Release Week: 14 June 2022
← Release Week: 7 June 2022Release Week: 21 June 2022 →
Release Week: 14 June 2022
Posted on 2022-06-14 at 12:00 by Samuel Montgomery-Blinn
PICKS:
The Dawnhounds By: Sascha Stronach, read by Anna Coddington for Simon and Schuster -- "Gideon the Ninth meets Black Sun in this queer, Māori-inspired debut fantasy about a police officer who is murdered, brought back to life with a mysterious new power, and tasked with protecting her city from an insidious evil threatening to destroy it."
The Men By: Sandra Newman, read by Mia Barron for Recorded Books -- "From the author of The Heavens, a dazzling, mind-bending novel in which all men mysteriously disappear from the face of the earth."
Crécy: Battle of Five Kings By: Michael Livingston, read by Rupert Farley for Bloomsbury -- "A groundbreaking new study of the battle of Crécy, in which the outnumbered English under King Edward III won a decisive victory over the French and changed the course of the Hundred Years War."
Oleander City: A Novel Based on a True Story By: Matt Bondurant, read by Julia Atwood and Chris Henry Coffey for Blackstone -- "In the wake of the 1900 Galveston hurricane, three lives converge despite persecution from the Ku Klux Klan, a bare-knuckle boxing match gone wrong, and the recovery efforts of the American Red Cross."
BACKLIST WATCH:
Letters of Cold Fire: The Occult Cases of John Thunstone, Book 1 By: Manly Wade Wellman (1944), read by Andrew Nilles for Wordwooze -- "Thrill to the adventures of John Thunstone, straight from the pages of the world's greatest horror magazine—the legendary Weird Tales."
The Beach By: Alex Garland (2005), read by Michael Page for Penguin -- "The irresistible novel that was adapted into a major motion picture starring Leonardo DiCaprio. The Khao San Road, Bangkok—first stop for the hordes of rootless young Westerners traveling in Southeast Asia. On Richard's first night there, in a low-budget guest house, a fellow traveler slashes his wrists, bequeathing to Richard a meticulously drawn map to "the Beach." The Beach, as Richard has come to learn, is the subject of a legend among young travelers in Asia: a lagoon hidden from the sea, with white sand and coral gardens, freshwater falls surrounded by jungle, plants untouched for a thousand years. There, it is rumored, a carefully selected international few have settled in a communal Eden."
Blood Trinity: The Belador Series, Book 1 By: Sherrilyn Kenyon and Dianna Love (2010), read by Stephen Thorne for Blackstone -- "Supernatural warriors bound by an extraordinary code of honor face an ultimate test of loyalty."
SERIES WATCH:
The Grief of Stones By: Katherine Addison: The Cemeteries of Amalo, Book 2, read by Liam Gerrard for Macmillan -- "Teturns to the world of The Goblin Emperor with a direct sequel to The Witness For The Dead. Celehar’s life as the Witness for the Dead of Amalo grows less isolated as his circle of friends grows larger. He has been given an apprentice to teach, and he has stumbled over a scandal of the city—the foundling girls. Orphans with no family to claim them and no funds to buy an apprenticeship. Foundling boys go to the Prelacies; foundling girls are sold into service, or worse. At once touching and shattering, Celehar’s witnessing for one of these girls will lead him into the depths of his own losses. The love of his friends will lead him out again."
A Mirror Mended: Fractured Fables, Book 2 By: Alix E. Harrow, read by Amy Landon for Macmillan -- "Zinnia Gray, professional fairy-tale fixer and lapsed Sleeping Beauty is over rescuing snoring princesses. Once you’ve rescued a dozen damsels and burned 50 spindles, once you’ve gotten drunk with 20 good fairies and made out with one too many members of the royal family, you start to wish some of these girls would just get a grip and try solving their own narrative issues."
The Queen's Assassin: Blood and Fire, Book 2 By: James Barclay, read by Mel Hudson for Gollancz -- "Naida is living a lie. A peerless battlefield surgeon. A talisman for the army. A symbol of hope in an impossible, grinding war. A fraud."
Freezer Burn: Waymaker Wars, Book 2 By: Rachel Aukes, read by Scott Aiello for Recorded Books -- "Having an AI control the system can’t be that bad, can it?"
Clockwork Destiny: Clockwork Angels, Book 3 By: Kevin J. Anderson and Neil Peart, read by Kevin J. Anderson for Recorded Books -- "In Clockwork Angels and Clockwork Lives, listeners met the optimistic young hero Owen Hardy, as well as the more reluctant adventurer Marinda Peake, in an amazing world of airships and alchemy, fantastic carnivals and lost cities. Now Owen Hardy, retired and content in his quiet, perfect life with the beautiful Francesca, is pulled into one last adventure with his eager grandson Alain."
