Hello, and welcome to this week's list of new books. Our first book is no indicator of the quality of the releases this week; it's more of an indicator that we started the newsletter right before lunch. And, in fact, we're going to simply crib from the marketing copy because that'll get us closer to actually having lunch instead of wringing our hands and overthinking our copy.
This is Jamie Loftus's Raw Dog: The Naked Truth About Hot Dogs. It's "part investigation into the cultural and culinary significance of hot dogs and part travelog documenting a cross-country road trip researching them as they’re served today. From avocado and spice in the West to ass-shattering chili in the East to an entire salad on a slice of meat in Chicago, Loftus, her pets, and her ex eat their way across the country during the strange summer of 2021 . . . So grab a dog, lay out your picnic blanket, and dig into the delicious and inevitable product of centuries of violence, poverty, and ambition, now rolling around at your local 7-Eleven."
And speaking of local stories, here is Debra Magpie Earling's luminously realized The Lost Journals of Sacajewea, a fictional retelling of the Sacajewea that reestablishes the native woman's proper place within the historical record. Earling, who has received both a National Endowment for the Arts grant and a Guggenheim Fellowship for her writing, has transformed an earlier version of this tale, which had been written in verse for the bicentennial of the Lewis and Clark expedition. Highly recommended.
Meanwhile, over on the Stylish Page Turner of the Week shelf, here is Jaclyn Goldis's The Chateau. It's the story of four childhood friends who are reunited with an eccentric grandmother. They all visit a creepy chateau in the French countryside, and by breakfast the following morning, the old lady is dead. Murdered! And this quartet must figure out who killed the grand dame before all of their secrets are revealed.
And here's an interesting take on the old Arthur mythos. In Thomas D. Lee's Perilous Times, the focus is on Sir Kay, who dies a lot and gets resurrected quite often. When he claws his way out of the grave this time around, he discovers that Britain is in sore shape. The oceans have risen, most of the country has been sold to foreign corporations, and the dragon is—oh, there's a dragon! At least one thing is familiar. Okay, two things. His eternal nemesis Lancelot is searching for that sword of legend. Kay has to find it first if there's to be any hope for the future.
And here is Megan E. O'Keefe's new space opera novel, The Blighted Stars. It's the story of Naira Sharp, a revolutionary intent on bringing down the Mercator family who is squeezing the joy out the of galaxy. She's playing bodyguard to Tarquin Mercator, who would much rather read books and hang out in the library than deal with managing a new planet for the family's interests. Sharp is planning on wrecking the settlement ship before it can get established on the new world, but before she can pull off her plan, she and Mercator are stranded. In order to survive, she has to put aside her plans and make nice with the son of her enemy. Naturally, feelings get involved and things get complicated!
And speaking of complications, here is Emma Rosenblum's Bad Summer People, which is about terrible people doing terrible things while staying at a ridiculously exclusive island resort. They're mean; they're manipulative; they lie a lot. They're most definitely sleeping with each other's spouses. But murder? That's a little much, don't you think? Well, one of them crossed the line, and now, all bets are off. Bad Summer People is definitely the sort of book where you really hope everyone gets what they deserve.
And speaking of bad people, Nora Roberts is back with Identity, which is the story about the one that got away. In this case, it's Morgan Albright, whose life is turned upside down when a serial killer targets the wrong person. And this guy? Someone she had just met who seemed like a nice fellow. Well, now she's doubting everything, and even when she starts over, she's still not sure who she can trust. But she has to sort this out, because that whackadoodle knife wielder is still out there, and he doesn't like that one of his potential victims can identify him . . .
And James Islington is starting a new fantasy series. This is The Will of the Many, and it's the first volume in the Hierarchy Trilogy. It's the story of a young person who has been sent to the world's most prestigious academy to learn how to temper their Will. And when they graduate, they'll have the pleasure of having their Will leeched away for fuel to the ruling elite. Now, okay, this sounds like a terrible reward for acing school, and our protagonist feels the same as we do. What they're really after is an ancient weapon, which may be hidden in the Academy. Along with a bunch of secret stuff that could bring down the Republic. Oooh. Intrigue! Secret plots! Hidden identities! You know the drill.
And speaking of drills, here is Clare Frank's memoir about being a firefighter. Burnt follows Frank as she forges her way through a male-dominated profession, until she manages to become chief of fire protection, the first and only woman to hold that position. Since this is California, the stories about fires are wild, risky, and utterly explosive. Badass and bonkers.
And finally, here is Wild Things, a new rom-com by Laura Kay. Most authors nail the "rom" part of the genre, but the "com" can be tricky, and we're happy to report that Kay delivers in this tale of DIY home repair, queer found families, and a backyard hen. All four of the main characters in Wild Things are in ruts, and they decide the best solution to the disasters of their lives is to move out to the country, where, as you can imagine, nothing goes as planned and everything turns out exactly like it was supposed to. Sign us up!
Memorial Day weekend is coming, and that means an extra day to not be at work. The store will be open as per usual, though we may run Sunday hours on Monday (11 - 4). Plan accordingly. Get some sun. Take some books with you. And don't forget to laugh out loud. The trees like to hear that sort of sound.
