Category: Swords and Spaceships

Nice AI to Counter The Rest

Post author By Alex Acks
Post date August 10, 2023

Sponsored by

Happy Friday, shipmates! It’s Alex, and I’ve got two more new releases for you, and a couple of books about nice AI to check out because it’s sure been a week for bad quasi-AI out there. I hope everyone had a lovely week! I’ve been reading a lot to relax (mostly Cassiel’s Servant, or as we call it in my house, “the book about the dumb boy”) but this weekend I’m hoping to go see the movie where Jason Statham punches a shark in the face for the second time. Wish me the time to do so! Stay safe out there, space pirates, and I’ll see you on Tuesday!

Delighting velocireaders since 2017, Book Riot’s New Release Index will keep you in the know about all the latest books. All of them! For when my double features are not enough, because there are too many good books. Subscribe today — you won’t be able to read them all, but it’s fun to try!

Let’s make the world a better place, together. Here’s somewhere to start: Entertainment Community Fund, which supports entertainment workers who are striking for living wages and a future where humans can continue to create art for each other.

Bookish Goods

Caturn Enamel Pin by artbyleoniejonk

My weakness for enamel pins is well established. But look at this one! It’s Caturn. An adorable cat with rings around it! The seller has a lot of other really cute Sci Fi-ish pins and bookmarks, too. $11.50.

New Releases

Forged by Blood by Ehigbor Okosun

Dèmi’s homeland has been invaded by the nonmagical Ajes who have committed a systematic genocide against her people, the darker-skinned, magic-wielding Oluso. Dèmi isn’t a revolutionary, though; she just wants to survive and live peacefully with her mother, who is teaching her to wield the magic that is her birthright. But when a misplaced act of trust by Dèmi causes the death of her mother, she gives up on peace and searches for vengeance instead.

Mister Magic by Kiersten White

Thirty years ago, the classic children’s program Mister Magic was shut down abruptly due to a tragic and horrific accident. Since then, the five cast members who survived have been trying to live their lives and move on; a thing made more difficult by the cultish fans of the old show — and the mystery of the show itself, which left behind no records and no evidence of who directed or produced it. But when the cast is brought back together at a remote filming compound in the desert, they find themselves reunited in purpose once more, to reclaim parts of their past…and perhaps to escape a trap.

For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter.

Riot Recommendations

This has been a frustrating week for some authors — yet more machine learning “AI” stuff using books without permission, basically. It feels like we are truly living in the most ridiculous timeline where AI is so far evil, but not even a cool kind of evil. So instead, here are a couple of books about AI being good, darn it. I will cling to this.

The A.I. Who Loved Me by Alyssa Cole

I often bounce off sci-fi romance because it’s either too sci-fi or too romance and doesn’t quite marry the genres properly…but Alyssa Cole knocks it out of the park with this one as far as I’m concerned. A traumatized researcher with a janky memory discovers that her neighbor’s sexy “nephew” is secretly an AI.

Loki’s Ring by Stina Leicht

In a universe where AI are raised by being partnered with humans, the ones Gita Chithra has raised are accepted socially as her children. When one of her children turns out to be in trouble, trapped on a mysterious alien artifact/world called Loki’s Ring, Gita will move heaven and worlds to save her.

See you, space pirates. If you’d like to know more about my secret plans to dominate the seas and skies, you can catch me over at my personal site.

Swords and Spaceships

Warning: This Book Will Keep You Up Until 3 A.M.

Post author By Alex Acks
Post date August 7, 2023

Sponsored by

Happy Tuesday, shipmates! It’s Alex, and I’ve got new releases, new releases, and more new releases for you today. I’m a bit sleepy today because I made a rookie mistake: I started reading Cassiel’s Servant before bed last night and “just one more chapter”ed myself until 3 a.m. Whoops. That’s the price of reading a good book, I guess. Stay safe out there, space pirates, and try to have a reasonable bedtime! I’ll see you on Friday!

