Here’s my pick of this week’s new hardback/paperback fiction titles. In some cases the eBook might already be available. My source is primarily The Bookseller, but I’ve started to include other sources to broaden the selection.
Just a reminder, I don’t have access to a complete list of titles being published, and, as I don’t see any advance copies, my choices are based on the cover, blurb, gut instinct and what takes my fancy at the time. Which is how I decide on my own purchases.
(NB This post features Affiliate links from which I earn a small commission on qualifying purchases)
Index
Crime, Thriller and Mystery (includes Historical Crime/Mysteries)
Historical (I tend to take this as pre 1960’s ie not in my lifetime!)
Crime, Thriller & Mystery
See How They Hide by Allison Brennan
No matter how far you run, some pasts never let you go…
Two people were murdered–at the exact same time, in the same gruesome manner, bodies covered in the same red poppies…but on opposite sides of the country.
With Detective Kara Quinn investigating in Oregon and Special Agent Matt Costa in Virginia, the Mobile Response Team digs deep to uncover more about each victim. What is the link between the two, and why were they targeted?
Yet their search unearths more questions than answers–until they meet Riley Pierce, the only person still alive who might be able to help them find the killers.
Soon, it becomes clear this case is nothing like they’ve seen before as their investigation leads them to the hallowed grounds of Havenwood–an eerily beautiful place rooted in a terrifying past.
As more bodies turn up, all tied to the same community, Kara and Matt are desperate to piece the puzzle together before Havenwood’s leader sacrifices everything to keep her secrets buried.
The Stolen Queen by Fiona Davis
Egypt, 1936: When anthropology student Charlotte Cross is offered a coveted spot on an archaeological dig in Egypt’s Valley of the Kings, she leaps at the opportunity. That is until an unbearable tragedy strikes.
New York City, 1978: Nineteen-year-old Annie Jenkins is thrilled when she lands an opportunity to work for former Vogue fashion editor Diana Vreeland, who’s in the midst of organizing the famous Met Gala, hosted at the museum and known across the city as the “party of the year.”
Meanwhile, Charlotte is now leading a quiet life as the associate curator of the Met’s celebrated Department of Egyptian Art. She’s consumed by her research on Hathorkare—a rare female pharaoh dismissed by most other Egyptologists as unimportant.
The night of the gala: One of the Egyptian art collection’s most valuable artifacts goes missing, and there are signs Hathorkare’s legendary curse might be reawakening. Annie and Charlotte team up to search for the missing antiquity, and a desperate hunch leads the unlikely duo to one place Charlotte swore she’d never return: Egypt. But if they have any hope of finding the artifact, Charlotte will need to confront the demons of her past—which may mean leading them both directly into danger.
Dead Man’s Shoes by Marion Todd
Will DI Clare Mackay end up with blood on her hands?
A young man is found dead near a nightclub. He has marks on his neck, the signature of the Choker, a killer who has been targeting gay men across the country. Now, it seems he’s in DI Clare Mackay’s territory.
She discovers this victim has links to notorious criminals in the area. Is it possible his death was at the hands of someone else?
More men, including ones linked to the victim, are attacked and left injured. It’s only a matter of time before someone else is killed. But Clare’s desire for justice leaves her with blindspots which put her job – and her life – at risk.
Wife, Mother, Liar by Sue Watson
She’s perfect. Too perfect…
Wife: For twenty-five years, my husband and I have been the ideal couple. I’m shy, but he’s always been the life and soul of the party, a charmer, so I didn’t worry the first time I caught him a little too close to my best friend, Wendy.
Mother: Then our darling son says he’s taking Wendy’s daughter to prom, the girl I never trusted because she’s too much like her mother. As I snap photos of them, I have a smile plastered on my face, but inside my head I’m screaming at him to stay away from her.
Liar: As flashing lights slice the darkness around our home, my worst nightmare comes true with the shocking news that one of our children is dead. And I can tell my husband, my best friend are both lying about where they were. But none of their secrets compares to mine.
