Waiting on Wednesday: Navola by Paolo Bacigalupi

“Waiting On Wednesday” is a weekly meme originally hosted on Breaking the Spine but has since linked up with “Can’t Wait Wednesday” at Wishful Endings now that the original creator is unable to host it anymore. This is a great way to share upcoming releases you’re excited about!

Cover Links to Goodreads

NAVOLA by Paolo Bacigalupi
Release Date: July 9th, 2024

A fantasy inspired by Renaissance Italy, following the scion of a powerful merchant house as he struggles to gain mastery over the politics and leadership necessary to ascend to take his father’s place? That already sounds like something I’d be very interested in. Add in a dragon relic that seems to be exerting undo influence on those who wield it, and I’m all in. I’ve never read anything by this author before, but his upcoming release this summer seems like a great place to start.

Synopsis:

In Navola, a bustling city-state dominated by a handful of influential families, business is power, and power is everything. For generations, the di Regulai family—merchant bankers with a vast empire—has nurtured tendrils that stretch to the farthest reaches of the known world. And though they claim not to be political, their staggering wealth has bought cities and toppled kingdoms. Soon, Davico di Regulai will be expected to take the reins of power from his father and demonstrate his mastery of the games of Navolese knowing who to trust and who to doubt, and how to read what lies hidden behind a smile. But in Navola, strange and ancient undercurrents lurk behind the gilt and grandeur—like the fossilized dragon eye in the family’s possession, a potent symbol of their raw power and a talisman that seems to be summoning Davico to act.

As tensions rise and the events unfold, Davico will be tested to his limits. His fate depends on the eldritch dragon relic and on what lies buried in the heart of his adopted sister, Celia di Balcosi, whose own family was destroyed by Nalova’s twisted politics. With echoes of Renaissance Italy, The Godfather, and Game of Thrones , Navola is a stunning feat of world-building and a mesmerizing depiction of drive and will.