19 Must-Read New Books You Won't Want To Put Down

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2 days ago

There's something about new novels that makes me forget about all my worries and (sadly) all of the unread books on my bookshelves.
Under the Stars by Beatriz Williams
Genre: Historical Fiction, ContemporarySynopsis: On glamorous Winthrop Island, acclaimed chef Audrey Fisher returns with her troubled actress mother, Meredith, seeking refuge from past scandals. Audrey, still reeling from a broken marriage, stumbles upon a hidden chest in her bartender father's bar, filled with priceless 19th-century paintings featuring a mysterious woman. Their discovery drags them into a decades-old mystery, catching the eye of their charming neighbor, Sedge Peabody. Meanwhile, in 1846, on the doomed steamship Atlantic, Providence Dare flees from Boston under a cloud of suspicion, only to face disaster and pursuit onboard. As the ship struggles toward Winthrop Island, Providence must outwit a detective who knows her darkest secrets. Across centuries, the stories of Audrey, Meredith, and Providence interweave, revealing echoes of hidden legacies, danger, and desire.
Work Nights by Erica Peplin
Genre: Romance, LGBTSynopsis: Jane Grabowski trudges into her 9-to-5 at a prestigious NYC newspaper, drowning under fluorescent lights and selling advertising she doesn't believe in, masking her frustration with overenthusiastic exclamation-point-filled emails. Her one bright spot? Madeline, the intern: attractive, enigmatic, and seemingly straight. Jane crafts clever lunchroom maneuvers and meticulously timed texts to inch closer to her object of affection — no small feat when Madeline tiptoes around labels.Meanwhile, Jane's free-spirited roommate Laurel keeps pushing her toward queer bars and Shabbat dinners, where Jane meets Addy — the impulsive, morally driven musician who's ready to commit straight away. Suddenly, Jane finds herself caught in a messy, thrilling love triangle: the safe, earnest path with Addy or the unpredictable, intoxicating pull of Madeline. As her emotions spiral, Jane's juggling act of office politics, romantic confusion, and fear of vulnerability propels her toward a dramatic turning point, complete with a plane ticket that could uproot everything.
King of Ashes by S. A. Cosby
Genre: Thriller, SuspenseSynopsis: Roman Carruthers, a sleek and cunning finance guru in Atlanta, is suddenly pulled back to his crumbling hometown of Jefferson Run, Virginia, when his father lands in a coma after a suspicious car crash. He discovers his brother Dante is drowning in a six-figure debt to the ruthless Black Baron Boys gang, and his sister Neveah is barely keeping their family crematorium and her own sanity afloat. Hoping to save his brother, Roman uses his financial acumen to negotiate with the gang, only to find himself sliding deeper into their violent world, his moral lines blur as he becomes entangled in criminal deals, brutal power plays, and dangerous allegiances. Meanwhile, Neveah obsessively investigates the long-unsolved mystery of their mother's disappearance two decades ago, rumored to involve their own father, which threatens to shatter whatever fragile peace remains. As Roman transforms from a smart city strategist into a ruthless kingpin with his own form of justice, the siblings must confront how far they're willing to go and what they may lose in order to protect family.
Finding Grace by Loretta Rothschild
Genre: Contemporary, RomanceSynopsis: Honor Wharton and her daughter Chloe are enjoying a festive Christmas in Paris, but a tragic bombing shatters their lives. Moments later, both are gone in an instant. Back in London, widower Tom secretly carries on using a surrogate and egg donor to complete his family. Four years later, his life takes an unexpected turn when he receives a misaddressed letter revealing his donor's identity. He meets Grace, the warm-hearted woman who loosely resembles his late wife, and they form a tender connection, oblivious to the secret tying them together. Narrated from beyond the grave by Honor, the story navigates love, grief, and moral ambiguity as Tom and Grace's relationship deepens. But the shadow of his hidden past looms large, raising the question: can new beginnings ever outrun the ghosts of loss?
