strange and random happenstance

Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins
Published by: Scholastic Press
Publication Date: March 18th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 400 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"The phenomenal fifth book in the Hunger Games series!

When you've been set up to lose everything you love, what is there left to fight for?

As the day dawns on the fiftieth annual Hunger Games, fear grips the districts of Panem. This year, in honor of the Quarter Quell, twice as many tributes will be taken from their homes.

Back in District 12, Haymitch Abernathy is trying not to think too hard about his chances. All he cares about is making it through the day and being with the girl he loves.

When Haymitch's name is called, he can feel all his dreams break. He's torn from his family and his love, shuttled to the Capitol with the three other District 12 tributes: a young friend who's nearly a sister to him, a compulsive oddsmaker, and the most stuck-up girl in town. As the Games begin, Haymitch understands he's been set up to fail. But there's something in him that wants to fight...and have that fight reverberate far beyond the deadly arena."

I didn't think I'd love The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes as much as I did, so, here's hoping this book surprises me as well. I can't wait to read it.

Aunt Tigress by Emily Yu-Xuan Qin
Published by: DAW
Publication Date: March 18th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 432 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"From debut author Emily Yu-Xuan Qin comes a snarky urban fantasy novel inspired by Chinese and First Nation mythology and bursting with wit, compelling characters, and LGBTQIA+ representation.

Readers of Seanan McGuire, Ilona Andrews, and Ben Aaronovitch will devour this gory story - and the sweet-as-Canadian-maple-syrup sapphic romance at its monstrous heart.

Tam hasn't eaten anyone in years.

She is now Mama's soft-spoken, vegan daughter - everything dangerous about her is cut out.

But when Tam's estranged Aunt Tigress is found murdered and skinned, Tam inherits an undead fox in a shoebox, and an ensemble of old enemies.

The demons, the ghosts, the gods running coffee shops by the river? Fine. The tentacled thing stalking Tam across the city? Absolutely not. And when Tam realizes the girl she's falling in love with might be yet another loose end from her past? That's just the brassy, beautiful cherry on top.

Because no matter how quietly she lives, Tam can't hide from her voracious upbringing, nor the suffering she caused. As she navigates romance, redemption, and the end of the world, she can't help but wonder...

Do monsters even deserve happy endings?

With worldbuilding inspired by Chinese folklore and the Siksiká Nation in Canada, LGBTQIA+ representation, and a sapphic romance, Aunt Tigress is at once familiar and breathtakingly innovative."

I can see the reason why this book is getting Ben Aaronovitch comparisons, which I love, but it's also so uniquely itself.

The Hymn to Dionysus by Natasha Pulley
Published by: Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication Date: March 18th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 416 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A timely reimagining of the story of Dionysus - Greek god of ecstasy, revelry, and ruin - and a captivating queer love story for readers of The Song of Achilles and Elektra.

Raised in a Greek legion, Phaidros has been taught to follow his commander's orders at all costs. But when Phaidros rescues a baby from a fire at Thebes's palace, his commander's orders cease to make sense: Phaidros is forced to abandon the blue-eyed boy at a temple, and to keep the baby's existence a total secret.

Years later, struggling with panic attacks and flashbacks, Phaidros is enlisted by the Queen to find her son, Thebes' young crown prince, who has vanished to escape an arranged marriage. The search leads him to a blue-eyed witch named Dionysus, whose guidance is as wise as the events that surround him are strange. In Dionysus's company, Phaidros witnesses sudden outbursts of riots and unrest, and everywhere Dionysus goes, rumors follow about a new god, one sired by Zeus but lost in a fire.

In The Hymn to Dionysus, bestselling author Natasha Pulley transports us to an ancient empire on the edge of ruin to tell an utterly captivating queer love story about a man needing a god to remind him how to be a human."

I'm always here for whatever Natasha Pulley writes, but this, damn. And look at that amazing cover.

A Gentleman's Offer by Emma Orchard
Published by: Boldwood Books Ltd
Publication Date: March 18th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 322 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"The gorgeous and spicy new romance from Emma Orchard, perfect for everyone waiting for their next Bridgerton fix!

June, 1817
Sir Dominic De Lacy - one of the season's most eligible gentlemen - has recently proposed marriage... to a woman he scarcely knows. But his father's choice for him, Miss Maria Nightingale, seems amiable, and at 29, Dominic cannot live the life of a bachelor forever. He hopes he can provide a happy future for her as they learn to care for each other.

Maria, however, has other ideas. Midway through their engagement celebrations, she confesses to Dominic that she is not Maria at all, but her identical twin sister, Margaret. Maria has disappeared, and Margaret's been persuaded to take her place until she's found - and for that she needs Dominic's help. The pair quickly find they make a formidable team, but with just three weeks to avoid the biggest scandal of the season, time is against them.

But even if they find Maria, can they really hope the wedding will happen? Because, as they are starting to realise, chemistry can't be arranged - and Sir Dominic might just be engaged to the wrong Miss Nightingale..."

Eh, just live as your twin sister forever if it means happiness and you're not actually keeping a secret from your husband... 

Sweet Home Alabarden Park by T.J. O'Shea
Published by: Bella Books
Publication Date: March 18th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 362 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Fiona Turner is about to face two, equally impossible challenges: repair a deteriorating, centuries-old estate in time to host the Queen of England, and turn an all-American farmer into a proper English duchess.

Fresh off a painful divorce, Fiona seizes the opportunity to renovate Alabarden Park and assist its new duchess, Alice Stewart - an effervescent, unpretentious American whose open attraction to Fiona intrigues and unsettles her. As their mutual feelings grow stronger, the professional distance Fiona put between them begins to crumble.

Now, Fiona is faced with two new, equally impossible challenges: keep Alice out of her battered, broken heart, or risk everything and let her in."

Let her in!

The Strawberry Patch Pancake House by Laurie Gilmore
Published by: HarperCollins
Publication Date: March 18th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 384 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Fall in love with the brand new spring romance set in Dream Harbor, from the bestselling author of The Pumpkin Spice Cafe and The Cinnamon Bun Book Store.

As a world-renowned chef, single dad Archer never planned on moving to a small town, let alone running a pancake restaurant. But Dream Harbor needs a new chef, and Archer needs a community to help raise his daughter, Olive.

Iris has never managed to hold down a job for more than a few months. So when it's suggested that Archer is looking for a live-in nanny, she almost runs in the opposite direction.

Now, Iris finds herself in a whole new world. One where her gorgeous new boss lives right across the hall and likes to cook topless... Keeping everything strictly professional should be easy, right?

The Strawberry Patch Pancake House is a cozy romantic mystery with a single dad and found family dynamic, a small-town setting and a HEA guaranteed!"

I mean, the Gilmore Girls vibes are strong, just look at the pen name Melissa McTernan chose, she literally made herself a Gilmore girl... 

The Bane Witch by Ava Morgyn
Published by: St. Martin's Griffin
Publication Date: March 18th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 384 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Practical Magic meets Gone Girl in Ava Morgyn's next dark, spellbinding novel about a woman who is more than a witch - she's a hunter.

Piers Corbin has always had an affinity for poisonous things - plants and men. From the pokeweed berries she consumed at age five that led to the accidental death of a stranger, to the husband whose dark proclivities have become… concerning, poison has been at the heart of her story.

