The Leaning Pile of Books is a feature in which I highlight books I got over the last week—old or new, bought or received in the mail for review consideration (most of which are unsolicited books from publishers). Since I hope you will find new books you’re interested in reading in these posts, I try to be as informative as possible. If I can find them, links to excerpts, author’s websites, and places where you can find more information on the book are included, along with series information and the publisher’s book description. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Last week brought a book I’m very excited about (and I recently bought a signed copy of a book I loved, although I’m just linking to my review in the list at the end since I have written about it and am sure I will be writing about it again in my yearly favorites post!), but first, here’s the latest review in case you missed it:
- A House of Rage and Sorrow (Celestial Trilogy #2) by Sangu Mandanna — Although I thought it was too quickly paced and preferred the previous book, the thrilling last 20% and excellently handled themes kept me excited about this series and where it’s headed.
Queen of the Conquered (Islands of Blood and Storm #1) by Kacen Callender
This Caribbean-inspired epic fantasy novel, Lambda Literary Award–winning author Kacen Callender’s first book for adults, was released last week (trade paperback, ebook, audiobook).
Orbit has an excerpt containing the prologue and first three chapters of Queen of the Conquered.
An ambitious young woman with the power to control minds seeks vengeance against the royals who murdered her family, in a Caribbean-inspired fantasy world embattled by colonial oppression.
Sigourney Rose is the only surviving daughter of a noble lineage on the islands of Hans Lollik. When she was a child, her family was murdered by the islands’ colonizers, who have massacred and enslaved generations of her people — and now, Sigourney is ready to exact her revenge.
When the childless king of the islands declares that he will choose his successor from amongst eligible noble families, Sigourney uses her ability to read and control minds to manipulate her way onto the royal island and into the ranks of the ruling colonizers. But when she arrives, prepared to fight for control of all the islands, Sigourney finds herself the target of a dangerous, unknown magic.
Someone is killing off the ruling families to clear a path to the throne. As the bodies pile up and all eyes regard her with suspicion, Sigourney must find allies among her prey and the murderer among her peers… lest she become the next victim.
Queen of the Conquered reckons with the many layers of power and privilege in a lush fantasy world — perfect for readers of S. A. Chakraborty, Ken Liu, and Tasha Suri.
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