Notable releases for June include Isabel Allende's latest historical novel, Elliot Page's intimate revelations, Lorrie Moore's first novel in over a decade, Agustina Bazterrica's collection of short eccentric tales, and so much more.

Notable Releases for the Week of June 26, 2023

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The Imposters by Tom Rachman

In the latest from the bestselling author of The Imperfectionists, aging Dutch novelist Dora Frenhofer battles time and her failing memory to finish her final book, while entangled in a web of her own characters. In engrossing chapters spanning the globe from London to New York, Paris to Sydney, we meet her old friends, siblings, lovers and others in her orbit. 

Banyan Moon by Thao Thai

A touching family saga tracing three generations of Vietnamese American women brought together by their matriarch's passing. From the war-torn Vietnam of the 1960s to Florida's swamplands, this anticipated debut is a Read with Jenna book club pick and graces many critics’ “best books of the summer” lists. *A Tertulia staff pick for June.

The Road to Roswell by Connie Willis

From one of America’s most celebrated science fiction writers comes this “absolute blast” of an alien abduction caper that kicks off at a Roswell, New Mexico destination wedding. Action-packed and loaded with humor, it’s an out-of-this-world road trip adventure packed with zany-but-possibly-true conspiracies, Elvis impersonators, UFO chasers, venomous serpents, space invaders and one heroic bridesmaid who just might save us all.

Crooked Plow by Itamar Vieira Junior

The critically acclaimed debut novel that took Brazil by storm in 2021 has now been translated into English. This magic-infused family saga follows two Afro Brazilian siblings on a hardscrabble farm in Brazil’s impoverished Bahia state, where the legacy of slavery still weighs heavy. The New York Times praised this "leading voice among the Black authors who have jolted Brazil's literary establishment in recent years with imaginative and searing works that have found commercial success and critical acclaim."

The Rachel Incident by Caroline O'Donoghue

The anticipated first adult novel from a bestselling Irish YA author is a bittersweet ode to youth, friendship and romance set in Cork, Ireland. When Rachel and her roommate James set their sights on the same closeted professor, their love lives become a tangled mess. Vogue was smitten with this “sneakily philosophical book about growing up that offers its insights with charming, effervescent ease.”

The Apartment by Ana Menéndez

From the author of In Cuba I Was a German Shepherd and Loving Che comes this multifaceted novel about the various tenants who’ve called a single South Beach apartment their home over the last seventy years. The interwoven tales probe the intimate lives of a Cuban concert pianist, a battle-scarred Vietnam vet, an intelligence officer’s widow, a trio stuck in a green card love triangle, a building manager with a secret identity, and various other eclectic characters who’ve called this old apartment home throughout the years.   *A Tertulia staff pick for June.

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The Art Thief: A True Story of Love, Crime, and a Dangerous Obsession by Michael Finkel

The dramatic true story of one of history’s most prolific art thieves, Stéphane Breitwieser, who along with his girlfriend and partner in crime pulled off over 200 daring heists throughout Europe before it all came crashing down in 2001. Library Journal called the page-turning crime caper, “a fascinating read. Finkel will have art history and true crime lovers obsessively turning the pages of this suspenseful, smartly written work until its shocking conclusion.” *A Tertulia staff pick for June.

Sofreh: A Contemporary Approach to Classic Persian Cuisine: A Cookbook by Nasim Alikhani

Brooklyn’s beloved Persian resto opens its townhouse doors to a wider audience with chef Nasim Alikhani’s first cookbook, featuring more than 120 of the bold, herb and spice-accented recipes that have kept New Yorkers (and luminaries like President Biden) buzzing since its 2018 debut. You’ll find Iranian classics along with modern Sofreh faves like Rosewater and Cardamom Custard, Sour Cherry Rice, Roasted Cauliflower with Shallot Yogurt and Pistachios and Sour Chicken Stew.

Goblin Mode: How to Get Cozy, Embrace Imperfection, and Thrive in the Muck by McKayla Coyle

In 2022 the Oxford English Dictionary announced 'goblin mode' as the word of the year, after the term racked up 93% of the public vote. The definition? Unapologetically self-indulgent, lazy, slovenly, or greedy, typically in a way that rejects social norms or expectations. Well, now there's a book for that too. 