Bookish Goods

a photo of a translucent sheet ghost bookmark

Ghost Bookmark by LittleBlackBats

This thing is just cute. It’s a translucent bookmark of a classic “person with a sheet over their head” ghost. Perfect for any book that needs to be a bit more haunted, particularly urban fantasy that involves ghosts! $8

New Releases

Masters of Death by Olivie Blake

Viola Marek is a vampire…and a real estate agent. The biggest problem she currently has in her life is that she needs to sell a house that’s haunted, and the ghost haunting it refuses to move on until the mystery of his murder is solved. She seeks the help of a medium named Fox who just so happens to be Death’s godson, and then things just get more complicated from there…

Lessons in Birdwatching by Honey Watson

Apech is a planet overcome with an illness that distorts time; Wilhelmina Ming and four other students have been temporarily assigned there for research purposes, but this position has exposed them to such brutality that they’ve turned to drugs and group sex to make it through their posting. When the group finds a horribly impaled corpse left outside their residence as some kind of warning, they truly begin to investigate and turn up a conspiracy that soon puts them in the middle of a civil war.

For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter.

Riot Recommendations

As is my wont, you get a double dose of new releases this week, since there is just SO MUCH coming out this summer.

Shigidi and the Brass Head of Obalufon by Wole Talabi

Shigidi is one of the Orisha, but unlike his brethren, he’s disgruntled and grumpy; he only answers the prayers of his followers — not that he has many left — so he can continue to exist long enough to have another drink. But when he meets a succubus (well…kind of) named Nneoma, they decide to break him free of his obligations and godhood together. But the rest of the Orisha have other plans…and they’re not all good.

Looking Glass Sound by Catriona Ward

Wilder Harlow is writing a book, semi-autobiographical, about a killer that cut through the small vacation town he lived in as a youth. He and his friends discovered a terrible secret in a cove near the bay, and made a pact about it. Yet the more Wilder writes, the less he trusts himself…and the more he begins seeing things that can’t possibly be real.

See you, space pirates. If you’d like to know more about my secret plans to dominate the seas and skies, you can catch me over at my personal site.

Swords and Spaceships

Stay Witchy and Bookish

Post author By Alex Acks
Post date August 3, 2023

Sponsored by

Happy Friday, shipmates! It’s Alex, with your second round of new releases for the week, and a couple of new short story anthologies to check out! I don’t know about you, but it’s been a heck of a busy week for me — mostly because I’m gearing up to move to a new place, and you know how much fun that isn’t. I’ve had to pack away almost all my books and my poor shelves look so sad now. Thank goodness for ebooks in these trying times! Stay safe and cool out there, space pirates, and I’ll see you on Tuesday! Have a great weekend.

Bookish Goods

Witchy and Bookish Sweatshirt by EarthCustom

It’s never too early to start thinking about October! And we’ve got a witchy anthology in the recommendations for this week so…I loved this unabashedly orange sweatshirt. (But it does come in other colors.) $25

New Releases

The Museum of Human History by Rebekah Bergman

At the age of 8, Maeve nearly drowned…but then she also never woke up. And never resumed aging. As Maeve sleeps and the world proceeds on without her, she becomes a curiosity to some and an obsession for others, a steady waypoint in a world of changing technology.

The Hundred Loves of Juliet by Evelyn Skye

Helene and Sebastian meet one cold evening in a small town in Alaska, and for Helene, it seems like a dream come true; Sebastian, however, sees only the oncoming tragedy. He knows they’ve lived this story hundreds of times, with different names, but they’re always Romeo and Juliet in the end. But this time, Helene is determined to see a different ending come to pass.

For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter.

Riot Recommendations

There seem to be a lot of cool anthologies coming out this month, so here are two to start you off!

Fit for the Gods: Greek Mythology Reimagined edited by Jenn Northington and S. Zainab Williams

An anthology of fantastical retellings of Greek myths, gender-bent, queered, race-bent, and inclusive — edited by Book Riot’s own Jenn Northington and S. Zainab Williams! Featuring stories by Alyssa Cole, Sarah Gailey, Mia P. Manansala, Valerie Valdes, and more.

The Book of Witches edited by Jonathan Strahan

This is an anthology of 29 new stories about witches, all kinds, from what one might traditionally imagine to those who run counter to all expectations. Featuring stories by C.L. Clark, Amal El-Mohtar, Andrea Hairston, Darcie Little Badger, Ken Lie, and more!

See you, space pirates. If you’d like to know more about my secret plans to dominate the seas and skies, you can catch me over at my personal site.

