Fruit Fly

Fruit Fly
by Josh Silver

Crooked Lane Books, 2026. 372 pages. Fiction.

Go gay. Go sad. Go dark. A washed-up author will stop at nothing to claw her way back to relevancy—even if it means appropriating a young gay man’s tragic story. Mallory Maddox is buried under seven years of writer’s block. With her status as a literary sensation fizzling, she’ll do anything she can to resurrect her career. Inspiration needs to strike—and fast. Enter Leo. He’s a struggling addict sleeping under bridges and trading sex for survival. He’s vulnerable. He’s enigmatic. He’s exactly what Mallory has been looking for. Mallory needs Leo if she wants another bestseller. The world needs Leo’s story right now, and Mallory believes she deserves to tell it. Really, it’s her story—she’s the one who wrote it, after all. But as secrets threaten to unravel more than just her career, Mallory must decide how far she will go to pen the perfect story. 

This book has been everywhere on my social media and has been sold out everywhere this summer- and, let me tell you, its popularity is for a very good reason! This book is a dark satirical thriller that, despite dealing with some really heavy topics, has an incredible pacing that makes it impossible to put down. The book is told through alternating POVs of Mallory and Leo, and Silver manages to give both characters such vivid, distinct voices that were both interesting to read. Because the book is told in each of their perspectives, we learn how they are both manipulating and exploiting people in different ways, including each other, which I found added to the nuance of this book, as it isn't one "bad" character hurting the "good" character. It's much more complex than that: both characters are flawed, unhappy, and are both pretending so much that they are lying to everyone around them, including themselves. Beneath the thriller and satire, the book raises important questions about the publishing industry’s obsession with trauma, who gets to tell queer stories, when curiosity or inspiration crosses the line into exploitation, and much more. Many of these questions don’t have neat answers, and I think that's the point: everything and everyone in this story is nuanced and complex, as is most of real life. I also loved the ending. I found it to the perfect way to end the book, and it was surprisingly hopeful, which felt important, especially considering the conversation the book brings up on how much of LGBTQ+ stories in media end tragically for their characters and the damage this does. Overall, this book had everything I was looking for: it was funny, smart, thought-provoking, heartbreaking, and unsettling. This was one of my favorite books of the year, and I haven't been able to stop thinking about it. 

If you like Fruit Fly, you might also like:

Yellowface
by R.F. Kuang

William Morrow, 2023. 323 pages. Fiction. 

What's the harm in a pseudonym? Bestselling sensation Juniper Song is not who she says she is, she didn't write the book she claims she wrote, and she is most certainly not Asian American--in this chilling and hilariously cutting novel from the #1 New York Times bestselling author R. F. Kuang in the vein of White Ivy and The Other Black Girl. Authors June Hayward and Athena Liu were supposed to be twin rising stars: same year at Yale, same debut year in publishing. But Athena's a cross-genre literary darling, and June didn't even get a paperback release. Nobody wants stories about basic white girls, June thinks. So when June witnesses Athena's death in a freak accident, she acts on impulse: she steals Athena's just-finished masterpiece, an experimental novel about the unsung contributions of Chinese laborers to the British and French war efforts during World War I. So what if June edits Athena's novel and sends it to her agent as her own work? So what if she lets her new publisher rebrand her as Juniper Song--complete with an ambiguously ethnic author photo? Doesn't this piece of history deserve to be told, whoever the teller? That's what June claims, and the New York Times bestseller list seems to agree. But June can't get away from Athena's shadow, and emerging evidence threatens to bring June's (stolen) success down around her. As June races to protect her secret, she discovers exactly how far she will go to keep what she thinks she deserves. 

The Plot

by Jean Hanff Korelitz

Celadon Books, 2021. 322 pages. Fiction. 

Jacob Finch Bonner was once a promising young novelist with a respectably published first book. Today, he's teaching in a third-rate MFA program and struggling to maintain what's left of his self-respect; he hasn't written-let alone published-anything decent in years. When Evan Parker, his most arrogant student, announces he doesn't need Jake's help because the plot of his book in progress is a sure thing, Jake is prepared to dismiss the boast as typical amateur narcissism. But then . . . he hears the plot. Jake returns to the downward trajectory of his own career and braces himself for the supernova publication of Evan Parker's first novel: but it never comes. When he discovers that his former student has died, presumably without ever completing his book, Jake does what any self-respecting writer would do with a story like that-a story that absolutely needs to be told. In a few short years, all of Evan Parker's predictions have come true, but Jake is the author enjoying the wave. He is wealthy, famous, praised and read all over the world. But at the height of his glorious new life, an e-mail arrives, the first salvo in a terrifying, anonymous campaign: You are a thief, it says. As Jake struggles to understand his antagonist and hide the truth from his readers and his publishers, he begins to learn more about his late student, and what he discovers both amazes and terrifies him. Who was Evan Parker, and how did he get the idea for his 'sure thing' of a novel? What is the real story behind the plot, and who stole it from whom?

