Release Week: 22 April 2025
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Release Week: 22 April 2025
Posted on 2025-04-22 at 12:00 by Samuel Montgomery-Blinn
PICKS:
Eleven Percent By: Maren Uthaug, translated by Caroline Waight, read by Cassandra Campbell for Recorded Books -- "It is the New Time, a time not so different from our own except that the men are gone. All but eleven percent of them, that is, the minimum required to avoid inbreeding. But they are safely under lock and key in “spa” centers for women’s pleasure (trained by amazons to fulfill all desires) and procreation. A few women protest that the males should be treated better–more space, better food, but all agree that testosterone cannot be allowed to roam free. The old patriarchal cities are crumbling, becoming overgrown; people now live in “round communities.” But if you prefer the slum, that’s okay too. Religion has survived, sort of: women priestesses speak in tongues, inspired by snake venom, as apples are passed around to the congregation. But all social engineering has its costs."
Eat the Ones You Love By: Sarah Maria Griffin, read by Barry McStay and Lauren O’Leary for Macmillan -- "After losing her job and her fiancé and moving back from the city to live with her parents, Shell Pine needs some help. And according to the sign in the window, the florist shop in the mall does too. Shell gets the gig, and the flowers she works with there are just the thing she needs to cheer up. Or maybe it’s Neve, the beautiful shop manager, who is making her days so rosy? But you have to get your hands dirty if you want your garden to grow—and Neve’s secrets are as dark and dangerous as they come. In the back room of the flower shop, a young sentient orchid actually runs the show, and he is hungry . . . and he has a plan for them all."
When the Wolf Comes Home By: Nat Cassidy, read by Helen Laser with the author for Macmillan -- "One night, Jess, a struggling actress, finds a five-year-old runaway hiding in the bushes outside her apartment. After a violent, bloody encounter with the boy's father, she and the boy find themselves running for their lives. As they attempt to evade the boy's increasingly desperate father, Jess slowly comes to a horrifying understanding of the butchery that follows them—the boy can turn his every fear into reality. And when the wolf finally comes home, no one will be spared."
Down in the Sea of Angels By: Khan Wong, read by Eunice Wong for Dreamscape Lore -- "An intense and thoughtful time-travelling dystopian fantasy where three individuals, psychically linked through time, fight enslavement, exploitation, and environmental collapse."
NEW EDITION WATCH:
- The Book of Form and Emptiness: A Novel by Ruth Ozeki (2021), read by the author for Penguin -- Ozeki is a fantastic narrator and while I never listened to the Kerry Shale narration, this will certainly be the standard for Ozeki's Women's Prize for Fiction-winning novel: "A boy who hears the voices of objects all around him; a mother drowning in her possessions; and a Book that might hold the secret to saving them both."
YA WATCH:
- The Corruption of Hollis Brown By: K. Ancrum, read by Andrew Gibson for Harper -- "A queer romantic thriller in which the lives of Hollis, a boy in search of meaning, and Walt, a spirit with unfinished business, collide when Walt takes possession of Hollis's body...and maybe his heart."
NON-FICTION WATCH:
Hope Dies Last: Visionary People Across the World, Fighting to Find Us a Future By: Alan Weisman, read by Fred Sanders with the author for Penguin -- "The award-winning environmental journalist’s extraordinary, long-awaited portrait of hope and resilience as we face a fractured and uncertain future."
The Book of Alchemy: A Creative Practice for an Inspired Life edited by Suleika Jaouad, read by the author with a full cast for Books On Tape -- "A guide to the art of journaling—and a meditation on the central questions of life—by the bestselling author of Between Two Kingdoms, with contributions from Hanif Abdurraqib, Jon Batiste, Salman Rushdie, Gloria Steinem, George Saunders, and many more."
The Word of Dog: What Our Canine Companions Can Teach Us About Living a Good Life by Mark Rowlands, read by Todd McLaren for HighBridge -- "A heartwarming philosophical meditation on how to live a fulfilling life—inspired by the inherent happiness of dogs."
SERIES WATCH:
- Saint Death's Herald: Saint Death, Book 2 By: C. S. E. Cooney, read by the author for Recorded Books -- "Heartbroken, exiled from her homeland as a traitor, Lanie Stones would rather take refuge in good books and delicate pastries than hunt a deathless abomination, but that is the duty she has chosen."
INDIE WATCH:
Dragonhart By: Abbie Eaton, read by Lizzy Watts for One More Chapter -- "Arla Reinhart, personal assassin to the King of Hadalyn, doesn’t believe in the gods and their dragons who once served the people – not after they abandoned her when she needed them most. But when shipments start going missing and the kingdoms begin to crumble, they may be the only ones who can help."
House of Thorns By: Lee Mountford, read by Hannibal Hills for Broken Sky Media -- "When Emily arrives at Erimus House, a sprawling old manor turned children’s home, she hopes for a fresh start. But alongside her new companions—Ollie, Daniel, and Lucy—she soon discovers that the house is far from ordinary. Strange sounds echo in empty halls, shadows move in impossible ways, and an unseen presence seems to be watching their every move. Years later, the four friends, now adults, return to Erimus House to honour a promise to their enigmatic guardian, Eleanore. But the house has changed—and so has the darkness within it."
The Rapscallion Agency: The Rapscallion Agency, Book 1 By: Christof Laputka (2023), read by a full cast -- "Set shortly after the events of the award-winning The Leviathan Chronicles, this spinoff series continues the adventures of its two youngest characters, Lisette Mainsabiles and Paul Kim (aka Cluracan) as they use their unique skills to start a business, navigate young love, and lovingly care for a cybernetic rat."
Dawn of Adakia: Silvan Outlands, Book 1 By: R.K. Lander (2024), read by Daniel Thomas May for Tantor -- "All Fel'annár wants is to find solace in family, companionship after a lifetime of war. But his arrival in Boscandia sparks hope for unity amongst the warring Adak tribes who seek independence for Adakia, ancestral lands they mean to claim from the ruling Scandic elves. To others, his presence is a danger that must be swiftly dealt with. As a sinister enemy rears from the shadows of exile, Fel'annár finds himself caught in the midst of conflict once more, torn between a land war and a treacherous move on the throne."
The Last City By: Carmiel Banasky, Jonathon Roessler, Lindsay Gelfand, and Lex Edness, read by Jeannie Tirado, Celia Rose Gooding, Rhea Seehorn, Maury Sterling, and Skye Lourie for Wondery -- "In the climate-ravaged year of 2072, Pura stands as a miraculous green haven, a geo-engineered paradise that protects lucky residents from the global catastrophes of heat domes, fires, floods, and droughts. Demetria Lopez is Pura's PR fixer, tirelessly promoting the city's idyllic image. But when she stumbles upon a dark secret that underpins Pura's existence, she must decide who and what she is willing to protect."
MOST MISSING:
- Colourfields: Writing About Writing About Science Fiction by Paul Kincaid (Briardene Books) -- "A wide-ranging, deeply knowledgeable, cheerfully argumentative exploration of how historians, critics, biographers have thought about the many interweaving traditions of science fiction. In the reviews and essays collected here, Paul Kincaid examines the changing stories told about SF, asks how different theoretical approaches are useful (or not) to readers, and demonstrates why in the end, it’s each individual perspective – each individual work – that really matters."