Intrigued? Read on to discover the synopsis and an excerpt from The Break-Up Retreat by Camilla Sten, which releases on June 9th 2026.

Welcome to Himlafall Clinic, where we use revolutionary therapy techniques to heal you from heartbreak. Whether you are going through a devastating breakup, or can’t seem to stop picking the wrong partners, we are here to help you change your life, once and for all…

Isobel Anderssen has heard rumors. Nestled deep in the Swedish woods, there is a retreat. Primarily aimed at helping women who have gone through devastating break-ups, the Himlafall Clinic is meant to heal your mind and help you move on.

Sometimes people are never heard from again.

Armed with a fake story and a contraband phone to record interviews, Isobel is ready to expose Himlafall’s founder and get closure for the families of missing loved ones. But when she gets there, nothing goes to plan. Her contact is missing. The founder, Dr. Martina Hastings, knows how to get under Isobel’s skin in ways she didn’t anticipate. And all the while, the ghosts of the missing haunt her at every turn. It is clear something is going wrong and Himlafall, and Isobel must uncover the truth, before she disappears once and for all.

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The post Read An Excerpt From ‘The Break-Up Retreat’ by Camilla Sten appeared first on The Nerd Daily.

Get ready to look forward to some great fiction book releases in 2026! We’ve rounded up just a few fiction books releasing between January and June from thrillers and historical fiction, to stories of friendship and family, and more. With new releases from Jennifer Niven, Simone St. James, Claire Heywood, Catriona Ward, CG Drews, Natalie Haynes, Megan Lally, Xochitl Gonzalez, Emma Straub, Kylie Lee Baker, Nick Cutter, Catherine Adel West, Jennifer Saint, Rob Hart, and more, plus debut novels, you’ll be sure to find quite a few exciting new reads within this list!

Be sure to check out our other 2026 round-ups too, including our Most Anticipated, Romance, Fantasy and Sci-Fi, and Young Adult lists!

JANUARY 2026 FICTION BOOK RELEASES

Meet the Newmans by Jennifer Niven

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
Funny, big-hearted, and deeply moving, Meet the Newmans is a rich family story about the dual lives we lead. Because even when our lives aren’t televised weekly, we all have a behind-the-scenes.

Is This A Cry For Help? by Emily Austin

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
A luminous new novel following a librarian who comes back to work after a mental breakdown only to confront book-banning crusaders in an empowering story of grief, love, and the power of libraries.

Women of a Promiscuous Nature by Donna Everhart

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
Based on the long-buried history of the American Plan, this powerful and shockingly timely story of resistance and resilience exposes the real government program designed to regulate women’s bodies and sexuality throughout the first half of the 20th century.

Dandelion Is Dead by Rosie Storey

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
With sparkling wit and aching tenderness, debut author Rosie Storey gives us a modern love story about the courage it takes to live again after loss and finding hope in the most unexpected places.

Skylark by Paula McLain

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
The New York Times bestselling author of The Paris Wife weaves a mesmerizing tale of Paris above and below—where a woman’s quest for artistic freedom in 1664 intertwines with a doctor’s dangerous mission during the German occupation in the 1940s, revealing a story of courage and resistance that transcends time.

You’ll Never Forget Me by Isha Raya

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
In this captivating cat-and-mouse thriller, a struggling actress is only just beginning to enjoy the life sheʼs always wanted after inadvertently killing her rival—but now she must contend with the woman who threatens to take it all away.

Burn Down Master’s House by Clay Cane

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
Inspired by long-buried true stories of enslaved people who dared to fight back, this powerful novel offers a searing portrayal of resistance. 

The Midnight Carousel by Fiza Saeed McLynn

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
The Night Circus meets Water for Elephants in this enchanting, darkly glittering story of grief, obsession, revenge, and enduring love.

The Briars by Sarah Crouch

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
The USA TODAY bestselling author of Middletide returns with a lush and atmospheric novel of suspense following a young woman whose job as a game warden puts her in the path of a murderer in a small town eager to protect its own.

Just Watch Me by Lior Torenberg

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
Fleabag meets Big Swiss in this bold debut about a charismatic misfit who livestreams her life for seven days and nights to raise money to save her comatose sister—a poignant and darkly funny exploration of grief, forgiveness, and redemption.

A Box Full of Darkness by Simone St. James

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
Simone St. James, the New York Times bestselling author of The Sun Down Motel, returns with her scariest, most shocking novel yet in this pulse-pounding story about siblings who return to the house they fled 18 years before, called back by the ghost of their long-missing brother and his haunting request: Come home.

The Seven Daughters of Dupree by Nikesha Elise Williams

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
From the two-time Emmy Award–winning producer and host of the Black and Published podcast comes a sweeping multi-generational epic following seven generations of Dupree women as they navigate love, loss, and the unyielding ties of family in the tradition of Homegoing and The Love Songs of W.E.B. DuBois.

FEBRUARY 2026 FICTION BOOK RELEASES

The Exes by Leodora Darlington

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
Who hasn’t wanted to murder an ex—figuratively, at least? In this explosive debut thriller, a woman’s seemingly perfect romantic life is on the verge of collapse as she uncovers a hidden history surfacing dark secrets that have deadly consequences.

A Crown of Stars by Shana Abe

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
A sumptuously vivid and poignant account of the Lusitania’s fateful last days, drawn from the true story of an extraordinary young actress who survived the unthinkable—for fans of Marie Benedict, Louis Bayard, Fiona Davis, Kate Quinn, and HBO’s The Gilded Age.

The Wandering Queen by Claire Heywood

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
An epic and fiercely imaginative retelling of the story of queen Dido, the legendary founder of Carthage, from the author of the national bestseller Daughters of Sparta.

Where the Wildflowers Grow by Terah Shelton Harris

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
From acclaimed author Terah Shelton Harris comes a poignant story of survival and redemption that questions what it means to stop existing and start living.

The Fourth Princess by Janie Chang

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
From the internationally bestselling author of The Porcelain Moon comes a haunting Gothic novel set in 1911 China. Two young women living in a crumbling, once-grand Shanghai mansion face danger as secrets of their pasts come to light, even as the mansion’s own secret threatens the present.

Out of the Loop by Katie Siegel

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
The Seven Year Slip meets Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers in this wholly original time loop mystery.

Superfan by Jenny Tinghui Zhang

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
From National Book Foundation 5 Under 35 honoree Jenny Tinghui Zhang, a novel about a pop idol and his superfan, whose stories shockingly collide

The Midnight Taxi by Yosha Gunasekera

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
When the last fare of the night turns up dead in her backseat, a Sri Lankan American taxi driver works off the clock to clear her name in this mystery novel by debut author Yosha Gunasekera.

Adrift by Will Dean

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
A high-tension thriller about a family’s descent into darkness that is perfect for fans of Dennis Lehane and Lisa Jewell.

A Sociopath’s Guide to a Successful Marriage by MK Oliver

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
A whip-smart and darkly funny crime novel—perfect for fans of My Sister, the Serial Killer and The Maid—that follows a wife and mother with a deadly secret that she must suppress if she wants to maintain her picture-perfect façade.

Bad Asians by Lillian Li

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
From the acclaimed author of Number One Chinese Restaurant comes an affecting novel about an unforgettable group of friends trying to make their way in the world without losing themselves, or one another.

Nowhere Burning by Catriona Ward

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
Nowhere Burning is a harrowing tale of survival that places the dark fairy tale of Peter Pan and the ruthless dangers of Lord of the Flies into the unforgiving maw of the Colorado Rockies.

MARCH 2026 FICTION BOOK RELEASES

No Friend To This House by Natalie Haynes

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
No Friend to This House is an extraordinary reimagining of the myth of Medea from the Sunday Times bestselling author of Stone Blind, Natalie Haynes.

Wretch by Eric LaRocca

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
From rising horror star and award-winning author of Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke comes a nightmarish, haunting, tech-Gothic thrill ride about sorrow, memory, and the unabashed complexity of love as a transgressive act.

