Jan 27

Jan 27 21 Books Publishing This Week

The evening at the end of January arrives with a kind of deep quiet, the sort that settles after weeks of cold and early darkness. Winter feels fully rooted now. The rush of the new year has softened, the urgency of resolutions fading into something more honest and sustainable. Outside, the sky has already turned a deep blue-gray, and the air presses cold against the windows, steady and unmoving. Inside, the world feels smaller—in the best way.

You move through your space slowly, almost ceremonially. The lights are low, just a lamp or two casting warm pools of glow against the walls. You make yourself something warm to drink—tea steeped strong, perhaps, or coffee you’ll sip slowly, or even a glass of wine if the evening calls for it. The mug warms your hands, grounding you in the moment. There is no hurry tonight.

You settle into your favorite spot, one that has become familiar over the long stretch of winter. A blanket waits there, soft and heavy, and you pull it across your lap, tucking it in around you. The house is quiet now, the kind of quiet that isn’t empty but full—full of warmth, of safety, of pause. Somewhere, a heater hums gently. Somewhere else, a clock ticks, marking time you are in no rush to notice.

The book rests nearby, its cover catching the lamplight. You’ve been saving it for this moment, though you may not have realized it at the time. There’s something fitting about beginning a new book at the end of January, when the year has settled into itself, when you no longer feel the need to rush forward or reinvent everything at once. You’re ready now to commit to a story, to let it unfold alongside you.

You pick it up, feeling the cool smoothness of the cover beneath your fingers. The pages are crisp, untouched. There’s comfort in that, in knowing this is a beginning that belongs only to you. You open it slowly, listening to the soft give of the spine, the quiet promise in that first turn of the page.

The opening lines meet you gently. There’s no spectacle, no demand—just a steady invitation. You begin to read, letting your breath slow, your shoulders relax. Outside, a car passes, tires hissing faintly on cold pavement. The sound fades quickly, leaving behind the steady stillness of the night.

As the story takes shape, the world around you grows softer. The characters begin to step forward, the setting clarifies, and you feel that familiar pull—the moment when you know you’ve chosen the right book for this time. You read without checking the clock, without thinking about what comes next. This is not a night for planning. This is a night for presence.

Every so often, you pause. You lift your mug, take a sip, feel the warmth spread through you. You glance toward the window, where darkness reflects the lamplight back at you, doubling the sense of warmth inside. January feels long, but tonight, it feels generous—giving you this space to be still, to read, to exist without expectation.

The pages turn more easily now. The book has found its rhythm, and you’ve found yours alongside it. You shift slightly beneath the blanket, more comfortable than before, more anchored. Time stretches, elastic and forgiving.

When you finally close the book—only a few chapters in—you mark your place carefully. You hold it in your lap for a moment, feeling the quiet satisfaction of having begun something meaningful. Outside, winter remains unchanged, the cold steady and patient. Inside, you feel warmed and settled, accompanied.

This is how January ends—not with urgency, but with intention. With a story just beginning, an evening well spent, and the quiet knowledge that you don’t need to rush into what comes next.

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Books Publishing January 25 - 31

Simplicity by the Sea by Jennifer Vido

What if the perfect pairing isn't found in a bottle, but in each other?

High-powered marketing executive Delaney Huger thrives in Virginia's wine scene until a quick trip home to Gull Island for a wedding forces her to slow down. Suddenly, she's questioning the life she's built and what comes next. Can she uncork a new beginning or keep pouring into a dream that no longer fits?

Charter captain Luke Sullivan has built a quiet, predictable life on Gull Island, perfect for raising his daughter and growing his business. But when a captivating wedding guest stirs something he thought he'd buried, he wonders if it's time to change. Will he chart a new course toward love or stay safely ashore?

The Final Score by Don Winslow

#1 internationally bestselling author Don Winslow—America’s King of Crime Fiction—is back and he’s better than ever in this intense, deeply felt, gripping collection of six all-new, never-before-published short novels.

