Firewatching by Russ Thomas
Published by: G.P. Putnam's Sons
Publication Date: February 25th, 2020
Format: Hardcover, 368 Pages
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The official patter:
"A taut and ambitious police procedural debut introducing Detective Sergeant Adam Tyler, a cold case reviewer who lands a high-profile murder investigation, only to find the main suspect is his recent one-night stand...
When financier Gerald Cartwright disappeared from his home six years ago, it was assumed he'd gone on the run from his creditors. But then a skeleton is found bricked up in the cellar of Cartwright's burned-out mansion, and it becomes clear Gerald never left alive.
As the sole representative of South Yorkshire's Cold Case Review Unit, Detective Sergeant Adam Tyler is not expected to get results, but he knows this is the case that might finally kick start his floundering career. Luckily, he already has a suspect. Unluckily, that suspect is Cartwright's son, the man Tyler slept with the night before.
Keeping his possible conflict-of-interest under wraps, Tyler digs into the case alongside Amina Rabbani, an ambitious young Muslim constable and a fellow outsider seeking to prove herself on the force. Soon their investigation will come up against close-lipped townsfolk, an elderly woman with dementia who's receiving mysterious threats referencing a past she can't remember, and an escalating series of conflagrations set by a troubled soul intent on watching the world burn..."
My friend Johnnie Cakes has made it his business to make sure EVERYONE knows about this new book. Therefore it is my business to make sure EVERYONE knows about Firewatching!
The King's Justice by Susan Elia MacNeal
Published by: Bantam
Publication Date: February 25th, 2020
Format: Hardcover, 352 Pages
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The official patter:
"Can a stolen violin lead secret agent and spy Maggie Hope to a new serial killer terrorizing London? Find out as the acclaimed World War II mystery series from New York Times bestselling author Susan Elia MacNeal continues.
Maggie Hope started out as Winston Churchill’s secretary, but now she’s a secret agent - and the only one who can figure out how the missing violin ties into a series of horrifying murders.
London, December 1943. As the Russian army repels German forces from Stalingrad, Maggie Hope takes a much-needed break from spying to defuse bombs in London. But Maggie herself is an explosion waiting to happen. Traumatized by her past, she finds herself living dangerously - taking huge risks, smoking, drinking, and speeding through the city streets on a motorbike. The last thing she wants is to get entangled in another crime.
But when she’s called upon to look into the theft of a Stradivarius, one of the finest violins ever made, Maggie can’t resist. Meanwhile, there’s a serial killer on the loose in London, targeting conscientious objectors. Little does Maggie know that investigating this dangerous predator will pit her against a new evil - and old enemies. Only Maggie can uncover the connection between the robbery, the murders, and a link to her own past."
The newest Maggie Hope book brings a little hope into my life.
A Silent Stabbing by Alyssa Maxwell
Published by: Kensington
Publication Date: February 25th, 2020
Format: Hardcover, 288 Pages
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The official patter:
"As England recovers from its costly involvement in the Great War, Lady Phoebe Renshaw and her lady’s maid, Eva Huntford, find the steady comforts of their lives unsettled by a local case of murder...
Eva is excited for a visit from her sister Alice, who lives in Suffolk with her husband and three children. But when Alice arrives alone, desiring a break from her family, Eva becomes concerned. Her dismay deepens as Alice starts spending time with a former beau, Keenan Ripley, who owns the nearby pear orchard. At the same time, Phoebe's sister Julia, now a widow and pregnant, is in a fretful state, and Phoebe struggles to be helpful to her.
When Keenan's brother Stephen, the new head gardener at the Renshaw estate, Foxwood Hall, is found impaled by a pair of hedge clippers, the police - including Eva's beau, Constable Miles Brannock - suspect his closest kin. Stephen had been eager to sell their orchard to an American developer, but Keenan had fiercely resisted. A table set with two teacups and scones suggests Keenan had company the morning of the murder - and Eva fears her sister was with him.
If Alice were to provide Keenan with an alibi, her reputation and marriage would be ruined. She denies being there but is clearly withholding secrets, much to Eva's consternation. Now, to protect her sister, Eva and Phoebe set off to expose the gardener's real killer, putting their own lives at risk..."
I am ALL about books set right after WWI at the moment.
The Splendid and the Vile by Erik Larson
Published by: Crown
Publication Date: February 25th, 2020
Format: Hardcover, 608 Pages
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The official patter:
"On Winston Churchill’s first day as prime minister, Adolf Hitler invaded Holland and Belgium. Poland and Czechoslovakia had already fallen, and the Dunkirk evacuation was just two weeks away. For the next twelve months, Hitler would wage a relentless bombing campaign, killing 45,000 Britons. It was up to Churchill to hold his country together and persuade President Franklin Roosevelt that Britain was a worthy ally - and willing to fight to the end.
