Merrill delivers a fast-paced romance thriller in the first of her Sundowners series (a spinoff from The Gifted series). Creed Lowell seemingly has it all—looks that could kill, poise, and an old soul that seems out of place in his young body—but that’s to be expected, given his status as a vampire. Below the surface he’s an enigma: fresh out of a lengthy self-enforced exile and with no family left alive, Creed’s hell bent on revenge from the cult leaders responsible for his condition, but while on the hunt for them he spends his time working as a nurse in Santa Cruz, drinking human blood only when he must in order to survive and using his supernatural powers to heal his patients.

Readers will be invested in Creed’s efforts to settle, and jolted when Santa Cruz is rocked with strange crimes and reports of victims being bitten by human attackers. While he’s wondering about the coincidences, he crosses paths with Roman—a psychology doctoral candidate recently returned to the city after his grandmother is placed in the very same assisted living facility where Creed works. Sparks fly between the two, and before long their whirlwind attraction morphs into something much bigger, leaving Creed to brood on how he’ll break the news of his true identity to Roman. But more than romance is on the horizon for Creed and Roman, as they’re caught up in a supernatural fight for power that threatens their love—and the world.

Paranormal romance lovers will relish Merrill’s blend of steamy action, while the undercurrent of good versus evil—and probing the true parameters of that concept—gives the novel welcome depth. Some dialogue suffers from the narrative’s brisk pace, but the appealing characters and steady energy more than make up for any hiccups. Readers will be disappointed when the ride is over and eager for the reunion.

Takeaway: An action-packed paranormal romance with welcome depth—and real bite.

Great for fans of: Joe Satoria’s Vampire Kisses, Ariana Nash’s Violent Desire.

Production grades
Cover: B
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A

Click here for more about Sundowners

Pronko returns with the fifth installment of his celebrated Detective Hiroshi Series, following Hiroshi Shimizu, the Tokyo detective with a deep dislike of working crime scenes. Despite his preferences, Hiroshi finds himself summoned in one night to two different murder scenes: in one, the CEO of Nine Dragons, one of Tokyo's wealth management firms, is found murdered in his office, while the second finds young mother Miyuki returning home to discover her mother murdered, her babysitter attacked, and both her young daughters gone. As Hiroshi is pulled into the mix, he’s determined to solve the crimes—and in the process uncovers a shocking connection between them.

Lovers of hard-boiled procedurals will relish Pronko’s interweaving of suspense and drama—Miyuki is certain that her husband, Patrick, who happens to be an employee of Nine Dragons, is involved in their daughters’ disappearance, as the couple are in the middle of a divorce that would leave him without even visitation rights. And Pronko, an American living in Tokyo for over 20 years, avoids the trap of many foreign writers by painting a realistic rather than exotic portrait of Japan. This Tokyo is, like any big city, a huge and crowded place, filled with different worlds coexisting next to each other, yet at the same time, it's a place where it's hard to disappear for long if a dogged sleuth is really searching. Pronko skillfully shifts between viewpoints, and despite his attention to well-established series relationships, readers who are new to Hiroshi's adventures will easily connect with the story.

Hiroshi and Patrick lead readers through the shoe-leather of police work—with all its inherent challenges and miscommunications—and Japan's unique economic and criminal world, topics that Pronko treats with depth and realism while still always making them engaging. Jolting bursts of violence and a consistent wit will keep the attention of even the most procedural readers.

Takeaway: A Tokyo police detective faces two murder scenes in one night in this gripping procedural.

Great for fans of: Nicolás Obregón’s Blue Light Yokohama, Sujata Massey’s The Salaryman's Wife.

Production grades
Cover: B
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: B-
Marketing copy: A

Click here for more about Azabu Getaway (Detective Hiroshi Series Book 5)

This incisive collection from Kauffman centers on the author’s talent for capturing, in just a few lines, the sweep and grain of a life, with rare empathy. Kauffman’s perceptive acuity is clear from the opening pages, as the collection kicks off with a heartbreaker of a portrait of a Georgia widower picking at his guitar, reflecting on how he came to be here, wondering what life has left for him after 74 years. The answer resounds in the stories that follow: connections. “Friends did all they could within their limitations,” Kauffman writes, one of the many small yet resonant truths that stud the collection. Sammy, the widower, “had never been much for church going” but finds what he needs in visits from a literal Good Samaritan, a volunteer from a Christian ministry who checks in on him.

