If you loved Lily King's release, Writers and Lovers, catch up on her previous works starting with this. From the publisher: "A novel of painful truths and the refuge of fiction set in a New England prep school. Fifteen years ago, English teacher Vida Avery arrived alone and pregnant at the elite Fayer Academy. Living on the campus off the coast of New England, she worked to become a beloved fixture of the school—and to shelter herself and her son, Peter, from a painful secret she left behind. Then she accepts the impulsive marriage proposal of ardent widower Tom Belou, and the prescribed life Vida has constructed begins to come apart. As Peter bonds with Tom and his new stepsiblings, Vida retreats further into the books she teaches. To embrace life and a chance at happiness, she will have to face the nightmares of her former self—and shed the pain she has held onto for far too long." Elle calls this a "domestic drama with the adrenalin-fueled beating heart of a thriller."

This late September 2025 release is both follow-up and prequel to King's 2020 novel Writers and Lovers: here we see Casey, during her college years, first discovering she wants to be a writer, and then again many years after the events of Writers and Lovers, so we can see where life has taken her. The first line in this first-person narrative is, "You knew I'd write a book about you someday;" the "you" is her first love. The tone is reflective and compassionate as Casey—having received jolting news that sends her mind barreling back to events from decades before—reflects on old friendships and a formative romantic relationship, past decisions that altered the course of her life, and the potential to both give and receive forgiveness. This felt wistful and wise as Casey examines the issues that matter most to her, and incidentally, to me—partnership, parenting, calling. Bonus: so many books are referenced in these pages; I loved that it inspired me to read so much under-the-radar literature.

A young writer turns her life around in this 2020 novel from the author of Euphoria. Casey Peabody’s life is a catastrophe: she’s grieving her mother, buried in debt, floundering in her love life, and fed up with waiting tables while she labors to finish the novel she’s been working on for six years. But then slowly, slowly, she starts to pull it together. This novel has it all, while never feeling weighed down: a story of growing up, finding love, grieving loss, and a tribute to the writing life. This book was slow to hook me, but once I was in, I was IN. It also has one of the most exuberant, satisfying endings I've read in ages. 

If you loved Lily King's Writers & Lovers, catch up on her previous works starting with this debut, about a young American au pair heading to Paris to work with a family who becomes her "trouble and salvation" based on the author's own experiences while traveling through France and Spain as an au pair.

Vanity Fair calls King's breakout novel "A story of high drama in the court of Nixon-era New England aristocracy . . . You won't be able to stop reading this book, but when you do finally finish the last delicious page and look up, you will see families in a clearer and more forgiving way."

Inspired by the life of anthropologist Margaret Mead, this stunning novel follows Nell Stone and her husband, who are working in the jungle of New Guinea. When Andrew Bankson crosses their path, the three of them quickly become a dynamic trio, doing some of their best anthropological work ever. But eventually, jealousy and human drama gets in the way, putting their relationships and lives in danger.