All the February 2025 Prepub Alerts in one place, plus a downloadable spreadsheet of all titles from every post.

Fiction

Pop Fiction

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Baker, Angelica. When We Grow Up. Flatiron. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781250345776. 288p. $28.99. FICTION

In Baker’s (Our Little Racket) sophomore novel, Clare and five of her long-time friends reunite for a vacation in Hawai‘i. She seems to have her life together and has everything she thought she wanted, but somehow she isn’t content. When a terrifying news alert disrupts their reunion, their friendship will be tested. With a 75K-copy first printing.

Brickley, Holly. Deep Cuts. Crown. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780593799086. 288p. $28. FICTION

In this buzzy debut, college students Percy Marks and Joe Morrow meet at a bar in Berkeley during the fall of 2000. Percy has no musical talent but is full of opinions about it, while Joe, a songwriter, asks for Percy’s feedback on his song, leading to a creative and romantic partnership that might not stand the test of time and simmering resentment.

Butler, Nickolas. A Forty Year Kiss. Sourcebooks Landmark. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781464221248. 352p. $27.99. FICTION

Butler, author of the bestselling Shotgun Lovesongs, offers another small-town tale with a love story at its heart. Charlie and Vivian divorced after four years of marriage. Forty years later, hoping for a fresh start and a second chance, Charlie returns to Wisconsin, intent on reconnecting with Vivian.

Clancy, Christina. The Snowbirds. St. Martin’s. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781250284952. 304p. $29. FICTION

After being a couple for 30 years and with their daughters grown and gone, Kim and Grant are at a crossroads in their relationship. They decide to escape the Midwest winter for sunny Palm Springs, but Kim wonders if their relationship will survive the season. Clancy’s (Shoulder Season) latest receives a 75K-copy first printing.

D’Addario, Daniel. The Talent. Scout. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781668075470. 336p. $28.99. FICTION

D’Addario, chief correspondent at Variety and a moderator of the “Actors on Actors” series, debuts with a novel about five actors facing awards season. There’s Adria, a movie veteran; Bitty, experiencing alcohol-use disorder; former child star Contessa; Davina, who traded the London stage for Hollywood; and underdog Jenny. As they compete for the top honor, they’ll confront themselves and each other.

Franklin, Alice. Life Hacks for a Little Alien. Little, Brown. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780316576055. 336p. $29. FICTION

In her debut, Franklin, who is neurodivergent, explores how language shapes and connects people through the story of a girl who thinks of herself as Little Alien because she feels different from others. When she learns about an ancient tome in an indecipherable language, she has hope that there are others like her, launching her on a quest to find the mysterious manuscript.

Holmes, Linda. Back After This. Ballantine. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780593599259. 320p. $30. FICTION

Bestselling Holmes (Evvie Drake Starts Over, a Read with Jenna pick), host of NPR’s Pop Culture Happy Hour, writes a novel featuring podcast producer Cecily Foster, who faces a dilemma between love and career success when she falls for the wrong guy, jeopardizing a new podcast about her dating life.

Johnson, Nancy. People of Means. Morrow. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780063157514. 368p. $30. FICTION

Two generations of Black women pursue their college and career dreams while experiencing racism and fighting injustice. Freda finds her way during the civil rights movement in Nashville; her daughter Tulip is on her own journey in 1992 Chicago, following the Rodney King verdict. Johnson’s second novel, after The Kindest Lie, a Target Book Club, Indie Next, and LibraryReads pick, receives a 75K-copy first printing.

Koval, Kristin. Penitence. Celadon. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781250342997. 320p. $28.99. FICTION

Koval’s debut delves into themes of grief, mercy, love, and forgiveness, as a murder shatters the lives of Angie and David Sheehan. They hire lawyer Martine Dupont to defend them; she happens to be the mother of Angie’s first love, Julian, and so Angie is also forced to confront their past and a tragic accident from years ago. With a 125K-copy first printing.

Montimore, Margarita. The Dollhouse Academy. Flatiron. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781250320650. 320p. $28.99. FICTION

Montimore (Oona Out of Order, a GMA Book Club pick) writes a dark academia–tinged title set at the Dollhouse Academy, an elite boarding school that turns out star performers. When best friends and aspiring actors Ramona and Grace join the Dollhouse, Ramona finds it unexpectedly unsettling and begins to wonder what is really going on. With a 100K-copy first printing.

Moyes, Jojo. We All Live Here. Viking: Pamela Dorman. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781984879325. 464p. $30. FICTION

Bestselling Moyes (Someone Else’s Shoes) tells the story of Lila Kennedy and her quirky family. At midlife, Lila has a lot going on, with a broken marriage, challenging daughters, and a falling-apart house. Plus, her elderly stepfather seems to have moved in, and then her estranged biological dad shows up, bringing unexpected lessons on love and family.

Murray, Victoria Christopher. Harlem Rhapsody. Berkley. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780593638484. 400p. $29. FICTION

After coauthoring the bestsellers The Personal Librarian and The First Ladies with Marie Benedict, Murray offers her first solo historical, inspired by real-life Jessie Redmon Fauset, who played a crucial role in the Harlem Renaissance as literary editor at The Crisis magazine, founded by W. E. B. Du Bois, her boss and lover.

Sittenfeld, Curtis. Show Don’t Tell: Stories. Random. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780593446737. 304p. $28. FICTION

Bestselling Sittenfeld (Romantic Comedy) is well known for her novels, but her short fiction has also been popular, including the multi-best-booked You Think It, I’ll Say It, a Reese’s Book Club pick. Her latest collection contains 12 stories (three never before published) that explore marriage, friendship, fame, and artistic ambition. Lee Fiora, the main character from Prep, also makes an appearance.

Tyler, Anne. Three Days in June. Knopf. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780593803486. 176p. $27. FICTION

Bestselling and Pulitzer Prize–winning Tyler (French Braid) returns with a novella about the joys and heartbreaks of love and family. On the eve of her daughter’s wedding, Gail Baines is having a bad day: she loses her job and has to deal with her ex-husband. Then a secret about the groom throws the whole wedding into question.

