Mysteries, thrillers, murders, secrets….time to dive in and enjoy new releases during the heat of the summer!
The Locked Ward by Sarah Pekkanen (mystery/thriller)
Was it…
Bitter, all-consuming jealousy?
Pathological sibling rivalry?
Pure insanity?
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?
Nothing is as it seems in Sarah Pekkanen’s The Locked Ward, a shocking psychological thriller about the complex bonds of sisterhood—and what happens when they are stretched to the breaking point.
Some doors in the Locked Ward should never be opened.
Last Seen by J.T. Ellison (psychological thriller)
From New York Times bestselling author J.T. Ellison comes a twisted psychological thriller about the bonds of family and the disconnect between memory and the truth.
Come here. Come closer.
Halley James knows her marriage is over. But she’s not prepared for the rest of her life to fall apart too.
No one can hear you. No one can help you.
She just lost her job at the forensics lab. Her dad needs emergency surgery. But the biggest blow comes back home in Marchburg, Virginia, where she discovers her mother didn’t actually die in a car crash. Her mom was murdered—and her father lied about it all these years.
I have nothing to hide from you. Are you hiding something from me?
Since she was six years old, it’s been Halley and her dad. Now, she doesn’t know what to believe. Desperate for the truth, Halley chases down a lead in Brockville, Tennessee. But all there is not as it seems. Brockville’s utopian charm hides a chilling darkness. And Halley’s search for answers threatens to expose an unspeakable reality.
The Meaning of the Murder by Walter B. Levis (suspense)
The father of a modern orthodox Jewish family works as a compliance officer at a bank in New York. When he discovers that his bank is violating OFAC laws and funding terrorists in the Middle East he alerts the bank’s top brass. They ignore him. After struggling with the conflict between his position as a fully assimilated member of his professional community and his moral obligations as a man and a Jew, he turns whistle-blower and goes to the DOJ. The night before his deposition he disappears.
Eliana Golden was thirteen when her father disappeared. Years later, after surprising her family by joining the NYPD, Eliana meets a mysterious and alluring soldier, a man who is far more dangerous than Eliana—and everyone except those at the highest and most secret levels of the U.S. government—understands. And he knows exactly what happened to her father.
What follows is a journey into the darkest depths of America’s covert war against terrorism and the horrific moral compromises it can entail.
The Meaning of the Murder is a psychological drama and a meditation on the moral ambiguity of violence, telling the multi-layered story of a family recovering from trauma, a detective determined to solve a crime, and the price we pay for safety in the war on terror.
“The Meaning of the Murder is both a compelling story, populated with strikingly memorable characters, and also a nuanced and deeply intelligent examination of violence. Walter Levis has written a first-rate crime novel.”—Lou Berney, author of November Road
“Walter Levis’ exquisitely crafted, utterly enthralling The Meaning of the Murderprobes the relationship between love and violence in a searing, original way. His gorgeously textured novel also makes us understand the ways our private lives are now inextricably linked to lethal worldly forces. This is an astonishing and necessary novel.” —Jay Neugeboren, author of The Stolen Jew, and Imagining Robert
“The Meaning of the Murder is more than an engaging narrative; it’s an authentic and profound exploration of the moral complexities law enforcement officers face in the relentless fight against terrorism. Having stood on the front lines, I highly recommend this book for its insightful portrayal of these critical challenges.” —Matthew Jones, NYPD Ret. Sergeant; U.S. Dept. of Justice, Int. Criminal Investigative Training Assistance Program (ICITAP); U.S. Dept. of State Bureau of Int. Narcotics and Law Enforcement (INL)
Walter B. Levis, a former crime reporter, lives in New York City. His articles have appeared in The NY Daily News, The National Law Journal, The Chicago Reporter,The Chicago Lawyer, The New Republic, Show Business Magazine, and The New Yorker, among others. He is author of the novel Moments of Doubt. His short stories have appeared widely and have been chosen for a Henfield Prize and nominated for a Pushcart Prize. His website is walterblevis.com.
