Library Love Fest

In the Spotlight: Tamron Hall, Lori Rader-Day, and Sarah MacLean in Conversation

Please join us for a night of stories by and about
strong women told through three genres:
mystery, history, and romance.

June 29, 2021
7:00 - 8:00pm ET

Register for the 6/29 CrowdCast event!

About As the Wicked Watch by Tamron Hall: The first in a thrilling new series from Emmy Award–winning journalist Tamron Hall, in which a reporter unravels the disturbing mystery around the deaths of two Black girls, the work of a serial killer terrorizing Chicago.

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About Death at Greenway by Lori Rader-Day: From the award-winning author of The Day I Died and The Lucky One, a captivating suspense novel about nurses during World War II who come to Agatha Christie’s holiday estate to care for evacuated children, but when a body is discovered nearby, the idyllic setting becomes host to a deadly mystery.

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About Bombshell by Sarah MacLean: New York Times bestselling author Sarah MacLean returns with a blazingly sexy, unapologetically feminist new series, Hell’s Belles, beginning with a bold, bombshell of a heroine, able to dispose of a scoundrel—or seduce one—in a single night.

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-LLF

DREAM GIRL by Laura Lippman Tops Library Holds Lists

DREAM GIRL IS A DREAM!

Fan favorite and all-around fabulous person Laura Lippman crushes it again in her latest novel, Dream Girl, a dark, complex tale of psychological suspense with echoes of Misery involving a novelist, incapacitated by injury, who is plagued by mysterious phone calls.

Library Journal reports it leads the holds lists this week!

Laura gave a fabulous interview on CBS This Morning this past Saturday. Watch below!

Dream Girl goes on sale June 22, 2021.

Get ready to lose yourself in this immersive read!

-Virginia

All things Bridgerton!

So, you've finished the first season of Bridgerton on Netflix...now what? Well, not to fear! We have you covered. Below you will see a list of all the Bridgerton books in the series and books within that world as well as other books to read after the Bridgerton series.

Check out this message that Julia Quinn recorded for librarians during National Library Week:

Find all of Julia Quinn's books here. 

Happy Reading!

-Lainey

The July LibraryReads List is Here!

Hello, librarians!

You voted, they counted, and the winners have finally been announced!

This month, we are thrilled to share that Devil in Disguise by Lisa Kleypas has been selected for the July LibraryReads List!

We're also thrilled that we have THREE authors who’ve been newly inducted into the LibraryReads Hall of Fame for their upcoming publications: Karin Slaughter / False Witness, Sonali Dev / Incense and Sensibility, and Liv Constantine / The Stranger in the Mirror!

And finally, we have one current LibraryReads Hall of Fame author whose latest publication was selected: Tessa Bailey / It Happened One Summer!

Want to hear how our authors reacted to the big news? Listen to our latest episode of The Library Love Fest Podcast below to hear their responses!

Click here to see the full July LibraryReads List!

***

Devil in Disguise by Lisa Kleypas: New York Times
bestselling author Lisa Kleypas returns with an enthralling and steaming romance between a widowed lady and a Scot on the run—who may have connections to one of London's most noble families.

"The novel abounds in the vintage pleasures of Kleypas' writing: finely-drawn characters; a tactile, sensuous style...; and glimpses of couples from other novels to assure us that love lasts forever. Undemandingly pleasurable and guaranteed to go on the reread shelf."
—Kirkus Reviews ⭐ review

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False Witness by Karin Slaughter: From the New York Times bestselling author of Pieces of Her and The Silent Wife, an electrifying standalone thriller about a successful defense attorney whose latest case has chilling ties to a decades-old secret.

"Slaughter doesn’t save her twists for the end, instead peppering them throughout the intricately layered story amid stomach-churning near misses and gripping character revelations. Equal parts hyperrealistic thriller and epic tragedy, Slaughter’s latest is pitch-perfect storytelling."
—Booklist ⭐ review

Previous LibraryReads Selections:
The Silent Wife (August 2020)
The Last Widow (August 2019)

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Sign up for an exclusive Karin Slaughter CrowdCast event on 7/27!

 

Incense and Sensibility 
by Sonali Dev: The author of Recipe for Persuasion—"not only one of the best but one of the bravest romance novelists working today" (Shelf Awareness)—adds an Indian American twist to Jane Austen's classic Sense and Sensibility in this delightful retelling that is a feast for the senses.

