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Big Books of the Week

Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke (Knopf) leads holds this week.

Other titles in demand include:

Revenge Prey by John Sandford (Putnam)

American Fantasy by Emma Straub (Riverhead)

The Ending Writes Itself by Evelyn Clarke (Harper; LJ starred review)

London Falling: A Mysterious Death in a Gilded City and a Family’s Search for Truth by Patrick Radden Keefe (Doubleday)

These books and others publishing the week of April 6, 2026, are listed in a downloadable spreadsheet.

Librarians and Booksellers Suggest

Eight LibraryReads and five Indie Next picks publish this week:

London Falling: A Mysterious Death in a Gilded City and a Family’s Search for Truth by Patrick Radden Keefe (Doubleday) *Good for Book Clubs

“In November 2019, the lifeless body of teenager Zac Brettler was discovered in the Thames River. Police conclude that Zac was suicidal but his parents believe that something more nefarious led to his death and soon discover he was caught in a web of lies, surrounded by gangsters and criminals. Compelling narrative nonfiction that’s deeply intimate and unnerving.”—KC Davis, LibraryReads Ambassador, CT

It is also an Indie Next pick:

“London Falling begins with the devastating death of a 19-year-old and the secrets he took into the cold Thames with him. As this web of secrets untangles, the story widens into a gripping investigation of power, money, and the hidden systems shaping our world.”—Nick Petrulakis, Newtonville Books, Newton Centre, MA

Hall of Fame pick American Fantasy by Emma Straub (Riverhead) is also an Indie Next pick:

“This is such a great story around nostalgia, identity, and how it’s never too late to live the life you want to live. Annie and Keith’s relationship was so genuine. A fun and heartfelt read!”—Emily Tuttle, Queen Takes Book, Columbia, MD

Other Hall of Fame picks include The Name Game by Beth O’Leary (Berkley), The Book Witch by Meg Shaffer (Ballantine), and The Paris Match by Kate Clayborn (Berkley; LJ starred review).

The top pick is Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke (Knopf) *Debut *Good for Book Clubs

“Natalie is an influencer with a seemingly perfect life: six perfect children, a perfect, if simple, husband, and a perfectly beautiful Idaho farm. Never mind the dozens of workers who actually run the farm, the nannies who care for the children. And never mind the ‘Angry Women’ online who are jealous that Natalie can afford to be a trad wife who serves her family and, most importantly, her God. Natalie wakes one morning in her house…except it’s not her house—electricity has been replaced by a fire, her children are dirty, and her husband is old and gruff. Where are the hidden cameras? Where is her real family? Creative, mind-bending, and incredibly well-written, this one is sure to be a blockbuster.”—Jenny Davies, Oak Creek Public Library, WI

It is also the #1 Indie Next pick:

“Yesteryear is a thoughtful look behind the curtain at carefully curated social media influencers. Like Natalie’s staff, I didn’t care for her ‘perfect life’ but I couldn’t quit reading this story. Hard to believe this is a debut!”—Angela Sides, Monkey and Dog Books, Fort Worth, TX

The Ending Writes Itself by Evelyn Clarke (Harper; LJ starred review) *Good for Book Clubs

“An oft-used trope—people lured to a remote island, then cut off from the outside world—gets a new life. Six writers, following the death of their famous host, must compete to finish his final manuscript for a massive payday. While hesitant at first, the competition soon becomes intense, no one is quite who they seem to be, and death stalks the halls. A wonderfully twisty mystery and a wickedly satirical look at the world of publishing.”—Beth Mills, New Rochelle Public Library, NY

It is also an Indie Next pick:

“Six writers are invited to an island to compete to finish Arthur’s final novel, left incomplete after his death. Rivalries ignite, secrets emerge, the competition turns lethal, bodies begin to fall, and it becomes terrifyingly clear: someone would kill to write the conclusion.”—Sandra Pinkney, Hills & Hamlets Bookshop, Chattahoochee, GA