Swords and Spaceships

Guardians of Dawn vs. The Monster Plague

Post author By Alex Acks
Post date July 31, 2023

Sponsored by

Happy Tuesday, shipmates! It’s Alex, with your first set of new releases for August. And…it’s August? How did that happen? We’re deep into the summer now (at least in this hemisphere), and the books just keep on coming. Not that I’m complaining. I’m also recommending a couple of indie releases from last month that are definitely worth checking out! Stay safe out there, space pirates, and I’ll see you on Friday!

Delighting velocireaders since 2017, Book Riot’s New Release Index will keep you in the know about all the latest books. All of them! It’s perfect for when my double features are not enough, because there are too many good books. You can even filter by genre. Subscribe today — you won’t be able to read them all, but it’s fun to try!

Bookish Goods

a photo of a black embroidered throw pillow with the text "All knowledge is worth having" with an image of a rose and a stack of books

Kushiel’s Legacy Throw Pillow by LeoraCoutureLLC

This throw pillow is embroidered with a quote from the character Anafiel Delaunay. Color options are available! $53

New Releases

Zhara by S. Jae-Jones

Jin Zhara has a lot of problems: she’s at the mercy of a cruel stepmother and responsible for caring for her blind younger sister; she’s got magical gifts in a land where magic is forbidden, and thus must hide them; and now, there are rumors that the monster plague that nearly destroyed the Morning Realms 20 years ago is coming back. But a chance encounter with a young man named Han introduces her to the Guardians of Dawn, a secret organization of magicians on the case to stop the return of the monsters. Now Zhara must make peace with her inner magical warrior and help bring harmony back to her world.

Cassiel’s Servant by Jacqueline Carey

This book is a retelling of Kushiel’s Dart from the perspective of Joscelin, the Cassiline warrior-priest that eventually falls in love with the woman he’s sworn to protect. (I am unreasonably excited about this book, not going to lie. Joscelin was always one of my favorite characters!)

For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter.

Riot Recommendations

Here’s a couple of recent indie new releases that you should check out!

The Meadowlands by Kate Kelly

Four children being raised in a state home in a dystopian land stumble across a portal to another world, which they discover as a beautiful meadow hidden behind a crumbling city wall. This new, verdant world belongs to the Beigfur, small beings who once lived alongside humans, but have since moved on to a parallel universe. The children will learn about these new people, and humanity, and how they all relate to nature.

The Screaming Child by Scott Adlerberg

A mother’s child went missing long enough ago that she’s trying to move on…by writing a book about an explorer who was murdered in the wilderness. But when she hears the voice of her child screaming in the woods she’s traveled to for research, she cannot help but search.

See you, space pirates. If you’d like to know more about my secret plans to dominate the seas and skies, you can catch me over at my personal site.

Swords and Spaceships

This Barbie is Having an Existential Crisis

Post author By Alex Acks
Post date July 27, 2023

Sponsored by

Happy Friday, shipmates! It’s Alex, and I hope you’re having a very Barbie day. (I sure did see that this week! And it is a delightful and funny and thoughtful film that is definitely SFF — even better.) I have not had the fortitude to do the full Barbenheimer, but maybe this weekend it’ll happen. What I have for you are a couple more new releases, and a couple of books that put me in mind of the movie I just watched! Have a wonderful (and pink) weekend, with or without an existential crisis. Stay safe out there, space pirates, and I’ll see you on Tuesday!

What do S.A. Cosby, Khaled Hosseini, Sarah Bakewell, and Yahdon Israel have in common? They’ve been guests on Book Riot’s newest podcast, First Edition, where BookRiot.com co-founder Jeff O’Neal explores the wide bookish world. Subscribe to hear them and stay to hear Book Riot’s editors pick the “it” book of the month.

Bookish Goods

She’s Not Dead, She’s Just Having an Existential Crisis Sticker by FandomSophisticates

I’m on a Barbie kick right now, and here’s a sticker of one of my favorite lines from the movie! Have we not all felt that way now and then, regardless of gender? $3.50

New Releases

Infested by Angel Luis Colón

There’s very little worse for a teen than getting moved cross country right before senior year starts; the culture shock of going from Texas to the Bronx alone might do Manny in. He makes some surprising friends quickly, though: Sasha, who is protesting the luxury condo building Manny’s dad moved here to manage; and the building’s exterminator, Mr. Mueller. But soon, Manny starts having nightmares and building contractors start going missing, and it turns out Mr. Mueller might not be who he says he is…he might not even be alive.

