We're Novellic 👋 Expert book recommenders and book club community-builders since 2020 — and now we're on Substack. Alongside our mobile app (download here!), we'll be sharing thoughtfully curated collections of new releases across literary fiction, genre fiction, and non-fiction — for real readers, not algorithms. If you're overwhelmed by BookTok and craving something more personal, you're in the right place.
☀️ Welcoming in June ☀️
Summer is nearly here, and your reading list should feel like it. Whatever June looks like for you — a packed suitcase, a garden chair, or a sofa you refuse to leave — this month’s list has something for every mood and moment.
Here’s where we think you should start!
The Sea Sisters — Louise Douglas — June 1
When a woman walks into a detective agency claiming to be a toddler who vanished from a Brittany seaside town 25 years ago, Mila Shepherd isn't convinced — but she reopens the case anyway. What unravels is a web of misdirection, secret societies, and buried grief that hits closer to home than she bargained for. The Sea Sisters is a fiendishly plotted mystery, and one that doesn't let go.
Whistler — Ann Patchett — June 2
Ann Patchett, who the Sunday Times names as ‘one of the most beloved authors of her generation,’ is back with Whistler. When Daphne spots a man following her around the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, it turns out to be Eddie — her former stepfather, not seen since a life-changing event decades ago. What follows is a moving, luminous story about how family, memory and love endures. Here, Patchett paints an intimate portrait of how the feeling of being known by one other person, even for a short period of time, can change everything.
Receipts From the Bookshop — Katie Clapham — June 4
Katie Clapham became a bookseller by accident — moving back to her seaside hometown to go into business with her mum, mostly fielding customers who were hoping to catch her mother instead. Each week brings small, hard-won triumphs: a tea crisis averted, a book correctly identified from a hopeless description, and the emotional rollercoaster of being named the 7th Best Bookshop in the Country on a day the till took £16.98. A funny, warm-hearted celebration of bad weather, good books, and the irreplaceable magic of a local bookshop.
The Subtle Art of Folding Space — John Chu — June 4
Ellie's universe is falling apart: her mother is in a coma, her sister accuses her of being insufficiently Chinese between assassination attempts, and a shadowy cabal is hijacking the machinery that keeps physics working. When an illicit device surfaces that keeps her mother alive while destabilising the universe itself, Ellie must dig into her family's past to find a way forward. A propulsive, inventive novel about generational trauma, identity, and impossible choices.
People in Love — Claire Daverley — June 4
A decade into a loving relationship, Nora says yes when her partner Robin proposes. Then, on the night of their engagement party, Bren — her childhood best friend and the one who got away — shows up at her door. Tender and quietly devastating, People in Love is a novel about split hearts, unexplored roads, and the love story you didn't see coming.
Rotten Heart — Kat Dunn — June 4
1898, Hampstead. When Odette's mother dies, her estranged aunt Claudine moves swiftly in — and when she's announced as the new stepmother, something sinister stirs in the house. A sapphic gothic horror retelling of Hamlet, drenched in grief, madness, and a mother who refuses to stay dead.
The Final Six — Akinari Asakura — June 4
Shogo Hatano has beaten 5,000 applicants to become one of six final candidates for a coveted role at Japan's most exclusive tech company — only to discover that just one of them will be offered the job, decided by a group vote. Then six envelopes appear, each containing a secret that could destroy a life. A razor-sharp Japanese thriller about ambition, betrayal, and how far people will go when everything is on the line.
Villa Coco — Andrew Sean Greer — June 9
Broke and directionless, a young archivist takes a job in the Tuscan hills assisting Lisabetta — known to her friends as Coco — a strong-willed aristocrat with a great final plan: to reunite with the lost love of her life. Days unfold in increasingly eccentric pursuits among bohemian painters, elderly princesses, and unnervingly handsome nephews. As summer turns to autumn, the secrets of Villa Coco slowly come to light. Sun-drenched, wise, and full of unadulterated joy — from the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Less.
Read This to Look Cool: Essays and Overthinkings — Maeve Dunigan — June 12
Maeve Dunigan has spent a lifetime trying to seem effortlessly chill, with mixed results. With sharp wit and unflinching honesty, she recounts misadventures (like quietly enduring a ruptured appendix at McDonald's so as not to seem dramatic). A deeply relatable meditation on belonging, self-love, and the absurdity of performing ourselves in an age of constant visibility. It says "I see you" — but also "don't look at me, my hair is doing something weird."
Things I Told My Notes App: The Funny And Candid Guide To Living Your Best Life From A Self-Proclaimed Oversharer — Milly Goldsmith — June 25
Viral oversharer Milly Goldsmith has built a community around her refreshingly vulnerable takes on single life, self-love, and navigating her twenties as a work-in-progress. From imposter syndrome in brand meetings to serial dating and romanticising strangers on New York streets, she gives voice to every thought you felt too embarrassed to say out loud. The book-shaped dose of real talk we all need right now.
Natural Disaster — Lisa Owens — June 25
One last perfect day with her children before returning to work after maternity leave. What could go wrong? Unfolding across 24 hours, this darkly funny, sharply observed novel captures the absurd, precarious, bittersweet reality of being a woman, a mother, a wife, and a person — all at once, all in a single day.
A Creative Compass: Finding Your Way to a Creative Life — Emma Gannon — June 25
In a world of algorithms, productivity hacks, and AI-generated everything, Sunday Times bestselling author (and Substack’s reigning Queen!) Emma Gannon argues that the most radical thing you can do is trust yourself. A practical and personal guide to rekindling your creative spark — with mindsets, rituals, and actions to beat burnout, silence the noise, and find your way back to making what only you can make.
We hope you’ve found something that piques your interest! Let us know in the comments. And be sure to download the Novellic app to peruse all of our curated collections.
Happy reading, book friends!
Very excited for Whistler! Been waiting ages for a new Ann Patchett 💙