CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE:
April 7th: The Name Game
Charlie Jones has her dream fresh start.
But Charlie Jones is trying to steal it …
The Isle of population 500, soon to be 501.
Charlie Jones has landed on the island to embark on her brand new life. As the manager at Ormer’s only farm shop, this job will be her perfect next chapter. Good riddance to the mainland, this is it – fresh air, and a clean slate.
Except there is one small issue …
Charlie Jones has also just arrived on the Isle of Ormer, to embark on his brand new life. His job at the farm shop feels like fate, and could not have come at a better moment. On Ormer, Charlie has promised himself he’ll escape old friends, bad habits and heartbreak.
This second chance is the best thing that could have happened to Charlie . . . and Charlie.
That is, until they are introduced . . .
LINKS: Goodreads | BookBub | Amazon | Bookshop.org
April 7th: Ryder
One hard fall in the rodeo ring.
One maddeningly gorgeous cowboy.
One chance at love she swore she’d never take.
Billie Wallace has spent her whole life trying to prove she’s more than the Wallace Ranch’s “wild” only daughter. All she wants is a shot at barrel racing—and a purpose beyond crunching numbers in her daddy’s office. But when her very first run ends in disaster, Billie lands flat on her back with Ryder Rivers—her childhood crush, her brother’s best friend, and the town’s notorious heartbreaker—hovering over her.
In all the years she’s known him, Ryder has never entertained Billie’s shameless flirting. But after her fall, he’s suddenly everywhere—showing up to help her when she’s hurt, staring at her across the honky-tonk when she’s trying to move on with a bronc rider, and encouraging her to explore her dream career.
Before either can really register what’s happening, their partnership sparks into much more than just dust and arguments.
Late nights turn into stolen kisses. Stolen kisses turn into something that feels dangerously like forever. Ryder swears he’s not the staying kind, but the way he looks at Billie like she’s the only woman in the world makes everyone start to wonder if he’s ready to stop running…
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub | Bookshop.org
April 7th: The Write Off
Two rival authors are forced to confront a decade of love and heartbreak on the campus where it all started in this captivating debut romance by Kara McDowell.
It’s been thirteen years since Mars Darling first met West Emerson on a bench outside their writing class. What started out as a friendly rivalry turned into a best friendship and then, for a brief time, a romance. Now over a decade later, as Mars stands at their college campus as a once-esteemed YA fantasy author, ready to take on a book festival, she comes face to face with West—the muse behind her infamous trilogy’s heartthrob hero, the man who betrayed her in the worst way.
Mars is determined not to let her comeback tour be ruined by the fact that West is also at the festival as an author. But the longer they are on the campus that holds so many shared memories, the more time they have to untangle their past, and Mars starts to question if maybe it’s not only her writing career that deserves a second chance.
Told in two unfolding timelines—Mars and West’s frenzied college days where they grapple with their undeniable connection, and their tension-filled present of heartache and familiar yearning—this charming romance shows that while you can’t rewrite the past, it’s never too late to chase your happily ever after and get back the one that got away.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub | Bookshop.org
April 14th: While You Were Seething
Daisy Emmett has been enemies with famous romance author Caleb Miller since they were in college together, and time hasn’t lessened their mutual loathing. So when she agrees to manoeuvre him through a PR disaster of his own making, she knows it’s not going to be easy. She just doesn’t realise how not easy until they somehow end up trapped in the same truck, on an endless road trip from one book tour stop to another, bantering and butting heads along the way.
Then, even more people appear to be mistaking her for the woman he dedicates all his books to. The love of his life, his adored beloved—the one who doesn’t actually exist. Now they’re trapped into pretending she does and that Daisy is her, each fake kiss and phoney embrace ratcheting up the tension to the point where enemies suddenly seems a lot closer to lovers than either of them would like.
Or so they’re telling themselves.
But sometimes it’s hard to be sure, when seething turns into something so much more…
LINKS: Goodreads | BookBub | Amazon | Bookshop.org
April 14th: Happy Ending
Thea and Alex have three things in common—they love food, they hate where they live, and they’re both divorced. Otherwise, they couldn’t be more different.
