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Big Books of the Week

Holly by Stephen King (Scribner) leads holds this week.

Other titles in demand include:

Payback in Death by J.D Robb (St. Martin’s)

The Long Game by Elena Armas (Atria; LJ starred review)

The River We Remember by William Kent Krueger (Atria)

The Raging Storm by Ann Cleeves (Minotaur: St. Martin’s; LJ starred review)

The Fraud by Zadie Smith (Penguin Pr.; LJ starred review)

These books and others publishing the week of September 4, 2023, are listed in a downloadable spreadsheet.

Librarians and Booksellers Suggest

Five LibraryReads and eight Indie Next picks publish this week:

Hush Harbor by Anise Vance (Hanover Square Pr.; LJ starred review)

“When racism explodes and it feels like the world is on fire, siblings Jeremiah and Nova decide to form a resistance group in an abandoned housing project. But differences about how to move forward divide the group, threatening to derail their work. The group must find a way forward without becoming like the enemy. Thought-provoking and intense!”—Alicia Ahlvers, Henrico County Public Library

Things We Left Behind by Lucy Score (Bloom Bks.)

“In this series entry, Sloane Walton, local librarian, and Lucian Rollins, DC power player, mix as well as oil and water. When Sloane decides she’s ready to settle down, Lucian insists on watching out for her. Can they get past their animosity and build a relationship? Lucian and Sloane are likable but flawed characters and readers will root for them to get their HEA.”—Shari Suarez, Genesee District Library, MI

The September House by Carissa Orlando (Berkley; LJ starred review)

“Margaret believes in following the rules. Four years after moving into a haunted Victorian, she knows how to avoid the dangerous ghosts. But her husband can’t take it anymore and leaves when the paranormal activity escalates to excessive levels. Now their estranged daughter—who’s never been to the house—is coming to visit, and Margaret doesn’t know how to explain (much less keep her child safe from) the specters’ violent antics.”—Lucy Lockley, St. Charles City-County Lib Dist, MO

It is also an Indie Next pick:

“This was a ride! With a seemingly unreliable narrator and a house full of either real or imagined horrors, The September House is a story of mental illness, domestic abuse, and the resilience of women. This was an incredibly layered novel.”—Lauren Nopenz Fairley, Curious Iguana, Frederick, MD

The Long Game by Elena Armas (Atria; LJ starred review)

“Adalyn needs a hug, not that she’ll ever admit it. Exiled to tiny Green Oak, North Carolina after a very public breakdown, she's forced to examine her life—and of course, falls in love along the way. Armas hits all the right emotional notes and the slow burn is delicious. Pick this one up if you like small-town romance, love interests who actually talk to each other, and female leads who can handle their stuff.”—Amanda Baumann, JCL Northwest, MO

Enchanted To Meet You by Meg Cabot (Avon) is a Hall of Fame pick.

Seven additional Indie Next picks publish this week:

The Square of Sevens by Laura Shepherd-Robinson (Atria)

“Come for the orphaned, Dickensian fortune teller in 18th-century Cornwall and stay for a sweeping epic of Georgian high society, mystery, and divination. Deeply researched and intricate, this is outstanding historical fiction.”—Debra Ginsberg, DIESEL, A Bookstore, Santa Monica, CA

Creep: Accusations and Confessions by Myriam Gurba (Avid Reader Pr.: S. & S.)

“Through a historical and literary lens, Creep exposes racist dog whistles you may not be aware of, biases you don’t even realize, and shines a light on oppression marginalized people face. It is full of heart, humor, and hard truths.”—Alana Haley, Schuler Books, Grand Rapids, MI

Mother-Daughter Murder Night by Nina Simon (Morrow; LJ starred review)

“I adored this twisty thriller set in the beauty of the marshlands of California. A grandmother, mother, and daughter try to solve a murder while also healing their troubled relationships. Highly recommend!”—Elizabeth Barnhill, Fabled Bookshop & Café, Waco, TX

The Fraud by Zadie Smith (Penguin Pr.; LJ starred review)

“Zadie Smith is a literary genius. The last time I stopped to marvel at the beauty of a book’s writing was in the Neapolitan novels. This has the same notes of immersive world building and rich, complex characters. One of my favorite reads of 2023!”—Michelle Zhang, BookPeople, Austin, TX

While You Were Out: An Intimate Family Portrait of Mental Illness in an Era of Silence by Meg Kissinger (Celadon)

“Every child, every parent, every sibling—every one of us—must read this book. We all share the experience of loving someone with mental illness. We can take a step toward greater compassion by reading Meg’s insightful, personal story.”—Beth Stroh, Viewpoint Books, Columbus, IN

Amazing Grace Adams by Fran Littlewood (Holt)

“A moving novel about a mother grappling with a past tragedy and oncoming perimenopause. Estranged from her daughter and with a pending divorce, she fights back and shows her family who she really is and how she will not give up on them. Or herself.”—Alexandria Hammett, Serendipity Books, Chelsea, MI

The River We Remember by William Kent Krueger (Atria)

“Although I love the Cork O’Connor books, I think William Kent Krueger’s absolute best work resides in his stand-alone titles. This book will reside in my heart for quite a time to come. Great message of truth, love, and forgiveness.”—Katie Lancaster, Back Forty Books, Two Harbors, MN

In The Media

People previews the best books for fall.

