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7 Great Books Hitting Bookstores This Month (May 2022)

Updated: May 15, 2022

We hand-picked seven highly anticipated book releases that are coming out in May.


Whether you are looking for a thriller, romance, or messy family drama, we have something for you! We also selected some historical fiction and speculative fiction titles for you to add to your bookshelf. I hope you can find something to either read or add to your to-be-read pile! Enjoy!


1. Trust by Hernan Diaz

Benjamin and Helen Rask have it all, money, influence, power, and all of NYC in their hand. Gossip begins to stir about their rise to power and wealth and is the focus and mystery of the 1938 book Bonds, written to answer the question on everyone's mind: How did they get that rich?


An elegantly written novel that uses an untimely scandal to show the fragility of the truth and how money and the elite can turn fiction into fact from the perspective of a woman desperate to find out the truth behind all these lies.


Trust, an instant best-seller by Pultizer Prize finalist Hernan Diaz, is a historical fiction novel, but Diaz writes about subject matter that resonates and has a place within today's world.


Hernan Diaz is the author of two highly-anticipated books: In the Distance and now Trust. His writing has gained him two prestigious fellowships, one from the New York Public Library's Cullman Center for Scholars and Writers and the other from the Guggenheim Fellowship.



2. This Time Tomorrow by Emma Straub

Alice is turning 40. She loves her life and job, but with her father sick, something in her life is missing. Waking up in 1996 as her 16-year-old self, Alice discovers new meaning in past life events that she had once otherwise disregarded.


Emily Straub uses the time travel trope to explore the father-daughter relationship that Alice is desperate to hold onto with her father now sick. With a newfound perspective on life, her dad, and their relationship, will Alice use her time differently?


This Time Tomorrow is a speculative fiction novel by Emma Straub, the New York Times bestselling author of Modern Lovers and The Vacationers. Her novels have been translated into 20 different languages and been made into television series.



3. Dirty Laundry by Cori Nevruz

Dirty Laundry tells the story of Samantha, a suburban housewife who goes to extremes to keep her secrets private. What is Samantha willing to do to keep the life that she’s always dreamed of?


Samantha had grown accustomed to high expectations; a clean house, nice meals, and a fit and nicely presented wife, just to name a few. A move brings them to a new home in a perfect neighborhood where she meets a friend she can finally confide in… but can she? Will sharing secrets with this newfound friend put them both in danger from Samantha's very private and controlling husband?


Dirty Laundry gives us a fast-moving and suspenseful look into the mind of a mom on the edge, but not everything is what it seems.



4. The Summer Place by Jennifer Weiner

For fans of messy family dramas, The Summer Place incorporates multiple generational stories with a punch of comedy and flooding emotions to keep you reading and wanting more.


A rushed wedding brings together Sarah, Ruby, and Veronica, all with their own problems, days before Ruby's wedding. The close proximity forces the three women to deal with the baggage they brought to the family's beach house in Cape Cod. But on the big day, long-hidden secrets come to light. Not only affecting these three women but those around them that they love and cherish, leaving nothing the same.


Jennifer Weiner has been called the "undisputed boss of the beach read" by the New York Times and is the author of 15 best-selling books: Mrs. Everything, Good in Bed, Hungry Heart, and many, many more.



5. Half-Blown Rose by Leesa Cross-Smith

Vincent returns to Paris from America after her husband's best-selling book reveals secrets about their marriage and his possible secret family.

Back in a familiar setting, Vincent tries to allow herself to deal with this still fresh betrayal, but one day, she falls for a young, charismatic man, Loup, who introduces her to a new world in a town she thought she knew so well. Loup, while he does bring out a new side to Vincent, brings her a whole whirlwind of trouble with him. Life away from her husband and with Loup weighs on Vincent. In the end, she has to decide if her newfound happiness and life is worth the challenges it presented over the last year.


Half-Blown Rose is a romance novel by Leesa Cross-Smith, author of Every Kiss a War, So We Can Glow, and others. Her novel Whiskey & Ribbons won the Independent Publisher Book Awards in 2019.



6. The Lioness by Chris Bohjalian

To see the sun rise once more is all Katie Barstow wants. After what was supposed to be a happy honeymoon and celebration with friends, things begin to go terribly wrong for this group of Hollywood elite. During a safari in the already dangerous Serengeti, Katie and her star-studded group are kidnapped by Russian mercenaries, turning their once lavish trip of drinking all night and photographing the wildlife into a nightmare to survive.


The Lioness, set in 1964, is part historical fiction, part thriller, written by Chris Bohjalian, a bestselling author of more than 20 novels. The Lioness was so well received and popular that a television series is now in the works. His critically acclaimed work includes The Red Lotus, The Flight Attendant, Midwives, and many more great reads.



7. Yerba Buena by Nina LaCour

Yerba Buena is a modern-day love story between two women trying to find themselves and their way in the world. Working at Yerba Buena, Emilie and Sara share an immediate connection with each other. However, this strong bond is instantly tested between Emilie and Sara when problems from both of their pasts resurface. Sara and Emilie both have to decide if their newfound love is worth the turbulent relationship and if it is strong enough to survive these challenges.


After writing two bestselling young adult books, Yerba Buena is Nina LaCour's debut adult LGBT+ fiction novel. Her other novels include Everything Leads to You, We Are Okay, and The Disenchantments.



Those were some of the best books hitting bookstores this month. Are you going to add any of them to your TBR list? Let us know in the comments below or on social media!


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