Yahoo Lifestyle The 16 Best New Book Releases This Week: Nov. 26-Dec. 2, 2024
Here are the 16 best new book releases this week: November 26 to December 2, 2024. Yes, it’s a slow week for new books. Every publisher rushes to make sure their big books of the fall are in stores and ready for Black Friday. And then they want you to find them when you’re online for CyberMonday! No matter who you’re shopping for, there’s a great book out there that would be perfect.
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And a week with fewer releases doesn’t mean a week with dull releases. Far from it! You’ll find new thrillers by James Patterson and Mike Lupica. A book celebrating all the books Taylor Swift loves! Romances! Fiction! A history of the Old West and the story of the NBA through its 100 greatest players! Coffee table books, like a lavish ode to Superman that’s perfect for the comic book/superhero lover in your life! See what I mean? So let’s get reading. At the head of the Parade are….
The 16 Best New Book Releases This Week: Nov. 26-Dec. 2, 2024
Courtesy of Little, Brown and Company; Delacorte Press; G.P. Putnam’s Sons
1. The House of Cross by James Patterson
2. Darkly by Marisha Pessl
3. Robert B. Parker’s Hot Property by Mike Lupica
Three thrillers to enliven the holidays.
New fans are discovering one of James Patterson’s most vivid creations thanks to the new Prime series Cross, starring Aldis Hodge. The first season just dropped to great reviews. Longtime fans will welcome the new thriller The House of Cross. Newcomers should start with Here Comes A Spider. That way, the many threats to the detective’s family and beloved Washington DC will have more impact.
Darkly is sort of a Willie Wonka for the Video Game age. The late game designer Louisiana Veda was a legend. His company Darkly may be moribund but Dia Gannon is still excited she landed an internship there, along with six other teens from around the world. But there’s a dangerous puzzle at the heart of Darkly and all the interns are players whether they like it or not…and unlike most video games, if they lose, there won’t be a do-over.
Author Mike Lupica keeps alive Spenser For Hire with the latest caper for the investigator first created by Robert B. Parker. Face it, if a character is memorable enough (Robin Hood, Sherlock Holmes, Spenser), someone is going to keep the stories coming. Just be glad Lupica is the one in charge here.
The House of Cross by James Patterson ($30; Little, Brown and Company) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Darkly by Marisha Pessl ($19.99; Delacorte Press) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Robert B. Parker’s Hot Property by Mike Lupica ($30; G.P. Putnam’s Sons) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Courtesy of Quirk Books
4. Taylor Swift By The Book by Rachel Feder and Tiffany Tatreau
I had a blast writing a feature about the 15 Books You Must Read If You’re Obsessed With Taylor Swift’s New Album. Authors Rachel Feder and Tiffany Tatreau do me one better by exploring all the books, poems and plays Swift has nodded to throughout her entire career. If you ever hang out with Swift, you’ll definitely want to be able to discuss The Bell Jar and countless other works important to her. So get going!
Taylor Swift By The Book by Rachel Feder and Tiffany Tatreau ($19.99; Quirk Books) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Courtesy of Berkley, Zebra, Wednesday Books
5. The Jewel of the Isle by Kerry Rea
6. A Worthington Wedding by Ella Quinn
7. Not For The Faint of Heart by Lex Croucher
Three romances to spice up the holidays.
The Jewel of the Isle is a shameless spin on the classic Kathleen Turner and Michael Douglas romp. This time our hero is a woman fulfilling her dad’s bucket list of awesome national parks to hike. Too bad the tour guide she hires is pretty clueless about, you know, hiking or making a fire or pretty much anything outdoorsy. On the bright side, he’s awfully handsome and they need to partner up to avoid killers and maybe find a precious jewel, so partner up they will.
In A Worthington Wedding, Charles (Earl of Stanwood, thank you very much) believes he has rescued a damsel in distress by winning the estate of a family that would have been sent packing by their home’s dissolute owner. Instead, he’s sent packing by the determined Miss Oriana Ognon, who (despite her very awkward name) is very pretty and very clear that she has title to the home, thank you very much and good day to you, sir! Not even a spot of tea is proffered! Well, his interest is piqued and she must admit he’s about the handsomest fellow she’s ever seen. So perhaps a Worthington Wedding is in the cards after all.
In Not For The Faint of Heart, the granddaughter of Robin Hood is determined to prove herself worthy to the other Merry Men (and Women). So why does her unintentional captive–the charming and appealing healer Clem–seem so determined to distract Mariel from her duties? Critics call this lighthearted and quite funny.
The Jewel of the Isle by Kerry Rea ($19; Berkley) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
A Worthington Wedding by Ella Quinn ($8.99; Zebra) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Not For The Faint of Heart by Lex Croucher ($20; Wednesday Books) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Courtesy of St. Martin’s Press, William Morrow, NYRB Classics
8. Four Against The West by Joe Pappalardo
9. The Basketball 100 by David Aldridge & John Hollinger with The Athletic NBA Staff
10. The Village of Ben Suc by Jonathan Schell
Three very different works of history.
