Release Week: 22 February 2022
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Release Week: 22 February 2022
Posted on 2022-02-22 at 12:00 by Samuel Montgomery-Blinn
PICKS:
The Paradox Hotel: A Novel by Rob Hart, read by Emily Woo Zeller for Random House -- "An impossible crime. A detective on the edge of madness. The future of time travel at stake."
Last Exit By: Max Gladstone, read by Natalie Naudus for Recorded Books -- "Ten years ago, Zelda led a band of merry adventurers whose knacks let them travel to alternate realities and battle the black rot that threatened to unmake each world. Zelda was the warrior; Ish could locate people anywhere; Ramon always knew what path to take; Sarah could turn catastrophe aside. Keeping them all connected: Sal, Zelda’s lover and the group's heart. Until their final, failed mission, when Sal was lost. When they all fell apart."
Spontaneous Human Combustion By: Richard Thomas with an introduction by Brian Evenson, read by David Bendena, Noah Michael Levine, Pete Cross, Cary Hite, Rupert Degas, Pat Grimes, and Laural Merlington for Dreamscape -- "In this new collection, Richard Thomas has crafted 14 stories that push the boundaries of dark fiction in an intoxicating, piercing blend of fantasy, science fiction, and horror. Equally provocative and profound, each story is masterfully woven with transgressive themes that burrow beneath the skin."
The Paris Apartment: A Novel By: Lucy Foley, read by Clare Corbett, Daphne Kouma, Julia Winwood, Sope Dirisu, Sofia Zervudachi, and Charlie Anson for Harper -- "From the New York Times best-selling author of The Guest List comes a new locked-room mystery, set in a Paris apartment building in which every resident has something to hide."
Carolina Built By: Kianna Alexander, read by Shayna Small and Leon Nixon for Simon and Schuster -- "Josephine N. Leary is determined to build a life of her own and a future for her family. When she moves to Edenton, North Carolina from the plantation where she was born, she is free, newly married, and ready to follow her dreams. As the demands of life pull Josephine’s attention away, it becomes increasingly difficult for her to pursue her real estate aspirations. She finds herself immersed in deepening her marriage, mothering her daughters, and being a dutiful daughter and granddaughter. Still, she manages to teach herself to be a businesswoman, to manage her finances, and to make smart investments in the local real estate market. But with each passing year, it grows more and more difficult to focus on building her legacy from the ground up."
The Justice of Kings: Empire of the Wolf, Book 1 By: Richard Swan, read by Lucy Paterson for Orbit -- "From a major new debut author in epic fantasy comes the first book in a trilogy where action, intrigue, and magic collide. The Justice of Kings introduces an unforgettable protagonist destined to become a fantasy icon: Sir Konrad Vonvalt, an Emperor’s Justice, who is a detective, judge, and executioner all in one. But these are dangerous times to be a Justice.... "
Impact Winter By: Travis Beacham, read by a full cast for Audible Originals -- "From executive producers of The Walking Dead and Travis Beacham, the writer of Pacific Rim, comes a heart-stopping Audible Original featuring a brilliant British cast. It’s the near future and seven years since a comet hit the earth and blotted out the sun. The world is a dark, frozen landscape. And then, beastly creatures emerge and take over. Can they really be vampires?"
Manhunt By: Gretchen Felker-Martin, read by Katherine Pucciariello for Macmillan -- "Beth and Fran spend their days traveling the ravaged New England coast, hunting feral men and harvesting their organs in a gruesome effort to ensure they'll never face the same fate. Robbie lives by his gun and one hard-learned motto: Other people aren't safe. After a brutal accident entwines the three of them, this found family of survivors must navigate murderous TERFs, a sociopathic billionaire bunker brat, and awkward relationship dynamics - all while outrunning packs of feral men, and their own demons."
Scorpica: The Five Queendoms By: G.R. Macallister, read by Shiromi Arserio for Simon and Schuster -- "A centuries-long peace is shattered in a matriarchal society when a decade passes without a single girl being born."
