Wednesday, October 11, 2023

debut & emerging authors

First, a few housekeeping items:

If you’d like your library to participate in BPL Central’s Veterans’ Day Remembrance display, contact Heather McWilliams (heather [dot] mcwilliams [at] cobpl [dot] org) to receive a supply packet and instructions for making paper poppies.  The deadline to turn them back in is October 25th.  Reach out to her for additional information!

Save the date for the JCPLA Holiday Luncheon on Tuesday, December 5th 11am-1pm.  Registration and Library Champion Award nominations will open soon!

In attendance:

Holley – O’Neal
Brooke – Springville Road
Tamara – Irondale
Samm – Hoover
Melanie – Hoover
Madison – Five Points West
Stephanie – Hoover
Lora – Vestavia
Gelenda – Southside
Olivia – North Avondale
Madalyn – Hoover
Lawana –
Cara – Center Point
Emily – Center Point
Romellia –

The next meeting is at the O’Neal Library on Wednesday, December 13th at 9:30am and the topic up for discussion is gender representation.  A Zoom option will be available.  Voting took place and I am delighted to moderate the group next year!  We also voted on topics for 2024, so mark your calendars for these meetings:

2024 – a participant requested LP recs in particular, so keep that in mind as you select what you’d like to share with the group 😊

February 14 – clean romance

April 10 – historical mysteries

June 12 – westerns

August 14 – large print for book clubs (enough copies available)

October 9 – mythology retellings

December 11 – local/Southern authors

If you would like the pdf file for next year’s meeting schedule, let me know! (hwesley [at] oneallibrary [dot] org)

Today, we met to chat about debut and emerging authors!

A Good House for Children by Kate Collins

A feminist gothic tale perfectly suited for the current moment, A Good House for Children combines an atmospheric mystery with resonant themes of motherhood, madness, and the value of a woman’s work.

The Witching Tide by Margaret Meyer

For readers of Margaret Atwood and Hilary Mantel, an immersive literary debut inspired by historical events—a deadly witch hunt in 17th-century England—that claimed many innocent lives.

Furious Hours: Murder, Fraud, and the Last Trial of Harper Lee by Casey Cep

“Compelling . . . at once a true-crime thriller, courtroom drama, and miniature biography of Harper Lee. If To Kill a Mockingbird was one of your favorite books growing up, you should add Furious Hours to your reading list today.” —Southern Living

Who is Vera Kelly? by Rosalie Knecht

An exhilarating page-turner and perceptive coming-of-age story, Who Is Vera Kelly? introduces an original, wry, and whip-smart female spy for the twenty-first century.

Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Fairies by Heather Fawcett

A curmudgeonly professor journeys to a small town in the far north to study faerie folklore and discovers dark fae magic, friendship, and love in the start of a heartwarming and enchanting new fantasy series.

Dead Dead Girls by Nekesa Afia

The start of an exciting new historical mystery series set during the Harlem Renaissance

Library of the Dead by T.L. Huchu

Sixth Sense meets Stranger Things in T. L. Huchu's The Library of the Dead, a sharp contemporary fantasy following a precocious and cynical teen as she explores the shadowy magical underside of modern Edinburgh.

The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides

The Silent Patient is a shocking psychological thriller of a woman’s act of violence against her husband - and of the therapist obsessed with uncovering her motive. 

The Maidens by Alex Michaelides

From the number one New York Times best-selling author of The Silent Patient comes a spellbinding tale of psychological suspense, weaving together Greek mythology, murder, and obsession, that further cements “Michaelides as a major player in the field” (Publishers Weekly).

The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Davies

The instant #1 New York Times bestselling mystery and Reese Witherspoon Book Club pick that’s captivated more than a million readers about a woman searching for the truth about her husband’s disappearance…at any cost.

The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb

Ray McMillian is a Black classical musician on the rise—undeterred by the pressure and prejudice of the classical music world—when a shocking theft sends him on a desperate quest to recover his great-great-grandfather’s heirloom violin on the eve of the most prestigious musical competition in the world.

Chlorine by Jade Song

In the vein of The Pisces and The VegetarianChlorine is a debut novel that blurs the line between a literary coming-of-age narrative and a dark unsettling horror tale, told from an adult perspective on the trials and tribulations of growing up in a society that puts pressure on young women and their bodies… a powerful, relevant novel of immigration, sapphic longing, and fierce, defiant becoming.

The Salt Grows Heavy by Cassandra Khaw

From Cassandra Khaw, USA Today bestselling author of Nothing But Blackened Teeth, comes The Salt Grows Heavy, a razor-sharp and bewitching fairy tale of discovering the darkness in the world, and the darkness within oneself.

