Next week in fiction, two buzzy titles arrive: NBA finalist Dana Spiotta returns with her third novel and British author Glen Duncan delivers a literary werewolf thriller for adults. In nonfiction, Jaycee Dugard tells the story of her kidnapping and 18 years as a captive of her abductor and will appear on major evening and morning news shows, while journalist Ben Mezrich returns with a real-life NASA-related adventure.

Watch List

Stone Arabia by Dana Spiotta (Scribner) is the third novel by this National Book Award finalist, about a conflicted artist in Southern California and his sister, who is convinced he’s a genius. PW says its “clever structure, jaundiced affection for Los Angeles, and diamond-honed prose” make this “one of the most moving and original portraits of a sibling relationship in recent fiction.” It also gets an early review in New York magazine, which calls it “good, sly fun, but … also tender, rueful, and shrewd.”

The Last Werewolf by Glen Duncan (Knopf)  is a literate page-turner about a 201-year-old werewolf who is the last of his kind. It’s getting a big push from the publisher, buzz from early readers, and has been mentioned at BEA’s Shout and Share as well as on our very own GalleyChat. This one’s a fun (and dirty!) read.

Rising Star

Iron House by John Hart (Thomas Dunne Books) is the story of two orphaned boys separated by violence. It’s the fourth literary thriller by this award-winning writer, whose last book (The Last Child) was a bestseller. This one has an announced 200,000-copy first printing and is the #1 Indie Next pick for August.

Usual Suspects

A Dance with Dragons by George R.R. Martin (Bantam) is the long awaited fifth installment of the epic fantasy A Song of Ice and Fire series. It already had a strong fan base that was expanded by HBO’s Game of Thrones, based on the first book. Its been in the Amazon Top Ten for a month. Recent news stories about  spoilers surfacing on fan sites on the Web are just adding to the excitement.

Quinn by Iris Johansen (St. Martin’s) is a follow-up to Eve that delves deep into the life and psyche of Eve Duncan’s lover and soul mate, Joe Quinn. As a ruthless killer closes in, long-held secrets are gradually revealed. LJ, PW and Booklist all say it’s a pulse-pounder.

Then Came You by Jennifer Weiner (Atria) is the story of four women whose lives intertwine in creating a child through reproductive technology. LJ says, “fans of Marian Keyes, Anna Maxted, and other authors of serious chick lit will thoroughly enjoy this title for its humor mixed with a sympathetic portrayal of real women’s lives and challenges.”

Blood Work: An Original Hollows Graphic Novel by Kim Harrison (Del Rey) brings the authors popular urban crime fantasy series to visual form.

Young Adult Fiction

Dragon’s Oath by P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast (St. Martin’s Griffin) is the first in a new mini-series of novellas, and tells the story behind the fencing instructor in the bestselling House of Night series.

Forever by Maggie Stiefvater (Scholastic) concludes the Wolves of Mercy Falls werewolf trilogy.

Nonfiction

A Stolen Life by Jaycee Dugard (Simon & Schuster) is a memoir by a woman who was kidnapped in 1991 at age 11 and endured 18 years of living with her abductor and his wife, bearing and raising his child before she was discovered in 2009. This one has an impressive news lineup. It’s on the cover of the July 18 issue of People, with an excerpt and a brief Q&A with Diane Sawyer about her  two-hour interview with Dugard, to air on ABC’s PrimeTime July 10th. Sawyer says that her spirit “will astonish you” and that “everything she says makes you stop and examine yourself and your life.” She is also scheduled for Good Morning America on July 12th.

Sex on the Moon: The Amazing Story Behind the Most Audacious Heist in History by Ben Mezrich is the story of a fellow in a NASA program who schemed to steal rare moon rocks as a way to impress his new girlfriend. The author wrote Accidental Billionaires (the basis for the movie The Social Network). Our own view is that the details about the space program will be catnip for space junkies (and even those who are not – the James Bond stuff they have at the Johnson Space Center is amazing), but the central character doesn’t have the celebrity value of Mark Zuckerberg, so it may not draw a wider audience. It is currently being developed for a movie, by the same production team that created Social Network, but with Will Gluck (Easy A) directing, rather than David Fincher.

I’m Feeling Lucky: The Confessions of Google Employee Number 59 by Douglas Edwards (Houghton Mifflin) is the story of Google’s rise from the perspective of the company’s first director of marketing. PW says, ” The book’s real strength is its evenhandedness” and that it’s “more entertaining than it really has any right to be,” though Kirkus finds it less focused than it could be, given all the other books written about Google.

Of Thee I Zing: America’s Cultural Decline from Muffin Tops to Body Shots by Laura Ingraham and Raymond Arroyo (Threshold) criticizes the contemporary American culture of consumerism.

Next week, look out for two titles librarians have been talking about – a new thriller by Chevy Stevens about an adoptee who discovers her fraught roots, and Alice LePlante’s probing look into the mind of a woman with dementia. Usual suspects Barbara Delinsky, Tess Gerritson and J.A. Jance also weigh in, along with YA author Sara Shepard. And in nonfiction, Rolling Stone writer Janet Reitman reveals the inner workings of Scientology.

Watch List

Never Knowing by Chevy Stevens (St. Martins) is a thriller about an adoptee who searches for her birth mother, only to discover that the woman is the only surviving victim of the serial killer who was her father. This one could be big: it follows Stevens’ popular debut, Still Missing (2010). and has been a buzz title among librarians in our Twitter GalleyChat (reminder: the next GalleyChat is on Tuesday, July 12, from 4 to 5 pm, Eastern). Kirkus says it’s “as finely calculated in its escalating suspense as Stevens’ grueling debut.”

Turn of Mind by Alice LaPlante (Atlantic Monthly) is a debut novel about a retired orthopedic surgeon succumbing to dementia, who is uncertain whether or not she was involved in the murder of her friend. The publisher has high expectations for this one, co-sponsoring a librarian dinner in San Francisco with EarlyWord to get the word out. A New York Times is in the works.

Usual Suspects

Escape by Barbara Delinsky (Doubleday) is the story of a lawyer who breaks abruptly from her career and marriage and seeks a fresh start in New Hampshire. PW says, “Delinsky keeps the story moving with some nice twists on a familiar plot, rich characterizations, and real-feeling dilemmas that will keep readers hooked.”

Betrayal of Trust (J. P. Beaumont Series #20) by J. A. Jance (Morrow) is a thriller about privileged teens and the well-heeled parents who extricate them from the consequences of their crimes. Kikus declares that this story that will leave readers “wanting more.”

