Fiction A to Z February 2026 |
|
|
|
| Departure(s) by Julian BarnesStarring a 70-something Booker Prize winner with a fatal illness, Departure(s) is the planned final novel by author Julian Barnes, who shares a name and many similarities with his main character. Exploring art, life, death, and memory while covering the fictional Julian's two matchmaking attempts for the same couple -- once in college and once decades later -- this short but powerful tale is candid and witty. Read-alikes: Paul Auster's Baumgartner; Joshua Ferris' A Calling for Charlie Barnes. |
|
|
|
Lost Lambs
by Madeline Cash
Irreverent and addictive, pinging between the voices of the Flynn family and those of the panorama of characters around them, Madeline Cash’s Lost Lambs is a debut novel of quick-witted observation and surprising tenderness. With it, Cash has crafted a family saga for the twenty-first century, all held together with crazy glue. "If the Royal Tenenbaums were middle-class and likable, they'd be this madcap family" (The New York Times Book Review).
|
|
| The Hitch by Sara LevineOpinionated Rose Cutler is excited to watch her six-year-old nephew Nathan and feed him vegan food while his parents vacation in Mexico. But things go bad when Rose's Newfoundland dog kills a corgi at the park, leading Nathan to proclaim the corgi is actually alive, its soul melded to his own. As Nathan acts strangely, Rose wonders if he might be right in this darkly humorous, offbeat tale. For fans of: the author's Treasure Island!!!; Melissa Broder. |
|
| How to Commit a Postcolonial Murder by Nina McConigleyGrowing up in 1980s Wyoming as Reagan rules and the tabloids follow Charles and Diana's engagement, sisters Georgie and Aggie face racism as the only Brown kids around. Then, when their uncle and his family leave India and move in with them, the sexual abuse starts. The girls blame the abuse on various things as they plot to kill their uncle in this inventive, short debut novel featuring magazine-style quizzes. Try these next: Essie Chambers' Swift River; Tiffany McDaniel's Betty. |
|
| This Is Where the Serpent Lives by Daniyal MueenuddinSpanning decades, this moving, lyrical look at life and social class in modern-day Pakistan follows memorable characters, from orphaned Bayazid, who rises to the position of chauffeur to Hisham, who's the heir to a large estate, to Hisham himself, who attended college in the United States, as well as others connected to these two. "This is a masterpiece," raves Publishers Weekly. Read-alikes: When the Fireflies Dance by Aisha Hassan; Aravind Adiga's novels. |
|
| The Award by Matthew PearlIn Cambridge, Massachusetts, aspiring author David Trent and his girlfriend rent the upper floor in a house belonging to well-known writer Silas Hale. But while David dreams of mentorship, he gets the cold shoulder. That is, until he wins an award and Silas invites him to a literary party, which leads to murder and more in this witty send-up of the writing life. Read-alikes: Daniel Aleman's I Might Be in Trouble; R.F. Kuang's Yellowface. |
|
| Crux by Gabriel TallentIn California's Mojave Desert, two high school seniors share a tight friendship and a passion for rock climbing, though neither has money for good gear. While Dan dreams of college and his mom sacrifices to pay for it, Tamma wants to be a pro climber but must help her troubled family. For fans of: Allegra Goodman's Sam; suspenseful, richly detailed novels; character-driven stories about friendship. |
|
|
|
House of Day, House of Night
by Olga Tokarczuk
Richly imagined, weaving in anecdote with recipes and gossip, House of Day, House of Night is an epic of a small place. In Nowa Ruda, a small town in Silesia, Poland, the narrator learns that the history of one's house is limitless - one can feel at home everywhere. "A poetic, rich work of art that ebbs and flows like a stream" (Booklist).
|
|
|
|
Beasts of the Sea
by Iida Turpeinen
“Turpeinen matches the heights of Andrea Barrett” (Publishers Weekly) in this sweeping and intimate tale about a fateful encounter between man and nature spanning three centuries and linked by a long-extinct denizen of the northern oceans.
|
|
|
|
The Future Saints
by Ashley Winstead
Following the death of their manager, the band Future Saints is on the brink. That is, until a new music executive is sent to get them back on course. A powerful and transportive new novel for fans of Daisy Jones and the Six and In Five Years.
|
|
Contact your librarian for more great books!
|
|
|