One spring morning, a stranger named Theo arrives in the small Southern city of Golden. He doesn’t explain much about where he came from or why he’s there—but when he visits the local coffeehouse, where pencil portraits of the people of Golden hang on the walls, he begins purchasing them, one at a time, and giving each portrait to the person depicted. In exchange, he asks only for the person’s story. And so portrait by portrait, person by person, secrets are revealed, regrets are shared, and ordinary lives are profoundly altered. A story of giving and receiving, of seeing and being seen, Theo of Golden is an unforgettable novel about the power of generosity, the importance of connection, and the quiet miracles that happen when we choose kindness and wonder.

Can love draw them together . . . again? After a traumatic accident, a young couple tries to find their way back to each other - and themselves - in this tender, slow-burn romance by the bestselling author of Ready or Not and Promise Me Sunshine. Roz and Vin can't look each other in the eyes anymore, let alone share a bed. It's been a year since they survived a traumatic car accident and their marriage hasn't been the same. But Roz has held out hope that they can fix things . . . until she discovers that Vin has signed a new lease. So she does what any soon-to-be-divorced Manhattanite would do: she signs up for figure drawing class. Ignoring Vin's impending move-out date would be a lot easier if he wasn't her best-friends brother - and if he hadn't just offered to let her draw him. After all, that's known to make a separation easier, right? Focus on every detail of your estranged spouse's body while drawing them in the nude? But after the year they've spent avoiding each other, it feels good to see and be seen by one another again. As Roz works to capture the wholeness of the person she fell in love with, will they both be able to draw upon the feelings they buried deep inside to finally heal together?

When you lose your way in life, the Elsewhere Express just might find you. Step aboard the train that can take you to your life’s purpose, in this cozy and inspiring fantasy from the author of Water Moon.This hardcover edition Interactive endpapers with a scene you can color inA full-color illustrated book case beneath the jacketYou can’t buy a ticket for the Elsewhere Express. Appearing only to those whose lives are adrift, it’s a magical train carrying very rare and special a sense of purpose, peace, and belonging.Raya is one of those lost souls. She dreamed of being a songwriter, but when her brother died, she gave up on her dream and started living his instead.One day, as her thoughts wander while on the subway, she's swept off to the Elsewhere Express. There she meets Q, a charming, handsome artist who, like her, has lost his place in the world.Together they find a train full of wonders, from a boarding car that's also a meadow to a dining car where passengers can picnic on lilypads to a bar where jellyfish and whales swim through pink clouds.But they also discover that the train harbors secrets—and A mysterious stranger has stowed away on the train and brought with him a dark, malignant magic that threatens to destroy it.But in investigating the stowaway's identity, Raya also finds herself drawing closer to the ultimate What is her life's true purpose—and might Q be connected to it?

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • A jaded twentysomething is stuck living at home, her life on pause, when a single dad becomes her new neighbor and unexpectedly sets her life—and her heart—into motion in this modern love story from the bestselling author of You, Again. Sometimes love shows up where you least expect it—right next door. At twenty-six, Sam Pulaski expected to be thriving in her academic career, living on her own in some exciting city. Expectations meet reality: She has massive student loan debt from studying art history, a dead-end service industry job, a situationship that’s equal parts intoxicating and toxic. And she’s been crashing in her mom’s condo—at least it’s not a basement?—for the last five years. If she can finally get accepted into a PhD program and get out of Ohio, the adult life that’s been on hold for half her twenties will finally begin. Her mom’s new neighbor, Nick, is the ultimate grown-up. His adult life began the moment his nine-year-old daughter, Kira, was born. Her happiness is Nick’s only priority, especially in the wake of divorce. There’s nothing he won’t do for Kira, including giving up his globe-trotting career for something more stable . . . like managing a chain restaurant. Sam has zero interest in an ultra-dependable guy pushing forty; frankly, she’s a little afraid of kids. But with just one thin wall separating the two condos, Nick proves difficult to avoid. His quiet confidence forces Sam to grapple with the other men in her life: her emotionally derelict friendwithbenefits and her actually derelict father. As her unexpected connection with Nick heats up (and steams up his minivan windows), Sam finds herself falling fast for a man whose life is steady and settled—while hers is anything but.

