Fresh Meat: April 26-May 2nd Speculative Fiction Releases

Posted April 28, 2015 by Carmel in Fresh Meat / 8 Comments

Urban Fantasy:

Ties That Bind
Ties That Bind (The Veil #5)
by Pippa DaCosta
Urban Fantasy
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]“I am fire. I am destruction. I will be their nightmare.”




The veil fell. Demons are here. Muse knows she can stop the slaughter, but to do so, she must return to the battle-scarred streets of Boston and face the cold, hard, truth. Her old life is ashes. Her love, turned to dust. But all is not lost; a spark of hope remains. A spark from which an inferno can blaze.




To stop the demons claiming Earth as their own, Muse must unite those capable of repairing the veil. The Dark Court, led by her Prince of Lust father, seek to recruit her to their cause. They want the veil destroyed for good; for chaos to reign for eternity. She will need to manoeuvre around their deadly intentions, and enlist the King of Hell’s help, before it’s too late.




For Muse to succeed, she must survive her father, save her soul, resurrect her love, forgive her enemies, and betray a trust. She must be everything she can be—demon and human. She must be their nightmare.




***




In this, the fifth and final Veil Series book, we return to where it all began. To the netherworld, where once a wretched half-blood girl surprised the Prince of Greed. To a world where ‘hope’ is fantasy, and ‘love’ a disease.




Muse is ready to take the fight to the demons. Are you? [/learn_more]


Rising Darkness (Rylee Adamson #9)
by Shannon Mayer
Urban Fantasy
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]“My name is Rylee and I am a Tracker.”




When children go missing, and the Humans have no leads, I’m the one they call. I am their last hope in bringing home the lost ones. I salvage what they cannot.




One last salvage and the final battle with Orion and the demon hordes will be upon me. I don’t know the name of the person I’m Tracking, or what she looks like so finding her is going to be . . . impossible. But she is the key to defeating the demons.




The world has been swept with a plague that is killing not only the humans, but every supernatural it touches. While I’m out Tracking, my allies are being wiped out.




Worse than all of this? I am losing Pamela to the darkness with every second that passes.




I’m not sure even I can control any of these outcomes




But that doesn’t mean I’m not going to try. [/learn_more]


Emergence: Dave vs. the Monsters
(David Hooper #1)
by John Birmingham
Urban Fantasy
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]“Monsters,” said Vince Martinelli. “There are monsters on the rig, Dave.”




Dave Hooper has a hangover from hell, a horrible ex-wife, and the fangs of the IRS deep in his side. The last thing he needs is an explosion at work. A real explosion. On his off-shore oil rig.




But this is no accident, and despite the news reports, Dave knows that terrorists aren’t to blame. He knows because he killed one of the things responsible.




When he wakes up in a hospital bed guarded by Navy SEALs, he realizes this is more than just a bad acid trip. Yeah, Dave’s had a few. This trip is way weirder.




Killing a seven-foot-tall, tattooed demon has transformed the overweight, balding safety manager into something else entirely. A foul-mouthed, beer-loving monster slayer, and humanity’s least worthy Champion.[/learn_more]


Boundary Crossed (Boundary Magic #1)
by Melissa F. Olson
Urban Fantasy
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]After her twin sister’s brutal murder, former US Army Sergeant Allison “Lex” Luther vowed to protect her niece, Charlie. So when two vampires try to kidnap the baby, it quickly turns into a fight to the death—Lex’s death, that is.




She wakes up to two shocking discoveries: she has miraculously survived the fight, and baby Charlie is a “null,” gifted with the ability to weaken supernatural forces…and a target for creatures who want to control that power. Determined to guarantee her niece’s safety, Lex makes a deal with the local vampires. She sets out with the mysterious—and undead—“fixer” Quinn to track down whoever’s responsible for the kidnapping, sharpening her newfound magic skills along the way. But the closer she gets to the truth, the more dangerous her powers become.




Boundary Crossed is a dark, thrilling journey into a world where the line between living and dead isn’t nearly as solid as it appears…[/learn_more]


The Dark Side of the Road
by Simon R. Green
Urban Fantasy
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]Ishmael Jones is someone who can’t afford to be noticed, someone who lives under the radar, who drives on the dark side of the road. He’s employed to search out secrets, investigate mysteries and shine a light in dark places. Sometimes he kills people.




