Showing posts with label Jilly Gagnon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jilly Gagnon. Show all posts

Monday, August 31, 2026

Tuesday Tomorrow

The Knave and the Moon by Rachel Gillig
Published by: Orbit
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: Hardcover, 368 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Rachel Gillig, the queen of gothic romantasy, returns with higher stakes, darker mysteries, and deeper longings in this gorgeous sequel to the #1 New York Times bestselling sensation The Knight and the Moth.

Aisling Cathedral is in ruins. Rodrick Myndacious, Bartholomew, and Maude Bauer are rumored to be dead - and the king has taken Sybil Delling as his bride. To show off their union and solidify his power over Traum, Benji proposes a series of tournaments throughout the hamlets. Captive and drugged, Sybil remains determined to vanquish him as she once did the Omens, even if she destroys the kingdom's faith - and herself - in the process.

But then a mysterious knave rises to the top of the tournament lists, a man with no name and no memory who may just be Sybil's ticket to undoing Benji's power. For in a land where stories repeat themselves, where a king can prove as cruel as a god, the only way to truly destroy the Stonewater Kingdom's faith is to save it."

Anyone else have the Barnes and Noble signed special edition on order for months? 

Hawk and Sparrow by Ayana Gray
Published by: Balzer + Bray
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: Hardcover, 352 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Sparks fly in this Gilded Age novel of mystery, magic, and romance by the author of the New York Times-bestselling Beasts of Prey.

Vesper Evans has always resented Basalton's high society, and the sorcery that provides them with a luxurious life unimaginable to most. Orphaned as a child and rescued by the editor of The Basalton Globe, Vesper is now an ambitious reporter determined to keep her newspaper afloat.

While covering a lavish society gala, Vesper happens upon a shocking scene: the murdered body of a man she had spoken with just minutes before. Several of the powerful magical elite may want the man dead, but the prime suspect is wealthy industrialist Maximilian Kite.

Max soon makes Vesper a tempting offer: Find the culprit and restore his reputation in exchange for a substantial fee. Despite her distaste for Max's world, Vesper agrees - the money would save the Globe, and the story would be the scoop of a lifetime. There's only one catch: In order for her to infiltrate society, the two must pose as a courting couple.

Their investigation takes them from the highest echelons of privilege to the seediest backstreets of Basalton. As they unearth the city's secrets and scandals, Vesper finds herself in grave danger - while falling for one of the most infuriating, arrogant, handsome men she has ever met..."

Just the right level of forced proximity crime solving I love.

The Wolf Queen's Curse by Kaylee Archer
Published by: St. Martin's Griffin
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: Paperback, 384 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"In The Wolf Queen's Curse, the much anticipated sequel to Witch of the Wolves, Cordelia and Bishop must seek alliances with other packs and confront their Alphas in order to restore their beloved Trevelyan, no matter the cost.

The previously quiet life of Cordelia Levine, half-werewolf, all witch, has been turned upside down. Both of her parents are now dead, and her grandmother's vicious attack on Trevelyan, her pack's home, has left the Albion Pack fleeing and severely reduced in number.

As they recover and strategize a path forward, Cordelia is navigating her role in the pack as well as her feelings for her new husband, the Alpha. But even as their love grows stronger, the fate of the pack lies in their hands, and they must focus on finding a way to survive.

The pack decides that the only way to defeat the cabal and forge a path back home is to rekindle old alliances. The journey proves complicated, however, as each Alpha they encounter has an agenda of his own. But Cordelia and Bishop will stop at nothing to protect their pack - and reclaim their rightful home."

Anyone who reads about werewolves knows, Alphas do not play nice with each other. Begrudgingly so when they have to.

Rider of Dragons by A.T. Qureshi
Published by: Avon Books
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: Paperback, 400 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Genevieve's family forbids her from joining the deadly dragon races. But she won't let them stop her.

He's the trainer she doesn't want, but needs.

Without her family's money, nobody will train her. Desperate for help, she agrees to a terrible deal: Qais, an alleged member of a dragon poaching gang, will train her to win the races, if she agrees to give him her prize money.

Every race could be their last.

The dragon races aren't just about being the fastest. There will be sabotage, attacks and all out violence. The devastatingly handsome Qais will teach her to be cunning and cruel, and Genevieve will be forced to answer a ruinous question: to win, is she willing to lose everything?"

Will the dragon help you stay safe? Because I think making an alliance with a dragon would be a deal breaker. 

An Immaculate Deception by Isabela Livino
Published by: Dutton
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: Hardcover, 304 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A debut Gothic horror set in 1870s Brazil - a tale of creeping suspense in which a young pregnant woman finds herself unable to escape her lover's isolated family home, and a family's deal with the devil goes terribly wrong.

1877, Pernambuco, Brazil: Raised in a deeply religious household, Madalena knows Dante's Inferno by heart and fears her mother's reaction as much as she fears God. When she falls pregnant with a child conceived in sin, her mother issues a threat: marry or surrender the baby. Madalena is confident that the father, the dashing Leandro Neves, will do right by her and propose. But just as she is about to tell him about the baby, a violent storm sends their carriage careening off the road.

Madalena awakens in Leandro's sprawling, secluded home, under the care of the mysterious and larger-than-life Doctor Lobo. Leandro is there...but he is no longer the charming poet she knew. He's silent. Obsessed. Always watching.

Strange perfume haunts a locked room. Pages vanish from books. Jewels lie untouched in a forgotten wardrobe. And mirrors begin disappearing after Madalena sees something - or someone - ghastly in the reflection.

Leandro is unraveling. Doctor Lobo may be hiding something even darker. Trapped in a decaying house of secrets, Madalena must uncover the truth before the men around her destroy her, and before the hell she fears becomes the one she’s living in."

Well this wants to be Silvia Moreno-Garcia meets Isabel Cañas. Perhaps skeewing towards Cañas with that cover...

The Other Life of Mary English by GD Harper
Published by: Ginger Cat
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: Kindle, 386 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Two different women. One shared destiny.

Mary English, a dockworker's daughter from Faversham, England, travels to South America to escape a scandal from her past. She ends up running a cacao plantation in Colombia, at a time when women were not legally allowed to own businesses there.

Manuela Sáenz, tempestuous lover of Venezuelan revolutionary Simón Bolívar, serves as a colonel in his army. She joins him in battle to fight the Spanish and twice saves his life from assassination attempts.

This is the story of two remarkable real-life women, both fighting oppression, hardship and danger in 1820s Colombia, who come together to change the course of a nation's history."

Women changing history? Hells yes!

Pomegranate Seed and Other Ghostly Tales by Edith Wharton
Published by: Penguin
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: Paperback, 208 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"PENGUIN HORROR: A celebration of the very best literary horror, a series of terrifying novels and tales that for generations have thrilled, captivated and kept readers wide awake at night.

Known for writing some of the most incisive and elegant novels of the early twentieth century, Edith Wharton was also a master practitioner of the ghost story, producing dozens of frightful fictions throughout her lifetime. Combining pristine prose with strange, suffocating atmospheres and a profound sense of the uncanny, Pomegranate Seed and Other Ghostly Tales, a collection of Wharton's very best haunting narratives, detail spectral handwriting, isolated houses in lonely landscapes, and a husband with a terrible secret..."

I need something uncanny for this time of year.

Paper Ghosts by Sarah Addison Allen
Published by: St. Martin's Press
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: Hardcover, 288 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Part ghost story, part love story and steeped in magical realism, Paper Ghosts will transport you to a place where old secrets echo through the years and love finds a way of bringing us home.

Every family has its secrets...The Wester women live inside theirs.

For decades, the women of Wester House have unsettled and fascinated their small, timeless North Carolina town. Their home is full of whispers, old griefs, and uncanny knowing. But when Willamena Wester reaches out to the granddaughter she once pushed away, long-buried truths begin to stir.

1976: Restless young Willamena falls for a stranded musician who brings freedom and the promise of another life to her carefully controlled world. Their brief, incandescent love story promises to escape the pull of the Wester legacy until Willamena makes a fateful choice that changes her life forever.

