Welcome to November everyone. Halloween has passed but it’s still too early for that ‘C’ word. So how shall we stay entertained now that clocks have granted us a little more time to lie in? We recommend a hearty dose of reading! So join us as we count down some of the best sci-fi, fantasy and horror books that are being released this November…
Bookshops and bone dust
Travis baldree
9 November – Tor Books
When battle-hungry Orc, Viv, is injured on the hunt for a powerful necromancer, she’s despatched to the sleepy town of Murk for a little bit of R&R. With no one to fight and not much to do, Viv soon finds herself lost in a dusty old bookshop, and on track for a different kind of adventure.
A prequel (of sorts) that expands on the enchanting world of the bestselling Legends & Lattes, Bookshops & Bonedust embarks on a journey of epic fantasy, the flutters of first love, and the ever enchanting world of secondhand books.
Mothtown
Caroline Hardaker
14 November – Angry Robot
In Mothtown, something is wrong with the world but David seems to be the only one to notice it. The trouble is he can’t quite put his finger on what it is. All he knows is that people are going missing (his beloved grandfather among them) and winged bodies are starting to show up
Elusive and engaging, no one does off-kilter quite like Caroline Hardaker. Coming off the back of the brilliantly uncomfortable Composite Creatures, Hardaker returns with yet more moody and malevolent body horror, rife with the underpinning themes of isolation and loneliness.
What The River Knows
Isabel Ibañez
14 November – Hodderscape
In nineteenth-century Buenos Aires, Inez Olivera’s privileged life is turned upside down when she learns of her parents’ mysterious deaths. Desperate to uncover the truth, she embarks on a quest to Cairo armed only with her sketchbooks and a magical ring…
An historical fantasy packed with ancient magic and roaring romance, Isabel Ibañez’s What The River Knows, sits somewhere between the popcorn adventuring of Brendan Fraser’s The Mummy, and Agatha Christie 1920’s romantic mysteries. Ibañez sweeps you away into a charming and addictive world of heart-fluttering alt-history.
Ultimate Adventure
Lawrence Essex
9 November – The Book Guild Ltd
Remy Winters is having a tough time and so seeks comfort in the newly-released remake of her favorite childhood video game, Ultimate Adventure VII. However, she gets more than she bargained for when she gets sucked into the game. Now, following the rules of any self-respecting RPG, she must assemble a team of allies, both real-world and in-game, to battle through armies of undead monsters, and reach the formidable final boss, Dread Knight Grimoirh. Otherwise, it’s game over… for real.
The idea of being absorbed into a video game has long been reserved for the action-adventure platformers but now is the time for the RPG players. Filled with just the right amount of knowing nudges and coy winks to the world of role play games, Ultimate Adventure really does make you want to respawn back into childhood.
The Lost Cause
Cory Doctorow
16 November – Ad Astra
Thirty years from now, the future seems a little brighter. Although the devastating effects of climate change are ever present, there is a preparedness in the world in how it deals with it. Yet no matter how far humanity can come, there’ll always be those red baseball cap-wearing decriers of fake news and the good old days.
Unashamedly political, author Cory Doctorow is simultaneously hopeful and nihilistic in his futurism. Although The Lost Cause struggles with characterisation and plot, it makes up for it with its horrifyingly plausible vision of the route to the future.
