Books

Welcome to Today in Books, our daily round-up of literary headlines at the intersection of politics, culture, media, and more. Deluxe Editions of HEATED RIVALRY Series Plus a New Cover First things first: let me just say that the series isn’t technically called “Heated Rivalry,” it’s actually called Game Changers—Heated Rivalry is the second book

Some crime authors are just too darned sneaky! I mean, getting us to read their books by tempting us with delectable delights – that really is criminal. But if you put the coffee on, I won’t complain, because we’re kicking off this week’s report with some patisserie perfect Parisian murder – poison, naturellement – care

Mortedants can talk to the dead. Sort of. What they can actually do is sift through the bitter miasma of a soul’s confused and terrified last moments, and that’s only if they’re actually good at their job. Mortedant Hasp is good at his job. He is also a misanthropic prick who needs to pay his

James Grady’s debut novel Six Days of the Condor, was a smash hit in 1974, the basis for the classic Robert Redford film Three Days of the Condor. Since then, he has written a string of successful novels, covering espionage, noir and more. At 77, he proves he is still a writer to be reckoned

“All children understand what the first glimpse of the white night-blooming lily means,” declares Xiong Liang’s mythical and inventive series starter Lost in Peach Blossom Paradise). It’s a sign of summer’s end. As a return to school draws near, Little Yu spends one last day by the river, where she follows a trail of peach

Welcome to Today in Books, our daily round-up of literary headlines at the intersection of politics, culture, media, and more. We’re Getting a FOURTH WING Series Through Amazon Prime And Oscar Winner Michael B. Jordan is producing it! He’s joined by executive producer Lisa Joy (Westworld), executive producer/showrunner Meredith Averill (Wednesday), and Rebecca Yarros herself.

Running parallel to the events in Kennedy Ryan’s first installment of her Hollywood Renaissance series, Reel, second-chance romance Score is a powerful companion piece that shines on its own. Like Reel, most of Score’s narrative centers on the making of a biopic about the (fictional) Harlem Renaissance singer Dessi Blue, retelling the story behind the

First published in 1960 and now included in the British Library Crime Classics series, Jack on the Gallows Tree is part of the long-running Carolus Deene series. Written by Leo Bruce, the pen name of Rupert Croft-Cooke, the series blends the puzzle mystery traditions of classic British crime fiction with an unusually sharp sense of

Ever since we launched the Zero to Well-Read podcast last fall, the #1 listener request has been for some kind of book club or community reading experience. We’ve been thinking and talking about it for months: what can we do that will be fun, informative, and in the unique Zero to Well-Read vibe of part

Neriya knows that the crows of her shtetl are far smarter than any she’s met anywhere else. Every summer when her family returns to the country, she is amazed at how quickly the corvids figure out the puzzles and games she sets for them. But Neriya may never get to follow her dreams of studying

Translated by Vanessa Liu — Rio is a Taiwanese writer and artist and this is the first in her very successful manga series, which has already won awards across Europe and Asia. Curiously, Rio says there is no support group culture in Taiwan, so the central theme here comes from Europe and the US and

Welcome to Today in Books, our daily round-up of literary headlines at the intersection of politics, culture, media, and more. Today’s stories include another literary L for the Trump administration, how we best absorb reading, and more. Judge Rules Trump Administration’s Cancellation of Humanities Grants Was Unconstitutional In the last couple of months, numerous cases

The Case of the Hydegild Sacrifice takes a pivotal event from US history – the assassination of Abraham Lincoln – and reimagines it as fertile ground for mystery, doubt and moral uncertainty. In so doing, David Cairns delivers a novel that is as much about the instability of truth as it is about solving a

Most of us born after World War II knew Katharine Hepburn—if we knew her at all—as the warble-throated septuagenarian invited by Henry Fonda to “suck face” in 1981’s On Golden Pond. Sure, it won her an Oscar (a record-setting fourth), but it didn’t even hint that half a century earlier, she was Hollywood’s “It” girl.

