Wednesday, January 28, 2026

Can't-Wait Wednesday: Operation Bounce House by Matt Dinniman, The Fourth Princess by Janie Chang, & Patchwork Dolls by Ysabelle Cheung

   

 Can't-Wait is a weekly meme hosted by Wishful Endings that spotlights exciting upcoming releases that we can't wait to be released

Operation Bounce House by Matt Dinniman
Publication: February 10th, 2026
Ace
Hardcover. 448 pages.
Pre-order: Bookshop.org | Amazon

From Goodreads:
"A man must fight for his planet against impossible odds when gamers from Earth attempt to remotely annihilate it in this epic, fast-paced novel from the New York Times bestselling author of the smash-hit Dungeon Crawler Carl.

All colonist Oliver Lewis ever wanted to do was run the family ranch with his sister, maybe play a gig or two with his band, and keep his family’s aging fleet of intelligent agriculture bots ticking as long as possible. He figures it will be a good thing when the transfer gate finally opens all the way and restores instant travel and full communication between Earth and his planet, New Sonora. But there’s a complication.

Even though the settlers were promised they’d be left in peace, Earth’s government now has other plans. The colossal Apex Industries is hired to commence an “eviction action.” But maximizing profits will always be Apex’s number one priority. Why spend money printing and deploying AI soldiers when they can turn it into a game? Why not charge bored Earthers for the opportunity to design their own war machines and remotely pilot them from the comfort of their homes?

The game is called Operation Bounce House.

Oliver and his friends soon find themselves fighting for their lives against machines piloted by gamers who’ve paid a premium for the privilege. With the help of an old book from his grandfather and a bucket of rusty parts, Oliver is determined to defend the only home he’s ever known.
"

I, like many, many other people, have been a huge fan of Matt Dinniman's Dungeon Crawler Carl series, so I'm very eager to check out this new book! I read one of Dinniman's previous LitRPG works and was impressed with the creativity there as well, so I think something new from him is very promising.


The Fourth Princess by Janie Chang
Publication: February 10th, 2026
William Morrow
Paperback. 336 pages.
Pre-order: Bookshop.org | Amazon

From Goodreads:
"From the internationally bestselling author of The Porcelain Moon comes a haunting Gothic novel set in 1911 China. Two young women living in a crumbling, once-grand Shanghai mansion face danger as secrets of their pasts come to light, even as the mansion’s own secret threatens the present.

Shanghai, 1911. Lisan Liu is elated when she is hired as secretary to wealthy American Caroline Stanton, the new mistress of Lennox Manor on the outskirts of Shanghai’s International Settlement. However, the Manor has a dark past due to a previous owner’s suicide, and soon Lisan’s childhood nightmares resurface with more intensity and meld with haunted visions of a woman in red. Adding to her unease is the young gardener, Yao, who both entices and disturbs her.

Newly married Caroline looks forward to life in China with her husband, Thomas, away from the shadows of another earlier tragedy. But an unwelcome guest, Andrew Grey, attends her party and claims to know secrets she can’t afford to have exposed. At the same party, the notorious princess Masako Kyo approaches Lisan with questions about the young woman’s family that the orphaned Lisan can’t answer.

As Caroline struggles with Grey’s extortion and Thomas’s mysterious illness, Lisan’s future is upended when she learns the truth about her past, and why her identity has been hidden all these years. All the while, strange incidents accelerate, driving Lisan to doubt her sanity as Lennox Manor seems unwilling to release her until she fulfills demands from beyond the grave."

I've really enjoyed some of Janie Chang's previous books and this sounds like it'll be another fantastic read. 

Patchwork Dolls by Ysabelle Cheung
Publication: February 10th, 2026
Blair
Paperback. 200 pages.
Pre-order: Bookshop.org | Amazon

From Goodreads:
"In this debut story collection, Ysabelle Cheung weaves an eerie fabulism with tales that cross continents, technology, and time.

Set in Hong Kong and America—between the present day and an uncannily altered future—this story collection warps the familiar rules of our world to ask: what does it mean to be Asian and a woman—living under the specter of state and technological surveillance—or trying to break free from it?

In the title story, a young woman of color realizes she can make her fortune by surgically selling her facial features to whiter, wealthier clients. In “Please, Get Out and Dance,” a group of rebels escapes a city that is literally disappearing around them—building by building, person by person—to migrate to a new home beneath the ocean, defying their government’s mandate. “Herbs” follows an elderly widow who, when the clones of her dead husband start to appear uninvited in her home, must grapple with her memories.

In each of these stories, Cheung tilts the world just slightly off its axis to bring together a haunting meditation on what it means to survive within our increasingly digitized and mechanized world.
"

I was fortunate enough to have already worked my way through an early copy of this and it was so good, I can't wait for it to be released (my review will also be up closer to it's publication)!



The Faceless Thing We Adore by Hester Steel
Publication: August 5th, 2025
Page Street Horror
Hardcover. 416 pages.
Pre-order: Bookshop.org | Amazon

From Goodreads:
"It’s a tale as old as time: break up with your shitty boyfriend, travel to a foreign country to find yourself . . . end up in a sex-fueled commune worshiping an angry God. When Aoife stumbles across the Farmstead, she finds everything she’s been missing—a community that loves her, sexual freedom, a greater purpose. She could actually be happy here. . .

If it weren’t for the teenager they keep locked up in a cabin with no windows. Or the mysterious rot spreading through the farmland. Or that some of her new friends talk about their leader Jonah with more fear than love.

When the god wakes up and it all goes wrong, it’s only Aoife who has the power to choose what will become of their tiny reality. Awkward, clumsy Aoife, who was always told she was weak, and is just now realizing the depths of her strength—and the pleasures of her rage.
"

I usually like to throw in a nonfiction option on these posts, but since we are slowly entering the season for horror there are an abundance of new horror options, so I just had to share this last one here. What a premise and I have absolutely no idea what to expect, so I'm definitely intrigued!

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