The books Southern indie booksellers are recommending to readers everywhere!

Adult Fiction

The Prettiest Star by Carter Sickels

, ,
buy this book

Buy from your local indie.

2021 Southern Book Prize Winner!

This beautiful, elegaic novel gives us a family of voices over the course of a last homecoming to rural Ohio for Brian, dying of AIDS at the height of the 1980s epidemic. Told with empathy and heart, as well as a pitch-perfect sense of time and place, The Prettiest Star is a deeply affecting story about what it means to understand each other and where we come from, even when our lives have taken us light years away.

The Prettiest Star by Carter Sickels (List Price: $26.00, Hub City Press, 9781938235627, May 2020)

Reviewed by Ashley Warlick, M. Judson booksellers and storytellers in Greenville, South Carolina

The Prettiest Star by Carter Sickels Read More »

The Prettiest Star by Carter Sickels

, ,
buy this book

Buy from your local indie.

2021 Southern Book Prize Winner!

Carter Sickels has written a gorgeous and heartbreaking book. Brian comes home to rural Ohio after contracting AIDS in New York. As he searches for something like peace we also watch his family and their complicated love for not only him but each other. I absolutely loved this, it was tender and humane, and a glimpse of a shamefully almost-forgotten time in American history. I haven’t stopped thinking about Brian since I finished the novel, and I can tell I won’t stop thinking of him for a long time.

The Prettiest Star by Carter Sickels (List Price: $26.00, Hub City Press, 9781938235627, May 2020)

Reviewed by Chelsea Bauer, Union Ave Books in Knoxville, Tennessee

The Prettiest Star by Carter Sickels Read More »

What Comes After by JoAnne Tompkins

, , ,
What Comes After
buy this book

Buy from your local indie.

Set in the Pacific Northwest, What Comes After, is brimming with emotion. A tiny town is rocked by the murder/suicide of two teenage boys who had been lifelong friends and next-door neighbors. As their families attempt to piece together the events leading up to the tragedy, a homeless pregnant girl appears. Author JoAnne Tompkins has created a study of human nature: What elements in life her characters recognize and choose to know, and what lies deeply embedded. This is a beautifully crafted novel, nuanced with suspense.

What Comes After by JoAnne Tompkins (List Price: $28, Riverhead Books, 9780593085998, 4/13/2021)

Reviewed by Damita Nocton, The Country Bookshop in Southern Pines, North Carolina

What Comes After by JoAnne Tompkins Read More »

Remote Control by Nnedi Okorafor

, ,
remote control
buy this book

Buy from your local indie.

A Winter 2021 Read This Next! Title

How unsettled do you want to feel? Double it and that’s Remote Control. Okorafore’s prose is stunning as she constructs a world in which the unknown walks among us, delivering the mercy or vengeance of death where she wishes and simply traveling at other times. Sankofa’s search for answers does not come to a neat and tidy end, but isn’t that the true nature of things? Nothing will ever be completely understood.

Remote Control by Nnedi Okorafor (List Price: $19.99, Tordotcom, 9781250772800, 1/19/2021)

Reviewed by Faith Parke-Dodge, Page 158 Books in Wake Forest, North Carolina

Remote Control by Nnedi Okorafor Read More »

Migrations by Charlotte McConaghy

, , ,
Migrations
buy this book

Buy from your local indie.

Migrations is for the lovers, the wanderers, and those who are drawn to the beauty of the earth. The main character, Franny Stone, might be the focus of the novel…but the ocean, the birds in the sky, and the arctic are all equally important. Franny convinces a fishing crew to let her hitch a ride on their ship in the North Atlantic so that she can conduct an individual study on Arctic Terns and their migration. The fish are in short supply, the crew is a band of misfits, and Franny has an ulterior motive stemming from a troubled past. Little by little, all of the truths revealed are colored by the settings of Galway, Ireland and Scotland, Newfoundland/Greenland and ultimately the Antarctic continent. For me, there are two stories in this book: 1) The wanderlust that exists in many of us looking for a place (or a person) to call home. And though we may find it, the need for exploration never ceases. And 2) The conservation of the natural world and all of it occupants should not be discarded by humanity. All in all, the writing was excellent; the settings were majestic; the epilogue was magnificent.

