March 2024 Latinx Releases

On Sale March 1

Makeship Altar by Amy M. Alvarez | POETRY

Amy M. Alvarez explores the cultural, spiritual, and place-based experiences of Afro-Caribbean and African American diasporic peoples in this haunting and emotionally charged collection of poems that meditates on the meaning of home and existence. Born in New York City to Jamaican and Puerto Rican parents, Alvarez draws readers into a journey of self-discovery and identity, connecting the past with the present while highlighting the complexities of navigating life as a multicultural American. The musicality of her language weaves together themes of environment, family, and migration, as well as her own ancestry as a Black Latinx woman. Makeshift Altar is an intimate collection that explores identities forged by colonialism and displacement and shaped by individual choice and collective power. 

On Sale March 5

Anita de Monte Laughs Last by Xochitl Gonzalez| ADULT FICTION

1985. Anita de Monte, a rising star in the art world, is found dead in New York City; her tragic death is the talk of the town. Until it isn’t. By 1998 Anita’s name has been all but forgotten—certainly by the time Raquel, a third-year art history student is preparing her final thesis. On College Hill, surrounded by privileged students whose futures are already paved out for them, Raquel feels like an outsider. Students of color, like her, are the minority there, and the pressure to work twice as hard for the same opportunities is no secret.

But when Raquel becomes romantically involved with a well-connected older art student, she finds herself unexpectedly rising up the social ranks. As she attempts to straddle both worlds, she stumbles upon Anita’s story, raising questions about the dynamics of her own relationship, which eerily mirrors that of the forgotten artist.

Moving back and forth through time and told from the perspectives of both women, Anita de Monte Laughs Last is a propulsive, witty examination of power, love, and art, daring to ask who gets to be remembered and who is left behind in the rarefied world of the elite.

Thirst by Marina Yuszczuk| Translated by Heather Cleary| ADULT FICTION

It is the twilight of Europe’s bloody bacchanals, of murder and feasting without end. In the nineteenth century, a vampire arrives from Europe to the coast of Buenos Aires and, for the second time in her life, watches as villages transform into a cosmopolitan city, one that will soon be ravaged by yellow fever. She must adapt, intermingle with humans, and be discreet.

In present-day Buenos Aires, a woman finds herself at an impasse as she grapples with her mother’s terminal illness and her own relationship with motherhood. When she first encounters the vampire in a cemetery, something ignites within the two women—and they cross a threshold from which there’s no turning back.

The Great Divide by Cristina Henriquez| ADULT FICTION

It is said that the canal will be the greatest feat of engineering in history. But first, it must be built. For Francisco, a local fisherman who resents the foreign powers clamoring for a slice of his country, nothing is more upsetting than the decision of his son, Omar, to work as a digger in the excavation zone. But for Omar, whose upbringing was quiet and lonely, this job offers a chance to finally find connection.

Ada Bunting is a bold sixteen-year-old from Barbados who arrives in Panama as a stowaway alongside thousands of other West Indians seeking work. Alone and with no resources, she is determined to find a job that will earn enough money for her ailing sister's surgery. When she sees a young man--Omar--who has collapsed after a grueling shift, she is the only one who rushes to his aid.

John Oswald has dedicated his life to scientific research and has journeyed to Panama in single-minded pursuit of one goal: eliminating malaria. But now, his wife, Marian, has fallen ill herself, and when he witnesses Ada's bravery and compassion, he hires her on the spot as a caregiver. This fateful decision sets in motion a sweeping tale of ambition, loyalty, and sacrifice.

Chicano Frankenstein by Daniel A. Olivas| ADULT FICTION

An unnamed paralegal, brought back to life through a controversial process, maneuvers through a near-future world that both needs and resents him. As the United States president spouts anti-reanimation rhetoric and giant pharmaceutical companies rake in profits, the man falls in love with lawyer Faustina Godínez. His world expands as he meets her network of family and friends, setting him on a course to discover his first-life history, which the reanimation process erased. With elements of science fiction, horror, political satire and romance, Chicano Frankenstein confronts our nation's bigotries and the question of what it truly means to be human.

Say Hello to My Little Friend by Jennine Capó Crucet| ADULT FICTION

Failed Pitbull impersonator Ismael Reyes—you can call him Izzy—might not be the Scarface type, but why should that keep him from trying? Growing up in Miami has shaped him into someone who dreams of being the King of the 305, with the money, power, and respect he assumes comes with it. After finding himself at the mercy of a cease-and-desist letter from Pitbull’s legal team and living in his aunt’s garage-turned-efficiency, Izzy embarks on an absurd quest to turn himself into a modern-day Tony Montana.

When Izzy’s efforts lead him to the tank that houses Lolita, a captive orca at the Miami Seaquarium, she proves just how powerful she and the water surrounding her really are—permeating everything from Miami’s sinking streets to Izzy’s memories to the very heart of the novel itself. What begins as Izzy’s story turns into a super-saturated fever dream as sprawling and surreal as the Magic City, one as sharp as an iguana’s claws, and as menacing as a killer whale’s teeth. As the truth surrounding Izzy’s boyhood escape from Cuba surfaces, the novel reckons with the forces of nature, with the limits and absence of love, and with the dangers of pursuing a tragic inheritance.

Bad Mexican, Bad American by Jose Hernandez Diaz| POETRY

In Bad Mexican, Bad American, the minimalist, working-class aesthetic of a "disadvantaged Brown kid" takes wing in prose poems that recall and celebrate that form's ties to Surrealism. With influences like Alberto Ríos and Ray Gonzalez on one hand, and James Tate and Charles Baudelaire on the other, the collection spectacularly combines "high" art and folk art in a way that collapses those distinctions, as in the poem "My Date with Frida Kahlo" "Frida and I had Cuban coffee and then vegetarian tacos. We sipped on mescal and black tea. At the end of the night, I tried to make a move on her. She feigned resistance at first but then aggressively kissed me back. We kissed for about thirty minutes beneath a protest mural by David Alfaro Siqueiros."

Bad Mexican, Bad American demonstrates how having roots in more than one culture can be both unsettling and rich: van Gogh and Beethoven share the page with tattoos, graffiti, and rancheras; Quetzalcoatl shows up at Panda Express; a Mexican American child who has never had a Mexican American teacher may become that teacher; a parent's "broken" English is beautiful and masterful. Blending reality with dream and humility with hope, Hernandez Diaz contributes a singing strand to the complex cultural weave that is twenty-first-century poetry.

On Sale March 12

Victim by Andrew Boryga| ADULT FICTION

Javier Perez is a hustler from a family of hustlers. He learns from an early age how to play the game to his own advantage, how his background--murdered drug dealer dad, single cash-strapped mom, best friend serving time for gang activity--can be a key to doors he didn't even know existed. This kind of story, molded in the right way, is just what college admissions committees are looking for, and a full academic scholarship to a prestigious university brings Javi one step closer to his dream of becoming a famous writer.

As a college student, Javi embellishes his life story until there's not even a kernel of truth left. The only real connection to his past is the occasional letter he trades with his childhood best friend, Gio, who doesn't seem to care about Javi's newfound awareness of white privilege or the school-to-prison pipeline. Soon after Javi graduates, a viral essay transforms him from a writer on the rise to a journalist at a legendary magazine where the editors applaud his "unique perspective." But Gio more than anyone knows who Javi really is, and sees through his game. Once Gio's released from prison and Javi offers to cut him in on the deal, will he play along with Javi's charade, or will it all come crumbling down?

Through the Night Like a Snake by Mónica Ojeda, Tomás Downey, Camila Sosa Villada, Julián Isaza, Maximiliano Barrentos, Mariana Enriquez, Lina Munar Guevara, Antonio Diza Oliva| Edited by Sarah Coolige |ANTHOLOGY

A boy explores the abandoned house of a dead fascist...
A leaked sex tape pushes a woman to the brink...
A sex worker discovers a dark secret among the nuns of the pampas...
The mountain fog is not what it seems...
Kermit the Frog dreams of murder...

In ten chilling stories from an ensemble cast of contemporary Latin American writers, including Mariana Enriquez (tr. Megan McDowell), Camila Sosa Villlada (tr. Kit Maude), Claudia Hernández (tr. by Julia Sanches and Johanna Warren) and Mónica Ojeda (tr. Sarah Booker and Noelle de la Paz), horror infiltrates the unexpected, taboo regions of the present-day psyche.

Reinbou by Pedro Cabiya| Translated by Jessica Powell| ADULT FICTION

In 1976 Santo Domingo, Ángel Maceta uncovers the real story behind the murder of his father, Puro Maceta, ten years prior. In the process, events that unfolded during and after the war are revealed, unleashing a series of small revolutions in his community that in turn unravel other intrigues of what really took place during the Civil War of 1965.

Weaving together the brutal realities of war with the innocence of childhood imagination, Reinbou explores this era in Dominican society, a time when the U.S. sent Marines into the country to back a coup against Juan Bosch, the first democratically elected president of the Dominican Republic since the end of the brutal, three-decade-long dictatorship of the genocidal Rafael Trujillo. Moving between 1965 and 1976, we follow the revolutionary efforts of Puro and the transformative, feverish adventures of Ángel.

Told through the eyes of a child and a varied cast of friends, family, and neighbors, Reinbouexplores the consequences of political and societal upheaval, corruption, and violence in modern Dominican society.

Fury by Clyo Mendoza| Translated by Christina Macsweeney | ADULT FICTION

In a desert dotted with war-torn towns, Lázaro and Juan are two soldiers from opposing camps who abandon the war and, while fleeing, become lovers and discover a dark truth. Vicente Barrera, a salesman who swept into the lives of women who both hated and revered him, spends his last days tied up like a mad dog. A morgue worker, Salvador, gets lost in the desert and hallucinating from heat and thirst, mistakes the cactus for the person he loves. Over the echoes of the stories of these broken men--and of their mothers, lovers and companions--Mendoza explores her characters' passions in a way that simmers on the page, and then explodes with pain, fear and desire in a landscape that imprisons them.

After winning the International Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz Poetry Prize, Clyo Mendoza has written a novel of extraordinary beauty where language embarks on a hallucinatory trip through eroticism, the transitions of conscience, and the possibility of multiple beings inhabiting a single body. In this journey through madness, incest, sexual abuse, infidelity, and silence, Fury offers a moving questioning of the complexity of love and suffering. The desert is where these characters' destinies become intertwined, where their wounds are inherited and bled dry. Readers will be blown away by the sensitivity of the writing, and will shudder at the way violence conveyed with a poetic forcefulness and a fierce mastery of the Mexican oral tradition.

La Mala Suerte Is Following Me by Ana Siqueira| Illustrated by Carlos Vélez Aguilera | PICTURE BOOK

Miguel's abuelita warned him that opening an umbrella in the house will bring La Mala Suerte (Mrs. Bad Luck) who will follow him wherever he goes, and now Miguel's life is ruined! He trips, fails an exam, and he can't block a shot to save his life at soccer practice. Nothing he tries works to get rid of Mrs. Bad Luck--looking for a four-leaf clover, his aunt's "existential" oils... Now what? Using integrated Spanish words and playful language, La Mala Suerte Is Following Me takes a silly and heartfelt look at superstitions.

On Sale March 19

The Waves Take You Home by María Alejandra Barrios Vélez | ADULT FICTION

Violeta Sanoguera had always done what she was told. She left the man she loved in Colombia in pursuit of a better life for herself and because her mother and grandmother didn't approve of him. Chasing dreams of education and art in New York City, and with a new love, twenty-eight-year-old Violeta establishes a new life for herself, on her terms. But when her grandmother suddenly dies, everything changes.