The other stories read like check ins as well, Chekhovian dispatches from the heart and mind of entirely believable people facing hardships, feeling towards a bit of grace. In the Great Depression, aged sisters Mary and Ruby, who have lived together and tended each other for decades, discuss Buddhism, the past, and a piercing question: “Are you happy?” The milieu couldn’t be further removed from “Jack,” a penetrating story that opens with a Chicago CEO briefing a board of directors on how profitable it will be to exploit Nigerian workers, but both stories turn on loneliness and people’s responsibility to each other when Sobia, a Pakistani national, discovers a secret.

The stories range widely—a doctor interested in a race horse; an audit at a local Red Cross office; the proudly divorced exterminator who eats at Hardees every morning and has drunken visions of an East Indian woman. What binds Unaka is Kauffman’s almost reportorial dedication to these people’s experiences and circumstances. He pins lives to the page in direct, unadorned prose.

Takeaway: Quiet, incisive slice-of-life stories of rare empathy and directness.

Great for fans of: Breece D'J Pancake, Ron Rash’s Burning Bright.

Production grades
Cover: B
Design and typography: B
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A-
Marketing copy: B

Click here for more about Unaka

“Effective inclusion leadership needs to start at the top of the organization,” Cox notes in this illuminating business guide focused on effective inclusion leadership, which starts from a jolting truth: businesses and organizations that committed in recent years to DE&I are too often still not seeing serious progress—or happier employees. Drawing on her experiences as an executive coach and organizational psychologist, she introduces a three-step framework for effective inclusion that provides leaders with strategic solutions to ongoing racial disparities amongst employees in workplace environments. Pairing historical data with the shared experiences of peers and colleagues, Cox explains the root causes of race-based discrimination and social inequality, noting that many Americans still report that they’re just learning about their nation’s racial disparities.

The heart of the book is her “MBA” framework: Mindset, Boldness, and Action.Cox begins with a call to action for “those who have the power to change workplaces” to address their uncertainty around issues of race, take action, and be supportive. Divided into four main parts, the first section is a brief breakdown of U.S. history surrounding race, especially in regard to Black Americans. The next three sections are each dedicated to an aspect of Inclusion MBA. REDI (Respect, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion) principles are incorporated throughout the guide. Cox asserts that “to effectively lead all employees, leaders must practice REDI” and address systemic bias in the workplace.

An extensive REDI exercise helps readers pinpoint their conscious and unconscious beliefs about people of color and how to approach anxiety surrounding these issues, and a REDI Action plan begins with clarifying any current diversity issues. From colorism to sexism, this guide takes an unflinching look at every aspect of systemic bias and inclusion in the workplace. Prioritizing respect and awareness, Cox provides senior leadership teams with a detailed roadmap to effective inclusion and meaningful REDI progress.

Takeaway: A real-world leadership guide to effective inclusion and diversity in the workplace.

Great for fans of: Anthony Greenwald and Mahzarin R. Banaji’s Blindspot, Mary-Frances Winters’s We Can’t Talk About That at Work!

Production grades
Cover: A
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A

Click here for more about Leading Inclusion

“Welcome to the free world,” says Will Robin, the protagonist of this near-future dystopia, the first time he slices a microchip out of someone’s scalp. Soon, his patient, overwhelmed by a life in which her brain isn’t remotely medicated by the Cirrus megacorporation, collapses and weeps. In Raleigh’s inventive, liberation-minded thriller, the populace is jacked, through these microchips, into Aurora, a network originally touted for treating mental and neurological disorders. Will, though, suspects the worst, and the fact that an assassin’s targeting him and everyone he loves seems like confirmation: Cirrus “had the ability to use neural plasticity to reshape someone’s brain for profit and its own sinister purposes.”

That arresting setup kicks off a tense, polished thriller of revolutionary resistance and high-stakes chip removal as Will, a member of the Asheville, NC, chapter of the “Scalpels,” faces feds, killers, racists, and—in richly unpredictable scenes—an AI named Iris who can summon up artificial realities. She’s seemingly the product of a court-mandated Aurora implant, knows his Scalpel secret, and apparently has an agenda all her own. Raleigh intercuts this mysterious setup with characters facing their own engaging travails in a climate change-ravaged Arizona, where gangs work a black market for water.

