It might not feel like it (physically and emotionally) but Spring has officially started this week! And you may be looking to read something to take your mind off of whatever world we are in right now. Lucky for you, I highlighted upcoming Spring releases that will put a “spring” in your step as the weather starts getting warmer.
So make sure you have your favorite bookstore and local library on standby! When you read more about these spotlighted books, you will rush to pre-order or place hold with your library card right away:
Late March Releases
Bad Manners by Amy Beashel
Expected Publication Date: March 27
Would it kill you to smile, darling? Perhaps…
A men-only charity dinner. A clutch of young waitresses.
The jokes are uncomfortable. The hands linger. The collars loosen.
Behind closed doors, the wine flows.
The night is dark. The faces blur. The memories warp.
Behind closed doors, the money flows.
But revenge is sweet and justice is a burning flame.
Behind closed doors, the blood flows…
A fierce and addictive read about lust and power, the love we want versus the love we take, and the tinderbox secrets that hide so well in the heart of families, this is the searing new novel from the author of Spilt Milk. (Credit: HarperCollins)
A Wager at Midnight by Vanessa Riley
Expected Publication Date: March 25
Scarlett Wilcox is willing to live out her life as a spinster if it means being able to continue her medical research to help a friend in need. After all, few husbands would tolerate her dressing as a man to attend lectures at the Royal Academy of Science. If the Duke of Torrance finds her such a specimen, she’ll agree to a marriage in name only, much to the dismay of her elder sister, the Viscountess.
When she’s unmasked at a lecture on ophthalmology, Scarlett prepares to be disgraced, but she’s saved by Trinidadian-born physician Stephen Carew who claims her as a cousin. Dedicated to caring for his community, Stephen has no wish to marry a frivolous and privileged lady, no matter how many fall for his disarming accent and seductive charm. But Scarlett proves the opposite of any he’s ever met before. Yet the pressure to marry blinds them both to the chemistry growing between them, pitting their brilliant minds against their reluctant hearts—as the Duke and Viscountess await with bated breath to see who will win . . . A WAGER AT MIDNIGHT. (Credit: Zebra)
Miss Austen Investigates by Jessica Bull
Expected Publication Date: March 25
A witty, engaging murder mystery featuring Jane Austen as an intrepid sleuth–the second installment in the Miss Austen Investigates series.
1797: A broken-hearted Jane Austen travels to Kent to look after her brother Neddy’s children and further her writing. She soon realizes it’s imperative she uncovers the true identity of a mysterious young woman claiming to be a shipwrecked foreign princess before the interloper can swindle Neddy’s adoptive mother out of her fortune and steal the much-anticipated inheritance all the Austens rely on. (Credit: Union Square & Co.)
April Releases
The Pay Back Girls by Alex Travis
Expected Publication Date: April 1
His first mistake was underestimating them.
Senior year is going to be perfect. Meghan won’t settle for anything less. She’s already crushing her classes and dating the star of the basketball team. Nate’s friends have been less than welcoming, but it’s never easy being one of the only Black kids at a mostly white prep school. Still, Meghan did not expect the scene at pep rally.
Robin and Bria dated Nate too. Correction: are dating him. He never broke up with them, and Meghan is furious.
When Nate is found bloodied and unconscious in the locker room after the big game, suddenly the three teens are prime suspects–and a tenuous alliance may be the only way to clear their names. Except Meghan doesn’t remember everything that happened that night, and she’s starting to have feelings for one of the exes. One thing is for sure: the more clues they uncover, the more Meghan, Bria, and Robin each look responsible…(Credit: Sourcebooks Fire)
This Song Is About Us by Sara Barnard
Expected Publication Date: April 3
Told over three summer festivals, this stunning novel from a bestselling author charts the emotional turmoil of young love and early fame.
The Kerbs are a four-piece pop rock band on the verge of breaking big the moment that frontman, Drew, turns 18. But Drew and his long-term girlfriend Ruby have a decision to make: go public right from the start or keep their relationship private, away from the intrusive lens of the tabloids and the scrutiny of the Kerbs’ fanbase. The choice seems easy. Ruby wants her life to remain her own – she’s seen how fame can devour the lives of those who stand in the periphery.
