labeling their son as a “problem,” and a supervisor who’s angry at the amount of time she’s taking off school, she’s at a loss for how to come up with a solution to this particular dilemma. Julie’s struggle to help her son ultimately demands a number of mindset shifts: a willingness to become a student and ask for help, a humble acceptance of her errors, a burgeoning strength to reckon with a dominant father and retreating husband—and the self-confidence to trust her instincts when it comes to deciding on the best next steps for her son. Author: Lorelei Brush Publication Date: August 11, 2026 -
Perfect for fans of Mona Awad and Maria Semple, this gripping, offbeat journey through modern-day Los Angeles is a genre-blending, darkly humorous exploration of suburban life, conspiracy theories, and spiritual awakening. A page-turning psychological trip for anyone who’s ever wondered if all their crazy ideas . . . might actually be right. Joan is a middle-aged punk rocker turned housewife who’s seen too many TikToks to trust the official narrative. The moon landing? Faked. Weather? Controlled. Food? Poisoned. Her suspicions ignite when a strange new neighbor—possibly a dead astronaut with ties to secret ops—arrives on her block. As Joan spirals deeper into the rabbit hole, she begins to question everything: her marriage, her sanity, and her soul’s purpose. Armed with a mystical book and a fading voice that once shook LA punk clubs, she sets out on a spiritual journey through canyon trails, desert portals, and shadow realms to expose the truth—and reclaim her power. Author: Alexandra Fleder Publication Date: August 11, 2026 -
For fans of My Dark Vanessa and The Secret History, a gripping campus thriller about a determined young professor who challenges a corrupt academic system, confronts a predator in power, and refuses to stay silent—even when her quest turns deadly. A brilliant young professor. A powerful advisor with everything to lose. A university campus hiding deadly secrets. It’s 1998, and Dr. Lacey Redd is on the verge of tenure—and under the thumb of her department chair, the arrogant and celebrated Dr. Geoffrey Hart. When Lacey begins to suspect Hart of falsifying his research, she quietly teams up with a tech-savvy colleague to uncover the truth. But before they can break the case, her partner turns up dead in the campus library. As Lacey digs deeper, she uncovers something even darker: Hart has been preying on female graduate students for years. When he attacks her at a department party, Lacey fights back—leaving him injured and exposed. A new department head steps in, and with Hart out of the picture, it seems justice has finally been served. But someone on campus is still watching. And they’ve decided Lacey knows too much. Author: Cheryl Miller Dellasega Publication Date: August 4, 2026 -
Dan Millman’s Way of the Peaceful Warrior meets Dave Eggers’s The Circle in this exhilarating tale, which marries visionary and political fiction together into a nail-biting, high-stakes thriller. Cybersecurity whiz Jedd finds himself held captive, strapped to the ground in a dark tunnel, without food or water. June’s campaign website has been hacked and she is viciously attacked by protesters. Darah flashes back to the terror of life under the dictatorship in the States, when her mother was deported. Just when this group of friends thought they had defeated their enemies, they’re faced with not one but multiple immediate threats. Rumors and accusations are flying, and the future of the democratic nation of California is at stake. Can they figure out who is telling the truth and who is lying before it’s too late? A taut combination of political, techno-thriller, and metaphysical fiction that’s scaffolded on three realities—the ancient wisdom of the Bhagavad Gita, our current post-truth world, and the near future—this sequel to The Die is a fast-paced story about friendship, courage, and how to restore and revitalize truth. Author: Jude Berman Publication Date: August 4, 2026 -
For fans of Pachinko and Half of a Yellow Sun, an intimate debut novel about immigration, marriage, and vengeance politics told through the eyes of four Bengali teenagers in two vastly different time periods. In 1970s Sylhet, eleven-year-old Sumaya is the daughter of a wealthy Bengali aristocrat who lives unaware of the Liberation War against West Pakistan and the cost of independence she will soon pay. In the same city, fifteen-year-old Murshed lives without hope for the future, knowing that his father’s religious and political stance has painted his family as razakar—traitors—a death sentence if West Pakistan loses the war. Then, one day, their paths cross and a single encounter upends both their lives forever. Forty years later, Sumaya’s third daughter, Hinna, and Murshed’s eldest son, Burhaan, lock eyes at a family gathering. The two, reunited flames, live vastly different lives: Hinna has grown up in America, far from the chaos of the war but stuck in an endless cycle of tradition. Burhaan has lived his entire life in Sylhet, attempting to start over despite the never-ending vengeance against razakar families. But drawn to each other as they are, they soon find out that plans for Hinna’s future are already in motion. Connected by the far reaches of tyranny and tradition, these families discover what’s found and lost—dreaming of a Bangladesh free from dictatorship and holding the silent hope of paradise. Author: Samiha Hoque Publication Date: August 4, 2026 -
For fans of Connie Willis, Lucy Lyons, and Janet Evanovich, a debut cozy mystery with a speculative bent, set in Ann Arbor, that’s replete with wormholes, incorrigible pets, and delightfully quirky characters. When Allie Caldwell gets a rambling middle-of-the-night call from her very excited aunt Mel, she initially curbs her concern; her aunt has always been a bit eccentric, after all. But when Mel disappears before telling anyone what has her so worked up, Allie drops everything –even her better judgement—to fly to Ann Arbor and find her. In the ensuing days, Allie inexplicably ignores her gut instincts (and some weird dream-based warnings from angry flying squirrels) and accepts help in the search from her aunt’s handsome, enigmatic neighbor George Bennet. In order to discern how virtual reality goggles, innovative migraine research, hidden treasure, attack drones, and a neighborhood trellis are all connected to the case, they’ll need to survive bungled bids of help from Allie’s well-meaning brother, hidden agendas from multiple neighbors, constant interruptions from Mel’s itinerant Chihuahua and his exuberant pit bull puppy pal—and even some attempts on their lives. Author: D. E. Carr Publication Date: July 28, 2026 -
For fans of The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, an epistolary memoir about two young women’s friendship across continents and decades—an enduring connection kept alive by the simple act of written correspondence. When Ruth’s family migrates from Brazil to North America in 1964, she and her best friend, Elana, are forced to separate. They decide to keep in touch via written correspondence—an exchange that ultimately persists for twenty years. From São Paulo, Elana writes candidly with warmth, dedication, and support, easing Ruth’s assimilation to first Canada, then the United States. Lonely and uprooted, Ruth derives solace from the friendship and the correspondence. As both girls mature and embark on a life in different countries and cultures, their bonds transcend their differences. They remain friends for life. Fifty years after parting, Ruth and Elana re-read aloud the letters that they exchanged as young women. The experience of hearing their words written in letters and sent like a bridge across the continent and half a lifetime is a revelation that stuns the friends: the antecedent voice spoken in the concrete voice of the present. Author: Ruth Zelig Publication Date: July 28, 2026 -