In six all-new short novels written with the trademark literary style, trenchant wit, and incisive characterization that have made Don Winslow “America’s greatest living crime writer” (Providence Journal), this repeat New York Times bestselling author serves up a collection of tales sure to delight Winslow’s most devoted fans and first-time readers.

The multi-million-dollar casino heist is impossible—it can’t be done. That’s what makes it irresistible to a legendary robber facing the rest of his life in prison for his “Final Score.” An ambitious, hard-working college-bound teenager has a side job delivering illegal booze to “The Sunday List” until a crooked cop, a seductive customer, and a fake guru threaten to end his dreams. Two wise guys tell each other a “True Story” over breakfast at a diner. It’s all bullshit and laughs until someone else has to pick up the check. An otherwise honest patrolman has to make an excruciating choice between his loyalty to the job and his love for a ne’er-do-well cousin in “The North Wing.” The entitled, substance-addicted movie star that surfer/PI Boone Daniels and his crew are hired to babysit in “The Lunch Break” is a problem. She also has a problem—someone wants her dead. Finally, the one terrible, momentary mistake that a devoted family man makes sends him to prison and on a “Collision” course between the man he wants to be and the killer he’s forced to become to survive.

With a foreword written by award-winning crime author Reed Farrel Coleman, The Final Score is a propulsive, perceptive, and deeply immersive collection of crime writing — the ultimate testament to Don Winslow's prowess as a living legend of the genre.

Last First Kiss by Julian Winters

Sparks fly in this second chance m/m rom com when an unlucky-in-love event planner realizes the man-of-honor at the high profile wedding he's planning is the same man who broke his heart.

They say you never forget your first kiss. But Jordan Carter wishes he could forget the one he shared with Jamie Peters as teens. And the one they almost shared again last year before Jamie made it clear he wasn’t the “right” man for Jordan to be with while he’s figuring himself out.

Now, Jordan’s fully focused on his career at 24 Carter Gold, his family’s event planning company, and ready to move on - until his boss assigns him to plan a new client’s high-profile wedding. The bride’s man-of-honor? None other than Jamie.

As things ramp up the closer they get to the wedding, so does Jordan’s relationship with Jamie, with sarcastic asides turning into steamy hook-ups. But can Jordan afford to pursue Jamie if he’s still unsure who he is? Or is knowing who he loves enough? Venue shopping, cake-tastings, and dress fittings with the man he can’t forget just might change the man Jordan Carter is meant to become.

Last First Kiss by Julian Winters is a second chance romance about finding yourself–and the love of your life.

Akiko's Quiet Happiness by Jan-Philipp Sendker

Two lonely former classmates reconnect in Tokyo and unravel a family secret in this touching new novel from the internationally bestselling author of The Art of Hearing Heartbeats.

Still grieving the death of her mother, 29-year-old Akiko is single and lives in self-imposed isolation in Tokyo. Then one evening, she unexpectedly runs into Kento, her first love from school. Kento now leads a reclusive life as a hikikomori, only venturing out at night.

At the same time, Akiko discovers evidence that her mother had been lying to her about their family, causing her to doubt everything. She has to admit to herself that she doesn’t know who she is.

With Kento’s help, Akiko embarks on a journey into her own history, which takes her life in surprising directions and leads her to questions she had never dared to ask herself before: How do I want to live? And do I have the courage to love?

Monster in the Moonlight by Annelise Ryan

Under the light of the full moon, a quiet rural lane becomes the scene of a shocking crime that may be the work of a mythical monster in the latest entry of this USA Today bestselling mystery series.

When a dead body turns up along a lonely country byway in rural Wisconsin, rumors of The Beast of Bray Road, a werewolf-like creature that is said to inhabit the area are reinvigorated. For years locals have reported sightings of the terrifying creature, but this would be its first verified attack.

Marks on the dead woman’s body indicate a mauling by some kind of large animal. The wounds plus deep scratches on the victim’s car convince the community that the legendary beast is not only real but responsible for this brutal killing.

If the police have any hope of solving this crime, they’re going to need an expert—enter cryptozoologist Morgan Carter. She’s investigated sightings of eerie creatures throughout the upper Midwest. If anyone is going to track down the killer, it’s Morgan, but she may find that the Beast is not the worst thing lurking on Bray Road.

