New Books (April-May)

NewBooks-20180429

Featuring: Rob Boffard, Pat Cunnane, Delilah S. Dawson, Francesco Dimitri, Ronan Farrow, R.S. Ford, Daniel Godfrey, Jonathan Lethem, Brian McClellan, Derek B. Miller, Daniel José Older, Kathleen O’Neal Gear, Sarah Pinborough, Chistopher Ruocchio, John Sandford, Nick Setchfield, Jake Tapper, Daniel Torday, Alex White, Tyler Whitesides, You-Jeong Jeong

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BoffardR-AdriftUSRob Boffard, ADRIFT (Orbit)

In the far reaches of space, a tour group embarks on what will be the trip of a lifetime – in more ways than one…

At Sigma Station, a remote mining facility and luxury hotel in deep space, a group of tourists boards a small vessel to take in the stunning views of the Horsehead Nebula.

But while they’re out there, a mysterious ship with devastating advanced technology attacks the station. Their pilot’s quick thinking means that the tourists escape with their lives – but as the dust settles, they realize they may be the only survivors…

Adrift in outer space on a vastly under equipped ship, they’ve got no experience, no weapons, no contact with civilization. They are way out of their depth, and if they can’t figure out how to work together, they’re never getting home alive.

Because the ship that destroyed the station is still out there. And it’s looking for them…

The new sci-fi mystery from the author of the Outer Earth trilogy! Really looking forward to reading this. Adrift is published by Orbit Books in North America and the UK, on June 5th, 2018.

Also on CR: Interview with Rob Boffard (201); Guest Posts on “What to do if you’re set adrift in space?” and “64 SFF Books Rap”; Review of Tracer

Follow the Author: Website, Goodreads, Twitter

Review copy received from publisher

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CunnaneP-WestWingingItUSPat Cunnane, WEST WINGING IT (Gallery)

West Winging It: An Unpresidential Memoir is the personal story of Pat Cunnane and his journey from outsider to insider, from his dreary job at a warehouse to his dream job at the White House. Pat pulls the drapes back on the most famous and exclusive building in the United States, telling the story of the real West Wing with compelling and quirky portraits of the people who populate the place, from the President to the press corps. Pat takes you into the Oval Office, providing a witty insider’s glimpse of that it’s really like — from the minutiae to the momentous — to work at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

Along the way, Pat draws an intimate portrait of the side of President Obama that few were privy to — the funnyman, the nerd, the athlete, the caring parent. He describes both the small details—the time he watched in horror as the President reached over the sneeze guard at Chipotle — and the larger, historic moments, such as watching the President handle the news of the 2015 terrorist attacks in Paris. In some ways, working at the White House is a lot like every office, and in some ways, it’s like no office ever. Pat recounts the time he accidentally slammed a door on Joe Biden, plotted to have the Pope bless him by faking a sneeze, and almost killed America’s First Dog.

Pat’s story is one of proximity to history, revealing an office where both the historically momentous and the hilariously mundane occurred every day. He brings the White House to life with hysterical, heartwarming, and sharply observed depictions of the President and Vice President. It’s a fun portrait of a remarkable time and an extraordinary President, featuring a bunch of brilliant, quirky staffers bursting in and out of frame. He recounts the behind-the-scene highs and lows of the West Wing, from the elation of 2012 to the despair of 2016.

Filled with sharp observations and exclusive photos, West Winging It is at its core a fish-out-of-water story — only these fish are trying to run the United States of America.

I’ve already read a couple of memoirs by former Obama administration staffers, and they’ve been aimed at an audience looking for something quirky and amusing. (There is a strange impulse to discuss time in the Obama White House in a slightly knowing, unserious tone, which can be annoying.) Cunnane’s book has been described/pitched as “The West Wing meets The Office“, which gives me pause. Sometimes, when I see pitches like that, I can’t help but think that the author is pandering to the “youth” vote/readers, trying to desperately hold on to their place at the cool kids’ table. (See also, for example, Pod Save America — a podcast I am admittedly addicted to, even though the “banter” and “jokes” can be frequently irritating.) I’ll read West Winging It pretty soon, I think. West Winging It is published by Gallery Books in North America and is available in the UK as well. [My intent is to write a longer group-review of these memoirs, and to also include the upcoming memoirs by Ben Rhodes and Dan Pfeiffer.]

