A wacky tale of suburban PTO moms and murder. The new mom on the block is our main character, Jill. For a short book, this one is kind of chaotic. I really enjoyed Darla and the other mom characters, even though Jill was pretty insufferable. It reads a bit like YA, it goes deep on storylines that go nowhere and rushes through the development I was eager for. A few scenes genuinely cracked me up. Still, I enjoyed a lot of the dialogue and would try other books by this author. The pacing in this one seemed off for me, but I think others may really enjoy it.
Thanks to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for this buzzy ARC! Book to be published 2/24/26.
A quietly humorous, self-deprecating contemporary story of a long term relationship, being abandoned, and finding your spirit. Part “Same As It Ever Was” [Claire Lombardo] and part “Then She Was Gone” [Lisa Jewell] and part “Emperor of Gladness” [Ocean Vuong]
Jesse and Norman have been together for decades; they’ve settled into their privileged life, and suffer from the general malaise of late capitalism. Jesse is a semi-celebrated writer, teaching at university, whose most celebrated work may be behind him. His husband Norman goes to the backyard to investigate a soft but encompassing light in the backyard one night, then disappears.
Jesse needs to grieve the loss, learn who he is without Norman by his side, and come to terms with feeling abandoned by his father before he was born and his emotionally distant mother. He is joined by his sister-in-law Lally, who is also grieving the disappearance of her brother, figuring out what middle age is going to look like for her, and figuring out how to get close to people who might leave.
This is beautiful writing, surprising in its simplicity, and with deep themes. The writing is clever, not laugh-out-loud funny, but specific to really develop the characters into being endearing. It all builds up to a heartwarming scene. With Steven Rowley, you always know he’ll make you think, laugh, and cry. This one fits the bill.
4.25/5 stars “I loved it”
Thanks to NetGalley and Putnam for the ARC. Book to be published May 18, 2026.
A fake dating, mid 20’s couple, sports romance. He’s a famous football player and she’s the team’s biggest fan. This book is everything I love about Lynn Painter- an upper midwest setting, extremely funny banter and all the chemistry. This is my favorite adult romcom from Lynn Painter yet! I love the meet cute, the misophonia representation, and a fantastic dad character. I loved the roller coaster of Connor and Duffy’s relationship. Duffy was very likable but funny. I just love the way she writes dialogue.
a best romance of 2026 you heard it here first!
Thanks to NetGalley and Berkley for the ARC. Book to be published 5/12/2026.
After The Fall is a Sci Fi standalone with a lot of strong world building and beloved characters. It is the perfect listen for a longer road trip with the kids- it is not YA, but is family friendly with little to no violence or adult content. The protagonist, John, is a human “employee” i.e. “pet” of Martok the gray. This takes place on earth many years from now, after an alien invasion that domesticated humans. There are feral humans that operate like wolves in a pack, and a government that has propaganda causing John to feel as though Martok is his friend. It is a unique theme about the ruling class and the working class, or about slavery and the way that history has been altered to make modern people think that slavery was something it was not.
Martok is optimistic to the point of nearly being delusional, and while he considers John to be his friend, he has offered John as bond on a loan for new land he wants to turn into a luxury resort for wealthier grays.
I was really impressed with the performance of John Pirhalla. His performance of Martok was absolutely perfect and captured the spirit of this lovable fool. His performance of John and Six were also excellent, I found it to be incredibly engaging and melodious. The story works really well on audio and is a lighthearted yet still deep Science Fiction story that will stay with me for some time.
Thanks to Macmillan audio for the ALC. Book to be published February 24, 2026.
A fun cozy mystery for 2026- Juliette is a heroine for the modern woman, she is confident and capable. She is missing that insecurity that so many of our FMCs share. Later in the book we learn her origin story, which explained a lot for me about her character. She works in publishing and is lucky to have landed the memoir rights to magnate Warren Ellingham. At a party he drops dead of an apparent heart attack although his doctor praised his heart healthiness just a day earlier. The memoir is stolen and Juliet finds herself a suspect, although her gaze turns towards Warren’s son who is heir to his fortune and has a bit of a gambling habit. Now Juliet must solve the mystery herself while trying to find out what happened to the memoir, which is key to her career trajectory.
This is the kind of story that is made for audio- it was an excellent performance by Sarah Mollo-Christensen, who used voices for the characters and had a melodious voice for inner dialogue that captured Juliette’s character perfectly. A true cozy mystery, there is a bit of spice and some twists. I found it to be a really fun, campy story- with mustache twirling villains and characters that, while one-dimensional, were vibrant enough to tell apart and to follow on audio. This doesn’t take a ton of brain cells to follow and although I might forget the storyline soon, I definitely was in the mood for something light and fun, this definitely fit the bill.
3.5/5 stars Thanks to Macmillan Audio for the ALC. Book to be published January 20, 2026.
A warm-hearted fake dating rom-com that finds us with a “knight in shining armor” type workaholic handsome man that buys a roof and helps a struggling single mom kindergarten teacher. Absolutely classic Annabelle Monaghan- there are few romance authors that can blend fade-to-black romance with deeply developed characters and wildly funny dialogue. I loved the family dynamics with Dolly and her family, her son and father, and the way she changes over the course of the story. It is a beautiful character arc for Dolly, from being fiercely and stubbornly independent to learning to be a part of a community and allow herself to be helped. Stewart is so driven by working, not being seen as weak, and controlling how his family views his place in the company and in the family.