Her Cold Justice by Robert Dugoni

To save a client accused of murder, defense attorney Keera Duggan must fight a complex web of corruption in a riveting novel of suspense by New York Times bestselling author Robert Dugoni.

In a quiet South Seattle neighborhood, a suspected drug smuggler and his girlfriend are murdered in their home. When a young man named Michael Westbrook is accused of the brutal double homicide, his uncle JP Harrison turns to Keera Duggan to defend him. JP is Keera’s trusted investigator, and he desperately needs Keera to save his nephew against escalating odds.

The evidence is circumstantial―Michael worked with one of the victims, drugs were found in his possession, and he bolted from authorities. Ruthless star prosecutor Anh Tran has gotten convictions on much less. With the testimony of two prison informants, the case looks grave. But Keera never concedes defeat. To free her client, she must dig deep before Tran crushes both of them.

As the investigation gets more twisted with each new find, Keera is swept up in a mystery with far-reaching consequences. This case isn’t just murder. It’s looking like a conspiracy. And getting justice for Michael could be the most dangerous promise Keera has ever made.

Passage to Tokyo by Poppy Kuroki

A young woman finds herself back in 1920s Tokyo as Japan enters a new and dangerous era—and a deadly tragedy awaits her city.

Yui Sanada struggles to raise her twelve-year-old brother, Hiro, while contending with the antics of their neglectful, alcoholic mother. During a trip to Ueno Park, Hiro runs away from his sister into a strange passage beneath a samurai statue. Yui chases after him and soon finds herself in a Tokyo far removed from the familiar world of 1995.

When Yui emerges from the tunnel, she cannot find Hiro but meets a young woman named Chiyo and her family and learns she has traveled back through time to 1923. As feelings between the two women develop, Yui and realizes it’s just weeks before the devastating Great Kanto Earthquake will happen, killing tens of thousands and leveling the city. Will Yui be able to find her brother and save her new family from the coming disaster?

A Reckoning Up Black Cat Hollow by Matthew F. Jones

In a split-second decision that will shatter his life, insurance salesman Jack Spinks stops to help a young woman walking alone down a back country road. After getting into his truck the mysterious young woman grabs the steering wheel and forces the truck off the road, sending it plunging over a cliff and into the woods. What begins as a simple act of kindness spirals into a nightmare as Jack finds himself trapped in a dark and perilous world, hunted by the woman’s cryptic pursuers. As he fights for survival, Jack’s journey uncovers a haunting connection to his own past—one that may hold the key to unraveling the mystery and escaping the deadly forces closing in on him. From the highly acclaimed author of A Single Shot, A Reckoning Up Black Cat Hollow is a pulse-pounding crime thriller that weaves together psychological suspense and a gripping mystery, where every step brings Jack closer to a truth he’s long buried—and forces him to confront who, or what, he can truly trust.

Eleanor: A 200-Mile Walk in Search of England's Lost Queen by Alice Loxton

In 1290, England mourned the death of a queen, Eleanor of Castile, beloved wife of King Edward I. Her body was carried on a 200-mile journey from Lincoln to London, a solemn procession that would become immortalised in stone. To mark the places where her cortege rested, a heartbroken Edward commissioned twelve magnificent Eleanor Crosses.

More than seven centuries later, bestselling historian Alice Loxton set herself an epic challenge: walking the entire 200-mile funeral route from Lincoln to London, following in history's footsteps on the corresponding dates in November and December 2024.

As Alice journeys in search of England’s forgotten queen, over ancient paths and modern motorways, history comes alive in surprising ways. Lively and entertaining, Eleanor uncovers the extraordinary life and formidable character of a royal, the hidden history of Britain and Eleanor’s inspiring legacy.

Quinto's Challenge by Peter McChesney

On the 100th anniversary of JFK’s challenge to land a man on the Moon and return him safely to the Earth, visionary US President Vince Quinto challenges America with an even more audacious goal: finding a way to conquer death before the century is out—by developing the scientific means to achieve resurrection.

