Past Read this Next!

The Neighbor Favor by Kristina Forest

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The Neighbor Favorby Kristina Forest
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A February 2023 Read This Next! Title

Lily is stuck in a dead-end job as an editor’s assistant, the one Greene sister who hasn’t managed to make a success of her life. On a whim, one day she emails the author of her favorite fantasy book — and he unexpectedly writes back! They correspond regularly, opening up to each other in ways neither of them has before and becoming close, until Strick breaks things off suddenly. Lily is heartbroken…until she meets her hot new neighbor, who figures out pretty quickly that Lily is the Lily from the emails. But he has reasons for keeping his identity secret, so he agrees to help Lily find a date for her sister’s wedding, even though he can’t get her out of his own head. A fun, flirty, bookish romance that will appeal to anyone who’s had fantasies of hitting it off with their favorite author.

The Neighbor Favor by Kristina Forest (List Price: $17, Berkley, 9780593546437, February 2023)

Reviewed by Melissa Oates, Fiction Addiction in Greenville, South Carolina

The House of Eve by Sadeqa Johnson

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The House of Eve by Sadeqa Johnson
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A February 2023 Read This Next! Title

Set in the late 1940’s and early 1950’s, The House of Eve by Sadeqa Johnson is a wonderful historical fiction novel that tells the story of two young women who are working hard to achieve their dreams. 15 year old Ruby lives in Philadelphia. She wants to be a doctor but is struggling to make ends meet while living with her aunt. A secret love affair forces an impossible choice upon her. Eleanor is a student at Howard University in D.C. and struggling to pay her tuition when she meets a handsome young man who brings her into an elite world of wealth and privilege. What will she do to fit in and stay in? This novel pulls you in from the first page and doesn’t let go until the very end. Highly recommended!

The House of Eve by Sadeqa Johnson (List Price: $27.99, Simon & Schuster, 9781982197360, February 2023)

Reviewed by Mary Patterson, The Little Bookshop in Midlothian, Virginia

She Is a Haunting by Trang Thanh Tran

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She Is a Hauntingby Trang Thanh Tran
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A February 2023 Read This Next! Title

A gothic ghost story set in Vietnam. A modern family who have been torn apart by time and a house possessed by its former occupants. Haunting is the perfect word for this story. I was engrossed from the very beginning and now that I have finished it I can’t stop thinking about it.

She Is a Haunting by Trang Thanh Tran (List Price: $18.99, Bloomsbury YA, 9781547610815, February 2023)

Reviewed by Rayna Nielsen, Blue Cypress Books in New Orleans, Louisiana

All the Beauty in the World by Patrick Bringley

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All the Beauty in the World : The Metropolitan Museum of Art and Me by Patrick Bringley
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A February 2023 Read This Next! Title

Patrick Bringley becomes a guard at The Metropolitan Museum of Art after his brother dies and he can’t handle the day to day stress of his former job. Spending his days in the midst of some of the most beautiful art in the world, he slowly heals from his grief. This book provides a behind the scenes look at everyday life in the museum and I loved it. And there is a reference list of the art mentioned in the book which can then be viewed online.

All the Beauty in the World : The Metropolitan Museum of Art and Me by Patrick Bringley (List Price: $27.99, Simon & Schuster, 9781982163303, February 2023)

Beth Carpenter from The Country Bookshop in Southern Pines, North Carolina

When Sea Becomes Sky by Gillian McDunn

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When Sea Becomes Sky by Gillian McDunn
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A February 2023 Read This Next! Title

When Sea Becomes Sky is a book that needs to be read spoiler free, but what I can tell you is that this is Gillian McDunn at her finest. The intersection of science and art is a perfect complement to the interpersonal relationships in the book, every single detail adds a layer and a complexity the story that makes this one to sit and think about. I love how careful McDunn is with her characters and their emotions – and the experience of her readers. Bex and her family will stay in my heart for a very, very long time.

