What to read next: Book recommendations selected by the Amazon Editors
When you’re done reading Rebecca Yarros’s blockbuster, Onyx Storm (or done reading about it on social media), take a look at this week’s book recommendations, hand-picked by Amazon Editors. We have something for everyone—epic romantasy, thoughtful poems for the inauguration week, legal suspense thrillers, a portrait of the unforgettable 2016 wildfire in Canada, and more.
One of our Best Books of January and a Reese's Book Club Pick, fans of Taylor Jenkins Reid will love this propulsive novel about a bestselling author who decides to reveal her identity, and true story, after years keeping it a secret. Cate and Amanda are the type of best friends other best friends wish they could be. Inseparable since they were nine years old, they’ve graduated high school and are one day out from the next chapter of their lives…when a devastating accident changes everything. Cate flees, taking new names as she creates a life she never expected to lead, and turning away from a past she’s too scared to face. When a shocking truth is revealed, Cate realizes that revisiting the past is the only way to move forward. I couldn’t put this book down. There are so many threads woven together beautifully to tell a story about friendship, ambition and love. It is sexy, gripping, heartbreaking, and ultimately, redemptive. I dare you not to read this in one sitting. —Abby Abell, Amazon Editor
I am the queen of the belated birthday greeting, so no surprise I'm one week late congratulating Witchcraft for Wayward Girls on its book birthday. No lie, I rocketed through this novel—set in a home for pregnant teenagers in mid-'70s Florida. Once again, Hendrix recreates nostalgia so adroitly you can almost hear the summery sound of plastic couch covers being peeled off the backs of your legs with this one. A quirky, funny, supernatural coming-of-rage novel where innocence and ignorance mingle with pregnancy hormones and teenage hormones, the net effect is a horror tale with a huge heart, where maybe the most frightening aspect is how evergreen its themes about girls and innocence are. —Vannessa Cronin, Amazon Editor
I love when a debut author can immerse me in a new world and make me care about characters so thoroughly that I don't want to stop reading. It's rare that a new author can pull me in like a seasoned novelist, but when it happens, it's like magic. Emily Varga's debut, For She Is Wrath, did all of that and more. If you're a fan of The Count of Monte Cristo, and enjoy stories of deadly magic and vengeful djinn, this is the book for you. Wrongfully imprisoned for a murder she didn't commit, Dania bides her time by plotting the downfall of every person responsible for putting her there. A handsy captain of the emperor's guard, a lover whom she trusted above everyone, and even the emperor himself won't be safe once Dania breaks herself out, for she's found the location of a hidden source of dark djinn magic. With the vengeful spirit empowering her, and the fire of injustice burning inside, Dania enacts her plot with a whispered refrain following wherever she goes: revenge. —Ben Grange, Amazon Editor
Yet again, things are not all quiet on the Midwestern front in another gem from Leif Enger, set on and around Lake Superior in the near future. The country is now ruled by baleful billionaires who preside over work camps, and an absconder from one such camp inadvertently upends the lives of the couple who take him in, forcing our hero, Rainy, to embark on a treacherous journey—both to escape those who hunt him, and to reunite with the love of his life. Dark much? Yes. But, those familiar with Enger’s oeuvre know that he imbues his stories with so much humanity and heart that, like Rainy, readers will never lose hope. I Cheerfully Refuse—one of the Amazon Editors’ Best Books of 2024—is no exception. This harrowing, but beautifully told, tale is a sly paean to books, language, love, and the transformative power of receiving and extending kindness. I cheerfully endorse it. —Erin Kodicek, Amazon Editor
This week’s presidential inauguration has me thinking back to the powerful words and astounding poise of Amanda Gorman, who recited her original work “The Hill We Climb” at the same event back in 2020. The youngest-ever inaugural poet at age 22, Gorman lyrically urged us to “leave behind a country better than the one we were left.” Her poetry book Call Us What We Carry was released less than a year later, and immediately landed in the No. 1 spot on The New York Times best-seller list. Gorman spoke to the Amazon Book Review about her medium, calling poetry the “language and the dialect of the people…Whether it be a verse at the base of the Statue of Liberty, or a verse in the ‘I Have a Dream’ speech by Martin Luther King Jr., there is something about poetry that communicates the heart of a populace in a way that prose doesn’t.” —Lindsay Powers, Amazon Editor
Scott Turow is a master of the suspenseful legal thriller, with clever plotlines, and fly-on-the-wall atmosphere that makes his books unputdownable. With Presumed Guilty, Rusty Sabich comes out of retirement for a high stakes murder trial in which he takes on the role of defense attorney and the question of a loved one’s guilt or innocence had me on the edge of my seat. If you’ve watched the Apple TV+ adaptation of Presumed Innocent (or read the book), you won’t want to miss this one. —Seira Wilson, Amazon Editor
I can't get Fire Weather out of my head. Like so many, I've been glued to the news watching the tragic, frightening, and devastating impact of the wild fires in LA. And, while we named this a Best Book of 2023 (it was also named a finalist for the Pulitzer, the National Book Award, and one of The New York Times' top 10 books of the year), I fear that it's perhaps even more resonant today. Fire Weather is an unforgettable portrait of the 2016 Canadian wildfire that raged for more than a year, devasting land, lives, and livelihoods. The fire, which torched Fort McMurray (population 90,000 and where more than 40% of American oil imports come from) was so powerful it generated its own weather systems—think hurricane-force winds and lightning. In other words, not only are Vaillant’s descriptions of the inferno frightening, but Fort McMurray is also a hotbed for the physical forces that have led to climate change. Vaillant’s narration of the havoc, the danger, and the consequences of a hotter world make for shocking reading about our world’s future. This is timely reading, but it’s also necessary reading to understand the urgent impact of climate change. A heart-breaking and visceral read right now. —Al Woodworth, Amazon Editor
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