You Did Nothing Wrong by C.G. Drews

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
Domestic suspense meets haunted house horror in this adult debut from the New York Times bestselling author of Don’t Let the Forest In.

Strangers In The Villa by Robyn Harding

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
From the international bestselling author of The Drowning Woman, a psychological thriller about a couple rocked by infidelity who moves to a villa in Spain’s Costa Brava to rebuild their relationship, only to welcome a pair of visitors who have no intention of leaving.  

How Simi Got Her Groom Back by Sonali Dev

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
Two sisters face the real consequences of a fake marriage scheme in an emotional yet hilarious novel about immigration, healing, and family from USA Today bestselling author Sonali Dev.

Bloom by Robbie Couch

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
From the New York Times bestselling author of If I See You Again Tomorrow comes a delightful and heartwarming novel about family, love, grief, and one precocious houseplant, that reminds us of the beauty of living a life in full Bloom.

Dig by J. H. Markert

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
J. H. Markert returns with a surreal horror novel, perfect for fans of Graveyard Shift and What Moves the Dead.

This Story Might Save Your Life by Tiffany Crum

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
Best friends Benny and Joy like to say they’ve been saving each other’s lives since the moment they met. Until the day Joy disappears and Benny is suspected of murder . . .

Turn Off the Light by Jacquie Walter

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
Two women living centuries apart are bound by the same dark secret in this haunting novel that “upends everything you think you know about ghost stories” (Jennifer McMahon, author of The Winter People).

Sweetbitter Song by Rosie Hewlett

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
Perfect for fans of The Song of Achilles and from the award-winning author of The Witch of Colchis comes a profoundly moving story of two women on the shores of Ithaca, in the shadows of a legendary war, who must face their own battle – one of sisterhood, survival, and a forbidden love that could destroy them both.

What We Did To Survive by Megan Lally

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
A vacation in paradise turns deadly when four teens’ sailing charter hits stormy seas in this propulsive new thriller from New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Megan Lally!

Finlay Donovan Crosses The Line by Elle Cosimano

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
From New York Times bestseller Elle Cosimano comes Finlay Donovan Crosses the Line—the highly anticipated next installment in the beloved Finlay Donovan series.

APRIL 2026 FICTION BOOK RELEASES

Last Night in Brooklyn by Xochitl Gonzalez

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
New York Times bestselling author Xochitl Gonzalez delivers a captivating story about a young woman whose life becomes ensnared in her glamorous neighbor’s secret past

A Murder Most Camp by Nicolas DiDomizio

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
The Guncle meets Every Time I Go On Vacation Someone Dies in this fun, twisty mystery following a spoiled nepo baby forced to work at a struggling summer camp who stumbles into a real-life murder mystery he has no choice but to solve.

We Would Never Tell by Anne-Sophie Jouhanneau

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
A high-glamour, high-stakes thriller trailing three ambitious women as they navigate Hollywood’s secrets, sins, and scandals during 12 days at the Cannes Film Festival. 

American Fantasy by Emma Straub

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
From New York Times bestselling author of This Time Tomorrow, an irresistible story about what happens when your teenage fantasy comes true after you’re already an adult.

The Girls Trip by Ally Condie

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
From the author of Reese’s Book Club Pick and instant USA Today bestseller The Unwedding, a novel of suspense and friendship about three friends who decide to disappear from their lives for a few days while on a trip to a national park—only to have one of them vanish.

The Ending Writes Itself by Evelyn Clarke

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
Fans of Agatha Christie’s locked-room mysteries and modern tales like Knives Out will fall for The Ending Writes Itself, which masterfully blends classic mystery elements with genre-bending tropes. Crafted with razor-sharp wit and a meta twist, this satirical take on the publishing world ensures readers will hang on every word, right up to its breathtaking finale.

The Book Witch by Meg Shaffer

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
Come along with the Book Witch in this magical and inspiring love letter to reading from the USA Today bestselling author of The Wishing Game.

The Caretaker by Marcus Kliewer

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
From Marcus Kliewer, a new “titan of the macabre and unsettling” (Erin A. Craig, #1 New York Times bestselling author), comes a supernatural horror about a young woman who accepts a caretaking job from Craigslist, only to discover the position has consequences far greater—and more dangerous—than she ever could have imagined.

Japanese Gothic by Kylie Lee Baker

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
In this lyrical, wildly inventive horror novel interwoven with Japanese mythology, two people living centuries apart discover a door between their worlds.

The Island Club by Nicola Harrison

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
Set against the sun-drenched beaches of Balboa Island, with its prim and proper 1950s facade, The Island Club is a story of love, loneliness and the lies we tell ourselves―and what can be gained when the truth is finally revealed.

Ms. Mebel Goes Back to the Chopping Block by Jesse Q. Sutanto

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
A nearly divorced trophy wife enrolls in culinary school to win back her husband, only to find a fresh start in the unlikeliest of places in this new novel from the USA Today bestselling author of Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers.

Go Gentle by Maria Semple

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
The New York Times bestselling author of Where’d You Go, Bernadette returns to form in her most exuberant and life-affirming novel yet with the story of one woman’s cheerful determination to live a life of the mind only to have the heart force its way in.

MAY 2026 FICTION BOOK RELEASES

The Library After Dark by Ande Pliego

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
A bookseller must escape the infamously haunted library that holds her darkest secrets, but with a murderer in her tour group, escaping alive is not as simple as it seems, in this twisty locked-room thriller from bestselling author of You Are Fatally Invited.

The Dorians by Nick Cutter

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
The all-new novel of terror from “one of the hottest horror authors on the planet” (Paste) and writer of the #HorrorBookTok sensation The Troop!

Caller Unknown by Gillian McAllister

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
How far would you go to rescue your child? A mother races against the clock—and finds herself on the wrong side of the law—in a desperate fight to save her teenage daughter in this pulse-pounding thriller.

The Calamity Club by Kathryn Stockett

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
The Calamity Club will make you laugh, cry, and cheer—an epic testament to underestimated women who know that calamity can be the spark of new beginnings. This is Kathryn Stockett at her most confident, heartfelt, and hilarious—the triumphant return of one of the most beloved storytellers of our time.

The Anniversary by Alex Finlay

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
Twisty, high-concept, and emotionally charged, this novel is an utterly compelling story of the hunt for a serial killer. But it’s also a heartfelt―and heartrending―novel about fate, innocence lost, and two souls who find that sometimes being broken is the only way for the light to get in. 

The Young Will Remember by Eve J. Chung

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
A sweeping novel about a correspondent trapped behind enemy lines during the Korean War, and the women who help her find her way home, from the national bestselling author of Daughters of Shandong.

Villain by Natalie Zina Walschots

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
The Boys meets Assistant to the Villain in the electrifying, sharp, violent, and hilarious sequel to the highly acclaimed novel, Hench. Filled with a queer and neurodiverse cast, Villain asks the question: what happens when a diabolically brilliant henchperson looks back at their already storied career and thinks, I can be so much worse.

The One Day You Were My Husband by Rosie Walsh

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
From the New York Times–bestselling author of Ghosted and The Love of My Life comes an unmissable emotional thriller: an up-all-night, page-turning love story with a very dark secret at its heart.

Homebound by Portia Elan

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
Five interlocking lives. One beloved story. A dazzling adventure across centuries and continents in search of the things that hold us together.

Lady X by Molly Fader

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
The search for a notorious vigilante exposes the secrets among three generations of women in this propulsive novel of female resistance and rage, sweeping from contemporary L.A. to gritty 1970s New York.

The Hope Keeper by Heather Webb

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
Set in Jazz Age D.C., the story of possession and obsession, and the ever-looming curse of the legendary Hope Diamond, comes to life as the socialites scheme and the jewels glitter in the evening light. 

The Players Club by Rachel Mills

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
For fans of Lessons in Chemistry and Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine, a bold, big concept debut about a secret club of women who risk everything to ask the question: If you could be anyone…who would you dare to become?