And nobody knows just how far I’d go to protect my family…
General/Contemporary Fiction
The Three Lives of Cate Kay by Kate Fagan
Who is Cate Kay?
Cate Kay is the most famous author on the planet. But it’s just a name. Somehow, despite her bestselling novels and the record-breaking film franchise, the writer has remained completely anonymous.
Anne Marie Callahan is the name nobody knows. Only the people she left behind. And Annie knows there’s no one there anymore who could connect the dots between the girl who ran away all those years ago and the famous novelist.
If you asked, she’d say her name was Cass Ford. That’s what her barista shouts each morning. And it’s how she introduces herself to the woman she’ll eventually call the love of her life.
Three names, three lives. But Cate Kay is finally ready to tell you who she really is.
And when the truth is out, will everyone’s favourite novelist hold on to her place in our hearts or are some betrayals impossible to forgive?
This One Life by Amanda Prowse
She wants it all. But life has other plans…
After years of hard work, Madeleine’s life is very nearly perfect. She’s about to move to LA to pursue her dream job—and there’s a new man on the scene too. But when her mother falls ill, pulling her back to the world she’s tried so hard to leave behind, the repercussions of a life-changing decision Madeleine made seven years ago resurface, threatening to jeopardise everything she’s worked for.
Faced with the promise of her new life, and the pull of her old, she has to ask herself some tough questions: was what she did then right for her family? How do you know when it’s okay to put yourself first? And what’s the cost of happiness?
Heartfelt, provocative and emotional, this is a gripping look at the choices women have to make, and whether we really can have it all…
Season by George Harrison
For ten months of the year, two men are drawn to adjacent seats in a stadium, carrying the burdens of life and pouring all their hopes into their beloved but ailing team.
Fatherless and fretful, the Young Man is trying to nurture a precarious new relationship and to find his place in the world. The Old Man, an increasingly isolated carer for his fading wife, knows he has little left to look forward to. Neither fan is a comfortable talker. However, in a slow-motion play of nods, silences and guarded chats, they strike up a tentative friendship across the generational gap.
Told through thirty-eight chapters – one for each game of the Premier League campaign – Season is a lyrical, hypnotic and gently uplifting study of loneliness and modern masculinity. About much more than football, it celebrates the healing, unifying and maddening role of ritualised sport in the lives of ordinary people.
City of Night Birds by Juhea Kim
A terrible accident forces Natalia to make a devastating choice about her future as a dancer, in this sweeping novel of love and redemption
Prima ballerina Natalia Leonova was once celebrated across the world, her signature bravura in demand on stages from St. Petersburg to Paris to New York. But at the top of her career, an accident forces her into sudden retirement. Injured and alone, she turns to pills and alcohol to numb the pain of her past, still haunted by her relationships with two gifted dancers, Dmitri and Alexander. These men were responsible for her soaring highs, her darkest hours and, ultimately, both played their part in her downfall.
So when Dmitri resurfaces with a tantalising offer for Natalia, she must decide what she is willing to sacrifice in order to dance again – and for the chance to return to the great love of her life. Painting a vivid portrait of a world in which ruthless ambition, desire and sublime artistry collide, City of Night Birds unveils the making of a dancer with profound intimacy and breathtaking scope.
Historical
The Songbird by Stacy Lynn Miller
Every note masks a secret.
A novel of espionage, love, and betrayal in WWII Brazil.
In the glamorous world of 1940s New York, Hattie James is a rising star, enchanting audiences at the iconic Copacabana Club. But her glittering life is shattered by a shocking phone call: her father, a respected diplomat, has been arrested for espionage, accused of aiding Nazi Germany. As her world crumbles, Hattie is plunged into a whirlwind of danger and deceit.
Following her father’s dramatic escape and alleged betrayal, Hattie is coerced by the FBI to aid their hunt. Her mission: infiltrate Rio de Janeiro’s high society and uncover the truth about her father’s loyalties.
In the sultry heat of Rio, Hattie poses undercover as a singer at the Halo Club, owned by enigmatic Maya Reyes. Each performance at this vibrant hotspot brings her closer to the dark secrets entangling the city, and every note she sings could lead to her father—or to a trap set by those who wish to silence her.