Scenes of violence tend toward the wrenching. One unforgettable scene finds Aja tapping into Will’s fears: in a vision he can’t escape, Will, always aware his brown skin can get him into trouble from white men with power, sees himself bullwhipped by Confederate goons, passing out from the pain only to be awakened by his Aurora and forced to suffer again. Flower deftly blends contemporary fears with dark truths about the American past and its possible tragic future in a story with mysteries to burn, freedom at its heart, and serious depth of feeling.

Takeaway: This superior dystopian thriller takes on AI, climate change, and pressing issues of freedom.

Great for fans of: Omar El Akkad’s American War, Cory Doctorow.

Production grades
Cover: B-
Design and typography: A-
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A-
Marketing copy: A-

Click here for more about Welcome to the Free World: A Novel

“When is the thick skin required to live this life supposed to form?” asks Farkas in this pained yet inspiring debut, which follows her journey through the unexpected loss of two pivotal women in her life—her wife, Margaret, and her sister, Lexi. Farkas shares her grief through a collection of essays, poetry, and journal entries arranged in chronological order and detailing her transitions from shock and suicidal thoughts to her eventual “vow to go on living.” In the process she sweeps readers into the depths of her pain and carries them out the other side to healing and rebirth, offering a model for facing the hardest that life has to offer while finding meaning and purpose.

Always mindful of her connection to the Universe—and embodied with a deep sense of wonder at the world around her—Farkas writes with gentle poise, even in the darkest moments of her remembering. “Today, I emptied one jar. I undid your accumulation of insignificance, so significant to me,” she notes while trying to recreate life without Margaret, and, delving into the added pain of Margaret’s family’s bias towards her in the days following the funeral, she conveys “We were just Lesbians, Queer; our relationship didn’t really count.” That innate longing to stamp out bias powers the memoir as Farkas celebrates coming out on her 25th birthday and considers the pain of other minority groups.

Farkas offers much more to her readers than how to cope with grief, although she deposits soft reminders throughout the book for self-care and urges readers to fall back in love with experiences that create joy, whether that’s spiritual stirrings, learning new skills, or rediscovering movement. Farkas’s willingness to unveil her immense pain allows readers the privilege of free expression, and her unwavering self-empathy will inspire them to not just survive, but “come out strong and clear…even thrive.”

Takeaway: A moving meditation on love, loss, and rebirth.

Great for fans of: Ariel Levy’s The Rules Do Not Apply, Tanja Pajevic’s The Secret Life of Grief

Production grades
Cover: B-
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: B

Click here for more about Overcoming Deepest Grief, A Woman's Journey

Huijgens (Polar Bear and the UFO) celebrates the power of imagination in this whimsical story of Zuki, a young girl who wants “a fish more than she wanted anything else in the world.” When Zuki’s mother explains a pet fish is too expensive, Zuki takes it upon herself to craft a fish instead, tying a string to its mouth and running through her neighborhood with her very own flying fish. But when she accidentally lets go of the string, her fish takes off into the clouds, leaving a devastated Zuki behind to pick up the pieces.

Young readers will relish the dreamy landscape of this story and rejoice in Zuki’s journey from heartache to celebration. When her kindly neighbor, Mr. Humphries, notices her distress, he unwraps his telescope to help Zuki spot her fish in the nighttime sky, sparking an impromptu lesson on constellations—among which, he points out, “it would be easy for a fish to get lost.” When Zuki finally spots her fish floating by the Andromeda galaxy, and wonders if it will ever return, the wise Mr. Humphries reminds her of the power of positive thinking, prompting Zuki to name her fish Andromeda and to patiently wait for its reappearance.

Huijgens’s message to believe in your dreams won’t be lost on adult readers, and Watanabe’s wistful, kaleidoscope illustrations bolster that message with hints of texture and gorgeous imaginings: the night sky sparkles and glows across the pages, while different animals float high above Zuki and Mr. Humphries. It’s a pleasure to get lost in these pages. Ultimately, Zuki-and her fish-achieve their happy ending, one that Huijgens chooses to render with beautiful abstraction, in keeping with the book’s theme. Readers will find plenty of opportunities to exercise their own imaginations in this fanciful story, and the author includes a link at the end to Andromeda-inspired crafts online.

Takeaway: A young girl unleashes her imagination to find the pet of her dreams in this beautifully illustrated tale.

Great for fans of: Dan Santat’s The Adventures of Beekle: The Unimaginary Friend, Alice McLerran’s Roxaboxen.