But staying secret comes with a price. As Drew’s star rises and rumours begin to stir, Ruby starts to wonder if love is strong enough to keep them together when Drew’s fame seems destined to drive them apart. (Credit: Walker Books)
Burn After Reading by Catherine Ryan Howard
Expected Publication Date: April 10
The night Jack Smyth ran into flames in a desperate attempt to save his wife from their burning home, he was, tragically, too late – but hailed a hero. Until it emerged that Kate was dead long before the fire began.
Suspicion has stalked him ever since. After all, there’s no smoke without fire.
A year on, he’s signed a book deal. He wants to tell his side of the story, to prove his own innocence in print. He just needs someone to help him write it.
Emily has never ghostwritten anything before, but she knows what it’s like to live with a guilty secret. And she’s about to learn that there are some stories that should never be told . . . (Credit: Transworld Publishers)
- The Big Ask by Simon James Green (Expected Publication Date: April 1)
- Swept Away by Beth O’Leary (Expected Publication Date: April 1)
- Fair Play by Louise Hegarty (Expected Publication Date: April 22)
- The Horizon Experiment (Expected Publication Date: April 29)
- Bibliotherapy in the Bronx by Emely Rumble, LCSW (Expected Publication Date: April 29)
- Gold Coast Dilemma by Nana Malone (Expected Publication Date: April 29)
Brielle and Bear: Volume 1 by Salomey oku
Expected Publication Date: April 22
Once upon a time, Brielle met Bear. And then they fell in love.
But that’s just the beginning. Fairytales have a way of twisting and swirling before you get to “happily ever after.” And though modern-day Once Upon a Time University first-year, Brielle, is a dreamer, always with her nose in a book, her imagination can’t help but run wild with potential romance.
To her, Bear is perfect. . . until Brielle discovers a secret he’s been hiding for a long time that just might shatter their fairytale love. . . . (Credit: Random House Graphic)
The Girl with the Red Boots by Alex Wheatle
Expected Publication Date: April 24
Fourteen-year-old aspiring footballer Kadeen Best is sent to stay with her Aunt Mel in London after her beloved older brother is tragically killed and she identifies the shooter – a dangerous crime lord.
She must carry her grief while adjusting to her new home – away from everything she knows and loves in Jamaica – and living with her strict aunt. Kadeen must lie low, as if she’s recognised, she’ll put them both in serious danger.
Desperate for a distraction, Kadeen practises football in the local park where she’s asked to try out for a girls’ team. Kadeen thinks her aunt won’t approve, so she keeps it secret, and finds herself part of a new family: the SW2s.
But when Aunt Mel finds out, she is furious and bans Kadeen from playing. Can she convince her aunt to let her play her way to the top with the SW2s and avoid attracting the crime lord’s attention? (Credit: Hachette Children’s Group)
A Year of Pride and Joy: 52 LGBTQ+ Voices Share Their Life Passions curated by Simon James Green and illustrated by Ruth Burrows
An uplifting anthology of joyful contributions from 52 contemporary LGBTQ+ voices, including BAFTA-winning actor Miriam Margolyes, Olympic gold medallist Tom Daley and NHS paediatrician and TV presenter Dr Ranj Singh.
- Discover the joy of old films with actor Stephen Fry, then find out what his favourite films are
- Find the joy of magic with magician Nathan Jones, then learn his vanishing coin magic trick
- Experience the joy of drawing comics with cartoonist Lewis Hancox, then learn how to draw your own comic strip
- Read about the joy of dancing with TV presenter Dr Ranj Singh, then discover six dazzling dance moves from the Strictly floor
- Learn about the joy of swimming with actor Emma D’Arcy, then read her guide to swimming in different ways on different days
Whether you read an entry a week, or dip into it whenever you are feeling in need of joy, this is a book to treasure all year round.
