New Books in Literature
This podcast is a channel on the New Books Network, an academic audio library dedicated to public education. Each episode features scholars discussing their recently published research with another expert in their field. The network offers over 150 channels and more than 28,000 episodes. Listeners can explore the full catalog on the New Books Network website.
Episodes
The Instrument Must Not Matter with Christine Fischer Guy (Buckrider Books, 2026)
In this NBN episode, host Hollay Ghadery speaks with Christine Fischer Guy about her novel, The Instrument Must Not Matter (Wolsak & Wynn, 2026). She sees the score for the Bach-Brahms in her mind’s eye, hears the indigo notes unfurl.In this sweeping coming-of-age novel gifted young classical pianist Lila Rys finds herself in New York City studying under famed teacher George Vrubel.
Radioland with Matt Cahill (Buckrider Books, 2022)
In this NBN episode, host Hollay Ghadery speaks with Matt Cahill about Radioland, his mesmerizing 2022 literary thriller where music, fame and magic wind together in an eerie mystery.There are whispers about murders on the scene in Toronto, from bartenders, hairdressers and others who trade in rumours. When the bodies are found they are altered in disturbing ways. No one knows who the killer
The Calamity of Desire and Other Stories with Judith Dancoff (Finishing Line Press, 2024)
The seven stories and novella that comprise The Calamity of Desire, Judith Dancoff’s debut collection of short fiction, each focus on a famous painter or well-known work of art. Inspired by the art of Gustav Klimt, John Singer Sargent, Auguste Renoir, Diego Velásquez, Johannes Vermeer, Paul Gauguin, and Roman glass found around the world, these stories explore the imagined desires and dreams of bo
A Bunch of Fives with William Kely McClung (Falling Up Publishing, 2026)
Danny Bradigan survived brutal fighting in Afghanistan and fought as a professional boxer, but a bullet finally puts him in a coma. Part of his recovery involves heading to a small Appalachian town where he’s inherited a property and a car mechanic business. He knows nothing about repairing cars and needs to understand who gave him this chance at another life. He begins mentoring Ryan, the young m
How to Date A Fanatic with Aruni Kashyap (HarperVia, 2026)
In How to Date a Fanatic (HarperVia, 2026), a novel by Aruni Kashyap, a young professor searches for connection and love during a time of political and cultural upheaval.As political tensions rise precipitously across India, Rohit returns to Delhi University to teach and gets caught in a web of unrequited love with his friend Dhruv. To alleviate his inevitable heartbreak, Rohit seeks relati
Butter Road with Jaclyn Gilbert (Acre Books, 2026)
Jaclyn Gilbert's Butter Road (Acre Books, 2026) is a searing novel about a community irrevocably transformed by gun violence. In 2006, a gunman entered a one-room Amish schoolhouse in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, taking the students hostage and shooting ten girls before turning his weapon on himself. Set twelve years after this event, largely in the village of Nickel Mines, Butter Road explores
A Real Animal with Emeline Atwood (Catapult, 2026)
Her clothes shredded and disrobed by her own teeth, Lucy finds herself draped over a high tree branch in the quad of her college, naked but unafraid, a wild leopard more than any humankind. So begins Emeline Atwood’s starling debut novel, A Real Animal (Catapult, 2026). We know early on that Lucy will never be able to reach back to that precise feeling of being the leopard, powerful an
Samantha: The Next Chapter with Fiona Davis (American Girl Publishing, 2026)
Samantha: The Next Chapter (American Girl Publishing, 2026). From American Girl and New York Times bestselling author Fiona Davis comes the next chapter of Samantha Parkington's story--now an adult searching for justice after her legacy is stolen in New York City in 1920. It’s 1920, and 25-year-old Samantha Parkington is working hard to educate women in New York about suffrage and encourage them t
