Literary

Cloudthief by Nathaniel Rich Read More »

Rebecca Solnit argues that the climate crisis is, in part, a “storytelling crisis,” with a lack of compelling fiction to present paths for action in the face of the looming crisis. Rich, author of one of the best nonfiction books on the history of climate change and the political reaction to it (Losing Earth), has delivered the fictional follow-up we need – subtle yet moving, bizarre yet brilliant. Set in the near future, a rudderless journalist discovers Virginia, an off-grid idealist living in a storage facility. This meeting is the launchpad for an odd-couple heist that presents the evils of Big Data folded into a truly bizarre caper, which gets darker and darker as the tale unfolds.

Cloudthief by Nathaniel Rich, (List Price: $28, MCD, 9780374619794, July 2026)

Reviewed by Doron, Octavia Books in New Orleans, LA

Air by Christian Kracht

Air by Christian Kracht Read More »

Christian Kracht’s Air unfolds through two storylines that gradually echo one another. The novel doesn’t rush to explain how Paul and Ilder connect. Instead, it lingers within the tension of their possible relationship. Air is a story and also a puzzle. It artfully combines sci-fi with a historical tale, in which Kracht creates a novel that is hard to pin down. I had very little idea what was actually going on, but that never felt like a problem. Part of the enjoyment of Air is its unpredictability while moving through the story alongside the characters, who often seem just as unsure of the world around them. That shared confusion turns the reading experience into a journey, where atmosphere and relationship matter more than explanations. I just wish I had the opportunity to read this book on a snow day.

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

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

We Were Forbidden by Jacqueline Harpman

We Were Forbidden by Jacqueline Harpman Read More »

A new perspective into Harpman’s beautiful mind! If you loved I Who Have Never Known Men, this collection will give you deeper insight into that novel, as well as into Harpman’s thought processes and experiences as a young girl that clearly inspired her future work. Wouldn’t recommend as an intro to the author, however – more for those familiar with her work and wanting more.

We Were Forbidden by Jacqueline Harpman, (List Price: $18.95, Transit Books, 9798893380583, July 2026)

Reviewed by Mackenzie, Thank You Books in Birmingham, AL

Book Buzz: Agnes Lives! by Hallie Elizabeth Newton

Adult Fiction, Dark Humor, Humorous, Literary, Women

“Agnes Lives! is a 24 hour novel. I had all of these feelings in 2018, 2020, that I was trying to find an outlet for. So I started creating this character in snatches of daily life. What would it be like for this character to go shopping, or try to buy a gun in Chinatown, and so on. And as I started to write this, I discovered more and more of her, and I thought the 24 hour time period would add a propulsive clock to the piece.”
― Hallie Elizabeth Newton, InterviewBooks Are Magic with David Lipsky

What booksellers are saying about Agnes Lives!

Agnes Lives! explores themes of self-worth and self-indulgence in a pitiless world that demands women be everything to everyone at all times, highlighting the push and pull of embracing or rejecting those demands. Said demands push Agnes to the absolute extremes. This is a literary thriller that all strange book lovers are going to devour. I loved it!
― Jenny, Bookmarks, Winston-Salem, North Carolina | BUY
Funny, delirious, shocking, and a wild, wild goose chase of a time. You’ll root for Agnes in her search for a potential killer and cheer every time she gets closer to reaching her goal.
― Joshua, The Underground Bookshop, Carrollton, Georgia | BUY
A blistering manifesto of a book that crams so much into its pages; a kind of reverse American Psycho telling the story of one woman down-trodden by mid-2010’s rat race existence in New York. As wild, unexpected, and original as a hypnotic Instagram spiral, it’s hard to believe this is a debut novel.
― Doron, Octavia Books, New Orleans, Louisiana | BUY
Agnes is like a piece of glass that our patriarchal, image-obsessed society has trampled all over…a smart commentary on toxic femininity, on being an aging woman, on the ways women feel pressured to sacrifice their bodies at the altars of men, on all the toxic little crimes men commit against women and women commit against themselves. It’s full of killer lines and insights about our culture and the characterization is precise and blazing. This novel is as enraging as it is insightful. So if you like chaotic, weird girl Lit. Fic. with an unhinged woman on an equally unhinged mission then take a big bite, this one’s worth the calories.
― Savannah, The Country Bookshop, Southern Pines, North Carolina | BUY

About Hallie Elizabeth Newton

Hallie Elizabeth Newton was born in Mississippi. A recipient of NYU’s Goldwater Fellowship, she won first prize for fiction in Columbia Journal’s 2020 Winter Contest. Agnes Lives! is her debut novel. She lives in New York.

