Review: REMEMBER YOU WILL DIE by Eden Robins

Sep 102024
 

Booklist: In a spiraling saga of obituaries, sixty deaths slowly unravel the fate of Poppy and her AI mother, Peregrine. It is no surprise, then, that this grand scheme begins with grief: when “Computer Doctor” Matth Fletcher’s old friend dies, he decides to create a program with their messages. This leads to creating a humanoid body for the messages, crafted with the help of his sculptor husband, whom he eventually divorces to marry the AI. Even after Matth dies, the questions surrounding this controversy fail to disappear: How did Peregrine have the child, and where did they go? Separated by the occasional etymology guide, poem, or letter, the newspaper articles construct a timeline that jumps from the 1700s to the 2100s. Readers must repeatedly sift through the lives of scientists, artists, and actors, laid out in such detail that the pieces of the overarching puzzle can get lost. Provocative but at times meandering, author Robins’ second novel (after When Franny Stands Up, 2022) examines what remains after death: technology, art, and nature. An intriguing read for those who enjoy sf and innovative storytelling.

COUNTESS by Suzan Palumbo

Sep 102024
 

A queer, Caribbean, anti-colonial sci-fi novella in which a betrayed captain seeks revenge on the interplanetary empire that subjugated her people for generations

Virika Sameroo lives in colonized space under the Æcerbot Empire, much like her ancestors before her in the British West Indies. After years of working hard to rise through the ranks of the empire’s merchant marine, she’s finally become first lieutenant on an interstellar cargo vessel.

When her captain dies under suspicious circumstances, Virika is arrested for murder and charged with treason despite her lifelong loyalty to the empire. Her conviction and subsequent imprisonment set her on a path of revenge, determined to take down the evil empire that wronged her, all while the fate of her people hangs in the balance.

Review: THE HOLLOW AND THE HAUNTED by Camilla Raines

Sep 092024
 

Publishers Weekly: Raines debuts with an unexpectedly charming dark fantasy set in the fictional small town of Thistle, Wash. High school student Miles Warren is part of a psychic family capable of banishing evil spirits. It’s unusual that he would receive a death premonition for a stranger, but his latest vision is just that: a strange boy pleading for his help. During a party at the home of his family’s long-standing rivals, the Hawthornes, Miles is surprised to recognize the boy, Gabriel Hawthorne, heir to the cruel and calculating Hawthorne matriarch, Felicity. Setting aside their tumultuous, century-long family feud, the two work together to understand Gabriel’s death prophecy and possibly prevent it. Along the way, they discover the ugly history that led to the rift between their families. Raines seamlessly combines horror and fantasy as she gradually unravels the threat to Gabriel’s life. A slow-burning queer romance between Miles and Gabriel adds both tension and tenderness. This will leave readers eager for a sequel. (Oct.)

Deal: Cassandra Khaw

Sep 062024
 

Bram Stoker Award winner, Shirley Jackson Award finalist, and USA Today bestselling author of NOTHING BUT BLACKENED TEETH Cassandra Khaw’s HELLEBORE, a deeply dark academia novel set at a brutal institute for the dangerously powerful, where a group of graduating students must survive one last diabolical test, and three more standalone books, to Kristin Temple at Nightfire, with Ellen Datlow editing two novellas, for publication in summer 2025, by Michael Curry (world English).

Review: THIS WILL BE FUN by E.B. Asher

Sep 052024
 

Booklist: Ten years ago, Galwell, his younger sister Elowen, Beatrice, and Clare saved the realm of Mythria from dark magic. But after Galwell sacrificed himself to ensure the success of their mission, the three friends went their separate ways. However, Beatrice, Clare, and Elowen now face a reunion when Queen Thessia, who was once engaged to Galwell, invites them to her upcoming wedding. Given their still unresolved romantic feelings for each other, the last thing Beatrice and Clare want to do is spend time together. Elowen is equally determined to keep her distance from professional assassin Vandra, who not only helped the trio on their last mission but also helped herself to Elowen’s heart. Then again, it is just an invitation to attend a wedding. What could possibly go wrong? With an abundance of winsome charm and wry wit, Asher—a pseudonym for the collaborating romance authors Bridget Morrissey, Emily Wibberley, and Austin Siegmund-Broka—fashion an enchanting tale of self-discovery and second chances that is a rare treat for both romance readers and fantasy fans.

