Winter Reading

December is a rather slow month in publishing, so it seems January is filled with exciting releases instead – and apparently January 20th is going to be a good day.

Descent / Tim Johnston.  January 6, Algonquin. The stunning vistas of the Rocky Mountains reveal a dark and deadly side in this brilliantly conceived thriller about family ties and the fight for survival.

Black River / S. M. Hulse. January 20, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. A tense Western and an assured debut, Black River tells the story of a man marked by a prison riot as he returns to the town, and the convict, who shaped him.

The Marauders / Tom Cooper. February 3, Crown. A masterfully written, darkly hilarious crime novel from a debut novelist, set in a small bayou town that has recently been devastated by the BP oil spill.

The Rabbit Back Literature Society / Pasi Ilmari Jääskeläinen. January 20, Macmillan. “Twin Peaks meets the Brothers Grimm” (The Telegraph UK) in this intriguing novel featuring a highly contagious book virus, a secretive literary society, and a disappearing author.

The Sweetheart: A Novel / Angelina Mirabella. January 20, Simon & Schuster. A debut, coming-of-age novel in which a teenage girl from Philadelphia leaves her old life behind to become The Sweetheart, one of America’s most infamous female wrestlers.

Against the Country: A Novel / Ben Metcalf. January 6, Random House. For fans of literary Southern Gothic: an intense, sly and deceptively humorous debut novel about growing up in the wilds of Goochland County, Virginia, from former literary editor of Harper’s Magazine, Ben Metcalf. The reviews have been pretty harsh so far, but I’m willing to give it a shot.

Wolf Winter / Cecilia Ekbäck. January 27, Weinstein Books. ‘Wolf winter,’ she said, her voice small. ‘I wanted to ask about it. You know, what it is.’ He was silent for a long time. ‘It’s the kind of winter that will remind us we are mortal,’ he said. ‘Mortal and alone.’

As I plan to spend most of November and December catching up on everything I have missed for the year, January looks to be filled with ALL the new releases. Twin Peaks meets Brothers Grimm, Southern Gothic? Yes, please.

Is there a book you are looking forward to?