But when she fakes her own death in an attempt to escape her volatile marriage and goes to stay with her estranged great aunt in the mountains, she realizes her predilection is more than a hunger - it's a birthright. Piers comes from a long line of poison eaters - Bane Witches - women who ingest deadly plants and use their magic to rid the world of evil men.

Piers sets out to earn her place in her family's gritty but distinguished legacy, all while working at her Aunt Myrtle's cafe and perpetuating a flirtation with the local, well-meaning sheriff to allay his suspicions on the body count she's been leaving in her wake. But soon she catches the attention of someone else, a serial killer operating in the area. And that only means one thing - it's time to feed.

In Ava Morgyn’s dark, thrilling novel, The Bane Witch, a very little poison can do a world of good."

Do you have to be born a Bane Witch or can you apprentice to become one?

The Story She Left Behind by Patti Callahan Henry
Published by: Atria Books
Publication Date: March 18th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 352 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Inspired by a true literary mystery, New York Times bestselling author of the mesmerizing The Secret Book of Flora Lea returns with the sweeping story of a legendary book, a lost mother, and a daughter's search for them both.

In 1927, eight-year-old Clara Harrington's magical childhood shatters when her mother, renowned author, Bronwyn Newcastle Fordham, disappears off the coast of South Carolina. Bronwyn stunned the world with a book written in an invented language that became a national sensation when she was just twelve years old. Her departure leaves behind not only a devoted husband and heartbroken daughter, but also the hope of ever translating the sequel to her landmark work. As the headlines focus on the missing author, Clara yearns for something far deeper and more insatiable: her beautiful mother.

By 1952, Clara is an illustrator raising her own daughter, Wynnie. When a stranger named Charlie Jameson contacts her from London claiming to have discovered a handwritten dictionary of her mother's lost language. Clara is skeptical. Compelled by the tragedy of her mother's vanishing, she crosses the Atlantic with Wynnie only to arrive during one of London's most deadly natural disasters - the Great Smog. With asthmatic Wynnie in peril, they escape the city with Charlie and find refuge in the Jameson's family retreat nestled in the Lake District. It is there that Clara must find the courage to uncover the truth about her mother and the story she left behind.

Told in Patti Callahan Henry's lyrical, enchanting prose, The Story She Left Behind is a captivating novel of mystery and family legacy that captures the profound longing for a mother and the evergreen allure of secrets."

I love literary mysteries!

A Map to Paradise by Susan Meissner
Published by: Berkley
Publication Date: March 18th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 352 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"1956, Malibu, California: Something is not right on Paradise Circle.

With her name on the Hollywood blacklist and her life on hold, starlet Melanie Cole has little choice in company. There is her next-door neighbor, Elwood, but the screenwriter's agoraphobia allows for just short chats through open windows. He's her sole confidante, though, as she and her housekeeper, Eva, an immigrant from war-torn Europe, rarely make conversation.

Then one early morning Melanie and Eva spot Elwood's sister-in-law and caretaker, June, digging in his beloved rose garden. After that they don't see Elwood at all anymore. Where could a man who never leaves the house possibly have gone?

As they try to find out if something has happened to him, unexpected secrets are revealed among all three women, leading to an alliance that seems the only way for any of them to hold on to what they can still call their own. But it's a fragile pact and one little spark could send it all up in smoke..."

A little Rear Window vibe.

The Orphanage by the Lake by Daniel G. Miller
Published by: Poisoned Pen Press
Publication Date: March 18th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 336 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A MISSING GIRL. AN ORPHANAGE FILLED WITH SECRETS.

Hazel wants a new life.

She's thirty years old, single, and her private investigation business is months away from folding.

Her luck takes a turn when Madeline Hemsley, a mysterious socialite, pays Hazel a visit with an offer too enticing to resist. An orphan girl has disappeared from a children's home - The Orphanage by the Lake, as the locals call it - and Madeline wants Hazel to find her.

At first glance, it appears to be a standard runaway case, but as Hazel plunges into the investigation, she finds signs of something more: unexplained blood stains, cryptic symbols, sinister figures shadowing her every move. The more she digs, the more she realizes that The Orphanage by the Lake holds terrifying secrets, and even worse...

...so does Madeline.

Fans of Freida McFadden's The Housemaid, Charlie Donlea's The Girl Who Was Taken, and Karin Slaughter's Pretty Girls will love this twisty, suspenseful thill-ride."

I mean, if you have something to hide, perhaps going into a business of uncovering secrets isn't the wisest move...

Pomona Afton Can So Solve a Murder by Bellamy Rose
Published by: Atria/Emily Bestler Books
Publication Date: March 18th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 256 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A spoiled heiress must investigate her grandmother's death in order to gain back her trust fund, all while discovering how to be her own person and maybe even in falling in love in this rom-com meets murder mystery.

When Pomona Afton, Upper East Side hotel heiress, stumbles out of a gala and upon the scene of her grandmother's murder, her first thought is that the society queen won't be missed for her kind, cookie-baking ways. In fact, she was mean, greedy, and paranoid - so paranoid that she secretly slipped a clause into her will mandating that, should she die an unnatural death, all the family assets get frozen. And if the "unnatural death" isn’t explained? Those accounts stay frozen.

Practically overnight, Pomona is locked out of her penthouse with no other option than to move in with a roommate: Gabe, the irritable (yet handsome) son of her former nanny. Not only is his apartment cramped, but it doesn't even have a doorman. Or a chef! Pom needs someone to solve this murder, like, yesterday, so she can get her trust fund back.

And Gabe? He needs this murder solved because that's the only way his mother, who toiled for the Afton family for years, will ever get the retirement money she deserves. As Pom's family clams up, blocking the police at every turn, Pom quickly realizes that if she wants her glamorous life back, she's going to have to put on her big-girl Manolos and do it herself…with the help of Gabe, who she's falling for more and more by the day.

Can Pomona Afton (who previously couldn't solve a crossword in the bath on a hungover Sunday) actually solve this murder? And if she does return to her former life of luxury, will it be worth the possibility of losing Gabe?"

The real question, is there a time limit on solving the murder to unfreeze the assets?

The Library Game by Gigi Pandian
Published by: Minotaur Books
Publication Date: March 18th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 320 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"In The Library Game, Tempest Raj and Secret Staircase Construction are renovating a classic detective fiction library that just got its first real-life mystery.

Tempest Raj couldn't be happier that the family business, Secret Staircase Construction, is finally getting the recognition it deserves. Known for enchanting architectural features like sliding bookshelves and secret passageways, the company is now taking on a dream project: transforming a home into a public library that celebrates history's greatest fictional detectives.

Though the work is far from done, Gray House Library's new owner is eager to host a murder mystery dinner and literary themed escape room. But when a rehearsal ends with an actor murdered and the body vanishes, Tempest is witness to a seemingly impossible crime. Fueled by her grandfather's Scottish and Indian meals, Tempest and the rest of the crew must figure out who is making beloved classic mystery plots come to life in a deadly game.

Multiple award winning author Gigi Pandian masterfully weaves wit and warmth in the Secret Staircase Mysteries. Readers will delight in the surprises Secret Staircase Construction uncovers behind the next locked door."