Start at the End by Emma Grey (Zibby) *Good for Book Clubs

“A thoughtful, emotionally resonant novel that will appeal to readers who enjoy stories about love, loss, and new beginnings. This ‘sliding-doors’ novel balances tenderness and hope, offering a meaningful reading experience that lingers after the final page. An excellent choice for patrons who enjoy contemporary literary fiction and book club–worthy reads.”—Janie Hermann, Princeton Public Library, NJ

One additional Indie Next pick publishes this week:

Body Double by Hanna Johansson, tr. by Kira Josefsson (Catapult)

“A chance meeting between two women in a department store cafe leads to an affair of obsession in this captivating novel by Hanna Johansson, translated by Kira Josefsson. Perfect for fans of Hitchcock and Patricia Highsmith.”—Caitlin Baker, Island Books, Mercer Island, WA

In the Media

People’s book of the week is Mothers and Other Strangers by Corey Ann Haydu (Little, Brown). Also getting attention are Almost Life by Kiran Millwood Hargrave (Summit) and The Bridge Back to You by Riss M. Neilson (Berkley; LJ starred review). “New Novels by Hot Authors” include Daughter of Egypt by Marie Benedict (St. Martin’s), The Keeper by Tana French (Viking; LJ starred review), and Son of Nobody by Yann Martel (Norton). There is also a Q&A with Emma Straub about her new novel, American Fantasy (Riverhead).

People highlights Stephen Colbert’s forthcoming Lord of the Rings spinoff, bombshells from Brandy’s memoir Phases (Hanover Square), and Hugo Vickers’s new royal biography, Queen Elizabeth II: A Personal History (Hodder & Stoughton). 

There is a feature on country star Ty Herndon and his new memoir, What Mattered Most, written with David Ritz (Dey Street). Plus recipes from Ham El-Waylly, author of Hello, Home Cooking: Do-Able Dishes for Every Day (Clarkson Potter), and Ron Hsu, coauthor of Down South + East: A Chinese American Cookbook, written with Hugh Amano (Abrams). 

Reviews

NYT reviews Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke (Knopf): “The chasm between social media and reality runs deep and dark in Caro Claire Burke’s debut novel, Yesteryear, which crawls into the psyche of a tradwife influencer so maddening and mesmerizing that Anne Hathaway has already signed on to play her in the movie adaptation”; True Color: The Strange and Spectacular Quest To Define Color—from Azure to Zinc Pink by Kory Stamper (Knopf): “Stamper’s book is about color, but it’s also a sneakily insightful philosophical treatise on what it means to define anything at all”; The Oyster Diaries by Nancy Lemann (NYRB): “Below and beyond this surface chop, The Oyster Diaries is remorseful and melancholy, and it leaves a wide wake. It’s also a bit scattered and hectic, not Lemann’s best. Yet it’s wide awake. It’s an epic of disgruntlement that’s in touch with life’s little moments of grace”; Here Where We Live Is Our Country: The Story of the Jewish Bund by Molly Crabapple (One World): “It’s an authoritative history of the Jewish Labor Bund, better known simply as the Bund, the early-20th-century socialist movement that broke with the Bolsheviks, fought the Zionists and tried to resist the fascists”; and four new thrillers. 

NPR reviews London Falling: A Mysterious Death in a Gilded City and a Family’s Search for Truth by Patrick Radden Keefe (Doubleday): “On the surface, London Falling documents the Brettlers’ investigation into the death of their son and the mystery of his life. But it is also—like The Snakehead—a journey into an urban underworld.”

Briefly Noted

M. R. Carey wins the Philip K. Dick Award for Outlaw Planet (Orbit). 

Jurors for the 2026 Kirkus Prize are announced. 

CrimeReads suggests 10 new books for the week. 

Time highlights 12 new books for April. 

CBC recommends 10 Canadian food memoirs.  

People shares cult-related documentaries, books, and movies. 

The Guardian has an interview with Yann Martel, author of Son of Nobody (Norton).

Authors on Air

Today, Cleo Wade, In a World of Sunrises: 365 Days of Heart, Soul, and Hope (Avid Reader) will appear on GMA and Today. People shares an excerpt from the book. 

Emma Straub, American Fantasy (Riverhead), also appears on Today.

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