When Sea Becomes Sky by Gillian McDunn (List Price: $16.99, Bloomsbury Children’s Books, 9781547610853, February 2023)

Reviewed by Beth Seufer Buss, Bookmarks in Winston-Salem, North Carolina

Begin Again by Emma Lord

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Begin Again by Emma Lord
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A January 2023 Read This Next! Title

Emma Lord brings the feels in her new novel, Begin Again. Andie didn’t get into her first choice college with her boyfriend, but she has a plan. She works really hard and ends up getting in as a transfer student after her first semester at community college. The problem is that she planned her transfer as a surprise for her boyfriend….who did the same thing, transferring to the school Andie WAS at.

Begin Again by Emma Lord (List Price: $18.99, Wednesday Books, 9781250783363, January 2023)

Reviewed by Jennifer Jones, Bookmiser in Marietta, Georgia

Moonrise Over New Jessup by Jamila Minnicks

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Moonrise Over New Jessup by Jamila Minnicks
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A January 2023 Read This Next! Title

Romantic love, familial love, and the love of place play out against the background of late 1950s – early 1960s civil rights era. After the loss of her last family member, Alice flees her former home and the overt racial and sexualized violence by the landowner. She disembarks by chance in an entirely Black town – and what is meant to be a brief stop on her way north becomes a new home. New Jessup rose back up from the swamp and from the ashes of a white race riot, and the town carefully maintains a very public anti-integration stance to protect itself from attention from the white side of town. When Alice falls for the son of a town founder, she slowly learns that her Raymond been involved in the civil rights actions in Montgomery – and his affiliation with a group that works towards desegregation elsewhere creates tensions within their love story. A beautifully written exploration of just some of the variety of opinions within the civil rights era Black community on freedom, equality, and safety.

Moonrise Over New Jessup by Jamila Minnicks (List Price: $28, Algonquin Books, 9781643752464, January 2023)

Reviewed by Ginger Kautz, Quail Ridge Books in Raleigh, North Carolina

How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix

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How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix
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A January 2023 Read This Next! Title

Absolutely fucking terrifying. Hendrix does it again in this hilarious yet terrifying novel that combines generational trauma and denial with a not-your-average haunted house. Honestly, I’m unsure if my sibling and I could survive the level of haunting that plagues Louise and Mark; the characters themselves have you questioning whether they will make it to the very end! I had to read this in broad daylight to get through it all. Unique and horrifying, every detail will send goosebumps up your arms and chills down your neck. Not to mention you’ll never look at puppets or squirrels the same way.

How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix (List Price: $28, Berkley, 9780593201268, January 2023)

Reviewed by Laney Sheehan, Epilogue Books Chocolate Brews in Chapel Hill, North Carolina

Age of Vice by Deepti Kapoor

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Age of Vice by Deepti Kapoor
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A January 2023 Read This Next! Title

This novel will rob you of hours from your life, it will rob you of the need for food or company or sleep. Time the reading of the first pages wisely; you’ll have a sudden need to find a comfy spot where you can commune with these characters and their lush stories of pleasure and pain. A mashup of American Psycho, Scarface and The Great Gatsby but set in contemporary India, it’s all but impossible to look away from this dazzling train wreck orchestrated by Deepti Kapoor. I was consumed by this novel.

Age of Vice by Deepti Kapoor (List Price: $30, Riverhead Books, 9780593328798, January 2023)

Reviewed by Jamie Fiocco, Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill, North Carolina

Drinking Games by Sarah Levy

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Drinking Games by Sarah Levy
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A January 2023 Read This Next! Title

I loved Sarah’s very frank and honest recounting of her relationship with alcohol. Her self-aware and candid writing will be a much-needed voice for many who are re-considering the way we look at drinking as a culture. It is also a fantastic memoir about making hard changes for a better life.