Homecoming Queen by Chad Bourdreaux (fiction/thriller)
NO ONE EVER LEAVES MIRANDA TWICE
Anika Raven faces the challenge of a lifetime. She must rescue her little sister from a neglectful family as the hurricane of a century barrels toward her hometown of Miranda, Texas. Time is of the essence, but the deadly storm is not her biggest problem.
Once Miranda High School’s beloved homecoming queen, Anika now possesses a dark secret that must remain hidden. Unable to outrun the shadows of her past, and terrified to confront the demons of her future, she finds herself running from the law.
Concealing a dark secret of its own, the town of Miranda’s corruption permeates every aspect of society. Each time Anika catches a break, a scheming mayor and powerful political forces deliver her another life-threatening setback.
With the storm looming, and tensions in town escalating, Anika and her sister are trapped. To escape town, they will need unspeakable courage, perseverance, and the help of a special gift possessed by Anika’s little sister. But all bets are off as adversity abounds. To stay alive, they must overcome a jealous town, rabid adversaries bent on vigilante justice, and a monster hurricane . . . all coming at them with a vengeance.
High Season by Katie Bishop (Thriller)
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?
Set over two unforgettable summers two decades apart, High Season is a dark, tense exploration of the nature of memory, the enduring power of truth, and all the gray areas in between.
The Last Carolina Summer by Karen White (mystery)
Beloved New York Times bestselling author Karen White returns with a brand-new contemporary stand-alone novel about sisterhood, secrets and one woman’s reckoning with the past
As a child, Phoebe Manigault developed the gift of premonition after she was struck by lightning in the creeks near her Charleston home. Plagued throughout her life by mysterious dreams, and always living in the shadow of her beautiful sister, Addie, Phoebe eventually moves to the West Coast, as far from her family as possible. Now, years later, she is summoned back to South Carolina, to help Addie care for their ailing mother.
As Phoebe’s return lures her back into deep-rooted tensions and conflicts, she is drawn toward Celeste, whose granddaughter went missing years ago. Their connection, woven through shared losses and hope, brings comfort to Phoebe, while Celeste’s adult grandson Liam resurrects complicated emotions tied to Phoebe’s past.
But the longer Phoebe spends in her childhood home, the more her recurring nightmares intensify—bringing her closer to the shocking truth that will irrevocably change everything. Unfolding against the lush backdrop of the South Carolina Lowcountry, That Last Carolina Summer is an unforgettable family drama and mystery about the unbreakable bonds of family and the gift of second chances.
Someone’s Gotta Give by Alisha Fernandez Miranda (Fiction)
The author of My What If Year is back with a fun, witty debut novel that takes you inside the world of extreme wealth and charitable giving.
Lucia thought she had it all figured out—until life in London as a new mom and expat turns everything upside down. She’s just barely keeping it together, when she unexpectedly lands a glamorous job as a philanthropic advisor to the poshest families in England. But is the world of the uber wealthy everything it’s cracked up to be?
At work, she’s rubbing elbows with royals and taking champagne-fueled meetings with heirs to the next generation of wealth; while at home, her teething one-year-old is up at all hours of the night, and her husband’s growing connection to his ex-girlfriend is making her question their marriage.
Something’s gotta give in this relatable and heartwarming dramedy about a woman caught between her career ambitions, her family’s needs, and the person she’s becoming. Can Lucia rediscover herself before it all falls apart? And can she still do some good in the world while she’s at it?
A Dog in Georgia by Lauren Grodstein (fiction)
Amy Webb is a chef. Or rather, she was a chef. Somewhere along the way she also became a wife and a stepmother and an emergency contact, and the part of her that was a chef disappeared entirely– along with her sense of self. Which is why she is currently in the republic of Georgia, on a mission to find a lost dog named Angel, and, more importantly, the life’s purpose she once took for granted.
For months, Amy has escaped by watching Youtube videos of Angel walking the children of Tbilisi to school. When Angel goes missing, Amy volunteers to go find him. The fact that her husband may be having (another) affair and her stepson is away at college probably has something to do with it. Who is Amy, after all, if she’s not taking care of other people?