JUNE 2026 FICTION BOOK RELEASES

Tell Your Friends by Lauren Wilson

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
A former child star and an envious fan collide in this cat-and-mouse psychological thriller about obsession, self-invention, and the dark side of internet fame.

There’s Only One Sin In Hollywood by Rasheed Newson

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
A cinematic, razor-sharp novel following a backlot fixer’s daring investigation into the suspicious death of a closeted Black actor within the glamorous world of Hollywood, from the bestselling author of My Government Means to Kill Me.

A Pair of Aces by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
A gripping novel about two trailblazing women on opposite sides of the law—a prosecutor and a madam—who team up to bring down notorious mob boss Lucky Luciano in 1930s New York, from the New York Times bestselling authors of the million-copy bestseller The Personal Librarian.

Strangers Behind Closed Doors by Catherine Adel West

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
A twisty thriller about a woman who vanishes from a luxury hotel, and the detective who believes the case is tied to the unsolved disappearances of other Black women in the city.

The Break-Up Retreat by Camilla Sten

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
An undercover journalist goes to expose an exclusive psychological wellness clinic where women go to recover from heartbreak, with dire consequences, in this creepy thriller from The Bachelorette Party author Camilla Sten.

A Fortune of Sand by Ruta Sepetys

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
The daughter of an automotive magnate escapes to an artistic retreat that holds more secrets—and more intrigue—than she could have ever imagined, in this Prohibition-era novel from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Salt to the Sea.

Girl’s Girl by Sonia Feldman

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
From a dazzling new talent, a sensual and spellbinding novel about one summer that shatters the balance between three best friends, forcing them to confront the line between friendship and desire.

This Immortal Heart by Jennifer Saint

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
The epic, captivating tale of Aphrodite, the goddess of love, who must reconcile her mind and heart when she is drawn against all odds to Ares, the god of war, from the internationally bestselling author of Ariadne and Hera.

Our Sister’s Keeper by Jasmine Holmes

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
A gripping blend of historical fiction and Southern gothic psychological horror, Our Sister’s Keeper is a fierce exploration of Black sisterhood, rage, and resistance.

Three Hitmen and a Baby by Rob Hart

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
Welcome back to Assassins Anonymous, where family is everything and danger lurks around every corner.

Pool House by Mary H.K. Choi

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
Bestselling young adult author Mary H.K. Choi debuts a brilliantly observed adult novel about mothers, daughters and the complexity of family set against the backdrop of Hollywood.

The Shampoo Effect by Jenny Jackson

Publisher | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Bookshop.org | Goodreads
An ambitious young woman insinuates herself into a tight-knit social set, shaking up friendships and marriages in a small seaside town.

What 2026 fiction book releases are you looking forward to? Tell us in the comments below!

The post Fiction Book Releases To Check Out In 2026 appeared first on The Nerd Daily.

About The Bachlorette Party (released June 10th 2025): Scream meets The Guest List in this wickedly compelling and compulsively page-turning thriller of friendship and murder from the author of The Lost Village, Camilla Sten.

People tend to be surprised when I tell them what I do for a living. Despite my tepid attempts at looking scary, it seems the occasional slash of black lipstick just isn’t enough to overcome what my husband calls my “Resting Asking-For-Directions-Face”. Apparently, I simply don’t look like the kind of person who would delight in brutally killing fictional characters – I look like someone who would be delighted to help you find that brunch place your friend told you that you simply had to try when you’re in town.

However, despite my friendly visage, my full-time job is writing books where people are brutally murdered. Over the last ten years, my characters have been stabbed with scissors, shot in the chest with sawed-off shotguns, and had their heads bashed in with glass jars. I’ve killed fictional characters via drowning, poisoning, and, on one occasion, stoning. In writing all those gruesome death scenes, I have come to two conclusions:

1. I would not survive one of my own books. I would go into that dark, haunted basement immediately. I wouldn’t even hesitate. Therefore, I probably would not even make it through the prologue.
2. There is a formula to dying in a slasher story – sneaking off to have sex will get you killed, as will having kept dark secrets from your friends, and, of course, there is the classic sheer stupidity – but there is no formula to surviving one.

I know a survivor character when I see one, but it’s not based on intelligence, skill, or perseverance. It’s based purely on vibes. And because I am an internet-poisoned millennial, I have made a list of six iconic 90’s characters who exemplify the vibes of a slasher survivor, to hopefully teach you how to survive if you ever find yourself stuck in a horror story.

6. Evelyn Carnahan – The Mummy

Evelyn Carnahan from the bisexual classic “The Mummy” would survive any one of my books, because she would never have gone on the doomed trip to begin with. Evelyn is an introverted librarian who dreams about adventure – she’d never engage in something so silly as a bachelorette party on an island where a murder might have taken place ten years earlier, or go on a location scouting trip for a documentary about a ghost town. She has got more important things to do. If Evelyn Carnahan was in one of my books, she’d be the smart friend who advised the main character against whatever stupid thing she was about to embark on in chapter one, and then she’d show up again in the epilogue to say “I told you so”. While the main characters were busy getting hacked to bits, Evelyn would probably have been curled up in bed with a cup of tea and a book on ancient Aramaic. The best way not to get murdered is to not leave the house at all.

5. Ian Malcolm – Jurassic Park

Unlike Evelyn, Ian Malcolm from Jurassic Park would absolutely come along on whichever clearly doomed trip was taking place in my book. Not only would he be invited to the bachelorette party, but he would have been the first person in the group to get absolutely trashed on mimosas. This might make him seem like an obvious candidate for the first murder, but given his enormous charisma and sex appeal, I, the author, would have found him too much fun to kill off. Instead, I’d give him some sort of debilitating wound in the second act, keeping him out of the main action, and then a big hero-moment in the climax. Sometimes, charm is more powerful than smarts.

4. Spot – Star Trek: The Next Generation

I would never kill a cat in a horror book. Or in any book. I might spend my time dreaming up creative ways of butchering fictional people, but I’m not a monster.

3. The Lone Gunmen – The X-Files

“Hey, wait a second”, you might be saying, if, like me, you had an intense and abiding crush on Gillian Andersson in the 90’s. “What about Dana Scully?”

I’m sorry to have to tell you this, but Scully would not make it through my book. She’s too skeptical and unwilling to believe. She’d keep finding normal, rational explanations for all the strange things going on until the killer took her out.

No, in order to survive a horror story, you need a healthy dose of paranoia. You have to be the kind of person who hears what might be a cat, and might be a masked killer, and immediately concludes it’s the second option. Therefore, the Lone Gunmen, the three conspiracy theorists from “The X-Files”, would do swimmingly. At the first sign of trouble, these three nerds would barricade themselves in the bathroom, send their location to the police, and use their investigative skills to figure out the whole plot before the cops even had time to turn on their sirens.

3. Cordelia Chase – Buffy the Vampire Slayer & Angel

She’s gorgeous. She’s popular. She does surprisingly well on standardized tests. Cordelia Chase might look like your classic beautiful bully, but she’s sharp as a tack. It takes brains to come up with all those gutting insults you still think about in the shower ten years later, and as the reigning queen of mean, Cordelia might be the smartest person on this list. Combined with a hidden heart of gold, this makes her a perfect candidate for the surprise ally – someone who at the beginning of the story seems like an antagonist, but teams up with the main character in the third act to take the killer out. Not only would Cordelia beat the murderer to a pulp with an empty bottle of tequila, but she’d look good doing it, too.

1. Johnny Bravo – Johnny Bravo

The power of a himbo in a horror story cannot be overstated.

In every single thriller I’ve written, the characters have been complicated, slightly broken people who find themselves a situation they couldn’t possibly have anticipated, fighting for their lives against impossible odds. That is because the horror of a horror story comes from the characters understanding the peril they are in; the dawning terror of realizing that the ground has suddenly shifted underneath you, and all your nightmares have come true.

Johnny Bravo would not understand this.