"Incense and Sensibility is a tender, well-crafted novel, as much about finding purpose as it is about falling in love. Dev writes with such rare empathy and humor that I often found myself holding my breath on one page only to be giggling by the next."
—Emily Henry, New York Times bestselling author of Beach Read

Previous LibraryReads Selections: 
Recipe for Persuasion (May 2020)
Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors (May 2019)

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The Stranger in the Mirror
by Liv Constantine: A diabolically twisty, psychologically unsettling novel about a woman with no recollection of her past from the authors of the Reese Witherspoon Book Club pick The Last Mrs. Parrish and The Wife Stalker.

"Gripping! Equal parts character study and domestic thriller, The Stranger in the Mirror makes for a perfect weekend read—a highly enjoyable page-turner where you race to the end, breathless to discover the shocking truth."
—Lisa Gardner, #1 New York Times bestselling author of When You See Me

Previous LibraryReads Selections: 
The Wife Stalker (May 2020)
The Last Mrs. Parrish (October 2017)

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It Happened One Summer
by Tessa Bailey: Tessa Bailey is back with a Schitt’s Creek-inspired rom-com about a Hollywood "It Girl" who’s cut off from her wealthy family and exiled to a small Pacific Northwest beach town...where she butts heads with a surly, sexy local who thinks she doesn’t belong.

"Bailey delivers on her usual trifecta of sharp banter, instant chemistry, and high-heat sex scenes, but they are coupled with intense soul-searching for both Piper and Brendan.... Another winning romance from an author at the top of her game."
—Kirkus Reviews ⭐ review

Previous LibraryReads Selections: 
Tools of Engagement (September 2020)
Love Her or Lose Her (January 2020)
Fix Her Up (June 2019)

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***

Thanks to all who participated and submitted votes for the July LibraryReads List! Be sure to submit your votes for the August LibraryReads List by July 1st. Click here to find out what we're recommending!  

Click here to learn more about LibraryReads.

-Chris

New podcast episode: An interview with Mary Adkins, author of PALM BEACH

On this week's podcast episode, we welcome Mary Adkins back to the podcast for a conversation about her new book, Palm Beach, which publishes August 3, 2021. Palm Beach is a thought-provoking page-turner from the author of When You Read This and Privilege that captures the painful divide between the haves and have-nots and the seductive lure of the American dream. 

Jessica Anya Blau, author of Mary Jane says: "Mary Adkins’ Palm Beach is a rare page-turner that gives you all the fun and decadence of a beach read while exploring the relevant issues around wealth inequity. I opened it up and could not stop reading!"

Listen to the episode below:

We mentioned that we've had the honor of hosting Mary on the podcast twice before, interviewing her for each of her previous publications. 

You can listen to her interview about her debut novel When You Read This:

And her second novel, Privilege:

 

A big thank you to Mary for taking the time to speak with us!

You can download an egalley on Edelweiss+ and NetGalley now. LibraryReads votes are due July 1st!

-Lainey

LLF Guest Post: Tim Fielder, Author of INFINITUM

Today we are thrilled to have a guest post from
Tim Fielder, cartoonist, animator, Afrofuturist, AND author/illustrator of the graphic novel INFINITUM (on sale now)! This epic Afrofuturist tale spans millennia as it follows Warrior King Aja Oba, cursed by immortality, as he navigates through major world events and into the distant future.

Publishers Weekly praised INFINITUM: "Fielder (Matty’s Rocket) digs deep into his pulp toolbox to fuse genre influences in this daring epic, which bristles with action and verve."

And Jerry Craft, New York Times bestselling author of New Kid called INFINITUM 
"[an] amazing tale of one man’s odyssey from African king to ruler of the stars told with breathtaking visuals. INFINITUM is epic in every way! Engrossing! Powerful! Intelligent! Cinematic!"

Keep reading to learn about Tim Fielder's personal connection to Afrofuturism and the history behind INFINITUM. Be sure to check out his website for even more information!

***

My Afrofuturist Origins
by Tim Fielder

I am now, and have always been, an Afrofuturist.  Afrofuturism, the intersection of technology, speculative thought, and philosophy bound together through race, is becoming part of High Culture. Right now my first book as a "debut author" titled INFINITUM: An Afrofuturist Tale published by HarperCollins Amistad holds a unique position. INFINITUM is the first Afrofuturist graphic novel published by a big five company with an original storyline. I am so proud of my book. 

 

As the creator, I’ve been asked to give a little background on my artistic origins.

 

It’s interesting when one takes up the sum total of their artistic life. I have always done some form of Visual Afrofuturism since I was a young boy. I come from the state of Mississippi. I was born in Tupelo, home of Elvis. I was raised in Clarksdale, home of Robert Johnson. My life in the Mississippi Delta was one in which all of the deep-seeded phobias and isms of Black American life existed intertwined with the magical upbringing that is inherent in a rural upbringing. Mixed along with this was my exposure to science-fiction films, comic books, and all sorts of geek-like things that young kids could engage in...minus the estrangement from peers.