Present day: Returning home is the last thing Bailey Wester wants. Yet as she reconnects with Willamena, the grandmother she feared, Bailey begins to understand the love, heartbreak, and impossible choices that shaped the women in her family and realizes the past may not have been trying to haunt them after all. A luminous novel filled with Sarah Addison Allen's stunning prose and signature blend of romance, Southern charm, and wonder, Paper Ghosts reminds us that in order to have the future we really want, sometimes we need to live with the past, and not let go of it."

I find it beyond tragic that when we finally want to get answers and listen to our elders it's often too late. Perhaps that's why we're drawn to these types of stories.

Divine Oaths by Elizabeth Agyemang
Published by: Requited
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: Paperback, 384 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Ninth House meets Legendborn in this thrilling dark academia novel following a new student fueled by questions about her prestigious university and the haunting answers she uncovers as her heart pulls her in two different, dangerous directions.

Westfield University was supposed to be Sianna Adu's dream school. But just when she's on the cusp of attending the elite academic institution hidden in Virginia's swampland, an unexpected tragedy changes everything. In one day, Sianna loses her family and gains an extraordinary power - the ability to see lifelines and witness other people's pasts and futures.

With all she's lost, Sianna puts her college dreams on pause and spends her days navigating dead-end jobs and a not-so-secret crush on her coworker. But when Kasem Saint James, the undeniably handsome heir to Westfield, approaches her with a strange request, the future Sianna has long deferred becomes a dangerous new reality. Worried that her powers are now tied to Kasem, she has no choice. Fate has called her to Westfield.

At an academy where secret societies abound, connections are everything, and an ominous history - stretching back centuries - determines the future, Sianna and Kasem must piece together the past to undo a curse that binds them to each other.

With a swoony romance and jaw-dropping twists, this layered dark academia novel introduces a university where nothing is quite as it seems."

Centuries old? I'm intrigued. 

Goodnight Monsters by Suzanne Junered
Published by: She Writes Press
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: Paperback, 304 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"For fans of Ariana Harwicz's Die, My Love and Ashley Audrain's The Push, a psychological horror novel that follows a woman obsessed with death who must decide if she's fit to bring new life into this world - especially after someone she's fantasized about killing turns up dead.

Southern suburban housewife Lia and her husband Evan have long dreamed of becoming parents - but when a pregnancy test shows positive, Lia questions whether she wants the child and keeps her pregnancy a secret.

As she's holding new life inside, she intentionally surrounds herself with death by blackmailing her way into a job at a forensic anthropology center endearingly called The Body Farm. At The Farm, monsters emerge from within Lia - the desire to kill - and she begins daydreaming about murder. Because fantasizing never hurt anyone. Or so she thinks.

Then a body donation to The Farm turns out to be someone she's imagined killing, and reality and fantasy begin to blur. As people around her begin to die, Lia loses trust in her loved ones and herself...and ultimately must put her monsters to bed."

Yes, put those monsters to bed before you put your baby to bed!

Tell the Ghosts I'm Gone by Kalynn Bayron
Published by: Bloomsbury YA
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: Hardcover, 336 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"From New York Times bestselling author Kalynn Bayron comes a new horror novel about a group of teens with unique - and potentially deadly - gifts.

Moll, Redd, Agnes, and Ossie are powerful - and dangerous. But they don't want people to fear them. They've spent their lives trying to understand and control their supernatural gifts, trying to help people instead of hurt them.

That's why they offer paranormal investigative services to anyone who needs them. But when the case of a missing young woman brings them to an old (and potentially haunted) Victorian mansion, soon it's the four teens who are in the greatest danger. The secrets they uncover about the paranormal forces inhabiting the house may shed light on the darkness that exists at the edge of their powers and finally help them gain control - if they can make it out alive."

I wonder if ghosts are like bees.

Cards on the Table by Lana Harper and Jilly Gagnon
Published by: Bantam
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: Paperback, 400 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Two witchy sisters find themselves framed for the disappearance of millions of dollars in this atmospheric locked room mystery - from the New York Times bestselling author of Payback's a Witch and the critically acclaimed author of All Dressed Up.

As descendants of a Salem witch, sisters Tori and Cassie Bishop have the occult credentials - but their trickle of tarot readings isn't paying the bills. On the brink of eviction, they accept a too-good-to-be-true offer: play "witches in residence" for a dying, wealthy widow in her secluded Berkshires mansion for the Fall season.

But from the minute they arrive at the gothic estate, it's clear: they've been dropped into a far riskier game than their smoke and mirrors can save them from. Rose, the widow, is desperate. Her family is conniving. The staff is ominous. And some guests in the house are drawn to the sisters in ways that lean more...personal. But just as the sisters are starting to settle into the mysterious home and their role in it, Rose dies after a séance - and her millions vanish overnight.

Trapped in a viper's nest of competing motives and twisted secrets, Tori and Cassie must untangle a web of greed and deception using every trick they have - magical or not - to clear their names. Because someone else in Berwyn House is running their own con...and they've set up the sisters to take the fall."

Imagine being so wealthy that you could have a witch in residence?

Buried in the Woods Below by Daniel G. Miller
Published by: Poisoned Pen Press
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: Hardcover, 352 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Perfect for fans of Freida McFadden's The Housemaid, Riley Sager's The Only One Left and Alice Feeney's My Husband's Wife, this addictive psychological suspense-thriller is a must-read for anyone who loves dark secrets, isolated settings, and jaw-dropping twists.

SOME MEMORIES WERE NEVER MEANT TO STAY BURIED.

When Charlotte Hoffman's picture-perfect career implodes overnight, she retreats to the one place she swore she'd never return: Big Island, Minnesota. Home to her childhood best friend, Olivia Parker, and the place where her life first fell apart.

Eighteen years ago, tragedy struck, and Charlotte's blamed herself for that bloody night ever since. Now she's back, staying with the Parkers in their isolated lakeside home, surrounded by dark woods shrouded in mist and the decaying remains of a long-abandoned amusement park.

But something isn't right.

The Parkers' young twin girls whisper about ghosts in the trees. Threatening notes appear on doors. An old carousel screams in the wind. And every night the island claims another victim.

As Charlotte wades ever-deeper into danger, she can't shake the feeling that someone brought her back to the isolated island for a reason.

Someone who wants to finish what was started all those years ago."

Do. Not. Go. Near. Abandoned. Amusement. Parks. It's like rule number one in my book.

Untamed Coast by Kevin C. Morris
Published by: Ballantine Books
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: Hardcover, 304 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A late-night mayday call drives a grieving man to embark on an unexpected journey along the wild Alaskan coast, unraveling a decades-old mystery of stolen gold, missing women, and murder in this atmospheric and propulsive debut novel, perfect for fans of William Kent Krueger and Peter Heller.

After the loss of his wife, Marconi Franco is content drifting alone on his boat through the isolated waters of Southeast Alaska with no real destination in mind. But when a mysterious distress signal cuts through the static on his radio one sleepless night, Marco feels an overwhelming pull to help the woman whose plea he heard - a pull he can't explain or ignore.

His search for the missing woman draws him to Radioville, an abandoned 1930s communication outpost now decaying on an uninhabited island off the coast of Alaska. There, Marco begins uncovering fragments of a story long forgotten: a Depression-era theft, a shattered marriage, and a disturbing pattern of disappearances. As he sifts through the past, his own grief starts to mirror the tragedies that echo across decades, and his search draws the attention of someone determined to keep the truth buried.

Told across three evocative timelines - a radio operator in 1938 collecting more than just telegrams, a young woman in the 1980s fighting to survive her abusive husband, and Marco in the present day searching for a voice in the static - Untamed Coast is a story of fierce determination, missed signals, loneliness and connection, and the unseen ripples that reverberate across generations, standing the test of time and the tides."

Alaska is all one big mystery to me, which is why I love reading about it.

The Filbert Steps by Lila Blake
Published by: Sutro House Press
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: Kindle, 311 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A body on the steps. A neighborhood that saw nothing.

Vivian Salvatore came back to Telegraph Hill with a cat, a divorce settlement, and a book she cannot seem to write.

