Author: Liberty Hardy

First: an excellent debut! When most people find a dead body, they call the authorities—but not Ellice Littlejohn. She’s too worried about her secrets. Ellice is a Black woman at a mostly white law firm, she’s having a secret affair with her boss, and she has even more secrets from her past that she is hiding. So when she finds her boss dead, she backs out of the room and pretends she was never there. But soon she finds herself promoted to his position, and suddenly she’s wrapped up in what very well may be the case that got him killed. Can she unravel the mystery and keep her secrets before the murderer gets to her too? (CW for infidelity, racism, sexism, violence, murder.)

Backlist bump: Pleasantville by Attica Locke

What if you could get revenge on murderers and never get caught? It’s an offer Camille can’t refuse. Five years ago, her teenage daughter died, and the boy responsible for her death walked away free. After years of grief and rage, Camille is approached by an anonymous internet group that claims they can get her the revenge she seeks, in return for a few small favors. But when Camille realizes those favors lead to the deaths of other people, she wonders if she can extract herself from her deadly new friends—or is she too far gone to care? This one is unrelenting in the thrills! (CW for child murder, suicide, sexual assault, and bullying; loss of a child, car accident and death by car, murder, drowning, chemical use and abuse and overdose, medical negligence, grief, trauma, falling death.)

Backlist bump: Then She Was Gone by Lisa Jewell

And last, but not least, a futuristic tale about a former pro baseball player with outdated cybernetic parts named Kobo. He now works as a scout for the Big Pharma-owned teams and spends his free time dodging loan sharks. When his own brother, a baseball superstar, dies at the plate, Kobo goes on a quest for answers. But his search reveals more questions and a conspiracy that goes to the top. This one is like if Raymond Chandler wrote Blade Runner. I love a down-on-their-luck private investigator. (CW for violence, chemical use and abuse, murder.)

Backlist bump: Make Room! Make Room! by Harry Harrison

This fun, fast-paced book is a dark urban fantasy novel about an FBI agent who is investigating a serial killer whose victims all have something in common: they have six fingers and six toes. These people are believed to be Nephalims, also known as fallen angels. Michael Childs is said FBI agent, whose search for a murderer leads him to a Marine sniper, Anaba Raines. Anaba is also not who she first appears to be, and during their partnership, Michael also uncovers something shocking about himself. I call this novel Good Omens mashed up with The Black Stallion, with a dash of Loki. And it’s as awesome as it sounds. MORE, PLEASE. (CW for gore, violence, and murder.)

Backlist bump: The Immortals (Olympus Bound #1) by Jordanna Max Brodsky

World-famous author Murakami, known for such books as Kafka on the Shore and The Wind-up Bird Chronicles, has created a great little photo book of his T-shirt collection. His collection includes shirts with animals, alcohol brands, bands, bookstores, and of course, a few featuring the author himself. (He has one that says “Keep calm and read Murakami.” The images are accompanied by stories about the shirts, such as where he got them and why he loves them. It’s a great gift for people who love T-shirts, photo books, Murakami, or all three!

Backlist bump: Sputnik Sweetheart by Haruki Murakami, Philip Gabriel (Translator) (My favorite Murakami.)

And last, but not least, this cool book based on Rosenwald’s popular workshop. It’s a fun guide to being your most original you, and how being yourself—and some human error—can lead to creativity. The book also has pages of visual aids and tips for unlocking your untapped potential. Chapters include “Your Pointless Quest for Perfection” and “Sometimes Not Trying Works Better Than Trying.” I definitely want to get a finished copy of this for myself.

Backlist bump: Embrace Your Weird: Face Your Fears and Unleash Creativity by Felicia Day

I feel like I should just write “AHHHH” for twenty lines here, or a million heart eye emojis, because nothing I say will do this novel justice. It’s a genre-bending queer love story about a married couple, Leah and Miri. Leah is a scientist who left for a routine submarine expedition, but instead her sub went missing for a long, long time.

