Announcing the July 2023 LibraryReads List

By Rachel Mann | June 15 2023 | NewsLibraryReads

Public library staff across the nation have spoken! Congratulations to the books selected for the July 2023 LibraryReads Top Ten List.

Request eGalleys for Your July Readers’ Advisory.


For more information about the program, or to learn how to vote for your favorite upcoming books, visit LibraryReads.org. And, don’t forget, voting for the August LibraryReads list ends 7/1!

Check out which August titles we’re loving.

TOP PICK

A Novel

Another thrilling domestic suspense novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The Couple Next Door.

“William’s lies are piling up. An extramarital affair just ended; returning home, he finds his young daughter there instead of at school. Soon after, she goes missing. If he confesses having seen her, he’s caught in his deception. Will the truth come out before it’s too late? Great pick for Gillian Flynn fans.”—Selena Swink, Lake Public Library, MS

NoveList read-alike: Something She’s Not Telling Us by Darcy Bell


TOP TEN LIST

A Novel

Internationally bestselling author Sophie Irwin brings us another delightful, escapist historical romance, led by an audacious heroine who has suddenly inherited a fortune—but it has strings attached…

“At 28, widow Eliza Balfour is the dowager Lady Somerset, and plans to enjoy her wealth and title. How Eliza relates to the people around her and how she changes are wonderfully nuanced and satisfying. Irwin’s story forges its own path with liveliness and an attention to a wider scope of high society. Highly recommended to fans of historical romance.”—Allison Smith, Minuteman Library Network, MA

NoveList read-alike: To Swoon and To Spar by Martha Waters


From the author of Looker comes this “compulsive and unforgettable novel” (Mona Awad) of razor-sharp suspense about two local librarians whose lives become dangerously intertwined.

“Margo moved to Carlyle two years ago to get a fresh start as a librarian, her days filled with helping patrons. But when a new employee is hired, Margo feels unsettled by the curious Patricia. When a patron is discovered dead in the library bathroom, Margo’s carefully crafted mundane life starts to unravel and may pull Patricia into a tangle of terrifying secrets.”—Priscilla Garvin, Cecil County Public Library, MD

NoveList read-alike: Social Creature by Tara Isabella Burton


A Gripping Historical Novel Perfect for Book Clubs

Set in 1960s Italy, this stylish, atmospheric debut spins a bewitching web of ruthless ambition, family secrets, and the consequences of forbidden love, as an ambitious American actress snags the starring role in a mysterious horror movie shooting on location in a crumbling medieval castle outside Rome…

“1960s Italy: a horror movie filmed in a crumbling, possibly haunted, castle owned by the estranged aunt of the starlet. What could be better? As the lines between reality and the movie plot begin to blur in this tautly written novel, family secrets begin to emerge that if revealed, might lead to unforeseen (and possibly deadly) consequences for everyone.”—Jennifer Winberry, Hunterdon County Library, NJ

NoveList read-alike: The Villa by Rachel Hawkins


HALL OF FAME

A Red Rising Novel

Darrow returns as Pierce Brown’s New York Times bestselling Red Rising series continues in the thrilling sequel to Dark Age.

NoveList read-alike: Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesch


A ghostwriter and a struggling actor help each other on the page and in the bedroom in this steamy romantic comedy from the New York Times bestselling author of The Ex Talk.

NoveList read-alike: Bet on It by Jodie Slaughter


From the New York Times bestselling author of The Daughter of Doctor Moreau and Mexican Gothic comes a fabulous meld of Mexican horror movies and Nazi occultism: a dark thriller about the curse that haunts a legendary lost film—and awakens one woman’s hidden powers.

NoveList read-alike: The Remaking by Clay McLeod Chapman


A Novel
The two-time Pulitzer Prize winner and bestselling author of Harlem Shuffle continues his Harlem saga in a powerful and hugely-entertaining novel that summons 1970s New York in all its seedy glory.

NoveList read-alike: Trouble the Saints by Alaya Dawn Johnson


From the bestselling author of My Lovely Wife comes a reckless, delicious thriller that gives a whole new meaning to the dangers of modern dating.

NoveList read-alike: The Woman Inside by E.G. Scott


BONUS PICK