Can't-Wait Wednesday: Just Like Home by Sarah Gailey, The Splendid City by Karen Heuler, & Dark Earth by Rebecca Stott

     

Can't-Wait is a weekly meme hosted by Wishful Endings that spotlights exciting upcoming releases that we can't wait to be released! This meme is based off of Jill @ Breaking the Spine's Waiting on Wednesday meme.

 

This week's upcoming book spotlights are: 

Just Like Home by Sarah Gailey
Publication: July 19th, 2022
Tor Books
Hardcover. 352 pages.
Pre-order: Amazon | Bookshop.org

From Goodreads:
"'Come home.' Vera’s mother called and Vera obeyed. In spite of their long estrangement, in spite of the memories -- she's come back to the home of a serial killer. Back to face the love she had for her father and the bodies he buried there. 

Coming home is hard enough for Vera, and to make things worse, she and her mother aren’t alone. A parasitic artist has moved into the guest house out back, and is slowly stripping Vera’s childhood for spare parts. He insists that he isn’t the one leaving notes around the house in her father’s handwriting… but who else could it possibly be? 

There are secrets yet undiscovered in the foundations of the notorious Crowder House. Vera must face them, and find out for herself just how deep the rot goes."

I'm always curious to see what's next from Sarah Gailey and I'm always a sucker for a weird house setting. 

and...

The Splendid City by Karen Heuler
Publication: June 14th, 2022
Angry Robot
Paperback. 400 pages.
Pre-order: Amazon

From Goodreads:

"A genre-blending story of modern witchcraft, a police state and WTF characters, for fans of Alice Hoffman and Madeline Miller. 

In the state of Liberty, water is rationed at alarming prices, free speech is hardly without a cost, and Texas has just declared itself its own country. In this society, paranoia is well-suited because eyes and ears are all around, and they are judging. Always judging. This terrifying (and yet somehow vaguely familiar) terrain is explored via Eleanor - a young woman eagerly learning about the gifts of her magic through the support of her coven. 

But being a white witch is not as easy as they portray it in the books, and she's already been placed under 'house arrest' with a letch named Stan, a co-worker who wronged her in the past and now exists in the form of a cat. A talking cat who loves craft beers, picket lines, and duping and 'shooting' people. 

Eleanor has no time for Stan and his shenanigans, because she finds herself helping another coven locate a missing witch which she thinks is mysteriously linked to the shortage of water in Liberty."

I haven't heard anything about this and I love how weird it sounds. I have absolutely no idea what to expect from it, but I'm intrigued and ready!

and...

Dark Earth by Rebecca Stott
Publication: July 19th, 2022
Random House
Hardcover. 336 pages.
Pre-order: Amazon | Bookshop.org

From Goodreads:

"The year is 500 AD. Sisters Isla and Blue live in the shadows of the Ghost City, the abandoned ruins of the once-glorious mile-wide Roman settlement Londinium on the bank of the River Thames. But the small island they call home is also a place of exile for Isla, Blue, and their father, a legendary blacksmith accused of using dark magic to make his firetongue swords—formidable blades that cannot be broken—and cast out from the community. When he dies suddenly, the sisters find themselves facing enslavement by the local warlord and his cruel, power-hungry son. Their only option is to escape to the Ghost City, where they discover an underworld of rebel women living secretly amid the ruins. But if Isla and Blue are to survive the men who hunt them, and protect their new community, they will need to use all their skill and ingenuity—as well as the magic of their foremothers—to fight back. 

With an intimate yet cinematic scope, Dark Earth re-creates an ancient world steeped in myth and folklore, and introduces us to unforgettable women who come to vibrant life on the page. A heart-in-mouth adventure full of moments of tenderness, this is a beautiful, profound novel about oppression and power that puts a female perspective on a historical period dominated by men’s stories."

This setting reminds me a bit of Sistersong, which I loved, and this premise sounds so interesting! 

What do you think about these upcoming releases? What are your anticipated upcoming releases?

Anticipated July 2022 Releases!

 

If you though June was packed full of new releases, then you may want to make sure you're sitting down for this post because there are so many releases coming in July as well! At this point, I will likely never catch up on all my reading, haha, but I accepted that a long time ago. I am so very excited for so many of these releases, and have already read a number of them as well. The Daughter of Doctor Moreau and What Moves the Dead are two ARCs I'm reading very soon, and I really loved The Book of Gothel. I can't wait to check the rest of these out (one day?). What books are you most looking forward to being released in July?

