Must-Read Books
July 2026
Adult Fiction
A Pair of Aces by Marie Benedict
A Pair of Aces
by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray

In 1930s Manhattan, the city's first Black woman prosecutor, Eunice Carter, interviews Polly Adler, who owns the city's best brothel, and the two women from vastly different worlds realize they can help each other. None of Eunice's male colleagues have been able to touch gangster Lucky Luciano, who's recently put Polly's workers in danger, so the pair utilize a network of women to assemble evidence. Read-alike: Diane Richard's Ella.
 
Also available in eBook on Libby
Also available in audiobook on CloudLibrary
A Chance for Kallie Mae by Ann H. Gabhart
A Chance for Kallie Mae
by Ann H. Gabhart

In 1911 Kentucky, 19-year-old Kallie Bertram dreams of both an education and a forbidden love. Caring for her siblings after her mother died in childbirth, she's never learned to read or write, but a new school for adults might change that. Meanwhile, she runs into Quinn Spencer, and while their feelings are strong, their feuding families make a match seem impossible. For another faith-filled historical romance set in 1911 Kentucky, read Suzanne Woods Fisher's The Moonlight School.
Sublimation by Isabel J. Kim
Sublimation
by Isabel J. Kim

In this high-concept novel, emigration creates two copies of a person. These can be reintegrated, or both iterations can go about their lives, one in the home country, one in the new. They can keep in touch, or not. Rose Kang left Korea for the United States at ten, and hasn't spoken to her other self, Soyoung, since. Now Rose is in Korea for a funeral, and Soyoung wants to meet. Meanwhile, a tech company hopes to monetize reintegration. Sublimation is the debut novel of award-winning short story writer Isabel J. Kim. For fans of: Apple TV's Severance.
 
Also available in audiobook on CloudLibrary
The Last Contract of Isako by Fonda Lee
The Last Contract of Isako
by Fonda Lee

Isako's long legacy as a legendary samurai for hire is close to an end. When she's offered one last job she can't refuse, she's suddenly thrust into a world of espionage far more complex than she can handle...and secrets that may change all of humanity. Immersive, evocative, and full of unique worldbuilding, this space opera with an older female protagonist will be a treat for readers of Shannon Chakraborty's The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi and Bethany Jacobs' These Burning Stars.
 
Also available in audiobooks on CloudLibrary
Safari Murder Party by Rachel Moore
Safari Murder Party
by Rachel Moore

After years as an overworked executive assistant, Fletcher Spence finally attends a luxury corporate retreat on a private island, but upon arrival, she finds the CEO dead and a twisted inheritance game in motion. With no escape and trust in short supply, Fletcher must navigate shifting alliances and danger to survive the week-long power struggle.
Heather by Caitlin Mullen
Heather
by Caitlin Mullen

Callie Hauser moves back to her New Jersey Pine Barrens hometown to be the police chief and help her best friend, who's recovering from a hit-and-run. Soon, she's pulled into a 30-year-old cold case that her estranged mother seemingly has ties to and which also involves missing 16-year-old twin sisters and a deceased baby. For fans of: Liz Moore’s Long Bright River; HBO's Mare of Easttown.
 
Also available in audiobook on CloudLibrary
We Dance Upon Demons by Vaishnavi Patel
We Dance Upon Demons
by Vaishnavi Patel

Burnt out from depression and the stress of being a reproductive healthcare worker in America, Nisha doesn't need more problems when she suddenly acquires the ability to alter reality from a statue at an Indian art exhibit. But as forces begin to converge on her, Nisha will have to reconnect with her culture and learn from the women before her to regain control of her life. This fantastical story of community, autonomy, and self-discovery will appeal to fans of The Women Could Fly by Megan Giddings.  
Bromantasy by Roche
Bromantasy
by Máire Roche

Homebody farmer Juniper O'Reilly and his longtime best friend and roommate, adventure-seeking Morn "Mo" Elmthorn, unexpectedly find themselves on a dragon-hunting quest after running afoul of the law. This fast-paced and lighthearted send-up of romantasy tropes will appeal to fans of Delilah S. Dawson and Kevin Hearne's Tales of Pell novels and Travis Baldree's Legends & Lattes series.
 
Also available in audiobook on Libby
Score by Kennedy Ryan
Score
by Kennedy Ryan

Ten years after their college romance ended in heartbreak, screenwriter Verity Hill and composer Wright "Monk" Bellamy reunite on the set of a Harlem Renaissance biopic and struggle to keep things strictly professional. This steamy second-chance romance is the 2nd in bestselling author Kennedy Ryan's Hollywood Renaissance series. Try this next: August Lane by Regina Black.
 
Also available in audiobook on CloudLibrary
Adult Nonfiction
America, U.S.A.: How Race Shadows the Nation's Anniversaries by Eddie S. Glaude
America, U.S.A.: How Race Shadows the Nation's Anniversaries
by Eddie S. Glaude, Jr.

New York Times bestselling author Eddie S. Glaude Jr. (Begin Again: James Baldwin's America and Its Urgent Lessons for Our Own) incisively examines the racial contradictions of America's founding in his reflective history that demythologizes 250 years of the country's milestone anniversaries. Further reading: The Great Contradiction: The Tragic Side of the American Founding by Joseph J. Ellis.
On Witness and Respair: Essays by Jesmyn Ward
On Witness and Respair: Essays
by Jesmyn Ward

MacArthur Fellow Jesmyn Ward's reflective latest collects nearly two dozen essays, lectures, and other pieces published from 2008-2025, covering writing, film, literature, and her experiences as a Black woman. Try this next: To Free the Captives: A Plea for the American Soul by Tracy K. Smith.
Youth Fiction
Breakout by Dhonielle Clayton
Breakout
by Dhonielle Clayton, Tiffany D. Jackson, Nic Stone, Angie Thomas, Ashley Woodfolk, and Nicola Yoon

New kid Anthony invites five of his high-achieving classmates for a spring break vacation at his father’s luxury resort. When a tropical storm wreaks havoc, dark secrets begin to emerge. The superstar team of authors who collaborated on Whiteout and Blackout deliver this clever thriller.
 
Also available in audiobook on CloudLibrary
We Are Joy by Chrystal D. Giles
We Are Joy
by Chrystal D. Giles; illustrated by Kitt Thomas

Told through elegant, poetic words and swirling, jewel-toned illustrations, this affirming picture book celebrates all the facets of Black joy. On each spread, Black children are shown with their loved ones as they play, eat, learn, protest, and revel in the resilience and warmth of community. Read-alikes: Tami Charles' All Because You Matter; Natasha Tarpley's The Me I Choose to Be.
Midsummer Sisters (a Graphic Novel) by Niki Smith
Midsummer Sisters
by Niki Smith

With their parents' marriage in trouble, stepsisters and best friends Quinn and Kenzie are visiting Gramma on North Carolina's Outer Banks. There, they become attached to a wild foal, while also wondering what will happen if their parents get divorced. Delicate yet expressive artwork highlights the big emotions in this graphic novel.
 
Also available in eBook on CloudLibrary
Contact your librarian for more great books!