At fifty-two, newly single and trying to rebuild her life, she has settled into the rhythms of San Francisco's most beautiful staircase: coffee at the corner café, morning walks on the Filbert Steps, old neighbors on three corners, and the comforting illusion that everyone knows everyone.

Then, on a bright October morning, Vivian finds one of the city's most ambitious developers dead on the third landing.

The police are ready to call it a fall. But Vivian spent twenty-seven years reading teenagers' faces for a living, and she knows when a story does not fit. A coat buttoned wrong. A cigarette ground out where it should not be. Storefronts quietly sold to a post-office box in Delaware. And a neighborhood full of people who had reason to want one man gone.

As Vivian begins asking questions, she discovers that Telegraph Hill has been keeping secrets for years - about money, loyalty, grief, and who really gets to call a place home.

The Filbert Steps introduces Vivian Salvatore, a sharp-eyed, warm-hearted sleuth who notices everything and forgives almost as much.

Perfect for readers who love older women sleuths, atmospheric San Francisco mysteries, neighborhood secrets, found community, and fair-play cozy mysteries with literary depth."

I adore everything about San Francisco. But what I adore even more, is a mystery set in my favorite literary city. 

Muriel and the Mystery by Charlotte Parent
Published by: Tundra Books
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: Hardcover, 56 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A little shrew encounters the unexpected in this charming picture book that explores change and the fear of the unknown. For fans of Little Witch Hazel and The Hidden World of Gnomes.

Muriel is having a perfectly ordinary day in the forest she knows by heart, when, while gathering snails in the underbrush, she encounters a mystery!

It's different from anything she's seen before, and it certainly doesn't belong in her well-ordered life. Though she tries to put it out of her mind, that becomes difficult when the mystery won't leave her alone...

Muriel will need to muster her courage to face the unknown and embrace the changes it brings to her forest. And maybe, just maybe, she will make a new friend along the way."

Even moles deal with mysteries! 

Goldie Vance Book One by Hope Larson and Brittney Williams
Published by: KaBOOM!
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: Paperback, 224 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Intrepid teen detective Goldie Vance is on the case in this acclaimed upper middle-grade graphic novel mystery that reads like Nancy Drew meets Only Murders in the Building.

Marigold "Goldie" Vance lives at a Florida resort with her dad and dreams of one day becoming the hotel's in-house detective. Armed with endless curiosity and unstoppable determination, she's ready to prove she has what it takes to solve any mystery, big or small!

When the current Crossed Palms Resort detective encounters a case he can't quite crack, he agrees to mentor Goldie in exchange for her help. Will this budding sleuth be the key to revealing the truth? Or is Goldie in over her head?

Uncover secrets and adventures around every corner with this double-length detective adventure full of retro flair from New York Times bestselling and Eisner Award-winning writer Hope Larson (All Summer Long) and fan-favorite artist Brittney Williams (Mixed-Up, Girl on Fire)!

Collects Goldie Vance #1-8."

This looks like it would be the perfect read for me. It sadly wasn't. Goldie Vance and her mid-century Florida conspiracies of Communists and cosmonauts left me cold.   

The Oxford Guide to Scandal and Lies by Kate Westbury
Published by: Minotaur Books
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: Hardcover, 352Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Set against the backdrop of post-WWII Oxford University, The Oxford Guide to Scandal and Lies is the irresistible debut from Kate Westbury that seamlessly layers mystery, romance, and a dash of academia to introduce the Crown's newest undercover operatives.

Oxford, England, 1951 - The Honorable Ginevra Bishop likes red lipstick, clever retorts, and earning top marks in her tutorials. She's following her mother's footsteps by studying at Oxford, eager to prove she's more than a debutante.

Sidney Braithwaite likes brooding, Latin, and ignoring his nightmares. He's determined to forge a new life for himself at Oxford, far from his childhood mining village and free from memories of the war.

Though Gin and Sidney have little in common, the British Security Service is keen to unite her charm with his espionage experience: there's a Soviet spy at the university, and the agent tracking them down was poisoned. MI5 wants Gin and Sidney to pick up the trail and identify the informant before more sensitive information is compromised. As a team, the pair of undergraduates clash in personality, upbringing, and taste - but have a connection neither can deny. Gin and Sidney must unite their respective talents to follow the clues before they're caught in the traitor's crosshairs...if the sparks flying between them don't blow up the operation first."

I wonder if I should take up brooding as a pastime. I'd be willing to solve crimes against Britain in my spare time.

An A-List for Murder by Amy Patricia Meade
Published by: Severn House
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: Hardcover, 256 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"An irresistible historical cozy series featuring Evelyn Galloway, Hollywood script supervisor turned sleuth!

The list you'd die to be on...

March, 1940, and script supervisor Evelyn Galloway is enjoying being reunited with Alfred Hitchcock on his new film. Until twenty-three-year-old Phoebe Dillon, an aspiring actress hoping to be an extra in the movie, is found strangled in downtown L.A. Evelyn encountered Phoebe in the studio just hours before she died. Did she really have audition jitters as she claimed, or was she frightened of something - or someone?

When Evelyn learns that Phoebe attended a birthday party for film producer Monty Carpenter the previous weekend, rubbing shoulders with Hollywood's A-list, she quickly makes disturbing discoveries about some of the guests. It seems that powerful dark forces are at play in the film industry during war - and the reason for Phoebe's murder is more shocking than Evelyn could ever have imagined.

Effortlessly combining murder and glamour, the Evelyn Galloway mysteries are perfect for fans of Verity Bright and Nicola Upson's Shot With Crimson."

I love dark Hollywood and I love Hitchcock, so a perfect combo!

Murders in the Marquee by Dana Mentink
Published by: Love Inspired Trade
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: Paperback, 336Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"In this witty historical murder mystery set in a San Francisco hotel, an unlikely trio of amateur sleuths must uncover a killer before another guest checks out for good. This first book in the Murder Most Fowl Mysteries is perfect for fans of Only Murders in the Building.

In 1905, the Grand Mallard Marquee is well known for its iconic style, as well as its daily duck parade. For Saul Niffler, a reformed jewel thief, working at the luxurious hotel offers a much-needed second chance. Staying out of trouble and in gainful employment is essential. Which makes seeing a body plummet from a penthouse window extra complicated.

Except...did he see it? There's no body to be found, and Saul knows he should concentrate on his new duties as "Duck Commandant" rather than meddle. If only Kitty Rossi, a persistent young guest yearning to be a Pinkerton detective, would leave well enough alone. Kitty has already roped in Henry, the elevator man, to investigate suspicious goings-on around the hotel. And against his better judgment, Saul feels compelled to join them.

Between the mystery of Saul's missing predecessor and a grisly discovery in a drain, all signs point to murder most fowl. And with a cold-blooded killer roaming the Marquee's lavish corridors, keeping his job may be the least of Saul's problems..."

A jewel thief named Niffler? I hope Dana Mentink has some good lawyers.

Murder in St. James's Park by Vanessa Riley
Published by: Severn House
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: Hardcover, 272 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Perfect for readers who love Bridgerton with a dark twist - a vibrant historical mystery series that embraces the true diversity of the Regency era.

Confessions from beyond the grave throw Lady Worthing into turmoil...

London, 1807. Lady Abigail Worthing's marriage of convenience to James Monroe, the Lord Worthing, is over. But James is out of her life quicker than Abigail anticipated when she finds his body in St. James's Park.

Shocked by her husband's brutal murder, Abigail is determined to catch his killer. But when she discovers that James's transgressions ran far deeper and darker than she thought possible, Abigail questions her own judgment. Did she make a terrible mistake when solving a past crime, and does the key to James's death lie in the letters he was writing shortly before his demise?

With her neighbor and good friend Stapleton Henderson by her side, Abigail confronts jealousy, resentment, and stunning betrayal that will shake her to her core...

This sharply observed, captivating Regency mystery series featuring a smart and fearless mixed-race aristocrat heroine with a notorious family history is a must-read for historical mystery fans."

A touch of Tasha Alexander. 

The Case of Bingley's Missing Aphrodite by Emma Aubrey
Published by: Emma Aubrey
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: Kindle, 374 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Pride and Prejudice meets Sherlock Holmes in this sharp-witted Regency mystery, featuring a crime-solving Bennet/Darcy team-up in a Jane Austen variation where the Bennet sisters lost their estate before marriage saved them.