Review: THE SWARM by Andy Marino

Sep 042024
 

Booklist: Marino is mostly known for his books for young readers (the Plot to Kill Hitler trilogy, for example), but he’s written a few solid novels for adults, the most recent being It Rides a Pale Horse (2022). His new novel is creepily good, a story of an apocalypse triggered by an unexpected swarm of insects. Why have they suddenly appeared, in the millions, without warning? Why are they behaving in such an uncharacteristic—even murderous—way? Who’s controlling them, and why? Marino juggles a great cast of characters (including a cop, an entomologist, and an ex-husband-and-wife combo who rescue people from cults) and does a superlative job of creating an atmosphere of fear, paranoia, and claustrophobia. His approach is rigorously logical; the story might be on the fantastic side, but it develops in a carefully structured, entirely plausible way. We really believe this could happen, which makes it altogether more frightening (and, it must be said, icky).

ESCAPE FROM ALCATRAZ by Andy Marino

Sep 032024
 

May 1962

In the middle of San Francisco Bay looms Alcatraz, home to America’s most infamous prisoners. Also home to Chip Carter and his dad, who works at the high security prison. Their neighbors are former mobsters, gangsters, and murderers, but Chip finds it to be a pretty boring place to live. After all, the inmates can’t hurt him–they’re locked up in an impenetrable fortress, surrounded by unforgiving waters.

Or are they?

Inmate AZ1441, aka the Watcher, has a plan to break out of Alcatraz. It’s a genius plan he’s concocted along with three other inmates. Foolproof. Or so he thought until one of the guard’s kids stumbles into the middle of it.

Chip is stunned. No one can break out of the Rock. Not unless they have an inside guy. Which it seems like they do … Chip’s dad. They know Chip’s onto them, so if he wants to survive, he’s going to have to make sure these men stay locked up. But first he has to figure out who is planning the prison break and just how deep into this deadly scheme his dad is. Because given what these men have done to end up in Alcatraz, there’s no telling what they’ll do to get out.

August Subsidiary Rights Deals

Aug 312024
 

a pair of black ear budsAudio rights to Christopher Rowe’s THE NAVIGATING FOX, a fantastical fable of “knowledgeable creatures,” to Kim Budnick at Tantor Media, by Michael Curry for Jennifer Jackson.

Audio rights to J. Alexander Cohen’s TALIO CODEX,  an epic fantasy and legal thriller in a city of canals and holy magic, where a secret relationship between a disgraced legal advocate and a member of an ostracized religious group may shake the foundations of the city, to Kim Budnick at Tantor Media by Katie Shea Boutillier.

Audio rights to A.Z. Rozkillis’s SPACE STATION X, debut scifi tale about an engineer who runs away to the farthest space station from Earth to live in peace but soon discovers there are some problems that can’t be fixed by swinging an absurdly large murder-wrench, to Kim Budnick at Tantor Media by Katie Shea Boutillier.

Audio rights to Alex Kingsley’s EXPRESS OF DUST, a post-apocalyptic fantasy about a young transman and his team of scavengers who find there’s more to the monsters roaming the deserts than they thought and he must choose between saving his crew or allying with the “monsters” who rescued him, to Kim Budnick at Tantor Media by Katie Shea Boutillier.

August Translation Deals

Aug 312024
 

French rights to Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka’s IF I’M BEING HONEST, to Eyrolles, by Sarah Dray at Anna Jarota Agency, on behalf of Katie Shea Boutillier.

German rights to LJ Andrews’s THE EVER SEAS series, to Blanvalet, in a pre-empt, by Sarah Knofius at Thomas Schlueck Agency, on behalf of Katie Shea Boutillier.

Starred Review: THE IMPROVISERS by Nicole Glover

Aug 292024
 

Publishers Weekly: Glover returns to the alternate 1930s America of her Murder and Magic series in this thrilling spin-off, an intoxicating blend of mystery and fantasy. Velma Frye’s days as a bootlegger of forbidden magic are behind her, and she now divides her time between performing high-flying aerial stunts and working as an investigator for magical rights group the Magnolia Muses. Trouble arises when a magic-fueled fight over a pocket watch breaks out after one of Velma’s air shows. She learns the pocket watch is one of many enchanted objects that have been causing unexplained violent incidents across the country, including one that led to a woman’s death. Velma sets off to locate the rest of the dangerous artifacts and gains an unexpected travel companion, the annoyingly charming journalist Dillon Harris. Dillon’s inquisitive nature and skills as a spellcaster prove useful for Velma’s investigation, and together they discover that the enchanted objects are part of a deadly conspiracy with unexpected ties to Velma’s family. The complex mystery keeps readers on their toes and the pages flying. The colorful cast, unique magic system, and slow-burning, enemies-to-lovers romance between Velma and Dillon add to the fun. New readers and returning fans alike will devour this.

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