Johnny Bravo would, if beset by a psychopathic killer, either misunderstand the situation as some sort of game, or, if the killer was a woman, try to hit on her with a “Hey, mama”. This would throw the killer off completely. It would throw me, the author, off completely. It is possible the entire genre of the book would shift, against my will, from a slasher to a farce, or possibly a very strange romantic comedy.

Johnny Bravo would definitely survive one of my horror books. I am not sure I would survive Johnny Bravo.

The post Six Iconic 90’s Characters Who Would Survive One of Camilla Sten’s Slasher Novels appeared first on The Nerd Daily.

Get ready to look forward to some great fiction book releases in 2025! We’ve rounded up just a few fiction books releasing between January and June from thrillers and historical fiction, to stories of friendship and family, and more. With releases from Megan Collins, Scott Turow, Kate Alice Marshall, Jojo Moyes, Elle Cosimano, Stephen Graham Jones, Alex North, Fredrik Backman, Maggie Stiefvater, and many more, plus those making their debut.

Read on to discover new books hitting shelves in the first half of the year and be sure to check out our other 2025 round-ups too, including our Most Anticipated, Romance, Fantasy & Sci-Fi and Young Adult lists.

JANUARY 2025 FICTION BOOK RELEASES

Old Soul by Susan Barker

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The Historian meets Under the Skin in this searingly provocative literary horror novel about one woman’s determination to stay alive at any terrifying cost.

The Stolen Queen by Fiona Davis

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From New York Times bestselling author Fiona Davis, an utterly addictive new novel that will transport you from New York City’s most glamorous party to the labyrinth streets of Cairo and back.

A Serial Killer’s Guide to Marriage by Asia Mackay

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Two former serial killers trying to keep their past buried realize that old habits die hard in this “wildly original, razor-sharp thriller” (Chris Whitaker, New York Times bestselling author of All the Colors of the Dark).

Tell Me What You Did by Carter Wilson

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From the USA Today bestselling author of The Dead Girl in 2A and The New Neighbor comes a chilling new thriller that forces the question: are murderers always the bad guys?

The Inheritance by Trisha Sakhlecha

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A billionaire is primed to announce the succession plan for his company to his family at a lavish reunion, but at least one person won’t make it through the week alive. . . Most family reunions end in tears. This one will end in murder. 

Head Cases by John McMahon

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Head Cases follows an enigmatic group of FBI agents as they hunt down a murderer seeking his own justice in this electrifying―and commercial―series debut.

We Rip the World Apart by Charlene Carr

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Weaving the women’s stories across multiple timelines, We Rip the World Apart reveals the ways that simple choices, made in the heat of the moment and with the best of intentions, can have deep and lasting repercussions―especially when people stay silent.

The Three Lives of Cate Kay by Kate Fagan

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The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo meets First Lie Wins in this electric, voice-driven debut novel about an elusive bestselling author who decides to finally confess her true identity after years of hiding from her past.

Cross My Heart by Megan Collins

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She has his wife’s heart; the one she wants is his. The author of The Family Plot brings her signature “taut, emotionally charged, and propulsive” (Jeneva Rose, New York Times bestselling author) prose to a twisty novel about a heart transplant patient who becomes romantically obsessed with her donor’s husband.

We Could Be Rats by Emily Austin

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A moving story about two very different sisters, and a love letter to childhood, growing up, and the power of imagination—from the bestselling author of Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead and Interesting Facts About Space.

Presumed Guilty by Scott Turow

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New from the author of Presumed Innocent, the #1 bestseller that redefined the legal thriller and is the basis for Apple TV+’s most-watched drama series ever.

The Crash by Freida McFadden

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A gut-wrenching story of motherhood, survival, and twisted expectations, #1 New York Times bestselling author Freida McFadden delivers a snowbound thriller that will chill you to the bone.

FEBRUARY 2025 FICTION BOOK RELEASES

A Killing Cold by Kate Alice Marshall

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A woman invited to her wealthy fiance’s family retreat realizes they are hiding a terrible secret―and that she’s been there before, by the bestselling author of What Lies in the Woods.

Junie by Erin Crosby Eckstine

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A young girl must face a life-altering decision after awakening her sister’s ghost, navigating truths about love, friendship, and power as the Civil War looms.

Maya & Natasha by Elyse Durham

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This stunning debut novel set in the fascinating world of Cold War Soviet ballet follows the fates of twin sisters whose bond is competitive, complicated, but never broken.

The Garden by Nick Newman

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An eerie, hypnotic, darkly beautiful novel about two elderly sisters living alone at the edge of the world and how their lives unravel when their sanctum is breached, for fans of Piranesi and The Testaments.

The Lamb by Lucy Rose

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From an incendiary new talent, a contemporary queer folktale about a mother and daughter living in the woods, for fans of Angela Carter, Margaret Atwood, and Julia Armfield.

Last Twilight in Paris by Pam Jenoff

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A Parisian department store, a mysterious necklace and a woman’s quest to unlock a decade-old mystery are at the center of this riveting novel of love and survival, from New York Times bestselling author Pam Jenoff.

We All Live Here by Jojo Moyes

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The #1 New York Times bestselling author, whose books so many love, brings us a fresh, contemporary story of a woman and her unruly blended family.

Harlem Rhapsody by Victoria Christopher Murray

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She found the literary voices that would inspire the world…. The extraordinary story of the woman who ignited the Harlem Renaissance, written by Victoria Christopher Murray, New York Times bestselling coauthor of The Personal Librarian.

You Are Fatally Invited by Ande Pliego

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An exclusive thriller writer’s retreat hosted on a private island turns lethal when one of the authors is found murdered.

The Lost Passenger by Frances Quinn

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An immersive historical drama about a young mother who starts a new life with her son in New York after faking their deaths on the Titanic—the U.S. debut of acclaimed British novelist Frances Quinn.

Three Days in June by Anne Tyler

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A new Anne Tyler novel destined to be an instant classic: a socially awkward mother of the bride navigates the days before and after her daughter’s wedding.

Isola by Allegra Goodman

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A young woman and her lover are marooned on an island in this breathtaking saga, an epic story of love, faith, and defiance from the bestselling author of Sam

MARCH 2025 FICTION BOOK RELEASES

The King’s Messenger by Susanna Kearsley

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New York Times, USA Today and international bestselling author Susanna Kearsley explores romance, court alliances, and the limits of one’s duty in this rich story of an honorable man in service to a treacherous king, and the mission that brings him to love and his true calling.

Broken Country by Clare Hall

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A sweeping love story with the pace and twists of a thriller, Broken Country is a novel of simmering passion, impossible choices, and explosive consequences that toggles between the past and present to explore the far-reaching legacy of first love.

Jane and Dan at the End of the World by Colleen Oakley

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Date night goes off the rails in this hilariously insightful take on midlife and marriage when one unhappy couple find themselves at the heart of a crime in progress, from the USA Today bestselling author of The Mostly True Story of Tanner & Louise.

This Book Will Bury Me by Ashley Winstead

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From the national bestselling author of In My Dreams I Hold a Knife and Midnight is the Darkest Hour comes a chilling, compulsive story of five amateur sleuths, whose hunt for an elusive killer catapults them into danger as the world watches.

The Story She Left Behind by Patti Callahan Henry

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Inspired by a true literary mystery, New York Times bestselling author of the mesmerizing The Secret Book of Flora Lea returns with the sweeping story of a legendary book, a lost mother, and a daughter’s search for them both.

Finlay Donovan Digs Her Own Grave by Elle Cosimano

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From New York Times bestseller and Edgar-Award nominee Elle Cosimano, comes Finlay Donovan Digs Her Own Grave―the hugely anticipated next installment in the fan-favorite Finlay Donovan series.

Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy

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A novel of breathtaking twists, dizzying beauty, and ferocious love, Wild Dark Shore is about the impossible choices we make to protect the people we love, even as the world around us disappears.

Count My Lies by Sophie Stava

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A read-in-one-night suspense thriller narrated by a compulsive liar whose little white lies allow her to enter into the life and comfort of a wealthy married couple who are harboring much darker secrets themselves. For the millions of us still chasing those gone girls, this is perfect for fans of Lisa Jewell, Lucy Foley, and Laura Dave.

The Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones

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A chilling historical horror novel set in the American west in 1912 following a Lutheran priest who transcribes the life of a vampire who haunts the fields of the Blackfeet reservation looking for justice.

Retreat by Krysten Ritter

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A beautiful con artist insinuates herself into a wealthy socialite’s life . . . with deadly consequences, in this serpentine thriller about identity and obsession, from actress, director and bestselling author Krysten Ritter.

Dissolution by Nicholas Binge

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A woman dives into her husband’s memories to uncover a decades-old feud threatening reality itself in this staggering technothriller from the bestselling author of Ascension.

Early Thirties by Josh Duboff

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A hilarious and painfully relatable debut novel about two thirtysomething best friends’ messy search for connection and love in New York, perfect for fans of Rebecca Serle, Gabrielle Zevin, and Dolly Alderton.

APRIL 2025 FICTION BOOK RELEASES

The French Honeymoon by Anne-Sophie Jouhanneau

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The Paris Apartment meets A Simple Favor in an unputdownable thriller about a honeymoon gone horribly wrong.

Coram House by Bailey Seybolt

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Sharp Objects meets I Have Some Questions for You in this haunting novel—inspired by a true story—about a crime writer who risks everything as she investigates the mystery of two deaths, decades apart, at a crumbling Vermont orphanage.

Passion Project by London Sperry

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A compassionate and hopeful romantic comedy, Passion Project is a reminder that love is waiting for us to let it in.

Happy Land by Dolen Perkins-Valdez

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A woman learns the astonishing truth of her family’s ties to a vanished American Kingdom in this riveting new novel from the New York Times bestselling, NAACP Image Award-winning author of Take My Hand.

Bad Nature by Ariel Courage

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Armed with a terminal diagnosis, a grudge, and a rental car, Hester sets out to fulfill her lifelong dream of killing her father in this brilliantly subversive and bleakly funny debut novel.

What If I Never Get Over You by Paige Toon

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One Day meets a contemporary Bridgerton in this high-drama, escapist wonder of a love story, Paige Toon’s best yet.

A Town with Half the Lights On by Page Getz

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For readers of J. Ryan Stradal and The Music of Bees (with a dash of FX’s The Bear) comes a quirky and refreshing epistolary novel about family of culture-shocked Brooklynites transplanted to Goodnight, Kansas and their fight for their unexpected lifeline: the legendary May Day Diner.

The Bright Years by Sarah Damoff

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One family. Four generations. A secret son. A devastating addiction. A Texas family is met with losses and surprises of inheritance, but they’re unable to shake the pull back toward each other in this big-hearted family saga perfect for readers of Mary Beth Keane and Claire Lombardo.

Bearer of Bad News by Elisabeth Dini

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A sharply funny and moving debut in which a young woman accepts a job that takes her though the Italian Dolomites and into an international mystery far greater—and more personal—than she could have ever expected.

The Strange Case of Jane O. by Karen Thompson Walker

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In this spellbinding and provocative novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The Age of Miracles, a young mother is struck by sudden and puzzling psychological symptoms that illuminate the mysterious dimensions of the human mind—and of love.

The Murder Show by Matt Goldman

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The Murder Show is a pulse-racing novel about secrets, old friends, and how the past never leaves us by New York Times bestselling and Emmy Award winning author Matt Goldman.

The Amalfi Curse by Sarah Penner

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Powerful witchcraft. A hunt for sunken treasure. Forbidden love on the high seas. Beware the Amalfi Curse…

MAY 2025 FICTION BOOK RELEASES

Austen At Sea by Natalie Jenner

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Two pairs of siblings, devotees of Jane Austen, find their lives transformed by a visit to England and Sir Francis Austen, her last surviving brother and keeper of a long-suppressed, secret legacy.

All the Mothers by Domenica Ruta

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From New York Times bestselling author Domenica Ruta comes a heartfelt, hilarious novel about a single mom reimagining what the perfect family can look like.

Girls of Good Fortune by Kristina McMorris

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A captivating tale of resilience and hope, The Girls of Good Fortune explores the complexity of family and identity, the importance of stories that echo through generations, and the power of strength found beneath the surface.

The Retirement Plan by Sue Hincenbergs

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Three middle-aged best friends turn to murder in order to collect on their husbands’ life insurance policies…but are unaware that their husbands have a devious plan of their own, in this darkly funny debut—perfect for fans of The Thursday Murder Club and Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone.

The Manor of Dreams by Christina Li

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Mexican Gothic meets The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo in Christina Li’s haunting novel about the secrets that lie in wait in the crumbling mansion of a former Hollywood starlet, and the intertwined fates of the two Chinese American families fighting to inherit it.

Aftertaste by Daria Lavelle

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What if you could have one last meal with someone you’ve loved, someone you’ve lost? Combining the magic of Under the Whispering Door with the high-stakes culinary world of Sweetbitter, Aftertaste is an epic love story, a dark comedy, and a synesthetic adventure through food and grief.

The Missing Half by Ashley Flowers

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Two women haunted by their sisters’ unsolved disappearances band together in this captivating mystery from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of All Good People Here and host of the #1 true crime podcast Crime Junkie.

Immaculate Conception by Ling Ling Huang

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From the author of Natural Beauty, set in the fiercely competitive art world, a novel about an obsessive friendship upended by a cutting-edge technology purported to enhance empathy and connection

My Name Is Emilia del Valle by Isabel Allende

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In this spellbinding historical novel from the New York Times bestselling author of A Long Petal of the Sea and The Wind Knows My Name, a young writer journeys to South America to uncover the truth about her father—and herself.

The Man Made of Smoke by Alex North

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With his signature shock and suspense, Alex North brings us The Man Made of Smoke. In turn emotional, introspective, and utterly terrifying, this is a story of fathers and sons, shadows and secrets, and the fight we all face to escape the trauma of the past.

Slaying You by Michelle Gagnon

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A wildly funny thriller about reluctant partners who hit the danger jackpot when they discover that a serial killer is on their heels . . . again.

The Night Birds by Christopher Golden

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The next gripping, atmospheric horror novel from New York Times bestselling author Christopher Golden, set in a deteriorated, half-sunken freighter ship off the coast of Galveston, TX.

JUNE 2025 FICTION BOOK RELEASES

My Friends by Fredrik Backman

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#1 New York Times bestselling author Fredrik Backman returns with an unforgettably funny, deeply moving tale of four teenagers whose friendship creates a bond so powerful that it changes a complete stranger’s life twenty-five years later.

Don’t Let Him In by Lisa Jewell

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From #1 New York Times bestseller Lisa Jewell, an author “at the very top of her game” (Lucy Foley)—three women are connected by one man in this kaleidoscopic thriller.

The Listeners by Maggie Stiefvater

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#1 New York Times bestselling novelist Maggie Stiefvater dazzles in this mesmerizing portrait of an irresistible heroine, an unlikely romance, and a hotel—and a world—in peril.

A Language of Limbs by Dylin Hardcastle

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A beautifully inventive, tender novel—the author’s first to be published in the U.S.—following two lives as they almost intersect over three heartbreaking yet euphoric decades

The Accidental Favorite by Fran Littlewood

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From the New York Times bestselling author of Amazing Grace Adams comes a wryly resonant and deeply moving family dramedy investigating the question so many of us have asked ourselves: do my parents have a favorite?

The Stolen Life of Colette Marceau by Kristin Harmel

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Kristin Harmel, the New York Times bestselling author who “is the best there is at sweeping historical drama” (Kelly Harms, author of The Seven Day Switch), returns with an electrifying new novel about two jewel thieves, a priceless bracelet that disappears in 1940s Paris, and a quest for answers in a decades-old murder.

The Bachelorette Party by Camilla Sten

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Scream meets The Guest List in this wickedly compelling and compulsively page-turning thriller of friendship and murder from the author of The Lost Village, Camilla Sten.