Fitzwilliam Darcy believes his worst problem is the mistake he made a year and a half ago, when he snubbed Miss Elizabeth Bennet and separated his friend Bingley from her sister Jane. That is, until a corrupt viscount is found murdered, just after Bingley's antique Aphrodite statue vanishes during a ball. The crimes appear to be linked - and Darcy's oldest adversary, Mr Wickham, may be trying to frame him for both.

They enlist an investigator, coincidentally the Miss Bennets' cousin, who has entirely the wrong impression of Darcy and Wickham's history. When Elizabeth Bennet finally re-enters the picture, Darcy must open up to her about the blackguard's lies - for in the end, they will need both her keen character observations and the investigator's cutting-edge methods to prove Darcy's innocence.

In a tangle of secrets and deceit, Darcy and his friends must race to uncover the true culprit - before he pays the ultimate price."

Here for all Pride and Prejudice variations! 

The Heiress of Northanger Abbey by Nancy Bilyeau
Published by: Admiral Road Books
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: Paperback, 260 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Steeped in the atmospheric charm of classic historical fiction, The Heiress of Northanger Abbey weaves a captivating Jane Austen sequel that breathes new life into Catherine Morland's world. Twenty-two years after her marriage to Henry Tilney, the imposing estate of Northanger Abbey passes to a new generation. When their spirited daughter Phoebe looks poised to inherit the grand estate, she inherits more than just wealth - she uncovers a web of long-buried secrets, hidden corridors, and a haunting legacy that refuses to stay buried. This spellbinding Gothic mystery masterfully balances Austen's signature wit and social commentary with the spine-tingling suspense of a classic Regency thriller.

Gloucestershire, 1820: Catherine Tilney receives a letter that resurrects her darkest fears. Her daughter Phoebe has fallen under the influence of the unscrupulous Thorpe family - the very figures who once nearly destroyed Catherine's happiness.

Determined to protect her child from dangerous fortune hunters, Catherine follows Phoebe to an isolated manor on Dartmoor. There, she finds a landscape of reckless passions, family secrets, and a dangerously charming aristocratic neighbor. It all feels eerily like the plot of the latest Gothic sensation, The Vampyre - but is Catherine once again letting her imagination run wild?

In this psychologically charged sequel to Jane Austen's classic, award-winning historical novelist Nancy Bilyeau transforms Catherine's youthful adventures into a mystery with the highest of stakes. The Heiress of Northanger Abbey is a story of mothers and daughters, deception and desire - and of a woman who must learn to trust her power of perception before it's too late.

For Austen fans who adore a high-spirited Regency tale, savor a hint of the Gothic - and long to be transported to the mist-shrouded moors."

But how would Catherine's daughter inherit? I have so many questions. I guess I just have to read the book!

Land of Oz edited by Marie O'Regan and Paul Kane
Published by: Titan Books
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: Paperback, 368 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"13 original stories of dark fantasy inspired by the classic tales of L. Frank Baum and the land of Oz, from the masters of fantasy and science fiction, including M.R. Carey, Christina Henry and Adrian Tchaikovsky.

Journey beyond the yellow brick road, click your heels together and enter the dark heart of the tornado...if you dare.

Join the award-winning Marie O'Regan and Paul Kane as they bring together some of genre fiction's bestselling and acclaimed authors as they explore the wild imagination of L. Frank Baum and his wonderful Land of Oz.

Featuring stories by
Simon R. Green
Caitlin Rozakis
Louise Carey
Adrian Tchaikovsky
Ian Whates
M. R. Carey
Paul Magrs
Delilah S. Dawson
Robert Shearman
Stark Holborn
Christina Henry
Una McCormack
Jonathan Maberry"

My friend Paul has a story in this. I'm so excited for him! And me! And you! Because we all get to enjoy it!

The Snow Witch by Kirsty Ferry
Published by: Boldwood Books
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: eBook, 320 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Discover the next enchanting, atmospheric read from Kirsty Ferry, perfect for fans of C.J. Cooke and Laura Purcell.

In the dead of winter, 1650...

As the Newcastle Witch Trials spread fear across the north, suspicion takes hold in Newbrough, near Hadrian's Wall. Meg Noble - healer, midwife, and the so-called 'Snow Witch' - finds solace at Coventina's Well. But when tragedy strikes, whispers of witchcraft begin to swirl, and something ancient is stirred - bound to a sacred dagger and a forgotten goddess.

Now, beneath the same well...

Historian Violet Marsh arrives at Hadrian's Wall to research the legend of the Snow Witch, but what begins as curiosity soon turns personal. As visions haunt her and the past bleeds into the present, Violet uncovers a story that was never laid to rest - and a presence that has been waiting centuries to reclaim what was taken.

The Snow Witch is a chilling, atmospheric tale of buried vengeance and unyielding female power - where the past doesn't die, it freezes and waits."

Because Witch Trials are nothing more than men trying to destroy powerful women, if they're witches or not...

A Time of Witches by Madeline Martin
Published by: Hanover Square Press
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: Hardcover, 384 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Two women, bound by blood and betrayal, must break silence across centuries - or be silenced forever, in the dazzling new novel by New York Times bestselling author Madeline Martin.

Lilith Legare's life is unraveling. Since her mother's death, strange things have been happening - plants turn toward her touch, animals linger in her path, and the birthmark on her arm has started tingling. Worse still is her recurring nightmare of being burned alive at the stake.

Her search for answers brings her from Savannah to England, to the decaying Brackenmere Manor where the past blurs with the present. There, Lilith discovers a legacy she never asked for and along with it, the threat of peril. History must be rewritten, or she too will die.

In 1645 Suffolk, Sybil Brantham stands accused as a witch. An educated, wealthy widow, she is branded a threat by men who fear her independence. As arrests begin and suspicion abounds, Sybil must protect her younger sister, even as betrayal takes root within her household.

Across centuries, Lilith and Sybil are bound by blood and by danger. To save themselves, and each other, they must confront the silence that has stolen women's power for generations - and dare to claim their voices before it's too late."

Take back your voice! It is you power!

The Pumpkin Bride by Fiona Buttercup
Published by: Mira Books
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: Paperback, 3652 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Shrek meets The Princess Bride in this cozy, low-stakes romantic fantasy. The Pumpkin Bride delivers all the autumnal feels, a dash of spice, and a guaranteed HEA!

Some curses just need a cozy fire, a little magic, and a second chance to break them.

A cursed knight.
Sir Bram Duncan was once a knight of legend in Harvest Hollow - until the whim of a jealous prince and the trickery of an autumn sprite turned him into the hulking orc Jask Bone-Cracker, and tethered him to Grimroot Farm. For three long, lonely years, he's hidden his monstrous form and the truth of what happened the night he lost everything, including his true love, Princess Marigold.

A runaway princess.
Fleeing an arranged marriage to the vain and intolerable Prince Crispin, Marigold finds a safe haven when she stumbles across Jask's charmed pumpkin farm deep in the forest. Sensing glimmers of gentleness - and a surprising talent for baking - beneath the grumpy orc's imposing exterior, she begins to feel a familiar longing she believed dead when her Bram disappeared.

One true love.
As magic stirs and pies are baked, truths about Jask's curse begin to surface. But curses don't break easily, and wronged princes don't capitulate. As their peace is threatened, Jask and Marigold must decide: cling to the lies that protect them, or risk everything for a love that could set them free."

I mean, who can resist an orc that can bake? Cursed true love or not.

The Hocus Pocus Handbook by Ann Aguirre
Published by: Sourcebooks Casablanca
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: Paperback, 352 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"From NYT bestselling author Ann Aguirre comes a cozy fae fantasy romance featuring a sunshine-shadow slow burn, a grumpy-but-secretly-tender love interest, an unforgettable found family, and a world lush with wildcraft magic. Perfect for fans of T. Kingfisher and Emily Wilde's Encyclopedia of Faeries.

