January 2023 Indie Next List
Age of Vice: A Novel
Deepti Kapoor (Riverhead Books)
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“A potent and moving crime drama set in India, Age of Vice takes a magnifying glass to the corruption and violence caused by wealth. Sweeping in scope yet attuned to the minute details of everyday life, this is a novel that’s not to be missed.”
— Bennard Fajardo, Politics and Prose Bookstore, Washington, DC
January 2023 Indie Next List
Inspired Recommendations from Indie Booksellers
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“Crewe pays great tribute to those throughout history who have braved the battles to rightfully normalize homosexuality. Addington and Ellis boldly believed in a New Life for everyone. Their legacy is nothing less than inspiring.”
— Barbara Hall, Readers' Books, Sonoma, CA
By Stacy Willingham
Minotaur Books
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“All the Dangerous Things is such a twisty story and I couldn’t get enough! The characters in this novel overlapped well and the way it all came together was impossible to see coming. The setting is so vivid and captivating.”
— Addy Bowman, Wild Geese Bookshop, Franklin, IN
By Leigh Bardugo
Flatiron Books
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“Ninth House was a dark, explosive introduction and Hell Bent expands on the world with even more mystery and magic. This book is every bit as addicting as the first. If you need me, I’ll be waiting for another installment in the series.”
— Becky Martone, R.J. Julia Booksellers, Madison, CT
By Allegra Goodman
The Dial Press
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“You’ve never read a novel like Sam. Sam’s seminal years leave her insecure at best, entering adulthood with a number of missteps. Rock climbing gives her purpose; it doesn’t take her where she wants to go, but leads to unseen paths. Powerful.”
— Daniel Goldin, Boswell Book Company, Milwaukee, WI
By Elinor Lipman
Harper Perennial
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“A whole book about a woman on house arrest! Jane hooks up with a colleague on the roof of her apartment and ends up on house arrest for six months. Fellow neighbor Perry is in the same predicament; friendship and romance ensue. Delightful!”
— Melissa DeMotte, The Well-Read Moose, Coeur d'Alene, ID
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“Is Lily just an innocent high school teacher who is in the wrong place at the wrong time? Can she keep her secret hidden from her best friend? Just the Nicest Couple gains steam throughout and keeps you guessing until the final pages.”
— Kelli McDonald, The Novel Neighbor, Webster Groves, MO
By Michael Bennett
Atlantic Monthly Press
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“Fast-paced and fascinating. Hana Westerman is a senior police detective, Māori, and a mother. It all comes into play in the chase for a serial killer intent on righting the wrongs of the colonial past. I hope this is the first of many!”
— Anne Holman, The King's English Bookshop, Salt Lake City, UT
By Kashana Cauley
Soft Skull
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“The Survivalists tackles our divisive sociopolitical climate with dark humor, irony, absurdity, and understanding. A fun, thought-provoking, and revelatory novel about Doomsday prepping and our capacity for love and acceptance.”
— Alyssa Raymond, Copper Dog Books, Beverly, MA
By Rachel Hawkins
St. Martin's Press
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“Six weeks in an Italian Villa is an ideal summer for best friends Chess and Emily — except for the secrets they’ve kept. The Villa has secrets of its own. ‘Houses remember’ is the first line of a book written at the Villa; this one has seen it all!”
— Beth Mynhier, Lake Forest Book Store, Lake Forest, IL
By Parini Shroff
Ballantine Books
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“A rebuke of misogynistic violence and a rollicking romp through an erstwhile crime spree, The Bandit Queens is incisive, yet funny and sweet in its sharpness. This tongue-in-cheek celebration of women’s solidarity is not to be missed.”
— Milo Michels, University Book Store, Seattle, WA
By Armando Lucas Correa
Atria Books
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“The Night Travelers is a stunning and original work of historical fiction, following several generations of women from Nazi Germany, to Cuba, and beyond. Brilliant writing and a novel that is screaming for book club discussion.”
— Mary O'Malley, Skylark Bookshop, Columbia, MO
By Susanne Pari
A John Scognamiglio Book
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“A poignant exploration of family, migration, cultural revolution, and community ties. Pari crafts nuanced characters woven together and torn apart by the same events; the journeys they each travel are momentous. This is a must-read.”