Invited by his employer, the enigmatic Colonel, to join him and his family for Christmas, Ishmael arrives at the grand but isolated Belcourt Manor in the midst of a blizzard to find that the Colonel has mysteriously disappeared. As he questions his fellow guests, Ishmael concludes that at least one of them – not least Ishmael himself – is harbouring a dangerous secret, and that beneath the veneer of festive cheer lurk passion, jealousy, resentment and betrayal.




As a storm sets in, sealing off the Manor from the rest of the world, Ishmael must unmask a ruthless murderer before they strike again.[/learn_more]



Science Fiction / Fantasy:

The Deepest Poison
(The Clockwork Dagger #1.5)
by Beth Cato
Science Fiction / Steampunk
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]Octavia Leander, a young healer with incredible powers, has found her place among Miss Percival’s medicians-in-training. Called to the frontlines of a never-ending war between Caskentia and the immoral Wasters, the two women must uncover the source of a devastating illness that is killing thousands of soldiers. But when Octavia’s natural talents far outshine her teacher’s, jealousy threatens to destroy their relationship—as time runs out to save the encampment.




Fans of Beth Cato’s debut, The Clockwork Dagger, will love this journey into Octavia’s past—as well as an exclusive excerpt from the sequel, The Clockwork Crown![/learn_more]


The Hercules Text
by Jack McDevitt
Science Fiction
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]The classic first-contact science fiction novel that launched the career of Jack McDevitt, the national bestselling author of Coming Home—now revised from the original edition, and featuring a new foreword.




From a remote corner of the galaxy a message is being sent. The continuous beats of a pulsar have become odd, irregular…artificial. It can only be a code.




Frantically, a research team struggles to decipher the alien communication. And what the scientists discover is destined to shake the foundations of empires around this world—from Wall Street to the Vatican…[/learn_more]


The Shattered Court (Four Arts #1)
by M.J. Scott
Fantasy
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]First in a new fantasy series from the author of the Novels of the Half-Light City.




Entangled in a court ruled by tradition and intrigue, a young witch must come to terms with newfound power and desire—and a choice between loyalty and survival.…




The royal witches of Anglion have bowed to tradition for centuries. If a woman of royal blood manifests powers, she is immediately bound by rites of marriage. She will serve her lord by practicing the tamer magics of the earth—ensuring good harvests and predicting the weather. Any magic more dangerous is forbidden.




Lady Sophia Kendall, thirty-second in line to the throne, is only days away from finding out if she will be blessed—or perhaps cursed—with magic. When a vicious attack by Anglion’s ancient enemies leaves the kingdom in chaos, Sophia is forced to flee the court. Her protector by happenstance is Lieutenant Cameron Mackenzie, a member of the royal guard, raised all his life to be fiercely loyal to the Crown.




Then Sophia’s powers manifest stronger than she ever imagined they would, and Cameron and she are inextricably linked in the process. As a witch unbound by marriage rites, Sophia is not only a threat to the established order of her country, but is also a weapon for those who seek to destroy it. Faced with old secrets and new truths, she must decide if she will fight for her country or succumb to the delicious temptation of power.…[/learn_more]


Charm (Tales from the Kingdoms #2)
by Sarah Pinborough
Fantasy
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]The classic Cinderella story is given a sexy contemporary makeover in this wicked fairy tale featuring all the heroes and villains that we know and love: the handsome prince, the fairy godmother, the wretched sisters, and the beautiful girl.[/learn_more]


Of Noble Family (Glamourist Histories #5)
by Mary Robinette Kowal
Fantasy
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]Jane and Vincent have finally gotten some much-needed rest after their adventures in Italy when Vincent receives word that his estranged father has passed away on one of his properties in the West Indies. His brother, who manages the estate, is overwhelmed, and no one else in his family can go. Grudgingly, out of filial duty the couple decide to go.




The sea voyage is long and Jane spends enough time unable to perform glamour that towards the end of the trip she discovers that she is with child. They are overjoyed, but when they finally arrive at the estate to complete what they expect to be routine legal tasks, they realize that nearly everything they came expecting to find had been a lie. Also, the entire estate is in disarray, with horrifying conditions and tensions with the local slave population so high that they are close to revolt.Jane and Vincent’s sense of peril is screaming out for them to flee, but Vincent cannot stand to leave an estate connected with his family in such a condition. They have survived many grand and terrifying adventures in their time, but this one will test their skills and wits more than any they have ever encountered before, this time with a new life hanging in the balance. Mary Robinette Kowal’s Of Noble Family is the final book of the acclaimed Glamourist Histories.[/learn_more]


Darkened Blade (Fallen Blade #6)
by Kelly McCullough
Fantasy
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]Aral Kingslayer has nothing to lose—and only justice to gain. Torn apart by the death of his goddess, he must avenge her in order to save himself from being lost forever….




