Featuring: Giaime Alonge, Shannon Bowring, Mason Coile, Michael Connelly, Melissa de la Cruz, David Goodman, Austin Kelley, Vaseem Khan, David McCullough, Mark Ronson, Alan Siegel, Martin Suarez & Ian Frisch
Excerpt: IF WISHES WERE RETAIL by Auston Habershaw (Tachyon)
If Wishes Were Retail is the debut novel by Auston Habershaw, due to be published in a couple of weeks by Tachyon Publications. It is the story of “an enterprising young woman and a clueless genie just try to make a living”, offering an interesting spin on the genie story. To introduce readers to the characters, we have been provided with an excerpt to share with CR readers. Here’s the synopsis:
A pop-up at the local mall meets Aladdin in this cozy, chaotic, and deeply funny debut novel where an enterprising young woman and a clueless genie just try to make a living.
Alex Delmore needs a miracle. She wants out of her dead-end suburban town, but her parents are broke and NYU seems like a distant dream.
Good thing there’s a genie in town ― and he’s hiring at the Wellspring Mall.
It’d help if the Jinn-formerly-of-the-Ring-of-Khorad knew even one thing about 21st-century America. It’d help if he weren’t at least as stubborn as Alex. It’d really help if her brother didn’t sell her out to her conspiracy theory-loving, gnome-hating dad.
When Alex and the genie set up their wishing kiosk, they face seemingly-endless setbacks. The mall is failing and management will not stop interfering on behalf of their big-box tenants.
But when the wishing biz might start working, the biggest problem of all remains: People are really terrible at wishing.
Upcoming: WE THE RAPTORS by Eric Smith & Andrew Bricker (Simon & Schuster)
Later this year, Simon & Schuster are due to publish a new book about the Toronto Raptors: We the Raptors by Eric Smith and Andrew Bricker. As the team turns 30 years old, the authors have conducted interviewed thirty players from across the team’s history, to paint a picture of an organization, a team, and what it means to the players and fans. They also managed to get a foreword from the GROAT,* Kyle Lowry! Very much looking forward to this one. Here’s the synopsis:
We the Raptors: Thirty Players, Thirty Stories, Thirty Years is about the grinders, glue guys, bench heroes, and more. Alvin Williams, José Calderón, T. J. Ford, Jonas Valanciunas, Danny Green — whether regular or part-time starters, role players, key cogs, or even short-term stars — all of them felt blessed to call Canada home.
Foreword by Kyle Lowry
Amir Johnson immediately fell in love with the diversity of the country. From special events with fans to Zombie Walks down Yonge Street, few players connected with Toronto — on and off the floor—more than Amir. At the age of thirty, Anthony Parker — known as the “Michael Jordan of EuroLeague” — finally found his place in the NBA with the Raptors, a role that had eluded him as a young draftee and during his six seasons overseas. NBA vet and Toronto native Jamaal Magloire mentored younger players in the shadow of his brother’s murder in Regent Park. Bismack Biyombo, a fan favourite for his big, burly play and endless energy, couldn’t decide which team to sign with as a free agent, until a phone call from Masai Ujiri made the choice easy. The Junkyard Dog, Jerome Williams, drove himself to Toronto in a snowstorm, becoming in the process one of the most recognizable players in franchise history. Matt Bonner, dubbed the Red Mamba by none other than Kobe Bryant, emerged as a national hero after going toe to toe in the post with Kevin Garnett. Jorge Garbajosa, a superstar in Italy and his native Spain, gambled on a second career at the age of twenty-eight, becoming the hustle and heart of a playoff-bound Raptors squad only to see his NBA dreams crumble in a career-ending on-court injury.
Every team has unheralded but dogged players but none more so than the expansion-era Raptors, a team that many NBA players and free agents often ignored — until the Raptors became one of the most interesting and winningest teams in the league.
This rich tapestry comes alive in We the Raptors, as told by Raptors radio voice Eric Smith and Andrew Bricker through thirty exclusive interviews with former and current Raptors. Every bounce, every rebound, every elbow to the face — this is a rare view of the NBA through the eyes of those who made it to the pinnacle of their profession.
Eric Smith & Andrew Bricker’s We the Raptors is due to be published by Simon & Schuster in North America, on November 4th.
