Celebrate Texas Writers Month with May's Newest Reads

 

Texas authors blossom during Texas Writers Month with a bouquet of fresh new titles. We have a posy of delights to charm readers young and old in our May Texas Books Preview. Pluck a title from the list and bask in that new book fragrance. Check out these upcoming releases to discover a new mystery, charm the young reader in your life, fall into a new fantasy world, or revel in a new romance.

 

A Camping Conundrum: A Liz Adams Mystery

Stacy Wilder

 

A heart-pounding cozy mystery filled with twists, turns, and canine charm. Perfect for fans of page-turning whodunits and outdoor adventures!

 

 

Will There Be Love? 

Whitney Cubbison

 

To celebrate her fortieth birthday, Ophelia and her husband Gianluca gather an unlikely group of eight friends and lovers for a weekend in Ibiza. However, the idyllic villa setting may be the only thing holding together a complicated tangle of friendship, love, and betrayal.

 

Ophelia knows she loves her husband, but “love” is a word she never learned to say, a silence rooted in a childhood tragedy. What she doesn’t know is that Gianluca has been whispering it to someone else. And when his mistress crashes the party with her own boyfriend, she brings a revelation that could unravel everything.

 

Across Rome, Paris and Ibiza, the guests explore where love begins and falters, and the courage it takes to hold on—or to let go.

 

 

The Rise of The Mad March

Robert Espenscheid, Jr. 

 

Two admitted felons on probation, one ‘Nam vet, and one Grosse Pointe deb collide to form an unlikely rock band. Internal conflict blows them apart. Faith in the music they make patches them back together for one wild-ride cross-country tour.

 

America, 1973. Christine on lead, Henry on rhythm, Gretchen on bass and Melissa on drums. A chaotic rise, fighting amongst themselves, battling self-destruction, finding their sound, learning to trust, finding a helping hand, overcoming convention (girls can’t play guitar) to become one band, on one tour, for one month – New York to LA and all the stories in between.

 

This one is for all the rock bands who never headlined the big stage, who never needed protection getting to the limo, who never made any money, who never got signed, who had no answer to the cry of  “why aren’t you guys famous?” It’s for those who wrote killer songs never heard on the radio, who never made a Rolling Stone cover—or even a mention inside. It’s for those whose collars were always blue, who were promised this and wound up with that, who always opened and never closed.

 

 

Higher Love

Joanne Kukanza Easley

 

In 1986 Austin, Texas, sixteen-year-old Stephanie steps into sixty-two-year-old Lauren’s life, her uncanny resemblance cracking open a buried past. Claiming to be the daughter of the child Lauren gave up for adoption forty-five years ago, Stephanie upends Lauren’s life—already complicated by her remarriage to Brett after decades apart. Stung by her adoptive grandmother’s deception, Stephanie stays, her past of tragedy and self-harm forging a fragile bond with Lauren and Brett. When Stephanie’s trust fund evaporates, crushing her college dreams, Lauren sacrifices all to give her a future—only to face a bittersweet twist that echoes the past and changes everything. This heart-wrenching family drama delves into the power of unconditional love, and the strength found in facing our pasts.

 

 

Too Much the Lion: A Novel of the Battle of Franklin

Preston Lewis

 

Too Much the Lion follows a handful of Confederate generals, infantrymen, civilians and slaves through the five days leading up to the horrific 1864 Battle of Franklin and its tragic aftermath.

 

The historical novel offers an unvarnished account of the dying days of the Confederacy in a powerful and moving narrative of honor and betrayal, bravery and cowardice, death and survival.

 

Told with poignancy and honesty by accomplished and award-winning novelist Preston Lewis, Too Much the Lion achieves for the Battle of Franklin what The Killer Angels did for the Battle of Gettysburg, providing a classic fictional account of one of the Civil War’s pivotal encounters.

 

 

Meet the Kellys: The True Story of Machine Gun Kelly and His Moll Kathryn Thorne

Chris Enss

 

Gangsters. Lovers. Legends. Meet the Kellys—the bootlegging, bank-robbing, husband-wife duo known as “Machine Gun” Kelly and Kathyrn Thorne—who masterminded one of the most infamous kidnappings in American crime . . .