A donation to Stonewall will be made for every copy sold. Stonewall is a charity who promote equality and human rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans people. (Credit: Magic Cat Publishing)
Emily Knight…I Am Power by A. Bello
Expected Publication Date: April 28
As the chosen one to battle the powerful Neci, the stake of the warrior world is on Emily’s shoulders but with family betrayals and super powers being stolen, everything is falling apart. Can Emily rise above it all and defeat her toughest opponent? Will she live up to the expectations of being number one? Win or lose – this is the final battle.(Credit: Hashtag Press)
May Releases
Austen At Sea by Natalie Jenner
Expected Publication Date: May 6
In Boston, 1865, Charlotte and Henrietta Stevenson, daughters of a Massachusetts Supreme Court Justice, have accomplished as much as women are allowed in those days. Chafing against those restrictions and inspired by the works of Jane Austen, they start a secret correspondence with Sir Francis Austen, her last surviving brother, now in his nineties. He sends them an original letter from his sister and invites them to come visit him in England.
In Philadelphia, Nicholas & Haslett Nelson—bachelor brothers, veterans of the recent Civil War, and rare book dealers—are also in correspondence with Sir Francis Austen, who lures them, too, to England, with the promise of a never-before-seen, rare Austen artifact to be evaluated.
The Stevenson sisters sneak away without a chaperone to sail to England. On their ship are the Nelson brothers, writer Louisa May Alcott, Sara-Beth Gleason—wealthy daughter of a Pennsylvania state senator with her eye on the Nelsons—and, a would-be last-minute chaperone to the Stevenson sisters, Justice Thomas Nash.
It’s a voyage and trip that will dramatically change each of their lives in ways that are unforeseen, with the transformative spirit of the love of literature and that of Jane Austen herself. (Credit: St. Martin’s Press)
I Can’t Even Think Straight by Dean Atta
Expected Publication Date: May 6
Kai knows who he is to others: The good grandson, the reliable best friend, the romantic backup. But he doesn’t quite know who he is to himself.
Kai wants to come out at school, but his best friend there, Matt, stays closeted for fear of getting kicked out by his conservative parents—and wants Kai to do the same. Kai unhappily agrees, but when a rumor goes around that Kai and Matt are dating, Matt starts acting differently anyway.
Kai’s other best friend, Vass, is proudly nonbinary and thinks Matt is a negative influence—though maybe that’s just their crush on Kai talking. Kai has always turned to writing to express his emotions, but when his on-page emotions erupt into the real world, he might just be putting the delicate balance of his life at risk.
Told with Dean Atta’s signature lyricism and candor, this deeply feeling story explores the complexities of crushes, navigating identity, and coming out. (Credit: Quill Tree Books)
It Should Have Been You by Andrea Mara
Expected Publication Date: May 8
Look what you started.
You press send and your message disappears. Full of secrets about your neighbours, it’s meant for your sister. But it doesn’t reach her – it goes to the entire local community WhatsApp group instead.
Now everyone knows what you did.
As rumour spreads like wildfire through the picture-perfect neighbourhood, you convince yourself that people will move on, that this will quickly be forgotten. But then you receive the first death threat.
And someone wants you dead.
The next day, a woman has been murdered. And what’s even more chilling is that she had the same address as you – 26 Oakpark – but in a different part of town. Did the killer get the wrong house? It won’t be long before you find out… (Credit: Transworld Publishers)
Heartbreaker by Anika Hussain
Expected Publication Date: May 8
HE BROKE HER BEST FRIEND’S HEART. NOW SAACHI PLANS TO BREAK HIS.
MAY THE BEST HEARTBREAKER WIN . . .
Saachi would do anything for her best friend. So when school bad boy Fahim breaks Mona’s heart, Saachi is hellbent on getting revenge. It’s time to put him in his place once and for all.
And so begins Operation Heartbreaker: Saachi will make Fahim fall in love with her and then pull the plug on him – just like he does to every girl he’s ever dated. Simple.
Except as she spends more time with Fahim, against her better judgement, she finds herself falling for him. Unable to talk to Mona about her mixed emotions, and with the mission veering dangerously off course, Saachi will have to embrace her role as a heartbreaker or potentially end up with her own heart broken . . . (Credit: Hot Key Books)
Can’t Get Enough by Kennedy Ryan
Expected Publication Date: May 13
Hendrix Barry lives a fabulous life. She has phenomenal friends, a loving family, and a thriving business that places her in the entertainment industry’s rarefied air. Your vision board? She’s probably living it.
