Summer 2020 has been a season of big shifts, including in the world of fiction. We're delighted to give a warm welcome to these new voices and their debut novels.

Cherie Dimaline, author of Empire of Wild

The author: Writer and activist Cherie Dimaline is a member of the Georgian Bay Métis Community in Ontario. She has published five books in Canada and makes her U.S. adult debut with Empire of Wild.

The book: Drawing inspiration from legends of the werewolf-like rougarou, Dimaline's powerful and inventive novel follows a woman who is searching for the truth behind her husband's mysterious disappearance and even more suspicious return.

For fans of: Literary thrillers that draw from the author's cultural heritage, such as LaRose by Louise Erdrich.

Read it for: Indigenous empowerment and a flawless mixture of supernatural events and realistic characters.

Raven Leilani, author of Luster

The author: A former student of Zadie Smith (who hyped Luster earlier this year in Harper's Bazaar), Raven Leilani has won multiple prizes for her fiction and poetry and is the Axinn Foundation Writer-in-Residence at NYU. 

The book: This gritty novel explores many appetites—for sex, companionship, attention and money—and what happens when those lusts are sated.

For fans of: Spike Lee's 2017 reboot of She's Gotta Have It and heavy-hitting millennial writers like Ling Ma and Catherine Lacey.

Read it for: Leilani's cerebral, raw writing and keen social observations—especially about the truths that some people don't want to see.

Rónán Hession, author of Leonard and Hungry Paul

The author: Dublin-based author Rónán Hession is a social worker and songwriter who has released three lyrical acoustic albums as Mumblin' Deaf Ro. 

The book: Hession explores the ordinary lives of two everyday guys in their 30s. Leonard's mom has just died, and he's working through his grief and loneliness. Hungry Paul lives at home with his parents and is occasionally accosted with motivational speeches by his older sister. These two lifelong friends go to work (or not, as the case may be), meet new people, try new things—the stuff of everyday life.

For fans of: Stories of lives well lived from Maeve Binchy and Mark Haddon.

Read it for: The reminder that we're all just doing our best. Simple and straightforward stories often get overlooked in our noisy world, but not by Hession.

Alex Landragin, author of Crossings

The author: French Armenian Australian writer Alex Landragin is a former author of Lonely Planet travel guides.

The book: Crossings is composed of three imaginative tales: a ghost story written by Charles Baudelaire, a German Jewish exile's dark love story on the precipice of the Nazi invasion of Paris and a memoir by a woman who lives through seven generations. The reader can read each story individually or follow the "Baroness" style, following directions to leap between the three tales.

For fans of: Books that play with storytelling structure, like Kate Atkinson's Life After Life or Mark Z. Danielewski's House of Leaves.

Read it for: The totally unexpected reading experience, which is as incredibly fun as it is nuanced and engaging.

Charlotte McConaghy, author of Migrations

The author: Charlotte McConaghy has published eight books in her native Australia and has worked in script development for film and TV for several years.

The book: Set in a near-future world that's facing the mass extinction of animals, McConaghy's U.S. debut follows a young woman named Franny who, grappling with a lifelong inability to define the nature of home, joins a fishing crew to follow the last migration of Arctic terns.

For fans of: Emotionally resonant tales like Disappearing Earth by Julia Phillips and H Is for Hawk by Helen Macdonald.

Read it for: A message of hope when all feels hopeless.

Lysley Tenorio, author of The Son of Good Fortune

The author: Lysley Tenorio is a Filipino American professor at Saint Mary's College of California whose stories have been adapted for the stage in New York City and San Francisco.

The book: Excel, a young Filipino immigrant living in California, lives paycheck to paycheck with his mother, a former low-budget movie star who now scams men online. When Excel meets a girl named Sab, the two run away and find themselves at the whimsical desert community of Hello City.

For fans of: Unique perspectives of the immigrant experience, such as The Leavers by Lisa Ko.

Read it for: A powerful examination of the bond between mother, son and motherland.

Sanaë Lemoine, author of The Margot Affair

The author: Born in Paris to a Japanese mother and French father, Sanaë Lemoine was raised in France and Australia. She now lives in New York, where she has worked as a recipe writer and cookbook editor.

