Books
The 18 Best New Fiction Books of June 2017
It's June, baby! Which means it's the best time of the year: summer reading season. June is the ideal time to grab a gigantic pile of books, lay out your towel, and dive into some incredible reads. And here's a bit of good news: this June, you'll be getting a batch of excellent, brand new fiction books that you're going to tear through in an afternoon.
This summer, read something exciting. Mystery, danger, and a little romance are the perfect ingredients for a great warm-weather TBR list, and you'll find all of those elements served up fresh here. From fun flings to fast-paced thrillers to intense emotional rides, there's a little bit of everything on this list.
I'm especially stoked for some of the work of returning authors coming out this June, including Arundhati Roy, Fiona Barton, and even a new story from the manuscripts of J.R.R. Tolkien. Plus, we're seeing some exceptional debut authors make their mark this month.
Whether you're looking for something to keep you company as you travel, or for a book that will take you on its own journey, there's a book on here that's perfect for your next read. So get ready to welcome summer with these great new fiction books.
1'Beren and Luthien' by J.R.R. Tolkien, edited by Christopher Tolkien (June 1; Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
A new story set in Middle Earth is something every Lord of the Rings fan should be stoked about. Adapted from J.R.R. Tolkien's unpublished manuscripts, Beren and Lúthien is a legendary love story between an elf and a mortal man.
2'The Ministry of Utmost Happiness' by Arundhati Roy (June 6; Knopf)
Twenty years after the publication of the Man Booker-winning The God of Small Things, Arundhati Roy is publishing her second novel. Braiding together the lives of a cast of characters from across India, this book is a touching, insightful read.
3'The Gypsy Moth Summer' by Julia Fierro (June 6; St. Martin's Press)
Set on Avalon Island during the summer of 1992, when a prominent white woman returns to her family's estate with her black husband and bi-racial children, stirring up rumblings in the island community. Young love, the consequences of prejudice, and an infestation of gypsy moths all have their parts to play in this soaring novel.
4'Dear Cyborgs' by Eugene Lim (June 6; Macmillan)
This book begins as a story about two Asian preteen BFFs who bond over their shared love of comic books. From there, it takes some meta twists and turns — weaving in comic book superheroes, detective novels, resistance narratives, and more.
5'The Weight of Ink' by Rachel Kadish (June 6; Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
History and the power of women writers: two of my favorite things! In this fascinating book, readers follow the linked narratives of two Jewish women: Ester Velasquez, an emigrant in 1660s London who's permitted to scribe for a blind rabbi, and Helen Watt, a 21st-century historian trying to determine the authorial identity of newly discovered 17th-century documents.
6'Magpie Murders' by Anthony Horowitz (June 6; Harper)
A literary mystery within a mystery, this book has hooked every reader it's found. When an editor receives the manuscript of a famous mystery author's newest book, she begins to suspect that there's a deeper mystery within its pages.
7'The Answers' by Catherine Lacey (June 6; Farrar, Straus and Giroux)
In this engrossing novel, readers follow Mary, a woman who is all but paralyzed with pain. When she discovers a mysterious treatment, she goes to extraordinary lengths to pay for the expensive procedure, signing onto an experiment called "The Girlfriend Project." Hired to play the "Emotional Girlfriend" for a man, Mary soon becomes involved with his life beyond the scope of the project.
8'Do Not Become Alarmed' by Maile Meloy (June 6; Riverhead)
What if the worst case scenario happened? When two families go on a holiday cruise, they don't expect that their four children will go missing.
9'She Rides Shotgun' by Jordan Harper (June 6; Ecco)
Eleven-year-old Polly's life is thrown into chaos when her father is released from prison and becomes a target of the Aryan Brotherhood. Suddenly, Polly is in extreme danger, and as they go on the lam, her father must teach her how to survive in his kill-or-be-killed world.
10'The Last Place You Look' by Kristen Lepionka (June 6; Minotaur Books)
This fantastic thriller has a badass, bisexual private inspector, Roxane Weary, as she attempts to solve a 15-year-old murder case in time to save an innocent man from death row. Uniquely compelling, this book is one everyone should get their hands on ASAP.
11'Dating You / Hating You' by Christina Lauren (June 6; Gallery Books)
Summer is a great time for digging into a romance, and this read will have your heart racing. After two talent agents start to fall for each other, their romance goes up in flames when their companies merge and they're suddenly competing for the same job. Kirkus Reviews calls it a "smart, sexy romance for readers who thrive on girl power."
12'Mad' by Chloé Esposito (June 13; Dutton Books)
Warning: the narrator in this sizzling novel has a lot of 'tude, and she isn't necessary likable, which is part of what gives this book its fiery spark. Self-described trainwreck Alvina Knightly takes over the perfect life of her twin sister, only to discover that her sister is wrapped up in some serious trouble, from Mafia connections to secret lovers.
13'Marriage of a Thousand Lies' by S.J. Sindu (June 13; Soho Press)
In this moving read, Lucky and her husband are both gay, dating as they like and keeping up the appearances of their marriage for their conservative Sri Lankan parents. But when Lucky returns to Sri Lanka and finds that her first love, Nisha, is about to enter an arranged marriage, she must confront whether or not she is truly satisfied with the life she has built.
14'The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo' by Taylor Jenkins Reid (June 13; Atria Books)
What if you could dive into the secrets of a famous Hollywood star? In this novel, Evelyn Hugo has similar fame to Marilyn Monroe or Elizabeth Taylor, and is particularly infamous for having seven husbands. Now she's decided to tell the whole truth to a freshly-mined reporter, unfurling the story of her rise to fame and the secrets of her past, in hopes of showing readers "the real me."
15'The City Always Wins' by Omar Robert Hamilton (June 13; MCD)
This debut novel throws you into the heart of Egypt's Arab Spring. Centering on two Miriam and Khalil, and their relationship as they're each swept up in the revolution in different ways.
16'The Idea of You' by Robinne Lee (June 13; St. Martin's Griffith)
Not only is this romance a fun ride, but it also draws on themes of celebrity and sexism that will give you something to think about after you're done. When 39-year-old divorcèe Solène takes her teen daughter to see the hottest new boy band, she unexpectedly falls into an affair with one of the band members.
17'The Child' by Fiona Barton (June 27; Berkley)
There's a ton of buzz around this new, edge-of-your-seat thriller by Fiona Barotn, author of The Widow. After workman discovers a tiny skeleton, London based journalist Kate Waters connects it to a decades-old crime and finds herself wrapped up in the darker mystery underneath.
18'The Confusion of Languages' by Siobhan Fallon (June 27; G.P. Putnam and Sons)
This exquisite book follows two women, Cassie and Margo, who have followed their respective husbands to the U.S. Embassy in Jordan. Their differences fuel a relationship filled with tension, but when Margo leaves her one-year-old with Cassie and then fails to reappear, Cassie begins to snoop through Margo's things, uncovering her strange life's story in the process.
