Books of the Month
THE WHITE HOT
Author: Quiara Alegría Hudes
Publisher: One World
ISBN-13: 978-0593732342 / ASIN: B0DSHWSFXX
SUMMARY:
The story of a runaway mother’s ten days of freedom—and the pain, desire, longing, and wonder we find on the messy road to enlightenment—from Pulitzer Prize winner Quiara Alegría Hudes.
“The White Hot has the effect of pressing your hand to a barbed live wire. April’s is one of the most memorable voices I’ve encountered in recent fiction. . . . [A] brilliant depiction of a woman learning to transform her rage into something resembling transcendence.”—The New York Times Book Review
LONGLISTED FOR THE VCU CABELL FIRST NOVELIST AWARD • A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: NPR, Oprah Daily, Kirkus Reviews, BookPage
April is a young mother raising her daughter in an intergenerational house of unspoken secrets and loud arguments. Her only refuge is to hide away in a locked bathroom, her ears plugged into an ambient soundscape, and a mantra on her lips: dead inside. That is, until one day, as she finds herself spiraling toward the volcanic rage she calls the white hot, a voice inside her tells her to just . . . walk away. She wanders to a bus station and asks for a ticket to the furthest destination; she tells the clerk to make it one-way. That ticket takes her from her Philly home to the threshold of a wilderness and the beginning of a nameless quest—an accidental journey that shakes her awake, almost kills her, and brings her to the brink of an impossible choice.
The White Hot takes the form of a letter from mother to daughter about a moment of abandonment that would stretch from ten days to ten years—an explanation, but not an apology. Hudes narrates April’s story—spiritual and sexy, fierce and funny—with delicate lyricism and tough love. Just as April finds in her painful and absurd sojourn the key to freeing herself and her family from a cage of generational trauma, so Hudes turns April’s stumbling pursuit of herself into an unforgettable short epic of self-discovery.
About the Author:
Quiara Alegría Hudes is the Pulitzer Prize–winning playwright of Water by the Spoonful and the musical In the Heights, which won the Tony Award for Best Musical, and which she adapted for the screen. Her memoir, My Broken Language, was longlisted for the Andrew Carnegie Medal. Her essays have appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Cut, The Nation, and American Theater Magazine. Her 2025 fiction debut, The White Hot, is currently shortlisted for the Carol Shields Prize for Fiction and the PEN/Faulker Award for Fiction.
As a prison reform activist, Hudes and her cousin founded Emancipated Stories, a prison writing platform where people behind bars can share one page of their life story with the world.
A daughter of the Puerto Rican diaspora, Quiara was born and raised in West Philly and now lives in New York.
AFTER THE OCEAN
Author: Lauren E. Rico
Publisher: Kensington
ISBN-10: 1496744667 / ISBN-13: 978-1496744661
SUMMARY:
How do you find your way back when you’ve left yourself behind?
A painful unsolved mystery resurfaces after decades of confusion, sending one woman and her daughters on a journey of redemption in this emotional story about intergenerational trauma, family, and the beauty of Puerto Rico for fans of Nina LaCour, Xochitl Gonzalez, Elizabeth Acevedo, Jodi Picoult, Celeste Ng, and Julia Alvarez.
Thirty years ago, musicians Emilia Oliveras and Paul Winstead were married in Puerto Rico. Forty-eight hours later, Paul vanished from their honeymoon cruise, leaving Emilia devastated—and the prime suspect in his disappearance. So, she ran for her life, leaving behind her love, her dreams, and her identity.
Today “Emily Oliver” is a divorced music teacher and mother of two daughters who know nothing about her past: Gracie, a talented attorney who excels in the courtroom but grapples with personal relationships, and Meg, a gifted concert pianist who wrestles with her ambition and purpose.
When a cryptic caller claims the unthinkable—that Paul is alive, Emily returns to Puerto Rico in search of the truth. What she doesn’t know is that her daughters aren’t far behind. Shocked to find their mother isn’t the woman they thought she was, Gracie and Meg wonder how much of their lives have been a lie.
As the paths of the three women intertwine, they are compelled to confront their pasts, reevaluate their relationships, and seek forgiveness. Together they embark on a quest to unravel the mystery of Paul’s disappearance and redefine their futures on their own terms, navigating a maze of family ties, secrets, and redemption.
About the Author:
Lauren E. Rico is an award-winning author of twisty, emotionally resonant fiction that explores family, identity, and the secrets we keep. Her novels have been selected for LibraryReads, Book of the Month, and Aardvark Book Club, and have captivated readers with their blend of suspense and heart.
She has received honors from First Coast Romance Writers, Birmingham Romance Writers, and NJ Romance Writers. Her debut women’s fiction novel, Familia: A Riveting and Unforgettable Novel of Sisterhood, was both an Indie Next Pick and a LibraryReads selection. Her latest novel, After the Ocean, captures the beauty of Puerto Rico in a dual-timeline family mystery that weaves together themes of identity, secrets, and forgiveness. It is also a finalist for the 2026 Carolyn Award. Her other works include The Whiskey Sisters Series, The Reverie Series, Solo, and Counterpoint.
In addition to her writing, Lauren is a nationally recognized classical music broadcaster, heard on SiriusXM and on stations across the country, including WQXR in New York City, WSHU in Connecticut, and WDAV in Charlotte. She recently wrote the script for one of the New York Philharmonic’s Young People’s Concerts.
Lauren lives on Long Island with her husband, Tom, and their rescue pup, Sandy.
For more info, visit LaurenRico.com.
