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

Five Dark Fates – Kendare Blake

The fourth and final novel (fifth if you count the brief novella that dropped in 2018) in Kendare Blake’s Three Dark Crowns fantasy series, Five Dark Fates will conclude the story of three sisters who must battle to the death for a crown.

Queens Arsinoe, Katherine and Mirabella each command different abilities – one an elemental, one a naturalist and one a poisoner – and in order for one to rule, the other two must die. Over the course of the series, secrets have been revealed, family loyalties tested, revolutions attempted, and betrayals made. People have died, while others have been resurrected, or fled the island of the queens for lives in the world across the sea that happens to look a lot like our own.

(It’s hard to talk about this series in too much detail without getting spoilery, but it’s a wild and worthwhile ride. And I can’t wait to see how it all ends.)

Here’s what the official synopsis has to say.

"After the grim confrontation with Queen Katharine, the rebellion lies in tatters. Jules’s legion curse has been unbound, and it is up to Arsinoe to find a cure, even as the responsibility of stopping the ravaging mist lies heavy on her shoulders, and her shoulders alone. Mirabella has disappeared. Katharine’s reign remains intact—for now. When Mirabella arrives, seemingly under a banner of truce, Katharine begins to yearn for the closeness that Mirabella and Arsinoe share. But as the two circle each other, the dead queens hiss caution—Mirabella is not to be trusted. In this conclusion to the Three Dark Crowns series, three sisters will rise to fight as the secrets of Fennbirn’s history are laid bare. Allegiances will shift. Bonds will be tested. But the fate of the island lies in the hands of its queens. It always has."

Five Dark Fates is available September 3.