Boy Parts 

by Eliza Clark

Harper Perennial, 2023. 292 pages. Fiction. 

Irina obsessively takes explicit photographs of the average-looking men she persuades to model for her, scouted from the streets of Newcastle. Placed on sabbatical from her dead-end bar job, she is offered an exhibition at a fashionable London gallery, promising to revive her career in the art world and offering an escape from her rut of drugs, alcohol, and extreme cinema. The news triggers a self-destructive tailspin, centered around Irina's relationship with her obsessive best friend, and a shy young man from her local supermarket who has attracted her attention.

ND

Villa Coco

Villa Coco
by Andrew Sean Greer
Doubleday, 2026. 269 pages. Fiction

A young American takes a job in the Italian countryside as the assistant to Lisabetta, known to her friends as Coco - a strong-willed, wealthy widow of great local renown. He thinks he's been hired to catalogue the contents of the beautiful, crumbling mansion nestled in the green Tuscan hills but what are his actual duties? Days are spent ridding the house of a marten - whatever that is - locating the antediluvian septic system, entertaining a unique cast of guests, participating in the annual olive harvest (la raccolta) and traveling the Italian countryside.

This book was such a delight to listen to. I found all the characters, flaws and all, charming and full of life. I caught myself laughing out loud many times. The relationship between Coco and our American is what makes this book a joy to read. I wouldn't say the book is driven by plot. It is more about the characters and their relationships to each other. It takes place in Italy and has a very strong sense of place making me wish I could visit and see the beautiful art and landscapes described in the book. If you listen to the audiobook the reader is top notch and pulls off quite the performance. 

If you like Villa Coco you might also like:

Heart the Lover
by Lily King
Grove Press, 2025. 249 pages. Fiction

In the fall of her senior year of college, she meets two star students from her 17th-Century Lit class: Sam and Yash. Best friends living off campus in the elegant house of a professor on sabbatical, the boys invite her into their intoxicating world of academic fervor, rapid-fire banter and raucous card games. They nickname her Jordan, and she quickly discovers the pleasures of friendship, love and her own intellectual ambition. Youthful passion is unpredictable though, and she soon finds herself at the center of a charged and intricate triangle. As graduation comes and goes, choices made will alter these three lives forever. Decades later, Jordan is living the life she dreamed of, and the vulnerable days of her youth seem comfortably behind her. But when a surprise visit and unexpected news brings the past crashing into the present, she returns to a world she left behind and is forced to confront the decisions and deceptions of her younger self.

One Italian Summer
by Rebecca Serle
Atria Books, 2022. 253 pages. Fiction

When Katy's mother dies, she is left reeling. Carol wasn't just Katy's mom, but her best friend and first phone call. To make matters worse, the mother-daughter trip of a lifetime looms: two weeks in Positano. Katy has been waiting years for Carol to take her, and now she is faced with embarking on the adventure alone. But as soon as she steps foot on the beautiful Amalfi Coast, Katy begins to feel her mother's spirit. And then Carol appears for real-in the flesh, healthy and sun-tanned ... and thirty years old. Katy doesn't understand what is happening, or how. But over the course of her time in Italy, Katy gets to know Carol in this new form, and soon she must reconcile the mother who knew everything with the young woman who does not yet have a clue. One Italian Summer is Rebecca Serle's next great love story, a transcendent novel about how we move on after loss, and how the people we love never truly leave us.

JK

That Which Feeds Us: A Hawaiian Gothic

That Which Feeds Us: A Hawaiian Gothic

By Keala Kendall

Random House, 2026. 337 pages. Young Adult Horror

A native Hawaiian teen travels to a luxury island resort in search of her missing twin and uncovers the dark side of paradise. For the world's wealthiest, Kōpa'a Island Resort is more than a destination. It's the ultimate escape. With no cell service or Wi-Fi, the Hawaiian island is a coveted wellness retreat renowned for its persimmon orchard and promises of rejuvenation. But to uncover what happened to Ohia, Lehua will have to unearth the island's bloody history and face the horrors that lurk within its sugarcane fields--or risk being consumed by them.

