Release Week: 29 October 2024
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Release Week: 29 October 2024
Posted on 2024-10-29 at 12:00 by Samuel Montgomery-Blinn
PICKS:
This Will Be Fun: A Novel by E. B. Asher, read by Alexander Cendese, January LaVoy, and Hope Newhouse for Harper -- "Everyone in Mythria knows the story of how best friends Beatrice and Elowen, handsome ex-bandit Clare, and valiant leader Galwell the Great defended the realm from darkness. It’s a tale beloved by all—except the heroes. They haven’t spoken in a decade, devastated by what their quest cost them. But when they all receive an invitation to the queen of Mythria’s wedding, it’s a summons they can’t refuse . . . and a reunion for the ages—with Clare secretly not over his long-ago fling with Beatrice, Beatrice fighting the guilt she feels over how everything ended, Elowen unprepared for the return of her ex-love (the cunning Vandra), and all of them lost without Galwell. And if reuniting with former friends and lovers wasn’t perilous enough, dark forces from their past have also returned."
The Blue Hour: A Novel by Paula Hawkins, read by Gemma Whelan for Harper -- "The propulsive and powerful new novel from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Girl on the Train. Welcome to Eris: an island with only one house, one inhabitant, one way out. Unreachable from the Scottish mainland for twelve hours each day. Once home to Vanessa: A famous artist whose notoriously unfaithful husband disappeared twenty years ago. Now home to Grace: A solitary creature of the tides, content in her own isolation. But when a shocking discovery is made in an art gallery far away in London, a visitor comes calling."
Blood over Bright Haven: A Novel by M. L. Wang, read by Moira Quirk for Random House -- "The first woman ever admitted to a prestigious order of mages unravels a secret conspiracy that could change the practice of magic forever, in this standalone dark fantasy from the author of The Sword of Kaigen."
Pay the Piper: A Novel By: George A. Romero and Daniel Kraus, read by Sophie Amoss for Brilliance -- "In 2019, while sifting through University of Pittsburgh Library’s System’s George A. Romero Archival Collection, novelist Daniel Kraus turned up a surprise: a half-finished novel. In the years since, Kraus has worked with Romero’s estate to bring this unfinished masterwork to light. Alligator Point, Louisiana, population 141: Young Renée Pontiac has heard stories of “the Piper”—a murderous swamp entity haunting the bayou—her entire life. But now the legend feels horrifically real: children are being taken and gruesomely slain. To resist, Pontiac and the town’s desperate denizens will need to acknowledge the sins of their ancestors—the infamous slave traders, the Pirates Lafitte. If they don’t . . . it’s time to pay the piper."
Rewitched By: Lucy Jane Wood, read by Evie Hargreaves for Penguin -- "In this spellbinding warm and cozy debut novel, a burned-out witch will need to turn to her friends and trust in herself to find the magic in her own life again."
Nether Station by Kevin J. Anderson, read by Scott Brick for Blackstone -- "In the darkest part of the solar system lies a wormhole. Nether. Astrophysicist Cammie Skoura has joined the first research team traveling to the Nether anomaly, eager to understand the mechanics of the wormhole and to explore its possibilities as a shortcut to Alpha Centauri. But another race of ancient beings has already been here—an impossibly long time ago—leaving remnants of their vast complexes and gigantic temples built for horrific beings beyond comprehension."
BACKLIST WATCH:
Chimera by Alice Thompson (2023), read by Jess Nesling for W.F. Howes -- "Scientist and dream investigator Artemis is travelling to the distant moon of Oneiros. Her ship, the Chimera has been sent to look for organisms that will help assuage Earth's global warming, but it becomes clear on the journey that there are other disturbing reasons for the mission. Accompanied by dryads – sophisticated AIs with synthetic bodies – nothing is quite as it seems, even desire. Are we just a template of memories and experiences, or is there something that makes us uniquely human? And what is the role of emotion in forming consciousness?"