Walker, Karen Thompson. The Strange Case of Jane O. Random. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781984853943. 304p. $28. FICTION

The latest from bestselling Walker, author of the multi-best-booked The Age of Miracles and The Dreamers, draws inspiration from the case notes of psychiatrist Oliver Sacks. After her child is born, Jane experiences strange episodes, including amnesia, premonitions, and hallucinations. As her psychiatrist delves further into her mysterious condition, it brings into question his own ideas of reality.

Literary Fiction

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Francis-Sharma, Lauren. Casualties of Truth. Atlantic Monthly. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780802163783. 272p. $27. LITERARY FICTION

Prudence Wright has created a successful life in Washington, DC, years after her traumatic time in South Africa, where she attended the hearings of the Truth and Reconciliation Committee as a law student. When someone from her past reappears, though, that life is threatened. From the author of Book of the Little Axe, nominated for the Huston/Wright Legacy Award.

Ivey, Eowyn. Black Woods, Blue Sky. Random. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780593231029. 320p. $29. LITERARY FICTION

Bestselling Ivey, a Pulitzer Prize finalist for The Snow Child, reimagines “Beauty and the Beast.” After scarred, reclusive Arthur Neilsen rescues Emaleen from the woods one day, her mom Birdie falls for him and his remote home in the mountains, but Arthur’s secret and the dangerous Alaskan wilderness threaten their new idyllic life.

Peters, Amanda. Waiting for the Long Night Moon: Stories. Catapult. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781646222599. NAp. $27. LITERARY FICTION

Peters debuted with the bestselling novel The Berry Pickers, which won the Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction and the Barnes & Noble Discover Prize. A writer of Mi’kmaq and settler ancestry, she continues to explore Indigenous experiences in this collection of short stories that portray grief, joy, trauma, and resilience.

Smith, Ali. Gliff. Pantheon. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780593701560. 272p. $28. LITERARY FICTION

The book’s title comes from a Scottish word meaning a shock or a faint glimpse, which is appropriate for award-winning Smith’s (Companion Piece) genre-bending near-future novel, expected to be the first in a duology. The story explores the search for meaning and the importance of humanity in an uncertain future, where algorithms and data predict, dominate, and divide.

Mystery

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Connolly, Rebecca. The Crime Brûlée Bake Off. (A Claire Walker Mystery, bk. 1). Shadow Mountain. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781639933044. pbk. 320p. $16.99. MYSTERY

Claire Walker is a contestant on Britain’s Battle of the Bakers, a baking competition show that’s shooting at Blackfrith Park, home of the Viscount of Colburn, Jonathan Ainsley. When a contestant is found dead, in a manner all too similar to the death of one of Jonathan’s ancestors 200 years earlier, Claire and Jonathan join forces to solve the crime and also stumble into romance.

Knox, Ruthie & Annie Mare. Big Name Fan. Kensington. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781496751331. 320p. $28. MYSTERY

Knox and Mare (coauthors of Everyone I Kissed Since You Got Famous, under the pen name Mae Marvel) create a sapphic mystery starring a costars-to-lovers pair. Sam and Bex were the leads in a cult-favorite crime show that was cancelled. When they start hosting a rewatch podcast, their chemistry takes off again, but so do more mysteries. Filled with fan culture, Hollywood glitz, and lots of chemistry.

McCluskey, Laura. The Wolf Tree. Putnam. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780593852545. 336p. $30. MYSTERY

McCluskey debuts with a modern gothic crime novel mired in Scottish legend. Two detective inspectors from Glasgow are sent to investigate when a body is found on a remote Scottish island where three lighthouse-keepers went missing back in 1919 and were never heard from again.

McDonough, Patrice. A Slash of Emerald. (A Dr. Julia Lewis Mystery, bk. 2). Kensington. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781496746399. 336p. $27. MYSTERY

Following her LJ-starred debut, Murder by Lamplight, McDonough offers the second in the historical mystery series starring Dr. Julia Lewis and Inspector Richard Tennant. They join forces yet again on a case in which women painters in Victorian London are being hunted.

Miller, C. L. The Antique Hunter’s Death on the Red Sea. (Antique Hunter’s Series, bk. 2). Atria. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781668032039. 320p. $28.99. MYSTERY

The second in Miller’s “Antique Hunter’s Series,” after The Antique Hunter’s Guide to Murder, sees Freya Lockwood and Aunt Carole on the case again, this time aboard a cruise ship in Jordan, as the two go on the hunt for a missing painting and a killer.

Nesbø, Jo. Blood Ties. tr. from Norwegian by Robert Ferguson. Knopf. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780593803615. 384p. $30. MYSTERY

Bestselling Nesbø pens a novel about brothers, crime, and loyalty. Carl and Roy Opgard have killed their way to the top of their small town, but their plan to start an amusement park is derailed by a new highway route, inspiring them to return to dirty work. Meanwhile, the town sheriff has finally gotten technology to help solve cold cases, including the murder of his own father.

Forthcoming Series Titles

Armstrong, Kelley. Cold as Hell. (Haven’s Rock, bk. 3). Minotaur. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781250351791. 352p. $28. MYSTERY

Bannalec, Jean-Luc. An Island of Suspects. (A Brittany Mystery, bk. 10). Minotaur. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781250893116. 336p. $28. MYSTERY

Beaton, M. C. Death of a Smuggler. (Hamish Macbeth, bk. 37). Grand Central. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781538743331. 256p. $28. MYSTERY

Davis, Krista. The Wagtail Murder Club. (Paws & Claws, bk. 10). Berkley. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780593817520. 320p. $30. MYSTERY

Estleman, Loren D. Smoke on the Water. (Amos Walker, bk. 32). Forge. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781250892553. 240p. $28.99. MYSTERY

Farnsworth, Christopher. Robert B. Parker’s Buried Secrets. (Jesse Stone, bk. 22). Putnam. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780593544761. 336p. $30. MYSTERY

Kellerman, Jonathan. Open Season. (Alex Delaware, bk. 40). Ballantine. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780593497692. 288p. $30. MYSTERY

