A young boy discovers that helping others leads to a happy life in this mystical picture book by Moulton, the first in her Magic Moon series. In a small village nestled against an imposing mountain, a young boy lives with his mother and sister. But their village is no ordinary place: the Magic Moon hangs just above the mountaintop, granting two requests to any villager during the full moon. The catch? The first request can only be “to find a lost treasure,” while the second must “be for something good,” as long as it hurts no one.

Moulton renders her young protagonist both innocent and heartfelt, willing to do whatever it takes to help those around him. After bravely venturing into the Magic Moon’s territory (no small feat, either, as the trek up the mountainside is dangerous, and the moon is intimidating), he sacrifices his own wants for those of his sister, using up his first request to find her lost Dolly. The payoff is worth it, he decides, thanks to that warm feeling he gets when she’s reunited with her favorite toy. From there, he spreads good cheer into his schoolyard, offering to play with the new boy who’s been bullied and left alone. Those acts of kindness inspire him to make his final request of the Magic Moon that very night.

Moulton’s message—that kindness is the best path—reverberates throughout, and younger readers will pick up on that meaning quickly, as the young boy asks the moon for the secrets to happiness, only to be told that he already knows. Marilyn Whitchurch’s simple, comforting illustrations illuminate nighttime scenes that will soothe, as the Magic Moon is painted in glowing, amber tones with a wise face. That wisdom comes with a reminder that challenges are usually worth it, as the moon advises “The difficult journey makes the happiness found at the end sweeter!”

Takeaway: Mystical tale depicting kindness as the key to happiness.

Comparable Titles: Pat Zietlow Miller’s Be Kind, Corinna Luyken’s My Heart.

Production grades
Cover: B+
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: B+
Editing: A-
Marketing copy: B+

Click here for more about Magic Moon: A Young Boy's Journey (Vol. 1)

On her family ranch in Arizona’s Sonoran Desert, counterterrorism analyst Rye Dalton stumbles into an explosive cartel secret on a morning ride, launching her straight into the sights of the deadly Sombra Roja cartel in Taggert’s action-packed debut. After discovering a group of suspicious men on her land, Rye enlists the help of her counterterrorism colleague, Mark Benson, to investigate any potential threats to the ranch. The two are shocked when they uncover the threads of an elaborate human and drug trafficking web, and the discovery of a hidden drug cache in one of the ranch’s barns brings the Sombra Roja’s fight to Rye’s doorstep.

Taggert’s female lead is every bit the capable, up-to-the-task operative, but her vulnerability is expertly crafted through a moving backstory that involves Rye’s return to the family ranch following the tragic death of her parents in a vehicle accident. That accident, leaving her as the last surviving Dalton, paints Rye into a corner of sorts, forcing her to re-evaluate her career and assume management of her family’s legacy—a stark portrayal of the unexpected curveballs that can so easily upend life. Still, Rye stays grounded, depending on the close-knit loyalty of her staff—and a blossoming romance with Alejandro Mendoza, Mexico’s Secretary of Foreign Affairs—to steady her amid the chaos threatening her way of life.

The storyline manages a satisfying balance of breezy romance and homespun thrills, as Rye and Alejandro find time for sun-soaked intimacy and cobblestone strolls in Mexico, even while coordinating the efforts of local law enforcement and international aid in their mission to protect the borderlands they both love. Gunfights, violence, and kidnapping spoil the almost-reverent setting, but Rye and Alejandro stay focused, expanding their reach into the complicated issue of border security for both Mexico and the United States, giving this against-the-odds thriller purpose—and hope for change.

Takeaway: Borderland cartel violence threatens a woman’s family ranch.

Comparable Titles: Jeanine Cummins’s American Dirt, James L’etoile’s Dead Drop.