After years of being on her own in NYC, Violeta finds herself on a plane back to Colombia, accompanied at all times by the ghost of her grandmother who is sending her messages and signs, to find she is the heir of the failing family restaurant, the very one Abuela told her to run from in the first place. The journey leads her to rediscover her home, her grandmother, and even the flame of an old love.

Mother Island: A Daughter Claims Puerto Rico by Jamie Figueroa | ADULT NONFICTION

Growing up in the Midwest, raised by a Puerto Rican mother who was abandoned by her family, Jamie Figueroa and her sisters were estranged from their culture, consumed by the whiteness that surrounded them. In Mother Island, Figueroa traces her search for identity as shaped by and against a mother who settled into the safety of assimilation. In lyrical, blistering prose, Figueroa recalls a childhood in Ohio in which she was relegated to the background of her mother's string of failed marriages; her own marriage in her early twenties to a man twice her age; how her work as a licensed massage therapist helped her heal her body trauma; and how becoming a mother has reshaped her relationship to her family and herself. Only as an adult in New Mexico was Figueroa able to forge her own path, using writing to recast her origin story. In a journey that takes her to Puerto Rico and back, Figueroa looks to her ancestors to reimagine her relationship to the past and to her mother's native island, reaching beyond her own mother into a greater experience of mothering and claiming herself.

In stunning prose that draws from Puerto Rican folklore and mythology, a literary lineage of women writers of color, and narratives of identity, Figueroa presents a cultural coming-of-age story. Candid and raw, Mother Island gets to the heart of the question: Who do we become when we are no longer trying to be someone else?

On Sale March 26

Mamá’s Panza/ La panza de mamá by Isabel Quintero | Illustrated by Iliana Galvez | Translated by Aida Salazar |PICTURE BOOK

Everyone has a panza--it can be big and round, soft and small, or somewhere in between. But a young boy's favorite panza of all is Mamá's. Her panza is capable of remarkable things, and she loves it as an important part of herself. Her panza was also his first home. Even before he was born, it cradled and held him.

When he's feeling shy and needs a place to hide or when he wants somewhere to rest during a bedtime story, Mamá's panza is always there. With affirming text by Isabel Quintero and vivid art by Iliana Galvez, Mamá's Panza is a young boy's love letter to his mother, along with a celebration of our bodies and our bellies.

Like Happiness by Ursula Villareal-Moura |ADULT FICTION

It's 2015, and Tatum Vega feels that her life is finally falling into place. Living in sunny Chile with her partner, Vera, she spends her days surrounded by art at the museum where she works. More than anything else, she loves this new life for helping her forget the decade she spent in New York City orbiting the brilliant and famous author M. Domínguez.

When a reporter calls from the US asking for an interview, the careful separation Tatum has constructed between her past and present begins to crumble. Domínguez has been accused of assault, and the reporter is looking for corroboration.

As Tatum is forced to reexamine the all-consuming but undefinable relationship that dominated so much of her early adulthood, long-buried questions surface. What did happen between them? And why is she still struggling with the mark the relationship left on her life?

Simpatía by Rodrigo Blanco Calderón |Translated by Noel Hernández González and Daniel Hahn | ADULT FICTION

Simpatía is a suspenseful novel with unexpected twists and turns about the agony of Venezuela and the collapse of Chavismo.

Simpatía is set in the Venezuela of Nicolas Maduro amid a mass exodus of the intellectual class who have been leaving their pets behind. Ulises Kan, the protagonist and a movie buff, receives a text message from his wife, Paulina, saying she is leaving the country (and him). Ulises is not heartbroken but liberated by Paulina's departure. Two other events end up disrupting his life even further: the return of Nadine, an unrequited love from the past, and the death of his father-in-law, General Martín Ayala. Thanks to Ayala's will, Ulises discovers that he has been entrusted with a mission--to transform Los Argonautas, the great family home, into a shelter for abandoned dogs. If he manages to do it in time, he will inherit the luxurious apartment that he had shared with Paulina.

This novel centers on themes of family and orphanhood in order to address the abuse of power by a patrilineage of political figures in Latin America, from Simón Bolívar to Hugo Chávez. The untranslatable title, Simpatía, which means both sympathy and charm, ironically references the qualities these political figures share. In a morally bankrupt society, where all human ties seem to have dissolved, Ulises is like a stray dog picking up scraps of sympathy. Can you really know who you love? What is, in essence, a family? Are abandoned dogs proof of the existence or non-existence of God? Ulises unknowingly embodies these questions, as a pilgrim of affection in a post-love era.

On Sale March 31

The Last Philosopher in Texas: Fictions and Superstitions by Daniel Chacón | ADULT FICTION

llusion and the possibility of magic coexist with the pain and joy of daily life in these compelling pieces mostly set in the Texas-Mexico border region. In one, a girl desperately wants to know more about her mother, who died when she was four years old. Did she like being a mom? Would she have preferred partying with her friends? When her eccentric aunt says she can teach her how to travel back in time, the girl is skeptical. Is it really possible to visit the past and communicate with the dead?

Each story is a celebration of the narrative’s power to transport, enlighten and connect the reader to the myriad facets of the human experience. In “Borges and the Chicanx,” a Chicano professor’s imposter syndrome worsens when he is asked to teach a course on a famed Latin American writer he has never read and whose work he doesn’t understand. And in “Sara’s Chest of Drawers,” a young man’s parents insist he go through his dead twin sister’s things even though he doesn’t think she would want him to—until she sends him a sign from the beyond.

Dreams, memories, visions and superstitions permeate this collection of short fiction that blends the ordinary with the extraordinary, making the fantastical feel surprisingly tangible. Considering themes of outsider status and displacement, cultural representation and authenticity, identity and collective memory, award-winning author Daniel Chacón once again crafts troubled characters searching for salvation from sorrows they often cannot even articulate.

Ten Books by Afro-Latinx Authors to Read for Black History Month

Happy Black History Month! We put together a list of 10 books written by Afro-Latinx authors to read this month and beyond. These range from short stories, to fiction, poetry, and more! We hope you enjoy these reads and let us know what you think!

Wild Tongues Can’t Be Tamed Edited by Saraciea J. Fennell

In Wild Tongues Can't Be Tamed, bestselling and award-winning authors as well as up-and-coming voices interrogate the different myths and stereotypes about the Latinx diaspora. These fifteen original pieces delve into everything from ghost stories and superheroes, to memories in the kitchen and travels around the world, to addiction and grief, to identity and anti-Blackness, to finding love and speaking your truth. Full of both sorrow and joy, Wild Tongues Can't Be Tamed is an essential celebration of this rich and diverse community.

Family Lore by Elizabeth Acevedo

Flor has a gift: she can predict, to the day, when someone will die. So when she decides she wants a living wake--a party to bring her family and community together to celebrate the long life she's led--her sisters are surprised. Has Flor foreseen her own death, or someone else's? Does she have other motives? She refuses to tell her sisters, Matilde, Pastora, and Camila.

But Flor isn't the only person with secrets: her sisters are hiding things, too. And the next generation, cousins Ona and Yadi, face tumult of their own.

Spanning the three days prior to the wake, Family Lore traces the lives of each of the Marte women, weaving together past and present, Santo Domingo and New York City. Told with Elizabeth Acevedo's inimitable and incandescent voice, this is an indelible portrait of sisters and cousins, aunts and nieces--one family's journey through their history, helping them better

¡Manteca! an Anthology of Afro-Latin@ Poets Edited by Melissa Castillo-Garsow

Containing the work of more than 40 poets—equally divided between men and women—who self-identify as Afro-Latino, ¡Manteca! is the first  poetry anthology to highlight writings by Latinos of African descent. The themes covered are as diverse as the authors themselves. Many pieces rail against a system that institutionalizes poverty and racism. Others remember parents and grandparents who immigrated to the United States in search of a better life, only to learn that the American Dream is a nightmare for someone with dark skin and nappy hair. But in spite of the darkness, faith remains. Anthony Morales’ grandmother, like so many others, was “hardwired to hold on to hope.” There are love poems to family and lovers. And music—salsa, merengue, jazz—permeates this collection.

The Worst Best Man By Mia Sosa

A wedding planner left at the altar? Yeah, the irony isn't lost on Carolina Santos, either. But despite that embarrassing blip from her past, Lina's offered an opportunity that could change her life. There's just one hitch... she has to collaborate with the best (make that worst) man from her own failed nuptials. 

Marketing expert Max Hartley is determined to make his mark with a coveted hotel client looking to expand its brand. Then he learns he'll be working with his brother's whip-smart, stunning--absolutely off-limits--ex-fiancée. And she loathes him. 

If they can nail their presentation without killing each other, they'll both come out ahead. 

Except Max has been public enemy number one ever since he encouraged his brother to jilt the bride, and Lina's ready to dish out a little payback of her own. 

Soon Lina and Max discover animosity may not be the only emotion creating sparks between them. Still, this star-crossed couple can never be more than temporary playmates because Lina isn't interested in falling in love and Max refuses to play runner-up to his brother ever again...

Plátanos Go with Everything / Los plátanos van con todo By Lissette Norman and Sara Palacios

Paletero Man meets Fry Bread in this vibrant and cheerful ode to plátanos, the star of Dominican cuisine, written by award-winning poet Lissette Norman, illustrated by Sara Palacios, and translated by Kianny N. Antigua. 

Platanos are Yesenia's favorite food. They can be sweet and sugary, or salty and savory. And they're a part of almost every meal her Dominican family makes. 

Stop by her apartment and find out why platanos go with everything--especially love!

Neruda on the Park by Cleyvis Natera

The Guerreros have lived in Nothar Park, a predominantly Dominican part of New York City, for twenty years. When demolition begins on a neighboring tenement, Eusebia, an elder of the community, takes matters into her own hands by devising an increasingly dangerous series of schemes to stop construction of the luxury condos. Meanwhile, Eusebia's daughter, Luz, a rising associate at a top Manhattan law firm who strives to live the bougie lifestyle her parents worked hard to give her, becomes distracted by a sweltering romance with the handsome white developer at the company her mother so vehemently opposes. 

As Luz's father, Vladimir, secretly designs their retirement home in the Dominican Republic, mother and daughter collide, ramping up tensions in Nothar Park, racing toward a near-fatal climax. 

A beautifully layered portrait of family, friendship, and ambition, Neruda on the Parkweaves a rich and vivid tapestry of community as well as the sacrifices we make to protect what we love most, announcing Cleyvis Natera as an electrifying new voice.

What’s Mine and Yours by Naima Coster

In the Piedmont of North Carolina, two families' paths become unexpectedly intertwined over twenty years. Jade and Lacey May are two mothers determined to give their children the opportunities they never had. After a harrowing loss, Jade wants to hand down the tools her son, Gee, will need to survive in America as a sensitive young Black man. Meanwhile, Lacey May, having left the husband she loves, strives to protect her three half-Latina daughters from their charming father's influence. 

When a county initiative draws students from the largely Black east side of town into a predominantly white high school on the west, each mother stands on different sides of the integration debate. Gee meets Lacey May's daughter Noelle during the school play, and their families begin to form deeply knotted, messy ties that will shape the trajectory of their adult lives. And their mothers make choices that will haunt them for decades to come. 

