Release Week: 6 August 2024
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Release Week: 6 August 2024
Posted on 2024-08-06 at 12:00 by Samuel Montgomery-Blinn
PICKS:
A Sorceress Comes to Call by T. Kingfisher, read by Eliza Foss and Jennifer Pickens for Macmillan -- "Cordelia knows her mother is . . . unusual. Their house doesn’t have any doors between rooms—there are no secrets in this house—and her mother doesn't allow Cordelia to have a single friend. Unless you count Falada, her mother's beautiful white horse. The only time Cordelia feels truly free is on her daily rides with him. But more than simple eccentricity sets her mother apart. Other mothers don’t force their daughters to be silent and motionless for hours, sometimes days, on end. Other mothers aren’t evil sorcerers. When her mother unexpectedly moves them into the manor home of a wealthy older Squire and his kind but keen-eyed sister, Hester, Cordelia knows this welcoming pair are to be her mother's next victims. But Cordelia feels at home for the very first time among these people, and as her mother's plans darken, she must decide how to face the woman who raised her to save the people who have become like family."
The Seventh Veil of Salome by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, read by a full cast for Random House -- "1950s Hollywood: Every actress wants to play Salome, the star-making role in a big-budget movie about the legendary woman whose story has inspired artists since ancient times. So when the film’s mercurial director casts Vera Larios, an unknown Mexican ingenue, in the lead role, she quickly becomes the talk of the town. Vera also becomes an object of envy for Nancy Hartley, a bit player whose career has stalled, and who will do anything to win the fame she believes she richly deserves. Two actresses, both determined to make it to the top in Golden Age Hollywood—a city overflowing with gossip, scandal, and intrigue—make for a sizzling combination. But this is the tale of three women, for it is also the story of the princess Salome herself, consumed with desire for the fiery prophet who foretells the doom of her stepfather, Herod: a woman torn between the decree of duty and the yearning of her heart."
Hum By: Helen Phillips, read by Ariel Blake for Simon and Schuster -- "In a city addled by climate change and populated by intelligent robots called “hums,” May loses her job to artificial intelligence. In a desperate bid to resolve her family’s debt and secure their future for another few months, she becomes a guinea pig in an experiment that alters her face so it cannot be recognized by surveillance. Seeking some reprieve from her recent hardships and from her family’s addiction to their devices, she splurges on passes that allow them three nights’ respite inside the Botanical Garden: a rare green refuge where forests, streams, and animals flourish. But her insistence that her son, daughter, and husband leave their devices at home proves far more fraught than she anticipated, and the lush beauty of the Botanical Garden is not the balm she hoped it would be. When her children come under threat, May is forced to put her trust in a hum of uncertain motives as she works to restore the life of her family."
House of Bone and Rain By: Gabino Iglesias, read by Jean-Marc Berne and Daya Mendez for Mulholland -- "In the latest from Shirley Jackson and Bram Stoker Award-winning author of THE DEVIL TAKES YOU HOME, a group of five teenage boys in Puerto Rico seek vengeance after one of their mothers is murdered; a Latinx STAND BY ME with a haunted, obsidianly dark heart."
The Mercy of Gods: Captive's War, Book 1 By: James S.A. Corey, read by Jefferson Mays for Recorded Books -- "The Carryx—part empire, part hive—has waged wars of conquest for centuries, destroying or enslaving species across the galaxy in its conflict with an ancient and deathless enemy. When they descend on the isolated world of Anjiin, the human population is abased, slaughtered, and put in chains. The best and brightest are abducted, taken to the Carryx world-palace to join prisoners from a thousand other species. Dafyd Alkhor, assistant to a prestigious scientist, is captured along with his team. Even he doesn’t suspect that his peculiar insight and skills will be the key to seeing past their captors’ terrifying agenda."
The Dead Cat Tail Assassins By: P. Djèlí Clark, read by Lynnette R. Freeman for Recorded Books -- "Eveen the Eviscerator is skilled, discreet, professional, and here for your most pressing needs in the ancient city of Tal Abisi. Her guild is strong, her blades are sharp, and her rules are simple. Those sworn to the Matron of Assassins—resurrected, deadly, wiped of their memories—have only three unbreakable vows. First, the contract must be just. That’s above Eveen’s pay grade. Second, even the most powerful assassin may only kill the contracted. Eveen’s a professional. She’s never missed her mark. The third and the simplest: once you accept a job, you must carry it out. And if you stray? A final death would be a mercy. When the Festival of the Clockwork King turns the city upside down, Eveen’s newest mission brings her face-to-face with a past she isn’t supposed to remember and a vow she can’t forget."