Follow the Author: Goodreads, Twitter

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DawsonDS-SW-PhasmaUKPBDelilah S. Dawson, PHASMA (Arrow)

One of the most cunning and merciless officers of the First Order, Captain Phasma commands the favor of her superiors, the respect of her peers, and the terror of her enemies. But for all her renown, Phasma remains as virtually unknown as the impassive expression on her gleaming chrome helmet. Now, an adversary is bent on unearthing her mysterious origins — and exposing a secret she guards as zealously and ruthlessly as she serves her masters.

Deep inside the Battlecruiser Absolution, a captured Resistance spy endures brutal interrogation at the hands of a crimson-armored stormtrooper — Cardinal. But the information he desires has nothing to do with the Resistance or its covert operations against the First Order.

What the mysterious stormtrooper wants is Phasma’s past — and with it whatever long-buried scandal, treachery, or private demons he can wield against the hated rival who threatens his own power and privilege in the ranks of the First Order. His prisoner has what Cardinal so desperately seeks, but she won’t surrender it easily. As she wages a painstaking war of wills with her captor, bargaining for her life in exchange for every precious revelation, the spellbinding chronicle of the inscrutable Phasma unfolds. But this knowledge may prove more than just dangerous once Cardinal possesses it — and once his adversary unleashes the full measure of her fury.

The best-selling, acclaimed origin story of fan-favourite Captain Phasma is out now in paperback. I really should get around to reading this, hopefully soon. Published in the UK by Arrow and in North America by Del Rey.

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Review copy received from publisher

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DimitriF-BookOfHiddenThingsUKFrancesco Dimitri, THE BOOK OF HIDDEN THINGS (Titan)

Four old school friends have a pact: to meet up every year in the small town in Puglia they grew up in. Art, the charismatic leader of the group and creator of the pact, insists that the agreement must remain unshakable and enduring. But this year, he never shows up.

A visit to his house increases the friends’ worry; Art is farming marijuana. In Southern Italy doing that kind of thing can be very dangerous. They can’t go to the Carabinieri so must make enquiries of their own. This is how they come across the rumours about Art; bizarre and unbelievable rumours that he miraculously cured the local mafia boss’s daughter of terminal leukaemia. And among the chaos of his house, they find a document written by Art, The Book of Hidden Things, which promises to reveal dark secrets and wonders beyond anything previously known.

Set in the beguiling and seductive landscape of Southern Italy, this story is about friendship and landscape, love and betrayal; above all it is about the nature of mystery itself.

This is Italian author Francesco Dimitri’s first novel written in English. It has been described as perfect for fans of Elena Ferrante, Neil Gaiman and Donna Tartt. Which certainly has me interest piqued. The Book of Hidden Things is published by Titan Books in North America and in the UK in July 2018.

Follow the Author: Goodreads, Twitter

Review copy received from publisher

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FarrowR-WarOnPeaceUSRonan Farrow, WAR ON PEACE (W.W. Norton)

A harrowing exploration of the collapse of American diplomacy and the abdication of global leadership.

US foreign policy is undergoing a dire transformation, forever changing America’s place in the world. Institutions of diplomacy and development are bleeding out after deep budget cuts; the diplomats who make America’s deals and protect its citizens around the world are walking out in droves. Offices across the State Department sit empty, while abroad the military-industrial complex has assumed the work once undertaken by peacemakers. We’re becoming a nation that shoots first and asks questions later.

In an astonishing journey from the corridors of power in Washington, DC, to some of the most remote and dangerous places on earth — Afghanistan, Somalia, and North Korea among them — acclaimed investigative journalist Ronan Farrow illuminates one of the most consequential and poorly understood changes in American history. His firsthand experience as a former State Department official affords a personal look at some of the last standard bearers of traditional statecraft, including Richard Holbrooke, who made peace in Bosnia and died while trying to do so in Afghanistan.

