Happy March! I hope 2021 is treating you well. It’s hard to believe we are two full months into the new year already. Here are some of the new books releasing this week:
Books for Kids – Picture Books
Chicks Rock! – The follow up to the delightful Chicks Rule! (♥♥♥♥) When Rocker Chick struggles with stage fright, her friends are there to lend a wing.
A New Day – Brad Meltzer (Xavier Riddle, Ordinary People Change the World series) teams up with Dan Santat in this picture book about what happens when Sunday decides to quit the calendar and the other days audition replacements. This looks delightful!
Bird Show – This book is on the list because the bird on the cover – the African Crowned Crane – is one of my all time favorite birds. I have no idea what is in the book, but I’d pick this up just because of the cover.
Classified: The Secret Career of Mary Golda Ross, Cherokee Aerospace Engineer – A picture book biography of the first female engineer at Lockheed.
Code Breaker, Spy Hunter: How Elizebeth Friedman Changed the Course of Two World Wars – A picture book biography about the woman who created the CIA’s first cryptology unit.
Michelle’s Garden: How the First Lady Planted Seeds of Change – The story of First Lady Michelle Obama’s White House garden.
Books for Kids – Early Chapter Books
The Boxcar Children: The Secret of Bigfoot Valley – First in the new Boxcar Children Creatures of Legend series. The Aldens help a scientist investigate strange events at summer camp. A second book in the series, Mystery of the Hidden Elves, also releases this week.
Dragon Masters: Heat of the Lava Dragon – Book 18 in the Dragon Masters series. With Drake’s friends trapped in stone by an evil wizard, he and Ana set out in search of the Lava Dragon.
The Infamous Ratsos: Ratty Tattletale – Book 5 in the Infamous Ratsos series. When bullies start trouble for Ralphie, he has to decide which is the better strategy – telling an adult or dishing their behavior back at them.
Magic Tree House: Camp Time in California – Book 35 in the Magic Tree House (re-numbered) series. Jack and Annie are sent to Yosemite in 1903 for the most important camp out ever.
The Puppy Place: Biggie – Book 60 in the Puppy Place series. The family is fostering a new yorkie.
Unicorn and Yeti: Fair and Square – Book 5 in this Scholastic ACORN series with three new friendship stories.
The Wish Library: Snow Day in May AND Principal for a Day – The first two books in a new series about a school with a wish library – but the wishes don’t always go as planned.
She Persisted: Sally Ride – An early chapter book biography of Sally Ride.
Books for Older Kids/Teens
Allergic (Graphic Novel) – A girl looking for connection in her busy family thinks a dog is the solution to her problems, but it turns out she’s allergic.
Ben Yokoyama and the Cookie of Doom AND Ben Yokoyama and the Cookie of Endless Waiting – The first two books in a new series about a kid who takes his fortune cookies very seriously. I’ll be reviewing book 2 soon.
Charlie Thorne and the Lost City (Older Middle Grade) – Book 2 in the Charlie Thorne series. This time Charlie is tasked with breaking a 200 year old code from Charles Darwin in order to track down a lost treasure. You can read my review of book one here.
Endling: The Only – The third and final book in the Endling trilogy.
Houdini and Me – From the author of the Genius Files, Baseball Card Adventures, and My Weird School series comes this new book about a Harry Houdini fan who gets texts from someone saying they are Houdini and offering him a chance to go back in time to experience the escape artist in person.
Rescue – A new historical fiction story from Jennifer Nielsen (The False Prince, The Scourge, A Night Divided). A girl agrees to help move a German family across Nazi-occupied France to Spain in exchange for her father’s freedom from the Nazis.
Revenge of Magic: The Chosen One – The fifth and final book in the series. Damian is convinced he is the Chosen One, so he plans to summon the villains and destroy them once and for all. But Fort is pretty sure Damian is wrong and could be setting the world up for magical destruction.
Stella – While Stella was being trained to sniff out explosives, a mistake leaves her retired, anxious, and wondering about her purpose. Stella has another chance to prove her worth when she notices a chemical in her new owner’s body just before she has a seizure. But how can Stella warn her new family without them thinking she’s just having an anxiety attack from her previous experience?
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (Graphic Novel) – The graphic novel adaptation of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.
Winterborne Home for Mayhem and Mystery – The sequel to the amazing Winterborne Home for Vengeance and Valor. April and her friends are keeping Gabriel Winterborne’s secret, but when a masked stranger breaks into their home, the kids have a new mystery to solve in order to hold onto the life and family they have carved out for themselves. I’ll be reviewing this one soon.
Wings of Fire: The Dangerous Gift – Book 14 in the Wings of Fire series, book 4 in the most recent story arc from the lost continent of Pantala. Snowfall, the new Icewing Queen faces a unique challenge when a group of unfamiliar dragons comes to her territory looking for asylum.
Becoming: Adapted for Young Readers (Older Middle Grade) – A young readers’ edition of First Lady Michelle Obama’s autobiography Becoming.
Escape at 10,000 Feet: D. B. Cooper and the Missing Money (Graphic Novel) – First in the Unsolved Case Files series, this book focuses on the D. B. Cooper mystery.
National Parks Maps – Illustrated maps of the National Parks of the United States.
Books for Teens/Young Adults
The Castle School for Troubled Girls – A girl grieving the loss of her best friend is sent to an all-girls boarding school, but when she sneaks out, she discovers there’s a Castle School for boys as well. And she’s pretty sure the administration of both schools is hiding something.
Follow Your Arrow (LGBTQ+) – Cece and her girlfriend are social media influencers with a huge following that Cece is afraid of losing when her girlfriend breaks off their relationship. When Cece starts to fall for someone new, she’s afraid her online fame will ruin this new chance at love.
