TheBestseller
Observatory

Best Sellers

Hardcover Fiction

Week of August 25, 2024

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1
THE WOMEN
Kristin Hannah

THE WOMEN

by Kristin Hannah · St. Martin's

22 wks at #1 · 27 on list
2
NEW
THE COVEN
Harper L. Woods
Cover of THE COVEN

THE COVEN

by Harper L. Woods · Bramble

1 wks on list

An Instant New York Times and USA Today Bestseller! From indie darling Harper L. Woods comes THE COVEN, a sexy, deliciously imaginative fantasy romance where The Magicians meets Ninth House with vampires. Revenge. Raised to be my father’s weapon against the Coven that took away his sister and his birthright, I would do anything to protect my younger brother from suffering the same fate. My duty forces me to the secret town of Crystal Hollow and the prestigious Hollow’s Grove University—where the best and brightest of my kind learn to practice their magic free from human judgment. There are no whispered words here. No condemnation for the blood that flows through my veins. The only animosity I face comes from the beautiful and infuriating Headmaster, Alaric Grayson Thorne, a man who despises me just as much as I loathe him and everything he stands for. But that doesn’t mean secrets don’t threaten to tear the school in two. No one talks about the bloody massacre that forced it to close decades prior, only the opportunity it can afford to those fortunate enough to attend. Because for the first time in fifty years, the Coven will open its wards to the Thirteen. Thirteen promising students destined to change the world. If the ghosts of Hollow’s Grove’s victims don’t kill them first. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

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1
FOURTH WING
Rebecca Yarros
Cover of FOURTH WING

FOURTH WING

by Rebecca Yarros · Red Tower

66 wks on list

As war grows more deadly, Violet Sorrengail joins the elite Navarre: the dragon riders. But she'll need to keep her wits because once you enter the Basgiath War College, there are only two ways out: graduate or die.

6
4
THE WEDDING PEOPLE
Alison Espach
Cover of THE WEDDING PEOPLE

THE WEDDING PEOPLE

by Alison Espach · Holt

2 wks on list

The runaway New York Times bestselling Today Show Read With Jenna Book Club Pick, with more than 1.5 million copies sold, about an unexpected wedding guest and the surprising people who help her start anew. Named a Best Book of the Year by The Guardian, Time, Chicago Tribune, Elle, Real Simple, and Glamour It’s a beautiful day in Newport, Rhode Island, when Phoebe Stone arrives at the grand Cornwall Inn wearing a green dress and gold heels, not a bag in sight, alone. She’s immediately mistaken by everyone in the lobby for one of the wedding people, but she’s actually the only guest at the Cornwall who isn’t here for the big event. Phoebe is here because she’s dreamed of coming for years—she hoped to shuck oysters and take sunset sails with her husband, only now she’s here without him, at rock bottom, and determined to have one last decadent splurge on herself. Meanwhile, the bride has accounted for every detail and every possible disaster the weekend might yield except for, well, Phoebe and Phoebe's plan—which makes it that much more surprising when the two women can’t stop confiding in each other. In turns absurdly funny and devastatingly tender, Alison Espach’s The Wedding People is ultimately an incredibly nuanced and resonant look at the winding paths we can take to places we never imagined—and the chance encounters it sometimes takes to reroute us.

7
1
IRON FLAME
Rebecca Yarros
Cover of IRON FLAME

IRON FLAME

by Rebecca Yarros · Red Tower

40 wks on list

"Everyone expected Violet Sorrengail to die during her first year at Basgiath War College--Violet included. But Threshing was only the first impossible test meant to weed out the weak-willed, the unworthy, and the unlucky. Now the real training begins, and Violet's already wondering how she'll get through. It's not just that it's grueling and maliciously brutal, or even that it's designed to stretch the riders' capacity for pain beyond endurance. It's the new vice commandant, who's made it his personal mission to teach Violet exactly how powerless she is-unless she betrays the man she loves. Although Violet's body might be weaker and frailer than everyone else's, she still has her wits--and a will of iron. And leadership is forgetting the most important lesson Basgiath has taught her: Dragon riders make their own rules. But a determination to survive won't be enough this year. Because Violet knows the real secret hidden for centuries at Basgiath War College--and nothing, not even dragon fire, may be enough to save them in the end." --