Maxwell, Alyssa. Two Weddings and a Murder. (A Lady and Lady’s Maid Mystery, bk. 9). Kensington. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781496734921. 304p. $27. MYSTERY

O’Connor, Carlene. Murder in an Irish Garden. (An Irish Village Mystery, bk. 11). Kensington Cozies. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781496744456. 304p. $27. MYSTERY

Robb, J. D. Bonded in Death. (In Death, bk. 60). St. Martin’s. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781250370792. 368p. $30. MYSTERY

Spotswood, Stephen. Dead in the Frame. (Pentecost and Parker, bk. 5). Doubleday. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780385550468. 384p. $28. MYSTERY

Thrillers

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Boyle, William. Saint of the Narrows Street. Soho Crime. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781641296403. 448p. $28.95. THRILLER

Boyle (Shoot the Moonlight Out) is known for his award-nominated, character-driven crime fiction with a literary bent. Here he offers a thriller that begins in 1986 Gravesend, Brooklyn, where an angry Risa Franzone accidentally kills her drunk husband. She enlists her sister and a friend to hide the crime, but eventually cracks in their cover-up begin to appear.

Eskens, Allen. The Quiet Librarian. Mulholland. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780316566315. 320p. $29. THRILLER

The latest from bestselling Eskens (Saving Emma) features middle-aged librarian Hana Babic. She’s living a quiet life in Minnesota when she learns that her best friend has been murdered—and she may be next—as someone who knows the secret of her militia fighter past in Bosnia pursues her.

Kazumi, Callie. Claire, Darling. Bantam. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780593871638. 288p. $30. THRILLER

Kazumi debuts with a novel of psychological suspense. When Claire makes a surprise visit to the office of her fiancé, Noah, she’s shocked to learn that he doesn’t work there—and has another life with another girlfriend and another house. Noah completely ghosts Claire, but she’s obsessed with uncovering all of his lies, plunging her back into her own troubled past.

Larsen, Ward. Dark Vector. (David Slaton and Tru Miller, bk. 1). Forge. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781250343529. 352p. $29.99. THRILLER

Bestselling Larsen (Assassin’s Mark) launches a spin-off series featuring Chief of CIA Clandestine Operations David Slaton and rookie operator Tru Miller. A top-secret Russian fighter plane goes missing in Siberia when the pilot attempts to defect, setting off a desperate search for the man by the CIA and Russian intelligence.

Marshall, Kate Alice. A Killing Cold. Flatiron. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781250343055. 304p. $28.99. THRILLER

Theodora Scott quickly fell in love with wealthy, charming Connor Dalton and is about to meet his powerful family at their isolated winter retreat. A childhood photo and a strange familiarity make her think she’s been there before, but searching for the truth puts her in grave danger. The latest from bestselling Marshall (No One Can Know) receives a 125K-copy first printing.

McAllister, Gillian. Famous Last Words. Morrow. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780063338425. 352p. $30. THRILLER

McAllister, author of the Reese’s Book Club pick Wrong Place Wrong Time, offers another twisty suspense novel. New mom Camilla is shocked when she learns her husband has taken hostages and is in a standoff with police. Then he disappears, and Camilla is left without answers. Seven years later, a text sends her on a dangerous quest for the truth. With a 150K-copy first printing.

McLoughlin, Anna Sophia. A Girl Like Us. Sourcebooks Landmark. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781728296135. 432p. $27.99. THRILLER

Known for her bestselling “Luxe” YA series, Anna Godbersen returns with a locked-room thriller written under a pseudonym. American reality TV star Maya Miller marries into the aristocratic British Sterling family. When the heiress to the Sterling fortune is murdered, Maya becomes the prime suspect and must find the real murderer at the family’s estate in the English countryside.

Perry, Thomas. Pro Bono. The Mysterious Pr. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781613166161. 336p. $27.95. THRILLER

Perry’s (Hero, a Booklist best thriller of the year) latest features Los Angeles attorney Charles Warren, who’s skilled at recovering embezzled and hidden assets. He’s currently tracking down missing money for a young widow, and he recognizes the con that targeted his own widowed mother. He quickly finds himself in danger as he investigates, but it’s too late to walk away now.

Pliego, Ande. You Are Fatally Invited. Bantam. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780593871577. 384p. $30. THRILLER

In Pliego’s debut, Mila is hired by an anonymous author to host a retreat for six thriller writers at a manor off the coast of Maine. Mila plots to use the event as cover for a murder, but when the wrong guest turns up dead and a storm cuts off the island, she instead finds herself trying to outwit a killer.

Unger, Lisa. Close Your Eyes and Count to 10. Park Row. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780778333364. 384p. $30. THRILLER

In the newest from veteran thriller bestseller Unger (The New Couple in 5B), extreme adventurer Maverick Dillan organizes the ultimate game of hide-and-seek on an island as a social media stunt. When a storm hits and another deadly threat stalks the contestants, the stakes become even higher, and they’ll have to battle for survival.

Forthcoming Series Titles

Berry, Steve. The Medici Return. (Cotton Malone, bk. 19). Grand Central. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781538770566. 400p. $30. THRILLER

Box, C. J. Battle Mountain. (Joe Pickett, bk. 25). Putnam. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780593851050. 384p. $32. THRILLER

Greaney, Mark. Midnight Black. (Gray Man, bk. 14). Berkley. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780593548189. 544p. $30. THRILLER

Hurwitz, Gregg. Nemesis. (Orphan X, bk. 10). Minotaur. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781250871749. 464p. $30. THRILLER

Meyer, Deon. Leo. (Benny Griessel, bk. 8). Atlantic Monthly. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780802164230. 100,987p. $28. THRILLER

Moehling, Joshua. A Long Time Gone. (Ben Packard, bk. 3). Poisoned Pen. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781728279008. 336p. $27.99. THRILLER

Patterson, James & James O. Born. Paranoia: The Most Beloved Family in Crime Fiction. (Michael Bennett, bk. 17). Little, Brown. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780316403689. 400p. $30. THRILLER

Romance

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Borison, B. K. First-Time Caller. (Heartstrings, bk. 1). Berkley. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780593641194. pbk. 448p. $19. CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE

Borison, bestselling author of the “Lovelight” series, pens a Sleepless in Seattle–inspired love story. Aiden Valentine is the radio host of Baltimore’s romance hotline, but he’s over love for himself. When a young girl calls in looking for dating advice for her mom, Lucie, the interview goes viral. Suddenly, everyone is invested in Lucie’s happily ever after, including Aiden.

