Fiction

  • On Your Bookmark: Summer Book Bingo Starts Today

    On Your Bookmark: Summer Book Bingo Starts Today

    Grab a stack of books, a friend and start reading — Seattle’s favorite summer reading contest is on! The Seattle Public Library and Seattle Arts & Lectures just launched this year’s Summer Book Bingo, which encourages people to read for pleasure and to talk about books with friends, coworkers and neighbors. Need a refresher? Book… Continue reading

  • Seattle Reads Turns 25 and We’re Celebrating With Julie Otsuka

    It’s hard to imagine, but back in 1998, citywide book clubs didn’t really exist. Enter Nancy Pearl and Chris Higashi, who were with the Washington Center for the Book (then affiliated with the Library). They came up with the concept of encouraging readers across a community to read the same book, and discuss it. They… Continue reading

  • Don’t Go Down That Causeway: Island Mysteries

    One of my favorite takes on the locked room mystery is the island mystery, where characters are trapped on an inaccessible island with a murderer and must solve the mystery to save themselves. The Rising Tide by Ann Cleeves For 50 years, a group of friends has reunited on Holy Island every five years. This… Continue reading

  • Taking a Stand for the Right to Read with Books Unbanned

    If you’ve followed the news about the unprecedented increase in book bans and challenges nationwide, you’ll be happy to know that The Seattle Public Library is doing something about it. On April 29, we announced that we are joining Brooklyn Public Library to offer a free Books Unbanned e-card for teens and young adults (ages… Continue reading

  • New fiction roundup, May 2023

    May brings a bounty of summer reads, with novels about dance and other art forms, historical sagas, several books about books, and much more! 5/2: Chain Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah In a near-future United States, two women convicts are the top gladiators in the Chain-Gang All Stars reality TV death matches, competing for… Continue reading

  • Thrills for your Monday

    Having a hard time getting started this dreary, rainy Monday morning? How about a thriller to give you a quick shot of adrenaline? Here are some of the latest, from our collection: Regrets Only, by Kieran Scott. A single mom goes undercover to investigate a host of disturbing secrets held by the leaders of a… Continue reading

  • New fiction roundup, April 2023

    Take your pick of excellent fiction this April, with enticing romance, thriller, horror, and general fiction offerings. 4/4: Ana María and the Fox by Liana de la Rosa In Victorian London, Ana María Luna Valdés – heiress to the powerful Mexican Luna family – catches the eye of Gideon Fox, a shrewd British politician with… Continue reading

  • Middle Grade Fiction for Adults

    Middle Grade Fiction for Adults

    For a long time as an adult, I told myself that middle grade books were no longer for me. But I was pleasantly surprised to find out that I was wrong! Not only can middle grade novels simply be great stories, they can also transport you back into the world of being a kid. This… Continue reading

  • Girl Power

    March is Women’s History Month. To celebrate, I’ve compiled a list of picture books from the last few years that feature amazing women that will hopefully inspire you and your children. Highlighted below are a few favorites that stood out from the crowd. Sweet Justice: Georgia Gilmore and the Montgomery Bus Boycott , by Mara… Continue reading

  • New Fiction Roundup, March 2023

    March new releases bring an enticing range of horror and historical fiction titles, alongside witches, capers, baking competitions gone wrong, and complex family relationships. 3/7: Confidence by Rafael Frumkin Con artists Ezra and Orson meet as teens and launch a series a schemes that culminate in a company – part pyramid scheme, part cult-of-personality –… Continue reading

  • Our Favorite Fantasy Fiction of 2022

    I’d say Fantasy Fiction is enjoying a “renaissance,” but it never went away, and has garnered massive mainstream interest since a certain boy wizard’s first day at Hogwart’s, or even since Bilbo left the Shire. That said, today’s fantasy readers can choose from an unprecedented diversity of subgenres, settings, voices and themes. We recently compiled… Continue reading

  • A librarians’ guide to the best in recent genre fiction

    A librarians’ guide to the best in recent genre fiction

    Each year, groups of librarians from across the country meet to discuss and select the best books from the year before. The Notable Books List presents literary fiction, nonfiction, and poetry; the Listen List is all about outstanding audiobooks; and the Reading List, which I want to tell you about today, highlights outstanding genre fiction… Continue reading

  • Nightstand Reads with Bonnie Garmus, author of Lessons in Chemistry

    Bonnie Garmus, author of Lessons in Chemistry, shares some books she’s loving. Garmus will be appearing in conversation with Nancy Pearl at the Central Library at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 23. Set in 1960s California, Bonnie Garmus’ blockbuster debut novel follows Elizabeth Zott, a scientist whose career is shaped by the idea that a… Continue reading

  • New Fiction Roundup, February 2023

    Family dramas, mythological retellings and more await you in February! 2/7: Cold People by Tom Rob Smith Earth has fallen to an outside force, and the remnants of humanity will only be allowed on Antarctica. Those who make it there confront an urgent challenge: to what extremes are they willing to go to evolve quickly… Continue reading

  • Theater, Music and Film: February 2023 Events at The Seattle Public Library

    Theater, Music and Film: February 2023 Events at The Seattle Public Library

    We’ve got some amazing author programs and community events planned for February, from Lambda Award-winning novelist Annalee Newitz to Bonnie Garmus, author of the bestselling novel “Lessons in Chemistry”. The Fifth Avenue Theatre is also back with a Sondheim show talk and the South Park Branch is hosting a movie screening with former Washington State… Continue reading

  • What Seattle Read in 2022: Teen Edition

    What are the teenagers checking out these days? We were curious, so as a follow-up to our post on The Seattle Public Library’s most popular books for adults in 2022, we’ve compiled the top-circulated 10 fiction and nonfiction books for teen audiences. It’s a diverse, fascinating list, ranging from award-winning graphic novels to an Ojibwe… Continue reading

  • New Fiction Roundup, January 2023

    New year, new fiction! 2023 gets off to a great start with a slate of engaging general fiction, mysteries, horror, historical fiction, and much more. What will be the first novel you read in 2023? 1/1: Hide by Tracy Clark Chicago detective Harriet Foster is on the hunt for a serial killer who targets redheads.… Continue reading

  • Short Books to End the Year

    As the end of the year approaches, perhaps you’re looking for a short read, either to help you hit a reading goal or to devour during some self-care time as 2022 finishes up. If so, check out one of these reads, all coming in at under 200 pages. The Singing Hills Cycle novels by Nghi… Continue reading