What's Mine and Yours is an expansive yet intimate multigenerational tapestry of motherhood, identity, and the legacies we inherit. It explores the unique organism that is every family: what breaks them apart and how they come back together.

When Trying to Return Home by Jennifer Maritza McCauley

A dazzling debut collection spanning a century of Black American and Afro-Latino life in Puerto Rico, Pittsburgh, Louisiana, Miami, and beyond--and an evocative meditation on belonging, the meaning of home, and how we secure freedom on our own terms 

Profoundly moving and powerful, the stories in When Trying to Return Home dig deeply into the question of belonging. A young woman is torn between overwhelming love for her mother and the need to break free from her damaging influence during a desperate and disastrous attempt to rescue her brother from foster care. A man, his wife, and his mistress each confront the borders separating love and hate, obligation and longing, on the eve of a flight to San Juan. A college student grapples with the space between chivalry and machismo in a tense encounter involving a nun. And in 1930s Louisiana, a woman attempting to find a place to call her own chances upon an old friend at a bar and must reckon with her troubled past. 

Forming a web of desires and consequences that span generations, McCauley's Black American and Afro-Puerto Rican characters remind us that these voices have always been here, occupying the very center of American life--even if we haven't always been willing to listen.

We Are Owed. by Ariana Brown

We Are Owed. is the debut poetry collection of Ariana Brown, exploring Black relationality in Mexican and Mexican American spaces. Through poems about the author's childhood in Texas and a trip to Mexico as an adult, Brown interrogates the accepted origin stories of Mexican identity. We Are Owed. asks the reader to develop a Black consciousness by rejecting U.S., Chicano, and Mexican nationalism and confronting anti-Black erasure and empire-building. As Brown searches for other Black kin in the same spaces through which she moves, her experiences of Blackness are placed in conversation with the histories of formerly enslaved Africans in Texas and Mexico. Esteban Dorantes, Gaspar Yanga, and the author's Black family members and friends populate the book as a protective and guiding force, building the "we" evoked in the title and linking Brown to all other African-descended peoples living in what Saidiya Hartman calls "the afterlife of slavery."

Queen of Urban Prophecy by Aya de León

20-year-old Deza was supposed to be just another hot girl emcee, but when a bonus track strikes a surprising social chord, it rockets her album to the top of the charts--and her record label promotes her to headline their first-ever all-female national tour. As Deza attempts to live up to her new reputation, her inexperience generates tour drama. And when her female DJ quits, the label replaces her with the last thing Deza needs: the sexy guy DJ she flirted with at a club. 

But in battling to prove she deserves her success and embracing her power as an activist for Black Lives, Deza starts to feel she can face anything that comes her way--until her label prepares to undermine the all-female lineup in the name of mega-profits. 

Now, up against brutal industry misogyny and corporate big money, Deza will need the drive of that scrappy emcee from the South Side of Chicago and the bulletproof cool of a seasoned music professional if she wants to claim a space of respect in hip hop, not just for herself, but for everyone and everything she believes in…

---

Mariana Felix-Kim (she/her/ella) is a biologist and a bookstagrammer (@mariana.reads.books). As a Mexican and Korean reader, Mariana centers her bookstagram around amplifying diverse voices. She currently lives in Washington, D.C. with her cat, Leo. Mariana is proud to have five library cards and loves to use them to read non-fiction, literary fiction, romance, YA, and thrillers. 

24 Most Anticipated Books of 2024

From literary fiction to fantasy to memoirs to poetry to children’s books…these are our most anticipated books of the year! All are available for preorder (or to buy now), so start planning your gifts for family and friends, and for yourself! And remember to sign up for our newsletter and keep your eyes on our blog for new releases each month. Our Latine community is putting out many, many more exciting books this year.

Craft: Stories I Wrote for the Devil by Ananda Lima | ADULT FICTION | On Sale June 18

Ananda Lima lures readers into surreal pockets of the United States and Brazil where they’ll find bite-size Americans in vending machines and the ghosts of people who are not dead. Once there, she speaks to modern Brazilian-American immigrant experiences–of ambition, fear, longing, and belonging―and reveals the porousness of storytelling and of the places we call home.

Say Hello to My Little Friend by Jennine Capo Crucet | ADULT FICTION | On Sale March 5

Failed Pitbull impersonator Ismael Reyes—Izzy—might not be the Scarface type, but why should that keep him from trying? Growing up in Miami has shaped him into someone who dreams of being the King of the 305, with the money, power, and respect he assumes comes with it. After finding himself at the mercy of a cease-and-desist letter from Pitbull’s legal team and living in his aunt’s garage-turned-efficiency, Izzy embarks on an absurd quest to turn himself into a modern-day Tony Montana. When Izzy’s efforts lead him to the tank that houses Lolita, a captive orca at the Miami Seaquarium, she proves just how powerful she and the water surrounding her really are. What begins as Izzy’s story turns into a super-saturated fever dream as sprawling and surreal as the Magic City. As the truth surrounding Izzy’s boyhood escape from Cuba surfaces, the novel reckons with the forces of nature, with the limits and absence of love, and with the dangers of pursuing a tragic inheritance.

The Dead Don’t Need Reminding: In Search of Fugitives, Mississippi, and Black TV Nerd Shit by Julian Randall | ADULT NONFICTION | On Sale May 7

The Dead Don’t Need Reminding is a braided story of Julian Randall’s return from the cliff edge of a harrowing depression and his determination to retrace the hustle of a white-passing grandfather to the Mississippi town from which he was driven amid threats of tar and feather.

 Alternatively wry, lyrical, and heartfelt, Randall transforms pop culture moments into deeply personal explorations of grief, family, and the American way. He envisions his fight to stay alive through a striking medley of media ranging from Into the Spiderverse and Jordan Peele movies to BoJack Horseman and the music of Odd Future. Pulsing with life, sharp, and wickedly funny, The Dead Don’t Need Reminding is Randall’s journey to get his ghost story back.

The Bullet Swallower by Elizabeth Gonzalez James | ADULT FICTION | On Sale January 23

In 1895, Antonio Sonoro is the latest in a long line of ruthless men. He’s good with his gun and is drawn to trouble, but he’s also out of money and options. A drought has ravaged the town of Dorado, Mexico, where he lives with his wife and children, and so when he hears about a train laden with gold, he sets off for Houston to rob it—with his younger brother in tow. But when the heist goes awry, Antonio finds himself launched into a quest for revenge that endangers not only his life, but his eternal soul. In 1964, Jaime Sonoro is Mexico’s most renowned actor and singer. But his comfortable life is disrupted when he discovers a book that purports to tell the entire history of his family. In its pages, Jaime learns about the multitude of horrific crimes committed by his ancestors. And when the same mysterious figure from Antonio’s timeline shows up in Mexico City, Jaime realizes that he may be the one who has to pay for his ancestors’ crimes, unless he can discover the true story of his grandfather Antonio, the legendary bandido El Tragabalas, The Bullet Swallower.

The Great Divide by Cristina Henríquez | ADULT FICTION | On Sale March 5

It is said that the canal will be the greatest feat of engineering in history. But first, it must be built. For Francisco, a local fisherman who resents the foreign powers clamoring for a slice of his country, nothing is more upsetting than the decision of his son, Omar, to work as a digger in the excavation zone. Ada Bunting is a bold sixteen-year-old from Barbados. Alone and with no resources, she is determined to find a job that will earn enough money for her ailing sister’s surgery. When she finds Omar collapsed after a grueling shift, she rushes to his aid. John Oswald has dedicated his life to scientific research and has journeyed to Panama in single-minded pursuit of one goal: eliminating malaria. But now, his wife, Marian, has fallen ill herself, and when he witnesses Ada’s bravery and compassion, he hires her on the spot as a caregiver. This fateful decision sets in motion a sweeping tale of ambition, loyalty, and sacrifice.

There Is a Rio Grande in Heaven: Stories by Ruben Reyes Jr. | ADULT FICTION | On Sale August 6

In There Is a Rio Grande in Heaven, Ruben Reyes Jr. conjures strange dreamlike worlds to explore what we would do if we woke up one morning and our lives were unrecognizable. Boundaries between the past, present, and future are blurred. Menacing technology and unchecked bureaucracy cut through everyday life with uncanny dread. The characters, from mango farmers to popstars to ex-guerilla fighters to cyborgs, are forced to make uncomfortable choices—choices that not only mean life or death, but might also allow them to be heard in a world set on silencing the voices of Central Americans.

Tiny Threads by Lilliam Rivera | ADULT FICTION | On Sale August 27

Fashion-obsessed Samara finally has the life she’s always dreamed of: a high-powered job with legendary designer Antonio Mota, a new home in sunny California, and an intriguing love interest. But it’s not long before Samara’s dream life begins to turn into a living nightmare, as Mota’s big fashion show approaches and the pressure on Samara turns crushing. She begins hearing voices in the dark—and seeing strange things that can’t be explained away. And it may not only be Samara’s unraveling psyche, because she soon discovers hints that her new city—and the house of Mota—may have been built on a foundation of secrets and lies. Now Samara must uncover what hideous truths lurk in the shadows of this illusory world of glamor and beauty, before those shadows claim her…

My Side of the River by Elizabeth Camarillo Gutierrez | ADULT NONFICTION | On Sale February 13

Born to Mexican immigrants south of the Rillito River in Tucson, Arizona, Elizabeth had the world at her fingertips. She was preparing to enter her freshman year of high school as the number one student when suddenly, her own country took away the most important right a child has: the right to have a family. When her parents’ visas expired and they were forced to return to Mexico, Elizabeth was left responsible for her younger brother, as well as her education. Determined to break the cycle of being a “statistic,” she knew that even though her parents couldn’t stay, there was no way she could let go of the opportunities the U.S. could provide. Armed with only her passport and sheer teenage determination, Elizabeth became what her school would eventually describe as an unaccompanied homeless youth, one of thousands of underage victims affected by family separation due to broken immigration laws.

Sun of Blood and Ruin by Mariely Lares | ADULT FICTION | On Sale February 20

In sixteenth-century New Spain, witchcraft is punishable by death, indigenous temples have been destroyed, and tales of mythical creatures that once roamed the land have become whispers in the night. Hidden behind a mask, Pantera uses her magic and legendary swordplay skills to fight the tyranny of Spanish rule. Meanwhile, respectable Lady Leonora never leaves the palace and is promised to the heir of the Spanish throne. No one suspects that Leonora and Pantera are the same person. Leonora’s charade is tragically good, and with magic running through her veins, she is nearly invincible. Nearly. Despite her mastery, she is destined to die young in battle, as predicted by a seer. When an ancient prophecy of destruction threatens to come true, Leonora is forced to decide: surrender the mask or fight to the end. But the legendary Pantera is destined for more than an early grave, and once she discovers the truth of her origins, not even death will stop her.

The Volcano Daughters by Gina María Balibrera | ADULT FICTION | On Sale August 20

El Salvador, 1923. Graciela grows up on a volcano in a community of indigenous women indentured to coffee plantations, until a messenger from the Capital comes to claim her: at nine years old she’s been chosen to be an oracle for a rising dictator—a sinister, violent man wedded to the occult. In the Capital she meets Consuelo, the sister she’s never known. The two are a small fortress within the dictator’s regime, but they’re no match for El Gran Pendejo’s cruelty. Years pass and terror rises as the economy flatlines, and Graciela comes to understand the horrific vision that she’s unwittingly helped shape just as genocide strikes the community that raised her. She and Consuelo barely escape, each believing the other to be dead. They run, crossing the globe, reinventing their lives, and ultimately reconnecting at the least likely moment.