Storm Shattered: The Darkest Storm, Book 3 By: Patrick Dugan (2020), read by William Walker for Falstaff Books -- "The explosive conclusion to the trilogy that began with the award-winning Storm Forged."
The Stuff of Dreams: Vampire Hunter D, Book 5 By: Hideyuki Kikuchi, illustrated by Yoshitaka Amano, translated by Kevin Leahy, read by Paul Boehmer
Just Another Judgement Day: Nightside, Book 9 By: Simon R. Green, read by Dan Calley
Trouble with the Cursed: Hollows, Book 16 By: Kim Harrison, read by Marguerite Gavin
MORE SCI-FI and FANTASY:
Breaking Time By: Sasha Alsberg, read by Elle Newlands and Joshua Manning for Harlequin -- "When a mysterious Scotsman suddenly appears in the middle of the road, Klara thinks the biggest problem is whether she hit him with her car. But, as impossible as it sounds, Callum has stepped out of another time, and it’s just the beginning of a deadly adventure. Klara will soon learn that she is the last Pillar of Time—an anchor point in the timeline of the world and a hiding place for a rogue goddess’s magic. Callum believes he’s fated to protect her at all costs after being unable to protect the previous Pillar, his best friend, Thomas. A dark force is hunting the Pillars to claim the power of the goddess—and Klara and Callum are the only two people standing in the way. Thrown together by fate, the two have to learn to trust each other and work together…but they’ll need to protect their hearts from one another if they’re going to survive."
Starship for Sale By: M.R. Forbes, read by Dave Jackson for Quirky Algorithms -- "When Ben Murdock receives a text message offering a fully operational starship for sale, he’s certain it has to be a joke. Already trapped in the worst day of his life and desperate for a way out, he decides to play along. Except there is no joke. The starship is real. And Ben’s life is going to change in ways he never dreamed possible. All he has to do is sign the contract."
The Boys: Deeper and Deeper by Matt Berns, read by Chace Crawford, Leigh Bush, and Katy Breier for Audible Originals -- " From his exile from The Seven to his escape from an insidious cult, The Deep tells all in this companion to the hit Prime Video series The Boys."
Project Kawayan by Randy Ribay, read by Eileen Stevens, Richard Ferrone, Jennifer Aquino, Manny Jacinto, and the author for Audible Originals -- " You wake up floating. Not in the air, but horizontally in a coffin-sized chamber filled with blue gelatinous fluid. You do not remember what this is. You do not remember why you are here. You do not remember who you are."
The Beached Ones By: Colleen M. Story, read by Rob Shapiro for CamCat -- "Daniel and his younger brother grew up in an abusive home, but Daniel was the only one who escaped. Now an established stunt rider, he intends to go back to rescue his brother. But then one jump goes horribly wrong.... When he wakes up from a nightmare in Iowa, unscathed, with no memory of how he got there, his life falls apart. His team moves on without him. His best friend won’t answer his calls. Strangers die in front of him. Even his girlfriend is hiding something. All Daniel knows is that he must pick up his brother in San Francisco. In five days. From the isolating fields of Iowa to the crowded streets of San Francisco, Daniel must fight his way through a fog of disjointed memories and supernatural encounters to pay a debt he didn’t know he owed."
TIE-IN WATCH:
The Veiled Masters: Twilight Imperium By: Tim Pratt, read by Erin deWard for Tantor -- "The galaxy stands on the brink of war, yet hope remains that the vast web of schemes can be exposed before it's too late, in this astounding space opera from the acclaimed game, Twilight Imperium."
The Devourer Below: Arkham Horror edited by Charlotte Llewelyn-Wells, stories by Josh Reynolds, Evan Dicken, Davide Mana, Georgina Kamsika, Thomas Parrott, David Annandale, and Cath Lauria, read by Jennifer Jill Araya for Tantor -- "The city of Arkham falls prey to ghoulish dread in this chilling anthology of action-packed adventure, from the bestselling world of Arkham Horror."
Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai By: Hajime Kamoshida, read by Andrew Grace for Yen Audio -- "Bunny girls do not live in libraries. This is simply common sense. And yet, that's exactly where Sakuta finds one in the wild. More bewildering is who the bunny girl is: Mai Sakurajima, a girl one year older than Sakuta, famous at their school for her acting career even though she's currently on break. To top it all off, it seems like no one else in the library can see Mai at all, no matter what she does or...wears. Wanting to find out more about this mystery and maybe get a little closer to this beautiful upperclassman in the process, Sakuta launches an investigation to discover why an unforgettable bunny girl keeps becoming totally invisible."