The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea By: Axie Oh, read by Rosa Escoda for Dreamscape -- "Deadly storms have ravaged Mina’s homeland for generations. Floods sweep away entire villages, while bloody wars are waged over the few remaining resources. Her people believe the Sea God, once their protector, now curses them with death and despair. In an attempt to appease him, each year a beautiful maiden is thrown into the sea to serve as the Sea God’s bride, in the hopes that one day the “true bride” will be chosen and end the suffering."
Wakers: The Side-Step Trilogy, Book 1 By: Orson Scott Card, read by Stefan Rudnicki for Blackstone -- "Laz is a side-stepper: a teen with the incredible power to jump his consciousness to alternate versions of himself in parallel worlds. All his life, there was no mistake that a little side-stepping couldn’t fix. Until Laz wakes up one day in a cloning facility on a seemingly abandoned Earth."
Unseen Magic By: Emily Lloyd-Jones, read by Chloe Dolandis for Harper Children's -- "The magic-infused town of Aldermere is the first place 11-year-old Fin has ever felt safe - and she’ll do whatever it takes to save her home when she accidentally unleashes a shadow self who wreaks havoc everywhere she goes. Emily Lloyd-Jones’s middle grade debut is an enchanting exploration of self-discovery and finding the place you truly belong."
Off the Edge: Flat Earthers, Conspiracy Culture, and Why People Will Believe Anything By: Kelly Weill, read by Xe Sands for Workman -- "At once a definitive history of the movement and an enjoyable look at its expansive, absurd, and dangerous present, Off the Edge introduces us to a cast of larger-than-life characters, from 19th-century grifters to 20th-century small-town tyrants to the provocateurs of Alex Jones’ early-aughts internet, whose rancor sowed the early seeds of our modern division."
Empire of the Black Sea: The Rise and Fall of the Mithridatic World By: Duane W. Roller, read by Bob Souer for Tantor -- "What is commonly called the kingdom of Pontos flourished for over 200 years in the coastal regions of the Black Sea. At its peak in the early first century BC, it included much of the southern, eastern, and northern littoral, becoming one of the most important Hellenistic dynasties not founded by a successor of Alexander the Great. It also posed one of the greatest challenges to Roman imperial expansion in the East. Not until 63 BC, after many violent clashes, was Rome able to subjugate the kingdom and its last charismatic ruler Mithridates VI."
BACKLIST WATCH:
The Original Bambi: The Story of a Life in the Forest By: Felix Salten, translated by Jack Zipes, read by Peter Marinker and John Chancer for Princeton University Press -- "Peter Marinker narrates a new translation of Felix Salten’s celebrated novel Bambi, capturing the emotional impact and rich meanings of the original story."
Barbarians of the Beyond By: Matthew Hughes (2020), read by Gabrielle de Cuir for Skyboat -- "Twenty years ago, five master criminals known as the Demon Princes raided Mount Pleasant to enslave thousands of inhabitants in the lawless Beyond. Now Morwen Sabine, a daughter of captives, has escaped her cruel master and returns to Mount Pleasant to recover the hidden treasure she hopes will buy her parents’ freedom."
The Star King: The Demon Princes Series, Book 1 By: Jack Vance (1963), read by Stefan Rudnicki for Skyboat -- "Five intergalactic criminal masterminds raid the tranquil world of Mount Pleasant, leaving behind only ruin and slaughter - and the orphaned child Kirth Gersen, who comes to manhood swearing to take bloody revenge. Now Gersen roams the galaxy, bringing vengeance to the Demon Princes one by one, in Jack Vance's classic series of hardboiled space opera."
The Dreaming Jewels By: Theodore Sturgeon (1950), read by Peter Berkrot for Tantor -- "Though only eight years old, little Horton "Horty" Bluett has known a lifetime of sadness. Tormented and abused by his adoptive family, he's had enough - and with a beloved broken toy he calls "Junky" as his sole companion, the desperate little boy runs away to join a carnival. There, among the fortune tellers, fire-eaters, sideshow freaks, and assorted "strange people", Horty hopes to find acceptance and, at long last, a real home. But disgraced Doctor Pierre "Maneater" Monetre's traveling show is no ordinary entertainment, and its performers are not what they appear to be. The Maneater has sinister plans for the world that go far beyond fleecing unsuspecting rubes and other easy marks - a dark and terrible scheme that requires unleashing the extraterrestrial power of the dreaming jewels, and the unwitting assistance of a young boy who may be far more remarkable than he's ever imagined."
