Staff Picks
LibraryReads for April 2021
- Sarah C.
- Tuesday, March 23, 2021
Collection
Each month, LibraryReads lists the top upcoming titles recommended by librarians across the country. All these books will be published in April 2021, so stay ahead of the curve and get on the holds list now!
The Intimacy Experiment
Published in 2021
"Naomi and Ethan will test the boundaries of love in this provocative romance from the author of the groundbreaking debut, The Roommate. Naomi Grant has built a life around going against the grain. When the sex-positive start-up she cofounded becomes an international sensation, her responsibilities shift from the bedroom to the boardroom. Ready to conquer new worlds, Naomi wants to extend her educational platform to live lecturing, but despite her long list of qualifications, higher ed won't hire her. Ethan Cohen has recently received two honors: LA Mag named him one of the city's hottest bachelors and he became rabbi of his own synagogue. Taking a gamble in an effort to attract more millennials to the faith, the executive board hired Ethan because of hisnontraditional background. Unfortunately, his temple is low on both funds and congregants. The board gives him three months to turn things around or else they'll close the doors of his synagogue for good. Naomi and Ethan join forces to host a buzzy seminar series on Modern Intimacy, the perfect solution to their problems-until they discover a new one-their growing attraction to each other. They've built the syllabus for love's latest experiment, but neither of them expected they'd be the ones putting itto the test"-- Provided by publisher.
The Music of Bees
A Novel
Published in 2021
"Following three lonely strangers in a rural Oregon town, each working through grief and life's curveballs, who are brought together by happenstance on a local honeybee farm where they find surprising friendship, healing--and maybe even a second chance--just when they least expect it"-- Provided by publisher.
The Good Sister
Published in 2021
"Sally Hepworth, the author of The Mother-In-Law, delivers a knock-out of a novel about the lies that bind two sisters. From the outside, everyone might think Fern and Rose are as close as twin sisters can be: Rose is the responsible one, with a home anda husband and a fierce desire to become a mother. Fern is the quirky one, the free spirit, the librarian who avoids social interaction and whom the world might just describe as truly odd. But the sisters are devoted to one another and Rose has always beenFern's protector from the time they were small. Fern needed protecting because their mother was a true sociopath who hid her true nature from the world, and only Rose could see it. Fern always saw the good in everyone. Years ago, Fern did something very,very bad. And Rose has never told a soul. When Fern decides to help her sister achieve her heart's desire of having a baby, Rose realizes with growing horror that Fern might make choices that can only have a terrible outcome. What Rose doesn't realize isthat Fern is growing more and more aware of the secrets Rose, herself, is keeping. And that their mother might have the last word after all. Spine tingling, creepy, utterly compelling and unpredictable, The Good Sister is about the ties that bind sisterstogether...and about the madness that lurks where you least expect it"-- Provided by publisher.
You Love Me
A You Novel
Published in 2021
"The highly anticipated new thriller in Caroline Kepnes's hit You series, now a blockbuster Netflix show . . . Joe Goldberg is back. And he's going to start a family--even if it kills him. Joe Goldberg is done with cities, done with the muck and the posers, done with Love. Now, he's saying hello to nature, to simple pleasures on a cozy island in the Pacific Northwest. For the first time in a long time, he can just breathe. He gets a job at the local library--he does know a thing or two about books--and that's where he meets her: Mary Kay DiMarco. Librarian. Joe won't meddle, he will not obsess. He'll win her the old fashioned way . . . by providing a shoulder to cry on, a helping hand. Over time, they'll both heal their wounds and begin their happily everafter in this sleepy town. The trouble is . . . Mary Kaye already has a life. She's a mother. She's a friend. She's . . . busy. True love can only triumph if both people are willing to make room for the real thing. Joe cleared his decks. He's ready. Andhopefully, with his encouragement and undying support, Mary Kaye will do the right thing and make room for him"-- Provided by publisher.