The Harvest by Diego Rauda | ADULT FICTION | On Sale May 6

After a nightmare about a disembodied, skinless head calling him from under the bed, Daniel woke with a jolt, but managed to fall asleep again with little effort. He was used to these hellish visions— while asleep. Now the visions have started to cross over to his waking life, and it’ s game over. As he tries to bury the feeling that he’s being stalked by an unseen force, one of his closest friends takes their own life in front of Daniel, but only after blaming him and “ the dragon he carries.” While he races to elucidate a mystery that recedes before him, the people closest to Daniel continue to die in perverse circumstances. Against his better judgment, Daniel follows the thread which connects these deaths in order to discover the truth.

The Salvisoul Cookbook: Salvadoran Recipes and the Women who Preserve Them by Karla Tatiana Vasquez | COOKBOOK | On Sale April 30

In this collection of eighty recipes, Vasquez shares her conversations with moms, aunts, grandmothers, and friends to preserve their histories so that they do not go unheard. Here are recipes for Rellenos de Papa from Patricia, who remembers the Los Angeles earthquakes of the 1980s for more reasons than just fear; Flor de Izote con Huevos Revueltos, a favorite of Karla's father; as well as variations on the beloved Salvadoran Pupusa, a thick masa tortilla stuffed with different combinations of pork, cheese, and beans. Though their stories vary, the women have a shared experience of what it was like in El Salvador before the war, and what life was like as Salvadoran women surviving in their new home in the United States.

Nostalgia Doesn’t Flow Away Like Riverwater by Irma Pineda | Translated by Wendy Call | POETRY | On Sale January 16

Nostalgia Doesn’t Flow Away Like Riverwater / Xilase qui rié di’ sicasi rié nisa guiigu’ / La Nostalgia no se marcha como el agua de los ríos is a trilingual collection by one of the most prominent Indigenous poets in Latin America: Irma Pineda. The book consists of 36 persona poems that tell a story of separation and displacement in two fictionalized voices: a person who has migrated, without papers, to the United States for work, and that person’s partner who waits at home, in the poet’s hometown of Juchitán, Oaxaca.

Like Happiness by Ursula Villarreal-Moura | ADULT FICTION | On Sale March 26

It’s 2015, and Tatum Vega feels that her life is finally falling into place. Living in sunny Chile with her partner, Vera, she spends her days surrounded by art at the museum where she works. More than anything else, she loves this new life for helping her forget the decade she spent in New York City orbiting the brilliant and famous author M. Domínguez. When a reporter calls from the U.S. asking for an interview, the careful separation Tatum has constructed between her past and present begins to crumble. Domínguez has been accused of assault, and the reporter is looking for corroboration. As Tatum is forced to reexamine the all-consuming but undefinable relationship that dominated so much of her early adulthood, long-buried questions surface. What did happen between them? And why is she still struggling with the mark the relationship left on her life?

Tías and Primas: On Knowing and Loving the Women Who Raised Us by Prisca Dorca Mojica Rodríguez | ADULT NONFICTION | On Sale September 10

Born into a large, close-knit family in Nicaragua, Prisca Dorcas Mojica Rodríguez grew up surrounded by strong, kind, funny, sensitive, resilient, judgmental, messy, beautiful women. Whether blood relatives or chosen family, these tias and primas fundamentally shaped her view of the world—and so did the labels that were used to talk about them. The tia loca who is shunned for defying gender roles. The pretty prima put on a pedestal for her European features. The matriarch who is the core of her community but hides all her pain. Mojica Rodríguez explores these archetypes. Fearlessly grappling with the effects of intergenerational trauma, centuries of colonization, and sexism, she attempts to heal the pain that is so often embodied in female family lines.

The Sons of El Rey by Alex Espinoza | ADULT FICTION | On Sale June 11

Ernesto and Elena Vega arrive in Mexico City where Ernesto works on a construction site until he is discovered by a local lucha libre trainer. At a time when luchadores—Mexican wrestlers donning flamboyant masks and capes—were treated as daredevils or rockstars, Ernesto finds fame as El Rey Coyote, rapidly gaining name recognition across Mexico. Years later, in East Los Angeles, Freddy Vega is struggling to save his father’s gym while Freddy’s own son Julian is searching for professional and romantic fulfillment as a Mexican American gay man refusing to be defined by stereotypes. The once larger-than-life Ernesto Vega is now dying, leading Freddy and Julian to find their own passions and discover what really happened back in Mexico.

Catalina by Karla Cornejo Villavicencio | ADULT FICTION | On Sale July 23

When Catalina is admitted to Harvard, it feels like the fulfillment of destiny: a miracle child escapes death in Latin America, moves to Queens to be raised by her undocumented grandparents, and becomes one of the chosen. But nothing is simple for Catalina. Now a senior, she faces graduation to a world that has no place for the undocumented; her sense of doom intensifies her curiosities and desires. She infiltrates the school’s elite subcultures, which she observes with the eye of an anthropologist and an interloper’s skepticism. Craving a great romance, Catalina finds herself drawn to a fellow student, an actual budding anthropologist eager to teach her about the Latin American world she was born into but never knew, even as her life back in Queens begins to unravel. And every day, the clock ticks closer to the abyss of life after graduation. Can she save her family? Can she save herself? What does it mean to be saved?

Lotería Remedios: Soulful Remedies and Affirmations from Mexican Lotería by Xelena González | Illustrated by Jose Sotelo Yamasaki | CARDS AND GUIDEBOOK | On Sale July 9

Lotería Remedios enters the well-known cards of Lotería into the canon of cartomancy: it uses the traditional symbols for divination, reflection, and self-healing. Here author Xelena González, a member of the Tap Pillar Coahuiltecan Nation, is continuing the work of her great-grandmother, a highly respected curandera. Through beautiful illustrations and lyrical written remedios, La Sirena (The Mermaid) becomes an invitation to view your own magic and beauty. La Bandera (The Flag) suggests the need to wave your flag high, so that you may discover who is ready to join your cause. And the much-loved La Luna (The Moon) encourages you to look within, and understand that night will always find its morning, that the tide always changes.

Hearts of Fire and Snow by David Bowles and Guadalupe García McCall | YOUNG ADULT | On Sale June 11

Blanca Montes wants to make a difference in the world, to do more than her wealthy godfather and spoiled boyfriend think her capable of. So when Greg Chan shows up as a new student at her Nevada school, she is more than intrigued by this handsome, brilliant stranger. But Greg and Blanca are drawn to each other by something stronger--their fates entwined centuries ago. In his first life, Greg was Captain Popoca, and Blanca is the reincarnation of Princess Iztac, who took her own life after believing her beloved Popoca was sent to his death in battle. Greg has spent a thousand years searching for his lost love, and now the fates have given them one more chance to reunite. Will their hearts finally beat as one?

The Black Girl Survives in This One: Horror Stories, edited by Desiree S. Evans and Saraciea J. Fennell | YOUNG ADULT | On Sale April 2

Celebrating a new generation of bestselling and acclaimed Black writers, The Black Girl Survives in This One makes space for Black girls in horror. Fifteen chilling and thought-provoking stories place Black girls front and center as heroes and survivors who slay monsters, battle spirits, and face down death. Prepare to be terrified and left breathless by the pieces in this anthology. The bestselling and acclaimed authors include Erin E. Adams, Monica Brashears, Charlotte Nicole Davis, Desiree S. Evans, Saraciea J. Fennell, Zakiya Dalila Harris, Daka Hermon, Justina Ireland, L.L. McKinney, Brittney Morris, Maika & Maritza Moulite, Eden Royce, and Vincent Tirado. The foreword is by Tananarive Due.

The Quince Project by Jessica Parra | YOUNG ADULT | On Sale May 28

Castillo Torres, Student Body Association event chair and serial planner, could use a fairy godmother. After a disastrous mishap at her sister’s quinceañera and her mother's unexpected passing, all of Cas’s plans are crumbling. So when a local lifestyle-guru-slash-party-planner opens up applications for the internship of her dreams, Cas sees it as the perfect opportunity to learn every trick in the book so that things never go wrong again. The only catch is that she needs more party planning experience before she can apply. When she books a quinceañera for a teen Disneyland vlogger, Cas thinks her plan is taking off… until she discovers that the party is just a publicity stunt―and she begins catching feelings for the chambelán. As her agenda starts to go way off-script, Cas finds that real life may be more complicated than a fairy tale.

Across So Many Seas by Ruth Behar | MIDDLE GRADE | On Sale February 6

During the Spanish Inquisition, Benvenida and her family are banished from Spain for being Jewish. They journey by foot and by sea, eventually settling in Istanbul. Over four centuries later, shortly after the Turkish war of independence, Reina’s father disowns her for a small act of disobedience. He ships her away to live with an aunt in Cuba, to be wed in an arranged marriage when she turns fifteen. In 1961, Reina’s daughter, Alegra, is proud to be a brigadista, teaching literacy in the countryside for Fidel Castro. But soon Castro’s crackdowns force her to flee to Miami all alone, leaving her parents behind. Finally, in 2003, Alegra’s daughter, Paloma, is fascinated by all the journeys that had to happen before she could be born. A keeper of memories, she’s thrilled by the opportunity to learn more about her heritage on a family trip to Spain, where she makes a momentous discovery. Though many years and many seas separate these girls, they are united by a love of music and poetry, a desire to belong and to matter, a passion for learning, and their longing for a home where all are welcome.

A Maleta Full of Treasures by Natalia Sylvester | Illustrated by Juana Medina | PICTURE BOOK | On Sale April 16

It’s been three years since Abuela’s last visit, and Dulce revels in every tiny detail—from Abuela’s maletas full of candies in crinkly wrappers and gifts from primos to the sweet, earthy smell of Peru that floats out of Abuela’s room and down the hall. But Abuela’s visit can’t last forever, and all too soon she’s packing her suitcases again. Then Dulce has an idea: maybe there are things she can gather for her cousins and send with Abuela to remind them of the U.S. relatives they’ve never met. And despite having to say goodbye, Abuela has one more surprise for Dulce—something to help her remember that home isn’t just a place, but the deep-rooted love they share no matter the distance.

Dona Fela’s Dream: The Story of Puerto Rico’s First Female Mayor by Monica Brown | Illustrated by Rosa Ibarra | PICTURE BOOK | On Sale September 3

Though she was born before women on her island were allowed to vote, Felisa Rincón de Gautier did not let that stop her from becoming the first female mayor of San Juan, Puerto Rico, in 1946. Doña Fela, as she affectionately came to be called, loved her city. Doña Fela was always ready to listen to problems and find solutions. With determination and resilience, she brought lasting change to the island. Doña Fela’s inspiring story as a visionary leader is brought to life on the page through stunning paintings that evoke the vibrant colors and culture of Puerto Rico.

Toni Kirkpatrick is a Senior Acquisitions Editor at Crooked Lane Books and Board Secretary of Latinx in Publishing. Under the name Toni Margarita Plummer, she is the author of the story collection The Bolero of Andi Rowe and a contributor to the anthologies Indomitable/Indomables: A Multigenre Chicanx/Latinx Women’s Anthology and East of East: The Making of Greater El Monte. Originally from the San Gabriel Valley of Los Angeles, she now lives in the Hudson Valley.

Latinx Romance Titles

Valentine’s Day is here and it’s the perfect time to read romances, especially written by Latinx authors! While there are so many great romances, we have gathered 5 romance books that we think you will enjoy.

