Must-Have Monday #148
Must-Have Monday is a feature highlighting which of the coming week’s new releases I’m excited for. It is not meant to be a comprehensive list of all books being published that week; only those I’m interested in out of those I’m aware of! The focus is diverse SFF, but other genres sneak in occasionally too.
Just THREE books this week!
(Books are listed in order of pub date, then Adult SFF, Adult Other, YA SFF, YA Other, MG SFF.)
Shigidi and the Brass Head of Obalufon by Wole Talabi Genres: Fantasy, Contemporary or Urban Fantasy
Representation: Nigerian MC
Published on: 8th August 2023
Goodreads
{ "@context":"https://schema.org", "@type":"Review", "datePublished": "2023-08-07T11:46:07+00:00", "description": "Gods and heists, Nigerian-inspired epic fantasy, and a man turning into a shark!", "publisher": { "@type": "Organization", "name": "Every Book a Doorway" }, "url": "https:\/\/everybookadoorway.com\/must-have-monday-148\/", "itemReviewed": { "@type": "Book", "name": "Shigidi and the Brass Head of Obalufon", "author": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Wole Talabi", "sameAs": "" }, "isbn": "" }, "author": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Sia", "sameAs": "https:\/\/everybookadoorway.com\/" }, "reviewRating": { "@type": "Rating", "ratingValue": false, "bestRating": "5" }}
The debut fantasy novel from an award-winning Nigerian author presents a mythic tale of disgruntled gods, revenge, and a heist across two worlds
Shigidi is a disgruntled and demotivated nightmare god in the Orisha spirit company, reluctantly answering prayers of his few remaining believers to maintain his existence long enough to find his next drink. When he meets Nneoma, a sort-of succubus with a long and secretive past, everything changes for him.
Together, they attempt to break free of his obligations and the restrictions that have bound him to his godhood and navigate the parameters of their new relationship in the shadow of her past. But the elder gods that run the Orisha spirit company have other plans for Shigidi, and they are not all aligned--or good.
From the boisterous streets of Lagos to the swanky rooftop bars of Singapore and the secret spaces of London, Shigidi and Nneoma will encounter old acquaintances, rival gods, strange creatures, and manipulative magicians as they are drawn into a web of revenge, spirit business, and a spectacular heist across two worlds that will change Shigidi's understanding of himself forever and determine the fate of the Orisha spirit company.
The reviews I’ve seen for this have been mixed – the most common critique seems to be that Nneoma goes in for a lot of dubious consent? The worldbuilding is supposed to be spectacular, though, so I’ll probably be giving it a go – and crossing my fingers that the sex scenes aren’t as dodgy as some have been saying!
Shark Heart by Emily Habeck Published on: 8th August 2023
Goodreads
{ "@context":"https://schema.org", "@type":"Review", "datePublished": "2023-08-07T11:46:07+00:00", "description": "Gods and heists, Nigerian-inspired epic fantasy, and a man turning into a shark!", "publisher": { "@type": "Organization", "name": "Every Book a Doorway" }, "url": "https:\/\/everybookadoorway.com\/must-have-monday-148\/", "itemReviewed": { "@type": "Book", "name": "Shark Heart", "author": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Emily Habeck", "sameAs": "" }, "isbn": "" }, "author": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Sia", "sameAs": "https:\/\/everybookadoorway.com\/" }, "reviewRating": { "@type": "Rating", "ratingValue": false, "bestRating": "5" }}
A lyrical and provocative debut novel about newlyweds Wren and her husband, Lewis, who over the course of nine months, transforms into a great white shark.
For Lewis and Wren, their first year of marriage is also their last. A few weeks after their wedding, Lewis receives a rare diagnosis. He will retain most of his consciousness, memories, and intellect, but his physical body will transform into that of a great white shark. As Lewis develops the features and impulses of one of the most predatory creatures in the ocean, his complicated artist’s heart struggles to make peace with his unfulfilled dreams.
