17 new SFF books to get nice and cozy with this September

Tiger Queen – Annie Sullivan

From the author of A Touch of Gold comes another feminist retelling of another famous legend. Annie Sullivan’s Tiger Queen is a retelling of the Frank Stockton’s short story “The Lady or the Tiger,” a tale which has long become something of a cultural shorthand for making an impossible choice.

Such a choice apparently awaits Princess Kateri, heir to the kingdom of Achra, who must survive the arena to prove her right to rule and conquer the desert defeat the harsh environment of the desert to save her people. The premise immediately inverts the tone of the original story, placing a female character at the center and giving her tons of agency.

Much like Sullivan’s previous work, Tiger Queen features a strong, complex protagonist in Kateri, and in-depth world building about the kingdom in which she finds herself, offering a creative twist on a familiar story.

The official synopsis offers a bit more detail.

"In the mythical desert kingdom of Achra, an ancient law forces sixteen-year-old Princess Kateri to fight in the arena to prove her right to rule. For Kateri, winning also means fulfilling a promise to her late mother that she would protect her people, who are struggling through windstorms and drought. The situation is worsened by the gang of Desert Boys that frequently raids the city wells, forcing the king to ration what little water is left. The punishment for stealing water is a choice between two doors: behind one lies freedom, and behind the other is a tiger. But when Kateri’s final opponent is announced, she knows she cannot win. In desperation, she turns to the desert and the one person she never thought she’d side with. What Kateri discovers twists her world—and her heart—upside down. Her future is now behind two doors—only she’s not sure which holds the key to keeping her kingdom and which releases the tiger."

Tiger Queen is available on September 10.