A heartwarming dual-perspective memoir for fans of The Ride of Her Life and Horse Crazy, The Brat and the Bullfighter explores how a misunderstood Lusitano stallion and an uprooted Army brat find healing, belonging, and each other. Some horses don’t just change your life, they save it. Arty’s blood runs hot. White hot. A white Lusitano stallion with bullfighting in his bones, he was born on a prestigious Brazilian farm and sold through an elite auction to a private ranch in California. There, human misunderstanding dims his brilliance. Rider after rider mistakes his sensitivity for defiance, eroding his confidence and trust. As an Army brat, Erin relates. She grew up always moving—the perpetual new kid, never quite belonging, rarely feeling understood. Her love for horses was her only constant. So, when Arty’s owner recognizes he needs something different and offers to sell him to her, she can’t refuse. What follows isn’t a fairytale. Erin questions everything: her choices, her ability, whether she’s helping or hurting him. But when unexpected loss shatters her, Arty steps forward to light a path through darkness. Told from both human and horse perspectives, The Brat and the Bullfighter is a dual coming-of-age memoir about trust, love, and the bond that forms between two souls who, in finding each other, finally find home. Author: Erin O’Malley Publication Date: July 28, 2026 -
For fans of Roisín O’Donnell’s Nesting, an intense, suspenseful story of a young mother’s fight to save herself after the man she thought was her white knight turns out to be just as dangerous as the man he helped her escape. After twenty-one-year-old Emily Miller flees her ex-husband, Lee, with the exterminator she hired to kill hornets in her backyard, she finally feels safe. Jake Clayton offers Emily and her daughter a beautiful place to live where neither Lee nor her mother, who wants custody of Jenna, can find them. Unlike Lee, Jake has a steady job, doesn’t drink (she’s never met a man who doesn’t), and doesn’t hit. And he doesn’t think Emily is too much—too mouthy (Lee), too large (her mother), too extra. Isolated in a cabin in the Santa Cruz mountains with only a three-year-old for company, Emily distracts herself from the liquor cabinet and from worrying that Lee will track her down by planning a surprise for Jake: a reunion with the sisters he hasn’t seen since foster care. But the deeper she digs into Jake’s past, the less he seems like the man she trusts—and when she learns Lee has disappeared, she suspects Jake could have done . . . something. But that’s ridiculous, right? Sure, Jake is bossy about where she goes and who she sees. Sure, he has a temper. But murder? That’s just her being dramatic—like Lee and her mother always say she is. Right? Author: Catherine Marshall-Smith Publication Date: July 21, 2026 -
For fans of The Many Lives of Mama Love and the many women struggling with addiction while raising families, a candid recovery memoir chronicling one suburban New Jersey mother’s journey from secret vodka binges to sobriety. Liz Jannuzzi’s life is unraveling: a failing marriage, three young children to care for, and a vodka bottle hidden behind the coffee maker. Her alcoholism, a family legacy that has already claimed her brother’s life, threatens to destroy everything she loves. When a shocking confession about an affair forces Liz to admit to her drinking problem, she reluctantly attends her first AA meeting. There, surrounded by women who understand her struggles, she’s given a lifeline: “You never have to feel this way again.” She commits to getting sober—and through the Twelve Steps, she confronts the wreckage of her past while rebuilding her marriage and reclaiming her role as a mother. With unflinching honesty and unexpected humor—never once shying away from the messiness of recovery (the awkward amends, the persistent cravings, the haunting grief that alcohol once numbed)—Liz takes readers through her journey from hiding empty bottles to celebrating milestones of sobriety. In doing so, she illuminates the complex challenges of motherhood and marriage and offers hope to anyone struggling with alcoholism. Raw and heartfelt, Sober Mom is a powerful testament to resilience and the possibility of transformation, one day at a time. Author: Elizabeth Jannuzzi Publication Date: July 21, 2026 -
A haunting, emotionally charged novel about the burden of being a woman, the grip of childhood trauma, and a mother’s fight to reclaim her life before losing her daughter—and herself—forever. When Delia lands a coveted spot with a prestigious New York ballet company, she steps into a world of beauty, betrayal, and brutal ambition—while her mother, Victoria, is left behind to confront the wreckage of her own unrealized dreams and long-buried trauma. A cryptic prophecy shadows their lives and as Delia’s path toward womanhood is marred by injury and manipulation, Victoria embarks on a tender, midlife metamorphosis—rekindling her own desire and learning, too late, that letting go is not the same as giving up. Told with lyrical grace and unflinching honesty, this haunting, feminist portrait of art, sacrifice, and rebirth reminds us: life dances on, a tragic ballet. Author: Janette DeFelice Publication Date: July 14, 2026 -
For fans of Little Fires Everywhere, a novel that explores the ambiguities of motherhood and salvation through the anguished relationship between a troubled, undocumented Mexican teenager and the grieving, upper-middle-class mother who takes her in. After the drug overdose of her teenage son, Helen, a privileged white woman, takes in Mia, a troubled and undocumented Mexican teenager. Although they initially fill each other’s voids, Helen’s lofty expectations of Mia eventually test that bond and Mia, tortured by guilt and starved for affection, runs off with Diego, an MS13 gang leader. While Helen, bereft over losing another child, tries to reconstruct her life, Mia’s life with Diego spirals into a nightmare: Just after she has his baby, he goes to jail for multiple murders. As each woman moves forward through her own challenges, Helen confronts her deep-seated prejudices, while Mia battles her own demons in search of self-identity and meaning in her life. A haunting and suspenseful cautionary tale, Borrowed Child is about what happens when a well-meaning inclination toward “salvation” goes awry. Author: Marguerite Welch Publication Date: July 14, 2026 -
For fans of novels featuring strong, smart female protagonists, the first in a series about the novice female American spies in North Africa and the Mediterranean that changed the tide of World War II. In 1942, during the height of World War II, Wild Bill Donovan, the director of the United States’ first spy agency, believes women are the key to winning the intelligence battle with the Nazis. To that end, he partners fledgling agent Kit Thomas with British MI6 agent Mark Williams and sends them to one of the most perilous places in the world—Massawa, Eritrea—to investigate the theft of millions of military payroll dollars. In Massawa, Kit and Mark discover a conspiracy by Nazi sympathizers, known as the Vichy, to shut down the only Allied naval base on the Red Sea—which is an essential resource in stopping the Nazi invasion of North Africa. As they work to reveal the conspirators, Kit and Mark engage in a dangerous and tempestuous dance of trust versus mistrust. Author: Pam Webber Publication Date: June 23, 2026 -