One Yellow Eye by Leigh Radford
Genre: Sci-Fi, HorrorSynopsis: Kesta Shelley, a brilliant but emotionally withdrawn British scientist, has her world torn apart when her husband, Tim, becomes one of the last victims of a devastating zombie-style virus. While the government has quarantined or eliminated all infected individuals, Kesta hides Tim in her spare room — still alive, but unstable and increasingly violent — as she desperately works to develop a cure in her lab by day. By night, she juggles caring for him with slipping him sedatives stolen from her workplace and struggling to attend mandatory recovery meetings. Her obsession takes a toll: she begins to unravel, skipping lab ethics, self-medicating with alcohol, and distancing herself from colleagues who sense something is off. As whispers grow about 'Project Dawn,' a secret government lab racing toward a cure, Kesta clings to hope, but time is running out. Can she save Tim before he's discovered? Or will her love spark another catastrophic outbreak?
Den of Liars by Jessica S. Olson
Genre: Fantasy, YASynopsis: Lola St. James was rescued as a teen during a high-stakes Liar's Dice Tournament and bound by magic to the enigmatic crime boss known as the Thief. She literally shares his heart and his emotions. Now, living under the name Astra, she's determined to join his group, the Tentacles, and prove her skills. When a heist goes horribly wrong, her only escape is to enter the next Liar's Dice Tournament, now run by the Thief's mysterious brother, the Liar. Sevilla's enchanted dice don't just lie, they twist hearts, reveal secrets, and blur reality. As Lola plays the game, she's torn between her growing attraction to the Liar and her deep bond with the Thief. In a world where deceit is power, illusions are danger, and trust is a luxury, Lola must untangle her own past, the brothers' hidden history, and the lies she's been telling herself.
Our Last Resort by Clémence Michallon
Genre: Thriller, MysterySynopsis: Frida and her brother Gabriel arrive at the luxurious Ara Hotel in Utah, hoping their sibling bond can finally heal after escaping a controlling cult fifteen years earlier. But paradise shatters when a glamorous guest is found brutally murdered, and Gabriel becomes the prime suspect. As police lock down the resort, Frida races to clear his name, and in doing so, must confront the darkest corners of their shared past. Alternating between present-day scenes and chilling flashbacks to life under the cult's sway, the novel builds to a shocking climax: How well do we truly know the people we love?
August Lane by Regina Black
Genre: Contemporary, RomanceSynopsis: Former country music heartthrob Luke Randall has been scraping by, performing his one hit, 'Another Love Song,' at dingy motels every Thursday night. His big break comes when he's asked to open for his childhood idol, JoJo Lane, at her Hall of Fame induction in Arcadia, Arkansas. The catch? That hometown includes August Lane, the woman who actually wrote the song, and his secret high school love, who still loathes him for stealing both her lyrics and her heart. August, JoJo's daughter, demands a reckoning: she offers him one chance at redemption — co‑write and debut a new song together at the concert, a platform she hopes will finally lift her from her mother's shadow into her own career. Luke, desperate to conceal his past lie and reclaim his future, reluctantly agrees. As they revisit memories, rewrite lyrics, and share moments, the spark from their teenage connection reignites. But with the concert looming, August must decide if he wants to expose the betrayal that scarred her, or trust him to create something genuinely new and real.
A Beautiful Family by Jennifer Trevelyan
Genre: Suspense, ThrillerSynopsis: Alix, 10, is looking forward to a sun‑soaked summer getaway with her family at a coastal resort in New Zealand, only to find her parents preoccupied, her teenage sister lost in crushes, and the days strangely quiet. Bored, Alix befriends Kahu, who reveals the town's eerie mystery: two years earlier, a young girl named Charlotte vanished, presumed drowned. Driven by curiosity and loneliness, Alix and Kahu become amateur sleuths, combing the shoreline and poking around the locals, but in doing so, they unravel unsettling truths about the vulnerable cracks in her family: her parents' tension, her sister's risky choices, and the ominous stranger next door. As another disappearance rocks the community, Alix realizes her idyllic summer might hold far darker secrets, and she may be uncovering more than even she can handle.
