New Speculative Fiction for October 2019!

10/01/19
Crier's War
Crier's War, Book #1
by Nina Varela
ISBN-13: 978-0062823946
Publisher: HarperTeen
Pages: 448
Amazon, Goodreads
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From debut author Nina Varela comes the first book in an Own Voices, richly imagined epic fantasy duology about an impossible love between two girls—one human, one Made—whose romance could be the beginning of a revolution.

Perfect for fans of Marie Rutkoski’s The Winner’s Curse as well as Game of Thrones and Westworld.

After the War of Kinds ravaged the kingdom of Rabu, the Automae, designed to be the playthings of royals, usurped their owners’ estates and bent the human race to their will.

Now Ayla, a human servant rising in the ranks at the House of the Sovereign, dreams of avenging her family’s death…by killing the sovereign’s daughter, Lady Crier.

Crier was Made to be beautiful, flawless, and to carry on her father’s legacy. But that was before her betrothal to the enigmatic Scyre Kinok, before she discovered her father isn’t the benevolent king she once admired, and most importantly, before she met Ayla.

Now, with growing human unrest across the land, pressures from a foreign queen, and an evil new leader on the rise, Crier and Ayla find there may be only one path to love: war.

10/01/19
The Good Luck Girls
Good Luck Girls Duology, Book #1
by Charlotte Nicole Davis
ISBN-13: 978-1250299703
Publisher: Tor Teen
Pages: 336
Amazon, Goodreads
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Westworld meets The Handmaid's Tale in this stunning fantasy adventure from debut author Charlotte Nicole Davis.

Aster, the protector
Violet, the favorite
Tansy, the medic
Mallow, the fighter
Clementine, the catalyst

THE GOOD LUCK GIRLS

The country of Arketta calls them Good Luck Girls--they know their luck is anything but. Sold to a "welcome house" as children and branded with cursed markings. Trapped in a life they would never have chosen.

When Clementine accidentally murders a man, the girls risk a dangerous escape and harrowing journey to find freedom, justice, and revenge in a country that wants them to have none of those things. Pursued by Arketta's most vicious and powerful forces, both human and inhuman, their only hope lies in a bedtime story passed from one Good Luck Girl to another, a story that only the youngest or most desperate would ever believe.

It's going to take more than luck for them all to survive.

10/01/19
The Memory Thief
by Lauren Mansy
ISBN-13: 978-0310767657
Publisher: Blink
Pages: 368
Amazon, Goodreads
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In the Realm of Craewick, memories reign. The power-obsessed ruler of the city, Madame, has cultivated a society in which memories are currency, citizens are divided by ability, and Gifted individuals can take memories from others through touch as they please.

Seventeen-year-old Etta Lark is desperate to live outside of the corrupt culture, but grapples with the guilt of an accident that has left her mother bedridden in the city’s asylum. When Madame threatens to put her mother up for Auction, a Craewick tradition in which a “worthless” person’s memories are sold to the highest bidder before she is killed, Etta will do whatever it takes to save her. Even if it means rejoining the Shadows, the rebel group she swore off in the wake of the accident years earlier.

To prove her allegiance to the Shadows and rescue her mother, Etta must steal a memorized map of the Maze, a formidable prison created by the bloodthirsty ruler of a neighboring realm. So she sets out on a journey in which she faces startling attacks, unexpected romance, and, above all, her own past in order to set things right in her world.

10/01/19
Ninth House
Alex Stern, Book #1
by Leigh Bardugo 
ISBN-13: 978-1250313072
Publisher: Flatiron Books
Pages: 448
Amazon, Goodreads
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The mesmerizing adult debut from #1 New York Times bestselling author Leigh Bardugo

Galaxy “Alex” Stern is the most unlikely member of Yale’s freshman class. Raised in the Los Angeles hinterlands by a hippie mom, Alex dropped out of school early and into a world of shady drug dealer boyfriends, dead-end jobs, and much, much worse. By age twenty, in fact, she is the sole survivor of a horrific, unsolved multiple homicide. Some might say she’s thrown her life away. But at her hospital bed, Alex is offered a second chance: to attend one of the world’s most elite universities on a full ride. What’s the catch, and why her?

Author Leigh Bardugo

Still searching for answers to this herself, Alex arrives in New Haven tasked by her mysterious benefactors with monitoring the activities of Yale’s secret societies. These eight windowless “tombs” are well-known to be haunts of the future rich and powerful, ranging from Jodie Foster to George W. Bush. But their occult activities are revealed to be more sinister and more supernatural than any paranoid imagination might conceive.

NINTH HOUSE is the long-awaited adult debut by the beloved author of SHADOW AND BONE and CROOKED KINGDOM. Leigh Bardugo will take her place alongside Lev Grossman, Deborah Harkness, and Neil Gaiman as one of the finest practitioners of literary fantasy writing today.