The Silent Girl: A Rizzoli & Isles Novel by Tess Gerritsen (Ballantine) is a thriller about a twisted killer in Boston’s Chinatown, featuring homicide detective Jane Rizzoli and medical examiner Maura Isles in their 10th outing. Booklist says, “Recent series entries have been solid, workmanlike thrillers, but this one has some real spark to it. Fans should definitely check it out, and readers who have wandered away from the series might want to give it another try.”

Young Adult

Twisted (Pretty Little Liars Series #9) by Sara Shepard (HarperTeen) is the latest installment in the #1 New York Times bestselling series, which is also an ABC Family hit TV series.

Nonfiction

Inside Scientology: The Story of America’s Most Secretive Religion by Janet Reitman (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt) is an exploration of the “church” created by science fiction writer L. Ron Hubbard in 1954, by a contributing writer to Rolling Stone. LJ says her tone is “evenhanded,” while PW declares that “Reitman plows through her abundant material without an organizing narrative arc; consequently, many of the chapters pile on without providing satisfying conclusions. The only hopeful conclusion Reitman offer,sand most readers will agree, is that Scientology is shrinking, with less than 250,000 members worldwide.”

On tap next week, a controversial UK novel that has received early attention here, the first novel by singer/songwriter Josh Ritter, plus several titles from repeat authors, poised for best seller lists.

Watch List

Untold Story by Monica Ali (Scribner) finds Princess Diana alive and well, living incognito in an ordinary American town, in this fourth novel from the British author who was named by Granta as one of Britain’s 20 best young novelists in 2003. Her first novel, “Brick Lane,” was on the shortlist for the prestigious Man Booker Prize.

Its big rollout in the UK, just before the William/Kate Royal wedding, brought accusations that the timing was poor and the subject beneath a literary writer. Perhaps because of this attention, it got an early review from Michiko Kakutani the 6/13 NYT. She points out that this book seems “quite a departure from the subject matter of Ms. Ali’s earlier work; both Brick Lane and her second novel, In the Kitchen, drew portraits of a gritty, multicultural London,” yet it allows Ali to “address some of the same questions of identity and exile that animated her earlier work.” In the end, however, she finds it “preposterously gimmicky.”

Ali defends the book in an interview in the Wall Street Journal today. In the 6/25 NYT Book Review, Curtis Settenfeld, who reimagined Laura Bush’s life in the novel American Wife, also finds Untold Story falls short. Entertainment Weekly gives it a solid B, saying the story is told with “empathetic energy that puts a literary gloss on a beachread subject.” It is on O magazine’s Summer Reading List. Holds are building in some libraries.

The Girl in the Blue Beret by Bobbi Ann Mason (Random House) is the story of an American World War II pilot shot down in Occupied Europe, inspired by the wartime experiences of the novelist’s late father-in-law. LJ says, “the rich setting, detail, and intimate character nuances ring true. Great crossover appeal for fans of the award-winning author, World War II fiction, and novels with French settings.”

Bright’s Passage by Josh Ritter (Dial Press) is the story of a soldier who returns to West Virginia to take care of his infant son after his wife’s death, by a singer and songwriter Entertainment Weekly declared one of the “Ten Most Exciting Artists Now.” Library Journal says, “This expressive and darkly humorous tale of a man desperately attempting to salvage his future while coping with his past will attract Ritter’s fans and readers who enjoy a bit of magical realism in their fiction.”

Usual Suspects

Flashback by Dan Simmons (Regan Arthur Books) is set in an America in near-total collapse, where the citizens are addicted to a drug that allows them to rexperience the best moments of their lives. LJ finds it “believable in a grim sort of way. As always, Simmons keeps the reader’s attention from start to finish. Midway between science ficion and detective fiction, this will appeal to aficionados of both genres.”

Now You See Her by James Patterson and Michael Ledwidge (Little, Brown) is a thriller about a lawyer and mother, who must finally tell the truth about her past when an innocent man is framed for murder.

Thunder of Heaven: A Joshua Jordan Novel by Tim LeHaye and Craig Parshall (Zondervan) Library Journal says, “this fast-paced novel is in its own right a strong one with a multidimensional hero. Ripped right from today’s headlines, it will attract fans of the “Left Behind” series and other apocalyptic fiction.”

Young Adult

Middle School, The Worst Years of My Life by James Patterson with Chris Tebbetts (Little, Brown) is about a middle schooler who decides to break every one of his school’s rules. Publishers Weekly says, “the book’s ultrashort chapters, dynamic artwork, and message that “normal is boring” should go a long way toward assuring kids who don’t fit the mold that there’s a place for them, too.”

Two quite different debuts launch with high expectations this week; a Swedish thriller (The Hypnotist) and a historical novel of manners (The Heiress). In addition, many fan favorites return with books ready for beach bags.

Watch List

The American Heiress by Daisy Godwin (St. Martin’s) is the tale an early 20th-century American heiress who marries the most eligible bachelor in England. She has the money, he’s got the title, but is the price they pay worth it?This was a popular pick on our recent Galley Chat. PW calls it  ” a propulsive story of love, manners, culture clash, and store-bought class from a time long past that proves altogether fresh.” In a starred review, LJ recommends it for book clubs.

The Hypnotist by Lars Kepler (Sarah Crichton Books/Farrar, Straus and Giroux) is a debut thriller by a Swedish husband-and-wife team that’s been signed for a movie to be directed by Lasse Hallstrom, and was covered in USA Today‘s Scandi Noir roundup. Booklist says, “A cracking pace makes up for the rather-flat-seeming characters.”

Usual Suspects

Silver Girl by Elin Hilderbrand (Reagan Arthur) follows the disgraced wife of a fraudulent money manager during a summer on Nantucket. This week’s People gives it 3 of 4 stars and describes the plot this way, “What if Ruth Madoff headed for Nanctucket and got a second chance at love?.” Booklist says, “Another winner from Hilderbrand (The Castaways, 2009), who in this sensitive and suspenseful tale succeeds in portraying a seemingly unlikable character, besieged Meredith, and making her human.”

Smokin’ Seventeen: A Stephanie Plum Novel by Janet Evanovich (Bantam) finds Stephanie Plum’s name on a killer’s list.