Follow the Author (Smith): Website, Goodreads, Instagram, BlueSky
Follow the Author (Bricker): Goodreads
* “Greatest Raptor Of All Time”
Upcoming: A HOLLYWOOD ENDING by Yaron Weitzman (Doubleday)
Later this year, Doubleday Books are due to publish the second book by Yaron Weitzman: A Hollywood Ending. Weitzman’s Tanking to the Top was one of the first books about the NBA that I read (it’s excellent, and is a must-read for anyone interested in whatever it is that the 76ers have been trying to do). The new book takes a look at LeBron James’s move to the Los Angeles Lakers, and everything that has happened since. Here’s the official synopsis:
NBA journalist Yaron Weitzman lays out the high stakes drama happening inside the Lakers’ organization at a crucial juncture in their history, as they try to juggle the warring priorities between Lebron James and the Buss family.
When LeBron James signed with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2018, the match looked like one made in heaven. Here was a living legend, the preeminent athlete of his generation, joining forces with one of the most iconic teams in all of sports. The Lakers, in the midst of their worst stretch in franchise history and reeling from the death of their legendary owner Dr. Jerry Buss, needed a savior. LeBron, fresh off ending Cleveland’s 50-year title drought, needed a new challenge to help further burnish his legacy. The script wrote itself.
A little over two years later, LeBron and Dr. Buss’ daughter, Jeanie, were standing shoulder to shoulder, hoisting the NBA finals trophy into the air. Having won their record-tying 17th NBA title, the Lakers had reclaimed their accustomed perch on top of the basketball world and seemed destined to dominate the NBA for years to come.
Traditionally, the Lakers’ didn’t celebrate championships, they celebrated dynasties. But this was a different Lakers’ organization, one beset by infighting. A single title wouldn’t be enough to cement Lebron James status as a Lakers’ legend or help him surpass the ghost of Michael Jordan. Both parties needed sustained success, but for that to happen they needed to be on the same page. Sadly, the 2020 title would represent the pinnacle of their pairing, and the beginning of a precipitous decline.
Drawing from over 250 interviews, Yaron Weitzman takes readers on a riveting, behind the scenes journey of this fraught partnership. From the Succession-like power struggle between the Buss children, to the rise of LeBron’s landscape-altering talent agency and its attempts to assert its own power within the Lakers’ walls, to the evolution of LeBron’s priorities and political voice, “A Hollywood Ending” is the definitive story of an American icon’s final years on stage, one portraying him, a fabled NBA franchise, and the world of modern professional sports in a light never seen before.
Really looking forward to reading this. Yaron Weitzman’s A Hollywood Ending is due to be published by Doubleday Books in North America, on October 21st.
Quick Review: ANT by Chris Hine (Harper)
An early biography of a rising star of the NBA
The first in-depth look at the Minnesota Timberwolves rising star, from his backstory to his mindset, and the relationships that fueled his drive to greatness.
From his jaw-dropping dunks to his charismatic personality, Anthony Edwards draws comparisons to the greatest shooting guards of all time like Kobe and Jordan. A portrait in the education of a budding NBA superstar, Ant chronicles Edward’s meteoric rise. The number-one pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, a two-time All-Star, Edwards has, in just a few seasons, become a household name and the face of the Minnesota Timberwolves. And he’s only twenty-three years old.
With locker room access, original interviews, and fresh reporting by Chris Hine, the Minnesota Star Tribune’s beat writer covering the Wolves, Ant delves into Edwards’ early life in Atlanta, the challenges and family tragedy he overcame, and the relentless determination that has propelled him to stardom.
Anthony Edwards, the charismatic and personable star of the Minnesota Timberwolves, made a splash in last year’s NBA playoffs, making the jump to potential-future-face-of-the-league. This year, the ‘Wolves are blazing a path through the Western Conference playoffs once again, and will appear in the conference finals against OKC. This all makes Chris Hine’s book rather timely. It’s a well-written and engaging biography of the rising superstar; but perhaps too soon? Continue reading
Very Quick Review: MAKING HISTORY by K. J. Parker (TorDotCom)
How to manipulate history and (maybe) get away with it
A group of scholars must do the impossible for a ruthless king. The cost of refusal, of course, is death.
History isn’t truth, it’s propaganda.
Seeking war with his neighbor, the tyrannical ruler of Aelia convenes several of his kingdom’s professors for a chat. First citizen Gyges only just invaded Aelia a few years back and, naturally, his public image can’t take the hit of another unjustified assault.
His totally sane solution? Simple, really. These scholars must construct a fake ancient city from scratch to verify Gyges’s apocryphal claims.
Now these academics must put their heads together to make history. Because if they don’t, they’ll lose their heads altogether.