Confessions of a Grammar Queen by Eliza Knight

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There are no female publishing CEOs in 1960’s New York. And that is exactly what savvy, ambitious Bernadette Swift plans to change.

Tell Me Something Good by Court Stevens

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This is a story of the rich and the very poor. This is a story of an illegal auction with dire consequences. This is a story of murders past and present. This is a story of intertwined relationships and the silent ripples they leave behind, where love becomes a guiding force, revealing the lengths one will go to protect those they cherish.

The Ghostwriter by Julie Clark

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A blistering literary suspense novel about a ghostwriter who is hired to write the last book for her estranged father and finds herself investigating the brutal murder of both his siblings in the summer of 1975.

The Other Side of Now by Paige Harbison

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A hilarious and heartfelt novel about how loves and lives are never truly lost, for fans of Rebecca Serle and Taylor Jenkins Reid.

Park Avenue by Renée Ahdieh

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#1 NYT-bestselling YA author Renee Ahdieh’s adult debut novel, about a young lawyer who gets pulled in to manage a crisis with her firm’s biggest client, a family whose Korean beauty brand is worth a billion dollars, pitched as Crazy Rich Asians meets Succession.

What releases are you looking forward to? Any other recommendations for us? Tell us in the comments below!

The post Fiction Book Releases To Check Out In 2025 appeared first on The Nerd Daily.

2025?! How!? Nevertheless, the upside of a new year is all of the new books that will be hitting shelves! We’ve rounded up some highly anticipated  books from a range of genres releasing between the months of January and June 2025.

You can expect new releases from the likes of Taylor Jenkins Reid, Emily Henry, Samantha Shannon, Richard Swan, Kate Alice Marshall, Tessa Bailey, Suzanne Collins, Chuck Wendig, Rachel Lynn Solomon, Christopher Golden, Becky Albertalli, Rebecca Yarros, VE Schwab, Maggie Stiefvater, Fredrik Backman, and so many more, plus many making their dazzling debuts!

You’ll find quite a few exciting new reads within this list and be sure to check out our other January to June 2025 lists, which we’ll be releasing over the next month! This article will also get updated with those links so you can easily find them… We apologise in advance to your TBR pile and wallet!

• 2025 Romance Book Releases
• 2025 YA Book Releases
• 2025 Fiction Book Releases
• 2025 Fantasy & Sci-Fi Book Releases

Read on to discover our picks and tell us in the comments below if you’ll be picking up any!

JANUARY 2025 BOOK RELEASES

I Think They Love You by Julian Winters

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With his funny, big-hearted adult rom com debut, bestselling, award-winning YA author Julian Winters shows sometimes fake dating your ex can turn into a second chance.

Breath of the Dragon by Fonda Lee and Shannon Lee

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A young warrior dreams of proving his worth in the elite Guardian Tournament, fighting not only for himself but the fate of everything he loves.

Cross My Heart by Megan Collins

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She has his dead wife’s heart; the one she wants is his. The author of The Family Plot brings her signature prose to a twisty novel about a heart transplant patient who becomes romantically obsessed with her donor’s husband.

Liar’s Kingdom by Christine Calella

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An Into the Woods-inspired fairy tale retelling where Cinderella never went to the ball and must lie to get her prince.

A Language of Dragons by S.F. Williamson

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In an alternate London in 1923, one girl accidentally breaks the tenuous truce between dragons and humans in this sweeping debut and epic retelling of Bletchley Park steeped in language, class, and forbidden romance. Perfect for teen fans of Fourth Wing and Babel.

Unromance by Erin Connor

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A recently dumped TV heartthrob enlists a jaded romance novelist to ruin romance for him—one rom-com trope at a time—so he never gets swept off his feet again . . .

The Rival by Emma Lord

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Rivals-to-lovers gets an academic send-up in this charming and irresistible romantic comedy from Emma Lord, New York Times bestselling author of Tweet Cute and Begin Again.

Witchcraft for Wayward Girls by Grady Hendrix

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A group of young women in a home for unwed mothers in 1970s Florida who find a book to witchcraft—a guide which may just be the key to regaining their power or the source of their worst nightmares.

Beg, Borrow, or Steal by Sarah Adams

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Two feuding second-grade teachers (and neighbors) find themselves teaming up in this new rivals-to-lovers romance set in Rome, Kentucky—from the New York Times bestselling author of The Rule Book and Practice Makes Perfect.

Beautiful Ugly by Alice Feeney

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A twisty domestic thriller about an author who travels to a remote Scottish island to write his next book…only to run into a woman who looks exactly like his missing wife. 

A Sea of Unspoken Things by Adrienne Young

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In this captivating atmospheric novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The Unmaking of June Farrow, a woman investigates her twin brother’s mysterious death while confronting the ghosts of her own haunted past.

Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros

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Get ready to fly or die in the breathtaking follow-up to Fourth Wing and Iron Flame from #1 New York Times bestselling author Rebecca Yarros.

FEBRUARY 2025 BOOK RELEASES

Hungerstone by Kat Dunn

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Set against the violent wilderness of the moors and the uncontrolled appetite of the industrial revolution, Hungerstone is a compulsive feminist reworking of Carmilla, the book that inspired Dracula: a captivating story of appetite and desire.

First-Time Caller by B.K. Borison

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A hopeless romantic meets a jaded radio host in this cozy, Sleepless in Seattle–inspired love story from beloved author B.K. Borison.

The Dark Mirror by Samantha Shannon

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The highly anticipated fifth novel in the New York Times bestselling Bone Season series-an epic and spellbinding fantasy from the author of The Priory of the Orange Tree.

A Killing Cold by Kate Alice Marshall

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A woman invited to her wealthy fiance’s family retreat realizes they are hiding a terrible secret―and that she’s been there before, by the bestselling author of What Lies in the Woods.

Emily Wilde’s Compendium of Lost Tales by Heather Fawcett

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The third installment in the heartwarming and enchanting Emily Wilde series, about a curmudgeonly scholar of folklore and the fae prince she loves.

Famous Last Words by Gillian McAllister

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An addictive thriller about a new mother’s world upended when her husband commits a terrifying crime. How well does she truly know the man she loves? And what danger does she face if her entire life has been built on a lie?

Grave Empire by Richard Swan

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From critically acclaimed author Richard Swan, Grave Empire begins the epic tale of an empire on the verge of industrial revolution, where sorcery and arcane practices are outlawed – and where an ancient prophecy threatens the coming end of days.

Dream Girl Drama by Tessa Bailey

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A steamy chance encounter between a professional hockey player and the manic pixie dream girl he just can’t seem to forget about takes a turn when the pair realize that their parents are engaged—in an all-new rom-com by #1 New York Times bestselling author Tessa Bailey.

The Otherwhere Post by Emily J. Taylor

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The New York Times bestselling author of Hotel Magnifique returns with another glittering dark fantasy about a deadly mystery that spans worlds and a teenage girl who must risk everything to uncover the truth.

Wooing The Witch Queen by Stephanie Burgis

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In a Gaslamp-lit world where hags and ogres lurk in thick pine forests, three magical queens form an uneasy alliance to protect their lands from invasion…and love turns their world upside down.

The Dollhouse Academy by Margarita Montimore

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With dark academia twists and enormous heart, The Dollhouse Academy is a novel about the complexities of friendship, our desire to be seen and understood, and the true cost of making our dreams a reality.

Under the Same Stars by Libba Bray

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From New York Times-bestselling author Libba Bray comes an evocative and groundbreaking young adult historical mystery that examines truth, rebellion, reconciliation, and what must be sacrificed for a better world.

MARCH 2025 BOOK RELEASES

Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins

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The phenomenal fifth book in the Hunger Games series. Sunrise on the Reaping revisits the world of Panem twenty-four years before the events of The Hunger Games, starting on the morning of the reaping of the Fiftieth Hunger Games, also known as the Second Quarter Quell.

Our Infinite Fates by Laura Steven

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The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue meets This is How You Lose The Time War in this fantastical love story that defies death as two souls reincarnate through the centuries.

