Memes

WAITING ON WEDNESDAY: Upcoming Science Fiction Releases

- Meg

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme originally hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine (though it seems as though it’s been a while since she updated that particular blog, so if you know of the current host, if there is one, please let me know) that highlights upcoming releases that we’re impatiently waiting for. This week I’m featuring upcoming science fiction titles I’m excited to read! I feel like I haven’t read enough scifi lately, and I definitely want to change that. As usual, pub dates change without warning, so keep that in mind! You can also click on the cover photos for more detail/bigger file size.

  • Battle of the Linguist Mages, by Scotto Moore – This is enough to make me want to read this immediately: Isobel is the Queen of the medieval rave-themed VR game Sparkle Dungeon. Her prowess in the game makes her an ideal candidate to learn the secrets of “power morphemes”—unnaturally dense units of meaning that warp perception when skillfully pronounced. (expected pub: January 11, 2022)
  • The Best of World SF: Volume 1, edited by Lavie Tidhar – I love reading science fiction from other places, especially non-Western ones, and I think this might be out already?? I see two different dates. Either way, definitely an anticipated read for me. (expected pub: April 14, 2022)
  • The Blood Trials, by N.E. Davenport – This one blends magic and science and is the first half a duology that focuses on a young Black woman who must survive deadly trials in order to become an elite warrior. I see comps to The Hunger Games and Stars Wars, and so far everything I’ve seen interests me! (expected pub: April 5, 2022)
  • The Kaiju Preservation Society, by John Scalzi – an alternate Earth, Kaiju, John Scalzi? A winning combo to me! (expected pub: March 15, 2022)
  • The Misfit Soldier, by Michael Mammay – Something about this cover drew me in, and then it being a ragtag bunch of soldiers in a military war drew me in, with comps to Martha Wells and John Scalzi. (expected pub: February 22, 2022)

FIRST LINES FRIDAY: The Wolf and the Woodsman, by Ava Reid

- Meg

Hello, Friday! First Lines Friday is a feature on my blog in which I post the first lines from a book I am interested in reading, either a new release or a backlist title! The latest feature for these reads some of my current reads, either recently finished, presently reading, or will read in the immediate future!

The trees have to be tied down by sunset. When the Woodsmen come, they always try to run.

The girls who are skilled foragers fashion little iron stakes to drive through the roots of the trees and into the earth, anchoring them in place. With no gift for forging between the two of us, Boróka and I haul a great length of rope, snaring any trees we pass in clumsy loops and awkward knots. When we finish, it looks like the spider web of some giant creature, something the woods might cough up. The thought doesn’t even make me shiver. Nothing that might break through the tree line could be worse than the Woodsmen.

The Wolf and the Woodsman by Ava Reid is a retelling of Little Red Riding Hood with Jewish and Hungarian roots that I am currently reading and enjoying!

WAITING ON WEDNESDAY: Upcoming YA Fantasy Releases

- Meg

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme originally hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine (though it seems as though it’s been a while since she updated that particular blog, so if you know of the current host, if there is one, please let me know) that highlights upcoming releases that we’re impatiently waiting for. This week I’m featuring upcoming YA fantasy titles I’m excited to read! As usual, pub dates change without warning, so keep that in mind! You can also click on the cover photos for more detail/bigger file size.

  • Together We Burn, by Isabel Ibañez – flamenco dancers, dragons, medieval Spain??? sign me UP (expected pub: May 31, 2022)
  • The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea, by Axie Oh – a Korean myth retelling, with Sea Gods, the most beautiful girl in the village attempting to wake him, and all the spirits in between. This cover is absolutely stunning, but I’m also here for myth retellings in any form (expected pub: February 22, 2022)
  • Extasia, by Claire Legrand – witches and covens, villages at the edge of the woods, mysterious things living in those woods, and truths buried in lies gives me a lot of M. Night Shyamalan vibes and I’m here for it. (expected pub: February 22, 2022)
  • Echoes and Empires, by Morgan Rhodes – forbidden magic, looks a little steampunky, possibly an enemies to lovers trope?? (expected pub: January 4, 2022)
  • Castles in Their Bones, by Laura Sebastian – this bit from the blurb – “there is one common truth: everyone underestimates a girl. Which is a grave mistake. Sophronia, Daphne, and Beatriz are no innocents. They have been trained since birth in the arts of deception, seduction, and violence with a singular goal—to bring down monarchies— and their marriages are merely the first stage of their mother’s grand vision: to one day reign over the entire continent of Vesteria” – is all I need to know (expected pub: February 1, 2022)

Which of these are on your TBR?

