Fish Out of Water

Part of Your World

Abby Jimenez · Romance

After a wild bet, gourmet grilled-cheese sandwich, and cuddle with a baby goat, Alexis Montgomery has had her world turned upside down.

romantic comedy · fish out of water · opposites attract · slow burn

Dollface

Lindy Ryan · Horror

INSTANT USA TODAY BESTSELLER Barbie meets Scream with a 90s nostalgia twist in this horror romp from Bless Your Heart author Lindy Ryan.

coming of age · found family · fish out of water · twist ending

American Fantasy

Emma Straub · Literary Fiction

NAMED A MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK OF 2026 BY THE NEW YORK TIMES, PEOPLE, AND TIME, AND HARPER'S BAZAAR "I can hardly remember the last time I read…

magical realism · coming of age · found family · fish out of water

If I Ruled the World

Amy DuBois Barnett · Literary Fiction

A fast-paced, juicy debut novel that peeks behind the curtain at the cutthroat world of hip-hop music and the glamorous magazine scene in the late…

coming of age · historical fiction · fish out of water

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

Douglas Adams · Sci-Fi

DON'T LEAVE EARTH WITHOUT IT! THE HITCHHIKER'S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY is the hilarious international bestseller--with over one million copies in…

space opera · fish out of water · road trip · found family

One Last Stop

Casey McQuiston · Romance

For cynical twenty-three-year-old August, moving to New York City is supposed to prove her right: that things like magic and cinematic love stories…

romantic comedy · found family · fish out of water

Sky Daddy

Kate Folk · Literary Fiction

“[A] bizarre and endearing debut .

coming of age · romantic comedy · fish out of water

City of Gods and Monsters

Kayla Edwards · Fantasy

PRE-ORDER THE HOUSE OF DEVILS SERIES NOW, AND ENTER THE CITY OF ANGELTHENE.

paranormal romance · urban fantasy · slow burn · fish out of water · vampires · werewolves shifters · witches

Shōgun

James Clavell · Literary Fiction

After Englishman John Blackthorne is lost at sea, he awakens in a place few Europeans know of and even fewer have seen--Nippon.

historical fiction · fish out of water · political intrigue · survival

Fundamentally

Nussaibah Younis · Literary Fiction

Nadia is an academic who's been disowned by her puritanical mother and dumped by her lover, Rosy.

coming of age · slow burn · trauma recovery · fish out of water

Taipei Story

Rebecca F Kuang · Literary Fiction

TAIPEI STORY is the electrifying new novel by bestselling literary phenomenon Rebecca F.

coming of age · romantic comedy · fish out of water

Story Of My Life

Lucy Score · Romance

THE ALL-NEW SMALL-TOWN ROMCOM FROM LUCY SCORE Hazel is given a one-two punch when she's forced to move out of her Upper East Side apartment and is…

romantic comedy · small town · coming of age · fish out of water

Us Dark Few

Alexis Patton · Sci-Fi

Khalani Kanes has never stood on the surface of the earth.

coming of age · dystopian society · survival · fish out of water

When in Rome

Sarah Adams · Romance

Opposites certainly attract for the stranded pop star and small-town baker in this charming slice of romance from the author of the TikTok sensation…

romantic comedy · opposites attract · slow burn · small town · fish out of water

A Gentleman's Gentleman

TJ Alexander · Romance

A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK • A USA TODAY BESTSELLER • From the acclaimed author of Chef's Kiss, a groundbreaking trans Regency romance that's both…

romantic comedy · slow burn · fish out of water

Ice Planet Barbarians

Ruby Dixon · Romance

You'd think being abducted by aliens would be the worst thing that could happen to me.

