"You, Me, & the Conspiracy"

Coming November 10 from Atria Books: You, Me, & the Conspiracy: A Novel by Emma Barry.

About the novel, from the publisher:

Perfect for fans of Jo Segura and Rachel Grant, You, Me, & the Conspiracy is an academic adventure romance that finds two history professors trying to unmask a deadly secret society.

After a bruising book rejection, tenure-track history professor Jessica Wilson is scrambling for something new to publish to secure her spot at the top of the academic food chain. While researching in the archives, she discovers a coded message written by one of the founding fathers with the power to change her—and the world’s—understanding of American history forever. But first, she’s got to prove it’s real.

Desperate for answers, Jess searches out Calloway Morgan, a Harvard PhD student turned adjunct professor. Cal was forced to leave graduate school after presenting theories about a shadowy revolutionary organization. Jess heard his conference presentation and thought his findings were absurd, but now, she believes he was onto something.

With their fates intertwined by their discoveries, the two begin to work together, but danger lurks around every corner. The clandestine fraternity that they’ve uncovered still exists and is ready to kill. With it hot on their heels, the embers of Jess and Cal’s attraction grow. But unless they can make their findings public in this “perfect blend of chemistry, spice, and a historical mystery” (Adriana Anders, author of Whiteout), they’ll soon become the conspiracy’s latest victims...

Visit Emma Barry's website.

My Book, The Movie: Bad Reputation.

--Marshal Zeringue

"Penelope and Her Maids"

New from Cornell University Press: Penelope and Her Maids by Emily G. Shanahan.

About the book, from the publisher:

Penelope and Her Maids reconsiders the Odyssey from Penelope's point of view. Her decisions have long been considered to be the product of a fractured characterization, with no coherent human psychology possibly explaining everything she says and does. Emily Shanahan investigates this characterization, and all of Penelope's decisions, in context, reading each one of her scenes diachronically. In doing so, Penelope and Her Maids reveals how the pervasive threat of gendered violence in homeric society―a rape culture―constrains what Penelope may say and do openly.

The suitors attempt to fill a power vacuum in Odysseus's absence―by either marrying his wife, Penelope, or alternatively, diminishing his honor, geras, which includes the value of his possessions. As Penelope is an asset in his ledger, the only way to stay safe is to lead the suitors to believe she may become theirs at any moment. Penelope ultimately survives the Odyssey's violence. However, twelve young, enslaved girls in her home do not and ultimately demonstrate the inherent danger that men pose to women in Homer's world.

--Marshal Zeringue

"Dark Accords"

Coming November 3 from Severn House: Dark Accords (A Bloody Mackenzie Mystery, 1) by Morgan Cry.

About the novel, from the publisher:

SOMETHING EVIL IS AFOOT . . .

A COUNTRY ABLAZE WITH FEAR

Scotland, 1662. Accused of witchcraft, Jonet and her lover Malcolm flee across a land ruled by fear and superstition. Their path through the Scottish mainland holds peril and an unexpected rescue mission.

A WOMAN IN DANGER

Reaching Dundee they’re granted sanctuary by Sir George Mackenzie, a smart advocate who has defended witches, only to find him facing a crisis of his own. His secret lover Margaret has been abducted by his nemeses, the unscrupulous Blair brothers, and they are claiming she’s a witch!

A MURDEROUS PLOT IN THE MAKING

Is this personal revenge on Sir George or are darker machinations at play? With time running out, Sir George and his loyal allies set out to uncover the chilling truth – a truth that could alter the course of history in its entirety . . .

An intricately plotted and twisty historical thriller based on the real-life seventeenth-century lawyer Sir George Mackenzie – perfect for fans of S. J. PARRIS, ANDREW TAYLOR and JOHN PILKINGTON.

Visit Morgan Cry / Gordon J. Brown's website.

--Marshal Zeringue

"Future Build"

New from Bloomsbury Sigma: Future Build: How Construction Can Heal Our Planet by Will Arnold.

About the book, from the publisher:

Future Build exposes the devastating environmental impact of modern construction while offering a bold vision for change.

Construction shapes the world we live in, but also leaves one of the heaviest footprints on our planet. From the relentless heat of cement kilns to the towering steel and concrete skeletons of our cities, Future Build reveals how our dependence on five key materials has led to soaring carbon emissions, waste and ecological destruction.

