New & Notable Books, September 2023
Daniel Abraham, Blade of Dream (Orbit US 7/23) The second novel in the Kithamar trilogy tells the bloody history of Garreth Left, an heir to a merchant family who falls for a mysterious woman. His search for her leads to ancient gods and dark deals, and his path could change the fate of the city itself.
Kemi Ashing-Giwa, The Splinter in the Sky (Saga 7/23) Ashing-Giwa’s stunning debut depicts colonization and imperialism on an interplanetary scale through the eyes of an impoverished scribe and tea expert, who takes advantage of her recruitment as a government spy to save her captured sibling and, hopefully, wrest her home province from under the thumb of the God-Emperor.
Sharon Lee & Steve Miller, Salvage Right (Baen 2023) Lee & Miller return to the popular Liaden Universe with a rousing space opera. When the malevolent AI that guides the space station Tinsori Light collapses in a spatial event, the Light Keepers and their backup hurry to stabilize the Light, overhaul its systems, and open it once more for trade as a slave-producing institute plans to infiltrate and claim the station for itself.
Chloe Gong, Immortal Longings (Saga 7/23) Gong’s latest fantasy novel is inspired by Shakespeare’s Antony and Cleopatra. The city of San-Er hosts a yearly set of games with 88 participants and a massive sum in prize money, and palace exile Anton and ex-princess Calla each enter, one for the money, one for the chance to kill the king. Gong ‘‘has created a rich and compelling world that means I’m excited that this is the first book in a trilogy.’’ [Alexandra Pierce]
Yume Kitasei, The Deep Sky (Flatiron 7/23) Earth’s only generation starship is knocked off its course by a bomb, and the only surviving witness, Asuka, is the prime suspect. Between flashbacks to the parental tensions and climate crises of her youth, she seeks the true culprit as she struggles to prove that she is not an imposter, even when she feels she is.
Fonda Lee, Jade Shards (Subterranean 7/23) Lee’s popular Green Bone Saga series returns with four short prequel stories. From the friendship between fan-favorite character Ayt Mada and a reluctant but renowned young assassin to the political subterfuge conducted by Kaul Shae, the stories delve deep into the characters of the trilogy and their relationships, complete with story notes by Lee.
Ken MacLeod, Beyond the Reach of Earth (Orbit UK 3/23; Pyr 7/23) Second in the Lightspeed trilogy, MacLeod’s new science fiction novel confronts the invention of faster-than-light travel and the discovery of the Fermi, mysterious beings across the universe displeased to awaken to find humans. A gripping, first-contact political drama.
Sara Flannery Murphy, The Wonder State (MCD 7/23) Five former friends are drawn back to their small hometown in the Ozarks by another friend’s disappearance in this supernatural thriller. ‘‘I can’t recommend TheWonder State enough; it delivered on all its ‘gothic supernatural Nancy Drew’ cover blurb promise, while giving readers so many complex characters (both in people and houses), that it injects new life into the perennially popular teen detective genre.’’ [Colleen Mondor]
Chuck Tingle, Camp Damascus (Nightfire 7/23) Rose, a senior in high school, attends a church tied to the most effective gay conversion camp in the country. When a demonic figure begins to haunt her relationship with her close friend Martina, Rose begins a quest to recover her own identity as she seeks the truth of the camp. A sharp supernatural horror novel.
Paul Tremblay, The Beast You Are (Morrow 7/23) Fifteen imaginative dark stories from Tremblay, one new, exhibit his talent for writing deeply human characters in deeply bizarre situations. From ghost stories to pandemic stories to SF to the titular animal fable, the collection is dreadfully chilling as often as it is subtly incisive.
Tobi Ogundiran, Jackal, Jackal: Tales of the Dark and Fantastic (Undertow 7/23) A collection of 18 short stories, two original, from Ogundiran’s recent work. ‘‘Jackal, Jackal is a great showcase of Ogundiran’s consistency and strengths of a storyteller and dark fabulist. Forget logic. These are stories you are meant to feel. Think Grimm by way of Amos Tutuola. Stephen King meets Cyprian Ekwensi.’’ [Wole Talabi]
From the September 2023 issue of Locus.
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