Lavelle's novel is a genre-bender that I could not put down, blending speculative fiction, romance, and a ghost story, perfect for any foodie. I can't wait to host the author on Book Gang this Fall.

Kostya, haunted by grief, discovers he can taste ghostly memories through food. In New York's culinary scene, he opens a restaurant offering closure to the bereaved through meals inspired by the dead. Lavelle's sensory writing, emotional depth, and inventive gift—clairgustance—blends a heartfelt exploration of grief and memory.

Flavor profiles develop a bit differently in this world, where bitter can be the taste of coffee but also the taste of the last conversation shared with a dad who never understood you. As the ghosts come to life, Lavelle imagines a world of merging that I delighted in.

Related- Daria Lavelle Interview (COMING SOON to Book Gang Podcast)

Related- 2025 Summer Reading Guide

Lisavet inherits more than a watchmaker's shop. She's heir to a library where lost moments and erased histories are kept safe. When her father vanishes, she must take up the work of time‑keeping across decades and continents.

Gelfuso builds a dual‑timeline mystery that's rich in atmosphere and meticulous in craft. The publisher promises an intricate story that is as mesmerizing as clockwork.

Release Date- 26 August 2025

Related- Books About Libraries and Librarians

This timely speculative fiction book offers readers an alternate 1979 England where triplets grow up under a government that prescribes conformity as if it were a cure. The state's "Guilt Scheme" is designed to scrub away rebellion, but what it really erases is individuality, until the cracks start to show.

Through Vincent, Nancy, and a calculating bureaucrat, Chidgey delivers a slow, unnerving unraveling of state control. The cost of obedience is nothing less than the self.

Release Date- 16 September 2025

Related- Books About Twins for Double the Trouble

Related- Best Books About Books

In the brutal trenches of World War I, soldiers find a dying angel. The discovery warps the fragile truce between men, where Kraus mixes historical grit with mythic unease.

This book is both a war story and a strange parable, but what might be the most mesmerizing aspect is that the story is written in one continuous sentence, which could be both a surprisingly rare delight or the story's pitfall, depending on what kind of reader you are.

Related- Best Literary Fiction Books

In this cozy sci-fi story, a crew of abandoned food service bots open their own restaurant where they produce delicious noodles. Things go swimmingly until someone begins review bombing them.

Written by Annalee Newitz, an American journalist who covers the cultural impact of science and technology, they blend their background into this cozy near-future novella that requires a bowl of ramen while reading.

Related- Cozy Fantasy Books to Lower Stress Levels

Rawles' character-driven story imagines a remote desert compound where reality show contestants are brought to life in a blending of The Hunger Games and Love Island.

Readers unbox the show with Lily, the narrator, as the contestants' tasks escalate. From romantic pairings to psychological tasks, and the boundary between entertainment and exploitation vanishes.

Rawle satirizes influencer culture and consumerism with brutal clarity, making each twist feel as addictive and unsettling as a binge‑watch nightmare complete with catastrophes awaiting outside the compound's walls.

Ten‑year‑old Vera navigates a near-future New York where democratic norms unravel. Her father, an anxious Russian‑Jewish editor, and her liberal stepmother can't shield her from the rising tide of racist laws and family secrets.

To endure it all, Vera keeps a "Things I Still Need to Know" diary. Every unfamiliar word, phrase, or policy logged acts as her own survival toolkit.

Shteyngart threads heartfelt laughter and creeping dread together, blending childlike wonder and political satire to make the unfolding dystopia feel unbearably personal in this moving story.

Related- Coming-of-Age Books Any Adult Will Love

What if the pencil in your hand could rewrite more than just a page? In this inventive speculative novel, a struggling copywriter stumbles upon a seemingly ordinary pencil from a long-defunct stationery brand, only to discover it grants the power to revise her own past.

But every revision comes at a cost, and soon she’s untangling a life threaded with altered memories, missed connections, and one haunting question- what would you risk to get it right this time?

Related- Fascinating Books About Authors and Publishing

In this intriguing family drama, what begins as a tense scene on the road with a self‑driving minivan coasting toward a lacrosse game spirals into tragedy when the Cassidy‑Shaw family crashes into an oncoming vehicle, killing an elderly couple.

As the family retreats to a Chesapeake Bay house to heal, they each struggle with their own share of guilt. Is the fault human or technological failure? Or something deeper?

Holsinger is unafraid to blend speculative fiction with a family drama, combining his writing superpowers into this newly minted Oprah's Book Club pick.

Related- My Top Celebrity Book Club Picks

Knapp's high-concept speculative debut imagines a mother whose challenge to name her newborn son creates three potential choices that shatter into three distinct futures.

Across decades, Knapp watches as a single decision branches into lives shaped by resilience, regret, and survival, perfect for fans of The Nine Lives of Rose Napolitano and readers craving a layered story for thoughtful book club discussions.

In this genre-blurring mystery with a speculative twist, detective Ali Dawson investigates a centuries-old murder with help from a secret government unit that time-travels to retrieve evidence.

Set in a chillingly vivid 1850s London gripped by a mini ice age, the novel weaves cold-case suspense with a touch of satire into something entirely original. If you like your mysteries laced with history, high stakes, and a hint of sci-fi, this one delivers.

Related- 24 Atmospheric Books to Get Lost in this Season

Maggie spends decades caring for her husband, Stanley, until she learns his memory loss isn't natural but orchestrated.

As she probes deeper into his erased past, the novel blends memory‑diving with a global conspiracy spanning decades, as readers come to understand enduring love in a way that feels both vast and intimate.

Zelu, a disabled Nigerian‑American novelist, is teetering between failure and reinvention when her sci‑fi epic, Rusted Robots, turns her into a household name. The book's success comes with backlash and eerie echoes from the story she thought she'd invented about a future Lagos where AI rebels question memory itself.

If you don't mind a prickly protagonist, her sharp wit, defiance, and unwillingness to conform make her a compelling character. I found Zelu's interactions with those trying to define or understand her only added depth to the story.

The inclusion of interviews and observations from others in her life provides another fascinating dimension, making this a story of self-discovery and an exploration of how one's identity is perceived and interpreted by the world.

I was entranced.

I recommend Russell's ambitious Dust Bowl novel on audiobook with its robust ensemble cast that brings the more intricate elements to her storytelling to life. I've been slowly savoring this story over my summer walks.

In Dust Bowl–era Nebraska, a prairie witch stores her neighbors' grief like precious grain until a dust storm robs her of the power.

Alongside a haunted photographer and an unlikely apprentice, she faces buried truths about who the land belongs to and the danger of forgetting. Russell fuses folklore and climate anxiety with lush, uncanny detail.

The result is strange, sweeping, and intensely alive.

An experimental supplement that erases female guilt entices Maya Patel, who is struggling under the weight of new motherhood. With this new pill, it might be possible to finally "have it all," but will it be worth the cost of erasure?

Told through news clippings, therapy notes, and social media fallout, Dave turns speculative pharmaceutical fiction into a sharp exploration on motherhood.

Related- Page Turners About Motherhood

Pulitzer Prize Finalist, Lalami envisions a horrifying surveillance culture as the government takes it to a new level that would lead to more than a few sleepless nights.

An algorithm that monitors data from dreams has determined that a woman is at imminent risk of harming the person she loves most... her husband.

Transferred to a retention center filled with other dangerous women dreamers, the story shifts when a new resident arrives to disrupt the system.

Walker's gentle speculative fiction story introduces readers to Jane, who has lost a day altogether. No memory, no sense of time passing, only the creeping suspicion that reality shifted in her absence.

Her psychiatrist's attempts to help uncover fissures in his own past pull them both into an impossible loop. Walker writes with her signature calm unease, letting dread gather in the quiet spaces between what happened and what can't be explained.

Satisfying, but not as bendy as I had expected.

Powers ambitious new novel delivers a startling ending that had many readers going back to reread the story, but that's not to say that you won't enjoy this on your first loop.

Todd and Rafi met as board‑game‑obsessed high school misfits, only to split over ambition and ideology.

Decades later, Todd leads a vast AI platform while Rafi lives simply on Makatea, a tiny Polynesian atoll facing an existential vote on whether to host floating cities financed by outsiders.

Meanwhile, Evie Beaulieu, once a pioneering teenage diver, surveys coral reefs and marine life that Todd's tech threatens to commodify.

Powers threads AI, oceans, and postcolonial tension into a sprawling narrative where ethics and human connection ripple like the body of water it is set upon.

Four strangers travel to a controversial sleep therapy center in the California desert, where a month-long slumber promises to erase emotional pain, but sometimes at the cost of all human connection.

The pacing is a slow simmer at the start, but the emotional payoffs are rich. Erlick excels at crafting characters whose inner lives feel achingly real. Fans of The Measure will not be disappointed.

Related- Best Magical Realism Books

Barry Sutton, an NYPD detective, confronts a bizarre phenomenon called False Memory Syndrome, where victims recall entire lives they never lived. Parallelly, neuroscientist Helena Smith develops a memory chair to save those condemned by Alzheimer's, only to realize it sends people backward in time.

As timelines splinter worldwide, the pair race to prevent reality from unraveling.

Once again, Crouch blends science fiction with a thriller pace and a beautiful love story.  His storytelling is masterful, and the suspense is so incredibly good in this one.

Hope Nakano wakes up at a high‑end memory institute with no idea why she's there or what happened to the last year of her life.