The book: Margot Louve is the product of a long affair between a married public figure and a well-known actress. In her final year of high school, Margot decides that she is ready to expose the lie and go public with her story—anonymously. 

For fans of: Stories of young women searching for truth, such as Saltwater by Jessica Andrews and Actress by Anne Enright.

Read it for: A realistic Parisian atmosphere and complicated, nuanced female characters.

Odie Lindsey, author of Some Go Home

The author: Combat veteran Odie Lindsey is the Writer-in-Residence at Vanderbilt University's Center for Medicine, Health, and Society.

The book: Inspired by the author's work as an editor of the Mississippi Encyclopedia, Some Go Home is set in the fictional town of Pitchlynn, Mississippi, where white residents are forced to face buried truths during a retrial for the violent, decades-old murder of a Black man.

For fans of: The Bitter Southerner and Southern novels that wrestle with the region's complicated, brutal history.

Read it for: Reflections on how the sins of our ancestors replay in our own lives.

Cherie Dimaline photo by Wenzdae Brewster. Raven Leilani photo by Evan Davis. Rónán Hession photo by Barry Delany. Alex Landragin photo by Helga Salwe. Charlotte McConaghy photo by Emma Daniels. Lysley Tenorio photo by Laura Bianchi. Sanaë Lemoine photo by Gieves Anderson. Odie Lindsey photo by Dana DeLoca.

Despairing of the fate of nature, Franny Stone determines to travel to Greenland, locate the world's last flock of Arctic terns, and follow them on their final migration. To that end, she persuades the captain of the Saghani to take her onboard, arguing that in its travels the flock will lead the crew to fish. But Franny carries dark secrets, and as she starts to become unhinged, the crew worries that she's not so much going toward the light as running away. Australian author McConaghy's first adult literary fiction and first U.S. publication is timely indeed; with a 200,000-copy first printing.

In her first adult literary fiction and her first U.S. publication, Australian author McConaghy offers a story of nature on the verge of collapse even as a young woman struggles with her past. As the novel opens, Franny Stone travels to Greenland so she can follow the world's last flock of Arctic terns on its final migration, talking her way onto a fishing vessel trolling for perhaps its last catch. Franny is forever on the move, suffering from perpetually fractured relationships and a sense of not belonging; she's a wanderer, like her Irish mother, who eventually left her to be raised by her paternal grandmother in faraway Australia, with her relationship with her absent ornithologist husband creating an edgy undercurrent throughout. The slow revelation of a tragedy for which Franny feels responsible adds a thrillerlike dimension to an already involving narrative made stronger by the absence of time markers; it could be taking place in two years or 20 years, but it could just as well be happening today. VERDICT A consummate blend of issue and portrait, warning and affirmation, this heartbreaking, lushly written work is highly recommended. [See Prepub Alert, 2/12/10.]—Barbara Hoffert, Library Journal

Young adult novelist McConaghy (the Chronicles of Kaya series) makes her adult debut with the clunky chronicle of Franny Stone, a troubled woman who follows a flock of endangered Arctic terns on what is believed to be their final migration home. Franny's mother, who vanished when Franny was seven, warned her that women in their family are unable to resist the urge to wander. While working at a university in Galway, she meets ornithologist Niall Lynch, who immediately declares they'll spend their lives together, and they implausibly marry. Unfortunately, Franny's overwhelming desire to travel, her sorrow over their stillborn daughter, and a sleepwalking episode in which she chokes Niall drive a wedge in their marriage. Niall had always longed to track the terns, and Franny does so by convincing a fishing boat captain that she can help him find fish in exchange for transportation. Despite the ragtag crew's initial distrust of Franny, she becomes part of the team. McConaghy divulges more about Franny's dark past as she writes Niall letters and reflects on their relationship, as well as the true nature of her quest. While McConaghy's plot is engaging, her writing can be a heavy-handed distraction ("out flies my soul, sucked through my pores"). Lovers of ornithology and intense drama will find what they need in this uneven tale. (Aug.)