The Woman in the Window by A.J. Finn

For readers of Gillian Flynn and Tana French comes one of the decade’s most anticipated debuts: a twisty, powerful Hitchcockian thriller about an agoraphobic woman who believes she witnessed a crime in a neighboring house.

Pride and Protest by Nikki Payne

A woman goes head-to-head with the CEO of a corporation threatening to destroy her neighborhood in this fresh and modern retelling of Pride and Prejudice by debut author Nikki Payne.

Sex, Lies, and Sensibility by Nikki Payne (due out Feburary 13, 2024)

Two sisters roll up their sleeves to run a dilapidated inn but must learn to work with the locals in this deliciously spicy novel inspired by Sense and Sensibility.

Alice I Have Been by Melanie Benjamin

Few works of literature are as universally beloved as Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Now, in this spellbinding historical novel, we meet the young girl whose bright spirit sent her on an unforgettable trip down the rabbit hole - and the grown woman whose story is no less enthralling.

Horrorstor by Grady Hendrix

A traditional haunted house story in a contemporary setting, and full of current fears, Horrorstör delivers a high-concept premise in a unique style.

Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author, "a magnificent, compulsively readable thriller...Rice begins where Bram Stoker and the Hollywood versions leave off and penetrates directly to the true fascination of the myth—the education of the vampire” (Chicago Tribune).

The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield

The Thirteenth Tale is a return to that rich vein of storytelling that our parents loved and we loved as children. Diane Setterfield will keep you guessing, make you wonder, move you to tears and laughter, and in the end, deposit you breathless yet satisfied back upon the shore of your everyday life.

The Haunting of Maddy Clare by Simone St. James

A woman of limited means and even less experience must confront a vengeful spirit in this haunting novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The Broken Girls and The Sun Down Motel.

Lore Olympus by Rachel Smythe

Scandalous gossip, wild parties, and forbidden love—witness what the gods do after dark in this stylish and contemporary reimagining of one of the best-known stories in Greek mythology.

The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova

Breathtakingly suspenseful and beautifully written, The Historian is the story of a young woman plunged into a labyrinth where the secrets of her family’s past connect to an inconceivable evil: the dark fifteenth-century reign of Vlad the Impaler and a time-defying pact that may have kept his awful work alive through the ages.

My Lovely Wife by Samantha Downing

Dexter meets Mr. and Mrs. Smith in this wildly compulsive debut thriller about a couple whose fifteen-year marriage has finally gotten too interesting...

Tipping the Velvet by Sarah Waters

Nan King, an oyster girl, is captivated by the music hall phenomenon Kitty Butler, a male impersonator extraordinaire treading the boards in Canterbury. Through a friend at the box office, Nan manages to visit all her shows and finally meet her heroine. Soon after, she becomes Kitty's dresser and the two head for the bright lights of Leicester Square where they begin a glittering career as music-hall stars in an all-singing and dancing double act. At the same time, behind closed doors, they admit their attraction to each other and their affair begins.

Olga Dies Dreaming by Xochtil Gonzalez

A blazing new talent debuts with the story of a status-driven wedding planner grappling with her absent mother, her glittering career amongst New York’s elite, and her Puerto Rican roots in the wake of Hurricane Maria.

The Verifiers by Jane Pek

Introducing Claudia Lin: a sharp-witted amateur sleuth for the 21st century. This debut novel follows Claudia as she verifies people's online lives, and lies, for a dating detective agency in New York City. Until a client with an unusual request goes missing....

Liar, Dreamer, Thief by Maria Dong

A gripping page-turner, as well as a sensitive exploration of mental health, Liar, Dreamer, Thief is an intimate portrayal of life in all its complexities—and the dangers inherent in unveiling people’s most closely guarded secrets.

Chain-Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah

Two top women gladiators fight for their freedom within a depraved private prison system not so far-removed from America’s own in this explosive, hotly-anticipated debut novel.

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Seeking out debut novels/authors provides excellent potential to discover new voices, fresh takes, and groundbreaking creativity.  Here are a few award lists serving to
pile more on your TBR!

The Center For Fiction First Novel Prize Longlist

https://centerforfiction.org/book-recs/2023-first-novel-prize/

The Center For Fiction First Novel Prize Shortlist

https://centerforfiction.org/book-recs/2023-first-novel-prize-shortlist/

The Costa Book Award for First Novel (discontinued)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Costa_Book_Award_for_First_Novel

PEN/Hemingway Award for Debut Novel

https://pen.org/pen-hemingway-award/

 

 

 

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