The Indie Next List

Yellowface

“R.F. Kuang does it again! But honestly, who is surprised! Yellowface is full of terrible people doing terrible things, a horror of mundanity that makes you reconsider everyone around you. But mainly, you have June spiraling out of control in a similar manner to the main character in a tell-tale heart, an unreliable narrator who reliably tells on herself in every single sentence. I was on edge the entire time, desperate for something to go right for someone who wasn't the main character - one of my favorite kind of things in fiction. Yellowface is brilliant, and a stark reminder that we all need to be better.”

Caitlyn, Bookmarks

Good Night, Irene

“In 1943, author Luis Urerra's mother volunteered for the war effort. To make donuts. For the troops. In a war zone. Good Night Irene is Urrea's version of this amazing story. With adventure, a fabulous friendship tale, and, well, donuts, this will be THE historical fiction everyone will be reading in Fall 23.”

Angie, The Country Bookshop

"The reigning queen of STEM romance."—The Washington Post

An Indie Next and Library Reads Pick!

Rival physicists collide in a vortex of academic feuds and fake dating shenanigans in this delightfully STEMinist romcom from the New York Times bestselling author of The Love Hypothesis and Love on the Brain.
 
The many lives of theoretical physicist... Read more »

Lady Tan's Circle of Women

“Another winner from Lisa See! This fictionalized version of Lady Tan, a real Chinese doctor from the 15th century, is a fascinating dive into a world I knew nothing about. Fans of Snow Flower and the Secret Fan will enjoy this one as well. ”

Amber, Quail Ridge Books

If you enjoyed The Blade Itself, then you’ll love Witch King.

“Martha Wells, the Hugo-award winning author of the Murderbot series and the Raksura series delivers a detailed and complex fantasy world with beautifully realized human and non-human cultures and point of view characters, and layers of political intrigue that are as compelling as they are baroque. You won't be able to put down this wonderfully paced fantasy-thriller, which focuses on the love of found families and the bonds that are forged through adversity and triumph, and the dreadful costs that those bonds can lead to. ”

Jeremy, Borderlands Books

All the Sinners Bleed

“Truly excellent read. Great writing and perfect pacing. Definitely couldn't put it down! I listened to the audio and the narrator, Adam Lazarre-White, did an amazing job.”

Katherine, Letterpress Books

Deep as the Sky, Red as the Sea

“Who doesn't like pirates and who doesn't love a Pirate Queen?! ”

Jayne, Mystery to Me

A young woman pretends to be someone she isn’t in this “spellbinding” (Vogue), “smoldering” (The Washington Post) novel by the New York Times bestselling author of The Girls.
 
“Under Cline’s command, every sentence as sharp as a scalpel, a woman toeing the line between welcome and unwelcome guest becomes a fully destabilizing force.”—The New... Read more »

NAMED A MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK OF THE YEAR BY VOGUE, ELLE, OPRAH DAILY, THE WASHINGTON POST, BUZZFEED AND VULTURE

“Erudite, intimate, hilarious, poignant . . . A gorgeously written novel of youth’s promise, of the quest to find one’s tribe and one’s calling.” —Leigh Haber, Oprah Daily

The Booker Prize finalist and widely acclaimed author of... Read more »

“He was a hectic, unprincipled bird, but it was impossible not to love him.” From poet and painter Frieda Hughes, a memoir of love, obsession, and feathers.

When Frieda Hughes moved to the depths of the Welsh countryside, she was expecting to take on a few projects: planting a garden, painting, writing her poetry column for The Times (London),... Read more »

A hilarious and poignant memoir grappling with family, disability, and coming of age in two closets—as a gay man and as a man living with cerebral palsy

Greg Marshall's early years were pretty bizarre. Rewind the VHS tapes and you'll see a lopsided teenager limping across a high school stage, or in a wheelchair after leg surgeries,... Read more »

A TODAY Show #ReadWithJenna Book Club Pick

A Big Chill for our times, celebrating decades-long friendships and promises—especially to ourselves—by the bestselling and beloved author of The Guncle.

It’s been a minute—or five years—since Jordan Vargas last saw his college friends, and twenty-eight years since their graduation when their adult lives... Read more »

The Book of Charlie

“For seven years, David Von Drehle listened to his 102 year old neighbor Charlie White’s stories. Early tragedy helped form Charlie’s stoic nature because he had already learned that nothing is certain, so he lived his life with an optimistic, carpe diem approach. He lived most of his life in the Kansas City area where he faced and overcame tremendous obstacles. His mother had given him just one basic piece of advice that he lived by: do the right thing. Charlie White didn’t just survive a century of tremendous change and conflict but actually thrived. Over and over again, Charlie White bet on himself…and it almost always paid off. This is an uplifting book for our troubled times, a rewarding and enriching reading experience that gives us a lesson on how to live a long and meaningful life. ”

Shirley, Watermark Books

"This is gory and brutal and beautiful and painful and terrifying and a pure delight." —Stephen Graham Jones, New York Times bestselling author

A provocative debut that is both a blood-soaked love letter to Los Angeles and a gleeful send-up to iconic horror villains, Maeve Fly will thrill fans of My Heart is a Chainsaw and Caroline Kepnes’ You... Read more »

“Extraordinarily brave...plain funny as hell, too.” —Zakiya Dalila Harris, New York Times bestselling author of The Other Black Girl

“A subtle, ironic, wise, state-of-the-nation novel, sharp enough to draw blood, hidden inside a moving, intimate, sincere and very real love story--or vice versa.” —Nick Hornby

On Jess’s first day at Goldman Sachs,... Read more »

“Ingenious…fresh and unpredictable…My Murder shakes up the same-old, same-old conventions of every genre it touches and has a ton of fun doing so.” – Maureen Corrigan, The Washington Post

What if the murder you had to solve was your own?

Lou is a happily married mother of an adorable toddler. She’s also the victim of a local serial killer.... Read more »

Crow Mary

“Based on actual events, the author of The Kitchen House has written a novel about a strong, fiery woman torn between her native people and her husband’s culture. A wonderful story just waiting to be told! ”

Beth, Lake Forest Book Store

Chef's Choice

“Luna was my favorite character in Alexander’s debut novel, and she shines off the page in this standalone sequel as she cooks up her own love story, complete with fake dating, bed sharing, relatable kitchen disasters, and true depiction of trans & queer communities written with nuance and depth. I’ve already told everyone I know to read this, so now I’m telling the world - make space on your plate for this delicious beacon of trans joy.”

Miriasha, Phoenix Books

Reality and the supernatural collide when an expert puzzle maker is thrust into an ancient mystery—one with explosive consequences for the fate of humanity—in this suspenseful thriller from the New York Times bestselling author of Angelology

“In short: The Puzzle Master = (The Da Vinci Code + The Silent Patient + sprinkle of Stephen King) x... Read more »

"Confident, compassionate, and incredibly engrossing, Ink Blood Sister Scribe grabbed me with its first pages and put me completely under its spell. . . . The plot zigs and zags along with just the right amount of twists and reveals. . . . A stellar and original debut novel." – NPR“Follow where this novel leads and you will be lost in a... Read more »