Kiss the Girl by Zoraida Córdova

Ariel del Mar is one of the most famous singers in the world. She and her sisters--together, known as the band Siren Seven--have been a pop culture phenomenon since they were kids.

But lately, she wants more. Siren Seven is wrapping up their farewell tour, and Ariel can't wait to spend the summer just living a normal life--part of a world she's only ever seen from the outside. But her father, the head of Atlantica Records, has other plans: begin her breakout solo career immediately, starting with a splashy announcement on a morning talk show. 

The night before, Ariel and her sisters sneak out of their Manhattan penthouse for a night of incognito fun at a rock concert in Brooklyn. It's there that Ariel crosses paths with Eric Reyes, dreamy lead singer of an up-and-coming band. Unaware of her true identity, Eric spontaneously invites her on the road for the summer. And for the first time in her life, Ariel disobeys her father--and goes with him. 

Caught between the world she longs for and the one she's left behind, can Ariel follow her dreams, fall in love, and, somehow, find her own voice?

Learn to Love You by Jade Hernández

Damián "Junior" Águila-Gutierrez shouldn't think about his sister's mysterious best friend. She's off limits, unattainable, and more importantly, uninterested in him. Besides, he has other things to worry about. Like taking over his papá's rancho, Los Corazones. Inheriting his familia's empire is all that's expected of him, but Junior has other plans and desires, and he knows if they ever discovered the truth, it would hurt the people he cares about the most...

Mayda Jiménez has lived on the outskirts of the Águila-Gutierrez family for as long as she can remember. She's been loved by them but has never quite been one of them. She's always kept herself at arm's length, knowing if this perfect family ever found out about her mother's addictions, they'd want nothing to do with her lot. It won't stop her from pining after her best friend's brother, though. The one person in the world she knows she can never have...

Give a Witch a Chance by Colette Rivera

Psychic Witch, Aria Belmonte is determined to avoid her past. Even if it means failing to make it work in the Mortal world.

When her building is condemned, and her mediocre magic skills can't save her, Aria turns to the kindness of strangers. Except her new roommate is no stranger. He's the one she must avoid at all costs. Her most complicated ex.

Owen Sanchez has a dream. To successfully run the Coffee Cat Cafe despite the bizarre events trying to thwart him. He'd say it's haunted, but he's never believed in the paranormal.

That is, until Aria walks back into his life.

A Proposal They Can’t Refuse by Natalie Caña

Kamilah Vega is desperate to convince her family to update their Puerto Rican restaurant and enter it into the Fall Foodie Tour. With the gentrification of their Chicago neighborhood, it's the only way to save the place. The fly in her mofongo--her blackmailing abuelo says if she wants to change anything in his restaurant, she'll have to marry the one man she can't stand: his best friend's grandson. 

Liam Kane spent a decade working to turn his family's distillery into a contender. But just as he and his grandfather are on the verge of winning a national competition, Granda hits him with a one-two punch: he has cancer and has his heart set on seeing Liam married before it's too late. And Granda knows just the girl...Kamilah Vega. 

If they refuse, their grandfathers will sell the building that houses both their businesses. 

With their futures on the line, Kamilah and Liam plan to outfox the devious duo, faking an engagement until they both get what they want. But soon, they find themselves tangled up in more than either of them bargained for.

The Wedding Crasher by Mia Sosa

Just weeks away from ditching DC for greener pastures, Solange Pereira is roped into helping her wedding planner cousin on a random couple's big day. It's an easy gig... until Solange stumbles upon a situation that convinces her the pair isn't meant to be. What's a true-blue romantic to do? Crash the wedding, of course. And ensure the unsuspecting groom doesn't make the biggest mistake of his life.

Dean Chapman had his future all mapped out. He was about to check off "start a family" and on track to "make partner" when his modern day marriage of convenience went up in smoke. Then he learns he might not land an assignment that could be his ticket to a promotion unless he has a significant other and, in a moment of panic, Dean claims to be in love with the woman who crashed his wedding. Oops.

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Mariana Felix-Kim (she/her/ella) is a biologist and a bookstagrammer (@mariana.reads.books). As a Mexican and Korean reader, Mariana centers her bookstagram around amplifying diverse voices. She currently lives in Washington, D.C. with her cat, Leo. Mariana is proud to have five library cards and loves to use them to read non-fiction, literary fiction, romance, YA, and thrillers.

Most Anticipated February 2024 Releases

With Valentine’s Day right around the corner, why not give the gift of reading to a loved one— including yourself? Check out our February’s most anticipated releases below to add to your TBR or book bouquets.

American Negra: A Memoir by Natasha S. Alford |On Sale February 27

Award-winning journalist Natasha S. Alford grew up between two worlds as the daughter of an African American father and Puerto Rican mother. In American Negra, a narrative that is part memoir, part cultural analysis, Alford reflects on growing up in a working-class family from the city of Syracuse, NY.

In smart, vivid prose, Alford illustrates the complexity of being multiethnic in Upstate New York and society's flawed teachings about matters of identity. When she travels to Puerto Rico for the first time, she is the darkest in her family, and navigates shame for not speaking Spanish fluently. She visits African-American hair salons where she's told that she has "good" hair, while internalizing images that as a Latina she has "bad" hair or pelo malo.

When Alford goes from an underfunded public school system to Harvard University surrounded by privilege and pedigree, she wrestles with more than her own ethnic identity, as she is faced with imposter syndrome, a shocking medical diagnosis, and a struggle to define success on her own terms. A study abroad trip to the Dominican Republic changes her perspective on Afro-Latinidad and sets her on a path to better understand her own Latin roots.

The World and Us by Roberto Mangabeira Unger |On Sale February 27

A radical re-envisioning of the human condition by the acclaimed Brazilian philosopher and politician. In The World and Us, Roberto Mangabeira Unger sets out to reinvent philosophy. His central theme is our transcendence, everything in our existence points beyond itself, and its relation to our finitude: everything that surrounds us, and we ourselves, are flawed and ephemeral.

He asks how we can live so that we die only once, instead of dying many small deaths; how we can breathe new life and new meaning into the revolutionary movement that has aroused humanity for the last three centuries, but that is now weakened and disoriented; and how we can make sense of ourselves without claiming for human beings a miraculous exception to the general regime of nature. For Unger, philosophy must be the mind on fire, insisting on our prerogative to speak to what matters most.

From this perspective, he redefines each of the traditional parts of philosophy, from ontology and epistemology to ethics and politics. He turns moral philosophy into an exploration of the contest between the two most powerful contemporary moral visions: an ethic of self-fashioning and non-conformity, and an ethic of human connection and responsibility.

And he turns political philosophy into a program of deep freedom, showing how to democratize the market economy, energize democratic politics, and give the individual worker and citizen the means to flourish amid permanent innovation.

Blood Oath by Alex Segura & Rob Hart| Illustrated by Joe Eisma & Hilary Jenkins|On Sale February 27

A dark, moody, and menacing horror/crime tale from acclaimed and bestselling novelists Rob Hart and Alex Segura, with lush, compelling art from star artist Joe Eisma and colorist Hilary Jenkins.

1927. New York. The peak of Prohibition. Hazel Crenshaw just wants to be left alone, to tend to her farm, to care for her younger sister, and to run her business.

But her business is inescapably tangled up with the New York gangs that will eventually coalesce into the mafia, and a new, unknown partner. When the Crenshaw farm is attacked, Hazel must not only defend her home, she must cope with the realization that her flirtation with the other side of the law might also put her in the crosshairs of something else--something much more sinister...

Pilar Ramirez and the Curse of San Zenon by Julian Randall |On Sale February 28

The Land of Stories meets Dominican culture and mythology come to life in Julian Randall's Pilar Ramirez and the Curse of San Zenon, the action-packed fantasy duology finale--for fans of the Tristan Strong series and Amari and the Night Brothers.

After being magically transported to the mythical island of Zafa and rescuing her long captive cousin Natasha, Pilar is back in Chicago . . . and hiding the shocking truths about Zafa and Natasha being alive. So, when she and her family are invited on a trip to Santo Domingo, Pilar welcomes the distraction and the chance to see the Dominican Republic for the first time.

But when Ciguapa and close friend Carmen magically appears in the DR searching for help, Pilar is soon on the hunt for the escaped demon El Baca and his mysterious new ally. Now, with a cursed storm gathering over the island to resurrect an ancient enemy, Pilar will have to harness her newfound bruja powers if she has any hope of saving her own world, Zafa, and most importantly her family before the clock runs out and ushers in a new era of evil.

February 2024 Latinx Releases

On Sale February 6

Santa Tarantula by Jordan Pérez | POETRY

Jordan Pérez explores the tension between fear and reprieve, between hopelessness and light, in her debut collection, Santa Tarantula, the tenth winner of the Andrés Montoya Poetry Prize. Pérez lends voices to the forgotten: to the political dissidents, gay men, and religious minorities imprisoned in the forced-labor camps of 1960s Cuba; to biblical women who were deemed unworthy to name; to survivors of sexual violence who grapple with paralyzing fear and isolation.

With rich detail, these poems weave together the stories of those who go unheard with family memories, explore moments of unspeakable tragedy with glimpses of a life beyond the trauma, and draw out what it means to be vulnerable and the strength it takes to endure. Santa Tarantula pushes through the darkness, cataloging unspoken pain and multigenerational damage, and revealing that, sometimes, survival is in the telling.

The Girl, the Ring, & the Baseball Bat by Camille Gomera-Tavarez | YOUNG ADULT

Rosie: Capricorn. Does great in class. Wants nothing more than to get into the prestigious Innovation Technical Institute and kiss this awful school goodbye. Her talisman: a magical jacket from her mother’s past that gets people to do whatever she says.

Caro: Taurus. Rosie’s older sister. Always been closer to their estranged father – and always butted heads more with their strict mother. A trip to Dominican Republic for her father’s wedding leads her deep into family history that clears up any illusions about her parents she’s ever had. Her talisman: a baseball bat that fixes whatever it breaks.

Zeke: Certified Triple Pisces. Up in cold-ass Jersey City living with his aunt after his grandmother dies and his father moves to London to take care of his mother. He crushes on EVERYone – he knows he’ll find happiness in love, and maybe a way out of this depression. His talisman: a manifestation stone that will make anyone fall in love with him.

Rosie, Caro, and Zeke – and their talismans – find themselves intertwined in a magical, hilarious, and whip-smart Outsiders for the modern day, written by Camille Gomera-Tavarez, a 2022 Publishers Weekly Flying Start.

When Trying to Return Home: Stories by Jennifer Maritza McCauley| Paperback |ADULT FICTION

A dazzling debut collection spanning a century of Black American and Afro-Latino life in Puerto Rico, Pittsburgh, Louisiana, Miami, and beyond--and an evocative meditation on belonging, the meaning of home, and how we secure freedom on our own terms Profoundly moving and powerful, the stories in When Trying to Return Home dig deeply into the question of belonging.

A young woman is torn between overwhelming love for her mother and the need to break free from her damaging influence during a desperate and disastrous attempt to rescue her brother from foster care. A man, his wife, and his mistress each confront the borders separating love and hate, obligation and longing, on the eve of a flight to San Juan. A college student grapples with the space between chivalry and machismo in a tense encounter involving a nun. And in 1930s Louisiana, a woman attempting to find a place to call her own chances upon an old friend at a bar and must reckon with her troubled past. Forming a web of desires and consequences that span generations, McCauley's Black American and Afro-Puerto Rican characters remind us that these voices have always been here, occupying the very center of American life--even if we haven't always been willing to listen.

