The 25 Best Books of April Will Take You Around the World (and Beyond)

After Happily Ever After by Leslie A. Rasmussen is a refreshing story about a 45-year-old protagonist who is ready for her second act in life. After giving up her publishing job to raise her daughter, Maggie is ready to restart her career and focus on herself for a change, but first she's going to have to make her family realise she's not just the person who takes care of them.

Out April 6

Natalie Standiford transports readers to the vibrant club scene of 1980s New York in Astrid Sees All. Set in 1984, a young woman named Phoebe is ignoring processing her grief over the death of her father in favour of getting lost in the culture of the East Village. But when Phoebe ends up betraying one of her closest friends, she'll have to face her past in order to help her friend and move forward.

Out April 6

The Bohemians by Jasmin Darznik is a luscious historical fiction novel about the acclaimed Depression-era photographer Dorothea Lange. Lange's story begins when she arrives in 1918 San Francisco where she gets swept up in the art scene alongside her friend Caroline Lee, before spinning into an all-too relevant tale of a woman dealing with a pandemic, rising anti-immigration sentiment, and a tumultuous political climate.

Out April 6

In her first fiction book, Caul Baby, Morgan Jerkins weaves a tale of family, betrayal, and the desire to find your place in the world. Laila wants to be a mother so badly that she reaches out to the powerful Melancons family for help. However, when her daughter is stillborn, Laila develops a grudge against the family with surprising results.

Out April 6

The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams is a book for anyone who loves words. Based on actual events, the story centres on Esme, the daughter of a male scholar who is helping to compile the Oxford English Dictionary. Esme soon notices her father and the other men are leaving out words related to women and common people, which prompts her to create a dictionary featuring all of the so-called objectionable words the scholars plan to omit.

Out April 6

Gold Diggers by Sanjena Sathian is a sprawling tale of magical realism, gold heists, and the quest to attain the American dream. Second-generation teen Neil Narayan doesn't have the same drive as the rest of his family — he mostly just wants his neighbour Anita to notice him. But Anita is harboring a secret that will change Neil's life forever: she and her mother can harness ambition from stolen gold jewellery.

Out April 6

Nasim Marashi's debut novel I'll Be Strong for You is a story of three female friends in Tehran. Over the course of one summer and fall, three friends — Roja, Shabaneh and Leyla — support each other as they face family drama, career moves, and their own conflicts as they each embark on new chapters in their lives.

Out April 6

South Korean author Kim Bo-Young's lyrical collection of four interconnected stories is available in English for the first time this month. I'm Waiting for You and Other Stories includes two stories about a couple attempting to coordinate a wedding from opposite ends of the galaxy, and two stories about Earth's creators and their changing attitudes toward their creations. Bold, inventive, and utterly unforgettable, Bo-Young's stories are designed to take your breath away.

Out April 6

Grace Bennett arrives in London at the start of World War II in Madeline Martin's The Last Bookshop in London. The city she finds is one under the constant threat of air raids and blackouts, but through her job at a bookshop right at the centre of London, Grace discovers books can bring a community together even in the darkest of times.

Out April 6

Love in Case of Emergency by Daniela Krien focuses on what happens to five women when they face monumental changes in their lives. Tackling everything from infidelity to childlessness, Krien challenges readers to look beyond women's roles as mothers, wives, friends, sisters, and daughters, and to see them as people containing multitudes instead.

Out April 6

One choice changes a woman's life in surprising ways in Donna Freitas's The Nine Lives of Rose Napolitano. Told across nine different timelines, the book explores what happens to Rose when her fight with her husband over his sudden desire to have children leads to a variety of different choices for the academic.

Out April 6

A train journey completely upends the lives of a couple in Helen Oyeyemi's magical Peaces. When Otto and Xavier Shin declare their love for each other they receive a trip on a sleeper train from a family member. However, the train isn't exactly what it seems. Not only do they appear to be the only passengers, the trip has been designed specifically for them right down to their favourite breakfasts, but what they don't know is what it all means.

