It is finally fall, which means that it’s time to break out the trench coats, the tartan prints, and the books – novels, that is. Here are five newly released books that are a must-read for this season:
1. A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles
With his first novel since Rules of Civility, Amor Towles tells the story of Count Alexander Rostov who lives amidst the turbulence of the Bolshevik Revolution in the 1920s. When a twist and turn of events lands Rostov under house arrest in Moscow’s Metropol Hotel, the once indomitable aristocrat loses his lavish life as he is confined to an attic room. However, under his diminished circumstances, Rostov finds a deeper meaning in life and a larger world of emotional discovery.
2. Mischling by Affinity Konar
When Pearl and Stasha Zagorski arrive at Auschwitz in 1944, the twin sisters seek refuge in their own private world of secret languages, identical natures, and childhood games. However, when they find themselves as part of an experimental population known as Mengele’s Zoo, the girls are stripped of their refuge and are left to deal with their own personal guilt and pain as they experience horrors largely unbeknownst to others.
3. The Wonder by Emma Donoghue
Emma Donoghue’s latest psychological thriller shines light on the “fasting girls”, women and girls who claimed to live without food for years. The story starts when Lib Wright, an English nurse and Crimean war veteran, is given the task to watch one such “fasting girl”, 11 year old Anna O’Donnel. Set in the backdrop of tense relations between England and Ireland, the story explores the clash of science and faith.
4. Paris for One by Jojo Moyes
A quick and light hearted read, Paris for One tells the story of twenty-six year old Nell, who has never really seen the need to travel abroad. However, this changes when her boyfriend does not show up to their romantic getaway to Paris, and Nell decides to take matters into her own hands. As she ventures out in alone in a city she has never been to before, Nell discovers a completely different side of herself that she never knew existed.
5. Behold the Dreamers by Imbolo Mbue
Jende Jonga immigrated to Harlem from Cameroon with his wife and their son with the intentions to provide a better life for his family. These dreams finally seem to be coming true when Jende gets a job as a chauffeur for a high profile executive, Clark Edwards, and later, when his wife is offered a temporary job at the Edwards’ summer home in the Hamptons. However, their reverie comes to an abrupt halt with the financial collapse of 2007. Out of desperation to keep his job, Jende is forced to make at impossible choice that could change his and his family’s life.