PLDL Most Popular Titles May 2026

Portage Lake District Library Most Popular Titles May 2026

Updated June 2, 2026
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1

Cronkite's war : his World War II letters home
Cronkite, Walter.
Paper Book
A giant in American journalism in the vanguard of "The Greatest Generation" reveals his World War II experiences in this National Geographic book. Walter Cronkite, an obscure 23-year-old United Press wire service reporter, married Betsy Maxwell on March 30, 1940, following a four-year courtship. She...

2

Handle with care : a novel
Picoult, Jodi 1966-
Paper Book
When Willow is born with severe osteogenesis imperfecta, her parents are devastated--she will suffer hundreds of broken bones as she grows, a lifetime of pain. In this provocative story from the #1 New York Times bestselling author, "Picoult writes with unassuming brilliance" (Stephen King...

3

More Than Friends: A Sweet, Low-Spice Contemporary Romance
Hunter, Denise
Paper Book
Who knew that returning home after a broken engagement could be the best decision you ever made? Denise Hunter is back with another heartwarming contemporary romance with a sweet friends-to-more story, featuring a saltwater cowboy. Perfect for fans of Debbie Macomber and Hallmark movies. ...

4

Nero and Paul: How the Gospel of Grace Defeated the Ruler of Rome
Gifford, Kathie Lee
Paper Book
Does gaining power, possessions, and popularity lead to happiness and fulfillment? Or does inner transformation and self-sacrificial love bring the most joy and satisfaction? New York Times bestselling author Kathie Lee Gifford and scholar Bryan Litfin dive into these questions by bringing the...

5

The lumber baron's wife
Austin, Lynn N.
Paper Book
When the young wife of a powerful lumber baron vanishes into the wilds of frontier Michigan, her friend is left to unravel the truth in this captivating dual-timeline novel from bestselling author Lynn Austin. 1873.After a devastating loss, Hannah Wagner never imagined she'd...

6

Death times seven
Perry, Anne
Paper Book
Two violent crimes challenge the investigative skills of young Daniel Pitt and his wife, Miriam, in the final novel of iconic mystery writer Anne Perry's beloved Daniel Pitt series. "A towering achievement from a towering talent--superb!" --Jeffery Deaver, author of the Colter Shaw...

7

Felicia's Favorites
Steel, Danielle
Paper Book
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * A mother bestows a life-changing legacy on her five adult daughters in this profoundly moving novel from #1 New York Times bestselling author Danielle Steel. After the unexpected death of their mother, Felicia Morgan Weston, her five...

8

Harbor Pointe: A Hope Harbor Novel
Hannon, Irene
Paper Book
When life throws you off pointe, love helps you find your balance. As a principal dancer with a prestigious New York ballet company, Devyn Lee is far from her hometown of Hope Harbor on the Oregon coast. But when a family emergency compels her to return, her visit turns into an...

9

Judge Stone : a novel
Davis, Viola
Paper Book
#1 New York Times Bestseller! Academy Award winning actress Viola Davis and the world's #1 bestselling author James Patterson's Judge Stone "delivers first-class courtroom drama, small-town excitement, and strong characters all wrapped...

10

Killing Me Softly
Jones, Sandie
Paper Book
What do you do when love turns deadly? THE PERFECT COUPLE Charlie and Freya used to be the picture-perfect couple. Happy and in love, Freya enjoyed a rewarding job heading up a charity's fundraising efforts, and Charlie was fast becoming one-to-watch on the London...

11

Last One Out
Harper, Jane
Paper Book
THE INTERNATIONAL AND NATIONAL BESTSELLER!"A memorable journey that will pull at the heart, stiffen the spine, and thrill the reader. No one can ask for more than that." --David Baldacci From the New York Times bestselling author of Exiles and The Dry...