Production grades
Cover: B+
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A-
Marketing copy: B

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Ballard’s finale in her Sisters of Stella Mare series, after A Home Out of Ashes, digs into the healing power of family, as older sister Helen Madison returns home after 20 years in the big city. On the outs with her attorney partnership and recently divorced, Helen is eager to dole out advice to her younger sisters, despite the fact that her own life is secretly falling apart. Meanwhile, Rett, Evie, and Dorie aren’t as thrilled to be back around their sister as Helen had hoped; as the tensions between the girls escalate to a breaking point, she hatches a plan to hike the dangerous Fundy Footpath to get her family back on the same team again.

Each volume in the series offers readers a panoramic glimpse of one of the sisters, and this time Helen’s firmly on center stage. Her troubled past, including a sexual assault in high school and her own sketchy choices at her law firm, comes rushing back during the group’s multi-day hike, and Ballard structures the bond between the sisters—regardless of their petty disagreements—as the glue that will help Helen get her life back on track. Their camaraderie is heartwarming, and their attempts to restore closeness and help each other through troubles keeps the tone upbeat.

Ballard reveals Helen’s past secrets—and her perceived failure as a mother to her son Jacob—subtly, mirroring the shame and fear Helen feels at the thought of opening up to her family. Though that diminishes the emotional payoff when she finally bares her soul, it fits her personality and role within the family—Helen, “the big sister they needed,” believes she’s there to help her sisters “live better lives.” Ultimately, she realizes expecting herself to be perfect only hurts the people she loves, recognizing she is, in the end, “enough”—just the way she is.

Takeaway: Estranged sisters bond during a grueling family trek.

Comparable Titles: Barbara O’Neal’s The Starfish Sisters, Blair Thornburgh’s Ordinary Girls.

Production grades
Cover: A
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A

Click here for more about The Helping Heart

Elly Robin fans will be thrilled with the return of Quaver’s singular heroine—now sailing to France on the hunt for Edwin Friend, her “one true love”—in this eighth installment of his Ordeals of Elly Robin series, after Elly Robin in Harlem. When Edwin, an aviator with the First World War’s elite American Escadrille, is shot down over Germany and only narrowly escapes death and imprisonment, he finds refuge in a remote German village—and falls for Ilse Gruber, the widow who nurses him back to health. Meanwhile, Elly, desperate to be reunited, careens through France—and, eventually, behind enemy lines in Germany—flying planes, sinking a U-boat, and playing spy, all while searching for Edwin.

Elly’s adventures are every bit as colorful as readers have come to expect with this extraordinary prodigy, and Quaver sketches a believable historical setting alongside her incredible feats. As with other volumes, the pages are teeming with fascinating characters—including real historical figures Gertrude Stein, Alice B. Toklas, and, of course, the Crown Prince of Germany, William—but the characters who linger most in memory include Ilse and the imposing Olive King, an Australian ambulance driver working for Britain’s Voluntary Aid Department, whose tough-talking, steely exterior conceals a true heart of gold. The female leads are trailblazers, each in their own way, a testament to the often-unsung roles of women in World War I.

Though Elly’s operations still take center stage, Edwin, too, faces bizarre twists of fate, and, through their alternating perspectives, Quaver evocatively portrays early 20th century Europe, both rural and urban, as the war’s senseless tragedies overtake much of the continent. Even Elly’s induction into the Escadrille crackles with authenticity, and her devotion to Edwin eventually pays off—though the ending is as gut-wrenching as it is sweet, leaving Elly with a measure of hope that better times may be on the horizon.

Takeaway: Young woman’s search for her true love in WWI Europe.

Comparable Titles: Caroline Scott’s The Poppy Wife, Kate Quinn’s The Alice Network.

Production grades
Cover: A
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: A-
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A

Click here for more about Elly Robin goes to War

Husband and wife team Halbert offers up a twisty reflection on a flawed, overwrought family in this heart-pounding thriller, the first of their Goodpasture Chronicles. Ian Keane and his wife Lyana have lived in Boston for too long. Still devastated from an earlier miscarriage and desperate for a fresh start to put the pain behind her, Lyana stumbles onto the enigmatic Farr Hill mansion in the bucolic town of Littleton, New Hampshire. Despite the property’s eerie ambiance, the family is hooked; even 15-year-old Ariel and her 12-year-old brother Zach can’t wait to start exploring—though some creepy discoveries, ever-present fog, and a mysterious caretaker suggest there might be more to the house than meets the eye.