Thea Winter didn't choose to be a changeling - stolen from the mortal world as a baby, raised in the wildlands by a hobgoblin named Mudge who taught her everything worth knowing. How to read the weather in a crow's wing. How to barter with brownies. How to stay alive in a world of capricious fae courts. What Mudge couldn't teach her was how to stay out of trouble. Which is why she's entangled in a objectionable marriage of convenience.

Or would be, but her spouse bolted. Now she has to hunt down Devan J. Fenelon, but she's been saddled with a taciturn, humorless hunter known as Winter's Hound. He answers only to his cousin, and she's not looking forward to this quest at all.

Kerboros has survived the Winter Court by being exactly what they made him: relentless, invisible, and careful never to want anything at all. His life is an endless series of ceaseless commands from his reprehensible cousin, Lord Liskaal. Since his father's failed rebellion, Kerboros has been permitted to survive only as an example to others, an object lesson as to how far one may fall. But traveling with Thea - wild, warm, impossible Thea - is a glorious torment for an enforcer who has never known freedom.

She is sunshine. He is shadow.

Their love is forbidden, but when irresistible force sweeps up an immovable object, the resulting reaction might be magical..."

I mean, if the groom bolts it seems a shame to have to chase after him if you never wanted him in the first place...

Kiss Slay Replay by Rachel Harrison
Published by: Berkley
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: Hardcover, 336 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Every wedding guest's worst nightmare is on repeat in this wild and twisty new horror novel from the New York Times bestselling author of So Thirsty and Play Nice.

It's the picture-perfect wedding weekend: The venue is dreamy, the weather is beautiful, love is in the air - and Willa Sullivan is having a bad time. She's excited to celebrate her best friends' finally having the big wedding they've always wanted, but this is the first time she's seen her ex-fiancé in months, and he brought a date. Everything feels off, like she stumbled into an alternate universe. But things start to look up when Willa meets Danny, the groom's charming and single childhood best friend. When they sneak off together, their rendezvous is interrupted by a masked killer terrorizing the reception. Willa and Danny fight to save the ones they love and survive the night, but the killer is unrelenting. A final girl Willa is not.

Or is she? She wakes up and it's the morning of the wedding. She just had the most intense nightmare of her life. Only as the day unfolds, there are some uncanny coincidences that make her question whether it was really a dream, déjà vu, or something more sinister. After a horrifying turn of events, Willa comes to understand that she's stuck in a loop of carnage and terror that she must learn how to escape or else suffer a fate worse than death - being an eternal wedding guest."

I mean, as long as the cake is good and you can avoid the killer, things could be worse?

The Treasure House by Amy Matthews
Published by: Dell
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: Paperback, 400 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"In this tender-hearted novel, a single mom's fixer-upper may also open a new door to love - from the award-winning author of Someone Else's Bucket List.

Zoe Copeland and her daughter Florence need a new start. The only problem is, Zoe can't really afford one.

So when she stumbles across a listing for a charming cottage in Maine that is in her price range, she has no choice but to seize the opportunity. The catch? It's a treasure house - filled to the brim with junk, and being sold as is.

Eleven-year-old Florence, who's always longed for a room of her own, loves the old house full of cat figurines and other people's memories, but Zoe is daunted by the mess and the cost of fixing up the place. Their grumpy new neighbor, Jake, thinks Zoe's crazy for undertaking this task - though that doesn't stop him from lending a hand, and it's not long before Zoe starts daydreaming about the handsome handyman.

As the air turns crisp and fall sets in, Zoe becomes increasingly intrigued by the woman who lived in the house before them. Who was Marly, and how did her beloved home end up in such disrepair? As Zoe digs for more information, she can't help but draw parallels between herself and Marly...but what does it say about her future if she's still stuck in the past?

This was supposed to be a fresh start, a chance to give Florence the security she never had. But as Zoe uncovers Marly's secrets and her own past comes crashing into the present, Zoe's life is quickly becoming even messier than the coastal house she's renovating. With her heart and her home on the line, can Zoe put all of the broken pieces of her life back together?"

How can I get a treasure house? Yes, I get it's a lot of work, but I'm up to the challenge!

Sipsworth by Simon Van Booy
Published by: David R. Godine Publisher
Publication Date: September 1st, 2026
Format: Paperback, 250 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Sometimes a second chance comes in the most unexpected way....

Following the loss of her husband and son, Helen Cartwright returns to the village of her childhood after living abroad for six decades. Her only wish is to die quickly and without fuss. She retreats into her home on Westminster Crescent, becoming a creature of routine and habit: "Each day was an impersonation of the one before with only a slight shuffle - as though even for death there is a queue."

Then, one cold winter night, a chance encounter with a mouse sets Helen on a surprising journey. Over the course of two weeks in a small English town, this reclusive widow discovers an unexpected reason to live.

Sipsworth is a reminder that there is always reason for hope. No matter what we have planned for ourselves, sometimes life has plans of its own. With profound compassion, Simon Van Booy illuminates not only a deep friendship forged between two lonely creatures, but the reverberations of goodness that ripple out from that unique bond."

The littlest thing can literally change everything. 

Monday, September 4, 2023

Tuesday Tomorrow

Enola Holmes and the Mark of the Mongoose by Nancy Springer
Published by: Wednesday Books
Publication Date: September 5th, 2023
Format: Hardcover, 304 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"In May of 1890, Enola Holmes is finally fully on her own and, no longer hiding from her older brothers Sherlock and Mycroft, attending classes and occasionally pursuing her chosen profession as a scientific perditorian, a finder of lost things and people.

Wolcott Balestier, the representative of an American book publisher, arrived in London on a singular mission - to contract with English authors for their latest works. When Balestier disappears on the streets of London one day, his great friend - Rudyard Kipling - bursts into Enola's office looking for help in finding him. Brash and unwilling to hire a young woman, instead he turns to Sherlock Holmes. Convinced that evil has befallen Balestier, at the hands of rival American publishers who pirate the works of English authors, he sets the elder Holmes on the trail.

But Enola is not one to accept defeat, especially not to her brother, and sets off on her own - determined to learn the truth behind the disappearance of the young American. Can book publishing truly be so ruthless and deadly or can the missing man be rescued from his apparent fate and returned to his friends and loved ones?

The redoubtable Enola is determined to do just that, even if it means working with her brother Sherlock!"

I am an Enola Holmes devotee. What's more, the lawlessness of the early book publishing in the United States fascinates me!

The Dread Penny Society by Sarah M. Eden
Published by: Shadow Mountain
Publication Date: September 5th, 2023
Format: Hardcover, 400 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"This beautiful, cloth-covered hardcover collector's anthology compiles all the penny dreadful short stories from Sarah M. Eden's five-book Victorian romance series. Included in this edition are three new, never-before-released stories.

Each short story is written in the style of the Victorian fiction that became so popular during that time period. From ghost stories to adventures to mysteries, Sarah weaves these gothic tales among her romantic storylines, making it the perfect way to celebrate the Dread Penny Society series (The Lady and the Highwayman, The Gentleman and the Thief, The Merchant and the Rogue, The Bachelor and the Bride, and The Queen and the Knave)."

Oh, cloth-covered collector's edition? Yes please!

The Spy's Daughter by Bianca M. Schwarz
Published by: Central Avenue Publishing
Publication Date: September 5th, 2023
Format: Paperback, 320 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"The fourth and final book in the darkly romantic Gentleman Spy Mysteries.

Emily March, the illegitimate daughter of Sir Henry March, has all she needs: bountiful wealth, ample beauty, and abundant talent. But will this be enough to secure the one thing she truly wants: a loving marriage and her own family? However, it's not her illegitimacy that stands in her way, but a mystery her father - an agent of the crown - has never been able to solve.

Max Warthon has twice rescued Emily from the machinations of his sinister grandfather, the Earl of Warthon, enemy of Sir Henry. Max knows that getting too close to his daughter will lead to certain peril, but he cannot resist her. Played out in front of London's high society, their whirlwind romance attracts everyone's attention - and raises the ire of the Earl.

With old secrets standing in their way, will Emily and Max be able to unravel the mystery of an ancient hatred and unmask the true enemy? Their happiness and their lives depend on it."

Bring on the curtain call and the HEA!