When Maya’s sister suddenly goes missing, Hattie unearths a shocking connection between her father and the mysterious SS leader Heinz Baumann. With stakes higher than ever, Hattie finds herself thrust even deeper into a dangerous undercover operation that threatens to put more than just her own life at risk.
The Pearl Button Girl by Annie Murray
Annie Murray’s The Pearl Button Girl is book one in the Children of Birmingham series, starting in Victorian Birmingham and following the trials and triumphs of the Fletcher family.
Working at the local pearl button factory, Ada Fletcher is doing her best to make ends meet in trying times.
When tragedy strikes and her siblings are taken to a workhouse orphanage, Ada is saved from a similar fate by her neighbour, Sarah Connell.
But the roof over Ada’s head doesn’t come without a price: the Connells have too many children and not enough money, and Sarah’s reliance on drink means that it isn’t long before Ada needs to escape.
Determined to be more than just a factory girl, Ada embarks on a journey to reunite with her siblings. But in a teeming industrial city, will she be able to find long-lost family as well as a home and life to call her own?
Dark Times for the Clarks Factory Girls by May Ellis
1916: As fighting in Europe continues, the Clarks Factory Girls find themselves caught in a divided community…
With the country in the grips of conscription, the pacifism at the heart of Street village comes under scrutiny, and when Kate befriends Gerald, a young Quaker arrested for refusing to fight, she starts to understand the true dilemma the community finds itself in.
Still grieving the loss of her sweetheart Mattie, Louisa finds herself at odds with her parents, who refused them the chance to marry. As her mother’s attempts to find Louisa a husband show no signs of abating, Louisa takes solace in her friendship with Jeannie’s brother Lucas, but could an unexpected opportunity offer a solution to both their problems?
Meanwhile, Jeannie finds herself torn between her heart and her faith. With each other’s help, can the girls hold true to what they believe in, even as the village enters its darkest days yet?
Romance
The Temple of Swoon by Jo Segura
Her mission: find the Lost City of the Moon in the Amazon rainforest.
His mission: protect the holy temple . . . and his heart.
While her mentor may be the world’s most badass archaeologist, the only thing bad about Dr Miriam Jacobs are her corny jokes. But when Miri is charged with leading an unmapped expedition through the Amazon for the fabled Lost City of the Moon, she finally has her chance to prove to her colleagues that she’s capable – and hopefully prove it to herself, too.
Journalist Rafael Monfils has joined the archaeological team to chronicle their search for the lost city. Or at least, that’s what they think he’s doing. Rafa’s real goal? Make sure the team does not reach the Cidade da Lua, stopping the desecration of the holy city and protecting his mother’s legacy. All he needs to do is keep them on the wrong path.
If only the endearingly quirky Dr Jacobs wasn’t so damn tenacious – each of Rafa’s tricks and purposeful wrong turns only seem to fuel her determination. Even worse, he’s charmed by her goofy attempts to channel Lara Croft as they traverse the dangerous Brazilian rainforest. But they’re not the only crew hunting for the lost city, and soon the untamed jungle – and their untamed hearts – might be the least of their worries . . .
All the Missing Pieces by Catherine Cowles
Sometimes the last thing you expect is exactly what you need, the final missing piece. And sometimes it comes in the form of a towering, broody sheriff, determined to get in your way at every step.
Ridley Sawyer knows what it’s like to miss someone, to feel like a piece of her vanished—because it happened to her the night her twin sister disappeared.
Now, Ridley channels that loss into hope, traveling the country covering cold cases for her true crime podcast. She might not have found justice for her sister but that doesn’t stop her from finding it for others.
Until Sheriff Colter Brooks gets in her way.
Colt knows what it’s like to have reporters descend on his town in the wake of a tragedy, and he’s not about to let a fiery podcaster stir up trouble. It doesn’t matter that her haunting blue eyes tell him there’s more to Ridley’s story or that he can’t stop imagining what it would be like to touch her.