In The Splendid and the Vile, Erik Larson shows, in cinematic detail, how Churchill taught the British people “the art of being fearless.” It is a story of political brinkmanship, but it’s also an intimate domestic drama, set against the backdrop of Churchill’s prime-ministerial country home, Chequers; his wartime retreat, Ditchley, where he and his entourage go when the moon is brightest and the bombing threat is highest; and of course 10 Downing Street in London. Drawing on diaries, original archival documents, and once-secret intelligence reports - some released only recently - Larson provides a new lens on London’s darkest year through the day-to-day experience of Churchill and his family: his wife, Clementine; their youngest daughter, Mary, who chafes against her parents’ wartime protectiveness; their son, Randolph, and his beautiful, unhappy wife, Pamela; Pamela’s illicit lover, a dashing American emissary; and the advisers in Churchill’s “Secret Circle,” to whom he turns in the hardest moments.
The Splendid and the Vile takes readers out of today’s political dysfunction and back to a time of true leadership, when, in the face of unrelenting horror, Churchill’s eloquence, courage, and perseverance bound a country, and a family, together."
But of course what follows the period after WWI? WWII!
False Value by Ben Aaronovitch
Published by: DAW
Publication Date: February 25th, 2020
Format: Hardcover, 304 Pages
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The official patter:
"Now in hardcover, the eighth book of the bestselling Rivers of London series returns to the adventures of Peter Grant, detective and apprentice wizard, as he solves magical crimes in the city of London.
Peter Grant is facing fatherhood, and an uncertain future, with equal amounts of panic and enthusiasm. Rather than sit around, he takes a job with émigré Silicon Valley tech genius Terrence Skinner's brand new London start up - the Serious Cybernetics Company.
Drawn into the orbit of Old Street's famous 'silicon roundabout', Peter must learn how to blend in with people who are both civilians and geekier than he is. Compared to his last job, Peter thinks it should be a doddle. But magic is not finished with Mama Grant's favourite son.
Because Terrence Skinner has a secret hidden in the bowels of the SCC. A technology that stretches back to Ada Lovelace and Charles Babbage, and forward to the future of artificial intelligence. A secret that is just as magical as it technological - and just as dangerous."
Ben Aaronovitch has really hit the big time stateside with this series now being HARDCOVER! I only wonder if it's glow in the dark like in England. And look it up, I'm not joking!
Imaginary Numbers by Seanan McGuire
Published by: DAW,
Publication Date: February 25th, 2020
Format: Paperback, 448 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"The ninth book in the fast-paced InCryptid urban fantasy series returns to the mishaps of the Price family, eccentric cryptozoologists who safeguard the world of magical creatures living in secret among humans.
Sarah Zellaby has always been in an interesting position. Adopted into the Price family at a young age, she's never been able to escape the biological reality of her origins: she's a cuckoo, a telepathic ambush predator closer akin to a parasitic wasp than a human being. Friend, cousin, mathematician; it's never been enough to dispel the fear that one day, nature will win out over nurture, and everything will change.
Maybe that time has finally come.
After spending the last several years recuperating in Ohio with her adoptive parents, Sarah is ready to return to the world - and most importantly, to her cousin Artie, with whom she has been head-over-heels in love since childhood. But there are cuckoos everywhere, and when the question of her own survival is weighed against the survival of her family, Sarah's choices all add up to one inescapable conclusion.
This is war. Cuckoo vs. Price, human vs. cryptid...and not all of them are going to walk away."
Have we reached the point where Seanan is outwriting Stephen King 2-to-1 because it feels like we've reached that stage...
The Sound of Stars by Alechia Dow
Published by: Inkyard Press
Publication Date: February 25th, 2020
Format: Hardcover, 432 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"Don't miss this spectacular debut novel... Can a girl who risks her life for books and an alien who loves forbidden pop music work together to save humanity? This road trip is truly out of this world A beautiful and thrilling read for fans of Marie Lu and Veronica Roth.
Two years ago, a misunderstanding between the leaders of Earth and the invading Ilori resulted in the deaths of one-third of the world's population.
Seventeen-year-old Janelle "Ellie" Baker survives in an Ilori-controlled center in New York City. With humans deemed dangerously volatile because of their initial reaction to the invasion, emotional expression can be grounds for execution. Music, art and books are illegal, but Ellie breaks the rules by keeping a secret library. When a book goes missing, Ellie is terrified that the Ilori will track it back to her and kill her.
Born in a lab, M0Rr1S was raised to be emotionless. When he finds Ellie's illegal library, he's duty-bound to deliver her for execution. The trouble is, he finds himself drawn to human music and in desperate need of more. They're both breaking the rules for the love of art--and Ellie inspires the same feelings in him that music does.
Ellie's - and humanity's - fate rests in the hands of an alien she should fear. M0Rr1S has a lot of secrets, but also a potential solution - thousands of miles away. The two embark on a wild and dangerous road trip with a bag of books and their favorite albums, all the while creating a story and a song of their own that just might save them both."
I totally identify with anyone willing to risk their lives for books!