Book Buzz: Agnes Lives! by Hallie Elizabeth Newton Read More »

Country People by Daniel Mason

Fiction, Literary

Country People by Daniel Mason Read More »

Who would expect a novel with interludes from John Milton and scenes from Tolstoy to be such a good time? It’s a feat that it feels as if only Daniel Mason can pull off. I loved following the many misadventures of Miles Krzelewski, a disappointing husband, pretty good dad, and extremely distracted academic who would rather tag along with the “country people” of Vermont than sit down and finish his dissertation. This is an utterly entertaining read and also a meditation on nature, storytelling, the fine line between fact and fiction, and the human quest for paradise, which might just be deep in the forest of your own backyard.

Country People by Daniel Mason, (List Price: $30, Random House, 9798217197453, July 2026)

Reviewed by Lady, The Snail on the Wall in Huntsville, AL

Country People by Daniel Mason

Fiction, Literary

Country People by Daniel Mason Read More »

In Mason’s engaging and amusing story, Miles moves with his wife and children from California to rural Vermont, where his curiosity and willingness to suspend disbelief leads to unexpected community. This big-hearted novel offers a balm for our times and perhaps some good lessons for all of us.

Country People by Daniel Mason, (List Price: $30, Random House, 9798217197453, July 2026)

Reviewed by Lia, Wordsworth Books in Little Rock, AR

Skin Contact by Elisa Faison

Skin Contact by Elisa Faison Read More »

Really loved this book! I couldn’t get enough of it. Elisa Faison has such a good eye for meaningful details that deepen the understanding of her characters. It’s a story about a couple navigating non-monogamy, but it covers so much of the human experience: love, loss, sensual pleasure, pandemic loneliness, etc. This is literary fiction at its best. The characters don’t take themselves too seriously (healthy doses of humor throughout), yet there is always another level to explore beyond the surface.

Skin Contact by Elisa Faison, (List Price: $29, Cardinal, 9781538776018, June 2026)

Reviewed by Daniel, Pearl’s Books in Fayetteville, AR

Country People by Daniel Mason

Fiction, Literary

Country People by Daniel Mason Read More »

Come to this book with your sorrows, malaise, and dread, and leave revitalized, renewed, reborn! I just can’t think of another writer who understands so well the profundity of true delight, its ability to transport and transform a reader. Country People gives us back the wonder that many of us lost in childhood, that feeling of being lost in a book, and yet is so narratively sophisticated that I feel my brain has grown in size. To say nothing of my heart! Peak Vermont weirdness, family pathos, rollicking side-quests, and a perfect dog named Guiseppe–Daniel Mason, you’re a special kind of genius.

Country People by Daniel Mason, (List Price: $30, Random House, 9798217197453, July 2026)

Reviewed by Kristen, Thank You Books in Birmingham, AL

Agnes Lives! by Hallie Elizabeth Newton

Dark Humor, Fiction, Literary, Women

Agnes Lives! by Hallie Elizabeth Newton Read More »