Thea’s never cooked a day in her life. Alex is a world-class chef. Alex resents feeling stuck in his hometown. Thea resents the town for not feeling more like home. Thea and her ex are in a contentious custody battle for their dog. Alex and his ex amicably coparent their daughter. Beyond a few friends in common, a couple small-world connections (welcome to life in a mid-size city), their lives look nothing alike. Fast forward two years, and they’re truly the best of friends. No one would ever know their friendship began as a lie…
Two years ago, their exes got together immediately following their divorces, and somehow, Thea and Alex found themselves spinning a spite-fueled story about being old friends and first loves. Two years later, what began as a ruse has grown into real friendship—just friendship, despite what friends and family seem to think. But when their exes invite them on a two-week, “two family” beach vacation—daughter and dog included—Alex and Thea start to wonder if this story they’ve spun might have gotten away from them, and if it’s led them to the last place they ever thought it could: a happy ending.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub | Bookshop.org
FANTASY & ROMANTASY:
April 7th: Rites of the Starling
RITES OF THE STARLING is the epic, heart-pounding sequel to Devney Perry’s #1 New York Times-bestselling SHIELD OF SPARROWS. A princess journeys across a cursed realm to find the truth about her family, only to discover her quest intertwines with the fate of a lost warrior. Love, danger and magic collide in a captivating romantasy perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas and Rebecca Yarros.
Calandra’s five kingdoms are on the verge of destruction. The crux migration is coming. And in the wake of a devastating attack, I’ve been separated from the man who owns my heart.
I’m lost. Terrified. Homesick. Hunted by monsters, driven to exhaustion, and kidnapped by a powerful priest, the only thing keeping me going is the little girl counting on me to keep her safe. It’s my turn to become the Guardian.
Our lives change one fateful night. A night of death. A night of monsters. A night of truths. That night, I learn the real meaning of fear—and the depth of my own strength.
Everyone wants me to be something I’m not—a queen, a spy, a sacrifice. But what if I embrace my crown? What if the secrets I uncover save our realm?
What if my sacrifice means salvation for the man I love?
For too long, I’ve feared the monsters we make.
It’s time to discover the monster within.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub | Bookshop.org
April 7th: The Tricky Business of Faerie Bargains
A former changeling must return to the land of the Fae to right a bargain that’s gone terribly wrong in this delightful cozy fantasy debut packed full of charm, adventure, romance and heart.
When Poppy Hill was a child she was stolen from her family’s Montana homestead and taken to the land of the fae, where she spent more than a century as a cook in the Wild King’s castle. Now back in the human world, she works for a company that brokers fairy bargains, looking for loopholes in their contracts.
Then a bargain that Poppy is negotiating goes disastrously wrong and she has to return to the world she grew up in to try to rectify her mistake, facing danger, intrigue and a pesky ex-boyfriend along the way.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub | Bookshop.org
April 7th: The Verdant Cage
The Wall was built to keep them safe. Or so they thought.
For as long as seventeen-year-old apothecary Rose Allgood can remember, the towering stone Wall surrounding Noah’s Valley has protected her people. No one leaves. No one fights. And no one questions why.
But their paradise has been hiding its thorns. When Rose’s mother becomes the Valley’s first murder victim and her twin brother is swiftly condemned, she alone is searching for the real killer. Determined to find the truth, she follows a trail of hidden messages, forbidden knowledge, and whispers of a past no one dares to remember.
The deeper she digs, the more certain Rose becomes that her mother’s death was no accident. That the Wall isn’t just keeping something out.
It’s keeping something in.
LINKS: Goodreads | BookBub | Amazon | Bookshop.org
April 7th: The Book Witch
She can hop into any novel, she just can’t stay there. Come along with the book witch in this magical and inspiring love letter to reading from the USA Today bestselling author of The Wishing Game.
Rainy March is a proud third-generation book witch, sworn to defend works of fiction from all foes real and imaginary. With her magical umbrella and feline familiar, she jumps into and out of novels to fix malicious alterations and rogue heroes.
Book witches live by a strict Real people belong in the real word; fictional characters belong in works of fiction…. Do not eat, drink, or sleep inside a fictional world, lest you become part of the story. Falling in love with a fictional character? Don’t even think about it.
Which is why Rainy has been forbidden from seeing the Duke of Chicago, the dashing British detective who stars in her favorite mystery series. If she’s ever caught with him again, she’ll be expelled from her book coven—and forced to give up the magical gifts that are as much a part of her as her own name.
