Book Notification Weekly Picks #56

By Vince MoralesJul 3rd, 2026

Book Notification Weekly Picks: July 3rd, 2026

Vin - Entertainment Editor

Hello, everyone, and welcome to Book Notification Weekly Picks.

I finished reading Homebound which I recommended back in Weekly Picks #50. I enjoyed it, but didn’t love it. Part of that might just be my expectations. I read the book’s description, which tells of a young girl in the 80s programming a game and how that game affects people in the future. I thought it was going to be a little more Halt & Catch Fire, with a young girl programming in the 80s as the driving force of the plot. That turns out to be a very small portion of the books, as the large majority of it is dedicated to the future plotline. I enjoyed the future plot quite a bit, more than the 80s one, if I’m being honest, but it still left me kind of wanting more.

Last week, I made a mistake by not making clear what book Susan was recommending. I got quite a few emails, and I apologize for that. If anyone is still left wondering, Susan gave high recommendations to James Patterson and David Ellis‘ Billy Harney Series, which begins with Black Book.

Another e-mail I received was from Pamela, who said that if you’re looking to read a good Freida McFadden book, that The Divorce isn’t the best place to start. Pamela recommends The Boyfriend, The Perfect Son, Never Lie, or The Teacher.

That’s all I have for this week. Let’s get to the picks.

Vince
Entertainment Editor @ Book Notification

Founder’s Pick
Title: The Traveler
Author: Joseph Eckert
Series: Standalone
Published: 2026

Description: A man begins involuntarily leaping forward through time, leaving his family behind as his brilliant son grows up determined to find a way to bring him home.

Title: Abby Offsides
Author: Anna McCallie
Genre: Sports Romance
Series: Standalone
Published: 2026

Description: After a broken engagement, a woman moves to Liverpool for a fresh start and finds herself falling for a married football star while rediscovering her own dreams and independence.

Title: The Inheritance Games
Author: Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Genre: Young Adult
Series: The Inheritance Games
Published: 2020

Description: A teenager unexpectedly inherits a billionaire’s fortune and must solve the riddles surrounding his estate while navigating danger and the resentment of his disinherited family.

Title: Cosmic Love at the Multiverse Hair Salon
Author: Annie Mare
Genre: Cozy Fantasy
Series: Standalone
Published: 2025

Description: A hairstylist’s flirtatious text exchange with a stranger leads to a mystery involving a missing woman, parallel universes, and a race to change a seemingly inevitable fate.

Title: Black River
Author: Matthew Spencer
Genre: Detective
Series: Rose Riley
Published: 2023

Description: A Sydney detective and a journalist investigate the murder of a school chaplain’s daughter, uncovering hidden secrets and pursuing a serial killer before another victim is claimed.

Title: The Running Club
Author: Ali Lowe
Genre: Domestic Thriller
Series: Standalone
Published: 2023

Description: When a murder shatters an exclusive running club in a wealthy community, its members uncover long-buried secrets that someone will kill to keep hidden.

Title: A Rebel’s History of Mars
Author: Nadia Afifi
Genre: Sci-Fi
Series: Standalone
Published: 2025

Description: A Martian aerialist seeking revenge and a future historian searching for humanity’s past become linked across centuries by secrets buried beneath the red planet.

Title: Thorns of Lust
Author: Eva Winners
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Series: Thorns of Omertà
Published: 2023

Description: After discovering her husband’s devastating secrets, a determined woman is drawn into the dangerous world of a powerful crime boss, where trust becomes essential to survival.

Title: The Fire Agent
Author: David Baerwald
Genre: Historical Fiction
Series: Standalone
Published: 2026

Description: A German Jewish spy’s life spans two world wars as he navigates espionage, love, and the rise of fascism, confronting impossible moral choices that shape history and his future.

Title: The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
Author: Stephen R. Covey
Genre: Self Help
Series: Standalone
Published: 1989

Description: This self-help classic presents seven principles for building personal and professional effectiveness through character, responsibility, and intentional habits.

Title: The Eagle Has Landed
Author: Jack Higgins
Genre: Spy Thriller
Series: Liam Devlin
Published: 1975

Description: In this World War II thriller, Nazi commandos launch a secret mission to kidnap Winston Churchill, leaving a small English village to stand between them and a potentially war-altering success.

Title: A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
Author: Betty Smith
Genre: Coming of Age
Series: Standalone
Published: 1943

Description: In early 20th-century Brooklyn, a resilient young girl grows up in a struggling family, finding strength, hope, and ambition despite poverty and hardship.

Vince is the Entertainment Editor at Book Notification. His first book was Green Eggs & Ham by Dr. Seuss, and his passion for reading took off from there. He'll read just about anything, but can usually be found re-reading his favorite Pynchon novels and Seattle Mariners box scores.

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