Ian and Lyana embody the far-reaching effects of generational trauma, as their troubled childhoods and marital discord seep into the family’s new beginning. Lyana’s disturbing flashbacks to her younger years intensify the moment she sets foot in the mansion, aided by some chilling reflections in an old pantry mirror and whispered voices trailing around the hallways, while the kids bump into their own setbacks. Neurodivergent Zach harnesses the house’s energy to exert power over his popular sister, but the cost is more than he expected, and Ariel’s deterioration is unsettling to watch. Meanwhile, Ian faces his own demons, including a drinking problem and a secret room that transports him to a terrifying event from his childhood.

Despite the family’s excitement at their clean slate, something unusual is definitely happening at Farr Hill, and the suspenseful energy driving the story never lets up. The Keanes are far from perfect but infinitely relatable, rich with undeniable affection and rough edges, and their fight for a new start quickly devolves into a fight to survive, topped off with a shocker of an ending that will leave readers eager for the next installment in this promising series starter.

Takeaway: Troubled family seeks a new beginning in this chilling page-turner.

Comparable Titles: Gilly Macmillan’s The Manor House, Elizabeth Brooks’s The Whispering House.

Production grades
Cover: A-
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A

Click here for more about CARETAKER

“From as early as I can remember, I knew I didn’t do anything to deserve having more than I needed when others didn’t have enough” writes Friedman in this heartrending debut, probing one woman’s search for worth and meaning in her life. Financially secure from birth thanks to a family trust fund, she muddles through young adulthood with a constant refrain beating a steady rhythm in the back of her mind: “If I were good enough, I thought that would… keep me safe and get me loved.” But painful life circumstances—including a devastating breakup with her fiancé David and chronic illness—quickly prove her efforts to measure up to society’s standards more harmful than helpful.

Friedman skillfully illuminates the shame-based thought loops that undermine so many women’s self-esteem, revealing her innermost emotions to readers as she describes her paralyzing insecurities and use of drugs to numb her feelings. When romantic relationships end, Friedman struggles with self-blame, scrutinizing her own faults while turning a blind eye to her partners’ red flags. That sense of guilt for never measuring up eventually drives her escape to Costa Rica on a yoga retreat, where she tastes her first-ever “psychedelic experience,” hearing a family friend’s voice remind her that being born is reason enough to finally accept herself, flaws and all: “The voice told me there was nothing I needed to do to earn… the right to be here” she writes.

The narrative resounds with Friedman’s lush travels and educative anecdotes on her use of psychedelic substances, though it carries a word of caution as well—guidance and moderation is key. "I don't think your drug use is problematic. I think it's symptomatic," her therapist concludes, encouraging Friedman to discern the root causes of her anxieties. Her vulnerability is inspiring, and she closes with a call to action for conservative, measured use of psychedelics for “healing [and] spiritual growth.”

Takeaway: Kaleidoscopic roller-coaster ride toward loving oneself.

Comparable Titles: Rachel Hollis's Girl Wash Your Face, Daniel Pinchbeck's Breaking Open the Head.

Production grades
Cover: B+
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A-
Marketing copy: A-

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“I wonder what life's said to me,” Tiess writes in “Said,” from his third poetry collection that sweeps across the globe and the universe, but begins and ends with a seed called wonder that both honors the magnitude of nature’s abundance and “laud[s] the small,” in equal measure. Tiess’s muse is sandstone, whalesong, squirrel, and heron; “once I had no time or mind for them,” the poet admits in “Nature Preserves,” but now his poetry strives toward redemption, and even salvation, for himself and that baffling collective Tiess worships in his collection: nature.