Migrations by Charlotte McConaghy (List price: $26.99, Flatiron Books), recommended by novel., Memphis, TN.

Migrations by Charlotte McConaghy Read More »

Smoke by Joe Ide

, , , , , ,
Smoke
buy this book

Buy from your local indie.

Dodson’s back. Back again. Dodson’s back. Tell a friend. Or two. Or ten. My apologies to Eminem and to you, dear reader, for the possible ear worm I may have just planted but, THANK YOU Joe Ide! I’ve not laughed that loud, while reading, in some time. Truth be told, my wife tired quickly of me barging into her reading time to say, “Honey, wait until you have hear this bit”. Yeah, too much coffee and great writing so that to me. I’ve enjoyed all of the IQ series and, if I’m being honest, I was fairly sure this would be another solid run of the series but, probably not exceptional. Wrong. Just. Plain. Wrong. I love where Joe is taking us. The depth of the characters continues to develop at a wicked pace. The plot lines are becoming even more ferocious. And IQ keeps getting… smarter? Yep. And the ending? YIKES. Book six Mr. Ide? Bring. It. ON!

Smoke by Joe Ide (List Price: $28, Mulholland Books, 9780316531061, 2/23/2021)

Reviewed by Berkley McDaniel, Fountain Bookstore in Richmond, Virginia

Smoke by Joe Ide Read More »

Winter’s Orbit by Everina Maxwell

, ,
Winter's Orbit
buy this book

Buy from your local indie.

I couldn’t put this book down! (I stayed up until 6 AM to finish it.)I thoroughly enjoyed these two lost souls thrust into an arranged marriage as well as interplanetary politics and intrigue, mixed with an intriguing dose of cultural anthropology (the deft touches of cultural differences amongst the different planets). Crossover appeal for Romance readers, for sure

Winter’s Orbit by Everina Maxwell (List Price: $17.99, Tor Books, 9781250758835, 2/2/2021)

Reviewed by Angela Trigg, The Haunted Bookshop in Mobile, Alabama

Winter’s Orbit by Everina Maxwell Read More »

The Windsor Knot by SJ Bennett

, ,
The Windsor Knot
buy this book

Buy from your local indie.

A charming twist on the British murder mystery with insight into the potential daily life of Queen Elizabeth, which is fascinating in and of itself, but also a fun mystery as the Queen’s able sidekick does the legwork and together she and the Queen push the facts towards the official investigators to get the puzzle solved. Enjoyable and I look forward to the next in the series. Also a very good audiobook.

The Windsor Knot by SJ Bennett (List Price: $27.99, William Morrow, 9780063050006, 3/9/2021)

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

The Windsor Knot by SJ Bennett Read More »

Who is Maud Dixon? by Alexandra Andrews

, , ,
Who Is Maud Dixon?
buy this book

Buy from your local indie.

For those who loved Social Creature and Gone Girl: Florence Darrow, our desperately dark protagonist, has been fired from her editing job and taken on the position of an assistant to the infamously anonymous Maud Dixon. What should be a privileged position turns into something completely the opposite after a horrible work trip to Morocco. Who is Maud Dixon? will keep you guessing ’til the end and even after you’ll still be asking questions (in the absolute best way possible).

Who is Maud Dixon? by Alexandra Andrews (List Price: $28, Little, Brown and Company, 9780316500319, 3/2/2021)

Reviewed by Olivia Schaffer, The Bookshelf in Thomasville, Georgia

Who is Maud Dixon? by Alexandra Andrews Read More »

Arsenic and Adobo by Mia P. Manansala

, , , , , ,
Arsenic and Adobo
buy this book

Buy from your local indie.

Lila has moved back home and is living with her Filipino family after a bad breakup. She’s also come back to help with the family’s restaurant. But when the local fool critic has never met a dish about which he had something nice to say passes out in his food at the restaurant and later dies, Lila’s the number one suspect. I love cozies and this was a nice, new addition to the genre with some Filipino flair! I loved the characters and look forward to reading more!