Out April 6

Early Morning Riser by Katherine Heiny will challenge everything you think you know about what it means to be in a relationship. Sometimes it feels like Jane has to share Duncan with everyone — the man she loves still mows his ex-wife's lawn, lets his coworker visit whenever he likes, and even maintains a friendship with his ex-wife's current husband. But when Duncan is involved in a terrible accident, Jane begins to realise there are benefits to not having Duncan all to herself.

Out April 13

In I Want to Thank You author Gina Hamadey chronicles her gratitude journey one thank-you note at a time. After experiencing major burnout and social media fatigue, Hamadey decided to write one thank-you note to people who impact her life each day for 365 days. The practice left her feeling more connected to the world than ever before, and now she's sharing her inspiring lessons in gratitude with others.

Out April 13

Leaving Isn't the Hardest Thing by Lauren Hough is a thought-provoking and intimate collection of essays chronicling the author's journey of self-discovery. From growing up in The Children of God cult to joining the military and working as a bouncer at a gay club, Hough approaches her fascinating life with humour and wisdom as she traces the many twists and turns of her story so far.

Out April 13

Love in Colour by Bolu Babalola might just be the year's most beautiful ode to the romance genre. This short story collection retells love stories from mythologies around the world with a focus on the folklore of West Africa and the Middle East, as well as the fairy tales of other countries that are often left out of the romance narrative.

Out April 13

Christina Henry's Near the Bone is a chilling horror novel about a woman named Mattie who lives alone on a mountaintop with a dangerous man named William. Mattie knows nothing good ever happens when William is angry, but when she finds a mangled fox in the woods, she realises she has more than just one monster to contend with.

Out April 13

At once a mystery and a meditation on how to move forward in the wake of a tragedy, What Comes After by Joanne Tompkins is a moving tale of two parents grappling after the sudden deaths of their teenage sons. Neighbours Isaac and Lorrie are struggling to come to terms with their tragic losses when a pregnant girl arrives in town with a secret that could bind the unlikely trio together forever.

Out April 13

The Kindred Spirits Supper Club by Amy E. Reichert is a sweet romance with just the right amount of supernatural intrigue thrown in for good measure. When Sabrina Monroe returns to her childhood home, she also has to face her special gift: the ability to help spirits with unfinished business. While she's spent her whole life running from her ability, a new romance with a local restaurateur might just inspire her to embrace her ability to help people move on.

Out April 20

Inspired by Jamaican folklore, Witches Steeped in Gold by Ciannon Smart is a fantasy debut about sworn enemies who must work together to seek revenge on a common enemy: Jazmyne's mother. Witches Iraya and Jazmyne may be divided by their order, but they both want to stop the queen, even if it means working together.

Out April 20

Indie rock star Michelle Zauner proves she's also an accomplished writer in her funny and heartfelt memoir Crying in H Mart. Whether she's delving into her childhood in Eugene, OR, or candidly opening up about the loss of her mother, Zauner grounds her memoir in her experiences as a Korean American woman seeking to reconnect with the culture her mother instilled in her.

Out April 20

Dial A for Aunties is a warm, hilarious book that deftly straddles genres to tell a story of romance, murder, and the joys of having a family full of strong women. When Meddelin Chan accidentally kills her blind date, her mother and aunts come together to help her hide the body, but, as usual, the Chan women's bad luck strikes when the body ends up being shipped to the wedding venue of a billionaire.

Out April 27

In his memoir Little and Often, Trent Preszler takes readers along on his journey to build a canoe with the inheritance his estranged father left him: his toolbox. While his father was alive, Preszler and his dad struggled to find any common ground, but after his passing, the author dedicated himself to working with his hands for a year to better understand who his father truly was.

Out April 27

Meet Me in Another Life by Catriona Silvey will break your heart in the best possible way. The book spans the many lives of Thora and Santi, two people who are connected across time and space. In every lifetime they meet, and their story is always different. The one thing that endures is the profound impact they have on each other's many lives.

Out April 27

Pulitzer Prize-winning author Jhumpa Lahiri's latest novel Whereabouts has a deceptively simple premise: the story follows a woman as she moves through her city encountering strangers and acquaintances. However, the woman's life is about to change forever, thanks to a sunny day at the ocean.

Out April 27