Rather than attempt to define it, Tiess ogles the natural world in his poetry and expresses lessons learned from dandelions, squirrels, mud, and the cascading sunlight of “Enlightening,” a poem that gushes with feeling and humanity as Tiess strives to see again what’s divine in us. That struggle powers much of the collection, as threaded throughout Tiess’s exaltations of natural grandeur is a bleak awareness of humanity’s violation of our compact with the planet itself. As he notes in the anguished title poem, “yes, even Eden had an edge // a gate // a passage to be crossed once, only once,” Yet, though humanity approaches the edge of our Eden, Tiess’s collection remains optimistic, undergirded by the belief that the solution to humanity’s gluttony is a new identity based in the notion that “prosperity can stem from [...] community.”

Humility is the essential element, according to Tiess, in cultivating a global, as opposed to individual, perspective. Rather than assume the role of conqueror, Tiess writes, “I've tried to be // the leaf that finds // its due place // in the dewy earth // when finished spinning // into wind,” and for Tiess, making poetry and sharing it allows himself and readers to spin into wind and find their places in the dewy earth. With “love, that renaissance beyond all death,” Tiess makes the present sparkle and imagines a future where humanity “let[s] the small things be immense”.

Takeaway: Intimate yet cerebral paean to nature and a call to action for its preservation.

Comparable Titles: Mary Oliver’s “Wild Geese,” Joy Harjo’s “A Map to the Next World”

Production grades
Cover: A-
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A

Click here for more about Gracious Nature: Poems on Earth and Life

In this expansive novel that intertwines magical realism with urgent African history and tradition, Shakhete (author of the LaTonya Trilogy) takes readers on a rich, surprising journey through the realms of light and darkness, across continents, realms, the African diaspora, and billions of years. At the tale’s heart is Prince Ndanga-Njinga, an enslaved prince executed in 1634, and his mother, Shandake Aminata, whose stories are woven with the universal truth of Semperian, the all-knowing creator spirit. The novel’s present finds that Source Omnipotent sending a daughter to Earth, specifically to the cursed Alabama port town of Baldwin, in the early 20th century. Her mission: to halt the rise of the third dark realm, led by the dark lord Apollyon Diabolus Fallen 17.

Shakhete’s sense of history and the sacredness of Africa powers this literary fantasy, as the story digs into the dawn of the slave trade, the founding of Baldwin, and how key “Towners,” facing a smallpox epidemic in the 17th century, forged a vicious Blood Covenant involving sacrifices every 17 years, leading to “increased hell on Earth in the coming centuries.” The material is heady and at times demanding, as twin daughters, one embodying good and the other evil, clash from the moment of conception until the fateful solstice blood moon of 1925, when only one can emerge victorious, either releasing or destroying the tortured soul of the prince.

The novel pulses with pained and mythic imagery like the Hanging Tree (where Baldwin’s residents celebrated “the first African hung in early Alabama”), and there’s aching power in its central metaphor of Towners achieving immortality from “the blood of slain and deceased Africans.” For all the invented history and spiritual elements, including journeys into dark realms and appearances from Lucifer and Satan (or Satana), the narrative moves briskly, at least after some heady introductory material. Earthly scenes edge toward the unsettling—with blood and wombs, snakes and spirits and creatures like a clondike—or the hopeful, as Shakhete powerfully emphasizes love, community, and ancestral memory.

Takeaway: Literary fantasy of African myth, blood, and the secret history of an Alabama town.

Comparable Titles: Amos Tutuola’sMy Life in the Bush of Ghosts, Tomi Adeyemi’s Children of Blood and Bone.

Production grades
Cover: A-
Design and typography: A-
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: B+
Marketing copy: A-

Click here for more about Wrong Daughter

Inspiring but highly practical, this follow-up to Reframing Change demonstrates, through real-world stories of navigating differences and fostering inclusive change in the workplace, the utility of the authors’ Conscious Change toolkit, a set of six principles (such as Test Negative Assumptions and Build Effective Relationships) and 36 affiliated skills (“Check to See If You Are Making Cultural Assumptions”; “Distinguish Intent from Impact”). The framework, laid out with persuasive clarity, encourages readers toward deeper understanding of themselves and others, with a welcome emphasis on controlling emotions, recognizing cultural differences, and navigating the often complex dynamics between members of dominant and nondominant groups. The advice takes much of the edge off hard but necessary conversations.