Lord of a Shattered Land: Chronicles of Hanuvar, Book 1 by Howard Andrew Jones (2023), read by Kevin T. Collins for Tantor -- "The Dervan Empire has at last triumphed over Volanus, putting the great city to the torch, its treasures looted, temples defiled, and fields sown with salt. What little remains of Volanus is scattered across the empire, its wealth plundered and its survivors sold into slavery. It is an absolute victory for the Dervans in every way but one. Hanuvar, last and greatest general of Volanus, still lives. He now travels the length of the Dervan Empire that conquered his homeland, driven by a singular purpose—to find what remains of his people who were carried into slavery across the empire, and free them from subjugation by any means necessary."
Flame: Dragonmaster Trilogy, Book 1 By: Katie Cross (2018), read by the author for Tantor -- "In Anguis, magic is forbidden. Deep in a magical forest lives the sleepy village of Anguis, where dragons are the rulers and witches are the Servants. Seventeen-year-old twins Sanna and Isadora Spence must soon face the Selectis—the moment when a dragon chooses them. For Sanna, the Selectis can't happen soon enough. For Isadora, she'd rather die. When unexpected events at the Selectis turn their world around, Sanna and Isadora are each forced to make a decision. Each sister will choose the wrong path, and each sister will suffer for it. Can they come back together to save their family in time from far more nefarious foes than they'd known existed?"
Spiderlight by Adrian Tchaikovsky (2016), read by the author for Macmillan -- "The Church of Armes of the Light has battled the forces of Darkness for as long as anyone can remember. The great prophecy has foretold that a band of misfits, led by a high priestess will defeat the Dark Lord Darvezian, armed with their wits, the blessing of the Light and an artifact stolen from the merciless Spider Queen."
Red Planet Blues by Robert J. Sawyer (2013), read by Perry Daniels for Tantor -- "The name's Lomax-Alex Lomax. I'm the one and only private eye working the mean streets of New Klondike, the Martian frontier town that sprang up forty years ago after Simon Weingarten and Denny O'Reilly discovered fossils on the Red Planet. Back on Earth, where anything can be synthesized, the remains of alien life are the most valuable of all collectibles, so shiploads of desperate treasure hunters stampeded here in the Great Martian Fossil Rush."
An Island Called Moreau By: Brian W. Aldiss (1981), read by Andrew Joseph Perez for Tantor -- "War is hell, and the conflict tearing the world apart may be humankind's last. Set adrift on a makeshift raft in the middle of the South Pacific, the sole survivor of a sabotaged space-shuttle flight, undersecretary of state Calvert Roberts is certain his life is coming to an end. But fate intervenes, depositing him dehydrated and half starved on the beach of an uncharted island with a giant M etched into a cliff wall. At first it appears to be paradise, but Eden has a dark side: Here, Dr. Mortimer Dart is playing God."
SERIES WATCH:
Bindle Punk Jefe: A Novel by Desideria Mesa, read by Frankie Corzo for Harper -- "The glittering sequel to Bindle Punk Bruja in which Earth witch Rose (Luna) Lane’s secret life comes to a breaking point as outside threats lurk."
Betwixt Two Worlds by R.A. Salvatore, read by Victor Bevine for Audible Originals -- "A sweeping adventure of the Forgotten Realms to mark the 50th anniversary of Dungeons & Dragons. When Drizzt Do’Urden first entered Icewind Dale in 1347, he found a place quite unlike anywhere he had ever known, a land of freezing winds and ferocious monsters, of dramatic vistas and unrelenting challenges. Most of all, though, he found a land populated by folk who knew all too well the price of a misstep, whether walking into a yeti den or trusting a stranger."
The Remaining: Coyote Song by D.J. Molles, read by Christian Rummel for Audible -- "Three scientists were sent to Virginia to investigate how a human settlement has managed to coexist with primals. Those three scientists have now gone missing. And apparently it’s Lee Harden’s job to find them, get them out, and–most importantly–retrieve their research."
The Grey Wolf: Armand Gamache, Book 19 by Louise Penny, read by Jean Brassard for Macmillan -- "Relentless phone calls interrupt the peace of a warm August morning in Three Pines. Though the tiny Québec village is impossible to find on any map, someone has managed to track down Armand Gamache, head of homicide at the Sûreté, as he sits with his wife in their back garden. Reine-Marie watches with increasing unease as her husband refuses to pick up, though he clearly knows who is on the other end. When he finally answers, his rage shatters the calm of their quiet Sunday morning."