Production grades
Cover: A
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: B

Click here for more about A Fish Called Andromeda

Blending biography, memoir, musical studies, and innovative storytelling techniques, Farmer invites readers into the world of the first-rate but little-known guitarist and songwriter Danny DeGennaro, exploring through DeGennaro’s life and music a turbulent era where genius can so often languish in obscurity, all while celebrating the pleasure of seeing “one of the best bands on earth play in a local bar for free.” Born in 1955, Danny DeGennaro was raised in Levittown at the infancy of suburban life in America. His supportive father, a member of the then-booming post-war industrial middle class, could provide the means to nurture his musical talent. “Perhaps no generation in American history had been born into such limitless-seeming promise,” Farmer writes, and throughout he ties that promise to DeGennaro’s own.

Through his adolescence, DeGennaro dazzled with his performances at casual gatherings and in bands, then won a devoted fandom after joining the band Kingfish in 1979. Farmer twines elements of memoir throughout this portrait, touchingly recounting first meeting DeGennaro as Farmer grieved his wife’s sudden death in 1993. First, he heard DeGennaro’s guitar, coming from a waterfront bar in New Hope, “a sound that is as sad as the world, as sad as everything you’ve lost, because it is also as beautiful.”

DeGennaro “inspired loyalty” among many, Farmer writes, and he offers deep dives into those relationships. The story of Farmer and DeGennaro come together again in a happier time in the author’s life nearly twenty years later, when he finds the guitarist having suffered both in health and career. Readers will cheer on DeGennaro in his battle for his sobriety to the bitter end, which comes too soon, with his murder in 2011. This elegiac, formally inventive work examines shifts in culture over a generation, plus changing views of war, the invasion of drugs, and always, no matter the circumstances, the life-affirming power of music.

Takeaway: This innovative biography and memoir celebrates a singular guitarist and his passing era.

Great for fans of: Jim Abbott’s Jackson C. Frank: The Clear, Hard Light of Genius, Steven Blush’s Lost Rockers.

Production grades
Cover: A
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: A-
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A

Click here for more about Way Too Fast: An American Reckoning

Hand’s upbeat debut memoir offers readers a story of an unpredictable, vibrant life threaded by a childhood dream kept alive for over five decades by one woman’s faith in herself. In 1963, when she first read Madeleine L'Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time as a middle-schooler, Hand dreamt of starring as the protagonist, Meg, in the film, describing the book as “a portal into a wondrous, mysterious universe that set [her] curiosity on fire.” Over fifty years later, Hand realized her dream as one of the two producers for the movie. Becoming a Warrior chronicles the switch-backed journey of Hand’s life over half a century, with an emphasis on the ups and downs of the dream she never abandoned.

Most people grow out of childhood dreams over time, but Hand’s ambitions matured with her—through all her years as a young Hollywood executive assistant, stay-at-home mom, radio producer, and political appointee under the Obama administration, Hand’s dream of bringing L'Engle’s beloved fantasy to the screen grew and shrunk in scope and plausibility, but she never let it go. Beyond an exacting account of what it takes to produce a blockbuster—from acquiring film rights to casting to working with Reese Witherspoon and Oprah Winfrey to post-production—and working as a woman in Hollywood in the 1970s and 1980s, Hand’s memoir is also a record of how she built an identity by pursuing her goals despite numerous professional obstacles and personal challenges.

Hand writes with positivity and grace, crediting much of her success to the mentors and friends she generously describes in her memoir, particularly L’Engle, and her first boss, Norman Lear. Film industry enthusiasts, A Wrinkle in Time fans, and those interested in the painstaking process of making a big-budget film in Hollywood will delight in Hand’s accessible storytelling and the rewarding tale of a dream coming to fruition.

Takeaway: The inspiring story of one woman’s dream to make a movie from Madeleine L'Engle’s classic novel.

Great for fans of: Naomi McDougall Jones’s The Wrong Kind of Women, Christina Lane’s Phantom Lady.

Production grades
Cover: A
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A-
Marketing copy: A

Click here for more about Becoming a Warrior

Wilde’s polished debut, a dishy gothic fantasy page-turner, grabs from the start with sharp prose, weird magic, cutting remarks, a frank and buoyant sex-positive outlook, and a creepily enticing summoning ritual certain to lead to unexpected consequences. Set in a hothouse magic school where horned-up students enjoy public sex, discussing their professors’ endowment, and competing in a high-stakes campus-wide Game, House of Pain centers on Alecto, a half-witch of less power than the purebloods and legacies surrounding her at Venefica Academy, where she’s a second year student in the Inner Circle of the House of Snakes, taking classes like “History of the Sexuality of Witches” and being targeted for humiliation by handsome blackguards like Blaze.

