An incomplete, ever-changing list of what Nicole Cunningham is looking for.

Fiction:

• Literary and upmarket novels with a big, hooky premise — give me your best loglines!

• Literary, upmarket, book club novels with a romance that’ll break my heart

• Family stories that feel cinematic

• Softly speculative fiction

• Fiction by Indigenous authors, queer authors, BIPOC authors

• Mysteries/thrillers/psychological suspense with a fresh twist (a genre mash-up or a unique voice or a new cultural perspective/influence)

• Literary and upmarket escapism, especially in the form of heist or spy storylines (Black Doves, Slow Horses)

• Fiction by Irish authors

Nonfiction:

• Books that have the bingeable, I-didn’t-know-I-needed-to-know-this-but-I-can’t-stop-listening quality of a great podcast

• Narrative nonfiction about where culture meets language and linguistics, à la Amanda Montell’s CULTISH

• Narrative nonfiction on topics in cultural anthropology

• Books about late ‘90s and early 2000s pop culture

• Books that take a deep dive into scorned/maligned women whose stories deserve to be revisited

Not currently looking for:

- High fantasy
- Fiction or nonfiction about cancer
- Books that heavily feature sexual assault or grooming
- Absurdist or satirical novels
- Young adult, middle grade, or children’s picture books - Historical fiction

*Please note: Nicole represents adult fiction and nonfiction