Hodak’s star player is the customer experience, and she notes that regardless of what a business says about its brand, the customers’ word of mouth is the most efficient way to spread brand awareness, even in the social-media age. Hodak continually emphasizes that a brand is molded “in every interaction with every customer,” debunking, in persuasive examples, the notion that it’s the end products themselves that speak the loudest. She writes with the authority and enthusiasm of a coach. Practical tools include her Ladder to Superfandom, which clearly lays out seven key steps businesses should endeavor to guide their customers through: apathy, awareness, attraction, action, adoption, affinity, and finally advocacy.
Organized for clarity and quick reference, and boasting a host of graphs, diagrams, and catchy acronyms, Creating Superfans is an easy-to-follow guide packed with general knowhow, real-world examples, and telling personal anecdotes relating to customer experience and brand building. Hodak closes each chapter with a bite-sized, comprehensive overview of that chapter’s information in the "Superquick! Rewind" infographic, offering snapshots for quick reference. Readers will be entertained by this aesthetically pleasing, informative reference guide that they will be able to refer back to for multiple uses, plus a motivational refresher when branding and growing their businesses.
Takeaway: A savvy guide to turning customers into loyal advocates.
Great for fans of: Raving Fans by Ken Blanchard and Sheldon Bowles; Heart and Hustle by Patricia Bright
Production grades
Cover: B+
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A
Tenera balances Eric’s exuberance and youthful energy with Joseph’s cautiousness and maturity making them a formidable dynamic duo to battle the dark forces as, with their world flipped upside down, Joseph and Eric discover the connection between science and magic and learn that there are strange forces at play, threatening Earth. Whether they are exploring secret passageways, outsmarting fantasy creatures, or navigating through a shadowy, enchanting forest, the two friends stick together and prove that friendship can combat any challenge, their relationship grounding the novel.
The fantasy elements and the young men’s bond will spark young readers’ interest, though at times the story tests plausibility, such as when the teens elect to sneak out of their homes and jet across the globe without consulting their parents, or their choice to stay on the island once Professor Thessit admits to luring them under false pretenses. Still, supporting characters briefly jump onto the page, whetting the readers’ appetites to learn more about these intriguing individuals in potential future books. Young readers fascinated with magical worlds will enjoy the adventure
Takeaway: Best friends jet off to an island for magical adventure and an epic fantasy quest.
Great for fans of: Diana Wynne Jones’s Eight Days of Luke, Will Wight.
Production grades
Cover: B+
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: B+
Marketing copy: A

At Ashwood, ragtime and waltzes get the blood worked up—even of those married to others. Brighton deftly captures the champagne ennui of Sarah’s social scene, the brittle chatter and secret (and not-so-secret) longings and pairings, and the pleasure of good gossip. Sarah, who is navigating a tempting friendship with wealthy businessman Edward, discovers Arthur’s infidelities with Edward’s wife, as her own husband, Seth, has become frighteningly dependent on the ether his profession allows him to possess.
Readers expecting a traditional mystery plot should be advised that Brighton’s story builds toward a murder rather than from one. That doesn’t mean this is a slow burn, though. The efforts of these characters to find happiness and oblivion, to cover their sins, and maybe to make themselves and their city and their century into something new—all this is written with grace and power, capturing the moment that electricity lit up the world.
Takeaway: Barbara Hambly’s Benjamin January series, Lauren Belfer’s City of Light.
Great for fans of: This electric historical novel finds the social set of Buffalo jolted by scandal in 1901.
Production grades
Cover: A
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A
Despite varied topics and wide-ranging scriptural inspiration, though, Henning’s clear, engaging devotionals always return to that idea of Jesus as treasure, creating a strong sense of cohesion and continuity. Whether discussing the five different types of sacrifices given to God, the comfort and trust Mary Magdalene felt for Jesus, or the resurrection of Lazarus, the short essays are written with warmth and grace, crafted to welcome and nourish readers. Most entries build to a joyous declaration: “When you sin, repent and be restored to God, he is faithful to forgive,” Henning writes, after a consideration of Uriah the Hittite, the first husband of Bathsheba.
An entry focused on Uriah offers a sense of Henning’s range of inspirations, as she plunges deep within both testaments to reflect upon surprising figures like an Ethiopian eunuch from Acts, or Achsah, the daughter of Caleb, whose inheritance of land (told of in Joshua) launches a discussion of a larger inheritance, that of the kingdom of heaven for God’s believers. Throughout, Henning balances the familiar with the less well known, broadening her readers’ command of biblical figures while always connecting each reading to her heartening throughline.
Takeaway: Clear, encouraging Christian devotionals applicable to any season.
Great for fans of: Sarah Young’s Jesus Listens, J.I. Packer’s Knowing God Through the Year.
