Bardugo's rich world-building sets the scene in Spain during the Inquisition, as a scullery maid with Cotado lives in a grim house on a shabby street in the new capital of Madrid, working as a scullery maid Greed and manipulation rule the day for all involved, with our main protagonists paying the price.

influencer wakes up in the gritty, unforgiving 1800s, Caro Claire Burke's Yesteryear; I'm listening to Mai 01 Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke Caro Claire Burke's debut novel features main protagonist Natalie, prepublication version of this title courtesy of Knopf and NetGalley. 02 Cleo Dang Would Rather Be Dead by Mai

I love reading Naomi Novik's books without exception--just check out the links to my many rave Bossy Naomi Novik is the author of richly wrought fantasy novels featuring main protagonists I love: Uprooted

But surprises await Vera, and she'll need to undergo some painful self-discovery in order to face the Murphy includes many charming elements: the large number of sassy former Hollywood types in the free-love As much as it pains me to say it, maybe the roads have changed and my map is out of date." The pacing didn't always feel like it flowed, and I didn't buy into many of the small moments that make As in Murphy's novel Dumplin', the main protagonist is a body-positive, plus-sized woman.

Buried Deep and Other Stories by Naomi Novik Naomi Novik is the author of fantasy novels featuring main But one day a man visits Eilis, explains that his wife is carrying Tony's baby, and vows to drop the

Bunny begins with an outcast main protagonist in a MFA program who's infuriated by her twee fellow seminar

Wang doesn't shy away from a dramatic reckoning for the story's main characters in the end. , and what he lacks in training he makes up for with the desire to learn more about the forces that may uncover an enormous magical secret, it could not only mean the undoing of the magical hierarchies that many opens in a prison, with female inmates participating in their weekly book club in rural Abbott Falls, Maine Main protagonist Violet Powell is being released after 22 months' imprisonment for the drunk-driving

I loved spending time with main protagonist Eli as he navigated tough situations and emerged with hope Eli Bell is a young man in a tough spot. Who is the man? Can he be trusted? Is any of this even real? He wants to grow up and become a journalist, but for now his main goal is trying not to attract too much Boy Swallows Universe has many larger-than-life characters, especially its villains.

In Gareth Brown's debut fantasy novel The Book of Doors, main protagonist Cassie Andrews works in a New One of these customers is a kind older man she's become dear friends with. happening to Cassie and Izzy when Cassie takes possession of the book, and soon a rumpled Scottish man He just may be the only one seemingly without nefarious intentions. Authors of time-travel books must decide whether characters may change past events or simply witness

amount of heart and a unique main protagonist in this lighthearted murder mystery, her debut novel. In Nita Prose's novel The Maid, main protagonist Molly finds a hotel guest dead in his room, and her access to the room, her eccentric manner, and other's manipulations of her innocent vulnerability may Prose has built an interesting premise with Molly as an unreliable main protagonist. story--as with the account of Patient Zero's experience and his two degrees of separation from the main

mother-in-law, who severely curtails her ability to practice medicine, as in the family's opinion, Yunxian's main See presents Yunxian as a feminist in many ways, but doesn't allow her to feel more modern than might

weaves together timelines, threads of family history, and long-held secrets now revealed, while her main trail Nell has laid out for her, she discovers more about her family's history, uncovers secrets, and may In many ways this felt like a Secret Garden (a book I was obsessed with as a child) for grown-ups, with

The section on hog butchering may be an eye opener for anyone (anyone?) often luminous or gritty, and the author doesn't pretend to have easy answers for the beleaguered main

They nickname our main protagonist Jordan. Although it seems clear to the reader that ultrareligious, mainly abstinent, guilt-ridden, and generally when a decades-old mystery seems to be the cause of a new friend's aunt's disappearance--and Stevie may

