Release Week: 8 November 2022
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Release Week: 8 November 2022
Posted on 2022-11-08 at 12:00 by Samuel Montgomery-Blinn
PICKS:
Novelist as a Vocation By: Haruki Murakami, translated by Philip Gabriel and Ted Goossen, read by Kotaro Watanabe for Random House -- "A charmingly idiosyncratic look at writing, creativity, and the author’s own novels, from the beloved and best-selling author of 1Q84 and Norwegian Wood."
High John the Conqueror: A Novel By: Tariq Goddard, read by the author for Watkins -- "When children start going missing in a rural town, the investigation takes twists and turns into the strange world of privilege and the realm of the occult."
Even Though I Knew the End By: C.L. Polk, read by January LaVoy for Recorded Books -- "A magical detective dives into the affairs of Chicago's divine monsters to secure a future with the love of her life. This sapphic period piece will dazzle anyone looking for mystery, intrigue, romance, magic, or all of the above. An exiled augur who sold her soul to save her brother's life is offered one last job before serving an eternity in hell. When she turns it down, her client sweetens the pot by offering up the one payment she can't resist—the chance to have a future where she grows old with the woman she loves. To succeed, she is given three days to track down the White City Vampire, Chicago's most notorious serial killer. If she fails, only hell and heartbreak await."
Scattered Showers: Stories By: Rainbow Rowell, read by Euan Morton, Rebecca Lowman for Macmillan -- "Rowell has won fans all over the world by writing about love and life in a way that feels true. In her first collection, she gives us nine beautifully crafted love stories. Girl meets boy camping outside a movie theater. Best friends debate the merits of high school dances. A prince romances a troll. A girl romances an imaginary boy. And Simon Snow himself returns for a holiday adventure."
The Bruising of Qilwa By: Naseem Jamnia, read by Fajer Al-Kaisi for Tantor -- "Firuz-e Jafari is fortunate enough to have immigrated to the Free Democratic City-State of Qilwa, fleeing the slaughter of other traditional Sassanian blood magic practitioners in their homeland. Despite the status of refugees in their new home, Firuz has a good job at a free healing clinic in Qilwa, working with Kofi, a kindly new employer, and mentoring Afsoneh, a troubled orphan refugee with powerful magic. But Firuz and Kofi have discovered a terrible new disease which leaves mysterious bruises on its victims. The illness is spreading quickly through Qilwa, and there are dangerous accusations of ineptly performed blood magic. In order to survive, Firuz must break a deadly cycle of prejudice, untangle sociopolitical constraints, and find a fresh start for both their blood and found family."
The Children of Gods and Fighting Men: Gael Song, Book 1 By: Shauna Lawless, read by Aoife McMahon for W.F. Howes -- "981 AD. The Viking King of Dublin is dead. His young widow, Gormflaith, has ambitions for her son–and herself–but Ireland is a dangerous place and kings tend not to stay kings for long. Gormflaith also has a secret. She is one of the Fomorians, an immortal race who can do fire-magic. She has kept her powers hidden at all costs, for there are other immortals in this world–like the Tuatha Dé Danann, a race of warriors who are sworn to kill Fomorians."
The Stars Undying By: Emery Robin, read by Esther Wane and Tim Campbell for Orbit -- "In this spectacular space opera inspired by the lives and loves of Cleopatra and Julius Caesar, a princess stripped of her power finds control through an affair that could help regain her reign."
No Job for a Man: A Memoir By: John Ross Bowie, read by the author for Blackstone -- "A darkly witty, deeply affecting, and finely crafted memoir by the Big Bang Theory and Speechless star and comedian, John Ross Bowie."
Fatty Fatty Boom Boom: A Memoir of Food, Fat, and Family By: Rabia Chaudry, read by the author for Algonquin -- "From the bestselling author and host of the wildly popular Undisclosed podcast, a warm, intimate memoir about food, body image, and growing up in a loving but sometimes oppressively concerned Pakistani immigrant family."
The Pirate's Wife: The Remarkable True Story of Sarah Kidd By: Daphne Palmer Geanacopoulos, read by Courtney Patterson for Harlequin -- "The dramatic and deliciously swashbuckling story of Sarah Kidd, the wife of the famous pirate Captain Kidd, charting her transformation from New York socialite to international outlaw during the Golden Age of Piracy."
