Can't-Wait Wednesday: Ariadne by Jennifer Saint, Master Artificer (The Silent Gods #2) by Justin Travis Call, Luck of the Titanic by Stacey Lee

Can't-Wait is a weekly meme hosted by Wishful Endings that spotlights exciting upcoming releases that we can't wait to be released! This meme is based off of Jill @ Breaking the Spine's Waiting on Wednesday meme.

 

May is packed with releases, which means we are once again going to be featuring three books each week for Can't-Wait Wednesday because one or two are simply not enough. :)

This week's upcoming book spotlights are: 

Ariadne by Jennifer Saint
Publication: May 4th, 2021

Flatiron Books

Hardcover. 320 pages.

Pre-order: Amazon | IndieBound

From Goodreads:

"A mesmerising retelling of the ancient Greek myth of Theseus and the Minotaur. Perfect for fans of CIRCE, A SONG OF ACHILLES, and THE SILENCE OF THE GIRLS.

 

As Princesses of Crete and daughters of the fearsome King Minos, Ariadne and her sister Phaedra grow up hearing the hoofbeats and bellows of the Minotaur echo from the Labyrinth beneath the palace. The Minotaur - Minos's greatest shame and Ariadne's brother - demands blood every year.

 

When Theseus, Prince of Athens, arrives in Crete as a sacrifice to the beast, Ariadne falls in love with him. But helping Theseus kill the monster means betraying her family and country, and Ariadne knows only too well that in a world ruled by mercurial gods - drawing their attention can cost you everything.

 

In a world where women are nothing more than the pawns of powerful men, will Ariadne's decision to betray Crete for Theseus ensure her happy ending? Or will she find herself sacrificed for her lover's ambition?

 

Ariadne gives a voice to the forgotten women of one of the most famous Greek myths, and speaks to their strength in the face of angry, petulant Gods. Beautifully written and completely immersive, this is an exceptional debut novel."

I'm reading this one right now, and there's something odd about it to me, but I'm also really enjoying it? Regardless, I'm excited for its release because I think it's awesome to have more Greek myth retellings--and it's so lovely!

and...

Master Artificer (The Silent Gods #2) by Justin Travis Call

Publication: May 18th, 2021

Gollancz

Hardcover. 866 pages.

Pre-order: Amazon | IndieBound

From Goodreads:

"The fabulous sequel to 2019's hit debut novel: Master of Sorrows.

 

Annev has avoided one fate. But a darker path may still claim him . . .

 

After surviving the destruction of Chaenbalu, new mysteries and greater threats await Annev and his friends in the capital city of Luqura. As they navigate the city’s perilous streets, Annev searches for a way to control his nascent magic and remove the cursed artifact now fused to his body.

 

But what might removing it cost him?

 

As Annev grapples with his magic, Fyn joins forces with old enemies and new allies, waging a secret war against Luqura’s corrupt guilds in the hopes of forging his own criminal empire. Deep in the Brakewood, Myjun is learning new skills of her own as apprentice to Oyru, the shadow assassin who attacked the village of Chaenbalu – but the power of revenge comes at a daunting price. And back in Chaenbalu itself, left for dead in the Academy’s ruins, Kenton seeks salvation in the only place he can: the power hoarded in the Vault of Damnation . . ."

I really enjoyed Master of Sorrows back when I read it and have been excited to dive back into this world! I was granted an early copy of this so I'm hoping to dive in soon--but at 800+ pages, it may take me a while, haha! The covers for this series have also been so gorgeous so far.

and...

Luck of the Titanic by Stacey Lee

Publication: May 4th, 2021

G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers

Hardcover. 304 pages.