But it doesn't have to be this way. Structural engineer Will Arnold offers a bold vision for change, revealing how every stage of construction - from design to demolition - can be transformed for the better. Through a global journey of pioneering projects and groundbreaking innovations, he showcases buildings that do more than just minimize harm: they actively heal the planet. From schools built of bamboo, to concrete floors designed with plant-like efficiency and houses made from waste, a better future is not only possible, it is already being built.

--Marshal Zeringue

"A Treachery of Curses"

Coming November 17 from 47North: A Treachery of Curses (A Treason of Magic) by Melissa Marr.

About the book, from the publisher:

Destiny, love, and duty collide when a Hunter-in-Training must choose between the prince who stole her heart and her duty to protect against the faery realm in this lush historical fantasy by New York Times bestselling author Melissa Marr.

I am the Hunter-in-Training, waiting for a fate I do not want to ever inherit.

Rylan Fleuriste comes from a lineage of noble ancestors who’ve safeguarded their lands from monsters. Her duty is to the Hunters. There is no room for heart-mates―no matter the strength of her passion for the crown prince Alaric or the beautiful Anders.

But when Anders is murdered―the second woman to die under the strangest of circumstances―Rylan’s mission becomes personal. And with the Hunter line at risk, Rylan is forced to secure an arranged marriage to continue the line should the beast lurking in the realm defeat her.

As more victims are killed and the palace itself comes under siege, Rylan is plunged into a battle against evil. Now she must choose between a love she has longed for and her duty to the Fleuriste line. Each choice could come with a risk.

Visit Melissa Marr's website.

The Page 69 Test: A Treason of Magic.

--Marshal Zeringue

"American Bread: A History"

New from University of California Press: American Bread: A History by Andrew Coe.

About the book, from the publisher:

A fascinating window into America's past via one of our favorite foods.

There is no humbler food than bread, none easier to take for granted. So ancient that it shows up in prehistoric sites, bread is still full of surprises. Heirloom grains and artisan loaves fetch top dollar, while home bakers pour their passion into naan and challah, anadama and pistolet.

In this book, award-winning author Andrew Coe provides the definitive history of American bread, from European settlers' introduction to corn through the COVID-era sourdough craze. Each chapter follows an emblematic loaf that connects flour, water, salt, and yeast to the evolving story of American agriculture, industry, immigration, and ideas about health.

Why did supermarket white become America's dominant bread, and how did rustic old-world bagels, ryes, and rolls find their way into our kitchens? Who was the early nineteenth-century dietary reformer who started the whole-grain revolution? Why not knead? An enriching and enlightening cultural chronicle, American Bread answers these questions and more and offers carefully sourced historical recipes to inspire the home baker.

Follow Andrew Coe on Instagram.

--Marshal Zeringue

"Falling for a Villainous Vampire"

New from St. Martin's Griffin: Falling for a Villainous Vampire: A Novel by Charlotte Stein.

About the novel, from the publisher:

The third standalone in Charlotte Stein's Sanctuary for Supernatural Creatures series, featuring a blood-pumping enemies-to-lovers romance for the ages!

Marley Maples is sure she's finally evaded her vampire mortal enemy. Halsten has stalked her across oceans of time, and many, many lives. But now she's arrived at the age of thirty in Hollow Brook, with no sign of him. So she’s devastated when he suddenly shows and yet again tries to make her life hell. Until her two witchy best friends suggest a spell to make him forget all about her.

There’s just one issue: he forgets his whole existence with it. All Halsten now remembers is being a big, hot, vampire Viking. And all he sees when he looks at Marley is his beloved little witch, his saviour, the light of his life. He goes from being a horror that haunts her nightmares, to a man who loves her and will protect her at all costs. And as much as she’s skeptical, she can’t help finding his fish-out-of-water, warrior ways and his desire to defend her endearing.

Maybe even a little sexy. In fact, it’s starting feel very sexy indeed.

And if she’s not careful, she’s going to lose herself to a man she swore to hate. A man who might return to her eternal enemy, at any moment…

Visit Charlotte Stein's website.

--Marshal Zeringue

"Novel Constitutions and the Making of Race"

New from Oxford University Press: Novel Constitutions and the Making of Race: A Literary and Legal History of Slavery in the Anglophone Atlantic, 1688-1818 by Sarah Marsh.