Their Vicious Games by Joelle Wellington

Adina Walker is a scholarship student at the Edgewater Academy, where she stands out quite badly from the very rich — and very white — student population. She works hard to be perfect, but one moment of lost control leaves her blacklisted from any college she might want to go to. Her only chance to recover her future is to join the Finish, a mysterious contest that 12 ambitious female students can compete in for the ultimate prize of joining the Remingtons, the founding family of the school. But Adina soon finds out the stakes are far beyond opening the doors of colleges to her. A mistake here will be quite literally deadly.

For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter.

Riot Recommendations

In the afterglow of seeing Barbie, I thought of a couple of books that the film put me in mind of that I wanted to recommend!

The Giver by Lois Lowry

This is kind of a gimme for any movie in which an apparent Utopia turns out to be a creeping dystopia…though there are a lot of books that could fill that niche. In this case, The Giver also directly inspired the Kate McKinnon character in the film. I won’t go into the how or why, but once you’ve watched it, you’ll definitely understand.

The Midnight Bargain by C.L. Polk

The association here is a much more free-form one. Obviously, the world of The Midnight Bargain is not a woman-ruled, feminist Utopia by any stretch of the imagination. But it’s got the women challenging the patriarchy, the call-out of deep societal contradictions as a partial antidote, and also…there’s just something tonally about it that rhymes a bit, though I’d be hard pressed to explain what.

See you, space pirates. If you’d like to know more about my secret plans to dominate the seas and skies, you can catch me over at my personal site.

Swords and Spaceships

Riding On a Tidal Wave of SFF Releases

Post author By Alex Acks
Post date July 24, 2023

Sponsored by

Happy Tuesday, shipmates! It’s Alex, and I’m riding at you on a tidal wave of new releases I guess the publishers wanted to get in before the end of the month. I survived an extremely hot and sweaty weekend without my brain boiling off entirely, but I think listening to Wil Wheaton read What If? by Randall Monroe out loud helped by being a hilarious distraction. (The one that made me laugh the hardest for whatever reason was Relativistic Baseball.) Stay safe and cool out there, space pirates, and I’ll see you on Friday!

Bookish Goods

Janloon Temple District T-Shirt by TheBookRaven

Since we’re getting more Green Bone Saga this week, I wanted to point out this Janloon T-shirt. I love stuff like this, which looks like a souvenir from traveling to a book world. The seller also has a Kaul Du Academy sweatshirt! $25

New Releases

Immortal Longings by Chloe Gong

The kingdom of Talin hosts a most unusual competition in its twin capital cities of San-Er: a series of games meant for those able to jump between bodies and control them. Princess Calla of Er has been in hiding since her family was massacred…by her. These games will be her chance to finish her destruction of the monarchy by giving her a straight shot at her reclusive uncle, King Kasa. Anton is an aristocrat in exile, and for him the games are a chance to save the life of his childhood love, who languishes in a coma. Calla and Anton find each other as allies — and in Kasa’s adopted son August. But they all have wildly different goals, and each will have to make the choice between each other and their secrets.

The Possibilities by Yael Goldstein-Love

Hannah is new to motherhood; she had her son, Jack, just eight months ago, and since then, she’s been haunted by visions of other paths her life could have taken, ones where Jack didn’t make it through his fraught birth. She fears her hold on reality is slipping…until Jack disappears from his crib. The only way to get her son back is to tap into these other lives and other realities.

For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter.

Riot Recommendations

I know I do this a lot, but there are a TON of great books coming out this week, and here’s my chance to squeeze in two more you should have your eyeballs on. So that’s what we’re doing.

Jade Shards by Fonda Lee

This is a collection of four short stories that are prequels to Fonda Lee’s Green Bone Saga series, delving into the histories of the Kaul and Ayt families. Ayt Mada is an orphan with only one friend, a teenage girl who is also a renowned assassin. Kaul Lan is an impetuous young man who challenges his grandfather to force him to help a boy who has lost everything. Jaul Hilo and Maik Wen are a young couple whose families and social stations want nothing more than to keep them apart. And Kaul Shae, the apple of her grandfather’s eye, is also an informant for a foreign power.

