Books: New and noteworthy

USA TODAY’s Jocelyn McClurg scopes out the hottest books on sale each week.

1. Carve the Mark by Veronica Roth (Katherine Tegen Books, fiction, on sale Jan. 17)

What it’s about: In Roth’s dark new sci-fi adventure, teens Akos and Cyra, at first enemies, are drawn together by their mutual enmity toward Cyra’s dictator brother.

The buzz: This marks the start of a new series for the author of the mega-selling Divergent trilogy; Roth will do a USA TODAY Facebook Live chat Jan. 17 at 1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT.

Watch Veronica Roth's live chat on 'Carve the Mark'

2. My Life, My Love, My Legacy by Coretta Scott King as told to the Rev. Dr. Barbara Reynolds (Henry Holt, non-fiction, on sale Jan. 17)

What it’s about: A posthumous memoir by the widow of Martin Luther King Jr. (she died in 2006), based on taped interviews.

The buzz: Coretta Scott King became a Civil Rights icon in her own right after her husband’s death, and her book arrives the day after Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

3. The Nowhere Man by Gregg Hurwitz (Minotaur, fiction, on sale Jan. 17)

What it’s about: In this sequel to the thriller Orphan X, covert assassin Evan Smoak, who disappeared to create a new identity, is kidnapped by mysterious assailants.

The buzz: A “stellar sequel,” says Publishers Weekly in a starred review.

4. Audacity by Jonathan Chait (Custom House, non-fiction, on sale Jan. 17)

What it’s about: Subtitle: How Barack Obama Defied His Critics and Created a Legacy That Will Prevail.

The buzz: Chait, a political columnist for New York magazine, makes the case for Obama’s presidency just days before he leaves office.

5. The Wicked City by Beatriz Williams (William Morrow, fiction, on sale Jan. 17)

What it’s about: A woman in modern Greenwich Village lives in an apartment that was once a speakeasy in this novel that shifts back to the Roaring ’20s.

The buzz: In a review for USA TODAY, Patty Rhule praised Williams’ 2015 novel Along the Infinite Sea as a “romantic adventure.”