I’m used to my life being insanity. A family of a-holes, being locked up, and a few loose screws? Yeah anyone would go crazy. (Not that I am. I’m different, that’s all). My brothers say I’m the loose canon of the family. The truth is that I’m the life of the party! The party comes to a screeching halt when I meet Ash. Shy, younger, virgin. He’s everything I’m not attracted to. Give me an experienced partner anyday. But there’s something about him that makes me want to keep him. Maybe I want to stoke that fire I see in his eyes. Or maybe I’m just lonelier than I thought. Either way, he’s mine. Nobody, and I mean nobody, will take Ash away from me. (Blurb may change) Gritty M/M romance.

A five-thousand-year-old woman who has outlived empires and a doctor who’s spent his life fighting death collide in this novella from New York Times bestselling author Ali Hazelwood. Lilit of Nineveh has spent millennia in control. As a powerful revenant, she enforces one rule above all: protect mortals. Disciplined and focused, she has never made the same mistake twice, and she has learned that attachments can only lead to ruin. Enter Roman Martin. An overworked and relentlessly kind ER physician, he is the one mortal Lilit cannot quit. Any relationship between them is against everything Lilit has fought for. Still, she keeps coming back to him. Until someone starts hunting Lilit, and Roman is caught in the crossfire. When everything comes crashing down, Lilit must choose between the world she has sworn to protect and the man she was never meant to love.

All's fair in love and lore. Joonie is living in a fantasy—at least that's what people keep telling her. A copywriter by day and fanfic auteur by night, Joonie continues to date and dump disappointing men in search of a happily ever after. But every potential suitor seems to have one flaw in They can't hold a candle to her book boyfriend, Ryke. The protagonist of her favorite fantasy romance series (and, notably, a sexy merman), Ryke is a symbol for the life Joonie craves and the kind of relationship she deserves. So with a book always in her back pocket, why would she ever settle for less? But when Joonie learns that Ryke's character is based on someone the author knows in real life, she embarks on an epic quest to track him down, meet him in person, and determine once and for all if soulmates really do exist. Unfortunately, her brother's annoying best friend who doesn't believe in love or happy endings insists on hitching a ride. And like any great hero's journey, it doesn't take long for the trials and tribulations to begin.  As Joonie fights her way toward her love interest, using the skills she acquired through reading, she'll learn an important You can pursue a fantasy, but you can't always write your own plot. As unhinged as it is brilliant, Female Fantasy is both a self-aware dive into the concept of genre and a wild, steamy romp. Most of all, though, it's a heartfelt love letter to romance readers everywhere.

No one’s ever told Eleanor that life should be better than fine. Meet Eleanor Oliphant: She struggles with appropriate social skills and tends to say exactly what she’s thinking. Nothing is missing in her carefully timetabled life of avoiding social interactions, where weekends are punctuated by frozen pizza, vodka, and phone chats with Mummy. But everything changes when Eleanor meets Raymond, the bumbling and deeply unhygienic IT guy from her office. When she and Raymond together save Sammy, an elderly gentleman who has fallen on the sidewalk, the three become the kinds of friends who rescue one another from the lives of isolation they have each been living. And it is Raymond’s big heart that will ultimately help Eleanor find the way to repair her own profoundly damaged one. Soon to be a major motion picture produced by Reese Witherspoon, Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine is the smart, warm, and uplifting story of an out-of-the-ordinary heroine whose deadpan weirdness and unconscious wit make for an irresistible journey as she realizes. . . The only way to survive is to open your heart.