Fans of Under the Tuscan Sun and House Lessons will love Gutted, a witty, big-hearted tale of trading city lights for leaky pipes—and discovering that sometimes the best renovations happen on the inside. What if the only way to rebuild your life is to begin by tearing down the walls? When a successful designer, entrepreneur, and lifelong city dweller hesitantly agrees to follow her husband’s dream of country living, she doesn’t expect to be undone by a sagging Victorian farmhouse and the relentless wind howling through uninsulated walls. But as holes are patched and rooms slowly take shape, something surprising happens: space opens up. Not just in their crumbling home, but in her heart. Told with humor, vulnerability, and the insight of a woman rebuilding more than just a house, From There to Here: How an Old House Remodeled Me is a love story—not only between a wife and her husband but also between a woman shaped by fast-paced living and a slower, quieter way of life. With each creaky floorboard and stripped layer of old wallpaper, Maida Korte discovers unexpected beauty, remembers buried dreams, and finds strength in the women who came before her. For anyone who has ever wondered what lies beyond the edge of timelines and control, this is a warm, wise, and deeply human invitation to slow down, dig deep, and make peace with change—one shingle at a time. Author: Maida Korte Publication Date: June 23, 2026 -
Deeply researched and perfect for fans of Jayne Anne Phillips’s Night Watch, this action-packed coming-of-age tale, set in post–Civil War Appalachia, is part suspenseful mystery, part incisive examination of this nation’s history of racial violence. Dora Minor, a quirky and fiercely courageous girl, grows up in a remote Virginia mountain community in a family of outliers, thanks to their Quaker beliefs that all people are born equal. After her mother’s death, her indomitable, pipe-smoking grandmother Alma—a revolutionary in her own right—becomes her primary caregiver and protector. With a fierce moral compass, Alma helps shape Dora’s worldview and guides her to question the status quo. When Dora’s father partners with formerly enslaved Ginny Dudley to open a school for Black children in a place where none would otherwise exist, it sparks a violent backlash. After her father’s death and then a lynching, Dora, with Alma at her side, are forced to look at their community in a new light. Alongside Ginny’s husband Randolph and her closest friend Watcher James, a preacher guided by Nature spirits, Dora confronts hard truths about her neighbors, her father’s death, and, finally, the mysteries of her mother’s life—all of which ultimately leads to healing. A post–Civil War novel that opens just as Reconstruction is falling apart, What the Trees Remember depicts a time of extreme social unrest and the birth of the Jim Crow era as experienced by strong women constrained by the limitations of the time they live in. Through the devastating loss of loved ones, the destruction of the comfortable life they’ve known, and Nature’s wrath, Dora and Alma strive to rise above their trials by drawing strength from the natural world and never losing faith in themselves. Author: Abigail Cutter Publication Date: June 16, 2026 -
Perfect for fans of State of Wonder, this lushly written debut novel offers up one dead body, two amateur sleuths separated by decades, a vividly depicted Caribbean setting, and years of long-buried family secrets. In 1942 Puerto Rico, the death of a middle-aged American woman in the heart of El Yunque Rainforest arouses little attention from anyone—except for the sixteen-year-old boy who finds her. Bright and introverted, Eduardo Colón initially shrinks from the publicity stirred up by his find. He has enough problems with his adoptive parents urging him to leave his sheltered life in Puerto Rico and study in the States. But when he learns the dead woman, Laura Morrison, was once his mother’s schoolmate, curiosity overcomes qualms and he searches island-wide for answers. What he discovers draws him into dangerous wartime intrigues and a tangle of disturbing personal connections. Decades later, Pamela Palmer sits on a balcony overlooking Lake Coeur d’Alene in northern Idaho, reminiscing about her years of teaching in Puerto Rico and the discovery of a grand-aunt who died there under mysterious circumstances. Playing amateur detective among her other roles of mother, divorcee, and island transplant, she eventually stumbles onto what really happened to Laura Morrison. Reaching across different times, places, and cultures, Eduardo and Pamela find answers about the enigmatic woman—answers that change their lives. Author: Kathryn L. Robinson Publication Date: June 16, 2026 -
After heartbreak in Pennsylvania, a forty-five-year-old widow journeys to Sudan’s war zone, where a chaotic maternity ward teaches her a new kind of strength—and becomes her path to healing. When Sheila’s husband died, grief didn’t just visit—it swallowed her whole. She didn’t want casseroles or kind words. She wanted out. Broken and carrying a battered rucksack, she joined a humanitarian mission in war-torn South Sudan, where gunfire drove her under delivery-room tables and days blurred as she triaged mothers and children ravaged by tropical disease. But even the pulse of the frantic mission could not strip away her sorrow until she heard the ululation of the Sudanese women: a fierce, haunting cry, to celebrate life, to exorcise sorrow, and to rip the past from the body to make space for the now. Waiting for the Kick: A Midwife’s Grief and Rebirth in Africa recounts Sheila Kimble Haas’s journey from a home thick with loss in America to the edge of the world, where she delivers babies in mud-walled clinics, navigates tribal customs and civil unrest, and stands shoulder-to-shoulder with women whose strength redefined survival. This powerful memoir of loss, reckoning, and unexpected transformation is both a tribute to the unbreakable spirit of women and the story of a midwife who discovered that healing begins not in comfort, but in surrender. Author: Sheila Kimble-Haas Publication Date: June 16, 2026 -
A powerful firsthand look into the lives of grandparents and other relatives stepping in to raise children—and the people and policies that help them thrive. Today in the US, more than 2.4 million children whose parents are unable to care for them live in grandfamilies, where they are raised by grandparents or other loved ones. Until recently, their experiences have been all but invisible. These relative caregivers do time in waiting rooms and court hearings, put themselves at financial risk, and sacrifice their own health, all with the dream of making a better life for the kids they love. In Grandfamilies, Donna M. Butts, former longtime executive director of Generations United, sheds light on the ongoing fight for the recognition and resources these families deserve. Through heartfelt personal accounts, grandfamily members of all ages and backgrounds share their experiences, giving voice to the millions across this nation who have come together in the spirit of hope and resilience to imagine a better future for their loved ones. All book sale proceeds will go to Generations United to support their work with grandfamilies. Author: Donna M. Butts Publication Date: June 9, 2026 -