Frampton, Megan. The Devil’s Charm. (Heirs & Spares). Avon. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780063389205. mm. pbk. 368p. $9.99. HISTORICAL ROMANCE

Frampton (“School for Scoundrels” series) launches a new Victorian-era series, “Heirs and Spares.” Second son Lord Lucian Blackwood has a wild reputation, but when he meets and kisses proper Lady Diantha Courtenay, the daughter of his father’s enemy, these opposites might not be able to resist their attraction. With a 100K-copy first printing.

Hazelwood, Ali. Deep End. Berkley. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780593550441. pbk. 464p. $20. CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE

Bestselling Hazelwood (Not in Love) offers a college sports romance, featuring competitive diver Scarlett Vandermeer and all-star swimmer Lukas Blomqvist. Aiming to make the Olympics team, they both want to stay focused on their athletic careers, not a relationship, but their temporary fling starts to feel serious.

Sullivan, Sophie. Get Lost with You. (Rock Bottom Love, bk. 2). St. Martin’s Griffin. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781250875853. pbk. 304p. $18. CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE

In the second entry of Sullivan’s “Rock Bottom Love” series, after Love, Naturally, single mom Jillian has settled back into her hometown, where she helps run the Get Lost Lodge. When her old flame, Levi, returns, it seems they may have a second chance at a relationship—if Jilly can get over past hurts. With a 75K-copy first printing.

Tieu, Julie. The Girl Most Likely To. Avon. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780063245235. pbk. 384p. $18.99. CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE

In Tieu’s (Fancy Meeting You Here) latest, high school frenemies Rachel Dang and Danny Phan reconnect at their 20-year class reunion. Rachel was once voted “Most Likely To Succeed,” although she’s now unemployed, while Danny was unfocused as a teen but currently has a thriving career. They’ll have to decide if their rediscovered feelings can last beyond the evening.

Forthcoming Series Titles

Bailey, Tessa. Dream Girl Drama. (Big Shots, bk. 3). Avon. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780063380783. pbk. 320p. $18.99. CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE

Forest, Kristina. The Love Lyric. (Greene Sisters, bk. 3). Berkley. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780593817100. pbk. 400p. $19. CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE

Herrera, Adriana. A Tropical Rebel Gets the Duke. (Las Leonas, bk. 3). Canary Street. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781335476968. pbk. 336p. $18.99. HISTORICAL ROMANCE

Kennedy, Elle. The Charlie Method. (Campus Diaries, bk. 3). Bloom. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781464219351. pbk. NAp. $17.99. CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE

Spalding, Amy. On Her Terms. (Out in Hollywood, bk. 3). Kensington. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781496751157. pbk. 320p. $17.95. LGBTQIA+ ROMANCE

Weaver, Brynne. Scythe & Sparrow. (Ruinous Love Trilogy, bk. 3). Slowburn: Zando. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781638931812. pbk. 368p. $19. CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE

Williams, Preslaysa. A Wedding in the Lowcountry. (Lowcountry, bk. 3). Avon. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780063237186. pbk. 304p. $18.99. CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE

Romantasy

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Burgis, Stephanie. Wooing the Witch Queen. (Queens of Villainy, bk. 1). Bramble. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781250359599. pbk. 304p. $19.99. ROMANTASY

Burgis (The Harwood Spellbook) sets her newest in a gas lamp–lit world filled with magic, hags, and ogres. Queen Saskia has her hands full protecting her kingdom and spinning spells. She hires the charming wizard Fabian to run her library, unaware he is an archduke on the run. With a 150K-copy first printing.

Chalfin, Ben. The Prince’s Heart. Rising Action. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781998076925. pbk. 360p. $16.99. ROMANTASY

Chalfin debuts with an LGBTQIA+ romantasy in which second son Prince Darien Garros, of the mythical land of Soeria, must decide between duty and desire amid the burdens of kingship and rule.

CJ, Piper. The Fox and the Falcon. (No Other Gods, bk. 2). Bloom. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781464237379. pbk. NAp. $18.99. ROMANTASY

Few details are out about the second book in the bestselling queer urban fantasy series “No Other Gods,” following The Night and Its Moon, other than main character Marlow will have to rely on her new allies to save the world.

Eames, Andrea. A Harvest of Hearts. Erewhon. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781645661887. 464p. $28. ROMANTASY

Eames (The White Shadow, shortlisted for the Dylan Thomas Prize) writes a cozy fantasy that includes quirky magical houses and talking cats. Foss Butcher lives in a kingdom where magic-workers harvest human hearts to use in spells. When sorcerer Sylvester accidentally snags a piece of Foss’s heart, Foss finds adventure, magical secrets, and romance as she searches for a cure.

El-Arifi, Saara. Cursebound. (Faebound, bk. 2). Del Rey. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780593723036. 400p. $30. ROMANTASY

Bestselling El-Arifi offers the second novel in her “Faebound” trilogy. The first book found Yeeran fighting in the elven army until she was brought to the fae court for killing a fae prince, but she found magic and possibility there. Now, Yeeran and her sister are caught between love and duty as the war between the fae and the elves rages on.

Kuroki, Poppy. Gate to Kagoshima. (Ancestor Memories, bk. 1). Harper Paperbacks. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780063410879. pbk. 320p. $17.99. ROMANTASY

This time-travel series, which Kuroki (A Bard’s Lament) sold in a two-book deal, with the first already optioned by Will and Jada Smith’s production company, sees Isla Mackenzie traveling back in time 128 years to the dawn of the Satsuma Rebellion. In that time, she falls in love with samurai Kei, whose fate she knows. With a 100K-copy first printing.

