Swords & Spaceships

The Best New Science Fiction and Fantasy Books Out This Week

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Alex Acks

Contributing Editor

Alex Acks is a writer, geologist, and sharp-dressed sir. They've written for Six to Start and been published in Strange Horizons, Lightspeed, Shimmer, Daily Science Fiction, and more. Alex lives in Denver with their two furry little bastards, where they twirl their mustache, watch movies, and bike. Twitter: @katsudonburi Website: katsudon.net

Wow, are there a lot of new books coming out this week. So you’re going to get a double dose of them today—and another on Friday—because my will is weak and I can’t make myself winnow down the list tightly enough.

I hope you all had a lovely weekend. I did house things like mow the lawn (while listening to the unabridged The Count of Monte Cristo), and had a really awesome breakfast burrito that involved an entire chile relleno. Not the most exciting weekend, to be sure, but sometimes those are really for the best. I hope your weekend was as relaxing and satisfying, and you had as many opportunities to sneak some book time in. Stay safe out there, space pirates, and I’ll see you on Friday!

Bookish Goods

Poster based on a Deadly Education

A Deadly Education-inspired Poster by The AutomaticMoon

This is a really gorgeous (if scary) piece of art inspired by Naomi Novik’s A Deadly Education. This small picture simply does not do justice to the sheer level of detail of the piece. $28+

New Releases

cover of An Academy for Liars by Alexis Henderson; black with gold moth with its wings pinned down

An Academy for Liars by Alexis Henderson

Lennon Carter’s future seems to be going nowhere until she receives a mysterious invitation for an entrance exam to a very particular college—one hidden in Savannah and reserved for those who, like her, can wield a magical sort of persuasion like a weapon. It’s the opportunity of a lifetime, and perhaps a life-saving one, and Lennon begins to quickly master her powers. But the more she studies and learns, the more she unearths Drayton College’s disturbing history—and the test she will soon face that is deadly if failed.

Cover of The Lantern of Lost Memories

The Lantern of Lost Memories by Sanaka Hiiragi

Mr. Hirasaka is a collector of antique cameras and the owner of a magical photo studio that functions as a door to the afterlife. It is Mr. Hirasaka who gives the dead that final chance to have their life flash before their eyes—and the opportunity to travel back in time to their most cherished moment.

For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter.

Riot Recommendations

September continues apace as a massive tidal wave of new books, so here’s a double dose of those new releases for your perusal!

Cover of Kavithri by Aman J. Bedi

Kavithri by Aman J. Bedi

Kavithri’s people were once mighty and feared, berserkers who were the tip of the spear for an invasion that spanned an entire continent. Now, they are the dregs of society and their history has been all but erased. But Kavi has a plan to bring her people back to glory by joining a mage academy and facing its Jinn. The world is against her and determined to beat her back down into her ordained place, but no one is prepared for the fury of a berserker.

cover of Buried Deep and Other Stories by Naomi Novik; white with a leafy border with a wolf's head at the top

Buried Deep and Other Stories by Naomi Novik

This collection of short stories hosts new glimpses into all of Naomi Novik’s worlds—there are stories of dragons and of Scholomance—and also stories that stand wholly on their own.

See you, space pirates. If you’d like to know more about my secret plans to dominate the seas and skies, you can catch me over at my personal site.

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