But when her beloved grandfather disappears and a priceless book is stolen, there’s only one person she trusts to help her solve the case: the Duke. Their quest takes them through the worlds of Alice in Wonderland, The Great Gatsby, and other classics that will reveal hidden enemies and long-buried family secrets.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub | Bookshop.org
April 7th: We Become Darkness
Thalia, Princess of Agripa, has spent the last four years hunting her ex-lover, Cassius—the man who shattered her heart and betrayed her kingdom by becoming a Vampyr. Vampyrs and humans have had a tenuous past since Thalia’s father and sister were murdered thirteen years ago. But with Agripa’s ore supply—the lifeblood of human cities—running out, Thalia’s mother strikes a desperate and dangerous deal: Thalia will marry a Vampyr prince in exchange for their ore.
Thalia is blindsided by the arrangement—and horrified to find Cassius, now serving as the prince’s Hand, is the man tasked with bringing her to the Vampyr kingdom safely. To save her people, she agrees to the marriage: but plans to dismantle the Vampyr kingdom from within by killing the prince.
The Vampyr court is rife with danger and secrets, and Cassius is always watching. When a monstrous new threat emerges, Thalia realizes the safety and security of their world is far more fragile than she ever believed.
Caught between duty and desire, Thalia must grapple with her feelings for Cassius and decide if she will fulfill her duty to the human crown or embrace the darkness within herself to protect both realms.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub | Bookshop.org
April 7th: Bloodsinger
A spellbinding gift . . .
A plea answered by the gods . . .
An unforgiving world where dragons rule Rome.
Lela Bihari’s village was invaded on her wedding night, her betrothed murdered right in front of her. While her sisters were either dragged away or escaped, Lela was sold to Valerius, a consul of Rome.
When she tried to kill Valerius her first night as his slave, her bloodsinger gift manifested . . . and she was punished for it. Now she’s paraded in front of the other senators for their amusement.
But the dragon Trajan Tiberius, newly elected tribune to the senate, is different. He has no love for the brutality around him. When he frees Lela from enslavement and hides her, Lela is set on a path of vengeance, and using her gift puts her in more danger than ever before.
Now trapped inside the walls of Rome while deathriders circle the skies, how can she possibly trust a Roman dragon? Especially when it is clear Trajan has ulterior schemes of his own? As her powers grow stronger, danger draws closer, and Lela realizes it isn’t just her life at stake, but also her heart.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub | Bookshop.org
April 7th: The Alchemary
Neither amnesia nor the brothers trying to steer her fate will stop Amber Fallbrook from uncovering the truth about herself, the Alchemary, and the legend of the Philosopher’s Stone.
New York Times bestselling author Rachel Vincent (Soul Screamers, The Shifters) pens a dark paranormal romantasy centered on alchemy magic—and those who dare harness it.
Naked, knowing little more than her name, Amber Fallbrook does not recognize the stone tower she’s awoken in, or the vast, glittering ocean outside the window. Turning, she finds a very a different view: the beautiful, nearly naked man in the narrow bed is a stranger. So is the man who barges into the room unannounced, clearly expecting to find Amber alone.
Who are they? Who is she? Why can’t she remember?
Shocked to discover that she’s in her dormitory room at the Alchemary—the realm’s prestigious university dedicated to the study of alchemy—Amber has no recollection of having been one of the school’s top students for the past two years. The two men—brothers—are her childhood friends, even if “friends” is not the exact energy in the room.
One brother claims to want to protect her, and the other to help her recover her memory, but Amber soon realizes that nothing is at it seems at the Alchemary. Not the intentions of her classmates and faculty, not the stunning, labyrinthian campus, not the two brothers she’s increasingly attracted to—maybe not even herself.
Despite her memory loss, Amber rejoins her classes and prepares for the deadly Alchemary Trials alongside the other Mastery-level students. But as invigorating as the flowing language and symbology of alchemy is, she can’t help but notice that for an institution shining light on the quest for human perfection there are a lot of dark shadows in its winding corridors.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Bookshop.org
April 14th: The Thorn Queen
Wed to one brother.
In love with the other.
Bridgerton, The Selection, and The Cruel Prince collide in this Victorian-inspired romantasy; the sequel to the instant New York Times bestseller The Rose Bargain.
Having won the hand of the faerie King Bram, Ivy is now Queen of England.