The Devil Colony by James Rollins (Morrow) is a new Sigma Force novel with Painter Crowe, in which he uncovers a massive conspiracy with roots in Mormonism, Native American legends, Thomas Jefferson, and explorer Meriwether Lewis, to name just a few.PW calls it  “riveting,” and says, “Rollins gets better with each book, and his position at the top of this particular subgenre remains unshaken.”

Disturbance: An Irene Kelly Novel by Jan Burke (Simon & Schuster) finds the sons of serial killer Nick Parrish, now master criminals in their own right, who have formulated a plan to spring their father from prison and murder the person who put him there — investigative journalist Irene Kelly. Booklist says, “The Kelly novels have a devoted following, and its been five years since the last one, so expect considerable interest.”

Buried Secrets: A Nick Heller Novel by Joseph Finder (St. Martin’s Press) is the second novel to feature the “private spy” who finds out things powerful people want to keep hidden. PW says, “Self-effacing, wry, and ridiculously competent, Heller makes a reasonably engaging protagonist, but this thriller’s real star is the suspenseful, expertly paced plot.”

The Dog Who Came in from the Cold: A Corduroy Mansions Novel by Alexander McCall Smith (Pantheon Books) is the second novel to feature the Pimlico terrier Freddie de la Hay. He belongs to failed oenophile William French, who has been recruited by MI6 to infiltrate a Russian spy ring. Early reviews are mixed: PW finds the characters “somewhat anemic… and a lack of trenchant observations about human nature,” while Booklist and Kirkus say the fans of Smith’s many series won’t be disappointed.

Fort Freak: A Wild Cards Novel, ed. by George R. R. Martin (Tor Books) Martin, whose Game of Thrones is a hit on HBO, is the editor of this long running anthology series set in a shared universe. This volume includes contributions from authors Cherie Priest, Melinda M. Snodgrass, David Anthony Durham, Stephen Leigh, Paul Cornell, Kevin Andrew Murphy, Mary Anne Mohanraj, Victor Milan, and John Jos. Miller.

Fallen by Karin Slaughter (Delacorte Press) brings together Slaugher’s Grant County and Atlanta characters for a second time, after Undone. Booklist says, “With its relentlessly grim depiction of the desperate circumstances of those trapped by deep-seated poverty, Slaughter’s latest entry in her series overlays the standard police procedural with a burning sense of social justice.”

Nonfiction

Starting Over by La Toya Jackson and Jeffré Phillips (Gallery) chronicles the fifth Jackson sibling’s challenges in life and her feelings about the death of her brother Michael.

Summer fiction gets full emphasis next week, with a debut thriller by S.J. Watson, a second novel from J.Courtney Sullivan, author of the bestselling debut Commencement, and Pen/Faulkner winner Kate Christensen’s latest. Usual suspects include Jeffrey Deaver, Tom Clancy, Dorothea Benton Frank and an adult novel from Ann Brashares.

Buzz Titles

Before I Go to Sleep by S.J. Watson (HarperCollins). We’ve been talking about this title for months. Soon, we will find out how the public responds to this disturbing psychological thriller in which an amnesiac desperately tries to uncover the truth about who she is — and who she can trust. 
In the New York Times, Janet Maslin writes in her “critic’s notebook” on summer beach reads that it has “the summer’s single most suspenseful plot.” Holds are as high as 13 to 1 in libraries we checked.

The Astral by Kate Christensen (Doubleday) finds the PEN/Faulkner Award-winning author exploring marriage, friendship and parenthood among aging bohemians in rapidly changing Brooklyn. Kirkus calls it “a masterpiece of comedy and angst,” NPR reviewer Alan Cheuse gives it a thumbs up, and it’s a People Pick for summer in the June 14 issue.

Maine by J. Courtney Sullivan (Knopf) follows three generations of Irish Catholic women who converge on a family beach house, seeking acceptance from one another while struggling for self-acceptance. By the author of the bestselling debut novel Commencement, this one has also gotten some mentions on our very own Galley Chat and is a People Pick for summer.

……………

Usual Suspects

Carte Blanche by Jeffery Deaver (Simon & Schuster) is a new James Bond thriller – with 007 as a thirty-something veteran of the war in Afghanistan. USA Today interviews Deaver, who’s the bestselling author of the Lincoln Rhyme and Kathryn Dance series of thrillers.

Folly Beach: A Lowcountry Tale by Dorothea Benton Frank (Morrow) is the story of a woman picking up the pieces after her equity-trader husband commits suicide in the wake of the 2008 economic crash. Kirkus doesn’t give it high marks for “scene-craft,” but there’s no denying the popularity of the series.

Against All Enemies by Tom Clancy (Putnam) finds an ex-Navy Seal fighting a dark conspiracy on the U.S./Mexican border.

One Summer by David Baldacci (Grand Central) is a family drama about learning to love again after a terminally ill man’s wife is killed in a car accident. Kirkus calls it “creaky” and “contrived.”

Sisterhood Everlasting by Ann Brashares (Random House) follows the heroines of the mega-selling YA series – Tibby, Lena, Carmen and Bridget – as they start lives of their own, now that the jeans they shared as teenagers are long gone.

Summer debuts arrive in force, fueled by strong hype from BEA, in the case of Daniel Wilson’s Robopocalypse. There are plenty of returning fiction favorites, including a posthumous offering from E. Lynn Harris, and a much-anticipated new novel by Ann Patchett. In nonfiction, watch for a rising memoir about a young journalist who decides to follow Eleanor Roosevelt’s advice and do something every day that scares her.

Watch List

Robopocalypse by Daniel H. Wilson (Doubleday) is a thriller set in the near future, about what happens when our technology unites and turns against us. Nancy Pearl said it’s a “really good book” in her interview at BEA, where it was heavily promoted, and USA Today tips it as a hot summer read, but critic Ron Charles calls it a suspense-less “groaner” in the Washington Post. Steven Spielberg will direct the film version, which he signed based on a 100 page sample he saw before the book was acquired by Jason Kaufman – the editor who discovered Dan Brown.

Sister by Rosamund Lupton (Crown) is a debut thriller about a woman investigating her sister’s death, which she is convinced was not a suicide.  It’s garnered enthusiasm from librarians on the Early Word Galley Chat, and is an Indie Next Pick for June. LJ calls it “beautifully written with an unexpected twist at the end.”

The Borrower by Rebecca Makkai (Viking/Penguin) is a debut novel about a librarian and a young boy obsessed with reading who take a crazy road trip from Missouri to Vermont. Of this Indie Next #4 pick for June, LJ says, “Librarians may beef that Lucy’s reading suggestions and Makkai’s descriptions of library practice are not current, but the general public probably won’t notice. Overall, a stylish and clever tale for bibliophiles who enjoy Jasper Fforde and Connie Willis.”