It’s been nine long years since the death of his patron, Namara, and exalted assassin Aral Kingslayer desperately misses the thrill and glory of being a higher power of justice. Now he is haunted by the ghosts of the past—and by the ghost of the lost goddess herself.




When Namara calls upon Aral in a dream to seek justice for her death and the ruination of her temple, Aral must obtain the help of his fellow former Blades and his Shade familiar, Triss, to pursue the vengeance he knows Namara deserves. Even if it means attacking Heaven’s Son—and going against one of their own—in a bloody battle of epic proportions…[/learn_more]


Fire & Chasm
by Chelsea M. Campbell
Fantasy
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]Azeril is a ward of the Church, and their most cunning weapon. By day he hides in plain sight as a student, but with his beloved obsidian knife, he also kills wizards. Az has no memory of his life before the Church, until one night, when a wizard recognizes him from his past. The killer in Az never misses his mark, but he can’t destroy the only potential link to his life before this. For the first time, Az has a lead on who he used to be—if only he could escape the watchful eye of the High Priest long enough to investigate.




Azeril discovers that the line between good and evil—the primal forces of the Fire and the Chasm—is as shifting as his own moral compass. And the truth about who he is will put his entire world in danger.[/learn_more]


The Goddess of Buttercups and Daisies
by Martin Millar
Fantasy
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]Aristophanes is inconsolable—his rival playwrights are hogging all the local attention, a pesky young wannabe poet won’t leave him alone, his actors can’t remember their lines, and his own festival sponsor seems to be conspiring against him, withholding direly needed funds for set design and, most importantly, giant phallus props. O woe, how can his latest comedy convince Athenian citizens to vote down another ten years of war against Sparta if they’re too busy scoffing at the diminutive phalluses? And why does everyone in the city-state seem to be losing their minds?




Wallowing in one inconvenience after another, Aristophanes is unaware that the Spartan and Athenian generals have unleashed Laet, the spirit of foolishness and bad decisions, to inspire chaos and war-mongering in Athens. To counteract Laet’s influence, Athena sends Bremusa, an Amazon warrior, and Metris, an endearingly airheaded nymph (their first choice was her mother Metricia, but she grew tired of all the fighting and changed back into a river).




Dashing between fantastical scenes of moody and meddlesome gods, ever-applicable political debates in the senate, backstage scrambling for the play, and glimpses of life in Ancient Greece, Martin Millar delivers another witty and comical romp for readers of all ages.[/learn_more]



Paranormal Romance:

Masters of Seduction Vol. 2 (Books 5-8)
by Lara Adrian, Donna Grant+
Paranormal Romance
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]The passion continues with an all-new collection of sizzling, sexy stories in the New York Times bestselling Masters of Seduction paranormal romance series from Lara Adrian, Donna Grant, Laura Wright and Alexandra Ivy!




PRICELESS: House of Ebarron ~ by Lara Adrian


Incubus Master Sorin Ebarron has an insatiable taste for fine things. So when a tantalizing platinum-haired Nephilim walks into his elite casino on the arm of a rival male, Sorin is determined to have the beauty at any cost. But Ashayla is waging her own high-stakes gamble, willing to risk breath and body to win the prize she seeks. Caught in a game of deception and desire, Sorin and Ashayla will discover a secret that may hold the power to shake the gates of both Heaven and Hell…




BOUNDLESS: House of Drohas ~ by Donna Grant


As Master of the House of Drohas, Javan has a personal stake in his family’s art business. The enigmatic Incubus has never embraced that duty more than when a beautiful and talented new artist catches his eye. The Drohas name and influence can help Naomi’s career, but she’s interested in Javan for a different reason. Believing him to be her sister’s killer, Naomi soon finds herself fighting an all-consuming desire for the dangerous man, and thrust into a world she never dreamed existed–a world of angels and demons, poised at the brink of a brewing war.




DAUNTLESS: House of Trevanion ~ by Laura Wright


Incubus Casworon Trevanion likes his nights long and his bed full. But as his House’s new Master, Cas’s love of demon debauchery is over. Like every royal male before him, Cas’s mate has been chosen and will be presented to him at the annual Seafarer’s Ball. But when Cas sets his eyes on lovely stranger, Lia, all bets are off. He is meant to possess her. But will he discard his legacy when he realizes the female he desires is none other than the scarred servant who scrubs his floors?