Aleksander Solzhenitsyn's March 1917 with Marian Schwartz and Dan Mahoney (U Notre Dame Press, 2017)
In this latest Books for Better Understanding video from Notre Dame Press, David Carlson facilitates a conversation between Marian Schwartz and Dan Mahoney about Aleksander Solzhenitsyn's March 1917 The Red Wheel, Node III available in English now for the first time. Schwartz and Mahoney discuss the historical, literary, and cultural significance of MARCH 1917. Hosted by Simplecast, an A
Dish with Nancy Jo Cullen (Wolsak & Wynn, 2026)
In this NBN episode, host Hollay Ghadery speaks with award-winning author Nancy Jo Cullen about her new novel, Dish (Wolsak & Wynn, 2026).In this smart, sexy romp of a novel, Nancy Jo Cullen explores the joys of second chances – at life and at love.Frida Davis-Lefebvre is back in her hometown of Lakeland, BC, sober and recovering from the sale of her popular, but debt-ridden, Toronto restauran
Mistranslation with Madeleine Moss (U Iowa Press, 2026)
In upstate New York in 2001, nine-year-old twins Sabina and Camilla spend the summer weathering the moods of their erratic mother while finding themselves pulled toward diverging interests: Sabina into the mystery of their absent French father and Camilla into burgeoning popularity. But their lives are shaken up by the arrival of an Arab French family across the street. Thrilled by what she sees a
11.1 Indie Presses and the Literary Ecosystem: Meg Reid and Will Evans
Meg Reid and Will Evans join Mesha Maren to consider what makes up a literary ecosystem. As leaders of two nonprofit independent presses,Hub City Writers Project and Deep Vellum Press, Meg and Will describe their roles as publishers, booksellers, community builders, and advocates working with the many interconnected players in publishing: writers, readers, translators, critics, librarians, dis
The Art of Conjuring with SL Carroll (Terrazzo Editions, 2026)
“I hear whispers: Have you seen her? The woman who is not a woman, she is a walking museum. Have you seen her wares?”The narrator of SL Carroll’s radiant debut leads an empty life in a small town until she is employed to catalogue the Museum's collection. She has never seen anyone rewrite their bones the way the Museum has, until they are hardly bones at all. Obsession takes hold and the Museum's
If Wishes Were Obfuscation Codes and Other Stories with Malon Edwards (Fireside Fiction Company, 2023)
In this NBN episode, host Hollay Ghadery speaks with Malon Edwards about his book, If Wishes Were Obfuscation Codes (Fireside Fiction Company, 2023). “Electric Resurrection. Born again perfection. The six-zero correction.”For the last decade, Malon Edwards has been spinning out a world where humans have conquered death but still haven't bothered to take care of the living. Where resurrection
The Stitches Between Us with Taylor D Lott (Hawes & Jenkins, 2025)
Taylor D. Lott's The Stitches Between Us (Hawes & Jenkins, 2025) tells the story of Theo, a quiet, imaginative boy growing up in a home where sensitivity is punished and creativity is met with cruelty. He learns early to retreat inward, expressing what he cannot say through fabric, sketches, and observation. In a world that leaves little room for softness, Theo finds refuge in Danielle-unguard
Still with Joanna Cockerline (The Porcupine's Quill, 2025)
In this NBN episode, host Hollay Ghadery speaks with Joanna Cockerline about her acclaimed novel, Still (The Porcupine's Quill, 2025).Longlisted for the Giller Prize, Still is the story of Kayla, who lives and works on the streets of Kelowna, Canada, and of Little Zoe, a woman working in the sex trade who is missing. Set in a vibrant and diverse community of people living unhoused, the novel explo
The Immortal Woman with Su Chang (House of Anansi Press, 2025)
In this NBN episode, host Hollay Ghadery speaks with Su Chang, author of The Immortal Woman (House of Anansi, 2025). A sweeping generational story of heartbreak, resilience, and yearning, revealing an insider’s view of the fractured lives of Chinese immigrants and those they leave behind. Lemei, once a student Red Guard leader in 1960s Shanghai and a journalist at a state newspaper, was