 

It wasn’t cool then to be a geek.

 

I would eventually move to New York City. As the saying goes, if you can make it there, you can make it anywhere. Of course there is and isn’t a level of truth to that. Ultimately, like with the 4-color fictional tales read in my rural upbringing, this urban transition was quite dramatic. Life in the late 1980s NYC was an energetic fusion of early hip-hop culture blended with it’s more alternative sibling, Black Rock culture. I dove head and spirit first into the lifestyle change like a comic book character changing into a superhero costume. Within a matter of weeks I went from a mild mannered young African-American male unsure of himself, to a radicalized "all black" wearing mohawk dreadloc-wearing Afropunk. I would take this new identity and use that to explore cartooning, that thing that I love, and merge that into African religious modalities, science-fiction concept design, and expansive panel to panel storytelling.

 

I was in a grimy urban metropolis, but heaven nonetheless.

 

Jump forward 30 years, I am much more comfortable in my skin then I was in my youth. My art has advanced further then I could have imagined. Through INFINITUM, I wanted to produce a book that would look expansive visually, push the limits of what comics were allowed to do narratively, and bring some level of epic scale to the Black speculative experience. However, it was important for me to do it in a way that audiences of all races, genders and ethnicities would be able to relate to the story. The story is, after all, essentially about the human experience. I hope that librarians will be willing, as individual readers and guides for readers, to take a chance on my book, take a chance on my vision, and enjoy having your mind expanded (hopefully) into the farthest reaches of time.

 

INFINITUM: An Afrofuturist Tale can be purchased where all fine books are sold.

 

***

Thanks so much, Tim! 

 

INFINITUM is on sale now. We can't recommend enough this expansive, one-of-a-kind reading experience. If you want to learn more, check out the replay of our Door to Door episode featuring Tim and Jonny Sun, author of Goodbye, Again!

 

 

To highlight this wonderful book, we are giving away finished copies to the first 10 librarians who email librarylovefest@harpercollins.com.

 

-Chris

LLF Staff Suggestions for the August LibraryReads List

Hello, librarians. 

Welcome to summer! May these warmer months bring you rest, relaxation, and much reading fulfillment. We hope our staff suggestions for the August LibraryReads List will prove to be perfect pool-side partners, beach-side buddies, and hammock-hanging helpers.  

As a reminder, votes for the August LibraryReads List are due July 1st.

Happy reading!

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

***

Vortex by Catherine Coulter
For fans of: The Big Kahuna by Janet Evanovich
In the latest installment in Catherine Coulter’s #1 New York Times bestselling FBI Thriller series, agents Sherlock and Savich find themselves dealing with powerful pieces of the past that could have dire consequences in the present.

Praise for Catherine Coulter:
"Catherine Coulter is one of the bonafide rockstars of the thriller genre."
—The Real Book Spy

"The things you can count on in a Catherine Coulter book are a complex storyline with plenty of action, intrigue, and unexpected twists and turns."
—Fresh Fiction

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LibraryReads Votes Due: July 1, 2021

 

Bombshell by Sarah MacLean
Also from the author: Daring and the Duke 
and Brazen and the Beast
New York Times bestselling author Sarah MacLean returns with a blazingly sexy, unapologetically feminist new series, Hell’s Belles, beginning with a bold, bombshell of a heroine, able to dispose of a scoundrel—or seduce one—in a single night.

Praise for Sarah MacLean: 
"Sarah MacLean's books are fierce."
—Julia Quinn, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Bridgerton series

Previous LibraryReads Selections:
Brazen and the Beast (July 2019)
Never Judge a Lady by Her Cover (November 2014))
No Good Duke Goes Unpunished (December 2013)

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LibraryReads Votes Due: July 1, 2021

 

Afterparties by Anthony Veasna So
For fans of: A Woman Is No Man by Etaf Rum
and Lot by Bryan Washington 
A vibrant story collection about Cambodian-American life—immersive and comic, yet unsparing—that offers profound insight into the intimacy of queer and immigrant communities.

"So (1992–2020) conjures literary magic in his hilarious and insightful posthumous debut, a collection that delves into a tightly knit community of Cambodian-American immigrants in California’s Central Valley…. After this immersive introduction to the Central Valley community, readers won’t want to leave."
—Publishers Weekly ⭐ review

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LibraryReads Votes Due: July 1, 2021

 

The Reading List by Sara Nisha Adams
For fans of: The Lost and Found Bookshop by Susan Wiggs
and The Library of Lost and Found by Phaedra Patrick
An unforgettable and heartwarming debut about how a chance encounter and a list of library books helps forge an unlikely friendship between two very different people—a lonely London widower and a troubled teenager.