Sbrana, Analeigh. Lore of the Tides. (Lore of the Wilds, bk. 2). Harper Voyager. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780063380646. 384p. $28. ROMANTASY

In this sequel to Lore of the Wilds, Lore Alemeyu is being held prisoner on a ship in the middle of the ocean. She’ll need to navigate threats on the ship and continue her quest for the magical sun book in order to free humans from the ruthless Fae, but there’s one Fae who has been helping her and tempting her heart.

Historical Fiction

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Benedict, Marie. The Queens of Crime. St. Martin’s. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781250280756. 320p. $29. HISTORICAL FICTION

Bestselling Benedict (The Mitford Affair) sets her newest in 1930s London, as five women crime writers form a secret society to claim their position in the world. The club includes Dorothy Sayers, Agatha Christie, Ngaio Marsh, Margery Allingham, and Baroness Emma Orczy. To prove their point, they plan to solve a real locked-room murder. With a 250K-copy first printing.

Fancher, Charles B. Red Clay. Blackstone. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9798212408691. 373p. $27.99. HISTORICAL FICTION

Journalist Fancher debuts with a multigenerational saga set during the end of the Civil War, the beginning of Reconstruction, and through Jim Crow. In 1943, a white woman shows up at the house of a Black family, stating that her ancestors once enslaved theirs. Thus begins a sweeping story that crosses the globe and reveals the history of both families.

Durham, Elyse. Maya & Natasha. Mariner. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780063393615. 400p. $30. HISTORICAL FICTION

Durham, a PEN/Robert J. Dau Short Story Prize for Emerging Writers nominee, debuts with a 75K-copy first printing for her novel set in the world of Soviet ballet. Twin sisters, abandoned by their mother, are raised in the Vaganova Ballet Academy and are ultimately pitted against each other as freedom and opportunity, East and West, collide.

Eckstine, Erin Crosby. Junie. Ballantine. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780593725115. 368p. $30. HISTORICAL FICTION

Eckstine debuts with a story set during the Civil War as the 16-year-old and enslaved Junie sees a new threat in her life, triggering the ghost of her dead sister and presenting her with choices that limn questions of love and power.

Epstein, Linda & others. The Other March Sisters. Kensington. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781496750259. 368p. $28. HISTORICAL FICTION

Written by three authors, one of whom is a librarian, one a literary agent, and one an herbalist and witch, this queer retelling of Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women focuses on Meg, Beth, and Amy and draws inspiration from Alcott’s own sisters.

Galland, Nicole. Boy. Morrow. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780063342859. 352p. $30. HISTORICAL FICTION

Galland, who cowrote The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O. with Neal Stephenson, sets her newest in the theaters and intellectual solons of Elizabethan London, as Francis Bacon serves as the nexus of two friends, Alexander, an actor in William Shakespeare’s company who famously plays women characters, and Joan Buckler, a woman who is only allowed to study science disguised as a man.

Grant, Gail Milissa. The Sable Cloak. Grand Central. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781538742006. 320p. $28. HISTORICAL FICTION

Award-winner Grant (At the Elbows of My Elders: One Family’s Journey Toward Civil Rights) turns to fiction with a novel set in St. Louis during the Jim Crow era, modeled on her own family history. Jordan Sable is a Black undertaker and political boss who, alongside his powerhouse wife, builds an upper middle-class life for his family—until tragedy threatens their legacy.

Haw, Penny. Follow Me to Africa. Sourcebooks Landmark. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781728295459. pbk. 304p. $17.99. HISTORICAL FICTION

Haw (The Invincible Miss Cust) returns with her third historical, this time spanning two timelines (1935 and 1983) and featuring dual points of view as it traces the intergenerational friendship between the real-life archaeologist Mary Leakey and Anne, the 17-year-old daughter of a colleague who reminds Mary of her younger self.

Jenoff, Pam. Last Twilight in Paris. Park Row. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780778307983. 352p. $28.99. HISTORICAL FICTION

Bestselling Jenoff (Code Name Sapphire) returns with the story of a woman who discovers a necklace in a secondhand store, launching her on a quest to discover the history of her friend who died during WWII. Jenoff’s tale is also a love story and details the history of a Paris department store that the Nazis converted into a prison. With a 150K-copy first printing.

Joshi, Alka. Six Days in Bombay. MIRA. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780778368533. 352p. $28.99. HISTORICAL FICTION

Joshi, bestselling author of The Henna Artist, a Reese’s Book Club pick being developed by Netflix, returns with the story of a young Anglo Indian nurse who travels across Europe to find answers when a famous painter dies in her care. The painter, Mira Novak, is inspired by the real-life artist Amrita Sher-Gil. With a 100K-copy first printing.

Kelly, Julia. The Dressmakers of London. Gallery. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781668032725. pbk. 432p. $18.99. HISTORICAL FICTION

Kelly (The Lost English Girl; A Traitor in Whitehall) sets her newest in WWII London, where two estranged sisters jointly inherit their mother’s dressmaking shop and must rely upon each other to save the business and, perhaps by doing so, heal old wounds.

Lending, Tod. The Umbrella Maker’s Son: A Novel of WWII. Harper Paperbacks. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780063413849. pbk. 400p. $18.99. HISTORICAL FICTION

Lending, an Academy Award–nominated director and producer, debuts with the story of 17-year-old Reuven, a Jewish boy who creates umbrellas with his father in Poland. When the Nazis invade, Reuven’s girlfriend, Zelda, disappears. With terror all around him, Reuven tries to find her. With a 75K-copy first printing.

Moon, Shara. Let Us March On. Morrow Paperbacks. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780063213425. pbk. 384p.$18.99. HISTORICAL FICTION

Moon debuts with the story of Lizzie McDuffie, the real-life woman who led the civil rights movement of the FDR era, worked as a maid in the White House, and called herself FDR’s “Secretary on Colored People’s Affairs.”

Tiffany, Grace. The Owl Was a Baker’s Daughter: The Continuing Adventures of Judith Shakespeare. Harper. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780063380530. 256p. $30. HISTORICAL FICTION

Tiffany, a professor of Renaissance drama, offers a sequel to My Father Had a Daughter, a Book Sense 76 Best Book. Judith Shakespeare, a midwife-apothecary and daughter of William, flees Stratford lest she be declared a witch. In her company are a Puritan woman and child, both caught in the violence of the bloody civil war.