12

Lidie: The Further Travels and Adventures of Lidie Newton: A Novel
Smiley, Jane
Paper Book
From the bestselling, Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist, a rousing novel that follows two young women fleeing a divided America: one running toward a dazzling future and the other running from a troubled past Christmas, 1857. America's future is precarious; civil war looms on the...

13

Mrs. Benedict Arnold
Parry, Emma
Paper Book
Benedict Arnold is perhaps one of the most famous stories of American treason. Lesser known is the story of his wife, Peggy Shippen, her former love for a British soldier, and how her keen, strategic mind led him to become a turncoat. Peggy Shippen is torn between two sides. While many are aligning...

14

My husband's wife
Corry, Jane
Paper Book
"[A] must-read thriller . . . My Husband's Wife has an ending that will change the way you view marriage forever." --Bustle "If you loved Gone Girl and The Talented Mr. Ripley, you'll love My...

15

Robert B. Parker's Big Shot
Farnsworth, Christopher
Paper Book
Police Chief Jesse Stone finds himself in the crosshairs of a rich hedge fund manager dead set on making Paradise Jesse's personal hell, in this latest installment of Robert B. Parker's beloved series. Fresh off an acquittal in a multibillion-dollar fraud case, Ramsey Devlin...

16

Second chance at Sunshine Inn
Clipston, Amy
Paper Book
ECPA BESTSELLER! "There is absolutely nothing I love more than discovering a new-to-me author . . . Amy Clipston is one of those discoveries." --Sherryl Woods, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Sweet Magnolias series "Readers won't be able to resist this." -...

17

Someone we know
Lapena, Shari
Paper Book
AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER! USA Today's top 100 books to read while stuck at home social distancing  "No-one does suburban paranoia like Shari Lapena--this slowly unfurling nightmare will have you biting your nails until the end." ...

18

The 30-Day Inflammatory Reset: A Complete Guide to Healing Your Immune System
Redd, Josh
Paper Book
TOP 10 USA TODAY BESTSELLER A practical, science-based road map to identify and eliminate hidden inflammation--the root cause of chronic health issues--through diet, lifestyle changes, and environmental modifications that will help you reclaim your energy, clarity, and...

19

The Bookshop of 99 Doors
Wright, Jaime Jo
Paper Book
The manor's rumored one-hundredth door may conceal secrets hidden as deep as the estate's bookshelves extend high . . . but the haunted past has a way of ensnaring curious souls. In 1888, Minnie Tipton finds herself beset by the dark superstitions that envelop the Pennsylvania...

20

The Counting Game
Nolan, Sinead
Paper Book
Into the woods. Count to ten. Only one of us comes home again. When a teenager disappears from her small Irish town and a therapist is brought in to break the silence of the only witness, old wounds are opened in a search that becomes a race...

21

The insomniacs
Scotch, Allison Winn

22

The keeper
French, Tana
Paper Book
AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A New York Times Best Book of the Year (So Far) · A People Best Book of March From the iconic crime writer who "inspires cultic devotion in readers" (The New Yorker) and has been called "incandescent"...

23

The news from Dublin stories
Tóibín, Colm 1955-

24

The Paris match
Clayborn, Kate
Paper Book
"The most engrossing love story. A 2026 must-read."--Christina Lauren, New York Times bestselling authors of Love and Other Words AN INSTANT USA TODAY BESTSELLER ∙ AN AMAZON BEST OF ROMANCE PICK FOR APRIL ∙ A LIBRARY READS HALL OF FAME PICK FOR APRIL...

25

26 beauties
Patterson, James
Paper Book
Instant New York Times Bestseller! From the world's #1 bestselling author, the Women's Murder Club goes searching for 26 Beauties--young women missing in San Francisco. SFPD's Sergeant Lindsay Boxer's best friend, Claire Washburn, is...

26

A walk in the woods : rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail
Bryson, Bill.
Paper Book
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * The classic chronicle of a "terribly misguided and terribly funny" (The Washington Post) hike of the Appalachian Trail, from the author of A Short History of Nearly Everything and The Body  ...