But with his ascension to the throne, Bram unleashed the fae into the human world. After hundreds of years of being kept from their favorite playthings, the Others are looking to make up for lost time—and they do, with wicked revelry that sweeps through the country.
To survive, Ivy acts the sweet, devoted wife. Behind the smile, she plots to banish her husband, save her sister Lydia, and reunite with the love of her life, Emmett.
Yet Emmet and Lydia are trapped in the Otherworld, where fae games are deadlier than ever—and a queen must play most viciously of all. Or see herself dethroned.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub | Bookshop.org
April 14th: The Demonic Inventions of Aurelie Blake
In Wisteria, the very act of innovation is forbidden. Any creation—art, music, engineering—conjures a demon from the other side. The greater the innovation, the more dangerous the demon.
This has never stopped Aurelie from inventing—but it has made it more difficult. Her inventions are small by necessity, producing demons that she is capable of dispatching alone. But she knows she’s meant for something greater, and each day has her chafing more at the boundaries of her society.
Destrier lost his parents to demons as a child, and has devoted his life to preventing more senseless murder at the hands of demons. He was young when he joined the hunters, and each year he’s grown stronger. But it’s never enough.
When a mysterious figure offers Aurelie a job she can’t refuse—an impossible, magnificent invention—her decision to accept sets off a chain of events that will alter every aspect of their world… and sparks the connection that will change both Aurelie and Des irrevocably.
LINKS: Goodreads | BookBub | Amazon | Bookshop.org
April 14th: The Tempest Blade
A fugitive on the run, Ahnna has one goal: return to Ithicana with warning of the greatest threat her homeland has ever faced. But as she escapes into the wilderness, it is with the man who broke her heart hunting at her heels—and James wants more than justice. He wants revenge.
Desperate to prove his loyalty to his family, James ventures into dangerous territory to capture his father’s killer. But the longer he follows Ahnna’s trail, the more his certainty of her guilt is tested—and the more the passion they once shared reignites.
As schemes twist tighter and war brews, Ahnna and James discover that the enemy isn’t each other—it is the masterminds manipulating them both in pursuit of power. Yet their greatest obstacle remains, because their loyalties are to opposing sides in the battle to come. As the storms of the Tempest Seas lower their defenses, James and Ahnna must choose where their hearts lie: on the battlefield, or in each other’s arms.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub | Bookshop.org
April 14th: Stay for a Spell
A cursed princess must discover what her heart truly longs for in this charmingly cozy romantic fantasy for everyone who’s ever lost – or found – themselves in a bookshop.
Princess Tanadelle of the Widdenmar is disillusioned with life as a princess. She longs for real conversation, the chance to build a life of her own making, and uninterrupted reading time.
During a routine royal visit to the town of Little Pepperidge, Tandy’s dream comes true when she finds herself cursed to remain in a run-down bookshop until she unlocks her heart’s desire. Certain that someone will figure out how to break the curse eventually, and delighted by the prospect of an entire bookstore of her own, Tandy settles into life among the stacks. She finds it easy to exchange balls and endless state dinners for teetering piles of books and an irritatingly handsome pirate who seems bent on stealing her stock.
She even starts to believe she’s stumbled into her very own happily ever after.
There’s just one, minor problem: as Tandy’s royal duties go unfulfilled, her frantic parents start sending princes to woo her, each one of them certain their kiss will break the curse. After all, what more could a princess want but a prince?
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub | Bookshop.org
April 14th: West of the Wicked
Dorothy Gale doesn’t know where she came from. She has only the vaguest memory of her life before landing in the dull, gray world of the vast Kansas prairie.
Then a cyclone rips through the night and carries her, her dog, and the farmhouse somewhere a lot farther than Dorothy imagined. She’s in a strange land that’s apparently cursed, shrouded in shadow. And to get home, Dorothy needs to seek out a wizard, following a treacherous path and watch out for a never-ending list of forest beasts, witches, a cursed mercenary, and perhaps most dangerous of all, the wizard himself.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub | Bookshop.org
April 21st: Aphrodite in Pieces
Two hundred years before the common era, Aphrodite surprises an itinerant sculptor with a shocking Hear my story, see me for who I truly am, and carve it into stone. Never before has the goddess posed for her likeness, and as the artist works, she shares pieces of herself.