Personal stories, gathered from Conscious Change workshops, bring the guidance to life, as real people describe thorny interpersonal and institutional challenges—and how the framework either did or could have helped. The stories get at the human messiness of making change, like how to handle aggressions, micro- and otherwise, from a co-worker of a different background who also happens to be close friends with one’s supervisor. A diverse roster of storytellers illuminates situations like that, showcasing how the Conscious Change principles and skills offer a healthy path. “I had to ask myself, Is hers a normal yell, or just not normal to me?” one storyteller asks, describing confronting a Nigerian co-worker over perceived rudeness but then learning about, in an inspiring conversation, unexpected cultural differences.

A social worker shares the story of a new supervisor who, despite not having the credentials, insists she could do the storyteller’s job—the chapter compellingly illustrates the principles “Clear Emotions,” “Conscious Use of Self,” and “Initiate Change.” The stories read briskly but feel authentically thorny, with the framework offering clear, actionable steps toward greater understanding, collaboration, and effectiveness. Conscious Change never promises it will be easy, but the authors demonstrate that change can be achieved—and that doing so is rewarding.

Takeaway: Well-honed tools, lessons, and case studies for fostering inclusive workplace change.

Comparable Titles: Mita Mallick’s Reimagine Inclusion, Ruchika Tulshyan's Inclusion on Purpose.

Production grades
Cover: B
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A

Click here for more about Conscious Change

This delightful picture book from librarian/author CarrieAnne (A Natural Alphabet) tells the story of a sweet brown dog who loves nothing more than a good nap on the picnic table, toasting his tummy in the sun. But summer fades, and Brown Dog must also tolerate those less desirable seasons where the wind is cold, the ground is hard (or squishy and wet), and his owners make him brave the elements for those all-important trips outside to potty. Brown Dog's only consolation during those months is a snooze in front of a cozy fire, curled up like a donut. And soon enough, the sun returns, the air is warm, the wind is gentle, and his beloved spot awaits.

As both author and illustrator, CarrieAnne has created a simple, stirring book for small children that charms with its wistful sense of simple pleasures and seasonal changes while inviting new readers with spare, crisp prose and art bursting with canine character. The illustrations, too, tend toward a warm minimalism, the black and white line drawings accented by wonderful bursts of color and capturing well-observed eccentricities of dog movement and behavior. Brown Dog is so lifelike that it’s no surprise that the book is dedicated to the memory of the author's own brown dog, Mr. Buttons, whose photo, like the illustrations, inspire that surge of companionable pleasure that comes with saying “good boy” to a favorite furry companion. The storytelling, meanwhile, encourages empathy for pets in the face of inclement weather, while gently demystifying the cycles of seasons.

Brown Dog is a lovely, gentle offering for young readers and the grown ups lucky enough to read to them, demonstrating that joy is infectious across species. It's a quiet book for quiet moments spent sharing a story and a cuddle, maybe with the family dog curled up close by.

Takeaway: Warm, wonderfully observed story of a dog experiencing the seasons.

Comparable Titles: Luca Tortolini’s My Dog and I, Paul Meisel’s My Happy Year by E. Bluebird.

