Want to get the latest book news delivered to your inbox each day? Sign up for our daily Book Pulse newsletter.

Big Books of the Week

The Tenant by Freida McFadden (Poisoned Pen) leads holds this week.

Other titles in demand include:

One Golden Summer by Carley Fortune (Berkley)

My Friends by Fredrik Backman (Atria)

The Names by Florence Knapp (Pamela Dorman: Viking)

Big Dumb Eyes: Stories from a Simpler Mind by Nate Bargatze (Grand Central)

These books and others publishing the week of May 5, 2025, are listed in a downloadable spreadsheet.

Librarians and Booksellers Suggest

Ten LibraryReads and nine Indie Next picks publish this week.

Hall of Fame picks include What Happens in Amsterdam by Rachel Lynn Solomon (Berkley; LJ starred review), The Tenant by Freida McFadden (Poisoned Pen), Detective Aunty by Uzma Jalaluddin (Harper Perennial), and Parents Weekend by Alex Finlay (Minotaur)

Hall of Fame pick My Friends by Fredrik Backman (Atria) is also the #1 Indie Next pick:

“This coming-of-age story is funny, heartfelt, and wise. Four teens with fierce loyalty to one another bond over their unstable families and a painting done by one of their own. I could read this again and again.”—Beth Mynhier, Lake Forest Book Store, Lake Forest, IL

Brighter Than Scale, Swifter Than Flame by Neon Yang (Tor.com; LJ starred review)

“The tale of Yeva, a masked dragon slayer who has never felt truly at home, is both mythic and achingly human. Her journey to the dragon-worshipping realm of Quanbao sets the stage for an exploration of identity, duty, and love. The world building, storytelling, and representation has made Yang an author to look out for with this gem in the realm of queer fantasy novellas.”—Addy, Montrose Regional Library District, CO

It is also an Indie Next pick:

“A very well written knight’s tale about honor, oaths, and duty in the face of what is truly right. Subtle themes of geopolitics are set carefully alongside the disarming nature of real love. So easy to recommend.”—Miranda Parman, Katy Budget Books, Houston, TX

The Names by Florence Knapp (Pamela Dorman: Viking) *Debut *Good for Book Clubs

“This debut novel is told in three alternating storylines based on three different names that the main character could have been given at birth. What results is a beautiful and nuanced story of a family attempting to survive and overcome domestic abuse and forge their own identities in the process.”—Jessica Sweetland, Manchester Public Library, CT

It is also an Indie Next pick:

“A mother goes to register her baby son’s name on the birth certificate with three choices. The Names takes these three names and gives us three distinct stories of how life played out in a family living with domestic violence. Brilliant.”—Mamie Potter, Quail Ridge Books, Raleigh, NC

Silver Elite by Dani Francis (Del Rey) *Debut

“In a grim future, a military dictator sends forces after modified humans with psychic powers. Most have a tell when they use their powers. Wren wants revenge on those who destroyed her family, but she has a secret: she has powers but no tell. Nonstop action, great world-building, and a blisteringly hot enemies to lovers romance make this a winner.”—Jayna McDaniel-Browning, Delaware Cty Dist. Library, OH

One Golden Summer by Carley Fortune (Berkley)

“Alice is more comfortable behind a camera than living her life. When her Nan has surgery, Alice takes her for rest and relaxation at their favorite lake cottage. Alice falls for their handyman neighbor Charlie, who brings her out of her shell and lets her discover who she really is in this fun and flirty romance.”—Jacquie Daddato, Cherry Hill Public Library, NJ

The Missing Half by Ashley Flowers with Alex Kiester (Bantam)

“Nic has been messed up since her older sister went missing. Enter Jenna, who is searching for connections between her sister's disappearance and Nic's. They decide to work together to uncover what happened, but the deeper they get the harder it becomes. A twist ending completely turns the tables on this tightly written thriller.”—Kimberly McGee, Lake Travis Community Library, Austin, TX

It is also an Indie Next pick:

“Ashley Flowers’s knowledge of true crime has lent to her ability to tell crime-based thrillers. Two women seek justice for their missing sisters and embark on a thrilling journey with many twists and turns.”—Kristen Shidemantle, The Little Green Bookstore, Zelienople, PA

Five additional Indie Next picks publish this week:

Shopgirls by Jessica Anya Blau (Mariner)

“Shopgirls is a lovely and humorous coming-of-age story. Zippy experiences the ups and downs common to many young women as she learns more about her absent father, finds a partner, and navigates San Francisco in the age of AIDS.”—Camille Kovach, Completely Booked, Murrysville, PA

Old School Indian by Aaron John Curtis (Zando: Hillman Grad Bks.)

“Curtis is a pugilist on the page, fighting tropes in a landscape that uses language to marginalize the Indigenous experience. Abe Jacobs wrestles colonization in the world and with the disease inside his body, forces that gnaw at his very existence.”—Arvin Ramgoolam, Townie Books, Crested Butte, CO

The Manor of Dreams by Christina Li (Avid Reader)

“I was immersed in this lyrical world where dreams hold power and the past lingers. With rich atmosphere and heartfelt characters, the story explores identity, family, and the balance between holding on and letting go.”—Jessica Porter, Inklings Book Shoppe, Lakeland, FL

The Original Daughter by Jemimah Wei (Doubleday)

“It’s 1996 and Genevieve’s family lives in a tiny apartment in Singapore. Her grandfather had a secret family, and her family is saddled with an unwanted daughter to raise, changing Genevieve’s world. An accomplished and absorbing debut.”—Robin Glossner, Odyssey Bookshop, South Hadley, MA