Four Against The Wind is about the legendary Judge Roy Bean and his brothers as they tore a path through the Old West from Kentucky to California. The Basketball 100 comes from the team at the New York Times site The Athletic and they’re ready to tell you who the 100 greatest players of all time are…and then they’re ready to hear your arguments about why they are wrong, wrong, wrong.
Finally, from the NYRB Classics imprint (buy anything they put out; seriously) comes a work of uncompromising reportage from the Vietnam War. Reporter Jonathan Schell was embedded with US troops when they set out to level Vietnamese villages and then move the people to another, newer village. They were expected to be thrilled at having their lives upended, but somehow slaughter and the leveling of their world proved less than popular. Schell’s reporting isn’t a look back with 20/20 hindsight. It’s reporting done at the time, showing how clear it was that US policy would be a disaster on every level. It’s a gripping work of history and insightful for every future occupation, like Iraq and Afghanistan and whatever comes next.
Four Against The West by Joe Pappalardo ($32; St. Martin’s Press) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
The Basketball 100 by David Aldridge & John Hollinger with The Athletic NBA Staff ($40; William Morrow) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
The Village of Ben Suc by Jonathan Schell ($16.95; NYRB Classics) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Courtesy of Catapult, Ecco, Restless Books
11. Best Debut Short Stories 2024 edited by Kendall Storey and Elizabeth Pankova
12. City of Night Birds by Juhea Kim
13. The Third Temple by Yishai Sarid; translated by Yardenne Greenspan
Three works of fiction give insight into what is happening right now.
Best Debut Short Stories 2024 is a smart spin on the welcome annual tradition of presenting the best stories in genres like fiction, mystery, sci-fi, reporting, science and so on. This one gives you a snapshot of the hot new talent making waves in literary magazines.
City of Night Birds is set in the world of Russian ballet. A once famed dancer saw her career derailed by injury. Now she has a chance at a comeback, if she can trust the man she loved (loves?) and the choreographer with an uncompromising vision. Set in 2019 St. Petersburg Ruissia right before COVID, it feels like it takes place a million years ago. But the world of artists is always a hotbed of intrigue and the invasion of Ukraine and other worldly events intrude on that rarified realm with brutal impact.
Finally, The Third Temple is set in a dystopian future Jerusalem (but like, a Jerusalem of tomorrow) where fanaticism reigns Supreme. But our hero is wrestling with angels in his dreams, angels who say his father (the self-proclaimed King) is committing sacrilege and the torments and plagues won’t cease until something is done to rectify it all. Author Yishai Sarid is one of the most acclaimed writers in Israel right now and this book received with high praise.
Best Debut Short Stories 2024 edited by Kendall Storey and Elizabeth Pankova ($16.95; Catapult) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
City of Night Birds by Juhea Kim ($30; Ecco) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
The Third Temple by Yishai Sarid; translated by Yardenne Greenspan ($26; Restless Books) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
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Courtesy of powerHouse Books
14. Paris in Winter: An Illustrated Memoir by David Coggins
This 2015 memoir is a quirky, charming delight about a New York family with an annual tradition of heading to Paris for the winter. Well, of course! Clearly we’re in rarified New Yorker magazine territory. But writer David Coggins depicts his family and their passions and traditions with wry amusement. Sealing the deal are his delightful watercolors capturing Parisian life on the fly. For armchair travelers, fans of family memoirs and those who enjoy travel books. It’s the sort of work that will pop back into view, with those in the know saying “what a delight” and then it slips back into relative obscurity, just waiting for someone like you to be intrigued by the cover, pick it up, read the first page or so…and find yourself happily immersed in someone else’s charmed life.
Paris in Winter: An Illustrated Memoir by David Coggins ($29.95; powerHouse Books) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Courtesy of Insight Editions, Magic Hour Press
15. Superman: The Definitive History by Edward Gross and Robert Greenberger
16. Suzanne and Louise by Hervé Guibert; translated by Christine Pichini
Two coffee table books make perfect gifts for any budget.
Superman: The Definitive History covers the Man of Steel in every iteration: comic strips, comic books, movie serials, TV shows, animated cartoons, graphic novels, toys, games and live action films, including the greatest super hero movie of all time, Superman: The Movie. It’s a lavish presentation bursting with cool artwork and photographs.
Suzanne and Louise is a classic work of photo documentary by Hervé Guibert. His great aunts intrigued Guibert. They lived alone in a rambling townhouse, the older sister dominating their lives while the younger one (a former nun) rebelled in her own, secret ways. Guibert returned weekly to shoot them as they went about their daily routines. The result was a “photo novel” in 1980 that captured these lives with rare intimacy and power. Finally translated into English (which is very welcome), but really, you don’t need any translation to appreciate the power of his images. The story Guibert tells is all there.
Superman: The Definitive History by Edward Gross and Robert Greenberger ($175; Insight Editions) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Suzanne and Louise by Hervé Guibert; translated by Christine Pichini ($35; Magic Hour Press) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