Each treatment surfaces fragments: visions of her partner Luke that conflict with what staff tell her, strange messages hidden in VR sessions, and whispers of a hacker group called Mad Hatters.

As Hope pieces together reality, the facility's motivations begin to fracture her trust.

Preble Jefferson, a chessboxing champion in NYC, has the uncanny ability to see five seconds into the future—just enough to dodge bullets, but not always enough to save lives.

After a subway confrontation spirals into tragedy, Preble becomes the target of global intelligence agencies eager to control his gift. As he fights to protect his family, his premonitory edge turns into a moral battleground.

How much time can one man own before institutions claim it?

Related- Amateur Sleuths Are On the Case In These Books

Rowena thought a new marriage, baby, and suburban home meant a fresh start, but instead, her anxiety deepens.

When her husband gifts her Maxine, an AI “digital friend” in beta testing, it’s a lifeline. Maxine listens, supports, and predicts. But, when it forecasts, “Your husband is going to try to kill you,” Rowena’s world tilts.

In this tense, near-future domestic suspense, she must decide, do you trust yourself, the man beside you, or the unsettling whisper of a machine?

January runs security at a luxury time‑travel hotel where guests don Victorian gowns or ancient Roman togas, then ride over to the United States' federally owned timeport.

But she isn't just dealing with wealthy tourists, she's "Unstuck," slipping randomly into her past and future, fragments of grief and loss chasing her through the corridors.

When a corpse appears in Room 526 that only she can see, suddenly she's chasing a killer who moves across time.

Related- Rob Hart Interview (Book Gang Podcast)

Related- Best Time Travel Books

Related- Books About Alternate Realities or Parallel Lives

Related- Time Loop Books

Related- Books About Parallel Universes and Multiverse Stories

In a privatized prison system, inmates fight to the death in televised matches for the faint promise of freedom. Loretta Thurwar and her partner, Hurricane Staxxx, are the reigning champions, beloved by fans and exploited by the system.

Adjei-Brenyah turns this dystopian spectacle into razor-sharp social critique. It's violent, urgent, and impossible to look away from.

It's never been more relevant.

Tarisai longs for a family, but her mysterious mother sends her to join the Crown Prince's council with a hidden command.

Kill him.

Ifueko's worldbuilding is rich with West African mythology, and the found‑family bonds pulse with emotional truth.

It's a vibrant, inventive, fantastical story that I can't wait to screen for next year's book club.

Related- Join the 2025 Book Club

Related- Found Family Trope Books

In 21st‑century Taiwan, humanity has moved under the sea to escape climate catastrophe. Momo, a dermal technician who repairs clients' skin membranes, uncovers a truth about her own identity that reframes her entire life.

Chi's slim, strange novel fuses cyberpunk, queer identity, and environmental warning. It's eerie, tender, and unforgettable.

In this speculative short story collection, a melting Arctic releases an ancient virus, and the stories that follow span centuries, offering plague funerals in theme parks, experimental space travel, and grief that shifts form with each new era.

Nagamatsu threads his interconnected tales with wonder and heartbreak.

In a collapsing near‑future America, Lauren's gift (hyperempathy) becomes both a burden and the seed for a new belief system. As violence forces her from her walled community, she gathers followers on the road north.

Butler's vision is fierce, prescient, and painfully relevant. This bleak survival fiction has a prophet's clarity as we navigate our world's current dumpster fires.

In rural Mississippi, a young boy travels with his mother to pick up his father from prison, haunted by the ghost of a boy who died there decades earlier. Ward braids the supernatural with the brutal realities of poverty, racism, and family bonds.

It's haunting in every sense of the word, but I would recommend skipping the audiobook experience to fully appreciate Ward's lyrical prose on a page.

Related- 2017 Book Club Books

Will Wheaton brings his impeccable narration to Scalzi's Locked In series. This 2014 novel imagines a pandemic that leaves many "locked in" their bodies where technology enables integration with robotic bodies or human hosts.

For FBI rookie Chris Shane, it's a lifeline and a ticket into a murder case that tests the limits of this fragile system. Scalzi blends hard sci‑fi ideas with quick banter and brisk pacing, in this whip‑smart procedural.

My interview with Kim Liggett is still trending after all these years, and for good reason; this young adult dystopian novel is one where you want to know more behind the story after you finish.

Girls in Garner County are exiled for their "grace year" to purge their magic before marriage.

Sixteen‑year‑old Tierney James plans to survive, but the year brings betrayal, blood, and very truths the men of the county fear. Liggett crafts a taut, brutal fable about control and resistance.

The ending hits like a gut punch.

Related- Kim Liggett Interview (Blog Interview)

Related- Me Too Books That Reclaim the Narrative

If you find the protagonist unlikable at the start of the story, it is worth waiting for the evolution of Tom Barren in this surprisingly wonderful mind-bending adventure.

Tom is from the 2016 we were supposed to have that was filled with clean, utopian dreams with limitless energy. A time‑travel mistake strands him in our messier reality, and he's forced to choose which world is worth living in.

Mastai mixes humor, heartache, and mind‑bending physics. It's a love story wrapped in a reflective thought experiment.

In this unnerving near-future thriller, the government wants to save the institution of marriage and they’re using tech to do it.

Think mandatory relationship scores, AI surveillance in your bedroom, and social benefits tied to your performance as a spouse.

But when cracks appear in the system, a chorus of characters each trapped in different corners of the “Smart Marriage” initiative begin to question what love looks like when it’s being watched.

Marrs crafts a fast‑moving, chilling look at love under surveillance, offering tension builds with every data point.

When Leah returns from a deep-sea mission gone mysteriously silent, her wife Miri knows something is off. Leah is quiet. Withdrawn. And increasingly not quite… herself.

Told in two haunting perspectives—what happened below, and what’s unraveling above—this is a slow-burn speculative novel about grief and the eerie spaces between love and loss.

Armfield weaves a fluid, dreamlike narrative.

Related- These Sea Books Belong in Your Beach Bag Now

A Shakespeare troupe roams the ruins of post‑pandemic North America, performing in settlements that barely cling to hope. Their paths tangle with a prophet, a comic book, and the memories of a vanished world.

Mandel moves effortlessly between timelines, turning survival into a meditation on art, memory, and the fragile threads that bind us. It's haunting and unexpectedly tender.

If you haven't engaged in the miniseries, I think it is one of the best book adaptations I have ever seen and rivals the novel in the most beautiful ways.

In a future where books are burned and firefighters start the fires, Guy Montag begins to question everything he's been taught. The more he reads, the more the cracks in his society (and his own mind) widen.

Bradbury's prose burns as hot as his subject, warning against the seductions of complacency. Decades later, it still smolders.

Winston Smith works at the Ministry of Truth, rewriting history to fit the Party's shifting narrative. Surveillance is constant, language is weaponized, and independent thought is a crime.

Orwell's bleak vision remains chillingly relevant, its phrases embedded in our political lexicon, offering a manual on how freedom dies.

In the Republic of Gilead, fertile women are property, valued only for their ability to bear children. Offred remembers her life before, even as she serves her commander and his barren wife.

Atwood's world is meticulously built and terrifyingly plausible, making every act of defiance feel urgent. The final note lingers long after the last page.

Kathy H. looks back on her idyllic boarding school days, except the school's purpose isn't education, it's cultivation. As the truth seeps in, friendship and love are recast as fleeting rebellions against an unchangeable fate.

Ishiguro delivers a heartbreaking speculative elegy wrapped in gentle, almost polite prose. The restraint makes it hurt all the more.

Related- Unforgettable Campus Novels

Cora escapes a Georgia plantation via an actual underground train, its stops revealing different versions of America's racial history. Each state brings new horrors, forcing her to navigate the shifting rules of survival.

Whitehead blends historical realism with surreal invention, making the familiar brutalities of slavery freshly shocking. It's both an allegory and an unflinching reckoning, and the audiobook is superb.

Related- Best Time Travel TV Shows and Movies

In this haunting debut, readers follow Margaret, a woman whose childhood trauma resurfaces as she navigates motherhood and co-parenting. At ten, she experienced unsettling violations by someone in her family, a secret she kept hidden from her emotionally distant mother.

Now, twenty-five years later, Margaret returns to her childhood home with her daughters, confronting the echoes of her past, as she simultaneously navigates being a reporter during the Weinstein trials.

Jones's lyrical prose captures the haunting nuances of memory, shame, and the struggle to find words to long-held secrets. I read this novel in one day.

Related- Honor Jones Interview (Book Gang Podcast)

Related- 2025 Summer Reading Guide

Zang's ambitious debut offers two intriguing timelines in the grungy world of college life and suburban motherhood years later. The story follows best friends Nikki and Sadie, whose lives remain intertwined even after Nikki's death, as she haunts Sadie in a home that once belonged to her.

Sadie finds herself pulled back into the friendship that once defined her and the Sylvia Plath-obsessed professor who manipulated his female students, seemingly, until many of them tragically died.

Told in dual timelines, this haunting debut blends a slow-burn campus mystery and the complicated mythology we build around "sad girls. This novel is sure to be a hit with Ashley Winstead fans.

Release Date- 28 August 2025

Related- Unforgettable Campus Novels

At 13, Birdie Rhodes gets discovered in a department store and thrown into a glamorous modeling career. By 15, she’s drawn into an intense relationship with a 31-year-old rock star, despite warning signs and a mentor’s caution.