Last Seen in Havana by Teresa Dovalpage|ADULT FICTION

In 2019, newly widowed baker Mercedes Spivey flies from Miami to her native Cuba to care for her ailing paternal grandmother. Mercedes’s life has been shaped by loss, beginning with the mysterious unsolved disappearance of her mother when Mercedes was a little girl. Returning to Cuba revives Mercedes’s hopes of finding her mother as she attempts to piece together the few scraps of information she has. Could her mother still be alive?

33 years earlier, an American college student with endless political optimism falls deliriously in love with a handsome Cuban soldier while on a spontaneous visit to the island. She decides to stay permanently, but soon discovers that nothing is as it seems in Havana.

The two women’s stories proceed in parallel as Mercedes gets closer to discovering the truth about her mother, uncovering shocking family secrets in the process . . .

The Things We Didn’t Know by Elba Iris Pérez|ADULT FICTION

Andrea Rodríguez is nine years old when her mother whisks her and her brother, Pablo, away from Woronoco, the tiny Massachusetts factory town that is the only home they've known. With no plan and no money, she leaves them with family in the mountainside villages of Puerto Rico and promises to return.

Months later, when Andrea and Pablo are brought back to Massachusetts, they find their hometown significantly changed. As they navigate the rifts between their family's values and all-American culture and face the harsh realities of growing up, they must embrace both the triumphs and heartache that mark the journey to adulthood.

A heartfelt, evocative portrait of another side of life in 1950s America, The Things We Didn't Know establishes Elba Iris Pérez as a sensational new literary voice.

ON SALE FEBRUARY 13

The Imposition of Unnecessary Obstacles by Malka Older|ADULT FICTION

Investigator Mossa and Scholar Pleiti reunite to solve a new mystery in the follow-up to the cozy space-opera detective mystery The Mimicking of Known Successes, which Hugo Award-winning author Charlie Jane Anders called "an utter triumph."

Mossa has returned to Valdegeld on a missing person's case, for which she'll once again need Pleiti's insight. Seventeen students and staff members have disappeared from Valdegeld University--yet no one has noticed. The answers to this case may lie on the moon of Io--Mossa's home--and the history of Jupiter's original settlements during humanity's exodus from Earth.

But Pleiti's faith in her life's work as a scholar of the past has grown precarious, and this new case threatens to further destabilize her dreams for humanity's future, as well as her own.

Occupy Whiteness by Joaquín Zihuatanejo|POETRY

Occupy Whiteness is a collection of hybrid erasure poems from inaugural Dallas Poet Laureate and multi-world slam competition winner Joaquín Zihuatanejo.

Starting from long-form works of literature by straight, white men, Joaquín Zihuatanejo occupies their pages, erasing words and sections, leaving only his poetry behind -- the white space that remains becoming colonized Brown verse.

Occupy Whiteness is an act of rebellion that reclaims spaces and highlights a history of erasure of Brown life.

An unflinching look at the present day, the collection is haunted and blessed by the image of ancestors who braved the river and desert to travel into border states for the opportunity of freedom. These are poems meant to agitate and create unease, to make the reader realize that neither their author nor the immigrant children he describes are Other. Through poems and interspersed photography from the border, Zihuatanejo poignantly depicts this equally beautiful and brutal place we call home.

My Side of the River: A Memoir by Elizabeth Camarillo Gutierrez|ADULT NONFICTION

Elizabeth Camarillo Gutierrez reveals her experience as the U.S. born daughter of immigrants and what happened when, at fifteen, her parents were forced back to Mexico in this galvanizing yet tender memoir.

Born to Mexican immigrants south of the Rillito River in Tucson, Arizona, Elizabeth had the world at her fingertips. She was preparing to enter her freshman year of high school as the number one student when suddenly, her own country took away the most important right a child has: the right to have a family.

When her parents' visas expired and they were forced to return to Mexico, Elizabeth was left responsible for her younger brother, as well as her education. Determined to break the cycle of being a "statistic," she knew that even though her parents couldn't stay, there was no way she could let go of the opportunities the U.S. could provide. Armed with only her passport and sheer teenage determination, Elizabeth became what her school would eventually describe as an unaccompanied homeless youth, one of thousands of underage victims affected by family separation due to broken immigration laws.

Call Me Iggy by Jorge Aguirre |Illustrated by Rafael Rosado|GRAPHIC NOVEL

Ignacio "Iggy" Garcia is an Ohio-born Colombian American teen living his best life. After bumping into Marisol (and her coffee) at school, Iggy's world is spun around. But Marisol has too much going on to be bothered with the likes of Iggy. She has school, work, family, and the uphill battle of getting her legal papers. As Iggy stresses over how to get Marisol to like him, his grandfather comes to the rescue. The thing is, not only is his abuelito dead, but he also gives terrible love advice. The worst. And so, with his ghost abuelito's meddling, Iggy's life begins to unravel as he sets off on a journey of self-discovery.

Call me Iggy tells the story of Iggy searching for his place in his family, his school, his community, and ultimately--as the political climate in America changes during the 2016 election--his country. Focusing on familial ties and budding love, Call me Iggy challenges our assumptions about Latino-American identity while reaffirming our belief in the hope that all young people represent. Perfect for lovers of multigenerational stories like Displacement and The Magic Fish.

The Hands that Crafted the Bomb: The Making of a Lifelong Antifascist by Josh Fernandez |ADULT NONFICTION

As Fernandez spends the year defending his job, he reflects on a life lived in protest of the status quo, swept up in chaos and rage, from his childhood in Boston dealing with a mentally ill father and a new family to growing up in Davis, California, in the basement shows of the early '90s when Nazi boneheads proliferated the music scene, looking for heads to crack. His crew's first attempts at an antifascist group fall short when a member dies in a knife fight. A born antiauthoritarian, filled with an untamable rage, Fernandez rails against the system and aggressively chooses the path of most resistance. This leads to long spates of living in his car, strung out on drugs, and robbing the whiteboys coming home from the clubs at night.

Fernandez eventually realizes that his rage needs an outlet and finds relief for his existential dread in the form of running. And fighting Nazis. Fernandez cobbles together a life for himself as a writing professor, a facilitator of a self-defense collective, a boots-on-the-ground participant in Antifa work, and a proud father of two children he unapologetically raises to question authority.

But his parents and academia seem to think Fernandez is failing miserably, putting his children and his students at risk, and they treat Fernandez like he's a time bomb, ready to explode at any moment. They may have a point.

ON SALE FEBRUARY 20

Blood Oath by Alex Segura & Rob Hart| Illustrated by Joe Eisma & Hilary Jenkins|GRAPHIC NOVEL

A dark, moody, and menacing horror/crime tale from acclaimed and bestselling novelists Rob Hart and Alex Segura, with lush, compelling art from star artist Joe Eisma and colorist Hilary Jenkins.

1927. New York. The peak of Prohibition. Hazel Crenshaw just wants to be left alone, to tend to her farm, to care for her younger sister, and to run her business.

But her business is inescapably tangled up with the New York gangs that will eventually coalesce into the mafia, and a new, unknown partner. When the Crenshaw farm is attacked, Hazel must not only defend her home, she must cope with the realization that her flirtation with the other side of the law might also put her in the crosshairs of something else--something much more sinister...

Who Was Her Own Work of Art? Frida Kahlo: An Official Who HQ Graphic Novel by Terry Blas| Illustrated Ashanti Fortson|GRAPHIC NOVEL

Discover how Frida Kahlo became one of the most recognizable artists in the world in this powerful graphic novel written by award-winning author Terry Blas and illustrated by Ignatz Award-winning artist Ashanti Fortson.

Explore Mexican painter Frida Kahlo's rise to stardom as she travels from Mexico to New York City for her first-ever solo exhibition and sets the art world aflame. A story of independence, determination, and finding beauty within one's scars, this graphic novel invites readers to immerse themselves into the incredible power of one of the greatest artists of all time--brought to life by gripping narrative and vivid full-color illustrations that jump off the page.

Latinoland: A Portrait of America’s Largest and Least Understood Minority by Marie Arana|ADULT NONFICTION

A sweeping yet personal overview of the Latino population of America, drawn from hundreds of interviews and prodigious research that emphasizes the diversity and little-known history of our largest and fastest-growing minority.

LatinoLand is an exceptional, all-encompassing overview of Hispanic America based on personal interviews, deep research, and Marie Arana's life experience as a Latina. At present, Latinos comprise 20 percent of the US population, a number that is growing. By 2050, census reports project that one in every three Americans will claim Latino heritage.

But Latinos are not a monolith. They do not represent a single group. The largest numbers are Mexicans, Puerto Ricans, Dominicans, Salvadorans, and Cubans. Each has a different cultural and political background. Puerto Ricans, for example, are US citizens, whereas some Mexican Americans never immigrated because the US-Mexico border shifted after the US invasion of 1848, incorporating what is now the entire southwest of the United States. Cubans came in two great waves: those escaping communism in the early years of Castro, many of whom were professionals and wealthy, and those permitted to leave in the Mariel boat lift twenty years later, representing some of the poorest Cubans, including prisoners.

ON SALE FEBRUARY 27

My Documents: Stories by Alejandro Zambra |Translated by Megan McDowell |ADULT NONFICTION

The landmark first story collection from internationally acclaimed author Alejandro Zambra, now featuring five additional stories and an introduction by his longtime collaborator, Megan McDowell.

An early desktop computer becomes the third partner in a doomed relationship; an older brother figure whose father lives in exile imparts hilarious life lessons to his young protégé. A man attempts to quit smoking despite the fact that he's very good at it; another masquerades as the family man he'll never be. Throughout, Pinochet's dictatorship casts a long shadow, and men in relationships exhibit their profound capacity for both love and harm.

In these unforgettable stories--which span religion, romance, technology, soccer, solitude, and more--Alejandro Zambra unfolds a radical literary reflection on life, relationships, and the tender and brutal dimensions of masculinity in Chile from the 1980s to the present. Intimate and playful, provocative and profound, and brilliantly rendered by National Book Award winning translator Megan McDowell, My Documents a testament to the necessity of literature even--and especially--in times of political and personal crisis.

The World and Us by Roberto Mangabeira Unger |PHILOSOPHY

A radical re-envisioning of the human condition by the acclaimed Brazilian philosopher and politician. In The World and Us, Roberto Mangabeira Unger sets out to reinvent philosophy. His central theme is our transcendence, everything in our existence points beyond itself, and its relation to our finitude: everything that surrounds us, and we ourselves, are flawed and ephemeral.

He asks how we can live so that we die only once, instead of dying many small deaths; how we can breathe new life and new meaning into the revolutionary movement that has aroused humanity for the last three centuries, but that is now weakened and disoriented; and how we can make sense of ourselves without claiming for human beings a miraculous exception to the general regime of nature. For Unger, philosophy must be the mind on fire, insisting on our prerogative to speak to what matters most.

From this perspective, he redefines each of the traditional parts of philosophy, from ontology and epistemology to ethics and politics. He turns moral philosophy into an exploration of the contest between the two most powerful contemporary moral visions: an ethic of self-fashioning and non-conformity, and an ethic of human connection and responsibility.

And he turns political philosophy into a program of deep freedom, showing how to democratize the market economy, energize democratic politics, and give the individual worker and citizen the means to flourish amid permanent innovation.