As the 21st century draws to a close, advances in genetics, quantum physics, and artificial intelligence converge to make Quinto’s Challenge possible. The final breakthrough—hailed as the Theory of Everything—is made by Deeley Carr, a young, shy quantum physicist recruited to work on a top-secret US government project.
However, those privy to this highly classified science quickly realize that the power to bring about immortality is a double-edged sword—if it falls into the wrong hands, it would become the ultimate weapon of surveillance and control, a tool for the subjugation of all.
“Quinto’s Challenge” is a timely dissection of the burgeoning use of AI and its ethical implications in the scientific, political, and religious realms. A cannot miss debut that raises needling questions about the future of humanity.

Better Catch Up, Krishna Kumar by Anahita Karthik

Krishna Kumar may have gotten into her dream college, but that doesn’t mean she’s stopped being a bi disaster. Even after spending her whole summer in India flirting with her gorgeous neighbor Amrit, she has nothing to show for it. And now, her fate is sealed: she’s destined to be the only freshman who’s never been kissed.

But when her flight home is delayed right as a distinctly flirty text from Amrit lights up her phone, Krishna is determined to seize her last chance at a perfect first kiss with Amrit, even if it means asking her cousin-turned-nemesis, Priti, for help. Because Amrit is miles away at a family wedding—and Priti’s best friend, Rudra Desai, is the only one with a car.

The unlikely trio set off on a road trip to crash a wedding and save Krishna’s summer. But as she starts to fall for the quiet yet irresistibly hot and charming Rudra, who everyone knows is unrequitedly in love with Priti, Krishna realizes her heart better catch up to her head before she skips right past her first kiss and falls directly into her first heartbreak.

In Bloom by Liz Allan

It’s the mid-nineties, and in the small, shitty coastal town of Vincent, Australia, four Nirvana-obsessed fourteen-year-old girls form a grunge band. The Bastards are “forgettable girls”—poor, not particularly clever, ridiculed by their better-off classmates, and desperate to escape the fates of their mothers, who seem locked into a life of minimum-wage jobs, surprise pregnancies, and drunk boyfriends. The Battle of the Bands is the girls’ one ticket out.

As small-town rumors swirl, however, The Bastards are abandoned by their lead singer Lily Lucid, who accuses their beloved music teacher of assault. The three remaining girls are left with nothing. Nothing, that is, except their amateur detective skills, a conviction that Mr. P is innocent, and a readiness to sacrifice everything to keep their dream alive. Spinning with rage at the confines of their lives, they reach a precipice where there’s no turning back.

Brash and bold, grungy and propulsive, In Bloom is a coming-of-age novel about class, girlhood in precarious circumstances, and how to build a sense of self when the foundations of friendship fail.

The Unwritten Rules of Magic by Harper Ross

Emerson Clarke can’t remember a time when she felt in control. Her father―a celebrated author―was a chaotic force until he got Alzheimer’s. Her mother turned to gin. And recently, her teen daughter has shut her out without explanation. If only she could arrange reality the same way she controls the stories she ghostwrites, life could be perfect.
Or so she thinks.
After her father’s funeral, Emerson steals his vintage typewriter―the one he’d forbidden anyone to touch―and tests its keys by typing out a frivolous wish. When it comes true the very next day, she tries another. Then, those words also spring to life. Suddenly, she becomes obsessed with using the typewriter to rewrite happiness for herself and her daughter.
But the more she shapes her real-life, the more she uncovers disturbing truths about her family’s history and the unexpected cost of every story-come-true. She should destroy the typewriter, yet when her daughter’s secret finally emerges, Emerson is torn between paying the price for bending fate and embracing the uncertainty of an unscripted life.

Black Public Joy by Jay Pitter

From one of North America’s most influential public space experts comes a powerful treatise celebrating Black people’s audacious, complex, and universally embraced public joy expressions.

