Casati (Clytemnestra) chronicles the ruthless rise of Assyrian queen Semiramis in this masterful saga. In 823 BCE, the Assyrian empire is in the midst of a civil war between Assur and Ninus, two opposing sons of the late King Shalmaneser. The conflict extends to Eber-Nari, the western provi... Continue reading »

Ros (Powell) delivers an immersive small-town mystery that subverts reader expectations at nearly every turn. When popular 16-year-old Greta Pugh is found dead at the bottom of an abandoned quarry with her head bashed in, the citizens of Bethesda, her tight-knit Welsh hometown, are shocked.... Continue reading »

White expertly raises the stakes in the adrenaline-packed middle installment of their Starlight Symphony trilogy (after August Kitko and the Mechas from Space). Having saved the world from genocidal mechas from outer space by bonding with their own set of Vanguard war machines, the flamboya... Continue reading »

Meadows (Wreck My Plans) wows with a contemporary that’s funny, sexy, sweet, and deliciously nerdy all at the same time. Entomologist Millie Oaks is up for a major promotion at the Wilhelmina Natural Science Museum. She did well in her first interview, despite getting rattled by the grumpy ... Continue reading »

A bored everyman does battle with the colossal enemy that is a dull Sunday in this epic mock-Proustian graphic novel from Belgian artist Schrauwen (Portrait of a Drunk). The narrative chronicles “one exemplary, lame day” in the life of Schrauwen’s real cousin, Thibault, who wakes up with va... Continue reading »

The fantastical and strange second collection from Fathi (Great Guns) evokes André Breton’s surrealism and the linguistic playfulness of Gertrude Stein in lines such as “Now each wave curtsies, the bather has anal/ and a suit of medieval holes for the dolphin’s spurs” and the “bride slip ‘n... Continue reading »

In this tour de force from Brotherton (A Bright and Blinding Sun) and Lee (A Single Light), four friends’ lives change irrevocably when America becomes embroiled in WWII. In 1930s Mobile, Ala., preacher’s son Jimmy Propfield shares an idyllic upbringing with childhood sweetheart Cl... Continue reading »

In this outstanding debut, Zappa chronicles her unconventional upbringing as the daughter of musician Frank Zappa. Born in 1967 L.A., Zappa reflects on being raised by parents who insisted she and her three siblings call them by their first names and taught them to use profanity. Though Zappa expres... Continue reading »

Restaurateur Mina (Michael Mina: The Cookbook) presents an exciting celebration of his Egyptian heritage. Traditional dishes—including ta’ameya (fried fava bean patties), ma’amoul (date-filled cookies), and koshari (lentils, chickpeas, pasta, and rice served together in a tomato sauce with ... Continue reading »

In the early days of Christianity, there were many different versions of Christ, according to this scintillating history from journalist Nixey (The Darkening Age). Studying texts that emerged in the centuries after Jesus’s death, Nixey dissects ancient Greco-Roman writings that depict Chris... Continue reading »

Instead of waking up in the cellar of her deceased royal librarian father’s home, 12-year-old Ella, who has a glass leg, finds herself in the home of a traveling merchant fallen on hard times. Out of kindness, she takes his place in meeting Neesa, the mysterious beast of the woods. Now imprisoned in... Continue reading »