Drawing on newly unearthed documents, and richly informed by rare interviews with warlords, whistle-blowers, and policymakers — including every living former secretary of state from Henry Kissinger to Hillary Clinton to Rex Tillerson — War on Peace makes a powerful case for an endangered profession. Diplomacy, Farrow argues, has declined after decades of political cowardice, shortsightedness, and outright malice — but it may just offer America a way out of a world at war.

Farrow was catapulted into the limelight last year with his excellent reporting about the Harvey Weinstein horror-show. War on Peace is his new book on American diplomacy (which I was not aware was one of his beats). It sounded interesting, so I thought I’d pick it up and give it a try. Hopefully start reading it very soon. War on Peace is published by W.W. Norton in North America and William Collins in the UK.

Follow the Author: Goodreads, Twitter

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FordRS-WotA1-DemonInSilverR.S. Ford, A DEMON IN SILVER (Titan)

In a world where magic has disappeared, rival nations vie for power in a continent devastated by war.

When a young farm girl, Livia, demonstrates magical powers for the first time in a century there are many across the land that will kill to obtain her power. The Duke of Gothelm’s tallymen, the blood-soaked Qeltine Brotherhood, and cynical mercenary Josten Cade: all are searching for Livia and the power she wields.

But Livia finds that guardians can come from the most unlikely places… and that the old gods are returning to a world they abandoned.

The first in a new fantasy series from the author of the Steelhaven series. A Demon in Silver is due to be published by Titan Books in North America and in the UK, in June 2018.

Also on CR: Interview with Richard Ford (2013)

Follow the Author: Website, Goodreads, Twitter

Review copy received from publisher

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GodfreyD-SynapseSequenceDaniel Godfrey, THE SYNAPSE SEQUENCE (Titan)

In a future London, humans are watched over by AIs and served by bots. But now that justice and jobs are meted out by algorithm, inequality blooms, and protest is brutally silenced.

Anna Glover may be the most hated woman in the troubled city – the media’s scapegoat for an unpopular war. Now she hides from the public eye, investigating neglected cases by using the mind-invading technology of the synapse sequencer to enter witnesses’ memories. When a PI brings her a new high-stakes case, Anna sees a chance for atonement. But soon she is drawn into a plot that threatens to upend her hard-won anonymity and put everyone in danger – even those she hopes to save.

A new (stand-alone?) novel from the author of the acclaimed New Pompeii series. Sounds interesting. The Synapse Sequence is published by Titan Books in North America and in the UK, in mid-June 2018.

Follow the Author: Website, Goodreads, Twitter

Review copy received from publisher

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LethemJ-FeralDetectiveUSJonathan Lethem, THE FERAL DETECTIVE (Ecco)

Phoebe Siegler first meets Charles Heist in a shabby trailer on the eastern edge of Los Angeles. She’s looking for her friend’s missing daughter, Arabella, and hires Heist to help. A laconic loner who keeps his pet opossum in a desk drawer, Heist intrigues the sarcastic and garrulous Phoebe. Reluctantly, he agrees to help.

The unlikely pair navigate the enclaves of desert-dwelling vagabonds and find that Arabella is in serious trouble — caught in the middle of a violent standoff that only Heist, mysteriously, can end. Phoebe’s trip to the desert was always going to be strange, but it was never supposed to be dangerous…

This is Lethem’s first detective novel since critically-acclaimed Motherless Brooklyn. Lethem is one of those authors whose novels (and non-fiction books) always sound really interesting. I have quite a few of them… that I haven’t read yet. I really don’t know why, but I frequently forget that I have Lethem’s books. I’m going to make a real effort to get a couple of them read this year (The Fortress of Solitude and Disappointment Artist are top of the pile), including this new novel. The Feral Detective is published by Ecco in North America and in the UK, in November 2018.

Follow the Author: Website, Goodreads

Review copy received via Edelweiss

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McClellanB-GoB&P2-WrathOfEmpireUSBrian McClellan, WRATH OF EMPIRE (Orbit)

The country is in turmoil. With the capital city occupied, half a million refugees are on the march, looking for safety on the frontier, accompanied by Lady Flint’s soldiers. But escaping war is never easy, and soon the battle may find them, whether they are prepared or not.