How much safety, belonging and delight do you feel when you walk through a park? Hang out in a coffee shop? Ride the subway to work? Explore a new neighborhood? Now, how much do you know about how history, urban planning, culture and even your personal upbringing impact those feelings, and overall access, to public joy? For well over a decade, Jay Pitter has been thinking about public space and the ways it can be designed to not only contribute to social equity but also inspire joy for everyone. Her award-winning work helping cities navigate complex issues such as reimagining Confederate monument sites, the creation of cultural districts and the adoption of gender-responsive street design compels her to ask: “How can I ignite public joy?”

Pitter acknowledges egregious place-based violations faced by her community—historical and contemporary—while unapologetically bending the book’s narrative arc toward public joy. Declaring that Black public joy is so powerful that even the auction block could not extinguish it, Pitter guides the reader through an under-explored placemaking journey. In addition to unearthing historical rituals, the book builds on the current groundswell of Black-led initiatives highlighting hiking, dining, cycling, and frolicking punctuated by hashtags such as #BlackJoy and #BlackOutdoors. Pitter draws upon her practice expertise and research, delving more deeply to situate these moments and online conversations within the phenomenon that is Black public joy.

Along the way, she introduces us to beloved colleagues creating public joy in their communities, and also reveals vulnerable personal stories as ground for the book’s narrative. Black Public Joy’s themes—our collective desire for safely taking up space, feeling belonging, and freeing ourselves from fears of judgement—are universal. Pitter’s work calls on all of us to become better stewards of each other’s public joy, as well as to claim our own.

A Spell for Drowning by Rebecca Ferrier

A stunning historical fantasy debut steeped in the salt and superstition of the Cornish coast. Perfect for readers of Circe and Godkiller.

Forgotten sirens, mischievous sea gods, and the lore from days long since passed weave an irresistible tale.

The people of Portscatho are bound to traditions and to the sea, living side by side with the spirits, gods, and monsters that inhabit the rollicking waters. When Kensa and her half sister come across a dying sea beast on the Cornish shore, Kensa is quick to claim credit for the discovery and in doing so steals the glory and her sister’s position as apprentice to the local wise woman. It seems an appropriate station for Kensa, who has always existed out of step with the others in the village.

Yet to be a wise woman is to be alone—unmarried, childless, relied upon, and lusted after yet never truly wanted. Kensa’s only real company is her mentor, the wise woman Isolde.

But Isolde won’t live forever, and when she falls ill, Kensa will do anything to save her and retain her newfound elevation within the community. Even if that means having to seek help from the Bucka, a terrifying and unfathomable sea god who guards the tides around Portscatho. In doing so, she’ll risk her life, her family, and everything she’s sworn to protect.

Beautifully written, expertly crafted, and full of engaging and compelling Cornish mythology, A Spell for Drowning tackles the expectations and limitations put on women by society, what it means to be feared and needed at the same time, and how the desire for acceptance can either save or destroy us.

With the historical wonder of A Thousand Ships, A Spell for Drowning is in good company with compelling historical fantasies that enchant readers across the board.

A Field Guide to Murder by Michelle L. Cullen

A cranky widower and his spirited caregiver team up to solve his neighbor’s murder in this charming and original mystery, perfect for fans of Richard Osman and Benjamin Stevenson.

Once a globe-trotting anthropologist, Harry Lancaster is now certain that all his grand adventures are behind him. Recently widowed and suffering from a fractured hip, Harry spends his days and nights behind a pair of binoculars, nose-deep in his neighbors’ affairs. His millennial caregiver, Emma, is determined to get him out of his armchair and back into the world.

Fate intervenes when Harry’s mysterious neighbor, Sue, phones, pleading for help. But instead of rescuing her, Harry and Emma find Sue dead: poisoned, days after a break-in at Sue’s house. Harry resolves to find out what happened, and Emma insists on going along for the ride. Together, they discover motives and suspects abound in Harry’s quaint condominium community—putting them both in the crosshairs of a cold-blooded killer.

Readers of Kristen Perrin and Deanna Raybourn will be charmed by this quirky, cross-generational murder mystery.