Her greatest triumphs and most grievous mistakes. The truth behind the tales of her beneficence and vengeance. And the one epic romance that slips through her perfect fingers, time and time again.
Part memoir, part fantasy, and all heart, Aphrodite in Pieces begs the eternal, essential what do love and beauty truly mean? And can they last?
LINKS: Goodreads | BookBub | Amazon | Bookshop.org
April 28th: An Arcane Study of Stars
When Claudia Jolicoeur is rejected from Cygnus University, a devilish stranger named Dorian appears in her nightmares and offers her a bargain: he will get her into Cygnus if she learns how to free him from a prison of stars. He takes a bite of her soul to seal the deal, and Claudia wakes to a letter from the High Sage of Cygnus stating she will take the place of Odette Dufort, a Rhetoric student who passed away.
Her arrival raises suspicions, rumors that she had a hand in Odette’s death spread like wildfire, and Cassius MacLeod, the High Sage’s apprentice and Claudia’s fellow Rhetoric student, seems hellbent on humiliating her. Determined to clear her name, she searches for any evidence that could prove her innocence. When someone—or something—starts slipping her pieces of Odette’s diary, Claudia uncovers a horrifying truth: over the last century, celestial witches at Cygnus have been murdered. Odette was one of them, and Claudia could be next. For her own protection, Claudia needs to free Dorian—and fast.
By night, she studies the stars, slowly unraveling the mystery of Dorian’s prison. By day, she and Cassius wage rhetorical war as debate partners in class. What begins as a fierce rivalry devolves into something deeper, darker, and dangerously sensual. As Claudia inches closer to the truth, she must decide: would trusting Cassius be the last mistake she ever makes?
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub | Bookshop.org
April 28th: The Sea Spinner
Blazing with reawakened magic, a young woman challenges the tides of fate in this highly anticipated installment of Julie Johnson’s romantasy series.
Everything changed for Rhya Fleetwood in the battle of Fyremas. Her grief is heavy, her rage volatile. Caeldera lies in ruins. Her friends are dead or wounded. And Pendefyre, their newly crowned king, is shutting her out. The Remnant of Fire needs all his focus for his kingdom, his people, and—perhaps more than anything—his insatiable need for revenge.
When a twist of fate leads Rhya to the last place she expected—the Water Court—the novice wind weaver is forced to confront the limitations of her untrained power as well as her increasingly complicated relationships. For enigmatic King Soren of Llŷr is as different from Penn as sparks are from the sea. The more insight he offers into the maegic that binds them together, the more confused Rhya feels—about her future as a Remnant, about her deepest desires, and about her role in the coming war.
Enemies circle close, ready to strike. And if Rhya isn’t careful, she’ll lose more than just her heart.
She’ll lose her life.
LINKS: Goodreads | BookBub | Amazon | Bookshop.org
April 28th: We Burned So Bright
A heart-wrenching standalone novel by #1 New York Times bestselling author TJ Klune, We Burned So Bright follows an older queer couple on an end-of-the-world road-trip.
The road stretched out before them. No other cars, just the headlights on the blacktop. Above, the cracked moon in a kaleidoscope sky….
Husbands Don and Rodney have lived a good long life. Together they’ve experienced the highest highs of love and family, and lows so low that they felt like the end of the world.
Now, the world is ending for real. A wandering black hole is coming for Earth and in a month everything and everyone they’ve ever known will be gone.
Suddenly, after 40 years together, Don and Rodney are out of time. They’re in a race against the clock to make it from Maine to Washington State to take care of some unfinished business before it’s all over.
On the road they meet those who refuse to believe death is coming and those who rush to meet it. But there are also people living their final days as best they know how—impromptu weddings, bright burning bonfires, shared meals, and new friends.
And as the black hole draws near, among ball lightning and under a cracked moon in a kaleidoscope sky, Don and Rodney will look back on their lives and ask if their best was good enough.
Is it enough to burn bright if nothing comes from the ashes?
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub | Bookshop.org
HISTORICAL ROMANCE:
April 7th: Can’t Get Enough of the Duke
War hero Deckard Payne, Duke of Warburton, made a battlefield promise to become guardian to orphan Analise Crewe. He certainly didn’t agree to marry the girl! But that’s exactly what happens when he’s forced to wed her to save her honor.
