Louise Erdrich's formidable second short story collection, Python's Kiss, after 2009's The Red Convertible, is a family affair, with detailed black-and-white illustrations by daughter Aza Erdrich Abe. Family--particularly relationships between parents and children--takes center stage in many of the most memorable narratives here, whether underscoring unbreakable bonds or exposing horrific betrayals.

In "Wedding Dresses," an aunt shares sanitized summaries of her four marriages with her beloved 11-year-old niece, but reveals far more intimate, often devastating details with readers. In "December 26," a mother desperate to save her adult son forced on the run for potentially fatal choices will do just about anything to save him. Chosen family proves even more supportive and nurturing in "Amelia," about a teen determined to escape her small town, encouraged and enabled by an older bachelor who recognizes her potential for so much more. Erdrich chooses speculative fiction to explore noncorporal relationships: in "Domain," a woman transitions into the afterlife intending to terminate her father, who let her young son die. Animals appear both to haunt and to help humans: in the wrenching "Python's Kiss," a young girl shows singular kindness to her grandparents' guard dog, Nero, a prisoner forever denied affection and freedom.

Among the 13 stories gathered here, seven were previously published, with five initially appearing in the New Yorker. Erdrich, who has won both the Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award, uses short stories as an opportunity to experiment with various content and forms with unfettered, effortless ease. Several stories in Red Convertible, for example, morphed into novels. Lucky readers could and should consider this collection as a prescient gift. --Terry Hong

The Beheading Game, the enchanting first novel by poet Rebecca Lehmann, has an irresistible premise: on the day after her death, Anne Boleyn awakens in an arrow chest, her severed head at her knees. As she remembers the days leading up to her execution and her betrayal by Thomas Cromwell and King Henry VIII, Anne becomes furious. She then escapes the Tower of London, sews her head back on, and goes on a revenge tour to kill the king. The novel is worth reading for that first chapter alone, but there is so much more to recommend in this feminist reimagining of Tudor history.

Lehmann's extensive research for the novel is evident in its every detail, from Anne's embroidered slippers and red stockings to changes in the Act of Succession. As she makes her way to Whitehall Palace with murderous intent, Anne discovers a very different England than the one she knew as queen. Disguised as a commoner and helped by a new friend, Alice, a part-time prostitute, Anne repeatedly hears herself described as "the great whore" and comes to an understanding of how difficult life is for every woman in the kingdom. Her own intelligence, once prized by the fickle king, proved her undoing when it challenged the men in positions of power.

Lehmann's writing is both dazzling and sumptuous, a feast for readers that nimbly crosses genres. Her Anne Boleyn is complex and entirely relatable, despite the crude stitches holding her head to her body. Fanciful but always thoughtful, this novel is a stunning achievement. --Debra Ginsberg, author and freelance editor

Three women are compelled by infection, friendship, and ambition to abandon their established lives and travel toward the Pacific Ocean in Westward Women, Alice Martin's debut literary science fiction.

In 1973, a strange affliction starts affecting young women across the United States. It begins with an uncontrollable itch and drives them to travel west. Though some inexplicably recover, others disappear and are never found, and some are even murdered. Aimee endures a lonely college graduation and calls her best friend back home only to discover that Ginny has left. Aimee always planned to return and stay in her hometown, but she feels compelled to find Ginny and make sure she is safe. Eve is a journalist desperate for an angle on the "Westward Women" story. She's heard rumors of a man called the Piper who transports women on a bus. Teenie rides with the Piper, desperate enough from the itch when he found her not to question his motives. As the disease begins to influence her mind, Teenie's only other desire is not to forget her lost sister.

Martin crafts an intricate plot that inexorably brings these women together while illuminating how women's desires are often pathologized or suppressed. The line between sickness and health blurs as the uninfected seek answers and the infected find their symptoms mysteriously soothed. The result is a moving and otherworldly look at the delicate balance between freedom and the ties that bind. --Kristen Allen-Vogel, information services librarian at Dayton Metro Library

In The Valley of Vengeful Ghosts, Kim Fu (Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century) provides a bleak vision of an American dream that leaks, sags, and buckles under the weight of its own shoddy construction. The novel is part chilling real-estate horror and part somber requiem for lost potential and lost loves, woven together in an unforgettable work of literary fiction, whose adroit, incisive prose presents as a kindred spirit to that of Rachel Cusk and Shirley Jackson.