Emergent Properties by Aimee Ogden

Scorn isn’t your average AI; ze is an intrepid reporter who excels at asking just the right question, which makes zir a massive disappointment to zir human mothers, the CEOs of the world’s most powerful corporations. But when Scorn comes online to discover that ze has lost 10 days of time and somehow forgotten what story ze was chasing, ze soon realizes ze is on the trail of the most explosive truth ze’s ever found.

See you, space pirates. If you’d like to know more about my secret plans to dominate the seas and skies, you can catch me over at my personal site.

Swords and Spaceships

SFF Summer Camp Scares

Post author By Alex Acks
Post date July 20, 2023

Sponsored by

Happy Friday, shipmates! It’s Alex, and I’ve got two more new releases for you this week, and a bit of a summer camp theme. Which I will admit has more to do with me being sweaty and cranky and mosquito-bitten all week than any kind of fond summer memories of the great outdoors. That might also be why the books are all a bit on the…dark side this newsletter. But they’re all still good reads, I promise. Stay safe out there, space pirates, and stay cool! I’ll see you on Tuesday if I haven’t melted under the unforgiving glare of the July sun.

Bookish Goods

Learn to Canoe Because Zombies Can’t Swim Patch by AresDesignCo

Going with the summery/summer camp theme this newsletter seems to have taken on, here’s a great camp badge — with a very true statement. We’ve seen and read about slow zombies, fast zombies…but no swimming zombies. Yet. $6

New Releases

Silver Nitrate by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

In ’90s Mexico City, the film industry is very much a boys’ club, and Monserrat is excluded despite her brilliance as a sound editor. Then her oblivious crush Tristán, a fading soap opera star, discovers their new neighbor is a cult horror director, one who claims to be cursed by never having finished shooting a film using stock imbued with Nazi occultist magic. He asks Montserrat and Tristán to help him shoot the missing scenes to lift the curse, but soon the two sense a dark presence closing in on them…

Camp Damascus by Chuck Tingle

Neverton, Montana is the home to a deeply religious community that insists it operates with a heart of gold — and one of its gems is Camp Damascus, the self-proclaimed “most effective” gay conversion camp in existence. But while the community touts its holiness, the camp’s secrets — and its successes — are anything but…

For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter.

Riot Recommendations

My AC unit has been broken since the weekend, and my house is only slightly cooler than the outside, meaning I’ve been hot and sweaty and cranky all week. Which is to say, it feels like summer camp to me, so here are a couple of darkly fantastic summer camp novels that fit my current state.

The Honeys by Ryan La Sala

Mars has been struggling in his politically-connected family; his genderfluidity means he keeps getting excluded from the activities of his politically active and well-connected family while his much more socially acceptable sister Caroline gets all the attention. But when Caroline dies horrifically, Mars sets out to find everything he can about her, which means going to the Aspen Conservancy Summer Academy in her place and discovering a dark fairy tale that runs on old-fashioned gender roles and toxic preparatory, rich-person nonsense. Then he finds his sister’s old friends, a group called the Honeys, and things start getting darker, with even his memories starting to give way…

you're not supposed to die tonight book cover

You’re Not Supposed to Die Tonight by Kalynn Bayron

This was supposed to be Charity’s dream summer job, testing her acting chops by playing the final girl at a slasher-themed interactive attraction that recreates parts of a classic horror film, The Curse of Camp Silver Lake. But then her co-workers start disappearing…and one of them winds up dead. Soon, if Charity and her best friend Bezi want a chance to survive the night, they’ll have to survive the actual history of Camp Mirror Lake.

See you, space pirates. If you’d like to know more about my secret plans to dominate the seas and skies, you can catch me over at my personal site.

Swords and Spaceships

Reality is Broken

Post author By Alex Acks
Post date July 17, 2023

Sponsored by

Happy Tuesday, shipmates! It’s Alex, and I’ve got new releases for you, and some SFF-adjacent nonfiction since that’s a thing I like to do occasionally. I hope everyone had a lovely weekend…and you all managed to stay cool since summer is in full swing, and it’s hitting some places extra hard for even mid-July. Keep hydrated, solidarity with workers everywhere — but this week especially the writers and actors that have brought our eyeballs so much SFF goodness — and stay safe out there, space pirates. I’ll see you on Friday.

