Even though it only spans two years in the life of immigrant Pearl, Aaron Hamburger's third novel “Hotel Cuba” (Harper Perennial, 2023) has the feel and weight of an epic. Opening in 1922, as Pearl and her kid sister Frieda set sail for a better life in America from their home in Russia, only to be waylaid in Havana, Cuba, with their futures hanging indefinitely in the balance, Hamburger paints a vivid picture of time and place. While the novel is sure to appeal to a wide audience, gay writer Hamburger has made sure to feature significant queer characters in the storyline.

Interested in mythology and religion? Then check out "Gods and Mortals" by J. D. Netto.

You can't see the forest for the trees.

 "The Daughter of Doctor Moreau" by Silvia Moreno García is inspired by "The Island of Doctor Moreau," but with a lot more characters who do not appear in the original.

Even the best cooks and bakers among us know that not every attempt at food preparation turns out to be the way it was intended. Part essay collection/part cookbook, writer and creative-director Alison Riley’s “Recipe for Disaster: 40 Superstar Stories of Sustenance and Survival” (Chronicle Books, 2023) folds in humorous and heartfelt tales to satisfy almost every appetite.

Magic, murder, betrayal, and more betrayal are what Rebecca Mix wanted to include in "The Ones We Burn."