You know, I put these new books posts together as much for me as I do for you. See, I am very near maxing out the number of books that can be requested at one time at the library. How crazy they have a limit, right? Then again, the limit is forty books. Yes, I am nearing forty book requests (keeping in mind that quite a few of the books are not yet published so they are just hanging in the system until they are ready to circulate). I should really go through and refine my list, as I tend to add titles pell mell. Part of the beauty of library books is borrowing whatever strikes my fancy. If it sounds good . . . sure, add it to the list. Then when I check it out and I discover maybe it's not really one for me after all, no harm done. It can go back and I need not feel guilty about it. I often go back and refer to my lists and see which books have since been published that I might want to get in line for (or buy in some cases).
Here are ten soon to be published books that I am on the lookout for right now:
The Secret Life of Violet Grant by Beatriz Williams -- "Manhattan, 1964. Vivian Schuyler, newly graduated from Bryn Mawr College, has recently defied the privilege of her storied old Fifth Avenue family to do the unthinkable for a budding Kennedy-era socialite: break into the Madison Avenue world of razor-stylish Metropolitan magazine. But when she receives a bulky overseas parcel in the mail, the unexpected contents draw her inexorably back into her family’s past, and the hushed-over crime passionnel of an aunt she never knew, whose existence has been wiped from the record of history."
Under a Silent Moon by Elizabeth Haynes -- "In Under a Silent Moon, Elizabeth Haynes interweaves fictional primary source materials—police reports, phone messages, interviews—and multiple character viewpoints to create a sexy, edgy, and compulsively readable tale of murder, mystery, and unsettling suspense." I've just finished Darkest Tide, which I enjoyed very much and will write about soon--so am in the market for another book by Haynes!
The Book of You by Claire Kendal -- "Masterfully constructed, filled with exquisite tension and a pervasive sense of menace, The Book of You explores the lines between love and compulsion, fantasy and reality, and offers a heart-stopping portrait of a woman determined to survive. Claire Kendal’s extraordinary debut will haunt readers long after it reaches its terrifying, breathtaking conclusion."
What Lies Beneath by Sarah Rayne -- "The Poisoned Village. That’s the grim nickname the locals have for Priors Bramley, emptied of its residents when a Cold War experiment with chemical weapons went badly wrong. But the nightmares in Priors Bramley have been festering a lot longer, going back to the long-abandoned Cadence Manor. What happened there in the years before the first world war? And what is the source of the eerie music drifting down the crumbling village streets?"
Black Lake by Johanna Lane -- "A debut novel about a family losing grip of its legacy: a majestic house on the cliffs of Ireland." I've lucked out and have a review copy of this--will be starting to read it soon!
Landing Gear by Kate Pullinger -- "From the award-winning author of The Mistress of Nothing comes a highly imaginative story of colliding worlds and extraordinary connections. Inspired by real-life accounts of airplane stowaways, Landing Gear is about the complex texture of modern life, and how we fight the loneliness of the nuclear family to hold on to one another."
All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr -- "A blind French girl on the run from the German occupation and a German orphan-turned-Resistance tracker struggle with their respective beliefs after meeting on the Brittany coast."
The Untold by Courtney Collins -- "With shades of Water for Elephants and True Grit, a stunning debut novel set in the Australian outback about a female horse thief, her bid for freedom, and the two men trying to capture her."
The Unwitting by Ellen Feldman -- "Set in the literary Manhattan of the 1950s, at a journal much like the Paris Review, The Unwitting evokes a bygone era of burgeoning sexual awareness and intrigue and an exuberance of ideas that had the power to change the world. Resonant, illuminating, and utterly absorbing, The Unwitting is about the lies we tell, the secrets we keep, and the power of love in the face of both."
The Forbidden by F.R. Tallis -- "The Alienist meets The Exorcist in Tallis’ new novel of psychological suspense, as an ambitious young doctor explores the dangerous border between science and the supernatural." Hmm. The Tallis of Max Liebermann fame?
Call me silly, but . . . new books? They make me giddy with excitement! Is there a book you are waiting for now that makes you giddy with excitement, too?
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Two other small pieces of business. I have been a bit snowed under with the general busy-ness of work and life and so have fallen behind in emails and blog visiting (more than normal on the latter). I am hoping to catch up soon.
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Okay, I have plenty to read. Really. Plenty. But it's crossed my mind (I just watched for the seemingly millionth time--a favorite movie--Crossing Delancy Street. I was thinking I read very little "Jewish Literature"--not books on the Holocaust at the moment, but novels about Jewish life in general--contemporary or historical. It's always good to have a list of titles tucked away in the back of my mind for later consumption, so any suggestions are (as always) most appreciated.
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And, yay. Tomorrow is Friday!