"If you love books, read this. If you love people, read this. If you love crying with sadness, crying with happiness, and feeling like you have been wrapped in the blanket of someone else's life, read this."
—Debbie Johnson, bestselling author of Maybe One Day

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LibraryReads Votes Due: July 1, 2021

 

Palm Beach by Mary Adkins
For fans of: The Jetsetters by Amanda Eyre Ward
A thought-provoking page-turner from the author of When You Read This and Privilege—a powerful novel that captures the painful divide between the haves and have-nots and the seductive lure of the American dream, for readers of Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney and Emma Straub.

"Mary Adkins' Palm Beach is a rare page-turner that gives you all the fun and decadence of a beach read while exploring the relevant issues around wealth inequity. I opened it up and could not stop reading!"
—Jessica Anya Blau, author of Mary Jane

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LibraryReads Votes Due: July 1, 2021

 

Sisters in Arms by Kaia Alderson
For fans of: Code Girls by Liza Mundy and
Lost Roses by Martha Hall Kelly
Kaia Alderson’s debut historical fiction novel reveals the untold, true story of the Six Triple Eight, the only all-Black battalion of the Women’s Army Corps, who made the dangerous voyage to Europe to ensure American servicemen received word from their loved ones during World War II.

"Sisters in Arms is heartwarming but fierce, a novel brimming with camaraderie and fire, starring women you’d love to make your friends.... Kaia Alderson’s debut is a triumph!"
—Kate Quinn, New York Times bestselling author of The Rose Code

Going to ALA Annual? Kaia Alderson is the featured speaker on the Chapter One Stage: Debut Authors on Wednesday, 6/23, from 12:30 - 1:00pm ET. Click here to add to your ALA schedule!

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LibraryReads Votes Due: July 1, 2021

 

So We Meet Again by Suzanne Park
For fans of: The Right Swipe by Alisha Rai
From the author of the "genuinely funny" and "delightful" Loathe at First Sight (NPR), a young Korean American woman’s journey to finding a new career and new love means learning to embrace the awkward and unexpected—exploring familial expectations, finding your voice, and unimaginably falling for your childhood rival.

"Some books just feel like an old friend, their first pages embracing you with an instant familiarity and warmth you can’t help but sink into. Suzanne Park’s So We Meet Again is that kind of book.... A cinematic, charming heart-squeeze-of-a-book that has found its way to my Ultimate Comfort Reads shelf."
—Emily Henry, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Beach Read

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LibraryReads Votes Due: July 1, 2021

 

The Sisters of Auschwitz by Roxane van Iperen
For fans of: The Boy Who Followed His Father into Auschwitz
by Jeremy Dronfield
The unforgettable story of two unsung heroes of World War II: sisters Janny and Lien Brilleslijper who joined the Dutch Resistance, helped save dozen of lives, were captured by the Nazis, and ultimately survived the Holocaust.

"Offering fascinating insights into Amsterdam’s Jewish Quarter, the fate of the Frank family, and the bonds of sisterly devotion, this standout history isn’t to be missed."
—Publishers Weekly ⭐ review

Going to ALA Annual? See Roxane van Iperen on the "HarperCollins Presents Tales From Around the World" author panel, available on demand starting Wednesday, 6/23! Click here to add to your ALA schedule!

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LibraryReads Votes Due: July 1, 2021

 

Down Range by Taylor Moore
For fans of: Hunter Killer by Brad Taylor
In this action-packed debut thriller for fans of C. J. Box, DEA agent Garrett Kohl fights to protect his home on the Texas High Plains when a vicious criminal enterprise threatens his family.

"Combining the suspense and intrigue of a Tom Clancy thriller with the action and grit of a hard-hitting western, Taylor Moore's Down Range is sure to entice fans of both genres, as he weaves a wild tale of betrayal, vengeance, and death on the Texas High Plains."
—Philipp Meyer, New York Times bestselling author of The Son

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LibraryReads Votes Due: July 1, 2021

 

When the Reckoning Comes by LaTanya McQueen
For fans of: The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones
A haunting novel about a Black woman who returns to her hometown for a plantation wedding and the horror that ensues as she reconnects with the blood-soaked history of the land and the best friends she left behind.