Decades later, as Birdie lives quietly in Los Angeles, an invitation to her former agent’s anniversary forces her to reckon with a past she’s tried to forget.

Release Date- 5 August 2025

Ciara knows it's time to break free. With her two daughters in tow, she leaves her controlling husband behind, but escaping isn't that simple. Trapped by emotional abuse and caught in Dublin's housing crisis that offers no refuge, Ciara's fight for freedom becomes a gripping, heart-wrenching journey of survival and hope as she raises her girls in a cramped hotel room.

O'Donnell's debut novel is a moving story of the courage it takes to start over, which I couldn't put down. It's a perfect book match for fans of The Maid.

Related- Page Turners About Motherhood

Marty Goddard would become the forgotten heroine of sexual assault justice. In the 1970s, while counseling young survivors in Chicago, she realized something crucial was missing... proper forensic tools.

Out of that conviction, she conceived the rape kit. It was a standardized way for survivors to collect evidence and demand justice, long before society was ready to acknowledge their claims.

But when her invention gained traction, a male cop took the credit. Marty faded into obscurity until journalist Pagan Kennedy retraced her footsteps.

Kennedy's book is part detective story, part social history, and part personal memoir.

Related- Best Memoirs to Read for Nonfiction November

Related- The Nonfiction November Challenge You Need (Book Gang Podcast)

Jo-Lynn was once the epitome of high school success—class president, popular, and admired. Yet, when her private photos leaked, her world came crashing down.

Labeled the "Senior Slut," she became a social outcast. Then, her former best friend, Maddie Price, reaches out in distress and disappears. Determined to uncover the truth, Jo teams up with a former fling, to investigate in this compelling young adult mystery.

Related- Unlikely Amateur Sleuths Are on the Case In These Books

In the early 1960s, Judy escapes an abusive marriage by joining Pan Am as a stewardess, a position that forbids married women.

Her journey of self-discovery and survival unfolds alongside Beverly, a wealthy New York socialite seeking independence. Together, they navigate the glamorous yet challenging world of international flight, forming a deep bond that transcends their different backgrounds.

I highly recommend the audiobook narration for this novel- it was beautifully done!

Related- Best Historical Fiction Book Club Books

Related- 17 Stunning Friendship Stories

Georgia is a London-based professional lie detector who returns to her estranged South Carolina family after her father's sudden death. As family secrets unravel, including a surprising bequest in her father's will, she must confront her past traumas and her family's complacency toward her abuse.

This book was my first dip into the Jessa Hastings universe and delivered on an emotional, character-driven romance I've been craving, along with these other essential story layers.

Related- Incredible Books About Faith and Churches

Related Books on Grief and Loss to Read Now

In this intimate, astonishing memoir, Griffin excavates repressed memories of abuse by a school teacher through guided psychedelic therapy. What follows is a hauntingly tender reckoning as her memories come to life like a movie in her mind.

I was astounded by Amy's bravery and the brain's ability to compartmentalize for survival. As more people in my life look to these types of therapies, it has made me understand how they can be essential and potentially effective for some to process their trauma.

Daphne is a junior history professor at Harrison University and prefers to keep a low profile. But when a colleague is murdered and a cryptic text message links her to the crime, she is pushed into a dangerous investigation.

As she uncovers dark secrets about the university's elite, she must confront the abuse of power and corruption that lurk beneath the campus's prestigious façade. Wallbrook's novel balances these more brutal truths while still hitting the cozy mystery beats.

Related- Zoe Wallbrook Interview (Book Gang Podcast)

Freya returns to her childhood home after a financial setback forces her to leave her life as a bartender in Maine. She inherits a dilapidated house left by her estranged parents, but as she begins to rebuild the home, she must rebuild herself and confront the painful events that drove them apart years ago.

Julia Whelan beautifully narrates this story, and while these elements are challenging to read, Larkin unspools them in manageable scenes, building up to reveal all that Freya overcame.

Related- Unforgettable Circus Books That Capture Magic and Mystery

Related- Allison Larkin Interview (Home of the American Circus- Book Gang Podcast)

Related- Allison Larkin Interview (The People We Keep- Book Gang Podcast)

Related- Julia Whelan Interview (Book Gang Podcast)

This new novel offers readers a thoughtful tribute to sexual assault survivor Nafissatou Diallo. She was a hotel employee who accused Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the French politician and economist, of sexually assaulting her in his Manhattan hotel suite in 2011.

Following three Nigerian women living abroad, this emotionally rich novel references how trauma, solidarity, and identity can intersect across diasporas. I can't wait to read this one.

Related- Black History Month Books to Read All Year

Before the #MeToo movement became a viral hashtag, Tarana Burke had already been fighting to create a movement where survivors could find healing, solidarity, and justice. In this memoir, Burke shares her journey—from growing up in the South, grappling with trauma, to founding the Me Too Movement decades before it exploded into a global reckoning.

This memoir is honest, vulnerable, and deeply inspiring. It offers a behind-the-scenes look at the grassroots activism, the challenges of sustaining hope in the face of systemic abuse, and the power of community to reclaim stories that were once silenced.

Drawing on the author's litigator experience, Lee delivers a chilling debut about a young lawyer whose life changes after a drunken ride home from a company party leads to devastating consequences.

In this gripping and compulsively readable novel, Jade wakes up without memory of what has transpired or even the man who brought her home. But as her foggy recollections spiral into illuminating detail, she finds herself caught between her immigrant parents, a partner's shifting reactions, and a calculating corporate culture that demands her silence.

It's a gripping, thought-provoking #MeToo read, but not for the faint of heart.

Related- The Best Books I Read in 2024

Chanel Miller reclaims the story the world once told for her. Known only as “Emily Doe” during the Stanford sexual assault trial, Miller steps into the spotlight with devastating clarity, grace, and power. Her memoir isn’t just about what was taken from her. It’s about the act of taking it back.

With lyrical precision and unwavering emotional intelligence, she lays bare not only the trauma of assault, but the broken systems survivors are forced to navigate just to be heard.

Hermione is a flyer on her cheer squad and is proud to be their captain. While away at cheer camp, she attends a party where someone puts something in her drink, and she is brutally assaulted. When she awakens, she has no recollection of what has happened to her, but must deal with the devastating consequences of this assault.

I love that this book focuses less on being a victim and more on continuing to fight through the pain, not allowing this horrible situation to continue to define your life.

Heavier than a typical YA read and filled with a supportive cast of characters, Johnston deserves all the accolades she has received for this one, including being listed as a finalist for the L.A. Times Book Prize.

Related- E.K. Johnston Interview (Sundays With Writers Blog Series)

Alex accepts a dream offer to work for a prestigious Manhattan law firm and can't wait to make her mark on the company. What she discovers, though, is that this job requires entertaining clients at all hours of the night, and workdays never end.

The spiral is swift, but Alex realizes just how high the cost is when she uncovers a deeply hidden secret held by her firm that compromises women's safety. I found this book difficult to put down and a fascinating glimpse into this world.

Queenie is a 25-year-old British-Jamaican woman living in London, caught between two cultures yet somehow not fitting into either of them. After a tough breakup with her white boyfriend, she dives headfirst into all the wrong places—terrible hookups, cringeworthy encounters, and some seriously rough realizations about what she deserves.

With sharp wit and emotional honesty, this novel sheds light on the often invisible struggles women face, including sexual assault and the pressures of reclaiming one's narrative amidst systemic biases. Queenie undergoes significant growth throughout the story, and her evolution is what makes this novel truly shine.

Grace Turner was Hollywood's golden girl. Plucked from obscurity as a teen star and poised on the brink of a significant award. Then she vanished. A year later, she's back in Los Angeles—sober, wary, and carrying the scars of years under the control of a powerful director.

When she's asked to present him with a lifetime achievement award, Grace realizes the choice is hers to stay silent or reclaim her story.

Berman's sharp debut unpacks grooming and abuse in the spotlight and all the chaos that follows. With alternating past and present timelines, the novel is both a page-turning thriller and a tender, hard-won portrait of resilience. Grace's evolution made this an incredibly satisfying read.

Before there was a hashtag, there was Gilead. In this chilling dystopia where women are reduced to their reproductive function, Offred remembers the world before and dares to imagine one after.

Atwood's modern classic remains urgently relevant in a post-Roe, #MeToo world and is especially timely in this very moment of upheaval.

One line has stuck with me: "Better never means better for everyone."

When menopause hits, three women in a seaside town discover that their midlife transformations come with unexpected powers.

Harriett channels fury into controlling the natural world. Nessa hears the voices of the dead. And Jo, fueled by fire and rage, becomes a beacon of justice. When a local girl's body is found abandoned on the beach, the trio joins forces to uncover what the police won't touch—exposing a trail of violence, secrets, and buried girls.

Part witchy revenge fantasy, part murder mystery, this fierce novel is a wildly entertaining takedown of patriarchal power that many readers have loved.

Related- These Sea Books Belong in Your Beach Bag Now

When true crime podcaster Rachel Krall arrives in a coastal town to cover a high-profile trial, she expects to follow the courtroom drama of a local golden boy accused of a serious act of violence.

But when a series of mysterious letters begins appearing on her windshield, Rachel is pulled into another story. This story took place decades earlier, involving a teenager whose death was ruled an accident, despite whispers of something far more sinister.