paranormal romance · space opera · fish out of water · first contact

The Pie & Mash Detective Agency

J. D. Brinkworth · Mystery & Thriller

Oddball couple Jane and Simon take a private detective class and must use their (admittedly limited) skills to solve a series of mysterious…

romantic comedy · cozy vibes · found family · fish out of water

Minor Black Figures

Brandon Taylor · Literary Fiction

From the Booker Prize finalist and bestselling author: a perceptive novel about a gay Black painter navigating the worlds of art, desire, and…

coming of age · found family · fish out of water

Dragon Mage

Andre Norton · Fantasy

Shy realizes that she is lucky to be taken in by her grandparents after her father dies–but life above an antique store in Slade’s Corners, Wisconsin…

coming of age · urban fantasy · dragons · fish out of water · magic academy

My Phony Valentine

Courtney Walsh · Romance

A chance meeting. A hunky hockey player. A fake romance. Hardly an ordinary day in the life of Poppy Hart. My days usually consist of agonizing over…

fake relationship · romantic comedy · slow burn · sports romance · fish out of water

Romantic Hero

Kirsty Greenwood · Romance

A heartbroken romance novelist is forced to address her writer's block when the villainous cowboy character from her books shows up in the real…

romantic comedy · opposites attract · fish out of water · slow burn

Any Trope but You

Victoria Lavine · Romance

A bestselling romance author flees to Alaska to reinvent herself and write her first murder mystery, but the rugged resort proprietor soon has her…

romantic comedy · fish out of water · slow burn · workplace romance

Roll for Romance

Lenora Woods · Romance

Two fledgling tabletop gamers find themselves falling for each other—both in and out of their weekly D&D sessions—in this charming, fantasy-tinged…

romantic comedy · cozy vibes · found family · slow burn · fish out of water

It Happened One Summer

Tessa Bailey · Romance

Piper Bellinger is fashionable, influential, and her reputation as a wild child means the paparazzi are constantly on her heels.

grumpy sunshine · small town · romantic comedy · fish out of water · opposites attract

Boring Asian Female

Canwen Xu · Literary Fiction

“Thank you for your interest in our school, but we regret to inform you that…” You’re not special.

coming of age · she falls first · slow burn · fish out of water

Empire of Shadows

Jacquelyn Benson · Literary Fiction

Nice Victorian ladies don’t run off to find legendary lost cities.

historical fiction · quest · coming of age · fish out of water

Don't Tell Me How It Ends

Adrienne Thurman · Romance

A floundering twenty-something who’s sworn off romance finds herself roped into her meddling sister’s matchmaking business in this sparkling debut…

romantic comedy · coming of age · fish out of water

Curvy Girl Summer

Danielle Allen · Romance

After a one-night stand with her clingy ex, Aaliyah James has an epiphany: this ain’t it.

romantic comedy · fish out of water · slow burn · found family

The Unexpected Mrs. Pollifax

Dorothy Gilman · Mystery & Thriller

A widowed matron decides to pursue her lifelong desire to be a spy, finds herself useful to the CIA, and successfully completes an assignment which…

coming of age · cozy vibes · quest · fish out of water

Such a Fun Age

Kiley Reid · Literary Fiction

A striking and surprising debut novel from an exhilarating new voice, Such a Fun Age is a page-turning and big-hearted story about race and…

coming of age · fish out of water · found family

The Tiger's Share

Keshava Guha · Literary Fiction

'A stylish and engaging tragi-comedy of manners .

coming of age · fish out of water

Where'd You Go, Bernadette

Maria Semple · Literary Fiction

Bernadette Fox is notorious. To her Microsoft-guru husband, she's a fearlessly opinionated partner; to fellow private-school mothers in Seattle,…

coming of age · found family · missing person · fish out of water

Eat the Ones You Love

Sarah Maria Griffin · Literary Fiction

“Do you mind me asking—what kind of help do you need?” After losing her job and her fiancé and moving back from the city to live with her parents,…

coming of age · small town · cozy vibes · fish out of water

Binti

Nnedi Okorafor · Sci-Fi

Afro-futurist science fiction.

space opera · coming of age · first contact · fish out of water · quest