Peace ; I'm listening to the 31-hour audiobook of the latest Cormoran Strike mystery, The Hallmarked Man Bossy reviews of books set in Ireland, please check out the titles at this link . 02 The Hallmarked Man Within this setting, one of our main protagonists is an academic fascinated by the past (the years surrounding

love interest didn't ring true to me, and while he was very nice, I was partially turned off by his many For my full review of this book please see Sunny Side Up . 02 One Golden Summer by Carley Fortune The main Definitely Better Now by Ava Robinson In Ava Robinson's debut novel, she offers an appealingly imperfect main Jimenez Abby Jimenez layers tough situations and messy complications into her rom-coms, and here, her main But Xavier's painful past and Samantha's challenging present might make a future for the two impossible

the outskirts of local society for decades, and a rich, evil legend has grown up around him, so that many But we find that our main protagonist Mal has been having a secret, fulfilling relationship with him her mother's dementia and verbal abuse around Mal's sister's long-ago disappearance, the lingering pain

Emma is a marine biologist who's devoted to her husband Leo and their young daughter Ruby. surprising amount of heart and a unique main protagonist in this lighthearted murder mystery, her debut In Nita Prose's recent novel The Maid, main protagonist Molly finds a hotel guest dead in his room, and Prose has built an interesting premise with Molly as an unreliable main protagonist. Mary was a captivating main protagonist--alternately desperate and hopeful, but always dogged in her

Hawker's newest historical fiction gives a wonderfully evocative peek into a gritty period, as her main She's learned to bite her tongue, and she feels like the poor treatment her husband shows her may be

Walker offers an unreliable main protagonist, her dedicated new psychiatrist, increasingly inexplicable which Jane believes them seem to indicate that her ability to live on her own and care for her child may that is posed (but not extensively explored), one in which Jane is sane and the alternate realities may

has his eye on taking over her family's company rather than falling in love with Annie (and that he may So many elements of this premise are favorites for me--a strong young female main protagonist, ship life She may so far be powerless to enact major change, and she is certainly dismissed by the men around her

The secretive, haunted author has attempted to work through the pain and complications of her past by listening to The Three Lives of Cate Kay as an audiobook. 03 Stone Yard Devotional by Charlotte Wood The main

There's a health crisis and solution that involves the two main characters in key ways and complicates If you've agonized through the main relationship's ups and downs throughout the story, you might just

The book includes many detailed accounts of tracking online tweets and online message board messages, His main interest, Robin, is strong and savvy, yet even she is coping with trauma and the aftermath of But the building of the mystery is satisfying, and having spent five prior books with the main characters

details of a life of moneyed ease and an abandonment on an unforgiving, uninhabited island after our main Child  is the power of the small-town Faha community--gossipy and desperate for dirt as its citizens may In one timeline, an abused wife makes a stand for a whimsical name suggested by her daughter Maia, Bear Each timeline produces a vastly different boy, a significantly shaped sister Maia, drastically different Brendan is not the main protagonist, despite the novel's title, yet he is central to the story in that

Her main friend seems to be her talking chess game, who was made in Korea so understands some of Vera's Many of the key elements of her observations are placed in quotation marks, and this is a very funny, sometimes-hesitant takes on the family and world around her are often delightfully spot-on, and she sees many

series, The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi as an audiobook, narrated by the fantastic Lameece Issaq and Amin , and I was hooked on the lightning-fast banter; the gruff and independent, saucy, and irresistible main

to close out the summer, with a high-stakes fake marriage, comeuppances for the greedy bad guys, our main This is an adorable fake-dating-in-paradise setup with funny dialogue, a wonderfully imperfect main protagonist In small town Crosby, Maine, acclaimed writer Lucy Barton and attorney Bob Burgess walk and talk about But the young man, a self-taught artist, is counting on Bob and an unorthodox approach to figuring out Ana is Sherlock Holmes-esque in that she holds many of the answers to the mysteries that abound--but

I loved the main characters' fashion, banter, and stubbornness. imminent demise of the human race that the robots seem perched to enact serve as a catalyst for the human main The gods' war provides the structure for the book's main conflict, but the story feels primarily focused

story can take on a life of its own--in this novel featuring a science fiction tale within Okorafor's main only disabled and overwhelmed by her overly controlling and opinionated family as she has been for many The family's collective assumption that they may, unsolicited, rightfully weigh in on Zelu's every decision

I really liked the magical realism, details of life in 1800s England, the young widow main character, The romance is a large element, and in this adventure-romance, as with many romance novels that follow

I found myself wanting more worldbuilding and more depth for our main character in this first book in underground viewing holograms of artwork (the book references actual works of art) and clicking on many her prescribed Mate Collin, a brooding, doting toward Emeline, but professionally cruel and cutthroat man Yet she is also drawn to Hal, a mischievous young man who is far from part of the Elite and who makes

Veronica Speedwell series of historical fiction mysteries, Veronica remains a strong and unorthodox main But evidence indicates to Veronica that Alice may have been murdered.