RECKLESS: House of Furia ~ by Alexandra Ivy


Tiege never expected to become Master of Furia, not until his brother’s mate was kidnapped and brutally killed. With his House in mourning, Tiege has no choice but to lead, although that doesn’t halt his hedonistic lifestyle. Sloane is a former Nephilim Blade who is dedicated to duty. She has nothing in common with the reckless Incubus–except a dangerous passion. But it’s that passion they must draw upon in order to raise the spirit of a long-dead Succubus whose stunning revelations could topple the Obsidian Throne forever…[/learn_more]


Hunted Warrior (Dragon Kings #3)
by Lindsey Piper
Paranormal Romance
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]Demonic gladiators, ruthless mafia villains, and a race on the brink of distinction: What will become of them? One proud leader wields his power to unlock dark mysteries in the third book in this fierce, sensual new paranormal romance series.




When the head of the Five Clans of the Dragon Kings wants something, he gets it. Raised among the most privileged of his dying race, Malnefoley conceals a devastating tragedy from his youth. Now, many call him the Usurper because of his unconventional rise to power. His influence is waning while the Dragon Kings must solve the puzzle of their slow extinction. So when a particularly important captive escapes his compound in the Greek mountains, Malnefoley leaves nothing to chance. She is his prisoner to retrieve.




The woman is known as the Pet, a former associate of a sadistic doctor from the Asters, a human crime cartel. Her loyalties cannot be trusted, even when she claims to hold the secret to conception—an invaluable secret for a race unable to procreate. Neither can her unique gift from the Great Dragon be believed. She’s a soothsayer, able to see glimpses of the future. Her quest is to find and save a Cage warrior on the verge of her first match—a young woman whose destiny is bound to a timeless prophecy.




Malnefoley has no respect for the ancient superstitions that brought about his childhood trauma. His only goal is to return the Pet to his compound and use her knowledge for the betterment of their people. Yet her restless energy and raw sensuality are as intriguing as her predictions about the rise of the Great Dragon. He dares not trust the crafty fugitive’s loyalties, but as their treacherous chase turns passionate, can he even trust himself?[/learn_more]


Possessed by a Wolf (Horsemen #3)
by Sharon Ashwood
Paranormal Romance
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]Wolves mate for life…and wolves never forget their first love




Royal photographer Lexie Haven wasn’t expecting to see her ex-boyfriend Faran ever again. She could accept that he was a spy, but a werewolf? No way. No matter how good they had been together, she has very personal reasons for steering clear of monsters. That is, until he literally crashes into a royal gathering in all his furry glory—and with a gunman on his tail.




Within minutes of seeing each other again, the two estranged lovers are on a collision course. For now, Lexie is a prime suspect in the heist of a priceless ring, and only Faran can help her find the jewel and restore peace to the royal kingdom. But first, Lexie needs to trust in second chances and the supernatural.[/learn_more]


Wolf Hunter (Wolf Moons #4)
by Linda Thomas-Sundstrom
Paranormal Romance
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]Sworn enemies fated to be supernatural lovers…




Only a few know about a race of Lycans hidden deep within Miami’s underground. And those who do not embrace the wolves seek to destroy them. Cameron Mitchell has sought to protect his kind…at any cost. But one beautful woman may be his undoing.




Born into a family of wolf hunters, Abby Stark has never actually confronted a Lycan. Then Cameron steps out of the shadows and Abby is overcome with the need to be devoured. With her father vowing to destroy all of Cameron’s kind, Abby knows they have no future. Coupling with a were is not her destiny. Yet walking away is proving impossible.[/learn_more]


The City Beneath (Night Blood #1)
by Melody Johnson
Paranormal Romance
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]As a journalist, Cassidy DiRocco thought she had seen every depraved thing New York City’s underbelly had to offer. But while covering what appears to be a vicious animal attack, she finds herself drawn into a world she never knew existed. Her exposé makes her the target of the handsome yet brutal Dominic Lysander, the Master Vampire of New York City, who has no problem silencing her to keep his coven’s secrets safe…




But Dominic offers Cassidy another option: ally. He reveals she is a night blood, a being with powers of her own, including the ability to become a vampire. As the body count escalates, Cassidy is caught in the middle of a vampire rebellion. Dominic insists she can help him stop the coming war, but wary of his intentions, Cassidy enlists the help of the charming Ian Walker, a fellow night blood. As the battle between vampires takes over the city, Cassidy will have to tap into her newfound powers and decide where to place her trust…[/learn_more]



Young Adult:

Cold Burn of Magic (Black Blade #1)
by Jennifer Estep
Young Adult
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]There Be Monsters Here. . .




