Books to Get You Out of a Reading Slump

When Agatha Paul — a visiting professor and author — interviews three students and roommates at the University of Arkansas, they provide a lot more information for her latest book than she expected. Interviewing them about weddings and marriage becomes a bigger discussion on their relationship to money and class disparities. RA Millie Cousins can not only hear everything that these students — who live in the suite next to her — say about others, but also about her — so when Agatha offers to pay Millie to let her eavesdrop on them, she jumps at the chance to get her bills paid. But Millie’s new role comes at a much greater cost.

After a car crash kills her mother, Maggie Krause heads back home to grieve with her brother and father. Although Maggie and her mother didn’t get along — particularly after Maggie came out as queer — the one thing that she admired was her parents’ loyal and loving marriage. But after the funeral, Maggie realizes that this might not have been the case. When Maggie discovers five envelopes addressed to names she doesn’t recognize, she sets out on a California-wide road trip to hand deliver the letters that contain the secrets of her mother’s past and the answers that Maggie didn’t know she needed.

The tight-knit group of Jordan, Jordy, Naomi, Marielle, and Craig has spanned decades. Through the tough times that all began with the death of the sixth member of their group, the five left have always reunited when they need each other most — by throwing funerals while they’re still alive. But now it’s Jordan’s turn for a funeral, though this won’t be like the others — this is going to be a real goodbye. Battling a health crisis only he and his husband Jordy know about, Jordan’s news will rock the entire group. Dip in and out of the past 28 years that they’ve all shared together and see the memories the five friends will have to hold on to once they become four.

When Lauren comes home from a party, the last person she expects to find in her home is her husband — because she doesn’t have one. But from the evidence on her phone, in her home, and the assurance of her friends — Lauren has been married to Michael for years. But as quickly as he appears, Michael goes up to the attic only for a different man to come out in his place — a new life descending with him. With this discovery, Lauren realizes she can test out any number of husbands — and lives — as she’d like. But deciding who her perfect match is — or rather who she should keep out of the attic — isn’t easy when the possibility of something better is waiting upstairs.

When Lucy Ashby arrives in Prince Edward Island, she isn’t supposed to be alone. As she waits for her best friend Bridget to arrive and show her around her hometown, Lucy’s innocent chatter with a stranger turns into a one-night stand. But how can she forget him when he happens to be Bridget’s brother? Both determined to never let protective Bridget find out, the two spend every summer trying not to repeat that same mistake — trying and failing. But when Bridget runs away to PEI just two weeks before her wedding, she needs both her best friend and her brother to help her. With a weekend full of oyster-shucking competitions, Green Gables visits, and stolen glances — this might be the last summer that Lucy and Felix can keep their secret to themselves.

Vera Wong may be getting older, but that doesn’t mean she’s not still sharp as a tack. When she finds a dead man in the middle of her cozy tea shop, Vera decides that she would be a huge asset to the investigation — so instead of leaving everything up to the police, she pries a flash drive from the victim’s cold, dead hands to do some detective work of her own. But Vera isn’t the only one trying to solve this murder — other suspects come sniffing around the tea shop, determined to clear their own names. As Vera teams up with the wife of the victim, and the people he did business with, they might be able to figure out which one among them is the killer.

In a set of 13 connected short stories — half of which follows the same character — see into the lives of Houstonians navigating their sexuality, illicit affairs, dysfunctional families, and more. Find the meaning of community when a neighborhood throws a funeral for a body that isn’t claimed or analyze the complex relationships many of these characters have with their parents. Appearing in half the stories is Nicolás at different life stages. Watch him as he comes to terms with his sexuality, comes out to his intolerant family, and comes to grips with the trauma that has kept him from letting others get too close.

In a slump of his own is Jonathan Abernathy. Riddled with debt and on the verge of eviction, he’s willing to do whatever it takes to get out from under it — even if it means going in and out of people’s dreams. With the promise of having all of his loans forgiven, Jonathan becomes a “dream auditor” — going to sleep, entering stranger’s dreams, and cleaning up any anxieties that are keeping them from being productive workers. But this job is a lot harder than Jonathan ever dreamed of — literally — especially when he discovers the company’s darker motivations. Follow Jonathan not only through the dreams of others, but through his own waking hours as he deals with debt, life, and love.

Xavier Reynolds is desperate for a win — not only was he fired, dumped, and forced to move back in with his parents, but he lost the chance at his dream fellowship — that is until he’s given a last-minute spot. But with the payment date fast approaching, Xavier needs a job, and quickly. After a more than embarrassing first encounter with chef Logan O’Hare, he reluctantly hires Xavier as a prep chef in his popular restaurant. But the stove isn’t the only thing heating up the kitchen. As sparks fly between the two, Xavier and Logan will either be a match made in heaven or a recipe for disaster.

Oye is structured as a series of one-sided phone calls from our spunky, sarcastic narrator, Luciana, to her older sister, Mari in this coming-of-age comedy. As Luciana chronicles the events of her disrupted senior year of high school over the phone to Mari, Oye unfolds like the most fascinating and entertaining conversation you’ve ever eavesdropped on: a rollicking, heartfelt, and utterly unique novel that celebrates the beauty revealed and resilience required when rewriting your own story.

When a father goes missing, his family’s desperate search leads them to question everything they know about him and one another. Full of shocking twists and fascinating questions of love, language, and human connection, Happiness Falls is a mystery, a family drama, and a novel of profound philosophical inquiry.