Returning Favorites

State of Wonder by Ann Patchett (Harper) ) takes place deep in the Amazon jungle, where a pharmaceutical researcher searches for her missing mentor. In the New York Times, Janet Maslin is equivocal, finding it not quite up to Patchett’s usual standard. People, however, gives it their highest accolade; four stars and a “People Pick.” The Wall Street Journal has an interview with the author.

Best Staged Plans by Claire Cook (Hyperion) is the tale of an empty nester reinventing her life, and is an Indie Next #5 Pick for June. PW says, “there is a lot going on in this sometimes wacky tale of an ambitious micromanager forced to accept that the whole world cannot be staged, but there’s never any doubt Sandy will embrace her less than perfect life.”

No One in the World: A Novel by E. Lynn Harris and R.M. Johnson (Simon & Schuster) was completed by Johnson after bestseller Harris’s untimely death.  It’s a tale of estranged twins — one a defense attorney, the other a criminal — reconciling to organize their late father’s estate – with a gay twist, of course.

Murder One by Robert Dugoni (Touchstone) is the fourth installment in the series featuring Seattle attorney David Sloane. LJ and PW agree it’s the best yet in the series. You can watch Nancy Pearl interview him on Book Lust.

Usual Suspects

Hit List by Laurell K. Hamilton (Berkley) is installment #20 of the Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter series. PW finds it “as punchy as her first foray.”

Young Adult

Theodore Boone: The Abduction by John Grisham (Doubleday) is the sequel to the author’s bestselling foray into YA fiction with a “kid lawyer.”

Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs (Quirk Books) is about a tightly wound but ordinary teenager who is unusually susceptible to the creeps and the willies, Her story is told within a framework of 50 vintage photographs. LJ says, “It’s an enjoyable, eccentric read, distinguished by well-developed characters, a believable Welsh setting, and some very scary monsters.”

Nonfiction

Demonic: How the Liberal Mob Is Endangering America by Ann Coulter (Crown)  is the authors eighth indictment of the current American political scene.

My Year with Eleanor: A Memoir by Noelle Hancock is a young journalist’s account of her year spent following Eleanor Roosevelt’s classic advice to “do something every day that scares you.”  Booklist says, “with the greatest of ease, Hancock weaves a funny, compelling, true story of self-discovery.” She was on the Today Show this week.

The Memorial Day weekend brings media roundups of the big summer titles (inevitably, with the word “hot” in the headline); the L.A. Times was the first out last week; USA Today‘s and the NYT’s both arrived today).

Meanwhile, here’s the titles to look forward to next week.

Fiction

To Be Sung Underwater by Tom McNeal (Little, Brown) is the story of a Los Angeles wife and mother reevaluating her marriage and the carpenter she left in her Nebraska past. The Wall St. Journal praises its prose and plot, and it’s an Indie Next #4 Pick for June.

Dreams of Joy by Lisa See (Random House) revisits Shanghai Girls sisters Pearl and May in this story of life in Communist China. Library Journal says, “Readers of historical fiction will appreciate the authentic details that See weaves into her novel. You don’t have to read Shanghai Girls to love this book, but if you have, this sequel will make you want to reread its predecessor.”

Movie Tie-ins

Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See (Random House) ties in to the movie directed by Wayne Wang (The Joy Luck Club, Maid in Manhattan and Because of Winn-Dixie) coming July 15. Check out the trailer here.

Nonfiction

Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty by Andrew Bolton (Metropolitan Museum of Art) is a look at the highlights of the fashion designer’s career, tying into a current exhibit at New York’s Metropolitan Museum. The book is currently at #174 on the B&N.com bestseller list.

The Seed by Jon Gordon (Wiley) is a business fable by the bestselling author of The Energy Bus and Soup, which explains how to embark on a quest for meaning and passion behind work.

In addition to Silver Sparrow, (above) several new titles releasing next week are getting buzz; David McCullough turns his eyes to Paris and the effect it’s had on Americans who went there; former Sarah Palin aide, Frank Bailey publishes his tell-all, and we’ll get up close and personal with the guys of ESPN.

Fiction

Children and Fire by Ursula Hegi (Scribner) is set in Burgdorf, Germany, the fictitious town where her bestselling novels Stones from the River and The Vision of Emma Blau took place, and tells the story of a day in 1934 that changed the townspeople’s lives. Booklist says “Hegi excells at detailing the minutiae of the routine as ordinary citizens are either lulled into complacency or forced to confront their own dark night of the soul.” Audio; Tantor (an interview with the author is also on the Tantor site)

Nonfiction

Those Guys Have All the Fun: Inside the World of ESPN by James Andrew Miller and Tom Shales (Little Brown) is a 770-page oral history of ESPN that’s promises lots of dirt on the sports channel’s executives and talent. A well-kept embargo has had the desired effect, driving the media crazy and bringing advance speculation in many places, including the  New York Times. In another effective marketing ploy, publisher Little, Brown,  lifted the embargo earlier this week, bringing even more attention. As a result the book’s been on the Amazon Top 100 since May 12, and today is at #4 and rising. The authors’ previous title, the 2002 Live From New York: An Uncensored History of Saturday Night Live, as Told By Its Stars, Writers and Guests, is also rising.

Blind Allegiance to Sarah Palin: A Memoir of Our Tumultuous Years by Frank Bailey (Howard Books) is an account by the former Alaska governor’s 2006 campaign manager and transition team leader. Bailey says it’s based on 60,000 emails he sent or received while working for Palin, and is being investigated by the Alaska state attorney’s office for using unreleased state records.

The Greater Journey: Americans in Paris by David McCullough (Simon & Schuster) tells the story of American artists and scientists who studied in Paris, and how what they learned there changed America. PW calls it “an entertaining chronicle.”

Growing Up in Heaven by James Van Pragh (HarperOne) is the bestselling medium’s view of children in the afterlife and their connection to the living.

Children’s/Young Adult

The Warlock: Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel by Michael Scott (Delacorte Press Books for Young Readers) is the fifth installment in the bestselling series. No news yet on what is happening with the film adaptation of the series; rights were signed up over a year ago.

Movie Tie-ins:

One Day (Movie Tie-In Edition) by David Nicholls (Vintage) revisits Dexter Mayhew and Emma Morley over the course of 20 years on the anniversary of the day they met. Anne Hathaway and Jim Sturgis star in the movie releasing August 19, 2011. Trailer is here.