But when Ridley’s cold case turns hot and she’s thrust into the crosshairs, Colt has no choice but to step in. Suddenly, Ridley’s living at his house, drinking his whiskey, and stealing his dog’s affections. But she’s also proving that she’s so much more than his first impression.
And as they get closer to the truth, the game they’ve been playing might just turn deadly…
Beg, Borrow, or Steal by Sarah Adams
Maybe it’s time for a plot twist . . .
Emily Walker hates anyone disrupting her carefully curated life, especially her legendary nemesis, Jack Bennett – the exact opposite of the wonderful heroes she dreams up in her double life as a romance writer. But now Jack’s back in town after a failed engagement and he’s here to stay . . . as both her colleague and her neighbour.
Jack is glad to be back, eager to renovate his house and work on the next mystery novel under his bestselling pen name. Until, that is, he realises he’s now neighbours with the one woman who has always pushed his buttons.
With their red-hot animosity at an all-time high, Emily makes a mistake that could reveal her secret literary identity. Frustratingly, she needs Jack’s help to make it right. Will their unlikely alliance put an end to their rivalry? Or could it lead to a steamy plot twist they never saw coming?
Wish You Weren’t Here by Portia MacIntosh
Don’t get mad, get Ethan!
Lana has had enough. Her ‘perfect’ sister is getting married. In Australia. On Lana’s 30th birthday and no one seems to have noticed. To make matters worse, she’s been given a list of rules she must follow so she doesn’t upstage the bride. Well, rules are meant to be bent right?
She’s found a killer dress, now she just needs the most inappropriate wedding date she can find. But where to start? All her attempts at online dating are simply disasters, and not in the right way! Too boring/married/easily intimidated! But then her drop dead gorgeous ex Ethan suddenly reappears in her life. With the power to make her dizzy with excitement she reminds herself why they broke up. Together they literally attracted chaos until their relationship imploded. They couldn’t make it work. But could Lana make this work in her favour… just for the wedding?
However, when they arrive in Australia Ethan seems to have forgotten he’s only there to help cause bedlam. Instead he’s off the charts charming, nothing like she remembers and not playing by her rules. She’s here for revenge, not a rekindled holiday romance… but Ethan has other ideas!
The Proposal Play by Lauren Blakely
My plan when I win a date in Vegas with my brother’s hockey star best friend? Poker and go to sleep early. Instead, I wake up with a ring on my finger and the sexy athlete naked in my bed.
But Asher’s my best friend too so we’ll get this annulled and laugh about this secret for years to come.
Trouble is our wedding pics went viral overnight.
Now everyone thinks we’re a real couple. We race back home, where I’ve just landed the big art commission of my dreams and he’s launching a sports charity so we need to look like we meant to tie the knot.
Easy enough. We’ll claim we’ve been secretly in love, while staying in separate rooms for the rest of the hockey season.
The last thing either one of us wants is to ruin a decade-long friendship by falling into bed again.
But I experience a new side of my husband at home. He cooks for me, encourages me…and buys me so many toys.
And, it’s more fun to share your toys with a friend.
We’re just enjoying temporary marital benefits.
Except, the more times he calls me his wife, the more I start to wonder if Asher was ever pretending?
And if my heart is ready to take the biggest risk of all.
Not in My Book by Katie Holt
Rosie Maxwell has a plan: move to New York, get her creative writing degree from NYU, become a bestselling romance writer. But that plan is derailed when she ends up in class with her archnemesis and ex-crush, Aiden Huntington, an obnoxious, surly, unreasonably gorgeous literary fiction writer who has no patience for romance – or for Rosie.
Exhausted by Rosie and Aiden’s constant verbal sparring, their professor gives them an ultimatum: leave her class, or cowrite a novel that blends their respective genres.
As Rosie and Aiden collaborate on their (accidentally steamy) novel, they try to put their differences aside. Could their manuscript-in-progress be just the outlet they need to confess their feelings – and explore their mutual attraction?
