The year is winding down, and the publishing world is winding down with it, but we still have FOUR books of interest this week!
Genres: Sci Fi
Published on: 13th December 2021
Goodreads
Sounding Dark is a legend, a ghost ship missing two hundred years. Now it may be the only hope for the pirate republic of Eresh to stand against the mighty Calpurnian Navy. In the wake of a terrible defeat, Adelita Massacre, the Steel Captain, knows that their days are numbered without a miracle.
Bister is the only survivor of the defeat, a Tainted smuggler and fixer from the interdicted world of Inanna. Found alive, adrift in a spacesuit hours after its air supply should have run out, her survival is a literal miracle. Has the Lady of the Void herself chosen Bister to free her from imprisonment?
Now Adelita, Bister, Bister’s lover Griffin, and the mysterious Navigator must find Sounding Dark and her ancient weaponry if they hope to protect Eresh from the Calpurnian attack. But Sounding Dark will not give up her secrets easily….
Candlemark & Gleam blazed onto my radar when they published Melissa Scott’s Water Horse earlier this year, and the rest of their catalogue is equally wonderful! So I sat up and paid attention when I heard of their latest release, Sounding Dark! I’ll be going in with almost no expectations – I only know that Scott herself enjoyed it immensely – but I can’t wait nonetheless!
Genres: Fantasy, Queer Protagonists
Published on: 14th December 2021
Goodreads
Wei Wuxian was once one of the most powerful men of his generation, a talented and clever young cultivator who harnessed martial arts and spirituality into powerful abilities. But when the horrors of war led him to seek more power through demonic cultivation, the world's respect for his abilities turned to fear, and his death was celebrated throughout the land.
Years later, he awakens in the body of an aggrieved young man who sacrifices his soul so that Wei Wuxian can exact revenge on his behalf. Though granted a second life, Wei Wuxian is not free from his first, nor the mysteries that appear before him now. Yet this time, he'll face it all with the righteous and esteemed Lan Wangji at his side, another powerful cultivator whose unwavering dedication and shared memories of their past will help shine a light on the dark truths that surround them.
Finally, an official English translation of the book(s) that became the tv show The Untamed! I’m so excited to get to read this – I haven’t watched the show, but many of my nearest and dearest have, and I’ve adored the clips and snippets I’ve seen here and there! I know I have to manage my expectations a bit – I’ve never read xianxia before, so I’m not familiar with the genre conventions and style. But I’m determined to not let that unfamiliarity get in the way of enjoying an epic story!
Genres: Fantasy, Secondary World Fantasy
Published on: 14th December 2021
Goodreads
Long-dormant magical forces are moving again in Sartorias-deles. In volume one, A Sword Named Truth, a shaky alliance made among young rulers brought too early to their thrones survived a first foray, commanded by Siamis, the handsome young Norsundrian who was born four thousand years ago. Siamis was defeated, and the world celebrated, believing peace had come!
But the world's mages know it's not the quiet of peace-it's the stillness before the storm.
At the start of volume two, The Blood Mage Texts, the alliance seems to be a thing of the past as everyone is dealing with the fallout of the abortive attack. Rel the Traveler arrives back home to a surprise that has been awaiting him since he was first adopted, launching him on a personal quest.
Jilo, the king who is not a king, finds what looks like dangerous magical texts and hands them off to his friend Senrid, young king of Marloven Hess, who is in the midst of wrestling with his warlike nation. When word gets out that these eight-hundred-year-old blood mage texts are in the ignorant hands of youngsters, all of Norsunder's mages want them.
Meanwhile Siamis has gone renegade, hunted by both sides.
All the searches converge on Chwahirsland, furnishing new twists in the on-going saga of the alliance of young rulers . . .
Sherwood Smith is one of my favourite authors, and this is the second book in her newest series! I haven’t let myself read the blurb to avoid spoilers (copy-and-paste is interesting with your eyes closed!) but I will be POUNCING on the book itself the moment it’s on my e-reader!
Genres: Fantasy
Published on: 14th December 2021
Goodreads
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Holly Black comes the “dangerously, darkly gorgeous” (Cassandra Clare) Curse Workers trilogy, now together in one beautiful bind-up!
Cassel Sharpe comes from a family of curse workers, people who have the power to change emotions, memories, and luck with the slightest touch of their hands. And since curse work is illegal, they’re also all criminals. Many become mobsters and con artists, but not Cassel. He doesn’t have magic, so he’s an outsider, the straight kid in a crooked family—except for the small detail that he killed his best friend, Lila, three years ago.
Cassel has carefully built up a facade of normalcy, blending into the crowd. But his facade starts to crumble when he finds himself sleepwalking, propelled into the night by terrifying dreams about a white cat that wants to tell him something. He’s noticing other disturbing things, too, including the strange behavior of his two older brothers, who are keeping secrets from him. As Cassel begins to suspect he’s an unwitting pawn in a huge con game, he must unravel his past, and his memories. To find the truth, Cassel will have to out-con the conmen.
This magical bind-up includes: White Cat Red Glove Black Heart
Possibly the least well-known of Black’s series is the Curse Workers trilogy, an urban fantasy set in a world where magical gifts are relatively commonplace – and greatly distrusted, with good reason! I really enjoyed these when I first read them – the conspiracy around Cassel is marvelous – and I have a special love for omnibuses, so I’ll be nabbing this tomorrow!
That’s it! Will you be reading any of these? Did I miss any books I should know about? Let me know!
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