River of Dreams with Robin Blackburn McBride (Guernica Editions, 2026)
In this NBN episode, host Hollay Ghadery speaks with Robin Blackburn McBride about her novel, River of Dreams (Guernica Editions, 2026).A near-tragic accident. A life-changing phenomenon. A calling she couldn't foresee. Toronto, 1914. Avery Conlon's world turns upside down in an instant. Overhearing a comment that casts doubt on her blood ties with the mother raising her, the despairing twelve-yea
Now I'm Photogenic and Other Stories I Tell Myself with Jill Rosenberg (Black Lawrence Press, 2026)
Now I'm Photogenic and Other Stories I Tell Myself (Black Lawrence Press, 2026) is a collection of ten playfully strange and unsettling stories, some realistic and some surreal. The characters in these pages feel alienated: from their communities and relationships, on the streets of wealthy suburbs, at the doctor's office, in classrooms and swimming pools, in their own homes and their own sk
The Fall-Down Effect with Liz Johnston (Book*hug, 2026)
In this NBN episode, host Hollay Ghadery speaks with Liz Johnston about her eagerly anticipated debut novel, The Fall-Down Effect (Book*hug, 2026). The Fall-Down Effect traces the diverging fates of siblings Sylvia, Fern, and River from their late-1980s childhood in a small British Columbia logging town, where their mother Lynn' s environmental activism sets them apart from the local communi
Wastelands and Wonderlands: Utopias and Dystopias in Film and Literature with Matthew Leggatt (SUNY Press, 2026)
Wastelands and Wonderlands: Utopias and Dystopias in Film and Literature with Matthew Leggatt (SUNY Press, 2026) is an edited collection exploring utopias ad dystopias in films and literature. It challenges readers, in these uniquely dystopian times, to reevaluate their ideas about utopia and dystopia. The book brings together film, literary, and utopian studies scholars from across the
Just Another Dead Boy with Kelly McCaughrain (Walker Books, 2026)
DON’T FALL IN LOVE.That’s the only rule. In this world, everyone knows their death date. If you’re rich, you can check in to a resort to have the greatest final few weeks of your life, in five-star luxury.Regan works at one of these resorts as a “Juliet”. Her next client is Jude, who has a week to live. Regan’s job is simple: make Jude feel as though he has found true love before he dies.But
"Ex Situ" From The Common Issue 31
Liz DeWolf speaks to Emily Everett about her story “Ex Situ,” which appear in The Common’s spring issue. The story follows an American living in Istanbul, navigating the end of a relationship, alongside the appeal and alienation of living abroad in a layered, complex city. Liz also discusses her process and revision methods, the themes she often returns to, and her work as a nonfiction book e
Ed Seaward, "London Gothic" (Dark Winter Press, 2026)
In this NBN episode, host Hollay Ghadery speaks with Ed Seaward about his thrilling novel, London Gothic (Dark Winter Press, 2026). In 1975, John Caine and his nineteen-year-old son Ricky bury a woman near a clump of trees in an open field on the rural outskirts of London, Ontario. In 1984, seventeen-year-old Bethany Caine is haunted by the disappearance of her mother nine years previous. Her
Terri Lewis, "When They Came Home" (Miami UP, 2026)
It seems likely that most listeners to this podcast channel have heard of “shell shock,” the old name for what is now called post-traumatic stress disorder (usually abbreviated as PTSD). Even today, the long-term effects of combat tend to be under-estimated, but that was much more true in the years following World War I, when the diagnosis of “shell shock” first appeared. Terri Lewis’s When
Daisy Rockwell, "Alice Sees Ghosts" (Galiot Press, 2026)
In Alice Sees Ghosts (Galiot Press, 2026), Daisy Rockwell tells an unforgettable story of love, grief and wanting closure. A profound exploration of people trying to piece their broken selves together, this novel celebrates life in all its guises, and what comes after.Alice's ancestral home is crumbling. As her grandmother lies on her deathbed, and her relationships with her alcoholic mother and e
