The New Books Roundup, Jan. 10: Perilous Poisons and Bears
In this week’s new books roundup, there’s a fresh mystery, a YA novel about a poisonous assassin, and, sadly, not actual bears, but metaphysical ones.
All things considered, it’s still a relatively quiet period for new books. Fresh self-help books and cookbooks are everywhere, meaning you’ll have to pick your way through some smaller fiction sections to find the gems. Fortunately, that’s where we come in. On this week’s edition, we’ve kept things pretty light with just three new books taking the spotlight.
Title links take you to Amazon, and we, as per usual, note that ebooks show up instantly.
A Perilous Undertaking
Let’s just start this out by saying that this is the second of Deanna Raybourn’s Veronica Speedwell mysteries. However, the fact that the descriptions state that Veronica will visit a ladies-only adventurers’ club has us incredibly intrigued. The mystery surrounds the death of an artist by the name of Artemisia. Her lover’s been framed for the crime. With the help of Stoker, Veronica will attempt to find the real murderer. A book that references Artemisia Gentileschi is a book that we want to read, to be honest. Goodreads reviews praise Veronica as a character and mention things like danger, which bodes well for this book living up to its title. Berkley; hardcover, 352 pages; list price: $26.00.
Poison’s Kiss
Did we not promise you poisonous assassins? The heroine of Breeana Shields’ YA debut is Marinda, a teenager with the ability to kill with just one little kiss. Unsurprisingly, people in the kingdom of Sundari have put her to work as an assassin. However, Marinda’s newest target is a young man by the name of Deven. We’re sure that you can see where this is going. However, this novel also includes a positive familial relationship and some very large, very important conspiracies. It’s also based on Indian folklore. Goodreads lists this as the first novel of a potential series, and reviews there praise the writing in particular. Random House; hardcover, 304 pages; list price: $17.99.
The Bear and the Nightingale
Katherine Arden’s debut novel actually namechecks both Neil Gaiman and The Night Circus in its Amazon description. Those are some large shoes to fill. It also, however, sounds like it’s taking nods from Russian folklore. Vasilisa has grown up making sure that the spirits surrounding her home feel welcome. When a new stepmother arrives, though, it becomes harder and harder to carry out those traditions. This is, as you can imagine, not a good thing, and it leads to Vasilisa calling on “dangerous gifts”, which makes us think magic will be involved. Goodreads reviews peg it as a story meant to be savored. Del Rey; hardcover, 336 pages; list price: $27.00.
Next: George R.R. Martin Basically Admits that Winds of Winter isn't Done
Also coming out today are The Meaning of Michelle, featuring 15 essays about what Michelle Obama’s time as First Lady means; and RoseBlood, a fresh take on The Phantom of the Opera.
Which books are first on your to-read list this week?