Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish that asks bloggers to create Top Ten lists on a variety of bookish topics. This year, I’m actually on top of upcoming releases…yay! This is mostly due to my effort (thanks to Shannon’s post) to pay attention to imprints that have been successful for me in the past. I already shared my Top Ten 2016 Debuts I’m Anticipating (some of my most anticipated 2016 releases are debuts, so check out this list!) in an earlier post, so today’s list contains only non-debut releases.
I also have to mention After the Crash by Michel Bussi (January 5, Hachette). I didn’t include it in this list because I’ve already read it, but it’s a fantastic suck-you-in-type page turner.
Top Ten 2016 Non-Debut Releases I’m Anticipating (through May)
January
The Guest Room by Chris Bohjalian (January 5, Doubleday)
Bohjalian is one of my go-to authors and I’m about 3/4 of the way through his latest (enjoying it so far)!
“The spellbinding tale of a party gone horribly wrong: two men lie dead in a suburban living room; two women are on the run from police; and a marriage is ripping apart at the seams.”
American Housewife by Helen Ellis (January 12, Doubleday)
After loving Nickolas Butler’s Beneath the Bonfire last year, I’m trying to be more open to short stories in 2016.
“A sharp, funny, delightfully unhinged collection of stories set in the dark world of domesticity, American Housewife features murderous ladies who lunch, celebrity treasure hunters, and the best bra fitter south of the Mason Dixon line.”
February
Flight of Dreams by Ariel Lawhon (February 16, Doubleday)
From the author of my favorite debut of 2014 (The Wife, The Maid, and The Mistress):
“With everyone onboard harboring dark secrets and at least one person determined to make sure the airship doesn’t make the return trip, Flight of Dreams gives an utterly suspenseful, heart-wrenching explanation for one of the most enduring mysteries of the twentieth century.”
Tender by Belinda McKeon (February 16, Lee Boudreaux Books)
I’ve heard good things about this new Hachette imprint.
“By turns exhilarating and devastating, Tender is a dazzling exploration of human relationships, of the lies we tell ourselves and the lies we are taught to tell. It is the story of first love and lost innocence, of discovery and betrayal. A tense high-wire act with keen psychological insights…”
March
The Legends Club by John Feinstein (March 1, Doubleday)
One of my favorite sports writers on the best rivalry in college basketball (featuring my grad school alma mater – UNC).
“The riveting inside story of college basketball’s fiercest rivalry among three coaching legends—University of North Carolina’s Dean Smith, Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski, and North Carolina State’s Jim Valvano—by the king of college basketball writers…”
The Year of the Runaways by Sunjeev Sahota (March 29, Knopf)
This sophomore novel was published last year in Europe and shortlisted for the 2015 Man Booker Prize.
“The Year of the Runaways tells of the bold dreams and daily struggles of an unlikely family thrown together by circumstance. Thirteen young men live in a house in Sheffield, each in flight from India and in desperate search of a new life. Sweeping between India and England, and between childhood and the present day, Sunjeev Sahota’s generous, unforgettable novel is […] a story of dignity in the face of adversity and the ultimate triumph of the human spirit.”
Burning Down the House by Jane Mendelsohn (March 15, Knopf)
This novel screams “wealthy people behaving badly”, one of my favorite reading themes.
“A bold, deeply engrossing novel about the fall of a wealthy New York family whose struggles to face the challenges of familial rivalry, an explosively revealing love affair, and involvement, however unwitting, in a world of international crime unfold with the inexorability of Greek tragedy.”
April
The Midnight Assassin: Panic, Scandal, and the Hunt for America’s First Serial Killer by Skip Hollandsworth (April 5, Henry Holt)
This nonfiction hits my weakness for true crime!
“A sweeping narrative history of a terrifying serial killer–America’s first–who stalked Austin, Texas in 1885.”
Sunset City by Melissa Ginsburg (April 12, Ecco)
I saw this book in Book Riot’s The Best Books We Read in November and the Megan Abbott blurb caught my attention. Plus, it’s only 200 pages!
“A taut, erotically charged literary noir set in Houston about a woman caught up in her friend’s shocking murder, and the dark truths she uncovers.”
May
Some Possible Solutions by Helen Phillips (May 31, Henry Holt)
Author of The Beautiful Bureaucrat…nuff said.
“Some Possible Solutions offers an idiosyncratic series of “What ifs”: What if your perfect hermaphrodite match existed on another planet? What if you could suddenly see through everybody’s skin to their organs? What if you knew the exact date of your death? What if your city was filled with doppelgangers of you? Forced to navigate these bizarre scenarios, Phillips’ characters search for solutions to the problem of how to survive in an irrational, infinitely strange world.”
*All quotes from Goodreads
Tuesday Intro
Every Tuesday, fellow blogger Bibliophile By the Sea hosts First Chapter First Paragraph Tuesday Intros, where bloggers share the first paragraph of the book they are currently reading or thinking about reading soon.
I’m about 70% through this one and am enjoying it so far. However, I do wonder how things will wrap up and hope it takes a surprising direction.