Other New Releases This Week:

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The First Ladies by Marie Benedict

The Seven Year Slip by Ashley Poston

The Beach at Summerly by Beatriz Williams

The Wife App by Carolyn Mackler

Fireworks Every Night by Beth Raymer

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The Age of Insurrection: The Radical Right's Assault on American Democracy by David Neiwert

Sisterhood Heals: The Transformative Power of Healing in Community by Joy Harden Bradford

Through the Wilderness: My Journey of Redemption and Healing in the American Wild by Brad Orsted

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New Arrivals | Notable Releases for the Week of June 19, 2023

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I Am Homeless If This Is Not My Home by Lorrie Moore

The first novel in over a decade from the Birds of America author is a time-hopping ghost story told through the eyes of a therapy clown, a teacher visiting his dying brother and an assassin. Peppered with the author’s unmistakable banter and inimitable literary turns, this tragicomic tale promises to be worth the wait.

Holding Pattern by Jenny Xie

From this year’s National Book Foundation 5 under 35 honoree comes a tender tale about a young Chinese-American woman who drops out of grad school and moves back in with her mom in Oakland after a devastating breakup. Landing a job at a startup specializing in cuddle therapy, she soon discovers that her new life back home isn’t at all what she imagined.

Nineteen Claws and a Black Bird by Agustina Bazterrica

The Argentinian author's first novel Tender is the Flesh took TikTok by storm with its provocative story of cannibalism. Now she’s back with a collection of nineteen short, dark, eccentric tales steeped in her vividly subversive style that embrace issues of love, friendship, family relationships, and unspeakable desires. *A Tertulia staff pick for June.

The Quiet Tenant by Clémence Michallon

A psychological thriller about a seemingly upstanding man who’s secretly a serial killer - told from the point of view of the women in his orbit. For a sneak peek at the book Publishers Weekly called “a smart, female-focused inversion of the serial killer thriller perfect for readers who otherwise wouldn't give the genre a second look," peep our pulse-pounding excerpt here. 

The Spare Room by Andrea Bartz

The latest from the bestselling author of the Reese's Book Club pick We Were Never Here is a pandemic thriller loaded with heart-pounding suspense and steamy lockdown liaisons. When a newly single woman decides to quarantine with a childhood friend and her husband at their remote Virginia mansion, she begins to suspect that the glamorous couple might be harboring a deadly secret.

The Brightest Star by Gail Tsukiyama

Anna May Wong, the daughter of Chinese immigrants, was the first Asian American woman to gain stardom in the early days of Hollywood. This historical novel from the bestselling author of The Color of Air pays tribute to this groundbreaking movie star’s remarkable life and celebrates her legacy as a beacon of resilience and inspiration.

Watch Us Dance by Leïla Slimani

An intoxicating tale of rebellion, desire, and cultures colliding from a bestselling Franco-Moroccan author and journalist. Set in 1960s Morocco as the country emerged from its colonial past, two half-French half-Moroccan siblings navigate love, freedom, and corruption in a nation on the brink of change. The Financial Times called this coming-of-age story “beautifully atmospheric" with " a panoramic, classic quality... There is a palpable love of land and people, and a pride that can be felt through the author’s tone and vivid, colourful brushstrokes. It is both convincing and enveloping."

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In Light-Years There's No Hurry: Cosmic Perspectives on Everyday Life by Marjolijn Van Heemstra 

Feeling overwhelmed by the endless barrage of everyday stress? Our modern angst might be remedied by applying the so-called ‘overview effect,’ or the consciousness-shift that astronauts experience when they first see our home planet from orbit. In this eye-opening book, a poet and space reporter explores ways to tap into that same feel good cosmic energy right here on Earth. *A Tertulia staff pick for June.

Adult Drama: And Other Essays by Natalie Beach

A collection of deeply personal essays from the author of that viral New York magazine article about a toxic friendship with an Instagram influencer who has been compared to a "one-woman Fyre Fest. "Publishers Weekly called this young writer’s latest autobiographical musings “incisive and candid.”

National Dish: Around the World in Search of Food, History, and the Meaning of Home by Anya von Bremzen

Bremzen blends travel writing, food writing and memoir in this deeply researched tour of iconic dishes from around the world that are worth traveling for. The New York Times called it "a fast-paced, entertaining travelogue... Reading this book is like traveling with someone who knows the best places to eat & the right people to meet, but who can still find joy in humble, improvised meals.”

Through the Groves: A Memoir by Anne Hull 

A Pulitzer prize winning journalist reflects on her childhood in rural Central Florida during the 1960s. Autostraddle raved, “Through the Groves joins a growing body of powerful queer Florida lit. This coming-out and coming-of-age memoir from Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Anne Hull is a moving portrait of queer adolescence in 1960s Florida."

