9 Books We Read In March & Can’t Stop Thinking About

I didn't expect this book to reach inside my chest and destroy my heart, but here we are. The Bright Years by Sarah Damoff is emotional, gut-wrenching, and achingly human. It's about forgiveness and grief and the evergreen concept of family dysfunction. Damoff's writing is tender yet unflinching. Fair warning: Do not start this one on a day when you need to keep it together. You will be a hot mess. — Katie Garrity, News & Social Editor

*Releases May 12

The first book in this series, Silver Elite, was a Booktok darling for forever. To be honest, that book left me wanting a little more from it after all the hype, but when I received an ARC of the sequel, I decided to treat it like ACOTAR and believe there was much more to come. Without spoiling anything, there was. Seeing Wren navigate her new place in the Uprising and her love life (that's all I'll say, but omg I'm so torn) was just page-turning good. This is more romance- and character-driven than hard dystopian fiction, so just go into it knowing you're not getting intensely complex political systems or what have you. Maybe we'll see more of that in future installments? — Katie McPherson, Associate Editor, Lifestyle & Entertainment

I had such a wild month that I sadly only managed to squeeze in one book, but I’m so glad it was Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir. I’d only ever heard people rave about it, and with the screen adaptation coming up (and my interview with Ryan Gosling and Weir about the movie), it felt like the perfect time to dive in. The book is everything everyone says it is and more: smart, funny, emotional, and so beautifully hopeful. Also, Weir is a literal gem of a human. I will absolutely be reading everything he writes forever. Amaze, amaze, amaze! — Julie Sprankles, Deputy Editor, Lifestyle & Entertainment

The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter has always been one of my favorite books, and I've always been fascinated by the book's author, Carson McCullers, who was only in her early 20s when it was published. This thorough biography is an intricate look at her life, which was filled with love affairs, abuse, addiction, and all those other writerly things. It's also an unflinching look at what happens to queer kids in a society where they aren't loved and accepted. This was a tough but completely fascinating read. — Sarah Aswell, Deputy Editor, News & Social

*Releases March 31

I can't stop thinking about this book — it was absolutely a five-star read. The story follows Professor Ember Agni, an archaeologist who is single-mindedly obsessed with visiting ‘the Continent’ to search for artifacts that might shed new light on the people who lived there 3,000 years ago until they were wiped out by a climate crisis. I won't spoil anything, but the lengths she'll go to to achieve her goals will shock you, and thinking about how archaeologists may one day interpret what we leave behind is completely arresting. — Katie McPherson

Here's a book that will get you out of your reading slump! It's the dystopian future, but love-centered reality shows are still a thing. Our main character, Lily, finds herself in a desert compound with 19 other contestants, vying for commercial goods and looking for love while the world outside of their TV show literally burns. This is a page-turner for sure. — Sarah Aswell

*Releases April 21

I was warned this is a stressful read for journalists, and omg that was absolutely correct. The story follows Francesca, who has been laid off from her prestigious job at Marie Claire and finds herself doing what she never thought she'd have to: taking a job as the night editor of a seedy, no-ethics-having tabloid called The Scoop. As the pressure to get clicks only grows, Frankie's own morals are tested again and again. It's a nail-biter, but the ending is so satisfying. — Katie McPherson

I honestly and without exaggeration think that every American should be required to read this book, which follows several families who are living homeless in Atlanta despite having jobs and despite all of their best efforts. This is a book about the housing crisis, about racism, about sexism, and about the greed of the top one percent. You will be very educated, and very mad, when you finish. — Sarah Aswell

I know it's not Memorial Day yet, but I am sneaking in some beach reads in anticipation of my favorite time of year. I didn't get around to Carley Fortune's last book, so I dove in and discovered that it's probably my favorite one of hers that I've read yet! Her books take place on the shores of a perfect Canadian lake, and I never want to leave even though I've never been. In this installment, a woman brings her grandmother to the lake to help out for a summer, only to find that she needs a break just as much as her gran. Oh — and she meets someone and falls in love. — Sarah Aswell