An almost-mage discovers friendship—and maybe something more—in the unlikeliest of places in this delightfully charming novel from the USA Today bestselling author of The Teller of Small Fortunes.Certainty Bulrush wants to be useful—to the Guild of Mages that took her in as a novice, to the little brother who depends on her, and to anyone else she can help. Unfortunately, her tepid magic hasn’t proven much use to anyone. When Certainty has the chance to earn her magehood via a seemingly straightforward assignment, she takes it. Nevermind that she’ll have to work with Mage Aurelia, the brilliant, unfairly attractive overachiever who’s managed to alienate everyone around her.The two must transport minorly magical artifacts somewhere safe: Shpelling, the dullest, least magical village around. There, they must fix up an old warehouse, separate the gossipy teapots from the kind-of-flaming swords, corral an unruly little catdragon who has tagged along, and above all: avoid complications. The Guild’s uneasy relationship with citizens is at a tipping point, and the last thing needed is a magical incident.Still, as mage and novice come to know Shpelling’s residents—and each other—they realize the Guild’s hoarded magic might do more good being shared. Friendships blossom while Certainty and Aurelia work to make Shpelling the haven it could be. But magic is fickle—add attraction and it might spell trouble.

Emily Austin, the bestselling “queen of darkly quirky, endearingly flawed heroines” (Sarah Haywood, author of The Cactus), returns with 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. Darcy’s life turned out better than she could have ever imagined. She is a librarian at the local branch, while her wife Joy runs a book binding service. Between the two of them, there is no more room on their shelves with their ample book collections, various knickknacks and bobbles, and dried bouquets. Rounding out their ideal life is two cats and a sun-soaked house by the lake. But when Darcy receives the news that her ex-boyfriend, Ben, has passed away, she spirals into a pit of guilt and regret, resulting in a mental breakdown and medical leave from the library. When she returns to work, she is met by unrest in her community, and protests surrounding intellectual freedom, resulting in a call for book bans and a second look at the branch’s upcoming DEI programs. Through the support of her community, colleagues, and the personal growth that results from examining her previous relationships, Darcy comes into her own agency and the truest version of herself. Is This a Cry for Help? not only offers a moving portrait of queer life after coming of age but also powerfully explores questions about sexuality, community, and the importance of libraries.

I’m used to my life being insanity. A family of a-holes, being locked up, and a few loose screws? Yeah anyone would go crazy. (Not that I am. I’m different, that’s all). My brothers say I’m the loose canon of the family. The truth is that I’m the life of the party! The party comes to a screeching halt when I meet Ash. Shy, younger, virgin. He’s everything I’m not attracted to. Give me an experienced partner anyday. But there’s something about him that makes me want to keep him. Maybe I want to stoke that fire I see in his eyes. Or maybe I’m just lonelier than I thought. Either way, he’s mine. Nobody, and I mean nobody, will take Ash away from me. (Blurb may change) Gritty M/M romance.

When two young rival journalists find love through a magical connection, they must face the depths of hell, in a war among gods, to seal their fate forever. After centuries of sleep, the gods are warring again. But eighteen-year-old Iris Winnow just wants to hold her family together. Her mother is suffering from addiction and her brother is missing from the front lines. Her best bet is to win the columnist promotion at the Oath Gazette. To combat her worries, Iris writes letters to her brother and slips them beneath her wardrobe door, where they vanish―into the hands of Roman Kitt, her cold and handsome rival at the paper. When he anonymously writes Iris back, the two of them forge a connection that will follow Iris all the way to the front lines of battle: for her brother, the fate of mankind, and love. Shadow and Bone meets Lore in this epic enemies-to-lovers fantasy novel filled with hope and heartbreak, and the unparalleled power of love.

Debut author Shen Tao introduces readers to the lush, deadly world of The Poet Empress, a sweeping, epic and intimate fantasy perfect for fans of The Serpent & the Wings of Night, The Song of Achilles and She Who Became the Sun. Wei Yin is desperate. After the fifth death of a sibling, with her family and village on the brink of starvation, she will do anything to save those she loves. Even offer herself as concubine to the cruel, dissolute heir of the blood-gutted Azalea House—where poetry magic is power, but women are forbidden to read. But in a twist of fate, the palace now stands on the knife-edge of civil war, with Wei trapped in its center. . . with a violent prince. To save herself and the nation, she must survive the dangers of court, learn to read in secret, and compose the most powerful spell of all. A ballad of love. . . and death. The Poet Empress is an epic fantasy that explores darker themes, subjects, and scenes that may not be suitable for all readers. Please see the author's content note at the beginning of the book.