Judy Moody and the NOT Bummer Summer by Megan McDonald (Candlewick) is headed to movie theaters the week after next. Trailer is here. Several tie-ins are being published, for various ages; see our full list here.

Watch List

Vaclav & Lena by Haley Tanner (Dial Press) is a tale set in Russian-immigrant Brooklyn about a proto-romance between two children who are inexplicably separated, then meet again seven years later. Entertainment Weekly gives, it a B+, saying it “starts off cute but slight” then heads for “something darker and deeper…. Vaclav and especially Lena never quite cohere into three-dimensional characters, but Tanner is a gifted enough storyteller to bring some real emotional heft” to their story.

A Moment in the Sun by John Sayles is the fourth novel by the well-known independent filmmaker. PW says it “will stand among the finest work on his impressive résumé. Weighing in at nearly 1,000 pages, the behemoth recalls E.L. Doctorow’s Ragtime, Pynchon’s Against the Day, and Dos Passos’s USA trilogy, tracking mostly unconnected characters whose collective stories create a vast, kaleidoscopic panorama of the turn of the last century.”

Miss New India by Bharati Mukherjee (HMH) gets a starred review from Booklist: “Who better to capture the seismic shifts under way in India as the digital revolution takes hold than laser-precise and sharply witty Mukherjee? In each of her dramatic, slyly satirical novels, she dissects the legacy of colonialism, the paradoxes of technology, and the traditions that shackle Indian women. Mukherjee subtly continues the stories of the sisters from Desirable Daughters (2002) and The Tree Bride (2004) as she introduces Anjali Bose, a smart, rebellious 19-year-old who flees her provincial town after her fathers attempt to arrange her marriage goes catastrophically wrong.”

Usual Suspects

The Jefferson Key by Steve Berry (Ballantine) is the seventh novel to feature former U.S. Justice Department agent Cotton Malone. It was originally planned for the fall, then moved to lead in to Father’s Day. PW calls it “ingeniously plotted” with “plenty of twists and vivid action scenes in a feast of historical imagination.”

The Final Storm: A Novel of the War in the Pacific by Jeff Shaara (Ballantine) relates the story of the struggle for Okinawa through the eyes of combatants on both sides. Booklist says, “the previous three volumes in this series were best-sellers; expect no less for this extraordinarily evocative conclusion.”

Embassytown by China Miéville (Del Rey) is the respected author’s first foray into straight science fiction. It was covered in the Wall St. Journal this week, which describes it as “an intergalactic space romp [that] turns into a meditation on language.”

Nonfiction

William & Catherine: Their Story by Andrew Morton (St. Martin’s Press) is among the first hardcover keepsakes of the British royal wedding, by an author who has long covered the royals.

On China by Henry Kissinger (Penguin Press) gets a respectful yet mixed review by Michiko Kakutani in the New York Times, who calls it “fascinating, shrewd and sometimes perverse,” adding that it “not only addresses the central role he played in Nixon’s opening to China but also tries to show how the history of China, both ancient and more recent, has shaped its foreign policy and attitudes toward the West.”

The Long Journey Home: A Memoir by Margaret Robison (Spiegel & Grau) is a much-anticipated memoir by the mother of the bestselling memoirists Augusten Burroughs and John Elder Robison, telling her side of the story from her Southern Gothic childhood to her tormented marriage, motherhood, mental breakdown, and journey back to sanity. PW calls it an “unremarkable tell-all.”

Not Dead & Not for Sale: A Memoir by Scott Weiland and David Ritz Scribner) is an account by the lead singer of Stone Temple Pilots of rock stardom, addiction and incarceration, and making his comeback. PW says “the writing is often bland and it displays little of the tremendous energy found in his music.”

The Captain: The Journey of Derek Jeter by Ian O’Connor (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt) is a bio of the Yankee’s star that was 15 years in the making. PW says “O’Connor peppers the bio with enough hidden gems about the notoriously private ballplayer to make this the most thorough and intriguing work on Jeter so far. And O’Connor’s ability to reconcile Jeter the man with Jeter the ballplayer means that even Red Sox fans may enjoy this bio.”

Where’s the Birth Certificate?: The Case That Barack Obama Is Not Eligible to Be President by Jerome Corsi (WND Books). Now that the President has released his birth certificate, we wonder if they’ll pull this one?

Movie tie-in

Pirates of the Caribbean: The Price of Freedom (Disney Editions); the publisher describes this as “the first original novel based on the series for adult fans,” by the author of several  Star Trek and Star Wars novels. The fourth in the film series, On Stranger Tides, just premiered in London and goes in to wide release next week.

The lead-up to summer continues with more thrillers and series in fiction, Erik Larson’s latest, and the early release of a memoir by a former member of Navy Seals team that hunted Bin Laden.

Watch List

The Snowman by Jo Nesbø (Knopf) is a thriller about a Swedish expert (UPDATE; as is pointed out in the comments, that should be “Norwegian expert”) on serial killers in a country that prides itself on not having any – and a strong contender for the Stieg Larsson mantle. Library Joural raves “this work is being compared to Peter Høeg’s Smilla’s Sense of Snow among others. Apt comparisons, but they don’t go far enough. This is simply the best detective novel this reviewer has read in years.” It’s also Nesbo’s first book since Stieg Larsson’s publisher picked him up. The Washington Post ran a major feature about him on Thursday, sending The Snowman up Amazon’s sales rankings (to #145 from #361). It’s also the #3 Indie Next pick for May.

Faith by Jennifer Haigh (HarperCollins) explores the impact of sexual misconduct allegations on a Catholic priest’s family. It’s the latest from the author of Mrs. Kimble, a debut that’s beloved by many librarians. The new novel has been eliciting strong enthusiasm on on our GalleyChat. People magazine gave it 3.5 of 4 stars in the 5/18 issue, calling it “haunting” and “heart-wrenching.” It gets a 150,000-copy first printing.

Usual Suspects

Blood Trust by Eric Van Lustbader (Forge) finds National security adviser Jack McClure and Alli Carson, the psychologically damaged daughter of the recently deceased U.S. President, in their third adventure, this time involving international terrorism and sex slavery. Library Journal says, “Buy a copy for the name recognition from the author’s work on Robert Ludlum’s Bourne series, but don’t expect rave responses from readers.”

