In an unusual vote of confidence for a film with no stars attached so far, Sony has announced a release date for Tri-Star’s adaptation of Kristin Hannah’s NYT bestseller, The Nightingale (Macmillan/St. Martin’s; Macmillan Audio, OverDrive Sample). Deadline Hollywood reports that it is set to debut on August 10, 2018.

The movie also features a first-time film director, Michelle McLaren. However, she has had wide-ranging experience in television, directing episodes of hit shows such as Game of Thrones and Modern Family.

The book also represents a first for author Kristin Hannah. Her first historical novel, after several best selling contemporary romances, the change in genre brought her to a new level of sales. The Nightingale was on the NYT best seller for almost two years, much longer than any of her previous novels. After its paperback release, it went immediately onto the NYT Paperback Trade Fiction list where it is currently #7.

The heavily promoted adaptation of Nicola Yoon’s debut YA novel  Everything, Everything opens on May 19. The book debuted at #1 on the NYT  Young Adult best seller list and stayed on it for over a year. The release of the trailer in February brought the book back to the list, again at #1

About a teen girl confined to her house because of severe allergies, the novel earned a glowing NYT review (“gorgeous and lyrical”) and an A- review from Entertainment Weekly (a “complex,” “fresh, moving debut”).

The film stars Amandla Stenberg (who played Rue in The Hunger Games) and Nick Robinson (Zach in Jurassic World). Stella Meghie (Jean of the Joneses) directs.

Tie-in:  Everything, Everything Movie Tie-in Edition, (in hardcover: PRH/Delacorte Press; April 18, 2017; ISBN 9781524769802; 18.99; Listening Library; also in paperback: PRH/Ember; April 4, 2017; ISBN 9781524769604; $10.99).

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul premieres on May 19. It is based on the 9th title in the popular kids series written by Jeff Kinney.

The three previous films in the series have been commercial, although not critical successes. The new film, featuring a fresh cast including Alicia Silverstone, Tom Everett Scott, Charlie Wright, and Jason Drucker, follows a family road trip.

Tie-in: Diary of a Wimpy Kid # 9: Long Haul: The Long Haul by Jeff Kinney (Abrams; OverDrive Sample).

Also opening May 19th is Wakefield, an adaptation of E.L. Doctorow’s short story of the same name. Starring Bryan Cranston and Jennifer Garner, it tells the story of a man who “vanishes” but really only hides in his garage spying on the lives of his family and neighbors.

Both Variety and The Hollywood Reporter posted reviews in 2016 when the film was making the festival circuit. While praising Cranston’s performance, Variety says the ending is “a cop-out.” The Hollywood Reporter agrees that Cranston “is the whole show” and calls the film “decreasingly convincing.”

It opens in limited release . There is no tie-in. The short story was published in The New Yorker in 2008.

Airing on May 21st is A Bundle of Trouble, a Hallmark adaptation of Charlaine Harris’s Aurora Teagarden series featuring a crime-solving librarian.

There are nine books in the series. This newest adaptation is based on the sixth, titled A Fool And His Honey (PRH/Berkley; OverDrive Sample). This is also the 6th Hallmark adaptation, following A Bone To Pick, Real Murders, Three Bedrooms One Corpse, The Julius House, and Dead Over Heels.

The show stars Candace Cameron Bure (Full House) as the librarian sleuth. There is no tie-in, although the book is still available. See the Hallmark site for a preview (unfortunately we cannot embed the clip).

As we posted in the May 15th Titles to Know, HBO is adapting The Wizard of Lies: Bernie Madoff and the Death of Trust by Diana B. Henriques (Macmillan/St. Martin’s Griffin; Tantor Media; OverDrive Sample).

It premieres May 20 and stars Robert De Niro and Michelle Pfeiffer. Barry Levinson directs.

See our earlier post for more details.

Paula Hawkins’s sophomore effort, Into the Water (PRH/Riverhead; RH Audio/BOT; OverDrive Sample). has landed at #4 on the USA Today Best-Selling Books list, making it the second best selling adult novel on the list. Expect it to debut at #2 on the upcoming NYT‘s list after James Patterson’s 16th Seduction (Hachette/Little Brown; Blackstone Audio; OverDrive Sample).

It’s not being propelled by the reviews. As we have been tracking (and here), they are pretty damning, but they are outweighed by considerable interest in the author.

The #2 and #3 best-selling books are middle grade and YA series, reflecting the strength of those series, something that is masked by lists that divide their rankings by age/category.

The Trials of Apollo Book Two The Dark Prophecy by Rick Riordan (Hachette/Disney-Hyperion; Listening Library; OverDrive Sample) debuts at #2. It is the second in Riordan’s Trials of Apollo series.

Riordan released a series of tongue-in-cheek book trailers:

A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J. Maas (Macmillan/Bloomsbury USA Childrens; Recorded Books; OverDrive Sample) is the third book in the Court of Thorns and Roses trilogy. It makes a significant leap over the first two books in the series, landing at #3 this week. The first book did not make the USA Today list and the second only rose as high as #41. Maas tells Entertainment Weekly that she is planning another trilogy set in the same world, although with different characters.

Half of the top 10 titles are new this week. The other debuts are media darling Neil deGrasse Tyson is at #5 with Astrophysics for People in a Hurry (Norton; BlackStone Audio; OverDrive Sample) and Danielle Steel at #9 with Against All Odds (PRH/Delacorte Press; RH Large Type; Recorded Books; OverDrive Sample)

Further down the list, a much older title has returned.

At #26 is The Dark Tower I: The Gunslinger by Stephen King (S&S/Scribner; S&S Audio; OverDrive Sample) powered by last week’s release of the long awaited and highly anticipated trailer for the movie, set for release on August 4th.

Dropping down the list is Bill O’Reilly’s Old School: Life in the Sane Lane (Macmillan/Holt; Macmillan Audio). It debuted at #2 on the April 5th list and began falling after his firing from Fox News.

James Patterson’s newest co-author is getting top billing. According to the Associated Press, Patterson and former president Bill Clinton are writing a thriller together, appropriately titled The President is Missing.

The Amazon listing shows that it will be released on June 11, 2018, ISBN 978-0316412698. In an unusual move, it will be published jointly by PRH/ Knopf, which has published Clinton’s most recent books, and Patterson’s publisher, Hachette/Little, Brown.

In a the press release announcing the book, the publishers say it will be “a unique amalgam of intrigue, suspense and behind-the-scenes global drama from the highest corridors of power. It will be informed by details that only a president can know.”

Clinton adds, “Working on a book about a sitting president — drawing on what I know about the job, life in the White House and the way Washington works — has been a lot of fun. And working with Jim has been terrific. I’ve been a fan of his for a very long time.”

The Hill adds that Clinton and Patterson will go on a national book tour to promote their novel.

Hearing the news, we had to check the date, but April Fools Day was over a month ago. Further backing it up, the story is being reported by several other sources, including the Washington Post. and the New York Times, which quotes unnamed sources saying the idea was cooked up by the agent the two men share.