When she finally returns to her wife, Miri, Leah is changed. She turns all the faucets on all the time, she hangs out in the tub—she’s just not herself. It’s told between Leah’s time on the ocean floor, and then her return to Miri, who is desperately seeking answers to what happened and what to do now. This is a freaking remarkable novel! You will hear me call my favorite book of 2022 more than once, because it’s so good, I can’t even handle it. (CW for mentions of body horror, suicide, loss, grief, and animal death.)

This should be required reading for everyone. This book expands on the project started in the New York Times in 2019, the 400th anniversary of the arrival of the first slave ships in America. It covers the history of the United States with the contributions of Black people and the history of slavery as the center focus, something that is usually left out of history books, even today. It features contributions from some of today’s most incredibel writers, including Yaa Gyasi, Darryl Pinckney, Claudia Rankine, Jason Reynolds, and Jesmyn Ward. Grab a copy or two as soon as you can, because it’s going to go fast.

Backlist bump: Four Hundred Souls: A Community History of African America, 1619-2019 by Ibram X. Kendi (Not quite backlist yet, but too important not to mention.)

And calling all history fans: This is an excellent debut historical novel based on the true scandal of the Jacobean court. It’s about the friendship between Frances Howard, the wife of the Earl of Essex, and Anne Turner. Bonds are made and broken in an instant in the court, and friendships and fortunes can change in the drop of a fancy hat. The women struggle to take charge of their own futures and write themselves a happy ending, but risking everything means they could lose it all.

Backlist bump: Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell

And the amazing author of Binti, Remote Control, and more, is back with this great novella! Set in a near-future Nigeria, it’s about a young woman named Anwuli Okwudili, who has several body augmentations, and ends up on the run across the deserts of Northern Nigeria after a bloody confrontation at the local market. Who can AO trust, and how will the story of this technologically advanced woman end? It’s a great book that takes on race, class, and colonialism in a fast-paced adventure story. You’ll read it so fast, you’ll get whiplash!

Backlist bump: Remote Control by Nnedi Okorafor

This is not an upcoming book, but one that is available now exclusively through Kobo! And it is a freaking DELIGHT. Liza and her wife, Hanna, are having relationship troubles, so Hanna booked them a romantic getaway at a castle in Scotland. Which is part of why they’re having troubles—Liza feels like Hanna never asks her what she wants, she just goes ahead and does stuff, like booking them a trip. Hanna is a financial advisor who makes mad bank and works a lot of hours, and she is beginning to resent all the time Liza spends working on her true crime podcast, which grows in popularity each week, because it cuts in on their free time. Is a weekend in a remote location with a bunch of stuffy aristocrats the answer for their marital woes?

Because you know what might not be good for a relationship in trouble? A giant snowstorm that traps everyone in the castle, including a mysterious femme fatale with designs on Liza and an unknown murderer, who has started offing the guests. There’s no escape and no way to call for help. But now Liza now has the chance to show Hanna her podcast isn’t just a hobby and solve an actual case, and she and Hanna will learn what lengths they will go to in order to keep each other safe.

This is a fun satirical take on Agatha Christie and classic locked room mysteries. Hall does an excellent job nailing down all the situations and characters you find in those stories. But he also adds a couple of twists, including two things I really loved that I can’t mention because they’re spoilers, so you’ll have to hit me up after you read it.

(CW for violence and murder, mentions of infidelity and suicide.)

A young Black woman wakes up naked in an alley in Los Angeles in the 1930s. Lou has no memory of how she got there, but she does have a strong sense that this has happened before. People seem familiar, like she already knows them. After getting stuck in this time, she goes on to become the first Black woman journalist in L.A. Lou will investigate her own life in this time period, to figure out why it all seems so familiar—and what destiny has in store for her. This is a remarkable book, but I fully admit that it is very complex and I found it hard to follow at times. But I still loved it. (CW for mentions of violence, war, racism, abuse, and assault.)

Backlist bump: Grace by Natashia Deón

I love everything Lily King writes. It seems impossible that King’s last book, Writers & Lovers, only came out in March of 2020, because I feel like I have been thinking about it forever. But here we are, with a whole new book to read. This is a fantastic collection of stories, King’s first, filled with love, loss, triumph, and heartbreak. There’s tales of a painful college reunion, a grandfather’s rage, a bookseller’s new love, and more. These are ten powerful stories of raw emotion about the helplessness of being human. You may want to savor them so your heart doesn’t break.

