California, by Edan Lepucki (Little, Brown, July 8): This book got the coveted Colbert bump when the talk show host encouraged readers to pre-order the book from anywhere but Amazon, adding on to the ongoing drama of the Hachette-Amazon battle. And it promises a hauntingly-dystopian near future, which is right up my alley.
How to Tell Toledo from the Night Sky, by Lydia Netzer (St. Martin's, July 1): I loved Netzer's debut novel, Shine Shine Shine, so while I haven't a clue what her new book is about, I know I'll be reading it. (Ok, I read the publisher description: it's the tale of two astronomers who meet and fall in love and then find out they were engineered to be each other's perfect match).
Land of Love and Drowning, by Tiphanie Yanique (Riverhead, July 10): The publisher promises echoes of Toni Morrison and Gabriel Garcia Marquez in this multi-generational story set in the Caribbean in the first half of the 20th century. I can't wait to read this on the beach... in the Caribbean.
Season to Taste, by Natalie Young (Little, Brown, July 15): An "unexpectedly" funny novel about a woman who accidentally kills her (not very likeable) husband... and decides to dispose of his body in the only way she knows how: by cooking and eating him.
Crossword Century, by Alan Connor (Gotham, July 10): A history of crosswords from their New York Times debut in 1913 through to today? Ok, yes please.
The Visitors, by Sally Beauman (Harper, July 8): Based on historical fact with fictional characters woven in, Beauman's novel transports readers back to Egypt in the early 20th century--as archaeologists searched for the as-yet undiscovered tomb of King Tut.
Tigerman, by Nick Harkaway (Knopf, July 29): Nick Harkaway's Angelmaker blew my mind a little bit (ok, more than a little bit). Tigerman is strikingly different from Angelmaker... but also blew my mind.
Unruly Places, by Alastair Bonnett (HMH, July 8): A tour of the world's mysterious and unknown places--from lost cities to no-man's land to uninhabited islands.
What's on your radar for July?
