The Last Cowboys of San Geronimo, Ian Stansel, Houghton, Mifflin, Harcourt – Silas Van Loy murders his older brother, Frank, and takes off on horseback through the hills of coastal Northern California.

Salt Houses, Hala Alyan, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt – Salma Yacoub, her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren call a lot of places home. And for that reason, many times they feel as if no place is their real home.

If We Were Villains, M.L. Rio, Flatiron Books Macmillan – Seven acting students made the cut into their fourth year at Dellecher Classical Conservatory. Their on-stage Shakespearian roles have become predictable

The Half Wives, Stacia Pelletier, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt – In 1883 San Francisco, Henry and Marilyn Plageman lost their little boy and most of their reason for living. Henry’s cause became saving the cemetery where Jack is buried.

Rabbit Cakes, Annie Hartnett, Tin House Books – In Annie Hartnett’s debut novel, Rabbit Cake, ten-year-old Elvis lost her mother in a sleep-swimming accident. Or was it an accident?

The Impossible Fortress, Jason Rekulak, Simon & Schuster – In Jason Rekulak’s novel, The Impossible Fortress, young teens in a 1987 New Jersey working-class neighborhood set goals to break into several impossible places.

History of Wolves, Emily Fridlund, Grove Atlantic – In Emily Fridlund’s History of Wolves, a teenage girl raised on a failed commune in the north woods of Minnesota feels like she doesn’t fit in at home or at school.

All the Breaking Waves, Kerry Lonsdale, Lake Union Publishing – The women in Molly’s family have special abilities – to foresee the future, to communicate telepathically, and in Molly’s case, to cause people to do as she directs against their own will.

The Education of Dixie Dupree, Donna Everhart, Kensington Publishing Corp. – Eleven-year-old Dixie Dupree did not like being around Uncle Ray. He had a creepy way of getting too close to her.

The Wangs vs the World, Jade Chang, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt – When Charles Wang emigrated to America from Taiwan he hit on a lucky break. He started a cosmetic empire from his family’s urea business.