Production grades
Cover: B+
Design and typography: A-
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A
Von Haegert builds her story around compelling characters with complex, often conflicting motives, with lust and love scorching through their veins. Ashdon stands as a grand creation, a Mazerati-driving immortal who refuses a kingship and whose voice purrs like “the sound like velvet over steel.” Kielyn, meanwhile, spends much of the book’s first third observed at a distance or unconscious. But soon she’s commanding, making bold choices—including participation in a blood ritual that showcases the book’s strengths: it’s dark, sexy, dangerous, epic.
At times the prose can edge toward the florid, especially in scene-setting descriptive passages, but the action zips along, the dialogue is sharp and often funny—warned that a ghost will haunt him if he takes a decisive action, Ashdon snaps “As long as your ghost wears deodorant.” Scenes involving blood, sex, magic, and power all pulse with welcome vigor. The story is sweeping, but Von Haegert keeps the scheming, betrayals, and varied magic sets clear and engaging, right up to climactic revelations that promise even more magical beasts in the follow-up.
Takeaway: This steamy fantasy thrusts a mortal woman into war among vampires, angels, and more.
Great for fans of: Sarah J. Maas, Leigh Bardugo.
Production grades
Cover: A
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A-
Marketing copy: A
Hall’s subjects challenge the medical establishment on issues like overmedication—Mad in America author Robert Whitaker makes a compelling case that powerful economic incentives have united the pharmaceutical industry, the American Psychiatric Association, and others in “storytelling” “that psychiatric disorders were due to chemical imbalances in the brain.” Others discuss how the medicated life can leave one “profoundly emotionally, physically, and existentially disconnected from” the self. Therapist Arnold Mindell argues “medication is used just to calm people down. But everyone goes through these same states at least a little bit.”
Many of Hall’s interviewees find peace and control through meditative practice and spirituality. The discussions of depression, suicidal ideation, what it’s like to live with “voices,” and other pressing mental health issues are nuanced and sensitive. These revealing discussions call for a more balanced approach to treatment, one that recognizes that altered states are part of the human experience and offers something beyond what one interviewee characterizes as “I was told there was something deeply wrong with me that will never go away.”
Takeaway: Powerful interviews about mental-health patients finding peace outside the medical system.
Great for fans of: Robert Whitaker’s Mad in America, DJ Jaffe’s Insane Consequences.
Production grades
Cover: A-
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A-
Marketing copy: A
Bullis was inspired to write the book when he stumbled upon a studio portrait of a couple from 1905, at a flea market in France. The portrait convinced the author to source his story with visuals, rather than just text. History is carefully teased out from these well-sourced illustrations, as Bullis establishes, with clarity and engaging detail, the social setting of his characters, covering in the 1399 chapter alone sundry topics like winemaking, rat-killing, bloodletting, the filling of inkwells, and all the ways an abbey and its waterwheel use the local river. Fascinated with manual trades and skilled work, the author describes the details of plowing, tanning, breadmaking, carpentry, and many more, with each entry’s narrative bursting with surprise. (The illustration accompanying a line about a man purging, in 1599, is a jolt.)
The author’s take on the everyday weaves a resonant narrative rich with revelation and even social commentary. The penultimate chapter takes place in 1788, at the cusp of the French Revolution, showcasing the harsh realities of the Ancien Régime. Book of Days is singular in form, and a potent reminder that history belongs to the people.
Takeaway: A lavishly illustrated survey of everyday life in Europe over the last millennium, rich in insights.
Great for fans of: Paul B. Newman’s Daily Life in the Middle Ages, Frances Gies’s Life in a Medieval Village.
Production grades
Cover: B+
Design and typography: A-
Illustrations: A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A-

What’s most unnerving—and often, as above, insightful—about these rich entries is how close they are to our own reality, often reading less like tales of fantastical terror or allegorical cautions than straight-up foreshadowing. Wrath James White’s poem “Colorblind” delves into calls for society to be more colorblind in response to overt systemic racism experienced the world over, with the final line being, “I wish / I was never reminded / that you / and I / are different.” Elin Olausson’s stinging “Swan Song” turns on a surprising glimpse of life–and danger–in a dying land.
Horror fans will be excited to see Stephen King himself offering “Strawberry Spring,” a story that faces what lies beneath the masks we all wear, while Bird Box author Josh Malerman’s “There Are No Basements in the Bible” finds tension, resonance, and crack dialogue in a child’s forced playdate—and a staring contest. These big names are welcome, but one shivery pleasure of the series is Bailey’s championing of new talent, as up-and-comers offer many of this edition’s best. Bailey notes in an introduction that this anthology will be his last. While readers will inevitably find some entries here hit or miss, the hits outnumber the rest—here’s hoping he relents.
Takeaway: A strong collection of horror-tinged stories that urge us to look at the world anew.
