Barnes & Noble Announces its May lineup of Monthly Picks

New York, NY - Barnes & Noble, Inc., with bookstores in every state across the United States, announced its Monthly Book Picks for May with six newly released paperbacks for spring with titles in literary fiction, mystery/thriller, nonfiction, YA, Young Reader, and speculative fiction. The bookseller also announced its Most Anticipated New Books for readers to look forward to this month.

May Monthly Picks

The unofficial start of summer is just around the corner. And while you are busy getting that outdoor reading nook perfected, Barnes & Noble has got the books to make it complete. The Bookseller’s May Monthly Picks are here, and readers won’t want to miss them! Get swept up in a speculative romance, set out on a journey of self-discovery, race against the clock in a thrilling Southern noir, brush up on your history, enter a world of ancient magic, and explore a fast-paced series starter steeped in Colombian mythology.

Barnes & Noble’s Monthly Picks are available in-stores and on BN.com with a Buy One, Get One 50% off offer. May's selections are:

Speculative Fiction: The Beautiful Ones
Silvia Moreno-Garcia
A sweeping, atmospheric romance told with old-world elegance and a little magic. It’s perfect! A young debutante looking to elevate her social status struggles to hide her psychic abilities, until she meets a dashing telekinetic performer who offers her a chance to embrace them. This Belle Époque inspired tale of love and betrayal is a must-read for fans of historical fantasy and regency romance.

Fiction: The Son of Good Fortune
Lysley Tenorio
A beautifully-written debut novel that follows an undocumented Filipino son, Excel, as he navigates his relationship with his mother, an uncertain future, and the brand new place he calls home. Heartbreaking, vivid, timely, and full of energy, this is a story of forging relationships with the people we love and the places we live.

Mystery/Thriller: Hard Cash Valley
Brian Panowich
This bold and beautiful crime fiction novel starts like a punch in the gut and leaves you with an overwhelming tug of the heart. You will find yourself propelled from page to page. And then, as you get into the last chapters, you will slow down, turning each page carefully to make sure you are believing what you are reading. You will savor each page to, both, keep the story from ending as well as to prolong what you fear is ahead. We find this novel to be a work of art.

Nonfiction: You Never Forget Your First
Alexis Coe
Tired of the usual fusty, thousand-page portraits of our first president, with their romanticized, larger than life, well-worn and not always quite accurate tropes? Well then, jump in! This is not your usual founding father history, but what a sweet, refreshing breath of fresh air that is! Alexis Coe offers up a duly informed and authoritative biography, yet one with a modern spin — brisk, brief, sometimes teasing, often cheeky — and manages to show the complicated man behind the myth in a very new way. Don't miss out.

YA: A Song of Wraiths and Ruin
Roseanne A. Brown
Malik is a poor refugee; Karina is a rich princess. Though their lives seem worlds apart, when each of their families is affected by dark magic, both Malik and Karina will do whatever it takes to get them back — even if it means killing each other. Infused with West African folklore and lush world-building, A Song of Wraiths and Ruin is an epic debut with an ending that will leave you spellbound.

Young Reader: Curse of the Night Witch
Alex Aster
When 12-year-old Tor wakes up one morning to find that he has been cursed, he embarks on a quest with his friends Melda and Engle to find the Night Witch, who they believe is the only one who can reverse his fate. Using the mythical Book of Cuentos as their guide, the three friends encounter the dangerous monsters and treacherous terrains they have only read about in stories. This darkly fun and fast-paced adventure filled with Colombian folklore is a must-read for fans of Rick Riordan.

May Most Anticipated New Books

Beach reads, literary marvels, telling memoirs — whatever usually makes it to the top of your summer reading list, Barnes & Noble has a few more for you to explore. From an impossible scientific mystery to terrifying historical thrillers, a southern noir, swoon-worthy royal romance, and an ode to the wonder that is a hummingbird, here are our picks for the best new books to look out for this May.

Our Most Anticipated Books of the Month are:

• Project Hail Mary Andy Weir The only hope for humanity rests with Dr. Ryland Grace — if only he could remember his mission. Andy Weir, the bestselling author of The Martian, delivers another perfect science-based thriller with Project Hail Mary, a tale of impending catastrophe, survival and interstellar adventure.
• The Hour of the Witch (B&N Exclusive Edition) Chris Bohjalian Seventeenth-century New England was not a safe place, especially for women. Any small action outside of being a “good wife” had the potential to spurn allegations of witchcraft, so what was a woman to do if she found herself in a marriage marked by cruelty and domestic abuse? Chris Bohjalian’s latest thriller feels incredibly timely despite the historical setting, full of twists and the impossible and sometimes terrifying choices women must face in the pursuit of safety.
• Revival Season: A Novel Monica West Every summer, Miriam and her family load up the minivan and drive through small southern towns for revival season, where her father holds healing ceremonies for the faithful who come looking for cures for their various illnesses. This summer, Miriam learns a secret about her father that forces her to reckon with her faith, her father’s cruelty, and her own abilities as a healer. Novelist Ann Patchett describes this novel about disillusionment, faith, and a young woman’s burgeoning sense of self, as “tender and wise”.
• Great Circle: A novel Maggie Shipstead Readers will be swept away by Shipstead’s masterful writing in this unforgettable story of two women charting their own courses in life. Spanning over a hundred years across Montana, the Pacific Northwest, Alaska, New Zealand, London and Los Angeles, this breathtaking epic tells the story of Marian Graves, a female aviator determined to circumnavigate the globe, and Hadley Baxter, the actress cast to play Marian in a movie about her fateful disappearance in Antarctica.
• Madam: A Novel Phoebe Wynne “Imagine if Donna Tartt and Margaret Atwood got together to write a creepy, suspenseful novel about a school for young women in the Scottish Highlands,” says Chandler Baker, bestselling author of Whisper Network. Perfect for fans of The Secret History, this dark gothic novel is a thrilling story about what goes on behind closed doors at an elite, secretive boarding school called Caldonbrae Hall.
• Olympus, Texas: A Novel Stacey Swann All at once heartbreaking and hilarious, Stacey Swann’s debut novel Olympus, Texas is a must-read for anyone who loves stories of familial bonds and complexities — with a dash of classical mythology. March Briscoe returns to his family and their small Texas town two years after he was very publicly caught having an affair with his brother’s wife. Within days of his return, a man is dead, marriages are on the line, and seemingly strong sibling ties are unraveled, begging the question: how much destruction can one family take?
• Find You First Linwood Barclay We are always surprised by the plots of Linwood Barclay’s novels. The premises are easy to grasp but you soon realize the deeper pull is more complicated and fascinating. Here, the possible heirs of a tech millionaire are vanishing — like they never existed at all. Barclay is at the top of his game here with another psychological thriller that will hook you quickly and reel you even more so. Every page is an adventure.
• Basil’s War Stephen Hunter You might be familiar with Stephen Hunter’s work as film critic for The Washington Post, or maybe his contemporary thriller series about American sniper Bob Lee Swagger. With broad cinematic appeal and the moves of his suspense novels, Hunter now gives us a standalone historical thriller. Throw in a little dash of James Bond and you’ll find yourself propelled through this fast-moving, compact WWII thriller.
• Playing the Palace Paul Rudnick A boy meets boy romance where one of them just happens to be the Crown Prince of England. It’s one thing to fall in love but another to fall into the arms of a prince! A sweet royal romance that’s made in tabloid heaven, this charming and often hilarious novel is pure escapism with heart and soul. Fans of Casey McQuiston’s Red, White & Royal Blue will not want to miss it.
• Billie Eilish Billie Eilish A look inside the life of Billie Eilish as told by the superstar herself with a treasure trove of photographs. Up until now, Eilish has been very guarded about her personal life. Her decision to reveal the most intimate details and allow the public to see her in her most private moments through her words and amazing photos will be eye-opening to all her followers who think they know the real Billie Eilish. Here, she captures raw moments before, during and after her concerts as well as during the creative process.
• Yearbook Seth Rogen “Hi, I’m Seth Rogen! This is my collection of true stories of doing stand-up as a kid, surviving Jewish summer camp, doing way more drugs than my mom would like (sorry, mom!) and more. Enjoy!” The actor, writer, producer, director, entrepreneur, and philanthropist known for Superbad and Pineapple Express gifts us this hilarious collection of personal essays and true stories that will likely get him in a bit of trouble for divulging, but makes for one fantastic read.
• Freedom Sebastian Junger Set against the rigors of a trek along the wooded railroad lines of the East coast, Sebastian Junger considers the conundrum that is “freedom,” whether freedom to, freedom from, individualistic or in community, juxtapositions that have bedeviled through time. Moving between travelogue, history, nature writing, observation and philosophy, Freedom raises essential human questions in new frames. As with War Tribe, the perspective here is close, powerful and tactile. Junger is a knock-out punch of a writer.
• Madhouse at the End of the Earth: The Belgica’s Journey into the Dark Antarctic Night Julian Sancton Meticulously researched and realized, with a deep novelistic flare, Madhouse at the End of the Earth reconstructs the action-packed survival story of an early expedition to the South Pole. Amundson, Cook and an inexperienced, undisciplined crew, on an ill-fated ship, imprisoned in the Antarctic ice and darkness. This tale of adventure, excitement and indeed, terror, will captivate those who were drawn to The Lost City of Z, In the Kingdom of Ice and In the Heart of the Sea. Julian Sancton has gifted us an insanely gripping book from start to finish.
• The Hummingbirds’ Gift: Wonder, Beauty, and Renewal on Wings Sy Montgomery In each of her books, Sy Montgomery has introduced adults and children to the complicated, intelligent spirits of our fellow creatures in the natural world, be it an octopus, a good, good pig, pink dolphins, or golden moon bears. This tale of an intervention to save the lives of two orphaned, nearly microscopic hummingbird babies is a rumination on fragility and interdependence, and an extraordinary close-up on the wonder that is a hummingbird. “Hummingbirds are less flesh than fairies … little more than bubbles fringed with iridescent feathers — air wrapped in light.”

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