— Ashleigh Howland, Wellesley Books, Wellesley, MA
By Stephen Markley
Simon & Schuster
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“Be prepared to get hooked on page one! Markley brings climate change, virtual reality, artificial intelligence, and our democracy’s future to the fore. Anyone that loved Stephen King’s The Stand, get ready to be blown away by this epic.”
— Jan Danielson Kaiser, Beaverdale Books, Des Moines, IA
By Jamila Minnicks
Algonquin Books
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“An absolutely breathtaking debut that celebrates Blackness in all of its triumphs. Both an in-depth exploration of all-Black towns and a love story all the same, Jamila Minnicks has written a stunning and poignant modern classic.”
— Mary Louise Callaghan, Bookmarks, Winston-Salem, NC
By Seanan McGuire
Tordotcom
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“Emotionally resonant, thoughtfully complex, and endlessly creative, Lost in the Moment and Found is an excellent addition to the Wayward Children books. If you cracked my heart open, you’d find this series there.”
— Jodi Laidlaw, Blue Cypress Books, New Orleans, LA
By Carole Johnstone
Scribner
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“A highly immersive thriller on an insular and remote Scottish island in the Outer Hebrides. Johnstone uses this wild ‘thin place’ (where the division between this world and the next is porous) to great effect — she clearly knows her stuff.”
— Debra Ginsberg, DIESEL, A Bookstore, Santa Monica, CA
By Jessica Johns
Doubleday
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“Bad Cree uses the importance of dreams in Cree culture to cover corporate greed, trauma, and familial grief. Johns’ symbolism makes for an ethereal experience, and highlights the strength that can come from sisterhood and motherhood.”
— Stuart McCommon, Novel., Memphis, TN
By Christoffer Carlsson, Rachel Willson-Broyles
Hogarth
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“If you love a good Swedish crime novel or are a fan of Stieg Larsson then this book is for you! A runaway bestseller in Sweden, this is the American debut for the author and a can’t put down thriller that had me guessing until the end.”
— Kathy Clemmons, Sundog Books, Santa Rosa Beach, FL
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“This debut is wholly imaginative and magnificent, both a meditation on queer love and the government’s relationship with our bodies and children. Crane expertly creates a dystopian world grounded in real, fully-formed characters.”
— Adam Vitcavage, Tattered Cover Book Store, Denver, CO
By Deborah Goodrich Royce
Post Hill Press
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“A brilliant thriller that taps into an unsolved true crime story. It is masterfully written through two points of view, which expose the impact of violence and family trauma. I can already say this is one of my favorite books for 2023.”
— Lisa Valentino, Ink Fish Books, Warren, RI
By Heather Fawcett
Del Rey
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“Featuring a savvy and brutally practical heroine on a mission to create a thorough compendium of all known faerie species, this historical fantasy is rife with magical mischief and bewitching bargains that might cost Emily everything.”
— Heather Herbaugh, Mitzi's Books, Rapid City, SD
By Jordan Harper
Mulholland Books
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“What Don Winslow’s The Force did with the NYPD and New York, Everybody Knows does with Hollywood and Los Angeles. A wonderful yet wretched exploration of human nature, you will struggle to put this book down or ever forget it.”
— Hilary Kotecki, The Doylestown & Lahaska Bookshops, Doylestown, PA
By Iris Yamashita
Berkley
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“I couldn’t help feeling claustrophobic with the closed in atmosphere of the setting and being cut off from the outside world. It’s sinister as almost everyone is hiding from something, but you don’t know what, or who, to trust. Loved it!”
— Eileen McGervey, One More Page Books, Arlington, VA
By Oindrila Mukherjee
Tin House Books
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“A fascinating look at modern Indian culture through an imaginary city, a homage to consumerism, capitalism, and globalization. The creative structure pulls back the curtain and shows what it means to live in this glittery, modern place.”
— Cori Cusker, Bright Side Bookshop, Flagstaff, AZ
Now in Paperback
Indie Next List Selections Come to Paperback