It’s not as great as you’d think, living in a tourist town that’s known as “the most magical place in America.” Same boring high school, just twice as many monsters under the bridges and rival Families killing each other for power.




I try to keep out of it. I’ve got my mom’s bloodiron sword and my slightly illegal home in the basement of the municipal library. And a couple of Talents I try to keep quiet, including very light fingers and a way with a lock pick.




But then some nasty characters bring their Family feud into my friend’s pawn shop, and I have to make a call–get involved, or watch a cute guy die because I didn’t. I guess I made the wrong choice, because now I’m stuck putting everything on the line for Devon Sinclair. My mom was murdered because of the Families, and it looks like I’m going to end up just like her. . .[/learn_more]


A Magic Dark and Bright
(The Asylum Saga #1)
by Jenny Adams Perinovic
Young Adult
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]She meant to help a ghost…not unleash a curse.




Amelia Dupree hasn’t seen the Woman in White since the night her brother died.




The ghost seems to have disappeared from the woods surrounding Asylum, Pennsylvania—that is, until Charlie Blue moves into the creepy old MacAllister House next door. Amelia can’t help liking him, even though she spent her childhood thinking his grandmother was a witch. And she definitely can’t ignore the connection between his arrival and the Woman in White’s return.




Then Amelia learns that the Woman in White is a prisoner, trapped between the worlds of the living and the dead. Devastated by the idea that her brother could be suffering a similar fate, Amelia decides to do whatever it takes to help the Woman in White find peace–and Charlie agrees to help her.




But when Amelia’s classmates start to drown in the Susquehanna River, one right after another, rumors swirl as people begin to connect the timing of Charlie’s arrival with the unexplained deaths. As Charlie and Amelia uncover the dark history of Asylum, they realize they may have unleashed an unspeakable evil. One they have to stop before everything they love is destroyed.[/learn_more]


The Eternity Key (Into the Dark #3)
by Bree Despain
Young Adult
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]Fan-favorite author Bree Despain continues her modern-day romance trilogy inspired by the Greek myth of Persephone and Hades with this second book in her Into the Dark series.




Haden Lord, the disgraced Prince of the Underrealm, has chosen love over honor and will do everything in his power to protect Daphne Raines, the human girl he was supposed to bring to the Underrealm. Haden’s choice is put to the test as the Skylords and a figure from his past arrive in Olympus Hills with a plan that could destroy all of the realms.




Embracing her destiny as the Cypher, Daphne begins to understand the immense power of her musical ability to control the elements, but she must come to terms with her feelings for Haden and what she must sacrifice in order to protect him and her friends.




Believing the Key of Hades is the only thing that can stop the Underrealm Court from releasing the monstrous Keres on the mortal world, Haden, Daphne, and their friends set out to find the Key before Persephone’s Gate opens again on the spring equinox.[/learn_more]


The Game of Love and Death
by Martha Brockenbrough
Young Adult
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]Antony and Cleopatra. Helen of Troy and Paris. Romeo and Juliet. And now . . . Henry and Flora.




For centuries Love and Death have chosen their players. They have set the rules, rolled the dice, and kept close, ready to influence, angling for supremacy. And Death has always won. Always.




Could there ever be one time, one place, one pair whose love would truly tip the balance?




Meet Flora Saudade, an African-American girl who dreams of becoming the next Amelia Earhart by day and sings in the smoky jazz clubs of Seattle by night. Meet Henry Bishop, born a few blocks and a million worlds away, a white boy with his future assured — a wealthy adoptive family in the midst of the Great Depression, a college scholarship, and all the opportunities in the world seemingly available to him.




The players have been chosen. The dice have been rolled. But when human beings make moves of their own, what happens next is anyone’s guess.




Achingly romantic and brilliantly imagined, The Game of Love and Death is a love story you will never forget.[/learn_more]


Lois Lane: Fallout (Lois Lane #1)
by Gwenda Bond
Young Adult
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]Lois Lane is starting a new life in Metropolis. An Army brat, Lois has lived all over–and seen all kinds of things. (Some of them defy explanation, like the near-disaster she witnessed in Kansas in the middle of one night.) But now her family is putting down roots in the big city, and Lois is determined to fit in. Stay quiet. Fly straight. As soon as she steps into her new high school, though, she can see it won’t be that easy. A group known as the Warheads is making life miserable for another girl at school. They’re messing with her mind, somehow, via the high-tech immersive videogame they all play. Not cool. Armed with her wit and her new snazzy job as a reporter, Lois has her sights set on solving this mystery. But sometimes it’s all a bit much. Thank goodness for her maybe-more-than-a friend, a guy she knows only by his screenname, SmallvilleGuy . . .[/learn_more]