There's a health crisis and solution that involves the two main characters in key ways and which complicates Then Florence's beloved father dies, and she returns to her hometown for the first time in many years please see The Dead Romantics. 06 Happy Place by Emily Henry Six longtime friends gather for one last Maine I was impatient with the prolonged lack of communication but loved the main characters' interactions For years they've taken annual trips to their friend Sabrina's cottage in Maine with the rest of their

Here are my six favorite reads of May. Trace Temple is a disillusioned, angry young man whose family lost its ranch after hard times. We meet two main protagonists: independent young adult Birdie, who travels from her rural hometown to London Falling is about the disappearance of a young man, Zac. There are so many branches of this story, and so many complicated implications of the main players’ actions

I listened to Bull Moon Rising in audiobook form, and hearing it all read to me may have exacerbated plus-size woman who loves books and wears glasses and is the irresistible object of affection for the main

Brendan is not the main protagonist, despite the novel's title, yet he is central to the story in that

hallucinations late in the book felt like an opportunity to explore pure feelings and for the straight-laced main

The Second-Chance Stories I love a good second-chance book in which the main character gets the opportunity Our main protagonist Tom makes a decision that strands him in our version of the world, which feels like Either to change a world--many, many worlds, each touched by the choices I make in my life, for every Harry August has been born (in a train station in 1919) many times. Some lives are notable, others comfortable, and still others are full of pain.

Booth cushions the blow of the main protagonist's early-onset Alzheimer's with a zany romp, lots of love Enter superfan Peanut Brixton--who may be even more familiar with The Falling Children books than Libby

This book had many moving parts, evolving points of view and senses of self, shifts between days and Along with the kickass, whip smart, savvy, kind, and irresistible main protagonist Bridie are her striking Raybourn may allow Veronica to benefit from the author's own modern sensibilities in A Curious Beginning , but Veronica is a strong and unorthodox main protagonist, and for me this aspect of her character works adult supernatural mystery series of the same name, and in it, author William Ritter provides memorable main

locals for a while, but he must sometimes make educated guesses about the waterfall of repercussions he may After a time the mystery is no longer a mystery; the main unknown is which form the community's renegade

The banter is fantastic, and I laughed many times while reading this one. Jac Matthis is a romance novelist whose first book tanked (the main protagonist chose her career over a man, enraging readers who'd been counting on a different happy ever after), leaving little audience to close out the summer, with a high-stakes fake marriage, comeuppances for the greedy bad guys, our main This is an adorable fake-dating-in-paradise setup with funny dialogue, a wonderfully imperfect main protagonist

Both main characters' mothers are faulted, far from perfect, and have made decisions that upend Justin

Addison Allen's Other Birds is set on an island off the coast of South Carolina as main protagonist Zoey (An inherited apartment and money she has gained access to at age 18 help.)

Book two picks up when our main characters, having laid low and lived their own lives for a year, are

check out The Second Ending. 03 Happy Place by Emily Henry Six longtime friends gather for one last Maine I was impatient with the prolonged lack of communication but loved the main characters' interactions For years they've taken annual trips to their friend Sabrina's cottage in Maine with the rest of their Iris may be able to help--if only she could also figure out the store's connection to her mother's past She's fake-dating a nice man in order to keep his family off of his back.

Naomi Novik is the author of richly wrought fantasy novels featuring main protagonists I love: Uprooted Kingfisher/Vernon is a prolific author who has published many standalone novels as well as multiple series

Our main protagonist knows she is being chased because of something she's done, but the facts of the She has visions of the past and of versions of the future in which her spirit transcends the pain and

details of a life of moneyed ease and an abandonment on an unforgiving, uninhabited island after our main The unfolding of this continued theft and this absurd man's greedy, gratuitous mishandling of funds-- daughter (from Lessons for My Daughter ) urging constant preservation of reputation, exuding modesty, maintaining Since then she has published many more novels, including Sam .