Arsenic and Adobo by Mia P. Manansala (List Price: $16, Berkley, 9780593201671, 5/4/2021)

Reviewed by Jennifer Jones, Bookmiser, Inc. in Marietta, Georgia

Arsenic and Adobo by Mia P. Manansala Read More »

Whisper Down the Lane by Clay McLeod Chapman

, , ,
Whistle Down the Lane
buy this book

Buy from your local indie.

Clay McLeod Chapman has not disappointed in his second novel! Eerie in the best way, the story follows five year-old Sean in 1983 and Richard, an art teacher, in 2013. What is supposed to be a fresh start for the boy and the man thirty years apart leads to horrific events for Sean/Richard and everyone around them. Chapman’s impeccable writing brings the scenes to life. From the first page, Chapman skillfully peppers humor throughout, making you comfortable before the inevitable horrific snap of the plot. It is an intriguing look at how actions in our childhood can haunt us into adulthood–sometimes literally haunt us.

Whisper Down the Lane by Clay McLeod Chapman (List Price: $19.99, Quirk Books, 9781683692157, 4/6/2021)

Reviewed by Karyn Cumming, Fountain Bookstore in Richmond, Virginia

Whisper Down the Lane by Clay McLeod Chapman Read More »

Milk Blood Heat by Dantiel W. Moniz

, , , ,
Milk Blood Heat
buy this book

Buy from your local indie.

I opened this book’s beautiful cover to sample one story from the collection, but I couldn’t stop until I had read them all. Each piece packs a different sort of power, examining the subtleties of relationships—between friends, parents and children, husbands and wives, mothers and unborn children. The writing is raw and visceral, just as the title “Milk Blood Heat” suggests, and the characters’ feelings and bodies often can’t be contained, no matter how hard they might try. This collection will dazzle and unsettle you at the same time, and I highly recommend it!

Milk Blood Heat by Dantiel W. Moniz (List Price: $25, Grove Press, 9780802158154, 2/2/2021)

Reviewed by Lady Smith, The Snail on the Wall in Huntsville, Alabama

Milk Blood Heat by Dantiel W. Moniz Read More »

An Extravagant Death by Charles Finch

, ,
Extravagant Death
buy this book

Buy from your local indie.

Another entertaining addition to one of Righton Books’ favorite mystery series. Charles Lenox travels to the United States and becomes swept up in high society Newport, Rhode Island, where a beautiful young woman has died a suspicious death.

An Extravagant Death by Charles Finch (List Price: $27.99, Minotaur Books, 9781250767134, February 2021)

Reviewed by Anne Peck, Righton Books in St. Simons Island, Georgia

An Extravagant Death by Charles Finch Read More »

American Delirium by Betina González

,
American Delirium
buy this book

Buy from your local indie.

In an average Midwestern town, deer are attacking people. Retirees are training to hunt the animals down. Adults are choosing to abandon society and live in the woods. A local taxidermist finds a strange woman living in his closet. And much of this may be happening due to a mysterious hallucinogen. This story is beyond strange and surreal in the best way possible and I look forward to reading more by Argentine author Betina González in the future.

American Delirium by Betina González, Heather Cleary (Translated by) (List Price: $26.99, Henry Holt and Co., 9781250621283, 2/16/2021)

Reviewed by Jen Minor, Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill, North Carolina

American Delirium by Betina González Read More »

The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah

,
The Four Winds
buy this book

Buy from your local indie.

A stunning tale of perseverance, family, friendship, and hope, The Four Winds absolutely blew me away. Kristin Hannah describes a time in American history that is often overlooked through the eyes of characters so human I’m amazed they aren’t real people. Hannah weaves the struggles of the time seamlessly with ones any mother can relate to: working ten hours a day for mere pennies and a son who gets into fights at school; using a rope to guide her to the barn because the dust in the air is so thick she can’t see, then coming inside to an obstinate teenage daughter who just wants her dad. The reader can relate to Elsa enough that they can easily see themselves even in her most dire circumstances. The Four Winds tells the story of an American dream that isn’t meant for everyone, and how those left behind can band together to make that dream work for them. It’s one I will not soon forget.

The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah (List Price: $28.99, St. Martin’s Press, 9781250178602, 2/2/2021)

Reviewed by Tia at Quail Ridge Books in Raleigh, North Carolina

The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah Read More »

Scroll to Top