Oh, I know there's a risk I could be murdered, but can I get an invite to the dinner and escape room?

The Bookseller by Tim Sullivan
Published by: Head of Zeus - An Aries Book
Publication Date: March 18th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 368 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"SOMEONE'S ABOUT TO TURN THEIR LAST PAGE...

THE SETTING
The body of a bookseller is discovered, lying in a pool of blood in his Bristol bookshop. Police have one question: how did the man meet such a violent, murderous end in this peaceful place?

THE CONFLICT
DS Cross's ability to dismiss red herrings is challenged by a worrying development in his personal life. Hopelessly distracted, he needs to rely on those around him in a way he has never been comfortable doing before.

THE MURDER PLOT
It may be a quiet profession, but it's full of passionate, ambitious characters who know the value of a rare book. Their extensive reading means they also know how to get away with murder.

But is that enough to fool the tenacious DS George Cross?

Perfect for fans of MW Craven, Peter James, and Joy Ellis, this is the seventh book in the bestselling series, which can be read in any order."

I think DS Cross has a lot to learn about books and booksellers... 

The Writer by James Patterson and J.D. Barker
Published by: Little, Brown and Company
Publication Date: March 18th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 400 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"NYPD Detective Declan Shaw gets a call: How fast can you get to the Beresford building on Central Park West?

In the tower apartment, Shaw finds a woman waiting for him. She's covered in blood. A body is lying dead on the floor of the luxurious living room.

Every book in the apartment's floor-to-ceiling shelves is by the same author: bestselling true-crime writer Denise Morrow.

"This is you?" Shaw asks the woman. "You're a writer?"

​ Only one person knows the ending to this story. Is it the victim or the killer?"

So much yes to this, especially the apartment building's name!

Murder by Memory by Olivia Waite
Published by: Tordotcom
Publication Date: March 18th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 112 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Becky Chambers meets Miss Marple in this sci-fi ode to the cozy mystery, helmed by a formidable no-nonsense auntie of a detective.

A mind is a terrible thing to erase...

Welcome to the HMS Fairweather, Her Majesty's most luxurious interstellar passenger liner! Room and board are included, new bodies are graciously provided upon request, and should you desire a rest between lifetimes, your mind shall be most carefully preserved in glass in the Library, shielded from every danger.

Near the topmost deck of an interstellar generation ship, Dorothy Gentleman wakes up in a body that isn't hers - just as someone else is found murdered. As one of the ship's detectives, Dorothy usually delights in unraveling the schemes on board the Fairweather, but when she finds that someone is not only killing bodies but purposefully deleting minds from the Library, she realizes something even more sinister is afoot.

Dorothy suspects her misfortune is partly the fault of her feckless nephew Ruthie who, despite his brilliance as a programmer, leaves chaos in his cheerful wake. Or perhaps the sultry yarn store proprietor - and ex-girlfriend of the body Dorothy is currently inhabiting - knows more than she's letting on. Whatever it is, Dorothy intends to solve this case. Because someone has done the impossible and found a way to make murder on the Fairweather a very permanent state indeed. A mastermind may be at work - and if so, they've had three hundred years to perfect their schemes...

Told through Dorothy's delightfully shrewd POV, this novella is an ode to the cozy mystery taken to the stars with a fresh new sci-fi take. Perfect for fans of the plot-twisty narratives of Dorothy Sayers and Ann Leckie, this well-paced story will leave readers captivated and hungry for the series's next installment."

Stuart Turton does Altered Carbon.

The Martian Contingency by Mary Robinette Kowal
Published by: Tor Books
Publication Date: March 18th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 400 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Mary Robinette Kowal returns to Mars in this latest entry to the Hugo and Nebula Award-winning Lady Astronaut series.

Years after a meteorite strike obliterated Washington, D.C. - triggering an extinction-level global warming event - Earth's survivors have started an international effort to establish homes on space stations and the Moon.

The next step - Mars.

Elma York, the Lady Astronaut, lands on the Red Planet, optimistic about preparing for the first true wave of inhabitants. The mission objective is more than just building the infrastructure of a habitat - they are trying to preserve the many cultures and nuances of life on Earth without importing the hate.

But from the moment she arrives, something is off.

Disturbing signs hint at a hidden disaster during the First Mars Expedition that never made it into the official transcript. As Elma and her crew try to investigate, they face a wall of silence and obfuscation. Their attempts to build a thriving Martian community grind to a halt.

What you don't know CAN harm you. And if the truth doesn't come to light, the ripple effects could leave humanity stranded on a dying Earth..."

I mean, I meteorite obliterating Washington, D.C. sounds nice right now.

Twice as Dead by Harry Turtledove
Published by: CAEZIK SF and Fantasy
Publication Date: March 18th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 294 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Rudolf Sebestyen is missing, and Marianne Smalls is involved in an illicit affair with the shady Jonas Schmitt. Both cases converge when Dora Urban, Rudolf's beautiful and mysterious half-sister, and Lamont Smalls, Marianne's suspicious husband, hire Jack Mitchell, a hard-drinking, chain-smoking private investigator. Dora wants Jack to uncover what happened to her brother, while Lamont seeks proof of his wife's infidelity.

But Dora is a vampire, in a city teeming with creatures of the night.

As Jack dives deeper, he discovers that both cases are linked to vepratoga - a dangerous new drug spreading through Los Angeles. Twice as Dead is brimming with vampires, wizards, zombies and zombie dealers, the Central Avenue jazz scene, an exclusive after-hours club, adultery, a New England ghost who prefers Southern California's warmer clime, corrupt cops and politicians, spying rats, and a smart-mouthed talking cat.

When Jack's home is burned to the ground, the strands of his investigations culminate in a showdown at a tire factory, where even the reliefs on the walls are not what they seem. In this unique noirish urban fantasy set in postwar Los Angeles, Jack finds more adventure, danger, and romance than he ever imagined - and learns that success may come at too high a price."

I've always had Harry Turtledove on my radar, but since I started following first on Twitter and now on Bluesky I'm a huge fan!

The Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones
Published by: S and S/Saga Press
Publication Date: March 18th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 448 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"From the New York Times bestselling author of The Only Good Indians is a chilling historical horror novel tracing the life of a vampire who haunts the fields of the Blackfeet reservation looking for justice.

A diary, written in 1912 by a Lutheran pastor is discovered within a wall. What it unveils is a slow massacre, a chain of events that go back to 217 Blackfeet dead in the snow. Told in transcribed interviews by a Blackfeet named Good Stab, who shares the narrative of his peculiar life over a series of confessional visits. This is an American Indian revenge story written by one of the new masters of horror, Stephen Graham Jones."

Yes to revenge for those who deserve it the most.

