1. Life Drawing, Robin Black (Random House, 256 pages) Two artists live quietly on a Philadelphia-area farm, until a neighbor forces them to examine their relationship and its history of loss, betrayal, forgiveness, redemption and love.
2. All Fall Down, Jennifer Weiner (Atria Books, 416 pages) What happens when a Main Line-ish mom checks out of her overscheduled life and checks into rehab for a painkiller addiction? Find out in the new novel from this Philadelphia author, who’s made a career of writing about the struggles of modern women.
3. Equilateral, Ken Kalfus (Bloomsbury USA, 207 pages) It’s the 1890s in western Egypt, and Sanford Thayer is building a massive equilateral triangle to attract the highly evolved Martian civilization he’s convinced exists. Nuts? Maybe. But it’s a great read from Kalfus, a finalist for the PEN/Faulkner Award.
4. The Frangipani Hotel, Violet Kupersmith (Spiegel & Grau, 256 pages) This 24-year-old Doylestown native treats dark subjects —the Vietnam War, family secrets, human desire— with a refreshingly light touch.
5. Glitter and Glue, Kelly Corrigan (Ballantine Books, 240 pages) What does Daddy’s little girl do when she grows up? She figures out her relationship with her mother, as this Radnor native does so compellingly in her latest memoir.
6. Going Over, Beth Kephart (Chronicle Books, 264 pages) It’s Romeo and Juliet, Cold War style. Two young lovers are separated by the Berlin Wall in early-’80s Germany in this acclaimed young-adult novel that all ages can enjoy.
7. Mothership (The Ever-Expanding Universe), Martin Leicht (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 308 pages) Space school is the locale of this sci-fi romantic comedy for young adults. Think star-crossed lovers, unplanned pregnancy and alien invasions.
8. The River of No Return, Bee Ridgway (Plume, 462 pages) What’s summer without a page-turning historical romance? A Bryn Mawr College professor provides just that with the tale of Nick Falcott, who travels through time to meet Julia Percy, the dark-eyed beauty who haunts his dreams.
9. Trespassing on Einstein’s Lawn, Amanda Gefter (Bantam Books, 432 pages) This Wynnewood native joined her dad in an all-out search for answers to the universe’s mysteries. Along the way, the duo meets the greatest modern minds of science and forms a special bond.
10. What I Had Before I Had You, Sarah Cornwell (HarperCollins, 288 pages) When her son goes missing, Olivia searches for him at the Jersey Shore as she grapples with his recent diagnosis of bipolar disorder. A gripping novel.