This inventive school, alive with engaging students and rampant talk of sex and blood magic, will delight readers looking for a boldy uncensored take on fantasy mainstay while likely singeing the ears of readers who aren’t. To secure an advantage against the other houses in the Game, the Snakes witches perform a summoning ritual, calling forth what they hope will be a gorgeous “guardian” free of the character flaws of the likes of Blaze. It’s a laugh-out-loud moment, then, several chapters later, when an impossibly alluring newcomer turns up in one of Alecto’s classes. His name: Rogue Smolder. He’s a demon—and he’s Alecto’s new study partner.

Sexy, funny, fast-paced, and committed to jolting genre expectations, this first book in Wilde’s projected trilogy is decidedly not for everyone, but readers on its wavelength will savor it and impatiently wait for more. For all the adult and even satirical elements, the story itself—especially a surprising slow burn romance—is heartfelt and exciting, and Wilde proves deft at plotting out twists, reversals, betrayals, and revelations that honor the beloved magic and prep school stories that House of Pain both celebrates and interrogates. There’s detentions, memory orbs, and forces beyond everyone’s control—including lust.

Takeaway:This dishy, sex-positive magic school fantasy/romance will dazzle the readers on its wavelength.

Great for fans of: Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti’s Zodiac Academy series, Leigh Bardugo’s Ninth House.

Production grades
Cover: A
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A

Click here for more about House of Pain

Feminist business coach Roach Lewis’ debut offers readers a pathway to entrepreneurial success that deviates from what she identifies as a patriarchal, militaristic, Sun Tzu-quoting methodology that has dominated the field of business coaching since its inception. This alternate path is built on six “she rules” that offer readers strategies to expand their revenues and engineer a lifestyle for continued personal and professional growth. Citing substantial research and drawing on conversations with other successful women in business and her own career, Roach Lewis posits that “gender equality can solve all of the world’s problems,” and one of the best ways to bring about that equality is by “empower[ing] women to [...] make more money.”

Roach Lewis’ approach isn’t new. Readers will find many of her “she rules” familiar, including No.3 “Be Willing to Adapt and Calibrate,” and No. 4 “Attitude Is Everything.” The value in Roach Lewis’ guide stems from her contextualizing of these ideas into a feminist business framework that positions awareness, inclusivity, and empathy as assets required for a thriving entrepreneur. She declares that “military business strategy doesn’t serve anyone anymore” and that business owners’ time is better used learning how to be vulnerable in their leadership and to create harmony between work and home life through the use of boundaries. Roach Lewis assures readers that by following these rules, they will learn to “relax into their zone of genius” and “embrace all [their] dimensions.”

Roach Lewis does acknowledge her racial and socioeconomic privilege, but there are times when the guide lacks suggestions for people who do not have access to the same resources as Roach Lewis does. Beyond that omission, there is ample material within her rulebook for any entrepreneur, whether they’re in the start-up stage or a seasoned CEO, who wants a fresh, feminist perspective on business growth and the future of entrepreneurship.

Takeaway: A women-centered rule book for entrepreneurs seeking business growth via feminist business strategy.

Great for fans of: Rachel Rodgers’s We Should All Be Millionaires, Brené Brown's Dare to Lead, Kim Scott’s Radical Candor.

Production grades
Cover: B+
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: B+
Marketing copy: A

Click here for more about She Rules

Peterson’s debut courageously confronts the sexist, pervasive, double-standard-driven lie plaguing women in college: that if you appear effortlessly perfect to others, you will be rewarded with happiness. Drawing on interviews from women college undergraduates, extensive research ranging from Instagram posts to the history of feminist theory, and her own experience as a Duke alumnus, Peterson dissects how “the Myth’s promise [is] empty” and argues that choosing to believe in and to strive toward the appearance of Effortless Perfection “is to choose a default option devoid of substance” that can result in dangerous outcomes—not the least of which is neglecting to think independently.