Full Speed to a Crash Landing: Chaotic Orbits, Book 1 By: Beth Revis, read by Dara Rosenberg and David Bendena for Dreamscape Lore -- "Ada Lamarr may have gotten to the spaceship wreck first, but looter’s rights won’t get her far when she’s got a hole in the side of her ship and her spacesuit is almost out of air. Fortunately for her, help arrives in the form of a government salvage crew—and while they reluctantly rescue her from certain death, they are not pleased to have an unexpected passenger along on their classified mission. But Ada doesn’t care—all that matters to her is enjoying their fine food and sweet, sweet oxygen—until Rian White, the government agent in charge, starts to suspect that there’s more to Ada than meets the eye. He’s not wrong—but he’s so pretty that Ada is perfectly happy to keep him paying attention to her—at least until she can complete the job she was sent to pull off. But as quick as Ada is, Rian might be quicker—and she may not be entirely sure who’s manipulating who until it’s too late."
The Sunforge: The Endsong, Book 1 By: Sascha Stronach, read by Janaye Henry for Simon and Schuster -- "The steel city of Radovan is consumed by fire between. Stranded in its harbor is the crew of the Kopek, the survivors of a bioterror attack overseas. But they bear scars: their captain, Sibbi, has gone missing; Yat, their newest Weaver, is fighting for control of her own mind; and their Weaving powers are in a badly weakened state. To disable the technology that prevents the group from escaping, Sen and Kiada must plot their way through the ruins of the foreign capital, which is patrolled by a hostile militia, using wits alone. But to navigate through Radovan, Kiada will have to rely on her own history with the city—one she shares with a band of misfits dubbed Fort Tomorrow and their leader, Ari, a charismatic thief."
The Heir of Venus By: Laura Shepperson, read by Frances Butt for Dreamscape -- "Lavinia never asked to be fought over. But now her childhood sweetheart has waged a war that threatens to destroy everything she holds dear, all because Lavinia's father has promised her to somebody else–Aeneas. Aeneas, rumored to be the son of Venus, is famed for his bravery, cunning, and his vision for a new great Empire. He is also secretive, slippery—and Lavinia wonders why he will never discuss the past he left behind. So when a stranger arrives in the camp with stories about Aeneas that suggest he is not what he seems, Lavinia realizes she has to take her future, and that of her people, into her own hands."
BACKLIST WATCH:
Firefly Rain by Richard Dansky (2008), read by Jason Crum -- "When Jacob left home for a new life, he pretty much forgot all about Maryfield, North Carolina. But Maryfield never forgot him. Or forgave him. After a failed business venture in Boston, Jacob Logan comes back to the small Southern town of his childhood and takes up residence in the isolated house he grew up in. Here, the air is still. The nights are black. And his parents are buried close by. It should feel like home—but something is terribly wrong. Jacob loses all his belongings in a highway accident. His car is stolen from his driveway, yet he never hears a sound. The townspeople seem guarded and suspicious. And Carl, the property caretaker with so many secrets, is unnervingly accommodating. Then there are the fireflies that light the night skies . . . and die as they come near Jacob’s home. If it weren’t for the creaking sounds after dark, or the feeling that he is being watched, Jacob would feel so alone. He shouldn’t worry. He’s not. And whatever’s with him isn’t going to let him leave home ever again."
The Breast By: Philip Roth (1972), read by David Colacci for Blackstone -- "During a stay on the beach with his girlfriend, Claire, Kepesh had wished to have breasts, to be a breast, and he struggles with the idea that apparently this wish was fulfilled."
Go Tell It on the Mountain: A Novel by James Baldwin (1952), read by Joe Morton for Random House, with an introduction by Roxane Gay -- "With lyrical precision, psychological directness, resonating symbolic power, and a rage that is at once unrelenting and compassionate, Baldwin chronicles a fourteen-year-old boy's discovery of the terms of his identity as the stepson of the minister of a Pentecostal storefront church in Harlem."
NON-FICTION WATCH:
All That Glitters: A Story of Friendship, Fraud, and Fine Art by Orlando Whitfield, read by the author for Books on Tape -- "A dazzling insider’s account of the contemporary art world and the stunning rise and fall of the charismatic American art dealer Inigo Philbrick, as seen through the eyes of his friend and fellow dealer."