"LaTanya McQueen's When the Reckoning Comes is so deliciously uncomfortable there were moments where I had to put the book down, take a deep breath, and like Mira, its protagonist, urge myself to go further. This is a novel, like Octavia Butler's Kindred, that reminds its readers that as long as people don't acknowledge how much of the past still shapes the present, it will bring its whips, its hatchets, and fists to make us learn."
—Megan Giddings, author of Lakewood

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LibraryReads Votes Due: July 1, 2021

Listen to a podcast interview between LaTanya McQueen and LLF's Lainey Mays!

Edge Case by YZ Chin
For fans of: Exciting Times by Naoise Dolan
When her husband suddenly disappears, a young woman must uncover where he went—and who she might be without him—in this striking debut of immigration, identity, and marriage.

"Edge Case is a beautifully subtle novel about precarity and dislocation. YZ Chin writes with wisdom, precision and humor, tracing the routes by which we become strangers to each other and ourselves."
—Katie Kitamura, author of A Separation

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LibraryReads Votes Due: July 1, 2021

 

Ramadan Ramsey by Louis Edwards
For fans of: Swing Time by Zadie Smith
The Whiting Award-winning author makes his long-awaited comeback with this epic tale, spanning from the Deep South to the Middle East, that bridges four countries, two cultures, and three families who struggle to love and survive in the face of war, natural disasters, and other calamities beyond their control.

"New Orleans music industry veteran and Whiting Award winner Edwards (Oscar Wilde Discovers America) returns after almost two decades with an ambitious globe-trotting epic as luscious and musical as the city he calls home."   
—Publishers Weekly ⭐ review 

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LibraryReads Votes Due: July 1, 2021

 

Battle Royal by Lucy Parker
For fans of: Get a Life, Chloe Brown by Talia Hibbert
Beloved author Lucy Parker pens a delicious new romantic comedy that is a battle of whisks and wits, where two bakers learn they will be fighting for the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to bake a cake for an upcoming royal wedding.

"Lucy Parker’s books are marvels of wit and warmth and empathy, and Battle Royal is no exception. It’s as delicious as the cakes baked by Sylvie and Dominic, from first page to last."
—Olivia Dade, bestselling author of Spoiler Alert

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LibraryReads Votes Due: July 1, 2021

 

Then She Vanishes by Claire Douglas
For fans of: Have You Seen Me? by Kate White
A twisty, compulsive thriller full of jolting shocks and startling secrets involving two sisters, a disappearance, a double murder, and a reporter determined to find the truth from the bestselling author of Local Girl Missing, Last Seen Alive, and Do Not Disturb.

"Then She Vanishes lifts the stone on a cold case disappearance and asks chilling questions about friendship, loyalty, love, and obsession."
—Gilly Macmillan, New York Times bestselling author of 
What She Knew and The Nanny

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LibraryReads Votes Due: July 1, 2021

 

Breathe by Joyce Carol Oates
For fans of: Monogamy by Sue Miller
From the bestselling and award-winning author comes a deeply personal novel following a desperate woman's final days with her dying husband: part intimately detailed love story, part horror story rooted in real life.

Praise for Joyce Carol Oates: 
"Timely, monumental.... Yet another piercing examination of American culture by the writer this reviewer considers our country's greatest living novelist.... It is brilliant. How blessed we are to have her as a novelist in our chaotic, confusing times."
—Star Tribune on Night. Sleep. Death. The Stars.

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LibraryReads Votes Due: July 1, 2021

 

The Sister-in-Law by Pamela Crane
For fans of: The Nanny by Gilly Macmillan
From the USA Today bestselling author of Little Deadly Secrets comes a gripping story about the frailty of family and a battle of wills between a wife and a sister-in-law, bent on revenge.

Praise for Pamela Crane:
"Crane succeeds at painting families and friendships in vivid detail; women will see their tussles and triumphs in these pages, and will relish the twists and moments of brave camaraderie and bold revenge.... A satisfying read that has echoes of Liane Moriarty and of Emily Giffin’s All We Ever Wanted."
—Booklist on Little Deadly Secrets 

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LibraryReads Votes Due: July 1, 2021

In Polite Company by Gervais Hagerty
For fans of: Sunset Beach by Mary Kay Andrews
This luminous and captivating debut novel sneaks the reader inside the private lives of Charleston’s aristocracy, following the journey of a former debutant who forges a path from tradition to seize a future meant for her all along.

"Peek behind the veil of Charleston’s cobbled streets, Southern charm and pedigreed society. In Polite Company offers a nuanced look at birth and death, privilege and discrimination at odds between generations. Gervais Hagerty is an author to watch!”
—Mary Alice Monroe, New York Times bestselling author of The Islanders

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LibraryReads Votes Due: July 1, 2021

 

Her Turn by Katherine Ashenburg
For fans of: Good Karma by Christina Kelly
A delightful debut novel in the vein of Younger and 
The Unbreakables, with a hint of Nora Ephron, about a journalist who stumbles into an unusual relationship with the woman married to her former husband.