American Negra: A Memoir by Natasha S. Alford |ADULT NONFICTION

Award-winning journalist Natasha S. Alford grew up between two worlds as the daughter of an African American father and Puerto Rican mother. In American Negra, a narrative that is part memoir, part cultural analysis, Alford reflects on growing up in a working-class family from the city of Syracuse, NY.

In smart, vivid prose, Alford illustrates the complexity of being multiethnic in Upstate New York and society's flawed teachings about matters of identity. When she travels to Puerto Rico for the first time, she is the darkest in her family, and navigates shame for not speaking Spanish fluently. She visits African-American hair salons where she's told that she has "good" hair, while internalizing images that as a Latina she has "bad" hair or pelo malo.

When Alford goes from an underfunded public school system to Harvard University surrounded by privilege and pedigree, she wrestles with more than her own ethnic identity, as she is faced with imposter syndrome, a shocking medical diagnosis, and a struggle to define success on her own terms. A study abroad trip to the Dominican Republic changes her perspective on Afro-Latinidad and sets her on a path to better understand her own Latin roots.

Pilar Ramirez and the Curse of San Zenon by Julian Randall |CHILDREN’S FICTION

The Land of Stories meets Dominican culture and mythology come to life in Julian Randall's Pilar Ramirez and the Curse of San Zenon, the action-packed fantasy duology finale--for fans of the Tristan Strong series and Amari and the Night Brothers.

After being magically transported to the mythical island of Zafa and rescuing her long captive cousin Natasha, Pilar is back in Chicago . . . and hiding the shocking truths about Zafa and Natasha being alive. So, when she and her family are invited on a trip to Santo Domingo, Pilar welcomes the distraction and the chance to see the Dominican Republic for the first time.

But when Ciguapa and close friend Carmen magically appears in the DR searching for help, Pilar is soon on the hunt for the escaped demon El Baca and his mysterious new ally. Now, with a cursed storm gathering over the island to resurrect an ancient enemy, Pilar will have to harness her newfound bruja powers if she has any hope of saving her own world, Zafa, and most importantly her family before the clock runs out and ushers in a new era of evil.

Book Review: Breakup from Hell

One of my first reviews for Latinx in Pub was The Storyteller’s Death by Ann Dávila Cardinal. It was her adult fiction debut; it was a novel that touched me and helped me learn about Puerto Rico in such a personal way. So, when the opportunity to review one of Cardinal’s young adult novels came up, I jumped on the chance to review it. If you are looking for a quick heart-pumping unique young adult fantasy romance to add to your February TBR, look no further!

Breakup From Hell by Ann Dávila Cardinal is a fast-paced and surprisingly funny young adult novel that questions the desire to save the bad boy because the bad boy might not always deserve to be saved. Breakup From Hell follows the tale of Miguela Angeles, a teenager living in a small town in Vermont where she feels trapped. Her abuela is keeping secrets from her and she is tired of experiencing the same day over and over. That is until she runs into a new boy named Sam outside of church. With Sam blowing into town, Miguela jumps at the chance for something new and she begins to change. She is turning her back on her best friends and they are worried. But in the midst of Miguela’s new whirlwind romance, she cannot help but feel like something is wrong. As she unravels the secrets her abuela is keeping from her, Miguela soon realizes she is living in something akin to her favorite horror novels. Miguela’s journey is full of twists, turns, betrayals, revenge, and (unexpected) love.

Cardinal’s Breakup From Hell uses religious themes that are important to many Puerto Rican homes to show how individuals can find their own power and change the course of not only their lives but the lives of those around them. This book also highlights the sacrifices families, specifically mothers, make to protect their children. Cardinal’s work points to the strength in our maternal figures, allowing young women to see themselves as strong, as the savior they need instead of being saved. Miguela follows in her mother’s footsteps and is guided by the strength of multiple material figures in this book. There is a beautiful craftsmanship to this book where religion guides without becoming all-consuming for the characters in a way that I think can be aspiring and potentially healing to those with a difficult relationship with Christianity.

“Breakup From Hell is a rich adventure story where a young Puerto Rican woman gets to become her own hero. It has a rich creativity and blends culture, heritage, and religion into a unique story to highlight the growth and strength teenagers have within themselves.”

I am so glad that I read this book; it feels like Cardinal looked into the brain of my teenage self and wrote the book that was sitting on my heart to read. Breakup From Hell is a rich adventure story where a young Puerto Rican woman gets to become her own hero. It has a rich creativity and blends culture, heritage, and religion into a unique story to highlight the growth and strength teenagers have within themselves. This book is a wonderful read for those who are looking to diversify their reads and to celebrate the joy of a young girl who just went through a breakup from hell.

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Ann Dávila Cardinal is a writer and director of student recruitment for Vermont College of Fine Arts, where she earned her MFA in writing. Her young adult horror novels include Breakup from Hell and Five Midnights and its sequel, Category Five, and she also writes screenplays and podcasts with her son, Carlos Victor Cardinal. Ann lives with her family just north of Stowe, Vermont, and is always on the lookout for shadow demons. Visit her online at anndavilacardinal.com.

TEREZA LOPEZ (she/her) is a recent graduate from Clark University with a double major in English and history. She attended Clark University again in Fall 2021 and obtained a Master’s in communication. When she is not studying, you can find her obsessively reading or taking care of her new kitten.

Book Review: A Place to Anchor by: Estela Casas

A Place to Achor: Journalism, Cancer, and Rewriting Mi Vida is an autobiography written by Estela Casas. In her autobiography, Casas gives the reader the opportunity to see inside her life, focusing on her work as a journalist and her journey with cancer. As a news anchor in El Paso, TX, Casas was a constant presence in the homes of her viewers. She was a trusted voice, helping viewers through tragic and trying times, eventually learning, that with her own personal life changing news, she would have to trust others as well as reinvent herself.

Casas’ story is one of courage under fire. She is taken by surprise with the diagnosis of thyroid and bilateral breast cancer. She was used to being the one who reported on the news, keeping her life private but everything changed. Quickly, she became the news and her life was no longer private. Casas decided to open herself up to her viewers, who became both her reason to live and her motivation to change who she was and how she saw herself.

As a journalist, you are privy to many behind-the-scenes circumstances. You pick and choose how and what to report, in order for viewers to make informed decisions. However, when your life becomes the news, it’s even harder to strip away your bias and beliefs. Fear, vulnerability, and faith become a constant. You hardly recognize who you’ve become, unsure if this new version of you can go back to how things were. This is what Casas vividly depicts in her story. “Faith or fear” becomes her mantra, she musters her courage and embraces the uncomfortable, all in the hopes of advocating for others to be their own health care advocates. Casas’ wish, other than being alive, is to enjoy her life with her children and watch them grow, to know that her story pushed others to practice self-care, to take an interest in their physical well-being, and to question the power of faith during turbulent times.

During all of these trials, Casas became very aware of just how much she needed her viewers. Casas’ decision to let the viewers into her private bubble was one that surprised even her, yet there was never really any doubt about the fact that this is how she had to experience it all. The viewers needed to know what was going on and Casas needed to share, but most importantly, she needed her viewers’ support. With each chapter of the book, each turn of the page, the reader is drawn into the shared experience. When Casas is faced with a challenge, feels free, embraces her looks changing, and starts rediscovering her faith in God, we are there right with her.

“Casas’ wish, other than being alive, is to enjoy her life with her children and watch them grow, to know that her story pushed others to practice self-care, to take an interest in their physical well-being, and to question the power of faith during turbulent times. ”

The book resonated with me, as my life seemed to mirror some of Estela’s experiences: an orphan, a mother, Latinx, a journalist, and a survivor, not of cancer but a number of near-catastrophic brain bleeds that required emergency brain surgery. Our stories are not the same exactly, but I was able to empathize with Casas and her journey. The book is a story of a life and of a death. The death of old self to a newer thriving ever changing better version of herself. I am certain you will find a nugget of wisdom or two in Casas’ journey. You will laugh, cry, become fearful and hopeful, while also finding yourself in Casas’ journey. I loved this book and I think you will too.

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Estela Casas is a first-generation El Pasoan, mother, cancer thriver, and philanthropist. She is a former English and Spanish language news anchor and journalist who used her platform to not only report the news, but find ways to make a difference in her community. Estela founded the Stand with Estela Casas Cancer Foundation to help increase awareness about breast cancer and raise money to help uninsured women on their cancer journeys.

In her 37 years as a prime-time television news anchor, Estela has highlighted issues of education and health for underserved communities. She eventually found herself the subject of her own reporting, bringing her loyal viewers with her as she shared personal stories about her chemotherapy treatments and surgeries. As a two-time cancer survivor, Estela aims to show women that they too can successfully wage the war against any challenge—not just cancer. Estela firmly believes that her strong faith and love of family, friends, and strangers helped transform her into a better version of herself.

Angela “Angie” Ybarra is a senior student enrolled in the Nontraditional Degree Program (NDP) at Northeastern Illinois University. She hopes to work as a grant writer to assist local nonprofit organizations that address the issues of gentrification within Chicago's NorthWest side and help them find funding for their work. Angie loves to give her audience the opportunity to formulate their own views by presenting the facts or points of interest with the hope to move her audience into action.

“Journalism is what maintains democracy. It’s the force for progressive social change.” —Andrew Vachss, Author

Most Anticipated January 2024 Releases

2024 has many great book releases in store for us. Check out January’s most anticipated releases and keep those reading goals going strong.

Break the Cycle by Dr. Mariel Buqué | On Sale January 2

The definitive, paradigm-shifting guide to healing intergenerational trauma--weaving together scientific research with practical exercises and stories from the therapy room--from Dr. Mariel Buqué, PhD, a Columbia University-trained trauma-informed psychologist and practitioner of holistic healing

From Dr. Mariel Buqué, a leading trauma psychologist, comes this groundbreaking guide to transforming intergenerational pain into intergenerational abundance. With Break the Cycle, she delivers the definitive guide to healing inherited trauma. Weaving together scientific research with practical exercises and stories from the therapy room, Dr. Buqué teaches readers how trauma is transmitted from one generation to the next and how they can break the cycle through tangible therapeutic practices, learning to pass down strength instead of pain to future generations.

You Dreamed of Empires by Álvaro Enrigue|Translated by Natasha Wimmer | On Sale January 9

One morning in 1519, conquistador Hernán Cortés entered the city of Tenochtitlan - today's Mexico City. Later that day, he would meet the emperor Moctezuma in a collision of two worlds, two empires, two languages, two possible futures.

Cortés was accompanied by his nine captains, his troops, and his two translators: Friar Aguilar, a taciturn, former slave, and Malinalli, a strategic, former princess. Greeted at a ceremonial welcome meal by the steely princess Atotoxli, sister and wife of Moctezuma, the Spanish nearly bungle their entrance to the city. As they await their meeting with Moctezuma - who is at a political, spiritual, and physical crossroads, and relies on hallucinogens to get himself through the day and in quest for any kind of answer from the gods - the Spanish are ensconced in the labyrinthine palace. Soon, one of Cortés's captains, Jazmín Caldera, overwhelmed by the grandeur of the city, begins to question the ease with which they were welcomed into the city, and wonders at the risks of getting out alive, much less conquering the empire.