Production grades
Cover: A
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A

Click here for more about Brown Dog

Concerned with “the grand symphony of time,” honoring “the departed with a heavy heart,” and the “eternal, unwavering glow” of hope, Parihar’s lyric poetry collection debut moves between considerations of existential and cosmic phenomena. Parihar explores themes like grief, time, relativity, displacement, and strength rising from disappointment. While the verses themselves hold to a set form of AABB quatrains, the structure of The Poems and the Poet generally leaves it to readers to discover throughlines between the 38 selections, though at times the poems overlap and reflect each other, like companion verses “The Poem” and “The Poet,” “The Wilted Dew Drops,” and “The Wilted Flowers.” The latter speaks to the poetic balance in nature’s ephemeral cycles: “Each bloom, a poem penned in hues, // A vibrant anthem, a life to infuse. // Yet, petals now droop, in a silent plea, // Wilted flowers, a whispering elegy.”

Parihar’s collection is abundant with such poignant lines, often on the subjects of life and death, as the poet urges readers to “honor the body in decay” and “listen to the eternal song.” Another unifying theme is perseverance amid hardship, with special regard for displaced people, as noted in a dedication “to the disappointments of the displacement” and a trio of displacement poems illuminating lives on “a journey of longing” with “Their spirits unbroken / their hope not withdrawn” despite being umoored “In a world that offers no serenity.” Parihar’s “The Displaced Souls” digs into the immigrant and refugee experience, celebrating resilience born of adversity.

Like the collection as a whole, this poem, urgent in empathy, speaks to the poet’s conception of a universal balance operating within the phenomenon of suffering and beyond; disappointment is countered by wonder, “for in the balance of light and dark, // We find the beauty of the cosmic spark,” and poetry is a means of putting this duality to practice.

Takeaway: Thoughtful, richly human collection exploring death, displacement, and more.

Comparable Titles: Claude McKay’s “After the Winter,” Sun Yung Shin’s “Immigrant Song”

Production grades
Cover: B-
Design and typography: B
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A-
Marketing copy: A-

Click here for more about The Poems and The Poet

If you don’t want to get to know your neighbors—don’t move into Connelly Court. Unfortunately, Michael and Amelia Ross were not forewarned when they found and moved into their dream home in that very neighborhood. “You guys are swingers, right?” someone asks deep into Crowe’s dishy suburban nightmare, a story of a cul-de-sac social circle powered by Pimm’s teas, lavish parties, and pillars of the community up for experimental entanglements. Nobody likes a nosy neighbor, and the Rosses soon learn that the Murphys, the last family to live in the couple’s current dream home, found their lives ruined by their participation in Connelly Court’s, uh, neighborly activities.

As the residents, led by queen bee Janice Cooper and her plastic surgeon husband, Allen, observe the newcomers and then attempt to indoctrinate them into their party scene, the story pulses with hidden agendas, fake friendships, steamy relationships, and—inevitably—lies and betrayals that will shake the community. Crowe has written a host of romance novels, and here she deftly incorporates page-turning suspense, social satire, and a sense of lives spinning out of control and towards tragedy. Sharp characterization and slicing dialogue grip from the start, as does Crowe’s keen eye for jealousies and deliciously mixed feelings. Of a recent orgy, one muses “It had been shocking. And amazing. And horrifying. And perfect.” Allen, meanwhile, thinks this of Janice: “She was a full-frontal alpha female. His alpha female.”

The couples take “enjoying the finer things” to the next level. As jealousies and scandals heat up, Crowe never loses sight of the cast’s humanity, with a story that touches on infertility, autism, addiction, and more with some sensitivity. Still, the fun comes when lines get crossed and new friends turn to frenemies. The tension, stoked by a round-robin of perspectives and prose that bites, will keep readers on their toes—and begging Michael and Amelia to leave Connelly Court.

Takeaway: Tense, delicious novel of suburban swingers spinning out of control.

Comparable Titles: Sarah Dunn’s The Arrangement, Abbi Waxman’s Other People’s Houses.