The last thing Analise wants is a loveless marriage to a broodingly handsome duke who lives in a gloomy castle and keeps his doors—and his heart—tightly locked. He’s determined to keep her at arm’s length—but she’s not easily deterred when there’s a tough case to crack.
Warburton never wanted a wife. Especially an inquisitive and far-too-pretty whirlwind who upends his regimented life. Her sunny, winning ways charm everyone she meets and soon she’s unearthing buried secrets, plotting love matches, and shining light into even the darkest of hearts…his own.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub | Bookshop.org
April 28th: The Duke’s Got Mail
Anonymous love letters are all well and good… until you discover you’ve been flirting with the enemy.
Eleanor Wright is the best compositor in London and in high demand with every printing press in town. But when whispers spread of a new machine that could put her out of a job, writing to a mysterious pen pal quickly becomes her only relief from a life that’s coming apart like a badly bound book.
Peter Montgomery, Duke of Strafford, has spent years trying to get his estate out of debt. Now he finally has the solution in a machine set to revolutionize the publishing industry. If only finding a wife was as straightforward. Peter wants a lady who cares about him, not his title. Someone like his charming, witty pen pal—the only person in London who knows his most intimate secrets but not his real name. But when Peter’s invention makes them bitter rivals in person, can the bond they’ve created on paper survive the test?
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub | Bookshop.org
April 28th: A Night You Won’t Remember
She woke up in a duke’s bed. She stole his sword. She remembers none of it.
Esther has always followed the rules, behaved like a lady, and bored herself senseless doing it. So when a holiday in Brighton offers the chance to try something different, she takes it—a wild night at The New Club, the only nightclub in England that allows ladies.
One dubious potion later, Esther wakes up in the bed of His Grace Alexander, Duke of Richmond. She has no memory of the previous night. Worse, she’s apparently stolen his prized fencing foil—and has no idea where it is. Worst of all? She tried to kiss him. And doesn’t remember that either.
Alexander needs his sword back before an upcoming competition. Esther needs to fix what she’s broken—without starting a scandal or falling for the frustratingly handsome duke she’s already compromised.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub | Bookshop.org
In this captivating new historical romance brimming with seductive twists and irresistible wit, an English nobleman is finally free from exile-but can his heart still be captured?
The art of faking an engagement is never easy… After more than a decade, the Earl of Heathbrook returns to London to reclaim guardianship of his younger brothers. However, his reputation as a rake has followed him from France, and his own father has blocked Heathbrook’s rightful custody in his will. But the clever rogue concocts the perfect plan to restore his reputation, and his inheritance . . . by finding a temporary fiancée.
Giselle Bernard is not looking to wed an earl with a wild past. All she seeks is a nobleman, who can legally secure her new life in England and head off a mysterious stranger’s threats. Posing as Heathbrook’s bride-to-be would surely benefit them both. But as their engagement charade unravels, neither expect it to blossom into a promise of love.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub | Bookshop.org
THRILLERS
April 21st: The Drop
Six hundred and fifty feet in the air, no one can hear you scream.
Some might say that thirtysomething Cady Ellison landed herself a strange creative career, but Cady finally feels like she’s found her footing. Now an online theme park influencer, she is invited to the opening of a brand-new park by her old friend, Danny, who wants to use her online profile to help build buzz for its flagship ride, Hysteria, a record-breaking 650 foot-tall roller coaster.
When she arrives at the half-complete theme park site in the middle of the desert, Cady is unexpectedly met with her old college friend Femi, an award-winning actor, Naseem, a decorated novelist, and Winston, a member of a popular rock group. Wanting them all to sing the praises of Hysteria online, Danny has arranged an exclusive private ride for them, capped off with the stunning desert sunset. But when their coaster cars get to the top of the first hill, the ride stalls 650 feet above ground. With no one due on site for days and over 100-degree heat awaiting them once the sun rises, the four friends soon realize that they must unravel the secrets from their complicated past if they are to find their way to safety.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub | Bookshop.org
YA
April 7th: The Escape Game
It’s all fun and games until someone ends up dead.
Six months ago, season four of The Escape Game ended in horror when contestant Alicia Angelos was found murdered on set.