27

A world appears : a journey into consciousness
Pollan, Michael
Paper Book
The Instant New York Times Bestseller "Pollan's real genius--the word is not too strong--remains intact. That is his uncanny ability to scent the direction in which the culture is headed. He did it with food and psychedelics, and now, though A World Appears focuses on...

28

Absolute power
Baldacci, David
Paper Book
An unlikely witness threatens a high-level government cover-up--orchestrated by the Secret Service and a ruthlessly loyal White House chief-of-staff--of a brutal murder involving the president and his mistress.

29

All Booked Up
Carlson, Melody
Paper Book
When preserving precious memories means welcoming unexpected changes, Riva finds that her heart has room for so much more than she imagined. Widowed empty nester Riva Owen lives in the Victorian house that's been in her family for three generations, but finances have become a...

30

All your perfects : a novel
Hoover, Colleen
Paper Book
INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER The #1 New York Times bestselling author of Reminders of Him, It Starts with Us, and It Ends with Us--whose writing is "emotionally wrenching and utterly original" (Sara Shepard, New York...

31

Ambush of the heart
Connealy, Mary
Paper Book
When bandits strike in the wilderness, can love and faith overcome the shadows of danger? As Owen Riley and his fellow Marshals escort Delaney Bridger, her brother, and an escaped prisoner to Fort Russell, a gang of outlaws ambushes them, bringing death and devastation to their...

32

American fantasy
Straub, Emma
INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER "American Fantasy has everything we need right now: '90s nostalgia, humor, and it is a great escape." --Jenna Bush Hager on NBC Today Show "Vividly conjured and frequently hilarious." --Wall Street Journal

33

And then there was you : a novel
Cousens, Sophie
Paper Book
She's found the perfect man . . . There's just one big twist. Stuck in a Production Assistant job and living at home with her parents after a painful breakup, thirty-one-year-old Chloe Fairway isn't where she wants to be in life. The last thing she needs is to face the people who...

34

Being Thomas Jefferson: An Intimate History
Burstein, Andrew
Paper Book
The deepest dive yet into the heart and soul, secret affairs, unexplored alliances, and bitter feuds of a generally worshipped, intermittently reviled American icon. Perhaps no founding father is as mysterious as Thomas Jefferson. The author of the Declaration of Independence...

35

Bloodlust
Brown, Sandra
Paper Book
#1 New York Times bestselling author Sandra Brown delivers a new signature sexy suspense about a detective seeking justice for his murdered wife with the help of a psychotherapist ... while fighting an undeniable attraction to her. Two years ago...

36

Camino ghosts
Grisham, John
Paper Book
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * Will an ancient curse darken the skies over Camino Island? Bruce Cable and Mercer Mann are about to find out. Don't miss John Grisham's forthcoming thriller, The French Illusion! Mercer Mann, a popular writer from...

37

Clawed and dangerous
Brown, Rita Mae
When a series of suspiciously similar deaths begin to pop up across Crozet, Mary Minor "Harry" Haristeen must connect the dots with the help of her beloved cats and dogs in the latest mystery from Rita Mae Brown and her feline co-author Sneaky Pie Brown. The leaves have fallen in...

38

Cold zero : a thriller
Thor, Brad
Paper Book
From #1New York Times bestselling author Brad Thor and USA TODAY bestselling author Ward Larsen, comes a heart-pounding thriller of survival, espionage, and global brinkmanship, where the frozen Arctic becomes the deadliest battlefield on Earth. A vanished...

39

Daughter of Egypt
Benedict, Marie
Paper Book
INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER INSTANT USA TODAY BESTSELLER INSTANT INDIE BESTSELLER Known for her "delightful blend of historical fiction and suspense" (People), New York Times bestselling author Marie Benedict, returns with a sweeping...

40

Daughter of mine : a novel
Miranda, Megan
Paper Book
AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A USA TODAY BESTSELLER Her father was the town detective. Her mother its most notorious criminal. Now the secrets of Mirror Lake are coming to the surface...and changing everything. "[A] stunning...