Peterson’s analysis is ambitious in its attempt to flesh out how young women are manipulated by this ideal of perfection, covering their “relationship with self-esteem, confidence, assertiveness, body image, hookup culture, belonging, and mental health” in meticulous detail, alongside the psychological and physiological effects of adhering to “the Myth.” Crucially, Peterson includes perspectives from Black and LGBTQIA+ students, as well as those belonging to other historically underrepresented groups, to expose the Myth’s ubiquitous presence in the lives of undergraduate women. Although the statistics paint a bleak picture of the aftereffects of perfectionism, this playbook does offer hope: Peterson is confident that raising awareness of how the Myth functions can transform students’ worldviews toward one of “individualized agency and empowerment”— ultimately a move away from the expectations of patriarchal society.

Among the strongest advice are suggestions addressing mental health issues and on how to use counter-narratives to the Myth to develop an identity based in authenticity. Though Peterson positions her guide as useful for “today’s generation of college students,” some readers may find its length intimidating; with that said, readers willing to dive deep into its inner workings will come away with the tools and wisdom essential to pursuing the college experience with clear eyes and a balanced, healthy approach.

Takeaway: An illuminating, in-depth analysis of the ideal of “perfectionism” for young women in college.

Great for fans of: Paul Dolan’s Happy Ever After, Rebecca Traister’s All the Single Ladies.

Production grades
Cover: A-
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: B+
Marketing copy: A

Click here for more about The Effortless Perfection Myth

Nixon’s journey around the globe begins at the Comfort Inn in Norfolk, VA, where he worked after high school and where “the world first came to [him]. Meeting thousands of guests from far-flung locales stirred in him the feeling that “everyone's experiences and purpose overshadowed what I was doing.” So, encouraged to abandon his comfort zone, he took on a study abroad program in the Dominican Republic which catapulted the next decade of his life around the world. Nixon recounts joining the Peace Corps after college, being stationed in Paraguay, and finding a job in Nicaragua planning school trips, and finally joining the Navy, where he was stationed in Japan and traveled around the greater part of southeast Asia.

His travel stories range from hilarious, such as being accidentally poisoned by ingesting a venomous scorpion, to heartwarming, such as inspiring a group of kids in Paraguay to place in national business competitions. Around the world, he was often the only Black man in the room–at times, perhaps, the only one in some cities, a reality that Nixon discusses with frank insight and wit, as when he describes being routinely asked about American celebrities :“Had I been related to The Fresh Prince, my black ass would’ve been trying to get a role in a movie instead of passing out surveys in rural Paraguay.”

The stories jump around some within a general chronological structure, but the path to Nixon finding his true passion never wavers. Each new city scratched off the map offers an opportunity for growth that makes it clear how he grew from a desk clerk dreaming about the world to a seasoned globetrotter savvy about work visas and how to ride an elephant. The vivid descriptions and accounts of engaging conversations will encourage readers to leave behind their comfort zone and leave them wanting to explore everything the world has to offer.

Takeaway: Nixon’s eclectic mix of trave; stories will inspire dreams of exploring the cultures of the world.

Great for fans of: Torre DeRoche’s Love With a Chance of Drowning, Cheryl Strayed’s Wild.

Production grades
Cover: A
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: B

Click here for more about Life Travel And The People In Between

Otte, author of the Failstate series among other titles, swings big with this science-fantasy epic of resistance, a false utopia, oppressed beliefs, and a touch of royal romance. Everys, a secret “scribbler” of forbidden magic runes, still holds faith in the Singularity, the god of the Siporans, Everys’s people, though she feels “He” has allowed the Siporans “to rot for four hundred years” under the oppressive rule of the Dynasty. Fate upends her life—and the future of her people and the Dynasty itself—when, in the aftermath of an apparent terrorist bombing, Everys is taken into custody by Dynasty troops and then quite unexpectedly wed to the king.

The sprawling story that follows turns on faith, surprise alliances, suppressed histories, secret magic and high tech programs, and affecting “talk of destiny and purpose” as Everys—note the name’s similarity to the biblical Esther—must find a way to save her people while helping King Narius navigate the many dangers facing the Dynasty. As the new queen she must deal with the mystery of the fate of her predecessor, the seemingly transactional nature of her relationship with Narius, plus the politics, intrigue, and assassination attempts facing the royalty of any empire that rules through force, all as she faces serious questions of allegiance to a seemingly defeated god. That fascinating element gives Otte’s narrative power, and the details of Everys’s rune writing—and her people’s enduring faith—prove resonant.