In a country ruled by a usurper king, history can be a powerful tool for cementing authority and power. To do a decent job of manipulating the past, it’s important to turn to the people who know the most about it: historians. In Parker’s latest, excellent novella, a group of historians are (quietly) threatened by their new king into creating a new history that supports his authority and mandate. Continue reading
Upcoming: EXILES by Mason Coile (G. P. Putnam’s Sons)
I hadn’t heard about the second novel from Mason Coile, Exiles, until the publisher reached out about it a couple of weeks ago. Coile is a pseudonym for acclaimed, best-selling Canadian horror author Andrew Pyper, who sadly passed away in January 2025. This posthumous release is “a terrifying, taut” blend of “science fiction and psychological horror”. Set on Mars. I’ll be reading this very soon. Here’s the synopsis:
A terrifying locked-room mystery from the author of William – this time set on a remote outpost on Mars.
The human crew sent to prepare the first colony on Mars arrives to find the new base half-destroyed and the three robots sent to set it up in disarray — the machines have formed alliances, chosen their own names, and picked up some disturbing beliefs. Each must be interrogated. But one of them is missing.
In this barren, hostile landscape where even machines have nightmares, the astronauts will need to examine all the stories – especially their own – to get to the truth.
Mason Coile’s Exiles is due to be published by G. P. Putnam’s Sons in North America (September 16th) and Baskerville in the UK (September 18th).
Follow the Author: Goodreads
Upcoming: THE BONE RAIDERS by Jackson Ford (Orbit)
Late this summer, Orbit are due to publish the first book in a new, “no-holds-barred, action-packed” fantasy series from Jackson Ford: The Bone Raiders! A long-time fan of Ford’s work (who also publishes as Rob Boffard — also recommended), this sounds great. Here’s the synopsis:
A group of charmingly-named Bone Raiders harness the power of gigantic, fire-breathing lizards to defend their homeland from an invading enemy.
You don’t mess with the Rakada. The people living in the Great Grass call them the Bone Raiders, from their charming habit of displaying the bones of those they kill on their horses and armor.
But being a raider is tough these days. There’s a new High Chieftain ruling the Grass. He’s had it with the raider clans, and plans to use his sizeable military to do something about it. And then there are the araatan: fire-breathing lizards the size of elephants – one of which happens to turn up in a cute little settlement the Rakada are in the middle of raiding.
Sayana is a Rakada scout, and in the chaos of the raid-gone-wrong, she finds herself on the back of a rampaging araatan. Whoops. In a panic, she discovers she can steer it, like you would a horse. It’s frankly amazing she survives any of this. Once Sayana gets an idea into her head, it’s awful hard to dislodge. And now she has a doozy: what if the Rakada could swap their horses for araatan? Train the lizards to act as mounts? That would even the odds against the High Chieftain, no?
Really looking forward to the one. (Luckily, I already have a DRC of it, via NetGalley, so I won’t have to wait long to get to it.)
The Bone Raiders, the first in the Rakada series, is due to be published by Orbit Books in North America and in the UK, in August 12th.
Also on CR: Interview with Jackson Ford (2020); Interview with Rob Boffard (2015); Guest Posts on “What to Do if You’re Set Adrift in Space”
Excerpt: GOING HOME IN THE DARK by Dean Koontz (Thomas & Mercer)
Today we have an excerpt from the latest thriller by best-selling author Dean Koontz: Going Home in the Dark. Due to be published in May, the publisher has let CR share the first chapter. First, though, here’s the synopsis:
When hometown horrors come back to haunt, friendship is salvation in a novel about childhood fears and buried secrets…
As kids, outcasts Rebecca, Bobby, Spencer, and Ernie were inseparable friends in the idyllic town of Maple Grove. Three left to pursue lofty dreams―and achieved them. Only Ernie never left. When he falls into a coma, his three amigos feel an urgent need to return home. Don’t they remember people lapsing into comas back then? And those people always awoke… didn’t they?
After two decades, not a lot has changed in Maple Grove, especially Ernie’s obnoxious, scary mother. But Rebecca, Bobby, and Spencer begin to remember a hulking, murderous figure and weirdness piled on mystery that they were made to forget. As Ernie sinks deeper into darkness, something strange awaits any friend who tries to save him.
For Rebecca, Bobby, and Spencer, time is running out to remember the terrors of the past in a perfect town where nothing is what it seems. For Maple Grove, it’s a chance to have the “four amigos,” as they once called themselves, back in its grasp.
New Books (April-May)
Still trying to get caught up. I now have a fair few reviews that need to be written and published. Hoping to get on top of the back-log over the next week or so. In the meantime, here are some more new books!
Featuring: Kate Belli, Cory Doctorow, Mark Edwards, Kit Frick, Lee Goldberg, Holly James, Alissa Lee, Peter Mann, George Packer, K. J. Parker, Clay Risen, and Seamus Sullivan
Civilian Reader 