About the book, from the publisher:

Novel Constitutions and the Making of Race argues that Anglo-American racial slavery emerged from a constitutional crisis in seventeenth-century England between divine-right absolutism of the Stuart kings, and their people's claims to an 'ancient constitution': an immemorial, heritable protection of life, liberty, and property under the common law. As Stuart imperial expansion transported these conflicts overseas, Crown jurists and colonial lawmakers developed new procedures for the absolute mastery of human labour that severed kinship ties, alienated labour, and ultimately converted people of African descent into perpetual, inheritable property, while simultaneously transforming some English subjects into colonial slavocrats. These English slaveholders, like the Stuart kings, asserted absolute power over their human subjects.

Sarah Marsh argues that contemporary racial categories in the United States of America took shape through these legal improvisations, which this study names 'novel constitutions': practices that inserted absolutist power into the very constitutional idioms meant to restrain tyranny, turning an old set of English constitutional safeguards into a rationale for owning human beings, and setting that rationale upon the arbitrary logic of human skin colour.

Early modern literary texts are essential to perceiving this history because, in real time, they recorded this constitutional contest between the rights of the king and the rights of the people. Novels, autobiographies, petitions, and even mathematics disclose the moral drama, political conflict, and spiritual struggle through which modern American conceptions of slavery and antislavery were brought into being--often showing, with unmatched nuance, how race was developed at law, challenged, and ultimately exposed as a legal fiction. Reading these texts alongside statutes, slave codes, charters, and landmark legal decisions, Novel Constitutions reframes slavery and antislavery as competing constitutional impulses that shaped the American founding and continue to inflect its unfinished claims to liberty and equality.

--Marshal Zeringue

"Dark Country"

New from Grand Central Publishing: Dark Country by Adam Plantinga.

About the book, from the publisher:

Argento finds himself shielding a teenage boy caught up in a manhunt in this explosive installment of the Kurt Argento series, from USA Today bestselling author, Adam Plantinga.

After the bloodshed in Fenton, Arizona, former Detroit cop Kurt Argento had to disappear. He reemerges in the small town of Barton, South Dakota, working under an assumed name as a church handyman. It’s a serene existence of tending to the church grounds and avoiding questions. Until he meets seventeen-year-old Majed, a Syrian refugee trying to build a life in Barton with his single mother, as he’s running for his life.

Two men with hard eyes are close behind. Argento steps in, and Majed’s pursuers retreat with a thin excuse about a stolen wallet. It’s a story Argento doesn’t buy for a second. Digging deeper, he uncovers something far more lethal than a street-level shakedown. Majed isn’t just in trouble―he’s a target. And the hunters are closing in.

To safeguard Majed, Argento hits the road with the boy, pushing west. And along the way it becomes clear that whatever Majed knows―or carries―someone powerful wants it and will kill to get it. But Argento can’t let that happen. Because he’s made a promise. Protect the boy. Or die trying.

Visit Adam Plantinga's website.

My Book, The Movie: The Ascent.

Q&A with Adam Plantinga.

--Marshal Zeringue

"Shakespeare and Work"

New from Oxford University Press: Shakespeare and Work by Michelle M. Dowd.

About the book, from the publisher:

What did work mean to Shakespeare? And what does it mean to work in Shakespeare's plays? Work was a quintessential part of early modern society, as it is today. But the meanings attached to different forms of work were changing in important ways during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries in England. Developments such as the enclosure movement, the growth of venture capitalism, and the diversification of the wage-labour market transformed England's labour economy and helped reshape the everyday lives of men and women in both rural and urban communities. These socio-economic shifts had a direct effect on the professional theatres of Shakespeare's day. The world of work, including the people at all social levels who performed it, was vital to Shakespeare's drama, both because the theatre was a highly successful business enterprise in its own right and because work significantly influences the plots, language, and structures of Shakespeare's plays throughout his career.

Shakespeare and Work introduces readers to the rich working world of Shakespeare's plays. Opening chapters provide an overview of working conditions in Shakespeare's England and in the theatre and discuss Shakespeare's own practices as a working playwright. Subsequent chapters examine a range of plays from multiple genres, including Twelfth Night, Othello, The Tempest, Titus Andronicus, Love's Labour's Lost, Macbeth, The Winter's Tale, 2 Henry VI, and A Midsummer Night's Dream, and consider several types of work that are either staged directly (such as service) or, more frequently, alluded to (such as agricultural work). Offering an accessible and wide-ranging account of how Shakespeare engaged with the working world around him, Shakespeare and Work demonstrates that we can come to a richer understanding of Shakespeare's dramatic output and cultural legacy if we attend to how the everyday world of work shapes both the action and the language of his plays.

--Marshal Zeringue