She’s a woman with goals, dreams, ambitions–always striving upward. And in the midst of everything, she’s facing her toughest challenge yet: caring for an aging parent. Who has time for romance? From her experience, there’s a low ROI on relationships. Anyway, she hasn’t met the man who can keep up with her. Until…him.
Tech mogul Maverick Bell is a dilemma wrapped in an exquisitely tailored suit and knee-melting charm. From their first charged glance at the summer’s hottest party, Hendrix feels like she’s met her match. Only he can’t be. Mav may be the first to make her feel this seen and desired, but he’s the last one she can have. Forbidden fruit is the juiciest, and this man is off limits if she plans to stay the course she’s set for herself.
But when Maverick gives chase–pursuing her, spoiling her, understanding her–is it time to let herself have something more? (Credit: Forever)
The AI Con: How to Fight Big Tech’s Hype and Create the Future We Want by Alex Hanna and Emily M. Bender
Expected Publication Date: May 13
Is artificial intelligence going to take over the world? Have big tech scientists created an artificial lifeform that can think on its own? Is it going to put authors, artists, and others out of business? Are we about to enter an age where computers are better than humans at everything?
The answer to these questions, linguist Emily M. Bender and sociologist Alex Hanna make clear, is “no,” “they wish,” “LOL,” and “definitely not.” This kind of thinking is a symptom of a phenomenon known as “AI hype.” Hype looks and smells fishy: It twists words and helps the rich get richer by justifying data theft, motivating surveillance capitalism, and devaluing human creativity in order to replace meaningful work with jobs that treat people like machines. In The AI Con, Bender and Hanna offer a sharp, witty, and wide-ranging take-down of AI hype across its many forms.
Bender and Hanna show you how to spot AI hype, how to deconstruct it, and how to expose the power grabs it aims to hide. Armed with these tools, you will be prepared to push back against AI hype at work, as a consumer in the marketplace, as a skeptical newsreader, and as a citizen holding policymakers to account. Together, Bender and Hanna expose AI hype for what it is: a mask for Big Tech’s drive for profit, with little concern for who it affects. (Credit: Harper)
The New Age of Sexism: How the AI Revolution To Reinventing Misogyny by Laura Bates
Expected Publication Date: May 15
Step into a world where…
Little girls dressed up as women dance for an audience of adult men. A pornographic deepfake image or video of you exists on the internet and you just don’t know it yet. Men create ‘perfect’ AI girlfriends who live in their pocket – customised to every last detail, from breast size to eye colour and personality, only lacking the ability to say no.
This isn’t an image of the future. Sex robots, chatbots and the metaverse are here and spreading fast. A new wave of AI-powered technologies, with misogyny baked into their design, is putting women everywhere in danger.
In The New Age of Sexism, Sunday Times bestselling author and campaigner Laura Bates takes the reader deep into the heart of this strange new world. She travels to cyber brothels and visits schools gripped by an epidemic of online sexual abuse, showing how every aspect of our lives – from education to work, sex to entertainment – is being infiltrated by ever-evolving technologies that are changing the way we live and love forever. This rising tide, despite all its potential for good, is a wild west where women’s rights and safety are being sacrificed at the altar of profitability.
Gripping and eye-opening, The New Age of Sexism exposes a phenomenon we can’t afford to ignore any longer. Our future is on the line. We need to act now, before it is too late..(Credit: Simon & Schuster)
Making A Killing by Cara Hunter
Expected Publication Date: May 20
When Nick Vincent, producer of true-crime show Infamous, hears about an explosive new angle on a high-profile case—the 2016 murder of an eight-year-old girl in Oxford—he leaps at the chance to send a researcher to verify the claims.
Two months later, a dog walker discovers a woman’s body, bound and buried in a shallow grave in the woods. Forensic evidence links the corpse to the disappearance of that same child.
DCI Adam Fawley, the original investigating officer, is called in to run the enquiry. And he remembers the case well—he arrested the child’s mother for murder. A murder he now knows she didn’t commit.