I never thought I'd have the opportunity to read a Native Hawaiian horror - and this one sure delivers! Swapping the usual haunted mansion for an eerie hotel resort, Kendall deftly investigates the many ghosts of colonization and its psychological impact on Hawaiians today. Rich with atmosphere, complex characters and spooky encounters, That Which Feeds Us is a ghost story that's sure to linger with readers long after they've braved its pages. 

If you like That Which Feeds Us: A Hawaiian Gothic, you might also like:

Honeysuckle and Bone

By Trisha Tobias

Sweet July Books, 2025. 304 pages. Young Adult Horror

Carina Marshall is looking to reinvent herself, and what better place to do it than Jamaica, her mother's alluring homeland where she conveniently has access to an au pair gig for the wealthy and powerful Hall family. Once there, Carina finds herself settling right into her busy, but comfortable, new life. Yes, the family runs a tight ship, and yes, there is some tension between the Halls, but Carina is content flying under the radar and hanging out with her new friends--not least, the handsome and charming Aaron. But when inexplicable things start happening to her in the house, only getting worse each night, Carina realizes that someone, or something, is out to get her. Is it the Halls? The house itself? Or is her own past catching up with her? With Aaron's help, she must figure out what is haunting her, and fast, before she's forced out of Blackbeard House for good.

She is a Haunting

By Trang Thanh Tran

Bloomsbury, 2023. 341 pages. Young Adult Horror

Seventeen-year-old bisexual Jade Nguyrn is spending the summer in Vietnam at the French colonial house her estranged father is fixing up as a vacation rental, but unbeknownst to her family, the house and its ghosts have other plans.

Burn Down, Rise Up

By Vincent Tirado

Sourcebooks Fire, 2022. 338 pages. Young Adult Horror

When an urban legend rumored to trap people inside subway tunnels seems to be behind mysterious disappearances in the Bronx, sixteen-year-old Raquel and her friends team up to save their city--and confront a dark episode in its history in the process

KD

We Burned So Bright

We Burned So Bright

By T.J. Klune

Tor, 2026. 169 pages. Sci-Fi.

Husbands Don and Rodney have lived a good long life. Together they've experienced the highest highs of love and family, and lows so low that they felt like the end of the world. Now, the world is ending for real. A rogue black hole is coming for Earth and in a month everything and everyone they've ever known will be gone. Suddenly, after 40 years together, Don and Rodney are out of time. They're in a race against the clock to make it from Maine to Washington state to take care of some unfinished business before it's all over. On the road they meet those who refuse to believe death is coming and those who rush to meet it. But there are also people living their final days as best they know how--impromptu weddings, bright burning bonfires, shared meals, and new friends. And as the black hole draws near, among ball lightning and under a cracked moon in a kaleidoscope sky, Don and Rodney will look back on their lives and ask if their best was good enough. Is it enough to burn bright if nothing comes from the ashes?

I want to preface this review by saying I am a very emotional person who cries very easily, so, perhaps, you will not have as strong of a reaction to this book as I did. With that said, I have to be honest with you: this book made me cry a concerning amount. For entirety of the last forty or so pages, I was absolutely weeping. I know that doesn't necessarily sound fun. I know that might not sound appealing. I know you're wondering to yourself: "Why would I want to read a book that makes me cry so hard I nearly pass out?" I know! Trust me, I get it! But, yet, here I am recommending this book to you, anyway, despite my near brush with unconsciousness from crying too hard, because I can promise you that this book is so worth it. Klune handles the heavy topics -death, fear, mental health, the end of the world, grief- so tenderly and with compassion. While the story never shies away from heartbreak, Klune also balances the heaviness with humor, hope, and love in all its forms. He highlights both the bad in humanity (war, greed, violence) and the good in humanity (kindness, art, music, laughter, empathy) and shows how life in general contains both great terribleness and great beauty. This book is short at only 169 pages, and I flew through it, but it wasn't necessarily an easy read. It was, however, an incredibly rewarding one. If you're looking for a book that will make you feel deeply and leave you reflecting on life -and on how you choose to spend your brief and precious time on Earth- We Burned So Bright is the book for you. 

If you like We Burned So Bright, you might also like: 

The Spear Cuts Through Water

by Simon Jimenez
Del Rey, 2022. 522 pages. Sci-Fi.

The people suffer under the centuries-long rule of the Moon Throne. The royal family—the despotic emperor and his monstrous sons, the Three Terrors—hold the countryside in their choking grip. They bleed the land and oppress the citizens with the frightful powers they inherited from the god locked under their palace. But that god cannot be contained forever. With the aid of Jun, a guard broken by his guilt-stricken past, and Keema, an outcast fighting for his future, the god escapes from her royal captivity and flees from her own children, the triplet Terrors who would drag her back to her unholy prison. And so it is that she embarks with her young companions on a five-day pilgrimage in search of freedom and a way to end the Moon Throne forever. The journey ahead will be more dangerous than any of them could have imagined. Both a sweeping adventure story and an intimate exploration of identity, legacy, and belonging, The Spear Cuts Through Water is an ambitious and profound saga that will transport and transform you. 