Other New Releases This Week:

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The Devil’s Playground by Craig Russell

The Only One Left by Riley Sager

The Glow by Jessie Gaynor

Mrs. S by Patrick K 

Zero Days by Ruth Ware

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What the Dead Know: Learning About Life as a New York City Death Investigator by Barbara Butcher

Birds of Point Reyes by Keith Hansen

Directions to Myself: A Memoir of Four Years by Heidi Julavits

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New Arrivals | Notable Releases for the Week of June 12, 2023

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The Mythmakers by Keziah Weir

This compelling debut by a Vanity Fair editor follows a journalist drawn into a web of intrigue after discovering a short story about her life written by an older author she met years ago. Featured in Shondaland's best books for summer, this page-turner asks “why we remember the stories we do and who gets to tell them.”

Maddalena and the Dark by Julia Fine 

The latest from the author of The Upstairs House is a gothic Venetian fairytale set in an 18th-century music school that’s perfect for fans of dark academia and legendary Baroque composer Antonio Vivaldi. LitHub called this tale of friendship, music and magic “the kind of book that will make you lose track of your surroundings as you sink into its enchanted salt marshes... Maddalena and the Dark is an atmospheric banger of a novel." 

Loot by Tania James

The third offering from the novelist behind The Tusk That Did the Damage is a historical saga set in the 18th-century that takes readers on a captivating hero’s quest across colonial-era India, England, and France. Oprah Daily raved that the author’s “ravishing prose and trademark blend of lyricism and suspense animate this ingenious caper meets politically acute coming-of-age story."

You Were Always Mine by Christine Pride and Jo Piazza

The acclaimed duo behind the book club favorite  We Are Not Like Them is back with another moving and provocative novel about a Black woman trying to raise an abandoned white baby against all odds. Kirkus praised its writing team for asking “hard questions about race and what it means to be a mother." 

When the Hibiscus Falls by M. Evelina Galang

Seventeen globe-spanning short stories about Filipino women and their ancestors, from the small villages of yesteryear to the contemporary American diaspora. These richly-interwoven tales are another vibrant addition to the Asian-American discourse from the author of 2017’s nonfiction work Lola's House: Filipino Women Living with War.

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Wannabe: Reckonings with the Pop Culture That Shapes Me by Aisha Harris

The razor-sharp host of NPR’s Pop Culture Happy Hour drops a collection of entertaining personal essays brimming with her incisive takes on the cultural influences that have shaped her life - and ours. Elle raved, "Aisha Harris is one of our smartest, most entertaining modern cultural critics. The nine pieces offer insight on Stevie Wonder, the Spice Girls, Pen15, and New Girl—among many other pop artifacts, of course—which might as well be parlance for, 'Read me immediately.'" *A Tertulia staff pick for June.

To Name the Bigger Lie: A Memoir in Two Stories by Sarah Viren

A thrilling, true-life memoir about a professor’s relentless search for the truth during a complex sexual misconduct scandal at Arizona State University. This riveting story of deception, hoaxes, fake news, conspiracy theories and lies was based partly on the author’s viral New York Times essay that thrust her and her wife into the national spotlight in 2020.

End Times: Elites, Counter-Elites, and the Path of Political Disintegration by Peter Turchin

Is America headed toward collapse? Peter Turchin, one of the most interesting social scientists of our age, explores this question with his novel interdisciplinary approach to history. The book provides context to the current turmoil in the United States by investigating what causes political communities to cohere and what causes them to fall apart, and suggests some potential endgames.

100 Places to See After You Die: A Travel Guide to the Afterlife by Ken Jennings

A hilarious list of 100 must-see destinations to visit when you’ve kicked the bucket, from the record-breaking Jeopardy! champion and bestselling author of Brainiac. Mining everything from the Epic of Gilgamesh to The Simpsons for top spots to check out once you’ve checked out, it’s "everything you always wanted to know about the afterlife but were too alive to ask,” according to Kirkus Reviews.

What an Owl Knows: The New Science of the World's Most Enigmatic Birds by Jennifer Ackerman

Since humans first depicted these mysterious creatures on cave walls over 30,000 years ago, owls have cast a peculiar spell on our imagination. Yet these enigmatic animals have largely remained a mystery. In this fascinating new survey that mixes the latest scientific discoveries with surprising owl trivia, the bestselling author of The Genius of Birds pulls back the curtain on these elusive and extraordinary birds of prey.