Most Ardently: A Pride & Prejudice Remix by Gabe Cole Novoa | On Sale January 16

London, 1812. Oliver Bennet feels trapped. Not just by the endless corsets, petticoats and skirts he's forced to wear on a daily basis, but also by society's expectations. The world--and the vast majority of his family and friends--think Oliver is a girl named Elizabeth. He is therefore expected to mingle at balls wearing a pretty dress, entertain suitors regardless of his interest in them, and ultimately become someone's wife.

But Oliver can't bear the thought of such a fate. He finds solace in the few times he can sneak out of his family's home and explore the city rightfully dressed as a young gentleman. It's during one such excursion when Oliver becomes acquainted with Darcy, a sulky young man who had been rude to "Elizabeth" at a recent social function. But in the comfort of being out of the public eye, Oliver comes to find that Darcy is actually a sweet, intelligent boy with a warm heart. And not to mention incredibly attractive.

Through Fences by Frederick Luis Aldama|Illustrated by Oscar Garza | On Sale January 19

Through Fences follows the ups and downs of Latino kids and young adults in the US-Mexico borderlands: San Ysidro, Calexico, McAllen, and back and forth across the border. A young girl's journey north goes wrong, and now she is in a forbidding new place, away from her parents and brother, where she doesn't understand what the adults in green are saying even as she tries to obey their rules. Rocky, one of the few white kids in town, stands by and watches as Miguel is jumped by two of his friends. Maggie and her parents are separated at the border in a tragic accident. Alberto's son doesn't understand his Mexican father's hatred for "illegals" or his work as a border patrol agent. Alicia is a TikTok influencer who doesn't want to grow up to be a hospital cleaning lady like her mother, but COVID complicates things. Whatever their challenges, the kids, teens, tweens, and adults in these pages are just trying to survive their everyday lives. Vibrantly illustrated by Oscar Garza, each of these short stories brings a different perspective on the perils of living on the border while brown.

January 2024 Latinx Releases

On Sale January 9

How to Be a Good Savage and Other Poems by Mikeas Sánchez | Translated by Wendy Call & Shook | POETRY

In a fiercely personal yet authoritative voice, prolific contemporary poet Mikeas Sánchez explores the worldview of the Zoque people of southern Mexico. Her paced, steely lyrics fuse cosmology, lineage, feminism, and environmental activism into a singular body of work that stands for the self and the collective in the same instant. “I am woman and I celebrate every vein,” she writes, “where I guard my ancestors’ secrets / every Zoque man’s word in my mouth / every Zoque woman’s wisdom in my spit.”

How to Be a Good Savage and Other Poems examines the intersection of Zoque struggles against colonialism and empire, and those of North African immigrants and refugees. Sánchez encountered the latter in Barcelona as a revelation, “spreading their white blankets on the ground / as if they’ll soon return to sea / flying the sail of the promised land / the land that became a mirage.” Other works bring us just as close to similarly imperiled relatives, ancestors, gods, and archetypal Zoque men and women that Sánchez addresses with both deeply prophetic and childlike love.

Coming from the only woman to ever publish a book of poetry in Zoque and Spanish, this timely, powerful collection pairs the bilingual originals with an English translation for the first time. This book is for anyone interested in poetry as knowledge, proclaimed with both feet squarely set on ancient ground.

You Dreamed of Empires by Alvaro Enrigue | Translated by Natasha Wimmer | ADULT FICTION

One morning in 1519, conquistador Hernán Cortés entered the city of Tenochtitlan – today's Mexico City. Later that day, he would meet the emperor Moctezuma in a collision of two worlds, two empires, two languages, two possible futures.

Cortés was accompanied by his nine captains, his troops, and his two translators: Friar Aguilar, a taciturn, former slave, and Malinalli, a strategic, former princess. Greeted at a ceremonial welcome meal by the steely princess Atotoxli, sister and wife of Moctezuma, the Spanish nearly bungle their entrance to the city. As they await their meeting with Moctezuma – who is at a political, spiritual, and physical crossroads, and relies on hallucinogens to get himself through the day and in quest for any kind of answer from the gods – the Spanish are ensconced in the labyrinthine palace. Soon, one of Cortés’s captains, Jazmín Caldera, overwhelmed by the grandeur of the city, begins to question the ease with which they were welcomed into the city, and wonders at the risks of getting out alive, much less conquering the empire.

Shut Up, This Is Serious by Carolina Ixta | YOUNG ADULT

Belén Dolores Itzel del Toro wants the normal stuff: to experience love or maybe have a boyfriend or at least just lose her virginity. But nothing is normal in East Oakland. Her father left her family. She’s at risk of not graduating. And Leti, her super-Catholic, nerdy-ass best friend, is pregnant—by the boyfriend she hasn’t told her parents about, because he’s Black, and her parents are racist.

Things are hella complicated.

Weighed by a depression she can’t seem to shake, Belén helps Leti, hangs out with an older guy, and cuts a lot of class. She soon realizes, though, that distractions are only temporary. Leti is becoming a mother. Classmates are getting ready for college. But what about Belén? What future is there for girls like her?

From debut author Carolina Ixta comes a fierce, intimate examination of friendship, chosen family, and the generational cycles we must break to become our truest selves.

On Sale January 16

The Best That You Can Do: Stories by Amina Gautier | ADULT FICTION

Primarily told from the perspective of women and children in the Northeast who are tethered to fathers and families in Puerto Rico, these stories explore the cultural confusion of being one person in two places—of having a mother who wants your father and his language to stay on his island but sends you there because you need to know your family. Loudly and joyfully filled with Cousins, Aunts, Grandparents, and budding romances, these stories are saturated in summer nostalgia, and place readers at the center of the table to enjoy family traditions and holidays: the resplendent and universal language of survival for displaced or broken families.

Refusing to shy away from dysfunction, loss, obligation, or interrogating Black and Latinx heritages “If we flip the channels fast enough, we can turn almost anyone Puerto Rican, blurring black and white into Boricua.” Gautier's stories feature New York neighborhoods made of island nations living with seasonal and perpetual displacement. Like Justin Torres’ We the Animals, or Quiara Alegria Hudes’ My Broken Language, it’s the characters-in-becoming—flanked by family and rich with detail—that animate each story with special frequencies, especially for readers grappling split-identities themselves.

The Silence in Her Eyes by Armando Lucas Correa | ADULT FICTION

Leah has been living with akinetopsia, or motion blindness, since she was a child. For the last twenty years, she hasn’t been able to see movement. As she walks around her upper Manhattan neighborhood with her white stick tapping in front, most people assume she’s blind. But the truth is Leah sees a good deal, and with her acute senses of smell and hearing, very little escapes her notice.

She has a quiet, orderly life, with little human contact beyond her longtime housekeeper, her doctor, and her elderly neighbor. That all changes when Alice moves into the apartment next door and Leah can immediately smell the anxiety wafting off her. Worse, Leah can’t help but hear Alice and a late-night visitor engage in a violent fight. Worried, she befriends her neighbor and discovers that Alice is in the middle of a messy divorce from an abusive husband.

Then one night, Leah wakes up to someone in her apartment. She blacks out and in the morning is left wondering if she dreamt the episode. And yet the scent of the intruder follows her everywhere. And when she hears Alice through the wall pleading for her help, Leah makes a decision that will test her courage, her strength, and ultimately her sanity.

Nostalgia Doesn’t Flow Away Like Riverwater by Irma Pineda | Translated by Wendy Call | POETRY

Nostalgia Doesn’t Flow Away Like Riverwater / Xilase qui rié di’ sicasi rié nisa guiigu’ / La Nostalgia no se marcha como el agua de los ríos is a trilingual collection by one of the most prominent Indigenous poets in Latin America: Irma Pineda. The book consists of 36 persona poems that tell a story of separation and displacement in two fictionalized voices: a person who has migrated, without papers, to the United States for work, and that person’s partner who waits at home, in the poet’s hometown of Juchitán, Oaxaca.

On Sale January 23

The Bullet Swallower by Elizabeth Gonzalez James | ADULT FICTION

In 1895, Antonio Sonoro is the latest in a long line of ruthless men. He’s good with his gun and is drawn to trouble but he’s also out of money and out of options. A drought has ravaged the town of Dorado, Mexico, where he lives with his wife and children, and so when he hears about a train laden with gold and other treasures, he sets off for Houston to rob it—with his younger brother Hugo in tow. But when the heist goes awry and Hugo is killed by the Texas Rangers, Antonio finds himself launched into a quest for revenge that endangers not only his life and his family, but his eternal soul.

In 1964, Jaime Sonoro is Mexico’s most renowned actor and singer. But his comfortable life is disrupted when he discovers a book that purports to tell the entire history of his family beginning with Cain and Abel. In its ancient pages, Jaime learns about the multitude of horrific crimes committed by his ancestors. And when the same mysterious figure from Antonio’s timeline shows up in Mexico City, Jaime realizes that he may be the one who has to pay for his ancestors’ crimes, unless he can discover the true story of his grandfather Antonio, the legendary bandido El Tragabalas, The Bullet Swallower.

Leonor: The Story of a Lost Childhood by Paula Delgado-Kling | ADULT NONFICTION

Paula Delgado-Kling takes us to her homeland, Colombia, where she finds answers to the country's drug wars by examining the life of Leonor, a former child soldier in the FARC, a rural guerrilla group.

Paula followed Leonor for nineteen years, from shortly after she was an active member forced into sexual slavery by a commander thirty-four years her senior, through her rehabilitation and struggle with alcohol and drug addiction, to more recent days, as the mom of two girls. Leonor's immense resourcefulness and imagination in the face of horrendous circumstances helped her carve a space for herself in the FARC, a world dominated by males. She is beautiful, and by honing her powers of seduction, Leonor created a parallel world where she made herself a protagonist. She never stopped believing that she was a woman of worth and importance. It took her many years of therapy to accept that she was a victim. For half a lifetime, she regarded herself as "the First Lady of the Southern Bloc," and exploited any power she fabricated for herself to stay alive.

Colombia's violence also touched Paula's family. This narrative began with the question: why was her brother kidnapped and why were his guards teenagers?

On Sale January 30

How We Named the Stars by Andrés N. Ordorica | ADULT FICTION

When Daniel de La Luna arrives as a scholarship student at an elite East Coast university, he bears the weight of his family’s hopes and dreams, and the burden of sharing his late uncle’s name. Daniel flounders at first―but then Sam, his roommate, changes everything. As their relationship evolves from brotherly banter to something more intimate, Daniel soon finds himself in love with a man who helps him see himself in a new light. But just as their relationship takes flight, Daniel is pulled away, first by Sam’s hesitation and then by a brutal turn of events that changes Daniel’s life forever.

As he grapples with profound loss, Daniel finds himself in his family’s ancestral homeland in México for the summer, finding joy in this setting even as he struggles to come to terms with what’s happened and faces a host of new questions: How does the person he is connect with this place his family comes from? How is his own story connected to his late uncle’s? And how might he reconcile the many parts of himself as he learns to move forward?

José Feeds the World: How a Famous Chef Feeds Millions of People in Need Around the World by David Unger | Illustrated by Marta Álvarez Miguéns | PICTURE BOOK

When a terrible earthquake hit Haiti in 2010, chef José Andrés knew he needed to help. Within a few hours of the disaster, he had gathered friends, they flew to the island, and they began cooking rice and beans for the hungry locals. This trip changed the life of the successful chef and led him to found World Central Kitchen, a disaster-relief organization that has fed more than 200 million people affected by natural disasters, the COVID pandemic, and war.

This beautifully illustrated book tells the story of a passionate chef who uses the power of food to nurture people in need, one plate at a time.