A CUBAN GHOST STORY with a rich, beautiful heart and voice: a lost revolutionary haunts her own nephew in a desperate attempt to find the truth. B PLUS

THE BOOK OF LOST SAINTS
Imprint
2019

A LAST-CHANCE JOB for a Black political consultant takes him deep into rural white South Carolina, where he forms some unlikely alliances. Sharp, witty tragicomedy of political manners. B PLUS

THE COYOTES OF CARTHAGE
Ecco Press
2020

A FORGOTTEN SERIAL KILLER—a Massachusetts nurse with a fondness for poison—vividly evoked in a well-researched book. SOLID B

AMERICA’S FIRST FEMALE SERIAL KILLER: JANE TOPPAN AND THE MAKING OF A MONSTER
Mango Publishing
2020

A BEIJING ARTIST, WIDOWED suddenly, searches for a way to recreate herself. Lovely, dreamlike, poetic prose. B PLUS

BRAISED PORK
Grove Press
2020

AN ENGLISH PIRATE’S DARING raid on a royal Mughal treasure fleet illuminates a turning point in world history. Fascinating story that reads like a thriller! A MINUS

ENEMY OF ALL MANKIND
Riverhead Books
2020

MURDER AT MESA VERDE! An archaeologist and his family encounter a set of brutal crimes at the ancient Native cliff city. Sharp, smart mystery with lots of local and historical detail. B PLUS

MESA VERDE VICTIM
Torrey House Press
2020

SPRAWLING, SURREAL EPIC about nothing and everything and adorable organic robots and the human propensities for cruelty and love. B PLUS

BUBBLEGUM
Doubleday
2020

AFTER A MYSTERIOUS PANDEMIC decimates a near-future South Africa, a group of Cape Town misfits are drawn together in an unusual quest. Mesmerizing writing, incredibly timely world-building. A MINUS

THE DOWN DAYS
Skybound Books
2020

A VISIONARY PAINTER’S DEATH, and the mysterious journal she left behind, draw her nephew and his son into a grim, tangled web of magic. Beautiful, chilling horror tale from one of the greats. A MINUS

THE WISE FRIEND
Flame Tree Press
2020

A HARROWING TRUE CRIME tale, reported with deep compassion for the victim and other injured parties. Frightening, all too human cruelty explored. SOLID B

A TANGLED WEB
Citadel
2020