The best new books out this week 📚
 Hello, book lovers! Each week, dozens of new releases hit the shelves. Here are our favorites. ❤️📚 –The BuzzFeed Books team
 Forwarded this newsletter? Hi! BuzzFeed Books celebrates all things books for every kind of reader, and the newsletter is the best way to keep up with curated posts, exclusive reviews, virtual events, and author features. We'll pop into your inbox every Tuesday and Sunday, with the occasional offer from a sponsor. Maybe we're biased, but we think you'll really enjoy it. Hit the button below to join us!
 A Certain Appeal by Vanessa King
This modern retelling of Pride and Prejudice follows Liz Bennett, an interior designer who, after a betrayal, finds herself working as a stage kitten, aka a dressing room assistant, at NY burlesque club Meryton. When she locks eyes with patron Will Darcy one night, the chemistry is instant — until she overhears him calling her merely tolerable. She swears him off and vows not to have anything to do with him — which proves difficult when their respective best friends fall in love. Things only complicate further when a charming newcomer makes accusations against Darcy. Between the Darcy drama and her newfound home Meryton suddenly in jeopardy, Liz has a lot on her plate and doesn't know who to trust with her dreams or her heart. —Shyla Watson
Get it from Bookshop or from your local indie at Indiebound here.
The Fastest Way to Fall by Denise Williams
Lifestyle writer Britta Colby is determined to prove she's an asset to the website she works for, so when she's presented the opportunity to write about the popular new body positive fitness app, FitMe, she gives it her all. After signing up, she's paired with virtual coach, Wes. Their daily check-ins about her activity levels and favorite foods quickly turn into banter and flirting, but they both think they're playing it safe since they haven't met in person. But when Britta, literally and figuratively, takes a tumble, she comes face to face with Wes — who she has no idea is not only a coach, but the CEO of FitMe. They take their trainer/trainee relationship off the app to in person at the gym, and before long their friendship blooms into something more. Can they risk falling in love with both their careers on the line? —Shyla Watson
Get it from Bookshop or from your local indie at Indiebound here.
 A Marvellous Light by Freya Marske
This steamy gay historical fantasy romp is perfect for fans of Witchmark by C.L. Polk. When boxer Robin Blyth takes on an obscure civil service job, he stumbles upon a hidden world of magic in Edwardian England. His coworker is the magical and infuriatingly cold Edwin Courcey, who seemingly cares more for books and reading than being cordial. The previous magical liaison has disappeared, and Edwin fears the worst. Edwin's fears are confirmed when Robin is painfully cursed and instructed to find a magical contract hidden in the office. Despite their dislike for one another, Edwin whisks Robin away to his childhood home to try and find a way to remove the curse and investigate the disappearance of Robin's predecessor. But in the magical halls of his childhood home, Edwin's coolness toward Robin begins to simmer away. Meanwhile, a dangerous magical plot puts both of their lives at risk. —Margaret Kingsbury
Get it from Bookshop or from your local indie at Indiebound here.
The Seventh Queen by Greta Kelly
The second and final book in the Frozen Crown duology takes place immediately where the first book left off. Warrior Queen Askia has been captured by the tyrant and evil magician Emperor Radovan, who plans to make her his next bride. Imprisoned in his castle, she realizes that, to save both Seravesh and Vishir, she must play Radovan's game, at least for now. As she spies on Radovan, Askia learns more about his past queens. Meanwhile, her guard Illya is attempting to find a way to rescue Askia. Both still pine for one another, even though they know they're not meant to be together. The conclusion to this action-packed, romantic epic fantasy does not disappoint. —Margaret Kingsbury
Get it from Bookshop or from your local indie at Indiebound here.
A Psalm of Storms and Silence by Roseanne A. Brown
The second and final book in the A Song of Wraiths and Ruin duology is just as emotionally wrought and suspenseful as the first book and brings the series to a more than satisfying close. After the events in the first book, Malik has PTSD and his mental health is in shambles. He's serving his master Farid, who is controlling Karina's resurrected sister on the throne. However, with her sister's resurrection, the balance between the real world and the spirit world is now out of place. To correct the imbalance, Malik needs to find Karina. Karina, in the meantime, is in exile. To win her kingdom back, she decides to explore the secret city of her ancestors and uncover the magical powers it hides. —Rachel Strolle
Get it from Bookshop or from your local indie at Indiebound here.
Skin of the Sea by Natasha Bowen
In this remarkable debut, Simi collects the souls of those who die at sea, serving the gods as a Mami Wata, a mermaid. But after breaking the rules to save the life of a boy thrown overboard, one who seems to know more than he should, Simi heads to the Supreme Creator in order to make amends. —Rachel Strolle
Get it from Bookshop or from your local indie at Indiebound here.