You’re entered! But wait… You’ve unlocked a free trial for 3 Free Audiobooks from Audiobooks.com. A free deal is the best deal! **New subscribers only. 30-day free trial, then $14.95/month after trial. Plan automatically renews until cancelled. Terms apply. View Original Article Here

Based in Geneva, Switzerland, Joseph Incardona doesn’t consider himself to be a crime author. However, his first book to appear in English will certainly grab the attention of crime fiction lovers, not least because of its title. Holy F*ck is all about attempts to commit a crime that’s as unique as the immaculate conception. Once

“A blank page is a very daunting thing. If you give me an 80,000-word manuscript, I can make it a good book,” says British author KJ Charles, whose favorite part of writing is revision. This shouldn’t come as a surprise, given that Charles worked as an editor for Mills & Boon, a British publisher of

Welcome to Today in Books, our daily round-up of literary headlines at the intersection of politics, culture, media, and more. The 2026 Women’s Prize for Fiction Shortlist The Women’s Prize for Fiction is one of the biggest literary prizes, recognizing “the author of the best full-length novel of the year written in English and published

Mike Nicol’s last book, Hammerman – A Walking Shadow, concluded a five-book series featuring the surfing private investigator Fish Pescado and lawyer Vicki Kahn. With his latest novel, the South African author starts afresh and introduces a police officer as his protagonist. However, this is no standard police procedural and many of the officers depicted

The fantastical meets the personal in Sunyi Dean’s highly anticipated second novel, The Girl With a Thousand Faces. Dean’s worldbuilding remains as rich and vivid as in her debut, The Book Eaters, but this time she takes readers to 20th-century Hong Kong, and into an alternate reality where ghosts walk among the living. In the

TheFight of Our Lives: AIDS in America is a YA nonfiction book about the history of the AIDS crisis in the USA that is out this week from Knopf Books for Young Readers. Below, co-author David Levithan discusses how queer memory is a form of resistance. At a time when politicians are trying to pull

A fascinating little parcel arrived here the other day. So we made a little video for you as we unboxed our mystery gift… The Second Appeal follows on from Janice Hallett’s award-winning debut, The Appeal (2021), which was followed by the novella The Christmas Appeal in 2023. The gold copy we’ve got here is our

In nonfiction writer Kate Schatz’s fiction debut, Where the Girls Were (11.5 hours), she takes listeners to 1968 San Francisco, in the time before Roe v. Wade when “free love” was freer for some than for others. High school valedictorian Baker Phillips is an only child eager to please her conventional, suburban parents—until her cousin

This content contains affiliate links. When you buy through these links, we may earn an affiliate commission. As part of an ongoing series exploring the various facets, genres, and styles of YA literature, I’m thrilled to welcome author Diana Ma to talk today about something that doesn’t get quite the attention it deserves: the consistently

If you love cosy crime fiction but have yet to come across Steve Higgs, that has to change. Steve is the author of one of the most popular self-published cosy crime series ever – Albert Smith’s Culinary Capers. And he really has found a recipe for success. Albert is a retired detective who wants to

What are your bookstore rituals? For example, where do you go first in a store? I am a good browser in that I go all over the place. I am not a category person. I just like good books, whatever their type or genre. So, you could find me almost anywhere, I suppose. Tell us

This content contains affiliate links. When you buy through these links, we may earn an affiliate commission. Fantasy picture books have been around for a long time. As an ’80s child, I read many of Stephen Cosgrove’s fantasy children’s books–Serendipity was a favorite. I had my very own stuffed Wild Thing and frequently pored over

Sarah Hilary’s heady mix of razor-sharp characterisation and 4K-ready sense of place have stood her in good stead since 2014, when she debuted with Someone Else’s Skin and in the process introduced London-based DI Marnie Rome to crime fiction lovers. We reviewed that first novel and have looked forward to the next and the next

Lindsey Leigh is an expert in the astonishing world beneath our feet, as demonstrated in her previous picture books, which delved into places such as caves and the ocean. Now, she beckons readers into The Dirt!: Wild Life Under the Soil’s Surface, a superbly witty and informative exploration of what’s going on underground and why

This content contains affiliate links. When you buy through these links, we may earn an affiliate commission. Ever feel like the world is so overwhelming that you need your reading life to just keep things calm for once? I can definitely relate. The world feels like it’s been in a constant state of chaos (can’t