This Is How You Lose the Time War

by Amal El-Mohtar
Simon & Schuster, 2019. 198 pages. Sci-Fi.
 

Among the ashes of a dying world, an agent of the Commandant finds a letter. It reads: Burn before reading. Thus begins an unlikely correspondence between two rival agents hellbent on securing the best possible future for their warring factions. Now, what began as a taunt, a battlefield boast, grows into something more. Something epic. Something romantic. Something that could change the past and the future. Except the discovery of their bond would mean death for each of them.

The Measure

by Nikki Erlick
HarperCollins, 2022. 352 pages. Fiction.

It seems like any other day. You wake up, pour a cup of coffee, and head out. But today, when you open your front door, waiting for you is a small wooden box. This box holds your fate inside: the answer to the exact number of years you will live. From suburban doorsteps to desert tents, every person on every continent receives the same box. In an instant, the world is thrust into a collective frenzy. Where did these boxes come from? What do they mean? Is there truth to what they promise? As society comes together and pulls apart, everyone faces the same shocking choice: Do they wish to know how long they'll live? And, if so, what will they do with that knowledge? The Measure charts the dawn of this new world through an unforgettable cast of characters whose decisions and fates interweave with one another: best friends whose dreams are forever entwined, pen pals finding refuge in the unknown, a couple who thought they didn't have to rush, a doctor who cannot save himself, and a politician whose box becomes the powder keg that ultimately changes everything.

ND

Legends and Lattes

Legends and Lattes

By Travis Baldree 

Tor, 2022. 294 pages. Fantasy 

Come take a load off at Viv's cafe, the first & only coffee shop in Thune. Grand opening! Worn out after decades of packing steel and raising hell, Viv, the orc barbarian, cashes out of the warrior's life with one final score. A forgotten legend, a fabled artifact, and an unreasonable amount of hope lead her to the streets of Thune, where she plans to open the first coffee shop the city has ever seen. However, her dreams of a fresh start filling mugs instead of swinging swords are hardly a sure bet. Old frenemies and Thune's shady underbelly may just upset her plans. To finally build something that will last, Viv will need some new partners, and a different kind of resolve. 

I really loved the premise of this book: an experienced orc barbarian, weary of dungeon crawling and fighting, decides to open a café and start a quiet life. And it was done so well! I was absolutely charmed by the characters. This is truly a cozy fantasy full of excellent but not overwhelming world-building, a few side-quests, and the challenges of starting a small business in an area that has no idea what your product is. The plot felt very well paced, and it was hard to put down because the characters were that lovely. I can easily recommend this to someone looking for a light fantasy, perhaps a D&D fan, or someone looking for a gentle entrance to the fantasy genre. 

If you liked Legends and Lattes, you might also like: 

The Keeper of Magical Things 

By Julie Leong 

Ace Books, 2025. 358 pages. Fantasy 

Certainty Bulrush longs to be useful—to her mage Guild, her younger brother, and anyone in need—but her weak magic hasn’t helped much. When she gets a chance to earn full mage status through a simple assignment, she jumps at it, despite having to partner with Aurelia, a brilliant but off-putting overachiever. Their task: transport minor magical artifacts to Shpelling, a quiet, unremarkable village, and keep things running smoothly. As they sort enchanted odds and ends and settle into village life, Certainty and Aurelia begin to connect with the townspeople—and each other. They soon question the Guild’s tight control over magic, wondering if sharing it might do more good. But with magic and growing attraction in play, complications may be unavoidable. 

Automatic Noodle 

By Annalee Newitz 

Tor, 2025. 163 pages. Science Fiction 

You don't have to eat food to know the way to a city's heart is through its stomach. So, when a group of deactivated robots come back online in an abandoned ghost kitchen, they decide to make their own way doing what they know: making food--the tastiest hand-pulled noodles around--for the humans of San Francisco, who are recovering from a devastating war. But when their robot-run business starts causing a stir, a targeted wave of one-star reviews threatens to boil over into a crisis. To keep their doors open, they'll have to call on their customers, their community, and each other--and find a way to survive and thrive in a world that wasn't built for them.