Goldin does an incredible job of building sympathy for these women in each case and exploring the significant themes surrounding these #MeToo stories, as well as how wealth and power enable men to avoid punishment for their crimes.

When a missing teen named Ellie reappears after two years in the woods, she returns, but something is broken. She won't say what happened, who held her, or why she came back.

Detective Chelsey Calhoun, still haunted by her own sister's disappearance decades earlier, refuses to close the case until she unearths the truth. Get ready for a gripping, emotional thriller that cuts past sensationalism to examine trauma, rage, and the systems built to fail women and girls.

Ellie and Chelsea both have compelling backstories, and both are deeply flawed. It is riveting and enthralling from a detective who pushes too hard to get answers to a girl who went to the brink psychologically in ways that forever alter her.

Related- Emiko Jean Interview (Book Gang Podcast)

Related- 24 Atmospheric Books To Get Lost in This Season

Related- Fictional Serial Killer Books

In a secluded Mennonite colony, a group of women gather secretly to discuss the harrowing abuses they have suffered at the hands of the men in their community.

Faced with impossible choices about justice and survival, these women must decide whether to stay and fight or escape to freedom.

This profound novel gives voice to collective trauma and r how women find strength through solidarity.

Seventeen-year-old Enchanted Jones is an aspiring singer whose life changes forever when she catches the eye of a famous 28-year-old R&B star.

What begins as mentorship spirals into manipulation, abuse, and isolation. Jackson quickly shifts us into the present, where Enchanted awakens to find the star dead and has no memory of how it happened.

Flashing between past and present, the story forces us to see a young Black girl gaslit by fame, overlooked by those meant to protect her. This fictional story takes great liberty with the well-known facts of the R. Kelly case and the harrowing stories of the women involved.

Related- Best Books to Get Out of a Reading Slump

Camille lost her teenage daughter Emily after a brutal assault, and the assailant walked free. Five years later, she's still drowning in grief until she's invited into The Collective, a secret online group of bereaved mothers done with a justice system that protects the privileged.

What starts as a place for rage-filled fantasy becomes chillingly real. These women plan anonymous, coordinated acts of revenge. Camille is drawn in deeper, unsure if she's among avenging angels or monsters.

It's a relentless, emotionally charged thriller that shows how systems fail survivors and how justice can warp into vengeance without warning.

Related- 19 Thrillers To Keep You Up All Night

Related- Best Psychological Thrillers to Read Now

Related

When a masked man breaks into a Florida State sorority house in the 1970s, Pamela, the poised and practical chapter president, is the first to call for help. Two of her sisters are dead, and the media circus that follows focuses more on the killer's charm than on the women whose lives were shattered.

Decades later, another woman's search for answers brings Pamela back into the spotlight and forces her to reckon with a justice system that failed them both.

Knoll takes the true-crime template and flips it on its head. Instead of centering the infamous murderer, she gives voice to the survivors, refusing to let them be footnotes in someone else's narrative. It's a fierce, feminist take on the ways we mythologize violence and how women are often the ones left to carry the weight of the story.

If you read this, I recommend the audiobook, as the switching narration helps as these storylines begin to develop their overlaps innovatively.

Related- Jessica Knoll Interview (Sundays With Writers Blog Series)

Funny and surprisingly hopeful, this novel follows Aviva Grossman, whose life implodes after an affair with a married congressman becomes tabloid fodder.

Zevin explores the double standards women face around sex, shame, and redemption with wit and compassion. Aviva's journey across decades is a messy, relatable story about forgiveness, reinvention, and the ways women carve out their paths despite public judgment.

It's a beautiful, redemptive read, especially if you would like to revisit the Monica Lewinsky scandal with fresh eyes.

Lila Ridgefield appears to have it all, including a handsome husband adored by the community and a peaceful life in a college town. But behind the façade, she's been hiding suffocating control, manipulation, and grief.

When her husband disappears—and his body vanishes from the crime scene—Lila becomes both suspect and survivor in a chilling mystery that's about so much more than murder.

As small-town police and true-crime podcasters close in, Lila must face the trauma she ignored. Pretty Little Wife turns the typical thriller on its head by staying anchored firmly with women's experiences, trauma, and moral reckoning instead of glorifying violence.

The ending is oh-so-satisfying in this 5-star thriller.

Ford's memoir pulls no punches as it explores what it means to come of age with the looming absence of a father incarcerated for a violent crime. With clear-eyed honesty and poetic depth, she navigates a childhood shaped by silence and a mother whose own trauma often left little room for tenderness.

What emerges is a portrait of a girl learning to trust her voice in a world that has tried to define her by other people's choices, which has made it many readers' most beloved memoir of all time.

When Eliza Bright, a trailblazing coder at a major game studio, files a complaint about workplace harassment, the system does nothing.

She takes her story public instead, only to be fired, doxxed, and targeted by a swarm of angry online trolls. As she becomes a rallying figure for workplace safety, she must navigate a world where fan rage bleeds from Reddit into the streets of New York.

What makes this novel unforgettable is its narrative structure. The chapters are narrated by the anonymous collective fury of male gamers while Eliza's actual life unfolds off-screen.

Shay thought she'd escaped the cult-like men's group that shaped her college years until her best friend's shocking death pulled her back in. What starts as a true crime podcast investigation becomes a chilling descent into the underworld of power, manipulation, and misogyny.

This feminist thriller asks what happens when women stop trying to reform the system and burn it down instead.

If you love an interactive, mixed-media approach to your stories, this thriller delivers with podcast transcripts interspersed throughout.

Related- Ashley Winstead Interview (Book Gang Podcast)

Three women. Three centuries. One legacy of oppression and one impossible magic.

In 1619, Altha fights for her life amid witchcraft accusations. In 1942, Violet resists her powerful father's attempts to tame her spirit. And in 2019, Kate flees an abusive partner, seeking refuge in an ancestral cottage, but she can't escape the weight of what it means to be a Weyward woman.

This richly woven tale is feminist historical fiction with a hint of the supernatural, where strength, nature, and ancestral power become weapons against patriarchal control. Hart's unique eye for evocative gothic settings blends well with the natural world. Combining how women find their voice made this an empowering and impactful read.

Related- 2025 Book Club Books (Full List- JOIN NOW)

Related- Best Magical Realism Books

In this gripping exposé, investigative journalist Ronan Farrow chronicles his relentless pursuit of the truth behind powerful men accused of misconduct, focusing on Harvey Weinstein and Matt Lauer.

Farrow reveals how these individuals, leveraging their influence, orchestrated campaigns to suppress allegations and protect their careers. Through meticulous reporting and firsthand accounts, he uncovers the systemic efforts to silence victims and the media's complicity in perpetuating these injustices.

What happens when your most formative love was abuse all along? In this devastating coming-of-age novel, Vanessa revisits her past relationship with her high school teacher just as new accusations arise. It's a haunting portrait of grooming told with raw, unsparing honesty. 

It is astounding to me that this is Russell's debut, as the emotions she layered into these characters are done so beautifully and believably. Horrifying and unapologetically written.

Related- 13 Coming Of Age Books Any Adult Will Love

After calling the police at a party, Melinda is shunned by her classmates and silenced by her own trauma. But through art and inner grit, she begins to reclaim her voice.

This is a landmark YA novel that still resonates powerfully in the #MeToo era.

Lidija Hilje's mesmerizing debut brings the Croatian coastline alive and has been my favorite debut of 2025.

This tender, politically resonant story showcases a woman navigating a second act in her thirties—caregiving for her father, resisting a hollow development deal, and quietly grieving a love that's moved on without her. 

Hilje writes with the aching clarity of someone who knows how deeply place shapes identity and how hard it is to rebuild when the world keeps pulling the ground out from under you.

As an American reader, it opened my eyes to our parallel challenges in our countries, and I recommend this book as the perfect midlife book club selection.

Related- Lidija Hilje Interview

Related- 2025 Summer Reading Guide

Related- Second Chance Romance Novels to Celebrate New Beginnings

Maurice and Maralyn quit their jobs, sold their house, bought a boat, and sailed away in 1972, navigating the seas sufficiently until a year into their voyage when a breaching whale knocked a hole in their ship, and it sank into the waves.

This bingeable nonfiction story details their jaw-dropping fight to survive in the wild ocean for over a hundred days, with little hope of rescue. Alone together in a tiny rubber raft, starving and exhausted, their imperfect marriage bond is wildly tested.

Julia Whelan narrates MacLean's contemporary debut, where Alice hasn't set foot on her family's private island in five years—not since she was exiled from the tech empire built by her late father, Franklin Storm.

When he dies, he leaves behind a final challenge. Alice and her estranged relatives can participate in a week-long inheritance game that wil force them to confront lingering resentments and long-held desires.

In this unique setting, Alice finds herself drawn to Jack, her father's enigmatic second-in-command, sparking a passionate enemies-to-lovers romance. I can't wait to read this!

In this atmospheric thriller, a nautical archaeologist arrives in sun-drenched Positano for her late father's lost treasures, only to uncover shipwrecks, strange whirlpools, and an ancient curse of sea witches.

In a parallel timeline set in 1821, a young witch protects her coastal village from pirate invaders, until love forces her to choose between her powers and her freedom.

With dual timelines, this sweeping tale of magical realism merges modern mystery with a little Old-World enchantment.

