Somehow, July is already over and August has arrived (it’s only August 5th but already it seems like the month is over). I struggled a lot with reading this year, but have slowly gotten back into it. Here are some books (both newly published and books that have been sitting in my TBR piles for MONTHS) that I’m looking forward to reading this month:
Harrow the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir
I am the WORST ~ I’ve had an arc of Harrow since before pandemic but, well, pandemic has prevented me from doing a lot of thing. Finally going to dig into all it’s skeleton-filled goodness.
Harrowhark Nonagesimus, last necromancer of the Ninth House, has been drafted by her Emperor to fight an unwinnable war. Side-by-side with a detested rival, Harrow must perfect her skills and become an angel of undeath — but her health is failing, her sword makes her nauseous, and even her mind is threatening to betray her.
Sealed in the gothic gloom of the Emperor’s Mithraeum with three unfriendly teachers, hunted by the mad ghost of a murdered planet, Harrow must confront two unwelcome questions: is somebody trying to kill her? And if they succeeded, would the universe be better off?
In keeping with the bone/necromancer theme…!!! Rin Chupeco is going to be one of the amazing keynote speakers at Sirens Conference 2021, and I can’t wait start this series.
When Tea accidentally resurrects her brother, Fox, from the dead, she learns she is different from the other witches in her family. Her gift for necromancy means that she’s a bone witch, a title that makes her feared and ostracized by her community. But Tea finds solace and guidance with an older, wiser bone witch, who takes Tea and her brother to another land for training.
In her new home, Tea puts all her energy into becoming an asha―one who can wield elemental magic. But dark forces are approaching quickly, and in the face of danger, Tea will have to overcome her obstacles…and make a powerful choice.
The Black God’s Drums by P. Djèlí Clark
My life has quickly become a series of reading one novella after another. I honestly don’t know why I never read SFF novellas before this year ~ they are the perfect dose of character, story, and wonder. I’ve had this book on my TBR for about a year now, and I am FINALLY ready to dive in!
In an alternate New Orleans caught in the tangle of the American Civil War, the wall-scaling girl named Creeper yearns to escape the streets for the air–in particular, by earning a spot on-board the airship Midnight Robber. Creeper plans to earn Captain Ann-Marie’s trust with information she discovers about a Haitian scientist and a mysterious weapon he calls The Black God’s Drums.
But Creeper also has a secret herself: Oya, the African orisha of the wind and storms, speaks inside her head, and may have her own ulterior motivations.
Soon, Creeper, Oya, and the crew of the Midnight Robber are pulled into a perilous mission aimed to stop the Black God’s Drums from being unleashed and wiping out the entirety of New Orleans.
The Order of the Pure Moon Reflected in Water by Zen Cho
Zen Cho’s writing is always a balm on my soul. A few days ago I sat down to read The Perilous Life of Jade Yeo (one of Cho’s earlier historical romance novellas) and devoured it in one sitting! I can’t wait to settle down with a hot cup of coffee and this delightful wuxia-inspired novella (also, I cannot get over how amazing this title is!!!).
A bandit walks into a coffeehouse, and it all goes downhill from there. Guet Imm, a young votary of the Order of the Pure Moon, joins up with an eclectic group of thieves (whether they like it or not) in order to protect a sacred object, and finds herself in a far more complicated situation than she could have ever imagined.
The Midnight Bargain by C.L. Polk (ARC)
From the beloved World Fantasy Award-winning author of Witchmark comes a sweeping, romantic new fantasy set in a world reminiscent of Regency England, where women’s magic is taken from them when they marry. A sorceress must balance her desire to become the first great female magician against her duty to her family.
All I can say is REGENCY INSPIRED FANTASY!!!!!!!! This book is, in every way possible, my jam. I’m just guessing here, but I think I’m going to be yelling about this one for a looooooong time.
Emory Noakes 
Will definitely have to check out some of these books 🙂 xx
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