On October 1st, TorDotCom are due to publish The City in Glass, the latest novel by Nghi Vo: a “beguiling” fantasy stand-alone, set in a “city in the tradition of Calvino, Mieville, and Le Guin.” I’ve enjoyed some of Vo’s previous books, and really must get caught up on her Singing Hills Cycle (also published by TorDotCom). Described as “an epic love story, of death and resurrection, memory and transformation, redemption and desire”, it sounds great. The synopsis caught my attention a while before the publisher unveiled the great cover artwork — check it out below:
A demon. An angel. A city.
The demon Vitrine — immortal, powerful, and capricious — loves the dazzling city of Azril. She has mothered, married, and maddened the city and its people for generations, and built it into a place of joy and desire, revelry and riot.
And then the angels come, and the city falls.
Vitrine is left with nothing but memories and a book containing the names of those she has lost — and an angel, now bound by her mad, grief-stricken curse to haunt the city he burned.
She mourns her dead and rages against the angel she longs to destroy. Made to be each other’s devastation, angel and demon are destined for eternal battle. Instead, they find themselves locked in a devouring fascination that will change them both forever.
Together, they unearth the past of the lost city and begin to shape its future. But when war threatens Azril and everything they have built, Vitrine and her angel must decide whether they will let the city fall again.
Nghi Vo’s The City in Glass is due to be published by TorDotCom in North America and in the UK, on October 1st.
Back in 2017, I read an ARC of M. L. Rio‘s excellent If We Were Villains (which seems to get a new edition every few months). Ever since finishing it, I have been periodically checking to see if the author has a new book on the way. And the wait if almost over! 
Long-time readers of CR will know that I’m a bit fan of Hollywood/Television oral histories, and I’ve been rather enjoying the recent publishing boomlet in the sub-genre — I’ve very much enjoyed recent books about The Office, The Big Bang Theory, The O.C. and others. I discovered TWW in 2001, and I re-watched the show every year (or, at least, all that was available) up until 2016. (I had to take a pause during the Trump years…) When I saw that two cast members from The West Wing had collaborated on a behind-the-scenes history of the show, it became a must-read of the year for me. Melissa Fitzgerald (who played CJ’s assistant Carol) and Mary McCormack (who played Kate Harper) have teamed up for What’s Next. Here’s the synopsis:
This summer, Rob Hart returns with Assassins Anonymous, a novel S. A. Cosby has described as “The best kind of thriller… Suspenseful, sentimental, and ultimately redemptive.” I haven’t had the chance to read any of Hart’s other novels, yet (despite thinking they all sound very interesting), but I think this one sounds especially interesting. It’s due out in June, to be published by 
I very much enjoyed Heather Chavez‘s 2023 novel, 
The next novel from Madeline Ashby is Glass Houses. Pitched as a “near future whodunit for fans of Glass Onion and Black Mirror“, it certainly sounds intriguing. Due to be published in August, by 
In his follow-up to Long Road, which examined how Pearl Jam “shaped the times, and how their legacy and longevity have transcended generations”, Steven Hyden turns his attention to Bruce Springsteen’s Born in the USA. This album was the first album that I ever loved, so this book was immediately added to my Must Read Non-Fiction of the Year. (It’s not an actual list, but you know what I mean.) There Was Nothing You Could Do is scheduled to come out in May, via 
The next novel from Rio Youers sounds like a lot of fun. The new novel from the acclaimed author of No Second Chances, The Bang-Bang Sisters is described as “an action-packed crime novel featuring three kick-ass heroines—bandmates who moonlight as vigilantes.” Due to be published by 
I stumbled across The Book of Doors on NetGalley. It’s Gareth Brown‘s debut novel, and the synopsis caught my attention (later, so did the UK cover). It’s probably not surprising that “strange things are afoot at a bookstore” is a premise that would grab my attention. Due out in February, here’s the synopsis:
Then she’s approached by a gaunt stranger in a rumpled black suit with a Scottish brogue who calls himself Drummond Fox. He’s a librarian who keeps watch over a unique set of rare volumes. The tome now in Cassie’s possession is not the only book with great power, but it is the one most coveted by those who collect them.
I first spotted the UK cover (below) for The Cautious Traveller’s Guide to the Wasteland, Sarah Brooks‘s very-intriguing-sounding debut, via a 
Except on the last journey, though no one can say what occurred exactly because no one can remember it, not even Wei-Wei, the child of the train who was born on the Express. Only someone does know the truth: Elena, a strange stowaway with a mysterious connection to the Wastelands. As the Express embarks on a new voyage with a new set of travellers, each hiding their own motivations and secrets, Elena and Wei-Wei begin a dangerous friendship just as the train starts to misbehave. Desperate to save the only home she has ever known, Wei-Wei fights to keep the train from breaking down. But the rules of the Wasteland are changing and the wildness outside threatens to consume them all. 
Civilian Reader 