Related- Atmospheric Books

Related- Best Magical Realism Books

A surprisingly fierce feminist anthem, this novel is one of my favorite books of the year.

Based on a remarkable 16th‑century true story, this historical thriller follows Marguerite—a noblewoman turned castaway—stranded on a remote island with only a maid and lover for company.

As polar bears encroach and winter descends, she must learn to survive on her own terms as this story unspools with surprising twists.  

Related- Books About Nurses

Related- Allegra Goodman Interview (Podcast)

In 1926, famed evangelist Aimee Semple McPherson disappeared after going out for a swim off the coast of Venice Beach. What followed was a sensational search-and-rescue operation that captivated a nation.

Hoffman's gripping biography delves into the uncertainty surrounding McPherson's disappearance, rescue efforts, and the powerful woman at the center of it all. Those curious to learn more about Aimee's story, can spend a riveting hour with Hoffman discussing her research process in the podcast linked below.

Related- Claire Hoffman Interview (Book Gang Podcast)

Related- Books About Faith and Churches

McConaghy delivers another poignant story about climate change in this suspenseful tale, featuring short chapters and big emotional twists.

On a remote island, Dominic and his three children tend to a vital seed vault as sea levels rise and storm. When Rowan washes ashore after a shipwreck, they nurse her back to health amid escalating tensions rich with secrets on both sides.

If you love this novel, you'll find Late Migrations equally as immersive, which also documents emotional peril at sea!

In McCann's latest literary fiction novel, an Irish journalist joins a cable-laying ship crew to investigate undersea communications. As he confronts his own trauma and the vastness of deep-sea work, this novel becomes a poetic maritime journey through grief.

To quote the description, "Can we, in our fractured world, reweave ourselves out of the thin, broken threads of our pasts?"

Related- Best Literary Fiction Books

Jane, a Harvard archivist returns home after a career-threatening mistake. What she doesn't know is that this return will also launch her into a haunting new research project that could change her life.

A recently renovated historic home in town that once served as Jane's refuge as a child, has removed a family cemetery to make way for a dream pool. So, it's not entirely surprising when a ghost visits.

She uncovers the tangled history of this Victorian house perched on a seaside bluff—once filled with secrets of lovers lost at sea, artistic awakenings, and a haunting past that refuses to stay buried.

Related- Books About Libraries

Leah once dreamed of a nomadic, artistic life, but finds she's anchored in suburban motherhood. Her creativity is overshadowed by the demands of her husband, children, and a passive-aggressive mother-in-law.

The solace she finds in wine becomes a growing undercurrent that threatens to pull everyone under with her. Leah's journey mirrors a perilous sea voyage into deep waters as she confronts her addiction and fights to reclaim herself. This is a strong debut!

Related- Jessica Guerrieri Interview (Book Gang Podcast)

Related- Best Addiction Fiction Books

When artist James Golden returns to the mist-shrouded logging town of Six Rivers, California, to settle her twin brother Johnny's affairs, a supernatural bond means she feels his last moments before the phone even rings.

What begins as a grief pilgrimage evolves into something darker. James suspects Johnny's death wasn't an accident.

Related- Books About Twins For Double the Drama

Related- Books on Grief and Loss

Related- Best Books About Art and Artists

As World War II rages in London, eleven-year-old Beatrix is sent across the sea to safety with a well-off American family in Boston. This temporary arrangement turns into a lasting imprint, as Bea grows up caught between two countries, two families, and two selves.

Spanning decades and oceans, this debut novel beautifully explores the quiet grief of displacement, the bonds that form in unexpected places, and what it means to belong somewhere and to someone.

Related- Historical Fiction Book Club Books

When the SS Carlisle is torpedoed in the Atlantic, volunteer escort Alice King finds herself stranded in a lifeboat with young evacuees, miles away from rescue.

Back in London, a widowed mother desperately waits for news of her children, each day stretching her hope thin.

Inspired by the real-life sinking of the SS Benares, Gaynor's haunting dual narrative brings to life the fear, bravery, and unexpected bonds forged during this harrowing journey.

After marine biologist Leah returns from a deep-sea expedition gone wrong, her wife, Miri, hopes it's just physical exhaustion, but Leah's transformation is much more profound.

Alternating between Miri's grief-filled vigil and Leah's eerie journey aboard a stranded submarine, this gothic horror novel explores queerness through lyrical writing that lingers long after the final page.

Related- These Social Horror Books Will Make You Think

Retired pirate-captain Amina al‑Sirafi is enjoying a quiet life with her daughter, until a desperate plea pulls her back to the Indian Ocean.

Reassembling her motley crew aboard the ship Marawati, she sets sail on a daring mission to rescue a missing girl and reclaim a legendary relic known as the Moon of Saba.

This riveting fantasy novel blends swashbuckling adventure and motherhood. It's beautifully brought to life in audiobook form for a fun reading escape.

When the world begins to shut down in early 2020, novelist Lucy finds herself unexpectedly uprooted from Manhattan and driven north by her ex-husband William, who insists they ride out the uncertainty together in a rented house on the wind-whipped coast of Maine.

What starts as an awkward reunion, enforced by the stillness of pandemic life, stirs up long-buried questions about family and the invisible threads that tether people, even after marriage ends.

This is the fourth book in Strout’s luminous Lucy Barton series (My Name Is Lucy Barton, Anything Is Possible, and Oh William!), but it can be read as a standalone for those new to her work.

That said, returning readers will find deeper resonance in Lucy’s evolving relationship with William and her daughters, as well as the subtle, precise insights Strout is beloved for.

Related- Books About Authors and Publishing

In 1742, a battered ship washed ashore in Brazil carrying survivors of the HMS Wager, wrecked while chasing a Spanish treasure galleon. Six months later, a second boat landed in Chile... with a very different version of what happened.

In this riveting true story, David Grann (Killers of the Flower Moon) investigates a maritime mystery that rocked the British Empire.

With cinematic detail and the pacing of a thriller, The Wager is a brutal and breathtaking account of men pushed to their limits—and what we choose to believe when the truth is lost at sea.

Related- Best Backlist Books for Summer (Book Gang Podcast)

This YA novel follows teens aboard the ill-fated Wilhelm Gustloff, told with heart-wrenching beauty. This ship had promised safety to over 10,000 people, even more than the well-known Titanic.

Uniquely told through the voices of four characters, all with different ethnic backgrounds, Supetys explores a hidden time in history in a beautiful and heartbreakingly poignant way.

This novel is one of the most researched books I have read, as the author traveled to over a dozen countries to gather accounts from passengers, their families, and even deep-sea divers to round out this story.

Mogenstern's story isn't for every reader, but it is a great fit for fans of immersive, nonlinear storytelling.

Structured as six books, a graduate student discovers a mysterious book that leads him into a hidden world of stories beneath the surface of reality. This lush, genre-bending fantasy drips with symbolism offering readers an endless ocean of puzzling possibilities to uncover.

Related- Books About Books

Related- Unforgettable Circus Books

The glittering ocean backdrop of 1980s Malibu pulses over 24 hours as Nina Riva hosts the family's legendary end-of-summer party—one that will unravel secrets, ignite old wounds, and go up in flames.

As always, I recommend Julia Whelan's narration for this book as it enhances Reid's storytelling so beautifully.

Related- Julia Whelan's Interview (Book Gang Podcast)

Related- Taylor Jenkins Reid Books

In this captivating memoir, Torre DeRoche, a self-proclaimed land lover, makes a risky decision to set sail across the Pacific with her brand-new boyfriend.

As they bravely navigate fierce storms, unforeseen challenges, and the unpredictable nature of the open water, Torre uncovers her deepest fears and discovers the transformative power of embracing a life of uncertainty. This is one of my all-time favorite memoirs!

Related- Torre DeRoche Interview

Related- Best Memoirs to Read for Nonfiction November

Related- The Nonfiction November Challenge You Need (Book Gang Podcast)

This standalone fairytale quest, set across fantastical oceans, centers on Tress, a determined heroine who spends her days on a lonely rock of an island, collecting chipped teacups and watching green-spore "waves" roll across a deadly, waterless ocean.

When the duke's son (her secret best friend Charlie) vanishes after a voyage gone wrong, Tress stows away on a smuggler ship, determined to rescue him from the Sorceress who rules the midnight seas.

Related- 27 Fairytale Retellings to Enchant Your Reading Life

Van Pelt's memorable story brings together a lonely widow and a mischievous octopus. Through alternating chapters narrated by Marcellus the octopus and Tova, who cares for the aquarium, as well as a young man searching for his father, this gentle mystery unfolds with warmth, wit, and just the right hint of marine magic.

I encourage every reader to listen to this on audiobook as Marcellus vividly comes to life through Michael Urie's narration. It is an unforgettable reading experience.

Related- Best Books of 2022

This novel beautifully paints a literary portrait of a family in a remote fishing village in Maine. 

After a fishing accident leaves Jill's husband hospitalized, she must manage the home and her family alone. Under financial strain, she discovers her teen son's Instagram photos with a joint, while simultaneously beginning to suspect that her husband has been having an affair.

This midlife woman faces many reckonings in her family, told through Conley's sparse and gentle prose, which resonated deeply with me as a parent of a teen.

