The books Southern indie booksellers are recommending to readers everywhere!

Adult Fiction

Dèy by Edwidge Danticat

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Dèy by Edwidge Danticat
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Taking its title from the Haitian Kreyòl word for mourning, Dèy is a life-affirming novel about not only the fragility of existence, but also the value of love and family. After escaping unscathed from a mass shooting at her local mall, Haitian American real estate agent Magnolia chooses not to tell anyone about her traumatic experience. Instead, she reflects on her relationships with those closest to her – her daughter, her estranged partner, and her aging and increasingly unwell parents – while becoming ever more fixated on news of the shooting and its victims. Understated and quietly powerful, Dèy is a profoundly moving reminder to cherish life, family and home.

Dèy by Edwidge Danticat, (List Price: $30, Knopf, 9780593803523, August 2026)

Reviewed by Jude, Square Books in Oxford, MS

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Scandal of the Summer by Alexandra Vasti

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Scandal of the Summer by Alexandra Vasti
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This spicy slow-burn historical romance between Ruby, a brilliant and eccentric heiress, and Archer, an accomplished privateer turned con man, is hilarious, heartwarming, hope-filled, and HOT (y’all, there are TWO special interest-based love scenes, and they are *INCREDIBLE*)!! I love this book and these characters with my whole heart, and I desperately need all of you to read it, because brilliant stories are meant to be shared, and this is one of the very best books I’ve ever read!

Scandal of the Summer by Alexandra Vasti, (List Price: $19, St. Martin’s Griffin, 9781250414250, June 2026)

Reviewed by Lucy, Blinking Owl Books in Fort Myers, FL

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Under the Falls by Richard Russo

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Under the Falls by Richard Russo
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A coming home story with both tragic and redeeming qualities. Tyler Sinclair, rock star, is scheduled to return to his hometown of Stone Mountain for a charity concert. Tyler left 18 years earlier without a word to anyone, not even his best friend Curt. When the concert does not go as planned, we find that his apprehension in returning is warranted, but he cannot begin to comprehend how much devastation he has left in his wake.

Under the Falls by Richard Russo, (List Price: $30, Knopf, 9780593805107, August 2026)

Reviewed by Kathy, Sundog Books in Santa Rosa Beach, FL

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Book Buzz: The Great Wherever by Shannon Sanders

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The Great Wherever by Shannon Sanders“I was visiting a bookstore when I dreamed up the opening lines to The Great Wherever. I was standing in my favorite sections―literary fiction―browsing backlist titles and delighting at how some of my longtime favorites blended the modern and hyper-realistic with unexpected elements of the supernatural. I’d been noodling over a novel for years by then, and suddenly―as if a key had turned in a lock―one began writing itself on the journal in my mind. First came the opening words, and then a sudden revelation: A ghost should tell this story.”
  ― Shannon Sanders, Letter to booksellers

The Great Wherever by Shannon Sanders

What booksellers are saying about The Great Wherever

  • A winding tale of Aubrey Lamb and her journey in adulthood after the loss of her father and the breakup of her longtime boyfriend. She is joined in her tale by four family ghosts connected to her family land in Tennessee, who share through flashbacks their own stories and connections to the land.
      ― Emily, Story Hollow, Madisonville, Tennessee | BUY

  • Well-crafted debut novel brimming with atmosphere and family secrets, this story chronicles the lives of the Lamb family through multiple generations on their farm near Memphis. This story is rich and complex with lots of skeletons in the family closet.
      ― Karen, Righton Books, St Simons Island, Georgia | BUY

  • Loved this one! An interesting look at how our family affects us, even generations later. I wonder what my own ghosts would have to say?
    ― Brooke, The Country Bookshop, Southern Pines, North Carolina | BUY

  • This novel captures how generational trauma is inherited over time and beautifully illustrates themes of identity, self-worth, and personal growth. It shows how, despite balking against our family tree, the past continues to live on in us. There is charm and wisdom in Sanders’ storytelling. While much difficult history is explored, it’s handled with tenderness, grace, and humor.
    ― Sarah, Old Town Books, Alexandria, Virginia | BUY

About Shannon Sanders

Shannon Sanders is the author of the linked short story collection Company, which won the 2024 Los Angeles Times Book Prizes’ Art Seidenbaum Award for First Fiction, was named one of the best books of 2023 by Publishers Weekly and Debutiful, and was shortlisted for the 2024 William Saroyan International Prize for Writing. Her short fiction has appeared in numerous publications, including One Story, The Sewanee Review, Virginia Quarterly Review, and Electric Literature, and has received a PEN/Robert J. Dau Short Story Prize for Emerging Writers. She lives in Silver Spring, Maryland, with her husband and three sons.