Production grades
Cover: A-
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A

Click here for more about Cul-de-Sac

Blending comedy and moral weight, this sun-kissed picaresque from Kurian (author of The Sunlight Lies Beyond) charts the journey of John Balkus into the Ibiz of the late 1980, where John, the rare American to visit the bohemian island, embarks on a quest to find his long lost friend Gunther. Along the way, John also bumps into eccentric characters who become friends, foes, and possibly guides toward something greater—he’s “entrapped in rigid Western thought” and “patterns that have ruined your life,” a tiny German swami tells him, and among hippies and seekers, gurus and frauds, he encounters a Beverly Hills widow, a homeless sculptor, an international DJ and, most crucially, an American named Angela, escaping “the doldrums of widowhood” with parties, dinners, seances, and more.

A New York hedge funder for the last 15 years, John discovered that “hell occupies one of the upper floors.” He knows that finding Gunther—whom he had abandoned mid-way in his youth in order to pursue his career—and likewise rediscovering his own past promise means comprehending this elusive, surprising island. Still, he makes an uneasy fit among the compounds, vineyards, harvest celebrations, kayak voyages, and nude beaches packed with baking bodies. He hopes to reconcile with Gunther, whom he had abandoned years before to pursue a career, but even though Gunther is fondly known throughout the island it’s been a while since anyone’s actually seen him. Meanwhile, the many spirited colloquies push John to face questions about the state of his soul.

Each meeting and situation, described with sumptuous prose and brisk, searching dialogue, also reveals something about Ibiza that either unsettles or awes John. Kurian conjures wonders, like the beautiful beach of Cala Salada and the mysterious mountain Es Vedrá, the novel edging at times toward a travelogue, albeit with an interest in romance, transcendence, and mysteries of the heart. The love story is sweet, but it's the male friendships—both between John and Gunther, and then John and Andre—that prove the richest.

Takeaway: Sumptuous novel of Ibiza, friendship, and recovering one’s soul.

Comparable Titles: Matt Haig’s The Life Impossible, Gayl Jones’s The Birdcatcher.

Production grades
Cover: A-
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A-

Click here for more about The Canticle of Ibiza

This unconventional and clever title from Gilbert seeds inspirational lessons from her “MyNine Ways” path into a fictional story in which the protagonist, Naomi, a corporate change manager in England, is reeling from the death of her partner. Naomi asks “How could things have gone so wrong?” before happening upon the author’s book, finding within it guidance to help set her life on track.Using Gilbert’s Nine Ways—Leading, Partnering, Creating, Building, Transforming, Nurturing, Seeking, Managing, and Giving—Naomi begins a process of transformation, guided by Gilbert’s advice, exercises, tools, and mantras, like “BEST,” which stands for Be Empty, Still and Thoughtful.

Gilbert’s method focuses on small changes, finding what works, adapting when it doesn’t, celebrating contentment as success, and staying connected. The fiction offers a personal, relatable way to outline this, showing the work it takes to change as Wholly Naomi charts Naomi’s progression through the Ways, including breathing and visualization exercises, journaling, and more. Naomi’s attempts, some more successful than others, to achieve facets of each Way find her striving to balance mind, body, and spirit and reach contentment in the moment. Drawing upon the symbolic shapes of numbers one through nine and encounters with individuals who embody the lessons of each Way, Naomi is led from her dependence upon alcohol toward new habits and ways of thinking.

The storytelling is brisk and inviting, and readers who find more traditional self-help books impersonal may enjoy this take on the power of habits to make lasting life changes, especially as Gilbert acknowledges in the narrative the reality of setbacks. Woven throughout Naomi’s story is the parallel tale of an anthropomorphized ginger kitten who gets separated from his family and, after a brief encounter outside a liquor store, feels somehow connected to Naomi. The kitten is a metaphor for tenets of the Ways but also representative of a symbol Gilbert introduces early: a circle. The story reflects this in the shared fate of both characters.

Takeaway: Inspiring guide to making positive change in life, written in narrative.

Comparable Titles: James Clear’s Atomic Habits, Katy Milkman’s How to Change.

