Hi Book Pals!
It’s a big week here in our household because it was my husband’s birthday yesterday. And we celebrated by going to not one but two bookstores. Oh, and maybe even more importantly, it was our cat Murray’s birthday the day before. My little orange angel is four years old! So happy birthday week to two of the most special people in the whole world. And on with the books!
Book Deals and Reveals
Let’s start with a gorgeous cover reveal! Check out the cover of A Love Like The Sun by Riss M. Neilson. It’s out from Berkley on June 11.
Literary Hub has singled out the 139 best book covers of 2023.
And here are the 12 book covers The New York Times calls the “edgiest, catchiest, most creative book jackets of the year.”
Bikini Kill’s Kathleen Hanna has announced a U.S. book tour in support of her new memoir Rebel Girl: My Life as a Feminist Punk. The book will be out on May 14, and a portion of all ticket sales from the tour will be donated to the nonprofit Peace Sisters.
Jeffery Deaver has a new series coming out with Thomas & Mercer. The first book in the series, Fatal Intrusion, will be out in fall 2024.
Olivia Dade’s paranormal romantic comedy ZomRomCom is being called The Last of Us meets My Roommate Is a Vampire. And it’s out from Berkley in summer 2025!
Speaking of romance, Judith Rosen’s Bookstore Romance is coming out from Brandeis University Press in early 2025. The author calls the book “a celebration of love—and of bricks-and-mortar bookstores—told through the stories (in words and pictures) of couples who chose to get engaged, and sometimes married, in bookstores.”
Dictionary.com’s choice of Word of the Year nods to the prominence of AI in 2023 — and where it falls short.
Get your TBR ready and feast your eyes on all these fabulous new book releases coming in 2024.
Book Riot Recommends
Hi, welcome to everyone’s favorite segment of Book Radar called Book Riot Recommends. This is where I’ll talk to you about all the books I’m reading, the books I’m loving, and the books I can’t wait to read and love in the near future. I think you’re going to love them too!
Can’t Wait for This One!
I Was A Teenage Slasher by Stephen Graham Jones (S&S/Saga Press, July 16)
Y’all know the drill with Stephen Graham Jones by now. He’s always releasing multiple works per year, and I’m always going to send all of them straight to the top of my TBR list. I don’t know how this author does it, but he writes fast and he writes exceptionally well. And there’s nothing quite like a Stephen Graham Jones horror novel. If you’ve read his books, you know what I mean.
Yes, the third and final novel in Stephen Graham Jone’s Indian Lake Trilogy, The Angel of Indian Lake, is coming out in March. But only three months later, we’re getting a fresh new standalone in I Was A Teenage Slasher. Lamesa, Texas is a small town in west Texas where everyone knows everyone else’s business. And in 1989 in Lamesa, a young teenager named Tolly Driver will be cursed to kill others for revenge.
This story is told from the close perspective of a killer, as Tolly Driver writes his autobiography. Stephen Graham Jones is a master of character studies, and I’m so excited to meet his newest protagonist.
Words of Literary Wisdom
“Florida’s soil is soaked with so much blood, it’s a wonder the droplets don’t seep between your toes with every step, Mama used to say.”
— The Reformatory by Tananarive Due
What’s Up in the Book Community?
My iPhone is constantly telling me I spend too much time staring at my screen, which is honestly so rude. But this means I spend a lot of time scrolling around the online book community: BookTube, Bookstagram, BookTok, BookLinkedIn (JK. That’s not a thing…I don’t think). You get the idea. Don’t have the time, energy, or the will to do all of that yourself? No problem. I got you. In this weekly section of Book Radar, we’ll take a look at something cool, interesting, and/or newsy that’s going on in the book community.
If you’ve been following recent book news, then you know what story we have to talk about this week, friends. First-time author Cait Corrain has lost her book deal after posting fake negative reviews on other authors’ books on Goodreads. Corrain’s book agent, Rebecca Podos, also said she has cut ties with Corrain. The author has issued an apology on X Twitter. You can read more about the story here. Or if you’re more of a BookTube person, here’s a quick explanation.
And Here’s A Cat Picture!
We’ve got to end today’s newsletter by wishing Murray a HAPPY BIRTHDAY one more time! Happy birthday, sweet orange angel! Here’s to being four and more wonderful than ever! And many more years to come!
Okay, friends, that’s where we wrap up this newsletter today. I’ll see you on Monday. I hope you have a wonderful weekend.