The Bee Sting, by Paul Murray, is an exuberantly entertaining novel that delves into the lives of the Barnes family as they navigate a world on the brink of collapse. At the heart of their misfortunes is Dickie, whose once-thriving car business is now failing, leading him to obsessively build an apocalypse-proof bunker. His wife, Imelda, sells her jewelry on eBay and flirts with the idea of an affair, while their teenage daughter, Cass, is on a path of self-destruction. The youngest, PJ, contemplates running away from home.

The narrative poses a poignant question: if you could rewrite this family's story, how far back would you need to go? Could it be Imelda's wedding day, marred by a bee sting? A car accident preceding Cass's birth? Or even further back, to a summer day with Dickie and his father? The Bee Sting is both a portrait of post-crash Ireland and a tragicomic family saga, offering a dazzling exploration of the challenges in striving to be good in a world that's falling apart.

At the elite Catenan Academy, a young fugitive uncovers layered mysteries and world-changing secrets in this new fantasy series by internationally bestselling author of The Licanius Trilogy, James Islington.

AUDI. VIDE. TACE. The Catenan Republic—the Hierarchy—may rule the world now, but they do not know everything. I tell them my name is Vis Telimus. I tell them I was orphaned after a tragic accident three years ago, and that good fortune alone has led to my acceptance into their most prestigious school. I tell them that once I graduate, I will gladly join the rest of civilized society in allowing my strength, my drive and my focus—what they call Will—to be leeched away and added to the power of those above me, as millions already do. As all must eventually do. I tell them that I belong, and they believe me.

But the truth is that I have been sent to the Academy to find answers. To solve a murder. To search for an ancient weapon. To uncover secrets that may tear the Republic apart. And that I will never, ever cede my Will to the empire that executed my family. To survive, though, I will still have to rise through the Academy's ranks. I will have to smile, and make friends, and pretend to be one of them and win. Because if I cannot, then those who want to control me, who know my real name, will no longer have any use for me. And if the Hierarchy finds out who I truly am, they will kill me.

Enter the brutal and elite world of a war college for dragon riders from New York Times bestselling author Rebecca Yarros.

Twenty-year-old Violet Sorrengail was supposed to enter the Scribe Quadrant, living a quiet life among books and history. Now, the commanding general—also known as her tough-as-talons mother—has ordered Violet to join the hundreds of candidates striving to become the elite of Navarre: dragon riders.

But when you're smaller than everyone else and your body is brittle, death is only a heartbeat away...because dragons don't bond to 'fragile' humans. They incinerate them.

With fewer dragons willing to bond than cadets, most would kill Violet to better their own chances of success. The rest would kill her just for being her mother's daughter—like Xaden Riorson, the most powerful and ruthless wingleader in the Riders Quadrant.

She'll need every edge her wits can give her just to see the next sunrise. Yet, with every day that passes, the war outside grows more deadly, the kingdom's protective wards are failing, and the death toll continues to rise. Even worse, Violet begins to suspect leadership is hiding a terrible secret.

Friends, enemies, lovers. Everyone at Basgiath War College has an agenda—because once you enter, there are only two ways out: graduate or die.

The Covenant of Water is a stunning and magisterial new epic that weaves together love, faith, and medicine, set against the richly textured backdrop of Kerala, India. Spanning from the year 1900 to 1977, this narrative follows three generations of a family grappling with a peculiar curse: in every generation, at least one person succumbs to drowning in a land where water is omnipresent.

The saga begins with the story of a twelve-year-old girl from Kerala's ancient Christian community, who, grieving the loss of her father, embarks on a boat journey to meet her much-older husband for the first time. This young girl, destined to become the matriarch known as Big Ammachi, bears witness to the sweeping changes of her time, experiencing both the heights of joy and the depths of sorrow, with her unwavering faith and love as her guiding lights.

Through a tapestry of vivid medical encounters, moments of unexpected humor, and profound human connections, Abraham Verghese brings to life a bygone era of India. The Covenant of Water stands as a tribute to the progress in medicine, to the enduring human spirit, and to the sacrifices of previous generations, all for the benefit of those living in the present. It is a literary masterpiece that captures the fleeting nature of time and the indelible mark of history on our lives.