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American Hagwon by Min Jin Lee

October 2026

Min Jin Lee's last book, PACHINKO, came out in 2017, which in many ways feels like a lifetime ago. So I assumed that whatever she wrote next would both feel and be big. I am not talking about the page count, but rather the storyline, the complexity of the characters, and the messaging that she wanted to share.

The focus in AMERICAN HAGWON is on education, which starts young. It is not just about learning, but also about achievement. Mediocrity is unacceptable. Good is unacceptable. Very good is unacceptable. There is a quest for the promised land --- that of a select group of Ivy League colleges that have been noted as the only way that success will be achieved. 

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Hollywood, Ending by John Green

October 2026

Ah, Hollywood. It's all glimmer and glamour on the outside. But what is it really like behind the scenes? John Green takes readers there in his latest book, HOLLYWOOD, ENDING, his first novel for adults.

Over the past decade, Green has seen cinematic adaptations of his novels that have given him insight into that world --- and he brings that knowledge to this book.

Here we are brought onto the set of an indie film being made about Andy Warhol, which is set in the days before his death. Andy Warhol Never Gets Old co-stars Juniper Castillo, who was a child actor, and Kai Laramie, who is appearing in his first movie. The title role is being played by someone whom theatergoers might not expect to see in a film like this: Marvel action hero Matthew Malone. He's “the face” of the movie, with Hollywood clout behind his name. Whether a big motion picture or a small one, he wants a hit.

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The Munich Affair by James Patterson and David Ellis

September 2026

We all are well aware of the atrocities that Adolf Hitler committed during his reign of terror. His ordering of the extinction of Jewish people was barbaric, and the ramifications of that and the other cruelties he imparted on millions cannot be justified in any way. He changed the course of history, first in Germany and then with his outreach to countries throughout Europe. His antisemitic feelings still have consequences today. 

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Ten Perfect Guests by Jonathan Santlofer

September 2026

TEN PERFECT GUESTS by Jonathan Santlofer opens with 10 people being invited to a private island for a weekend memorial service for Victor D’Arcangelo, an artist who recently has died. Attendance is mandatory if they hope to reap part of the inheritance that he has left behind. All attendees arrive via first-class travel on planes and water vehicles. It feels very posh, and though there is tension among them, there is an expectation that this could be a pleasant weekend. 

The guests include Victor’s art dealers, a critic, his ex-wife, his son…you get the picture. And they are all in it for the money. 

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The Birthing Tree by Amanda Peters

September 2026

I had enjoyed THE BERRY PICKERS, so I was looking forward to THE BIRTHING TREE. Once again, Amanda Peters brings us to the Mi’kmaq community in Nova Scotia. 

Aliet Paul was born under a tree in a small Nova Scotia town, delivered by her grandmother, Kiju. Her mother died during childbirth, and her father remains unknown except to a select few. She was raised by Kiju, who, in addition to being a midwife, knew of the use of herbs to heal various ailments. One family that came each year had a boy named John, who was a friend to Aliet and then much more. She wrote him letters when he returned home, and there was a real bond between them. Reading about young love can be such fun as we remember waiting for the mail when life was a lot less immediate than it is today.

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Mother Daughter Sister Stranger by Hank Phillippi Ryan

September 2026

Hank Phillippi Ryan's MOTHER DAUGHTER SISTER STRANGER opens with Eliza Ramsey hosting her niece, Piper, while her sister, Bea, is out of town. Although Eliza and Bea are very different, they are bonded by a tragic incident from their past. Their parents were killed in a small plane crash that they survived, though both had significant injuries, and they were raised by their Aunt Margaret.

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God's Country by William Kent Krueger

August 2026

When I read one of William Kent Krueger's Cork O’Connor books, I journey back to Minnesota and Cork’s universe. His writing makes me dash aside the day-to-day of my life, and I drop into what is a brilliantly built world with a set of characters I want to revisit to see how they are, what they have been up to, and what their next life adventure will be. 

In GOD’S COUNTRY, we find Cork and the male members of his family on a canoe trip into the Boundary Waters. This place is spiritual to Cork, and as a reader who takes journeys with him into this space vicariously, its grandeur and beauty spill off the page. For those who are not familiar with this area, it's the over one million acres of forests, lakes and streams between Northern Minnesota and Ontario. In Kent's hands, you feel like you are there. I, who never see myself portaging a canoe or camping in a forest, love reading about this special part of the world.

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The Amateur by Chris Bohjalian

August 2026

I love when I don’t see the ending of a book coming. That’s exactly what happened when I read THE AMATEUR by Chris Bohjalian.

It is written in the voice of Mira Winston, who was once a young golf prodigy and is now a novelist. She is looking back at a horrendous incident that occurred when she was 18. She was hitting a golf ball into the practice net when the ball went through the net and killed Kenny Foster, a 17-year-old caddie who was reading a book while waiting to be called up for his next round.

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Getting Away with Murder by Shari Lapena

August 2026

Ahhhh the pleasure of holding a Shari Lapena book in my hands and knowing I am headed for what I call “a one-sit read.” 

In GETTING AWAY WITH MURDER, we meet Jill and Ted, who are living in a stunning brownstone that they have meticulously finished. They are able to stay on top of the maintenance around the place as Ted earns a substantial salary working in finance. But then the day comes when he makes a big investment, and it does not deliver. It actually tanks --- and with it goes their security as they try to keep up with their day-to-day costs, as well as appearances. 

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City of Widows by Nadia Hashimi

August 2026

When the United States left Afghanistan for the last time in August 2021, the photos of the Afghan people who were racing to leave with our soldiers were embedded in my memory. What was that moment like? What was going to happen to the women of that country as we departed after two decades? It's one of the images that continues to haunt me.

Women had flourished while the US military was there. They had gone to school, gotten jobs and contributed to their families outside of their homes. For nearly 20 years, they had tasted freedom. But then their worlds changed, seemingly overnight. Taliban rule was back as the order of the land, and once again pickup trucks with machine gun-toting soldiers on board were in the streets. 

This countdown to the departure of the Americans is the time period that Nadia Hashimi writes about in her latest novel, CITY OF WIDOWS. We see what is happening day by day in August 2021 and then are brought back in time to what transpired in the last two decades in dated chapters that are woven throughout the book.

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