MORE SCI-FI and FANTASY:
Empire of Exiles By: Erin M Evans, read by Imogen Church for Orbit -- "Twenty-seven years ago, a Duke with a grudge led a ruthless coup against the empire of Semilla, killing thousands. He failed. The Duke was executed, a terrifyingly powerful sorcerer was imprisoned, and an unwilling princess disappeared. The empire moved on. Now, when Quill, an apprentice scribe, arrives in the capital city, he believes he's on a simple errand for another pompous noble: fetch ancient artifacts from the magical Imperial Archives. He's always found his apprenticeship to a lawman to be dull work. But these aren't just any artifacts—these are the instruments of revolution, the banners under which the Duke lead his coup."
The Following By: Jacqueline Druga, read by Tina Wolstencroft for Tantor -- "When she was a child, a near-death experience left Harper Monroe with the ability to transcend to another realm and speak to those who had passed on. For the longest time, this was a gift she tried to bury, but now it is back with a vengeance. Not only can Harper talk to those who died, she now has the ability to pull them back through for one final moment. Believing she can help people, Harper dives into her gift with full force."
TIE-IN WATCH:
Aliens: Vasquez By: V. Castro, read by Lauren Rodriguez for Blackstone -- "A groundbreaking Latinx Aliens novel by a rising star Latina author, featuring the fan-favorite character PFC Jenette Vasquez from the hit movie Aliens and the family she is forced to leave behind."
Apocalypse War Dossier: A Judge Dredd Novel By: John Ware, read by Alex Magliaro for Penguin -- "Mega City One it's a powder keg waiting to blow on its best day. There isn't a moment when tensions aren't running high and the City isn't ready to crack. But there's something new going on something, something bad it's a block war. It's Block Mania and no one is immune, not even the Judges. But this is all prelude to invasion. The East-Meg One Sov's have infected Mega City One with Block-Mania to throw the city into massive, bloody turf wars. There are troops on the ground, bombs are dropping and the Mega City One is on fire. And the Judges are drawing the line and Mega City One is about to burn."
Origins of The Wheel of Time: The Legends and Mythologies That Inspired Robert Jordan by Michael Livingston with Harriet McDougal, read by Kate Reading, Michael Kramer, and the authors for Macmillan -- "Take a deep dive into the real-world history and mythology that inspired the world of Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time®. Origins of The Wheel of Time is written by Michael Livingston, Secretary-General of the United States Commission on Military History and professor of medieval literature at The Citadel, with a Foreword by Harriet McDougal, Robert Jordan's editor, widow, and executor of his estate."
BACKLIST WATCH:
Final Girls By: Mira Grant (2017), read by Jennifer Pickens for Tantor -- "Dr. Jennifer Webb has invented proprietary virtual reality technology that purports to heal psychological wounds by running clients through scenarios straight out of horror movies and nightmares. In a carefully controlled environment, with a medical cocktail running through their veins, sisters might develop a bond they've been missing their whole lives—while running from the bogeyman through a simulated forest. But . . . can real change come so easily?"
Kissing Carrion: Stories By: Gemma Files (2003, 2015), read by Neil Hellegers, Xe Sands, Natasha Soudek, Chelsea Stephens, Paul Woodson, Andrew Eiden, and Meghan Kelly for Blackstone -- "From a live necrophilia show starring reanimated corpses to a confrontation between a security guard and inhuman squatters, from who can be found at an all-night laundromat to what lies in wait at the bottom of the sea, from undead addictions to all-consuming obsessions."
Brain Wave By: Poul Anderson (1954), read by Daniel Thomas May for Tantor -- "As Earth passes out of a magnetic field that has suppressed intelligence for eons, the mental capacity for all mammals increases exponentially, radically changing the structures of society."
MOST MISSING:
Breakable Things by Cassandra Khaw (Undertow) -- " Khaw's dynamic and vibrant debut collection, Breakable Things, explores the fragile and nebulous bonds that weave love and grief into our existence. This exquisite and cutting collection of stories showcases a bloody fusion of horrors from cosmic to psychological to body traumas."
The Nightland Express by J.M. Lee (Erewhon) -- "In antebellum America, two teens bury their secrets and join the historic Pony Express, soon discovering that the mortal world is not the only one on the brink of war."
A Different Darkness and Other Abominations by Luigi Musolino, introduction by Brian Evenson (Valancourt Books) -- "The highly original and truly terrifying folk horror of Italy’s Luigi Musolino was introduced to an international audience in the acclaimed The Valancourt Book of World Horror Stories, and now at last an entire volume of the author’s best work – eight stories and three novellas – is available in English for the first time."