The Loneliness of Horses by Andrea Thalasinos
Published by: 12 Willows Press
Publication Date: March 18th, 2025
Format: Kindle, 394 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"In The Loneliness of Horses, Andrea Thalasinos weaves a captivating multigenerational saga that transcends time and geography. Set against the rugged backdrop of Nova Scotia and the deserts of northern Arizona, this novel explores the profound connections between two women, centuries apart, whose lives are dramatically reshaped by their fierce love for horses. Amid themes of displacement, resilience, and enduring bonds with nature, Thalasinos crafts a narrative that is as much about finding one's place in the world as it is about the unspoken kinship between humans and animals. A testament to courage and the pursuit of freedom, the story delves into the heart of what it means to stand up for one's beliefs and the intricate web of life that connects us all. Andrea's rich background in sociology and her deep engagement with animal welfare illuminate every page, offering a compelling and deeply insightful story."

My friend Mike did the book cover!

Still Waters and Wild Waves by Angela Harding
Published by: Sphere
Publication Date: March 18th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 192 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Featuring over 50 original illustrations of dramatic seascapes and reflective rivers, alongside photography of the stunning places that inspired the artwork, Angela Harding's beautiful new book captures the waters that move us.

'A blue-green sketchbook sits at the edge of my studio desk. It is covered in decorative paper that is now frayed and tattered. These marks are evidence of its travels, as far north as Shetland and as far south as the Isles of Scilly. Of days at sea and cycling across moorland. It has sat beside me on beaches and cliff tops, on small island planes and huge ferries, on trains and bicycles. Going to places of old that I have revisited many times, as well as new destinations long lived in my imagination. Some of the pages are stained with Scottish rain and spilt coffees. This sketchbook holds scribbles and memories that tell the tales of still waters and wild waves. Its pages are a record of a printmaker's journey and they are at the heart of this book.'

In this gorgeous book, Angela takes readers with her on her travels across rivers and seas, featuring beautiful paintings and prints, pages from Angela's personal sketchbooks and stunning photos. It is a joyful celebration of water and wildlife across Britain - perfect for art admirers and nature lovers everywhere."

I adore Angela Harding's artwork and can't wait to own this book.

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Andrea Thalasinos, Angela Harding, Emma Orchard, Gigi Pandian, Harry Turtledove, James Patterson, Laurie Gilmore, Mary Robinette Kowal, Natasha Pulley, Olivia Waite, Stephen Graham Jones, Suzanne Collins

The Mitford Secret by Jessica Fellowes
Published by: Minotaur Books
Publication Date: January 17th, 2023
Format: Hardcover, 384 Pages
Rating: ★★
To Buy

Deborah Mitford is now Lady Andrew Cavendish and she is determined to make her first Christmas as a newlywed a success. It doesn't matter that menus will have to be creative due to rationing, or that Andrew won't be there to celebrate, or that their hoped for child was stillborn, because her in-laws have given her free range of Chatsworth. Her first house party must be a success, and this is quite the house. Even if it's a bit of a mess what with it being used as a school now and the rest of the house being practically shut up, she's sure she can make one or two rooms comfortable and brimming with Christmas cheer. She needs a win. Even if it's small and might seem silly to anyone else, this is her chance to shine. From the Cavendish side, Andrew's grandmother, parents, brother, future sister-in-law, aunt, and uncle will all be in attendance. From the Mitford side, less of a showing what with Tom in Burma and Diana in prison, but Deborah's parents, Unity, and Nancy are all coming. As is Louisa Sullivan. Nancy, knowing her family, thinks a buffer would be a good idea and this way Louisa and her darling daughter Maisie get away from the constant bombing of London and get to have an actually restful holiday. Or that's the plan. Because as soon as Lord Redesdale sees Louisa he's convinced that a dead body will show up any minute. And while one would hope that he is wrong, he's not. One night before dinner a strange villager shows up at the door demanding entrance. A Mrs. Hoole. She has a message for Lady Andrew from, well, she can't really say from where, but they come to her. And the message is to "look in the vestibule." This is all a bit much and cook will be furious if dinner gets cold, but between them all they figure out exactly where in this enormous house there is a vestibule and there they find a maid's cap with dried blood. But as the dowager duchess points out, the style of the cap is from at least the last war. Intrigued and late for dinner they decide that Mrs. Hoole will return and perform a seance. The next night she puts on quite the show for them all but saves the best for last. She tells Deborah, Nancy, and Louisa, the truth after everyone else has retired for the night. She used to work at the house with her dear friend Joan Dorries who disappeared in 1916. The household and the police weren't interested in investigating. But Mrs. Hoole, hearing that a private detective was staying up at the house, realized this might be her last chance to find out the truth. Sadly Mrs. Hoole will be found dead the next morning. The local doctor can't say if it is suspicious or not. Louisa is convinced it is, Lord Redesdale is resigned. It's just another Mitford occasion with Louisa and a corpse. Everything is bound to work out in the end with some dramatics in the interim.

This is it! This is the book I've been waiting for. And not just because it's the end of the series, but because it's about my favorite Mitford, Deborah. Also, if you are wondering, my Mitford ranking goes Deborah, Jessica, Nancy, Pamela, Unity, and in the depths of hell, Diana. So, no pressure right? Jessica Fellowes, it's your duty to make Debo shine! And honestly, there literally was no pressure because my expectations for this series are so low, and yet this book failed to reach even this low bar. The thing is, back in 2020 I read the first three books in this series and, well, hate is almost too benign a word for what I felt. Though I was determined that I would finish this series. So I girded my loins and just finished the series this year. And yes, it did take me five years to mentally prepare myself for this task. At first I thought that maybe I had been too harsh on the series because the fourth book, The Mitford Trial, wasn't half bad. But the next two books were right back on form, subpar to say the least. From the beginning this series hasn't actually known what to do with the Mitfords. They're there but they add nothing. Which is why I think I actually enjoyed The Mitford Trial, because the Mitfords were integral to the plot not just ambiance. Here they're back to being wallpaper. Yes, we need Deborah because without her we don't have Chatsworth, but seeing as Jessica Fellowes has written so many books on Downton Abbey you think she'd get the dynamic right of the most classic of tropes, a murder mystery at a country house during Christmas. She doesn't. There's no forward momentum. At one point Louisa says that the house is in the dead days between Christmas and New Year's. Now I've never felt that these were dead days, just days to read and recharge, I now view them as dead days. Days that stretch on interminably by an inept author. Why are we supposed to care about a cold case? Why are we supposed to care about a dead woman who may or may not have been murdered? We were given no stakes, instead we were given an unhinged Louisa. She behaves so rashly and out of character that it made me remember why I hated her in the first place. I mean, she just finds the killer by a process of elimination because she has literally blamed everyone else for the crime. And in some cases called the police on them. I mean, this is her job and she is just shit at it. What's more, this running around like a chicken with it's head cut off endangers her child but she doesn't seem to care. But the real kicker is that Jessica Fellowes had a clever idea, I mean, it was bound to happen sometime. The crime scene is a red herring. This should have been played up not left until the end as an afterthought. Though thankfully, this is the end. Right? Don't even think about giving her a contract for a book about Tom!