10/01/19
Shadow Frost
by Coco Ma
ISBN-13: 978-1982527440
Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
Pages: 400
Amazon, Goodreads
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Something dark is brewing in the kingdom of Axaria. A monstrous beast has been laying waste to the villagers and their homes. Described as a shadow demon summoned from the darkest depths of the Immortal Realm, it is invulnerable. Dozens and dozens of soldiers are sent out to hunt it down ... and not one has ever returned.

When Asterin Faelenhart, the Princess of Axaria and heir to the throne, realizes that she may hold the key to the demon's defeat, she vows not to rest until the demon is slayed. With the help of her friends, Asterin sets out to complete a single task-the task that countless trained soldiers have failed. To kill it.

As they hunt for the demon, they unearth a plot to assassinate the princess. Asterin and her friends begin to wonder how much of their lives have been lies, especially when they realize that the center of the web of deceit might very well be themselves. With no one else to turn to, they are forced to ask just how much they are willing to sacrifice to protect the world that they have always known.

10/08/19
The Beautiful
The Beautiful, Book #1
by Renee Ahdieh
ISBN-13: 978-1524738174
Publisher: Penguin Teen
Pages: 416
Amazon, Goodreads
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New York Times bestselling author Renée Ahdieh returns with a sumptuous, sultry and romantic new series set in 19th century New Orleans where vampires hide in plain sight.

In 1872, New Orleans is a city ruled by the dead. But to seventeen-year-old Celine Rousseau, New Orleans provides her a refuge after she's forced to flee her life as a dressmaker in Paris. Taken in by the sisters of the Ursuline convent along with six other girls, Celine quickly becomes enamored with the vibrant city from the music to the food to the soirées and--especially--to the danger. She soon becomes embroiled in the city's glitzy underworld, known as La Cour des Lions, after catching the eye of the group's leader, the enigmatic Sèbastien Saint Germain. When the body of one of the girls from the convent is found in the lair of La Cour des Lions, Celine battles her attraction to him and suspicions about Sèbastien's guilt along with the shame of her own horrible secret.

When more bodies are discovered, each crime more gruesome than the last, Celine and New Orleans become gripped by the terror of a serial killer on the loose--one Celine is sure has set her in his sights . . . and who may even be the young man who has stolen her heart. As the murders continue to go unsolved, Celine takes matters into her own hands and soon uncovers something even more shocking: an age-old feud from the darkest creatures of the underworld reveals a truth about Celine she always suspected simmered just beneath the surface.

At once a sultry romance and a thrilling murder mystery, master storyteller Renée Ahdieh embarks on her most potent fantasy series yet: The Beautiful. And these vampires don’t sparkle. They slay.

10/08/19
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire: The Illustrated Edition
Harry Potter, Book #4
by J.K. Rowling
Hardcover: 464 pages
Publisher: Arthur A. Levine Books; Illustrated edition
ISBN-13: 978-0545791427
Amazon, Goodreads
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The fourth book in the beloved Harry Potter series, now illustrated in glorious full color by award-winning artist Jim Kay.

Harry Potter wants to get away from the pernicious Dursleys and go to the International Quidditch Cup with Hermione, Ron, and the Weasleys. He wants to dream about Cho Chang, his crush (and maybe do more than dream). He wants to find out about the mysterious event involving two other rival schools of magic, and a competition that hasn't happened for a hundred years. He wants to be a normal, fourteen-year-old wizard. Unfortunately for Harry Potter, he's not normal - even by wizarding standards. And in this case, different can be deadly.

With dazzling illustrations from Jim Kay, this new fully illustrated edition of the complete and unabridged text of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire is sure to delight fans and first-time readers alike.

10/08/19
Into the Crooked Place
Into the Crooked Place, Book #1
by Alexandra Christo
ISBN-13: 978-1250318374
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Pages: 384
Amazon, Goodreads
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Selling dark magic on the streets for her kingpin, Tavia knows just how many tricks she needs up her sleeve to survive. But when a dangerous new magic takes hold, she uncovers a sinister plot that threatens to destroy the realm she calls home. Desperate to put an end to her kingpin’s plan, Tavia forms an unlikely alliance with three crooks even more deadly than her:

Wesley, the kingpin’s prodigy and most renowned criminal in the realm.
Karam, an underground fighter with a penchant for killing first and forgetting to ask questions.

And Saxony, a Crafter in hiding who will stop at nothing to avenge her family.

With the reluctant saviours assembled, they embark on a quest to put an end to the dark magic before it’s too late. But even if they can take down the kingpin and save the realm, the one thing they can’t do is trust each other.