But to her surprise, Angel proves elusive, and while she does make friends with a number of stray dogs, what she finds in Tblisi is entirely human. Is she happy in her marriage? What happened to her career? Why doesn’t she ever cook anymore, even just for herself?
Helping her on this journey of self-discovery is a rebellious teenager, a mysterious and attractive Russian, and several post-Soviet grandmothers. And, of course, the rich food and culture and complicated politics of Georgia itself.
After a lifetime of looking away from her own needs and appetites, Amy is forced to confront what she really wants and how to finally find herself –
And a dog.
The Dead Come to Stay by Brandy Schillace (cozy mystery)
A delightful new cozy crime novel from the award-winning author of the “twisty, engaging, and thoroughly unexpected” (Deanna Raybourne) The Framed Women of Ardemore House
An amateur autistic sleuth. A wry English detective. A murder case that thrusts them both into the wealthy world of the rare artifacts trade…
Jo Jones can’t seem to catch a break. She’d hoped that trading in her city life for the cozy, peaceful hills of North Yorkshire to take over her family estate would finally be her chance for a “fresh start.” Instead, she’s been thrust further into the past than she thought possible. The estate property is littered with traces of ancestors that Jo never knew existed, including a mysterious woman depicted in a half-destroyed painting inside the estate – and also including Jo’s late uncle, who may hold the key to her cryptic family history. Add to all this the gossipy town politics that Jo’s forced to navigate as a neurodivergent transplanted American. And that’s not even getting to the murder yet.
When the prickly town detective James MacAdams discovers a body in the woods with coincidental ties to Jo Jones, they’re forced to team up on the case. The clues will lead them into the wealthiest locales of Yorkshire, from sparkling glass hotels to luxury property sites to elite country clubs. But below the glittering surfaces, Jo and MacAdams discover darker schemes brewing. Local teens, many of them international refugees, are disappearing left and right, and each case is somehow linked to a shady architectural firm – which also happened to employ the dead man from the woods.
What began as an unusual murder case plunges Jo and MacAdams into the underground world of rare artifacts and antique trading… and the murderer may not be finished yet…
Gone in the Night by Joanna Schaffhausen (mystery)
Detective Annalisa Vega hasn’t forgiven her brother for his role in a murder, and he hasn’t forgiven her for turning him in, so she’s surprised when he asks her to visit him in prison. Turns out, he has a possible case for her: one of his fellow inmates, Joe Green, may be innocent of the murder that landed him behind bars.
Joe is doing hard time for killing his ex-wife’s lawyer, but an anonymous letter sent to the prison warns that the eyewitness in Joe’s trial made up her story. With her private investigation business foundering, Annalisa is desperate enough to start poking around into Joe’s meager case. She immediately finds two problems: One, the eyewitness definitely lied about what she saw the night of the murder, and two, Annalisa’s husband Nick was the cop who arrested Joe in the first place.
Faced with correcting Nick’s mistakes, Annalisa digs deeper into Joe’s past and discovers he has two ex-wives with nothing good to say about him. The women may have orchestrated an elaborate frame to put Joe in prison, but one wife has completely disappeared since then. Did Joe somehow kill her? Or is he the real victim? Annalisa’s search for the truth tests the bounds of her marriage, her family, and her own sense of justice. Meanwhile, a devious killer keeps sending men to a watery death in the vastness of Lake Michigan. If Annalisa doesn’t figure out the truth about Joe soon, her husband might be next.
The View Form Lake Como by Adriana Trigiani
INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
INSTANT USA TODAY BESTSELLER
As seen on Good Morning America, The View, Good Day New York and featured on Katie Couric Media and Read with Jenna Open Book podcast
PEOPLE: BEST NEW BOOKS
An Elle Best Book of Summer 2025
USA Today Most Anticipated Read of Summer 2025
Publishers Weekly Most Anticipated Book of Summer 2025
From the beloved New York Times bestselling author Adriana Trigiani, a “dazzling” storyteller (Washington Post), and a “comedy writer with a heart of gold” (NYT), comes a novel about one woman’s quest to build her own life before it’s too late.
Jess Capodimonte Baratta is not living the life of her dreams. Not even close.