Laura Portwood-Stacer, "The Book Proposal Book: A Guide for Scholarly Authors" (Princeton UP, 2021)
Whether you’re hoping to publish your first book or you’re a seasoned author with an unfinished proposal languishing on your hard drive, The Book Proposal Book provides honest and invaluable advice on how to overcome common sticking points and get your book published. It also shows why a well-conceived proposal can help lead to an outstanding book. The Book Proposal Book cuts through the mystery a
Sarah Meehan O'Callaghan, "Psychoanalysing Mind-Body Narratives Through Beckett and Artaud: The Trauma of the Body" (Routledge, 2026)
Psychoanalysing Mind-Body Narratives Through Beckett and Artaud: The Trauma of the Body (Routledge, 2026) provides an epistemology of the body as it relates to subjectivity through an analysis of selected works of Antonin Artaud and Samuel Beckett. Presented in three parts, the book explores a fundamental premise: that there is a traumatic and alienating dimension to embodiment that resists expres
Rachel Eliza Griffiths, "The Flower Bearers" (Random House, 2026)
On September 24, 2021, Rachel Eliza Griffiths married her husband, the novelist Salman Rushdie. On the same day, hundreds of miles away, Griffiths’ closest friend and chosen sister, the poet Kamilah Aisha Moon, who was expected to speak at the wedding, died suddenly. Eleven months later, as Griffiths attempted to piece together her life as a newlywed with heartbreak in one hand and immense love in
Rod Carley, "The Great Catsby by Hilton" (Smart House Books, 2026)
In this NBN episode, host Hollay Ghadery speaks with award-winning author Rod Carley about The Great Catsby by Hilton, published by Canadian publisher Smart House (September 1, 2026). The Great Catsby by Hilton (Smart House Books, 2026) is the unforgettable and wildly entertaining new YA book by Rod Carley and his cat, Hilton. Yes, you read that right! The Great Catsby by Hilt
Mubanga Kalimamukwento, "The Shipikisha Club" (Cassava Republic Press, 2026)
Kabwe, Zambia: Sali, a working mother of three, stands trial for the murder of her husband, Kasunga. The prosecutor claims Sali shot him after a heated fight in their bedroom. There are no witnesses. Sali pleads not guilty.
But her story does not begin with a gun. It begins fourteen years earlier--with her rebellion against the pressure to find a husband, her affair with a wealthy married man call
Tom Lin, "Babylon, South Dakota" (Little Brown and Co, 2026)
When Saul Keng Hsiu and his wife, Mei Lee, move from China to the United States to take possession of a 160-acre homestead bequeathed to them by a distant relative, all they have are the possessions on their back, some hidden gold, and a pocketful of chrysanthemum seeds. After a rocky start and a long, harsh winter, the couple find themselves successfully raising chrysanthemums and livestock, and
Ellen Prentiss Campbell, "Vanishing Point" (Apprentice House Press, 2026)
Beginning in the 1880s and spanning three generations through the 1980s, Vanishing Point (Apprentice House Press, 2026) explores the life and family of Pennsylvania artist George Hetzel and his large, complex family. We watch him and his wife, Mary Louise, mourn losses, celebrate triumphs, and struggle with the tension between their family life and Hetzel’s art. We learn about the lives of Hetzel’
Lucas L. Johnson II, "Remembering Roots: How an American Classic Transformed the World" (Broadleaf Books, 2026)
As we approach the 50th anniversaries of Alex Haley’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel Roots (1976) and its landmark television adaptation (1977), journalist and storyteller Lucas L. Johnson II reflects on the enduring legacy of Haley’s work through the voices of those it continues to move, including scholars, artists, genealogists, students, and original cast members like LeVar Burton and Ben Vereen.
