We’re excited that four amazing Algonquin authors—from clockwise from top left: Jaquira Diaz, Gabriel Bump,Tim Mason, and Brock Clarke—will be joining us at Book Expo in New York this week. Here’s a little bit about each of their upcoming books:

The Darwin Affair by Tim Mason

London, June 1860: When an assassination attempt is made on Queen Victoria and a petty thief is gruesomely murdered moments later, Chief Detective Inspector Charles Field quickly surmises that these crimes are connected to an even more sinister plot. Field’s investigation exposes a shocking conspiracy in which the publication of Charles Darwin’s controversial On the Origin of Species sets off a string of murders, arson, kidnapping, and the pursuit of a madman. As the investigation takes Field from the dangerous alleyways of London to the hallowed halls of Oxford, the list of possible conspirators grows, the body count escalates and he uncovers dark secrets that were meant to remain forever hidden. Tim Mason has created a rousing page-turner that both Charles Dickens and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle would relish and envy.

“It’s a grand ride, a serious education and a delightful addiction.” —Louis Bayard, author of Courting Mr. Lincoln

Coming June 11: pre-order now.

Who Are You Calvin Bledsoe? by Brock Clarke

After his mother dies in a fiery explosion, Calvin Bledsoe’s heretofore uninspired life is upended. A stranger shows up at the funeral, claiming to be Calvin’s aunt Beatrice, and insists that Calvin accompany her on a trip to Europe, immediately. As he and Beatrice traverse the continent, it quickly becomes apparent that his aunt’s clandestine behavior is leading him into danger. Facing a comic menagerie of antiquities thieves, secret agents, religious fanatics, and an ex-wife who’s stalking him, Calvin begins to suspect there might be some meaning behind the madness. But there’s little time for soul-searching, as Calvin first has to figure out why he has been kidnapped, why his aunt disappeared, and who the hell burned down his house. With the comic unpredictability of a Wes Anderson movie, author Brock Clarke introduces readers to an ordinary man who is about to embark on an absurdly extraordinary adventure.

“This is a book of many trips–across oceans, back to the past, and, most profoundly, into the infinite deep space of the human heart.” ––Ben Fountain, author of Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk

Coming August 21: pre-order now.

Ordinary Girls by Jaquira Díaz

Ordinary Girls is a fierce, beautiful, and unflinching memoir from a wildly talented debut author. While growing up in housing projects in Puerto Rico and Miami Beach, Jaquira Díaz found herself caught between extremes: as her family split apart and her mother battled schizophrenia, she was surrounded by the love of her friends; as she longed for a family and home, she found instead a life upended by violence. From her own struggles with depression and sexual assault to Puerto Rico’s history of colonialism, every page of Ordinary Girls vibrates with music and lyricism. Díaz triumphantly maps a way out of despair toward love and hope to become her version of the girl she always wanted to be. With a story reminiscent of Tara Westover’s Educated, Roxane Gay’s Hunger, and Terese Marie Mailhot’s Heart Berries, Jaquira Díaz delivers a memoir that reads as electrically as a novel.

“There is more life packed on each page of Ordinary Girls than some lives hold in a lifetime.” —Julia Alvarez, author of In the Time of the Butterflies

Coming October 29: pre-order now.

Everywhere You Don’t Belong by Gabriel Bump

In this powerful, edgy, and funny debut novel about making right and wrong choices, Gabriel Bump gives us an unforgettable and lovable protagonist, Claude McKay Love. Claude is a young black man in search of a place where he can fit; born on the South Side of Chicago, he is raised by his civil rights–era grandmother, who tries to shape him into a principled actor for change. After a riot consumes his neighborhood, Claude decides to escape Chicago for another place, to go to college, to find a new life and identity. But as he discovers, there’s no escaping the people and places that made him. Written in a fierce and original voice attuned to the ironies inherent in our twenty-first-century landscape, Everywhere You Don’t Belong marks the arrival of a brilliant young talent.

“What appears again and again are spectacular beams of light also called love, also called hope, also called family. Gabriel Bump has established himself as a stunning talent to be reckoned with.” —Maaza Mengiste, author of Beneath the Lion’s Gaze

Coming February 4, 2020: pre-order now.