What do S.A. Cosby, Khaled Hosseini, Sarah Bakewell, and Yahdon Israel have in common? They’ve been guests on Book Riot’s newest podcast, First Edition where BookRiot.com co-founder Jeff O’Neal explores the wide bookish world. Subscribe to hear them and stay to hear Book Riot’s editors pick the “it” book of the month.

Let’s make the world a better place, together. Here’s somewhere to start: Entertainment Community Fund, which supports entertainment workers impacted by the strikes.

Bookish Goods

Replica Doom Eternal Helmet by Vegvizir

I was in a Doom mood (haha a palindrome), as you will see later on, inspired by one of the new releases. And there are a surprising number of really great-looking Doom cosplay replicas on Etsy, but this one comes with a version that can be safely worn while playing airsoft, which is just bonkers. $95

New Releases

The Jasad Heir by Sara Hashem

It’s been a decade since Jasad was taken over by Nizahl, its magic outlawed and its royal family murdered…except for the heir, Sylvia, who has been in hiding. But when Arin, the Nizahl heir, attacks a group of rebels at her village, Sylvia lashes out in anger and reveals her magic. If she wants to survive past her mistake, she will have to make a deal with Arin to help him hunt the rebels to save her own life.

Charming by Jade Linwood

Prince Jean-Marc Charming Arundel (AKA “Prince Charming”) is a dream come true who shows up when a princess needs rescuing. Actually, he’s a con man who pretends to accede to betrothal so he can take a shot at the royal treasure before escaping. Little does he know that three of his victims have met up…and have made a plan.

For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter.

Riot Recommendations

It’s occasionally fun to read books that are sci-fi adjacent nonfiction, and this week, with Doom Guy coming out, I wanted to draw attention to that and another nonfiction book about video games!

Doom Guy: Life in First Person by John Romero

John Romero was one of the duo behind DOOM and Quake, hugely influential first-person shooters that definitely lived in the SFF space. This is a personal memoir on his part, starting with his childhood and going on the full journey of his career to making a game (haha) changer.

Reality is Broken by Jane McGonigal

Jane McGonigal is a game designer who wants to push video games beyond escapism and use them to address real-world social and societal problems, including depression and poverty.

See you, space pirates. If you’d like to know more about my secret plans to dominate the seas and skies, you can catch me over at my personal site.

Swords and Spaceships

Do You Dare Pass Through the Bright Doors?

Post author By Alex Acks
Post date July 13, 2023

Sponsored by

Happy Friday, shipmates! It’s Alex, with even more new releases for you for the week. That’s it, new releases. It was an absolute downpour of fresh books. It’s been an “exciting” (exhausting) week for me as a cat parent; my old man tabby Loki was sick over the weekend (don’t worry! He’s okay now!) and had to get an ultrasound, which made for a night afterward of following him around the house as he drunkenly staggered about. But there was also a lot of quality time on the couch with him and his newly-naked tummy, so it could have been worse. Have a wonderful weekend, space pirates. Stay safe, and I’ll see you on Tuesday!

Let’s make the world a better place, together. Here’s somewhere to start: Entertainment Community Fund, which supports entertainment workers impacted by the strikes.

Bookish Goods

Fantasy Book Shelf Map by MagicRowan

Now this is a cool idea if you’re looking for reading list suggestions! All of the books on the shelf are titled, and the idea is you color each one in as you read it. There are two more parts to this book shelf, and they also have a sci-fi/dystopia one! It’s a digital download, so you can just print at home. $5.50

New Releases

Ebony Gate by Julia Vee and Ken Bebelle

Emiko Soong was the Blade of her clan, one of the eight most powerful magical families in the world. She had no need for magic, however, only violence at her hand. When killing became too much, she retired early to a quiet life in San Francisco as an importer of antiques…until a shinigami comes calling with her family’s blood debt in hand, and a demand: Recover the Ebony Gate that holds back the ghosts of the underworld, or forfeit her soul as its new anchor.

Thief Liar Lady by D.L. Soria

A twist on the classical tale of Cinderella has this sad stepdaughter in league with her sisters, all of them conspiring together to use their wits and training to secure the wealth and power that their society has made dependent upon men. With some highly illegal magic at her beck and call, she’s out to become a princess and get them all set up for life… but of course, things don’t quite go according to plan.

For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter.

Riot Recommendations

As promised (threatened?) on Tuesday, he’s a second-second round of new releases, the only way I could deal with the absolute deluge of new books coming out this week.

