Books
The Fiction You Need To Read In April 2017
It's a new month — and you know what that means: a brand new batch of books to get excited about! This April, prepare to get showered with some great new fiction reads, because, let's be real: spring is the perfect time to jump into a new world or a new perspective.
Each book on this list has its own unique thing to offer, and so many of these books have wonderfully unexpected elements: superpowers, archaeology, Neaderthals, books-within-books, horses, and internet obsessions all have their part to play in this month's reading. Imagination is certainly in high supply, but I'm especially amazed at the brilliant storytelling and vivid characters that these authors have all delivered. Oh, and did I mention that so many of these books are debuts? If you're looking for a fresh new voice, you're certainly going to want to add these authors to your TBR list.
There's so much to get pumped about in this month's reading. So grab your lucky bookmark, hit up your favorite bookstore, and dive in to these seriously incredible reads coming in April 2017:
1'What It Means When a Man Falls From the Sky' by Lesley Nneka Arimah (April 4; Riverhead)
This short story collection is filled with tales of women and girls, mothers and daughters, immigrants and children of immigrants. Each story will take you on an incredibly deep, incredibly satisfying journey.
2'Marlena' by Julie Buntin (April 4; Henry Holt and Co.)
This is the story of the electric friendship of two teenage girls, Cat and Marlena, during the whirlwind year that ends with Marlena's death.
3'No One is Coming to Save Us' by Stephanie Powell Watts
This retelling of The Great Gatsby reimagines the classic novel through the lens of an African-American family in the contemporary South. When JJ Ferguson, now wealthy, returns to his hometown in North Carolina, he has high hopes of settling down in a new home with his childhood sweetheart. Instead, he finds that everything has changed.
4'A Little More Human' by Fiona Maazel (April 4; Graywolf)
At the center of A Little More Lonely is Phil, whose ability to read minds hasn't prevented his life from falling apart. When Phil wakes up from a night he can't remember and is confronted with violent images, he has to use his powers to figure out what happened.
5'Sympathy' by Olivia Sudjic (April 4; Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
Alice Hare is obsessed with Mizuko Himura, a Japanese writer living in New York. So obsessed, in fact, that she believes they're her "internet twin." So Alice travels to New York and engineers a "chance" encounter with Mizuko, a tangled relationship is formed.
6'The Romance Reader's Guide to Life' by Sharon Pywell (April 4; Flatiron Books)
In 1936 small-town Massachusetts, 11-year-old Neave discovers a love of romance novels — and particularly, a love for a book called The Pirate Lover. As she and her sister, Lilly, grow up and start a business together, Neave is drawn deeper into her world of books. But when Lilly suddenly disappears, Neave must figure out what happened.
7'Cake Time' by Siel Ju (April 6; Red Hen Press)
This delicious "novel-in-stories" follows one woman from her teenage years to adulthood. Much like, well, a cake, every story adds a new layer to this woman's life.
8'The Horse Dancer' by Jojo Moyes (April 11; Penguin)
In the new novel from Me Before You author Jojo Moyes, Sarah is gifted a horse named Boo by her equestrian grandfather. But when her grandfather dies, Sarah is sent into foster care — and her and Boo's futures is suddenly uncertain. That's when she crosses paths with Natasha, a lawyer who takes them both under her wing.
9'The Last Days of Cafe Leila' by Donia Bijan (April 18; Algonquin Books)
Decades after immigrating to America as a teenager, Noora moves back to Tehran with her teenage daughter, only to find that the Iranian Revolution has completely changed her old home.
10'The Last Neanderthal' by Claire Cameron (April 25; Little, Brown and Company)
OK, how many times do we get to read fiction written from the point-of-view of a Neanderthal? In this fascinating novel, the lives of two women intersect in fascinating ways. There's Girl, a young Neanderthal woman who lived 40,000 years ago, and Rosamund Gale, a pregnant, modern-day archeologist who wants to excavate some newly discovered Neanderthal ruins before she gives birth.
11'Startup' by Doree Shafrir (April 25; Little, Brown and Company)
Mack McAllister, the head of a hot new startup, is the wonder-boy of the tech industry. Katya Pasternack is a tech blogger, hungry for a scoop. Sabrina Choe Blum is a mother-of-two, trying to stay afloat as she rejoins the workforce in a revolutionized industry. When Mack finds himself at the center of a scandal involving a young social media manager in his office, it's up to Katya and Sabrina to tell the story the men would prefer remained under wraps.