Stef Ferrari, "Pining for You" (Simon & Schuster, 2026)
In Pining for You (Simon & Schuster, 2026) the classic Hallmark holiday movie gets turned upside down when a teen leaves her small-town Christmas tree farm in pursuit of the city girl who swept her off her feet in this cheeky and cozy rom-com by Food Network competitor Stef Ferrari. Bennie Bosley has Christmas spirit on lock. Her borderline magical ability to give the perfect gift, encyclopedi
Jonathan Swift and David Womersley ed., "Gulliver's Travels: Cambridge Anniversary Edition" (Cambridge UP, 2026)
Gulliver's Travels is one of the landmarks of world literature. Gulliver's adventures with the tiny but spirited Lilliputians, the giant inhabitants of Brobdingnag, the flying island of Laputa, and the rational horses of Houyhnmhnmland have become globally famous for their satirical wit and visionary creativity. Early editions credited Gulliver himself as the author, and many readers believed him
Téa Obreht, "Sunrise" (Random House, 2026)
In 2024, Nina’s small-engine plane crashes into a lake in the Wyoming mountains. Her boyfriend Ben, who was flying it, is nowhere to be found. Lost and freezing on the shore, Nina is armed with only a few old protein bars, a phone with no service, and a vague hope of rescue. It is up to her to survive in the vast wilderness. But then she stumbles upon Sunrise—a town of the Old West that is strange
Darlene Madott, "Closing Ceremonies and Dying Times" (Guernica Editions, 2026)
In this NBN episode, host Hollay Ghadery speaks with retired lawyer and award-winning author of 10 books, Darlene Madott about her new book, Closing Ceremonies and Dying Times, published by Guernica Editions, September 1, 2026
Closing Ceremonies is a collection of linked love stories that explores the aftermath of love. Who among us has not suffered the after-shocks? The sorrowing souls that inhab
Rebecca Ruth Gould, "Strangers" (Serving House Books, 2025)
In this episode, Rebecca Ruth Gould,
Distinguished Professor, Comparative Poetics & Global Politics at
SOAS University of London, and University of Puerto Rico professors Jeffrey Herlihy-Mera and Cora Monroe González, discuss writing, travel, bilingualism, translation, defamiliarization and the power of language as facets of Gould’s book Strangers: Stories (Serving House Books, 2025).
Nuevo
Honoree Fanonne Jeffers, "The Love Songs of W.E.B. Du Bois" (HarperCollins, 2021)
In 2021, the NAACP Image Award-winning poet Honorée Fanonne Jeffers made her fiction debut with The Love Songs of W.E.B. DuBois, a magisterial epic of African American historical fiction—an intimate yet sweeping novel with all the luminescence and force of Homegoing; Sing, Unburied, Sing; and The Water Dancer—chronicling the journey of one American family, from the centuries of the colonial slave
David Lagercrantz, "Post Mortem: A Mystery" (Knopf, 2026)
Post Mortem: A Mystery (Knopf,
2026) is the third book in David Lagercrantz's mystery series
following detective duo Rekke and Vargas: this time, their hunt for a
killer has a literary twist. Professor Hans Rekke and police officer
Micaela Vargas have earned a reputation for solving the unsolvable. But
they’ve never been confronted by a serial killer. Until now. Rekke
receives a visit from S
Ed Park, "Three Tenses" (Random House, 2026)
Three Tenses (Random House, 2026) by Ed Park is not quite a memoir, not quite fiction, not quite poetry and not quite prose—and yet it transcends the sum of all its not-quite parts as a resonant portrait of its young artist. Written when he was 28, Park’s “transmission from the nineties” displays his more earnest, more vulnerable version: a writer toiling away in upstart obscurity, working thankle
A Hosts' Special: Ferry and Plotz Choose Books in Dark Times (EF, JP)
For our pandemic-era Books in Dark Times (our first ever Special Series!) Elizabeth and John discussed books that were keeping us afloat, barely afloat, way back in April 2020. Memory lane, here we come!