The investigation raises more questions than answers. What connects the two crimes? Where has the dead girl been all these years? How did she manage to disappear? For Adam Fawley, this is personal…(Credit: William Morrow Paperbacks)
June Releases
Skipshock by Caroline O’Donoghue
Expected Publication Date: June 3
Margo is a troubled schoolgirl. After the death of her father, she’s on her way to a new boarding school in a new city.
Moon is a salesman. He makes his living traveling through a series of interconnected worlds on a network of barely used train lines.
They never should have met. But when Margo suddenly appears one day on Moon’s train, their fates become inextricably linked. If Margo wants to survive, she has to pass as a traveling salesman, too—except it’s not that easy.
Move north on the train line and time speeds up, a day passing in mere hours. Move south and time slows down—a day can last several weeks. Slow worlds are the richest ones: you live longer, your youth lasting decades. Fast worlds are sharp, cruel, and don’t have time for pleasantries. Death is frequent. Salesmen die young of skipshock. That is, if they’re not shot down by the Southern Guard first.
As Margo moves between worlds and her attachment to Moon intensifies, she feels her youth start to slip between her fingers. But is Moon everything he seems? Is Margo?
Told through the eyes of both naive Margo and desperate Moon, the unforgettable realm of Skipshock will shake the way you think about love, time, and the fabric of the universe. The first in a planned duology from the best-selling author of the Gifts series, this utterly original epic is a must-read.(Credit: Walker Books US)
The Ghostwriter by Julie Clark
Expected Publication Date: June 3
June, 1975.
The Taylor family shatters in a single night when two teenage siblings are found dead in their own home. The only surviving sibling, Vincent, never shakes the whispers and accusations that he was the one who killed them. Decades later, the legend only grows as his career as a horror writer skyrockets.
Ghostwriter Olivia Dumont has spent her entire professional life hiding the fact that she is the only child of Vincent Taylor. Now on the brink of financial ruin, she’s offered a job to ghostwrite her father’s last book. What she doesn’t know, though, is that this project is another one of his lies. Because it’s not another horror novel he wants her to write.
After fifty years of silence, Vincent Taylor is finally ready to talk about what really happened that night in 1975.(Credit: Sourcebooks Landmark)
A Box Full of Murders by Janice Hallett
Expected Publication Date: June 5
When siblings Ava and Luke discover a mysterious notebook in their dad’s attic they are instantly intrigued. And, as they read through letters, diary entries, newspaper cuttings and notarised secret recordings, they realise that a decades-old, still unsolved, murder case is unfolding right in front of them . . .
Determined to discover what really happened, Ava and Luke turn detective to try and crack the case. But soon they realise that the killer might still be out there – and might be closer than they think…
YOU know the facts. YOU have all the clues. Can YOU solve the mystery before they do? (Credit: Penguin Random House UK)
Run Away With Me by J.L. Simmonds
Expected Publication Date: June 5
Two teenage runaways. One vintage Mustang. A life-changing road trip. So strap in, because this is going to be one hell of a ride.
Jessie ‘Mouse’ Swift needs to get the hell out of Seattle. A few days ago she admitted to wanting her abusive stepfather dead, only to come home and find his murdered body. So when a girl from school offers Jessie a ride in her vintage red Mustang, they embark on an unexpected road trip across America.
Brooke Summer is everything Jessie isn’t: popular, confident, wealthy and heart-stoppingly beautiful, and Jessie has been in love with her from afar for years. But Brooke is hiding her own secrets . . .
With the cops and other sinister figures on their tail, how long can Jessie and Brooke stay on the run before they’re caught? And as their friendship blossoms into something more, can they find a future worth running to together? (Credit: Penguin Random House Children’s UK)
A Most Puzzling Murder by Bianca Marais
Expected Publication Date: June 10
How do you solve a murder that hasn’t happened yet?
Destiny Whip is a former child prodigy, world-renowned enigmatologist and very, very alone. A life filled with loss has made her a recluse, an existence she’s content to endure until a letter arrives inviting her to interview for the position of Scruffmore family historian. Not only does an internet search for the name yield almost nothing, it’s a role she never applied to in the first place!
She decodes the invitation’s hidden message with ease, and its promise to reveal her family secrets proves too powerful a draw for the orphaned Destiny, who soon finds herself on Eerie Island. It’s a place whose inhabitants are almost as inhospitable as the tempestuous weather. The Scruffmores themselves turn out to be not much better, a snarled mess of secrets and motives connected by their mistrust for one another.