YA WATCH:
- Don't Let the Forest In By: C.G. Drews, read by Michael Crouch for Recorded Books -- "High school senior Andrew Perrault finds refuge in the twisted fairy tales that he writes for the only person who can ground him to reality—Thomas Rye, the boy with perpetually ink-stained hands and hair like autumn leaves. And with his twin sister, Dove, inexplicably keeping him at a cold distance upon their return to Wickwood Academy, Andrew finds himself leaning on his friend even more. But something strange is going on with Thomas. His abusive parents have mysteriously vanished, and he arrives at school with blood on his sleeve. Thomas won’t say a word about it and shuts down whenever Andrew tries to ask him questions. Stranger still, Thomas is haunted by something, and he seems to have lost interest in his artwork—whimsically macabre sketches of the monsters from Andrew’s wicked stories."
INDIE WATCH:
The Time Door: The Eternities Series, Book 1 By: Shannon McDermott, read by Adam Verner for Oasis -- "Reuben Jackson is the only one who still cares about Mars. In the shambles of the Great Collapse, Earth has abandoned the Mars explorers to their fate. But Reuben will make a stand for the Mars team—even against the powerfully united politicians and scientists. In too deep, he discovers hidden conspiracies and unexpected allies."
Sycamore By: Ian Rogers, read by Andrew Tell for Spotify -- "People are dying in the town of Sycamore. A string of grisly murders have shaken the quaint Canadian suburb, and the most recent crime scene might provide the first solid lead—despite an easily fatal amount of blood, the victim is nowhere to be found. Most people would steer clear of a crime scene this gory, but to Private Investigator Felix Renn a missing persons investigation comes as a pleasant surprise. After a few run-ins with "Black Lands entities," Felix has developed an unwanted reputation as a monster hunter, and in a world where paranormal has become the norm, the opportunity to get back to simple human crime is almost refreshing. In Sycamore, though, Felix will find that darkness isn't so easy to escape."
The Song of Immaru: Earth's Door By: PJ Dudek, read by Kent Lutt -- "The vast plains of South Dakota offer Tarin solace from both his dreams of an unknown past and the rumblings of a new global war. Yet a haunting melody plays over the stillness of the grasslands, a melody he cannot escape—one that seems hungry to force him to . . . remember. When a stranger dressed like a medieval traveler enters town, the already nervous community responds with alarm. Is this man there to cause trouble like the other newcomers—those who claim to be part of a government organization observing a new illness in the area? And how does this man know Tarin when Tarin has no recollection of him?"
MOST MISSING:
Masquerade by Mike Fu (Tin House Books) -- "Newly single Meadow Liu is house-sitting for his friend, artist Selma Shimizu, when he stumbles upon The Masquerade, a translated novel about a masked ball in 1930s Shanghai. The author’s name is the same as Meadow’s own in Chinese, Liu Tian―a coincidence that proves to be the first of many strange happenings. Over the course of a single summer, Meadow must contend with a possibly haunted apartment, a mirror that plays tricks, a stranger speaking in riddles at the bar where he works, as well as a startling revelation about a former lover. And when Selma vanishes from her artist residency, Meadow is forced to question everything he knows as the boundaries between real and imagined begin to blur."
Jamaica Ginger and Other Concoctions by Nalo Hopkinson (Tachyon) -- "Afro-Caribbean, Canadian, and American influences shine in truly unique stories that are gorgeously strange, inventively subversive, and vividly beautiful. In her first collection of stories since 2015, a woman and her cyborg pig eke out a living in a future waterworld; two scientists contemplate the cavernous remains of an alien life-form; a trans woman at a funeral might be haunted by more than just bad memories; and an artist creates nanotechnology that asserts Blackness where it is least welcome and most needed."
The Off-Season: An Anthology of Coastal New Weird edited by Marissa van Uden (Dark Matter INK) -- "Contained within this anthology are strange and surreal stories of disquieting and disturbing "New Weird" horror set in landscapes and communities on the edge of the sea. These unsettling tales de-familiarize the ordinary, evoke dread in the daylight, and haunt like half-remembered dreams. They are tales of mysticism, psychedelia, outsiders, obsessions, collapsed boundaries, weird sea life, and the total abandonment of reason. Welcome to your stay on the other side. Please check your sanity at the door."