Grub Street Pick
What does it mean to be a monster? In this retelling of Beowulf from Grendel’s POV, we find the creature searching for meaning in a world that never wanted him. Through conversations with dragons and his secretive observations through the roof of the great hall, Grendel tries to determine the meaning of life, if there even is one.
Dave
Before George Saunders was a genius minted by the MacArthur Fellowship folks, and the recipient of the Booker Prize for his first novel, he wrote this book of genuinely delightful, weird, tender stories. In terms of short story writers, Saunders has become American royalty. But this is him as a debut author, in what might be his wildest form.
Dave
Naomi and Nicholas are the lovey dovey fiances everyone's jealous of. But they're both burdened by an earth-shattering secret...they actually despise one another. With the wedding coming hot at their heels, It's too late to back out, though neither of them wants to tank the cost of their wedding by calling it quits. Suddenly, their "happily ever after" becomes a battle of wills: who's going to outlast the other in this crumbling relationship? Full of hilarious dialogue and trickery to last a lifetime, Sarah Hogle's debut You Deserve Each Other is the unconventional lovers-to-enemies-to-??? rom-com you didn't know you needed.
Cindy
If you're looking for new, unique, and diverse writing that is reminiscent of authors like Mona Awad, Cat Valente, and Carmen Maria Machado, this book is an ideal read for you! Chadburn's Filipino heritage lends a heavy filter to the narrative, which follows the too-short life of a woman cast out by society and transformed by death into an agent of justice--or mercy. Murdered by a serial killer, Marina Salles' life doesn't end the day she wakes up dead. Transformed into a monster from myth, she has nine days to decide whether to enact revenge.
Engel
Not all of these poems are about death, but a lot of them are. Likewise, not all of these poems are about pigs, but really truly A LOT of them are, and Jenny George treats both subjects with the care and close attention of someone who loves this world and all the things living and dying in it. Describing a pig, George writes: "All sleeping things are children."
Piera
If you enjoyed Mexican Gothic, you’re going to (lose it) over The Hacienda. Cañas has captured the eerie trapped feeling of a gothic with perfect skill and has crafted a vivid, gory, and terrifying story that you won’t be able to put down. This is the type of horror novel that keeps you up at night as its beautiful imagery creeps its way into your nightmares. And to top it all off, there’s a romance that will have you yelling “JUST KISS ALREADY” at the page
Katherine
Humans of all cultures have ascribed so much meaning to flowers and plants that you can often miss so much in literature (and in general) without knowing what is going unsaid. If you love flowers, mythology, colorful illustrations, and a dash of history, this is a compendium for you.
Stacey
An incredibly beautiful and insightful narrative that blends memoir with queer theory, focusing on motherhood within the queer experience. It is a book I still think about long after I finished.
Morgan
Oh, to be a citizen of the Roman Empire, where murder technically wasn't illegal.
John
