LAURA WARRELL is a contributor to the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference and the Tin House Summer Workshop, and is a graduate of the creative writing program at Vermont College of Fine Arts. Her work has appeared in HuffPost, The Rumpus, and the Los Angeles Review of Books, among other publications. She has taught creative writing and literature at the Berklee College of Music in Boston and through the Emerging Voices Fellowship at PEN America in Los Angeles, where she lives.
Superfan (2026) Jenny Tinghui Zhang "A deliciously smart page turner, Superfan takes on our lonely culture where strangers on message boards become stand-ins for real-world friends and fandom takes the place of genuine connection. Sly and inventive, Zhang writes perceptively and her curiosity lies with the absurdity of a contemporary world bent on splitting us into private and public selves while offering few off-ramps to true happiness. A timely read."
When the Music Hits (2025) Amber Oliver "When the Music Hits takes on the music industry, both the genius and glitz of those artists who make the soundtrack of our lives and the sometimes-dark power dynamics operating behind the scenes. Amber Oliver's powerhouse debut hits its groove and stays with it from the first to last page."
Florenzer (2025) Phil Melanson "A sweeping, sure-footed saga... Florenzer contemplates human ambition as a source of conflict and a means to true transcendence and connection. An enthralling debut."
The Family Recipe (2025) Carolyn Huynh "What fun to be a fly on the wall as the five siblings in The Family Recipe stumble over their own rivalries and shortcomings to become the sole inheritor of their whimsical father's fortune. Money, love, family dysfunction - Huynh hits all the marks with a perfect blend of playfulness and angst, while her characters' troubles show astutely how the cracks in a family unit mirror a fractured community. The Trans make messy choices, but wow, are they hard not to love. An infinite delight."
They Dream in Gold (2024) Mai Sennaar "They Dream in Gold sends us on a journey around the world with a remarkable cast of women in search of belonging and the realization of their dreams. Sennaar tells their story with a musician's ear for rhythm and subtlety, and indeed, music and love beat strong in the heart of this powerful debut. I would follow these characters anywhere."
The Last Verse (2024) Caroline Frost "The Last Verse weaves a tale as plucky and fierce as the songs its heroine writes to heal her broken heart and discover her voice after an act of violence upends her world. This page-turner of a novel reminds us to trust our dreams while Frost's voice crackles like a freshly pressed vinyl record."
The River, The Town (2023) Farah Ali "Farah Ali's stunning debut illustrates how even the deepest love can be corrupted by the encroaching devastation of a planet in crisis. An impoverished, drought-plagued town backdrops a tense family drama between a mother, her son, and the woman he loves. In this lushly painted world, villagers sleep on the ground, fight for food, and die from preventable illnesses, yet joy always manages to break through as does love - desperate, wounded, intimate, and true. The River, The Town surveys the losses we bring upon ourselves, the losses forced upon us by an unforgiving world, and the gains when we persevere."
An Autobiography of Skin (2023) Lakiesha Carr "Lakiesha Carr writes elegantly about grief and passion, loss and redemption, though she is unafraid to twist the knife. Her characters endure monumental heartbreaks, both from their loved ones and a world that threatens all manner of violence yet demands sacrifice in return. These women face life's inevitable disappointments, and while their choices may haunt us, they also remind us that romance somehow persists, as does the human spirit. A gorgeous debut from a talent to watch."