41

Ghosts of Sicily : the true story of the naval intelligence agents who courted the mob to fight Nazis in America and the battlefields of Italy
Harmon, Mark
INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER "Absorbing history of an unlikely alliance." - Kirkus Reviews From the New York Times bestselling authors of Ghosts of Honolulu comes their most harrowing true story yet. It's 1942, and New York City...

42

Go gentle : a novel
Semple, Maria
AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * OPRAH'S BOOK CLUB * "For all those who crave a good page-turner, this is one wild ride of a story that carries equal parts wit and wisdom. I learned so much about Stoicism--I laughed out loud for real. And underneath the humor there was...

43

Heart the lover : a novel
King, Lily
Paper Book
INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER FINALIST FOR THE PEN/FAULKNER AWARD AND THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: TIME Magazine, New York Times, Washington Post, Boston Globe, Harper's Baazar, NPR, Vogue, Oprah Daily, People Magazine,...

44

Hope rises
Baldacci, David
Paper Book
Walter Nash began a journey down a dark path of seemingly no return, and now he  finds himself questioning everything that got him there in this thrilling sequel to Nash Falls from #1 New York Times bestselling author David Baldacci. ...

45

It's not her
Kubica, Mary
Paper Book
AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER! "A gripping thrill ride." --Jeneva Rose "Tantalizing, terrifying and all too real." --Shari Lapena "Cancel your plans, you won't be able to put this one down." --Chris Whitaker ...

46

Jigsaw
Kellerman, Jonathan
Paper Book
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * The iconic thriller series that inspired the upcoming streaming show on Prime Video, in development now! Psychologist Alex Delaware and Detective Milo Sturgis, the most beloved duo in American crime fiction, return in this electric novel from...

47

Just for the summer
Jimenez, Abby
Paper Book
Instant #1 New York Times bestseller and a Good Morning America Book Club Pick! This witty, slow-burn rom-com is the perfect beach read. Justin has a curse, and thanks to a Reddit thread, it's now all over the internet. Every woman he dates...

48

Keeper of lost children
Johnson, Sadeqa
Paper Book
*INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER* In this new novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The House of Eve, one American woman's vision in post WWII Germany will tie together three people in unexpected and soul-stirring ways. Ethel...

49

Kill for a Million
Dailey, Janet
Paper Book
For one prestigious Texas ranching family still reeling from the murder of their powerful patriarch, the aftershocks continue amid the most prized reining event of the year --and so does the infighting and scandalous romance from legendary author Janet Dailey! Frank...

50

Kin
Jones, Tayari
Paper Book
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A NEW YORK TIMES BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR SO FAR  OPRAH'S BOOK CLUB PICK * A magnificent new novel from the bestselling, award-winning author of An American Marriage--Tayari Jones has written an unforgettable novel that sparkles with wit...

51

Lady Tremaine
Hochhauser, Rachel
Paper Book
Instant New York Times Bestseller * REESE'S BOOK CLUB PICK * IndieNext Pick * LibraryReads Pick "With transporting prose and a galloping plot, this wholly original take on Cinderella recasts the wicked stepmother...a riveting, complex paean to women's strength." --...

52

Last Night in Brooklyn
Gonzalez, Xochitl
Paper Book
NAMED A MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK OF 2026 BY TIME, OPRAH DAILY, USA TODAY, PEOPLE, ELECTRIC LIT, HARPER'S BAZAAR, VULTURE, LITHUB, BOOK RIOT, PUBLISHER'S WEEKLY, THE BOSTON GLOBE, TOWN & COUNTRY, SHE READS, LIBRARY JOURNAL, AND...

53

Life: A Love Story
Berg, Elizabeth
Paper Book
A warm, intimate novel that reminds us of the richness that can be found all throughout our lives--by the New York Times bestselling author of The Story of Arthur Truluv and Open House "This gentle story of appreciation for the people and things that make...