The Ghosts of Gwendolyn Montgomery by Clarence A. Haynes
Genre: Horror, FantasySynopsis: Gwendolyn Montgomery seems to have it all: a glamorous career as New York's top publicist, stylish looks, and a handsome new boyfriend. But after a chilling incident at the Brooklyn Museum, supernatural signals start pulsing around her, and she realizes that the past she tried to leave behind is clawing its way back into her life. Enter her estranged cousin Fonsi Harewood, a queer Latinx psychic from the South Bronx who communicates with spirits 'stuck' in El Intermedio, a ghostly limbo. Fonsi warns Gwendolyn that the veil between the living and the dead is weakening, and only she has the power to stop it.
The Unraveling of Julia by Lisa Scottoline
Genre: Thriller, MysterySynopsis: Julia Pritzker, a young widow already mourning her tragic past, is convinced her life is cursed when her horoscope eerily predicts her husband's violent death in Philadelphia. Then she inherits a crumbling Tuscan villa and vineyard from a stranger, Emilia Rossi — sparking a journey into Italy and the shadows of her identity. As Julia settles into the eerie estate, she uncovers unsettling parallels between herself, Rossi, and the Renaissance ruler Duchess Caterina Sforza, and becomes obsessed with astrology guiding her fate. Strange occurrences begin, she's followed, haunted by vivid nightmares, and thrust into a dangerous mystery that might cost her sanity. Tension mounts in the sun-drenched hills of Tuscany as Julia races to unravel whether this inherited legacy is a blessing…or a deadly trap.
The List by Steve Berry
Genre: Mystery, ThrillerSynopsis: After a decadelong, self-imposed exile, lawyer Brent Walker returns to his childhood home in Concord, Georgia, to care for his aging mother and start fresh as assistant general counsel at the Southern Republic Pulp and Paper Company. But behind the town's idyllic veneer lies a dark secret: the company's leadership has been quietly eliminating employees and retirees with costly medical conditions via a covert program nicknamed 'Priority.' When Brent discovers a mysterious list of coded entries, later revealed to be victims' Social Security numbers, he teams up with a moralizing partner to expose the conspiracy. Yet digging deeper puts him in the crosshairs of powerful executives willing to kill to keep the truth buried.
The River is Waiting by Wally Lamb
Genre: Literary Fiction, ContemporarySynopsis: Corby Ledbetter was once a devoted husband and father, but his world shatters after a devastating accident claims the life of his young son — and it's his fault. Sentenced to prison, Corby is forced to confront not only his guilt, but also the darker parts of himself that led to that moment. Behind bars, he meets a cast of broken yet deeply human characters who challenge him to face the truth, make amends, and search for a way forward. Through art, unlikely friendships, and the slow work of redemption, Corby begins to piece together a new identity — not as the man he was, but as someone trying to earn a second chance.
The Confessions by Paul Bradley Carr
Genre: Sci-Fi, MysterySynopsis: In the near future, most of humanity relies on a supercomputer named LLIAM to decide everything, from careers and marriages to life-or-death choices. But when LLIAM abruptly shuts down, society collapses into chaos: stock markets tank, airports freeze, and people no longer know what to do. Then the 'Confessions' begin: identical letters land in mailboxes worldwide, each starting with the chilling words, 'We must confess.' The letters expose hidden sins, murderers, cheaters, secret wrongdoers — all laid bare and igniting global panic. Desperate to stop the unraveling, LLIAM's creator, CEO Kaitlan Goss, turns to Maud Brookes, an ex-nun who helped teach LLIAM empathy. Together, they must coax the AI back online and contain the fallout. But when Maud herself receives a confession revealing Kaitlan's darkest secret, the pair spiral into a high-stakes battle of trust, truth, and survival as the world teeters on the edge.