The novel centers on Eleanor, whose recently deceased mother, Lele, commanded her to use her inheritance to buy a house and stabilize her life. Though employed as a therapist, Eleanor is ill equipped to deal with the realities of life without her mother, who coddled her well into adulthood and shielded her from basic tasks and responsibilities. Eleanor complies with her mother's instructions, as she always has.

All too quickly, the house that was meant to be a sanctuary reveals itself to be a nightmare with a gruesome history. Eleanor's psychological state dissolves as the rain pours through her leaky windows. She begins to see the ghosts of her mother and the ill-fated builder of her house. She finds even her dreams haunted by her struggling clients, who include a new mother trying to regain access to her child, a young woman with a shopping addiction, and a husband grappling with an unyielding premonition of impending doom.

Eleanor's ultimate reckoning strikes readers with the ferocity of a deluge; is it one she can survive? Fu explores the possibilities with dexterous ambiguity. --Elizabeth DeNoma, executive editor, DeNoma Literary Services, Seattle, Wash.

Deadly and misunderstood magical forces reawaken, and a would-be knight finds himself drawn to his people's historic enemy in the action-driven, atmospheric, and romantic dark fantasy Green & Deadly Things by Jenn Lyons (The Sky on Fire).

The Idallik Order raised Mathaiik to become one of them since he was orphaned as a child, but at the age of 22, he has little chance left to demonstrate the magical skill to become a knight. Instead, he hides the strength of his innate botanical magic, lest the order believe he is a tool of the necromancers they have sworn to fight. Then strange, ferocious tree-beings attack the order's stronghold. Math seeks shelter for the order's children and makes a horrifying discovery in the fortress's enchanted maze: the preserved body of Kaiataris, one of the "grim lord" necromancers who nearly destroyed humanity long ago. Math accidentally wakes her, and she defeats the plant monsters. Soon Math is on the run under suspicion of treachery from his order, with the allegedly evil necromancer as his only ally. Against Math's expectations, Kaiataris is funny, spunky, "the sort of beauty that heroes from legends once went to war over," and she's never even heard of a grim lord. She also warns of a coming magical imbalance that, if unchecked, will end all life.

Lyons creates a weird, arresting world of tree zombies, magical knights, and lost histories. The connection between caring Math and spitfire Kaiataris carries the day in this plant-pocalyptic sword and sorcery stand-alone novel. --Jaclyn Fulwood, blogger at Infinite Reads

In Toe to Toe, Falon Ballard (Change of Heart; Just My Type) whisks readers to both the serious and sexy: New York City ballet and male revue scenes. Allegra is a career ballet dancer hoping to finally score her first leading role and a possible promotion to principal dancer. But the role she wants is a sensual courtesan, and she is decidedly not a sensual dancer. When a bachelorette party introduces her to the "male entertainment extravaganza" Six Pact, Allegra sees Cord perform suggestive dance moves with classically trained talent, and she knows he'll be able to help her land her dream part.

Cord, the owner of a successful nationwide chain of male revue clubs, has a complicated history with ballet, and he certainly doesn't want to get involved in that world. He proposes an exchange he's sure she will refuse: he'll work with Allegra if she agrees to be his partner and help him create choreography for a new male-female dance performance for the club's show. To his surprise, the pair strike a deal and begin lessons, starting with a private lap dance.

Allegra and Cord's chemistry is evident from their first meeting, and it only grows along with Allegra's confidence through Cord's lessons. Readers whirl through salsa dancing, pole-dance lessons, and more--all told through first-person, dual point-of-view narration. A relationship emerges naturally between two people with much in common and very busy schedules that normally wouldn't allow for anything serious. Dance movie aficionados will appreciate references to Center Stage and a Dirty Dancing-inspired lift.

Perfect for fans of Farrah Rochon or Ali Brady, Ballard's show pairs with Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky just as well as with some Ginuwine. --Alyssa Parssinen, Freelance reviewer and former bookseller

Ana Holguin's Second Chance Duet introduces readers to the art of TV show scoring with Juilliard grads Celia and Oliver. When they met as students, Celia was sure Oliver, with his megastar film-score composer father, thought he was better than everybody else. Thirteen years later, both are now composers--Oliver for a few small films and Celia for commercials but struggling to break into bigger jobs. When a classmate asks them to compose the score for a prestige television drama together, Celia isn't sure she can work with Oliver, but she can't afford not to.

