Weekend picks for book lovers

What should you read this weekend? Paste BN's picks for book lovers include The Queen of the Tearling, a fantasy already signed up for the movies, and a posthumous memoir by funkster Rick James.

The Queen of the Tearling by Erika Johansen; Harper; 448 pp.; fiction

Call it The Hunger Games of Thrones. Erika Johansen's debut novel, The Queen of the Tearling, is a genre mashup: medieval fantasy meets dystopian future.

The teen-friendly book, the first of a planned trilogy, takes place in the 24th century; humanity has rejected technology and returned to a feudal society. A movie version is already planned with Emma Watson set to star.

Tearling focuses on 19-year-old Kelsea Raleigh, the heir to the throne of her kingdom, the Tear. She was raised in exile after the death of her mother put her evil uncle on the throne. The book opens on the day Kelsea is set to return to the capital city of New London and claim her throne, escorted by the remainder of her late mother's guard, who neither trust nor respect Kelsea.

Paste BN says *** out of four. "An addictive and enjoyable adventure."

Glow: The Autobiography of Rick James by Rick James with David Ritz; Atria, 324 pp.; non-fiction

Posthumous memoir by the funk star (Give It to Me Baby) who died in 2004 at age 56.

Paste BN says ***. "Raw and authentic."

Close Your Eyes, Hold Hands by Chris Bohjalian; Doubleday, 271 pp.; fiction

A teenage Emily Dickinson fan whose parents and dog go missing must cope after a nuclear power plant meltdown in rural Vermont.

Paste BN says ***½ . "Chilling and heartbreaking ... poignant."

The Vacationers by Emma Straub; Riverhead; 304 pp.; fiction

New Yorkers Jim and Franny Post vacation with family and friends in Mallorca.

Paste BN says ***½. "The characters in Vacationers are … richly, intricately drawn."

The Phantom of Fifth Avenue: The Mysterious Life and Scandalous Death of Heiress Huguette Clark by Meryl Gordon; Grand Central, 400 pp., non-fiction

The story of the late copper heiress and renowned recluse Huguette Clark, who spent the last two decades of her life as a hermit at Beth Israel Hospital in New York City.

Paste BN says ***. "A strange and fascinating twist on the American Dream … a page-turner."

Contributing reviewers: Kelly Lawler, Gene Seymour, Bob Minzesheimer, Elysa Gardner, Bill Desowitz