Fiction picks include: Search History by Amy Taylor (Dial), Good Women by Halle Hill (Hub City Pr.), Absolution by Alice McDermott (Farrar), The Helsinki Affair by Anna Pitoniak (S. & S.), and Julia by Sandra Newman (Mariner).

Nonfiction picks include: Hell If We Don’t Change Our Ways: A Memoir by Brittany Means (Zibby), Landlines: The Remarkable Story of a Thousand-Mile Journey by Raynor Winn (Pegasus), But Will You Love Me Tomorrow? An Oral History of the ’60s Girl Groups by Laura Flam & Emily Sieu Liebowitz (Hachette; LJ starred review), To Infinity and Beyond: A Journey of Cosmic Discovery by Neil deGrasse Tyson & Lindsey Nyx Walker (National Geographic), and Opposable Thumbs: How Siskel & Ebert Changed Movies Forever by Matt Singer (Putnam).

Mystery & Thriller picks include: The Raging Storm by Ann Cleeves (Minotaur: St. Martin’s; LJ starred review), The Secret Hours by Mick Herron (Soho Crime; LJ starred review), One Puzzling Afternoon by Emily Critchley (Sourcebooks Landmark), The Leftover Woman by Jean Kwok (Morrow), and The Last Devil To Die by Richard Osman (Pamela Dorman: Viking; LJ starred review). 

The “Picks” section spotlights Ahsoka on Disney+, with assoc. titles. There is a feature on actor Jake Gyllenhaal and his new picture book, The Secret Society of Aunts & Uncles, written with Greta Caruso, illus. by Dan Santat (Feiwel & Friends). There is also a remembrance for the late game show host and author Bob Barker. Plus, a Fall TV Preview highlights Apple TV’s Lessons in Chemistry, based on the book by Bonnie Garmus, Paramount+’s Fellow Travelers, based on a novel by Thomas Mallon, Prime’s Wheel of Time series, based on the books by Robert Jordan with Brandon Sanderson, and Hulu’s The Other Black Girl, based on the book by Zakiya Dalila Harris. 

September’s Costco Connection is out, featuring an interview with Swedish author Karin Smirnoff, who continues Lisbeth Salander’s story in The Girl in the Eagle’s Talons, trans. by Sarah Death (Knopf). The online book pick is NASA’s Bees: Fifty Experiments That Revolutionized Robotics and AI by Rob Waugh (Shelter Harbor Pr.)

Reviews

NYT reviews What You Are Looking for Is in the Library by Michiko Aoyama (Hanover Square Pr.): “It’s plain from the first page, from the tenderness with which writer and translator treat their characters. Yet the novel is an undeniable page-turner, its mechanism energized by a simple question, posed again and again by the uncanny librarian, Mrs. Komachi”; and The Hidden Roots of White Supremacy, and the Path to a Shared American Future by Robert P. Jones (S. & S.): “The Hidden Roots of White Supremacy offers uncommon and moving entry into some of the most vexing challenges of our era. It also reminds us that this continent’s unfolding past defies easy or summary judgment.”

USA Today reviews Holly by Stephen King (Scribner), giving it 3 out of 4 stars: “While it might fall short of top-tier King, Holly satisfies as a fitfully freaky thriller, a solid exploration of the title character as a soulful beacon of hope, and a reminder of how important it is to answer that call when it comes.”

Washington Post reviews Surviving Our Catastrophes: Resilience and Renewal from Hiroshima to the COVID-19 Pandemic by Robert Jay Lifton (New Pr.): “Lifton is most deeply concerned today with the politicization of the pandemic and the split in the social core that has led to the spread of life-threatening misinformation.”

Briefly Noted

The shortlist for the 2023 Mark Twain American Voice in Literature Award is announced.

Audiofile announces the September 2023 Earphones Award winners.

ShelfAwareness reports on strike news from Powell’s Books.

An uncorrected proof copy of JK Rowling’s first Harry Potter book is discovered at a UK school. Deadline reports.

Ernest Hemingway’s letter detailing a plane crash that he survived has sold for $237,055 at auction. NPR reports.

Washington Post commiserates over the agony of unread books. 

NPR reflects on Julia Cameron’s creativity classic, The Artist’s Way.

LitHub shares 26 new books for the week and new paperbacks for September. 

NYT shares 33 non-fiction books and 34 new fiction titles for fall.

The Guardian rounds up the best thrillers of the month. 

Publisher Robert Abrams dies at the age of 80. Publishers Lunch has more on his life and career.

Translator Edith Grossman dies at the age of 87. The Guardian has an obituary.

Authors On Air

Variety has a fall TV preview, including forthcoming adaptations. 

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