 A Face for Picasso: Coming of Age with Crouzon Syndrome by Ariel Henley
Ariel Henley and her twin Zan were diagnosed with Crouzon syndrome at just 8 months old, and became the first twins known to survive it. As Crouzon syndrome means the bones in the head fuse prematurely, Ariel and her sister were put through the physical and mental toll of countless surgeries and procedures to ensure their growing organs would have enough room. This beautiful memoir chronicles Ariel's experiences navigating life with a facial disfigurement. —Rachel Strolle
Get it from Bookshop or your local indie through Indiebound here.
Tahira in Bloom by Farah Heron
Farah Heron's first YA follows aspiring fashion designer Tahira who ends up working in her aunt's boutique in Bakewell Ontario for the summer after her fashioninternship falls through. Despite being surrounded by florals instead of fabrics, Tahira can still make connections in the design world in New York City by winning the Bakewell flower-arranging contest. But to do that, she'll need to deal with Rowan, the garden-nerd-next-door with ironic shirts, a sharp jawline, and the ability to push all of Tahira's buttons. —Rachel Strolle
Get it from Bookshop or your local indie through Indiebound here.
You Can Go Your Own Way by Eric Smith
You've Got Mail + pinball? Can't wait! Adam is determined to protect the pinball arcade that is the only thing he has left of his dad, even if he has to fight the tech mogul who wants to turn it into a gaming café. Whitney is running social media for her dads chain of gaming cafés, trading insults with the pinball arcade across town. When a snowstorm hits, the two get trapped inside the arcade, and as the tension starts morphing into something else, the question becomes what happens when the storm ends. —Rachel Strolle
Get it from Bookshop or your local indie through Indiebound here.
 Anticipation by Melodie Winawer
An epic historical novel that combines science, romance, and suspense, Anticipation follows burnt-out scientist Helen and her son, Alexander, heading on a trip to Greece after the death of their beloved husband and father. But amidst the hoards of tourists, they somehow stumble upon the ancient city of Mystras, population of one. Back in 1237, Elias's mother promised his eternal servitude; now, 800 years later, he runs into Helen and Alexander. But Elias has an enemy: the noble Lusignan family, whose last descendant is on the hunt for Elias, who is prophesied to be able to cure the family's ancient curse. With the enemy on their heels and 800 years between them, can Helen and Elias's newfound love survive? —Kirby Beaton
Get it from Bookshop or through your local indie through Indiebound here.
The French Gift by Kirsty Manning
In 1940, Margot — a former maid at an upscale villa on the Riviera — finds herself sharing a French prison cell with a resistance fighter and writer named Joséphine. The two then spend four years in a German work camp, sharing secrets that will bind them together forever. In present-day Paris, Evie Black and her son, Hugo, are still grieving the loss of their husband and father. So when a letter arrives concerning her late husband's great-aunt, Joséphine Murant, Evie and Hugo eagerly head to Joséphine's — and now their house on Côte d'Azur. There, Evie spends the summer unraveling not only Joséphine's story, but the little-known stories of the women enslaved during World War II. Blending together the past and present, The French Gift highlights the tenderness and tenacity of female friendship. —Kirby Beaton
Get it from Bookshop or through your local indie through Indiebound here.
 The Uninnocent: Notes on Mercy and Violence by Katharine Blake
In 2012, Blake's 16-year-old cousin killed a 9-year-old boy during what his family believes was a psychotic break. He confessed to the crime and was subsequently tried as an adult for murder. Blake, now a lawyer, unpacks this history of violence both in her family, which has a history of alcoholism and violence, and the nation writ large. She teaches at a prison outside San Francisco and meets young men who, unlike her cousin, are poor and Black or brown. Like Maggie Nelson's The Art of Cruelty, which she often quotes, The Uninnocent is a sobering meditation on what justice and mercy look like and who gets it and who doesn't. —Tomi Obaro
Get it from Bookshop or from your local indie at Indiebound here.
 The Waiting by Keum Suk Gendry-Kim, translated by Janet Hong
This heartbreaking graphic novel about family separation during the Korean War hops between two times. It opens seventy years after the Korean War, with the narrator's elderly mother exhorting her daughter to contact the Red Cross to help locate her son. It then shifts to the mother's perspective and her story of fleeing her North Korean home and becoming separated from her husband and toddler son. Though a fictional account, the story is based on the author's mother's experiences of becoming separated from her sister, as well as the stories of other North Korean refugees who have yet to reconnect with their lost family members. Gendry-Kim's black-and-white art adds to the stark emotional impact of her story. —Margaret Kingsbury
Get it from Bookshop or from your local indie at Indiebound here.
Find these titles and other BuzzFeed Books favorites on our Bookshop page. 
BuzzFeed, Inc. We hope you love the products we recommend! Just so you know, BuzzFeed may collect a small share of sales from the links in this email. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