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The Half Life by Rachel Beanland

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The Half Life by Rachel Beanland
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A fascinating look at the American Navy officers and their spouses stationed in La Maddalena, Italy in the early 1970s. Eileen navigates her new life in Italy as a newlywed and a Navy wife, while also immersing herself in the Italian town with the locals. And when she finds herself attracted to local journalist Teo, her life gets pulled in different directions. An engrossing story that was extremely well-researched. Definitely looking forward to recommending this to customers this summer!

The Half Life by Rachel Beanland, (List Price: $30, Simon & Schuster, 9781668069134, July 2026)

Reviewed by Claire, River & Hill Books in Rome, GA

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Air by Christian Kracht

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Air by Christian Kracht
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There are two things that drive my will to exist: studying spaces and having dreams that introduce me to new places. “Air” managed to fulfill both of these needs through a void of color in both its plotline and its world building (and I mean that with high praise believe it or not). While I don’t believe this book is for everyone, it was certainly for me.

Air by Christian Kracht, (List Price: $24.99, Liveright, 9781324094586, July 2026)

Reviewed by Maureen, E. Shaver, Booksellers in Savannah, Georgia

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Most Ardently Yours by Freya Sampson

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Most Ardently Yours by Freya Sampson
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This was such a fun read with great characters and unexpected suspense along the way! Highly recommend to anyone who appreciates Pride and Prejudice, but is looking for a creative take on a modern love story.

Most Ardently Yours by Freya Sampson, (List Price: $18.99, Sourcebooks Landmark, 9781464264764, July 2026)

Reviewed by Kelly, WordsWorth Books in Little Rock, Arkansas

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Most Ardently Yours by Freya Sampson

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Most Ardently Yours by Freya Sampson
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Most Ardently Yours was SO MUCH FUN! This novel was like a reverse Lost in Austen where the female main character brings Mr. Darcy into the modern world! Zoe is done with men and with writing. But she has her beloved romance novels and her best friend, so she’s set. Until she somehow reads Mr. Darcy out of Pride and Prejudice, and now he’s sleeping on her couch. But how does she get him back? And does she want to? This story was a delight to read and a real page turner. Definitely a must for Austen fans!

Most Ardently Yours by Freya Sampson, (List Price: $18.99, Sourcebooks Landmark, 9781464264764, July 2026)

Reviewed by Jennifer, Bookmiser in Marietta, GA

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Most Ardently Yours by Freya Sampson

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Most Ardently Yours by Freya Sampson
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I was grinning and obsessed from the beginning. Love, love, loveeeed it, most ardently.

Most Ardently Yours by Freya Sampson, (List Price: $18.99, Sourcebooks Landmark, 9781464264764, July 2026)

Reviewed by liz, Columbus Bound Book Shop in Columbus, Georgia

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The Final Score by Lana Ferguson

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The Final Score by Lana Ferguson
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Lana Ferguson keeps her readers fed! Be it contemporary, paranormal, omegaverse, or anything else she writes, I will read it. Beyond one title that’s audio only at the moment, I’ve read all the others that I can. The Final Score for the time being is my favorite Lana contemporary. The care that is given to Jack and Abby’s romance is superb. It’s not just the romance, but the attention to detail given to the driving forces in their lives that have molded them into who they are, is done with such intention. I’m hard-pressed to think of another contemporary romance that has dealt with what Jack and Abby do and done it so well. Everything in this book worked for me, and it’ll be one of my go-to summer read recs.

