The books Southern indie booksellers are recommending to readers everywhere!

Fiction

Daddy Issues by Kate Goldbeck

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Daddy Issues by Kate Goldbeck
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Daddy Issues is an Ali-Hazelwood grade (said with unabashed reverence) age-gap romance that has it all—a real, messy protagonist, a hot, dedicated single dad next door, riveting professional stakes, unexpected info about a niche subject (comics), and meaningful, believable resolution and character growth through the book—a romcom that also has steaming hot “driving lessons” in a Chili’s parking lot! What more do you want? The girls who get it NEED TO GET THIS.

Daddy Issues by Kate Goldbeck, (List Price: $18, Dial Press Trade Paperback, 9780593730812, November 2025)

Reviewed by Megan Bell, The Underground Bookshop LLC in Carrollton, Georgia

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Secret Nights and Northern Lights by Megan Oliver

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Secret Nights and Northern Lights by Megan Oliver
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Adorable romance set in Iceland. If you’ve been lucky enough to visit the country, you will appreciate the great descriptions of the enchanting landscape. Great for readers who love a good romance with a side of travel thrown in. The characters are likable and you will root for them.

Secret Nights and Northern Lights by Megan Oliver, (List Price: $19, Berkley, 9780593952405, November 2025)

Reviewed by Christina Tabereaux, The Snail On the Wall in Huntsville, Alabama

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I, Medusa by Ayana Gray

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I, Medusa by Ayana Gray
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I’m always up for an origin story and especially like to hear a familiar tale from a different character’s perspective. I, Medusa delivers this and more. Gray explores timely themes of power, diversity, agency and humanity through a mythological lens. Even though I knew Medusa’s ultimate fate, I wanted to go on this journey with her.

I, Medusa by Ayana Gray, (List Price: $30, Random House, 9780593733769, November November 2025)

Reviewed by Ginger Young, WordsWorth Books in Little Rock, Arkansas

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Hellions by Julia Elliott

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Hellions by Julia Elliott
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Swampy Southern Gothic at its finest. These stories are lush, each driven by magical, wicked, wholly-alive characters so deeply rooted in their surroundings—or their desires—its difficult to see where person begins and wild ends. Discerning and empathetic, Elliott’s eye for the strange wonders that bring folklore and fairytale to life is unmatched.

Hellions by Julia Elliott, (List Price: $17.95, Tin House Books, 9781963108064, April 2025)

Reviewed by Miranda Sanchez, Epilogue Books Chocolate Brews in Chapel Hill, North Carolina

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Happy Land by Dolen Perkins-Valdez

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Happy Land by Dolen Perkins-Valdez
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I loved the author’s previous book, so I was excited to read this new one! This dual timeline, multi-generational story explores the real Kingdom of Happy Land that was created by ex-slaves on the North Carolina / South Carolina border in the 1870s, and its lingering legacy in the present day. The citizens of Happy Land were able to build lives and eventually buy the land that gave them security and roots that had been denied them in the time of slavery. The land was stability, security, a legacy. They still struggled, but it was interesting to see how they made their way in difficult times. In the current day, the last remnants of Happy Land is under threat–can the family bond together and heal years of doubt and misunderstanding in time to save the heritage left to them? If you have a place that gives you peace and security, that you long for when you are away, you will understand this story.

Happy Land by Dolen Perkins-Valdez, (List Price: $29, Berkley, 9780593337721, April 2025)

Reviewed by Amy Dance, The Snail On the Wall in Huntsville, Alabama

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The White Hot by Quiara Alegría Hudes

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The White Hot by Quiara Alegría Hudes
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Wow! This novel was absolutely beautiful! Quiara Alegria Hudes gives us a perfectly flawed narrator who I found myself in equal measures horrified by and empathizing with throughout the novel. April’s rage screams from the pages at times and quietly seethes at others. Abandonment is at the heart of this novel but also reclamation of the self and the hope that by leaving a mother can break the cycle of pain that has persisted for generations.

The White Hot by Quiara Alegría Hudes, (List Price: $26, One World, 9780593732335, November 2025)

Reviewed by Kelsey Jagneaux, Tombolo Books in St Petersburg, Florida

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Best Offer Wins by Marisa Kashino

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Best Offer Wins by Marisa Kashino
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Meet your new favorite anti-hero, Margot. She’s smart, she’s accomplished, she’s driven … but she’s also stressed and desperate for a forever home, which seems truly impossible in today’s cutthroat housing market in DC. Margot’s monomaniacal for all the trappings of a normal life…maybe because she’s far from normal herself. If you like stories that make you laugh and cringe in equal measure, this is the perfect appalling tale for you!

Best Offer Wins by Marisa Kashino, (List Price: $27.99, Celadon Books, 9781250400543, November 2025)

Reviewed by Maggie Robe, Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill, North Carolina

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Seven Deadly Thorns by Amber Hamilton

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Seven Deadly Thorns by Amber Hamilton
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I absolutely devoured this Snow White reimagining! The story was such a delightful read with a wonderfully developed romantic subplot, and as someone who can’t resist a good fake dating trope, this hit all the right notes. The dark, moody atmosphere throughout kept me hooked from start to finish. I’m already looking forward to diving into more of this author’s work!