ACS

Disappoint Me

Disappoint Me
By Nicola Dinan
The Dial Press, 2025. 305 pages. Fiction

This novel is an exploration of love, loss, trans panic, race, millennial angst, and the relationships--familial and romantic--that make us who we are. It is funny, sharp, and poignant. One of the best ways to build empathy is to read books about people who are different from us. (Check out this article from the American Psychological Association that support this claim!) Autostraddle Magazine calls this book, "One of the sharpest and most emotionally vulnerable novels on the complicated dynamic of dating cisgender straight men as a trans woman.” I'll never experience what it's like to be a trans woman, so reading a book like this is an excellent way for me to build understanding, empathy, and compassion.

Our main character Max, a 30-year-old trans woman, poet, and legal adviser at a tech company, is struggling with writer’s block following a recent breakup. After deciding to date again, she meets Vincent Chan, a cisgender corporate lawyer and son of Chinese immigrants. Despite their genuine connection, not just as Asians in the London business world but as kindred spirits, their relationship is tested by Vincent’s occasional thoughtless remarks about Max’s trans identity and her emerging health concerns resulting from her gender-affirming care. She must use love and forgiveness to determine whether it’s possible to move beyond her dissatisfaction and their shared mistakes.

The character development in this novel is compelling, and the thought-provoking plot kept me invested. Max is an incredibly complex character, and this book will leave you thinking about her and caring about her, long after you're done reading.

If you like Disappoint Me, you might also like:

Woodworking
By Emily St. James
Crooked Media Reads, 2025. 351 pages. Fiction

Erica Skyberg is thirty-five years old, recently divorced, and trans. Not that she's told anyone yet. Mitchell, South Dakota, isn't exactly bursting with other trans women. Instead, she keeps to herself, teaching by day and directing community theater by night. That is, until Abigail Hawkes enters her orbit. Abigail is seventeen, Mitchell High's resident political dissident and Only Trans Girl. It's a role she plays faultlessly, albeit a little reluctantly. She's also annoyed by the idea of spending her senior year secretly guiding her English teacher through her transition. But Abigail remembers the uncertainty--and loneliness--that comes with it. Besides, Erica isn't the only one struggling to shed the weight of others' expectations. As their unlikely friendship evolves under the increasing scrutiny of their community, both women, and those closest to them, will come to realize that sometimes there is nothing more radical than letting the world see who you really are.

A Gentleman's Gentleman
By T.J. Alexander
Vintage Books, 2025. 322 pages. Fiction

The notoriously eccentric Lord Christopher Eden is a "man of unusual make" and even more unusual habits: he wears pastels year round, prefers to live as far from the prying eyes and ears of the town as possible, and wholeheartedly prefers the comfortable company of his childhood cook and aged butler, Plinkton, to any swarm of servants that would normally befit a man of his station. His penchant for privacy makes for a pleasant, if occasionally lonely life. That life is threatened to be upended entirely when Christopher receives word from his lawyers that, according to his late father's will, he must find a wife in London by the end of the Season if he intends to maintain his status as the only living heir to the Eden's End estate. While most men his age and status would leap at the chance to marry, he cannot imagine a worse fate... Enter: the handsome-if stoic James Harding, the new valet Christopher very reluctantly hires after Cook and Plinkton remind him that if he's to stay in London, he must keep up appearances befitting that of a wealthy, eligible bachelor. After a rocky start to their relationship, the two strike up a fragile friendship amid the throes of the London Season; a friendship that threatens to shatter completely as Christopher's deadline to find a wife looms.

Bad Habit

By Alana Portero
HarperVia, 2024. 224 pages. Fiction

I read this book in 2024 and blogged about it here. It's a staggering coming-of-age novel deeply rooted in the struggles of a trans woman growing up in Madrid. Set against the very real heroin epidemic that ravaged Madrid in the 1980s and the city’s vibrant party scene that dominated its nightlife in the 1990s, the novel follows an unnamed protagonist as she grows up in a blue-collar suburb that has no place for her. Forging ahead, she discovers community and kinship in downtown Madrid, amid a lively party scene animated by junkies, pop divas, and fallen angels. But with each step she takes forward, she finds herself confronted by a violence she does not yet know how to counter; in this exciting and often terrifying world, each choice can truly be a matter of life and death.

The In-Between Bookstore
By Edward Underhill
Avon Books, 2025. 253 pages. Fiction

When thirty-year-old trans man Darby finds himself unemployed and in need of a fresh start, he moves back to the small Illinois town he left behind. But Oak Falls has changed almost as much as he has since he left. One thing is familiar: In-Between Books, Darby's refuge growing up and high school job. When he walks into the bookstore now, Darby feels an eerie sense of déjà vu--everything is exactly the same. He's transported back to 2009, and face-to-face with his teenage self, who just might give Darby the opportunity to change his own present for the better--if he can figure out how before his connection to the past vanishes forever. The In-Between Bookstore is a bingeable time travel novel of love, self-discovery, and the choices that come with both. It's for anyone who has ever wondered what their life might be like if they had the chance to go back and take a bigger, braver risk.