Wang, Jack. The Riveter. HarperVia. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780063081833. 320p. $30. HISTORICAL FICTION

Wang (We Two Alone) sets this historical in 1942 Vancouver, where Josiah Chang, a Chinese Canadian, is barred from joining the army and so becomes a riveter, building war ships and falling for Poppy, a singer in a navy club. Poppy’s father disapproves, but Josiah will do anything to prove himself worthy.

Horror

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dunn, Kat. Hungerstone. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781638932161. 304p. $28. HORROR

This historical horror features vampires and a sapphic romance in a feminist reworking of Sheridan Le Fanu’s 1872 gothic novella Carmilla, one of the earliest works of vampire fiction (published 25 years before Bram Stoker’s Dracula). With a 75K-copy first printing.

Pearce, Daisy. Something in the Walls. Minotaur. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781250334381. 304p. $28. HORROR

Pearce (The Missing) melds folklore, horror, and psychological suspense in her latest. When a teenage girl claims that she’s possessed by a witch, child psychologist Mina ventures to a remote English village to try to help her, but the small town is full of superstition and sinister traditions.

Rebelein, Sam. The Poorly Made and Other Things: A Story Collection. Morrow Paperbacks. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780063252295. 288p. $18.99. HORROR

Rebelein brings readers back to Renfield County, the setting of his Stoker Award–nominated debut, Edenville. The wood that became bloodstained during the Renfield massacre has been regrettably repurposed into furniture, decor, and heirloom pieces. These are the spooky stories of those living with that cursed wood.

Viel, Neena. Listen to Your Sister. St. Martin’s Griffin. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781250906328. pbk. 352p. $19. HORROR

At 25, Calla, who is haunted by nightmares that her brothers might die, has become guardian to her reckless 16-year-old brother, Jamie. His actions at a protest send the siblings on the run to a remote cabin, where they find new threats. Viel’s debut receives a 150K-copy first printing.

Magical Realism

Becker, Elizabeth. The Moonlight Healers. Graydon House. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781525830426. 320p. $30. MAGICAL REALISM

Becker debuts with a work of historical fiction and magical realism. The Winston women have long been able to bring people back to life. This is news to Louise Winston, who accidentally brings back her best friend when he dies in an accident. Desperate to know what happened, she turns to her grandmother and, through a tattered family diary, learns her family’s history and begins to navigate her own legacy.

McCaulay, Diana. A House for Miss Pauline. Algonquin. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781643757223. 288p. $29. MAGICAL REALISM

Twice winner of the Commonwealth Short Story Prize for the Caribbean region and shortlisted for the IMPAC Dublin Award, McCaulay creates a 99-year-old heroine, Miss Pauline, who lives in a house of great power that is telling her she will not live to see 100 and must take account of her identity, secrets, and past.

Robson, Laura. A Curse for the Homesick. MIRA. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780778368472. 352p. $30. MAGICAL REALISM

YA author Robson (Girls at the Edge of the World) makes her adult debut by inventing the legend of the skelds, women who can turn people to stone with just a look. Tess’s mother killed Soren’s parents with a glance, but even so, Tess and Soren have fallen in love. As the skeld season returns, the two face death and heartbreak.

Science Fiction & Fantasy

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ashton, Edward. The Fourth Consort. St. Martin’s. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781250286338. 288p. $29. SCIENCE FICTION

Ashton’s (Mickey7; Mal Goes to War) new stand-alone sci-fi stars Dalton Greaves, one of the first human representatives to Unity, a confederation supposedly working to bring all sentient life together. But there’s another confederation, the Assembly, that doesn’t like Unity or humans, and Dalton soon finds himself marooned on an unfamiliar planet and in danger.

Campbell, Jack. Destiny’s Way. (Doomed Earth Duology, bk. 2). Ace. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780593640661. 384p. $30. SCIENCE FICTION

Bestselling Campbell concludes his military SF duology, which began with In Our Stars. Lieutenant Selene Genji, genetically engineered with alien DNA, watched Earth get destroyed in 2180. She’s been flung 40 years into the past, where she’s trying to figure out how to change the future and save Earth, with the help of Lieutenant Kayl Owen.

Gordon, Marianne. The Antlered King. (The Raven’s Trade, bk. 2). Harper Voyager. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780063248830. pbk. 464p. $18.99. FANTASY

Gordon (The Gilded Crown) concludes her “Raven’s Trade” duology. Hellevir’s ability to bring people back from the dead led to her protecting Princess Sullivain, who she’s fallen in love with. Her gift comes at a great price, though, and now she’ll have to decide what she must sacrifice to save those she loves and stop a war. With a 100K-copy first printing.

Kim, Ewhan. The Black Orb. tr. from Korean by Sean Lin Halbert. MIRA. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780778387343. 304p. $28.99. SCIENCE FICTION

In this English-language debut of an award-winning Korean novel, Jeong-su is in downtown Seoul when he sees a black orb suck his neighbor inside. The orb continues consuming people, splitting and multiplying, and no one can stop it. As the crisis grows, Jeong-su struggles to survive as he journeys in search of his elderly parents.

O’Neill, Molly. Greenteeth. Orbit. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780316584241. pbk. 400p. $18.99. FANTASY

O’Neill debuts with a cozy fantasy tale of fae, folklore, and found family that’s set in an alternate 17th-century Britain. Jenny Greenteeth is a lake monster with very sharp teeth. When Temperance the witch is thrown into her lake, Jenny decides to save her, setting them on a magical quest to defeat a threatening evil.

Pueyo, Hache. But Not Too Bold. Tor.com. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781250376633. 128p. $24.99. FANTASY

After publishing several short stories, including the collection A Study in Ugliness & Outras Histórias, Pueyo makes her novella debut with a gothic fantasy that features a sapphic monster romance. Anatema is an enormous humanoid spider who just ate the keeper of the keys. The keeper’s protégée, Dália, must unravel the crime that led to her predecessor’s death in order to survive.