Inspired by true events, this novel tells the tale of young Alice Molland, who must grapple with accusations of witchcraft and the persecution of women with mysterious gifts in turbulent seventeenth-century England. In the tumultuous era of seventeenth-century Exeter, England, ten-year-old Alice Molland is forced to attend the brutal execution of her mentor in the healing arts, Goody Luscombe, who has been condemned to death for witchcraft. In the years that follow, with her use of herbs such as mugwort, slippery elm, and comfrey, Alice becomes well known as a magical healer. But such gifts come accompanied by danger in the misogynistic age she lives in, and it’s only a matter of time before a prominent Exeter merchant raises suspicion that she is a witch. When a love spell leads to an unexpected pregnancy, Alice becomes a target and must flee for her life. Author: Judy Molland Publication Date: June 9, 2026 -
For readers of Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal?, a debut memoir about a woman born into a conservative family who spends decades grappling with self-acceptance and her parents’ conditional love—until she finally learns how to love herself. Born with a cleft lip into an upper-middle-class, conservative family obsessed with image and success, Jill Vanneman was subjected early to a “perfection campaign” aimed at erasing flaws. Told with unflinching honesty, moments of wit, and emotional depth, this coming-of-age story unfolds against the backdrop of 1980s America—a time and place where being a lesbian could cost you your job, your family, and your sense of self. As she grows into adolescence, college, and early adulthood, Jill begins to question not only her place in her family but also her sexual identity. Her journey leads her through turbulent relationships, professional achievements shadowed by internalized shame, and a heartbreaking attempt to reconcile with disapproving parents. Gradually, through therapy, spiritual exploration, and painful introspection, Jill learns that healing doesn’t come from perfection but from embracing the flawed, fierce truth of who she is. A raw, deeply personal memoir of family expectations, social shame, and a relentless drive for perfection, The Perfection Campaign is a compelling testament to resilience, identity, and the high cost—and ultimate liberation—of living authentically. Author: Jill Vanneman Publication Date: June 9, 2026 -
For fans of Jennette McCurdy’s I’m Glad My Mom Died, a memoir for daughters who recognize that to truly understand themselves and the patterns of their lives, they must first understand their mothers and the forces that shaped these women. When Margaret Whitford’s mother was dying, she told those present that her daughter “had her history.” This was true; Margaret had conducted interviews with her mother during the last decade of her life. But this didn’t end their estrangement, and Margaret chose not to return to her mother’s side during her final days. In this memoir, Margaret confronts this decision by unearthing in her mother’s traumatic history the roots of the emotional distance between them. She explores how a history marked by the devastation of World War II in Europe, a violent childhood home, and sexual assault accumulated into complex PTSD that shaped her mother and the way she parented Margaret as her firstborn and as a daughter—and, in turn, how Margaret carried her mother’s trauma forward in her sense of self, in her relationships to others, and in the ways she navigated her world. Indeed, Margaret not only had her mother’s history—she embodied it. Ultimately, The History We Carry confronts the legacy of intergenerational trauma with wisdom and compassion, revealing how familial history shapes each of us but need not be wholly determinative of whom we become and how we choose to live. Author: Margaret Whitford Publication Date: June 2, 2026 -
Seventeen-year-old Lexa Donovan’s timid, plus-size life goes sideways when the spirit of Marilyn Monroe takes up residence in her body in this laugh-out-loud funny paranormal YA tale perfect for fans of Lisa Schroeder and Ashley Poston. High school senior Lexa Donovan longs to be more than a bit player in her own drab life—and when she’s chosen to be part of her school’s spring production of Bus Stop, she thinks her wish has come true. But her thrill turns to panic when she’s tapped to play the leading role, sexy showgirl Cherie. One thing tall, plus-size Lexa knows for sure is that she is the exact opposite of the most famous Cherie ever: sex-goddess Marilyn Monroe. Lexa wants out before she makes a fool of herself in front of everyone. But then something entirely unexpected happens: The spirit of Marilyn Monroe appears—ready and willing to be Lexa’s personal acting coach—and talks her out of quitting. Soon, Lexa’s life becomes a screwball comedy, with her bouncing between Marilyn’s acting “help,” her crush on her gorgeous co-star Brian, and her unexpected attraction to the mysterious Jeremy Leith. Comedy shifts to drama, though, as Lexa’s fear of humiliation—fueled by Brian’s jealous girlfriend—morphs into full-on stage fright. A fright that grows dangerously intense when Marilyn starts having decidedly un-spiritish feelings that have nothing to do with Lexa or the play. Before the curtain rises on opening night, Lexa and Marilyn will have to learn to trust their own hearts and act on what each truly needs to move on—in life and in death. Author: Mima Tipper Publication Date: June 2, 2026 -
For fans of the series Finding Your Roots, a compelling memoir about how land connects us all—and how, if we are to mend our relations to each other and the earth, we must first reckon with our past, no matter how distant, shameful, or tragic. When Jill Swenson returns to her mother’s hometown after her funeral, she finds a new Seven Clans Casino under construction in Warroad, Minnesota, on Lake of the Woods. There, she learns, Red Lake Nation has recently dispossessed descendants of Ojibway spiritual leader Kakaygeesick from their land—land where the family has lived for the last two centuries—and has also denied them tribal membership. In searching for answers, Jill meets the great-grandson of Kakaygeesick. Over weeks, months, and years, a friendship forms between them, and Jill gradually discovers what allotments, blood quantum, and the history of the Bureau of Indian Affairs have to do with her, the great-granddaughter of immigrants who homesteaded on reservation land. Estranged from her father, still mourning the suicide of her husband and the loss of their farm in upstate New York, and now grieving her mother’s death, Jill has spent decades trying to put the past behind her—but discovers the only path forward is to reckon with history. Clear-eyed and yet deeply personal, The Land of Everlasting Sky is a compelling exploration of the history we inherit and our relationships to land and each other. Author: Jill D. Swenson Publication Date: June 2, 2026 -
For fans of L. M. Montgomery’s The Blue Castle, a contemporary retelling of the beloved romance that follows a sheltered young woman’s quest for love in New York City—and her search for a rare and elusive bird in the deep Arkansas forest. What if the life you were meant to live was waiting just outside your door? New York City, 2013. Emma Jablonski’s life is as dry as the day-old bread at her family’s bakery. Living with her parents and grandmother, she clings to the only escape she knows: a recurring dream that feels more real than her waking world. But when Emma’s eyes are open, she’s reminded of what’s out of reach—Jake, the enigmatic boy-next-door. After a life-changing diagnosis forces her to face her fears, Emma decides it’s time to truly live—before it’s too late. With Jake and his vibrant friend Vee, she dives into a whirlwind of experiences: a fake engagement, dazzling parties, and an obsession with the elusive ivory-billed woodpecker, a bird that may not even exist. But as her daring adventure is coming to an end, Emma begins to embrace a future she never thought possible. Dreams and reality aren’t supposed to mix . . . are they? A modern retelling of L.M. Montgomery’s The Blue Castle, this gentle story of love, resilience, and the beauty of the unknown reminds us to seek joy in the most unexpected places. Author: Andrea Ezerins Publication Date: May 26, 2026 -