Backlist bump: Writers & Lovers by Lily King

And this one is so in our wheelhouses, it’s almost like cheating. But who doesn’t love a book about libraries?! This is exactly as advertised: a fascinating look into libraries past and present, the collecting and theft of rare books, and the future of libraries. For those of you who yell “TOO SOON!” whenever someone mentions the burning of the Library of Alexandria, this book is for you!

Backlist bump: I really wanted to recommend A Gentle Madness: Bibliophiles, Bibliomanes, and the Eternal Passion for Books by Nicholas A. Basbanes, but it is no longer readily available in print. So instead, here’s your reminder that you should definitely have Library Lion by Michelle Knudsen and Kevin Hawkes and The Library by Sarah Stewart and David Small in your collection.

First of all, you know how I love a book cover you can see from space. I am surprised more covers aren’t this loud. Why wouldn’t you want your cover to jump out at potential readers?? Good news, the inside is just as wild, too. This is a fun dystopian satire about office work and a hazardous outbreak in a tech company building.

Jacob Elliot is getting nowhere in his career, so he begrudgingly takes a temporary job in the mailroom at Delphi Enterprises, a Google-like tech company. But Jacob is about to have a horrible first day of work: During a meeting of all the company’s executives in the auditorium, something poisonous gets into the air vents. It kills everyone in the room, leaving only the interns and low-paid employees left in the building.

Jacob is sort of put in a leadership position of this motley group, who don’t know what the toxic event is that has occurred, only that it isn’t safe to leave the building. So they start their own version of society, a community of sorts, in the enormous building. But playing at a new paradise doesn’t please everyone. And there’s also the problem of rations and power. And as the survivors search around for supplies and answers, they uncover a much darker conspiracy that may go all the way to the top.

Despite its high body count and some serious events, this is a fun and funny read about a locked room mystery of sorts, and a sharp stab at the tech world. Kinda like Lord of the Flies set in Silicon Valley. (CW for mentions of mass illness and death, chemical use, violence, assault, and murder.)

This is an exciting, powerful YA novel about an alien invasion in Los Angeles. Pedro, Luna, and Rafa are three Latinx teens who attend Fairfax High School together, although they’re not really friends, but they’re brought together by unbelievable circumstances. Because aliens have decided that humans do not deserve Earth, so they’ve sent a representative to check the planet out and ready it for annihilation. When the Visitor arrives, it assumes the form of Luna’s dead cousin, Tasha, which confuses everyone. Pedro, Luna, and Rafa wind up on the run together from Alien Tasha, while also trying to foil her plans. Complicating matters is the behavior of the police, who are still trying to detain and arrest people in the middle of an alien invasion. While an alien invasion may never happen (but who knows anymore), the rest of the story is all too real. I loved the relationships and road blocks that pop up in the character’s lives, and all the action, too. (CW for violence, death, illness, pandemic, police violence and killings, people experiencing houselessness, racism, and bullying.)

Backlist bump: Dealing in Dreams by Lilliam Rivera

Okay, I must be completely honest with you: I am only one-third of the way through this because I only got my hands on it right before I started writing this newsletter. But it’s quite remarkable—remarkable enough that I felt the need to include it anyway. It’s about a Swedish man in the early 20th century named Sven Ormson. Sven leaves Stockholm to find a life of quiet and solitude near the Arctic circle, and after a traumatic injury, retreats completely into isolation. But he learns that his quest for solitude will lead him to the most important relationships he has made in his life. The writing is unbelievably gorgeous and the story is a roller coaster of emotions. I can’t wait to finish it. (My incomplete list of CW so far include body shaming, peril, injury, and trauma.)

