Tomorrow sees the release of three books I’ve been incredibly excited about for a long time!

Speak the Ocean by Rebecca Enzor
Genres: Fantasy
Published on: 9th July 2019
Goodreads

For Mer handler Finn Jarvis, the feral mermaid performers at Oceanica Marine Park are nothing more than ruthless aquatic predators, violent and unpredictable. That doesn’t stop the public from flocking to one of the world’s most popular tourist attractions. To them, the Mer are magical entertainment, too beautiful to be dangerous. They don’t see what happens to the ones who dare swim out of line.
Newly caught Erie doesn’t know what the evil landfolk want from her. Alone and voiceless, she watches the other merfolk from the confines of her tank. Broken into submission, they’ve become shells of the once vibrant creatures she knew. But Erie refuses to be subjugated. She’ll get the crowds to see her as something more than simple entertainment—starting with her captor, Finn.
While Finn trains Erie in her routine, she secretly teaches herself the air-words he and the other trainers speak. And when the language barrier falls, Finn starts to realize that the gap between human and Mer is smaller than he thought, and maybe it’s not the Mer who are monsters, after all.

I could have sworn this book contained LGBT+ themes when the premise first crossed my screen, but whether I hallucinated them or they’ve been removed, this still looks like an incredibly interesting story. I haven’t read a lot of books where mermaids were done well – Waterfire Saga I am looking. at. you. – but merging mermaids with the controversy of Sea World? Hell yes, sign me up. I want to see where this goes!

David Mogo, Godhunter by Suyi Davies Okungbowa
Representation: PoC
Published on: 9th July 2019
Goodreads

Nigerian God-Punk - a powerful and atmospheric urban fantasy set in Lagos.
Since the Orisha War that rained thousands of deities down on the streets of Lagos, David Mogo, demigod, scours Eko’s dank underbelly for a living wage as a freelance Godhunter. Despite pulling his biggest feat yet by capturing a high god for a renowned Eko wizard, David knows his job’s bad luck. He’s proved right when the wizard conjures a legion of Taboos—feral godling-child hybrids—to seize Lagos for himself. To fix his mistake and keep Lagos standing, David teams up with his foster wizard, the high god’s twin sister and a speech-impaired Muslim teenage girl to defeat the wizard.

I was lucky enough to be granted an arc of this, and I. AM. SHRIEKING. It’s so good, you guys; so good! I’m not quite finished with it, damn it – I really wanted to get a review up for release day! – but I’m hoping to finish it and write up a review by the end of the week. If you haven’t pre-ordered it already, you’ve still got a few hours! Trust me, you won’t be disappointed!

Spin the Dawn (The Blood of Stars, #1) by Elizabeth Lim
Genres: Secondary World Fantasy
Representation: PoC
Published on: 9th July 2019
Goodreads

Project Runway meets Mulan in this sweeping YA fantasy about a young girl who poses as a boy to compete for the role of imperial tailor and embarks on an impossible journey to sew three magic dresses, from the sun, the moon, and the stars.
Maia Tamarin dreams of becoming the greatest tailor in the land, but as a girl, the best she can hope for is to marry well. When a royal messenger summons her ailing father, once a tailor of renown, to court, Maia poses as a boy and takes his place. She knows her life is forfeit if her secret is discovered, but she'll take that risk to achieve her dream and save her family from ruin. There's just one catch: Maia is one of twelve tailors vying for the job.
Backstabbing and lies run rampant as the tailors compete in challenges to prove their artistry and skill. Maia's task is further complicated when she draws the attention of the court magician, Edan, whose piercing eyes seem to see straight through her disguise.
And nothing could have prepared her for the final challenge: to sew three magic gowns for the emperor's reluctant bride-to-be, from the laughter of the sun, the tears of the moon, and the blood of stars. With this impossible task before her, she embarks on a journey to the far reaches of the kingdom, seeking the sun, the moon, and the stars, and finding more than she ever could have imagined.

I mean, I have no idea where you’ve been if you missed this one somehow, but hey, no worries, you’ve found it now! With a stunning cover, glowing reviews, and a breathtaking premise, this has been on a lot of people’s most-anticipated lists, and I’m pretty confident that it’s going to live up to the hype. I can’t wait to download it to my e-reader tomorrow!

And that’s it from me! Are there other books releasing this week that I missed? Let me know!

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