LKA

Cry Out Loud

Cry Out Loud

By Tara O'Connor

Random House Graphic, 2025. 243 pages. YA Comics

Nobody understands Nell. Strongheaded, fiercely independent, and constantly furious, Nell just wants to be free to carve out her own path in life. And she doesn't care whether her mom or anyone else approves of her choices. But what Nell doesn't know is that her destiny was etched in stone generations ago. After getting suspended from school, Nell is forced to go live with an aunt and uncle whom she's never met before. Her sense of unease quickly evolves into terror when Nell discovers that she's been chosen as the latest victim in a perilous plot that spans centuries and has left countless bodies in its wake.

This is a fun YA horror graphic novel perfect for teens (and adults!) with just enough unease built in to satisfy. I particularly enjoyed the full color illustrations, and looking up how to pronounce the Irish names. A great read for spooky season and for those who enjoy coming of age and found family stories.  

If you liked Cry Out Loud, you might also like:

Creepy Cat

By Cotton Valent

Seven Seas Entertainment, 2021. 127 pages. YA Comics

Flora moves into a mysterious mansion and finds it inhabited by a strange creature-Creepy Cat! Thus begins her strange and sometimes dangerous life with a feline roommate. This gothic comedy brings the chuckles...and the chills.

Muted

By Miranda Mundt

Ten Speed Graphic, 2025. 313 pages. Graphic Novels

A summoning ritual gone awry kicks off a lush, witchy graphic novel series with joyful streaks of found family and sapphic romance.

RBL

The Eyes are the Best Part

The Eyes are the Best Part

By Monika Kim
Erewhon Books, 2024. 277 pages. Horror.

With her life in disarray after her Appa's extramarital affair and subsequent departure, Ji-won, plagued by horrifying yet enticing dreams of bloody rooms full of eyes, is overcome by hunger and rage that can only be sated by deceit, manipulation and murder as victims accumulate around her college campus.

The epitome of "I support women's rights and wrongs!" This book does a fantastic job of mixing relatable feminine rage with just enough body horror and cannibalism that you'll still be horrified throughout.  I also felt that despite being inside Ji-won's mind with her, there was still an element of mystery to the story that made it hard to put down. If you want to be justifiably angry, a bit disgusted, slightly worried, and ultimately satisfied, definitely give this book a chance.

If you like The Eyes are the Best Part, you might also like: 

My Sister, the Serial Killer

By Oyinkan Braithwaite

Doubleday, 2018. 226 pages. Fiction.

Satire meets slasher in this short, darkly funny hand grenade of a novel about a Nigerian woman whose younger sister has a very inconvenient habit of killing her boyfriends. "Femi makes three, you know. Three and they label you a serial killer." Korede is bitter. How could she not be? Her sister, Ayoola, is many things: the favorite child, the beautiful one, possibly sociopathic. And now Ayoola's third boyfriend in a row is dead. Korede's practicality is the sisters' saving grace. She knows the best solutions for cleaning blood, the trunk of her car is big enough for a body, and she keeps Ayoola from posting pictures of her dinner to Instagram when she should be mourning her 'missing' boyfriend. Not that she gets any credit. A kind, handsome doctor at the hospital where Korede works is the bright spot in her life. She dreams of the day when he will realize they're perfect for each other. But one day Ayoola shows up to the hospital uninvited and he takes notice. When he asks Korede for Ayoola's phone number, she must reckon with what her sister has become and what she will do about it. Sharp as nails and full of deadpan wit, Oyinkan Braithwaite has written a deliciously deadly debut that's as fun as it is frightening.

The Lamb

By Lucy Rose

Harper, 2025. 328 pages. Horror.

From an incendiary new talent, a contemporary folktale in which a mother and daughter take in passersby and eat them, exploring queerness, first loves, and tense mother-daughter relationships. Margot and Mama have lived by the forest ever since Margot can remember. They spend quiet days together in their cottage, waiting for strangers to knock on their door. Strays, Mama calls them. People who have strayed too far from the road. Mama loves the strays. She feeds them wine, keeps them warm. Then she picks apart their bodies and toasts them off with some vegetable oil. But Mama's want is stronger than her hunger sometimes, and when a beautiful, white-toothed stray named Eden turns up in the heart of a snowstorm, Margot must face the possibility that her life is changing for good. The Lamb is a folktale, a horror story, a love story, an enchantment. With this teeming, gothic debut, Lucy Rose wrings the relationship between mother and daughter until blood drips from it.