10/15/19
Fireborne
The Aurelian Cycle,  Book #1
by Rosaria Munda
ISBN-13: 978-0525518211
Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers
Pages: 336
Amazon, Goodreads
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Seraphina meets Red Rising in a debut young adult fantasy that's full of rivalry, romance . . . and dragons.

The brutal revolution that overthrew the Dragonlords may have orphaned Annie and Lee, but it's brought new hope to their city. Now anyone--including the lowborn--can have wealth, an education, and even test into the governing class of dragonriders.

Aristocratic by birth and with his identity concealed, Lee's confidence and air of power have made him a rising star in the very regime that slaughtered his family. Annie, a former serf, is as bold a rider as they come--in the air. On the ground, she struggles with self-doubt. 

Now, after seven years of friendship, Annie and Lee are the city's boldest and most daring riders, rivals for the top position in the city's fleet. All the riders have been preparing to lead their people into the future, yet no one is ready when survivors from the Dragonlord families resurface with dragons of their own, bent on reclaiming the city. 

Author Rosaria Munda

With war looming and their relationship growing, Annie and Lee will both have to confront wavering loyalties. Lee will be forced to choose between killing the only family he has left, or betraying everything he's come to believe in, while Annie will have to decide whether to protect the boy she loves . . . or step up to be the champion her city needs.

*Previous blurb: Inspired by Plato’s Republic and told from a dual point of view, the story is pitched as Aegon Targaryen and Hermione Granger with dragons, set in the aftermath of a bloody revolution.

10/15/19
The Never Tilting World
Never Tilting World, Book #1
by Rin Chupeco
ISBN-13: 978-0062821799
Publisher: HarperTeen 
Pages: 496
Amazon, Goodreads
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A world split between day and night. Two sisters who must unite it. The author of The Bone Witch kicks off an epic YA fantasy duology perfect for fans of Furyborn.

Generations of twin goddesses have long ruled Aeon—until one sister’s betrayal split their world in two. A Great Abyss now divides two realms: one cloaked in eternal night, the other scorched beneath an ever-burning sun.

While one sister rules the frozen fortress of Aranth, her twin rules the sand-locked Golden City—each with a daughter by their side. Now those young goddesses must set out on separate, equally dangerous journeys in hopes of healing their broken world. No matter the sacrifice it demands.

Told from four interweaving perspectives, this sweeping duology packs elemental magic, star-crossed romance, and incredible landscapes into a spectacular fantasy adventure that’s equal parts Frozen and Mad Max: Fury Road.

10/15/19
Tarnished Are the Stars
by Rosiee Thor
ISBN-13: 978-1338312270
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Pages: 384
Amazon, Goodreads
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A secret beats inside Anna Thatcher's chest: An illegal clockwork heart. Anna works cog by cog -- donning the moniker Technician -- to supply black market medical technology to the sick and injured, against the Commissioner's tyrannical laws.

Nathaniel Fremont, the Commissioner's son, has never had to fear the law. Determined to earn his father's respect, Nathaniel sets out to capture the Technician. But the more he learns about the outlaw, the more he questions whether his father's elusive affection is worth chasing at all.

Their game of cat and mouse takes an abrupt turn when Eliza, a skilled assassin and spy, arrives. Her mission is to learn the Commissioner's secrets at any cost -- even if it means betraying her own heart.

When these uneasy allies discover the most dangerous secret of all, they must work together despite their differences and put an end to a deadly epidemic -- before the Commissioner ends them first.

10/15/19
War Girls
by Tochi Onyebuchi
ISBN-13: 978-0451481672
Publisher: Razorbill
Pages: 464
Amazon, Goodreads
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Two sisters are torn apart by war and must fight their way back to each other in a futuristic, Black Panther-inspired Nigeria.

The year is 2172. Climate change and nuclear disasters have rendered much of earth unlivable. Only the lucky ones have escaped to space colonies in the sky. 

In a war-torn Nigeria, battles are fought using flying, deadly mechs and soldiers are outfitted with bionic limbs and artificial organs meant to protect them from the harsh, radiation-heavy climate. Across the nation, as the years-long civil war wages on, survival becomes the only way of life. 

Two sisters, Onyii and Ify, dream of more. Their lives have been marked by violence and political unrest. Still, they dream of peace, of hope, of a future together.

And they're willing to fight an entire war to get there.

Acclaimed author, Tochi Onyebuchi, has written an immersive, action-packed, deeply personal novel perfect for fans of Nnedi Okorafor, Marie Lu, and Paolo Bacigalupi.

10/29/19
All the Things We Do in the Dark
by Saundra Mitchell
ISBN-13: 978-0062852595
Publisher: HarperTeen 
Pages: 304
Amazon, Goodreads
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There’s no such thing as a secret.