54

Listen for the lie
Tintera, Amy
Paper Book
A New York Times Bestseller * A Good Morning America Book Club Pick * An NPR Best Book of the Year * A Washington Post Best Thriller of 2024 "I read this in one sitting! Such a fun and engaging read, with an ending that blew my mind!" --<...

55

London Falling: A Mysterious Death in a Gilded City and a Family's Search for Truth
Keefe, Patrick Radden
Paper Book
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * From the bestselling, prizewinning author of Say Nothing and Empire of Pain, a spellbinding account of a family devastated by the sudden death of their nineteen-year-old son, only to discover that he had created a secret life which...

56

Lonesome dove
McMurtry, Larry.
Paper Book
A love story, an adventure, and an epic of the frontier, Larry McMurtry's Pulitzer Prize-winning classicLonesome Dove, the third book in theLonesome Dovetetralogy, is the grandest novel ever written about the last, defiant wilderness of America. Journey to the dusty little Texas town of Lonesome...

57

Lord of the flies : a novel
Golding, William
Paper Book
Before The Hunger Games there was Lord of the Flies Lord of the Flies remains as provocative today as when it was first published in 1954, igniting passionate debate with its startling, brutal portrait of human nature. Though critically acclaimed, it was largely...

58

Lost: Amelia Earhart's Three Mysterious Deaths and One Extraordinary Life
Hartigan, Rachel
Paper Book
Unravel one of history's greatest mysteries in this spellbinding narrative, filled with compelling images, that explores the three leading theories of Amelia Earhart's tragic disappearance. When Amelia Earhart's plane disappeared in 1937, the clues poured in, attracting wild...

59

Mad Mabel
Hepworth, Sally
Paper Book
INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER From New York Times bestselling author Sally Hepworth comes a twisty tale of justice, redemption, and one irrepressible woman who's not done breaking the rules just yet. Meet Elsie Mabel Fitzpatrick: eighty-one years...

60

Medicare 101: From Your Initial Enrollment Period to Parts A, B, C, and D, an Essential Primer on the Government Healthcare Program
Lankford, Kimberly
Navigate your health care future with confidence and learn the ins and outs of the Medicare system with Medicare 101, an essential guide that transforms complex health care jargon into easily digestible knowledge. Medicare 101 simplifies the complex Medicare...

61

Meet me at the lake
Fortune, Carley
Paper Book
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER ∙ A random connection sends two strangers on a daylong adventure where they make a promise one keeps and the other breaks, with life-changing effects, in this breathtaking novel from the New York Times bestselling author of Every Summer After....

62

More than enough : a novel
Quindlen, Anna
Paper Book
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * "Quindlen is as observant and as wonderfully readable as ever, attuned to women's lives and the nuances of their voices."--Jennifer Weiner, The New York Times Book Review A woman confronts the surprising results of an ancestry test and begins...

63

Mr. Midshipman Hornblower
Forester, C. S.
Paper Book
Horatio Hornblower, only seventeen years old, gets his sea legs in this "absolutely compelling" (San Francisco Chronicle) first installment of C. S. Forester's classic naval adventure series. The year is 1793, the eve of the Napoleonic...

64

The Antique Hunter's Murder at the Castle
Miller, C L
Paper Book
The third novel in the "delightful, page-turning" (Tom Ryan, USA TODAY bestselling author) Antique Hunter Series finds Freya, Aunt Carole, and friends searching for a missing colleague in picturesque Scotland. Hot on the heels of an art forger, a member of...

65

No one would do what the Lamberts have done : a novel
Hannah, Sophie 1971-
Paper Book
The twistiest murder mystery you are ever likely to read? A story about a family that does the unthinkable? Both? Or something else altogether? You think it will never happen to you. The doorbell. The policeman. The words that turn your world inside out: I'm afraid there's...

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