AN NPR BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR • An absorbing, deeply felt book about our anxious present tense—and coming to grips with the future, by the author of the awar

Six friends. Three secrets. One murder. Maggie is destined to marry the perfect man in two weeks. Desperate for a last wild night on the town before the big day

In times of underpopulation, slaves weretaken to provide labor. O'Connell explores the histories of the civilizations of ancient Sumeria, Egypt, Assyria, China,