What We Are Reading in July

Set against the glittering contradictions of modern Beijing, “Wanting” is a gripping debut about ambition, envy, and the tangled intimacy of female friendship. Ye Lian’s seemingly perfect life — steady job, dependable boyfriend, luxury condo plans — begins to crack when her magnetic childhood best friend Wenyu returns from California, dazzling with influencer fame, an American fiancé, and a mansion under construction. As old bonds reignite and buried truths emerge, both women are forced to confront what they’re really chasing. Meanwhile, the architect building Wenyu’s dream home is unraveling his own regrets. With lyrical prose and razor-sharp insight, Claire Jia captures the electric push and pull between longing and loyalty, comfort and chaos, in a world where wanting can be both a lifeline and a trap.

Outrageously funny and sharply perceptive, “Hot Girls with Balls” follows trans Asian American volleyball stars Six and Green as they navigate love, rivalry, and social media fame in the high-stakes world of men’s pro indoor volleyball. While Six hustles to reclaim her spot in the starting lineup and Green chases clout for her post-career future, their long-distance romance plays out online in a swirl of jealousy, branding, and bro-dominated locker rooms. As the championship tournament approaches, a PR crisis forces them to face hard truths about grief, performance, and what it means to play on and off the court. Blistering with satire and sweaty femme rage, this debut is a fearless serve that lands with impact.

Blending personal narrative with global reporting, journalist Joseph Lee explores what it means to be indigenous in a world shaped by colonization, displacement, and erasure. From his roots in the Aquinnah Wampanoag community of Martha’s Vineyard, where most tribal members can no longer afford to live, to encounters with Indigenous activists across the U.S. and abroad, Lee traces stories of resistance, resurgence, and the daily fight to reclaim land, identity, and belonging. “Nothing More of This Land” is a powerful meditation on cultural survival and the many forms Indigenous life takes today.

When a Chinese American woman learns her husband is cheating with someone named Maggie, her world shatters. Then comes the kicker: her cancer diagnosis. She names the tumor Maggie too. In Katie Yee’s inventive and poignant debut, the narrator navigates betrayal, illness, and motherhood with biting humor and fragmented brilliance. Through conversations with her tumor, absurd guides to surviving heartbreak, and bedtime stories steeped in Chinese folklore, she reclaims her voice and culture while trying to keep it together for her children. A tender, sardonic meditation on grief and resilience, “Maggie” transforms devastation into dark comedy. Fans of “Crying in H Mart” and “Joan Is Okay” will find Yee’s voice refreshing, hilarious, and deeply moving.

When two women meet on a train bound for Seoul, each carrying dark secrets, only one steps off. In a split-second decision, Jae-Young assumes the life of a stranger who vanishes along with her infant son and a note begging Jae-Young to deliver him to distant in-laws. What begins as an act of reluctant kindness becomes an unsettling opportunity: The wealthy family welcomes her without question, mistaking her for their daughter-in-law. Drawn in by the lavish home and newfound stability, Jae-Young slips into the lie, hoping her own past — a dead boyfriend, a lifetime of struggle — stays buried. But behind the manor’s polished façade, something sinister festers. Tense and richly atmospheric, “A Twist of Fate” is a psychological thriller that explores identity, desperation, and the dangerous ease of disappearing into someone else’s life. Perfect for fans of “Parasite” and gothic mysteries, it’s a haunting summer read with sharp class commentary and simmering suspense.

When Isadora Chang fled her small hometown of Slater, she left behind more than just bad memories; she escaped a legacy of pain. But after her abusive father dies, Isa returns to claim her inheritance, only to find that the town hasn’t stopped haunting her. Strange drawings appear in her sketchbook. Eerie music floats through the air. And her old friend Mason believes that a malevolent force is behind the deaths of their childhood friends, and that it’s not finished yet.

Wen-yi Lee’s chilling debut blends horror with emotional depth, exploring how trauma clings like a shadow and friendship becomes a lifeline. A queer, atmospheric novel in the tradition of “She Is a Haunting” and “The Haunting of Hill House,” “The Dark We Know” invites readers into a town where grief feeds something ancient, and survival means facing what you swore you’d outrun.

Before “Crazy Rich Asians” and “Wicked,” Jon M. Chu was a camcorder-wielding kid in the Silicon Valley, navigating the in-between space of being a first-generation Chinese American. In “Viewfinder,” the acclaimed filmmaker turns the camera inward, reflecting on his childhood helping at his parents’ Chinese restaurant, the cultural tensions of growing up between two worlds, and the dreams that led him to film school and, ultimately, Hollywood.

With wit and honesty, Chu chronicles his journey from Spielberg discovery to directing era-defining films, while grappling with the deeper questions of belonging, identity, and purpose. As the lines between his past and present blur, he offers a moving account of what it means to build a life in motion, on screen and off. “Viewfinder” is a cinematic coming-of-age memoir about finding your voice, honoring your roots, and making space for new stories, especially your own.

Jayci Lee reimagines Jane Austin’s “Persuasion” in this heartfelt, K-drama–inspired romance about second chances. Ten years ago, Anne Lee broke Frederick Nam’s heart to save her family from financial ruin, pushing him away to keep him from sacrificing his future. Now a successful actress returning to Los Angeles, Anne never expected to see Frederick again, or to feel everything come rushing back.

Frederick, now a Culver City firefighter, spent years rebuilding his life without Anne. He doesn’t need romance, just his work and friends, or so he thought. When fate reunites them, old wounds and lingering love resurface, forcing both to confront what they lost and whether it’s too late to try again. With rich emotional stakes and slow-burn chemistry, “Give Me a Reason” is a tender story about letting go, holding on, and risking it all for the one who got away.

In this genre-bending story collection, Ed Park invites readers into a kaleidoscopic world where the absurd, the tender, and the speculative blur together. Spanning 25 years, “An Oral History of Atlantis” assembles 16 sharply observant tales that explore identity, memory, and the surreal mechanics of modern life. Whether following a student whose role in a sci-fi film begins to reshape his reality, or a man reflecting on his life through half-remembered passwords, Park’s characters navigate the everyday with both existential dread and unexpected wonder. Across these pages, people whale-watch, write book reviews, flirt, flounder, and try to hold onto something true. Park’s writing is sly and luminous, alternating between deadpan humor and quiet poignancy. Like a glitch in the simulation or a laugh at the end of a long cry, “An Oral History of Atlantis” captures that fleeting moment when the present tips into the past. This is a playful, perceptive collection from one of today’s most inventive literary voices.