Rogue (Talon #2)
by Julie Kagawa
Young Adult / Fantasy
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]Ember Hill left the dragon organization Talon to take her chances with rebel dragon Cobalt and his crew of rogues. But Ember can’t forget the sacrifice made for her by the human boy who could have killed her—Garret Xavier Sebastian, a soldier of the dragonslaying Order of St. George, the boy who saved her from a Talon assassin, knowing that by doing so, he’d signed his own death warrant.




Determined to save Garret from execution, Ember must convince Cobalt to help her break into the Order’s headquarters. With assassins after them and Ember’s own brother helping Talon with the hunt, the rogues find an unexpected ally in Garret and a new perspective on the underground battle between Talon and St. George.




A reckoning is brewing and the secrets hidden by both sides are shocking and deadly. Soon Ember must decide: Should she retreat to fight another day…or start an all-out war?[/learn_more]


Dragons Are People, Too
by Sarah Nicolas
Young Adult / Fantasy
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]Never judge a dragon


by her human cover…




Sixteen-year-old Kitty Lung has everyone convinced she’s a normal teen—not a secret government operative, not the one charged with protecting the president’s son, and certainly not a were-dragon. The only one she trusts with the truth is her best friend—and secret crush—the über-hot Bulisani Mathe.




Then a junior operative breaks Rule Number One by changing into his dragon form in public—on Kitty’s watch—and suddenly, the world knows. About dragons. About the Draconic Intelligence Command (DIC) Kitty works for. About Kitty herself.




Now the government is hunting down and incarcerating dragons to stop a public panic, and a new shape-shifting enemy has kidnapped the president’s son. Kitty and Bulisani are the last free dragons, wanted by both their allies and their enemies. If they can’t rescue the president’s son and liberate their fellow dragons before getting caught themselves, dragons might never live free again. [/learn_more]


Magonia
by Maria Dahvana Headley
Young Adult / Fantasy
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]Aza Ray Boyle is drowning in thin air. Since she was a baby, Aza has suffered from a mysterious lung disease that makes it ever harder for her to breathe, to speak—to live. So when Aza catches a glimpse of a ship in the sky, her family chalks it up to a cruel side effect of her medication. But Aza doesn’t think this is a hallucination. She can hear someone on the ship calling her name.




Only her best friend, Jason, listens. Jason, who’s always been there. Jason, for whom she might have more-than-friendly feelings. But before Aza can consider that thrilling idea, something goes terribly wrong. Aza is lost to our world—and found, by another. Magonia.




Above the clouds, in a land of trading ships, Aza is not the weak and dying thing she was. In Magonia, she can breathe for the first time. Better, she has immense power—but as she navigates her new life, she discovers that war between Magonia and Earth is coming. In Aza’s hands lies fate of the whole of humanity—including the boy who loves her. Where do her loyalties lie?[/learn_more]


An Ember in the Ashes
by Sabaa Tahir
Young Adult / Fantasy
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]I WILL TELL YOU THE SAME THING I TELL EVERY SLAVE.




THE RESISTANCE HAS TRIED TO PENETRATE THIS SCHOOL COUNTLESS TIMES. I HAVE DISCOVERED IT EVERY TIME.




IF YOU ARE WORKING WITH THE RESISTANCE, IF YOU CONTACT THEM, IF YOU THINK OF CONTACTING THEM, I WILL KNOW




AND I WILL DESTROY YOU.




Laia is a slave.


Elias is a soldier.


Neither is free.




Under the Martial Empire, defiance is met with death. Those who do not vow their blood and bodies to the Emperor risk the execution of their loved ones and the destruction of all they hold dear.




It is in this brutal world, inspired by ancient Rome, that Laia lives with her grandparents and older brother. The family ekes out an existence in the Empire’s impoverished backstreets. They do not challenge the Empire. They’ve seen what happens to those who do.




But when Laia’s brother is arrested for treason, Laia is forced to make a decision. In exchange for help from rebels who promise to rescue her brother, she will risk her life to spy for them from within the Empire’s greatest military academy.




