For months I've been anticipating Clarence A. Haynes's adult debut, The Ghosts of Gwendolyn Montgomery. This is one of those books that plays like a movie, with high action and plenty of other-worldly intrigue to hold your interest from start to finish. Set in present-day New York City, it follows Gwendolyn, an overworked but effective... Continue Reading →
I'm a person who's obsessed with time and reality and the butterfly effect of everyday life decisions. This is what drew me to Paige Harbison's adult debut, The Other Side of Now. Over a decade after losing her best friend, Meg Bryan is a successful actress, but she's not happy. Nothing in her life is... Continue Reading →
Next week, V. E. Schwab will release her highly anticipated new novel, Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil. Divided between three timelines—1520s and 1530s in Spain; 1827 in London; 2019 in Boston—it follows three young women craving something more in life. But there's a price to pay when seeking freedom and answers. Though I've... Continue Reading →
Tomorrow is the release day for one of my most anticipated books this year, Behooved by M. Stevenson. This debut romantasy novel is for the horse lovers out there. When Bianca is sent to marry the neighboring kingdom's heir apparent, Aric, she doesn't expect to turn her new husband into a horse on their wedding... Continue Reading →
Two years after releasing her first novel, Emilia Hart is back with her second book, The Sirens. Set mainly in Australia in alternating timelines between 1800, 1999, and 2019, it follows pairs of sisters grappling with what makes them different and the otherworldly rumors surrounding their communities. Why I Chose This Book: Though I haven't... Continue Reading →
One month ago, Jude Deveraux released Order of Swans, the first in her Blue Swan duology. This blend of fantasy and sci-fi follows Kaley, a PhD student devoted to folklore, who gets sucked into a real-life fairy tale... on another planet. She and two companions (Tanek and Sojee) are on a mission to find a... Continue Reading →
My most anticipated book this week was Upon a Starlit Tide by Kell Woods. If the title and cover aren't already enough to entice you, here's more: Unfolding like a fairytale, this novel is set in 1750s France, where Luce, adopted as an orphan, has always felt loved but like something is missing. She longs... Continue Reading →
Jane Eyre but with more spice and more dark magic? Yes please! That’s what the marketing copy for Erin Elle's The Baron’s Demons promised, and that’s what instantly had me sold. Julia Woodrow is desperate to escape her abusive father's home, but has little opportunity to do so. She's lucky when a stranger, Gabriel, Baron... Continue Reading →
Last year I absolutely loved The Pomegranate Gate, the first in Ariel Kaplan's Mirror Realm Cycle trilogy. Set during the Spanish Inquisition but in a differently named world and a whole Mazik realm, it was a book that was a little bonkers and a ton of fun. Now, the second installment is here: The Republic... Continue Reading →
Today Raquel Vasquez Gilliland releases her second Wild Magic novel, Lightning in Her Hands. This book follows middle sister Teal, a volatile woman whose gift is changing the weather according to her moods. But she was four when her mother abandoned the family, taking a piece of Teal's magic with her; Teal has never had... Continue Reading →
Tomorrow Raquel Vasquez Gilliland releases her second Wild Magic book, of which I have an ARC... but I hadn't yet read the first installment! Witch of Wild Things had been on my TBR since it came out last year, and I'm glad I read it first. In Witch of Wild Things, Sage is back home... Continue Reading →
I didn't know what to expect going into A Song to Drown Rivers, the adult debut from Ann Liang. It's a retelling of the legend of Xishi, one of the famous Four Beauties of Ancient China, though I was not familiar with that legend. This book has also been labeled as fantasy, though I would... Continue Reading →
Since 2019, Silvia Moreno-Garcia has become one of my favorite authors, and I've read nearly all of her books by now. However, I still hadn't read her first two novels. Now available in audiobook form, I've finally read her debut novel, Signal to Noise. It starts in Mexico City in 1988, when teenagers Meche, Sebastián,... Continue Reading →
Two years ago, I really enjoyed Vaishnavi Patel's debut novel, Kaikeyi, so I was excited to read her newest release, Goddess of the River. Also inspired by Hindu mythology, this one reimagines the story of the goddess Ganga, specifically her role in the Mahabharata. Special thanks to Redhook and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of... Continue Reading →
Last year, I enjoyed V. Castro's novel The Haunting of Alejandra, partially inspired by La Llorona. When I saw that she had a new novel coming out, I was intrigued. Immortal Pleasures offers a new side to the story of the woman known as La Malinche, who interpreted for conquistador Hernán Cortés and has a... Continue Reading →
Several months ago, before the cover had even been unveiled, I was intrigued about The Emperor and the Endless Palace by Justinian Huang. Spanning three disparate timelines, spotlighting gay Chinese men, and infusing it all with a theme of rebirth and fate, this is a fantasy debut I knew could not be missed. Special thanks... Continue Reading →
Between her first two novels, I’ve become a big fan of Yangsze Choo. Now she’s back with her third novel, The Fox Wife, and I was thrilled to get an early read of it. Like her previous two books, this one combines historical fiction, fantasy, and mystery together, along with Asian settings and mythologies. This... Continue Reading →
The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years is Shubnum Khan's first novel available in the United States. This is one of those cases where the cover completely captured my attention; it is gorgeous and evocative. I also have a growing interest in djinn, so I was excited to read a new book in which they feature.... Continue Reading →
Although I had November reading plans lined up, all that got derailed when I saw this month's Amazon First Reads selections. Salt & Broom by Sharon Lynn Fisher was compared to one of my favorite novels, Jane Eyre, and I was helpless to resist. And after having some health issues lately, I was in need... Continue Reading →
A few years ago, I absolutely loved Constance Sayers’s debut novel, A Witch in Time. Now she’s back with her third release, The Star and the Strange Moon. Like her previous work, this one combines fantasy and horror seamlessly. It’s about a 1960s actress who goes missing, the cult horror film left behind and the... Continue Reading →
I’m officially in my paranormal romance era! And my pirates era, too? For months, I’ve been intrigued about Hunt on Dark Waters, the first in Katee Robert’s Crimson Sails series. Equal parts romance and fantasy, it’s set in the magical sea realm of Threshold, connecting many other realms, including one just like our own. It... Continue Reading →
This month I've been all about reading books involving vampires. My final vampiric novel is one I've had on my shelf for a couple of years: The Lights of Prague by Nicole Jarvis. I picked this up when it first came out, in part because of its eye-catching cover, and partly because I'm interested in... Continue Reading →
One of the books I was most excited for this year is Scarlet by Genevieve Cogman. It's the first in her Scarlet Revolution trilogy, a retelling of The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy. This novel has 1790s France (vive la révolution!), secret missions, vampires, and adventure—perfect if you want a fast-paced historical fantasy to sink... Continue Reading →
Though I don’t read much YA anymore, one author I’ve enjoyed is Isabel Ibañez. Her third novel, Together We Burn, came out last year, and I’ve been eager to get to it. Set in a Spain-inspired world, it follows a flamenco dancer who must learn to fight dragons in order to save her family home. ... Continue Reading →
Amanda's Book Corner 