The Below by Scott T. Miller

Author Interview with Scott T. Miller

Humankind rose from the carcass of a dead world. Lifetimes later, billions of people live in superstructures constructed atop the only habitable lands left, the Hawaiian Islands. Kilohana “Kilo” Ressler lives in Hawai'i City (known to the people as Big City) along with his illegal Digital Psychological Manifestation (DPM), EO, a pseudo-twin only perceptible to the host, designed during the rebuilding years to provide companionship in a world of horrors. Kilo has managed to keep EO a secret for most of his life, but when his skills are required for a diplomatic mission in Kaua'i City, Kilo and EO find themselves embroiled in a conspiracy that threatens to expose EO’s existence and endanger the fragile balance of power between the island cities. The only place left for answers is in the depths of the superstructure the Below. As the walls close in, Kilo must undertake the impossible task of protecting his friend, facing his past, and holding a crumbling city together.

The Gratitude Express by Walter Green

The Gratitude Express follows Daniel, a young journalist traveling to see his ailing grandfather. Struggling to write a eulogy, he boards a mysterious, unlisted steam train that appears from another era. Guided by a stoic conductor and his wise parrot, Daniel journeys through forgotten moments of his past—times when small acts of kindness quietly changed others’ lives.

At each stop, he discovers the power of gratitude: how expressing and receiving it can heal and transform. When the train finally delivers him to his stop, Daniel sets aside the eulogy to thank his grandfather in person—just in time.

As the Gratitude Express steams into the distance, it leaves a lasting reminder: life’s meaning lies not just in what we do, but in the love and thanks we share. Blending fable, nostalgia, and emotional truth, The Gratitude Express is a gentle lesson in never waiting to say the words that matter and how sharing with someone how they have impacted your life can in turn change theirs. Written in a style of fable, for people of all ages.

Your Last First Date By Jaydi Samuels Kuba

Author Interview with Jaydi Samuels Kuba

What can singles do to make sure that they are finished having first dates? Just in time for Valentine’s Day, Hollywood matchmaker and certified dating and relationship coach Jaydi Samuels Kuba’s new book Your Last First Date: Secrets from a Hollywood Matchmaker (Avid Reader Press/January 27, 2026) provides invaluable insights and practical answers that everyone needs. Jaydi and her company LJ Matchmaking have been the go-to company for Hollywood’s top actors, executives, and creatives for years. The book provides unique guidelines in detail providing insights if one is a ‘love bomber,’ ‘soul barer,’ ‘babbler,’ ‘clam,’ ‘stiff’ or a self-sabotager. It’s important to identify that in the complexity of dating in today’s world. Most of us don’t always present our best selves on first dates and in the early stages of relationships where smart decisions are critical for long-term success. The book provides practical answers we all need through deeply compelling and illuminating real stories from three of her clients, along with her own journey in meeting her husband.

Whether you’re the one in a rush to make it happen, the one who’s convinced yourself you’re better off along, or even the one who figured it all out, you’ll learn more about who you are and how to achieve your Hollywood ending. Amidst increasing social isolation, the book offers essential and candid advice as well as wisdom about love, what it takes to find it, what price we for its acquisition and what, most importantly, we learn about ourselves in the process, regardless of the outcome.

Murder Before I Do by Rosie A. Point & Charles Timmerman

Cozy mystery meets themed word search puzzles in this interactive and charming whodunit experience that invites you to solve the case as you uncover clues.

It’s time for a celebration in Cranberry Creek! Abby has never been more excited to be maid of honor for her dear friend, Rose. But when the life-of-the-party best man is murdered at the rehearsal dinner—and the wedding rings he was responsible for go missing—it’s up to Abby to save the day!

If You Knew... by Richard Plourde

Author Interview with Richard Plourde

When their four-year-old son Gabriel’s leukemia relapses, Richard and his wife are thrust back into the nightmare they thought they had escaped. Every heartbeat feels like a countdown as they beg for a miracle to keep their child alive.

Meanwhile, elsewhere in time, Bill — a young university student reeling from heartbreak — suddenly glimpses a future that shouldn’t be his to see. Horrified by the suffering that seems to await, he vows to defy it at all costs.

As both men confront what they most fear, their stories converge into a haunting clash of destiny, courage, and life-altering choices. Will the actions they take be enough to rewrite fate, or are some destinies impossible to escape?

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