TOP TEN TUESDAY: Most Anticipated Releases for the Rest of 2021

- Meg

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly discussion hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl (and formerly hosted by The Broke and the Bookish), and this week’s topic is “Most Anticipated Releases for the Rest of 2021”! I’m sure there are others that I’m forgetting about, but in a glance at my to-read list and things I can remember off the top of my head, here are ten books I’m looking forward to that are coming out in the latter half of 2021. I can’t believe the year’s halfway gone already!! It’s been such a busy year, but I have a good feeling that the rest of this year is going to be amazing.

  • Well, This is Exhausting: Essays by Sophia Benoit– I’ve followed Sophia on Twitter for so long and have loved her presence on social media, so I’m excited to read her essays!
  • The Ex Hex by Erin Sterling – I love the vibes of this cover?? It’s a witchy romance out just in time for the spooky season.
  • Little Thieves by Margaret Owen – I have not read her duology yet even though I own them, but this has all of the fairy tale vibes I’m here for.
  • A Spindle Splintered by Alix E. Harrow – I really enjoyed her debut novel, and this retelling and reworking of the Sleeping Beauty fairy tale is calling my name.
  • The Death of Jane Lawrence by Caitlin Starling – I thoroughly enjoyed Starling’s debut, and this looks like the gothic horror I’ve been wanting (especially after reading Mexican Gothic).
  • Within These Wicked Walls by Lauren Blackwood – This is a Jane Eyre retelling, and I love seeing what writers do with that story.
  • Gilded by Marissa Meyer – I haven’t read the superhero trilogy of hers yet, but I’ve enjoyed everything else Meyer writes. The cover of this looks so good too.
  • Velvet Was the Night by Silvia Moreno-Garcia – After reading Mexican Gothic (and I’m in the middle of The Beautiful Ones now), I’ll read anything Silvia writes!!
  • The Penguin Book of Dragons by edited by Scott G. Bruce – Penguin puts out such great collections, and after their mermaid book a while back, I’m excited to see one come out about dragons!
  • Activation Degradation by Marina J. Lostetter – Having just read The Helm of Midnight by the same author, I’m looking forward to reading more of their work! This is recommended for those who like Martha Wells’ Murderbot series, and anything to do with robots/A.I./first contact is everything I enjoy.

What new releases are you looking forward to reading in 2021??

FIRST LINES FRIDAY: Chosen Ones, by Veronica Roth

- Meg

Hello, Friday! First Lines Friday is a feature on my blog in which I post the first lines from a book I am interested in reading, either a new release or a backlist title! The latest feature for these reads are all of the books on my Summer TBR!

EXCERPT FROM

Comedian Jessica Krys’s standup routine

Laugh Factory, Chicago, March 20, 2011

I’ve got a question for you: How the fuck did we end up with the name “Dark One” anyway? This guy shows up out of nowhere in a cloud of fucking smoke or whatever, literally rips people limb from limb — apparently using only the power of his mind — recruits an army of minions, levels whole cities, brings about a degree of destruction heretofore unknown to humankind … and “Dark One” is the best we can do? We might as well have named him after the creepy guy in your building who looks at you a couple seconds too long in the elevator. You know, the one with the really moist, soft hands? Tim. His name is Tim.

Personally, I would have gone with something like “Portent of Doom in the Form of a Man” or “Terrifying Fucking Killing Machine,” but unfortunately, nobody asked me.

Many thanks to Mariner Books for sending me a complimentary copy to feature and review!