Now season five is underway, and new contestants are ready to put their skills to the test solving the show’s trickiest escape rooms. There’s Adi, the cryptographer; Carter, the math whiz; Beck, the wannabe game master, and . . . Sierra Angelos, the girl who got away with her sister’s murder. Or so everyone believes.
But Sierra’s not just here to win. She’s here for justice.
When the contestants begin uncovering clues that hint at the identity of Alicia’s true killer, it becomes clear that the stakes aren’t high in this competition, they’re deadly. If these teens want to win—and survive—the game, they must solve the biggest mystery of who killed Alicia Angelos?
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub | Bookshop.org
April 7th: Morgana and Oz Vol. 4
In this stunning debut series by Miyuli, perfect for fans of fantasy and romance, a struggling witch crosses paths with an angsty vampire, setting the stage for either love or war.
What happens when a struggling witch meets an angsty vampire? Either love or war.
Morgana Winterberry belongs to a long line of witches, while Oz belongs to the rival vampire clan. After lifting a magical curse on the vampires, Morgana makes an uneasy truce with them, very much against her family’s warnings.
Morgana and Oz plan to work together to investigate who cursed the vampires in the first place, and who summoned the ghouls that are stalking the forest. Much to Morgana’s worry, signs point to someone in her family using her powerful ancestor Neil Winterberry’s grimoire.
Morgana and Oz get separated, but Morgana is finally able to find her missing grandfather…but he is under the thrall of a mysterious vampire who appears to be a young boy. After another of her spells goes awry, Morgana is taken in by a family of werewolves with a surprising connection to Oz.
Morgana is serious about righting her great-great-grandfather’s wrongs and Oz is determined to protect Morgana. The witch and vampire will have to work together to unravel a tangled web of dark magic that ensnares both their families.
This volume collects episodes 59 to 77 of the hit fantasy WEBTOON series with over 81 million reads, Morgana and Oz.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Bookshop.org
April 7th: To Steal a Throne
Her magic feeds on lies.
His magic could destroy her.
Mira Kyler runs the court of Virdei from the shadows. Ever since she helped her half-brother Luc cheat his way into the role of Virdei’s leader, she’s used her lie-powered magic to collect secrets from members of court, then used them as blackmail to keep her brother in power.
But when newcomer Kaidren Vale shows up and challenges Luc’s leadership, he threatens the stability Mira has worked so hard for. Kaidren also has magic-magic that can detect the precise nature of someone else’s power with a single touch. If Kaidren so much as brushes against her, everyone will discover that Mira is the one who’s been manipulating the court for years.
As Kaidren and Luc compete in three deadly challenges called The Trials, Mira realizes that no matter who wins, she’ll be stuck serving a mediocre man who doesn’t deserve to be in charge. She’s done hiding in the shadows. She wants power of her own.
To get it, she’ll have to betray both her own brother and Kaidren-but the fiercer the competition gets, the more Mira realizes that the one boy who could destroy everything is the one boy she might not be able to resist.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub | Bookshop.org
April 14th: I Could Give You the Moon
Everyone loves Chanel Cao—except Ares Yin.
While Chanel has spent her entire life curating a picture-perfect social media personality—from her body to her hair to her camera-ready smile—Ares has spent his trying to hide in the shadows. But Ares’s brother is missing, and Chanel’s parents have secretly separated, and their only hope is each other.
Ares is willing to do whatever it takes to find his brother, and Chanel will do anything to keep her parents’ secret. When the two meet and share a vision of the future—where Ares’s brother appears, as Chanel’s house burns to the ground—they are determined to use each other. Ares believes Chanel is the key to finding his brother, but Chanel is convinced if she gets Ares to fall in love with her, she’ll save her family house—and her parents’ crumbling marriage.
But Ares isn’t interested in the fake personality that Chanel has used her entire life to get affection and adoration. If she’s going to save her reputation, she’s going to have to let Ares get to know the real her—and risk real feelings.
LINKS: Goodreads | BookBub | Amazon | Bookshop.org
April 14th: Deathly Fates
A sweeping debut inspired by the Chinese folk practice of necromancy, Deathly Fates is perfect for fans of Descendant of the Crane, The Bone Shard Daughter, and A Magic Steeped in Poison.
As a corpse-driving priestess, a holy servant paid to guide the deceased home, Kang Siying has never feared death. But when her beloved father collapses due to his declining health, Siying realizes that even she is not free from the cruel grasp of mortality. Desperate to provide her father with the medical aid he needs, Siying accepts a dangerous job that promises a generous commission, and travels to a hostile state to retrieve the corpse of a missing prince.