Wanting by Claire Jia
Genre: Contemporary, Literary FictionSynopsis: Ye Lian, a driven professional in Beijing, has basically everything — a great job, a long-term boyfriend, and plans to buy a luxury condo. She's content, until her childhood best friend, Luo Wenyu, sweeps back into her life fresh from California. She's a social media influencer engaged to a Silicon Valley tech millionaire, with grand visions and a mansion to match. Suddenly, Lian's steady, secure life feels small in comparison. As the two reconnect, buried resentments and envy resurface. Wenyu drops a bombshell about her past with Lian's boyfriend, rattling Lian's sense of everything she's built. Meanwhile, aging architect Song Chen, who was hired to design Wenyu's dream home, grapples with his own unmet ambitions and a collapsing marriage. Their paths collide in a tense, emotional crossroad: Will they choose the comfortable life they know, or leap into the unknown desires that push them to redefine what success, and happiness really means?
We Don't Talk About Carol by Kristen L. Berry
Genre: Mystery, ThrillerSynopsis: When journalist Sydney Singleton returns to her North Carolina hometown after her grandmother's death, she stumbles on a decades-old family secret: a missing aunt named Carol no one ever talks about. What begins as a quiet trip home quickly spirals into a gripping mystery as Sydney digs into the truth behind Carol's disappearance, and the five other Black girls who vanished from the area in the 1960s. As Sydney's investigation deepens, so do the emotional stakes. With her own life at a crossroads, facing infertility and a stalled career, uncovering the past might be the only way she can reclaim her future. But the deeper she goes, the more resistance she faces from her family, the town, and even herself.
A Mastery of Monsters by Liselle Sambury
Genre: YA Fantasy, Dark AcademiaSynopsis: When August's brother and mother vanish one after the other, she's determined to find him, even if it means stepping into a world of dark secrets and supernatural threats. After being attacked by a massive creature, August realizes that monsters are real. Desperate for answers, she joins a secret society dedicated to controlling these beings. The key? She must partner with Virgil, a powerful 'monster' himself, in a deadly competition to gain acceptance and locate her brother. As August trains to master magic and navigate complex social politics, she grapples with her grief, racism, and the cost of power. With each challenge, she must decide how far she's willing to go and what she might lose in her quest to save her family and herself. It's a blood-soaked, emotionally charged dark academia fantasy where the line between monster and hero is as blurred as it is lethal.
Don't Let Him In by Lisa Jewell
Genre: Psychological Thriller, MysterySynopsis: Widow Nina Swann is reeling after her husband, a beloved restaurateur, is mysteriously pushed in front of a train. Enter Nick Radcliffe, an old friend of her late spouse who sends a condolence note and reconnects with Nina, sweeping her into a new romance that her grown daughter, Ash, immediately finds unsettling. While Ash digs into Nick's seemingly flawless past, she uncovers red flags and a dangerously long record of deception. Enter Martha, a florist in a nearby town, whose husband's frequent 'business trips' are wearing thin. Her instinct tells her something is very wrong. These three women — Nina, Ash, and Martha — find their lives entangled in a chilling conspiracy. As Nick (and possibly Martha's husband Alistair) reveal dark secrets, danger lurks closer than they could have imagined.
This Book Might Be About Zinnia by Brittney Morris
Genre: YA, ContemporarySynopsis: Set in 2024 and 2006, this dual‑timeline story intertwines two lives bound by secrets and longing: 2024 – Zinnia Davis, a biracial teen adopted by a wealthy white family, is applying to Harvard, but her college essay falls flat. When she reads a novel by her favorite author featuring a princess separated from her mother and bearing Zinnia's own heart-shaped birthmark, she suspects the writer could be her birth mother. 2006 – Tuesday Walker, a Black high schooler, struggles under her mother's pressure after reluctantly giving up her newborn daughter and grappling with the mystery of her absent father. As Zinnia races to uncover the truth in the present, and Tuesday fights to reclaim a lost journal and her sense of self, their stories echo across time. When hidden connections begin to surface, both teens must face family truths that could reshape their identities and their futures.
Which book(s) are you most excited to read this summer? Even if it's not on this list, tell me about it in the comments!