Related- Best Page Turners About Motherhood

Jo Walker makes her living as a yacht stewardess, drifting between glamorous ports and opulent decks. As she approaches her thirtieth birthday, her meticulously curated "30‑by‑30" bucket list threatens to collapse under grief when her nephew dies.

But a surprise visit from her nieces and a daring kiss with a handsome stranger (who becomes the yacht's chef) breathe new life into her heartfelt mission.

This YA fantasy is packed with action, romance, and brine-soaked worldbuilding.

In this story, seventeen-year-old Fable has never known anything but the sea.

Abandoned on a lawless island after her mother drowns and her father sails off, she spends years diving for gems and scavenging for survival.

When she finally earns passage aboard the Marigold, she's determined to confront her notorious sea-trader father for abandoning her. What begins as a coming-of-age sea voyage turns into a pulse-raising adventure bristling with danger, intrigue, and surprising alliances.

Related- 13 Coming Of Age Books Any Adult Will Love

This gripping locked-room thriller will keep your heart racing until the very last page.

Lo suffers trauma from a recent break-in and finds herself on assignment aboard an opulent boutique cruise ship for a travel magazine. But when she believes she witnesses a shocking murder in the cabin next door, her frazzled world spirals out of control.

As she bravely reports the incident and begins her own investigation, she unwittingly angers someone with dangerous intentions. This drives Lo deeper into a whirlwind of paranoia and anxiety, intensifying the suspense in this masterful tale of mystery and intrigue from one of my favorite mystery writers.

Related- Ruth Ware Books

Related- Unlikely Amateur Sleuths

This lush and unforgettable novel follows five queer women living under Uruguay's oppressive dictatorship in the 1970s. Drawn together by a shared desire for freedom, they find refuge on an isolated beach where they can live, love, and be themselves—if only for a while.

Cantoras is a love letter to chosen family and queer resilience, written with lyrical intimacy and political urgency. Carolina De Robertis delivers a quiet revolution on the page, and you will feel every pulse of it.

Related- LGBTQ History Books

Related- Found Family Trope Books

Before he became a World War II hero, Louis Zamperini was a delinquent turned Olympic runner. But his most significant test came in 1943, when his bomber crashed in the Pacific.

Stranded in a life raft for 47 days—fighting off sharks, starvation, and enemy aircraft—Louis endured a brutal sequence of events that would have broken most men.

And yet, this true story of survival at sea, capture by the Japanese, and the long road to healing is one of the most extraordinary and inspiring nonfiction epics of our time. I could not put this book down!

This book is a heartfelt tribute to the caregivers of the world, and it brought tears to my eyes.

Newlyweds Wren and Lewis face an extraordinary and surreal challenge when Lewis begins transforming into a great white shark.

As his body and identity shift like the tides, their love is tested by the unpredictable, primal forces of nature. Wren rises to the challenge in beautiful ways as she modifies their backyard into a safe swimming haven and finds food to meet Lewis's needs.

I highly recommend listening to my episode with Emily, which has become one of Book Gang listeners' favorites.

Related- Emily Habeck Interview (Book Gang Podcast)

This horror-thriller, set aboard a ship exploring the Mariana Trench, offers readers equal parts science fiction and terror as a fresh crew sets sail to investigate the disappearance of a documentary crew uniquely connected to those taking the voyage.

Grant's mermaids aren't the enchanting sirens of myth—they're terrifying, intelligent predators. Yet the true strength of this novel lies in how it blends visceral horror with the ocean's true-crime spin.

The audiobook experience was superb for this selection, which many of our book club members found to be riveting.

Related- 2024 Book Club Book

On the Korean island of Jeju, generations of women have made their living diving into the sea as fearless free divers harvesting sea urchins, abalone, and octopus from the ocean floor.

See centers the story of two girls (Mi-ja and Young-sook) who form a deep bond as they train to join the diving collective. But as decades pass, through Japanese occupation, war, and family secrets, their friendship is tested in heartbreaking ways.

Related- 17 Stunning Friendship Stories

Whimsy, warmth, and a seaside orphanage for magical children make this a comforting read with real heart delivered beautifully on audiobook.

Linus Baker, a meticulous government caseworker, is sent to an enchanting and unusual orphanage. As he grows fond of the extraordinary children and their endearing caretaker, the story beautifully explores the concept of discovering family in the most unexpected places.

Related- Cozy Fantasy Books to Lower Your Stress Levels

Dane Huckelbridge stuns with Castle of Water, a sharp, tender survival story.

When a plane crashes in the South Pacific, two strangers—an artist-turned-banker and a new bride—must learn to survive both their heartbreak and each other.

This story delivers humor and tension to even the most mundane survival tasks, layering in flashbacks and inner monologues that feel intimate and alive. I count this among my favorite island stories and recommend the audiobook experience for this one!

Related- 25 Enthralling Books Set on Islands

Wallbrook's debut has been one of the best mystery surprises of 2025.

Professor Daphne Ouverture's titles are as intriguing as this mystery. An assistant professor of European history, a scholar of modern French imperialism, and a (self-titled) semi-professional rambler on the horrors of colonial medicine, she leads a quiet academic life.

But when a colleague—brilliant but insufferable anthropology professor Sam Taylor—is murdered at the top of our story, Daphne finds herself tangled in a dangerous game.

There is so much to love about Daphne, but one of the most intriguing aspects of Daphne's character is her photographic memory. This ability becomes key to the mystery when she recalls that Sam sent her a cryptic text in French referencing a book that has now mysteriously vanished from her library.

As Daphne brilliantly pieces together the puzzle, she realizes that personal and institutional history has a way of repeating itself and that some secrets refuse to stay buried. It's a page-turner!

Related-2025 Summer Reading Guide

Related- Unforgettable Campus Novels With All the Drama

Related- Black History Month Books (To Read All Year Long)

From the author of A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder comes a gripping adult debut with a killer premise: Jet Mason has seven days to solve her own murder... before it happens.

After surviving a violent attack on Halloween night, doctors warn that a head injury will soon turn fatal. With her time ticking down, Jet must revisit old relationships, expose hidden secrets, and outwit a would-be killer with nothing left to lose.

Sharp, twisty, and emotionally charged, this novel offers everything fans love about amateur sleuths—raised stakes, unreliable allies, and a ticking clock that won’t wait.

Release Date- 22 July 2025

Related- Best Time Travel Books To Escape Real Life

Related- Time Loop Books

Related- Books About Alternate Realities or Parallel Lives

Related- Best Time Travel TV Shows and Movies

Set on Chicago’s vibrant South Side, this deliciously witty debut blends homicide with a dash of romance and a whole lot of flavor.

When a neighborhood lothario drops dead at table two of her soul food café, Savvy Summers never expects her sweet potato pie to be the prime suspect.

With her restaurant’s reputation crumbling and the press circling like vultures, Savvy—along with her spirited assistant Penny—sets out to solve the mystery herself.

Release Date- 29 July 2025

In a cozy Santa Barbara bungalow complex just steps from the beach, a group of quirky tenants becomes unlikely detectives when their landlady confesses to a murder they’re sure she didn’t commit.

What begins as a case of neighborhood drama quickly turns into a full-fledged amateur investigation with a sculptor, a playwright, a finance bro, and an anxious agoraphobe forming the most endearing sleuth squad you didn’t know you needed.

When Finlay’s partner-in-chaos, Vero, gets slapped with theft charges and house arrest, Finlay heads straight to Maryland to clear her best friend’s name because if there’s one thing these accidental sleuths have learned, it’s how to sniff out trouble and survive it together.

With sorority secrets, threatening notes, and a vanishing alibi in the mix, this sixth installment brings the same blend of twisty mystery, sharp humor, and ride-or-die friendship fans adore.

Release Date- 10 March 2026

Related- Best Books About Road Trips

Kirby Cornell's life is already a mess when a chilling message lights up her old group chat: Everyone in the group chat dies. It's creepy enough on its own—except it's from a roommate who's been dead for a year.

Now someone is resurrecting the past and picking off her old friends one by one, forcing Kirby to untangle a tangled web of secrets, guilt, and a second-rate serial killer who may not be so dead after all.

Release Date- 9 December 2025

Related- L.M. Chilton Interview (Podcast)

When Sierra Angelos enters season five of The Escape Game, a televised competition built around high-stakes escape rooms, she’s not just playing to win.

She’s playing to uncover the truth about her sister’s murder.

As the puzzles grow more dangerous and clues point to something far more sinister, Sierra and her fellow contestants realize the game isn’t just for entertainment—it’s a deadly hunt for justice.

Fast-paced, full of sabotage and secrets, this young adult thriller is a twisty ride perfect for fans of One of Us Is Lying and Only Murders in the Building—with a locked-room vibe and a countdown clock you won’t want to stop.

Release Date- 7 April 2026

Fans of The Good Place will find much to love in this surprisingly philosophical story pitting good against evil.

Thea can transfer life years between people—an ability that quickly spirals into a full-blown ethical dilemma when she redistributes time from the dangerous to the deserving.

What begins as a righteous mission grows more tangled with each choice, and this story's emotional depth caught me off guard.

This plot unfolded in such unexpected ways, and by the end, I was in tears, both from the emotional payoff and the way the author brilliantly tied everything together.

St. Barth’s may boast a murder rate of zero, but that stat doesn’t hold up once Audrey Collet arrives. Blackmailed by her eccentric billionaire ex, Audrey finds herself on a luxury island estate surrounded by secrets, scandal, and suspects.

