New Books: 4 July 2023
Asher, Neal: War Bodies (Macmillan/Tor UK 9781529050080, £20.00, 576pp, formats: hardcover, paperback, ebook, audio, 7/6/2023)
Science fiction novel. Rebellion could be their salvation—or their doom. Long ago, the Cyberat left Earth to co-evolve with machines. Now, led by the powerful dictator Castron, their Old Guard believe that machines should replace the physical body. But these beliefs are upended with the arrival of the human Polity—and their presence ignites rebellion.
Butler, D.J.: Between Princesses and Other Jobs (Baen 9781982192693, $25.00, 304pp, formats: hardcover, ebook, 7/4/2023)
Fantasy novel. Indrajit and Fix are the founding partners of the Protagonists, a jobber company in Kish. Since the seven great families of Kish farm out all tasks they and the city need doing, a jobber might one day unblock a well; the next, man a tollgate for the fair; and on the third, hunt down a murderer on the loose, all in a corrupt old city that isn’t so much governed as kept barely in bounds.
Campbell, Jack: Implacable (Ace 9780593199022, $28.00, 368pp, formats: hardcover, ebook, audio, 7/4/2023)
Military science fiction novel. As far from explored space as any human has ever been, Geary and the Alliance fleet are on their own, protecting a diplomatic mission in territory belonging to an alien species with still-unknown motives.
Cawkwell, Sarah: Marvel: Wastelanders: Star-Lord (Aconyte 9781839082276, $16.95, 352pp, formats: trade paperback, ebook, 7/4/2023)
The Guardians of the Galaxy return to Earth to save the world from Doctor Doom in this exhilarating novelization of the acclaimed Marvel scripted podcast. Star-Lord and Rocket are a little older, a little slower, and a lot saltier than they were during their glory days. When they crash land in the desolate Midwest, they soon discover that Earth isn’t what it used to be either, 30 years after Doctor Doom seized control and created his new domain: the Wastelands.
de la Cruz, Melissa: After Death (Disney/Hyperion 9781368067003, $18.99, 368pp, formats: hardcover, ebook, audio, 7/4/2023)
Young-adult vampire novel. After defeating Lucifer and saving the world, Schuyler Van Allen woke up in an entirely different reality and learned she had to do it all over again. Find the villain, take him down, save the world. But after losing her only allies, Jack Force—who ran off to protect her—and Kingsley Martin, who was captured and killed by the enemy, Schuyler has to face facts. She’s going to have to do this alone….
Heartfield, Kate: Assassin’s Creed: The Resurrection Plot (Aconyte 9781839082351, $16.95, 336pp, formats: trade paperback, audio, 7/4/2023)
The conspiracies of the Templars reverberate across nineteenth-century Europe as they seize control of the future, and only the Brotherhood of Assassins can hold them back, in this globetrotting adventure from Assassin’s Creed.
Holloway, Verity M.: The Others of Edenwell (Titan Books UK 9781803363950, £8.79, 448pp, formats: trade paperback, ebook, 7/4/2023)
Horror novel. A dark spirit haunts an isolated Norfolk retreat in this unsettling and sinister historical horror set in the early 1900s, perfect for readers of Michelle Paver, Silvia Moreno-Garcia, and Andrew Michael Hurley.
Jacobs, Cait: Medievally Blonde (HarperCollins UK/Magpie 9780008609108, £14.95, 400pp, formats: hardcover, 7/6/2023)
Fantasy novel. Based on Irish folklore, Medievally Blonde follows Clíodhna, a princess desperate to win back the prince who broke off their betrothal, and Ronan, a warrior determined to prove himself. This book includes a majority queer cast of characters and chronic pain representation.
Lee, Sharon & Steve Miller: Salvage Right (Baen 9781982192686, $27.00, 512pp, formats: hardcover, ebook, 7/4/2023)
Science fiction novel. With origins in the Old Universe, the malevolent, acquisitive intelligence of Tinsori Light sought to infect others with itself, and send those agents out into the wide new universe to infect even more. For centuries, two heroes stood between Tinsori Light and the vulnerable universe—Light Keepers Jen Sin yos’Phelium and Lorith of the Sanderat. Just when it seemed that they—merely human—must fail, Tinsori Light, enfeebled by aged systems, succumbed to the stress of a unique spatial event… and died, leaving the station a shell.
Mohanty, Gourav: Sons of Darkness (Bloomsbury UK/Head of Zeus/Ad Astra 9781035900237, £25.00, 598pp, formats: hardcover, trade paperback, ebook, 7/6/2023)
Fantasy novel. Bled dry by violent confrontations with the Magadhan Empire, the Mathuran Republic simmers on the brink of oblivion. Senator Krishna and his third wife Satyabhama have put their plans in motion, both within and beyond the Republic’s blood-soaked borders, to protect it from total annihilation.
Reiche, Arianna: At the End of Every Day (Simon & Schuster/Atria 9781668007945, $27.99, 272pp, formats: hardcover, trade paperback, ebook, audio, 7/4/2023)
Novel with possible fantasy elements. The death of a celebrity leaves Delphi with the job of closing down an iconic California theme park, leading to questions about workers who disappeared.
Reynolds, Josh: Legend of the Five Rings: Three Oaths (Aconyte 9781839082313, $16.95, 336pp, formats: trade paperback, ebook, audio, 7/4/2023)
Fantasy gaming tie-in novel. When a long-lost member of the Lion Clan, Itagawa Mosu, seemingly returns from the dead to claim the hand of his betrothed, it’s up to Daidoji Shin to determine the truth of this miraculous reappearance. The Lion reluctantly permit Shin’s involvement, even if they have to let him plan the wedding as part of his investigation… Shin must navigate dangerous political waters to discover if Mosu really is the man he claims to be, or is he a cleverly disguised imposter? It will take all of Shin’s charm, wit, and flair to find out before the wedding begins. And the guests are already starting to arrive.