Buried Prey by John Sandford (Putnam) is the 21st novel to feature Lucas Davenport of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, and finds him reopening the case that made his name when new evidence emerges. PW says, “Expert plotting and a riveting finish make this one of Sandford’s best.”

Nonfiction

In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror and an American Family in Hitler’s Berlin by Erik Larson (Crown) is a work of literary nonfiction about the experiences of U.S. ambassador to Germany William E. Dodd and his family in Berlin in the early years of Hitler’s rule. Early reviews have been strong, but some librarians say it’s slower going than Larson’s beloved The Devil in the White City.

Seal Team Six: Memoirs of an Elite Navy Seal by Howard E Wasdin (St. Martin’s) is by a former member of the counterterrorism unit that killed Osama bin Laden (see our earlier story). Unsurprisingly, publication was pushed up to make the most of the current news cycle. The author has been on several TV shows, including a Dateline special on NBC.

Transition: The Story of How I Became a Man by Chaz Bono (Dutton) is a memoir of the author’s 40 year struggle to reconcile his gender identity and the body he was born into, as the child of Cher and Sonny Bono. LJ notes that “interest will be sparked as much by Bono’s high profile as by his story.”

Lies That Chelsea Handler Told Me by Chelsea Handler is the latest from the stand up comedian and late-night talk show host on the E! network.

Movie Tie-in

Mr. Popper’s Penguins by Richard and Florence Atwater, the classic chidren’s story of  a house painter who receives a large crate of Antarctic penguins, is being made into a movie. In this incarnation, however, Mr. Popper (Jim Carey) is a modern day businessman with a swanky NYC apartment. The  movie opens 6/16 (trailer here).

With Mother’s Day and Memorial Day approaching, new titles are dramatically on the increase – particularly fiction and celebrity memoirs. Here’s a look at what’s ahead for next week.

Watch List

The Sisters Brothers by Patrick deWitt (Ecco) is a picaresque novel about two hired guns, the fabled Sisters brothers, set against in the California Gold Rush. Librarians have been buzzing about it on Galley Chat and it’s a May Indie Next pick.

The Story of Beautiful Girl by Rachel Simon (Grand Central) is an unlikely love story about a young white woman with a developmental disability and an African-American deaf man, both locked away in an institution in Pennsylvania in 1968, who fall deeply in love and escape together, finding refuge with a retired schoolteacher. It’s the #1 Indie Next Pick for May. It’s also the author’s fiction debut (although she wrote a well-received memoir, Riding in the Bus with My Sister).

The Moment by Douglas Kennedy (Atria Books) is the tale of a travel writer’s loves and betrayals, set in Cold War Berlin, by an American-born author who’s better known abroad (his nine previous novels have sold over five million copies, and he was awarded France’s Chevalier de L’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres). Kennedy spoke at a ALA MidWinter, at a panel hosted by LJ‘s Barbara Hoffert, who said “if other readers end up as engrossed as I was, then this is the year that Kennedy becomes a household name in America.” Early reviews are also positive, and it gets a 100,000-copy print run.

The Year We Left Home by Jean Thompson (S&S) chronicles the lives of the Erickson family as the children come of age in 1970s and ’80s America, as they grow out of their rural Iowan roots. It’s the #5 May Indie Next pick, and Entertainment Weekly gives it an A-: “even minor characters receive the full attention of the author’s prodigious talents; each one is drawn so vividly that they never feel less than utterly real.”

Returning RA Favorites

Caleb’s Crossing by Geraldine Brooks (Viking/Penguin) gets a 350,000 printing and is the #8 Indie Next pick for May.

Doc by Mary Doria Russell (Random House) is the #2 Indie Next Pick for May.

The Butterfly’s Daughter by Mary Alice Monroe (GalleryBooks) gets a 100,000-copy printing.

Usual Suspects

Sixkill by Robert B Parker (Putnam) is the last Spenser novel completed by Parker before his death in January 2010, and has a 300,000-copy print run. But this is not the last we’ll see of Parker – there are two revamped series coming. On September 13, Parker’s Jessie Stone series will continue with Robert B. Parker’s Killing the Blues, by a writer producer and screenwriter Michael Brandman, who co-wrote and co-produced the television movies featuring Tom Selleck as Jesse Stone. And in Spring 2012, the longrunning Spenser PI series will continue, written by Ace Atkins, whose last few novels have been published by Putnam. He begins a new series of his own with The Ranger, starting in June.

Dead Reckoning by Charlaine Harris (Ace Books) Sookie Stackhouse #11

The Devil’s Light by Richard North Patterson (Scribner)

10th Anniversary by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro (Little Brown)

Celeb Memoirs

There are several celebrity memoirs coming out next week – in fact, May is such a big month for them that USA Today featured several in a round up (remember when we thought the genre was dead?).

If You Ask Me: And of Course You Won’t by Betty White (Putnam)

My Lucky Life in and Out of Show Business: A Memoir by Dick Van Dyke (Crown Archetype) is slated for a lot of media. USA Today has an early interview, and Van Dyke will appear on Entertainment Tonight on May 3, The View on May 4, NPR’s Morning Edition on May 4 or 5, and the Today Show on May 5.

Does the Noise in My Head Bother You?: A Rock ‘n’ Roll Memoir by Steven Tyler (Ecco) is on the cover of the May 2 issue of People. On May 4, Tyler will be on Good Morning America.

Good Stuff: A Reminiscence of My Father, Cary Grant by Jennifer Grant (Knopf) is a memoir by the dapper film star’s only child, from his brief marriage to Dyan Cannon. Kirkus is not a fan: “It sounds like a lovely life, but it makes for an irritating reading experience.” On May 1, Parade will run an excerpt and the author will appear on CBS Sunday Morning.

From This Moment On by Shania Twain (Atria) is the mega-selling country singer’s memoir of her hardscrabble Canadian childhood. She will be on Oprah on May 3 and the Today Show on May 4;  plus a show called “Why Not? With Shania Twain” will debut on OWN May 1.

More Nonfiction

The Reading Promise: My Father and the Books We Shared by Alice Ozma (Grand Central) wowed the crowd at MidWinter ALA and at the AAP Author Buzz panel. Indies like it, too. It’s on the May Indie Next list and is one of the indies’ most-ordered titles for summer.

A Singular Woman: The Untold Story of Barack Obama’s Mother by Janny Scott (Riverhead Books) is written by a Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times reporter.