A book you might not think would be so comforting starts it off, Daniel Defoe’s A Journal of the Plague Year (1722) about the plague in London “during the last Great Visitation in 1665.” Classroo
Angelica Cheng, "The Fast Track" (Simon & Schuster, 2026)
Angelica Cheng's YA rom-com, The Fast Track (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2026) brings readers into the world of F1 racing. Justine Kwong has always dreamed of becoming a Formula 1 champion. There’s just one problem: no female driver has ever done it before. So when she’s offered a coveted chance to race in Formula 3, she leaps at the opportunity. Sure, half the fans think she’s j
Paul Yoon, "Etna" (Scribner, 2026)
Beloved author and winner of The Story Prize, Paul Yoon, is back with the unforgettable story of a working dog, Etna, who, after a devastating war, embarks on an odyssey in the hopes of returning home.Set in a fictional country in the present day, this is a story told through the eyes of an ex-military dog, Etna. After surviving years of a devastating war, Etna decides one night to leave the men h
Robyn Gigl, "All We Hide" (Soho Crime 2026)
In All We Hide (Soho Crime 2026), after Lauren Kelly transitions to female in a small-town District Attorney’s Office, her bosses do whatever they can to push her into retirement. Now stuck in the Homicide Cold Case unit, she investigates the 20-year-old murder of a trans sex-worker whom she knew in high school. Already grappling with a teenage daughter, an ex-wife she still loves, and her father
Caroline Bicks, "Monsters in the Archives: My Year of Fear with Stephen King" (Hogarth, 2026)
After Caroline Bicks was named the University of Maineʼs inaugural Stephen E. King Chair in Literature, she became the first scholar to be granted extended access by King to his private archives, a treasure trove of manuscripts that document the legendary writerʼs creative process—most of them never before studied or published. The year she spent exploring King’s early drafts and hand-written rev
Lauren Delapenha, "Supermarketing" (Spring, 2026)
Lauren Delapenha speaks to Emily Everett about her poems “Supermarketing” and “If You Are Learning English,” which appear in The Common’s spring issue. Lauren also discusses her process and revision methods, her time at the Disquiet Literary Program in Lisbon, and how balancing both teaching and writing challenges her.
Lauren is a Jamaican poet and English teacher. She earned her master’s in creat
Rhys Bowen, "The Castle in the Glen" (Lake Union Publishing, 2026)
I love Rhys Bowen’s historical mystery series, especially Her Royal Spyness books, which feature Lady Georgiana Rannoch. The Castle in the Glen (Lake Union Publishing, 2026) appears to be a standalone, although there’s room for it to develop into a series if the author so decides
The novel opens with an excerpt from The Wild Girl, a work-in-progress by an acclaimed mystery writer, Iris Blackburn (
Huang Chongkai, "The Formosa Exchange" (Honford Star, 2026)
In this episode of the New Books Network, we talk with Jeremy Tiang about his English translation of The Formosa Exchange (Honford Star, 2026)—which will be released on September 18, 2026 (but is available for preorder).Tiang is a novelist, playwright, and translator based in New York. He has translated more than thirty books from Chinese to English—including Zou Jingzhi's Ninth Building, longlist
Seamus O’Reilly, "Prestige Drama" (Cardinal, 2026)
A dazzling novel about a community where an upcoming film production brings their past into sharp focus--and nobody's version is the same.