In blue-collar Lake Como, New Jersey, family comes first. Recently divorced from Bobby Bilancia, “the perfect husband,” Jess moves into her parents’ basement to hide and heal. Jess is the overlooked daughter, who dutifully takes care of her parents, cooks Sunday dinner, and puts herself last. Despite her role as the family handmaiden, Jess is also a talented draftswoman in the marble business run by her dapper uncle Louie, who believes she can do anything (once she invests in a better wardrobe).
When the Capodimonte and Baratta families endure an unexpected loss, the shock unearths long-buried secrets that will force Jess to question her loyalty to those she trusted. Fueled by her lost dreams, Jess takes fate into her own hands and escapes to her ancestral home, Carrara, Italy.
From the shadows of the majestic marble-capped mountains of Tuscany, to the glittering streets of Milan, and on the shores of enchanting Lake Como (the other one), Jess begins to carve a place in this new/old world. When she meets Angelo Strazza, a passionate artist who works in gold, she discovers her own skills are priceless. But as Jess uncovers the truth about her family history, it will change the course of her life and those she loves the most forever. In love and work, in art and soul, Jess will need every tool she has mastered to reinvent her life.
Fed by the author’s cherished Italian roots comes a bighearted, hilarious novel of the moment: the story of one woman’s determination to live a creative life that matters, with enough room left over for love. With a one-way ticket to Italy, Jess is determined to write a new story on her own terms–this time, in stone.
I know How This Ends by Holly Smale
If you knew how your life would turn out, what would you change now?
The second brilliantly uplifting and page-turning novel from the multi-million bestselling author of Geek Girl and Reese’s Book Club Pick Cassandra in Reverse.
Margot Wayward is in manically gleeful self-destruct mode. Following the implosion of a ten-year relationship, she’s wilfully derailing her successful career, joyfully taking down men on dating apps, and living in total chaos.
Until one day, when Margot has a vision of herself with a man she’s never met before. She doesn’t believe in fate. But when Margot meets single-dad Henry, the vision comes true: exactly as she’d foreseen it.
As her future continues to reveal itself, a glimpse at a time, Margot realises she knows exactly what’s going to happen, and when. And there’s nothing she can do to change any of it.
So Margot has to decide how to live, how to love again, and how to be herself… Because if you can’t change your destiny, how on earth do you live your present?
Battle of the Bookshops by Poppy Alexander
A charming literary-themed novel about a young woman determined to save her great-aunt’s beloved bookshop from extinction by the shiny new competition—which also happens to be run by the handsome son of her family’s rivals.
The cute, seaside town of Portneath has been the home of Capelthorne’s Books for nearly a hundred years…
The shop, in the heart of a high street that stretches crookedly down the hill from the castle to the sea, may be a tad run-down these days, but to Jules Capelthorne, the wonky, dusty world of literary treasures is full of precious childhood memories. When her great-aunt Florence gets too frail to run it alone, Jules ditches her junior publishing job in London and comes home to make the bookshop’s hundredth birthday a celebration to remember.
Jules quickly discovers things are worse than she ever imagined: The bookshop is close to bankruptcy, unlikely to make it to its own centenary celebration, and the lease on the building is up for renewal. With a six-figure sum needed, the future looks bleak.
To make matters worse, the owner of the property is the insufferable Roman Montbeau, from the posh, local family who owns half of Portneath. The Montbeaus and Capelthornes have feuded for years, and Roman has clearly not improved since he tormented Jules as a child. Fresh from a high-flying career in New York, he is on a mission to shake things up, and—unforgivably—proves his point about Capelthorne’s being a relic of the past by opening a new bookshop directly opposite—a shiny, plate-glass-windowed emporium of books.
Jules may not be able to splash the cash on promotions and marketing like the Montbeaus, but she’s got some ideas of her own, plus she has a tenacity that may just win the hardest of hearts and the most hopeless of conflicts.
Let the battle of the bookshops commence…
The Secret Book Society by Madeline Martin (historical fiction)
A captivating new historical novel from Madeline Martin, set in Victorian London about a forbidden book club, dangerous secrets, and the women who dare to break free.
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.