"What a gem this novel is. Hilarious, wise, and humane, Her Turn follows one woman’s twisting path through a maze of love and betrayal and forgiveness. It is infused with the joyful spirit of Nora Ephron and lit with a charm all its own."
—Elizabeth Renzetti, author of Shrewed

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LibraryReads Votes Due: July 1, 2021

The Quiet Zone by Stephen Kurczy
For fans of: How to Do Nothing by Jenny Odell 
In this riveting account of an area of Appalachia known as the Quiet Zone where cell phones and WiFi are banned, journalist Stephen Kurczy explores the pervasive role of technology in our lives and the innate human need for quiet.

"What a fascinating book! This corner of America is unique for its electromagnetic silence—but once Stephen Kurczy starts looking he finds that it's unique in other ways too. The Quiet Zone will live on in your memory."
—Bill McKibben, author of The End of Nature

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LibraryReads Votes Due: July 1, 2021

 

The Last Debutantes by Georgie Blalock
For fans of: The Queen's Secret by Karen Harper
Fans of The Kennedy Debutante and Last Year in Havana will love Georgie Blalock’s new novel of a world on the cusp of change...set on the eve of World War II in the glittering world of English society and one of the last debutante seasons.

"A fascinating portrayal of London high society overshadowed by the threat of World War II.... Atmospheric, moving and compelling, The Last Debutantes is a must read!"
—Christine Wells, author of Sisters of the Resistance

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LibraryReads Votes Due: July 1, 2021

Click here for more great August reads!

 

The deadline to submit your votes is July 1!

***

We hope you enjoy the books! For more information about LibraryReads, visit their website. Remember: Vote early! Vote often!

-Chris

ALA 2021 is calling...Library Love Fest has answered!

Check out our schedule for ALA 2021!

TUESDAY, JUNE 22

11:30-1:00 ET

Adult Library Marketers Assn. (ALMA) Book Buzz—Live!
Hear about upcoming books from various publishing houses! RSVP here.

 

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 23

THINKFIT@ALA HEALTH AND FITNESS STAGE: Women’s Health and Wellness: Memoirist Gabrielle Union & Novelist Jayne Allen Discuss Women’s Health

Premiering on the live feed Wednesday, 6/23, 11:30 – 12:00 ET. Available on demand.

Authors Gabrielle Union and Jayne Allen, together with their editors, discuss their forthcoming publications: one a memoir, one a novel, both dealing with women’s emotional and physical health. Acclaimed activist, actress, and New York Times bestselling author Gabrielle Union is back with You Got Anything Stronger? an intimate, revealing, and powerful collection of essays addressing marriage, motherhood, and her surrogacy journey and the birth of her child. Jayne Allen is the author of Black Girls Must Die Exhausted, the first novel in a captivating three-book series about modern womanhood, in which a young Black woman, faced with an unexpected infertility diagnosis, must navigate her romantic life, her professional ambitions, and complex family matters with the help of her two longtime friends. 

12:30-1:00 ET

Kaia Alderson, author of Sisters in Arms: A Novel of the Daring Black Women Who Served During World War II
Featured Speaker on the Chapter One Stage: Debut Authors

Kaia Alderson discusses her historical debut novel, Sisters in Arms, the true story of the Six Triple Eight, the only all-Black battalion of the Women’s Army Corp, who made the dangerous voyage to Europe to ensure American servicemen received word from their loved ones during WWII.

 

THURSDAY, JUNE 24

11:00-12:00 ET

LIBRARY LOVE FEST TEAM LIVE IN-BOOTH CHAT! 

 

1:15-2:15 ET

Jeffrey Archer, author of Over My Dead Body
United for Libraries Gala Author Tea 

Hear the #1 New York Times bestselling author discuss his new, unputdownable story of murder, revenge, and betrayal!

 

2:15-2:25 ET

BOOK BUZZ BITES HarperCollins Buzzes Upcoming Adult Books from the Fall 2021/Winter 2022 Seasons!

Nothing can stop the LLF Team from Book Talking...We’ve buzzed in person.
Zoomed it, too.
Three cans and a string?
Any way will do!

Join the Library Love Fest Team for a bite-sized* look at some of our favorite reads coming in Fall 2021 and Winter 2021! More info here.

*CHECK OUT OUR SUPERSIZED BOOK BUZZ ON JULY 13, 1:00-3:00 ET
The Library Love Fest Team is back with another World-Famous Book Buzz, presenting Fall 2021/ Winter 2022 Titles on Crowdcast! RSVP here.