In Derry, the locals are already in a twist about the arrival of Hollywood actress Monica Logue to research her role for a show about the Troubles--and then she goes missing. Everyone has a story to tell--about Monica's possible whereabouts, and about the histo
M. H. Ayinde, "A Song of Legends Lost" (Saga Press, 2025)
A Song of Legends Lost (Saga Press, 2025) is the first, highly praised instalment in the Invoker Series. Set in a world offering an unique combination of an African inspired culture and a fallen tech-based empire at war, the novel feels at once epic and deeply personal. M. H. Ayinde deftly creates an entire, well-imagined society with a minimum of distracting exposition. Her clear prose and astut
Christopher R. Rogers, "My City Need Something" (Common Notions, 2026)
Moving between word and image, the call-and-response collaboration between writer Christopher R. Rogers and photographer karim brown improvises a contemporary portrait of present-day Black Philadelphia, replete with the unfinished activism present since the transnational upsurge of the George Floyd Uprising.Arriving five years after the crucible of that period, this experimental essay-as-LP challe
Tsering Döndrup, "The Red Wind Howls" (Columbia UP, 2025)
The Red Wind Howls (Columbia UP, 2025) is an unsettling, gripping, and darkly funny novel by Tsering Döndrup, one of modern Tibet’s most celebrated writers. First self-published in 2006 after no publisher was willing to take the political risk, the novel traces Tibetan experiences under Mao Zedong’s rule, from the 1958 Amdo uprising and the Great Leap Forward to the Cultural Revolution. Through a
Tom Lin, "Babylon, South Dakota" (Little, Brown and Co, 2026)
Today, we’re welcoming novelist Tom Lin back to the show, whose new novel Babylon, South Dakota (Little, Brown and Company: 2026) moves his fascination with the American West into stranger and more uncanny territory.
A Chinese family moves to a new farm in South Dakota; after the government takes an interest in a plot near their home for some Cold War-era experiments, the family’s life gets much o
Amy B. Scher, "The Unexpected Afterlife of Salon Rose" (Tiny Ghost Press, 2026)
In Amy B. Scher's The Unexpected Afterlife of Salon Rose (Tiny Ghost Press, 2026) college hopeful Salon Rose arrives to the Nowhere in Between, a way-station between life and death, only to learn she’s been murdered.
Returning to the life she had before is not an option, but before Salon can move on, she is determined to discover who was responsible for her death.
With the help of her new friends–
Emily McBride, "Queen Mab" (FSG, 2026)
There is a changeling in this story—but who?Madeleine is young for motherhood, a promising grad student in Victorian and Modernist literature, twenty-three and not long married. Even her mother worries about the timing. But Madeleine’s ambivalence is pushed aside by Tom’s elation and her own joy at bringing new life to the world.Then comes Maud, perfect and fresh and worth every moment of diffi
Tracy Borman, "The House of Boleyn" (Hachette, 2026)
When nobleman Thomas Boleyn, lord of Hever Castle, is called to London in 1509 to present himself to a newly anointed King Henry VIII, he sets in train events that ensure the Boleyn name will never be forgotten. His daughters Mary and Anne were young then, and though he was ambitious for his family to prosper, he could not imagine what would transpire in the two decades to come.
Blending the histo
J.J. Crayhill, "Raleigh and the Pirates" (Raconteur Press, 2026)
J.J. Crayhill's Raleigh and the Pirates (Raconteur Press, 2026) is the launch of The Adventures of Midshipman Raleigh — a science fiction adventure series built on the bones of the great naval tales, transplanted to the lawless frontier of space. Anthony is small, undertrained, and deeply motivated, which turns out to be a dangerous combination — for everyone involved.
Midshipman Anthony Raleigh w
Meryl Branch-McTiernan, "What You Should Worry About" (Akashic Books, 2026)
Tune in to this interview with Meryl Branch-McTiernan about her new book What You Should Worry About (Akashic Books, 2026).