Agnes is like a piece of glass that our patriarchal, image-obsessed society has trampled all over. She’s fractured. The beauty industry has her by the throat, she indulges the toxic behaviors of the men in her life, and Instagram is the safe haven where she tries to bury her head in the sand only to be assaulted with a constant influx of information on how to better herself aesthetically. Like someone who walks into oncoming traffic, she places herself directly in the path of the male gaze, spends her days in service to it, walks a tightrope to stay in its sightline, and gets repeatedly run over in the hopes of being seen. Thus, her maddening and manic spiral as she searches for someone to kill her, to set her free from this Plato’s Cave of warped womanhood refracted through the Conjunctiva of the male gaze. In a chaotic whirlwind of stream of consciousness prose, we follow Agnes through what she hopes will be the last day in her life. Agnes Lives! is a smart commentary on toxic femininity, on being an aging woman, on the ways women feel pressured to sacrifice their bodies at the altars of men, on all the toxic little crimes men commit against women and women commit against themselves. It’s full of killer lines and insights about our culture, and the characterization is precise and blazing. This novel is as enraging as it is insightful. So if you like chaotic, weird girl Lit. Fic. with an unhinged woman on an equally unhinged mission, then take a big bite, this one’s worth the calories.

Agnes Lives! by Hallie Elizabeth Newton, (List Price: $26.99, Bloomsbury Publishing, 9781639738564, June 2026)

Reviewed by Savannah, The Country Bookshop in Southern Pines, NC

Agnes Lives! by Hallie Elizabeth Newton

Dark Humor, Fiction, Literary, Women

Agnes Lives! by Hallie Elizabeth Newton Read More »

A blistering manifesto of a book that crams so much into its pages; a kind of reverse American Psycho telling the story of one woman downtrodden by mid-2010’s rat race existence in New York. As wild, unexpected, and original as a hypnotic Instagram spiral, it’s hard to believe this is a debut novel.

Agnes Lives! by Hallie Elizabeth Newton, (List Price: $26.99, Bloomsbury Publishing, 9781639738564, June 2026)

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

On the Other Side Is March by Sólrún Michelsen

On the Other Side Is March by Sólrún Michelsen Read More »

The first female Faroese writer to publish in English has written truth about women caretakers the world over. The main character is a woman in her 60’s who is caring for her grandchildren and mothering her own aging mother. She is waiting for a nursing home for her mother, but her name doesn’t come up. As she is caring for others, she remembers scenes of her youth and caring for her own children when they were small. Even though this story is told from the Faroe Islands, it is the same story played over and over. She honestly even thinks of feeling angry at her ancient mother for growing old and feeble. Love and caring are displayed with the work and worry of caretaking.

On the Other Side Is March by Sólrún Michelsen, (List Price: $18.95, Transit Books, 9798893380491, June 2026)

Reviewed by Nancy, Bookmiser in Marietta, GA

Take Me With You by Steven Rowley

Adult Fiction, Family Life, LGBTQ+, Literary

Take Me With You by Steven Rowley Read More »

Take a deep, slow breath and prepare for Rowley’s unique combination of tenderness, longing, sorrow, and humor. The biggest mystery isn’t how a man disappears into a beam of light; it’s the human vulnerability of moving on, facing mistakes, and naming losses. Every character has hidden stories. Getting a ringside seat to their journeys is the best gift any reader could want.

Take Me with You by Steven Rowley, (List Price: $30, G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 9780593851494, May 2026)

Reviewed by Jan, Main Street Books in Davidson, NC

Partita by Barbara Kingsolver

Partita by Barbara Kingsolver Read More »

Barbara Kingsolver has once again claimed the status of THE VERY BEST in my reading world with this beautiful novel. She deftly writes about class, isolation and abandonment, music, and so much more. Can we overcome the traumas we experience as children? Do we forget the first love? Is obsession really love? Do we outgrow our hometowns or does time and wisdom show us the very best of our places that root us to who we are? The writing is gorgeous. The musical connections are beautiful (even though many of the references were over my head). The characters are flawed and fascinating. I’m still wrestling a bit with the ending and how it all fell into place. But I will always read a Kingsolver work and praise it.

Partita by Barbara Kingsolver, (List Price: $32, Harper, 9780063577541, October 2026)

Reviewed by Christina, The Snail on the Wall in Huntsville, AL

Taipei Story by R. F. Kuang

Adult Fiction, Asia, Asian American & Pacific Islander, Bereavement, Coming of Age, Cultural Heritage, Death, Family Life, Fiction, Grief, Humorous, Literary, Multigenerational, Travel & Vacation, Women