The wealth of themes, characters, crises, and intriguing connections to the story of Esther means that, despite brisk scenecraft, the length is epic, with much to keep track of—the story can feel dense when it covers scheming and geopolitics. Still, Otte has created a compelling protagonist whose relationships with both her god and her husband prove rich and rewarding. Seasoned fans of dystopian adventures, especially with underpinnings of biblical allegory, will find much to savor here.

Takeaway: An unexpected queen must save her people, her empire, and her faith in this dystopian epic.

Great for fans of: Jill Williamson’s Kinsman Chronicles, Karen Hancock’s Legends of the Guardian-King series.

Production grades
Cover: A
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: B+
Marketing copy: A

Click here for more about Drawn in Ash

In this love letter to his late wife, Tsesis (Communist Daze: The Many Misadventures of a Soviet Doctor) tracks the course of his beloved Marina’s fifteen years of living with cancer, detailing the choices and caregivers the couple faced, celebrating the relationship they shared, and paying touching tribute to her vibrant, lively self—her Holocaust research, active social life, and tendency to be “a tigress protecting her cubs.” A doctor himself, Tsesis depicts with welcome clarity the different treatments she endured, and the many side effects of those treatments, as well as the level of care she received from many doctors, surgeons, and nurses, up through her last days in hospice care, where the staff “did not hide that they were spiritually satisfied with their mission.”

While the love between the couple shines through, and the book will likely move readers to tears, one of the most interesting aspects of Tsesis’s memoir is the depiction of U.S. healthcare. Tsesis compares the US Healthcare system to that of the USSR, where he practiced in his early career as a pediatrician. While the US healthcare system is not without its faults, Tsesis compares it favorably to what he found in the eastern bloc. Tsesis’s descriptions of each course of treatment, and the side effects of each treatment, are clear and concise.

“Despite all my education and my skeptic mind, a part of me believed in miracles, and I sincerely believed that Marina would escape the premature tragic outcome from her menacing disease,” Tsesis writes. But he knows not to offer readers false hope, instead offering a clear-eyed account, with a doctor’s perceptive eye, of Marina’s remarkable strength and resilience—and what she meant to so many. The narrative momentum at times slows for detailed descriptions, and readers might wish the main narrative addressed grief and loss more thoroughly, as the epilogue presenting ten principles that helped Tsesis in the aftermath will leave readers wanting more.

Takeaway: A doctor’s tender, life-affirming account of his late wife’s long years facing cancer.

Great for fans of: Paul Kalanithi’s When Breath Becomes Air, Sherrell D. Mims’s I Will Wait Until Morning.

Production grades
Cover: B
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A-
Marketing copy: A-

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Constantin opens her In-Between series—which explores the afterlife and what matters most in this existence—with the story of Eva, a journalist returning from an assignment when her plane crashes, landing her in a coma and sending her soul to the In-Between, an enigmatic place between life and death for people not yet ready to leave their earthly lives. When she wakes up to a warm, intensely white light after the crash, Eva is dismayed to learn that her soul has been “suspended.” She now faces a choice: return to Earth or continue her otherworldly journey to a place where she will wait to be reincarnated. But if she chooses to move on, what will happen to her young son, Luke?

Eva’s contemplative journey, though painful at times, will resonate with readers wondering about their own purpose. As she struggles to make sense of her surroundings, Eva’s In-Between guide, Thomas, and new friend, Annabel, try to answer her questions without influencing her ultimate choice. In the process, Eva comes to grips with having spent her life avoiding uncomfortable emotions and working too hard to please others, learning from “The Master” of the In-Between that “When a challenge is great, we must look into our hearts. That is always where the answer lies.” But Eva is certain her heart lies with her son, and the overwhelming pull of motherhood beckons until the very end, when she makes an unexpected and somewhat shocking decision that results in unforeseen consequences for Eva and all she holds dear.

This is a weighty story, despite some welcome comic relief (Eva’s In-Between room comes packed with her favorite fashion accessories, and there’s even a bar in the sky with an endless drink selection). But Constantin’s message is one of uplifting hope: in the end, being true to yourself is what’s most important. Readers of inspirational metaphysical fiction will leave the story eager for the next installment.

Takeaway: Facing impossible choices in the afterlife, a mother discovers what’s most important.

Great for fans of: Michael Poore’s Reincarnation Blues, Lauren Oliver’s Before I Fall.

Production grades
Cover: B+
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A-
Marketing copy: B

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