 

FRIDAY, JUNE 25

10:30 AM-11:00 ET

COFFEE TALK
The Road to Being Published: Two Perspectives

What does it take to get a book published?
Listen to two emerging authors talk about their publishing experiences!

All Her Little Secrets is a twisty mystery about a Black lawyer who gets in over her head after the sudden death of her boss. This book will resonate not only with Black readers but with all women who’ve sought to find their voice in spaces dominated by the ol’ boys club mentality.

All Black Girls Must Die Exhausted is the first in a three book series about a young Black woman who must rely on courage, laughter, and love to overcome an unexpected setback that threatens the most precious thing she’s ever wanted. Originally self-published, this #OwnVoices novel provides an undiluted perspective for diverse readers hungry for books that reflect their own experiences and viewpoints. 

 

11:00-12:00 ET

LIBRARY LOVE FEST TEAM LIVE IN-BOOTH CHAT! 

 

SATURDAY, JUNE 26

11:30 - 12:30 ET

United for Libraries: It’s a Mystery to Me
Featuring Wiley Cash, author of When Ghosts Come Home 

 

MONDAY, JUNE 28

12:30 - 1:30 ET

United for Libraries: First Book, First Author
Featuring Emily Itami, author of Fault Lines 

 

TUESDAY, JUNE 29

4:00-5:00 ET

SMORGASBOOK: A Food Lover’s Author Panel & Book Buzz!

HarperCollins, Workman, and Hachette are teaming up to bring you a delicious author panel of incredible women chefs: Sabrina Snyder (Dinner Then Dessert), Cheryl Day (Treasury of Southern Baking), and Zoe Adjonyoh (Zoe’s Ghana Kitchen). Virginia, Annie, and Melissa will then present a mini book buzz of additional cookbook recommendations. RSVP here.

7:00-8:00 ET

Please join us for a night of stories by and about
strong women told through three genres:
mystery, history, and romance.

June 29, 2021
7:00 - 8:00pm ET

Register for the 6/29 CrowdCast event!

About As the Wicked Watch by Tamron Hall: The first in a thrilling new series from Emmy Award–winning journalist Tamron Hall, in which a reporter unravels the disturbing mystery around the deaths of two Black girls, the work of a serial killer terrorizing Chicago.

Request the egalley on Edelweiss+
Request the egalley on NetGalley
Register for the 6/29 CrowdCast event!

 

About Death at Greenway by Lori Rader-Day: From the award-winning author of The Day I Died and The Lucky One, a captivating suspense novel about nurses during World War II who come to Agatha Christie’s holiday estate to care for evacuated children, but when a body is discovered nearby, the idyllic setting becomes host to a deadly mystery.

Request the egalley on Edelweiss+
Request the egalley on NetGalley
Register for the 6/29 CrowdCast event!

 

About Bombshell by Sarah MacLean: New York Times bestselling author Sarah MacLean returns with a blazingly sexy, unapologetically feminist new series, Hell’s Belles, beginning with a bold, bombshell of a heroine, able to dispose of a scoundrel—or seduce one—in a single night.

Request the egalley on Edelweiss+
Request the egalley on NetGalley
Register for the 6/29 CrowdCast event!

 

 

On Demand Program

POPTOP STAGE: HarperCollins Presents Tales from Around the World

Take a step back in time and hear three authors’ stories of survival, independence, and resilience: Juhea Kim, author of Beasts of a Little Land, an epic story of love, war, and redemption set against the backdrop of the Korean independence movement; Roxane van Iperen, author of The Sisters of Auschwitz, an unforgettable true story of Holocaust survivors Janny and Lien Brilleslijper—two sisters in the Dutch Resistance who helped save dozens of lives; and Vanessa Riley, author of Island Queen, a sweeping historical novel based on the incredible true life story of Dorothy Kirwan Thomas, a free woman of color who rose from slavery to become one of the wealthiest and most powerful landowners in the colonial West Indies.

See you at ALA!

-LLF

New Podcast Episode — Editors Unedited: Elle Keck interviews Cat Sebastian, author of THE QUEER PRINCIPLES OF KIT WEBB

This week on the podcast, we are featuring a conversation between critically acclaimed historical romance author Cat Sebastian and Elle Keck, Editor at Avon and William Morrow. They discuss Cat's new book (her paperback debut), The Queer Principles of Kit Webb, a stunning historical romance about a reluctantly reformed highwayman and the aristocrat who threatens to steal his heart. This conversation was fantastic! You will hear more about Cat's journey to publishing her first book, the writing process, and why it's important to feature many different kinds of relationships throughout history.