Back in the capital, Michel Bravis smuggles even more refugees out of the city. But internal forces are working against him. With enemies on all sides, Michel may be forced to find help with the very occupiers he’s trying to undermine.

Meanwhile, Ben Styke is building his own army. He and his mad lancers are gathering every able body they can find and searching for an ancient artifact that may have the power to turn the tides of war in their favor. But what they find may not be what they’re looking for.

The second novel in McClellan’s second series, Gods of Blood and Powder. I’m a big fan of McClellan’s work (even though I have fallen quite behind, at this point), and think his Powder Mage world is one of the best new(ish) ongoing fantasy settings. I’m eager to get caught up, and will try to do so soon. Wrath of Empire is published by Orbit Books in North America and in the UK, on May 15th, 2018.

Also on CR: Interview with Brian McClellan (2013); Guest Posts on “My Favourite Novel” and “Protagonist Ages in Epic Fantasy”; Excerpt from The Autumn Republic; Reviews of Promise of Blood and The Crimson Campaign

Follow the Author: Website, Goodreads, Twitter

Review copy received from publisher

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MillerDB-AmericanByDayUKDerek B. Miller, AMERICAN BY DAY (Doubleday)

She knew it was a weird place. She’d heard the stories, seen the movies, read the books. But now police Chief Inspector Sigrid Ødegård has to leave her native Norway and actually go there; to that land across the Atlantic where her missing brother is implicated in the mysterious death of a prominent African-American academic.

America.

And not someplace interesting, either: upstate New York.

It is election season, 2008, and Sigrid is plunged into a United States where race and identity, politics and promise, reverberate in every aspect of daily life.

To find her older brother, she needs the help of the local police who appear to have already made up their minds about the case. Working with – or, if necessary, against — someone actually named Sheriff Irving ‘Irv’ Wylie, she must negotiate the local political minefields and navigate the back woods of the Adirondacks to uncover the truth before events escalate further.

This looks really interesting. I haven’t read the first book in the series, Norwegian By Night (although I’m not sure that it’s essential to do so, in order to enjoy this one). American By Day is out now, published by Doubleday in the UK and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt in North America.

Follow the Author: Goodreads, Twitter

Review copy received from publisher

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OlderDJ-SW-LastShotUSDaniel José Older, LAST SHOT (Century)

Even the fastest ship in the galaxy can’t outrun the past…

THEN:

It’s one of the galaxy’s most dangerous secrets: a mysterious transmitter with unknown power and a reward for its discovery that most could only dream of claiming. But those who fly the Millennium Falconthroughout its infamous history aren’t your average scoundrels. Not once, but twice, the crew of the Falcon tries to claim the elusive prize — first, Lando Calrissian and the droid L3-37 at the dawn of an ambitious career, and later, a young and hungry Han Solo with the help of his copilot, Chewbacca. But the device’s creator, the volatile criminal Fyzen Gor, isn’t interested in sharing. And Gor knows how to hold a grudge…

NOW:

It’s been ten years since the rebel hero Han Solo last encountered Fyzen Gor. After mounting a successful rebellion against the Empire and starting a family with an Alderaanian princess, Han hasn’t given much thought to the mad inventor. But when Lando turns up at Han’s doorstep in the middle of the night, it’s Fyzen’s assassins that he’s running from. And without Han’s help, Lando — and all life on Cloud City—will be annihilated.

With the assistance of a young hotshot pilot, an Ewok slicer prodigy, the woman who might be the love of Lando’s life, and Han’s best and furriest friend, the two most notorious scoundrels in the New Republic are working together once more. They’ll have to journey across the stars — and into the past — before Gor uses the device’s power to reshape the galaxy.

The first novel to tie-in (ish) with the upcoming Solo movie, I’ve been looking forward to giving this a try. I’m familiar with Older’s previous work — his Bone Street Rumba series, in particular — so I’m intrigued to see how he approached the Star Wars universe and characters. Last Shot is out now, published by Century in the UK and Del Rey in North America.