Broken (in the Best Possible Way)
(In the Best Possible Way)
Published in 2021
"As Jenny Lawson's hundreds of thousands of fans know, she suffers from depression. In Broken (in the best possible way), she explores her experimental treatment of transcranial magnetic stimulation with brutal honesty. But also with brutal humor: "Peopledo different things to distract themselves during each treatment. I embroider. It feels fitting. I'm being magnetically stabbed in the head thousands of times as I'm stabbing the embroidery myself. I don't embroider the same patterns my grandmother did.I embroider girls with octopus faces, David Bowie, a flowery bouquet with FUCK YES written in the middle. They let you do anything as long as it's 'positive.'" Jenny discusses the frustration of dealing with her insurance company in "An Open Letter to MyInsurance Company," which should be an anthem for anyone who has ever had to call their insurance company to try and get a claim covered. On the lighter side, she tackles such timelessly debated questions as "How do dogs know they have penises?" We see how her vacuum cleaner almost set her house on fire, how she was attacked by three bears, business ideas she wants to pitch to Shark Tank, and why she can never go back to the post office. Of course, Jenny's long-suffering husband Victor--the Ricky to Jenny's Lucille Ball--is present throughout. A treat for Jenny Lawson's already existing fans, and destined to convert new ones, Broken is a beacon of hope and a wellspring of laughter"-- Provided by publisher.
When the Stars Go Dark
A Novel
Published in 2021
"From the New York times bestselling author of 'The Paris Wife' comes an atmospheric novel of intertwined fate and heart-wrenching suspense: A detective hiding away from the world. A series of disappearances that reach into her past. Can solving them helpher heal? Anna Hart is a seasoned missing persons detective in San Francisco with far too much knowledge of the darkest side of human nature. When unspeakable tragedy strikes her personal life, Anna, desperate and numb, flees to the Northern California village of Mendocino. She spent summers there as a child with her beloved grandparents, and now she believes it might be the only place left for her to heal. Yet the day she arrives, she learns a local teenage girl has gone missing. Anna is in no conditionto become involved with the search--until a childhood friend, now the village sheriff, pleads for her help. Then, just days later, a twelve-year-old girl is abducted from her home. The crimes feel frighteningly reminiscent of the most crucial time in Anna's childhood, when a string of unsolved murders touched Mendocino. As past and present collide, Anna realizes that she has been led to this moment. The most difficult lessons of her life have given her insight into how victims come into contact with violent predators. As Anna becomes obsessed with these missing girls, she must learn that true courage means getting out of her own way and learning to let others in. Weaving together true crime, trauma theory, and a hint of the metaphysical, this tense, affecting story is about fate, unlikely redemption, and what it takes, when the worst happens, to reclaim our lives--and our faith in one another"-- Provided by publisher.
Dial A for Aunties
Published in 2021
"What happens when you mix 1 (accidental) murder with 2 thousand wedding guests, and then, toss in a possible curse on 3 generations of an immigrant Chinese-Indonesian family? You get 4 meddling Asian aunties coming to the rescue! When Meddelin Chan endsup accidentally killing her blind date, her meddlesome mother calls for her even more meddlesome aunties to help get rid of the body. Unfortunately, a dead body proves to be a lot more challenging to dispose of than one might anticipate-especially when itis accidentally shipped in a cake cooler to the over-the-top billionaire wedding that Meddy, her Ma, and her aunties are working, at an island resort on the California coastline. It is the biggest job yet for their family wedding business-"Don't leave your big day to chance, leave it to the Chans!"-and nothing, not even an unsavory corpse, will get in the way of her aunties' perfect buttercream-cake flowers. But things go from inconvenient to downright torturous when Meddy's great college love-and biggest heartbreak-makes a surprise appearance amid the wedding chaos. Is it possible to escape murder charges, charm her ex back into her life, and pull off a stunning wedding, all in one weekend?"-- Provided by publisher.
To Love and to Loathe
A Novel
Published in 2021
"The widowed Diana, Lady Templeton and Jeremy, Marquess of Willingham are infamous among English high society as much for their sharp-tongued bickering as their flirtation. One evening, an argument at a ball turns into a serious wager: Jeremy will marry within the year or Diana will forfeit one hundred pounds. So shortly after, just before a fortnight-long house party at Elderwild, Jeremy's country estate, Diana is shocked when Jeremy appears at her home with a very different kind of proposition. After his latest mistress unfavorably criticized his skills in the bedroom, Jeremy is looking for reassurance, so he has gone to the only woman he trusts to be totally truthful. He suggests that they embark on a brief affair while at the house party-Jeremy can receive an honest critique of his bedroom skills and widowed Diana can use the gossip to signal to other gentlemen that she is interested in taking a lover. Diana thinks taking him up on his counter-proposal can only help her win her wager. With her in thebedroom and Jeremy's marriage-minded grandmother, the formidable Dowager Marchioness of Willingham, helping to find suitable matches among the eligible ladies at Elderwild, Diana is confident her victory is assured. But while they're focused on winning wagers, they stand to lose their own hearts"-- Provided by publisher.