When a foot washes ashore in the Everglades and a birthday dive ends in death, Audrey realizes the person extorting her isn’t the only danger in paradise.

Trapped on a yacht with seven potential killers, she must solve the murder before she becomes the next body to surface. Perfect for fans of Agatha Christie with a modern, sun-soaked edge.

Related- Best Books to Get Out of a Reading Slump

When book-loving Mia Crawford takes a long-overdue vacation to a private island resort, she expects her biggest decision to be which book to read next—until she discovers cryptic notes scribbled in the margins of a mystery novel.

As the clues begin to point toward a missing guest and the resort’s glossy perfection starts to crack, Mia is drawn into an investigation filled with suspects, secrets, and a dangerously charming bartender.

Related- Enthralling Books Set on Islands

When Cath discovers that her late mother had secretly booked tickets to a staged murder mystery week in the English countryside, she impulsively decides to go in her place.

What begins as a quirky getaway in a small Peak District village turns into something deeper, as Cath and her two fellow amateur sleuths—an overwhelmed birding shop employee and a romance author in a rut—find that solving fake crimes might just help them face the real mysteries in their lives.

Related- Fascinating Books About Authors and Publishing

When college student Jane Sharp plunges into the online world of amateur sleuthing after her father’s death, she finds comfort in chasing cold cases with fellow internet detectives.

But when a series of shocking murders rocks a small town in Idaho, Jane’s obsession turns deadly. As she digs deeper into the Delphine killings, it becomes clear that the truth is more twisted than she imagined. Told in the aftermath of the case, this chilling novel explores the blurred line between solving a mystery and becoming part of it.

Related- Ashley Winstead Interview (Podcast)

Related- Fictional Serial Killer Books

Related- Books on Grief and Loss

Related- Best Atmospheric Books

You'll know immediately if this book is for you from the opening line:

"The missing boy is ten-year-old Alfie Risby, and to be perfectly honest with you, he's a little shit."

Florence Grimes is in a rut after the collapse of her promising girl band career. Instead of pursuing her dreams, she's delivering overpriced balloon arches to influencer events. But in her heart of hearts, Florence knows Mariah had a comeback. She, too, will find her Emancipation of Mimi moment to begin her singing career again.

Just as she is about to have her comeback interview with a promising lead in the music industry, an incident at her son's private school changes everything.

Alfie Risby, a problematic classmate, becomes a field trip partner with her son on a nature excursion. But when they return to school, the teachers realize that the pair is now down to one, and Dylan is the last person to have seen him.

Later, when Florence finds Alfie's backpack hidden in Dylan's room, she discovers a diary tucked inside with a chilling entry that says, "Dylan Palmer said he's going to kill me."

She realizes she must put her music career on hold, get rid of this backpack, clear her son's name, and discover what REALLY happened to this mini heir to a frozen food empire.

Related- Sarah Harman Interview

Related- Page Turners About Motherhood

Vera Wong is back and as meddling as ever in this follow-up to the hit Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers.

Vera Wong’s teahouse is thriving, her matchmaking skills are unmatched, and life is good, but wouldn’t another murder make things more exciting?

When a young woman seeks help finding a missing friend, Vera stumbles upon a case file about the mysterious death of influencer Xander Lin. Online, he had it all, but in reality, no one seems to know who he truly was.

Determined to impress her future daughter-in-law, Officer Selena Gray, Vera launches her own investigation. But as every clue leads to another dead end, she’ll need her signature meddling (and a few cups of tea) to crack the case—before the killer strikes again.

I haven't met a Jess Kidd book that I haven't loved. This new cozy mystery is the first in the Nora Breen Investigates series and a fun new writerly direction for Jess Kidd fans to follow.

In 1954, Sister Nora Breen's quiet world is upended when her former novice, Frieda Brogan, suddenly stops writing.

Masquerading as a guest, she settles among the eccentric residents, quickly realizing she's not the only one harboring secrets.

Related- Incredible Books About Faith and Churches

When Nova Davies moves to the quaint Cornish village of St. Tredock, she hopes to quietly settle into life with her fiancé's family despite her overbearing mother-in-law's wedding meddling.

But after taking a job at the local community center, she finds herself at the helm of a book club filled with an eclectic mix of members, from studious teens to cantankerous retirees.

Just as she begins to bridge their differences, disaster strikes: £10,000 meant for the center's roof repair vanishes, a book club member disappears, and a murder shakes the village.

Now, with suspicion falling on their beloved club, Nova and her fellow bookworms—led by a Miss Marple-obsessed octogenarian—must channel their inner sleuths to uncover the truth.

Related- Books About Book Clubs

These beloved TV icons get a delightful whodunit makeover in Murder by Cheesecake, a nostalgic and laugh-out-loud mystery featuring the ladies of The Golden Girls.

When Rose's niece plans a wedding in Miami, her Norwegian American relatives descend upon Florida, sending her stress levels soaring.

But family drama takes a backseat when Dorothy is arrested at the bridal shower—accused of murder after a man from a VHS dating service turns up dead, face-first in a cheesecake.

Determined to clear Dorothy's name, Rose, Blanche, and Sophia band together, proving that friendship (and a well-timed quip) can solve anything.

Related- 17 Stunning Friendship Stories

When her grown daughter is suspected of murder, a charming and tenacious widow digs into the case to unmask the real killer in this twisty, page-turning whodunnit—the first book in a cozy new detective series from the acclaimed author of Ayesha at Last.

With sharp intuition, a meddlesome aunty streak, and help from old friends and her spirited granddaughter, this new novel sounds like a page-turner.

But as she unearths long-buried secrets, she realizes the truth may be more dangerous than even she ever imagined.

Nita Prose returns with another irresistible mystery in The Maid's Secret, blending an art heist, a long-buried family secret, and a touch of romance in a captivating whodunit.

When the Regency Grand Hotel hosts an episode of Hidden Treasures, head maid Molly Gray is stunned to learn that her late grandmother's beloved display egg is no mere trinket—it's a priceless Fabergé. But before she can fully grasp the revelation, the egg vanishes, setting off a chain of threats, investigations, and shocking discoveries.

As Molly races to uncover the truth, her grandmother's long-hidden diary emerges, unlocking secrets that reach back decades and tie her family's past to the very heart of the mystery.

Related- Best Books About Art and Artists

A retired nurse, expert cake maker, and sharp-eyed sleuth, Miss Hortense has lived in Bigglesweigh, a quiet Birmingham suburb, since emigrating from Jamaica in 1960.

With decades of nursing experience, she's unafraid of anyone, and can uncover secrets with a glance.

When a man is found dead in one of the Pardner network's homes, an influential group of Black investors, Miss Hortense, steps in to investigate.

However, when a Bible quote found by the body brings unsettling memories of a traumatic past, she must dive deeper into long-buried secrets.

Related- Books About Nurses

By day, Joe is a buttoned-up hotel accountant. By night, they transform into Misty Divine, a dazzling star of London's drag scene.

But when Misty's beloved drag mother, Lady Lady, is found dead beside a poisoned box of chocolates, the spotlight turns on Misty and her fellow queens as the prime suspects.

Determined to get justice and unwilling to let the police's biases cloud the case, Misty launches her own investigation. But in a world of glitter and glam, a killer lurks in the wings, and Misty Divine won't stop until she finds out who's behind the crime.

Related- LGBTQ History Month Books

Julia Mann, a sharp-tongued ex-actress with a knack for making enemies, has a problem. There's a dead body in her swimming pool, and the cops are convinced she put it there.

(Not an unfair assumption, considering she's already done time for murder once.)

Enter Natasha Mason, a by-the-book investigator who meets Julia at an AA meeting and can't help but get involved.

What starts as a reluctant partnership turns into a wild investigation through Hollywood's glitzy underbelly, from burlesque clubs to country clubs, with a supporting cast of showgirls, cat burglars, and shady agents.

But will they find the real killer before Julia lands back behind bars?

This captivating debut mystery, a Reese’s Book Club pick for September 2023, was written by former NASA engineer Nina Simon while her mother was undergoing cancer treatment, a heartfelt collaboration to pass the time together.

In this charming and heartfelt whodunit, an unlikely trio of amateur sleuths—a sharp-witted grandmother, her determined single mother daughter, and an inquisitive teenage girl—team up to solve a shocking murder.

Lana Rubicon, a formidable Los Angeles real estate mogul, is forced to slow down after a cancer diagnosis lands her in a quiet coastal town with her estranged daughter, Beth, and granddaughter, Jack.

Just as she struggles to adjust to her new reality, their world is upended when Jack discovers a dead body during a routine kayaking trip.

Now, three generations of strong-willed women must set aside their differences and uncover the truth before the killer strikes again.

Related- Nina Simon Interview (The Remarkable Murder Mystery That Changed Everything)

Related- My Top Celebrity Book Club Picks

In a peaceful retirement village, four unlikely friends—Elizabeth, Joyce, Ibrahim, and Ron—meet every Thursday to investigate cold cases as part of their quirky Thursday Murder Club.

Their sleuthing is mostly a harmless hobby until a local developer is found dead under mysterious circumstances, and the club suddenly finds themselves at the center of an active murder investigation.

Armed with sharp wit, decades of life experience, and a few unexpected connections, the four retirees take it upon themselves to solve the case—much to the frustration of the local police.