Follow the Author: Website, Goodreads, Twitter

Review copy received from publisher

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ONealGearK-MazeMasterUSKathleen O’Neal Gear, MAZE MASTER (St. Martin’s Press)

LucentB is a retrovirus that’s inevitable, unstoppable, and utterly catastrophic for humanity. The US government believes the only person who can find the cure is the geneticist who tried to warn them about it and then disappeared: James Hakari. They assign the task of finding him to his former student Anna Asher, who in turn recruits paleographer and religious studies scholar Dr. Martin Nadai.

The brilliant but insane geneticist is leaving clues for Anna and Martin to follow, showing he’s truly earned his students’ nickname for him: the Maze Master. The search takes Anna and Martin around the world and into a warzone they never imagined.

I hadn’t heard of this novel before it arrived in the mail. I am definitely intrigued, though (I love novels like this). It sounds interesting. According to the publisher’s page for this title, “LucentB is based off the real retrovirus HERV-K, which has caused several plagues over the past 75,000 years, almost wiping out Neandertals 50,000 years ago, and maybe 30,000 years ago. Modern geneticists consider HERV-K not to be extinct, but rather to be waiting for some trigger to come alive again.” Which I thought was interesting. I’ll read this very soon. Maze Master is due to be published in North America and in the UK by by St. Martin’s Press, in June 2018.

Follow the Author: Website, Goodreads, Twitter

Review copy received from publisher

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PinboroughS-CrossHerHeartUSSarah Pinborough, CROSS HER HEART (William Morrow)

A twisty, hair-raising psychological thriller about a single mom, her daughter, and her best friend, the secrets they hide, and the danger they can’t escape.

Lisa lives a very quiet life. A single mother nearing forty, she devotes herself to raising her sixteen-year-old daughter, Ava. Wary of men, Lisa doesn’t speak of her past or Ava’s absent father. Her best friend Marilyn wishes she would open up more and maybe finally go on a date — with the sexy new client who’s obviously keen — but Marilyn has problems of her own.

Ava is getting tired of her overprotective mother. She wants to live like a normal teenager — chill with friends, go to swim practice, study for exams, have a boyfriend. Her mom would freak if she knew that Ava’s already got someone special, someone who makes her feel sophisticated — and wanted.

Lisa has spent a long time looking over her shoulder, but lately she’s been especially uneasy. Small things from the past have begun to appear in the present, feeding her anxiety. As her life begins to unravel, Lisa knows that the only way she can protect herself and her daughter is to face her fears. Yet courage won’t be enough. She’ll need help from the only person she can trust — Marilyn. Between them they have to save Ava, and to do that, they have to be honest with each other. Truly honest. Marilyn did promise she’d do anything to help.

But a long time ago, Lisa made a promise too. Then she broke her word. And that betrayal hasn’t been forgotten — or forgiven.

Now, someone is going to make her pay for her sin.

I’m a big fan of Pinborough’s novels, and each new book has been better than the last. It should go without saying, therefore, that Cross Her Heart is one of my most anticipated novels of the year. Cross Her Heart is published in September by William Morrow in North America, and in May by Harper Collins in the UK.

Also on CR: Reviews of The Language of DyingMayhemThe Death House and 13 Minutes

Follow the Author: Website, Goodreads, Twitter

Review copy received via Edelweiss

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RuocchioC-SE1-EmpireOfSilenceUKChristopher Ruocchio, EMPIRE OF SILENCE (Gollancz)

Hadrian Marlowe, a man revered as a hero and despised as a murderer, chronicles his tale in the galaxy-spanning debut of the Sun Eater series, merging the best of space opera and epic fantasy.

It was not his war.

On the wrong planet, at the right time, for the best reasons, Hadrian Marlowe started down a path that could only end in fire. The galaxy remembers him as a hero: the man who burned every last alien Cielcin from the sky. They remember him as a monster: the devil who destroyed a sun, casually annihilating four billion human lives — even the Emperor himself — against Imperial orders.

But Hadrian was not a hero. He was not a monster. He was not even a soldier.

Fleeing his father and a future as a torturer, Hadrian finds himself stranded on a strange, backwater world. Forced to fight as a gladiator and navigate the intrigues of a foreign planetary court, he will find himself fighting a war he did not start, for an Empire he does not love, against an enemy he will never understand.