Dolly is a real spit fire. She is flawed but very likable. I also appreciated the incorporation of the gig economy since she is a single mom and teacher she needs to supplement her income in all kinds of ways. Dolly and Stewart are in different economic brackets- but both of them don’t have a lot of room in their life for a partner because they work so much.
I was pretty angry with Stewart in the third act, Dolly is a bit more forgiving than myself. I enjoyed her son being a young teenager (13), his voice was authentic and loving towards his mom. I can certainly relate to Dolly’s independence and desire to do anything to make her kid happy.
One of the top romances of 2026!
Thanks to NetGalley and G.P. Putnam’s Sons for the ARC. Book to be published May 26, 2026.
A suspenseful, dual timeline/dual POV rich people suburban mommie mystery/thriller that provides plenty of drama. A promising debut novel for fans of Lisa Jewell, Sarah Pekkanen and Heather Gudenkauf.
Anna was found strangled and killed near the river in her snowy northern Massachusetts town. And the primary suspect is her husband, Denny. Just a year ago, she ruffled some feathers with her criticism of the PTO’s “pay to play” type of “premium membership” for elementary school activities. It is a worthy endeavor, shouldn’t all kids- especially in a public school, have equal access? As Anna dives deeper into the Hamilton culture, she learns that this is so much bigger than just early access to the school dance- it is access to nearly everything.
I found this novel to be reminiscent of Big Little Lies and other suburban thrillers- there is an underlying theme of the entitlement of the haves vs. the have nots. The POV alternates between Anna, a year earlier, as she criticizes and infiltrates the rich mom culture of their town; and Denny, her husband, falsely accused of her murder as he tries to piece together the last few months of her life and who is responsible for her death. It is a really gripping story with a few well developed characters, not only Anna and Denny, but also her best and oldest friend Di and the queen bee Mimi. The setting is haunting and the cover art seems perfect to describe the overall vibes of Hamilton, Massachusetts. The themes are timely and relatable.
I would have liked to see more character development of the children and more description of the grief that the family goes through losing Anna in such a violent way. The plot focused more on the secrets and solving the crime itself. I was guessing until the last chapter! So many secrets~
Thank you to NetGalley, Little Brown/Mulholland and author Hannah Selinger for the ARC. Book to be published June 16, 2026
A suspense filled thriller that builds from the first page. I was thoroughly engaged in this story and the pacing. Nell is in a new relationship but she has a past. Once she was known as Elle and witnessed a crime outside her apartment. She became obsessed with the man that she saw and begins stalking him. The narrative jumps between Elle in the past being a stalker, and Nell in the current, realizing that she has a stalker herself.
The audiobook was great, I enjoyed the performance and the British accent. I particularly liked how creepy she was in the interstitial chapters from the killers notebooks.
I liked this but can’t say I loved it, I didn’t at all enjoy the ending. All of the scenarios that I had in my head were so much better, I feel like the reveal was a let down. But other than that, I truly liked the writing style. I would definitely read other titles by this author.
Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the ALC. book to be published February 16, 2026.
This was completely delightful. It is part self-help, some memoir, and some lovely doodles. I love her voice, her non-traditional writing style and her unique and ridiculously specific references. It is a story about how she has managed her anxiety, depression, and ADHD. She has true practical exercises that will help make the reader’s life better. I don’t remember laughing out loud this much at a book in a very long time. Jenny is just hilarious. This book comes with more of a maturity and accountability than from her previous books. She is taking a lot of great experience from therapy and sharing what has worked for her.
My son has severe ADHD and this book really helped me understand more what he goes through daily. I can’t wait to read it again!
Thanks to NetGalley and Viking Penguin for the ARC. Book to be published March 30, 2026.
“Are you lonely?” she asked quietly. “Aren’t we all a little lonely?”
A quarter-life-crisis leads to a second coming of age novel about a 25 year old Gen Z who finds herself fired because “her heart isn’t in it” in her Corporate World job. Shortly thereafter she finds herself in jail for having a bit of a meltdown in the presence of a police officer. But Camille’s Knight in Shining Armor comes in the form of her best friend Danny, who takes her back to her hometown and allows her the privilege of working at Beau’s, his tavern, while she finds out what is next. Armed with a mountain of personal and student debt, Camille has done nearly everything right and is still not thriving.
“I’m not averse to seafood. It’s just . . . at the bottom of the list of food I want to eat.”
Camile, naturally, falls in love with Danny, who has some of the most romantic and gorgeous expressions of love. It is a best-friends-to-lovers trope with side characters who have a lot of potential. Her ex boyfriend Cory has found love and is getting married, but 2 other friends are about to have books of their own. I am sure this will be first in a series, and I can’t wait to read the others. Ramirez absolutely captures the voice and the spirit of Gen Z, and brings the reader to the feeling of malaise we all feel at the point in which the government thinks we are an adult but the workforce very much treats us as a child. The characters are really quintessential 25 year olds and their voice and struggles are really authentic- Student loan debt and rent are 80% of her now non-existent income. Boomers and Millenials in the work force are very confused by Gen z not wanting to put work at the center of their world.
“Twenty-five is about figuring stuff out. It’s okay to be lost.”
I give this book an enthusiastic 4 stars- it is very well done as a debut and it is a romance that has some deeper themes. I look forward to what is coming next from this talented new voice in fiction.
Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC. Book to be published May 12, 2026.