The Final Score by Lana Ferguson, (List Price: $19, Berkley, 9780593953716, July 2026)

Reviewed by Preet, Eagle Eye Book Shop in Decatur, GA

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The Half Life by Rachel Beanland

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The Half Life by Rachel Beanland
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Rachel Beanland transports readers to a remote Italian island, where a young Navy wife is forced to face both the reality of her whirlwind romance and her country’s role in the nuclear submarine program endangering the locals. Beanland weaves a layered story of romance, love, purpose, and trying desperately to fit in — while not knowing exactly where you fit. I felt transported by the beauty of the island and completely drawn into this setting. This story — of a government failing its own people and others — feels very current and relevant, too. Highly recommended for readers who enjoy learning through historical fiction.

The Half Life by Rachel Beanland, (List Price: $30, Simon & Schuster, 9781668069134, July 2026)

Reviewed by Beth, Bookmarks in Winston-Salem, NC

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The Half Life by Rachel Beanland

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The Half Life by Rachel Beanland
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The Half Life is an honest coming-of-age story absorbed in unexpected love, worldwide adventure, and political upheaval. Readers will discover not all is as it seems when navigating life in Mediterranean waters.

The Half Life by Rachel Beanland, (List Price: $30, Simon & Schuster, 9781668069134, July 2026)

Reviewed by Jenny, E. Shaver, Booksellers in Savannah, Georgia

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John of John by Douglas Stuart

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John of John by Douglas Stuart
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In the weeks since I finished John of John, I keep thinking back to the experience as if I actually traveled to the Western Isles of Scotland, stayed in a croft on the water, gossiped and cried with all the inhabitants of this island–except I didn’t do any of those things, that’s just the power of Douglas Stuart. John of John isn’t a book you read inasmuch as you live it, achingly real and vulnerable. I loved it.

John of John by Douglas Stuart, (List Price: $28, Grove Press, 9780802167194, May 2026)

Reviewed by Lindsay, Parnassus Books in Nashville, TN

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Should the Waters Take Us by Stephanie Soileau

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Should the Waters Take Us by Stephanie Soileau
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There are not many stories about the people and the place I am from, but Stephanie Soileau delivers a novel so close to home that I had to put it down multiple times to catch my breath. Should the Waters Take Us captures such a particular experience growing up in the forgotten places of rural South Louisiana. That is, until a disaster strikes–be it a devastating oil spill or a catastrophic hurricane. But in between these headlines, life moves on in these places. Families plant generational roots and are tied to the land and water for their livelihoods because it’s all they know. It’s hard to talk about this book without getting personal. Soileau has given me a book that is three o’clock coffee milk at my grandparents’ house; it’s trying to eavesdrop on their conversations but they keep slipping into French so that I can’t understand; it’s Zydeco and SwampPop on the radio in the backyard during a crawfish boil; it’s 14 on and 7 off of so many people I knew on oil rigs in the Gulf; it’s blue tarps and days of clean up after another hurricane; it’s gumbo and fishing camps and family and all the beautiful, messy bits of our culture. It is a brilliant novel!

Should the Waters Take Us by Stephanie Soileau, (List Price: $30, Doubleday, 9780385551786, July 2026)

Reviewed by Kelsey, Tombolo Books in St. Petersburg, FL

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Man Overboard! by Kathleen Rooney

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Man Overboard! by Kathleen Rooney
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This is a book you can easily read in one sitting, and I did, because I needed to know what would happen to Kick and what had caused him to find himself floating in the middle of the Gulf of Mexico. Told as a stream of consciousness, we get to float alongside Patrick “Kick” Kilpatrick for almost twenty-four hours as he reflects on his life, takes in the world around him, and has hallucinations in which he converses with sea creatures. You end up feeling very close to this man, and I found myself hoping for a happy ending because I genuinely liked him. But I won’t tell you what happens, because that would ruin the journey for you. A feel-good book, in my opinion. An easy read that glues you to the page from the very first sentence.

Man Overboard! by Kathleen Rooney, (List Price: $27, Gallery Books, 9781668212387, July 2026)

Reviewed by Erika, Righton Books in St Simons Island, GA

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