The Queer Principles of Kit Webb was a LibraryReads selection for June 2021!

Check out some of the other praise for this book:

"Sebastian’s prose is entertaining and delightful, with many steamy scenes...It’s also full of intelligent and thought-provoking political debates...An irresistible story of love and adventure that will delight both newcomers and regular readers of queer romance."
—Kirkus Reviews ⭐ review

 

“Kit Webb will surprise and delight not only fans of Sebastian and queer historical romance but also readers who are new to both.”
—BookPage ⭐ review

 

“Wielding a rapier-sharp wit and displaying an exceptional gift for insightful characterization, Sebastian fashions another fiercely romantic, fabulously sexy m/m love story that not only delivers a delicious surfeit of slow-burn sexual chemistry but also deftly illustrates the true complexity of all human relationships.“
—Booklist

“Great fun for the reader.... The book does not so much tear down class boundaries as dynamite the very idea of class itself, which is becoming a satisfying theme in Sebastian’s work. Laws that exist only to hurt people are unjust; systems that depend on people’s misery should be subverted and dismantled at every chance. The right to love and be loved as we are is a compass that always points toward justice.”
—The New York Times Book Review

 

Listen to the podcast episode here:

 

Cat also spoke at our diversity panel at ALA Midwinter 2021. You can watch the replay of that conversation here.

 

Download an egalley on Edelweiss+

Download an egalley on NetGalley

-Lainey

LLF Guest Post: J.B. MacKinnon, author of THE DAY THE WORLD STOPS SHOPPING

Today, we welcome a guest post from J.B. MacKinnon, author of The Day the World Stops Shopping—a thoughtful and surprisingly optimistic book that investigates how we may achieve a world without shopping. 

Check out some of the praise for the book:

“A well-researched and provocative analysis offering hope and optimism for our future."
—Kirkus Reviews, ⭐ review

 

“Witty and erudite…. Expertly showing the complex relationship between consumer culture and nature, this insightful account offers a starting point for change (and optimism).”
—Library Journal

 

“Well-researched and stimulating. Readers will be galvanized to make changes in their own buying habits.” 
—Publishers Weekly

***

“Libraries have always been models for a lower-consuming society.” So goes a line from my new book, The Day the World Stops Shopping, which roams the world in an attempt to answer a surprisingly difficult question: What would the world look like if we consumed a little less stuff? One answer is, there would probably be a lot more libraries.

This book began when, after writing for years about nature and the environment, I came face to face with what I think of as the “consumer dilemma”: We must stop shopping, but we can’t stop shopping. On the one hand, consumerism is now the world’s greatest driver of climate change and other eco-crises—even more so than the world’s rising population. On the other hand, whenever consumers slow their spending, it throws the economy into a tailspin. What’s the solution?

So began a search for people and places that could show me what life after shopping could be. To find out who we might become in a post-consumer world, I spoke to psychologists who study what happens when we give up materialism, spent time with hunter-gatherers in Namibia who live with minimal possessions, and explored a London borough that is trying to turn its residents from consumers into “participants.” To learn how business might change, I visited centuries-old companies in Japan that don’t worry whether they grow or not, and new start-ups that are trying to get back to making things that last. I kept chasing down these paths until I began to see a way past the consumer dilemma.

Then something extraordinary happened: The world really did stop shopping. The COVID-19 pandemic emerged, and the global economy locked down. It was a chance, however grim, to see whether my predictions of how a world without shopping might change were on target or off by a mile.

They were on target—only more so. We witnessed shifts away from materialist values at speeds that shocked even the experts. Emissions dropped, skies cleared, and wildlife retook the quieted landscape. Digital and virtual consumption replaced the real thing, brands began to drift toward buy-less-buy-better business models, and people began to rethink everything from time to work to keeping up with the Joneses.

A pandemic world isn’t what we want, of course. It’s not only a world without shopping, but also one without the human relationships we need so badly. Right now, I think we’re all looking forward to a little more consumer culture than we’ve seen in a while. We won’t stop there, though. Already there are clear signs that we’ll roar out of the pandemic with a record-setting consumption binge that pushes aside the new priorities many of us have set for ourselves, and pushes the planet back to the breaking point.

As that happens, a lot of us will question what it means to get back to “normal.” The Day the World Stops Shopping will be there for them. And what better place to read it than the library?

—J.B. MacKinnon

***

Thank you, J.B.! The Day the World Stops Shopping is on sale today, May 25th! In celebration, we are giving away finished copies to the first 10 librarians who email librarylovefest@harpercollins.com.

-Lainey