The Dad Rock That Made Me a Woman by Niko Stratis (Univ. of Texas)

“Muddled by memory and alcohol, a picture of Niko’s life forms: she’s made you a mixtape in the form of an essay collection. The stories that make up her life gently remind us it’s never too late to recover or rebuild yourself.”—Kitri Madera, Third Place Books, Lake Forest Park, WA

In the Media

People’s book of the week is The Names by Florence Knapp (Pamela Dorman: Viking). Also getting attention are I Regret Almost Everything: A Memoir by Keith McNally (Gallery) and My Friends by Fredrik Backman (Atria). “Thrilling Historical Fiction” includes Forged by Danielle Teller (Pegasus), The Amalfi Curse by Sarah Penner (Park Row), and My Name Is Emilia del Valle by Isabel Allende, tr. by Frances Riddle (Ballantine).

The “Picks” section spotlights Thunderbolts*, based on associated titles; PBS Masterpiece’s Miss Austen, based on the novels by Gill Hornby; and On Swift Horses, based on the novel by Shannon Pufahl. There is a feature on Stefany Valentine, author of First Love Language (Penguin Workshop), and how she found her biological mother after 25 years. Actor Kelsey Grammer has written a new book, Karen: A Brother Remembers (Harper Select), about how the 1975 murder of his sister affected his life. Plus, recipes from Kylie Sakaida, So Easy So Good: Delicious Recipes and Expert Tips for Balanced Eating (S. & S.: Simon Element), and Michael Symon, Symon’s Dinners Cooking Out: 100 Recipes That Redefine Outdoor Cooking, written with Douglas Trattner (Clarkson Potter).

Reviews

NYT reviews Little Bosses Everywhere: How the Pyramid Scheme Shaped America by Bridget Read (Crown): “Little Bosses Everywhere lays out an almost prosecutorial case against many multilevel marketing schemes, explaining why regulators need to take the industry seriously, and the larger story it tells about whom the economy has set up to fail”; The Deserters by Mathias Enard, tr. by Charlotte Mandell (New Directions): “In this artful and sad novel, forbearance is courage”; The Dazzling Paget Sisters: Identical Twins at the Heart of the 20th Century by Ariane Bankes (McNally Editions): “Filled with foreboding about ‘the graveyards of individual freedoms,’ The Dazzling Paget Sisters nonetheless does plenty of whistling past those graveyards. It’s lacy and necessary filigree between the sober straight lines of history”; Tequila Wars: José Cuervo and the Bloody Struggle for the Spirit of Mexico by Ted Genoways (Norton): “If the Terry Pratchett observation that ‘a man’s not dead while his name is still spoken’ stands, José Cuervo will live for the foreseeable future—and thanks to Ted Genoways, as more than just a brand name”; and The Butcher’s Daughter: The Hitherto Untold Story of Mrs. Lovett by David Demchuk, with Corinne Leigh Clark (Hell’s Hundred): “This is a wild, high-octane, blood-soaked tale, but by the end, everything crimps together just a little too neatly (with one final, groan-worthy twist).”

Washington Post reviews Strangers in the Land: Exclusion, Belonging, and the Epic Story of the Chinese in America by Michael Luo (Doubleday; LJ starred review): “At once an indictment of how our nation failed that test before and a reminder of how some pushed back, Strangers in the Land deserves a place on the shelf beside other essential works of American history”; and They Poisoned the World: Life and Death in the Age of Forever Chemicals by Mariah Blake (Crown): “Blake’s deft chronicle of one of the greatest moral scandals of our time, a book that none of us can afford to miss, reminds us that ‘we can’t count on our leaders to protect us from these threats without intense, sustained public pressure.’”

The Guardian reviews Pathemata, Or, The Story of My Mouth by Maggie Nelson (Wave): “In this thoughtful work, she excavates the duties of parenthood and care, bodies and ageing, loneliness and mortality.”

LA Times reviews The River Is Waiting by Wally Lamb (S. & S.: MarySue Rucci): “Lamb has written an earnest, well-intentioned novel, albeit one with the promise of so much more.”

Briefly Noted

Columbia University will announce the 2025 Pulitzer Prizes today via livestream at 3 p.m. Eastern time.

Audiofile announces the May 2025 Earphones Award winners.

Amazon editors select the best books of May.

CrimeReads suggests 10 new books for the week.

NYT has a feature interview with Ocean Vuong, whose new novel, The Emperor of Gladness (Penguin Pr.), publishes next week.

People talks with Traer Scott about her new book, Cats of Rome (Princeton Architectural).

People also shares an excerpt from Rachel Gillig’s forthcoming fantasy novel The Knight and the Moth (Orbit), due out next week.

Authors on Air

Mark Whitaker, The Afterlife of Malcolm X : An Outcast Turned Icon's Enduring Impact on America (S. & S.), explores the life of Malcolm X on the 100th anniversary of his birth on CBS Sunday Morning. Excerpt here.

Suzy Welch, Becoming You: The Proven Method for Crafting Your Authentic Life and Career (Harper Business), visits CBS Mornings.

Nate Bargatze, Big Dumb Eyes: Stories from a Simpler Mind (Grand Central), visits Today and will appear on The Tonight Show tomorrow.

Lakeysha Hallmon, No One Is Self-Made: Build Your Village To Flourish in Business and Life (Dey Street), will be on with Tamron Hall.

Suleika Jaouad, The Book of Alchemy: A Creative Practice for an Inspired Life (Random), visits The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.

Want to get the latest book news delivered to your inbox each day? Sign up for our daily Book Pulse newsletter.