Infinity Reaper (LGBTQ+) – Sequel to Infinity Son. Brighton’s quest for powers has left him poisoned, and Emil will do anything to find the cure. But when he goes looking for solutions, he discovers he might be fighting against the wrong enemy.
Once Upon a Quinceañera – Carmen is stuck performing as a party princess in a ball gown, and that’s only the first problem in what is becoming a summer of disaster.
The Queen’s Secret – Book 2 in the Queen’s Secret series. Lilac’s ascent to the throne has separated her from her one true love, which means they are separated in their fight against dark forces.
Red Tigress – Book 2 in the Blood Heir series. Ana, the only surviving member of the royal family, must team up again with a crime lord in order to have any chance of regaining her throne, or even surviving.
The Secret Life of Kitty Granger – An autistic heroine joins a spy organization in 1960s London where her “peculiarities” become assets both to Kitty and to the organization she is serving.
The Stolen Kingdom – A vinter’s daughter discovers her magic is proof of a secret royal bloodline. But the current power-hungry rulers will do anything to maintain their hold on the throne.
Books for Adults – Fiction
Accidentally Engaged (Trade Paperback) – No matter how perfect Nadim seems, Reena refuses to even consider a relationship with him since he works for her meddling father. But when she has a chance at a couple’s cooking contest with the prize of her dreams, she will consider a fake engagement. I *adore* the fake relationship trope, so this is absolutely on my list for this week.
Caught Off Guard (e-book, March 5) – Book 4 in the Samantha True Mystery series. When Samantha’s boss is accused of killing a football star, she starts sleuthing. I have book 1 from this series in my TBR.
The Conductors (Trade Paperback) – Book 1 in the Murder and Magic series. A husband and wife team who used magic in their role as conductors on the Underground Railroad now find themselves solving mysteries white authorities ignore, including the murder of an old friend. This sounds fascinating! I’ve already requested this one from my local library.
Death at First Night (e-book, March 4) – Book 3 in the Deadly Paradise Mystery series. Mallory’s ex is in town because he says he wants her back. She is so not interested. But when he becomes the prime suspect for a murder, Mallory agrees to help track a killer.
A Desolation Called Peace (Hardcover) – Book 2 in the Teixcalaan series after A Memory Called Empire. The inability to communicate with an alien armada means it’s time to call Mahit in for some diplomatic finesse. If she fails, millions could die. If she succeeds, it might not be much better. I’ve requested book 1 from my local library.
Float Plan (Trade Paperback) – Determined to still take the sailing trip she had planned with her fiancé, Anna hires Keane, a professional sailor who is also struggling with a future that looks nothing like he planned.
A Game of Cones (Trade Paperback) – Book 2 in the Ice Cream Parlor Mystery series after A Deadly Inside Scoop. Win is fighting battles on two fronts – the aunt who wants to take over the family ice cream shop and the friend who is accused of murder. This sounds like a fun series.
Haunted Hibiscus (Hardcover) – Book 22 in the Tea Shop Mystery series. The spooky Halloween vibe is all too real when an author signing at a literary haunted house leads to murder and Theo’s boyfriend is shot while investigating.
Heart Smart (e-book, March 4) – Book 2 in the Work For It series after Street Smart (also releasing today). A scientist with an off-putting demeanor needs the help of a communications professional when he is up for a prestigious award.
Maybe One Day (Trade Paperback) – This is the US debut of a book about a woman who believed her one true love abandoned her – and their child – at the most vulnerable moment in her life. But she finds a stack of cards and letters hidden in her mother’s attic that tell a different story.
The Postscript Murders (Hardcover) – The elderly woman’s death seems typical at first, but when a series of novels are found with a curious postscript, and then someone tries to steal one and another person is killed, Detective Kaur has to take a second look. I’ll be reviewing this one soon.
Purled & Poisoned (e-book, March 5) – Tessa is juggling her craft store, her crazy family, and a couple of love interests when she stumbles across a dead body. Now she’s trying to sniff out a baby daddy and find a killer. I have the first book in this series in my TBR.
The Restoration of Celia Fairchild (Trade Paperback) – Celia feels this potential adoption is her last chance at the life she always dreamed of. But now that she has lost her job, her only chance to get it is to sell the home she inherited from her aunt, but calling it “a disaster” is actually an understatement. I’ll be reviewing this one soon.
Star Wars Alpha Squadron: Victory’s Price (Hardcover) – The third and final book in the Alphabet Squadron series.
Trusting Taylor (Trade Paperback) – Book 2 in the Silverstone series. A woman with face blindness is dismissed by police when she witnesses a car crash. The tow-truck driver, a secret government assassin, is intrigued by her. But neither of them can see the danger that is pursuing them both.
An Unexpected Peril (Hardcover) – Book 6 in the Veronica Speedwell Mystery series. Veronica is posing as a missing princess for the sake of a crucial peace treaty while she and Stoker also try to uncover a murderer.
Unknown Threat (Trade Paperback) – First in a new Defend and Protect series about a secret service agent and an FBI agent who team up to discover who is killing members of the secret service.
Vanished into Plein Air (e-book, March 5) – Book 2 in the Fine Art Mystery series. Amanda is called upon to help a famous artist find his missing wife.
Books for Adults – Nonfiction
60-Day Enneagram Devotional: The Perfectionist AND The Guardian AND The Enthusiast – Three new devotionals based on Enneagram type. I have heard good things about this series, although I haven’t tried the book for my type yet. Books for 3s, 5s, and 8s will release later this year.
Dusk Night Dawn: On Revival and Courage – Anne Lamott’s latest about walking through dark times.