Fantasy/SF/Horror/Gothic: Jul. 2022, Pt. 3 | Prepub Alert

Haunted houses and the retelling of iconic tales. 

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Chambers, Becky. A Prayer for the Crown-Shy. Tor.com. (Monk & Robot, Bk. 2). Jul. 2022. 160p. ISBN 9781250236234. $21.99. SF/ACTION & ADVENTURE

In this second in a new series from Clarke/Locus nominee Chambers, famed Tea Monk Sibling Dex and the robot Mosscap, whose mission is to discover what humanity really needs, have finished up touring the rural areas of the moon where they live and are heading toward habitation. With a 150,000-copy first printing.

Feist, Raymond E. Master of Furies. Harper Voyager. (Firemane Saga, Bk. 3). Jul. 2022. 432p. ISBN 9780062315823. $27.99. FANTASY/EPIC

In this wrap-up to the “Firemane Saga,” Declan Smith and Baron Daylon Dumarch seek vengeance after raiders devastate Marquensas, massacring multitudes. Meanwhile, Hava, now known as the Sea Demon, seeks out the source of this violence even as her husband, last of the Firemanes, the ruling family of Ithrace, struggles to master his magic. With a 100,000-copy first printing.

Hendrix, Grady. How To Sell a Haunted House. Berkley. Jul. 2022. 400p. ISBN 9780593201268. $27. Downloadable. HORROR

After the death of her parents, Louise returns to her Southern hometown to ready their house for sale. She dreads having to deal with her younger brother, given their past battles, but what’s worse is the creepy something she encounters in the house itself. Following the author of the New York Times best-selling, LJ-starred The Final Girl Support Group.

Kingfisher, T. What Moves the Dead. Tor Nightfire. Jul. 2022. 176p. ISBN 9781250830753. $19.99. HORROR

When retired soldier Alex Easton learns their childhood friend Madeleine Usher is dying, they rush to the ancestral Usher home in Ruritania. There they encounter weird fungus, possessed wildlife, a sleepwalking Madeleine, and her nerve-wrecked brother. Working out what has happened requires the help of a British mycologist and an American doctor. A reimaging of Poe’s classic; with a 100,000-copy first printing.

Meadows, Foz. A Strange and Stubborn Endurance. Tor. Jul. 2022. 544p. ISBN 9781250829139. $27.99. FANTASY/HISTORICAL

When his preference for men emerges, Velasin vin Aaro fears that he has wrecked his diplomatic mission to the Tithena. But while his own country prohibits relationships between men, the Tithena have an enlightened perspective and propose a political marriage between Velasin and one of their own, a man named Caethari Aeduria. When violence threatens the new alliance, Vel and Cae have no one to trust but each other. From Hugo Award–winning Australian Meadows; with a 125,000-copy first printing.

Moreno-Garcia, Silvia. The Daughter of Doctor Moreau. Del Rey: Ballantine. Jul. 2022. 320p. ISBN 9780593355336. $28. HORROR

The masterly author of Mexican Gothic retells the story of Doctor Moreau from the perspective of his daughter, Carlota, who grows up on a grand estate on the Yucatán peninsula as her father conducts experiments funded by the wealthy Lizaldes. The estate also serves as home to Montgomery Laughton, Doctor Moreau’s hard-drinking assistant, and the many part-human, part-animal hybrids that result from the doctor’s creepy experiments. The arrival of a Lizalde son disrupts everything.

Query, Matt & Harrison Query. Old Country. Grand Central. Jul. 2022. 320p. ISBN 9781538721209. $28. Downloadable. HORROR

In this debut, based on a Reddit sensation that was preempted by Netflix for seven figures, former U.S. Marine Harry and his wife, Sasha, buy a ranch in a beautiful Idaho valley. A mile away, their closest neighbors insist that a malevolent spirit haunts the valley, and Harry and Sasha suspect that the isolation has taken its toll on these hapless folks. They should have listened. With a 30,000-copy first printing.

Roy, Lucinda. Flying the Coop. Tor. (Dreambird Chronicles, Bk. 2). Jul. 2022. 496p. ISBN 9781250809827. $27.99. SF/POST-APOCALYPTIC

With this follow-up to The Freedom Race, the multi-genre author Roy’s first foray into speculative fiction, a search for Freedom brings former Muleseed Jellybean “Ji-ji” Silapu to the Dream City, formerly the U.S. capital. It’s risky business—no person of color is safe in Ji-ji’s world—but with her new-found ability to fly she and friends Tiro and Afarra, struggling to lay aside their own ghosts, could all find their dreams. With a 125,000-copy first printing.

Vale, Maria. Wolf in the Shadows. Sourcebooks Casablanca. Jul. 2022. (Legend of All Wolves, Bk. 4). 336p. ISBN 9781728214733. pap. $8.99. ROMANCE/PARANORMAL SHIFTERS

In this next in the “Legend of All Wolves” series, Julia is a Shifter trapped with the Great North Pack whose task is tending to Arthur, the Omega wolf at the bottom of pack hierarchy who watches out for all the other wolves. Happily, they fall in love. Lots of wolf-human tales out there, but Vale’s series is especially smart and vividly told, so check it out.

Wynne, Phoebe. The Ruins. St. Martin’s. Jul. 2022. 336p. ISBN 9781250272065. $27.99. GOTHIC

Ruby Ashby has always loved the Chateau des Sètes, her parents’ gorgeous away-from-England home, located on the Cote d’Azur. But this August, strange things are happening—unexpected guests arrive, children are left untended, and Ruby starts feeling trapped. Two decades later, she arrives at the house as a young widow, intent on repurchasing it and reclaiming its glory days despite its subsequent terrible history. But someone else wants it, too. From the author of Madam; with a 75,000-copy first printing.

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Barbara Hoffert

Barbara Hoffert (bhoffert@mediasourceinc.com, @BarbaraHoffert on Twitter) is Editor, LJ Prepub Alert; winner of ALA's Louis Shores Award for reviewing; and past president, awards chair, and treasurer of the National Book Critics Circle, which awarded her its inaugural Service Award in 2023.

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