MOST MISSING:
January Fifteenth by Rachel Swirsky (Tordotcom) -- "January Fifteenth—the day all Americans receive their annual Universal Basic Income payment. For Hannah, a middle-aged mother, today is the anniversary of the day she took her two children and fled her abusive ex-wife. For Janelle, a young, broke journalist, today is another mind-numbing day interviewing passersby about the very policy she once opposed. For Olivia, a wealthy college freshman, today is “Waste Day”, when rich kids across the country compete to see who can most obscenely squander the government’s money. For Sarah, a pregnant teen, today is the day she’ll journey alongside her sister-wives to pick up the payments that undergird their community—and perhaps embark on a new journey altogether. In this near-future science fiction novella by Nebula Award-winning author Rachel Swirsky, the fifteenth of January is another day of the status quo, and another chance at making lasting change."
You Mean It or You Don't: James Baldwin's Radical Challenge by Jamie McGhee and Adam Hollowell (Broadleaf Books) -- "After a speech at UMass Amherst on February 28, 1984, James Baldwin was asked by a student: "You said that the liberal façade and being a liberal is not enough. Well, what is? What is necessary?" Baldwin responded, "Commitment. That is what is necessary. You mean it or you don't." Taking up that challenge and drawing from Baldwin's fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and interviews, You Mean It or You Don't will spur today's progressives from conviction to action. It is not enough, authors Hollowell and McGhee urge us, to hold progressive views on racial justice, LGBTQ+ identity, and economic inequality. True and lasting change demands a response to Baldwin's radical challenge for moral commitment. Called to move from dreams of justice to living it out in communities, churches, and neighborhoods, we can show that we truly mean it."
Rogue Artists: An Origins Anthology (Atthis Arts) -- "To heal. to mourn. to redeem. to live. Rogue Artists presents seventeen speculative fiction stories of art used for change, in celebration of the 2022 Origins Game Fair, themed: The Art of Gaming. Featuring 2022 Guest of Honor Cat Rambo, E.D.E. Bell, Marie Bilodeau, Donald J. Bingle, Jennifer Brozek, C. S. E. Cooney, Sarah Hans, Carlos Hernandez, Chris A. Jackson, Addie J. King, R. L. King, Daniel Myers, Aaron Rosenberg, Tracy R. Ross, Jason Sanford, Michael R. Underwood, and Gregory A. Wilson."
Queen: Hidden Earth, Book 1 by J.S. Fields (NineStar Press) -- "Nobody leaves Queen. On the tidally locked, women-only planet, a vulva and an authority problem are the only immigration requirements. Emigration is banned. Ember spends her days cruising Queen’s endless sand dunes, hunting sand pirates and wallowing in memories of her dead wife. After an ambush, Ember is dragged to the pirate camp and learns her wife’s biggest secret—before her death, she’d joined the pirates, built an illegal spaceship, and plotted to leave the planet."
Lawyers, Guns, and Money: Crime Fiction Inspired by the Music of Warren Zevon edited by Libby Cudmore and Art Taylor (Down and Out Books) -- "From classics like “Werewolves of London,” “Excitable Boy,” and “Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner” to lesser-known gems across a career spanning nearly four decades, the songs of Warren Zevon are rich with crime and intrigue and suspense—guns and gunners, assassins and drug dealers, a supernatural serial killer, and a heap of hapless losers along the way too. And Zevon himself was a fan of crime fiction, especially the work of iconic mystery writer Ross Macdonald, to whom Zevon dedicated his 1980 album Bad Luck Streak in Dancing School."
Immoral Origins: The Desire Card, Book 1 by Lee Matthew Goldberg (Rough Edges Press) -- "It’s 1978 in New York City, and disco is prominent. As are mobsters, gritty streets, needle parks and graffiti-stained subways. Jake Barnum lives in Hell’s Kitchen. He’s a petty thief selling hot coats with his buddy Maggs to make ends meet and help his sick kid brother. At a Halloween party downtown, he meets a woman with a Marilyn Monroe mask who works for an organization called The Desire Card—an underground operation promising its exclusive clients “Any Wish Fulfilled for the Right Price.” As Jake becomes taken with its leader, a pseudo father and sociopath at heart, he starts stealing from the rich and giving to the poor. In other words…himself. But as he dives deeper in with the Card, begins falling love with Marilyn, and sees the money rolling in, clients’ wishes start becoming more and more suspect—some leading to murder."