Children’s

The Kane Chronicles: Book Two: Throne of Fire by Rick Riordan

(Hyperion Books)

It’s the last gasp of the spring publishing season before we begin diving into summer. Below are the titles you will be hearing about next week.

Watch List

Stories I Only Tell My Friends by Rob Lowe is the autobiography of the film and TV star who made his name with the 1980s Brat Pack. The New York Times‘s Janet Maslin is a fan: “Mr. Lowe emerges as a canny observer of both himself and others, and as someone whose instincts have grown increasingly sharp over time.” But Entertainment Weekly gives the book a “B”, taking Lowe to task for devoting only four paragraphs to his 1988 sex tape scandal, involving a 16 year-old and another woman, and for omitting his 2008 nanny scandal, involving sexual harassment and blackmail acccusations. That may be remedied when Lowe appears on Oprah on Thursday, 4/28. Libraries we checked have orders in line with mounting holds.

Lost in Shangri-La: A True Story of Survival, Adventure, and the Most Incrediblea Rescue Mission of World War II by Mitchell Zuckoff (HarperCollins) is “an engaging story about the survival and ultimate rescue of three American service people who crashed in the dense jungles of New Guinea toward the end of World War II,” says Library Journal.  Well-received by librarians participating our special edition of GalleyChat, it’s the Indie Next #6 pick for May and lands with a 200,000 copy printing.

The Floor of Heaven: A True Tale of the Last Frontier and the Yukon Gold Rush by Howard Blum (Crown) gets an enthusiastic, yet mixed review from PW: “From a purely historical perspective, there should have been more information on Alaska as a Russian colony and American territory, but as an exciting narrative, this is a huge success.” Hollywood liked it so much that film rights were grabbed before publication; the author describes what it was like to make the film deal on WordAndFilm.

Fiction

The Preacher by Camilla Läckberg (Pegasus) is the latest Swedish crime thriller from one of Steig Larsson’s heirs apparent, according to USA Today. Kirkus calls it “An adequate thriller, though without Larsson’s deft touches; sure to please church-hating readers of the Hitchens-Dawkins set.”

Usual Suspects

Bel-Air Dead (Stone Barrington Series #20) by Stuart Woods (Penguin) brings together three characters from his various series, as Stone Barrington heads to Hollywood. PW says, “Series fans will find Barrington as shrewd, sexy, and glib as ever.”

A Turn in the Road (Blossom Street Series #8) by Debbie Macomber finds a mother on a cross country road trip with her daughter and ex-mother-in-law. PW says, “Themes of forgiving old hurts and finding new love will resonate with readers in search of a gently romantic tale.”

Born of Shadows (League Series #5) by Sherrilyn Kenyon (Grand Central) unites a soldier of fortune and a body guard in the latest paranormal romance from the mega-bestselling author.

Young Adult

We’ll Always Have Summer by Jenny Han (Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing) is the last installment in this trilogy romance. Kirkus says “Han’s impressive ear for and pitch-perfect reproduction of the interactions between not-quite-adult older teens make this an appealing conclusion.”

The week leading in to the Easter holiday weekend is dominated by repeat authors, including a new David Baldacci.

GalleyChat RA Pick

The Tragedy of Arthur by Arthur Phillips (Random House) is the author’s fifth novel. About a long-lost Shakespeare play, PW gives it a starred review, and calls it “a sublime faux memoir framed as the introduction to the play’s first printing—a Modern Library edition, of course.” It got mentions in our recent GalleyChat: one participant called it “quirky and rompish” and likened it to Michael Crummey’s Galore. Entertainment Weekly gives it an A- in the new issue, “Phillips invests the metafictional gamesmanship with bracing intelligence and genuine heart. The fun starts with the opening line — ‘I have never much liked Shakespeare’ — and the energy never flags as the book develops into both a literary mystery and a surprisingly effective critique of the Bard.”

Usual Suspects

The Sixth Man by David Baldacci (Grand Central) is a new mystery with former Secret Service agents and current private investigators Sean King and Michelle Maxwell.

Eve by Iris Johansen (St. Martin’s Press) features forensic sculptor Eve Duncan in her 11th investigation, and the first installment in a new trilogy, in which she works to solve a case that has haunted her for years; the abduction and murder of her own seven-year-old daughter Bonnie. Fans will not have long to wait for the other books in the trilogy; Quinn is coming this July, followed by Bonnie in October.

The Priest’s Graveyard by Ted Dekker (Center Street) is the story of a vigilante priest and a woman dedicated to avenging the man she loved. Booklist says it’s “skillfully written, surprising, and impossible to put down. It might, in fact, be his best novel to date.” It arrives complete with its own book trailer.

Quicksilver: Book Two of the Looking Glass Trilogy by Amanda Quick (Putnam) is a paranormal romance, the latest in her Arcane Society series.

The Silver Boat by Luanne Rice (Pamela Dorman Books) is a portrait of three sisters who come home to Martha’s Vineyard one last time and has a 100,000-copy print run. Rice was a featured author at the ALA MidWinter Author Tea.

Nonfiction

Reading My Father: A Memoir by Alexandra Styron (Scribner) is William Styron’s youngest daughter’s exploration of his talent, and whether it justified his alcohol abuse and the debilitating depression that cast a long shadow over his wife and four children. Entertainment Weekly gives it an A-.

Idea Man: A Memoir by the Cofounder of Microsoft by Paul Allen (Portfolio) gives an insider’s account of the dawning of the digital age. “Allen offers a clearheaded diagnosis of Microsoft’s problems, including its complicated future,” says BusinessWeek, adding that “Allen can be a scatterbrain. That quality slips into his writing.” An excerpt in Vanity Fair, made advance headlines because of Allen’s pointed criticism of former partner, Bill Gates. Allen will appear on 60 Minutes on Sunday.

Young Adult

Twelfth Grade Kills #5: The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod by Heather Brewer (Penguin) is the final installment in this series about a teenage vampire who has spent the last four years trying to handle the pressures of school while sidestepping a slayer out for his blood.

The Pale King, the novel that the late David Foster Wallace left unfinished at the time of his 2008 suicide, has an April 15th pub date (not coincidentally, it is set in an Internal Revenue Service processing center). But as we’ve covered, Amazon and BarnesandNoble.com have been selling it since its March 22 release date, infuriating indies who had not received it. Libraries are in the same position, with copies still on order and mounting holds.

Meanwhile, major reviewers have also jumped the pub date, from Time‘s Lev Grossman to the New York Times‘ Michiko Kakutani, as well as Sam Anderson in the New York Times magazine and reviewers at GQ and Esquire.)