What Moves the Dead by T. Kingfisher || July 12th -- Amazon | Bookshop.org

The Daughter of Doctor Moreau by Silvia Moreno-Garcia || July 19th -- Amazon | Bookshop.org

Ymir by Rich Larson || July 12th -- Amazon | Bookshop.org

Dead Water by C.A. Fletcher || July 19th -- Amazon | Bookshop.org

Upgrade by Blake Crouch || July 12th -- Amazon | Bookshop.org

Mary: An Awakening of Terror by Nat Cassidy || July 19th -- Amazon | Bookshop.org

Night of the Living Rez by Morgan Talty || July 5th -- Amazon | Bookshop.org

The Book of Gothel by Mary McMyne || July 26th -- Amazon | Bookshop.org

The Pallbearer's Club by Paul Tremblay || July 5th -- Amazon | Bookshop.org

Just Like Home by Sarah Gailey || July 19th -- Amazon | Bookshop.org

The Splendid City by Karen Heuler || July 12th -- Amazon | Bookshop.org

The Darkening by Sunya Mara || July 5th -- Amazon | Bookshop.org

August Kitko and the Mechas from Space by Alex White || July 12th -- Amazon | Bookshop.org

Silk Fire by Zabe Ellor || July 5th -- Amazon | Bookshop.org

Wake the Bones by Elizabeth Kilcoyne || July 12th -- Amazon | Bookshop.org

The Ruins by Phoebe Wynne || July 5th -- Amazon | Bookshop.org

Dark Earth by Rebecca Stott || July 19th -- Amazon | Bookshop.org

A Strange and Stubborn Endurance by Foz Meadows || July 26th -- Amazon | Bookshop.org

The House of Fortune by Jessie Burton || July 7th -- Amazon | Bookshop.org

The It Girl by Ruth Ware || July 12th -- Amazon | Bookshop.org

Ravenous Things by Derrick Chow || July 26th -- Amazon | Bookshop.org

The Displacements by Bruce Holsinger || July 5th -- Amazon | Bookshop.org

Ten Thousand Stitches by Olivia Atwater || July 19th -- Amazon | Bookshop.org

What are your anticipated July releases?

The Friday Face-Off: A Father-Figure Role

      

Welcome to The Friday Face-Off, a weekly meme at Books by Proxy. Join us every Friday as we pit cover against cover, and publisher against publisher, to find the best artwork in our literary universe.  You can find a list of upcoming topics at Lynn's Books.

This week's topic is:

Father-Figure

I had a few ideas for this one, with Inkheart by Cornelia Funke and Nevermoor by Jessica Townsend first coming to mind, but I've already featured both of those in past posts and so had to keep looking. I finally settled on Andrzej Sapkowski's The Witcher series since Gerald has a great father-type role towards Ciri. I've decided to share editions of the first book, Blood of Elves, since Ciri has a larger role in it. There were so many covers and I want to share them, but that would be far too long so here's a small sampling. Let's check them out!

2009 US Mass Market | 2007 Polish | 2009 UK

2009 German | 2012 Italian | 1998 Czech

2011 French | 2009 Bulgarian | 1998 Russian

2012 Serbian | 2015 Spanish | 2013 Hungarian

2020 Swedish | 2017 Estonian | 2018 Persian

2016 Georgian | 2016 Russian | 2019 Portuguese

My choice(s):

It always bothered me that the main US editions featured covers taken from the games!? Especially since a lot of them featured scenes that weren't even in the books. (Orbit actually has a lot of new awesome covers for them coming out later this year if you're looking for better ones!) I really love just how much variety there is in all of these covers, and I have to say that I really like the Portuguese, Swedish, Spanish, and Bulgarian the most out of these options.

What cover(s) do you like the most?

Mini-Review: Half a Soul by Olivia Atwater

     

Half a Soul by Olivia Atwater

Orbit

Publication Date: June 28th, 2022

Hardcover. 288 pages.

About Half a Soul:

"It's difficult to find a husband in Regency England when you're a young lady with only half a soul. 

Ever since she was cursed by a faerie, Theodora Ettings has had no sense of fear or embarrassment - a condition which makes her prone to accidental scandal. Dora hopes to be a quiet, sensible wallflower during the London Season - but when the strange, handsome and utterly uncouth Lord Sorcier discovers her condition, she is instead drawn into dangerous and peculiar faerie affairs. 

If Dora's reputation can survive both her curse and her sudden connection with the least-liked man in all of high society, then she may yet reclaim her normal place in the world. . . but the longer Dora spends with Elias Wilder, the more she begins to suspect that one may indeed fall in love, even with only half a soul."

