https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog daily 0.75 2026-03-30 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/april-new-releases-1 monthly 0.5 2026-03-30 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6c192864-8d11-4cef-b950-91ce3598a53c/236226582.jpg Blog - April New Releases - The Escape Game by Marissa Meyer and Tamara Moss It’s all fun and games until someone ends up dead. Six months ago, season four of The Escape Game ended in horror when contestant Alicia Angelos was found murdered on set. Now season five is underway, and new contestants are ready to put their skills to the test solving the show's trickiest escape rooms. There's Adi, the cryptographer; Carter, the math whiz; Beck, the wannabe game master, and . . . Sierra Angelos, the girl who got away with her sister’s murder. Or so everyone believes. But Sierra’s not just here to win. She’s here for justice. When the contestants begin uncovering clues that hint at the identity of Alicia’s true killer, it becomes clear that the stakes aren’t high in this competition, they’re deadly. If these teens want to win—and survive—the game, they must solve the biggest mystery of who killed Alicia Angelos? Release Date: April 7, 2026 Genre: Young Adult Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/83b0a129-da3e-41b1-a349-39ece531d395/235992260.jpg Blog - April New Releases - Unbound by Peyton Corinne Paloma Blake is, at best, antagonistic. But beneath the hairspray, attitude, and promiscuity is a scared girl whose trauma runs deep. Still, the walls she’s built are strong, ensuring everyone only sees Paloma’s sexy façade. Everyone except for Bennett. Bennett Reiner, the carefully controlled, neurodivergent goalie, has his routines and sticks to them, which helps him keep a hold on his OCD compulsions and the crippling anxiety that comes with them. The quiet and meticulous Bennett sees everything, especially the girl beneath Paloma’s ever-present masks. And he always has. Unbeknownst to their friends, Bennett and Paloma were each other’s first real love, which ended in crippling heartbreak. Bennett still doesn’t know what happened, and Paloma is determined to stay away from the comfort she used to find only in his arms. For years, Bennett has remained her protective shadow, coming to Paloma’s rescue whenever she asked, keeping her as close and safe as she’ll let him. But, like a tumultuous sea to a constant shore, Bennett and Paloma find each other once more. Release Date: April 7, 2026 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9571263f-ac7f-4d8e-b568-bcd532dda5a9/241058997.jpg Blog - April New Releases - Rites of Starling by Devney Perry Calandra’s five kingdoms are on the verge of destruction. The crux migration is coming. And in the wake of a devastating attack, I’ve been separated from the man who owns my heart. I’m lost. Terrified. Homesick. Hunted by monsters, driven to exhaustion, and kidnapped by a powerful priest, the only thing keeping me going is the little girl counting on me to keep her safe. It’s my turn to become the Guardian. Our lives change one fateful night. A night of death. A night of monsters. A night of truths. That night, I learn the real meaning of fear—and the depth of my own strength. Everyone wants me to be something I’m not—a queen, a spy, a sacrifice. But what if I embrace my crown? What if the secrets I uncover save our realm? What if my sacrifice means salvation for the man I love? For too long, I’ve feared the monsters we make. It’s time to discover the monster within. Release Date: April 7, 2026 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/45273ec9-2fbc-4368-a25a-8ceead86994f/236447384.jpg.png Blog - April New Releases - The Ending Writes Itself by Evelyn Clarke Six authors. One private island. Seventy-two hours to write the ending that will change their lives. Arthur Fletch, one of the world’s bestselling novelists, is a reclusive genius known for his iconic protagonists and fiendish twists. When six struggling authors are invited to spend a weekend on his private Scottish island, they arrive to discover a shocking secret: Arthur Fletch is dead . . . and his last book is unfinished. Desperate to publish the novel, Fletch’s agent and editor have summoned these writers in the hope that one of them will imagine a worthy ending for this final book. To sweeten the deal, they are offering an irresistible prize: in addition to ghost-writing the last chapter––for a mind-boggling sum––they will also help the lucky writer successfully re-launch their own career, guaranteeing future bestsellers. The catch: the writers have just seventy-two hours to finish Fletch’s magnum opus. It’s the perfect plot. All it needs is a killer ending. Release Date: April 7, 2026 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/75204b3a-a802-44dd-bd11-34f6092c803d/240027599.jpg Blog - April New Releases - The Verdant Cage by Jess Lourey The Wall was built to keep them safe. Or so they thought. For as long as seventeen-year-old apothecary Rose Allgood can remember, the towering stone Wall surrounding Noah's Valley has protected her people. No one leaves. No one fights. And no one questions why. But their paradise has been hiding its thorns. When Rose's mother becomes the Valley's first murder victim and her twin brother is swiftly condemned, she alone is searching for the real killer. Determined to find the truth, she follows a trail of hidden messages, forbidden knowledge, and whispers of a past no one dares to remember. The deeper she digs, the more certain Rose becomes that her mother's death was no accident. That the Wall isn't just keeping something out. It's keeping something in. Release Date: April 7, 2026 Genre: Young Adult Dystopian https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2f10c0b5-f9fe-4ec3-823e-0c714e5ea06e/231127042.jpg Blog - April New Releases - Love by the Book by Jessica George Friendship is the love story you can count on. Remy is lucky. Her debut novel, based on her three best friends, became an instant bestseller when it was released, and her agent and publisher are clamoring for a follow-up. But just as Remy’s creative inspiration seems to leave her, so too do her friends: one moves to New York, one gets pregnant, and one gets back together with her (awful) boyfriend. After an ill-advised one-night stand complicates matters further, Remy is left deeply alone—and unable to find her next book idea. Simone is successful. A Kindergarten teacher with a passion for kids, and a well-paying side hustle that affords her all the material comforts she desires, she doesn't have time for a robust social life. All Simone needs is her close-knit family—but after the true nature of her work is revealed, they cut her off, and she realizes for the first time just how isolated she is. When Simone and Remy bump into each other (literally) in a bookstore, it isn’t exactly soulmates at first sight. Simone is guarded and prickly, Remy is insecure and heartbroken, and each woman is harboring a secret. And yet they might just be the missing piece the other has been searching for—if only they can let each other in. Release Date: April 7, 2026 Genre: Contemporary Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/65f4c315-6ddb-4a92-90e5-40be57aecf63/237100508.jpg Blog - April New Releases - Release Me by Tahereh Mafi Rosabelle Wolff had a plan. Now she wants revenge. To save her sister she needs to get back home and destroy the system that created her. Rosabelle’s greatest strength is her ability to deaden her mind and body; it’s the only way to survive the surveillance state of Ark Island. But lately her heart has been beating harder; her thoughts are spiraling; her defenses are coming undone. And there’s only one person to blame. James Anderson had a plan. Now he has nothing but problems. Rosabelle might be the ally they need in a fight against The Reestablishment, but no one wants to trust an enemy assassin. It doesn’t help that Rosabelle’s not much of a talker, doesn’t work well in groups, and kills people on instinct. Taking her side has cost James nearly everything—but keeping her alive might help save his world. If only he could convince his older brother. Aaron Warner Anderson has a headache. Something dark is coming, and Rosabelle’s arrival is just a prelude. In her, he sees shades of himself he can’t trust, and he can no longer get a read on the girl. She’s a dead battery, emanating no emotional feedback. At least not until James walks into a room… Welcome back to The New Republic. Release Date: April 7, 2026 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2e7fca8b-00c0-4c4a-b0e7-29a19526bd09/238226942.jpg Blog - April New Releases - Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke My name was Natalie Heller Mills, and I was perfect at being alive. Natalie lives a traditional lifestyle. Her charming farmhouse is rustic, her husband a handsome cowboy, her six children each more delightful than the last. So what if there are nannies and producers behind the scenes, her kitchen hiding industrial-grade fridges and ovens, her husband the Republican equivalent of a Kennedy? What Natalie’s followers—all 8 million of them—don’t know won’t hurt them. And The Angry Women? The privileged, Ivy League, coastal elite haters who call her an antifeminist iconoclast? They’re sick with jealousy. Because Natalie isn’t simply living the good life, she’s living the ideal—and just so happens to be building an empire from it. Until one morning she wakes up in a life that isn’t hers. Her home, her husband, her children—they’re all familiar, but something’s off. Her kitchen is warmed by a sputtering fire rather than electricity, her children are dirty and strange, and her soft-handed husband is suddenly a competent farmer. Just yesterday Natalie was curating photos of homemade jam for her Instagram, and now she’s expected to haul firewood and handwash clothes until her fingers bleed. Has she become the unwitting star of a brutal reality show? Could it really be time travel? Is she being tested by God? By Satan? When Natalie suffers a brutal injury in the woods, she realizes two things: This is not her beautiful life, and she must escape by any means possible. Release Date: April 7, 2026 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/13c35433-65f6-4636-a1a2-334555d45c28/238226952.jpg Blog - April New Releases - The Book Witch by Meg Shaffer Rainy March is a proud third-generation book witch, sworn to defend works of fiction from all foes real and imaginary. With her magical umbrella and feline familiar, she jumps into and out of novels to fix malicious alterations and rogue heroes. Book witches live by a strict Real people belong in the real word; fictional characters belong in works of fiction…. Do not eat, drink, or sleep inside a fictional world, lest you become part of the story. Falling in love with a fictional character? Don’t even think about it. Which is why Rainy has been forbidden from seeing the Duke of Chicago, the dashing British detective who stars in her favorite mystery series. If she’s ever caught with him again, she’ll be expelled from her book coven—and forced to give up the magical gifts that are as much a part of her as her own name. Release Date: April 7, 2026 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ef5f26ce-1fe0-45b7-bc1e-66e35a6e8fab/231127269.jpg Blog - April New Releases - The Subtle Art of Folding Space by John Chu Ellie’s universe, and this one, is falling apart. Her ailing mother is in a coma; her sister, Chris, accuses her of being insufficiently Chinese between assassination attempts; and a shadowy cabal of engineers is trying to hijack the skunkworks, the machinery that keeps the physics of each universe working the way it’s supposed to. Daniel, Ellie's cousin, has found an illicit device in the skunkworks—one that keeps Ellie's comatose mother alive while also creating destabilizing bugs in the physics of this universe. It's not a good day. If she can confront her mother’s legacy and overcome her family’s generational trauma, she just might find a way to preserve the skunkworks and reconcile with her sister…but digging into her family’s past is thornier than it seems, and the secrets she uncovers will force Ellie to choose between her family and the universe itself. Release Date: April 7, 2026 Genre: Science Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/151af784-4934-4ebf-a971-cf28fccf9885/231127064.jpg Blog - April New Releases - Stranger Things Have Happened by Kasie West Sutton knows she needs therapy. After all, she’s managing her newly opened restaurant remotely while taking care of her ungrateful sick mother. Plus, her boyfriend of two years just dumped her over the phone. But does therapy with a handsome stranger, who she has to pretend to be engaged to, in order to help her friend’s struggling relationship count? Probably not. Then why did she just agree to go? Because she’s had a few too many drinks? Because this stranger, Elijah, is smug and annoying and really, really handsome? Because she feels guilty that she abandoned her best friend, Tara, after high school and this might just make up for it? Whatever the reason, she has committed to this unhinged plan. What the hell is Sutton doing? Helping Tara prove a point: a good therapist can tell the difference between real love and fake love. That’s what she’s doing. But as they attend their sessions, Sutton and Elijah only seem to be proving one thing—the lines between pretend desire and real desire are very blurry. This true connection forming between them is threatening to unravel everything Sutton thought she knew about family, friendship, and her own heart. Release Date: April 14, 2026 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1f792ddf-e1d2-4257-9348-a99fa15ecdb3/238740256.jpg Blog - April New Releases - The Thron Queen by Sasha Peyton Smith Having won the hand of the faerie King Bram, Ivy is now Queen of England. But with his ascension to the throne, Bram unleashed the fae into the human world. After hundreds of years of being kept from their favorite playthings, the Others are looking to make up for lost time—and they do, with wicked revelry that sweeps through the country. To survive, Ivy acts the sweet, devoted wife. Behind the smile, she plots to banish her husband, save her sister Lydia, and reunite with the love of her life, Emmett. Yet Emmet and Lydia are trapped in the Otherworld, where fae games are deadlier than ever—and a queen must play most viciously of all. Or see herself dethroned. Release Date: April 14, 2026 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e6dde130-2f9f-4f6f-b00a-71ae062bb8c0/239643868.jpg Blog - April New Releases - The Auction by Sadie Kincaid I was trained to be a pawn, but I will rise as a queen. My life has never been my own. After the death of my parents, I was saved by my grandfather, with the promise that he would turn me over to the Brotherhood on my twenty-first birthday. I was kept away from the outside world so I could one day be sold to the highest bidder—pure and unsullied. Penance for my parents’ alleged crimes. That’s how I come to be sold at an auction. And who buys me but the reclusive billionaire, Lincoln Knight? Some say that he’s a monster, more dangerous than any of the evil men from the Brotherhood. That he wears a mask to cover his scars. But I believe he’s hiding more than just his face behind his mask. My fate is sealed when he takes me to his crumbling mansion deep in the woods. I’m trapped. Entirely at his mercy. I have to escape. But something here isn’t what it seems. Lincoln isn’t what he seems. Maybe he’s not a monster at all. I’m drawn to him in a way that I can’t explain. Until I discover that his secrets go far beyond his mask. He’s everything I’ve been taught to fear, but what if everything I’ve ever known has been a lie? Release Date: April 14, 2026 Genre: Dark Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6bc05377-e937-4346-a9ac-044eb3511d53/233333688.jpg Blog - April New Releases - Japanese Gothic by Kylie Lee Baker October, 2026: Lee Turner doesn’t remember how or why he killed his college roommate. The details are blurred and bloody. All he knows is he has to flee New York and go to the one place that might offer refuge—his father’s new home in Japan, a house hidden by sword ferns and wild ginger. But something is terribly wrong with the house: no animals will come near it, the bedroom window isn't always a window, and a woman with a sword appears in the yard when night falls. October, 1877: Sen is a young samurai in exile, hiding from the imperial soldiers in a house behind the sword ferns. A monster came home from war wearing her father’s face, but Sen would do anything to please him, even turn her sword on her own mother. She knows the soldiers will soon slaughter her whole family when she sees a terrible omen: a young foreign man who appears outside her window. One of these people is a ghost, and one of these stories is a lie. Something is hiding beneath the house of sword ferns, and Lee and Sen will soon wish they never unburied it. Release Date: April 14, 2026 Genre: Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f5017b5c-e753-4d1a-a290-64f661ece5a7/236142491.jpg Blog - April New Releases - Cherry Baby by Rainbow Rowell Everybody knows that Cherry's husband, Tom, is in Hollywood making a movie... Almost nobody knows that he isn't coming home. Tom is the creator of Thursday--a semi-autobiographical webcomic, turned bestselling graphic novel, turned international phenomenon. Semi-autobiographical. That means there's a character in this movie based on Cherry... "Baby." Wide-hipped, heavy-chested, double-chinned Baby. Cherry never wanted this. No fat girl wants to see herself caricatured on the page--let alone on the big screen. But there's no getting away from it. Baby looks so much like Cherry that strangers recognize her at the grocery store. While her soon-to-be ex-husband is in Los Angeles getting rich and famous and being the Internet's latest boyfriend, Cherry is stuck in Omaha taking care of the dog he always wanted and the house they were going to raise a family in...and wondering who she's supposed to be without him. Cherry had promised to love Tom through thick and thin. She'd meant it. One night, Cherry decides to leave all her problems, including Tom's overgrown puppy, at home. She ventures out to see her favorite band play her favorite album...and someone recognizes her from across the room. Russ Sutton knew Cherry when she was a young art student with a fondness for pin-up dresses and patent leather heels. Before Tom. Russ knows Cherry. He likes Cherry. And best of all...he's never heard of Thursday. Release Date: April 14, 2026 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9251bb64-cda8-462d-bdd8-f7ebe98cfe0a/231387279.jpg Blog - April New Releases - Last One Out by Jane Harper Carralon Ridge, a once vibrant village in rural New South Wales, has become a shell of itself, its houses and buildings bought up and left to rot by the mining company operating at its borders. A decade into its slow death, surrounded by industrial noise and swathed in thick layers of dust, the skeletal town is all but abandoned, with just a handful of residents clinging onto what remains. After years of scorning those who left the Ridge behind as it fell into ruin, Ro never imagined she'd become one of them. But everything changed when she lost her son. Five years ago, Sam vanished while visiting during a break from college, leaving behind a rental car with his belongings inside. Sam had loved Carralon Ridge, and had been working on an oral history of the town to preserve its legacy before it vanished altogether. It wasn't long after his disappearance that the rest of the family began to crumble away too. But when Ro returns to Carralon Ridge to be with her husband and daughter on the anniversary of Sam's disappearance, she begins to suspect that something important was overlooked in his case. Because while nothing can stop Carralon Ridge from dying, someone seems to want to make sure that its secrets die with it. Release Date: April 14, 2026 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9019f607-4d18-4014-830c-b1b826fab66e/235992492.jpg Blog - April New Releases - Happy Ending by Chloe Liese Thea and Alex have three things in common—they love food, they hate where they live, and they’re both divorced. Otherwise, they couldn’t be more different. Thea’s never cooked a day in her life. Alex is a world-class chef. Alex resents feeling stuck in his hometown. Thea resents the town for not feeling more like home. Thea and her ex are in a contentious custody battle for their dog. Alex and his ex amicably coparent their daughter. Beyond a few friends in common, a couple small-world connections (welcome to life in a mid-size city), their lives look nothing alike. Fast forward two years, and they’re truly the best of friends. No one would ever know their friendship began as a lie… Two years ago, their exes got together immediately following their divorces, and somehow, Thea and Alex found themselves spinning a spite-fueled story about being old friends and first loves. Two years later, what began as a ruse has grown into real friendship—just friendship, despite what friends and family seem to think. But when their exes invite them on a two-week, “two family” beach vacation—daughter and dog included—Alex and Thea start to wonder if this story they’ve spun might have gotten away from them, and if it’s led them to the last place they ever thought it could: a happy ending. Release Date: April 14, 2026 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a894c5df-7267-4802-85d0-be4fb367e0d3/156714412.jpg Blog - April New Releases - I Could Give You the Moon by Ann Liang Everyone loves Chanel Cao—except Ares Yin. While Chanel has spent her entire life curating a picture-perfect social media personality—from her body to her hair to her camera-ready smile—Ares has spent his trying to hide in the shadows. But Ares’s brother is missing, and Chanel’s parents have secretly separated, and their only hope is each other. Ares is willing to do whatever it takes to find his brother, and Chanel will do anything to keep her parents’ secret. When the two meet and share a vision of the future—where Ares’s brother appears, as Chanel’s house burns to the ground—they are determined to use each other. Ares believes Chanel is the key to finding his brother, but Chanel is convinced if she gets Ares to fall in love with her, she’ll save her family house—and her parents’ crumbling marriage. But Ares isn’t interested in the fake personality that Chanel has used her entire life to get affection and adoration. If she’s going to save her reputation, she’s going to have to let Ares get to know the real her—and risk real feelings. Release Date: April 14, 2026 Genre: Young Adult Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2f5e30f1-0956-4bfa-94de-200d251585e2/235993046.jpg Blog - April New Releases - The Caretaker by Marcus Kliewer EXCITING OPPORTUNITY: Caretaker urgently needed. Three days of work. Competitive pay. Serious applicants ONLY. Macy Mullins can’t say why the job posting grabbed her attention—it had the pull of a fisherman’s lure, barbed hook and all—vaguely ominous. But after an endless string of failed job interviews, she's not exactly in the position to be picky. She has rent to pay, groceries to buy, and a younger sister to provide for. Besides, it’s only three days’ work… Three days, cooped up in a stranger’s house, surrounded by Oregon Coast wilderness. What starts as a peculiar side gig soon becomes a waking nightmare. An incomprehensible evil may dwell on this property—and Macy Mullins might just be the only thing standing between it, and the rest of humanity. Follow the Rites... Follow the Rites... Follow the Rites... ..--- / ..... / ---.. Release Date: April 21, 2026 Genre: Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b3db497d-8612-435a-87ee-6674106b00ce/239152339.jpg Blog - April New Releases - Thistlemarsh by Moorea Corrigan In the wake of World War I, the world is a decidedly unmagical place for Mouse Dunne. She once dreamed of becoming a Faerie anthropologist, but with one telegram, her world shattered. At the Battle of the Somme, her cousin’s body disappeared into the mud, and her brother was left with debilitating shell shock. It was time, she knew, to put aside childish dreams. When Mouse receives news that her uncle has left her the Faerie-blessed Thistlemarsh Hall, a dilapidated manor in the English countryside, she must leave her brother’s side and return to her childhood home to claim her birthright. But there is a catch in her uncle’s If Mouse does not rehabilitate the crumbling house in one month’s time, she will forfeit her inheritance and any hope of caring for her brother. It quickly becomes clear it’s impossible to repair the manor in the allotted time, until a mysterious Faerie appears with a proposition. He offers to restore Thistlemarsh...for a price. Mouse knows better than to trust a Faerie—especially one so insufferably handsome and arrogant—but she is out of options. There are dark and magical forces at work in the house, and Mouse must confront the ghosts of her past and the secrets of her heart or lose Thistlemarsh, and herself, in the process. Release Date: April 21, 2026 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bec846c2-af9d-45c4-8dcb-b17e92e87829/228398323.jpg Blog - April New Releases - Molka by Monika Kim molka (n): the Korean term for spy cameras secretly and illegally installed, often to capture voyeuristic images and videos Dahye can't believe her luck when she finds herself in a whirlwind romance with handsome, charismatic Hyukjoon, the heir to a multi-million dollar fortune. But then a shocking revelation threatens: the couple has been caught on a spycam amid Korea's growing molka epidemic, and the video is all over the internet. When Hyukjoon flees the country to avoid the intense public scrutiny, Dahye is left to grapple with the ramifications on her own; and the demons from her childhood, long dormant, begin to surface. Amid the chaos, she catches the attention of Junyoung, a nerdy, introverted IT tech at work. Junyoung harbours a dark secret: he has been spying on the women at work with his own hidden cameras. As Dahye's life begins to unravel, she unknowingly becomes the sole target of Junyoung's perverse obsession. When the facts surrounding the invasion of her privacy come to light, Dahye is faced with the humiliating truth. Her pain and hurt turn to rage as she faces her past. Her desire for vengeance is insatiable, and she will not rest until the men who have wronged her have paid in blood... Release Date: April 28, 2026 Genre: Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8c4cfa81-139e-4061-aafb-b3f4dbc34dc7/231698932.jpg Blog - April New Releases - King of Gluttony by Ana Huang She's his greatest rival…and his greatest weakness. Handsome, talented, and beloved by (almost) everyone, Sebastian Laurent is used to being on top. The heir to a culinary empire, his sharp instincts and effortless charm have made him a legend. What people don't see are the demons lurking beneath his golden-boy facade. There's only one person who's come close to knowing the real him―Maya Singh, his childhood rival and secret obsession. She's also the only one who's ever successfully challenged him. He can't stand her, but if that's true…why can't he stop thinking about her? Smart, witty, and competitive to a fault, top marketing executive Maya Singh is used to winning―unless her opponent is Sebastian. It's something that's infuriated and motivated her her entire life. So when a series of unfortunate events forces her to work with her sworn enemy, she's determined to one-up him and show the world who's the best once and for all. What she didn't count on? Not hating their time together. To her horror, she might even…like it. There may be a thin line between love and hate, but that's one line she'll never cross. Not with him. Not ever. Release Date: April 28, 2026 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1d454bbc-beb9-44ad-96e6-b03e9e5524d9/231126900.jpg Blog - April New Releases - Dark is When the Devil Comes by Daisy Pearce The woods are known as the place to avoid. What goes in, doesn’t come out. Hazel has been gone from her small hometown of Idless in the English countryside for years. Now returned in the wake of a traumatic divorce and crumbling personal life, her simple plans are to lay low at her parents’ vacated house, reconnect with her prickly sister Cathy, and slowly get back on her feet. Cathy is surprised when Hazel doesn’t show. Their relationship strained from a fallout half a decade ago, she didn’t expect them to get back into a sisterly rhythm…though she hadn’t counted on Hazel bailing, either. But something isn’t adding up. Other people in town whisper of a threat that can’t be shaken. The woods are known for being restless. And Cathy knows the old saying. If you go looking for trouble, you just might find it. Release Date: April 28, 2026 Genre: Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f59a4382-68e6-45c9-9058-81114b86c24e/231126880.jpg Blog - April New Releases - The Island Club by Nicola Harrison 1956: On idyllic Balboa Island, just off the California coast, life seems peaceful and welcoming. But when the lives of three women begin to unravel in shockingly different ways, an unlikely friendship―and the game of tennis―may be the only thing that can save them. Milly Kinkaid's plan to fix her crumbling marriage seems to be falling apart before it even begins. She believed that moving her young family from Hollywood to Balboa Island might entice her increasingly distant husband to come home earlier after work. Instead, he's barely coming home at all. Society matriarch Sylvia Johnson and her husband have been pillars of their community for decades, and have just recently begun a new business venture: The Island Club, a place for members to swim, play tennis and dine in style. But when she learns that he has been risking their financial security and putting their family's future in grave danger, she's not only poised to lose the club, but the entire community she holds dear. Meanwhile, standoffish loner Adele Lambert's entire world is on the brink of being destroyed if the dark secrets of her past and her hidden identity is revealed. Twenty years ago, she ran from a shameful scandal and left behind the only thing she ever loved. Now, terrified that the anonymity she's spent decades guarding will be exposed, but desperate to stay afloat, she risks everything to return to the game that brought her to her knees all those years before. Release Date: April 28, 2026 Genre: Historical Fiction https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/spring-into-love monthly 0.5 2026-03-22 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b9e35d79-df38-4535-80ad-e2e86c77c265/169690624.jpg Blog - Spring into Love - Picking Daisies on Sundays by Liana Cincotti Daniella Daisy Maria wanted love. It’s all she hoped for when watching endless rom-coms every Friday night. What she hadn't hoped for was to find it in her childhood best friend Levi. It was the hand-trembling, heart-thumping kind of love that wasn't supposed to happen when you saw your best friend. But it all ended when he didn’t feel the same way and she vowed to never see him again. Four years later and one night in a crowded bar in the West Village, there he was, just as perfect as ever. Maybe it was the lighting or the way his hair curled above his brow, but she couldn’t say no when he asked her to be his fake girlfriend for his sister’s wedding. Another chance at being his friend and mending her immature mistake? How was she supposed to say no? The weight of possible rejection from her dream grad school quickly became the least of her problems. With old, resurfacing feelings at every staged, romantic interaction and stolen glance, she struggles to find confidence. She couldn't help but think that maybe she should’ve said no to protect her heart for a second time. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/354e5b3e-1d85-4296-8833-185790d8fc26/55710822.jpg Blog - Spring into Love - Better Than the Movies by Lynn Painter Perpetual daydreamer Liz Buxbaum gave her heart to Michael a long time ago. But her cool, aloof forever crush never really saw her before he moved away. Now that he’s back in town, Liz will do whatever it takes to get on his radar - and maybe snag him as a prom date - even befriend Wes Bennet. The annoyingly attractive next-door neighbor might seem like a prime candidate for romantic-comedy fantasies, but Wes has only been a pain in Liz’s butt since they were kids. Pranks involving frogs and decapitated lawn gnomes do not a potential boyfriend make. Yet, somehow, Wes and Michael are hitting it off, which means Wes is Liz’s in. But as Liz and Wes scheme to get Liz noticed by Michael so she can have her magical prom moment, she’s shocked to discover that she likes being around Wes. And as they continue to grow closer, she must reexamine everything she thought she knew about love - and rethink her own ideas of what happily ever after should look like. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c33b3617-c2d5-48d9-973d-98d90b24f46d/62926938.jpg Blog - Spring into Love - The Seven Year Slip by Ashley Poston Sometimes, the worst day of your life happens, and you have to figure out how to live after it. So Clementine forms a plan to keep her heart safe: work hard, find someone decent to love, and try to remember to chase the moon. The last one is silly and obviously metaphorical, but her aunt always told her that you needed at least one big dream to keep going. And for the last year, that plan has gone off without a hitch. Mostly. The love part is hard because she doesn’t want to get too close to anyone—she isn’t sure her heart can take it. And then she finds a strange man standing in the kitchen of her late aunt’s apartment. A man with kind eyes and a Southern drawl and a taste for lemon pies. The kind of man that, before it all, she would’ve fallen head-over-heels for. And she might again. Except, he exists in the past. Seven years ago, to be exact. And she, quite literally, lives seven years in his future. Her aunt always said the apartment was a pinch in time, a place where moments blended together like watercolors. And Clementine knows that if she lets her heart fall, she’ll be doomed. After all, love is never a matter of time—but a matter of timing. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9b8f1926-2c78-4831-b15b-90ba437fa119/61897968.jpg Blog - Spring into Love - Practice Makes Perfect by Sarah Adams Annie Walker is on a quest to find her perfect match—someone who complements her happy, quiet life running the local flower shop in Rome, Kentucky. But finding her dream man may be harder than Annie imagined. Everyone knows everyone in her hometown, and the dating prospects are getting fewer by the day. After she overhears her latest date say she is “so unbelievably boring,” Annie starts to think the problem might be her. Is it too late to become flirtatious and fun like the leading ladies in her favorite romance movies? Maybe she only needs a little practice . . . and Annie has the perfect person in mind to be her tutor: Will Griffin. Will—the sexy, tattooed, and absolutely gorgeous bodyguard—is temporarily back in Rome, providing security for Amelia Rose as excitement builds for her upcoming marriage to Noah Walker, Annie’s brother. He has one personal objective while on the job: stay away from Annie Walker and any other possible attachments to this sleepy town. But no sooner than he gets settled, Will finds himself tasked with helping Annie find the love of her life by becoming the next leading lady of Rome, Kentucky. Will wants no part in changing the sweet and lovely Annie. He knows for a fact that some stuffy, straitlaced guy won’t make her happy, but he doesn’t have the heart to say no. Amid steamy practice dates and strictly “educational” tutoring lessons, Annie discovers there are more layers to Will’s usual stoic attitude. As the lines of their friendship become dangerously blurred, Annie reconsiders her dream guy. Maybe her love life doesn’t need to be perfect—it just needs to be real. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4935c9ab-1b55-45c7-bae9-e3315579b6dd/195790586.jpg Blog - Spring into Love - The Rom-Commers by Katherine Center Emma Wheeler desperately longs to be a screenwriter. She’s spent her life studying, obsessing over, and writing romantic comedies―good ones! That win contests! But she’s also been the sole caretaker for her kind-hearted dad, who needs full-time care. Now, when she gets a chance to re-write a script for famous screenwriter Charlie Yates―The Charlie Yates! Her personal writing god!―it’s a break too big to pass up. Emma’s younger sister steps in for caretaking duties, and Emma moves to L.A. for six weeks for the writing gig of a lifetime. But what is it they say? Don’t meet your heroes? Charlie Yates doesn’t want to write with anyone―much less “a failed, nobody screenwriter.” Worse, the romantic comedy he’s written is so terrible it might actually bring on the apocalypse. Plus! He doesn’t even care about the script―it’s just a means to get a different one green-lit. Oh, and he thinks love is an emotional Ponzi scheme. But Emma’s not going down without a fight. She will stand up for herself, and for rom-coms, and for love itself. She will convince him that love stories matter―even if she has to kiss him senseless to do it. But . . . what if that kiss is accidentally amazing? What if real life turns out to be so much . . . more real than fiction? What if the love story they’re writing breaks all Emma’s rules―and comes true? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a1f8668c-9255-4623-bc39-43246e3e33e5/199926331.jpg Blog - Spring into Love - The Ex Vows by Jessica Joyce Georgia Woodward lives by her lists, none more so than the one about her ex, Eli Mora. It’s full of the ironclad dos and don’ts they’ve been following since she returned to the Bay Area after their cataclysmic breakup five years ago. With the wedding of their mutual best friend, Adam, looming, and them about to step into their roles as best woman and man, Georgia’s never needed it more. She refuses to threaten their tight-knit friend group with her messy—and still very present—feelings. The rules on that list will keep her cool, calm, and compartmentalized. What’s not on her list? Eli arriving from New York with a new rule-breaking attitude or the all-inclusive venue burning to the ground, leaving the bride and groom in dire straits. Nor does she anticipate Adam asking her and Eli to help him make a miracle happen. Together. As Georgia and Eli rush up to Napa Valley to pull off the perfect wedding, their old chemistry comes back in technicolor. Somewhere between cake tastings gone wrong, disastrous DJ auditions, and Eli’s heated attention, Georgia starts recognizing the man she fell in love with before. And if she lets herself break her rules, she might find what they’re building isn’t the something old that ruined them—it’s a chance at something new. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/399429c3-4164-45df-94e4-af5820673938/154462768.jpg Blog - Spring into Love - Ready or Not by Cara Bastone Eve Hatch lives for surprises! Just kidding. She expects every tomorrow to be pretty much the same as today. She loves her cozy apartment in Brooklyn that’s close to her childhood best friend Willa, and far from her midwestern, traditional family who has never really understood her. While her job is only dream-adjacent, it’s comfortable and steady. She always knows what to expect from her life . . . until she finds herself expecting after an uncharacteristic one-night stand. The unplanned pregnancy cracks open all the relationships in her life. Eve’s loyal friendship with Willa is feeling tense, right when she needs her the most. And it’s actually Willa’s steadfast older brother, Shep, who steps up to help Eve. He has always been friendly, but now he’s checking in, ordering her surprise lunches, listening to all her complaints, and is . . . suddenly kinda hot? Then, as if she needs one more complication, there’s the baby’s father, who is (technically) supportive but (majorly) conflicted. Up until this point, Eve’s been content to coast through life. Now, though—maybe it’s the hormones, maybe it’s the way Shep’s shoulders look in a T-shirt—Eve starts to wonder if she has been secretly desiring more from every aspect of her life. Over the course of nine months, as Eve struggles to figure out the next right step in her expanding reality, she begins to realize that family and love, in all forms, can sneak up on you when you least expect it. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8c2e558e-67bb-404d-9f35-00f300bb0275/203237161.jpg Blog - Spring into Love - Passion Project by London Sperry If your twenties are supposed to be the best years of your life, Bennet Taylor is failing miserably . . . with a big emphasis on the miserable. Where’s that zest she keeps hearing about? She’s a temp worker in New York City with no direction, no future, and no social life. And at the painful center of this listlessness is grief over the death of her first love. When Bennet runs into Henry Adams just hours after standing him up for a first date, she makes an alcohol-fueled confession: She’s not ready to date. In fact, it’s been years since she felt passion for something. Not even pottery, or organized sports—not anything. Rather than leaving her to ruminate, Henry jumps at the opportunity for adventure: Bennet needs to find a passion for life, and Henry will help her find it. Every Saturday, they’ll try something new in New York City. As friends, of course. As their “passion project” continues, the pair tackle everything from carpentry to tattooing to rappelling off skyscrapers, and Bennet feels her guarded exterior ebbing away. But as secrets surface, Bennet has to decide what she wants, and if she’s truly ready to move on. With emotional resonance and sparkling banter, Passion Project is a fun, flirty, thoughtful story of finding a spark—and igniting happiness. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0217637e-85ff-42c1-8183-37aee462f1bd/61214136.jpg Blog - Spring into Love - The Collected Regrets of Clover by Mikki Brammer What’s the point of giving someone a beautiful death if you can’t give yourself a beautiful life? From the day she watched her kindergarten teacher drop dead during a dramatic telling of Peter Rabbit , Clover Brooks has felt a stronger connection with the dying than she has with the living. After the beloved grandfather who raised her dies alone while she is traveling, Clover becomes a death doula in New York City, dedicating her life to ushering people peacefully through their end-of-life process. Clover spends so much time with the dying that she has no life of her own, until the final wishes of a feisty old woman send Clover on a road trip to uncover a forgotten love story—and perhaps, her own happy ending. As she finds herself struggling to navigate the uncharted roads of romance and friendship, Clover is forced to examine what she really wants, and whether she’ll have the courage to go after it. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/67abf72b-fa81-4830-943d-bc4eabc18f16/220161055.jpg Blog - Spring into Love - How Freaking Romantic by Emily Harding Beatrice Nilsson has a lot to be angry about. The wage gap, the pink tax, the repayment schedule on all those student loans…the list goes on. But that anger is also what makes her such a good friend—the perennial sidekick who fights for her loved ones’ happily ever after, even while conveniently neglecting her own. So when the marriage of her two best friends falls apart—and the divorce proceedings get ugly—Bea is ready to step in and help pick up the pieces. First on her to-do list? Storm the office of Nathan Asher, her friend’s ex-husband’s lawyer, and tell him exactly what he can do with his divorce petition. But what should end with a few choice words and a slam of the door soon spirals into uncharted territory when Nathan shows up at her NYU Law office a few days later. As a newly-minted adjunct professor––and her new colleague––he proves to be annoyingly intelligent, relentlessly patient, and unfairly attractive. Bea still hates him, of course, but it’s not long before that hate begins to feel a lot like something else. There’s just one when you’ve spent your life focusing on everyone else’s love story, it’s not easy to take the starring role in your own. And as uncomfortable truths emerge about the divorce that started it all, Bea must choose whose happily ever after to everyone else’s or her own. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e2177360-f4bf-46b0-a300-dbf59fd042e2/214175139.jpg Blog - Spring into Love - You Between the Lines by Katie Naymon A former sorority girl starts a prestigious poetry MFA program only to discover that one of her fellow grad students is her high school crush-turned-nemesis— who can't stop writing about her. No one’s more surprised than Leigh when a prestigious MFA program in North Carolina accepts her. A former sorority girl, Leigh’s the first to admit she knows more about the lyrics of Taylor Swift than T.S. Eliot, and she’s never been able to shake the “all-style-no-substance” feedback her high school crush made in their poetry workshop. Bad enough that her tattooed, New Yorker tote bag-carrying classmates have read all the right authors and been published in the country's leading literary journals, Leigh's insecurities become all too real when Will, that same high school crush-turned-nemesis, shows up at orientation as a first-year in the program, too. And now, he’s William, exactly the kind of writer Leigh hates, complete with his pretentious sweater vests and tattered Moleskine. Leigh’s determined to prove herself—and William—wrong by landing the program’s highly-coveted fellowship. But Will’s dead-set on it, too, and in a small cohort, they can't keep apart for long. When Will submits an intimate poem (that's maybe, probably, definitely about Leigh) to workshop, they’re both forced to realize there’s more to the other than what’s on the page. And what’s between the lines may be even more interesting. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b5bd7fbf-7f04-4cd1-90aa-8779fbd5ae55/217245608.jpg Blog - Spring into Love - What Happens in Amsterdam by Rachel Lynn Solomon Dani Dorfman has somehow made it to her thirties without knowing what she wants to do with her life. So when an office romance ends poorly and gets her fired, she applies for a job in Amsterdam, idly dreaming of escaping the mess she’s created, but never imagining she'll actually get it. Except she does. By the end of her first week in Amsterdam, she’s never felt more adrift or alone. Then she crashes her bike into her high school ex-boyfriend—and suddenly life is blooming with new opportunities. Wouter van Leeuwen was a Dutch exchange student Dani’s family hosted, a forbidden love that ended in a painful breakup. Years later, there’s still sizzling chemistry between them, and okay, maybe a little animosity. More importantly, Wouter needs to be married to inherit a gorgeous family home on a canal—and when Dani's job falls apart, she needs a visa. As the marriage of convenience pushes them together in unexpected ways, Dani must decide whether her new life is yet another mistake—or if it's worth taking a risk on a second chance. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a22a13f9-7cf2-409a-b81d-29235eddc538/224082605.jpg Blog - Spring into Love - Some Kind of Famous by Ava Wilder It’s been a decade since Merritt Valentine’s peak as a celebrated singer-songwriter… and her subsequent career-ending mental breakdown. Since then, she’s abandoned the glitz of Los Angeles to move in with her sister, Olivia, in the sleepy Colorado ski town of Crested Peak, hoping to heal her lingering emotional wounds of the spotlight. Life in Crested Peak would be uncomplicated if not for Merritt’s inconvenient crush on the local contractor and handyman, Nikolaos Petrakis. Niko is disarmingly handsome and too kind-hearted to ever be right for the complex and prickly Merritt. Though tempting, a fling with Niko would only bring the kind of drama Merritt has vowed to leave behind. After his last heartbreak, Niko is done dating his fellow townies. Still, he can’t shake his fascination with the brilliant Merritt, even as he heeds their mutual friends’ warnings to steer clear of her chaos. But when Merritt needs help fixing up a house of her own, Niko is glad to be the only man for the job. As the two spend more time together, their mutual attraction sparking a deeper connection than either one expects, they’re forced to confront the idea that they may have underestimated each other– and themselves. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2c224cd9-9ff2-4eba-aa1f-c765c48587fc/223922841.jpg Blog - Spring into Love - Catch Her if You Can by Tessa Bailey Madden Donahue, the newest catcher for the Yankees, has been in love with Eve Mitchell since high school, but for some mysterious reason, the burlesque club owner always turns him down. That never stopped him from being her self-appointed protector. Case in point, now that Eve’s sister has left Eve with her two children indefinitely, Madden steps in with a proposition—marry him for the much needed health benefits. Eve has secretly harbored feelings for Madden all along, but there’s one problem—her best friend Skylar called dibs on him when they were fourteen. Eve has always put their friendship above all else, and she’s not willing to risk losing Skylar over a man. Raised by the local strip club owner, Eve is woefully short on friends and treasures the ones she has. But with Skylar happily paired off, Eve finds herself accepting Madden’s proposal—on the condition that their marriage remains strictly private. She’s not about to let her unique profession and maligned reputation destroy Madden’s shiny new career. Madden won’t let Eve get away that easily, though. What starts as a marriage of convenience soon ignites into something much hotter, and now it’s up to Madden to convince Eve that their connection is far more than a business arrangement. As the passion builds, can their fake marriage become the real deal? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4c7fbb28-8b39-4008-a751-9480d5cdd9ec/195645746.jpg Blog - Spring into Love - Wild Love by Elsie Silver She's been driving him wild for years. The good kind of wild. The bad kind of wild. But mostly, the kind of wild that comes with wanting your best friend's little sister and knowing you can't have her. Forbes may have labeled Ford Grant the World's Hottest Billionaire, but all he cares about is escaping the press and opening a recording studio in gorgeous small town Rose Hill. Something that comes to a screeching halt when he ends up face-to-face with a young girl who claims he's her biological father. Now, he spends his days balancing business with parenting a sullen twelve-year-old, all while trying desperately to keep his hands the hell off his best friend's sister, Rosie Belmont. After living in the city, Rosie came blasting back into town like a storm. Beautiful, messy, and chaotic. And one wide-eyed, desperate plea for a job is all it takes for Ford to hire her. He vows to keep her at arm's length. Tries to stick to scowls and grumpy one-liners. But with her, verbal sparring is a type of foreplay―friction that soon turns to blistering heat. Ford knows damn well he shouldn't cross this line. But shouldn't and can't are two very different things. And the only thing he truly can't do is resist her. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/celebrating-womens-history-month monthly 0.5 2026-03-09 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/111891c1-1863-4bed-ac8f-abda38013890/214152206.jpg Blog - Celebrating Women’s History Month - Jane Austen’s Bookshelf by Rebecca Romney Long before she was a rare book dealer, Rebecca Romney was a devoted reader of Jane Austen. She loved that Austen’s books took the lives of women seriously, explored relationships with wit and confidence, and always, allowed for the possibility of a happy ending. She read and reread them, often wishing Austen wrote just one more. But Austen wasn’t a lone genius. She wrote at a time of great experimentation for women writers—and clues about those women, and the exceptional books they wrote, are sprinkled like breadcrumbs throughout Austen’s work. Every character in Northanger Abbey who isn’t a boor sings the praises of Ann Radcliffe. The play that causes such a stir in Mansfield Park is a real one by the playwright Elizabeth Inchbald. In fact, the phrase “pride and prejudice” came from Frances Burney’s second novel Cecilia. The women that populated Jane Austen’s bookshelf profoundly influenced her work; Austen looked up to them, passionately discussed their books with her friends, and used an appreciation of their books as a litmus test for whether someone had good taste. So where had these women gone? Why hadn’t Romney—despite her training—ever read them? Or, in some cases, even heard of them? And why were they no longer embraced as part of the wider literary canon? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b9b435be-8cb6-46e3-adf5-7c7f5648f666/217432719-2.jpg Blog - Celebrating Women’s History Month - Queen of All Mayhem by Dane Huckelbridge On February 3, 1889, just two days shy of her forty-first birthday, Myra Maybelle Shirley—better known at that point by her outlaw sobriquet “Belle Starr”—was blown from her horse saddle and killed by a pair of shotgun blasts, delivered by an unseen assailant, only a few miles away from her home in the Indian Territory of present-day Oklahoma. Thus ended the life of one of the most colorful, authentic, and dangerous women in the history of the American West. While today’s household names like Annie Oakley and Calamity Jane had dubious criminal bona fides, Belle’s were not in any doubt. She led a gang of horse thieves (a very serious crime in an era when horses were often the basis of one’s livelihood); was romantically involved with two of the West’s most legendary outlaws, Cole Younger and Jim Reed (her first husband); and participated in stickups and robberies across present-day Texas and Oklahoma. When Reed was murdered, Belle crossed into Indian Territory, where she assimilated into the Cherokee tribe, a matrilineal society, and soon married Sam Starr, a direct descendant of Nanye’hi, the greatest female warrior in Cherokee history. Dane Huckelbridge, acclaimed author of No Beast So Fierce, probes a life rich in contradictions and intrigue. Why did a woman who had considerable advantages in life—a good family, a decent education, solid marriage prospects, a clear path to financial security—choose to pursue a life of crime? The life of Belle Starr is one of almost endless trauma: the horrors of the Civil War, which destroyed her hometown and killed her beloved brother, Bud; the untimely deaths of her first two husbands, both of them murdered; a stint in Detroit’s notorious women’s prison. Her career coincided with those of Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and yet Belle Starr was a very different sort of feminist icon. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f648154b-54e8-4323-b478-d79e2434acd4/203578826.jpg Blog - Celebrating Women’s History Month - The Cure for Women by Lydia Reeder After Elizabeth Blackwell became the first woman to graduate from medical school, more women demanded a chance to study medicine. Barred entrance to universities like Harvard, women built their own first-rate medical schools and hospitals. Their success spurred a chilling backlash from elite, white male physicians who were obsessed with eugenics and the propagation of the white race. Distorting Darwin’s evolution theory, these haughty physicians proclaimed in bestselling books that women should never be allowed to attend college or enter a profession because their menstrual cycles made them perpetually sick. Motherhood was their constitution and duty. Into the midst of this turmoil marched tiny, dynamic Mary Putnam Jacobi, daughter of New York publisher George Palmer Putnam and the first woman to be accepted into the world-renowned Sorbonne medical school in Paris. As one of the best-educated doctors in the world, she returned to New York for the fight of her life. Aided by other prominent women physicians and suffragists, Jacobi conducted the first-ever data-backed, scientific research on women's reproductive biology. The results of her studies shook the foundations of medical science and higher education. Full of larger than life characters and cinematically written, The Cure for Women documents the birth of a sexist science still haunting us today as the fight for control of women’s bodies and lives continues. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7b6b2be8-1b00-4404-ae97-15289ea436af/217387767.jpg Blog - Celebrating Women’s History Month - Spitfires by Becky Aikman They were crop dusters and debutantes, college girls and performers in flying circuses-all of them trained as pilots. Because they were women, they were denied the opportunity to fly for their country when the United States entered the Second World War. But Great Britain, desperately fighting for survival, would let anyone-even Americans, even women-transport warplanes. Thus, twenty-five daring young aviators bolted for England in 1942, becoming the first American women to command military aircraft. In a faraway land, these “spitfires” lived like women decades ahead of their time. Risking their lives in one of the deadliest jobs of the war, they ferried new, barely tested fighters and bombers to air bases and returned shot-up wrecks for repair, never knowing what might go wrong until they were high in the sky. Many ferry pilots died in crashes or made spectacular saves. It was exciting, often terrifying work. The pilots broke new ground off duty as well, shocking their hosts with thoroughly modern behavior. With cinematic sweep, Becky Aikman follows the stories of nine of the women who served, drawing on unpublished diaries, letters, and records, along with her own interviews, to bring these forgotten heroines fully to life. Spitfires is a vivid, richly detailed account of war, ambition, and a group of remarkable women whose lives were as unconventional as their dreams. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f87af0c1-d9a0-4571-86f1-256d22834fa9/220161038.jpg Blog - Celebrating Women’s History Month - A Flower Traveled in My Blood by Haley Cohen Gilliland In the early hours of March 24th, 1976, the streets of Buenos Aires rumbled with tanks as soldiers seized the presidential palace, overthrowing Argentina’s leader. To many, it seemed like just another coup in a continent troubled by them, amid political violence and Cold War tensions. But there was something darker about this new regime. Quietly supported by the United States and much of Argentina itself, which was sick of constant bombings and gunfights, the junta quickly launched the “National Reorganization Process” or El Proceso—a bland name masking their ruthless campaign to crush the political left and instill the country with “Western, Christian” values. The dictatorship, which continued until 1983, decimated a generation. One of the military’s most diabolical acts was the disappearance of hundreds of pregnant women. Patricia Roisinblit was among them, a mother and leftist revolutionary labeled “subversive” and abducted while eight months pregnant with her second child. Patricia gave birth in captivity, making one last call to her mother, Rosa, before vanishing. Her newborn son was also taken, one of hundreds given to police, military families, and dictatorship supporters, while their biological parents were secretly executed and their bodies disposed of. For Rosa and the other mothers in her same situation, the loss was unimaginable; their only solace was the hope that their grandchildren were still alive. United by this faith, a group of fierce grandmothers formed the Abuelas de Plaza de Mayo, dedicated to finding the stolen children and seeking justice from a nation that betrayed them. A Flower Traveled in My Blood is Rosa and the Abuelas’ extraordinary story, told by a journalist with unique access. With authority and compassion, Haley Cohen Gilliland brings this tale to life, tracing the lives of Patricia, Rosa, and her stolen grandson, Guillermo. As the Abuelas transform into detectives, they confront military officers, sift through government documents, assume aliases to see suspected grandchildren, and even pioneer a groundbreaking genetics test with an American scientist. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c5330b9f-c18f-408d-960b-5cf64a85aa77/222476092.jpg Blog - Celebrating Women’s History Month - How to Kill A Witch by Zoe Venditozzi and Claire Mitchell Scotland, 1563: Crops failed. People starved. And the Devil's influence was stronger than ever—at least, that's what everyone believed. If you were a woman living in Scotland during this turbulent time, there was a very good chance that you, or someone you knew, would be tried as a witch. During the chaos of the Reformation, violence against women was codified for the first time in the Witchcraft Act—a tool of theocratic control with one chilling to root out witches and rid the land of evil. What followed was a dark and misogynistic chapter in history that fanned the flames of witch hunts across the globe, including in the United States and beyond. In How to Kill a Witch, Zoe Venditozzi and Claire Mitchell, hosts of the popular Witches of Scotlandpodcast, unravel the grim yet absurdly bureaucratic process of identifying, accusing, trying, and executing women as witches. With sharp wit and keen feminist insight, they reveal the inner workings of a patriarchal system designed to weaponize fear and oppress women. This captivating (and often infuriating) account, which weaves a rich tapestry of trial transcripts, witness accounts, and the documents that set the legal grounds for the witch hunts, exposes how this violent period of history mirrors today's struggles for justice and equality. How to Kill a Witch is a powerful, darkly humorous reminder of the dangers of superstition, bias, and ignorance, and a warning to never forget the past… while raising the question of whether it could ever happen again. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4e56335d-0ad7-4920-91f2-bbbcf2a0e148/216269104.jpg Blog - Celebrating Women’s History Month - Four Red Sweaters by Lucy Adlington Jock Heidenstein, Anita Lasker, Chana Zumerkorn, and Regina Feldman all faced the Holocaust in different ways. While they did not know each other—in fact had never met—each had a red sweater that would play a major part in their lives. In this absorbing and deeply moving account, award-winning clothes historian Lucy Adlington documents their stories, knitting together the experiences that fragmented their families and their lives. Adlington immortalizes these young women whose resilience, skills, strength, and kindness accompanied them through the darkest events in human history. A powerful reminder of the suffering they endured and a celebration of courage, love, and tenacity, this moving and original work illuminates moments long lost to history, now pieced back together by a simple garment. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/653d6002-da19-426f-8a31-6f06a075e172/211080534.jpg Blog - Celebrating Women’s History Month - The Rebel Romanov by Helen Rappaport In 1795, Catherine the Great of Russia was in search of a bride for her grandson Constantine, who stood third in line to her throne. In an eerie echo of her own story, Catherine selected an innocent young German princess, Julie of Saxe-Coburg, aunt of the future Queen Victoria. Though Julie had everything a young bride could wish for, she was alone in a court dominated by an aging empress and riven with rivalries, plotting, and gossip―not to mention her brute of a husband, who was tender one moment and violent the next. She longed to leave Russia and her disastrous marriage, but her family in Germany refused to allow her to do so. Desperate for love, Julie allegedly sought consolation in the arms of others. Finally, Tsar Alexander granted her permission to leave in 1801, even though her husband was now heir to the throne. Rootless in Europe, Julie gave birth to two―possibly three―illegitimate children, all of whom she was forced to give up for adoption. Despite entreaties from Constantine to return and provide an heir, she refused, eventually finding love with her own married physician. At a time when many royal brides meekly submitted to disastrous marriages, Julie proved to be a woman ahead of her time, sacrificing her reputation and a life of luxury in exchange for the freedom to live as she wished. The Rebel Romanov is the inspiring tale of a bold woman who, until now, has been ignored by history. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/02e99a4d-2087-4299-a8e2-215513d7a6c6/220160410.jpg Blog - Celebrating Women’s History Month - Joy Goddess by A’Lelia Bundles Dubbed the “joy goddess of Harlem’s 1920s” by poet Langston Hughes, A’Lelia Walker, daughter of millionaire entrepreneur Madam C.J. Walker and the author’s great-grandmother and namesake, is a fascinating figure whose legendary parties and Dark Tower salon helped define the Harlem Renaissance. After inheriting her mother’s hair care enterprise, A’Lelia would become America’s first high profile black heiress and a prominent patron of the arts. Joy Goddess takes readers inside her three New York homes—a mansion, a townhouse, and a pied-a-terre—where she entertained Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston, Paul Robeson, Florence Mills, James Weldon Johnson, Carl Van Vechten, W.E.B. DuBois, and other cultural, social and intellectual luminaries of the Roaring Twenties. Now, based on extensive research and Walker’s personal correspondence, her great-granddaughter creates a meticulous, nuanced portrait of a charismatic woman struggling to define herself as a wife, mother, and businesswoman outside her famous mother’s sphere. In Joy Goddess, A’Lelia’s radiant personality and impresario instincts—at the center of a vast, artistic social world where she flourished as a fashion trendsetter and international traveler—are brought to vivid and unforgettable life. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/034720ba-d0b5-467e-8feb-38fe193ceb17/216970894.jpg Blog - Celebrating Women’s History Month - Women of War by Suzanne Cope From underground soldiers to intrepid spies, Women of War unearths the hidden history of the brave women who risked their lives to overthrow the Nazi occupation and liberate Italy. Using primary sources and brand new scholarship, historian Suzanne Cope illuminates the roles played by women while Italians struggled under dual Nazi invaders and Italian fascist loyalists. Cope’s research and storytelling introduces four brave and resourceful women who risked everything to overthrow the Nazi occupation and pry their future from the fascist grasp. We meet Carla Capponi in Rome, where she made bombs in an underground bunker then ferried them to their deadly destination wearing lipstick and a trenchcoat; and Bianca Guidetti Serra who rode her bicycle up switchbacks in the Alps, dodging bullets while delivering bags of clandestine newspapers and munitions to the anti-fascist armies hidden in the mountains. In Florence, the young future author of Italy’s new constitution, Teresa Mattei, carried secret messages and hid bombs; while Anita Malavasi led troops across the Apennine Mountains. Women of War brings their experiences as underground resistance fighters, partisan combatants, spies, and saboteurs to life. Essential and original, Women of War offers not only a reexamination of the elision of women from vital WWII history but also a valuable perspective on the ongoing fight for gender equality and social justice. After all, these were the women who launched a feminist movement as they fought for the future of their country, and what that could mean for its women, all while under Nazi and fascist fire. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d6f831d3-0a7c-4805-97a5-ec41d5eb42a5/203747797.jpg Blog - Celebrating Women’s History Month - Sisters in Science by Olivia Campbell In the 1930s, Germany was a hotbed of scientific thought. But after the Nazis took power, Jewish and female citizens were forced out of their academic positions. Hedwig Kohn, Lise Meitner, Hertha Sponer, and Hildegard Stücklen were eminent in their fields, but they had no choice but to flee due to their Jewish ancestry or anti-Nazi sentiments. Their harrowing journey out of Germany became a life-and-death situation that required Herculean efforts of friends and other prominent scientists. Lise fled to Sweden, where she made a groundbreaking discovery in nuclear physics, and the others fled to the United States, where they brought advanced physics to American universities. No matter their destination, each woman revolutionized the field of physics when all odds were stacked against them, galvanizing young women to do the same. Well-researched and written with cinematic prose, Sisters in Science brings these trailblazing women to life and shows us how sisterhood and scientific curiosity can transcend borders and persist—flourish, even—in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a90e720c-bff8-42c2-98e3-6f94b5e101b0/231387353-2.jpg Blog - Celebrating Women’s History Month - The Blood Countess by Shelley Puhak There have long been whispers, coming from the castle; from the village square; from the dark woods. The great lady-a countess, from one of Europe's oldest families-is a vicious killer. Some even say she bathes in the blood of her victims. When the king's men force their way into her manor house, she has blood on her hands, caught in the act of murdering yet another of her maids. She is walled up in a tower and never seen again, except in the uppermost barred window, where she broods over the countryside, cursing all those who dared speak up against her. Told and retold in many languages, the legend of the Blood Countess has consumed cultural imaginations around the world. But despite claims that Elizabeth Bathory tortured and killed as many as 650 girls, some have wondered if the Countess was herself a victim- of one of the most successful disinformation campaigns known to history. So, was Elizabeth Bathory a monster, a victim, or a bit of both? With the breathlessness of a whodunit, drawing upon new archival evidence and questioning old assumptions, Shelley Puhak traces the Countess's downfall, bringing to life an assertive woman leader in a world sliding into anti-scientific, reactionary darkness-a world where nothing is ever as it seems. In this exhilarating narrative, Puhak renders a vivid portrait of history's most dangerous woman and her tumultuous time, revealing just how far we will go to destroy a woman in power. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1cbf4c52-7997-4366-9425-04042c4d17e2/222376877.jpg Blog - Celebrating Women’s History Month - The Women’s Orchestra of Aushwitz by Anne Sebba In 1943, German SS officers in charge of Auschwitz-Birkenau ordered that an orchestra be formed among the female prisoners. Almost fifty women and girls from eleven nations were drafted into a band that would play in all weathers marching music to other inmates, forced laborers who left each morning and returned, exhausted and often broken, at the end of the day. While still living amid the harshest of circumstances, with little more than a bowl of soup to eat, they were also made to give weekly concerts for Nazi officers, and individual members were sometimes summoned to give solo performances. For almost all of the musicians chosen to take part, being in the orchestra saved their lives. But at what cost? What role could music play in a death camp? What was the effect on those women who owed their survival to their participation in a Nazi propaganda project? And how did it feel to be forced to provide solace to the perpetrators of a genocide that claimed the lives of their family and friends? In The Women's Orchestra of Auschwitz, award-winning historian Anne Sebba traces these tangled questions of deep moral complexity with sensitivity and care. From Alma Rosé, the orchestra's main conductor, niece of Gustav Mahler and a formidable pre-war celebrity violinist, to Anita Lasker-Wallfisch, its teenage cellist and last surviving member, Sebba draws on meticulous archival research and exclusive first-hand accounts to tell the full and astonishing story of the orchestra, its members, and the response of other prisoners for the first time. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/56d64487-58f8-41e9-8542-6be6cae7fe0d/211003699.jpg Blog - Celebrating Women’s History Month - Propaganda Girls by Lisa Rogak Betty MacDonald was a 28-year-old reporter from Hawaii. Zuzka Lauwers grew up in a tiny Czechoslovakian village and knew five languages by the time she was 21. Jane Smith-Hutton was the wife of a naval attaché living in Tokyo. Marlene Dietrich, the German-American actress and singer, was of course one of the biggest stars of the 20th century. These four women, each fascinating in her own right, together contributed to one of the most covert and successful military campaigns in WWII. As members of the OSS, their task was to create a secret brand of propaganda produced with the sole aim to break the morale of Axis soldiers. Working in the European theater, across enemy lines in occupied China, and in Washington, D.C., Betty, Zuzka, Jane, and Marlene forged letters and “official” military orders, wrote and produced entire newspapers, scripted radio broadcasts and songs, and even developed rumors for undercover spies and double agents to spread to the enemy. And outside of a small group of spies, no one knew they existed. Until now. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7e769c05-0c04-43b6-b45f-7a30909f3753/79743331-2.jpg Blog - Celebrating Women’s History Month - The Tigerbelles by Aime Alley Card The Tigerbelles tells the epic story of the 1960 Tennessee State University all-Black women’s track team, which found Olympic glory at the 1960 games in Rome. Author Aime Alley Card tells an epic story of desire, success, and failure—of beating the odds—against the backdrop of a changing America. Readers will come to know the individuals’ unique struggles and triumphs, while also understanding how these dreams emerged and solidified just as the country was struggling to leave the Jim Crow era behind. Coach Edward Temple pushed each team member to the limit and saw the possibilities in them that they often did not see themselves. The elite group of talent included Wilma Rudolph, Barbara Jones, Lucinda Williams, Martha Hudson, Willye B. White, and Shirley Crowder: women who once were and should still be known worldwide. Ultimately the team’s drive was for more than medals. Coach Temple and the Tigerbelles wanted to change the world's perception of what this group of young women were capable of. The Tigerbellesis a multilayered inspirational tale of triumph over adversity. Operating on a shoestring budget and pitted dirt track, they nevertheless shared a common goal: to represent the USA in track and field. The arc of their story starts with the origins of the team in Nashville, continues through the Olympics in Rome in the early fall of 1960, and focus on the achievement of an entire team of women, highlighting not only their character and talent but also the relationships between them that helped propel them to their ultimate success. Based on memoirs and interviews with team members, including Coach Temple, this is the story of an impossible dream come true. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0498666c-ce7a-47ac-8ed4-cf59dccfd8ee/218153679.jpg Blog - Celebrating Women’s History Month - The Sisterhood of Ravensbruck by Lynne Olson For decades after World War II, histories of the French Resistance were written almost exclusively by men and largely ignored the contributions of women. Many current overviews of the subject continue to underplay the extent and importance of women’s participation in the Resistance, treating the subject, in the words of one historian, as ‘an anonymous background element in an essentially male story’. The Sisterhood of Ravensbrück corrects that omission, surveying the bond between four women — Germaine Tillion, Anise Girard, Genevieve de Gaulle, and Jacqueline d’Alincourt — who fought valiantly against Nazi oppression. While the women belonged to different Resistance movements and networks, they were united by a common they were arrested by the Gestapo, underwent merciless interrogations and beatings, were jailed — and, most significantly, survived, if just barely, the hell of Ravensbrück, the only concentration camp designed specifically for women. In an institution designed to dehumanise and kill, the sisterhood maintained their sense of self and joined together to face down death. Remarkably, in the aftermath of World War II, the women once again joined forces to find a way to transcend the horrors of the war and turn it into something good for themselves and the world. The Sisterhood of Ravensbrück is an illuminating, inspiring account. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4ced26a5-b8a9-44fd-a3fa-56ae3599a6ff/211934917-2.jpg Blog - Celebrating Women’s History Month - Sister, Sinner by Claire Hoffman On a spring day in 1926, Aimee Semple McPherson wandered into the Pacific Ocean and vanished. Weeks later she reappeared in the desert, claiming to have been kidnapped. A national media frenzy and months of investigation ensued. Who was this woman? America’s most famous evangelist, McPherson was a sophisticated marketer who used spectacle, storytelling, and the newest technology—including her own radio station—to bring God’s message to the masses. Her innovations brought Pentecostalism into the mainstream, paved the way for televangelists, and shaped the future of American Christianity. Her Angelus Temple in Echo Park, Los Angeles, can be called the first megachurch. Her Foursquare Church continues, with more than eight million faithful around the world. But after her disappearance, as crowds gathered at the water’s edge, people Was McPherson everybody’s saintly sister, or a con-artist sinner? The story of what happened next—sex scandals, religious persecution, legal shenanigans, the seemingly unshakable faith of thousands of followers, and the race to cover it all—runs through the center of Claire Hoffman’s thrilling Sister, Sinner. A riveting journey into the rise of popular religion in America and life in early Hollywood, and told with the flavor of the period's noir mysteries, this is an unforgettable story of an iconic woman, largely overlooked, who changed the world. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/47eddc5d-dbea-4a68-bd6c-108f9273201d/217432748.jpg Blog - Celebrating Women’s History Month - The Art Spy by Michelle Young On August 25, 1944, Rose Valland, a woman of quiet daring, found herself in a desperate position. From the windows of her beloved Jeu de Paume museum, where she had worked and ultimately spied, she could see the battle to liberate Paris thundering around her. The Jeu de Paume, co-opted by Nazi leadership, was now the Germans’ final line of defense. Would the museum curator be killed before she could tell the truth—a story that would mean nothing less than saving humanity’s cultural inheritance? Based on troves of previously undiscovered documents, The Art Spy chronicles the brave actions of the key Resistance spy in the heart of the Nazi’s art looting headquarters in the French capital. A veritable female Monuments Man, Valland has, until now, been written out of the annals, despite bearing witness to history’s largest art theft. While Hitler was amassing stolen art for his future Führermuseum, Valland, his undercover adversary, secretly worked to stop him. At every stage of World War II, Valland was front and center. She came face to face with Reichsmarschall Hermann Göring, passed crucial information to the Resistance network, put herself deliberately in harm’s way to protect the museum and her staff, and faced death during the last hours of Liberation Day. At the same time, a young Free French soldier, Alexandre Rosenberg , was fighting his way to Paris with the Allied forces battling to liberate France. Alexandre's father was the exclusive art dealer for Picasso, Matisse, George Braque, and Fernand Léger. The Nazis had taken everything from their family—their art collection, their nationality, their gallery, and their home in Paris. Vivid and atmospheric, The Art Spy moves from the glittering days of pre-War Paris, home to geniuses of modern culture, including Picasso, Josephine Baker, Coco Chanel, Le Corbusier, and Frida Kahlo, through the tension-riddled cities and resorts of Europe on the eve of war, to the harrowing years of the Nazi occupation of France when brave people such as Valland and Rosenberg risked everything to fight monstrous evil. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/march-new-releases-2 monthly 0.5 2026-03-01 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/32ef340f-15ae-44ba-9051-8c2a697faaf2/235699107.jpg Blog - March New Releases - The Secret Lives of Murderers’ Wives by Elizabeth Arnott Beverley, Elsie, and Margot are not your average housewives. They are all wives of convicted killers. During the sun-drenched summer of 1966, the three women form an unlikely friendship after the discoveries of their husbands’ brutal crimes. With their exes—some of California’s most infamous serial killers—dead or behind bars, they are attempting to forge a new future for themselves. Headstrong Beverley compulsively tries to maintain control of everything around her, all while raising two children. Bookish Elsie fights day in and day out for the chance to make a name for herself in the newsroom, working among men who sneer at her career goals. Glamorous Margot refuses to take anything seriously and devotes all her energy to upholding the appearance that everything is fine—anything to quell the shame from her husband’s deceit. They know people look at them and think only one How could they not have known, when their husbands were right under their noses, committing horrific crimes? How much guilt is theirs to carry? And yet when a string of killings hits the news, the three women—underestimated, overlooked, shrewd—decide to get to work. After all, who better to catch a killer than those who have shared their lives and homes with one? Release Date: March 3, 2026 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f85713c0-0b34-4af6-9c0e-eaf335f8b42d/230926478.jpg Blog - March New Releases - In Her Own League by Liz Tomforde As the first female team owner in Major League Baseball, Reese Remington has spent her entire life preparing for this role. With a sharp mind and years of experience working behind the scenes, she's more than qualified. But the public only sees a woman in a man's world — not the person who's earned their place on the field. Under constant scrutiny and pressure to prove herself, Reese can't afford distractions. Especially one that comes in the form of the team's tempting field manager who questions her every decision. Emmett Montgomery is a former All-Star turned coach who treats his players like family and the field like home. After years of running the team his way, the last thing he wants is a new boss, let alone one who seems ice-cold and laser-focused on business. But forced to spend long hours - and too many away games - side by side, he begins to see the fire beneath Reese's control, the heart behind her ambition, and the unwavering determination to prove herself. When heated banter turns into sizzling chemistry, professional boundaries blur and the spark between them becomes impossible to resist. But Reese is constantly reminded of how many people are waiting for her to fail, and the safest move is to keep Emmett at arm's length - for the sake of the team, the season, and her career. But keeping their distance is one game neither of them can seem to win. Release Date: March 3, 2026 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/312bb29a-3490-4b78-af62-bdca6ee25e1d/231003006.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Midnight on the Celestial by Julia Alexandra Roe Damarcus has never been afraid of the dead. Her power to summon spirits has awed the guests of her esteemed family’s galas for as long as she can remember. Her future is certain, and her gift will be another shining jewel in the Damarcus legacy. But when she fails her realm’s trial to keep her magic and is deemed too dangerous for society, she faces a harrowing choice: give up her gift or serve a punishment sentence aboard the Celestial, a luxurious magical cruise ship where staff members compete for guest votes to earn a coveted retrial. As a concierge, Roe juggles the demands of affluent guests, cruel bosses, and the suspicion that an infuriatingly handsome silks performer, Ivander, is determined to keep her from a retrial. But the true dangers surface after her shift ends when the Celestial transforms into halls of nightmares that kill staff members after dark. Faced with the reality of serving aboard, Roe begins to question the ship, trials, and the system that put her there. But the moment Roe sinks into the ship's dark history, she's wrongly framed for a guest's murder. Vowing to conjure her own second chance, Roe will use whatever power she has to uncover the secrets of the ship, her family, and their entwined bloody past... before she becomes the Celestial’s next victim. Release Date: March 3, 2026 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ff2d053d-fffa-45fd-8485-a0550798ea6e/238252741.jpg Blog - March New Releases - A Far-Flung Life by M.L. Stedman Western Australia, 1958. A truck rumbles along a lonely outback road. A moment’s inattention, and in a few muddled seconds the lives of the MacBride family are shattered. Instead of leaving them to heal, fate comes back for them in a twist of consequences that will cause one of them to lose their life, and another to sacrifice theirs for the sake of an innocent child. Set in the expanse of a vast and flat landscape, where the weather is a capricious god and a million-acre sheep station is barely a dot on the map, A Far-flung Life explores the hearts of a handful of isolated souls and the secrets they shield in order to survive. Release Date: March 3, 2026 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/45f473a8-2cf1-4ea8-af36-6d90e05c0c1c/231126977.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Lady Tremaine by Rachel Hochhauser A widow twice-over, Etheldreda is now saddled with the care of her two children, a priggish stepdaughter, and a razor-taloned peregrine falcon. Her entire life has become a ruse, just like the manor hall they live grand and ornate on the exterior, but crumbling, brick by brick, inside. Fierce in the face of her misfortune, Ethel clings to her family’s respectability, the lifeboat that will float her daughters straight into the secure banks of marriage. When a royal ball offers the chance to secure the future she desperately desires, Etheldreda must risk her secrets, pride, and limited resources in pursuit of an invitation for her daughters—only to see her hopes fulfilled by the wrong one. As an engagement to the heir of the kingdom unfolds with unnerving speed, she discovers a sordid secret hidden in the depths of the royal family, forcing her to choose between the security she’s sought for years and the wellbeing of the feckless stepdaughter who has rebuffed her at every turn. Release Date: March 3, 2026 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/cc30d8d5-5b9f-4f06-85d8-421a65c92538/231127254.jpg Blog - March New Releases - In Time With You by Kristin Dwyer Nieve Monroe is devastated after her boyfriend Carter dies saving her from drowning. Even worse she blames herself for his death… and so does his best friend, Max. He was there with them on that fateful day, and he’s never liked Nieve. Unable to pull herself from her grief and wanting to hide from the accusation in his eyes, Nieve goes to stay with her grandmother, who has always had strange stories to tell of uncanny happenings, of magic and make believe. The next morning, Nieve wakes up on the first day of college, the year before. This time she plans to make sure Carter never follows her into that river. She’ll do everything in her power to keep him safe, even if it means losing him in other ways. But the more distance she puts between her and Carter, the closer she gets to Max, drawn to him in ways she never expected. But is she betraying Carter if the only way she can save him is to move on? And can she ever forget her past to embrace her future? Release Date: March 3, 2026 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ce7ccbe3-2786-4e96-8e3f-c78a7c1a2a2f/235145025.jpg Blog - March New Releases - the Library of Amorlin by Kalyn Joesphson Kasira used to be a masterful con choosing her target, building trust, judging the precise moment to make her move. Now, she’s working off a lengthy prison sentence by hunting dangerous magical creatures on behalf of the fanatical kingdom of Kalthos. But Kasira’s past catches up to her when the ambassador from Kalthos arrives at her camp with a her freedom in exchange for infiltrating and destabilizing the magical institution meant to protect all six kingdoms—the Library of Amorlin. When Kasira assumes the role of the new Assistant Librarian, she enters an enchanting world brimming with books and beasts, tempting her with a life she can never have. But Kasira’s real future depends on her long con to bring down the Librarian. Unfortunately, Allaster is as prickly as he is handsome, and his monstrous secrets are about to catch up with them both . . . Release Date: March 3, 2026 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8110a3e1-bbd7-4d1f-83cc-76dcfedff741/236047806.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Her Hidden Fire by Cliodhna O’Sullivan In a world where dragons soar through the skies and magical abilities are an elite privilege, the ruling family of Ailm’s Keep is on a Can their son Ionáin prove that he can channel magic, or will his entire family be cast out in disgrace? Éadha, a servant girl who loves Ionáin, is shocked to discover shortly before the test that she can wield magic herself. It’s extremely rare for a girl to have this talent, especially outside the few great Families. At Ionáin’s moment of truth, when it's clear he is about to fail, Éadha makes a desperate gamble to save him from humiliation by pretending her magic is his, forfeiting her own claim to power. Her decision sends them both to an academy of magic, where she must shield her secret from every grim Master and scheming apprentice—especially the handsome but enigmatic Gry. As Éadha enters this whirlwind of patriarchy, class, heartache, and jealousy, she also learns about magic’s terrible cost—the human price that Channellers willingly pay to maintain their power. How far would you go to empower the one you love? Release Date: March 3, 2026 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/693d4f6c-8991-4c7f-8ae0-d5e6c566833b/236772706.jpg Blog - March New Releases - No Matter What by Cara Bastone Roz and Vin can’t look each other in the eyes anymore, let alone share a bed. It’s been a year since they survived a traumatic car accident and their marriage hasn’t been the same. But Roz has held out hope they can fix things…until she discovers Vin signed a new lease. So she does what any soon-to-be-divorced-Brooklynite would do: sign up for figure drawing class. Between her determined attempts to improve her skills in class every Friday and adventures with her best friend Raffi, she can almost ignore Vin’s impending move out date and his footsteps in their previously unoccupied guest room. But it would all be a lot easier if Vin wasn’t Raffi’s older brother, and she didn’t still find him incredibly, debilitatingly attractive and kind. So kind, in fact, that he offers to let Roz draw him. What is she supposed to say? It’s probably better than her original plan of finding some random male model online, and she needs all the practice she can get. Plus, that’s sure to make a separation easier right? Focus on every detail of your estranged spouse’s body while drawing them in the nude. But after the year they have spent avoiding each other and their struggles in the aftermath of the accident, it feels good to see and be seen by one another again. As Roz works to better herself as an artist and capture the wholeness of the person she fell in love with, will they both be able to draw upon the feelings they buried deep inside to finally heal together? Release Date: March 3, 2026 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/56af83d0-3e98-4dc4-b0f4-8ee9400cd120/235991978.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Just Friends by Haley Pham Blair and Declan were inseparable growing up—best friends who knew each other better than anyone else. But when an impulsive kiss took them from friends to something more, everything changed. Just as quickly as their romance started, one moment shattered it all, leaving them with nothing but heartbreak and silence. Now, four years later, Blair is back in their coastal hometown of Seabrook to support her mom and care for her great-aunt Lottie as her health declines. To make ends meet, Blair applies to work at a coffee shop—only to discover it’s managed by none other than Declan. The boy she loved. The boy she lost. The boy who still makes her heart race. As Blair’s path keeps crossing with Declan’s, old wounds resurface, secrets are revealed, and sparks reignite. But could their future ever be free of their past? Release Date: March 3, 2026 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e7d51c29-b1c1-4a2a-923b-030a2352f8c5/234134719.jpg Blog - March New Releases - The Wings That Bind by Briar Boleyn The night's chaos left us breathless. Now the real nightmare begins. A second dragon has awoken–her heart tainted and her power commandeered by two ruthless highbloods whose cruelty knows no bounds. My dearest friend teetered on the brink of death. A dragon saved her, but now she's tied to him in a way I can scarcely understand. What will this new bond do to the woman I've come to love as a sister? And then there’s Blake. Once my relentless tormentor—he betrayed me again, nearly condemning Nyxaris to a cursed, stone-cold fate. Now something has shifted in him. His gray eyes hide a secret he’s desperate to keep. I saved Blake’s life, despite everything. Yet now my every heartbeat questions where we go from here. With Bloodwing Academy in turmoil and a new headmaster no one saw coming, only one thing is This is going to be one hell of a term. Release Date: March 10, 2026 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/19cb1db8-064d-424f-9e19-92f76cfb282f/236079795.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Whidbey by T. Kira Madden Birdie Chang didn’t know anything about Whidbey Island when she chose it, only that it was about as far away as she could get from her own life. She’s a woman on the run, desperate for an escape from the headlines back home and the look of concern in her girlfriend’s eyes—and from Calvin Boyer, the man who abused her as a child and who’s now resurfaced. On her way, she has an unnerving encounter with a stranger on the ferry who offers her a proposition, a sinister solution, a plan for revenge. But Birdie isn’t the only girl Calvin harmed back then. There’s also Linzie King, a former reality TV star who recently wrote all about it in her bestselling memoir. Though the two women have never met, their stories intertwine. Once Birdie arrives on Whidbey, she finally cracks the book’s spine, only to find too much she recognizes in its pages. Soon after, on the other side of the country, Calvin’s loving mother, Mary-Beth, receives a shocking phone call from the police: her only son has been murdered. Calvin’s death sets into motion a series of events that sends each woman on a desperate search for answers. A complex whodunnit told from alternating points of view, Whidbey is searingly perceptive and astonishingly original. Exploring the long reach of violence and our flawed systems of incarceration and rehabilitation, this is a tense and provocative debut that’s sure to incite crucial questions about the pursuit of justice and who has real power over a story: the one who lives it, or the one who tells it? Release Date: March 10, 2026 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1cc15100-da7c-40dd-aed0-631b61e46e6f/227081378.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Mistakes Were Made by Lucy Score He's looking for the perfect wife. She's looking for the perfect one-night stand. Literary agent Zoey Moody doesn't like small town life, but here she is: exiled from Manhattan's publishing scene and trapped in a tiny Pennsylvania town with her BFF and only remaining client, Hazel. The problem? She's totally broke. All she needs is for Hazel's next romance novel to become a gigantic hit, and Zoey will be back in New York. Nothing will stand in her way. Nothing except her six-foot-two-inch landlord, Gage Bishop. He's smart, serious, and sexy. Worst of all, he's ready to settle down. Zoey might be the most beautiful woman Gage has ever met, but it's clear they're all wrong for each other. She's allergic to commitment and can't work a calendar app; he's looking for a wife and has the next five years all planned out. She's afraid of animals. He lives in a literal barn. But when Gage's world is rocked by a devastating family secret, he turns to Zoey for one night to forget everything. That one night just might change everything…or ruin it. Release Date: March 10, 2026 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/52ea4eee-fa69-4b3b-b916-436199f17fe4/231126887.jpg Blog - March New Releases - This Story Might Save Your Life by Tiffany Crum Benny Abbott and Joy Moore host one of the most beloved podcasts in the world. Each week, they delight listeners with a different “against all odds” survival story, gleefully finding the weird, life-affirming humor in near-death experiences. Since their first episode on Joy’s experience with severe narcolepsy, they’ve been the best friends everyone wants to befriend—and thanks to the meticulous management of Joy’s husband, Xander, they’ve built a lucrative empire. The problem is, their next survival story may be their own. When Benny arrives at Joy and Xander’s one morning to record, he finds shattered glass and an empty house. The one clue shedding light on the couple’s disappearance is the incomplete, previously unseen first draft of Joy’s memoir. Benny will stop at nothing to find them, even as the police zero in on him as their prime suspect. Millions of devoted listeners think they know the “real” Benny and Joy. But as the hours tick by, and the odds seem increasingly stacked against Joy and Xander being found alive, not even the most devoted fans could guess the terrible secrets their favorite famous BFFs have hidden from the world—and from each other. Release Date: March 10, 2026 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e94150ee-1b93-4aea-9457-678f9420991d/236847870.jpg Blog - March New Releases - How to Write a Love Story by Catherine Walsh Ciara Sheridan’s father has left her with three a sprawling and distinctly ramshackle estate on the Irish coast, the outline for the finale to his bestselling epic fantasy series that he wanted her to finish—and writer’s block. Enter Sam Frank Sheridan fanboy and hotshot editor, sent from the New York publishing house direct to Ciara’s doorstep. Ciara was expecting a crusty old-timer, so the handsome young American is a surprise. And for his part, Sam was expecting Ciara to have written something by now. Ciara and Sam have two weeks of the hottest Irish summer on record to write this novel together and secure Frank’s legacy—but will their own love story be the plot twist neither of them see coming? Release Date: March 10, 2026 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/587ff3ba-4f7a-41d9-9e8e-2c0d09dde033/235992265.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Once and Again by Rebecca Serle The women of the Novak family were each born with a gift: they can, just once, turn back time. Lauren has known since she was fifteen that her mother Marcella saved Lauren’s father from a deadly car accident. Dave is alive and happy, and out on the Malibu waves. But ever since, Marcella, her power spent, has lived in fear of what she won’t be able to reverse. Her own mother, Sylvia, is her polar opposite: a free-spirited iconoclast with a glamorous past she only hints at. Lauren has spent her life between these two role models—and waiting for her own catastrophe to strike. Then one summer, Lauren’s husband takes a job in New York and she moves back to Broad Beach Road, back into her childhood home on the shores of Malibu. Lauren looks forward to surfing with her dad again and perhaps repairing an unspoken fracture in her relationship with her mother. What she doesn’t expect is for the boy next to door to return home as well: Stone, Lauren’s first love, who broke her heart nearly a decade before. As Lauren falls into familiar patterns, with her family and, more dangerously, Stone, she finds herself thinking about all the choices, large and small, that have brought her to this moment. And wondering, finally, if one of them should be undone. Release Date: March 10, 2026 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/441cd73c-089b-4ca1-9598-3a85f8378f60/231507398.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Served Him Right by Lisa Unger Ana Blacksmith has gathered her closest friends and sister Vera together for a girls’ brunch to celebrate her recent breakup from her boyfriend Paul. But when shocking news about Paul and his new girlfriend arrives, all eyes are on Ana, the angry ex with a bad reputation. Suspicions only intensify when Ana’s best friend falls deathly ill after the brunch. But Ana is not the only one who had a score to settle with Paul, a business mogul with a whispered history. And the list of people who will not shed a tear over his fate is long. As the investigation unfolds, rumours of a secret network that uses ancient methods to obtain justice begin to emerge. Vengeance is sweet, but it can also be deadly. Ana and Vera are determined to find the truth before Ana takes the fall and their own long-buried history comes to light. Served Him Right is a riveting thriller that shows you can never underestimate the power of a woman looking for justice. Release Date: March 10, 2026 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7c84f2e9-0696-4022-bee6-7e7528edcefb/231474494.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Love Song by Elle Kennedy After a brutal breakup, college junior Blake Logan escapes to her family’s lake house in Tahoe, determined to shut out the world. Her plan is simple: no men, no drama. Until Wyatt Graham shows up. Four years older and far too good at getting under her skin, Wyatt is the living embodiment of a “bad idea,” and the guy who shattered her pride when she confessed her crush at sixteen. With his music career stalled, Wyatt has come to Tahoe for inspiration. The last thing he expects is to find it with Blake. He’s spent years keeping his distance, convinced he’s all wrong for her, but she’s no longer the innocent girl he once knew. She’s confident, captivating, and impossible to ignore. And the slow-burning tension between them? It’s catching fire fast. They both know this can’t last, but one reckless kiss turns into another, and soon they’re tangled in something that feels dangerously like more. Just as they finally give in to the pull, tragedy tears them apart, leaving their hearts in pieces. But forgetting that one, nearly perfect summer? Not a chance. And when fate brings them together again, Blake and Wyatt must decide if this is a second chance…or the final verse. Release Date: March 17, 2026 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ddc0aba2-7a8a-4e3b-b71f-71df30b73518/231692454.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Everyone in this Bank is a Thief by Benjamin Stevenson I’ve spent the last few years solving murders. But a bank heist is a new one, even for me. I’ve never been a hostage before. The doors are chained shut. No one in or out. Which means that when someone in the bank is murdered, everyone is a suspect. The Bank Robber The Manager The Security Guard The Kid The Film Producer The Priest The Receptionist The Patient The Caregiver Me Turns out, more than one person planned to rob the bank today. You can steal more from a bank than just money. Who is stealing what? Are they willing to kill for it? And can I solve the crime before the police kick down the door and rescue us? Release Date: March 17, 2026 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/abd0914b-a790-4e7b-a0b0-589ff0da5c13/236772741.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Innamorata by Ava Reid Once there was an island where the dead walked the earth, and seven noble houses ruled by the arcane secrets of necromancy. A conqueror’s blade brought them low, burning their libraries, killing their lords, and extinguishing their eldritch magic. But defiant against the new order stands the House of Teeth and its last living members: beautiful Marozia, the heiress to the House, and her cousin, the uncanny Lady Agnes. Though she has not spoken a word in seven years, Agnes is the true carrier of the House’s legacy. And she has her orders. She must recapture the secrets of death magic and avenge her family’s fallen honor. She must arrange the betrothal of her beloved cousin Marozia to Liuprand, heir to the conqueror’s throne, for access to the forbidden library in his grotesquely grand castle. Revenge burns in Agnes’s heart but so do stranger passions—and it is Liuprand, the golden prince, who speaks to her soul. This passion is as treasonous as it is powerful, poisoning the kingdom’s roots and threatening to tear the already shattered realm in two. For Agnes’s final order is the gravest: She must not fall in love. Release Date: March 17, 2026 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0583f56d-211c-40bd-b2a2-93d9a276ab1b/231126846.jpg Blog - March New Releases - You Did Nothing Wrong by CG Drews Single mother Elodie’s life has become a fairy tale. She’s met Bren, equal parts golden-retriever devoted and sinfully handsome. He’s whisked her and her autistic son, Jude, to the crumbling family house he’s renovating. She has a new husband, a new house, and a new baby on the way. Everything is perfect. Then Jude claims he can hear voices in the walls. He says their renovations are “hurting” the house. Even Elodie can’t ignore it–something strange is going on. The question is, is it with the house, or with her son? Then the one secret Elodie has been hiding is revealed, and no one is safe anymore. Release Date: March 17, 2026 Genre: Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c72412bc-20df-43c0-b52a-0758f68e20ad/238767000.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Daughter of Crows by Mark Lawrence Set a thief to catch a thief. Set a monster to punish monsters. The Academy of Kindness exists to create agents of retribution, cast in the image of the Furies—known as the kindly ones—against whom even the gods hesitate to stand. Each year a hundred girls are sold to the Academy. Ten years later only three will emerge. The Academy’s halls run with blood. The few that survive its decade-long nightmare have been forged on the sands of the Wound Garden. They have learned ancient secrets amid the necrotic fumes of the Bone Garden. They leave its gates as avatars of vengeance, bound to uphold the oldest of laws. Only the most desperate would sell their child to the Kindnesses. But Rue … she sold herself. And now, a lifetime later, a long and bloody lifetime later, just as she has discovered peace, war has been brought to an old woman’s doorstep. That was a mistake. Release Date: March 24, 2026 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/fde570b8-7cb1-4cf2-a112-33bf3c95bea8/231127315.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Daughter of Egypt by Marie Benedict 1920’s London was enthralled by the discovery of the treasure-filled tomb of Pharaoh Tutankhamun. Filled with priceless statues, jewels, and the gold-encased mummy of the boy Pharaoh himself, the burial site unleashed a fascination with the ancient world and revolutionized the world of archeology. The discovery was made by Lord Carnarvon of Highclere Castle and his associate, famed archeologist Howard Carter. What no one knows is that without the pioneering spirit of Lady Evelyn Herbert, Carnarvon’s daughter, the tomb might never have been found. As a young woman, Evelyn was fascinated by the story of Hatshepsut, a woman who had to assume the guise of a man in order to rule Egypt. Although she brought peace and prosperity to Egypt, her male successors ruthlessly and thoroughly erased her name from history. Lady Evelyn’s ambition to find the tomb of Egypt’s first woman ruler exposes her to life-threatening danger and pits her against archeologists who refuse to believe the tomb can be found―and certainly not by a woman. Refusing to give up, Evelyn is on the verge of success when she is suddenly forced to make an agonizing choice between loyalty to her beloved father and Carter and realizing the dream of a lifetime. Release Date: March 24, 2026 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a4147775-3776-4deb-8f22-9aafd5004237/231126842.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Wolf Worm by T. Kingfisher The year is 1899 and Sonia Wilson is a scientific illustrator without work, prospects, or hope. When the reclusive Dr. Halder offers her a position illustrating his vast collection of insects, Sonia jumps at the chance to move to his North Carolina manor house and put her talents to use. But soon enough she finds that there are darker things at work than the Carolina woods. What happened to her predecessor, Halder’s wife? Why are animals acting so strangely, and what is behind the peculiar local whispers about “blood thiefs?” With the aid of the housekeeper and a local healer, Sonia discovers that Halder’s entomological studies have taken him down a dark road full of parasitic maggots that burrow into human flesh, and that his monstrous experiments may grow to encompass his newest illustrator as well. Release Date: March 24, 2026 Genre: Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9f6d6900-0778-4ed8-a7f5-6c7e2cae382f/220061020.jpg Blog - March New Releases - This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me by Ilona Andrews When Maggie wakes up cold, filthy and naked in a gutter, it doesn’t take her long to recognize Kair Toren. It’s a city she knows intimately from the pages of a famously unfinished dark fantasy series – one she’s been obsessively reading and re-reading, while waiting years for the final novel. Her only tools for navigating this gritty world of rival warlords, magic and mayhem? Her encyclopaedic knowledge of the plot, the setting and the characters’ ambitions and fates. But while she quickly discovers she cannot be killed (though many will try!), the same cannot be said for the living, breathing characters she’s coming to love – a motley band that includes a former lady’s maid, a deadly assassin, various outrageous magical creatures and a dangerously appealing soldier. Soon, instead of trying to return home, she finds herself enmeshed in the schemes – and attentions – of duelling princes, dukes and villains. This all while trying to save them and the kingdom of Rellas from the ending she’s seen on the a cataclysmic war. Release Date: March 31, 2026 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/adef35eb-00e8-4f5a-8459-61dccaf390c8/229070401.jpg Blog - March New Releases - What We Did to Survive by Megan Lally Hannah is having an incredible spring break. A week at a resort in Mexico with her best friend Emmy and her family is perfect for de-stressing from senior year, even if it’s awkward being around Emmy's older brother, Jackson, who she’s had a crush on for as long as she can remember. Still, the beach is gorgeous. So is the guy they meet in the surf. Except Hannah is now the third wheel in Emmy’s vacation romance. Eager to impress Emmy, her wealthy new boyfriend charters a private sailboat to make the most of their last day in paradise, and Hannah and Jackson are invited along. As the clouds roll in and the skies darken, their boat is the only one leaving the marina. And the further they get into open water, the more unsettled Hannah becomes. A storm is brewing onboard that’s as deadly as the one racing toward them. Forget surviving graduation. Who will make it back to land alive? Release Date: March 31, 2026 Genre: Young Adult Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/59b6ad13-70c4-4481-8531-cba139e73ec6/231801371.jpg.png Blog - March New Releases - The Night We Met by Abby Jimenez In everyone’s life, there’s a split-second decision that can change everything... For Larissa, it came when choosing which guy to ride home with after a concert. That night, she had no idea she’d met the perfect man. She and Chris are great together, co-parenting a slightly unhinged rescue Yorkie, sharing their favorite books, and judging bread (pumpernickel for the win!). For the first time amid all her side hustles to scrape by, things finally feel easy. But Chris isn't the one who drove Larissa home all those months ago—Chris is her boyfriend's best friend. All Chris wants is for Larissa to be happy. Standing by on the sidelines is slowly killing him, but making a move would destroy someone else. And he’s just not that guy. Release Date: March 31, 2026 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b8b440b3-c7c6-4486-b6e1-8df18de4b8dc/238227104.jpg Blog - March New Releases - The Keeper by Tana French On a cold night in the remote Irish village of Arknakelty, a girl goes missing. Sweet, loving Rachel Holohan was about to be engaged to the son of the local big shot. Instead, she’s dead in the river. In a close-knit small town, a death like this isn’t simple. It comes wrapped in generations-old grudges and power struggles, and it splits the townland in two. Retired Chicago detective Cal Hooper has friends here now, and he owes them loyalty, but his fiancée Lena wants nothing to do with Ardnakelty’s tangles. As the feud becomes more vicious, their settled peace starts to crack apart. And when they uncover a scheme that casts a new light on Rachel’s death and threatens the whole village, they find themselves in the firing line. Release Date: March 31, 2026 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/44f4ecce-e454-46c1-9231-7933c7cab288/240382002.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Game On by Navessa Allen hate that woman. Tyler Neumann has spent years looking for his father, and not because he wants to meet the man. No, he wants to destroy him. And he'll manipulate whoever he can to exact his revenge. Including Stella McCormick. She's everything Tyler hates. Her wealth and privilege have protected her for her entire life, and Tyler thinks it's time she finally paid the price. Whether she's ready to or not. I hate that man. Stella might not believe in love at first sight, but loathing at first sight - no question. From the moment she sets eyes on Tyler in her tattoo parlor, she knows he's the devil planning to make her life hell. Forced to play the part of his girlfriend and invite him into her family's glittering circles, Stella quickly clocks Tyler's ulterior motives. But love and hate are two sides of the same coin, and soon she doesn't know which is being blackmailed by a man who wants to ruin her, or that they can't seem to keep their hands off each other. Release Date: March 31, 2026 Genre: Dark Romance https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/16-enchanting-fantasy-standalone-novels monthly 0.5 2026-02-23 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/541335ee-3add-4b94-bdf8-1062709fe130/9361589-2.jpg Blog - 16 Enchanting Fantasy Standalone Novels - The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night. But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway—a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them, this is a game in which only one can be left standing, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battle of imagination and will. Despite themselves, however, Celia and Marco tumble headfirst into love—a deep, magical love that makes the lights flicker and the room grow warm whenever they so much as brush hands. True love or not, the game must play out, and the fates of everyone involved, from the cast of extraordinary circus performers to the patrons, hang in the balance, suspended as precariously as the daring acrobats overhead. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c8fab074-cc6c-4c2c-a6d5-32efb51abcb5/42201395.jpg Blog - 16 Enchanting Fantasy Standalone Novels - Sorcery of Thorns by Margaret Rogerson ALL SORCERERS ARE EVIL . . . Elisabeth has known that for as long as she can remember. Raised in one of Austermeer’s Great Libraries, Elisabeth has grown up among magical grimoires that, if provoked, transform into grotesque monsters of ink and leather. When the library’s most dangerous grimoire is released, Elisabeth is blamed. With no one to turn to but her sworn enemy, the sorcerer Nathaniel Thorn, she finds herself entangled in a centuries-old conspiracy. As her alliance with Nathaniel grows stronger, Elisabeth starts to question everything she’s been taught. For Elisabeth has a power she could never have imagined . . . https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5a5d7c21-ed4e-44d3-b4c0-99bdc7c33d14/58064046.jpg Blog - 16 Enchanting Fantasy Standalone Novels - Gallant by V.E. Schwab Everything casts a shadow. Even the world we live in. And as with every shadow, there is a place where it must touch. A seam, where the shadow meets its source. Olivia Prior has grown up in Merilance School for girls, and all she has of her past is her mother’s journal—which seems to unravel into madness. Then, a letter invites Olivia to come home—to Gallant. Yet when Olivia arrives, no one is expecting her. But Olivia is not about to leave the first place that feels like home, it doesn’t matter if her cousin Matthew is hostile or if she sees half-formed ghouls haunting the hallways. Olivia knows that Gallant is hiding secrets, and she is determined to uncover them. When she crosses a ruined wall at just the right moment, Olivia finds herself in a place that is Gallant—but not. The manor is crumbling, the ghouls are solid, and a mysterious figure rules over all. Now Olivia sees what has unraveled generations of her family, and where her father may have come from. Olivia has always wanted to belong somewhere, but will she take her place as a Prior, protecting our world against the Master of the House? Or will she take her place beside him? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5b79bfb9-6e89-4117-a663-2d571213c645/238284854.jpg.png Blog - 16 Enchanting Fantasy Standalone Novels - Bloody Black by Rhiannon Hargadon He stole her throne, she's come back to reclaim it. Anne was a reckless, arrogant royal who had never tasted defeat. After a brutal betrayal on her wedding night, Anne vanishes from the kingdom she was meant to rule. Years later, she’s returns from the grave—no longer a princess, but a terror of the seas. Known only as Blackbeard, she’s hunting down the men who destroyed her, one by one. Vengeance doesn’t come without a cost. Brutal bargains with a demon collar her, and bind her to a dark promise. When she captures Lieutenant Robb Maynard—a too-handsome, too-calm officer loyal to her enemy—Anne intends to trade him for leverage. Instead, she finds herself locked in a dangerous game of secrets and seduction, where the greatest threat isn’t a blade—but the way he looks at her. Like she’s still a woman worth loving. And while she knows better than to believe in anything but pain... Anne must decide if life is worth the risk—or if trusting the wrong man will cost her everything she has built. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bab11c81-66c2-403c-b238-9f8519675aa2/156480764.jpg Blog - 16 Enchanting Fantasy Standalone Novels - The Book of Doors by Gareth Brown If you could open a door to anywhere, where would you go? In New York City, bookseller Cassie Andrews is living an unassuming life when she is given a gift by a favourite customer. It's a book—an unusual book, full of strange writing and mysterious drawings. And at the very front there is a handwritten message to Cassie, telling her that this is the Book of Doors, and that any door is every door. What Cassie is about to discover is that the Book of Doors is a special book that bestows an extraordinary powers on whoever possesses it, and soon she and her best friend Izzy are exploring all that the Book of Doors can do, swept away from their quiet lives by the possibilities of travelling to anywhere they want. But the Book of Doors is not the only magical book in the world. There are other books that can do wondrous and dreadful things when wielded by dangerous and ruthless individuals—individuals who crave what Cassie now possesses. Suddenly Cassie and Izzy are confronted by violence and danger, and the only person who can help them is, it seems, Drummond Fox. He is a man fleeing his own demons—a man with his own secret library of magical books that he has hidden away in the shadows for safekeeping. Because there is a nameless evil out there that is hunting them all... Because some doors should never be opened. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/521462cd-d857-46a8-8886-1676927db2f7/18584855.jpg Blog - 16 Enchanting Fantasy Standalone Novels - Heartless by Marissa Meyer Long before she was the terror of Wonderland—the infamous Queen of Hearts—she was just a girl who wanted to fall in love. Catherine may be one of the most desired girls in Wonderland, and a favorite of the unmarried King of Hearts, but her interests lie elsewhere. A talented baker, all she wants is to open a shop with her best friend. But according to her mother, such a goal is unthinkable for the young woman who could be the next queen. Then Cath meets Jest, the handsome and mysterious court joker. For the first time, she feels the pull of true attraction. At the risk of offending the king and infuriating her parents, she and Jest enter into an intense, secret courtship. Cath is determined to define her own destiny and fall in love on her terms. But in a land thriving with magic, madness, and monsters, fate has other plans. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1290506b-f697-4ae1-813c-95d0cf4f540d/217953353.jpg Blog - 16 Enchanting Fantasy Standalone Novels - Voice of the Ocean by Kelsey Impicciche As the youngest daughter of the Siren queen, Celeste's life is tightly controlled. Desperate to prove her worth, she intends to join the Chorus - an elite group of siren warriors. With her final test on the horizon, Celeste must finally gain control over her temperamental Song. But when Celeste encounters a seemingly harmless ship, helmed by the intriguing Prince Raiden Sharp, her path veers towards forbidden waters. Believing the handsome sailor to be innocent of any wrongdoing, Celeste defies Siren law to save Raiden's life - despite knowing he is the son of a king who has murdered many of her kindred. The penalty for Celeste's betrayal should be death, but the queen offers her an alternative: right her wrong by assassinating the prince. Determined to first discover the truth behind the prince's clandestine mission, Celeste agrees to become human. The human world is nothing like she expected, nor is the prince the charming and noble man she assumed him to be. But as Celeste finds her place aboard the ship, friendships - and attraction - begin to grow. Will Celeste be able to save herself? Or will her choices unravel a kingdom, devastating sirens and humans alike? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bd8d20f9-730e-415a-8fca-73ecd343d1cc/127305900.jpg Blog - 16 Enchanting Fantasy Standalone Novels - A Fragile Enchantment by Allison Saft Niamh Ó Conchobhair has never let herself long for more. The magic in her blood that lets her stitch emotions and memories into fabric is the same magic that will eventually kill her. Determined to spend the little time she has left guaranteeing a better life for her family, Niamh jumps at the chance to design the wardrobe for a royal wedding in the neighboring kingdom of Avaland. But Avaland is far from the fairytale that she imagined. While young nobles attend candlelit balls and elegant garden parties, unrest brews amid the working class. The groom himself, Kit Carmine, is prickly, abrasive, and begrudgingly being dragged to the altar as a political pawn. But when Niamh and Kit grow closer, an unlikely friendship blossoms into something more—until an anonymous columnist starts buzzing about their chemistry, promising to leave them alone only if Niamh helps to uncover the royal family’s secrets. The rot at the heart of Avaland runs deep, but exposing it could risk a future she never let herself dream of, and a love she never thought possible. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/72b1ce28-e183-434d-b9bc-f98fffb45683/61287784.jpg Blog - 16 Enchanting Fantasy Standalone Novels - Where the Dark Stands Still by A.B. Poranek Raised in a small village near the spirit-wood, Liska Radost knows that Magic is monstrous, and its practitioners, monsters. After Liska unleashes her own powers with devastating consequences, she is caught by the demon warden of the wood – the Leszy – who offers her a bargain: one year of servitude in exchange for a wish. Whisked away to his crumbling manor, Liska soon discovers the sinister roots of their bargain. And if she wants to survive the year and return home, she must unravel her host’s spool of secrets and face the ghosts of his past. Those who enter the wood do not always return… https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b4674c91-22da-4131-a6c9-803715522222/56978100.jpg Blog - 16 Enchanting Fantasy Standalone Novels - The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh Deadly storms have ravaged Mina’s homeland for generations. Floods sweep away entire villages, while bloody wars are waged over the few remaining resources. Her people believe the Sea God, once their protector, now curses them with death and despair. In an attempt to appease him, each year a beautiful maiden is thrown into the sea to serve as the Sea God’s bride, in the hopes that one day the “true bride” will be chosen and end the suffering. Many believe that Shim Cheong, the most beautiful girl in the village—and the beloved of Mina’s older brother Joon—may be the legendary true bride. But on the night Cheong is to be sacrificed, Joon follows Cheong out to sea, even knowing that to interfere is a death sentence. To save her brother, Mina throws herself into the water in Cheong’s stead. Swept away to the Spirit Realm, a magical city of lesser gods and mythical beasts, Mina seeks out the Sea God, only to find him caught in an enchanted sleep. With the help of a mysterious young man named Shin—as well as a motley crew of demons, gods and spirits—Mina sets out to wake the Sea God and bring an end to the killer storms once and for all. But she doesn’t have much time: A human cannot live long in the land of the spirits. And there are those who would do anything to keep the Sea God from waking… https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/96a39c82-ce81-4c94-9bdc-325d2fcaca93/50623864.jpg Blog - 16 Enchanting Fantasy Standalone Novels - The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab A Life No One Will Remember. A Story You Will Never Forget. France, 1714: in a moment of desperation, a young woman makes a Faustian bargain to live forever―and is cursed to be forgotten by everyone she meets. Thus begins the extraordinary life of Addie LaRue, and a dazzling adventure that will play out across centuries and continents, across history and art, as a young woman learns how far she will go to leave her mark on the world. But everything changes when, after nearly 300 years, Addie stumbles across a young man in a hidden bookstore and he remembers her name. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e1d07b15-979a-4377-9ba1-357878a28bfa/205181098.jpg Blog - 16 Enchanting Fantasy Standalone Novels - The Thirteenth Child by Erin A. Craig All gifts come with a price. Hazel Trépas has always known she wasn’t like the rest of her siblings. A thirteenth child, promised away to one of the gods, she spends her childhood waiting for her godfather—Merrick, the Dreaded End—to arrive. When he does, he lays out exactly how he’s planned Hazel’s future. She will become a great healer, known throughout the kingdom for her precision and skill. To aid her endeavors, Merrick blesses Hazel with a gift, the ability to instantly deduce the exact cure needed to treat the sick. But all gifts come with a price. Hazel can see when Death has claimed a patient—when all hope is gone—and is tasked to end their suffering, permanently. Haunted by the ghosts of those she’s killed, Hazel longs to run. But destiny brings her to the royal court, where she meets Leo, a rakish prince with a disdain for everything and everyone. And it’s where Hazel faces her biggest dilemma yet—to save the life of a king marked to die. Hazel knows what she is meant to do and knows what her heart is urging her toward, but what will happen if she goes against the will of Death? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/41806c18-9261-4d63-a6f9-917e38032db9/201750794.jpg Blog - 16 Enchanting Fantasy Standalone Novels - The Bright Sword by Lev Grossman A gifted young knight named Collum arrives at Camelot to compete for a spot on the Round Table, only to find he’s too late. The king died two weeks ago at the Battle of Camlann, leaving no heir, and only a handful of the knights of the Round Table survive. They aren’t the heroes of legend, like Lancelot or Gawain. They’re the oddballs of the Round Tables, from the edges of the stories, like Sir Palomides, the Saracen Knight and Sir Dagonet, Arthur’s fool, who was knighted as a joke. They’re joined by Nimue, who was Merlin’s apprentice until she turned on him and buried him under a hill. Together this ragtag fellowship will set out to rebuild Camelot in a world that has lost its balance. But Arthur’s death has revealed Britain’s fault lines. God has abandoned it, and the fairies and monsters and old gods are returning, led by Arthur’s half-sister Morgan le Fay. Kingdoms are turning on each other, warlords are laying siege to Camelot, and rival factions are forming around the disgraced Lancelot and the fallen Queen Guinevere. It is up to Collum and his companions to reclaim Excalibur, solve the mysteries of this ruined world and make it whole again. But before they can restore Camelot they’ll have to learn the truth of why the lonely, brilliant King Arthur fell and lay to rest the ghosts of his troubled family and of Britain’s dark past. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5a2e67c5-d976-414b-bb02-b5226f663c41/230634102-2.jpg Blog - 16 Enchanting Fantasy Standalone Novels - A Language of Dragons by S.F. Williamson EVERY ACT OF TRANSLATION REQUIRES SACRIFICE Welcome to Bletchley Park… with dragons. London, 1923. Dragons soar through the skies and protests erupt on the streets, but Vivien Featherswallow isn’t worried. She’s going to follow the rules, get an internship studying dragon languages, and make sure her little sister never has to risk growing up Third Class. By midnight, Viv has started a civil war. With her parents arrested and her sister missing, all the safety Viv has worked for is collapsing around her. So when a lifeline is offered in the form of a mysterious ‘job’, she grabs it. Arriving at Bletchley Park, Viv discovers that she has been recruited as a codebreaker helping the war effort – if she succeeds, she and her family can all go home again. If she doesn’t, they’ll all die. At first Viv believes that her challenge, of discovering the secrets of a hidden dragon language, is doable. But the more she learns, the more she realises that the bubble she’s grown up in isn’t as safe as she thought, and eventually Viv must decide: What war is she really fighting? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/af11bf16-782b-41c7-829e-d553815dbe48/224078325.jpg Blog - 16 Enchanting Fantasy Standalone Novels - The Wicked Lies of Habren Faire by Anna Fiteni Ceridwen Parry has run away with the fairies. But this is not her story. For Sabrina Parry, the world is tough, cruel and practical. With her father in prison, her aims in life are: 1. hold onto her job, 2. hold her tongue and 3. set up her sister Ceridwen with a man rich enough to look after her. Ceridwen is lovely, romantic, timid – everything that Sabrina isn’t. But then Ceridwen vanishes into the eerie woods leaving only an iron ring behind and Sabrina is drawn into a beautiful but decaying world of fairies and monsters of old. And when an annoyingly handsome fairy prince offers her a dangerous deal, Sabrina is forced to put her own freedom at risk to save her sister. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2a6d5ca9-b366-4e9d-9009-33a01b3e9e90/59559145.jpg Blog - 16 Enchanting Fantasy Standalone Novels - Spells For Forgetting by Adrienne Young Emery Blackwood’s life changed forever the night her best friend was found dead and the love of her life, August Salt, was accused of murdering her. Years later, she is doing what her teenage self swore she never would: living a quiet existence on the misty, remote shores of Saoirse Island and running the family’s business, Blackwood’s Tea Shoppe Herbal Tonics & Tea Leaf Readings. But when the island, rooted in folklore and magic, begins to show signs of strange happenings, Emery knows that something is coming. The morning she wakes to find that every single tree on Saoirse has turned color in a single night, August returns for the first time in fourteen years and unearths the past that the town has tried desperately to forget. August knows he is not welcome on Saoirse, not after the night everything changed. As a fire raged on at the Salt family orchard, Lily Morgan was found dead in the dark woods, shaking the bedrock of their tight-knit community and branding August a murderer. When he returns to bury his mother’s ashes, he must confront the people who turned their backs on him and face the one wound from his past that has never healed—Emery. But the town has more than one reason to want August gone, and the emergence of deep betrayals and hidden promises spanning generations threaten to reveal the truth behind Lily’s mysterious death once and for all. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/15-books-to-celebrate-black-history-month monthly 0.5 2026-02-12 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6ce4ca85-fbc5-4004-85fa-6e551bf6fd6a/212806648-2.jpg Blog - 15 Books to Celebrate Black History Month - Junie by Erin Crosby Eckstine Sixteen years old and enslaved since she was born, Junie has spent her life on Bellereine Plantation in Alabama, cooking and cleaning alongside her family, and tending to the white master’s daughter, Violet. Her daydreams are filled with poetry and faraway worlds, while she spends her nights secretly roaming through the forest, consumed with grief over the sudden death of her older sister, Minnie. When wealthy guests arrive from New Orleans, hinting at marriage for Violet and upending Junie’s life, she commits a desperate act—one that rouses Minnie’s spirit from the grave, tethered to this world unless Junie can free her. She enlists the aid of Caleb, the guests’ coachman, and their friendship soon becomes something more. Yet as long-held truths begin to crumble, she realizes Bellereine is harboring dark and horrifying secrets that can no longer be ignored. With time ticking down, Junie begins to push against the harsh current that has controlled her entire life. As she grapples with an increasingly unfamiliar world in which she has little control, she is forced to ask herself: When we choose love and liberation, what must we leave behind? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/138edb69-9ca0-4fd2-98cf-8ac25a8c4c68/222658339.jpg Blog - 15 Books to Celebrate Black History Month - The Wilderness by Angela Flournoy Desiree, Danielle, January, Monique, and Nakia are in their early twenties and at the beginning. Of their careers, of marriage, of motherhood, and of big-city lives in New York and Los Angeles. Together, they are finding their way through the wilderness, that period of life when the reality of contemporary adulthood—overwhelming, mysterious, and full of freedom and consequences—swoops in and stays. Desiree and Danielle, sisters whose shared history has done little to prevent their estrangement, nurse bitter family wounds in different ways. January’s got a relationship with a “good” man she feels ambivalent about, even after her surprise pregnancy. Monique, a librarian and aspiring blogger, finds unexpected online fame after calling out the university where she works for its plans to whitewash fraught history. And Nakia is trying to get her restaurant off the ground, without relying on the largesse of her upper middle-class family who wonder aloud if she should be doing something better with her life. As these friends move from the late 2000’s into the late 2020’s, from young adults to grown women, they must figure out what they mean to one another—amid political upheaval, economic and environmental instability, and the increasing volatility of modern American life. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ca43d6cf-8d99-45e8-865e-dc8ac885fc5a/232209360.jpg Blog - 15 Books to Celebrate Black History Month - Burn Down Master’s House by Clay Cane In the midst of the Civil War, another war brews among the enslaved who are living and enduring in the shadow of the plantations—imposing monuments to power and tyranny. Their interconnected journeys of rebellion and kinship unite them in a long-seething need for justice. In an ultimate act of revolution, they will get it. Luke, intelligent and literate, and Henri, a man with a strong and defiant spirit, forge an unbreakable bond at Magnolia Row in Virginia. Both seek escape from unimaginable cruelty. And sure as the fires of hell, Luke and Henri will leave their mark, sparking future uprisings. Like Josephine, a young, sharp, and observant girl who wields silence as her greatest weapon. She listens, watches, waits. Her vow is They gonna remember us. Also, Charity Butler has successfully fought for her freedom, but battles against a deeply unjust system and a future abolitionist. Then there is Nathaniel, a Black enslaver whose existence disturbs the very nature of bondage. His rule is both fragile and contradictory, setting off a collision of resistance that will shape their fates. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7e21b238-d1ec-4559-8e54-01c12ab1a9a2/219833252.jpg Blog - 15 Books to Celebrate Black History Month - King of Ashes by S.A. Cosby A son returning home. A dangerous debt. Secrets about to ignite . . . and a family consumed by flames. Roman Carruthers left the smoke and fire of his family's crematory business behind in his hometown of Jefferson Run, Virginia. He is enjoying a life of shallow excess as a financial adviser in Atlanta until he gets a call from his sister, Neveah, telling him their father is in a coma after a hit-and-run accident. When Roman goes home, he learns the accident may not be what it seems. His brother, Dante, is deeply in debt to dangerous, ruthless criminals. And Roman is willing to do anything to protect his family. Anything. A financial whiz with a head for numbers and a talent for making his clients rich, Roman must use all his skills to try to save his family while dealing with a shadow that has haunted them all for twenty years: the disappearance of their mother when Roman and his siblings were teenagers. It's a mystery that Neveah, who has sacrificed so much of her life to hold her family together, is determined to solve once and for all. As fate and chance and heartache ignite their lives, the Carruthers family must pull together to survive or see their lives turn to ash. Because, as their father counseled them from birth, nothing lasts forever. Everything burns. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bb885fd7-c656-4590-a94f-5746e7955d61/233301113.jpg Blog - 15 Books to Celebrate Black History Month - The Re-Do List by Denise Williams Willow experienced all her big firsts with her high school sweetheart. Now, reeling from their very public breakup, she wants to get a re-do on those important moments. While dog-sitting for her brother during his deployment, she has a chance to start over and spending time with his best friend gives her the confidence to start checking items off her “Re-Do list.” Deacon promised his best friend two things when Cruz left for a deployment: that he’d look out for Willow, and that he’d keep his hands off Cruz’s baby sister. “Operation Re-Do” is innocent enough at first: Deacon likes Willow and he’s willing to help her out any way he can. But when the list of firsts turns from a first dance to first kisses and more, Deacon can’t deny the connection he feels to Willow. As Deacon’s and Willow’s firsts turn to seconds, thirds, and fourths, this pair can’t get enough of each other—and they support each other through new challenges. But they are both aware there’s an end date to Willow’s time in town… and even if she were to stay, Deacon doesn’t know how to choose between his loyalty to his closest friend and the woman he’s fallen in love with. With no more romantic moments on her list for them to re-do, can these two still find a way to stay together? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9e8ebeaf-8dfc-4f2b-890e-d04c1a6d23ff/228347660.jpg Blog - 15 Books to Celebrate Black History Month - Amity by Nathan Harris New Orleans, 1866. The Civil War might be over, but formerly enslaved Coleman and June have yet to find the freedom they’ve been promised. Two years ago, the siblings were separated when their old master, Mr. Harper, took June away to Mexico, where he hoped to escape the new reality of the post-war South. Coleman stayed behind in Louisiana to serve the Harper family, clinging to the hope that one day June would return. When an unexpected letter from Mr. Harper arrives, summoning Coleman to Mexico, Coleman thinks that finally his prayers have been answered. What Coleman cannot know is the tangled truth of June’s tribulations under Mr. Harper out on the frontier. And when disaster strikes Coleman’s journey, he is forced on the run with Mr. Harper's daughter, Florence. Together, they venture into the Mexican desert to find June, all the while evading two crooked brothers who'll stop at nothing to capture Coleman and Florence and collect the money they're owed. As Coleman and June separately navigate a perilous, parched landscape, the siblings learn quickly that freedom isn't always given—sometimes, it must be taken by force. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/20fec4ce-5d5b-4387-8b6c-d57564893deb/218426911-2.jpg Blog - 15 Books to Celebrate Black History Month - The Devil Three Times by Rickey Fayne Yetunde awakens aboard a slave ship en route to the United States with the spirit of her dead sister as her only companion. Desperate to survive the hell that awaits her at their destination, Yetunde finds help in an unexpected form—the Devil himself. The Devil, seeking a way to reenter the pearly gates of heaven, decides to prove himself to an indifferent God by protecting Yetunde and granting her a piece of his supernatural power. In return, Yetunde makes an incredible sacrifice. Their bargain extends far beyond Yetunde's mortal lifespan. Over the next 175 years, the Devil visits Yetunde's descendants in their darkest hour of Lucille, a conjure woman; Asa, who passes for white; Louis and Virgil, who risk becoming a twentieth-century Cain and Abel; Cassandra, who speaks to the dead; James, who struggles to make sense of the past while fighting to keep his family together; and many others. The Devil offers each of them his own version of salvation, all the while can he save himself, too? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4c850e35-b46d-47d6-85a1-c0b2f9112cdc/220687907-2.jpg Blog - 15 Books to Celebrate Black History Month - Love You to Death by Christina Dotson How well do we really know our friends? As the only Black women at an antebellum-themed wedding, Kayla and Zorie should’ve known this heist was doomed from the start. They should never have come, but when their financial situation became dire, they agreed to hit one last wedding. Jaded and cynical Kayla has spent the last decade trying to fix her life since an angsty teen prank led to her arrest. Now, with her housekeeping job at a subpar hotel and her disappointing, Cinderella-esque relationship with her dad and obnoxious stepsister, she hates the life she’s built. Her only bright spots are her best friend, Zorie, and their favorite weekend pastime of crashing weddings to steal the money and pawn the gifts. But what started as a lark has evolved into a greedy obsession, making each wedding haul riskier than the last. While trying to avoid the angry bride and groom, Kayla and Zorie's getaway takes a gruesome turn and suddenly the “Wedding Crash Killers” are national news. The best friends are forced to hit the road to dodge the authorities, but their escape plan leaves behind a bloody trail of destruction from Georgia all the way to the bayou. As past grudges resurface, Kayla realizes that the best friend she thought she knew is more dangerous than she could ever have realized. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9dd4c4f5-902e-4101-bbb2-20639fd1f44c/232209415.jpg Blog - 15 Books to Celebrate Black History Month - Humboldt Cut by Allison Mick Jasmine Bay is a nurse for an Oakland mental health facility, battling her own demons, caught in a spiral of suicidal despair. Estranged from her brother James and his wife Tilly, who was once her best friend, Jas has chosen self-isolation to protect herself—even if it means denying herself a hopeful future with co-worker and potential love interest Henry Lewis. When her godmother dies, Jas returns to Redceder for the funeral, a logging town where her grandfather William Whipple made a living deforesting the countryside, ripping and raping apart nature’s very foundations for corporate profits. As trees fell to axes and chainsaws, so did dozens of lumberjacks, falling prey to the dangers of their job—and to the ecoterrorism of Jas’s grandfather who was lynched for his crimes. And buried in the haunted woods are even more dark secrets perpetrated by Jas’s family. Unnatural acts giving birth to entities made of human flesh and petrified bark, seeking to avenge the devastation that ravaged their land. It is an inheritance that threatens to consume the remnants of Jas’s family, and her very sanity. . . https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2b6afa13-7763-4e39-b248-fb0bdd52d756/235992421.jpg Blog - 15 Books to Celebrate Black History Month - Keeper of Lost Children by Sadeqa Johnson Lost in the streets and smoldering rubble of Occupied Germany, Ethel Gathers, the proud wife of an American soldier spots a gaggle of mixed-race children following a nun. Desperate to conceive her own family, she feels compelled to follow them to learn their story. Ozzie Philips volunteers for the army in 1948, eager to break barriers for Black soldiers. Despite his best efforts, he finds the racism he encountered at home in Philadelphia has followed him overseas. He finds solace in the arms of Jelka, a German woman struggling with the lack of resources and even joy in her destroyed country. In 1965, Sophia Clark discovers she’s been given an opportunity to integrate a prestigious boarding school in Maryland and leave behind her spiteful parents and the grueling demands. In a chance meeting with a fellow classmate, she discovers a secret that upends her world. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f7f7db51-7212-4a2f-9983-59c8c5b5a30b/218372325.jpg Blog - 15 Books to Celebrate Black History Month - Can’t Get Enough by Kennedy Ryan Hendrix Barry lives a fabulous life. She has phenomenal friends, a loving family, and a thriving business that places her in the entertainment industry's rarefied air. Your vision board? She’s probably living it. She’s a woman with goals, dreams, ambitions—always striving upward. And in the midst of everything, she's facing her toughest challenge caring for an aging parent. Who has time for romance? From her experience, there's a low ROI on relationships. Anyway, she hasn't met the man who can keep up with her. Until...him. Tech mogul Maverick Bell is a dilemma wrapped in an exquisitely tailored suit and knee-melting charm. From their first charged glance at the summer's hottest party, Hendrix feels like she’s met her match. Only he can’t be. Mav may be the first to make her feel this seen and desired, but he’s the last one she can have. Forbidden fruit is the juiciest, and this man is off limits if she plans to stay the course she’s set for herself. But when Maverick gives chase—pursuing her, spoiling her, understanding her—is it time to let herself have something more? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0aa3fb3b-7774-4cc1-985d-c00405478c6c/227429747.jpg Blog - 15 Books to Celebrate Black History Month - Cursed Daughters by Oyinkan Braithwaite When Ebun gives birth to her daughter, Eniiyi, on the day they bury her cousin Monife, there is no denying the startling resemblance between the child and the dead woman. So begins the belief, fostered and fanned by the entire family, that Eniiyi is the actual reincarnation of Monife, fated to follow in her footsteps in all ways, including that tragic end. There is also the matter of the family curse: “No man will call your house his home. And if they try, they will not have peace...” which has been handed down from generation to generation, breaking hearts and causing three generations of abandoned Falodun women to live under the same roof. When Eniiyi falls in love with the handsome boy she saves from drowning, she can no longer run from her family’s history. As several women in her family have done before, she ill-advisedly seeks answers in older, darker spiritual corners of Lagos, demanding solutions. Is she destined to live out the habitual story of love and heartbreak? Or can she break the pattern once and for all, not only avoiding the spiral that led Monife to her lonely death, but liberating herself from all the family secrets and unspoken traumas that have dogged her steps since before she could remember? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1b5c21a4-2710-420c-98d4-b4ea9dd0a0e2/224004815.jpg Blog - 15 Books to Celebrate Black History Month - Boom Town by Nic Stone When Damaris “Charm” Wilburn, a new daytime dancer, is missing for her shift at Boom Town, former headliner Michah “Lyriq” Johanssen suspects something more than a “no call, no show.” As Lyriq’s former headline partner and lover—Felice “Lucky” Carothers—also vanished under similar circumstances, Lyriq decides she’s going to find them. Delving deeper into Charm and Lucky’s disappearances, Lyriq uncovers a tangled web of deceit, privilege, and power. The line between friend and foe blurs, forcing Lyriq to confront the question: Is finding for these women worth the threat to her own life? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/41486c3b-392e-46b4-88ba-6a9c51d77719/235992776.jpg Blog - 15 Books to Celebrate Black History Month - The Seven Daughters of Dupree It’s 1995, and fourteen-year-old Tati is determined to uncover the identity of her father. But her mother, Nadia, keeps her secrets close, while her grandmother Gladys remains silent about the family’s past, including why she left Land’s End, Alabama, in 1953. As Tati digs deeper, she uncovers a legacy of family secrets, where every generation of Dupree women has posed more questions than answers. From Jubi in 1917, whose attempt to pass for white ends when she gives birth to Ruby; to Ruby’s fiery lust for Sampson in 1934 that leads to a baby of her own; to the night in 1980 that changed Nadia’s future forever, the Dupree women carry the weight of their heritage. Bound by a mysterious malediction that means they will only give birth to daughters, the Dupree women confront a legacy of pain, resilience, and survival that began with an enslaved ancestor who risked everything for freedom. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b25a9755-757f-4ea6-8201-c54a34131eee/213618132.jpg Blog - 15 Books to Celebrate Black History Month - Good Dirt by Charmaine Wilkerson When ten-year-old Ebby Freeman heard the gunshot, time stopped. And when she saw her brother, Baz, lying on the floor surrounded by the shattered pieces of a centuries-old jar, life as Ebby knew it shattered as well. The crime was never solved—and because the Freemans were one of the only Black families in a particularly well-to-do enclave of New England—the case has had an enduring, voyeuristic pull for the public. The last thing the Freemans want is another media frenzy splashing their family across the papers, but when Ebby's high profile romance falls apart without any explanation, that's exactly what they get. So Ebby flees to France, only for her past to follow her there. And as she tries to process what's happened, she begins to think about the other loss her family suffered on that day eighteen years ago—the stoneware jar that had been in their family for generations, brought North by an enslaved ancestor. But little does she know that the handcrafted piece of pottery held more than just her family's history—it might also hold the key to unlocking her own future. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/16-recs-for-the-winter-olympics monthly 0.5 2026-02-08 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/415e6a5b-31f2-48d7-af46-ae1aea12f5da/211399784.jpg Blog - 16 Recs for the Winter Olympics - The Favorites by Layne Fargo She might not have a famous name, funding, or her family’s support, but Katarina Shaw has always known that she was destined to become an Olympic skater. When she meets Heath Rocha, a lonely kid stuck in the foster care system, their instant connection makes them a formidable duo on the ice. Clinging to skating—and each other—to escape their turbulent lives, Kat and Heath go from childhood sweethearts to champion ice dancers, captivating the world with their scorching chemistry, rebellious style, and roller-coaster relationship. Until a shocking incident at the Olympic Games brings their partnership to a sudden end. As the ten-year anniversary of their final skate approaches, an unauthorized documentary reignites the public fascination with Shaw and Rocha, claiming to uncover the “real story” through interviews with their closest friends and fiercest rivals. Kat wants nothing to do with the documentary, but she can’t stand the thought of someone else defining her legacy. So, after a decade of silence, she’s telling her story: from the childhood tragedies that created her all-consuming bond with Heath to the clash of desires that tore them apart. Sensational rumors have haunted their every step for years, but the truth may be even more shocking than the headlines. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bfb42dd6-2bc2-470b-a1ee-0dbdf14c5bbc/208863012.jpg Blog - 16 Recs for the Winter Olympics - Head Over Skates by Gigi Blume Sometimes you have to play dirty to score big. OWEN: I've never met a challenge I couldn't deke out—until Emily Brooks blasted into my world with all the subtlety of a slapshot to the face. When an underwear incident (don’t ask) gives Emily ammunition for her gossip blog Blades After Dark, I’ve become her very reluctant muse. Perched on her Zamboni with a crafty smirk on that gorgeous face, she’s determined to turn my life into one big penalty box. Not only does this woman have an Olympic-sized grudge against me, she cheered—yes, cheered—for the other team. When I find out she has a secret she doesn’t want out, it’s gloves off. I’m tempted to toss her right into the sin bin, but she’s skating circles around me. In a catsuit. (don’t ask about that, either) But now the championship cup’s gone missing, and we find ourselves sleuthing in closed quarters—despite Emily’s stubborn determination to keep me at stick's length. Now I can’t stop thinking about that stolen kiss, and I want another taste. Am I playing for keeps? Or am I the one who's being played? EMILY: My Olympic figure skating dreams got toe-picked, but driving a Zamboni at the Toronto Blizzard Dome has its perks—like not being recognized. Beneath the cloak of anonymity, my words do what my skates used to; they slice with precision—in my late-night hockey blog. Enter Owen Jablonski, the cocky star player with more notches on his hockey stick than all the pucks in Canada. Yet he singles me out to—get this—come on to me. The gall. But the pen is mightier than the skate blade, so they say. Do I have reasons for slamming Owen’s name against the boards? Yes, I do. And when a funny post about him goes viral, can you blame me for finding Owen's flustered face a little bit delightful? But instead of a simple exposé, Owen turns the tables on me and brokers a twisted deal: polish his precious public image in my blog in exchange for his silence on my identity. It's extortion with a side of sultry glares. And secret kisses against the wall. He's maddening, infuriating... a reeaaally good kisser. Now I’m stuck in a reluctant pact with Owen. Stack on a mystery and the sting of his smoldering kiss on my mind, the heat between us might just melt all the ice in the rink. He’s not what I expected, or wanted. How fiercely protective he is. How he insists I wear his jersey. How my heart flips when he stands up for me. Or the way his eyes rake over me with want. Oof. Is it getting hot in here? I need to body-check my feelings before Owen scores more than just goals. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d48d50d3-01a1-4151-b363-ec0ed864c2f0/222081655.jpg Blog - 16 Recs for the Winter Olympics - If You Love Me by Helena Hunting Two nights with her ruined me for all other women, but I never got the chance to make her mine. I’m the pinnacle of control. I protect the net, my team, and my daughter. It’s my final season and I can’t afford any distractions. Except our new assistant coach just walked in. And I would know her face anywhere. She’s the one I dream about. That weekend, I was just a man—not the legend, the dad, the mentor. I didn’t care that I was a decade older. For the first time in my life, I was ready to risk everything if it meant having her. Until I woke up to an empty bed and no note. Three years of wishing I knew how to find her, now she’s my new boss. I can be patient. But for her—I want to break all the rules. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3298fdfd-dc2c-4758-83f1-472c1e5507e9/224004053.jpg Blog - 16 Recs for the Winter Olympics - Off Your Game by Susan Renee Good looks and wads of cash usually get me whatever I desire, unless I desire a box of my favorite cereal at the grocery store right before it closes. As if tonight’s loss wasn’t bad enough, I'm now watching said box of cereal, my literal good luck charm, disappear in some woman’s cart. The brazen woman denies my cash offer along with my proposal for a more intimate payment. How much loss can a man take in one day? At this point, who cares how rude I am to her? She’s public enemy number one and chances of seeing her again are slim to none. That is, until she appears at the arena the next morning as the newest marketing rep for the Chicago Red Tails hockey team. Just my luck. Carissa Smallson is feisty, outspoken, and boldly confident. She's also funny, down to earth, and…ugh, she’s insanely pretty. Everything about her is both unbelievably annoying and terrifyingly attractive. As Captain of the team, I’m always laser focused on my job, but lately I can’t stop thinking about her. I lead my team to victory night after night. Hustle, hit, and never quit. But if I’m not careful, she could knock me off my game. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/830f16bf-e78f-4ab2-8463-376ffa375123/174713026.jpg Blog - 16 Recs for the Winter Olympics - Behind the Net by Stephanie Archer He's the hot, grumpy goalie I had a crush on in high school... and now I'm his live-in assistant. After my ex crushed my dreams in the music industry, I’m done with getting my heart broken. Working as an assistant for an NHL player was supposed to be a breeze, but nothing about Jamie Streicher is easy. He’s an intimidatingly hot, grouchy jerk who can't stand me. The guy has a massive ego. Keeping things professional will be no problem, even when he demands I move in with him. Beneath his surliness, though, Jamie’s surprisingly sweet and protective. When Jamie learns how bad my ex was in bed, his competitive nature flares, and he encourages and spoils me in every way. The creative spark I used to feel about songwriting? It’s back, and I’m writing music again. Between wearing his jersey at games, rowdy parties with the team, and being brave on stage again, I’m falling for him. He could break my heart, but it might be worth it. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c4b709bb-dab3-43c5-b1da-3972af12d7e9/230202904.jpg Blog - 16 Recs for the Winter Olympics - Just Breaking the Rules by Lauren Blakely Everyone knows the golden rule of business: don’t bang your business partner. Especially if he’s your brother’s hot-as-sin, hockey-star best friend. But when the sexy single dad athlete saves me from a cake contest catastrophe—and shows me how good he is with his hands—I blurt out the world’s worst business pitch: Want to invest in my bakery? With no loan or backup plan, this is my last shot at proving I’m more than my past mistakes, and shockingly, he says yes. We set one rule: don’t mix business with pleasure. Except Corbin Knight’s impossible to resist. When he’s not scoring goals, he’s staying up late with me to test tempting recipes. Braiding my hair before we bake like it’s foreplay. Giving me his jersey to wear to games. I try to keep a professional distance from the bossy, possessive and dangerously flirty hockey player, but soon we’re testing the limits of the kitchen counter. This bakery is my chance to finally get my life right, so I fight the messy feelings. Until one night, he shows up after closing and admits he can’t stop thinking about me. Suddenly I’m ready to break every rule—no matter the cost to our dreams. And breaking the rules has never tasted so good. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/557abb01-8a50-41ae-9192-bfacae88cfe5/40097744.jpg Blog - 16 Recs for the Winter Olympics - Ride by Harper Dallas No one rides like Chase Austin. Bad boy. Player. Adrenaline junkie. Snowboarder Chase Austin has a reputation—and not just for being the world’s best extreme athlete. He’s as cold as the mountains he rides, loyal only to his crew . . . and panties drop wherever he goes. Photographer Brooke Larson knows better than to let him get through her emotional Kevlar. So what if she used to have his poster on her bedroom wall? She’s not a teenager with a crush anymore. Chase Austin is her key to the big time, and she’s getting his photo no matter what. Too bad the only place Chase wants her is in his bed. Men leave. Success is forever. Brooke knows the drill, and she’s not letting anyone get in the way of her career—or into her heart. But whether it’s on the slopes or between the sheets, riding with the best means risking it all. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/80ea8887-3770-45d7-914d-6f6a986fac88/37683751.jpg Blog - 16 Recs for the Winter Olympics - From Lukov with Love by Mariana Zapata hey're the coldest of enemies off the ice . . . But could their shared passion on the ice turn to unexpected heat? If someone were to ask Jasmine Santos to describe the last few years of her life with a single word, it would definitely be a four-letter one. After seventeen years of figure skating - and countless broken bones and broken promises - she knows her window to compete is coming to a close. But when the offer of a lifetime comes from the arrogant idiot she's spent the last decade dreaming about pushing in front of a moving bus, Jasmine might have to reconsider everything. Including Ivan Lukov. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9151056f-27d9-4924-b82f-d3eb6565f92f/228690557.jpg Blog - 16 Recs for the Winter Olympics - Finding Her Edge by Jennifer Iacopelli Adriana Russo is figure skating royalty. With gold-medalist parents, and her older sister headed to the Olympics, all she wants is to live up to the family name and stand atop the ice dance podium at the Junior World Championships. But fame doesn’t always mean fortune, and their legendary skating rink is struggling under the weight of her dad’s lavish lifestyle. The only thing keeping it afloat is a deal to host the rest of the Junior Worlds team before they leave for France. That means training on the same ice as her first crush, Freddie, the partner she left when her growth spurt outpaced his. For the past two years, he’s barely acknowledged her existence, and she can’t even blame him for it. When the family’s finances take another unexpected hit, losing the rink seems inevitable until her partner, Brayden, suggests they let the world believe what many have suspected: that their intense chemistry isn’t contained to the ice. Fans and sponsors alike take the bait, but keeping up the charade is harder than she ever imagined. And training alongside Freddie makes it worse, especially when pretending with Brayden starts to feel very real. As the biggest competition of her life draws closer and her family’s legacy hangs in the balance, Adriana is caught between her past and present, between the golden future she’s worked so hard for, and the one she gave up long ago. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5b6fed13-5a4d-4129-bd13-6a8495bba076/33413128.jpg Blog - 16 Recs for the Winter Olympics - Bear Town by Fredrik Backman People say Beartown is finished. A tiny community nestled deep in the forest, it is slowly losing ground to the ever encroaching trees. But down by the lake stands an old ice rink, built generations ago by the working men who founded this town. And in that ice rink is the reason people in Beartown believe tomorrow will be better than today. Their junior ice hockey team is about to compete in the national semi-finals, and they actually have a shot at winning. All the hopes and dreams of this place now rest on the shoulders of a handful of teenage boys. Being responsible for the hopes of an entire town is a heavy burden, and the semi-final match is the catalyst for a violent act that will leave a young girl traumatized and a town in turmoil. Accusations are made and, like ripples on a pond, they travel through all of Beartown, leaving no resident unaffected. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/30329f8a-d531-4a15-b164-6dfe658c34a2/198853583.jpg Blog - 16 Recs for the Winter Olympics - Unsteady by Peyton Corinne Rhys Koteskiy is back — at least, he's supposed to be. During last year’s Frozen Four, the Waterfell University hockey captain, and NHL legacy, took a brutal hit that left him with a concussion and a new discomfort on the ice. Plagued by nightmares and panic attacks every time he attempt to skate, Rhys wonders if he’ll ever play again — if he’ll ever want to. Sadie Brown is staying focused this semester — no matter what. Currently drowning in debt, custody hearings for her younger brothers and skating practices, she's just trying to make it to the next day. A spitfire figure skater known for her bad attitude and frequent disappearing acts, she has a reputation on campus. And it’s not a pretty one. When she accidentally witnesses one of the golden boy hockey captain’s panic attacks and attempts to help him, a strange sort of understanding strikes up between them. No questions asked. Just comfort. But Rhys finds himself drawn to Sadie. Where he feels empty, a shell of the man and player he was before, Sadie is so full of everything it bursts from her; every emotion she feels seems like it’s blasted at max. Rhys is desperate to feel anything, Sadie wants to stop feeling so much. But healing doesn’t mix with secrets, and they’re both skating a thin line, unsteady . https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8807c0c4-a5af-4af0-aeb1-aef90b21002f/58953626.jpg Blog - 16 Recs for the Winter Olympics - The Deal by Elle Kennedy She’s about to make a deal with the college bad boy… Hannah Wells has finally found someone who turns her on. But while she might be confident in every other area of her life, she’s carting around a full set of baggage when it comes to sex and seduction. If she wants to get her crush’s attention, she’ll have to step out of her comfort zone and make him take notice…even if it means tutoring the annoying, childish, cocky captain of the hockey team in exchange for a pretend date. ...and it’s going to be oh so good All Garrett Graham has ever wanted is to play professional hockey after graduation, but his plummeting GPA is threatening everything he’s worked so hard for. If helping a sarcastic brunette make another guy jealous will help him secure his position on the team, he’s all for it. But when one unexpected kiss leads to the wildest sex of both their lives, it doesn’t take long for Garrett to realize that pretend isn’t going to cut it. Now he just has to convince Hannah that the man she wants looks a lot like him. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5b77d4a4-3436-4a07-9510-1ce329a1148b/203043386.jpg Blog - 16 Recs for the Winter Olympics - Out of Bounds by Julia Connors I’m a type-A planner. Arriving at my best friend’s wedding newly single—not planned. Off-the-charts chemistry with her much younger brother—also unplanned. Agreeing to be his roommate for a few weeks—wait, was there a plan? Jilted by my cheating ex-fiancé and left homeless in the process, it’s a no-brainer to take my best friend Jackson up on her offer to stay in her condo in Park City. The only catch? Jackson’s already agreed to let her younger brother Beau stay there for a few weeks. Living with Beau short-term shouldn’t be an issue, except when we meet again for the first time in a decade, our chemistry is off the charts. But Beau is everything I’m not looking for in a guy: he’s unpredictable and self-centred, a known womanizer, and incapable of committing to anything besides travelling the globe snowboarding. Plus, no guy is worth losing my best friend over. As barely tolerating each other turns to barely restrained attraction, our relationship is pushed far past the boundaries we’ve both erected. Can we keep it casual as our relationship heats up, or are we risking every plan we’ve ever made? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/cfd93a91-9718-4890-9c3b-c32b4ab22452/223641012.jpg Blog - 16 Recs for the Winter Olympics - Revolve by Bal Khabra Sierra Romanova was an Olympian figure skater before a life-altering accident on the ice left her with panic attacks every time she enters the rink. Now, back for her final year at Dalton University, she’s ready to reclaim the spotlight, with all eyes on her…including those of hockey player Dylan Donovan, whose audacious words goad her back into her skates to prove him wrong. After getting kicked off his hockey team for his reckless behavior, Dylan is left with slim chances of making it to the NHL draft. But Dylan’s whole world revolves around the ice, and if hockey is forbidden, well at least there’s figure skating. Even better, it means more time at the rink with Sierra. Sure, he’s helping her rebuild her confidence, but pushing her buttons along the way? That’s just a bonus. As the figure skating world awaits Sierra's comeback, she finds herself in need for a new pairs partner. The only person she knows who can match her skill on the ice is none other than the cocky hockey player who refuses to cut her any slack. Dylan's a wildcard, Sierra's a seasoned pro, but together, they might just be the perfect match on the ice. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/55d573c7-127c-48ef-8e06-6ed09569ebd1/224003280.jpg Blog - 16 Recs for the Winter Olympics - Heart Check by Emily Charlotte Luke Dawson and Harper Braedon could have been friends. They trade shifts at the same diner, share classes at school, and are driven by their greatest passions: hockey for Dawson and jewelry-making for Harper. But some things aren't meant to be. Dawson thinks Harper is stuck-up, too good for anything resembling school spirit. Harper thinks Dawson is a self-centered jock, a perfect fit for a hockey team that seems to absorb all the budget away from the arts departments. When his beloved hockey coach gets fired for misallocation of funds, Dawson is terrified that all his plans for impressing scouts are vanishing before his eyes. A rumor goes around that Harper was the one who got him fired, and suddenly she’s public enemy number one. But even with their mutual dislike at an all-time high, Harper and Dawson can’t escape splitting shifts forever. Can forced proximity help them find some common ground, or will long-held grudges finally succeed in bringing them both down? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/550c8abc-0d84-4c24-b868-32357bf38ceb/208293418.jpg Blog - 16 Recs for the Winter Olympics - Offside by Avery Keelan Heartbreaker. Troublemaker. And my ex's biggest rival. After my boyfriend of two years unceremoniously dumps me on my twenty-first birthday, my friends drag me to a trendy new nightclub to drown my sorrows. Several drinks later, I spot the perfect rebound standing next to the bar: Chase Carter, my ex's worst enemy. A notorious antagonizer, Chase is cocky, smart-mouthed... and undeniably hot. Even better, he's rumored to be impressively skilled at more than just hockey. What better way to move on? Unfortunately, my plan falls apart after I have one cocktail too many and throw up all over Chase's shoes. Following a night of him taking care of me while I'm at my worst, I'm certain he'll never want to see me again. But the next time our schools face off, he finds me in the crowd after the game—and when we fake a kiss in front of my ex, the sparks that fly are real. Before I know it, we’re having “study dates” and he's taking me out for a do-over birthday to replace the bad memories with good ones. Beneath his brash exterior, he’s protective and sweet, not to mention generous in every sense of the word. The only problem? We're caught in the midst of a bitter rivalry that extends far beyond the arena. My brother hates him, my friends don't approve, and I'm being forced to choose between my loyalties and my heart. He's the last person I should fall for, but it might just be too late. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/15-swoon-worthy-reads monthly 0.5 2026-02-02 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1aa80dc3-1d6c-41fe-b31d-8be5806ea1cb/217388096.jpg Blog - 15 Swoon Worthy Reads - Left of Forever by Tarah DeWitt This time, they'll get it right. Wren and Ellis Byrd fell in love as kids, had their son Sam when they were only teenagers, and built a life together in the coastal town of Spunes, Oregon. They were made for one another…until they fell apart. Now divorced and in their 30s, Wren runs the bakery in town, while Ellis works as a firefighter. They live separate lives, though they are hardly off each other’s minds. When Sam gets accepted into college and the pair help him move in together, Ellis convinces Wren to take an extended road trip back to Spunes with him to see if they can give their relationship one last chance. Amid the gorgeous scenery of the California coastline, dreamy destinations, and a great deal of long-yearned-for proximity, Wren starts to think it just might be possible. But the two still have to contend with their tumultuous past in order to move forward. And when spoken words fail, sometimes the written word must bridge the gap. Will they make the most of what’s left of forever? Or will they let each other go for good? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e122fd14-99a5-4127-a067-dc5c7ea54c52/228644485.jpg Blog - 15 Swoon Worthy Reads - The Bodyguard Affair by Amy Lea Andi Zeigler lives a double life. By day, she’s the no-nonsense, steadfast personal assistant to the Prime Minister of Canada’s wife. By night, she slips out of her heels and writes romance novels under a top-secret pen name. But when her steamiest book, The Prime Minister & Me, unexpectedly becomes a bestseller, rumors of a real-life affair between her and the PM start swirling out of control. Enter Nolan Crosby, the PM’s new close protection officer (aka bodyguard) – and Andi’s failed one-night stand from three years ago. Nolan’s in town very temporarily to care for his mother, who’s battling early-onset Alzheimer’s. But when the scandal erupts, Andi ropes him into a fake-dating plan. As loyal employees, they’ll pretend to date for the summer, just long enough to put the scandal to bed and save their boss’s reputation. In an unexpected plot twist, Andi and Nolan discover that keeping their romance strictly fictional might be easier said than done. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/241fcdb1-703f-433c-8dd3-a9a62486aee3/211164792.jpg Blog - 15 Swoon Worthy Reads - Beg, Borrow, or Steal by Sarah Adams Emily Walker hates having her carefully crafted world disrupted by anyone, most of all her legendary nemesis, Jack Bennett. He's the opposite of the wonderful heroes she dreams up in her double life as a romance writer, which is why Emily was perfectly happy when Jack left Rome, Kentucky, mid-school year, with his fiancée. The last thing Emily saw coming was Jack’s return at the start of the summer after calling off the wedding and ending his relationship, but he’s here to stay—as her colleague and her neighbor. Jackson Bennett is glad to be back, eager to renovate his house and work on the next mystery novel under his bestselling pen name. But when he realizes he’s now neighbors with the one woman who has always pushed his buttons, he discovers something he’s even more excited for—thwarting Emily and her petty plans to sabotage his return. With their chemistry-fueled animosity at an all-time high, Emily accidentally sends an email to their school’s principal that could reveal her secret literary side hustle. She needs to steal back her manuscript, and Jack—she hates to admit—is just the man to help her. Surprisingly, Jack agrees. Will their unlikely alliance put an end to their rivalry? Or could it lead to a steamy plot twist they never saw coming? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c0f97f7d-febd-43a6-bab4-eba4b17a3980/208516646.jpg Blog - 15 Swoon Worthy Reads - Cross the Line by Simone Soltani Formula 1 driver Dev Anderson’s career is on the line. After a social media disaster leaves him with an angry team and sponsors threatening to jump ship, he needs someone to help save his image. At a party in Monaco, he bumps into the woman who can fix it all. There’s just one problem: she’s his best friend’s little sister. And, okay, maybe there’s another problem—he kissed her last year and hasn’t been able to stop thinking about it since. Recent college grad Willow Williams needs a job. She may have a talent for seeing the bright side of any bad situation, but it’s hard to stay positive when she’s struggling to get hired. So when Dev offers her a temporary solution, she can’t help but say yes. Even if it means ignoring the crush she’s had on him since childhood. Willow and Dev are determined to keep things strictly professional, regardless of old feelings and the blazing chemistry between them. But in the glittering and high-stakes world of Formula 1, some lines are meant to be crossed… https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2ffc091f-0a98-4a39-8004-c68e09588600/219520699.jpg Blog - 15 Swoon Worthy Reads - When Javi Dumped Mari by Mia Sosa On the eve of their college graduation, best friends Javier Báez and Marisol Campos swore never to date someone the other doesn’t approve of. Now, ten years later, Javi has a problem. Mari, the woman he's secretly pined for since sophomore year, is planning to marry—and Javi didn’t even get the chance to vet the Pedro Pascal knockoff. Mari, a successful entertainment lawyer in Los Angeles, is no longer seeking Javi's dating advice or waiting for him to declare his love for her. Instead, she's made a different pact—with herself. And to succeed, she'll need to build a future with someone else. With his life and theater career finally on track, Javi’s ready to confess his feelings. Except Mari’s changed the script and moved on without him. Which means he has eight weeks to convince her this marriage is a flop. And if Javi has to ruffle some feathers to help Mari avert a disaster, well, he’s up for the challenge. After all, isn't that what best friends are for? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4eabaf2b-f291-4767-97fe-548bb5901f3e/123179008.jpg Blog - 15 Swoon Worthy Reads - Done and Dusted by Lyla Sage She’s off-limits, but he’s never been good at following the rules. For the first time in her life, Clementine “Emmy” Ryder has no idea what she’s doing. She’s accomplished everything on her to-do list. She left her small hometown of Meadowlark, Wyoming; went to college; and made a career for herself by doing her favorite thing: riding horses. But after an accident makes it impossible for her to get back into the saddle, she has no choice but to return to the hometown she always wanted to escape. Luke Brooks is Meadowlark’s most notorious bad boy, bar owner, and bachelor. He’s also the unofficial fifth member of the Ryder family. As Emmy’s older brother’s best friend, Luke spent most of his childhood antagonizing her. It’s been years since he’s seen her, but when she walks into his bar and back into his life, he can’t take his eyes off her. Despite his better judgment, he wants to do a whole lot more than just look at her. Emmy’s got too much on her mind to think about romance. And Luke knows he should stay away from his best friend’s younger sister. But what if Luke is just what Emmy needs to get her spark back? Or will they both go up in flames? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/098d757c-ba6f-4a84-abd1-5dfe64804453/55076069.jpg Blog - 15 Swoon Worthy Reads - People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry Two best friends. Ten summer trips. One last chance to fall in love. Poppy and Alex. Alex and Poppy. They have nothing in common. She’s a wild child; he wears khakis. She has insatiable wanderlust; he prefers to stay home with a book. And somehow, ever since a fateful car share home from college many years ago, they are the very best of friends. For most of the year they live far apart—she’s in New York City, and he’s in their small hometown—but every summer, for a decade, they have taken one glorious week of vacation together. Until two years ago, when they ruined everything. They haven’t spoken since. Poppy has everything she should want, but she’s stuck in a rut. When someone asks when she was last truly happy, she knows, without a doubt, it was on that ill-fated, final trip with Alex. And so, she decides to convince her best friend to take one more vacation together—lay everything on the table, make it all right. Miraculously, he agrees. Now she has a week to fix everything. If only she can get around the one big truth that has always stood quietly in the middle of their seemingly perfect relationship. What could possibly go wrong? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6d9dc763-d3d7-487b-ba2f-1f4c1c0c1942/218671828.jpg Blog - 15 Swoon Worthy Reads - Last Night Was Fun by Holly Michelle Emmy Jameson lives by three no dating, no sharing personal news at work, and baseball above everything. As the only female data analyst for a professional baseball team, Emmy is constantly trying to prove herself. Especially when she’s put up for a senior analyst position against her arrogant, infuriating coworker Gabe Olson. Sure, he’s gorgeous and smart and he was a baseball star in college who knows the sport inside and out, but so does Emmy. She is not going to lose to him again. There will be no distractions this summer. Not even her sister’s pending destination wedding in Mexico for which she needs to find a plus one. But then she receives a text from an unknown number with a simple “Last night was fun.” When she strikes up a conversation with the mystery texter, they realize that he was given a fake phone number after a bad date that just so happened to be Emmy’s. Despite her rules, Emmy can’t deny the instant connection she feels and soon finds herself falling for the stranger on the other side of the screen…and inviting him to her sister’s wedding. Emmy’s world turns upside down when her mystery man turns out to be none other than Gabe Olson. They are left having to travel to the wedding together while trying to sort out which version of their relationship is their in-person rivalry or the deep connection they found in their messages. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/397b3702-65ee-48a3-9b97-e3187a0f1db1/222912960.jpg Blog - 15 Swoon Worthy Reads - Burning Daylight by Emily Mcintire Juliette Calloway lives in a world of luxury, legacies, and lies. The daughter of Rosebrook Falls’ most powerful family, her life is a carefully crafted performance, and she’s tired of being polished to perfection. Roman Montgomery doesn’t exist. Not officially, anyway. He’s a shadow, a hidden weapon, the secret heir to an empire soaked in danger and a generations-old feud. When their paths cross, sparks fly. No names. No pasts. Just reckless smiles and an undeniable chemistry neither of them can shake. Roman is charming. Mysterious. Infuriatingly flirty. And Juliette? She’s simply…his. When Roman is called back to claim his place as heir to the Montgomery empire, the truth crashes down: Their families are sworn enemies, and Roman’s very existence is a threat. Their love isn’t just forbidden, it’s impossible. Now, every kiss feels like a betrayal. Every stolen moment a risk. And in a town built on secrets and blood, their passion might just be the most dangerous thing of all. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bcbc2f07-986d-4c6a-83b4-e2595709b18b/60417459-2.jpg Blog - 15 Swoon Worthy Reads - Better than Fiction by Alexa Martin As a self-proclaimed book hater and a firm believer that the movie is always better, Drew Young didn't anticipate inheriting her grandma's bookstore, the Book Nook. She's in way over her head even before the shop's resident book club, comprising seven of the naughtiest old ladies ever, begin to do what they do best--meddle. Bestselling author Jasper Williams is a hopeless romantic. When he meets Drew at his Book Nook signing event, he becomes determined to show her the beauty of reading. He curates a book bucket list in exchange for her help exploring the local Denver scene for his current manuscript. From river rafting to local restaurants, Drew begins to connect with Jasper in a way she only thought happened in fiction. When messy family ties jeopardize the future of the Book Nook, Drew is caught between a bookshelf and a hard place. She's reminded that real life isn't always big dreams and sweeping romance. But Jasper is the plot twist she never saw coming and he's writing a happily ever after just for them. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/47439213-6288-492e-bc19-231e7daeb0cf/62926938.jpg Blog - 15 Swoon Worthy Reads - The Seven Year Slip by Ashley Poston Sometimes, the worst day of your life happens, and you have to figure out how to live after it. So Clementine forms a plan to keep her heart safe: work hard, find someone decent to love, and try to remember to chase the moon. The last one is silly and obviously metaphorical, but her aunt always told her that you needed at least one big dream to keep going. And for the last year, that plan has gone off without a hitch. Mostly. The love part is hard because she doesn’t want to get too close to anyone—she isn’t sure her heart can take it. And then she finds a strange man standing in the kitchen of her late aunt’s apartment. A man with kind eyes and a Southern drawl and a taste for lemon pies. The kind of man that, before it all, she would’ve fallen head-over-heels for. And she might again. Except, he exists in the past. Seven years ago, to be exact. And she, quite literally, lives seven years in his future. Her aunt always said the apartment was a pinch in time, a place where moments blended together like watercolors. And Clementine knows that if she lets her heart fall, she’ll be doomed. After all, love is never a matter of time—but a matter of timing. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0b5e259e-a30f-45b2-a42e-9325f412220d/58939853.jpg Blog - 15 Swoon Worthy Reads - A Proposal They Can’t Refuse by Natalie Cana Kamilah Vega is desperate to convince her family to update their Puerto Rican restaurant and enter it into the Fall Foodie Tour. With the gentrification of their Chicago neighborhood, it's the only way to save the place. The fly in her mofongo--her blackmailing abuelo says if she wants to change anything in his restaurant, she'll have to marry the one man she can't stand: his best friend's grandson. Liam Kane spent a decade working to turn his family's distillery into a contender. Now he and his grandfather are on the verge of winning a national competition. Then Granda hits him with a one-two punch: he has cancer and he has his heart set on seeing Liam married before it's too late. And Granda knows just the girl...Kamilah Vega. If they refuse, their grandfathers will sell the building that houses both their businesses. With their futures on the line, Kamilah and Liam plan to outfox the devious duo, faking an engagement until they both get what they want. But soon, they find themselves tangled up in more than either of them bargained for. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/011eccdb-21c1-40f3-af63-709f107c6315/220217814.jpg Blog - 15 Swoon Worthy Reads - Sweet Heat by Bolu Babalola Three years after their break-up, Kiki's worked hard to forget her first love. But just as she thinks she's got her life under control—jumping into the distractions of her romance-by-calendar-invite boyfriend, and plans for her best friend, Aminah's, wedding—Kiki's career implodes, the family business teeters on collapse, and Malakai returns. As Malakai takes up his role as best man opposite her maid of honour, suddenly Kiki can think of nothing but their simmering chemistry, what went wrong, and why it is now impossible to act normal around each other. Juggling a new job, the prospect of her parents' restaurant being sold, and keeping her best friend from going full bridezilla, dealing with The Ex is the last thing she needs. But somehow the spark between them is only getting hotter—and threatening to ruin everything. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3822125a-ca16-4a75-9dc2-fb52054a3878/201245798.jpg Blog - 15 Swoon Worthy Reads - One-Star Romance by Laura Hankin Natalie and Rob couldn’t have less in common. Nat’s a messy artist, and Rob’s a rigid academic. The only thing they share is their devotion to their respective best friends—who just got engaged. Still, unexpected chemistry has Natalie cautiously optimistic about being maid of honor to Rob’s best man. Until, minutes before the ceremony, Nat learns that Rob wrote a one-star review of her new novel, which has them both reeling: Nat from imposter syndrome, and Rob over the reason he needed to write it. When the reception ends, these two opposites hope they’ll never meet again. But, as they slip from their twenties into their thirties, they’re forced together whenever their fast-track best friends celebrate another milestone. Through housewarmings and christenings, life-changing triumphs and failures, Natalie and Rob grapple with their own choices—and how your harshest critic can become your perfectly imperfect match. After all, even the truest love stories sometimes need a bit of rewriting. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0811ea18-afe7-416f-b2c5-05de8f25dbb8/231299870.jpg Blog - 15 Swoon Worthy Reads - Tourist Season by Brynne Weaver Welcome to Cape Carnage! Visit Once, Stay Forever. Cape Carnage is a seaside town of colorful houses, quirky shops, and an unusually high body count. But with tourists comes trouble, and Harper Starling won’t let anyone ruin her picture-perfect home. A skilled gardener with killer instincts, Harper protects her sanctuary at any cost—especially for her aging mentor with a fading memory. Troublesome tourists don’t check out of Carnage. They compost beneath Harper’s award-winning flowerbeds. But Nolan Rhodes isn’t your average tourist. Devilishly handsome, disarmingly charming, and skilled with a blade, Nolan is relentless in the pursuit of revenge. On every anniversary of the hit-and-run accident that fractured his life, Nolan slays another target. And he’s saved the best for last: the undeniably beautiful Harper Starling. The problem? Harper isn’t the monster he expected. And she won’t go down without a fight. When an amateur true crime investigator comes to Cape Carnage on the trail of a long-lost serial killer, Harper and Nolan strike an uneasy truce. If Nolan helps Harper protect her town, she’ll keep quiet about his hunting habits . . . for now. But their alliance soon spirals into obsession, one that threatens to shatter every secret in Carnage—including their fragile love. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/february-new-releases-1 monthly 0.5 2026-01-26 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bb2bfc4f-6cba-4e86-83cc-2277aea199e8/239780635.jpg Blog - February New Releases - A Stage Set For Villains by Shannon J. Spann Eighteen-year-old Riven Hesper is running out of time. Cursed by a Player—a godlike performer whose unnatural allure is as lethal as it is irresistible—she has one shot to infiltrate the Playhouse, the traveling theatre where Players reign supreme, and find a way to break the curse before it kills her. But inside the Playhouse, survival comes at a steep price. Every season, mortals compete for a single, blood-soaked the chance to kill a Player and steal their power. Riven wants nothing to do with the game…until Jude—charismatic, cruel, and captivating—makes her an offer she can’t refuse. Win the competition. Spare his life in the finale. And he’ll set her free. Navigating the Playhouse means mastering illusions, surviving betrayals, and keeping pace with performers who shift identities as easily as costumes. But the deeper Riven digs, the more she this isn’t just a game. The Players are hiding something. And the Playhouse doesn’t want her cursed—it wants her dead. As the final act approaches, Riven faces a devastating truth. She might not be the hero of this story. She might be the villain. Release Date: February 3, 2026 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/65e440b6-9f36-41cf-a964-00db24d52120/235992233.jpg Blog - February New Releases - Family Drama by Rebecca Fallon It’s 1997, and snow is blanketing a New England beach. Two befuddled seven-year-olds watch as their mother’s body is tipped overboard a crumbling boat. A Viking funeral, followed by a raucous wake. A send-off fit for soap opera star Susan Bliss. Fifteen years earlier, Susan is a blazing, beautiful young woman, passionate about her art. It’s impossible not to fall in love with her, and so Alcott, a practical professor, does—hopelessly. And so begins the love story of Susan’s two-paneled life, an unconventional, jetlag-filled arrangement that takes her back and forth between her home in New England as a wife and mother to young twins, and the bright lights of soapy Los Angeles. In the present, Susan’s twins grow up in the shadow of her all-consuming absence. Sebastian, a sensitive artist, cleaves to her memory, fascinated with the artifacts of her starry past. Viola, resentful of her mother’s torn allegiances, distances herself from the memories of her. But when Viola runs into her mother’s old costar Orson Grey—now a renowned Hollywood star—she finds herself falling deeply in love with him and begins to put together the pieces of a mother she never really knew. Release Date: February 3, 2026 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/281e74b2-b311-4535-ab32-8a8219909105/232794931.jpg Blog - February New Releases - The Wild Card by Stephanie Archer Former star player Tate Ward has become easily the best coach in professional hockey, leading the Vancouver Storm team to victory. Everyone is in love with the handsome, authoritative single dad—except Jordan Hathaway, the newest staff member on the Vancouver Storm team. Jordan was more than comfortable behind her bar at the team’s favorite watering hole. When her father threatens to sell the team, though, she’s forced to put her grievances aside and work with the man who likes everyone but her—: Coach Tate Ward. But beneath his controlled exterior, Tate is funny, encouraging, and protective. He moves Jordan into his guest house, trusts her with his daughter, and fires the person who made her cry. He’s her boss, and a relationship would ruin both their careers, but Jordan still finds herself dreaming of a life with Tate. As the lines between them blur and Jordan encourages him to be selfish, Tate realizes what he wants . . . is her. Release Date: February 3, 2026 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a2f76260-dc6e-428e-ac9f-98a68f71e9bc/232794908.jpg Blog - February New Releases - Dawn of the North by Demi Winters A new age begins in the Kingdom of Íseldur in this sizzling third installment of the Viking-inspired Ashen romantasy the series. The lost Volsik heir has finally returned to the people of Íseldur, and even with the warrior who’s captured her heart standing by her side, Silla’s task is monumental. She must earn the loyalty of the northern jarls to drive Ivar Ironheart from the throne and restore peace in the kingdom. But the secret she vigilantly guards threatens to ruin all her plans: A shard of a god lives in her mind, twisting her thoughts and deeds to His will. Meanwhile, held captive on the mysterious isle of Zagadka, Saga Volsik fights to return to her sister in Íseldur. But when King Ivar sets his sights on the Zagadkians, she’s forced to make an impossible choice: fight for the man who stole her—and is now hell-bent on marrying her—or let the innocent people of his kingdom die. As a poisonous mist threatens the realm, the sisters will delve into the unknowns of their magic to battle against evil. Return to the land of ice and fire, where a god awakens, a queen finds her power, and sisters must unite against the darkness threatening their realm. Release Date: February 3, 2026 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f8574754-2734-4440-8771-f9743ce89cb0/230443142.jpg Blog - February New Releases - It’s Not Her by Mary Kubica A stunning discovery… Courtney Gray's tranquil family vacation is shattered when she hears a blood-curdling scream from the lakeside cottage next door. There she finds the lifeless bodies of her brother and sister-in-law. Her teenage niece Reese is nowhere to be found, while her nephew Wyatt lies asleep upstairs, unharmed. A shocking investigation… As the police descend on the quiet resort town, disturbing secrets about Courtney’s family start to emerge. When she learns that the town has secrets of its own, it makes her wonder if Reese is another victim in a brutal crime or if she’s the killer. A truth no one could have imagined … As Courtney begins to unravel the terrible mystery, she realizes that everyone around her has something to hide. And the closer she gets to the truth, the harder it is to see… Release Date: February 3, 2026 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5ffce4bd-5141-419e-9c4d-d647113fd305/236464696-2.jpg Blog - February New Releases - Songbird of the Sorrows by Braidee Otto Ask no questions. Obey your orders. Respect your masters. But most of all, love no one. Spy. Thief. Princess. Songbird. Princess Aella was ousted from the Palace of Sorrows as a child, shattering her world and forcing her to abandon the truth of her royal lineage. Instead, she was raised in The Aviary, which disguises itself as a school for orphaned children but is actually a secret order designed to train its students as spies for an intelligence network embedded throughout the Empyrieos. Now twenty-three years old and having completed her final tests, Aella is summoned to join Alpha Flight, the Aviary’s elite team of assassins that’s led by none other than her former flame, Raven. Everything about him calls to her—he’s brave, loyal, and lethal. But is Raven worth breaking the rules and risking everything she’s worked so hard to achieve? Before she can decide, the Alpha Flight team is sent on a dangerous mission that tests Aella’s resolve in every way. Her role is crucial and she must assume her former title of Princess of the Sorrows, the identity she once had to forsake, to compete in the bridal trials held by the Prince of Eretria. As old sparks reignite and the harsh realities of the realm reveal themselves, the mission begins to unravel, and Aella must decide if she is brave enough to disobey her superiors in order to do what she believes is right. Release Date: February 3, 2026 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9e0dd55a-19ee-43f8-9f9e-6c420e645f38/235991925.jpg Blog - February New Releases - How to Kill A Guy in Ten Dates by Shailee Thompson When Jamie Prescott and her best friend Laurie attend a speed-dating event, Jamie expects to meet a roster of mediocre men and indulge in some street food afterwards. She doesn’t expect one of her dates to have his throat slit at their table during a blackout. When the lights come back on and there are more bodies on the floor, it becomes clear that speed dating can be a very dangerous pastime. Armed with makeshift weapons and Jamie’s extensive knowledge of what NOT to do in a horror movie, the remaining speed daters try to find an exit while the killer adds to their body count. As the night progresses and Jamie comes face-to-mask with the murderer, she begins to suspect he is committing the slayings to woo one of the daters and turn her into his real-life Final Girl. But Jamie has a different love story in mind, and as she fights for her life, she can’t help but find herself ensconced in a love triangle with two of the other speed-daters. Will she survive the bloodshed to find her happily ever after? Or does this machete-wielding psychopath have another Final Girl in mind? Released Date: February 3, 2026 Genre: Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/08924629-cc9f-4a88-aaca-9a0f161aab35/237134690.jpg Blog - February New Releases - The Lies that Summon the Night by Tessonja Odette From the art of liars, the monsters came… Ever since art gave life to bloodthirsty shadows, creative works have been forbidden and the talented creators sacrificed to the Sinless—the immortal royals who feast on human blood in return for their protection. Inana’s secret storytelling nearly got her killed once, and she’ll be damned if she’s ever caught again. With a bounty on her head, she keeps to the city’s dark underbelly where she earns a meager living from thrill-seeking patrons desperate to hear her illicit fiction. Until Dominic, a Shadowbane, catches one of her performances. . . Dominic is a half-Sinless monster hunter as fearsome as his prey. But to complete his hunt, he needs an artist to summon the shadows . . . he needs Inana. Dominic delivers an ultimatum: serve him or he’ll claim her bounty. When survival is all Inana has left, the choice is clear. At least until she can betray him and leave him for dead. As their tense alliance leads them into the heart of danger, dark secrets unravel—about each other, their world, and the threats they face. But the greatest risk of all is the desire growing between them. There’s something more sinful than lust at play, and it could bring the world to its knees. Released Date: February 3, 2026 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b999fcc9-87bf-4fbd-b90f-180890ef296b/231127248.jpg Blog - February New Releases - The Bone Queen by Will Shindler Single mother Jenna arrives on the tranquil shores of Athelsea fueled by the desperate hope to find Chloe, her teenage daughter who’s disappeared from their London home. She has no idea why–all she knows is that Chloe had changed in the previous two weeks, haunted by something, or someone, and the ferry ticket here is the only clue she has. As she explores the village and interacts with the locals, Jenna soon realizes a macabre secret is being hidden in plain sight. A dark legend of a vengeful woman called the Bone Queen is spoken of in hushed tones amongst the villagers, some of whom are frantically trying to suppress the tale that has long terrorized their lives. As Jenna starts to learn more about the Bone Queen and her previous victims, the village’s grip on reality begins to loosen and no one can say for sure who, or what, is responsible for the deaths and disappearances on Athelsea. Suffering from what she can no longer distinguish between paranoid hallucinations or real manifestations, Jenna must act quickly before Chloe is next… The Bone Queen has left her mark, and one day she’ll collect. Release Date: February 3, 2026 Genre: Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/05b7e04b-befc-4708-8303-bd175b2fe153/236161369.jpg Blog - February New Releases - Wicked Onyx by Debbie Cassidy You don't graduate Nightbridge Academy—you survive it. Born into a sorcerer bloodline, cursed, and cut off from my power, I was accustomed to being an outcast. For generations, my bloodline carried the weight of a crime committed by our ancestor. But my mother’s death changed everything. She left a clue that could prove our an ancient text hidden deep beneath Nightsbridge Academy. The Academy is a fortress of power, housing the most dangerous incantors and sorcerers, conscripted to keep Horrors and Echoes at bay. And as the last surviving Onyx, I’m owed admission. My plan is simple—find the book and expose the Imperium as the liars they are. But I didn’t plan for the whispers that haunt my dreams. Or the complication of feelings I shouldn’t be capable of—stirred by two men bound to the very institution I’ve come to destroy. One sees too much yet says too little. The other is steady, protective, and always in my corner. I can’t have either. Yet when I’m in their presence…my curse begins to crack. If they discover my true purpose, I’m dead. But some truths are worth dying for. The Imperium cursed my bloodline. Stripped us of our magic. Branded us as traitors. And now they will pay. Release Date: February 10, 2026 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4701a6a6-27b7-4030-ad0c-e0a8ce432c84/234313835.jpg Blog - February New Releases - She Made Herself A Monster by Anna Kovatcheva We make monsters in order to destroy them. For thousands of years, we’ve named witches and burned them, suspected demons and exorcised them. When crops die and children fall ill, who better to blame than a monster? In nineteenth-century Bulgaria, Yana rides from one desolate town to the next, staging grisly displays while the villagers animal corpses in the public square, eggs filled with blood in the chicken coop. She tells the stricken villagers stories of vampires that stalk the night. Then Yana eliminates the threat, and leaves seeds of hope in her wake. The village of Koprivici, however, is plagued by exceptional illness and misfortune, its children rarely surviving infancy. There, Yana meets a headstrong orphan who the villagers blame for their curse. As Anka approaches womanhood, the village Captain is grooming her for marriage against her will. Anka is powerless against him—that is, until Yana arrives. Together, the orphan and the vampire slayer hatch a to conjure a monster so vile, it might provide cover for Anka to escape. But their plan quickly takes on a horrifying life of its own... Release Date: February 10, 2026 Genre: Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c96c28ed-0a0d-4591-9b1a-3552627f68ee/233717212.jpg Blog - February New Releases - Operation Bounce House by Matt Dinniman All colonist Oliver Lewis ever wanted to do is run the family ranch with his sister, maybe play a gig or two with his band, and keep his family’s aging fleet of intelligent agriculture bots ticking as long as possible. As a fan of Earth television and culture, he figures it will be a good thing when the transfer gate finally opens all the way and restores instant travel and full communication between Earth and his planet, New Sonora. But there’s a complication. Even though the settlers were promised they’d be left in peace, Earth’s government now has other plans. The colossal Apex Corporation is hired to commence an “eviction action.” But maximizing profits will always be Apex’s number one priority. Why spend money printing and deploying their own AI soldiers when they can turn it into a game? Why not charge bored Earthers for the opportunity to design their own war machines and remotely pilot them from the comfort of their own homes? The game is called Operation Bounce House. Oliver and his friends soon find themselves fighting for their lives against machines piloted by gamers who’ve paid a premium for the privilege. With the help of an old book from his grandfather and a bucket of rusty parts, Oliver is determined to defend the only home he’s ever known. Release Date: February 10, 2026 Genre: Science Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e9840fac-7c8b-42c4-8f3a-f272e9648081/235992421.jpg Blog - February New Releases - Keeper of Lost Children by Sadeqa Johnson Lost in the streets and smoldering rubble of Occupied Germany, Ethel Gathers, the proud wife of an American soldier spots a gaggle of mixed-race children following a nun. Desperate to conceive her own family, she feels compelled to follow them to learn their story. Ozzie Philips volunteers for the army in 1948, eager to break barriers for Black soldiers. Despite his best efforts, he finds the racism he encountered at home in Philadelphia has followed him overseas. He finds solace in the arms of Jelka, a German woman struggling with the lack of resources and even joy in her destroyed country. In 1965, Sophia Clark discovers she’s been given an opportunity to integrate a prestigious boarding school in Maryland and leave behind her spiteful parents and the grueling demands. In a chance meeting with a fellow classmate, she discovers a secret that upends her world. Release Date: February 10, 2026 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0e3bb530-f7df-4047-9b28-ee5cec1784ec/236012002-2.jpg Blog - February New Releases - Throne of Nightmares by Kerri Maniscalco A prince who prefers games of the head to those of the heart. Prince Sloth hates leaving his enchanted library, but when a forgotten deity threatens the very fabric of the Underworld, he's thrust into a race against time. He must find the Book of Nightmares - an ancient artifact that has the power to break worlds - before it unleashes a deadly game to free its master, the Goddess of Night. When a betrayal leaves him marked, and desperate, his path collides with a young woman who possesses the legendary Phoenix Tear - a portal stone unlike any other. A librarian who is all sweet sunshine . . . until she burns. Lore Brimstone has always loved getting lost in a book - but she never meant literally. Yet, after visiting a traveling caravan, she quickly finds herself transported to a terrifying but oddly familiar world - with a calculating prince at her side. Realizing they are living out her favourite novels one by one, they face off against an increasingly dark magic as they try to survive the story. A twisted tale that means they can't trust themselves - or their hearts. As Lore and Sloth navigate the pages of her beloved novels gone wrong, she must channel her inner main character to defeat the Book of Nightmares before the wall between the gods and mortals comes crashing down, dooming them all. Release Date: February 12, 2026 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c377fc07-2447-4fe1-b5bf-a0fc2453be1a/231126970.jpg Blog - February New Releases - When I Kill You by B.A. Paris Who is watching Nell Masters? Nell Masters is certain someone is following her. The hairs on the back of her neck rise when she travels to and from work, there are silent calls to her office, and a huge bouquet of flowers arrives without a card. And Nell has a reason to be looking over her shoulder, because she has a secret that she’s hiding from everyone in her life, including her new partner, Alex. But Alex also has secrets of his own. Fourteen years earlier, when Nell went by the name Elle Nugent, she witnessed a student, Bryony Sanders, getting into a stranger’s car. When Bryony was found murdered, Elle became obsessed with finding the person responsible. She was convinced she knew who it was and her fixation with Brett Parker, the man she accused, led her down a dangerous path . . . Now, Nell tries to convince herself that this unnerving feeling of being watched is all in her mind. Has someone from her past discovered her new identity? Has the stalker become the stalked? Or is there something even more deadly at play? Release Date: February 17, 2026 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8de18b69-d313-4210-a551-90c45208fe76/234352814.jpg Blog - February New Releases - Agnes Aubert’s Mystical Cat Shelter by Heather Fawcett Agnes Aubert leads a meticulously organized life—and she likes it that way. As the proudly type-A manager of a much-needed cat rescue charity, she has devoted her life to finding forever homes for lost cats. But after she is forced to move the cat shelter, Agnes learns that her new landlord is using her charity as a front—for an internationally renowned and thoroughly disreputable magic shop. Owned by the disorganized—not to mention self-absorbed, irritating, but also decidedly handsome—Havelock Renard, magician and failed Dark Lord, the shop draws magical clientele from around the world, partly due to the quality of Havelock’s illicit goods as well as their curiosity about his shadowy past and rumors of his incredible powers. Agnes's charity offers the perfect cover for illegal magics. Agnes couldn’t care less about the shop—magical intrigue or not, there are cats to be rescued. But when an enemy from Havelock’s past surfaces, the magic shop—and more importantly, the cat shelter—are suddenly in jeopardy. To save the shelter, will Agnes have to set aside her social conscience and protect the man who once tried to bring about the apocalypse—and is now trying to steal her heart? Release Date: February 17, 2026 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5810f1e8-9c00-41da-9da8-05f161830466/222476127.jpg Blog - February New Releases - Where the Wildflowers Grow by Terah Shelton Harris Leigh is the last of the Wildes. She knows this because she watched them all die. Grief never truly fades and even as the tragedy haunts her, Leigh carries on, because survival is in her blood. So, when the transport bus taking her to prison careens off the road, killing everyone onboard except her, she does what's in her nature. She survives. While searching for a place to hide, Leigh stumbles upon an unexpected sanctuary: a flower farm in rural Alabama tucked away from the world. What Leigh doesn't expect is the found family there who have built something from the wreckage of their own lives. Especially Jackson, the farm's owner, who sees through Leigh's defenses, offers her small moments of tenderness, encourages her to face her own tragedies. Slowly, Leigh finds peace with the hard pace and soft nature of the farm, taking comfort in the life blooming around her. Maybe she's not beyond redemption, not too broken for something good. And maybe, just maybe, Leigh starts to heal. But the past isn't so easily buried. No matter how far she runs, the truth of who she is and the ghosts of the Wildes follow. And when those secrets catch up to her, threatening everything she's come to love, Leigh will have to truly face what she can survive. Release Date: February 17, 2026 Genre: Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/82bff41a-6760-4158-9126-5bc2b8503ae7/231127006.jpg Blog - February New Releases - They Call Her Regret by Channelle Desamours Every year horror-loving Simone Washington throws an epic Halloween party for her classmates. Party-planning is her favorite escape from the dark secrets in her past, and this year, she’s taking things up a notch with an invitation-only event to celebrate her eighteenth birthday—something that will leave the halls of Pinegrove Academy flooded with gossip about the big ghoulish bash. The overnight stay at Doll’s Head Lake will be filled with spooky pranks and scary stories told by the fire—including the legend of a local witch named Regret. But those dark secrets from Simone’s past are forced to the surface at the party when her best friend Kira dies under questionable circumstances. The witch appears and offers Simone a deal: if Simone can figure out how to release Regret from the curse trapping her at the lake within fourteen days, all of Simone’s regrets will be erased. If Simone accepts, Kira’s life will be immediately restored. But if she fails, Kira will die again—and Simone will be the one to kill her. Release Date: February 17, 2026 Genre: Young Adult Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e1c88f78-a9d1-4bf6-9f08-6eb00cf06ffa/234313865.jpg.png Blog - February New Releases - Her Last Breath by Taylor Adams After years of excuses, Tess has finally agreed to go caving with her best friend Allie. Their lives have diverged sharply since high school—Allie is a self-made travel influencer, while Tess is a shy (and claustrophobic) legal assistant struggling to pay for law school. Maybe she’s a little jealous of Allie's globe-trotting life. Who wouldn’t be? As Tess and Allie descend into the depths, they realize they’re not alone. A stranger who claims to be a fellow caver harasses them. Confident, take-no-shit Allie insults the guy—and he retaliates. Soon, Tess is trapped inside a narrow crawl space hundreds of feet underground, fighting to stay alive. Twenty-four hours later, as a hospitalized Tess recounts her harrowing story of survival, the detective interviewing her shares new and shocking secrets about Allie's true past. Together, they begin to suspect the brutal attack wasn’t so random after all. Who was Allie, really? Why did this man target them? And did Tess really leave the danger behind when she escaped the cave? Release Date: February 17, 2026 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6abdf7e9-dc8f-4f68-8894-f0855112fb8c/235289982.jpg Blog - February New Releases - The Astral Library by Kate Quinn Alexandria “Alix” Watson has learned one lesson from her barren childhood in the foster-care system: unlike people, books will never let you down. Working three dead-end jobs to make ends meet and knowing college is a pipe dream, Alix takes nightly refuge in the high-vaulted reading room at the Boston Public Library, escaping into her favorite fantasy novels and dreaming of far-off lands. Until the day she stumbles through a hidden door and meets the Librarian: the ageless, acerbic guardian of a hidden library where the desperate and the lost escape to new lives...inside their favorite books. The Librarian takes a dazzled Alix under her wing, but before she can escape into the pages of her new life, a shadowy enemy emerges to threaten everyone the Astral Library has ever helped protect. Aided by a dashing costume-shop owner, Alix and the Librarian flee through the Regency drawing rooms of Jane Austen to the back alleys of Sherlock Holmes and the champagne-soaked parties of The Great Gatsby as danger draws inexorably closer. But who does their enemy really wish to destroy—Alix, the Librarian, or the Library itself? Release Date: February 17, 2026 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/38bc0387-155f-480f-ae89-4ded1381e184/222168124.jpg Blog - February New Releases - The Sun and the Starmaker by Rachel Griffin Nestled deep in the snowy mountains of the Lost Range, the small village of Reverie endures on a miracle. Beyond the reach of the Sun, Reverie is dependent upon the magic of the mysterious Starmaker: every morning, he trudges across a vast glacier and pulls in sunlight over the peaks, providing the village with the light it needs to survive. Aurora Finch grew up on tales of the Starmaker’s magic, never imagining she’d one day meet him. But on the morning of her wedding, a fateful encounter in the frostbitten woods changes everything. The Starmaker senses a powerful magic within her and demands she come study under his guidance. With her newfound abilities tied to the survival of the village, Aurora is swept away to his ice-covered castle at the mountain’s peak. The Starmaker is as cold and distant as the dark woods, leaving Aurora to explore his enchanted castle with only an immortal rabbit for company. Yet the more she discovers about the sorcerer, the stronger their ruinous attraction grows, pulling her closer to the secrets he refuses to share. A deadly frost approaches, and Aurora must uncover what the Starmaker is hiding before she is left in an endless winter that even the Sun cannot touch. Release Date: February 17, 2026 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/dc308090-7600-496b-975e-cf44b1cec24a/231679986.jpg Blog - February New Releases - Crown of War and Shadow by J.R. Ward In the dead of night, passions rise and empires fall. Welcome to Kingdoms of the Compass. The Fulcrum is failing, and demons are slipping into the mortal world, stalking the night. No one is safe. Especially not Sorrel. An orphan and an outcast, she’s spent her whole life within the walls of her small village, ostracized for her mystical abilities. She wants to survive…and maybe find somewhere she can call her true home. But Fate has other plans. Sorrel has been chosen. Cursed. She must cross the Badlands to return the Queen's crown and convince the fearsome female to save their world from destruction. Well aware she’s no brave hero, Sorrel makes a dangerous deal with Merc, a brooding, commanding mercenary known only by his unscrupulous profession. The deal? A night in his bed that she will never forget, in exchange for her safe passage. But Merc has secrets of his own, and even though passion runs hot between them, enemies are around every corner, and danger and betrayal threaten at every turn. Release Date: February 17, 2026 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1d40f0bc-5a04-4a9b-bcdc-64042ce45b52/233717187.jpg Blog - February New Releases - Half City by Kate Golden Welcome to Harker Academy for Deviant Defense. Keep your daggers sharp, and your wits even sharper. Viv Abbot is an average twenty-one-year-old girl. She lives in an expensive city where the rent is too high, works long hours at a thankless job, and is dating a guy she doesn’t even like in the hopes of winning her prickly mother’s approval. She just also happens to be a demon hunter. Ever since her father's murder, she's been forced to hunt deviants alone, meaning everyone, including her family, sees her as an outsider. . . . Until the day she crosses paths with a dangerously alluring demon, Reid Graveheart. The reformed deviant tells her of a school for people just like her: Harker Academy for Deviant Defense. If she enrolls, she'll learn to hone her craft, work with other hunters, and never be alone again. But Viv has a deadly secret. One that not even her new friends at Harker can know about. Not when the school might hold the answers to untangling the mystery surrounding Viv's father’s death. When strange occurrences begin to plague the students, Viv will have to figure out who she can trust, and fast. All while trying to ace her classes, not fall for a demon, and make it through her first year at Harker in one piece. How hard could that be? Release Date: February 17, 2026 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f8cac885-b6f0-4057-a4f2-65d4de9d9ccb/231126906.jpg Blog - February New Releases - How to Get Away With Murder by Rebecca Philipson This fresh debut thriller finds a Scotland Yard detective trying to find the author of a self-help book that promises quite literally to teach readers how to get away with murder, which seems to have inspired London's newest murderer. Detective Inspector Samantha Hansen has been on leave for six months, recovering from a breakdown she suffered at work, but when a fourteen-year-old girl is murdered in a local park, Sam jumps at the chance to return to the job and prove that she's still got what it takes to be the Yard's most successful homicide detective. One of the cases only leads is a copy of a self-help book found in the victim's backpack called How To Get Away With Murder by a man named Denver Brady. Brady claims to be the most successful serial killer of our time, which is why no one's ever heard of him. Chapter by chapter, he details his methodology and his past victims, and as Sam's investigation progresses and the details of the book go viral, Sam begins to suspect that there’s more to the author than what he’s revealed. But in order to find a killer and get justice for young Charlotte, Sam must learn to trust her instincts once again, before Denver Brady--or someone else--really does get away with murder. Release Date: February 24, 2026 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/edd425ef-fa46-4275-bfe0-c26e28f01422/234943561.jpg Blog - February New Releases - Cleopatra by Saara El-Arifi YOU KNOW MY NAME. BUT YOU DO NOT KNOW ME. Your historians call me seductress, but I was always in love's thrall. Your playwrights speak of my witchcraft, but I was gifted my talents by the gods. Your poets sing of my blood-lust, but I was protecting my children. They cannot credit that a mere woman could be powerful, strategic, divinely blessed to rule. Death will silence me no longer. This is not the story of how I died. But how I lived. Release Date: February 24, 2026 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0a6856b2-328f-4f7e-8a63-770dc66fb3c4/217513554.jpg Blog - February New Releases - And Now, Back to You by B.K. Borison Jackson Clark and Delilah Stewart have had their fair share of run-ins over the years, often ending in disaster. While Jackson thrives on routine and organization from the comfort of his radio booth, Delilah loves the spontaneity and adventure out in the field. When they’re partnered against their will to cover the snowstorm of the century, they find themselves scrambling to figure out how to work together. Eager to be taken seriously as a journalist, Delilah offers Jackson a deal. If he can help her ace this assignment, she’ll help him rediscover his long-lost fun side. With an undiscovered chemistry burning beneath their clashes, the unlikely partnership quickly tumbles into an easy and surprising friendship. But when other feelings start to enter the equation, can Jackson and Delilah withstand the storm? Or does what happens in the mountains, stay in the mountains? Release Date: February 24, 2026 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f88f5da6-eb47-42ca-b894-614c7cbb1f94/231127047-2.jpg Blog - February New Releases - The Girls Before by Kate Alice Marshall There is a girl in a basement. The door has stopped opening. The light is gone. Stranger is trapped in the dark, with only her imagination and the scribbles on the wall left by long-dead girls to keep her company. Nearly out of food and water, she makes one last attempt to escape. But if the door opens at last, will it mean salvation, or only the beginning of her fight to survive? Audrey is a search and rescue expert who never stopped looking for her ex-best friend, Janie, who disappeared when they were teenagers. Janie used to love the local legend of a forest witch who saves girls from bad men, but Audrey knows now that for every one saved, there’s always another one lost. When she stumbles upon evidence in the forest that a teenage runaway might have actually been kidnapped from land belonging to the town’s most prominent family, she will have to dig through decades of secrets to reveal the biggest one of all: what happened to the girls before. Release Date: February 24, 2026 Genre: Thriller https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/if-you-like-this-barbie-movie-youll-love monthly 0.5 2026-01-18 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e6e2c6b3-7a97-44d2-a7f8-e35feab22b54/57693245.jpg Blog - If You Like this Barbie Movie, You’ll Love… - The Liar’s Crown by Abigail Owen Everything about my life is a lie. As a hidden twin princess, born second, I have only one purpose—to sacrifice my life for my sister if death comes for her. I’ve been living under the guise of a poor, obscure girl of no standing, slipping into the palace and into the role of the true princess when danger is present. Now the queen is dead and the ageless King Eidolon has sent my sister a gift—an eerily familiar gift—and a proposal to wed. I don’t trust him, so I do what I was born to do and secretly take her place on the eve of the coronation. Which is why, when a figure made of shadow kidnaps the new queen, he gets me by mistake. As I try to escape, all the lies start to unravel. And not just my lies. The Shadowraith who took me has secrets of his own. He struggles to contain the shadows he wields—other faces, identities that threaten my very life. Winter is at the walls. Darkness is looming. And the only way to save my sister and our dominion is to kill Eidolon…and the Shadowraith who has stolen my heart. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9762d2c5-0143-489e-a434-36480cac6ce5/39679076.jpg Blog - If You Like this Barbie Movie, You’ll Love… - House of Salt and Sorrows by Erin A. Craig In a manor by the sea, twelve sisters are cursed. Annaleigh lives a sheltered life at Highmoor with her sisters and their father and stepmother. Once there were twelve, but loneliness fills the grand halls now that four of the girls' lives have been cut short. Each death was more tragic than the last--the plague, a plummeting fall, a drowning, a slippery plunge--and there are whispers throughout the surrounding villages that the family is cursed by the gods. Disturbed by a series of ghostly visions, Annaleigh becomes increasingly suspicious that her sister's deaths were no accidents. The girls have been sneaking out every night to attend glittering balls, dancing until dawn in silk gowns and shimmering slippers, and Annaleigh isn't sure whether to try to stop them or to join their forbidden trysts. Because who--or what--are they really dancing with? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a71ea0e3-1aa7-41d4-b997-e1f72dbbe31a/10507293.jpg Blog - If You Like this Barbie Movie, You’ll Love… - The Selection by Kiera Cass For thirty-five girls, the Selection is the chance of a lifetime. The opportunity to escape the life laid out for them since birth. To be swept up in a world of glittering gowns and priceless jewels. To live in a palace and compete for the heart of gorgeous Prince Maxon. But for America Singer, being Selected is a nightmare. It means turning her back on her secret love with Aspen, who is a caste below her. Leaving her home to enter a fierce competition for a crown she doesn't want. Living in a palace that is constantly threatened by violent rebel attacks. Then America meets Prince Maxon. Gradually, she starts to question all the plans she's made for herself—and realizes that the life she's always dreamed of may not compare to a future she never imagined. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/fb4c5ac2-ec14-48bf-b887-00b3127d8477/62966487-2.jpg Blog - If You Like this Barbie Movie, You’ll Love… - One For All by Lillie Lainoff Tania de Batz is most herself with a sword in her hand. Everyone thinks her near-constant dizziness makes her weak, nothing but “a sick girl.” But Tania wants to be strong, independent, a fencer like her father―a former Musketeer and her greatest champion. Then Papa is brutally, mysteriously murdered. His dying wish? For Tania to attend finishing school. But L’Académie des Mariées, Tania realizes, is no finishing school. It’s a secret training ground for new Musketeers: women who are socialites on the surface, but strap daggers under their skirts, seduce men into giving up dangerous secrets, and protect France from downfall. And they don’t shy away from a sword fight. With her newfound sisters at her side, Tania feels that she has a purpose, that she belongs. But then she meets Étienne, her target in uncovering a potential assassination plot. He’s kind, charming―and might have information about what really happened to her father. Torn between duty and dizzying emotion, Tania will have to decide where her loyalties lie…or risk losing everything she’s ever wanted. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b49feb52-ac7d-47a6-b0e5-544c4b88c0e6/58961129-2.jpg Blog - If You Like this Barbie Movie, You’ll Love… - The Stand-In by Lily Chu Gracie Reed is doing just fine. Sure, she was fired by her overly "friendly" boss, and yes she still hasn't gotten her mother into the nursing home of their dreams, but she's healthy, she's (somewhat) happy, and she's (mostly) holding it all together. But when a mysterious SUV pulls up beside her, revealing Chinese cinema's golden couple Wei Fangli and Sam Yao, Gracie's world is turned on its head. The famous actress has a proposition: due to their uncanny resemblance, Fangli wants Gracie to be her stand-in. The catch? Gracie will have to be escorted by Sam, the most attractive—and infuriating—man Gracie's ever met. If it means getting the money she needs for her mother, Gracie's in. Soon Gracie moves into a world of luxury she never knew existed. But resisting Sam, and playing the role of an elegant movie star, proves more difficult than she ever imagined—especially when she learns the real reason Fangli so desperately needs her help. In the end all the lists in the world won't be able to help Gracie keep up this elaborate ruse without losing herself...and her heart. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/db9fa724-8e86-49bf-8f55-0c0e2c5e67df/44674898.jpg Blog - If You Like this Barbie Movie, You’ll Love… - The Iron King by Julie Kagawa MY NAME IS MEGHAN CHASE. In less than twenty-four hours, I’ll be sixteen. Countless stories, songs and poems have been written about this wonderful age, when a girl finds true love and the stars shine for her and the handsome prince carries her off into the sunset. I DON’T THINK IT WILL BE THAT WAY FOR ME. Something has always felt slightly off in Meghan Chase’s life, ever since her father disappeared when she was six. Ten years later, when her little brother also goes missing, Meghan learns the truth—she is the secret daughter of a mythical faery king and a pawn in a deadly war. Now Meghan will learn just how far she’ll go to save someone she loves, to stop a mysterious evil no faery creature dare face…and to find love with a young prince who might rather see her dead than let her touch his icy heart. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e068e381-8c92-4da0-a561-4cd1ca3e9aa9/53457092.jpg Blog - If You Like this Barbie Movie, You’ll Love… - Six Crimson Cranes by Elizabeth Lim Shiori'anma, the only princess of Kiata, has a secret. Forbidden magic runs through her veins. Normally she conceals it well, but on the morning of her betrothal ceremony, Shiori loses control. At first, her mistake seems like a stroke of luck, forestalling the wedding she never wanted. But it also catches the attention of Raikama, her stepmother. A sorceress in her own right, Raikama banishes the young princess, turning her brothers into cranes. She warns Shiori that she must speak of it to no one: for with every word that escapes her lips, one of her brothers will die. Penniless, voiceless, and alone, Shiori searches for her brothers, and uncovers a dark conspiracy to seize the throne. Only Shiori can set the kingdom to rights, but to do so she must place her trust in a paper bird, a mercurial dragon, and the very boy she fought so hard not to marry. And she must embrace the magic she's been taught all her life to forswear - no matter what the cost. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/30254da2-19ec-43ae-87ef-7a9deb289a5c/181325033.jpg Blog - If You Like this Barbie Movie, You’ll Love… - Dragonfruit by Makiia Lucier In the old tales, it is written that the egg of a seadragon, dragonfruit, holds within it the power to undo a person’s greatest sorrow. An unwanted marriage, a painful illness, and unpaid debt ... gone. But as with all things that promise the moon and the stars and offer hope when hope has gone, the tale comes with a warning. Every wish demands a price. Hanalei of Tamarind is the cherished daughter of an old island family. But when her father steals a seadragon egg meant for an ailing princess, she is forced into a life of exile. In the years that follow, Hanalei finds solace in studying the majestic seadragons that roam the Nominomi Sea. Until, one day, an encounter with a female dragon offers her what she desires most. A chance to return home, and to right a terrible wrong. Samahtitamahenele, Sam, is the last remaining prince of Tamarind. But he can never inherit the throne, for Tamarind is a matriarchal society. With his mother ill and his grandmother nearing the end of her reign. Sam is left with two to marry, or to find a cure for the sickness that has plagued his mother for ten long years. When a childhood companion returns from exile, she brings with her something he has not felt in a very long time - hope. But Hanalei and Sam are not the only ones searching for the dragonfruit. And as they battle enemies both near and far, there is another danger they cannot escape…that of the dragonfruit itself. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/431ab5e6-262a-4a9f-87ff-d40c36d49ba7/42135029-2.jpg Blog - If You Like this Barbie Movie, You’ll Love… - City of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert In 1940, nineteen-year-old Vivian Morris has just been kicked out of Vassar College, owing to her lackluster freshman-year performance. Her affluent parents send her to Manhattan to live with her Aunt Peg, who owns a flamboyant, crumbling midtown theater called the Lily Playhouse. There Vivian is introduced to an entire cosmos of unconventional and charismatic characters, from the fun-chasing showgirls to a sexy male actor, a grand-dame actress, a lady-killer writer, and no-nonsense stage manager. But when Vivian makes a personal mistake that results in professional scandal, it turns her new world upside down in ways that it will take her years to fully understand. Ultimately, though, it leads her to a new understanding of the kind of life she craves-and the kind of freedom it takes to pursue it. It will also lead to the love of her life, a love that stands out from all the rest. Now ninety-five years old and telling her story at last, Vivian recalls how the events of those years altered the course of her life - and the gusto and autonomy with which she approached it. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/181b2d71-18be-42a5-9670-81f23db90e5b/12425532.jpg Blog - If You Like this Barbie Movie, You’ll Love… - Of Poseidon by Anna Banks Galen is the prince of the Syrena, sent to land to find a girl he's heard can communicate with fish. Emma is on vacation at the beach. When she runs into Galen—literally, ouch!—both teens sense a connection. But it will take several encounters, including a deadly one with a shark, for Galen to be convinced of Emma's gifts. Now, if he can only convince Emma that she holds the key to his kingdom... https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b802c954-3403-4e06-83af-f9cb7f536cba/56978100.jpg Blog - If You Like this Barbie Movie, You’ll Love… - The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh Deadly storms have ravaged Mina’s homeland for generations. Floods sweep away entire villages, while bloody wars are waged over the few remaining resources. Her people believe the Sea God, once their protector, now curses them with death and despair. In an attempt to appease him, each year a beautiful maiden is thrown into the sea to serve as the Sea God’s bride, in the hopes that one day the “true bride” will be chosen and end the suffering. Many believe that Shim Cheong, the most beautiful girl in the village—and the beloved of Mina’s older brother Joon—may be the legendary true bride. But on the night Cheong is to be sacrificed, Joon follows Cheong out to sea, even knowing that to interfere is a death sentence. To save her brother, Mina throws herself into the water in Cheong’s stead. Swept away to the Spirit Realm, a magical city of lesser gods and mythical beasts, Mina seeks out the Sea God, only to find him caught in an enchanted sleep. With the help of a mysterious young man named Shin—as well as a motley crew of demons, gods and spirits—Mina sets out to wake the Sea God and bring an end to the killer storms once and for all. But she doesn’t have much time: A human cannot live long in the land of the spirits. And there are those who would do anything to keep the Sea God from waking… https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7c8b9705-5b54-4a95-b2ae-c7ad928f18d9/53422971.jpg Blog - If You Like this Barbie Movie, You’ll Love… - These Hollow Vows by Lexi Ryan Brie hates the Fae and refuses to have anything to do with them, even if that means starving on the street. But when her sister is sold to the sadistic king of the Unseelie court to pay a debt, she'll do whatever it takes to get her back—including making a deal with the king himself to steal three magical relics from the Seelie court. Gaining unfettered access to the Seelie court is easier said than done. Brie's only choice is to pose as a potential bride for Prince Ronan, and she soon finds herself falling for him. Unwilling to let her heart distract her, she accepts help from a band of Unseelie misfits with their own secret agenda. As Brie spends time with their mysterious leader, Finn, she struggles to resist his seductive charm. Caught between two dangerous courts, Brie must decide who to trust with her loyalty. And with her heart. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/310ec3d9-879e-43e8-a8ff-cb043f1bcef3/30128124.jpg Blog - If You Like this Barbie Movie, You’ll Love… - The Midnight Dance by Nikki Katz When the music stops, the dance begins. Seventeen-year-old Penny is a lead dancer at the Grande Teatro, a finishing school where she and eleven other young women are training to become the finest ballerinas in Italy. Tucked deep into the woods, the school is overseen by the mysterious and handsome young Master who keeps the girls ensconced in the estate – and in the only life Penny has never known. But when flashes of memories, memories of a life very different from the one she thinks she’s been leading, start to appear, Penny begins to question the Grand Teatro and the motivations of the Master. With a kind and attractive kitchen boy, Cricket, at her side, Penny vows to escape the confines of her school and the strict rules that dictate every step she takes. But at every turn, the Master finds a way to stop her, and Penny must find a way to escape the school and uncover the secrets of her past before it’s too late. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0c5a6c83-e084-40a1-ad92-27b15a63de06/55918521.jpg Blog - If You Like this Barbie Movie, You’ll Love… - Midnight in Everwood by M.A. Kuzniar There’s nothing Marietta Stelle loves more than ballet, but after Christmas, her dreams will be over as she is obligated to take her place in Edwardian society. While she is chafing against such suffocating traditions, a mysterious man purchases the neighbouring townhouse. Dr Drosselmeier is a charming but calculating figure who wins over the rest of the Stelle family with his enchanting toys and wondrous mechanisms. When Drosselmeier constructs an elaborate set for Marietta’s final ballet performance, she discovers it carries a magic all of its own. On the stroke of midnight on Christmas Eve, she is transported to a snowy forest, where she encounters danger at every turn: ice giants, shadow goblins and the shrieking mist all lurk amidst the firs and frozen waterfalls and ice cliffs. After being rescued by the butterscotch-eyed captain of the king’s guard, she is escorted to the frozen sugar palace. At once, Marietta is enchanted by this glittering world of glamorous gowns, gingerbread houses, miniature reindeer and the most delicious confectionary. But all is not as it seems and Marietta is soon trapped in the sumptuous palace by the sadistic King Gelum, who claims her as his own. She is confined to a gilded prison with his other pets; Dellara, whose words are as sharp as her teeth, and Pirlipata, a princess from another land. Marietta must forge an alliance with the two women to carve a way free from this sugar-coated but treacherous world and back home to follow her dreams. Yet in a hedonistic world brimming with rebellion and a forbidden romance that risks everything, such a path will never be easy. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a54748d6-642a-4a1f-a675-fa412de89423/26032825.jpg Blog - If You Like this Barbie Movie, You’ll Love… - The Cruel Prince by Holly Black Of course, I want to be like them. They’re beautiful as blades forged in some divine fire. They will live forever. And Cardan is even more beautiful than the rest. I hate him more than all the others. I hate him so much that sometimes when I look at him, I can hardly breathe. Jude was seven when her parents were murdered, and she and her two sisters were stolen away to live in the treacherous High Court of Faerie. Ten years later, Jude wants nothing more than to belong there, despite her mortality. But many of the fey despise humans. Especially Prince Cardan, the youngest and wickedest son of the High King. To win a place at the Court, she must defy him–and face the consequences. As Jude becomes more deeply embroiled in palace intrigues and deceptions, she discovers her own capacity for trickery and bloodshed. But as betrayal threatens to drown the Courts of Faerie in violence, Jude will need to risk her life in a dangerous alliance to save her sisters and Faerie itself. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9fc9c058-635b-44a4-adda-c27d108bbdcd/145624782.jpg Blog - If You Like this Barbie Movie, You’ll Love… - The City of Stardust by Georgia Summers For centuries, generations of Everlys have seen their brightest and best disappear, taken as punishment for a crime no one remembers, for a purpose no one understands. Their tormentor, a woman named Penelope, never ages, never grows sick – and never forgives a debt. Violet Everly was a child when her mother left on a stormy night, determined to break the curse. When Marianne never returns, Penelope issues an ultimatum: Violet has ten years to find her mother, or she will take her place. Violet is the last of the Everly line, the last to suffer. Unless she can break it first. To do so, she must descend into a seductive magical underworld of power-hungry scholars, fickle gods and monsters bent on revenge. She must also contend with Penelope’s quiet assistant, Aleksander, who she knows cannot be trusted – and yet whose knowledge of a world beyond her own is too valuable to avoid. Tied to a very literal deadline, Violet will travel the edges of the world to find Marianne and the key to the city of stardust, where the Everly story began. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e20cfb6f-4c60-49e2-9709-b350c2550305/36688725.jpg Blog - If You Like this Barbie Movie, You’ll Love… - Sea Witch by Sarah Henning Everyone knows what happens in the end. A mermaid, a prince, a true love’s kiss. But before that young siren’s tale, there were three friends. One feared, one royal, and one already dead. Ever since her best friend, Anna, drowned, Evie has been an outcast in her small fishing town. A freak. A curse. A witch. A girl with an uncanny resemblance to Anna appears offshore and, though the girl denies it, Evie is convinced that her best friend actually survived. That her own magic wasn’t so powerless after all. And, as the two girls catch the eyes—and hearts—of two charming princes, Evie believes that she might finally have a chance at her own happily ever after. But her new friend has secrets of her own. She can’t stay in Havnestad, or on two legs, unless Evie finds a way to help her. Now Evie will do anything to save her friend’s humanity, along with her prince’s heart—harnessing the power of her magic, her ocean, and her love until she discovers, too late, the truth of her bargain. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bf333919-952b-4c6b-93fb-59fd18aa4cb4/107525439.jpg Blog - If You Like this Barbie Movie, You’ll Love… - Of Earth and Flame by Elayna R. Gallea She refuses to be bound to anyone; he’s trying to find freedom. Aileana is the king’s pet. She has lived her entire life in a tower, waiting for the day she will be forced to marry his son. When that day arrives, she has a plan. Armed with her daggers and her desire for freedom, she runs from the king and his deadly power. Xander has spent his entire life on the run. He doesn’t need anyone or anything, certainly not a mate. But when his path crosses with a feisty elf, nothing will ever be the same again. He has secrets to keep. She wants to leave Ithenmyr behind and not look back. Fate has other plans for them both. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/arthurian-legend-retellings monthly 0.5 2026-01-09 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/778c0684-9b5c-402e-913a-a6615bcc65ae/50892338.jpg Blog - Arthurian Legend Retellings - Legendborn by Tracy Deonn After her mother dies in an accident, sixteen-year-old Bree Matthews wants nothing to do with her family memories or childhood home. A residential program for bright high schoolers at UNC–Chapel Hill seems like the perfect escape—until Bree witnesses a magical attack her very first night on campus. A flying demon feeding on human energies. A secret society of so called “Legendborn” students that hunt the creatures down. And a mysterious teenage mage who calls himself a “Merlin” and who attempts—and fails—to wipe Bree’s memory of everything she saw. The mage’s failure unlocks Bree’s own unique magic and a buried memory with a hidden connection: the night her mother died, another Merlin was at the hospital. Now that Bree knows there’s more to her mother’s death than what’s on the police report, she’ll do whatever it takes to find out the truth, even if that means infiltrating the Legendborn as one of their initiates. She recruits Nick, a self-exiled Legendborn with his own grudge against the group, and their reluctant partnership pulls them deeper into the society’s secrets—and closer to each other. But when the Legendborn reveal themselves as the descendants of King Arthur’s knights and explain that a magical war is coming, Bree has to decide how far she’ll go for the truth and whether she should use her magic to take the society down—or join the fight. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d2327b7d-eeb3-44fb-83f7-d41d7d91ee9c/62300945.jpg Blog - Arthurian Legend Retellings - Morgan Is My Name by Sophie Keetch An atmospheric, feminist retelling of the early life of famed villainess Morgan le Fay, set against the colourful chivalric backdrop of Arthurian legend. When King Uther Pendragon murders her father and tricks her mother into marriage, Morgan refuses to be crushed. Trapped amid the machinations of men in a world of isolated castles and gossiping courts, she discovers secret powers. Vengeful and brilliant, it's not long before Morgan becomes a worthy adversary to Merlin, influential sorcerer to the king. But fighting for her freedom, she risks losing everything – her reputation, her loved ones and her life. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4d5503f9-45d4-4342-b3f6-9c9ced119532/207297530-2.jpg Blog - Arthurian Legend Retellings - The Shadowed Land by Signe Pike Kingdom of Gododdin, AD 580: After defeating the Angles at the Battle of the Caledonian Wood, Languoreth, her daughter Angharad, brother Lailoken, and the warrior Artúr mac Aedan are reunited. But all too soon, fate pulls each back to their own path. Artúr receives a mysterious summons from his father in Dalriada. Languoreth and Lailoken return to Strathclyde with the dangerous former bishop Mungo in tow, determined to maintain the fragile peace between the Christians and the people of the Old Way. Meanwhile, Angharad must travel deep into the shadowed land of the Picts, hoping to become the initiate of Briochan, a druid who practices the secret Celtic art of summoning weather. As they rise to their destinies, they are pushed to impossible new frontiers as each must decide whether they are willing to do what it takes to be the heroes their harrowing days demand. This “rich, immersive” (Kirkus Reviews) saga transports the reader to a vivid world of mysticism, beauty, and meticulously researched early medieval history. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/470fbf19-c7a2-4a09-b05e-f5bea5addaae/43545.jpg Blog - Arthurian Legend Retellings - The Once and Future King by T.H. White T.H White′s masterful retelling of the Arthurian legend is an abiding classic. Here all five volumes that make up the story are published in one volume, as White himself always wished. Exquisite comedy offsets the tragedy of Arthur′s personal doom as White brings to life the major British epic of all time with brilliance, grandeur, warmth and charm. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8540ca57-3241-475e-87ac-7fee4b41f8c9/205788549.jpg Blog - Arthurian Legend Retellings - The Winter King by Bernard Cornwell Uther, the High King, has died, leaving the infant Mordred as his only heir. His uncle, the loyal and gifted warlord Arthur, now rules as caretaker for a country which has fallen into chaos - threats emerge from within the British kingdoms while vicious Saxon armies stand ready to invade. As he struggles to unite Britain and hold back the enemy at the gates, Arthur is embroiled in a doomed romance with beautiful Guinevere. Will the old-world magic of Merlin be enough to turn the tide of war in his favour? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3fe49ee6-afd2-4587-8624-bbe1cc3601b7/217223396.jpg Blog - Arthurian Legend Retellings - The Enemy’s Daughter by Melissa Poett It’s been thirty-seven years since the Republic was destroyed. Now two settlements—the five clans and the Kingsland—fight for control of the untainted land. Though the five clans are outnumbered, they’ve finally struck, killing Kingsland’s brutal leader. In the war that follows, Isadora, an eighteen-year-old healer, risks her life to help injured soldiers. But when she stops an attack from Tristan, a Kingsland assassin, his soldiers shoot her with a poisoned arrow. As Isadora lies dying, Tristan does the unimaginable: He offers to save her life using a rare magic. In choosing to live, Isadora is unknowingly bound to the mysterious Tristan. Worse, even acknowledging the attraction between them allows him to glean fragments of her memories and the very knowledge he needs to destroy the five clans. But their magical connection works both ways. So to save her people, Isadora will have to open her heart to her most cunning enemy. Because in a race for ultimate survival, she’ll need to destroy Tristan and his people first. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/18e2d8ce-b307-409c-a188-6fe5141ca17e/40605251.jpg Blog - Arthurian Legend Retellings - The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley In Marion Zimmer Bradley's masterpiece, we see the tumult and adventures of Camelot's court through the eyes of the women who bolstered the king's rise and schemed for his fall. From their childhoods through the ultimate fulfillment of their destinies, we follow these women and the diverse cast of characters that surrounds them as the great Arthurian epic unfolds stunningly before us. As Morgaine and Gwenhwyfar struggle for control over the fate of Arthur's kingdom, as the Knights of the Round Table take on their infamous quest, as Merlin and Viviane wield their magics for the future of Old Britain, the Isle of Avalon slips further into the impenetrable mists of memory, until the fissure between old and new worlds' and old and new religions' claims its most famous victim. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/09819adc-ac57-4a95-b193-188c9a972d20/124958845-2.jpg Blog - Arthurian Legend Retellings - Sisters of Sword and Shadow by Laura Bates What if the Knights of the Round Table had been women? This afternoon Cass's older sister will be married. Soon she will be too. Gone will be days of running through fields and feeling the earth between her toes. So when a beautiful leather-clad woman rides up and offers to take her away, Cass doesn't hesitate to join her. Cass is introduced to the Sisterhood of Silk Knights - a group of women training to fight and working to right the wrongs of men. Cass is drawn into a world of ancient feuds, glorious battles, and deadly intrigue, where soon discovers she holds a power that could change the destiny of her sisterhood. 'An interesting thing happens, when a man is defeated in combat by a woman.' 'He tells nobody.' https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6e5d1f16-ff3d-4d2e-b325-a1ad470a8372/201750794.jpg Blog - Arthurian Legend Retellings - The Bright Sword by Lev Grossman A gifted young knight named Collum arrives at Camelot to compete for a spot on the Round Table, only to find he’s too late. The king died two weeks ago at the Battle of Camlann, leaving no heir, and only a handful of the knights of the Round Table survive. They aren’t the heroes of legend, like Lancelot or Gawain. They’re the oddballs of the Round Tables, from the edges of the stories, like Sir Palomides, the Saracen Knight and Sir Dagonet, Arthur’s fool, who was knighted as a joke. They’re joined by Nimue, who was Merlin’s apprentice until she turned on him and buried him under a hill. Together this ragtag fellowship will set out to rebuild Camelot in a world that has lost its balance. But Arthur’s death has revealed Britain’s fault lines. God has abandoned it, and the fairies and monsters and old gods are returning, led by Arthur’s half-sister Morgan le Fay. Kingdoms are turning on each other, warlords are laying siege to Camelot, and rival factions are forming around the disgraced Lancelot and the fallen Queen Guinevere. It is up to Collum and his companions to reclaim Excalibur, solve the mysteries of this ruined world and make it whole again. But before they can restore Camelot they’ll have to learn the truth of why the lonely, brilliant King Arthur fell and lay to rest the ghosts of his troubled family and of Britain’s dark past. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/083b3914-c4ec-41f2-812a-56816d071156/223296201.jpg Blog - Arthurian Legend Retellings - The Faerie Morgana by Louisa Morgan To the other priestesses of the Nine, a powerful council at the Lady’s Temple, Morgana is haughty and arrogant as she performs feats of magic no human should be capable of. Rumors start that she must be a fearsome fae. To King Arthur, Morgana is a trusted and devoted advisor, but his court is wary of her and her prodigious talent at divination. But his wife sees Morgana as a rival and a malevolent witch. To Braithe, Morgana’s faithful acolyte, she is simply the most powerful priestess Camelot has seen. Morgana doesn’t know why she’s so different from everyone else, and she doesn’t much care. But when she aids Arthur to ascend the throne before his time, she sets off a series of events that will change everything Morgana believes about her power. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d6f49307-a660-4456-90f5-1aef43a93d6a/49356383-2.jpg Blog - Arthurian Legend Retellings - Half Sick of Shadows by Laura Sebastian Everyone knows the legend. Of Arthur, destined to be a king. Of the beautiful Guinevere, who will betray him with his most loyal knight, Lancelot. Of the bitter sorceress, Morgana, who will turn against them all. But Elaine alone carries the burden of knowing what is to come--for Elaine of Shalott is cursed to see the future. On the mystical isle of Avalon, Elaine runs free and learns of the ancient prophecies surrounding her and her friends--countless possibilities, almost all of them tragic. When their future comes to claim them, Elaine, Guinevere, Lancelot, and Morgana accompany Arthur to take his throne in stifling Camelot, where magic is outlawed, the rules of society chain them, and enemies are everywhere. Yet the most dangerous threats may come from within their own circle. As visions are fulfilled and an inevitable fate closes in, Elaine must decide how far she will go to change fate--and what she is willing to sacrifice along the way. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0b7ef09d-18f8-4e41-87eb-7508260fa771/62192516.jpg Blog - Arthurian Legend Retellings - Perilous Times by Thomas D. Lee Legends don’t always live up to reality. Being reborn as an immortal defender of the realm gets awfully tiring over the years—or at least that’s what Sir Kay’s thinking as he claws his way up from beneath the earth yet again. Kay once rode alongside his brother, King Arthur, as a Knight of the Round Table. Since then, he has fought at Hastings and at Waterloo and in both World Wars. But now he finds himself in a strange new world where oceans have risen, the army’s been privatized, and half of Britain’s been sold to foreign powers. The dragon that’s running amok—that he can handle. The rest? He’s not so sure. Mariam’s spent her life fighting what’s wrong with her country. But she’s just one ordinary person, up against a hopelessly broken system. So when she meets Kay, she dares to hope that the world has finally found the savior it needs. Yet as the two travel through this bizarre and dangerous land, they discover that a magical plot of apocalyptic proportions is underway. And Kay’s too busy hunting dragons—and exchanging blows with his old enemy Lancelot—to figure out what to do about it. In perilous times like these, the realm doesn’t just need a knight. It needs a true leader. Luckily, Excalibur lies within reach. But who will be fit to wield it? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/01be8456-d25c-4385-81b1-cf7489a4b2f3/6940540-2.jpg Blog - Arthurian Legend Retellings - Hexwood by Diana Wynne Jones “All I did was ask you for a role-playing game. You never warned me I’d be pitched into it for real! And I asked you for hobbits on a Grail quest, and not one hobbit have I seen!” Hexwood Farm is a bit like human memory; it doesn’t reveal its secrets in chronological order. Consequently, whenever Ann enters Hexwood, she cannot guarantee on always ending up in the same place or even the same time. Hexwood Farm is full of machines that should not be tampered with – and when one is, the aftershock is felt throughout the universe. Only Hume, Ann and Mordion can prevent an apocalypse in their struggle with the deadly Reigners – or are they too being altered by the whims of Hexwood? A complex blend of science fiction and all sorts of fantasy – including fantasy football!! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7d6d5843-ea28-495b-8afc-c851fd504cd0/58095605.jpg Blog - Arthurian Legend Retellings - The Buried Giant by Kazuo Ishiguro In post-Arthurian Britain, the wars that once raged between the Saxons and the Britons have finally ceased. Axl and Beatrice, an elderly British couple, set off to visit their son, whom they haven't seen in years. And, because a strange mist has caused mass amnesia throughout the land, they can scarcely remember anything about him. As they are joined on their journey by a Saxon warrior, his orphan charge, and an illustrious knight, Axl and Beatrice slowly begin to remember the dark and troubled past they all share. By turns savage, suspenseful, and intensely moving, The Buried Giant is a luminous meditation on the act of forgetting and the power of memory. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/12467cd3-b457-436d-8a6e-8823819d2af2/53146362.jpg Blog - Arthurian Legend Retellings - By Force Alone by Lavie Tidhar Everyone thinks they know the story of King Arthur and his knights of the Round Table. The fact is they don't know sh*t. Arthur? An over-promoted gangster. Merlin? An eldritch parasite. Excalibur? A shady deal with a watery arms dealer. Britain? A clogged sewer that Rome abandoned just as soon as it could. A savage and cutting epic fantasy, equally poetic and profane, By Force Alone is at once a timely political satire, a magical adventure, and a subversive masterwork. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/recent-celebrity-book-club-picks monthly 0.5 2026-01-04 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2697c90d-b58e-4a92-85f0-1d7c9f8233fa/224003731.jpg Blog - Recent Celebrity Book Club Picks - To the Moon and Back by Eliana Ramage My mother took my sister and me, and she drove through the night to a place she felt a claim to, a place on earth she thought we might be safe. I stopped asking questions. I picked little glass pieces from my sister’s hair. I watched the moon. Steph Harper is on the run. When she was six, her mother, Hannah, fled an abusive husband—with Steph and her younger sister, Kayla, in tow—to Cherokee Nation, where she hoped they might finally belong. In response, Steph sets her sights as far away from Oklahoma as she can get, vowing that she will let nothing get in the way of pursuing the rigorous physical and academic training she knows she will need to be accepted by NASA, and ultimately, to go to the moon. Spanning three decades and several continents, To the Moon and Back encompasses Steph’s turbulent journey, along with the multifaceted and intertwined lives of the three women closest to her sister Kayla, an artist who goes on to become an Indigenous social media influencer, and whose determination to appear good takes her life to unexpected places; Steph’s college girlfriend Della Owens, who strives to reclaim her identity as an adult after being removed from her Cherokee family through a challenge to the Indian Child Welfare Act; and Hannah, Steph and Kayla’s mother, who has held up her family’s tribal history as a beacon of inspiration to her children, all the while keeping her own past a secret. In Steph’s certainty that only her ambition can save her, she will stretch her bonds with each of these women to the point of breaking, at once betraying their love and generosity, and forcing them to reconsider their own deepest desires in her shadow. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3d6cd335-da85-4a45-b60d-c4e759b6cb5d/232885690-2.jpg Blog - Recent Celebrity Book Club Picks - The Heir Apparent by Rebecca Armitage Lexi Villiers is a 29-year-old Englishwoman doing her medical residency in Hobart, working too hard, worried about her bank balance, and living with friends. It's a good life, and getting even better, because as the dawn is breaking on New Year's Day, Lexi is about to kiss the man she loves for the very first time. But by midnight, everything will change. Because Lexi is in fact not an ordinary young woman. She is Princess Alexandrina, third in line to the British throne - albeit estranged from the rest of her family and living in voluntary exile on the other side of the world. But following a terrible accident, Lexi - the black sheep of her family and, until this moment, always destined to be the spare - is now the heir apparent, first in line to the throne once her grandmother, the elderly Queen, dies. Called back to do her duty, she arrives in London to a Palace riven with power plays and media leaks, all the while guarding painful secrets of her own. Palace waters are treacherous, rumours are rife, and selling each other's secrets is a family tradition. And with the Crown just within her grasp, Lexi must choose what bonds she will keep ... and what she is willing to leave behind. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/24b61415-014a-4af0-ab31-20c60af77650/223854466.jpg Blog - Recent Celebrity Book Club Picks - Once Upon a Time In Dollywood by Ashley Jordan Eve Ambroise may be a rising star playwright, but her personal life is falling part. Desperate for a fresh start, she breaks up with her fiancé, cuts off her parents, and heads to the Tennessee mountains. But keeping up the lie that she’s just on a writing retreat becomes near impossible when faced with the well-meaning townspeople and a neighbor who has just as much baggage as she has. Coming off a contentious custody battle, Jamie Gallagher is restructuring what his life looks like as a single dad, and spending more days at his cabin makes his new “free time” a little less empty. Especially when he meets the beautiful—and prickly—woman next door. The last thing he needs is a new romance to shake up his family dynamics even more, but there’s something about Eve. What starts out as a fling quickly becomes more serious, and it’s not long before Eve is running scared once again. She’s loved and lost in every possible way, and risking it one more time could finally break her. But like the fireflies that fill the mountains around them, Jamie’s and Eve’s lives keep falling into sync. A fairy-tale ending could be in the cards, but only if the new couple can get out of their heads and put their hearts first. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/49138aad-813b-4c8d-b2ba-759504766eef/220652184.jpg Blog - Recent Celebrity Book Club Picks - The Phoenix Pencil Company by Allison King Monica Tsai spends most days on her computer, journaling the details of her ordinary life and coding for a program that seeks to connect strangers online. A self-proclaimed recluse, she's always struggled to make friends and, as a college freshman, finds herself escaping into a digital world, counting the days until she can return home to her beloved grandparents. They are now in their nineties, and Monica worries about them constantly—especially her grandmother, Yun, who survived two wars in China before coming to the States, and whose memory has begun to fade. Though Yun rarely speaks of her past, Monica is determined to find the long-lost cousin she was separated from years ago. One day, the very program Monica is helping to build connects her to a young woman, whose gift of a single pencil holds a surprising clue. Monica’s discovery of a hidden family history is exquisitely braided with Yun’s own memories as she writes of her years in Shanghai, working at the Phoenix Pencil Company. As WWII rages outside their door, Yun and her cousin, Meng, learn of a special power the women in their family possess: the ability to Reforge a pencil’s words. But when the government uncovers their secret, they are forced into a life of espionage, betraying other people’s stories to survive. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/81c4d9e8-f2fa-48c5-8a3b-20337c5d5bfb/65646968.jpg.png Blog - Recent Celebrity Book Club Picks - Mother-Daughter Murder Night by Nina Simon High-powered businesswoman Lana Rubicon has a lot to be proud her keen intelligence, impeccable taste, and the L.A. real estate empire she’s built. But when she finds herself trapped 300 miles north of the city, convalescing in a sleepy coastal town with her adult daughter Beth and teenage granddaughter Jack, Lana is stuck counting otters instead of square footage—and hoping that boredom won’t kill her before the cancer does. Then Jack—tiny in stature but fiercely independent—happens upon a dead body while kayaking. She quickly becomes a suspect in the homicide investigation, and the Rubicon women are thrown into chaos. Beth thinks Lana should focus on recovery, but Lana has a better idea. She’ll pull on her wig, find the true murderer, protect her family, and prove she still has power. With Jack and Beth’s help, Lana uncovers a web of lies, family vendettas, and land disputes lurking beneath the surface of a community populated by folksy conservationists and wealthy ranchers. But as their amateur snooping advances into ever-more dangerous territory, the headstrong Rubicon women must learn to do the one thing they’ve always depend on each other. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7eeffb99-3204-4fd5-84c2-8d3cae3d9118/227429747.jpg Blog - Recent Celebrity Book Club Picks - Cursed Daughters by Oyinkan Braithwaite When Ebun gives birth to her daughter, Eniiyi, on the day they bury her cousin Monife, there is no denying the startling resemblance between the child and the dead woman. So begins the belief, fostered and fanned by the entire family, that Eniiyi is the actual reincarnation of Monife, fated to follow in her footsteps in all ways, including that tragic end. There is also the matter of the family curse: “No man will call your house his home. And if they try, they will not have peace...” which has been handed down from generation to generation, breaking hearts and causing three generations of abandoned Falodun women to live under the same roof. When Eniiyi falls in love with the handsome boy she saves from drowning, she can no longer run from her family’s history. As several women in her family have done before, she ill-advisedly seeks answers in older, darker spiritual corners of Lagos, demanding solutions. Is she destined to live out the habitual story of love and heartbreak? Or can she break the pattern once and for all, not only avoiding the spiral that led Monife to her lonely death, but liberating herself from all the family secrets and unspoken traumas that have dogged her steps since before she could remember? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0f6b54ea-4764-4080-b087-012eeaf00cf0/222376716.jpg Blog - Recent Celebrity Book Club Picks - The Irish Goodbye by Heather Aimee O’Neill It’s been years since the three Ryan sisters were all home together at their family’s beloved house on the eastern shore of Long Island. Two decades ago, their lives were upended by an accident on their brother Topher’s boat, a friend’s brother was killed, the lawsuit nearly bankrupted their parents, and Topher spiraled into a depression, eventually taking his life. Now the Ryan women are back for Thanksgiving, eager to reconnect, but each carrying a heavy secret. The eldest, Cait, still holding guilt for the role no one knows she played in the boat accident, rekindles a flame with her high school crush, Topher’s best friend and the brother of the boy who died. Middle sister Alice’s been thrown a curveball threatening the career she’s restarting and faces a difficult decision that may doom her marriage. And the youngest, Maggie, is finally taking the risk to bring the woman she loves home to her devoutly Catholic mother. Infusing everything is the grief for Topher that none of the Ryans have figured out how to carry together. When Cait invites a guest to Thanksgiving dinner, old tensions boil over and new truths surface, nearly overpowering the flickering light of their family bond. Far more than a family holiday will be ruined unless the sisters can find a way to forgive themselves—and one another. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8f381f9b-3e25-4ee8-a017-f75c62a81bd1/219848331-2.jpg Blog - Recent Celebrity Book Club Picks - My Other Heart by Emma Nahami Strenner In June 1998, Mimi Truang is on her way home to Vietnam when her toddler daughter vanishes in the Philadelphia airport. Seventeen years later, two best friends in Chestnut Hill, Pennsylvania, discuss their summer plans before college. Kit, with the support of her white adoptive parents, will travel to Tokyo to explore her Japanese roots. This dizzying adventure offers her a taste of first love and a new understanding of what it means to belong. Sabrina had hoped to take a similar trip to China, but money is tight. Her disappointment subsides, however, when she meets a bold, uncompromising new mentor who prompts Sabrina to ask questions she’s avoided all her life. Meanwhile, Mimi purchases a plane ticket to Philadelphia. She finally has a lead in her search for her daughter. When Mimi, Kit, and Sabrina come face to face, they will confront the people they truly are, in this tremendously moving novel that is propelled to its astonishing climax in a way you will never forget. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5161aa16-f372-4360-bdba-0e82a595eb5e/216247502.jpg Blog - Recent Celebrity Book Club Picks - The Life Cylce of the Common Octopus by Emma Knight Arriving at the University of Edinburgh for her first term, Pen knows her divorced parents back in Canada are hiding something from her. She believes she’ll find the answer here in Scotland, where an old friend of her father’s—now a famous writer known as Lord Lennox—lives. When she is invited to spend the weekend at Lord Lennox’s centuries-old estate with his enveloping, fascinating family, Pen begins to unravel her parents’ secret, just as she’s falling in love for the first time . . . As Pen experiences the sharp shock of adulthood, she comes to rely on herself for the first time in her life. A rich and rewarding novel of campus life, of sexual awakening, and ultimately, of the many ways women can become mothers in this world, The Life Cycle of the Common Octopus asks to what extent we need to look back in order to move forward. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/83890d70-047a-4153-8bc9-5468c603b086/199531828.jpg Blog - Recent Celebrity Book Club Picks - This Motherless Land by Nikki May Quiet Funke is happy in Nigeria. She loves her art teacher mother, her professor father, and even her annoying little brother (most of the time). But when tragedy strikes, she’s sent to England, a place she knows only from her mother’s stories. To her dismay, she finds the much-lauded estate dilapidated, the food tasteless, the weather grey. Worse still, her mother’s family are cold and distant. With one exception: her cousin Liv. Free-spirited Liv has always wanted to break free of her joyless family. She becomes fiercely protective of her little cousin, and her warmth and kindness give Funke a place to heal. The two girls grow into adulthood the closest of friends. But the choices their mothers made haunt Funke and Liv and when a second tragedy occurs their friendship is torn apart. Against the long shadow of their shared family history, each woman will struggle to chart a path forward, separated by country, misunderstanding, and ambition. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0839e686-7fe9-4852-ad37-93348bbe0577/211025407.jpg Blog - Recent Celebrity Book Club Picks - Homeseeking by Karissa Chen A single choice can define an entire life. Haiwen is buying bananas at a 99 Ranch Market in Los Angeles when he looks up and sees Suchi, his Suchi, for the first time in sixty years. To recently widowed Haiwen it feels like a second chance, but Suchi has only survived by refusing to look back. Suchi was seven when she first met Haiwen in their Shanghai neighborhood, drawn by the sound of his violin. Their childhood friendship blossomed into soul-deep love, but when Haiwen secretly enlisted in the Nationalist army in 1947 to save his brother from the draft, she was left with just his violin and a note: Forgive me. Homeseeking follows the separated lovers through six decades of tumultuous Chinese history as war, famine, and opportunity take them separately to the song halls of Hong Kong, the military encampments of Taiwan, the bustling streets of New York, and sunny California, telling Haiwen’s story from the present to the past while tracing Suchi’s from her childhood to the present, meeting in the crucible of their lives. Throughout, Haiwen holds his memories close while Suchi forces herself to look only forward, neither losing sight of the home they hold in their hearts. At once epic and intimate, Homeseeking is a story of family, sacrifice, and loyalty, and of the power of love to endure beyond distance, beyond time. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3288e900-2132-48bc-8b18-7d643984621a/203578730.jpg Blog - Recent Celebrity Book Club Picks - A Song to Drown Rivers by Ann Liang Xishi’s beauty is seen as a blessing to the villagers of Yue—convinced that the best fate for a girl is to marry well and support her family. When Xishi draws the attention of the famous young military advisor, Fanli, he presents her with a rare opportunity: to use her beauty as a weapon. One that could topple the rival neighboring kingdom of Wu, improve the lives of her people, and avenge her sister’s murder. All she has to do is infiltrate the enemy palace as a spy, seduce their immoral king, and weaken them from within. Trained by Fanli in everything from classical instruments to concealing emotion, Xishi hones her beauty into the perfect blade. But she knows Fanli can see through every deception she masters, the attraction between them burning away any falsehoods. Once inside the enemy palace, Xishi finds herself under the hungry gaze of the king’s advisors while the king himself shows her great affection. Despite his gentleness, a brutality lurks and Xishi knows she can never let her guard down. But the higher Xishi climbs in the Wu court, the farther she and Fanli have to fall—and if she is unmasked as a traitor, she will bring both kingdoms down. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/362be983-0dff-48ba-b83a-c09540458517/223688905.jpg Blog - Recent Celebrity Book Club Picks - Twice by Mitch Albom When he is eight years old, Alfie Logan discovers the magical ability to get a second chance at everything. He can undo any moment and live it again. The one catch: he must accept the consequences of his second try—for better or worse. He grows up correcting his mistakes and saving himself from adolescent embarrassments. He even takes foolishly dangerous risks, just to see what it’s like to come close to death, before tapping back to safety. Eventually, Alfie turns his gift to his love life, studying his crushes and going back to make himself more appealing. In time, he falls deeply in love with Gianna, the woman he believes is the one. He seems to find contentment. But as the years pass, Alfie’s eye begins to wander. Which is when he learns a lone caveat to his power: once he undoes a love, that person can never fall in love with him again. Knowing if he gives into to temptation, he will risk losing what he has with Gianna, Alfie makes a choice that changes his life forever. The book begins many years later, after an ailing Alfie is arrested for allegedly cheating and winning millions at a casino roulette wheel. As a curious detective interrogates him, he slowly uncovers Alfie’s incredible story, and its most unlikely conclusion. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c4781081-8205-47fb-8a59-287aac758594/220223963.jpg Blog - Recent Celebrity Book Club Picks - Not Quite Dead Yet by Holly Jackson In seven days Jet Mason will be dead. Jet is the daughter of one of the wealthiest families in Woodstock, Vermont. Twenty-seven years old, she’s still waiting for her life to begin. I’ll do it later, she always says. She has time. Until Halloween night, when Jet is violently attacked by an unseen intruder. She suffers a catastrophic head injury. The doctor is certain that within a week, the injury will trigger a deadly aneurysm. Jet has never thought of herself as having enemies. But now she looks at everyone in a new light: her family, her former best friend turned sister-in-law, her ex-boyfriend. She has at most seven days, and as her condition deteriorates she has only her childhood friend Billy for help. But nevertheless, she’s absolutely determined to finally finish something: Jet is going to solve her own murder. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/024de685-d7fb-4328-967a-6d38ebc9d128/217245582.jpg Blog - Recent Celebrity Book Club Picks - The Original Daughter by Jemimah Wei Before Arin, Genevieve Yang was an only child. Living with her parents and grandmother in a single-room flat in working-class Bedok, Genevieve is saddled with an unexpected sibling when Arin appears, the shameful legacy of a grandfather long believed to be dead. As the two girls grow closer, they must navigate the intensity of life in a place where the urgent insistence on achievement demands constant sacrifice. Knowing that failure is not an option, the sisters learn to depend entirely on one another as they spurn outside friendships, leisure, and any semblance of a social life in pursuit of academic perfection and passage to a better future. When a stinging betrayal violently estranges Genevieve and Arin, Genevieve must weigh the value of ambition versus familial love, home versus the outside world, and allegiance to herself versus allegiance to the people who made her who she is. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9cc48ba8-dfaa-40d8-ae17-5122f7ee0372/231388884.jpg Blog - Recent Celebrity Book Club Picks - Some Bright Nowhere by Ann Packer Eliot and his wife Claire have been happily married for nearly four decades. They’ve raised two children in their sleepy Connecticut town and have weathered the inevitable ups and downs of a long life spent together. But eight years after Claire was diagnosed with cancer, the end is near, and it is time to gather loved ones and prepare for the inevitable. Over the years of Claire’s illness, Eliot has willingly—lovingly—shifted into the role of caregiver, appreciating the intimacy and tenderness that comes with a role even more layered and complex than the one he performed as a devoted husband. But as he focuses on settling into what will be their last days and weeks together, Claire makes an unexpected request that leaves him reeling. In a moment, his carefully constructed world is shattered. What if your partner’s dying wish broke your heart? How well do we know the deepest desires of those we love dearly? As Eliot is confronted with this profound turning point in his marriage and his life, he grapples with the man and husband he’s been, and with the great unknowns of Claire’s last days. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c406ff88-8ea2-4255-a116-9021d90c520a/232207672.jpg Blog - Recent Celebrity Book Club Picks - A Guardian and a Thief by Megha Majumdar In a near-future Kolkata, Ma, her two-year-old daughter, and her elderly father are just days from leaving the collapsing city behind to join Ma's husband in Ann Arbor, Michigan. After procuring long-awaited visas from the consulate, they pack their bags for the flight to America. But in the morning they awaken to discover that Ma's purse, containing their treasured immigration documents, has been stolen. Set over the course of one week, A Guardian and a Thief tells two stories: the story of Ma's frantic search for the thief while keeping hunger at bay during a worsening food shortage; and the story of Boomba, the thief, whose desperation to care for his family drives him to commit a series of escalating crimes whose consequences he cannot fathom. With stunning control and command, Megha Majumdar paints a kaleidoscopic portrait of two families, each operating from a place of ferocious love and undefeated hope, each discovering how far they will go to secure their children's future as they stave off encroaching catastrophe. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/14b51cdf-ee9e-4ae1-ac9a-95dfa4f2b75a/200262412.jpg Blog - Recent Celebrity Book Club Picks - Familiaris by David Wroblewski It is spring 1919, and John Sawtelle's imagination has gotten him into trouble ... again. Now John and his newlywed wife, Mary, along with their two best friends and their three dogs, are setting off for Wisconsin's north woods, where they hope to make a fresh start—and, with a little luck, discover what it takes to live a life of meaning, purpose, and adventure. But the place they are headed for is far stranger and more perilous than they realize, and it will take all their ingenuity, along with a few new friends—human, animal, and otherworldly—to realize their dreams. By turns hilarious and heartbreaking, mysterious and enchanting, Familiaris takes readers on an unforgettable journey from the halls of a small-town automobile factory, through an epic midwestern firestorm and an ambitious WWII dog training program, and far back into mankind's ancient past, examining the dynamics of love and friendship, the vexing nature of families, the universal desire to create something lasting and beautiful, and of course, the species-long partnership between Homo sapiens and Canis familiaris. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c0b01c70-51e5-4c6a-b916-cb7c2e2106ed/215362651.jpg Blog - Recent Celebrity Book Club Picks - Dream State by Eric Puchner Cece is in love. She has arrived early at her future in-laws’ lake house in Salish, Montana, to finish planning her wedding to Charlie, a young doctor with a brilliant life ahead of him. Charlie has asked Garrett, his best friend from college, to officiate the ceremony, though Cece can’t imagine anyone more ill-suited for the task—an airport baggage handler haunted by a tragedy from his and Charlie’s shared past. But as Cece spends time with Garrett, his gruff mask slips, and she grows increasingly uncertain about her future. And why does Garrett, after meeting Cece, begin to feel, well, human again? As a contagious stomach flu threatens to scuttle the wedding, and Charlie and Garrett’s friendship is put to the ultimate test, Cece must decide between the life she’s dreamed of and a life she’s never imagined. The events of that summer have long-lasting repercussions, not only on the three friends caught in its shadow but also on their children, who struggle to escape their parents’ story. Spanning fifty years and set against the backdrop of a rapidly warming Montana, Dream State explores what it means to live with the mistakes of the past—both our own and the ones we’ve inherited. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2e0eaa68-615f-4d8f-9a75-087055f744a7/217044909.jpg Blog - Recent Celebrity Book Club Picks - Matriarch by Tina Knowles "You are Celestine," she said. She squatted to push the hair off my face and pull leaves off my pajama legs. "Like my sister and my grandmother." And there under the pecan tree, as she did countless times, that day my mother told me stories of the mothers and daughters that went before me. Tina Knowles, the mother of iconic singer-songwriters Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, Solange Knowles, and bonus daughter Kelly Rowland, is known the world over as a Matriarch with a capital M: a determined, self-possessed, self-aware, and wise woman who raised and inspired some of the great artists of our time. But this story is about so much more than that. Matriarch begins with a precocious, if unruly, little girl growing up in 1950s Galveston, the youngest of seven. She is in love with her world, with extended family on every other porch and the sounds of Motown and the lapping beach always within earshot. But as the realities of race and the limitations of girlhood set in, she begins to dream of the world beyond. Her instincts and impulsive nature drive her far beyond the shores of Texas to discover the life awaiting her on the other side of childhood. That life's journey—through grief and tragedy, creative and romantic risks and turmoil, the nurturing of superstar offspring and of her own special gifts—is the remarkable story she shares with readers here. This is a page-turning chronicle of family love and heartbreak, of loss and perseverance, and of the kind of creativity, audacity, and will it takes for a girl from Galveston to change the world. It's one brilliant woman's intimate and revealing story, and a multigenerational family saga that carries within it the story of America—and the wisdom that women pass on to each other, mothers to daughters, across generations. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7b34d560-896f-466b-b7d9-d409237633d5/226743876.jpg Blog - Recent Celebrity Book Club Picks - Lightbreakers by Aja Gabel In the beginning, there was happiness. Maya, an artist obsessed with the nature of beauty, and Noah, a quantum physicist preoccupied by the mysteries of the universe, found in each other a shared curiosity about the world. But beneath the surface of their happy marriage is a third Serena, the lost child that Noah had with his ex-wife, Eileen. One day Noah gets a call from an eccentric billionaire, asking him to participate in a clandestine project aiming to unravel the secrets of time and consciousness. The couple agrees to relocate to the Janus Lab, deep in the desert, where Noah finds himself drawn into a dangerous kind of time travel that could result in seeing Serena again. As Noah delves into this groundbreaking, fringe work, his past begins to overtake him. And when his ex-wife, Eileen, joins the project, Maya embarks on a journey back to her own past, one that takes her to Japan, to her family, and to a formative lover who once shattered her heart. As Noah, Maya, and Eileen grapple with the balance between holding on and letting go, new information emerges that the Janus Lab might not be exactly what it seems. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9c7cb750-fa93-46b5-b512-3d3ca1ee2592/222925703-2.jpg Blog - Recent Celebrity Book Club Picks - Will There Ever Be Another You by Patricia Lockwood Amid a global pandemic one young woman is trying to keep the pieces together—of her family, stunned by a devastating loss, and of her mind, left mangled and misfiring from a mystifying disease She’s afraid of her own floorboards, and she hears “What is love? Baby, don't hurt me" playing repeatedly in her head. She hates her friends, or more accurately, she doesn’t know who they are. Has the illness stolen her mind and given her a new one? Does it mean she’ll get to start over, a chance afforded to few people? The very weave of herself seems to have loosened as time and memories pass straight through her body. “I’m sorry not to respond to your email,” she writes, “but I live completely in the present now." Will There Ever be Another You is the brain-shredding, phosphorescent story of one woman’s dissolution and her attempt to create a new way of thinking, as well as a profound investigation into what keeps us alive in times of unprecedented disorientation and loss. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/100c2d55-f4e5-468b-91c6-80634dbdaf3f/221440192.jpg Blog - Recent Celebrity Book Club Picks - Lush by Rochelle Dowden-Lord Four wine experts receive a mysterious invitation to an exclusive weekend tasting at a famous French vineyard. Avery is a cash-strapped sommelier and wine social media influencer; Sonny, a rich American who owns a popular but unimpressive wine brand; Maëlys, a French food and drink critic; and Cosmo, a sommelier who is one of the youngest Masters in the world. It seems at first that these four have little in common except for their love of wine and their belief in its transformative power. But, as the quartet awaits the penultimate night of the trip, when they will taste the only bottle of one of the rarest wines in the world, it becomes clear that each of them grapples with a private crisis and projects their ultimate hopes and fears onto the contents of this bottle, a bottle rendered divine by age and scarcity. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b0e51809-04e6-4a1f-80cc-dc5ec3132990/208430757.jpg Blog - Recent Celebrity Book Club Picks - Darkly by Marisha Pessl Arcadia “Dia” Gannon is obsessed with Louisiana Veda, the game designer whose creations and company, Darkly, have gained a cult-like following. Dia is shocked when she’s chosen for a highly coveted internship, along with six other teenagers from around the world. Darkly, once a game-making empire renowned for its ingenious and terrifying toys and games, now lies dormant after Veda’s mysterious death. The remaining games are priced like rare works of art, with some fetching millions of dollars at auction. As Dia and her fellow interns delve into the heart of Darkly, they discover hidden symbols, buried clues, and a web of intrigue. Who are these other teens, and what secrets do they keep? Why were any of them really chosen? The answers lie within the twisted labyrinth of Darkly. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b3b9650a-63ef-4c99-a632-937dbc2e0981/217387909.jpg Blog - Recent Celebrity Book Club Picks - Notes on Infinity by Austin Taylor Zoe, the daughter of an MIT professor who grew up in her brother’s shadow, can envision her future anew at Harvard University. Jack, a boy in Zoe’s organic chemistry class with unruly hair and a gleam of competitiveness, matches her intellect and curiosity with every breath. When Jack refers Zoe for a position in a prestigious professor’s lab, the two become entwined as colleagues, staying up late to discuss scientific ideas. They find themselves on the cusp of a breakthrough: the promise of immortality through a novel anti-ageing drug. Zoe and Jack set off on their new project in secret. Finding encouraging results, they bring their work to an investor, drop out of Harvard, and form a startup. But after the money, the magazine covers, and the national news stories detailing their success, Zoe and Jack receive a startling accusation that threatens to destroy both the company they built and their partnership. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/january-new-releases-1 monthly 0.5 2025-12-29 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/69ad090b-4e25-445b-917b-12569e8acbc5/231679966.jpg Blog - January New Releases - The Storm by Rachel Hawkins St. Medard’s Bay, Alabama is famous for three things: the deadly hurricanes that regularly sweep into town, the Rosalie Inn, a century-old hotel that’s survived every one of those storms, and Lo Bailey, the local girl infamously accused of the murder of her lover, political scion Landon Fitzroy, during Hurricane Marie in 1984. When Geneva Corliss, the current owner of the Rosalie Inn, hears a writer is coming to town to research the crime that put St. Medard’s Bay on the map, she’s less interested in solving a whodunnit than in how a successful true crime book might help the struggling inn’s bottom line. But to her surprise, August Fletcher doesn’t come to St. Medard’s Bay alone. With him is none other than Lo Bailey herself. Lo says she’s returned to her hometown to clear her name once and for all, but the closer Geneva gets to both Lo and August, the more she wonders if Lo is actually back to settle old scores. As the summer heats up and another monster storm begins twisting its way towards St. Medard’s Bay, Geneva learns that some people can be just as destructive—and as deadly—as any hurricane, and that the truth of what happened to Landon Fitzroy may not be the only secret Lo is keeping… Release Date: January 6, 2026 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9cf6438d-c3f7-409a-9a0b-6f37f13a0424/228393488.jpg Blog - January New Releases - The Swan’s Daughter by Roshani Chokshi To find love is a curse ... Prince Arris knows that marriage means murder. Thanks to a poorly worded wish to a sea witch, all one needs to rule the Isle of Malys is the heart and hand of the kingdom’s heir. Historically, this has been construed quite literally. Thus, Arris expects that the day after his marriage and murder he will wake up as a sentient tree alongside the rest of his predecessors. His only chance at a long life is finding true and lasting love. When Arris's parents announce a tournament of brides to compete for his hand and heart, a slew of eligible, lovely and (possibly murderous) bachelorettes make their way to Rathe Castle. Amidst glittering balls in ozorald caves, strolls through menageries of daydream trees and pearl crocodiles, tea time on glass boats and kisses that leave his head spinning, Arris cannot tell who is here out of love for him…or lust for power. Until he meets Demelza. As a veritas swan, Demelza’s song wrings out the truth. Forced into hiding, Demelza strikes a deal. Arris will provide her with safekeeping in exchange for her truth-telling song to sort through his potential brides. While Arris is used to dodging death threats and Demelza is accustomed to fighting for her voice to be heard, to survive the tournament of brides requires a different kind of bravery. And perhaps the bravest thing one can do is not merely protect one’s life, but find the courage to chase a life worth living. Release Date: January 6, 2026 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/eb622533-4dcc-4762-bc4f-ef83cc3b59ef/236156146.jpg Blog - January New Releases - The First Time I Saw Him by Laura Dave Five years after her husband, Owen, disappeared, Hannah Hall and her stepdaughter, Bailey, have settled into a new life in Southern California. Together, they’ve forged a relationship with Bailey’s grandfather Nicholas and are putting the past behind them. But when Owen shows up at Hannah’s new exhibition, she knows that she and Bailey are in danger again. Hannah and Bailey are forced to go on the run in a relentless race to keep their past from catching up with them. As a thrilling drama unfolds, Hannah risks everything to get Bailey to safety—and finds there just might be a way back to Owen and their long-awaited second chance. Release Date: January 6, 2026 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4d56fe2a-19b0-42ec-a636-deeda0ad1378/231127229.jpg Blog - January New Releases - Meet the Newmans by Jennifer Niven For two decades, Del and Dinah Newman and their sons, Guy and Shep, have ruled television as America’s Favorite Family. Millions of viewers tune in every week to watch them play flawless, black-and-white versions of themselves. But now it’s 1964, and the Newmans’ perfection suddenly feels woefully out of touch. Ratings are in free fall, as are the Newmans themselves. Del is keeping an explosive secret from his wife, and Dinah is slowly going numb—literally. Steady, stable Guy is hiding the truth about his love life, and rock ‘n roll idol Shep may finally be in real trouble. When Del—the creative motor behind the show— is in a mysterious car accident, Dinah decides to take matters into her own hands. She hires Juliet Dunne, an outspoken young reporter, to help her write the final episode. But Dinah and Juliet have wildly different perspectives about what it means to be a woman, and a family, in 1964. Can the Newmans hold it together to change television history? Or will they be canceled before they ever have the chance? Release Date: January 6, 2026 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2f45aafd-beef-4f99-925e-f940611f83b2/235991966.jpg Blog - January New Releases - Beth is Dead by Katie Bernet When Beth March is found dead in the woods on New Year’s Day, her sisters vow to uncover her murderer. Suspects abound. There’s the neighbor who has feelings for not one but two of the girls. Meg’s manipulative best friend. Amy’s flirtatious mentor. And Beth’s lionhearted first love. But it doesn’t take the surviving sisters much digging to uncover motives each one of the March girls had for doing the unthinkable. Jo, an aspiring author with a huge following on social media, would do anything to hook readers. Would she kill her sister for the story? Amy dreams of studying art in Europe, but she’ll need money from her aunt—money that’s always been earmarked for Beth. And Meg wouldn’t dream of hurting her sister…but her boyfriend might have, and she’ll protect him at all costs. Despite the growing suspicion within the family, it’s hard to know for sure if the crime was committed by someone close to home. After all, the March sisters were dragged into the spotlight months ago when their father published a controversial bestseller about his own daughters. Beth could have been killed by anyone. Release Date: January 6, 2026 Genre: Young Adult Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/506f5f84-9033-4176-95e9-74f42dd1abe3/216697286.jpg Blog - January New Releases - Dragon Cursed by Elise Kova The moment you see a dragon is usually your last… Since the dragons emerged–along with the scourge that ravaged our lands and people–there’s only one human city that remains Vinguard. But the hellfire from above is nothing compared to he threat from within. For there is no worse fate than being dragon cursed. Slowly and excruciatingly, you’ll be transformed into a mindless beast who destroys everything–and everyone–you love. Any of us could be tainted. Any of us could be lying. Any of us could be caught and killed by the authorities. And I’m terrified that I might be next. There’s only one other person who might suspect my secret. He’s like my shadow, following me wherever I go. Part protector, part tormentor, fully annoying. Sometimes I think I am just one of the million unfathomable secrets he keeps hidden. Because Lucan definitely knows something. And if I’m dragon cursed, death might be the only mercy I get. Release Date: January 6, 2026 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/95381cfa-f7a8-4a8f-ba2c-88988be99761/241458703.jpg Blog - January New Releases - Woman Down by Colleen Hoover Her words used to set the page on fire. But a viral backlash over her latest film adaptation forced Petra Rose to take a hiatus, resulting in missed deadlines and an overdue mortgage. Branded a fraud and fame-hungry opportunist, she learned the hard way what happens when the internet turns on you. And she’s been uninspired to write ever since. Now, with her next suspense novel outlined and savings nearly gone, she retreats to a secluded lakeside cabin, hoping to find inspiration. It’s Petra’s last-ditch attempt to save her career—and herself. Then he shows up. Detective Nathaniel Saint arrives with disturbing news, his presence igniting a creativity in her she thought long since burned out. Petra’s words return in a rush, and her fictional cop character begins to mirror the very real cop who’s becoming her muse. Their “research” sessions blur the lines between fantasy and reality. Each glance, every touch pulls Petra deeper into a world she thought she’d never lose herself in again. She’s never felt more alive. But inspiration this powerful comes at a cost. When Saint starts taking his role in her career a little too seriously, Petra’s forced to confront the chaos she created. But doing so could cost her more than the reputation she’s been trying to salvage. The reputation the world wrote for her—the reputation only she can reclaim. Release Date: January 13, 2026 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/500fb1fb-1662-4dec-812e-48669b876225/231127484.jpg Blog - January New Releases - Most Eligible by Isabelle Engel Georgia Rose is not going on the hit reality dating show Love Shack to find love. She’s there to write a killer exposé on the producers, which will guarantee the journalism job of her dreams. But when Georgia’s unforgettable one-night stand from the year before, country singer Rhett Auburn, steps into the Malibu mansion as the season’s new host, all of her carefully crafted plans unravel. Caught up in the drama of backstabbing contestants, producer blackmail, and death-defying dates, Georgia must keep her identity—and history with Rhett—a secret. Despite the lies between them, it isn’t long before Georgia and Rhett’s heated behind-the-scenes moments start to feel more genuine than the romance Georgia’s faking for the cameras. But with her assignment unfinished and the executive producer on her tail, a second chance with Rhett could be her riskiest move of all. Release Date: January 13, 2026 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/fc52ec23-4f2e-449e-ab02-ba2b33bd7596/222376804.jpg Blog - January New Releases - Oxford Blood by Rachael Davis Featherstone Love, Lies, Legacy...High-achieving state-school pupil Eva has one dream – reading English at Oxford. If she gets in, not only will she receive a world-class education at an elite university, but she will be fulfilling the dreams of her mother and gain some independence from her father, the overprotective Inspector Dawkins. At the same school, Eva's best-friend George is also hoping to go to Oxford. The attraction between him and Eva is undeniable, but they’ve agreed to put any romance on hold until their places at Oxford are secured. Eva cannot be distracted from her goal – although when they are both invited for interview week, their future together feels oh-so close. Until George shows up dead. The police rule his death an accident, but the behaviour of some of the other interview candidates has Eva suspecting foul play. When a shocking secret about George is revealed, Eva finds suspicion falling on her. What was meant to be one of the most important weeks of her life is fast turning into a nightmare. All eyes are now on Eva, including the anonymous posters behind OxSlay, a gossipy social media forum exclusively for Oxford students. But amongst the conspiracy theories, lurk hidden clues. Could they help Eva clear her name - and catch the killer? Release Date: January 13, 2026 Genre: Young Adult Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9aea8451-2401-4f3c-b1d9-67a4a515cd01/239052933.jpg Blog - January New Releases - Anatomy of an Alibi by Ashley Elston Everyone at Chantilly’s Bar noticed out-of-towner Camille Bayliss. Red lips, designer heels, sipping a Negroni. But that woman wasn’t Camille Bayliss. It was Aubrey Price. Camille Bayliss appears to have the picture-perfect life; she’s married to hotshot lawyer Ben and is the daughter of a wealthy Louisiana family. Only nothing is as it seems: Camille believes Ben has been hiding dirty secrets for years, but she can’t find proof because he tracks her every move. Aubrey Price has been haunted by the terrible night that changed her life a decade ago, and she’s convinced Benjamin Bayliss knows something about it. Living in a house full of criminals, Aubrey understands there’s more than one way to get to the truth—and she may have found the best way in. Aubrey and Camille hatch a plan. It sounds simple: For twelve hours, Aubrey will take Camille’s place. Camille will spy on Ben, and the two women will get the answers they desperately seek. Except the next morning, Ben is found murdered. Both women need an airtight alibi, but only one of them has it. And one false step is all it takes for everything to come undone. Release Date: January 13, 2026 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5978f862-530d-464d-a4a8-7d9f5e0f69e1/235992407.jpg Blog - January New Releases - A Killer Kind of Romance by Letizia Lorini Scarlett Moore doesn’t do romance. She’s made a name for herself narrating gritty crime fiction on a local podcast. But when her boss hands her the reins to the network’s romance show, Scarlett finds herself neck-deep in swoony love stories on top of her usual murder plots. Then someone begins reenacting the chilling crimes she discusses on air, down to the last twisted detail. Determined to protect her small town, Scarlett launches her own investigation. But the line between reality and fiction blurs even more when Rafael Gray—the brooding bad boy who disappeared five years ago—unexpectedly returns. Suddenly, her life reads like a romance novel filled with every trope she used to mock, with Rafael playing the dangerously irresistible lead. He's perfect in every way...except last time, he broke her heart, and now he’s the prime suspect in the string of brutal murders. Will this be the love story she never saw coming, or is it a killer kind of romance? Release Date: January 13, 2026 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/76b892d5-b369-4b34-ad25-3df26a624c3d/215998781.jpg Blog - January New Releases - It Should Have Been You by Andrea Mara You press send and your message disappears. Full of secrets about your neighbors, it’s meant for your sister. But it doesn’t reach her – it goes to the entire local community WhatsApp group instead. As rumor spreads like wildfire through the picture-perfect neighborhood, you convince yourself that people will move on, that this will quickly be forgotten. But then you receive the first death threat. The next day, a woman has been murdered. And what’s even more chilling is that she had the same address as you – 26 Oakpark – but in a different part of town. Did the killer get the wrong house? It won’t be long before you find out… Release Date: January 13, m2026 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9241cebd-4672-49ea-9ab8-2f04c3acd3ee/231126993.jpg Blog - January New Releases - Graceless Heart by Isabel Ibanes In 15th-century Volterra, sculptress Ravenna Maffei enters a competition hosted by a secretive, immortal family who offer an invaluable boon to the victor. Desperate to win so she can save her brother, Ravenna reveals a rare magical talent--a dangerous act in a city where magic is forbidden. Her revelation makes her a target, and she is kidnapped by the Luni family and taken to Florence, a city of breathtaking beauty and cutthroat ambition. There, Ravenna is forced into an impossible task where failure means certain death at the hands of Saturnino dei Luni, the family's enigmatic and merciless heir. But under his cold reserve hides a vulnerability that draws her closer than she ever intended. Meanwhile, Ravenna's forbidden magic does not go unnoticed. The Pope, waging war against Florence, the Medici, and magic itself, has his own interest in her abilities, seeing her as a potential weapon in his ruthless campaign. As alliances shift and war brews on the horizon, Ravenna must navigate the treacherous line between survival and betrayal, between love and duty. With time running out and her every move watched, the choices she makes will determine the fate of not just her own life, but the fragile balance of magic and power that could unravel Florence itself. Release Date: January 13, 2026 Genre: Historical Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/70156c94-940f-48cd-8836-e8fdd6d54162/230614708.jpg Blog - January New Releases - A Vow in Vengeance by Jaclyn Rodriguez Rune Ryker has nothing left to lose. Everything’s been stolen by the Immortals—her family, her home, her freedom. But she’s done playing by their rules. Each year, humans are forced to journey into the Immortal Realms, but twenty-year-old Rune orchestrates her own selection, determined to find her family and destroy anyone who stands in her way. Rune is used to doing whatever it takes to survive, and now she must endure the Forge, a cutthroat college for the Immortal druids’ elusive tarot magic. When Rune’s magic reveals itself to be the rarest and most powerful, she must live with its only other wielder—Prince Draven. As arrogant as he is ruthlessly ambitious, he’s the last person she can trust. Rune’s abilities also draw the eyes of the most dangerous druids in the realms. Some want to use her. More want her dead. Draven offers to train her . . . for a price. As Rune becomes ensnared in Draven’s dangerous games, she learns there are secrets at the heart of the kingdom that some will kill to protect. And Rune and Draven’s growing attraction may be the spark to ignite a brewing war. Release Date: January 13, 2026 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9553931e-1b94-4186-b40e-6c57a07a431d/231681636.jpg Blog - January New Releases - A Box Full of Darkness by Simone St. James Strange things happen in Fell, New York: A mysterious drowning at the town’s roadside motel. The unexplained death of a young girl whose body is left by the railroad tracks. For Violet, Vail, and Dodie Esmie the final straw was their little brother's shocking disappearance, which started as a normal game of hide-and-seek. As their parents grew increasingly distant, the sisters were each haunted by visions and frightening events, leading them to leave town and never look back. Violet still sees dead people—spirits who remind her of Sister, the menacing presence that terrorized her for years. Now after nearly two decades it’s time for a homecoming—because Ben is back, and he’s ready to lead them to the answers they’ve longed for and long feared. Release Date: January 20, 2026 Genre: Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4e8a3332-1fed-4998-a28e-981c174bf9f3/240424526.jpg Blog - January New Releases - Half His Age by Jennette McCurdy Waldo is ravenous. Horny. Blunt. Naive. Wise. Impulsive. Lonely. Angry. Forceful. Hurting. Perceptive. Endlessly wanting. And the thing she wants most of all: Mr. Korgy, her creative writing teacher with the wife and the kid and the mortgage and the bills, with the dead dreams and the atrophied looks and the growing paunch. She doesn’t know why she wants him. Is it his passion? His life experience? The fact that he knows books and films and things that she doesn’t? Or is it purer than that, rooted in their unlikely connection, their kindred spirits, the similar filter with which they each take in the world around them? Or, perhaps, it’s just enough that he sees her when no one else does. Release Date: January 20, 2026 Genre: Contemporary Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3a5de2c6-fb3f-4708-b3d7-e3b798f2e9bc/231127462.jpg Blog - January New Releases - My Husband’s Wife by Alice Feeney Eden Fox, an artist on the brink of her big break, sets off for a run before her first exhibition. When she returns to the home she recently moved into, Spyglass, an enchanting old house in Hope Falls, nothing is as it should be. Her key doesn’t fit. A woman, eerily similar to her, answers the door. And her husband insists that the stranger is his wife. One house. One husband. Two women. Someone is lying. Six months earlier, a reclusive Londoner called Birdy, reeling from a life-changing diagnosis, inherits Spyglass. This unexpected gift from a long-lost grandmother brings her to the pretty seaside village of Hope Falls. But then Birdy stumbles upon a shadowy London clinic that claims to be able to predict a person's date of death, including her own. Secrets start to unravel, and as the line between truth and lies blurs, Birdy feels compelled to right some old wrongs. Release Date: January 20, 2026 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ebeeb945-a4d4-4a7c-92f0-922762d5cdc8/231680079._SX300_.jpg Blog - January New Releases - The Poet Empress by Shen Tao In the waning years of the Azalea Dynasty, the emperor is dying, the land consumed by famine, and poetry magic lost to all except the powerful. Wei Yin is desperate. After the fifth death of a sibling, with her family and village on the brink of starvation, she will do anything to save those she loves. Even offer herself as concubine to the cruel heir of the beautiful and brutal Azalea House. But in a twist of fate, the palace stands on the knife-edge of civil war with Wei trapped in its center…at the side of a violent prince. To survive, Wei must harden her heart, rely on her wit, and become dangerous herself. Even if it means becoming a poet in a world where women are forbidden to read—and composing the most powerful spell of all. A ballad of death...and love. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/efffd1f4-9b5d-4a5c-b367-f772cff21ebb/235991909.jpg Blog - January New Releases - The Future Saints by Ashley Winstead This is a love story, but not the one you’re expecting. When record executive Theo meets the Future Saints, they’re bombing at a dive bar in their hometown. Since the tragic death of their manager, the band has been in a downward spiral and Theo has been dispatched to coax a new—and successful—album out of them, or else let them go. Immediately, Theo is struck by Hannah, the group’s impetuous lead singer, who’s gone off script by debuting a whole new sound, replacing their California pop with gut-wrenching rock. When this new music goes viral, striking an unexpected chord with fans, Theo puts his career on the line to give the Saints one last shot at success with a new tour, new record, and new start. But Hannah’s grief has larger consequences for the group, and her increasingly destructive antics become a distraction as she and her sister Ginny—her lifelong partner in crime—undermine Theo at every turn. Hannah isn’t ready to move on or prepared for the fame she’s been chasing, and the weight of her problems jeopardize the band, her growing closeness with Theo, and, worst of all, her relationship with her sister—all while the world watches closely. The Future Saints’s big break is here—if only they can survive it. Release Date: January 20, 2026 Genre: Contemporary Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8b9c454b-ba48-4b8b-b294-de311d8f0fcb/223922841._SX300_.jpg Blog - January New Releases - Catch Her If You Can by Tessa Bailey Madden Donahue, the newest catcher for the Yankees, has been in love with Eve Mitchell since high school, but for some mysterious reason, the burlesque club owner always turns him down. That never stopped him from being her self-appointed protector. Case in point, now that Eve’s sister has left Eve with her two children indefinitely, Madden steps in with a proposition—marry him for the much needed health benefits. Eve has secretly harbored feelings for Madden all along, but there’s one problem—her best friend Skylar called dibs on him when they were fourteen. Eve has always put their friendship above all else, and she’s not willing to risk losing Skylar over a man. Raised by the local strip club owner, Eve is woefully short on friends and treasures the ones she has. But with Skylar happily paired off, Eve finds herself accepting Madden’s proposal—on the condition that their marriage remains strictly private. She’s not about to let her unique profession and maligned reputation destroy Madden’s shiny new career. Madden won’t let Eve get away that easily, though. What starts as a marriage of convenience soon ignites into something much hotter, and now it’s up to Madden to convince Eve that their connection is far more than a business arrangement. As the passion builds, can their fake marriage become the real deal? Release Date: January 20, 2026 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/475a9ae2-9423-4331-916a-eb57087cf3fe/238365535.jpg Blog - January New Releases - Dear Debbie by Freida McFadden Sometimes, enough is enough… Debbie Mullen is losing it. For years, she has compiled all of her best advice into her column, Dear Debbie, where the wives of New England come for sympathy and neighborly advice. Through her work, Debbie has heard from countless women who are ignored, belittled, or even abused by their husbands. And Debbie does her best to guide them in the right direction. Or at least, she did. These days, Debbie’s life seems to be spiraling out of control. She just lost her job. Something strange is happening with her teenage daughters. And her husband is keeping secrets, according to the tracking app she installed on his phone. Now, Debbie’s done being the bigger person. She’s done being reasonable and practical. It’s time to take her own advice. And now it’s time for payback against all the people in her life who deserve it the most. Release Date: January 27, 2026 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e147fc50-5112-42e3-a921-cfe6e658d78b/232207676.jpg Blog - January New Releases - We Who Have No Gods by Liza Anderson Vic Wood knows her priorities: scrape by on her restaurant wages, take care of her younger brother Henry, and forget their mother ever existed. But Vic’s careful life crumbles when Henry reveals that their long-missing mother belonged to the Acheron Order—a secret society of witches tasked with keeping the dead at bay. What’s worse, Henry inherited their mother’s magical abilities while Vic did not, and Henry has been chosen as the Order's newest recruit. Determined to keep him safe, Vic accompanies Henry to the isolated woods in upstate New York that play host to the sprawling and eerie Avalon Castle. When she joins the academy despite lacking powers of her own, she risks not only the Order’s wrath, but also her brother’s. And then there is Xan, the head Sentinel—imposing, ruthless, and frustrating—in charge of protecting Avalon. He makes no secret that he wants Vic to leave. As she makes both enemies and allies in this mysterious realm, Vic becomes caught between the dark forces at play, with her mother at the heart of it all. What's stranger is that Vic begins to be affected by the academy—and Xan—in ways she can't quite understand. But with war between witches threatening the fabric of reality, Vic must decide whether to risk her heart and life for a world where power is everything. Release Date: January 27, 2026 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f4ee3e64-d55f-4425-9d80-2301eb8bfa98/232209420.jpg Blog - January New Releases - Women of A Promiscuous Nature by Donna Everhart The day Ruth Foster’s life changes begins the same way as many others—with a walk through her North Carolina hometown toward the diner where she works. But on this day, Ruth is stopped by the local sheriff, who insists that she accompany him to a health clinic. Women like Ruth—young, unmarried, living alone—must undergo testing in order to preserve decency and prevent the spread of sexual disease. Though Ruth has never shared more than a chaste kiss with a man, by day’s end she is one of dozens of women held at the State Industrial Farm Colony for Women. Some, like 15-year-old Stella Temple, are brought in at their family’s request. For Stella, even the Colony’s hardships seem like a respite from her nightmarish home life. Superintendent Dorothy Baker, convinced that she’s transforming degenerate souls into upstanding members of society, oversees the women’s medical treatment and “training” until they’re deemed ready for parole. Sooner or later, everyone at the Colony learns to abide by Mrs. Baker’s rule book or face the consequences—solitary confinement, grueling work assignments, and worse. But some refuse to be cowed. Against Mrs. Baker’s dogged efforts and the punishing weight of authority, Ruth and other inmates find ways to fight back, resolved to regain their freedom at any cost . . . Release Date: January 27, 2026 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a15e93c4-18f2-465b-910a-08747b2c5be1/231387291.jpg Blog - January New Releases - The Wolf and the Crown of Blood by Elizabeth May A princess and a war-weary god met in the ashes of a broken city, forging a pact in blood and sacrifice. Now, centuries of fragile peace are on the brink of collapse… Bryony Devaliant was born to die — again and again. In Vartena, royal blood is the currency of peace, with every monarch sacrificed and resurrected to appease the gods. But when rebellion stirs, the god-king sends his deadliest weapon to restore order: an immortal assassin known only as the Wolf. Evander has perfected the art of killing over centuries — until his latest target becomes the one person he cannot destroy. When forbidden desire burns between the assassin and the sacrificial princess, their connection threatens the fragile boundary between gods and mortals. And when that boundary shatters, empires crumble. Because when gods fall in love with mortals, mortals are always the ones to break. Release Date: January 27, 2026 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b8bbaf4e-c1ff-4958-b5e1-0f814ce07c20/238873074.jpg Blog - January New Releases - Vigil by George Saunders Not for the first time, Jill “Doll” Blaine finds herself hurtling toward earth, reconstituting as she falls, right down to her favorite black pumps. She plummets towards her newest charge, yet another soul she must usher into the afterlife, and lands headfirst in the circular drive of his ornate mansion. She has performed this sacred duty three hundred and forty-three times since her own death. Her charges, as a rule, have been greatly comforted in their final moments. But this charge, she soon discovers, isn’t like the The powerful K.J. Boone will not be consoled, because he has nothing to regret. He lived a big, bold life, and the world is better for it. Isn’t it? Vigil transports us, careening, through the wild final evening of an epic, complicated life. Crowds of people and animals—worldly and otherworldly, alive and dead—arrive, clamoring for a reckoning. Birds swarm the dying man’s room, a black calf grazes on the loveseat, a man from a distant drought-ravaged village materializes, two oil-business cronies from decades past show up with chilling plans for Boone’s post-death future. Release Date: January 27, 2026 Genre: Literary Fantasy https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/13-cant-miss-christmas-thrillers monthly 0.5 2025-12-22 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/47676522-ff2e-496b-b822-ddc209c096bc/124949815.jpg Blog - 13 Can’t Miss Christmas Thrillers - The Christmas Appeal by Janice Hallett This immersive holiday caper follows the hilarious Fairway Players theater group as they put on a Christmas play—and solve a murder that threatens their production. The Christmas season has arrived in Lower Lockwood, and the Fairway Players are busy rehearsing their festive holiday production of Jack and the Beanstalk to raise money for a new church roof. But despite the season, goodwill is distinctly lacking among the amateur theater enthusiasts with petty rivalries, a possibly asbestos-filled beanstalk, and some perennially absent players behind the scenes. Of course, there’s also the matter of the dead body onstage. Who could possibly have had the victim on their naughty list? Join lawyers Femi and Charlotte as they investigate Christmas letters, examine emails, and pore over police transcripts to identify both the victim and killer before the curtain closes on their holiday production—for good. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/948bd8dd-c1f7-4ef1-bff9-deadba224c15/222376649-2.jpg Blog - 13 Can’t Miss Christmas Thrillers - At Midnight Comes the Cry by Julia Spencer-Fleming It’s Christmas time in Millers Kill, and Reverend Clare Fergusson and her husband Russ van Alstyne - newly resigned from his position as chief of police – plan to enjoy it with their baby boy. On their visiting Santa, decorating the tree, and attending the church Christmas pageant. But when a beloved holiday parade is crashed by white supremacists, Clare and Russ find themselves sucked into a parallel world of militias, machinations and murder. Meanwhile, single mom and officer Hadley Knox has her hands full juggling her kids and her police work. She doesn’t want to worry about her former partner – and sometimes lover – Kevin Flynn, but when he takes leave from the Syracuse PD and disappears, she can’t help her growing panic that something has gone very wrong. Novice lawyer Joy Zhào is keeping secrets from her superiors at the state Attorney General’s Office. She knows they wouldn’t condone her off-the-books investigation, but she’s convinced a threatening alt-right conspiracy is brewing – and catching the perpetrators could jump start her career. NYS Forest Ranger Paul Terrance is looking for his uncle, a veteran of the park service gone inexplicably missing. He doesn’t think much of an ex-cop and out-of-town officer showing up in his patch of the woods, but he’s heard the disturbing rumors of dangerous men in the mountains. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5dbd1cb2-4a2c-4b78-8e44-9831ecd687df/85150686.jpg Blog - 13 Can’t Miss Christmas Thrillers - Murder on the Christmas Express by Alexandra Benedict Eighteen passengers. Seven stops. One killer. In the early hours of Christmas Eve, the sleeper train to the Highlands is derailed, along with the festive plans of its travellers. With the train stuck in snow in the middle of nowhere, a killer stalks its carriages, picking off passengers one by one. Those who sleep on the sleeper train may never wake again. Can former Met detective Roz Parker find the killer before they kill again? All aboard for . . . Murder on the Christmas Express. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/00d9aa4c-b144-4870-b801-95aba2295f73/228062184.jpg Blog - 13 Can’t Miss Christmas Thrillers - 25 Days by Per Jacobsen Hoping to bring his family closer together, Adam Gray arranges a vacation in a remote cabin on a snowy mountain. Things take a dark turn, however, when someone starts leaving gifts in the Christmas stocking mounted on the barn door. Each morning brings something new, and with every passing day, the contents become more terrifying. Soon, the family makes a spine-chilling realization: they’ve been dragged into a deranged game of Secret Santa, and if they want to survive, they will have to fight. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a4a5b948-6a2f-4d1d-905b-a007d9206841/206005312.jpg.png Blog - 13 Can’t Miss Christmas Thrillers - Everyone This Christmas Has A Secret by Benjamin Stevenson My name’s Ernest Cunningham. I used to be a fan of reading Golden Age murder mysteries, until I found myself with a haphazard career getting stuck in the middle of real-life ones. I’d hoped, this Christmas, that any self-respecting murderer would kick their feet up and take it easy over the holidays. I was wrong. So here I am, backstage at the show of world-famous magician Rylan Blaze, whose benefactor has just been murdered. My suspects are all professional tricksters: masters of the art of misdirection. THE MAGICIAN THE ASSISTANT THE EXECUTIVE THE HYPNOTIST THE IDENTICAL TWIN THE COUNSELLOR THE TECH My clues are even more abstract: A suspect covered in blood, without a memory of how it got there. A murder committed without setting foot inside the room where it happens. And an advent calendar. Because, you know, it’s Christmas. If I can see through the illusions, I know I can solve it. After all, a good murder is just like a magic trick, isn’t it? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c015f6a8-0cf3-4e83-92c5-f088af6be110/210040063-2.jpg Blog - 13 Can’t Miss Christmas Thrillers - The Mistletoe Mystery by Nita Prose Molly Gray has always loved the holidays. When Molly was a child, her gran went to great lengths to make the season merry and bright, full of cherished traditions. The first few Christmases without Gran were hard on Molly, but this year, her beloved boyfriend and fellow festive spirit, Juan Manuel, is intent on making the season Molly’s mofinst joyful yet. But when a Secret Santa gift exchange at the Regency Grand Hotel raises questions about who Molly can and cannot trust, she dives headfirst into solving her most consequential—and personal—mystery yet. Molly has a bad feeling about things, and she starts to wonder: has she yet again mistaken a frog for a prince? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/67923d57-cd33-4e62-916b-2f79ebb9ae0d/236282763.jpg Blog - 13 Can’t Miss Christmas Thrillers - The Christmas Clue by Nicola Upson Christmas Eve, 1943. Anthony and Elva Pratt arrive in a snowy English village to run a murder mystery game - and instead discover a real murder. The Pratts had planned for festive cheer, despite the wartime with Elva's map of the hotel and Anthony's prop weapons to use as clues, the guests in their parlour game would move through the rooms to figure out whodunnit. But when Anthony discovers the cook's sister Miss Silver beaten to death, they instead find themselves investigating a shockingly real crime. The hotel manager Mr Browning is trying to keep the peace but the guests are agitated, Colonel Colman is about to take over the hotel for the war effort - and the mysterious Mrs Threadgold hasn't been seen at all. In games, there's only one victim - but this is real life. Can the Pratts puzzle out this Christmas mystery before it's too late? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/257f3442-4792-4e85-a2fa-de50789ed30d/203579200.jpg Blog - 13 Can’t Miss Christmas Thrillers - You Better Watch Out by James S. Murray and Darren Wearmouth Forty-eight hours until Christmas, Jessica Kane wakes up with blurred vision, ears ringing, and in excruciating pain. A gash in her head and blood running down her face, the last thing she remembers is going for a run and something or someone hitting her in the head. It doesn't take her long to realize she is trapped in an unknown, deserted town with five other strangers who share similar stories of being attacked and stranded there. Unsure why and how they got there, she knows one thing for certain, she has to find a way out. That becomes nearly impossible when someone is meticulously orchestrating their deaths, one by one, and the only thing Jessica can do is watch the life leave their eyes. The fenced-in town is the killer’s very own playground and there's nowhere left to hide... she better watch out because she could be next. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d55ef98f-c59a-4c98-bdca-f972bbc612f5/124028498.jpg Blog - 13 Can’t Miss Christmas Thrillers - Murder at Holly House by Denzil Meyrick A village of secrets It's December 1952, and a dead stranger has been found lodged up the chimney of Holly House in the remote town of Elderby. Is he a simple thief, or a would-be killer? Either way, he wasn't on anyone's Christmas wish list. A mystery that can't be solved Inspector Frank Grasby is ordered to investigate. The victim of some unfortunate misunderstandings, he hopes this case will help clear his name. But as is often the way for Grasby, things most certainly don't go according to plan. A Christmas to remember Soon blizzards hit the North York Moors, cutting off the village from help, and the local doctor's husband is found murdered. Grasby begins to realise that everyone in Elderby is hiding something - and if he can't uncover the truth soon, the whole country will pay a dreadful price... https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/53b230ba-8176-401b-bbfa-ef90e3a27330/241625087.jpg Blog - 13 Can’t Miss Christmas Thrillers - Christmas Revenge by AJ Campbell All she wants for Christmas is… payback. After their mother is left with life-changing injuries from being attacked in their home, sisters Violet and Rose react very differently. Rose grows up seemingly well-balanced, while Violet —who witnessed the Christmas Eve assault—can think of nothing but vengeance. When a freak accident brings Violet face-to-face with the intruder, fifteen years of torture culminate in the opportunity for cold, hard revenge. But while Violet worms her way into the attacker’s life, Rose discovers their father is not the man they thought they knew. As Rose scrambles to uncover the secrets and lies at the heart of their family, not all the pieces of the puzzle fit—and she soon realises that the reason for their mother’s fate may be closer to home… ...too close. This Christmas, truth is the most dangerous gift of all. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1bfc1589-ea6b-4ad5-aad2-69ee4e4955f5/122494784.jpg Blog - 13 Can’t Miss Christmas Thrillers - Christmas Presents by Lisa Unger Instead of presents this Christmas, one true crime podcaster is opening up a cold case… When true crime podcaster Harley Granger drifts into Madeline Martin's bookshop days before Christmas, he seems intent on digging up a past that Madeline would much rather forget. Granger's work has earned him fame and wealth - and some serious criticism for his various unethical practices. Granger also has a lot of questions about the night Madeline was left for dead, the only surviving victim of killer Evan Handy. Handy, who also murdered Madeline's best friend and is suspected in the disappearance of two local sisters, has been in jail for a decade. Since then, though, three other young women have gone missing in similar circumstances. Is the true predator still out there somewhere? As Christmas approaches and a blizzard bears down, Madeline must confront the past to answer questions that have haunted her since that day. Is the truth more terrible than she ever imagined? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/87dd1cc6-38d5-4023-bf87-f28838ad7ea6/221065871.jpg Blog - 13 Can’t Miss Christmas Thrillers - Xmas Break by J.E. Rowney When Isla reluctantly accepts her estranged sister Clara's invitation to spend Christmas at a luxury mountain retreat, she expects awkward family tension – not a fight for survival. After years of silence following their mother's death, this holiday reunion seems too good to be true. And it is. As a brutal snowstorm cuts them off from civilization, dark secrets begin to surface. With time running out and nowhere to run, two sisters must put aside years of mistrust to survive the night. But in a house full of lies, how do you know who to trust? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ce021fe7-5989-4e26-a548-2d96abacb1fa/63288618.jpg Blog - 13 Can’t Miss Christmas Thrillers - The Christmas Party by Mikayla Davids A family reunion. A shocking secret. A night to die for… On a snowy December night, the Bailey family are gathered at an isolated hotel in the English countryside. They’re reuniting for the first time since the accident that shattered their lives ten years ago. It’s a time for love and forgiveness. But more than one guest has an ulterior motive: The perfect daughter The alcoholic The single mother The liar The handsome husband The adulterer The beautiful sister The jealous sibling The murderer… As the clock strikes midnight, one member of the party is found dead at the foot of the grand marble staircase. Everyone is a suspect. But which one of them is a killer? https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/must-read-holiday-romances monthly 0.5 2025-12-08 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c422aa9b-130f-4108-ab62-1dadf558fbcb/206318178-2.jpg Blog - Must Read Holiday Romances - The Christmas Tree Farm by Laurie Gilmore Kira North hates Christmas. Which is unfortunate since she just bought a Christmas tree farm in a town that’s too cute for its own good. Bennett Ellis is on vacation in Dream Harbor trying to take a break from both his life and his constant desire to fix things. But somehow fate finds Ben trapped by a blanket of snow at Kira’s farm, and, despite her Grinchiest first impressions, with the glow of the fairy lights twinkling in the trees, and the promise of a warming hot chocolate, maybe, just maybe, these two lost souls will have a Christmas they’ll remember forever… https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0c17eca7-71bb-4349-bc2b-fbbde32c82e3/43811209.jpg Blog - Must Read Holiday Romances - Christmas Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella Becky Brandon (née Bloomwood) adores Christmas. It's always the same – Mum and Dad hosting, carols playing, Mum pretending she made the Christmas pudding, and the next-door neighbours coming round for sherry in their terrible festive jumpers. And now it's even easier with online bargain-shopping sites – if you spend enough you even get free delivery. Sorted! But this year looks set to be different. Unable to resist the draw of craft beer and smashed avocado, Becky's parents are moving to ultra-trendy Shoreditch and have asked Becky if she'll host Christmas this year. What could possibly go wrong? With sister Jess demanding a vegan turkey, husband Luke determined that he just wants aftershave again, and little Minnie insisting on a very specific picnic hamper – surely Becky can manage all this, as well as the surprise appearance of an old boyfriend and his pushy new girlfriend, whose motives are far from clear . . . Will chaos ensue, or will Becky manage to bring comfort and joy to Christmas? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/fcae8101-1be6-49a0-b3b4-88d73ace039c/231657155.jpg Blog - Must Read Holiday Romances - Holiday Ever After by Hannah Grace Clara Davenport wants to solve Fraser Falls’s biggest problem. According to Jack Kelly, Clara is Fraser Falls’s biggest problem. All Clara Davenport has ever wanted to do is climb the ladder at Davenport Innovation Creative, her family’s toy business. Everything was going according to plan, until the company was accused of stealing a doll design from an independent toy maker, creating a flurry of bad publicity. With a promotion dangled in front of her like a carrot to a reindeer, Clara is tasked with charming the locals of the small town to solve the PR nightmare, by any means necessary. Jack Kelly would be happy to never hear the name Davenport ever again. Less than a year after a guy in a fancy suit appeared on his doorstep with a sleigh-full of promises, the company that once falsely claimed they wanted to sign him to their small business program has copied his design. So when Clara prances into town hoping to convince Fraser Falls that her company is not the enemy, Jack is determined not to be fooled by Davenport twice. But Clara has a plan to win over the community only to realize that beneath Jack’s frosty demeanor lies the key to the town’s heart—and maybe her own. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c318cef4-982a-4f15-afd7-32dce8433e77/58943206.jpg Blog - Must Read Holiday Romances - Window Shopping by Tessa Bailey Two weeks before Christmas and all through Manhattan, shop windows are decorated in red and green satin. I'm standing alone in front of the famous Vivant department store, when a charming man named Aiden asks my opinion of the décor. It's a tragedy in tinsel, I say, unable to lie. He asks for a better idea with a twinkle in his eye. Did I know he owned the place? No. He put me on the spot. Now I'm working for that man, trying to ignore that he's hot. But as a down on her luck girl with a difficult past, I know an opportunity when I see one—and I have to make it last. I'll put my heart and soul into dressing his holiday windows. I'll work without stopping. And when we lose the battle with temptation, I'll try and remember I'm just window shopping. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/da27d2f7-0e1b-412c-81f2-7d1462ca8447/222925678.jpg Blog - Must Read Holiday Romances - Christmas at the Ranch by Julia McKay On the first day of Christmas, my true love gave to a run-in with my ex, two flat tires, and a miracle horse to help me find love. With the holidays around the corner and her father under arrest for financial fraud, journalist Everly Oakes has no idea where to turn. She’s only certain of one she needs to get away. Fate and her subconscious take her to Evergreen Lake, the picturesque town where she spent her happiest Christmas as a teenage girl – and fell in love for the first time. Stranded due to car trouble and a blizzard, Everly is rescued by Charlie Wilder, father of her first love, who offers her the guest house at Wilder Ranch. Tate, he promises, is out of town. But kismet and Christmas magic have other ideas, and when Tate comes home early and finds a half-dressed Everly in his cabin, all bets are off for what else the holidays will hold this year. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/70359dfd-f713-4d60-bb4c-23789b0ec420/56790613.jpg.png Blog - Must Read Holiday Romances - Fool Me Twice at Christmas by Camilla Isley There are two types of relationships: fake and real. Chuck and Kate’s used to be real, oh-so-real. But after she broke his heart four months ago, leaving him, it became all just pretense for the sake of their entwined families. With parents who are best friends and business partners, it’s not easy for Chuck and Kate to announce they’ve split up. But with the holidays looming over them, they can no longer keep pretending. They head home for Christmas, determined to tell the truth—and end up accidentally engaged instead. The more they try to pull apart, the more the Universe seems to push them back together, shortening the road to the altar. And when just-for-show kisses stir up forgotten feelings, things get even more complicated. Now, with the midnight hour approaching, will Chuck and Kate’s relationship turn out to be fake or real? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b0a9432e-aa85-40f4-be3f-295f257930f4/223641064.jpg Blog - Must Read Holiday Romances - Grace and Henry’s Holiday Movie Marathon by Matthew Norman The new year barely began when Grace White and Henry Adler both lost their spouses. Now, nearly a year later, the first holiday season since their "Great and Terrible Sadnesses" approaches. Although their mothers scheme to matchmake the two surviving spouses, it’s clear that neither is ready to date again. Yet no one understands what they're going through better than each other, and a delicate friendship is born. When Henry sees an ad for a Christmas movie marathon—once an annual tradition for him and his wife—Grace offers to watch some films with him, despite her aversion to a few of his picks. Her two young kids, Ian and Bella, also join in whenever possible—bedtimes permitting, of course. With each movie, Grace and Henry’s shared grief eases as they start to see a life beyond the sadness. But as they draw closer, other romantic possibilities leave them both uncertain about their future together. Is their bond merely the result of loneliness and shared circumstances, or have they found something that’s worth taking a shot at . . . again? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3f4ec7b8-65f0-4dd3-8243-c2101ae714de/199531989-2.jpg Blog - Must Read Holiday Romances - The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year by Ally Carter The bridge is out. The phones are down. And the most famous mystery writer in the world just disappeared out of a locked room three days before Christmas. Meet Maggie Chase and Ethan Wyatt: She’s the new Queen of the Cozy Mystery. He’s Mr. Big-Time Thriller Guy. She hates his guts. He thinks her name is Marcie (no matter how many times she’s told him otherwise.) But when they both accept a cryptic invitation to attend a Christmas house party at the English estate of a reclusive fan, neither is expecting their host to be the most powerful author in the world: Eleanor Ashley, the Duchess of Death herself. That night, the weather turns, and the next morning Eleanor is gone. She vanished from a locked room, and Maggie has to wonder: Is Eleanor in danger? Or is it all some kind of test? Is Ethan the competition? Or is he the only person in that snowbound mansion she can trust? As the snow gets deeper and the stakes get higher, every clue will bring Maggie and Ethan closer to the truth—and each other. Because, this Christmas, these two rivals are going to have to become allies (and maybe more) if they have any hope of saving Eleanor. Assuming they don’t kill each other first. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/89803d66-be2c-4203-99c8-1bdc5537d518/223362267.jpg Blog - Must Read Holiday Romances - Yours for the Season by Emily Stone Melanie has not had a good year. Things are definitely not going as planned in her work life, her best friend has moved to the other side of the world, and her favorite bagel shop is closing down. But the real reason this year has been awful is because Finn, the man who she was sure was the love of her life, dumped her. In front of everyone. At his sister’s engagement party. So when Finn shows up at her doorstep two weeks before Christmas asking if she’ll help him, her first instinct is to slam the door in his face—or punch him. But he has a proposal for her. Finn wants Melanie to spend the week of Christmas with him. He has to face the holiday at a vacation cottage in the Scottish Highlands with his two perfect siblings who are happily paired off with their perfect partners. His mother is obsessed with the idea of a perfect Christmas—and to try and help, Finn may have told his mother he and Mel are dating again. All she has to do is come with him and pretend they’re back together. Melanie may hate Finn, but she loves his mom. And with her own parents on a trip, it looks like the only way to spend the holiday with someone she cares about is to suffer through being around the person she despises most. So Melanie agrees—on one condition. At the end of the week, Finn will allow Mel to publicly dump him—in front of his family—so she can get her dignity back and he can experience the same humiliation she felt. As they embark on seven days with Finn's family, Mel tells herself it's only a week. She just has to pretend to still be in love with him. Until she starts to lose track of which feelings are fake, and which are for real... https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/920e62c6-b47c-4f4f-b641-31c7e8192119/50892287.jpg Blog - Must Read Holiday Romances - In a Holidaze by Christina Lauren It’s the most wonderful time of the year…but not for Maelyn Jones. She’s living with her parents, hates her going-nowhere job, and has just made a romantic error of epic proportions. But perhaps worst of all, this is the last Christmas Mae will be at her favorite place in the world—the snowy Utah cabin where she and her family have spent every holiday since she was born, along with two other beloved families. Mentally melting down as she drives away from the cabin for the final time, Mae throws out what she thinks is a simple plea to the universe: Please. Show me what will make me happy. The next thing she knows, tires screech and metal collides, everything goes black. But when Mae gasps awake…she’s on an airplane bound for Utah, where she begins the same holiday all over again. With one hilarious disaster after another sending her back to the plane, Mae must figure out how to break free of the strange time loop—and finally get her true love under the mistletoe. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c3ba32c2-6966-4464-b201-6da214e2a0b8/222376880.jpg Blog - Must Read Holiday Romances - Christmas People by Iva-Marie Palmer Some people are Christmas people, but Jill Jacobs is most certainly not. She hasn’t been ever since her hometown love broke her heart on Christmas Day three years ago. After that, Jill moved to L.A. to pursue her dream of becoming a screenwriter. She hasn’t been home in years to avoid her ex, but this winter she finds herself back in drab, suburban Illinois for the holidays. After one very hazy night, Jill wakes up to a hometown that's filled with jolly neighbors, covered in pristine white snow, and shimmering with the smell of nutmeg. She realizes that this is more than just a bad hangover… she's stuck in a Heartfelt movie. One set in her town, starring real people from her life, including her family, her high school crush (uber perfect, owns a bakery, and definitely a Christmas Person), and of course, her ex —handsome as ever and now exclusively clad in plaid flannel. The only way out of this bizarro world is to complete the plot of the movie, including a holiday bake off and a cookie-sweet love story. To get home in time for Christmas, Jill must act out a picture-perfect holiday romance with the one that got away, all while her ex watches on. Fa la la la freaking la…. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/208450af-20ad-43d6-93b3-a3058ecb8721/38255337.jpg Blog - Must Read Holiday Romances - One Day in December by Josie Silver Two people. Ten chances. One unforgettable love story. Laurie is pretty sure love at first sight doesn't exist anywhere but the movies. But then, through a misted-up bus window one snowy December day, she sees a man who she knows instantly is the one. Their eyes meet, there's a moment of pure magic... and then her bus drives away. Certain they're fated to find each other again, Laurie spends a year scanning every bus stop and cafe in London for him. But she doesn't find him, not when it matters anyway. Instead they "reunite" at a Christmas party, when her best friend Sarah giddily introduces her new boyfriend to Laurie. It's Jack, the man from the bus. It would be. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/cc083bf6-35ce-473f-8ee6-a892d19a5717/222023346.jpg Blog - Must Read Holiday Romances - Merry Christmas You Filthy Animal by Meghan Quinn Nothing says I love you like trespassing, public humiliation, and a town-wide Christmas spectacle to win your crush back. Atlas "Max" Maxheimer did not sign up for this. One minute, he's anxiously trying to keep his family's Christmas tree farm from imploding. The next? He's passed out in the snow after getting clocked by a suspiciously strong bottle of soda. Enter Betty: new in town, full of holiday cheer, and helping her uncle open a rival tree farm next door. Max is convinced she's out to destroy everything Evergreen Farm stands for. Betty thinks Max might be one sleigh short of a winter parade. Cue the holiday chaos. Between blizzards, blown reputations, wildly misguided romantic plots, and one stolen ornament with a seriously tragic backstory, this small-town war turns into something far messier―and much more delicious―than either of them expected. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7f35a901-40d8-4a0e-a9f2-594f93b835ad/222925559.jpg Blog - Must Read Holiday Romances - I’ll be Home for Christmas by Jenny Bayliss Fred Hallow-Hart isn't in love with the idea of returning home to Pine Bluff. But after a bad breakup and a subsequent eviction, she's fresh out of options. God knows she loves her mum and her eccentric aunts—and who could forget their Christmas Cracker family business?—but she's always felt a little out of place in her small town. Quickly roped in by her mother to help with the cracker shop, Fred decides throwing herself into work might actually be what's best for her. Until she reconnects with her old best friend Ryan, who is suddenly making her heart flutter in ways she's never known; and unexpectedly finds a spark with Warren, a charming journalist covering the Pine Bluff Christmas Market for the Daily News. But as these connections slowly lead Fred back to her heart, she's forced to confront some harsh truths, which, if she doesn't find a way through, might just ruin the holidays for those dearest to her. Can Fred let go of the past enough to recognize real love? And when she does, how far will she go to protect it? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/baf61f04-3b95-4511-a685-a72cf2f24a98/224004364.jpg Blog - Must Read Holiday Romances - My Favorite Holidate by Lauren Blakely Wanted: one hot billionaire to pose as my Christmas boyfriend. Must be willing to make my cheating ex jealous when you kiss me under the mistletoe at all the holiday parties. Bonus points if you make him cry. To my surprise my billionaire boss is more than up for the challenge of coming down the chimney as my holiday boyfriend. The sexy single dad desperately needs a plus one at a Christmas Eve wedding, where he’s the best man and I’m the maid of honor. And since my ex is in the wedding party too, my boss and I team up as a pair of insta-lovebirds for the holiday season, including during the annual week-long Christmas competition leading up to the snowy destination wedding. But soon staying up late to string the best popcorn balls ever turns into a scorching night in his arms where the chestnuts aren’t the only thing roasting on the open fire. Can all these winter wonderland nights seeking revenge turn into the real thing when we return to the office? Or are we destined to go the way of a Christmas tree on New Year’s? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3f97a8d0-b88e-4be0-99d5-a7208be6fe15/222376982.jpg Blog - Must Read Holiday Romances - You Make It Feel Like Christmas by Sophie Sullivan Maisie Smart has a don’t-look-back policy–not on the choice she made to be a photographer (despite her family’s wishes) and not on the one-night stand she had six months ago. Sleeping with someone she barely knew was out of character; sleeping with a professional hockey player who bolted the morning after is a whole new level of embarrassing. Getting invited to spend the week at Tickle Tree Farm with her family this Christmas is a sure way to fill her with holiday spirit. Until the universe throws a Grinch in her festive plans in the form of the one man she hoped to avoid. Nick King is a mess. After a significant injury lands him on the bench for every game for the rest of the month, he has more time to dwell on the one night stand he can’t get out of his head. With time on his hands, his anxiety hovering, and the holidays around the corner, he figures visiting his sister and nephew at their Christmas tree farm will be a good way to lie low and sort himself out. He’s in for a surprise when it turns out Maisie is staying at his sister’s and his attraction for her hasn’t lessened one bit in the last six months. Apparently, neither has her anger at him for bailing. But Christmas is the time for second chances, and the forced proximity may help Nick and Maisie unwrap feelings neither of them can walk away from twice. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f3a887dc-ca77-4b67-8be2-f4267fb4f26e/222279220.jpg Blog - Must Read Holiday Romances - Good Spirits by B.K. Borison He’s the Ghost of Christmas Past. She’s not exactly Scrooge. Ghost of Christmas Past Nolan Callahan intends to spend this holiday haunting like every other—get in, get out, return to his otherwise aimless existence as a ghost awaiting the afterlife. But when he’s faced with Harriet York, the sweetest assignment he’s ever had, he suddenly finds himself wishing for a future. Harriet York has no idea why she’s being haunted. She’s a good person—or, at least, she tries to be. A people pleaser to her core, she always does what’s expected of her. But as she and Nolan begin to examine her past, they discover there are threads that bind them together— and realize there might be more to moving on than expected. With the deadline of Christmas Eve fast approaching, will they find the key to their futures in each other’s pasts? Or will they stay firmly in the present, indulging in their unexpected, spirited connection? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/fba95735-4f79-499a-828f-35e8aa998d29/222818685.jpg Blog - Must Read Holiday Romances - A Merry Little Lie by Sarah Morgan This Christmas, the Balfour family will have more secrets to unwrap than presents… Becky is stranded at the airport, so when she bumps into her brother’s best friend, Will, and he suggests they drive home together, Becky reluctantly agrees. For the first time, Becky is dreading Christmas, and only Will knows why. Can she trust him to keep her secret? Her twin sister, Rosie, married Declan after a whirlwind romance, and now the cracks are starting to appear. Rosie and Declan have agreed to hide their problems from her family, but Rosie’s insecurities are growing. Will this Christmas bring them closer or drive them apart? Hayley can’t wait for her first Balfour family Christmas with Jamie. The Balfour Christmas traditions sound wonderful, but she’s worried about her place in this close-knit family. Will there be room for her too? And how will they react to the secret she and Jamie have been keeping? Despite everyone’s best intentions, all the chaos and confusion could derail their normally happy holidays. Can they tell each other the truth in time to enjoy a perfect family Christmas? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/821069fb-fc44-42bd-a1bc-148f1a73ffd1/240663367.jpg Blog - Must Read Holiday Romances - Big Nick Energy by Kristen Bailey One woman, two Nicks, and a Christmas season that’s about to get very complicated. When librarian Kay bumps into her ex-boyfriend Nick at a Christmas market, she thinks fate is finally giving her a second chance with her first big love. But then she gets spectacularly tangled in a Christmas tree-netting machine and meets another Nick entirely. One who cuts her free, dresses her wounds, and makes her pulse race in ways that thoroughly confuse her. Finance Nick is successful, settled, and ready to talk five-year plans. Farmer Nick makes handcrafted furniture, supports local charities, and sees the creative spirit Kay has kept hidden behind her library desk. But how is a girl to choose? Soon she’s spending her days delivering books to children’s hospitals and care homes with farmer Nick, before dashing home to whip off her reindeer onesie and glam up for romantic dates at the ballet with finance Nick. But the countdown to Christmas is on, and Kay can’t keep this up forever. Somehow she must navigate London’s most complicated love triangle, avoid getting any more pine needles stuck in her hair – and work out once and for all which Nick has her heart. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ae549449-f406-42a3-97d3-c0bba25909f2/242286156.jpg Blog - Must Read Holiday Romances - Mistletoe Meet Cute by Bella Matthews Falling for my brother’s teammate wasn’t on my Christmas list. Neither was working for him, but here I am—nannying for Camden Monroe, Philly’s star quarterback, single dad, and the grumpiest grinch to ever fill out a pair of gray sweats. He should be the last man I want under my mistletoe. He’s too old. Too cocky. And too damn tempting. But one snowy night, one reckless touch, and one unforgettable kiss have me rethinking everything I thought I wanted. Suddenly, the holidays aren’t about twinkle lights and tinsel. They’re about stolen moments, secret touches, and the kind of Christmas chaos that feels way too good to resist. Maybe the best gifts don’t come wrapped in pretty bows… Maybe they come with dirty grins, filthy mouths, and the power to make me forget every single reason why Camden doesn’t belong at the top of my wish list. . . ‘Tis the season. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/16-must-read-historical-fiction monthly 0.5 2025-11-21 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/026b33a5-be99-4d8c-9bb4-51935f631368/222631694.jpg Blog - 16 Must Read Historical Fiction - The Wayfinder by Adam Johnson The Wayfinder is an epic, sweeping novel set in the Polynesian islands of the South Pacific during the height of the Tu’i Tonga Empire. At its heart is Kōrero, a young girl chosen to save her people from the brink of starvation. Her quest takes her from her remote island home on a daring seafaring journey across a vast ocean empire built on power, consumption, and bloodshed. With the grandeur of Wolf Hall, Shogun, and War and Peace, The Wayfinder immerses readers in a world untouched by Western influence, evoking the lost art of oral storytelling. Far from a conventional swashbuckling adventure, it conjures a world of outrigger canoes and celestial navigation, weaving a narrative that is as much about survival and self-discovery as it is about the sweeping history of the Tongan people. In this monumental literary work, Adam Johnson explores themes of indigeneity, ecological balance, and the resilience of humanity in the face of scarcity, marking the novel as a profound meditation on both individual and cultural legacy. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/af44628b-ee28-45eb-957a-da9876b883be/223362037.jpg Blog - 16 Must Read Historical Fiction - The Hong Kong Widow by Kristen Loesch In 1950s Hong Kong, Mei is a young refugee of the Chinese Communist revolution struggling to put her past in Shanghai behind her. When she receives a shocking invitation—to take part in a competition pitting six spirit mediums against one another in a series of six séances over six nights, until a single winner emerges, in one of Hong Kong’s most notorious haunted houses—she has every reason to refuse. Except that the hostess, a former Shanghainese silent film star, is none other than the wife of the man who once destroyed Mei’s entire life. It is promised the winner will receive a fortune, but there is only one prize Mei wants: revenge. Decades later, the final night of that competition has become an infamous urban legend: The police were called to the scene of a brutal massacre but found no evidence, dismissing it as a collective hallucination. Mei knows what she saw, but now someone else is convinced they know what she did. She must uncover the truth about that fateful night in the cursed house at last—even if the ghosts of her past are waiting for her there. . . . https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0a64633c-42be-4063-b83e-0e0e33d29e53/52761909.jpg Blog - 16 Must Read Historical Fiction - The Paris Library by Janet Skeslien Charles Paris, 1939: Young and ambitious Odile Souchet has it all: her handsome police officer beau and a dream job at the American Library in Paris. When the Nazis march into Paris, Odile stands to lose everything she holds dear, including her beloved library. Together with her fellow librarians, Odile joins the Resistance with the best weapons she has: books. But when the war finally ends, instead of freedom, Odile tastes the bitter sting of unspeakable betrayal. Montana, 1983: Lily is a lonely teenager looking for adventure in small-town Montana. Her interest is piqued by her solitary, elderly neighbor. As Lily uncovers more about her neighbor’s mysterious past, she finds that they share a love of language, the same longings, and the same intense jealousy, never suspecting that a dark secret from the past connects them. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/82d3a2da-c00a-4ac0-adf7-6485b254e39c/138378707.jpg Blog - 16 Must Read Historical Fiction - When the Jessamine Grows by Donna Everhart Talk of impending war is a steady drumbeat throughout North Carolina, though Joetta McBride pays it little heed. The small farm she tends with her husband, Ennis, and their two sons provides all they need. Those who want to fight can fight, but Joetta considers her family to be neutral. That opinion isn’t shared by Joetta’s father-in-law, Rudean. A staunch Confederate supporter, he fills his grandsons’ heads with stories about the glories of soldiering, and insists that owning land and slaves is the only measure of success. When fifteen-year-old Henry, impressed by his grandfather’s stories, runs off to volunteer, Joetta insists Ennis go and search for him. Weeks pass without word from either father or son, though other soldiers pass the farm, growing ever gaunter and hungrier. Joetta offers food and shelter to all, regardless of which uniform they wear. Her actions are deemed treasonous by townsfolk and the Home Guard, but Joetta won’t be swayed. After all, the wealthy find ways to stay away from battle. Why should poor men suffer and die on their behalf? Though shunned and struggling, Joetta remains committed to her principles, and to her belief that her family will survive. But the greatest tests are still to come, for a fractured nation and for Joetta and those she loves . . . https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/61ee5b06-0c69-4ac7-b300-996206b2bb54/222399107.jpg Blog - 16 Must Read Historical Fiction - One of Them by Kitty Zeldis Anne Bishop seems like a typical Vassar freshman—one of a popular group of privileged WASP friends. None of the girls in her circle has any idea that she’s Jewish, or that her real name is or that her real first name is Miriam Pretending to be a Gentile has made life easier—as Anne, she no longer suffers the snubs, snide remarks, and daily restrictions Jews face. She enjoys her college life of teas, late-night conversations, and mixers. She turns a blind eye to the casual anti-Semitism that flourishes among her friends and classmates—after all, it's no longer directed at her. But her secret life is threatened when she becomes fascinated by a girl not in her crowd. Delia Goldhush is sophisticated, stylish, brilliant, and unashamedly Jewish—and seems not to care that she’s an outcast among the other students. Knowing that her growing closeness with Delia would be social suicide if it were discovered, Anne keeps their friendship quiet. Delia seems to understand—until a cruelty on Anne’s part drives them apart and sends them scattering to other corners of the world, alone and together https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c6973b13-9796-4acc-9147-287c13a46a44/220865935.jpg-2.png Blog - 16 Must Read Historical Fiction - House of Splinters by Laura Purcell Not every house is a home... Belinda Bainbridge has spent her life in the shadow of her anxious mother, so when her father-in-law dies at The Bridge, his remote ancestral seat, she is secretly thrilled. His death means she, her husband Wilfred and their children can relocate and finally begin to create their own happy home born a merchant's daughter, she will now be lady of the manor. But their new home quickly proves far from ideal. The garden is a wilderness, the estate is struggling financially, there are whispers about the mysterious death of a servant many years before while their young son, Freddie, seems unusually fixated on the strange wooden figures – so-called 'silent companions' – that were once owned by his ancestors. When Wilfred's charismatic brother, Nathan, arrives unexpectedly from abroad, bringing a very different account of the family's past, Belinda begins to question what her husband has told her. What really lies behind the sad history of the house? And are Belinda's children truly safe here? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c921eebc-18d6-4331-8f9f-fbe015ef6749/50089336.jpg Blog - 16 Must Read Historical Fiction - Code Name Helene by Ariel Lawhon It is 1936 and Nancy Wake is an intrepid Australian expat living in Paris who has bluffed her way into a reporting job for Hearst newspaper when she meets the wealthy French industrialist Henri Fiocca. No sooner does Henri sweep Nancy off her feet and convince her to become Mrs. Fiocca than the Germans invade France and she takes yet another name: a code name. As LUCIENNE CARLIER Nancy smuggles people and documents across the border. Her success and her remarkable ability to evade capture earns her the nickname THE WHITE MOUSE from the Gestapo. With a five million franc bounty on her head, Nancy is forced to escape France and leave Henri behind. When she enters training with the Special Operations Executives in Britain, her new comrades are instructed to call her HÉLÈNE. And finally, with mission in hand, Nancy is airdropped back into France as the deadly MADAM ANDRÉ, where she claims her place as one of the most powerful leaders in the French Resistance, armed with a ferocious wit, her signature red lipstick, and the ability to summon weapons straight from the Allied Forces. But no one can protect Nancy if the enemy finds out these four women are one and the same, and the closer to liberation France gets, the more exposed she--and the people she loves--become. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/43d89648-a7e3-411e-b1a7-4cdf5c288703/222419246.jpg Blog - 16 Must Read Historical Fiction - The White Octopus Hotel by Alexandra Bell Journey to a magical hotel in the Swiss Alps, where two lost souls living in different centuries meet and discover that behind its many doors, they may just find a second chance. ‘Have you travelled a long way?’ she asked carefully. A smile twitched at the corner of his mouth. ‘Well, yes,” he said slowly. ‘Yes, you could say that. But it was worth the wait.’ London, 2015 When reclusive art appraiser Eve Shaw shakes the hand of a silver-haired gentleman in her London office, the warmth of his palm sends a spark through her. His name is Max Everly – curiously, the same name as Eve’s favourite composer, born one hundred sixteen years prior. And she can’t shake the feeling that she’s held his hand before . . . but where, and when? The White Octopus Hotel, 1935 Decades earlier, high in the snowy Swiss Alps, Eve and a young Max Everly wander the winding halls of the grand belle epoque White Octopus Hotel, lost in time. Each of them has been through the trenches – Eve in a family accident and Max on the battlefields of the Great War – but for an impossible moment, love and healing are just a room away . . . if only they have the courage to step through the door. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e14f82a1-dca2-4303-8035-d4968a82ff05/224003653.jpg Blog - 16 Must Read Historical Fiction - The Belles by Lacey N. Dunham Belles never tell… It’s 1951 at the secluded Bellerton College, and Deena Williams is an outsider doing her best to blend in with her wealthy and perfectly groomed peers. Infamous for its strict rules as much as its prestige, attending Bellerton could give Deena the comfortable life she’s always dreamed of. She quickly forms an alliance with the five other freshmen on her floor, and soon they are singled out by the president’s wife as the most promising girls of their class, who anoints The Belles. They walk the college’s halls in menacing unison, matching velvet ribbons in their hair. But no sisterhood comes without secrets, and the Belles are no exception. Playing cruel pranks on their dormitory housemother and embarking on boundary-shattering night games, the Belles test the limits of the campus rules. But as Deena begins to piece together the sinister history of Bellerton, her own past threatens to come to light, forcing her to make a dangerous choice. A chilling and seductive coming-of-age story, The Belles is an excavation of the dark side of girlhood, the intricacies of privilege, and the unbridled desire to belong at any cost. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/96c5e406-9993-42bc-a49f-101ba69f9479/220292680-2.jpg Blog - 16 Must Read Historical Fiction - The Women of Arlington Hall by Jane Healey 1947: Adventurous Radcliffe graduate Catherine “Cat” Killeen cancels her wedding and upends a future that no longer suits her. At the behest of her professor and hungry for a challenge, Cat arrives in Virginia to work on a confidential military project. A student in cryptoanalysis, Cat is already ahead of the game—to assist in rooting out Soviet spies who have infiltrated the US. Joining the “government girls” of Arlington Hall, Cat gains the respect of her superiors and the friendship of her peers. Then, on a night out in DC, Cat runs into Jonathan Dardis, her arrogant and privileged Harvard rival and newly minted agent for the FBI. What Cat and Jonathan share is a competitive drive and an attraction that’s becoming just as spirited. They’re also united in the same critical goal for America. Together, they’re diving deep into the shadows of espionage. The stakes of the codebreaking operation grow ever higher, and Cat’s relationship with Jonathan opens her heart. Amid dangerous intrigue and grave secrecy, Cat is ready for every risk—no matter how personal the stakes get. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3e325b46-0a53-4199-be49-4e9b0b13fe88/222376503.jpg Blog - 16 Must Read Historical Fiction - Bog Queen by Anna North When a body is found in a bog in northwest England, Agnes, an American forensic anthropologist, is called to investigate. But this body is not like any she has ever seen: Although its bones prove it was buried more than two thousand years ago, it is almost completely preserved. Soon Agnes is drawn into a mystery from the distant past, called to understand and avenge the death of an Iron Age woman more like her than she knows. Along the way she must contend with peat-cutters who want to profit from the bog and activists who demand that the land be left undisturbed. Then there is the moss itself: a complex repository of artifacts and remains with its own dark stories to tell. As Agnes faces the deep history of what she has unearthed, she is also forced to question what she thought she knew about her talent, her self-reliance, and her place in the world. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4437ddff-c035-48dc-bec9-5d2a196efd70/224004304.jpg Blog - 16 Must Read Historical Fiction - The Last Spirits of Manhattan by John A. McDermott After fleeing her mundane life in the Midwest, Carolyn Banks finds herself in her enigmatic great-aunts’ eerie mansion on Manhattan’s Upper East Side. Inside its crumbling façade, suspense director Alfred Hitchcock is throwing a party, gleefully informing his celebrity guests that the venue is supposedly haunted. It all seems like a fun gag, but Carolyn knows that the line between reality and the supernatural is dangerously blurred here. Soon, the paranormal entities are mingling with guests like Charles Addams and Henry Fonda. As Carolyn grapples with romantic entanglements and ghostly encounters, she discovers long-buried family secrets, challenging her understanding of love, loyalty, and legacy. A striking mix of the haunting and the heartwarming, The Last Spirits of Manhattan is an unputdownable novel about a family reunion unlike any other, set against the bewitching backdrop of 1950s New York City. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/152609df-dd1e-4be9-ac84-121b3030158c/221754302-2.jpg Blog - 16 Must Read Historical Fiction - The Lost Baker of Vienna by Sharon Kurtzman Vienna,1946: Chana Rosensweig has endured the horrors of war to find herself, her mother, and younger brother finally free in Vienna. But freedom doesn’t look like they imagined it would, as they struggle to make a living and stay safe. Despite the danger, Chana sneaks out most nights to return to the hotel kitchen where she works as a dishwasher, using the quiet nighttime hours to bake her late father’s recipes. As she tries to balance her love of baking against her family’s need for security, Chana finds herself caught in a dangerous love triangle, torn between the black-market dealer who has offered marriage and protection, and the apprentice baker who shares her passions. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/29014f42-d20c-48f7-ac47-641bc02707cf/212378273.jpg Blog - 16 Must Read Historical Fiction - Last Twilight in Paris by Pam Jenoff London, 1953. Louise is still adjusting to her postwar role as a housewife when she discovers a necklace in a box at a secondhand shop. The box is marked with the name of a department store in Paris, and she is certain she has seen the necklace before when she worked with the Red Cross in Nazi-occupied Europe —and that it holds the key to the mysterious death of her friend Franny during the war. Following the trail of clues to Paris, Louise seeks help from her former boss Ian, with whom she shares a romantic history. The necklace leads them to discover the dark history of Lévitan—a once-glamorous department store that served as a Nazi prison, and Helaine, a woman who was imprisoned there, torn apart from her husband when the Germans invaded France. Louise races to find the connection between the necklace, the department store and Franny’s death. But nothing is as it seems, and there are forces determined to keep the truth buried forever. Inspired by the true story of Lévitan, Last Twilight in Paris is both a gripping mystery and an unforgettable story about sacrifice, resistance and the power of love to transcend in even the darkest hours. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8074dd52-4f58-46ca-977a-d82c5c6debe0/60324341.jpg Blog - 16 Must Read Historical Fiction - Brotherless Night by V.V. Ganeshananthan Jaffna, 1981. Sixteen-year-old Sashi wants to become a doctor. But over the next decade, a vicious civil war tears through her home, and her dream spins off course as she sees her four beloved brothers and their friend K swept up in the mounting violence. Desperate to act, Sashi accepts K's invitation to work as a medic at the field hospital for the militant Tamil Tigers, who, following years of state discrimination and violence, are fighting for a separate homeland for Sri Lanka's Tamil minority. But after the Tigers murder one of her teachers and Indian peacekeepers arrive only to commit further atrocities, Sashi begins to question where she stands. When one of her medical school professors, a Tamil feminist and dissident, invites her to join a secret project documenting human rights violations, she embarks on a dangerous path that will change her forever. Set during the early years of Sri Lanka's three-decade civil war, Brotherless Night is a heartrending portrait of one woman's moral journey and a testament to both the enduring impact of war and the bonds of home. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/144abf59-3f2a-4a75-9b4c-ca9c6741a1cc/228352159.jpg Blog - 16 Must Read Historical Fiction - Call of the Camino by Suzanne Redfearn Reina Watkins lost her father when she was eight. Seventeen years later, she still carries that grief. When her budding journalism career takes an unexpected turn, it leads her to the ancient five-hundred-mile Camino de Santiago in Spain. Now she finds herself embarking on the same pilgrimage that her father made at her age, unaware of how profoundly it will change her. Back in 1997, Isabelle Vidal is a teenager on the run. Fleeing from her boarding school, she heads straight for the Way of Saint James. She’s heard the Camino will provide. And so it does, in the form of a handsome young American and the promise of a new life. But it could all fall apart if her troubles catch up with her. One woman is coming to grips with her past; the other is grasping for her future. But as each treads the same hallowed trail, it will knot their destinies together in a most miraculous way. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/the-hottest-upcoming-book-to-screen-adaptations monthly 0.5 2025-11-16 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a141eeb0-db4a-45b3-a24c-d7cbc5825236/54493401.jpg Blog - The Hottest Upcoming Book-to-Screen Adaptations - Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir A lone astronaut. An impossible mission. An ally he never imagined. Ryland Grace is the sole survivor on a desperate, last-chance mission—and if he fails, humanity and Earth itself will perish. Except that right now, he doesn’t know that. He can’t even remember his own name, let alone the nature of his assignment or how to complete it. All he knows is that he’s been asleep for a very, very long time. And he’s just been awakened to find himself millions of miles from home, with nothing but two corpses for company. His crewmates dead, his memories fuzzily returning, Ryland realizes that an impossible task now confronts him. Hurtling through space on this tiny ship, it’s up to him to puzzle out an impossible scientific mystery—and conquer an extinction-level threat to our species. And with the clock ticking down and the nearest human being light-years away, he’s got to do it all alone. Or does he? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/463ab279-ddeb-48c2-a9a5-93a2f56c0f39/11019333.jpg Blog - The Hottest Upcoming Book-to-Screen Adaptations - Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë Lockwood, the new tenant of Thrushcross Grange, situated on the bleak Yorkshire moors, is forced to seek shelter one night at Wuthering Heights, the home of his landlord. There he discovers the history of the tempestuous events that took place years before; of the intense relationship between the gypsy foundling Heathcliff and Catherine Earnshaw; and how Catherine, forced to choose between passionate, tortured Heathcliff and gentle, well-bred Edgar Linton, surrendered to the expectations of her class. As Heathcliff's bitterness and vengeance at his betrayal is visited upon the next generation, their innocent heirs must struggle to escape the legacy of the past. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/fd37060f-181b-43f2-baa1-58fa8e5dd355/59218704-2.jpg Blog - The Hottest Upcoming Book-to-Screen Adaptations - Verity by Colleen Hoover Lowen Ashleigh is a struggling writer on the brink of financial ruin when she accepts the job offer of a lifetime. Jeremy Crawford, husband of bestselling author Verity Crawford, has hired Lowen to complete the remaining books in a successful series his injured wife is unable to finish. Lowen arrives at the Crawford home, ready to sort through years of Verity's notes and outlines, hoping to find enough material to get her started. What Lowen doesn't expect to uncover in the chaotic office is an unfinished autobiography Verity never intended for anyone to read. Page after page of bone-chilling admissions, including Verity's recollection of the night her family was forever altered. Lowen decides to keep the manuscript hidden from Jeremy, knowing its contents could devastate the already grieving father. But as Lowen's feelings for Jeremy begin to intensify, she recognizes all the ways she could benefit if he were to read his wife's words. After all, no matter how devoted Jeremy is to his injured wife, a truth this horrifying would make it impossible for him to continue loving her. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9afe93d1-a7ad-47e2-be8d-ac60e9709247/214331246.jpg Blog - The Hottest Upcoming Book-to-Screen Adaptations - Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins When you’ve been set up to lose everything you love, what is there left to fight for? As the day dawns on the fiftieth annual Hunger Games, fear grips the districts of Panem. This year, in honor of the Quarter Quell, twice as many tributes will be taken from their homes. Back in District 12, Haymitch Abernathy is trying not to think too hard about his chances. All he cares about is making it through the day and being with the girl he loves. When Haymitch’s name is called, he can feel all his dreams break. He’s torn from his family and his love, shuttled to the Capitol with the three other District 12 tributes: a young friend who’s nearly a sister to him, a compulsive oddsmaker, and the most stuck-up girl in town. As the Games begin, Haymitch understands he’s been set up to fail. But there’s something in him that wants to fight . . . and have that fight reverberate far beyond the deadly arena. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5ef13a7e-c3c1-4007-98e9-bdec96dcfd3f/54985743.jpg Blog - The Hottest Upcoming Book-to-Screen Adaptations - People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry Two best friends. Ten summer trips. One last chance to fall in love. Poppy and Alex. Alex and Poppy. They have nothing in common. She’s a wild child; he wears khakis. She has insatiable wanderlust; he prefers to stay home with a book. And somehow, ever since a fateful car share home from college many years ago, they are the very best of friends. For most of the year they live far apart—she’s in New York City and he’s in their small hometown—but every summer for a decade, they have taken one glorious week of vacation together. Until two years ago, when they ruined everything. They haven’t spoken since. Poppy has everything she should want, but she’s stuck in a rut. When someone asks when she was last truly happy, she knows without a doubt it was on that ill-fated final trip with Alex. And so, she decides to convince her best friend to take one more vacation together—lay everything on the table, make it all right. Miraculously, he agrees. Now she has a week to fix everything. If only she can get around the one big truth that has always stood quietly in the middle of their seemingly perfect relationship. What could possibly go wrong? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9623c6bf-0583-46a0-892b-1c41de91a44c/13330761.jpg Blog - The Hottest Upcoming Book-to-Screen Adaptations - The Dog Stars by Peter Heller Hig somehow survived the flu pandemic that killed everyone he knows. Now his wife is gone, his friends are dead, and he lives in the hangar of a small abandoned airport with his dog, Jasper, and a mercurial, gun-toting misanthrope named Bangley. But when a random transmission beams through the radio of his 1956 Cessna, the voice ignites a hope deep inside him that a better life exists outside their tightly controlled perimeter. Risking everything, he flies past his point of no return and follows its static-broken trail, only to find something that is both better and worse than anything he could ever hope for. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2401a407-ec64-4493-8174-1ea14e868f50/36381037.jpg Blog - The Hottest Upcoming Book-to-Screen Adaptations - Cinder by Marissa Meyer Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth's fate hinges on one girl. . . . Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She's a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister's illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai's, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world's future. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0b346bfe-3f11-495f-9765-ff768f8e5c66/34068470.jpg Blog - The Hottest Upcoming Book-to-Screen Adaptations - The Odyssey by Homer, Translated by Emily Wilson The first great adventure story in the Western canon, The Odyssey is a poem about violence and the aftermath of war; about wealth, poverty, and power; about marriage and family; about travelers, hospitality, and the yearning for home. In this fresh, authoritative version--the first English translation of The Odyssey by a woman--this stirring tale of shipwrecks, monsters, and magic comes alive in an entirely new way. Written in iambic pentameter verse and a vivid, contemporary idiom, this engrossing translation matches the number of lines in the Greek original, thus striding at Homer's sprightly pace and singing with a voice that echoes Homer's music. Wilson's Odyssey captures the beauty and enchantment of this ancient poem as well as the suspense and drama of its narrative. Its characters are unforgettable, from the cunning goddess Athena, whose interventions guide and protect the hero, to the awkward teenage son, Telemachus, who struggles to achieve adulthood and find his father; from the cautious, clever, and miserable Penelope, who somehow keeps clamoring suitors at bay during her husband's long absence, to the "complicated" hero himself, a man of many disguises, many tricks, and many moods, who emerges in this translation as a more fully rounded human being than ever before. A fascinating introduction provides an informative overview of the Bronze Age milieu that produced the epic, the major themes of the poem, the controversies about its origins, and the unparalleled scope of its impact and influence. Maps drawn especially for this volume, a pronunciation glossary, and extensive notes and summaries of each book make this an Odysseythat will be treasured by a new generation of scholars, students, and general readers alike. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d7d57fe1-d694-4827-ac68-2088e1c4ba4e/60556912-2.jpg Blog - The Hottest Upcoming Book-to-Screen Adaptations - The Housemaid by Freida McFadden Every day I clean the Winchesters’ beautiful house top to bottom. I collect their daughter from school. And I cook a delicious meal for the whole family before heading up to eat alone in my tiny room on the top floor. I try to ignore how Nina makes a mess just to watch me clean it up. How she tells strange lies about her own daughter. And how her husband Andrew seems more broken every day. But as I look into Andrew’s handsome brown eyes, so full of pain, it’s hard not to imagine what it would be like to live Nina’s life. The walk-in closet, the fancy car, the perfect husband. I only try on one of Nina’s pristine white dresses once. Just to see what it’s like. But she soon finds out… and by the time I realize my attic bedroom door only locks from the outside, it’s far too late. But I reassure myself: the Winchesters don’t know who I really am. They don’t know what I’m capable of… https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e8110109-c323-4326-89d2-b8a1ca4c2004/55378851.jpg-2.png Blog - The Hottest Upcoming Book-to-Screen Adaptations - East of Eden by John Steinbeck Set in the rich farmland of California's Salinas Valley, this sprawling and often brutal novel follows the intertwined destinies of two families—the Trasks and the Hamiltons—whose generations helplessly reenact the fall of Adam and Eve and the poisonous rivalry of Cain and Abel. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7e83f33a-93a3-4ce2-97af-98f8ee40bd04/43229556.jpg Blog - The Hottest Upcoming Book-to-Screen Adaptations - Cold Storage by David Koepp When Pentagon bioterror operative Roberto Diaz was sent to investigate a suspected biochemical attack, he found something far worse: a highly mutative organism capable of extinction-level destruction. He contained it and buried it in cold storage deep beneath a little-used military repository. Now, after decades of festering in a forgotten sub-basement, the specimen has found its way out and is on a lethal feeding frenzy. Only Diaz knows how to stop it. He races across the country to help two unwitting security guards—one an ex-con, the other a single mother. Over one harrowing night, the unlikely trio must figure out how to quarantine this horror again. All they have is luck, fearlessness, and a mordant sense of humor. Will that be enough to save all of humanity? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6a72054c-80bc-4c6d-a219-f8ceadbf9d9c/7806728._SX300_.jpg Blog - The Hottest Upcoming Book-to-Screen Adaptations - The Magician’s Nephew by C.S. Lewis The secret passage to the house next door leads to a fascinating adventure. Narnia... a land where the woods are thick and cold, where Talking Beasts come to life—an entirely new world where adventure begins. One cold, wet summer in London, Digory and Polly meet and become fast friends. Their lives take a sudden turn when Digory’s Uncle Andrew, who fancies himself a magician, sends them hurtling to... somewhere else. They arrive in Narnia, just as it is born from the song of the great Lion, Aslan. Along the way, they encounter the evil sorceress Jadis, whose dark magic threatens everything. After a whirlwind adventure, they finally find their way back home. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9d2fc4ed-6a4b-4412-bd0e-e3415352f40f/213960819.jpg Blog - The Hottest Upcoming Book-to-Screen Adaptations - Three Bags Full by Leonie Swann Something is not right with George the shepherd. His sheep have gathered around him outside the cozy Irish village of Glennkill to assess the situation. George has cared for the sheep, reading them books every night, and now he lies pinned to the ground with a spade. His flock, far savvier about the workings of the human mind than your average sheep, sets out to find George’s killer, led by Miss Maple, the smartest sheep in Glennkill (and possibly the world). Her team of investigators includes Othello, who was rescued from the Dublin Zoo; Mopple the Whale, who is always hungry and remembers everything; and Zora, an existential ewe—just to name a few. Together, the sheep discuss the crime late into the night, and their speculations vary wildly. Determined to unravel the mystery, they embark on furtive missions into the village, where they encounter a hoof-full of two-legged suspects. There’s Ham, the terrifying butcher who smells of death; Rebecca, the secretive village newcomer; and Father Will, a sinister priest the sheep call God. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7e0c62f0-f5ee-4126-a5ea-30c448a8f5f5/48677123.jpg Blog - The Hottest Upcoming Book-to-Screen Adaptations - Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell England, 1580. A young Latin tutor--penniless, bullied by a violent father--falls in love with an extraordinary, eccentric young woman: a wild creature who walks her family's estate with a falcon on her shoulder and is known throughout the countryside for her unusual gifts as a healer. Agnes understands plants and potions better than she does people, but once she settles with her husband on Henley Street in Stratford she becomes a fiercely protective mother and a steadfast, centrifugal force in the life of her young husband, whose gifts as a writer are just beginning to awaken when his beloved young son succumbs to bubonic plague. A luminous portrait of a marriage, a shattering evocation of a family ravaged by grief and loss, and a hypnotic recreation of the story that inspired one of the greatest literary masterpieces of all time, Hamnet is mesmerizing and seductive, an impossible-to-put-down novel from one of our most gifted writers. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9767ed85-6a38-4879-ab18-d2af45975a9a/58341222.jpg Blog - The Hottest Upcoming Book-to-Screen Adaptations - Reminders of Him by Colleen Hoover After serving five years in prison for a tragic mistake, Kenna Rowan returns to the town where it all went wrong, hoping to reunite with her four-year-old daughter. But the bridges Kenna burned are proving impossible to rebuild. Everyone in her daughter’s life is determined to shut Kenna out, no matter how hard she works to prove herself. The only person who hasn’t closed the door on her completely is Ledger Ward, a local bar owner and one of the few remaining links to Kenna’s daughter. But if anyone were to discover how Ledger is slowly becoming an important part of Kenna’s life, both would risk losing the trust of everyone important to them. The two form a connection despite the pressure surrounding them, but as their romance grows, so does the risk. Kenna must find a way to absolve the mistakes of her past in order to build a future out of hope and healing. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f4729c66-be52-4ee1-a4e9-f7fdd3964062/44492285.jpg Blog - The Hottest Upcoming Book-to-Screen Adaptations - Dune Messiah by Frank Herbert Dune Messiah continues the story of Paul Atreides, better known--and feared--as the man christened Muad'Dib. As Emperor of the Known Universe, he possesses more power than a single man was ever meant to wield. Worshipped as a religious icon by the fanatical Fremens, Paul faces the enmity of the political houses he displaced when he assumed the throne--and a conspiracy conducted within his own sphere of influence. And even as House Atreides begins to crumble around him from the machinations of his enemies, the true threat to Paul comes to his lover, Chani, and the unborn heir to his family's dynasty... https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/54a3775b-a134-4852-8e2e-04f98e49adf8/199757490.jpg Blog - The Hottest Upcoming Book-to-Screen Adaptations - Incidents Around the House by Josh Malerman To eight-year-old Bela, her family is her world. There’s Mommy, Daddo, and Grandma Ruth. But there is also Other Mommy, a malevolent entity who asks her every day: “Can I go inside your heart?” When horrifying incidents around the house signal that Other Mommy is growing tired of asking Bela the same question, over and over . . . Bela understands that unless she says yes, soon her family must pay. Other Mommy is getting restless, stronger, bolder. Only the bonds of family can keep Bela safe but other incidents show cracks in her parents' marriage. The safety Bela relies on is on the brink of unraveling. But Other Mommy needs an answer. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b74a7444-74ad-4f74-81c4-f37e81b71035/21853621.jpg Blog - The Hottest Upcoming Book-to-Screen Adaptations - The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah In love we find out who we want to be. In war we find out who we are. France, 1939 In the quiet village of Carriveau, Vianne Mauriac says goodbye to her husband, Antoine, as he heads for the Front. She doesn't believe that the Nazis will invade France…but invade they do, in droves of marching soldiers, in caravans of trucks and tanks, in planes that fill the skies and drop bombs upon the innocent. When a German captain requisitions Vianne's home, she and her daughter must live with the enemy or lose everything. Without food or money or hope, as danger escalates all around them, she is forced to make one impossible choice after another to keep her family alive. Vianne's sister, Isabelle, is a rebellious eighteen-year-old, searching for purpose with all the reckless passion of youth. While thousands of Parisians march into the unknown terrors of war, she meets Gäetan, a partisan who believes the French can fight the Nazis from within France, and she falls in love as only the young can…completely. But when he betrays her, Isabelle joins the Resistance and never looks back, risking her life time and again to save others. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/562b0838-5b98-4152-825b-1810423c0eb9/12991188.jpg Blog - The Hottest Upcoming Book-to-Screen Adaptations - Train Dreams by Denis Johnson Suffused with the history and landscapes of the American West—its otherworldly flora and fauna, its rugged loggers and bridge builders—this extraordinary novella poignantly captures the disappearance of a distinctly American way of life. Train Dreams tells the story of Robert Grainer, a day laborer in the American West at the start of the twentieth century—an ordinary man in extraordinary times. Buffeted by the loss of his family, Grainer struggles to make sense of this strange new world. As his story unfolds, we witness both his shocking personal defeats and the radical changes that transform America in his lifetime. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3409a3cb-349c-4b91-86d6-6d9b4b994931/34728667.jpg Blog - The Hottest Upcoming Book-to-Screen Adaptations - Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi They killed my mother. They took our magic. They tried to bury us. Now we rise. Zélie Adebola remembers when the soil of Orïsha hummed with magic. Burners ignited flames, Tiders beckoned waves, and Zélie’s Reaper mother summoned forth souls. But everything changed the night magic disappeared. Under the orders of a ruthless king, maji were killed, leaving Zélie without a mother and her people without hope. Now Zélie has one chance to bring back magic and strike against the monarchy. With the help of a rogue princess, Zélie must outwit and outrun the crown prince, who is hell-bent on eradicating magic for good. Danger lurks in Orïsha, where snow leoponaires prowl and vengeful spirits wait in the waters. Yet the greatest danger may be Zélie herself as she struggles to control her powers and her growing feelings for an enemy. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/november-new-releases-1 monthly 0.5 2025-11-02 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ec98e9ca-4d56-4458-840a-8ae6cb3fd594/222376989.jpg Blog - November New Releases - A Dark Forgetting by Kristen Ciccarelli No matter how far she runs, the forest always comes for Emeline Lark. She is haunted by its mysterious disappearances and the tales of fae magic lurking in its depths. But when her grandfather goes missing, the stories Emeline has always scoffed at suddenly seem less foolish. She enters the forest she has spent years trying to escape, only to have Hawthorne Fell, a handsome and brooding tithe collector, brutally try to dissuade her from searching, even as a magnetic spark ignites between them. Refusing to be deterred, Emeline finds herself in the court of the fabled Wood King. She makes a deal―her voice for her grandfather’s freedom. Little does she know, she’s stumbled into a curse that threatens the existence of this eerie world she’s now trapped in. To survive, she'll need the help of the fiery Hawthorne, who she's so helplessly drawn to. If she fails, she'll lose everything she holds dear. Release Date: November 4, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/74e1229f-5d99-48cd-8dec-2b69670ee022/223665367.jpg Blog - November New Releases - The Bridesmaid by Cate Quinn The Kensingtons invite you to the society wedding of the decade. There's just one hitch. You might not make it out alive. When a celebrity bridesmaid is murdered weeks before an exclusive society wedding, forensic attorney Holly Stone is drafted as an unlikely undercover replacement. As she works to unpick the lives of the notoriously private Kensington family, glamour-averse Holly discovers a new worst enemy in bridezilla Adrianna. Heir to a multimillion dollar fortune, Adrianna is set on throwing the event of the decade, and she won't let anything get in her way. But beneath the veneer of poise and sophistication, Adrianna and her bridesmaids have secrets worth killing for. As the wedding day gets closer, it's clear that one of the five hand-picked bridesmaids has committed murder – and a destination wedding is a perfect place to strike again. Soon, Holly finds herself on the playground of the rich and famous, but if she wants to find answers, she'll have to make it out alive. Release Date: November 4, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f7e94c58-5ea5-4d8a-abc8-c72d97307ae1/221604746.jpg Blog - November New Releases - The House Saphir by Marissa Meyer Mallory Fontaine is a fraud. Though she comes from a long line of witches, the only magic she possesses is the ability to see ghosts, which is rarely as useful as one would think. She and her sister have maintained the family business, eking out a paltry living by selling bogus spells to gullible buyers and conducting tours of the infamous mansion where the first of the Saphir murders took place. Mallory is a self-proclaimed expert on Count Bastien Saphir—otherwise known as Monsieur Le Bleu—who brutally killed three of his wives more than a century ago. But she never expected to meet Bastien's great-great grandson and heir to the Saphir estate. Armand is handsome, wealthy, and convinced that the Fontaine Sisters are as talented as they claim. The perfect mark. When he offers Mallory a large sum of money to rid his ancestral home of Le Bleu's ghost, she can’t resist. A paid vacation at Armand’s country manor? It’s practically a dream come true, never mind the ghosts of murdered wives and the monsters that are as common as household pests. But when murder again comes to the House Saphir, Mallory finds herself at the center of the investigation—and she is almost certain the killer is mortal. If she has any hope of cashing in on the payment she was promised, she’ll have to solve the murder and banish the ghost, all while upholding the illusion of witchcraft. But that all sounds relatively easy compared to her biggest learning to trust her heart. Especially when the person her heart wants the most might be a murderer himself. Release Date: November 4, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d05295f9-fc3c-427e-991d-430682bfb37c/224004202.jpg Blog - November New Releases - Coldwire by Chloe Gong The future is loading… To escape rising seas and rampant epidemics, most of society lives “upcountry” in glistening virtual reality, while those who can’t afford the subscription are forced to remain in crumbling “downcountry.” But upcountry isn’t perfect. A cold war rages between two powerful nations, Medaluo and Atahua—and no one suffers for it more than the Medan orphans in Atahua. Their enrollment at Nile Military Academy is mandatory. Either serve as a soldier or risk being labelled a spy. Eirale graduated the academy and joined NileCorp’s private forces downcountry, exactly as she was supposed to. Then Atahua’s most wanted anarchist frames her for assassinating a government official, and she’s given a choice: cooperate with him to search for a dangerous program in Medaluo or go down for treason. Meanwhile, Lia is finishing her last year upcountry at Nile Military Academy. Paired with her academic nemesis for their final assignment, Lia is determined to beat him for valedictorian and prove her worth. But there may be far more at stake when their task to infiltrate Medaluo and track down an Atahuan traitor goes wrong… Though Eirale and Lia tear through Medaluo on different planes of reality, the two start to suspect they are puzzle pieces in a larger conspiracy—and the closer they get to the truth, the closer their worlds come to a shattering collision. Release Date: November 4, 2025 Genre: Young Adult SciFi https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/137aef08-d631-4093-9928-bdc2d6aedac5/222376635.jpg Blog - November New Releases - Fallen City by Adrienne Young Luca Matius has one purpose—to carry on the family name, maintaining its presence in the Forum once his powerful and cruel uncle dies. But his noviceship with the city's Philosopher places him in the middle of a catastrophe that will alter the destiny of his people. Maris Casoeria was raised amidst the strategic maneuvers of the Citadel's inner workings, and she knows what her future holds—a lifetime of service to a corrupt city. But her years of serving as a novice to the last Priestess who possesses the stolen magic of the Old War has made her envision a different kind of future for the city. When she meets Luca, a fated chain of events is set into motion that will divinely entangle their lives. As a secret comes to light and throws the city into chaos, Luca and Maris hatch a plot to create a calculated alliance that could tip the scales of power. But when an execution forces Luca to become the symbol of rebellion, he and Maris are thrown onto opposite sides of a holy war. As their fates diverge, they learn they are at the center of a story the gods are writing. And even if they can find their way back to each other, there may be nothing left. Release Date: November 4, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e3c92894-7364-4dcd-8aad-63000e33ced8/239602092._SX300_.jpg Blog - November New Releases - Bad Bishop by L.J. Shen He's Deathless. She's trying to find a reason to live. Lila My innocence was ripped from me one fateful night under the starless sky. Resulting in an unwanted teenage pregnancy and a secret the Camorra must bury. My father decided to hand me off to the highest bidder. The lucky winner? Tiernan Callaghan, psychopath extraordinaire. The Irish mafia prince wants me for all the wrong reasons. Alliance. Money. Prestige. War. I am but a pawn in his twisted game. The man who sits on a throne of his enemies' skulls thinks I'm a weakling. Little does he know, in this chess game, the underdog wins. Because the thing about bad bishops? They protect good pawns. Release Date: November 4, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8954ec7f-dd06-4597-aaca-05aa66ae2112/211384006.jpg Blog - November New Releases - Seven Deadly Thorns by Amber Hamilton In the cursed Kingdom of Aragoa, the punishment for magic is death. Even the students at Vandenberghe Academy aren't spared. When Viola Sinclair's deadly shadow magic is discovered, the queen gives her assassin a new assignment and a new cursed tattoo: seven-thorned rose on his arm for the seven days he has to hunt Viola down and kill her. If he doesn't, he will be the one to die. The assassin is Roze Roquelart--entitled prince, arrogant fellow student, and the one person Viola hates more than anyone. Roze should revel in the chance to end her life, but he desperately needs something from Viola and her magic. And he's willing to spare her life--and fake their engagement--to get it. Forced to work together, Viola and Roze must contend with deadly threats, dangerous secrets, and an impossible attraction. Will they give in to their deepest desires, even if it means destroying Aragoa--and risking both their lives? HER WORST ENEMY. HIS ONLY CHANCE. Release Date: November 4, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/61fa6b2b-cd22-4371-a199-9d5359bf64b7/222701036.jpg Blog - November New Releases - The Perfect Hosts by Heather Gudenkauf Is it a boy or a girl? They would die to know… Madeline and Wes Drake have invited two hundred of their closest friends and family to their sprawling horse ranch for the most anticipated event of the year: a “pistols and pearls” gender reveal party so sensational it is sure to make headlines. But the party descends into chaos when the celebratory explosive misfires, leaving one woman dead and a trail of secrets. As the aftershocks of the bloody party ripple across the small town, Agent Jamie Saldano is brought on the scene to investigate. Battling his own demons from the past, Saldano unearths a web of deceit spun around the Drakes. The appearance of some unexpected houseguests only deepens the mystery. And as tensions mount, it becomes clear that the explosion wasn’t just an unlucky accident. But who was the target, and why? As the shadow of a killer looms, the happy parents-to-be must unravel the truth before it’s too late. Release Date: November 4, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d48aa8ab-044a-4e69-b483-44b8b3f4a845/234435703.jpg Blog - November New Releases - Ship of Spells by H. Leighton Dickson A war-scarred mage. A sentient ship. A secret that could drown empires. When Ensign Bluemage Honor Renn is rescued from the wreckage of her first naval post, she expects death or disgrace. Instead, she wakes aboard the Touchstone, a mythic vessel whispered of in dockside ballads and royal war rooms alike. With a crew of misfits. A mysterious, elven captain. And a mission tied to the Dreadwall, the crumbling barrier that has kept the Overland and Nethersea from open war for a hundred years. But the tragedy that sank her last ship didn’t just take lives—it left something behind. Now Renn carries a secret everyone wants. A magik that’s chimeric, arcane...and slowly killing her. But the captain’s mission may be her only chance to survive, even if he still doesn’t trust her. Caught between privateers, princes, and spies, Renn knows each choice could sink her future—or set the sea on fire. Release Date: November 4, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6ce0f465-f36f-4cd2-a501-f82eae34bce1/227970831.jpg Blog - November New Releases - We Fell Apart by E. Lockhart The invitation arrives out of the blue. In it, Matilda discovers a father she’s never met. Kingsley Cello is a visionary, a reclusive artist. And when he asks her to spend the summer at his seaside home, Hidden Beach, Matilda expects to find a part of herself she’s never fully understood. Instead, she finds Meer, her long-lost, openhearted brother; Brock, a former child star battling demons; and brooding, wild Tatum, who just wants her to leave their crumbling sanctuary. With Kingsley nowhere to be seen, Matilda must delve into the twisted heart of Hidden Beach to uncover the answers she’s desperately craving. But secrets run thicker than blood, and blood runs like seawater. And everyone here is lying. Release Date: November 4, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2c270a57-dc68-43c0-b059-510a8c4a86c0/228646238.jpg Blog - November New Releases - The Sacred Space Between by Kalie Reid The Abbey has controlled the minds of its patrons for a millennium through memory magic, stolen from exiled saints. At fifteen, Jude was exiled from the Abbey to the bleak moors in the countryside, to maintain their control over his bourgeoning magic. Almost a decade later, he wants to live a normal life free from the Abbey’s oppressive gaze. When they send Maeve, a stubbornly devout iconographer, to paint an updated icon of him, Jude makes it his mission to get rid of her as soon as possible. That is until he discovers she holds the same tainted magic of the saints as he does, and that the icons she paints may be the key to destroying the Abbey's power. As Jude and Maeve draw closer, the two of them face a choice—they can take on the full power of the Abbey and risk their lives for freedom or escape back to exile and make the most of their fading memories. But this institution has eyes everywhere, and the only thing the Abbey loves more than a saint is a martyr. Release Date: November 4, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b1623f12-6c13-4cdd-ac47-214a03b7c1ba/223614634.jpg Blog - November New Releases - The Merge by Grace Walker How far would you go to never say goodbye? Laurie is sixty-five and living with Alzheimer’s. Her daughter Amelia, a once fiery and strong-willed activist, can’t bear to see her mother’s mind fade. Faced with the reality of losing her forever, Amelia signs them up to take part in the world’s first experimental merging process for Alzheimer’s patients, in which Laurie’s ailing mind will be transferred into Amelia’s healthy body and their consciousness will be blended as one. Soon Amelia and Laurie join the opaque and mysterious group of other merge teenage Lucas, who plans to merge with his terminally ill brother Noah; Ben, who will merge with his pregnant fiancée Annie; and Jay, whose merging partner is his addict daughter Lara. As they prepare to move to The Village, a luxurious rehabilitation center for those who have merged, they quickly begin to question whether everything is really as it seems. Release Date: November 11, 2025 Genre: Science Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9e5fa2de-c5b7-4507-9eef-81390ca0561a/224003821.jpg Blog - November New Releases - An Academic Affair by Jodi McAlister Sadie Shaw and Jonah Fisher have been academic rivals since they first crossed paths as undergraduates in the literature department thirteen years ago. Now that a highly coveted teaching opportunity has come up, their rivalry hits epic proportions. Jonah needs the job to move closer to his recently divorced sister and her children, while Sadie needs the financial security and freedom of a full-time teaching position. When Sadie notices that the job offers partner hire, however, she hatches a plot to get them boththe job. All they must do is get legally married. It’s a simple win-win solution but when sparks begin to fly, it becomes clear that despite their education, these two may not have thought this whole thing through. Release Date: November 11, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d6ed7867-6bdb-47a5-a83d-d210ad022421/169485073.jpg Blog - November New Releases - The Strength of the Few by James Islington OMNE TRIUM PERFECTUM. The Hierarchy still call me Vis Telimus. Still hail me as Catenicus. They still, as one, believe they know who I am. But with all that has happened—with what I fear is coming—I am not sure it matters anymore. I am no longer one. I won the Iudicium, and lost everything—and now, impossibly, the ancient device beyond the Labyrinth has replicated me across three separate worlds. A different version of myself in each of Obiteum, Luceum, and Res. Three different bodies, three different lives. I have to hide; fight; play politics. I have to train; trust; lie. I have to kill; heal; prove myself again, and again, and again. I am loved, and hated, and entirely alone. Above all, though, I need to find answers before it’s too late. To understand the nature of what has happened to me, and why. I need to find a way to stop the coming Cataclysm, because if all I have learned is true, I may be the only one who can. Release Date: November 11, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4a7dc9b4-f0b1-426b-b46c-151dd9a8b85c/230104152.jpg Blog - November New Releases - Honeymoon Phase by Amy Daws Fact or fiction: becoming a lumberjack and marrying your best friend so she can inherit her family business is a great idea. When Addison “Roe” Monroe tells me she’s going on a husband hunt at the local lumberjack competition so she can inherit her father’s lumberyard, I think she has finally lost her mind. But my stubborn friend, who would rather drive a forklift than get her nails done, refused my first marriage offer. And since I can’t stomach watching Roe hitch her wagon to some hulking ax wielder who might be a serial killer, I decide that desperate times require desperate measures. Call me Lumberjack Luke. I’ll do whatever it takes to get her to accept my proposal because she’s more than just a friend. And the way she looks back at me? I think she knows it. On the surface, I’m offering a marriage of convenience to protect her. But the truth is…I’m hopelessly in love with my best friend. Marrying her and moving her up to Fletcher Mountain might mean I’ve lost my mind too, but so be it. Because the only thing I would regret more, is never trying. And that’s a fact. Release Date: November 11, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c4f46f2b-8b3b-49b8-8ee9-6469a7440594/223665373.jpg Blog - November New Releases - The Forest of Missing Girls by Nichelle Giraldes The forest is hungry, and her family's secrets are tangled in the trees… Lia Gregg always hoped to outgrow her fear of the woods surrounding her childhood home. The dark, menacing trees have long been the site of whispered legends and disappearances of girls like her. But after a breakup sends her back to live with her family, the woods feel more sinister than ever. When a teenage girl disappears from their backyard, Lia's childhood fear becomes terrifyingly real. The missing girls are no longer just faces on the news. Now, the danger is closer than she imagined, and her younger sister could be next. As Lia digs into the disappearances, she begins to suspect her mother knows more about the forest—and the horrors within—than she's letting on. To save her sister and uncover the truth, Lia must confront the secrets lurking in the trees and the darkness they conceal…before it's too late. Release Date: November 11, 2025 Genre: Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5e618b7a-0dff-442c-97e9-ff3f78368f68/222139748.jpg Blog - November New Releases - Brimstone by Callie Hart Duty. Blood. Honour. Power. Saeris Fane doesn't want power. The very last thing she needs is her name whispered on an entire court's lips, but now that she's been crowned queen of the Blood Court, she's discovering that a queen's life is not her own. A heavy weight rests upon her shoulders. Her ward - and her brother - need her back in her homeland . . . but the changes that have strengthened Saeris have also made her weak. Born under blazing suns, Saeris will surely die if she makes her way home through the Quicksilver. Which means that, once again, she must send someone else in her stead . . . 