The critical verdict? Some of it is great, some of it isn’t, but it’s definitely worth a read, and that’s saying a lot for a novel that’s about boredom.

The Pale King David Foster Wallace Retail Price: $27.99 Hardcover: 560 pages Publisher: Little, Brown and Company – (2011-04-15) ISBN / EAN: 0316074233 / 9780316074230

• Large print from Little, Brown: $29.99; ISBN 9780316177931
• Compact Disc from Hachette Audio: $34.98; ISBN 9781609419752
• Playaway: $109.99; ISBN 9781611138818

More Notable Fiction

Midnight and the Meaning of Love by Sister Souljah (Atria Books) is the latest from the author of the street lit classic The Coldest Winter Ever, about Midnight, a young African American fighter and devout Muslim.

One Was A Soldier by Julia Spencer-Fleming (Minotaur). tThe followup to her debut In the Bleak Midwinter, sparked enthusiastic responses from librarians in our March GalleyChat. Writing about the bonanza of mysteries coming this April on her blog, Lesa’s Critiques, GalleyChatter Lesa Holstine said:

Is there any April mystery release that has been awaited longer than Julia Spencer-Fleming’s One Was a Soldier? Fans of the series have been waiting to see what happens with police chief Russ Van Alstyne and Episcopalian priest Clare Fergusson. Now, Clare has returned from her tour of duty in Iraq. . . with problems that Russ doesn’t know about, and he’s impatient to marry.

Usual Suspects

Chasing Fire by Nora Roberts (Putnam) is a standalone from the bestselling author that celebrates the smokejumpers of Missoula, Montana. Booklist calls it “a riveting, five alarm tale of romantic suspense.”

Save Me by Lisa Scottoline (St. Martin’s) is a standalone about a mother’s split-second decision about which child to save in a lunchroom explosion, and its consequences. Kirkus says Scottoline “shifts gears at every curve with the cool efficiency of a NASCAR driver [and] expertly fuels her target audience’s dearest fantasty: “every mom is an action hero.”

Nonfiction

The Long Goodbye: A Memoir by Meghan O’Rourke (Riverhead) is based on the nine-part series by the Slate writer, about nursing her mother through her death from cancer, and her grief in the aftermath. O magazine made it one of “18 picks for April.”

The Best Advice I Ever Got: Lessons from Extraordinary Livesby Katie Couric (Random House) may not be an utter shoe-in for longevity on the bestseller list, but it will probably be helped by the will-she-won’t-she quit-as-news-anchor headlines that are currently surrounding Couric.

Nonfiction/YA

The Twilight Saga: The Official Illustrated Guide by Stephenie Meyer (Little, Brown). You can be forgiven if you thought this was already published. This guide to the books was first announced back in 2008, but ended up being delayed. To add to the confusion, there are also the three Twilight Saga Official Illustrated Movie Companions by Mark Cotta Vaz. The movie version of Breaking Dawn, Part 1, is coming in this November, followed by part 2 next year (and, as night follows day, there will surely be accompanying movie companions for each).

Titles to Watch

Please Look After Mom by Kyung Sook-Shin (Knopf) marks the first U.S. publication by the author, who is popular in South Korea, where this book sold more than a million copies. It’s about the self-absorbed family of a woman who gets lost in a Seoul train station and never reappears, and dramatizes the contrast between rural and city values that have lead to the family’s neglect of this selfless mother. Janet Maslin’s New York Times review doesn’t make it sound like it will jump the cultural divide, though it may help spur further media attention.

Say Her Name by Francisco Goldman (Grove) is this accomplished novelist’s fiction tribute to the wife he lost in a swimming accident in Mexico in 2007, and was excerpted in the New Yorker. It’s been selected as the #1 pick by independent booksellers for the month of April.

 Usual Suspects

I’ll Walk Alone by Mary Higgins Clark (S&S) gets the full treatment by the Wall St. Journal, with a cover story on the veteran mystery writer’s thriving career at age 83, and her children’s resistance to bringing in ghost writers to continue her mega-bestselling legacy when someday she is gone.

44 Charles Street by Danielle Steel (Delacorte) is the story of a 30-something gallery owner who takes in boarders at her West Village brownstone in New York City after her boyfriend leaves. Kirkus calls it, “classic Steel, phoned in. Much repetitious ruminating and a stultifying, unmusical prose style too often obstruct the intended edgy escapism.”

Miles to Go: The Second Journal of the Walk Series by Richard Paul Evans (Simon & Schuster) is the second installment in a series about an executive who loses everything and decides to walk from Seattle to Key West. Library Journal says, “the first book in this five-parter left him in Spokane, so in his search for hope he has a long way to go. . . . for some readers this walk got off to a slow start, so you might want to gauge interest before deciding how many to order.”

Elizabeth I by Margaret George (Viking) depicts the Virgin Queen as an actual virgin married to England, whose interests she pursues with shrewdness, courage, and wisdom borne of surviving the deaths of her family. Library Journal says the writing is formal “neither cinematic nor intimately personal,” and that the plot is “plodding,” with a focus more on accurate history than fiction that may “try the patience of casual readers.”

The Silver Boat by Luanne Rice (Pamela Dorman Books) is a portrait of three far-flung sisters who come home to Martha’s Vineyard one last time.

Mobbed: A Regan Reilly Mystery by Carol Higgins Clark (Scribner) finds private investigator Regan Reilly and her husband, Jack, head of the NYPD Major Case Squad, in a case that takes them through key sites in New Jersey.

The Fifth Witness by Michael Connelly (Little, Brown) brings back the Lincoln Lawyer for a “satisfying” case that pits him against a real-estate foreclosure mill, according to Kirkus.

Once Upon a Time, There Was You by Elizabeth Berg (Random House) follows the journey of a couple who meet again after their divorce. Library Journal calls it “classic Berg, who’s always beloved if not always tip-top best seller.”

The Uncoupling by Meg Wolitzer (Riverhead) is about a town where the women pull away from their men, as the high school puts on a production of Lysistrata (in which the women of Greece refuse to have sex until the men end the Peloponnesian War). Publishers Weekly calls it “a plodding story with a killer hook.”

Young Adult

City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Claire (Margaret K. Elderry) is the fourth book of the internationally bestselling series, and promises, love, temptation and betrayal.

Movie Tie-in

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides Junior Novel (Disney Press) marks the return of Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp), Captain Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush), and other familiar faces in the film release on May 20.