May 2020 Book Haul

Somehow we’ve gotten through May!  The ARC collection has picked up a bit, in part inspired by some accepted review requests in the wake of SPFBO 6 beginning.  On top of that, I FINALLY got my hands on some very anticipated releases!  So let’s see what the book fairies left on my doorstep this month, shall we?

If you want to throw any of these onto your own TBR, all covers link to Goodreads!

eARCs

 

THE INVISIBLE LIFE OF ADDIE LARUE by V.E. Schwab
The ARC gods heard my fevered prayers, and I got a copy of Victoria Schwab’s newest book!  In this standalone fantasy, Addie LaRue makes a deal so that she can live forever.  The catch?  Everyone she ever meets will forget her as soon as she leaves. So goes the life of Addie, until the day she meets a boy in a bookshop who can remember her name.  So looking forward to this one!

THE MEMORY OF SOULS by Jenn Lyons
The third book in the A CHORUS OF DRAGONS series releases in August!  This time, Kihrin, Janel, and Thurvishar must travel to the home of the Manol vané and try to convince them to perform a ritual that will help seal away the rising evil, but will also strip the vané of their immortality.  I really enjoyed the addition of Janel to the cast last book, so hopefully she gets a good amount of time this outing!

 

VOICE OF WAR by Zack Argyle
The first of two self-published books I accepted for review this month (both of which are also SPFBO contestants), VOICE OF WAR follows a threadweaver who receives a prophecy that his unborn child is danger from an unknown entity.  I don’t know too much else, other than I read the first chapter before I accepted and was intrigued enough to keep going, so look for my thoughts in the coming months!

SHADOW OF A DEAD GOD by Patrick Samphire
This other SPFBO entry has a premise that immediately hooked me: a mage who agrees to break a curse for an old friend finds himself framed for murder.  With no friends to turn to and the entire city convinced of his guilt, he’ll have to find a way to prove his innocence, hopefully before an unknown assailant manages to kill him.

 

CHAOS VECTOR by Megan E. O’Keefe
Hello, what have we here!  One of my most anticipated summer releases appeared in my pile!  Last summer’s VELOCITY WEAPON was an absolute delight, managing to completely surprise me multiple times (we’re talking audible gasps), so I’ve been looking forward to the follow-up for MONTHS.  After making some big moves at the end of last book, Sanda is on the run, and the only people she can turn to for help might have more interest in having her dead than alive.  If you like big sprawling space adventures, jump into this series!

TEN ARROWS OF IRON by Sam Sykes
Last, but certainly not least, we have the sequel to one of my favorite 2019 releases, SEVEN BLADES IN BLACK.  Sal the Cacophony is a mercenary who does odd jobs while working on her much larger goal of revenge against the people who stole her magic and left her for dead.  This time around, Sal is partaking in a heist.  And we’re not talking some art or jewelry.  We’re talking an entire airfleet.  Strap in for what I’m sure will be quite the adventure!

Physical ARCs

THE BONE SHARD DAUGHTER by Andrea Stewart
As you can imagine, the physical ARC mailings are a little slow right now, but that doesn’t mean surprises can’t show up!  The lovely Orbit books sent me this debut fantasy that releases in September.   I found the initial excerpt they posted captivating, especially the descriptions of the constructed animals, amalgamations of all kinds of creature body parts.  Review to come in the months ahead!