Good People by Patmeena Sabit! I’ll be posting this publicly next week, but so excited for this to be our first book club read! I hope you’ll join us for discussion on Discord (coming soon!) throughout April.

This book couldn’t be more timely: a community commentating on what brown immigrants should/shouldn’t be doing? Plus it may challenge some preconceived notions you have about the Muslim community (especially if you lived through 9/11 in an evangelical church like I did).

Here are some February 10th releases on my radar (and should be on yours!). First, the ones I've had a chance to read:

Murder Bimbo by Rebecca Novack 5/5 stars

Put this on your TBR if you support women's rights and wrongs. A sex worker gets recruited to become a political assassin...or is that what really happens? This story is told 3 very different ways.

A Slow and Secret Poison by Carmella Lowkis 4.25/5 stars

Put this on your TBR if you want to read a saphic, gothic story that will find it's place in the weird girl canon.

Belgrave Road by Manish Chauhan 4/5 stars

Put this on your TBR if you enjoy immigration stories (this is 2 for 1).

She Made Herself a Monster by Anna Kovatcheva 3.5/5 stars

Put this on your TBR if you enjoy folk horror or enjoy women who make opportunities for themselves.

And the five I'm still waiting to get my hands on:

Fourth Princess by Janie Chang

Why it interests me: a gothic story in a non-western setting.

The Renovation by Kenan Orhan

Why it interests me: I love stories where you don't know what is actually real. In this one, a woman wakes up in her bathroom that has been converted into a prison cell.

Maria the Wanted by V. Castro

Why it interests me: A vampire story with Aztec influences.

I Hope You Find What You're Looking for by Bsrat Mezghebe

Why it interests me: an Eritrean immigration story.

The Body by Bethany C. Morrow

Why it interests me: a supernatural horror story with deconstructing vibes.

Here are new releases this week that I have my eye on. First, the ones that I've had the chance to read:

• Good People by Patmeena Sabit 4.25/5 stars

  • Put this on your TBR if you are broken up over the current ICE situation. This story featuring an Afghan immigrant family is told entirely from the outside, because we all have opinions on the lives of immigrants.

• Heap Earth Upon It by Chloe Michelle Howarth 4.25/5 stars

  • Put this on your TBR if you enjoy slow-build queer family stories or support women's rights and wrongs. This is a story of obsession set in 1965 Ireland.

• The Pohaku by Jasmin Iolani Hakes 3.5/5 stars

  • Put this on your TBR if you enjoy historical fiction tales of women who protect their people and culture.

• The Secret of Snow by Tina Harnesk 3.5/5 stars

  • Put this on your TBR if you enjoy elderly protagonists or learning about the Sami people and how they've been harmed by colonization.

And the 4 I'm still waiting to get my hands on:

• Books & Bewitchment by Isla Jewell

  • Why it interests me: Isla Jewell is a pen name for Delilah S. Dawson, one of my favorite authors. This is a cozy, witchy romcom.

• Every Exit Brings You Home by Naeem Murr

  • Why it interests me: a literary fiction book by a British Lebanese author dealing with times of financial crisis.

• Mass Mothering by Sarah Bruni

  • Why it interests me: a literary fiction book set in a late capitalist city written by a Latin American literature scholar exploring grief.

• The Glowing Hours by Leila Siddiqui

  • Why it interests me: A historical gothic horror tale centering Mary Shelley's Indian maid by an Indian American author.