Welcome to Harker Academy for Deviant Defense. Keep your daggers sharp, and your wits even sharper.Viv Abbot is an average twenty-one-year-old girl. She lives in an expensive city where the rent is too high, works long hours at a thankless job, and is dating a guy she doesn’t even like in the hopes of winning her prickly mother’s approval.She also happens to be a demon hunter.Ever since her father's murder, she's been forced to hunt deviants alone, meaning everyone, including her family, sees her as an outsider . . . until the day she crosses paths with a dangerously alluring demon, Reid Graveheart. The reformed deviant tells her of a school for people just like Harker Academy for Deviant Defense. If she enrolls, she'll learn to hone her craft, work with other hunters, and never be alone again.But Viv has a deadly secret. One that not even her new friends at Harker can know about, not if the school might hold the answers to untangling the mystery surrounding Viv's father’s death. When strange occurrences begin to plague the students, Viv will have to figure out who she can trust, fast, all while trying to ace her classes, avoid falling for a demon, and make it through her first year at Harker in one piece. How hard could that be?

Jamie Wendon-Dale may design haunted houses, but they don't actually believe in ghosts—until they meet Edgar Lovejoy, who is tall, clever, beautiful…and 100% haunted. A COZY, GHOSTLY LGBTQIA+ ROMANCE Jamie Wendon-Dale creates haunted houses for a living. Haunting is their life—but nobody working New Orleans' spooky circuit actually believes in ghosts. Edgar Lovejoy is 100% haunted. No, really. Ghosts have tormented him since childhood and he's organized his life around attempts to avoid them. Opposites? Get ready to attract. But while Jamie's biggest concern is that Edgar sometimes seems a bit distracted, Edgar's fears are much greater. Not only is he scared of encountering the dearly departed whenever he leaves the house, but he's terrified of making himself vulnerable to Jamie. After all, how do you tell someone who believes ghosts only exist as smoke and mirrors that you see them everywhere you go? And how can you trust in a happy future when you can't even believe in yourself? A little spooky, a little magical, and a whole lot The (Most Unusual) Haunting of Edgar Lovejoy will leave you feeling like you've found a brand new bookish family of your own.

YOU'RE HERE BECAUSE OF A STORY . . . It starts with a class in an old movie theatre. Folklore 517: Local Legends and Urban Myths, taught by a woman called the Professor. Most students believe the Professor's stories are just fiction, but Holland St. James has always been convinced that magic is real. Her search for the truth leads her to a dazzling new world, a deadly ultimatum hidden at the heart of Los Angeles, and into the path of a magnetic stranger who claims he's been sent to save her life. But everyone in this intoxicating new world is lying to her, even this stranger. And if she can't figure out whom to trust, her magical reality could change from a Hollywood dream to a nightmare. Alchemy of Secrets is the spectacular new novel from global phenomenon Stephanie Garber, the multimillion-copy bestselling author of the Caraval and Once Upon a Broken Heart series. Fusing spellbinding Hollywood secrets with a cinematic mystery, it will transport you into another world.

Meddling gods. A magical card system. An apocalypse no one could have predicted. Jake is working at the neighborhood market under his apartment when the world ends. He expected nuclear war, a computer virus, or even climate change burning everyone to a crisp to bring about the downfall of civilization. But cruel and arbitrary gods from another world? Who would have guessed that? When these cruel gods shuffled Earth like a deck of cards, nothing was in the same place anymore. Monsters, dungeons, and magical items appear scattered across the globe. And suddenly, everyone has access to a new, strange magical card system that gives them magical powers. Jake, wasting his day slacking off in the cooler, as he usually did, found himself alone in a completely new and very dangerous world. Can he learn to survive? Can he collect enough cards and create a good enough deck to fight back against the monsters that have overtaken his former home? And why are these strange people that look a lot like elves knocking on the door of the market he is hiding in and asking to buy some of his goods? The gods may have stacked the deck against him, but Jake just might have a few cards up his sleeve that will help him survive.