For fans of Laline Paull, a speculative young adult novel about a family of New York City crows struggling to survive the outbreak of West Nile virus during the sizzling summer of 1999. Four-year-old Duncan needs to hurry up and find a mate—or so says his sister, Cloud. But she doesn’t know about the mistake that’s preventing him from leaving their family to start another. Though he’s the eldest, Duncan doesn’t see himself as a leader. Yet that’s what he must become when both his parents die of the mysterious illness that’s killing crows across New York City. He devotes himself to caring for his siblings, including three fledglings—but he soon discovers he can’t protect them from the “blind death.” Meanwhile, a zoo pathologist’s worst fears are realized. It starts with dead flamingos. Then critically ill New Yorkers start showing up in hospital emergency rooms. Some blame the crows. Author: Pam McGaffin Publication Date: May 26, 2026 -
For readers trying to make sense of America’s political turmoil and eroding reproductive rights, an incisive examination, enhanced with personal stories, of how care work has been extracted and compelled throughout American history. In the wake of Dobbs, and now with the country in the grip of Trump and a resurgent far right, the question everyone seems to be asking is—How could this happen in America? Lawyer Carolyn McConnell has a few ideas. After becoming a mother, McConnell was forced to face the myth of autonomy that American individualism breeds: the idea that independence is always good and dependence always bad. Why does America have such a problem offering social support for care work, she wondered, when mothering is the essential work of reproducing society? In Motherhood Discounted, McConnell turns a searching eye on autonomy, asking what it is and what it is for. Tracing this myth’s development through American history, she frames each episode with personal stories and incisive analysis. In doing so, she offers women readers of all ages seeking to understand their own experiences in these disturbing times a potent explanation for how we got here—and sounds a clarion call for political change. Author: Carolyn McConnell Publication Date: May 26, 2026 -
A compelling blend of sexy and nostalgic, this summer camp romance follows thirty-nine-year-old mom Lori Kramer as she finds out you’re never too old to learn the life lessons—or experience the romances—that sleepaway camp has to offer. Is thirty-nine too old to get your first sleepaway camp kiss? Lori Kramer, a stay-at-home mom, would go to any length to give her two daughters the summer experience of their lives—even getting a job at their camp and tagging along with them. At Camp Woodlands, Lori finds herself overseeing the chaos of four bunks filled with rambunctious kids and their counselors, not to mention having to outwit her boss and outrun a bear—and that’s just during the first half of the summer! But those escapades are child’s play compared to her growing friendship and attraction to Teddy, the camp’s British soccer coach. Their clandestine meetings late at night behind the laundry shack, breaking the no-smoking rule, soon turn hot and steamy like a lazy August afternoon. Camp may be for kids, but Lori’s the one having the most fun. She never imagined that stepping outside of her conventional, underappreciated, New York City existence would turn her world upside down and change her life forever. Author: Amy Lorowitz Publication Date: May 19, 2026 -
Perfect for fans of The Glass Castle and Educated, this raw, powerful memoir recounts one woman’s journey—from gritty 1970s Brooklyn to testosterone-fueled 1980s–1990s Wall Street and beyond—to reclaim truth, identity, and self-worth after trauma. A powerful memoir of trauma, resilience, and female empowerment, House of Pretend tells the story of a girl who, raised in the shadow of her father’s death by an emotionally abusive, narcissistic mother, learns early to perform, to please, and to pretend—and spends the rest of her life struggling to unlearn those behaviors. Determined to escape the silence and neglect of her childhood, Joanne claws her way into the male-dominated world of Wall Street as a young woman—only to find that success means nothing without self-worth. When her boss offers her a million dollars to have his child, she is forced to reckon with everything she’s buried: the deep ache of abandonment, years of chasing love in all the wrong places, and the belief that she’s undeserving of more. What follows is not a transformation into someone new but rather a fierce unmasking—a reclamation of the voice, worth, and identity she has had within her all along. Offering a gripping blend of raw emotion and biting clarity, House of Pretend is about what happens when a woman stops waiting to be saved and instead saves herself—with grit, honesty, and just the right amount of badassery. Author: Joanne Redding Publication Date: May 19, 2026 -
Based on a true story, this heartwarming and often humorous story follows a fortysomething New Yorker as she uproots her entire life in pursuit of a cure after developing a terminal disease—and ends up finding much more than a new set of lungs. When Fiona Copeland is diagnosed with terminal lung disease, she risks everything on the chance of a few more years of life. Far from New York is a lung transplant center that can procure lungs for transplant within a month. But the center requires each patient to bring their own full-time, in-house caregiver with them—and Fiona’s husband, Dane, cannot leave town. So, in breach of the center’s strict rules, Fiona hires a caregiver and she and her fake husband, Mason, head to Tennessee. The Johnson’s River center is a grueling rehab program where patients exercise for three hours daily to prepare for surgery. Over the course of her first weeks there, Fiona discovers the close bonding that develops among people fighting at high risk—and is devastated when one of the cohort dies. Meanwhile, weeks turn into months without Fiona getting transplant matches. Her marriage suffers from the long distance, and the realization she might actually die threatens to unravel her. But she is thrown a shocking life buoy when Mason’s young daughter comes to join them at the center. Captivated by the girl and growing increasingly closer to Mason, Fiona finds herself with compelling new reasons to fight—not least of which is this unexpected found family. Author: Sharon V. Agar Publication Date: May 12, 2026 -
A moving debut about second chances, Thirty Days to Home follows a grieving woman who rediscovers purpose—and unexpected love—through her connection with a stray dog she meets on the streets of picturesque Puerto Escondido, Mexico. Following the death of her son, Marli May accompanies her husband, Nick, on a work retreat to Puerto Escondido, Mexico, in an attempt to put her grief behind her and repair their strained marriage. But Marli’s resilience is challenged once again when she receives an anonymous text message stating her son’s death was not the accident she has been led to believe. Nick says it is a sick prank, and to forget about it. Of course, he has other things on his mind: He’s having an affair with a coworker. Before the end of their trip he walks away from his marriage, leaving Marli alone in Mexico. What can bring Marli back from despair this time? Mentally battered and 2,000 miles from home, she turns her attention to a stray street dog and a handsome veterinarian who harbors his own grief. She is told she must wait thirty days before taking the dog out of Mexico and into the United States. That’s thirty days to reevaluate her future, find her strength, and discover the true reason for her son’s death. Filled with secrets, street dogs, and second chances, Thirty Days to Home follows Marli’s journey as she finds the courage to confront her grief and rebuild her life on her own terms. Author: Cathryn Rakich Publication Date: May 12, 2026 -