Seven Deadly Thorns by Amber Hamilton, (List Price: $20.99, Bloomsbury YA, 9781547619108, November 2025)

Reviewed by Sarah Blackwell, Bookmarks in Winston-Salem, North Carolina

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The City and Its Uncertain Walls by Haruki Murakami

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The City and Its Uncertain Walls by Haruki Murakami
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This novel is uber-Murakami, the author back to the magical best of his earlier novels such as Hardboiled Wonderland and the End of the World (note: this makes sense, as the author writes in an afterword that this novel was a second attempt at reworking a novella, the first attempt being Hardboiled Wonderland). You don’t read a Murakami novel; you live it, holding on for dear life until it lets you off at the end, slightly confused but highly entertained. A magical world slowly unravels through an unnamed girl, while everyday life interweaves with it, featuring all the traditional Murakami Bingo tropes (loneliness, high school, jazz, pasta recipes, The Beatles, wells, libraries, cats…all the greatest hits!) There were a few minor logical bugbears, but plot logic was never Murakami’s strong suit. The simplicity of his language has long been a feature, but lately has felt more like a bug at times, with the repetition of banal thoughts (‘it was just my conjecture, but I was sure of it’; I nodded vaguely’ etc.) – perhaps as one of my all-time favourite authors I have come to expect more, but it was still great to be back in Murakami world.

The City and Its Uncertain Walls by Haruki Murakami, (List Price: $19, Vintage, 9780593687840, November 2024)

Reviewed by Doron Klemer, Octavia Books in New Orleans, Louisiana

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The Devil’s Done Come Back by Ed Southern

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The Devil's Done Come Back by Ed Southern
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A collection of North Carolina folklore, freshly told by some of the state’s best writers. I thoroughly enjoyed this, and while some myths were familiar, many were brand new to me. Readers will appreciate the creativity of form and voice that make each retelling unique.

The Devil’s Done Come Back by Ed Southern, (List Price: $18.95, Blair, 9781958888650, September 2025)

Reviewed by Becca Naylor, Bookmarks in Winston-Salem, North Carolina

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Cursed Daughters by Oyinkan Braithwaite

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Cursed Daughters by Oyinkan Braithwaite
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The back cover of this new and highly anticipated novel by Oyinkan Braithwaite has a quote by the New York Times, calling it “brilliantly perceptive” and “sharp”. It is those things. But the review also calls this novel “wickedly funny” and “hilarious”. To me, this is misleading. This novel is more complicated than that, and it is certainly no rom-com. There were moments you could chuckle at, yes. When you have a big family sharing a home together, funny and ironic things happen all the time. To me, this is a family saga. In it, there is a lot of heartbreak, a lot of love, some superstition, and some questionable choices. Braithwaite is immensely talented, and her stories will keep you on the edge of your seat, craving the knowledge of what will happen next. She is a gifted storyteller, and I will eagerly read anything she writes. This story is very different from her first novel and is perfect for anyone interested in multigenerational stories woven together with otherworldly elements.

Cursed Daughters by Oyinkan Braithwaite, (List Price: $29, Doubleday, 9780385551472, November 2025)

Reviewed by Krista Roach, E. Shaver Bookseller in Savannah, Georgia

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Grape Juice by Eliza Dumais

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Grape Juice by Eliza Dumais
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Such a delight of a read! I adore this imprint, and Grape Juice is another win in my opinion. Beautiful French vineyard setting, interesting main characters, absolutely delightful supporting characters, and I loved the ending (hopeful but not too neat). Keep giving us more of these 831!

Grape Juice by Eliza Dumais, (List Price: $14.99, 831 Stories, 9798893310566, November 2025)

Reviewed by Christina Tabereaux, The Snail On the Wall in Huntsville, Alabama

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Boom Town by Nic Stone

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Boom Town by Nic Stone
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This book delivers on all the things I want from a mystery thriller. It’s sexy, intriguing, and keeps you guessing until the end. The vibe of this story feels so real and edgy; it pulls you into a web of secrets and shocking twists, and I enjoyed reading every minute of it.

Boom Town by Nic Stone, (List Price: $28, Simon & Schuster, 9781668056271, October 2025)

Reviewed by Jess Bryant, Bookmarks in Winston-Salem, North Carolina

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Catalina by Karla Cornejo Villavicencio

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Catalina by Karla Cornejo Villavicencio
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Catalina Ituralde is a fascinating protagonist; prepare to be hooked by her twisting, turning narrative. Catalinatells the story of an undocumented immigrant from Ecuador, who is currently in her senior year at Harvard and hopes to be a writer. As she struggles to find her place in the world, Catalina works through her feelings on gender, desire, relationships, belonging, and family bonds. The book’s stream-of-consciousness prose style emulates authors such as Virginia Woolf and James Joyce, while also reflecting the state of Catalina’s jumbled thoughts. If you’re looking for a wry narrative with cheeky dialogue and plenty of literary references, this is the book for you!

Catalina by Karla Cornejo Villavicencio, (List Price: $28, One World, 9780593449097, July 2024)

Reviewed by Catherine Pabalate, Epilogue: Books Chocolate Brews in Chapel Hill, North Carolina

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The Keeper of Magical Things by Julie Leong

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The Keeper of Magical Things by Julie Leong
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I love this book so so much! It’s warm and wonderful and filled with beautifully woven sentiments about love and one’s place in the world that I now have saved in a note so I can reference them when I need to believe in magic again. I’m so glad that I live in a world with Julie Leong books in it, and will truly never hesitate to throw them at readers with all of the love in my heart!

The Keeper of Magical Things by Julie Leong, (List Price: $19, Ace, 9780593815946, October 2025)

Reviewed by Lucile Perkins-Wagel, Blinking Owl Books in Fort Myers, Florida

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