Other New Releases This Week:

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The Puzzle Master by Danielle Trussoni

The Spectacular by Fiona Davis

The Forbidden Territory of a Terrifying Woman by Molly Lynch

The Five-Star Weekend by Elin Hilderbrand 

Nightbloom by Peace Adzo Medie

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Young and Restless: The Girls Who Sparked America's Revolutions by Mattie Kahn

Thinking with Your Hands: The Surprising Science Behind How Gestures Shape Our Thoughts by Susan Goldin-Meadow

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New Arrivals | Notable Releases for the Week of June 5, 2023

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The Wind Knows My Name by Isabel Allende

The latest from the celebrated Chilean writer tells a poignant tale of war, family and migration through the interwoven lives of a little girl fleeing El Salvador to seek refuge in the US, and a child escaping Nazi-occupied Vienna. *A Tertulia staff pick for June.

All the Sinners Bleed by S. A. Cosby

This gritty, highly anticipated crime read from the prize-winning author of Blacktop Wasteland is about the first Black sheriff in a small Southern town investigating a complicated serial murder. In his review in The New York Times, Stephen King  praised the “unerring depiction of small-town rural life and the uneasy (and sometimes violent) interactions between Charon’s white and Black citizens,” and proclaimed of its grand finale: “White or Black, you gotta love it.”

My Murder by Katie Williams 

Imagine having to solve the most elusive mystery of all: your own murder. In this sci-fi infused thriller from a Kirkus prize finalist, a homicide victim who’s been brought back to life by a secret government project must unravel the story behind her own killing. Book critic Maureen Corrigan called it, "Ingenious...fresh and unpredictable… My Murder shakes up the same-old, same-old conventions of every genre it touches and has a ton of fun doing so." 

A Quitter's Paradise by Elysha Chang

The first book from Sarah Jessica Parker’s new SJP Lit imprint is a bittersweet family saga about a young woman from a second generation immigrant family coping with her mother’s death. It’s an NPR critics' summer pick that the Golden Globe-winning actress called a “glorious, pondering, heartbreaking, extremely funny, very special book.” *A Tertulia staff pick for June.

The Whispers by Ashley Audrain

In the latest psychological drama from the author of The Push, a terrible tragedy shatters an idyllic suburb. Told in the alternating voices of four different women over the course of one explosive week, it’s a haunting tale of domestic turmoil that Publishers Weekly hailed as “artful and pulse pounding.”

August Blue by Deborah Levy

In the latest novel by the Booker Prize finalist, a renowned concert pianist embarks on a surrealist journey through Europe trailed by a mysterious doppelgänger. Kirkus declared: “An economical, elliptical, but always entertaining novel of transformation by a highly skilled enigmatist.” *A Tertulia staff pick for June.

The Memory of Animals by Claire Fuller 

The latest from the prize-winning author of Unsettled Ground is a haunting dystopian tale set in a near future ravaged by a global pandemic. Confined to a London hospital, a disgraced marine biologist and four other experimental vaccine recipients struggle to survive as the world around them descends into chaos.  

Girls and Their Horses by Eliza Jane Brazier

An entertaining whodunit set in the world of elite showjumping, written by a former equestrian who knows the cutthroat horse riding circuit inside out. Notably impressed, the crime novelist and literary critic Paula L. Woods likened it to another equine mystery legend: "The complex motives, class divisions and nice-nasty backbiting among the "horse girls" and "barn moms" brings to mind the competitive female environments in Megan Abbott's novels, but Brazier's experience as a horsewoman and deep knowledge of that world could make her the next Dick Francis." Check out our interview with the author here. *A Tertulia staff pick for June.

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Pageboy: A Memoir by Elliot Page

In this highly anticipated new memoir, the Academy Award nominated star of Juno shares his emotional and groundbreaking story of coming out as queer in Hollywood. It’s an inspiring story filled with challenges, triumphs and intimate details from one of the entertainment world’s most influential LGBTQ+ activists.

The Elissas: Three Girls, One Fate, and the Deadly Secrets of Suburbia by Samantha Leach

Three wealthy suburban girls, who happen to share the same name, meet at boarding school — they are all dead within eight years.  Written by a friend of one of the Elissas,  this well-reported examination of addiction, rebellion and trauma casts a harsh light on the controversial reform schools of the so-called Troubled Teen Industry. 

Ice: From Mixed Drinks to Skating Rinks--A Cool History of a Hot Commodity by Amy Brady

An eye-opening look at how the ubiquitous frozen amenity has transformed the worlds of food, sport, politics, medicine, and many more. This comprehensive history of America’s 200-year love affair with ice is “overflowing with intriguing arcana and colorful personalities,” per Publishers Weekly.

Other New Releases This Week:

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Translation State by Ann Leckie

Killingly by Katharine Beutner 

Between Two Moons by Aisha Abdel Gawad

At the Edge of the Woods by Kathryn Bromwich

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Strong Female Character by Fern Brady

The Talk by Darrin Bell