Drinking Games by Sarah Levy (List Price: $28.99, St. Martin’s Press, 9781250280589, January 2023)

Reviewed by Laura Taylor, Oxford Exchange in Tampa, Florida

The Light Pirate by Lily Brooks-Dalton

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The Light Pirate by Lily Brooks-Dalton
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A 2022 December Read This Next! Title

What happens when nature isn’t natural? When in the end, Climate Change is unstoppable? Lily Brooks-Dalton renders a shockingly real depiction of this possibility in the harrowing and beautiful novel, The Light Pirate. Florida’s struggle with the aftermath of violent weather has always been a reality, but in this story, the rapidly changing landscape overwhelms the will and stamina of most human beings. Wanda, who was born during, and named after, a particularly vicious hurricane, frequently navigates a new, storm-carved home as the Florida coast shifts and neighborhoods are swallowed by wind, water, and human dereliction. Wanda adapts as nature does, to a strange new world–one dependent not on human infrastructure–but on that which matters most in the end: humility, kindness and bravery. This story is important. This story could happen. This story is happening. A must-read.

The Light Pirate by Lily Brooks-Dalton (List Price: $28, Grand Central Publishing, 9781538708279, December 2022)

Reviewed by Laura Simcox, Sunrise Books in High Point, North Carolina

Never Ever Getting Back Together by Sophie Gonzales

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Never Ever Getting Back Together by Sophie Gonzales
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A 2022 December Read This Next! Title

This is one of my top romances of 2022! Gonzales’ YA books are charming and this new adult romcom is a delight. Maya’s cheating ex is about to star on a reality dating show and all of his exes are being called together as contestants – including the other woman that helped break Maya’s heart. Sharing a room with her arch-nemesis can only lead to the best revenge plot of all time, right? This has slow burn, hilarious, sapphic joy on every page. Gonzales does a great job with bi representation and she gets better with every book.

Never Ever Getting Back Together by Sophie Gonzales (List Price: $18.99, Wednesday Books, 9781250819161, December 2022)

Reviewed by Andrea Richardson, Fountain Bookstore in Richmond, Virginia

My Darkest Prayer by S. A. Cosby

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My Darkest Prayer by S. A. Cosby
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A 2022 December Read This Next! Title

In this novel, readers are introduced to a story where religion, region, karma, and race intersect. Nathan, (former marine and ex-cop) has experienced loss of his own, and he’s dealt his own hand of karma to others. So, when the local sheriff’s office doubles down on corruption, he takes the case of a local minister’s death into his own hands in an attempt to bring peace to the congregation. This novel is full of twists and turns that will leave your jaw on the floor. This novel dissects the weight of loss on a person’s moral compass. In this small Virginia community is where the darkest secrets are revealed–where the darkest prayers are heard. S.A. Cosby is a force to be reckoned with.

My Darkest Prayer by S. A. Cosby (List Price: $16.99, Flatiron Books, 9781250867636, December 2022)

Reviewed by Leo Coffey, Union Ave. Books in Knoxville, Tennessee

How Far the Light Reaches by Sabrina Imbler

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How Far the Light Reaches by Sabrina Imbler
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A 2022 December Read This Next! Title

Wholly original, astonishingly informative, and powerfully written. Imbler describes marine life with reverence and compelling detail, and deftly intertwines the lives of the sea creatures with stories of their own experiences with gender, queerness, and identity.

How Far the Light Reaches by Sabrina Imbler (List Price: $27, Little, Brown and Company, 9780316540537, December 2022)

Reviewed by Sarah Arnold, Parnassus Books in Nashville, Tennessee

A Wilderness of Stars by Shea Ernshaw

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A Wilderness of Stars by Shea Ernshaw
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A 2022 December Read This Next! Title

This is an absolute gem of a book! Part science-fiction, part romance, Shea Ernshaw delivers another YA novel that is a delight to read. For lovers of stars and post apocalyptic literature!

A Wilderness of Stars by Shea Ernshaw (List Price: $19.99, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 9781665900249, December 2022)

Reviewed by Hallie Smith, Main Street Books in Davidson, North Carolina

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