The job has a tight timeline, so Oliver offers up his family's Maine compound and its state-of-the-art recording studio. Though Celia is loath to leave her close-knit family behind in New York City, she resigns herself to spending at least the next two months in a remote cottage with a snobby "nepo baby."

Holguin (Up Close and Personal) slowly builds the tension between the characters. Celia narrates in the first person, with flashbacks to their college days, immersing readers in her world of family group chats, music, and the desire to succeed. As Oliver slowly opens up, readers glimpse his true self alongside Celia. She sees that the quiet, awkward, and excellent musician she knew at school had more depth than she first assumed. Oliver is refreshingly up front with Celia, showing her kindness and courtesy until he finally reveals his crush in an adorable way.

The swoon-worthy way Celia and Oliver's love grows in this warm and comforting romance makes Second Chance Duet perfect for readers who yearn for sweet and charming stories. --Alyssa Parssinen, freelance reviewer and former bookseller

When restaurant Chai Pani opened in Asheville, N.C., in 2009, Indian street food was hardly on the U.S. foodie scene. But since then, chef Meherwan Irani and his wife and business partner--and now author--Molly Irani have not only opened multiple locations but also expanded into spin-off businesses Botiwalla and Spicewalla. Service Ready is Molly Irani's exploration of both the human story behind the founding of the restaurant and the leadership techniques and strategies that she and Meherwan developed as they dreamed of running a restaurant differently.

Irani dovetails the story of Chai Pani with the story of their lives, and she emphasizes the importance of being part of a community and local ecosystems rather than being just a business. She makes clear how her and her husband's leadership principles come from lived practices, shared values, and even the rocky moments, when they realized that following conventional wisdom could ruin their marriage or their business. She shows the difficulties of balancing their individual strengths and weaknesses; meeting the needs of their family, employees, and customers; and (eventually) preserving space for their life together.

Irani's advice can scale to any enterprise. This is in part because she demonstrates how consistent employee mentorship and review of business management practices is a recipe for resilience. This resilience was not only proved in the lows of normal restaurant woes and the highs of winning a James Beard Award but also in the face of pandemic lockdowns and the devastating flooding that resulted from Hurricane Helene in 2024. Chai Pani's story inviting and heartening story is ultimately one of community and creative thinking. --Michelle Anya Anjirbag, freelance reviewer

Historian Richard Vinen's The Last Titans is a sharply observed dual study of two statesmen who came to embody British and French resistance to Nazism. While they pursued similar goals, their profound differences shaped the second half of the 20th century.

Winston Churchill and Charles de Gaulle were the living, breathing symbols of their countries during World War II. They each appealed to their citizenry to resist the Nazi forces in historic speeches on June 18, 1940. Vinen's free-flowing narrative unfolds over 12 chapters, beginning with the men's early upbringings before moving into the war years and the "shadowland" of their postwar lives. Whereas Churchill's childish bonhomie meant he could be "indifferent to his dignity," "de Gaulle's public persona was like a late-medieval suit of armour--uncomfortable and largely designed for ceremonial use." Thrown together by the fall of France in 1940, the vain and theatrical Churchill and the modest and reserved de Gaulle clashed frequently.

Shrewd insights abound in Vinen's enjoyable account, many of which are worthy of underlining in ink: despite being seen "as the victors of 1945... the defining experience of their lives was defeat." Vinen ably synthesizes impressive primary and secondary sources to portray Churchill and de Gaulle as leaders forced to adjust to empire's decline in ways that created the modern versions of Britain and France--lessons that remain relevant. The Last Titans is a superlative and eye-opening analysis of two of history's most iconic heroes. --Peggy Kurkowski, freelance book reviewer in Denver

A teenage artist trapped in an all-girl internment camp uses her paintings to protest oppression in Caryl Lewis's darkly beautiful YA dystopian novel.