Pre-order: Amazon | IndieBound

From Goodreads:

"Southampton, 1912: Seventeen-year-old British-Chinese Valora Luck has quit her job and smuggled herself aboard the Titanic with two goals in mind: to reunite with her twin brother Jamie--her only family now that both their parents are dead--and to convince a part-owner of the Ringling Brothers Circus to take the twins on as acrobats. Quick-thinking Val talks her way into opulent firstclass accommodations and finds Jamie with a group of fellow Chinese laborers in third class. But in the rigidly stratified world of the luxury liner, Val's ruse can only last so long, and after two long years apart, it's unclear if Jamie even wants the life Val proposes. Then, one moonless night in the North Atlantic, the unthinkable happens--the supposedly unsinkable ship is dealt a fatal blow--and Val and her companions suddenly find themselves in a race to survive.

 

Stacey Lee, master of historical fiction, brings a fresh perspective to an infamous tragedy, loosely inspired by the recently uncovered account of six Titanic survivors of Chinese descent. "

I absolutely love the premise of this one and thinks it sounds like it'll be such an interesting perspective to follow. Really can't wait for this one!

What do you think about these upcoming releases? What are your anticipated upcoming releases?

Review: Master of Sorrows by Justin Travis Call

Master of Sorrows by Justin Travis Call
Gollancz

Publication Date: February 21st, 2020

Hardcover. 448 pages

About Master of Sorrows:

"You have heard the story before - of a young boy, orphaned through tragic circumstances, raised by a wise old man, who comes to a fuller knowledge of his magic and uses it to fight the great evil that threatens his world. 

But what if the boy hero and the malevolent, threatening taint were one and the same? 

What if the boy slowly came to realize he was the reincarnation of an evil god? Would he save the world . . . or destroy it? 

Among the Academy's warrior-thieves, Annev de Breth is an outlier. Unlike his classmates who were stolen as infants from the capital city, Annev was born in the small village of Chaenbalu, was believed to be executed, and then unknowingly raised by his parents' killers. 

Seventeen years later, Annev struggles with the burdens of a forbidden magic, a forgotten heritage, and a secret deformity. When he is subsequently caught between the warring ideologies of his priestly mentor and the Academy's masters, he must choose between forfeiting his promising future at the Academy or betraying his closest friends. Each decision leads to a deeper dilemma, until Annev finds himself pressed into a quest he does not wish to fulfil. 

Will he finally embrace the doctrine of his tutors, murder a stranger, and abandon his mentor? Or will he accept the more difficult truth of who he is . . . and the darker truth of what he may become . . ."

Master of Sorrows is an ambitious and inventive story about a boy who must learn to handle a dark secret that could have dire consequences from those around him if they ever found out. I wasn't entirely sure what to expect from this book going into it, but I ended up enjoying far more than I expected, which is always a pleasant surprise.

Master of Sorrows is a book that employs a variety of classic fantasy tropes, such as the prophesied one, the reluctant hero, a training academy/school setting, etc., and turns them into something new and exciting. I always say that tropes are classic and used repeatedly by various authors for a reason--readers like them! And most readers love it when authors take those tropes and add new twists to them and bring an inventive take, which is exactly what Call does in this book.

Our protagonist, Annev, lives in a place where magic is feared and banned, and anyone found using magic or tainted with magic can thus find themselves banished or killed. Annev has to continuously hide his true self because he would be considered 'Keos-touched,' or essentially tainted by the magic of an evil god, due to being born missing part of his arm. He wears a prosthetic that was skillfully crafted by his mentor, Sodar, who helps him hide this from those in his town. As with any character that has to hide something big about themselves, this added a constant level of tension to the story because you never knew if or when his secret might be revealed, as well as the consequence of that happening--added on to him hiding it for so long.

I'm a sucker for the mentor-apprentice trope in fantasy, so Annev and Sodar's relationships was one of my favorites to watch, despite my occasional frustrations with Annev's attitude and decisions surrounding him and Sodar. I actually really like that Call crafted Annev to be rather stubborn and to push back against certain things Sodar tells him (which I can't tell you because spoilers!), as it made him seem like an authentic young adult who is growing up and wants nothing more than to live a fairly normal life by continuing his education and future career and courting the girl he likes. He's a bit of a reluctant hero type and is also ridiculously loyal to his friends--sometimes so loyal that I almost felt frustrated by the choices he made, even though they were the right things to do, even if a bit stupid. Even though things might not always turn out positively for Annev, he's one of those characters that I trust to do the right thing--or to at least realize what the right thing is after he's done the wrong.