This novel, the first in the the Sun Eater series, was announced with quite some fanfare by Gollancz (UK) and then DAW (US). It sounds quite interesting. It is also quite a hefty tome, complete with indexes and glossaries… Which I’ll admit does give me some pause. Nevertheless, I’m looking forward to giving it a try. Empire of Silence is due out in July 2018.

Follow the Author: Goodreads, Twitter

Review copy received from publisher

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SandfordJ-P28-TwistedPreyUSJohn Sandford, TWISTED PREY (G.P. Putnam’s Sons)

Lucas Davenport had crossed paths with her before.

A rich psychopath, Taryn Grant had run successfully for the U.S. Senate, where Lucas had predicted she’d fit right in. He was also convinced that she’d been responsible for three murders, though he’d never been able to prove it. Once a psychopath had gotten that kind of rush, though, he or she often needed another fix, so he figured he might be seeing her again.

He was right. A federal marshal now, with a very wide scope of investigation, he’s heard rumors that Grant has found her seat on the Senate intelligence committee, and the contacts she’s made from it, to be very…useful. Pinning those rumors down was likely to be just as difficult as before, and considerably more dangerous.

But they had unfinished business, he and Grant. One way or the other, he was going to see it through to the end.

The 28th novel in Sandford’s excellent Prey series! I feel like I’ve said this ad infinitum on CR, but it’s easily one my all-time favourite crime series. I’ll be reading this very soon. Twisted Prey is published by G.P. Putnam’s Sons in North America, and Simon & Schuster in the UK (on May 30th).

Follow the Author: Website, Goodreads, Twitter

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SetchfieldN-WarInTheDarkUKNick Setchfield, THE WAR IN THE DARK (Titan)

Europe. 1963. And the true Cold War is fought on the borders of this world, at the edges of the light.

When the assassination of a traitor trading with the enemy goes terribly wrong, British Intelligence agent Christopher Winter must flee London. In a tense alliance with a lethal, mysterious woman named Karina Lazarova, he’s caught in a quest for hidden knowledge from centuries before, an occult secret written in a language of fire. A secret that will give supremacy to the nation that possesses it.

Racing against the Russians, the chase takes them from the demon-haunted Hungarian border to treasure-laden tunnels beneath Berlin, from an impossible house in Vienna to a bomb-blasted ruin in Bavaria where something unholy waits, born of the power of white fire and black glass…

It’s a world of treachery, blood and magic. A world at war in the dark.

This sounds really interesting. Looking forward to reading it very soon. The War in the Dark is due to be published by Titan Books in North America and in the UK, in mid-July 2018.

Follow the Author: Goodreads, Twitter

Review copy received from publisher

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TapperJ-HellfireClubUSJake Tapper, THE HELLFIRE CLUB (Little, Brown)

1950’s D.C. intrigue about a secret society and a young Congressman in its grip

Charlie Marder is an unlikely Congressman. Thrust into office by his family ties after his predecessor died mysteriously, Charlie is struggling to navigate the dangerous waters of 1950s Washington, DC, alongside his young wife Margaret, a zoologist with ambitions of her own. Amid the swirl of glamorous and powerful political leaders and deal makers, a mysterious fatal car accident thrusts Charlie and Margaret into an underworld of backroom deals, secret societies, and a plot that could change the course of history. When Charlie discovers a conspiracy that reaches the highest levels of governance, he has to fight not only for his principles and his newfound political career… but for his life.

I’ve been intrigued about this title ever since it was announced. I haven’t been a frequent viewer of Tapper’s show on CNN, but I’ve always been aware of his commentary and reporting (thanks to Twitter and Facebook feeds). His debut novel, set in the 1950s, sounds like it could be pretty interesting. The Hellfire Club is out now, published by Little, Brown in North America and in the UK.