For newly diagnosed cancer patients, a uniquely comprehensive and empowering guide offering all the information needed to navigate critical early decisions with clarity, confidence, and a greater sense of control. “You have cancer.” Few phrases hit harder—or leave you feeling more lost. Just Diagnosed is a compassionate resource for people reeling from the shock of a life-changing diagnosis. Written by seasoned journalist and twenty-four-year cancer survivor Jennifer Omholt, this practical guide empowers patients to take charge of their care from day one. With warmth and clarity, Omholt offers guidance on how to share the news, enlist the help of loved ones, prepare for appointments, ask the right questions, build a trusted care team, and navigate insurance. In addition to logistical guidance, this book offers emotional support and evidence-based integrative therapies that support immune health and ease anxiety, depression, and fatigue. A dedicated chapter on financial resources also offers real-world tools for managing the high cost of cancer care. With a foreword by Dr. Debu Tripathy of MD Anderson Cancer Center, Just Diagnosed draws on lived experience to shepherd readers from overwhelm to action, helping them feel less alone, more prepared, and ready to take the next step. Author: Jennifer Omholt Publication Date: May 5, 2026 -
Blending the sensual candor of Cheryl Strayed’s Wild with the emotional honesty of Nora McInerny’s It’s Okay to Laugh, this bold memoir is a tale of love, grief, midlife reinvention, and the unapologetic reclaiming of desire after devastating loss. When Amy Gabrielle’s husband died from cancer, her carefully constructed life crumbled. After three years of caregiving, the fifty-four-year-old widow found herself raising her neurodivergent son alone—and experiencing an unexpected sensual reawakening that both challenged and invigorated her. Widow in the City chronicles Amy’s raw, unfiltered journey through grief and desire following her husband’s death. From exploring dating apps and casual encounters to rediscovering her sensuality through lingerie and creative self-expression, she challenges cultural taboos about midlife female desire while fighting to rebuild her identity. As she grapples with the duality of loss—mourning her husband while embracing her newfound freedom—she discovers that grief and pleasure can coexist in surprising ways. Candid, provocative, and ultimately empowering, this memoir illuminates the messy reality of reclaiming joy after devastating loss. Amy’s transformation from a grieving widow to a woman fully embracing her authentic self offers a roadmap for anyone seeking to reinvent their life when the future they planned suddenly vanishes. Her story reminds us that even in our darkest moments, the path to healing may lead to unexpected places—and that it’s never too late to rediscover who we truly are. Author: Amy Gabrielle Publication Date: May 5, 2026 -
For fans of Brené Brown, Suze Orman, or Lynne Twist comes this compassionate, transformative guide—an essential roadmap to uncovering the emotional roots of money struggles, transforming relationships, and finally finding true financial peace. Have you ever wondered why you handle money the way you do? Why anxiety creeps in when you check your bank account, or why certain spending habits seem impossible to break? In this eye-opening guide, author and financial wellness coach Tari Vickery explores the deep emotional currents that shape your financial life, taking you beneath the surface to reveal how childhood experiences, family dynamics, and societal messages silently influence every money decision you make. Through candid personal stories and compelling client experiences, Vickery shows how unresolved money trauma, emotional spending, and inherited beliefs can quietly control your financial reality—often more than income or education ever could. But this isn’t just about awareness—it’s about healing. With compassion and clarity, Vickery offers a powerful path to understand your money story and rewrite it. With her help, you’ll uncover the emotional patterns driving your financial behavior and learn how to build a healthier, more empowering relationship with money. Whether you’re starting fresh or seeking a deeper shift, The Emotional Side of Money will help you release anxiety, reclaim your power, and finally feel at peace with your finances—from the inside out. Author: Tari K Vickery Publication Date: May 5, 2026 -
For James Herriot fans and pet lovers, a modern-day, funny-yet-poignant memoir about what it is like to be the only person in a small family not employed in the veterinary profession. Patti Eddington should have known when she married her veterinary student boyfriend that she would spend anniversary and birthday dinners not sitting at tables at fancy restaurants but kneeling under a surgery table in a cocktail dress, desperately trying to mop up a steady stream of blood and urine with cheap paper towels. She should have guessed that every knock at the door or ring of the phone would mean her husband would be torn away from the family for hours—sometimes returning deflated, sometimes smiling. But she could never have dreamed that her beautiful, curly-haired young daughter would one day bathe and sleep with an inflatable tick (until the day it was mysteriously punctured by a salad fork) or that she would go through her marriage of forty-five years opening every freezer door with caution. Don’t Look in the Freezer is a humorous, poignant, loving look into the sometimes strange, mostly unglamorous, life of a veterinarian’s wife. Patti’s little family is not at all like that of famous veterinarian James Herriot’s—but is still absolutely filled with compassion and love for animals and the people who adore them. Author: Patti Eddington Publication Date: April 28, 2026 -
For fans of Rupi Kaur and Caroline Kaufman, a debut poetic novella that takes the reader on a complex, tumultuous, and ultimately healing journey of love, told through the colorful lens of a synesthete. The Synesthete’s Rainbow is a captivating poetry novella that paints the story of a toxic situationship through the vibrant lens of synesthesia. It intertwines sensory crossover and emotional depth as the protagonist, the Synesthete, names the colors of her love—all of which fall within a symbolic rainbow that defies nature. As the Synesthete journeys across this messy, fragmented, chaotic, and heart-wrenching rainbow, she confronts both the antagonist and herself in her plight of unrequited longing, and ultimately arrives at a burgeoning sense of self. Perfect for readers drawn to short, metaphor-rich poetry and evocative tales of transformation, The Synesthete’s Rainbow illuminates the intricacies of human connection and the beauty of finding oneself on the other side of emotional storms. Author: Nisha Srinivasa Publication Date: April 28, 2026 -