Fables and Spells: Collected and New Short Fiction and Poetry by Adrienne Maree Brown (AK Press) -- "A vibrant selection of visionary works, both previously published and brand new. Included here is Brown’s most beloved story, “The River,” as well as the two sequel tales of her Water Trio. The remaining sixty-seven pieces explore moments of beauty, conflict, and transformation that also weave deep, radical lessons. With narrative “fables” of speculative fiction and “spells” that play with the lines between poetry, instruction, song, and chant, Fables and Spells demonstrates how good writing can engage the present while providing expansive visions of the possible worlds humans can build."
Obelisks, Book One: Dust by Ari Marmell (Crossroad Press) -- "For Flight Engineer Cynthia Han and her fellow astronauts aboard the International Space Station, Expedition 81 has proved as mundane as space travel ever gets. Yes, this would be Cynthia’s final NASA mission, for reasons she’s so far kept from the rest of the crew; and yes, the latest billionaire “space tourist” has managed to irritate everyone on board. Still, none of them could have asked for a smoother experience. Until the morning they wake up to silence. All communication with Earth, gone. From half a dozen different agencies with multiple installations and redundancies across the globe, there is simply... nothing."
In the Devil's Cradle by S.L. Edwards (Word Horde) -- "Senator William Esquival is in a rush to save his family's life. Fleeing political persecution, William takes his family from the capital and flees to the family stronghold of Rio Rojo, a town known as the birthplace of William's ancestor, a powerful former dictator whose legacy haunts the nation of Antioch. But even as the Esquival family seeks refuge, the country continues to fray around them. As Antioch bleeds, ancient hatreds, secrets, and ghosts pour from its wounds."
SERIES WATCH:
Bloodmarked: The Legendborn Cycle, Book 2 By: Tracy Deonn, read by Joniece Abbott-Pratt for Simon and Schuster -- "The shadows have risen, and the line is law. All Bree wanted was to uncover the truth behind her mother’s death. So she infiltrated the Legendborn Order, a secret society descended from King Arthur’s knights—only to discover her own ancestral power. Now, Bree has become someone new: A Medium. A Bloodcrafter. A Scion. But the ancient war between demons and the Order is rising to a deadly peak. And Nick, the Legendborn boy Bree fell in love with, has been kidnapped."
Nightwatch over Windscar: The Weep, Book 2 By: K. Eason, read by Nicole Poole for Tantor -- "Iari is good at killing monsters. As a templar in the Aedis, a multi-species religious organization committed to protecting the Confederation, eliminating extra-dimensional horrors is her job. But after she helped stop separatists from sabotaging the entire Confederation, she discovered a new sort of monster: the rogue-arithmancer, political kind."
Cursed: Gilded Duology, Book 2 By: Marissa Meyer, read by Rebecca Soler for Macmillan -- "Adalheid Castle is in chaos. Following a shocking turn of events, Serilda finds herself ensnared in a deadly game of make-believe with the Erlking, who is determined to propel her deeper into the castle’s lies. Meanwhile, Serilda is determined to work with Gild to help him solve the mystery of his forgotten name and past."
Dawnlands: The Fairmile Series, Book 3 By: Philippa Gregory, read by Louise Brealey for Simon and Schuster -- "It is 1685 and England is on the brink of a renewed civil war. King Charles II has died without an heir and his brother James is to take the throne. But the people are bitterly divided, and many do not welcome the new king or his young queen."
The Last Hero: The First Sister Trilogy, Book 3 By: Linden A. Lewis, read by Ali Andre Ali, Jennifer Aquino, Neo Cihi, Andrew Kishino, Farah Naz Rishi, Gary Tiedemann, and Emily Woo Zeller for Simon and Schuster -- "Astrid is finally free of the Sisterhood, yet her name carries on. She’s called the Unchained by those she’s inspired and the Heretic by those who want her voiceless once more. Now Astrid uses knowledge of the Sisterhood’s inner workings against them, aiding the moonborn in raids against abbeys and Cathedrals, all the while exploring the mysteries of her forgotten past."
Gleanings: Arc of a Scythe, Book 3.5 By: Neal Shusterman, read by the author with Megan Tusing, Greg Tremblay, Nicky Endres, Jarrod Shusterman, Fiona Hardingham, and Rachel Nalebuff for Simon and Schuster -- "Thrilling stories that span the timeline. Storylines continue. Origin stories are revealed. And new Scythes emerge!"