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Chatsworth, Christmas, Deborah Mitford, Downton Abbey, Duchess of Devonshire, Jessica Fellowes, Louisa Cannon, Mitfords, Murder Most Foul, Private Detective, Red Herring, The Mitford Secret, The Mitford Trial

The Mitford Vanishing by Jessica Fellowes
Published by: Minotaur Books
Publication Date: January 18th, 2022
Format: Hardcover, 368 Pages
Rating: ★★
To Buy

Louisa and Guy are about to start the next chapter of their lives. After their disillusionment with the establishment they have set up a private detective agency, Cannon and Sullivan. They hope to help those who the police overlook, though Guy is more sanguine, warning Louisa that they are probably going to spend most of their time on petty domestic disputes. Given their history with the Mitfords it shouldn't come as a surprise to Louisa that they are going to be their first clients now that she has finished her maternity leave. Louisa is summoned to Rutland Gate by Nancy because Jessica, familially known as Decca, has run away. This shouldn't be such a shock to the family. The nineteen year old Decca started her "running away" fund when she was twelve, so actually running away while claiming to be on a motoring tour of France with friends seemed inevitable. The problem is, if the press gets wind of this it would ruin her and her future. So they are hoping that Louisa and Guy can discretely discover what has happened by popping over to France. What has happened is that Decca's run off to the Spanish Civil War as the bride of her cousin, Esmond Romilly. From the family's point of view things couldn't be worse. She has divorced herself from her family forever. Esmond is a known firebrand and a Communist. He also happens to be Winston Churchill's nephew. Which is how the foreign office gets involved. And once the press finds out, it's front page headlines. With their reputation on the line, Louisa and Guy realize that they must succeed in finding Decca. The Mitford case will put their name on the map if they succeed. And if they fail? Their business will be a bust before it's even begun. Seeing as the government is now involved, they decide that not both of them are needed in France and Guy continues on to Bayonne while Louisa heads home to their darling daughter Maisie, and another disappearance all together. Julia Attwood has come to Cannon and Sullivan because her sister Petunia has gone missing. Petunia was a secretary at Lee Worth. A middle-aged woman who had no political power or clout. Someone who wouldn't be missed. The exact opposite of Jessica Mitford. This is someone not even the police are looking for. The poignancy of this makes Louisa take the case to heart. She learns about Petunia and a contretemps with her coworker, Bernard Plum. As soon as she starts digging into the man she finds connections to the Spanish Civil War, and, as impossible as this may seem, even Decca and Esmond. Could Petunia's case, as well as two other missing women cases that fall into Louisa's lap, all be tied together with the Mitfords for some inexplicable reason? Only time and Bayonne will tell.

Seeing as each book in this series has been focused on one of the six Mitford sisters, in the order they were born, before the title was even announced I knew this book would be about Decca. Once the title was revealed as The Mitford Vanishing I knew it would be about Decca running off to the Spanish Civil War with her cousin Esmond Romilly. Because, as any Mitford fan has, I've read Jessica Mitford's stellar autobiography, Hons and Rebels. Which makes me question the purpose of this book. Why did Jessica Fellowes choose this event from Decca's life to dramatize? It's been well documented and there's not much new ground to cover. Unless it was that Jessica Fellowes wanted us to see it from the point of view of the Mitford clan, collective noun still to be finalized, and how they were furious with Decca. Flipping the script of Decca's own writing and seeing her as throwing her life away and being nothing more than a spoiled brat than a girl on a romantic adventure. Well, having read extensively about the Mitfords, I say running away was the healthiest decision Decca could have made. Her family was a next of fascist vipers who would eat their own and this break with her family is what made her. But Jessica Fellowes takes this selfishness further and applies it to anyone who went to fight in the Spanish Civil War. Yes, there were people who viewed it as an romantic adventure, much as Jessica did at the start, but looking down on those who were actually trying to stop the spread of hate is hypocritical when Jessica Fellowes is also saying that we need to look to the past to stop the spread of fascism now. Plus it was because of the journalists on the ground that we learned about the true horrors of what was happening in Spain. It's weird to think of this large country involved in it's own conflict outside of the rest of the European theater. Yes, maybe this book took away some of the romanticism of those who went to Spain, but anyone who looks seriously at war knows there's nothing romantic about it. And Jessica Fellowes just felt like she was preaching. Hating on the naivete of these people while trying to give a teachable moment to her very naive leads. At the end I came away with the distinct feeling that Jessica Fellowes doesn't really like any of the Mitfords. And as for her mystery with the missing women? It was implausible and amorphous. No, like really implausible. Guy was in London on the phone with Louisa only hours before he showed up in Bayonne. That is the most implausible thing ever.

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Esmond Rommilly, Guy Sullivan, Hons and Rebels, Jessica Fellowes, Jessica Mitford, Louisa Cannon, Missing, Mitfords, Murder Most Foul, Private Eyes, Romanticism, Runaway, Spanish Civil War, The Mitford Vanishing

A Gentleman's Gentleman by T.J. Alexander
Published by: Vintage
Publication Date: March 11th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 336 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"From the acclaimed author of Chef's Kiss, a groundbreaking trans Regency romance that's both delightfully witty and refreshingly iconoclastic.

The notoriously eccentric Lord Christopher Eden is a "man of unusual make" and even more unusual habits: he prefers to live far from the prying eyes and ears of the ton, and would rather have the comfortable company of his childhood cook and his aged butler than the swarm of servants and hangers-on befitting a man of his station. But Christopher's pleasant, if occasionally lonely life is upended when he receives word from his lawyers that, according to his late father's will, he must find a wife by the end of the Season if he intends to keep his family's fortune and the Eden estate. Christopher cannot imagine a worse fate: as he isn't attracted to women, his chances of making a wife happy are slim. Furthermore, if his quest to marry has any hope of succeeding, he must move to London posthaste and acquire some more suitable staff.

Enter James Harding, Christopher's new, distractingly handsome - if rigidly traditional - valet. After a rocky start, the two strike up a fragile friendship amid the throes of the London Season...a friendship that threatens to shatter under the looming shadow of Christopher's impending nuptials - and the secrets both men are keeping. With its heady combination of dry wit, slow-burn romance, and a nuanced portrait of trans identity, A Gentleman's Gentleman stands to transform the historical romance genre as we know it."

Because life has never been as black and white as some people would have you believe. And everyone deserves representation! 

The Duke at Hazard by K.J. Charles
Published by: Orion
Publication Date: March 11th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 336 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Don't miss the second thrilling standalone Regency romance in the Gentlemen of Uncertain Fortune series by K.J. Charles...

The Duke of Severn is one of the greatest men in Britain.

He's also short, quiet, and unimpressive. And now he's been robbed, after indulging in one rash night with a strange man who stole the heirloom Severn ring from his finger. The Duke has to get it back, and he can't let anyone know how he lost it. So when his cousin bets that he couldn't survive without his privilege and title, the Duke grasps the opportunity to hunt down his ring-incognito.

Life as an ordinary person is terrifying...until the anonymous Duke meets Daizell Charnage, a disgraced gentleman, and hires him to help. Racing across the country in search of the thief, the Duke and Daizell fall into scrapes, into trouble - and in love.

Daizell has been excluded from polite society, his name tainted by his father's crimes and his own misbehaviour. Now he dares to dream of a life somewhere out of sight with the quiet gentleman who's stolen his heart. He doesn't know that his lover is a hugely rich public figure with half a dozen titles. And when he finds out, it will risk everything they have..."

Love wins.

Murder in Covent Garden by Anita Davison
Published by: Boldwood Books Ltd
Publication Date: March 11th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 266 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"The BRAND NEW installment in Anita Davison's gripping cozy mystery series! Nobody should be in the market...for murder!

