Want to know what new book releases to expect in 2009? Here is a glimpse at the hottest book releases by month. This page will be updated as publishers announce new books for each publishing season.
Want more information about book releases? Follow the links to monthly book release calendars, covering all the hottest releases for each month.
January - Politics & Legal Thrillers
Doubleday
Publishing is usually slow in the winter, but John Grisham is making it a tradition to release a new book early in the new year. In addition to Grisham's legal thriller, there are political books hitting stores in an attempt to capitalize on Barack Obama's inauguration as President of the United States, and fast paced releases from Janet Evanovich and Richard North Patterson.
February - Murder & Romance
Dell Publishing
James Patterson, Nora Roberts (writing as J.D. Robb) and Danielle Steel all will be releasing new books in February. Perhaps they figure that such a cold and heavy month calls for a little bit of light release.
March - Jodi Picoult Strikes Again
Simon & Schuster
Jodi Picoult releases one new book every year. Her books, like My Sister's Keeper and Change of Heart, often deal with controversial topics and are told from a variety of viewpoints. Her 2009 novel, Handle with Care, is likely to follow the formula that has made her so popular.
Competing with Picoult: an internationally bestselling debut novel, The Kindly Ones by Jonathan Littell, about a Nazi who tries to build a new identity and life in France after the war.
April - Favorite Detectives Return
Knopf
Dianne Mott Davidson's foodie detective is back in Fatally Flaky, James Patterson brings us another Women's Murder Club thriller, and Alexander McCall Smith's Lady Detective, Mma Ramotswe, returns with more enchanting adventures -- April is a month for modern serial mystery fans.
May - Something for Everyone in the Mix
Random House
May starts with a big release by Charlaine Harris -- the ninth book in the Southern Vampire series. For those who want a little more meat in their Memorial Day reading, there is a new Colm Toibin, a new J.R.R. Tolkien (yes, that Tolkien) and another story of Chinese women by Lisa See.
June, July & August - Summer Reading
Knopf
Summer is usually slow in publishing; however, June is packed with beach reading and there are some exciting literary contributions as well. Look for plenty of beach reads from Nora Roberts, Janet Evanovich, Dean Koontz and James Patterson. The big release of summer: a new Pat Conroy novel, South of Broad, coming out August 11.
September - Big, Big Release Time
Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
Here's the news for September: Dan Brown is releasing the sequel to The Da Vinci Code after six years! The Lost Symbol will hit stores September 15.
As if that isn't enough, there is also a memoir by Edward Kennedy, Audrey Niffenegger's first novel since The Time Traveler's Wife and an announcement by Oprah about a new book club pick!
October - Somewhat Literary
HarperCollins
October is a great month for reading! The days are shorter, and there is nothing quite like a good book and a warm blanket. It is also a big month for publishing, and those who enjoy books that aren't too fluffy but aren't too heavy either will appreciate new titles from John Irving, Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner, and Dave Eggers.
November - King, Grisham, Crichton
HarperCollins
November does not have as many releases as September and October, but there will be no shortage of novels from heavy hitters -- Michael Crichton's first post-mortem release, a collection of stories from John Grisham, a 1000+ page epic novel from Stephen King and an autobiography from Sarah Palin.
December - Mostly Looking Back
Penguin Group
December is usually a time for gift book releases and little else. Most publishers want to release their books before the start of the holiday shopping season at the end of November. There is an early and interesting release from Greg Mortenson, though: Stones into Schools, the sequel to his popular Three Cups of Tea.
