Finished your summer book list early? Bestselling author Harlan Coben has five thrilling recommendations to carry readers through August 2023.
Whether you're in the mood for nonfiction, short stories, or sweeping sagas, Coben's book list has a late-summer read for everyone.
Coben describes "Strange Sally Diamond" as "a huge number one bestseller in her native country of Ireland."
"Liz Nugent’s story opens with the death of Sally’s father — and a shocking revelation about her past," Coben says. "As Sally digs into the truth, the novel becomes surprising, moving, and shockingly original."
"The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store" by James McBride
"McBride’s latest is a gorgeous, towering, life-affirming saga of a novel that defies easy description," Coben says. "'The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store' starts with an old skeleton being unearthed, but this searing novel is really about communities on the margin and how they fight, live, laugh, and love. Brilliantly written."
“How Can I Help You” by Laura Sims
Here is Coben's "simple pitch" for the novel: "'How I Can Help You' is a gripping and dark psychological thriller about two librarians that takes place in a library. Delicious, right? What more do we book-lovers need to know? I read it one sitting."
"Valiant Women" by Lena Andrews
Described by Coben as "a must-read for the history buff," Coben says that "no study of World War II is complete without reading Lena Andrew’s account of the 350,000 women who served bravely in every branch of the armed forces during World Word II."
"Witness: Stories" by Jamel Brinkley
"We overlook short story collections, and we shouldn’t," Coben says. "These ten stories of contemporary New York burst with life -- they’re thought-provoking, entertaining, explosive. Brinkley is an incredible talent."