The Devil Behind the Badge: The Horrifying Twelve Days of the Border Patrol Serial Killer by Rick Jervis, read by Timothy Andrés Pabon for Harper -- "The shocking true-crime story of a U.S. Border Patrol agent turned serial killer, the four sex workers whom he mercilessly killed, and the upended border town of Laredo where his heinous crimes occurred."
INDIE WATCH:
- Feisty Felines and Other Fantastical Familiars edited by Kevin J. Anderson and Allyson Longueira, read by Brenda McGinnis for WordFire Press -- "When the witches and wizards are away, the familiars will play! Features 26 never-before-published short stories and poems crafted by Mercedes Lackey, Heather Graham, Jody Lynn Nye, John Hartness, Steve Rasnic Tem, and many others."
SERIES WATCH:
Gilgamesh: The Sumerians Trilogy, Book 2 By: Emily H. Wilson, read by Zehra Jane Naqvi for Tantor
Hell Divers XII: Heroes by Nicholas Sansbury Smith, read by R. C. Bray for Blackstone -- "Beloved characters will confront their fates in a desperate bid to resurrect the world, though not all will live to see the dawn of a new era in the long-awaited series finale."
Arkangel: Sigma Force, Book 18 by James Rollins, read by Christian Baskous for Harper
MOST MISSING:
Heartwood: A Mythago Wood Anthology edited by Dan Coxon (PS Publishing) -- "Commemorating the 40th anniversary of Robert Holdstock’s seminal fantasy novel Mythago Wood (winner of the World Fantasy Award and British Fantasy Award), Heartwood for the first time opens Holdstock’s world to other writers. From new tales of Ryhope and Oak Lodge to strange encounters with mythagos further afield, this groundbreaking anthology revisits the old pathways and cuts new tracks through the undergrowth, drawing ever closer to the mysteries of Lavondyss—the Old Forbidden Place at the heart of the wood."
The Jaguar Mask by Michael J. DeLuca (Stelliform Press) -- "Felipe K'icab doesn't know who he is. He only knows he was born different than his human family, and he can't relax unless he's blasting reggaeton in his cab weaving through the streets of Guatemala City. The jaguar mask and his other human faces keep him safe - until El Bufo, a corrupt ex-cop, commandeers his cab and drags Felipe into a murder conspiracy investigation, trying to expose the foreign-backed regime's ecocidal and genocidal past."
TO BE FILED:
In Any Lifetime: A Novel By: Marc Guggenheim, read by Ramón de Ocampo for Brilliance -- "A devoted husband defies fate and risks everything to find the one universe where his beloved wife is still alive in this bold and thought-provoking novel."
Daughter of Fire: A Novel By: Sofia Robleda, read by Ana Lucia Robleda for Brilliance -- "For a young woman coming of age in sixteenth-century Guatemala, safeguarding her people’s legacy is a dangerous pursuit in a mystical, empowering, and richly imagined historical novel."
Temporal By: Julian Simpson, Richard MacLean Smith, Bec Boey, and Nosa Igbinedion, read by a full cast for Audible Originals
The Story Spinner By: Barbara Erskine for Harper
Dark Harvest By: Hazel Atkinson, read by Sofia Engstrand
Cannibal Jack by Patricia Lee Macomber
To Turn the Tide by SM Stirling
Drill by Scott R. Jones
There Is a Rio Grande in Heaven: Stories By: Ruben Reyes Jr.
The Leap Year Gene of Kit McKinley By: Shelley Wood
Withered by A.G.A. Wilmon, read by Hayden Bishop for Podium
A Mask of Flies By: Matthew Lyons, read by Saskia Maarleveld for Macmillan -- "In the grisly aftermath of a botched bank heist, career criminal Anne Heller has no choice but to return to her family’s cabin–a secluded shack in Colorado’s San Luis Valley, and the site of her mother’s untimely death. Along for the ride are Jessup, Anne’s badly wounded partner, and Dutch, the police officer she’s taken hostage. As they wait for help, Anne discovers strange relics from her mother’s past and begins to unfold the mystery of her childhood at the cabin. Then Jessup goes missing, only to turn up dead. Anne and Dutch bury her friend, but that night, he comes back and knocks at the cabin door."
Drop Dead by Lily Chu, read by Phillipa Soo and John Cho for Audible Originals -- "One mysterious mansion. Two rival journalists. Three weeks to uncover the story—and love—of a lifetime."
Agony Hill: A Franklin Warren Mystery By: Sarah Stewart Taylor, read by Eric G. Dove