But the moment Siying places her reanimation talisman on the dead prince’s head, rather than make the corpse obedient to Siying’s commands, the talisman brings the prince back to life. Worse, he won’t stay alive for long―not unless he absorbs enough qi, or life force, to keep his soul anchored to his body.
In return for a reward worth twice her original commission, Siying agrees to aid the frustratingly handsome prince in finding and purifying evil spirits for their qi. But as they journey across the countryside, encountering vengeful ghosts and enemy spies alike, they gradually uncover dark secrets about the prince’s death―secrets that could endanger both Siying’s father and their entire kingdom.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub | Bookshop.org
April 21st: The Blind Date Agreement
Carina’s fifth wheel status is making things awkward, so she agrees to let her two best friends set her up on a series of blind dates—each worse than the one before…
This laugh-out-loud, YA contemporary rom-com comes laced with a dose of high school friendship drama perfect for fans of authors like Emma Lord and shows like Never Have I Ever.
Carina has zero issues with being single—even though her best friends, Emi and Kalani, are coupled up. She’s got more than enough to keep her busy between schoolwork, her part-time job at her family’s bakery, and her art. Besides, Carina adores Emi’s partner, Daphne, they always make her feel included and not like a third wheel. Kalani’s another story—being around her and her boyfriend is complicated. That’s why Kalani takes matters into her own hands and arranges a series of blind dates for Carina.
There’s just one Carina doesn’t want to go. Being single isn’t the problem. The fact that she’s in love with Kalani’s boyfriend, Emmett, is and no amount of distraction can fix that. But with prom on the horizon, the idea of being a fifth, seventh, or eleventh wheel weighs heavily on Carina’s mind. So, she agrees.
And it’s a complete disaster. And every date is worse than the one before. Except for one, pink-short-wearing Jay, who pushes Carina in ways she never expected. Soon she finds herself in a complicated battle between friendship and romance, and she must decide which form of love matters most to her—and which one will surprise her.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Bookshop.org
MIDDLE GRADE
April 21st: Auntie Q’s Golden Claws Salon
A heartwarming and funny middle grade novel about family, resilience, and the power of second chances where one girl’s summer punishment turns into a mission to save her aunt’s struggling nail salon and bring her family together.
Twelve-year-old Domi Pham had the perfect summer lounging by the pool, making art with her best friend, and celebrating her escape from seventh grade. But one costly mistake puts her dream summer on hold. Instead, she finds herself deep in debt to her parents, and shipped off to New Mexico to work at her Auntie Q’s nail salon for the next three months.
At first, Domi is miserable—surrounded by nosy aunties, constant nail polish fumes, and endless work. But as she gets to know Auntie Q and the people in the salon, she starts to see their struggles and resilience in a new light. When she discovers that the salon is at risk of closing, Domi puts her creativity and determination to the test to help save it.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub | Bookshop.org
April 21st: Deep Secrets
Colette only wants three to prove she isn’t weak, to get a job, and to uncover the mystery surrounding her father. All her life she’s heard that he died in a factory accident, but she’s haunted by dreams of bitter cold and a sea of stars—and part of her knows it’s somehow connected to him. Colette is not to work, is not to leave the house, and is to never speak of her father. But when Colette secretly gets a job, she becomes fascinated by the stories that Walter, the store owner, tells.
He was aboard the Titanic before it sank. He saw the ship fall beneath the waves and watched as his brother perished in the sea. His memories bewitch Colette in a way she can’t explain. She’s drawn to the Titanic, and the more she learns, the more intense her dreams become.
Then the stock market crashes. As things get desperate, Colette clings to Walter’s stories—especially the ones about a man he knew who shared her father’s name. But then Walter reveals a truth that changes Colette’s life and identity forever.
Can Colette live the life she’s lived all these years, knowing the truth now? Can she forgive her mother for lying to her? What if the repercussions of the truth are more daunting than secrets? Her memories aboard the Titanic will be the key to the life she’s always been denied.
Seamlessly weaving between the Great Depression and a journey aboard the Titanic, Nikki Shannon Smith tells a story about what it means to survive, and all those we leave behind to do so.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub | Bookshop.org