Even though its famous opera house has shuttered its doors for the war, Covent Garden remains one of the most exciting, bustling areas of London. It's where Hannah Merrill and Aunt Violet have their bookshop and, in spite of the recent spate of burglaries in the area, it's generally thought to be a good neighbourhood.

So Hannah is surprised when she sees a fellow shopkeeper - a jeweller named Jacob Cornelis - having a heated argument with a stranger. Especially when the next day Cornelis is found dead in his shop, apparently the victim of another burglary.

But what shocks Hannah more is when she meets the policeman supposedly there to investigate the crime. Because he is none other than the man who Hannah saw arguing with Cornelis the day before.

Hannah knows it's up to her and Violet to investigate. But they don't know they're about to uncover a secret underworld of theft, murder and blackmail. And they must act fast, before the Covent Garden Killer strikes again...

A gripping and unputdownable Golden Age cozy crime mystery, perfect for fans of Agatha Christie, Helena Dixon and Verity Bright."

I'm just saying... cops, right? 

Murder at Mill Ponds House by Michelle Salter
Published by: Boldwood Books Ltd
Publication Date: March 11th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 290 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"The BRAND NEW installment in the page-turning Iris Woodmore Mysteries from Michelle Salter!

When murder hits close to home, Iris must fight to clear her name...

Spring, 1924. Reporter Iris Woodmore plans to move to London to avoid a shocking hometown scandal. Longtime enemy Archie Powell has been threatening to reveal her darkest secret - and she's desperate to flee before he does.

But when he's found murdered after a violent argument with her, there's no escape. Iris must stay and clear her name even though the truth could ruin her reputation.

With the police closing in, Iris has to find the real killer if she's to keep her secret. Can she prove her innocence without revealing the identity of the one man who can provide her with an alibi?

A gripping new mystery for fans of Verity Bright, Clara McKenna, and Helena Dixon."

I mean, there's your reputation and then there's prison, your choice...

The Four Queens of Crime by Rosanne Limoncelli
Published by: Crooked Lane Books
Publication Date: March 11th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 320 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"In this debut mystery, DCI Lilian Wyles, the first woman detective chief inspector in the CID, is determined to find a killer with the help of the four queens of crime, Agatha Christie, Dorothy L. Sayers, Ngaio Marsh, and Margery Allingham, perfect for fans of Elly Griffiths and Claudia Gray.

1938, London. The four queens of British crime fiction, Agatha Christie, Dorothy L. Sayers, Ngaio Marsh, and Margery Allingham, are hosting a gala to raise money for the Women's Voluntary Service to help Britain prepare for war. Baronet Sir Henry Heathcote has loaned Hursley House for the event, and all the elites of London society are attending. The gala is a brilliant success, despite a few hiccups, but the next morning, Sir Henry is found dead in the library.

Detective Chief Inspectors Lilian Wyles and Richard Davidson from Scotland Yard are quickly summoned and discover a cluster of potential suspects among the guests, including an upset fiancée, a politically ambitious son, a reserved but protective brother, an irate son-in-law, a rebellious teenage daughter, and the deputy home secretary.

Quietly recruiting the four queens of crime, DCI Wyles must sort through the messy aftermath of Sir Henry’s death to solve the mystery and identify the killer."

And you'll have to read it to find out of Dorothy L. Sayers is as antisemitic on the page as she was in real life.

The Socialite's Guide to Sleuthing and Secrets by S.K. Golden
Published by: Crooked Lane Books
Publication Date: March 11th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 288 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Hotel heiress Evelyn Murphy is on the hunt for a cunning killer and a mysterious thief in the third Pinnacle Hotel mystery, perfect for fans of Rhys Bowen and Ashley Weaver.

New York, 1958. When Evelyn's mail is delivered during a luncheon in the Gold Room, she's surprised to find she has received a diamond tiara, which catches the attention of a costume jewelry sales team lunching nearby. Their leader, Lois Mitchel, is especially interested, but by the end of the lunch, Lois has choked and fallen into Evelyn's lap - and by the end of the day, she's dead.

The papers report on the death the next day, while also spreading news of a Gentleman Thief who's been leaving behind a red pocket square after robbing the city's wealthiest. Determined to figure out what happened to Lois, Evelyn devotes herself to the investigation.

The truth is as rare as a diamond and just as hard to crack, and Evelyn swiftly discovers that this particular mystery is multifaceted, too. From costume jewelry hawkers to wannabe Robin Hoods and a detective in residence at the Pinnacle, nothing is simple. But neither is Evelyn - and this case is hers to solve."

I love the Gentleman Thief trope, especially when they leave behind a pocket square. If it's monogrammed, be still my heart!

The Widows' Guide to Backstabbing by Amanda Ashby
Published by: Storm Publishing
Publication Date: March 11th, 2025
Format: Kindle, 275 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"When librarian Ginny Cole discovers a body in Little Shaw's beloved haberdashery shop, she finds herself embroiled in a murder investigation. The victim? Arrogant shop owner and spring fete judge, Timothy Harlow, found with a pair of sewing scissors plunged into his back. While the police are quick to arrest Milos, a charming young upholsterer, Ginny thinks the case has been sewn up too neatly.

Together with her friends - no-nonsense JM, craft-obsessed Hen, and irrepressible Tuppence - Ginny delves into the village's secrets. Between apologising for her kleptomaniac cat and making marmalade for the spring fete, she discovers that behind Little Shaw's quaint façade lies a tapestry of rivalries, affairs, and deadly ambitions. And when her own car brakes are sabotaged, Ginny realizes the killer is still at large - and getting closer.

With help from the widows and an increasingly exasperated Detective Inspector Wallace, can Ginny unpick the clues before the murderer strikes again?

A fun, fast-paced mystery full of small-town charm, perfect for fans of Sarah Yarwood-Lovett, Robert Thorogood and The Thursday Murder Club series."

The real mystery is how a small town can still support their own haberdashery shop...

A Study in Secrets by Debbi Michiko Florence 
Published by: Aladdin
Publication Date: March 11th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 304 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Only Murders in the Building meets Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library in this action-packed novel about a girl pulled into a mysterious treasure hunt at her new boarding school.

Ever since her mom passed away, twelve-year-old Megumi "Meg" Mizuno has been spiraling. After too many low grades and cut classes, she's been expelled from school - apparently, everyone else has moved past her grief and expects the same from her. Her dad secures her a spot at the prestigious Leland Chase Academy, a boarding school in the middle-of-nowhere New York, called the Last Chance Academy by its student body. If Meg can't make it work there, she'll be forced to live with her horrible aunt.

At first, Leland Chase seems like an average, if very strict, boarding school, though Meg tentatively warms up to her roommate and some of their classmates. Then, one night, a mysterious envelope appears under her door, inviting Meg and her roommate to participate in a scavenger hunt. The only rules: don't get caught by faculty or staff and no cheating. The grand prize? A luxury stay at a fancy resort in California. And after learning her dad has plans to sell their family home - with all its memories of Mom - Meg knows she has to win the competition and use the trip to convince Dad to stay.