The Witching Tide by Margaret Meyer
Published by: Scribner Book Company
Publication Date: September 5th, 2023
Format: Hardcover, 336 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"For readers of Margaret Atwood and Hilary Mantel, an immersive literary debut inspired by historical events - a deadly witch hunt in 17th-century England - that claimed many innocent lives.

East Anglia, 1645. Martha Hallybread, a midwife, healer, and servant, has lived peacefully for more than four decades in her beloved seaside village of Cleftwater. Having lost her voice as a child, Martha has not spoken a word in years.

One autumn morning, a sinister newcomer appears in town. The witchfinder, Silas Makepeace, has been blazing a trail of destruction along the coast, and now has Cleftwater in his sights. His arrival strikes fear into the heart of the community. Within a day, local women are being captured and detained, and Martha finds herself a silent witness to the hunt.

Powerless to protest, Martha is enlisted to search the accused women for "devil's marks." She is caught between suspicion and betrayal; between shielding herself or condemning the women of the village. In desperation, she revives a wax witching doll that belonged to her mother, in the hope that it will bring protection. But the doll's true powers are unknowable, Martha harbors a terrible secret, and the gallows are looming...

Set over the course of just a few weeks that will forever change history, The Witching Tide delivers powerful and psychologically astute insights about the exigencies of friendship and the nature of loyalty, and heralds the arrival of a striking new voice in fiction."

There are a few books I stumble on that I mark instantly as "must get" and this is one of them ever since Waterstones featured it in a recent email.

The Square of Sevens by Laura Shepherd-Robinson
Published by: Atria Books
Publication Date: September 5th, 2023
Format: Hardcover, 528 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"An orphaned fortune teller in 18th-century England searches for answers about her long-dead mother and uncovers shocking secrets in this immersive and atmospheric saga perfect for fans of Sarah Waters and Sarah Perry.

Cornwall, 1730: A young girl known only as Red travels with her father making a living predicting fortunes using the ancient Cornish method of the Square of Sevens. Shortly before he dies, her father entrusts Red's care to a gentleman scholar, along with a document containing the secret of the Square of Sevens technique.

Raised as a lady amidst the Georgian splendor of Bath, Red's fortune-telling delights in high society. But she cannot ignore the questions that gnaw at her soul: who was her mother? How did she die? And who are the mysterious enemies her father was always terrified would find him?

The pursuit of these mysteries takes her from Cornwall and Bath to London and Devon, from the rough ribaldry of the Bartholomew Fair to the grand houses of two of the most powerful families in England. And while Red's quest brings her the possibility of great reward, it also leads to grave danger.

Laura Shepherd-Robinson, "the queen of modern Georgian literature" (Susan Stokes-Chapman, author of Pandora), has written a dazzling and Dickensian story of mystery and intrigue, with audacious twists and turns."

Oh my, a fortune teller with comparisons to Sarah Waters and Sarah Perry, the two best English Sarahs!?!

The Spirit Bares Its Teeth by Andrew Joseph White
Published by: Peachtree Teen
Publication Date: September 5th, 2023
Format: Hardcover, 400 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"New York Times bestselling author Andrew Joseph White returns with the transgressive Gothic horror of our time!

Mors vincit omnia. Death conquers all.

London, 1883. The Veil between the living and dead has thinned. Violet-eyed mediums commune with spirits under the watchful eye of the Royal Speaker Society, and sixteen-year-old Silas Bell would rather rip out his violet eyes than become an obedient Speaker wife. According to Mother, he'll be married by the end of the year. It doesn't matter that he's needed a decade of tutors to hide his autism; that he practices surgery on slaughtered pigs; that he is a boy, not the girl the world insists on seeing.

After a failed attempt to escape an arranged marriage, Silas is diagnosed with Veil sickness - a mysterious disease sending violet-eyed women into madness - and shipped away to Braxton's Finishing School and Sanitorium. The facility is cold, the instructors merciless, and the students either bloom into eligible wives or disappear. When the ghosts of missing students start begging Silas for help, he decides to reach into Braxton's innards and expose its guts to the world - if the school doesn't break him first.

Featuring an autistic trans protagonist in a historical setting, Andrew Joseph White's much-anticipated sophomore novel does not back down from exposing the violence of the patriarchy and the harm inflicted on trans youth who are forced into conformity."

Gothic in so many ways.

The Mossheart's Promise by Rebecca Mix
Published by: Balzer and Bray/Harperteen
Publication Date: September 5th, 2023
Format: Hardcover, 432 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"From New York Times bestselling YA author Rebecca Mix comes the first book in a breathtaking middle grade fantasy duology about a young fairy who has always lived in her heroic grandmother's shadow, but now must step up and embark on a quest to save her mother from the ever-creeping mold overtaking their world. Perfect for readers who loved Brandon Mull's Fablehaven, The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau, and Endling: The Last by Katherine Applegate.

The mold takes all.

Twelve-year-old fairy Canary Mossheart knows this better than most. A few years ago, the mold took her papa, and even her famous, former-chosen-one Gran never found a cure. So when Ary's beloved mama falls ill, Ary decides it's taken enough. Armed with only a bucket and a prayer, she sneaks out to find a magical, underground lake whose healing waters are straight out of Gran's adventures.

But when Ary gets there, the lake's bone dry, and instead of healing waters, she finds a terrifying secret: Her entire world is actually trapped inside a giant terrarium - one they were meant to leave centuries ago. Worse, Gran knew and hid the truth, dooming Ary and her generation to a dying, rotting world.

Now, allied with only her doomsday-obsessed frenemy, a timid pill bug, and a particularly grumpy newt, Ary has one week to unravel the clues and find a way out of the terrarium - or they'll be trapped for good."

Yeah, being trapped in a terrarium, especially one that I'm in charge of, would be a very very bad thing.

Sleep No More by Seanan McGuire
Published by: Daw Books
Publication Date: September 5th, 2023
Format: Hardcover, 384 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"The 17th novel of the Hugo-nominated, New York Times bestselling October Daye urban fantasy series.

October is very happy with her life as the second daughter of her pureblood parents, Amandine and Simon Torquill. Born to be the changeling handmaid to her beloved sister August, she spends her days working in her family's tower, serving as August's companion, and waiting for the day when her sister sets up a household of her own. Everything is right in October's Faerie. Everything is perfect.

Everything is a lie.

October has been pulled from her own reality and thrown into a twisted reinterpretation of Faerie where nothing is as it should be and everything has been distorted to support Titania's ideals. Bound by the Summer Queen's magic and thrust into a world turned upside down, October has no way of knowing who she can trust, where she can turn, or even who she really is. As strangers who claim to know her begin to appear and the edges of Titania's paradise begin to unravel, Toby will have to decide whether she can risk everything she knows based on only their stories of another world.

But first she'll have to survive this one, as Titania demonstrates why she needed to be banished in the first place - and this time, much more than Toby's own life is at stake."

And you only have a month to wait until volume 18!

All the Dead Shall Weep by Charlaine Harris
Published by: Gallery / Saga Press
Publication Date: September 5th, 2023
Format: Hardcover, 256 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"#1 New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author returns with the fifth installment in the bestselling Gunnie Rose series as sisters Lizbeth Rose and Felicia as well as brother Eli and Peter, are reunited in Texoma only to break apart before the Wizard's Ball held in San Diego, which will determine all their fates.

Following the murderous events of the "gripping...thrill-ride" (Karin Slaughter) Serpent of Heaven, Lizbeth Rose is awaiting the arrival of her sister Felicia and her husband's younger brother Eli in Texoma. Both needed to leave the seat of the Holy Russian Empire in San Diego after Felicia's burgeoning wizardly power in death magic became the reason for kidnapping and assassination attempts from her mother's family of high-powered wizards in Mexico.

Yet bad news has traveled ahead of them, as Eli is called back to San Diego, taking Peter along with him, splitting them apart in more ways than one as their enemies' plans for revenge come to fruition. In this fifth installment in the beloved and bestselling Gunnie Rose series, #1 New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author Charlaine Harris has crafted a family drama of murderous and magical thrills."

Charlaine Harris writes it, I will read it and love it.

