Every month, we’re profiling new-ish releases that are getting critical and commercial buzz. For April, we’re looking at an acclaimed new take on the story of Huckleberry Finn, historical fiction about a famous 19th century British trial, a collaborative effort between some of today’s most famous writers, a new series that melds the genres of science fiction and espionage thriller, a guide to living the van life, and two very different thrillers on audiobook, one with a historical setting while the other is extremely contemporary.
If you enjoy historic fiction with a literary bent:
Percival Everett’s James (2024)*
Mark Twain’s Huckleberry Finn is an American classic, and in his highly lauded new book, Percival Everett re-imagines the book’s action through the perspective of enslaved Jim as he and Huck float down the Mississippi together. However, James isn’t merely a retelling of a well-known story. It’s a vibrant, powerful, haunting, funny, and thoughtful novel in its own right.
*Ebook and audiobook also available on Libby.
Recommended for those who enjoy the work of Colson Whitehead and/or are fans of books like Barbara Kingsolver’s Demon Copperhead and Tara Karr Roberts’s Wild and Distant Seas.
Zadie Smith’s The Fraud (2024)**
In Victorian England, the Tichborne case captivated the public as a man came forward claiming to be Roger Tichborne, the rightful heir to a title and fortune. Roger had allegedly been lost at sea, so legal battles to resolve whether or not the man is the true claimant or an imposter unfold. In this novel, Zadie Smith especially probes the case and the question of who’s fooling who from the perspective of a bitter housekeeper and a former slave who’s now a star witness.
**Ebook also available on Libby.
Recommended for those who enjoy the work of Claire Messud, Arundhati Roy, and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.
If you’re intrigued by collaborative fiction:
Fourteen Days (2024)***
What do authors Margaret Atwood, Douglas Preston, Celeste Ng, John Grisham, Diana Gabaldon, Mary Pope Osborne, R. L. Stine, and Tommy Orange have in common beyond all being noted writers in their own right? They all contributed a chapter to this collaborative novel! Set in the early days of the pandemic, the book explores how apartment complex neighbors who barely know each other start to gather on the rooftop to swap stories. In the process, they finally really become neighbors. Each writer gets their own chapter exploring one character.
***Ebook also available on Libby.
Recommended for those who enjoy collaborative fiction or fans of Sigrid Nunez’s The Vulnerables.
If you want science fiction:
Megan E. O’Keefe’s Devoured Worlds series (2023-present)****
This new trilogy follows Naira, a revolutionary whose mission is to bring down the powerful Mercator family. They’ve long controlled space exploration, and when she’s hired to serve as a bodyguard to bookish family heir Tarquin on the family’s latest venture, the opportunity to strike seems perfect. That is, until Naira and Tarquin get stranded together on a dead planet and must depend on each other to survive. Complications ensue. The final book in the trilogy will be released later this spring.
****Ebooks and audiobooks also available on Libby.
Recommended for those who enjoy the work of Adrian Tchaikovsky, Martha Wells, Becky Chambers, John Scalzi, and Arkady Martine.
If you prefer nonfiction:
Noami Grevemberg’s Living the Van Life: On the Road Toward Sustainability, Community, and Joy (2023)*****
Intrigued by the proliferation of van life? Whether you’re seriously considering hitting the road yourself or are just curious about the ins and outs of living in a van full-time, this book is the perfect guide. The author left her corporate job in 2016 to embrace van living, and that’s what she’s been doing ever since. She provides tips and advice on everything from converting vans to better support your needs to budgeting and finding work as a modern nomad to keeping safe and finding friends along the way.
*****Ebook and audiobook also available on Libby.
Recommended for those curious about van living.
If you love audiobooks and thrillers:
Kate Morton’s Homecoming (2023)******
In Kate Morton’s latest gothic novel, the action rotates back and forth between 1950s Australia and the present day. When journalist Jess returns home to Australia, she does so to assist her ailing beloved grandmother. But she soon uncovers a link between her family and a notorious unsolved crime from the past. What initially started as a curious research project when she’s desperate for distraction quickly evolves into something else entirely.
******Ebook also available on Libby and physical copies in the library.
Recommended for those who enjoy the work of Daphne du Maurier, Beatriz Miller, Tana French, and Sara Waters.
Dervla McTiernan’s What Happened to Nina? (2024)*******
Nina and Simon are young, in love, and on vacation . . . until they aren’t. When Simon returns from his family’s New England cabin, his explanations for why Nina aren’t with him don’t add up. While his family races to protect him, Nina’s family pushes back in their own desperation to find her. If you think the general gist of the story sounds familiar, the author was inspired by the Gabby Petito case. However, the novel isn’t a salacious, ripped-from-the-headlines rendering of the story. Instead, its focus is on the families that quickly go to war with each other over their children and how quickly everything spirals out of control via social media as other parties, from journalists in search of a scoop to true crime fans obsessed with proving their own theories, start inserting themselves into the case and the families’ lives.
*********Ebook also available on Libby.
Recommended for those who enjoy the work of Tana French, Benjamin Black, and Jane Harper.
What’s your favorite new-ish books? What books are you buzzing about these days? Have you read any of these books? Tell us in the comments! As always, please follow this link to our online library catalog for more information on any of these items or to place them on hold.
Berryville Book Buzz 