SOMETHING happened to Ava. The curving scar on her face is proof. But Ava would rather keep that something hidden—buried deep in her heart and her soul.

She has her best friend Syd, and she has her tattoos—a colorful quilt, like a security blanket, over her whole body—and now, suddenly, she has Hailey. Beautiful, sweet Hailey, who seems to like Ava as much as she likes her. And Ava isn’t letting anything get in the way of finally, finally seeking peace. But in the woods on the outskirts of town, the traces of someone else’s secrets lie frozen, awaiting Ava’s discovery—and what Ava finds threatens to topple the carefully-constructed wall of normalcy that she’s spent years building. Secrets leave scars. But when the secret in question is not your own—do you ignore the truth and walk away? Or do you uncover it from its shallow grave, and let it reopen old wounds—wounds that have finally begun to heal?

10/29/19
Beyond the Black Door
by A.M. Strickland
ISBN-13: 978-1250198747
Publisher: Imprint 
Pages: 400
Amazon, Goodreads
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Beyond the Black Door is a young adult dark fantasy about unlocking the mysteries around and within us―no matter the cost ...

Everyone has a soul. Some are beautiful gardens, others are frightening dungeons. Soulwalkers―like Kamai and her mother―can journey into other people's souls while they sleep.

But no matter where Kamai visits, she sees the black door. It follows her into every soul, and her mother has told her to never, ever open it.

When Kamai touches the door, it is warm and beating, like it has a pulse. When she puts her ear to it, she hears her own name whispered from the other side. And when tragedy strikes, Kamai does the unthinkable: she opens the door.

A.M. Strickland's imaginative dark fantasy features court intrigue and romance, a main character coming to terms with her asexuality, and twists and turns as a seductive mystery unfolds that endangers not just Kamai's own soul, but the entire kingdom ...

10/29/19
Gravemaidens
Gravemaidens Duology, Book #1
by Kelly Coon
ISBN-13: 978-0525647829
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Pages: 416
Amazon, Goodreads
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The start of a fierce fantasy duology about three maidens who are chosen for their land's greatest honor...and one girl determined to save her sister from the grave. 

In the walled city-state of Alu, Kammani wants nothing more than to become the accomplished healer her father used to be before her family was cast out of their privileged life in shame. 

When Alu's ruler falls deathly ill, Kammani’s beautiful little sister, Nanaea, is chosen as one of three sacred maidens to join him in the afterlife. It’s an honor. A tradition. And Nanaea believes it is her chance to live an even grander life than the one that was stolen from her. 

But Kammani sees the selection for what it really is—a death sentence.

Desperate to save her sister, Kammani schemes her way into the palace to heal the ruler. There she discovers more danger lurking in the sand-stone corridors than she could have ever imagined and that her own life—and heart—are at stake. But Kammani will stop at nothing to dig up the palace’s buried secrets even if it means sacrificing everything…including herself.

10/29/19
A River of Royal Blood
A River of Royal Blood, Book #1
by Amanda Joy
ISBN-13: 978-0525518587
Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons BYR
Pages: 368
Amazon, Goodreads
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An enthralling debut perfect for fans of Children of Blood and Bone set in a North African-inspired fantasy world where two sisters must fight to the death to win the crown. 

Seventeen-year-old Eva is a princess, born with the magick of blood and bone--a dark and terrible magic that hasn't been seen in so long, the knowledge on how to wield its power has been lost to history. She wants nothing to do with the magick or with the Ivory Throne and heavy responsibility of leading her fractured country. But she has little choice. If she can't learn to harness the magick inside her by her nameday, she'll die at the hands of the Rival Heir. Her older sister Isadore, whose magick of light and persuasion is more glamorous but no less dangerous than Eva's, holds the hearts and alliances of the Court, and is widely favored to win the crown. Because in the Queendom of Myre, only the strongest, most ruthless rulers can ascend to the throne, and princesses kill for the right to do so.

Author Amanda Joy

When an assassin attacks Eva weeks before the competition is set to begin, she discovers there is more to the attempt on her life than meets the eye--and it isn't just her sister who wants to see her dead. Although humans have ruled Myre since the Great War, with fey holding only the illusion of power, bloodkin banned from noble society, and the despised khimaer forced to live in the Enclosures, unrest is growing, and someone is using the naming of the True Heir as a smokescreen for political gain.
As tensions escalate, alliances are tested and family secrets are revealed, and Eva turns to the help of an instructor of mythic proportions and a mysterious khimaer prince to grow her magick into something to fear. Because despite the love she still has for her sister and the childhood memories they share, Eva will have to choose: Isa's death, or her own; her freedom, or the Queendom.