Half a Soul follows Theodora Ettings, who has only half of her soul due to an unfortunate meeting with a Fae man in her youth, meaning that she now experiences life without a full range of strong emotions. When her cousin Vanessa decides to travel to London with the apparent intention of finding a husband, Dora accompanies her and is introduced to London society as well, which results in meeting a variety of new characters, including a rather grumpy sorcerer who may be key in helping Dora recover her full soul.

What I liked: This was such a cute and fun comfort read. I don't really read a lot of books like this, so this was an incredibly welcome fresh breath of air and I'm excited to read more of Olivia Atwater's books. I loved the idea of Dora having half a soul and seeing how that affects her life on a regularly basis. Dora is a fantastic and utterly compelling character to follow and I loved seeing the world through her eyes and experiences. She's really not all that different from you or I, and I liked seeing her adapt to new situations and really thrive in new environments in her own unique ways. There a nice mix of the main plot and some side stories that meld together really well to give Dora her own story and to keep this story moving at a steady, flowing pace.

What I disliked: The main issues that arose for me in Half a Soul had to do with the magic and some of the plot. There was a certain lack of information given around the magic used in this story which left me feeling uncertain about how any of it worked or what it's role was within the society as a whole. Since Dora herself doesn't really use magic, I understand why it wasn't focused on more, but since magic was such a large component of this book in other ways and it played a rather important role in the end, I do wish there had been just a bit more expanded upon regarding it. In regards to the plot, I enjoyed the first half of this book much more than the latter half and felt as though some of the main focus of the story was lost a little bit once we reached the halfway point. Still, this was a really fun book that doesn't give me too much to complain about!

Overall, it's 3.75 stars from me for Half a Soul!

*I received a copy of Half a Soul courtesy of the publisher in exchange for an honest review.*

Buy the book: Amazon | Bookshop.org

Can't-Wait Wednesday: The Book of Gothel by Mary McMyne & Mary: An Awakening of Terror by Nat Cassidy

     

Can't-Wait is a weekly meme hosted by Wishful Endings that spotlights exciting upcoming releases that we can't wait to be released! This meme is based off of Jill @ Breaking the Spine's Waiting on Wednesday meme.

 

This week's upcoming book spotlights are: 

The Book of Gothel by Mary McMyne
Publication: July 26th, 2022
Redhook
Hardcover. 384 pages.
Pre-order: Amazon | Bookshop.org

From Goodreads:
"Everyone knows the tale of Rapunzel in her tower, but do you know the story of the witch who put her there? 

Haelewise has always lived under the shadow of her mother, Hedda—a woman who will do anything to keep her daughter protected. For with her strange black eyes and even stranger fainting spells, Haelewise is shunned by her medieval village, and her only solace lies in the stories her mother tells of child-stealing witches, of princes in wolf-skins, of an ancient tower cloaked in mist, where women will find shelter if they are brave enough to seek it. 

Then, Hedda dies, and Haelewise is left unmoored. With nothing left for her in her village, she sets out to find the legendary tower her mother used to speak of—a place called Gothel, where Haelewise meets a wise woman willing to take her under her wing. 

But Haelewise is not the only woman to seek refuge at Gothel. It’s also a haven for a girl named Rika, who carries with her a secret the Church strives to keep hidden. A secret that unlocks a dark world of ancient spells and murderous nobles behind the world Haelewise has always known…"

I love Rapunzel retellings and I don't think we have enough of them! I already read an ARC and I adored it. I can't wait to see it published!

and...

Mary: An Awakening of Terror by Nat Cassidy
Publication: July 19th, 2022
Tor Nightfire
Hardcover. 416 pages.
Pre-order: Amazon | Bookshop.org

From Goodreads:

"Nat Cassidy’s highly commercial, debut horror novel Mary: An Awakening of Terror, blends Midsommar with elements of American Psycho and a pinch of I'll Be Gone in the Dark. 

Mary is a quiet, middle-aged woman doing her best to blend into the background. Unremarkable. Invisible. Unknown even to herself. 

But lately, things have been changing inside Mary. Along with the hot flashes and body aches, she can’t look in a mirror without passing out, and the voices in her head have been urging her to do unspeakable things. 

Fired from her job in New York, she moves back to her hometown, hoping to reconnect with her past and inner self. Instead, visions of terrifying, mutilated specters overwhelm her with increasing regularity and she begins auto-writing strange thoughts and phrases. Mary discovers that these experiences are echoes of an infamous serial killer. 

Then the killings begin again. 

Mary’s definitely going to find herself."

This sounds like such a weird horror and I am so here for it!

What do you think about these upcoming releases? What are your anticipated upcoming releases?