Midnight at the Houdini by Delilah S. Dawson
Published by: Delacorte Press
Publication Date: September 5th, 2023
Format: Hardcover, 368Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A girl discovers a surreal hotel where no one ever leaves. When the clock strikes midnight, she'll be trapped there forever unless she's able to break free from magic that in turn breaks all her rules. Perfect for fans of Caraval and The Starless Sea!

Life has gone according to plan for Anna - she stays in the background, letting her sister, Emily, shine in the spotlight. But on Emily's wedding night, Anna learns that her sister is moving away, abandoning her - and all their shared dreams. Devastated, Anna leaves the reception in the middle of a raging storm, taking shelter in a hotel she's never seen before: the Houdini.

The Houdini is a hotel unlike any other, with sumptuous velvet couches, marble tiled floors, secret restaurants, winding passageways, and an undercurrent of magic in the air. And when Anna meets Max, who has lived his entire life inside its walls, she's captivated. For the first time in her life, Anna is center stage, in a place that anticipates her every desire, with a boy who only has eyes for her.

But there's a terrifying secret hidden in the Houdini. When the clock strikes midnight, Anna will be trapped there forever unless she can find a way to break free from its dreamlike magic. But will she be able to do it if it means leaving Max behind?

Enchanting, mysterious, and utterly fantastic, Midnight at the Houdini will cast its spell on you."

And would you really want to leave a magic hotel?

The Library of Shadows by Rachel Moore
Published by: Harperteen
Publication Date: September 5th, 2023
Format: Hardcover, 368 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Funny, moving, and heart-achingly real, this romantic romp and paranormal romcom debut - through a haunted library with trapdoors, ghosts, and memories - is full of great love that triumphs over even death, perfect for fans of Ninth House and Cemetery Boys.

Radcliffe Prep. The third most haunted school in the country, where a student disappearance isn't uncommon and no one dares stay in the library after dark. And Este Logano enrolls with the hopes of finding her dead father.

Not literally, of course. She doesn't believe in ghosts. Going to her dad's school just seems like her best hope at figuring out who he was.

But then Este meets Mateo, who is maybe - probably - definitely - a real ghost. And an annoying one at that.

When Mateo frames Este for the theft of a rare book from the library's secret spire and then vanishes, Este will have to track him down or risk being expelled and leaving Radcliffe early just like her father did.

Except following her father's footsteps might be more dangerous than Este ever anticipated. As she investigates the library with its secret passageways, hidden tunnels, and haunted halls, she learns that the student disappearances aren't just myth. And if she isn't careful, she'll be next."

Dark academia here I come! Bring on the library and ghosts!

Holly by Stephen King
Published by: Scribner Book Company
Publication Date: September 5th, 2023
Format: Hardcover, 464 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Holly Gibney, one of Stephen King's most compelling and ingeniously resourceful characters, returns in this thrilling novel to solve the gruesome truth behind multiple disappearances in a Midwestern town.

Stephen King's Holly marks the triumphant return of beloved King character Holly Gibney. Readers have witnessed Holly's gradual transformation from a shy (but also brave and ethical) recluse in Mr. Mercedes to Bill Hodges's partner in Finders Keepers to a full-fledged, smart, and occasionally tough private detective in The Outsider. In King's new novel, Holly is on her own, and up against a pair of unimaginably depraved and brilliantly disguised adversaries.

When Penny Dahl calls the Finders Keepers detective agency hoping for help locating her missing daughter, Holly is reluctant to accept the case. Her partner, Pete, has Covid. Her (very complicated) mother has just died. And Holly is meant to be on leave. But something in Penny Dahl's desperate voice makes it impossible for Holly to turn her down.

Mere blocks from where Bonnie Dahl disappeared live Professors Rodney and Emily Harris. They are the picture of bourgeois respectability: married octogenarians, devoted to each other, and semi-retired lifelong academics. But they are harboring an unholy secret in the basement of their well-kept, book-lined home, one that may be related to Bonnie's disappearance. And it will prove nearly impossible to discover what they are up to: they are savvy, they are patient, and they are ruthless.

Holly must summon all her formidable talents to outthink and outmaneuver the shockingly twisted professors in this chilling new masterwork from Stephen King."

Aren't all professors shockingly twisted?

The September House by Carissa Orlando
Published by: Berkley Books
Publication Date: September 5th, 2023
Format: Hardcover, 352 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A woman is determined to stay in her dream home even after it becomes a haunted nightmare in this compulsively readable, twisty, and layered debut novel.

When Margaret and her husband Hal bought the large Victorian house on Hawthorn Street - for sale at a surprisingly reasonable price - they couldn't believe they finally had a home of their own. Then they discovered the hauntings. Every September, the walls drip blood. The ghosts of former inhabitants appear, and all of them are terrified of something that lurks in the basement. Most people would flee.

Margaret is not most people.

Margaret is staying. It's her house. But after four years Hal can't take it anymore, and he leaves abruptly. Now, he's not returning calls, and their daughter Katherine - who knows nothing about the hauntings - arrives, intent on looking for her missing father. To make things worse, September has just begun, and with every attempt Margaret and Katherine make at finding Hal, the hauntings grow more harrowing, because there are some secrets the house needs to keep."

Why don't they got to an Airbnb for September?

There's No Way I'd Die First by Lisa Springer
Published by: Delacorte Press
Publication Date: September 5th, 2023
Format: Hardcover, 304 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A spine-tingling contemporary horror novel that follows a scary-movie buff as she hosts an elaborate Halloween bash but soon finds the festivities upended when she and her guests are forced to test their survival skills in a deadly game, from debut author Lisa Springer.

Seventeen-year-old Noelle Layne knows horror. Every trope, every warning sign, every survival tactic. She even leads a successful movie club dedicated to the genre. Who better to throw the ultimate, most exclusive Halloween party on all of Long Island?

With some of the top influencers in her school on the guest list, including gorgeous singer-songwriter Archer Mitchell, her popularity is bound to spike. She could really use the social boost for an upcoming brand expansion. Nothing is going to ruin this party.

Except...maybe the low budget It clown she hired for a stirring round of tag. He axes one of her classmates. From the looks of his devilish grin and bag full of killer tricks, he's just getting started. A murderous clown is out for blood, but Noelle has been waiting her entire life to prove that she's a Final Girl."

Just saying, if Randy Meeks couldn't make it...

The Raging Storm by Ann Cleeves
Published by: Minotaur Books
Publication Date: September 5th, 2023
Format: Hardcover, 400 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Ann Cleeves - New York Times bestselling and award-winning author of the Vera and Shetland series, both of which are hit TV shows - returns with The Raging Storm, the extraordinary third installment in the Matthew Venn series.

Fierce winds, dark secrets, deadly intentions.

When Jem Rosco - sailor, adventurer, and legend - blows into town in the middle of an autumn gale, the residents of Greystone, Devon, are delighted to have a celebrity in their midst. But just as abruptly as he arrived, Rosco disappears again, and soon his lifeless body is discovered in a dinghy, anchored off Scully Cove, a place with legends of its own.

This is an uncomfortable case for Detective Inspector Matthew Venn. Greystone is a place he visited as a child, a community he parted ways with. Superstition and rumor mix with fact as another body is found, and Venn finds his judgment clouded.

As the winds howl, and Venn and his team investigate, he realizes that no one, including himself, is safe from Scully Cove's storm of dark secrets."

I stan Ann Cleeves!

Grave Expectations by Alice Bell
Published by: Vintage
Publication Date: September 5th, 2023
Format: Paperback, 352 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A fast-paced and hilarious debut crime novel, in which a burnt-out Millennial medium must utilize her ability to see ghosts and team-up with a band of oddball investigators to figure out which member(s) of a posh English family are guilty of murder.

Almost-authentic medium Claire and her best friend, Sophie, agree to take on a seemingly simple job at a crumbling old manor in the English countryside: performing a seance for the family matriarch's 80th birthday. The pair have been friends since before Sophie went missing when they were seventeen. Everyone else is convinced Sophie simply ran away, but Claire knows the truth. Claire knows Sophie was murdered because Sophie has been haunting her ever since.