Thanks to her mom, who taught her how to solve ciphers, Meg has a knack for puzzles she uses to get ahead in the hunt. But she quickly learns that her classmates seem to have their own sets of skills keeping them in the competition. And as they get deeper in the game, Meg and her fellow competitors realize the anonymous creator has their own agenda…and LCA isn't quite what it seems."

Oh, what is their agenda!?! 

All the Other Mothers Hate Me by Sarah Harman
Published by: G.P. Putnam's Sons
Publication Date: March 11th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 384 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
""The missing boy is 10-year-old Alfie Risby, and to be perfectly honest with you, he's a little shit."

Florence Grimes is a thirty-one-year-old party girl who always takes the easy way out. Single, broke and unfulfilled after the humiliating end to her girl band career, she has only one reason to get out of bed each day: her ten-year-old son Dylan. But then Alfie Risby, her son's bully and the heir to a vast frozen food empire, mysteriously vanishes during a class trip, and Dylan becomes the prime suspect. Florence, for once, is faced with a task she can't quit: She's got to find Alfie and clear her son's name, or risk losing Dylan forever.

The only problem? Florence has no useful skills, let alone investigative ones, and all the other school moms hate her. Oh, and Florence has a reason to suspect Dylan might not be as innocent as she'd like to believe...

Hilarious and twisted, propulsive and furious, All the Other Mothers Hate Me is the must-read book of 2025."

A much more honest, and hilarious, take on children and what they can do.

Fan Service by Rosie Danan
Published by: Berkley
Publication Date: March 11th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 448 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"The truth is stranger than fan fiction in the next sexy paranormal rom-com from the beloved author of The Roommate.

The only place small-town outcast Alex Lawson fits in is the online fan forum she built for The Arcane Files, a long-running werewolf detective show. Her dedication to archiving fictional supernatural lore made her Internet-famous, even if she harbors a secret disdain for the show's star, Devin Ashwood. (Never meet your heroes - sometimes they turn out to be The Worst.)

Ever since his show went off the air, Devin and his career have spiraled, but waking up naked in the woods outside his LA home with no memory of the night before is a new low. It must have been a coincidence that the once-in-a-century Wolf Blood Moon crested last night. The claws, fangs, and howling are a little more difficult to explain away. Desperate for answers, Devin finds Alex - the closest thing to an expert that exists. If only he could convince her to stop hating his guts long enough to help....

Once he makes her an offer she can't refuse, these reluctant allies lower their guards trying to wrangle his inner beast. Unfortunately, getting up close and personal quickly comes back to bite them."

I mean, this book was written for me, and has me totally fantasizing about Seth Green turning into a werewolf...

The Gate of the Feral Gods by Matt Dinniman
Published by: Ace
Publication Date: March 11th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 608 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Follow Carl, Princess Donut, and Mongo as they fight their way to the next level in the USA Today bestselling Dungeon Crawler Carl series by Matt Dinniman - now with bonus material exclusive to this print edition!

New Achievement! Total, Utter Failure.

You failed a quest less than five minutes after you received it. Now that's talent.

Surviving in a multilevel dungeon that also happens to be the set of the galaxy's most watched game show has taught Coast Guard vet Carl and his ex-girlfriend's cat, Princess Donut, that there's only one thing they can count on apart from each other: they never know what's coming next. And this floor is no exception.

A floating fortress occupied by warrior gnomes. A castle made of sand. A derelict submarine guarded by malfunctioning machines. A haunted crypt surrounded by lethal traps.

It was supposed to be easy. One bubble. Four castles. Fifteen days. Capture each one, and the stairwell is unlocked. Here's the thing. It's never easy. Going it alone is not an option this time, so Carl and his team must rely on the help of the low-level, I-can't-believe-these-idiots-are-still-alive crawlers trapped in the bubble with them. But can they be trusted?

Welcome, Crawlers. Welcome to the fifth floor of the dungeon."

Oh, I remember several quests I'm had that ended in less than five minutes with total failure. None were this entertaining though.

Installment Immortality by Seanan McGuire
Published by: Tor Books
Publication Date: March 11th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 432 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Seanan McGuire's New York Times-bestselling and Hugo Award-nominated InCryptid series continues with a whirlwind adventure....

After four generations of caring for the Price family, Mary Dunlavy has more than earned a break from the ongoing war with the Covenant of St. George. Instead, what she's getting is a new employer in the form of the anima mundi, Earth's living soul made manifest, and a new assignment: to hunt down the Covenant agents on the East Coast and make them stop imprisoning America's ghosts.

All in a day's work for a phantom nanny, even one who'd really rather be teaching her youngest charges how to read.

One ghost can't take on the entire Covenant without backup, which is how she winds up on a road trip with the still-mourning Elsie and the slowly collapsing Arthur, both of whom are reeling in their own way from the loss of their mother. New allies and new enemies await in Worcester, Massachusetts, where the path of the haunting leads.

With the anima mundi demanding results and Mary's newfound freedom at stake, it's down to Mary to make sure that everyone gets out of this adventure alive.

It's been a long afterlife, but Mary Dunlavy's not ready to be exorcised quite yet."

It's March and this is only Seanan's second book of the year!?! Is something off!?!

The Tomb of Dragons by Katherine Addison
Published by: Tor Books
Publication Date: March 11th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 352 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"In The Tomb of Dragons, Katherine Addison returns to the award-winning world of The Goblin Emperor, deftly wrapping up The Cemeteries of Amalo trilogy.

Thara Celehar has lost his ability to speak with the dead. When that title of Witness for the Dead is gone, what defines him?

While his title may be gone, his duties are not. Celehar contends with a municipal cemetery with fifty years of secrets, the damage of a revethavar he's terrified to remember, and a group of miners who are more than willing to trade Celehar's life for a chance at what they feel they're owed.

Celehar does not have to face these impossible tasks alone. Joining him are his mentee Velhiro Tomasaran, still finding her footing with the investigative nature of their job; Iäna Pel-Thenhior, his beloved opera director friend and avid supporter; Anora Chanavar, his stalwart friend and fellow prelate of Ulis; and the valiant guard captain Hanu Olgarezh.

Amidst the backdrop of a murder and a brewing political uprising, Celehar must seek justice for those who cannot find it themselves under a tense political system. The repercussions of his quest are never as simple they seem, and Celehar's own life and happiness hang in the balance."

The one thing I cannot deny Katherine Addison is that she delivers on unforgettable atmosphere. 

She Waits for You Beyond the Dark by Kristen Simmons
Published by: Tor Teen
Publication Date: March 11th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 304 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"The finale to Kristen Simmons's masterful horror duology that's "Jumanji but Japanese-inspired" (Kendare Blake) about estranged friends playing a deadly game in a nightmarish folkloric underworld.

"Death is not an ending, it's simply the next chapter. Do not be afraid to turn the page...."

It's been one month since Ian's reunited friends escaped the hellish game of Meido and saved him. The survivors may have sealed the gate to the world of the dead shut and destroyed Empress Izanami, but that doesn't mean they aren't still reeling over the challenges they endured. Trying to relax back in the world of the living, they take solace in the fact that they rescued Ian from the nightmare that tried to steal him away. But there's just one problem - Ian didn't come home alone.

