Reviews+

This month’s top indie and foreign films feature lonely singles navigating love, unfolding courtroom drama, and “the British Schindler.”

Forthcoming DVDs and Blu-rays for every interest, including a classic Henry James adaptation, women fighters in the boxing ring, and a New Delhi bird rescue. 

This month’s must-see documentaries include a swindling scheme turned psychological thrill ride, a behind-the-scenes look at a high-stakes piano competition, and a heartbreaking account of a family imploding in the face of war.

Angela Jackson-Brown and Fabienne Josaphat transport readers to the turbulent 1960s in the U.S.; two dual-timeline stories explore French history through wine and champagne; and National Book Award winner Lily Tuck writes a Holocaust novel.

Thea Guanzon and A.K. Mulford pen sequels, while Emily Rath and Rachel Van Dyken launch new series.

Suzanne Allain writes a Regency twist on the trading-places concept, Lana Ferguson offers a paranormal rom-com, and Amy James debuts with a Wordle-inspired romance set on Prince Edward Island.

Chelsea Iversen writes a historical fantasy featuring a magical garden in London, while Alex White continues their queer space opera trilogy about a band of musicians trying to save humanity from an army of giant space robots; plus a list of forthcoming series titles.

Temple Folk by Aaliyah Bilal wins the Ernest J. Gaines Award for Literary Excellence, which is given to an emerging Black American fiction writer. Solenoid by Mircea Cărtărescu, tr. by Sean Cotter, wins the Dublin Literary Award. Ali Bryan’s Coq, Patrick deWitt’s The Librarianist, and Deborah Willis’s Girlfriend on Mars are shortlisted for the Leacock Medal for Canadian humor writing. The shortlists for Britain’s Society of Authors Awards are announced. Plus, new title bestsellers and interviews with Amy Tan, Kaliane Bradley, and Monica Youn.

No need to wait until spooky season to read scary stories. Put these horror novels up for display now.