Have you recently moved to a new city?  Started a new job?  Find yourself with a new friend group?  Life can be full of scary new things, but to give you a little escape from it, here are five books that are about new beginnings for entirely fictional characters!

1. If Not for you

This book is about Beth Prudhomme, who takes charge of her life and moves away from her native hometown in Chicago to an entirely new place in Portland, Oregon.  She reconnects with her Aunt Sunshine there and finds a new job as a high school music teacher.  Her friend, Nicole, introduces her to Sam Carney, her soon-to-be love interest, and is everything that Beth is not.  The book is full of ups and downs as Beth tries to establish her new life, but it becomes difficult when she gets into a car crash and her mother comes back in the picture.

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2. last one home

This book is about Cassie Carter and her sisters, Karen and Nichole.  They were all close until an event drove them apart.  After high school, Cassie ran away to marry the wrong man, and threw away a college scholarship.  Fast-forward, Cassie is thirty-one and back in Seattle, Washington with her daughter, hoping to put her questionable past behind her.  Despite Cassie bringing the pieces back together, she hasn’t been able to restore the relationship she had with her sisters years ago.  She eventually receives a letter offering her the opportunity to reconcile with her sisters, and Cassie learns the power and promise of starting anew.

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3. little fires everywhere

This book is about Mia Warren, an artist and mother, who arrives in Shaker Heights, Cleveland, with her daughter, Pearl.  Mia rents a house from the Richardsons, and soon the four Richardson children are drawn to the new pair that just moved in, but Mia carries a dark secret with her and a disregard for rules that will soon threaten to upend the entire community.  When the Richardsons’ friends attempt to adopt a Chinese baby, a fierce debate erupts in the town, placing Mia and Mrs. Richardson on opposing sides.  Soon, Mrs. Richardson works hard to uncover Mia’s past and her secrets, but not without consequences to her and Mia’s family.

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4. the kitchen god’s wife

Two women, Pearl Brandt, and her mother, Winnie Louie, have been keeping secrets from each other for most of their lives.  Pearl has multiple sclerosis and didn’t tell Winnie; Winnie didn’t tell Pearl about her traumatic past in China during World War II.  When Pearl’s aunt Helen threatens to tell Pearl everything about Winnie’s past, the two women are forced to sit down and be honest with each other.  The story involves Winnie’s retelling of her life in China and her new beginning in America, and Pearl being honest about her condition.

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5. white oleander

After her mother, Ingrid, is imprisoned for murder, young Astrid finds herself circulating through the foster system, each new home a new start for her.  While she isn’t at each household for long, Astrid quickly absorbs the culture of each one, before some unfortunate event sends her on her way yet again.  The novel embodies grief, abuse, and neglect.

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