But a potentially career-changing opportunity soon reignites the flames of their old rivalry. Rosie and Aiden’s once-in-a-lifetime love story is once again at risk of being shelved – unless they can find a way to end the book on their own terms . . .
Whenever You’re Ready by Rachel Runya Katz
Can first love last a lifetime?
It’s been twenty years since Nia, Jade and Michal became the best of friends. Three years since Michal died … and three years since Nia and Jade had the worst fight they’ve ever had. They’ve barely spoken since.
Michal’s last wish was for Nia and Jade to go on the road trip they’d all planned to do together before they turned 30. Now Nia and Jade must face up to the mistakes they made in their friendship – complicated by the distracting presence of Jonah, Michal’s ex-boyfriend.
As the three of them drive across the southern states of America, confronting a complex history at every stop, hidden feelings rise to the surface – because Nia has been in love with Jade for twenty years, and this could be her last chance to let her best friend know the truth.
But can they face their fears and decide that love is a risk worth taking?
Protect by Paisley Hope
Rowan Kingsley
Imagine coming into the town pub with my crew, dirty and exhausted, only to walk right into my biggest regret. The twin sister of my lost best friend and the one who got away. I haven’t seen Violette Taylor in years but I haven’t forgotten her either.
I used to be Rowan to her. Now, I’m just King, the guy who broke her heart, but not for the reasons she thinks.
Violette is back in town for good, she’s a single mom and a nurse in the burn unit I accidentally wind up in.
Can you call that fate? Maybe, if she wasn’t doing her best to stay far away from anyone who reminded her of her past, especially a career hotshot like me. But I know something she doesn’t; life rarely offers second chances. So, if this is my chance to finally make things right, I’m taking it.
One Day and Forever by Shari Low
As dawn breaks, four people are planning journeys that could change their lives forever…
Kara McIntyre is supposed to be jetting off to her destination wedding in Hawaii. However, a last-minute hitch appears to have left her without a job, home and, more importantly, a fiancé.
TV sensation Ollie Chiles and Kara always have each other’s backs. But when his wife goes viral in a compromising clinch with another man, Ollie must choose between supporting his best friend in her hour of need or going home to save his marriage.
Alice Brookes is flying away to a new life after surviving a horrendous marriage and a very public scandal… until a stranger brings a letter from the past that could change everything.
After saying goodbye to someone he loves, Zac Conlan should be heading back to Dublin. Now a shocking discovery is threatening to change his plans and his future.
When weather delays their flights, Kara, Ollie, Alice and Zac discover that storms are brewing… and the turbulence is about to shake their worlds.
Welcome to Pennycress Inn by Sarah Hope
Laura wants to shake things up. She’s thirty-eight, and has been living in her parents’ house since her divorce last year. Her siblings seem to have got their lives together: successful careers, happy marriages, beautiful children.
Laura’s determined to prove herself. And buying the beautiful Pennycress Inn in the idyllic Cotswolds village of Meadowfield could be just the way to do it.
But getting the inn ready for its first guests proves easier said than done! With crumbling walls, dangerous woodwork and loose roof tiles, not to mention unfriendly locals and even errant sheep, Laura soon fears she’s made the wrong choice.
Luckily a friendly face is on hand in the form of gorgeous chef, Jackson. But is he too good to be true? And just why are the villagers so against her?
Can Laura turn her life around and get the fresh start she longs for at Pennycress Inn?
Chase Lovett Wants Me by Helena Hunting
Chase Lovett.
Star of my (unrequited) fantasies.
Hottest guy on campus.
Hockey god.
Too bad he has no idea who I am. Literally, I’m so invisible to him that he once sat on me in class.
No thanks to a fire in the dorms, he just became my accidental roommate.
Did I mention the hotel room our university moved us to has only one bed?
Not ideal.
Worse, I accidentally left “My Precious” fantasy fandomunderwear hanging to dry in our shower.
My actual nightmare.
My name is Cammie Lovelock and this might just be the worst, best thing that’s ever happened to me.
So that’s all for this week.
Happy Reading!