Backlist bump: Tinkers by Paul Harding

And last, but not least, this is a fun debut thriller! It’s about a journalist named Jordan Manning in Chicago. Jordan has a master’s degree in forensic science and uses her keen instincts for crime in her reporting. She tries to give voice to young Black women victims, whose murders have gone unreported and overlooked. But when a teen girl is killed, it hits Jordan particularly hard, and the arrest of three young boys doesn’t strike her as the correct solution to the case. So Jordan decides to investigate the case herself, but she just might end up being a news story instead. What makes this story more fun is the fact that Hall herself is a journalist. And this novel is definitely an exciting page turner, but do not believe the ‘cozy mystery’ label that has been attached to it. It’s not a cozy! (CW for racism, violence, murder, and sexual assault.)

Backlist bump: Notorious by Allison Brennan

Oh, how I loved this novel! It’s so fantastic. Imagine it’s the future and the Earth is really bad off. (Not that hard to imagine, right?) The temperature of the planet is raging out of control, and heat and fires are causing massive deaths. So scientist Alex Welch-Peters is sent into space by the giant tech company Sensus to work on his project: creating a strain of algae that will eat up carbon emissions and reverse climate change. He’s been workin gon it for two decades and is close to a solution, but his passion for his work has cost him his marriage. Alex’s lab is housed in Parallaxis, a space station being built for billionaires who have invested heavily in the project so they can leave the hellscape that is Earth behind.

There are a lot of problems at Parallaxis right away, starting with the fact that it isn’t even done being built. Meanwhile, back on home, Alex’s family is dealing with problems of their own. Technology has advanced to the point where people wear their Sensus phones as implants in their ears, and Alex’s daughter Mary Agnes is being bullied by a classmate who has sent around an upsetting video to the other students to humiliate her. Mary Agnes wants to join her dad in space, but her mother won’t let her.

There’s also the founders of Sensus, two brilliant and opportunistic sisters, who are locked in a sibling rivalry over the fate of Parallaxis and what must be done to placate their investors. And Tess, a young social psychologist who has been hired by Sensus to monitor the team on the space station and create an algorithm that predicts human behavior, who becomes obsessed with her work.

I’m doing a terrible job trying to compress all the incredible and heartbreaking things involved in telling this amazing story of family, technology, and the future. Parts of it reminded me of We Are Satellites by Sarah Pinsker, and parts were like In the Quick by Kate Hope Day. But all together, it is its own remarkable story of survival in the face of the consequences of our own actions. This book haunts me, and I can’t wait for everyone to read it. (CW for illegal surveillance, attempted rape, suicide, illness, mass shootings, and mass deaths.)

I talked about this on All the Books a couple weeks ago but then the release date got moved, so I am going to mention it again here, because it’s one of the best fantasy books of the year! It’s a a somewhat-retelling of the fairy tale The Goose Girl. Vanja, a young woman who was raised by Fortune and Death, became a servant and while in the employ of the princess, stole her magic necklace. Now Vanja appears as the princess, and while attending swanky events, she’s pulling off robberies to get enough money to split town. But when the princess’s betrothed and a hunter looking to get to the bottom of the crimes both show up, she thinks she’s got real trouble on her hands. But then a curse is placed on her where she starts to grow rubies on her face, and THAT is real trouble. This book is so inventive and fun and I loved it to pieces! (CW for child abuse and neglect, attempted assault, and violence.)

Backlist bump: The Merciful Crow (The Merciful Crow Series Book 1) by Margaret Owen

And this is a really fun middle grade novel set in an alternate Egyptian universe. Ash is a regular kid growing up in Egypt, except for the part where he has a mentor who is training him for a secret purpose. On the eve of his twelfth birthday, he finds out what that is—to compete to be the protector of the prince. The contest is deadly, five days of dangerous tests, each overseen by a different Egyptian god, and not everyone will survive. But does Ash, who has been preparing for this moment all his life, have what it takes to become the Shadow Prince?

Backlist bump: Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky by Kwame Mbalia

And last, but not least, a fun feminist look at women and the vital roles they played in the history of alcohol throughout the world. From the ancient Sumerian beer goddess Ninkasi up to the 20th century, O’Meara has created a fascinating look into what is historically depicted as a man’s enterprise. This is perfect for people who love to learn about rarely discussed history! (Full disclosure that Mallory is a friend of mine, but I promise the book is awesome regardless.)