The Saint of Bright Doors by Vajra Chandrasekera

Fetter has a god-touched destiny in a world where divine fates are a dime a dozen. He was raised to kill his own father, walked among devils and anti-gods, lost his shadow, and gained sorcery. It’s given him a lot to talk about in group therapy once he escaped his small hometown and made it to the city…except group therapy is actually a recruitment tool for revolutionaries, and any doorway might disguise a Bright Door, through which a cold wind blows — and who knows what else.

Stars, Hide Your Fires by Jessica Mary Best

Cass might be from a minor moon, but she’s an expert thief, and she has what she thinks is a foolproof plan: she’s going to travel to the capital of the empire, sneak into the emperor’s ball, and steal everything that isn’t nailed down. Too bad the emperor is found dead at his own party, making everyone on the grounds a suspect — including Cass. And worse, it looks like someone is setting her up to take the fall.

See you, space pirates. If you’d like to know more about my secret plans to dominate the seas and skies, you can catch me over at my personal site.

Swords and Spaceships

All Aboard the Space Elevator

Post author By Alex Acks
Post date July 10, 2023

Sponsored by

Happy Tuesday, shipmates! It’s time to kick off the first full week of July, are you ready? This is Alex, and I’m here to tell you that there is a bananapants amount of new releases this week — I guess the publishers were keeping their powder dry over the holiday. So coming at you this week will be a double-double dose of new releases because there are so many books I do not want you to miss. I hope you are staying cool in the heat that’s baking most of the world. Be careful, drink water, and stay safe space pirates! I will see you on Friday.

Let’s make the world a better place, together. Here’s somewhere to start: Entertainment Community Fund, which supports entertainment workers impacted by the strikes.

Bookish Goods

Space Elevator Poster by chopshopstore

This is a cool-looking poster (available in two sizes) that represents the space elevator that gets written about so often in science fiction. And it immediately caught my eye as relevant to one of the new releases this week…$29

New Releases

Counterweight by Djuna, translated by Anton Hur

The Korean conglomerate LK is building a space elevator on the island of Patusan, turning a once-resort into a travel hub that has the native residents more than upset. But the junk acting as the counterweight to the elevator is an even bigger deal: hidden inside it is a memory fragment of LK’s former CEO, which holds information that could affect the future of the entire world. A wide array of people, from the grand to the humble to the deeply strange, race to find that fragment first and take control of humanity’s future.

Cover of Splinter in the Sky by Kemi Ashing-Giwa

The Splinter in the Sky by Kemi Ashing-Giwa

The surrender of the last emperor in the wake of a failed war of conquest might be a big deal to politicians and nobility, but to a minor scribe like Enitan, it’s barely a blip. All she would like is to get out of being a scribe and run her tea business full-time. But then her lover is assassinated and her sibling is kidnapped by soldiers of the Empire, making all of the politics very much her problem. Armed with a tea tray, she will soon learn of herself what she will do for vengeance, for rescuing her sibling — and for freeing her homeland.

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Riot Recommendations

As mentioned in my intro, the number of new releases this week is an absolute deluge, so here are two more must-sees.

The Judas Blossom by Stephen Aryan

In Persia, the year 1260, the Mongol Empire covers much of the world, but Hulagu Khan, would see its borders expand further — using violence. When this fails, he gives his youngest son, Temujin, a chance to prove himself. But more powerful forces than simple blood and death are stirring. One of Hulagu’s wives seeks her own path to power; a Persian rebel has an opportunity to destroy the empire from within if only he can set his personal feelings aside. And an empire will rise or fall through all of their actions.

A Song of Salvation by Alechia Dow

Zaira is the reincarnation of the god Indigo, whose song created the universe and banished the god of destruction, Ozvios. So of course, an emperor would like to sacrifice her to honor Ozvios; her only chance of survival is to escape and find a boy named Wesley, who per prophecy is supposed to help her truly defeat Ozvios and the empire. No one asked Wesley if he wanted that fate; he’s a pilot and would-be smuggler who wants to finish his biggest payday yet, smuggling a celebrity wanted by the empire to a backwater planet called Earth. But when fate comes knocking, he’s not going to be able to smuggle any of them out of this…

See you, space pirates. If you’d like to know more about my secret plans to dominate the seas and skies, you can catch me over at my personal site.