SERIES WATCH:
Star Trek: Picard: No Man's Land: An Original Audio Drama By: Kirsten Beyer and Mike Johnson, read by Michelle Hurd, Jeri Ryan, Jack Cutmore-Scott, John Kassir, Fred Tatasciore, Chris Andrew Ciulla, Lisa Flanagan, Gibson Frazier, Lameece Issaq, Natalie Naudus, Xe Sands, and Emily Woo Zeller for Simon and Schuster -- "Discover what happens to Raffi and Seven of Nine following the stunning conclusion to season one of Star Trek: Picard with this audio exclusive, fully dramatized Star Trek adventure featuring the beloved stars of the hit TV series Michelle Hurd and Jeri Ryan."
Sword and Shadow: The Wolves of Elantra, Book 2 By: Michelle Sagara, read by Khristine Hvam
INDIE WATCH:
Unity By: Elly Bangs, read by Adenrele Ojo, Kevin Kenerly, James Fouhey, and Karen Chilton for Podium -- "Danae is not only herself. She is concealing a connection to a grieving collective inside of her body. But while she labors as a tech servant in the dangerous underwater enclave of Bloom City, her fractured self cannot mend."
Goth Drow Unleashed by Martha Carr and Michael Anderle, read by Devon Sorvari for Tantor -- 7 books in this series dropped today, with 11 more due out next week: "I'm not Goth to hide my Drow heritage; I'm Goth because I'm not a quitter."
In the Shadow of Ziammotienth: Myth of the Dragon, Book 1 By: Michael Anderle, read by Emily Beresford for Tantor -- "Why don't thieves and mages get along? Because thieves remind mages too much of themselves."
Pale Blue Dot(s) By: Erin Mallon, read by Thérèse Plummer, Megan Tusing, Andrew Eiden, Gabra Zackman, Inés del Castillo, Sarah Mollo-Christensen, Adenrele Ojo, Julia Whelan, Natalie Naudus, and a full cast -- "everal years in the future, an all-female astronaut team circumnavigates the globe once every 90 minutes aboard the International Space Station, prepared to be a powerful presence in space. When a surprise set of "everyday citizens" tags along for the ride, all protocol flies right out the proverbial...airlock. After a lifetime of being kept down on the ground, what happens when these women finally rise up and see their lives - and their planet - from high above it all?"
MOST MISSING:
You Pray for Dry Weather at the Sight of the Sun: A Strand Essay by J David Osborne (Broken River Books) -- " A meditation on birth, death, and fatherhood inspired by the game Death Stranding."
Music of the Night edited by Martin Edwards (Flame Tree Press) -- "The Annual Crime Writers' Association anthology is always a thrilling read, and eagerly anticipated by readers and authors of crime and mystery fiction worldwide."
Legends & Lattes: A Novel of High Fantasy and Low Stakes by Travis Baldree (Cryptid Press) -- Surely we won't have to wait too long for an audiobook version of this, considering the author is a pro narrator! "Worn out after decades of packing steel and raising hell, Viv the orc barbarian cashes out of the warrior’s life with one final score. A forgotten legend, a fabled artifact, and an unreasonable amount of hope lead her to the streets of Thune, where she plans to open the first coffee shop the city has ever seen. However, her dreams of a fresh start pulling shots instead of swinging swords are hardly a sure bet. Old frenemies and Thune’s shady underbelly may just upset her plans. To finally build something that will last, Viv will need some new partners and a different kind of resolve."
Inheritors of Power: The Broken Trust, Book 3 by Juliette Wade (DAW) -- "The third book of The Broken Trust continues a deadly battle for power in this sociological sci-fi novel where brother is pitted against brother."