Plot Summary from Amazon (adapted for length)
[A] spellbinding tale of a party gone horribly wrong: two men lie dead in a suburban living room, two women are on the run from police, and a marriage is ripping apart at the seams. 3067
Here’s the first part of the first paragraph (from an uncorrected proof):
Richard Chapman presumed there would be a stripper at his brother Philip’s bachelor party. Perhaps if he had actually thought about it, he might even have expected two. Sure, in sitcoms the stripper always arrived alone, but he knew in real life strippers often came in pairs. How else could there be a little pretend (or not pretend) girl-on-girl action on the living room carpet? Besides, he worked in mergers and acquisitions, he understood the exigencies of commerce as well as anyone: two strippers meant you could have two gentlemen squirming at once. You could have two girls hovering just above two sets of thighs – or if the girls saw the right combination of neediness and dollar signs in the men’s eyes, not hovering but in fact descending upon each of the men’s laps. Richard wasn’t especially wild about the idea of an exotic dancer in his family’s living room: there was a place for everything in his mind, even the acrobatically tensed sinews of a stripper. But that place wasn’t his home. […]
Would you keep reading?
I’ll keep my eye out for these. Thanks for sharing your list. They all look good!
I’m definitely looking forward to Tender and the Year of the Runaways, they’ve been on my list for quite some time!
Those are two of the non-debuts I’m most excited about from this list (I honestly think I’m more excited for my 2016 debuts list, though – ha!)…esp after your high praises for Lee Boudreaux! And the Man Booker for Runaways certainly doesn’t hurt!
Great list! American Housewife piques my interest!
Isn’t that a great cover?!
Nice list, Sarah. Now I must dig out my ARC of After the Crash.
I was pretty skeptical of it, but gave it a shot and was 40 pages in before I knew it. I wasn’t a fan of the ending, but I couldn’t put it down up until then.
American Housewife sounds interesting for sure. And somehow I missed that Helen Philips is coming out with a new book, so thanks a million for that! I need to go back and check out your debut author list, since I somehow missed that one.
I was super psyched to see the Helen Phillips also – I’m usually skeptical of short stories, but I have confidence in hers!
Oooh, Burning Down the House sounds great and I’ve already requested a copy of Sunset City; I grew up just an hour from Houston, so you know I’m dying to read that one! What a fun list! I’m happy to hear you’re enjoying The Guest Room; excited to hear what you think.
Did you request on Edelweiss?? I requested a long time ago and I’m still waiting – ha! 🙂
I like Chris Bohjalian so I would probably keep reading. Girl Who Reads
I loved The Guest Room….one of my favorites this year. Here’s mine: “BEHIND CLOSED DOORS”
I hope to start on Guest Room next. I love Bohjalian’s writing and am anxious to read his latest (and all the other books of his I have still yet to read). Flight of Dreams is one I would really like to read. It sounds so good. Great list and opening, Sarah. Thank you for sharing.
Have you read Bohjalian’s The Double Bind? I loved that one! And I loved Lawhon’s debut in 2014…so have high hopes for Flight of Dreams!
I’m seeing Guest Room all over the place or hearing about it anyway. I like the beginning. Yes, I’m planning on reading it. Also think that Flight Of Dreams looks interesting and I also want to read After The Crash (even though it’s not on your list). Yay, 2016!!
After the Crash is worth a read for sure, especially if you like page turners. I read it over the holidays and didn’t include it since I’m not technically “anticipating” it anymore.
I just finished this one Sarah and enjoyed it but, was it me or did the 9-year old seem to wise beyond her years?
Gotta check out some of the other books that you are looking forward to.
I’m not quite finished with it yet, but hmm…that didn’t really strike me, but then again, I don’t really know what’s normal for a 9 year old. My kids are 5 and 2, so I’m sure I’ll know soon enough!
American Housewife looks right up my alley. I love short stories, and I love that cover, so I requested it from Edelweiss. Woo!
I loved that cover…that’s what initially grabbed me and covers don’t usually get to me! I’m not a huge short story fan normally, but am trying to be more open to them after loving Nickolas Butler’s Beneath the Bonfire this year.
What a great list! I can’t wait to check out Bohjalian’s latest – he starts it off in a very bold fashion!
He’s one of my go-to authors!
Ummmmmmm American Housewife sounds AMAZING!!!
Ha – that cover is pretty awesome, right?!
I am right there with you on ‘rich people behaving badly books’- they’re like bad TV, I can watch it for hours. adding Burning Down the House to my list! Along those lines (and because I have to eggy on) you might want to take a look at The After Party. It comes out in May- rich people in Texas in the 1950s! So, many ways they could be bad and it could be good. 😉
I have that on my master list – it looks awesome! Not sure it didn’t make the list I actually posted! Speaking of rich people in Texas, have you ever read The Big Rich by Bryan Burrough? Nonfiction version of wealthy people behaving badly…focuses on the 4 big oil families.
Why? Why are you doing this to me? I was just starting to feel caught up on all the big releases and now you have me behind again. Good thing you pick good books!
I heard about The Guest Room yesterday, I sounds wonderful. I loved the rest of his books.
And woo for UNC! I just left a job there for a job at Duke, and live outside Chapel Hill.
Oh my gosh – how could you?!! Going to the enemy like that! Just kidding…I love Chapel Hill. You’re lucky to live there!
I’m not familiar with any of the books on your list, but they do sound good.
The Guest Room looks good, too.
Happy New Year!
Oh my gosh, there are so many on here that I want, already. American Housewife immediately caught my eye. I guess I’d better be reading a lot of my own books if I want my new book rewards. It’s going to be anarchy on my shelves!
Helen Phillips!! I need Some Possible Solutions. NEED IT.