Backlist bump: The Lady from the Black Lagoon: Hollywood Monsters and the Lost Legacy of Milicent Patrick by Mallory O’Meara

I would be remiss not to point out that the amazing Sarah Andersen has another hilarious collection coming out, just in time for holiday shopping! Her delightful comics about being an introvert, owning cats, reading books, and more, are one of my very favorite things about the internet, and this might be the best collection yet. Also, be sure to check out her new comic, Cryptid Club, and don’t miss her amazing vampire/werewolf romance graphic novel, Fangs!

Backlist bump: Adulthood Is a Myth: A Sarah’s Scribbles Collection by Sarah Andersen

Because we went hard on the really scary books on this week’s episode of All the Books!, I thought it would be nice to include something cozier. So here’s the first in a new cozy mystery series! And it’s about food shows, which is my favorite setting in books this year. (So! Many! Food! Show! Books!) Cuban-American Miriam Quinones-Smith becomes the star of a food show when she and her family move from NYC to Miami. But when a socialite dies right in front of Miriam at a luncheon, followed by another suspicious death soon after, her best friend Alma is implicated in the crimes. Miriam is determined to clear Alma’s name, but snooping around trying to find the real killer may be a—wait for it—recipe for disaster. (Related: someone please hire me to write pun titles for cozy mysteries.)

Backlist bump: Death by Dumpling: A Noodle Shop Mystery by Vivien Chien

Vanessa covered the The Best American Mystery and Suspense 2021 edition on the show this week, and I would be remiss not to shout out this edition here. Because the line-up of contributors is FIRE. There’s stories from C Pam Zhang, Brandon Hobson, Gabriel Bump, Kevin Wilson, Bryan Washington (related: have you seen the paperback cover of Memorial? UH-MAY-ZING), George Saunders, and more. Not to mention this year’s guest editor, the astounding Jesmyn Ward. I would put this on your gift list right now and get one for yourself, too!

Backlist bump: Everyday People: The Color of Life–a Short Story Anthology edited by Jennifer Baker

And here’s another fabulous book that will make a great gift. The description of this book calls Dumontier and Farber “two of Canada’s most influential contemporary artists.” I am sorry to admit I am not familiar with them, but I did love this book, so I will be sure to watch out for more from them! This is a collection of painted illustrations of books with hand-lettered covers featuring silly and sweet titles. Titles include “I Carved Your Name In a Tree Because I Love You, and I Hate Trees,” “I Wish I Had More Middle Fingers,” “Now Would Be a Good Time for a Joke,” and “Basic Human Confusion.” It’s a charming little art book that is sure to delight readers.

Backlist bump: Bibliophile: An Illustrated Miscellany by Jane Mount

Are you ready to be scared? Well, sorry, you have to wait until March, my bad, I didn’t mean to tease you. But if your answer was ‘yes’ then mark this book down on your TBR now!

In the small town of Claire Lake, Oregon, Shea Collins is a receptionist at a doctor’s office and she also runs a website about cold cases. When Beth Greer, the acquitted suspect in the town’s forty-year-old unsolved Lady Killer case, crosses her path, Shea takes a chance and asks for an interview. And to her surprise, Beth says yes.

But Shea wonders, after decades of isolation in her family’s mansion, why did Beth decide to talk now? As Shea digs deep into the Lady Killer case, interviewing key players and researching old files, she learns some startling things. Readers are treated to alternating chapters set in the past, during the events of the case, where we learn about Beth and her arrest. And on top of that, we know that Shea also has a secret of her own she is hiding from everyone—she was abducted when she was nine, but managed to escape (it’s not a spoiler, it’s in the book’s description). Is her desperate need to get to the bottom of cold cases a way for her to avoid dealing with her own past? And is spending all her free time immersed in crime cases really helping her?

I loved this book! First off, it’s HELLA scary. I was not expecting that, but yep, I found myself reading it in the middle of the night with all the lights on. I thought the mysteries were fun, and I always love books that include plot lines involving technology and cold cases. This one will ring all your thriller bells!

(CW for child kidnapping, sexual assault, and murder, chemical use and abuse, car accidents, murder, police brutality, infidelity, mental illness, child endangerment, terror.)