Maybe a Note Would Help is a heartfelt exploration of how handwritten notes can deepen connections, combat loneliness, and foster personal growth—an essential guide for readers seeking to nurture authentic relationships in today’s digital age. In 2021, Kristen Tremonti Reiter finds herself on the edge of depression and despair—uprooted, ungrounded, and disconnected. She writes a simple note of gratitude, but has no idea it will lead to a calling, a challenge, and a new place to call home. The response to her note is so profound, she embarks upon a quest to handwrite a note every day for a year—a year that includes living out of her suitcase in one city after another. She discovers that her notes to others provide the foundation for her mental, spiritual, and physical health while everything else in her life changes. Maybe a Note Would Help documents Kristen’s remarkable note-writing journey of personal transformation and encourages readers to enjoy a similar experience. Ultimately, we discover that a joyful way to interact more intentionally, connect more completely, uplift others, and feel better in your own skin is only a note away. Author: Kristen Tremonti Reiter Publication Date: April 28, 2026 -
For fans of Kate Morton, Amy Harmon, and Sally Page comes a multigenerational novel infused with touches of magical realism about a woman’s journey to find her place in an uncertain world as she unravels her family’s legacy. In 1934, a child’s death tears open a family and shakes the small town of Richarme, Louisiana. Recalling her grandmother’s hidden gifts that had been shut down decades earlier, Grace Paschal begins writing to her deceased daughter as she navigates grief and guilt for Lily’s death, which will haunt their French community for generations. In 2019, Alice, Grace’s great-granddaughter, awakens in her apartment in Berkeley and opens a jewelry box given to her decades earlier upon Grace’s death. When she explores its contents, the lines between past and present fade. As she works to meet the demands of her career, her life turns upside-down when new and frequent memories that aren’t her own rise to the surface—memories that cause her to question everything about the life she has chosen. A haunting and magical story of a family with hidden gifts and secrets, Song of Belonging follows Alice as she embarks on a journey to discover the truth about her ancestors and find her place in a lineage of women healers who protect the waters that surround their Louisiana home. Author: Michelle St. Romain Publication Date: April 21, 2026 -
For fans of Eat Pray Love and Untamed, a soulful memoir of motherhood, mysticism, and plant medicine that chronicles one woman’s journey of healing and transformation in the lush wilds of Kauai. What if your greatest teachers weren’t shamans in the jungle but the people you eat breakfast with every morning? The Mother Vine is a raw, often funny, and deeply human story of one woman’s awakening through plant medicine—and the winding road that leads her there. After walking away from a high-powered TV career and a picture-perfect life in Canada, Shannon moves her family to the jungled slopes of Kauai in search of a more laid-back existence. But instead of fresh mangoes and good surf, she finds herself swept into a tide of unexpected revelations.? In the crucible of motherhood, Shannon’s two sons and husband become unlikely teachers, reflecting her forgotten pieces with unrelenting love and occasional ferocity. Their struggles crack her open in ways no self-help book ever could. When deep-seated heartache has her seeking transformation, an invitation to drink ayahuasca becomes a lifeline. Guided by ancient wisdom and insatiable curiosity, Shannon begins the journey of remembering who she truly was—and still is. More than a memoir of healing, The Mother Vine is a love letter to the mess of motherhood, the mystery of the medicine path, and the sacred power of being fully alive. If you’ve ever longed for something deeper, this book is for you. Author: Shannon Nering Publication Date: April 21, 2026 -
A captivating memoir about midlife desire and a woman’s quest to let go. Fly, My Darling explores the resilience of love, the weight of loss, the undeniable pull toward freedom, and the transformation that occurs when a woman finally asks, What do I really want? Lisa—classical pianist, wife, and mother—yearns for something she can’t define. When she begins a study of jazz improv with a musician from the ‘70s girl band era, a woman with a renegade past who encourages her to let go both musically and emotionally, life takes an unexpected, irrevocable turn. With rhythmic, imaginative prose, the author paints a deeply immersive world, bringing to life moments of music, eroticism, loss, and renewal with breathtaking elegance. Based on her years together with musician and visionary composer Lynda Roth, past and present weave together in this profoundly moving memoir. Author: Lisa K. Richter Publication Date: April 21, 2026 -
For fans of The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks and Lab Girl, an arresting memoir that chronicles a young woman’s journey from remote island research to Big Pharma and the boardroom. Elizabeth “Betsy” Aden, a twenty-something anthropology student, is clinging to academia as a safety net—until she’s offered a grant to spend the summer on a remote island in Melanesia, famously home to cannibals. Adventure calls, and Betsy doesn’t hesitate. Once she arrives, though, reality hits: no running water, no electricity, and no Western medicine. Inspired by her experiences, Betsy returns to school with a new perspective and changes her field from cultural anthropology to biomedical anthropology. Driven by a new purpose, she returns to Melanesia for two years to study the transmission hepatitis B and sets up an ingenious field laboratory to collect and test blood samples. Back at home, resourceful and determined Elizabeth successfully navigates the complicated “boys club” of academia. She explores teaching and advertising and finds a fit in biotech from which she builds a career in Big Pharma. That choice, along with her tenacity and willingness to take risks, propels Elizabeth on a meteoric rise to the senior executive suite in a large Swiss company and into the boardrooms of scrappy biotech companies. With electric detail and candid honesty, Mud, Microbes, and Medicine is a testimony of resilience and resolve in the face of challenges so large and unimaginable, you will wonder how Elizabeth’s story could even be true. Author: Elizabeth Reed Aden Publication Date: April 21, 2026 -
An evocative work of historical fiction, Vivian’s Decision is an all too relevant story of repeated history, female friendship, and the strength that it takes to make choices of one’s own. Vivian Jacobson is distraught to be pregnant again. Already drowning in the demands of her four young children, she can’t imagine adding a fifth to her brood. Her husband, Mel, is a devoted partner, but he works long days in his family’s Maxwell Street tavern—leaving Vivian isolated and overwhelmed in their suburban Chicago home. When Vivian pleads with Mel to let her ask her trusted obstetrician for an abortion, Mel reluctantly agrees. Her doctor won’t risk his license, but refers her to someone who will. Once she finds herself in the sleazy abortionist’s disgusting makeshift flat, she can’t go through with the procedure. As she flees, the man warns her that the clock is ticking: If she wants this abortion, she must return within one week. As Vivian struggles with what to do, she is buffeted by a series of revelations, including her Jewish immigrant mother's parallel secret. Ultimately, she must find the courage to make the decision that is best for her family—and her own fulfillment. Author: Della Leavitt Publication Date: April 14, 2026 -