'Keep your mouth shut. Stick to the shadows. And for the love of all seven Gods, do NOT crack any jokes.' Kingfisher of the Ajun Gate has defeated armies and survived all manner of horrors, but traveling back to Zilvaren with Carrion Swift might just be the death of him. The male just will not shut up. Hidden dangers await them down the narrow alleyways of the Silver City. Unfolding secrets pose impossible threats. Fisher must wrangle the smuggler and accomplish his goals quickly if he wants to see his mate again. A darkness falls across Yvelia. The realm and their friends are in danger. Together, Saeris and Fisher will pass through fire and brimstone to save them. Release Date: November 18, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/75491157-c3c6-49f0-92f8-8f9b0d7a594d/228142779.jpg Blog - November New Releases - Haven’t Killed in Years by Amy K. Green No one is supposed to know harmless office worker Gwen Tanner is the vanished daughter of serial killer Abel Haggerty. But a low profile and a new name aren’t going to cut it when an obsessive new killer starts targeting her, in this lively and propulsive thriller with a standout voice. Marin Haggerty, the daughter of a notorious serial killer, was only a child when they arrested her father. Ripped from her home and given a new identity, Marin disappeared. Twenty years later, Gwen Tanner keeps everyone at a distance, preferring to satirize the world around her than participate in it. It’s for her safety—and theirs. But when someone starts sending body parts to her front door, the message is I Know Who You Are. To preserve her secrets, Gwen must hunt down the killer, a journey which immerses her in the twisted world of true crime fandom and makes her confront her past once and for all. Maybe she is capable of deep, human connections, but she’s not the only one keeping secrets. Will opening herself up to others help her find the killer, or remind her why it was necessary she hide her true self in the first place? The apple never falls too far, after all. Release Date: November 18, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/797c1f06-832f-4680-abc3-6a46bb62c6b3/228537678._SX300_.jpg Blog - November New Releases - I, Medusa by Ayana Gray Meddy has spent her whole life as a footnote in someone else’s story. Out of place next to her beautiful, immortal sisters and her parents—both gods, albeit minor ones—she dreams of leaving her family’s island for a life of adventure. So when she catches the eye of the goddess Athena, who invites her to train as an esteemed priestess in her temple, Meddy leaps at the chance to see the world beyond her home. In Athens’ colorful market streets and the clandestine chambers of the temple, Meddy flourishes in her role as Athena’s favored acolyte, getting her first tastes of purpose and power. But when she is noticed by another Olympian, Poseidon, a drunken night between girl and god ends in violence, and the course of Meddy’s promising future is suddenly and irrevocably altered. Her locs transformed into snakes as punishment for a crime she did not commit, Medusa must embrace a new identity—not as a victim, but as a vigilante—and with it, the chance to write her own story as mortal, martyr, and myth. Release Date: November 18, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/df1dcd0d-9c40-42d1-947c-3acf550033e3/227912786.jpg Blog - November New Releases - Daddy Issues by Kate Goldbeck Sometimes love shows up where you least expect it—right next door. At 26, Sam Pulaski expected to be thriving in her academic career, living on her own in some exciting city. Expectations, meet reality. She has massive student loans from studying art history, a dead-end service industry job, a situationship that’s equal parts intoxicating and toxic. And she’s been crashing in her mom’s condo—at least it’s not a basement?—for the last five years. If she can finally get accepted into a PhD program and get out of Ohio, the adult life that’s been on hold for half her twenties will finally begin. Her mom’s new neighbor, Nick, is the ultimate grownup. His adult life began the moment his nine-year-old daughter, Kira, was born. Her happiness is Nick’s only priority, especially in the wake of divorce. There’s nothing he won’t do for Kira–including giving up his globetrotting career for something more stable…like managing a chain restaurant. Sam has zero interest in an ultra-dependable guy pushing forty; frankly, she’s a little afraid of kids. But with just one thin wall separating the two condos, Nick proves difficult to avoid. His quiet confidence forces Sam to grapple with the other men in her her emotionally derelict friend-with-benefits and her actually-derelict father. As her unexpected connection with Nick heats up (and steams up his minivan windows), Sam finds herself falling fast for a man whose life is steady and settled–while hers is anything but. Release Date: November 18, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b96343ac-0340-406c-b2fe-19e2589c580f/228646203.jpg Blog - November New Releases - Beasts of the Sea by Iida Turpeinen In 1741, thirty-two-year-old naturalist Georg Wilhelm Steller joins Captain Bering's Great Northern Expedition to scout out a sea route from Asia to America. Plagued with hardships, captain and crew never reach their goal, but they do make a unique discovery, a gentle giant that will be named for the young explorer who described Steller’s sea cow. In 1859, the governor of the Russian territory of Alaska sends his men to seek the skeleton of the massive marine mammal rumored to have vanished a hundred years before, while his sister curates the settlement’s peculiar natural science collection. Two years later, a revered Helsinki professor hires a talented illustrator—a woman!—to make precise drawings of a set of bones sent from afar. The ill-fated beast will help introduce to a skeptical public the concept of human-caused extinction. Finally, in 1952, the Museum of Zoology assigns its most talented restorer the task of refurbishing the antique skeleton, a testimony to the sea cow's fate that will fire the imaginations of future generations. Release Date: November 18, 2025 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7045c0b8-3bea-477d-82b6-ac59308bc472/228142753.jpg Blog - November New Releases - And Then There Was You by Sophie Cousens She's found the perfect man . . . There's just one big twist. Stuck in a Production Assistant job and living at home with her parents after a painful breakup, thirty-one-year-old Chloe Fairway isn’t where she wants to be in life. The last thing she needs is to face the people who once voted her "most likely to succeed" at her upcoming ten-year college reunion. And she definitely doesn’t want to see her former best friend, Sean Adler, who is now a hotshot film director living the life Chloe dreamed of. Desperate to make a splash—and to save face in front of the man who might be the one that got away—she turns to a mysterious dating service. Enter Rob, her handsome, well-read, and charming match, the perfect plus-one to take to her reunion. The more she gets to know him, the more perfect he appears to be. Could it be that this dating service knows her better than she knows herself? And can she overlook the one big catch? As Chloe reconnects with old friends, she begins to question everything she thought she wanted. Maybe, just maybe, revisiting the past is exactly what she needs to move forward. Release Date: November 18, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e1eec91c-8b55-409e-890b-7cd6c1d83595/228125645.jpg Blog - November New Releases - The Burning Lbrary by Gilly Macmillan On a frigid, windswept day in Scotland’s Western Hebrides, Eleanor Bruton’s body is discovered on the shore. To her family Eleanor was an ordinary middle-aged woman. She made flower arrangements and plumped kneeler cushions at church. Little did they know she was harboring a dark and all-consuming secret: a scrap of fraying embroidery that seems worthless at first glance. For more than a century two rival organizations of women have gone to deadly lengths to secure the valuable artifact in the hopes of finding the original medieval manuscript from which it was torn: The Order of St Katherine, devoted to the belief that women must pull strings in the shadows to exercise control. And the Fellowship of the Larks, determined to amass as many overt positions of power for women as possible…so long as their methods of doing so never come to light. When Dr Anya Brown garners international attention for her translation of the cryptic Folio 9, she is handpicked by Diana Cornish, a professor and high-ranking member of the Fellowship of the Larks, to join the exclusive Institute of Manuscript Studies in St Andrews. Meanwhile at Scotland Yard, Detective Clio Spicer begins a private investigation into the death of Eleanor Bruton. As all of them grow further entangled in this ancient web, circumstances are spinning wildly out of control and their lives may be in grave danger. Release Date: November 18, 2025 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5823173c-5b7a-413a-8ece-97c428a83427/228511328.jpg Blog - November New Releases - Second Chance Romance by Olivia Dade Karl and Molly were never together. There was a time, right after high school, where it seemed like they might finally cross the line from friends to lovers…but instead, a foolish misunderstanding meant they never spoke again. Molly went to LA and got married. Karl stayed in Harlot’s Bay and bought a bakery. The only connection the pair has shared over the years is painfully one-sided: Now divorced, Molly narrates monster romance audiobooks, and Karl is an ever-diligent listener, clinging to his only piece of the one that got away. Still, Molly hasn’t totally left Harlot’s Bay behind. When she hears that Karl’s obituary has run in the local paper, unexpected grief prompts her to hop on the next flight to Maryland…where she finds Karl very much alive, the victim of nothing but an accidental obituary. As the pair reunite, they finally hash out their missed connection. True, Molly isn’t quite ready to trust again, but Karl is determined to prove himself worthy of her faith and devotion. And as her remaining time in Harlot’s Bay ticks down, Molly, the habitual cynic, just might find that Karl, the cranky town curmudgeon, is impossible to leave behind a second time. Release Date: November 25, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/deccb679-8b7a-4197-bdad-044d13d1291f/231126811.jpg Blog - November New Releases - Best Offer Wins by Marisa Kashino Eighteen months and eleven lost bidding wars into house-hunting in the Washington, D.C. suburbs, 37-year-old publicist Margo Miyake gets a tip about the perfect house, in the perfect neighborhood, slated to come up for sale in one month. Desperate to escape the cramped apartment she shares with her husband Ian—and in turn, get their marriage, plan to have a baby, and whole life back on track—Margo becomes obsessed with buying the house before it’s publicly listed and the masses descend (with unbeatable, all-cash offers in hand). A little stalking? Harmless. A bit of trespassing? Necessary. As Margo infiltrates the homeowners’ lives, her tactics grow increasingly unhinged—but just when she thinks she’s won them over, she hits a snag in her plan. Undeterred, she'll prove again and again that there’s no boundary she won’t cross to seize the dream life she’s been chasing. Release Date: November 25, 2025 Genre: Horror https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/cant-miss-paranormal-romances monthly 0.5 2025-10-25 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b643bfbe-8862-46a5-be68-f7da53992cbd/223649382.jpg Blog - Can’t Miss Paranormal Romances - My Big Fat Vampire Wedding by Jessica Gadziala Vampires live forever…and so do his in-laws Pandora has real problems. She’s working a dead-end job as the night barista at a 24/7 coffee-shop, she still lives with her parents, and, oh yeah, she’s a vampire who has to get married by the end of the year or she won’t inherit her ancient family fortune. One slight catch: she’s single. When PhD student and coffee shop regular (and Pandora's work crush) Victor mentions his crippling debt, Pandora is overjoyed. She’s found the perfect solution to her problem. She can marry Victor, inherit the family fortune, pay off his debt, and divorce him as quickly as they married. It should be simple! But things in Pandora’s life are never that easy. Victor doesn’t know she’s a vampire, and absolutely cannot find out. On top of that, her whole family is getting involved in the wedding planning, turning Pandora’s proposed elopement into an extravaganza not fit for humans. Plus, the growing attraction between Pandora and Victor has her questioning whether she even wants this marriage to be fake at all. Can the pair survive this big fat vampire wedding? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/22fe25fc-c793-456c-a89a-46bd38745fc9/123199658.jpg Blog - Can’t Miss Paranormal Romances - The Fake Mate by Lana Ferguson Mackenzie hasn't had a successful date in months. She's only a year out of residency, and her grandmother's obsession with finding the perfect mate threatens to drive her barking mad, so it should be a small thing when she lies about meeting someone . . . until she blurts out the name of the last man she would ever date: Noah 'The Big Bad Wolf of Denver General' Taylor. Noah, interventional cardiologist and all-round grump, has spent his entire life hiding what he is - an unmated alpha. But when an anonymous tip brings everything to light, he's left with two choices: come clean to the board and risk his career or find himself a mate. So, when the chatty, overly friendly ER doctor asks him to be her fake boyfriend the same day he's called to meet the board, it must be kismet, right? Mackenzie gets her grandmother off her back, and Noah gets the chance to prove he can continue to work without a real mate - it's a mutually beneficial business transaction. But when the fake-mate act turns to a very real friends-with-benefits arrangement, lines start to blur, and they quickly realise love is a whole different kind of animal. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ad9bc1a1-b860-4b9d-9ac4-bb58b4f029cc/59949720-2.jpg Blog - Can’t Miss Paranormal Romances - The Kiss Curse by Erin Sterling Gwyn Jones is perfectly happy with her life in Graves Glen. She, her mom, and her cousin have formed a new and powerful coven; she’s running a successful witchcraft shop, Something Wicked; and she’s started mentoring some of the younger witches in town. As Halloween approaches, there’s only one problem—Llewellyn “Wells” Penhallow. Wells has come to Graves Glen to re-establish his family’s connection to the town they founded as well as to make a new life for himself after years of being the dutiful son in Wales. When he opens up a shop of his own, Penhallow’s, just across the street from Something Wicked, he quickly learns he’s gotten more than he bargained for in going up against Gwyn. When their professional competition leads to a very personal—and very hot—kiss, both Wells and Gwyn are determined to stay away from each other, convinced the kiss was just a magical fluke. But when a mysterious new coven of witches come to town and Gwyn’s powers begin fading, she and Wells must work together to figure out just what these new witches want and how to restore Gwyn’s magic before it’s too late. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/aa4bb5b6-00fd-4154-85a1-c16aa4041c90/204640575.jpg Blog - Can’t Miss Paranormal Romances - Fang Fiction by Kate Stayman-London Tess Rosenbloom is no stranger to the dark. An assault survivor and grad school dropout, she spends her nights managing a chic Brooklyn hotel and her days curled up with her favorite vampire novels, Blood Feud. Tess even dabbles in online conspiracies that Blood Feud is real—it’s fun to hunt for clues! But deep down, Tess doesn’t believe vampires actually exist… Until one walks through her door. It turns out Blood Feud is real, and the sexy villain of the novels is trapped. Eager to escape her life, Tess agrees to help rescue him, and soon she’s in a fantasia of lavish palaces and enchanted forests, on a secret island where the sun never shines and she’s surrounded by deadly vampires—and against her better judgment, she’s falling in love with one of them. (And unbeknownst to Tess, her estranged best friend is having a sapphic affair with a beautiful vampire of her own back in New York.) Visiting the world of your favorite story is any fan’s dream, but will Tess be able to outrun the demons of her past (and vampires of her present) before it becomes a nightmare? In this darkly glamorous rom-com, Tess will find out whether it’s worth risking her neck—and her heart—for a chance to reclaim her future. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4d72d65a-d62a-4308-8da5-475946280e7a/221251762.jpg Blog - Can’t Miss Paranormal Romances - Zom Romcom by Olivia Dade When Edie Brandstrup attempts to save her sweet, seemingly harmless human neighbor from the first major zombie breach in two decades, she’s stunned to be saved by him—and his ridiculously large sword—instead. As it turns out, he's actually a super-old, super-surly vampire. But for all her neighbor's newly revealed cynicism and lethality, Gaston "Max" Boucher (yes, Gaston) is unexpectedly protective. He wants her to stay in his safety bunker until the breach is resolved. Edie can’t risk more innocent people getting killed, though—and Max won’t let her save them alone. As they unravel a sinister conspiracy to set zombies loose on the world (again), the duo meet a host of lovable allies and discover they're not the only ones willing to fight for the future of humanity. Despite the awful timing, Edie finds herself falling for the vampire who’s helping her save the world . . . but all their dangerous plans could end their future before it even begins. As she and Max battle side by side, Edie must decide whether having a love worth living for also means having a love you'd die for—and, in a world that grows deadlier by the minute, whether that’s a risk she’s willing to take. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f81c71f8-1b2e-43e9-82f9-1e74dac38b8a/228256271.jpg Blog - Can’t Miss Paranormal Romances - Mate by Ali Hazelwood Serena Paris is orphaned, pack-less, and one of a kind. Coming forward as the first Human-Were hybrid was supposed to heal a centuries-long rift between species. Instead, it made her a target, prey to the ruthless political machinations between Weres, Vampyres, and Humans. With her enemies closing in on her, she has only one option left—if he’ll have her. As Alpha of the Northwest pack, Koen Alexander commands obedience. His authority is so absolute, only a fool would threaten his mate. It doesn’t matter if Serena doesn’t reciprocate his feelings, nothing will stop him from keeping her safe. But power-hungry Vampyres and Weres are not the only threats chasing Serena. Sooner or later, her past is bound to catch up with her—and Koen might be the only thing standing between her and total annihilation… https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8bf79a64-3465-443b-be33-7555e62128b5/222419257.jpg Blog - Can’t Miss Paranormal Romances - Crazy Spooky Love by Josie Silver In the leafy, charming town of Chapelwick, the Bittersweet family has been a fixture on High Street for as long as anyone can remember. Their rambling black-and-white building houses all three generations of ghost-sensitive Bittersweet women and their business, Blithe Spirits. On her twenty-seventh birthday, Melody Bittersweet converts the disused back storeroom into her office and opens her own business. Unlike the rest of her family, she’s not taking down messages from ghosts—she’s taking them out. Soon, the Girls’ Ghostbusting Agency takes on its first a grand old house that won’t sell because a trio of incumbent ghost brothers raise merry hell whenever prospective owners arrive to view it. It soon becomes clear that there’s a whole heap of unfinished business between the Scarborough brothers—including murder—and Melody isn’t the only one trying to unravel the mystery. Leo Dark, her rakish ex and business rival, is also on the case, along with the TV crew that trails him. To make matters worse, the sarcastic and skeptical (and annoyingly good-looking) local reporter Fletcher Gunn has his nose in the story as well. Sniffing out a way to publicly discredit the Bittersweets is his favorite assignment—and has absolutely nothing to do with his inability to resist Melody. With her business on the line, it’s up to Melody to work out the brothers' issues, but can she protect her own very susceptible heart from Fletcher’s charm? Does she even want to? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8d976966-162c-4050-b9e9-96700ffee8ce/78296210.jpg Blog - Can’t Miss Paranormal Romances - Hex and the City by Kate Johnson Things you should know about Poppy: 1. She’s a witch 2. She has magical hair like Rapunzel from Tangled 3. She lives with Iris, the head of her coven, in a beautiful, ramshackle house next to Highgate cemetery 4. She works at Hubble Bubble, a magic shop in Covent Garden. Though none of it is real magic as that would be highly irresponsible. Until… …Poppy accidentally sells gorgeous celebrity magician Axl Storm, all six-foot-four of him, a cursed pendant. When all hell breaks loose can the guy with fake magic and the girl with real magic fix the chaos they’ve caused? Or will sparks fly both in and out of the cauldron? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2fb262a0-3b17-4520-a2d2-dd22f1f73b43/204640539.jpg Blog - Can’t Miss Paranormal Romances - My Vampire Plus-One by Jenna Levine Amelia Collins is by definition successful. She would even go so far as to say successfully single. But not according to her family, and she’s tired of the constant questions about her nonexistent dating life. When an invitation to yet another family wedding arrives, she decides to get everyone off her back once and for all by finding someone–anyone–to pose as her date. After a chance encounter with Reginald Cleaves, Amelia decides he’s perfect for her purposes. He’s a bit strange, but that’s fine; it’ll discourage tough questions from her family. (And it certainly doesn’t hurt that he’s very handsome.) For centuries-old vampire Reggie, posing as her plus-one sounds like the ultimate fun. And if it helps his ruse of pretending to be human, so much the better. As Amelia and Reggie practice their fauxmance, it becomes clear that Reggie is as loyal to her as the day is long, and that Amelia’s first impressions could not have been more wrong. Suddenly, being in a real relationship with Reggie sounds pretty fang-tastic. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5db1d03b-b1cc-4169-81e0-dfaf2ed45fa2/58885776.jpg Blog - Can’t Miss Paranormal Romances - The Dead Romantics by Ashley Poston Florence Day is the ghostwriter for one of the most prolific romance authors in the industry, and she has a problem—after a terrible breakup, she no longer believes in love. It’s as good as dead. When her new editor, a too-handsome mountain of a man, won’t give her an extension on her book deadline, Florence prepares to kiss her career goodbye. But then she gets a phone call she never wanted to receive, and she must return home for the first time in a decade to help her family bury her beloved father. For ten years, she’s run from the town that never understood her, and even though she misses the sound of a warm Southern night and her eccentric, loving family and their funeral parlor, she can’t bring herself to stay. Even with her father gone, it feels like nothing in this town has changed. And she hates it. Until she finds a ghost standing at the funeral parlor’s front door, just as broad and infuriatingly handsome as ever, and he’s just as confused about why he’s there as she is. Romance is most certainly dead... but so is her new editor, and his unfinished business will have her second-guessing everything she’s ever known about love stories. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a818904b-088c-4858-b669-3d8388e4149d/205438870.jpg Blog - Can’t Miss Paranormal Romances - Haunt Your Heart Out by Amber Roberts Homebody Lex McCall loves her sleepy Vermont town and quiet bookstore job. After her family, friends, and exes all moved away to seek futures elsewhere, Lex set one rule: no dating tourists, newcomers, or anyone else who is bound to leave her behind. When the bookshop owner, eager to offload the supposedly haunted building, offers to sell the store to Lex at an unbeatable price, Lex jumps at the chance to further put down roots. Then handsome stranger James stops by the bookstore. Lex assumes he’s just another tourist passing through, but it turns out he’s part of a ghost-hunting documentary crew that’s looking into the many “verified” ghost stories in town. Lex can’t resist getting involved—especially because these so-called ghosts are actually made up stories from Haunted Happenings, her hobby vlog from a decade prior. Worried her ghost-faking secret will get out and ruin her chance to buy the store, she tampers with the ghosthunters' research and skews the results. After all, James’s stay is only temporary and her career dreams come first. But as they spend more time together, Lex realizes she’s falling for James. Worse, there’s more at stake than her simply being found out and losing his affection: his mission isn’t as frivolous as it seems, and her interference may cost him much more than a spooky story. This not-quite-ghost-story is sure to delight Gilmore Girls fans and anyone who loves flirty romances with a little extra spirit. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b61ebeb6-8490-4d22-b534-90c2337469a5/220405379.jpg Blog - Can’t Miss Paranormal Romances - I Accidentally Hooked Up With a Vampire by Jessica Cage Bills don't bite... but vampires do! Who needs a job when you just signed a new mortgage?When Whitney Harris loses her dream job as an art broker, she drowns her sorrows in a few too many cocktails. But her night takes a turn for the bizarre when she accidentally hooks up with Domino, a drop-dead gorgeous vampire with a flair for the dramatic and a taste for trouble. Now, instead of just worrying about her next paycheck, Whitney finds herself in a world where Domino’s vampire affiliates have their sights set on her—because she’s special. Duh! As she navigates this unexpected romance, she discovers her friends have their own supernatural spells and daggers anyone? With danger lurking in every shadow, Whitney must figure out how to survive this new chaotic reality. Can she embrace her wild side, save her heart (and neck), and turn the tables on fate before she becomes a vampire's main course? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5de5d655-2307-46bc-a73a-e5bb5ada37f0/199090016.jpg Blog - Can’t Miss Paranormal Romances - A Ghost of a Chance by Brittany Kelley Fake dating the hot grump next door until Halloween is more of a trick than a treat. I only pretend to be the town psychic—which means my crystal ball never told me I’d be moving in with my elderly aunt and dealing with her hot, grumpy neighbor. Sure, she’s hilarious, and she’s letting me stay in her tiny guest house in return for dealing with her ‘ghost problem.’ The catch? I don’t really believe in the supernatural. Even worse, Ward Carlisle, her hunky neighbor, is a real pain in my pumpkin patch. The fact our families have been feuding over some land for centuries doesn’t help, either. When Ward shows up at my fortune-telling booth at the town fall festival desperate for my help, he promises he’ll give my aunt the land she wants if I can fake a relationship with him until Halloween—and convince his ex-girlfriend we’re in love. I’m always down for a little mayhem, and if it means getting one up on prickly Ward, I’m totally game. But bizarre occurrences keep pushing Ward and I together: spooky calls for help which have me running to him in the night, phantom cold spots which push us together for warmth, and visions of people who aren’t really there that scare me right into his arms. Even stranger, though, is all this time we’re spending together means I’m getting to see the real him… and I like it. Things between us start heating up just as the weather turns cold. I’m not sure which is more unbelievable: that Ward and I could have something real, or that my aunt might be right about her ghost problem. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f06f5725-a378-489a-9b9d-9ce26c7ef36d/230422842.jpg Blog - Can’t Miss Paranormal Romances - Soul Searching by Lyla Sage Collins Cartwright does not want to go home. Sweetwater Peak, Wyoming, was supposed to be in her rearview mirror, but when she finds out a developer is trying to buy her parents’ antique shop out from under them, she doesn’t have a choice—at least, that’s what she tells her family. They don’t need to know she’s lost her job and is out of money. Or that the ghosts that have always been her companions have recently gone silent. But just because she’s returned home doesn’t mean she has to stay with her parents or crash on her twin sister’s couch. Lucky for her, the new-to-town upholsterer has a room for rent above his store. Unluckily, it is absolutely crawling with more ghosts who are freezing her out. And Collins hates being ignored. Brady Cooper is absolutely and totally fine. Seriously, there’s no secret reason why he decided to uproot his life and suddenly move to Sweetwater Peak. He just needed a change of pace. At least, that’s what he tells himself. And everyone else. When he agrees to let the elusive Collins Cartwright stay in his spare room, he doesn’t know that she’s absolutely bonkers—constantly talking to herself and having conversations with no one—or that she looked like that. But as they begin to get closer, the lines between them start to blur, leaving both of them—and the ghosts that have been pushing them together—wondering whether or not their temporary arrangement could be something more permanent. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6c577b9f-7996-49c0-b163-ed33045143f7/182484370.jpg-2.png Blog - Can’t Miss Paranormal Romances - A Witch’s Guide to Magical Innkeeping by Sangu Mandanna Sera Swan was once one of the most powerful witches in Britain. Then she resurrected her great-aunt Jasmine from the (very recently) dead, lost most of her magic, befriended a semi-villainous talking fox, and was exiled from her magical Guild. Now she ( slightly reluctantly and just a bit grumpily) helps Aunt Jasmine run an inn in Lancashire, where she deals with her quirky guests' shenanigans, tries to keep the talking fox in check, and longs for the magical future she lost. When she learns about an old spellbook that holds the secret to restoring her power, she turns to Luke Larsen, a gorgeous historian who might just be able to help her unlock the book’s mysteries. Luke, who has his own reasons for staying at the inn, never planned on getting involved in the madcap goings-on around him and certainly had no intention of letting certain grumpy innkeepers past his icy walls, so no one is more surprised than he is when he not only agrees to help, but also finds himself thawing . Running an inn, reclaiming lost magic, and staying one step ahead of the watchful Guild is a lot for anyone, but Sera is about to discover that she doesn’t have to do it alone... and that the weird, wonderful family she’s made might be the best magic of all. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8ccdce1a-f82e-45cf-b4bf-f60b249a1e55/214537679.jpg Blog - Can’t Miss Paranormal Romances - Fan Service by Rosie Danan The only place small-town outcast Alex Lawson fits in is the online fan forum she built for The Arcane Files, a long-running werewolf detective show. Her dedication to archiving fictional supernatural lore made her Internet-famous, even if she harbors a secret disdain for the show’s star, Devin Ashwood. (Never meet your heroes—sometimes they turn out to be The Worst.) Ever since his show went off the air, Devin and his career have spiraled, but waking up naked in the woods outside his LA home with no memory of the night before is a new low. It must have been a coincidence that the once-in-a-century Wolf Blood Moon crested last night. The claws, fangs, and howling are a little more difficult to explain away. Desperate for answers, Devin finds Alex—the closest thing to an expert that exists. If only he could convince her to stop hating his guts long enough to help.... Once he makes her an offer she can’t refuse, these reluctant allies lower their guards trying to wrangle his inner beast. Unfortunately, getting up close and personal quickly comes back to bite them. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8ffb1e73-6cad-442c-87cf-7e4fe65a2c1b/202102032.jpg Blog - Can’t Miss Paranormal Romances - Haunted Ever After by Jen DeLuca Small Florida coastal towns often find themselves scrambling for the tourism dollars that the Orlando theme parks leave behind. And within the town limits of Boneyard Key, the residents decided long ago to lean into its ghostliness. Nick Royer, owner of the Hallowed Grounds coffee shop, embraces the ghost tourism that keeps the local economy afloat, as well as his spectral roommate. At least he doesn’t have to run air-conditioning. Cassie Rutherford possibly overreacted to all her friends getting married and having kids by leaving Orlando and buying a flipped historic cottage in Boneyard Key. Though there’s something unusual with her new home (her laptop won’t charge in any outlets, and the poetry magnets on her fridge definitely didn’t read “WRONG” and “MY HOUSE” when she put them up), she’s charmed by the colorful history surrounding her. And she's catching a certain vibe from the grumpy coffee shop owner whenever he slips her a free slice of banana bread along with her coffee order. As Nick takes her on a ghost tour, sharing town gossip that tourists don't get to hear, and they spend nights side-by-side looking into the former owners of her haunted cottage, their connection solidifies into something very real and enticing. But Cassie's worried she’s in too deep with this whole (haunted) home ownership thing… and Nick's afraid to get too close in case Cassie gets scared away for good. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7202d4c7-c523-4b43-bac4-42c6faa02f5f/167817115.jpg Blog - Can’t Miss Paranormal Romances - How to Fake Date A Vampire by Linsey Hall Faking it with a vampire duke should be easy, right? I’ve got one chance to prove to my coven that I’m worth my wand. But to do it, I'm going to have to make a deal with a vampire duke. I get to use his gorgeous estate in Cornwall to host the Beltane Ball--and in exchange, I'll pretend to be his girlfriend. But it's all a show for his grandmother. The rules of our fake relationship are simple: No flirting. No emotion. No sex. Easy, right? Except I can't seem to ignore the allure of the infuriating and devastatingly sexy vampire. Falling for a duke isn’t an option, though. I would lose the anonymity that protects me and my coven, and that would ruin my life--and the lives of the other witches in my coven. So yeah, totally easy. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0c07d345-c901-434d-89ca-4ca009128bb2/125096569.jpg Blog - Can’t Miss Paranormal Romances - That Time I Got Drunk and Yeeted a Love Potion at a Werewolf by Kimberly Lemming Cheesemaker Brie has the worst luck in love, which is how she ends up falling for a lactose intolerant werewolf, in this raunchy, laugh-out-loud rom-com fantasy that's perfect for fans of Legends & Lattes and The Dragon's Bride. Anyone else ever thrown a drink at someone's head, only to miss entirely and hit a stranger behind them? Then have that stranger fall madly in love with you because it turned out that drink you threw was a love potion? No, just me? Well damn. Dealing with a pirate ship full of demons that just moved into town was hard enough. Now on top of it, I have to convince a werewolf that I'm not his fated mate, he's just drugged. Easier said than done. Though I have to say, having a gorgeous man show up and do all of your chores while telling you you're beautiful isn't the worst thing to happen to a girl. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/df5a2512-ead6-4e83-9386-1a5917de6371/122977981.jpg Blog - Can’t Miss Paranormal Romances - Do Your Worst by Rosie Danan Riley Rhodes finally has the chance to turn her family’s knack for the supernatural into a legitimate business when she’s hired to break the curse on an infamous Scottish castle. Used to working alone in her alienating occupation, she's pleasantly surprised to meet a handsome stranger upon arrival—until he tries to get her fired. Fresh off a professional scandal, Clark Edgeware can’t allow a self-proclaimed “curse breaker” to threaten his last chance for redemption. After he fails to get Riley kicked off his survey site, he vows to avoid her. Unfortunately for him, she vows to get even. Riley expects the curse to do her dirty work by driving Clark away, but instead, they keep finding themselves in close proximity. Too close. Turns out, the only thing they do better than fight is fool around. If they’re not careful, by the end of all this, more than the castle will end up in ruins. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d741c48b-d773-4c08-9e7a-5f360fd40bb5/223362297.jpg Blog - Can’t Miss Paranormal Romances - Love at First Fright by Nadia El-Fassi Rosemary is a successful horror author with a secret: she can see ghosts. So when the set of her hit novel’s film adaptation turns out to be a haunted countryside manor, she’s unfazed. What she’s less prepared for is the maddeningly handsome, completely miscast actor playing her leading man. Ellis is a Hollywood heartthrob tired of his action-hero persona. Instead, he dreams of being a serious actor, and having free time to spend gardening with his dog. Landing the lead in a historical horror movie is his chance to start fresh… until he discovers the author tried to have him replaced. But as filming progresses, and the manor's ghosts make their presence known, the chemistry between Rosemary and Ellis becomes undeniable. With secrets being spilled, sparks flying, and spirits stirring up trouble, can they face their demons and write themselves a happily-ever-after before it's a wrap? https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/horror-hits-of-the-years monthly 0.5 2025-10-18 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8dc20389-029d-4439-a990-c1127ffb6e79/195703882.jpg Blog - Horror Hits of the Years - The Eyes are the Best Part by Monika Kim Ji-won’s life tumbles into disarray in the wake of her Appa’s extramarital affair and subsequent departure. Her mother, distraught. Her younger sister, hurt and confused. Her college freshman grades, failing. Her dreams, horrifying . . . yet enticing. In them, Ji-won walks through bloody rooms full of eyes. Succulent blue eyes. Salivatingly blue eyes. Eyes the same shape and shade as George’s, who is Umma’s obnoxious new boyfriend. George has already overstayed his welcome in her family’s claustrophobic apartment. He brags about his puffed-up consulting job, ogles Asian waitresses while dining out, and acts condescending toward Ji-won and her sister as if he deserves all of Umma’s fawning adoration. No, George doesn’t deserve anything from her family. Ji-won will make sure of that. For no matter how many victims accumulate around her campus or how many people she must deceive and manipulate, Ji-won’s hunger and her rage deserve to be sated. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2066f2e6-698b-41a6-ab27-888ebf9308c8/62919847-2.jpg Blog - Horror Hits of the Years - The Reformatory by Tananarive Due Gracetown, Florida June 1950 Twelve-year-old Robbie Stephens, Jr., is sentenced to six months at the Gracetown School for Boys, a reformatory, for kicking the son of the largest landowner in town in defense of his older sister, Gloria. So begins Robbie’s journey further into the terrors of the Jim Crow South and the very real horror of the school they call The Reformatory. Robbie has a talent for seeing ghosts, or haints. But what was once a comfort to him after the loss of his mother has become a window to the truth of what happens at the reformatory. Boys forced to work to remediate their so-called crimes have gone missing, but the haints Robbie sees hint at worse things. Through his friends Redbone and Blue, Robbie is learning not just the rules but how to survive. Meanwhile, Gloria is rallying every family member and connection in Florida to find a way to get Robbie out before it’s too late. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3aa7510f-15c2-44fd-81de-1bd38a05769e/58724923.jpg Blog - Horror Hits of the Years - Hidden Pictures by Jason Rekulak Fresh out of rehab, Mallory Quinn takes a job in the affluent suburb of Spring Brook, New Jersey as a babysitter for Ted and Caroline Maxwell. She is to look after their five-year-old son, Teddy. Mallory immediately loves this new job. She lives in the Maxwell’s pool house, goes out for nightly runs, and has the stability she craves. And she sincerely bonds with Teddy, a sweet, shy boy who is never without his sketchbook and pencil. His drawings are the usual trees, rabbits, balloons. But one day, he draws something a man in a forest, dragging a woman’s lifeless body. As the days pass, Teddy’s artwork becomes more and more sinister, and his stick figures steadily evolve into more detailed, complex, and lifelike sketches well beyond the ability of any five-year-old. Mallory begins to suspect these are glimpses of an unsolved murder from long ago, perhaps relayed by a supernatural force lingering in the forest behind the Maxwell’s house. With help from a handsome landscaper and an eccentric neighbor, Mallory sets out to decipher the images and save Teddy—while coming to terms with a tragedy in her own past—before it’s too late. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5a4b5fba-d2c3-413f-9776-9ae23a79fb13/64623481.jpg Blog - Horror Hits of the Years - The September House by Carissa Orlando 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. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3e3c6989-05e5-4830-af3c-89aee8eeb1d3/63264519.jpg Blog - Horror Hits of the Years - Dead of Winter bt Darcy Coates When Christa joins a tour group heading deep into the snowy expanse of the Rocky Mountains, she's hopeful this will be her chance to put the ghosts of her past to rest. But when a bitterly cold snowstorm sweeps the region, the small group is forced to take shelter in an abandoned hunting cabin. Despite the uncomfortably claustrophobic quarters and rapidly dropping temperature, Christa believes they'll be safe as they wait out the storm. She couldn't be more wrong. Deep in the night, their tour guide goes missing...only to be discovered the following morning, his severed head impaled on a tree outside the cabin. Terrified, and completely isolated by the storm, Christa finds herself trapped with eight total strangers. One of them kills for sport...and they're far from finished. As the storm grows more dangerous and the number of survivors dwindles one by one, Christa must decide who she can trust before this frozen mountain becomes her tomb. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a9ecd822-44ed-4bac-958d-8fade58d0c21/207611566.jpg Blog - Horror Hits of the Years - Witchcraft for Wayward Girls by Grady Hendrix There’s power in a book… They call them wayward girls. Loose girls. Girls who grew up too fast. And they’re sent to the Wellwood Home in St. Augustine, Florida, where unwed mothers are hidden by their families to have their babies in secret, give them up for adoption, and most important of all, to forget any of it ever happened. Fifteen-year-old Fern arrives at the home in the sweltering summer of 1970, pregnant, terrified and alone. Under the watchful eye of the stern Miss Wellwood, she meets a dozen other girls in the same predicament. There’s Rose, a hippie who insists she’s going to find a way to keep her baby and escape to a commune. And Zinnia, a budding musician who knows she’s going to go home and marry her baby’s father. And Holly, a wisp of a girl, barely fourteen, mute and pregnant by no-one-knows-who. Everything the girls eat, every moment of their waking day, and everything they’re allowed to talk about is strictly controlled by adults who claim they know what’s best for them. Then Fern meets a librarian who gives her an occult book about witchcraft, and power is in the hands of the girls for the first time in their lives. But power can destroy as easily as it creates, and it’s never given freely. There’s always a price to be paid…and it’s usually paid in blood. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/df2f1a0a-01b0-4c9d-9df4-2dde33e3c2b5/57840571.jpg Blog - Horror Hits of the Years - The Hacienda by Isabel Canas In the overthrow of the Mexican government, Beatriz’s father is executed and her home destroyed. When handsome Don Rodolfo Solórzano proposes, Beatriz ignores the rumors surrounding his first wife’s sudden demise, choosing instead to seize the security his estate in the countryside provides. She will have her own home again, no matter the cost. But Hacienda San Isidro is not the sanctuary she imagined. When Rodolfo returns to work in the capital, visions and voices invade Beatriz’s sleep. The weight of invisible eyes follows her every move. Rodolfo’s sister, Juana, scoffs at Beatriz’s fears—but why does she refuse to enter the house at night? Why does the cook burn copal incense at the edge of the kitchen and mark its doorway with strange symbols? What really happened to the first Doña Solórzano? Beatriz only knows two things for certain: Something is wrong with the hacienda. And no one there will help her. Desperate for help, she clings to the young priest, Padre Andrés, as an ally. No ordinary priest, Andrés will have to rely on his skills as a witch to fight off the malevolent presence haunting the hacienda and protect the woman for whom he feels a powerful, forbidden attraction. But even he might not be enough to battle the darkness. Far from a refuge, San Isidro may be Beatriz’s doom. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9cf5b5f5-9ad7-461c-9d80-a570d21bcc9a/57693184.jpg.png Blog - Horror Hits of the Years - Dead Silence by S.A. Barnes A woman and her crew board a decades-lost luxury cruiser and find the wreckage of a nightmare that hasn't yet ended. A GHOST SHIP. A SALVAGE CREW. UNSPEAKABLE HORRORS. Claire Kovalik is days away from being unemployed—made obsolete—when her beacon repair crew picks up a strange distress signal. With nothing to lose and no desire to return to Earth, Claire and her team decide to investigate. What they find at the other end of the signal is a shock: the Aurora, a famous luxury space-liner that vanished on its maiden tour of the solar system more than twenty years ago. A salvage claim like this could set Claire and her crew up for life. But a quick trip through the Aurora reveals something isn’t right. Whispers in the dark. Flickers of movement. Words scrawled in blood. Claire must fight to hold onto her sanity and find out what really happened on the Aurora, before she and her crew meet the same ghastly fate. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/64ab45c0-81c4-467a-b75b-6ff52c59863a/58438554.jpg Blog - Horror Hits of the Years - The Children on the Hill by Jennifer McMahon 1978: at her renowned treatment center in picturesque Vermont, the brilliant psychiatrist, Dr. Helen Hildreth, is acclaimed for her compassionate work with the mentally ill. But when she's home with her cherished grandchildren, Vi and Eric, she’s just Gran—teaching them how to take care of their pets, preparing them home-cooked meals, providing them with care and attention and love. Then one day Gran brings home a child to stay with the family. Iris—silent, hollow-eyed, skittish, and feral—does not behave like a normal girl. Still, Violet is thrilled to have a new playmate. She and Eric invite Iris to join their Monster Club, where they catalogue all kinds of monsters and dream up ways to defeat them. Before long, Iris begins to come out of her shell. She and Vi and Eric do everything together: ride their bicycles, go to the drive-in, meet at their clubhouse in secret to hunt monsters. Because, as Vi explains, monsters are everywhere. 2019: Lizzy Shelley, the host of the popular podcast Monsters Among Us, is traveling to Vermont, where a young girl has been abducted, and a monster sighting has the town in an uproar. She’s determined to hunt it down, because Lizzy knows better than anyone that monsters are real—and one of them is her very own sister. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c953a7a5-5e06-4184-b6a0-0152daa94856/44074800-2.jpg Blog - Horror Hits of the Years - The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix Patricia Campbell had always planned for a big life, but after giving up her career as a nurse to marry an ambitious doctor and become a mother, Patricia's life has never felt smaller. The days are long, her kids are ungrateful, her husband is distant, and her to-do list is never really done. The one thing she has to look forward to is her book club, a group of Charleston mothers united only by their love for true-crime and suspenseful fiction. In these meetings, they're more likely to discuss the FBI's recent siege of Waco as much as the ups and downs of marriage and motherhood. But when an artistic and sensitive stranger moves into the neighborhood, the book club's meetings turn into speculation about the newcomer. Patricia is initially attracted to him, but when some local children go missing, she starts to suspect the newcomer is involved. She begins her own investigation, assuming that he's a Jeffrey Dahmer or Ted Bundy. What she uncovers is far more terrifying, and soon she--and her book club--are the only people standing between the monster they've invited into their homes and their unsuspecting community. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d2efaff8-b7de-4067-941e-5a7355e0d22f/56179372.jpg Blog - Horror Hits of the Years - Slewfoot by Brom A spirited young Englishwoman, Abitha, arrives at a Puritan colony betrothed to a stranger – only to become quickly widowed when her husband dies under mysterious circumstances. All alone in this pious and patriarchal society, Abitha fights for what little freedom she can grasp onto, while trying to stay true to herself and her past. Enter Slewfoot, a powerful spirit of antiquity newly woken ... and trying to find his own role in the world. Healer or destroyer? Protector or predator? But as the shadows walk and villagers start dying, a new rumor is whispered: Witch. Both Abitha and Slewfoot must swiftly decide who they are, and what they must do to survive in a world intent on hanging any who meddle in the dark arts. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/93457a90-495d-4f5d-8de5-37e7cec38533/218185743.jpg Blog - Horror Hits of the Years - Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng by Kylie Lee Baker Cora Zeng is a crime scene cleaner, washing away the remains of brutal murders and suicides in Chinatown. The bloody messes don't bother her, not when she's already witnessed the most horrific thing possible: her sister being pushed in front of a train. Before fleeing the scene, the murderer whispered two words: bat eater. Months pass, the killer is never caught, and Cora can barely keep herself together. She pushes away all feelings, disregards the bite marks that appear on her coffee table, and won't take her aunt's advice to prepare for the Hungry Ghost Festival, when the gates of hell open. Cora tries to ignore the rising dread in her stomach, even when she and her weird co-workers begin finding bat carcasses at their crime scene clean-ups. But Cora can't ignore the fact that all their recent clean-ups have been the bodies of East Asian women. Soon Cora will learn: you can't just ignore hungry ghosts. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/61155d62-2680-4371-b1d2-9c3a71ab7a46/49090884.jpg Blog - Horror Hits of the Years - Tender is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica His wife has left him, his father is sinking into dementia, and Marcos tries not to think too hard about how he makes a living. After all, it happened so quickly. First, it was reported that an infectious virus has made all animal meat poisonous to humans. Then governments initiated the “Transition.” Now, eating human meat—“special meat”—is legal. Marcos tries to stick to numbers, consignments, processing. Then one day he’s given a a live specimen of the finest quality. Though he’s aware that any form of personal contact is forbidden on pain of death, little by little he starts to treat her like a human being. And soon, he becomes tortured by what has been lost—and what might still be saved. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/72c8c47c-66b9-4b2d-9119-b7b0545ca26e/53152636.jpg Blog - Horror Hits of the Years - Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia After receiving a frantic letter from her newly-wed cousin begging for someone to save her from a mysterious doom, Noemí Taboada heads to High Place, a distant house in the Mexican countryside. She’s not sure what she will find—her cousin’s husband, a handsome Englishman, is a stranger, and Noemí knows little about the region. Noemí is also an unlikely rescuer: She’s a glamorous debutante, and her chic gowns and perfect red lipstick are more suited for cocktail parties than amateur sleuthing. But she’s also tough and smart, with an indomitable will, and she is not afraid: Not of her cousin’s new husband, who is both menacing and alluring; not of his father, the ancient patriarch who seems to be fascinated by Noemí; and not even of the house itself, which begins to invade Noemi’s dreams with visions of blood and doom. Her only ally in this inhospitable abode is the family’s youngest son. Shy and gentle, he seems to want to help Noemí, but might also be hiding dark knowledge of his family’s past. For there are many secrets behind the walls of High Place. The family’s once colossal wealth and faded mining empire kept them from prying eyes, but as Noemí digs deeper she unearths stories of violence and madness. And Noemí, mesmerized by the terrifying yet seductive world of High Place, may soon find it impossible to ever leave this enigmatic house behind. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/22f2d62b-96dd-44bb-bdfa-7548a4b7efb2/43522576.jpg Blog - Horror Hits of the Years - Imaginary Friend by Stephen Chbosky Christopher is seven years old. Christopher is the new kid in town. Christopher has an imaginary friend. We can swallow our fear or let our fear swallow us. Single mother Kate Reese is on the run. Determined to improve life for her and her son, Christopher, she flees an abusive relationship in the middle of the night with her child. Together, they find themselves drawn to the tight-knit community of Mill Grove, Pennsylvania. It's as far off the beaten track as they can get. Just one highway in, one highway out. At first, it seems like the perfect place to finally settle down. Then Christopher vanishes. For six long days, no one can find him. Until Christopher emerges from the woods at the edge of town, unharmed but not unchanged. He returns with a voice in his head only he can hear, with a mission only he can complete: Build a treehouse in the woods by Christmas, or his mother and everyone in the town will never be the same again. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8d0b13b9-32c7-4df9-9f2f-087ebb03ab42/53387949.jpg Blog - Horror Hits of the Years - The Burning Girls by C.J. Tudor Welcome to Chapel Croft. Five hundred years ago, eight protestant martyrs were burned at the stake here. Thirty years ago, two teenage girls disappeared without a trace. And two months ago, the vicar of the local parish killed himself. Reverend Jack Brooks, a single parent with a fourteen-year-old daughter and a heavy conscience, arrives in the village hoping to make a fresh start and find some peace. Instead, Jack finds a town mired in secrecy and a strange welcome package: an old exorcism kit and a note quoting scripture. "But there is nothing covered up that will not be revealed and hidden that will not be known." The more Jack and her daughter Flo get acquainted with the town and its strange denizens, the deeper they are drawn into their rifts, mysteries, and suspicions. And when Flo is troubled by strange sightings in the old chapel, it becomes apparent that there are ghosts here that refuse to be laid to rest. But uncovering the truth can be deadly in a village where everyone has something to protect, everyone has links with the village's bloody past, and no one trusts an outsider. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/99b01f6e-e673-4634-902f-12e3aa3e5398/221633230.jpg Blog - Horror Hits of the Years - Never Flinch by Stephen King When the Buckeye City Police Department receives a disturbing letter from a person threatening to “kill thirteen innocents and one guilty” in “an act of atonement for the needless death of an innocent man,” Detective Izzy Jaynes has no idea what to think. Are fourteen citizens about to be slaughtered in an unhinged act of retribution? As the investigation unfolds, Izzy realizes that the letter writer is deadly serious, and she turns to her friend Holly Gibney for help. Meanwhile, controversial and outspoken women’s rights activist Kate McKay is embarking on a multi-state lecture tour, drawing packed venues of both fans and detractors. Someone who vehemently opposes Kate’s message of female empowerment is targeting her and disrupting her events. At first, no one is hurt, but the stalker is growing bolder, and Holly is hired to be Kate’s bodyguard—a challenging task with a headstrong employer and a determined adversary driven by wrath and his belief in his own righteousness. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a9393b7a-ea23-4a1a-8e1d-fa935a650ca4/211004350.jpg Blog - Horror Hits of the Years - Something in the Walls by Daisy Pearce Newly minted child psychologist Mina has little experience. In a field where the first people called are experts, she’s been unable to get her feet wet. Instead she aimlessly spends her days stuck in the stifling heat wave sweeping across Britain and anxiously contemplates her upcoming marriage to careful, precise researcher Oscar. The only reprieve from her small, close world is attending the local bereavement group to mourn her brother’s death from years ago. Then she meets journalist Sam Hunter at the grief group one day, and he has a proposition for her: Thirteen-year-old Alice Webber claims a witch is haunting her. Living with her family in the remote village of Banathel, Alice finds her symptoms are getting increasingly disturbing. Taking this job will give Mina some experience and much-needed money; Sam will get the scoop of a lifetime; and Alice will get better—Mina is sure of it. But instead of improving, Alice’s behavior becomes inexplicable and intense. The town of Banathel has a deep history of superstition and witchcraft. They believe there is evil in the world. They believe there are ways of…dealing with it. And they don’t expect outsiders to understand. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/dd2b77a5-c82e-4dd5-9b85-aefb5e8a8249/59808007.jpg Blog - Horror Hits of the Years - Little Eve by Catriona Ward “A great day is upon us. He is coming. The world will be washed away.” On the wind-battered isle of Altnaharra, off the wildest coast of Scotland, a clan prepares to bring about the end of the world and its imminent rebirth. The Adder is coming and one of their number will inherit its powers. They all want the honor, but young Eve is willing to do anything for the distinction. A reckoning beyond Eve’s imagination begins when Chief Inspector Black arrives to investigate a brutal murder and their sacred ceremony goes terribly wrong. And soon all the secrets of Altnaharra will be uncovered. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2bcf72ae-cbe2-4ee4-a7aa-f8cc266e2629/57693472.jpg Blog - Horror Hits of the Years - Just Like Home by Sarah Gailey “Come home.” Vera’s mother called and Vera obeyed. In spite of their long estrangement, in spite of the memories -- she's come back to the home of a serial killer. Back to face the love she had for her father and the bodies he buried there. Coming home is hard enough for Vera, and to make things worse, she and her mother aren’t alone. A parasitic artist has moved into the guest house out back, and is slowly stripping Vera’s childhood for spare parts. He insists that he isn’t the one leaving notes around the house in her father’s handwriting… but who else could it possibly be? There are secrets yet undiscovered in the foundations of the notorious Crowder House. Vera must face them, and find out for herself just how deep the rot goes. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/banned-books-2 monthly 0.5 2025-10-09 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7950e527-0037-401f-b67e-6bbac5a05664/41817486.jpg Blog - Banned Books - A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess A vicious fifteen-year-old droog is the central character of this 1963 classic. In Anthony Burgess's nightmare vision of the future, where criminals take over after dark, the story is told by the central character, Alex, who talks in a brutal invented slang that brilliantly renders his and his friends' social pathology. A Clockwork Orange is a frightening fable about good and evil, and the meaning of human freedom. And when the state undertakes to reform Alex to "redeem" him, the novel asks, "At what cost?" https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ab390061-499c-491d-baf9-82baccd3990f/51401773.jpg Blog - Banned Books - Breathless by Jennifer Niven Before: With graduation on the horizon, budding writer Claudine Henry is making plans: college in the fall, become a famous author, and maybe—finally—have sex. She doesn't even need to be in love. Then her dad drops a bombshell: he's leaving Claude's mother. Suddenly, Claude's entire world feels like a lie, and her future anything but under control. After: Claude's mom whisks them away to the last place Claude could imagine nursing a broken heart: a remote, mosquito-infested island off the coast of Georgia. But then Jeremiah Crew happens. Miah is a local trail guide with a passion for photography—and a past he doesn't like to talk about. He's brash and enigmatic, and even more infuriatingly, he's the only one who seems to see Claude for who she wants to be. So when Claude decides to sleep with Miah, she tells herself it's just sex, nothing more. There's not enough time to fall in love, especially if it means putting her already broken heart at risk. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c42b5aec-d032-45af-b3cb-7107f89f485d/201114.jpg Blog - Banned Books - Sold by Patricia McCormick Lakshmi is a thirteen-year-old girl who lives with her family in a small hut in the mountains of Nepal. Her family is desperately poor, but her life is full of simple pleasures, like raising her black-and-white speckled goat, and having her mother brush her hair by the light of an oil lamp. But when the harsh Himalayan monsoons wash away all that remains of the family's crops, Lakshmi's stepfather says she must leave home and take a job to support her family. He introduces her to a glamorous stranger who tells her she will find her a job as a maid working for a wealthy woman in the city. Glad to be able to help, Lakshmi undertakes the long journey to India and arrives at "Happiness House" full of hope. But she soon learns the unthinkable truth: she has been sold into prostitution. An old woman named Mumtaz rules the brothel with cruelty and cunning. She tells Lakshmi that she is trapped there until she can pay off her family's debt—then cheats Lakshmi of her meager earnings so that she can never leave. Lakshmi's life becomes a nightmare from which she cannot escape. Still, she lives by her mother's words—"Simply to endure is to triumph"—and gradually, she forms friendships with the other girls that enable her to survive in this terrifying new world. Then the day comes when she must make a decision—will she risk everything for a chance to reclaim her life? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8f59754b-75d7-4a31-ae20-d8a0b351946a/50659467.jpg Blog - Banned Books - A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas When nineteen-year-old huntress Feyre kills a wolf in the woods, a terrifying creature arrives to demand retribution. Dragged to a treacherous magical land she knows about only from legends, Feyre discovers that her captor is not truly a beast, but one of the lethal, immortal faeries who once ruled her world. At least, he’s not a beast all the time. As she adapts to her new home, her feelings for the faerie, Tamlin, transform from icy hostility into a fiery passion that burns through every lie she’s been told about the beautiful, dangerous world of the Fae. But something is not right in the faerie lands. An ancient, wicked shadow is growing, and Feyre must find a way to stop it, or doom Tamlin—and his world—forever. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d6a73540-ff95-4dfd-b970-ad8a778829c0/270730.jpg Blog - Banned Books - Crank by Ellen Hopkins Kristina Georgia Snow is the perfect daughter: gifted high-school junior, quiet, never any trouble. But on a trip to visit her absentee father, she meets a boy who introduces her to crank. At first she finds it freeing, but soon Kristina's personality disappears inside the drug. What began as a wild, ecstatic ride turns into a struggle through hell for her mind, her soul, and her life. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3dbdf938-befb-479b-bac8-d2c450ae5b21/16132448._SX300_.jpg Blog - Banned Books - Forever by Judy Blume Katherine and Michael meet at a New Year's Eve party. They're attracted to each other, they grow to love each other. And once they've decided their love is forever, they make love. It's the beginning of an intense and exclusive relationship, with a future all planned. Until Katherine's parents insist that she and Michael put their love to the test with a summer apart... https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/cebec7c2-18e3-4d3a-a0ac-1730b4b6c335/22628.jpg Blog - Banned Books - The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky This is the story of what it's like to grow up in high school. More intimate than a diary, Charlie's letters are singular and unique, hilarious and devastating. We may not know where he lives. We may not know to whom he is writing. All we know is the world he shares. Caught between trying to live his life and trying to run from it puts him on a strange course through uncharted territory. The world of first dates and mixed tapes, family dramas and new friends. The world of sex, drugs, and The Rocky Horror Picture Show, when all one requires is that the perfect song on that perfect drive to feel infinite. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/83ebb8e1-525b-4c13-87ce-f9af20c74b4f/36260155.jpg Blog - Banned Books - Damsel by Elana K. Arnold This is the story of what it's like to grow up in high school. More intimate than a diary, Charlie's letters are singular and unique, hilarious and devastating. We may not know where he lives. We may not know to whom he is writing. All we know is the world he shares. Caught between trying to live his life and trying to run from it puts him on a strange course through uncharted territory. The world of first dates and mixed tapes, family dramas and new friends. The world of sex, drugs, and The Rocky Horror Picture Show, when all one requires is that the perfect song on that perfect drive to feel infinite. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a430c031-65a0-4a56-8441-b5ba6299c856/49982302.jpg Blog - Banned Books - The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood It is the world of the near future, and Offred is a Handmaid in the home of the Commander and his wife. She is allowed out once a day to the food market, she is not permitted to read, and she is hoping the Commander makes her pregnant, because she is only valued if her ovaries are viable. Offred can remember the years before, when she was an independent woman, had a job of her own, a husband and child. But all of that is gone now ... everything has changed. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0030ad7a-368f-4e31-88be-51a45c424c0e/59019985._SX300_.jpg Blog - Banned Books - Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult In nineteen minutes, you can mow the front lawn, color your hair, watch a third of a hockey game. In nineteen minutes, you can bake scones or get a tooth filled by a dentist; you can fold laundry for a family of five....In nineteen minutes, you can stop the world, or you can just jump off it. In nineteen minutes, you can get revenge. Sterling is a small, ordinary New Hampshire town where nothing ever happens -- until the day its complacency is shattered by a shocking act of violence. In the aftermath, the town's residents must not only seek justice in order to begin healing but also come to terms with the role they played in the tragedy. For them, the lines between truth and fiction, right and wrong, insider and outsider have been obscured forever. Josie Cormier, the teenage daughter of the judge sitting on the case, could be the state's best witness, but she can't remember what happened in front of her own eyes. And as the trial progresses, fault lines between the high school and the adult community begin to show, destroying the closest of friendships and families. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/04f3e6e6-16a8-4203-a6f1-4db8c947b5c7/292327._SX300_.jpg Blog - Banned Books - The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison Pecola Breedlove, a young black girl, prays every day for beauty. Mocked by other children for the dark skin, curly hair, and brown eyes that set her apart, she yearns for normalcy, for the blond hair and blue eyes that she believes will allow her to finally fit in. Yet as her dream grows more fervent, her life slowly starts to disintegrate in the face of adversity and strife. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d89282b4-4a25-4481-b880-c3efedd6d57a/99561.jpg Blog - Banned Books - Looking for Alaska by John Green Before. Miles “Pudge” Halter is done with his safe life at home. His whole life has been one big non-event, and his obsession with famous last words has only made him crave “the Great Perhaps” even more (Francois Rabelais, poet). He heads off to the sometimes crazy and anything-but-boring world of Culver Creek Boarding School, and his life becomes the opposite of safe. Because down the hall is Alaska Young. The gorgeous, clever, funny, sexy, self-destructive, screwed up, and utterly fascinating Alaska Young. She is an event unto herself. She pulls Pudge into her world, launches him into the Great Perhaps, and steals his heart. Then. . . . After. Nothing is ever the same. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3eaeabb1-104d-428b-bc98-f99ae28afd8e/17165596.jpg Blog - Banned Books - The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini 1970s Afghanistan: Twelve-year-old Amir is desperate to win the local kite-fighting tournament and his loyal friend Hassan promises to help him. But neither of the boys can foresee what would happen to Hassan that afternoon, an event that is to shatter their lives. After the Russians invade and the family is forced to flee to America, Amir realises that one day he must return to an Afghanistan under Taliban rule to find the one thing that his new world cannot grant him: redemption. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/47acae2f-8721-41db-a99a-4a538fdca8a8/13496.jpg Blog - Banned Books - A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin Long ago, in a time forgotten, a preternatural event threw the seasons out of balance. In a land where summers can last decades and winters a lifetime, trouble is brewing. The cold is returning, and in the frozen wastes to the north of Winterfell, sinister forces are massing beyond the kingdom’s protective Wall. To the south, the king’s powers are failing—his most trusted adviser dead under mysterious circumstances and his enemies emerging from the shadows of the throne. At the center of the conflict lie the Starks of Winterfell, a family as harsh and unyielding as the frozen land they were born to. Now Lord Eddard Stark is reluctantly summoned to serve as the king’s new Hand, an appointment that threatens to sunder not only his family but the kingdom itself. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7b6ef222-3141-4f23-844f-dffa40ca8f85/58651625.jpg Blog - Banned Books - The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas Sixteen-year-old Starr Carter moves between two worlds: the poor neighborhood where she lives and the fancy suburban prep school she attends. The uneasy balance between these worlds is shattered when Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer. Khalil was unarmed. Soon afterward, his death is a national headline. Some are calling him a thug, maybe even a drug dealer and a gangbanger. Protesters are taking to the streets in Khalil’s name. Some cops and the local drug lord try to intimidate Starr and her family. What everyone wants to know is: what really went down that night? And the only person alive who can answer that is Starr. But what Starr does—or does not—say could upend her community. It could also endanger her life. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ba626adb-193d-4f27-8ac4-26cc37851e54/6413444.jpg Blog - Banned Books - Living Dead Girl by Elizabeth Scott Once upon a time, I was a little girl who disappeared. Once upon a time, my name was not Alice. Once upon a time, I didn't know how lucky I was. When Alice was ten, Ray took her away from her family, her friends -- her life. She learned to give up all power, to endure all pain. She waited for the nightmare to be over. Now Alice is fifteen and Ray still has her, but he speaks more and more of her death. He does not know it is what she longs for. She does not know he has something more terrifying than death in mind for her. This is Alice's story. It is one you have never heard, and one you will never, ever forget. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/133ae87f-ba73-4c91-a2ce-cae221f68c0c/61439040._SX300_.jpg Blog - Banned Books - 1984 by George Orwell The year 1984 has come and gone, but George Orwell's prophetic, nightmarish vision in 1949 of the world we were becoming is timelier than ever. 1984 is still the great modern classic of "negative utopia"—a startlingly original and haunting novel that creates an imaginary world that is completely convincing, from the first sentence to the last four words. No one can deny the novel's hold on the imaginations of whole generations, or the power of its admonitions—a power that seems to grow, not lessen, with the passage of time. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bf396816-0957-45ec-ba52-9c90f655001b/56616095.jpg Blog - Banned Books - The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath The Bell Jar chronicles the crack-up of Esther Greenwood: brilliant, beautiful, enormously talented, and successful, but slowly going under -- maybe for the last time. Sylvia Plath masterfully draws the reader into Esther's breakdown with such intensity that Esther's insanity becomes completely real and even rational, as probable and accessible an experience as going to the movies. Such deep penetration into the dark and harrowing corners of the psyche is an extraordinary accomplishment and has made The Bell Jar a haunting American classic. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6ac92c64-0d85-4a5f-b57a-51ea04d2f48a/192566704.jpg Blog - Banned Books - The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton No one ever said life was easy. But Ponyboy is pretty sure that he's got things figured out. He knows that he can count on his brothers, Darry and Sodapop. And he knows that he can count on his friends - true friends who would do anything for him, like Johnny and Two-Bit. And when it comes to the beating up on "greasers" like him and his friends - he knows that he can count on them for trouble. But one night someone takes things too far, and Ponyboy's world is turned upside down... https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/311c3c91-51cc-4810-b44e-81fe9b1747ea/56916837.jpg Blog - Banned Books - To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee "Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit 'em, but remember it's a sin to kill a mockingbird." A lawyer's advice to his children as he defends the real mockingbird of Harper Lee's classic novel - a black man charged with the rape of a white girl. Through the young eyes of Scout and Jem Finch, Harper Lee explores with exuberant humour the irrationality of adult attitudes to race and class in the Deep South of the 1930s. The conscience of a town steeped in prejudice, violence and hypocrisy is pricked by the stamina of one man's struggle for justice. But the weight of history will only tolerate so much. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/october-new-releases-1 monthly 0.5 2025-09-29 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f123ba1a-6f0f-4cab-80ed-f514af0f44b1/226943312.jpg Blog - October New Releases - Dating After the End of the World by Jeneva Rose Casey Pearson grew up with a doomsday-prepping father. At eighteen, tired of living an unconventional life, she left home, vowing never to return. More than a decade later, a mysterious viral outbreak changes everything, including the people it infects, turning them into zombielike creatures. It’s the end of the world, and no one saw it coming—well, except for Casey’s father. With no place left to run and danger lurking around every corner, Casey is forced to return home. Upon arrival, she’s surprised to find that her dad has hunkered down with a group of survivors, including her archnemesis, Blake Morrison, the high school bully who made Casey’s teenage years a living hell. While struggling to live on the compound, face outside threats, and survive alongside her handsome enemy, Casey will learn that although the world has ended, hers is just beginning. Release Date: October 1, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/55a16404-373d-4c88-b8ea-3d130468a1f6/222706197.jpg Blog - October New Releases - Alchemy of Secrets by Stephanie Garber It starts with a class in an old movie theater. Folklore 517: Local Legends and Urban Myths, taught by a woman called the Professor. Most students believe the Professor’s stories are just fiction, but Holland St. James has always been convinced that magic is real. When she tracks down a local legend named the Watch Man, who can supposedly tell you when you’ll die, the world finally makes sense. Except that the Watch Man tells her she will die at midnight tomorrow unless she finds an ancient object called the Alchemical Heart. With the clock ticking, Holland is pulled deeper into this magical world in the heart of Los Angeles—and into the path of a magnetic stranger. Everything about him feels like a bad idea, but he promises Holland that her sister sent him to protect her. As they chase clues and stories that take them closer to the Alchemical Heart, Holland realizes everyone in this intoxicating new world is lying to her, even this stranger. And if she can’t figure out whom to trust, not even the Alchemical Heart will save her. Release Date: October 7, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/acfdee53-25b6-450a-8708-8c646b8fa388/228256271.jpg Blog - October New Releases - Mate by Ali Hazelwood Serena Paris is orphaned, pack-less, and one of a kind. Coming forward as the first Human-Were hybrid was supposed to heal a centuries-long rift between species. Instead, it made her a target, prey to the ruthless political machinations between Weres, Vampyres, and Humans. With her enemies closing in on her, she has only one option left—if he’ll have her. As Alpha of the Northwest pack, Koen Alexander commands obedience. His authority is so absolute, only a fool would threaten his mate. It doesn’t matter if Serena doesn’t reciprocate his feelings, nothing will stop him from keeping her safe. But power-hungry Vampyres and Weres are not the only threats chasing Serena. Sooner or later, her past is bound to catch up with her—and Koen might be the only thing standing between her and total annihilation… Release Date: October 7, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/507fb1bf-ab77-4327-bea6-a2d56b8696d1/231819058.jpg Blog - October New Releases - The Intruder by Freida McFadden Who knows what the storm will blow in… Casey's cabin in the wilderness is not built for a hurricane. Her roof shakes, the lights flicker, and the tree outside her front door sways ominously in the wind. But she's a lot more worried about the girl she discovers lurking outside her kitchen window. She’s young. She’s alone. And she’s covered in blood. The girl won't explain where she came from or loosen her grip on the knife in her right hand. And when Casey makes a disturbing discovery in the middle of the night, things take a turn for the worse. The girl has a dark secret. One she’ll kill to keep. And if Casey gets too close to the truth, she may not live to see the morning. Release Date: October 7, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3365e480-77d5-4900-8ff6-8561501e0ada/223787618.jpg Blog - October New Releases - The Hearth Witch’s Guide to Magic and Murder by Kiri Callaghan "For all intents and purposes, we are still blissfully separated from the mortals, but there have been…complications." When a rise in London's supernatural crime puts Fey society at risk of discovery, the Winter Council turns to an unlikely solution: Avery Hemlock, the changeling they sentenced to 500 Years of Nightmares. Inherently lacking social grace and missing approximately two centuries of world knowledge, Avery must find a way to acclimate and solve the case or lose her probationary freedom. After being left at the altar and dropping out of medical school, Saga Trygg attempts to rekindle her faith in life, humanity, and witchcraft. But when her new neighbor, Avery, accidentally reveals the Fey that have been living among humanity all along, Saga realizes magic is far more than prayers, intention, and candles. Each faced with navigating an unfamiliar world, the two form an unexpected partnership—but shortly into Avery's investigation, they discover the threat might be closer to Saga than either of them imagined, and Avery will do anything to protect the first friend she's had in more than two hundred years. Release Date: October 7, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c76bf31b-10d4-4e58-b83f-e4a68ca40e5d/223338983.jpg Blog - October New Releases - The Scammer by Tiffany D. Jackson Out from under her overprotective parents, Jordyn is ready to kill it in prelaw at a prestigious, historically Black university in Washington DC. When her new roommate’s brother is released from prison, the last thing Jordyn expects is to come home and find the ex-convict on their dorm room sofa. But Devonte needs a place to stay while he gets back on his feet—and how could she say no to one of her new best friends? Devonte is older, as charming as he is intelligent, pushing every student he meets to make better choices about their young lives. But Jordyn senses something sinister beneath his friendly advice and growing group of followers. When one of Jordyn’s roommates goes missing, she must enlist the help of the university’s lone white student to uncover the mystery—or become trapped at the center of a web of lies more tangled than she can imagine. Release Date: October 7, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f51727dc-3a1e-4671-aa51-86cafffff2b0/222376487.jpg Blog - October New Releases - Overdue by Stephanie Perkins Ingrid Dahl, a cheerful twenty-nine-year-old librarian in the cozy mountain town of Ridgetop, North Carolina, has been happily dating her college boyfriend, Cory, for eleven years without ever discussing marriage. But when Ingrid’s sister announces her engagement to a woman she’s only been dating for two years, Ingrid and Cory feel pressured to consider their future. Neither has ever been with anybody else, so they make an unconventional decision. They'll take a one-month break to date other people, then they'll reunite and move toward marriage. Ingrid even has someone in mind: her charmingly grumpy coworker, Macon Nowakowski, on whom she’s secretly crushed for years. But plans go awry, and when the month ends, Ingrid and Cory realize they’re not ready to resume their relationship― and Ingrid’s harmless crush on Macon has turned into something much more complicated. Release Date: October 7, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7688d8ec-f4df-46bc-b4f5-bc404da8950f/228486032.jpg Blog - October New Releases - The Crimson Throne by Sara Raasch and Beth Revis Samson Calthorpe's father is a court favorite—but that alone won't take him far without money and so many people depending on him. So when the opportunity arises to become a royal spy, he has to take it, using every bit of the skills and resolve he's picked up on the streets of London to prove his worth in Queen Elizabeth's court. Alyth Graham has kept her eyes on Queen Mary's husband, Lord Darnley, for years—her eyes and her magic. She may be a member of the Scottish court, but she's no lady. A bastard child of a fae prince and a human mother, Alyth is among the most powerful protectors in guardians sworn to support the barrier keeping the Red Caps, a bloodthirtsy clan of fairies, away from the Fae Land portals. As Alyth and Samson circle each other in the volatile and glamorous Scottish court, both seek to uncover threats to their own countries. They have only one unifying their shared hatred and suspicion of Lord Darnley. Using secret codes, hidden messages, and a little bit of magic, Alyth and Samson unravel a plot centuries in the making. Lord Darnley is only a pawn, and in this game, the queen takes all. Release Date: October 7, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/95d414ee-2e36-4eae-bc2e-6687c1a4943b/228347674.jpg Blog - October New Releases - Final Orbit by Chris Hadfield 1975. A new Apollo mission launches into orbit, on course to dock with a Russian Soyuz three NASA astronauts and three cosmonauts, joining to celebrate a new dawn of Soviet-American cooperation. But a third power is rising, in the race to dominate Space. As NASA Flight Controller Kaz Zemeckis listens in from Earth, three of the six astronauts are killed in a depressurization accident. And from a remote location in east Asia, a capsule secretly launches with China's very first astronaut aboard, purpose unknown . . . Release Date: October 7, 2025 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e60d42d3-1ef2-4fec-b928-84c2ad90d566/62792284.jpg Blog - October New Releases - The Princess Knight by Cait Jacobs Domhnall and Clía are an ideal match—or so everyone says. They are prince and princess of neighboring kingdoms. An alliance the gods will smile on. Until Domhnall ruins everything by refusing to propose. Heartbroken but determined, Clía makes the perfect plan: Follow Domhnall to Caisleán Cósta, the military academy he’s attending. Show she can protect her kingdom. Secure the betrothal. Sure, the castle has a brutal reputation. But how hard can dueling really be? Warrior Ronan promised himself he’d never lose his focus. He fought and sacrificed for his place at Caisleán Cósta, and he has no time for blonde princesses who waltz intro arenas like they’re attending a ball. Even if she and her otter-like pet are…well, cute. He doesn’t want to be intrigued by Clía. But her hunger to prove herself is something he understands. He tells himself there’s no harm training her. Even if his heart does race around her. Even if Domhnall is his best friend. But as they say, love is a battlefield—and unfortunately for them all, a very real war is looming on the horizon. It’s a fight that will threaten all their kingdoms…and test all their hearts. Release Date: October 14, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f3be23bc-9698-42b4-ae00-eb09cd74cb44/223641012.jpg Blog - October New Releases - Revolve by Bal Khabra Sierra Romanova was an Olympian figure skater before a life-altering accident on the ice left her with panic attacks every time she enters the rink. Now, back for her final year at Dalton University, she’s ready to reclaim the spotlight, with all eyes on her…including those of hockey player Dylan Donovan, whose audacious words goad her back into her skates to prove him wrong. After getting kicked off his hockey team for his reckless behavior, Dylan is left with slim chances of making it to the NHL draft. But Dylan’s whole world revolves around the ice, and if hockey is forbidden, well at least there’s figure skating. Even better, it means more time at the rink with Sierra. Sure, he’s helping her rebuild her confidence, but pushing her buttons along the way? That’s just a bonus. As the figure skating world awaits Sierra's comeback, she finds herself in need for a new pairs partner. The only person she knows who can match her skill on the ice is none other than the cocky hockey player who refuses to cut her any slack. Dylan's a wildcard, Sierra's a seasoned pro, but together, they might just be the perfect match on the ice. Release Date: October 14, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6be2ed96-f50d-4366-bc3a-be77925a71aa/224004815.jpg Blog - October New Releases - Boom Town by Nic Stone When Damaris “Charm” Wilburn, a new daytime dancer, is missing for her shift at Boom Town, former headliner Michah “Lyriq” Johanssen suspects something more than a “no call, no show.” As Lyriq’s former headline partner and lover—Felice “Lucky” Carothers—also vanished under similar circumstances, Lyriq decides she’s going to find them. Delving deeper into Charm and Lucky’s disappearances, Lyriq uncovers a tangled web of deceit, privilege, and power. The line between friend and foe blurs, forcing Lyriq to confront the question: Is finding for these women worth the threat to her own life? Release Date: October 14, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e4b93fd6-5773-4c45-9e7c-2ed2c5d0ee60/222765064._SX300_.jpg Blog - October New Releases - Red City by Marie Lu Alchemy is the hidden art of transformation. An exclusive power wielded by crime syndicates that market it to the world’s elites in the form of sand, a drug that enhances those who take it into a more perfect version of themselves: more beautiful, more charismatic, simply more. Among the gleaming skyscrapers and rolling foothills of Angel City, alchemy is controlled by two rival syndicates. For years, Grand Central and Lumines have been balanced on a razor’s edge between polite negotiation and outright violence. But when two childhood friends step into that delicate equation, the city―and the paths of their lives―will be irrevocably transformed. The daughter of a poor single mother, Sam would do anything to claw her way into the ranks of Grand Central in search of a better life. Plucked away from his family as a boy to become a Lumines apprentice, Ari is one of the syndicates' brightest rising stars. Once, they might have loved each other. But as the two alchemists face off across opposite sides of an ever-escalating conflict, ambition becomes power, loyalty becomes lies, and no transformation may be perfect enough for them both to survive the coming war. Release Date: October 14, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/53075049-0596-4730-ac40-8b2beee63f51/222631694.jpg Blog - October New Releases - The Wayfinder by Adam Johnson The Wayfinder is an epic, sweeping novel set in the Polynesian islands of the South Pacific during the height of the Tu’i Tonga Empire. At its heart is Kōrero, a young girl chosen to save her people from the brink of starvation. Her quest takes her from her remote island home on a daring seafaring journey across a vast ocean empire built on power, consumption, and bloodshed. With the grandeur of Wolf Hall, Shogun, and War and Peace, The Wayfinder immerses readers in a world untouched by Western influence, evoking the lost art of oral storytelling. Far from a conventional swashbuckling adventure, it conjures a world of outrigger canoes and celestial navigation, weaving a narrative that is as much about survival and self-discovery as it is about the sweeping history of the Tongan people. Release Date: October 14, 2025 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7f8c3785-bd1a-4a3d-9b00-c2ed1640a6e4/219385951.jpg Blog - October New Releases - Gone Before Goodbye by Reese Witherspoon and Harlan Coben Maggie McCabe is teetering on the brink. A highly skilled and renowned Army combat surgeon, she has always lived life at the edge, where she could make the most impact. And it was all going to plan…until it wasn’t. Upside down after a devastating series of tragedies leads to her medical license being revoked, Maggie has lost her purpose, but not her nerve or her passion. At her lowest point, she is thrown a lifeline by a former colleague, an elite plastic surgeon whose anonymous clientele demand the best care money can buy, as well as absolute discretion. Halfway across the globe, sequestered in the lap of luxury and cutting-edge technology, one of the world’s most mysterious men requires unconventional medical assistance. Desperate, and one of the few surgeons in the world skilled enough to take this job, Maggie enters his realm of unspeakable opulence and fulfills her end of the agreement. But when the patient suddenly disappears while still under her care, Maggie must become a fugitive herself—or she will be the next one who is… Gone Before Goodbye. Release Date: October 14, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/357d8685-2150-4e49-ae15-d4052551ad63/228691222.jpg Blog - October New Releases - Remain by Nicholas Sparks When New York architect Tate Donovan arrives in Cape Cod to design his best friend’s summer home, he is hoping to make a fresh start. Recently discharged from an upscale psychiatric facility where he was treated for acute depression, he is still wrestling with the pain of losing his beloved sister. Sylvia’s deathbed revelation—that she can see spirits who are still tethered to the living world, a gift that runs in their family—sits uneasily with Tate, who struggles to believe in more than what reason can explain. But when he takes up residence at a historic bed-and-breakfast on the Cape, he encounters a beautiful young woman named Wren who will challenge every assumption he has about his logical and controlled world. Tate and Wren find themselves forging an immediate connection, one that neither has ever experienced before. But Tate gradually discovers that below the surface of Wren’s idyllic small-town life, hatred, jealousy, and greed are festering, threatening their fragile relationship just as it begins to blossom. Tate realizes that in order to free Wren from an increasingly desperate fate, he will need to unearth the truth about her past before time runs out . . . a quest that will make him doubt whether we can ever believe the stories we tell about ourselves, and the laws that govern our existence. Love—while transformative—can sometimes be frightening. Release Date: October 14, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/19cac007-e19b-41e6-ba72-643b985a844f/223239535.jpg Blog - October New Releases - Conform by Ariel Sullivan In the far future, one young woman finds herself torn between two loves—and two sides of a rebellion boiling under the surface—in the first novel of a sweeping dystopian romance trilogy. Centuries after a catastrophic world war nearly decimated the human population, a city arose from the ashes, ruled by an elusive and technologically advanced group called the Illum. At twenty-seven, Emeline lives in limbo, wasting away her days in a job sorting ancient human art for destruction and waiting to be selected as a Mate for a procreation contract. Where others look forward to being chosen, Emeline has never felt like she fit into a society where a person’s worth is determined by constantly monitored genes, health, and the ability to procreate. She’s struggled to keep her discomfort secret, but when she is finally chosen, her Mate is revealed to be a member of the Illum named Collin, a man who seems to be harboring secrets of his own. It is the first time an Illum has taken a Mate in decades, leaving Emeline—and others—baffled as to why she was chosen. Soon, she is swept into the dangerous game of Courting, filled with ballgowns, lavish dinners, and watchful eyes, where one wrong move can mean elimination. While parts of this elite lifestyle are unexpectedly appealing, the more embroiled she becomes, the more she sees its dark underbelly—and a rebellion rising in secret. Collin is confusing, both cold and protective, and worse, she finds herself drawn to the very last person she should be falling for: Hal, one of the resistance leaders. As she draws closer to both Collin and Hal, the Illum exercise their power in increasingly brutal ways, forcing Emeline to question everything—most of all whether she’ll have to give up her heart and even her life to stop them. Release Date: October 14, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4fa5d62b-c940-4da3-808b-8c0fc6e26d8b/222279220.jpg Blog - October New Releases - Good Spirits by B.K. Borison He’s the Ghost of Christmas Past. She’s not exactly Scrooge. Ghost of Christmas Past Nolan Callahan intends to spend this holiday haunting like every other—get in, get out, return to his otherwise aimless existence as a ghost awaiting the afterlife. But when he’s faced with Harriet York, the sweetest assignment he’s ever had, he suddenly finds himself wishing for a future. Harriet York has no idea why she’s being haunted. She’s a good person—or, at least, she tries to be. A people pleaser to her core, she always does what’s expected of her. But as she and Nolan begin to examine her past, they discover there are threads that bind them together— and realize there might be more to moving on than expected. With the deadline of Christmas Eve fast approaching, will they find the key to their futures in each other’s pasts? Or will they stay firmly in the present, indulging in their unexpected, spirited connection? Release Date: October 21, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a82ad067-97a7-4783-9893-48bdb8059fcb/222615913.jpg Blog - October New Releases - Girl Dinner by Olivie Blake Good girls deserve a treat. Every member of The House, the most exclusive sorority on campus, and all its alumni, are beautiful, high-achieving, and universally respected. After a freshman year she would rather forget, sophomore Nina Kaur knows being one of the chosen few accepted into The House is the first step in her path to the brightest possible future. Once she's taken into their fold, the House will surely ease her fears of failure and protect her from those who see a young woman on her own as easy prey. Meanwhile, adjunct professor Dr. Sloane Hartley is struggling to return to work after accepting a demotion to support her partner's new position at the cutthroat University. After 18 months at home with her newborn daughter, Sloane's clothes don’t fit right, her girl-dad husband isn’t as present as he thinks he is, and even the few hours a day she's apart from her child fill her psyche with paralyzing ennui. When invited to be The House’s academic liaison, Sloane enviously drinks in the way the alumnae seem to have it all, achieving a level of collective perfection that Sloane so desperately craves. As Nina and Sloane each get drawn deeper into the arcane rituals of the sisterhood, they learn that living well comes with bloody costs. And when they are finally invited to the table, they will have to decide just how much they can stomach in the name of solidarity and power. Release Date: October 21, 2025 Genre: Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b2a88f9c-a5ce-4eeb-9596-0d68fd897fb1/222376563.jpg Blog - October New Releases - A Curious Kind of Magic by Mara Rutherford Everyone in Ardmuir knows that Willow Stokes is a charlatan, including Willow herself. Her father's shoppe hasn't sold anything magical in decades, and it's only hanging on by the skin of the fake dragon's teeth Willow sells as charms, along with “enchanted” ostrich eggs, taxidermied chimeras, and talismans made of fools' gold. Until outlander Brianna Hargrave appears and turns Willow's fakes into exactly what they're purported to be. But try as Willow might to enlist Bri's help, she wants nothing to do with Willow and her curiosities. Because Brianna is harboring a secret of her own: everything she touches turns to magic, and the consequences have chased her all the way to Ardmuir. All she wants to do is find a particular missing grimoire, which contains a spell that can finally put an end to her curse. Desperate to keep her father's shoppe, Willow proposes a bargain that could save them both. Together with the frustratingly handsome printer's assistant, the girls will uncover a plot that goes far deeper than either could have imagined. But when Willow is forced to participate in an ambitious collector's quest for the rarest magical object in the world-a quest that risks almost-certain death-she learns that not all treasure is for sale, and that true magic is closer than she ever could have imagined. Release Date: October 21, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3560a82a-c6cd-477a-990b-7ab9d0ef224c/223428403._SX300_.jpg Blog - October New Releases - The Defender by Ana Huang He has to play by the rules...but for her, he'd break them all. As the captain of Blackcastle Football Club and one of the highest-paid athletes in the game, Vincent DuBois should be on top of the world. But when his fame brings danger to his doorstep, he finds himself in his worst nightmare scenario—secretly sharing a flat with his coach’s daughter, knowing full well she’s far too big a temptation for him to resist. When his new living arrangements escalate into a bet that throws them even closer together, he realizes he’s in deeper trouble than he thought. He’s always played to win—but for her, he might just risk it all. As a sports nutritionist and the daughter of a legendary coach, Brooklyn Armstrong is used to dealing with hotshot athletes. However, no player gets under her skin like Vincent, her best friend’s infuriatingly cocky (and gorgeous) brother. She left California hoping for a fresh start, and he’s the kind of distraction she doesn’t need. Now, he’s sleeping in the room next to hers while her career is up in the air and her defenses are crumbling. But no matter how many sparks fly between them, a relationship between the captain and the coach’s daughter could never work…could it? Release Date: October 28, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c9faf324-d02f-4c2d-af0d-2ff91c0ae4b6/219737525.jpg Blog - October New Releases - Bonds of Hercules by Jasmine Mas Every hero has their monsters. And Alexis is bound to hers: tied eternally, irrevocably to the Underworld’s dark heirs in a marriage that has shaken the foundations of Olympus – and everything Alexis once believed. Reeling, she enlists in the Assembly of Death with her mentors, set on wrecking vengeance on her husbands and uncovering the truth behind her deadly powers. She will soon teach them all that a god can’t be manacled. And a monster can’t be caged… https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/916ce5e0-9cee-43bd-bfd8-f0ca08aedb7b/227967141.jpg Blog - October New Releases - Wreck by Catherine Newman If you loved Rocky and her family on vacation on Cape Cod, wait until you join them at home two years later. (And if this is your first meeting with this crew, get ready to laugh and cry—and relate.) Rocky, still anxious, nostalgic, and funny, is living in Western Massachusetts with her husband Nick and their daughter Willa, who's back home after college. Their son, Jamie, has taken a new job in New York, and Mort, Rocky’s widowed father, has moved in. It all couldn’t be more ridiculously normal . . . until Rocky finds herself obsessed with a local accident that only tangentially affects them—and with a medical condition that, she hopes, won’t affect them at all. Release Date: October 28, 2025 Genre: Contemporary Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0066710f-f458-4aa7-9f96-1a39f0005a73/223296202.jpg Blog - October New Releases - Never Ever After by Sue Lynn Tan Life in the Iron Mountains is harsh and unforgiving. After the death of her beloved uncle, Yining has survived by becoming a skilled thief and an even better liar. When she acquires an enchanted ring that holds the key to a brighter future, it is stolen by her step-aunt, and Yining must venture into the imperial heart of the kingdom to seize it back. Amid the grandeur of the palace, Yining catches the eye of the ruthless and ambitious prince, who tempts her with a world she’s never imagined. But nothing is as it seems, for she’s soon trapped in a tangle of power, treachery, and greed—her only ally the cunning advisor from a rival court who keeps dangerous secrets of his own. To break free, she must unravel the mystery of her past and fight for a future that both frightens and calls to her. Release Date: October 28, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b2e682b7-5630-4ac7-9aeb-ed5fc76f8302/224082605.jpg Blog - October New Releases - Some Kind of Famous by Ava Wilder It’s been a decade since Merritt Valentine’s peak as a celebrated singer-songwriter… and her subsequent career-ending mental breakdown. Since then, she’s abandoned the glitz of Los Angeles to move in with her sister, Olivia, in the sleepy Colorado ski town of Crested Peak, hoping to heal her lingering emotional wounds of the spotlight. Life in Crested Peak would be uncomplicated if not for Merritt’s inconvenient crush on the local contractor and handyman, Nikolaos Petrakis. Niko is disarmingly handsome and too kind-hearted to ever be right for the complex and prickly Merritt. Though tempting, a fling with Niko would only bring the kind of drama Merritt has vowed to leave behind. After his last heartbreak, Niko is done dating his fellow townies. Still, he can’t shake his fascination with the brilliant Merritt, even as he heeds their mutual friends’ warnings to steer clear of her chaos. But when Merritt needs help fixing up a house of her own, Niko is glad to be the only man for the job. As the two spend more time together, their mutual attraction sparking a deeper connection than either one expects, they’re forced to confront the idea that they may have underestimated each other– and themselves. Release Date: October 28, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/fbbe7c7a-0f04-4bb8-8fc7-feff51432f8b/214183001.jpg Blog - October New Releases - The Wrath of the Fallen by Amber V. Nicole When Gods dance with Monsters, the world will tremble. With the return of Samkiel, the rightful heir to the throne, tensions grow in the remaining realms. Battle lines begin to form between those pledging their loyalties to either Samkiel or Nismera. War looms on the horizon, and Samkiel must deal with his growing power. Without the Ring of Oblivion, the dark ancient force living under his skin begins to lash out. Meanwhile, an ancient power calls to Dianna, plaguing her dreams with messages of retribution. Samkiel, seeking to protect the woman he loves, sets out on a desperate search for answers, but the solution will mean a dangerous voyage to the one place he dares not go—the Otherworld. Forces, primal and eternal, have taken notice, forcing Ig’Morruthens and gods to work together on a quest to reclaim an object capable of unraveling reality. An unlikely bond is formed in blood and fire, leaving all affected with no choice but one—save the realms or themselves. It is a race against time as Nismera hunts for Vincent and Camilla, seeking what they stole. Her thirst for power and her armada only grow stronger as she rampages across the realms. Release Date: October 28, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f0ab53a8-96e8-4fef-9a6b-8b6be05ab040/218483960.jpg Blog - October New Releases - The Book of Autumn by Molly O’Sullivan Try as she might, anthropologist Marcella Gibbons can't escape the fact that she's a dimidium, one half of a formidable pair of Magicians, forever tied together to enable the other's powers. After a tumultuous final year at Seinford and Brown College of Agriculture (and Magic) in rural New Mexico, Cella felt more than a little uneasy about returning to the sun-drenched desert campus ever again. She'd cut ties with her other half—the charming and rugged rancher Max Middlemore—and sworn off Magic, academia, and heartache for good. Until Max turns up at her door, grinning under his cowboy hat for one last favor. Something is shifting at her alma mater, something bigger than anyone understands. One student is dead. Another is floating midair in the infirmary, growling guttural nonsense and terrifying the staff. Their best, perhaps only, chance to intervene requires Cella and Max to work together. But the origins of the disturbances lie centuries ago. To unravel them, Cella will have to confront the truth about her past—and Max. Because she might be challenging a power she could never rival alone . . . Release Date: October 28, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6ed6b7c4-be26-4b5d-b7c6-d587e97c0739/226850464.jpg Blog - October New Releases - The Everlasting by Alix E. Harrow Sir Una Everlasting was Dominion’s greatest the orphaned girl who became a knight, who died for queen and country. Her legend lives on in songs and stories, in children’s books and recruiting posters—but her life as it truly happened has been forgotten. Centuries later, Owen Mallory—failed soldier, struggling scholar—falls in love with the tale of Una Everlasting. Her story takes him to war, to the archives—and then into the past itself. Una and Owen are tangled together in time, bound to retell the same story over and over again, no matter what it costs. But that story always ends the same way. If they want to rewrite Una’s legend—if they want to tell a different story--they’ll have to rewrite history itself. Release Date: October 28, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/31b1xki9m2zjw5zto88l9cgw72y4w1 monthly 0.5 2025-09-19 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3683bda4-1c1a-427d-8c7a-1a0c6db2fd50/229004405.jpg Blog - Cozy Fall Romances - If It Makes You Happy by Julie Olivia My new next-door neighbor seems to have everything figured out. Small town golden boy? Check. Single dad extraordinaire? Check. Hot baker forearms? I didn’t notice them, I swear. I, on the other hand, don’t–at all–have anything figured out. Trust me, I didn’t think taking over my mom’s dream bed and breakfast in Copper Run Vermont was going to be easy. It should be a good place to heal after my divorce. But apparently my scones belong in the garbage with my small talk skills. As pointed out by none other than Cliff. Cliff is inescapable. He knows exactly what people need–always. His charm, the way he wears flannel, and even his pastries, make not wanting to be friends with Cliff and his daughters pretty hard. Friends? I can make friends. That’s safe. Except I’m leaving in three months to pass the inn off to my little sister and get the promotion in Seattle I’ve been working towards. So ask me why I’m thinking about kissing my hot neighbor. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d431a2de-27a1-4efa-b802-531e9f467214/222419270.jpg Blog - Cozy Fall Romances - People Watching by Hannah Bonam-Young Prudence Welch has found solace in her introverted life in Baysville, a charming tourist town in Northern Ontario. Despite once dreaming of a life beyond its borders, she now finds contentment in her working at her father’s gas station, writing poetry, and caring for her mother, who was diagnosed with Early Onset Alzheimer's shortly after Prue’s nineteenth birthday. But as her mother’s condition worsens and her father’s concerns about her future intensify, Prue feels her world slipping further out of control. Enter Milo Kablukov, an enigmatic wanderer whose beat-up van covered with ill-advised bumper stickers rolls into town just when Prue needs a change. It’s all too easy to let go with him, and Prue can’t help but strike up an unlikely friendship with Milo, which leads to a wild and sexy agreement between them. Milo, a man of many adventures and countless stories, is not one to settle down. However, his brother’s urgent need for help has brought him to Baysville, and now the intriguing Prue has given him more reason to stay. Especially once they start spending more time together, their chemistry intensifying, and casual-sex lessons start at Prue’s request. But as their temporary arrangement blossoms into something deeper, Prue and Milo discover that getting out of their comfort zones is one thing . . . taking that leap together is something else entirely. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4457bfa4-8280-4976-b366-ca01e523aca2/227912786.jpg Blog - Cozy Fall Romances - Daddy Issues by Kate Goldbeck At 26, Sam Pulaski expected to be thriving in her academic career, living on her own in some exciting city. Expectations, meet reality. She has massive student loans from studying art history, a dead-end service industry job, a situationship that’s equal parts intoxicating and toxic. And she’s been crashing in her mom’s condo—at least it’s not a basement?—for the last five years. If she can finally get accepted into a PhD program and get out of Ohio, the adult life that’s been on hold for half her twenties will finally begin. Her mom’s new neighbor, Nick, is the ultimate grownup. His adult life began the moment his nine-year-old daughter, Kira, was born. Her happiness is Nick’s only priority, especially in the wake of divorce. There’s nothing he won’t do for Kira–including giving up his globetrotting career for something more stable…like managing a chain restaurant. Sam has zero interest in an ultra-dependable guy pushing forty; frankly, she’s a little afraid of kids. But with just one thin wall separating the two condos, Nick proves difficult to avoid. His quiet confidence forces Sam to grapple with the other men in her her emotionally derelict friend-with-benefits and her actually-derelict father. As her unexpected connection with Nick heats up (and steams up his minivan windows), Sam finds herself falling fast for a man whose life is steady and settled–while hers is anything but. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/95d68576-4cf0-47ba-9c05-896a4f860b7c/215493611-2.jpg Blog - Cozy Fall Romances - Let’s Give Em Pumpkin to Talk About by Isabelle Popp Textile artist Sadie Fox did not sign up for this. When she agreed to come home to Pea Blossom, Indiana, it was to care for her father’s beloved pumpkin patch. The deal was that—just for the summer—she would grow a ginormous pumpkin, win the Indiana State Fair's pumpkin contest and finally win back her father’s (grudging) respect. Instead, a horde of wild hogs destroyed the. entire. patch. Which is precisely when the annoyingly sexy, sunshiny next-door neighbor shows up. Josh Thatcher is a tech millionaire who traded in the office for growing gourds, including experimental squash hybrids. And for the life of her, Sadie can’t understand what he sees in her sweary, tattooed, prickly self—or why he’s offering to help his biggest competitor. But a storm-fueled kiss proves there’s definitely something growing between them. Maybe it’s just attraction. Maybe it’s more. Whatever it is, it’s already bigger than Sadie’s fast-growing pumpkin…or the secret that Josh has been hiding. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a9a54dd3-f7e3-4975-8b58-4999c78a4efb/220255019.jpg Blog - Cozy Fall Romances - The Baby Dragon Bakery by A.T. Qureshi Will it be a recipe for romance? Or a friendship up in flames? Lavinia has it all. A loving family (complete with adorable pet baby dragon). A place at university training to be a magical animal vet. And a part-time job at the enchanting Baby Dragon Cafe. The only thing she doesn’t have is her one true love: Theo. Theo is the local baker and her best friend. On paper, they’re perfect: he’s funny, she’s witty. He’s sweet, and she’s a little salty. That’s why they’ve been friends for as long as they can remember. They’ve never been without one another – and it’s clear to everyone that they’re meant to be. Everyone except Theo. Because when Lavinia finally makes her move, he pulls away. Lavinia is devastated. Has this friendship gone up in smoke? Or will Theo finally realise that he wants them to be more than friends? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8b016c26-4812-4869-a2f5-7085b2cdafe0/123029113.jpg.png Blog - Cozy Fall Romances - A Witch’s Guide to Magical Innkeeping by Sangu Mandanna Sera Swan used to be one of the most powerful witches in Britain. Then she resurrected her great-aunt Jasmine from the (very recently) dead, lost most of her magic, befriended a semi-villainous talking fox, and was exiled from her Guild. Now she (slightly reluctantly and just a bit grumpily) helps her aunt run an enchanted inn in Lancashire, where she deals with her quirky guests' shenanigans, tries to keep said talking fox in check, and longs for the future that seems lost to her. But then she finds out about an old spell that could hold the key to restoring her power… Enter Luke Larsen, handsome and icy magical historian, who arrives on a dark winter evening and might just know how to unlock the spell’s secrets. Luke has absolutely no interest in getting involved in the madcap goings-on of the inn and is definitely not about to let a certain bewitching innkeeper past his walls, so no one is more surprised than he is when he agrees to help Sera with her spell. Worse, he might actually be thawing. Running an inn, reclaiming lost magic, and staying one step ahead of the watchful Guild is a lot for anyone, but Sera Swan is about to discover that she doesn’t have to do it alone...and that the weird, wonderful family she’s made might be the best magic of all. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/87fe235b-ff5a-4827-a226-8bb51ff63135/218873208-2.jpg Blog - Cozy Fall Romances - Falling Like Leaves by Misty Wilson Ellis has a lot of expectations for her senior year, but moving from Manhattan to Bramble Falls, Connecticut is not one of them. Yet in the wake of her parents' separation, that's exactly where she and her mother are headed. Bramble Falls might be charming, but it's also full of distractions. Like local barista Cooper Barnett, Ellis's one-time best friend—and first kiss—who has not only majorly glowed up but wants nothing to do with Ellis. Then there's the Falling Leaves Festival, a month-long tourist attraction run by Ellis's aunt—celebrating everything autumn. The festival seems nice and all, but Ellis doesn't have time to be roped into her aunt's enthusiastic planning. Dragged to each event, she can't stop bumping into Cooper, the one person she's hoping to avoid. But the longer she stays in Bramble Falls, the harder it is to pretend she's not falling for this town and the people in it. As her return to Manhattan gets pushed further and further out, Ellis is forced to confront exactly what she wants for her future—and what that means for her present. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a021c068-30ec-4f2f-9762-e5bbc12a8cfc/231234204.jpg.png Blog - Cozy Fall Romances - Love and Lattes at Pumpkin Hollow I remembered my mum telling me that autumn was a chance for nature, and for people, to let go of anything that was holding them back… Willow Connor has one shot to save her family’s farm – turning it into Birchbrook’s first ever pumpkin patch. There’s just one problem: she has exactly zero pumpkins and only six weeks to make it happen. Everyone in the close-knit town thinks she’s crazy, but she’s determined to prove them wrong. Enter Dylan Henderson, a hotshot property consultant with a clipboard full of reasons why selling is the smarter choice. Determined to stand her ground, Willow makes him a bold offer – stay and watch her turn the farm around. To her surprise, he agrees. Now, as Willow throws everything into making her pumpkin patch a success (even if it means buying every pumpkin in the county), she also finds herself learning a thing or two from Dylan – about business, about ambition… and maybe about love? Will she save the farm and prove everyone wrong? And when the deal is up, will Dylan walk away – or has he found something worth sticking around for? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ba8732cf-3f5d-4ebd-8b2b-8578ebe36a0b/62926938.jpg Blog - Cozy Fall Romances - The Seven Year Slip by Ashley Poston Sometimes, the worst day of your life happens, and you have to figure out how to live after it. So Clementine forms a plan to keep her heart safe: work hard, find someone decent to love, and try to remember to chase the moon. The last one is silly and obviously metaphorical, but her aunt always told her that you needed at least one big dream to keep going. And for the last year, that plan has gone off without a hitch. Mostly. The love part is hard because she doesn’t want to get too close to anyone—she isn’t sure her heart can take it. And then she finds a strange man standing in the kitchen of her late aunt’s apartment. A man with kind eyes and a Southern drawl and a taste for lemon pies. The kind of man that, before it all, she would’ve fallen head-over-heels for. And she might again. Except, he exists in the past. Seven years ago, to be exact. And she, quite literally, lives seven years in his future. Her aunt always said the apartment was a pinch in time, a place where moments blended together like watercolors. And Clementine knows that if she lets her heart fall, she’ll be doomed. After all, love is never a matter of time—but a matter of timing. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/767aee3d-06d8-4b68-ac7d-63febe94cff9/139391940.jpg.png Blog - Cozy Fall Romances - The Pumkin Spice Cafe by Laurie Gilmore When Jeanie's aunt gifts her the beloved Pumpkin Spice Café in the small town of Dream Harbor, Jeanie jumps at the chance for a fresh start away from her very dull desk job. Logan is a local farmer who avoids Dream Harbor's gossip at all costs. But Jeanie's arrival disrupts Logan's routine and he wants nothing to do with the irritatingly upbeat new girl, except that he finds himself inexplicably drawn to her. Will Jeanie's happy-go-lucky attitude win over the grumpy-but-gorgeous Logan, or has this city girl found the one person in town who won't fall for her charm, or her pumpkin spice lattes… https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/15ddf2d8-93f3-44c1-9b70-78fe2895d83b/222925957.jpg Blog - Cozy Fall Romances - Uncharmed by Lucy Jane Wood Annie Wildwood is practically perfect in every witch way. Her life is a haze of pink, magic and impossibly high standards. But, when she is tasked with mentoring a troubled teenage witch with extraordinary powers, Annie’s charmed existence is quickly thrown into utter chaos… Set in the same enchanting world as Rewitched, Uncharmed celebrates found family, unconditional love and the joy of swapping perfectionism and people-pleasing for being your true magical self. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4da0ca22-a412-4e90-bd17-2fe35065a4cd/217387831.jpg Blog - Cozy Fall Romances - Well, Actually by Mazey Eddings Eva Kitt never expected to be the host of Sausage Talk, interviewing B-list celebrities over wieners, instead of pursuing the journalism career she dreamed of. When Eva publicly calls out her college ex for ghosting her, her video goes viral. It doesn’t help said ex is Rylie Cooper, a beloved social media personality that has built a platform on deconstructing toxic masculinity and teaching men how to be decent partners. Now, she’s forced to confront Rylie on a live episode of Sausage Talk, where Rylie makes her a deal: allow him to take her on a series of dates to make up for his toxic behavior, then debrief them all on his channel. Eva refuses to play nice, but agrees to the deal to further her own career and continue defaming Rylie’s good name. But when these manufactured dates start to feel real, Eva has to wonder if the boy that broke her heart has become the man that might heal it. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/be2ca92a-43cf-4ee7-8d4d-0beaedfb80f8/231980833.jpg Blog - Cozy Fall Romances - Hoax and Kisses by Elodie Colliard He swore never to fall for a city girl again. She's on a mission to charm his small town. MATT BECKER is stretched thin. Running his flower shop solo is a full-time job, but now he’s also tasked with caring for his teenage sister while their parents are away. With her expensive new school draining his savings, Matt’s barely keeping his head above water. He needs money—and fast. Groomed to inherit her father’s hotel empire, ZOEY DELACROIX is finally poised to take the reins. But first, she must convince shareholders she’s got what it takes and silence her own doubts. Her plan? Secure a piece of land in the town where her father once failed. Falling for a local? Definitely not part of it. When a crucial town vote spirals into disaster and her reputation takes a hit, Zoey finds an unexpected lifeline: Matt. He suggests a fake relationship to win back the town’s favor in exchange for a spot in her small business investment program. It’s strictly business… until it isn’t. Matt never expected the spoiled city girl to fit so easily into his world. And Zoey never questioned the future set for her until she began picturing a life that looked a lot more like his. As lines blur and real feelings get tangled in their fake romance, Matt and Zoey must find the nerve to rewrite their future or risk losing the one thing they never saw coming: a shot at love. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f7f6533b-98b9-4aa9-9764-62d3edce4d0f/222417159.jpg Blog - Cozy Fall Romances - The Honeycrisp Orchard Inn by Valerie Bowman Ellie Lawson's city life was treating her just fine until a sour turn of events knocks her out in one fell swoop. Dumped by her boyfriend and fired from her event planning job, she is left with no choice but to return to her parents' idyllic inn, nestled within a picturesque Honeycrisp orchard on Long Island. Anticipating a quiet hiatus in the attic apartment, she is instead met with Aiden, the stubborn, attractive son of the orchard owner who is currently occupying her planned refuge. Forced together by circumstance, they find themselves not only roommates but also coworkers, when they're put in charge by their parents of the orchard's vital Harvest Festival, a lifeline for both the struggling orchard and the inn. Amidst the enchanting disorder of small-town life, Ellie and Aiden grapple with their conflicting values, burgeoning feelings, and an electrifying tension. As Ellie discovers the unexpected charm of the life she left behind and Aiden learns there's much more to Ellie than he'd first assumed, one fact remains: the future of the orchard and the inn depends on their unlikely collaboration. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/gilmore-girls-reading-challenge monthly 0.5 2025-09-14 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d8012b10-edb8-44f0-9499-e0dee99ea5a6/196241667.jpg Blog - Gilmore Girls Reading Challenge - The Cinnamon Bun Book Store by Laurie Gilmore When a secret message turns up hidden in a book in the Cinnamon Bun Bookstore, Hazel can't understand it. As more secret codes appear between the pages, she decides to follow the trail of clues… she just need someone to help her out. Gorgeous and outgoing fisherman, Noah, is always up for an adventure. And a scavenger hunt sounds like a lot of fun. Even better that the cute bookseller he's been crushing on for months is the one who wants his help! Hazel didn’t go looking for romance, but as the treasure hunt leads her and Noah around Dream Harbor, their undeniable chemistry might be just as hot as the fresh-out-of-the-oven cinnamon buns the bookstore sells… Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1b5663b1-a872-4cf2-bfc8-000cb292b2cb/13079982.jpg Blog - Gilmore Girls Reading Challenge - Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury Guy Montag is a fireman. His job is to destroy the most illegal of commodities, the printed book, along with the houses in which they are hidden. Montag never questions the destruction and ruin his actions produce, returning each day to his bland life and wife, Mildred, who spends all day with her television “family.” But when he meets an eccentric young neighbor, Clarisse, who introduces him to a past where people didn’t live in fear and to a present where one sees the world through the ideas in books instead of the mindless chatter of television, Montag begins to question everything he has ever known. Genre: Classics https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/48a1e206-80fa-4837-b423-8d0a74642822/2165.jpg Blog - Gilmore Girls Reading Challenge - The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway This short novel, already a modern classic, is the superbly told, tragic story of a Cuban fisherman in the Gulf Stream and the giant Marlin he kills and loses — specifically referred to in the citation accompanying the author's Nobel Prize for literature in 1954. Genre: Classics https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/30bb287a-2556-4250-a26b-2320eb3fc7a8/3.jpg Blog - Gilmore Girls Reading Challenge - Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling Harry Potter has never even heard of Hogwarts when the letters start dropping on the doormat at number four, Privet Drive. Addressed in green ink on yellowish parchment with a purple seal, they are swiftly confiscated by his grisly aunt and uncle. Then, on Harry's eleventh birthday, a great beetle-eyed giant of a man called Rubeus Hagrid bursts in with some astonishing news: Harry Potter is a wizard, and he has a place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. An incredible adventure is about to begin! Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0b99a132-f573-47e1-96fa-0c520a16a554/218873208.jpg Blog - Gilmore Girls Reading Challenge - Falling Like Leaves by Misty Wilson Ellis has a lot of expectations for her senior year, but moving from Manhattan to Bramble Falls, Connecticut is not one of them. Yet in the wake of her parents' separation, that's exactly where she and her mother are headed. Bramble Falls might be charming, but it's also full of distractions. Like local barista Cooper Barnett, Ellis's one-time best friend—and first kiss—who has not only majorly glowed up but wants nothing to do with Ellis. Then there's the Falling Leaves Festival, a month-long tourist attraction run by Ellis's aunt—celebrating everything autumn. The festival seems nice and all, but Ellis doesn't have time to be roped into her aunt's enthusiastic planning. Dragged to each event, she can't stop bumping into Cooper, the one person she's hoping to avoid. But the longer she stays in Bramble Falls, the harder it is to pretend she's not falling for this town and the people in it. As her return to Manhattan gets pushed further and further out, Ellis is forced to confront exactly what she wants for her future—and what that means for her present. Genre: Young Adult Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5d456057-8758-42e7-8231-b51e70cba6e2/4214.jpg Blog - Gilmore Girls Reading Challenge - Life of Pi by Yann Martel Life of Pi is a fantasy adventure novel by Yann Martel published in 2001. The protagonist, Piscine Molitor "Pi" Patel, a Tamil boy from Pondicherry, explores issues of spirituality and practicality from an early age. He survives 227 days after a shipwreck while stranded on a boat in the Pacific Ocean with a Bengal tiger named Richard Parker. Genre: Classic https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ac5ee66f-f2ca-4779-8517-dd38263a12f1/9889.jpg Blog - Gilmore Girls Reading Challenge - Breakfast at Tiffany’s by Truman Capote It's New York in the 1940s, where the martinis flow from cocktail hour till breakfast at Tiffany's. And nice girls don't, except, of course, Holly Golightly. Pursued by Mafia gangsters and playboy millionaires, Holly is a fragile eyeful of tawny hair and turned-up nose, a heart-breaker, a perplexer, a traveller, a tease. She is irrepressibly 'top banana in the shock department', and one of the shining flowers of American fiction. Genre: Classic https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/99ee69b8-bc08-4fd3-b2b5-e522ceeedc79/151.jpg Blog - Gilmore Girls Reading Challenge - Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy Described by William Faulkner as the best novel ever written and by Fyodor Dostoevsky as “flawless,” Anna Karenina tells of the doomed love affair between the sensuous and rebellious Anna and the dashing officer, Count Vronsky. Tragedy unfolds as Anna rejects her passionless marriage and thereby exposes herself to the hypocrisies of society. Set against a vast and richly textured canvas of nineteenth-century Russia, the novel's seven major characters create a dynamic imbalance, playing out the contrasts of city and country life and all the variations on love and family happiness. While previous versions have softened the robust and sometimes shocking qualities of Tolstoy's writing, Pevear and Volokhonsky have produced a translation true to his powerful voice. This authoritative edition, which received the PEN Translation Prize and was an Oprah Book Club™ selection, also includes an illuminating introduction and explanatory notes. Beautiful, vigorous, and eminently readable, this Anna Karenina will be the definitive text for fans of the film and generations to come. Genre: Classic https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c34f2aef-6337-4457-bc76-744635109975/223490656.jpg Blog - Gilmore Girls Reading Challenge - Fall I Want by Lyra Parish Autumn The brokenhearted billionaire visits Cozy Creek to escape. I never expected to become his fake girlfriend or fall madly in love...but here we are. My first impression of Zane Alexander isn't great. The second is worse, but when he uses his powers of persuasion to get me to hang out with him, I can’t say no. We quickly go from familiar strangers to flirty friends. When my ex returns, Zane flawlessly pretends to be my boyfriend to protect me. He’s so damn good at it, I almost believe it. I don’t know when our relationship moves from pretending to passionate, but I catch feelings. As our exes desperately crawl back into our lives like zombies, I realize there is only one man for me, and (f)all I want is him. Zane Everything changes the moment I see her. Autumn's enchanting gaze makes my heart race, so I push her away to protect myself. Immediately, I regret it. But when I find her standing in my haunted house, I convince her to be my friend. She begrudgingly agrees. As the leaves transform and Cozy Creek's fall festivities come alive, our playful charade blossoms into something more. The lines between real and pretend begin to blur, and I find myself falling under her spell. I should keep my broken heart in check, but instead, I fight for love that feels like magic. This woman is all I've ever needed and (f)all I want. Genre: Romance https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/september-new-releases monthly 0.5 2025-08-31 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8c40ea5c-1ca1-4a8a-a15c-a09a198dc876/222794853.jpg Blog - September New Releases - The First Witch of Boston by Andrea Catalano Massachusetts Bay Colony, 1646. Thomas and Margaret Jones arrive from England to build a life in the New World. Though of differing temperaments, cautious Thomas and fiery Margaret, a healer, are bound by a love that has lasted decades. With a child on the way, their new beginning promises only blessings. But in this austere Puritan community, comely faces hide malicious intent. Wrong moves or words are met with suspicion, and Margaret’s bold and unguarded nature draws scorn. Soon, Margaret is mistrusted as more cunning woman than kind caregiver. And when personal tragedies, religious hysteria, and wariness of the unknown turn most against her, even the devotion Margaret and her husband share is at risk. Release Date: September 1, 2025 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/027422e1-b644-4ed8-a9aa-3ca0fbcfea50/220217814.jpg Blog - September New Releases - Sweet Heat by Bolu Babalola Three years after their break-up, Kiki's worked hard to forget her first love. But just as she thinks she's got her life under control—jumping into the distractions of her romance-by-calendar-invite boyfriend, and plans for her best friend, Aminah's, wedding—Kiki's career implodes, the family business teeters on collapse, and Malakai returns. As Malakai takes up his role as best man opposite her maid of honour, suddenly Kiki can think of nothing but their simmering chemistry, what went wrong, and why it is now impossible to act normal around each other. Juggling a new job, the prospect of her parents' restaurant being sold, and keeping her best friend from going full bridezilla, dealing with The Ex is the last thing she needs. But somehow the spark between them is only getting hotter—and threatening to ruin everything. Release Date: September 2, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3c46c87c-bf94-4622-817c-42e157b6d64e/220161171.jpg Blog - September New Releases - Fearful by Lauren Roberts Love too grand, it kills. Mara never intended to set foot in Ilya again. But when the king makes a life-altering decision, her interest is piqued, and Death is determined to understand Kitt Azer’s mind if he is destined to join her in the Mors. Spending time with the king while observing the castle’s inhabitants reminds Mara that there is more to life than just death. There is love. But even the purest of intentions spur revenge and the pursuit of power. And fate will have its way with all of them—to live, to rule, to love, and most certainly, to die… Release Date: September 2, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ffe3f53b-5c43-4131-9226-d5f27699c3d2/229004405.jpg Blog - September New Releases - If It Makes You Happy by Julie Olivia My new next-door neighbor seems to have everything figured out. Small town golden boy? Check. Single dad extraordinaire? Check. Hot baker forearms? I didn’t notice them, I swear. I, on the other hand, don’t–at all–have anything figured out. Trust me, I didn’t think taking over my mom’s dream bed and breakfast in Copper Run Vermont was going to be easy. It should be a good place to heal after my divorce. But apparently my scones belong in the garbage with my small talk skills. As pointed out by none other than Cliff. Cliff is inescapable. He knows exactly what people need–always. His charm, the way he wears flannel, and even his pastries, make not wanting to be friends with Cliff and his daughters pretty hard. Friends? I can make friends. That’s safe. Except I’m leaving in three months to pass the inn off to my little sister and get the promotion in Seattle I’ve been working towards. So ask me why I’m thinking about kissing my hot neighbor. Release Date: September 2, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0819094c-299c-42c5-802c-3b2504bcd090/225699546.jpg Blog - September New Releases - Sisters in the Wind by Angeline Boulley Ever since Lucy Smith’s father died five years ago, “home” has been more of an idea than a place. She knows being on the run is better than anything waiting for her as a “ward of the state.” But when the sharp-eyed and kind Mr. Jameson with an interest in her case comes looking for her, Lucy wonders if hiding from her past will ever truly keep her safe. Five years in the foster system has taught her to be cautious and smart. But she wants to believe Mr. Jameson and his “friend-not-friend,” a tall and fierce-looking woman who say they want to look after her. They also tell Lucy the truth her father hid from her: She is Ojibwe; she has – had – a sister, and more siblings; a grandmother who’d look after her and a home where she would be loved. But Lucy is being followed. The past has destroyed any chance of normal she has had, and now the secrets she’s hiding will swallow her whole and take away the future she always dreamed of. Release Date: September 2, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/966a5036-8f81-44f3-8434-94ebc38a9f85/222376906.jpg Blog - September New Releases - Wild Reverence by Rebecca Ross Born in the firelit domain of the under realm, Matilda is the youngest goddess of her clan, blessed with humble messenger magic. But in a land where gods often kill each other to steal power and alliances break as quickly as they are forged, Matilda must come of age sooner than most. She may be known to carry words and letters through the realms, but she holds a secret she must hide from even her dearest of allies to ensure her survival. And to complicate matters . . . there is a mortal boy who dreams of her, despite the fact they have never met in the waking world. Ten years ago, Vincent of Beckett wrote to Matilda on the darkest night of his life―begging the goddess he befriended in dreams to help him. When his request went unanswered, Vincent moved on, becoming the hardened, irreverent lord of the river who has long forgotten Matilda. That is, until she comes tumbling into his bedroom window with a letter for him. As Fate would have it, Matilda and Vincent were destined to find each other beyond dreams. There may be a chance for Matilda to rewrite the blood-soaked ways of the gods, but at immense sacrifice. She will have to face something she fears even more than losing her magic: to be vulnerable, and to allow herself to finally be loved. Release Date: September 2, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/343e4754-010f-4b88-b269-398b0dd13a8b/227948548.jpg Blog - September New Releases - Wild Card by Elsie Silver Sebastian Rousseau is a grumpy, hot as hell fire pilot who is too damn good with his hands. It’s the perfect combination. But unfortunately for me, he’s also my ex-boyfriend’s dad. A chance meeting brought us together and a missed connection has kept us apart. One year later, a stroke of fate has us living under the same roof—which makes everything between us downright messy. Because even after all this time, he’s still the man I think about when I fall asleep. The one I can’t get over no matter how hard I try. He’s working on mending a fragile relationship with his son and we both know acting on these urges would be the ultimate betrayal. But I see the heat in his eyes. That look of need that never fails to send a shiver down my spine. The mutual longing is borderline unbearable and the simmering heat between us is downright palpable. We both know there are rules when it comes to situations like this. But then again…following the rules never has been my strong suit. Release Date: September 9, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/569bfbb1-f568-4043-9218-1ba2f2ac29ce/224103430.jpg Blog - September New Releases - Hot Wax by M.L. Rio Summer, 1989: ten-year-old Suzanne is drawn like a magnet to her father’s forbidden world of electric guitars and tricked-out cars. When her mother remarries, she jumps at the chance to tag along on the concert tour that just might be Gil and the Kills’ wild ride to glory. But fame has sharper fangs than anybody realized, and as the band blazes up the charts, internal power struggles set Gil and his group on a collision course destined for a bloody reckoning—one shrouded in mystery and lore for decades to come. The only witness to a desperate act of violence, Suzanne spends the next twenty-nine years trying to disappear. She trades the music and mayhem of her youth for the quiet of the suburbs and the company of her mild-mannered husband Rob. But when her father’s sudden death resurrects the troubled past she tried so hard to bury, she leaves it all behind and hits the road in search of answers. Hitching her fate and Gil’s beloved car to two vagabonds who call an old Airstream trailer home, she finds everything she thought she’d lost forever: desire, adventure, and the woman she once wanted to be. But Rob refuses to let her go. Determined to bring her back where she belongs, he chases her across the country—and drives her to a desperation all her own. Release Date: September 9, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c684f012-be39-462b-947c-0e64d98613a0/222419270.jpg Blog - September New Releases - People Watching by Hannah Bonam-Young Prudence Welch has found solace in her introverted life in Baysville, a charming tourist town in Northern Ontario. Despite once dreaming of a life beyond its borders, she now finds contentment in her working at her father’s gas station, writing poetry, and caring for her mother, who was diagnosed with Early Onset Alzheimer's shortly after Prue’s nineteenth birthday. But as her mother’s condition worsens and her father’s concerns about her future intensify, Prue feels her world slipping further out of control. Enter Milo Kablukov, an enigmatic wanderer whose beat-up van covered with ill-advised bumper stickers rolls into town just when Prue needs a change. It’s all too easy to let go with him, and Prue can’t help but strike up an unlikely friendship with Milo, which leads to a wild and sexy agreement between them. Milo, a man of many adventures and countless stories, is not one to settle down. However, his brother’s urgent need for help has brought him to Baysville, and now the intriguing Prue has given him more reason to stay. Especially once they start spending more time together, their chemistry intensifying, and casual-sex lessons start at Prue’s request. But as their temporary arrangement blossoms into something deeper, Prue and Milo discover that getting out of their comfort zones is one thing . . . taking that leap together is something else entirely. Release Date: September 9, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8103fde4-1b6f-422b-96a6-108fbecfbeb1/220255008.jpg Blog - September New Releases - The Gingerbread Bakery by Laurie Gilmore With Jeanie and Logan set to tie the knot, and Kira desperate to hire out her newly renovated barn at the Christmas tree farm, everything seems to be going well. Annie has agreed to bake the cake, and Mac is responsible for, well… just being Mac. And as the whole of Dream Harbor comes together to celebrate the wedding of the year with the snow falling around them, can Annie and Mac put aside their dislike for each just long enough for the ‘I Do’s’ or is that one request too far… Release Date: September 16, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d3c2ff27-80ff-4b4c-b37d-07a1af7d189c/221604704.jpg Blog - September New Releases - A Steeping of Blood by Hafsah Faizal She's had her tea, now she's out for blood. White Roaring is sharpening its fangs after the deadly night that left the city in shambles. The press are dead, the public calls for justice, vampires are in danger, and amid the turmoil, the Ram announces a celebration. Still reeling from the bloodshed, Arthie Casimir has no time to mourn the death of anyone, let alone her own. She has no time for love, either, but it had saved her life. As Arthie navigates new emotions and new allies, she must reassemble her scrambled crew and scrape what little they have left to fight one last time – and she will need to face the ghosts of her past to do it. In Ceylan. Release Date: September 23, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2033e529-0412-45cf-b9af-94f253f3929e/231299870.jpg Blog - September New Releases - Tourist Season by Brynne Weaver Welcome to Cape Carnage! Visit Once, Stay Forever. Cape Carnage is a seaside town of colorful houses, quirky shops, and an unusually high body count. But with tourists comes trouble, and Harper Starling won’t let anyone ruin her picture-perfect home. A skilled gardener with killer instincts, Harper protects her sanctuary at any cost—especially for her aging mentor with a fading memory. Troublesome tourists don’t check out of Carnage. They compost beneath Harper’s award-winning flowerbeds. But Nolan Rhodes isn’t your average tourist. Devilishly handsome, disarmingly charming, and skilled with a blade, Nolan is relentless in the pursuit of revenge. On every anniversary of the hit-and-run accident that fractured his life, Nolan slays another target. And he’s saved the best for last: the undeniably beautiful Harper Starling. The problem? Harper isn’t the monster he expected. And she won’t go down without a fight. When an amateur true crime investigator comes to Cape Carnage on the trail of a long-lost serial killer, Harper and Nolan strike an uneasy truce. If Nolan helps Harper protect her town, she’ll keep quiet about his hunting habits . . . for now. But their alliance soon spirals into obsession, one that threatens to shatter every secret in Carnage—including their fragile love. Release Date: September 23, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2f1da843-66e7-49bf-9c7f-befd1be8809c/228527388.jpg Blog - September New Releases - Spell Caster by Jaymin Eve Welcome to Weatherstone College... Don’t walk the halls late at night. Don’t disturb the ancient magic. And don’t, under any circumstances, ever trust a spellcaster. When my magic bloomed at twenty-two, the last thing I expected was to receive an acceptance letter to the most prestigious witch college in the world. It’s not that I don’t have magic. It’s just…unpredictable. But with Weatherstone a part of my family legacy, I’m determined to live up to their expectations. A task that’s almost derailed on my very first day when I come face-to-face with Logan Kingston, the son of my father’s enemy. I’m warned to avoid the powerful spellcaster at all costs, but apparently Logan did not receive the same memo. The more time I spend around him, the more I crave his unsettling attention, and as hate flirts with obsession, I’m left wondering if there’s another side to the decades-old feud between our fathers. On top of that, Weatherstone is not at all like I expected. Built on the ancient blood of necromancers and battle, the magic here is as unpredictable as mine, and I sense a dark energy stalking my footsteps. When a monster attacks me, I have no choice but to turn to the strongest warlock in our school: Logan. Afterall, to fight a monster, I’ll need a monster. Release Date: September 23, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3b6262a1-dc7e-442e-87ec-03c84cc989b8/58483123.jpg Blog - September New Releases - The Primal of Blood and Bone by Jennifer L. Armentrout In the shadows and flames, Primals will fall… And from the blood and ash, new gods will rise. Bound by love but driven by destiny, they must navigate a world on the brink of devastation—where every choice has deadly consequences. With their bond tested and their future hanging in the balance, the fate of the realm rests on the strength of their hearts and the power of the Deminyen. Release Date: September 23, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/865d45c9-e548-48fc-baee-355c20ffcbc2/61256902.jpg Blog - September New Releases - Thief of Night by Holly Black The highly-anticipated sequel to the #1 New York Times bestselling author Holly Black's stunning adult debut, Book of Night. There'd always been something wrong with Charlie Hall. Crooked from the day she was born. Never met a bad decision she wasn't willing to double down on. She may be good enough to steal a shadow from a tower, but will she be good enough to steal back a heart? Release Date: September 23, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6e14a033-1c2a-42eb-b6fe-7aefffa9f53d/222490389.jpg Blog - September New Releases - Alchemised by SenLinYu 'What is it you think you’re protecting in that brain of yours? The war is over. Holdfast is dead. The Eternal Flame extinguished. There’s no one left for you to save' Once a promising alchemist, Helena Marino is now a prisoner ― of war and of her own mind. Her Resistance friends and allies have been brutally murdered, her abilities suppressed, and the world she knew destroyed. In the aftermath of a long war, Paladia’s new ruling class of corrupt guild families and depraved necromancers, whose vile, undead creatures helped bring about their victory, holds Helena captive. According to Resistance records, she was a healer of little importance within their ranks. But Helena has inexplicable memory loss of the months leading up to her capture, making her enemies wonder: Is she truly as insignificant as she appears, or are her lost memories hiding some vital piece of the Resistance’s final gambit? To uncover the memories buried deep within her mind, Helena is sent to the High Reeve, one of the most powerful and ruthless necromancers in this new world. Trapped on his crumbling estate, Helena’s fight―to protect her lost history and to preserve the last remaining shreds of her former self―is just beginning. For her prison and captor have secrets of their own . . . secrets Helena must unearth, whatever the cost. Release Date: September 23, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/adf50391-d9f6-4f5a-a8d5-eb2f459b7a48/230422842-2.jpg Blog - September New Releases - Soul Searching by Lyla Sage Collins Cartwright does not want to go home. Sweetwater Peak, Wyoming, was supposed to be in her rearview mirror, but when she finds out a developer is trying to buy her parents’ antique shop out from under them, she doesn’t have a choice—at least, that’s what she tells her family. They don’t need to know she’s lost her job and is out of money. Or that the ghosts that have always been her companions have recently gone silent. But just because she’s returned home doesn’t mean she has to stay with her parents or crash on her twin sister’s couch. Lucky for her, the new-to-town upholsterer has a room for rent above his store. Unluckily, it is absolutely crawling with more ghosts who are freezing her out. And Collins hates being ignored. Brady Cooper is absolutely and totally fine. Seriously, there’s no secret reason why he decided to uproot his life and suddenly move to Sweetwater Peak. He just needed a change of pace. At least, that’s what he tells himself. And everyone else. When he agrees to let the elusive Collins Cartwright stay in his spare room, he doesn’t know that she’s absolutely bonkers—constantly talking to herself and having conversations with no one—or that she looked like that. But as they begin to get closer, the lines between them start to blur, leaving both of them—and the ghosts that have been pushing them together—wondering whether or not their temporary arrangement could be something more permanent. Release Date: September 30, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/becdbe9f-c7d3-436d-977e-7ccd42e0ea1b/222377146.jpg Blog - September New Releases - The October Film Haunt by Michael Wehunt Ten years ago, Jorie Stroud was the rising star of the October Film Haunt – a trio of horror enthusiasts who camped out at the filming locations of their favorite scary movies, sharing their love through their popular blog. But after a night in the graveyard from Proof of Demons – perhaps the most chilling cult film ever made, directed by the enigmatic Hélène Enriquez – everything unraveled. Now, Jorie has built an isolated life with her young son in Vermont. In the devastating wake of her viral, truth-stretching Proof of Demons blog entry — hysteria, internet backlash, and the death of a young woman — Jorie has put it all, along with her intense love for the horror genre, behind her. Until a videotape arrives in the mail. Jorie fears someone might be filming her. And the “Rickies” – Enriquez obsessives who would do anything for the reclusive director – begin to cross lines in shocking ways. It seems Hélène Enriquez is making a new kind of sequel…and Jorie is her final girl. As the dangers grow even more unexpected and strange, Jorie must search for answers before the Proof of the movie’s title finds her and takes everything she loves. Release Date: September 30, 2025 Genre: Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/33ebea55-dcc4-4109-bd34-bdd1301c0484/223262140.jpg Blog - September New Releases - Fake Skating by Lynn Painter From play dates on the playground to sneaking into movie theatres, Dani and Alec were inseparable as kids. Until Dani moved away. Years later, Dani is back in Minnesota, and exited to reconnect with the nerdy and comforting Alec. But teenage Alec is NOTHING like the boy she remembers. He's the hockey STAR in a town where hockey players are worshipped as gods – and he loves it. When one thing leads to another and Dani and Alec find themselves thrown together and playing the role of boyfriend and girlfriend, “complicated” becomes an understatement. In this Minnesota town, hockey may rule, but romance is about to take its place. Release Date: September 30, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/800373bf-f111-4b03-895e-09429a4b09bb/222284050.jpg Blog - September New Releases - Witch of the Wolves by Kaylee Archer Cordelia Levine comes from a long line of powerful witches. She's been flying under the radar in the human world, focused on strengthening her magic. She loves working at her aunt's apothecary in London, secretly serving supernaturals. Until the truth about her family is revealed. She always assumed her enhanced sense of smell came from her French perfumer father. But when Bishop Daniels abducts Cordelia at the request of her father, the Alpha, Cordelia learns she's a lycan--sharing both witch and werewolf traits. She's brought to Trevelyan, the pack estate, under the guise of protection from foreign threats who want to use her to continue their bloodline. She quickly learns that to keep her from being sold off to another pack, her father intends to give Cordelia as a mate to Bishop. His second in command and the future Alpha. Cordelia refuses to accept this as her fate. She can't rely on her magic alone to escape and when she learns Bishop plans to challenge her father's power, she reluctantly begins to trust him. The cracks within the Pack become evident and something is bound to break. And Cordelia and her growing desire for the man who shouldn't set her on fire are right at the center of it all. Release Date: September 30, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6bd749bc-1a0e-4491-a91b-65104a898d2c/222292420.jpg Blog - September New Releases - The Impossible Fortune by Richard Osman Who's got time to think about murder when there's a wedding to plan? It’s been a quiet year for the Thursday Murder Club. Joyce is busy with table plans and first dances. Elizabeth is grieving. Ron is dealing with family troubles, and Ibrahim is still providing therapy to his favourite criminal. But when Elizabeth meets a wedding guest who’s in trouble, kidnap and death are hot on their heels once more. A villain wants access to an uncrackable code, and will stop at nothing to get it. Plunged back into action once more, can the gang solve the puzzle and a murder in time? Release Date: September 30, 2025 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/22d81425-a853-44e7-bc4e-5ca00f5e223a/223097553.jpg Blog - September New Releases - Every Spiral of Fate by Tahereh Mafi At long last, the wedding day has arrived. The Jinn queen and the enigmatic ruler of Tulan are to be married in a magical, enchanted ceremony—but Cyrus, tethered by a blood oath to his bride-to-be, can find nothing to celebrate in this union. He’s falling ever more deeply in love with the one person oathbound to kill him. Sworn to an ancient, unbreakable magic, Alizeh can only fulfill the prophecy to free her people by ensuring Cyrus dies by her own hand. And Cyrus is forced to await his end all while Prince Kamran inches closer, ready to take his place by Alizeh’s side. The countdown to murder coils tensions ever tighter, but the historic wedding has already drawn deadly attention. To prepare for war and protect her people, Alizeh must finally discover her magic—and outrun the enemies trying to stop her. Alizeh and Cyrus, along with Kamran and their friends from Ardunia, must flee on dragon-back to begin the perilous journey into the legendary mountains of Arya, where a firestorm of revelations, magical discoveries, and fresh allies awaits them. Every allegiance will be tested, every darkness uncovered, and when the shattering secrets of the Tulanian king are finally revealed . . . Nothing, and no one, will be the same. Release Date: September 30, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/thats-not-my-name-review monthly 0.5 2025-08-08 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/august-new-releases-1 monthly 0.5 2025-07-25 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/55925525-196e-49d4-ad48-9414a7df05af/217388258.jpg Blog - August New Releases - The Locked Ward by Sarah Pekkanen Whatever the cause—and everyone has a theory—it's the Crime of the Decade when glamorous Georgia Cartwright, who was adopted as a newborn, is accused of killing the biological daughter of her wealthy, Southern family. Georgia is locked in a psychiatric institution where the most violent offenders are held while she awaits trial. The only words she whispers when her estranged twin sister Amanda visits are, “I didn’t do it. You’ve got to get me out of here.” Amanda doesn't trust Georgia, but she can't abandon her in a place so eerie and menacing that it seems to exist in another dimension. Is Georgia the victim of a powerful family that's so depraved murder is the least of their crimes? Or is Amanda being led down a path of madness into the web of a master manipulator? Release Date: August 5, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4f3da538-b3ee-4385-baa0-8854e965b6e3/217420653.jpg Blog - August New Releases - Mistress of Bones by Maria Z. Medina Necromancer Azul del Arroyo only wants one thing: to steal her sister back from Death by reclaiming her sister’s bones. But the Emissary of the Lord Death will do anything to stop her, no matter how alluring he finds her . . . As their paths collide, they’re drawn into a deadly game of pawns and power with a count who begrudgingly works for a child king, a faceless witch who transforms the bones of gods into dreams she can peddle, and a long-lost half-brother with a secret of his own—and soon realize the fate of the lands is hanging in the balance. For long ago the gods raised the continents, binding them with their own bones to keep humanity alive. But in an era when the gods’ sacrifice has been forgotten, Death might not be the only resentful god Azul must defy. Release Date: August 5, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9d47a45d-f0bd-4389-baa0-ea9c91f7a20e/217387831.jpg Blog - August New Releases - Well, Actually by Mazey Eddings Eva Kitt never expected to be the host of Sausage Talk, interviewing B-list celebrities over lukewarm hot dogs, instead of pursuing the journalism career she dreamed of. But when Eva’s impromptu public call out of her college ex goes viral, she’s thrust into the spotlight. It doesn’t help said ex is Rylie Cooper, a beloved social media personality that has built a platform on deconstructing toxic masculinity and teaching men how to be good partners. Forced to confront Rylie on a live episode of Sausage Talk, he offers Eva a deal: allow him to take her on a series of dates to make up for his toxic behavior, then debrief them on his channel to show he’s changed. Eva refuses to play nice, but agrees to the scheme to advance her own career and continue defaming Rylie’s good name. When these manufactured dates start to feel real, Eva has to wonder if the boy that broke her heart has become the man that might heal it. Release Date: August 5, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/811212e3-bacb-47df-9ad2-7cf27e62d630/217388041.jpg Blog - August New Releases - The Fallen and the Kiss of Dusk by Carissa Broadbent Mische made the ultimate sacrifice to save those she loves – and plunged the world into an eternal night. Now, imprisoned by the gods and obsessed with revenge, Asar is desperate to find her again. When a goddess offers them a final path to redemption – and back to each other – Asar and Mische embark on an extraordinary mission. Together, they must seize the power of the god of death so Asar may do the impossible: ascend to true divinity. Their journey will take them through mortal and immortal realms, alongside both old friends and ruthless enemies. But as the underworld teeters on the brink of collapse and the gods prepare for a war, Asar and Mische must decide what they are willing to sacrifice for the power to defy death. In a game of vengeful gods and ancient betrayals, there are some debts that even love may not be able to repay. Release Date: August 5, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/864ead22-902e-4585-a5a2-f608f1782b0f/217388147.jpg Blog - August New Releases - The Hounding by Xenobe Purvis Even before the rumors about the Mansfield girls begin, Little Nettlebed is a village steeped in the uncanny, from strange creatures that wash up on the riverbed to portentous ravens gathering on the roofs of people about to die. But when the villagers start to hear barking, and one claims to see the Mansfield sisters transform before his very eyes, the allegations spark fascination and fear like nothing has before. The truth is that though the inhabitants of Little Nettlebed have never much liked the Mansfield girls—a little odd, think some; a little high on themselves, perhaps—they’ve always had plenty to say about them. As the rotating perspectives of five villagers quickly make clear, now is no exception. Even if local belief in witchcraft is waning, an aversion to difference is as widespread as ever, and these conflicting narratives all point to the same ultimate conclusion: something isn’t right in Little Nettlebed, and the sisters will be the ones to pay for it. Release Date: August 5, 2025 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/74ae5ecb-8e87-44f6-b6a5-3d62eb2a32ff/188563996.jpg Blog - August New Releases - Accomplice to the Villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer REWARD OFFERED: Apprentice to The Villain wanted for treason (light), magical property damage (alleged), and one incident involving a weaponized scone (accurate). Frequently seen with a grumpy frog (crowned, judgmental). Answers to “Evie” or “Stop that.” Evie Sage didn’t mean to become the right-hand woman to the kingdom’s most terrifying villain. One minute, she was applying for an entry-level position that promised “light paperwork and occasional beheadings,” and the next, she was knee-deep in magical mayhem, murder plots, and an entirely inappropriate crush on her brooding, sharp-jawed, walking disaster of a boss. Now, with a magical prophecy unraveling, assassins showing up in the break room, and a suspicious amount of frogs wearing crowns, Evie has to figure out how to survive her job without setting the kingdom on fire—or her dignity, which is hanging by a very sarcastic thread. Being evil-adjacent was never part of the five-year plan. But then again…neither was falling for The Villain. Release Date: August 5, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d203298a-f075-41bd-bea9-092271c8f512/221132635.jpg Blog - August New Releases - If All Else Sails by Emma St. Clair When Josie's brother sends her to a random address for their (sometimes) annual Super Summer Sibling Extravaganza, she finds neither siblings nor extravaganzas. Instead, ends up at a run-down cottage on the Northern Neck of Virginia occupied by a hockey player she knows and loathes. A hockey player who isn't just one of her sports agent brother's clients. He's also his best friend. And Josie's sworn enemy. Oh--and her brother wants Josie to help Wyatt recover from his injury. Dragging grumpy hockey players to physical therapy is a far cry from bandaging skinned knees, but for the price her brother offers to pay, Josie is willing to try. Even if it means sharing what she dubs the quaint little murder cottage with Wyatt. Begrudgingly, Josie starts to see a little more of the man behind the grumpy exterior. And when she finds out he was supposed to sail the Intracoastal Waterway south to Savannah scattering his uncle's ashes, Josie surprises even herself by offering to be Wyatt's first mate. Smooth sailing is nowhere to be found, and Josie begins to wonder if they'll be able to make it home without killing--or kissing?--each other. And yet, the longer they share cramped quarters and canned food, the more of Wyatt's layers she peels back until Josie realizes she misunderstood him, their shared history, and perhaps herself as well. Release Date: August 5, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6b745383-4d2c-4402-ade5-36f37a6c015b/220481352.jpg Blog - August New Releases - The Dead Husband Cookbook by Danielle Valentine She has the recipe for the perfect murder... Maria Capello is a celebrity chef like no other. A household name, an inspiration, an icon. Her dozens of cookbooks and weekly television show, broadcast from her beautiful Italian-style kitchen, not to mention her line of bestselling supermarket sauces. And of course there's her history. Once just the timid wife of famous chef Damien Capello, she stepped into the spotlight after Damien's mysterious disappearance twenty years before. An event she's never spoken about publicly until now, when it is announced that she is looking for a publisher for her memoirs. Why is Maria willing to finally break her silence? Why does she turn down seven-figure offers from large publishing houses and sign up with a small press? And why does she do so on the condition that it is edited by Thea Woods? Thea is a lifelong fan but has never met Maria and can't figure it out, plus she had been planning to hand in her notice that very day. But when she is invited to Maria's remote farm to work on the manuscript, she can't resist. After all, she may finally learn whether the rumours are that Maria killed Damien for his recipes and the legendary 'secret ingredient'... Release Date: August 5, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f2f566f9-1678-4cba-9c3b-8a911cd6e28b/221267276.jpg Blog - August New Releases - Zomromcom by Olivia Dade When Edie Brandstrup attempts to save her sweet, seemingly harmless human neighbor from the first major zombie breach in two decades, she’s stunned to be saved by him—and his ridiculously large sword—instead. As it turns out, he's actually a super-old, super-surly vampire. But for all her neighbor's newly revealed cynicism and lethality, Gaston "Max" Boucher (yes, Gaston) is unexpectedly protective. He wants her to stay in his safety bunker until the breach is resolved. Edie can’t risk more innocent people getting killed, though—and Max won’t let her save them alone. As they unravel a sinister conspiracy to set zombies loose on the world (again), the duo meet a host of lovable allies and discover they're not the only ones willing to fight for the future of humanity. Despite the awful timing, Edie finds herself falling for the vampire who’s helping her save the world . . . but all their dangerous plans could end their future before it even begins. As she and Max battle side by side, Edie must decide whether having a love worth living for also means having a love you'd die for—and, in a world that grows deadlier by the minute, whether that’s a risk she’s willing to take. Release Date: August 5, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6689cc54-3cf2-42f5-9b1d-568400b3f0fe/217421170.jpg Blog - August New Releases - Woven From Clay by Jenny Birch Terra Slater might not know anything about her birth family or where she comes from, but that’s never stopped her, and she fully intends her senior year to be her best yet. Until the dark and mysterious Thorne Wilder―a magical bounty hunter―moves to town, bringing revelations that wreck all of her plans. When Terra learns she is a golem, not born but crafted from mud and magic by a warlock, her world is upended. Worse, Cyrus Quill, the warlock who made her, is a fugitive, on the run from the witches who want to hold him accountable for his past crimes. But Quill’s sentence is death, which would unravel the threads of magic that hold Terra―and all of the other golems that he crafted―together. Desperate to save herself and her friends, Terra strikes a deal with Thorne and his coven to preserve the warlock’s life and his magic. If she can prove her worth to the coven by mastering the magic within her, the golems will survive. If she can’t, they’ll perish along with Cyrus. As Thorne helps her to see and manipulate the tapestry of magic that surrounds them, their unexpected alliance evolves into something more and Terra comes to understand the depths of her magic, her humanity, and her love for the people most important to her. Release Date: August 12, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e13897cb-3e83-4ad3-8c02-bb40b5ea5c6c/217387630.jpg Blog - August New Releases - The Witch’s Orchard by Archer Sullivan Former Air Force Special Investigator Annie Gore joined the military right after high school to escape the fraught homelife of her childhood. Now, she’s getting by as a private investigator and her latest case takes her to an Appalachian holler not unlike the one where she grew up. Ten years ago, three little girls went missing from their tiny mountain town. While one was returned, the others were never seen again. After all this time without answers, the brother of one of the girls wants to hire an outsider, and he wants Annie. While she may not be from his town, she gets mountain towns. Mountain people. Driving back into the hills for a case this old—it might be a fool’s errand. But Annie needs to put money in the bank and she can’t turn down a case. Not even one that dredges up her own painful past. In the shadow of the Blue Ridge, Annie begins to track the truth, navigating a decade’s worth of secrets, folklore of witches and crows, and a whole town that prefers to forget. But while the case may have been buried, echoes of the past linger. And Annie’s arrival stirs someone into action. Release Date: August 12, 2025 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4acca922-06bc-4b5e-9eb0-9e159276bdc4/223340300.jpg Blog - August New Releases - Warrior Princess Assassin by Brigid Kemmerer WARRIOR. King Maddox Kyronan’s fire magic has earned him a ruthless reputation on the battlefield, but now his kingdom is slowly burning. Ky’s only chance to save his people is to enter a marriage alliance with the neighboring nation of Astranza, and hope that the royal family’s power to manipulate the weather will help his land flourish once more. He just needs to ensure no one finds out how the blaze began. PRINCESS. With war looming on the horizon, Princess Jory’s home needs the protection of the fearsome warrior king, but she is hiding a dangerous her family’s magic is fading. Tempting as it is to reject her duties and run away with her childhood friend, Asher, Jory knows that she is the kingdom’s last hope. When she meets her intended, Jory is surprised to discover that beneath Ky’s daunting exterior is a compassionate and sharp-witted man who sets her heart aflame. But what will he do when he realizes she's deceiving him? ASSASSIN. Asher’s done what he must to survive, even if that means getting his hands dirty. Once a young nobleman in Astranza’s palace, where he and Jory caused mischief together, now he’s part of the Hunter’s Guild, employing much darker skills. When a lucrative job comes his way, Asher can’t say no—until he discovers the targets. Someone wants Ky and Jory dead. With the Guild watching, Asher must decide what he’s willing to do to protect the woman he loves. Release Date: August 12, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6f79ef38-6af4-4154-a775-351e875a33b5/221544394.jpg Blog - August New Releases - We Are All Guilty Here by Karin Slaughter Welcome to North Falls—a small town where everyone knows everyone. Or so they think. Until the night of the fireworks. When two teenage girls vanish, and the town ignites. For Officer Emmy Clifton, it’s personal. She turned away when her best friend's daughter needed help—and now she must bring her home. But as Emmy combs through the puzzle the girls left behind, she realizes she never really knew them. Nobody did. Every teenage girl has secrets. But who would kill for them? And what else is the town hiding? Release Date: August 12, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e91778fa-6d3a-44e8-a42e-b23e1a39dc08/217388179.jpg Blog - August New Releases - High Season by Katie Bishop Never speak of that summer. On a beautiful summer’s night twenty years ago, troubled seventeen-year-old Tamara Drayton was found floating face-down in the pool of her family’s idyllic mansion in the south of France, leaving her twin brother, golden-boy Blake, to pick up the pieces of their shattered family. Also left behind was their sister Nina who, at six years old, became the youngest person ever to testify in a French murder trial. Because she’s the only one who saw what happened—who watched as her babysitter, Josie Jackson, pushed Tamara under the water, and held her there until she stopped breathing. Didn’t she? Twenty years later, Nina's memories have faded, leaving her with no idea of what really transpired that night. When a new true crime documentary about her sister’s murder is announced, Nina thinks this might be her chance to finally find out. But the truth always comes at a cost. Who will pay the price? Release Date: August 12, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/27ff69ee-9526-4d62-8c24-74d0b63b0ef8/227848751-2.jpg Blog - August New Releases - The Society of Unknowable Objects by Gareth Brown The world of unknowable objects - magical items that most people have no idea possess powers - has been quiet for decades . . . But three current members of a secret society have remained watchful, meeting every six months in the basement of a bookshop in London. They are pledged to protect their archive of magical items hidden away, safe from the outside world - and keep the world safe from them. But when Frank Simpson, the longest-standing member of the Society of Unknowable Objects, hears of a new artefact coming to light in Hong Kong, he sends the Society's newest member, author Magda Sparks, to investigate. Within hours of arriving in Hong Kong, Magda is facing death and danger, confronted by a professional killer who seems to know all about unknowable objects, specifically one that was stolen from him a decade before. Magda is forced to flee, using an artefact that not even the rest of the Society knows about. Returning to London, Magda learns hers is not the only secret being kept from the other two members. And that the most pernicious secret is about the nature of the Society’s mission. Her discoveries will lead her on a perilous journey, across the Atlantic to the deep south of the United States - not in pursuit of an unknowable object, but an unknowable person: the killer she first faced in Hong Kong. In doing so, Magda begins to understand that there are even more in the world who are chasing these magical items, and that her own family’s legacy is tied up in keeping all these secrets under wraps. Magic has always been too powerful to reveal to the world. But Magda will learn there might be something even more powerful: the truth. Release Date: August 12, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a43d102c-86be-4330-afd3-6ccf6f2c87b2/217387723-2.jpg Blog - August New Releases - For the Record by Emma Lord Once the most notorious rivals in the music scene, pop princess Mackenzie Waters and punk rockstar Sam Blaze electrified audiences as their bands clashed on stage. But behind the scenes, their simmering tension grew into something more — until suddenly both bands fell apart, and the idea of Mackenzie and Sam did, too. Two years later, Sam has traded the rockstar lifestyle for a quiet life raising the son he didn’t know about. Meanwhile, Mackenzie is dealing with a postoperative change in her voice by only singing under a pseudonym. The only way to revive their public careers? A joint comeback album. With fans over the moon and their futures on the line, Sam and Mackenzie face their biggest challenge yet: giving up the old rivalry and learning to work together. But as old sparks fly and new secrets emerge, they set off a chain reaction neither of them could have anticipated — one that proves that sometimes, the greatest hits are the ones yet to be written. Release Date: August 12, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7a089ef3-029c-4e57-9a21-4080fb97be6f/221115923.jpg Blog - August New Releases - Too Old For This by Samantha Downing Lottie Jones thought her crimes were behind her. Decades earlier, she changed her identity and tucked herself away in a small town. Her most exciting nights are the weekly bingo games at the local church and gossiping with her friends. When investigative journalist Plum Dixon shows up on her doorstep asking questions about Lottie’s past and specifically her involvement with numerous unsolved cases, well, Lottie just can’t have that. But getting away with murder is hard enough when you’re young. And when Lottie receives another annoying knock on the door, she realizes this crime might just be the death of her… Release Date: August 12, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0bef4387-65db-4365-bd7c-e0296967b22e/221452840.jpg Blog - August New Releases - Mess by Michael Chessler To the world, Jane Brown, a Los-Angeles based professional organizer, is a model of composure and reticence. But inside, she’s fiercely judgmental and critical of herself and others. A lover of order and tidiness, she struggles to accept the world’s exasperating messiness of both her own clients—a superficial sphere of influencers and rich creatives—and her live-in boyfriend, who is becoming as aggravating as he is comforting. When she arrives at the home of a new client, a has-been Hollywood actress—a woman opposite to her in every way—Jane finds herself unexpectedly moved. Realizing how desperately she wants to lower her defenses and open her heart, Jane decides to declutter the mess of her own mindset. Organizing her own feelings turns out to be the most daunting job she’s ever tackled, but one that promises big rewards if she succeeds, including freedom—and even love. Set against the dazzlingly rich, beautiful, and shallow world of Hollywood money and mansions, Mess is an honest, heartfelt, and often hilarious response to the disorder of our lives today. Release Date: August 12, 2025 Genre: Contemporary Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/61abe842-495e-4dfd-b7ef-76937fb6fbb4/217387959.jpg Blog - August New Releases - The Once and Future Me by Melissa Pace Virginia 1954. A young woman wakes, agitated and confused, on a patient transport bus arriving at Hanover State Psychiatric Hospital. She remembers nothing of her life before that moment, none of the dark things she must've seen—and done—that have forged her into such a skilled and cunning fighter. Once she's been subdued, doctors tell her she's Dorothy Frasier, a paranoid schizophrenic, committed to Hanover for treatments they hope will quell her increasingly violent delusions. She’s certain they’re wrong—until disturbing visions begin to invade her reality: of a dystopian future where frantic scientists urge her to complete "the mission" and save humankind. Convinced it's Hanover causing the hallucinations, she tells no one, focuses only on escape… Until there's a visitor, a man whose loving face—and touch—she remembers, a man who knows all about her visions because he's spent years helping her cope with them: her husband, Paul Frasier. Now she's sure of nothing, caught between two realities. Believe in the future, and she might save the world. Believe in her doctors and Paul, and she might save herself. She's desperate for answers, but she'll have to harness the darkness inside her to get them, risking her freedom, her mind, and ultimately her life in a heart-stopping quest for the truth. Release Date: August 19, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/045456f6-8b10-45df-8ee0-745e2b936719/217582926.jpg Blog - August New Releases - Hemlock and Silver by T. Kingfisher Healer Anja regularly drinks poison. Not to die, but to save—seeking cures for those everyone else has given up on. But a summons from the King interrupts her quiet, herb-obsessed life. His daughter, Snow, is dying, and he hopes Anja’s unorthodox methods can save her. Aided by a taciturn guard, a narcissistic cat, and a passion for the scientific method, Anja rushes to treat Snow, but nothing seems to work. That is, until she finds a secret world, hidden inside a magic mirror. This dark realm may hold the key to what is making Snow sick. Or it might be the thing that kills them all. Release Date: August 19, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a82dc1b5-d19c-4d92-8031-634512dff3ea/214619719.jpg Blog - August New Releases - Love Arranged by Lauren Asher LORENZO Five months. Two people “in love”. One fake relationship with an expiration date. Sounds simple enough. The problem is, Lily Muñoz and I have history. So, when she volunteers to date me so I can improve my public image, I should say no. Our past complicates everything, but since my future depends on her, I agree to her plan. Faking it for the public is expected, but falling in love in private? That isn’t part of our arrangement. LILY Using a dating app sounded like a great idea, up until I discovered Lorenzo Vittori was my match. My sister’s boyfriend hates him. My mom is wary of him. And me? I’ve spent the last year avoiding him. But when my business is threatened, I’m forced into teaming up with Lorenzo to save it. All I need to do is help him win the mayoral election, and he promises to protect my shop. It doesn’t take me long to learn that I’m not cut out for fake relationships, but Lorenzo? He isn’t capable of a real one. Release Date: August 19, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/670a384c-8919-4d7f-8b42-45beb6bc175d/218294577.jpg.png Blog - August New Releases - The Executioners Three by Susan Dennard Freddie Gellar didn't mean to get half the rival high school arrested. She’d simply heard shrieks coming from the woods, so she’d called the cops like any good human would do. How was she supposed to know it was just kids partying? Except the next day, a body is found. And while the local sheriff might call it suicide, Freddie's instincts tell her otherwise. So, like the aspiring sleuth (and true X-Files aficionado) she is, Freddie sets out to prove there's a murderer at large. But her investigation is quickly disrupted by the rivalry between her school and the school of the partying teens she got arrested. For over twenty years, the two student bodies have had an ongoing prank war, and Freddie's failed attempt at Good Samaritanism has upped the ante. Worse, the clever—and gorgeous—leader of the rival prank squad has set his sights on Freddie. As more pranks unfurl, more bodies also start piling up in the forest. But it's the supernatural warning signs around town, each plucked straight from an old forgotten poem called "The Executioners Three," that worry Freddie the most. She knows the poem and its blood curse can’t be real, but she's quickly running out of time to prove it. Because the murderer—or executioners?—knows she's onto them now, and their next target just might be Freddie. Release Date: August 26, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/06429565-7ca6-4ab5-88c1-ede9e97022fe/222850723.jpg Blog - August New Releases - The Secret Book Society by Madeline Martin You are cordially invited to the Secret Book Society… London, 1895: Trapped by oppressive marriages and societal expectations, three women receive a mysterious invitation to an afternoon tea at the home of the reclusive Lady Duxbury. Beneath the genteel facade of the gathering lies a secret book club—a sanctuary where they can discover freedom, sisterhood, and the courage to rewrite their stories. Eleanor Clarke, a devoted mother suffocating under the tyranny of her husband. Rose Wharton, a transplanted American dollar princess struggling to fit the mold of an aristocratic wife. Lavinia Cavendish, an artistic young woman haunted by a dangerous family secret. All are drawn to the enigmatic Lady Duxbury, a thrice-widowed countess whose husbands’ untimely deaths have sparked whispers of murder. As the women form deep, heartwarming friendships, they uncover secrets about their marriages, their pasts, and the risks they face. Their courage is their only weapon in the oppressive world that has kept them silent, but when secrets are deadly, one misstep could cost them everything. Release Date: August 26, 2025 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d75bb0f6-fc4e-4d25-9e41-ba2ae356f399/210223811-2.jpg Blog - August New Releases - Katabasis by R.F. Kuang Two graduate students must set aside their rivalry and journey to Hell to save their professor’s soul, perhaps at the cost of their own. Alice Law has only ever had one goal: to become one of the brightest minds in the field of Magick. She has sacrificed everything to make that a reality—her pride, her health, her love life, and most definitely her sanity. All to work with Professor Jacob Grimes at Cambridge, the greatest magician in the world—that is, until he dies in a magical accident that could possibly be her fault. Grimes is now in Hell, and she’s going in after him. Because his recommendation could hold her very future in his now incorporeal hands, and even death is not going to stop the pursuit of her dreams. Nor will the fact that her rival, Peter Murdoch, has come to the same conclusion. Release Date: August 26, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/53826471-10a6-46c8-ac02-cf0d1df43be7/59972550.jpg Blog - August New Releases - The Gilded Heiress by Joanna Shupe In 1880 a baby was stolen from the wealthiest family in America. Though no ransom was ever demanded, the Pendelton family never gave up hope . . . and their reward became the stuff of legend. After being raised in a children’s asylum, Josie Smith ends up on the streets and quickly learns how to take care of herself. Her singing voice draws crowds on every corner, and she’ll stop at nothing to become famous and travel the world, loved and adored by all. Maybe then she won’t think about the family who gave her away as an infant. Leo Hardy isn’t afraid to use his charm and wits to make a fast buck, especially with a mother and five siblings to support. When he stumbles upon a beautiful young woman singing on the street, Leo notices her striking resemblance to the infamous missing baby’s mother, Mrs. Thomas Pendelton. The Hardys lost everything thanks to the Pendeltons, and once Leo sees Josie, he seizes the opportunity to settle the score. All he needs to do is pull off the biggest swindle of his career. As the two are catapulted into Knickerbocker High Society, they grow closer to their goal, as well as to each other. But secrets can only stay hidden for so long. Soon the truth unfolds, and both Josie and Leo must separate what’s real from what’s just gilding. Release Date: August 26, 2025 Genre: Historical Romantic Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b0387b1e-9950-49d9-b9f2-31848fc48176/208197094.jpg.png Blog - August New Releases - A Liar’s Twisted Tongue by Caroline Cusanelli Power. Obsession. The terrible price of survival. Desdemona Althenia has spent her life in the shadows, hiding the volatile magic that could kill her if it’s ever unleashed. Born into the lowest ranks of society, she’s survived by her wits and her willingness to deceive. But when fate traps her within the brutal walls of Visnatus Academy, it also offers a dangerous chance: power, for the first time within reach. Prince Lucian Aibek lives beneath the weight of a rotting empire and the ruthless grip of a corrupt family regime. Desdemona’s untamed fire could be the key to his freedom—and her chance to master the magic that might consume her. But as their fates entwine, the line between ally and enemy blurs, and they’re caught in a deadly game of ambition and desire, where trust becomes more treacherous than the magic they wield. As an ancient society stirs, Desdemona and Lucian are forced to confront the ghosts of a war that never truly ended. Caught between survival and surrender, they must gamble everything: let their connection bring them to ruin—or become their only hope of redemption. Release Date: August 26, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c7057a46-99bc-471b-8fde-0a6802c8e86b/213782286.jpg Blog - August New Releases - A Spell to Wake the Dead by Nicole Lesperance Two teen girls must uncover the dark, occult secrets lurking in their Cape Cod town to solve a series of murders—and save themselves from the same fate—in this twisty, witchy thriller. When Mazzy and her best friend Nora sneak down to the beach one moonlit night to cast a spell, they don’t expect to find a dead body. But as the tide rolls in, it carries the remains of a woman who is missing her hands and teeth. The girls know they should leave the investigation to the police, but they can’t shake the weird, supernatural connection they feel with the dead woman. Using spellwork and divination, they set out to find answers of their own. But after they uncover a rash of local disappearances stretching back years—and both girls start having occult visions and hearing ghostly, whispering voices—Mazzy worries that she and Nora are in danger. Then, Nora finds a second body. And a whispering voice is telling her where to find more. With everything spiraling, Mazzy needs to figure out who to trust and how to sever this supernatural connection—or she and Nora might be the next bodies to wash up on the beach. Release Date: August 26, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/072937a3-a0f1-47d8-85d5-b66cde7a10e1/217387937.jpg Blog - August New Releases - Forget Me Not by Stacy Willingham Twenty-two years ago, Claire Campbell’s older sister, Natalie, disappeared shortly after her eighteenth birthday. Days later, her blood was found in a car, a man was arrested, and the case was swiftly closed. In the decades since, Claire has attempted to forget her traumatic past by moving to the city and climbing the ranks as an investigative journalist... until an unexpected call from her father forces her to come back home and face it all anew. With the entire summer now looming ahead—a summer spent with nothing to do in her childhood home, with her estranged mother—Claire decides on a whim to accept a seasonal job at Galloway Farm, a muscadine vineyard in coastal South Carolina less than an hour away from where she grew up. At first glance, Galloway is an idyllic escape for Claire. A scenic retreat full of slow-paced nostalgia, as well as a place where her sister seemed truly happy in that last summer before she vanished, it feels like the perfect plan to pass the time. However, as soon as Claire starts to settle in, she stumbles across an old diary written by one of the vineyard's owners, and what at first seems like a story of young rebellion and love turns into something much more sinister as it begins to describe details of various unsolved crimes. As the days stretch on, Claire finds herself becoming more and more secluded as she starts to obsess over the diary's contents… as well as the lingering feeling that her own sister's disappearance may be somehow tied to it all. Galloway was supposed to be a place to help her move forward, but instead, Claire quickly finds herself immersed in her own dark and dangerous past. Release Date: August 26, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/little-free-library monthly 0.5 2025-08-12 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/once-upon-a-broken-heart-review monthly 0.5 2025-07-13 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/childrens-storytime monthly 0.5 2025-07-07 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/21-summer-thrillers monthly 0.5 2025-06-24 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/63820d81-a335-49f7-ba3a-1e6813917006/45714854.jpg Blog - 21 Summer Thrillers - The Hunting Wives by May Cobb Sophie O’Neill left behind an envy-inspiring career and the stressful, competitive life of big-city Chicago to settle down with her husband and young son in a small Texas town. It seems like the perfect life with a beautiful home in an idyllic rural community. But Sophie soon realizes that life is now too quiet, and she’s feeling bored and restless. Then she meets Margot Banks, an alluring socialite who is part of an elite clique secretly known as the Hunting Wives. Sophie finds herself completely drawn to Margot and swept into her mysterious world of late-night target practice and dangerous partying. As Sophie’s curiosity gives way to full-blown obsession, she slips farther away from the safety of her family and deeper into this nest of vipers. When the body of a teenage girl is discovered in the woods where the Hunting Wives meet, Sophie finds herself in the middle of a murder investigation and her life spiraling out of control. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a4578617-2d26-4155-bf01-9c79b3245673/199698485-3.jpg Blog - 21 Summer Thrillers - The God of the Woods by Liz Moore When a teenager vanishes from her Adirondack summer camp, two worlds collide. Early morning, August 1975: a camp counselor discovers an empty bunk. Its occupant, Barbara Van Laar, has gone missing. Barbara isn’t just any thirteen-year-old: she’s the daughter of the family that owns the summer camp and employs most of the region’s residents. And this isn’t the first time a Van Laar child has disappeared. Barbara’s older brother similarly vanished fourteen years ago, never to be found. As a panicked search begins, a thrilling drama unfolds. Chasing down the layered secrets of the Van Laar family and the blue-collar community working in its shadow, Moore’s multi-threaded story invites readers into a rich and gripping dynasty of secrets and second chances. It is Liz Moore’s most ambitious and wide-reaching novel yet. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1ef0f025-e664-4976-a179-25e7dd4929a5/52656911.jpg Blog - 21 Summer Thrillers - The Guest List by Lucy Foley The bride – The plus one – The best man – The wedding planner – The bridesmaid – The body On an island off the coast of Ireland, guests gather to celebrate two people joining their lives together as one. The groom: handsome and charming, a rising television star. The bride: smart and ambitious, a magazine publisher. It’s a wedding for a magazine, or for a celebrity: the designer dress, the remote location, the luxe party favors, the boutique whiskey. The cell phone service may be spotty and the waves may be rough, but every detail has been expertly planned and will be expertly executed. But perfection is for plans, and people are all too human. As the champagne is popped and the festivities begin, resentments and petty jealousies begin to mingle with the reminiscences and well wishes. The groomsmen begin the drinking game from their school days. The bridesmaid not-so-accidentally ruins her dress. The bride’s oldest (male) friend gives an uncomfortably caring toast. And then someone turns up dead. Who didn’t wish the happy couple well? And perhaps more important, why? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a3a8b4b2-f636-4473-9cac-9c76621f2d20/101124639.jpg Blog - 21 Summer Thrillers - Bright Young Women by Jessica Knoll A Saturday in 1978 in Florida: In the middle of the night, a man breaks into a female student dormitory. He goes from room to room and kills several residents. He will soon be known as one of the most famous serial killers in the USA. But he was observed committing his crime. The survivors, including key witness Pamela Schumacher, will be forever changed by this night. They have all become victims. But they tell their perspectives here, they remain masters of their stories. And they hunt the perpetrator on their own - against resistance from the justice system and the police; against public opinion, which idolizes the serial killer. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d22397b5-f07e-40e6-bdbc-e1b79ae8228e/58909880.jpg Blog - 21 Summer Thrillers - The House Across the Lake by Riley Sager Casey Fletcher, a recently widowed actress trying to escape a streak of bad press, has retreated to the peace and quiet of her family’s lake house in Vermont. Armed with a pair of binoculars and several bottles of liquor, she passes the time watching Tom and Katherine Royce, the glamorous couple who live in the house across the lake. They make for good viewing—a tech innovator, Tom is rich; and a former model, Katherine is gorgeous. One day on the lake, Casey saves Katherine from drowning, and the two strike up a budding friendship. But the more they get to know each other—and the longer Casey watches—it becomes clear that Katherine and Tom’s marriage is not as perfect and placid as it appears. When Katherine suddenly vanishes, Casey becomes consumed with finding out what happened to her. In the process, she uncovers eerie, darker truths that turn a tale of voyeurism and suspicion into a story of guilt, obsession and how looks can be very deceiving. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/dbd68e6e-5320-486f-b227-50e2a786e5e1/16143347.jpg Blog - 21 Summer Thrillers - We Were Liars by E. Lockhart A beautiful and distinguished family. A private island. A brilliant, damaged girl; a passionate, political boy. A group of four friends—the Liars—whose friendship turns destructive. A revolution. An accident. A secret. Lies upon lies. True love. The truth. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/94cf83e8-ea8e-4678-81bb-73e663678093/207571151-3.jpg Blog - 21 Summer Thrillers - The Lake of Lost Girls by Katherine Greene It's 1998, and female students are going missing at Southern State University in North Carolina. But freshman Jessica Fadley, once a bright and responsible student, is going through her own struggles. Just as her life seems to be careening dangerously out of control, she suddenly disappears. Twenty-four years later, Jessica's sister Lindsey is desperately searching for answers and uses the momentum of a new chart-topping true crime podcast, Ten Seconds to Vanish, that focuses on the cold cases, to guide her own investigation. Soon, interest reaches fever pitch when the bodies of the long-missing women begin turning up at a local lake, which leads Lindsey down a disturbing road of discovery. In the present, one sister seeks to untangle a complicated web of lies. In the past, the other descends ever deeper into a darkness that will lead to her ultimate fate. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bf273256-95ce-43e8-ab4a-c5caf96b5a9c/62802782.jpg Blog - 21 Summer Thrillers - You Can Trust Me by Wendy Heard Summer and Leo would do anything for each other. Inspired by the way each has had to carve her place in a hostile and unforgiving world, and united by the call of the open road, they travel around sunny California in Summer's tricked-out Land Cruiser. It's not a glamorous life, but it gives them the freedom they crave from the painful pasts they've left behind. But even free spirits have bills to pay. Luckily, Summer is a skilled pickpocket, a small-time thief, and a con artist--and Leo, determined to pay her own way, has learned a trick or two. Eager for a big score, Leo catches in her crosshairs Michael Forrester, a self-made billionaire and philanthropist. When her charm wins him over, Leo is rewarded with an invitation to his private island off the California coastline for a night of fabulous excess. She eagerly anticipates returning with photos that can be sold to the paparazzi, jewelry that can be liquidated, and endless stories to share with Summer. Instead, Leo disappears. On her own for the first time in years, Summer decides to infiltrate Michael's island and find out what really happened. But when she arrives, no one has seen Leo--she's not on the island as far as they know. Plus, there was only one way on the island--and no way off--for the coming days. Trapped in a scheme she helped initiate, could Summer have met her match? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ec351731-52dc-4d6e-b882-3e5918ce77cb/80924632.jpg Blog - 21 Summer Thrillers - Keep Your Friends Close by Lucinda Berry When Kiersten McCann, president of the West Hollywood Moms’ Club, turns up dead in her own pool, it quickly becomes clear this wasn’t an accident. And the party guests—all members of the exclusive club—are now key suspects in her murder. Accusations fly, and three mothers find themselves at the center of the investigation. Whitney, Brooke, and Jade all have heavy secrets to bear…and possible motives for their friend’s murder. But as the police look closer, more secrets, betrayals, and sinister plots are revealed than the women could ever imagine. With everything at stake, deceit threatens to shatter their illusions of the perfect life. West Hollywood will never be the same. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1e452277-cd74-4109-b6a1-e3f4331fe1ec/23212667.jpg Blog - 21 Summer Thrillers - All the Missing Girls by Megan Miranda It’s been ten years since Nicolette Farrell left her rural hometown after her best friend, Corinne, disappeared from Cooley Ridge without a trace. Back again to tie up loose ends and care for her ailing father, Nic is soon plunged into a shocking drama that reawakens Corinne’s case and breaks open old wounds long since stitched. The decade-old investigation focused on Nic, her brother Daniel, boyfriend Tyler, and Corinne’s boyfriend Jackson. Since then, only Nic has left Cooley Ridge. Daniel and his wife, Laura, are expecting a baby; Jackson works at the town bar; and Tyler is dating Annaleise Carter, Nic’s younger neighbor and the group’s alibi the night Corinne disappeared. Then, within days of Nic’s return, Annaleise goes missing. Told backwards—Day 15 to Day 1—from the time Annaleise goes missing, Nic works to unravel the truth about her younger neighbor’s disappearance, revealing shocking truths about her friends, her family, and what really happened to Corinne that night ten years ago. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f515b83c-28f8-4f50-b6e6-3d88362a02d1/137991728.jpg Blog - 21 Summer Thrillers - Summer Rental by Rektok Ross Riley March and her friends are headed to ritzy, remote Palm Key Island for one last blow-out party weekend before college. It's the vacation of a lifetime—beautiful beaches, epic nightlife, and hot guys like Riley's crush—superstar soccer player Sebastian Ramos. There's just one catch. Everyone on this trip is hiding something. Riley is hiding her past in order to fit in. Sebastian is hiding his feelings for Riley. And someone is hiding what really happened to Jordyn Chang, a classmate that mysteriously died last summer. Things take a dark turn after one of their friends goes missing, and a hurricane cuts the group off from civilization. Trapped inside their rental house, a killer stalks them one by one. No one is safe. Everyone's a suspect. As the body count rises, Riley and her friends will have to confront the secrets they've been keeping if they want to stay alive . . . https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f429be3f-190c-4869-bb5b-1c31c4b00259/32796253.jpg Blog - 21 Summer Thrillers - Final Girls by Riley Sager Ten years ago, college student Quincy Carpenter went on vacation with five friends and came back alone, the only survivor of a horror movie–scale massacre. In an instant, she became a member of a club no one wants to belong to—a group of similar survivors known in the press as the Final Girls. Lisa, who lost nine sorority sisters to a college dropout's knife; Sam, who went up against the Sack Man during her shift at the Nightlight Inn; and now Quincy, who ran bleeding through the woods to escape Pine Cottage and the man she refers to only as Him. The three girls are all attempting to put their nightmares behind them, and, with that, one another. Despite the media's attempts, they never meet. Now, Quincy is doing well—maybe even great, thanks to her Xanax prescription. She has a caring almost-fiancé, Jeff; a popular baking blog; a beautiful apartment; and a therapeutic presence in Coop, the police officer who saved her life all those years ago. Her memory won’t even allow her to recall the events of that night; the past is in the past. That is, until Lisa, the first Final Girl, is found dead in her bathtub, wrists slit, and Sam, the second, appears on Quincy's doorstep. Blowing through Quincy's life like a whirlwind, Sam seems intent on making Quincy relive the past, with increasingly dire consequences, all of which makes Quincy question why Sam is really seeking her out. And when new details about Lisa's death come to light, Quincy's life becomes a race against time as she tries to unravel Sam's truths from her lies, evade the police and hungry reporters, and, most crucially, remember what really happened at Pine Cottage, before what was started ten years ago is finished. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/fc5b0b89-578d-4984-83b9-8e197cefa4a6/199223892.jpg Blog - 21 Summer Thrillers - The Summer Guests by Tess Gerritsen When former spy Maggie Bird retired to the seaside hamlet of Purity, Maine, she settled in for a quiet life with breathtaking views. But enemies from her past soon threatened to destroy everything. Maggie survived, thanks to her wits and the collective intelligence of the Martini Club, the circle of ex-CIA friends in her cocktail-sipping book club. Their handiwork, however, caught the attention of young police chief Jo Thibodeau. Now Jo and her neighborhood ex-spies have an uneasy alliance. After a teenager vanishes—and Maggie’s neighbor becomes the prime suspect—she joins the investigation, determined to prove her friend’s innocence. But the girl’s wealthy family pushes for an arrest. And when authorities discover a long-dead corpse in a nearby pond, the case becomes doubly complicated, with unthinkable ties to long-buried secrets. As Jo grapples with two unexplained mysteries, the Martini Club races to uncover the truth behind shadowy secrets…before more lives are lost. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/41c51b6e-9090-4abf-b272-c4cb97da005b/217213002-2.jpg Blog - 21 Summer Thrillers - The Missing Half by Ashley Flowers Nicole “Nic” Monroe is in a rut. At twenty-four, she lives alone in a dinky apartment in her hometown of Mishawaka, Indiana, she’s just gotten a DWI, and she works the same dead-end job she’s been working since high school, a job she only has because her boss is a family friend and feels sorry for her. Everyone has felt sorry for her for the last seven years—since the day her older sister, Kasey, vanished without a trace. On the night Kasey went missing, her car was found over a hundred miles from home. The driver’s door was open and her purse was untouched in the seat next to it. The only real clue in her disappearance was Jules Connor, another young woman from the same area who disappeared in the same way, two weeks earlier. But with so little for the police to go on, both their cases eventually went cold. Nic wants nothing more than to move on—from her sister’s disappearance and the state it’s left her in. But then one day, Jules’s sister, Jenna Connor, walks into her life and offers Nic something she hasn’t felt in a long hope. What follows is a gripping tale of two sisters who will do anything to find their missing halves, even if it means destroying everything they’ve ever known. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/20f88ac9-61c7-42d1-99f4-abb6670e1021/58829857-2.jpg Blog - 21 Summer Thrillers - One of the Girls by Lucy Clarke It was supposed to be the perfect weekend away. Six very different women travel to a sun-soaked Greek island for a bachelorette trip, to celebrate Lexi’s upcoming wedding. From the glorious ocean views to the quaint tavernas and whitewashed streets, the vacation seems too good to be true. But dangerous undercurrents run beneath the sunset swims and midnight cocktails – because each of the women is hiding a secret. Someone is determined to make sure that Lexi’s marriage never happens – and that one of them doesn’t leave the island alive. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/912febf3-4b52-4257-9d82-ed3f7d75cbdb/207299448.jpg Blog - 21 Summer Thrillers - The Night We Lost Him by Laura Dave Nora Noone’s father, Liam, was many things to many people. To the public he was a self-made hotel magnate, whose luxury boutique hotels were among the most coveted destinations in the world. To his three ex-wives, he was a loving yet distant family man who managed to keep his finances—and his families—separate. But to Nora, her father was always a mystery—especially after his suspicious death at his cliffside home. Though the authorities rule Liam's death accidental, Nora and her estranged brother, Sam, believe otherwise. As they form an uneasy alliance to unpack the mystery, they start putting together the pieces of their father’s past and uncover a family secret that changes everything. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/49e970b2-106b-4019-96e1-83ee2cf3dfc5/60784641.jpg Blog - 21 Summer Thrillers - The Villa by Rachel Hawkins As kids, Emily and Chess were inseparable. But by their 30s, their bond has been strained by the demands of their adult lives. So when Chess suggests a girls trip to Italy, Emily jumps at the chance to reconnect with her best friend. Villa Aestas in Orvieto is a high-end holiday home now, but in 1974, it was known as Villa Rosato, and rented for the summer by a notorious rock star, Noel Gordon. In an attempt to reignite his creative spark, Noel invites up-and-coming musician, Pierce Sheldon to join him, as well as Pierce’s girlfriend, Mari, and her stepsister, Lara. But he also sets in motion a chain of events that leads to Mari writing one of the greatest horror novels of all time, Lara composing a platinum album––and ends in Pierce’s brutal murder. As Emily digs into the villa’s complicated history, she begins to think there might be more to the story of that fateful summer in 1974. That perhaps Pierce’s murder wasn’t just a tale of sex, drugs, and rock & roll gone wrong, but that something more sinister might have occurred––and that there might be clues hidden in the now-iconic works that Mari and Lara left behind. Yet the closer that Emily gets to the truth, the more tension she feels developing between her and Chess. As secrets from the past come to light, equally dangerous betrayals from the present also emerge––and it begins to look like the villa will claim another victim before the summer ends. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/89e13850-6b3a-4e0b-975c-2d79c645c072/217387739-2.jpg Blog - 21 Summer Thrillers - Parents Weekend by Alex Finlay In the glow of their children’s exciting first year of college at a small private school in Northern California, five families plan on a night of dinner and cocktails for the opening festivities of Parents Weekend. As the parents stay out way past their bedtimes, their kids—five residents of Campisi Hall—never show up at dinner. At first, everyone thinks that they’re just being college students, irresponsibly forgetting about the gathering or skipping out to go to a party. But as the hours click by and another night falls with not so much as a text from the students, panic ensues. Soon, the campus police call in reinforcements. Search parties are formed. Reporters swarm the small enclave. Rumors swirl and questions arise. Libby, Blane, Mark, Felix, and Stella—The Five, as the podcasters, bloggers, and TikTok sleuths call them—come from five very different families. What led them out on that fateful night? Could it be the sins of their mothers and fathers come to cause them peril or a threat to the friend group from within? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bc2e8eac-a8c4-441b-b1a6-4b6db81c3e78/63112140.jpg Blog - 21 Summer Thrillers - Five Nights by Rachel Wolf A powerful family. A luxury cruise. A killer on board… You’re invited to join the infamous Scarmado family on a five night voyage aboard their glamorous new ship. It’s a chance to see your best friend, Belle, newly married to Mattia Scarmado. You haven’t seen her in years. FIVE On the first night, you’ll be wrapped up in the glamour of the ship. FOUR On the second night, you’ll wonder who is sending you threatening notes. THREE On the third night, someone will die. TWO On the fourth night, you’ll discover that someone knows the truth of what you did. ONE On the last night, you’ll be left for dead. WILL YOU MAKE IT BACK TO SHORE ALIVE? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e2e29343-b2dc-4d42-ba97-16986a8d81ec/219301720.jpg Blog - 21 Summer Thrillers - The Last Ferry Out by Andrea Bartz When Abby decided to come to Isla Colel, she wasn't sure what—if anything—she'd find. She only knew that she needed to see the place where her fiancée, Eszter, died, to try and make sense of everything that happened. The island is nothing like Abby expected; though it was once a bustling tourist hub, a hurricane a few years earlier left it a shell of its former self, with only a few locals and expats remaining. Even the once-daily ferry to the mainland now only runs every week or so. There, Abby befriends an alluring group of expats, but her sense of unease surges when one of them says he knows the truth about Eszter's last days. Before she can see him, though, he vanishes from the island. Hours turn to days with no sign of him, and the other expats are chillingly cavalier about his disappearance. As her quest for the truth unearths dark secrets, shady pasts, and a web of lies, Abby grows more determined than ever to find out what happened to the love of her life. And the deeper she gets in the close-knit expat community, the more she suspects one of them is Eszter's killer—and will do anything to keep the truth buried. But will she discover who it is before she becomes the island’s next victim? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/21d0ee05-0428-42b3-a4a0-12cc8dcecdc0/41973359-2.jpg Blog - 21 Summer Thrillers - The Holiday by T.M. Logan Seven days. Three families. One killer. It was supposed to be the perfect holiday - a group of families enjoying a week together in the sun. Four women who have been best friends for as long as they can remember making the most of a luxurious villa in the south of France. But Kate has a secret: her husband is having an affair. And a week away might just be the perfect opportunity to get the proof she needs - to catch him in the act once and for all. Because she suspects the other woman is one of her two best friends. One of them is working against her, willing to sacrifice years of friendship to destroy her family. But which one? As Kate closes in on the truth in the stifling Mediterranean heat, she realises too late that the stakes are far higher than she ever imagined . . . Because someone in the villa may be prepared to kill to keep their secret hidden. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/the-rage-of-dragons-review monthly 0.5 2025-06-15 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/june-new-releases monthly 0.5 2025-06-06 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c8d441f6-ddfe-4950-a498-98503cc15abd/220817728.jpg Blog - June New Releases - Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid Joan Goodwin has been obsessed with the stars for as long as she can remember. Thoughtful and reserved, Joan is content with her life as a professor of physics and astronomy at Rice University and as aunt to her precocious niece, Frances. That is, until she comes across an advertisement seeking the first women scientists to join NASA’s Space Shuttle program. Suddenly, Joan burns to be one of the few people to go to space. Selected from a pool of thousands of applicants in the summer of 1980, Joan begins training at Houston’s Johnson Space Center, alongside an exceptional group of fellow candidates: Top Gun pilot Hank Redmond and scientist John Griffin, who are kind and easy-going even when the stakes are highest; mission specialist Lydia Danes, who has worked too hard to play nice; warm-hearted Donna Fitzgerald, who is navigating her own secrets; and Vanessa Ford, the magnetic and mysterious aeronautical engineer, who can fix any engine and fly any plane. As the new astronauts become unlikely friends and prepare for their first flights, Joan finds a passion and a love she never imagined. In this new light, Joan begins to question everything she thinks she knows about her place in the observable universe. Then, in December of 1984, on mission STS-LR9, everything changes in an instant. Release Date: June 1, 2025 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a8a95c61-7e3a-47e7-8b96-d57dd8cb4083/217388211.jpg Blog - June New Releases - The Other Side of Now by Paige Harbison With a leading role on a hit TV show and a relationship with Hollywood's latest heartthrob, Meg Bryan appears to have everything she ever wanted. But underneath the layers of makeup and hairspray, her happiness is as fake as her stage name, Lana Lord. Following a small breakdown at her thirtieth birthday party, she books an impromptu trip where she knows the grass is greener: Ireland. Specifically, the quaint little village where she and her best friend Aimee always dreamt of moving—a dream that fell apart when an accident claimed Aimee’s life a decade ago. When Meg arrives, the people in town are so nice, treating her not as a stranger, but a friend. Except for the (extremely hot) bartender giving her the cold shoulder. Meg writes it all off as jetlag until she looks in the mirror. Her hair is no longer bleached within an inch of its life, her skin has a few natural fine lines, and her nose looks like… well, her old nose. Her real nose. Her phone reveals hundreds of pictures of her life in this little town: with an adorable dog she doesn’t know; with the bartender who might be her (ex?) boyfriend; and at a retail job unrelated to acting. Eventually, she comes to accept that she somehow made a quantum slide into an alternate version of her life. But the most shocking realization of all? In this life, her best friend Aimee is alive and well…but wants nothing to do with Meg. Despite her bewilderment, Meg is clear-eyed about one thing: this is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to reconnect with her friend and repair what she broke. She finagles an opportunity to act in the play Aimee is writing and directing and as the project unfolds, Meg realizes that events as she remembers them may not be the only truth, and that an impossible choice looms before her. Release Date: June 3, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/309c8f54-2c65-4ab3-abe5-358a1870de28/219446158.jpg Blog - June New Releases - A Forgery of Fate by Elizabeth Lim Truyan Saigas didn't choose to become a con artist, but after her father is lost at sea, it’s up to her to support her mother and two younger sisters. A gifted art forger, Tru has the unique ability to paint the future, but even such magic is not enough to put her family back together again, or stave off the gangsters demanding payment in blood for her mother’s gambling debts. Left with few options, Tru agrees to a marriage contract with a mysterious dragon lord. He offers a fresh start for her mother and sisters and elusive answers about her father's disappearance, but in exchange, she must join him in his desolate undersea palace. And she must assist him in a plot to infiltrate the tyrannical Dragon King's inner circle, painting a future so treasonous, it could upend both the mortal and immortal realms. . . . Release Date: June 3, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1c6bd79c-085a-433d-a434-0aaa51a5f45c/218460257.jpg Blog - June New Releases - Battle of the Bookstores by Ali Brady Despite managing bookstores on the same Boston street, Josie Klein and Ryan Lawson have never interacted much—Josie’s store focuses on serious literature, and Ryan’s sells romance only. But when the new owner of both stores decides to combine them, the two are thrust into direct competition. Only one manager will be left standing, decided by who turns the most profit over the summer. Efficient and detail-oriented Josie instantly clashes with easygoing and disorganized Ryan. Their competing events and contrasting styles lead to more than just frustration—the sparks between them might just set the whole store on fire. Their only solace during this chaos is the friendship they’ve each struck up with an anonymous friend in an online book forum. Little do they know they’re actually chatting with each other. As their rivalry heats up in real life, their online relationship grows, and when the walls between their stores come tumbling down, Josie and Ryan realize not all’s fair in love and war. And maybe, if they’re lucky, happily ever afters aren’t just for the books. Release Date: June 3, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e0fc9f6e-7a33-401e-9b1b-668b841a9c3f/218695909.jpg Blog - June New Releases - What Kind of Paradise by Janelle Brown The first thing you have to understand is that my father was my entire world. Growing up in an isolated cabin in Montana in the mid-1990s, Jane knows only the world that she and her father live the woodstove that heats their home, the vegetable garden where they try to eke out a subsistence existence, the books of nineteenth-century philosophy that her father gives her to read in lieu of going to school. Her father is elusive about their pasts, giving Jane little beyond the facts that they once lived in the Bay Area and that her mother died in a car accident, the crash propelling him to move Jane off the grid to raise her in a Thoreau-like utopia. As Jane becomes a teenager she starts pushing against the boundaries of her restricted world. She begs to accompany her father on his occasional trips away from the cabin. But when Jane realizes that her devotion to her father has made her an accomplice to a horrific crime, she flees Montana to the only place she knows to look for answers about her mysterious past, and her mother's San Francisco. It is a city in the midst of a seismic change, where her quest to understand herself will force her to reckon with both the possibilities and the perils of the fledgling Internet, and where she will come to question everything she values. Release Date: June 3, 2025 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9dc8d73f-3581-4acf-a718-87e0bdc9b173/216594948.jpg Blog - June New Releases - A First Time for Everything by K.L. Walther Madeline has always been extremely close to her family, so she is shocked when her older brother gets engaged without including them (or even giving them a heads up!). Mads has never been the biggest fan of his fiancée, Katie, so in order to remain one happy family, she is determined to bond with Katie before the big day, which includes reluctantly agreeing to be a bridesmaid. During a late-night bridesmaids-only game of "Truth or Dare" Mads is cornered into revealing she has never been kissed or even been on a date, which spurs the other girls to unite on a quest to find Mads the perfect plus-one for the wedding. Next thing she knows she’s navigating a series of disastrous dates that include some major misunderstandings and mishaps. All of a sudden Mads finds her heart tugged in different directions: to Connor, the boy next door who knows her best. To Marco Álvarez, the former classmate who knows how to push all her buttons. And to some of the new suitors who surprisingly aren’t all bad. As the wedding draws nearer, Mads has to figure out who she wants most as a forever dance partner, while also making sure her brother isn't making the biggest mistake of his life. Release Date: June 3, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4e37da25-172e-4f44-afcf-96a2310d1b45/227939188.jpg Blog - June New Releases - Till Summer Do Us Part by Meghan Quinn Scottie Price just started a new job and it's a real sausage fest. She's the only woman on a team filled with Brads and Chads. Expecting a bachelor pad atmosphere, she is quickly corrected when she finds out everyone is happily married. In an effort to impress her boss, Scottie mentions her nonexistent husband in a company meeting. But eagle-eyed Chad points out her lack of wedding ring. Panicked, Scottie creates a story about her unhappy marriage. Unfortunately for Scottie, her boss has a solution—a one-on-one session with the best marriage counselor in the Northeast, who happens to be her boss’s husband. With no way out of her lie, Scottie agrees to see him. Frantic, she calls in help from her best friend who sets her up with his brother, an improv-obsessed millionaire. Enter Wilder Wells. More than happy to take on the job, he teaches Scottie the main rule of always say yes. But the rule backfires during the session when Wilder signs them up for an eight-day summer marriage camp with all of Scottie’s co-workers where she’ll have to share a cabin with her way-too-handsome fake husband. Release Date: June 3, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9770ae6f-4c69-42ef-840d-e5ba76bbeb66/214860496.jpg Blog - June New Releases - Heir of Storms by Lauryn Hamilton Murray The very day Blaze came into the world, she almost drowned it. A Rain Singer born into one of the most powerful fire-wielding families in the empire, Blaze's birth summoned a devastating storm that left thousands dead. She's been hidden away ever since with a dark the same torrential power that branded her an outcast disappeared that fateful day. And she’s not sure she wants it back. When an unexpected invitation arrives for Blaze and her twin brother, Flint, to compete as future rulers of the empire, she’s suddenly thrust into the limelight again -- and into battle. Threats abound at the Golden Palace, where intrigue and romance await with not one but two handsome the enchanting Crown Prince and a dangerously alluring newcomer at court. As Blaze explores her untapped power, she discovers the throne may be within her grasp. But in order to take it, she’ll have to leave behind the stories that others have told about her, and find the courage to write her own. Release Date: June 3, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/302f0fe7-8520-4eec-9a68-f9d327c0c9b9/216879705.jpg Blog - June New Releases - Never Thought I’d End Up Here by Ann Liang Leah Zhang has spent her whole life in LA - it's all she's ever known. But after accidentally wishing her cousin ill health and a very depressing marriage at her wedding, her parents stage an intervention. She's forgotten most of her Mandarin, has zero regard for etiquette, and can't hold a conversation with her own grandparents for longer than a minute. Their solution? Send her on an intensive two-week travel program across China's most beautiful cities. To them, it's the perfect opportunity for Leah to get back to her roots. To Leah, it's simply a much-needed escape. But before Leah can even begin to enjoy the luxurious hotels, stunning scenery, and mouth-watering cuisine, she finds that also on the trip is her former classmate and least favorite person cynical, sarcastic Cyrus, who's somehow only gotten more annoyingly handsome since they last saw each other. While Leah might be tempted to shove him off the peak of the Yellow Mountain when nobody's looking, she can't get rid of him just yet. After all, she might never get another chance to get revenge on the boy who ruined her life. Yet the deeper they wander into China's provinces, the deeper Leah finds herself falling in love - with the boy she once thought she despised, the home she never thought she'd call her own, and the parts of herself she thought were already lost. Release Date: June 3, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3af5c774-34a6-48c5-ae0e-26671f373960/220160455.jpg Blog - June New Releases - Welcome to Murder Week by Karen Dukess When thirty-four-year-old Cath loses her mostly absentee mother, she is ambivalent. With days of quiet, unassuming routine in Buffalo, New York, Cath consciously avoids the impulsive, thrill-seeking lifestyle that her mother once led. But when she’s forced to go through her mother’s things one afternoon, Cath is perplexed to find tickets for an upcoming “murder week” in England’s Peak. A whole town has come together to stage a fake murder mystery to attract tourism to their quaint hamlet. Baffled but helplessly intrigued by her mother’s secret purchase, Cath decides to go on the trip herself—and begins a journey she never could have anticipated. Teaming up with her two cottage-mates, both ardent mystery lovers—Wyatt Green, forty, who works unhappily in his husband’s birding store, and Amity Clark, fifty, a divorced romance writer struggling with her novels—Cath sets about solving the “crime” and begins to unravel shocking truths about her mother along the way. Amidst a fling—or something more—with the handsome local maker of artisanal gin, Cath and her irresistibly charming fellow sleuths will find this week of fake murder may help them face up to a very real crossroads in their own lives. Release Date: June 10, 2025 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/74542804-f484-4245-b4ef-d7fd09264c50/219833252.jpg Blog - June New Releases - King of Ashes by S.A. Cosby When eldest son Roman Carruthers is summoned home after his father’s car accident, he finds his younger brother, Dante, in debt to dangerous criminals and his sister, Neveah, exhausted from holding the family—and the family business—together. Neveah and their father, who run the Carruthers Crematorium in the run-down central Virginia town of Jefferson Run, see death up close every day. But mortality draws even closer when it becomes clear that the crash that landed their father in a coma was no accident and Dante’s recklessness has placed them all in real danger. Roman, a financial whiz with a head for numbers and a talent for making his clients rich, has some money to help buy his brother out of trouble. But in his work with wannabe tough guys, he’s forgotten that there are real gangsters out there. As his bargaining chips go up in smoke, Roman realizes that he has only one thing left to offer to save his himself, and his own particular set of skills. Roman begins his work for the criminals while Neveah tries to uncover the long-ago mystery of what happened to their mother, who disappeared when they were teenagers. But Roman is far less of a pushover than the gangsters realize. He is willing to do anything to save his family. Anything. Because everything burns. Release Date: June 10, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/42bd90ba-427c-4338-8ee9-d0f944d61337/217562358.jpg Blog - June New Releases - Caught Up by Navessa Allen I wanted this woman, and I was a man who always got what he wanted. Nico 'Junior' Trocci knows Lauren Marchetti is off limits. She is sweetness and laughter, whereas Junior exists in a world of violence and depravity. Men like him don't get to have women like her. It's why he pushed her away back in high school and has kept his distance ever since. But when Junior looks Lauren up online, he discovers the shy, bookish girl he remembers is gone. In her place is a strikingly beautiful woman whose social media is filled with scantily clad pictures of herself and a connection to a nearby play club. Junior's innocent curiosity quickly turns into a dark obsession. But watching Lauren from a distance isn't enough; he needs to make her his. He's ruthless; a walking red flag. Good thing red is my favorite color. Lauren is intrigued by the mystery man who keeps showing up at her club, who tempts her white-hot desires. But as their flirty online messages stir up a deeper form of connection, Lauren worries she's developing real feelings for this brooding stranger. As their combined desire ratchets up to a breaking point, who will seduce who? And will they survive the fall? Release Date: June 10, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/042341ce-6bd1-4bc6-8a46-fe4ade545a28/218695931.jpg Blog - June New Releases - A Dance of Lies by Brittney Arena My protector is gone, revealed to be a monster. But I remind myself that I am not a damsel. I’m no princess bound within a tower. I am a shadow. Vasalie Moran was once a dancer in King Illian’s court, until he framed her for murder. Barely surviving her two years in the dungeons, she’s suddenly called to face her king. He offers her a deal: become his spy at the six-week royal Gathering and he’ll grant her freedom. As Illian’s orders grow bloody and dangerous, forcing her to harm and betray those around her, Vasalie discovers that the monster she serves may be aligned with a bigger monster—one far closer to home. With her world threatened, Vasalie enlists the help of Illian’s brother and greatest adversary, the infamous King of the East. As the rivalry between brothers escalates, with Vasalie caught in the middle, the horrifying truth of her past comes to light. If she wants to survive, she must decide who to trust, who to fight for, and how much of her soul she’s willing to damn in the process. Release Date: June 10, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/38abf7ae-971e-482a-bf54-16e098dd913c/219603177.jpg Blog - June New Releases - With a Vengeance by Riley Sager One train. No stops. A deadly game of survival and revenge. In 1942, six people destroyed Anna Matheson’s family. Twelve years later, she’s ready for retribution. Under false pretenses, Anna has lured those responsible for her family’s downfall onto a luxury train from Philadelphia to Chicago, an overnight journey of fourteen hours. Her goal? Confront the people who’ve wronged her, get them to confess their crimes, and deliver them into the hands of authorities waiting at the end of the line. Justice will at last be served. But Anna’s plan is quickly derailed by the murder of one of the passengers. As the train barrels through the night, it becomes clear that someone else on board is enacting their own form of revenge—and that they won’t stop until everyone else is dead. With time running out before the train reaches its destination, Anna is forced to hunt the killer in their midst while protecting the people she hates the most. In order to destroy her enemies, she must first save them—even though it means putting her own life at risk. Release Date: June 10, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8f8bfe6d-20d3-4b75-9ea2-e5c08e816a70/218695924.jpg Blog - June New Releases - Slow Burn Summer by Josie Silver A talent agent hires an actress to play the part of “novelist” on a book tour for his agency’s publicity-shy client She’s playing the part of romance author, but has she found her own real life love story? Talent agent Charlie Francisco has three problems: a divorce that ended his screenwriting career, a business he never planned to inherit, and a take-your-breath-away romance novel whose author wants nothing to do with its publication. The book is a surefire hit, if only his agency can find someone to “play” author on its summer book tour. Enter Kate Elliott, a former soap actress who’s miraculously right for the part at the very moment her life seems to be going all wrong. Kate is still recovering from her own divorce and Charlie’s job offer is a lifeline. She agrees to the pretense for all interviews, signings, and appearances surrounding the novel’s publication. But she can’t know who really wrote the remarkable story—the one so beautiful it’s made her believe in love again. When Kate and Charlie meet they’re all friction and sparks—the one thing they have in common is they’re determined to play their respective parts. But as the summer heat ups and the lies get bigger and bigger, can they stick to their lines . . . or will they go off-script? Release Date: June 10, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6da7c97b-ec8b-4c03-91d5-4bc84c79fdea/217388429.jpg Blog - June New Releases - The Bachelorette Party by Camilla Sten On a remote, craggy island nestled off the coast of Sweden, four friends—Tilly, Anna, Linnea and Evelina—meet every year. Best friends since childhood, the idea is to drink beer, dance by the water, and shake off the weight of life's expectations. The location of the island is a secret to everyone but them. One night of reckless fun and secret-sharing, and then they return to their normal lives. Ten years later. Ever since she was a teenager, Tessa Nilsson has been consumed by the story of four friends who disappeared on their annual trip to a remote island together. As her true crime fervor turned into a wildly popular podcast, Tessa urgently covered Sweden’s most gruesome cases, but could never find the answers behind what happened to these women who disappeared, leaving a few maddening clues but no concrete answers. Now Tessa’s podcast has crashed and burned, any chance she had at uncovering the truth vanishing with it. Anneliese is Tessa’s best friend, and before she walks down the aisle, she wants to have a bachelorette party. The Baltic Vinyasa, a sleek, sophisticated yoga retreat on a small island off the coast—one with such similar characteristics to the tragedy years ago that it raises the hair on Tessa’s neck. The idea is to drink gallons of cava, do sunrise yoga, and get in their last chance to bond with the bride. Tessa will not pass this up. It’s her last chance to find out what happened to the four women, once and for all. And it’s someone else’s last chance to get revenge. Release Date: June 10, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0a315dfb-9a20-4ca2-b6d9-a6f3c1a1ff03/218695847.jpg Blog - June New Releases - Never Been Shipped by Alicia Thompson Micah's relationship to music is complicated. As teenagers, her band took off after being featured on a popular TV show, but the group barely released their sophomore album before breaking up. Now, over a decade later, the band is reuniting for one more performance on a themed cruise, and Micah is determined to learn from her past mistakes -- no losing herself in the music, and no losing her heart along the way. John misses playing in a band, and mostly he misses Micah, who'd been his best friend until the music stopped. Back then, he didn't take the lead, either in his guitar parts or while he sat back and watched her date another bandmate. John's never been one to rock the boat, but he's faced with another chance now that this cruise has brought music -- and Micah -- back in his life. Onboard, Micah can't help but see John with brand new eyes, and John's feelings only intensify as the discordant band's tension grows to a breaking point. With five days at sea, there's a ticking clock on anything that might develop between them, and they'll have to decide if their relationship is destined to be more than a one-hit wonder. Release Date: June 10, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7d831b68-a094-4f71-9156-db514462d6c5/220161384.jpg Blog - June New Releases - Someone Knows by Vi Keeland As a college English professor, Elizabeth looks forward to the start of each new semester teaching her creative writing seminar. At least until she reads chapter one of The Reckoning, a tale about a high school senior who has an affair with her teacher. To anyone else it would be the beginning of a great page-turner, but to Elizabeth it is the beginning of the end. She knows this story. It’s all familiar because she lived it. The girl in the story was her best friend Jocelyn, and Elizabeth knows exactly how the story will end—with the professor dead. Because she was the one who killed him. Someone knows what Elizabeth did twenty years ago and her secret is about to be exposed, but who is the mystery student submitting the chapters? In an effort to find out, Elizabeth returns to her Louisiana hometown where it soon becomes clear that no matter how many years have gone by, she can’t escape her past. Release Date: June 10, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8ad04a81-385f-4eb6-b44c-8b0a0ad9a6fb/220637398.jpg Blog - June New Releases - Gloves Off by Stephanie Archer The only way to get my inheritance? Marry Alexei Volkov—the grumpiest enforcer in the NHL, a brutally handsome jerk, and the last man I’d ever fall for. In public, we act as besotted newlyweds, but in private, we’re at each other’s throats. He’s competitive, arrogant, and surly. The guy’s never cracked a smile in his life. He’s jealous of my ex, he glares at my high heels, and insists he’s not attracted to me. He’s only marrying me for citizenship. Fighting with Alexei is more fun than expected, though, and beneath his grouchy exterior, Alexei is surprisingly caring, protective, and generous. He cooks for me and worries about my safety. He sends me flowers with secret meanings and spends way too much money on me. He makes me sleep in his bed and calls me his wife. For a guy who said he’d never fall in love with me, Alexei’s doing a good impression of it… and now I’m wondering if this marriage is fake after all. Release Date: June 17, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/88754995-b48a-42d0-ac13-27b846f15531/219301723.jpg Blog - June New Releases - Don’t Open Your Eyes by Liv Constantine Annabelle has everything she’s ever wanted. A devoted husband, two wonderful daughters, and a career she loves. She couldn’t be happier. So why is she suddenly plagued by disturbing dreams of a future where she hates her husband and her daughters’ lives are at risk? At first, she chalks the dreams up to an overactive imagination. But when details from her dreams, details she couldn’t possibly have predicted, begin to materialize, she realizes these aren’t just dreams but rather premonitions of a terrifying future. They all point to a singular choice, an unknown moment that holds Annabelle’s life in the balance. Then Annabelle has a dream that her daughter, Scarlett, is in immediate danger. Someone wants Scarlett dead and Annabelle has no idea who or why. Suddenly, every choice she makes is fraught with peril, with no inkling of which move could bring this terrifying vision to life. As her present life starts to collide with the future in her dreams, she wrestles with how much control she really has over her destiny and whether or not she can change what is meant to be. Release Date: June 17, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d2f7815c-2d1b-46bb-8a9e-eafa8b4ff51d/218431658.jpg Blog - June New Releases - The Poppy Fields by Nokki Erlick What if there were a cure for the broken-hearted? Welcome to the Poppy Fields, where there’s hope for even the most battered hearts to heal. Here, in a remote stretch of the California desert, lies an experimental and controversial treatment center that allows those suffering from the heartache of loss to sleep through their pain...and keep on sleeping. After patients awaken from this prolonged state of slumber, they will finally be healed. But only if they’re willing to accept the potential shadowy side effects. On a journey to this mystical destination are four very different strangers and one little dog: Ava, a book illustrator; Ray, a fireman; Sasha, an occupational therapist; Sky, a free spirit; and a friendly pup named PJ. As they attempt to make their way from the Midwest all the way to the Poppy Fields—where they hope to find Ellis, its brilliant, enigmatic founder—each of their past secrets and mysterious motivations threaten to derail their voyage. Release Date: June 17, 2025 Genre: Science Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f3d4be64-8f46-4e6e-bb41-fb3f52c95f5c/219301746.jpg Blog - June New Releases - Sounds Like Love by Ashley Poston Joni Lark is living the dream. She’s one of the most coveted songwriters in LA…and she can’t seem to write. There’s an emptiness inside her, and nothing seems to fill it. When she returns to her hometown of Vienna Shores, North Carolina, she hopes that the sand, the surf, and the concerts at The Revelry, her family’s music venue, will spark her inspiration. But when she gets there, nothing is how she left it. Her best friend is avoiding her, her mother’s memories are fading fast, and The Revelry is closing. How can she think about writing her next song when everything is changing without her? Until she hears it. A melody in her head, lyric-less and half-formed, and an alluring and addictive voice to go with it—belonging, apparently, to a wry musician with hangups of his own. Surely, he’s a figment of her overworked imagination. But then the very real man attached to the voice shows up in Vienna Shores. He’s aggravating and gruff on the outside—nothing like the sweet, funny voice in Joni’s head—and he has a plan: They’ll finish the song haunting them both, break their connection, and hope they don’t risk their hearts in the process. Because that song stuck in their heads? Maybe it’s there for a reason. Release Date: June 17, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b22e8915-2f5c-4f99-96a0-350adf355e08/220160204.jpg Blog - June New Releases - The Stolen Life of Colette Marceau Colette Marceau has been stealing jewels for nearly as long as she can remember, following the centuries-old code of honor instilled in her by her mother, take only from the cruel and unkind, and give to those in need. Never was their family tradition more important than seven decades earlier, during the Second World War, when Annabel and Colette worked side by side in Paris to fund the French Resistance. But one night in 1942, it all went wrong. Annabel was arrested by the Germans, and Colette’s four-year-old sister, Liliane, disappeared in the chaos of the raid, along with an exquisite diamond bracelet sewn into the hem of her nightgown for safekeeping. Soon after, Annabel was executed, and Liliane’s body was found floating in the Seine—but the bracelet was nowhere to be found. Seventy years later, Colette—who has “redistributed” $30 million in jewels over the decades to fund many worthy organizations—has done her best to put her tragic past behind her, but her life begins to unravel when the long-missing bracelet suddenly turns up in a museum exhibit in Boston. If Colette can discover where it has been all this time—and who owns it now—she may finally learn the truth about what happened to her sister. But she isn’t the only one for whom the bracelet holds answers, and when someone from her childhood lays claim to the diamonds, she’s forced to confront the ghosts of her past as never before. Against all odds, there may still be a chance to bring a murderer to justice—but first, Colette will have to summon the courage to open her own battered heart. Release Date: June 17, 2025 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1a7c1788-4b85-48c0-9c94-e0f764d491ce/220160814.jpg Blog - June New Releases - Don’t Let Him In by Lisa Jewell “Who are you? Who are you really?” Nick Radcliffe is a man of substance and good taste. He has a smile that could melt the coldest heart and a knack for putting others at ease. He’s just what Nina Swann needed in her life after her husband’s unexpected death. But to Nina’s adult daughter, Ash, Nick seems too slick, too polished, too good to be true. Without telling her mother, Ash begins digging into Nick’s past. What she finds is more than unsettling… “Because there are things that don’t make sense, and I’ve been so patient, so very patient…” Martha is a florist living in a neighboring town with her infant daughter and her devoted husband Alistair. But lately, Alistair has been traveling more and more frequently for work, disappearing for days at a time. When Martha questions him about his frequent absences, he always has a legitimate explanation, but Martha can’t share the feeling that something isn't right. “You know that’s mad, don’t you? I’m your husband. We know everything there is to know about each other.” Nina, Martha, and Ash are on a collision course with a shocking truth that is far darker than anyone could have imagined. And all three are about to wish they had heeded the same warning: Don’t let him in. But the past won’t stay buried forever. Release Date: June 24, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d6c11f67-e0e6-45d1-9742-d9efaf08907d/216601219.jpg Blog - June New Releases - The Undercurrent by Sarah Sawyer It’s 2011 and Deecie Jeffries’s missing person’s case in Austin, Texas, is still cold. New mom Bee, struggling with postpartum depression, is living in Portland, Maine, having left Austin–and those memories–far behind. Until Leo, her childhood crush and her estranged twin Gus’s best friend, suddenly resurfaces, drawing Bee back into their shared past. Bee’s predictable life is upended, pushing her to return to her childhood home and piece together a neighborhood’s shattered history. Bee becomes consumed with a need to uncover the truth about Deecie’s disappearance and what happened to the families who lived across the field from one another—Gus, Leo, and their mothers: Mary, a homemaker, whose only escape is the local community theater, and Diana, a serious academic dedicated to her studies. Release Date: June 24, 2025 Genre: Mystery https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/project-hail-mary-review monthly 0.5 2025-05-19 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/15-ya-must-reads monthly 0.5 2025-05-11 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9c0a4179-9c74-4c2a-91ad-92bc7822456d/10507293-2.jpg Blog - 15 YA Must-Reads - The Selection by Kiera Cass For thirty-five girls, the Selection is the chance of a lifetime. The opportunity to escape the life laid out for them since birth. To be swept up in a world of glittering gowns and priceless jewels. To live in a palace and compete for the heart of gorgeous Prince Maxon. But for America Singer, being Selected is a nightmare. It means turning her back on her secret love with Aspen, who is a caste below her. Leaving her home to enter a fierce competition for a crown she doesn't want. Living in a palace that is constantly threatened by violent rebel attacks. Then America meets Prince Maxon. Gradually, she starts to question all the plans she's made for herself—and realizes that the life she's always dreamed of may not compare to a future she never imagined. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/92a04f3c-dee2-428d-89ac-88df5f55f07e/27883214.jpg Blog - 15 YA Must-Reads - Caraval by Stephanie Garber A legendary competition. A mesmerizing romance. An unbreakable bond between two sisters. Scarlett Dragna has never left the tiny island where she and her sister, Tella, live with their powerful, and cruel, father. Now Scarlett’s father has arranged a marriage for her, and Scarlett thinks her dreams of seeing Caraval—the faraway, once-a-year performance where the audience participates in the show—are over. But this year, Scarlett’s long-dreamt-of invitation finally arrives. With the help of a mysterious sailor, Tella whisks Scarlett away to the show. Only, as soon as they arrive, Tella is kidnapped by Caraval’s mastermind organizer, Legend. It turns out that this season’s Caraval revolves around Tella, and whoever finds her first is the winner. Scarlett has been told that everything that happens during Caraval is only an elaborate performance. Nevertheless she becomes enmeshed in a game of love, heartbreak, and magic. And whether Caraval is real or not, Scarlett must find Tella before the five nights of the game are over or a dangerous domino effect of consequences will be set off, and her beloved sister will disappear forever. Welcome, welcome to Caraval . . . beware of getting swept too far away. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/552c41d2-89fc-421b-b12f-d0f27552b9b5/43263520.jpg Blog - 15 YA Must-Reads - The Grace Year by Kim Liggett No one speaks of the grace year. It’s forbidden. In Garner County, girls are told they have the power to lure grown men from their beds, to drive women mad with jealousy. They believe their very skin emits a powerful aphrodisiac, the potent essence of youth, of a girl on the edge of womanhood. That’s why they’re banished for their sixteenth year, to release their magic into the wild so they can return purified and ready for marriage. But not all of them will make it home alive. Sixteen-year-old Tierney James dreams of a better life—a society that doesn’t pit friend against friend or woman against woman, but as her own grace year draws near, she quickly realizes that it’s not just the brutal elements they must fear. It’s not even the poachers in the woods, men who are waiting for a chance to grab one of the girls in order to make a fortune on the black market. Their greatest threat may very well be each other. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/fbe276a4-3eda-4478-8f72-70614e616dbd/60784546-2.jpg Blog - 15 YA Must-Reads - Divine Rivals by Rebecca Ross After centuries of sleep, the gods are warring again… All eighteen-year-old Iris Winnow wants to do is hold her family together. With a brother on the frontline forced to fight on behalf of the Gods now missing from the frontline and a mother drowning her sorrows, Iris’s best bet is winning the columnist promotion at the Oath Gazette. But when Iris’s letters to her brother fall into the wrong hands – that of the handsome but cold Roman Kitt, her rival at the paper – an unlikely magical connection forms. Expelled into the middle of a mystical war, magical typewriters in tow, can their bond withstand the fight for the fate of mankind and, most importantly, love? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/74b41389-fd18-4567-8d83-771fadcb658f/179031684.jpg Blog - 15 YA Must-Reads - I Wish You Would by Eva Des Lauriers It’s Senior Sunrise, the epic overnight at the beach that kicks off senior year. But for Natalia and Ethan, it’s the first time seeing each other after what happened at junior prom—when they almost crossed the line from best friends to something more and ruined everything. After ghosting each other all summer, Natalia is desperate to pretend she doesn’t care and Ethan is desperate to fix his mistake. When the senior class carries out their tradition of writing private letters to themselves—what they wish they would do this year if they were braver—Natalia pours her heart out. So does Ethan. So does everyone in their entire class. But in Natalia’s panicked attempt to retrieve her heartfelt confession, the wind scatters seven of the notes across the beach. Now, Ethan and Natalia are forced to work together to find the lost letters before any secrets are revealed—especially their own. Seven private confessions. Seven time bombs loose for anyone to find. And one last chance before the sun rises for these two to fall in love. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/706da263-4c6a-47cc-b369-38c384eb33c4/199531937-2.jpg Blog - 15 YA Must-Reads - Us in Ruins by Rachel Moore The mythical Vase of Venus Aurelia hasn’t been seen since 1932, but Margot Rhodes is determined to change that. Drawn by the vase’s supposed magical properties, Margot embarks on her school’s archaeological trip to Pompeii. Sure, it’s her first time holding a shovel, but she’s got something no one else does: lost teenage explorer Van Keane’s journal. Poring over the poetic entries that serve as a map to the vase’s missing shards, Margot finds herself falling in love with the boy who wrote it a century ago. She’s shocked when her search leads her to a statue that looks exactly like Van, and then the statue comes to life. Catapulted into the present, Van is nothing like the wordsmith Margot imagined. He’s all sharp edges, intent on retrieving the relic for all the wrong reasons. But it takes two to survive Venus’s death-defying challenges, and, together, Margot and Van must excavate the treasure—and their buried pasts—before their story ends in ruins. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/27d7af62-5526-47f4-9a3d-5cce4a2cdca3/55710822-2.jpg Blog - 15 YA Must-Reads - Better Than the Movies by Lynn Painter Perpetual daydreamer Liz Buxbaum gave her heart to Michael a long time ago. But her cool, aloof forever crush never really saw her before he moved away. Now that he’s back in town, Liz will do whatever it takes to get on his radar - and maybe snag him as a prom date - even befriend Wes Bennet. The annoyingly attractive next-door neighbor might seem like a prime candidate for romantic-comedy fantasies, but Wes has only been a pain in Liz’s butt since they were kids. Pranks involving frogs and decapitated lawn gnomes do not a potential boyfriend make. Yet, somehow, Wes and Michael are hitting it off, which means Wes is Liz’s in. But as Liz and Wes scheme to get Liz noticed by Michael so she can have her magical prom moment, she’s shocked to discover that she likes being around Wes. And as they continue to grow closer, she must reexamine everything she thought she knew about love - and rethink her own ideas of what happily ever after should look like. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8a0462be-bbee-49a9-957d-ff0008a4bb5c/23437156.jpg Blog - 15 YA Must-Reads - Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo Ketterdam: a bustling hub of international trade where anything can be had for the right price—and no one knows better than criminal prodigy Kaz Brekker. Kaz is offered a chance at a deadly heist that could make him rich beyond his wildest dreams. But he can't pull it off alone... A convict with a thirst for revenge A sharpshooter who can't walk away from a wager A runaway with a privileged past A spy known as a Wraith A Heartrender using her magic to survive the slums A thief with a gift for unlikely escapes Kaz's crew are the only ones who might stand between the world and destruction—if they dont kill each other first. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6fba12c3-ff62-4b46-851f-a907326ea136/61287784-2.jpg Blog - 15 YA Must-Reads - Where the Dark Stands Still by A.B. Poranek Raised in a small village near the spirit-wood, Liska Radost knows that Magic is monstrous, and its practitioners, monsters. After Liska unleashes her own powers with devastating consequences, she is caught by the demon warden of the wood – the Leszy – who offers her a bargain: one year of servitude in exchange for a wish. Whisked away to his crumbling manor, Liska soon discovers the sinister roots of their bargain. And if she wants to survive the year and return home, she must unravel her host’s spool of secrets and face the ghosts of his past. Those who enter the wood do not always return… https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d1e4551c-4668-4ad0-8498-767372f60058/123429195.jpg Blog - 15 YA Must-Reads - That’s Not My Name by Megan Lally She thought she had her life back. She was wrong. It was a mistake to trust him. Shivering and bruised, a teen wakes up on the side of a dirt road with no memory of how she got there―or who she is. A passing officer takes her to the police station, and not long after, a frantic man arrives. He's been searching for her for hours. He has her school ID, her birth certificate, and even family photos. He is her father. Her name is Mary. Or so he says. When Lola slammed the car door and stormed off into the night, Drew thought they just needed some time to cool off. Except Lola disappeared, and the sheriff, his friends, and the whole town are convinced Drew murdered his girlfriend. Forget proving his innocence, he needs to find her before it's too late. The longer Lola is missing, the fewer leads there are to follow…and the more danger they both are in. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/24d76636-9aa4-4810-9dc7-4ddb7028790f/208840739-2.jpg Blog - 15 YA Must-Reads - Boys With Sharp Teeth by Jenni Howell Seventeen-year-old Marin James has spent her entire life living in the shadow of the exclusive Huntsworth Academy. And when her cousin’s dead body is found in a creek on school property, Marin knows exactly who’s to blame: Adrian Hargraves and Henry Wu, the enigmatic yet dangerously alluring leaders of the school's social elite. Swapping her ripped jeans for a crisp prep school skirt, Marin infiltrates Huntsworth to seek justice. But her quest is quickly muddied by a confusing attraction to her new life, and to the two dysfunctional and depraved boys who somehow understand her better than anyone ever has. When Marin uncovers an otherworldly secret the boys are hiding within Huntsworth's ivied gates, the lines between right and wrong, love and hate, and nightmare and reality begin to crumble -- and nothing is as it seems. Welcome to Huntsworth Academy. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9da77e13-0c84-4d0f-9138-eb14f7a9cf2c/215750325-3.jpg Blog - 15 YA Must-Reads - Nightwear by R.M. Gray Six hundred years ago, Nightweavers, cursed beings with untamed power, claimed the continents for their own. The ocean was meant to be a safe haven for humanity, including seventeen-year-old Aster Oberon and her pirate family. But after Aster’s brother is killed in an epic battle at sea against Nightweavers, Aster and her family are thrust into a new life on land. When a handsome Nightweaver named Will offers the Oberons protection and work at his opulent estate, Aster is suspicious. As the arrogant and entitled right hand to the wicked prince, Will is everything that she has been taught to hate. But as he shows empathy and kindness, Aster can’t ignore a blooming attraction. And even more, Will opens her eyes to a new There are monsters worse than Nightweavers, monsters who may be behind her brother’s death. As Aster hunts the creatures responsible, dark secrets threaten to unravel everything she once believed about her family, herself, and her world. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/811956ad-8b7c-4036-8d22-0c0ba6130851/52189092-2.jpg Blog - 15 YA Must-Reads - A Good Girls Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson Everyone in Fairview knows the story. Pretty and popular high school senior Andie Bell was murdered by her boyfriend, Sal Singh, who then killed himself. It was all anyone could talk about. And five years later, Pip sees how the tragedy still haunts her town. But she can’t shake the feeling that there was more to what happened that day. She knew Sal when she was a child, and he was always so kind to her. How could he possibly have been a killer? Now a senior herself, Pip decides to reexamine the closed case for her final project, at first just to cast doubt on the original investigation. But soon she discovers a trail of dark secrets that might actually prove Sal innocent . . . and the line between past and present begins to blur. Someone in Fairview doesn’t want Pip digging around for answers, and now her own life might be in danger. This is the story of an investigation turned obsession, full of twists and turns and with an ending you’ll never expect. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5c676ca5-fea3-48a2-a3f8-219f9869f7dc/13455782.jpg Blog - 15 YA Must-Reads - Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi Juliette hasn’t touched anyone in exactly 264 days. The last time she did, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette’s touch is fatal. As long as she doesn’t hurt anyone else, no one really cares. The world is too busy crumbling to pieces to pay attention to a 17-year-old girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds don’t fly anymore, and the clouds are the wrong color. The Reestablishment said their way was the only way to fix things, so they threw Juliette in a cell. Now so many people are dead that the survivors are whispering war – and The Reestablishment has changed its mind. Maybe Juliette is more than a tortured soul stuffed into a poisonous body. Maybe she’s exactly what they need right now. Juliette has to make a choice: Be a weapon. Or be a warrior. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/50ce7ca0-723d-4379-afac-c646e8bde398/22328546.jpg Blog - 15 YA Must-Reads - Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard This is a world divided by blood—red or silver. The Reds are commoners, ruled by a Silver elite in possession of god-like superpowers. And to Mare Barrow, a seventeen-year-old Red girl from the poverty-stricken Stilts, it seems like nothing will ever change. That is until she finds herself working in the Silver Palace. Here, surrounded by the people she hates the most, Mare discovers that, despite her red blood, she possesses a deadly power of her own. One that threatens to destroy the balance of power. Fearful of Mare's potential, the Silvers hide her in plain view, declaring her a long-lost Silver princess, now engaged to a Silver prince. Despite knowing that one misstep would mean her death, Mare works silently to help the Red Guard, a militant resistance group, and bring down the Silver regime. But this is a world of betrayal and lies, and Mare has entered a dangerous dance—Reds against Silvers, prince against prince, and Mare against her own heart. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/summer-fantasy-recommendations monthly 0.5 2025-05-04 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d42f0cc5-9ba1-485a-880e-9b282f15b06a/34499221-3.jpg Blog - Summer Fantasy Recommendations - To Kill a Kingdom by Alexandra Christo Princess Lira is siren royalty and the most lethal of them all. With the hearts of seventeen princes in her collection, she is revered across the sea. Until a twist of fate forces her to kill one of her own. To punish her daughter, the Sea Queen transforms Lira into the one thing they loathe most—a human. Robbed of her song, Lira has until the winter solstice to deliver Prince Elian’s heart to the Sea Queen or remain a human forever. The ocean is the only place Prince Elian calls home, even though he is heir to the most powerful kingdom in the world. Hunting sirens is more than an unsavory hobby—it’s his calling. When he rescues a drowning woman in the ocean, she’s more than what she appears. She promises to help him find the key to destroying all of sirenkind for good—But can he trust her? And just how many deals will Elian have to barter to eliminate mankind’s greatest enemy? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/fa89f728-e3d8-41b6-ae08-433ad782c847/60749888.jpg Blog - Summer Fantasy Recommendations - From Tormented Tides by Val E. Lane Unravel the past. Break the curse. Pass midterms. And don’t fall in love with dead pirates. Katrina Delmar has no idea that Milo, the charming guy she meets at a college party, was supposed to have died at sea 300 years ago. She only knows that she's drawn to him right away. But she’s also caught the attention of his crewmate, Bellamy, whose mysterious allure is hard to resist. Falling for undead pirates is the least of her worries when there seems to be something sinister lurking beneath the surface. And when the ruthless captain of the ship discovers Katrina may hold the key to breaking the crew’s curse, he's hellbent on taking it from her at whatever cost. With time running out, Katrina must learn who she can trust and unlock the mysteries of the past before she and those she loves are pulled under by a curse of her own. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/45c960da-45ab-4941-98ea-c9b91fcf5844/83816867-2.jpg Blog - Summer Fantasy Recommendations - Curse of the Nautilus by Ralynn Kimie There was once a sea witch with powers that rivaled Poseidon himself. When she challenged him for his throne, he killed her, and her magic was locked away in a nautilus shell lost in the dark ocean depths. Sought after by many, none had the power to wield it. Until now. Villains are not born. They're made. Anela is a 26-year-old sea nymph in Hawai'i. Still nursing a broken heart from a former flame, she keeps others at an arm's length away so no one can hurt her again. Her life is turned upside down when her mother brings home a man brought to the Hawaiian Islands by raging storm, whose presence in the Pacific angers the shark gods, but pleases her younger sister, Malia. Hi'iaka, her mother, insists on protecting him from them and Anela is determined to find out why. Triton is a 28-year-old prince of the Atlantic Ocean. Charming and handsome, yet arrogant and self-serving, he only really has one goal on his mind: get back home by any means necessary. When his plan goes south and someone is severely hurt, he reconsiders that he may be stuck as a land dweller forever. Forced to be in the company of beings he hates most, he has to stop playing life like a game before someone gets killed. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4b862f7d-336e-429b-a70e-ce2db9a2605c/62039411-3.jpg Blog - Summer Fantasy Recommendations - Daughter of the Pirate King Tricia Levenseller There will be plenty of time for me to beat him soundly once I've gotten what I came for. Sent on a mission to retrieve an ancient hidden map―the key to a legendary treasure trove―seventeen-year-old pirate captain Alosa deliberately allows herself to be captured by her enemies, giving her the perfect opportunity to search their ship. More than a match for the ruthless pirate crew, Alosa has only one thing standing between her and the her captor, the unexpectedly clever and unfairly attractive first mate Riden. But not to worry, for Alosa has a few tricks up her sleeve, and no lone pirate can stop the Daughter of the Pirate King. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8b684b21-1835-4862-80d8-4d4a7ee138f9/62326344.jpg Blog - Summer Fantasy Recommendations - Dark Water Daughter by H.M. Long A stormsinger and pirate hunter join forces against a deathless pirate lord in this swashbuckling Jacobean adventure on the high-seas. Mary Firth is a Stormsinger: a woman whose voice can still hurricanes and shatter armadas. Faced with servitude to pirate lord Silvanus Lirr, Mary offers her skills to his arch-rival in exchange for protection - and, more importantly, his help sending Lirr to a watery grave. But her new ally has a vendetta of his own, and Mary's dreams are dark and full of ghistings, spectral creatures who inhabit the ancient forests of her homeland and the figureheads of ships. Samuel Rosser is a disgraced naval officer serving aboard The Hart, an infamous privateer commissioned to bring Lirr to justice. He will stop at nothing to capture Lirr, restore his good name and reclaim the only thing that stands between himself and madness: a talisman stolen by Mary. Finally, driven into the eternal ice at the limits of their world, Mary and Samuel must choose their loyalties and battle forces older and more powerful than the pirates who would make them slaves. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1956d193-351a-4447-9dab-3271f84cc2d7/61294937-2.jpg Blog - Summer Fantasy Recommendations - The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty Amina al-Sirafi should be content. After a storied and scandalous career as one of the Indian Ocean’s most notorious pirates, she’s survived backstabbing rogues, vengeful merchant princes, several husbands, and one actual demon to retire peacefully with her family to a life of piety, motherhood, and absolutely nothing that hints of the supernatural. But when she’s tracked down by the obscenely wealthy mother of a former crewman, she’s offered a job no bandit could refuse: retrieve her comrade’s kidnapped daughter for a kingly sum. The chance to have one last adventure with her crew, do right by an old friend, and win a fortune that will secure her family’s future forever? It seems like such an obvious choice that it must be God’s will. Yet the deeper Amina dives, the more it becomes alarmingly clear there’s more to this job, and the girl’s disappearance, than she was led to believe. For there’s always risk in wanting to become a legend, to seize one last chance at glory, to savor just a bit more power…and the price might be your very soul. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/59f282bb-ff8a-45ee-8a89-f9e349d936fc/36502054.jpg Blog - Summer Fantasy Recommendations - Sea Witch by Sarah Henning Everyone knows what happens in the end. A mermaid, a prince, a true love’s kiss. But before that young siren’s tale, there were three friends. One feared, one royal, and one already dead. Ever since her best friend, Anna, drowned, Evie has been an outcast in her small fishing town. A freak. A curse. A witch. A girl with an uncanny resemblance to Anna appears offshore and, though the girl denies it, Evie is convinced that her best friend actually survived. That her own magic wasn’t so powerless after all. And, as the two girls catch the eyes—and hearts—of two charming princes, Evie believes that she might finally have a chance at her own happily ever after. But her new friend has secrets of her own. She can’t stay in Havnestad, or on two legs, unless Evie finds a way to help her. Now Evie will do anything to save her friend’s humanity, along with her prince’s heart—harnessing the power of her magic, her ocean, and her love until she discovers, too late, the truth of her bargain. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c6ba8186-bb7e-43ec-adfe-310c5c040f49/57626046.jpg Blog - Summer Fantasy Recommendations - Monsters Born and Made by Tanvi Berwah Sixteen-year-old Koral and her older brother Emrik risk their lives each day to capture the monstrous maristags that live in the black seas around their island. They have to, or else their family will starve. In an oceanic world swarming with vicious beasts, the Landers―the ruling elite, have indentured Koral's family to provide the maristags for the Glory Race, a deadly chariot tournament reserved for the upper class. The winning contender receives gold and glory. The others―if they're lucky―survive. When the last maristag of the year escapes and Koral has no new maristag to sell, her family's financial situation takes a turn for the worse and they can't afford medicine for her chronically ill little sister. Koral's only choice is to do what no one in the world has ever dared: cheat her way into the Glory Race. But every step of the way is unpredictable as Koral races against contenders―including her ex-boyfriend―who have trained for this their whole lives and who have no intention of letting a low-caste girl steal their glory. When a rebellion rises and rogues attack Koral to try and force her to drop out, she must choose―her life or her sister's―before the whole island burns. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f479bb95-1b17-4e30-bc9d-223022bdb0b7/63068384-2.jpg Blog - Summer Fantasy Recommendations - Tress of the Emerald Sea by Brandon Sanderson The only life Tress has known on her island home in an emerald-green ocean has been a simple one, with the simple pleasures of collecting cups brought by sailors from faraway lands and listening to stories told by her friend Charlie. But when his father takes him on a voyage to find a bride and disaster strikes, Tress must stow away on a ship and seek the Sorceress of the deadly Midnight Sea. Amid the spore oceans where pirates abound, can Tress leave her simple life behind and make her own place sailing a sea where a single drop of water can mean instant death? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/16e39561-1ed4-4260-a332-047e108ae0af/44012880.jpg Blog - Summer Fantasy Recommendations - Fable by Adrienne Young For seventeen-year-old Fable, the daughter of the most powerful trader in the Narrows, the sea is the only home she has ever known. It’s been four years since the night she watched her mother drown during an unforgiving storm. The next day her father abandoned her on a legendary island filled with thieves and little food. To survive she must keep to herself, learn to trust no one, and rely on the unique skills her mother taught her. The only thing that keeps her going is the goal of getting off the island, finding her father, and demanding her rightful place beside him and his crew. To do so Fable enlists the help of a young trader named West to get her off the island and across the Narrows to her father. But her father’s rivalries and the dangers of his trading enterprise have only multiplied since she last saw him, and Fable soon finds that West isn't who he seems. Together, they will have to survive more than the treacherous storms that haunt the Narrows if they're going to stay alive. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5f860605-dbbd-46be-b08c-a1be9f6d793b/75384035.jpg Blog - Summer Fantasy Recommendations - The Ever King by L.J. Andrews They stole his crown, so he stole their daughter… For years Erik, the scarred king of the Ever Kingdom, has thought of nothing but vengeance against the man who killed his father and trapped him beneath the waves, making him a prisoner in his own realm. Until his enemy’s daughter unintentionally breaks the chains on the Ever, and Erik makes her the unwitting pawn in his vicious game of revenge. She’s innocent. He’s vicious. But he will take back what he lost, no matter the price. Unless she steals his heart first. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bc47da0d-1d4c-41a2-8214-03ace3b8fcdd/62039217.jpg Blog - Summer Fantasy Recommendations - Sing Me to Sleep by Gabi Burton Saoirse Sorkova survives on lies. As a soldier-in-training at the most prestigious barracks in the kingdom, she lies about being a siren to avoid execution. At night, working as an assassin for a dangerous group of mercenaries, Saoirse lies about her true identity. And to her family, Saoirse tells the biggest lie of all: that she can control her siren powers and doesn't struggle constantly against an impulse to kill. As the top trainee in her class, Saoirse would be headed for a bright future if it weren't for the need to keep her secrets out of the spotlight. But when a mysterious blackmailer threatens her sister, Saoirse takes a dangerous job that will help her investigate: she becomes personal bodyguard to the crown prince. Saoirse should hate Prince Hayes. After all, his father is the one who enforces the kingdom's brutal creature segregation laws. But when Hayes turns out to be kind, thoughtful, and charming, Saoirse finds herself increasingly drawn to him-especially when they're forced to work together to stop a deadly killer who's plaguing the city. There's only one problem: Saoirse is that deadly killer. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f7e0ecab-0e82-4a62-944f-a10d64ff9873/62688758.jpg Blog - Summer Fantasy Recommendations - Bring Me Your Midnight by Rachel Griffin Tana Fairchild’s fate has never been in question. Her life has been planned out since the moment she was born: she is to marry the governor’s son, Landon, and secure an unprecedented alliance between the witches of her island home and the mainlanders who see her very existence as a threat. Tana’s coven has appeased those who fear their power for years by releasing most of their magic into the ocean during the full moon. But when Tana misses the midnight ritual—a fatal mistake—there is no one she can turn to for help…until she meets Wolfe. Wolfe claims he is from a coven that practices dark magic, making him one of the only people who can help her. But he refuses to let Tana’s power rush into the sea, and instead teaches her his forbidden magic. A magic that makes her feel powerful. Alive. As the sea grows more violent, her coven loses control of the currents, a danger that could destroy the alliance as well as her island. Tana will have to choose between love and duty, between loyalty to her people and loyalty to her heart. Marrying Landon would secure peace for her coven but losing Wolfe and his wild magic could cost her everything else. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ab3659f7-028e-42c6-89c2-ec7b7f6f2862/56267120.jpg Blog - Summer Fantasy Recommendations - On These Black Sands bt Vanessa Rasanen He doesn't mind killing people... he just prefers to do it on his own terms. But the pirates have no say in who they kill on this island. The council orders. The pirates obey. This arrangement has kept Declan from setting foot on these shores for years... until a bit of bad luck forces him to return. But it may prove a lucrative stop, if the rebel's information is true. Find the dagger. Escape this life. But only if this damn stowaway doesn't ruin everything first. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1ed54e6d-9b87-4fb9-9163-864e2e2e526c/37822534-2.jpg Blog - Summer Fantasy Recommendations - Seafire by Natalie C. Parker After her family is killed by corrupt warlord Aric Athair and his bloodthirsty army of Bullets, Caledonia Styx is left to chart her own course on the dangerous and deadly seas. She captains her ship, the Mors Navis, with a crew of girls and women just like her, who have lost their families and homes because of Aric and his men. The crew has one mission: stay alive, and take down Aric's armed and armored fleet. But when Caledonia's best friend and second-in-command barely survives an attack thanks to help from a Bullet looking to defect, Caledonia finds herself questioning whether to let him join their crew. Is this boy the key to taking down Aric Athair once and for all . . . or will he threaten everything the women of the Mors Navis have worked for? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1d6edcf6-a484-4853-ac69-1b3831054c4b/210489508.jpg Blog - Summer Fantasy Recommendations - Of Song and Scepter by Liesl West She's a killer in disguise. He's determined to make her his queen. As a deep sea death-dealer, Enna Valomir's life is kill the siren, deliver the body, collect the reward. There's just one problem. Enna owes a mermaid her life, and in the cutthroat waters of the Abyss, that's a lifelong blood oath of service. When the mermaid orders her to kill the Abyssal Princess, Enna is pulled into an impersonation scheme with no choice but to infiltrate a gaudy surface court and help the mermaid win the heart—and throne—of its unwitting future king. But Prince Soren isn't interested in courting the so-called Abyssal Princess, or any power-hungry princess, for that matter. He's finally met his match in her fierce and mysterious handmaid, and he'll be damned if he can't have Enna for his queen instead. Breaking a blood oath means death, but Enna falls for Soren anyway. Now she must watch him descend into a ruin of her own making, or warn him of the ruse—and die. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5dc9a1e8-e9e3-4aa7-8212-9656a1407bf0/217953353.jpg Blog - Summer Fantasy Recommendations - Voice of the Ocean by Kelsey Impicciche As the youngest daughter of the Siren queen, Celeste's life is tightly controlled. Desperate to prove her worth, she intends to join the Chorus - an elite group of siren warriors. With her final test on the horizon, Celeste must finally gain control over her temperamental Song. But when Celeste encounters a seemingly harmless ship, helmed by the intriguing Prince Raiden Sharp, her path veers towards forbidden waters. Believing the handsome sailor to be innocent of any wrongdoing, Celeste defies Siren law to save Raiden's life - despite knowing he is the son of a king who has murdered many of her kindred. The penalty for Celeste's betrayal should be death, but the queen offers her an alternative: right her wrong by assassinating the prince. Determined to first discover the truth behind the prince's clandestine mission, Celeste agrees to become human. The human world is nothing like she expected, nor is the prince the charming and noble man she assumed him to be. But as Celeste finds her place aboard the ship, friendships - and attraction - begin to grow. Will Celeste be able to save herself? Or will her choices unravel a kingdom, devastating sirens and humans alike? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9a67b0c6-47ed-4194-becc-71e3ea351bb6/41555964.jpg Blog - Summer Fantasy Recommendations - Dark Shores by Danielle L. Jensen In a world divided by meddlesome gods and treacherous oceans, only the Maarin possess the knowledge to cross the Endless Seas. But they have one mandate: East must never meet West. A SAILOR WITH A WILL OF IRON Teriana is the second mate of the Quincense and heir to the Maarin Triumvirate. Her people are born of the seas and the keepers of its secrets, but when her closest friend is forced into an unwanted betrothal, Teriana breaks her people’s mandate so her friend might escape—a choice with devastating consequences. A SOLDIER WITH A SECRET Marcus is the commander of the Thirty-Seventh, the notorious legion that has led the Celendor Empire to conquer the entire East. The legion is his family, but even they don’t know the truth he’s been hiding since childhood. It’s a secret he’ll do anything to protect, no matter how much it costs him – and the world. A DANGEROUS QUEST When an Empire senator discovers the existence of the Dark Shores, he captures Teriana’s crew and threatens to reveal Marcus’s secret unless they sail in pursuit of conquest, forcing the two into an unlikely—and unwilling—alliance. They unite for the sake of their families, but both must decide how far they are willing to go, and how much they are willing to sacrifice. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6477dd5c-5467-4ad3-a9e7-bcb39cf66bdd/215750325-2.jpg Blog - Summer Fantasy Recommendations - Nightwear by R. M. Gray Six hundred years ago, Nightweavers, cursed beings with untamed power, claimed the continents for their own. The ocean was meant to be a safe haven for humanity, including seventeen-year-old Aster Oberon and her pirate family. But after Aster’s brother is killed in an epic battle at sea against Nightweavers, Aster and her family are thrust into a new life on land. When a handsome Nightweaver named Will offers the Oberons protection and work at his opulent estate, Aster is suspicious. As the arrogant and entitled right hand to the wicked prince, Will is everything that she has been taught to hate. But as he shows empathy and kindness, Aster can’t ignore a blooming attraction. And even more, Will opens her eyes to a new There are monsters worse than Nightweavers, monsters who may be behind her brother’s death. As Aster hunts the creatures responsible, dark secrets threaten to unravel everything she once believed about her family, herself, and her world. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bdf97fbd-20f2-480e-a84a-37c949e9f5c0/38325332.jpg Blog - Summer Fantasy Recommendations - All the Stars and Teeth by Adalyn Grace Set in a kingdom where danger lurks beneath the sea, mermaids seek vengeance with song, and magic is a choice. She will reign. As princess of the island kingdom Visidia, Amora Montara has spent her entire life training to be High Animancer — the master of souls. The rest of the realm can choose their magic, but for Amora, it’s never been a choice. To secure her place as heir to the throne, she must prove her mastery of the monarchy’s dangerous soul magic. When her demonstration goes awry, Amora is forced to flee. She strikes a deal with Bastian, a mysterious pirate: he’ll help her prove she’s fit to rule, if she’ll help him reclaim his stolen magic. But sailing the kingdom holds more wonder — and more peril — than Amora anticipated. A destructive new magic is on the rise, and if Amora is to conquer it, she’ll need to face legendary monsters, cross paths with vengeful mermaids, and deal with a stow-away she never expected… or risk the fate of Visidia and lose the crown forever. I am the right choice. The only choice. And I will protect my kingdom. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/may-new-releases-1 monthly 0.5 2025-04-27 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7026d818-8bee-49e4-891b-db03a27626c8/217245608.jpg Blog - May New Releases - What Happens in Amsterdam by Rachel Lynn Solomon Dani Dorfman has somehow made it to her thirties without knowing what she wants to do with her life. So when an office romance ends poorly and gets her fired, she applies for a job in Amsterdam, idly dreaming of escaping the mess she’s created, but never imagining she'll actually get it. Except she does. By the end of her first week in Amsterdam, she’s never felt more adrift or alone. Then she crashes her bike into her high school ex-boyfriend—and suddenly life is blooming with new opportunities. Wouter van Leeuwen was a Dutch exchange student Dani’s family hosted, a forbidden love that ended in a painful breakup. Years later, there’s still sizzling chemistry between them, and okay, maybe a little animosity. More importantly, Wouter needs to be married to inherit a gorgeous family home on a canal—and when Dani's job falls apart, she needs a visa. As the marriage of convenience pushes them together in unexpected ways, Dani must decide whether her new life is yet another mistake—or if it's worth taking a risk on a second chance. Release Date: May 6, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2fd07062-8736-4eac-b5c0-6992f19e29da/217387739.jpg Blog - May New Releases - Parents Weekend by Alex Finlay In the glow of their children’s exciting first year of college at a small private school in Northern California, five families plan on a night of dinner and cocktails for the opening festivities of Parents Weekend. As the parents stay out way past their bedtimes, their kids—five residents of Campisi Hall—never show up at dinner. At first, everyone thinks that they’re just being college students, irresponsibly forgetting about the gathering or skipping out to go to a party. But as the hours click by and another night falls with not so much as a text from the students, panic ensues. Soon, the campus police call in reinforcements. Search parties are formed. Reporters swarm the small enclave. Rumors swirl and questions arise. Libby, Blane, Mark, Felix, and Stella—The Five, as the podcasters, bloggers, and TikTok sleuths call them—come from five very different families. What led them out on that fateful night? Could it be the sins of their mothers and fathers come to cause them peril or a threat to the friend group from within? Release Date: May 6, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/12b69978-e295-40b8-af07-79fd71610b6c/217245639.jpg Blog - May New Releases - One Golden Summer by Carley Fortune I never anticipated Charlie Florek. Good things happen at the lake. That’s what Alice’s grandmother says, and it’s true. Alice spent just one summer at a cottage with Nan when she was seventeen—it’s where she took that photo, the one of three grinning teenagers in a yellow speedboat, the image that changed her life. Now Alice lives behind a lens. As a photographer, she’s most comfortable on the sidelines, letting other people shine. Lately though, she’s been itching for something more, and when Nan falls and breaks her hip, Alice comes up with a plan for them both: another summer in that magical place, Barry’s Bay. But as soon as they settle in, their peace is disrupted by the roar of a familiar yellow boat, and the man driving it. Charlie Florek was nineteen when Alice took his photo from afar. Now he’s all grown up—a shameless flirt, who manages to make Nan laugh and Alice long to be seventeen again, when life was simpler, when taking pictures was just for fun. Sun-slanted days and warm nights out on the lake with Charlie are a balm for Alice’s soul, but when she looks up and sees his piercing green gaze directly on her, she begins to worry for her heart. Because Alice sees people—that’s why she is so good at what she does—but she’s never met someone who looks and sees her right back. Release Date: May 6, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e0a1096b-57c3-46b1-b997-a2079c74cbb8/221733722.jpg Blog - May New Releases - The Tenant by Freida McFadden There’s no place like home… Blake Porter is riding high, until he's not. Fired abruptly from his job as a VP of marketing and unable to make the mortgage payments on the new brownstone that he shares with his fiancee, he's desperate to make ends meet. Enter Whitney. Beautiful, charming, down-to-earth, and looking for a room to rent. She's exactly what Blake's looking for. Or is she? Because something isn't quite right. The neighbors start treating Blake differently. The smell of decay permeates his home, no matter how hard he scrubs. Strange noises jar him awake in the middle of the night. And soon Blake fears someone knows his darkest secrets... Danger lives right at home, and by the time Blake realizes it, it'll be far too late. The trap is already set. Release Date: May 6, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f2274455-2eca-49fe-b38f-b2a36b47def3/216594951.jpg Blog - May New Releases - His Face is the Sun by Michelle Jabes Corpora Desire, War, Magic, Monsters...a forgotten oracle will unite them against an ancient enemy. But who will be on the throne when the red dust of Khetara settles? The Kingdom of Khetara is gift of the River Iteru, the jewel of the desert. Yet a crisis looms on the horizon. The crowns of the north and south were joined through war a generation before, but Khetara remains a land divided. The pharaoh is wasting away from a mysterious illness—and forces in the south and within his own family are plotting against him. As rebellion grows and secrets flourish, an even more deadly threat emerges. An ancient evil awakes among the rolling dunes of the Red Land that threatens to destroy everything in its path. Four strangers—a princess, a young priestess, a rebel, and a tomb robber—are ripped from their lives and thrown into the conflict. Amid murder and betrayal, magic and monsters, gods and visions, love and war, these four unlikely heroes find themselves connected by a forgotten oracle that whispers insistently across the land. Only together can they save the kingdom from destruction, but when the bloodshed is done, who of Khetara’s children will sit on the throne? Release Date: May 6, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/62b07744-151e-412f-b361-af6fdf66fbce/217245557.jpg Blog - May New Releases - My Name is Emilia Del Valle by Isabel Allende In San Francisco 1866, an Irish nun, left pregnant and abandoned following a torrid relationship with a Chilean aristocrat, gives birth to a daughter named Emilia Del Valle. Raised by a loving stepfather, Emilia grows into an independent thinker and a self-sufficient young woman. To pursue her passion for writing, she is willing to defy societal norms. At the age of sixteen, she begins to publish pulp fiction under a man’s pen name. When these fictional worlds can't contain her sense of adventure any longer, she turns to journalism, convincing an editor at the San Francisco Examiner to hire her. There she is paired with another talented reporter, Eric Whelan. As she proves herself, her restlessness returns, until an opportunity arises to cover a brewing civil war in Chile. She seizes it, along with Eric, and while there, begins to uncover the truth about her father and the country that represents her roots. But as the war escalates, Emilia finds herself in danger and at a crossroads, questioning both her identity and her destiny. Release Date: May 6, 2025 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a712390c-93b0-4551-a63c-45987a329389/218114292.jpg Blog - May New Releases - All We Lost Was Everything by Sloan Harlow River Santos is stuck—in her job at the diner, in her dead-end town, in her grief. Her father died in a house fire just a few months ago, her mother has been MIA for nearly a year, and the only people she can count on are the aunt she lives with and her best friend Tawny. Things feel like they’re turning around when Logan—the hot guy at the diner who’s always ignored her—seems interested. It’s complicated by her ex-boyfriend Noah, who she really needs closure with, and the fact that Tawny doesn’t think either of them is good enough for River… but the tension between River and Logan can’t be denied. But love takes a backseat when new information surfaces about the fire. After all these months trying to move forward, River is forced to rethink everything… including the idea that maybe it wasn’t an accident after all. But who would commit this deadly act? And why? River isn’t sure who to trust or who to turn to, but she needs to figure it out, fast. Because someone has more than love on their mind. They want revenge. Release Date: May 6, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ad112335-e695-4421-953c-8d48fc0b065c/214152076.jpg Blog - May New Releases - The Manor of Dreams by Christina Li They say what you don’t know can’t hurt you. But silence can be deadly. Vivian Yin is dead. The first Chinese actress to win an Oscar, the trailblazing ingénue rose to fame in the eighties, only to disappear from the spotlight at the height of her career and live out the rest of her life as a recluse. Now her remaining family members are gathered for the reading of her will and her daughters expect to inherit their childhood Vivian’s grand, sprawling Southern California garden estate. But due to a last-minute change to the will, the house is passed on to another family instead—one that has suddenly returned after decades of estrangement. In hopes of staking their claim, both families move into the mansion. Amidst the grief and paranoia of the families’ unhappy reunion, Vivian’s daughters race to piece together what happened in the last weeks of their mother’s life, only to realize they are being haunted by something much more sinister and vengeful than their regrets. After so many years of silence, will the families finally confront the painful truth about the last fateful summer they spent in the house, or will they cling to their secrets until it’s too late? Release Date: May 6, 2025 Genre: Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/525aac55-b72a-4a85-bb55-aabba8e39cf3/217245572.jpg Blog - May New Releases - Silver Elite by Dani Francis The world is divided. On the Continent, you’re either a Prime—immune to the biotoxin that nearly wiped out the Earth’s population 150 years ago—or a Modified, one who was enhanced by the toxin, developing powerful psychic gifts. As conflict rages between the two sides, Wren Darlington lives in hiding. Occasionally running the odd op for the rebel Uprising against the Primes’ oppressive rule, she must keep a low profile. After all, if the enemy finds out that she is a Mod with a staggering four psychic abilities, she won’t just be sent to the labor camps. She’ll be executed—immediately and without trial. When a careless mistake puts Wren in the crosshairs of the Continent’s military, she is taken captive and forced to join their most elite Silver Block. Unwittingly, they’ve handed her the perfect opportunity for the Uprising to strike a devastating blow from inside their ranks. That is, if she can keep her powers hidden, survive training, and prove herself to Cross Redden, her maddeningly cocky commanding officer. Despite the explosive chemistry between them, Cross doesn’t trust her—even as he seems determined to destroy the remaining shreds of Wren’s self-control. Yet as the war between Primes and Mods escalates, and as Wren and Cross find themselves unable to stay away from each other, they must decide how far they’re willing to go for their secrets—and how much of the Continent is worth saving. Release Date: May 6, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b62c774c-f885-499e-9662-6082fe07ea1b/217223450.jpg Blog - May New Releases - The Retirement Plan by Sue Hincenbergs Three wives wanting a new life, three husbands in their way… After thirty years of friendship, Pam dreams of her perfect retirement with Nancy, Shalisa, Marlene, and their husbands—until their husbands pool their funds for an investment that goes terribly wrong, and their dreams of beachfront condos and a sunny, carefree retirement vanish. The golden years are looking as dreary as their marriages. But when one husband dies in a freak accident, the other three women are shocked to see his widow rebound with a huge life insurance payout and a new life in Florida. In the aftermath, the women discover that their husbands have identical, seven-figure life insurance policies. A new dream forms, and this time, it involves a hitman. Meanwhile, their husbands have a secret retirement plan of their own. So, when things begin to go awry, they fear their own scheme may have backfired…with deadly consequences. The husbands scramble to stay alive, but they may not be fast enough to outmaneuver their wives. Release Date: May 6, 2025 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c155b039-755b-4e63-b470-3ba01033a01f/217171544.jpg Blog - May New Releases - Shield of Sparrows by Devney Perry The gods sent monsters to the five kingdoms to remind mortals they must kneel. I’ve spent my life kneeling―to their will and to my father's. As a princess, my only duty is to wear the crown and obey the king. I was never meant to rule. Never meant to fight. And I was never supposed to be the daughter who sealed an ancient treaty with her own blood. But that changed the fateful day I stepped into my father’s throne room. The day a legendary monster hunter sailed to our shores. The day a prince ruined my life. Now I’m crossing treacherous lands beside a warrior who despises me as much as I despise him―bound to a future I didn’t choose and a husband I barely know. Everyone wants me to be something I’m not―a queen, a spy, a sacrifice. But what if I refused the role chosen for me? What if I made my own rules? What if there’s power in being underestimated? And what if―for the first time―I reached for it? Release Date: May 6, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/39f503b3-52f1-4451-a328-d3cf617f98bb/217213002.jpg Blog - May New Releases - The Missing Half by Ashley Flowers Nicole “Nic” Monroe is in a rut. At twenty-four, she lives alone in a dinky apartment in her hometown of Mishawaka, Indiana, she’s just gotten a DWI, and she works the same dead-end job she’s been working since high school, a job she only has because her boss is a family friend and feels sorry for her. Everyone has felt sorry for her for the last seven years—since the day her older sister, Kasey, vanished without a trace. On the night Kasey went missing, her car was found over a hundred miles from home. The driver’s door was open and her purse was untouched in the seat next to it. The only real clue in her disappearance was Jules Connor, another young woman from the same area who disappeared in the same way, two weeks earlier. But with so little for the police to go on, both their cases eventually went cold. Nic wants nothing more than to move on—from her sister’s disappearance and the state it’s left her in. But then one day, Jules’s sister, Jenna Connor, walks into her life and offers Nic something she hasn’t felt in a long hope. What follows is a gripping tale of two sisters who will do anything to find their missing halves, even if it means destroying everything they’ve ever known. Release Date: May 6, 2025 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/fd88b879-851d-438d-8fa0-4004abd5269f/217163697.jpg Blog - May New Releases - My Friends by Fredrik Backman Most people don’t even notice them—three tiny figures sitting at the end of a long pier in the corner of one of the most famous paintings in the world. Most people think it’s just a depiction of the sea. But Louisa, an artist herself, knows otherwise and she is determined to find out the story of these three enigmatic figures. Twenty-five years earlier, in a distant town, a group of teenagers find refuge from their difficult home lives by spending their days laughing and telling stories out on a pier. There’s Joar, who never backs down from a fight; quiet and bookish Ted who is mourning his father; Ali, the daughter of a man who never stays in one place for long; and finally, there’s the artist, a boy who hoards sleeping pills and shuns attention, but who possesses an extraordinary gift that might be his ticket to a better life. These four lost souls find in each other a reason to get up each morning, a reason to dream. Out of that summer emerges a transcendent work of art, a painting that will unexpectedly be put into eighteen-year-old Louisa’s care. As she struggles to decide what to do with this bequest, she embarks on a surprise-filled cross-country journey to learn the story of how the painting came to be. The closer she gets to the painting’s birthplace, the more she feels compelled to unleash her own artistic spirit, but happy endings don’t always take the form we expect in this fresh testament to the transformative power of friendship and art. Release Date: May 6, 2025 Genre: Contemporary Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5ecdb47f-ffd9-42ce-bb83-4ee7ea963030/217387802.jpg Blog - May New Releases - The Thrashers by Julie Soto Either you're in or you're out. Welcome to the Thrashers, the elite friend group at New Helvetia High. They’re everything everyone wants to be. Jodi Dillon was never meant to be one of them. Julian, Lucy, Paige, and the infamous Zack Thrasher are rich, sophisticated, and love attention. Jodi feels out of place, but Zack’s her childhood best friend, so she’s in. Then Emily Mills, who desperately wanted to be a Thrasher, dies—and the whispers about the Thrashers begin. As Emily’s journal surfaces, detectives close in, and Jodi faces an impossible choice: betray her friends or protect herself. But as eerie messages and strange occurrences escalate, it becomes clear—Emily isn’t done with them yet. Release Date: May 6, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7bc527fc-c13a-43b3-8d92-47408b0c5b6d/216602917.jpg Blog - May New Releases - A Curse Carved in Bone by Danielle L. Jensen The secret of her divine heritage revealed, Freya finds herself on a path that will see thousands of lives lost to the magic in her blood. Desperate to avoid this dark fate, she risks an alliance with Skaland’s greatest enemy to seek answers from the seer who foretold her future—the same seer who sent Bjorn to kill her. While Freya still seethes with rage over Bjorn’s betrayal, the blood oaths that bind her demand that she keep him close as she hunts for a way to avert the looming war. Her magic draws her to the front lines of an old enmity, embroiling her with Nordeland’s Unfated—children of the gods who serve the king she was raised to fear. The same king who, unlike Bjorn, is now willing to fight at her back. For despite the desire that burns hot between Bjorn and Freya, his growing distrust of her chosen path threatens to drag them further apart. As war approaches, gods and mortals must choose their weapons. Yet the fiercest battle will be the one Freya wages within herself. With the magic of two goddesses burning in her veins, she must weave the threads of destiny to decide her own fate: Will she be the shield that protects her people or the curse that destroys them? Release Date: May 13, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5bdbca63-d522-4419-a85c-97d4ee97afe6/217453576.jpg Blog - May New Releases - Immaculate Conception by Ling Ling Huang Enka meets Mathilde in art school. Mathilde is a dizzyingly talented yet tortured artist whose star is on the rise—and Enka, struggling to make art that feels original, is immediately drawn to her. The two strike up an intense bond that soon turns codependent. But when Mathilde’s fame reaches new heights, Enka becomes desperate to keep her best friend close—no matter the cost. Enka quickly falls in love with and marries a billionaire whose family’s company is funding an unconventional technology purported to heighten empathy, which could allow someone else to inhabit Mathilde’s mind and absorb the trauma from her brain. Soon, the boundaries between Mathilde and Enka begin to blur even further, setting in motion a disturbing series of events that forever changes their lives. Release Date: May 13, 2025 Genre: Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f4469be3-cb34-45d3-bca4-591b3d71dcba/218372325.jpg Blog - May New Releases - Can’t Get Enough by Kennedy Ryan Hendrix Barry lives a fabulous life. She has phenomenal friends, a loving family, and a thriving business that places her in the entertainment industry's rarefied air. Your vision board? She’s probably living it. She’s a woman with goals, dreams, ambitions—always striving upward. And in the midst of everything, she's facing her toughest challenge caring for an aging parent. Who has time for romance? From her experience, there's a low ROI on relationships. She hasn't met the man who can keep up with her anyway. Until...him. Tech mogul Maverick Bell is a dilemma wrapped in an exquisitely tailored suit and knee-melting charm. From their first charged glance at the summer's hottest party, Hendrix feels like she’s met her match. Only he can’t be. Mav may be the first to make her feel this seen and desired and appreciated, but he’s the last one she can have. Forbidden fruit is the juiciest, and this man is off limits if she plans to stay the course she’s set for herself. But when Maverick gives chase—pursuing her, spoiling her, understanding her—is it time to let herself have something more? Release Date: May 13, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/fecf9bc7-725e-4adb-bed3-69bd5a90cfb6/217432720.jpg Blog - May New Releases - Dying to Meet You by Sarina Bowen Rowan Gallagher is a devoted single mother and a talented architect with a high-profile commission restoring an historic mansion for the most powerful family in Maine. But inside, she’s a mess. She knows that stalking her ex’s avatar all over Portland on her phone isn't the healthiest way to heal from their breakup. But she’s out of ice cream and she's sick of romcoms. Watching his every move is both fascinating and infuriating. He's dining out while she's wallowing on the couch. The last straw comes when he parks in their favorite spot on the waterfront. In a weak moment, she leashes the dog and sets off to see who else is in his car. Instead of catching her ex in a kiss, Rowan becomes the first witness to his murder—and the primary suspect. But Rowan isn’t the only one keeping secrets. As she digs for the truth, she discovers the dead man was stalking her too, gathering intimate details about her job and her past. Struggling to clear her name, Rowan finds herself spiraling into the shadowy plot that killed him. Will she be the next to die? Release Date: May 13, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f0a1369e-f5c5-47e6-896c-d9d8413442eb/217223452.jpg Blog - May New Releases - 32 Days in May by Betty Corrello Nadia Fabiola wants to lose herself in Evergreen—the Jersey Shore town where she grew up vacationing with her family—and never look back at her glamorous, gainfully employed former self. After a shocking lupus diagnosis turned her life upside down, she’s desperate for a sense of control over her body, her life, and her mental health. Nadia plans on keeping her life small and boring, while continuing to ignore her sister’s relentless questioning. Nadia’s sister isn’t the only person worried about her. When her rheumatologist not-so-subtly sets her up with his infamous former-actor cousin, Marco Antoniou, Nadia is skeptical. But Marco is gorgeous—despite carrying his own baggage from a very public burnout. After a messy (but fun) first date, they decide that a May-long fling could be just what the doctor no commitment, no strings, just one month of escape. Their undeniable chemistry starts to feel a lot like something more and while Marco pulls Nadia deeper into his life, she is dead set on keeping her diagnosis from him. But there are only so many days in May, and only so much pretending she can do. As the stress of their whirlwind romance takes its toll on Nadia’s health, she’s forced to decide if a chance at love is worth the risk of trusting someone new. Release Date: Romance 13, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9227ca49-1ca8-4f43-8f1a-7eec041937f7/205335957.jpg Blog - May New Releases - The Knight and the Moth by Rachel Gillig Sybil Delling has spent nine years dreaming of having no dreams at all. Like the other foundling girls who traded a decade of service for a home in the great cathedral, Sybil is a Diviner. In her dreams she receives visions from six unearthly figures known as Omens. From them, she can predict terrible things before they occur, and lords and common folk alike travel across the kingdom of Traum's windswept moors to learn their futures by her dreams. Just as she and her sister Diviners near the end of their service, a mysterious knight arrives at the cathedral. Rude, heretical, and devilishly handsome, the knight Rodrick has no respect for Sybil's visions. But when Sybil's fellow Diviners begin to vanish one by one, she has no choice but to seek his help in finding them. For the world outside the cathedral's cloister is wrought with peril. Only the gods have the answers she is seeking, and as much as she'd rather avoid Rodrick's dark eyes and sharp tongue, only a heretic can defeat a god. Release Date: May 20, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/fade7535-1049-4dbd-aff9-12c58ef0efcf/219401075.jpg Blog - May New Releases - The Memory Collectors by Dete Meserve What would you do if you could spend an hour in your past? Four strangers in the beach town of Ventura, California are about to find out. Elizabeth aches for one more precious hour with her son who died in a senseless accident. Andy is desperate to find his first love who vanished after a whirlwind romance. Logan craves the rush of surfing and mountain climbing, yearning to reclaim the freedom he lost after a misstep landed him in a wheelchair. Brooke is looking for an hour of relief from the guilt of an unforgivable mistake. Enter Aeon Expeditions, the groundbreaking time travel invention of Mark Saunders—which allows some lucky clients the chance to spend an hour in their past. Even though Aeon’s technology ensures time travel can’t alter the future, all four clients, including Mark’s ex-wife Elizabeth, yearn to revisit the hour that changed their lives forever. But when their “hour” extends beyond sixty minutes, they find themselves stranded in the past. As their paths intertwine unexpectedly, they unearth shocking secrets hidden in the shadows of their shared All their lives were shattered the same night on a secluded highway by the beach. As they delve into the hidden truths of that pivotal hour, a startling revelation emerges. They were not alone. Someone else was present, harboring deadly intentions. Release Date: May 20, 2025 Genre: Science Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0d32945c-c749-457c-b69d-d3f7cb4d1fb4/217387810.jpg Blog - May New Releases - The Love Haters by Katherine Center It’s a thin line between love and love-hating. Katie Vaughn has been burned by love in the past—now she may be lighting her career on fire. She has two choices: wait to get laid off from her job as a video producer or, at her coworker Cole’s request, take a career-making gig profiling Tom “Hutch” Hutcheson, a Coast Guard rescue swimmer in Key West. The catch? Katie’s not exactly qualified. She can’t swim—but fakes it that she can. Plus: Cole is Hutch’s brother. And they don’t get along. Next stop paradise! But paradise is messier than it seems. As Katie gets entangled with Hutch (the most scientifically good looking man she has ever seen . . . but also a bit of a love hater), along with his colorful Aunt Rue and his rescue Great Dane, she gets trapped in a lie. Or two. Swim lessons, helicopter flights, conga lines, drinking contests, hurricanes, and stolen kisses ensue—along with chances to tell the truth, to face old fears, and to be truly brave at last. Release Date: May 20, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4a578d3b-8e6f-4664-82f2-846b7bcf9207/220160259.jpg Blog - May New Releases - Our Last Wild Days by Anna Bailey The Labasques aren’t like other families. Living in a shack out in the swamps, they made do by hunting down alligators and other animals. To the good people of Jacknife, Louisiana, they are troublemakers and outcasts, the kind of people you wouldn’t want in your community. So, when Cutter Labasque is found face down in the muddy swamp, no one seems to care, not even her two brothers. The only person who questions the official verdict of suicide is Cutter’s childhood friend, Loyal May, who has just returned home to care for her mother. When she left town at eighteen years old, she betrayed Cutter. Now with a ragtag group from the local paper where she works, Loyal goes in search of answers, uncovering a web of deceit and corruption that implicates those in town. It may be too late to apologize to Cutter, but Loyal has restitution in mind. Release Date: May 20, 2025 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a94b4d09-7833-4f8d-a7b9-f8acc9092794/218153674.jpg Blog - May New Releases - A Fate Forged in Fire by Hazel McBride Once a territory built on matriarchal rule and values, Tìr Teine has since grown frail from a long line of fruitless kings. The most recent of which have ruled under the influence of the True Religion, an oppressive group who have steadily poisoned the region with their anti-magic teachings. Born to rule and blessed by fire, Aemyra has begrudgingly lived in hiding rather than risk her life in court, waiting in anticipation for the current king’s death so she can bond to his dragon, claim her throne, and protect her people. But when the king dies and Aemyra is ready to take what is rightfully hers, her ambitious plan is foiled and she is thrust into a game of vicious politics and plots. Her biggest adversary is Prince Fiorean, a dragon-rider and one of the most powerful fire wielders in the territory. Cold, arrogant, and blindly supportive of his corrupt family, he is everything Aemyra despises. But as chaos engulfs the court, they find themselves reluctantly entwined, forced to forge an uneasy alliance—one that quickly ignites into something more dangerous than either of them expected. Behind enemy lines and slowly falling for her so-called adversary, Aemyra uncovers just how far the rot of corruption has spread, and what she may have to sacrifice to claim her throne. Release Date: May 27, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/344f7265-5f5f-400f-8867-44a89d978101/218153839.jpg Blog - May New Releases - It’s A Love Story by Annabel Monaghan Rules for a love story: There are none. It’s all a lie. Jane Jackson knows that true love is a lie. Laughter is the only truth—you can’t fake a belly laugh. Jane should know, she spent her adolescence as "Poor Janey Jakes," the barbecue-sauce-in-her-braces punchline on America's fifth-favorite sitcom. Now she’s a Creative Executive at Clearwater Studios and she’s living by a new mantra: Fake it till you make it. Except, she might have faked it too far. Desperate to get her first project greenlit and riled up by pompous cinematographer and one-time crush Dan Finnegan, she opened her mouth and a big fat fib fell out. She claimed that Jack Quinlan, hottest popstar of the moment, has promised to write an original song for the soundtrack. Jack may have been her first kiss—and greatest source of shame—but she hasn’t spoken to him in twenty years. Now, Jane must turn to the last man she’d ever want to owe: Dan Finnegan. Because Jack is playing a festival in Dan’s hometown on Long Island, and Dan has an in. A week in close quarters with Dan while facing down her past is Jane's idea of hell, but Dan just might surprise her. While covering up her lie, can they find something true? Release Date: May 27, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/dbc4999a-6329-4cc0-9a86-cb26fadb1de8/215805887.jpg Blog - May New Releases - The Martha’s Vineyard Beach and Book Club by Martha Hall Kelly 2016: Thirty-four-year-old Mari Starwood is still grieving after her mother’s death as she travels to the storied island of Martha’s Vineyard, off the coast of Massachusetts. She’s come all the way from California with nothing but a name on a piece of paper: Elizabeth Devereaux, the famous but reclusive Vineyard painter. When Mari makes it to Mrs. Devereaux’s stunning waterfront farm under the guise of taking a painting class with her, Mrs. Devereaux begins to tell her the story of the Smith sisters, who once lived there. As the tale unfolds, Mari is shocked to learn that her relationship to this island runs deeper than she ever thought possible. 1942: The Smith girls—nineteen-year-old aspiring writer Cadence and sixteen-year-old war-obsessed Briar—are faced with the impossible task of holding their failing family farm together during World War II as the U.S. Army arrives on Martha’s Vineyard. When Briar spots German U-boats lurking off the island’s shores, and Cadence falls into an unlikely romance with a sworn enemy, their quiet lives are officially upended. In an attempt at normalcy, Cadence and her best friend, Bess, start a book club, which grows both in members and influence as they connect with a fabulous New York publisher who could make all of Cadence’s dreams come true. But all that is put at risk by a mysterious man who washes ashore—and whispers of a spy in their midst. Who in their tight-knit island community can they trust? Could this little book club change the course of the war . . . before it’s too late? Release Date: May 27, 2025 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c7b495a0-453e-45e6-b2e9-bc717d55bca9/228691356.jpg Blog - May New Releases - Problematic Summer Romance by Ali Hazelwood Maya Killgore is twenty-three and still in the process of figuring out her life. Conor Harkness is thirty-eight, and Maya cannot stop thinking about him. It’s such a cliché, it almost makes her heart implode: older man and younger woman; successful biotech guy and struggling grad student; brother’s best friend and the girl he never even knew existed. As Conor loves to remind her, the power dynamic is too imbalanced. Any relationship between them would be problematic in too many ways to count, and Maya should just get over him. After all, he has made it clear that he wants her gone from his life. But not everything is as it seems—and clichés sometimes become plot twists. When Maya’s brother decides to get married in Taormina, she and Conor end up stuck together in a romantic Sicilian villa for over a week. There, on the beautiful Ionian coast, between ancient ruins, delicious foods, and natural caves, Maya realizes that Conor might be hiding something from her. And as the destination wedding begins to erupt out of control, she decides that a summer fling might be just what she needs—even if it’s a problematic one. Release Date: May 27, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b17bfb91-f922-44e0-a18a-6be432e3e061/216594961.jpg Blog - May New Releases - Whispers of Dead Girls by Marlee Bush She's right. It can never happen again. She won't let it. Ten years have passed, and Ren Taylor is back at square one, having accepted a job at her old high school. She'd hoped to make peace with the past but now she's thrust back into it: her murdered teenage sister is still immortalized in town, and Ren can't stop seeing her wherever she goes. She's dogged by the scandal that ruined her childhood and killed her sister. Then Ren meets physics teacher Bryson Lewis. Handsome and charismatic, all the other teachers and students seem to fall at his feet. But Ren knows men like him – she knows they can't be trusted. The more Ren watches him, the more suspicious she becomes. And when she notices his close relationship with a girl in one of his classes – a girl just like her sister – she worries history is about to repeat itself. This time, she won't sit back and watch another girl be taken before her time. This time, Ren will do what she must to save her, even if it means revealing her own darkest secrets. Release Date: May 27, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/cfdfb907-16d7-4f01-864e-861b0c261717/217420830.jpg Blog - May New Releases - Come As You Are by Dahlia Adler Hot on the heels of a broken heart, Everett “Evie” Riley arrives at Camden Academy ready for a new beginning - one far away from her cheating ex-boyfriend, the sister who stole him, and the best friend who let it happen. But her fresh start is stopped in its tracks when she's accidentally placed in an all-boys dorm, with no choice but to stay. When rumors and gossip about Evie's housing predicament spread like wildfire, she decides the only way to survive is to lean into her questionable new reputation... but she's definitely going to require help. Her grumpy emo dorm mate Salem Grayson isn't exactly her first choice, but he does need her help to repair his relationship with his parents every bit as much as she needs his to learn how to be cool. And so they make a pact - he'll teach her how to be bad, if she teaches him how to be good. It's a flawless plan, except while Salem thrives academically, even romantically, and - annoyingly enough - even physically, Evie's quest feels like one dead end after another, and the girl she's becoming certainly doesn't feel remotely cool. But when Evie realizes what she wants more than anything, she'll have to contend with her thrice-broken heart and figure out how to become someone capable of chasing happiness. Release Date: May 27, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/548433e1-99de-4c83-9249-6d2e010ec0d9/221633230.jpg Blog - May New Releases - Never Flinch by Stephen King When the Buckeye City Police Department receives a disturbing letter from a person threatening to “kill thirteen innocents and one guilty” in “an act of atonement for the needless death of an innocent man,” Detective Izzy Jaynes has no idea what to think. Are fourteen citizens about to be slaughtered in an unhinged act of retribution? As the investigation unfolds, Izzy realizes that the letter writer is deadly serious, and she turns to her friend Holly Gibney for help. Meanwhile, controversial and outspoken women’s rights activist Kate McKay is embarking on a multi-state lecture tour, drawing packed venues of both fans and detractors. Someone who vehemently opposes Kate’s message of female empowerment is targeting her and disrupting her events. At first, no one is hurt, but the stalker is growing bolder, and Holly is hired to be Kate’s bodyguard—a challenging task with a headstrong employer and a determined adversary driven by wrath and his belief in his own righteousness. Release Date: May 27, 2025 Genre: Horror https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/13-friends-to-lovers-recommendations monthly 0.5 2025-04-18 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/618cd9c6-55b2-4d23-b7d6-cc988001f4f9/169690624.jpg Blog - 13 Friends to Lovers Recommendations - Picking Daises on Sundays by Liana Cincotti Daniella Daisy Maria wanted love. It’s all she hoped for when watching endless rom-coms every Friday night. What she hadn't hoped for was to find it in her childhood best friend Levi. It was the hand-trembling, heart-thumping kind of love that wasn't supposed to happen when you saw your best friend. But it all ended when he didn’t feel the same way and she vowed to never see him again. Four years later and one night in a crowded bar in the West Village, there he was, just as perfect as ever. Maybe it was the lighting or the way his hair curled above his brow, but she couldn’t say no when he asked her to be his fake girlfriend for his sister’s wedding. Another chance at being his friend and mending her immature mistake? How was she supposed to say no? The weight of possible rejection from her dream grad school quickly became the least of her problems. With old, resurfacing feelings at every staged, romantic interaction and stolen glance, she struggles to find confidence. She couldn't help but think that maybe she should’ve said no to protect her heart for a second time. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6733d84e-be0b-4e2a-b565-928c756b21e0/23309634.jpg Blog - 13 Friends to Lovers Recommendations - Before We Were Strangers by Renee Carlind To the Green-eyed Lovebird: We met fifteen years ago, almost to the day, when I moved my stuff into the NYU dorm room next to yours at Senior House. You called us fast friends. I like to think it was more. We lived on nothing but the excitement of finding ourselves through music (you were obsessed with Jeff Buckley), photography (I couldn’t stop taking pictures of you), hanging out in Washington Square Park, and all the weird things we did to make money. I learned more about myself that year than any other. Yet, somehow, it all fell apart. We lost touch the summer after graduation when I went to South America to work for National Geographic. When I came back, you were gone. A part of me still wonders if I pushed you too hard after the wedding… I didn’t see you again until a month ago. It was a Wednesday. You were rocking back on your heels, balancing on that thick yellow line that runs along the subway platform, waiting for the F train. I didn’t know it was you until it was too late, and then you were gone. Again. You said my name; I saw it on your lips. I tried to will the train to stop, just so I could say hello. After seeing you, all of the youthful feelings and memories came flooding back to me, and now I’ve spent the better part of a month wondering what your life is like. I might be totally out of my mind, but would you like to get a drink with me and catch up on the last decade and a half? M https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f48c7242-db60-4748-ab40-c82407f46053/54985743.jpg Blog - 13 Friends to Lovers Recommendations - People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry Poppy and Alex. Alex and Poppy. They have nothing in common. She’s a wild child; he wears khakis. She has insatiable wanderlust; he prefers to stay home with a book. And somehow, ever since a fateful car share home from college many years ago, they are the very best of friends. For most of the year they live far apart—she’s in New York City, and he’s in their small hometown—but every summer, for a decade, they have taken one glorious week of vacation together. Until two years ago, when they ruined everything. They haven’t spoken since. Poppy has everything she should want, but she’s stuck in a rut. When someone asks when she was last truly happy, she knows, without a doubt, it was on that ill-fated, final trip with Alex. And so, she decides to convince her best friend to take one more vacation together—lay everything on the table, make it all right. Miraculously, he agrees. Now she has a week to fix everything. If only she can get around the one big truth that has always stood quietly in the middle of their seemingly perfect relationship. What could possibly go wrong? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6239ce88-8c03-4542-9c02-e0a208015299/195820807.jpg Blog - 13 Friends to Lovers Recommendations - Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenez Justin has a curse, and thanks to a Reddit thread, it's now all over the internet. Every woman he dates goes on to find their soul mate the second they break up. When a woman slides into his DMs with the same problem, they come up with a plan: They'll date each other and break up. Their curses will cancel each other’s out, and they’ll both go on to find the love of their lives. It’s a bonkers idea… and it just might work. Emma hadn't planned that her next assignment as a traveling nurse would be in Minnesota, but she and her best friend agree that dating Justin is too good of an opportunity to pass up, especially when they get to rent an adorable cottage on a private island on Lake Minnetonka. It's supposed to be a quick fling, just for the summer. But when Emma's toxic mother shows up and Justin has to assume guardianship of his three siblings, they're suddenly navigating a lot more than they expected--including catching real feelings for each other. What if this time Fate has actually brought the perfect pair together? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8c7fca67-ca95-4082-8d7b-fe7060b5f71d/214269328-3.jpg Blog - 13 Friends to Lovers Recommendations - Promise Me Sunshine by Cara Bastone Lenny’s a bit of a mess at the moment. Her best friend, Lou, recently passed away after a battle with cancer, and her death has left Lenny feeling completely lost. She’s avoiding her concerned parents, the apartment she shared with Lou, and the list of things she’s supposed to do to help her live again. The only thing she can do is temporary babysitting gigs, and luckily, she just landed a great one, helping overworked, single mom Reese and her precocious daughter, Ainsley. It’s not perfect: Ainsley’s uncle, Miles, always seems to be around, and is kind of... a huge jerk. But if Lenny acts like she has it all together, maybe no one will notice she’s falling apart. Miles sees right through her though. Turns out, he knows a lot about grief and, surprisingly, he offers her a proposition. He’ll help her complete everything on her “live again” list if she’ll help him connect with Ainsley and overcome his complicated relationship with Reese. Lenny doubts anything can fill the Lou has left behind, but she begins to spend more time with Miles, Lenny is surprised to discover that, sometimes, losing everything is only the first step to finding yourself, and love, again. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5078c3f0-d127-405a-94a8-03d4825d09fb/62926938-2.jpg Blog - 13 Friends to Lovers Recommendations - The Seven Year Slip by Ashley Poston Sometimes, the worst day of your life happens, and you have to figure out how to live after it. So Clementine forms a plan to keep her heart safe: work hard, find someone decent to love, and try to remember to chase the moon. The last one is silly and obviously metaphorical, but her aunt always told her that you needed at least one big dream to keep going. And for the last year, that plan has gone off without a hitch. Mostly. The love part is hard because she doesn’t want to get too close to anyone—she isn’t sure her heart can take it. And then she finds a strange man standing in the kitchen of her late aunt’s apartment. A man with kind eyes and a Southern drawl and a taste for lemon pies. The kind of man that, before it all, she would’ve fallen head-over-heels for. And she might again. Except, he exists in the past. Seven years ago, to be exact. And she, quite literally, lives seven years in his future. Her aunt always said the apartment was a pinch in time, a place where moments blended together like watercolors. And Clementine knows that if she lets her heart fall, she’ll be doomed. After all, love is never a matter of time—but a matter of timing. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/cf6fb1fe-aa0e-47e5-bf46-bf06aae17281/36206591.jpg.png Blog - 13 Friends to Lovers Recommendations - Love and Other Words by Christina Lauren Macy Sorensen is settling into an ambitious if emotionally tepid routine: work hard as a new pediatrics resident, plan her wedding to an older, financially secure man, keep her head down and heart tucked away. But when she runs into Elliot Petropoulos—the first and only love of her life—the careful bubble she’s constructed begins to dissolve. Once upon a time, Elliot was Macy’s entire world—growing from her gangly bookish friend into the man who coaxed her heart open again after the loss of her mother...only to break it on the very night he declared his love for her. Told in alternating timelines between Then and Now, teenage Elliot and Macy grow from friends to much more—spending weekends and lazy summers together in a house outside of San Francisco devouring books, sharing favorite words, and talking through their growing pains and triumphs. As adults, they have become strangers to one another until their chance reunion. Although their memories are obscured by the agony of what happened that night so many years ago, Elliot will come to understand the truth behind Macy’s decade-long silence, and will have to overcome the past and himself to revive her faith in the possibility of an all-consuming love. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/67b95a53-4835-451f-9f88-b6064427edf1/61897968.jpg Blog - 13 Friends to Lovers Recommendations - Practice Makes Perfect by Sarah Adams Annie Walker is on a quest to find her perfect match—someone who complements her happy, quiet life running the local flower shop in Rome, Kentucky. But finding her dream man may be harder than Annie imagined. Everyone knows everyone in her hometown, and the dating prospects are getting fewer by the day. After she overhears her latest date say she is “so unbelievably boring,” Annie starts to think the problem might be her. Is it too late to become flirtatious and fun like the leading ladies in her favorite romance movies? Maybe she only needs a little practice . . . and Annie has the perfect person in mind to be her tutor: Will Griffin. Will—the sexy, tattooed, and absolutely gorgeous bodyguard—is temporarily back in Rome, providing security for Amelia Rose as excitement builds for her upcoming marriage to Noah Walker, Annie’s brother. He has one personal objective while on the job: stay away from Annie Walker and any other possible attachments to this sleepy town. But no sooner than he gets settled, Will finds himself tasked with helping Annie find the love of her life by becoming the next leading lady of Rome, Kentucky. Will wants no part in changing the sweet and lovely Annie. He knows for a fact that some stuffy, straitlaced guy won’t make her happy, but he doesn’t have the heart to say no. Amid steamy practice dates and strictly “educational” tutoring lessons, Annie discovers there are more layers to Will’s usual stoic attitude. As the lines of their friendship become dangerously blurred, Annie reconsiders her dream guy. Maybe her love life doesn’t need to be perfect—it just needs to be real. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b8a8c0b9-5c86-4253-825a-fb6b6f3a7fb7/49259788.jpg Blog - 13 Friends to Lovers Recommendations - The Summer of Broken Rules by K.L. Walther Meredith Fox has been going to Martha's Vineyard for the summer as long as she can remember. But this summer is the first one back since the death of Meredith's sister. It will all be overwhelming, but even more since since the entire extended family will be together for her cousin's big wedding. Unfortunately, Meredith's longtime boyfriend unexpectedly dumped her two weeks before the wedding, leaving her dateless. Luckily, she has the perfect distraction. Her family has a tradition of playing the ultimate game of Assassin every summer, and this year it will take place during the week of wedding festivities. But her target just happens to be a very cute groomsman. She's determined to not let herself get distracted, not let herself be lost in another doomed relationship. But as the week progresses, she can't help falling for him, which may cost her not only the game, but also her heart. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6d0d8b79-e6e7-4635-a4a0-5b2eb04c2852/41945163-2.jpg Blog - 13 Friends to Lovers Recommendations - The Friend Zone by Abby Jimenez Kristen Petersen doesn't do drama, will fight to the death for her friends, and has no room in her life for guys who just don't get her. She's also keeping a big secret: facing a medically necessary procedure that will make it impossible for her to have children. Planning her best friend's wedding is bittersweet for Kristen—especially when she meets the best man, Josh Copeland. He's funny, sexy, never offended by her mile-wide streak of sarcasm, and always one chicken enchilada ahead of her hangry. Even her dog, Stuntman Mike, adores him. The only catch: Josh wants a big family someday. Kristen knows he'd be better off with someone else, but as their attraction grows, it's harder and harder to keep him at arm's length. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b00b7e12-de70-4cd3-9583-bae5a7335006/124950295-2.jpg Blog - 13 Friends to Lovers Recommendations - Out on a Limb by Hannah Bonam-Young Winnifred "Win" McNulty has always been wildly independent. Not one to be coddled for her limb difference, Win has spent most of her life trying to prove that she can do it all on her own. And, with some minor adjustments, she's done just fine. That is until she has a one-night stand with the incredibly charming Bo, a perfect stranger. And that one night changes everything. While Bo is surprisingly elated to step up to the plate, Win finds herself unsure of whether she can handle this new challenge on her own or if she’ll need a helping hand. Together, Win and Bo decide to get to know one another as friends and nothing more. But, as they both should know by now, life rarely goes according to plan. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e6044f57-fff6-498c-a058-55f0f54f42ae/60114057-2.jpg Blog - 13 Friends to Lovers Recommendations - The American Roommate Experiment by Elena Armas Rosie Graham has a problem. A few, actually. She just quit her well paid job to focus on her secret career as a romance writer. She hasn’t told her family and now has terrible writer’s block. Then, the ceiling of her New York apartment literally crumbles on her. Luckily she has her best friend Lina’s spare key while she’s out of town. But Rosie doesn’t know that Lina has already lent her apartment to her cousin Lucas, who Rosie has been stalking—for lack of a better word—on Instagram for the last few months. Lucas seems intent on coming to her rescue like a Spanish knight in shining armor. Only this one strolls around the place in a towel, has a distracting grin, and an irresistible accent. Oh, and he cooks. Lucas offers to let Rosie stay with him, at least until she can find some affordable temporary housing. And then he proposes an outrageous experiment to bring back her literary muse and meet her deadline: He’ll take her on a series of experimental dates meant to jump-start her romantic inspiration. Rosie has nothing to lose. Her silly, online crush is totally under control—but Lucas’s time in New York has an expiration date, and six weeks may not be enough, for either her or her deadline. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c5965fb5-4d9c-4950-88f0-71f82bdadb18/125195303.jpg Blog - 13 Friends to Lovers Recommendations - Powerless by Elsie Silver Two childhood friends. Two broken hearts. One impromptu road trip to get away from everything. That’s all this was supposed to be. Afterall, I’ve been living in the friend zone for years now. But hockey heartthrob Jasper Gervais isn’t looking at me like a friend anymore. And he isn’t touching me like one either. To his fans, he’s the handsome, talented athlete on TV. But to me he’s still the lost boy with sad eyes and a heart of gold. The man I’ve loved in secret for years. So when my life falls apart on my wedding day, it only makes sense that he’s the one to swoop in and save me. And when his world comes crashing down around him, I’m there to return the favor. But the more time we spend alone, the more Jasper doesn’t feel like a friend at all. He feels like everything I’ve ever wanted and thought I could never have. Our feelings aren’t straight forward though. They twist and turn around the pain of his past and the reality of my present. Jasper Gervais acts like he wants me. But after years of turning me away, he’s going to need to prove it. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/20-must-read-thrillers monthly 0.5 2025-04-12 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0082ca00-209c-45d1-8971-22a90783f5dc/58829857.jpg Blog - 20 Must-Read Thrillers - One of the Girls by Lucy Clarke It was supposed to be the perfect weekend away. Six very different women travel to a sun-soaked Greek island for a bachelorette trip, to celebrate Lexi’s upcoming wedding. From the glorious ocean views to the quaint tavernas and whitewashed streets, the vacation seems too good to be true. But dangerous undercurrents run beneath the sunset swims and midnight cocktails – because each of the women is hiding a secret. Someone is determined to make sure that Lexi’s marriage never happens – and that one of them doesn’t leave the island alive. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ae37df53-f4a9-4a63-b8d0-a9d1277bb431/41973359.jpg Blog - 20 Must-Read Thrillers - The Holiday by T.M. Logan Seven days. Three families. One killer. It was supposed to be the perfect holiday - a group of families enjoying a week together in the sun. Four women who have been best friends for as long as they can remember making the most of a luxurious villa in the south of France. But Kate has a secret: her husband is having an affair. And a week away might just be the perfect opportunity to get the proof she needs - to catch him in the act once and for all. Because she suspects the other woman is one of her two best friends. One of them is working against her, willing to sacrifice years of friendship to destroy her family. But which one? As Kate closes in on the truth in the stifling Mediterranean heat, she realises too late that the stakes are far higher than she ever imagined . . . Because someone in the villa may be prepared to kill to keep their secret hidden. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/446e06f1-aac7-409d-ae94-a46273fa1a3b/203579177-4.jpg Blog - 20 Must-Read Thrillers - The Last One at the Wedding by Jason Rekulak Frank Szatowski is shocked when his daughter, Maggie, calls him for the first time in three years. He was convinced that their estrangement would become permanent. He’s even more surprised when she invites him to her upcoming wedding in New Hampshire. Frank is ecstatic, and determined to finally make things right. He arrives to find that the wedding is at a private estate—very secluded, very luxurious, very much out of his league. It seems that Maggie failed to mention that she’s marrying Aidan Gardner, the son of a famous tech billionaire. Feeling desperately out of place, Frank focuses on reconnecting with Maggie and getting to know her new family. But it’s difficult: Aidan is withdrawn and evasive; Maggie doesn’t seem to have time for him; and he finds that the locals are disturbingly hostile to the Gardners. Frank needs to know more about this family his daughter is marrying into, but if he pushes too hard, he could lose Maggie forever. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/37cd4709-e074-4247-ae59-5bf7f3e8ea04/207571151-2.jpg Blog - 20 Must-Read Thrillers - The Lake of Lost Girls by Katherine Greene It's 1998, and female students are going missing at Southern State University in North Carolina. But freshman Jessica Fadley, once a bright and responsible student, is going through her own struggles. Just as her life seems to be careening dangerously out of control, she suddenly disappears. Twenty-four years later, Jessica's sister Lindsey is desperately searching for answers and uses the momentum of a new chart-topping true crime podcast, Ten Seconds to Vanish, that focuses on the cold cases, to guide her own investigation. Soon, interest reaches fever pitch when the bodies of the long-missing women begin turning up at a local lake, which leads Lindsey down a disturbing road of discovery. In the present, one sister seeks to untangle a complicated web of lies. In the past, the other descends ever deeper into a darkness that will lead to her ultimate fate. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/12572707-ea55-4406-be3c-0293a9a432bf/55628983.jpg Blog - 20 Must-Read Thrillers - Survive the Night by Riley Sager Charlie Jordan is being driven across the country by a serial killer. Maybe. Behind the wheel is Josh Baxter, a stranger Charlie met by the college ride share board, who also has a good reason for leaving university in the middle of term. On the road they share their stories, carefully avoiding the subject dominating the news - the Campus Killer, who's tied up and stabbed three students in the span of a year, has just struck again. Travelling the lengthy journey between university and their final destination, Charlie begins to notice discrepancies in Josh's story. As she begins to plan her escape from the man she is becoming certain is the killer, she starts to suspect that Josh knows exactly what she's thinking. Meaning that she could very well end up as his next victim. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c2e1788b-a883-4a12-a3c9-0f23b5d01193/197717646.jpg Blog - 20 Must-Read Thrillers - A Girl Like Us by Anna Sophia McLoughlin It's 2004 and former reality TV star and party girl Maya Miller has just married the most eligible bachelor on the planet: Colin Sterling, of the globally famous Sterling family whose history of aristocratic titles and land holdings rival a British royal and whose media empire is comparable to the Murdochs. To some, Maya represents the American dream. To others, a gold digger. But when Colin's cousin Arianna, the heiress to the family's immense fortune, is found murdered, Maya is thrust into the spotlight: first as she is revealed to be the next heiress to the fortune, and then as the prime suspect. Swiftly, the entire Sterling family goes into lockdown at Silver House, the family's ancestral estate in the English countryside. They're told it's for their own safety—but Maya becomes convinced that it's not to keep threats out, but to keep secrets in. Now, she has no choice but to find and expose the truth hidden within the Sterling family, and why Arianna, a girl she had never met, chose her to take her place. But Maya has secrets of her own. And she knows that in order to survive the Sterlings, she'll have to beat them at their own game. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/59882482-e9c4-46b5-aef4-05cb1e8be460/215217589.jpg Blog - 20 Must-Read Thrillers - Killer Potential by Hannah Deitch A scholarship kid with straight As and big dreams, Evie Gordon always thought she was special, that she’d be someone. But after graduating from an elite university, she finds herself drowning in debt and working as an SAT tutor for the super-rich of Los Angeles. Everything changes one Sunday, when she arrives for her weekly lesson at the Victors’ Beverly Hills estate and, in lieu of a bored teenager, finds the bloody remains of the parents strewn through their beautiful back garden, and a woman crying for help within a closet. As Evie works to free her, the two are spotted—and within moments, they go from bystanders to suspects to fugitives. Suddenly at the heart of a manhunt and accompanied by a mysterious woman who refuses to speak, Evie knows the only way to clear her name is to find the real killer. But first she’ll have to break down the barriers of her companion, who is quickly becoming the most important person in Evie’s upside-down life. Their breathless spree takes them across the U.S. as developments in the case shock the nation and the press runs wild with Evie’s a gifted kid turned killer. She's now on the cover of every magazine and newspaper—anointed the new Charles Manson, a bloodthirsty ninety-nine percenter looking to start a class war. Evie is finally someone. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1b8eee9f-9094-4059-96c1-3288726d4c0e/215361877.jpg Blog - 20 Must-Read Thrillers - Twist by Colum McCann “Everything gets fixed, and we all stay broken.” Anthony Fennell, an Irish journalist and playwright, is assigned to cover the underwater cables that carry the world’s information. The sum of human existence—words, images, transactions, memes, voices, viruses—travels through the tiny fiber-optic tubes. But sometimes the tubes break, at an unfathomable depth. Fennell’s journey brings him to the west coast of Africa, where he uncovers a story about the raw human labor behind the dazzling veneer of the technological world. He meets a fellow Irishman, John Conway, the chief of mission on a cable repair ship. The mysterious Conway is a skilled engineer and a freediver capable of reaching extraordinary depths. He is also in love with a South African actress, Zanele, who must leave to go on her own literary adventure to London. When the ship is sent up the coast to repair a series of major underwater breaks, both men learn that the very cables they seek to fix carry the news that may cause their lives to unravel. At sea, they are forced to confront the most elemental questions of life, love, absence, belonging, and the perils of our severed connections. Can we, in our fractured world, reweave ourselves out of the thin, broken threads of our pasts? Can the ruptured things awaken us from our despair? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/308b150b-3677-4658-8c59-588192c8db68/215362444-2.jpg Blog - 20 Must-Read Thrillers - Salt Water by Katy Hays In 1992 Sarah Lingate is found dead below the cliffs of Capri, leaving behind her three-year-old daughter, Helen. Despite suspicions that the old-money Lingates are involved, Sarah’s death is ruled an accident, and every year the family returns to prove it’s true. But on the thirtieth anniversary of Sarah’s death, the Lingates arrive at the villa to find a surprise waiting for them—the necklace Sarah was wearing the night she died. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5672bd67-f77d-473f-a09e-d7c33aee4398/215217614.jpg Blog - 20 Must-Read Thrillers - Retreat by Krysten Ritter Liz Dawson weaves through a crowd with the ease of a tropical breeze, moving seamlessly through elite circles, sparking instant connections and making every new acquaintance feel like an intimate friend. She’s clever, smooth, and confident—qualities that make her a brilliant serial con artist. Isabelle Beresford is strikingly beautiful, obscenely wealthy, and the new owner of Casa Esmerelda, a fabulous villa on the Mexican coast—attributes that make her the perfect mark. When she offers Liz a job handling the installation of a piece of art in her otherwise vacant home, Liz can’t resist the allure of a beach retreat. She longs for a reset, a chance to finally shed the grip of her addiction to the conning game. But when Liz, with her lush dark hair and intense green eyes, is mistaken for Isabelle herself, Liz can’t help effortlessly slipping into the socialite’s identity. The transition is so easeful, it almost feels like fate. But just who is Isabelle Beresford really, and why does she seem to have abandoned this stunning life of hers? As Liz insinuates herself deeper into the dazzling—and deceptive—world of the Punta Mita resort community, she draws closer to the dangers surrounding the real Isabelle. Dangers that may have already ensnared Liz, too. This might not be the con of her life—but the con that ends it. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e9c2160e-1e13-4656-a3f0-afd623be6bd4/209492361.jpg Blog - 20 Must-Read Thrillers - Vanishing Daughters by Cynthia Pelayo It started the night journalist Briar Thorne’s mother died in their rambling old mansion on Chicago’s South Side. The nightmares of a woman in white pleading to come home, music switched on in locked rooms, and the panicked fear of being swallowed by the dark…Bri has almost convinced herself that these stirrings of dread are simply manifestations of grief and not the beyond-world of ghostly impossibilities her mother believed in. And more tangible terrors still lurk outside the decaying Victorian greystone. A serial killer has claimed the lives of fifty-one women in the Chicago area. When Bri starts researching the murders, she meets a stranger who tells her there’s more to her sleepless nights than bad dreams—they hold the key to putting ghosts to rest and stopping a killer. But the killer has caught on and is closing in, and if Bri doesn’t answer the call of the dead soon, she’ll be walking among them. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/433c7f92-571e-4630-a3ca-e928c43f9fc6/213243937-2.jpg Blog - 20 Must-Read Thrillers - You Are Fatally Invited by Ande Pliego When renowned anonymous author J. R. Alastor hires former aspiring writer Mila del Angél to host a writing retreat at his private manor off the coast of Maine, she jumps at the chance—particularly since she has an ax to grind with one of the invitees. The guest list? Six thriller authors, all masters of deceit, misdirection, and mayhem. Confess the crimes, survive the tropes. Alastor and Mila have masterminded a week of games, trope-fueled riddles, and maybe a jump scare or two—the perfect cover for Mila to plot a murder of her own. But when a guest turns up dead—and it’s not the murder she planned—Mila finds herself trapped in a different narrative altogether. One by one, you’ll lose your turn. With a storm cutting off the island, and the body count rising, Mila must outwit a killer who knows literally every trick in the book. Until only one of us remains… https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/eca4a601-7134-41f1-8d6e-ede83f6aa286/211894916.jpg Blog - 20 Must-Read Thrillers - Close Your Eyes and Count to 10 by Lisa Unger When the real game begins, who will make it to the count of 10? Charismatic daredevil and extreme adventurer Maverick Dillan invites you to the ultimate game of hide-and-seek. But as the players gather on Falcao Island, the event quickly spirals into a chilling test of survival. A storm rages as a deadly threat stalks the contestants, turning the challenge into something far more sinister than the social media stunt it was intended to be. Enter Adele, a single mother with a fierce determination to protect her children at all costs. When she begins the game, she unwittingly enters a twisted web of deception and intrigue. Can she maneuver through the treacherous storm and the relentless competition and get home to her family? In a ruthless battle for survival where the stakes are higher than ever, the blurry line between the virtual and the real proves that the only person we can trust is ourselves. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c6ee9332-deec-45c0-b9f7-404a36645e27/199743738-2.jpg Blog - 20 Must-Read Thrillers - The Midnight Feast by Lucy Foley It’s the opening night of The Manor, and no expense, small or large, has been spared. The infinity pool sparkles; crystal pouches for guests’ healing have been placed in the Seaside Cottages and Woodland Hutches; the “Manor Mule” cocktail (grapefruit, ginger, vodka, and a dash of CBD oil) is being poured with a heavy hand. Everyone is wearing linen. But under the burning midsummer sun, darkness stirs. Old friends and enemies circulate among the guests. Just outside the Manor’s immaculately kept grounds, an ancient forest bristles with secrets. And the Sunday morning of opening weekend, the local police are called. Something’s not right with the guests. There’s been a fire. A body’s been discovered. THE FOUNDER * THE HUSBAND * THE MYSTERY GUEST * THE KITCHEN HELP It all began with a secret, fifteen years ago. Now the past has crashed the party. And it’ll end in murder at… The Midnight Feast. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6f7686a0-e80e-422d-8c72-a5aeb93a34cc/217442566.jpg Blog - 20 Must-Read Thrillers - The Fourth Girl by Wendy Corsi Staub On prom night, Caroline Winterfield walked away from the ruins of an abandoned mansion called Haven Cliff and into the woods…never to be seen again. Only her three best friends know what really happened. But a secret is a secret, and a promise is a promise—even when it shatters lifelong friendships. On the twenty-fifth anniversary of that night, Midge, Kelly, and Talia reunite at Haven Cliff, now a gleaming architectural jewel. But they aren’t alone. Someone is watching. Someone who knows what really happened to Caroline—and to the man who now lies dead a stone’s throw from where she was last seen. Police detective Midge knows she’s dealing with a murder the moment she sees the item clutched in his lifeless hand. Only three other people in the world would grasp its significance. That means Kelly and Talia are either involved or in danger, because Caroline is long gone…or is she? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3323e0dc-caad-43b7-b0df-c2636b197121/57693172.jpg Blog - 20 Must-Read Thrillers - A Flicker in the Dark by Stacy Willingham When Chloe Davis was twelve, six teenage girls went missing in her small Louisiana town. By the end of the summer, Chloe’s father had been arrested as a serial killer and promptly put in prison. Chloe and the rest of her family were left to grapple with the truth and try to move forward while dealing with the aftermath. Now 20 years later, Chloe is a psychologist in private practice in Baton Rouge and getting ready for her wedding. She finally has a fragile grasp on the happiness she’s worked so hard to get. Sometimes, though, she feels as out of control of her own life as the troubled teens who are her patients. And then a local teenage girl goes missing, and then another, and that terrifying summer comes crashing back. Is she paranoid, and seeing parallels that aren't really there, or for the second time in her life, is she about to unmask a killer? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bedd93ab-7bba-45fb-abc5-add2cf8e9ccb/214537763-2.jpg Blog - 20 Must-Read Thrillers - All the Other Mothers Hate Me by Sarah Harman Florence Grimes, age thirty-one, always takes the easy way out. Single, broke and unfulfilled after the humiliating end to her girl-band career, she has only one reason to get out of bed each day: her ten-year-old son Dylan. But then Alfie Risby, her son’s bully and the heir to a vast frozen-food empire, mysteriously vanishes during a class trip, and Dylan becomes the prime suspect. Florence, for once, is faced with a task she can’t quit: She’s got to find Alfie and clear her son’s name or risk losing Dylan forever—never mind that she has no useful skills (let alone investigative ones) and that all the other school moms hate her. Oh, and she has a reason to suspect Dylan might not be as innocent as she’d like to believe. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/914ca699-e10f-428c-93db-3087dd8c476c/214152422.jpg Blog - 20 Must-Read Thrillers - Cross My Heart by Megan Collins Rosie Lachlan wants nothing more than to find The One. A year after she was dumped in her wedding dress, she’s working at her parents’ bridal salon, anxious for a happy ending that can’t come soon enough. After receiving a life-saving heart transplant, Rosie knows her health is precious and precarious. She suspects her heart donor is Daphne Thorne, the wife of local celebrity author Morgan Thorne, who she begins messaging via an anonymous service called DonorConnect, ostensibly to learn more about Daphne. But Rosie has a secret: She’s convinced that now that she has his wife’s heart, she and Morgan are meant to be together. As she and Morgan correspond, the pretense of avoiding personal details soon disappears, even if Rosie’s keeping some cards close to her chest. But as she digs deeper into Morgan’s previous marriage, she discovers disturbing rumors about the man she’s falling for. Could Morgan have had something to do with his late wife’s death? And can Rosie’s heart sustain another break—or is she next? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c73dd6be-f903-4e23-a3ca-a527a3276e8c/127280429-2.jpg Blog - 20 Must-Read Thrillers - Darling Girls by Sally Hepworth For as long as they can remember, Jessica, Norah, and Alicia have been told how lucky they are. As young girls they were rescued from family tragedies and raised by a loving foster mother, Miss Fairchild, on an idyllic farming estate and given an elusive second chance at a happy family life. But their childhood wasn’t the fairy tale everyone thinks it was. Miss Fairchild had rules. Miss Fairchild could be unpredictable. And Miss Fairchild was never, ever to be crossed. In a moment of desperation, the three broke away from Miss Fairchild and thought they were free. Even though they never saw her again, she was always somewhere in the shadows of their minds. When a body is discovered under the home they grew up in, the foster sisters find themselves thrust into the spotlight as key witnesses. Or are they prime suspects? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8ed55c77-b8e6-4c3e-9b37-8845e8e7d837/61458888-2.jpg Blog - 20 Must-Read Thrillers - You Shouldn’t Have Come Here by Jeneva Rose Grace Evans, an overworked New Yorker looking for a total escape from her busy life, books an Airbnb on a ranch in the middle of Wyoming. When she arrives, she's pleasantly surprised to find that the owner is a handsome man by the name of Calvin Wells. But there are things Grace discovers that she's not too pleased about: A lack of cell phone service. A missing woman. And a feeling that something isn't right with the town. Despite her uneasiness and misgivings from Calvin's friends and family, the two grow close and start to fall for one another. However, as her departure date nears, things between them start to change for the worse. Grace grows wary of Calvin as his infatuation for her seems to turn into obsession. Calvin fears that Grace is hiding something from him. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/march-book-club-book-reviews monthly 0.5 2025-04-06 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/april-new-releases monthly 0.5 2025-03-28 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a884aa5e-8250-4030-aaf2-063ef5a100a9/216437557.jpg.png Blog - April New Releases - Say You’ll Remember Me by Abby Jimenez There might be no such a thing as a perfect guy, but Xavier Rush comes disastrously close. A gorgeous veterinarian giving Greek god vibes—all while cuddling a tiny kitten? Immediately yes.That is until Xavier opens his mouth and proves that even sculpted gods can say the absolute wrong thing. Like, really wrong. Of course, there’s nothing Samantha loves more than proving an asshole wrong… . . . unless, of course, he can admit he made a mistake. But after one incredible and seemingly endless date—possibly the best in living history—Samantha is forced to admit the truth, that her family is in crisis and any kind of relationship would be impossible. Samantha begs Xavier to forget her. To remember their night together as a perfect moment, as crushing as that may be. Only no amount of distance or time is nearly enough to forget that something between them. And the only thing better than one single perfect memory is to make a life—and even a love—worth remembering. Release Date: April 1, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2bcdd7df-7436-4bbc-b89c-46e9354fd1ef/210411871.jpg Blog - April New Releases - The Sirens by Emilia Hart 2019: Lucy awakens in her ex-lover’s room in the middle of the night with her hands around his throat. Horrified, she flees to her sister’s house on the coast of New South Wales hoping Jess can help explain the vivid dreams that preceded the attack—but her sister is missing. As Lucy waits for her return, she starts to unearth strange rumours about Jess’s town—tales of numerous missing men, spread over decades. A baby abandoned in a sea-swept cave. Whispers of women’s voices on the waves. All the while, her dreams start to feel closer than ever. 1800: Mary and Eliza are torn from their loving home in Ireland and forced onto a convict ship heading for Australia. As the boat takes them farther and farther away from all they know, they begin to notice unexplainable changes in their bodies. Release Date: April 1, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7ebe8a6e-7b61-4cb2-a479-9bea5b5c1e17/214151571.jpg Blog - April New Releases - The Last Session by Julia Bartz When a catatonic woman shows up at the psychiatric unit, social worker Thea swears she knows her from somewhere. She’s shocked to discover the patient holds a link to a traumatic time in her past. Upon regaining lucidity, the patient claims she can’t remember the horrific recent events that caused her brain to shut down. Thea’s at a loss—especially when the patient is ripped away from her as suddenly as she appeared. Determined to find her, Thea follows a trail of clues to a remote center in Southwestern New Mexico, where a charismatic couple holds a controversial monthly retreat to uncover attendees’ romantic and sexual issues. Forced to participate in increasingly intimate exercises, Thea finds herself inching closer not only to her missing patient, but also to tantalizing answers about her harrowing past. However, time is running out, and if she stays for the last session, she too might lose her mind…or worse. Release Date: April 1, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f84e6b44-8b0f-47ce-9276-ba6dffb0ac0a/215805795.jpg Blog - April New Releases - Swept Away by Beth O’Leary What if you were lost at sea…with your one-night stand? Zeke and Lexi thought it would just be a night of fun. They had no intentions of seeing each other again. Zeke is only in town for the weekend to buy back his late father’s houseboat. Lexi has no time for dating when she needs to help take care of her best friend's daughter. Going back home with a stranger seems like a perfect escape from their problems. But a miscommunication in the dark, foggy night means no one tied the houseboat to the dock. The next morning, Zeke and Lexi realize all they can see is miles and miles of water. With just a few provisions on the idle boat, Zeke and Lexi must figure out how to get back home. But aside from their survival, they’re facing another challenge. Because when you’re stuck together for days on end, it gives you a lot of time to get to know someone—and to fall in love with them. Release Date: April 1, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/26181e30-a70f-448f-b000-4c47dd28b858/211004124.jpg Blog - April New Releases - Gifted and Talented by Olivia Blake Where there’s a will, there’s a war. Thayer Wren, the brilliant CEO of Wrenfare Magitech and so-called father of modern technology, is dead. Any one of his three telepathically and electrokinetically gifted children would be a plausible inheritor to the Wrenfare throne. Or at least, so they like to think. Meredith, textbook accomplished eldest daughter and the head of her own groundbreaking biotech company, has recently cured mental illness. You're welcome! If only her father's fortune wasn't her last hope for keeping her journalist ex-boyfriend from exposing what she really is: a total fraud. Arthur, second-youngest congressman in history, fights the good fight every day of his life. And yet, his wife might be leaving him, and he's losing his re-election campaign. But his dead father’s approval in the form of a seat on the Wrenfare throne might just turn his sinking ship around. Eilidh, once the world's most famous ballerina, has spent the last five years as a run-of-the-mill marketing executive at her father’s company after a life-altering injury put an end to her prodigious career. She might be lacking in accolades compared to her siblings, but if her father left her everything, it would finally validate her worth—by confirming she'd been his favorite all along. On the pipeline of gifted kid to clinically depressed adult, nobody wins—but which Wren will come out on top? Release Date: April 1, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/68bd06be-358b-447b-9060-e822bc30a531/216269037.jpg Blog - April New Releases - Crash Landing by Annie McQuaid Piper Adams is totally, one hundred percent, completely over Wyatt, the former love of her life. After he broke her heart, she stopped taking risks and focused instead on building a perfect—and perfectly safe—life. Bumping into him at the airport on the way to her best friend’s destination wedding wasn’t part of the plan. Neither was a canceled flight nor Wyatt’s offer of a ride on the tiny plane he’s flying to attend the same wedding. Desperate to make it on time she accepts his offer, but things go from awkward to full-blown nightmare when their plane crashes in the Caribbean, stranding Piper on a deserted island with the last person she ever wanted to see again. At first, rule-following Piper clashes with adventure-driven Wyatt, but as the days tick by, she begrudgingly admits that the boy she once knew has grown into a man. A man who makes her laugh, knows his way around a fire, and is annoyingly hot shirtless. As the chemistry still simmering between them boils over, Piper begins wishing Wyatt could be more than just a survival partner. But for their love to survive a second chance, she’ll have to not only trust Wyatt again, but also learn to trust herself and find the courage to let go of her carefully curated life for the chance at something far greater—if they survive the island long enough for rescue. Release Date: April 1, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/70788020-c32f-4fd4-bc08-a530b5d8d285/216269038.jpg Blog - April New Releases - The Library of Lost Dollhouses by Elise Hooper Tildy Barrows, Head Curator of a beautiful archival library in San Francisco, is meticulously dedicated to the century’s worth of inventory housed in her beloved Beaux Art building. She loves the calm and order in the shelves of books and walls of art. But Tildy’s uneventful life takes an unexpected turn when she, first, learns the library is on the verge of bankruptcy and, second, discovers two exquisite never-before-seen dollhouses. After finding clues hidden within these remarkable miniatures, Tildy starts to believe that Belva Curtis LeFarge, the influential heiress who established the library a century ago, is conveying a significant final message. With a newfound sense of spontaneity, Tildy sets out to decipher the secret history of the dollhouses, aiming to salvage her cherished library in the process. Her journey to understand introduces her to a world of ambitious and gifted women in Belle Époque Paris, a group of scarred World War I veterans in the English countryside, and Walt Disney’s bustling Burbank studio in the 1950s. As Tildy unravels the mystery, she finds not only inspiring, overlooked history, but also a future for herself, filled with exciting possibilities—and an astonishing familial revelation. Release Date: April 1, 2025 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/40981c4d-749f-4f53-9e9e-e169c58386e2/228569777.jpg Blog - April New Releases - In Good Company by Kat Singleton Callahan Hastings is relentless when it comes to getting what he wants, and what he wants is me–to be his private chef in the Hamptons for the summer. My dream job served to me on a silver platter by one of the wealthiest members of Pembroke Hills Country Club. The only catch? He’s my ex-boyfriend’s older brother with a reputation for being as charming as he is cunning. But Cal doesn’t take no for an answer. He draws you in with flirty smiles and extravagant promises. I should have seen him coming, but I didn’t. I should have stayed away, but I couldn’t. His playful touches and burning gaze have ignited a fire in me. The more I resist him, the more irresistible he becomes. I've always known there's an expiration date on the job–an expiration date on us. But leaving isn't going to be easy with Cal on his knees, begging me to stay... Release Date: April 3, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/725f3fe1-dc3c-4d96-aa01-87284c164d59/209948349.jpg Blog - April New Releases - The Gods Time Forgot by Kelsie Sheridan Gonzalez Manhattan, 1870. Rua knows only two things: her name, and that she has no memories. So when the wealthy Harrington family mistakes Rua for their missing daughter, Emma, Rua goes along with the charade, hoping for answers about who she really is. As she tries to blend into a society she doesn’t remember, she’s drawn to a firmly off-limits the Lord of Donore, a newcomer to Manhattan society who is somehow familiar to Rua. Finn is new to this side of the Atlantic and knows that the best way to fit in as Lord of Donore is to make friends in high places and play by the rules of society. He knows he shouldn’t become involved with a mysterious, recently missing debutante, but he’s intrigued by Emma Harrington, and Finn has an uncanny feeling that this isn’t the first time they’ve met. With societal pressures mounting on both sides, Rua is determined to discover the truth about the missing Harrington daughter and her own past. But when her memories begin to return, they’re of a world far stranger than New York and traced in dark magic. As ancient secrets unfurl in Rua’s memory, Rua and Finn are forced to uncover the mystery of their past and try to save their future. In this gritty and glittering romantasy, nothing and no one is as they seem. Release Date: April 8, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e9f32047-87ee-4840-8bf4-9b7fab888763/216351856.jpg Blog - April New Releases - The Maid’s Secret by Nita Prose Molly Gray’s life is about to change in ways she could never have imagined. As the esteemed Head Maid and recently promoted Special Events Manager of the Regency Grand Hotel, good things are just around the corner, including her marriage to her beloved fiancé, Juan Manuel, only two months away. But Molly’s entire existence is upended when a film crew descends upon the hotel to shoot the hit reality TV show Hidden Treasures, starring popular art appraisers Brown and Beagle. On a whim, Molly brings in a shoebox containing a few of her gran’s old things for appraisal, and much to everyone's surprise, one item turns out to be a rare and priceless treasure. Instantly, Molly is both a multi-millionaire and a media sensation—the world’s rags-to-riches darling—until the priceless piece vanishes from the hotel in the boldest, brashest antiquities heist in recent memory. The key to the mystery lies in the past, in a long-forgotten diary written by Molly’s gran. For the first time ever, Molly learns about Gran’s true-to-life fairytale, a young girl to the manor born, the only child of a wealthy magnate. But when Gran falls head over heels in love with a young man her parents deem below her station, her life is thrown into turmoil. As fate would have it, the greatest love of Gran’s life is someone Molly knows quite well…. Together with her friends, Molly combs the past and the present to catch the thief before looming threats against her become real. Release Date: April 8, 2025 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4aef6811-030d-4ebf-b616-fd80697cb68e/208840739.jpg Blog - April New Releases - Boys with Sharp Teeth by Jenni Howell Seventeen-year-old Marin James has spent her entire life living in the shadow of the exclusive Huntsworth Academy. And when her cousin’s dead body is found in a creek on school property, Marin knows exactly who’s to blame: Adrian Hargraves and Henry Wu, the enigmatic yet dangerously alluring leaders of the school's social elite. Swapping her ripped jeans for a crisp prep school skirt, Marin infiltrates Huntsworth to seek justice. But her quest is quickly muddied by a confusing attraction to her new life, and to the two dysfunctional and depraved boys who somehow understand her better than anyone ever has. When Marin uncovers an otherworldly secret the boys are hiding within Huntsworth's ivied gates, the lines between right and wrong, love and hate, and nightmare and reality begin to crumble -- and nothing is as it seems. Welcome to Huntsworth Academy. Release Date: April 8, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a092cb1f-7745-49fb-ab67-1809686fab85/217182344.jpg Blog - April New Releases - Enchantra by Kaylie Smith Ready or not, the game has begun. Genevieve Grimm has felt adrift ever since her sister became the head of the family. So when a mysterious friend of their mother's invites her to Italy, she accepts. She arrives at his grand palace, expecting passion and magic, decadence and luxury... perhaps even a midnight ball. She doesn't expect the owner's ruthlessly handsome son to slam the door in her face. Rowin Silver is tall, dark, and exceptionally rude, and invitation or not, he demands Genevieve leave and never come back. But Genevieve follows nobody's orders, especially those of arrogant rich boys. She slips inside—and immediately discovers her mistake. Rowin and his family are caught in an insidious game of hide and seek, where only one can win. The rest will be trapped in Hell... until the competition begins again. Genevieve must either join the hunt or forfeit any hope of escaping. But to her dismay, her best chance of survival lies with Rowin. Since lovers may play as a pair, Rowin and Genevieve agree to form an alliance under the guise of a fake courtship. However, as they race through the game's elaborate labyrinth, trapped among gleaming gold and shining marble, their loathing gives way to irresistible attraction. Only Rowin is keeping secrets, especially when it comes to his ruthless family, and Genevieve can't help but wonder if she's trapped in two treacherous games: Enchantra and the one Rowin is playing with her heart. Release Date: April 8, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f4d90af1-268d-4f71-8ffe-0a3127242155/214151222.jpg Blog - April New Releases - Fearless by Lauren Roberts Paedyn Gray and Kai Azer return to the Kingdom of Ilya… And Paedyn has a life-altering choice to make. Whatever she decides will determine her fate—and the fate of those around her—forever. In the ultimate battle of love and loyalty, who wins? Release Date: April 8, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/37bf689f-5a23-4280-a9b3-746126ecb3c1/216405568.jpg Blog - April New Releases - House of Blight by Maxym M. Martineau Edira Brillwyn is a threadmender. She holds a rare, lifesaving power that can cure disease and heal injuries in the blink of an eye. But magic always comes with a cost, and saving anyone sacrifices a sliver of her own life. She’s always kept her abilities hidden…until the powerful Fernglove family discovers her secret. The Ferngloves are charming and beautiful, possess powerful magic, and don’t take no for an answer—especially Orin, the head of these ruling elites. When Edira’s brothers unexpectedly contract blight—an incurable virus killing people throughout the town, and an illness too strong for her to heal them both—Orin offers to help. Together at his estate they’ll research a cure while Orin slows their sickness and Edira hones her magic. His kindness and honesty surprises Edira, as does her undeniable attraction to him. But the other Ferngloves are suspicious of her power and may be more dangerous than the ever-present disease. The longer Edira stays within the confines of the Manor, the more the family’s pristine exterior begins to crack—until Edira discovers a terrifying secret and must choose who she can save and at what cost… Release Date: April 8, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/57a1f300-d1fe-4efb-b2d0-13e079a09102/216563167.jpg Blog - April New Releases - The Twisted Throne by Danielle L. Jensen A commander who bled to defend her people, Ahnna is haunted by two beliefs. The first is that she failed to protect Ithicana from invasion. And the second is that saving her homeland means leaving it behind forever. The Maridrinians left Ithicana in ruins and its people impoverished. So when the wealthy kingdom of Harendell claims her as a bride for its crown prince, Ahnna is prepared to do whatever it takes to gain influence as the future queen. And to control the gold that comes with the throne. Yet Ahnna swiftly discovers that beneath the beautiful surface of Harendell's court is a dark underbelly built upon schemes, duplicity, and the pursuit of power. The only individual who holds himself above the politics is not her future husband, but his infuriating half brother, James. And as she begins to question whether Harendell is the ally it claims to be, Ahnna finds herself drawn into a forbidden attraction to the wrong prince. As deadly plots tighten around her, Ahnna must decide whether saving her people will be achieved as a bride...or as a blade. Release Date: April 8, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ddf0faca-9d49-4cb5-b4fd-20e7741a8909/217432789.jpg Blog - April New Releases - Marble Hall Murders by Anthony Horowitz Editor Susan Ryeland has left her Greek island, her hotel, and her Greek boyfriend Andreas in search of a new life back in England. Freelancing for Causton Books, she’s working on the manuscript of a novel, Pund’s Last Case, by a young author named Eliot Crace, a continuation of the popular Alan Conway series. Susan is surprised to learn that Eliot is the grandson of legendary children’s author Marian Crace, who died some fifteen years ago—murdered, Elliot insists, by poison. As Susan begins to read the manuscript’s opening chapters, the skeptical editor is relieved to find that Pund’s Last Case is actually very good. Set in the South of France, it revolves around the mysterious death of Lady Margaret Chalfont, who, though mortally ill, is poisoned—perhaps by a member of her own family. But who did it? And why? The deeper Susan reads, the more it becomes clear that the clues leading to the truth of Marian Crace’s death are hidden within this Atticus Pund mystery. While Eliot’s accusation becomes more plausible, his behavior grows increasingly erratic.. Then he is suddenly killed in a hit-and-run accident, and Susan finds herself under police scrutiny as a suspect in his killing. Three mysterious deaths. Multiple motives and possible murderers. If Susan doesn’t solve the mystery of Pund’s Last Case, she may well be the next victim. Release Date: April 10, 2025 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ff0ea532-dd13-4fbf-954d-95023052675c/213650748.jpg Blog - April New Releases - Wild and Wrangled by Lyla Sage Camille Ashwood had always loved a plan. Her latest was her best yet. She was going to get married so she could secure her daughter’s future, get her overbearing parents off her back, and finally start building her own life in small town Meadowlark, Wyoming. Easy, right? But when her groom doesn’t show up to the wedding, Cam’s life is turned upside down—she doesn’t even have a place to live. That is, until she finds out the house she’s loved since high school is available to rent. There’s only one problem: the neighbor. Dusty Tucker has spent nearly all of his adult life running. Running from what, though? More like who: Cam Ashwood. But ever since he returned home last year, the girl who was his first, well, everything has become a woman seemingly determined to keep him at arm’s length. And he was okay with that—at least, that’s what he kept telling himself. She was getting married, after all. But now she’s single and living next door. Dusty wants to show her that they can be friends, and that he can stay put. Despite her best attempts to stay far away from Dusty Tucker, Cam realizes that being close to him is like slipping on her favorite jeans. Easy. Comfortable. That is until past wounds start to open and feelings—both old and new—wreak havoc. Nearly ten years after they first met, Dusty and Cam begin to wonder if their first love can also be their last. And this time, will it be forever? Release Date: April 15, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2bb00567-6752-4206-ae41-a1f8674912ff/219240806.jpg Blog - April New Releases - The Perfect Divorce by Jeneva Rose It’s been eleven years since high-powered attorney Sarah Morgan defended her husband, Adam, against the charge of murdering his mistress. Sarah has long since moved on, starting a family with her new husband, Bob Miller, and changing careers. Her life is back to being exactly how she always wanted … or is it? After discovering Bob engaged in a one-night stand, Sarah wastes no time filing for divorce. However, amid their ugly separation, new DNA evidence is uncovered in the case against Adam, forcing the police to reopen the investigation and putting Sarah right back in the spotlight. Everyone wants to know what really happened, most of all former deputy Marcus Hudson, who is hell-bent on finding the truth. But when the woman Bob slept with is reported missing, he and Sarah start to fight dirty, and a high-stakes game of cat and mouse ensues. Filled with page-turning suspense and Jeneva Rose’s signature twists and turns, this book will have readers wondering: Can Bob and Sarah achieve the perfect divorce? Or will it be “’til death do us part”? Release Date: April 15, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1d5261b5-0b32-4ef1-97db-840b730cbb62/216364822.jpg Blog - April New Releases - Watch Me by Tahereh Mafi James Anderson had a plan. Or half of one. All that matters is that he managed to do what his older brother, the famous Aaron Warner Anderson, never did: infiltrate Ark Island, the last refuge of The Reestablishment. In the past decade no outsider has breached the stronghold of the authoritarian regime, but James is in. In a prison cell, sure, but as far as James is concerned, a win is a win. It’s been ten years since the fall of The Reestablishment. Ten years since the notorious duo — Juliette Ferrars and Aaron Warner Anderson — led a worldwide rebellion and established the New Republic of the West. But after a decade of unsettling quiet, The Reestablishment is ready to make a devastating move, and they have the perfect person for the job. Rosabelle Wolff had a plan. She always has a plan. On Ark Island, where constant surveillance is packaged as security, even emotions must be experienced with caution. A trained assassin, her every movement is monitored by synthetic intelligence—and when she’s given an order to kill, she never hesitates. Release Date: April 15, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a850a843-e4e5-488a-a978-6fa970d6eb60/216052751.jpg Blog - April New Releases - The Book Club for Troublesome Women by Marie Bostwick By early 1960s standards, Margaret Ryan, Viv Buschetti, and Bitsy Cobb, suburban housewives in a brand-new "planned community" in Northern Virginia, appear to have it all. The fact that "all" doesn't feel like enough leaves them feeling confused and guilty, certain the fault must lie with them. Things begin to change when they form a book club with Charlotte Gustafson--the eccentric and artsy "new neighbor" from Manhattan--and read Betty Friedan's just-released book, The Feminine Mystique. Controversial and groundbreaking, the book struck a chord with an entire generation of women, helping them realize that they weren't alone in their dissatisfactions, or their longings, lifting their eyes to new horizons of possibility and achievement. Margaret, Charlotte, Bitsy, and Viv are among them. But is it really the book that alters the lives of these four very different women? Or is it the bond of sisterhood that helps them find courage to confront the past, navigate turmoil in a rapidly changing world, and see themselves in a new and limitless light? Release Date: April 22, 2025 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2e47eff4-1ffb-401b-9deb-2053fb653cec/218559595.jpg Blog - April New Releases - Great Big Beautiful Life by Emily Henry Alice Scott is an eternal optimist still dreaming of her big writing break. Hayden Anderson is a Pulitzer-prize winning human thundercloud. And they’re both on balmy Little Crescent Island for the same reason: To write the biography of a woman no one has seen in years--or at least to meet with the octogenarian who claims to be the Margaret Ives. Tragic heiress, former tabloid princess, and daughter of one of the most storied (and scandalous) families of the 20th Century. When Margaret invites them both for a one-month trial period, after which she’ll choose the person who’ll tell her story, there are three things keeping Alice’s head in the game. One: Alice genuinely likes people, which means people usually like Alice—and she has a whole month to win the legendary woman over. Two: She’s ready for this job and the chance to impress her perennially unimpressed family with a Serious Publication Three: Hayden Anderson, who should have no reason to be concerned about losing this book, is glowering at her in a shaken-to-the core way that suggests he sees her as competition. But the problem is, Margaret is only giving each of them pieces of her story. Pieces they can’t swap to put together because of an ironclad NDA and an inconvenient yearning pulsing between them every time they’re in the same room. And it’s becoming abundantly clear that their story—just like the tale Margaret’s spinning—could be a mystery, tragedy, or love ballad…depending on who’s telling it. Release Date: April 22, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e3719477-4706-4992-98a4-240c5afe3062/208840704.jpg Blog - April New Releases - The Summer I Ate the Rich by Maika Moulite and Maritza Moulite Just add lemon, garlic, and a dash of the one percent. This smart, biting novel explores what happens when a Haitian American girl uses her previously hidden zombie abilities to exact revenge on the wealthy elites who’ve caused her family pain. Brielle Petitfour loves to cook. But with a chronically sick mother and bills to pay, becoming a chef isn’t exactly a realistic career path. When Brielle’s mom suddenly loses her job, Brielle steps in and uses her culinary skills to earn some extra money. The rich families who love her cooking praise her use of unique flavors and textures, which keep everyone guessing what’s in Brielle’s dishes. The secret ingredient? Human flesh. Release Date: April 22, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f326f122-858e-4ee9-81ec-e6f8b827bf09/214152211.jpg Blog - April New Releases - The Bright Years by Sarah Damoff Ryan and Lillian Bright are deeply in love, recently married, and now parents to a baby girl, Georgette. But Lillian has a son she hasn’t told Ryan about, and Ryan has an alcohol addiction he hasn’t told Lillian about, so Georgette comes of age watching their marriage rise and fall. When a shocking blow scatters their fragile trio, Georgette tries to distance herself from reminders of her parents. Years later, Lillian’s son comes searching for his birth family, so Georgette must return to her roots, unearth her family’s history, and decide whether she can open up to love for them—or herself—while there’s still time. Release Date: April 22, 2025 Genre: Contemporary Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ed795fbc-0f77-48ab-9acd-6b4a7d718f1b/216970870.jpg Blog - April New Releases - Serial Killer Games by Kate Posey Dolores dela Cruz has been dying to spot one in the wild, and he fits the mold strangler gloves, calculated charm, dashing good looks that give a leg up in any field . . . including fields of unmarked graves. The new office temp is definitely a serial killer. Jake Ripper finds a welcome distraction in his combative and enigmatic new coworker. He hasn’t come across anyone as interesting as Dolores in a long time. But when mere curiosity evolves into a darkly romantic flirtation, Jake can’t help but wonder if, finally, he’s found someone who really sees him, skeletons in the closet and all. Until Dolores asks Jake’s help to dispose of a body . . Release Date: April 29, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a0c33bf0-fcac-4f9a-8074-3327818758e5/218185743.jpg Blog - April New Releases - Bat Eater and Other Names for Cora Zeng by Kylie Lee Baker Cora Zeng is a crime scene cleaner, washing away the remains of brutal murders and suicides in Chinatown. But none of that seems so terrible when she’s already witnessed the most horrific thing possible: her sister, Delilah, being pushed in front of a train. Before fleeing the scene, the murderer shouted two words: bat eater. So the bloody messes don’t really bother Cora—she’s more bothered by the germs on the subway railing, the bare hands of a stranger, the hidden viruses in every corner, and the bite marks on her coffee table. Of course, ever since Delilah was killed in front of her, Cora can’t be sure what's real and what’s in her head. She pushes away all feelings and ignores the advice of her aunt to prepare for the Hungry Ghost Festival, when the gates of hell open. But she can't ignore the dread in her stomach as she keeps finding bat carcasses at crime scenes, or the scary fact that all her recent cleanups have been the bodies of East Asian women. As Cora will soon learn, you can’t just ignore hungry ghosts. Release Date: April 29, 2025 Genre: Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/08f2d951-77a8-41f3-9184-0c65f88fc506/214143805.jpg Blog - April New Releases - Enigma by RuNyx Salem Salazar comes to Mortimer University to get to the bottom of her sister's mysterious death. There, obsessed with forensics, she discovers there have been a lot more unexplained deaths on the campus. Her search leads her down a dark and dangerous path to a secret society and to Caz. Cazimir van der Waal is in her way and another mystery to unravel. Is he just an art student, a man living a double life, or a murderer? While also at the university seeking answers for another death, Caz has a lot more to him than meets the eye. Secret forces are at play in Mortimer and no one is safe. As Salem tries to go under radar and Caz tries to block her path, somehow, they both end up in the crossfire of a powerful, secret society. They are forced to work together to discover the truth or risk losing their lives. Release Date: April 29, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/869da1f5-4c9b-4d52-bf0b-61e9506a5b87/216971219.jpg Blog - April New Releases - The Staircase in the Woods by Chuck Wendig Five high school friends are bonded by an oath to protect one another no matter what. Then, on a camping trip in the middle of the forest, they find something a mysterious staircase to nowhere. One friend walks up—and never comes back down. Then the staircase disappears. Twenty years later, the staircase has reappeared. Now the group returns to find the lost boy—and what lies beyond the staircase in the woods. . . . Release Date: April 29, 2025 Genre: Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/784698c3-9626-41e0-874c-5bfabf91d4de/210825471.jpg Blog - April New Releases - King of Envy by Ana Huang He had everything he could’ve wanted…except her. Dangerous. Powerful. Reclusive. Vuk Markovic is notorious for shunning human interactions. The scarred billionaire rarely talks, and he has no interest in relationships outside his small but trusted circle. His only exception? Her . The beauty to his beast, the object of his obsession. He saw her first. He wanted her first. But now, she’s engaged to his oldest friend—and the closer the wedding looms, the more he’s torn between loyalty and desire. She should be his…and he might just risk it all to have her. *** Beautiful. Successful. Glamorous. To the world, supermodel Ayana Kidane leads the perfect life. Her career has skyrocketed, and she’s engaged to one of New York’s most eligible bachelors. What people don't know is that the engagement is only a business arrangement. He gets his inheritance when they marry; she gets the money she needs to leave her abusive agency. Pretending to be in love should be easy—until she finds herself increasingly drawn to her fiancé’s enigmatic best man. Vuk thrills and terrifies her in equal measure. She knows she should stay away, but when her wedding is thrown into chaos, he’s the only person she finds comfort in… Until his past catches up with them and threatens everything they love. Release Date: April 29, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9dcc5c0f-d8d3-49d7-a1b1-228f52c61b43/218674082.jpg Blog - April New Releases - The Amalfi Curse by Sarah Penner Haven Ambrose, a trailblazing nautical archaeologist, has come to the sun-soaked village of Positano to investigate the mysterious shipwrecks along the Amalfi Coast. But Haven is hoping to find more than old artifacts beneath the azure waters; she is secretly on a quest to locate a trove of priceless gemstones her late father spotted on his final dive. Upon Haven’s arrival, strange maelstroms and misfortunes start plaguing the town. Is it nature or something more sinister at work? As Haven searches for her father’s sunken treasure, she begins to unearth a centuries-old tale of ancient sorcery and one woman’s quest to save her lover and her village by using the legendary art of stregheria, a magical ability to harness the ocean. Could this magic be behind Positano’s latest calamities? Haven must unravel the Amalfi Curse before the region is destroyed forever… Release Date: April 29, 2025 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/85ede1e7-5016-4719-be8e-dbae38e9df27/197522426.jpg Blog - April New Releases - Long Time Gone by Charlie Donlea Thirty years ago, Baby Charlotte vanished. Today, she’s still in danger. When Dr. Sloan Hastings submits her DNA to an online genealogy site for a research assignment, her goal is to better understand the treasure-trove of genetic information contained on ancestry websites. Brilliant and driven, Sloan is embarking on a fellowship in forensic pathology, training under the renowned Dr. Livia Cutty. Sloan has one reservation about involving herself in the she’s adopted. Grateful for a loving home, she’s never considered tracking down her biological parents. The results of her search are shocking. Sloan’s DNA profile suggests her true identity is that of Charlotte Margolis, aka “Baby Charlotte”, who captured the nation’s attention when she mysteriously disappeared, along with her parents, in July 1995. Despite an exhaustive search, the family was never seen again, and no suspects were named in the case. Sloan’s discovery leads her to the small town of Cedar Creek, Nevada, the site of her disappearance. It also leads her to Sheriff Eric Stamos. The Margolis family’s influence and power permeate every corner of Harrison County, and Eric is convinced that in learning the truth about her past, Sloan can also help discover what happened to Eric’s father, who died under suspicious circumstances soon after he started investigating the case her disappearance. Slowly, over the course of a stifling summer, Sloan begins getting to know her relatives. Though initially welcoming, the Margolis family is also mysterious and tight-lipped. Not everyone seems happy about Sloan’s return, or the questions she’s asking. And the more she and Eric learn, the more apparent it becomes that the answers they both seek are buried in a graveyard of Margolis family secrets that some will do anything to keep hidden—no matter who else has to die… Release Date: April 29, 2025 Genre: Mystery https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/spring-into-spring-romances monthly 0.5 2025-03-20 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9dcbf431-c0af-473b-9baa-eeff7f3a7367/213186396-2.jpg Blog - Spring into Spring Romances - The Strawberry Pancake House by Laurie Gilmore As a renowned chef, single-dad Archer never planned on moving to a small town, let alone running a pancake restaurant. But Dream Harbor needs a new chef, and Archer needs a community to help raise his daughter, Olive. Iris has never managed to hold down a job for more than a few months. So when Mayor Kelly suggests Archer is looking for a nanny, and Iris might be available, she shudders at the thought. But in need of money she reluctantly agrees. As Archer and Iris get used to their new roles, is it possible that they might have more in common than they first thought, or is Olive just determined to play match-maker… https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9e4d9d88-8040-458a-b828-f683a675cfe6/214269328-2.jpg Blog - Spring into Spring Romances - Promise Me Sunshine by Cara Bastone Lenny’s a bit of a mess at the moment. Her best friend, Lou, recently passed away after a battle with cancer, and her death has left Lenny feeling completely lost. She’s avoiding her concerned parents, the apartment she shared with Lou, and the list of things she’s supposed to do to help her live again. The only thing she can do is temporary babysitting gigs, and luckily, she just landed a great one, helping overworked, single mom Reese and her precocious daughter, Ainsley. It’s not perfect: Ainsley’s uncle, Miles, always seems to be around, and is kind of... a huge jerk. But if Lenny acts like she has it all together, maybe no one will notice she’s falling apart. Miles sees right through her though. Turns out, he knows a lot about grief and, surprisingly, he offers her a proposition. He’ll help her complete everything on her “live again” list if she’ll help him connect with Ainsley and overcome his complicated relationship with Reese. Lenny doubts anything can fill the Lou has left behind, but she begins to spend more time with Miles, Lenny is surprised to discover that, sometimes, losing everything is only the first step to finding yourself, and love, again. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9f5d36a1-df96-4076-bcf6-e0e6381cb9b0/209220944.jpg Blog - Spring into Spring Romances - Out of the Woods by Hannah Bonam-Young High school sweethearts Sarah and Caleb Linwood have always been a sure thing. For the past seventeen years, they have had each other’s backs through all of life’s ups and downs, achievements, losses, stages, and phases. But Sarah has begun to wonder... Who is she without her other half? When she decides to take on a project of her own, a fundraising gala in memoriam of her late mother, Sarah wants nothing more than to prove to herself—and to everyone else—that she doesn’t need Caleb’s help to succeed. She’s still her mother’s daughter, after all. Independent and capable. That is until the event fails and Caleb uninvitedly steps in to save the day. The rift that follows unearths a decade of grievances between them and doubts begin to grow. Are they truly the same people they were when they got married at nineteen? Are they supposed to be? In a desperate attempt to fix what they fear is near breaking, Sarah and Caleb make the spontaneous decision to join a grueling hiking trip intended to guide couples through rough patches. What follows is a life-affirming comedy of errors as two nature-averse people fight their way out of the woods in order to find their way back to their roots. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b786265a-86e1-4514-9fb3-956115d0eb41/209455835.jpg.png Blog - Spring into Spring Romances - Under Loch and Key by Lana Ferguson Keyanna “Key” MacKay is used to secrets. Raised by a single father who never divulged his past, it’s only after his death that she finds herself thrust into the world he’d always refused to speak of. With just a childhood bedtime story about a monster that saved her father’s life and the name of her estranged grandmother to go off of, Key has no idea what she’ll find in Scotland. But repeating her father’s mistakes and being rescued by a gorgeous, angry Scotsman—who thinks she’s an idiot—is definitely the last thing she expects. Lachlan Greer has his own secrets to keep, especially from the bonnie lass he pulls to safety from the slippery shore—a lass with captivating eyes and the last name he’s been taught not to trust. He’s looking for answers as well, and Key’s presence on the grounds they both now occupy presents a real problem. It’s even more troublesome when he gets a front row seat to the lukewarm welcome Key receives from her family; the strange powers she begins to develop; and the fierce determination she brings to every obstacle in her path. Things he shouldn’t care about, and someone he definitely doesn’t find wildly attractive. When their secrets collide, it becomes clear that Lachlan could hold the answers Keyanna is after—and that she might also be the key to uncovering his. Up against time, mystery, and a centuries old curse, they’ll quickly discover that magic might not only be in fairy tales, and that love can be a real loch-mess. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/faf2f540-42ec-42ec-a834-728b4c87a287/212431593-2.jpg Blog - Spring into Spring Romances - Scot and Bothered by Alexandra Kiley Brooke Sinclair’s dream of being a published author derailed when she was expelled from the University of Edinburgh seven years ago. Now a ghostwriter, she sticks to other people’s stories. But when her college mentor Mhairi McCallister needs a co-writer for her memoir about Scotland’s most challenging trek, Brooke would do anything for the opportunity—including agreeing to hike the rugged Skye Trail for authenticity’s sake... not knowing the nature photographer who’ll join her is Jack Sutherland, the man who shattered Brooke’s writing career—and her heart. Between getting sacked from the University and walking away from his family’s tour-guiding business to follow his photography dreams, Jack is desperate to prove he didn’t disappoint his family for nothing. And he can’t ignore his Aunt Mhairi’s final wishes for her memoir. Even if it means acting as guide and storyteller for the one who got away. Even if it means keeping secrets about Mhairi’s health. As Jack and Brooke head into the solitude of the sweeping Scottish landscape, they’re forced to confront old feelings that haven’t disappeared with time. But can two weeks and eighty miles heal years of unspoken hurt and offer a second chance at the end of the trail? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4670aacb-0741-4309-9f37-e1c869f1a270/198563641-2.jpg Blog - Spring into Spring Romances - Back After This by Linda Holmes Cecily Foster loves to make podcasts. She fiercely protects her colleagues, dearly adores her friends, and never misses dinner with her sister. But after a disastrous relationship with a colleague who stole her heart and her ideas, she’s put romantic love on hold. When the boss who’s disappointed her again and again finally offers her the chance to host her own show, she wants to be thrilled. But there’s a catch—actually, two catches. First, the show will be about Cecily’s dating life. And second, she has to follow the guidance of influencer and newly minted relationship coach Eliza Cassidy, whose relentlessly upbeat attitude seems ready-made for social media, not real life. Cecily would rather do anything other than put her singledom on display (ugh) or take advice from the internet (UGH). But when her boss hints that doing the show is the only way to protect a friend’s job, she realizes she has no choice. To make matters more complicated, once she’s committed to twenty blind dates of Eliza’s choosing, Cecily finds herself unable to stop thinking about Will, a photographer she helped to rescue a very big and very lovable lost dog. Even though there are sparks between the two, Will’s own path is uncertain, and Eliza’s skeptical comments about Cecily’s decision-making aren’t helping. On the one hand, Will seems great. But on the other hand . . . don’t they all? As Cecily struggles to balance the life she truly desires and the one Eliza wants to create for her, she finds herself at a crossroads. Can Cecily sort through all the advice and find a way to do what she loves without losing herself in the process? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a7260ff6-a4d9-4d9f-8c24-6cc0247b4aab/214511213.jpg Blog - Spring into Spring Romances - Something Like Fate by Amy Lea For generations, the fortune-telling women in Lo Zhao-Jensen’s family have foreseen The One—the great loves of their lives—before ever meeting them. Except for Lo, who has zero psychic abilities. Just memories of old rom-coms and a lot of poor judgment when it comes to love. Until now. When Lo finally has the vision she’s been waiting for, her delighted aunties are convinced she’ll meet The One on her backpacking trip in Italy. Vero amore, here she comes. Along for the summer is Lo’s best friend and confidant, Teller Owens, her opposite in every way. Upon arrival in Venice, Lo is saved from a runaway trolley by Caleb, a fellow backpacker. It’s a meet-cute so swoony, it has to be fate. But with each destination, Lo’s complicated feelings for Teller are becoming harder to ignore. From the cobblestone streets of Rome to the rocky cliffs of Amalfi, Lo begins to wonder if fate has other plans. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2f132fcb-328a-4ffb-b1a7-6c6a20a90bb8/215583253-2.jpg Blog - Spring into Spring Romances - Spring Fling by Annie England Noblin Rekindle your belief in the magic of first love and the charm of small towns with Annie England Noblin’s delightful friends-to-lovers romantic comedy, perfect for readers of Jill Shalvis and Sarah Adams. Spring is in the air and Mylie has everything she could ever want: her tackle shop is thriving and employs a third of Clay Creek, Arkansas, and she lives with her beloved Granny and little sister Cassie, who both keep her on her toes. As tourists pour into town for the annual fishing tournament, Mylie is in her element and ready to bring her all-women team to victory. After moving to Chicago, Ben never thought he would return to Clay Creek. But with both his grandfather and mother gone, he’s left to deal with their estate. His plan is simple: come in quietly, fix up his lakeside childhood home, sell it quickly, and get out. He underestimates how quickly his arrival will stir up the local gossip, and how intensely his unresolved feelings for Mylie, his childhood best friend, will resurface. Amid the buzz of competition and the rhythm of small-town life, Mylie and Ben find themselves unable to ignore their shared history. They tentatively explore a future together, despite the impending sale of Ben’s house and Mylie’s insistence on staying put in Clay Creek. Flings are easier said than done, and Mylie and Ben will have to address their clashing lifestyles before their feelings get away from them. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3ff35660-d3c2-47e5-9647-688795798a87/220808241.jpg Blog - Spring into Spring Romances - Pitcher Us by Mollie Goins Coming off a World Series win, one of the last things starting pitcher, Will Anderson anticipates is being traded to the Boston Blues. That and the fact he isn’t being traded alone. Over the past year, his catcher’s little sister was simply that—his teammate’s sister. She was never someone Will should have felt a need to take care of, but with her fiery personality, Will finds himself caught in her blaze. When Callie Reyer showed up on her brother’s doorstep, she promised herself no more baseball players. All season, she distanced herself from her brother’s teammates. But now, not only is she the Blue’s new team photographer, she’s moved in next door to the team’s pitcher. When Callie and Will find themselves tiptoeing the line between being friends and wanting more, they must decide whether their relationship is worth risking the jobs they love. Because as it turns out, dating your coworkers at the Boston Blues is strictly prohibited. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ebc5c501-6dff-43fe-83e5-e7c70d1782b1/214490432.jpg Blog - Spring into Spring Romances - While We’re Young by K.L. Walther Grace, Isa, and Everett used to be an inseparable trio before their love lives became a tangled mess. For starters, Grace is secretly in love with Everett, who used to go out with Isa before breaking her heart in the infamous Freshman Year Fracture. And, oh yeah, no one knows that Isa has been hanging out with James, Grace’s brother—and if Grace finds out, it could ruin their friendship. With graduation fast approaching, Grace decides an unsanctioned senior skip day in Philadelphia might be just what they need to fix things. All she has to do is convince Isa to help her kidnap Everett and outmaneuver James, who’s certain his sister is up to something. In an epic day that includes racing up the famous Rocky steps, taste-testing Philly's finest cheesesteaks, and even crashing a wedding, their secrets are bound to collide. But can their hearts withstand the wreckage? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/18abce88-0cdc-40e5-9d02-38fa2d02ef10/214175139.jpg Blog - Spring into Spring Romances - You Between the Lines by Katie Naymon A former sorority girl starts a prestigious poetry MFA program only to discover that one of her fellow grad students is her high school crush-turned-nemesis— who can't stop writing about her. No one’s more surprised than Leigh when a prestigious MFA program in North Carolina accepts her. A former sorority girl, Leigh’s the first to admit she knows more about the lyrics of Taylor Swift than T.S. Eliot, and she’s never been able to shake the “all-style-no-substance” feedback her high school crush made in their poetry workshop. Bad enough that her tattooed, New Yorker tote bag-carrying classmates have read all the right authors and been published in the country's leading literary journals, Leigh's insecurities become all too real when Will, that same high school crush-turned-nemesis, shows up at orientation as a first-year in the program, too. And now, he’s William, exactly the kind of writer Leigh hates, complete with his pretentious sweater vests and tattered Moleskine. Leigh’s determined to prove herself—and William—wrong by landing the program’s highly-coveted fellowship. But Will’s dead-set on it, too, and in a small cohort, they can't keep apart for long. When Will submits an intimate poem (that's maybe, probably, definitely about Leigh) to workshop, they’re both forced to realize there’s more to the other than what’s on the page. And what’s between the lines may be even more interesting. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/64b79656-64a7-4ee0-ab2e-d8c26bf8d438/203578971.jpg Blog - Spring into Spring Romances - Perfect Fit by Clare Gilmore Josephine Davis has spent her entire twenties building Revenant: a fashion brand headquartered in downtown Austin. When her biggest investor orders Josie to hire a consultant, the last person she expects to be working with is Will Grant – the twin brother of Josie’s ex best friend. Sure, Will and Josie may have shared one mistake of a kiss during senior spring break nine years ago, but they’ve never been friends. She remembers him as moody; he always thought of her as shallow. Romance isn’t on the table for either of them until they blink, and realize there’s a reason they can’t stay away from each other. But there’s Will’s sister to consider – whom Josie hasn’t spoken with since their falling out – not to mention, Will and Josie live seventeen hundred miles apart. And it’s not like she has time for a boyfriend anyway when she’s an overworked CEO. As Josie’s burnout looms while she falls deeper and harder for Will, she contends with the fact that eventually, she’ll have to make a choice: stay alone to be productive, or slow down to be in love. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7e419019-3c09-490a-ba46-17c6eb500ed1/213212691.jpg Blog - Spring into Spring Romances - Work in Progress by Kat Mackenzie UK Bus Trip Goals: 1. Crawl out of pajamas. 2. Get over cheating bastard and his stupid ironed jeans. 3. Have my first real adventure! 4. Achieve stability, strength, and growth. 5. Definitely do NOT kiss any British men. Alice loves a good list. But careful planning didn’t stop her from losing her job and her fiance in one fell swoop. With her dreaded 30th birthday looming on the horizon, Alice makes the first impulsive decision of her life - booking a flight to the UK for a three-week, all-female, literary bus tour. What could possibly go wrong? Turns out - everything. Alice arrives to discover that this tour isn’t what she expected. At all. Instead of cool, globe-trotting thirtysomethings with meaningful tattoos, she finds a rickety, antique bus full of fluffy-haired octogenarians. And to make matters infinitely worse, the tour guide makes her blood boil! And that devilish grin of his tells her he’s dead set on making her trip a misery. But as they travel from castle ruins to cozy pubs, Alice may just find that she’s got it all wrong. The ladies are vivacious. The book club chat is on fire. And damn if that mischievous smile doesn't threaten to turn her world upside down - and her beloved list right along with it! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4c83f289-6438-4e89-a1e1-9daf262d46cb/213243919.jpg Blog - Spring into Spring Romances - Change of Heart by Falon Ballard Campbell Andrews despises exactly three things in incompetence, tardiness, and love stories. Making partner at her law firm at thirty-four, she has no time for anything or anyone else. And certainly no respect for those who choose love over work. That is, until she wakes up in Heart Springs—her own personal hell. The good news? She's not dead. She's been magically transported to a small town straight out the Hallmark channel, complete with a meddling mayor, seasonal festivals, and friendly townsfolk. Cam can't stand it, but in order to make it back to her real life, she has to fulfill three tasks . . . most importantly, she has to find true love. It seems impossible. But anything's possible with a Change of Heart. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/085ddfc6-ad0b-426d-854f-e35fc492c01e/199926331-2.jpg Blog - Spring into Spring Romances - The Ex Vows by Jessica Joyce Georgia Woodward lives by her lists, none more so than the one about her ex, Eli Mora. It’s full of the ironclad dos and don’ts they’ve been following since she returned to the Bay Area after their cataclysmic breakup five years ago. With the wedding of their mutual best friend, Adam, looming, and them about to step into their roles as best woman and man, Georgia’s never needed it more. She refuses to threaten their tight-knit friend group with her messy—and still very present—feelings. The rules on that list will keep her cool, calm, and compartmentalized. What’s not on her list? Eli arriving from New York with a new rule-breaking attitude or the all-inclusive venue burning to the ground, leaving the bride and groom in dire straits. Nor does she anticipate Adam asking her and Eli to help him make a miracle happen. Together. As Georgia and Eli rush up to Napa Valley to pull off the perfect wedding, their old chemistry comes back in technicolor. Somewhere between cake tastings gone wrong, disastrous DJ auditions, and Eli’s heated attention, Georgia starts recognizing the man she fell in love with before. And if she lets herself break her rules, she might find what they’re building isn’t the something old that ruined them—it’s a chance at something new. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1c332ca5-3f18-495e-a8b2-946d8048662a/183904913.jpg Blog - Spring into Spring Romances - Give Me Butterflies by Jillian Meadows Millie loves her job as a kickass entomology curator, inspiring museum visitors every day. She even has an interview for the department director position, so she can take on an even bigger role in the museum. She refuses to be distracted by her grumpy coworker with his permanent scowl, bright blue eyes, and nerdy astronomy ties. . . . Not that she’s spent much time noticing any of those things. Finn Ashford doesn’t mean to glare at everyone, but he’s juggling his job at the museum, navigating the grief of losing his sister, attempting to make his nieces smile, and not ruin dinner for the fifth night in a row. When Millie stumbles through the door of her interview, her eyes scan the committee and land on the one man that could derail her promotion, but it just so happens he’s also the one man that could make all her dreams come true. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3590b374-1286-4736-ae34-c3cd0e1dd21d/212924210-2.jpg Blog - Spring into Spring Romances - Into the Woods by Jenny Holiday Teddy Knight’s band has just broken up in spectacular fashion after his longtime bandmate and—he’d thought—closest friend decides to go solo. So when he’s offered a last-minute gig to fill in as an artist-in-residence at a summer arts camp—which comes with a lake cabin and lots of free time to work on a revenge album—he takes it. No matter that he knows nothing about nature, dislikes kids, and is generally a grump. Gretchen Miller is having a mid-life crisis. Luckily, her summer job as the dance teacher at Wild Arts summer camp will allow her to drop out of society for a while. Having sworn off dating, she decides she’ll go into the woods and become a crone. She might skip the “luring innocent children to their death” part of cronedom, but she’s all for the “curse men” aspect. Teddy and Gretchen clash from the get-go when he mistakes her for a fan, and she relegates him to the “entitled jerk” ash heap. Despite their determination to dislike each other, a wary friendship blooms as the magic of the woods starts to unwind them, and they spend long hours by the campfire talking about art, being stuck, and the idea of starting over. But woods are often filled with monsters, and Teddy and Gretchen will have to face their fears if they want to start over together. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d3570a14-33a4-4260-af64-5188772a4ba0/194802722-3.jpg Blog - Spring into Spring Romances - Funny Story by Emily Henry Daphne always loved the way her fiancé, Peter, told their story. How they met (on a blustery day), fell in love (over an errant hat), and moved back to his lakeside hometown to begin their life together. He really was good at telling it... right up until the moment he realized he was actually in love with his childhood best friend Petra. Which is how Daphne begins her new story: stranded in beautiful Waning Bay, Michigan, without friends or family but with a dream job as a children’s librarian (that barely pays the bills), and proposing to be roommates with the only person who could possibly understand her predicament: Petra’s ex, Miles Nowak. Scruffy and chaotic—with a penchant for taking solace in the sounds of heart break love ballads—Miles is exactly the opposite of practical, buttoned-up Daphne, whose coworkers know so little about her they have a running bet that she’s either FBI or in witness protection. The roommates mainly avoid one another, until one day, while drowning their sorrows, they form a tenuous friendship and a plan. If said plan also involves posting deliberately misleading photos of their summer adventures together, well, who could blame them? But it’s all just for show, of course, because there’s no way Daphne would actually start her new chapter by falling in love with her ex-fiancé’s new fiancée’s ex... right? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3bd6fd0a-620d-4f0c-8199-72bac1fb3606/199797582-2.jpg Blog - Spring into Spring Romances - The Paradise Problem by Christina Lauren Anna Green thought she was marrying Liam “West” Weston for access to subsidized family housing while at UCLA. She also thought she’d signed divorce papers when the graduation caps were tossed, and they both went on their merry ways. Three years later, Anna is a starving artist living paycheck to paycheck while West is a Stanford professor. He may be one of four heirs to the Weston Foods conglomerate, but he has little interest in working for the heartless corporation his family built from the ground up. He is interested, however, in his one-hundred-million-dollar inheritance. There’s just one catch. Due to an antiquated clause in his grandfather’s will, Liam won’t see a penny until he’s been happily married for five years. Just when Liam thinks he’s in the home stretch, pressure mounts from his family to see this mysterious spouse, and he has no choice but to turn to the one person he’s afraid to introduce to his one-percenter parents — his unpolished, not-so-ex-wife. But in the presence of his family, Liam’s fears quickly shift from whether the feisty, foul-mouthed, paint-splattered Anna can play the part to whether the toxic world of wealth will corrupt someone as pure of heart as his surprisingly grounded and loyal wife. Liam will have to ask himself if the price tag on his flimsy cover story is worth losing true love that sprouted from a lie. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/24946845-bb64-4415-a471-72839e3d196f/182484354-2.jpg Blog - Spring into Spring Romances - The Rule Book by Sarah Adams Nora Mackenzie’s entire career lies in the hands of famous NFL tight end Derek Pender, who happens to be her extremely hot college ex-boyfriend. Nora didn’t end things as gracefully as she could have back then, and now it has come back to haunt her. Derek is her first client as an official full-time sports agent, and he’s holding a grudge. Derek has set his sights on a little friendly revenge. If Nora Mackenzie, the first girl to ever break his heart, wants to be his agent, oh, he’ll let her be his agent. The plan is simple: make Nora’s life absolutely miserable. But if Derek knows anything about the woman he once loved—she won’t quit easily. Instead of giving in, Nora starts a scheme of her own. But then a wild night in Vegas leads to Nora and Derek in bed the next morning married. With their rule book out the window, could this new relationship save their careers and spark the romance of a lifetime? https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/five-survive-review monthly 0.5 2025-03-10 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/cowboy-romance-recemmendations monthly 0.5 2025-02-27 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5e901750-97f5-4508-affd-6353f4820eb2/199368721-2.jpg Blog - Cowboy Romance Recommendations - Wild Love by Elsie Silver She's been driving him wild for years . . . the good kind of wild. The kind of wild that comes with wanting your best friend's little sister and knowing you can't have her. Forbes may have labeled Ford Grant the World's Hottest Billionaire, but all he cares about is escaping the press and opening a recording studio in gorgeous small town Rose Hill. Something that comes to a screeching halt when he ends up face-to-face with a young girl who claims he's her biological father. Now, he spends his days balancing business with parenting a sullen twelve-year-old, all while trying desperately to keep his hands the hell off his best friend's sister, Rosie Belmont. After living in the city, Rosie came blasting back into town like a storm. Beautiful, messy, and chaotic. And one wide-eyed, desperate plea for a job is all it takes for Ford to hire her. He vows to keep her at arm's length. Tries to stick to scowls and grumpy one-liners. But with her, verbal sparring is a type of foreplay―friction that soon turns to blistering heat. Ford knows damn well he shouldn't cross this line. But shouldn't and can't are two very different things. And the only thing he truly can't do is resist her. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/94fb28a1-cc79-499f-a731-c6d50f0a929e/181507668-2.jpg Blog - Cowboy Romance Recommendations - Here With Me by Brooke Montgomery When we met at the rodeo, I only knew his first name. Sparks ignited between us, and we spent an unforgettable night together. It's not until the morning after when I recognize his last name do I realize who he is. So I do what any rational woman would and make the walk of shame while he sleeps. It's not like I'll ever see him again or have to explain why I left. But I'm proven wrong when he shows up at my family's ranch as the new farrier. We can't be more than friends—for many reasons. He's twice my age, workplace relationships are off-limits, and he moved back to rebuild a relationship with his son—the one I used to date. Getting involved would ruin everything. As we struggle between right and wrong, our connection deepens even though his traumatic past makes him doubt he deserves a second chance. But it doesn't matter when everything's against us, including a rival who's out to get me and my ex who's determined to win me back. After a riding trick goes wrong on his watch, he insists on taking care of me. Even though the odds are stacked against us, we keep the truth to ourselves. But secrets don't stay hidden for long in a Southern small town. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/93deb94a-4bc9-416f-bb76-c2cf6b6ba847/123179008-3.jpg Blog - Cowboy Romance Recommendations - Done and Dusted by Lyla Sage She’s off-limits, but he’s never been good at following the rules. For the first time in her life, Clementine “Emmy” Ryder has no idea what she’s doing. She’s accomplished everything on her to-do list. She left her small hometown of Meadowlark, Wyoming; went to college; and made a career for herself by doing her favorite thing: riding horses. But after an accident makes it impossible for her to get back into the saddle, she has no choice but to return to the hometown she always wanted to escape. Luke Brooks is Meadowlark’s most notorious bad boy, bar owner, and bachelor. He’s also the unofficial fifth member of the Ryder family. As Emmy’s older brother’s best friend, Luke spent most of his childhood antagonizing her. It’s been years since he’s seen her, but when she walks into his bar and back into his life, he can’t take his eyes off her. Despite his better judgment, he wants to do a whole lot more than just look at her. Emmy’s got too much on her mind to think about romance. And Luke knows he should stay away from his best friend’s younger sister. But what if Luke is just what Emmy needs to get her spark back? Or will they both go up in flames? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4488acd0-a68c-45d1-83ae-4d559f093703/200568645-2.jpg Blog - Cowboy Romance Recommendations - Tame the Heart by Ava Hunter Keeping my heart guarded all my life has never been an issue. Until he saves me in a bar fight. Charlie Montgomery is one grumpy rancher. Calloused hands, stubborn heart, the definition of a true cowboy. He dislikes me from the second we meet. Warns me away from his tiny town of Resurrection, Montana. Well, what he doesn’t know is I’m armed with a bucket list and a secret. There’s no way I’m leaving. I’ll just keep my distance. Only in a small town that distance doesn’t last for long. Because I owe him a Work for him for three months and help him save his home. Runaway Ranch. But our close confines mean I see what’s under all that strong. I see the real Charlie Montgomery. The man behind the rugged rancher who yells. Beneath his dark beard hides a rare smile. Beneath his mile-wide chest beats a tender heart. One that slowly starts to beat for me. And instead of running back onto that open road, I run towards Charlie instead. But a hidden danger is lurking. Someone who doesn't want Charlie to save his ranch. Someone who is out to get us both. And I could lose more than my heart this summer—I could lose my life… https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/06ed9ba5-1f00-4e65-9b6a-e1a7a6d11156/199679208-2.jpg Blog - Cowboy Romance Recommendations - Spur of the Moment by Karley Brenna Coming home was supposed to be temporary, but this time, he isn't letting her go. Lettie Bronson thought that running from her problems was the only way to find happiness and avoid risking losing the one person who meant the most to her. But running didn’t solve a single thing, and when she returns to her family’s ranch in Bell Buckle, she has no intent on staying. She’s only there long enough to figure out where to land next. But one road trip later, she’s convinced she doesn’t know what she wants. Bailey Cooper has always given more of himself to the two ranches he works on than his personal life, but one thing he knows for sure: Lettie is the girl he’s going to marry. When she leaves without a goodbye the day after her eighteenth birthday, he’s convinced he’ll never see her again. That is, until she’s falling off a ladder and into his arms. Even after five years, he’s still lost in those baby blues of hers, and falls impossibly harder after a few days alone with her. But coming back to Bell Buckle doesn’t mean she’s here to stay. She left once already, what was stopping her this time? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/51d454d9-105e-4176-94b6-c45132d12d11/198033106-2.jpg Blog - Cowboy Romance Recommendations - Smoking Gun by Lainey Lawson Nothing says welcome home like an irresistibly hot cowboy inviting himself into your shower. I should have kicked him out the second he barged in. He’s my brother’s best friend and we’re living on a ranch in the same bunkhouse for the next three weeks. Disaster waiting to happen. He’s hell bent on keeping his walls up. And I’m a ball of stress, fresh out of medical school, determined to focus on my career and taking care of my family. Despite the long list of reasons why it’s a terrible idea, we jump into the burning ring of fire that is secret friends with benefits. As long as there’s no strings attached, no feelings, and no kissing of course. Just when I think Gage will be a distant memory once I’m gone for good, my heart starts to run the show. Rules are broken and lines are blurred. Now I wish the only big secret he’s been keeping was me. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/fc5f2f4a-41d6-4293-af8c-ee7fe617328e/205963941-2.jpg Blog - Cowboy Romance Recommendations - Dust Storm by Maggie Gates —Christian— Rule Number 1: You ride in my truck; you let me open the door. Another problem was the last thing I needed. Unfortunately, Cassandra Parker was mine. But the biggest problem of all? It wasn’t the beautiful stranger sticking her nose in my operations. It wasn’t the bulldozer she was driving over my way of life. And it definitely wasn’t the fact that she was living in my house. My biggest problem? The engagement ring on her finger. —Cassandra— Rule Number 1: If you’re going to kill someone, make it look like an accident, cry at the funeral, admit to nothing, and deny everything. To be clear, I didn’t want to be Christian Griffith’s problem. But there I was: exiled from New York, stranded on a cattle ranch, and desperate to salvage what was left of my career. Living with a single dad and his children was a downgrade from my high-rise office and city comforts, but I agreed to it for one simple reason: to save my job. A hot cowboy wasn’t going to lasso me into staying a second longer than necessary. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a28a4bec-dad9-4ed0-aa77-1da5669b26cc/203896380-2.jpg Blog - Cowboy Romance Recommendations - Strung Along by Hannah Cowan Love. Sucks. I don’t know where I went wrong. Whether it was letting a man convince me that suddenly, the things I’ve never wanted are right for me, or if simply believing the best in the person who I wasted three years of my life on was what lead me here. To Cherry Peak. A small town nestled in the heart of Alberta, Canada. The hometown of rising country star, Brody Steele. It only takes one brief encounter to mark him as a broody jerk. An all-knowing, arrogant celebrity with a complex I don’t have the energy for. But if I truly dislike him the way I’ve convinced myself I do, then why am I always looking for him in crowded rooms? Why are his surprisingly thoughtful gestures melting the wall of ice I’ve stuck between us? Cherry Peak was supposed to be my fresh start, a place to heal and rebuild. Yet, just as I begin piecing my life back together, Brody’s preparing to leave, as if he hasn’t become a vital part of that journey. The thought of losing him keeps me up at night. I don’t know if we’ll ever be able to find our footing, or if we were just stringing each other along the whole time. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/689eb012-5ad0-4e5d-8d55-b9de27231c0f/214490423-2.jpg Blog - Cowboy Romance Recommendations - Holding the Reins by Paisley Hope Take a deep breath and let go of the reins. Cecilia “CeCe” Ashby is finally escaping the toxic relationship that has consumed her entire adult life. She's returning to her hometown of Laurel Creek, Kentucky, and to her family’s equestrian ranch, unsure of what the future holds. Nash Carter, the newly retired superstar of the Dallas Stars, is Laurel Creek's hometown hero, local business owner, and notorious bachelor. He’s also the unofficial fourth sibling in the Ashby clan. It’s been years since his days of tormenting CeCe with her older brothers Wade and Cole. So, when CeCe needs a job, he feels drawn to help her. Nash can’t seem to take his eyes off of his best friend's sister, and it seems she’s been staring right back, not without animosity left over from his childish teasing back in the day. Despite their initial reluctance, the fire between them ignites and it isn't long before they jump into the flames. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4b58f69b-f279-4b7c-8fd9-bc0b7a3e7f00/209821177.jpg Blog - Cowboy Romance Recommendations - Live, Ranch, Love by Emma Lucy She’s here to sell my ranch, but now I think she might steal my heart. Rory Jones prided herself on the successful life she’d built as a wellness influencer and author - until she walked in on her boyfriend with another woman after a family funeral. Forced to run away to her late great aunt’s ranch in Colorado, Rory’s hoping that fixing up and selling the place will help her find her confidence and inspiration to write again. But Wyatt Hensley, the grumpy head rancher, isn’t willing to hand over the reins to the job he gave everything up for. Especially not to a yoga-loving, manifestation guru who doesn’t even know how to ride a horse. Yet, with a past that’s taught him to not bother dreaming anymore, even Wyatt knows he can’t hold on forever. Until one day they strike a deal that might just save both of their careers – help Rory turn the ranch into a wellness retreat and Wyatt can stay. With Rory’s shattered self-confidence and Wyatt’s last drop of hope also on the line, staying professional is a must. But can they ignore the sizzling tension growing between them that could jeopardise it all? Especially when the rocky path ahead seems a lot easier with the other riding beside them. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1c4930f7-58e7-4b9c-9872-37488907df51/108514520._SX300_.jpg Blog - Cowboy Romance Recommendations - Flawless by Elsie Silver The rules were simple . . . Keep my hands off his daughter and stay out of trouble. But now I’m stuck with her . . . And there’s only one bed . . . Oh well, rules are made -- to be broken . . . aren't they? I’m the face of professional bull riding -- the golden boy. Or at least I was, until it all blew up in my face. Now my agent says I have to clean up my image, so I’m stuck with his ball-busting daughter for the rest of the season as my “full-time supervision.” But I don’t need a goddamn babysitter -- especially one with skin-tight jeans, a sexy smirk, and a mouth she can’t stop running. A mouth I just can’t stop thinking about . . . Because Summer isn’t just another conquest. She sees the man behind the mask, and she doesn’t run -- she pulls me closer, even when she shouldn’t. She says this means nothing -- but I say this means everything. She says there are boundaries we shouldn’t cross. That my reputation can’t take any more hits -- and neither can her damaged heart. I say I’m going to steal it anyway. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/381848da-17ce-45c2-b05d-f17f3e8a8f95/216734941.jpg Blog - Cowboy Romance Recommendations - Cash by Jessica Peterson My dad and I have been estranged for years. But as his only living relative, it’s no surprise I inherit his massive cattle ranch when he dies. Something that is a surprise? The stipulation in his will, which requires me to live on the ranch and actively manage it for a year before I can access my inheritance money. I haven’t stepped foot in Hartsville, Texas, population one thousand, since my parents split when I was six. Now a city girl through and through, I never imagined having to move back to cowboy country. But I need the money to invest in my company, and a girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do. There’s just one giant roadblock to my plan: the ranch’s foreman, grumpy cowboy Cash Rivers. I don’t care how good he looks in his Wranglers and chaps. He’s rude, he’s growly, and he wants me gone. I’d fire him in a heartbeat, but I need this cowboy to teach me the ropes of running a ranch. We’re enemies from the get-go. But turns out, Cash is really good at this ranch thing. He’s got strong hands, an intelligent mind, and let’s just say everything really is bigger in Texas. Working alongside him leads to conversations beneath the stars. Throw in some cheek-to-cheek dancing at the local dive bar, and it all feels so right that I start to fall in love with life on the ranch. And maybe with him, too. But my stay in Hartsville is only temporary. And you know what they say about cowboys: they may break horses, but they also break hearts. If only Cash hadn’t already lassoed mine… https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bad3faec-9002-47d9-96bd-08c68ca3de87/221740099.jpg Blog - Cowboy Romance Recommendations - Between the Pines by Amber Palmer osie Hayes is always on the run. From bad decisions. From heartbreak. From cowboys. Her latest escape was supposed to be a quiet reset at her family’s cabin in Tennessee—not a reckless detour at a smoky backwoods bar, and definitely not a collision with Lincoln Carter. Rugged and magnetic, he’s temptation in a cowboy hat, and his slow smile makes forgetting her rules far too easy. Their connection is instant, electric, and impossible to ignore. What starts with teasing glances and lingering touches spiral into a series of nights that feel like more—too much more. By the end of the week, Josie does what she does best: she bolts, leaving behind only her name and the memory of a man she can’t shake. A year later, Josie’s done running. With a steady job, a new boyfriend, and her life finally on track, she’s ready to prove she’s not the same girl she used to be. Except her father’s prestigious summer horse training program just brought a ghost from her past straight to her front door. Lincoln isn’t the forgiving type, and now that he’s on the ranch, he’s determined to show Josie exactly what she left behind—and what they could have had if she’d stayed. As old wounds reopen and sparks reignite, Josie must decide: keep running from her past or take a chance on the cowboy who just might be worth staying for. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4ee450c5-af7c-4641-a9cb-e899f07cfcd9/199239864-2.jpg Blog - Cowboy Romance Recommendations - Alive and Wells by Bailey Hannah The last place city girl Cecily Kennedy expected to end up was a cattle ranch. But she needs a job—and refuge from her abusive soon-to-be-ex-husband. If only her new boss, Austin Wells, would make it clear whether he hates her or wants her. His gaze makes her feel things she hasn’t in years. Though getting over her ex by getting under her grumpy boss isn’t worth the potential fallout. Austin’s a gruff, no-nonsense rancher who’s seriously regretting letting his head cook hire her own help. As far as he’s concerned, Cecily won’t be sticking around for long. Nobody ever stays. And the wedding ring indent still on her finger makes her more trouble than she’s worth. When Cecily’s past catches up with her, Austin discovers that she’s already placed a branding iron on his heart. He wants her to stay. First, he needs to keep her safe. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/march-new-releases-1 monthly 0.5 2025-02-27 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/88939c6b-4a07-410f-8fd5-9415dec91c31/223199392-2.jpg Blog - March New Releases - The Fall Risk by Abby Jimenez It’s Valentine’s Day weekend, and Charlotte and Seth are not looking for romance. Armed with emotional-support bear spray, Charlotte is in self-imposed isolation and on guard from men. Having a stalker can do that to a person’s nerves. Just across the hall and giving off woodsy vibes is Seth, a recently divorced arborist. As in today recently. Heights, he’s fine with. Trust? Not so much. But when disaster traps them one flight up and no way down, an outrageously precarious predicament forces a tree-loving guy and a rattled girl next door to embrace their captivity. Soon their defenses are breaking away. Considering how close they both are to the edge, Charlotte and Seth could be in danger of falling—in love. Release Date: March 1, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0fcdf91c-674c-4316-a197-cf6d40c4d226/213570816.jpg Blog - March New Releases - We Were Warned by Chelsea Ichaso All her life, Eden Stafford has heard the lore about the abandoned beach resort at the edge of ever since the notorious murder there, anyone who sets foot on the property is cursed to die, It's more than just a over the years, two high school students who dared to explore the ruins of Fairport Village were killed there. Eden is no stranger to notoriety, having endured a family scandal that's made her a target at school. So when she reluctantly attends an overnight party at the ruins, she's on edge—not because of some legend, but because the clique that has made her life hell for years is there, too, including Caleb Durham, the worst of them all. Yet out of all the things Eden expected to happen that night, finding another student dead at Fairport Village wasn't one of them. Though the death is ruled an accident, Eden knows she saw something suspicious at the ruins—and Caleb and her other longtime tormentors did too. Now they're all being followed by a deadly stranger, and to save themselves, they must work together to uncover the truth about Fairport Village. But after all that's happened, can Eden really trust Caleb and his friends? Or will they leave her to face a killer alone? Release Date: March 4, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/36f11290-13fe-4c4f-a463-ca0ca8cd0e72/217271595-2.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Wild Side by Elsie Silver I’d always dreamed of my wedding day. But not like this. Not looking into the eyes of the man who betrayed me. But when my nephew’s guardianship is contested, I decide I’ll do whatever it takes to keep him in Rose Hill. Even if it means marrying the enemy. Rhys Dupris. A man who is secretive, broody, and completely infuriating. A man whose work takes him away for weeks on end and brings him back covered in mysterious bruises—ones he won’t talk about. In fact, we barely talk at all. Which would be fine, except when he’s not talking, he’s staring. And the way he looks at me is borderline indecent. The tension between us has always been palpable. But living under the same roof is a dangerous temptation. I swore I would never forgive him. But that was before I knew the man behind the mask. The one who’s fierce and protective. The one who’s gentle and patient. The one who shows up for us when we need him most. He’s not at all who I thought he was. And that makes hating my husband so much harder… and loving him just a little too easy. Release Date: March 4, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/dd919618-03df-47d2-8301-6f9cda0d4915/211004089.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy A family on a remote island. A mysterious woman washed ashore. A rising storm on the horizon. Dominic Salt and his three children are caretakers of Shearwater, a tiny island not far from Antarctica. Home to the world’s largest seed bank, Shearwater was once full of researchers. But with sea levels rising, the Salts are now its final inhabitants, packing up the seeds before they are transported to safer ground. Despite the wild beauty of life here, isolation has taken its toll on the Salts. Raff, eighteen and suffering his first heartbreak, can only find relief at his punching bag; Fen, seventeen, has started spending her nights on the beach among the seals; nine-year-old Orly, obsessed with botany, fears the loss of his beloved natural world; and Dominic can’t stop turning back toward the past, and the loss that drove the family to Shearwater in the first place. Then, during the worst storm the island has ever seen, a woman washes up on shore. As the Salts nurse the woman, Rowan, back to life, their suspicion gives way to affection, and they finally begin to feel like a family again. Rowan, long accustomed to protecting her heart, begins to fall for the Salts, too. But Rowan isn’t telling the whole truth about why she set out for Shearwater. And when she discovers the sabotaged radios and a freshly dug grave, she realizes Dominic is keeping his own dark secrets. As the storms on Shearwater gather force, the characters must decide if they can trust each other enough to protect the precious seeds in their care before it’s too late—and if they can finally put the tragedies of the past behind them to create something new, together. Release Date: March 4, 2025 Genre: March 4, 2025 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0924a075-1452-44b6-98ae-da9f3f642833/214151316-2.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Oathbound by Tracy Deonn Severed from the Legendborn. Oathbound to a monster. Bree Matthews is alone. She exiled herself from the Legendborn Order, cut her ancestral connections, and turned away from the friends who can’t understand the impossible cost of her powers. This is the only way to keep herself—and those she loves—safe. But Bree’s decision has come with a terrible price: an unbreakable bargain with the Shadow King himself, a shapeshifter who can move between humanity, the demon underworld, and the Legendborn secret society. In exchange for training to wield her unprecedented abilities, Bree has put her future in the Shadow King’s hands—and unwittingly bound herself to do his bidding as his new protégé. Meanwhile, the other Scions must face war with their Round Table fractured, leaderless, and missing its Kingsmage, as Selwyn has also disappeared. When Nick is detained by the Order’s Merlins, he invokes an ancient law that requires the High Council of Regents to convene at the Northern Keep and grant him an audience. No one knows what he will demand of them...or what secrets he has kept hidden from the Table. As a string of mysterious kidnappings escalates and Merlins are found dead, it becomes clear that no matter how hard Bree runs from who she is, the past will always find her. Release Date: March 4, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/fa7b95b5-f0ab-4064-be08-26123c779b11/214269328.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Promise Me Sunshine by Cara Bastone Lenny’s a bit of a mess at the moment. Her best friend, Lou, recently passed away after a battle with cancer, and her death has left Lenny feeling completely lost. She’s avoiding her concerned parents, the apartment she shared with Lou, and the list of things she’s supposed to do to help her live again. The only thing she can do is temporary babysitting gigs, and luckily, she just landed a great one, helping overworked, single mom Reese and her precocious daughter, Ainsley. It’s not perfect: Ainsley’s uncle, Miles, always seems to be around, and is kind of... a huge jerk. But if Lenny acts like she has it all together, maybe no one will notice she’s falling apart. Miles sees right through her though. Turns out, he knows a lot about grief and, surprisingly, he offers her a proposition. He’ll help her complete everything on her “live again” list if she’ll help him connect with Ainsley and overcome his complicated relationship with Reese. Lenny doubts anything can fill the Lou has left behind, but she begins to spend more time with Miles, Lenny is surprised to discover that, sometimes, losing everything is only the first step to finding yourself, and love, again. Release Date: March 4, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/77c6300c-1a4e-4efc-80f7-e339ab046bec/36692308.jpg Blog - March New Releases - The Ragpicker King by Cassandra Clare Kel Saren, body double to Conor, crown prince of the dazzling city of Castellane, is caught between two worlds. In order to protect his beloved prince, Kel must find the culprits responsible for a massacre at the royal palace—and the only clues are held by the Ragpicker King, the notorious criminal who rules Castellane’s underworld. The trail Kel follows leads back to the Hill, where among decadent nobles and glittering parties a dark conspiracy to destroy the royal family has taken hold—a conspiracy headed up by the monstrous Artal Gremont, the man engaged to marry the woman Kel adores. Meanwhile, Lin Caster must face the aftermath of the greatest risk she’s ever taken. To save the life of a dying friend, Lin has falsely claimed to be the Goddess Reborn, the legendary heroine destined to save her people. Now the terrifying—but strangely magnetic—leader of her people has arrived to test her powers. The price of failure is exile, and only through her alliance with the Ragpicker King can she continue to access the magic that may save her. Then Prince Conor reappears in her life, demanding that she use her healing powers to cure the madness of his father, the King. Lin soon realizes the King is gripped by an ancient and terrible magic, one whose lure she cannot deny any more than she can deny her growing passion for Conor. As the simmering tensions in Castellane reach a fever pitch, Lin and Kel must decide who to trust when any false move means death—or worse. Release Date: March 4, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/036579d6-a381-4832-a622-b9a297b14da7/214151202.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Broken Country by Clare Leslie Hall “The farmer is dead. He is dead and all anyone wants to know is who killed him.” When her brother-in-law shoots a dog going after their sheep, Beth doesn’t realize that the gunshot will alter the course of their lives. For the dog belonged to none other than Gabriel Wolfe, the man Beth loved as a teenager—the man who broke her heart all those years ago. Gabriel has returned to the village with his young son Leo, a boy who reminds Beth very much of her own son Bobby, who died a few years earlier. As Beth is pulled back into Gabriel and Leo’s lives, tensions around the village rise, and jealousy rears its ugly head. Beth and her gentle and kind husband Frank are happily married, but they have their fair share of secrets, and their relationship relies on the past staying buried. And when the truth begins to come out, events spiral out of control, this time with deadly consequences. Beth is forced to make a choice—between the woman she once was, and the woman she has become. Release Date: March 4, 2025 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8fcd1cef-2c1b-425b-84c7-1f362f02e396/214151565.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Count My Lies by Sophie Stava Sloane Caraway is a liar. Harmless lies, mostly, to make her self-proclaimed sad, little life a bit more interesting. So when Sloane sees a young girl in tears at a park one afternoon, she can't help herself—she tells the girl's (very attractive) dad she's a nurse and helps him pull a bee stinger from the girl's foot. With this lie, and chance encounter, Sloane becomes the nanny for the wealthy, and privileged Jay and Violet Lockhart. The perfect New York couple, with a brownstone, a daughter in private school, and summers on Block Island. But maybe Sloane isn't the only one lying, and all that's picture-perfect harbors a much more dangerous truth. To say anything more is to spoil the most exciting, twisty, and bitingly smart suspense novel to come out in years. The thing about lies is that they add up, form their own truth and a twisted prison of a world. And in Count My Lies, Sophie Stava spins a breakneck, unputdownable thriller about the secrets we keep, and the terrifying dangers that lurk just under the images we spend so much time trying to maintain. Careful what you lie for. Release Date: March 4, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/814f8096-5e6b-4cd0-b8d7-c9dd348b46d7/210693153.jpg Blog - March New Releases - A Harvest of Hearts by Andrea Eames Before Foss Butcher was Snagged, she thought no more of the magic-users than did anyone else in her tiny village. Sometimes gorgeous women in impossible carriages rolled into town and took bits of people’s hearts. Everyone knew hearts fueled their magic. But Foss, plain, clumsy, and practical as a boot, never expected anyone would want hers. True enough, when the only sorcerer in the kingdom stepped from his glossy carriage, he didn’t intend to hook Foss. Sylvester’s riot of black curls and perfectly etched cheekbones caught her eye a moment too long, that was all. Suddenly, Foss is cursed and finds herself stomping toward the grand City to keep his enchanted House, where her only friend is a talking cat and the walls themselves have moods. But as Foss learns the ways of magic, she realizes she’s far from its only unwilling captive. Even Sylvester is hemmed in by spells and threats. It’s said this sorcery protects king, country, and order for thousands. If Foss wants to free herself—and, perhaps, Sylvester—she’ll have to confront it all . . . and uncover the blight nestled in the heart of the kingdom itself. Release Date: March 4, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/763d3ce5-965d-4d66-a91a-b0951dad8633/211003787.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Finlay Donovan Digs Her Own Grave by Elle Cosimano Finlay Donovan and her nanny/partner-in-crime, Vero, have not always gotten along with Finlay’s elderly neighbor, Mrs. Haggerty, the community busybody and president of the neighborhood watch. But when a dead body is discovered in her backyard, Mrs. Haggerty needs their help. At first a suspect, Mrs. Haggerty is cleared by the police, but her house remains an active crime scene. She has nowhere to go . . . except Finlay’s house, right across the street. Finlay and Vero have no interest in getting involved in another murder case—or sacrificing either of their bedrooms. After all, they’ve dealt with enough murders over the last four months to last a lifetime and they both would much rather share their beds with someone else. Release Date: March 4, 2025 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/07cbf2a5-a643-48d8-b7ab-d2e76cddf5e1/212431593.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Scot and Bothered by Alexandra Kiley Brooke Sinclair’s dream of being a published author derailed when she was expelled from the University of Edinburgh seven years ago. Now a ghostwriter, she sticks to other people’s stories. But when her college mentor Mhairi McCallister needs a co-writer for her memoir about Scotland’s most challenging trek, Brooke would do anything for the opportunity—including agreeing to hike the rugged Skye Trail for authenticity’s sake... not knowing the nature photographer who’ll join her is Jack Sutherland, the man who shattered Brooke’s writing career—and her heart. Between getting sacked from the University and walking away from his family’s tour-guiding business to follow his photography dreams, Jack is desperate to prove he didn’t disappoint his family for nothing. And he can’t ignore his Aunt Mhairi’s final wishes for her memoir. Even if it means acting as guide and storyteller for the one who got away. Even if it means keeping secrets about Mhairi’s health. As Jack and Brooke head into the solitude of the sweeping Scottish landscape, they’re forced to confront old feelings that haven’t disappeared with time. But can two weeks and eighty miles heal years of unspoken hurt and offer a second chance at the end of the trail? Release Date: March 4, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c87b3dd7-58e8-48ba-89b6-a493fe0f8a3a/214210952.jpg Blog - March New Releases - The Girl from Greenwich Street by Lauren Willig At the start of a new century, a shocking murder transfixes Manhattan, forcing bitter rivals Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr to work together to save a man from the gallows. Just before Christmas 1799, Elma Sands slips out of her Quaker cousin’s boarding house—and doesn’t come home. Has she eloped? Run away? No one knows—until her body appears in the Manhattan Well. Her family insists they know who killed her. Handbills circulate around the city accusing a carpenter named Levi Weeks of seducing and murdering Elma. But privately, quietly, Levi’s wealthy brother calls in a special favor…. Aaron Burr’s legal practice can’t finance both his expensive tastes and his ambition to win the 1800 New York elections. To defend Levi Weeks is a double a hefty fee plus a chance to grab headlines. Alexander Hamilton has his own political aspirations; he isn’t going to let Burr monopolize the public’s attention. If Burr is defending Levi Weeks, then Hamilton will too. As the trial and the election draw near, Burr and Hamilton race against time to save a man’s life—and destroy each other. Release Date: March 4, 2025 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b1cfd9f1-e757-4260-be00-574e95c4aab0/214268996.jpg Blog - March New Releases - When the Bones Sing by Ginny Myers Sain The past three years have been tough for Lucifer’s Creek, Arkansas, a small town quietly tucked away in the Ozark mountains. More than two dozen people have disappeared on the local hiking trails; there one moment, gone the next, not a trace left behind, until their buried bodies are discovered. 17-year-old Dovie doesn’t believe in magic even though she comes from a long line of women who can hear the bones of the dead sing, and for the past few years the bones have been crooning nonstop, calling out to Dovie to dig them up. Some of the old-timers believe that it’s the monstrous Ozarks howler snatching people off the Aux Arc Trail. Well Dovie doesn’t believe in the howler, and she doesn’t believe her best friend Lo when he tells her he is being haunted by dark shadows. All she believes in is her talent that guides the local sheriff to the bones when they begin their song, then reuniting the dead with their families to give them some peace. Lo doesn’t know peace, though. The shadows follow him everywhere. He soon learns they’re the murdered hikers and they want answers. But the truth of their deaths isn’t buried with their bones; it’s hidden somewhere deep in the hills. And Lo and Dovie must unearth it before anyone else is killed. Release Date: March 4, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2d61c442-7e81-43c4-8ab3-78650e540d14/214537763.jpg Blog - March New Releases - All the Other Mothers Hate Me by Sarah Harman Florence Grimes, age thirty-one, always takes the easy way out. Single, broke and unfulfilled after the humiliating end to her girl-band career, she has only one reason to get out of bed each day: her ten-year-old son Dylan. But then Alfie Risby, her son’s bully and the heir to a vast frozen-food empire, mysteriously vanishes during a class trip, and Dylan becomes the prime suspect. Florence, for once, is faced with a task she can’t quit: She’s got to find Alfie and clear her son’s name or risk losing Dylan forever—never mind that she has no useful skills (let alone investigative ones) and that all the other school moms hate her. Oh, and she has a reason to suspect Dylan might not be as innocent as she’d like to believe. Release Date: March 11, 2025 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2dd72003-e5ec-4740-b7ef-445f7f861174/213186396.jpg Blog - March New Releases - The Strawberry Patch Pancake House by Laurie Gilmore As a renowned chef, single-dad Archer never planned on moving to a small town, let alone running a pancake restaurant. But Dream Harbor needs a new chef, and Archer needs a community to help raise his daughter, Olive. Iris has never managed to hold down a job for more than a few months. So when Mayor Kelly suggests Archer is looking for a nanny, and Iris might be available, she shudders at the thought. But in need of money she reluctantly agrees. As Archer and Iris get used to their new roles, is it possible that they might have more in common than they first thought, or is Olive just determined to play match-maker… Release Date: March 13, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0dba5948-7f1e-4774-b7dd-70a49ec4d259/214331246.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins When you've been set up to lose everything you love, what is there left to fight for? As the day dawns on the fiftieth annual Hunger Games, fear grips the districts of Panem. This year, in honor of the Quarter Quell, twice as many tributes will be taken from their homes. Back in District 12, Haymitch Abernathy is trying not to think too hard about his chances. All he cares about is making it through the day and being with the girl he loves. When Haymitch's name is called, he can feel all his dreams break. He's torn from his family and his love, shuttled to the Capitol with the three other District 12 tributes: a young friend who's nearly a sister to him, a compulsive oddsmaker, and the most stuck-up girl in town. As the Games begin, Haymitch understands he's been set up to fail. But there's something in him that wants to fight . . . and have that fight reverberate far beyond the deadly arena. Release Date: March 18, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Dystopian https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3130304a-f7cc-4f48-b771-5ebc1f3b9110/211004908.jpg Blog - March New Releases - The Bane Witch by Ava Morgyn Piers Corbin has always had an affinity for poisonous things - plants and men. From the pokeweed berries she consumed at age five that led to the accidental death of a stranger, to the husband whose dark proclivities have become… concerning, poison has been at the heart of her story. But when she fakes her own death in an attempt to escape her volatile marriage and goes to stay with her estranged great aunt in the mountains, she realizes her predilection is more than a hunger - it’s a birthright. Piers comes from a long line of poison eaters - Bane Witches – women who ingest deadly plants and use their magic to rid the world of evil men. Piers sets out to earn her place in her family’s gritty but distinguished legacy, all while working at her Aunt Myrtle’s cafe and perpetuating a flirtation with the local, well-meaning sheriff to allay his suspicions on the body count she’s been leaving in her wake. But soon she catches the attention of someone else, a serial killer operating in the area. And that only means one thing - it’s time to feed. Release Date: March 18, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e4339e03-2913-405c-82e8-9044978c9481/215583253.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Spring Fling by Annie England Noblin Spring is in the air and Mylie has everything she could ever want: her tackle shop is thriving and employs a third of Clay Creek, Arkansas, and she lives with her beloved Granny and little sister Cassie, who both keep her on her toes. As tourists pour into town for the annual fishing tournament, Mylie is in her element and ready to bring her all-women team to victory. After moving to Chicago, Ben never thought he would return to Clay Creek. But with both his grandfather and mother gone, he’s left to deal with their estate. His plan is simple: come in quietly, fix up his lakeside childhood home, sell it quickly, and get out. He underestimates how quickly his arrival will stir up the local gossip, and how intensely his unresolved feelings for Mylie, his childhood best friend, will resurface. Amid the buzz of competition and the rhythm of small-town life, Mylie and Ben find themselves unable to ignore their shared history. They tentatively explore a future together, despite the impending sale of Ben’s house and Mylie’s insistence on staying put in Clay Creek. Flings are easier said than done, and Mylie and Ben will have to address their clashing lifestyles before their feelings get away from them. Release Date: March 18, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/61f7138c-43b4-46b6-8112-b4d24b90da0a/213570821.jpg Blog - March New Releases - This Book Will Bury Me by Ashley Winstead It's the most famous crime in modern history. But only she knows the true story. After the unexpected death of her father, college student Jane Sharp longs for a distraction from her grief. She becomes obsessed with true crime, befriending armchair detectives who teach her how to hunt killers from afar. In this morbid internet underground, Jane finds friendship, purpose, and even glory... So when news of the shocking deaths of three college girls in Delphine, Idaho takes the world by storm, and sleuths everywhere race to solve the crimes, Jane and her friends are determined to beat them. But the case turns out to be stranger than anyone expected. Details don't add up, the police are cagey, and there seems to be more media hype and internet theorizing than actual evidence. When Jane and her sleuths take a step closer, they find that every answer only begs more questions. Something's not adding up, and they begin to suspect their killer may be smarter and more prolific than any they've faced before. Placing themselves in the center of the story starts to feel more and more like walking into a trap... Told one year after the astounding events that concluded the case and left the world reeling, when Jane has finally decided to break her silence about what really happened, she tells the true story of the Delphine Massacres. And what she has to confess will shock even the most seasoned true crime fans... Release Date: March 25, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c9c789ca-89fe-4eb5-9b27-cf0ea94688b6/216406487.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Summer in the City by Alex Aster Twenty-seven-year-old screenwriter Elle has the chance of a lifetime to write a big-budget movie set in New York City. The only problem? She’s had writer’s block for months, and her screenplay is due at the end of the summer. In a desperate attempt at inspiration, Elle ends up back in the city she swore she would never return to, in an apartment she could never afford (floor-to-ceiling windows, skyline views, and a new coffee shop to haunt included). It’s the perfect place to write her screenplay…until she realizes her new neighbor is tech “Billionaire Bachelor” Parker Warren, her stairwell hookup from two years ago. It’s been a lovers-to-enemies situation ever since. When seeing him again turns into a full night of hate-fueled writing, Elle realizes her enemy/twisted muse might just be the key to finishing her screenplay... if she can stand being around her polar opposite. She writes anonymously, and he’s on the cover of every business magazine. He frequents fancy red carpeted events, and she doesn’t like leaving her emotional support five block radius. One summer. One wall apart. He needs to fake a buzzy relationship during his company’s precarious acquisition. She needs to write a movie around a list of NYC locations. Both need a break from their unrelenting schedules, and a chance to rediscover the skyscraper glimmering, pizza crusted, sunlit charms of the city. Summers always end, and so will this agreement. It’s all pretend. Promise. Until it isn’t. Release Date: March 25, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e865262d-b7ba-47fd-a033-ab874ad84a9d/213570812.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Blood on her Tongue by Johanna Van Veen "I'm in your blood, and you are in mine…" The Netherlands, 1887. Lucy's twin sister Sarah is unwell. She refuses to eat, mumbles nonsensically, and is increasingly obsessed with a centuries-old corpse recently discovered on her husband's grand estate. The doctor has diagnosed her with temporary insanity caused by a fever of the brain. To protect her twin from a terrible fate in a lunatic asylum, Lucy must unravel the mystery surrounding her sister's condition, but it's clear her twin is hiding something. Then again, Lucy is harboring secrets of her own, too. Then, the worst happens. Sarah's behavior takes a turn for the strange. She becomes angry… and hungry. Lucy soon comes to suspect that something is trying to possess her beloved sister. Or is it madness? As Sarah changes before her very eyes, Lucy must reckon with the dark, monstrous truth, or risk losing her forever. Release Date: March 25, 2025 Genre: Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c4e720e0-04da-4a46-ac0c-386adda03331/199635112.jpg Blog - March New Releases - The Shadow Bride by Shelby Mahurin Célie’s life is over. She took her final breath trying to save the people she loves—including the powerful and enigmatic vampire king, Michal, who refused to let her go. When Célie wakes, she cannot walk in the sun; she can hear her friends’ heartbeats and she craves their blood. Michal has cursed her to the eternal existence of a vampire. But Célie isn’t the only dead roaming the earth. Her sister, Filippa, has returned as a shadow of her former self, and other revenants are rising from their graves intent on revenge. The fragile balance between life and death has broken, awakening an even darker force—and he is coming for Célie, ready to claim her as his Bride. With the fate of their world at stake, Célie and Michal must set aside their searing attraction to mend the veil and right the balance, once and for all. Release Date: March 25, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/528bc39c-a38e-4b4b-90a6-b5347b212c90/215363278.jpg Blog - March New Releases - The Song of the Blue Bottle Tree by India Hayford Genevieve Charbonneau talks to ghosts and has a special relationship with rattlesnakes. In her travels, she’s wandered throughout the South, working in a Louisiana circus and as a hootchy kootch dancer in Texas. Now for the first time in a decade, she’s allowed her winding path to bring her to the site of her grandmother’s Arkansas farmhouse, a place hallowed in her memory. Disguised by years in exile and a name she found on a gravestone, Genevieve intends only to visit briefly and leave. But a chance meeting with a guilt-ridden young Vietnam veteran draws her into more unexpected connections. Her hard-won independence inspires an abused woman and her daughters to find their own path to empowerment, and a hypocritical preacher is brought to a long-deserved reckoning. With undertones of magical realism and dark humor, here is a powerful story of discovering—and sometimes rediscovering—one’s place in the world, and the unexpected challenges and gifts that present themselves along the way. Release Date: March 25, 2025 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2afcdacf-a190-4061-845e-a04c400753fe/195790577.jpg Blog - March New Releases - I Would Die for You by Sandie Jones Now: Nicole Forbes lives a quiet life in a small seaside Californian town with her husband and daughter. She is not expecting a writer to knock on her door asking for her personal insight into the downfall of the biggest British band of the 1980s—unveiling the threads of a life she put behind her years ago. The same day, her daughter goes missing and the school claims her aunt picked her up . . . but she doesn’t have an aunt. Convinced of a link between the two, Nicole is forced to revisit long-abandoned memories from her past to protect everything she now holds dear. 1986: Sixteen-year-old Cassie is obsessed with the hottest band in London, Secret Oktober. Harboring an intense crush on the leading man, Ben Edwards, she will do anything she can to capture his attention among the throngs of groupies at the band’s scandalous backstage parties. But when Ben discovers her older sister Nicole singing at a local bar one night, he can’t help but feel drawn to her, setting in motion a collision course that could tear their family apart. Release Date: March 25, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/ujcef4ho7xuxgm9nrzxbet4dumeq85 monthly 0.5 2025-02-17 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/45dba6b1-6e47-4cf3-95ca-467d1dffa061/57693165.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must-Reads - The Christie Affair by Nina de Gramont In 1925, Miss Nan O’Dea infiltrated the wealthy, rarefied world of author Agatha Christie and her husband, Archie. In every way, she became a part of their life––first, both Christies. Then, just Archie. Soon, Nan became Archie’s mistress, luring him away from his devoted wife, desperate to marry him. Nan’s plot didn’t begin the day she met Archie and Agatha. It began decades before, in Ireland, when Nan was a young girl. She and the man she loved were a star-crossed couple who were destined to be together––until the Great War, a pandemic, and shameful secrets tore them apart. Then acts of unspeakable cruelty kept them separated. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bde7de93-5e45-451c-980e-1ee9e45f7f8a/45897568.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must-Reads - A Long Petal of the Sea by Isabel Allende In the late 1930s, civil war gripped Spain. When General Franco and his Fascists succeed in overthrowing the government, hundreds of thousands are forced to flee in a treacherous journey over the mountains to the French border. Among them is Roser, a pregnant young widow, who finds her life irreversibly intertwined with that of Victor Dalmau, an army doctor and the brother of her deceased love. In order to survive, the two must unite in a marriage neither of them wants, and together are sponsored by poet Pablo Neruda to embark on the SS Winnipeg along with 2,200 other refugees in search of a new life. As unlikely partners, they embrace exile and emigrate to Chile as the rest of Europe erupts in World War. Starting over on a new continent, their trials are just beginning. Over the course of their lives, they will face test after test. But they will also find joy as they wait patiently for a day when they are exiles no more, and will find friends in the most unlikely of places. Through it all, it is that hope of being reunited with their home that keeps them going. And in the end, they will find that home might have been closer than they thought all along. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e02f9ce1-b5af-47f3-8427-dbfab3ee16a0/60460704.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must-Reads - Lone Women by Victor Lavalle Adelaide Henry carries an enormous steamer trunk with her wherever she goes. It’s locked at all times. Because when the trunk opens, people around Adelaide start to disappear. The year is 1915, and Adelaide is in trouble. Her secret sin killed her parents, forcing her to flee California in a hellfire rush and make her way to Montana as a homesteader. Dragging the trunk with her at every stop, she will become one of the “lone women” taking advantage of the government’s offer of free land for those who can tame it—except that Adelaide isn’t alone. And the secret she’s tried so desperately to lock away might be the only thing that will help her survive the harsh territory. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1eb41fb6-87d3-4db5-960a-a8ce7ff398b6/198563674-2.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must-Reads - Shelterwood by Lisa Wingate Oklahoma, 1909. Eleven-year-old Olive Augusta Radley knows that her stepfather doesn’t have good intentions toward the two Choctaw girls boarded in their home as wards. When the older girl disappears, Ollie flees to the woods, taking six-year-old Nessa with her. Together they begin a perilous journey to the rugged Winding Stair Mountains, the notorious territory of outlaws, treasure hunters, and desperate men. Along the way, Ollie and Nessa form an unlikely band with others like themselves, struggling to stay one step ahead of those who seek to exploit them . . . or worse. Oklahoma, 1990. Law Enforcement Ranger Valerie Boren O’dell arrives at Horsethief Trail National Park seeking a quiet place to balance a career and single parenthood. But no sooner has Valerie reported for duty than she’s faced with local controversy over the park’s opening, a teenage hiker gone missing from one of the trails, and the long-hidden burial site of three children deep in a cave. Val’s quest to uncover the truth wins an ally among the neighboring Choctaw Tribal Police but soon collides with old secrets and the tragic and deadly history of the land itself. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4e0cc7c0-f8ea-47f9-99c0-b392fb81b058/59947698.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must-Reads - The Attic Child by Lola Jaye Two children trapped in the same attic, almost a century apart, bound by a shared secret. Early 1900s Taken from his homeland, twelve-year-old Celestine spends most of the time locked away in the attic of a large house by the sea. The only time Celestine isn’t bound by confines of the small space is when he is acting as an unpaid servant to English explorer Sir Richard Babbington, As the years pass, he desperately clings on to memories of his family in Africa, even as he struggles to remember his mother’s face, and sometimes his real name . . . 1974: Lowra, a young orphan girl born into wealth and privilege whose fortunes have now changed, finds herself trapped in the same attic. Searching for a ray of light in the darkness of the attic, Lowra finds under the floorboards an old-fashioned pen, a porcelain doll, a beaded necklace, and a message carved on the wall, written in an unidentifiable language. Providing comfort for her when all hope is lost, these clues will lead her to uncover the secrets of the attic. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/804ef5cb-d18c-44ac-8581-734a98b7210f/59109471.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must-Reads - Mercury Pictures Presents by Anthony Marra Like many before her, Maria Lagana has come to Hollywood to outrun her past. Born in Rome, where every Sunday her father took her to the cinema instead of church, Maria immigrates with her mother to Los Angeles after a childhood transgression leads to her father's arrest. Fifteen years later, on the eve of America's entry into World War II, Maria is an associate producer at Mercury Pictures, trying to keep her personal and professional lives from falling apart. Her mother won't speak to her. Her boss, a man of many toupees, has been summoned to Washington by congressional investigators. Her boyfriend, a virtuoso Chinese-American actor, can't escape the studio's narrow typecasting. And the studio itself, Maria's only home in exile, teeters on the verge of bankruptcy. Over the coming months, as the bright lights go dark across Los Angeles, Mercury Pictures becomes a nexus of European émigrés: modernist poets trying their luck as B-movie screenwriters, once-celebrated architects becoming scale-model miniaturists, and refugee actors finding work playing the very villains they fled. While the world descends into war, Maria rises through a maze of conflicting politics, divided loyalties, and jockeying ambitions. But when the arrival of a stranger from her father's past threatens Maria's carefully constructed facade, she must finally confront her father's fate--and her own. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/95ea2849-d244-4afa-b146-4636792d06a8/51932121.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must-Reads - The Library of Legends by Janie Chang “Myths are the darkest and brightest incarnations of who we are . . .” China, 1937. When Japanese bombs begin falling on the city of Nanking, nineteen-year-old Hu Lian and her classmates at Minghua University are ordered to flee. Lian and a convoy of students, faculty and staff must walk 1,000 miles to the safety of China’s western provinces, a journey marred by the constant threat of aerial attack. And it is not just the refugees who are at risk; Lian and her classmates have been entrusted with a priceless treasure: a 500-year-old collection of myths and folklore known as the Library of Legends. The students’ common duty to safeguard the Library of Legends creates unexpected bonds. Lian becomes friends and forms a cautious romance with the handsome and wealthy Liu Shaoming. But after one classmate is arrested and another one is murdered, Lian realizes she must escape before a family secret puts her in danger too. Accompanied by Shao and his enigmatic maidservant, Sparrow, Lian makes her way to Shanghai in the hopes of reuniting with her mother. During the journey, Lian learns of the connection between her two companions and a tale from the Library of Legends, The Willow Star and the Prince. This revelation comes with profound consequences, for as the ancient books travel across China, they awaken immortals and guardian spirits who embark on an exodus of their own, one that will change the country’s fate forever. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4ac7eb5c-ef44-42f3-8424-bc9dfabf290d/25813942.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must-Reads - This Tender Land by William Kent Krueger In the summer of 1932, on the banks of Minnesota's Gilead River, the Lincoln Indian Training School is a pitiless place where Native American children, forcibly separated from their parents, are sent to be educated. It is also home to Odie O’Banion, a lively orphan boy whose exploits constantly earn him the superintendent’s wrath. Odie and his brother, Albert, are the only white faces among the hundreds of Native American children at the school. After committing a terrible crime, Odie and Albert are forced to flee for their lives along with their best friend, Mose, a mute young man of Sioux heritage. Out of pity, they also take with them a brokenhearted little girl named Emmy. Together, they steal away in a canoe, heading for the mighty Mississippi in search for a place to call home. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/459db00a-661b-4856-9bf1-189d398403bc/50607466.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must-Reads - The Henna Artist by Alka Joshi Escaping from an abusive marriage, seventeen-year-old Lakshmi makes her way alone to the vibrant 1950s pink city of Jaipur. There she becomes the most highly requested henna artist—and confidante—to the wealthy women of the upper class. But trusted with the secrets of the wealthy, she can never reveal her own… Known for her original designs and sage advice, Lakshmi must tread carefully to avoid the jealous gossips who could ruin her reputation and her livelihood. As she pursues her dream of an independent life, she is startled one day when she is confronted by her husband, who has tracked her down these many years later with a high-spirited young girl in tow—a sister Lakshmi never knew she had. Suddenly the caution that she has carefully cultivated as protection is threatened. Still she perseveres, applying her talents and lifting up those that surround her as she does. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ee02c162-b157-4529-8705-1fffd2ab03c0/176442848.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must-Reads - The Things We Didn’t Know by Elba Iris Perez Andrea Rodríguez is nine years old when her mother whisks her and her brother, Pablo, away from Woronoco, the tiny Massachusetts factory town that is the only home they’ve known. With no plan and no money, she leaves them with family in the mountainside villages of Puerto Rico and promises to return. Months later, when Andrea and Pablo are brought back to Massachusetts, they find their hometown significantly changed. As they navigate the rifts between their family’s values and all-American culture and face the harsh realities of growing up, they must embrace both the triumphs and heartache that mark the journey to adulthood. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/453c880c-79cd-4c39-b351-25f3a2d15bfa/48814109.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must-Reads - The Lions of Fifth Avenue by Fiona Davis It's 1913, and on the surface, Laura Lyons couldn't ask for more out of life--her husband is the superintendent of the New York Public Library, allowing their family to live in an apartment within the grand building, and they are blessed with two children. But headstrong, passionate Laura wants more, and when she takes a leap of faith and applies to the Columbia Journalism School, her world is cracked wide open. As her studies take her all over the city, she finds herself drawn to Greenwich Village's new bohemia, where she discovers the Heterodoxy Club--a radical, all-female group in which women are encouraged to loudly share their opinions on suffrage, birth control, and women's rights. Soon, Laura finds herself questioning her traditional role as wife and mother. But when valuable books are stolen back at the library, threatening the home and institution she loves, she's forced to confront her shifting priorities head on . . . and may just lose everything in the process. Eighty years later, in 1993, Sadie Donovan struggles with the legacy of her grandmother, the famous essayist Laura Lyons, especially after she's wrangled her dream job as a curator at the New York Public Library. But the job quickly becomes a nightmare when rare manuscripts, notes, and books for the exhibit Sadie's running begin disappearing from the library's famous Berg Collection. Determined to save both the exhibit and her career, the typically risk-adverse Sadie teams up with a private security expert to uncover the culprit. However, things unexpectedly become personal when the investigation leads Sadie to some unwelcome truths about her own family heritage--truths that shed new light on the biggest tragedy in the library's history. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e87a6fef-83a4-498a-971b-2a6533c58496/133206574-2.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must-Reads - The Mayor of Maxwell Street by Avery Cunningham The year is 1921, and America is burning. A fire of vice and virtue rages on every shore with Chicago at its beating heart. Twenty-year-old Nelly Sawyer is the daughter of the alleged “wealthiest Negro in America,” a Kentucky horse breeder whose wealth and prestige catapults his family to the heights of the exclusive, elite Black society. After the unexpected death of her brother—the family’s presumed heir—Nelly goes from being virtually unknown to a premier debutante overnight. But Nelly has aspirations beyond society influence and marriage. For the past year, she has worked undercover as an investigative journalist for the Chicago Defender , sharing the achievements and tribulations of everyday Black people living in the shadow of Jim Crow. Now, her latest assignment thrusts her into the den of a dangerous vice the so-called Mayor of Maxwell Street. Charming and mysterious, Jay Shorey strives to balance his connection to the Chicago underworld with his desperate yearning for the refinement and protection of high society. Born to a murdered bi-racial couple in rural Alabama, he knows firsthand what it means to be denied a chance at the American dream. When a tragic turn of fate gave Jay a rare path out, he took it without question. He washed up on Chicago’s storied shores and never looked back, until now. When Nelly’s and Jay’s paths cross, she recruits him to help expose the Mayor and bring about a lasting change in a corrupted city. Trapped between the monolith of Jim Crow, the inflexible world of the Black upper class, and the violence of Prohibition-era Chicago, Jay and Nelly work together and stoke the flames of a love worth fighting for. And yet, as with all things in America, there is a price to be paid. What risk is Nelly willing to take for a young man willing to risk it all? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/52a581a7-e450-4348-aea5-8b77b98e04bb/199798557.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must-Reads - Swift River by Essie Chambers It’s the summer of 1987 in Swift River, and Diamond Newberry is learning how to drive. Ever since her Pop disappeared seven years ago, she and her mother hitchhike everywhere. But that’s not the only reason Diamond stands out: She’s teased relentlessly about her weight, and the fact that since Pop’s been gone, she is the only Black person in all of Swift River. This summer, Ma is determined to declare Pop legally dead so they can collect his life insurance money, get their house back from the bank, and finally move on. But when Diamond receives a letter from a relative she’s never met, key elements of Pop’s life are uncovered. She is introduced to two generations of African American Newberry women, spanning the 20th century and revealing a much larger picture of prejudice and abandonment, of love and devotion. As pieces of their shared past become clearer, Diamond gains a sense of her place in the world and in her family. But how will what she’s learned of the past change her future? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d0396d41-7ad2-4e36-a121-f26f8c7ad599/217362723.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must-Reads - The Seventh Veil of Salome by Silvia Moreno-Garcia 1950s Hollywood: Every actress wants to play Salome, the star-making role in a big-budget movie about the legendary woman whose story has inspired artists since ancient times. So when the film’s mercurial director casts Vera Larios, an unknown Mexican ingenue, in the lead role, she quickly becomes the talk of the town. Vera also becomes an object of envy for Nancy Hartley, a bit player whose career has stalled and who will do anything to win the fame she believes she richly deserves. Two actresses, both determined to make it to the top in Golden Age Hollywood—a city overflowing with gossip, scandal, and intrigue—make for a sizzling combination. But this is the tale of three women, for it is also the story of the princess Salome herself, consumed with desire for the fiery prophet who foretells the doom of her stepfather, Herod: a woman torn between the decree of duty and the yearning of her heart. Before the curtain comes down, there will be tears and tragedy aplenty in this sexy Technicolor saga. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/518a972d-cae1-4339-acb8-268125072878/40914165.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must-Reads - The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson In 1936, tucked deep into the woods of Troublesome Creek, KY, lives blue-skinned 19-year-old Cussy Carter, the last living female of the rare Blue People ancestry. The lonely young Appalachian woman joins the historical Pack Horse Library Project of Kentucky and becomes a librarian, riding across slippery creek beds and up treacherous mountains on her faithful mule to deliver books and other reading material to the impoverished hill people of Eastern Kentucky. Along her dangerous route, Cussy, known to the mountain folk as Bluet, confronts those suspicious of her damselfly-blue skin and the government's new book program. She befriends hardscrabble and complex fellow Kentuckians, and is fiercely determined to bring comfort and joy, instill literacy, and give to those who have nothing, a bookly respite, a fleeting retreat to faraway lands. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/valentine-book-recommendations monthly 0.5 2025-02-09 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9abdac08-531d-4a86-93e5-f469b1f8bdc8/205846802.jpg.png Blog - Valentine Book Recommendations - Prime Time Romance by Kate Robb Newly divorced on the eve of her thirtieth birthday, Brynn is sick of heartbreak. She thought she had found her happy ending, but now she’s living with a roommate, Josh, to afford her mortgage, and she’s trying to adjust to her new single life. At least she’s got Carson’s Cove to binge, her beloved 2000s teenage soap. The show ended unexpectantly on a cliffhanger after five seasons, and the two main characters, Sloan and Spencer, never got to declare their love for each other. The show is still perfect in Brynn’s eyes; despite all the drama that goes down, things always have a way of working out in Carson’s Cove . . . unlike her own life. So when a birthday cake surprisingly shows up on her and Josh’s doorstep, Brynn makes a wish for the one thing she’s always wanted (but has failed to achieve herself): a happily-ever-after. The next morning, she doesn’t wake up in her apartment. She’s in Carson’s Cove . . . and Josh is there too. Everyone seems to know them, except they’re not Brynn and Josh; they’re Sloan, the sweetheart of Carson’s Cove, and Fletch, the town’s bad boy. And to get home, they have to make Brynn’s wish come true by ensuring Sloan and Spencer, the hometown heartthrob, end up together at last. But as they spend more time together, Brynn and Josh realize that Carson’s Cove might not be as perfect as seen on television . . . especially when they start developing feelings for each other in a plot twist no one has expected. Will they stick to the script, or will real love change the story forever? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6f4c53ca-bc2f-49c0-aa94-1e5033f1abf7/201245798.jpg Blog - Valentine Book Recommendations - One-Star Romance by Laura Hankin Natalie and Rob couldn’t have less in common. Nat’s a messy artist, and Rob’s a rigid academic. The only thing they share is their devotion to their respective best friends—who just got engaged. Still, unexpected chemistry has Natalie cautiously optimistic about being maid of honor to Rob’s best man. Until, minutes before the ceremony, Nat learns that Rob wrote a one-star review of her new novel, which has them both reeling: Nat from imposter syndrome, and Rob over the reason he needed to write it. When the reception ends, these two opposites hope they’ll never meet again. But, as they slip from their twenties into their thirties, they’re forced together whenever their fast-track best friends celebrate another milestone. Through housewarmings and christenings, life-changing triumphs and failures, Natalie and Rob grapple with their own choices—and how your harshest critic can become your perfectly imperfect match. After all, even the truest love stories sometimes need a bit of rewriting. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f6b3ce85-6124-49a9-8bdb-b22e11c9e337/165938562.jpg Blog - Valentine Book Recommendations - The Partner Plot by Kristina Forest To Violet Greene, fashion is everything. As a successful celebrity stylist, she travels all over the world, living out her dreams. Professionally, she’s thriving, but her personal life is in shambles. After surviving a very public breakup with her ex-fiancé six months ago, Violet is now determined to focus on her career. But life hands her something—or rather, someone—that might derail everything… Xavier Wright did not expect to run into his high school girlfriend Violet—the girl he once thought he’d marry—on a birthday trip to Vegas. As a high school teacher and basketball coach, he rarely leaves his New Jersey hometown, so what were the chances? But when the initial shock wears off, they decide to celebrate together. They feel young and reckless as they party the night away—and reckless they clearly were when the following morning, they wake up beside each other with rings on their fingers. Their impulsive nuptials might be a blessing in disguise, though, when they realize that both of their careers could benefit from the marriage. So they play the part of a blissfully wedded couple. Yet when their passion comes hurling back, they realize their feelings are just as real as they were back when they were teens. But are their lives too different to stick it through or will they finally get a happy ending? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/04b0732a-8e23-4636-934e-0d13e435edfb/61884987.jpg Blog - Valentine Book Recommendations - Hello Stranger by Katherine Center Sadie Montgomery never saw what was coming . . . Literally! One minute she’s celebrating the biggest achievement of her life—placing as a finalist in the North American Portrait Society competition—the next, she’s lying in a hospital bed diagnosed with a “probably temporary” condition known as face blindness. She can see, but every face she looks at is now a jumbled puzzle of disconnected features. Imagine trying to read a book upside down and in another language. This is Sadie’s new reality with every face she sees. But, as she struggles to cope, hang on to her artistic dream, work through major family issues, and take care of her beloved dog, Peanut, she falls into—love? Lust? A temporary obsession to distract from the real problems in her life?—with not one man but two very different ones. The timing couldn’t be worse. If only her life were a little more in focus, Sadie might be able to find her way. But perceiving anything clearly right now seems impossible. Even though there are things we can only find when we aren’t looking. And there are people who show up when we least expect them. And there are always, always other ways of seeing. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/68c1a035-04ac-46f6-9ebc-870167da75bf/199793676-2.jpg Blog - Valentine Book Recommendations - Adam and Evie’s Matchmaking Tour by Nora Nguyen What’s a few weeks to a lifetime of promise? Evie Lang’s life is in shambles. On the heels of losing her beloved aunt, she's unceremoniously fired from her poetry professorship by her secret boyfriend. Lacking income and inspiration, she's stuck in Ohio with no idea how to move forward—until hope arrives in a surprising letter. Auntie Hảo left Evie the deed to her San Francisco row house, a place full of Evie’s happiest memories. The catch? To inherit, she must go on a pre-arranged matchmaking tour in Việt Nam. The last thing Evie wants is to spend time with a group of strangers looking for love. But she can't resist the chance to finally visit her family’s native home. A world away, Adam Quyền has a chip on his shoulder. He’s working around the clock as CMO for his sister’s elite matchmaking business, a job complicated by her insistence that he knows nothing about love. He’s desperate to prove himself, so when she challenges him to join the inaugural tour, he reluctantly agrees. Adam thinks Evie is chaotic and unpredictable. Evie thinks Adam is grumpy and uptight. But from the bustling streets of Hồ Chí Minh City to the soaring waterfalls in Đà Lạt, they keep getting thrown together, their animosity charged with attraction…and they discover that true love may be out there, if they are willing to take a leap. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b836a56b-d407-450a-b606-b9e518d1f508/211164792-2.jpg Blog - Valentine Book Recommendations - Beg, Borrow, or Steal by Sarah Adams Emily Walker hates having her carefully crafted world disrupted by anyone, most of all her legendary nemesis, Jack Bennett. He's the opposite of the wonderful heroes she dreams up in her double life as a romance writer, which is why Emily was perfectly happy when Jack left Rome, Kentucky, mid-school year, with his fiancée. The last thing Emily saw coming was Jack’s return at the start of the summer after calling off the wedding and ending his relationship, but he’s here to stay—as her colleague and her neighbor. Jackson Bennett is glad to be back, eager to renovate his house and work on the next mystery novel under his bestselling pen name. But when he realizes he’s now neighbors with the one woman who has always pushed his buttons, he discovers something he’s even more excited for—thwarting Emily and her petty plans to sabotage his return. With their chemistry-fueled animosity at an all-time high, Emily accidentally sends an email to their school’s principal that could reveal her secret literary side hustle. She needs to steal back her manuscript, and Jack—she hates to admit—is just the man to help her. Surprisingly, Jack agrees. Will their unlikely alliance put an end to their rivalry? Or could it lead to a steamy plot twist they never saw coming? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6e50534f-8243-4e90-a8f1-c28524558dc4/199450933.jpg Blog - Valentine Book Recommendations - Pardon My Frenchie by Farrah Rochon Ashanti Wright is ecstatic over the success of her dog boarding business, Barkingham Palace. In fact, it has become so successful that Ashanti has plans to expand her empire with a doggie bake shop. There’s just one problem, the building she’s had her eye on has just been sold to the surly grandson of one of her favorite customers. Thaddeus Sims is not a dog person. He’s barely a person’s person. But when his grandmother is transferred to a senior living facility that doesn’t accept pets, the former army officer agrees to care for her annoying Standard Poodle, Puddin’. After all, it was with his grandmother’s help that Thad was able to buy the building that will soon house The PX, a sports bar/all-around hangout space for former servicemen that he plans to open. Puddin’ and Ashanti’s French Bulldog, Duchess, have become a bit of a sensation on Barkingham Palace’s livestream because of their budding romance. When a video of the dogs sharing a doggy treat Lady and the Tramp-style goes viral, their owners are sucked into a media frenzy that captures the nation by storm...and creates some sparks for their owners too. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4a575140-a707-4eb4-924a-74e52efff53e/58007262.jpg Blog - Valentine Book Recommendations - Partners in Crime by Alisha Rai At thirty-five, with a stable job as an accountant, Mira Chaudhary wants nothing more than to find a boring man to spend the rest of her life with. Having had enough excitement in her younger days and desperately trying to escape her dysfunctional past, she turns to a matching app specializing in Indian American singles to help her find someone to settle down with. Enter Naveen Desai. An English professor with an uneventful, normal, and—dare she say it, boring—life, Naveen is perfect. But just when things are going well, Mira receives news that her aunt has died. Suddenly a trip to Las Vegas to settle her aunt’s affairs turns into a mad dash to escape kidnappers, evade art thieves, and consorting with hackers who can decipher just what it was Mira’s aunt was involved with. Mira just hopes that Naveen isn’t chased away by the very same life of “excitement” that she’s been trying to get away from. But maybe, over the course of one wild night, Mira and Naveen will find the love connection that neither expected. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/50c10d66-2cf5-41dc-9dfe-e764e242792d/199928276.jpg Blog - Valentine Book Recommendations - The Love of My After Life by Kirsty Greenwood If she wasn’t dead already, Delphie would be dying of embarrassment. Not only did she just die by choking on a microwaveable burger, she’s also now standing in her "sparkle and shine" nightie in front of the hottest man she’s ever seen. And he’s smiling at her. As they start to chat, everything else becomes background noise. That is, until someone comes running through a door yelling something about a huge mistake and sends the dreamy stranger back down to Earth. And here Delphie was thinking her luck might be different in the afterlife. When Delphie is offered a deal in which she can return to Earth and reconnect with the mysterious man, she jumps at the opportunity to find her possible soulmate and a fresh start. But to find him in a city of millions, Delphie is going to have to listen to her heart, learn to ask for help, and perhaps even see the magic in the life she’s leaving behind. . . . https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/84741892-35fe-4bf2-a5ab-7e9f0179c0d0/62926938.jpg Blog - Valentine Book Recommendations - The Seven Year Slip by Ashley Poston Sometimes, the worst day of your life happens, and you have to figure out how to live after it. So Clementine forms a plan to keep her heart safe: work hard, find someone decent to love, and try to remember to chase the moon. The last one is silly and obviously metaphorical, but her aunt always told her that you needed at least one big dream to keep going. And for the last year, that plan has gone off without a hitch. Mostly. The love part is hard because she doesn’t want to get too close to anyone—she isn’t sure her heart can take it. And then she finds a strange man standing in the kitchen of her late aunt’s apartment. A man with kind eyes and a Southern drawl and a taste for lemon pies. The kind of man that, before it all, she would’ve fallen head-over-heels for. And she might again. Except, he exists in the past. Seven years ago, to be exact. And she, quite literally, lives seven years in his future. Her aunt always said the apartment was a pinch in time, a place where moments blended together like watercolors. And Clementine knows that if she lets her heart fall, she’ll be doomed. After all, love is never a matter of time—but a matter of timing. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/957a3903-e459-4a9c-aee9-c6b124ee95a1/176443178.jpg Blog - Valentine Book Recommendations - Expiration Dates by Rebecca Serle Daphne Bell believes the universe has a plan for her. Every time she meets a new man, she receives a slip of paper with his name and a number on it—the exact amount of time they will be together. The papers told her she’d spend three days with Martin in Paris; five weeks with Noah in San Francisco; and three months with Hugo, her ex-boyfriend turned best friend. Daphne has been receiving the numbered papers for over twenty years, always wondering when there might be one without an expiration. Finally, the night of a blind date at her favorite Los Angeles restaurant, there’s only a name: Jake. But as Jake and Daphne’s story unfolds, Daphne finds herself doubting the paper’s prediction, and wrestling with what it means to be both committed and truthful. Because Daphne knows things Jake doesn’t, information that—if he found out—would break his heart. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ac0ec173-4a27-407b-997f-59d38fc597c2/208516646.jpg Blog - Valentine Book Recommendations - Cross the Line by Simone Soltani Formula 1 driver Dev Anderson’s career is on the line. After a social media disaster leaves him with an angry team and sponsors threatening to jump ship, he needs someone to help save his image. At a party in Monaco, he bumps into the woman who can fix it all. There’s just one problem: she’s his best friend’s little sister. And, okay, maybe there’s another problem—he kissed her last year and hasn’t been able to stop thinking about it since. Recent college grad Willow Williams needs a job. She may have a talent for seeing the bright side of any bad situation, but it’s hard to stay positive when she’s struggling to get hired. So when Dev offers her a temporary solution, she can’t help but say yes. Even if it means ignoring the crush she’s had on him since childhood. Willow and Dev are determined to keep things strictly professional, regardless of old feelings and the blazing chemistry between them. But in the glittering and high-stakes world of Formula 1, some lines are meant to be crossed… https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/dcc2ecd1-8215-4fc4-9690-81e940328b99/211399750.jpg Blog - Valentine Book Recommendations - Flirting with Disaster by Naina Kumar It's been years since Meena has seen her husband, Nikhil . . . years since they first laid eyes on each other back home in Texas, years since they eloped in Las Vegas and she felt true happiness. A high-powered lawyer on Capitol Hill, ready to move on (or at least, she thinks so) with another successful lawyer, Shake, Meena has returned home. This time, finally, to obtain a divorce. But there's one thing Meena couldn't have accounted for: a hurricane forming in the Gulf, veering right toward them, giving them no choice but to hunker down in the home they had built together. Suddenly, she finds herself trapped amid gale-force winds and pelting rain with the man she once loved. As they spend more time together, Meena begins to remember everything that drew her to Nikhil: His small-town charm, his thoughtful nature. . . his absurdly good looks. But things make sense with Shake. He’s steady and ambitious and wants exactly what she wants. She’ll stick to her plan, come hell or high water. But will her windswept heart make the right choice, when the storm settles and the eye passes over? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4fcf704c-70a0-4485-a022-49c143c7a1b0/201627008.jpg Blog - Valentine Book Recommendations - The Next Best Fling by Gabriella Gamez Librarian Marcela Ortiz has been secretly in love with her best friend for years—and when he gets engaged, she knows it’s long past time to move on. But before she gets the chance, she has a bigger problem to contend with in the form of Theo Young, ex-NFL player and older brother of the man she’s in love with. When she discovers Theo's plans to confess his feelings for his brother’s fiancée at their engagement party, Marcela is quick to stop him—despite how tempting it is to let him run away with the bride-to-be. She manages to convince Theo to sleep off his drunken almost-mistake at her place and when they arrive at a family brunch the next day together, everyone wrongly assumes they hooked up. Since Theo needs a cover for his feelings for the bride and Marcela needs a distraction from her unrequited feelings for the groom, they decide to roll with the lie. Until one late night at a bar, they take it a step further and discover a layer of attraction neither realized existed. Soon, they find themselves exploring the simmering chemistry between them, whether in library aisles or Marcela's bed. There are no boundaries for the rebound relationship they form—just a host of complicated feelings, messy familial dynamics, and uncovered secrets that threaten to tear them apart before they can even admit to themselves that their rebound is working. Maybe a little too well. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/13954c2b-f11e-4b73-a8a0-a50d8f8301df/61423065.jpg Blog - Valentine Book Recommendations - The Do-Over by Suzanne Park Lily Lee is a bestselling author of the How to Be a Supernova At Work series, and her editor wants her to strike while the iron’s hot with a new book, How to Land the Perfect Job. But when Lily is offered a coveted position at a top firm, the employer background check reveals she’s short a few college credits and never actually completed her degree. Unbelievably, her worst nightmare has come true. Lily returns to her alma mater, reliving her senior year of college ten years later. She enrolls in classes, gets invited to frat parties, eats most of her meals with “dining dollars,” and to make things even more weird and chaotic, she discovers that her computer science TA is her old college boyfriend, Jake Cho. As Lily and Jake reconnect, she sees that her ex has done well for himself: the handsome, charming grad student appears to have his life together while Lily’s so close to losing her dream job opportunity and her book deal. Things aren't so simple the second time around. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e73d204b-585b-4208-b875-81cee74e0bc3/212806619.jpg Blog - Valentine Book Recommendations - Deep End by Ali Hazelwood Scarlett Vandermeer is swimming upstream. A Junior at Stanford and a student-athlete who specializes in platform diving, Scarlett prefers to keep her head down, concentrating on getting into med school and on recovering from the injury that almost ended her career. She has no time for relationships—at least, that’s what she tells herself. Swim captain, world champion, all-around aquatics golden boy, Lukas Blomqvist thrives on discipline. It’s how he wins gold medals and breaks records: complete focus, with every stroke. On the surface, Lukas and Scarlett have nothing in common. Until a well-guarded secret slips out, and everything changes. So they start an arrangement. And as the pressure leading to the Olympics heats up, so does their relationship. It was supposed to be just a temporary, mutually satisfying fling. But when staying away from Lukas becomes impossible, Scarlett realizes that her heart might be treading into dangerous water... https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f7bdb353-085e-46b6-b331-32982c6f83be/207611511.jpg.png Blog - Valentine Book Recommendations - Lost and Lassoed by Lyla Sage Teddy Andersen doesn’t have a plan. She’s never needed one before. She’s always been more of a go with the flow type of girl, but for some reason, the flow doesn’t seem to be going her way this time. Her favorite vintage suede jacket has a hole in it, her sewing machine is broken, and her best friend just got engaged. Suddenly, everything feels like it’s starting to change. Teddy’s used to being a leader, but now she feels like she’s getting left behind, wondering if life in the small town she loves is enough for her anymore. Gus Ryder has a lot on his plate. He doesn’t know what’s taking care of his family’s 8,000 acre ranch, or parenting his spunky six-year-old daughter, who is staying with him for the summer. Gus has always been the dependable one, but when his workload starts to overwhelm him, he has to admit that he can’t manage everything on his own. He needs help. His little sister’s best friend, the woman he can’t stand, is not who he had in mind. But when no one else can step in, Teddy's the only option he’s got. Teddy decides to use the summer to try and figure out what she wants out of life. Gus, on the other hand, starts to worry that he’ll never find what he needs. Tempers flare, tension builds, and for the first time ever, Gus and Teddy start to see each other in a different light. As new feelings start to simmer below the surface, they must decide whether or not to act on them. Can they keep things cool? Or will both of them get burned? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/dd523817-7b3c-4711-a7f7-803da3269627/154488304.jpg Blog - Valentine Book Recommendations - The Catch by Amy Lea In a last-ditch effort to rescue her brand from the brink of irrelevance, Boston fashion influencer Melanie Karlsen finds herself in a rural fishing village on the east coast of Canada. The only thing scarier than nature itself? The burly and bearded bed-and-breakfast owner and fisherman, Evan Whaler—who single-handedly disproves the theory that Canadians are “nice.” After a boating accident lands Evan unconscious in the hospital, Mel is mistaken for his fiancée by his welcoming yet quirky family, who are embroiled in a long-standing feud over the B&B. In a bold attempt to mend family fences, Mel agrees to fake their engagement for one week in exchange for Evan’s help with her social media content. Amid long hikes and campfire chats, reeling in their budding feelings for each other proves more difficult by the day. But is Mel willing to sacrifice her picture-perfect life in the city for a chance at a true, unfiltered love in the wild? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ef0eb0cc-b8aa-4f4e-88a4-f9325fad6730/43801254.jpg Blog - Valentine Book Recommendations - The Worst Best Man by Mia Sosa Mia Sosa delivers a sassy, steamy #ownvoices enemies-to-lovers novel, perfect for fans of Jasmine Guillory, Helen Hoang, and Sally Thorne! A wedding planner left at the altar? Yeah, the irony isn’t lost on Carolina Santos, either. But despite that embarrassing blip from her past, Lina’s offered an opportunity that could change her life. There’s just one hitch… she has to collaborate with the best (make that worst) man from her own failed nuptials. Marketing expert Max Hartley is determined to make his mark with a coveted hotel client looking to expand its brand. Then he learns he’ll be working with his brother’s whip-smart, stunning—absolutely off-limits—ex-fiancée. And she loathes him. If they can nail their presentation without killing each other, they’ll both come out ahead. Except Max has been public enemy number one ever since he encouraged his brother to jilt the bride, and Lina’s ready to dish out a little payback of her own. Soon Lina and Max discover animosity may not be the only emotion creating sparks between them. Still, this star-crossed couple can never be more than temporary playmates because Lina isn’t interested in falling in love and Max refuses to play runner-up to his brother ever again... https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/99ff3246-82c6-4f4b-ba44-983b97903796/203194039-2.jpg Blog - Valentine Book Recommendations - Not in My Book by Katie Holt Rosie, an idealistic and passionate Peruvian-American who has grown up without strong ties to her culture, leaves her Tennessee hometown to pursue her dream of making it in New York as a writer. But her plan is derailed when she ends up in class with her arch-nemesis and ex-crush, Aiden Huntington—an obnoxious, surly, and gorgeous literary fiction writer who doesn’t have much patience for the romance genre, or for Rosie. Rosie and Aiden regularly go to verbal battle in workshop until their professor reaches her breaking point. She allows them to stay in her class on one condition: they must co-write a novel that blends their genres. The reluctant writing duo can’t help but put pieces of themselves into their accidentally steamy novel, and as they slowly get to know each other, they try to put their differences aside. Meanwhile, their manuscript-in-progress provides an outlet for them to confess their feelings—and explore their attraction toward each other. When Rosie and Aiden find themselves competing against each other for a potentially career-changing opportunity, the flames of old rivalry reignite, and their once-in-a-lifetime love story is once again at risk of being shelved—unless they can find a way to end the book on their own terms. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/d0w3ril4j4dm6g9iblcmg6oimmvp89 monthly 0.5 2025-02-01 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/february-new-releases monthly 0.5 2025-01-20 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/503df46b-2c98-42b1-9adb-9a05e833bcc6/212808709.jpg Blog - February New Releases - Deep End by Ali Hazelwood Scarlett Vandermeer is swimming upstream. A Junior at Stanford and a student-athlete who specializes in platform diving, Scarlett prefers to keep her head down, concentrating on getting into med school and on recovering from the injury that almost ended her career. She has no time for relationships—at least, that’s what she tells herself. Swim captain, world champion, all-around aquatics golden boy, Lukas Blomqvist thrives on discipline. It’s how he wins gold medals and breaks records: complete focus, with every stroke. On the surface, Lukas and Scarlett have nothing in common. Until a well-guarded secret slips out, and everything changes. So they start an arrangement. And as the pressure leading to the Olympics heats up, so does their relationship. It was supposed to be just a temporary, mutually satisfying fling. But when staying away from Lukas becomes impossible, Scarlett realizes that her heart might be treading into dangerous water... Release Date: February 4, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e10fbc21-598c-4e4f-b7f1-6c7c82ef078e/211004079.jpg Blog - February New Releases - A Killing Cold by Kate Alice Marshall A whirlwind romance. When Theodora Scott met Connor—wealthy, charming, and a member of the powerful Dalton family—she fell in love in an instant. Six months later, he’s brought her to Idlewood, his family’s isolated winter retreat, to win over his skeptical relatives. Stay away from Connor Dalton. Theo has tried to ignore the threatening messages on her phone, but she can’t ignore the footprints in the snow outside the cabin window or the strange sense of familiarity she has about this place. Then, in a disused cabin, Theo finds something impossible: a photo of herself as a child. A photo taken at Idlewood. I’ve been here before. Theo has almost no recollection of her earliest years, but now she begins to piece together the fragments of her memories. Someone here has a shocking secret that they will do anything to keep hidden, and Theo is in terrible danger. Because the Daltons do not lose, and discovering what happened at Idlewood may cost Theo everything. Release Date: February 4, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2fa6e2ba-80ef-4bbf-80de-32b69dda9bfa/208840724.jpg Blog - February New Releases - The Beasts We Bury by D.L. Taylor Will he steal her heart... or her chance at the throne? Daughter and heir to the throne, Mancella Cliff yearns for a life without bloodshed. But as a child, she emerged from the Broken Citadel with the power to summon animals—only after killing them with her bare hands. Her magic is a constant reminder of the horrors her father, the ruler of the realm, has forced upon her to strengthen their power. Silver is a charming thief struggling to survive in a world torn apart by Mancella’s father’s reign. When a mysterious benefactor recruits him for the heist of a lifetime, a chance to rob the castle, Silver relishes the opportunity for a real future—and revenge. But he'll have to manipulate Mance and earn her trust to pull it off. As the deception and carnage mount, Mance must find a way to save her realm without becoming the ruthless monster she's been bred to be. And when Silver discovers that his actions are fueling the violence that Mance wants to prevent, he'll have to choose between his ambition and the girl he’s falling for. Release Date: February 4, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bb01e9b1-a953-4f81-a76a-ea0253dc2ca9/212806636.jpg Blog - February New Releases - Isola by Allegra Goodman Heir to a chateau with its own village and lands, Marguerite is destined for a life of prosperity and gentility. Then she is orphaned, and Jean Francois de la Rocque de Roberval—an enigmatic and volatile older man Marguerite has never met—becomes her guardian, controlling her future. He sells her property to pay his debts, leaving her destitute, and insists she accompany him on an expedition to New France. Isolated and afraid, Marguerite befriends Roberval’s servant and the two begin meeting secretly aboard the ship, drawn together by an intense attraction. But when Roberval discovers Marguerite’s deception, his rage is all-consuming. As punishment, he maroons her and her lover on a small island, condemning them to certain death. Once a child of privilege who dressed in gowns and laced pearls in her hair, Marguerite is now at the mercy of the elements. Without food or shelter, she must learn to hunt and live in a cave. As the weather turns, blanketing the island in ice, survival becomes nearly impossible. Marguerite despairs; has everyone and everything she once held dear abandoned her? Release Date: February 4, 2025 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c5e5d8a3-0ecc-4b2f-861b-e2abc62a5504/213051921.jpg Blog - February New Releases - Capitana by Cassandra James Ximena Reale has spent most of her life at La Academia training to become a Cazador, a seafaring hunter who tracks down pirates. But her future is uncertain, thanks to her parents’ reputation. They were pirates, traitors to the Luzan Empire, and though they were executed when Ximena and her sister were young, they permanently damaged the Reale name. Ability alone won’t earn Ximena the coveted Cazador cloak. So, when the legendary pirate Gasparilla returns and captures the Empire’s queen, Ximena offers to bring her back and capture the notorious pirate in exchange for a cloak. But there’s a catch: There’s only one cloak, and Ximena’s competition is Dante deLeon, an infuriating yet handsome classmate. With their futures on the line, Ximena and Dante set out on a dangerous quest across the high seas. But can Ximena sail far enough to escape the legacy of her family, or will her relationship with Dante thwart her success in more ways than one? Release Date: February 4, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/094cf7ec-46a6-4f72-b569-9961a527b917/214283601-2.jpg Blog - February New Releases - Dream Girl Drama by Tessa Bailey When professional hockey player Sig Gauthier’s car breaks down and his phone dies, he treks into a posh private country club to call a tow truck, where he encounters the alluring Chloe Clifford, the manic pixie dream girl who captivates him immediately with her sense of adventure and penchant for stealing champagne. Sparks fly during a moonlight kiss and the enamored pair can’t wait to see each other again, but when Sig finally arrives to meet his dad’s new girlfriend over dinner, Chloe is confusingly also there. Turns out the girlfriend is Chloe’s mother. Oh, and they’re engaged. Sig’s dream girl is his future stepsister. Though the pair is now wary of being involved romantically, Chloe, a sheltered harp prodigy, yearns to escape her controlling mother. Sig promises to teach her the ins and outs of independence in Boston—but not inside his bedroom. They both know there can never be more than friendship between a famous hockey player and his high-society, soon-to-be stepsister. But keeping their relationship platonic grows harder amid the developing family drama, especially knowing they were meant for so much more… Release Date: February 4, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ef97f202-5d02-49a5-b4fb-88a9b08cf93f/214229274.jpg Blog - February New Releases - Grave Empire by Richard Swan A new age of exploration and innovation has dawned, and the Empire of the Wolf stands to take its place as the foremost power in the known world. Glory and riches await. But dark days are coming. A mysterious plague has broken out in the pagan kingdoms to the north, while in the south, the Empire’s proxy war in the lands of the wolfmen is weeks away from total collapse. Worse still is the message brought to the Empress by two heretic monks, who claim to have lost contact with the spirits of the afterlife. The monks believe this is the start of an ancient prophecy heralding the end of days—the Great Silence. It falls to Renata Rainer, a low-ranking ambassador to an enigmatic and vicious race of mermen, to seek answers from those who still practice the arcane arts. But with the road south beset by war and the Empire on the brink of supernatural catastrophe, soon there may not be a world left to save... Release Date: February 4, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/cd0e9313-fbb4-4cac-bf64-3d32df1de6a3/212806648.jpg Blog - February New Releases - Junie by Erin Crosby Eckstine Sixteen years old and enslaved since she was born, Junie has spent her life on Bellereine Plantation in Alabama, cooking and cleaning alongside her family, and tending to the white master’s daughter, Violet. Her daydreams are filled with poetry and faraway worlds, while she spends her nights secretly roaming through the forest, consumed with grief over the sudden death of her older sister, Minnie. When wealthy guests arrive from New Orleans, hinting at marriage for Violet and upending Junie’s life, she commits a desperate act—one that rouses Minnie’s spirit from the grave, tethered to this world unless Junie can free her. She enlists the aid of Caleb, the guests’ coachman, and their friendship soon becomes something more. Yet as long-held truths begin to crumble, she realizes Bellereine is harboring dark and horrifying secrets that can no longer be ignored. With time ticking down, Junie begins to push against the harsh current that has controlled her entire life. As she grapples with an increasingly unfamiliar world in which she has little control, she is forced to ask herself: When we choose love and liberation, what must we leave behind? Release Date: February 4, 2025 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/dfe8f7f3-9fda-4438-a3f3-ed3ea2ab6f00/211742041.jpg.png Blog - February New Releases - The Rose Bargain by Sasha Peyton Smith Every citizen of England is granted one bargain from their immortal fae queen. High society girls are expected to bargain for qualities that will win them suitors: a rare talent for piano in exchange for one’s happiest childhood memory. A perfect smile for one’s ability to taste. But Ivy Benton’s debut season arrives with a shocking twist: a competition to secure the heart of the Queen’s fae son, Prince Bram. A prize that could save Ivy’s family from ruin… and free her sister from the bargain that destroyed her. Yet every glittering fae deal has a rotting heart—and at the center of this contest is a dark plot that could destroy everything Ivy knows. Release Date: February 4, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/28e1c396-2e66-406a-aa17-9d55d2f48468/212378273.jpg Blog - February New Releases - Last Twilight In Paris by Pam Jenoff A Parisian department store, a mysterious necklace and a woman’s quest to unlock a decade-old mystery are at the center of this riveting novel of love and survival, from New York Times bestselling author Pam Jenoff London, 1953. Louise is still adjusting to her postwar role as a housewife when she discovers a necklace in a box at a secondhand shop. The box is marked with the name of a department store in Paris, and she is certain she has seen the necklace before when she worked with the Red Cross in Nazi-occupied Europe —and that it holds the key to the mysterious death of her friend Franny during the war. Following the trail of clues to Paris, Louise seeks help from her former boss Ian, with whom she shares a romantic history. The necklace leads them to discover the dark history of Lévitan—a once-glamorous department store that served as a Nazi prison, and Helaine, a woman who was imprisoned there, torn apart from her husband when the Germans invaded France. Louise races to find the connection between the necklace, the department store and Franny’s death. But nothing is as it seems, and there are forces determined to keep the truth buried forever. Inspired by the true story of Lévitan, Last Twilight in Paris is both a gripping mystery and an unforgettable story about sacrifice, resistance and the power of love to transcend in even the darkest hours. Release Date: February 4, 2025 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a84f2452-abfd-4466-8ff7-136385820696/216052747.jpg Blog - February New Releases - The Perfect Rom-Com by Melissa Ferguson Aspiring author Bryony Page attends her first writers conference bursting with optimism and ready to sell her manuscript with long-shot dreams of raising awareness for The Bridge, her grandmother's financially-struggling organization where she teaches ESL full-time. But after a disastrous pitching session, she stumbles into correcting another author's work in a last-ditch attempt to make a good impression with the agent. And she, as it turns out, is spot on. No one is more surprised than Bryony when the agent offers her the opportunity to be a ghostwriter for Amelia Benedict, popular rom-com novelist. Bryony agrees on one she'll write books for this vain, demanding woman just as long as Jack Sterling, literary agent of the legendary Foundry Literary Agency, works to sell her own book too. What nobody predicted, however, was that Bryony's books would turn Amelia Benedict into theAmelia Benedict, household name and bestselling author with millions of copies sold around the world. And just like that, the Foundry Agency can't let her go. But on a personal note, Jack is realizing he can't either. Release Date: February 11, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/427a57a2-f4a5-4c35-b73f-80f01a8edb2a/206549834.jpg Blog - February New Releases - Beartooth by Callan Wink In an aging timber house hand-built into the Absaroka-Beartooth mountains, two brothers are struggling to keep up with their debts. They live off the grid on the fringe of Yellowstone, surviving after the death of their father. Thad, the elder, is more capable of engaging with things like the truck registration and the medical bills from their father’s fatal illness and the tax lien on the cabin their grandfather built, while Hazen is... different, more instinctual, deeply attuned to the natural world. Desperate for money, they are approached by a shadowy out-of-towner with a proposition and agree to attempt a heist of natural resources from Yellowstone, a federal crime. Beartooth is a fast-paced tale set in the grandeur of the American West. Release Date: February 11, 2025 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4dc444a8-6997-476c-9554-4596de213fa0/213243908.jpg Blog - February New Releases - First-Time Caller by B.K. Borison Aiden Valentine has a secret: he's fallen out of love with love. And as the host of Baltimore's romance hotline, that's a bit of a problem. But when a young girl calls in to the station asking for dating advice for her mom, the interview goes viral, thrusting Aiden and Heartstrings into the limelight. Lucie Stone thought she was doing just fine. She has a good job; an incredible family; and a smart, slightly devious kid. But when all of Baltimore is suddenly scrutinizing her love life-or lack thereof—she begins to question if she's as happy as she thought. Maybe a little more romance wouldn't be such a bad thing. Everyone wants Lucie to find her happy ending... even the handsome, temperamental man calling the shots. But when sparks start to fly behind the scenes, Lucie must make the final call between the radio-sponsored happily ever after or the man in the headphones next to her. Release Date: February 11, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/33623048-cc65-418b-8848-231d900ba781/213243937.jpg Blog - February New Releases - You Are Fatally Invited by Ande Pliego When renowned anonymous author J. R. Alastor hires former aspiring writer Mila del Angél to host a writing retreat at his private manor off the coast of Maine, she jumps at the chance—particularly since she has an ax to grind with one of the invitees. The guest list? Six thriller authors, all masters of deceit, misdirection, and mayhem. Confess the crimes, survive the tropes. Alastor and Mila have masterminded a week of games, trope-fueled riddles, and maybe a jump scare or two—the perfect cover for Mila to plot a murder of her own. But when a guest turns up dead—and it’s not the murder she planned—Mila finds herself trapped in a different narrative altogether. One by one, you’ll lose your turn. With a storm cutting off the island, and the body count rising, Mila must outwit a killer who knows literally every trick in the book. Until only one of us remains… Release Date: February 11, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/293d5cf6-f046-48a7-95af-22b6fdba07b3/214310631.jpg Blog - February New Releases - Scythe and Sparrow by Brynne Weaver Doctor Fionn Kane is running from a broken heart, one he hopes to mend in small-town Nebraska, far away from his almost-fiancé and his derailed surgical career. It’s a simpler life: head down, work hard, and absolutely no romantic relationships. He wants none of the circus he left behind in Boston. But then the Silveria Circus finds him. Motorcycle performer Rose Evans has spent a decade on the road with Silveria, and it suits her just fine, especially when she has the urge to indulge in a little murder and mayhem when she’s not in the spotlight. But when a kill goes awry and she ends up with a broken leg, she finds herself stuck in Nebraska at the home of the adorably nerdy town doctor. The problem is, not every broken heart can be sewn back together. . . . And the longer you stay in one place, the more likely your ghosts are to catch up. Release Date: February 11, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2c04e8ed-322b-47de-a597-92b18a714577/211003830.jpg Blog - February New Releases - The Queens of Crime by Marie Benedict London, 1930. The five greatest women crime writers have banded together to form a secret society with a single goal: to show they are no longer willing to be treated as second-class citizens by their male counterparts in the legendary Detection Club. Led by the formidable Dorothy L. Sayers, the group includes Agatha Christie, Ngaio Marsh, Margery Allingham and Baroness Emma Orczy. They call themselves the Queens of Crime. Their plan? Solve an actual murder, that of a young woman found strangled in a park in France who may have connections leading to the highest levels of the British establishment. May Daniels, a young English nurse on an excursion to France with her friend, seemed to vanish into thin air as they prepared to board a ferry home. Months later, her body is found in the nearby woods. The murder has all the hallmarks of a locked room mystery for which these authors are famous: how did her killer manage to sneak her body out of a crowded train station without anyone noticing? If, as the police believe, the cause of death is manual strangulation, why is there is an extraordinary amount of blood at the crime scene? What is the meaning of a heartbreaking secret letter seeming to implicate an unnamed paramour? Determined to solve the highly publicized murder, the Queens of Crime embark on their own investigation, discovering they’re stronger together. But soon the killer targets Dorothy Sayers herself, threatening to expose a dark secret in her past that she would do anything to keep hidden. Release Date: February 11, 2025 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/556911fc-77da-4a74-8eef-4aa94f30fa8a/208841368.jpg Blog - February New Releases - Emily Wilde’s Compendium of Lost Tales Emily Wilde has spent her life studying faeries. A renowned dryadologist, she has documented hundreds of species of Folk in her Encyclopaedia of Faeries. Now she is about to embark on her most dangerous academic project studying the inner workings of a faerie realm-as its queen. Along with her former academic rival-now fiancé-the dashing and mercurial Wendell Bambleby, Emily is immediately thrust into the deadly intrigues of Faerie as the two of them seize the throne of Wendell's long-lost kingdom, which Emily finds a beautiful nightmare, filled with scholarly treasures. Emily has been obsessed with faerie stories her entire life, but at first she feels as ill-suited to Faerie as she did to the mortal world-how could an unassuming scholar like herself pass for a queen? Yet there is little time to settle in-Wendell's murderous stepmother has placed a deadly curse upon the land before vanishing without a trace. It will take all of Wendell's magic-and Emily's knowledge of stories-to unravel the mystery before they lose everything they hold dear. Release Date: February 11, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1b9eb46e-bab9-4df2-a9c3-a4158c67c635/214175092.jpg Blog - February New Releases - The Quiet Librarian by Allen Eskens Hana Babic is a quiet, middle-aged librarian in Minnesota who wants nothing more than to be left alone. But when a detective arrives with the news that her best friend has been murdered, Hana knows that something evil has come for her, a dark remnant of the past she and her friend had shared. Thirty years before, Hana was someone Nura Divjak, a teenager growing up in the mountains of war-torn Bosnia—until Serbian soldiers arrived to slaughter her entire family before her eyes. The events of that day thrust Nura into the war, leading her to join a band of militia fighters, where she became not only a fierce warrior but a legend—the deadly Night Mora. But a shattering final act forced Nura to flee to the United States with a bounty on her head. Now, someone is hunting Hana, and her friend has paid the price, leaving her eight-year-old grandson in Hana’s care. To protect the child without revealing her secret, Hana must again become the Night Mora—and hope she can find the killer before the past comes for them, too. Release Date: February 18, 2025 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/351428ac-a0b3-44ae-a723-689de6f1a45a/60217777.jpg Blog - February New Releases - Rebel Witch by Ciccarelli A WITCH... Rune Winters is on the run. Ever since the boy she loved, Gideon Sharpe, revealed who she was and delivered her into enemy hands, everyone wants her dead. If Rune hopes to survive, she must ally herself with the cruel and dangerous Cressida Roseblood, who’s planning to take back the Republic and reinstate a Reign of Witches—something Cressida needs Rune to accomplish. A WITCH HUNTER... Apparently it wasn’t enough for Rune to deceive Gideon; she’s now betrayed him by allying herself with the witch who made his life a living hell. Gideon won’t allow the Republic to fall to the witches and be plunged back into the nightmares of the past. In order to protect this new world he fought for, every last witch must die—especially Rune Winters. AN IMPOSSIBLE CHOICE... When Rune makes Gideon an offer he can’t refuse, the two must pair up to accomplish dangerous goals. The more they’re forced into each other’s company, the more Gideon realizes the feelings he had for Rune aren’t as dead and buried as he thought. Now he’s faced with a terrible choice: sacrifice the girl he loves to stop a monster taking back power, or let Rune live and watch the world he fought so hard for burn. Release Date: February 18, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a7417c8c-0739-4678-96a3-d6bcc127031d/211004131.jpg Blog - February New Releases - Upon A Starlit Tide by Kell Woods Saint-Malo, Brittany, 1758. For Lucinde Leon, the youngest daughter of one of Saint-Malo's wealthiest ship-owners, the high walls of the city are more hindrance than haven. While her sisters are interested in securing advantageous marriages, Luce dreams of escaping her elegant but stifling home and joining a ship's crew. Only Samuel—Luce's best friend and an English smuggler—understands her longing for the sea, secretly teaching her to sail whenever she can sneak away. For Luce, the stolen time on the water with Samuel is precious. One stormy morning, Luce's plans are blown off course when she rescues Morgan de Chatelaine, the youngest son of the most powerful ship-owner in Saint-Malo, from the sea. Immediately drawn to his charm and sense of adventure, she longs to attend the glittering ball held in honor of his safe return and begins to contemplate a different kind of future for herself. But it is not only Luce's hopes at stake—the local fae are leaving Brittany and taking their magic with them, while the long-standing war with the English means Saint-Malo is always at risk of attack. As Luce is plunged into a world of magic, brutality, and seduction, secrets that have long been lost in the shadowy depths of the ocean begin to rise to the surface. The truth of her own power is growing brighter and brighter, shining like a sea-glass slipper. Or the scales of a sea-maid's tail. Release Date: February 18, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a86ef2bf-88c4-49e2-b1bb-850111584655/211003694.jpg Blog - February New Releases - The Fourth Consort by Edward Ashton Dalton Greaves is a hero. He’s one of humankind’s first representatives to Unity, a pan-species confederation working to bring all sentient life into a single benevolent brotherhood. That’s what they told him, anyway. The only actual members of Unity that he’s ever met are Boreau, a giant snail who seems more interested in plunder than spreading love and harmony, and Boreau’s human sidekick, Neera, who Dalton strongly suspects roped him into this gig so that she wouldn’t become the next one of Boreau’s crew to get eaten by locals while prospecting. Funny thing, though—turns out there actually is a benevolent confederation out there, working for the good of all life. They call themselves the Assembly, and they really don’t like Unity. More to the point, they really, really don’t like Unity’s new human minions. When an encounter between Boreau’s scout ship and an Assembly cruiser over a newly discovered world ends badly for both parties, Dalton finds himself marooned, caught between a stickman, one of the Assembly’s nightmarish shock troops, the planet’s natives, who aren’t winning any congeniality prizes themselves, and Neera, who might actually be the most dangerous of the three. To survive, he’ll need to navigate palace intrigue, alien morality, and a proposal that he literally cannot refuse, all while making sure Neera doesn’t come to the conclusion that he’s worth more to her dead than alive. Release Date: February 25, 2025 Genre: Science Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0c1331f1-d688-4b3c-a836-dbeaa6cb380b/212421066.jpg Blog - February New Releases - Famous Last Words by Gillian McAllister It is June 21, the longest day of the year, and the life of new mother Camilla is about to change forever. After months of maternity leave, she will drop off her infant daughter at daycare for the first time and return to her job as a literary agent. Finally. But when she wakes, her husband Luke isn’t there, and in his place is a cryptic note. Then it starts. Breaking news: A hostage situation is developing in London. The police tell her Luke is involved—but he isn't a hostage. Her husband—doting father, eternal optimist—is the gunman. Release Date: February 25, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/77bfdb83-5d77-4709-91ee-57daa2e624be/212688557.jpg Blog - February New Releases - The Charlie Method by Elle Kennedy College senior Charlotte Kingston is living two lives―and she's nailing both of them. By day, she's the perfect sorority girl, a STEM student in biomedical engineering, and the adopted daughter of an overachiever family. At night, she's Charlie: a risk-taking daredevil looking for fun who finds herself chatting on a dating app with two anonymous hotties. Will Larsen may seem like the breezy boy next door, but his congressman father is a constant thorn in his side. After a scandal hits another Division 1 hockey program, Will's dad is determined to distance his son from it, hiring a journalist to prove how squeaky-clean Will and his team are. Which means the last thing Will wants is for anyone to find out he and his best friend Beckett Dunne―a laidback Aussie shielding secret heartache―sometimes share girls in the bedroom. When Charlie finally meets them in person and realizes she's been chatting with two gorgeous Briar U hockey players, things get steamy―fast. But all their messy secrets are piling up, and real life soon threatens to shatter the fantasy. With Charlie, Will, and Beckett all coming to terms with what they want and what others want for them, difficult decisions will need to be made. Especially when lust starts to look a lot like love. Release Date: February 25, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ae59fb48-cac7-47ee-8f80-75448cd982a9/211004350.jpg Blog - February New Releases - Something In The Walls by Daisy Pearce Newly minted child psychologist Mina has little experience. In a field where the first people called are experts, she’s been unable to get her feet wet. Instead she aimlessly spends her days stuck in the stifling heat wave sweeping across Britain, and anxiously contemplating her upcoming marriage to careful, precise researcher Oscar. The only reprieve from her small, close world is attending the local bereavement group to mourn her brother’s death from years ago. That is, until she meets journalist Sam Hunter at the grief group one day. And he has a proposition for her. Alice Webber is a thirteen-year-old girl who claims a witch is haunting her. Living with her family in their crowded home in the remote village of Banathel, Alice’s symptoms are increasingly disturbing, and money is tight. Taking this job will give Mina some experience; Sam will get the scoop of a lifetime; and Alice will get better, Mina is sure of it. But instead of improving, Alice’s behavior becomes increasingly inexplicable and intense. The town of Banathel has a deep history of superstition and witchcraft. They believe there is evil in the world. They believe there are ways of…dealing with it. And they don’t expect outsiders to understand. Release Date: February 25, 2025 Genre: Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3545852b-5c09-4662-81c6-4ed337c448cf/198563641.jpg Blog - February New Releases - Back After This by Linda Holmes A podcast producer agrees to host a new series about modern dating—but will the show jeopardize her chance at finding real love? From the New York Times bestselling author of Evvie Drake Starts Over and Flying Solo . Longtime podcast producer Cecily Foster has always operated behind the scenes. For years, she’s worked toward hosting her own show, putting everything, including her love life, on the backburner. So when her boss finally offers her the chance, she’s over the moon. But there’s a catch. Actually, two 1) The show will be about Cecily’s dating life 2) Cecily will be mentored by renowned dating coach/life coach/influencer Eliza Cassidy. Cecily would rather do anything else than put her singledom on display, especially since the last time she mixed work with romance the outcome was catastrophic. But when Cecily’s boss tells her that doing the show is the only way to protect her mentee's job, she realizes she has no other choice. To make matters even more complicated, Cecily finds herself unable to stop thinking about Will, a photographer she serendipitously met while chasing a runaway dog down a busy street. Even though there are sparks between the two, Eliza forbids Cecily from dating Will, whom she believes is no better than Cecily's disappointing exes. As Cecily struggles to balance her real romantic life and the one Eliza wants to create for her, she finds herself at a crossroads. Will she fall back into old patterns, or is this her chance to finally find love that lasts? Release Date: February 25, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5eb85eb3-c7a7-4e41-8cd1-3cdb7a0a3df7/211894916.jpg Blog - February New Releases - Close Your Eyes and Count to 10 by Lisa Unger When the real game begins, who will make it to the count of 10? Charismatic daredevil and extreme adventurer Maverick Dillan invites you to the ultimate game of hide-and-seek. But as the players gather on Falcao Island, the event quickly spirals into a chilling test of survival. A storm rages as a deadly threat stalks the contestants, turning the challenge into something far more sinister than the social media stunt it was intended to be. Enter Adele, a single mother with a fierce determination to protect her children at all costs. When she begins the game, she unwittingly enters a twisted web of deception and intrigue. Can she maneuver through the treacherous storm and the relentless competition and get home to her family? In a ruthless battle for survival where the stakes are higher than ever, the blurry line between the virtual and the real proves that the only person we can trust is ourselves. Release Date: February 25, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/dragon-books monthly 0.5 2025-01-12 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/707e383e-4b27-4921-bd1d-f7c628b6fae5/53911554.jpg Blog - Dragon Books - Fireborne by Rosaria Munda Annie and Lee were just children when a brutal revolution changed their world, giving everyone--even the lowborn--a chance to test into the governing class of dragonriders. Now they are both rising stars in the new regime, despite backgrounds that couldn't be more different. Annie's lowborn family was executed by dragonfire, while Lee's aristocratic family was murdered by revolutionaries. Growing up in the same orphanage forged their friendship, and seven years of training have made them rivals for the top position in the dragonriding fleet. But everything changes when survivors from the old regime surface, bent on reclaiming the city. With war on the horizon and his relationship with Annie changing fast, Lee must choose to kill the only family he has left or to betray everything he's come to believe in. And Annie must decide whether to protect the boy she loves . . . or step up to be the champion her city needs. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7eefce99-c70e-4380-8f30-6623ba4def04/210428052.jpg Blog - Dragon Books - On Wings of Blood by Briar Boleyn I didn't sign up for this. A half-fae in a school of highblood vampires? That's a recipe for torment. I'm Medra Pendragon—last of the dragon riders, or so they tell me. Funny thing is, there are no dragons left. Not a single one. But somehow, that hasn't stopped the vampires from deciding I'm worth capturing. Now I'm stuck at Bloodwing Academy, where the highbloods run everything and blightborn like me? We're just blood in their veins, pawns in their games. But that's not even the worst part. Enter Blake Drakharrow. Cold, arrogant, and way too gorgeous for his own good. He's been tormenting me since the moment we met, and now, thanks to some ancient ritual, we're betrothed. He acts like he owns me, but I'm not going down without a fight. Bloodwing isn't just a school—it's a battlefield. Highbloods fight for power, and if you're weak? You're dead. Between deadly competitions, lies that could get me executed, and a dragon-shaped secret looming over my head, all I have to do is survive. Easy, right? Except I'm starting to think the real danger isn't the academy—it's what I'm becoming in this twisted game of power. And Blake? He might just be the one who pushes me over the edge. They think they can control me. They think they can use me. But they have no idea what they've awakened. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/93ea107b-cde0-4364-9c33-7be466ea7ae0/202507554.jpg Blog - Dragon Books - When the Moon Hatched by Sarah A. Parker The Creators did not expect their beloved dragons to sail skyward upon their end. To curl into balls just beyond gravity’s grip, littering the sky with tombstones. With moons. They certainly did not expect them to fall. As a valued Elding Blade of the rebellion group Fíur du Ath, Raeve’s job is to kill. To complete orders and never get caught. When a renowned bounty hunter is employed by The Crown to capture a member of the Ath, Raeve’s world is turned upside down. Blood spills, hearts break, and Raeve finds herself at the mercy of the Guild of Nobles—a group of dual-beaded elementals who intend to turn her into a political statement. Only death will set her free. Crushed beneath a mourning weight, Kaan Vaegor took the head of a king and donned his melted crown. Now on a tireless quest to assuage the never-ebbing ache in his chest, his hunt for a moonshard lures him into the belly of Gore’s notorious prison where he stumbles upon something that rips apart his perception of reality. A shackled miracle with eyes full of rage and blood on her hands. The echo of the past sings louder than the Creators themselves, and even Raeve can’t ignore the truths blaring at her from a warmer, happier time. However. There’s more to this song than meets the eye, and some truths … They’re too poisonous to swallow. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b4c6bba6-a41d-4d9e-851b-2e3cb3c4abb5/63057844._SY475_.jpg Blog - Dragon Books - Fear the Flames by Olivia Rose Darling Princess. Prisoner. Runaway. Queen. Elowen Atarah, Princess of Imirath, came into the world like a firestorm made flesh. A princess with a link to five dragons should have been a blessing to her kingdom, but her blessing became her curse. The little girl in shackles became a knife wielding woman with a thirst for retaliation. Now, Queen of Aestilian, a secret kingdom she forged through strength and survival, Elowen needs a way to feed her rising population. She never thought she would have the force to take on Imirath, but when the snarky Commander Cayden Veles of Vareveth, her father’s enemy kingdom, offers her a deal she’s been dreaming of for years, how can she not take it? Even if he ignites her temper like no other, nothing unites two begrudging allies more than a common enemy. The pair of them, along with three accomplices, will navigate their partnership, politics, and attempt to pull off the greatest heist their world has ever known. Five people, all united through revenge, will have to transcend the odds stacked against them and infiltrate the impenetrable castle if they want to reap their rewards before someone reaps their souls. Putting aside their differences to accomplish a common goal because everyone knows…vengeance is a promise signed in blood. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/42440938-6240-4228-aa7c-0a61305e1f56/211096516-2.jpg Blog - Dragon Books - A Language of Dragons by S.F. Williamson EVERY ACT OF TRANSLATION REQUIRES SACRIFICE Welcome to Bletchley Park… with dragons. London, 1923. Dragons soar through the skies and protests erupt on the streets, but Vivian Featherswallow isn’t worried. She’s going to follow the rules, get an internship studying dragon languages, and make sure her little sister never has to risk growing up Third Class. By midnight, Viv has started a civil war. With her parents arrested and her sister missing, all the safety Viv has worked for is collapsing around her. So when a lifeline is offered in the form of a mysterious ‘job’, she grabs it. Arriving at Bletchley Park, Viv discovers that she has been recruited as a codebreaker helping the war effort – if she succeeds, she and her family can all go home again. If she doesn’t, they’ll all die. At first Viv believes that her challenge, of discovering the secrets of a hidden dragon language, is doable. But the more she learns, the more she realises that the bubble she’s grown up in isn’t as safe as she thought, and eventually Viv must What war is she really fighting? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b621a231-5b5e-4868-8ebc-a6d28a59d0a4/204593559._SY475_.jpg Blog - Dragon Books - Throne of Secrets by Kerri Maniscalco A wicked prince determined to save his kingdom. Gabriel Axton—infamous as the Prince of Gluttony, the self-proclaimed rake of rakes—has always lived for in delicious food, in tantalizing women, and most of all, in the thrill of the hunt, where his love of danger can take over. But when his favorite adventure takes a deadly turn, he realizes something is very wrong in his demon court. With the clock ticking, he must turn to the only one who might uncover the a journalist he has spent a decade avoiding… A reporter hell-bent on finding the truth. Adriana Saint Lucent has been on the hunt for years—if she could just report something damning enough about that no-good scoundrel Gabriel Axton, she knows others would finally see the demon as she does. But she never expected to turn up a rumor too terrifying to be could the ice dragons to the north be growing restless? Drawn into the secrets of the Underworld, Adriana’s investigation leads her into the place she dreads most…Axton’s infamous court. A dangerous rivalry—and deliciously twisted fairy tale. To stop darkness from falling over their kingdom, Axton and Adriana will have to unite against an escalating danger. But with each holding tight to their own secrets, can they find the truth before it’s too late? And what will they do with an equally troubling that they might not actually hate one another, after all? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f8bebef2-782e-4c4b-a6ac-18b80fb24b9d/205822553.jpg-2.png Blog - Dragon Books - A Fire in the Sky by Sophie Jordan Dragons are extinct. Witches are outcast. Magic is dying. But human lust for power is immortal. Dragon fire no longer blisters the skies over Penterra, but inside the lavish palace, life is still perilous…especially for Tamsyn. Raised in the glittering court alongside the princesses, it's her duty to be punished for their misdeeds. Treated as part of the royal family but also as the lowliest servant, Tamsyn fits nowhere. Her only friend is Stig, Captain of the Guard...though sometimes she thinks he wants more than friendship. When Fell, the Beast of the Borderlands, descends on her home, Tamsyn’s world becomes even more dangerous. To save the pampered princesses from a fate worse than death, she is commanded to don a veil and marry the brutal warrior. She agrees to the deception even though it means leaving Stig, and the only life she’s ever known, behind. The wedding night begins with unexpected passion—and ends in near violence when her trickery is exposed. Rather than start a war, Fell accepts Tamsyn as his bride...but can he accept the dark secrets she harbors—secrets buried so deep even she doesn’t know they exist? For Tamsyn is more than a royal whipping girl, more than the false wife of a man who now sees her as his enemy. And when those secrets emerge, they will ignite a flame bright enough to burn the entire kingdom to the bone. Magic is not dead...it is only sleeping. And it will take one ordinary girl with an extraordinary destiny to awaken it. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f386b7a2-4e6b-49d3-ba25-7f854e8d7da6/217477109.jpg Blog - Dragon Books - Empire of Flame and Thorns by Marion Blackwood A fae rebel. A ruthless dragon commander. And a deadly trial that will turn their lives upside down. Trapped in the Seelie Court by a forest of thorns, Selena Hale lives at the mercy of the dragon shifters. Her only chance to gain her freedom is by entering the Atonement Trials: a deadly competition that pits fae magic users against each other. Only three people can win, and Selena intends to be one of them. There is only one problem. Draven Ryat, the ruthless commander of the dragon shifter army, is determined to make her lose. He symbolizes everything that she hates, and if he finds out that she is also a member of the secret fae rebellion, he will not only mess with her chances to win, he will kill her. But the more time she spends with him, the more she finds herself inexplicably drawn to him. And nothing is more dangerous in a lethal trial than a distracted heart. Especially one that beats for the enemy… https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d0777d35-322e-4605-b821-67ec9325d248/59126924.jpg Blog - Dragon Books - Promised in Fire by Jasmine Walt A fae with impossible magic Adara has been an outsider for as long as she can remember. Born and raised in the earth fae realm, she’s a water fae who can’t control her magic, making her not just useless, but downright dangerous at times. When a training mishap accidentally unleashes a hidden magic inside her, Adara suddenly finds herself on the run. The king wants to use her powers for nefarious reasons, and he’ll stop at nothing to obtain her—including kidnapping and torturing Adara’s own mother. A dragon awoken from slumber As the last of his kind, Einar wants nothing to do with the kingdom of Ediria or its problems. The fae hunted his kind to extinction, and he harbors only hatred for them in his heart. But when a beautiful fae female awakens him from an enchanted slumber, Einar is reluctantly ensnared. And while he would rather die than submit to any fae, every fiber of his body screams to claim her as his own. A kingdom corrupted by darkness The last thing Adara and Einar want to do is join forces, no matter how scorching the passion between them is. But a dark magic is sweeping through the land, rotting the kingdom from the inside out. And if the two cannot put aside the centuries-old feud between their races, they will lose everything they hold dear... https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9aa729e7-5170-473e-9013-9dc73de4ab28/32667458.jpg Blog - Dragon Books - The Last N amsara by Kristen Ciccarelli In the beginning, there was the Namsara: the child of sky and spirit, who carried love and laughter wherever he went. But where there is light, there must be darkness—and so there was also the Iskari. The child of blood and moonlight. The destroyer. The death-bringer. These are the legends that Asha, daughter of the king of Firgaard, has grown up learning in hushed whispers, drawn to the forbidden figures of the past. But it isn’t until she becomes the fiercest, most feared dragon slayer in the land that she takes on the role of the next Iskari—a lonely destiny that leaves her feeling more like a weapon than a girl. Asha conquers each dragon and brings its head to the king, but no kill can free her from the shackles that await at home: her betrothal to the cruel commandant, a man who holds the truth about her nature in his palm. When she’s offered the chance to gain her freedom in exchange for the life of the most powerful dragon in Firgaard, she finds that there may be more truth to the ancient stories than she ever could have expected. With the help of a secret friend—a slave boy from her betrothed’s household—Asha must shed the layers of her Iskari bondage and open her heart to love, light, and a truth that has been kept from her. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/78989968-d170-4839-9f8c-3f1ee7be1283/52694527.jpg Blog - Dragon Books - The Shadow of the Gods by John Gwynne After the gods warred and drove themselves to extinction, the cataclysm of their fall shattered the land of Vigrið. Now a new world is rising, where power-hungry jarls feud and monsters stalk the woods and mountains. A world where the bones of the dead gods still hold great power for those brave - or desperate - enough to seek them out. Now, as whispers of war echo across the mountains and fjords, fate follows in the footsteps of three people: a huntress on a dangerous quest, a noblewoman who has rejected privilege in pursuit of battle fame, and a thrall who seeks vengeance among the famed mercenaries known as the Bloodsworn. All three will shape the fate of the world as it once more falls under the shadow of the gods . . . https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f3a5700e-c391-46ad-b06f-5e0d521e9a97/113436.jpg Blog - Dragon Books - Dragon by Christopher Paolini One boy... One dragon... A world of adventure. When Eragon finds a polished blue stone in the forest, he thinks it is the lucky discovery of a poor farm boy; perhaps it will buy his family meat for the winter. But when the stone brings a dragon hatchling, Eragon soon realizes he has stumbled upon a legacy nearly as old as the Empire itself. Overnight his simple life is shattered, and he is thrust into a perilous new world of destiny, magic, and power. With only an ancient sword and the advice of an old storyteller for guidance, Eragon and the fledgling dragon must navigate the dangerous terrain and dark enemies of an Empire ruled by a king whose evil knows no bounds. Can Eragon take up the mantle of the legendary Dragon Riders? The fate of the Empire may rest in his hands. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/af6ac389-acfe-4b64-869a-6b09607e30a1/199087657.jpg Blog - Dragon Books - Of Jade and Dragons by Amber Chen Eighteen-year-old Aihui Ying dreams of becoming a world-class engineer like her father, but after his sudden murder, her life falls apart. Left with only a journal of her father’s engineering secrets and a jade pendant snatched from the assassin, a heartbroken Ying follows the trail to the capital and the prestigious Engineers Guild—a place that harbors her father’s hidden past—determined to discover why anyone would threaten a man who ultimately chose a quiet life over fame and fortune. Disguised as her brother, Ying manages to infiltrate the guild’s male-only apprenticeship trial with the help of an unlikely ally—Aogiya Ye-yang, the taciturn eighth prince of the High Command. With her father’s renown placing a target firmly on her back, Ying must stay one step ahead of her fellow competitors, the jealous guild masters, and the killer still hunting for her father’s journal. Complicating everything is her increasingly tangled relationship with the prince, who may have mysterious plans of his own. The secrets concealed within the guild can be as deadly as the weapons they build—and with her life and the future of her homeland at stake, Ying doesn’t know who to trust. Can she avenge her father even if it means going against everything he stood for, or will she be next in the mastermind’s line of fire? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/36f592cb-ea5e-4904-a281-7ba5744ac09c/213602113.jpg Blog - Dragon Books - Threaded by Tay Rose In a world where magic means servitude, being giftless is a blessing. Mariah’s twenty-first birthday was supposed to bring freedom: from expectation, from scrutiny, from the oppressive lord reigning over her hometown. When a summons from the Queen puts those dreams at risk, she has no choice but to follow through—even if it means a future she doesn’t want or deserve. Thrust into a world of cutthroat politics, secret rituals, and ruthless power grabs, Mariah is forced to come to terms with her new position as terrifying hidden magic begins to awaken in her veins. Meanwhile, the brooding, disgraced royal heir selected to serve in her sworn guard inexplicably hates her, yet he can’t seem to stay away. As the kingdom’s delicate balance shifts and crumbles, Mariah’s freedom seems further away than ever. Relationships blossom, schemes are unearthed, and gods are awakened… yet her heart may be the biggest threat of all. Love is a weakness. But will fate weave a different thread? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/fe48668e-2938-485d-9073-a5bde83fd4ac/61985453.jpg Blog - Dragon Books - Dragonfall by L.R. Lam Long-banished dragons, revered as gods, return to the mortal realm in the first in this magical new epic fantasy duology from a bestselling author Long ago, humans betrayed dragons, stealing their magic and banishing them to a dying world. Centuries later, their descendants worship dragons as gods. But the gods remember, and they do not forgive. Thief Arcady scrapes a living on the streets of Vatra. Desperate, Arcady steals a powerful artifact from the bones of the Plaguebringer, the most hated person in Lumet history. Only Arcady knows the artifact's magic holds the key to a new life among the nobles at court and a chance for revenge. The spell connects to Everen, the last male dragon foretold to save his kind, dragging him through the Veil. Disguised as a human, Everen soon learns that to regain his true power and form and fulfil his destiny, he only needs to convince one little thief to trust him enough to bond completely--body, mind, and soul--and then kill them. Yet the closer the two become, the greater the risk both their worlds will shatter. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/winter-thrillers monthly 0.5 2025-01-04 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/33abcdf3-b647-4a01-bcdd-a9ffcd144d7b/56935099.jpg Blog - Winter Thrillers - The Sanatorium by Sarah Pearse You won't want to leave...until you can't. Half hidden by forest and overshadowed by threatening peaks, Le Sommet has always been a sinister place. Long plagued by troubling rumors, the former abandoned sanatorium has since been renovated into a five-star minimalist hotel. An imposing, isolated getaway spot high up in the Swiss Alps is the last place Elin Warner wants to be. But Elin's taken time off from her job as a detective, so when her estranged brother, Isaac, and his fiancée, Laure, invite her to celebrate their engagement at the hotel, Elin really has no reason not to accept. Arriving in the midst of a threatening storm, Elin immediately feels on edge--there's something about the hotel that makes her nervous. And when they wake the following morning to discover Laure is missing, Elin must trust her instincts if they hope to find her. With the storm closing off all access to the hotel, the longer Laure stays missing, the more the remaining guests start to panic. Elin is under pressure to find Laure, but no one has realized yet that another woman has gone missing. And she's the only one who could have warned them just how much danger they are all in... https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bfb5db47-3dcc-4067-a230-9bef3dd41339/56269064.jpg Blog - Winter Thrillers - Rock Paper Scissors by Alice Feeney Think you know the person you married? Think again… Things have been wrong with Mr and Mrs Wright for a long time. When Adam and Amelia win a weekend away to Scotland, it might be just what their marriage needs. Self-confessed workaholic and screenwriter Adam Wright has lived with face blindness his whole life. He can’t recognize friends or family, or even his own wife. Every anniversary the couple exchange traditional gifts – paper, cotton, pottery, tin – and each year Adam’s wife writes him a letter that she never lets him read. Until now. They both know this weekend will make or break their marriage, but they didn’t randomly win this trip. One of them is lying, and someone doesn’t want them to live happily ever after. Ten years of marriage. Ten years of secrets. And an anniversary they will never forget. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/66270c98-28a7-4465-be5a-d351e6c3adfd/57717408.jpg Blog - Winter Thrillers - Shiver by Allie Reynolds When Milla accepts an off-season invitation to Le Rocher, a cozy ski resort in the French Alps, she's expecting an intimate weekend of catching up with four old friends. It might have been a decade since she saw them last, but she's never forgotten the bond they forged on this very mountain during a winter spent fiercely training for an elite snowboarding competition. Yet no sooner do Milla and the others arrive for the reunion than they realize something is horribly wrong. The resort is deserted. The cable cars that delivered them to the mountaintop have stopped working. Their cell phones--missing. And inside the hotel, detailed instructions await them: an icebreaker game, designed to draw out their secrets. A game meant to remind them of Saskia, the enigmatic sixth member of their group, who vanished the morning of the competition years before and has long been presumed dead. Stranded in the resort, Milla's not sure what's worse: the increasingly sinister things happening around her or the looming snowstorm that's making escape even more impossible. All she knows is that there's no one on the mountain she can trust. Because someone has gathered them there to find out the truth about Saskia...someone who will stop at nothing to get answers. And if Milla's not careful, she could be the next to disappear... https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/cb650ed3-d3dc-4d48-b388-341a3325f293/60164470.jpg Blog - Winter Thrillers - The Overnight Guest by Heather Gudenkauf She thought she was alone… True crime writer Wylie Lark doesn’t mind being snowed in at the isolated farmhouse where she’s retreated to write her new book. A cozy fire, complete silence. It would be perfect, if not for the fact that decades earlier, at this very house, two people were murdered in cold blood and a girl disappeared without a trace. As the storm worsens, Wylie finds herself trapped inside the house, haunted by the secrets contained within its walls—haunted by secrets of her own. Then she discovers a small child in the snow just outside. After bringing the child inside for warmth and safety, she begins to search for answers. But soon it becomes clear that the farmhouse isn’t as isolated as she thought, and someone is willing to do anything to find them. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8394a080-6f3b-4017-bf1f-17c8c4ebf18b/49169365.jpg Blog - Winter Thrillers - Five Total Strangers by Natalie D. Richards A hitched ride home in a snow storm turns sinister when one of the passengers is plotting for the ride to end in disaster. When Mira flies home to spend Christmas with her mother in Pittsburgh, a record-breaking blizzard results in a cancelled layover. Desperate to get to her grief-ridden mother in the wake of a family death, Mira hitches a ride with a group of friendly college kids who were on her initial flight. As the drive progresses and weather conditions become more treacherous, Mira realizes that the four other passengers she's stuck in the car with don't actually know one another. Soon, they're not just dealing with heavy snowfall and ice-slick roads, but the fact that somebody will stop at nothing to ensure their trip ends in a deadly disaster. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/06df45b9-77c7-419f-ad39-bc8a2dd306bc/51610977.jpg Blog - Winter Thrillers - Voices in the Snow by Darcy Coates Clare remembers the cold. She remembers abandoned cars and children’s toys littered across the road. She remembers dark shapes in the snow and a terror she can’t explain. And then…nothing. When she wakes, aching and afraid in a stranger’s gothic home, he tells her she was in an accident. He claims he saved her. Clare wants to leave, but a vicious snowstorm has blanketed the world in white, trapping them together, and there’s nothing she can do but wait. At least the stranger seems kind…but Clare doesn’t know if she can trust him. He promised they were alone here, but she sees and hears things that convince her something else is creeping about the surrounding woods, watching. Waiting. Between the claustrophobic storm and the inescapable sense of being hunted, Clare is on edge…and increasingly certain of one thing: Her car crash wasn't an accident. Something is waiting for her to step outside the fragile safety of the house... something monstrous, something unfeeling. Something desperately hungry. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/712b8c1d-3e62-4b49-8619-64c566c70143/50892433.jpg Blog - Winter Thrillers - One by One by Ruth Ware Getting snowed in at a beautiful, rustic mountain chalet doesn’t sound like the worst problem in the world, especially when there’s a breathtaking vista, a cozy fire, and company to keep you warm. But what happens when that company is eight of your coworkers…and you can’t trust any of them? When an off-site company retreat meant to promote mindfulness and collaboration goes utterly wrong when an avalanche hits, the corporate food chain becomes irrelevant and survival trumps togetherness. Come Monday morning, how many members short will the team be? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2c3412ab-d9f0-4035-a842-fa665d5c5944/18007535.jpg Blog - Winter Thrillers - The Winter People by Jennifer McMahon West Hall, Vermont, has always been a town of strange disappearances and old legends. The most mysterious is that of Sara Harrison Shea, who, in 1908, was found dead in the field behind her house just months after the tragic death of her daughter. Now, in present day, nineteen-year-old Ruthie lives in Sara's farmhouse with her mother, Alice, and her younger sister. Alice has always insisted that they live off the grid, a decision that has weighty consequences when Ruthie wakes up one morning to find that Alice has vanished. In her search for clues, she is startled to find a copy of Sara Harrison Shea's diary hidden beneath the floorboards of her mother's bedroom. As Ruthie gets sucked into the historical mystery, she discovers that she's not the only person looking for someone that they've lost. But she may be the only one who can stop history from repeating itself. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e5806bf6-0b29-4317-b4ce-7e7b58812b35/40535684.jpg Blog - Winter Thrillers - The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley All of them are friends. One of them is a killer. During the languid days of the Christmas break, a group of thirtysomething friends from Oxford meet to welcome in the New Year together, a tradition they began as students ten years ago. For this vacation, they’ve chosen an idyllic and isolated estate in the Scottish Highlands—the perfect place to get away and unwind by themselves. They arrive on December 30th, just before a historic blizzard seals the lodge off from the outside world. Two days later, on New Year’s Day, one of them is dead. The trip began innocently enough: admiring the stunning if foreboding scenery, champagne in front of a crackling fire, and reminiscences about the past. But after a decade, the weight of secret resentments has grown too heavy for the group’s tenuous nostalgia to bear. Amid the boisterous revelry of New Year’s Eve, the cord holding them together snaps. Now one of them is dead . . . and another of them did it. Keep your friends close, the old adage goes. But just how close is too close? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4a273d9f-80ea-477a-903e-e84e0afe68fc/38240386.jpg Blog - Winter Thrillers - An Unwanted Guest by Shari Lapena A weekend retreat at a cozy mountain lodge is supposed to be the perfect getaway . . . but when the storm hits, no one is getting away It's winter in the Catskills and Mitchell's Inn, nestled deep in the woods, is the perfect setting for a relaxing--maybe even romantic--weekend away. It boasts spacious old rooms with huge woodburning fireplaces, a well-stocked wine cellar, and opportunities for cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, or just curling up with a good murder mystery. So when the weather takes a turn for the worse, and a blizzard cuts off the electricity--and all contact with the outside world--the guests settle in and try to make the best of it. Soon, though, one of the guests turns up dead--it looks like an accident. But when a second guest dies, they start to panic. Within the snowed-in paradise, something--or someone--is picking off the guests one by one. And there's nothing they can do but hunker down and hope they can survive the storm--and one another. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/22d91542-2f99-46c9-881e-1240b1cb4363/40106375.jpg Blog - Winter Thrillers - No Exit by Taylor Adams A kidnapped little girl locked in a stranger’s van. No help for miles. What would you do? On her way to Utah to see her dying mother, college student Darby Thorne gets caught in a fierce blizzard in the mountains of Colorado. With the roads impassable, she’s forced to wait out the storm at a remote highway rest stop. Inside, are some vending machines, a coffee maker, and four complete strangers. Desperate to find a signal to call home, Darby goes back out into the storm . . . and makes a horrifying discovery. In the back of the van parked next to her car, a little girl is locked in an animal crate. Who is the child? Why has she been taken? And how can Darby save her? There is no cell phone reception, no telephone, and no way out. One of her fellow travelers is a kidnapper. But which one? Trapped in an increasingly dangerous situation, with a child’s life and her own on the line, Darby must find a way to break the girl out of the van and escape. But who can she trust? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6830d305-f1a1-4ea4-bdfe-4ca132fb013d/61273863.jpg Blog - Winter Thrillers - The Writing Retreat by Julia Bartz A young author is invited to an exclusive writer’s retreat that soon descends into a pulse-pounding nightmare. Alex has all but given up on her dreams of becoming a published author when she receives a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity: attend an exclusive, month-long writing retreat at the estate of feminist horror writer Roza Vallo. Even the knowledge that Wren, her former best friend and current rival, is attending doesn’t dampen her excitement. But when the attendees arrive, Roza drops a bombshell—they must all complete an entire novel from scratch during the next month, and the author of the best one will receive a life-changing seven-figure publishing deal. Determined to win this seemingly impossible contest, Alex buckles down and tries to ignore the strange happenings at the estate, including Roza’s erratic behavior, Wren’s cruel mind games, and the alleged haunting of the mansion itself. But when one of the writers vanishes during a snowstorm, Alex realizes that something very sinister is afoot. With the clock running out, she must discover the truth—or suffer the same fate. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c29c03f5-bc52-4d64-8874-63544859de4d/200488164.jpg Blog - Winter Thrillers - Bone White by Ronald Malfi A man’s search for his missing brother triggers a blood-freezing odyssey into the Alaskan wilds in a terrifying novel by an award-winning master of contemporary horror. You should not be here . . . Paul Gallo sees the report on the a disheveled loner in the remote hamlet of Dread’s Hand, Alaska, calmly admits to the murder of eight hikers and agrees to lead authorities to his victims’ graves. It’s the same bit of unsettling wilderness where Paul’s twin brother, Danny, vanished a year ago. Assuming that Danny’s remains will be among the exhumed bodies, Paul arrives to find Dread’s Hand far from welcoming. Locals talk of superstitions, legends, and a devil that steals souls. Wooden crosses, staked in the frozen ground, cordon off the woods to keep what’s in there from coming out. Most troubling, no one can explain exactly what happened to Danny. As Paul searches for answers, the true horrors of Dread’s Hand close in around him. The most chilling mystery of all may be how to get out of there alive. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5b23bb54-897e-4eda-8127-fc2f37e76130/60833946.jpg Blog - Winter Thrillers - You Must Remember This by Kat Rosenfield On Christmas Eve, eighty-five-year-old Miriam Gardiner walks onto the vast frozen river behind her home. As a younger woman, she used to steal out on winter nights to meet her lover, walking straight across the ice to their secret meeting place. She knows the way—but not the year. Miriam, her mind clouded by dementia, doesn’t hear the snap of thin ice until it’s too late. Was it an accident? Suicide? Or worse: did someone urge the old woman onto the frozen river on purpose? There are plenty of suspects; Miriam’s fractured and complicated family has gathered in their Bar Harbor mansion to celebrate what they already thought would likely be the matriarch’s last Christmas. The guests include Delphine, Miriam’s granddaughter, a frightened and insecure young woman who adored her grandmother, and Miriam’s live-in nurse, Adam, a handsome man from a working-class background, whom Delphine has been secretly dating. Then there’s Miriam’s children: Nicole, who hated being thrust into the role of caretaker; Diana, whose deadbeat husband has long been a family joke; and Richard, who always said they’d all be better off if Mother would just hurry up and die. But it’s Delphine who comes in for the greatest scrutiny when they learn the shocking news that Miriam’s will cut off her children, and left the entire estate to Delphine only. As her relatives obsess over getting the will thrown out, Delphine begins to notice inconsistencies in their stories and is emboldened to start investigating…until the trail seems to lead her onto thin ice as well. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/fec55b63-018c-43e1-91f2-b3f445163731/58568509.jpg Blog - Winter Thrillers - Don’t Let In the Cold by Keely P arrack The storm isn't the only thing they'll have to survive. It was supposed to be just one night in the cabin: one night for Lottie and her brand new stepsister, Jade, to try to get along. When a solar flare causes a massive blackout―no power or cell signal―Lottie knows they've got a long night ahead of them. Then, in the dark, someone else shows up at the cabin―a stranger named Alex, claiming to be lost and needing shelter from the coming snowstorm. But later that night, Lottie spies him in the driveway talking to two mysterious men in a pickup truck, and she's sure he's lying about why he's here. Before Lottie can find out more, a fire forces her, Jade, and Alex out into the blizzard, where they must rely on one another to get to safety―wherever that is. In the remote, freezing Tahoe wilderness, they have to survive more than just the elements. Soon it becomes clear that Alex's accomplices are hunting for all three of them, in a scheme that's gone too far and taken a chilling, deadly turn. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/january-new-releases monthly 0.5 2024-12-27 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7a0ea9a4-8057-45bc-a7db-44058966201a/211164792.jpg Blog - January New Releases - Beg, Borrow, or Steal by Sarah Adams Emily Walker hates having her carefully crafted world disrupted by anyone, most of all her legendary nemesis, Jack Bennett. He's the opposite of the wonderful heroes she dreams up in her double life as a romance writer, which is why Emily was perfectly happy when Jack left Rome, Kentucky, mid-school year, with his fiancée. The last thing Emily saw coming was Jack’s return at the start of the summer after calling off the wedding and ending his relationship, but he’s here to stay—as her colleague and her neighbor. Jackson Bennett is glad to be back, eager to renovate his house and work on the next mystery novel under his bestselling pen name. But when he realizes he’s now neighbors with the one woman who has always pushed his buttons, he discovers something he’s even more excited for—thwarting Emily and her petty plans to sabotage his return. With their chemistry-fueled animosity at an all-time high, Emily accidentally sends an email to their school’s principal that could reveal her secret literary side hustle. She needs to steal back her manuscript, and Jack—she hates to admit—is just the man to help her. Surprisingly, Jack agrees. Will their unlikely alliance put an end to their rivalry? Or could it lead to a steamy plot twist they never saw coming? Release Date: January 7, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f757b17a-f7dc-48c7-9a10-afe4f6d8c890/211642122.jpg Blog - January New Releases - Immortal by Sue Lynn Tan “What the gods did not give us, I would take.” As the heir to Tianxia, Liyen knows she must ascend the throne and renew her kingdom’s pledge to serve the immortals who once protected them from a vicious enemy. But when she is poisoned, Liyen’s grandfather steals an enchanted lotus to save her life. Enraged at his betrayal, the immortal queen commands the powerful God of War to attack Tianxia. Upon her grandfather’s death, Liyen ascends a precarious throne, vowing to end her kingdom’s obligation to the immortals. When she is summoned to the Immortal Realm, she seizes the opportunity to learn their secrets and to form a tenuous alliance to safeguard her people, all with the one she should fear and mistrust the most: the ruthless God of War. As they are drawn together, a treacherous attraction ignites between them—one she has to resist, to not endanger all she is fighting for. But with darker forces closing in around them, and her kingdom plunged into peril, Liyen must risk everything to save her people from an unspeakable fate, even if it means forging a dangerous bond with the immortal… even if it means losing her heart. Release Date: January 7, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/538a1e0b-a1aa-4ae3-809a-2770bc668a8b/211399773.jpg Blog - January New Releases - The Note by Alafair Burke It was meant to be a harmless prank. Growing up, May Hanover was a good girl, always. Well-behaved, top of her class, a compulsive rule-follower. Raised by a first-generation Chinese single mother with high expectations, May didn’t have room to slip up, let alone fail. Her friends didn’t call her the Little Sheriff for nothing. But even good girls have secrets. And regrets. When it comes to her friendship with Lauren and Kelsey, she's had her fair share of both. Their bond—forged when May was just twelve years old—has withstood a tragic accident, individual scandals, heartbreak and loss. Now the three friends have reunited for the first time in years for a few days of sun and fun in the Hamptons. But a chance encounter with a pair of strangers leads to a drunken prank that goes horribly awry. When she finds herself at the center of an urgent police investigation, May begins to wonder whether Lauren and Kelsey are keeping secrets from her, testing the limits of her loyalty to lifelong friends. What had they gone and done? Release Date: January 7, 2025 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d684c0d9-5135-4c49-bb45-4c0a512bbd31/211025454.jpg Blog - January New Releases - The Stolen Queen by Fiona Davis Egypt, 1936: When anthropology student Charlotte Cross is offered a coveted spot on an archaeological dig in Egypt’s Valley of the Kings, she leaps at the opportunity. But after an unbearable tragedy strikes, Charlotte knows her future will never be the same. New York City, 1978: Eighteen-year-old Annie Jenkins is thrilled when she lands an opportunity to work for iconic former Vogue fashion editor Diana Vreeland, who’s in the midst of organizing the famous Met Gala, hosted at the museum and known across the city as the “party of the year.” Though Annie soon realizes she’ll have her work cut out for her, scrambling to meet Diana’s capricious demands and exacting standards. Meanwhile, Charlotte, now leading a quiet life as the associate curator of the Met’s celebrated Department of Egyptian Art, wants little to do with the upcoming gala. She’s consumed with her research on Hathorkare—a rare female pharaoh dismissed by most other Egyptologists as unimportant. That is, until the night of the gala. When one of the Egyptian art collection’s most valuable artifacts goes missing . . . and there are signs Hathorkare’s legendary curse might be reawakening. As Annie and Charlotte team up to search for the missing antiquity, a desperate hunch leads the unlikely duo to one place Charlotte swore she’d never return: Egypt. But if they’re to have any hope of finding the artifact, Charlotte will need to confront the demons of her past—which may mean leading them both directly into danger. Release Date: January 7, 2025 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ed2f0fed-0951-450d-b8c9-3f6a424ba01a/214152254.jpg Blog - January New Releases - The Perfect Home by Daniel Kenitz Dawn Decker is an American everywoman and the salt to her husband Wyatt’s sweet, media-friendly charm on their Tennessee-based home renovation reality TV show, The Perfect Home. While Dawn bristles at the trappings of their D-list celebrity status, Wyatt hungers for greater fame. The couple also faces infertility issues stemming from Wyatt’s low sperm count. He secretly orders experimental fertility drugs, and they conceive, but his personality takes a dark turn—he becomes moody, withdrawn, and even cruel. When Dawn discovers his horrifying plot to manufacture a tragedy in order to skyrocket their celebrity status, she takes their infant twins and goes on the run. Wyatt appears on national television to turn the public against her, painting Dawn as an unstable kidnapper suffering from postpartum psychosis. His charm is so compelling that even Dawn’s closest friends doubt her. She will have to dig deep into the past—both hers and Wyatt’s—to find allies, protect her children, and beat this beloved all-American celebrity at his own game. Release Date: January 7, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/dd942f70-145f-463b-937b-99c2941f62a4/211003924.jpg Blog - January New Releases - Breath of the Dragon by Shannon Lee and Fonda Lee Sixteen-year-old Jun dreams of proving his worth as a warrior in the elite Guardian’s Tournament, held every six years to entrust the magical Scroll of Earth to a new protector. Eager to prove his skills, Jun hopes that a win will restore his father’s honor—righting a horrible mistake that caused their banishment from his home, mother, and twin brother. But Jun’s father strictly forbids him from participating. There is no future in honing his skills as a warrior, especially considering Jun is not breathmarked, born with a patch of dragon scales and blessed with special abilities like his twin. Determined to be the next Guardian, Jun stows away in the wagon of Chang and his daughter, Ren, performers on their way to the capital where the tournament will take place. As Jun competes, he quickly realizes he may be fighting for not just a better life, but the fate of the country itself. Release Date: January 7, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/67875055-cc3d-4d48-be8e-74b9f29dae82/211003759.jpg Blog - January New Releases - All the Water in the World by Eiren Caffall All the Water in the World is told in the voice of a girl gifted with a deep feeling for water. In the years after the glaciers melt, Nonie, her older sister and her parents and their researcher friends have stayed behind in an almost deserted New York City, creating a settlement on the roof of the American Museum of Natural History. The rule: Take from the exhibits only in dire need. They hunt and grow their food in Central Park as they work to save the collections of human history and science. When a superstorm breaches the city’s flood walls, Nonie and her family must escape north on the Hudson. They carry with them a book that holds their records of the lost collections. Racing on the swollen river towards what may be safety, they encounter communities that have adapted in very different and sometimes frightening ways to the new reality. But they are determined to find a way to make a new world that honors all they've saved. Release Date: January 7, 2025 Genre: Science Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2e796746-3ede-425a-ba22-a0a43e0a6a79/212924210.jpg Blog - January New Releases - Into the Woods by Jenny Holiday Teddy Knight’s band has just broken up in spectacular fashion after his longtime bandmate and—he’d thought—closest friend decides to go solo. So when he’s offered a last-minute gig to fill in as an artist-in-residence at a summer arts camp—which comes with a lake cabin and lots of free time to work on a revenge album—he takes it. No matter that he knows nothing about nature, dislikes kids, and is generally a grump. Gretchen Miller is having a mid-life crisis. Luckily, her summer job as the dance teacher at Wild Arts summer camp will allow her to drop out of society for a while. Having sworn off dating, she decides she’ll go into the woods and become a crone. She might skip the “luring innocent children to their death” part of cronedom, but she’s all for the “curse men” aspect. Teddy and Gretchen clash from the get-go when he mistakes her for a fan, and she relegates him to the “entitled jerk” ash heap. Despite their determination to dislike each other, a wary friendship blooms as the magic of the woods starts to unwind them, and they spend long hours by the campfire talking about art, being stuck, and the idea of starting over. But woods are often filled with monsters, and Teddy and Gretchen will have to face their fears if they want to start over together. Release Date: January 7, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/39ed1fb2-0335-4c48-b833-b1ae32324b0c/209823376.jpg Blog - January New Releases - No Place Left to Hide by Megan Lally To Brooke, image is everything. She works hard to maintain perfect grades, perfect looks, a perfect life—especially after "the incident" that threatened it all. Getting into her dream university puts her that much closer to a fresh start. How can she say no to celebrating with all her classmates? Hanging out with her crush by the bonfire is the perfect end to the night. Except it isn't the end. An old truck starts aggressively tailing Brooke and her best friend on the isolated road toward home. Someone thinks they know the truth about "the incident," and they won't stop until it's all out in the open. This terrifying drive is about to bring out Brooke's worst fears…if she survives it. Release Date: January 7, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3ac61571-f40b-40e6-a6b6-143ea5000a64/211096516.jpg Blog - January New Releases - A Language of Dragons by S.F. Williamson EVERY ACT OF TRANSLATION REQUIRES SACRIFICE Welcome to Bletchley Park… with dragons. London, 1923. Dragons soar through the skies and protests erupt on the streets, but Vivian Featherswallow isn’t worried. She’s going to follow the rules, get an internship studying dragon languages, and make sure her little sister never has to risk growing up Third Class. By midnight, Viv has started a civil war. With her parents arrested and her sister missing, all the safety Viv has worked for is collapsing around her. So when a lifeline is offered in the form of a mysterious ‘job’, she grabs it. Arriving at Bletchley Park, Viv discovers that she has been recruited as a codebreaker helping the war effort – if she succeeds, she and her family can all go home again. If she doesn’t, they’ll all die. At first Viv believes that her challenge, of discovering the secrets of a hidden dragon language, is doable. But the more she learns, the more she realises that the bubble she’s grown up in isn’t as safe as she thought, and eventually Viv must What war is she really fighting? Release Date: January 7, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8929091d-1102-4e49-beb7-d93684ee9724/207677131.jpg Blog - January New Releases - A Sea of Unspoken Things by Adrienne Young The only thing James and Johnny Golden have ever had is each other. For as long as she can remember, James’s deep connection with her twin brother, Johnny, has gone beyond intuition—she can feel what he feels. So, when Johnny is killed in a tragic accident, James knows before her phone even rings that her brother is gone and that she’s alone—truly alone—for the first time in her life. When James arrives in the rural town of Hawthorne, California to settle her brother’s affairs, she’s forced to rehash the ominous past she and Johnny shared and finally face Micah, the only person who knows about it. He’s also the only man she’s ever loved. But James soon discovers that the strange connection she had with Johnny isn’t quite gone, and the more she immerses herself into his world, the more questions she has about the brother she thought she knew. Johnny was keeping secrets, and he’s not the only one. What she uncovers will push her to unravel what happened in the days before Johnny’s death, but in the end, she’ll have to decide which truths should come to light, and which should stay buried forever. Release Date: January 7, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3ef78e38-b2ec-498b-8bbb-187b21dee6a1/207611566.jpg Blog - January New Releases - Witchcraft for Wayward Girls by Grady Hendrix There’s power in a book… They call them wayward girls. Loose girls. Girls who grew up too fast. And they’re sent to the Wellwood Home in St. Augustine, Florida, where unwed mothers are hidden by their families to have their babies in secret, give them up for adoption, and most important of all, to forget any of it ever happened. Fifteen-year-old Fern arrives at the home in the sweltering summer of 1970, pregnant, terrified and alone. Under the watchful eye of the stern Miss Wellwood, she meets a dozen other girls in the same predicament. There’s Rose, a hippie who insists she’s going to find a way to keep her baby and escape to a commune. And Zinnia, a budding musician who knows she’s going to go home and marry her baby’s father. And Holly, a wisp of a girl, barely fourteen, mute and pregnant by no-one-knows-who. Everything the girls eat, every moment of their waking day, and everything they’re allowed to talk about is strictly controlled by adults who claim they know what’s best for them. Then Fern meets a librarian who gives her an occult book about witchcraft, and power is in the hands of the girls for the first time in their lives. But power can destroy as easily as it creates, and it’s never given freely. There’s always a price to be paid…and it’s usually paid in blood. Release Date: January 14, 2025 Genre: Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/96c11f64-ab7e-451b-a638-d48c88c88f85/211003690.jpg Blog - January New Releases - Lightfall by Ed Crocker No humans here. Just immortals: their politics, their feuds—and their long buried secrets. For centuries, vampires freely roamed the land until the Grays came out of nowhere, wiping out half the population in a night. The survivors fled to the last vampire city of First Light, where the rules are simple. If you’re poor, you drink weak blood. If you’re nobility, you get the good stuff. And you can never, ever leave. Palace maid Sam has had enough of these rules, and she’s definitely had enough of cleaning the bedpans of the lords who enforce them. When the son of the city’s ruler is murdered and she finds the only clue to his death, she seizes the chance to blackmail her way into a better class and better blood. She falls in with the Leeches, a group of rebel maids who rein in the worst of the Lords. Soon she’s in league with a sorcerer whose deductive skills make up for his lack of magic, a deadly werewolf assassin and a countess who knows a city’s worth of secrets. There’s just one problem. What began as a murder investigation has uncovered a vast conspiracy by the ruling elite, and now Sam must find the truth before she becomes another victim. If she can avoid getting murdered, she might just live forever. Release Date: January 14, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9c94b128-b132-4bbf-84a3-75d59ac1fa1b/211004069.jpg Blog - January New Releases - The Lost House by Melissa Larsen Forty years ago, a young woman and her infant daughter were found buried in the cold Icelandic snow, lying together as peacefully as though sleeping. Except the mother’s throat had been slashed and the infant drowned. The case was never solved. There were no arrests, no conviction. Just a suspicion turned into a the husband did it. When he took his son and fled halfway across the world to California, it was proof enough of his guilt. Now, nearly half a century later and a year after his death, his granddaughter, Agnes, is ready to clear her grandfather’s name once and for all. Still recovering from his death and a devastating injury, Agnes wants nothing more than an excuse to escape the shambles of her once-stable life—which is why she so readily accepts true crime expert Nora Carver’s invitation to be interviewed for her popular podcast. Agnes packs a bag and hops on a last-minute flight to the remote town of Bifröst, Iceland, where Nora is staying, where Agnes’s father grew up, and where, supposedly, her grandfather slaughtered his wife and infant daughter. Is it merely coincidence that a local girl goes missing the very same weekend Agnes arrives? Suddenly, Agnes and Nora’s investigation is turned upside down, and everyone in the small Icelandic town is once again a suspect. Seeking to unearth old and new truths alike, Agnes finds herself drawn into a web of secrets that threaten the redemption she is hell-bent on delivering, and even her life—discovering how far a person will go to protect their family, their safety, and their secrets. Release Date: January 14, 2025 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d49d768b-b9bd-4407-a57b-d5f8cb8347fc/212294418.jpg Blog - January New Releases - Once Smitten, Twice Shy by Chloe Liese Since heartbreak entered the scene, Juliet Wilmot, once a hopeless romantic, has sworn off love. But when she's presented with the chance to revisit romance-purely for practice-with the gorgeous, off-limits guy she keeps serendipitously running into, it feels like a sign from the universe. Quiet, shy Will Orsino knows happily-ever-after isn't on his horizon. Problem is, for the sake of the family business, marriage is. Resigned to the inevitable, but with no confidence he can woo a wife, he can hardly say no when fate hands him the alluring, unattainable woman he keeps crossing paths with, offering to help him learn the ropes of romance. Neither of them looking for love, Jules and Will agree they're the perfect pair to practice romance. Except that practicing to perfection leads to an irresistible attraction. Their once smitten hearts, though still twice shy, might have happily-ever-after written in the stars for them, after all. Release Date: January 14, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c3117191-274c-4fb3-9f0f-b8775415782a/209831392.jpg Blog - January New Releases - The Last Raven by Helen Glynn Jones I’ll be forced to take the crown, simply because of who my parents are. Never mind that my skin, my eyes, the way I move, everything will give me away for what I am. Human. In a world ruled by vampires. As sole heir to the House of Raven, there is nothing Emelia can’t have. The only problem is, she doesn’t want it. But when a new guard enters her closed-off existence, she sees a way out. As rebellion and dark forces swirl around her, Emelia has a choice to make – leave everyone she loves behind, or stay and accept her destiny… Release Date: January 14, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d65ae4b7-2d0f-42d3-a97c-e330f266cd1b/211399774.jpg Blog - January New Releases - A Serial Killer’s Guide to Marriage by Asia Mackay The couple that kills together stays together... Hazel and Fox are an ordinary married couple with a baby. Except for one small thing, they're ex-serial killers. They had it all. An enviable London lifestyle, five-star travels, and plenty of bad men to kill. Not many power couples know how to get away with murder. Then Hazel fell pregnant and they gave it all up for life in the suburbs; dinner parties instead of body disposal. But recently Hazel has started to feel that itch again. When she kills someone behind Fox's back and brings the police to their door, she must do anything she can to protect her family. This could save their marriage - unless it kills them first. Release Date: January 14, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a05d5444-ca82-4bf2-ad9c-13aaa635ebe4/211479192.jpg Blog - January New Releases - Water Moon by Samantha Sotto Yambao On a backstreet in Tokyo lies a pawnshop, but not everyone can find it. Most will see a cozy ramen restaurant. And only the chosen ones—those who are lost—will find a place to pawn their life choices and deepest regrets. Hana Ishikawa wakes on her first morning as the pawnshop’s new owner to find it ransacked, the shop’s most precious acquisition stolen, and her father missing. And then into the shop stumbles a charming stranger, quite unlike its other customers, for he offers help instead of seeking it. Together, they must journey through a mystical world to find Hana’s father and the stolen choice—by way of rain puddles, rides on paper cranes, the bridge between midnight and morning, and a night market in the clouds. But as they get closer to the truth, Hana must reveal a secret of her own—and risk making a choice that she will never be able to take back. Release Date: January 14, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bb910c3a-0ea7-48b0-8784-a6703145f326/212203126.jpg Blog - January New Releases - Honeysuckle and Bone by Trisha Tobias On the run from her own dark secrets, a teen girl becomes the nanny for a prestigious family on their extravagant Jamaican estate—but things aren't quite as they seem, and she quickly discovers even paradise may be haunted. Carina Marshall is looking to reinvent herself, and what better place to do it than Jamaica, her mother’s alluring homeland where she conveniently has access to an au pair gig for the wealthy and politically powerful Hall family. After months of being the target of vicious rumors and hate online (which she just might deserve), the luxurious Blackbead House seems to hold everything she wants, a world of mango trees, tropical breezes, and glamorous parties—and a place to disappear. Once there, Carina joins up with her fellow junior staff members, the self-named Young Birds, and finds herself sinking right into her busy, but comfortable, new life. Yes, the Halls run a tight ship, and yes, there is some tension amongst the family, but she’s content flying under the radar, doing her job, and hanging out with her new friends—not least, the handsome and charming Aaron. But when inexplicable things start happening to her in the house, only getting worse each night, Carina realizes that someone—or something—is out to get her. Is it the house itself? The Halls? Or, worse, is it her own past catching up with her? With the help of Aaron, she must figure out what is haunting her, and fast, before she is forced out of Blackbead House for good. Eerie, propulsive, and full of intrigue, Honeysuckle and Bone is a deliciously atmospheric, young adult novel, following an imperfect yet courageous teen as she seeks to remake herself in the homeland she always idealized, only to discover that new beginnings don’t always come easy. Release Date: January 14, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/72afab30-13b9-4121-876b-8cc90831a238/211004830.jpg Blog - January New Releases - Let’s Call a Truce by Amy Buchanan After Juliana Ryan's husband dies unexpectedly, leaving her with two grieving kids and a stunted career from years as a stay-at-home mom, she has no choice but to make it work all on her own. But her confidence crashes around her when she overhears her condescending but infuriatingly attractive new colleague, Ben Thomas, talking about how her kids and inexperience are a liability the company can’t afford. This sets off a feud between the two, as Juliana vows to prove him wrong. Two years later, their feud rages on, but it may be charged with something they aren't willing to admit. When they are forced onto a career-making project together, Juliana has no choice but to call a truce. As their lives become more intertwined in and out of the office, Juliana finds it hard to ignore Ben’s perpetual smile and charming determination. What started as a truce grows into more, as boardroom-clearing arguments turn to desk-clearing kisses. Could the man she deemed her nemesis understand her life–her stress and responsibilities–better than anyone? But just when Juliana decides to open her heart again, Ben’s past threatens their newfound bliss, and she has to figure out whether this second chance at love is worth it after all. Release Date: January 14, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/faa36e37-775a-4971-aac6-853c96d3d9af/211004123.jpg Blog - January New Releases - Beautiful Ugly by Alice Feeney Author Grady Green is having the worst best day of his life. Grady calls his wife to share some exciting news as she is driving home. He hears Abby slam on the brakes, get out of the car, then nothing. When he eventually finds her car by the cliff edge the headlights are on, the driver door is open, her phone is still there. . . but his wife has disappeared. A year later, Grady is still overcome with grief and desperate to know what happened to Abby. He can’t sleep, and he can’t write, so he travels to a tiny Scottish island to try to get his life back on track. Then he sees the impossible – a woman who looks exactly like his missing wife. Wives think their husbands will change but they don’t. Husbands think their wives won’t change but they do. Release Date: January 14, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/abd55d60-025a-4276-8576-a95fab559e2c/209439446.jpg Blog - January New Releases - Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros After nearly eighteen months at Basgiath War College, Violet Sorrengail knows there’s no more time for lessons. No more time for uncertainty. Because the battle has truly begun; and with enemies closing in from outside their walls and within their ranks, it’s impossible to know who to trust. Now Violet must journey beyond the failing Aretian wards to seek allies from unfamiliar lands to stand with Navarre. The trip will test every bit of her wit, luck, and strength, but she will do anything to save what she loves - her dragons, her family, her home, and him. Even if it means keeping a secret so big, it could destroy everything. They need an army. They need power. They need magic. And they need the one thing only Violet can find—the truth. But a storm is coming... and not everyone can survive its wrath Release Date: January 21, 2025 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/70f9156c-f13d-40b9-b203-f06a5a14f697/211003731.jpg Blog - January New Releases - She Doesn’t Have A Clue by Jenny Elder Moke A high-end wedding on a private island off the coast of Seattle sounds like something out of a magazine. But for bestselling mystery author Kate Valentine, it’s more like a nightmare. Why Kate agreed to attend her ex-fiancé’s wedding is its own enigma, but she’ll plaster on a fake smile for two nights, with the aid of free champagne, naturally. And because the groom happens to be her editor, she’ll try to finish a draft of her latest Loretta Starling mystery as a wedding gift. But when the bride is poisoned and Kate stumbles across a dead body, she finds herself in a real-life mystery that eerily echoes the plot of her latest novel. And the only person who seems willing to help Kate catch the killer is Jake Hawkins, aka: the Hostralian; aka: Kate’s biggest romantic regret. As the wine flows and the weather threatens to hold every guest hostage, bitter resentments and long-held grudges surface amongst the colorful crowd. Anyone could be capable of murder, it seems. What would Loretta do? Unfortunately, Kate doesn’t have a clue. Release Date: January 21, 2025 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1c90cc0d-99bd-4104-bcaf-2ea5f457f02c/211003860.jpg Blog - January New Releases - The Rival by Emma Lord At long last, Sadie has vanquished her lifelong academic rival — her irritatingly charming, whip smart next door neighbor, Seb — by getting the coveted, only spot to her dream college. Or at least, so she thinks. When Seb is unexpectedly pulled off the waitlist and admitted, Sadie has to compete with him all over again, this time to get a spot on the school’s famous zine. Now not only is she dealing with the mayhem of the lovable, chaotic family she hid her writing talents from, as well as her own self doubt, but she has to come to terms with some less-than-resentful feelings for Seb that are popping up along the way. But the longer they compete, the more Sadie and Seb notice flaws in the school’s system that are much bigger than any competition between them. Somehow the two of them have to band together even as they’re trying to crush each other, only to discover they may have met their match in more ways than one. Release Date: January 21, 2025 Genre: Young Adult Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1bb7648d-e7b2-4d55-9d28-373e93636db8/211004897.jpg Blog - January New Releases - Head Cases by John McMahon Head Cases follows an enigmatic group of FBI agents as they hunt down a murderer seeking his own justice in this electrifying—and commercial—series debut. Gardner Camden is a walking analytical brain with an affinity for riddles, puzzles, and codes. It makes him the perfect fit for the Patterns and Recognition (PAR) unit of the FBI, a team of five brilliant but misfit agents tasked with solving cold cases. Gardner's smart, but he's all business--except for his seven-year-old daughter and occasional visits to his elderly mother, he prioritizes his work and justice over everything else, no matter the cost. With rumors of PAR about to be disbanded, the team can’t afford to make any mistakes. A serial killer from one of Gardner’s solved cases, presumed to be dead for over a decade, is found murdered, and then soon after, another body with a similar story. The mastermind murderer has left clues and riddles for Gardner and his team--a mathematician, a sniper and weapons expert, a computer analytics specialist, and their leader, a career agent--as they track him across the country. With the threat of PAR dissolving, Gardner must work to solve the riddles before it’s too late. Release Date: January 28, 2025 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/56a937e4-87a7-4f88-820b-64636d84d5ee/209220944.jpg Blog - January New Releases - Out of the Woods by Hannah Bonam-Young High school sweethearts Sarah and Caleb Linwood have always been a sure thing. For the past seventeen years, they have had each other’s backs through all of life’s ups and downs, achievements, losses, stages, and phases. But Sarah has begun to wonder... Who is she without her other half? When she decides to take on a project of her own, a fundraising gala in memoriam of her late mother, Sarah wants nothing more than to prove to herself—and to everyone else—that she doesn’t need Caleb’s help to succeed. She’s still her mother’s daughter, after all. Independent and capable. That is until the event fails and Caleb uninvitedly steps in to save the day. The rift that follows unearths a decade of grievances between them and doubts begin to grow. Are they truly the same people they were when they got married at nineteen? Are they supposed to be? In a desperate attempt to fix what they fear is near breaking, Sarah and Caleb make the spontaneous decision to join a grueling hiking trip intended to guide couples through rough patches. What follows is a life-affirming comedy of errors as two nature-averse people fight their way out of the woods in order to find their way back to their roots. Release Date: January 28, 2025 Genre: Romance https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/community-book-fair monthly 0.5 2024-12-22 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/22fa1456-3d30-498d-b06a-be5b0435ff39/IMG_3105.jpg Blog - Community Book Fair - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7855f67e-c978-4191-877b-adb39d496140/IMG_3107.jpg Blog - Community Book Fair - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/fairytale-retellings monthly 0.5 2024-12-13 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b7c428c5-b72e-42bd-b0ef-d9ced2b2967b/34499221-2.jpg Blog - Fairytale Retellings - To Kill A Kingdom by Alexandra Christo Princess Lira is siren royalty and the most lethal of them all. With the hearts of seventeen princes in her collection, she is revered across the sea. Until a twist of fate forces her to kill one of her own. To punish her daughter, the Sea Queen transforms Lira into the one thing they loathe most—a human. Robbed of her song, Lira has until the winter solstice to deliver Prince Elian’s heart to the Sea Queen or remain a human forever. The ocean is the only place Prince Elian calls home, even though he is heir to the most powerful kingdom in the world. Hunting sirens is more than an unsavory hobby—it’s his calling. When he rescues a drowning woman in the ocean, she’s more than what she appears. She promises to help him find the key to destroying all of sirenkind for good—But can he trust her? And just how many deals will Elian have to barter to eliminate mankind’s greatest enemy? Retelling: The Little Mermaid https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f834c14a-a4e1-48ab-a177-a61436a1ec45/11235712.jpg Blog - Fairytale Retellings - Cinder by Marissa Meyer Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless Lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl. . . . Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future. Retelling: Cinderella https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/45df5747-e6f9-4f2a-bff9-adfb219aeea4/12558285.jpg Blog - Fairytale Retellings - Splintered by A.G. Howard Alyssa Gardner hears the whispers of bugs and flowers—precisely the affliction that landed her mother in a mental hospital years before. This family curse stretches back to her ancestor Alice Liddell, the real-life inspiration for Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Alyssa might be crazy, but she manages to keep it together. For now. When her mother’s mental health takes a turn for the worse, Alyssa learns that what she thought was fiction is based in terrifying reality. The real Wonderland is a place far darker and more twisted than Lewis Carroll ever let on. There, Alyssa must pass a series of tests, including draining an ocean of Alice’s tears, waking the slumbering tea party, and subduing a vicious bandersnatch, to fix Alice’s mistakes and save her family. She must also decide whom to trust: Jeb, her gorgeous best friend and secret crush, or the sexy but suspicious Morpheus, her guide through Wonderland, who may have dark motives of his own. Retelling: Alice in Wonderland https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4a160078-81f5-43d3-89a2-996a322c6c86/43204703.jpg Blog - Fairytale Retellings - A Curse So Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer Fall in love, break the curse. Cursed by a powerful enchantress to repeat the autumn of his eighteenth year, Prince Rhen, the heir of Emberfall, thought he could be saved easily if a girl fell for him. But that was before he turned into a vicious beast hell-bent on destruction. Before he destroyed his castle, his family, and every last shred of hope. Nothing has ever been easy for Harper. With her father long gone, her mother dying, and her brother constantly underestimating her because of her cerebral palsy, Harper learned to be tough enough to survive. When she tries to save a stranger on the streets of Washington, DC, she's pulled into a magical world. Break the curse, save the kingdom. Harper doesn't know where she is or what to believe. A prince? A curse? A monster? As she spends time with Rhen in this enchanted land, she begins to understand what's at stake. And as Rhen realizes Harper is not just another girl to charm, his hope comes flooding back. But powerful forces are standing against Emberfall . . . and it will take more than a broken curse to save Harper, Rhen, and his people from utter ruin. Retelling: Beauty and the Beast https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b02a684e-65ed-46f9-b121-b7630bb58e04/50892212.jpg Blog - Fairytale Retellings - These Violent Delights by Chloe Gong The year is 1926, and Shanghai hums to the tune of debauchery. A blood feud between two gangs runs the streets red, leaving the city helpless in the grip of chaos. At the heart of it all is eighteen-year-old Juliette Cai, a former flapper who has returned to assume her role as the proud heir of the Scarlet Gang—a network of criminals far above the law. Their only rivals in power are the White Flowers, who have fought the Scarlets for generations. And behind every move is their heir, Roma Montagov, Juliette’s first love…and first betrayal. But when gangsters on both sides show signs of instability culminating in clawing their own throats out, the people start to whisper. Of a contagion, a madness. Of a monster in the shadows. As the deaths stack up, Juliette and Roma must set their guns—and grudges—aside and work together, for if they can’t stop this mayhem, then there will be no city left for either to rule. Retelling: Romeo and Juliet https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7638d9df-08e5-4b76-8714-7f3ae2e2014e/208433854.jpg Blog - Fairytale Retellings - Toto by A.J. Hackwith I was mostly a Good Dog until they sold me out to animal control, okay? But if it’s a choice between Oz, with its creepy little singing dudes, and being behind bars in gray old Kansas, I’ll choose the place where animals talk and run the show for now, thanks. It’s not my fault that the kid is stuck here too, or that she stumbled into a tug-of-war over a pair of slippers that don’t even taste good. Now one witch in good eyeliner calls her pretty and we’re off on a quest? Teenagers. I try to tell her she’s falling in with the wrong crowd when she befriends a freaking hedge wizard made of straw, that blue jay with revolutionary aspirations, and the walking tin can. Still, I’m not one to judge when there’s the small matter of a coup in the Forest Kingdom.... Look, something really stinks in Oz, and this Wizard guy and the witches positively reek of it. As usual, it’s going to be up to a sensible little dog to do a big dog’s job and get to the bottom of it. And trust me: Little dogs can get away with anything. Retelling: Wizard of Oz https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4a9d5a45-f1ec-4110-ae2b-4a14533a6bcd/199635075-3.jpg Blog - Fairytale Retellings - This Will Be Fun by E.B. Asher Ten years ago, they saved the realm. It ruined their lives. Everyone in Mythria knows the story of how best friends Beatrice and Elowen, handsome ex-bandit Clare, and valiant leader Galwell the Great defended the land from darkness. It’s a tale beloved by all—except the former heroes. They haven’t spoken in a decade, devastated by what their quest cost them. But when they receive an invitation to the queen of Mythria’s wedding, it’s a summons they can’t refuse . . . and a reunion for the ages, with Clare secretly not over his long-ago fling with Beatrice, Beatrice fighting the guilt she feels over how everything ended, Elowen unprepared for the return of her former flame (the cunning Vandra), and all of them lost without Galwell’s presence. And if reuniting with old friends and lovers wasn’t perilous enough, dark forces from their past have returned, plotting a domination that only Mythria’s one-time defenders can stop. Maybe. Dusting off old weapons and old instincts, they face undead nemeses, crystal caves, enchanted swords, coffee shops, games of magical Truth or Dare, and, hardest of all, their past—rife with wounds never healed and romances never forgotten. This time around, will their story end in happily ever after? Retelling: The Princess Bride https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/38f0bf4a-e433-4441-8bdd-dee5c565147f/62292422.jpg Blog - Fairytale Retellings - Psyche and Eros by Luna McNamara Who said true love is a myth? A prophecy claims that Psyche, princess of Mycenae, will defeat a monster feared even by the gods. Rebelling against her society’s expectations for women, Psyche spends her youth mastering blade and bow, preparing to meet her destiny. When Psyche angers the love goddess Aphrodite, she sends Eros, god of desire, to deliver a cruel curse. After eons watching humanity twist his gifts, the last thing Eros wants is to become involved in the chaos of the mortal world. But when he pricks himself with the arrow intended for Psyche, Eros finds himself doomed to yearn for a woman who will be torn from him the moment their eyes meet. Thrown together by fate, headstrong Psyche and world-weary Eros will face challenges greater than they could have ever imagined. And as the Trojan War begins and divine powers try to keep them apart, the pair must determine if the curse could become something more . . . before it’s too late. Retelling: Greek Mythology https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/915051ca-bb1b-476e-b1d9-a9afa4ee5137/197577021-2.jpg Blog - Fairytale Retellings - Tangled Up in You by Christina Lauren She has a dream. He has a plan. Together they’ll take a leap of faith. Ren has never held an iPhone, googled the answer to a question, or followed a crush on social media. What she has done: Read a book or two, or three (okay, hundreds). Taught herself to paint. Built a working wind power system from scratch. But for all the books she’s read, Ren has never found one that’s taught a woman raised on a homestead and off the grid for most of her twenty-two years how to live in the real world. So when she finally achieves her lifelong dream of attending Corona College, it feels like her life is finally beginning. Fitz has the rest of his life mapped out: Graduate from Corona at the top of his class, get his criminal record wiped clean, and pass himself off as the rich, handsome player everyone thinks he is. He’s a few short months from checking off step one of his plans when Ren Gylden, with her cascading blonde hair and encyclopedic brain, crashes into his life, and for the first time Fitz’s plan is in jeopardy. But a simple assignment in their immunology seminar changes the course of both their lives, and suddenly they’re thrown out of the frying pan and into the fire on a road trip that will lead them in the most unexpected directions. Out on the open road, the world somehow shifts, and the unlikely pair realize that, maybe, the key to the dreams they've both been chasing have been sitting next to them the whole time. Retelling: Rapunzel https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/74a9fd3c-a56f-4422-b9a4-fc68e2f3909e/57789637.jpg Blog - Fairytale Retellings - Daughter of the Moon Goddess by Sue Lynn Tan Growing up on the moon, Xingyin is accustomed to solitude, unaware that she is being hidden from the feared Celestial Emperor who exiled her mother for stealing his elixir of immortality. But when Xingyin’s magic flares and her existence is discovered, she is forced to flee her home, leaving her mother behind. Alone, powerless, and afraid, she makes her way to the Celestial Kingdom, a land of wonder and secrets. Disguising her identity, she seizes an opportunity to learn alongside the emperor's son, mastering archery and magic, even as passion flames between her and the prince. To save her mother, Xingyin embarks on a perilous quest, confronting legendary creatures and vicious enemies across the earth and skies. But when treachery looms and forbidden magic threatens the kingdom, she must challenge the ruthless Celestial Emperor for her dream—striking a dangerous bargain in which she is torn between losing all she loves or plunging the realm into chaos. Retelling: The Legend of Chang'e, the Chinese moon goddess https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/021f9d8f-4caf-43ce-b26c-1dd69ee7a872/202102084-2.jpg Blog - Fairytale Retellings - Lady Macbeth by Ava Reid he Lady knows the stories: how her eyes induce madness in men. The Lady knows she will be wed to the Scottish brute, who does not leave his warrior ways behind when he comes to the marriage bed. The Lady knows his hostile, suspicious court will be a game of strategy, requiring all of her wiles and hidden witchcraft to survive. But the Lady does not know her husband has occult secrets of his own. She does not know that prophecy girds him like armor. She does not know that her magic is greater and more dangerous, and that it will threaten the order of the world. She does not know this yet. But she will. Retelling: Macbeth https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bedfb45a-83f8-417e-99c9-46b71d06d4bf/39679076.jpg Blog - Fairytale Retellings - House of Salt and Sorrows by Erin A. Craig In a manor by the sea, twelve sisters are cursed. Annaleigh lives a sheltered life at Highmoor, a manor by the sea, with her sisters, their father, and stepmother. Once they were twelve, but loneliness fills the grand halls now that four of the girls' lives have been cut short. Each death was more tragic than the last—the plague, a plummeting fall, a drowning, a slippery plunge—and there are whispers throughout the surrounding villages that the family is cursed by the gods. Disturbed by a series of ghostly visions, Annaleigh becomes increasingly suspicious that the deaths were no accidents. Her sisters have been sneaking out every night to attend glittering balls, dancing until dawn in silk gowns and shimmering slippers, and Annaleigh isn't sure whether to try to stop them or to join their forbidden trysts. Because who—or what—are they really dancing with? When Annaleigh's involvement with a mysterious stranger who has secrets of his own intensifies, it's a race to unravel the darkness that has fallen over her family—before it claims her next. Retelling: The Twelve Dancing Princesses https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a028050c-b29c-4dd9-af7b-b353860d2741/60420293.jpg Blog - Fairytale Retellings - Ten Thousand Stitches by Olivia Atwater Regency housemaid Euphemia Reeves has acquired a faerie godfather. Unfortunately, he has no idea what he's doing. Effie has most inconveniently fallen in love with the dashing Mr Benedict Ashbrooke. There's only one problem; Effie is a housemaid, and a housemaid cannot marry a gentleman. It seems that Effie is out of luck until she stumbles into the faerie realm of Lord Blackthorn, who is only too eager to help Effie win Mr Ashbrooke's heart. All he asks in return is that Effie sew ten thousand stitches onto his favourite jacket. Effie has heard rumours about what happens to those who accept help from faeries, but life as a maid at Hartfield is so awful that she is willing to risk even her immortal soul for a chance at something better. Now, she has one hundred days - and ten thousand stitches - to make Mr Ashbrooke fall in love and propose. . . if Lord Blackthorn doesn't wreck things by accident, that is. For Effie's greatest obstacle might well prove to be Lord Blackthorn's overwhelmingly good intentions. Retelling: Cinderella https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/705fd6a1-df08-458b-9d6b-60d14e9f35d9/61884838.jpg Blog - Fairytale Retellings - Atalanta by Jennifer Saint When Princess Atalanta is born, a daughter rather than the son her parents hoped for, she is left on a mountainside to die. But even then, she is a survivor. Raised by a mother bear under the protective eye of the goddess Artemis, Atalanta grows up wild and free, with just one condition: if she marries, Artemis warns, it will be her undoing. Although she loves her beautiful forest home, Atalanta yearns for adventure. When Artemis offers her the chance to fight in her name alongside the Argonauts, the fiercest band of warriors the world has ever seen, Atalanta seizes it. The Argonauts' quest for the Golden Fleece is filled with impossible challenges, but Atalanta proves herself equal to the men she fights alongside. As she is swept into a passionate affair, in defiance of Artemis's warning, she begins to question the goddess's true intentions. Can Atalanta carve out her own legendary place in a world of men, while staying true to her heart? Retelling: The myth of Atalanta https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6b3786ed-83ca-48f9-88b6-de8fd66b90ae/123176586.jpg Blog - Fairytale Retellings - The Kingdom of Sweets by Erika Johansen Light and dark—this is the destiny placed upon Natasha and Clara, the birthright bestowed by their godfather, the mysterious sorcerer Drosselmeyer. Clara, the favorite, grows into beauty and ease, while Natasha is cursed to live in her sister’s shadow. But one fateful Christmas Eve, Natasha gets her chance at revenge. For Drosselmeyer has brought the Nutcracker, an enchanted present that offers entry into a deceptively beautiful world: the Kingdom of Sweets. In this land of snow and sugar, Natasha is presented with a power far greater than Drosselmeyer: the Sugar Plum Fairy, who is also full of gifts . . . and dreadful bargains. As Natasha uncovers the dark destiny laid before her birth, she must reckon with powers both earthly and magical, and decide to which world she truly belongs. Retelling: The Nutcracker https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9b552fa9-3563-42f2-9bca-d1bc3006f6a1/123443274.jpg Blog - Fairytale Retellings - Salt and Broom by Sharon Lynn Fisher "Salt and broom, make this room Safe and tight, against the night." Trunks packed with potions and cures, Jane Aire sets out on a crisp, clear morning in October to face the greatest challenge of her sheltered girls’-school existence. A shadow lies over Thornfield Hall and its reclusive master, Edward Rochester. And he’s hired her only as a last resort. Jane stumbles again and again as she tries to establish a rapport with her prickly new employer, but he becomes the least of her worries as a mysterious force seems to work against her. The threats mount around both Jane and Rochester—who’s becoming more intriguing and appealing to her by the day. Jane begins to fear her herb healing and protective charms may not be enough to save the man she’s growing to love from a threat darker and more dangerous than either of them imagined. Retelling: Jane Eyre https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2f5deb8b-45f3-4ff7-821e-72abb92bc349/56614597.jpg.png Blog - Fairytale Retellings - Gilded by Marissa Meyer Long ago cursed by the god of lies, a poor miller's daughter has developed a talent for spinning stories that are fantastical and spellbinding and entirely untrue. Or so everyone believes. When one of Serilda's outlandish tales draws the attention of the sinister Erlking and his undead hunters, she finds herself swept away into a grim world where ghouls and phantoms prowl the earth and hollow-eyed ravens track her every move. The king orders Serilda to complete the impossible task of spinning straw into gold, or be killed for telling falsehoods. In her desperation, Serilda unwittingly summons a mysterious boy to her aid. He agrees to help her... for a price. Soon Serilda realizes that there is more than one secret hidden in the castle walls, including an ancient curse that must be broken if she hopes to end the tyranny of the king and his wild hunt forever. Retelling: Rumpelstiltskin https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/27376204-35ee-4ef7-87a1-a37a7688ce06/57190620.jpg Blog - Fairytale Retellings - White as Frost by Anthea Sharp Two sisters. One enchanted forest. And a hidden destiny that could doom them both… Swept away to the castle beside the Darkwood, Rose Valrois finds herself in a world full of secrets and forbidden magic. There she meets her new stepsister, the enigmatic Princess Neeve, who will either become her best friend - or her worst enemy. When Rose follows her stepsister into the enchanted shadows beneath the trees, she is beset by dangerous creatures and rescued by Thorne, the Dark Elf guardian of the forest, who binds her to the Darkwood and forbids her to speak of its mysteries. Yet despite the danger surrounding her, Rose continues to risk everything in her quest for answers, until the day she steals into the depths of the forest and discovers the most perilous secret of all... Retelling: Snow White https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bcc85b8b-0a7f-4fa8-a4af-54561c58943f/55558336.jpg Blog - Fairytale Retellings - Red Wolf by Rachel Vincent For as long as sixteen-year-old Adele can remember, the village of Oakvale has been surrounded by the dark wood—a forest filled with terrible monsters. A forest that light itself cannot penetrate. Unlike her fellow villagers, Adele cannot avoid the dark wood. Adele is one of a long line of guardians: women who secretly take on the form of a wolf, in order to protect their village. But when accepting her fate means giving up the boy she loves, abandoning the future she imagined for herself, and breaking her own moral code, she must decide how far she is willing to go to keep her neighbors safe. Retelling: Little Red Riding Hood https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5606055c-9559-4471-bdb7-4704790a4a4d/182717595.jpg Blog - Fairytale Retellings - Born of Starlight by Mariet Kay “It is time to act, Sister of the Stars.” Tower walls are all Asterie knows. As the Sisterhood’s oracle, she is used to seeing what comes next. But when Asterie becomes consumed with visions of destruction, she only sees ruin. When a prophecy speaks to her, Asterie realizes she must leave her tower for the first time. She ventures out to help a young Queen unbind a dangerously alluring warlock from the northern woodlands. Find her. Fenris hears the voice whisper to him. But he is alone. He has been alone, exiled, for four centuries. When an enchantress shows up with a promise of freedom, he wonders if she is the woman he is destined to find. Fenris realizes that Asterie doesn’t understand the power within her, a power that once destroyed his world. He tells himself not to get involved. But will he be strong enough to resist her? Retelling: Rapunzel https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/christmas-must-haves monthly 0.5 2024-12-07 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/43f9b8ee-5a47-4542-9909-90a5b50cb137/211148021.jpg Blog - Christmas Must-Haves - How My Neighbor Stole Christmas by Meghan Quinn Every Kringle in Kringletown celebrated Christmas a lot. But Cole Black on Whistler Lane, unfortunately, did not. As his fellow citizens decorate their quaint town, brimming with carols and glad tidings, Cole wants nothing more than to hibernate the winter away. But his dreary plans are thwarted when his Christmas nemesis, Storee Taylor, moves in next door to care for her Aunt Cindy. Immediately, the new neighbor turns his life into a real nightmare before Christmas, especially when she decides to enter the town Christmas Kringle contest in honor of Cindy. And better yet, Storee is determined to win. Over Cole's dead body, she will. With help from his friend Max, Cole decides to enter the competition as well, to beat Storee at her own game by pretending that this hometown grump's heart has grown three sizes this season and he's fallen for the girl next door. And unfortunately for Storee, she has to follow his lead to have a chance at the Christmas Kringle title. But the competition isn't the only thing that heats up. Cole and Storee's fake relationship becomes very real, and before they know it, they're attempting to hide it from Aunt Cindy. Things get complicated, the competition gets tough, and all it takes is one single night for someone to steal it all… https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c96162c1-7ee4-49b5-8c4c-6efe714278f2/218678292.jpg Blog - Christmas Must-Haves - The Christmas Fix by Lucy Score She'll save Christmas just to spite him... When a late season hurricane hits Merry, Connecticut, city manager and single dad Noah Yates has to inform the already devastated residents that there won't be a Christmas Festival this year. No festival means no tourism dollars. A disaster of epic proportions for his hometown. But when home renovation expert slash smoking hot reality TV star Catalina King shows up with a camera crew and a budget big enough to put the town back together again, Noah balks. Hard. The last time Cat was in town she stirred up trouble everywhere she went. (Residents are still talking about the town's first and only bar fight.) Noah doesn't need a TV diva capitalizing on his town's tragedy or filling his daughter's head with glitz and glam. Cat is ready and willing to put Merry back in Christmas mode with a holiday special that will leave everyone believing in miracles and get her friends back in the home they love. But there's one big problem standing in her way. And his name is Noah Yates. He's wrong about her and she can't wait to prove it. Ring those jingle bells because it's on. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9f74adf3-41eb-47dd-b98d-7c00570fe3dc/206318178-3.jpg Blog - Christmas Must-Haves - The Christmas Tree Farm by Laurie Gilmore Kira North hates Christmas. Which is unfortunate since she just bought a Christmas tree farm in a town that’s too cute for its own good. Bennett Ellis is on vacation in Dream Harbor taking a break from his life in California. And most importantly, taking a break from his latest run of disastrous dates. After a run in with Kira in her fields, Ben has no intention of offering to help the grumpy owner set up her tree farm, despite the fact she’s clearly got no idea what she’s doing. Kira knows she should stop being so stubborn, but her farm is not all cute and cozy like people always show on social media, it’s borderline dangerous with no heating, and she’d rather no one saw it. But somehow fate finds Ben at Kira’s farm once more, and as Kira watches him swing an ax at the first tree, she finds herself appreciating his strength and questionning why she refused help in the first place.. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/72438d8e-6bdf-43d4-ac58-5ad99d5534b6/219754771.jpg Blog - Christmas Must-Haves - Holiday Hideaway by Mary Kay Andrews Tilly Farriday isn’t feeling very jolly this season. Recently divorced and broke, she’s squatting in one of her rental agency’s properties until her new home is ready. The sprinkles on top of the burnt Christmas cookie that is her life? The new owner shows up early, forcing Tilly to hide in the attic to save her job…and what remains of her dignity. George Holloway is here to sell his granduncle’s house—and to reconsider whether he and his fiancée are right for each other. Amid home repairs, George notices strange noises and missing food, but as much as he gets his rental agent on the phone, Tilly dodges every invitation to meet. He’s sure that someone’s here with him, and it’s certainly not the Ghost of Christmas Past, Present, or Future. As Tilly and George circle each other, they both wonder where their lives are headed and if, maybe, meeting each other is just the Christmas miracle they need. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/09e462a0-dd6f-44e8-80bf-ece87cb5b426/38255337.jpg Blog - Christmas Must-Haves - One Day in December by Josie Silver Two people. Ten chances. One unforgettable love story. Laurie is pretty sure love at first sight doesn't exist anywhere but the movies. But then, through a misted-up bus window one snowy December day, she sees a man who she knows instantly is the one. Their eyes meet, there's a moment of pure magic... and then her bus drives away. Certain they're fated to find each other again, Laurie spends a year scanning every bus stop and cafe in London for him. But she doesn't find him, not when it matters anyway. Instead they "reunite" at a Christmas party, when her best friend Sarah giddily introduces her new boyfriend to Laurie. It's Jack, the man from the bus. It would be. What follows for Laurie, Sarah and Jack is ten years of friendship, heartbreak, missed opportunities, roads not taken, and destinies reconsidered. One Day in December is a joyous, heartwarming and immensely moving love story to escape into and a reminder that fate takes inexplicable turns along the route to happiness. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/27edfd2f-4756-45ee-8c4d-c84ccd46ff33/200758059.jpg Blog - Christmas Must-Haves - Lone Wolf in Lights by Stacey Kennedy Everyone daydreams about a fresh start…but Willow Quinn is making it happen. She’s left her life in Phoenix to open a bar in cowboy-country Montana with her two best friends. It’s a chance to reboot in a new town with a new life—and leave behind the shadows of her past and heal. Hopefully. All she wants to do is create an empowering space for women who need support. Snow and the holidays are on the way, so surely a craft circle is the perfect way to build community… Except who knew her plans would ruffle so many feathers. Enter former bull rider Eli Cole. She’s drawn to the green-eyed cowboy, his intensity and the electrical charge between them. (Even though he seems to have as many dark secrets as she does.) And when she and her bar, The Naked Moose, go viral for being interlopers, suddenly Willow’s new life is on rocky ground. But Eli has the perfect solution—give the fiercely single bar owner a fake relationship with a local. But while it might dim the negative spotlight and convince the town she really does fit in, it definitely won’t protect her heart from the cowboy she can’t resist… https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d5fc943e-eda8-4187-85e4-878e085d8380/75663742.jpg Blog - Christmas Must-Haves - Wreck the Halls by Tessa Bailey Melody Gallard may be the daughter of music royalty, but her world is far from glamorous. She spends her days restoring old books and avoiding the limelight (one awkward tabloid photo was enough, thanks). But when a producer offers her a lot of money to reunite her mother’s band on live tv, Mel begins to wonder if it’s time to rattle the cage, shake up her quiet life… and see him again. The only other person who could wrangle the rock and roll divas. Beat Dawkins, the lead singer’s son, is Melody’s opposite—the camera loves him, he could charm the pants off anyone, and his mom is not a potential cult leader. Still, they might have been best friends if not for the legendary feud that broke up the band. When they met as teenagers, Mel felt an instant spark, but it’s nothing compared to the wild, intense attraction that builds as they embark on a madcap mission to convince their mothers to perform one last show. While dealing with rock star shenanigans, a 24-hour film crew, brawling Santas, and mobs of adoring fans, Mel starts to step out of her comfort zone. With Beat by her side, cheering her on, she’s never felt so understood. But Christmas Eve is fast approaching, and a decades-old scandal is poised to wreck everything—the Steel Birds reunion, their relationships with their mothers, and their newfound love. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/53f568b7-b752-4431-971c-1bb818c5edd7/61401417.jpg Blog - Christmas Must-Haves - Holiday Romance by Catherine Walsh She’s meant to be catching flights, not catching feelings… Molly and Andrew are just trying to get home to Ireland for the holidays, when a freak snowstorm grounds their flight. Nothing romantic has ever happened between them: they’re friends and that’s all. But once a year, for the last ten years, Molly has spent seven hours and fifteen minutes sitting next to Andrew on the last flight before Christmas from Chicago to Dublin, drinking terrible airplane wine and catching up on each other’s lives. In spite of all the ways the two friends are different, it’s the holiday tradition neither of them has ever wanted to give up. Molly isn’t that bothered by Christmas, but—in yet another way they’re total opposites—Andrew is a full-on fanatic for the festive season and she knows how much getting back to Ireland means to him. So, instead of doing the sane thing and just celebrating the holidays together in America, she does the stupid thing. The irrational thing. She vows to get him home. And in time for his mam’s famous Christmas dinner. The clock is ticking. But Molly always has a plan. And—as long as the highly-specific combination of taxis, planes, boats, and trains all run on time—it can’t possibly go wrong. What she doesn’t know is that, as the snow falls over the city and over the heads of two friends who are sure they’re not meant to be together, the universe might just have a plan of its own… https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/cbe2c718-3d99-45ad-a607-4154c17c831e/60323954.jpg Blog - Christmas Must-Haves - One Last Gift by Emily Stone Sometimes the best gifts in life are the ones you don't expect. Cassie and Tom lost their parents at a young age and relied on each other--as well as a community of friends--to get through it. Especially Tom's best friend, Sam, who always made sure Tom and Cassie were surrounded with love. But now, twenty years later, Cassie has lost Tom as well. And in a way, she's also lost Sam; over the years they've drifted apart, and now the man she always had a crush on is someone she doesn't even recognize anymore. She's never felt more alone. Then she finds an envelope with her name on it, written in Tom's terrible handwriting, and she knows immediately what it is. It's the first clue in the Christmas scavenger hunt Tom made for her every year; he'd promised her for months that this year's would be the grandest one yet. At first, she's too scared to open it--what if she can't figure out the clues without his help? Or what if she does figure them all out, and her last connection to Tom is gone? Tom's clues set Cassie on a heart-wrenching and beautiful journey that will change her life--if she lets them. And as she travels from London to the Welsh mountains to the French countryside, she reconnects with old friends, rekindles a lost love, and most importantly, rediscovers herself. But once she's solved the final clue, will she be brave enough to accept the gift her brother has given her--and the love it's led her to? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ea25a6ee-17bc-4d95-8554-6f7043c0d1ab/50892287.jpg Blog - Christmas Must-Haves - In A Holidaze by Christina Lauren It’s the most wonderful time of the year…but not for Maelyn Jones. She’s living with her parents, hates her going-nowhere job, and has just made a romantic error of epic proportions. But perhaps worst of all, this is the last Christmas Mae will be at her favorite place in the world—the snowy Utah cabin where she and her family have spent every holiday since she was born, along with two other beloved families. Mentally melting down as she drives away from the cabin for the final time, Mae throws out what she thinks is a simple plea to the universe: Please. Show me what will make me happy. The next thing she knows, tires screech and metal collides, everything goes black. But when Mae gasps awake…she’s on an airplane bound for Utah, where she begins the same holiday all over again. With one hilarious disaster after another sending her back to the plane, Mae must figure out how to break free of the strange time loop—and finally get her true love under the mistletoe. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9affade6-b788-427d-bbbd-77387dbc60dc/122753311.jpg Blog - Christmas Must-Haves - Lovelight Farms by B.K. Borison Two best friends fake date to reach their holiday happily ever after in this first romantic comedy in the Lovelight series. A pasture of dead trees. A hostile takeover of the Santa barn by a family of raccoons. And shipments that have mysteriously gone missing. Lovelight Farms is not the magical winter wonderland of Stella Bloom’s dreams. In an effort to save the Christmas tree farm she’s loved since she was a kid, Stella enters a contest with Instagram-famous influencer Evelyn St. James. With the added publicity and the $100,000 cash prize, Stella might just be able to save the farm from its financial woes. There’s just one problem. To make the farm seem like a romantic destination for the holidays, she lied on her application and said she owns Lovelight Farms with her boyfriend. Only…there is no boyfriend. Enter best friend Luka Peters. He just stopped by for some hot chocolate and somehow got a farm and a serious girlfriend in the process. But fake dating his best friend might be the best Christmas present he’s ever received. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/815b0f4f-8c64-4130-bc70-1da7f6058c8f/199531989.jpg Blog - Christmas Must-Haves - The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year by Ally Carter The bridge is out. The phones are down. And the most famous mystery writer in the world just disappeared out of a locked room three days before Christmas. Meet Maggie Chase and Ethan Wyatt: She’s the new Queen of the Cozy Mystery. He’s Mr. Big-time Thriller Guy. She hates his guts. He thinks her name is Marcie (no matter how many times she’s told him otherwise.) But when they both accept a cryptic invitation to attend a Christmas house party at the English estate of a reclusive fan, neither is expecting their host to be the most powerful author in the world: Eleanor Ashley, the Duchess of Death herself. That night, the weather turns, and the next morning Eleanor is gone. She vanished from a locked room, and Maggie has to wonder: Is Eleanor in danger? Or is it all some kind of test? Is Ethan the competition? Or is he the only person in that snowbound mansion she can trust? As the snow gets deeper and the stakes get higher, every clue will bring Maggie and Ethan closer to the truth—and each other. Because, this Christmas, these two rivals are going to have to become allies (and maybe more) if they have any hope of saving Eleanor. Assuming they don’t kill each other first. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5d29b176-424c-44b4-a2a1-4f24e0c54aa3/60121411.jpg Blog - Christmas Must-Haves - A Merry Little Meet Cute by Julie Murphy and Sierra Simone Bee Hobbes (aka Bianca Von Honey) has a successful career as a plus-size adult film star. With a huge following and two supportive moms, Bee couldn’t ask for more. But when Bee’s favorite producer casts her to star in a Christmas movie he’s making for the squeaky-clean Hope Channel, Bee’s career is about to take a more family-friendly direction. Forced to keep her work as Bianca under wraps, Bee quickly learns this is a task a lot easier said than done. Though it all becomes worthwhile when she discovers her co-star is none other than childhood crush Nolan Shaw, an ex-boy band member in desperate need of career rehab. Nolan’s promised his bulldog manager to keep it zipped up on set, and he will if it means he’ll be able to provide a more stable living situation for his sister and mom. But things heat up quickly in Christmas Notch, Vermont, when Nolan recognizes his new co-star from her ClosedDoors account (oh yeah, he’s a member). Now Bee and Nolan are sneaking off for quickies on set, keeping their new relationship a secret from the Hope Channel’s execs. Things only get trickier when the reporter who torpedoed Nolan’s singing career comes snooping around—and takes an instant interest in mysterious newcomer Bee. And if Bee and Nolan can’t keep their off-camera romance behind the scenes, then this merry little meet cute might end up on the cutting room floor. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/december-new-releases monthly 0.5 2024-11-27 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c21a10d0-f071-4e0d-b53d-c905220e90e2/209604911.jpg Blog - December New Releases - The Broken Places by Mia Sheridan The streets of San Francisco aren’t as sunny as the city pretends they are. Inspector Lennon Gray has learned this the hard way, and it’s starting to wear on her. When a new case plunges her into the depths of the transient community, Lennon must once again face ugly truths about humanity. Her new partner makes things a little easier, though. Agent Ambrose Mars is charming—innocent, somehow, despite his own hard years in the field. The combination leaves Lennon fascinated and disturbed at the same time, and she’s even more drawn to him for it. As they investigate the hallucinogenic drug that’s forcing homeless citizens into bizarre and dangerous role-plays, Lennon and Ambrose find their relationship intensified with every new twist. But when these revelations begin to uncover secrets she wasn’t prepared to know, Lennon will have to decide how much more she can take…before something important is taken from her. Release Date: December 1, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bb67c7b4-42c4-4bbd-a4fe-178d77003d7a/210670872.jpg Blog - December New Releases - White Mulberry by Rosa Kwon Easton 1928, Japan-occupied Korea. Eleven-year-old Miyoung has dreams too big for her tiny farming village near to become a teacher, to avoid an arranged marriage, to write her own future. When she is offered the chance to live with her older sister in Japan and continue her education, she is elated, even though it means leaving her sick mother—and her very name—behind. In Kyoto, anti-Korean sentiment is rising every day, and Miyoung quickly realizes she must pass as Japanese if she expects to survive. Her Japanese name, Miyoko, helps her find a new calling as a nurse, but as the years go by, she fears that her true self is slipping away. She seeks solace in a Korean church group and, within it, finds something she never a romance with an activist that reignites her sense of purpose and gives her a cherished son. As war looms on a new front and Miyoung feels the constraints of her adopted home tighten, she is faced with a choice that will change her life—and the lives of those she loves—forever. Release Date: December 1, 2024 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ea1913f0-c54c-4dcf-a89d-35b0e1ee8cb5/206294753.jpg Blog - December New Releases - The Silent Watcher by Victor Methos Far from the neon glare of the Vegas strip, attorney Piper Danes walks away from a hotshot law firm to work as a guardian ad litem (GAL). Piper was once a vulnerable youth herself, and a GAL gave her hope when she needed it most. Now she’s committed to paying it forward. Her first case is unlike any fifteen-year-old Sophie Grace is the sole survivor of a gruesome family murder. Teaming up with the formidable Judge Hope Dawson and enigmatic Detective Lazarus Holloway, Piper delves into a world more sinister than she could have imagined. Their hunt for the truth leads to a serial killer known only as “The Creeper,” a predator who hides in the shadows. But as the team inches closer to unveiling the murderer, they find themselves in the crosshairs. Trapped in a web of lies, Piper will do anything to protect Sophie and stop the killer…before she becomes his next victim. Release Date: December 1, 2024 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/85f4f4db-b612-489d-9ee0-b895b9f11a75/209455835.jpg.png Blog - December New Releases - Under Loch and Key by Lana Ferguson Keyanna “Key” MacKay is used to secrets. Raised by a single father who never divulged his past, it’s only after his death that she finds herself thrust into the world he’d always refused to speak of. With just a childhood bedtime story about a monster that saved her father’s life and the name of her estranged grandmother to go off of, Key has no idea what she’ll find in Scotland. But repeating her father’s mistakes and being rescued by a gorgeous, angry Scotsman—who thinks she’s an idiot—is definitely the last thing she expects. Lachlan Greer has his own secrets to keep, especially from the bonnie lass he pulls to safety from the slippery shore—a lass with captivating eyes and the last name he’s been taught not to trust. He’s looking for answers as well, and Key’s presence on the grounds they both now occupy presents a real problem. It’s even more troublesome when he gets a front row seat to the lukewarm welcome Key receives from her family; the strange powers she begins to develop; and the fierce determination she brings to every obstacle in her path. Things he shouldn’t care about, and someone he definitely doesn’t find wildly attractive. When their secrets collide, it becomes clear that Lachlan could hold the answers Keyanna is after—and that she might also be the key to uncovering his. Up against time, mystery, and a centuries old curse, they’ll quickly discover that magic might not only be in fairy tales, and that love can be a real loch-mess. Release Date: December 3, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/301521c9-ba61-416e-b6ec-b9e56c21b80a/203578712.jpg Blog - December New Releases - Trouble Island by Sharon Short Many miles from anywhere in the middle of Lake Erie, Trouble Island serves as a stop-off for gangsters as they run between America and Canada. The remote isle is also the permanent home to two women: Aurelia Escalante, who serves as a maid to Rosita, lady of the mansion and wife to the notorious prohibition gangster, Eddie McGee. In the freezing winter of 1932, the women anticipate the arrival of Eddie and his strange coterie: his right-hand man, a doctor, a cousin, a famous actor, and a rival gangster who Rosita believes murdered their only son. Aurelia wants nothing more than to escape Trouble Island, but she is hiding a secret of her own. She is in fact not a maid, but a gangster’s wife in hiding, as she runs from the murder she committed five years ago. Her friend Rosita took her in under this guise, but it has become clear that Rosita wants to keep Aurelia right where she is. Shortly after the group of criminals, celebrities, and scoundrels arrive, Rosita suddenly disappears. Aurelia plans her getaway, going to the shore to retrieve her box of hidden treasures, but instead finds Rosita’s body in the water. Someone has made sure Aurelia was the one to find her. An ice storm makes unexpected landfall, cutting Trouble Island off from both mainlands, and with more than one murderer among them. Release Date: December 3, 2024 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4511dbcb-d6db-47df-aaa7-341e93cbd80c/203578784.jpg Blog - December New Releases - The Secret of the Three Fates by Jess Armstrong American heiress Ruby Vaughn still hasn't entirely forgiven her octogenarian employer and housemate Mr. Owen for bringing the occult into their lives during her recent trip to Cornwall. He claims their journey to Manhurst Castle in the Scottish Borders is simply to appraise and acquire illuminated manuscripts for their rare bookshop, however when Ruby discovers there are no manuscripts and receives news of a séance to be held that very night, she begins to grow suspicious about the true reason why they have come. The Great War left grieving families willing to sacrifice anything for the chance to say goodbye to a lost loved one. Mr. Owen is no exception. He is desperate to speak to his son, but he doesn’t want to face the spirits alone. When the séance—hosted by a trio of mediums billing themselves as The Three Fates—goes awry, Mr. Owen’s secrets begin to unravel, threatening to reveal a history that he has been running from for half his life. Something Ruby knows all too well how to do. When Ruby finds one of the Three Fates murdered the night of the seance, she and Mr. Owen quickly become the prime suspects. To clear their names, Ruby enlists the help of Ruan Kivell, the folk healer Pellar who helped her weeks before in Cornwall. As their investigation progresses Ruby and Ruan realize someone is determined to prevent them from uncovering the truth about what happened to the dead medium. Release Date: December 3, 2024 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/11a5ab07-a8d3-40f2-bc51-7170775fefbb/221036299.jpg Blog - December New Releases - Second Down Scrooge by Lisa Suzanne I never planned to give Austin Graham, the tight end for the Vegas Aces and the father of my little girl, a second chance this holiday season. After all, he messed up. Big time. But the shimmering decorations on the Christmas tree cast him in a totally new light—especially when I get home from a disastrous blind date and find him on my couch with our sweet baby asleep on his chest. He's not the villain he so easily plays, but coming in second to everyone his entire life has pushed him to act like a Grinch. I'm getting swept up watching him with our daughter, seeing his eyes twinkle in the Christmas lights, and feeling his hands caressing my skin. Now I need to figure out whether it's worth risking both my heart and my little girl's to show this second down scrooge that he comes in first with us. Release Date: December 3, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8681a2ac-6e8d-478a-9eea-fd20171f551a/217536270.jpg Blog - December New Releases - Quicksilver by Callie Hart Do not touch the sword. Do not turn the key. Do not open the gate. In the land of the unforgiving desert, there isn’t much a girl wouldn’t do for a glass of water. Twenty-four-year-old Saeris Fane is good at keeping secrets. No one knows about the strange powers she possesses, or the fact that she has been picking pockets and stealing from the Undying Queen’s reservoirs for as long as she can remember. But a secret is like a knot. Sooner or later, it is bound to come undone. When Saeris comes face-to-face with Death himself, she inadvertently reopens a gateway between realms and is transported to a land of ice and snow. The Fae have always been the stuff of myth, of legend, of nightmares…but it turns out they’re real, and Saeris has landed herself right in the middle of a centuries-long conflict that might just get her killed. The first of her kind to tread the frozen mountains of Yvelia in over a thousand years, Saeris mistakenly binds herself to Kingfisher, a handsome Fae warrior, who has secrets and nefarious agendas of his own. He will use her Alchemist’s magic to protect his people, no matter what it costs him… or her. Death has a name. It is Kingfisher of the Ajun Gate. His past is murky. His attitude stinks. And he’s the only way Saeris is going to make it home. Be careful of the deals you make, dear child. The devil is in the details... Release Date: December 3, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5abf74cc-607a-4e95-a6b0-db0c6268ad92/209455838.jpg Blog - December New Releases - Designs on You by Jaci Burton Natalie Parker is in her mid-thirties, divorced, and firmly focused on her newly resurrected career and her two children. When her sister asks her to help design the backyard in the new home she shares with her boyfriend, Linc, Natalie’s more than happy to take on the project. What she isn’t prepared for is Linc’s younger brother, video game designer Eugene Kennedy. He’s smart, incredibly good-looking, and constantly flirts with Natalie. He’s also too young for her, which makes him totally off-limits. Eugene is intrigued by Natalie’s beauty, smarts, and especially her sarcastic wit. When he teases her, she throws it right back at him. Besides that, they have an instant chemistry, but she keeps trying to get rid of him despite the sparks that fly between them. And Eugene never backs down from a challenge. Natalie is running out of reasons to think being with Eugene is a bad thing. Her kids adore him, her sister loves him, and even her always negative mother does, too. The only person holding her back is...her. Maybe it’s time she take that leap and design herself a love for the ages. After all, if she can create the perfect home, she sure as hell can design a happily ever after. Release Date: December 3, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4c960222-6122-49b8-b43d-2a9aef06670d/75675224.jpg Blog - December New Releases - The Last One by Rachel Howzell Hall Thrown into a desolate land of sickness and unnatural beasts, Kai wakes in the woods with no idea who she is or how she got there. All she knows is that if she cannot reach the Sea of Devour, even this hellscape will get worse. But when she sees the village blacksmith fight invaders with unspeakable skill, she decides to accept his offer of help. Too bad he’s as skilled at annoying her as he is at fighting. As she searches for answers, Kai only finds more questions, especially regarding the blacksmith who can ignite her body like a flame, then douse it with ice in the next breath. And no one is what—or who—they appear to be in the kingdom of Vinevridth, including the man whose secrets might be as deadly as the land itself. Release Date: December 3, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/48ab7f32-7ca7-4032-9436-8d2046d46953/209801575.jpg Blog - December New Releases - Buried Road by Katie Tallo When the love of her life disappeared on a camping trip, Gus Monet was devastated. Her daughter was only nine at the time, but young Bly still remembers the heartbreak vividly. Howard had been like a father to her. He was a journalist working on a story that took a dark and dangerous turn. The last time they saw him, he was going to meet a source he believed could blow the story wide open. Three years later, shocked to see Howard’s obituary in the paper, Gus and Bly are drawn back to Prince Edward County where he was last seen and where the camper Howard was driving has been found. Sneaking into the camper, mother and daughter find what investigators missed. Hidden behind a secret panel are Howard’s notebook, cell phone, and a video message recorded right before he vanished, evidence that turns the cold case red hot. Searching for answers, Gus and Bly vow to follow the story Howard was pursuing and to expose whoever went to deadly lengths to stop him from revealing the truth. Told in the compelling, thoughtful voice of young Bly, this edge-of-your-seat thriller ratchets up the tension, culminating in a heart-pounding, soul crushing, shocking finale. Infused with vivid summer imagery, set among eerie abandoned places, and steeped with sinister small-town secrets, Buried Road is the story of a young girl and a mother whose reckless resolve leads them ever closer to lethal danger—but ultimately might be what ensures their survival. Release Date: December 3, 2024 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/636c5c98-4938-4c38-a580-0bc5dc5e5578/208503336.jpg Blog - December New Releases - The Peculiar Garden of Harriet Hunt by Chelsea Iversen Harriet Hunt is completely alone. Her father disappeared months ago, leaving her to wander the halls of Sunnyside house, dwelling on a past she'd rather keep buried. She doesn't often venture beyond her front gate, instead relishing the feel of dirt under her fingernails and of soft moss beneath her feet. Consequently, she's been deemed a little too peculiar for popular Victorian society. This solitary life suits her fine, though – because, in her garden, magic awaits. Harriet's garden is special. It's a wild place full of twisting ivy, vibrant plums, and a quiet power that buzzes like bees. Caring for this place, and keeping it from running rampant through the streets of her London suburb, is Harriet's purpose. When suspicion for her father's disappearance falls on her, she marries a seemingly charming man, the first to see past her peculiarities, in order to protect herself. It's soon clear, however, that her new husband might be worse than her father and that she's integral to a dark plot created by the men around her. To free herself and discover the truth, she must learn to channel the power of her strange, magical garden. Release Date: December 3, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e774e2c6-35f1-4115-b418-eaebdbbe40db/210690230.jpg Blog - December New Releases - What the Wife Knew by Darby Kane Dr. Richmond Dougherty is a renowned pediatric surgeon, an infamous tragedy survivor, and a national hero. He’s also very dead—thanks to a fall down the stairs. His neighbors angrily point a finger at the newest Ms. Dougherty, Addison. The sudden marriage to the mysterious young woman only lasted ninety-seven days, and he’d had two suspicious “accidents” during that time. Now Addison is a very rich widow. As law enforcement starts to circle in on Addison and people in town become increasingly hostile, sides are chosen with Kathryn, Richmond’s high school sweetheart, wife number one, and the mother of his children, leading the fray. Despite rising tensions, Addison is even more driven to forge ahead on the path she charted years ago… Determined at all costs to unravel Richmond’s legacy, she soon becomes a target—with a shocking note left on her bedroom You will pay. But it will take a lot more than faceless threats to stop Addison. Her plan to marry Richmond then ruin him may have been derailed by his unexpected death, but she’s not done with him yet. Release Date: December 10, 2024 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/094cb024-6ed5-4a47-b686-53308f3578ad/199793372.jpg Blog - December New Releases - A Monsoon Rising by Thea Guanzon After a lifetime of war, Alaric and Talasyn were thrust into an alliance between their homelands that was supposed to end the fighting; however, being married to their sworn foe feels far from peaceful. Now Talasyn must play the part of Alaric’s willing empress while her allies secretly plot to overthrow his reign. But the longer the couple are forced together, the harder it becomes to deny the feelings crackling like lightning between them. When the time comes to act, can she trust him, or must she ignore her heart for the sake of so many others? As the master of the Shadowforged Legion, Alaric has trained for battle all his life, but marrying a Lightweaver might be his most dangerous challenge yet. With tensions between nations churning, he needs to focus on the greater threat—the Moonless Dark, a cataclysmic magical event that could devour everything. Only he and Talasyn can stop it, with a powerful merging of light and shadow that they alone can create together. But saving their world from this disaster is a mere preface to his father’s more sinister schemes, and his wife is a burning flame in the darkness, tempting both his loyalties and his desires. The Hurricane Wars aren’t over. It’s time to choose what—and who—to fight for. The world holds its breath amidst a whirlwind of new magic and old secrets that could change everything. Release Date: December 10, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/61b6bf1e-d127-49a9-a943-11aae89df6c1/203578707.jpg Blog - December New Releases - What the Woods Took by Courtney Gould Devin Green wakes in the middle of the night to find two men in her bedroom. No stranger to a fight, she calls to her foster parents for help, but it soon becomes clear this is a planned abduction—one everyone but Devin signed up for. She’s shoved in a van and driven deep into the Idaho woods, where she’s dropped off with a cohort of equally confused teens. Finally, two camp counselors inform them that they've all been enrolled in an experimental therapy program. If the campers can learn to change their self-destructive ways—and survive a fifty-days hike through the wilderness—they’ll come out the other side as better versions of themselves. Or so the counselors say. Devin is immediately determined to escape. She’s also determined to ignore Sheridan, the cruel-mouthed, lavender-haired bully who mocks every group exercise. But there’s something strange about these woods—inhuman faces appearing between the trees, visions of people who shouldn't be there flashing in the leaves—and when the campers wake up to find both counselors missing, therapy becomes the least of their problems. Stranded and left to fend for themselves, the teens quickly realize they’ll have to trust each other if they want to survive. But what lies in the woods may not be as dangerous as what the campers are hiding from each other—and if the monsters have their way, no one will leave the woods alive. Release Date: December 10, 2024 Genre: Young Adult Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ad1742d2-1ce6-4da6-80bb-a8df68bcd366/203194039.jpg Blog - December New Releases - Not in My Book by Katie Holt Rosie, an idealistic and passionate Peruvian-American who has grown up without strong ties to her culture, leaves her Tennessee hometown to pursue her dream of making it in New York as a writer. But her plan is derailed when she ends up in class with her arch-nemesis and ex-crush, Aiden Huntington—an obnoxious, surly, and gorgeous literary fiction writer who doesn’t have much patience for the romance genre, or for Rosie. Rosie and Aiden regularly go to verbal battle in workshop until their professor reaches her breaking point. She allows them to stay in her class on one condition: they must co-write a novel that blends their genres. The reluctant writing duo can’t help but put pieces of themselves into their accidentally steamy novel, and as they slowly get to know each other, they try to put their differences aside. Meanwhile, their manuscript-in-progress provides an outlet for them to confess their feelings—and explore their attraction toward each other. When Rosie and Aiden find themselves competing against each other for a potentially career-changing opportunity, the flames of old rivalry reignite, and their once-in-a-lifetime love story is once again at risk of being shelved—unless they can find a way to end the book on their own terms. Release Date: December 10, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6c4979ce-2044-42ac-85fc-1cc73e8ad9dd/203579269.jpg Blog - December New Releases - Booked For Murder by P.J. Nelson Madeline Brimley left small town Georgia many years ago to go to college and pursue her dreams on the stage. Her dramatic escapades are many but success has eluded her, leaving her at loose ends. But then she gets word that not only has her beloved, eccentric Aunt Rose passed, but she's left Madeline her equally eccentric bookstore housed in an old Victorian mansion in the small college town of Enigma. But when she arrives in her beat-up Fiat to claim The Old Juniper Bookstore, and restart her life, Madeline is faced with unexpected challenges. The gazebo in the back yard is set ablaze and a late night caller threatens to burn the whole store down if she doesn't leave immediately. But Madeline Brimley, not one to be intimidated, ignores the threats and soldiers on. Until there's another fire and a murder in the store itself. Now with a cloud of suspicion falling over her, it's up to Madeline to untangle the skein of secrets and find the killer before she herself is the next victim. Release Date: December 10, 2024 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/49205760-6f39-405c-9beb-1409861aee92/212643715.jpg Blog - December New Releases - Ex Marks the Spot by Gloria Chao For Gemma's whole life, it has always been her and her mom against the world. As far as she knew, all her grandparents—and thus her ties to Taiwanese culture—were dead. Until one day when a mysterious man shows up at her door with two shocking the news that her grandfather has just recently passed, and the first clue to a treasure hunt that Gemma hopes will lead to her inheritance. There's just one major to complete the hunt, she has to go to her grandfather's home in Taiwan. And the only way she can get there is by asking her ex and biggest high-school rival, Xander, for help. But after swallowing her pride, Gemma finds herself halfway across the world, ready to unearth her life-changing prize. Soon Gemma discovers that the treasure hunt is about much more than money—it's about finally learning about her family, her cultural roots, and maybe even finding true love. Release Date: December 31, 2024 Genre: Young Adult Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/dd5468b5-0225-4291-8fa4-6a78ddf15c6a/217005832.jpg Blog - December New Releases - Training the Heart by Paisley Hope Wade Ashby doesn’t let anyone in. With the death of his father and his failed marriage, plus the weight of the family business on his shoulders, Wade has plenty to deal with. He thrives on being the one constant and steady thing in his family’s life and on their ranch, Silver Pines. Ivy Spencer knows two things for Animals make better friends than people and she can only count on herself. After a turbulent childhood and a string of bad luck since, Ivy is excited to start fresh at Silver Pines Ranch and live out her dream of training a racehorse en route to the Kentucky Derby. Wade needs help on the ranch, but with two entirely different views on how to train his star horse, it makes absolutely no sense why he allows her to stay on. She’s chaos and he’s control, but it doesn’t take long for the levee to break and their passion to ignite. Release Date: December 31, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/93241974-bd1e-42a6-b937-c1d86b92f4a4/213197107.jpg Blog - December New Releases - Better Than Revenge by Kasie West Seventeen-year-old Finley has only ever had one to become a famous podcaster. This includes coming up with the perfect pitch to land her on her school's podcast team. But when her football-obsessed boyfriend, Jensen, decides to also try out—and uses her idea—she's left confused and betrayed. Determined to get back at him, Finley and her friends try to find the perfect revenge scheme, but quickly discover that Jensen is almost-impossible to best. Keyword, almost. By chance, Finley discovers a knack for kicking and decides to take Jensen's spot on the football team. To help her train, she recruits Jensen's cute but conceited nemeses, Theo. Soon the two discover that their connection runs deeper than football. But Finley can't let herself get distracted, and Theo has secrets of his own. Is true love really better than the perfect revenge? Release Date: December 31, 2024 Genre: Young Adult Romance https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/fantasy-standalones monthly 0.5 2024-11-18 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/90c5a19b-ad62-4f59-82f4-d7b2c09d1baf/50623864.jpg Blog - Fantasy Standalone’s - The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab France, 1714: in a moment of desperation, a young woman makes a Faustian bargain to live forever and is cursed to be forgotten by everyone she meets. Thus begins the extraordinary life of Addie LaRue, and a dazzling adventure that will play out across centuries and continents, across history and art, as a young woman learns how far she will go to leave her mark on the world. But everything changes when, after nearly 300 years, Addie stumbles across a young man in a hidden bookstore and he remembers her name. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/db4f402a-6cb2-44e3-a94b-615cf6ef97e7/205181098.jpg Blog - Fantasy Standalone’s - The Thirteenth Child by Erin A. Craig This is the story of Hazel, a young healer navigating a ruthless court to save the life of the king, grappling with a pantheon of gods with questionable agendas as she fights for agency and true love in her own life as the goddaughter of none other than Death himself. All gifts come with a price. Hazel Trépas has always known she wasn’t like the rest of her siblings. A thirteenth child, promised away to one of the gods, she spends her childhood waiting for her godfather—Merrick, the Dreaded End—to arrive. When he does, he lays out exactly how he’s planned Hazel’s future. She will become a great healer, known throughout the kingdom for her precision and skill. To aid her endeavors, Merrick blesses Hazel with a gift, the ability to instantly deduce the exact cure needed to treat the sick. But all gifts come with a price. Hazel can see when Death has claimed a patient—when all hope is gone—and is tasked to end their suffering, permanently. Haunted by the ghosts of those she’s killed, Hazel longs to run. But destiny brings her to the royal court, where she meets Leo, a rakish prince with a disdain for everything and everyone. And it’s where Hazel faces her biggest dilemma yet—to save the life of a king marked to die. Hazel knows what she is meant to do and knows what her heart is urging her toward, but what will happen if she goes against the will of Death? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/de920c4c-d4d6-44c8-bbb2-8b8e4e4e71bd/13330943.jpg Blog - Fantasy Standalone’s - The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night. But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway - a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them, this is a game in which only one can be left standing, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battle of imagination and will. Despite themselves, however, Celia and Marco tumble headfirst into love - a deep, magical love that makes the lights flicker and the room grow warm whenever they so much as brush hands. True love or not, the game must play out, and the fates of everyone involved, from the cast of extraordinary circus per­formers to the patrons, hang in the balance, suspended as precariously as the daring acrobats overhead. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4b8e65c9-73e1-490c-852c-63dee6694f3d/60691190.jpg Blog - Fantasy Standalone’s - The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh Deadly storms. An ancient curse. Will her sacrifice save them all? For generations, deadly storms have ravaged Mina’s homeland. Her people believe the Sea God, once their protector, now curses them with death and despair. To appease him, each year a maiden is thrown into the sea, in the hopes that one day the ‘true bride’ will be chosen and end the suffering. Many believe Shim Cheong - Mina’s brother’s beloved - to be the legendary true bride. But on the night Cheong is to be sacrificed, Mina’s brother follows her, knowing that to interfere is a death sentence. To save her brother, Mina throws herself into the water in Cheong’s stead. Swept away to the Spirit Realm, a magical city of lesser gods and mythical beasts, Mina finds the Sea God, trapped in an enchanted sleep. With the help of a mysterious young man and a motley crew of demons, gods and spirits, Mina sets out to wake him and bring and end to the storms once and for all. But she doesn’t have much time: a human cannot live long in the land of the spirits. And there are those who would do anything to keep the Sea God from waking… https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/91d66bee-67fa-4dea-851a-54704ed239bf/59559145-2.jpg Blog - Fantasy Standalone’s - Spells for Forgetting by Adrienne Young Emery Blackwood’s life changed forever the night her best friend was found dead and the love of her life, August Salt, was accused of murdering her. Years later, she is doing what her teenage self swore she never would: living a quiet existence on the misty, remote shores of Saoirse Island and running the family’s business, Blackwood’s Tea Shoppe Herbal Tonics & Tea Leaf Readings. But when the island, rooted in folklore and magic, begins to show signs of strange happenings, Emery knows that something is coming. The morning she wakes to find that every single tree on Saoirse has turned color in a single night, August returns for the first time in fourteen years and unearths the past that the town has tried desperately to forget. August knows he is not welcome on Saoirse, not after the night everything changed. As a fire raged on at the Salt family orchard, Lily Morgan was found dead in the dark woods, shaking the bedrock of their tight-knit community and branding August a murderer. When he returns to bury his mother’s ashes, he must confront the people who turned their backs on him and face the one wound from his past that has never healed—Emery. But the town has more than one reason to want August gone, and the emergence of deep betrayals and hidden promises spanning generations threaten to reveal the truth behind Lily’s mysterious death once and for all. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c1f928a0-2642-45d0-bf51-9f240043f54d/61287784.jpg Blog - Fantasy Standalone’s - Where the Dark Stands Still by A.B. Poranek Raised in a small village near the spirit-wood, Liska Radost knows that Magic is monstrous, and its practitioners, monsters. After Liska unleashes her own powers with devastating consequences, she is caught by the demon warden of the wood – the Leszy – who offers her a bargain: one year of servitude in exchange for a wish. Whisked away to his crumbling manor, Liska soon discovers the sinister roots of their bargain. And if she wants to survive the year and return home, she must unravel her host’s spool of secrets and face the ghosts of his past. Those who enter the wood do not always return… https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d064d4f2-09ca-47b2-ad83-db6d9a394257/63068384.jpg Blog - Fantasy Standalone’s - Tress of the Emerald Sea by Brandon Sanderson The only life Tress has known on her island home in an emerald-green ocean has been a simple one, with the simple pleasures of collecting cups brought by sailors from faraway lands and listening to stories told by her friend Charlie. But when his father takes him on a voyage to find a bride and disaster strikes, Tress must stow away on a ship and seek the Sorceress of the deadly Midnight Sea. Amid the spore oceans where pirates abound, can Tress leave her simple life behind and make her own place sailing a sea where a single drop of water can mean instant death? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d4ad3b53-a337-4824-b296-545fcd83f9b3/57693396.jpg Blog - Fantasy Standalone’s - The Bone Orchard by Sara A. Mueller Charm is a witch, and she is alone. The last of a line of conquered necromantic workers, now confined within the yard of regrown bone trees at Orchard House, and the secrets of their marrow. Charm is a prisoner, and a survivor. Charm tends the trees and their clattering fruit for the sake of her children, painstakingly grown and regrown with its fruit: Shame, Justice, Desire, Pride, and Pain. Charm is a whore, and a madam. The wealthy and powerful of Borenguard come to her house to buy time with the girls who aren't real. Except on Tuesdays, which is when the Emperor himself lays claim to his mistress, Charm herself. But now—Charm is also the only person who can keep an empire together, as the Emperor summons her to his deathbed, and charges her with choosing which of his awful, faithless sons will carry on the empire—by discovering which one is responsible for his own murder. If she does this last thing, she will finally have what has been denied her since the fall of Inshil—her freedom. But she will also be betraying the ghosts past and present that live on within her heart. Charm must choose. Her dead Emperor’s will or the whispers of her own ghosts. Justice for the empire or her own revenge. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7f240ab8-b58f-4a7b-bf83-1f848df0e4d4/57945316-2.jpg Blog - Fantasy Standalone’s - Babel by R.F. Kuang Traduttore, traditore: An act of translation is always an act of betrayal. 1828. Robin Swift, orphaned by cholera in Canton, is brought to London by the mysterious Professor Lovell. There, he trains for years in Latin, Ancient Greek, and Chinese, all in preparation for the day he’ll enroll in Oxford University’s prestigious Royal Institute of Translation—also known as Babel. The tower and its students are the world's center for translation and, more importantly, magic. Silver-working—the art of manifesting the meaning lost in translation using enchanted silver bars—has made the British unparalleled in power, as the arcane craft serves the Empire's quest for colonization. For Robin, Oxford is a utopia dedicated to the pursuit of knowledge. But knowledge obeys power, and as a Chinese boy raised in Britain, Robin realizes serving Babel means betraying his motherland. As his studies progress, Robin finds himself caught between Babel and the shadowy Hermes Society, an organization dedicated to stopping imperial expansion. When Britain pursues an unjust war with China over silver and opium, Robin must decide . . . Can powerful institutions be changed from within, or does revolution always require violence? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/87d033dd-7a2a-4586-8c53-d9f12ce79045/44033470.jpg Blog - Fantasy Standalone’s - The Sword of Kaigen bt M.L. Wang On a mountainside at the edge of the Kaigenese Empire live the most powerful fighters in the world, warriors capable of raising the sea and wielding blades of ice. For centuries, the fighters of the Kusanagi Peninsula have held the Empire's enemies at bay, earning their treacherous spit of land the name 'The Sword of Kaigen.' Born into Kusanagi's legendary Matsuda family, fourteen-year-old Mamoru has always know his purpose: to master his family's fighting techniques and defend his homeland. But when an outsider arrives and pulls back the curtain on Kaigen's alleged age of peace, Mamoru ralizes that he might not have much time before he has to become the fighter he was bred to be. Even worse, the empire he was born to defend might stand on a foundation of lies. Misaki told herself that she left the passions of her youth behind when she married into the Matsuda house. Determined to be a good housewife and mother, she hid away her sword, along with everything from her days as a fighter in a faraway country. But with her son asking questions about the outside world, the threat of invasion looming on the horizon, and her frigid husband grating on her nerves, Misaki finds the fighter in her clawing its way back to the surface. When the winds of war reach their peninsula, will the Matsuda family have the strength to defend their empire? Or will they tear each other apart before the true enemies ever reach their shores? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f4a20406-7713-4c11-b695-02fc9d521b39/34499221.jpg Blog - Fantasy Standalone’s - To Kill a Kingdom by Alexandra Christo Princess Lira is siren royalty and the most lethal of them all. With the hearts of seventeen princes in her collection, she is revered across the sea. Until a twist of fate forces her to kill one of her own. To punish her daughter, the Sea Queen transforms Lira into the one thing they loathe most—a human. Robbed of her song, Lira has until the winter solstice to deliver Prince Elian’s heart to the Sea Queen or remain a human forever. The ocean is the only place Prince Elian calls home, even though he is heir to the most powerful kingdom in the world. Hunting sirens is more than an unsavory hobby—it’s his calling. When he rescues a drowning woman in the ocean, she’s more than what she appears. She promises to help him find the key to destroying all of sirenkind for good—But can he trust her? And just how many deals will Elian have to barter to eliminate mankind’s greatest enemy? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f8ca040b-8e26-492b-a9bd-50f55bb3ba77/56179377.jpg Blog - Fantasy Standalone’s - Nettle and Bone by T. Kingfisher After years of seeing her sisters suffer at the hands of an abusive prince, Marra—the shy, convent-raised, third-born daughter—has finally realized that no one is coming to their rescue. No one, except for Marra herself. Seeking help from a powerful gravewitch, Marra is offered the tools to kill a prince—if she can complete three impossible tasks. But, as is the way in tales of princes, witches, and daughters, the impossible is only the beginning. On her quest, Marra is joined by the gravewitch, a reluctant fairy godmother, a strapping former knight, and a chicken possessed by a demon. Together, the five of them intend to be the hand that closes around the throat of the prince and frees Marra's family and their kingdom from its tyrannous ruler at last. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/51a820c0-8973-4bb5-a2e4-fd4c02bd563e/75302266-3.jpg Blog - Fantasy Standalone’s - A Study in Drowning by Ava Reid Effy Sayre has always believed in fairy tales. Haunted by visions of the Fairy King since childhood, she’s had no choice. Her tattered copy of Angharad—Emrys Myrddin’s epic about a mortal girl who falls in love with the Fairy King, then destroys him—is the only thing keeping her afloat. So when Myrddin’s family announces a contest to redesign the late author’s estate, Effy feels certain it’s her destiny. But musty, decrepit Hiraeth Manor is an impossible task, and its residents are far from welcoming. Including Preston Héloury, a stodgy young literature scholar determined to expose Myrddin as a fraud. As the two rivals piece together clues about Myrddin’s legacy, dark forces, both mortal and magical, conspire against them—and the truth may bring them both to ruin. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1be747a2-128c-4044-a3b2-f7b47dbf5360/50202953.jpg Blog - Fantasy Standalone’s - Piranesi by Susanna Clarke Piranesi’s house is no ordinary building: its rooms are infinite, its corridors endless, its walls are lined with thousands upon thousands of statues, each one different from all the others. Within the labyrinth of halls an ocean is imprisoned; waves thunder up staircases, rooms are flooded in an instant. But Piranesi is not afraid; he understands the tides as he understands the pattern of the labyrinth itself. He lives to explore the house. There is one other person in the house—a man called The Other, who visits Piranesi twice a week and asks for help with research into A Great and Secret Knowledge. But as Piranesi explores, evidence emerges of another person, and a terrible truth begins to unravel, revealing a world beyond the one Piranesi has always known. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d264cbad-09ff-4b3c-bf09-740f1f45a477/38311338.jpg Blog - Fantasy Standalone’s - Masters of Death by Olivie Blake Viola Marek is a struggling real estate agent, and a vampire. But her biggest problem currently is that the house she needs to sell is haunted. The ghost haunting the house has been murdered, and until he can solve the mystery of how he died, he refuses to move on. Fox D’Mora is a medium, and though is also most-definitely a shameless fraud, he isn’t entirely without his uses—seeing as he’s actually the godson of Death. When Viola seeks out Fox to help her with her ghost-infested mansion, he becomes inextricably involved in a quest that neither he nor Vi expects (or wants). But with the help of an unruly poltergeist, a demonic personal trainer, a sharp-voiced angel, a love-stricken reaper, and a few high-functioning creatures, Vi and Fox soon discover the difference between a mysterious lost love and an annoying dead body isn’t nearly as distinct as they thought. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f5ed67f0-c01a-4124-ba0d-554dba333baf/62562898.jpg Blog - Fantasy Standalone’s - The Isles of the Gods by Amie Kaufman When Selly's father leaves her high and dry in the port of Kirkpool, she has no intention of riding out the winter on land while he sails to adventure in the north seas. But any plans to follow him are dashed when a handsome stranger with tell-tale magician's marks on his arm boards her ship, presenting her and the crew with a dangerous mission: to cross the Crescent Sea without detection so he can complete a ritual on the sacred Isles of the Gods. What starts as a leisure cruise will lead to acts of treason and sheer terror on the high seas, bringing two countries to the brink of war, two strangers closer than they ever thought possible and stirring two dangerous gods from centuries of slumber... https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b09875a3-bd73-49d0-871a-084dbb9b8b12/36510722.jpg Blog - Fantasy Standalone’s - Gods of Jade and Shadow by Silvia Moreno-Garcia The Jazz Age is in full swing, but Casiopea Tun is too busy cleaning the floors of her wealthy grandfather’s house to listen to any fast tunes. Nevertheless, she dreams of a life far from her dusty small town in southern Mexico. A life she can call her own. Yet this new life seems as distant as the stars, until the day she finds a curious wooden box in her grandfather’s room. She opens it—and accidentally frees the spirit of the Mayan god of death, who requests her help in recovering his throne from his treacherous brother. Failure will mean Casiopea’s demise, but success could make her dreams come true. In the company of the strangely alluring god and armed with her wits, Casiopea begins an adventure that will take her on a cross-country odyssey from the jungles of Yucatán to the bright lights of Mexico City—and deep into the darkness of the Mayan underworld. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/900fa1e2-a757-4ec7-afc0-d4d4df6a5494/43521657.jpg Blog - Fantasy Standalone’s - The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alex E. Harrow In a sprawling mansion filled with peculiar treasures, January Scaller is a curiosity herself. As the ward of the wealthy Mr. Locke, she feels little different from the artifacts that decorate the halls: carefully maintained, largely ignored, and utterly out of place. Then she finds a strange book. A book that carries the scent of other worlds, and tells a tale of secret doors, of love, adventure and danger. Each page turn reveals impossible truths about the world and January discovers a story increasingly entwined with her own. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/banned-books-1 monthly 0.5 2024-11-08 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/60e72472-f99d-4e42-abd8-11f3ef168bc5/5219.jpg Blog - Banned Books “The Bluest Eye” by Toni Morrison First published in 1970, Morrison’s novel about a Black girl growing up during the Great Depression is a meditation on the oppressive nature of America’s white-centric conception of beauty, as New York Times reviewer John Leonard wrote at the time. The story’s depiction of child abuse and sexual violence led to it being banned at a Southern California high school and elsewhere. (32 bans, 73 challenges) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/095b7bdf-1b6a-4bbb-91be-ef1c87a1a2e8/25256386.jpg Blog - Banned Books “Out of Darkness” by Ashley Hope Perez A 1937 explosion that killed nearly 300 students and teachers at a Texas school provides the historical context for this YA Novel a love story about a Black boy and a Mexican American girl. Published in 2015, the book written by an Ohio State University literature professor faced challenges in 2021 about sexual depictions in the story. (31 bans, 50 challenges) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8d25fc76-bd87-46c6-9f02-126753d98b8e/53522062.jpg Blog - Banned Books “The Hate U Give” by Angie Thomas Published in 2017, this novel about a teenage girl who witnesses a police officer kill her childhood best friend was inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement. The bestseller was adapted into a 2018 film by the same name. An Illinois school board cited inappropriate language as a reason to ban the book in 2022; other challenges cited violence and an anti-police message. At the Festival of Books in April, Thomas said books like hers are seen as dangerous because of the power they have to create change through empathy. (24 bans) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3f6227c5-9c79-4334-b032-ef2fc2b4b4d1/6676284.jpg Blog - Banned Books - “Crank” by Ellen Hopkins The author based her 2004 novel on her daughter’s struggle with addiction to crystal meth and says the experience helped her better understand the nature of addiction. “The power of this novel is still felt in the constant challenges it still faces nearly twenty years after it was originally published,” writes Maryland librarian Nia Thimakis for the ALA. Challenges cited the book’s depictions of drug use and a violent sexual encounter. (24 bans, 48 challenges) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5a38f3f4-46a3-4c94-b62e-b00f720c7d8b/693208.jpg Blog - Banned Books “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian” by Sherman Alexie Based on his own experiences, Alexie tells the story of a budding cartoonist growing up on a Spokane, Wash., reservation. Detractors have challenged the 2007 bestseller, citing sexual references and profanity. (21 bans, 52 challenges) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/dcdcfa0b-5159-486e-9b4d-f7af51495541/1217100.jpg Blog - Banned Books “Thirteen Reasons Why” by Jay Asher This 2007 novel explores the reasons a teenage girl decided to take her own life, recorded on cassette tapes discovered by a friend. The book was adapted into a Netflix series in 2017. One Colorado school district banned the book, saying it glamorized suicide, according to PBS News Hour (20 bans) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4cf95972-a0cd-41fa-8a59-af8081689a14/5107.jpg Blog - Banned Books “The Catcher in the Rye” by J.D. Salinger This 1951 novel is a classic of post-World War II American literature. The ALA notes that this title has been a favorite target of censors since its publication. Numerous school districts removed it from libraries and reading lists between 1960 and 2000. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c5bd223f-9f94-4165-8f12-82953073d9d8/12700353.jpg Blog - Banned Books “Me and Earl and the Dying Girl” by Jesse Andrews This 2012 novel centers around two teenage boys who try to make a movie about their female friend with leukemia. One Missouri school district pulled it from libraries in 2023 because of explicit sexual language. (20 bans, 48 challenges) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8bf9913d-3336-4e89-b016-0a66aacb65ed/201114.jpg Blog - Banned Books “Sold” by Patricia McCormick This 2006 novel, about a young Nepalese girl who struggles to survive being sold into sexual slavery, was a National Book Award finalist. But its realistic depiction of her plight has led to challenges. (18 bans) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7a42656f-c264-4bd2-8223-0e140daf2232/18114322.jpg Blog - Banned Books “The Grapes of Wrath” by John Steinbeck The Nobel Prize-winning author’s novel about the Dust Bowl and the hard lives of displaced farmers and their families in California became a bestseller in 1939. It was banned and copies were burned in Kern County, the destination of the fictional Joad family. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0556fadd-f52f-4fd9-a5a1-b5f0e32095d1/2657.jpg Blog - Banned Books “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee The classic 1960 novel about racial injustice in a Southern town has been banned and challenged in numerous communities. Challenges often cite language and racial depictions. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4d9b4445-7757-4033-9b20-b06c60fddfcf/5129.jpg Blog - Banned Books “Brave New World” by Aldous Huxley Modern Library’s editorial board ranked “Brave New World,” the 1932 novel about the discontents of a technologically-advanced future society, as the fifth most important novel of the 20th century. Nevertheless, the book was challenged as required reading in the Corona-Norco Unified School District in 1993 because it is “centered around negative activity.” The novel also was removed from a high school library in Foley, Ala., in 2000 after a parent complained that it showed contempt for religion, marriage and family. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0ddf57ba-f8f2-4cfc-bfdf-98a269a74d44/61439040.jpg Blog - Banned Books “Nineteen Eighty-Four” by George Orwell The 1949 dystopian novel was challenged in Florida in 1981 for being “pro-communist” and sexually explicit. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/october-book-club-book-reviews monthly 0.5 2024-11-02 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/chills-and-thrills monthly 0.5 2024-10-27 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bf3ee753-1f18-40b3-9c59-f51909183caa/53152636._SY475_.jpg Blog - Chills and Thrills - Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia After receiving a frantic letter from her newly-wed cousin begging for someone to save her from a mysterious doom, Noemí Taboada heads to High Place, a distant house in the Mexican countryside. She’s not sure what she will find—her cousin’s husband, a handsome Englishman, is a stranger, and Noemí knows little about the region. Noemí is also an unlikely rescuer: She’s a glamorous debutante, and her chic gowns and perfect red lipstick are more suited for cocktail parties than amateur sleuthing. But she’s also tough and smart, with an indomitable will, and she is not afraid: Not of her cousin’s new husband, who is both menacing and alluring; not of his father, the ancient patriarch who seems to be fascinated by Noemí; and not even of the house itself, which begins to invade Noemí’s dreams with visions of blood and doom. Her only ally in this inhospitable abode is the family’s youngest son. Shy and gentle, he seems to want to help Noemí, but might also be hiding dark knowledge of his family’s past. For there are many secrets behind the walls of High Place. The family’s once colossal wealth and faded mining empire kept them from prying eyes, but as Noemí digs deeper she unearths stories of violence and madness. And Noemí, mesmerized by the terrifying yet seductive world of High Place, may soon find it impossible to ever leave this enigmatic house behind. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f14d5a81-9a77-4bdd-b55e-2b66202a2ac5/58724923-2.jpg Blog - Chills and Thrills - Hidden Pictures by Jason Rekulak Mallory Quinn is fresh out of rehab when she takes a job as a babysitter for Ted and Caroline Maxwell. She is to look after their five-year-old son, Teddy. Mallory immediately loves it. She has her own living space, goes out for nightly runs, and has the stability she craves. And she sincerely bonds with Teddy, a sweet, shy boy who is never without his sketchbook and pencil. His drawings are the usual fare: trees, rabbits, balloons. But one day, he draws something different: a man in a forest, dragging a woman’s lifeless body. Then, Teddy’s artwork becomes increasingly sinister, and his stick figures quickly evolve into lifelike sketches well beyond the ability of any five-year-old. Mallory begins to wonder if these are glimpses of a long-unsolved murder, perhaps relayed by a supernatural force. Knowing just how crazy it all sounds, Mallory nevertheless sets out to decipher the images and save Teddy before it’s too late. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/36050cbf-332b-43aa-b73d-081b438b8fc2/43798285.jpg Blog - Chills and Thrills - The Institute by Stephen King In the middle of the night, in a house on a quiet street in suburban Minneapolis, intruders silently murder Luke Ellis’s parents and load him into a black SUV. The operation takes less than two minutes. Luke will wake up at The Institute, in a room that looks just like his own, except there’s no window. And outside his door are other doors, behind which are other kids with special talents—telekinesis and telepathy—who got to this place the same way Luke did: Kalisha, Nick, George, Iris, and ten-year-old Avery Dixon. They are all in Front Half. Others, Luke learns, graduated to Back Half, “like the roach motel,” Kalisha says. “You check in, but you don’t check out.” In this most sinister of institutions, the director, Mrs. Sigsby, and her staff are ruthlessly dedicated to extracting from these children the force of their extranormal gifts. There are no scruples here. If you go along, you get tokens for the vending machines. If you don’t, punishment is brutal. As each new victim disappears to Back Half, Luke becomes more and more desperate to get out and get help. But no one has ever escaped from the Institute. As psychically terrifying as Firestarter, and with the spectacular kid power of It, The Institute is Stephen King's gut-wrenchingly dramatic story of good versus evil in a world where the good guys don't always win. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2ad3db24-1d1f-4b85-8333-9f98b2c74afe/53285047.jpg Blog - Chills and Thrills - Bunny by Mona Awad We were just these innocent girls in the night trying to make something beautiful. We nearly died. We very nearly did, didn't we? Samantha Heather Mackey couldn't be more of an outsider in her small, highly selective MFA program at New England's Warren University. A scholarship student who prefers the company of her dark imagination to that of most people, she is utterly repelled by the rest of her fiction writing cohort--a clique of unbearably twee rich girls who call each other Bunny, and seem to move and speak as one. But everything changes when Samantha receives an invitation to the Bunnies' fabled Smut Salon, and finds herself inexplicably drawn to their front door--ditching her only friend, Ava, in the process. As Samantha plunges deeper and deeper into the Bunnies' sinister yet saccharine world, beginning to take part in the ritualistic off-campus Workshop where they conjure their monstrous creations, the edges of reality begin to blur. Soon, her friendships with Ava and the Bunnies will be brought into deadly collision. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c93527fb-d245-48b5-9bc8-ab8a8c80d176/50833559-2.jpg Blog - Chills and Thrills - Home Before Dark by Riley Sagar What was it like? Living in that house. Maggie Holt is used to such questions. Twenty-five years ago, she and her parents, Ewan and Jess, moved into Baneberry Hall, a rambling Victorian estate in the Vermont woods. They spent three weeks there before fleeing in the dead of night, an ordeal Ewan later recounted in a nonfiction book called House of Horrors. His tale of ghostly happenings and encounters with malevolent spirits became a worldwide phenomenon, rivaling The Amityville Horror in popularity—and skepticism. Today, Maggie is a restorer of old homes and too young to remember any of the events mentioned in her father’s book. But she also doesn’t believe a word of it. Ghosts, after all, don’t exist. When Maggie inherits Baneberry Hall after her father’s death, she returns to renovate the place to prepare it for sale. But her homecoming is anything but warm. People from the past, chronicled in House of Horrors, lurk in the shadows. And locals aren’t thrilled that their small town has been made infamous thanks to Maggie’s father. Even more unnerving is Baneberry Hall itself—a place filled with relics from another era that hint at a history of dark deeds. As Maggie experiences strange occurrences straight out of her father’s book, she starts to believe that what he wrote was more fact than fiction. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e78e5e50-2ed7-461d-9709-ec27d254c34e/58724626.jpg Blog - Chills and Thrills - What Moves The Dead by T. Kingfisher When Alex Easton, a retired soldier, receives word that their childhood friend Madeline Usher is dying, they race to the ancestral home of the Ushers in the remote countryside of Ruravia. What they find there is a nightmare of fungal growths and possessed wildlife, surrounding a dark, pulsing lake. Madeline sleepwalks and speaks in strange voices at night, and her brother Roderick is consumed with a mysterious malady of the nerves. Aided by a redoubtable British mycologist and a baffled American doctor, Alex must unravel the secret of the House of Usher before it consumes them all. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b510b737-8a98-4fba-a667-b886cc116e8f/61111034.jpg Blog - Chills and Thrills - Our Share of Night by Mariana Enriquez A woman’s mysterious death puts her husband and son on a collision course with her demonic family. A young father and son set out on a road trip, devastated by the death of the wife and mother they both loved. United in grief, the pair travel to her ancestral home, where they must confront the terrifying legacy she has bequeathed: a family called the Order that commits unspeakable acts in search of immortality. For Gaspar, the son, this maniacal cult is his destiny. As the Order tries to pull him into their evil, he and his father take flight, attempting to outrun a powerful clan that will do anything to ensure its own survival. But how far will Gaspar’s father go to protect his child? And can anyone escape their fate? Moving back and forth in time, from London in the swinging 1960s to the brutal years of Argentina’s military dictatorship and its turbulent aftermath, Our Share of Night is a novel like no other: a family story, a ghost story, a story of the occult and the supernatural, a book about the complexities of love and longing with queer subplots and themes. This is the masterwork of one of Latin America’s most original novelists, “a mesmerizing writer,” says Dave Eggers, “who demands to be read.” https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/78d95bc4-214f-44fb-abb0-3bd207738f3d/43522576.jpg Blog - Chills and Thrills - Imaginary Friend by Stephen Chbosky Christopher is seven years old. Christopher is the new kid in town. Christopher has an imaginary friend. We can swallow our fear or let our fear swallow us. Single mother Kate Reese is on the run. Determined to improve life for her and her son, Christopher, she flees an abusive relationship in the middle of the night with her child. Together, they find themselves drawn to the tight-knit community of Mill Grove, Pennsylvania. It's as far off the beaten track as they can get. Just one highway in, one highway out. At first, it seems like the perfect place to finally settle down. Then Christopher vanishes. For six long days, no one can find him. Until Christopher emerges from the woods at the edge of town, unharmed but not unchanged. He returns with a voice in his head only he can hear, with a mission only he can complete: Build a treehouse in the woods by Christmas, or his mother and everyone in the town will never be the same again. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3f110e17-1f86-4d0a-a65f-d53f82567b82/63264519.jpg Blog - Chills and Thrills - Dead of Winter by Darcy Coates When Christa joins a tour group heading deep into the snowy expanse of the Rocky Mountains, she's hopeful this will be her chance to put the ghosts of her past to rest. But when a bitterly cold snowstorm sweeps the region, the small group is forced to take shelter in an abandoned hunting cabin. Despite the uncomfortably claustrophobic quarters and rapidly dropping temperature, Christa believes they'll be safe as they wait out the storm. She couldn't be more wrong. Deep in the night, their tour guide goes missing...only to be discovered the following morning, his severed head impaled on a tree outside the cabin. Terrified, and completely isolated by the storm, Christa finds herself trapped with eight total strangers. One of them kills for sport...and they're far from finished. As the storm grows more dangerous and the number of survivors dwindles one by one, Christa must decide who she can trust before this frozen mountain becomes her tomb. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7938c962-21e6-496f-850a-a967d9959f9f/195703882.jpg Blog - Chills and Thrills - The Eyes Are the Best Part by Monika Kim Ji-won’s life tumbles into disarray in the wake of her appa’s extramarital affair and subsequent departure. Her mother, distraught. Her younger sister, hurt and confused. Her college freshman grades, failing. Her dreams, horrifying… yet enticing. In them, Ji-won walks through bloody rooms full of eyes. Succulent blue eyes. Salivatingly blue eyes. Eyes the same shape and shade as George’s, who is Umma’s obnoxious new boyfriend. George has already overstayed his welcome in her family’s claustrophobic apartment. He brags about his puffed-up consulting job, ogles Asian waitresses while dining out, and acts condescending toward Ji-won and her sister as if he deserves all of Umma’s fawning adoration. No, George doesn’t deserve anything from her family. Ji-won will make sure of that. For no matter how many victims accumulate around her campus or how many people she must deceive and manipulate, Ji-won’s hunger and her rage deserve to be sated. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1b2305ac-c412-4673-9124-564ce3ca6e52/42881101.jpg Blog - Chills and Thrills - The Girl in Red by Christina Henry It's not safe for anyone alone in the woods. There are predators that come out at night: critters and coyotes, snakes and wolves. But the woman in the red jacket has no choice. Not since the Crisis came, decimated the population, and sent those who survived fleeing into quarantine camps that serve as breeding grounds for death, destruction, and disease. She is just a woman trying not to get killed in a world that doesn't look anything like the one she grew up in, the one that was perfectly sane and normal and boring until three months ago. There are worse threats in the woods than the things that stalk their prey at night. Sometimes, there are men. Men with dark desires, weak wills, and evil intents. Men in uniform with classified information, deadly secrets, and unforgiving orders. And sometimes, just sometimes, there's something worse than all of the horrible people and vicious beasts combined. Red doesn't like to think of herself as a killer, but she isn't about to let herself get eaten up just because she is a woman alone in the woods.... https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0fb36366-7b6a-40a8-9535-08f56c7ebc2b/52581895.jpg Blog - Chills and Thrills - Survivor Song by Paul Tremblay In a matter of weeks, Massachusetts has been overrun by an insidious rabies-like virus that is spread by saliva. But unlike rabies, the disease has a terrifyingly short incubation period of an hour or less. Those infected quickly lose their minds and are driven to bite and infect as many others as they can before they inevitably succumb. Hospitals are inundated with the sick and dying, and hysteria has taken hold. To try to limit its spread, the commonwealth is under quarantine and curfew. But society is breaking down and the government's emergency protocols are faltering. Dr. Ramola "Rams" Sherman, a soft-spoken pediatrician in her mid-thirties, receives a frantic phone call from Natalie, a friend who is eight months pregnant. Natalie's husband has been killed—viciously attacked by an infected neighbor—and in a failed attempt to save him, Natalie, too, was bitten. Natalie's only chance of survival is to get to a hospital as quickly as possible to receive a rabies vaccine. The clock is ticking for her and for her unborn child. Natalie’s fight for life becomes a desperate odyssey as she and Rams make their way through a hostile landscape filled with dangers beyond their worst nightmares—terrifying, strange, and sometimes deadly challenges that push them to the brink. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1819d3c9-5036-426b-9fc8-48f6814a33b5/101145269.jpg Blog - Chills and Thrills - My Darling Girl by Jennifer McMahon A spine-tingling psychological thriller about a woman who, after taking in her dying, alcoholic mother, begins to suspect demonic possession is haunting her family. Alison has never been a fan of Christmas. But with it right around the corner and her husband busily decorating their cozy Vermont home, she has no choice but to face it. Then she gets the call. Mavis, Alison’s estranged mother, has been diagnosed with cancer and has only weeks to live. She wants to spend her remaining days with her daughter, son-in-law, and two granddaughters. But Alison grew up with her mother’s alcoholism and violent abuse and is reluctant to unearth these traumatic memories. Still, she eventually agrees to take in Mavis, hoping that she and her mother could finally heal and have the relationship she’s always dreamed of. But when mysterious and otherworldly things start happening upon Mavis’s arrival, Alison begins to suspect her mother is not quite who she seems. And as the holiday festivities turn into a nightmare, she must confront just how far she is willing to go to protect her family. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/86b8edd7-5c28-45d3-b680-a84d987c0353/199757490.jpg Blog - Chills and Thrills - Incidents Around the House by Josh Malerman To eight-year-old Bela, her family is her world. There’s Mommy, Daddo, and Grandma Ruth. But there is also Other Mommy, a malevolent entity who asks her every day: “Can I go inside your heart?” When horrifying incidents around the house signal that Other Mommy is growing tired of asking Bela the same question, over and over . . . Bela understands that unless she says yes, soon her family must pay. Other Mommy is getting restless, stronger, bolder. Only the bonds of family can keep Bela safe but other incidents show cracks in her parents' marriage. The safety Bela relies on is on the brink of unraveling. But Other Mommy needs an answer. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b7f1c0e0-2c83-4a85-9e53-23266f7b586e/56179382.jpg Blog - Chills and Thrills - Comfort Me With Apples by Catherynne M. Valente Sophia was made for him. Her perfect husband. She can feel it in her bones. He is perfect. Their home together in Arcadia Gardens is perfect. Everything is perfect. It's just that he's away so much. So often. He works so hard. She misses him. And he misses her. He says he does, so it must be true. He is the perfect husband and everything is perfect. But sometimes Sophia wonders about things. Strange things. Dark things. The look on her husband's face when he comes back from a long business trip. The questions he will not answer. The locked basement she is never allowed to enter. And whenever she asks the neighbors, they can't quite meet her gaze... But everything is perfect. Isn't it? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8836990f-6420-4ef0-aa42-a1759ea1cfcf/62976325.jpg Blog - Chills and Thrills - Delicate Condition by Danielle Valentine Anna Alcott is desperate to be pregnant. But as she tries to balance her increasingly public life with a grueling IVF journey, she starts to suspect that someone is going to great lengths to make sure her pregnancy never happens. Crucial medicines are lost. Appointments get swapped without her knowledge. And even when she finally manages to get pregnant, not even her husband is willing to believe that someone's playing a twisted game with her. When the increasingly cryptic threats drive her out of her Brooklyn brownstone and into hiding in the cold, gray ghost town that is the Hamptons in the depths of winter, Anna is almost at the end of her rope. Then her doctor tells her she's had a miscarriage—except Anna's convinced she's still pregnant, despite everything the grave-faced men around her claim. Could it be that her mind is playing tricks on her? Or is something more sinister at play? As her symptoms become ever more horrifying and the sense of danger ever more present, Anna can't help but wonder what exactly she's carrying inside of her...and why no one will listen when she says something is horribly, painfully wrong. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b6504c9e-0046-4a6d-82ec-a73449991821/55782435.jpg.png Blog - Chills and Thrills - The Book of Accidents by Chuck Wending Long ago, Nathan lived in a house in the country with his abusive father—and has never told his family what happened there. Long ago, Maddie was a little girl making dolls in her bedroom when she saw something she shouldn’t have—and is trying to remember that lost trauma by making haunting sculptures. Long ago, something sinister, something hungry, walked in the tunnels and the mountains and the coal mines of their hometown in rural Pennsylvania. Now, Nate and Maddie Graves are married, and they have moved back to their hometown with their son, Oliver. And now what happened long ago is happening again . . . and it is happening to Oliver. He meets a strange boy who becomes his best friend, a boy with secrets of his own and a taste for dark magic. This dark magic puts them at the heart of a battle of good versus evil and a fight for the soul of the family—and perhaps for all of the world. But the Graves family has a secret weapon in this battle: their love for one another. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/12399096-7be9-49c2-bf91-6951d285b05f/64623481-2.jpg Blog - Chills and Thrills - The September House by Carissa Orlando 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. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/195fe7ad-4ef7-437d-8330-b726a970626f/53256108.jpg Blog - Chills and Thrills - All’s Well by Mona Awad Miranda Fitch’s life is a waking nightmare. The accident that ended her burgeoning acting career left her with excruciating, chronic back pain, a failed marriage, and a deepening dependence on painkillers. And now she’s on the verge of losing her job as a college theater director. Determined to put on Shakespeare’s All’s Well That Ends Well, the play that promised, and cost, her everything, she faces a mutinous cast hellbent on staging Macbeth instead. Miranda sees her chance at redemption slip through her fingers. That’s when she meets three strange benefactors who have an eerie knowledge of Miranda’s past and a tantalizing promise for her future: one where the show goes on, her rebellious students get what’s coming to them, and the invisible, doubted pain that’s kept her from the spotlight is made known. With prose Margaret Atwood has described as “no punches pulled, no hilarities dodged...genius,” Mona Awad has concocted her most potent, subversive novel yet. All’s Well is the story of a woman at her breaking point and a formidable, piercingly funny indictment of our collective refusal to witness and believe female pain. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7ab13c1d-d85f-4ea7-97fc-09c1a0f7b5e9/55169043.jpg Blog - Chills and Thrills - The Shadows by Alex North You knew a teenager like Charlie Crabtree. A dark imagination, a sinister smile--always on the outside of the group. Some part of you suspected he might be capable of doing something awful. Twenty-five years ago, Crabtree did just that, committing a murder so shocking that it’s attracted that strange kind of infamy that only exists on the darkest corners of the internet--and inspired more than one copycat. Paul Adams remembers the case all too well: Crabtree--and his victim--were Paul’s friends. Paul has slowly put his life back together. But now his mother, old and suffering from dementia, has taken a turn for the worse. Though every inch of him resists, it is time to come home. It's not long before things start to go wrong. Paul learns that Detective Amanda Beck is investigating another copycat that has struck in the nearby town of Featherbank. His mother is distressed, insistent that there's something in the house. And someone is following him. Which reminds him of the most unsettling thing about that awful day twenty-five years ago. It wasn't just the murder. It was the fact that afterward, Charlie Crabtree was never seen again... https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/november-new-releases monthly 0.5 2024-10-21 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/dfb10b4a-375c-47bf-8d26-08fd1c520cdc/208920886.jpg Blog - November New Releases - A Tribute of Fire by Sariah Wilson Lia is the princess of Locris, a dying desert nation cursed centuries ago by an earth goddess—one still worshipped by the thriving and adversarial nation of Ilion. Every year, Ilion offers the goddess a sacrifice: two Locrian maidens forced to compete in a life-and-death race to reach her temple. In a millennium, no maiden has made it out of Ilion alive. This year, Lia is one of the hunted. An education in battle gives her a fighting chance, but the challenges are greater than she feared: Lia’s beloved but untrained sister Quynh has been put in the path of danger. The winding streets of Ilion itself have been transformed into a labyrinthine maze of countless choices and dead ends. And if the risks weren’t significant enough, Lia is reluctantly drawn to the commandingly attractive Jason, an Ilionian sailor she loathes to trust and desires like no man before. The tribute game is on. It’s up to Lia to lift the goddess’s curse, restore Locris to its former glory, and change the fate of every young woman destined to follow in her path. Release Date: November 1, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4257d4ab-97d1-48d5-9f0b-35a3ce3ae14f/202991908.jpg Blog - November New Releases - A Very Bad Thing by J.T. Ellison A great writer knows when to deliver a juicy plot twist. But for one author, the biggest twist of all is her own murder. With a number of hit titles and a highly anticipated movie tie-in, celebrated novelist Columbia Jones is at the top of her game. Fans around the world adore her. But on the final night of her latest book tour, one face in the crowd makes the author collapse. And by the next morning, she’s lying dead in a pool of blood. Columbia’s death shocks the world and leaves Darian, her daughter and publicist, reeling. The police have nothing to go on—at first. But then details emerge, pointing to the author’s illicit past. Turns out many people had motive to kill Columbia. And with a hungry reporter and frustrated cop on the trail, her secrets won’t stay buried long. But how many lives will they shatter as the truth comes out? Release Date: November 1, 2024 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5f39ae05-d17d-4ff9-adce-4a0fc7fe5cbf/206673322.jpg.png Blog - November New Releases - Lost and Lassoed by Lyla Sage Teddy Andersen doesn't have a plan. She's never needed one before. She's always been more of a go with the flow type of girl, but for some reason, the flow doesn't seem to be going her way this time. Her favorite vintage suede jacket has a hole in it, her sewing machine is broken, and her best friend just got engaged. Suddenly, everything feels like it's starting to change. Teddy's used to being a leader, but now she feels like she's getting left behind, wondering if the life she lives in the small town she loves is enough for her anymore. Gus Ryder has a lot on his plate. He doesn't know what's taking care of his family's 8,000 acre ranch, or parenting his spunky six-year-old daughter, who is staying with him for the summer. Gus has always been the dependable one, but when his workload starts to overwhelm him, he slips up, and he has to admit that he can't manage everything on his own. He needs help. His little sister's best friend, the woman he can't stand, is not who he had in mind. But when no one else can step in, Teddy's the only option he's got. Teddy decides to use the summer to try and figure out what she wants out of life. Gus, on the other hand, starts to worry that he'll never find what he needs. Tempers flare, tension builds, and for the first time ever, Gus and Teddy start to see each other in a different light. As new feelings start to simmer below the surface, they must decide whether or not to act on them. Can they keep things cool? Or will both of them get burned? Release Date: November 5, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1a4ee8b5-fff8-4205-9d11-a07b8f7bfd88/203578814.jpg Blog - November New Releases - Where the Library Hides by Isabel Ibanez 1885, Egypt Inez Olivera is left reeling from her cousin Elvira’s murder, and her mother’s betrayal, and when Tío Ricardo issues an ultimatum about her inheritance, she’s left with only one option to consider. Marriage to Whitford Hayes. Former British soldier, her uncle’s aide de camp, and one time nemesis, Whit has his own mysterious reasons for staying in Egypt. With her heart on the line, Inez might have to bind her fate to the one person whose secret plans could ruin her. Release Date: November 5, 2024 Genre: Historical Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/196ff672-f265-4bfd-9242-edb94fe21f0e/207571151.jpg Blog - November New Releases - The Lake of Lost Girls by Katherine Greene It's 1998, and female students are going missing at Southern State University in North Carolina. But freshman Jessica Fadley, once a bright and responsible student, is going through her own struggles. Just as her life seems to be careening dangerously out of control, she suddenly disappears. Twenty-four years later, Jessica's sister Lindsey is desperately searching for answers and uses the momentum of a new chart-topping true crime podcast, Ten Seconds to Vanish, that focuses on the cold cases, to guide her own investigation. Soon, interest reaches fever pitch when the bodies of the long-missing women begin turning up at a local lake, which leads Lindsey down a disturbing road of discovery. In the present, one sister seeks to untangle a complicated web of lies. In the past, the other descends ever deeper into a darkness that will lead to her ultimate fate. This propulsive and chilling suspense is a sharp examination of sisterhood and the culture of true crime. Release Date: November 5, 2024 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/192176a3-9585-48f9-93ab-0ede8bf32fb5/210722967.jpg Blog - November New Releases - Hexed by Emily McIntire Venesa Andersen has never been good. She wasn’t good enough for her parents, and she isn’t good enough for the gangster uncle who took her in after they died. But she’s cunning. Beautiful. Dutiful to her uncle’s demands. And she doesn’t have time for a moral compass, anyway. When her runaway cousin returns to their coastal southern town, she brings a man with her…and Venesa soon realizes he’s the only one who’s ever seen her for her. There’s just one problem: she can never have him. Enzo “Loverboy” Marino is a wealthy businessman by day and prince of the underworld by night. Underboss to a notorious mafia syndicate, he answers to no one except his father, the strongest don in the Northeast. When he’s tasked with marriage, Enzo doesn’t think twice. Until he meets his fiancée’s cousin. Venesa is everything he never knew he wanted, bewitching him with her sultry voice and supple curves. But Enzo learned long ago that for a man like him, life is better without the things you want. When plans unravel and temptation sings its siren song, they’ll both have to choose what’s more important: duty to their families, or a forbidden love that was never supposed to be. Release Date: November 5, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e3529d2a-6d5a-4dcf-ada1-460b38422514/208209832.jpg Blog - November New Releases - Games Untold by Jennifer Lynn Barnes There is nothing frivolous about the way a Hawthorne man loves. An amnesiac playboy and the woman with every reason to hate him. A daredevil, his favorite heiress, and three nights in Prague. An unlikely pairing between a cowboy and a goth. Four brothers with an inescapable bond, strengthened by the family they chose, in a house of wonders that promises to always deliver one more secret. Discover their stories of love and loss, power, puzzles, and life-and-death secrets in this mind-blowingly romantic collection that proves that when you love the way Hawthornes love, there is no going back. Release Date: November 12, 2024 Genre: Young Adult https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/cd4aced5-6c95-436b-9ee9-d555304a8a8d/201335478.jpg Blog - November New Releases - The Starlets by Lee Kelly and Jennifer Thorne Real life is turning out to be stranger than a script for the silver screen. Vivienne Rhodes thinks she’s finally landed her break playing Helen in Apex Pictures’ big-budget Troy epic, A Thousand Ships, an anticipated blockbuster meant to resurrect the failing studio. Naturally, she’s devastated when she arrives on the remote Italian island of Tavalli and finds herself cast as Cassandra—while her nemesis, the fiancée-stealing Lottie Lawrence, America’s supposed “sweetheart,” is headlining instead. The tension on set, though, turns deadly when the ladies discover that members of the crew are using the production as a front for something decidedly illegal—and that they are willing to kill to keep their dealings under wraps. When the two women find themselves on the run and holding key evidence, Vivienne and Lottie frantically agree to work together to deliver the proof to Interpol, hoping to protect both their lives and their careers. Staying one step ahead of corrupt cops and looming mobsters, the arch rivals flee across the seas. Their journey leads them into Monaco’s casinos, Grace Kelly’s palace, on a road trip through the Alps—even onto another film set, before a final showdown on Tavalli, where the lives of the entire cast and crew hang in the balance. Vivienne and Lottie finally have the chance to be real heroines—to save the day, the film, maybe even each other—but only if they can first figure out how to share the spotlight Release Date: November 12, 2024 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ccb31de1-72af-403b-9f2f-47a4922970d3/207003676.jpg Blog - November New Releases - Skyshade by Alex Aster Love kills kingdoms… Back in Grim’s castle on Nightshade, Isla is reeling in the wake of a brutal battle and the devastating truths it exposed. Her future—and the fate of the world—now hinge on a heart split in two. Past Isla, who fell in love with the ruler of Nightshade, fights to resist feelings she considers treasonous. The Isla of the present, who has seen the ruin her powers can cause, will do anything to save Lightlark and its king. As the line between enemy and friend is tested, Isla is more desperate than ever to understand the oracle’s final prophecy and change her heartrending fate. But a storm is coming. And with it, a long-buried evil greater than anything the realms have faced before. With the clock ticking on her destiny and the survival of two warring kingdoms hinging on her own shattered heart, Isla Crown will either save the world—or destroy it. Release Date: November 12, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f802648f-390a-47fb-a881-e9b3f1e7ac01/208515903.jpg Blog - November New Releases - Heist Royale by Kayvion Lewis t's been six months since the end of the Gambit. Instead of winning an impossible wish, Ross has the threat of her family’s execution hanging over her head. Devroe, the only person Ross thought she could trust, could wish the Quests into oblivion at any time. Shockingly, despite his betrayal, Devroe is still making a play for Ross’s heart as the two work together pulling jobs for the Organization. But Ross has learned her lesson: A Quest can only trust another Quest. When Ross finds herself at the center of a power struggle within the Organization, she sees her chance to change her fortunes. As a new deadly Gambit develops for control of the criminal underworld, Ross strikes a risky deal to guarantee protection for herself and her family. In this final clash, Ross will square off against a ruthless opponent who will stop at nothing to seize power, and in their corner will be not only Devroe but his mother, who wants to destroy the Quests at any cost. The new Gambit takes Ross and her crew into the intoxicating casinos of Monte Carlo and across treacherous snow-covered slopes in Antarctica as Ross competes against Devroe in a fight for her life. Loyalties will be tested, backs stabbed, hearts broken. May the best thief win. Release Date: November 12, 2024 Genre: Young Adult https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/52851645-5090-4a37-b0ce-10dc941ffb8b/199531966.jpg Blog - November New Releases - Shy Creatures by Clare Chambers In all failed relationships there is a point that passes unnoticed at the time, which can later be identified as the beginning of the decline. For Helen it was the weekend that the Hidden Man came to Westbury Park. Croydon, 1964. Helen Hansford is in her thirties and an art therapist in a psychiatric hospital where she has been having a long love affair with a charismatic, married doctor. One spring afternoon they receive a call about a disturbance from a derelict house not far from Helen's home. A mute, thirty-seven-year-old man called William Tapping, with a beard down to his waist, has been discovered along with his elderly aunt. It is clear he has been shut up in the house for decades, but when it emerges that William is a talented artist, Helen is determined to discover his story. Release Date: November 12, 2024 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2dca94eb-3892-4b9a-b858-8911b7bf7f2b/200502380.jpg Blog - November New Releases - Our Deadly Designs by Kalyn Josephson The Illinir may be over, but the race for Enderlain’s future has just begun. The hunt for the old king’s lost heir is on, and the first to find them will win the throne. Mikira has allied herself with the rebels in pursuit of the lost heir, but the deeper her search takes her, the closer she gets to the royal family's wicked past. Ari is struggling to control her own growing power as she grapples with a dark secret that may be her undoing — and the truth behind Damien's greatest foe. Damien, the new head of House Adair, joins the race to find the heir and secure the crown. But as his influence at court grows, so does his paranoia and hunger for power. Reid is trying his best to stay true to the friend who's always had his loyalty — and the flame who has his heart — while trapped in a web of chaos and lies. But a darker force is festering in Enderlain’s underbelly, and Mikira, Ari, Damien, and Reid will need to find a way back to each other — and themselves — before the kingdom is torn apart. Hearts will be broken and new bonds will be forged in this explosive finale to This Dark Descent, where spellbinding fantasy meets Jewish mythology in a cut-throat race for the throne — and Enderlain’s survival. Release Date: November 12, 2024 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/fcb53880-1265-42d7-8af4-4c81adc9da85/203579150.jpg Blog - November New Releases - The Sunflower House by Adrianna Allegri In a sleepy German village, Allina Strauss’s life seems idyllic: she works at her uncle’s bookshop, makes strudel with her aunt, and spends weekends with her friends and fiancé. But it's 1939, Adolf Hitler is Chancellor, and Allina’s family hides a terrifying secret—her birth mother was Jewish, making her a Mischling. One fateful night after losing everyone she loves, Allina is forced into service as a nurse at a state-run baby factory called Hochland Home. There, she becomes both witness and participant to the horrors of Heinrich Himmler’s ruthless eugenics program. The Sunflower House is a meticulously-researched debut historical novel that uncovers the notorious Lebensborn Program of Nazi Germany. Women of “pure” blood stayed in Lebensborn homes for the sole purpose of perpetuating the Aryan population, giving birth to thousands of babies who were adopted out to “good” Nazi families. Allina must keep her Jewish identity a secret in order to survive, but when she discovers the neglect occurring within the home, she’s determined not only to save herself, but also the children in her care. A tale of one woman’s determination to resist and survive, The Sunflower House is also a love story. When Allina meets Karl, a high-ranking SS officer with secrets of his own, the two must decide how much they are willing to share with each other—and how much they can stand to risk as they join forces to save as many children as they can. The threads of this poignant and heartrending novel weave a tale of loss and love, friendship and betrayal, and the secrets we bury in order to save ourselves. Release Date: November 12, 2024 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0afa7472-158a-4d5a-9455-9435e5656feb/203579073.jpg Blog - November New Releases - Deadly Animals by Marie Tierney Finding a dead body is not normal. But Ava is not a normal teenager. In this chilling debut mystery, only the obsessive spirit of youth can save a sleepy town from the savagery within. Fourteen-year-old Ava Bonney is unlike other children. She has an obsessive interest in the rate at which dead animals decompose. The motorway she lives by regularly offers up roadkill, and in the dead of night, Ava likes nothing more than to pull her latest discovery into her roadside den and record her findings. One night, she stumbles across the body of her classmate Mickey Grant, and fearing that her secret ritual could be revealed, she makes an anonymous call to the police. When Detective Seth Delahaye is given the case, Ava won’t step back—not when teenagers in her sleepy South Birmingham town are going missing. How hard can it be to track a killer? Release Date: November 12, 2024 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c5bb5169-880b-4a00-a0c6-8aef12dc7cf4/109253821.jpg Blog - November New Releases - Midnights With You by Clare Osongco “Where were you thinking of going?” “Nowhere.” “Great,” he says lightly, putting the car in gear. “Then we’ll go there.” Seventeen-year-old Deedee’s life is full of family ghosts and questions she can’t ask. She longs for an escape, but guilt holds her back—that, and the fact that her strict Filipino single mom won’t let her learn to drive. But one sleepless night leads Deedee down a road she never thought possible: secret driving lessons with the new boy next door, Jay, whose turbulent family life also keeps him up until sunrise. As midnights stretch into days, Jay helps Deedee begin to unravel her past, and as shared secrets blossom into love, Deedee starts to imagine a life where happiness is possible. But the deeper she digs into the trauma that has shaped her, the more that trauma threatens to tear Deedee and Jay apart. Together, these two must decide if the pain they’ve both inherited has the power to choose their fate, or if they have the power to choose for themselves. Release Date: November 12, 2024 Genre: Young Adult https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/06b6130d-1293-4f84-9947-5b2667d0fa5d/210296786.jpg Blog - November New Releases - The Liberty Scarf by Aimie K. Runyan, J’nell Ciesielski, and Rachel McMillan In the midst of a seemingly endless war, a scarf connects three women in the cold winter of 1917 . . . As an ambitious scarf maker, Iris Braxton spends her days surrounded by color and luxury not often seen during the dark days of war that promised to be over by Christmas. That promise has come and gone for three years with still no end in sight and her days continue in a monotony of rations and threads while she spins a dream of becoming Liberty's first female pattern designer. She hasn't the time or interest in rakish soldiers, but the temporarily-on-leave Captain Conrad Jones is persistent--and before long his charm wins her over. But war is cruel and all too soon Conrad leaves once more for the Front, but not before vowing to meet again in Strasbourg, France, the most magical of Christmas cities. Iris begins stitching small messages into each of the scarves she makes in hopes that one will find a way into Conrad's hands to let him know she's thinking of him. And when she receives word that he's wounded in Strasbourg, she rushes to his side. Along the way, she passes a woman wearing one of her scarves . . . Geneviève Tremblay, a French-Canadian immigrant, is a telephone operator living in Lewiston, Maine. Her beau is a member of a prominent family who has helped to Americanize her in a community often unfriendly to Canadians. As part of this effort, she enlists in the US Army Signal Corps to serve as a bi-lingual operator. Along the way, she meets a French officer who makes her question whether losing her identity is too heavy a price for acceptance. The Clara Janssens, a Flemish Nurse, and Roman Allaire, an Alsatian violinist, are chosen to play for an orchestra providing morale on the front lines. This is a world they've never known, far beyond their routine provincial and countryside lives--and the expectations in those towns. Their love of music creates a spark between them, but the destruction of battle and the fulfillment of a promise threaten their romance. Still, the appearance of a kind stranger and the unexpected gift of a treasured scarf bind them long beyond their stolen moments and offer them a future beyond what they could have even hoped. Release Date: November 19, 2024 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b52da391-a94e-4ecf-919c-40b7656b3bbc/209455855.jpg Blog - November New Releases - Dirty Diana by Jen Besser and Shana Feste Diana Wood has a job she likes and a husband, Oliver, she loves. Together, they have a daughter they adore. She and Oliver spend so much time together, they even carpool to work in the same office. They’re in married love, which isn’t exactly the same as love love, but it’s fine.Or is it? Is fine good enough? Diana and Oliver haven’t had sex in months and their intimacy seems more like a memory than a reality. The cozy trappings of Diana’s life in Dallas, Texas have become ever-more confining. She is restless, growing more distant from Oliver by the day. A trip to see an old friend in Santa Fe prompts Diana to remember the woman she used to an aspiring artist; someone devoted to creativity, spontaneity, sensuality. In her past—especially with Jasper, the dashing photographer with whom she once had an unforgettable love affair—Diana let herself fantasize, she let her body lead the way. She was wholly…alive. Returning to Dallas, Diana decides to rediscover the deeply feeling woman she once was. She begins interviewing other women, painting their portraits as they speak. She encourages them to give voice to their secret desires as she captures their deepest, innermost fantasies. But is it possible for Diana to reclaim her more sensual self and maintain the marriage she committed to? What if connecting to her own desires means dissolving the safe life she’s so carefully cultivated? Release Date: November 19, 2024 Genre: Contemporary Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8432adfe-efcd-452b-ba9c-7073481f596c/207297940.jpg Blog - November New Releases - The Serpent and the Wolf by Rebecca Robinson All her life, Vaasa Kozár has been sharpened into a blade. After losing her mother—her only remaining parent—to a mysterious dark magic that has since awakened within her, Vaasa is certain death looms. So is her merciless brother, who aims to eliminate Vaasa as a threat to his crown. In one last political scheme, he marries her off to Reid of Mireh, a ruthless foreign ruler, in hopes that he can use her death as a rallying cry to finally invade Reid’s nation. All Vaasa has to do is die. But she is desperate to live. Vaasa enters her new marriage with every intent to escape it, wielding the hard-won political prowess and combat abilities her late father instilled in her. But to her surprise, Reid offers her a deal: help him win the votes to rise in power, and she can walk free. In exchange, he will share his knowledge about the dark magic running through her veins—and help keep it at bay. This proposal may be too good to refuse, yet Vaasa and Reid’s undeniable attraction threatens to break the rules of their arrangement. As her brother’s lethal machinations take form, everything is at stake: Vaasa must learn to trust her new husband, but how can she, especially when their perfect political marriage begins to feel like the real thing? Release Date: November 19, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/886f307a-1723-4160-879f-f39396e4d210/210134467.jpg Blog - November New Releases - The Songbird and the Heart of Stone by Carissa Broadbent Mische lost everything when she was forcibly Turned into a vampire—her home, her humanity, and most devastating of all, the love of the sun god to whom she had devoted her life. Now, sentenced to death for murdering the vampire prince who turned her, redemption feels impossible. But when Mische is saved by Asar, the bastard prince of the House of Shadow with a past as brutal as his scars, she's forced into a mission worse than execution: a journey to the underworld to resurrect the god of death himself. Yet, Mische's punishment may be the key to her salvation. In a secret meeting, her sun god commands her to help Asar in his mission, only to betray him… by killing the god of death. Mische and Asar must travel the treacherous path to the underworld, facing trials, beasts, and the vengeful ghosts of their pasts. Yet, most dangerous of all is the alluring call of the darkness—and her forbidden attraction to Asar, a burgeoning bond that risks invoking the wrath of gods. As her betrayal looms, the underworld closes in, and angry gods are growing restless. Mische will be forced to choose between the redemption of the sun or the damnation of the darkness. Release Date: November 19, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/football-romances monthly 0.5 2024-10-13 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/10716811-bba4-4c36-b245-3399374e3d5d/60495054.jpg Blog - Football Romances - Say You Swear by Meagan Brandy If she isn't mine in the end, I'll still be hers. It's torture, but it's true... My brothers best friend broke my heart, but what happens when his new teammate wants to put it back together? For years, I've dreamt of what college life could bring and while some things changed, there was always one constant. It didn't matter how wild I allowed my imagination to run, it always led me to the same place in the end. It led me to him. My future was clear, and he was it. Until suddenly, he wasn't. Now there's a new man in my life, one who isn't afraid to go after what he wants, and what he wants ... is me. They say first loves last forever. What about the second? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2f0c000f-c85d-4242-b0b6-5cdc3c5f5440/58100280.jpg Blog - Football Romances - The Cheat Sheet by Sarah Adams Is it ever too late to leave the friend-zone? Hi, my name is Bree Camden, and I’m hopelessly in love with my best friend and star quarterback Nathan Donelson (so is half of America, judging by the tabloids and how much the guy dates). The first step is admitting, right? Except, I can never admit it to him because he clearly doesn’t see me that way, and the last thing I want is for things to get weird between us. Nothing but good old-fashioned, no-touching-the-sexiest-man-alive, platonic friendship for us! Everything is exactly how I like it! Yes. Good. (I’m not crying, I’m just peeling an onion.) Our friendship is going swimmingly until I accidentally spill my beans to a reporter over too much tequila, and now the world seems to think me and Nathan belong together. Oh, and did I mention we have to date publicly for three weeks until after the Super Bowl because we signed a contract with...oops, forgot I can’t tell anyone about that! Bottom line is, now my best friend is smudging all the lines and acting very un-platonic, and I’m just trying to keep my body from bursting into flames every time he touches me. How am I going to make it through three weeks of fake dating Nathan without anything changing between us? Especially when it almost-sort-a-kinda seems like he’s fighting for a completely different outcome? Send help. XO Bree https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/cb06f288-5c52-4804-903d-5e04243a47c6/202717742.jpg Blog - Football Romances - All My Kisses For You by Monica Murphy Everyone loves Willow Lancaster, and every girl wants to be her. She’s the perfect student. Stylish, kind to all and always flashing that beautiful smile. After spending her junior year studying in Europe, she returns to Lancaster Prep, eager to kick off being a senior with her friends and maybe even start something up with her old crush? But everything has changed. Her supposed best friend is dating her crush, new cliques have formed and everyone is OBSESSED with the new guy on campus. Rhett Bennett is gorgeous. Lethally charming. Absolutely full of himself. He’s also the star quarterback of the football team and suddenly everyone on campus is a sports fan. He is everything Willow should never want yet…he’s all she can think about. And when she realizes Rhett might feel the same way about her, she’s desperate to throw away her good girl reputation and do bad things. Only with him. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/db6efd0c-be33-4951-a658-866f8be2ee94/54370827.jpg Blog - Football Romances - Hands Down by Mariana Zapata Before he was Big Texas, he was Zac the Snack Pack. Bianca Brannen knows time--mostly--heals all wounds. Including those your once loved ones might have unintentionally given you. (Those just take longer.) She thinks she’s ready when a call has her walking back into her old friend’s life. Or at least as prepared as possible to see the starting quarterback in the National Football Organization. Before the lights, the fans, and the millions, he’d been a skinny kid with a heart of gold. Waltzing out of Zac Travis’s life should be easy. Just as easy as he walked out of hers. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a3d0e7e6-f537-4584-9bc1-8e259295aaf1/61624618.jpg Blog - Football Romances - Blind Side by Kandi Steiner The hottest college football safety in the nation just asked me to be his fake girlfriend. And I just asked him to take my virginity. Clay Johnson has the abs of Adonis and the deadly smirk of the devil, himself. There’s hardly a day he’s not headline material during football season, and never a day he isn’t a bullseye target for every girl on campus. He used to be the easiest of all the players for me to wrangle as the Public Relations Coordinator, but after a nasty breakup with his high school sweetheart, he’s a mess. And a complete pain in my ass. We meet to discuss his behavior and review media relations standards. But when he witnesses how I fall to pieces in front of my guitar-toting crush, his wheels start turning. And he cooks up this absurd plan. He helps me get noticed. I help him make his ex jealous. All by pretending to be in a relationship. What he doesn’t realize is that this bookworm is a virgin, and far from versed in seducing a musician. So, to sweeten the deal, I convince him to help me — not just to get my crush’s attention, but to knock his socks off once I have it. But the more I come unraveled at the hands of Clay Johnson, the more trouble I have discerning what’s fake and what’s undoubtedly real — particularly, the way my heart flutters every time that breathtaking man touches me. We set the rules. We put the safeguards in place.But they say rules are meant to be broken. They probably should have added that hearts are, too. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9cd60517-b9f0-4239-9c6a-7c7d88cdec0e/123238776.jpg Blog - Football Romances - Against the Clock by Brittany Kelley I'll never date a football player— but all the veteran quarterback wants? Me. Daniel My life’s defined by my long career as a quarterback. I’m determined to have a great season, because I’m not sure how many I have left. But when I slam into gorgeous reporter Kelsey Cole on the sidelines, my focus on the game takes a backseat to my fascination with her. She’s tiny, smart, and fierce, and she makes me feel young again. Only one problem: she hates football—with good reason, too. Still, you don’t become a champion quarterback without learning how to fight for what you want. Football’s always come first, but Kelsey might be the one to change that. Kelsey The last thing I need is to get involved with huge and handsome quarterback Daniel Harrison. Under all those muscles he’s hiding charm and a surprising intellect— an irresistible combination. I can’t deny our chemistry, but I can’t stand what he does for a living. Not to mention, once the internet starts shipping us, the spotlight becomes unbearable. The fans will hate me even more when they find out I’m writing a piece that could leave the league they love in shambles. There’s no future for the hot quarterback and I— so why can’t I say goodbye? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a3550431-ad37-4343-8e0b-54f80ca23bb6/181505526.jpg Blog - Football Romances - The Trade by Ki Stephens JADE Jennings is tired of her day-to-day life—from the boring, senseless boys at Dayton U to the repetitive beats her editor assigns. She's looking for excitement, novelty, a good story to sink her teeth into, and a boy she can write home about. She's a driven and ambitious journalist, and she has an innate love for the game of football. She's also the younger sister to an NFL superstar, which means she's not interested in the aimless, student-athletes at her school. But maybe, for entertainment purposes, she could spend just one night trying them on for size. THEO Westman-Cooke, aka "West," has one goal in this to be drafted into the NFL. But his coach doesn't support an early declaration, his grades (and scholarship) are slipping, and he only has one more year to make his college career count for something. Oh, wait. There is one other thing that West might want—a chance to spend the night with his favorite red-headed cheerleader. When the opportunity suddenly strikes, it's nearly impossible to pass up the perfect trade. In just a few months, Dayton U's football team is hosting their annual spring banquet. The catch? Players must go home with another teammate's date. To the rest of the team, it's a simple, secret trade. But for Jade and West, it's the night that everything changed. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a52820f2-d5c0-4f60-9cea-b5284edba57c/64407796.jpg Blog - Football Romances - The Wall of Winnipeg and Me by Mariana Zapata Vanessa Mazur refuses to feel bad for quitting—she knows she’s doing the right thing. The thankless job of personal assistant to the top defensive end in the National Football Organization was always supposed to be temporary. She has plans for her life, and none of them include washing extra-large underwear one more day for a man who could never find it in him to tell her good morning, congratulate her on a job well done, or wish her a happy birthday—even when she was spending it working for him. The legendary “Wall of Winnipeg” may be adored by thousands, but after two years Van has had enough. But when Aiden Graves shows up at her door begging her to come back, she’s beyond shocked. Mr. Walled-Off Emotions is actually letting his guard down for once. And she’s even more dumbstruck when he explains that her job description is about to become even more outrageous: something that takes the “personal” in personal assistant to a whole new level. What do you say to the man who is used to getting everything he wants? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3200f145-3c33-4f20-8468-30be80686b41/81339977.jpg Blog - Football Romances - First Down by Grace Reilly Tutoring the star quarterback in exchange for a few fake dates won’t lead to anything more… right? James Football is my everything. I live, eat, breathe the sport. But when I transfer to McKee University to escape the distractions that nearly cost me my future in the NFL, I’m faced with another consequence: retake and pass the writing class I failed at my last college or lose any chance I have at making it big. That’s where fellow senior Beckett Wood—gorgeous, stubborn, and just my type—comes in. She’s the key to my success in this class… but the price of her help is a fake relationship, and I never do things halfway. Bex I don’t mess around with athletes—I’ve already learned that lesson—and at first glance, handsome, self-assured James Callahan is no exception. He wants me to help him pass the writing class we’re both stuck taking, but I’m too busy to take on yet another responsibility. But when his teammate—my cheating ex—won’t leave me alone, I realize I need to convince him I’ve moved on… and what better way than by pretending to be with James, who wants nothing to do with a real relationship? Yet with every fake kiss, James pulls me deeper into a place that thrills and terrifies me. Why does he make me feel alive like no one else has? And why don’t I want it to end? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/822f61b7-81a7-43df-a00b-6ab777f3fc6f/63046790.jpg Blog - Football Romances - Midnight Kisses by Jeanine Bennedict What do a cat, a one-night stand, and a game of Catan all have in common? Love. Despite being the football coach’s daughter, Greta Sahnoun resents the sport and is furious when her best friend mistakes a football house party for a frat kegger. Instead of mingling inside, Greta seeks solitude in the backyard and, not surprising to anyone that knows her, winds up kissing the jaded stranger outside with her. A little dry humping and a brief exchange about cats later, the two wind up in her apartment for a night of casual, raunchy fun. Otis Morgan is a Heisman-winning quarterback with a bad knee and a penchant for being in love. He’s a little full of himself and craves recognition, but that’s expected of a collegiate NFL recruit. When Greta refuses to see him again after their night together, it’s no surprise that he takes it hard and says things he shouldn’t, and because the universe is out to get him, Greta overhears. Always one to put people in their place, she wagers a bet with Otis, one that ends with the good kind of choking. Suddenly, what’s supposed to be a just-one-more-time lapse in judgment turns into a recurring mistake, one they both enjoy immensely. But like all relationships, the two hit an impasse. Greta has never been good with emotions—feeling them, dealing with them, and most of all, surrendering herself to them. They say love hurts, so maybe it’s a good thing Greta enjoys a little pain. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/magic-is-in-the-air monthly 0.5 2024-10-02 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f2dfc3d5-9418-48a0-b541-e919f6e147c9/204593711-2.jpg Blog - Magic is in the air - Immortal Dark by Tigest Girma It began long before my time, but something has always hunted our family. Orphaned heiress Kidan Adane grew up far from the arcane society she was born into, where human bloodlines gain power through vampire companionship. When her sister, June, disappears, Kidan is convinced a vampire stole her—the very vampire bound to their family, the cruel yet captivating Susenyos Sagad. To find June, Kidan must infiltrate the elite Uxlay University—where students study to ensure peaceful coexistence between humans and vampires and inherit their family legacies. Kidan must survive living with Susenyos—even as he does everything he can to drive her away. It doesn’t matter that Susenyos’s wickedness speaks to Kidan’s own violent nature and tempts her to surrender to a life of darkness. She must find her sister and kill Susenyos at all costs. When a murder mirroring June’s disappearance shakes Uxlay, Kidan sinks further into the ruthless underworld of vampires, risking her very soul. There she discovers a centuries-old threat—and June could be at the center of it. To save her sister, Kidan must bring Uxlay to its knees and either break free from the horrors of her own actions or embrace the dark entanglements of love—and the blood it requires. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5c1ad0c5-e021-4e74-be72-9e190a82e4fc/58724923.jpg Blog - Magic is in the air - Hidden Pictures by Jason Rekulak Mallory Quinn is fresh out of rehab when she takes a job as a babysitter for Ted and Caroline Maxwell. She is to look after their five-year-old son, Teddy. Mallory immediately loves it. She has her own living space, goes out for nightly runs, and has the stability she craves. And she sincerely bonds with Teddy, a sweet, shy boy who is never without his sketchbook and pencil. His drawings are the usual fare: trees, rabbits, balloons. But one day, he draws something different: a man in a forest, dragging a woman’s lifeless body. Then, Teddy’s artwork becomes increasingly sinister, and his stick figures quickly evolve into lifelike sketches well beyond the ability of any five-year-old. Mallory begins to wonder if these are glimpses of a long-unsolved murder, perhaps relayed by a supernatural force. Knowing just how crazy it all sounds, Mallory nevertheless sets out to decipher the images and save Teddy before it’s too late. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8066e1b0-7f40-493a-a0b3-b1149236c19c/202468452.jpg Blog - Magic is in the air - Love and Other Conspiracies by Mallory Marlowe Hallie Barrett's life has imploded after she's dumped by her hotshot ex, who also happens to be her coworker and the star of the online series she was producing. Without a new show to present for the company competition, she’ll be out of a job. But inspiration can come from the strangest places . . . like the most handsome guy she’s ever seen passionately discussing Bigfoot on a late-night docuseries. Hayden Hargrove made a name for himself as a cryptid expert on his hit podcast, and is intrigued by the plucky, blue-haired producer who offers him the opportunity to lead his own web show. When the production team sees that Hayden’s solo on-screen presence is bad enough to make a ghost blanch, Hallie jumps on camera too, hitting him (and his cryptids) with a healthy dose of skepticism—and enough chemistry to electrify their show to the top of the competition. As Hayden and Hallie investigate the unknown, they unearth feelings for each other that shake their beliefs to the core. In their search for Mothman, aliens, and the truth, the most elusive discovery might just be learning to love again. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/88721334-683a-4347-8253-151c27205584/204593914.jpg Blog - Magic is in the air - Phantasma by Kaylie Smith When Ophelia and her sister discovers their mother brutally murdered, there is no time to grieve: Ophelia has inherited both her powerful death-driven magic and enormous debt on their home. Circumstances go from dire to deadly, however, when Ophelia’s sister decides to pay off the loan by entering Phantasma—a competition where most contestants don’t make it out alive and the winner is granted a single wish. The only way to save her sister is to compete. But Phantasma is a cursed manor, with twisting corridors and lavish ballrooms, and filled with enticing demons and fatal temptations. Ophelia will need to face nine floors of challenges to win... if her fears don’t overtake her first. When a charming, arrogant stranger claims he can protect and guide Ophelia, she knows she shouldn’t trust him. While Blackwell may not seem dangerous, appearances can be deceptive. But with her sister’s life on the line, Ophelia can’t afford to turn him away. She just needs to ignore the overwhelming, dark attraction drawing them closer and closer together. Because in Phantasma, the only thing deadlier than losing the game is losing your heart. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e5d67808-0b25-4f69-9477-57f73bdf7370/127280850.jpg Blog - Magic is in the air - Weyward by Emilia Hart I am a Weyward, and wild inside. 2019: Under cover of darkness, Kate flees London for ramshackle Weyward Cottage, inherited from a great aunt she barely remembers. With its tumbling ivy and overgrown garden, the cottage is worlds away from the abusive partner who tormented Kate. But she begins to suspect that her great aunt had a secret. One that lurks in the bones of the cottage, hidden ever since the witch-hunts of the 17th century. 1619: Altha is awaiting trial for the murder of a local farmer who was stampeded to death by his herd. As a girl, Altha’s mother taught her their magic, a kind not rooted in spell casting but in a deep knowledge of the natural world. But unusual women have always been deemed dangerous, and as the evidence for witchcraft is set out against Altha, she knows it will take all of her powers to maintain her freedom. 1942: As World War II rages, Violet is trapped in her family's grand, crumbling estate. Straitjacketed by societal convention, she longs for the robust education her brother receives––and for her mother, long deceased, who was rumored to have gone mad before her death. The only traces Violet has of her are a locket bearing the initial W and the word weyward scratched into the baseboard of her bedroom. Weaving together the stories of three extraordinary women across five centuries, Emilia Hart's Weyward is an enthralling novel of female resilience and the transformative power of the natural world. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c7b9c1a0-9729-49bf-9dc6-6f282dd660f6/60018635.jpg Blog - Magic is in the air - The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna As one of the few witches in Britain, Mika Moon knows she has to hide her magic, keep her head down, and stay away from other witches so their powers don't mingle and draw attention. And as an orphan who lost her parents at a young age and was raised by strangers, she's used to being alone and she follows the rules...with one exception: an online account, where she posts videos pretending to be a witch. She thinks no one will take it seriously. But someone does. An unexpected message arrives, begging her to travel to the remote and mysterious Nowhere House to teach three young witches how to control their magic. It breaks all of the rules, but Mika goes anyway, and is immediately tangled up in the lives and secrets of not only her three charges, but also an absent archaeologist, a retired actor, two long-suffering caretakers, and...Jamie. The handsome and prickly librarian of Nowhere House would do anything to protect the children, and as far as he's concerned, a stranger like Mika is a threat. An irritatingly appealing threat. As Mika begins to find her place at Nowhere House, the thought of belonging somewhere begins to feel like a real possibility. But magic isn't the only danger in the world, and when a threat comes knocking at their door, Mika will need to decide whether to risk everything to protect a found family she didn't know she was looking for.... https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/85aa1b87-1966-4aed-a4a0-39362ebc9a49/64623481.jpg Blog - Magic is in the air - The September House by Carissa Orlando 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. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/35599416-2c1b-46b2-bc2b-33423762f81f/43263680.jpg Blog - Magic is in the air - Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo Galaxy “Alex” Stern is the most unlikely member of Yale’s freshman class. Raised in the Los Angeles hinterlands by a hippie mom, Alex dropped out of school early and into a world of shady drug dealer boyfriends, dead-end jobs, and much, much worse. By age twenty, in fact, she is the sole survivor of a horrific, unsolved multiple homicide. Some might say she’s thrown her life away. But at her hospital bed, Alex is offered a second chance: to attend one of the world’s most elite universities on a full ride. What’s the catch, and why her? Still searching for answers to this herself, Alex arrives in New Haven tasked by her mysterious benefactors with monitoring the activities of Yale’s secret societies. These eight windowless “tombs” are well-known to be haunts of the future rich and powerful, from high-ranking politicos to Wall Street and Hollywood’s biggest players. But their occult activities are revealed to be more sinister and more extraordinary than any paranoid imagination might conceive. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bb15c3f9-1223-4dfc-af38-8904b642fbcb/56554626.jpg Blog - Magic is in the air - The Ex Hex by Erin Sterling Nine years ago, Vivienne Jones nursed her broken heart like any young witch would: vodka, weepy music, bubble baths…and a curse on the horrible boyfriend. Sure, Vivi knows she shouldn’t use her magic this way, but with only an “orchard hayride” scented candle on hand, she isn’t worried it will cause him anything more than a bad hair day or two. That is until Rhys Penhallow, descendent of the town’s ancestors, breaker of hearts, and annoyingly just as gorgeous as he always was, returns to Graves Glen, Georgia. What should be a quick trip to recharge the town’s ley lines and make an appearance at the annual fall festival turns disastrously wrong. With one calamity after another striking Rhys, Vivi realizes her silly little Ex Hex may not have been so harmless after all. Suddenly, Graves Glen is under attack from murderous wind-up toys, a pissed off ghost, and a talking cat with some interesting things to say. Vivi and Rhys have to ignore their off the charts chemistry to work together to save the town and find a way to break the break-up curse before it’s too late. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7f8bcdb3-9d8b-4e93-862c-39b2816dcb24/45892228.jpg Blog - Magic is in the air - Crave by Tracy Wolff My whole world changed when I stepped inside the academy. Nothing is right about this place or the other students in it. Here I am, a mere mortal among gods… or monsters. I still can’t decide which of these warring factions I belong to, if I belong at all. I only know the one thing that unites them is their hatred of me. Then there’s Jaxon Vega. A vampire with deadly secrets who hasn’t felt anything for a hundred years. But there’s something about him that calls to me, something broken in him that somehow fits with what’s broken in me. Which could spell death for us all. Because Jaxon walled himself off for a reason. And now someone wants to wake a sleeping monster, and I’m wondering if I was brought here intentionally—as the bait. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b014e7c9-2aa9-4706-9e67-5d309ee4df00/60041932.jpg Blog - Magic is in the air - My Roommate is a Vampire by Jenna Levine Cassie Greenberg loves being an artist, but it’s a tough way to make a living. On the brink of eviction, she’s desperate when she finds a too-good-to-be-true apartment in a beautiful Chicago neighborhood. Cassie knows there has to be a catch—only someone with a secret to hide would rent out a room for that price. Of course, her new roommate Frederick J. Fitzwilliam is far from normal. He sleeps all day, is out at night on business, and talks like he walked out of a regency romance novel. He also leaves Cassie heart-melting notes around the apartment, cares about her art, and asks about her day. And he doesn’t look half bad shirtless, on the rare occasions they’re both home and awake. But when Cassie finds bags of blood in the fridge that definitely weren’t there earlier, Frederick has to come clean... Cassie’s sexy new roommate is a vampire. And he has a proposition for her. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ec146b46-6cf3-4e16-868b-2f40a35f280a/203956639-2.jpg Blog - Magic is in the air - An Academy for Liars by Alexis Henderson Lennon Carter’s life is falling apart. Then she gets a mysterious phone call inviting her to take the entrance exam for Drayton College, a school of magic hidden in a secret pocket of Savannah. Lennon has been chosen because—like everyone else at the school—she has the innate gift of persuasion, the ability to wield her will like a weapon, using it to control others and, in rare cases, matter itself. After passing the test, Lennon begins to learn how to master her devastating and unsettling power. But despite persuasion’s heavy toll on her body and mind, she is wholly captivated by her studies, by Drayton’s lush, moss-draped campus, and by her brilliant classmates. But even more captivating is her charismatic adviser, Dante, who both intimidates and enthralls her. As Lennon continues in her studies her control grows, and she starts to uncover more about the secret world she has entered into, including the disquieting history of Drayton College, and the way her mentor’s tragic and violent past intertwines with it. She is increasingly disturbed by what she learns. For it seems that the ultimate test is to embrace absolute power without succumbing to corruption . . . and it's a test she's terrified she is going to fail. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3d2e574e-b14c-4855-b276-5d77477e6e7f/204593704.jpg Blog - Magic is in the air - Hot Hex Boyfriend by Carly Bloom Delia Merriweather does not believe in magic. But she does believe in family, and her family happens to identify as witches. Their lack of magic doesn’t dampen this heartfelt belief, because according to lore and legend, they’re hexed. Convenient? Yes. True? Probably not. Thanks to a weird birthmark, the eccentric circle of Merriweather women believe that Delia is their blue witch. In other words, she’s supposedly the person capable of restoring magic to the Coven Merriweather. However, A) magic isn’t real and B) the spell is truly horrific and illegal in all fifty states. Who’s going to boil a baby, for crying out loud? So, they’re all completely blown away when Delia accidentally breaks the hex (sans baby-boiling obviously). Chaos and mayhem ensue, drawing the attention of the invisible witching world. And that includes the sexy, brooding, and excessively irritable Max Halifax who has recently moved in next door to settle his uncle’s estate. Just when Max thinks he’s done with his endless tour of duty—keeping an eye on the bumbling Merriweather women—he discovers Delia Merriweather has somehow broken the hex placed by his great-great grandfather. He worries that beneath the Merriweathers’ seemingly harmless antics, lies the very real possibility that this gaggle of clueless witches will somehow stumble into their power and, like their ancestors, threaten to rule the witching world by controlling the hearts of men. Maybe it’s even starting already. Because Max’s heart beats erratically whenever Delia Merriweather is around. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a1a794e2-6051-48d0-934b-69528e3c73cb/59227936.jpg Blog - Magic is in the air - Belladonna by Adalyn Grace Orphaned as a baby, nineteen-year-old Signa has been raised by a string of guardians, each one more interested in her wealth than her well-being—and each has met an untimely end. Her remaining relatives are the elusive Hawthornes, an eccentric family living at Thorn Grove, an estate both glittering and gloomy. Its patriarch mourns his late wife through wild parties, while his son grapples for control of the family’s waning reputation, and his daughter suffers from a mysterious illness. But when their mother’s restless spirit appears claiming she was poisoned, Signa realizes that the family she depends on could be in grave danger and enlists the help of a surly stable boy to hunt down the killer. However, Signa’s best chance of uncovering the murderer is an alliance with Death himself, a fascinating, dangerous shadow who has never been far from her side. Though he’s made her life a living hell, Death shows Signa that their growing connection may be more powerful—and more irresistible—than she ever dared imagine. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8d82ed1b-88be-4a95-8a0b-abef881766a5/181344829-2.jpg Blog - Magic is in the air - Bride by Ali Hazelwood A dangerous alliance between a Vampyre bride and an Alpha Werewolf becomes a love deep enough to sink your teeth into in this new paranormal romance. Misery Lark, the only daughter of the most powerful Vampyre councilman of the Southwest, is an outcast—again. Her days of living in anonymity among the Humans are over: she has been called upon to uphold a historic peacekeeping alliance between the Vampyres and their mortal enemies, the Weres, and she sees little choice but to surrender herself in the exchange—again... Weres are ruthless and unpredictable, and their Alpha, Lowe Moreland, is no exception. He rules his pack with absolute authority, but not without justice. And, unlike the Vampyre Council, not without feeling. It’s clear from the way he tracks Misery’s every movement that he doesn’t trust her. If only he knew how right he was…. Because Misery has her own reasons to agree to this marriage of convenience, reasons that have nothing to do with politics or alliances, and everything to do with the only thing she's ever cared about. And she is willing to do whatever it takes to get back what’s hers, even if it means a life alone in Were territory…alone with the wolf. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1d867e28-dbfd-4b06-b7a6-da3d751a16fb/219407654.jpg Blog - Magic is in the air - Ask for Andrea by Noelle W. Ihli Meghan, Brecia, and Skye have just one thing in common. They were all murdered by the same man. He hunted them online, masquerading as an eligible bachelor. Then he played the perfect gentleman, a thick layer of charm and a thousand-watt smile hiding the fact that his first dates end in shallow graves. He’s gotten away with murder three times now. The only thing that might keep him from killing again? The women he murdered. Meghan, Brecia, and Skye might be dead, but they’re not gone. They’ve found each other. And they won’t rest until they find a way to stop him. The haunt is on. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/07bdf579-ebe2-473c-ba13-503d3edfcc82/202102032.jpg Blog - Magic is in the air - Haunted Ever After by Jen DeLuca Small Florida coastal towns often find themselves scrambling for the tourism dollars that the Orlando theme parks leave behind. And within the town limits of Boneyard Key, the residents decided long ago to lean into its ghostliness. Nick Royer, owner of the Hallowed Grounds coffee shop, embraces the ghost tourism that keeps the local economy afloat, as well as his spectral roommate. At least he doesn’t have to run air-conditioning. Cassie Rutherford possibly overreacted to all her friends getting married and having kids by leaving Orlando and buying a flipped historic cottage in Boneyard Key. Though there’s something unusual with her new home (her laptop won’t charge in any outlets, and the poetry magnets on her fridge definitely didn’t read “WRONG” and “MY HOUSE” when she put them up), she’s charmed by the colorful history surrounding her. And she's catching a certain vibe from the grumpy coffee shop owner whenever he slips her a free slice of banana bread along with her coffee order. As Nick takes her on a ghost tour, sharing town gossip that tourists don't get to hear, and they spend nights side-by-side looking into the former owners of her haunted cottage, their connection solidifies into something very real and enticing. But Cassie's worried she’s in too deep with this whole (haunted) home ownership thing… and Nick's afraid to get too close in case Cassie gets scared away for good. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d1925e5a-de3f-4247-8158-ee6af6295d9b/205181041.jpg Blog - Magic is in the air - The Monstrous Kind by Lydia Gregovic Merrick Darling’s life as daughter of the Manor Lord of Sussex is better than most. Unlike the commoners, she is immune to the toxic fog that encroached on England generations earlier. She will never become a Phantom—one of the monstrous creatures that stalk her province’s borders—and as long as the fires burn to hold them back, her safety is ensured. She wants for nothing, yet she will never inherit her family’s Manor. She must marry smartly or live at the kindness of her elder sister, Essie. Everything is turned on its head, though, when Merrick’s father dies suddenly. Torn from her New London society life of ball gowns and parties, Merrick must travel back to her childhood home, the Darling estate of Norland House, and what she finds there is bewildering. Once strong and capable, Essie is withdrawn and frightened—and with good cause. A recent string of attacks along the province’s borders has turned their formerly bucolic countryside into a terrifying and unpredictable landscape. The fog is closing in and the fires aren’t holding, which makes Merrick and Essie vulnerable in more ways than one. Because the Phantoms are far from the only monsters in Merrick’s world, and the other eleven Manor Lords are always watching for weakness. Revealing her and her sister’s current state to the rest of the Manors is out of the question, but when Essie goes missing, it’s clear that Merrick needs help. Only, who can she trust when everyone seems to be scheming, and when all she holds true feels like it’s slipping right out of her grasp? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d375b25a-93d6-4813-9d4d-1b6df7a88438/59441717-2.jpg Blog - Magic is in the air - A Witch’s Guide to Fake Dating a Demon by Sarah Hawley Mariel Spark is prophesied to be the most powerful witch seen in centuries of the famed Spark family, but to the displeasure of her mother, she prefers baking to brewing potions and gardening to casting hexes. When a spell to summon flour goes very wrong, Mariel finds herself staring down a demon—one she inadvertently summoned for a soul bargain. Ozroth the Ruthless is a legend among demons. Powerful and merciless, he drives hard bargains to collect mortal souls. But his reputation has suffered ever since a bargain went awry—if he can strike a bargain with Mariel, he will earn back his deadly reputation. Ozroth can’t leave Mariel’s side until they complete a bargain, which she refuses to do (turns out some humans are attached to their souls). But the witch is funny. And curvy. And disgustingly yet endearingly cheerful. Becoming awkward roommates quickly escalates when Mariel, terrified to confess the inadvertent summoning to her mother, blurts out that she’s dating Ozroth. As Ozroth and Mariel struggle with their opposing goals and maintaining a fake relationship, real attraction blooms between them. But Ozroth has a limited amount of time to strike the deal, and if Mariel gives up her soul, she’ll lose all her emotions—including love—which will only spell disaster for them both. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3d1a664f-09de-412b-a9ec-8535f292ca58/65213595.jpg Blog - Magic is in the air - Starling House by Alex E. Harrow Eden, Kentucky, is just another dying, bad-luck town, known only for the legend of E. Starling, the reclusive nineteenth-century author and illustrator who wrote The Underland--and disappeared. Before she vanished, Starling House appeared. But everyone agrees that it’s best to let the uncanny house―and its last lonely heir, Arthur Starling―go to rot. Opal knows better than to mess with haunted houses or brooding men, but an unexpected job offer might be a chance to get her brother out of Eden. Too quickly, though, Starling House starts to feel dangerously like something she’s never had: a home. As sinister forces converge on Starling House, Opal and Arthur are going to have to make a dire choice to dig up the buried secrets of the past and confront their own fears, or let Eden be taken over by literal nightmares. If Opal wants a home, she’ll have to fight for it. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8e35d92e-2e5a-434a-bd9a-dfa3d83757ea/75532088.jpg Blog - Magic is in the air - The Unfortunate Side Effects of Heartbreak and Magic by Breanne Randall Sadie Revelare has always believed that the curse of four heartbreaks that accompanies her magic would be worth the price. But when her grandmother is diagnosed with cancer with only weeks to live, and her first heartbreak, Jake McNealy, returns to town after a decade, her carefully structured life begins to unravel. With the news of their grandmother's impending death, Sadie's estranged twin brother Seth returns to town, bringing with him deeply buried family secrets that threaten to tear Sadie's world apart. Their grandmother has been the backbone of the family for generations, and with her death, Sadie isn't sure she'll have the strength to keep the family, and her magic, together. As feelings for Jake begin to rekindle, and her grandmother growing sicker by the day, Sadie faces the last of her heartbreaks, and she has to decide: is love more important than magic? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0d4c1984-6941-467a-befe-e09a5d0f6e1b/54613751.jpg Blog - Magic is in the air - House of Hollow by Krystal Sutherland Seventeen-year-old Iris Hollow has always been strange. Something happened to her and her two older sisters when they were children, something they can’t quite remember but that left each of them with an identical half-moon scar at the base of their throats. Iris has spent most of her teenage years trying to avoid the weirdness that sticks to her like tar. But when her eldest sister, Grey, goes missing under suspicious circumstances, Iris learns just how weird her life can get: horned men start shadowing her, a corpse falls out of her sister’s ceiling, and ugly, impossible memories start to twist their way to the forefront of her mind. As Iris retraces Grey’s last known footsteps and follows the increasingly bizarre trail of breadcrumbs she left behind, it becomes apparent that the only way to save her sister is to decipher the mystery of what happened to them as children. The closer Iris gets to the truth, the closer she comes to understanding that the answer is dark and dangerous – and that Grey has been keeping a terrible secret from her for years. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/98e7835c-4e2d-4333-91e3-f1e6386a278b/58844858.jpg Blog - Magic is in the air - Go Hex Yourself by Jessica Clare When Reggie Johnson answers a job ad in the paper, she's astonished to find that she's not applying to work at her favorite card game, Spellcraft: The Magicking. Instead, she's applying to be an actual familiar for an actual witch. As in, real magic. The new job has a few perks - great room and board, excellent pay, and she's apprenticing to a powerful witch. Sure, the witch is a bit eccentric. And sure, there was that issue with the black cat Reggie would prefer to forget about. The biggest problem, however, is warlock Ben Magnus, her employer's nephew and the most arrogant, insufferable, maddening man to ever cast a spell. Reggie absolutely hates him. He's handsome, but he's also bossy and irritating and orders her around. Ben's butt might look great in a crystal ball vision, but that's as far as it goes. But when someone with a vendetta targets the household, she finds herself working with Ben to break a deadly curse. Apparently, when they're not fighting like cats and dogs, things get downright...bewitching. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/04f76d3f-6d5d-4c69-beb1-83518e2c21b4/199269577.jpg Blog - Magic is in the air - The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst Kiela has always had trouble dealing with people. Thankfully, as a librarian at the Great Library of Alyssium, she and her assistant, Caz—a magically sentient spider plant—have spent the last decade sequestered among the empire’s most precious spellbooks, preserving their magic for the city’s elite. When a revolution begins and the library goes up in flames, she and Caz flee with all the spellbooks they can carry and head to a remote island Kiela never thought she’d see again: her childhood home. Taking refuge there, Kiela discovers, much to her dismay, a nosy—and very handsome—neighbor who can’t take a hint and keeps showing up day after day to make sure she’s fed and to help fix up her new home. In need of income, Kiela identifies something that even the bakery in town doesn’t have: jam. With the help of an old recipe book her parents left her and a bit of illegal magic, her cottage garden is soon covered in ripe berries. But magic can do more than make life a little sweeter, so Kiela risks the consequences of using unsanctioned spells and opens the island’s first-ever and much needed secret spellshop. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f639882d-a6af-496c-aed2-3f42cd277267/59952170.jpg Blog - Magic is in the air - Small Town Big Magic by Hazel Beck Witches aren't real. Right? No one has civic pride quite like Emerson Wilde. As a local indie bookstore owner and youngest-ever Chamber of Commerce president, she’d do anything for her hometown of St. Cyprian, Missouri. After all, Midwest is best! She may be descended from a witch who was hanged in 1692 during the Salem Witch Trials, but there’s no sorcery in doing your best for the town you love. Or is there? As she preps Main Street for an annual festival, Emerson notices strange things happening around St. Cyprian. Strange things that culminate in a showdown with her lifelong arch-rival, Mayor Skip Simon. He seems to have sent impossible, paranormal creatures after her. Creatures that Emerson dispatches with ease, though she has no idea how she’s done it. Is Skip Simon…a witch? Is Emerson? It turns out witches are real, and Emerson is one of them. She failed a coming-of-age test at age eighteen—the only test she’s ever failed!—and now, as an adult, her powers have come roaring back. But she has little time to explore those powers, or her blossoming relationship with her childhood friend, cranky-yet-gorgeous local farmer Jacob North: an ancient evil has awakened in St. Cyprian, and it’s up to Emerson and her friends—maybe even Emerson herself—to save everything she loves. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/db8434bb-ebc0-476a-b3e2-869b587afbf7/203608552.jpg-2.png Blog - Magic is in the air - So Thirsty by Rachel Harrison Sloane Parker is dreading her birthday. She doesn’t need a reminder she’s getting older, or that she’s feeling indifferent about her own life. Her husband surprises her with a birthday weekend getaway—not with him, but with Sloane’s longtime best friend, troublemaker extraordinaire Naomi. Sloane anticipates a weekend of wine tastings and cozy robes and strategic avoidance of issues she’d rather not confront, like her husband’s repeated infidelity. But when they arrive at their rental cottage, it becomes clear Naomi has something else in mind. She wants Sloane to stop letting things happen to her, for Sloane to really live. So Naomi orchestrates a wild night out with a group of mysterious strangers, only for it to take a horrifying turn that changes Sloane’s and Naomi’s lives literally forever. The friends are forced to come to terms with some pretty eternal consequences in this bloody, seductive novel about how it’s never too late to find satisfaction, even though it might taste different than expected. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4f3231a0-6eff-4b5e-93ca-f1ced747c661/61058915.jpg Blog - Magic is in the air - Cackle by Rachel Harrison All her life, Annie has played it nice and safe. After being unceremoniously dumped by her longtime boyfriend, Annie seeks a fresh start. She accepts a teaching position that moves her from Manhattan to a small village upstate. She’s stunned by how perfect and picturesque the town is. The people are all friendly and warm. Her new apartment is dreamy too, minus the oddly persistent spider infestation. Then Annie meets Sophie. Beautiful, charming, magnetic Sophie, who takes a special interest in Annie, who wants to be her friend. More importantly, she wants Annie to stop apologizing and start living for herself. That’s how Sophie lives. Annie can’t help but gravitate toward the self-possessed Sophie, wanting to spend more and more time with her, despite the fact that the rest of the townsfolk seem…a little afraid of her. And like, okay. There are some things. Sophie’s appearance is uncanny and ageless, her mansion in the middle of the woods feels a little unearthly, and she does seem to wield a certain power…but she couldn’t be…could she? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/fb81494e-8f96-4939-bd06-b8b901cc536d/64627957.jpg.png Blog - Magic is in the air - The Library of Shadows by Rachel Moore 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. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/05249060-5a84-4811-b27c-5c28f4558241/122977981.jpg Blog - Magic is in the air - Do Your Worst by Rosie Danan Sparks fly when an occult expert and a disgraced archeologist become enemies-with-benefits in this steamy romance. Riley Rhodes finally has the chance to turn her family’s knack for the supernatural into a legitimate business when she’s hired to break the curse on an infamous Scottish castle. Used to working alone in her alienating occupation, she's pleasantly surprised to meet a handsome stranger upon arrival—until he tries to get her fired. Fresh off a professional scandal, Clark Edgeware can’t allow a self-proclaimed “curse breaker” to threaten his last chance for redemption. After he fails to get Riley kicked off his survey site, he vows to avoid her. Unfortunately for him, she vows to get even. Riley expects the curse to do her dirty work by driving Clark away, but instead, they keep finding themselves in close proximity. Too close. Turns out, the only thing they do better than fight is fool around. If they’re not careful, by the end of all this, more than the castle will end up in ruins. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/b4iwqzt3yh84m7o4thda6g7m1zcu6f monthly 0.5 2024-09-28 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/why-books-are-the-perfect-gifts monthly 0.5 2024-09-24 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/76ce4d7d-627d-4576-b845-fc37e7a021ce/Screenshot+2024-09-20+at+12.55.05+PM.JPEG Blog - Why Books Are the Perfect Gifts - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/october-new-releases monthly 0.5 2024-09-16 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/647c0367-6392-4924-9fb8-0d915a810de6/203590129.jpg Blog - October New Releases - The Last One at the Wedding by Jason Rekulak Frank Szatowski is shocked when his daughter, Maggie, calls him for the first time in three years. He was convinced that their estrangement would become permanent. He’s even more surprised when she invites him to her upcoming wedding in New Hampshire. Frank is ecstatic, and determined to finally make things right. He arrives to find that the wedding is at a private estate—very secluded, very luxurious, very much out of his league. It seems that Maggie failed to mention that she’s marrying Aidan Gardner, the son of a famous tech billionaire. Feeling desperately out of place, Frank focuses on reconnecting with Maggie and getting to know her new family. But it’s difficult: Aidan is withdrawn and evasive; Maggie doesn’t seem to have time for him; and he finds that the locals are disturbingly hostile to the Gardners. Frank needs to know more about this family his daughter is marrying into, but if he pushes too hard, he could lose Maggie forever. Release Date: October 1, 2024 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8140224d-c0e5-4457-a6b8-75fe07297933/206780522.jpg Blog - October New Releases - Heir by Sabaa Tahir An orphan. An outcast. A prince. And a killer who will bring an empire to its knees. Growing up in the Kegari slums, AIZ has seen her share of suffering. An old tragedy fuels her need for vengeance, but it is love of her people that propels her. Until one hot-headed mistake lands her in an inescapable prison, where the embers of her wrath ignite. Banished from her tribe for an unforgiveable crime, SIRSHA is a down-on-her-luck tracker who speaks to the earth, air, and water to trace her marks. Destitute, she agrees to hunt down a killer who has murdered children across the Empire. All she has to do is carry out the job and get paid. But then, she falls for a charismatic and inconvenient fugitive who keeps getting in her way. QUIL is the crown prince of the Empire, nephew of a famed and venerated empress, but he’s loathe to pick up the mantle when his aunt steps down. As the son of the most hated emperor in the history of his people, he, better than anyone, understands that power corrupts. When a vicious new enemy threatens the survival of the Empire, Quil must ask himself if he can rise above his tragic lineage and be the heir his people need. Release Date: October 1, 2024 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/72af1dce-66fb-4030-93ea-d4e5333df6f3/202102003-2.jpg Blog - October New Releases - Society of Lies by Lauren Ling Brown When a young woman is found dead on her college campus, her sister doesn't believe it was an accident—and her search for answers leads her closer to home than she ever would have imagined in this thrilling debut novel from an exciting new talent. Maya can’t wait to return to Princeton for Reunions—it’s been a decade since she graduated, but she is looking forward to seeing old faces and reminiscing about her college days. And this year is even more special because her little sister, Naomi, is graduating. But what should have been a dream weekend becomes Maya's worst nightmare when she gets a call no one ever wants—Naomi is dead. The police are saying it’s an accident, but Maya suspects there is more to the story than they are letting on. As Maya pieces together the months leading up to her sister’s death, she starts to realize how much Naomi hid from her. Naomi had joined Sterling Club, the most exclusive social club on campus—the same one Maya belonged to—despite Maya’s warnings. And if she had to guess, she'd say Naomi was also tapped for the secret society within it. The more Maya uncovers, the more terrified she becomes that Naomi's decision to follow in her footsteps might have been what got her killed. Because Maya's time at Princeton wasn't as wonderful as she always pretended it was—after all, her sister wasn't the first young woman to turn up dead. Now every clue is leading Maya back to the past…and to the secrets she’s kept all these years. Release Date: October 1, 2024 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/197890a6-03cd-4642-9983-0440ef62eecf/200982381.jpg Blog - October New Releases - Killer House Party by Lily Anderson Red Solo cups? Check. Snacks? Check. Abandoned mansion full of countless horrors that won’t let you leave? Check. The Deinhart Manor has been a looming shadow over town for as long as anyone can remember, and it's been abandoned for even longer. When the final Deinhart descendent passes, the huge gothic manor is up for sale for the first time ever. Which means Arden can steal the keys from her mom’s real estate office... It’s time for a graduation party that no one will ever forget. Arden and her best friends Maddy, Remi, and Shane, each have different reasons for wanting to throw the party to end all parties. But when the manor doors bar everyone inside and the walls begin to bleed, all anyone wants to do is make it out alive. Release Date: October 1, 2024 Genre: Young Adult Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f73152da-bd84-4998-8f5c-d8725cbc0009/204640575.jpg Blog - October New Releases - Fang Fiction by Kate Stayman-London Tess Rosenbloom is no stranger to the dark. An assault survivor and grad school dropout, she spends her nights managing a chic Brooklyn hotel and her days curled up with her favorite vampire novels, Blood Feud. Tess even dabbles in online conspiracies that Blood Feud is real—it’s fun to hunt for clues! But deep down, Tess doesn’t believe vampires actually exist… Until one walks through her door. It turns out Blood Feud is real, and the sexy villain of the novels is trapped. Eager to escape her life, Tess agrees to help rescue him, and soon she’s in a fantasia of lavish palaces and enchanted forests, on a secret island where the sun never shines and she’s surrounded by deadly vampires—and against her better judgment, she’s falling in love with one of them. (And unbeknownst to Tess, her estranged best friend is having a sapphic affair with a beautiful vampire of her own back in New York.) Visiting the world of your favorite story is any fan’s dream, but will Tess be able to outrun the demons of her past (and vampires of her present) before it becomes a nightmare? In this darkly glamorous rom-com, Tess will find out whether it’s worth risking her neck—and her heart—for a chance to reclaim her future. Release Date: October 1, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/586993cb-fde9-42a1-bffe-f2bf8a0259cf/205673392.jpg Blog - October New Releases - The Bog Wife by Kay Chronister Since time immemorial, the Haddesley family has tended the cranberry bog. In exchange, the bog sustains them. The staunch seasons of their lives are governed by a strict covenant that is renewed each generation with the ritual sacrifice of their patriarch, and in return, the bog produces a “bog-wife.” Brought to life from vegetation, this woman is meant to carry on the family line. But when the bog fails—or refuses—to honor the bargain, the Haddesleys, a group of discordant siblings still grieving the mother who mysteriously disappeared years earlier, face an unknown future. Middle child Wenna, summoned back to the dilapidated family manor just as her marriage is collapsing, believes the Haddesleys must abandon their patrimony. Her siblings are not so easily persuaded. Eldest daughter Eda, de facto head of the household, seeks to salvage the compact by desecrating it. Younger son Percy retreats into the wilderness in a dangerous bid to summon his own bog-wife. And as youngest daughter Nora takes desperate measures to keep her warring siblings together, fledgling patriarch Charlie uncovers a disturbing secret that casts doubt over everything the family has ever believed about itself. Release Date: October 1, 2024 Genre: Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d17811d8-377e-4454-9971-8fcfb9fea4e3/208503280.jpg.png Blog - October New Releases - The Boyfriend by Freida McFadden She's looking for the perfect man. He's looking for the perfect victim. Sydney Shaw, like every single woman in New York, has terrible luck with dating. She’s seen it men who lie in their dating profile, men who stick her with the dinner bill, and worst of all, men who can't shut up about their mothers. But finally, she hits the jackpot. Her new boyfriend is utterly perfect. He's charming, handsome, and works as a doctor at a local hospital. Sydney is swept off her feet. Then the brutal murder of a young woman―the latest in a string of deaths across the coast―confounds police. The primary suspect? A mystery man who dates his victims before he kills them. Sydney should feel safe. After all, she is dating the guy of her dreams. But she can’t shake her own suspicions that the perfect man may not be as perfect as he seems. Because someone is watching her every move, and if she doesn’t get to the truth, she’ll be the killer’s next victim... Release Date: October 1, 2024 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/26c4c1f9-fde8-441e-82c7-9878c42eeb4c/207293948-2.jpg Blog - October New Releases - Nothing Like the Movies by Lynn Painter For a few beautiful months, Wes had his dream girl: strong-willed girl-next-door Liz. But right as the two were about to set off to UCLA to start their freshman year together, tragedy struck. Wes was left dealing with the fallout, which ultimately meant losing Liz in the process. Flash forward months and months later and Wes and Liz find themselves in college, together. In a healthier place now, Wes knows he broke Liz’s heart when he ended things, but he is determined to make her fall back in love with him. Wes knows Liz better than anyone, and he has a foolproof plan to win her back with the rom-com worthy big gestures she loves. Only…Liz will have none of it. Wes has to scheme like a rom-com hero to figure out how to see her. Even worse, Liz has a new friend…a guy friend. Still, Wes won’t give up, adapting his clever plans and going hard to get Liz’s attention and win back her affection. But after his best efforts get him nowhere, Wes is left wondering if their relationship is really over for good. Release Date: October 1, 2024 Genre: Young Adult Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2113283a-3996-4b6e-9cf1-4be3d7a3b9f2/204294871.jpg Blog - October New Releases - A Dark and Secret Magic by Wallis Kinney Hecate Goodwin, Kate to her friends, has curated the perfect life as a hedge witch, living in a secluded cottage with only a black cat for company. She spends her days foraging herbs from the Ipswich forest, gardening, and creating tinctures to sell at the apothecary she owns. Most evenings pass without her speaking to another human being, an arrangement she quite prefers. Kate’s solitude is thrown into disarray when her older sister, Miranda, reaches out and asks her to host their coven’s annual Halloween gathering. The day marks the beginning of the new year for witches and is also Kate’s birthday. The pressure from her coven to make the evening memorable mounts as the event draws near. To complicate things further, a handsome man from Kate’s past turns up at her cottage, asking for sanctuary. It is Kate’s duty as a hedge witch to honor this request, much to her dismay. Matthew Cypher is no ordinary lost soul–he’s a practitioner of forbidden magic who’s tricked Kate once before, and her guard is up. As she juggles Matthew’s arrival and the preparations for Halloween, Kate comes across an old tome shrouded in dark magic. She is horrified when she realizes the blood-red inscription is written in familiar handwriting: her recently deceased mother’s. Afraid to even touch the dark magic her mother secretly studied, Kate can turn only to Matthew for help. Her idealized memory of her mother begins to distort, and as she and Matthew grow closer, Kate has to reevaluate whom she can really trust. Release Date: October 8, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/76373cc1-1e89-49c6-94f2-b88a02e61db7/203747795.jpg Blog - October New Releases - The Stone Witch of Florence by Anna Rasche Ancient sorcery. Magic gemstones. Only one woman can save a city in ruins… 1348. As the Black Plague ravages Italy, Ginevra di Gasparo is summoned to Florence after nearly a decade of lonely exile. Ginevra has a gift—harnessing the hidden powers of gemstones, she can heal the sick. But when word spread of her unusual abilities, she was condemned as a witch and banished. Now the same men who expelled Ginevra are begging for her return. Ginevra obliges, assuming the city’s leaders are finally ready to accept her unorthodox cures amid a pandemic. But upon arrival, she is tasked with a much different she must use her collection of jewels to track down a ruthless thief who is ransacking Florence’s churches for priceless relics—the city’s only hope for protection. If she succeeds, she’ll be a recognized physician and never accused of witchcraft again. But as her investigation progresses, Ginevra discovers she’s merely a pawn in a much larger scheme than the one she’s been hired to solve. And the dangerous men behind this conspiracy won’t think twice about killing a stone witch to get what they want… Release Date: October 8, 2024 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a063def4-c7e5-47c6-9421-c55de481f836/206318178-2.jpg Blog - October New Releases - The Christmas Tree Farm by Laurie Gilmore Kira North hates Christmas. Which is unfortunate since she just bought a Christmas tree farm in a town that’s too cute for its own good. Bennett Ellis is on vacation in Dream Harbor taking a break from his life in California. And most importantly, taking a break from his latest run of disastrous dates. After a run in with Kira in her fields, Ben has no intention of offering to help the grumpy owner set up her tree farm, despite the fact she’s clearly got no idea what she’s doing. Kira knows she should stop being so stubborn, but her farm is not all cute and cozy like people always show on social media, it’s borderline dangerous with no heating, and she’d rather no one saw it. But somehow fate finds Ben at Kira’s farm once more, and as Kira watches him swing an ax at the first tree, she finds herself appreciating his strength and questionning why she refused help in the first place.. Release Date: October 10, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/01c2c4dd-342c-4737-819a-0f5b8250190c/112972173.jpg Blog - October New Releases - The Wedding Witch by Erin Sterling Bowen Penhallow has always been a loner, studying dark and ancient magic on a mountaintop in Wales. He prefers it that way, but when his friend Declan—who happens to be a ghost—asks him to attend a Yuletide wedding at a grand estate deep in the Welsh countryside, Bowen reluctantly agrees. Tamsyn Bligh is not a witch, but she makes her living off of them. As a procurer and seller of magical items, Tamsyn’s business is not always above board, but she’s been trying to fix that (mostly.) Bowen is an occasional customer—as well as the star of several of Tamsyn’s dirtiest dreams—but she’s been around enough witches to know that, as a human, getting involved with one is not the smartest idea. She’s finagled an invite to the Witchy Wedding of the Century in the hopes of finally making a score big enough to retire. Just one priceless magical artifact from Tywyll House would set her up for life. But Tamsyn isn’t the only one sneaking about in Tywyll House, and the mix of a very strong spell combined with a wedding mishap transports Bowen and Tamsyn into Tywyll House’s past, to the Yuletide Celebration of 1957. As Bowen and Tamsyn work together to get back to the present, they must also face off with the origins of Tywyll House’s haunting, the suspicions of their fellow witches…oh, and the fact that somewhere between the mistletoe and the bonfire, they might be falling in love.Release Date: October 15, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e5cbaba0-7dee-4db3-812d-61916b4f8fba/203578889-2.jpg Blog - October New Releases - If I Stopped Haunting You by Colby Wilkins It's been months since horror author Penelope Skinner threw a book at Neil Storm. But he was so infuriating, with his sparkling green eyes and his bestselling horror novels that claimed to break Native stereotypes. And now she’s a publishing pariah and hasn’t been able to write a word since. So when her friend invites her on a too-good-to-be-true writers retreat in a supposedly haunted Scottish castle, she seizes the opportunity. Of course, some things really are too good to be true. Neil wants nothing less than to be trapped in a castle with the frustratingly adorable woman who threw a book at him. She drew blood! Worse still, she unleashed a serious case of self-doubt! Neil is terrified to write another bestselling “book without a soul,” as Pen called it. All Neil wants is to find inspiration, while completely avoiding her. But as the retreat begins, Pen and Neil are stunned to find themselves trapped in a real-life ghost story. Even more horrifying, they’re stuck together and a truly shocking (extremely hot) almost-kiss has left them rethinking their feelings, and… maybe they shouldn’t have been enemies at all? But if they can’t stop the ghosts pursuing them, they may never have the chance to find out. Release Date: October 15, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ae846f3b-86c5-4cf8-840c-4d88a25a24dd/203578793.jpg Blog - October New Releases - Spectacular by Stephanie Garber Snowflakes are falling. Invitations are arriving. And holiday magic is swirling in the capital city of the Meridian Empire. It’s Great Holiday Eve Eve. Scarlett Dragna is planning a spectacular Holiday celebration for the city. Donatella is searching for the perfect gift. Julian is looking ridiculously handsome in green. And Legend . . . Well, sadly Legend is not fond of the Great Holiday. Tella is hoping her perfect gift will change his mind. Unfortunately, she hasn’t found this perfect gift just yet. But it is Great Holiday Eve Eve . . . surely there’s some holiday magic swirling around. Welcome, welcome back to the world of Caraval, where even holidays are not as they seem. Release Date: October 22, 2024 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a3c60b80-1e88-4303-b132-1e92834848f3/204795443.jpg Blog - October New Releases - The Striker by Ana Huang She's the only woman he wants...and the only one he can't have. Asher Donovan is a living legend—the darling of the Premier League, the (arguably) greatest footballer in the world. But his reckless antics and recent team transfer have caused much controversy, and when his feud with his rival-turned-teammate costs them a championship, they’re forced to “bond” during off-season cross-training. Surviving the summer shouldn’t be hard…until Asher meets their new trainer. She’s beautiful, talented, and no matter how hard he tries, he can’t take his mind off her. The only problem? She’s his rival’s sister—and completely off limits. *** Scarlett DuBois is a former prima ballerina whose career was cut short by a tragic accident. Now a teacher at a prestigious dance academy but still haunted by the ghosts of her past, the last thing she wants is to spend the summer cross-training Asher Donovan, of all people . She swore she would never date a footballer, but when her brother leaves town for an emergency, she finds herself thrown into dangerously close proximity with the gorgeous, charming striker. Training, she can deal with. But falling in love? That’s out of the question—especially when he’s the only person with the power to break her heart. Release Date: October 22, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/07cfdf59-3081-4379-960c-154b04b4aba9/214490423.jpg Blog - October New Releases - Holding the Reins by Paisley Hope Take a deep breath and let go of the reins. Cecilia “CeCe” Ashby is finally escaping the toxic relationship that has consumed her entire adult life. She's returning to her hometown of Laurel Creek, Kentucky, and to her family’s equestrian ranch, unsure of what the future holds. Nash Carter, the newly retired superstar of the Dallas Stars, is Laurel Creek's hometown hero, local business owner, and notorious bachelor. He’s also the unofficial fourth sibling in the Ashby clan. It’s been years since his days of tormenting CeCe with her older brothers Wade and Cole. So, when CeCe needs a job, he feels drawn to help her. Nash can’t seem to take his eyes off of his best friend's sister, and it seems she’s been staring right back, not without animosity left over from his childish teasing back in the day. Despite their initial reluctance, the fire between them ignites and it isn't long before they jump into the flames. Release Date: October 22, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f2116220-0491-408f-8894-f388c95d07d5/208580624.jpg Blog - October New Releases - The Treasure Hunters Club by Tom Ryan WELCOME TO MAPLE BAY, NOVA SCOTIA For nearly a century, people have ventured to the idyllic seaside town of Maple Bay in search of a legendary lost pirate treasure, but locals know there’s more than just gold buried in the sand. As the paths of three strangers converge in Maple Bay, the truth is about to be blown wide open. But not before the bodies start to pile up. Peter Barnett is rapidly approaching 40 with little to show for it when a mysterious letter invites him to Maple Bay and the mansion his estranged family has called home for generations. Seventeen-year-old Dandy Feltzen is isolated and adrift following the death of her beloved grandfather, until his final request and a tantalizing clue sets her on a mission to solve the mystery he spent his entire life chasing. Cass Jones has given up on her dream of being a successful author when an unexpected opportunity lands in her a housesitting gig in remote Maple Bay, where she stumbles on the perfect subject matter for her breakout book—and the handsome sailor who might be just the person to help her research it. Peter, Dandy and Cass have never met, but they’re on a collision course with each other and the mystery that has defined Maple Bay for two centuries, and none of them are prepared for the shocking truths that may or may not still be buried there. Release Date: October 24, 2024 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/31ecdb65-a5cf-4d60-8274-0b508aacfd9f/199635075-2.jpg Blog - October New Releases - This Will Be Fun by E.B. Asher Ten years ago, they saved the realm. It ruined their lives. Everyone in Mythria knows the story of how best friends Beatrice and Elowen, handsome ex-bandit Clare, and valiant leader Galwell the Great defended the land from darkness. It’s a tale beloved by all—except the former heroes. They haven’t spoken in a decade, devastated by what their quest cost them. But when they receive an invitation to the queen of Mythria’s wedding, it’s a summons they can’t refuse . . . and a reunion for the ages, with Clare secretly not over his long-ago fling with Beatrice, Beatrice fighting the guilt she feels over how everything ended, Elowen unprepared for the return of her former flame (the cunning Vandra), and all of them lost without Galwell’s presence. And if reuniting with old friends and lovers wasn’t perilous enough, dark forces from their past have returned, plotting a domination that only Mythria’s one-time defenders can stop. Maybe. Dusting off old weapons and old instincts, they face undead nemeses, crystal caves, enchanted swords, coffee shops, games of magical Truth or Dare, and, hardest of all, their past—rife with wounds never healed and romances never forgotten. This time around, will their story end in happily ever after? Release Date: October 29, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f3396542-b031-47b6-8db8-31fd8143d48d/207252770.jpg Blog - October New Releases - The Blue Hour by Paula Hawkins An isolated Scottish island, accessible to the mainland only twelve hours a day. A famous (some might say infamous) artist whose notoriously unfaithful husband disappeared after visiting her twenty years ago. A present-day discovery that intimately connects three people and unveils a web of secrets and lies. Welcome to Eris: an island with only one house, one inhabitant, one way out. Unreachable from the Scottish mainland for twelve hours each day. Once home to Vanessa: A famous artist whose notoriously unfaithful husband disappeared twenty years ago. Now home to Grace: A solitary creature of the tides, content in her own isolation. But when a shocking discovery is made in an art gallery far away in London, a visitor comes calling. And the secrets of Eris threaten to emerge.... Release Date: October 29, 2024 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9aee9e94-60fc-41c7-a42a-aaf0ef42f7e9/204593559.jpg Blog - October New Releases - Throne of Secrets by Kerri Maniscalco A wicked prince determined to save his kingdom. Gabriel Axton—infamous as the Prince of Gluttony, the self-proclaimed rake of rakes—has always lived for indulgence: in delicious food, in tantalizing women, and most of all, in the thrill of the hunt, where his love of danger can take over. But when his favorite adventure takes a deadly turn, he realizes something is very wrong in his demon court. With the clock ticking, he must turn to the only one who might uncover the truth: a journalist he has spent a decade avoiding… A reporter hell-bent on finding the truth. Adriana Saint Lucent has been on the hunt for years—if she could just report something damning enough about that no-good scoundrel Gabriel Axton, she knows others would finally see the demon as she does. But she never expected to turn up a rumor too terrifying to be believed: could the ice dragons to the north be growing restless? Drawn into the secrets of the Underworld, Adriana’s investigation leads her into the place she dreads most…Axton’s infamous court. A dangerous rivalry—and deliciously twisted fairy tale. To stop darkness from falling over their kingdom, Axton and Adriana will have to unite against an escalating danger. But with each holding tight to their own secrets, can they find the truth before it’s too late? And what will they do with an equally troubling rumor: that they might not actually hate one another, after all? Release Date: October 29, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ee46ce4f-03b9-4d8f-b9bd-b935095c8a8a/203579013.jpg Blog - October New Releases - A New Lease on Death by Olivia Blacke Ruby Young's new Boston apartment comes with all the usual perks. Windows facing the brick wall of the next-door building. Heat that barely works. A malfunctioning buzzer. Noisy neighbors. A dead body on the sidewalk outside. And of course, a ghost. Since Cordelia Graves died in her apartment a few months ago, she's kept up her residency, despite being bored out of her (non-tangible) skull and frustrated by her new roommate. When her across-the-hall neighbor, Jake Macintyre, is shot and killed in an apparent mugging gone wrong outside their building, Cordelia is convinced there’s more to it and is determined to bring his killer to justice. Unfortunately, Cordelia, being dead herself, can't solve the mystery alone. She has to enlist the help of the obnoxiously perky, living tenant of her apartment. Ruby is twenty, annoying, and has never met a houseplant she couldn't kill. But she also can do everything Cordelia can't, from interviewing suspects to researching Jake on the library computers that go up in a puff of smoke if Cordelia gets too close. The roommates form an unlikely friendship as they get closer to the truth about Jake's death…and maybe other dangerous secrets as well. Release Date: October 29, 2024 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/65e4bf7c-287e-4493-8713-9c1032e4c652/203578802.jpg Blog - October New Releases - The Debutantes by Olivia Worley For the New Orleans elite, the Les Masques Ball is sure to be the social event of the season—if they can avoid another dead Queen. When debutante Margot Landry was found dead the morning after her reign at last year’s ball, it was a tragedy, but not a shocking one. Margot was a wild child with a self-destructive streak, nothing like this year’s Queen, Lily LeBlanc. With a perfectly poised debutante on the throne, everything is going according to plan…until the ball is hijacked by a mysterious figure in a Jester costume. That night, Lily sends a text to three of the Maids on her royal court—her best friend, Vivian; her boyfriend's sister, Piper; and April, her former frenemy—asking them all to meet the next morning. But Lily never shows up. On the surface, these three debutantes don’t have anything in common except their exclusive private school and their ties to Les Masques. But soon, they realize why Lily brought them together: something dark is lurking beneath the glamorous surface of the debutante world, and it might be the reason she disappeared. And the further the girls dig, the more they begin to suspect that Margot's death may not have been an accident—and that Lily may be next. When the Jester starts threatening to expose their own secrets, this unlikely trio must team up to uncover the monsters behind the Mardi Gras masks—before they’re left with another dead debutante. Release Date: October 29, 2024 Genre: Young Adult Thriller https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/fall-thrillers monthly 0.5 2024-09-09 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/300f6e76-988c-4e91-a7ee-6104df71ced7/43822820.jpg Blog - Fall Thrillers - The Family Upstairs by Lisa Jewell Soon after her twenty-fifth birthday, Libby Jones returns home from work to find the letter she’s been waiting for her entire life. She rips it open with one driving thought: I am finally going to know who I am. She soon learns not only the identity of her birth parents, but also that she is the sole inheritor of their abandoned mansion on the banks of the Thames in London’s fashionable Chelsea neighborhood, worth millions. Everything in Libby’s life is about to change. But what she can’t possibly know is that others have been waiting for this day as well—and she is on a collision course to meet them. Twenty-five years ago, police were called to 16 Cheyne Walk with reports of a baby crying. When they arrived, they found a healthy ten-month-old happily cooing in her crib in the bedroom. Downstairs in the kitchen lay three dead bodies, all dressed in black, next to a hastily scrawled note. And the four other children reported to live at Cheyne Walk were gone. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0397fb93-637e-4ee9-b293-669559395961/50833559.jpg Blog - Fall Thrillers - Home Before Dark by Riley Sager What was it like? Living in that house. Maggie Holt is used to such questions. Twenty-five years ago, she and her parents, Ewan and Jess, moved into Baneberry Hall, a rambling Victorian estate in the Vermont woods. They spent three weeks there before fleeing in the dead of night, an ordeal Ewan later recounted in a nonfiction book called House of Horrors. His tale of ghostly happenings and encounters with malevolent spirits became a worldwide phenomenon, rivaling The Amityville Horror in popularity—and skepticism. Today, Maggie is a restorer of old homes and too young to remember any of the events mentioned in her father’s book. But she also doesn’t believe a word of it. Ghosts, after all, don’t exist. When Maggie inherits Baneberry Hall after her father’s death, she returns to renovate the place to prepare it for sale. But her homecoming is anything but warm. People from the past, chronicled in House of Horrors, lurk in the shadows. And locals aren’t thrilled that their small town has been made infamous thanks to Maggie’s father. Even more unnerving is Baneberry Hall itself—a place filled with relics from another era that hint at a history of dark deeds. As Maggie experiences strange occurrences straight out of her father’s book, she starts to believe that what he wrote was more fact than fiction. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c88ac165-29f6-41e7-bfdc-5ed778d80cd6/58977601.jpg Blog - Fall Thrillers - On A Quiet Street by Seraphina Nova Glass The perfect neighborhood can be the perfect place to hide… Who wouldn’t want to live in Brighton Hills? This exclusive community on the Oregon coast is the perfect mix of luxury and natural beauty. Stunning houses nestle beneath mighty Douglas firs, and lush backyards roll down to the lakefront. It’s the kind of place where neighbors look out for one another. Sometimes a little too closely… Cora thinks her husband, Finn, is cheating—she just needs to catch him in the act. That’s where Paige comes in. Paige lost her son to a hit-and-run last year, and she’s drowning in the kind of grief that makes people do reckless things. Like spying on the locals, searching for proof that her son’s death was no accident. And agreeing to Cora’s plan to reveal what kind of man Finn really is. All the while, their reclusive new neighbor, Georgia, is acting more strangely every day. But what could such a lovely young mother possibly be hiding? When you really start to look beyond the airy open floor plans and marble counters, Brighton Hills is filled with secrets. Some big, some little, some deadly. And one by one, they’re about to be revealed… https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1513b41e-42bc-42ce-8475-4a84a766b9ea/57645345.jpg Blog - Fall Thrillers - Twenty Years Later by Charlie Donlea Hiding her own dark past in plain sight, a TV reporter is determined to uncover the truth behind a gruesome murder decades after the investigation was abandoned. But TWENTY YEARS LATER, to understand the present, you need to listen to the past… Avery Mason, host of American Events, knows the subjects that grab a TV audience’s attention. Her latest story—a murder mystery laced with kinky sex, tragedy, and betrayal—is guaranteed to be ratings gold. New DNA technology has allowed the New York medical examiner’s office to make its first successful identification of a 9/11 victim in years. The twist: the victim, Victoria Ford, had been accused of the gruesome murder of her married lover. In a chilling last phone call to her sister, Victoria begged her to prove her innocence. Emma Kind has waited twenty years to put her sister to rest, but closure won’t be complete until she can clear Victoria’s name. Alone she’s had no luck, but she’s convinced that Avery’s connections and fame will help. Avery, hoping to negotiate a more lucrative network contract, goes into investigative overdrive. Victoria had been having an affair with a successful novelist, found hanging from the balcony of his Catskills mansion. The rope, the bedroom, and the entire crime scene was covered in Victoria’s DNA. But the twisted puzzle of Victoria’s private life is just the beginning. And what Avery doesn't realize is that there are other players in the game who are interested in Avery’s own secret past—one she has kept hidden from both the network executives and her television audience. A secret she thought was dead and buried . . . https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3e5c26b6-187a-4612-9ebe-b4bea84f8cab/57361474.jpg Blog - Fall Thrillers - Local Woman Missing by Mary Kubica People don’t just disappear without a trace.... Shelby Tebow is the first to go missing. Not long after, Meredith Dickey and her six-year-old daughter, Delilah, vanish just blocks away from where Shelby was last seen, striking fear into their once-peaceful community. Are these incidents connected? After an elusive search that yields more questions than answers, the case eventually goes cold. Now, 11 years later, Delilah shockingly returns. Everyone wants to know what happened to her, but no one is prepared for what they’ll find.... In this smart and chilling thriller, master of suspense and New York Times best-selling author Mary Kubica takes domestic secrets to a whole new level, showing that some people will stop at nothing to keep the truth buried. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c5210cb1-bd52-4e85-ad13-7f59d1418b10/30319086.jpg Blog - Fall Thrillers - If We Were Villains by M. L. Rio Oliver Marks has just served ten years in jail - for a murder he may or may not have committed. On the day he's released, he's greeted by the man who put him in prison. Detective Colborne is retiring, but before he does, he wants to know what really happened a decade ago. As one of seven young actors studying Shakespeare at an elite arts college, Oliver and his friends play the same roles onstage and off: hero, villain, tyrant, temptress, ingenue, extra. But when the casting changes, and the secondary characters usurp the stars, the plays spill dangerously over into life, and one of them is found dead. The rest face their greatest acting challenge yet: convincing the police, and themselves, that they are blameless. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e1f82f91-e18b-4acc-9c17-eeb01e30ec75/70897-2.jpg Blog - Fall Thrillers - The Secret History by Donna Tart Under the influence of their charismatic classics professor, a group of clever, eccentric misfits at an elite New England college discover a way of thinking and living that is a world away from the humdrum existence of their contemporaries. But when they go beyond the boundaries of normal morality they slip gradually from obsession to corruption and betrayal, and at last—inexorably—into evil. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/aabd5de2-7a86-449e-8662-070f58a35485/22557272.jpg Blog - Fall Thrillers - The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins Rachel catches the same commuter train every morning. She knows it will wait at the same signal each time, overlooking a row of back gardens. She’s even started to feel like she knows the people who live in one of the houses. “Jess and Jason,” she calls them. Their life—as she sees it—is perfect. If only Rachel could be that happy. And then she sees something shocking. It’s only a minute until the train moves on, but it’s enough. Now everything’s changed. Now Rachel has a chance to become a part of the lives she’s only watched from afar. Now they’ll see; she’s much more than just the girl on the train... https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6e948be2-fb62-4926-88a6-1cc617656dee/61313902.jpg Blog - Fall Thrillers - Five Survive by Holly Jackson Eight hours. Six friends. One sniper . . . Eighteen year old Red and her friends are on a road trip in an RV, heading to the beach for Spring Break. It’s a long drive but spirits are high. Until the RV breaks down in the middle of nowhere. There’s no mobile phone reception and nobody around to help. And as the wheels are shot out, one by one, the friends realise that this is no accident. There’s a sniper out there in the dark watching them and he knows exactly who they are. One of the group has a secret that the sniper is willing to kill for. A game of cat-and-mouse plays out as the group desperately tries to get help and to work out which member of the group is the target. Buried secrets are forced to light in the cramped, claustrophobic setting of the RV, and tensions within the group will reach deadly levels. Not everyone will survive the night. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6242e3a4-c02e-46e0-b34a-3d52dbaa2100/16299.jpg Blog - Fall Thrillers - And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie First, there were ten—a curious assortment of strangers summoned as weekend guests to a little private island off the coast of Devon. Their host, an eccentric millionaire unknown to all of them, is nowhere to be found. All that the guests have in common is a wicked past they're unwilling to reveal—and a secret that will seal their fate. For each has been marked for murder. A famous nursery rhyme is framed and hung in every room of the mansion: "Ten little boys went out to dine; One choked his little self and then there were nine. Nine little boys sat up very late; One overslept himself and then there were eight. Eight little boys traveling in Devon; One said he'd stay there then there were seven. Seven little boys chopping up sticks; One chopped himself in half and then there were six. Six little boys playing with a hive; A bumblebee stung one and then there were five. Five little boys going in for law; One got in Chancery and then there were four. Four little boys going out to sea; A red herring swallowed one and then there were three. Three little boys walking in the zoo; A big bear hugged one and then there were two. Two little boys sitting in the sun; One got frizzled up and then there was one. One little boy left all alone; He went out and hanged himself and then there were none." When they realize that murders are occurring as described in the rhyme, terror mounts. One by one they fall prey. Before the weekend is out, there will be none. Who has choreographed this dastardly scheme? And who will be left to tell the tale? Only the dead are above suspicion. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2a839b56-8b23-4c8f-9b4f-b07ab9801ad0/59808050.jpg Blog - Fall Thrillers - Daisy Darker by Alice Feeney After years of avoiding each other, Daisy Darker’s entire family is assembling for Nana’s 80th birthday party in Nana’s crumbling gothic house on a tiny tidal island. Finally back together one last time, when the tide comes in, they will be cut off from the rest of the world for eight hours. The family arrives, each of them harboring secrets. Then at the stroke of midnight, as a storm rages, Nana is found dead. And an hour later, the next family member follows… Trapped on an island where someone is killing them one by one, the Darkers must reckon with their present mystery as well as their past secrets, before the tide comes in and all is revealed. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b8b13d20-8701-4c81-b83c-d89137adc9c9/40097951.jpg-2.png Blog - Fall Thrillers - The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides Alicia Berenson’s life is seemingly perfect. A famous painter married to an in-demand fashion photographer, she lives in a grand house with big windows overlooking a park in one of London’s most desirable areas. One evening her husband Gabriel returns home late from a fashion shoot, and Alicia shoots him five times in the face, and then never speaks another word. Alicia’s refusal to talk, or give any kind of explanation, turns a domestic tragedy into something far grander, a mystery that captures the public imagination and casts Alicia into notoriety. The price of her art skyrockets, and she, the silent patient, is hidden away from the tabloids and spotlight at the Grove, a secure forensic unit in North London. Theo Faber is a criminal psychotherapist who has waited a long time for the opportunity to work with Alicia. His determination to get her to talk and unravel the mystery of why she shot her husband takes him down a twisting path into his own motivations—a search for the truth that threatens to consume him.... https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e4e03906-112c-4411-a303-f3bf26e12597/29589074.jpg Blog - Fall Thrillers - Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson Ellingham Academy is a famous private school in Vermont for the brightest thinkers, inventors, and artists. It was founded by Albert Ellingham, an early twentieth century tycoon, who wanted to make a wonderful place full of riddles, twisting pathways, and gardens. “A place,” he said, “where learning is a game.” Shortly after the school opened, his wife and daughter were kidnapped. The only real clue was a mocking riddle listing methods of murder, signed with the frightening pseudonym “Truly, Devious.” It became one of the great unsolved crimes of American history. True-crime aficionado Stevie Bell is set to begin her first year at Ellingham Academy, and she has an ambitious plan: She will solve this cold case. That is, she will solve the case when she gets a grip on her demanding new school life and her housemates: the inventor, the novelist, the actor, the artist, and the jokester. But something strange is happening. Truly Devious makes a surprise return, and death revisits Ellingham Academy. The past has crawled out of its grave. Someone has gotten away with murder. The two interwoven mysteries of this first book in the Truly Devious series dovetail brilliantly, and Stevie Bell will continue her relentless quest for the murderers in books two and three. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0f84b2a1-ece6-433f-9e6e-ae390ffa73db/63910917.jpg Blog - Fall Thrillers - This Is How We End Things by R. J. Jacobs Campus is empty, a winter storm is blowing in, and someone is lurking in the shadows, waiting for their chance to kill again. Forest, North Carolina. Under the instruction of enigmatic Professor Joe Lyons, five graduate students are studying the tedious science behind the acts of lying. But discovering the secrets of deception isn't making any of the student's more honest though. Instead, it's making it easier for them to guard their own secrets – and they all have something to hide. When a test goes awry and one of them is found dead, the students find themselves trapped by a snowstorm on an abandoned campus with a local detective on the case. As harbored secrets begin to break the surface, the graduates must find out who's lying, who isn't, and who may have been capable of committing murder. It turns out deception is even more dangerous than they thought... A foreboding new dark academia thriller of deception and suspense, This is How it Ends follows the unraveling of a close group of students as they contend with what it means to lie, and be lied to. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/336b5970-2a50-4d90-839e-07ae3782f78f/62949648-2.jpg Blog - Fall Thrillers - The Naturals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes Seventeen-year-old Cassie is a natural at reading people. Piecing together the tiniest details, she can tell you who you are and what you want. But, it's not a skill that she's ever taken seriously. That is, until the FBI come they've begun a classified program that uses exceptional teenagers to crack infamous cold cases, and they need Cassie. What Cassie doesn't realize is that there's more at risk than a few unsolved homicides—especially when she's sent to live with a group of teens whose gifts are as unusual as her own. Soon, it becomes clear that no one in the Naturals program is what they seem. And when a new killer strikes, danger looms close. Caught in a lethal game of cat and mouse with a killer, the Naturals are going to have to use all of their gifts just to survive. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b555159b-9733-4144-bd99-68935e223830/62703226.jpg Blog - Fall Thrillers - The Only One Left by Riley Sager At seventeen, Lenora Hope Hung her sister with a rope Now reduced to a schoolyard chant, the Hope family murders shocked the Maine coast one bloody night in 1929. While most people assume seventeen-year-old Lenora was responsible, the police were never able to prove it. Other than her denial after the killings, she has never spoken publicly about that night, nor has she set foot outside Hope’s End, the cliffside mansion where the massacre occurred. Stabbed her father with a knife Took her mother’s happy life It’s now 1983, and home-health aide Kit McDeere arrives at a decaying Hope’s End to care for Lenora after her previous nurse fled in the middle of the night. In her seventies and confined to a wheelchair, Lenora was rendered mute by a series of strokes and can only communicate with Kit by tapping out sentences on an old typewriter. One night, Lenora uses it to make a tantalizing offer—I want to tell you everything. “It wasn’t me,” Lenora said But she’s the only one not dead As Kit helps Lenora write about the events leading to the Hope family massacre, it becomes clear there’s more to the tale than people know. But when new details about her predecessor’s departure come to light, Kit starts to suspect Lenora might not be telling the complete truth—and that the seemingly harmless woman in her care could be far more dangerous than she first thought. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ce0905f4-2d1a-499a-8c5c-f4554c615c27/52189092.jpg Blog - Fall Thrillers - A Good Girls Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson Everyone in Fairview knows the story. Pretty and popular high school senior Andie Bell was murdered by her boyfriend, Sal Singh, who then killed himself. It was all anyone could talk about. And five years later, Pip sees how the tragedy still haunts her town. But she can't shake the feeling that there was more to what happened that day. She knew Sal when she was a child, and he was always so kind to her. How could he possibly have been a killer? Now a senior herself, Pip decides to reexamine the closed case for her final project, at first just to cast doubt on the original investigation. But soon she discovers a trail of dark secrets that might actually prove Sal innocent . . . and the line between past and present begins to blur. Someone in Fairview doesn't want Pip digging around for answers, and now her own life might be in danger. This is the story of an investigation turned obsession, full of twists and turns and with an ending you'll never expect. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0fdbb77b-d3e9-4769-a109-1556410ec392/59414094.jpg Blog - Fall Thrillers - How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix When Louise finds out her parents have died, she dreads going home. She doesn’t want to leave her daughter with her ex and fly to Charleston. She doesn’t want to deal with her family home, stuffed to the rafters with the remnants of her father’s academic career and her mother’s lifelong obsession with puppets and dolls. She doesn’t want to learn how to live without the two people who knew and loved her best in the world. Most of all, she doesn’t want to deal with her brother, Mark, who never left their hometown, gets fired from one job after another, and resents her success. Unfortunately, she’ll need his help to get the house ready for sale because it’ll take more than some new paint on the walls and clearing out a lifetime of memories to get this place on the market. But some houses don’t want to be sold, and their home has other plans for both of them… https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a59f30ac-11b1-4636-a63f-32ef9c25abf8/16307.jpg Blog - Fall Thrillers - Hallowe’en Party by Agatha Christie A teenage murder witness is drowned in a tub of apples. At a Hallowe'en party, Joyce, a hostile thirteen-year-old, boasts that she once witnessed a murder. When no-one believes her, she storms off home. But within hours her body is found, still in the house, drowned in an apple-bobbing tub. That night, Hercule Poirot is called in to find the 'evil presence.' But first he must establish whether he is looking for a murderer or a double-murderer! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6f930617-5a3a-4862-ba1d-f04f1873a590/61458888.jpg Blog - Fall Thrillers - You Shouldn’t Have Come Here by Jeneva Rose Grace Evans, an overworked New Yorker looking for a total escape from her busy life, books an Airbnb on a ranch in the middle of Wyoming. When she arrives, she's pleasantly surprised to find that the owner is a handsome man by the name of Calvin Wells. But there are things Grace discovers that she's not too pleased about: A lack of cell phone service. A missing woman. And a feeling that something isn't right with the town. Despite her uneasiness and misgivings from Calvin's friends and family, the two grow close and start to fall for one another. However, as her departure date nears, things between them start to change for the worse. Grace grows wary of Calvin as his infatuation for her seems to turn into obsession. Calvin fears that Grace is hiding something from him. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6b477369-1899-45be-869b-4a0c4f255aef/60784373.jpg Blog - Fall Thrillers - What Lies in the Woods by Kate Alice Marshall Naomi Shaw used to believe in magic. Twenty-two years ago, she and her two best friends, Cassidy and Olivia, spent the summer roaming the woods, imagining a world of ceremony and wonder. They called it the Goddess Game. The summer ended suddenly when Naomi was attacked. Miraculously, she survived her seventeen stab wounds and lived to identify the man who had hurt her. The girls’ testimony put away a serial killer, wanted for murdering six women. They were heroes. For decades afterward, the friends have kept a secret worth killing for. But now Olivia wants to tell, and Naomi sets out to find out what really happened in the woods―no matter how dangerous the truth turns out to be. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/cozy-fall-romances monthly 0.5 2024-08-27 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ee2fe4cc-8a80-4500-b76d-11a0b1a5ba6f/81N6pjRZLbL._SL1500_.jpg Blog - Cozy Fall Romances - The Seven Year Slip by Ashley Poston Sometimes, the worst day of your life happens, and you have to figure out how to live after it. So Clementine forms a plan to keep her heart safe: work hard, find someone decent to love, and try to remember to chase the moon. The last one is silly and obviously metaphorical, but her aunt always told her that you needed at least one big dream to keep going. And for the last year, that plan has gone off without a hitch. Mostly. The love part is hard because she doesn’t want to get too close to anyone—she isn’t sure her heart can take it. And then she finds a strange man standing in the kitchen of her late aunt’s apartment. A man with kind eyes and a Southern drawl and a taste for lemon pies. The kind of man that, before it all, she would’ve fallen head-over-heels for. And she might again. Except, he exists in the past. Seven years ago, to be exact. And she, quite literally, lives seven years in his future. Her aunt always said the apartment was a pinch in time, a place where moments blended together like watercolors. And Clementine knows that if she lets her heart fall, she’ll be doomed. After all, love is never a matter of time—but a matter of timing. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f4fd5436-3b91-43f9-8403-e3c9fb4bf9a4/A1P7%2BoqiHyL._SL1500_.jpg Blog - Cozy Fall Romances - You, Again by Kate Goldbeck Can they stop hating each other long enough to fall in love? When Ari and Josh first meet, the wrong kind of sparks fly. They hate each other. Instantly. A free-spirited, struggling comedian who likes to keep things casual, Ari sublets, takes gigs, and she never sleeps over after hooking up. Born-and-bred Manhattanite Josh has ambitious plans: Take the culinary world by storm, find The One, and make her breakfast in his spotless kitchen. They have absolutely nothing in common . . . except that they happen to be sleeping with the same woman. Ari and Josh never expect their paths to cross again. But years later, as they’re both reeling from ego-bruising breakups, a chance encounter leads to a surprising connection: friendship. Turns out, spending time with your former nemesis is fun when you’re too sad to hate each other—and too sad for hate sex. As friends-without-benefits, they find comfort in late-night Netflix binges, swiping through each other’s online dating profiles, and bickering across boroughs. It’s better than romance. Until one night, the unspoken boundaries of their platonic relationship begin to blur. . . . https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d83ffada-657c-4235-81ff-a98222995763/81oEamBWGnL._SL1500_.jpg Blog - Cozy Fall Romances - Funny Feelings by Tarah Dewitt When falling in love is the punchline… Farley Jones is a loud, chaotic, and hilariously clever standup comedian on the way to stardom. The only thing she loves more than the rush of telling jokes in front of a revved-up audience is her hot older manager Meyer, though he doesn’t have a clue. Keeping her feelings hidden from him is agony (a tragedy, even―in lieu of flowers, please send cash...) but Meyer has been Farley’s closest and most treasured friend, not to mention vital to the trajectory of her career. She can’t risk ruining their relationship by telling him how she truly feels. After all, who else would have the patience to put up with a hot mess like her? A former standup star himself, single father Meyer Harrigan left the stage years ago in order to focus on raising his deaf daughter Hazel. Farley has been everything to them since she came into their lives three years ago, and despite his grumpiness, his protectiveness over Hazel, and his disdain for public attention, Meyer will do anything to make her standup dreams come true. When the biggest opportunity of Farley’s career comes along and forces the pair to fake-date in order to stir up publicity, it doesn't take long for their act to bring all those other funny feelings out into the open. Like most matters of the heart, it quickly begins to feel like anything but a joke. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b073f86a-2d52-44cd-8e5c-4fbae7d12198/619UxlDG0KL._SL1500_.jpg Blog - Cozy Fall Romances - Just Between Us by Madison Wright Ellie Bates is in big trouble. When her parents, the owners of the apartment complex she manages, tell her she’s on her last strike, Ellie knows she can’t break any more rules or risk getting fired. She needs to tread very, very carefully or chance falling straight through this thin ice beneath her feet. That’s easier said than done when Camden Lane moves into her complex and starts flipping her world upside down. But dating residents is off-limits and getting close to him is a rule she's not willing to break. Camden Lane can’t get Ellie out of his head. He may be in town for work, but it’s Ellie that his focus keeps drifting toward. Between his impending departure date and her parent’s rules, he knows nothing can happen. Except, the more time they spend together, the harder and harder it gets to resist the pull they feel toward each other. When the lines between them start to blur, Camden and Ellie have to decide where their priorities lie. Is what they have worth what’s at stake? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6277974c-ec4e-4f8f-8e6b-53ce04caba24/123011489.jpg Blog - Cozy Fall Romances - Love at the Salted Caramel Cafe by Angie Ellington Sierra Blake has returned home to Mill Hollows, Virginia. She's lost her job as a hotel marketing executive. She knew getting romantically involved with the son of the franchise owner was a bad idea. Turning down his marriage proposal left Sierra updating her resume and needing a change of scenery. Returning to the small football-loving town located in view of the Blue Ridge Parkway is definitely a change of scenery from the sultry heat and water sport enthusiast city of Tampa. Wes Carter is new to Mill Hollows and stirring up more than sediment and rocks for geology sampling upon meeting the beautiful Sierra Blake at the Salted Caramel Cafe. Renting the cabin next door to the Blake family gives him views of the Roanoke Valley and reasons to contemplate leaving behind his days of suitcase living. Fall in Virginia isn't the only chill in the air. The last time Sierra saw her younger sibling, Roxie, the two didn't exactly leave each other on the best of terms. Then again, they've butted heads since they were teenagers. Sierra and Roxie need each other more than either will admit. More than sweet treats abound in this cozy romance that will leave you craving decadent desserts and a romantic getaway . https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b88ec355-04e0-4d4b-9894-d5693c0f7db0/61922953.jpg Blog - Cozy Fall Romances - Accidentally Amy by Lynn Painter IT STARTED WITH A CUP… Isabella Shay is usually a very honest person. But when she’s running late for her first day at a dream job and the barista yells for “Amy” 3x with no answer, she does the unthinkable. Izzy takes that PSL. It’s the exact drink she ordered and paid for, only waaaay further ahead in the line, so she mutters “I’m Amy” and grabs the cup. But when she turns around and runs directly into the most attractive man she’s ever seen, spilling the drink all over his GQ shirt and tie, she ends up having the ultimate meet-cute. Sparks fly and things feel beyond promising until he says the words, “See you tomorrow, Amy.” Uh, oh – she’ll definitely have to straighten him out the following day. Only when she gets to her new office and meets the VP of her department, it is none other than Blake Phillips - the hottie from Starbucks. And the man might’ve been charming to “Amy,” but he is an arrogant grump to Izzy, an arrogant grump who dos not find her explanation funny at all. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5fae5b18-e272-4ad4-be3b-fb148ed02753/62052562.jpg Blog - Cozy Fall Romances - Happily Haunted Afters by Brittany Kelley Nothing is spookier than a second chance at love. I’m done juggling dead-end jobs and deadbeat boyfriends. It’s time to nail down my goal of owning a hotel — and fix my friendship with my ex-best friend, Jack Colson. He's a big shot investor, and I’m going to need one. Nailing him barely crosses my mind. I might actually get my life in order, especially if I snag the deep (and deeply weird) discount for staying an entire weekend at my dream property. It’s hard not to fall in love with the place. Though I could do without the creepy doll that lives there, the noises Jack insists are raccoons, and the eerie AF abandoned hotel I’d need an even spookier amount of money to renovate. The worst part is, I’m falling for Jack… again. He'll never invest if he finds out I have feelings for him. But as we work through the phantoms of problems past, we’ll have to figure out if the property is infested with rodents — or something else that goes bump in the night. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b09b255b-c372-4c7a-8110-7c0e45f74f84/58885776-2.jpg Blog - Cozy Fall Romances - The Dead Romantics by Ashley Poston Florence Day is the ghostwriter for one of the most prolific romance authors in the industry, and she has a problem—after a terrible breakup, she no longer believes in love. It’s as good as dead. When her new editor, a too-handsome mountain of a man, won’t give her an extension on her book deadline, Florence prepares to kiss her career goodbye. But then she gets a phone call she never wanted to receive, and she must return home for the first time in a decade to help her family bury her beloved father. For ten years, she’s run from the town that never understood her, and even though she misses the sound of a warm Southern night and her eccentric, loving family and their funeral parlor, she can’t bring herself to stay. Even with her father gone, it feels like nothing in this town has changed. And she hates it. Until she finds a ghost standing at the funeral parlor’s front door, just as broad and infuriatingly handsome as ever, and he’s just as confused about why he’s there as she is. Romance is most certainly dead... but so is her new editor, and his unfinished business will have her second-guessing everything she’s ever known about love stories. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/13f4ce2f-db7b-452b-9200-3eae1d4e08a1/60737079.jpg Blog - Cozy Fall Romances - Every Rule Worth Breaking by Amanda Chaperon Rules are made for a reason, but some rules are meant to be broken. After dropping out of NYU, moving across the country, and spending the last two years as the co-owner of a successful activewear brand, Mackenzie Jean has decided it’s time to go back to school. Does she want to finish her degree? Absolutely. But enrolling at Michigan State University is about so much more. Somewhere along the way, she lost herself in the fog of her anxiety, and it’s time she rediscovers who she is. Aiden Fuller is an MSU hockey standout set to embark on his senior season. He’s flying high, all of his dreams within reach, until a seemingly harmless dare from his teammates ends with Aiden staring down a ten-game suspension. Now, he’s terrified he’s on the verge of losing the one thing in his life that means the most to him. When a chance encounter during Welcome Weekend pulls Kenzie and Aiden into each other’s orbits, suddenly all the rules they’ve carefully laid out for their lives seem to be hindering more than helping. Can Aiden be a safe place for Kenzie, a place where her mind is at rest and she can simply be? And will Kenzie help Aiden realize he can have it all—the game and the girl? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8cee52b5-7657-45c9-9bb8-c6f3ab4e3f12/139391940.jpg.png Blog - Cozy Fall Romances - The Pumpkin Spice Cafe by Laurie Gilmore When Jeanie's aunt gifts her the beloved Pumpkin Spice Café in the small town of Dream Harbor, Jeanie jumps at the chance for a fresh start away from her very dull desk job. Logan is a local farmer who avoids Dream Harbor's gossip at all costs. But Jeanie's arrival disrupts Logan's routine and he wants nothing to do with the irritatingly upbeat new girl, except that he finds himself inexplicably drawn to her. Will Jeanie's happy-go-lucky attitude win over the grumpy-but-gorgeous Logan, or has this city girl found the one person in town who won't fall for her charm, or her pumpkin spice lattes… https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/841bb08c-b450-463b-8905-343e156c2291/181344829.jpg Blog - Cozy Fall Romances - Bride by Ali Hazelwood A dangerous alliance between a Vampyre bride and an Alpha Werewolf becomes a love deep enough to sink your teeth into in this new paranormal romance. Misery Lark, the only daughter of the most powerful Vampyre councilman of the Southwest, is an outcast—again. Her days of living in anonymity among the Humans are over: she has been called upon to uphold a historic peacekeeping alliance between the Vampyres and their mortal enemies, the Weres, and she sees little choice but to surrender herself in the exchange—again... Weres are ruthless and unpredictable, and their Alpha, Lowe Moreland, is no exception. He rules his pack with absolute authority, but not without justice. And, unlike the Vampyre Council, not without feeling. It’s clear from the way he tracks Misery’s every movement that he doesn’t trust her. If only he knew how right he was…. Because Misery has her own reasons to agree to this marriage of convenience, reasons that have nothing to do with politics or alliances, and everything to do with the only thing she's ever cared about. And she is willing to do whatever it takes to get back what’s hers, even if it means a life alone in Were territory…alone with the wolf. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f8e029a3-924c-491b-88dc-53d4b4c2e6c9/195885046.jpg Blog - Cozy Fall Romances - The Fall of Bradley Reed by Morgan Elizabeth What if you actually had a hot FBI agent watching your search history while you plot revenge on an ex… and what if it became his mission to keep you out of trouble? When Olivia Anderson gets left at the altar, she decides to do what all modern women do—hit up Google. When a couple of searches land her in a support group for jilted brides, she immediately takes the reins and decides they all deserve revenge on their exes. Andre Valenti is tired of watching spoiled rich Olivia Anderson's every move, but his career depends on putting her ex behind bars. He's managed to stay off her radar until one day he realizes her search history is peppered with revenge that will land her in prison and ruin her status as a reliable witness. As Andre gets more involved in Olivia's schemes, will he be able to keep it professional? Or will the subject of his work assignment become....something more. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/31a113bc-2c0e-4a05-9dd7-ca4af205510a/203578889.jpg Blog - Cozy Fall Romances - If I Stopped Haunting You by Colby Wilkens It's been months since horror author Penelope Skinner threw a book at Neil Storm. But he was so infuriating, with his sparkling green eyes and his bestselling horror novels that claimed to break Native stereotypes. And now she’s a publishing pariah and hasn’t been able to write a word since. So when her friend invites her on a too-good-to-be-true writers retreat in a supposedly haunted Scottish castle, she seizes the opportunity. Of course, some things really are too good to be true. Neil wants nothing less than to be trapped in a castle with the frustratingly adorable woman who threw a book at him. She drew blood! Worse still, she unleashed a serious case of self-doubt! Neil is terrified to write another bestselling “book without a soul,” as Pen called it. All Neil wants is to find inspiration, while completely avoiding her. But as the retreat begins, Pen and Neil are stunned to find themselves trapped in a real-life ghost story. Even more horrifying, they’re stuck together and a truly shocking (extremely hot) almost-kiss has left them rethinking their feelings, and… maybe they shouldn’t have been enemies at all? But if they can’t stop the ghosts pursuing them, they may never have the chance to find out. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/07e917f0-4401-43f1-86fd-8cfaa0d01127/169622074.jpg Blog - Cozy Fall Romances - Her Favorite Jack O Lantern by Rebecca Rennick Jack Campbell has just returned to his hometown after eight years away in the army, much to his family’s delight, to rent the only place available in town. He quickly appreciates his luck when he meets his new lavender-eyed neighbor. Sally Smithson is the weirdo among the townsfolk, with her black house and hearse to match. Not many in the small New Hampshire town appreciate her sense of style. It doesn't matter either way to her. She has her two best friends, her cats, and her interior design business, which is all she needs . . . Until a rather dashing familiarly handsome man moves in next door—her high school crush, Jack—who finds her too enticing to ignore. She's sweet and loves her baked goods but is different from the rest of the country club attending town. And he adores it. She intrigues, captivates, and arouses him. He can't seem to stay away from her. So, when the opportunity to spend more time with her presents itself, he takes it. When their relationship turns more than friendly, Jack is all in, but Sally is worried they won’t fit together. It takes the support of her friends, old and new, to learn how to move beyond the gossip, to accept the affection of a man she thought she could never have. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f3a79c79-9bf8-4eff-adf2-7402cb26dd4a/62342319.jpg Blog - Cozy Fall Romances - Pumpkin Spice and not so Nice by Becky Monson If I were ever to write a memoir, it would be titled, Jenna Peterson’s Guide to Dating Emotionally Unavailable Men. I’m like a professional at it. I’m so good, I can take any dysfunctional man and turn him into Prince Charming, just in time for him to dump me and then go on to marry the next woman he dates. I’m about ready to give up on loving real men and focus on lusting over fictional men in the Turkish dramas I can’t stop devouring. But then . . . I find a mysterious fifty-dollar bill with a handwritten note on it that was donated to my family’s pumpkin patch by accident. And wouldn’t you know it, the mystery man it belongs to is emotionally unavailable, albeit freakishly attractive. I keep telling myself to walk away, but there’s something about Aidan St. Claire that makes me want to unravel all his secrets. All I know is he sure can heat up the cozy fall nights. I can’t help but think that maybe this time I’ll get to keep Prince Charming for myself. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ab02b31f-8b49-4152-b17b-e6492b5ee56f/178930867-2.jpg Blog - Cozy Fall Romances - Morbidly Yours by Ivy Fairbanks Falling for the wrong person? Bury your feelings. Callum Flannelly would rather dive into an open grave than take a stranger to dinner and a movie. But he can only inherit the family undertaking business and carry on their legacy under one condition: He must marry before his 35th birthday. So it’s out of the mortuary and into the dating scene. Lark Thompson would rather get crushed by a falling anvil than live next to a funeral home during her stay in Galway, Ireland. The vivacious American cartoon creator and animator came here to embrace life, not be reminded of losing her husband. When Lark learns of Callum’s dilemma and aversion to marrying out of necessity rather than love, she agrees to help the introverted mortician. Although sworn off love herself, she is optimistic that Callum can find The One and secure his inheritance. But as the dating project progresses and their friendship grows, so does a mutual attraction. The more time she spends with serious, sarcastic Callum, the more she dreads finding him a match. And the more disastrous dates he endures, the more trepidation he feels for Lark’s imminent return to the states. If they think it’s possible to ignore their connection, they’re dead wrong. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/august-book-club-book-reviews monthly 0.5 2024-08-25 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/k99h6kqe9wfbahekold84mhaxicxvg monthly 0.5 2024-08-18 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/44de30b0-af0c-46ca-862f-11432ab58b83/204593711.jpg Blog - September New Releases - Immortal Dark by Tigest Girma The Cruel Prince meets Ninth House in this dangerously romantic dark academia fantasy, where a lost heiress must infiltrate an arcane society and live with the vampire she suspects killed her family and kidnapped her sister. It began long before my time, but something has always hunted our family. Orphaned heiress Kidan Adane grew up far from the arcane society she was born into, where human bloodlines gain power through vampire companionship. When her sister, June, disappears, Kidan is convinced a vampire stole her—the very vampire bound to their family, the cruel yet captivating Susenyos Sagad. To find June, Kidan must infiltrate the elite Uxlay University—where students study to ensure peaceful coexistence between humans and vampires and inherit their family legacies. Kidan must survive living with Susenyos—even as he does everything he can to drive her away. It doesn’t matter that Susenyos’s wickedness speaks to Kidan’s own violent nature and tempts her to surrender to a life of darkness. She must find her sister and kill Susenyos at all costs. When a murder mirroring June’s disappearance shakes Uxlay, Kidan sinks further into the ruthless underworld of vampires, risking her very soul. There she discovers a centuries-old threat—and June could be at the center of it. To save her sister, Kidan must bring Uxlay to its knees and either break free from the horrors of her own actions or embrace the dark entanglements of love—and the blood it requires. Release Date: September 3, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/52f92ccd-4d4d-44fb-8775-950617f897fc/198281740.jpg Blog - September New Releases - The Life Impossible by Matt Haig “What looks like magic is simply a part of life we don’t understand yet…” When retired math teacher Grace Winters is left a run-down house on a Mediterranean island by a long-lost friend, curiosity gets the better of her. She arrives in Ibiza with a one-way ticket, no guidebook and no plan. Among the rugged hills and golden beaches of the island, Grace searches for answers about her friend’s life, and how it ended. What she uncovers is stranger than she could have dreamed. But to dive into this impossible truth, Grace must first come to terms with her past. Filled with wonder and wild adventure, this is a story of hope and the life-changing power of a new beginning. Release Date: September 3, 2024 Genre: Contemporary Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/51e2bb64-8e33-4917-b119-b0ae05e17a04/205670075.jpg Blog - September New Releases - Shadows of Perl by J. Elle Quell Marionne’s explosive final Rite of Induction to House Marionne sent shockwaves through the magical world, unearthing long buried secrets and her own deadly power. But she paid a steep price: her family and her love. Fleeing Chateau Soleil for House of Perl, for once Quell is celebrated instead of shunned. She has finally found somewhere to belong. But secrets lurk in every House, and Quell’s quest to find her mom threatens to lead her deeper into the shadows. Assassin Jordan Wexton, second-in command of the Dragun brotherhood, must protect the source of all magic, the Sphere. Yet the biggest threat to the Sphere is Quell Marionne—the girl he loved, until she claimed the deadly, outlawed toushana. As the Sphere cracks and war brews among the Houses, can the only way to save the world be to kill his own heart? Now, these two lovers-turned enemies must confront their competing ambitions and conflicting loyalties. Or die. The future of magic hangs on their decision. Release Date: September 3, 2024 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8dbaf0c8-6c98-4643-b6a5-45eb7918ed70/202204725.jpg Blog - September New Releases - This Book Kills by Ravena Guron "I'll make it clear from the start: I did not kill Hugh Henry Van Boren. I didn't even help. Well, not intentionally." When Hugh Henry Van Boren, one of the most popular and richest kids in Jess Choudhary's school, is found dead, the student body is left reeling and wondering who the murderer could be... Jess, a student under strict instructions to keep her record clean or risk losing her scholarship, finds herself at the centre of the investigation when it's revealed that Hugh died in the exact same way as a character in a short story she wrote. And then Jess receives an anonymous text thanking her for the inspiration. With time running out, Jess knows if she doesn't solve this mystery she'll finally have something in common with Hugh Henry. She'll be dead too. Release Date: September 3, 2024 Genre: Young Adult Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2d2d129c-0818-4889-a95d-94bffec5f94f/203164400.jpg Blog - September New Releases - The Haunting of Moscow House by Olesya Salnikova Gilmore It is the summer of 1921, and a group of Bolsheviks have taken over Irina and Lili Goliteva’s ancestral home in Moscow, a stately mansion falling into disrepair and decay. The remaining members of their family are ordered to move into the cramped attic, while the officials take over an entire wing of grand rooms downstairs. The sisters understand it is the way of things and know they must forget their noble upbringing to make their way in this new Soviet Russia. But the house begins to whisper of a traumatic past not as dead as they thought. Eager to escape it and their unwelcome new landlords, Irina and Lili find jobs with the recently arrived American Relief Administration, meant to ease the post-revolutionary famine in Russia. For the sisters, the ARA provides much-needed food and employment, as well as a chance for sensible Irina to help those less fortunate and artistic Lili to express herself for a good cause. It might just lead them to love, too. But at home, the spirits of their deceased family awaken, desperate to impart what really happened to them during the Revolution. Soon one of the officials living in the house is found dead. Was his death caused by something supernatural, or by someone all too human? And are Irina and Lili and their family next? Only unearthing the frightening secrets of Moscow House will reveal all. But this means the sisters must dig deep into a past no one in Russia except the dead are allowed to remember. Release Date: September 3, 2024 Genre: Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9c076b6a-5045-4713-8393-f7b3547b9fa9/199531937.jpg Blog - September New Releases - Us in Ruins by Rachel Moore Margot is on the quest to uncover and reassemble an ancient—and cursed—vase, with the help of a boy who went missing in 1932, because it's the only way to put back together her broken heart in this stand-alone adventure rom-com, perfect for fans of What the River Knows and The Lost City. The mythical Vase of Venus Aurelia hasn’t been seen since 1932, but Margot Rhodes is determined to change that. Drawn by the vase’s supposed magical properties, Margot embarks on her school’s archaeological trip to Pompeii. Sure, it’s her first time holding a shovel, but she’s got something no one else does: lost teenage explorer Van Keane’s journal. Poring over the poetic entries that serve as a map to the vase’s missing shards, Margot finds herself falling in love with the boy who wrote it a century ago. She’s shocked when her search leads her to a statue that looks exactly like Van, and then the statue comes to life. Catapulted into the present, Van is nothing like the wordsmith Margot imagined. He’s all sharp edges, intent on retrieving the relic for all the wrong reasons. But it takes two to survive Venus’s death-defying challenges, and, together, Margot and Van must excavate the treasure—and their buried pasts—before their story ends in ruins. With a blend of humor, magic, and love, Rachel Moore crafts another stand-alone adventure rom-com full of double- and triple-crosses, hilarious shenanigans, and frustration-fueled banter, where the best treasure is true love. Release Date: September 3, 2024 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f0d61260-1212-4617-8024-d7cde7108706/203608430.jpg Blog - September New Releases - Lucy Undying by Kiersten White Her name was written in the pages of someone else's story: Lucy Westenra was one of Dracula's first victims. But her death was only the beginning. Lucy rose from the grave a vampire, and has spent her immortal life trying to escape from Dracula's clutches--and trying to discover who she really is and what she truly wants. Her undead life takes an unexpected turn when, in twenty-first-century London, she meets another woman who is also yearning to break free from her past. Iris’s family has built a health empire based on a sinister secret, and they’ll do anything to stay in power. Lucy has long believed she would never love again. But she finds herself compelled by the charming Iris, while Iris is mesmerized by the confident and glamorous Lucy. But their intense connection and blossoming love is threatened by forces from without. Iris's mother won't let go of her without a fight, and Lucy's past still has fangs: Dracula is on the prowl again. Lucy Westenra has been a tragically murdered teen, a lonesome adventurer, and a fearsome hunter, but happiness always eluded her. Can she find the strength to destroy Dracula once and for all, or will her heart once again be her undoing? Release Date: September 10, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/39f2629b-62f2-41a8-8dd9-87c7e82980e8/203608552.jpg.png Blog - September New Releases - So Thirsty by Rachel Harrison Sloane Parker is dreading her birthday. She doesn’t need a reminder she’s getting older, or that she’s feeling indifferent about her own life. Her husband surprises her with a birthday weekend getaway—not with him, but with Sloane’s longtime best friend, troublemaker extraordinaire Naomi. Sloane anticipates a weekend of wine tastings and cozy robes and strategic avoidance of issues she’d rather not confront, like her husband’s repeated infidelity. But when they arrive at their rental cottage, it becomes clear Naomi has something else in mind. She wants Sloane to stop letting things happen to her, for Sloane to really live. So Naomi orchestrates a wild night out with a group of mysterious strangers, only for it to take a horrifying turn that changes Sloane’s and Naomi’s lives literally forever. The friends are forced to come to terms with some pretty eternal consequences in this bloody, seductive novel about how it’s never too late to find satisfaction, even though it might taste different than expected. Release Date: September 10, 2024 Genre: Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/72e6fb52-56c1-4de4-9767-f0b246973bd5/199635075.jpg Blog - September New Releases - This Will be Fun by E.B. Asher Ten years ago, they saved the realm. It ruined their lives. Everyone in Mythria knows the story of how best friends Beatrice and Elowen, handsome ex-bandit Clare, and valiant leader Galwell the Great defended the land from darkness. It’s a tale beloved by all—except the former heroes. They haven’t spoken in a decade, devastated by what their quest cost them. But when they receive an invitation to the queen of Mythria’s wedding, it’s a summons they can’t refuse . . . and a reunion for the ages, with Clare secretly not over his long-ago fling with Beatrice, Beatrice fighting the guilt she feels over how everything ended, Elowen unprepared for the return of her former flame (the cunning Vandra), and all of them lost without Galwell’s presence. And if reuniting with old friends and lovers wasn’t perilous enough, dark forces from their past have returned, plotting a domination that only Mythria’s one-time defenders can stop. Maybe. Dusting off old weapons and old instincts, they face undead nemeses, crystal caves, enchanted swords, coffee shops, games of magical Truth or Dare, and, hardest of all, their past—rife with wounds never healed and romances never forgotten. This time around, will their story end in happily ever after? Release Date: September 10, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2b0a9ed2-982c-42e1-830b-fa477b54c8c4/207298442.jpg Blog - September New Releases - Vilest Things by Chloe Gong Calla Tuoleimi has succeeded in the impossible. Despite the odds, she has won San-Er’s bloody games and eliminated King Kasa, her tyrant uncle and the former ruler of Talin. She serves now as royal advisor to Kasa’s adopted son, August Shenzhi, who has risen to the throne. Only Calla knows it isn’t really August. Anton Makusa is still furious about Calla’s betrayal in the final round of the games. In an impossible feat, he took over August’s body to survive, and has no intention of giving up this newfound power. But when his first love, the beautiful, explosive Otta Avia, awakens from a years-long coma and reveals a secret that threatens the monarchy’s authority over Talin, chaos erupts. As tensions come to a boiling point, Calla and Anton must set their conflicts aside and head to the kingdom’s far reaches to prevent anarchy… even if their empire might be better off burning. Release Date: September 10, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4b43a5ab-7b76-4489-ade2-d97e25582010/203956647.jpg Blog - September New Releases - We Solve Murders by Richard Osman Solving murders. It’s a family business. Steve Wheeler is enjoying retired life. He still does the odd bit of investigation work, but he prefers his familiar routines: the pub quiz, his favorite bench, his cat waiting for him at home. His days of adventure are over. Adrenaline is daughter-in-law Amy’s job now. Amy Wheeler thinks adrenaline is good for the soul. Working in private security, every day is dangerous. She’s currently on a remote island protecting mega-bestselling author Rosie D’Antonio, until a dead body and a bag of money mean trouble in paradise. So she sends an SOS to the only person she trusts . . . As a thrilling race around the world begins, can Amy and Steve outrun and outsmart a killer? Release Date: September 17, 2024 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bddc39b6-df1b-4562-bfdd-140de25eb5ca/203956639.jpg Blog - September New Releases - An Academy for Liars by Alexis Henderson Lennon Carter’s life is falling apart. Then she gets a mysterious phone call inviting her to take the entrance exam for Drayton College, a school of magic hidden in a secret pocket of Savannah. Lennon has been chosen because—like everyone else at the school—she has the innate gift of persuasion, the ability to wield her will like a weapon, using it to control others and, in rare cases, matter itself. After passing the test, Lennon begins to learn how to master her devastating and unsettling power. But despite persuasion’s heavy toll on her body and mind, she is wholly captivated by her studies, by Drayton’s lush, moss-draped campus, and by her brilliant classmates. But even more captivating is her charismatic adviser, Dante, who both intimidates and enthralls her. As Lennon continues in her studies her control grows, and she starts to uncover more about the secret world she has entered into, including the disquieting history of Drayton college, and the way her mentor’s tragic and violent past intertwines with it. She is increasingly disturbed by what she learns. For it seems that the ultimate test is to embrace absolute power without succumbing to corruption . . . and it's a test she's terrified she is going to fail. Release Date: September 17, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9ee1db35-988b-4fd5-9198-7205d43a09ba/203578866.jpg Blog - September New Releases - Can’t Help Falling in Love by Sophie Sullivan Lexi Danby is looking for some no-strings, fall fun. Once a college track star, she was forced to drop out when her father passed away. Now she’s trying to make ends meet while putting herself through school and caring for her grieving mother. When her comically bad waitressing lands her directly in the path of a handsome, charming stranger named Will, Lexi may just have found the distraction she’s been looking for. Their first date looks promising until a misunderstanding at a party thrusts Lexi and Will into a fake engagement they can’t talk themselves out of. And Will turns out to be a member of Seattle royalty. Will Grand is heir to a major company, and Seattle’s most eligible bachelor. But he’s been placed in charge of an important merger with a company that values family above all else, and needs to show them that he’s settled down. While a fake engagement is advantageous from a business standpoint, it’s not so great for a budding relationship with a woman who’s wary of commitment. With a woman who Will is beginning to care about much more than he could have anticipated. As Lexi gets a taste of Will’s glamorous world and the pair keeps up the pretense of their fake engagement for the press, they decide to see where a more casual relationship takes them out of the spotlight. And amid apple picking in comfy flannels, outdoor breweries in the crisp air, and fun Halloween preparations, Lexi starts to realize the scariest part of the season might just be taking a chance on love. Release Date: September 17, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3da897c1-8948-4d27-b390-e8a058067107/207299448.jpg Blog - September New Releases - The Night We Lost Him by Laura Dave Estranged siblings discover their father has been keeping a secret for over fifty years, one that may have been fatal... Liam Noone was many things to many people. To the public, he was an exacting, self-made hotel magnate fleeing his past. To his three ex-wives, he was a loving albeit distant family man who kept his finances flush and his families carefully separated. To Nora, he was a father who often loved her from afar – notably a cliffside cottage perched on the California coast from which he fell to his death. The authorities rule the death accidental, but Nora and her estranged brother Sam have other ideas. As Nora and Sam form an uneasy alliance to unravel the mystery, they start putting together the pieces of their father’s past—and uncover a family secret that changes everything. Release Date: September 17, 2024 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8ebdbb4f-0bf2-4c22-8de2-d06bb0780a49/204640539.jpg Blog - September New Releases - My Vampire Plus-One by Jenna Levine Amelia Collins is by definition successful. She would even go so far as to say successfully single. But not according to her family, and she’s tired of the constant questions about her nonexistent dating life. When an invitation to yet another family wedding arrives, she decides to get everyone off her back once and for all by finding someone–anyone–to pose as her date. After a chance encounter with Reginald Cleaves, Amelia decides he’s perfect for her purposes. He’s a bit strange, but that’s fine; it’ll discourage tough questions from her family. (And it certainly doesn’t hurt that he’s very handsome.) For centuries-old vampire Reggie, posing as her plus-one sounds like the ultimate fun. And if it helps his ruse of pretending to be human, so much the better. As Amelia and Reggie practice their fauxmance, it becomes clear that Reggie is as loyal to her as the day is long, and that Amelia’s first impressions could not have been more wrong. Suddenly, being in a real relationship with Reggie sounds pretty fang-tastic. Release Date: September 17, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/65aedfd3-c608-4a24-a786-4c5166316b75/203613896.jpg Blog - September New Releases - The Vampire of King’s Street by Asha Greyling Having a resident vampire is just the thing for upper-class New Yorkers–besides being a status symbol, they make excellent butlers or housekeepers. The only thing they require in return is a drop or two of blood and a casket to shut out the dawn’s early light. Tolerated by society only if they follow a strict set of rules, vampires are seen as “less than”–and as the daughter of immigrants, Radhika knows firsthand how this feels. Accused of murder, her undead client Mr. Evelyn More, knows that the cards are stacked against him. With the help of a journalist friend and a diminutive detective inspector, Miss Dhingra sets out to prove her client’s innocence and win his freedom. Failure will mean Mr. More’s death, the end of her dreams of becoming a successful attorney, and the loss of the vampire Miss Dhingra has begun to call her friend. Release Date: September 17, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/418d4b18-41db-428a-9cdc-df0702f78468/199793676.jpg Blog - September New Releases - Adam and Evie’s Matchmaking Tour by Nora Nguyen What’s a few weeks to a lifetime of promise? Evie Lang’s life is in shambles. On the heels of losing her beloved aunt, she's unceremoniously fired from her poetry professorship by her secret boyfriend. Lacking income and inspiration, she's stuck in Ohio with no idea how to move forward—until hope arrives in a surprising letter. Auntie Hảo left Evie the deed to her San Francisco row house, a place full of Evie’s happiest memories. The catch? To inherit, she must go on a pre-arranged matchmaking tour in Việt Nam. The last thing Evie wants is to spend time with a group of strangers looking for love. But she can't resist the chance to finally visit her family’s native home. A world away, Adam Quyền has a chip on his shoulder. He’s working around the clock as CMO for his sister’s elite matchmaking business, a job complicated by her insistence that he knows nothing about love. He’s desperate to prove himself, so when she challenges him to join the inaugural tour, he reluctantly agrees. Adam thinks Evie is chaotic and unpredictable. Evie thinks Adam is grumpy and uptight. But from the bustling streets of Hồ Chí Minh City to the soaring waterfalls in Đà Lạt, they keep getting thrown together, their animosity charged with attraction…and they discover that true love may be out there, if they are willing to take a leap. Release Date: September 24, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3a771391-9e5e-488a-a0e5-7e04266cad5a/207293948.jpg Blog - September New Releases - Nothing Like the Movies by Lynn Painter For a few beautiful months, Wes had his dream girl: strong-willed girl-next-door Liz. But right as the two were about to set off to UCLA to start their freshman year together, tragedy struck. Wes was left dealing with the fallout, which ultimately meant losing Liz in the process. Flash forward months and months later and Wes and Liz find themselves in college, together. In a healthier place now, Wes knows he broke Liz’s heart when he ended things, but he is determined to make her fall back in love with him. Wes knows Liz better than anyone, and he has a foolproof plan to win her back with the rom-com worthy big gestures she loves. Only…Liz will have none of it. Wes has to scheme like a rom-com hero to figure out how to see her. Even worse, Liz has a new friend…a guy friend. Still, Wes won’t give up, adapting his clever plans and going hard to get Liz’s attention and win back her affection. But after his best efforts get him nowhere, Wes is left wondering if their relationship is really over for good. Release Date: September 24, 2024 Genre: Young Adult Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ffa594b9-7c53-4624-89aa-ce9243a2fe23/205822553.jpg.png Blog - September New Releases - A Fire in the Sky by Sophie Jordan Dragons are extinct. Witches are outcast. Magic is dying. But human lust for power is immortal. Dragon fire no longer blisters the skies over Penterra, but inside the lavish palace, life is still perilous…especially for Tamsyn. Raised in the glittering court alongside the princesses, it's her duty to be punished for their misdeeds. Treated as part of the royal family but also as the lowliest servant, Tamsyn fits nowhere. Her only friend is Stig, Captain of the Guard...though sometimes she thinks he wants more than friendship. When Fell, the Beast of the Borderlands, descends on her home, Tamsyn’s world becomes even more dangerous. To save the pampered princesses from a fate worse than death, she is commanded to don a veil and marry the brutal warrior. She agrees to the deception even though it means leaving Stig, and the only life she’s ever known, behind. The wedding night begins with unexpected passion—and ends in near violence when her trickery is exposed. Rather than start a war, Fell accepts Tamsyn as his bride...but can he accept the dark secrets she harbors—secrets buried so deep even she doesn’t know they exist? For Tamsyn is more than a royal whipping girl, more than the false wife of a man who now sees her as his enemy. And when those secrets emerge, they will ignite a flame bright enough to burn the entire kingdom to the bone. Magic is not dead...it is only sleeping. And it will take one ordinary girl with an extraordinary destiny to awaken it. Release Date: September 24, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/58d284d0-14ec-4353-a7b8-1cf83229e565/203578853.jpg.png Blog - September New Releases - The Slowest Burn by Sarah Chamberlain Love could be a recipe for disaster, or the best thing they ever cooked up... Kieran O'Neill should be on top of the world. He's just won a cooking reality TV show, he's on track to open his own restaurant before he turns thirty, and he's even got a high-paying cookbook deal. Still he can't impress his stuck-up family, his ADHD makes planning ahead impossible and, worst of all, his ghostwriter is the most uptight, humourless woman he's ever met. But to be seen as a serious chef like he's always wanted, he needs to finish this book... Ellie Wasserman is barely holding it together. She's a thirty-year-old widow living with her needy in-laws, her little brother won't adult without her help, and instead of working on her own cookbook, she's ghostwriting one for the chaotic, impulsive Kieran O'Neill. Or would be, if he'd ever answer her emails. But to own her own home like she's always dreamed of, she needs to finish this book... As their deadline gets closer and the heat between them builds, can these two driven, lonely people let go of their past hurts and make something truly sweet together? Or will their fragile new love go up in smoke? Release Date: September 24, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ef3cc10d-001a-4b7d-9604-0ad3c9c5ff26/203578770.jpg Blog - September New Releases - Graveyard Shift by M.L. Rio Every night, in the college’s ancient cemetery, five people cross paths as they work the late shift: a bartender, a rideshare driver, a hotel receptionist, the steward of the derelict church that looms over them, and the editor-in-chief of the college paper, always in search of a story. One dark October evening in the defunct churchyard, they find a hole that wasn’t there before. A fresh, open grave where no grave should be. But who dug it, and for whom? Before they go their separate ways, the gravedigger returns. As they trail him through the night, they realize he may be the key to a string of strange happenings around town that have made headlines for the last few weeks—and that they may be closer to the mystery than they thought. Release Date: September 24, 2024 Genre: Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4098beff-ad82-4d32-bbf0-f592c4dc0e60/205227936.jpg Blog - September New Releases - Percy Jackson and the Wrath of the Triple Goddess by Rick Riordan In his continuing quest to earn college recommendation letters from the gods, Percy has to pet sit the goddess Hecate's polecat and giant mastiff during Halloween week. What could go wrong? Percy Jackson, now a high school senior, needs three recommendation letters from the Greek gods in order to get into New Rome University. He earned his first one by retrieving Ganymede’s chalice. Now the goddess Hecate has offered Percy another “opportunity”—all he has to do is pet sit her mastiff, Hecuba, and her polecat, Gale, over Halloween week while she is away. Piece of cake, right? Percy, Annabeth, and Grover settle into Hecate’s seemingly endless mansion and start getting acquainted with the fussy, terrifying animals. The trio has been warned not to touch anything, but while Percy and Annabeth are out at school, Grover can’t resist drinking a strawberry-flavored potion in the laboratory. It turns him into a giant frenzied goat, and after he rampages through the house, damaging everything in sight, and passes out, Hecuba and Gale escape. Now the friends have to find Hecate’s pets and somehow restore the house, all before Hecate gets back on Saturday. It’s going to take luck, demigod wiles, and some old and new friends to hunt down the animals and set things right again. Release Date: September 24, 2024 Genre: Middle Grade Fantasy https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/daymark-living-donation monthly 0.5 2024-08-15 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/50b8178d-cd1c-4f0d-ac1b-dc54a9c3299c/IMG_6488.jpeg Blog - Daymark Living Donation - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/fae-book-recommendations monthly 0.5 2024-08-04 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bfb939e8-4ddb-4368-8189-61ca7b9e1d80/58175788.jpg Blog - Fae Book Recommendation’s - House of Beating Wings by Olivia Wildenstein Free the crows, Fallon, and they will make you queen. Until an oracle predicted my regal future, I’d never imagined myself rising above the curve of my round ears. After all, I was the magicless halfling loved by beasts but loathed by every pure-blooded faerie at court. Well... by all but one. Dante Regio, prince of Luce, had owned my heart since he gave me my first kiss. If gathering a slew of iron relics could help me overthrow the current monarch and crown his brother to rule at my side, then treasure hunting I’d go. If only the oracle had warned me what winged demon I was releasing into the world. And that I’d become this demon’s obsession. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/50433de4-f258-4216-aa22-745633b024f5/199393181.jpg Blog - Fae Book Recommendation’s - Beneath These Cursed Stars by Lexi Ryan Princess Jasalyn has a secret. Armed with an enchanted ring that gives her death’s kiss, Jas has been sneaking away from the palace at night to assassinate her enemies. Shape-shifter Felicity needs a miracle. Fated to kill her magical father, she’s been using her unique ability to evade a fatal prophecy. When rumors of evil king Mordeus’s resurrection spread through the shadow court, Jasalyn decides to end him once and for all. Felicity agrees to take the form of the princess, allowing Jas to covertly hunt Mordeus—and starting Felicity on the path that could finally take her home. While Jasalyn teams up with the charming and handsome Kendrick, Felicity sets out to get closer to the Wild Fae king, Misha. Kendrick helps Jasalyn feel something other than anger for the first time in three years, and Misha makes Felicity wish for a world where she’s free to be her true self. Soon, the girls’ missions are at risk right alongside their hearts. The future of the human and fae realms hangs in the balance as fates intertwine. Between perilous tasks, grim secrets, and forbidden romances, Jasalyn and Felicity find that perhaps their stars are the most cursed of all. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3ecaf97e-a9fc-4a43-9d1f-71165e989b0d/84354929.jpg Blog - Fae Book Recommendation’s - Mountains Made of Glass by Scarlett St. Clair All Gesela's life, her home village of Elk has been cursed. And it isn't a single curse—it is one after another, each to be broken by a villager, each with devastating consequences. When Elk's well goes dry, it is Gesela's turn to save her town by killing the toad that lives at the bottom. Except… the toad is not a toad at all. He is an Elven prince under a curse of his own, and upon his death, his brothers come for Gesela, seeking retribution. As punishment, the princes banish Gesela to live with their seventh brother, the one they call the beast. Gesela expects to be the prisoner of a hideous monster, but the beast turns out to be exquisitely beautiful, and rather than lock her in a cell, he offers Gesela a deal. If she can guess his true name in seven days, she can go free. Gesela agrees, but there is a hidden catch—she must speak his name with love in order to free him, too. But can either of them learn to love in time? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e12d00ea-5631-47e5-bc86-2751bd00a1f5/197697866.jpg Blog - Fae Book Recommendation’s - A Game of Love and Betrayal by Elayna R. Gallea He requires a wife. She needs to kill him. All’s fair in pursuit of love and revenge. What’s a vampire to do when the fae who made her an orphan is searching for a wife? Make him choose her and end his life on their wedding night, of course. Brynleigh has been carefully planning this for years. Her plan is simple: date Ryker Waterborn, the Fae Representative’s son, make him fall in love with her, and kill him after they say, “I do.” Unfortunately, it will not be that easy. She won’t be the only one going after Ryker’s hand. Far from it. Two dozen men and women are competing in the Choosing, each searching for their perfect partner. The catch? It’s a blind selection process, and contestants won’t see each other until they have made their choice. Nothing will stand between Brynleigh and her revenge, not even a competition for love. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c07c10fa-403a-4270-8b2e-75f22c239e9c/191755077.jpg Blog - Fae Book Recommendation’s - Trial of the Sun Queen by Nisha J. Tuli Ten women. A deadly contest. Only one can win the Sun King's heart. Lor has endured twelve long years of torment under the Aurora King’s rule. Her only desire is to escape and pay him back for every moment of misery she's endured. When a surprise release finds her in the hands of the rival Sun King, Lor is thrust into the spotlight as she competes against nine other Tributes for the role of queen. If she wins his heart, she'll earn her freedom and finally get her revenge. But Lor doesn't belong in the Sun Queen Trials. Not only does she not understand why she was freed, she isn’t a citizen of the Sun King’s court. The other Tributes resent her presence and will stop at nothing to ensure Lor is removed from the competition, permanently. Now Lor must win, because if she loses, she dies. Or worse, she'll be returned to the evil—and now vengeful—Aurora King. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c785f41c-d259-4d9a-9a4f-b3edb2c39780/198207910.jpg Blog - Fae Book Recommendation’s - Court of Winter by Krista Street Being a defective marks me in the eyes of the Solis Fae. Wingless. Magicless. Weak. To my kind, I’m nothing—not when strength is needed to survive the perpetual snow and ice that shrouds our northern continent in endless winter. But I’ve persevered, living a meaningful yet simple life with my sister . . . until the hated Crown Prince of the Winter Court thunders into our village. Prince Norivun’s massive black wings and potent magic cloud my senses and steal my breath. He’s beautiful yet brutal, so when he whisks me away and locks me in his castle I’m certain my death is tomorrow’s promise. Yet my end doesn’t come, not when the prince looks at me with hunger in his gaze while revealing the true reason for my abduction. Now I’m faced with an impossible choice—either join forces with the hated prince who’s robbed me of everything I love or watch our kingdom start a devastating war. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f38e1e9d-1486-4df5-b765-09b82405d131/61431964.jpg Blog - Fae Book Recommendation’s - The Wren in the Holly Library by K.A. Linde Can you love the dark when you know what it hides? Some things aren’t supposed to exist outside of our imagination. Thirteen years ago, monsters emerged from the shadows and plunged Kierse’s world into a cataclysmic war of near-total destruction. The New York City she knew so well collapsed practically overnight. In the wake of that carnage, the Monster Treaty was created. A truce...of sorts. But tonight, Kierse―a gifted and fearless thief―will break that treaty. She’ll enter the Holly Library...not knowing it’s the home of a monster. He’s charming. Quietly alluring. Terrifying. But he knows talent when he sees it; it’s just a matter of finding her price. Now she’s locked into a dangerous bargain with a creature unlike any other. She’ll sacrifice her freedom. She’ll offer her skills. Together, they’ll put their own futures at risk. But he’s been playing a game across centuries―and once she joins in, there will be no escape... https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c63745b5-dff8-42fa-8cac-33aa6f62e8fd/26032825.jpg Blog - Fae Book Recommendation’s - The Cruel Prince by Holly Black Jude was seven when her parents were murdered and she and her two sisters were stolen away to live in the treacherous High Court of Faerie. Ten years later, Jude wants nothing more than to belong there, despite her mortality. But many of the fey despise humans. Especially Prince Cardan, the youngest and wickedest son of the High King. To win a place at the Court, she must defy him–and face the consequences. As Jude becomes more deeply embroiled in palace intrigues and deceptions, she discovers her own capacity for trickery and bloodshed. But as betrayal threatens to drown the Courts of Faerie in violence, Jude will need to risk her life in a dangerous alliance to save her sisters, and Faerie itself. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d873b0bf-6197-47ac-b9a0-8f93c7bd985e/60657589.jpg Blog - Fae Book Recommendation’s - Emily Wilde’s Encyclopedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett A curmudgeonly professor journeys to a small town in the far north to study faerie folklore and discovers dark fae magic, friendship, and love in the start of a heartwarming and enchanting new fantasy series. Cambridge professor Emily Wilde is good at many things: She is the foremost expert on the study of faeries. She is a genius scholar and a meticulous researcher who is writing the world's first encyclopaedia of faerie lore. But Emily Wilde is not good at people. She could never make small talk at a party--or even get invited to one. And she prefers the company of her books, her dog, and the Fair Folk. So when she arrives in the hardscrabble village of Hrafnsvik, Emily has no intention of befriending the gruff townsfolk. Nor does she care to spend time with another new arrival: her dashing and insufferably handsome academic rival Wendell Bambleby, who manages to charm the townsfolk, get in the middle of Emily's research, and utterly confound and frustrate her. But as Emily gets closer and closer to uncovering the secrets of the Hidden Ones--the most elusive of all faeries--lurking in the shadowy forest outside the town, she also finds herself on the trail of another mystery: Who is Wendell Bambleby, and what does he really want? To find the answer, she'll have to unlock the greatest mystery of all--her own heart. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9f4b0e01-6287-4ba5-9d1d-8651c72bb264/205058752.jpg Blog - Fae Book Recommendation’s - Blood Oath by Morgan B. Lee Everbound University is the mandatory graduate school for anything that goes bump in the night. Not going isn’t an option, unless you want to be hunted down for illegally inhabiting the mortal world. All legacies — the descendants of the Four Houses — are required to attend because we’re all cursed, and the only way to break our curses is through binding our hearts in a quintet. Becoming part of a quintet is a dream come true. Destiny fulfilled. A gods-given, merciful blessing. For me, it’s a hard pass. I can’t be bound to anyone else. Trust me, it wouldn’t end well. So when I’m placed in a quintet, I promptly reject all four of my matches for their own good. But these powerful, gorgeous, high-profile legacies have no idea how to handle rejection, because… The cutthroat blood fae shows me his soft side. The charming dragon shifter won't leave me alone. The unhinged nightmare prince calls me darling. And the gorgeous ice elemental is as overprotective as he is cold. They're the kind of deadly perfection that draws attention. Which is exactly what I'm trying to avoid, since no one can know my secret. I'll do whatever it takes to make them decide I’m not worth the chase. The problem is, no matter what I do to make them hate me, it only seems to have the opposite effect… https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/75147641-08ea-4c75-b3a5-2c7b3f23a99d/49826643.jpg.png Blog - Fae Book Recommendation’s - Daughter of No Worlds by Carissa Broadbent A former slave fighting for justice. A reclusive warrior who no longer believes it exists. And a dark magic that will entangle their fates. Ripped from a forgotten homeland as a child, Tisaanah learned how to survive with nothing but a sharp wit and a touch of magic. But the night she tries to buy her freedom, she barely escapes with her life. Desperate to save the best friend she left behind, Tisaanah journeys to the Orders, the most powerful organizations of magic Wielders in the world. But to join their ranks, she must complete an apprenticeship with Maxantarius Farlione, a handsome and reclusive fire wielder who despises the Orders. The Orders’ intentions are cryptic, and Tisaanah must prove herself under the threat of looming war. But even more dangerous are her growing feelings for Maxantarius. The bloody past he wants to forget may be the key to her future… or the downfall of them both. But Tisaanah will stop at nothing to save those she abandoned. Even if it means gambling in the Orders’ deadly games. Even if it means sacrificing her heart. Even if it means wielding death itself. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4c532c94-0333-4da5-9289-6ff032395103/55285911-2.jpg Blog - Fae Book Recommendation’s - A Deal with the Elf King by Elise Kova The elves come for two things: war and wives. In both cases, they come for death. Three-thousand years ago, humans were hunted by powerful races with wild magic until the treaty was formed. Now, for centuries, the elves have taken a young woman from Luella's village to be their Human Queen. To be chosen is seen as a mark of death by the townsfolk. A mark nineteen-year-old Luella is grateful to have escaped as a girl. Instead, she's dedicated her life to studying herbology and becoming the town's only healer. That is, until the Elf King unexpectedly arrives... for her. Everything Luella had thought she'd known about her life, and herself, was a lie. Taken to a land filled with wild magic, Luella is forced to be the new queen to a cold yet blisteringly handsome Elf King. Once there, she learns about a dying world that only she can save. The magical land of Midscape pulls on one corner of her heart, her home and people tug on another... but what will truly break her is a passion she never wanted. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9d084bb6-0f6d-44c4-b44e-7ab439472451/75302266.jpg Blog - Fae Book Recommendation’s - A Study in Drowning by Ava Reid Effy Sayre has always believed in fairy tales. Haunted by visions of the Fairy King since childhood, she’s had no choice. Her tattered copy of Angharad—Emrys Myrddin’s epic about a mortal girl who falls in love with the Fairy King, then destroys him—is the only thing keeping her afloat. So when Myrddin’s family announces a contest to redesign the late author’s estate, Effy feels certain it’s her destiny. But musty, decrepit Hiraeth Manor is an impossible task, and its residents are far from welcoming. Including Preston Héloury, a stodgy young literature scholar determined to expose Myrddin as a fraud. As the two rivals piece together clues about Myrddin’s legacy, dark forces, both mortal and magical, conspire against them—and the truth may bring them both to ruin. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6cabd51e-2565-4e49-86a9-5bb758163aab/60717747.jpg Blog - Fae Book Recommendation’s - Half a Soul by Olivia Atwater It's difficult to find a husband in Regency England when you're a young lady with only half a soul. Ever since she was cursed by a faerie, Theodora Ettings has had no sense of fear or embarrassment - a condition which makes her prone to accidental scandal. Dora hopes to be a quiet, sensible wallflower during the London Season - but when the strange, handsome and utterly uncouth Lord Sorcier discovers her condition, she is instead drawn into dangerous and peculiar faerie affairs. If Dora's reputation can survive both her curse and her sudden connection with the least-liked man in all of high society, then she may yet reclaim her normal place in the world. . . but the longer Dora spends with Elias Wilder, the more she begins to suspect that one may indeed fall in love, even with only half a soul. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bbf8c22c-1d63-4037-92ad-28f8fc5218ce/63342028.jpg Blog - Fae Book Recommendation’s - Queen of Roses by Briar Boleyn A doomed love, a dangerous mission, and a kingdom on the brink of war... A cast-off princess… Born into a life of duty and sacrifice, Morgan Pendragon’s destiny has never been her own. Rumored to carry the tainted blood of the fae in her veins, her birthright is stolen from her when she is a mere child. Growing up in the shadow of her brother the king, she has been promised to the goddesses when she comes of age. So, when her brother commands that she seek out a fae weapon of legendary power, Morgan seizes the chance to break free from the chains of her fate. A dangerous temptation… As she travels, Morgan finds herself drawn into a strange group of outcasts, led by a dark and enigmatic warrior whose sharp wit and fierce beauty set her heart ablaze. But while Morgan struggles to reconcile her desires with her duty, she and her new comrades discover dangers that await them beyond anything in their wildest nightmares. A slumbering kingdom awoken by blood… Believed to have vanished generations ago, a fae kingdom dreaded by mortals is ascending once more, bound to reclaim what was lost by violence and bloodshed. As the fae world, with its intricate web of lies and mysteries, is slowly revealed to Morgan, she is led to the terrible realization that the secrets she carries in her blood make her a greater threat than she could ever have imagined. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/aa34a539-1fdc-470e-bacf-c65af1a2dbc4/59739150.jpg Blog - Fae Book Recommendation’s - A Broken Blade by Melissa Blair Keera is a killer. As the King’s Blade, she is the most talented spy in the kingdom. And the King’s favored assassin. When a mysterious figure called the Shadow starts making moves against the Crown, Keera is forced to hunt the masked menace down. She crosses into the magical lands of the Fae, trying to discern if her enemy is Mortal, Elf, or a Halfling like her. But the Faeland is not what it seems, and neither is the Shadow. Keera is shocked by what she discovers and can’t help but wonder who her enemy truly is… The King that destroyed her people? The Prince that tortures them? Or the Shadow that threatens her place at court? As she searches for answers, Keera is haunted by a promise she made long ago. A promise not only to save herself but an entire kingdom. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/04873aec-1ac4-4afb-a7a4-270caeff3ede/44674898.jpg Blog - Fae Book Recommendation’s - The Iron King by Julie Kagawa MY NAME IS MEGHAN CHASE. In less than twenty-four hours, I’ll be sixteen. Countless stories, songs and poems have been written about this wonderful age, when a girl finds true love and the stars shine for her and the handsome prince carries her off into the sunset. I DON’T THINK IT WILL BE THAT WAY FOR ME. Something has always felt slightly off in Meghan Chase’s life, ever since her father disappeared when she was six. Ten years later, when her little brother also goes missing, Meghan learns the truth—she is the secret daughter of a mythical faery king and a pawn in a deadly war. Now Meghan will learn just how far she’ll go to save someone she loves, to stop a mysterious evil no faery creature dare face…and to find love with a young prince who might rather see her dead than let her touch his icy heart. THE IRON FEY https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0045cc91-7f53-4e35-8efe-2608a3002ef5/53422971.jpg Blog - Fae Book Recommendation’s - These Hollow Vows by Lexi Ryan Brie hates the Fae and refuses to have anything to do with them, even if that means starving on the street. But when her sister is sold to the sadistic king of the Unseelie court to pay a debt, she'll do whatever it takes to get her back—including making a deal with the king himself to steal three magical relics from the Seelie court. Gaining unfettered access to the Seelie court is easier said than done. Brie's only choice is to pose as a potential bride for Prince Ronan, and she soon finds herself falling for him. Unwilling to let her heart distract her, she accepts help from a band of Unseelie misfits with their own secret agenda. As Brie spends time with their mysterious leader, Finn, she struggles to resist his seductive charm. Caught between two dangerous courts, Brie must decide who to trust with her loyalty. And with her heart. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/606805e1-9cea-4c0d-ba90-b779b46f51c9/56483061.jpg Blog - Fae Book Recommendation’s - Gild by Raven Kennedy The fae abandoned this world to us. And the ones with power rule. Gold. Gold floors, gold walls, gold furniture, gold clothes. In Highbell, in the castle built into the frozen mountains, everything is made of gold. Even me. King Midas rescued me. Dug me out of the slums and placed me on a pedestal. I’m called his precious. His favored. I’m the woman he Gold-Touched to show everyone that I belong to him. To show how powerful he is. He gave me protection, and I gave him my heart. And even though I don’t leave the confines of the palace, I’m safe. Until war comes to the kingdom and a deal is struck. Suddenly, my trust is broken. My love is challenged. And I realize that everything I thought I knew about Midas might be wrong. Because these bars I’m kept in, no matter how gilded, are still just a cage. But the monsters on the other side might make me wish I’d never left. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/july-book-club-books monthly 0.5 2024-07-29 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/dystopian-must-haves monthly 0.5 2024-07-16 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/53a26376-c21c-4011-9f53-def303d2ede9/9275658.jpg Blog - Dystopian Must Have’s - Legend by Marie Lu What was once the western United States is now home to the Republic, a nation perpetually at war with its neighbors. Born into an elite family in one of the Republic's wealthiest districts, fifteen-year-old June is a prodigy being groomed for success in the Republic's highest military circles. Born into the slums, fifteen-year-old Day is the country's most wanted criminal. But his motives may not be as malicious as they seem. From very different worlds, June and Day have no reason to cross paths—until the day June's brother, Metias, is murdered and Day becomes the prime suspect. Caught in the ultimate game of cat and mouse, Day is in a race for his family's survival, while June seeks to avenge Metias's death. But in a shocking turn of events, the two uncover the truth of what has really brought them together, and the sinister lengths their country will go to keep its secrets. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/952df10e-3c7b-4046-9b9c-c62066507a9e/11614718.jpg Blog - Dystopian Must Have’s - Delirium by Lauren Oliver In an alternate United States, love has been declared a dangerous disease, and the government forces everyone who reaches eighteen to have a procedure called the Cure. Living with her aunt, uncle, and cousins in Portland, Maine, Lena Haloway is very much looking forward to being cured and living a safe, predictable life. She watched love destroy her mother and isn't about to make the same mistake. But with ninety-five days left until her treatment, Lena meets enigmatic Alex, a boy from the "Wilds" who lives under the government's radar. What will happen if they do the unthinkable and fall in love? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/66550697-d02e-408e-9e26-cef1c2f56384/3636.jpg Blog - Dystopian Must Have’s - The Giver by Lois Lowry In a world with no poverty, no crime, no sickness and no unemployment, and where every family is happy, 12-year-old Jonas is chosen to be the community's Receiver of Memories. Under the tutelage of the Elders and an old man known as the Giver, he discovers the disturbing truth about his utopian world and struggles against the weight of its hypocrisy. With echoes of Brave New World, in this 1994 Newbery Medal winner, Lowry examines the idea that people might freely choose to give up their humanity in order to create a more stable society. Gradually Jonas learns just how costly this ordered and pain-free society can be, and boldly decides he cannot pay the price. The Giver is set in a future society which is at first presented as a utopia and gradually appears more and more dystopic, so could therefore be considered anti-utopian. The novel follows a boy named Jonas through the twelfth year of his life. Jonas' society has eliminated pain and strife by converting to "Sameness", a plan which has also eradicated emotional depth from their lives. Jonas is selected to inherit the position of "Receiver of Memory," the person who stores all the memories of the time before Sameness, in case they are ever needed to aid in decisions that others lack the experience to make. As Jonas receives the memories from his predecessor—the "Giver"—he discovers how shallow his community's life has become. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/977b8a8c-c0d7-4868-a0e6-b5f1da46ae13/63910884.jpg Blog - Dystopian Must Have’s - The Chaperone by M. Hendrix Like every young woman in New America, Stella knows the rules: Deflect attention. Abstain from sin. Navigate the world with care. Give obedience. Embrace purity. Respect your chaperone. Stella can't go out by herself, or spend time with boys except at Visitations. Girls in New America must have chaperones at all times until they marry, so Stella's lucky that Sister Helen is like a friend to her. When Sister Helen dies suddenly, she's devastated, especially when the Constables assign Stella a new chaperone just days later. Sister Laura is... different. She leaves Stella alone at the library (isn't that illegal?) and knows how to get into the "Hush Hush" parties where all kinds of forbidden things happen. As Stella spends more time with Sister Laura, she begins to question everything she's been taught. What if the Constables' rules don't actually protect girls? What if they were never meant to keep them safe? Once Stella glimpses both real freedom and the dark truths behind New America, she has no choice but to fight back against the world she knows. She sets out on a dangerous journey across what was once the United States, risking everything. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/82b4bcf8-4a27-41b1-a5ca-9655ebb47af2/11366397.jpg Blog - Dystopian Must Have’s - The Program by Suzanne Young In Sloane’s world, true feelings are forbidden, teen suicide is an epidemic, and the only solution is The Program. Sloane knows better than to cry in front of anyone. With suicide now an international epidemic, one outburst could land her in The Program, the only proven course of treatment. Sloane’s parents have already lost one child; Sloane knows they’ll do anything to keep her alive. She also knows that everyone who’s been through The Program returns as a blank slate. Because their depression is gone—but so are their memories. Under constant surveillance at home and at school, Sloane puts on a brave face and keeps her feelings buried as deep as she can. The only person Sloane can be herself with is James. He’s promised to keep them both safe and out of treatment, and Sloane knows their love is strong enough to withstand anything. But despite the promises they made to each other, it’s getting harder to hide the truth. They are both growing weaker. Depression is setting in. And The Program is coming for them. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7fea66dc-7a8e-42d7-afc4-7a9ba3951366/7735333.jpg Blog - Dystopian Must Have’s - Matched by Ally Condle Cassia has always trusted the Society to make the right choices for her: what to read, what to watch, what to believe. So when Xander's face appears on-screen at her Matching ceremony, Cassia knows with complete certainty that he is her ideal mate . . . until she sees Ky Markham's face flash for an instant before the screen fades to black. The Society tells her it's a glitch, a rare malfunction, and that she should focus on the happy life she's destined to lead with Xander. But Cassia can't stop thinking about Ky, and as they slowly fall in love, Cassia begins to doubt the Society's infallibility and is faced with an impossible choice: between Xander and Ky, between the only life she's known and a path that no one else has dared to follow. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/db96164a-41bc-4d9d-8c29-c05913ca48b1/24770.jpg Blog - Dystopian Must Have’s - Uglies by Scott Westerfeld Tally is about to turn sixteen, and she can't wait. In just a few weeks she'll have the operation that will turn her from a repellent ugly into a stunning pretty. And as a pretty, she'll be catapulted into a high-tech paradise where her only job is to have fun. But Tally's new friend Shay isn't sure she wants to become a pretty. When Shay runs away, Tally learns about a whole new side of the pretty world—and it isn't very pretty. The authorities offer Tally a choice: find her friend and turn her in, or never turn pretty at all. Tally's choice will change her world forever.... https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/473c89c4-a523-48c5-afa5-682fd7d56a14/30622126.jpg Blog - Dystopian Must Have’s - Gone by Michael Grant In the blink of an eye, everyone disappears. Gone. Except for the young. There are teens, but not one single adult. Just as suddenly, there are no phones, no internet, no television. No way to get help. And no way to figure out what's happened. Hunger threatens. Bullies rule. A sinister creature lurks. Animals are mutating. And the teens themselves are changing, developing new talents—unimaginable, dangerous, deadly powers—that grow stronger by the day. It's a terrifying new world. Sides are being chosen, a fight is shaping up. Townies against rich kids. Bullies against the weak. Powerful against powerless. And time is running out: On your 15th birthday, you disappear just like everyone else... https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/eacb4565-a71d-4154-96ea-b173e6a96c0a/8235178.jpg Blog - Dystopian Must Have’s - Across the Universe by Beth Revis Seventeen-year-old Amy joins her parents as frozen cargo aboard the vast spaceship Godspeed and expects to awaken on a new planet, three hundred years in the future. Never could she have known that her frozen slumber would come to an end fifty years too soon and that she would be thrust into the brave new world of a spaceship that lives by its own rules. Amy quickly realizes that her awakening was no mere computer malfunction. Someone—one of the few thousand inhabitants of the spaceship —tried to kill her. And if Amy doesn't do something soon, her parents will be next. Now Amy must race to unlock Godspeed's hidden secrets. But out of her list of murder suspects, there's only one who matters: Elder, the future leader of the ship and the love she could never have seen coming. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/53121add-5380-49db-bf9c-fd3744f48e66/15863832.jpg Blog - Dystopian Must Have’s - Angelfall by Susan Ee It's been six weeks since angels of the apocalypse descended to demolish the modern world. Street gangs rule the day while fear and superstition rule the night. When warrior angels fly away with a helpless little girl, her seventeen-year-old sister Penryn will do anything to get her back. Anything, including making a deal with an enemy angel. Raffe is a warrior who lies broken and wingless on the street. After eons of fighting his own battles, he finds himself being rescued from a desperate situation by a half-starved teenage girl. Traveling through a dark and twisted Northern California, they have only each other to rely on for survival. Together, they journey toward the angels' stronghold in San Francisco where she'll risk everything to rescue her sister and he'll put himself at the mercy of his greatest enemies for the chance to be made whole again. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3a95cd13-5a33-4274-833f-2a156885881c/16101128.jpg Blog - Dystopian Must Have’s - The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey After the 1st wave, only darkness remains. After the 2nd, only the lucky escape. And after the 3rd, only the unlucky survive. After the 4th wave, only one rule applies: trust no one. Now, it's the dawn of the 5th wave, and on a lonely stretch of highway, Cassie runs from Them. The beings who only look human, who roam the countryside killing anyone they see. Who have scattered Earth's last survivors. To stay alone is to stay alive, Cassie believes, until she meets Evan Walker. Beguiling and mysterious, Evan Walker may be Cassie's only hope for rescuing her brother—or even saving herself. But Cassie must choose: between trust and despair, between defiance and surrender, between life and death. To give up or to get up. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3363d724-3370-4ba6-a708-2965bc64e2b2/7137327.jpg Blog - Dystopian Must Have’s - Enclave by Ann Aguirre New York City has been decimated by war and plague, and most of civilization has migrated to underground enclaves, where life expectancy is no more than the early 20's. When Deuce turns 15, she takes on her role as a Huntress, and is paired with Fade, a teenage Hunter who lived Topside as a young boy. When she and Fade discover that the neighboring enclave has been decimated by the tunnel monsters--or Freaks--who seem to be growing more organized, the elders refuse to listen to warnings. And when Deuce and Fade are exiled from the enclave, the girl born in darkness must survive in daylight--guided by Fade's long-ago memories--in the ruins of a city whose population has dwindled to a few dangerous gangs. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/115bb2ff-d93c-48f2-9b4c-99c229aa1d41/13376.jpg Blog - Dystopian Must Have’s - The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer With undertones of vampires, Frankenstein, dragons' hoards, and killing fields, Matt's story turns out to be an inspiring tale of friendship, survival, hope, and transcendence. A must-read for teenage fantasy fans. At his coming-of-age party, Matteo Alacrán asks El Patrón's bodyguard, "How old am I?...I know I don't have a birthday like humans, but I was born." "You were harvested," Tam Lin reminds him. "You were grown in that poor cow for nine months and then you were cut out of her." To most people around him, Matt is not a boy, but a beast. A room full of chicken litter with roaches for friends and old chicken bones for toys is considered good enough for him. But for El Patrón, lord of a country called Opium—a strip of poppy fields lying between the U.S. and what was once called Mexico—Matt is a guarantee of eternal life. El Patrón loves Matt as he loves himself for Matt is himself. They share identical DNA. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bbd637ff-0a16-40cd-af5f-852480057156/13326831.jpg Blog - Dystopian Must Have’s - The Testing by Joelle Charbonneau Keep your friends close and your enemies closer. Isn't that what they say? But how close is too close when they may be one and the same? The Seven Stages War left much of the planet a charred wasteland. The future belongs to the next generation's chosen few who must rebuild it. But to enter this elite group, candidates must first pass The Testing—their one chance at a college education and a rewarding career. Cia Vale is honoured to be chosen as a Testing candidate; eager to prove her worthiness as a University student and future leader of the United Commonwealth. But on the eve of her departure, her father's advice hints at a darker side to her upcoming studies—trust no one. But surely she can trust Tomas, her handsome childhood friend who offers an alliance? Tomas, who seems to care more about her with the passing of every gruelling (and deadly) day of the Testing. To survive, Cia must choose: love without truth or life without trust. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1334bfd0-d546-4e12-96d8-3e52aea1ed89/10576365.jpg Blog - Dystopian Must Have’s - The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken When Ruby woke up on her tenth birthday, something about her had changed. Something alarming enough to make her parents lock her in the garage and call the police. Something that gets her sent to Thurmond, a brutal government “rehabilitation camp.” She might have survived the mysterious disease that’s killed most of America’s children, but she and the others have emerged with something far worse: frightening abilities they cannot control. Now sixteen, Ruby is one of the dangerous ones. When the truth comes out, Ruby barely escapes Thurmond with her life. Now she’s on the run, desperate to find the one safe haven left for kids like her—East River. She joins a group of kids who escaped their own camp. Liam, their brave leader, is falling hard for Ruby. But no matter how much she aches for him, Ruby can’t risk getting close. Not after what happened to her parents. When they arrive at East River, nothing is as it seems, least of all its mysterious leader. But there are other forces at work, people who will stop at nothing to use Ruby in their fight against the government. Ruby will be faced with a terrible choice, one that may mean giving up her only chance at a life worth living. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/73b78ece-0ccc-4b10-ba69-c011d652dd8a/12476820.jpg Blog - Dystopian Must Have’s - Partials by Dan Wells Humanity is all but extinguished after a war with Partials—engineered organic beings identical to humans—has decimated the population. Reduced to only tens of thousands by a weaponized virus to which only a fraction of humanity is immune, the survivors in North America have huddled together on Long Island. But sixteen-year-old Kira is determined to find a solution. As she tries desperately to save what is left of her race, she discovers that that the survival of both humans and Partials rests in her attempts to answer questions about the war's origin that she never knew to ask. Playing on our curiosity of and fascination with the complete collapse of civilization, Partials is, at its heart, a story of survival, one that explores the individual narratives and complex relationships of those left behind, both humans and Partials alike—and of the way in which the concept of what is right and wrong in this world is greatly dependent on one's own point of view. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/607beb6e-c1ea-4af7-b64f-5d4dc576df0f/17332969.jpg Blog - Dystopian Must Have’s - The 100 by Kass Morgan No one has set foot on Earth in centuries—until now. Ever since a devastating nuclear war, humanity has lived on spaceships far above Earth's radioactive surface. Now, one hundred juvenile delinquents—considered expendable by society—are being sent on a dangerous mission: to recolonize the planet. It could be their second chance at life...or it could be a suicide mission. CLARKE was arrested for treason, though she's haunted by the memory of what she really did. WELLS, the chancellor's son, came to Earth for the girl he loves—but will she ever forgive him? Reckless BELLAMY fought his way onto the transport pod to protect his sister, the other half of the only pair of siblings in the universe. And GLASS managed to escape back onto the ship, only to find that life there is just as dangerous as she feared it would be on Earth. Confronted with a savage land and haunted by secrets from their pasts, the hundred must fight to survive. They were never meant to be heroes, but they may be mankind's last hope. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/eeac4f4a-44a5-4cf8-9bca-eecd8935c8fd/10507293.jpg Blog - Dystopian Must Have’s - The Selection by Kiera Cass For thirty-five girls, the Selection is the chance of a lifetime. The opportunity to escape the life laid out for them since birth. To be swept up in a world of glittering gowns and priceless jewels. To live in a palace and compete for the heart of gorgeous Prince Maxon. But for America Singer, being Selected is a nightmare. It means turning her back on her secret love with Aspen, who is a caste below her. Leaving her home to enter a fierce competition for a crown she doesn't want. Living in a palace that is constantly threatened by violent rebel attacks. Then America meets Prince Maxon. Gradually, she starts to question all the plans she's made for herself—and realizes that the life she's always dreamed of may not compare to a future she never imagined. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/48463928-7716-4626-b6eb-5b6fba1ef2c1/50872082.jpg Blog - Dystopian Must Have’s - Edge of Collapse by Kyla Stone In the dead of winter, an EMP attack destroys the U.S. power grid. No electricity. No cars or phones. The country is plunged into instant chaos. But for Hannah Sheridan, it's the best day of her life. For the last five years, she's been the captive of a sadistic psychopath--until the EMP releases the lock of her prison. Battered but not broken, she emerges from her underground cell into a hostile winter wilderness with nothing but her determination to survive. Reclusive ex-soldier Liam Coleman is headed nowhere fast. He believed he was prepared for any disaster, until the EMP took everything he'd ever cared about in a matter of seconds. Two hundred frozen, perilous miles stand between them and their destination in rural Michigan. But the killing cold isn't the only threat, for Hannah's captor isn't about to let her go... When the country goes dark, ordinary people find themselves facing the end of the world as they know it. With society collapsing before their eyes, they'll have to risk everything to protect their home and the people they love. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f47e8560-79bc-404d-843e-91f52f74ac54/13517444.jpg Blog - Dystopian Must Have’s - Stung by Bethany Wiggins There is no cure for being stung. Fiona doesn’t remember going to sleep. But when she awakens, her world no longer exists. Her house is abandoned and broken. Her neighborhood is barren and dead. And there is a tattoo on her right hand. A tattoo Fiona doesn’t remember getting…but somehow she must conceal at any cost. Because humanity has been divided. Those bearing the tattoo have turned into mindless, violent beasts that roam the streets and sewers, preying upon the unbranded, while a select few live protected inside a fortresslike wall, their lives devoted to rebuilding society and killing all who bear the mark. And Fiona has awoken branded, on the wrong side of the wall, and…normal. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/546f1721-23c2-45f5-bc0c-871ba51eda89/10677277.jpg Blog - Dystopian Must Have’s - Article 5 by Kristen Simmons New York, Los Angeles, and Washington, D.C., have been abandoned. The Bill of Rights has been revoked, and replaced with the Moral Statutes. There are no more police—instead, there are soldiers. There are no more fines for bad behavior—instead, there are arrests, trials, and maybe worse. People who get arrested usually don't come back. Seventeen-year-old Ember Miller is old enough to remember that things weren't always this way. Living with her rebellious single mother, it's hard for her to forget that people weren't always arrested for reading the wrong books or staying out after dark. It's hard to forget that life in the United States used to be different. Ember has perfected the art of keeping a low profile. She knows how to get the things she needs, like food stamps and hand-me-down clothes, and how to pass the random home inspections by the military. Her life is as close to peaceful as circumstances allow. That is, until her mother is arrested for noncompliance with Article 5 of the Moral Statutes. And one of the arresting officers is none other than Chase Jennings—the only boy Ember has ever loved. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/august-new-releases monthly 0.5 2024-07-11 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/008a2d8b-74f7-4995-a200-13e703babc53/201632567.jpg Blog - August New Releases - Blood Like Mine by Stuart Neville On a snowy December night, single mother Rebecca Carter drives her van into a snowbank to avoid hitting an elk on a desolate mountain highway. She is at the end of her rope, out of money and food. Still, she refuses help from a man in a pickup truck—Rebecca’s adolescent daughter, Moonflower, is on the run from a grisly secret, and the last thing they can afford is to be remembered by anyone they meet. Meanwhile, Special Agent Marc Donner of the FBI has spent the better part of two years hunting down a gruesome serial killer who drains victims of blood before severing their spinal cords, leaving a trail of bodies throughout the American West. As Agent Donner’s investigation brings him closer and closer to where Rebecca and Moonflower are hiding out, in the foothills of Colorado, the life that Rebecca has fought so hard to hold together for her daughter becomes increasingly imperilled. Release Date: August 6, 2024 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/24862497-969e-4440-ac6a-4a94d8e0a072/62171046.jpg Blog - August New Releases - Dark Restraint by Katee Robert Dark Olympus #7 Ariadne Vitalis is in trouble. She's betrayed her father―and his benefactor―and now she's left to rely on the questionable mercy of Olympus to keep her safe. As with everything in this city, mercy comes with a price. For Ariadne, that means a marriage to Dionysus. She has no choice but to agree, even if there's only one man she's ever wanted―a man she's feared just as much as she desires. The Minotaur never had any illusions about Minos's plans. He was willing to get his hands dirty as long as the old man kept his word―at the end of this, the Minotaur would be given Ariadne as a reward. Nowhere in that deal was her walking down the aisle to a different man. She's meant for him, and he means to have her. Ariadne knows better than to encourage the Minotaur. Her relationship with her new fiancé might be more friendship than burning passion, but she is all too aware of how much fiery passion can hurt. She and the Minotaur are no good for each other. She can never forgive him for what he's done, and he can never change. But when his hands are on her body and his wicked words are whispered in her ear, she might just be willing to let all of Olympus burn… Release Date: August 6, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a44c6ac5-fea0-4092-8f1f-8a5c8d417501/199927990.jpg Blog - August New Releases - The Seventh Veil of Salome by Silvia Moreno-GarciaG 1950s Hollywood: Every actress wants to play Salome, the star-making role in a big-budget movie about the legendary woman whose story has inspired artists since ancient times. So when the film’s mercurial director casts Vera Larios, an unknown Mexican ingenue, in the lead role, she quickly becomes the talk of the town. Vera also becomes an object of envy for Nancy Hartley, a bit player whose career has stalled and who will do anything to win the fame she believes she richly deserves. Two actresses, both determined to make it to the top in Golden Age Hollywood—a city overflowing with gossip, scandal, and intrigue—make for a sizzling combination. But this is the tale of three women, for it is also the story of the princess Salome herself, consumed with desire for the fiery prophet who foretells the doom of her stepfather, Herod: a woman torn between the decree of duty and the yearning of her heart. Before the curtain comes down, there will be tears and tragedy aplenty in this sexy Technicolor saga. Release Date: August 6, 2024 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/029bb5ee-6700-4322-9075-271d512a1d08/195790847.jpg.png Blog - August New Releases - A Sorceress Comes to Call by T. Kingfisher Cordelia knows her mother is unusual. Their house doesn’t have any doors between rooms, and her mother doesn't allow Cordelia to have a single friend—unless you count Falada, her mother's beautiful white horse. The only time Cordelia feels truly free is on her daily rides with him. But more than simple eccentricity sets her mother apart. Other mothers don’t force their daughters to be silent and motionless for hours, sometimes days, on end. Other mothers aren’t sorcerers. After a suspicious death in their small town, Cordelia’s mother insists they leave in the middle of the night, riding away on Falada’s sturdy back, leaving behind all Cordelia has ever known. They arrive at the remote country manor of a wealthy older man, the Squire, and his unwed sister, Hester. Cordelia’s mother intends to lure the Squire into marriage, and Cordelia knows this can only be bad news for the bumbling gentleman and his kind, intelligent sister. Hester sees the way Cordelia shrinks away from her mother, how the young girl sits eerily still at dinner every night. Hester knows that to save her brother from bewitchment and to rescue the terrified Cordelia, she will have to face down a wicked witch of the worst kind. Release Date: August 6, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/dbc5eaf7-4f70-4761-a641-84049090c2ca/195790531.jpg Blog - August New Releases - House of Glass by Sarah Perkkanen On the outside they were the golden family with the perfect life. On the inside they built the perfect lie. A young nanny who plunged to her death, or was she pushed? A nine-year-old girl who collects sharp objects and refuses to speak. A lawyer whose job it is to uncover who in the family is a victim and who is a murderer. But how can you find out the truth when everyone here is lying? Rose Barclay is a nine-year-old girl who witnessed the possible murder of her nanny - in the midst of her parent's bitter divorce - and immediately stopped speaking. Stella Hudson is a best interest attorney, appointed to serve as counsel for children in custody cases. She never accepts clients under thirteen due to her own traumatic childhood, but Stella's mentor, a revered judge, believes Stella is the only one who can help. From the moment Stella passes through the iron security gate and steps into the gilded, historic DC home of the Barclays, she realizes the case is even more twisted, and the Barclay family far more troubled, than she feared. And there's something eerie about the house itself: It's a plastic house, with not a single bit of glass to be found. As Stella comes closer to uncovering the secrets the Barclays are desperate to hide, danger wraps around her like a shroud, and her past and present are set on a collision course in ways she never expected. Everyone is a suspect in the nanny's murder. The mother, the father, the grandmother, the nanny's boyfriend. Even Rose. Is the person Stella's supposed to protect the one she may need protection from? Release Date: August 6, 2024 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5b65b001-6732-43df-bce3-ccea64a60031/202102084.jpg Blog - August New Releases - Lady Macbeth by Ava Reid The Lady knows the stories: how her eyes induce madness in men. The Lady knows she will be wed to the Scottish brute, who does not leave his warrior ways behind when he comes to the marriage bed. The Lady knows his hostile, suspicious court will be a game of strategy, requiring all of her wiles and hidden witchcraft to survive. But the Lady does not know her husband has occult secrets of his own. She does not know that prophecy girds him like armor. She does not know that her magic is greater and more dangerous, and that it will threaten the order of the world. She does not know this yet. But she will. Release Date: August 13, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ea8a2c5b-4546-4618-ba79-3e826cff89c6/195790940.jpg Blog - August New Releases - The House Keeper’s Secret by Iona Grey Duty, desire, and deception reside under one roof. Standing in the remote windswept moors of Northern England, Coldwell Hall is the perfect place to hide. For the past five years, Kate Furniss has maintained her professional mask so carefully that she almost believes she is the character she has Coldwell’s respectable housekeeper. It is the summer of 1911 that brings new faces above and below the stairs of Coldwell Hall―including the handsome and mysterious new footman, Jem Arden. Just as the house’s shuttered rooms open, so does Kate’s guarded heart to a love affair that is as intense as it is forbidden. But Kate can feel her control slipping as Jem harbors secrets of his own. Told in alternating timelines from the last sun-drenched summer of the Edwardian Age to the mud-filled trenches of WWI, The Housekeeper's Secret opens its door to a world of romance, the truths we hold onto, and the past we must let go. Release Date: August 13, 2024 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4d661d68-ecae-41bd-833e-8d089a48e599/196787830.jpg Blog - August New Releases - Born of Blood and Ash by Jennifer L. Armentrout Flesh and Fire #4 While Sera is finally free of Kolis and back with those she loves, not everything is calm. Memories of all she’s endured still haunt her, but Sera finally has hope for a future with the other half of her heart and soul. Nyktos desires, loves, and accepts every part of her—even the monstrous bits she still battles. More than ever, Sera and Ash have everything under the realms to fight for, and Nyktos has no doubt Sera is fit to be the Queen of the Gods. But she must find that faith within herself if they hope to convince the other Courts to support them against Kolis and make Iliseeum and the mortal realm better, safer places for all. But as Sera begins to piece together the importance of her bloodline and the true meaning behind the foreboding prophecy, it becomes clear that everything that has happened and is yet to come is much bigger than Kolis and his dark obsessions. They cannot help but wonder exactly how much influence the Fates have had and what their ultimate goal is. What Sera does know for sure is that they can trust very few—including her. A battle between the gods is brewing, and heartbreaking losses are imminent with the true Primal of Death strengthening. With a family of the heart willing to battle by their side, can Sera and Nyktos stop Kolis before he destroys the realms, or will it all disappear in a fiery inferno of blood and ash? And the line between justice and vengeance has never been so thin. Release Date: August 13, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/eb04d72c-6129-4876-b75f-b8c87bd77aad/203402909.jpg Blog - August New Releases - Wicked Serve by Grace Reilly Nikolai Hockey is my life, and I need to make this last season count. But when I’m forced to transfer to rival school McKee University for my senior year, I risk pissing off the captain, who happens to be the older brother of Isabelle Callahan: the gorgeous beam of sunshine I messed around with in secret this summer. Rekindling our fling could risk her brother icing me off the team—not to mention the fact that my scarred past makes having a real relationship impossible—and yet the moment I see Isabelle again, all my wild, burning feelings come rushing back. Izzy I have two goals for sophomore year: win back my old volleyball position, and forget I ever knew devilishly handsome hockey defenseman Nikolai Abney-Volkov. As the youngest and only daughter in a family full of athletes, failure isn’t an option. But when Nik crashes back into my life, I can’t stay away from his broody charm. I’m determined to guard my heart this time, but between the furtive hookups and the heartfelt conversations, the lines between friends-with-benefits and more begin to blur. As we fall deeper into a place we can’t come back from unscathed, we’ll have to make a choice: fight for a future together, or watch it go up in flames. Release Date: August 13, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/87b86914-2ee3-4293-bc89-caf9598632c8/201102406.jpg Blog - August New Releases - Under the Surface by Diana Urban Ruby is terrified to cave to her feelings for Sean and risk him crushing her heart. Sean is pumped to spend a week with Ruby in Paris on their senior class trip, and he’ll wait however long until she’s ready to take things further. But when Ruby’s best friend sneaks out the first night to meet a mysterious French boy, Ruby goes after her with two classmates, but caves to another temptation: attending mystery boy’s exclusive party in the Paris catacombs, the intricate web of tunnels beneath the city, home to six million long-dead Parisians. Only they never reach the party. Underground, as something sinister chases them, they get lost in the endless maze of bones, uncovering dark secrets about the catacombs… and each other. And if they can’t find a way out, they’ll die in the dark beneath the City of Light. Aboveground, Sean races to find the girl he loves as a media frenzy over the four missing teens begins. Release Date: August 13, 2024 Genre: Young Adult Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/caa16329-d27b-4ec2-b239-574c7c05e4c0/202102003.jpg Blog - August New Releases - Society of Lies by Lauren Ling Brown When a young woman is found dead on her college campus, her sister doesn't believe it was an accident—and her search for answers leads her closer to home than she ever would have imagined in this thrilling debut novel from an exciting new talent. Maya can’t wait to return to Princeton for Reunions—it’s been a decade since she graduated, but she is looking forward to seeing old faces and reminiscing about her college days. And this year is even more special because her little sister, Naomi, is graduating. But what should have been a dream weekend becomes Maya's worst nightmare when she gets a call no one ever wants—Naomi is dead. The police are saying it’s an accident, but Maya suspects there is more to the story than they are letting on. As Maya pieces together the months leading up to her sister’s death, she starts to realize how much Naomi hid from her. Naomi had joined Sterling Club, the most exclusive social club on campus—the same one Maya belonged to—despite Maya’s warnings. And if she had to guess, she'd say Naomi was also tapped for the secret society within it. The more Maya uncovers, the more terrified she becomes that Naomi's decision to follow in her footsteps might have been what got her killed. Because Maya's time at Princeton wasn't as wonderful as she always pretended it was—after all, her sister wasn't the first young woman to turn up dead. Now every clue is leading Maya back to the past…and to the secrets she’s kept all these years. Release Date: August 13, 2024 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e949a615-1d2d-4d02-aa9d-615e4ba0d87d/195790535.jpg Blog - August New Releases - The Break-Up Pact by Emma Lord June and Levi were best friends as teenagers—until the day they weren’t. Now June is struggling to make rent on her beachside tea shop, Levi is living a New York cliché as a disillusioned hedge fund manager and failed novelist, and they've barely spoken in years. But after they both experience public, humiliating break-ups with their exes that spread like wildfire across TikTok rabbit holes and daytime talk shows alike, they accidentally make some juicy gossip of their own—a photo of them together has the internet convinced they're a couple. With so many people rooting for them, they decide to put aside their rocky past and make a pact to fuel the fire. Pretending to date will help June’s shop get back on its feet and make Levi’s ex realize that she made a mistake. All they have to do is convince the world they're in love, one swoon-worthy photo opp at a time. Two viral break-ups. One fake relationship. Five sparkling, heart-pounding dates. June and Levi can definitely pull this off without their hearts getting involved. Because everyone knows fake dating doesn’t come with real feelings. Right? Release Date: August 13, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7b346fd6-defb-449f-b22e-2b58a496ccc9/199793571.jpg Blog - August New Releases - This Is Why We Lied by Karin Slaughter Everyone here is a liar, but only one of us is a killer… A secluded cabin retreat For GBI investigator Will Trent and medical examiner Sara Linton, McAlpine Lodge seems like the ideal getaway to celebrate their honeymoon. Set on a gorgeous, off-the-grid mountaintop property, it’s the perfect place to unplug and reconnect. Until a bone-chilling scream cuts through the night. A murderer in their midst Mercy McAlpine, the manager of the Lodge, is dead. With a vicious storm raging and the one access road to the property washed out, the murderer must be someone on the mountain. But as Will and Sara investigate the McAlpine family and the other guests, they realize that everyone here is lying….Lying about their past. Lying to their family. Lying to themselves. Who killed Mercy McAlpine? It soon becomes clear that normal rules don’t apply at McAlpine Lodge, and Will and Sara are going to have to watch their step at every turn. Trapped on the resort, they must untangle a decades-old web of secrets to discover what happened to Mercy. And with the killer poised to strike again, the trip of a lifetime becomes a race against the clock… Release Date: August 20, 2024 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/010dd8c2-3a2e-490a-90ff-d971779a8113/203337138.jpg Blog - August New Releases - By Ant Other Name by Jodi Picoult Two women, centuries apart—one of whom is the real author of Shakespeare’s plays—are both forced to hide behind another name to make their voices heard. In 1581, Emilia Bassano—like most young women of her day—is allowed no voice of her own. But as the Lord Chamberlain’s mistress, she has access to all theater in England, and finds a way to bring her work to the stage secretly. And yet, creating some of the world’s greatest dramatic masterpieces comes at great cost: by paying a man for the use of his name, she will write her own out of history. In the present, playwright Melina Green has just written a new work inspired by the life of her Elizabethan ancestor Emilia Bassano. Although the challenges are different four hundred years later, the playing field is still not level for women in theater. Would Melina—like Emilia—be willing to forfeit her credit as author, just for a chance to see her work performed? Told in intertwining narratives, this sweeping tale of ambition, courage, and desire asks what price each woman is willing to pay to see their work live on—even if it means they will be forgotten. Release Date: August 20, 2024 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1fb9c402-5498-4595-bdf1-69e889737889/195820745.jpg Blog - August New Releases - Wisteria by Adalyn Grace Belladonna #3 Blythe Hawthorn has never let anyone tell her what to do—not society, not her overprotective father, and certainly not the man she’s bound herself to, no matter how rude and insufferable he is. In fact, she’s determined to be a thorn in his side for the rest of her days, even as he ensures that her life in his palace is anything but a fairytale. But as Blythe discovers a new side of herself linked to his past, she’ll have to decide if she’s willing to let an unexpected spark ignite…and to discover the truth about who she really is. Release Date: August 20, 2024 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/47998adb-89f2-4132-8575-f8e9580abc40/198647119.jpg Blog - August New Releases - Daydream by Hannah Grace Maple Hills #3 When procrastination lands him in a difficult class with his least favorite professor, Henry Turner knows he’s going to have to work extra hard to survive his junior year of college. And now with his new role as ice hockey captain – which he didn’t even want – Henry absolutely cannot fail. Enter Halle Jacobs, a fellow junior who finds herself befriended by Henry when he accidentally crashes her book club. Halle may not have the romantic pursuits of her favorite fictional leads, but she’s an academic superstar, and when she hears about Henry’s problems with his class reading material, she offers to help. But being a private tutor isn’t exactly ideal given her own studies, job and the novel she’s trying to write. New experiences are the key to beating her writer’s block, though, and Henry’s promising to be the one to give them to her. They just need to stick to their rulebook. Oh, and not fall in love. Release Date: August 27, 2024 Genre: Romance https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/june-book-club-books monthly 0.5 2024-06-30 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/historical-fiction-must-haves monthly 0.5 2024-06-25 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5bb1dd91-1c62-4f1a-aaa7-822516c5c509/197522445.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must Haves - The Medicine Woman of Galveston by Amanda Skenandore Caught in the great Galveston Hurricane of 1900, a female doctor who’s joined a traveling medicine show to support her disabled son is forced to weather the storm and its aftermath in a town hostile to the troupe’s unconventional ways but desperate for their help. Readers of Ellen Marie Wiseman, Sandra Dallas, and Sara Donati will be captivated by this story of medical historical fiction by Amanda Skenandore, registered nurse and acclaimed author of The Nurse’s Secret and The Second Life of Mirielle West. Once a trailblazer in the field of medicine, Dr. Tucia Hatherley hasn’t touched a scalpel or stethoscope since she made a fatal mistake in the operating theater. Instead, she works in a corset factory, striving to earn enough to support her disabled son. When even that livelihood is threatened, Tucia is left with one option—to join a wily, charismatic showman named Huey and become part of his traveling medicine show. Her medical license lends the show a pretense of credibility, but the cures and tonics Tucia is forced to peddle are little more than purgatives and bathwater. Loathing the duplicity, even as she finds uneasy kinship with the other misfit performers, Tucia vows to leave as soon as her debts are paid and start a new life with her son—if Huey will ever let her go. When the show reaches Galveston, Texas, Tucia tries to break free from Huey, only to be pulled even deeper into his schemes. But there is a far greater reckoning ahead, as a September storm becomes a devastating hurricane that will decimate the Gulf Coast—and challenge Tucia to recover her belief in medicine, in the goodness of others—and in herself. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b26975e3-99c3-4cae-b171-e79fed621bd5/195790759.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must Haves - Rednecks by Taylor Brown Rednecks is a tour de force, big canvas historical novel that dramatizes the 1920 to 1921 events of the West Virginia Mine Wars—from the Matewan Massacre through the Battle of Blair Mountain, the largest armed conflict on American soil since the Civil War, when some one million rounds were fired, bombs were dropped on Appalachia, and the term “redneck” would come to have an unexpected origin story. Brimming with the high stakes drama of America’s buried history, Rednecks tells a powerful story of rebellion against oppression. In a land where the coal companies use violence and intimidation to keep miners from organizing, “Doc Moo" Muhanna, a Lebanese-American doctor (inspired by the author’s own great-grandfather), toils amid the blood and injustice of the mining camps. When Frank Hugham, a Black World War One veteran and coal miner, takes dramatic steps to lead a miners' revolt with a band of fellow veterans, Doc Moo risks his life and career to treat sick and wounded miners, while Frank's grandmother, Beulah, fights her own battle to save her home and grandson. Real-life historical figures burn bright among the hills: the fiery Mother Jones, an Irish-born labor organizer once known as "The Most Dangerous Woman in America," struggles to maintain the ear of the miners ("her boys") amid the tide of rebellion, while the sharp-shooting police chief "Smilin" Sid Hatfield dares to stand up to the "gun thugs" of the coal companies, becoming a folk hero of the mine wars. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8181257c-9702-4742-ac71-d71dc36f4c00/195888522.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must Haves - Whale Fall by Elizabeth O’Connor A stunning debut from an award-winning writer, about loss, isolation, folklore, and the joy and dissonance of finding oneself by exploring life outside one’s community In 1938, a dead whale washes up on the shores of remote Welsh island. For Manod, who has spent her whole life on the island, it feels like both a portent of doom and a symbol of what may lie beyond the island's shores. A young woman living with her father and her sister (to whom she has reluctantly but devotedly become a mother following the death of their own mother years prior), Manod can't shake her welling desire to explore life beyond the beautiful yet blisteringly harsh islands that her hardscrabble family has called home for generations. The arrival of two English ethnographers who hope to study the island culture, then, feels like a boon to her—both a glimpse of life outside her community and a means of escape. The longer the ethnographers stay, the more she feels herself pulled towards them, reckoning with a sensual awakening inside herself, despite her misgivings that her community is being misconstrued and exoticized. With shimmering prose tempered by sharp wit, Whale Fall tells the story of what happens when one person's ambitions threaten the fabric of a community, and what can happen when they are realized. O'Connor paints a portrait of a community and a woman on the precipice, forced to confront an outside world that seems to be closing in on them. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/885d973e-4a3b-45dd-9d60-ef40144a93e8/197448682.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must Haves - The Goddess of Warsaw by Lisa Barr From the New York Times bestselling author of Woman on Fire, the harrowing and ultimately triumphant tale of a Jewish WWII assassin turned Hollywood star ... The Goddess Of Warsaw is an enthralling story of a legendary Hollywood screen goddess with a dark secret. When the famous actress Lena Browning is threatened by someone from her war-time past, she must put her skills into play to protect herself, her illustrious career, and those she loves, then and now. Before she was a “Living Legend”, Lena Browning was Bina Blonski, a wealthy Polish Jew whose life and prominent family were destroyed by the Nazis and imprisoned with the rest of Warsaw's Jews in a ghastly ghetto. Determined to fight back, the beautiful, blonde Aryan-looking Bina becomes a spy and an assassin, gaining information and stealing weapons outside the Warsaw ghetto to protect her family and fellow Jews. While Bina accomplishes amazing feats of bravery, she sacrifices much in the process – including a forbidden love. More than a decade after escaping the horrors of the war, Lena Browning rises to fame in Hollywood. Yet she cannot help but hunger for revenge against the Nazis who escaped justice after the war. Fierce and fearless, Lena uses her star power to right the past’s wrongs . . . and perhaps even finds the happy ending she never had. A gripping page-turner of one of history’s most heroic uprisings and a glamourous actress whose personal war never ends, The Goddess of Warsaw is filled with secrets, lies, twists and turns, and a burning pursuit of justice no matter the cost. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1ce33fbd-c195-4404-be2d-bc08319edbc2/197449282.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must Haves - The Lost Letters from Martha’s Vineyard by Michael Callahan A tantalizing novel of two women bound by blood but divided by a long-buried secret, and the island that holds the key to the fateful summer that changed everything forever. In 1959, Hollywood ingenue Mercy Welles seems to have the world at her feet. Far removed from her Nebraska roots, she has crafted herself into a glamorous Oscar-nominated actress engaged to an up-and-coming director… Until she shockingly vanishes without a trace, just as her career is taking off. Almost sixty years later, Kit O’Neill, a junior television producer in Manhattan, is packing up her recently deceased grandmother’s attic, only to discover a long-lost box of souvenirs that reveal that the grandmother who raised her and her sister Claire was, in fact, the mysterious Mercy Welles. Putting her investigative skills to use, Kit is determined to solve the riddle of her grandmother’s missing life, and the trail eventually leads to Martha’s Vineyard. Mercy retreats to the island nursing a broken heart, only to be drawn to the roguish Ren Sewards, who is not just the simple oysterman he appears to be but a scion of one of the island’s wealthy founding families. With her attraction to Ren quickly growing, Mercy soon finds herself entangled in the intrigues of the tightly knit community and the secrets of the Sewards. Alternating between Mercy and Kit’s timelines, including excerpts from letters Mercy wrote the summer she disappeared, The Lost Letters from Martha’s Vineyard unfurls into a heart-stopping story of love, betrayal, and even murder. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/81917193-1c05-4ffd-b4c9-d90f15a125b9/123252117-2.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must Haves - All the Glimmering Stars by Mark Sullivan Inspired by a true story, two teens kidnapped by an African warlord find salvation through love in a powerful and healing historical novel from the #1 bestselling author of Beneath a Scarlet Sky and The Last Green Valley. Anthony Opoka and Florence Okori are coming of age in Uganda in the 1990s. Outstanding students, they believe in being good humans before they are kidnapped and forced into the fanatical Lord’s Resistance Army. In a legion of young recruits, no one gets closer than Anthony to powerful messianic warlord Joseph Kony and his darkest secrets. To stay sane as he spirals through chaos, Anthony clings to his childhood lessons about being a good human. Florence’s upbringing grounds her, too, helping her keep her dreams alive even as she’s pulled deeper into the insanity of Kony’s war. At the lowest points of their lives, certain they’ll never go home, Anthony and Florence meet by chance, fall in love, and begin to dream of surviving their captivity. They devote their lives to helping their fellow child soldiers escape bondage and return to their families and redemption by following the stars. By turns tender, shocking, moving, desperate, and ultimately triumphant, Florence and Anthony’s story is an epic drama of humanity, a life-affirming tale, and an experience readers will never forget. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/01cfc316-9def-43c6-a8c5-0e505c488fc1/197516630.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must Haves - Butcher by Joyce Carol Oates In this harrowing story based on authentic historical documents, we follow the career of Dr. Silas Weir, “The Father of Gyno-Psychiatry,” as he ascends from professional anonymity to national renown. Humiliated by a disastrous procedure, Weir is forced to take a position at the New Jersey Asylum for Female Lunatics, where he reigns. There, he is allowed to continue his practice, unchecked for decades, making a name for himself by focusing on women who have been neglected by the state—women he subjects to the most grotesque modes of experimentation. As he begins to establish himself as a pioneer of 19th-century surgery, Weir’s ambition is fueled by his obsessive fascination with a young Irish indentured servant named Brigit, who becomes not only Weir’s primary experimental subject, but also the agent of his destruction. Narrated by Silas Weir’s eldest son, who has repudiated his father’s brutal legacy, Butcher is a unique blend of fiction and fact, a nightmare voyage through the darkest regions of the American psyche conjoined, in its startling conclusion, with unexpected romance. Once again, Joyce Carol Oates has written a spellbinding novel confirming her position as one of our celebrated American visionaries of the imagination. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9892ede7-a250-40f0-ad61-6e841434f5dd/197516645.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must Haves - The Wealth of Shadows by Graham Moore An ordinary man joins a secret mission to bring down the Nazi war machine by crashing their economy in this historical thriller based on a true story, from the Academy Award-winning screenwriter of The Imitation Game and bestselling author of The Last Days of Night . 1939. Tax attorney Ansel Luxford has everything a man could want—a comfortable career, a brilliant wife, a beautiful new baby. But he is obsessed by a belief that Europe is on the precipice of a war that will grow to consume the world. The United States is officially proclaiming neutrality in any foreign conflict, but when Ansel is offered an opportunity to move to Washington, D.C., to join a clandestine team within the Treasury Department that is conspiring to undermine Nazi Germany, he uproots his family overnight and takes on the challenge of a lifetime. How can they defeat the enemy without firing a bullet? To thwart the Nazis, Ansel and his team invent a powerful new theater of economic warfare. Money is a dangerous weapon, and Ansel’s efforts will plunge him into a world full of espionage, peril, and deceit. He will crisscross the globe to broker backroom deals, undertake daring heists, and spar with titans of industry like J.P. Morgan and the century's greatest economic mind, Britain's John Maynard Keynes. When Ansel’s wife takes a job with the FBI to hunt for spies within the government, the need for subterfuge extends to the home front. And Ansel discovers that he might be closer to those spies than he could ever imagine. The Wealth of Shadows is a gripping, mind-expanding thriller about the mysterious powers of money and the lies worth telling to defeat evil, as witnessed by an unassuming American at the center of the hidden war that shaped the modern world. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6a6d5b11-0745-4daa-8cef-992b57ec4b5e/199448166.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must Haves - The Stolen Child by Ann Hood For decades, Nick Burns has been haunted by a decision he made as a young soldier in World War I, when a French artist he’d befriended thrust both her paintings and her baby into his hands—and disappeared. In 1974, with only months left to live, Nick enlists Jenny, a college dropout desperate for adventure, to help him unravel the mystery. The journey leads them from Paris galleries and provincial towns to a surprising place: the Museum of Tears, the life’s work of a lonely Italian craftsman. Determined to find the baby and the artist, hopeless romantic Jenny and curmudgeonly Nick must reckon with regret, betrayal, and the lives they’ve left behind. With characteristic warmth and verve, Ann Hood captures a world of possibility and romance through the eyes of a young woman learning to claim her place in it. The Stolen Child is an engaging, timeless novel of secrets, love lost and found, and the nature of forgiveness. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f1c8387c-9bfc-41aa-8a8a-2abf2cb3f6c5/60097419.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must Haves - Black Shield Maiden by Willow Smith and Jess Hendel Lore, legend, and history tell us of the Vikings: of warrior-kings on epic journeys of conquest and plunder. But the stories we know are not the only stories to tell. There is another story, one that has been lost to the mists of time: the saga of the dark queen. That saga begins with Yafeu, a defiant yet fiercely compassionate young warrior who is stolen from her home in the flourishing Ghanaian Empire and taken as a slave to a distant kingdom in the North. There she is thrust into a strange, cold world of savage shield maidens, tyrannical rulers, and mysterious gods. And there she also finds something unexpected: a kindred spirit. She comes to serve Freydis, a shy princess who couldn’t be more different than the confident and self-possessed Yafeu. But they both want the same thing: to forge their own fate. Yafeu inspires Freydis to dream of a future greater than the one that the king and queen have forced upon her. And with the princess at her side, Yafeu learns to navigate this new world and grows increasingly determined to become one of the legendary shield maidens. For Yafeu may have lost her home, but she still knows who she is, and she’s not afraid to be the flame that burns a city to the ground so a new world can rise from the ashes. She will alter the course of history—and become the revolutionary heroine of her own myth. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1bf9b5a3-f76e-4ea0-9928-a20de9506da8/198493881.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must Haves - Tomorrow is for the Brave by Kelly Bowen Based on true events, Tomorrow Is for the Brave is a gripping World War II page‑turner about a courageous woman who risks it all for what is right—perfect for fans of Natasha Lester and Kristen Harmel. 1939, France: Lavish parties, fast cars, and a closet full of the latest fashion—to the average eye, socialite Violet St. Croix seemingly has it all. But what she truly wants is a life full of meaning and purpose. So when France falls to Germany, Violet defies her parents’ wishes and joins the war effort. With her impeccable skill for driving under pressure, she is soon sent to North Africa to shepherd French Foreign Legion officers carrying valuable intelligence through dangerous territory. But as the Allies encounter one mishap after another, Violet becomes convinced there is a spy in their ranks. And when her commanding officer is murdered, Violet realizes she might be the only one who can uncover the traitor and save the lives of countless soldiers on the front lines. Convincing others to believe her is difficult enough. Finding someone she can trust just might be impossible. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/de356863-b756-4ea7-9b20-c8f1ee7a4d87/199605023.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must Haves - Their Divine Fires by Wendy Chen A family saga that begins at the dawn of the Chinese Revolution and spans 100 years to trace the intricate lives of four generations of Chinese and Chinese American women In 1917, at the dawn of the Chinese Revolution, Yunhong grows up in the southern China countryside and falls in love with the son of a wealthy landlord—but on the night of her wedding, her brother destroys the marriage before it has lasted even a day. Yunhong’s daughter Yuexin will never know her father. She passes that sorrow on to her daughters Hongxing and Yonghong, who come of age in the years following Mao’s death, battling the push and pull of political forces as they forge their own paths. Each generation guards its secrets, leaving Emily, living in contemporary America, to piece together what actually happened between her mother and her sister, and to understand the weight of their shared history. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/16c9590c-7da2-47d7-8b18-76e974b4b2b6/208266066.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must Haves - The Nurse Behind the Gates by Shari J. Ryan Dachau, 1942. Emilie has been told she’s here to nurse evil men. But the first patient she sees in the cold, dark room is hauntingly familiar. Her first love is not wicked. He couldn’t be. What is he doing here? Emilie’s heart stops as she takes in her childhood sweetheart hunched in a tattered prisoner’s uniform, the light lost from his face. Her new husband, Otto, said this was a camp for criminals. He should know, he’s the doctor. But Danner would never have broken the law. As she looks into Danner’s beautiful brown eyes, she's transported back to their happy childhood in Munich. The friendship they shared. The way her heart once felt like it beat only for him. Before the Jewish laws were enforced and Danner pushed Emilie away to protect her, breaking her heart. Now, Emilie rushes to find Otto, desperate for answers. But when she discovers him waiting with confidentiality papers for her to sign, she realizes her husband has been lying. This isn’t a place to treat sick criminals, but to murder the innocent. And Otto tells her if she doesn’t help, they'll both die. Her hands shake as she receives her instructions. But as she rushes back to the sickbay, searching for a way to escape, her gaze lands on Danner once more. In his eyes, she can see something that almost looks like hope… The thought of losing her first love again tears Emilie’s heart in two. She's determined to keep him alive, and perhaps she can alter the fate of more than just one prisoner. But can she save Danner? Or will she die trying to rescue the man she’s never stopped loving? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b639bdc0-e97d-4e12-8411-759ad186e571/198429363.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must Haves - To Catch a Coronet by Grace Hitchcock Sometimes the only way to outsmart a scandal is to find a crown big enough to silence it Muriel Beau, country baker turned heiress, can't stop instigating outrage. She discards two arranged engagements, then further antagonizes in Kent society by publicly proposing to a baron at a ball. His rejection leaves her with no choice but to flee to the city and to secure a coronet so splendid that her peers will forget her debacles. The glitter of the London courts convinces Muriel that it's possible to find the future she dreams of, until she finds herself entangled in yet another escapade--one that may cost her more than her crumbling reputation. After years of serving as a privateer under an assumed name, Captain Erik Draycott, heir to Draycott Castle and soon to assume his uncle's title of Earl, returns to his London home to find it in disrepair thanks to his longtime nemesis. A staunch bachelor intent on returning to his ship, the captain now finds himself in dire need of a wife. But while his pauper status causes the potential London brides to turn their noses up at him, the captain is shocked when his mentor encourages him to retire and take a wife. But while his alleged pauper status causes the potential London brides to turn their noses up at him, the ladies of Kent have no such qualms and are eager to fill his coffers with their fathers' wealth. When he encounters the unconventional Muriel Beau and she becomes embroiled in his risky undertaking, Erik is torn between staying put to protect this enchanting country lady and heeding the call of the high seas. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9f2e01a5-5615-4843-ab42-19ec84f047d6/123266511-2.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must Haves - Operation Scarlet by Rachel McMillan The future of the country depends upon their secret lives, but the things they keep from one another are tearing them apart. France, 1944 : The clever and dashing Phineas Fulham is deeply involved in the resistance movement. Entrenched in the Black Market, he determines dealers and buyers sympathetic to working against the growing spread of Nazi hatred. While in Paris, fate reintroduces him to a beautiful opera singer from his past, Marlena Sartin. Their romance blossoms as the occupied city becomes more tightly held by the vise grip of Germany. Meanwhile, Marlena is holding secrets of her own. She has her own part to play in the changing landscape of France, but she can’t help being drawn to Phin. It is on their wedding day that they both learn that the other’s secrets could threaten them both. And with D-day looming, the things they’re keeping from each other threaten not just the future of their love, but of the country and the war itself. Transporting readers to war-occupied Dover, Rouen, and Paris, Operation Scarlet breathes new life into a classic revolutionary story with fresh wit, romance, and the spirit of swashbuckling heroism that transcends wars and centuries. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4d00c7d6-1855-48e9-9346-2499c7c7465f/205325368.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must Haves - The Borrowed Hills by Scott Preston In early 2001, a lethal disease breaks out on the hill farms of northern England, emptying the valleys of sheep and filling the skies with smoke as they burn the carcasses. Two neighboring shepherds lose everything and set their sights on a wealthy farm in the south with its flock of prizewinning animals. So begins the dark tale of Steve Elliman and William Herne. As their sheep rustling leads to more and more difficult decisions, the struggles of the land are never far away. Steve’s only distraction is his growing fascination with William’s enigmatic and independent wife, Helen. When their mountain home comes under the sway of a lawless outsider, Colin Tinley, it is left to Steve to save himself and Helen in a savage conflict that threatens the ancient ways of the Lakeland fells. Told in the hardscrabble voice of a forgotten England, Scott Preston creates an uncompromising vision of farmers lost in brutal devotion to their flocks, the aching love affairs that men and women use to sustain themselves, and the painful consequences of a breathtaking heist gone bad. The Borrowed Hills is a thrilling adventure that reimagines the American Western for Britain’s moors and mountains where survival is in the blood. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/cf0ef1bf-0e97-44f5-a88a-28edd5eb69b3/182093377.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must Haves - These Tangled Threads by Sarah Loudin Thomas Seven years ago, a hidden betrayal scattered three young friends living in the shadow of Biltmore Estate. Now, when Biltmore Industries master weaver Lorna Blankenship is commissioned to create an original design for Cornelia Vanderbilt's 1924 wedding, she panics knowing she doesn't have the creativity needed. But there's an elusive artisan in the Blue Ridge Mountains who could save her--if only she can find her. To track the mysterious weaver down, Lorna sees no other way but to seek out the relationships she abandoned in shame. As she pulls at each tangled thread from her old life, Lorna is forced to confront the wounds and regrets of long ago. She'll have to risk the job that shapes her identity as well as the hope of friendship--and love--restored. In this seamlessly woven historical tale, award-winning Appalachian author Sarah Loudin Thomas delivers a poignant novel of friendship, artistry, restoration, and second chances. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0be08ed8-7430-407f-9fa5-9228c8bab33b/182094740.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must Haves - The Elusive Truth of Lily Temple by Joanna Davidson Peter Driscoll, an underground investigator to the wealthy, has never met anyone like Lily Temple. The beautiful silent-film actress spins fairy tales and plays frivolous roles in front of the cine-camera, but beneath the costumes and stage makeup is a woman with a quick wit--and a murky past. Peter has been tasked with locating the legendary Briarwood Teardrop, an exquisite sapphire, which Lily wears beneath her gown. In order to stay close to her and hopefully unravel the mystery of her story--and the sapphire--Peter employs Lily's help on a case, which leads to a useful partnership. But as they are investigating together, Peter is also investigating Lily. The closer he gets to the truth, the more danger they face. And the closer he gets to Lily, the clearer it is that he needs her even more than she needs him. Award-winning author Joanna Davidson Politano whisks you away to Edwardian England in 1903 for a whimsical and layered tale that treads the crooked line between real and make-believe. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b9babf30-9211-476e-be56-9f9da372e666/123263354.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must Haves - The Royal Librarian by Daisy Wood A royal palace. A closed book. A betrayal that will echo through generations… Windsor, 1940: Secretly tasked with foiling a suspected plot, Sophie Klein is placed in the Royal Library at Windsor castle, where the princesses reside. But when she learns that Windsor is compromised, Sophie must sacrifice everything she knows to save the future queen of England… Philadelphia, Present day: Looking through her grandmother's papers, Lacey Jones comes across a mysterious letter stamped with the Windsor Castle crest. But how did it come to be in her family's possession? And so begins a journey that will take Lacey deep into the heart of the oldest inhabited castle in the world, and change her life forever. . . https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d5c7de48-4e48-45aa-ab7c-eb17beaaa308/197789906.jpg Blog - Historical Fiction Must Haves - The Girl From the Grand Hotel by Camille Aubray The #1 bestselling author of Cooking for Picasso and The Godmothers returns with The Girl from the Grand Hotel , a dazzling historical novel that brings readers into the glamorous world of the first (and doomed) Cannes Film Festival and the deadly atmosphere of Europe on the brink of war. Summer, 1939. The glittering Côte d'Azur is having a particularly brilliant season, as the world's wealthiest vacationers collide with Hollywood's illustrious movie stars for the first-ever film festival on the French Riviera. Into this hothouse playground comes an American named Annabel Faucon. Having left a dead-end job and a broken heart back in New York, she's escaped to a summer stint at the fabulous Grand Hotel where her uncle is the manager. But when a major movie studio brings its flock of stars to stay at the hotel, Annabel is hand-picked to "keep an eye on" two of the mysterious a screenwriter who's been literally "in his cups", and a renegade actor who keeps luring the studio's female star into his independent productions. The arrival of Nazi guests only intensifies the situation. Suddenly everyone is watching everybody else during this feverish last summer before the outbreak of World War II. Faced with international spies who will stop at nothing to get what they want, Annabel finds herself embroiled in murder, intrigue, and a race against the clock to disrupt a secret Nazi communications system. Inspired by true events and the histories of three great hotels on the Côte d'Azur -- with appearances by such real-life luminaries as Marlene Dietrich, F. Scott Fitzgerald, James Cagney and Mae West -- The Girl from the Grand Hotel is a brilliant page-turner that is not to be missed https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/july-new-releases monthly 0.5 2024-06-17 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/88943c59-e05c-4247-b902-b96ebd72f328/183086339.jpg Blog - July New Releases - Reckless by Lauren Roberts Book Two of the Powerless Trilogy The second heart-racing installment in this bestselling and sizzling fantasy romance trilogy. Perfect for fans of Red Queen and The Hunger Games. The kingdom of Ilya is in turmoil… After surviving the Purging Trials, Ordinary-born Paedyn Gray has killed the King, and kickstarted a Resistance throughout the land. Now she’s running from the one person she had wanted to run to. Kai Azer is now Ilya’s Enforcer, loyal to his brother Kitt, the new King. He has vowed to find Paedyn and bring her to justice. Across the deadly Scorches, and deep into the hostile city of Dor, Kai pursues the one person he wishes he didn’t have to. But in a city without Elites, the balance between the hunter and hunted shifts – and the battle between duty and desire is deadly. Release Date: July 2, 2024 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d973cce9-8ac6-4831-b330-f08338fe44ef/199698485.jpg Blog - July New Releases - The God of the Woods by Liz Moore When a teenager vanishes from her Adirondack summer camp, two worlds collide Early morning, August 1975: a camp counselor discovers an empty bunk. Its occupant, Barbara Van Laar, has gone missing. Barbara isn’t just any thirteen-year-old: she’s the daughter of the family that owns the summer camp and employs most of the region’s residents. And this isn’t the first time a Van Laar child has disappeared. Barbara’s older brother similarly vanished fourteen years ago, never to be found. As a panicked search begins, a thrilling drama unfolds. Chasing down the layered secrets of the Van Laar family and the blue-collar community working in its shadow, Moore’s multi-threaded story invites readers into a rich and gripping dynasty of secrets and second chances. It is Liz Moore’s most ambitious and wide-reaching novel yet. Release Date: July 2, 2024 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/749e032c-6c05-4384-81f0-68f9787a4826/195790999.jpg Blog - July New Releases - Masquerade by O.O. Sangoyomi Set in a wonderfully reimagined 15th century West Africa, Masquerade is a dazzling, lyrical tale exploring the true cost of one woman’s fight for freedom and self-discovery, and the lengths she’ll go to secure her future. Òdòdó’s hometown of Timbuktu has been conquered by the warrior king of Yorùbáland. Already shunned as social pariahs, living conditions for Òdòdó and the other women in her blacksmith guild grow even worse under Yorùbá rule. Then Òdòdó is abducted. She is whisked across the Sahara to the capital city of Ṣàngótẹ̀, where she is shocked to discover that her kidnapper is none other than the vagrant who had visited her guild just days prior. But now that he is swathed in riches rather than rags, Òdòdó realizes he is not a vagrant at all; he is the warrior king, and he has chosen her to be his wife. In a sudden change of fortune, Òdòdó soars to the very heights of society. But after a lifetime of subjugation, the power that saturates this world of battle and political savvy becomes too enticing to resist. As tensions with rival states grow, revealing elaborate schemes and enemies hidden in plain sight, Òdòdó must defy the cruel king she has been forced to wed by re-forging the shaky loyalties of the court in her favor, or risk losing everything—including her life. Release Date: July 2, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8d96a236-805a-4f7b-8771-a91ab2e8562a/181110045.jpg Blog - July New Releases - The Briar Club by Kate Quinn Washington, D.C., 1950. Everyone keeps to themselves at Briarwood House, a down-at-the-heels all-female boardinghouse in the heart of the nation’s capital, where secrets hide behind white picket fences. But when the lovely, mysterious widow Grace March moves into the attic, she draws her oddball collection of neighbors into unlikely friendship: poised English beauty Fliss whose facade of perfect wife and mother covers gaping inner wounds; police officer’s daughter Nora, who is entangled with a shadowy gangster; frustrated baseball star Bea, whose career has ended along with the women’s baseball league of WWII; and poisonous, gung-ho Arlene, who has thrown herself into McCarthy’s Red Scare. Grace’s weekly attic-room dinner parties and window-brewed sun tea become a healing balm on all their lives, but she hides a terrible secret of her own. When a shocking act of violence tears apart the house, the Briar Club women must decide once and for all: Who is the true enemy in their midst? Release Date: July 9, 2024 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/95aa4a65-226d-4fd1-aaa5-ff605bdaa69d/180634025.jpg Blog - July New Releases - The Darkness Within Us by Tricia Levenseller Book Two of The Shadow Between Us Chrysantha Stathos has won. By hiding her intelligence and ambition behind the mask of a beautiful air-headed girl, she has gathered important secrets, earned her father’s constant care, and become a wealthy duchess—all by age nineteen. Now, she is only one elderly, dying duke away from having all the freedom, money, and safety she’s ever wanted. Or so she thought. Turns out her little sister somehow snatched the true victory away from her: Alessandra is wedding the Shadow King, the most powerful man in the world. Meanwhile, after the death of Chrysantha’s no-good, lecherous husband, a man claiming to be the duke’s estranged grandson turns up to inherit everything that should be hers. Chrysantha is enraged. There is no way that she’s going to let some man take everything from her. Never mind that he’s extremely handsome and secretive and alluring with mysterious powers… No, Chrysantha wants Eryx Demos dead, and in the end, a Stathos girl always gets what she wants. Release Date: July 9, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1c48086b-e3dc-4231-938e-465ab819bcf0/195888459.jpg Blog - July New Releases - The Summer Pact by Emily Giffin Four freshmen arrive at college from completely different worlds: Lainey, a California party girl with a flair for drama; Tyson, a brilliant scholar and law school hopeful from D.C.; Summer, a recruited athlete and perfectionist from the Midwest; and Hannah, a mild-mannered southerner who is content to quietly round out the circle of big personalities. Soon after moving into their shared dorm, they strike up a conversation in a study lounge, and the seeds of friendship are planted. As their college years fly by, their bond intensifies and the four become inseparable. But as graduation nears, their lives are forever changed after a desperate act leads to tragic consequences. Stunned and heartbroken, a pact is made to be there for each other in their time of need, no matter how separated they are by circumstances or distance. Ten years later, Hannah is anticipating what should be one of the happiest moments of her life when everything is suddenly turned upside down. Calling on her closest friends, it soon becomes clear that they are facing their own crossroads. True to their promise, they agree to take a time out from lives headed in wrong directions and embark on a journey of self-discovery, forgiveness, and acceptance. In this tender portrayal of grief, love, and hope, Emily Giffin asks: When things fall apart, who will be at our sides to help pick up the pieces? Release Date: July 9, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/128ff3f1-b85a-4c14-a14a-54fb2e4490bf/199926331.jpg Blog - July New Releases - The Ex Vows by Jessica Joyce Georgia Woodward lives by her lists, none more so than the one about her ex, Eli Mora. It’s full of the ironclad dos and don’ts they’ve been following since she returned to the Bay Area after their cataclysmic breakup five years ago. With the wedding of their mutual best friend, Adam, looming, and them about to step into their roles as best woman and man, Georgia’s never needed it more. She refuses to threaten their tight-knit friend group with her messy—and still very present—feelinJugs. The rules on that list will keep her cool, calm, and compartmentalized. What’s not on her list? Eli arriving from New York with a new rule-breaking attitude or the all-inclusive venue burning to the ground, leaving the bride and groom in dire straits. Nor does she anticipate Adam asking her and Eli to help him make a miracle happen. Together. As Georgia and Eli rush up to Napa Valley to pull off the perfect wedding, their old chemistry comes back in technicolor. Somewhere between cake tastings gone wrong, disastrous DJ auditions, and Eli’s heated attention, Georgia starts recognizing the man she fell in love with before. And if she lets herself break her rules, she might find what they’re building isn’t the something old that ruined them—it’s a chance at something new. Release Date: July 16, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a357a9b3-e198-4dac-b736-c1ef2f2664a6/199531938.jpg Blog - July New Releases - The Au Pair Affair by Tessa Bailey Tallulah is smart, vivacious, and studying to be a marine biologist. She’s also twenty-six and broke. So when Burgess, a battle-scarred hockey veteran and newly single dad, offers her a job as his live-in nanny, she jumps at the opportunity to get paid while living in a super fancy neighborhood and being around Lissa, his cool but introverted tween. Her tween charge isn’t the only one who could use some help fitting in, though. According to…well, everyone except Burgess, he needs to get back on the dating scene, and adventurous Tallulah is just the girl to show him how. But as boundaries are slowly crossed and Burgess finds himself pulled between his daughter, who wants her parents back together, and his insane chemistry with Tallulah, a huge rift is formed, and Tallulah does the “right” thing—breaks her own heart and walks away. Though Burgess knows it’s for the best—he’s too jaded, with too much baggage—a chance meeting, and a new push from his daughter, forces him to put everything on the line and fight to prove he learned his lessons well and is worthy of a happily ever after with Tallulah. Release Date: July 16, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0e4ae24e-58f2-4fe1-925f-6658bbc42350/199927030.jpg Blog - July New Releases - The Lost Story by Meg Shaffer As boys, best friends Jeremy Cox and Rafe Howell went missing in a vast West Virginia state forest, only to mysteriously reappear six months later with no explanation for where they’d gone or how they’d survived. Fifteen years after their miraculous homecoming, Rafe is a reclusive artist who still bears scars inside and out but has no memory of what happened during those months. Meanwhile, Jeremy has become a famed missing persons’ investigator. With his uncanny abilities, he is the one person who can help vet tech Emilie Wendell find her sister, who vanished in the very same forest as Rafe and Jeremy. Jeremy alone knows the fantastical truth about the disappearances, for while the rest of the world was searching for them, the two missing boys were in a magical realm filled with impossible beauty and terrible danger. He believes it is there that they will find Emilie’s sister. However, Jeremy has kept Rafe in the dark since their return for his own inscrutable reasons. But the time for burying secrets comes to an end as the quest for Emilie’s sister begins. The former lost boys must confront their shared past, no matter how traumatic the memories. Alongside the headstrong Emilie, Rafe and Jeremy must return to the enchanted world they called home for six months—for only then can they get back everything and everyone they’ve lost. Release Date: July 16, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/22dfeb10-0040-4e3a-8780-fb51dc141846/199252912.jpg Blog - July New Releases - Business Casual by B.K. Borison Two opposites will find out if one night together is enough to get each other out of their systems in the final book in the beloved Lovelight series. Nova Porter isn’t looking for love, and she certainly has no explanation for her attraction to buttoned-up, three-piece-suit-wearing investment banker Charlie Milford. Maybe it’s his charm? Or maybe it’s his determination to help her fledgling business however he can. Either way, she’s distracted every time he’s around. With her new tattoo studio set to open in her hometown of Inglewild, she doesn’t have time for frivolous flirtations. In an effort to get Charlie out of her system once and for all, Nova offers a proposition. One night. No strings. They’ll kick their uncomfortable attraction to the curb and return to their respective responsibilities. But their explosive night together scatters their expectations like fallen leaves. And with Charlie in town as the temporary head of Lovelight Farms, Nova can’t quite avoid him. And Charlie? Well, Charlie knows a good investment when he sees one. He’s hoping he can convince Nova he’s worth some of her time. Release Date: July 16, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/80823f06-7f54-4649-b7ac-0da7818f666e/199798522.jpg Blog - July New Releases - I Was a Teenage Slasher by Stephen Graham Jones 1989, Lamesa, Texas. A small west Texas town driven by oil and cotton—and a place where everyone knows everyone else’s business. So it goes for Tolly Driver, a good kid with more potential than application, seventeen, and about to be cursed to kill for revenge. Here Stephen Graham Jones explores the Texas he grew up in, the unfairness of being on the outside, through the slasher horror he lives but from the perspective of the killer, Tolly, writing his own autobiography. Find yourself rooting for a killer in this summer teen movie of a novel gone full blood-curdling tragic. Release Date: July 16, 2024 Genre: Horror https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/12c0cd33-eefe-4691-9828-5f76d42c13b3/203518955.jpg Blog - July New Releases - The Black Bird Oracle by Deborah Harkness Book 5 of the All Souls Series Deborah Harkness first introduced the world to Diana Bishop, Oxford scholar and witch, and vampire geneticist Matthew de Clairmont in A Discovery of Witches. Drawn to each other despite long-standing taboos, these two otherworldly beings found themselves at the center of a battle for a lost, enchanted manuscript known as Ashmole 782. Since then, they have fallen in love, traveled to Elizabethan England, dissolved the Covenant between the three species, and awoken the dark powers within Diana’s family line. Now, Diana and Matthew receive a formal demand from the Congregation: They must test the magic of their seven-year-old twins, Pip and Rebecca. Concerned with their safety and desperate to avoid the same fate that led her parents to spellbind her, Diana decides to forge a different path for her family’s future and answers a message from a great-aunt she never knew existed, Gwyneth Proctor, whose invitation simply reads: It’s time you came home, Diana. On the hallowed ground of Ravenswood, the Proctor family home, and under the tutelage of Gwyneth, a talented witch grounded in higher magic, a new era begins for Diana: a confrontation with her family’s dark past, and a reckoning for her own desire for even greater power—if she can let go, finally, of her fear of wielding it. Release Date: July 16, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3f114275-1f62-4996-9796-bdcb85f759fa/197392670.jpg Blog - July New Releases - The Grandest Game by Jennifer Lynn Barnes Get caught up in the puzzles, games, danger, romance, and riches of this lush new chapter in the #1 bestselling Inheritance Games saga. Seven tickets. An island of dreams. The chance of a lifetime. Welcome to the Grandest Game, an annual competition run by billionaire Avery Grambs and the four infamous Hawthorne brothers, whose family fortune she inherited. Designed to give anyone a shot at fame and fortune, this year’s game requires one of seven golden tickets to enter. With millions on the line, those seven players will do whatever it takes to win. Some of the players are in it for the money. Some for power. Some for reasons all their own. Every single one of them has secrets. Amidst it all is Grayson Hawthorne, tasked with a vital role in this year’s game. But as tensions rise and the mind-bending challenges push the players to their limits—physically, mentally, and emotionally—it soon becomes clear that not everyone is playing by the rules. Release Date: July 30, 2024 Genre: Young Adult Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ecf2c0e0-ae91-49fd-8239-96b615e147eb/199347234.jpg Blog - July New Releases - Like Mother, Like Daughter by Kimberly McMreight A daughter races to uncover her mother's secret life in the wake of her disappearance in this thriller. When Cleo, a student at NYU, arrives late for dinner at her childhood home in Brooklyn, she finds food burning in the oven and no sign of her mother, Kat. Then Cleo discovers her mom’s bloody shoe under the sofa. Something terrible has happened. But what? The polar opposite of Cleo, whose “out of control” emotions and “unsafe” behavior have created a seemingly unbridgeable rift between mother and daughter, Kat is the essence of Park Slope perfection: a happily married, successful corporate lawyer. Or so Cleo thinks. Kat has been lying. She’s not just a lawyer; she’s her firm’s fixer. She’s damn good at it, too. Growing up in a dangerous group home taught her how to think fast, stay calm under pressure, and recognize a real threat when she sees one. And in the days leading up her disappearance, Kat has become aware of multiple threats: demands for money from her unfaithful soon-to-be ex-husband; evidence that Cleo has slipped back into a relationship that’s far riskier than she understands; and menacing anonymous messages from her past—all of which she’s kept hidden from Cleo . . . Release Date: July 30, 2024 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/69d97fc2-6319-4720-a9bc-caf01d64e0d6/198902277.jpg Blog - July New Releases - The Wedding People by Alison Espach It's a beautiful day in Newport, Rhode Island, when Phoebe Stone arrives at the grand Cornwall Inn wearing a green dress and gold heels, not a bag in sight, alone. She's immediately mistaken by everyone in the lobby for one of the wedding people, but she’s actually the only guest at the Cornwall who isn’t here for the big event. Phoebe is here because she’s dreamt of coming for years―she hoped to shuck oysters and take sunset sails with her husband, only now she's here without him. Meanwhile, the bride has accounted for every detail and every possible disaster the weekend might yield except for, well, Phoebe―which makes it that much more surprising when the women can’t stop confiding in each other. In turns uproariously, absurdly funny and devastatingly tender, Alison Espach's The Wedding People is a look at the winding paths we can take to places we never imagined―and the chance encounters it sometimes takes to reroute us. Release Date: July 30, 2024 Genre: Romance https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/fathers-day-books monthly 0.5 2024-06-12 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3376d083-8001-42eb-b4e8-30d5dc719a5f/82944379.jpg Blog - Father’s Day Books https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/91b3dd25-d371-451c-a1bb-a9a43939f83d/61377060.jpg Blog - Father’s Day Books - Make it stand out https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2c08d201-70e1-4713-b7e1-4d75da332944/41721428.jpg Blog - Father’s Day Books https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b11f2c6b-c915-4b53-88fa-d9043eae7a83/32874104.jpg Blog - Father’s Day Books https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/91e44ea4-4eed-48c4-a461-850651c17442/13229757.jpg Blog - Father’s Day Books https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8eca959f-2ef8-4e6f-8579-b69d38487f94/61237038.jpg Blog - Father’s Day Books https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d3ec3f50-f1fd-4f8f-a6ed-18e644f3d4e3/58395065.jpg Blog - Father’s Day Books https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/84597eaa-e376-4527-a9ef-5b220a9b40fc/26313563.jpg Blog - Father’s Day Books https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/must-have-summer-reads monthly 0.5 2024-06-01 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8b04ac9c-2c56-4e5e-b78e-af765a79cb49/126919196.jpg Blog - Must-Have Summer Reads - The Getaway List by Emma Lord he day of her high school graduation, Riley realizes two things: One, that she has spent the last four years trying so hard to be a Good Kid for her mom that she has no idea who she really is anymore, and two, she has no idea what she wants because of it. The solution? Pack her bags and move to New York for the summer, where her childhood best friend Tom and co-creator of The Getaway List ― a list of all the adventures they’ve wanted to do together since he moved away ― will hopefully help her get in touch with her old adventurous self, and pave the road to a new future. Riley isn’t sure what to expect from Tom, who has been distant since his famous mom’s scriptwriting career pulled him away. But when Riley arrives in the city, their reconnection is as effortless as it was when they were young―except with one, unexpected complication that will pull Riley’s feelings in a direction she didn’t know they could take. As she, Tom, and their newfound friends work their way through the delightfully chaotic items on The Getaway List, Riley learns that sometimes the biggest adventure is not one you take, but one you feel in your heart. Genre: YA Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3bf72cda-17a5-4989-aeda-6500b1eb51cc/61273353.jpg Blog - Must-Have Summer Reads - The Summer of Songbirds by Kristy Woodson Harvey Four women come together to save the summer camp that changed their lives and rediscover themselves in the process in this moving new novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The Wedding Veil and the Peachtree Bluff series. Nearly thirty years ago, in the wake of a personal tragedy, June Moore bought Camp Holly Springs and turned it into a thriving summer haven for girls. But now, June is in danger of losing the place she has sacrificed everything for, and begins to realize how much she has used the camp to avoid facing difficulties in her life. June’s niece, Daphne, met her two best friends, Lanier and Mary Stuart, during a fateful summer at camp. They’ve all helped each other through hard things, from heartbreak and loss to substance abuse and unplanned pregnancy, and the three are inseparable even in their thirties. But when attorney Daphne is confronted with a relationship from her past—and a confidential issue at work becomes personal—she is faced with an impossible choice. Lanier, meanwhile, is struggling with tough decisions of her own. After a run-in with an old flame, she is torn between the commitment she made to her fiancé and the one she made to her first love. And when a big secret comes to light, she finds herself at odds with her best friend…and risks losing the person she loves most. But in spite of their personal problems, nothing is more important to these songbirds than Camp Holly Springs. When the women learn their childhood oasis is in danger of closing, they band together to save it, sending them on a journey that promises to open the next chapters in their lives. Genre: Contemporary Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/44e97a17-ac64-43db-9164-dc79ba09ec8e/60417443.jpg Blog - Must-Have Summer Reads - The Family Game by Catherine Steadman Harry is a novelist on the brink of stardom; Edward, her husband-to-be, is seemingly perfect. In love and freshly engaged, their bliss is interrupted by the reemergence of the Holbecks, Edward's eminent family and the embodiment of American old money. For years, they've dominated headlines and pulled society's strings, and Edward left them all behind to forge his own path. But there are eyes and ears everywhere. It was only a matter of time before they were pulled back in . . . After all, even though he's long severed ties with his family, Edward is set to inherit it all. Harriet is drawn to the glamour and sophistication of the Holbecks, who seem to welcome her with open arms, but everything changes when she meets Robert, the inescapably magnetic head of the family. At their first meeting, Robert slips Harry a cassette tape, revealing a shocking confession which sets the inevitable game in motion. What is it about Harry that made him give her that tape? A thing that has the power to destroy everything? As she ramps up her quest for the truth, she must endure the Holbecks' savage Christmas traditions all the while knowing that losing this game could be deadly. Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/dd89acc9-8a19-4911-80b1-45c0f06395f1/52867387.jpg Blog - Must-Have Summer Reads - Beach Read by Emily Henry Augustus Everett is an acclaimed author of literary fiction. January Andrews writes bestselling romance. When she pens a happily ever after, he kills off his entire cast. They’re polar opposites. In fact, the only thing they have in common is that for the next three months, they’re living in neighboring beach houses, broke, and bogged down with writer’s block. Until, one hazy evening, one thing leads to another and they strike a deal designed to force them out of their creative ruts: Augustus will spend the summer writing something happy, and January will pen the next Great American Novel. She’ll take him on field trips worthy of any rom-com montage, and he’ll take her to interview surviving members of a backwoods death cult (obviously). Everyone will finish a book and no-one will fall in love. Really. Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8398d707-7ffd-4c87-a476-a534d0538b0f/196845474.jpg Blog - Must-Have Summer Reads - The Hazelbourne Ladies Motorcycle and Flying Club by Helen Simonson A timeless comedy of manners—refreshing as a summer breeze and bracing as the British seaside—about a generation of young women facing the seismic changes brought on by war and dreaming of the boundless possibilities of their future, from the bestselling author of Major Pettigrew's Last Stand It is the summer of 1919 and Constance Haverhill is without prospects. Now that all the men have returned from the front, she has been asked to give up her cottage and her job at the estate she helped run during the war. While she looks for a position as a bookkeeper or—horror—a governess, she’s sent as a lady’s companion to an old family friend who is convalescing at a seaside hotel. Despite having only weeks to find a permanent home, Constance is swept up in the social whirl of Hazelbourne-on-Sea after she rescues the local baronet’s daughter, Poppy Wirrall, from a social faux pas. Poppy wears trousers, operates a taxi and delivery service to employ local women, and runs a ladies’ motorcycle club (to which she plans to add flying lessons). She and her friends enthusiastically welcome Constance into their circle. And then there is Harris, Poppy’s recalcitrant but handsome brother—a fighter pilot recently wounded in battle—who warms in Constance’s presence. But things are more complicated than they seem in this sunny pocket of English high society. As the country prepares to celebrate its hard-won peace, Constance and the women of the club are forced to confront the fact that the freedoms they gained during the war are being revoked. Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9b64554d-26a6-4354-8414-902b7ba9208c/182484354.jpg Blog - Must-Have Summer Reads - The Rule Book by Sarah Adams Nora Mackenzie’s entire career lies in the hands of famous NFL tight end Derek Pender, who happens to be her extremely hot college ex-boyfriend. Nora didn’t end things as gracefully as she could have back then, and now it has come back to haunt her. Derek is her first client as an official full-time sports agent, and he’s holding a grudge. Derek has set his sights on a little friendly revenge. If Nora Mackenzie, the first girl to ever break his heart, wants to be his agent, oh, he’ll let her be his agent. The plan is simple: make Nora’s life absolutely miserable. But if Derek knows anything about the woman he once loved—she won’t quit easily. Instead of giving in, Nora starts a scheme of her own. But then a wild night in Vegas leads to Nora and Derek in bed the next morning married. With their rule book out the window, could this new relationship save their careers and spark the romance of a lifetime? Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c201b2e9-843c-4be9-bbbe-8db657d33a11/61102578.jpg Blog - Must-Have Summer Reads - The Beach at Summerly by Beatriz Williams June 1946. As the residents of Winthrop Island prepare for the first summer season after the sacrifice of war, a glamorous new figure moves into the guest cottage at Summerly, the idyllic seaside estate of the wealthy Peabody family. To Emilia Winthrop, daughter of Summerly’s year-round caretaker and a descendant of the island’s settlers, Olive Rainsford opens a window into a world of shining possibility. While Emilia spent the war years caring for her incapacitated mother, Olive traveled the world, married fascinating men, and involved herself in political causes. She’s also the beloved aunt of the two surviving Peabody sons, Amory and Shep, with whom Emilia has a tangled romantic history. As the summer wears on, Emilia develops a deep rapport with Olive, who urges her to leave the island for a life of adventure, while romance blossoms with the sturdy and honorable Shep. But the heady promise of Peabody patronage is blown apart by the arrival of Sumner Fox, an FBI agent who demands Emilia’s help to capture a Soviet agent who’s transmitting vital intelligence on the West’s atomic weapon program from somewhere inside the Summerly estate. April 1954. Eight years later, Summerly is boarded up and Emilia has rebuilt her shattered life as a professor at Wellesley College, when shocking news arrives from Washington—the traitor she helped convict is about to be swapped for an American spy imprisoned in the Soviet Union, but with a mysterious condition only Emilia can fulfill. A reluctant Emilia is summoned to CIA headquarters, where she’s forced to confront the harrowing consequences of her actions that fateful summer, and a choice that could destroy the Peabody family—and Emilia’s chance for redemption—all over again. Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7f75be8e-e476-4830-8b6e-5ec563fb524d/61797464.jpg Blog - Must-Have Summer Reads - Meet Me at the Lake Fern Brookbanks has wasted far too much of her adult life thinking about Will Baxter. She spent just twenty-four hours in her early twenties with the aggravatingly attractive, idealistic artist, a chance encounter that spiraled into a daylong adventure in Toronto. The timing was wrong, but their connection was undeniable: they shared every secret, every dream, and made a pact to meet one year later. Fern showed up. Will didn't. At thirty-two, Fern's life doesn't look at all how she once imagined it would. Instead of living in the city, Fern's back home, running her mother's Muskoka lakeside resort—something she vowed never to do. The place is in disarray, her ex-boyfriend's the manager, and Fern doesn't know where to begin. She needs a plan—a lifeline. To her surprise, it comes in the form of Will, who arrives nine years too late, with a suitcase in tow and an offer to help on his lips. Will may be the only person who understands what Fern's going through. But how could she possibly trust this expensive-suit wearing mirage who seems nothing like the young man she met all those years ago. Will is hiding something, and Fern's not sure she wants to know what it is. But ten years ago, Will Baxter rescued Fern. Can she do the same for him? Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/79c91ba3-8a19-45f5-bf1f-365bbfcafd50/61442283.jpg Blog - Must-Have Summer Reads - Lying in the Deep by Diana Urban A juicy mystery of jealousy, love, and betrayal set on a Semester at Sea-inspired cruise ship, with a diverse cast of delightfully suspicious characters who’ll leave you guessing with every jaw-dropping twist. After being jilted by her ex-boyfriend and best friend, Jade couldn't be more ready to embark on the adventure of a lifetime—11 countries in 4 months, all from the luxurious Campus on Board ship—and to wedge an entire globe between her and the people who broke her heart. But when Jade discovers the backstabbing couple are also setting sail, her obsession with them grows and festers, leading to a shocking murder. And as their friends begin to drop like flies, Jade and her new crush must race to clear her name and find the killer they’re trapped at sea with….before anyone else winds up in body bags. Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/cf9fd00c-9a26-4925-9bbb-55ac1d14cc1b/53088873.jpg Blog - Must-Have Summer Reads - Those Summer Nights by Laura Silverman Hannah used to be all about focus, back before she shattered her ankle and her Olympic dreams in one bad soccer play. These days, she’s all about distraction—anything to keep the painful memories of her recent past at bay, including the string of bad decisions that landed her at boarding school for a year. Enter Bonanza, the local entertainment multiplex and site of Hanna’s summer employment. With its mini golf course, bowling alley, and arcade—not to mention her hot, flirty coworker Patrick—Bonanza seems like the perfect way to stay distracted. Until her boss announces the annual Bonanza tournament, a staff competition that brings her past Olympic nightmares crashing back into her present. On top of that, the Bonanza staff includes Brie, the ex-best friend she cut off last year, and Ethan, her brother’s best friend who became unreasonably attractive in her year away and who accepts her, even knowing her worst secrets. Under the neon lights of Bonanza, Hannah must decide whether she can find a way to discover a new self in the midst of her old life. Genre: YA Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/281d330d-c0ce-4764-8ac8-67324868c918/37822534.jpg Blog - Must-Have Summer Reads - Seafire by Natalie C. Parker After her family is killed by corrupt warlord Aric Athair and his bloodthirsty army of Bullets, Caledonia Styx is left to chart her own course on the dangerous and deadly seas. She captains her ship, the Mors Navis, with a crew of girls and women just like her, who have lost their families and homes because of Aric and his men. The crew has one mission: stay alive, and take down Aric's armed and armored fleet. But when Caledonia's best friend and second-in-command barely survives an attack thanks to help from a Bullet looking to defect, Caledonia finds herself questioning whether to let him join their crew. Is this boy the key to taking down Aric Athair once and for all . . . or will he threaten everything the women of the Mors Navis have worked for? Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b6564f2b-b8c8-446f-a927-0c51a2047875/195790849.jpg-2.png Blog - Must-Have Summer Reads - Every Time I Go on Vacation Someone Dies by Catherine Mack All that bestselling author Eleanor Dash wants is to get through her book tour in Italy and kill off her main character, Connor Smith, in the next in her Vacation Mysteries series―is that too much to ask? Clearly, because when an attempt is made on the real Connor’s life―the handsome but infuriating con man she got mixed up with ten years ago and now can't get out of her life―Eleanor’s enlisted to help solve the case. Contending with literary rivals, rabid fans, a stalker―and even her ex, Oliver, who turns up unexpectedly―theories are bandied about, and rivalries, rifts, and broken hearts are revealed. But who’s really trying to get away with murder? Every Time I Go on Vacation, Someone Dies is the irresistible and hilarious series debut from Catherine Mack, introducing bestselling fictional author Eleanor Dash on her Italian book tour that turns into a real-life murder mystery, as her life starts to imitate the world in her books. Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/edd6fbc5-358f-4fd2-aaaa-ef07921348aa/60530514.jpg Blog - Must-Have Summer Reads - From the Mouths of Sirens by Abigail Hair Win the Tournament. Kill the Prince. Take the Crown. Since childhood, Princess Saoirse has trained for the sole purpose of being chosen for the Tournament, a gladiator-style competition in which four enemy nations compete for the right to rule. An angel-like people known as the Aura have won the Tournament for a century, enacting exploitative treaties and ruling the continent with a merciless grip. If Saoirse survives the three infamous trials, she will win the Crown of Revelore and overthrow the nation responsible for her mother’s death. But when Saoirse is denied entry into the Tournament by the Mer king, she makes a bargain with an imprisoned sea witch. In exchange for entrance into the competition, Saoirse agrees to kill the Auran prince and bring back the witch’s stolen dagger. But while fighting for her life in the arena, the last thing Saoirse expects to do is fall for her greatest enemy, the arrogant Prince Rook. When Rook and Saoirse uncover the sinister secrets of their ancestors, they realize the animosity between their people is rooted in long-forgotten lore. What once was a competition for the Crown evolves into a perilous ancient game in which Saoirse and Rook are both pawns. As twisted truths are revealed and myths become real, Saoirse must decide if she should kill the man she is falling for and avenge her people, or spare his life and face the wrath of the Titans. Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/fdd70d24-7c2d-4bfc-bf60-27dc4ba11eb7/62562931.jpg Blog - Must-Have Summer Reads - Same Time Next Summer by Annabel Monaghan Beach Rules: Do take long walks on the sand. Do put an umbrella in every cocktail. Do NOT run into your first love. Sam’s life is on track. She has the perfect doctor fiancé, Jack (his strict routines are a good thing, really), a great job in Manhattan (unless they fire her), and is about to tour a wedding venue near her family’s Long Island beach house. Everything should go to plan, yet the minute she arrives, Sam senses something is off. Wyatt is here. Her Wyatt. But there’s no reason for a thirty-year-old engaged woman to feel panicked around the guy who broke her heart when she was seventeen. Right? Yet being back at this beach, hearing notes from Wyatt’s guitar float across the night air from next door as if no time has passed—Sam’s memories come flooding back: the feel of Wyatt’s skin on hers, their nights in the treehouse, and the truth behind their split. Sam remembers who she used to be, and as Wyatt reenters her life their connection is as undeniable as it always was. She will have to make a choice. Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f13df075-9fef-4688-9b93-6575987ee43f/36388243.jpg Blog - Must-Have Summer Reads - Something in the Water by Catherine Steadman If you could make one simple choice that would change your life forever, would you? Erin is a documentary filmmaker on the brink of a professional breakthrough, Mark a handsome investment banker with big plans. Passionately in love, they embark on a dream honeymoon to the tropical island of Bora Bora, where they enjoy the sun, the sand, and each other. Then, while scuba diving in the crystal blue sea, they find something in the water. . . . Could the life of your dreams be the stuff of nightmares? Suddenly the newlyweds must make a dangerous choice: to speak out or to protect their secret. After all, if no one else knows, who would be hurt? Their decision will trigger a devastating chain of events. . . . Have you ever wondered how long it takes to dig a grave? Wonder no longer. Catherine Steadman's enthralling voice shines throughout this spellbinding debut novel. With piercing insight and fascinating twists, Something in the Water challenges the reader to confront the hopes we desperately cling to, the ideals we're tempted to abandon, and the perfect lies we tell ourselves. Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ace402bb-4089-4280-bb37-a3ecd6f68434/62039411-2.jpg Blog - Must-Have Summer Reads - Daughter of the Pirate King by Tricia Levenseller There will be plenty of time for me to beat him soundly once I've gotten what I came for. Sent on a mission to retrieve an ancient hidden map―the key to a legendary treasure trove―seventeen-year-old pirate captain Alosa deliberately allows herself to be captured by her enemies, giving her the perfect opportunity to search their ship. More than a match for the ruthless pirate crew, Alosa has only one thing standing between her and the her captor, the unexpectedly clever and unfairly attractive first mate Riden. But not to worry, for Alosa has a few tricks up her sleeve, and no lone pirate can stop the Daughter of the Pirate King. In Daughter of the Pirate King, author Tricia Levenseller blends action, adventure, romance, and a little bit of magic into a thrilling pirate tale. Genre: Fantasy https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/may-book-club-reviews monthly 0.5 2024-05-30 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/the-summer-reading-program monthly 0.5 2024-05-24 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/supporting-librofm monthly 0.5 2024-05-07 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/june-releases monthly 0.5 2024-05-02 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f8bfbc49-2403-407e-8d28-624a5d86542d/127611580.jpg Blog - June Releases - Leather and Lark by Brynne Weaver *Ruinous Love Trilogy #2 Contract killer Lachlan Kane wants a quiet life working in his leather studio and forgetting all about his traumatic past. But when he botches a job for his boss’s biggest client, Lachlan knows he’ll never claw his way out of the underworld. At least, not until songbird Lark Montague offers him a deal: use his skills to hunt down a killer and she’ll find a way to secure his freedom. The catch? He has to marry her first. And they can’t stand each other. Indie singer-songwriter Lark is the sunshine and glitter that burns through every cloud and clings to every crevice that Lachlan Kane tries to hide inside. The surly older brother of her best friend’s soulmate, Lachlan thinks she’s just a privileged princess, but Lark has plenty of secrets hiding in the shadows of her bright light. With her formidable family in a tailspin and her best friend’s happiness on the line, she’s willing to make a vow to the man she’s determined to hate, no matter how tempting the broody assassin might be. As Lachlan and Lark navigate the dark world that binds them together, it becomes impossible to discern their fake marriage from a real one. But it’s not just familiar dangers that haunt them. There’s another phantom lurking on their doorstep. And this one has come for blood. Release Date: June 4, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/14a3ecfc-c20a-4a4a-b5d3-a6374bbca018/198563720.jpg Blog - June Releases - Two Sides to Every Murder by Danielle Valentine Most people’s births aren’t immortalized in a police report—but Olivia was born during the infamous Camp Lost Lake murders. Seventeen years later, Olivia’s life looks pretty perfect . . . until she discovers the man she calls dad is not her biological father. Now she wants answers about her bloodline, and the only place she knows to look is Camp Lost Lake. Most people don’t spend their formative years on the run with an alleged murderer—but Reagan did. In the court of public opinion, her mom was found guilty of the deaths at Camp Lost Lake, and both of them have been in hiding ever since. But Reagan believes in her mother’s innocence and is determined to clear her name. Luckily for Olivia and Reagan, Camp Lost Lake is finally reopening, providing the perfect opportunity to find answers. But someone else is dead set on keeping the past hidden, even if it means committing murder. Release Date: June 4, 2024 Genre: Young Adult Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/647a5e1f-9f95-42ad-83dd-53ea917171bb/198563674.jpg Blog - June Releases - Shelterwood by Lisa Wingate Oklahoma, 1909. Eleven-year-old Olive Augusta Radley knows that her stepfather doesn’t have good intentions toward the two Choctaw girls boarded in their home as wards. When the older girl disappears, Ollie flees to the woods, taking six-year-old Nessa with her. Together they begin a perilous journey to the rugged Winding Stair Mountains, the notorious territory of outlaws, treasure hunters, and desperate men. Along the way, Ollie and Nessa form an unlikely band with others like themselves, struggling to stay one step ahead of those who seek to exploit them . . . or worse. Oklahoma, 1990. Law Enforcement Ranger Valerie Boren O’dell arrives at Horsethief Trail National Park seeking a quiet place to balance a career and single parenthood. But no sooner has Valerie reported for duty than she’s faced with local controversy over the park’s opening, a teenage hiker gone missing from one of the trails, and the long-hidden burial site of three children deep in a cave. Val’s quest to uncover the truth wins an ally among the neighboring Choctaw Tribal Police but soon collides with old secrets and the tragic and deadly history of the land itself. Release Date: June 4, 2024 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0284301d-0ed5-4e4f-b51f-1a7f6225157f/199310463.jpg Blog - June Releases - Past Present Future by Rachel Lynn Solomon *Sequel to Today Tonight Tomorrow They fell for each other in just twenty-four hours. Now Rowan and Neil embark on a long-distance relationship during their first year of college in this romantic, dual points of view sequel to Today Tonight Tomorrow . When longtime rivals Rowan Roth and Neil McNair confessed their feelings on the last day of senior year, they knew they’d only have a couple months together before they left for college. Now summer is over, and they’re determined to make their relationship work as they begin school in different states. In Boston, Rowan is eager to be among other aspiring novelists, learning from a creative writing professor she adores. She’s just not sure why she suddenly can’t seem to find her voice. In New York, Neil embraces the chaos of the city, clicking with a new friend group more easily than he anticipated. But when his past refuses to leave him alone, he doesn’t know how to handle his rapidly changing mental health—or how to talk about it with the girl he loves. Over a year of late-night phone calls, weekend visits, and East Coast adventures, Rowan and Neil fall for each other again and again as they grapple with the uncertainty of their new lives. They’ve spent so many years at odds with each other—now that they’re finally on the same team, what does the future hold for them? Release Date: June 4, 2024 Genre: Young Adult Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ede26ec9-230f-4603-aa7b-1312784a9ecb/121668552.jpg Blog - June Releases - The Wren in the Holly Library by K.A. Linde Can you love the dark when you know what it hides? Some things aren’t supposed to exist outside of our imagination. Thirteen years ago, monsters emerged from the shadows and plunged Kierse’s world into a cataclysmic war of near-total destruction. The New York City she knew so well collapsed practically overnight. In the wake of that carnage, the Monster Treaty was created. A truce...of sorts. But tonight, Kierse—a gifted and fearless thief—will break that treaty. She’ll enter the Holly Library...not knowing it’s the home of a monster. He’s charming. Quietly alluring. Terrifying. But he knows talent when he sees it; it’s just a matter of finding her price. Now she’s locked into a dangerous bargain with a creature unlike any other. She’ll sacrifice her freedom. She’ll offer her skills. Together, they’ll put their own futures at risk. But he’s been playing a game across centuries—and once she joins in, there will be no escape... Release Date: June 4, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/37c7979e-ea95-45a8-be34-c3e9221ada27/198530970.jpg Blog - June Releases - The Secret Keeper of Main Street by Trisha R. Thomas In 1950s oil-rich Oklahoma, Bailey Dowery, a dressmaker with the gift of “second sight,” reluctantly reveals the true loves and intentions of her socialite clients, making her a silent witness to a shocking crime. 1954: In the quaint town of Mendol, Oklahoma, Bailey Dowery is a Black dressmaker for the wives and daughters of local oil barons. She earns a good living fitting designer gowns and creating custom wedding dresses for the town’s elite. But beyond her needle and thread lies a deeper talent, one passed down from her the gift of insight. With just a fleeting touch or brush against the skin, Bailey has sudden flashes of intuition— witnessing the other person’s hopes, dreams, and nightmares, as well glimpses of their past and future. To protect herself, she wears gloves to keep from grazing the skin of her clients as she pins them into their gowns. Brides have whispered that Bailey can see if their true love is faithful, or if their marriage will be a success. Her aunt Charlene has always warned her, “It’s safer to stay out of White folks’ business.” But Bailey will reluctantly provide a reading during a fitting, as long as the bride promises to be discreet. Now Elsa Grimes, daughter of one of the richest oil men in Oklahoma, has come to the Regal Gown as the least joyful bride Bailey has ever seen. Elsa’s big society wedding is imminent and her gown is gorgeous, but what Bailey’s intuition uncovers when she touches Elsa’s hand horrifies her. Against her better judgment, she’s determined to help Elsa in whatever way she can. But when the son of a prominent family turns up dead on the eve of Elsa’s wedding, and the bride-to-be is arrested for his murder, Bailey is suddenly at the center of a firestorm that threatens to overtake her and everyone she loves. Release Date: June 4, 2024 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9ea09a45-afff-45ea-a663-5d0e93eee152/198716261.jpg Blog - June Releases - Not in Love by Ali Hazelwood A forbidden, secret affair proves that all’s fair in love and science. Rue Siebert might not have it all, but she has enough: a few friends she can always count on, the financial stability she yearned for as a kid, and a successful career as a biotech engineer at Kline, one of the most promising start-ups in the field of food science. Her world is stable, pleasant, and hard-fought. Until a hostile takeover and its offensively attractive front man threatens to bring it all crumbling down. Eli Killgore and his business partners want Kline, period. Eli has his own reasons for pushing this deal through - and he's a man who gets what he wants. With one burning exception: Rue. The woman he can't stop thinking about. The woman who's off-limits to him. Torn between loyalty and an undeniable attraction, Rue and Eli throw caution out the lab and the boardroom windows. Their affair is secret, no-strings-attached, and has a built-in deadline: the day one of their companies will prevail. But the heart is risky business - one that plays for keeps. Release Date: June 11, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/dc0f74a0-9a7c-4c0d-95b3-e41c91fcf17f/199235727-2.jpg Blog - June Releases - The Housemaid is Watching by Freida McFadden *The Housemaid #3 I used to clean other people’s houses—now, I can’t believe this home is actually mine. The charming kitchen, the quiet cul-de-sac, the huge yard where my kids can play. My husband and I saved for years to give our children the life they deserve. Even though I’m wary of our new neighbor Mrs Lowell, when she invites us over for dinner it’s our chance to make friends. Her maid opens the door wearing a white apron, her hair in a tight bun. I know exactly what it’s like to be in her shoes. But her cold stare gives me chills… The Lowells’ maid isn’t the only strange thing on our street. I’m sure I see a shadowy figure watching us. My husband leaves the house late at night. And when I meet a woman who lives across the way, her words chill me to the bone: Be careful of your neighbors . Did I make a terrible mistake moving my family here? I thought I’d left my darkest secrets behind. But could this quiet suburban street be the most dangerous place of all? Release Date: June 11, 2024 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0fd17020-774d-4427-9a8c-634338dc3524/196841933.jpg Blog - June Releases - The Wilderness of Girls by Madeline Claire Franklin After being placed in foster care, Rhi is hungry for a fresh start and begins working at the Happy Valley Wildlife Preserve. While in the woods, she stumbles upon a surreal sight: a pack of wolves guarding four feral and majestic girls. After Rhi gains their trust, they reveal that they’re princesses from another land, raised by a magical prophet they call Mother―and they're convinced Rhi is their lost fifth sister. Unsure what to believe, Rhi ushers the girls to civilization, where they’re met with societal uproar and scrutiny, dubbed by the ravenous media and true crime junkies as “The Wild Girls of Happy Valley.” Desperate to return to their kingdom, the girls look to Rhi for help. Rhi knows the girls are deluded, but at the same time she’s drawn in by their boldness and authenticity―traits she is afraid she has lost within herself. And when Rhi witnesses strange phenomena she can’t quite explain, the line between fantasy and reality grows blurry. As the hunt for answers intensifies, Rhi must make a decision that will change the course of her life and the lives of her Wild Girls forever. Release Date: June 11, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1e30f726-8ec5-4f8a-ae78-0abe3f7413af/195790586.jpg Blog - June Releases - The Rom-Commers by Katherine Center Emma Wheeler desperately longs to be a screenwriter. She’s spent her life studying, obsessing over, and writing romantic comedies—good ones! That win contests! But she’s also been the sole caretaker for her kind-hearted dad, who needs full-time care. Now, when she gets a chance to re-write a script for famous screenwriter Charlie Yates—The Charlie Yates! Her personal writing god!—it’s a break too big to pass up. Emma’s younger sister steps in for caretaking duties, and Emma moves to L.A. for six weeks for the writing gig of a lifetime. But what is it they say? Don’t meet your heroes? Charlie Yates doesn’t want to write with anyone—much less “a failed, nobody screenwriter.” Worse, the romantic comedy he’s written is so terrible it might actually bring on the apocalypse. Plus! He doesn’t even care about the script—it’s just a means to get a different one green-lit. Oh, and he thinks love is an emotional Ponzi scheme. But Emma’s not going down without a fight. She will stand up for herself, and for rom-coms, and for love itself. She will convince him that love stories matter—even if she has to kiss him senseless to do it. But . . . what if that kiss is accidentally amazing? What if real life turns out to be so much . . . more real than fiction? What if the love story they’re writing breaks all Emma’s rules—and comes true? Release Date: June 11, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/dcee95c9-5691-4bd6-82a8-9a035377aabd/198264654.jpg Blog - June Releases - The Paris Widow by Kimberly Belle When Stella met Adam, she thought she had finally found a nice, normal guy—a welcome change from her previous boyfriend and her precarious jetsetter lifestyle with him. But her secure world comes crashing down when Adam goes missing after an explosion in the city square. Unable to reach him, she panics. As the French police investigate, it’s revealed that Adam was on their radar as a dealer of rare and stolen antiquities with a long roster of criminal clients. Reeling from this news, Stella is determined not to leave Paris until she has the full story. Was Adam a random victim or the target of the explosion? And why is someone following her through the streets of Paris? An irresistible, fast-paced read set in some of Europe’s most inviting locales, The Paris Widow explores how sinister secrets of the past stay with us—no matter how far we travel. Release Date: June 11, 2024 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f93250f0-4d11-43f4-b3f2-4795e130ed15/199743738.jpg Blog - June Releases - The Midnight Feast by Lucy Foley It’s the opening night of The Manor, and no expense, small or large, has been spared. The infinity pool sparkles; crystal pouches for guests’ healing have been placed in the Seaside Cottages and Woodland Hutches; the “Manor Mule” cocktail (grapefruit, ginger, vodka, and a dash of CBD oil) is being poured with a heavy hand. Everyone is wearing linen. And yet, just outside the Manor’s immaculately kept grounds, an ancient forest bristles with secrets. The local community resents what they see as the Manor’s intrusion into the local woods and attempts to privatize the beach, and small skirmishes have erupted on the edges of the property between locals and the staff. And the whispers keep coming, about an old piece of pagan folklore—it must be folklore??—the Night Birds, an avenging force that can be called upon to make right wrongs that elude the law. Though surely everything at the Manor has been done above board. On the Sunday morning of opening weekend, the local police are called. There’s been a fire. A body’s been discovered. Something’s not right with the guests. What happened on the grounds of the Manor the past 36 hours? And who—or what—is the cause? THE FOUNDER THE HUSBAND THE MYSTERY GUEST THE KITCHEN HELP Everyone has an agenda. Everyone has a past. But not everyone will survive…The Midnight Feast. Release Date: June 18, 2024 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/50cb276a-ad0e-40b0-83d8-aec11900b7c2/203828897.jpg Blog - June Releases - Bloodguard by Cecy Robson One hundred years. Tens of thousands of gladiators. And today, only one will rise… Everything in the Kingdom of Arrow is a lie. Leith of Grey thought coming to this new land and volunteering to fight in the gladiator arena—vicious, bloodthirsty tournaments where only the strongest survive—would earn him enough gold to save his dying sister. He thought there was nothing left to lose. He was wrong—and they took everything. His hope. His freedom. His very humanity. All Leith has left is his battle-scarred body, fueled by rage and hardened from years of fighting for the right to live another day. Then Leith meets Maeve, an elven royal who is everything he despises. Everything he should hate. Until the alluring princess offers him the one thing he needs most: a chance to win the coveted title of Bloodguard—and his freedom. But in a kingdom built on secrets and lies, hope doesn’t come cheap. Nor will his ultimate revenge… Release Date: June 24, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/894bb185-0921-4791-982b-6d18b3284dff/197577021.jpg Blog - June Releases - Tangled Up in You by Christina Lauren She has a dream. He has a plan. Together they’ll take a leap of faith. Ren has never held an iPhone, googled the answer to a question, or followed a crush on social media. What she has done: Read a book or two, or three (okay, hundreds). Taught herself to paint. Built a working wind power system from scratch. But for all the books she’s read, Ren has never found one that’s taught a woman raised on a homestead and off the grid for most of her twenty-two years how to live in the real world. So when she finally achieves her lifelong dream of attending Corona College, it feels like her life is finally beginning. Fitz has the rest of his life mapped out: Graduate from Corona at the top of his class, get his criminal record wiped clean, and pass himself off as the rich, handsome player everyone thinks he is. He’s a few short months from checking off step one of his plans when Ren Gylden, with her cascading blonde hair and encyclopedic brain, crashes into his life, and for the first time Fitz’s plan is in jeopardy. But a simple assignment in their immunology seminar changes the course of both their lives, and suddenly they’re thrown out of the frying pan and into the fire on a road trip that will lead them in the most unexpected directions. Out on the open road, the world somehow shifts, and the unlikely pair realize that, maybe, the key to the dreams they've both been chasing have been sitting next to them the whole time. Release Date: June 25, 2024 Genre: Romance https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/april-book-club-book-reviews monthly 0.5 2024-04-25 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/independent-bookstore-day monthly 0.5 2024-04-18 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/may-new-releases monthly 0.5 2024-04-10 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e117a8aa-5739-4f9c-a972-f3332aea0581/200982383.jpg Blog - May New Releases - 5 Broken Blades by Mai Corland The five most dangerous liars in the land have been mysteriously summoned to work together for a single objective: to kill the God King Joon. He has it coming. Under his merciless immortal hand, the nobles flourish, while the poor and innocent are imprisoned, ruined…or sold. And now each of the five blades will come for him. Each has tasted bitterness―from the hired hitman seeking atonement, a lovely assassin who seeks freedom, or even the prince banished for his cruel crimes. None can resist the sweet, icy lure of vengeance. They can agree on murder. They can agree on treachery. But for these five killers―each versed in deception, lies, and betrayal―it’s not enough to forge an alliance. To survive, they’ll have to find a way to trust each other…but only one can take the crown. Let the best liar win. Release Date: May 7, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5eb7346d-578d-4b53-ba29-104a003365ad/200153487.jpg Blog - May New Releases - The Library Thief by Kuchenga Shenje A strikingly original and absorbing mystery about a white-passing bookbinder in Victorian England and the secrets lurking on the estate where we she works, for fans of Fingersmith and The Confessions of Frannie Langton The library is under lock and key. But its secrets can't be contained. 1896. After he brought her home from Jamaica as a baby, Florence's father had her hair hot-combed to make her look like the other girls. But as a young woman, Florence is not so easy to tame—and when she brings scandal to his door, the bookbinder throws her onto the streets of Manchester. Intercepting her father's latest commission, Florence talks her way into the remote, forbidding Rose Hall to restore its collection of rare books. Lord Francis Belfield's library is old and full of secrets—but none so intriguing as the whispers about his late wife. Then one night, the library is broken into. Strangely, all the priceless tomes remain untouched. Florence is puzzled, until she discovers a half-burned book in the fireplace. She realizes with horror that someone has found and set fire to the secret diary of Lord Belfield's wife–which may hold the clue to her fate… Release Date: May 7, 2024 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3056a00a-7db0-4c9b-9fbd-36235a587dbb/197577126.jpg Blog - May New Releases - This Summer Will Be Different by Carley Fortune Lucy is the tourist vacationing at a beach house on Prince Edward Island. Felix is the local who shows her a very good time. The only problem: Lucy doesn’t know he’s her best friend’s younger brother. Lucy and Felix’s chemistry is unreal, but the list of reasons why they need to stay away from each other is long, and they vow to never repeat that electric night again. It’s easier said than done. Each year, Lucy escapes to PEI for a big breath of coastal air, fresh oysters and crisp vinho verde with her best friend, Bridget. Every visit begins with a long walk on the beach, beneath soaring red cliffs and a golden sun. And every visit, Lucy promises herself she won’t wind up in Felix’s bed. Again. If Lucy can’t help being drawn to Felix, at least she’s always kept her heart out of it. When Bridget suddenly flees Toronto a week before her wedding, Lucy drops everything to follow her to the island. Her mission is to help Bridget through her crisis and resist the one man she’s never been able to. But Felix’s sparkling eyes and flirty quips have been replaced with something new, and Lucy’s beginning to wonder just how safe her heart truly is. Release Date: May 7, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7211ce8f-524a-48be-943b-259e17a37d90/193544854.jpg Blog - May New Releases - Perfect Little Monsters by Cindy R.X. He Someone has murdered the queen bee of Sierton High School. All the dead girl’s friends are suspects. And each one has a reason for wanting her dead. Ella Moore was the most popular girl in school…and also the most hated. When she’s murdered at her own party, there are too many suspects to count--and too many people who think she deserved it. The police’s prime suspect is the new girl, Dawn Foster. She was the last to hand Ella a drink on the night Ella died. Plus, all of Ella’s friends with a motive for wanting her dead are more than willing to implicate Dawn. But Dawn refuses to go down without a fight. She’s determined to clear her name. As she delves deeper into the past, she discovers that Ella and her friends had enemies, and someone is out for revenge. She must uncover the truth before the police arrest the wrong suspect and before the next person dies. Release Date: May 7, 2024 Genre: Young Adult Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bb120758-0616-42bd-9b1f-bff37cc384ed/195263575.jpg Blog - May New Releases - Beastly Beauty by Jennifer Donnelly What makes a girl "beastly?" Is it having too much ambition? Being too proud? Taking up too much space? Or is it just wanting something, anything , too badly? That's the problem Arabella faces when she makes her debut in society. Her parents want her to be sweet and compliant so she can marry well, but try as she might, Arabella can't extinguish the fire burning inside her -- the source of her deepest wishes, her wildest dreams. When an attempt to suppress her emotions tragically backfires, a mysterious figure punishes Arabella with a curse, dooming her and everyone she cares about, trapping them in the castle. As the years pass, Arabella abandons hope. The curse is her fault -- after all, there's nothing more "beastly" than a girl who expresses her anger -- and the only way to break it is to find a boy who loves her for her true a cruel task for a girl who's been told she's impossible to love. When a handsome thief named Beau makes his way into the castle, the captive servants are thrilled, convinced he is the one to break the curse. But Beau -- spooked by the castle's strange and forbidding ladies-in-waiting, and by the malevolent presence that stalks its corridors at night -- only wants to escape. He learned long ago that love is only an illusion. If Beau and Arabella have any hope of breaking the curse, they must learn to trust their wounded hearts, and realize that the cruelest prisons of all are the ones we build for ourselves. Release Date: May 7, 2024 Genre: Young Adult Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/14dfba87-5749-4a03-b36f-eb497d027b8f/200338241.jpg Blog - May New Releases - The Dixon Rule by Elle Kennedy Diana Dixon has a lot going on this summer. She’s rehearsing for a ballroom dance competition, juggling two jobs, and dealing with an ex-boyfriend who can’t take the hint it’s over. Yet despite all that, she still has plenty of time and energy to tell Shane Lindley to screw off. Shane just moved into her apartment building and seems dedicated to sleeping his way through her entire cheerleading squad. Sure, he’s a tall, gorgeous hockey player, but he’s messing with her turf. This calls for some ground rules: no parties in her apartment, leave her teammates alone, and—most importantly—leave her alone. What Diana doesn’t realize is that Shane’s sick of hookups and tired of being on the rebound after his long-term girlfriend called it quits. He wants a relationship. And when his ex comes back into the picture, he pretends he has one to make her jealous…and who better to play the girlfriend role than his sassy new neighbor? Despite Diana’s reluctance to break her rule, a fake relationship is the perfect solution for her own ex issues, and soon she can’t deny something is sizzling between her and Shane. Something hot and completely unexpected. And it might just be getting a little too real. Release Date: May 14, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/057915ee-a07a-4978-9c92-c7eda53314f6/199797582.jpg Blog - May New Releases - The Paradise Problem by Christina Lauren Anna Green thought she was marrying Liam “West” Weston for access to subsidized family housing while at UCLA. She also thought she’d signed divorce papers when the graduation caps were tossed, and they both went on their merry ways. Three years later, Anna is a starving artist living paycheck to paycheck while West is a Stanford professor. He may be one of four heirs to the Weston Foods conglomerate, but he has little interest in working for the heartless corporation his family built from the ground up. He is interested, however, in his one-hundred-million-dollar inheritance. There’s just one catch. Due to an antiquated clause in his grandfather’s will, Liam won’t see a penny until he’s been happily married for five years. Just when Liam thinks he’s in the home stretch, pressure mounts from his family to see this mysterious spouse, and he has no choice but to turn to the one person he’s afraid to introduce to his one-percenter parents—his unpolished, not-so-ex-wife. But in the presence of his family, Liam’s fears quickly shift from whether the feisty, foul-mouthed, paint-splattered Anna can play the part to whether the toxic world of wealth will corrupt someone as pure of heart as his surprisingly grounded and loyal wife. Liam will have to ask himself if the price tag on his flimsy cover story is worth losing true love that sprouted from a lie. Release Date: May 14, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ce40706d-89d8-4cf7-90a3-179b5330ad01/199798953.jpg Blog - May New Releases - One Perfect Couple by Ruth Ware Lyla is in a bit of a rut. Her post-doctoral research has fizzled out, she’s pretty sure they won’t extend her contract, and things with her boyfriend, Nico, an aspiring actor, aren’t going great. When the opportunity arises for Nico to join the cast of a new reality TV show, The Perfect Couple, she decides to try out with him. A whirlwind audition process later, Lyla find herself whisked off to a tropical paradise with Nico, boating through the Indian Ocean towards Ever After Island, where the two of them will compete against four other couples—Bayer and Angel, Dan and Santana, Joel and Romi, and Conor and Zana—in order to win a cash prize. But not long after they arrive on the deserted island, things start to go wrong. After the first challenge leaves everyone rattled and angry, an overnight storm takes matters from bad to worse. Cut off from the mainland by miles of ocean, deprived of their phones, and unable to contact the crew that brought them there, the group must band together for survival. As tensions run high and fresh water runs low, Lyla finds that this game show is all too real—and the stakes are life or death. Release Date: May 21, 2024 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/294360e1-afb9-4ecf-9887-98de4a45440b/195790639.jpg Blog - May New Releases - Attached at the Hip by Christine Riccio Orie Lennox has spent her entire life prepping for her happily ever after -- and now that she’s graduated, she’s low-key wondering, when the heck is it gonna hit. Her love life, her new job, her relationship with her sister: none of it is quite what she envisioned it to be. One evening, on a whim, she applies for a reality show where she’ll be stranded on an island, with a bunch of strangers, to play a game of human chess for a shot at a million dollars. What better way to force herself to break up with the things that aren’t bringing her joy, than to abandon them all on short notice to live off the grid on a beach in the South Pacific! Orie's shocked when she ends up cast in an experimental romantic edition of the show: and even more surprised to find that her old high school crush, Remy, has been cast as well. Orie's one of ten contestants, set to compete in formidable challenges, while speed dating, in the wilderness: without deodorant, toilets, shaving cream, or showers. (How!?) She finds herself tied up — literally — in a game of risky alliances as she navigates ever-growing feelings for her one that got away, alongside an exciting array of budding new relationships. Release Date: May 21, 2024 Genre: Young Adult Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1721ad55-e214-4eab-a6f6-d7d8cbc58875/136276877.jpg Blog - May New Releases - The Last Murder at the End of the World Solve the murder to save what's left of the world. Outside the island there is nothing: the world was destroyed by a fog that swept the planet, killing anyone it touched. On the island: it is idyllic. One hundred and twenty-two villagers and three scientists, living in peaceful harmony. The villagers are content to fish, farm and feast, to obey their nightly curfew, to do what they're told by the scientists. Until, to the horror of the islanders, one of their beloved scientists is found brutally stabbed to death. And then they learn that the murder has triggered a lowering of the security system around the island, the only thing that was keeping the fog at bay. If the murder isn't solved within 107 hours, the fog will smother the island—and everyone on it. But the security system has also wiped everyone's memories of exactly what happened the night before, which means that someone on the island is a murderer—and they don't even know it. And the clock is ticking. Release Date: May 21, 2024 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/036def32-7db9-4236-9e55-6c0daea6c73c/195790899.jpg Blog - May New Releases - Savor It by Tarah Dewitt Summer won't last forever. Sage Byrd has lived in the coastal town of Spunes, Oregon (not to be confused with Forks, Washington) her entire life. She's learned to love her small world, with the misfit animals on her hobby farm, and her friendships with the town’s inhabitants. But when her 5-year relationship ends and her ex, town-golden-boy Ian, suddenly gets engaged, Sage needs a win―something that will convince everyone to stop pitying her all the time, and to put Ian in his place. The Festival of Spunes, the town’s annual summer competition, would be the perfect opportunity. She just needs a partner. Fisher Lange was a hotshot chef in New York City until the loss of his sister left him numb, grieving, and responsible for his teenage niece Indy. When Fisher loses his Michelin star along with his love of cooking, his boss sends him and Indy to Spunes on a much-needed summer sabbatical to consult on a restaurant opening. But when clashes with the townspeople threaten his last chance to redeem himself and a kiss with his new neighbor Sage leads to dating rumors, a strategic alliance might just be the best way to turn things around. A deal is struck. Sage will improve Fisher’s image in the eyes of the town and remove the roadblocks he is facing with the restaurant, and Fisher will be Sage’s partner for the competition. But as their pact quickly turns into steamy rendezvous, emotional wounds begin to heal, and the pair tries to savor every moment, they start to realize that summer is racing by much faster than they would like... Release Date: May 21, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/608d7922-8496-43e0-b6c1-c0fa1246bb81/83816867.jpg Blog - May New Releases - Curse of the Nautilus by Ralynn Kimie There was once a sea witch with powers that rivaled Poseidon himself. When she challenged him for his throne, he killed her, and her magic was locked away in a nautilus shell lost in the dark ocean depths. Sought after by many, none had the power to wield it. Until now. Villains are not born. They're made. Anela is a 26-year-old sea nymph in Hawai'i. Still nursing a broken heart from a former flame, she keeps others at an arm's length away so no one can hurt her again. Her life is turned upside down when her mother brings home a man brought to the Hawaiian Islands by raging storm, whose presence in the Pacific angers the shark gods, but pleases her younger sister, Malia. Hi'iaka, her mother, insists on protecting him from them and Anela is determined to find out why. Triton is a 28-year-old prince of the Atlantic Ocean. Charming and handsome, yet arrogant and self-serving, he only really has one goal on his mind: get back home by any means necessary. When his plan goes south and someone is severely hurt, he reconsiders that he may be stuck as a land dweller forever. Forced to be in the company of beings he hates most, he has to stop playing life like a game before someone gets killed. Release Date: May 22, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5b6ae3e7-c2ac-4ed5-a759-4956f43f574c/198471299.jpg.png Blog - May New Releases - Twelfth Knight by Alexene Farol Follmuth Viola Reyes is annoyed. Her painstakingly crafted tabletop game campaign was shot down, her best friend is suggesting she try being more “likable,” and school running back Jack Orsino is the most lackadaisical Student Body President she’s ever seen, which makes her job as VP that much harder. Vi’s favorite escape from the world is the MMORPG Twelfth Knight, but online spaces aren’t exactly kind to girls like her―girls who are extremely competent and have the swagger to prove it. So Vi creates a masculine alter ego, choosing to play as a knight named Cesario to create a safe haven for herself. But when a football injury leads Jack Orsino to the world of Twelfth Knight, Vi is alarmed to discover their online alter egos―Cesario and Duke Orsino―are surprisingly well-matched. As the long nights of game-play turn into discussions about life and love, Vi and Jack soon realise they’ve become more than just weapon-wielding characters in an online game. But Vi has been concealing her true identity from Jack, and Jack might just be falling for her offline… Release Date: May 28, 2024 Genre: Young Adult Romance https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/march-book-club-review monthly 0.5 2024-04-05 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/total-solar-eclipse monthly 0.5 2024-03-28 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/fc8eb53d-5907-4309-a6c7-54b82b075a89/150247455.jpg Blog - Total Solar Eclipse - Eclipse: One Sky’s Most Dazzling Phenomenon by Kelsey Oseid In Eclipse , celebrated artist and author Kelsey Oseid explores the science and mystique of lunar and solar eclipses, from the myths of our ancestors to today. Did you know that in Chinese legends, solar eclipses were caused by dragons eating the sun? Or that the Norse people believed that a sky wolf chased away the moon? Oseid presents these rich historical stories alongside informative, accessible science to enrich your a solar eclipse only occurs during a new moon; a selenelion is when you can see the lunar eclipse in front of you and the sunset behind you; and the Mars Rovers have even taken photographs of eclipses from Mars. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/894f1ce9-f959-4970-ba00-c538a8cfdb1e/190119365.jpg Blog - Total Solar Eclipse - Total Solar Eclipse: A Stellar Friendship Story by Jayme Sandberg Sun is seriously out of sorts about the upcoming total solar eclipse. Will Earthlings go blind watching it? What will they think when Sun's dependable light suddenly vanishes in the middle of the day? How could Moon betray their stellar friendship? When totality finally arrives and Moon completely hides our brightest star from millions of Earthlings in its shadow, no one is more surprised than Sun to find Moon helped it shine in a totally different way. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c24242c5-7917-450a-9ce8-ec903de624e8/206082678.jpg Blog - Total Solar Eclipse - Predicting the Eclipse: A Multimillennium Tale of Computation by Stephen Wolfram Total eclipses of the Sun are rare and dramatic—and on April 8, 2024, one will cross the US. But when exactly will it happen? In this short but richly illustrated book, prominent scientist and computation pioneer Stephen Wolfram tells the triumphant and hard-won story--spanning more than two thousand years--of how science, mathematics and computation have brought us to the point where we can now predict the time of the eclipse to within one second. Learn how the problem of eclipses brought us some of the earliest exact science, the first known computer, contributions from many of the all-time greats of mathematics and physics, and critical technology for the space program. See how all this provides a clear, modern understanding of a phenomenon that has surprised and amazed throughout human history. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/96c5e227-dc31-4eb1-8e82-476e6eff49b4/50097351.jpg Blog - Total Solar Eclipse - Eclipse: How the 1919 Solar Eclipse Proved Einstein’s Theory of General Relativity by Darcy Pattison In 1915, British astronomer Arthur Stanley Eddington was fascinated with Einstein's new theory of general relativity. The theory talks about how forces push and pull objects in space. Einstein said that the sun's gravity could pull and bend light. To test this, astronomers decided to photograph a solar eclipse. The eclipse would allow them to photograph the stars before and during the solar eclipse. If the star's position moved, then it was evidence that that light had bent. Eddington and his team traveled from England to the island of Principe, just off the African coast, to photograph the eclipse. In simple language, this nonfiction illustrated picture book explains how the push (acceleration) and pull (gravity) of space affects light. Back matter includes information on Einstein, Eddington, and the original photograph of the 1919 solar eclipse. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/fddbb73c-cca5-4b93-a3f7-71661504669c/74848675-2.jpg Blog - Total Solar Eclipse - Totality: An Eclipse Guide in Rhyme and Science by Jeffrey Bennett Tens of millions of people live in places that experience(d) the total solar eclipse on April 8, 2024 – and hundreds of millions more will see other future eclipses around the world. There' s no better way to get ready for an eclipse and to learn about the underlying science than through this book and the related free app "Totality by Big Kid Science." Written by the astrophysicist/educator who created that app, Totality! An Eclipse Guide in Rhyme and Science features a unique combination of rhyme and science that makes it suitable for a wide range of ages, as well as parents, teachers, and librarians. The rhyme begins "Today's the day, it's final come / I'll see a diamond on the Sun," thereby engaging readers of all ages in imagining an eclipse experience. In addition, the rhyme has been pedagogically constructed to serve as a mnemonic device for the underlying science that is explained in detail with illustration and "Big Kid Box" sidebars. The book concludes with a glossary, suggested activities, and an eclipse science summary — features that will add particular value for parents and teachers learning along with their students or kids. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2b1abf00-aa22-46e9-805b-006f077f9ede/75587362.jpg Blog - Total Solar Eclipse - A Few Beautiful Minutes: Experiencing a Solar Eclipse by Kate Allen Fox What happens during a solar eclipse? The sun vanishes. Light becomes dark. Day animals sleep, and night animals wake. The moon takes over the sky. People stop what they’re doing and together, they look up. The whole world changes for a few beautiful minutes. Celebrating the magic of this favorite wonder of the universe, A Few Beautiful Minutes encourages young readers to (safely) discover each stage of a solar eclipse—and to experience how this incredible phenomenon can connect us to one another. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/divinely-inspired monthly 0.5 2024-03-20 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/april-book-releases monthly 0.5 2024-03-14 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1bcc84db-ba7a-45bf-91a5-5c547852a676/182484360.jpg Blog - April Book Releases - The Reappearance of Rachel Prince by Holly Jackson Lights. Camera. Lies. 18-year-old Bel has lived her whole life in the shadow of her mom’s mysterious disappearance. Sixteen years ago, Rachel Price vanished and young Bel was the only witness, but she has no memory of it. Rachel is gone, long presumed dead, and Bel wishes everyone would just move on. But the case is dragged up from the past when the Price family agree to a true crime documentary. Bel can’t wait for filming to end, for life to go back to normal. And then the impossible happens. Rachel Price reappears, and life will never be normal again. Rachel has an unbelievable story about what happened to her. Unbelievable, because Bel isn’t sure it’s real. If Rachel is lying, then where has she been all this time? And – could she be dangerous? With the cameras still rolling, Bel must uncover the truth about her mother, and find out why Rachel Price really came back from the dead . . . Release Date: April 2, 2024 Genre: YA Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/509013c1-f1dd-4ad5-8148-7943d670c1a9/195820829.jpg Blog - April Book Releases - The Cemetery of Untold Stories by Julia Alvarez Alma Cruz, the celebrated writer at the heart of The Cemetery of Untold Stories , doesn’t want to end up like her friend, a novelist who fought so long and hard to finish a book that it threatened her sanity. So when Alma inherits a small plot of land in the Dominican Republic, her homeland, she has the beautiful idea of turning it into a place to bury her untold stories—literally. She creates a graveyard for the manuscript drafts and revisions, and the characters whose lives she tried and failed to bring to life and who still haunt her. Alma wants her characters to rest in peace. But they have other ideas, and the cemetery becomes a mysterious sanctuary for their true narratives. Filomena, a local woman hired as the groundskeeper, becomes a sympathetic listener as Alma’s characters unspool their secret tales. Among Bienvenida, the abandoned second wife of dictator Rafael Trujillo, consigned to oblivion by history, and Manuel Cruz, a doctor who fought in the Dominican underground and escaped to the United States. The characters defy their they talk back to her and talk to one another behind her back, rewriting and revising themselves. The Cemetery of Untold Stories Whose stories get to be told, and whose buried? Finally, Alma finds the meaning she and her characters yearn for in the everlasting vitality of stories. Release Date: April 2, 2024 Genre: Contemporary Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e2066a1b-6cb1-4ea8-95cd-30ef75a0cff1/195820807.jpg.png Blog - April Book Releases - Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenez Justin has a curse, and thanks to a Reddit thread, it's now all over the internet. Every woman he dates goes on to find their soul mate the second they break up. When a woman slides into his DMs with the same problem, they come up with a plan: They'll date each other and break up. Their curses will cancel each other’s out, and they’ll both go on to find the love of their lives. It’s a bonkers idea… and it just might work. Emma hadn't planned that her next assignment as a traveling nurse would be in Minnesota, but she and her best friend agree that dating Justin is too good of an opportunity to pass up, especially when they get to rent an adorable cottage on a private island on Lake Minnetonka. It's supposed to be a quick fling, just for the summer. But when Emma's toxic mother shows up and Justin has to assume guardianship of his three siblings, they're suddenly navigating a lot more than they expected–including catching real feelings for each other. What if this time Fate has actually brought the perfect pair together? Release Date: April 2, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e9879230-6024-49af-a960-43ae3887561b/157605258.jpg Blog - April Book Releases - Dragon Rider by Tara Matharu Can an orphan captive learn the secrets of the Dragon Riders to stand up and avenge his people? Jai lives as a royal hostage in the Sabine Court—ever since his father Rohan, leader of the Steppefolk, led a failed rebellion and was executed by the very emperor Jai now serves. When the emperor’s son and heir is betrothed to Princess Erica of the neighboring Dansk Kingdom, she brings with her dragons. Endemic to the northern nation, these powerful beasts come in several forms, but mystery surrounds them. Only Dansk royalty know the secret to soulbonding with these dangerous beasts to draw on their power and strength. This marriage—and the alliance that forms—will change that forever. But conspirators lurk in the shadows, and soon the Sabine Court is in chaos. With his life in danger, Jai uses the opportunity to escape with the Dansk handmaiden, Frida, and a stolen hatchling. Hunted at every turn, he must learn to cultivate magic and become a soulbound warrior if he has any chance of finding safety, seizing his destiny…and seeking his revenge. Release Date: April 2, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/32766cd0-af06-48d4-9d9a-92b56be29a33/181109975-2.jpg Blog - April Book Releases - The Stone Home by Crystal Hana Kim In 2011, Eunju Oh opens her door to greet a stranger: a young Korean American woman holding a familiar-looking knife—a knife Eunju hasn’t seen in more than thirty years, and that connects her to a place she’d desperately hoped to leave behind forever. In South Korea in the 1980s, young Eunju and her mother are homeless on the street. After being captured by the police, they’re sent to live within the walls of a state-sanctioned reformatory center that claims to rehabilitate the nation’s citizens but hides a darker, more violent reality. While Eunju and her mother form a tight-knit community with the other women in the kitchen, two teenage brothers, Sangchul and Youngchul, are compelled to labor in the workshops and make increasingly desperate decisions—and all are forced down a path of survival, the repercussions of which will echo for decades to come. Inspired by real events, told through alternating timelines and two intimate perspectives, The Stone Home is a deeply affecting story of a mother and daughter’s love and a pair of brothers whose bond is put to an unfathomably difficult test. Capturing a shameful period of history with breathtaking restraint and tenderness, Crystal Hana Kim weaves a lyrical exploration of the legacy of violence and the complicated psychology of power, while showcasing the extraordinary acts of devotion and friendship that can arise in the darkness. Release Date: April 2, 2024 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/11505b84-9d73-48ba-94e7-e6c8ecd75efd/127280451.jpg Blog - April Book Releases - Mal Goes to War by Edward Ashton The humans are fighting again. Go figure. As a free A.I., Mal finds the war between the modded and augmented Federals and the puritanical Humanists about as interesting as a battle between rival anthills. He’s not above scouting the battlefield for salvage, though, and when the Humanists abruptly cut off access to infospace he finds himself trapped in the body of a cyborg mercenary, and responsible for the safety of the modded girl she died protecting. A dark comedy wrapped in a techno thriller’s skin, Mal Goes to War provides a satirical take on war, artificial intelligence, and what it really means to be human. Release Date: April 9, 2024 Genre: Science Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/dcc67660-2988-4ff9-927b-1ee7864589cc/133286777.jpg Blog - April Book Releases - The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo In a shabby house, on a shabby street, in the new capital of Madrid, Luzia Cotado uses scraps of magic to get through her days of endless toil as a scullion. But when her scheming mistress discovers the lump of a servant cowering in the kitchen is actually hiding a talent for little miracles, she demands Luzia use those gifts to better the family's social position. What begins as simple amusement for the bored nobility takes a perilous turn when Luzia garners the notice of Antonio Pérez, the disgraced secretary to Spain's king. Still reeling from the defeat of his armada, the king is desperate for any advantage in the war against England's heretic queen—and Pérez will stop at nothing to regain the king's favor. Determined to seize this one chance to better her fortunes, Luzia plunges into a world of seers and alchemists, holy men and hucksters, where the line between magic, science, and fraud is never certain. But as her notoriety grows, so does the danger that her Jewish blood will doom her to the Inquisition's wrath. She will have to use every bit of her wit and will to survive—even if that means enlisting the help of Guillén Santangel, an embittered immortal familiar whose own secrets could prove deadly for them both. Release Date: April 9, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4652a176-e594-4780-b437-5dd9682bed3e/63247365.jpg Blog - April Book Releases - How to End a Love Story by Yulin Kuang Helen Zhang hasn’t seen Grant Shepard once in the thirteen years since the tragic accident that bound their lives together forever. Now a bestselling author, Helen pours everything into her career. She’s even scored a coveted spot in the writers’ room of the TV adaptation of her popular young adult novels, and if she can hide her imposter syndrome and overcome her writer’s block, surely the rest of her life will fall into place too. LA is the fresh start she needs. After all, no one knows her there. Except… Grant has done everything in his power to move on from the past, including building a life across the country. And while the panic attacks have never quite gone away, he’s well liked around town as a screenwriter. He knows he shouldn’t have taken the job on Helen’s show, but it will open doors to developing his own projects that he just can’t pass up. Grant’s exactly as Helen remembers him—charming, funny, popular, and lovable in ways that she’s never been. And Helen’s exactly as Grant remembers too—brilliant, beautiful, closed off. But working together is messy, and electrifying, and Helen’s parents, who have never forgiven Grant, have no idea he’s in the picture at all. When secrets come to light, they must reckon with the fact that theirs was never meant to be any kind of love story. And yet… the key to making peace with their past—and themselves—might just lie in holding on to each other in the present. Release Date: April 9, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9a41685d-e568-4430-adf9-d16a6e498aec/194803808.jpg Blog - April Book Releases - Kill Her Twice by Stacey Lee Los Angeles, 1932: Lulu Wong, star of the silver screen and the pride of Chinatown, has a face known to practically anyone, especially to the Chow sisters—May, Gemma, and Peony—Lulu's former classmates and neighbors. So the girls instantly know it's Lulu whose body they discover one morning in an out-of-the-way stable, far from the Beverly Hills mansion where she moved once her fame skyrocketed. The sisters suspect Lulu's death is the result of foul play, but the LAPD—known for being corrupt to the core—doesn't seem motivated to investigate. Even worse, there are signs that point to the possibility of a police cover-up, and powerful forces in the city want to frame the killing as evidence that Chinatown is a den of iniquity and crime, even more reason it should be demolished to make room for the construction of a new railway depot, Union Station. Worried that neither the police nor the papers will treat a Chinese girl fairly—no matter how famous and wealthy—the sisters set out to solve their friend’s murder themselves, and maybe save their neighborhood in the bargain. But with Lulu’s killer still on the loose, the girls’ investigation just might put them square in the crosshairs of a coldblooded murderer. Release Date: April 23, 2024 Genre: YA Mystery/Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7c35a781-e6da-4e81-8fe8-67ab2fdaae09/172979755.jpg Blog - April Book Releases - Song of the Six Realms by Judy I. Lin Xue, a talented young musician, has no past and probably no future. Orphaned at a young age, her kindly poet uncle took her in and arranged for an apprenticeship at one of the most esteemed entertainment houses in the kingdom. She doesn’t remember much from before entering the House of Flowing Water, and when her uncle is suddenly killed in a bandit attack, she is devastated to lose her last connection to a life outside of her indenture contract. With no family and no patron, Xue is facing the possibility of a lifetime of servitude playing the qin for nobles that praise her talent with one breath and sneer at her lowly social status with the next. Then one night she is unexpectedly called to the garden to put on a private performance for the enigmatic Duke Meng. The young man is strangely kind and awkward for nobility, and surprises Xue further with an irresistible offer: serve as a musician in residence at his manor for one year, and he’ll set her free of her indenture. But the Duke’s motives become increasingly more suspect when he and Xue barely survive an attack by a nightmarish monster, and when he whisks her away to his estate, she discovers he’s not just some country noble: He’s the Duke of Dreams, one of the divine rulers of the Celestial Realm. There she learns the Six Realms are on the brink of disaster, and incursions by demonic beasts are growing more frequent. The Duke needs Xue’s help to unlock memories from her past that could hold the answers to how to stop the impending war… but first Xue will need to survive being the target of every monster and deity in the Six Realms. Release Date: April 23, 2024 Genre: YA Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5f02750e-05bf-4fc9-9e9c-69e038814db1/127280429.jpg Blog - April Book Releases - Darling Girls by Sally Hepworth For as long as they can remember, Jessica, Norah, and Alicia have been told how lucky they are. As young girls they were rescued from family tragedies and raised by a loving foster mother, Miss Fairchild, on an idyllic farming estate and given an elusive second chance at a happy family life. But their childhood wasn’t the fairy tale everyone thinks it was. Miss Fairchild had rules. Miss Fairchild could be unpredictable. And Miss Fairchild was never, ever to be crossed. In a moment of desperation, the three broke away from Miss Fairchild and thought they were free. Even though they never saw her again, she was always somewhere in the shadows of their minds. When a body is discovered under the home they grew up in, the foster sisters find themselves thrust into the spotlight as key witnesses. Or are they prime suspects? Release Date: April 23, 2024 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1e6c2b31-a261-4774-8dbe-625df75c03e4/194802722.jpg Blog - April Book Releases - Funny Story by Emily Henry Daphne always loved the way her fiancé Peter told their story. How they met (on a blustery day), fell in love (over an errant hat), and moved back to his lakeside hometown to begin their life together. He really was good at telling it…right up until the moment he realized he was actually in love with his childhood best friend Petra. Which is how Daphne begins her new story: Stranded in beautiful Waning Bay, Michigan, without friends or family but with a dream job as a children’s librarian (that barely pays the bills), and proposing to be roommates with the only person who could possibly understand her predicament: Petra’s ex, Miles Nowak. Scruffy and chaotic—with a penchant for taking solace in the sounds of heart break love ballads—Miles is exactly the opposite of practical, buttoned up Daphne, whose coworkers know so little about her they have a running bet that she’s either FBI or in witness protection. The roommates mainly avoid one another, until one day, while drowning their sorrows, they form a tenuous friendship and a plan. If said plan also involves posting deliberately misleading photos of their summer adventures together, well, who could blame them? But it’s all just for show, of course, because there’s no way Daphne would actually start her new chapter by falling in love with her ex-fiancé’s new fiancée’s ex…right? Release Date: April 23, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8457031b-ef48-476b-bc96-19d91ce61bf4/195790849.jpg.png Blog - April Book Releases - Every Time I Go on Vacation Someone Dies by Catherine Mack Ten days, eight suspects, six cities, five authors, three bodies . . . one trip to die for. All that bestselling author Eleanor Dash wants is to get through her book tour in Italy and kill off her main character, Connor Smith, in the next in her Vacation Mysteries series―is that too much to ask? Clearly, because when an attempt is made on the real Connor’s life―the handsome but infuriating con man she got mixed up with ten years ago and now can't get out of her life―Eleanor’s enlisted to help solve the case. Contending with literary rivals, rabid fans, a stalker―and even her ex, Oliver, who turns up unexpectedly―theories are bandied about, and rivalries, rifts, and broken hearts are revealed. But who’s really trying to get away with murder? Release Date: April 30, 2024 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b02d2c98-588f-443a-a6d5-85bf07e7f891/75491526.jpg Blog - April Book Releases - King of Sloth by Ana Huang He'd never wanted anyone enough to chase them...until he met her. Charming, easygoing, and rich beyond belief, Xavier Castillo has the world at his fingertips. He also has no interest in taking over his family’s empire (much to his father’s chagrin), but that hasn’t stopped women from throwing themselves at him…unless the woman in question is his publicist. Nothing brings him more joy than riling her up, but when a tragedy forces them closer than ever, he must grapple with the uncertainty of his future—and the realization that the only person immune to his charms is the only one he truly wants. *** Cool, intelligent, and ambitious, Sloane Kensington is a high-powered publicist who’s used to dealing with difficult clients. However, none infuriate—or tempt—her more than a certain billionaire heir, with his stupid dimples and laid-back attitude. She may be forced to work with him, but she’ll never fall for him…no matter how fast he makes her heart beat or how thoughtful he is beneath his party persona. He’s her client, and that’s all he’ll ever be. Right? Release Date: April 30, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/83161d00-4d85-416d-98cd-aaa3b6f3d8ee/194020321.jpg Blog - April Book Releases - Home is Where The Bodies Are by Jeneva Rose After their mother passes, three estranged siblings reunite to sort out her estate. Beth, the oldest, never left home. She stayed with her mom, caring for her until the very end. Nicole, the middle child, has been kept at arm's length due to her ongoing battle with a serious drug addiction. Michael, the youngest, lives out of state and hasn't been back to their small Wisconsin town since their father ran out on them seven years before. While going through their parent's belongings, the siblings stumble upon a collection of home videos and decide to revisit those happier memories. However, the nostalgia is cut short when one of the VHS tapes reveals a night back in 1999 that none of them have any recollection of. On screen, their father appears covered in blood. What follows is a dead body and a pact between their parents to get rid of it, before the video abruptly ends. Beth, Nicole, and Michael must now decide whether to leave the past in the past or uncover the dark secret their mother took to her grave. Release Date: April 30, 2024 Genre: Thriller https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/rom-coms monthly 0.5 2024-03-06 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/dcc684c1-fc0b-49d2-8b7a-ddc70f8f3e73/58724801.jpg Blog - Rom Com’s - The Bodyguard by Katherine Center She's got his back. He's got her heart. They've got a secret. What could possibly go wrong? Hannah Brooks looks more like a kindergarten teacher than somebody who could kill you with her bare hands. But the truth is, she's an elite bodyguard and she's just been hired to protect a superstar actor from his stalker. Jack Stapleton's a Hollywood heartthrob - captured by paparazzi on beaches the world over, rising out of the waves in clingy board shorts and glistening like a Roman deity. When Jack's mom gets sick, he comes home to the family's Texas ranch to help out. Only one catch: He doesn't want his family to know about his stalker. Or the bodyguard thing. And so Hannah - against her will and her better judgment - finds herself pretending to be Jack's girlfriend as a cover. Protecting Jack should be easy. But protecting her own heart? That's the hardest thing she's ever done... https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6f314092-9eaa-4d22-b9b9-b0fc8bf833be/41945163.jpg Blog - Rom Com’s - The Friend Zone by Abby Jimenez Kristen Petersen doesn't do drama, will fight to the death for her friends, and has no room in her life for guys who just don't get her. She's also keeping a big secret: facing a medically necessary procedure that will make it impossible for her to have children. Planning her best friend's wedding is bittersweet for Kristen—especially when she meets the best man, Josh Copeland. He's funny, sexy, never offended by her mile-wide streak of sarcasm, and always one chicken enchilada ahead of her hangry. Even her dog, Stuntman Mike, adores him. The only catch: Josh wants a big family someday. Kristen knows he'd be better off with someone else, but as their attraction grows, it's harder and harder to keep him at arm's length. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/fe425565-5e42-453b-8a63-f4e07119e2ba/54304013.jpg Blog - Rom Com’s - Shipped by Angie Hockman Between taking night classes for her MBA and her demanding day job at a cruise line, marketing manager Henley Evans barely has time for herself, let alone family, friends, or dating. But when she’s shortlisted for the promotion of her dreams, all her sacrifices finally seem worth it. The only problem? Graeme Crawford-Collins, the remote social media manager and the bane of her existence, is also up for the position. Although they’ve never met in person, their epic email battles are the stuff of office legend. Their boss tasks each of them with drafting a proposal on how to boost bookings in the Galápagos—best proposal wins the promotion. There’s just one catch: they have to go on a company cruise to the Galápagos Islands...together. But when the two meet on the ship, Henley is shocked to discover that the real Graeme is nothing like she imagined. As they explore the Islands together, she soon finds the line between loathing and liking thinner than a postcard. With her career dreams in her sights and a growing attraction to the competition, Henley begins questioning her life choices. Because what’s the point of working all the time if you never actually live? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f4fce95e-ce73-4285-8e38-a37a1c4e2dce/58885776.jpg Blog - Rom Com’s - The Dead Romantics by Ashley Poston Florence Day is the ghostwriter for one of the most prolific romance authors in the industry, and she has a problem—after a terrible breakup, she no longer believes in love. It’s as good as dead. When her new editor, a too-handsome mountain of a man, won’t give her an extension on her book deadline, Florence prepares to kiss her career goodbye. But then she gets a phone call she never wanted to receive, and she must return home for the first time in a decade to help her family bury her beloved father. For ten years, she’s run from the town that never understood her, and even though she misses the sound of a warm Southern night and her eccentric, loving family and their funeral parlor, she can’t bring herself to stay. Even with her father gone, it feels like nothing in this town has changed. And she hates it. Until she finds a ghost standing at the funeral parlor’s front door, just as broad and infuriatingly handsome as ever, and he’s just as confused about why he’s there as she is. Romance is most certainly dead... but so is her new editor, and his unfinished business will have her second-guessing everything she’s ever known about love stories. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bbdb7c8a-d37f-4936-980d-dc25c13b1fab/60191114.jpg Blog - Rom Com’s - My Killer Vacation by Tessa Bailey It was supposed to be a relaxing vacation in sweet, sunny Cape Cod—just me and my beloved brother—but discovering a corpse in our rental house really throws a wrench into our tanning schedule. Now a rude, crude bounty hunter has arrived on the back of his motorcycle to catch the killer and refuses to believe I can be helpful, despite countless hours of true crime podcast listening. Not to mention a fulfilling teaching career of wrangling second graders. A brash bounty hunter and an energetic elementary schoolteacher: the murder-solving team no one asked for, but thanks to these pesky attempts on my life, we're stuck together, come hell or high tide. I'm just here to do a job, not babysit an amateur sleuth. Although… it is becoming less and less of a hardship to have her around. Sure, she's stubborn, distracting and can't stay out of harm's way. She's also brave and beautiful and reminds me of the home I left behind three years ago. In other words, the painful hunger and protectiveness she is waking up in me is a threat to my peace of mind. Before I sink any deeper into this dangerous attraction, I need to solve this murder and get back on the road. But will fate take her from me before I realize the road has been leading to her all along? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/873cd403-0020-4273-bb32-1e92b17e0b95/55710822.jpg Blog - Rom Com’s - Better Than the Movies by Lynn Painter Perpetual daydreamer Liz Buxbaum gave her heart to Michael a long time ago. But her cool, aloof forever crush never really saw her before he moved away. Now that he’s back in town, Liz will do whatever it takes to get on his radar - and maybe snag him as a prom date - even befriend Wes Bennet. The annoyingly attractive next-door neighbor might seem like a prime candidate for romantic-comedy fantasies, but Wes has only been a pain in Liz’s butt since they were kids. Pranks involving frogs and decapitated lawn gnomes do not a potential boyfriend make. Yet, somehow, Wes and Michael are hitting it off, which means Wes is Liz’s in. But as Liz and Wes scheme to get Liz noticed by Michael so she can have her magical prom moment, she’s shocked to discover that she likes being around Wes. And as they continue to grow closer, she must reexamine everything she thought she knew about love - and rethink her own ideas of what happily ever after should look like. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c52b032a-a328-447d-95b2-44e8dc269dd3/50027029.jpg Blog - Rom Com’s - You Deserve Each Other by Sarah Hogle Naomi Westfield has the perfect fiancé: Nicholas Rose holds doors open for her, remembers her restaurant orders, and comes from the kind of upstanding society family any bride would love to be a part of. They never fight. They're preparing for their lavish wedding that's three months away. And she is miserably and utterly sick of him. Naomi wants out, but there's a catch: whoever ends the engagement will have to foot the nonrefundable wedding bill. When Naomi discovers that Nicholas, too, has been feigning contentment, the two of them go head-to-head in a battle of pranks, sabotage, and all-out emotional warfare. But with the countdown looming to the wedding that may or may not come to pass, Naomi finds her resolve slipping. Because now that they have nothing to lose, they're finally being themselves--and having fun with the last person they expect: each other https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8224d251-2747-48dc-b152-26639feb3bd7/54870201.jpg Blog - Rom Com’s - Just Last Night by Mhairi McFarlane Eve, Justin, Susie, and Ed have been friends since they were teenagers. Now in their thirties, the four are as close as ever, Thursday pub trivia night is sacred, and Eve is still secretly in love with Ed. Maybe she should have moved on by now, but she can’t stop thinking about what could have been. And she knows Ed still thinks about it, too. But then, in an instant, their lives are changed forever. In the aftermath, Eve’s world is upended. As stunning secrets are revealed, she begins to wonder if she really knew her friends as well as she thought. And when someone from the past comes back into her life, Eve’s future veers in a surprising new direction... They say every love story starts with a single moment. What if it was just last night? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/32f46dea-b151-4bb1-82f4-240f125c98ba/36478784.jpg Blog - Rom Com’s - The Flatshare by Beth O’Leary Tiffy and Leon share a flat Tiffy and Leon share a bed Tiffy and Leon have never met… Tiffy Moore needs a cheap flat, and fast. Leon Twomey works nights and needs cash. Their friends think they’re crazy, but it’s the perfect solution: Leon occupies the one-bed flat while Tiffy’s at work in the day, and she has the run of the place the rest of the time. But with obsessive ex-boyfriends, demanding clients at work, wrongly imprisoned brothers and, of course, the fact that they still haven’t met yet, they’re about to discover that if you want the perfect home you need to throw the rulebook out the window… https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/february-book-club-reviews monthly 0.5 2024-02-29 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/sports-romance-recommendations monthly 0.5 2024-02-22 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/235bb05d-f785-4537-8562-f6a98e6bf975/200986171._SX300_.jpg Blog - Sports Romance Recommendations - 5 Rounds by Nikki Castle She's a feisty workaholic that hates his guts. He's an arrogant MMA fighter that can't afford any distractions. This isn't the kind of fight they're used to... When Remy is suddenly evicted from her apartment, her best friend offers to let her crash at his house while he's traveling for work. The only problem is, she can't stand his arrogant, self-centered roommate, Tristan. Now, she has to figure out how to live in the same house with him for ten days while dealing with all the temptation that comes with… including punching Tristan’s smug face in. But when one night strips them of their masks and exposes the truth, they’re forced to reexamine how they really feel about each other. While Remy struggles with her attraction to this notorious womanizer, Tristan has to decide if his feelings for Remy are worth it, or if they'll just distract him from his longtime goal of becoming a world champion. Can Tristan and Remy drop their guards long enough to fall in love? Or will old prejudices deliver the final blow? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/19211b43-6102-4cb8-832e-5978fc246675/58383539.jpg Blog - Sports Romance Recommendations - Jock Reign by Sara Ney IT’S NOT EASY LIVING IN YOUR BROTHERS SHADOW. Jack Dryden-Jones is easily the worst rugby player on the field—when he moves to The States to follow in his brothers footsteps, he has no idea how he’d hate the game. He’s so horrible he considers faking an injury to take himself out of the game. Jack is a quick-witted, comic book loving gentleman—not an athlete. DO NOT DATE YOUR ROOMMATES CRUSH. When her roommate brings home a random stranger, Eliza is shocked when he makes himself at home; he’s strapping, strong and watching a movie at the end of her couch as if he belongs there. It makes her uncomfortable in the best way possible. But if there is one thing she believes in, it’s GIRL CODE: No girl may date her friend's ex, past crush, or guys who have humiliated/used her. And she most certainly may not date any guy her friend currently fancies... DO SO AT YOUR OWN RISK. Jack and Eliza are two of the good ones—it’s going to take a miracle to keep them apart. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/65453646-2159-4668-a002-4393e0541434/197481303.jpg Blog - Sports Romance Recommendations - On the Edge by K. Bromberg Surely this can’t be the only solution to overhaul my tarnished rep – faking a romance with the good girl intern? But that’s what my agent says. Just a few months of taming my ways—of shedding Formula 1’s party boy image—will land me a lifetime branding deal. One I desperately need. The key condition? Pretend I’m madly in love with my new girlfriend. The quiet wallflower who I figured wouldn’t put me in my place. Yeah. This girl is anything but that. Maddix Hart is defiant and intelligent. Loyal and real. Determined and sexy. And damn it to hell, before I know it, she’s in my head, in our bed . . . and if I’m not careful, she’ll see there’s more to me than the man I show the public. She’ll discover the man I hide from the world. The one who struggles to live up to the unrealistic expectations that should never have been mine. All I have to do is make sure no one sees the truth behind our farce. But instead, I let my heart get involved. I begin to believe the lie. And now with everything on the line—the deal, a championship, us—am I willing to risk it all to make her see what the rest of the world believes? That we belong together. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ee153f20-37e4-456d-b0cf-b110e696174e/200142767.jpg Blog - Sports Romance Recommendations - Luxe by Melissa Adams Rich, powerful, gorgeous- these star football players are every girl’s dream. And they choose me. The new girl on campus, I find myself swept into the billionaires’ world of wild parties and exclusive events. I’m offered a place at their side, but there’s a price to be paid for the attention. There’s a cost for them too, the Bridgeport Knights’ star players. They are unable to refuse the invitation to an evil secret society, passed down through the generations, and the key to the Luxe room with all its privileges and hazards. And for me, being a “Luxe Girl” is more dangerous than I ever dreamed. One girl after another is targeted, and I know I’m next. Caught up in a web of dark secrets and lies, can I trust my three Knights to protect me? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/57daf665-a620-4664-a39d-6a4eae682991/198638176.jpg Blog - Sports Romance Recommendations - The One with the Kiss Cam by Cindy Steel It was just one date. My friend told me I needed more fun in my life, so I reluctantly said yes. Fun wasn’t exactly in my wheelhouse. After watching my own mother’s love life implode time and time again it’s only natural that I have a few rules to protect myself. Actually, it’s just one rule… Avoid relationships with men so I don’t get attached. I wasn’t worried. Getting attached has never been a big problem for me. This guy was just a warm body in a chair. I was here for the basketball game. I was absolutely NOT here for my date. Or the kiss cam. Or the kiss. Or the impromptu evening with the one man who seems bent on throwing my tidy world off of its axis. But when my life takes a nose dive, he’s also the man who seems bent on proving to me that good men do exist, dreams can come true, and sometimes throwing out the rule book is when the magic really starts to happen. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/15b4c26d-224f-4661-b79d-e85d590b5dc1/62236489.jpg Blog - Sports Romance Recommendations - The Hardest Fall by Ella Maise The first time you meet someone, you make eye contact. You smile, say hello. Should be simple, if you’re anyone but me. The first time I met Dylan Reed, I found myself making eye contact with a different part of his body. You see, I’m very good at being shy, not to mention extremely well-versed in rambling nonsense and, unfortunately, rather highly skilled at making a fool of myself in front of a guy I’m attracted to. At the time, I knew nothing about him and thought none of what I said would matter since I’d never speak to him again. Turns out, I was very wrong. He was the star wide receiver of the football team, one of the few players expected to make it into the NFL, and I ended up seeing him all over campus. I might have also propositioned him, run away from him, attacked him with a cooking utensil…and…uh, maybe I shouldn’t tell you all of it. It’s pretty normal stuff, things you’d expect…from me. Eventually, the time came when I couldn’t hide anymore—not that he’d have let me even if I tried. Before now, he never knew I was secretly watching him. Now that we see each other every day, he knows when I have a hard time looking away. It doesn’t help that I’m not the most subtle person in the world either. He smiles at me and tells me he finds me fascinating because of my quirks. I can’t even tell him that I think my heart beats differently whenever he’s around. He thinks we’re going to be best friends. I think I have a big thing for him, and the more I get to know him, the more I don’t care that I’m not allowed to be his friend, let alone fall for him. The thing is, that’s exactly what I’m doing—what we’re doing, I think. Falling. Hard. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/65233956-ed17-444f-8469-0189a12b584a/177704614.jpg Blog - Sports Romance Recommendations - Only When It’s Us by Chloe Liese From the moment Willa sat next to Ryder in class, she’s made it clear she hates his guts. Her reason is a mystery, but its outcome suits him fine. Willa Sutter is the feisty, tempting chaos he doesn’t need in his quiet, tidy life. She’s the next generation of women’s soccer. Wild hair. Bee-stung lips. And a temper that makes the devil seem friendly. He’ll leverage her hate as long as possible to keep his distance. When Willa asked Ryder to borrow his lecture notes, the silent, surly, mountain man ignored her. Ryder Bergman is an arrogant, infuriating flannel-wearing enigma. Mangy beard. Frayed ball cap that hides his eyes. And a stubborn refusal to acknowledge her existence. But Willa’s never backed down from a challenge. Forced to work together on their final project, Willa and Ryder begin a game of pranks and practical jokes, each determined to come out the champion. But once they catch unexpected feelings, victory begins to mean something else—winning each other’s hearts. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/10d1f674-0c5d-42dd-857c-4aae0c7141ad/63881688.jpg Blog - Sports Romance Recommendations - The Faceoff by Cali Melle After experiencing a nasty break-up during my freshman year, there is one type of guy that I refuse to get involved with. Anyone from the university’s hockey team. Hayden King is arrogant, cocky, has a reputation for being a playboy and there isn’t a single thing about him that I like. One drunken summer night turns into a bad decision with Hayden. One that I swear that I’ll never make again. But once senior year starts, I can’t seem to get away from him. He’s everywhere I go, everywhere I turn. He’s under my skin and I find myself making mistake after mistake with him. We better learn from our mistakes before our hearts get involved… Eden Finley is as cold as the ice that she skates on. She’s the best figure skater at Wyncote University and I don’t know how I missed her when I first came here. After one night with her over the summer, I can’t get her out of my head. She has a chip on her shoulder, a nasty attitude and she hates my guts. Which all only makes her more appealing. I live for the chase, for the challenge. And Eden Finley has no idea what she’s gotten herself into…. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8b2da188-4561-454e-a346-c37e1c80a227/184591636.jpg Blog - Sports Romance Recommendations - The Fake Out by Stephanie Archer The best way to get back at my horrible ex? Fake date Rory Miller--my ex's rival, the top scorer in pro hockey, and the arrogant, flirtatious hockey player I tutored in high school. Faking it is fun and addictive, though, and beneath the bad boy swagger, Rory’s sweet, funny, and protective. He teaches me to skate and spends way too much money on me. He sleeps in my bed and convinces me to break my just-one-time hookup rule. He kisses me like it’s real. And now I wonder if Rory was ever faking it to begin with. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/cc76cbd5-dcd0-45bd-853e-2ee04da6cb5c/199020721-2.jpg Blog - Sports Romance Recommendations - Night Shift by Annie Crown Kendall Holiday spends her Friday nights exactly where she wants to be: with her head buried in a spicy romance novel while she works the graveyard shift at her university's library. She knows she could join her friends for a weekend of drunken debauchery and college parties, but she likes her alone time, so she tells herself she isn't hiding when she gets lost in the pages of fictional love stories. But that all changes when Vincent Knight, captain of the basketball team, turns up with an injured wrist, a sour mood, and a pressing need for poetry recommendations for a class he hates. Vincent is tall, smart-mouthed, and challenges Kendall like no one has before. Suddenly, she's falling headfirst into her very own romance novel—but it takes a lot more truth than tropes to get to a happy ever after in real life. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b6513378-73f5-4c98-9f6b-ab71380a4b31/123238776.jpg Blog - Sports Romance Recommendations - Against the Clock by Brittany Kelley I'll never date a football player— but all the veteran quarterback wants? Me. Daniel My life’s defined by my long career as a quarterback. I’m determined to have a great season, because I’m not sure how many I have left. But when I slam into gorgeous reporter Kelsey Cole on the sidelines, my focus on the game takes a backseat to my fascination with her. She’s tiny, smart, and fierce, and she makes me feel young again. Only one problem: she hates football—with good reason, too. Still, you don’t become a champion quarterback without learning how to fight for what you want. Football’s always come first, but Kelsey might be the one to change that. Kelsey The last thing I need is to get involved with huge and handsome quarterback Daniel Harrison. Under all those muscles he’s hiding charm and a surprising intellect— an irresistible combination. I can’t deny our chemistry, but I can’t stand what he does for a living. Not to mention, once the internet starts shipping us, the spotlight becomes unbearable. The fans will hate me even more when they find out I’m writing a piece that could leave the league they love in shambles. There’s no future for the hot quarterback and I— so why can’t I say goodbye? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/80be793a-a77f-401e-836a-af5ec05f9670/44178049.jpg Blog - Sports Romance Recommendations - Rock Bottom Girl by Lucy Score Downsized, broke, and dumped, 38-year-old Marley sneaks home to her childhood bedroom in the town she couldn’t wait to escape twenty years ago. Not much has changed in Culpepper. The cool kids are still cool. Now they just own car dealerships and live in McMansions next door. Oh, and the whole town is still talking about that Homecoming she ruined her senior year. Desperate for a new start, Marley accepts a temporary teaching position. Can the girl banned from all future Culpepper High Homecomings keep the losing-est girls soccer team in school history from killing each other and prevent carpal tunnel in a bunch of phone-clutching gym class students? Maybe with the help of Jake Weston, high school bad boy turned sexy good guy. When the school rumor mill sends Marley to the principal’s office to sign an ethics contract, the tattooed track coach, dog dad, and teacher of the year becomes her new fake boyfriend and alibi—for a price. The Deal: He’ll teach her how to coach if she teaches him how to be in a relationship. Who knew a fake boyfriend could deliver such real orgasms? But it’s all temporary. The guy. The job. The team. There’s too much history. Rock bottom can’t turn into a foundation for happily ever after. Can it? https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/march-new-releases monthly 0.5 2024-02-14 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/35b0249b-75ec-4ab8-bc72-19c6ef7dd525/61250159.jpg Blog - March New Releases - The Prisoner’s Throne by Holly Black An imprisoned prince. A vengeful queen. And a battle that will determine the future of Elfhame. Prince Oak is paying for his betrayal. Imprisoned in the icy north and bound to the will of a monstrous new queen, he must rely on charm and calculation to survive. With High King Cardan and High Queen Jude ready to use any means necessary to retrieve their stolen heir, should Oak attempt to regain the trust of the girl he's always loved, or remain loyal to Elfhame and hand over the means to end her reign-even if it means ending Wren, too... With war looming and treachery lurking in every corner, neither Oak's guile nor his wit will be enough to keep everyone he loves alive. He will have some terrible choices to make. Release Date: March 5, 2024 Genre: YA Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/52acaec1-7239-47ed-8630-abb8d0daaaff/150444412.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Kilt Trip by Alexandra Kiley Ready or Scot... Globetrotter Addie Macrae always follows her wanderlust. As a travel consultant, she jet sets around the world—anywhere but Scotland. But when she’s sent on assignment to help a struggling family-run tour company in the Highlands—and save her own job—Addie packs away her emotional baggage and turns on the professional charm. Rugged as the land he loves, Logan Sutherland’s greatest joy is sharing the beauty of Scotland’s hidden gems…even if it means a wee bit of red ink on the company’s bottom line. The last thing Logan wants is some American “expert” pushing tourist traps and perpetuating myths about the Loch Ness Monster—especially when Addie never leaves her desk to experience the country for herself. As they wage an office war, Logan discovers Addie’s secret connection to Scotland: a handful of faded Polaroids of her late mother. Hoping for a truce, he creates a private tour to the places in the pictures to help Addie find closure and appreciate the enchantment in less-traveled destinations, never expecting the off-limits attraction sparking between them. But Addie’s contract is almost up, and magic won’t pay the bills. They can’t afford distractions, but how can Addie do her job if she hasn’t explored all Scotland—and Logan—have to offer? Release Date: March 5, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a3b791c3-3584-41d2-8c05-c4e5e81b8747/157000386.jpg Blog - March New Releases - The Summer She Went Missing by Chelsea Ichaso Last summer, they searched for Audrey Covington. This summer, they'll search for the truth. Paige Redmond has always felt lucky to spend her summers in Clearwater Ridge, with lazy days sunning at the waterfalls and nights partying at the sprawling houses of the rich families who vacation there. The Covingtons are one of these families, and beautiful, brilliant Audrey Covington is Paige's best friend. And last year, when Audrey's crush-worthy brother Dylan finally started noticing Paige, she was sure it would be the best summer ever. Except Audrey didn't seem quite like herself. Then one night, she didn't come home. Though Audrey wasn't the first girl to disappear in Clearwater Ridge, she left behind more lies than clues. Now, one summer later, her case has gone cold, and nobody, least of all Paige, can make sense of what happened. When Paige stumbles across a secret hidden in Audrey's room, however, it changes everything she thought she knew about last summer. She and Dylan set out on their own investigation, discovering things even the police don't know about the people of Clearwater Ridge. But tracking down missing girls—girls who might be beyond saving by now—means entering a world far darker than Paige has ever imagined. And if she isn't careful, she'll become the next girl to vanish. Release Date: March 5, 2024 Genre: YA Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6c08f300-67d7-4124-a72d-59139fa2cc66/173953567.jpg Blog - March New Releases - What Monstrous Gods by Rosamund Hodge Centuries ago, the heretic sorcerer Ruven raised a deadly briar around Runakhia's palace, casting the royal family into an enchanted sleep - and silencing the kingdom's gods. Born with a miraculous gift, Lia's destiny is to kill Ruven and wake the royals. But when she succeeds, she finds her duty is not yet complete, for now she must marry into the royal family and forge a pact with a god - or die. To make matters even worse, Ruven's spirit is haunting her. As discord grows between the old and new guards, the queen sends Lia and Prince Araunn, her betrothed, on a pilgrimage to awaken the gods. But the old gods are more dangerous than Lia ever knew - and Ruven may offer her only hope of survival. As the two work together, Lia learns that they're more alike than she expected. And with tensions rising, Lia must choose between what she was raised to believe and what she knows is right - and between the prince she is bound to by duty...and the boy she killed. Release Date: March 5, 2024 Genre: YA Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e669fe80-ad0a-4050-9cbc-84bc17b68189/60643010.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Bad Like Us by Gabriella Lepore Spring break is a vibe—until someone gets murdered Partying with popular classmates they barely know is not what Eva and her BFFs had in mind for their spring break. But things have been off ever since Miles' academic career took a turn for the worse (they don't talk about it), so a trip to a private beach lodge might be exactly what they need. And Eva won’t admit it, but the chance to reconnect with Colton is worth putting up with Piper’s constant livestreams to her thousands of “besties.” At first, it’s all sand and waves, but tensions run high when an anonymous letter shakes up an already-flailing love triangle. When someone turns up dead, Eva can’t even trust her closest friends—but she thinks she can trust Colton. As they get closer to the truth, they uncover secrets that upend everything they thought they knew about their fellow spring breakers. Release Date: March 5, 2024 Genre: YA Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/10539dde-407b-42b4-b96d-f718f8971715/61431953.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Bloodguard by Cecy Robson One hundred years. Tens of thousands of gladiators. And today, only one will rise… Everything in the Kingdom of Arrow is a lie. Leith of Grey thought coming to this new land and volunteering to fight in the gladiator arena—vicious, bloodthirsty tournaments where only the strongest survive—would earn him enough gold to save his dying sister. He thought there was nothing left to lose. He was wrong—and they took everything. His hope. His freedom. His very humanity. All Leith has left is his battle-scarred body, fueled by rage and hardened from years of fighting for the right to live another day. Then Leith meets Maeve, an elven royal who is everything he despises. Everything he should hate. Until the alluring princess offers him the one thing he needs most: a chance to win the coveted title of Bloodguard—and his freedom. But in a kingdom built on secrets and lies, hope doesn’t come cheap. Nor will his ultimate revenge… Release Date: March 5, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/d0a6f8c2-1f30-4c12-8c19-499bc64ebcb9/150352946.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Women of Good Fortune by Sophie Wan Lulu has always been taught that money is the ticket to a good life. So, when Shanghai’s most eligible bachelor surprises her with a proposal, the only acceptable answer is yes, even if the voice inside her head is saying no. His family’s fortune would solve all her parents’ financial woes, but Lulu isn’t in love or ready for marriage. The only people she can confide in are her two best friends: career-minded Rina, who is tired of being passed over for promotion as her biological clock ticks away; and Jane, a sharp-tongued, luxury-chasing housewife desperate to divorce her husband and trade up. Each of them desires something different: freedom, time, beauty. None of them can get it without money. Lulu’s wedding is their golden opportunity. The social event of the season, it means more than enough cash gifts to transform the women’s lives. To steal the money on the big day, all they’ll need is a trustworthy crew and a brilliant plan. But as the plot grows increasingly complicated and relationships are caught in the cross fire, the women are forced to face that having it all might come at a steep price… Release Date: March 5, 2024 Genre: Contemporary Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a3f33309-297b-43ef-9d19-f4605516a793/197894208.jpg Blog - March New Releases - The Woman with No Name by Audrey Blake She'll light the fire of resistance―but she may get burned… 1942. Though she survived the bomb that destroyed her home, Yvonne Rudellat's life is over. She's estranged from her husband, her daughter is busy with war work, and Yvonne―older, diminutive, overlooked―has lost all purpose. Until she's offered a chance to remake herself entirely… The war has taken a turn for the worse, and the men in charge are desperate. So, when Yvonne is recruited as Britain's first female sabotage agent, expectations are low. But her tenacity, ability to go unnoticed, and aptitude for explosives set her apart. Soon enough she arrives in occupied France with a new identity, ready to set the Nazi regime ablaze. But there are adversaries on all sides. As Yvonne becomes infamous as the nameless, unstoppable woman who burns the enemy at every turn, she realizes she may lose herself to the urgent needs of the cause… Release Date: March 12, 2024 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4242ddf0-cd97-482c-b379-1a52666611fa/196700456-2.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Happily Never After by Lynn Painter When Sophie Steinbeck finds out just before her nuptials that her fiancé has cheated yet again, she desperately wants to call it off. But because her future father-in-law is her dad’s cutthroat boss, she doesn’t want to be the one to do it. Her savior comes in the form of a professional objector, whose purpose is to show up at weddings and proclaim the words no couple (usually) wants to hear at their ceremony: “I object!” During anti-wedding festivities that night, Sophie learns more about Max the Objector’s job. It makes perfect sense to her: he saves people from wasting their lives, from hurting each other. He’s a modern-day hero. And Sophie wants in. The two love cynics start working together, going from wedding to wedding, and Sophie’s having more fun than she’s had in ages. She looks forward to every nerve-racking ceremony saving the lovesick souls of the betrothed masses. As Sophie and Max spend more time together, however, they realize that their physical chemistry is off the charts, leading them to dabble in a little hookup session or two—but it’s totally fine, because they definitely do not have feelings for each other. Love doesn’t exist, after all. And then everything changes. A groom-to-be hires Sophie to object, but his fiancée is the woman who broke Max’s heart. As Max wrestles with whether he can be a party to his ex’s getting hurt, Sophie grapples with the sudden realization that she may have fallen hard for her partner in crime. Release Date: March 12, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/38637e84-732f-4aee-9867-b974674ac766/56670031.jpg Blog - March New Releases - A Touch of Chaos by Scarlett St. Clair The World Will Burn Persephone, Goddess of Spring, never guessed a chance encounter with Hades, God of the Underworld, would change her life forever—but he did. A fight for humanity and battles between gods, it's a world Persephone never thought she would see. To end the chaos, she must draw upon her darkness and embrace who she's become—Goddess, Wife, Queen of the Underworld. Once, Persephone made bargains to save those she loves, now she will go to war for them. Release Date: March 12, 2024 Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/54ea3c2d-02f4-4579-9433-8c4952b51c9c/156347494.jpg Blog - March New Releases - The Day Tripper by James Goodhand The right guy, the right place, the wrong time. It’s 1995, and Alex Dean has it a spot at Cambridge University next year, the love of an amazing woman named Holly and all the time in the world ahead of him. That is until a brutal encounter with a ghost from his past sees him beaten, battered and almost drowning in the Thames. He wakes the next day to find he’s in a messy, derelict room he’s never seen before, in grimy clothes he doesn’t recognize, with no idea of how he got there. A glimpse in the mirror tells him he’s older—much older—and has been living a hard life, his features ravaged by time and poor decisions. He snatches a newspaper and finds it’s 2010—fifteen years since the fight. After finally drifting off to sleep, Alex wakes the following morning to find it’s now 2019, another nine years later. But the next day, it’s 1999. Never knowing which day is coming, he begins to piece together what happens in his life after that fateful night by the river. But what exactly is going on? Why does his life look nothing like he thought it would? What about Cambridge, and Holly? In this page-turning adventure, Alex must navigate his way through the years to learn that small actions have untold impact. And that might be all he needs to save the people he loves and, equally importantly, himself. Release Date: March 19, 2024 Genre: Science Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/79978a73-f806-431b-ac8f-b043b659dde6/195532965.jpg Blog - March New Releases - Swift and Saddled by Lyla Sage She’s the city girl who refuses to be saddled with a man. He’s the cowboy who wants her anyway. The last thing Ada Hart needs is a man to take care of her. Not anymore. After failing out of her interior design program and the disaster that was her short-lived marriage, Ada clawed her way up from her rock bottom. Now, the only person she trusts is herself, and that has gotten her further than ever before. She has her own business, and one of the largest ranches in Wyoming just hired her for the most important project of her career. When Ada arrives in Meadowlark, she finds herself in a dive bar where she can’t seem to shake the eyes of a handsome cowboy. When she leads him to the back of the bar, he leaves her with a kiss that most people can only fantasize about. She almost regrets that she’ll never see him again . . . except it turns out he’s her new boss. Weston Ryder is a happy guy. Even happier now that the mystery woman from the bar is the interior designer for his dream project on his family’s ranch. He feels like he hit the jackpot. It’s too bad she wants absolutely nothing to do with him outside of work. Ada is convinced the pull she feels toward Wes will go away, but Wes can’t stop thinking about her. Even though walls are coming down around Rebel Blue, Ada’s walls are firmly in place. Can they make it through this project without giving in? Or will they both put their dreams on the line for a chance at love? Release Date: March 25, 2024 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/cf491a1c-7d4b-4233-8ffb-aa397fc4a193/181350367.jpg Blog - March New Releases - How to Solve Your Own Murder by Kristen Perrin For fans of Knives Out and The Thursday Murder Club , an enormously fun mystery about a woman who spends her entire life trying to prevent her foretold murder only to be proven right sixty years later, when she is found dead in her sprawling country estate... Now it's up to her great-niece to catch the killer. It’s 1965 and teenage Frances Adams is at an English country fair with her two best friends. But Frances’s night takes a hairpin turn when a fortune-teller makes a bone-chilling prediction: One day, Frances will be murdered. Frances spends a lifetime trying to solve a crime that hasn’t happened yet, compiling dirt on every person who crosses her path in an effort to prevent her own demise. For decades, no one takes Frances seriously, until nearly sixty years later, when Frances is found murdered, like she always said she would be. In the present day, Annie Adams has been summoned to a meeting at the sprawling country estate of her wealthy and reclusive great-aunt Frances. But by the time Annie arrives in the quaint English village of Castle Knoll, Frances is already dead. Annie is determined to catch the killer, but thanks to Frances’s lifelong habit of digging up secrets and lies, it seems every endearing and eccentric villager might just have a motive for her murder. Can Annie safely unravel the dark mystery at the heart of Castle Knoll, or will dredging up the past throw her into the path of a killer? As Annie gets closer to the truth, and closer to the danger, she starts to fear she might inherit her aunt’s fate instead of her fortune. Release Date: March 26, 2024 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ecbe67de-ac20-4136-b470-da0a34784248/90587135.jpg Blog - March New Releases - The Princess of Las Vegas by Chris Bohjalian THE PRINCESS IS FAKE. THE MURDERS ARE REAL • From the New York Times bestselling author of The Flight Attendant and The Lioness, a Princess Diana impersonator and her estranged sister find themselves drawn into a dangerous game of money and murder in this twisting tale of organized crime, cryptocurrency, and family secrets on the Las Vegas strip. Crissy Dowling has created a world that suits her perfectly. She passes her days by the pool in a private cabana, she splurges on ice cream but never gains an ounce, and each evening she transforms into a Princess, performing her musical cabaret inspired by the life of the late Diana Spencer. Some might find her strange or even delusional, an American speaking with a British accent, hair feathered into a style thirty years old, living and working in a casino that has become a dated trash heap. On top of that, Crissy’s daily diet of Adderall and Valium leaves her more than a little tipsy, her Senator boyfriend has gone back to his wife, and her entire career rests on resembling a dead woman. And yet, fans see her for the gifted chameleon she is, showering her with gifts, letters, and standing ovations night after night. But when Crissy’s sister, Betsy, arrives in town with a new boyfriend and a teenage daughter, and when Richie Morley, the owner of the Buckingham Palace Casino, is savagely murdered, Crissy’s carefully constructed kingdom comes crashing down all around her. Release Date: March 26, 2024 Genre: Historical Fiction/Mystery https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/romance-books monthly 0.5 2024-02-06 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5b1954ef-0b1b-4b58-aeb2-3a3407416c65/197042720.jpg Blog - Romance Books - The Bookbinder’s Guide to Love by Katherine Garbera As a lonely foster kid, Serafina Conte sought refuge in handmaking journals—and writing her wishes within their pages. Now, in the quirky new age store she shares with her two best friends, Sera’s intentions have paid off. Her journals are in the spotlight—and rumored to manifest great things. Whether it’s witchy skills, real magic or not, Sera’s finally ready to be the leading lady of her life story… Until her plot hits a twist. After the death of her mentor, Ford Sitwell, all the loneliness and insecurity of her past returns. The only balm is the box of antique books he left to her. But Ford’s suspicious brooding grandson, Wes, is ready to think the worst of her—and get his grandfather’s books back! The first part doesn’t bother her. The second? Forget it. Sera won’t give Wes the books so easily. But it’s clear he’s seeking something more, an emotional connection no book can replace. So she offers a deal—work in her store for six weeks, and in return, she’ll help him get closure by sharing memories of his late grandfather. Yes, Wes seems grumpy, but actually he’s hot …and maybe kind? Deep down? And when desire and vulnerability work their charms, Sera begins to wonder if the best stories aren’t the ones you intend, but the ones that take you where you least expected… https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9b1b31f1-2631-4931-883d-6201c590d461/200645359.jpg Blog - Romance Books - Love at First Flight by Jo Watson After four months of only speaking over intercom, when air-traffic controller Pippa Edwards finally meets pilot Andrew Boyce-Jones face-to-face, they discover they've got much more in common than simply working at the same airport. In fact . . . they both need a date. Tired of every relationship ending before it's even begun, Pippa wants to evade the inevitable questions at her dreaded ten-year school reunion in Cape Town. And Andrew needs to get his well-meaning family off his back about settling down. The solution seems simple. A pact - a fake dating pact - for as long as it's mutually beneficial. It's perfect. Or at least it would be if their very real attraction wasn't about to make Pippa question everything she thought she wanted. . . https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/586b69e0-f9fe-4a82-907a-f7eb8fae3ed0/127281714.jpg Blog - Romance Books - Hedging Your Bets by Jayne Denker Gillian has been happily divorced for several years and, after trying a few dating apps, prefers to stay that way. Navigating her way through dates with fat shamers and lackluster men has left her with no desire to do anything other than work in her garden in her spare time. Who needs rude comments and awkward first-date conversation when soft roses and vibrant tulips are so much better? Noah West has just moved to Willow Cove. After a rough breakup that leaves him looking to get far away, he relocates to the same small town he spent summers in as a teen―and moves right next door to Gillian. A big believer in minimalist design and that the best kind of plants are non-flowering, he knows as soon as he meets his neighbor that they are going to clash on just about everything. Now if only he could keep his eyes off her too. That might be helpful. When a gardening contest brings out the competition in Gillian and Noah, dueling plant arrangements and fiery banter ensues. But is it possible that beneath all their differences, they might just be perfect for each other https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/931be9da-7908-494c-8dd2-0a7ca65a857c/134117190.jpg Blog - Romance Books - Say You’ll Be Mine by Naina Kumar Meghna Raman’s parents wanted her to be an engineer, but instead she’s followed her passion, becoming a theater teacher and aspiring playwright. But when she discovers that her beloved writing partner, best friend, and secret crush, Seth, is suddenly engaged—and not to her—she realizes he’s about to become the one-that-got-away. Even worse, he’s asked her to be his best man. And worse than that, she’s agreed. Determined to try and move on and relieve a bit of the pressure she feels, Meghna agrees to let her parents introduce her to a potential match. Maybe she’ll even find the engineer her family wishes she became. . . . Grumpy, handsome engineer Karthik Murthy has seen enough of his parents’ marriage to know that it isn’t for him. He only agreed to his mother’s matchmaking attempts to make her happy, never dreaming he would meet someone as vibrant as Meghna. Though he can’t offer her a real marriage, a fake engagement could help Meghna soothe the sting of planning Seth’s wedding festivities and Karthik avoid the absurd number of set-ups his mother has planned for the next year. But as they find common ground, grow protective of one another’s hearts, and learn to fall for the flaws they thought they hated, an undeniable chemistry takes shape. Soon, Meghna and Karthik’s expectations and insecurities threaten to risk something that’s become a lot more real than they hoped. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/19ffc965-0e61-4d68-b772-86e91b8d0fdc/122770203.jpg Blog - Romance Books - In Your Wildest Dreams by Rebecca Jenshak He’s the cocky, pro hockey player that tried to get my number during a game. Now he’s sidelined with an injury and I’m his new nurse. The first time I met Ash Kelly, he stripped off his jersey and gave it to a little girl in the crowd, charming an arena full of fans in the process. Then he tossed me a puck and asked for my number. I was with my jerk ex-boyfriend, who was less than impressed with the whole thing. The second time he crashes into my life it’s as my patient. There’s no way he should remember me, but he does. Being Ash’s nurse is torture. He’s stubborn and frustrating, and he won’t stop flirting with me now that he knows I’m single. He’s even recruited the entire hospital to help him win me over. And it’s working. The more time I spend taking care of him, the more he breaks down my defenses. He’s kind and considerate, and he makes my heart race. But I’ve sworn off dating and getting involved with a charming, handsome hockey player like Ash feels like a terrible idea. We go our separate ways again, despite our undeniable connection. I should have known it wouldn’t be the last time. For some reason, the universe keeps throwing us together. I’m finally ready to give him a chance, but there’s one little problem. My ex-boyfriend just got a new job as the assistant GM of the Wildcats. And the only thing he wants more than me is to screw over the man I’m falling for. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0708cf77-cdfa-4c6e-9f03-d8637431a669/61618737.jpg Blog - Romance Books - Forget Me Not by Julie Soto He loves me; he loves me not... Ama Torres loves being a wedding planner. But with a mother who has been married more times than you can count on your fingers, Ama has decided that marriage is not the route for her. But weddings? Weddings are amazing. As a small business owner, she knows how to match her clients with the perfect vendor to give them the wedding of their dreams. Well, almost perfect… Elliot hates being a florist, most of the time. When his father left him the flower shop, he considered it a burden, but he’s stuck with it. Just like how he’s stuck with the way he proposed to Ama, his main collaborator and girlfriend (or was she?) two years ago. But flowers have grown on him, just like Ama did. And flowers can’t run off and never speak to him again, like Ama did. When Ama is hired to plan a celebrity wedding that will bring her business national exposure, there's a catch: Elliot is already contracted to design the flowers. Things are not helped by the two brides, who see the obvious chemistry between Ama and Elliot and are determined to set them up, not knowing their complicated history. Add in a meddling ex-boss, and a reality TV film crew documenting every step of the wedding prep, and Ama and Elliot's hearts are not only in jeopardy again, but this time, their livelihoods are too. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ca5687ca-681e-4ab5-b3d7-72a52c1aa591/127975624.jpg Blog - Romance Books - Wild Life by Opal Wei The Plan was simple: find a cure for the cancer that nearly took her sister’s life. But for Zoey Fong, something about The Plan isn’t working anymore. Maybe it’s her unsuccessful research, maybe it’s burnout. But when a crucial tissue sample accidentally winds up in the hands of a very distracting—and disarmingly handsome—visitor, Zoey jumps at the chance to follow him home to retrieve it. Davy Hsieh’s rugged island estate is no manicured suburban park. His plan is simple: establish a legitimate animal sanctuary and embrace life as a hermit to make up for a sketchy past. Zoey invading his fortress of solitude should not, under any circumstances, be a romantic development. And yet it’s the single most invigorating week of their lives…when they're able to set their many differences aside and embrace it. Stranded amid all manner of flora and fauna—including a semidomesticated cougar called Baby—Davy and Zoey first have to survive the island. Then they'll need to take a leap of faith, maybe even trusting in each other, to save it. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6075987e-c18c-4c11-b248-6760b9330b2e/200300820.jpg Blog - Romance Books - Canadian Boyfriend by Jenny Holiday The fake Canadian boyfriend. It's a thing. The get out of jail free card for all kinds of sticky social situations. “I can't go to prom; I'm going to be out of town visiting my boyfriend in Canada.” It's all over pop culture. But Aurora Evans did it first. Once upon a time she met a teenage hockey player at the Mall of America. He was from Canada. He was a boy. She may have fudged the “friend” part a little, but it wasn't like she was ever going to see him again. It wasn't like she hurt anyone. Until she did—years later—on both counts. When pro hockey player and recent widower Mike Martin walks into the dance studio where Aurora Evans teaches, he's feeling overwhelmed with the fact that his wife may not have been exactly who he thought she was and the logistics of going back to work. As one of the few people his angry, heartbroken daughter connects with, Aurora agrees to be a pseudo nanny to help him navigate the upcoming school year and hockey season. To his surprise, she turns out to be the perfect balm for him as well. Aurora gets him. The real him underneath his pro jersey. And yet, he still finds himself holding back, unable to fully trust again—especially when he finds out the secret Aurora’s been hiding from him. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/554d1d6b-249e-4134-810e-2d1aec3396fa/126919196.jpg Blog - Romance Books - The Getaway List by Emma Lord The day of her high school graduation, Riley realizes two things: One, that she has spent the last four years trying so hard to be a Good Kid for her mom that she has no idea who she really is anymore, and two, she has no idea what she wants because of it. The solution? Pack her bags and move to New York for the summer, where her childhood best friend Tom and co-creator of The Getaway List ― a list of all the adventures they’ve wanted to do together since he moved away ― will hopefully help her get in touch with her old adventurous self, and pave the road to a new future. Riley isn’t sure what to expect from Tom, who has been distant since his famous mom’s scriptwriting career pulled him away. But when Riley arrives in the city, their reconnection is as effortless as it was when they were young―except with one, unexpected complication that will pull Riley’s feelings in a direction she didn’t know they could take. As she, Tom, and their newfound friends work their way through the delightfully chaotic items on The Getaway List, Riley learns that sometimes the biggest adventure is not one you take, but one you feel in your heart. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1b8e4edb-51a2-425d-8199-d8cb5f9de87c/63139958.jpg Blog - Romance Books - Last Call at the Local by Sarah Grunder Ruiz Opposites attract when a free-spirited American singer-songwriter with ADHD teams up with a charming Irishman to revitalize his family's pub in the next heartfelt romance from the author of Luck and Last Resorts. Raine Hart is used to the challenges of living with ADHD. It’s why she ditched her life in Boston to busk around Europe as a traveling musician. No boss. No schedule. No one to disappoint but herself. But when a careless mistake in Ireland leaves her unable to perform, she sees no other option but to give up her nomadic life. Since inheriting the Local, Jack Dunne has wanted to make the pub his own. But the baggage of running a family business and the intrusive thoughts that stem from his OCD make changing things a challenge. Over a pint with handsome, tattooed Jack, Raine accidentally insults him and the pub. Instead of taking offense, Jack, impressed by her vision of what the pub could be, offers her a job bringing it to life. But when Raine and Jack develop feelings for one another their opposite lifestyles won’t accommodate, it becomes clear the pub isn’t the only thing that needs reinventing. As the end of their business collaboration draws near, they’ll have to find a way past the limits they’ve placed on themselves or let go of a love that could last a lifetime. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/book-bouquets-and-blind-dates-with-a-book monthly 0.5 2024-01-31 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/792cfa60-49ae-4da9-97c4-8e33b0a33bb4/IMG_6440.jpg Blog - Book Bouquets and Blind Dates with a Book - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c2281c1a-0aee-4819-ae59-3c81ca15a40b/IMG_6442.jpg Blog - Book Bouquets and Blind Dates with a Book - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/house-of-flame-and-shadow-party monthly 0.5 2024-01-24 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/393ef406-0e1f-4636-8aca-22b30a20b5d6/52857700-3.jpg Blog - House of Flame and Shadow Release Party - House of Flame and Shadow Midnight Release Join us on Monday Night/Tuesday Morning for a midnight House of Flame and Shadow release party! We will have Sarah J. Maas merch such as stickers, bookmarks, tote bags, and crewnecks. Pre-orders are available for pickup at midnight, but you can also attend and purchase a copy. We will also have a limited supply of House of Flame and Shadow custom-sprayed edges copies. Paper Leaves doors will be opening at 11:30 on January 29th but copies of House of Flame and Shadow will not be available for purchase until midnight. The stunning third book in the sexy, action-packed Crescent City series, following the global bestsellers House of Earth and Blood and House of Sky and Breath. Bryce Quinlan never expected to see a world other than Midgard, but now that she has, all she wants is to get back. Everything she loves is in Midgard: her family, her friends, her mate. Stranded in a strange new world, she's going to need all her wits about her to get home again. And that's no easy feat when she has no idea who to trust. Hunt Athalar has found himself in some deep holes in his life, but this one might be the deepest of all. After a few brief months with everything he ever wanted, he's in the Asteri's dungeons again, stripped of his freedom and without a clue as to Bryce's fate. He's desperate to help her, but until he can escape the Asteri's leash, his hands are quite literally tied. In this breathtaking sequel to the #1 bestsellers House of Earth and Blood and House of Sky and Breath, Sarah J. Maas's Crescent City series reaches new heights as Bryce and Hunt's world is brought to the brink of collapse-with its future resting on their shoulders. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/january-book-clubs-book-review monthly 0.5 2024-01-18 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/february-releases monthly 0.5 2024-01-09 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7c326def-3eba-4a6c-b4ad-a7d9d16b4942/181344829.jpg Blog - February Releases - Bride by Ali Hazelwood Misery Lark, the only daughter of the most powerful Vampyre councilman of the Southwest, is an outcast—again. Her days of living in anonymity among the Humans are over: she has been called upon to uphold a historic peacekeeping alliance between the Vampyres and their mortal enemies, the Weres, and she sees little choice but to surrender herself in the exchange—again... Weres are ruthless and unpredictable, and their Alpha, Lowe Moreland, is no exception. He rules his pack with absolute authority, but not without justice. And, unlike the Vampyre Council, not without feeling. It’s clear from the way he tracks Misery’s every movement that he doesn’t trust her. If only he knew how right he was…. Because Misery has her own reasons to agree to this marriage of convenience, reasons that have nothing to do with politics or alliances, and everything to do with the only thing she's ever cared about. And she is willing to do whatever it takes to get back what’s hers, even if it means a life alone in Were territory…alone with the wolf. Release Date: February 6 Genre: Romance & Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e5e095f1-0709-4874-8ba4-29f9b78db56b/126919062.jpg Blog - February Releases - Everyone Who Can Forgive Me Is Dead by Jenny Hollander What if everything you know about the worst night of your life turns out not to be true? Nine years ago, with the world's eyes on her, Charlie Colbert fled. The press and the police called Charlie a "witness" to the nightmarish events at her elite graduate school on Christmas Eve—events known to the public as "Scarlet Christmas"—though Charlie knows she was much more than that. Now, Charlie has meticulously rebuilt her life: She's the editor-in-chief of a major magazine, engaged to the golden child of the publishing industry, and hell-bent on never, ever letting her guard down again. But when a buzzy film made by one of Charlie's former classmates threatens to shatter everything she's worked for, Charlie realizes how much she's changed in nine years. Now, she's not going to let anything—not even the people she once loved most—get in her way. Release Date: February 6 Genre: Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3d758a6f-f2e1-4e6f-8674-436463a3600a/127823371.jpg Blog - February Releases - All This Twisted Glory by Tahereh Mafi As the long-lost heir to the Jinn throne, Alizeh has finally found her people—and she might’ve found her crown. Cyrus, the mercurial ruler of Tulan, has offered her his kingdom in a twisted exchange: one that would begin with their marriage and end with his murder. Cyrus’s dark reputation precedes him; all the world knows of his blood-soaked past. Killing him should be easy—and accepting his offer might be the only way to fulfill her destiny and save her people. But the more Alizeh learns of him, the more she questions whether the terrible stories about him are true. Ensnared by secrets, Cyrus has ached for Alizeh since she first appeared in his dreams many months ago. Now that he knows those visions were planted by the devil, he can hardly bear to look at her—much less endure her company. But despite their best efforts to despise each other, Alizeh and Cyrus are drawn together over and over with an all-consuming thirst that threatens to destroy them both. Meanwhile, Prince Kamran has arrived in Tulan, ready to exact revenge… Release Date: February 6 Genre: YA Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7d433a4f-ea9f-49c8-9f98-e7f3d5c41702/64417401.jpg Blog - February Releases - The Phoenix Crown by Kate Quinn and Janie Chang San Francisco, 1906. In a city bustling with newly minted millionaires and scheming upstarts, two very different women hope to change their fortunes: Gemma, a golden-haired, silver-voiced soprano whose career desperately needs rekindling, and Suling, a petite and resolute Chinatown embroideress who is determined to escape an arranged marriage. Their paths cross when they are drawn into the orbit of Henry Thornton, a charming railroad magnate whose extraordinary collection of Chinese antiques includes the fabled Phoenix Crown, a legendary relic of Beijing’s fallen Summer Palace. His patronage offers Gemma and Suling the chance of a lifetime, but their lives are thrown into turmoil when a devastating earthquake rips San Francisco apart and Thornton disappears, leaving behind a mystery reaching further than anyone could have imagined . . . until the Phoenix Crown reappears five years later at a sumptuous Paris costume ball, drawing Gemma and Suling together in one last desperate quest for justice. Release Date: February 13 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ad76de8d-f517-4489-a600-2e201d6318f7/75257282.jpg Blog - February Releases - Original Sins by Erin Young It's a brutal winter in Des Moines, Iowa, and the city is gripped by fear. A serial attacker known as the Sin Eater is stalking women and has just struck again. It's a tough time and a tough place for Riley Fisher, a former small-town sergeant, to be reporting for duty as an FBI agent on her first assignment. Teamed with a man she's not sure she can trust and struggling to prove herself - while fighting the pull of her old life and family dramas - Riley is tasked with investigating a vicious death threat against the newly elected female state governor. Gradually, she traces a disturbing connection between this case and the hunt for the Sin Eater. Through snow, ice, violence and lies, Riley Fisher is drawn towards a terrifying revelation. Release Date: February 13 Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f9b1cd3f-b6e5-4e19-9964-35e0b89071e1/154488304.jpg Blog - February Releases - The Catch by Amy Lea In a last-ditch effort to rescue her brand from the brink of irrelevance, Boston fashion influencer Melanie Karlsen finds herself in a rural fishing village on the east coast of Canada. The only thing scarier than nature itself? The burly and bearded bed-and-breakfast owner and fisherman, Evan Whaler—who single-handedly disproves the theory that Canadians are “nice.” After a boating accident lands Evan unconscious in the hospital, Mel is mistaken for his fiancée by his welcoming yet quirky family, who are embroiled in a long-standing feud over the B&B. In a bold attempt to mend family fences, Mel agrees to fake their engagement for one week in exchange for Evan’s help with her social media content. Amid long hikes and campfire chats, reeling in their budding feelings for each other proves more difficult by the day. But is Mel willing to sacrifice her picture-perfect life in the city for a chance at a true, unfiltered love in the wild? Release Date: February 13 Genre: Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0240e6cb-3e5b-480f-9c4a-8b27ee092cd7/173223545.jpg Blog - February Releases - Call of the Sea by Emily B. Rose Kenna has never wanted the life ahead of her; trapped in her castle and married to someone she does not love. She dreams of a life of adventure, exploring the ocean, searching for mermaids. Except mermaids don’t exist. At least, that’s what she has always been told. Unfortunately, her plans for exploration are thwarted. Every heir must wed, and with war on the horizon, her time is up. Five suitors are vying for her hand, but Kenna vowed never to marry someone only after her crown. Only, one of them doesn’t seem to care about her title, refusing to even use it. Just as she begins to consider opening up to him, he disappears. Kenna chases after him and learns his secret, before a storm wrecks her boat. Finding herself stranded on an island with him, Kenna has no choice but to trust him to nurse her back to health. With the tension growing, and sparks she doesn’t trust flying between them, Kenna has to decide how to balance the desires of her heart and her duty to her people. And how far she’s willing to go to learn the whole truth. Release Date: February 13 Genre: Fantasy & Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/499b5331-f9b2-45fa-833c-b19de2fe7a32/150343880.jpg.png Blog - February Releases - Fangirl Down by Tessa Bailey Wells Whitaker was once golf’s hottest rising star, but lately, all he has to show for his “promising” career is a killer hangover, a collection of broken clubs, and one remaining supporter. No matter how bad he plays, the beautiful, sunny redhead is always on the sidelines. He curses, she cheers. He scowls, she smiles. But when Wells quits in a blaze of glory and his fangirl finally goes home, he knows he made the greatest mistake of his life. Josephine Doyle believed in the gorgeous, grumpy golfer, even when he didn’t believe in himself. Yet after he throws in the towel, she begins to wonder if her faith was misplaced. Then a determined Wells shows up at her door with a wild be his new caddy, help him turn his game around, and split the prize money. And considering Josephine’s professional and personal life is in shambles, she could really use the cash… As they travel together, spending days on the green and nights in neighboring hotel rooms, sparks fly. Before long, they’re inseparable, Wells starts winning again, and Josephine is surprised to find a sweet, thoughtful guy underneath his gruff, growly exterior. This hot man wants to brush her hair, feed her snacks, and take bubble baths together? Is this real life? But Wells is technically her boss and an athlete falling for his fangirl would be ridiculous… right? Release Date: February 13 Genre: Sports Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4f3e6402-8866-40e7-80bb-0136a5fd69ff/127305853.jpg Blog - February Releases - The Women by Kristen Hannah Women can be heroes. When twenty-year-old nursing student Frances “Frankie” McGrath hears these words, it is a revelation. Raised in the sun-drenched, idyllic world of Southern California and sheltered by her conservative parents, she has always prided herself on doing the right thing. But in 1965, the world is changing, and she suddenly dares to imagine a different future for herself. When her brother ships out to serve in Vietnam, she joins the Army Nurse Corps and follows his path. As green and inexperienced as the men sent to Vietnam to fight, Frankie is over- whelmed by the chaos and destruction of war. Each day is a gamble of life and death, hope and betrayal; friendships run deep and can be shattered in an instant. In war, she meets—and becomes one of—the lucky, the brave, the broken, and the lost. But war is just the beginning for Frankie and her veteran friends. The real battle lies in coming home to a changed and divided America, to angry protesters, and to a country that wants to forget Vietnam. Release Date: February 15 Genre: Historical Fiction https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e212dea6-bf15-4a89-b8da-6d43dae83135/127305713.jpg Blog - February Releases - Heartless Hunter by Kristen Ciccarelli On the night Rune’s life changed forever, blood ran in the streets. Now, in the aftermath of a devastating revolution, witches have been diminished from powerful rulers to outcasts ruthlessly hunted due to their waning magic, and Rune must hide what she is. Spending her days pretending to be nothing more than a vapid young socialite, Rune spends her nights as the Crimson Moth, a witch vigilante who rescues her kind from being purged. When a rescue goes wrong, she decides to throw the witch hunters off her scent and gain the intel she desperately needs by courting the handsome Gideon Sharpe - a notorious and unforgiving witch hunter loyal to the revolution - who she can't help but find herself falling for. Gideon loathes the decadence and superficiality Rune represents, but when he learns the Crimson Moth has been using Rune’s merchant ships to smuggle renegade witches out of the republic, he inserts himself into her social circles by pretending to court her right back. He soon realizes that beneath her beauty and shallow façade, is someone fiercely intelligent and tender who feels like his perfect match. Except, what if she’s the very villain he’s been hunting? Release Date: February 20 Genre: YA Fantasy https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/winter-recommendations monthly 0.5 2024-01-05 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/fdc924e8-007f-42ab-a3da-233121ceb90d/37683751.jpg Blog - Winter Recommendations - From Lukov with Love by Mariana Zapata If someone were to ask Jasmine Santos to describe the last few years of her life with a single word, it would definitely be a four-letter one. After seventeen years—and countless broken bones and broken promises—she knows her window to compete in figure skating is coming to a close. But when the offer of a lifetime comes in from an arrogant idiot she’s spent the last decade dreaming about pushing in the way of a moving bus, Jasmine might have to reconsider everything. Including Ivan Lukov. Genre: Adult Sports Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/97898850-d2e5-4424-9e40-f2b4a5d6c2bc/33597976-2.jpg Blog - Winter Recommendations - The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey Alaska, 1920: a brutal place to homestead, and especially tough for recent arrivals Jack and Mabel. Childless, they are drifting apart--he breaking under the weight of the work of the farm; she crumbling from loneliness and despair. In a moment of levity during the season's first snowfall, they build a child out of snow. The next morning the snow child is gone--but they glimpse a young, blonde-haired girl running through the trees. This little girl, who calls herself Faina, seems to be a child of the woods. She hunts with a red fox at her side, skims lightly across the snow, and somehow survives alone in the Alaskan wilderness. As Jack and Mabel struggle to understand this child who could have stepped from the pages of a fairy tale, they come to love her as their own daughter. But in this beautiful, violent place things are rarely as they appear, and what they eventually learn about Faina will transform all of them. Genre: Historical Fiction & Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2755a688-4b29-4a44-92d1-1b906a7edf89/56269064.jpg Blog - Winter Recommendations - Rock Paper Scissors by Alice Feeney Think you know the person you married? Think again… Things have been wrong with Mr and Mrs Wright for a long time. When Adam and Amelia win a weekend away to Scotland, it might be just what their marriage needs. Self-confessed workaholic and screenwriter Adam Wright has lived with face blindness his whole life. He can’t recognize friends or family, or even his own wife. Every anniversary the couple exchange traditional gifts – paper, cotton, pottery, tin – and each year Adam’s wife writes him a letter that she never lets him read. Until now. They both know this weekend will make or break their marriage, but they didn’t randomly win this trip. One of them is lying, and someone doesn’t want them to live happily ever after. Ten years of marriage. Ten years of secrets. And an anniversary they will never forget. Genre: Mystery & Thriller https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1ec28835-2d84-43cd-84bf-42ec5ce2c9ff/61767292.jpg Blog - Winter Recommendations - Icebreaker by Hannah Grace Anastasia Allen has worked her entire life for a shot at Team USA. A competitive figure skater since she was five years old, a full college scholarship thanks to her place on the Maple Hills skating team, and a schedule that would make even the most driven person weep, Stassie comes to win. No exceptions. Nathan Hawkins has never had a problem he couldn’t solve. As captain of the Maple Hills Titans, he knows the responsibility of keeping the hockey team on the ice rests on his shoulders. When a misunderstanding results in the two teams sharing a rink, and Anastasia’s partner gets hurt in the aftermath, Nate finds himself swapping his stick for tights, and one scary coach for an even scarier one. The pair find themselves stuck together in more ways than one, but it’s fine, because Anastasia doesn’t even like hockey players…right? Genre: Adult Sports Romance https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4d4a7e07-ac62-49e7-b01b-288d251e5c83/18222716-2.jpg Blog - Winter Recommendations - Greenglass House by Kate Milford It’s wintertime at Greenglass House. The creaky smuggler’s inn is always quiet during this season, and twelve-year-old Milo, the innkeepers’ adopted son, plans to spend his holidays relaxing. But on the first icy night of vacation, out of nowhere, the guest bell rings. Then rings again. And again. Soon Milo’s home is bursting with odd, secretive guests, each one bearing a strange story that is somehow connected to the rambling old house. As objects go missing and tempers flare, Milo and Meddy, the cook’s daughter, must decipher clues and untangle the web of deepening mysteries to discover the truth about Greenglass House—and themselves. Genre: Middle Grade Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9bd92965-4812-42dc-8fd9-b1451d877f96/50892433.jpg Blog - Winter Recommendations - One by One by Ruth Ware Getting snowed in at a beautiful, rustic mountain chalet doesn’t sound like the worst problem in the world, especially when there’s a breathtaking vista, a cozy fire, and company to keep you warm. But what happens when that company is eight of your coworkers…and you can’t trust any of them? When an off-site company retreat meant to promote mindfulness and collaboration goes utterly wrong when an avalanche hits, the corporate food chain becomes irrelevant and survival trumps togetherness. Come Monday morning, how many members short will the team be? Genre: Mystery https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a565e308-0e0a-4ea9-bda6-b17365439e26/25489134.jpg Blog - Winter Recommendations - The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden At the edge of the Russian wilderness, winter lasts most of the year and the snowdrifts grow taller than houses. But Vasilisa doesn't mind—she spends the winter nights huddled around the embers of a fire with her beloved siblings, listening to her nurse's fairy tales. Above all, she loves the chilling story of Frost, the blue-eyed winter demon, who appears in the frigid night to claim unwary souls. Wise Russians fear him, her nurse says, and honor the spirits of house and yard and forest that protect their homes from evil. After Vasilisa's mother dies, her father goes to Moscow and brings home a new wife. Fiercely devout, city-bred, Vasilisa's new stepmother forbids her family from honoring the household spirits. The family acquiesces, but Vasilisa is frightened, sensing that more hinges upon their rituals than anyone knows. And indeed, crops begin to fail, evil creatures of the forest creep nearer, and misfortune stalks the village. All the while, Vasilisa's stepmother grows ever harsher in her determination to groom her rebellious stepdaughter for either marriage or confinement in a convent. As danger circles, Vasilisa must defy even the people she loves and call on dangerous gifts she has long concealed—this, in order to protect her family from a threat that seems to have stepped from her nurse's most frightening tales. Genre: Fantasy https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2816f394-2987-4a8c-92ee-d224dd4f418f/518MNMDq2-L.jpg Blog - Winter Recommendations - Smilla’s Sense of Snow by Peter Høeg She thinks more highly of snow and ice than she does of love. She lives in a world of numbers, science and memories--a dark, exotic stranger in a strange land. And now Smilla Jaspersen is convinced she has uncovered a shattering crime... It happened in the Copenhagen snow. A six-year-old boy, a Greenlander like Smilla, fell to his death from the top of his apartment building. While the boy's body is still warm, the police pronounce his death an accident. But Smilla knows her young neighbor didn't fall from the roof on his own. Soon she is following a path of clues as clear to her as footsteps in the snow. For her dead neighbor, and for herself, she must embark on a harrowing journey of lies, revelation and violence that will take her back to the world of ice and snow from which she comes, where an explosive secret waits beneath the ice.... Genre: Fiction https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/powerless-by-lauren-roberts monthly 0.5 2023-12-27 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/january-book-releases monthly 0.5 2023-12-18 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/85b2dcd6-7aeb-4d1d-8f2c-334a28d613e5/127305900.jpg Blog - January Book Releases - A Fragile Enchantment by Allison Saft Niamh Ó Conchobhair has never let herself long for more. The magic in her blood that lets her stitch emotions and memories into fabric is the same magic that will eventually kill her. Determined to spend the little time she has left guaranteeing a better life for her family, Niamh jumps at the chance to design the wardrobe for a royal wedding in the neighboring kingdom of Avaland. But Avaland is far from the fairytale that she imagined. While young nobles attend candlelit balls and elegant garden parties, unrest brews amid the working class. The groom himself, Kit Carmine, is prickly, abrasive, and begrudgingly being dragged to the altar as a political pawn. But when Niamh and Kit grow closer, an unlikely friendship blossoms into something more—until an anonymous columnist starts buzzing about their chemistry, promising to leave them alone only if Niamh helps to uncover the royal family’s secrets. The rot at the heart of Avaland runs deep, but exposing it could risk a future she never let herself dream of, and a love she never thought possible. Publication Date: January 2, 2024 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1e3e9389-97fc-4b11-b724-a74ec88a9d42/75305024.jpg Blog - January Book Releases - Upside Down by Danielle Steel Oscar-winning actress Ardith Law is a Hollywood icon. Radiant at sixty-two, she is the epitome of glamour and a highly respected artist. But her success has come at a she has a strained relationship with her daughter, Morgan, who at thirty-eight still blames Ardith for putting her career before being a mother. Morgan is a successful plastic surgeon in New York City—and the distance from Ardith’s Bel Air mansion is not lost on either of them. Ardith became a single mother when Morgan was seven, after her unfaithful husband died in a helicopter accident. In recent years, she has found amiable companionship with fellow actor Bill West. But Ardith’s comfortable world is turned upside down when she hires a temporary personal assistant, Josh Gray, while Bill is away filming in London. Josh’s rough-around-the-edges persona is the opposite of what Ardith is used to, but an unexpected tragedy brings them closer, stirring up conflicting feelings in her for this younger man. In New York, Morgan is swept off her feet by world-renowned TV anchorman Ben Ryan. Though more than two decades her senior, Ben is handsome, charismatic, and just as smitten as Morgan. But when a blackmail scheme puts his career—and their relationship—on the line, Morgan doesn’t know where to turn. Perhaps . . . to her mother? As each woman navigates an unconventional romance, they cautiously approach each other on new terms and attempt to put aside their past for a new future. Publication Date: January 2, 2024 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/897c084e-02b1-4ab4-ac8c-8e0bf790a3de/126919284.jpg Blog - January Book Releases - The Heiress by Rachel Hawkins When Ruby McTavish Callahan Woodward Miller Kenmore dies, she’s not only North Carolina’s richest woman, she’s also its most notorious. The victim of a famous kidnapping as a child and a widow four times over, Ruby ruled the tiny town of Tavistock from Ashby House, her family’s estate high in the Blue Ridge mountains. In the aftermath of her death, that estate—along with a nine-figure fortune and the complicated legacy of being a McTavish—pass to her adopted son, Camden. But to everyone’s surprise, Cam wants little to do with the house or the money—and even less to do with the surviving McTavishes. Instead, he rejects his inheritance, settling into a normal life as an English teacher in Colorado and marrying Jules, a woman just as eager to escape her own messy past. Ten years later, Camden is a McTavish in name only, but a summons in the wake of his uncle’s death brings him and Jules back into the family fold at Ashby House. Its views are just as stunning as ever, its rooms just as elegant, but coming home reminds Cam why he was so quick to leave in the first place. Jules, however, has other ideas, and the more she learns about Cam’s estranged family—and the twisted secrets they keep—the more determined she is for her husband to claim everything Ruby once intended for him to have. But Ruby’s plans were always more complicated than they appeared. As Ashby House tightens its grip on Jules and Camden, questions about the infamous heiress come to light. Was there any truth to the persistent rumors following her disappearance as a girl? What really happened to those four husbands, who all died under mysterious circumstances? And why did she adopt Cam in the first place? Soon, Jules and Cam realize that an inheritance can entail far more than what’s written in a will––and that the bonds of family stretch far beyond the grave. Publication Date: January 9, 2024 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/669ef75e-9ab3-4f35-b536-6e6f14cf7013/60891867.jpg Blog - January Book Releases - Only If You’re Lucky by Stacy Willingham Lucy Sharpe is larger than life. Magnetic, addictive. Bold and dangerous. Especially for Margot, who meets Lucy at the end of their freshman year at a liberal arts college in South Carolina. Margot is the shy one, the careful one, always the sidekick and never the center of attention. But when Lucy singles her out at the end of the year, a year Margot spent studying and playing it safe, and asks her to room together, something in Margot can't say no—something daring, or starved, or maybe even envious. And so Margot finds herself living in an off-campus house with three other girls, Lucy, the ringleader; Sloane, the sarcastic one; and Nicole, the nice one, the three of them opposites but also deeply intertwined. It's a year that finds Margot finally coming out of the shell she's been in since the end of high school, when her best friend Eliza died three weeks after graduation. Margot and Lucy have become the closest of friends, but by the middle of their sophomore year, one of the fraternity boys from the house next door has been brutally murdered... and Lucy Sharpe is missing without a trace. Publication Date: January 16, 2024 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7708af19-e68e-4f1f-bf7d-73e9b8217cd4/127282881.jpg Blog - January Book Releases - Family Family by Laurie Frankel India Allwood grew up wanting to be an actor. Armed with a stack of index cards (for research/line memorization/make-shift confetti), she goes from awkward sixteen-year-old to Broadway ingenue to TV superhero. Her new movie is a prestige picture about adoption, but its spin is the same old tired story of tragedy. India is an adoptive mom in real life though. She wants everyone to know there’s more to her family than pain and regret. So she does something you should never do — she tells a journalist the truth: it’s a bad movie. Soon she’s at the center of a media storm, battling accusations from the press and the paparazzi, from protesters on the right and advocates on the left. Her twin ten-year-olds know they need help – and who better to call than family? But that’s where it gets really messy because India’s not just an adoptive mother… The one thing she knows for sure is what makes a family isn’t blood. And it isn’t love. No matter how they’re formed, the truth about family is this: it's complicated. Publication Date: January 23, 2024 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/774a0f46-591e-4a55-ac04-2af041232ad6/127305892.jpg Blog - January Book Releases - No One Can Know by Kate Alice Marshall Emma hasn't told her husband much about her past. He knows her parents are dead and she hasn't spoken to her sisters in years. Then they lose their apartment, her husband gets laid off, and Emma discovers she's pregnant―right as the bank account slips into the red. That's when Emma confesses that she has one more asset: her parents' house, which she owns jointly with her estranged sisters. They can't sell it, but they can live in it. But returning home means that Emma is forced to reveal her secrets to her husband: that the house is not a run-down farmhouse but a stately mansion, and that her parents died there. Were murdered. And that some people say Emma did it. Emma and her sisters have never spoken about what really happened that night. Now, her return to the house may lure her sisters back, but it will also crack open family and small-town secrets lots of people don’t want revealed. As Emma struggles to reconnect with her old family and hold together her new one, she begins to realize that the things they have left unspoken all these years have put them in danger again. Publication Date: January 23, 2024 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/06a4e134-0f63-4f86-9a43-bd75f8f50093/52857700-2.jpg Blog - January Book Releases - House of Flame and Shadow by Sarah J. Maas Bryce Quinlan never expected to see a world other than Midgard, but now that she has, all she wants is to get back. Everything she loves is in Midgard: her family, her friends, her mate. Stranded in a strange new world, she's going to need all her wits about her to get home again. And that's no easy feat when she has no idea who to trust. Hunt Athalar has found himself in some deep holes in his life, but this one might be the deepest of all. After a few brief months with everything he ever wanted, he's in the Asteri's dungeons again, stripped of his freedom and without a clue as to Bryce's fate. He's desperate to help her, but until he can escape the Asteri's leash, his hands are quite literally tied. Publication Date: January 30, 2024 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/688660aa-24fa-42d3-8150-596a52908094/59475768.jpg Blog - January Book Releases - The Invocations by Krystal Sutherland Zara Jones believes in magic because the alternative is too painful to bear—that her sister was murdered by a serial killer and there is precisely nothing she can do to change it. If there’s anything Zara cannot stand it's feeling powerless, so she decides she will do whatever it takes—even if that means partaking in the occult—to bring her sister back from the dead. Jude Wolf might be the daughter of a billionaire, but she is also undeniably cursed. After a deal with a demon went horribly wrong, her soul is now slowly turning necrotic. Flowers and insects die in her wake and monstrous things come to taunt her at night. If Jude can’t find the right someone to fix her mistake, she fears she’ll die very soon. Enter Emer Bryne: the solution to both Zara's and Jude's predicaments. The daughter of a witch, Emer sells spells to women in desperate situations willing to sacrifice a part of their soul in exchange for a bit of power, a bit of magic to change their lives. But Emer has a dark past all her own—and as her former clients are murdered one-by-one, she knows it’s followed her all the way to London. As Zara and Jude enter Emer's orbit, they'll have to team up to stop the killer—before they each end up next on his list. Publication Date: January 30, 2024 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/holiday-reads monthly 0.5 2023-12-12 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/a94db2fa-08f1-452d-ae33-25c5a855859e/58935030.jpg.png Blog - Holiday Reads - Christmas in the Scottish Highlands by Donna Ashcroft Thirty-year-old Belle Albany is feeling lonely this Christmas. Another whole year has passed and her life is… exactly the same as it was last December. She longs for true love and a little bit of winter magic – but she’s almost given up on finding it in the sleepy Scottish community where she lives… When Belle crashes into elderly Edina on her cherry red bicycle, it’s not the meet-cute she’d been hoping for. But she immediately recognises the lost look in Edina’s watery-blue eyes and resolves to organise a Christmas to remember for them both – brimming with mince pies, mulled wine and lots of sparkle. Although Belle hadn’t counted on Edina’s home being a crumbling Scottish castle and she certainly hadn’t been expecting Edina’s handsome long-lost grandson Jack Hamilton-Kirk to turn up on the doorstep in the middle of a snow storm… Jack is arrogant, rude and bossy and Belle is convinced he’s about to ruin the seasonal cheer she has worked hard to create. He’s basically the Grinch in human form, so why does her heart race every time they’re in the same room? They disagree on almost everything, from menu choices to music, and yet she starts to glimpse a softer side hidden behind Jack’s clipped words and brooding countenance. As they hunt down costumes for the annual nativity show and save a donkey from a snowy disaster, Belle can’t ignore their growing attraction. But will a secret from Jack’s past come between them? Or will this finally be the year Belle falls in love? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ed8a707d-81be-485e-abdb-956479d5d68f/75294617.jpg Blog - Holiday Reads - The Twelve Months of Christmas by Sheila Roberts Sunny, Arianna and Molly are having three very different but equally terrible Christmases. Sunny is a newlywed with two new stepkids who want nothing to do with her; Arianna is newly divorced and hates having to send her daughter off to spend the holiday with her dad; for Molly, nothing is new, but her job at the post office is getting very, very old. The whole Christmas season has been a bust all around. But Sunny and Arianna have a wild idea: What if they had a Christmas do-over in January? February? On Saint Patrick’s Day? Christmas all year long—what could that look like? As these three determined women chase the perfect holiday through twelve months of cooking disasters, over-the-top festivity, and lots of laughter and tears, they’ll discover perfection is way overrated. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/366afdb2-3f3f-4dc8-9b03-c28634ec8dc7/75663742.jpg Blog - Holiday Reads - Wreck the Halls by Tessa Bailey Melody Gallard may be the daughter of music royalty, but her world is far from glamorous. She spends her days restoring old books and avoiding the limelight (one awkward tabloid photo was enough, thanks). But when a producer offers her a lot of money to reunite her mother’s band on live tv, Mel begins to wonder if it’s time to rattle the cage, shake up her quiet life… and see him again. The only other person who could wrangle the rock and roll divas. Beat Dawkins, the lead singer’s son, is Melody’s opposite—the camera loves him, he could charm the pants off anyone, and his mom is not a potential cult leader. Still, they might have been best friends if not for the legendary feud that broke up the band. When they met as teenagers, Mel felt an instant spark, but it’s nothing compared to the wild, intense attraction that builds as they embark on a madcap mission to convince their mothers to perform one last show. While dealing with rock star shenanigans, a 24-hour film crew, brawling Santas, and mobs of adoring fans, Mel starts to step out of her comfort zone. With Beat by her side, cheering her on, she’s never felt so understood. But Christmas Eve is fast approaching, and a decades-old scandal is poised to wreck everything—the Steel Birds reunion, their relationships with their mothers, and their newfound love. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/c3537c35-cd2e-40f8-b213-9b8d1dd0e004/56383019.jpg Blog - Holiday Reads - The Matzah Ball by Jean Meltzer Rachel Rubenstein-Goldblatt is a nice Jewish girl with a shameful secret: she loves Christmas. For a decade she’s hidden her career as a Christmas romance novelist from her family. Her talent has made her a bestseller even as her chronic illness has always kept the kind of love she writes about out of reach. But when her diversity-conscious publisher insists she write a Hanukkah romance, her well of inspiration suddenly runs dry. Hanukkah’s not magical. It’s not merry. It’s not Christmas. Desperate not to lose her contract, Rachel’s determined to find her muse at the Matzah Ball, a Jewish music celebration on the last night of Hanukkah, even if it means working with her summer camp archenemy—Jacob Greenberg. Though Rachel and Jacob haven’t seen each other since they were kids, their grudge still glows brighter than a menorah. But as they spend more time together, Rachel finds herself drawn to Hanukkah—and Jacob—in a way she never expected. Maybe this holiday of lights will be the spark she needed to set her heart ablaze. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5bca90d6-7fcb-40e7-8865-21c1529f1234/90247001.jpg Blog - Holiday Reads - All’s Fair in Love and Christmas by Sarah Monzon Every December two things are guaranteed for graphic designer Mackenzie Graham--Christmas celebrations and the annual promotion at her workplace. Those two things are by no means mutually exclusive. In fact, the better an employee is at harnessing the Christmas spirit, the more likely they'll win the new job. With her social anxiety, Mackenzie never thought she'd be a contender in her company's holiday competition, so how exactly has she found herself dueling her workplace crush with wrapping paper tubes and using tinsel as her weapon of choice for a much-needed raise? Jeremy Fletcher's life is meticulously planned out, including how to win this year's promotion at work. Not only will the new position fulfill some of his career goals, but the raise will help him as a single guardian to his twin niece and nephew. Jeremy has barely noticed Mackenzie Graham around the office, but now that she's his rival, he can't stop thinking about her. Her quirkiness intrigues him, and he's afraid that if he can't get his head on straight, the job isn't the only thing he'll end up losing to Mackenzie. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/41ea7b89-1e93-4a20-9ac7-cbbcbc9ae0c2/125085763.jpg Blog - Holiday Reads - The Christmas Wager by Holly Cassidy One rivalry. Eight days until Christmas. Let the holiday games begin. When LA-based real estate developer Bella Ross arrives in the sleepy, mountain town of Maple Falls, she has one mission: to acquire the local failing Christmas shop, Always Noelle, securing the promotion of her dreams. Nothing can get in her way. Except the shop owner’s stubborn grandson, Jesse Harrison. Both refuse to budge, until an unlikely wager is struck: Bella and Jesse will compete in the Maple Falls Holiday Games, an annual tradition of eccentric feats of strength and skills. Winner decides the selling price. They’ll give each other a run for their money, but as the competition heats up, Bella and Jesse’s icy feelings toward each other begin to thaw. It’ll take a Christmas miracle for them to admit there’s a spark, but what if it’s just another game? https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/214bc162-1253-4162-bebc-a4587f1b2083/90251201.jpg Blog - Holiday Reads - You Make It Feel like Christmas by Toni Shiloh Starr Lewis reluctantly returns home for the holidays jobless, single, and not at all prepared to be dragged into her sister's wedding activities--or to witness her sister's marriage to Starr's ex-boyfriend on Christmas Eve. But when her brother's charming best friend, Waylon Emmerson, attends their family Thanksgiving, Starr begins to believe that maybe coming home isn't so bad. As Starr endures wedding preparations, she takes comfort in Waylon's presence and finds the perfect distraction in helping him keep his late mother's Christmas shop afloat. As the spark between them grows, Starr must decide what she wants out of life--to go back to New York City or to stay and pursue a new dream. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/de9bece8-620d-430b-90dd-7fb6794ac331/65214206.jpg Blog - Holiday Reads - Christmas at the Lake by Anita Hughes On Christmas Eve, just hours before their wedding, Rebecca Huntley is left at the altar by Ben Cole, her college sweetheart and fellow co-founder of the hugely successful dating app, Dealbreakers. He’s fallen in love with the app’s head of legal, and they are going to leave for three weeks in St. Bart’s. Rebecca is shocked but a small part of her isn’t surprised. Dealbreakers matches potential couples by the things they hated, instead of what they had in common. Lately, she and Ben seem to have less and less in common. He craves the trappings of success, while Rebecca enjoys simple things. Rebecca decides to go on their honeymoon to the cozy Christmas Cove Inn in the charming small town of Christmas Cove on the shores of Lake Tahoe. There, Rebecca runs into an old college friend, Zach Mason, who had always had a crush on Rebecca. Through a misunderstanding, Zach believes Rebecca is married to Ben, and Rebecca believes Zach is in a relationship with a sophisticated older woman, when really, he is a waiter at the hotel. As Christmas week unfolds, will the two learn the truth about each other and then be open for a second chance at love? Or will they begin the new year with broken hearts? People are complicated. Everyone has positive attributes as well as faults – but none are dealbreakers when you’re really in love. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/december-events monthly 0.5 2023-12-06 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/the-secret-history-review monthly 0.5 2023-11-26 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/iron-flame-review monthly 0.5 2023-11-21 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/2023-december-releases monthly 0.5 2023-11-15 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/cdee4a6a-a850-434e-b5b6-d6062b29de10/65213227.jpg Blog - 2023 December Releases - The Curse of Penryth Hall by Jess Armstrong After the Great War, American heiress Ruby Vaughn made a life for herself running a rare bookstore alongside her octogenarian employer and house mate in Exeter. She’s always avoided dwelling on the past, even before the war, but it always has a way of finding her. When Ruby is forced to deliver a box of books to a folk healer living deep in the Cornish countryside, she is brought back to the one place she swore she’d never return. A more sensible soul would have delivered the package and left without rehashing old wounds. But no one has ever accused Ruby of being sensible. Thus begins her visit to Penryth Hall. A foreboding fortress, Penryth Hall is home to Ruby’s once dearest friend, Tamsyn, and her husband, Sir Edward Chenowyth. It’s an unsettling place, and after a more unsettling evening, Ruby is eager to depart. But her plans change when Penryth’s bells ring for the first time in thirty years. Edward is dead; he met a gruesome end in the orchard, and with his death brings whispers of a returned curse. It also brings Ruan Kivell, the person whose books brought her to Cornwall, the one the locals call a Pellar, the man they believe can break the curse. Ruby doesn’t believe in curses―or Pellars―but this is Cornwall and to these villagers the curse is anything but lore, and they believe it will soon claim its next Tamsyn. To protect her friend, Ruby must work alongside the Pellar to find out what really happened in the orchard that night. Publication Date: December 5, 2023 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8dea3ca7-ec79-493a-9a7a-33fdde54e4dc/123205973.jpg Blog - 2023 December Releases - The Engagement Party by Darby Kane Emily Hunt went missing from her affluent liberal arts school on graduation weekend. Her body was found floating in a river, and a quiet loner who most people on campus really didn’t know committed suicide. A tenuous link—one text—bound the two dead students together and was enough for law enforcement to close the case. But they got it wrong and now someone is determined to set it right. Twelve years later, college friends gather to celebrate an engagement over a long overdue getaway on a swanky private island in Maine—with only one way in and one way out. Sierra Prescott, invited as a guest and unconnected to past events, is the only person who soon senses not all is what it seems. The tension in the air is ignited when they find a dead man in the trunk of a car with a note: time to tell the truth. And things only get worse. As a torrential storm strands them together, the group’s buried stories begin to surface and secrets are bartered. To survive this deadly party, they’ll need to stop a killer before they become prey. Publication Date: December 5, 2023 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/346b6fd2-37c5-438c-b876-093f086c2432/75528c5c39b5f04e8a0ba8f1acd27dbb55ca.jpg Blog - 2023 December Releases - The Second Chance Year by Melissa Wiesner One disastrous year. One magical wish. One chance to change the past. Sadie Thatcher’s life has fallen apart in spectacular fashion. In one fell swoop, she managed to lose her job, her apartment, and her boyfriend—all thanks to her big mouth. So when a fortune teller offers her one wish, Sadie jumps at the chance to redo her awful year. Deep down, she doesn’t believe magic will fix her life, but taking a leap of faith, Sadie makes her wish, opens her eyes, and . . . nothing has changed. And then, in perhaps her dumbest move yet, she kisses her brother’s best friend, Jacob. When Sadie wakes up the next morning, she’s in her former apartment with her former boyfriend, and her former boss is expecting her at work. Checking the date, she realizes it's January 1 . . . of last year. As Sadie navigates her second-chance year, she begins to see the red flags she missed in her relationship and in her career. Plus, she keeps running into Jacob, and she can’t stop thinking about their kiss . . . the one he has no idea ever happened. Suddenly, Sadie begins to wonder if her only mistake was wishing for a second chance. Publication Date: December 5, 2023 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/9f9826f8-dafd-4e4a-ad1d-50721a0a6bdd/62315849.jpg Blog - 2023 December Releases - The Lost Tomb: And Other Real-Life Stories of Bones, Burials, and Murder by Douglas Preston What's it like to be the first to enter an Egyptian burial chamber that's been sealed for thousands of years? What horrifying secret was found among the prehistoric ruins of the American Southwest? Who really was the infamous the Monster of Florence? Douglas Preston's journalistic explorations have taken him from the haunted country of Italy to the jungles of Honduras. He was granted exclusive journalistic access to the largest tomb in Egypt's Valley of the Kings, broke the story of an extraordinary mass grave of animals killed by the asteroid impact that ended the Cretaceous period and caused the extinction of the dinosaurs, and explored what lay hidden in the booby-trapped Money Pit on Oak Island. When he hasn't been co-authoring bestselling thrillers featuring FBI Agent Pendergast, Preston has been writing about some of the world’s strangest and most dramatic mysteries. The Lost Tomb brings together an astonishing and compelling collection of true stories about buried treasure, enigmatic murders, lost tombs, bizarre crimes, and other fascinating tales of the past and present. Publication Date: December 5, 2023 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/4d4633fc-7737-4abe-a341-c126ed091e22/75293479.jpg.png Blog - 2023 December Releases - The Gentleman’s Gambit by Evie Dunmore Bookish suffragist Catriona Campbell is busy: An ailing estate, academic writer's block, a tense time for England's women's rights campaign--the last thing she needs is to be stuck playing host to her father's distractingly attractive young colleague. Deeply introverted Catriona lives for her work at Oxford and her fight for women's suffrage. She dreams of romance, too, but since all her attempts at love have ended badly, she now keeps her desires firmly locked inside her head--until she climbs out of a Scottish loch after a good swim and finds herself rather exposed to her new colleague. Elias Khoury has wheedled his way into Professor Campbell's circle under false pretenses: he did not come to Oxford to classify ancient artefacts, he is determined to take them back to his homeland in the Middle East. Winning Catriona's favor could be the key to his success. Unfortunately, seducing the coolly intense lady scholar quickly becomes a mission in itself and his well-laid plans are in danger of derailing... Forced into close proximity in Oxford's hallowed halls, two very different people have to face the fact that they might just be a perfect match. Soon, a risky new game begins that asks Catriona one more time to put her heart and wildest dreams at stake. Publication Date: December 5, 2023 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/587c6ed4-1e95-445f-af28-460190732cf5/143245005.jpg Blog - 2023 December Releases - The Stage Kiss by Amelia Jones Actress Eden Blake’s biggest claim to fame is a mortifying pharmaceutical commercial for male enhancement pills. That is until the female lead on the nationwide tour of Broadway’s hit Pride & Prejudice musical abruptly quits and Eden is called up to fill the role. The cast of Liz and Darcy: The Musical has just settled into a three-week run in Washington, DC, and Broadway royalty Brennon Thorne is set to play Darcy. Despite Brennon’s reputation as being “a dream to work with,” Eden’s first impression of him is more like a nightmare. Now, she’ll have to kiss the pompous jerk eight shows per week. Brennon can’t disguise his disdain for understudies like Eden. But New York is filled with reminders of his most recent failed relationship, and this American tour is a much-needed distraction from his loneliness. As Eden and Brennon take the stage playing Jane Austen’s most memorable characters, their reality begins to mirror Elizabeth and Darcy’s—explosive chemistry and all. Together, they power through press performances and curtain calls, even as rumors of Brennon’s checkered romantic past resurface and prove to Eden that he can’t be trusted. But with each choreographed stage kiss, Eden and Brennon’s passion for the stage—and each other—ignites. Maybe, just maybe, not all rumors are to be believed—and not all showmances are doomed to fail. Publication Date: December 12, 2023 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ee345bfd-440b-4f7c-abc5-c15f4209dc6f/65213130.jpg Blog - 2023 December Releases - Our Cursed Love by Julie Abe Six days to remember. Love or lose him forever. Remy Kobata has always wished she was destined to be with her best friend, Cam Yasuda. All the way from being neighbors from birth to mixing up magical prank potions together to their “just friends” homecoming date during their senior year in high school, nothing’s a secret between Remy and Cam―except for how much she is in love with him. Remy is trying to work up the courage to confess her feelings during their winter break trip to Japan, when she gets selected for a mystical tea leaves reading and it reveals that they’re not meant to be together. After they stumble upon a secret magical apothecary in the back alleys of Tokyo, Remy and Cam are offered an ancient soulmate elixir, created before all love potions were banned by the magical government. They each have their reasons for wanting to take it, but what could go wrong with finding your soulmate a little earlier? Except, after they drink up, their senior year trip flips into the worst vacation Cam has forgotten who Remy is. If she can't help Cam remember her by midnight New Year’s Eve, they’ll both be cursed to forget each other. To unravel their past and rewrite the future, Remy and Cam must travel through Tokyo to rediscover Cam’s memories and make new ones―and maybe even fall in love all over again. Publication Date: December 12, 2023 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/745b4c83-0922-4f51-90bd-245a369cf2d7/127280062-2.jpg Blog - 2023 December Releases - Ruthless Vows by Rebecca Ross Two weeks have passed since Iris Winnow returned home bruised and heartbroken from the front, but the war is far from over. Roman is missing, and the city of Oath continues to dwell in a state of disbelief and ignorance. When Iris and Attie are given another chance to report on Dacre’s movements, they both take the opportunity and head westward once more despite the danger, knowing it’s only a matter of time before the conflict reaches a city that’s unprepared and fracturing beneath the chancellor’s reign. Since waking below in Dacre’s realm, Roman cannot remember his past. But given the reassurance that his memories will return in time, Roman begins to write articles for Dacre, uncertain of his place in the greater scheme of the war. When a strange letter arrives by wardrobe door, Roman is first suspicious, then intrigued. As he strikes up a correspondence with his mysterious pen pal, Roman will soon have to make a decision: to stand with Dacre or betray the god who healed him. And as the days grow darker, inevitably drawing Roman and Iris closer together…the two of them will risk their very hearts and futures to change the tides of the war. Publication Date: December 26, 2023 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/october-book-club-books-review monthly 0.5 2023-11-07 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/percy-jackson-and-the-chalice-of-the-gods monthly 0.5 2023-11-07 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/upcoming-november-releases monthly 0.5 2023-11-07 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/af93d9cc-58dc-4f6c-b5e9-79251f3666f7/90202302.jpg.png Blog - Upcoming November Releases - Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros Everyone expected Violet Sorrengail to die during her first year at Basgiath War College—Violet included. But Threshing was only the first impossible test meant to weed out the weak-willed, the unworthy, and the unlucky. Now the real training begins, and Violet’s already wondering how she’ll get through. It’s not just that it’s grueling and maliciously brutal, or even that it’s designed to stretch the riders’ capacity for pain beyond endurance. It’s the new vice commandant, who’s made it his personal mission to teach Violet exactly how powerless she is–unless she betrays the man she loves. Although Violet’s body might be weaker and frailer than everyone else’s, she still has her wits—and a will of iron. And leadership is forgetting the most important lesson Basgiath has taught her: Dragon riders make their own rules. But a determination to survive won’t be enough this year. Because Violet knows the real secret hidden for centuries at Basgiath War College—and nothing, not even dragon fire, may be enough to save them in the end. Release Date: November 7, 2023 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7f27e1f6-9d24-42a7-916e-b993907d25fd/176403358.jpg Blog - Upcoming November Releases - Fourth Wing Special Edition by Rebecca Yarros Not only does this stunning new Fourth Wing Special Edition have a revamped cover, but new gorgeous endpapers, black sprayed edges, plus two bonus chapters from Xaden’s point of view! Order your copies from Paper Leaves before these limited editions sell out. Twenty-year-old Violet Sorrengail was supposed to enter the Scribe Quadrant, living a quiet life among books and history. Now, the commanding general―also known as her tough-as-talons mother―has ordered Violet to join the hundreds of candidates striving to become the elite of Navarre: dragon riders. But when you’re smaller than everyone else and your body is brittle, death is only a heartbeat away…because dragons don’t bond to “fragile” humans. They incinerate them. With fewer dragons willing to bond than cadets, most would kill Violet to better their own chances of success. The rest would kill her just for being her mother’s daughter―like Xaden Riorson, the most powerful and ruthless wingleader in the Riders Quadrant. She’ll need every edge her wits can give her just to see the next sunrise. Yet, with every day that passes, the war outside grows more deadly, the kingdom’s protective wards are failing, and the death toll continues to rise. Even worse, Violet begins to suspect leadership is hiding a terrible secret. Friends, enemies, lovers. Everyone at Basgiath War College has an agenda―because once you enter, there are only two ways out: graduate or die. Publication Date: November 7, 2023 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/03c9eaba-22ee-4f0b-8252-afe162b869cc/60683957.jpg Blog - Upcoming November Releases - Check & Mate by Ali Hazelwood Mallory Greenleaf is done with chess. Every move counts nowadays; after the sport led to the destruction of her family four years earlier, Mallory's focus is on her mom, her sisters, and the dead-end job that keeps the lights on. That is, until she begrudgingly agrees to play in one last charity tournament and inadvertently wipes the board with notorious "Kingkiller" Nolan Sawyer: current world champion and reigning Bad Boy of chess. Nolan's loss to an unknown rook-ie shocks everyone. What's even more confusing? His desire to cross pawns again. What kind of gambit is Nolan playing? The smart move would be to walk away. Resign. Game over. But Mallory's victory opens the door to sorely needed cash-prizes and despite everything, she can't help feeling drawn to the enigmatic strategist.... As she rockets up the ranks, Mallory struggles to keep her family safely separated from the game that wrecked it in the first place. And as her love for the sport she so desperately wanted to hate begins to rekindle, Mallory quickly realizes that the games aren't only on the board, the spotlight is brighter than she imagined, and the competition can be fierce (-ly attractive. And intelligent...and infuriating...) Publication Date: November 7, 2023 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/68d7e54c-5f85-4318-9fab-461cf4fc8f7f/61484872.jpg Blog - Upcoming November Releases - Vengeance of the Pirate Queen by Tricia Levenseller As an assassin working for the pirate queen, eighteen-year-old Sorinda is surprised when Alosa’s next task for her is not to kill a new target, but to captain a handpicked crew on a rescue mission. Unfortunately, her sailing master is twenty-year-old Kearan. He may be the best helmsman the pirate queen has, but Sorinda finds him a real pain in the arse. Sadly, there are few places on a ship to hide from an attentive man. As the crew of the Vengeance faces dangerous waters and deadly sea creatures, they accidentally awaken the King of the Undersea, a being who can control the dead. Their rescue mission quickly turns into a fight to save the world, but first, Sorinda must save herself from becoming an undead queen. Publication Date: November 7, 2023 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/759a4478-ad66-4952-9bf6-7504da3d1ccb/65213589.jpg Blog - Upcoming November Releases - The Porcelain Maker by Sarah Freethy Germany, 1929: Under the dazzling lights of Berlin, two people are drawn together: Max, a Jewish architect, and Bettina, a beautiful and celebrated German avant-garde artist. But their bright beginning is soon dimmed by the rising threat of Nazism. In time, Max is arrested and sent to the concentration camp at Dachau where only his talent at making exquisite porcelain figures stands between him and death. Everything Bettina has done up until now has been meticulously planned to try to save Max. She would rather die than live another moment without him—but can one moment last a lifetime? America, 1993. Bettina’s daughter Clara embarks on a journey to trace her roots and discover the identity of her father, a secret her mother has kept from her for reasons she’s never understood. As Clara starts piecing the puzzle together, we are transported back in time, where life is lived on a razor’s edge, and deception and death lurk around every corner. Publication Date: November 7, 2023 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/22fcf1db-27b8-435c-ba6b-e110eaa312da/124060636.jpg Blog - Upcoming November Releases - Wish of The Wicked by Danielle Paige Everyone knows a fairy godmother helped Cinderella get to the ball. But no one knows why. For centuries, Farrow's family-the Entente-have been magical advisors to the Queen. Their wisdom and foresight kept the Thirteen Queendoms in harmony. Until a new queen, Magrit, takes power, outlaws magic, and executes the Entente. Only Farrow survives, with her magic warped beyond repair. She can now use it only to fulfill the feeble wishes of commoners. Since that day, Farrow has dreamed of revenge. The one way to reach the queen is through her son, Prince Mather, who is nearing the age when he must select a bride. When a special ball in his honor is announced, Farrow sees her opportunity. All it will take is a young woman named Cinderella who dreams of true love. With one night, one chance to reclaim her magic and destroy the queen, Farrow will stop at nothing. Publication Date: November 14, 2023 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/0786a16a-67cb-432a-9f25-94787579fdc2/149111636.jpg Blog - Upcoming November Releases - The Edge by David Baldacci The 6:20 Man is back, dropped by his handlers into a small coastal town in Maine to solve the murder of a CIA agent who knew America’s dirtiest secrets—can Travis Devine uncover the truth before his time runs out? When CIA operative Jenny Sikwell is murdered in rural Maine, government officials have immediate concerns over national security. Her laptop and phone were full of state secrets that, in the wrong hands, endanger the lives of countless operatives. In need of someone who can solve the murder quickly and retrieve the missing information, the U.S. government knows just the chameleon they can call on. Ex-Army Ranger Travis Devine spent his time in the military preparing to take on any scenario, followed by his short-lived business career chasing shadows in the deepest halls of power, so his analytical mind makes him particularly well-suited for complex, high-stakes tasks. Taking down the world’s largest financial conspiracy proved his value, and in comparison, this case looks straightforward. Except small towns hold secrets and Devine finds himself an outsider again. Devine must ingratiate himself with locals who have trusted each other their whole lives, and who distrust outsiders just as much. Dak, Jenny’s brother, who’s working to revitalize the town. Earl, the retired lobsterman who found Jenny’s body. And Alex, Jenny’s sister with a dark past of her own. As Devine gets to know the residents of Potter, Maine, answers seem to appear and then transform into more questions. There’s a long history of secrets and those who will stop at nothing to keep them from being exposed. Leaving Devine with no idea who he can trust... and who wants him dead. Publication Date: November 14, 2023 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/8be6efd7-e8ea-4290-8895-6ae03451245b/157067546._SX300_.jpg Blog - Upcoming November Releases - The Mystery Guest by Nita Prose Molly Gray is not like anyone else. With her flair for cleaning and proper etiquette, she has risen through the ranks of the glorious five-star Regency Grand Hotel to become the esteemed Head Maid. But just as her life reaches a pinnacle state of perfection, her world is turned upside down when J.D. Grimthorpe, the world-renowned mystery author, drops dead— very dead —on the hotel’s tea room floor. When Detective Stark, Molly's old foe, investigates the author’s unexpected demise, it becomes clear that this death was murder most foul. Suspects abound, and everyone wants to who killed J.D. Grimthorpe? Was it Lily, the new Maid-in-Training? Or was it Serena, the author’s secretary? Could Mr. Preston, the hotel’s beloved doorman, be hiding something? And is Molly really as innocent as she seems? As the case threatens the hotel’s pristine reputation, Molly knows she alone holds the key to unlocking the killer's identity. But that key is buried deep in her past—because long ago, she knew J.D. Grimthorpe. Molly begins to comb her memory for clues, revisiting her childhood and the mysterious Grimthorpe mansion where she and her dearly departed Gran once worked side by side. With the entire hotel under investigation, Molly must solve the mystery post-haste. If there's one thing Molly knows for sure, it's that dirty secrets don't stay buried forever... Publication Date: November 28, 2023 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/banned-books monthly 0.5 2023-11-07 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/september-book-clubs-book-review monthly 0.5 2023-10-05 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/the-brothers-hawthorne-book-review monthly 0.5 2023-10-05 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/spooky-thrillers-from-paper-leaves monthly 0.5 2024-01-24 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/the-rory-gilmore-reading-challenge monthly 0.5 2024-01-24 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ef1f5e3d-28d0-49f5-a6f4-42849cfe1848/7d0d56c5961d35715f7cef87b2f15b0c.jpg Blog - The Rory Gilmore Reading Challenge - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/august-book-clubs-book-review monthly 0.5 2024-01-24 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/team-jeremiah-or-team-conrad monthly 0.5 2024-01-24 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1692929034855-85SE865AKWR276S6N9EH/image-asset.jpeg Blog - Team Jeremiah or Team Conrad? - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/blog/the-barbie-movie-experience monthly 0.5 2024-01-24 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1694644407123-9P89ZHJUQ9DRMYJJYV41/image-asset.jpeg Blog - The Barbie Movie Experience Greta Gerwig’s Barbie movie is an enchanting experience for children and adults alike. 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Michelle Stimpson Book Signing - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/daisy-made-pop-up-stand monthly 0.5 2024-05-07 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b5cebfc6-b113-4f17-bbd7-45c6f9ce9dba/IMG_7696.jpg Calendar | Paper Leaves Shop - Daisy Made Pop Up Stand - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/shelf-awareness-book-club-2 monthly 0.5 2024-04-25 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/07111743-b7ce-4c5a-b535-3d087070fec4/60784546.jpg Calendar | Paper Leaves Shop - Shelf Awareness Book Club - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/literary-ladies monthly 0.5 2024-04-25 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/childrens-story-time-and-crafts-4 monthly 0.5 2024-04-25 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2349453b-e247-4024-b0f9-4b6e8dcf201a/tempImageMKnBgP.jpg Calendar | Paper Leaves Shop - Children's Story Time and Crafts - Story Time Books To be announced May 1st https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/independent-bookstore-day monthly 0.5 2024-04-25 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/childrens-story-time-and-crafts-3 monthly 0.5 2024-04-25 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1694623321099-HMNBPF1E8WOX8IPO8PU9/tempImagetJ7mNI.gif Calendar | Paper Leaves Shop - Children's Story Time and Crafts - Story Time Book God Made Giraffes Just for Me by Kathryn Sofia https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/childrens-story-time-and-easter-egg-hunt monthly 0.5 2024-03-16 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6bb4a37e-fe07-4f70-8264-6261ae0275b4/5687469a380ca421dfb0b75fdf097c7d.jpg Calendar | Paper Leaves Shop - Children's Story Time and Easter Egg Hunt - Story Time Books To be announced March 1st https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/shelf-awareness-book-club-1 monthly 0.5 2024-03-14 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/b2a51afa-8495-4e41-a581-13d47cbef62e/198809890.jpg Calendar | Paper Leaves Shop - Shelf Awareness Book Club - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/childrens-story-time-and-crafts-2 monthly 0.5 2024-02-14 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2349453b-e247-4024-b0f9-4b6e8dcf201a/tempImageMKnBgP.jpg Calendar | Paper Leaves Shop - Children's Story Time and Crafts - Story Time Books To be announced April 1st https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/literary-ladies-book-club-2 monthly 0.5 2024-03-16 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/3fd7c520-3a1b-4333-a1ee-60300f20567a/112975658.jpg Calendar | Paper Leaves Shop - Literary Ladies Book Club - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/childrens-story-time-and-crafts-1 monthly 0.5 2024-02-14 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2349453b-e247-4024-b0f9-4b6e8dcf201a/tempImageMKnBgP.jpg Calendar | Paper Leaves Shop - Children's Story Time and Crafts - Story Time Books To be announced March 1st https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/shelf-awareness-book-club monthly 0.5 2024-02-14 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1704824642325-WKMI8KBSBGV9FWOBWVEF/SHELF%2B-%2BAWARENESS%2B-%2B2.jpg Calendar | Paper Leaves Shop - Shelf Awareness Book Club - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/childrens-story-time-and-crafts monthly 0.5 2024-02-14 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2349453b-e247-4024-b0f9-4b6e8dcf201a/tempImageMKnBgP.jpg Calendar | Paper Leaves Shop - Children's Story Time and Crafts - Story Time Books To Be Announced March 1st https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/literary-ladies-book-club-1 monthly 0.5 2024-02-14 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/132ce972-49ee-48ba-b0aa-419491df3784/123206645.jpg Calendar | Paper Leaves Shop - Literary Ladies Book Club https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/ydh3qm0apmx46ov0545yofgizsuw1v monthly 0.5 2024-01-24 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/e8522c51-5d5c-46ec-ad9e-950b516d9f09/52857700-3.jpg Calendar | Paper Leaves Shop - House of Flame and Shadow Release Party - Join us on Monday Night/Tuesday Morning for a midnight House of Flame and Shadow release party! We will have Sarah J. Maas merch such as stickers, bookmarks, tote bags, and crewnecks. Pre-orders are available for pickup at midnight, but you can also attend and purchase a copy. We will also have a limited supply of House of Flame and Shadow custom-sprayed edges copies. Paper Leaves doors will be opening at 11:30 on January 29th but copies of House of Flame and Shadow will not be available for purchase until midnight. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/shelf-awareness-bookclub monthly 0.5 2024-01-09 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5efc9019-44c8-4ba7-863e-68f76ac2772e/SHELF+-+AWARENESS+-+2.PNG Calendar | Paper Leaves Shop - Shelf Awareness Bookclub - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/mosaic-hideaway monthly 0.5 2024-01-09 https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/childrens-story-time-3 monthly 0.5 2023-12-30 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2349453b-e247-4024-b0f9-4b6e8dcf201a/tempImageMKnBgP.jpg Calendar | Paper Leaves Shop - Children's Story Time - Story Time Books: To be announced February 1st. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/childrens-story-time-2 monthly 0.5 2023-12-30 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/1694623321099-HMNBPF1E8WOX8IPO8PU9/tempImagetJ7mNI.gif Calendar | Paper Leaves Shop - Children's Story Time - Story Time Books: To be announced February 1st. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/literary-ladies-book-club monthly 0.5 2023-12-30 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f104c0f1-a19d-4452-9691-714cdf01371e/180357146.jpg Calendar | Paper Leaves Shop - Literary Ladies Book Club - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/story-time-of-david-and-goliath monthly 0.5 2023-12-30 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/ebec7d2f-06c5-49be-a92e-0a8fc5511152/157501378.jpg Calendar | Paper Leaves Shop - Story Time with David and Goliath - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/pams-traveling-coat-collection-signing monthly 0.5 2023-12-30 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/5941ec0a-1554-4804-ae8f-1d39957b2290/ipage+-+Product+Detail.PNG Calendar | Paper Leaves Shop - Pam's Traveling Coat Collection Signing - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/on-rising-recipes-and-rituals-book-signing monthly 0.5 2024-01-05 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/f8aca012-1130-4060-ac5b-f1f89a2a0f05/IMG_6102.jpg Calendar | Paper Leaves Shop - On Rising Book Signing - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/book-signing-with-jenna-hartley monthly 0.5 2024-01-09 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/7419fc51-6143-4818-b42a-c91f35fa6917/123242656.jpg Calendar | Paper Leaves Shop - Book Signing with Jenna Hartley - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/childrens-story-time-1 monthly 0.5 2023-12-12 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2349453b-e247-4024-b0f9-4b6e8dcf201a/tempImageMKnBgP.jpg Calendar | Paper Leaves Shop - Children's Story Time - Story Time Books To be announced January 1st https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/childrens-story-time monthly 0.5 2023-12-12 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2349453b-e247-4024-b0f9-4b6e8dcf201a/tempImageMKnBgP.jpg Calendar | Paper Leaves Shop - Children's Story Time - Story Time Books: To be announced on January 1st https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/book-club-christmas-party monthly 0.5 2023-12-06 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/6b227cc6-1d96-4850-b1a2-24aeb6a764b2/IMG_5779.jpg Calendar | Paper Leaves Shop - Book Club Christmas Party - Make it stand out Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/rm-gray-book-signing monthly 0.5 2023-12-06 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/bbfd9839-f748-4232-a474-00ca78c5a049/f3abe194262335f1f58abb560e24fed5.jpg Calendar | Paper Leaves Shop - R.M. Gray Book Signing - Make it stand out Nightweaver is R.M. Gray’s debut novel, filled with pirates, adventure, and manipulation. https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/childrensreadingandcraft-36w37 monthly 0.5 2023-12-11 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2349453b-e247-4024-b0f9-4b6e8dcf201a/tempImageMKnBgP.jpg Calendar | Paper Leaves Shop - Santa and Mrs Claus Story Time - Story Time Books: The Twelve Hours of Christmas by Jenn Bailey Pick a Pine Tree by Patricia Toht Mr. Willowby’s Christmas Tree by Robert Barry https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/childrensreadingandcraft-2ptbj monthly 0.5 2023-09-13 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2349453b-e247-4024-b0f9-4b6e8dcf201a/tempImageMKnBgP.jpg Calendar | Paper Leaves Shop - Children’s Story Time - Story Time Books: To be announced December 1st https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/childrensreadingandcraft-4l5y4 monthly 0.5 2023-09-13 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2349453b-e247-4024-b0f9-4b6e8dcf201a/tempImageMKnBgP.jpg Calendar | Paper Leaves Shop - Children’s Story Time - Story Time Books: To be announced November 1st https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/childrensreadingandcraft-jp3da monthly 0.5 2023-09-13 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2349453b-e247-4024-b0f9-4b6e8dcf201a/tempImageMKnBgP.jpg Calendar | Paper Leaves Shop - Children’s Story Time - Story Time Books: To be announced November 1st https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/childrensreadingandcraft-rp2fz-fztwg monthly 0.5 2023-09-13 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/62c04f204713972896ee3d0f/2349453b-e247-4024-b0f9-4b6e8dcf201a/tempImageMKnBgP.jpg Calendar | Paper Leaves Shop - Children’s Story Time - Story Time Books: To be announced October 1st https://www.paperleavesshop.com/calendar/childrensreadingandcraft-rp2fz monthly 0.5 2023-09-13 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