Their newly arrived guest proves to be just as much an enigma to them as they are to her. While Destiny slowly works to unravel the mysteries hidden throughout the ominous castle, she struggles to interpret disturbing nightly visions of what is to come. In the midst of cryptic ciphers, hidden passages, and the family’s magical line of succession, Destiny is certain of two things: one of the Scruffmores is going to die and she’s running out of time to stop it. (Credit: Mira Books)
The Ghosts of Gwendolyn Montgomery by Clarence A. Haynes
Expected Publication Date: June 17
To be a client of Gwendolyn Montgomery’s–New York’s most powerful publicist at Sublime Media–is to be infused with a certain oomph, a mysterious glamour. She seems to have created the ideal life with her handsome new boyfriend, the perfect match. But Gwendolyn has a secret: She’s a mystical practitioner who can tap into the interdimensional, metaphysical realm of the dead known as El Intermedio. Gwendolyn has hidden her powers, buried her old life, and started anew. After a grisly, bizarre incident at the Brooklyn Museum, Gwendolyn begins to realize that something nefarious is happening tied directly to her past, right as Fonsi Harewood comes back into her world.
Fonsi is a queer Latinx psychic from the South Bronx who’s caught up in a love triangle with a ghost and his mortal ex. He’s able to communicate with the dead, having established a robust business interpreting messages from departed loved ones. And he comes with a dire warning for Gwendolyn: that the barrier between humans and spirits is weakening.
Gwendolyn would prefer not to have anything to do with ghostly drama. Yet in order to get to the bottom of the spookiness derailing her life, she must face the demons she’s long left behind. Or the spirit world will be unleashed, threatening her very existence and all of New York. The Ghosts of Gwendolyn Montgomery is a sensuous, funny, mystical adventure that will leave you spellbound. (Credit: Legacy Lit)
I Did Warn Her Sian Gilbert
Expected Publication Date: June 17
The Ophelia is your typical billionaire yacht: ridiculously luxurious, owned by a ruthless money man, and staffed by a crew whose only job is to indulge the guests’ every wish.
Model-gorgeous Sasha is a last-minute hire for a weeklong Atlantic crossing. She joins fellow stewardesses Jade, Imogen, Euphemiac, and Lola. The Ophelia’s stewardesses are almost identical—blonde and model-gorgeous—and all were lured to the Ophelia by high wages and a chance to leave their problems behind when they set sail. But despite its sleek opulence, the Ophelia isn’t as heavenly as it seems. A stewardess on the previous charter died under mysterious circumstances, the guests’ expensive jewelry keeps disappearing, and the crew grows steadily more and more suspicious of one another.
Then the yacht’s owner brings aboard his best friend and two more women, also beautiful. Also hiding something.
When a crew member turns up dead after a night of partying, everyone on the yacht is a suspect. Who is the jewel thief? Who is the murderer? What will happen when the lights go out, and the crew and the guests are finally on equal footing?
Endlessly twisty and delightfully voyeuristic, I Did Warn Her is a whodunnit on the high seas, where the dark secrets of the ultra-wealthy have nowhere to hide. (Credit: William Morrow)
The Unexpected Consequence of Bleeding on a Tuesday by Kelsey B. Toney
Expected Publication Date: June 17
High school senior Delia Bridges has the most amazing mom and sister, a killer GPA–and periods that are so painful they make her scream, pass out, and throw up. Though she doesn’t know it yet, Delia has endometriosis, an affliction plaguing millions of people that is notoriously difficult to diagnose.
Pain makes everything harder, but Delia is just one semester away from graduating from Stockwood Prep and pursuing her dream of becoming the kind of doctor she’s never had: one who takes her symptoms seriously. But when she breaks a rule for the first time ever and is caught using marijuana at school to manage her pain, Delia is expelled.
Her expulsion jeopardizes her college acceptance, her planned mentorship, and everything she had carefully planned for years. Without her academic success and no closer to a diagnosis, is Delia anything more than her period? (Credit: Random House Books for Young Readers)
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