There, Laia meets Elias, the school’s finest soldier—and secretly, its most unwilling. Elias wants only to be free of the tyranny he’s being trained to enforce. He and Laia will soon realize that their destinies are intertwined—and that their choices will change the fate of the Empire itself.[/learn_more]


The Girl at Midnight
(The Girl at Midnight #1)
by Melissa Grey
Young Adult / Fantasy
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]Beneath the streets of New York City live the Avicen, an ancient race of people with feathers for hair and magic running through their veins. Age-old enchantments keep them hidden from humans. All but one. Echo is a runaway pickpocket who survives by selling stolen treasures on the black market, and the Avicen are the only family she’s ever known.




Echo is clever and daring, and at times she can be brash, but above all else she’s fiercely loyal. So when a centuries-old war crests on the borders of her home, she decides it’s time to act.




Legend has it that there is a way to end the conflict once and for all: find the Firebird, a mythical entity believed to possess power the likes of which the world has never seen. It will be no easy task, but if life as a thief has taught Echo anything, it’s how to hunt down what she wants . . . and how to take it.




But some jobs aren’t as straightforward as they seem. And this one might just set the world on fire.[/learn_more]


Deception’s Pawn
(Deception’s Princess #2)
by Esther M. Friesner
Young Adult / Fantasy
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]Maeve, princess of Connacht, seems to have won her freedom. Her father, the High King, is finally allowing her to explore the world beyond his castle. But Maeve soon discovers that being the High King’s daughter doesn’t protect her from bullying or the attention of unwelcome suitors.




Struggling to navigate a new court, she must discourage the advances of her father’s rival, who is vying with her host’s son for her hand in marriage. Maeve is a pawn trapped between these two boys. Her bold defiance will bring her to the brink of disaster, but her clever gamble may also lead to her independence. Though she faces danger and intrigue, Maeve will also discover what kind of person—and queen—she’s destined to become.[/learn_more]


Pip Bartlett’s Guide to Magical Creatures
(Pip Bartlett #1)
by Maggie Stiefvater & Jackson Pearce
Young Adult / Fantasy
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]From bestselling authors Maggie Stiefvater and Jackson Pearce comes an exciting new series full of magical creatures, whimsical adventures, and quirky illustrations.




Pip is a girl who can talk to magical creatures. Her aunt is a vet for magical creatures. And her new friend Tomas is allergic to most magical creatures. When things go amok—and they often go amok—Pip consults Jeffrey Higgleston’s Guide to Magical Creatures, a reference work that Pip finds herself constantly amending. Because dealing with magical creatures like unicorns, griffins, and fuzzles doesn’t just require book knowledge—it requires hands-on experience and thinking on your feet. For example, when fuzzles (which have an awful habit of bursting into flame when they’re agitated) invade your town, it’s not enough to know what the fuzzles are—Pip and Tomas also must trace the fuzzles’ agitation to its source, and in doing so, save the whole town. [/learn_more]


The Replaced (The Taking #2)
by Kimberly Derting
Young Adult / Science Fiction
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]Romantic and action-packed, The Replaced is the gripping second installment in the Taking trilogy.




Kyra hasn’t been the same since she returned from her mysterious five-year disappearance. Now, on the run from the NSA, Kyra is forced to hide out with others who, like her, have been Returned. Yet she is determined to find Tyler, the boy she loves who was also abducted—all because of her. When her group intercepts a message that Tyler might still be alive but is in the hands of a shadowy government organization that experiments on the Returned, Kyra knows it’s a risk to go after him. What if it’s a trap? And worse, what if the returned Tyler isn’t the same boy she lost? [/learn_more]


In a World Just Right
by Jen Brooks
Young Adult / Science Fiction
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]Imagination takes on new meaning for a uniquely talented teen in this debut novel that is a breathtaking blend of contemporary, fantasy, and romance.




Sometimes Jonathan Aubrey wishes he could just disappear. And as luck—or fate—would have it, he can. Ever since coming out of a coma as a kid, he has been able to create alternate worlds. Worlds where he is a superhero, or a ladies’ man, or simply a better version of himself. That’s the world he’s been escaping to most since sophomore year, a world where he has everything he doesn’t have in real life: friends, a place of honor on the track team, passing grades, and most importantly, Kylie Simms as his girlfriend.




But when Jonathan confuses his worlds senior year and tries to kiss the real Kylie Simms, everything unravels. The real Kylie actually notices Jonathan…and begins obsessing over him. The fantasy version of Kylie struggles to love Jonathan as she was created to do, and the consequences are disastrous. As his worlds collide, Jonathan must confront the truth of his power and figure out where he actually belongs—before he loses both Kylies forever.[/learn_more]


Strange Skies (Burn Out #2)
by Kristi Helvig
Young Adult / Science Fiction
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]Caelia is the new Earth. That’s what the Consulate told everyone and, against all odds, Tora finally has made it there. She can’t see the ocean from her cell in the Consulate’s containment center, and she doesn’t know what happened to the weapons her father died for and she’s risked her life to save.