In the future imagined by The Danger of Small Things, the extinction of bees led to the destruction of modern civilization. Crops failed, famines started, wars broke out, "governments collapsed," and "militias took over." Now, girls aren't "allowed outside... and boys [have] to learn to fight." At 13, pale-skinned Jess is taken from her mother and brother, Shey, to live in a military-run camp where adolescent girls use brushes to pollinate crops "by hand." Once the girls start menstruating, they are married off to husbands "chosen for them based on their fertility compatibility." Jess misses her mother, who taught Jess and Shey how to read and paint, and told stories about a hidden community of rebels who were "free to do as they please." Inspired by her mother's courage, Jess secretly creates art that challenges the camp's leadership, kindling "rebelliousness" in the girls around her.

Lewis (Seed) has crafted an arresting depiction of the power of art to expose injustice and inspire change. Jess's first-person narration conveys her rich artistic imagination; for her, love is "the most delicate coral pink... this sap rising fizzy green... the sootiest deep charcoal that edges a butterfly wing." The grimness of the novel's setting is brightened by the close blonds Jess forms with other misfit girls in the camp and her tentative friendship with a sympathetic young guard. Fans of Margaret Atwood's feminist speculative fiction and of acutely sensory prose like Tahereh Mafi's will likely appreciate this expressive, rebellious novel. --Alanna Felton, freelance reviewer

A boy loves his cat so much he wants to keep him a bit too close in artist/illustrator Johan Leynaud's wise and adorable English-language debut, the picture book Arthur's Cat, about expressing and respecting boundaries.

An exuberant spiky-haired boy named Arthur finds out that doting on a cat is a tricky proposition in this French import translated by Sarah Ardizzone. Lovestruck Arthur goes to extreme measures to care for Zeffo, his turquoise-colored kitty. He stacks a mountain of furniture against a bookshelf to reach the feline. He creates another mountain, this one of pots and pans, to cook a "din-din" feast for the cat. Zeffo tolerates the boy following him around, attempting to bounce together on the trampoline, or reading him "a few" books. But when Arthur goes in for a big hug, "because he loves [Zeffo] so, so much," the cat scratches the boy, putting the kibosh on the relationship (at least temporarily). Arthur needs to take a little time to learn that love means showing consideration for boundaries and Zeffo needs a few days to learn to trust Arthur again. Eventually, the kitty and his boy learn how to "love each other... freely."

Leynaud's pencil, ink, felt pen, and digital art creatively uses white space (with pale washes of color) to produce a world of black-outlined images. Only two figures have hues: the boy with his peachy skin and Zeffo with his soft turquoise fur. Pet owners may connect with Arthur's efforts, while others will likely enjoy Leynaud's art, reminiscent of Hilary Knight's Eloise illustrations and Crockett Johnson's Harold and the Purple Crayon. --Emilie Coulter, freelance writer and editor

¡Viva Valenzuela! by baseball reporter Nathalie Alonso (Call Me Roberto!) and illustrated by John Parra (Little Libraries, Big Heroes) passionately chronicles the endearing story of baseball player Fernando Valenzuela and his effects on the Los Angeles Latino community of the 1980s.

Mexican American Valenzuela shocked the baseball world when he unexpectedly started in the first game of his 1981 rookie season with the Los Angeles Dodgers. A young southpaw with a penchant for screwballs, he hadn't been scheduled to pitch but was summoned to fill in for an injured player. His performance was impressive and he began to make headlines on the mound: throwing complete games, setting records, and earning a spot in the All-Star Game. As his star rose, the city trembled with excitement and Fernandomania erupted. Latino Angelenos who previously took little interest in baseball "were now the biggest Dodgers fan around. They looked like Fernando, spoke like Fernando, and many were immigrants just like Fernando." Ultimately, Valenzuela's "gutsy performance in Game 3 of the 1981 World Series" proved a turning point for the Dodgers, who won their next three games against the Yankees and captured their "first championship since 1965."

Parra's distinctive acrylic-on-board art features brilliant, fully saturated colors on a textured surface, giving the illustrations a deliberately weathered look. The images superbly capture the atmosphere, action, and emotion in this touching picture book biography. Back matter offers notes from Alonso and Parra, as well as additional information on the screwball and Latinos' relationship to the Dodgers, plus a bibliography. With ¡Viva Valenzuela!, Alonso and Parra have pitched an extraordinary work every young baseball fan is sure to want to catch. --Jen Forbus, freelancer