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THE GOD OF THE WOODS
Liz Moore
Cover of THE GOD OF THE WOODS

THE GOD OF THE WOODS

by Liz Moore · Riverhead

6 wks on list

INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER ONE OF THE NEW YORK TIMES’S NOTABLE BOOKS OF 2024 A NEW YORK TIMES BEST THRILLER OF 2024 A NEW YORK TIMES BEST CRIME NOVEL OF 2024 PEOPLE MAGAZINE’S #1 BOOK OF THE YEAR ONE OF NPR’S “BOOKS WE LOVE” 2024 ONE OF TIME MAGAZINE’S “100 MUST-READ BOOKS OF 2024” “Extraordinary . . . Reminds me of Donna Tartt’s 1992 debut, The Secret History . . . I was so thoroughly submerged in a rich fictional world, that for hours I barely came up for air.” —Maureen Corrigan, Fresh Air, NPR “This expertly paced thriller …has the kineticism of a well-crafted miniseries.” —The New Yorker When a teenager vanishes from her Adirondack summer camp, two worlds collide Early morning, August 1975: a camp counselor discovers an empty bunk. Its occupant, Barbara Van Laar, has gone missing. Barbara isn’t just any thirteen-year-old: she’s the daughter of the family that owns the summer camp and employs most of the region’s residents. And this isn’t the first time a Van Laar child has disappeared. Barbara’s older brother similarly vanished fourteen years ago, never to be found. As a panicked search begins, a thrilling drama unfolds. Chasing down the layered secrets of the Van Laar family and the blue-collar community working in its shadow, Moore’s multi-threaded story invites readers into a rich and gripping dynasty of secrets and second chances. It is Liz Moore’s most ambitious and wide-reaching novel yet.

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2
ALL THE COLORS OF THE DARK
Chris Whitaker
Cover of ALL THE COLORS OF THE DARK

ALL THE COLORS OF THE DARK

by Chris Whitaker · Crown

7 wks on list

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From the author of We Begin at the End comes a soaring thriller and an epic love story that “hits like a sledgehammer . . . an absolutely must-read novel” (Gillian Flynn, author of Gone Girl). Read with Jenna Book Club Pick as Featured on Today The Boston Globe’s #1 Thriller/Mystery of 2024 So Far A Best Book of the Year: Washington Post, She Reads, Kirkus Reviews “Kept me frantically turning the pages and somehow made me cry at the end . . . Brava!”—Kristin Hannah, author of The Women “Melds tense suspense with a powerful exploration of devotion, obsession, and love.”—People (Best New Books) 1975 is a time of change in America. The Vietnam War is ending. Muhammad Ali is fighting Joe Frazier. And in the smalltown of Monta Clare, Missouri, girls are disappearing. When the daughter of a wealthy family is targeted, the most unlikely hero emerges—Patch, a local boy, who saves the girl, and, in doing so, leaves heartache in his wake. Patch and those who love him soon discover that the line between triumph and tragedy has never been finer. And that their search for answers will lead them to truths that could mean losing one another. A missing person mystery, a serial killer thriller, a love story, a unique twist on each, Chris Whitaker has written a novel about what lurks in the shadows of obsession and the blinding light of hope.

12
3
ERUPTION
Michael Crichton and James Patterson
Cover of ERUPTION

ERUPTION

by Michael Crichton and James Patterson · Little, Brown

10 wks on list

As the Big Island of Hawai'i faces an eruption of unprecedented intensity, the U.S. military contends with the consequences of a long-held doomsday secret. The master of the techno-blockbuster joins forces with the master of the modern thriller. Eruption is the passion project Michael Crichton, creator of Jurassic Park, ER, Twister, and Westworld, had been pursuing for years ahead of his untimely passing in 2008. After discovering his notes and the partial manuscript, his wife, Sherri Crichton, searched for more than a decade until she found the perfect partner: James Patterson, the world’s most popular storyteller. “A seismic publishing event…It’s a thrill and the pages practically turn themselves.” —Associated Press “Red-hot storytelling…The action scenes will make readers’ eyes pop as the tension continues to build.” —Kirkus (starred review) “Fast-paced and deeply considered…A cinematic story rooted in science and infused with plenty of heart, tackling big themes like love and loss.”—Time