It's January of 2020 and thirty-seven-year-old Layla Moody is trying to worm her way into a party at the Sundance Film Festival. When she’s not picking up other people’s abandoned drinks or skinny-dipping in the hot tub, she’s trying to gain access to someone who can jump-sta
Abdelwahab Meddeb, "Returns to Marrakesh / Retour à Marrakech" (Syracuse UP, 2026)
Abdelwahab Meddeb’s Returns to Marrakesh, co-translated by Claudia Esposito and Laura Reeck and published by Syracuse University Press in 2026, chronicles Meddeb’s successive visits to the Red City from 1968 through the 1990s, tracing both his personal journey and Marrakesh’s transformation across three pivotal decades. Through his distinctive blend of poetic prose and attentive observation, Medde
City on Fire: A Novel of Hong Kong with Simon Elegant
John chats with writer and journalist Simon Elegant about his third novel, a crime thriller set during the Hong Kong protests of 2019. City on Fire is published by Pegasus Crime, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. The novel follows Inspector Killian Tong’s investigation of a brutal murder against a backdrop of political chaos, police tensions, and also personal conflict – Killian’s half-sister is
Jacqueline West, "Black Point" (Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2026)
Black Point (Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2026) is an insular small town steeped in Norse traditions, a teen’s developing romance with a newcomer becomes fraught as dark secrets from the past rise to the surface in this gorgeously atmospheric mystery by New York Times bestselling author Jacqueline West. Lucia Sorenson holds on hard to the things she loves. Her tiny Wisconsin hometown clings t
Elisabeth Rhoads, "Haggard House" (Bodger Books, 2025)
It’s the 19th century, and a village in northern Michigan is the setting for Adam Bolton’s strange, decrepit house, called Haggard House by the community. He’s eleven, and his strictly religious mother only allows him to attend the village school after he promises not to be friendly with the other children. They’re heathens, she tells him. Adam builds an imaginary house in his mind, so when he mee
Charles Akl, "Red Like Orange" (Hoopoe, 2026)
A Conversation with author Charles Akl about his debut novel Red Like Orange (Hoopoe, 2026)
An offbeat tale of creativity, friendship, and finding your voice in this uproarious journey through Cairo's music scene in the early 2000s, where everything from American rock to Egyptian popular songs cultivates big dreams
Winner of the Sawiris Cultural Award
Following a breakup with his long-term girlf
Mark Kitto, "China Running Dog" (Plum Rain Press, 2025)
In his novel China Running Dog (Plum Rain Press, 2025), a young man in his early twenties lives in Shanghai in the year 2000, in a greed-crazed free-for-all moral and lawless vacuum created by the Chinese Communist Party. Johnny Trent, small-time entrepreneur from Basildon in the UK, ends up in China, where he meets Felix Fawcett-Smith, fresh off the boat and from the other side of the tracks. An
A Conversation with LeUyen Pham illustrator of "As I Dream of You" (First Second, 2026)
As I Dream of You (First Second, 2026) illustrated by LeUyen Pham and written by Jennifer Lee. Falling in love is supposed to hurt. That’s what Franny and Sam, two cynical teenagers raised on tales of heartbreak and loss, have come to understand. Yet when they fall for each other, they find the reality of love is something else entirely: it’s electrifying, all-encompassing, and easy. Theirs is a
Mohamed Alyahyai, "The War" (Dararab for Publishing and Translation, 2026)
A psychological Arabic novel in English translation, The War by Mohamed Alyahyai follows a man who begins to question whether he is truly the one who returned from war.
On a winter night, Issa Saleh prepares a small gathering at his home. By the end of the evening, they are gone—and he is no longer certain they were ever there.
As memory fractures, the war resurfaces not as event but as instabilit
Julie Buntin, "Famous Men" (Random House, 2026)
Will Miles is trapped. Trapped in tiny Greening, Michigan, where a toxic high school rumor has turned her into a social exile. Trapped in the predictable routines of her mother, and under the unrelenting gaze of her mother’s increasingly sinister boyfriend. But when Will stumbles across the early poems of Nathaniel Fellow, a famous writer forty years her senior who also grew up in Greening, she f
Marie Léticée, "Camille's Lakou" (Vanderbilt UP, 2025)
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