 

 

BUT WAIT, THERE'S MORE!

There are so many Texas-connected books publishing this month that we couldn’t feature all of them. The following books also publish in May:

 

CHILDREN'S, MIDDLE GRADE, & YOUNG ADULT BOOKS

100 First Words for Little Texans by Christopher Robbins

Abeni and the Kingdom of Gold by P. Djèlí Clark

Breaking Covens, Building Dreams by Isabel Campbell & Michael Anderle

Cascarones: An Easter Surprise by Alicia Salazar

Dream for the Land by Laekan Zea Kemp

Echoes from the Past: The War Elephant by John Caldwell

Elizabeth, Queen of the Seas by Lynne Cox, Author & Brian Floca, Illustrator

Enigma Jewels by Rox Burkey & Charles Breakfield

Firefly Season by Cynthia Leitich Smith 

The Last Hope by Sarah Noffke & Michael Anderle

Let Them Stare by Jonathan van Ness & Julie Murphy

Magical Elements of the Periodic Table Presented By The Alchemical Wizards Book 2 by Sybrina Durant

The Minor Rescue by Meredith Davis

Pick Your Own Quest: Raptors in the Ranchland by Connor Hoover

Rattlesnakes by Jennifer Lee Anderson

Sally's Musical Tale by Rosie J. Pova

So Many Years by Anne Wynter, author & Jerome Pumphrey, Illustrator

Tinker's Legacy by A.T. Michaels & Michael Anderle

Welcome Home, Esmerelda by Daniela Ramirez

 

MYSTERY / HORROR

Blame the Dogs by Laura Martin

Castle of Horror Anthology Volume 12: Ripped from the Headlines

Champagne Toast, Murder Chaser by Joni Folger

A Dash of Death by L.B. Dayton

Dead Silence by John W. Mefford

Four Fatal Elements by D.B. Borton

Hurtin' to Curse by Allie Katt

The Lady and the World’s Fair by Brittany E. Brinegar & J.E. Brinegar

The Missing Half by Ashley Flowers with Alex Kiester

The Night Birds by Christopher Golden

Our Last Wild Days by Anna Bailey

Promises and Politics, Another Murder by Christa Nardi

Rawhide and Ransom by Jo Grafford

Sacculina by Paul E. Cooley

Therapy Farm by Sam Barton

Three for the Kill by D.B. Borton

Treasure and Treachery by Kady Hinojosa

 

NONFICTION 

Alcon Laboratories by Thomas McDonald

The Architecture of the Playing Field by Richard L. Cleary

The Ballad of "Blind" Willie Johnson by Shane Ford

Being in Relation: Indigenous Peoples, the Land, and Texas Christian University, 1873-2023 by Scott M. Langston, Theresa Strouth Gaul and C. Annette Anderson

Birds of the Texas Coast by Ron Grimes

Bragging Rights by Keith Gåddie

Courting History by James F. Simon

Dare to Dream Scary Fast by Wade Wilson

Daughters of the Bamboo Grove by Barbara Demick

Fire in the Piney Woods by Edward Cavallerano

Gardening on the Dry Side of Texas by Mary Irish

Lone Star Tarnished by Cal Jillson

Melting Point by Rachel Cockerell

One Day at a Time: 180 Days of Hope for Special Needs Parents by Beth Richards

Parking Lot Birding by Jennifer L. Bristol

Pigs, Pets, and Public Health by Ronald D. Warner

Plants with Purpose by Monika Maeckle

Rockets, Tanks, and Submarines by Edward T. Cotham Jr.