Production grades
Cover: A-
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A-
Marketing copy: A

Click here for more about Wholly Naomi

Nalven’s debut, thirty years in the crafting, offers a compelling exploration of a homicide detective’s life and work, as Rafael Mikozy—a man of complex heritage surprised when anyone pronounces his name correctly—investigates a series of deaths connected to a mysterious poison or toxin, alongside a young professor, Lisa Liu-Smythe, in a diverse and vividly drawn Los Angeles. Poisonade’s streets abound with Chinese tacos, multi-lingual street signs that are “a kaleidoscope of history,” mysterious businesses whose sources of profit are stubbornly unclear, and nostalgic cafes whose old-Hollywood celebrity iconography suggests “the new paganism” and the impulse to “bend your knees and pray to LA.” As he struggles to find time to read a seemingly crucial manuscript provided by Deputy Inspector Tomlinson, Mikozy and medical examiner Leslie Cianfrancuso (LC) face military interest in the case, and Nalven explores Mikozy's introspective moments, delving into his past and his contemplations on race, society, and the challenges of police work.

The plot turns on Mikozy—”that crazy street philosopher who knows way too much to be a cop”—uncovering the existence of an AI known as Distributed Integrated Terminal (DIT) and facing layered questions about the influence of Artificial Intelligence on law enforcement. As the case becomes a matter of national security, Nalven immerses readers into Mikozy's world, expertly balancing the complexities of forensic work with personal and professional challenges, plus surprises like the work of Jack London playing a key role. The author maintains narrative authenticity by engaging Mikozy in a myriad of tasks alongside the main investigation, attentive to Los Angeles streets, people, and the city’s history and restless, ever-shifting present.

That literary richness means that readers eager for procedural thrills may find the pace (and occasional page-long paragraphs) frustrating. But Nalven’s literary mystery smartly weaves together elements of romance, culture, and striking insights into technology, police work, and the city in which Mikozy was raised, with ample interest and empathy for a sweeping supporting cast.

Takeaway: Vivid literary L.A. mystery plunging into a changing city’s heart.

Comparable Titles: David L. Ulin’s Thirteen Question Method, Naomi Hirahara’s Summer of the Big Bachi.

Production grades
Cover: A-
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A-
Marketing copy: A-

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Munck’s inspiring memoir reveals his tumultuous childhood, military service in the U.S. Marines, and later work in ministry—starting in youth ministry and later planting a church. In turns vulgar and moving, Munck shares how his difficult relationship with his father, who was an addict, shaped his childhood, and how his competitive drive was fed in both high school football and the marines. Munck came to a true faith in Jesus through the intervention of his then girlfriend, now wife, Kymbry, and others and then grew in his faith and leadership, eventually moving from a part-time pastoral role to a full-time one. The Guide shares stories from Munck’s life, including some jolting ones of enduring abuse, and lessons that he derives from it for the reader from his life and scripture.

Munck shares his story with sincerity, though unprepared readers may be surprised by his frankness, from early experimentation with masturbation, adolescent drug use, and teenage sexual exploits. His transparency is deeply affecting when he addresses his military service in the Gulf War, the difficult things he saw, and the impact of consequential PTSD. The photos that Munck periodically includes offer clarifying context, and the “Guiding Thought” lessons he offers at the end of each chapter manage to connect stories of, say, drunken “surfing” in the back of a pickup on L.A.’s 405 highway, with biblical precepts and thoughts about living with purpose.

Munck led a difficult childhood and young adulthood and through great determination made it through poverty, a parent struggling with addiction, and personal anger issues. This memoir is a powerful collection of stories of how he did that with the help of his community and God, and his attempt to share a guide for readers (and his children) to not make the same mistakes that he did. Now he is a pastor, father who clearly loves and respects his children, and a leader within his community. Readers looking for a moving story of perseverance and growth from a marine-turned-pastor will appreciate this memoir.

Takeaway: A former Marine’s revealing journey to faith.

Comparable Titles: Owen R. Chandler’s A Bridge in Babylon, and Joey Svendsen’s Fundamentalist.

Production grades
Cover: B+
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: A-
Editing: B+
Marketing copy: A-

Click here for more about The Guide