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THE SPELLSHOP
Sarah Beth Durst
Cover of THE SPELLSHOP

THE SPELLSHOP

by Sarah Beth Durst · Bramble

4 wks on list

The Spellshop is Sarah Beth Durst’s romantasy debut–a lush cottagecore tale full of stolen spellbooks, unexpected friendships, sweet jams, and even sweeter love. Download a FREE sneak peek today! Join Kiela the librarian and her assistant, Caz the sentient spider plant, as they navigate the low stakes market of illegal spellmaking and the high risk business of starting over. “Sarah Beth Durst is the hidden gem of the fantasy world.” —Book Riot Kiela has always had trouble dealing with people. Thankfully, as librarian at the Great Library of Alyssium, she hasn’t had to. She and her assistant, Caz, a magically sentient spider plant, have spent the last eleven years sequestered among the empire’s most precious spellbooks, preserving their magic for the city’s elite. But when a revolution begins and the library goes up in flames, she and Caz save as many books as they can carry and flee to a faraway island Kiela was sure she’d never return to: her childhood home. Kiela hopes to lay low in the overgrown and rundown cottage her late parents left her and figure out a way to survive without drawing the attention of either the empire or the revolutionaries. Much to her dismay, in addition to a nosy—and very handsome—neighbor, she finds the town neglected and in a state of disrepair. The empire, for all its magic and power, has been neglecting for years the people who depend on magical intervention to maintain healthy livestock and crops. Not only that, but the very magic that should be helping them has been creating destructive storms that have taken a toll on the island. Due to her past role at the library, Kiela feels partially responsible for this, and now she’s determined to find a way to make things right: by opening the island’s first-ever secret spellshop. Her plan comes with risks—the consequence of sharing magic with commoners is death. And as Kiela comes to make a place for herself among the kind and quirky townspeople of her former home, she realizes that in order to make a life for herself, she must learn to break down the walls she has built up so high. Like a Hallmark rom-com full of mythical creatures and fueled by cinnamon rolls and magic, Sarah Beth Durst’s The Spellshop will heal your heart and feed your soul. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

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3
YOU LIKE IT DARKER
Stephen King
Cover of YOU LIKE IT DARKER

YOU LIKE IT DARKER

by Stephen King · Scribner

12 wks on list

** With a bonus story for the paperback edition. ** 'You like it darker? Fine, so do I' writes Stephen King in the afterword to this magnificent new collection of stories that delve into the darker part of life - both metaphorical and literal. Each of these stories holds its own thrills, joys and mysteries; each feels iconic. In 'Danny Coughlin's Bad Dream', a brief and unprecedented psychic flash upends dozens of lives, Danny's most catastrophically. 'Rattlesnakes', a sequel to Cujo, sees a grieving widower travel to Florida for respite and instead receive an unexpected inheritance - with major strings attached. 'The Answer Man' asks if prescience is good luck or bad and reminds us that a life marked by unbearable tragedy can still be meaningful. King writes to feel 'the exhilaration of leaving ordinary day-to-day life behind' and his ability to surprise, amaze and bring us both terror and solace remains unsurpassed. You like it darker? You got it. 'As classic as King's novels are, his shorter fiction has been just as gripping over the years' USA Today 'One of the great storytellers of our time' Guardian

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REMARKABLY BRIGHT CREATURES
Shelby Van Pelt
Cover of REMARKABLY BRIGHT CREATURES

REMARKABLY BRIGHT CREATURES

by Shelby Van Pelt · Ecco

"For fans of A Man Called Ove, a ... debut novel about a widow's unlikely friendship with a giant Pacific octopus reluctantly residing at the local aquarium--and the truths she finally uncovers about her son's disappearance 30 years ago"--

Historical bestseller data sourced from the New York Times Book Review, archived by Hawes Publications.