Fall 2018 Reads!
1. Ignite the Stars by Maura Milan (September 4). The last few sci-fi books I've read have been disappointments to some degree or another, but y'know what? That's no reason not to give Ignite the Stars a chance. It's Asian-inspired, which is pretty cool, and features a 17-year-old criminal mastermind as the protagonist, so . . . should be interesting!
2. As She Ascends by Jodi Meadows (September 11). I really enjoyed the first Fallen Isles book, even if it suffered from a lack of promised dragons. I think that As She Ascends will rectify that, though, so yay! And I'm excited to find out what happens to Mira and her friends. This isn't a top-priority book, but I'm still looking forward to it.
3. An Absolutely Remarkable Thing by Hank Green (September 25). This one is actually the next book on my TBR (I'm reviewing it for Cedars), so y'all will get my thoughts on it pretty soon. I'm not quite sure what to expect from it? I mean, the concept sounds pretty cool, but I have exactly zero idea how it's going to play out. But it seems like it might sort of blend sci-fi and contemporary, so that's cool? I think? I don't know, but I'm looking forward to finding out!
4. West by Edith Pattou (October 23). This is the sequel to East, which I read two Februaries ago. I'll probably need to reread East before I pick this up because I remember very little about it other than the fact that I enjoyed it. Reviews suggest that this one focuses on Rose and Charles after they've started a family, which should be interesting — a lot of fantasy series drop off after their protagonists are married. I'm looking forward to a bit of a different perspective. All the same . . . if Charles has been turned into the huge snake on the cover by some evil magical being, I'm going to scream.
5. The Light Between Worlds by Laura E. Weymouth (October 23). So, this sounds very Narnia-ish, but with a greater focus on the after-Narnia than the in-Narnia adventure. I love the idea — over the last several years, I've become increasingly fascinated with the question of what happens after the adventure ends. Reviews are mixed, but I plan to give it a chance anyway.
6. Red as Snow by Kendra E. Ardnek (October 24). I alpha-read this one over the summer, and I can tell you that Kendra carries off her downright fascinating concept quite well. She thoroughly mixes up the plot, while keeping it recognizable for what it is. Plus, we've got a bit of a cute sibling relationship in here, so yay!
7. The Princess and the Invisible Apple Tree by Meredith Leigh Burton (October 25). Accidental murder! Reluctant sisters! Mystery! Fairy tales! What more could a girl want in a book? (Don't answer that.) Anyway. I can't wait to read this one, especially since people who have read it have said plenty of lovely things about it.
8. Blood in the Snow by Sarah Pennington (October 26). Oh, look! It's my book! Which comes out in less than a month! What the actual pumpernickel. I'm so excited, but I also have so much left to do . . .
9. For Such a Time as This by Heather L.L. FitzGerald (October 27). So we've got a retelling of Snow White . . . combined with a retelling of Esther . . . set in a Persian-inspired science fantasy world? I never saw that coming . . . but I also didn't realize until recently how much I needed it in my life, and I can't wait to see how Heather pulls it off.
10. Overpowered by Kathryn McConaughy (October 29). Here's another Snow White retelling combined with a tale from the Bible . . . but this one is actually set in Bible times, with a few hints of fantasy. I got to beta read it, and it's pretty awesome.
11. But One Life by Wyn Estelle Owens (October 30). Yeah, if you haven't noticed by now, I'm basically posting all the Magic Mirrors books. But I'm excited for them all to some degree, so it's fine. (Also: cross-promotion.) Anyway. But One Life is another historical, though this one is straight fiction and set during the Revolutionary War. So, not my usual cup of tea, but I'm still looking forward to it. (Plus: spies! And intrigue! I'm always down for good spying antics.)
12. The Seven Drawers by Kendra E. Ardnek (October 31). And here's the last of the Magic Mirrors! I alpha-read this one, and I'm currently beta-reading it, and it's awesome. I mean, it's a Kendra book, so you know it's going to be creative — even the worst of Kendra's books are still really unusual and unique. But Seven Drawers is a particularly enjoyable concept and I can't wait until I get to read the whole book at once.
13. Skyward by Brandon Sanderson (November 6)! NEW SANDERSON NEW SANDERSON NEW SANDERSON!!!!!!! Sci-fi! Sentient spaceships! Aliens! NEW SANDERSON! Yeah. I'm going to push to review this for Cedars; Cedarville needs to know more about the awesomeness that is Sanderson. (Hopefully this doesn't turn out to be another Alcatraz, though . . . it would be super awkward if my probably one-and-only Sanderson review for the newspaper is a bad one.)
14. The Mortal Word by Genevieve Cogman (November 29)! As if this season wasn't awesome enough — NEW INVISIBLE LIBRARY! And apparently Irene and Kai are investigating a murder mystery at a dragon-Fae-Library peace conference, which means maximum awesomeness. I want it yesterday, but as it is, it'll have to wait and be my post-finals celebration.
Well, there you have it! Twice as many seasonal reads as I normally have, and a whole lot of awesome! I'm going to have a busy fall, let me tell you. And now, you tell me: what books are you most excited for this fall? My TBR may be big, but it always has room to grow.
Thanks for reading!
-Sarah (Leilani Sunblade)
Oh, all of these sound amazing!
ReplyDeleteDon't they? This is going to be an awesome (though rather expensive) season. :D
DeleteI LOVED The Light Between Worlds. It's a quiet sort of love, but it truly was wonderful. Philippa was my fave.
ReplyDeleteAlso - I ended up with a copy of Ignite the Stars in my Uppercase box, and since I'm not really a sci-fi person, I'm not sure I want to read it. Would you like my copy?
Oooh, glad to hear that! Now I'm more excited!
DeleteUm, yes please! I am always eager to acquire books. :D Do you still have my email address? (If not, I can try to find yours. Can't remember if it's still in my contacts; I've switched programs so many times.) Thank you so much!
I might? Depends on which email address, lol. Feel free to email me at my blog one, though: MDBCnumber1fan
DeleteI emailed you. I didn't realize you had your email up on your blog. :) Thanks!
DeleteOh, my there's two books I have to read on here -- the ones that are fairytales combined with Biblical tales. I didn't know those existed, But I've been writing them! My current one I'm writing is called The Fur Slipper and is a retelling of the ancient Egyptian Cinderella story combined with the Biblical story of Esther and deals with the theme of, "Is love fate, or can you choose whom you love?"
ReplyDeleteThanks for the suggestions!!
keturahskorner.blogspot.com
I know; I didn't know those were a thing either until now! But yeah, I know Overpowered is awesome, and I'm sure For Such a Time is too! And your story sounds pretty cool as well.
DeleteYou're welcome! Thanks for reading!