Victorian Psycho

By Virginia Feito
W.W. Norton & Company, 2025. 195 pages. Horror.

Grim Wolds, England: Winifred Notty arrives at Ensor House prepared to play the perfect governess--she'll dutifully tutor her charges, Drusilla and Andrew, tell them bedtime stories, and only joke about eating children. But long, listless days spent within the estate's dreary confines come with an intimate knowledge of the perversions and pathetic preoccupations of the Pounds family--Mr. Pounds can't keep his eyes off Winifred's chest, and Mrs. Pounds takes a sickly pleasure in punishing Winifred for her husband's wandering gaze. Compounded with her disdain for the entitled Pounds children, Winifred finds herself struggling at every turn to stifle the violent compulsions of her past. French tutoring and needlework are one way to pass the time, as is admiring the ugly portraits in the gallery . . . and creeping across the moonlit lawns. . . Patience. Winifred must have patience, for Christmas is coming, and she has very special gifts planned for the dear souls of Ensor House. Brimming with sardonic wit and culminating in a shocking conclusion, Victorian Psycho plunges readers into the chilling mind of an iconic new literary psychopath.

KJ

All Fours 

All Fours 

By Miranda July

Riverhead Books, 2024. 326 pages. Fiction

A semi-famous artist announces her plan to drive cross-country, from LA to NY. Twenty minutes after leaving her husband and child at home, she spontaneously exits the freeway, beds down in a nondescript motel, and immerses herself in a temporary reinvention that turns out to be the start of an entirely different journey. Ditching her California life for the open road, a restless, semi-famous artist leaves her husband, child and career and reinvents herself in a motel room, embarking on a journey of self-discovery and what it means to be alive and free. 

This novel follows an unnamed, complex character as they navigate motherhood, marriage, menopause, and sexuality. Perfect for those experiencing these life stages, but also translates to broader experiences of longing, desire, grief, discontentment, and discovery. Written in a reflective and provocative manner, the author illustrates thoughts and feelings difficult to reckon with. Although they may appear unappealing or uncomfortable, July liberates them in a beautiful and authentic way. This book is ideal for fans of literary fiction and for those in a period of transition, looking for intimate prose and insights into modern relationships, aging, gender, and grief. 

If you like All Fours, you might also like:

Milk Fed 

By Melissa Broder 

Simon & Schuster, 2021. 289 pages. Fiction 

Rachel is twenty-four, a lapsed Jew who has made calorie restriction her religion. By day, she maintains an illusion of existential control, by way of obsessive food rituals. Rachel is content to carry on subsisting--until her therapist encourages her to take a ninety-day communication detox from her mother, who raised her in the tradition of calorie counting. Early in the detox, Rachel meets Miriam who works at her favorite frozen yogurt shop and is intent upon feeding her. As the two grow closer, Rachel embarks on a journey marked by mirrors, mysticism, mothers, milk, and honey.

 

Nightbitch

By Rachel Yoder

Doubleday, 2021. 238 pages. Fiction

 An ambitious mother puts her art career on hold to stay at home with her newborn son, but the experience does not match her imagination. Two years later she steps into the bathroom for a break from her toddler's demands, only to discover a dense patch of hair on the back of her neck; her canines look sharper than she remembers. Her husband dismisses her fears from faraway hotel rooms. She struggles to keep her alter-canine-identity secret, and discovers the mysterious academic tome which becomes her bible, A Field Guide to Magical Women: A Mythical Ethnography.

Our Wives Under the Sea

By Julia Armfield 

Flatiron Books, 2022. 228 pages. Fiction

Leah is changed. Months earlier, she left for a routine expedition, only this time her submarine sank to the sea floor. When she finally surfaces and returns home, her wife Miri knows that something is wrong. Barely eating and lost in her thoughts, Leah rotates between rooms in their apartment, running the taps morning and night. As Miri searches for answers, desperate to understand what happened below the water, she must face the possibility that the woman she loves is slipping from her grasp. By turns elegiac and furious, wry and heartbreaking, Our Wives Under the Sea is a genre-bending exploration of the depths of love and grief at the heart of a marriage.

MT

Bury Our Bones In The Midnight Soil

Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil
By V.E. Schwab
Tor, 2025. 535 pages. Fantasy.

