“The Cruel Prince” by Holly Black
For the fantasy lovers, The 2018 Young Adult classic hits all the spring vibes. Black does a masterful job at capturing the reader’s attention with her vivid world building, transporting the reader into the world under the hill. The book centers around the main character Jude Duterte, a mortal girl who is kidnapped as a child and forced to live in the world of faye. Jude struggles to find her own footing in a world that is so beautiful, but so cruel at the same time. While often confused as a romance novel due to Jude’s tumultuous relationship with the “Cruel Prince,” the novel itself has a lot more to do with Judes own character development and the political climate in the fictional world of Elfhame.
“Practice Makes Perfect” by Sarah Adams
Sarah Adams’ 2023 romance release is perfect for the romance reader looking for a spring read. Adams’ slow burn romance novel has all the classic romance qualities. It possesses a hardworking female lead and a kind and understanding male lead. The female lead Annie Walker is a socially awkward sweetheart that owns the only flower shop in her small town. Will Griffin is the bodyguard of Annie’s famous sister-in-law. Filled with meet cutes and awkward moments, Annie and Will’s story is a swoon-worthy spring romance.
“The Last House on Needless Street” by Catriona Ward
This is author Catriona Ward’s 2021 debut novel, which took the Horror genre by storm. With the likes of author Stephen King singing its praises, calling the novel a “true nerve-shredder,” a high honor from the king of horror himself. Ward’s novel is a psychological thriller not for the faint of the heart, a perfect book to spice up your spring reading list. The novel takes a bizarre approach to the horror genre using multiple unreliable narrators to tell the central story about a missing girl, one of the narrators being a house cat. Ward forces her readers to not take the information given to them at face value because even authors can be liars. In order to understand the book, readers must make their own observations of the world Ward has built. Everything from the color of carpet to the positioning of the picture frames matters in this story.
“Story Book Ending” by Moira Macdonald
Released in 2025, Moira Macdonald’s fiction novel makes the ordinary, extraordinary. Macdonald’s simple writing style paired with interesting and witty dialogue creates a light, easy read perfect for this spring season. Macdonald turns what would normally be a simple story about a misunderstanding in a bookstore into something that is both heartwarming and magical. This book is not for everyone, it is not action packed and at times the pacing is slow. However, it is definitely for the readers who want to see a little magic in the world. The book centers around three characters: a bookshop worker, a single mother and a tech worker who all are victims of an awkward misunderstanding. However, none of them know that they are a part of this situation. The novel covers themes of friendship and loneliness leading to an unlikely found-family.
“The Subtle Art of Folding Space” by John Chu
Nebula award-winning author John Chu’s new April 7 science fiction release is one that has been on every sci-fi fan’s reading list since it was announced. Chu has mastered the art of world building proven by his short story “The Water That Falls on You from Nowhere.” Chu uses his talent of creation to build an even deeper, more intense novel. One where readers must question their own morality to truly understand the main character Ellie’s motives. Chu balances the deep, sensitive topics of the novel by using unique witty characters.
In this book he explores the topics of generational trauma and morality using his own Taiwanese-American culture as an influence in his story telling.