For fans of Catherine Ryan Hyde and Laurie Frankel, a novel of one young woman’s post-college foray into the adult realities of landlords, economics, and urban politics, set against the Bicentennial summer of 1976. It's 1976, the Bicentennial year and a watershed moment in America. The draft, the Vietnam war, Woodstock, and the Summer of Love are long gone. Tie-dye is out, and everyone has cut their hair. The Civil Rights Act has passed, the Equal Rights Amendment is just a few states from ratification, Roe v. Wade is firmly enshrined, and closet doors are creaking open. The sixties have changed the world. Only they haven’t, as Novelle is about to find out. At this moment, she arrives in St. Louis to start graduate school in economics, a clear-cut field of mathematic problem sets with answers. Except, it’s not. Almost immediately, she discovers that Delmar Boulevard is a Great Wall of China separating St. Louis into Black North and white South, and that economics is the mortar between the bricks. She gets caught up in unraveling a plan to “take back” a Black neighborhood that has leaked over the divide. By the time she finishes her degree, she is getting hate mail and death threats. But she’s also come into her own as a force for change. A satirical, witty look at a slice of history that still resonates today. Author: Ellen Barker Publication Date: April 14, 2026 -
For readers who loved The Art of Racing in the Rain, a literary short story collection set in contemporary New York that surrounds a group of aging, lonely people who experience the unexpected healing power of pets. Lost souls come in all forms—some walk on two legs, others on four. Navigating loneliness and loss is a natural part of growing older, but it’s never easy. In King the Wonder Dog, this journey becomes more bearable for a group of men and women when their interactions with the dogs and cats that share their lives help them discover a deeper understanding of themselves. A woman whose dog is stolen from her meets a surprising ally who helps get him back. An artist who survives a drive-by shooting is brought a mysterious trinket by the cat he saved from a lonely life. A man in a troubled marriage begins drawing a graphic novel starring his dog as his fierce protector, and it consoles him. A poignant collection filled with warmth, heart, and quiet moments of reflection, King the Wonder Dog explores the nuances of companionship, the beauty of second chances, and the ways we rescue each other when we least expect it. For anyone who has ever found comfort in the presence of a loyal pet, these stories are a reminder that love—no matter where it comes from—has the power to change everything. Author: Eleanor Lerman Publication Date: April 7, 2026 -
Set against the backdrop of vibrant 1980s LA, this wild and intimate debut memoir follows a young woman’s quest for marriage, meaning, and lasting happiness.
At thirty-two, Laurie outgrows her sleepy beach town and moves to the epicenter of the anything-goes eighties: Los Angeles. There, she befriends a teenage wizard and a Russian defector. She enrolls in a Hogwarts-style psychic college. She gets a job at a hilltop Hindu convent, where she considers taking her monastic vows. She dates an Indian guru and shares heart-to-heart conversations with a Catholic priest.
But it is only when her home nearly burns to the ground that Laurie finds what she is looking for: her true calling. Reading passages from a cache of 300 old diaries that were spared by the flames, Laurie locates clues planted in her past and gradually comes to a realization: She must let go of the conventional, “white-picket fence” marital vow she has sought for decades, and instead must fashion an entirely different kind of vow for herself.
With this knowledge in hand, Laurie sets about fulfilling her sacred contract. In turn, she experiences for the first time an intense rightness—a sense that this is how her life is meant to be.
Author: Laurie Collister
Publication Date: April 7, 2026
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For fans of Sue Monk Kidd and Joyce Manard, a debut contemporary women’s fiction novel about a recently bereft daughter who journeys to South America to run away from her grief—and instead finds self-discovery and healing. When she is supposed to be having the time of her life in college in California, Leonie loses her mother to breast cancer. After taking her last college course in Buenos Aires, she cashes in her return flight ticket and refuses to go home, erroneously believing that her grief will subside if she avoids her family. Narrating in her own grief-stricken voice, Leonie travels across Argentina, makes friends, and falls in love. She discovers her vulnerability and strength while working at a winery in Mendoza, riding over the treacherous Andes Mountains, and hiking the ancient pilgrimage to Machu Picchu—and, in doing so, slowly begins to heal. Vividly rendered and full of heart, Learning to Whistle will resonate with every person who has ever been forced to venture into the world when they didn’t feel ready for it—with or without the guidance of a parent. Author: Tess Perko Publication Date: April 7, 2026 -
Fans of Bill Bryson will love this intimate and humorous memoir surrounding a group of expats as they entertain each other with their stories at a bar in a Costa Rican village. Willa and her wife travel to Costa Rica to visit family—but what they discover is far more than they expected . In a sleepy fishing village on the Pacific coast, they meet a vibrant, curious group of expats who have come looking for paradise—or at least cheap beer. At the Pato Loco, a local bar where stories flow as freely as the drinks, they meet Mama, the blind seventy-two-year-old co-owner of the place; her partner Mary, Willa’s sister, a bartender and installation artist; Richie, the aging hippie whose words are few but weighty; and a whole cast of unforgettable characters who will answer questions like:- What is it really like to live in another country?
- How important is it to learn the local language?
- How does a tight-knit community face the pressure of development?
- Can you survive dengue—and would you want to?
- Oh, and how do you perform CPR on a fish?
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In this lyrical and artfully woven memoir, a short road trip to California’s Central Coast becomes an epic journey through family history, loss, and connection. When three generations of women—a Gen X narrator, her seventy-seven-year-old mother, and her twenty-two-year-old Gen Z daughter—set out for a quick trip to California's Central Coast, what begins as a road trip soon transforms into something far richer: a modern-day Odyssey. Over the course of three days, the three women brave a severe winter storm, encounter ravenous ostriches, walk through an enchanted light exhibit, binge-watch White Lotus, hunt for coffee with plant-based milk, bicker, reconcile, and share stories. Troika braids the narrative of a three-day road trip with the longer strands of migration, memory, and motherhood, creating a layered meditation on distance traveled—geographic, generational, and emotional. The result is a kaleidoscopic journey that traverses the landscapes of identity and family history and stretches from the horrors of the second world war and an escape from Soviet Russia to adolescence and motherhood in the suburbs of Silicon Valley. As the narrative swerves from heartbreak to hilarity, from Homeric detours and Russian proverbs to internet memes, it weaves together an intimate, poignant, and darkly funny meditation on how we get from where we were to where we are—and what we carry with us along the way. Author: Irena Smith Publication Date: April 7, 2026