A Gentleman’s Gentleman by TJ Alexander

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From the acclaimed author of Chef’s Kiss, a groundbreaking trans Regency romance that’s both delightfully witty and refreshingly iconoclastic.

Finlay Donovan Digs Her Own Grave by Elle Cosimano

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From New York Times bestseller and Edgar-Award nominee Elle Cosimano, comes Finlay Donovan Digs Her Own Grave―the hugely anticipated next installment in the fan-favorite Finlay Donovan series.

Fable for the End of the World by Ava Reid

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The Last of Us meets The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes in this stand-alone dystopian romance about survival, sacrifice, and love that risks everything.

This Book Will Bury Me by Ashley Winstead

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From the national bestselling author of In My Dreams I Hold a Knife and Midnight is the Darkest Hour comes a chilling, compulsive story of five amateur sleuths, whose hunt for an elusive killer catapults them into danger as the world watches.

The Haunting of Room 904 by Erika T. Wurth

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From the author of White Horse comes a terrifying and resonant novel about a woman who uses her unique gift to learn the truth about her sister’s death.

The Hymn to Dionysus Natasha Pulley

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A timely reimagining of the story of Dionysus-Greek god of ecstasy, revelry, and ruin-and a captivating queer love story for readers of The Song of Achilles and Elektra.

Jane and Dan at the End of the World by Colleen Oakley

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Date night goes off the rails in this hilariously insightful take on midlife and marriage when one unhappy couple find themselves at the heart of a crime in progress, from the USA Today bestselling author of The Mostly True Story of Tanner & Louise.

They Bloom at Night by Trang Thanh Tran

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The author of the New York Times bestselling horror phenomenon She Is a Haunting is back with a novel about the monsters that swim beneath us . . . and live within us.

All the Other Mothers Hate Me by Sarah Harman

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Hilarious and twisted, propulsive and furious, All the Other Mothers Hate Me is a mix of Catastrophe and Fleabag with a dash of Nancy Drew.

Code Word Romance by Carlie Walker

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One fake prime minister, one ridiculously hot handler, and one Italian summer collide in this thrilling adventure rom-com.

APRIL 2025 BOOK RELEASES

Great Big Beautiful Life by Emily Henry

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Two writers compete for the chance to tell the larger-than-life story of a woman with more than a couple of plot twists up her sleeve in this dazzling and sweeping new novel from Emily Henry.

Where Shadows Meet by Patrice Caldwell

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Set in the aftermath of a war between vampires, humans, and the gods that created them, Patrice Caldwell’s devastatingly romantic fantasy debut, Where Shadows Meet, centers the heart-wrenching pain of loss and the struggle of self-discovery to ask: do we choose our fates, or do our fates choose us?

The Notorious Virtues by Alwyn Hamilton

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Bestselling Rebel of the Sands author Alwyn Hamilton is back with a glittering fantasy thriller about a glamorous media darling, a surprise heiress, and the magical competition of a lifetime.

Their Monstrous Hearts by Yiğit Turhan

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A haunting novel about the boundaries people will cross to keep their dreams alive, perfect for fans of Mexican Gothic and Hereditary.

City of All Seasons by Oliver K. Langmead and Aliya Whiteley

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A vibrant and emotional science fantasy about cousins trapped in mirrored worlds – the resplendent and verdant summer city and the ice-carved wastes of the winter city. For fans of Every Heart a Doorway and This is How You Lose the Time War.

Somadina by Akwaeke Emezi

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From the National Book Award finalist and author of Pet comes a novel set in a magical West African world, about a teen girl who must save her missing twin while learning to navigate her own terrifying new powers.

The Staircase In The Woods by Chuck Wendig

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A group of friends investigates the mystery of a strange staircase in the woods in this mesmerizing horror novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The Book of Accidents.

The Folklore of Forever by Sarah Hogle

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From the acclaimed author of Old Flames and New Fortunes comes a steamy enemies-to-lovers romantasy about a paranormal skeptic who is roped into a ghost hunting romp by the charming boy next door . . . who might just show her what real fantasies are made of.

Don’t Sleep With The Dead by Nghi Vo

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From award-winning author Nghi Vo comes Don’t Sleep with the Dead, a standalone companion novella to The Chosen and the Beautiful, her acclaimed reimagining of The Great Gatsby.

Senseless by Ronald Malfi

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A page-turning, supernaturally-tinged LA puzzle-box thriller – Zodiac with teeth, from the Bram Stoker Award-nominated and bestselling author of Come with Me. Perfect for fans of Riley Sager and Lauren Beukes.

Rabbit Moon by Jennifer Haigh

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From the New York Times bestselling author of Mercy Street, a tense, propulsive family drama set in Shanghai, where a fractured American family faces its complicated past

Enchantra by Kaylie Smith

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Knives Out meets Throne of the Fallen in this spicy stand-alone romantasy set in the same world as USA Today bestselling author Kaylie Smith’s BookTok sensation Phantasma! The print edition includes custom silver foiling on the cover.

MAY 2025 BOOK RELEASES

The Love Haters by Katherine Center

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Swim lessons, helicopter flights, conga lines, drinking contests, hurricanes, and stolen kisses ―along with chances to tell the truth, to face old fears, and to be truly brave at last.

Silver Elite by Dani Francis

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In the first book of a searing new dystopian trilogy, a young woman must conceal her psychic powers—and her attraction to her handsome, infuriating commanding officer—as she works undercover to take down a brutal government from within.

My Name Is Emilia del Valle by Isabel Allende

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In this spellbinding historical novel from the New York Times bestselling author of A Long Petal of the Sea and The Wind Knows My Name, a young writer journeys to South America to uncover the truth about her father—and herself.

Overgrowth by Mira Grant

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Invasion of the Body Snatchers meets Day of the Triffids in this full-on body horror/alien invasion apocalypse.

The Incandescent by Emily Tesh

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Naomi Novik’s Scholomance series meets Plain Bad Heroines in this sapphic dark academia fantasy by instant national and international bestselling author Emily Tesh, winner of the Hugo and World Fantasy Awards.

What Happens in Amsterdam by Rachel Lynn Solomon

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Falling in love with your husband is anything but convenient in this steamy romance from the New York Times bestselling author of Business or Pleasure.

Come As You Are by Dahlia Adler

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In this opposites attract romance for fans of Begin Again and Better Than the Movies, a fresh start doesn’t have to mean changing yourself.

The Night Birds by Christopher Golden

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The next gripping, atmospheric horror novel from NYT bestselling author Christopher Golden, set in a deteriorated, half-sunken freighter ship off the coast of Galveston, TX.

The Thrashers by Julie Soto

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A twisty thrill-ride of unforgettable drama and suspense that “encapsulates the vulnerability of adolescents playing adult games” (Ali Hazelwood) from USA Today bestselling author Julie Soto, The Thrashers will keep you up at night desperate to read just one more page.

The Knight and the Moth by Rachel Gillig

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From NYT bestselling author Rachel Gillig comes the next big romantasy sensation, a gothic, mist-cloaked tale of a young prophetess who is forced on an impossible quest with the one infuriating knight whose future is beyond her sight. Perfect for fans of Jennifer L. Armentrout and Leigh Bardugo.

The Devils by Joe Abercrombie

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A brand-new epic fantasy from New York Times bestselling author Joe Abercrombie, featuring a notorious band of anti-heroes on a delightfully bloody and raucous journey

The Ladies Road Guide to Utter Ruin by Alison Goodman

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In Regency England, the eccentric Colebrook sisters are amateur detectives who use their wits and invisibility as “old maids” to fight injustice in this delightful and fiercely feminist novel of mystery and adventure from New York Times bestselling author Alison Goodman.

JUNE 2025 BOOK RELEASES

Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid

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From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo and Daisy Jones & The Six comes an epic new novel set against the backdrop of the 1980s space shuttle program and the extraordinary lengths we go to live and love beyond our limits.

Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil by Victoria E. Schwab

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From V. E. Schwab, the No. 1 Sunday Times and New York Times bestselling author of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue: a new genre-defying, unforgettable novel to sink your teeth into.

The Listeners by Maggie Stiefvater

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#1 New York Times bestselling novelist Maggie Stiefvater dazzles in this mesmerizing portrait of an irresistible heroine, an unlikely romance, and a hotel—and a world—in peril.

Amelia, If Only by Becky Albertalli

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The beautiful and heartwarming new romance from Becky Albertalli, best-selling author of Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda.

My Friends by Fredrik Backman

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#1 New York Times bestselling author Fredrik Backman returns with an unforgettably funny, deeply moving tale of four teenagers whose friendship creates a bond so powerful that it changes a complete stranger’s life twenty-five years later.

Park Avenue by Renée Ahdieh

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#1 NYT-bestselling YA author Renee Ahdieh’s adult debut novel, about a young lawyer who gets pulled in to manage a crisis with her firm’s biggest client, a family whose Korean beauty brand is worth a billion dollars, pitched as Crazy Rich Asians meets Succession.

Sounds Like Love by Ashley Poston

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A hitmaking songwriter and a bitter musician share a startling and inexplicable connection that they’ll do anything to shake, in the next sparkling, magical book from Ashley Poston.

Realm of Thieves by Karina Halle

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Two thieves vie for dominance in the illegal dragon egg trade, putting both their lives and their hearts on the line in this scorching romantasy from New York Times bestselling author Karina Halle.

He’s to Die For by Erin Dunn

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Brooklyn 99 meets The Charm Offensive in this sparkling romantic murder mystery: it’s murder cute in the first degree when a detective finds himself falling for the lead suspect in a career-making case.

The Ghostwriter by Julie Clark

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A blistering literary suspense novel about a ghostwriter who is hired to write the last book for her estranged father and finds herself investigating the brutal murder of both his siblings in the summer of 1975.

The Beautiful Maddening by Shea Ernshaw

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From #1 New York Times bestselling author Shea Ernshaw comes a haunting romantic contemporary fantasy about a teen navigating her family’s love curse that blooms with their enchanted tulips every year.

The Bachelorette Party by Camilla Sten

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Scream meets The Guest List in this wickedly compelling and compulsively page-turning thriller of friendship and murder from the author of The Lost Village, Camilla Sten.

What books are you looking forward to picking up in the first half of the year? Tell us in the comments below!

The post Anticipated Book Releases Hitting Shelves In 2025 appeared first on The Nerd Daily.

Eleanor was raised by her grandmother after her mother passed away when Eleanor was a young girl. Her grandmother, however, was not the warm and loving stereotypical “grandmother” image we often see portrayed in media and now that Eleanor is an adult, she has reached a negotiation with her grandmother where she is now required to have one phone call and one dinner per week with her. Obviously not the standard grandmother/granddaughter relationship, to say the least.

On one evening where she is expected at dinner, Eleanor walks in on her grandmother’s murder. With a medical condition that leaves Eleanor unable to recognize faces, she does not have the ability to help police catch the killer and this causes her great anxiety. After months have passed, Eleanor has sought treatment for her anxiety and is in a little bit better place when she is contacted by an attorney and finds that she needs to inventory an estate that her grandmother left her – one that she had not even known existed.

Upon arriving at the estate, located in the remote, snowy Swedish woods, dark secrets from the past slowly start to be revealed, but often leave even more questions. The more answers they seek, however, the more danger they seem to find themselves in.

A tale of buried family secrets and a twisted history hidden from one generation to the next, The Resting Place is a must-read for fans of Simone St. James, her dual timelines and her talent for balancing reality and the supernatural as well as fans of Ruth Ware’s The Death of Mrs. Westaway and its mysterious, isolated houses and inheritances.

Sten does a masterful job of putting the reader deep into the isolated snowy landscape, on edge about what might be just around the corner, never knowing whether the danger we feel is real or imagined. While the majority of the story is told from Eleanor’s point of view, the reader is able to feel both Eleanor’s anxiety as well as the frustrations and disbelief of the others present at the estate with her.

Dual timelines are tied together perfectly as this tale of mystery and family tragedy unfolds at just the right pace for any fan of psychological suspense.

The Resting Place is available from Amazon, Book Depository, and other good book retailers.

Will you be picking up The Resting Place? Tell us in the comments below!

Synopsis | Goodreads

A spine-chilling, propulsive psychological suspense from international sensation Camilla Sten.

The medical term is prosopagnosia. The average person calls it face blindness—the inability to recognize a familiar person’s face, even the faces of those closest to you.

When Eleanor walked in on the scene of her capriciously cruel grandmother, Vivianne’s, murder, she came face to face with the killer—a maddening expression that means nothing to someone like her. With each passing day, her anxiety mounts. The dark feelings of having brushed by a killer, yet not know who could do this—or if they’d be back—overtakes both her dreams and her waking moments, thwarting her perception of reality.

Then a lawyer calls. Vivianne has left her a house—a looming estate tucked away in the Swedish woods. The place her grandfather died, suddenly. A place that has housed a dark past for over fifty years.

Eleanor. Her steadfast boyfriend, Sebastian. Her reckless aunt, Veronika. The lawyer. All will go to this house of secrets, looking for answers. But as they get closer to bringing the truth to light, they’ll wish they had never come to disturb what rests there.

A heart-thumping, relentless thriller that will shake you to your core, The Resting Place is an unforgettable novel of horror and suspense.

The post Review: The Resting Place by Camilla Sten appeared first on The Nerd Daily.

Alice is a documentary film maker (or at least wants to be) and has always been obsessed with her grandmother’s old stories about the village of Silvertjarn that one day in 1959 simply disappeared, leaving only a newborn baby, and the corpse of a woman who was stoned to death in the center of the village. Alice’s grandmother’s parents and younger sister were among those villagers that disappeared and now that her grandmother has passed away, Alice believes the only way to get some resolution for all of her unanswered questions it to go to Silvertjarn and make a movie to try to explain what really happened sixty years ago.

Along with four of her friends and colleagues, Alice has planned a short trip to do some preliminary filming in hopes of getting some financial backing for her planned documentary. Nothing about this trip, however, goes as planned and almost as soon as they arrive misfortune begins to befall the group, in both natural and unexplained ways.

Filled with creepy imagery, happenings with no rational cause, and a constant cloud of mystery, The Lost Village will have readers glued to the page from beginning to end. Just as the makers of The Blair Witch Project understood, Camilla Sten proves that what you can’t see is always so much scarier than what you can see.

Sten puts the puzzle pieces together for the reader in a gradual way, interspersing chapters that take place in the late 1950’s leading up to the mysterious disappearance with what is happening present day with Alice and her group of friends. Never allowing time to relax, Sten gut-punches the reader more than once, but also provides a climax that is both exciting and satisfying. I can not recommend The Lost Village highly enough and am eagerly awaiting what Camilla Sten does next!

The Lost Village is available from Amazon, Book Depository, and other good book retailers, like your local bookstore, as of March 23rd 2021.

Will you be picking up The Lost Village? Tell us in the comments below!

Synopsis | Goodreads

The Blair Witch Project meets Midsommar in this brilliantly disturbing thriller from Camilla Sten, an electrifying new voice in suspense.

Documentary filmmaker Alice Lindstedt has been obsessed with the vanishing residents of the old mining town, dubbed “The Lost Village,” since she was a little girl. In 1959, her grandmother’s entire family disappeared in this mysterious tragedy, and ever since, the unanswered questions surrounding the only two people who were left—a woman stoned to death in the town center and an abandoned newborn—have plagued her. She’s gathered a small crew of friends in the remote village to make a film about what really happened.

But there will be no turning back.

Not long after they’ve set up camp, mysterious things begin to happen. Equipment is destroyed. People go missing. As doubt breeds fear and their very minds begin to crack, one thing becomes startlingly clear to Alice:

They are not alone.

They’re looking for the truth…
But what if it finds them first?

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