15 Book Releases We're Excited About This Month

And What You Can Read in the Meantime

Reading Ahead

No matter how many books we may already have in our TBR pile, we still can't resist perusing (and purchasing!) exciting new reads coming out all the time. From eerie sci-fi gems to long-awaited follow-ups to taut thrillers, this month's releases include some very intriguing titles! Here are fifteen that we can't wait to get our hands on. A few of these came out this week, so they're already available. (But don't worry, we'll still include a previously published book that offers a similar vibe.)

March 2

Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro

With his newest science fiction novel—the first since winning the 2017 Nobel Prize in Literature—Ishiguro tells the story of Klara, an Artificial Friend who watches everyone carefully: those who come in to browse, and those who pass on the street outside. She remains ever hopeful a customer will soon choose her.

What to read first: Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro

The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner

Hidden in the depths of eighteenth-century London, a secret shop provides an unusual service. Women across the city whisper of the mysterious proprietor Nella, who provides well-disguised poisons to use against oppressive men. But Nella's fate is jeopardized when her newest patron makes a fatal mistake.

What to read first: The Once and Future Witches by Alix E. Harrow

The Committed by Viet Thanh Nguyen

In this long-awaited follow-up to the 2016 Pulitzer Prize-winning The Sympathizer, the eponymous protagonist arrives in Paris as a refugee. There he and his blood brother Bon try to escape their pasts and prepare for their futures by turning their hands to capitalism in one of its purest forms: drug dealing.

What to read first: The Refugees by Viet Thanh Nguyen

March 9

How Beautiful We Were by Imbolo Mbue

Set in a fictional African village, this powerful story tells of a people living amid environmental ruin wrought by an American oil company. Pipeline spills leave farmlands infertile. Children die from drinking toxic water. Promises of cleanup and reparations have been ignored and the villagers have no choice to fight back.

What to read first: Behold the Dreamers by Imbolo Mbue

The Rose Code by Kate Quinn

In 1940, as England prepares to fight the Nazis, three very different women answer the call to Bletchley Park, where the best minds in Britain train to break German military codes. Now the war is over, but a mysterious traitor has emerged and the three women must resurrect their old alliance to crack one last code.

What to read first: The Alice Network by Kate Quinn

Spellmaker by Charlie N. Holmberg

Dead wizards, stolen enchantments, and broken promises force a young spellbreaker out of the shadows in the thrilling second installment of this YA series. After unmasking a magical assassin, Elsie Camden must marry to avoid prison, all while trying to stop England's most dangerous criminal.

What to read first: Spellbreaker by Charlie N. Holmberg

March 16

Win by Harlan Coben

Over twenty years ago, an heiress was abducted during a robbery of her family's estate and kept captive for months. She escaped, but so did her captors—and the items stolen from her family were never recovered. Until now. As new evidence emerges there's just one man who may hold the keys to cracking the case.

What to read first: Tell No One by Harlan Coben

The Memory Collectors by Kim Neville

An atmospheric and enchanting debut novel about two women bound by a shared gift and the power the past holds over our lives. Ev has the ability to feel emotions left behind on objects. When she meets Harriet, they team up to create a museum of memory and escape a darkness that threatens to plague them both.

What to read first: The Scent Keeper by Erica Bauermeister

The Dating Plan by Sara Desai

Daisy Patel is a software engineer who understands lists and logic better than bosses and boyfriends. With her life all planned out, and no interest in love, the one thing she can't give her family is the marriage they expect. Left with few options, she asks her childhood crush to be her decoy fiance.

What to read first: The Trouble with Hating You by Sajni Patel

March 23

A Million Reasons Why by Jessica Strawser

Sela is in desperate need of a kidney transplant. She may have found the perfect match; but how do you turn someone else's life upside down by revealing that you are her previously unknown half-sister? This is the story of two women who discover they share a bond that will change both their lives forever.

What to read first: My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult

Red Widow by Alma Katsu

Lyndsey Duncan worries her CIA career might be over. After lines are crossed with another agent, she is put on administrative leave. So when a former colleague, now Chief of the Russia Division, recruits her for an internal investigation, she jumps at the chance to prove herself in this exhilarating spy thriller.

What to read first: American Spy by Lauren Wilkinson

The Lost Village by Camille Sten

Documentary filmmaker Alice Lindstedt has long been obsessed with the vanishing residents of the old mining town. In 1959, her grandmother's entire family disappeared there. She's gathered a small crew to make a film about what happened. But after setting up camp, strange things start to happen.

What to read first: Wonderland by Zoje Stage

March 30

Of Women and Salt by Gabriela Garcia

From 19th-century cigar factories to present-day detention centers, from Cuba to Mexico, this sweeping debut centers on a daughter's fateful choice, a mother motivated by her own past, and a family legacy that begins in Cuba before either of them were born.

What to read first: Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi

Girlhood by Melissa Febos

In her dazzling new book, a fierce essayist dispels the myths that young women grow up hearing about their bodies and themselves. It's an absorbing exploration of the realities of growing up female in a world that prioritizes the feelings, perceptions, and power of men.

What to read first: Abandon Me by Melissa Febos

Libertie by Kaitlyn Greenidge

Inspired by the life of one of the first Black female doctors in the US, this engrossing new novel is set in Reconstruction-era Brooklyn. At war's end, Libertie and her doctor mother have big dreams. But even amidst this newfound freedom, Libertie struggles to find her place in an America that does not account for her.

What to read first: We Love You, Charlie Freeman by Kaitlyn Greenidge

Hopefully there's something here that captures your fancy! Let us know which new books you're most excited about this month. And be sure to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for daily book recommendations, literary tidbits, and more.

Read more by Ashly Moore Sheldon