Swan, Richard. Grave Empire. (The Great Silence, bk. 1). Orbit. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780316577007. pbk. 464p. $19.99. FANTASY

Swan launches a new fantasy series set in the world of his “Empire of the Wolf” trilogy. The Empire intends to become the most powerful kingdom in the known world. However, a mysterious plague, a failing proxy war, and an ancient prophecy portending supernatural catastrophe threaten its dominance.

Woods, Kell. Upon a Starlit Tide. Tor. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781250852519. 432p. $28.99. FANTASY

In 1758 Brittany, Lucinde Leon dreams of joining a ship’s crew, but when she rescues Morgan de Chatelaine from the sea, she also longs to attend the ball with him. Complicating matters, the fae are leaving, taking their magic with them. Woods (After the Forest) offers a fairy-tale fantasy mash-up of “The Little Mermaid” and “Cinderella.” With a 100K-copy first printing.

Forthcoming Series Titles

Doctorow, Cory. Picks and Shovels. (Martin Hench, bk. 3). Tor. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781250865908. 400p. $28.99. SCIENCE FICTION

Fawcett, Heather. Emily Wilde’s Compendium of Lost Tales. (Emily Wilde, bk. 3). Del Rey. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780593500224. 368p. $29. FANTASY

Kade, Kel. Sanctum of the Soul. (Shroud of Prophecy, bk. 3). Tor. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781250293893. 368p. $32.99. FANTASY

Rollins, James. A Dragon of Black Glass. (Moonfall, bk. 3). Tor. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781250768179. 624p. $29.99. FANTASY

Shannon, Samantha. The Dark Mirror. (Bone Season, bk. 5). Bloomsbury. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781639733965. 576p. $31.99. FANTASY

Nonfiction

Biography & Memoir

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Amelina, Victoria. Looking at Women Looking at War: A War and Justice Diary. St. Martin’s. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781250367686. 320p. $29. MEMOIR

Amelina, an award-winning Ukrainian author, poet, and activist, was killed by a Russian missile in 2023. This posthumous book, with a foreword by Margaret Atwood, is an account of her documentation of the war, including the photographs she took and the interviews she recorded of survivors, soldiers, and fellow activists. With a 75K-copy first printing.

Baker, Josephine. Fearless and Free: A Memoir. tr. from French by Anam Zafar & Sophie R. Lewis. Tiny Reparations. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780593853696. 320p. $32. MEMOIR

Published in the U.S. for the first time (after being published in France in 1949), this autobiography by legendary dancer and singer Baker spans a remarkable period of time, from the Harlem Renaissance through Martin Luther King Jr.’s March on Washington, with 1920s Paris and WWII in between.

Benjamin, Rich. Talk to Me: Lessons from a Family Forged by History. Pantheon. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780593317396. 320p. $29. MEMOIR

Benjamin (Searching for Whitopia), a cultural anthropologist, writes about his hidden family history—his grandfather was the president of Haiti, until a coup powered by the Eisenhower administration removed him from office. The memoir branches from there, also exploring Benjamin’s personal life and the impact of family and history.

Boylan, Jennifer Finney. Cleavage: Men, Women, and the Space Between Us. Celadon. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781250261885. 256p. $29. MEMOIR

Boylan, whose memoir She’s Not There was the first bestselling work by a transgender American, writes about the differences and common ground between genders and how gender affects a sense of self, body image, friendship, even time.

Brooks, Geraldine. Memorial Days: A Memoir. Viking. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780593653982. 224p. $28. MEMOIR

Pulitzer Prize–winning novelist Brooks (March) writes about the sudden death of her partner, the bestselling author Tony Horwitz. Faced with the overwhelming demands that follow a death, she had no time to process her grief. Three years later, she finally was able to mourn and write this memoir of love and loss.

Gates, Bill. Source Code: My Beginnings. Knopf. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780593801581. 320p. $30. MEMOIR

Gates, the technologist, philanthropist, and co-founder of Microsoft, writes about his early life through his college years, detailing his childhood, his family, the influence of his parents and grandparents, and his coming of age.

Harris, Keeonna. Mainline Mama: A Memoir. Amistad. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780063205697. 224p. $26.99. MEMOIR

Harris, an activist, academic, and author, writes a memoir about raising a family with an incarcerated partner, a life-journey that began when she was a teen. Forced to raise their child mostly on her own, Harris discusses the trauma of the carceral system and her advocacy for others in a similar position.

Jiménez, Cristina. Dreaming of Home: A Young Latina’s Journey to Pride, Power, and Belonging. St. Martin’s Griffin. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781250275660. 304p. $29. MEMOIR

Jiménez, a MacArthur Fellow, one of Time’s Most Influential People in 2018, and co-founder and former executive director of United We Dream, writes about moving from Ecuador to the U.S., the fear of deportation, and becoming a powerful activist in the immigrant youth movement, helping to win DACA.

Kagge, Erling. After the North Pole: A Story of Survival, Mythmaking, and Melting Ice. tr. from Norwegian by Kari Dickson. HarperOne. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780063421783. 304p. $27.99. MEMOIR

Adventurer and philosopher Kagge (Silence: In the Age of Noise) recounts his record-breaking 58-day journey to the North Pole (accomplished on skis), ponders the nature and history of exploration, and meditates on the natural world.

McGilligan, Patrick. Woody Allen: Life and Legacy; A Travesty of a Mockery of a Sham. Harper. Nov. 2024. ISBN 9780062941336. 848p. $50. BIOGRAPHY

McGilligan, the film biographer who has written about Orson Welles (Young Orson) and Mel Brooks (Funny Man), turns to Allen, tracing his filmmaking, cultural impact, personal life, and controversies.

Morrison, Susan. Lorne: The Man Who Invented Saturday Night. Random. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780812988871. 592p. $36. BIOGRAPHY

Michaels, the famous creator of Saturday Night Live, cooperated with this biography and allowed Morrison, an editor at the New Yorker, to shadow him for a week on the show. The biography is being published to coincide with SNL’s 50th anniversary.