Great for fans of: Pellucid Lunacy, The Valancourt Book of World Horror Stories.
Production grades
Cover: A
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A
Bright from the start, Ansary’s dedicated himself to learning and garnered a spot on The New York Herald-Tribune Forum for High School Students, making his dream of traveling to America a reality. That dedication sustained him once he arrived in the United States, carrying him through the early hardships he endured on the path to citizenship—a milestone he achieved at 23, while serving in the U.S. Marine Corps. Ansary unwraps his aspirations for readers chronologically, sharing his transformation from a starving employee at Montgomery Ward to an attorney and acquisitions expert based in Washington, D.C. He opens up about his private life as well, revealing the breakdown of his first marriage and the happiness he’s discovered with his second wife, Jan.
Readers will be inspired by Ansary’s rousing sentiment for the American dream. He stays authentic, describing his challenges alongside his victories, and touches on the unique cultural issues that impacted his work as one of the first professionals to “introduce Iran into the Western corporate scene.” With striking humility he describes his success at creating Iran’s Sovereign Wealth Fund program, the first of its kind, giving credit to Pahlavi, the last king of Iran, and closes with his unwavering faith in democracy: “For me, America will always be the hope of the world.”
Takeaway: An inspiring account of an Iranian immigrant’s successful voyage to America
Great for fans of: Reyna Grande’s A Dream Called Home, Jagjiwan Narayan’s From Fiji to America.
Production grades
Cover: A-
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A
Wehrli’s dreamlike illustrations help bring this outdoorsy generational tale to life. The story takes place in the middle of winter, and the muted, soft-hued images seem to exist in a foggy, somewhat dreary land of endless frosty mornings. At first, Jack’s day with Earl goes as expected. They travel around the strikingly rendered forest, asking animals if they know the location of the missing feed while Jack deals with his frustration at his grandfather’s slowness—but when his cousin Stevie jumps out and tries to scare them, Jack is impressed that Earl does not even flinch. Eventually they learn a welcome surprise: grandpa used to be known as the Great Squirrel Burglar.
Jack’s discovery will invite kids to delve deeper into the fascinating histories of the older people in their own lives. Wehrli’s art makes Grandpa Earl’s inspiring surprise stand out even more, as his superhero costume provides a pop of color and a jolt of excitement to go along with Jack Boy’s growing awareness that even in his old age, his grandfather still has a lot to offer.
Takeaway: A young squirrel learns the value of family after spending a day with his Grandpa.
Great for fans of: Margaret Mason’s These Hands, Lisa Tawn Bergren’s Nana the Great Comes to Visit.
Production grades
Cover: A-
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A
In a crucial extended flashback to a vividly realized 1949 Hollywood, where Rafael has arrived after hitchhiking across the country, Maxwell deftly paints the strong love that Gary felt for Rafael in spite of knowing the futility of longing for a man who can’t love him back. These chapters, the novel’s vital emotional core, abound with strong characterization, rich historical detail, and convincingly lifelike incidents that will rouse in readers a desire to see justice and closure for Rafael, especially after Rafael suffers a horrifying assault.
The novel’s 1990s story, meanwhile, centers on a scheme for cross-generational justice, as Jeremy and Gary strive to achieve a reckoning for Burnshaw’s crime of a half century before. The plan is convoluted, straining against the dynamics of the fictional world Maxwell has created, and the introduction of thriller elements, including scenes of imprisonment, feels like a shift of genre. Still, the novel is poignant, especially in its portrait of love and healing across decades.
Takeaway: A touching novel of unrequited love, facing the past, and unexpected suspense.
Great for fans of:Ann-Marie MacDonald’s Fall on Your Knees, Andre Aciman’s Call Me By Your Name.
Production grades
Cover: B+
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A

Larken’s conflicts are evident from the opening pages, as an intense prologue introduces her torrid past with Balance of Light and its leader, Father Lionel Broussard. Although she finds that Kholt feels to her “comfortable, like a warm blanket on a cold winter’s night,” Larken’s hesitations about a relationship give way to a stakes-raising, cat-and-mouse romance that drives the narrative. The story progresses with chapters alternating perspectives between Larken, Kholt, and Father Lionel, adding depth and nail biting tension that will entice readers to flip the page.
Lovers of southern gothic and paranormal romance will relish the many references to magic, ghosts, and mystical New Orleans landmarks woven into the mysterious plot; however, the cast of colorful characters and Larken’s resilience is the heart of the story. Salvador excels at creating perfectly interwoven storylines and subplots that remain consistent without leaving readers new to the series in the dark.
Takeaway: Rich with New Orleans history, this entry will delight fans of paranormal romance.
Great for fans of: Laura Spinella’s Ghost Gifts, Nora Roberts’s Midnight Bayou.