Follow the Author: Website, Goodreads, Twitter

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TordayD-Boomer1USDaniel Torday, BOOMER1 (St. Martin’s Press)

Bluegrass musician, former journalist and editor, and now PhD in English, Mark Brumfeld has arrived at his thirties with significant debt and no steady prospects. His girlfriend Cassie — a punk bassist in an all-female band, who fled her Midwestern childhood for a new identity — finds work at a “new media” company. When Cassie refuses his marriage proposal, Mark leaves New York and returns to the basement of his childhood home in the Baltimore suburbs.

Desperate and humiliated, Mark begins to post a series of online video monologues that critique Baby Boomers and their powerful hold on the job market. But as his videos go viral, and while Cassie starts to build her career, Mark loses control of what he began — with consequences that ensnare them in a matter of national security.

Told through the perspectives of Mark, Cassie, and Mark’s mother, Julia, a child of the ’60s whose life is more conventional than she ever imagined, Boomer1 is timely, suspenseful, and in every line alert to the siren song of endless opportunity that beckons and beguiles all of us.

Thought this sounded interesting. Boomer1 is due to be published by St. Martin’s Press in North America and the UK, in September 2018.

Follow the Author: Website, Goodreads, Twitter

Review copy received via NetGalley

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WhiteA-ABigShipAtTheEdgeOfTheUniverseUSAlex White, A BIG SHIP AT THE EDGE OF THE UNIVERSE (Orbit)

Furious and fun, the first book in this bold, new science fiction adventure series follows a crew of outcasts as they try to find a legendary ship that just might be the key to savings themselves-and the universe.

Boots Elsworth was a famous treasure hunter in another life, but now she’s washed up. She makes her meager living faking salvage legends and selling them to the highest bidder, but this time she got something real–the story of the Harrow, a famous warship, capable of untold destruction.

Nilah Brio is the top driver in the Pan Galactic Racing Federation and the darling of the racing world–until she witnesses Mother murder a fellow racer. Framed for the murder and on the hunt to clear her name, Nilah has only one lead: the killer also hunts Boots.

On the wrong side of the law, the two women board a smuggler’s ship that will take them on a quest for fame, for riches, and for justice.

This is the first novel in White’s Salvagers sci-fi series, and it sounds really interesting. Looking forward to reading this one. A Big Ship at the Edge of the Universe is published by Orbit Books in North America and in the UK, on June 26th, 2018.

Follow the Author: Website, Goodreads, Twitter

Review copy received from publisher

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WhitesidesT-AB1-ThousandDeathsOfArdorBennTyler Whitesides, THE THOUSAND DEATHS OF ARDOR BENN (Orbit)

Ardor Benn is no ordinary thief. Rakish, ambitious, and master of wildly complex heists, he styles himself a Ruse Artist Extraordinaire.

When a priest hires him for the most daring ruse yet, Ardor knows he’ll need more than quick wit and sleight of hand. Assembling a dream team of forgers, disguisers, schemers, and thieves, he sets out to steal from the most powerful king the realm has ever known.

But it soon becomes clear there’s more at stake than fame and glory – Ard and his team might just be the last hope for human civilization.

The first in a new fantasy series. Looks like it could be quite fun and adventure-packed. I’ll try to get to it soon. The Thousand Deaths of Ardor Benn is published by Orbit Books in North America and in the UK, on May 15th, 2018.

Follow the Author: Website, Goodreads, Twitter

Review copy received from publisher

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YouJeongJ-GoodSonUKYou-Jeong Jeong, THE GOOD SON (Little, Brown)

YOU WAKE UP COVERED IN BLOOD

THERE’S A BODY DOWNSTAIRS

YOUR MOTHER’S BODY

YOU DIDN’T DO IT. DID YOU?

HOW COULD YOU, YOU’VE ALWAYS BEEN THE GOOD SON

When Yu-jin wakes up covered in blood, and finds the body of his mother downstairs, he decides to hide the evidence and pursue the killer himself.

Then young women start disappearing in his South Korean town. Who is he hunting? And why does the answer take him back to his brother and father who lost their lives many years ago.

The Good Son is inspired by a true story.

This sounds really interesting. I’ll try to read it soon. The Good Son is published in the UK by Little, Brown, on May 3rd; and in North America by Penguin, on June 5th.

Follow the Author: Goodreads

 

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