20 works of fiction from around the world to check out in the first half of 2018
Some great books from international authors are coming your way in 2018. Check them out!
The Perfect Nanny by Leïla Slimani
What it's about: Leïla Slimani's novel explores the darker sides of motherhood and domesticity. A hip, wealthy couple in Paris hire a seemingly perfect nanny named Louise to take care of their two children, but it is not long before tensions mount between the three adults, resulting in tragedy.
When you can read it: Jan. 9, 2018
The Immortalists by Chloe Benjamin
What it's about: Four young siblings visit a fortune teller who informs them of the exact day, month and year each of them will die. Chloe Benjamin's novel is equal parts supernatural thriller and family drama.
When you can read it: Jan. 9, 2018
Grist Mill Road by Christopher J. Yates
What it's about: Grist Mill Road is a tale told from various perspectives about a woman seeking revenge in 1980s New York.
When you can read it: Jan. 9, 2018
Mouths Don't Speak by Katia D. Ulysse
What it's about: An American of Haitian descent is forced to do some soul searching in the aftermath of the 2010 Haiti earthquake.
When you can read it: Jan. 12, 2018
Everything Here Is Beautiful by Mira T. Lee
What it's about: Mira T. Lee makes her debut with this novel about the ties that bind between two sisters who need each other more than they care to admit.
When you can read it: Jan. 16, 2018
The Largesse of the Sea Maiden by Denis Johnson
What it's about: The late literary master offers up this story collection that examines old age, mortality and the unexpected ways the mysteries of the universe assert themselves.
When you can read it: Jan. 16, 2018
The Sky Is Yours by Chandler Klang Smith
What it's about: Chandler Klang Smith delivers this debut novel that defies genre convention and features a dystopia populated by drugs, dragons and despots.
When you can read it: Jan. 23, 2018
An American Marriage by Tayari Jones
What it's about: Newlyweds Celestial and Roy represent the American Dream of happiness and material success. Things, however, take a turn for the worse when Roy is arrested and Celestial turns to her husband's best friend for comfort.
When you can read it: Feb. 6, 2018
Freshwater by Akwaeke Emezi
What it's about: The debut of Akwaeke Emezi is a story about young Nigerian woman named Ada who develops separate selves within her as a result of being born "with one foot on the other side."
When you can read it: Feb. 13, 2018
A Long Way From Home by Peter Carey
What it's about: The author's latest work is set in 1953 with arrival of the tiny, handsome Titch Bobs, his beautiful doll of a wife, Irene, and their two children in the small town of Bacchus Marsh. The Australian family enters a car race and find themselves lost in a remote part of the country.
When you can read it: Feb. 27, 2018
The Neighbourhood by Mario Vargas Llosa
What it's about: This politically charged detective novel explores the underbelly of Peruvian society in the 1990s. Secrets, lies, passion and politics are all in play in the latest offering by Mario Vargas Llosa.
When you can read it: Feb. 27, 2018
Speak No Evil by Uzodinma Iweala
What it's about: The author of the acclaimed Beasts of No Nation returns with this follow up novel that explores two privileged teenagers who must deal with the fallout when one's sexuality is revealed to disapproving parents.
When you can read it: Mar. 6, 2018
The Female Persuasion by Meg Wolitzer
What it's about: The author of The Interestings delivers this layered work that plays with themes of ambition, power, friendship and loyalty as characters seek to figure out the type of people they want to be.
When you can read it: Apr. 3, 2018
The Only Story by Julian Barnes
What it's about: The Man Booker Prize-winning author of The Sense of an Ending crafts a love story between a young man on the cusp of adulthood and a woman whose life is gradually moving in the opposite direction.
When you can read it: Apr. 17, 2018
Mr. Flood's Last Resort by Jess Kidd
What it's about: Eccentric and secretive characters — including a lonely caregiver and a cranky hoarder — explore the true meaning of forgiveness in this novel by the award-winning author of Himself.
When you can read it: May 1, 2018
The Mars Room by Rachel Kushner
What it's about: This unsentimental take at life in a women's correctional facility is a tragic look at violence, hopelessness and survival. Rachel Kushner's previous book, Flamethrowers, was nominated for the U.S. National Book Award.
When you can read it: May 1, 2018
There There by Tommy Orange
What it's about: Tommy Orange's debut novel is an unflinching look at life on an Native American reservation.
When you can read it: June 5, 2018
Florida by Lauren Groff
What it's about: The bestselling author of Fates and Furies looks at the connections behind human pleasure and pain, hope and despair, love and fury, with a sense of urgency.
When you can read it: June 5, 2018
Immigrant, Montana by Amitava Kumar
What it's about: This moving tale about a young new immigrant to the U.S. in search of love dissects the cultural misunderstandings that define modern-day society.
When you can read it: July 31, 2018
The Incendiaries by R.O. Kwon
What it's about: A young Korean American woman at an elite American university finds herself tangled up in a cult and escalating acts of domestic terrorism. R.O. Kwon's novel is a look at love and loss in the face of fundamentalism.
When you can read it: July 31, 2018