This is a story about hunger. 1532. Santo Domingo de la Calzada. A young girl grows up wild and wily--her beauty is only outmatched by her dreams of escape. But María knows she can only ever be a prize, or a pawn, in the games played by men. When an alluring stranger offers an alternate path, María makes a desperate choice. She vows to have no regrets. This is a story about love. 1827. London. A young woman lives an idyllic but cloistered life on her family's estate, until a moment of forbidden intimacy sees her shipped off to London. Charlotte's tender heart and seemingly impossible wishes are swept away by an invitation from a beautiful widow--but the price of freedom is higher than she could have imagined. This is a story about rage. 2019. Boston. College was supposed to be her chance to be someone new. That's why Alice moved halfway across the world, leaving her old life behind. But after an out-of-character one-night stand leaves her questioning her past, her present, and her future, Alice throws herself into the hunt for answers . . . and revenge. This is a story about life--how it ends, and how it starts.

Reason number one that you should read this book: sapphic vampires.  Reason number two: it provides a wonderful perspective on the ways women have had to take their freedom back from society over the centuries. Reason number three: it's an amazing genre blend of historical fiction, mystery, horror, and fantasy. Reason number four: VAMPIRES, who are gay! Once again V.E. Schwab has masterfully woven different timelines and narrators together to create a haunting story about how the core of who we are influences our story even more than our choices. If your introduction to this author was Vicious, you will find this book has a similar vibe while taking us from contemporary sci-fi to historical fantasy.  

If you like Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil, you might also like: 

Weyward

By Emilia Hart

St Martin's Press, 2023. 329 pages. Fantasy.

2019: Under cover of darkness, Kate flees London for ramshackle Weyward Cottage, inherited from a great aunt she barely remembers. With its tumbling ivy and overgrown garden, the cottage is worlds away from the abusive partner who tormented Kate. But she begins to suspect that her great aunt had a secret. One that lurks in the bones of the cottage, hidden ever since the witch-hunts of the 17th century. 1619: Altha is awaiting trial for the murder of a local farmer who was stampeded to death by his herd. As a girl, Altha's mother taught her their magic, a kind not rooted in spell casting but in a deep knowledge of the natural world. But unusual women have always been deemed dangerous, and as the evidence for witchcraft is set out against Altha, she knows it will take all of her powers to maintain her freedom. 1942: As World War II rages, Violet is trapped in her family's grand, crumbling estate. Straitjacketed by societal convention, she longs for the robust education her brother receives--and for her mother, long deceased, who was rumored to have gone mad before her death. The only traces Violet has of her are a locket bearing the initial W and the word weyward scratched into the baseboard of her bedroom. Weaving together the stories of three extraordinary women across five centuries, Emilia Hart's Weyward is an enthralling novel of female resilience and the transformative power of the natural world.

Vampires of El Norte

By Isabel Canas

Berkley, 2023. 371 pages. Horror.

As the daughter of a rancher in 1840s Mexico, Nena knows a thing or two about monsters--her home has long been threatened by tensions with Anglo settlers from the north. But something more sinister lurks near the ranch at night, something that drains men of their blood and leaves them for dead. Something that once attacked Nena nine years ago. Believing Nena dead, Néstor has been on the run from his grief ever since, moving from ranch to ranch working as a vaquero. But no amount of drink can dispel the night terrors of sharp teeth; no woman can erase his childhood sweetheart from his mind. When the United States attacks Mexico in 1846, the two are brought abruptly together on the road to war: Nena as a curandera, a healer striving to prove her worth to her father so that he does not marry her off to a stranger, and Néstor as a member of the auxiliary cavalry of ranchers and vaqueros. But the shock of their reunion--and Nena's rage at Néstor for seemingly abandoning her long ago--is quickly overshadowed by the appearance of a nightmare made flesh. And unless Nena and Néstor work through their past and face the future together, neither will survive to see the dawn.

House of Hunger

By Alexis Henderson
Ace, 2022. 290 pages. Fantasy.

Marion Shaw has been raised in the slums, where want and deprivation is all she knows. Despite longing to leave the city and its miseries, she has no real hope of escape until the day she spots a peculiar listing in the newspaper seeking a bloodmaid. Though she knows little about the far north--where wealthy nobles live in luxury and drink the blood of those in their service--Marion applies to the position. In a matter of days, she finds herself the newest bloodmaid at the notorious House of Hunger. There, Marion is swept into a world of dark debauchery--and at the center of it all is her. Countess Lisavet, who presides over this hedonistic court, is loved and feared in equal measure. She takes a special interest in Marion. Lisavet is magnetic, and Marion is eager to please her new mistress. But when her fellow bloodmaids begin to go missing in the night, Marion is thrust into a vicious game of cat and mouse. She'll need to learn the rules of her new home--and fast--or its halls will soon become her grave.

KJ