November 2021

See our full announcement of all HarperCollins titles that made the list and find links to egalleys here. 

Thank you for voting!

-Lainey

This week on the podcast, we feature a conversation between LLF's Lainey Mays and author Danya Kukafka. Danya's Notes on an Execution is a gripping and atmospheric work of literary suspense that deconstructs the story of a serial killer on death row, told primarily through the eyes of the women in his life. It's our Lead Read title for the Winter 2022 season!

Check out some of the rave reviews coming in:

Listen to the episode below:

Danya mentioned Savage Appetites by Rachel Monroe and The Fact of a Body by Alexandria Marzano-Lesnevich as books of Crime/True Crime she is loving right now. She also mentioned the following podcasts: One Click and Missing on 9/11. 

Also discussed: Tori Telfer's Lady Killers and Confident Women.

Check out the article about her love for pickles here.

Notes on an Execution is on sale January 25, 2022.
LibraryReads votes are due December 1, 2021!

Request an egalley or ALC on Edelweiss+
Request an egalley on NetGalley
Request the ALC on NetGalley

-Lainey

The Library Love Fest Podcast hit a milestone this week—we have over 50,000 listens! We started this podcast as a way to dive deeper into our books in a digestible audio format that you could listen to while on the way to work each day, while shelving books, or sitting behind the reference desk. That vision has grown to include many different formats that show off our phenomenal books. Whether that be through editor conversations where we hear an author's 'behind-the-scenes' relationship with their editor or hearing about upcoming audiobooks where we play a short clip to intrigue; we love curating this archive of book-related information that will be sure to cater to every kind of reader.

Thank you again for listening! Now, share it with a friend!

-Lainey

I've highlighted a few of our most popular episodes—including each of our series—below:

LibraryReads Announcements (monthly):

Editors Unedited:

Updates from Imprints and other departments at HarperCollins:

Author interviews conducted by the LLF team:

Thank you for 50K! If you don't already, subscribe anywhere you download podcasts for the weekly episodes to directly download to your feed.

Hello, librarians!

We are back for another round of LibraryReads suggestions for the January LibraryReads list. Reminder: votes for the January LibraryReads List are due December 1st.

Happy reading!

-The LLF Team (Virginia, Lainey, and Essie)

***

Check out these forthcoming debut novels that were included in our recent Library Journal and Booklist ads!

• Beasts of a Little Land by Juhea Kim (on sale 12/7/21): An epic story of love, war, and redemption set against the backdrop of the Korean independence movement, following the intertwined fates of a young girl sold to a courtesan school and the penniless son of a hunter.
• Velorio by Xavier Navarro Aquino (on sale 1/4/22): Set in the wake of Hurricane Maria, Xavier Navarro Aquino’s unforgettable debut novel follows a remarkable group of survivors searching for hope on an island torn apart by both natural disaster and human violence.
  -Also available in a Spanish edition!
   
• Daughter of the Moon Goddess by Sue Lynn Tan (on sale 1/11/22): A captivating debut fantasy inspired by the legend of the Chinese moon goddess, Chang’e, in which a young woman’s quest to free her mother pits her against the most powerful immortal in the realm and sets her on a dangerous path—where choices come with deadly consequences, and she risks losing more than her heart.
• How High We Go in the Dark by Sequoia Nagamatsu (on sale 1/18/22): For fans of Cloud Atlas and Station Eleven, a spellbinding and profoundly prescient debut that follows a cast of intricately linked characters over hundreds of years as humanity struggles to rebuild itself in the aftermath of a climate plague—a daring and deeply heartfelt work of mind-bending imagination from a singular new voice. 
• Wahala by Nikki May (on sale 1/11/22): An incisive and exhilarating debut novel of female friendship following three Anglo-Nigerian best friends and the lethally glamorous fourth woman who infiltrates their group—the most unforgettable girls since Carrie, Samantha, Charlotte, and Miranda.
  
  
• Shadows of Pecan Hollow by Caroline Frost (on sale 2/8/22): Set in Texas in the 1970s and 90s, Shadows of Pecan Hollow is a literary debut about a fierce woman and the partner-in-crime she can’t escape, perfect for readers of Where the Crawdads Sing and Valentine.

• Nightshift by Kiare Ladner (on sale 2/8/22): A haunting, compelling debut novel of complex female friendship and obsession, following one young woman’s decision to abandon her normal life and join the otherworldly, nocturnal existence of London’s nightshift workers.
• Asking for a Friend by Andi Osho (on sale 2/1/22): Comedian Andi Osho’s hilarious and uplifting debut novel features her trademark wit and is perfect for fans of Jasmine Guillory and Mhairi McFarlane. 
• Garden Variety by Christy Wilhelmi (on sale 3/29/22): Upbeat women’s fiction about an urban community garden, life’s growing pains, and how fellow gardeners rally and come together to save their own. Includes a PS section with gardening tips and information.
• The Tobacco Wives by Adele Myers (on sale 3/1/22):For the audience of Fiona Davis and Lisa Wingate, a vibrant historical debut set in 1947 North Carolina following a young female seamstress who uncovers dangerous truths about the Big Tobacco empire ruling the American South.
• The Blood Trials by N. E. Davenport (on sale 4/5/22): Blending fantasy and science fiction, N. E. Davenport’s fast-paced, action-packed debut kicks off a duology of loyalty and rebellion, in which a young Black woman must survive deadly trials in a racist and misogynistic society to become an elite warrior.
• The Caretakers by Amanda Bestor-Siegal (on sale 4/12/22): Set in a wealthy Parisian suburb, an emotionally riveting debut told from the point of view of six women, and centered around a group of au pairs, one of whom is arrested after a sudden and suspicious tragedy strikes her host family—a dramatic exploration of identity, class, and caregiving from a profoundly talented new writer.
• Hope and Glory by Jendella Benson (on sale 4/19/22): A brilliant debut by a British-Nigerian author—a heartfelt family drama that will delight book club readers and fans of books like Transcendent Kingdom, Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows, and The Girl with the Louding Voice.
• Cover Story by Susan Rigetti (on sale 4/5/22): Catch Me If You Can meets Sweetbitter in this debut novel about an ambitious and impressionable young woman who gets caught up in a charismatic con artist’s scam.

-Lainey