To End in Fire: The Honor Harrington Series: Crown of Slaves Saga, Book 4 By: David Weber and Eric Flint, read by Peter Larkin for Audible -- "The Solarian League lies in defeat, crushed by the Grand Alliance of Manticore, Haven, and Grayson. Obedient to the Alliance's surrender demands, the League is writing a new Constitution, to prevent the reemergence of out-of-control bureaucrats, like the "Mandarins" who led it to disaster. Frontier Security has been disbanded, the outer worlds have regained control of their own economic destinies, and multiple star systems will soon secede from the League entirely."
Murder at Black Oaks: A Robin Lockwood Novel, Book 6 By: Phillip Margolin, read by Thérèse Plummer for Macmillan -- "Attorney Robin Lockwood finds herself at an isolated retreat in the Oregon mountains, one with a tragic past and a legendary curse, and surrounded by many suspects and confronted with an impossible crime."
INDIE WATCH:
Blood of a Novice: The Eternal Ephemera, Book 1 By: Davis Ashura, read by Travis Baldree for Podium -- "The son of the town drunk, Cam never figured on letting his family name hold him down. He always strove to dream bigger, to fight for something better, to achieve more than what everyone else expected of him. But, as they say, “once a Folde, always a Folde,” and when a decision to rescue a friend leads to disaster, fortune’s favor is lost. Cam spirals away from his dreams and ambitions; his fall finally ending at the bottom of a bottle. But all hope is not lost. Cam rises, supported by family and friends. And when a powerful Master of Ephemera offers him a chance to walk the Way into Divinity and achieve redemption, Cam seizes the opportunity. All he has to do is survive the Ephemeral Academy, the very school where the next generation of Masters are trained."
The Left Hand of Dog: Starship Teapot, Book 1 By: Si Clarke, read by Kay Eluvian for White Hart Fiction -- "Escaping intergalactic kidnappers has never been quite so ridiculous. When Lem and her faithful dog, Spock, retreat from the city for a few days of hiking in Algonquin Park, the last thing they expect is to be kidnapped by aliens. No, scratch that. The last thing they expect is to be kidnapped by a bunch of strangely adorable intergalactic bounty hunters aboard a ship called the Teapot. After Lem falls in with an unlikely group of allies, the gang must devise a cunning plan to escape their captors and make it back home safely."
Scion of Lightning: The Stormcrafter Chronicles, Book 1 By: J.T. Moy, read by Ian Pringle for Centaurus Press -- "A desperate apprentice...a dangerous quest. When Jaks almost kills another soldier with his volatile magic, he is forced to tread the fearful path of the electromancer. Succeed, he will be the first in a generation. Fail, he will lose everything."
Under the Earth, Over the Sky By: Emily McCosh, read by Ryan Haugen -- "In the woods where human lands meet fae, an ancient king born before the history of men finds a dying baby. Iohmar will take in the child and care for him until a suitable home in the human realm is found. But best laid plans often go awry in the lands of Látwill, where winds carry fae across the star-strewn sky, the woods ensnare the weak-minded with their sinister song, and even Iohmar, King Beneath the Earth, is susceptible to the will of the immortal mountains."
Journey to the Heart Stone By: Catherine Raphael, read by Marisha Tapera for SparkPress -- "In the beginning, the Goddess danced the world into existence. Peace reigned for generations through matriarchal rule within the Minca, Dute, and Carroo tribes. But one man's lust for power destroyed this balance. Vestor assassinated his sister, Mother of the Minca tribe, and his army ravaged the Dute and Carroo tribes, thrusting a once idyllic world into war, famine, and despair. Yet, today there is hope. Vestor's niece, Cora, has a vision: if she can convince an emissary from each tribe to rendezvous at the Heart Stone, she can overthrow her evil uncle, take her rightful place as Mother Minca, and restore harmony."
WTF WATCH:
- Little Women: Mermaid Edition By: Megan Lois Whitehill, read by Brenna Colleen Castor for Rockwater Press -- "A retelling of Louisa May Alcott’s classic, Little Women: Mermaid Edition takes the story of Jo, Meg, Beth, and Amy and spins it into a fantastical story of merfolk under the sea. Follow the young mergirls as they grow up in a world of talking walruses, seahorse rides, and the mysterious merboy next door."