The empress - now possessing Ian's heart - hitched a ride into their world and the only way to free Ian from her grasp is to find three artifacts for her, sacred objects which have been hidden across many realms. Unwilling to leave Ian behind a second time, his friends dive into a new deadly game, with terrifying challenges that not only test their mettle, but demand sacrifices - including their very lives.

If they don't retrieve the empress's artifacts, Ian will be lost forever, but if they do, it could be the end of their world as they know it."

Always beware hitchhikers! 

Rose of Jericho by Alex Grecian
Published by: Tor Nightfire
Publication Date: March 11th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 352 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"From the New York Times bestselling author of Red Rabbit comes a supernatural horror where ghosts and ghouls are the least of a witch's problems in nineteenth-century New England.

Something wicked is going on in the village of Ascension. A mother wasting away from cancer is suddenly up and about. A boy trampled by a milk cart walks away from the accident. A hanged man can still speak, broken neck and all.

The dead are not dying.

When Rabbit and Sadie Grace accompany their friend Rose to Ascension to help take care of her ailing cousin, they immediately notice that their new house, Bethany Hall, is occupied by dozens of ghosts. And something is waiting for them in the attic.

The villagers of Ascension are unwelcoming and wary of their weird visitors. As the three women attempt to find out what's happening in the town, they must be careful not to be found out. But a much larger - and more dangerous - force is galloping straight for them..."

Nineteenth-century New England and the undead in many forms? Yes please!

Fear in the Blood edited by Mike Ashley
Published by: British Library
Publication Date: March 11th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 336 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Timothy followed, in his dream, and saw the ungainly, yet agile creature clamber in through the cat-flap... He could hear the flip-flop as it went up the stairs, and he woke himself, screaming, in a tangle of sheet and blanket. On Sunday night the dream was even worse.

Through eighteen dark tales bubbling with the ghostly and the occult, Mike Ashley traces the phenomenon of families in which a talent for channeling the Weird passes down the generations, showcasing six lineages whose names echo through the halls of speculative fiction: Dickens, Hawthorne, Le Fanu, Pangborn, Marryat and Aiken.

With a story each from selected members of these families along with introductions on the history of their bloodlines, this collection explores unexpected connections and the strange influences that define us while offering a rare selection of chilling Weird fiction."

Because we all need a little weird.

Vanishing Daughters by Cynthia Pelayo
Published by: Thomas and Mercer
Publication Date: March 11th, 2025
Format: Paperback, 336 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A haunted woman stalked by a serial killer confronts the horrors of fairy tales and the nightmares of real life in a breathtaking novel of psychological suspense by a Bram Stoker Award-winning author.

It started the night journalist Briar Thorne's mother died in their rambling old mansion on Chicago's South Side.

The nightmares of a woman in white pleading to come home, music switched on in locked rooms, and the panicked fear of being swallowed by the dark...Bri has almost convinced herself that these stirrings of dread are simply manifestations of grief and not the beyond-world of ghostly impossibilities her mother believed in. And more tangible terrors still lurk outside the decaying Victorian greystone.

A serial killer has claimed the lives of fifty-one women in the Chicago area. When Bri starts researching the murders, she meets a stranger who tells her there's more to her sleepless nights than bad dreams - they hold the key to putting ghosts to rest and stopping a killer. But the killer has caught on and is closing in, and if Bri doesn't answer the call of the dead soon, she'll be walking among them."

A serial killer and ghostly horrors!

Rose/House by Arkady Martine
Published by: Tordotcom
Publication Date: March 11th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 128 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Rose/House is a breathtaking and taut sci-fi Gothic thriller from Arkady Martine, Hugo Award-winning author of A Memory Called Empire.

"I'm a piece of architecture, Detective. How should I know how humans are like to die?"

All of Basit Deniau's houses were haunted. Rose House, his final architectural triumph built in the remote Mojave desert, was perhaps the most.

A house embedded with an artificial intelligence is a common thing. But a house that is an artificial intelligence, infused in every crevice and corner with a thinking creature that is not human? That is something else altogether. That is Rose House.

When Detective Maritza Smith gets a call from Rose House, she's shocked to learn that there is a dead body behind its sealed-up door. Everybody in town knows it's haunted. But Basit died more than a year ago, and everybody also knows that only his former protege, Dr. Selene Gisil, is permitted inside. But Selene wasn't in the country when Rose House called in the death. Who is the dead body? How did they get in? And who - or what - killed them?

The answers lie within the labyrinthine halls of Rose House. But even if Martiza can get inside, there is no guarantee she will ever be able to leave..."

Technological ghost story! YAS!

The Knight and the Butcherbird by Alix E. Harrow
Published by: Amazon Original Stories
Publication Date: March 11th, 2025
Format: Kindle, 36 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"In this dystopian fairy tale from the New York Times bestselling author of Starling House, a small town's storyteller struggles to protect a local demon from the knight hired to kill it.

Hundreds of years after the end of the world, the Appalachian community of Iron Hollow finds itself beset by demons. Such horrors are common these days in the outlands, where most folks die young - if they don't turn into monsters first.

When a legendary knight is summoned to hunt down the latest unearthly beast to haunt their woods, the town's new oral historian, Shrike, has more reason than most to be concerned. Because that demon was her wife. And while Shrike is certain that May still recognizes her - that May is still herself, somewhere beneath it all - she can't prove it.

Determined to keep May safe, Shrike stalks the knight and his demon-hunting hawk through the recesses of the forest. But as they creep through toxic creeks and overgrown kudzu, Shrike realizes the knight has a secret of his own. And he'll do anything to protect it."

All dystopian and post-apocalyptic tales need kudzu.

The Antidote by Karen Russell
Published by: Knopf
Publication Date: March 11th, 2025
Format: Hardcover, 432 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"From Pulitzer finalist, MacArthur Fellowship recipient, and bestselling author of Swamplandia! and Vampires in the Lemon Grove Karen Russell: a gripping dust bowl epic about five characters whose fates become entangled after a storm ravages their small Nebraskan town.

The Antidote opens on Black Sunday, as a historic dust storm ravages the fictional town of Uz, Nebraska. But Uz is already collapsing - not just under the weight of the Great Depression and the dust bowl drought but beneath its own violent histories. The Antidote follows a "Prairie Witch," whose body serves as a bank vault for peoples' memories and secrets; a Polish wheat farmer who learns how quickly a hoarded blessing can become a curse; his orphan niece, a basketball star and witch's apprentice in furious flight from her grief; a voluble scarecrow; and a New Deal photographer whose time-traveling camera threatens to reveal both the town's secrets and its fate.

Russell's novel is above all a reckoning with a nation's forgetting - enacting the settler amnesia and willful omissions passed down from generation to generation, and unearthing not only horrors but shimmering possibilities. The Antidote echoes with urgent warnings for our own climate emergency, challenging readers with a vision of what might have been - and what still could be."

There's a very Ozian undercurrent... 

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Alex Grecian, Alix E. Harrow, Arkady Martine, Cynthia Pelayo, Debbi Michiko Florence, Karen Russell, Katherine Addison, Kristen Simmons, Matt Dinniman, Mike Ashley, Rosie Danan, Sarah Harman, Seanan McGuire