Despite this traumatic past, Claire and Sophie are still unprepared for what they encounter when they arrive at the manor: a ghost, tragic and unrecognizable, and clearly the spirit of someone killed in a rage at the previous year's party. Given her obsession with crime shows - not to mention Sophie's ability to walk through walls - Claire decides they're the best people to solve the case. And with the help of the only obviously not-guilty members of their host family - sexy ex-policeman Sebastian and far-too-cool non-binary teen Alex - they launch an investigation into which of last year's guests never escaped the manor's grounds.

What follows is somewhat irregular detective work involving stealing a priest's cassock, getting too drunk to remember to question your suspect, and of course, Chekhov's sparkly purple dildo. As Claire desperately tries to keep a lid on the shameful secret that would definitely alienate her new friends, the gang must race against their own incompetence to find the murderer before the murderer finds them."

I'm all here for unconventional mysteries and crime solvers.

Scenes of the Crime by Jilly Gagnon
Published by: Bantam
Publication Date: September 5th, 2023
Format: Paperback, 400 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"An ambitious screenwriter tries to solve her friend's disappearance by re-creating their fateful final girls' trip in this riveting locked-room mystery from the author of All Dressed Up.

It should have been the perfect spring break: Five girlfriends. A remote winery on the Oregon coast. An infinite supply of delicious wine at their manicured fingertips. But then their center - beautiful, magnetic Vanessa Morales - vanished without a trace.

Emily Fischer was perhaps the last person to see her alive. But now, years later, Emily spots Vanessa's doppelganger at a local café. At the end of her rope working a lucrative yet mind-numbing gig on a network sitcom, Emily is inspired to finally tell the story that's been percolating inside her for so long: Vanessa's story. But first, she needs to know what really happened on that fateful night. So she puts a brilliant scheme into motion.

She gets the girls together for a reunion weekend at the scene of the crime under the guise of reconnecting. There's Brittany, Vanessa's cousin and the inheritor of the winery; Paige, a former athlete, bullish yet easily manipulated; and Lydia, the wallflower of the group.

One of them knows the truth. But what have they each been hiding? And how much can Emily trust anything she learns from them...or even her own memories of Vanessa's last days? Suspenseful, propulsive, and interspersed with scenes from Emily's blockbuster screenplay, Scenes of the Crime is an unforgettable mystery that examines culpability, the shiny rearview mirror of Hollywood storytelling, and the pitfalls of female friendship."

I mean, the only reason you'd go on this trip is if you're the killer and want to silence everyone right?

Murder Off Stage by Mary Miley
Published by: Severn House
Publication Date: September 5th, 2023
Format: Hardcover, 224 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Welcome to Broadway - and to an unthinkable crime! Former theater starlet turned amateur sleuth Jessie Beckett gets mixed up in murder when an on-stage shooting turns all too real.

New York, 1926. It's not like Jessie Beckett goes around looking for murders to solve, but the vaudeville star turned movie script girl has a natural talent for it. After a lifetime on stage, she's sensitive to details that other people miss.

So when leading theatre star Allen Crenshaw is shot live on stage during a performance of hit Broadway show Rules of Engagement - a horrified Jessie watching from the second row - she knows she has to act fast before Allen's co-star, the beautiful Norah Rose, goes down for murder. After all, it was Norah who fired the fateful bullet...even if the shooting was all part of the show.

Jessie investigates those closest to Allen - the presence of her theater companion, the superstar Adele Astaire, opening doors wherever they go - and finds only enemies. With the suspects for the disliked actor so numerous, can she uncover the truth in time to save Norah - or will the killer silence her too?

Packed with real-life stars of the stage and screen, this page-turning romp through the boards and backstreets of Broadway is a perfect pick for readers who enjoy Jazz Age mysteries with intrepid female sleuths."

With this cast of characters and that cover there's no way I'm not picking up this book.

From Dust to Stardust by Kathleen Rooney
Published by: Lake Union Publishing
Publication Date: September 5th, 2023
Format: Hardcover, 285 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"From the bestselling author of Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk comes a novel about Hollywood, the cost of stardom, and selfless second acts, inspired by an extraordinary true story.

Chicago, 1916. Doreen O'Dare is fourteen years old when she hops a Hollywood-bound train with her beloved Irish grandmother. Within a decade, her trademark bob and insouciant charm make her the preeminent movie flapper of the Jazz Age. But her success story masks one of relentless ambition, tragedy, and the secrets of a dangerous marriage.

Her professional life in flux, Doreen trades one dream for another. She pours her wealth and creative energy into a singular achievement: the construction of a one-ton miniature Fairy Castle, the likes of which the world has never seen. So begins Doreen's public tour to lift the nation's spirits during the Great Depression - and a personal journey worth remembering.

A sweeping journey from the dawn of the motion picture era through turbulent twentieth-century America, From Dust to Stardust is a breathtaking novel about one determined woman navigating change, challenging the price of fame, and sharing the gift of real magic."

I was an still am obsessed with her Fairy Castle!

Witches Get Stuff Done by Molly Harper
Published by: Sourcebooks Casablanca
Publication Date: September 5th, 2023
Format: Paperback, 304 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Juggling newfound witchy powers, a house full of ghosts, and verbal battles with the handsome local librarian is almost too much for a new witch to manage. A new witch with a coven, however, can get so much more done...

From the moment Riley Everett set foot in Starfall Point, magic bubbled inside of her. But with only her late aunt's journals and a cantankerous live-in ghost butler to instruct her on all things witchy - including her newly inherited Victorian haunted house - Riley seeks out a coven for sisterhood and support. The last person she expects to be drawn to is the town's frustrating, yet ridiculously attractive head librarian.

Edison Held knows almost everything there is to know about Starfall Point, but Shaddow House was always off-limits, thanks to its elusive owner. If he can convince the new owner, Riley, to let him take a peek inside, there's so much he could learn. But as he gets closer to Riley, he's fascinated by her dazzling wit and fiery spirit. Edison will do whatever he can to help Riley keep her family legacy alive, especially if it means spending more time with the captivating new witch in town.

Bestselling author Molly Harper wields a magical pen in this hilarious, delightful witchy romcom perfect for readers of The Ex Hex and Payback's a Witch."

It's September, which means it's "officially" fall, which means you now need to read only books with witches, AKA read this book.

The Art of Desire by Stacey Abrams
Published by: Berkley Books
Publication Date: September 5th, 2023
Format: Hardcover, 288 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Trouble comes in threes...

One doomed love affair after another has made lovely Alex Walton swear off men. Now, she's determined to try something that maybe she can succeed at: a writing career. Little does she know that a chance meeting with a strikingly handsome stranger, a mysterious obelisk, and a lost kingdom will change her life forever. As Alex is about to discover, truth can be stranger - and far more dangerous - than fiction.

...but true love comes only once.

After three years inside a terrorist organization, Phillip Turman is trying to rebuild his life. His first assignment is to pick up Alex Walton, the maid of honor for his best friend's wedding, at the airport. His second is to deal with his instant attraction to her. But his third may be the toughest: to keep Alex out of danger as his past - and her need to know about it - threaten to destroy their future."

I love Stacey Abrams and I am bemused by the obelisk way more than I should be. I mean, it's a romance book after all!

The Secret History of Christmas Baking by Linda Raedisch
Published by: Llewellyn Publications
Publication Date: September 5th, 2023
Format: Paperback, 320 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Explore the Surprising and Sometimes Dark Origins of Beloved Holiday Bakes.

Spice up your season by rolling, molding, and kneading your way through some of the world's most iconic Christmas recipes. Interspersed with tales of sailors, saints, tomb raiders, and artisans, The Secret History of Christmas Baking proves that even the humblest holiday treat has a global backstory.

Did you know that the ancient Egyptians had their own version of gingerbread or that marzipan was once considered a pharmaceutical? Linda Raedisch dispels some long-standing culinary myths and delves into the darker chapters of the West's centuries-long romance with sugar and spices. In addition to more than forty recipes for modern bakers, you'll find illustrated instructions for dressing up your cakes and cookie plates with paper stars, angels, and witches. From Linzer tartlets to Christstollen, you can turn your kitchen into an Old World Christmas market stall."

I mean, I'm here for everything about this book, but Linzer tartlets!?! Oh yeah.

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