July 6, 2019
Greetings, earthlings! What mind-bending, universe-expanding adventures happened this week in the world of spec? A little bit of everything, of course! No worries if you didn’t catch it all the first time around. The gang’s all here and we’ve got your back — it’s time for the Weekly Roundup!
July 4, 2019
Sacrificial Princess and the King of Beasts (2018 — 2019) Written by: Yu Tomofuji Series: Sacrificial Princess and the King of Beasts (Vol. 1-5) Genre: Manga (Fantasy) Publisher: Yen Press Why I Chose It: Working in a bookstore, I’ve read a lot of things based off what customers ask for (not what they recommend — no disrespect, but everyone recommends…
July 3, 2019
The Perfect Assassin (2019) Series: Chronicles of Ghadid, Book 1 Written by: K.A. Doore Genre: Fantasy Pages: 350 (Trade Paperback) Publisher: Tor Why I Chose It: I have a love-hate relationship with assassin stories, because on one hand, murder is bad! Assassins are not admirable people, right? On the other hand, fictional assassins are often fun to read, super-skilled, and…
July 2, 2019
I’m fond of Lovecraftian fiction, as you can see from my thoughts on Ruthanna Emrys’s fiction here and here. So when Mira Grant announced that her latest Subterranean Press novella was her first dip into actual Lovecraft territory, I might have squealed a little inside. The fates, and the publisher, smiled upon me and granted me access to an eARC…
June 29, 2019
Hats off to all you magical people out there! I mentioned in last week’s roundup about us not getting rain in my corner of Japan, then wished for your help in securing said rain through whimsical, unscientific means, and voilà! It rained! Not all week, but in long-enough spurts to actually mean something to the poor, dried-out land around here.…
June 26, 2019
Ladycastle (2017) Written By: Delilah S. Dawson Illustrated By: Ashley A. Woods and Rebecca Farrow Genre: Fantasy Graphic Novel Pages: 112 pages Paperback Publisher: BOOM! Studios Why I Chose It: I heard it mentioned on the Writing Excuses podcast. A castle full of women saving the day their own way? Heck, yes. Sign me up. The premise: When the King…
June 25, 2019
Gunmetal Magic (2012) Written by: Ilona Andrews Series: Kate Daniels #5.5 Genre: Urban Fantasy Pages: 326 (Paperback) Publisher: Ace Why I Chose This: My 2019 Resolution Project for Speculative Chic is to read the books in the Kate Daniels series and finish up with a first read of the final book. I first read Gunmetal Magic in 2012. The Premise: Some people…
June 21, 2019
Titanshade (2019) Written by: Dan Stout Genre: Urban Fantasy Pages: 407 (Hardcover) Publisher: DAW Why I Chose It: Because Carter’s a disgraced human cop; because Ajax is a new-to-town Mollenkampi rookie cop; together they fight crime! I am a total sucker for that premise, as I believe I’ve mentioned before. Less flippantly, I picked this one up because it looked…
June 8, 2019
Greetings, readers! Welcome to another week and (now another month!) at Speculative Chic. I hope things in your corner of the world are sunny, warm, and comfortable as the summer begins. In my neck of the woods, we have an extra season crammed inside summer called “tsuyu,” or, the rainy season, which has started early this year. Thank goodness I…
June 5, 2019
The Agony House (2018) Written by: Cherie Priest Illustrated by: Tara O’Connor Genre: YA Horror Pages: 256 (Hardcover) Publisher: Scholastic Why I Chose It: It was suggested to me, either by BookBub or by my Amazon Kindle Daily Deals email. I can’t recall which. I do know that when Cherie Priest’s books cross my line of sight, I always stop…