Saltgrass Prairie Saga by Jim Burnett

Small Town Author by John R. Erickson

Superbloom by Mark Lisk

Texas BBQ by Jonas Cramby

Texas Turf by Anne J. Bailey

We've Been Misled: Eating Healthy is Simple by Robin Dobbins

Who Is Willie Nelson? by David Stabler 

 

OTHER FICTION

Ace in the Hole by Jaime Castle & Rhett C. Bruno

Apache 16: Texas Killing by William M. James & Laurence James

Austin Blues by Gary Keith

Bloodless by G.J. Terral

Bloodlines by Michael Anderle

Cinderwitch by Eva Pohler

Codename: Savant by TR Cameron & Michael Anderle

Crown of Night and Rain by Susan Person

Crystal Heart by Kelli Robyns & Michael Anderle

Dancing with Dragons by Maria Grace

Deep Time by Susan Sizer Bogue 

Devil In The Pale Moonlight by D. Hollis Anderson

The Devil Three Times by Ricky Fayne

Doom's Division by Yoon Ha Lee

Drama On Stage by Michael Anderle

Drunk Love: Marriage Under the Influence by Melissa Fletcher Stoeltje

The Emilie Adventures by Martha Wells

The Forbidden Spell by Martha Carr & Michael Anderle

Free at Last by L.J. Breedlove

Girls with Long Shadows by Tennessee Hill

Heartseeker by Amy Campbell

The Jonah Way by Chad Lehrmann

Lured into the Deep Anthology

Marked by Moonlight by Sophie Jordan

Midnight Justice by Robin Dobbins

Misfit Youths Find A Champion by Robin Dobbins

No Waif Out by Renée Jaggér & Michael Anderle

One More Temptation by Michael Todd & Michael Anderle

Queen of All Mayhem by Dane Huckelbridge

Rapunzel Unchained by Erin Bedford

Saving the Sands by Bradford Bates & Michael Anderle

Shattered Nightmares by River Tatum & Michael Anderle

Spellbound by Kelli Robyns & Michael Anderle

Turn the Guns by Michael Anderle

Until Peace Comes Again by Raymond Wilkinson

Veil of Sacrifice by Martha Carr & Michael Anderle

Whistling Women and Crowing Hens by Melora Fern

Worthless Treasures by Mary L. Hamilton

The Wounds of My Father by Roccie Hill

 

POETRY

Into Her Wild by Nilam Patel

 

ROMANCE

As You Ice It by Emma St. Clair

Badge of Honor by Alexa Verde

Best for Last by Baleigh Jayne

Birdy by Karen Gammons

The Bounty Hunter's Surrender by KyLee Woodley

Built to Last by Lexi Blake

Catherine's Pursuit by Lena Nelson Dooley 

The Convict Gets His Girl by Jane Poller

The Cowboy Who Heard Her by Liz Isaacson

Desert Pursuit by Jennifer D. Bokal

Don't Forget the Milk by Eden Rosethorne

The Edge of Us by Katherine L. Evans

Finders Keepers by Nicole Lenz

Forever Theirs by Kennedy L. Mitchell

Glitter and Grace by Katherine L. Evans

Imperfectly Perfect by Dania Voss

Inheriting an Irish Groom by Sylvia McDaniel

Kiss Me, Maybe by Gabriella Gamez

Lachlan by Angel S. Vane

Last Mango in Palm Springs by Bix Barrow

The Love Haters by Katherine Center

Love in Focus by Lyla Lee

Mae by Caryl McAdoo

Mine by Clio Evans

Missing in Texas by Virginia Vaughn

Problematic Summer Romance by Ali Hazelwood

Protecting Addison by Susan Stoker

Puck, Marry, Thrill by Ginny Sterling

Quid Pro Beau by Kat Baxter

Renard's Deliverance by Laylah Roberts

Reunited by A.J. Llewellyn & D.J. Manly

Rule #15 Friends First by Caryl McAdoo

Rule #16 Listening is Everything by Linda Carroll-Bradd

Seeking Her Forever Cowboy by Janalyn Knight

The Senator's Rescue by Linda Carroll-Bradd

Silverleaf Rapids by Jodi Thomas

Simply Yours by Ginny Sterling

Sold to Three Alphas by Mia Wolf

Stand-in Texas Dad by Cathy Gillen Thacker

Summer of Sunsets by J. Collette Smith

The Texan's Unexpected Home by Jolene Navarro

A Texas Soldier's Love by Julie Benson

To Catch a Fortune by Rochelle Alers

 

Want to make sure your forthcoming Texas-connected titles are included in our feature? Email us at Publicity@LoneStarLiterary.com with the details!

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