Aliens Phalanx by Scott Sigler
Published by: Titan Books
Publication Date: February 25th, 2020
Format: Hardcover, 512 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"The #1 New York Times best-selling author of Infected delivers medieval carnage as a pre-industrial society fights extinction at the hands of a massive infestation of Xenomorphs.
Ataegina was an isolated world of medieval castles, varied cultures, and conquests, vibrant until the demons rose and spread relentless destruction. Swarms of lethal creatures with black husks, murderous claws, barbed tails and dreaded "tooth-tongues" raged through the lowlands, killing ninety percent of the planet's population. Terrified survivors fled to hidden mountain keeps where they eke out a meager existence. When a trio of young warriors discovers a new weapon, they see a chance to end this curse. To save humanity, the trio must fight their way to the tunnels of Black Smoke Mountain - the lair of the mythical Demon Mother."
I here for ALL things Alien... and THIS!?! Hells yes!
The Last Smile in Sunder City by Luke Arnold
Published by: Orbit
Publication Date: February 25th, 2020
Format: Hardcover, 368 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"A former soldier turned PI tries to help the fantasy creatures whose lives he ruined in a world that's lost its magic in a compelling debut fantasy by Black Sails actor Luke Arnold.
Welcome to Sunder City. The magic is gone but the monsters remain.
I'm Fetch Phillips, just like it says on the window. There are a few things you should know before you hire me:
1. Sobriety costs extra.
2. My services are confidential.
3. I don't work for humans.
It's nothing personal - I'm human myself. But after what happened, to the magic, it's not the humans who need my help.
Walk the streets of Sunder City and meet Fetch, his magical clients, and a darkly imagined world perfect for readers of Ben Aaronovitch and Jim Butcher."
Even if the blurb didn't name check two authors I love I'd SO be checking this book out because of my favorite Long John Silver, Luke Arnold!
At the beginning of the pandemic my friends and I wanted to keep in touch so we started a Thursday tradition of using Teleparty to watch a show together. Three years on and the tradition is still alive. It's really the highlight of our weeks if we're honest. We've watched British comedies, animation, comic book adaptations, and then we got into The Witcher universe. Mainly at my insistence because we were wrapping up The Umbrella Academy and rumors were the new season of The Witcher was going to drop summer 2023 and I had yet to watch a single episode, I know, simply shocking. And then the new season of The Witcher was announced and we had some spare time. Not much, but just enough to squeeze in a few prequels, where in one, The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf, Vesemir who is played to perfection by Kim Bodnia is nonsensically voiced by Theo James and his posh accent. I won't dwell on this though because that story is best forgotten. The Witcher: Blood Origin though was surprisingly interesting. Not in the story itself, it's pretty basic, but when you get down to it all stories are basic, it's how you tell them that makes them original. And this had just enough to make it memorable. Just enough and Dylan Moran. Which, when I heard his voice from a clifftop before even seeing his face I yelled out "Fuck me Dylan Moran!" Which you can literally take both ways, because it's Dylan Moran. In fact most of this show just had me shouting declarative sentences over and over. "Damn this music sounds like someone really wants to imitate Bear McCreary's Black Sails score." Five seconds later, oh, that's because it is Bear! Following which I wanted to know why Bear doesn't do the flagship show, because come on, it's Bear people! Also despite what the internet says I swear this show had to have a higher budget, the camerawork is lush, the sets are jaw-dropping, and everything just felt more polished. But what this show is really for is answers. The flagship show is kind of vague, they don't know exactly what monoliths are for, they're not sure how monsters entered their world, they can't even make any more Witchers, which all starts to slowly tie together near the end of the second season and then in walks The Witcher: Blood Origin and they're like, you want answers? Here's some answers; Monolith's take you to alternate dimensions where the monsters AND chaos magic originate from. Elves didn't used to be oppressed, they were the oppressors, those hypocrites, the way they treated the dwarves, but then the racial genocide seems kind of cyclical. And as for the conjunction? That event which if you grew up watching The Dark Crystal you assumed was a nice planetary alignment, it was rather a smashing together of dimensions that ended up bringing humans to the Continent. I mean, realities literally crashing together! And as for the first Witcher? Well, oddly enough the magic and the commingling of the I want to say powers or possibly blood of all our warrior friends is back to the vague, with possibly a baby being the first Witcher. That was unclear. Odd given how many answers were given and the title of the show. Which means this one-off show needs a sequel. How hard could it be to green light it? We are now in the age of Michelle Yeoh after all. Minimally I need a spinoff with Meldof and Gwen.
A Bride's Story, Volume 12 by Kaoru Mori
Solutions and Other Problems by Allie Brosh
Kenny and the Book of Beasts by Tony DiTerlizzi
The Silvered Serpents by Roshani Chokshi
The Left-Handed Booksellers of London by Garth Nix
Dead Man in a Ditch by Luke Arnold
Mortmain Hall by Martin Edwards