At first, Wren internally resists her husband’s fate. Is there a way for them to be together after Lewis fully transforms? Then, a glimpse of Lewis’s developing carnivorous nature activates long-repressed memories for Wren, whose story vacillates between her childhood living on a houseboat in Oklahoma, her time with a college ex-girlfriend, and her unusual friendship with a woman pregnant with twin birds. Woven throughout this daring novel is the story of Wren’s mother, Angela, who becomes pregnant with Wren at fifteen in an abusive relationship amidst her parents’ crumbling marriage. In the present, all of Wren’s grief eventually collides, and she meets her fears with surrender, choosing to love fully, now.
An emotional exploration of motherhood, marriage, transformation, and letting go, Shark Heart is an unforgettable love story about mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, animals and people—all while examining what it truly means to be human.
I still remember when I first heard about this book – it was such a wait, WHAT? moment! Shark Heart sounds so incredibly weird that I’m dying to give it a read – but I don’t know if I can handle an unhappy ending, and I really don’t see how you can get a happy ending out of that premise???
Forged by Blood (Tainted Blood Duology, #1) by Ehigbor Okosun Genres: Fantasy
Representation: Nigerian-coded setting and cast
Published on: 8th August 2023
Goodreads
{ "@context":"https://schema.org", "@type":"Review", "datePublished": "2023-08-07T11:46:07+00:00", "description": "Gods and heists, Nigerian-inspired epic fantasy, and a man turning into a shark!", "publisher": { "@type": "Organization", "name": "Every Book a Doorway" }, "url": "https:\/\/everybookadoorway.com\/must-have-monday-148\/", "itemReviewed": { "@type": "Book", "name": "Forged by Blood (Tainted Blood Duology, #1)", "author": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ehigbor Okosun", "sameAs": "" }, "isbn": "" }, "author": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Sia", "sameAs": "https:\/\/everybookadoorway.com\/" }, "reviewRating": { "@type": "Rating", "ratingValue": false, "bestRating": "5" }}
A brilliant new voice brings a brilliant new novel: debut author Ehigbor Okosun's first book in an action-packed, poignant duology inspired by Nigerian mythology--full of magic and emotion and set in a highly atmospheric, complex world in which a young woman fights to survive a tyrannical society, having everything stripped away from her, and seeks vengeance for her mother's murder and the spilled blood of her people.
In the midst of a tyrannical regime and political invasion, Dèmi just wants to survive: to avoid the suspicion of the nonmagical Ajes who occupy her ancestral homeland of Ife; to escape the King’s brutal genocide of her people—the darker skinned, magic wielding Oluso; and to live peacefully with her secretive mother while learning to control the terrifying blood magic that is her birthright.
But when Dèmi’s misplaced trust costs her mother’s life, survival gives way to vengeance. She bides her time until the devious Lord Ekwensi grants her the perfect opportunity—kidnap the Aje prince, Jonas, and bargain with his life to save the remaining Oluso. With the help of her reckless childhood friend Colin, Dèmi succeeds, but discovers that she and Jonas share more than deadly secrets; every moment tangles them further into a forbidden, unmistakable attraction, much to Colin’s—and Dèmi’s—distress.
The kidnapping is now a joint mission: to return to the King, help get Lord Ekwensi on the council, and bolster the voice of the Oluso in a system designed to silence them. But the way is dangerous, Dèmi’s magic is growing yet uncertain, and it’s not clear if she can trust the two men at her side.
A tale of rebellion and redemption, race and class, love and trust and betrayal, Forged by Blood is epic fantasy at its finest, from an enthusiastic, emerging voice.
I keep getting conflicting info on whether this is Adult or YA, but either way Forged By Blood sounds pretty epic – and you can read an excerpt here!
Will you be reading any of these? Let me know!
The post Must-Have Monday #148 appeared first on Every Book a Doorway.