But as she plans her escape, she runs into the last person she ever expected to see-her dad. The Consulate has kept held him prisoner in a complicated plot designed to lure Tora out of hiding. Now Tora has a new purpose: break free, get the guns, and save her father.




But first she’ll have to navigate a strange new planet, track down James (whose loyalties still remain questionable), and find Kale…before he finds her first.[/learn_more]


Rook
by Sharon Cameron
Young Adult / Dystopian
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]History has a way of repeating itself. In the Sunken City that was once Paris, all who oppose the new revolution are being put to the blade. Except for those who disappear from their prison cells, a red-tipped rook feather left in their place. Is the mysterious Red Rook a savior of the innocent or a criminal?




Meanwhile, across the sea in the Commonwealth, Sophia Bellamy’s arranged marriage to the wealthy René Hasard is the last chance to save her family from ruin. But when the search for the Red Rook comes straight to her doorstep, Sophia discovers that her fiancé is not all he seems. Which is only fair, because neither is she.




As the Red Rook grows bolder and the stakes grow higher, Sophia and René find themselves locked in a tantalizing game of cat and mouse. [/learn_more]


Ferals
by Jacob Grey
Middle Grade / Fantasy
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]Blackstone was once a thriving metropolis. But that was before the Dark Summer—a wave of violence and crime that swept through the city eight years ago, orchestrated by the fearsome Spinning Man. Now the Spinning Man is on the move again, and a boy named Caw is about to be caught in his web.




Caw has never questioned his ability to communicate with crows. But as the threat of a new Dark Summer looms, Caw discovers the underground world of Blackstone’s ferals—those with the power to speak to and control animals. Caw is one of them. And to save his city, he must quickly master abilities he never knew he had…and prepare to defeat a darkness he never could have imagined.[/learn_more]


Omega City (Omega City #1)
by Diana Peterfreund
Middle Grade / Science Fiction
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]Gillian Seagret doesn’t listen to people who say her father’s a crackpot. His conspiracy theories about the lost technology of Cold War–era rocket scientist Dr. Aloysius Underberg may have cost him his job and forced them to move to the middle of nowhere, but Gillian knows he’s right and plans to prove it.




When she discovers a missing page from Dr. Underberg’s diary in her father’s mess of an office, she thinks she’s found a big piece of the puzzle—a space-themed riddle promising to lead to Dr. Underberg’s greatest invention. Enlisting the help of her skeptical younger brother, Eric, her best friend, Savannah, and Howard, their NASA-obsessed schoolmate, Gillian sets off on a journey into the ruins of Omega City, a vast doomsday bunker deep inside the earth,.




But they aren’t alone inside its dark and flooded halls. For while Gillian wants to save her dad’s reputation by bringing Dr. Underberg’s secrets to light, there are others who will stop at nothing to make sure they stay buried . . . forever.[/learn_more]


The Arctic Code
(Dark Gravity Sequence #1)
by Matthew J. Kirby
Middle Grade / Science Fiction
[learn_more caption=”Book Description”]It is the near future, and the earth has entered a new ice age. Eleanor Perry lives in Tucson, one of the most popular destinations for refugees of the Freeze. She is the daughter of a climatologist who is trying to find new ways to preserve human life on the planet. Dr. Perry believes that a series of oil deposits she has found in the Arctic may hold the key to our survival. That’s when she disappears—but not before sending Eleanor a series of cryptic messages that point to a significant and mysterious discovery. Now it’s up to Eleanor to go find her.




This search will launch Eleanor on a breathless race to unlock the mysteries of what has happened to our planet, solving the riddle of the cold that could be humanity’s end—and uncovering a threat to the earth that may not be of this world.[/learn_more]



You can support Rabid Reads by making purchases via the above affiliate links.
Barnes & Noble
Know of an upcoming Paranormal / Fantasy release? E-mail me the details.




Carmel Signature

Owner, designer and main blogger behind Rabid Reads. Avid book reader, snowboard bunny, video gamer and Supernatural fan. I love all things paranormal, werewolves especially. Oh, and I’m Canadian, eh!

Facebook Twitter Google+    

Related Posts

Tags: ,

8 responses to “Fresh Meat: April 26-May 2nd Speculative Fiction Releases”