This book employs some darker themes and elements that permeate the entire story. Each chapter begins with an excerpt from the sort of 'religion' that is followed where Annev lives which adds some important and interesting background information and that also contributes to the darker, more serious undertones of the book. There are a lot of dark forces at play that want to use Annev for various reasons, and I liked seeing how Call incorporated all of these ideas and elements to the overall plot.

The worldbuilding and magic system in this book are top notch, and although I found it wasn't overly expansive and detailed, I can tell that Call has big plans for this series and that there will be so much more in future books, which makes me that much more excited to continue this series.

Overall, it's 4.25 stars from me! If you like books that take classic tropes and use them in new ways with plenty of twists, then this is absolutely a book that you should pick up.

*I received a copy of Master of Sorrows courtesy of the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This has no effect on my rating of the novel.*

Amazon | Book Depository | Indiebound

Can't-Wait Wednesday: Master of Sorrows by Justin Travis Call & The Severed Moon by Leigh Bardugo

Can't-Wait is a weekly meme hosted by Wishful Endings that spotlights exciting upcoming releases that we can't wait to be released! This meme is based off of Jill @ Breaking the Spine's Waiting on Wednesday meme.

This week's upcoming book spotlight is:

Master of Sorrows by Justin Travis Call
 Publication Date: February 21st, 2019

Gollancz
448 pages

Pre-order: Book Depository 

From Goodreads: 

"You have heard the story before - of a young boy, orphaned through tragic circumstances, raised by a wise old man, who comes to a fuller knowledge of his magic and uses it to fight the great evil that threatens his world. 

But what if the boy hero and the malevolent, threatening taint were one and the same? 

What if the boy slowly came to realize he was the reincarnation of an evil god? Would he save the world . . . or destroy it? 

Among the Academy's warrior-thieves, Annev de Breth is an outlier. Unlike his classmates who were stolen as infants from the capital city, Annev was born in the small village of Chaenbalu, was believed to be executed, and then unknowingly raised by his parents' killers. 

Seventeen years later, Annev struggles with the burdens of a forbidden magic, a forgotten heritage, and a secret deformity. When he is subsequently caught between the warring ideologies of his priestly mentor and the Academy's masters, he must choose between forfeiting his promising future at the Academy or betraying his closest friends. Each decision leads to a deeper dilemma, until Annev finds himself pressed into a quest he does not wish to fulfil. 

Will he finally embrace the doctrine of his tutors, murder a stranger, and abandon his mentor? Or will he accept the more difficult truth of who he is . . . and the darker truth of what he may become . . ."

The blurb is right, I have heard that story before.... until we get to the later part of the blurb! I have to say, the cover is what initially grabbed my attention, but that synopsis is what confirmed it. Really looking forward to this one!

             and...

The Severed Moon by Leigh Bardugo
Publication Date: January 29th, 2019
Imprint
368 pages

Pre-order: Amazon | Book Depository 

From Goodreads: 

"A bewitching journal filled with prompts and quotations from the imagination of worldwide #1 bestselling author Leigh Bardugo. 

"We learn to wring magic from the ordinary.” 

Find the magic in your life with this year-long journal. On every page you will find an introspective question to respond to, or an evocative quotation from the novels of the Grishaverse—a magical world created by bestselling author Leigh Bardugo. Open your windows to the moon, write down what each prompt or quote conjures in your mind, and let this journal guide you through 365 days of magical self reflection."

So as you can no doubt see, this isn't really a book, but I've recently discovered it and am really interested in it! I've never been good at journals despite trying countless times to keep them, but this sounds like it might make for some thoughtful topics and ideas to ponder and write about, so I think I'll have to try to pick up a copy at some point.

What do you think about these upcoming releases? What are your anticipated upcoming releases?

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