Production grades
Cover: A
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A-

“It’s a rabbit, hiccups, and donuts,” Davis explains, when pressed to identify the emergency that’s shaken her. That captures the book’s spirit. As always, Archer deftly blends mystery and comedy in sharp, lively prose that keeps the pages turning. From the get-go Davis has her work cut out for her, forced into damage control mode in both her business and personal life. With entertaining and eclectic characters, like best friend/partner Fantasy Erb, boss Jeremy "No Hair" Covey, and a havoc-wreaking mob family, Archer packs both the day and novel with fun and surprises, building stakes and excitement all the way to the satisfying conclusion. For all the wild happenings, though, Archer remains attuned to the everyday realities of casino work, motherhood, and what it takes to get a biohazard team dispatched to Biloxi.
Fans of cozy mysteries and beach reads will be overjoyed with this entry, which feels refreshingly vital and inviting for arriving so deep into the series. Readers new to Davis’s adventures should feel comfortable jumping onboard here, as the key relationships and backstory are always clearly sketched out. That said, the earlier books are breezy pleasures, too, well worth catching up on. This is a whirlwind ride, filled with clever solutions to seemingly outlandish problems and an indomitable heroine whose company remains a pleasure.
Takeaway: The uproarious Davis Way Crime Caper Series cleverly blends mystery and comedy.
Great for fans of: Abby Collette’s Body and Soul Food, Janet Evanovich’s One for the Money.
Production grades
Cover: B+
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A
The standout character in this novel is the setting of Phnom Penh, evoked with vivid detail. Fourteen years after the Khmer Rouge’s end, the city remains war-torn, and gruesome relics of the past, like the Tuol Sleng Museum of Genocide, pop off the page. The city’s inhabitants “all smiled,” Emily thinks, “but there was pain behind their eyes.”
The story moves at a clip, and the history lessons never feel heavy-handed. Emily progresses from a clueless, do-gooder American to an expat who embraces Cambodian culture. As an amputee, she discovers “her disability wasn’t a liability here, and it didn’t define her” as it had in the States. Her efforts to help, however, are stymied by her boss, Sonny, a Cambodian whose family fled but who returned as an adult to serve his homeland. Although he is a point of view character, Sonny is less fleshed-out, bouncing from gratitude for Emily’s help to sudden viciousness. Still, the novel is immersive, committed to capturing the texture of life amid striking historical detail.
Takeaway: A striking novel of an American supporting Cambodians in Phnom Penh in 1993.
Great for fans of: Rosemary Rawlins’s All My Silent Years and Vaddey Ratner’s In the Shadow of the Banyan.
Production grades
Cover: B
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A

Padgett expertly crafts a magical environment while simultaneously ensuring that the characters’ actions and motivations are rooted in reality. Frank shines as a kind and understanding friend and brother willing to do what it takes to help those he loves. Jon stands out as a troublemaker, however, underneath this exterior, he deeply cares for his friends and family and is silently struggling with his predictions of the future and feelings of loneliness. Readers will cheer on Frank and Jon as they navigate childhood and the fallout after a rare magical relic, The Guardian of Whispers, is stolen —and one of the brothers is framed for the theft.
This story is well thought out, engaging, and magical; this adventure, the magic system, and the characters are appealing and engaging, sure to spark joy in lovers of the genre. For people who want to enjoy a fascinating, fast paced narrative, The Guardian of Whispers is an ideal fantasy, polished and accomplished.
Takeaway: This standout middle-grade fantasy exemplifies its genre and will appeal to readers of all ages.
Great for fans of: Rick Riordan, TJ Klune’s The House in the Cerulean Sea.
Production grades
Cover: A-
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A
The screws tighten as, in tensely written scenes, her access to her friends and family is cut off and staff at the facility refuse to listen to her pleas that she’s sane. Oram convincingly dramatizes how the legal and medical system can be used to strip away autonomy, as Dusty takes advantage of his power of attorney and access to his mother’s money to live the high life. The material at times is harrowing but believable, especially as Oram shows how everyday people can find themselves abetting elder abuse, even perpetrating it. Rose begins to question her brother’s intentions, but is handicapped by a demanding boss and caring for her young son.
The Rose storyline offers a welcome chance at redemption, a human touch that also has the effect of somewhat diminishing the narrative momentum. Readers will be eager to get back to Jacklyn as she begins a series of escape attempts, with Oram generating suspense from a screwdriver, a security camera, and her clever performance of self. The specifics of the story are chilling, as is the broader message about the vulnerability of older Americans.
Takeaway: An older woman faces the fight of her life when everything is taken away from her—legally.
Great for fans of: Lisa Genova’s Still Alice, Emma Healey’s Elizabeth is Missing.
Production grades
Cover: A
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A
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