O’Meara, Mallory. Daughter of Daring: The Trick-Riding, Train-Leaping, Road-Racing Life of Helen Gibson, Hollywood’s First Stuntwoman. Hanover Square. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781335007933. 320p. $32. BIOGRAPHY

Award-winning O’Meara (The Lady from the Black Lagoon), cohost of the podcast Reading Glasses, tells the untold story of the United States’ first professional stuntwoman, Helen Gibson. Calling herself “the Most Daring Actress in Pictures,” Gibson worked in hundreds of silent films and starred in The Hazards of Helen.

Vaccaro, Sonny. Legends and Soles. HarperOne. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780063423435. 256p. $29.99. MEMOIR

Vaccaro, a basketball insider who signed Michael Jordan to Nike and was portrayed in the film Air, writes about sports marketing, Jordan, the fierce competition between manufacturers, his relationships with players, and the legal case that altered the landscape of college sports. With a 100K-copy first printing and written in collaboration with bestselling Armen Keteyian.

Memoir in Essays

Brown, Alton. Food for Thought: Essays and Ruminations. Gallery. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781668064214. 304p. $28.99. MEMOIR

Bestselling Brown, star of the Food Network’s Good Eats and author of several Good Eats cookbooks, turns to essays as he ruminates on a wide range of culinary questions, great meals, and his personal and professional lives.

Gomez, Edgar. Alligator Tears: A Memoir in Essays. Crown. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780593728543. 256p. $28. MEMOIR

Award-winning Gomez (High-Risk Homosexual) writes a memoir in essays that explore his path out of poverty, the scam of the American dream, the reality of Florida, and queer expression.

Okokon, Theresa. Who I Always Was: A Memoir. Atria. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781668008959. 288p. $28.99. MEMOIR

Okokon, a Pushcart Prize–nominated essayist, debuts with an essay collection that ponders questions of grief, family, abandonment, Blackness, African spirituality, and coming of age.

Social Sciences

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Clapp, Alexander. Waste Wars: The Wild Afterlife of Your Trash. Little, Brown. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780316459020. 400p. $30. SOCIAL SCIENCES

Clapp, an award-winning investigative journalist whose New Republic article “The Vampire Ship” is being adapted as a documentary series, looks at the global market for garbage—which spans across five continents, makes some people rich, fuels border skirmishes, and illuminates a fascinating and terrifying mix of environmental, social, and business concerns.

El Akkad, Omar. One Day Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This. Knopf. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780593804148. 224p. $30. SOCIAL SCIENCES

El Akkad (American War; What Strange Paradise), a novelist, journalist, and winner of the Scotiabank Giller Prize, writes about the failure of the West to live up to the values it has enshrined and the consequences of witnessing that failure, over and over again.

Fagan, Kevin. The Lost and the Found: A True Story of Homelessness, Found Family and Second Chances. One Signal. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781668017111. 288p. $29.99. SOCIAL SCIENCES

Fagan, an award-winning reporter at the San Francisco Chronicle, centers his exploration of homelessness in that most wealthy city, offering a character-driven and policy-oriented account of the factors driving an epidemic of homelessness, exacerbated by a lack of equality and care.

Hobbs, Jeff. Seeking Shelter: A Working Mother, Her Children, and a Story of Homelessness in America. Scribner. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781668034828. 352p. $29.99. SOCIAL SCIENCES

Hobbs, bestselling and award-winning author of The Short and Tragic Life of Robert Peace, writes about homelessness by following the life of a woman named Evelyn, her children, especially her son Orlando, and a social worker named Wendi. Their stories illuminate the broader social inequality and economic disparity that undergirds the American housing crisis.

Jones, Sarah. Disposable: America’s Contempt for the Underclass. Avid Reader. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781982197421. 368p. $30. SOCIAL SCIENCES

Jones, a senior writer for New York magazine covering politics and religion, offers a mix of reporting and personal narrative as she explores inequality in the United States. Using COVID as her marker, she exposes how the nation creates an underclass it then sacrifices; she also lays out arguments to turn the tide.

Ross, Loretta J. Calling In: How To Start Making Change with Those You’d Rather Cancel. S&S. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781982190798. 272p. $28.99. SOCIAL SCIENCES

Ross, a MacArthur Fellow, writes a memoir/manifesto on how to solve problems. Eschewing cancel culture, she advocates instead for calling people in. Ross discusses how she came to this philosophy through her own experiences and her decades of success as an activist.

Sanders, Chad. How To Sell Out: The (Hidden) Cost of Being a Black Writer. S&S. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781982190835. 256p. $28.99. SOCIAL SCIENCES

TV writer, podcaster, and author Sanders (Black Magic: What Black Leaders Learned from Trauma and Triumph) writes about Black authorship and the commercialization and profit made off of Black experiences and pain, reflecting in thought-provoking ways on trauma, race, class, and creativity.

von Hippel, William. The Social Paradox: Autonomy, Connection, and Why We Need Both to Find Happiness. Harper. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780063319257. 304p. $30. SOCIAL SCIENCES

Von Hippel (The Social Leap) explores humanity’s desire for connection and autonomy, how these two poles are in conflict, and how to resolve the paradox inherent in a need for both. Offering new ways to balance the interplay, von Hippel explores the ramifications of these evolutionary drives.

West, Keon. The Science of Racism: Everything You Need To Know but Probably Don’t—Yet. Abrams. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9781419774379. 320p. $28. SOCIAL SCIENCES

West, a social psychologist at Goldsmiths, University of London, addresses racism, moving away from opinion and personal anecdote to detailing the research and experiments that prove how racism impacts every aspect of life. He then explores and explains the various ways racism can be countered to create broader and deeper equity.

Yunkaporta, Tyson. Right Story, Wrong Story: How To Have Fearless Conversations in Hell. Feb. 2025. ISBN 9780063382398. 304p. $29.99. SOCIAL SCIENCES

Award-winning Yunkaporta (Sand Talk: How Indigenous Thinking Can Change the World), a member of the Apalech Clan and a senior lecturer in Indigenous Knowledges at Deakin University, writes about how to navigate conflict and division, offering ways into conversations, listening, and change.