We invited five authors to share their current favorite books with our readers and give us an update on their latest publications.
Fiona Davis
Fiona is excited for her October release of the first American Girl novel for adults, Samantha: the Next Chapter, as well as the January release of her novel The Jewel of Sugar Hill, which is set at Manhattan’s oldest residence.
Lady Tremaine by Rachel Hochhauser
This glorious debut is an examination of the story of Cinderella, but from the stepmother’s point of view. Funny, heartbreaking, and smart, and one of my favorite reads of the year so far.
The Parisian Heist by Jo Piazza
If you’d like to visit Europe without the searing heat or crowds, pick up Piazza’s latest, which portrays two women, a century apart, connected by a collection of van Gogh paintings. Intrigue and suspense that will keep you turning the pages.
The Amateur by Chris Bohjalian
An aspiring teenager golfer accidentally kills a caddy, setting off a chain of events that will change her life forever. Rich with 1970s details, the story builds up to a nailbiter of a courtroom showdown.
Greg Wands
Greg is currently at work on a hard-boiled detective mystery set in Los Angeles.
The House Guest by Jennifer Pashley
A talented young chef bites off more than she can chew when she takes a job cooking for a famous author and his wife in their oceanfront Cape Cod mansion and ends up pulled into their dysfunctional marriage in this tense, psychosexual thriller.
Leverage by Amran Gowani
This financial thriller–part white-knuckler, part satire–features an unforgettable main character who works at a hedge fund and is left to rely on his wits and resourcefulness when he’s set up to take the fall for a disastrous investment.
The Grand Paloma Hotel by Cleyvis Natera
This lush, atmospheric mystery features a pair of sisters working at a luxury resort in the Dominican Republic, and the White Lotus vibes are beautifully juxtaposed with rich, heartfelt character studies and poignant social commentary.
Wendy Smolen
Wendy is a writer, editor, and idea generator whose favorite medium is words. As an astute player in the children’s toy and media industry, her passion is discerning how the omnipresent influence of technology affects the ways kids play, learn, and connect today.
Wendy’s novel, The Hive, a five-decade story exploring the complicated friendship among four contemporary women is in pre-order and due out January 12, 2027.
Culpability by Bruce Holsinger
A must read for anyone conflicted over the ubiquity of AI. A saga that perfectly captures the online engagement of each member of a contemporary family and their age-appropriate reactions. I’m still thinking about this story weeks after I read!
Young Jane Young by Gabrielle Zevin
A Monica Lewinsky-esque story from both mothers’ and daughters’ points of view. Part scandal, part shameful, part hopeful. An easy read that leaves you thinking about how we treat women’s actions differently than men’s, and how as mothers, we continuously influence our daughters’ lives.
Whistler by Ann Pachett
Anything by Ann Pachett is a worthy read. A chance meeting of a daughter and former stepfather delves into the poignant relationship that was abruptly ended in childhood, but gets a second chance to flourish years later.
Anne T. Driscoll
Anne began her career in publishing and interior design. A dual citizen of the United States and Ireland, her years of genealogical research and time spent in Ireland inspired her debut novel, The Emerald Coat She Wears. Anne lives in Greenwich, Connecticut, where she writes, paints flowers, and enjoys the occasional glass of Burgundy with friends and family.
The Emerald Coat She Wears follows a young woman from Boston to the misty landscape of Ireland, where her search for the truth about her ancestry unearths generations of family secrets—and a doomed legacy that refuses to stay buried. Sweeping, romantic, and inspired by a forgotten chapter of Irish history, the novel explores how the past inhabits the present—and how love, courage, and lineage are forged across generations.
This Book Made Me Think of You
by Libby Page
When a young widow receives a surprise gift of a new book each month from her late husband, she is swept into a year-long adventure to reclaim her joy. This charming novel sparkles with quirky wit and cozy bookstore magic, capturing the deeply relatable steps of a healing heart. It stands as an irresistible, heartwarming reminder that a great story can heal almost anything.
Broken Country by Claire Leslie Hall
A web of love, pride, and tragic misunderstandings drives this gripping story of unforgettable characters whose lives collide against the moody backdrop of 1960s England. The novel’s brilliance lies in its intense emotional tension and slow-burn, atmospheric plotting. Hall weaves a dazzling, decades-spanning tapestry of secrets that will keep readers guessing until the final page.
Land by Maggie O’Farrell
Set against the haunted, thrumming landscape of 1865 Ireland, this expansive family saga follows a line of Great Hunger survivors as the weight of their choices ripples across generations. O’Farrell’s lyrical prose breathes vivid life into intimate human regrets, charting a delicate map of grief, trauma, and lingering hope. She beautifully weaves the natural world into the story, letting the ancient, wild landscape become its own character.
Vanessa Van Edwards
Vanessa is a behavioral researcher, corporate trainer & bestselling author. She is the author of Captivate and the instant Wall Street Journal bestseller Cues, and her next book, Conversation: How to Connect with Anyone and Make Every Interaction Count, is out October 6, 2026 from Portfolio. She runs Science of People, where her research and courses have taught half a million students how to read and connect with the people around them.
The Perfectionist’s Guide to Losing Control: A Path to Peace and Power
by Katherine Morgan Schafler
As a recovering perfectionist…still very much in recovery, this book brought me so much relief and wisdom. Schafler is a psychotherapist who treats perfectionism as usable energy, then sorts it into five types: classic, intense, Parisian, messy, and procrastinator. Finding my own type reframed a pile of behavior I had been filing under a character flaw. So interesting and so empowering.
Antifragile: Things That Gain from Disorder
by Nassim Nicholas Taleb
This classic was such a breath of fresh air right now. Taleb splits the world into things that break under stress, things that merely resist it, and things that get stronger because of it. It changed how I think about pressure and people — some skills only develop when conditions get uncomfortable. I’ve spent the last few years trying to get as comfortable as possible with lots of self-care routines and it wasn’t working. This book taught me comfortable and self-care is not the answer.
Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke
The premise here is gold: An influencer with 8 million followers wakes up in an 1855 farmhouse: no electricity, six filthy children, no idea whether she has been kidnapped, cast in a reality show, or something worse. The most fun I have had with a novel this year, and it is secretly about performance and audience, which is catnip for me. As an influencer, I constantly think about how sharing in an online world is shaping myself…and the world. A great read to counterbalance all the scrolling.