As they dig deeper, they uncover secrets that some would prefer to stay buried, all while proving that age is no obstacle when it comes to cracking a mystery.

Ingrid, a 29-year-old Ph.D. student, is struggling to finish her dissertation and drowning in student debt.

As her funding runs out and the deadline for her research on renowned poet Xiao-Wen Chou approaches, she discovers a mysterious note in the archives correcting her conclusion about the location referenced in Chou's famous poem.

Intrigued, Ingrid embarks on an unexpected investigation with the help of her best friend, Eunice, whose wild K-Drama theories may hold the key to unraveling the truth.

Jennifer Kim's deadpan delivery in the audiobook adds a layer of humor as she leads us through her coming-of-consciousness narration. If you love satirical novels, lean into this one!

Related- 14 Books By AAPI Authors to Read Now

Gwen Turner is just trying to navigate the horrors of online dating—ghosting, bad pickup lines, and the occasional awkward first date. But when her matches start turning up dead, Gwen realizes she's swiping through a serial killer's hit list.

As the body count rises, Gwen takes matters into her own hands, determined to unmask the murderer before she becomes the next victim.

Packed with red herrings, laugh-out-loud moments, and a clever spin on the dangers of modern romance, Don't Swipe Right is a binge-worthy thriller for fans of Scream.

Related- L.M. Chilton Interview (Digital Dating Turns Deadly in This Debut Mystery)

Related- 30 Fictional Serial Killer Books to Read Now

Daniel has a rare disease that limits his movement, but nothing gets past him especially when he witnesses a woman's abduction from his front porch.

He decides to take his story to Reddit, where he begins a conversation with the captor. As he discloses more and more, Daniel is convinced he might be the one to help solve the case, but it is tough to convince the police that you have valuable information when you can't speak or move.

Trust me, the characters in this novel are unforgettable, as are the laughs.

Related- Books to Get Out of a Reading Slump

Related- Disability Pride Books

Looking for a really great audiobook to indulge in? The narration on this smart murder mystery delivers in spades!

In this wildly entertaining series, struggling novelist Finlay Donovan finds herself in a bizarre mix-up at a Panera Bread. While discussing the plot of her next suspense novel with her agent, a nearby eavesdropper mistakes her for a contract killer—and offers her a job.

As a financially strapped single mom, the offer is shockingly tempting. After all, what better way to research a thriller than by accidentally living one?

Packed with sharp humor, witty banter, and an unexpected (and hilarious) partner-in-crime, this book delivers nonstop laughs and twists that will keep you flipping pages (and giggling) all the way through.

Stephanie Plum is broke, jobless, and desperate enough to take on a new bounty hunter gig despite having zero experience.

Her first assignment?

Bring in Joe Morelli, a charming and infuriating cop-turned-fugitive who also happens to be the guy who broke her heart years ago. Determined to prove herself, she dives headfirst into a world of car chases, eccentric criminals, and one very mysterious (and dangerously attractive) bounty hunter named Ranger.

Fast-paced, hilarious, and filled with quirky characters, this is a classic in the amateur sleuth genre, with 31 novels to dig into in this series.

Get ready to laugh a lot because Vera Wong is my new favorite meddling older protagonist! She’s up to date on all the latest TikTok trends and never misses an opportunity to dish out unsolicited advice... whether people want it or not.

Vera keeps busy running her struggling tea shop in San Francisco’s Chinatown, humorously named Vera Wang’s World Famous Tea House (because, hey, brand recognition matters).

But when she stumbles upon a dead man in her shop clutching a flash drive, she does what any self-respecting amateur sleuth would do. She swipes the evidence and takes the case into her own hands, convinced she can outsmart the police.

As she investigates, Vera unexpectedly finds herself forming deep connections with her customers, forcing her to juggle detective work with her growing friendships.

If you’re craving a charming and cozy mystery, the audiobook of this novel is delightful.

Ernest Cunningham follows the family rule: he always tells the truth. And the truth is, everyone in his family has killed someone.

When a family reunion at a remote mountain resort turns deadly, Ernest finds himself caught in a classic whodunit, complete with an isolated setting, a rising body count, and a web of long-buried secrets.

As tensions mount and accusations fly, Ernest must use his knowledge of crime novels (and his own family's dark history) to unravel the mystery before anyone else meets an untimely end.

Dark humor, twists, and a protagonist who feels like a hardboiled detective trapped in the wrong novel make this an unforgettable read.

Related- 26 Books About Books You Will Love

Precocious 11-year-old Flavia de Luce has a passion for chemistry and a knack for solving crime.

When she stumbles upon a dying man in her garden, she's determined to uncover the truth even if it means outwitting the police, her father, and her nosy older sisters.

There are twelve beloved books in the Flavia de Luce Series to read if you fall in love with this fun character.

Related- 13 Coming-of-Age Books Any Adult Will Love

When bestselling author Alan Conway dies under mysterious circumstances, his editor, Susan Ryeland, is tasked with finishing his latest manuscript—only to discover that the story within its pages mirrors the very real murder of Conway himself.

As Susan dives deeper into the manuscript, she uncovers a tangled web of secrets, lies, and potential motives. The more she reads, the more she finds herself drawn into a puzzling investigation that seems to blur the lines between fiction and reality.

Molly Gray isn’t like everyone else. Her world is guided by strict routines, a love of cleanliness, and a deep devotion to her job as a hotel maid at the prestigious Regency Grand. She takes great pride in restoring each room to perfection, finding comfort in the order of it all.

But when she discovers a wealthy guest dead in his suite, Molly’s carefully structured life is thrown into chaos.

Due to her unusual demeanor, she quickly becomes the prime suspect in the murder investigation. With the help of a few unlikely allies, Molly must navigate a world of secrets, deception, and hidden agendas to clear her name and uncover the truth.

Related- Books With Autistic Characters to Read Now

Lila Macapagal's fresh start running her aunt's Filipino restaurant takes a deadly turn when her food critic ex-boyfriend drops dead... right after a meal at the café.

With her family business on the line and the cops eyeing her as the prime suspect, Lila must devise a plan to clear her name.

This story is sweetly satisfying and, at the end, filled with some fun recipes for replicating a few of these great dishes that you are reading about.

Four strangers sit in the Boston Public Library when a woman's scream shatters the silence. As they rush to investigate, they discover the body of a woman in the library’s reading roo,m, setting off a chain of events that will forever link them together.

The story is told through the perspective of author Hannah, who is working on a novel inspired by the real-life crime, using the voices of the four strangers—Freya, Cain, Whit, and Marigold—as characters in her fictional work.

As the lines between reality and fiction blur, the characters begin to unravel not just the truth about the crime, but also dark secrets within their own lives.

Related- Books About Libraries You'll Want to Add to Your Shelf Now

Five years ago, Andie Bell was murdered, and everyone knows who did it. The case is closed, except Pippa Fitz-Amobi isn't convinced.

For her senior project, she re-examines the case, uncovering secrets the town would rather keep buried. But as Pip approaches the truth, someone wants to stop her—at any cost.

This young adult series is excellent on audiobook and you can binge the A Good Girl's Guide to Murder series on Netflix when you finish the book!

Related- 11 Shows to Watch With Your Tween

Related- Better Than The Movies Movie List (FREE PRINTABLE!)

This novel made me fall in love with Simone St. James.

Carly Kirk never believed in ghosts until she takes a job at the eerie Sundown Motel in search of answers about her aunt's disappearance decades ago. But something sinister still lingers in the motel's halls, and Carly's investigation may put her in the same danger her aunt once faced.

This mystery had a very Hitchcock feel to it and I loved the layering of all the guests stories and how they intertwined with Carly & Viv's story. It's a ghost story isn't too scary, but has just the right kind of creepy vibes for any reader.

Related- 24 Atmospheric Books to Get Lost In This Season

Set at an elite prep academy, two students, Devon and Chiamaka Adebayo, are selected as senior class prefects. This coveted spot holds notoriety in their school and puts them in the running for its valedictorian. 

After this announcement, the two start receiving threatening messages from someone who identifies only as Aces. What begins as a harmless prank evolves into dangerous threats that lead the two to realize that these pranks are rooted in a dark history at their school that they could have never expected. 

Related- Social Horror Books

College student Joe Talbert, is assigned to write a biography of a stranger as part of his English class project. He chooses Carl Iverson, a dying Vietnam War veteran who has spent decades in prison for the brutal murder of a young woman.

As Joe begins to interview Carl, he uncovers inconsistencies in the story and starts to suspect that Carl might not be guilty after all.

Becoming more entangled in the case, Joe must confront his own painful past while racing against time to bring justice to a man who may have been wrongfully convicted.

Related- The Best Book Club Books to Discuss Now

Related- Beautiful Lessons from a Book Club for Inmates

When Claire's husband is brutally murdered, she uncovers shocking secrets about his past—ones that link him to the disappearance of her sister decades earlier. As she digs deeper, she realizes the truth is darker than she ever imagined.

As a lover of horror films and fiction, this book is the first book that has absolutely terrified me and kept me up with nightmares at night...and I loved it. Slaughter perfectly crafts each character so skillfully that it is as though you are watching a film.

Dark, psychologically twisted, evil, and graphic, the tale is gruesome and horrific and kept me on the absolute edge of my seat from the opening page.

Related- Best Psychological Thrillers to Read Now

Related- 19 Thrillers to Keep You Up All Night