Pub Day Picks // November 17, 2020

This is probably the most exciting publishing Tuesday of the year. So many great books have been published today and some by my favorite authors. It’s the gift that keeps on giving! Let’s check out what’s being published:

Rhythm of War by Brandon Sanderson

I think Brandon Sanderson has sorta ruined fantasy novels for me, but in a good way. In the way that I’m always on the hunt for a book similar to this one. I find them more often than not, but The Stormlight Archive stands on its own and the fourth installment, The Rhythm of War, continues the story. I still have to read Oathbringer, but I’ll definitely be reading this one after.

The Stormlight Archive saga continues in Rhythm of War, the eagerly awaited sequel to Brandon Sanderson’s #1 New York Times bestselling Oathbringer, from an epic fantasy writer at the top of his game.

After forming a coalition of human resistance against the enemy invasion, Dalinar Kholin and his Knights Radiant have spent a year fighting a protracted, brutal war. Neither side has gained an advantage, and the threat of a betrayal by Dalinar’s crafty ally Taravangian looms over every strategic move.

Now, as new technological discoveries by Navani Kholin’s scholars begin to change the face of the war, the enemy prepares a bold and dangerous operation. The arms race that follows will challenge the very core of the Radiant ideals, and potentially reveal the secrets of the ancient tower that was once the heart of their strength.

At the same time that Kaladin Stormblessed must come to grips with his changing role within the Knights Radiant, his Windrunners face their own problem: As more and more deadly enemy Fused awaken to wage war, no more honorspren are willing to bond with humans to increase the number of Radiants. Adolin and Shallan must lead the coalition’s envoy to the honorspren stronghold of Lasting Integrity and either convince the spren to join the cause against the evil god Odium, or personally face the storm of failure.

These Violent Delights by Chloe Gong

This book was packaged like the representative Romeo and Juliet. I love a good retelling especially if it’s Shakespeare and written with a new perspective and culture in mind. I have a copy of this book that I’ve been sitting on because my brain sucks, but I want to read it soon. It sounds so seductive and serious, but also will blow me away.

Perfect for fans of The Last Magician and Descendant of the Crane, this heart-stopping debut is an imaginative Romeo and Juliet retelling set in 1920s Shanghai, with rival gangs and a monster in the depths of the Huangpu River.

The year is 1926, and Shanghai hums to the tune of debauchery. A blood feud between two gangs runs the streets red, leaving the city helpless in the grip of chaos. At the heart of it all is eighteen-year-old Juliette Cai, a former flapper who has returned to assume her role as the proud heir of the Scarlet Gang–a network of criminals far above the law. Their only rivals in power are the White Flowers, who have fought the Scarlets for generations. And behind every move is their heir, Roma Montagov, Juliette’s first love…and first betrayal. But when gangsters on both sides show signs of instability culminating in clawing their own throats out, the people start to whisper. Of a contagion, a madness. Of a monster in the shadows. As the deaths stack up, Juliette and Roma must set their guns–and grudges–aside and work together, for if they can’t stop this mayhem, then there will be no city left for either to rule.

The Burning God by RF Kuang

It’s the exciting conclusion of The Poppy Wars! This military fantasy series is incredible with a ton of inclusion of the Chinese military history. One of the most profound stories I’ve read to date with the idea that the main character is actually modeled off a young Mao. It’s truly an incredible story and the final book is out today.

The exciting end to The Poppy War trilogy, R. F. Kuang’s acclaimed, award-winning epic fantasy that combines the history of twentieth-century China with a gripping world of gods and monsters, to devastating, enthralling effect.

After saving her nation of Nikan from foreign invaders and battling the evil Empress Su Daji in a brutal civil war, Fang Runin was betrayed by allies and left for dead.

Despite her losses, Rin hasn’t given up on those for whom she has sacrificed so much–the people of the southern provinces and especially Tikany, the village that is her home. Returning to her roots, Rin meets difficult challenges–and unexpected opportunities. While her new allies in the Southern Coalition leadership are sly and untrustworthy, Rin quickly realizes that the real power in Nikan lies with the millions of common people who thirst for vengeance and revere her as a goddess of salvation.

Backed by the masses and her Southern Army, Rin will use every weapon to defeat the Dragon Republic, the colonizing Hesperians, and all who threaten the shamanic arts and their practitioners. As her power and influence grows, though, will she be strong enough to resist the Phoenix’s intoxicating voice urging her to burn the world and everything in it?

Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi

First off, let me tell you how much I love and hate time travel books. I love them because the concept of time travel is always intriguing to me since I was a kid. But I hate them because they’re all usually paradoxes. I think I read somewhere that the concept in itself is a paradox and there is no elegant way of fully making a time travel story work in technical terms. Yet, I still read them and devour them like candy because time travel will always be one of those tropes that are super close to me.

If you could go back, who would you want to meet? In a small back alley of Tokyo, there is a café that has been serving carefully brewed coffee for more than one hundred years. Local legend says that this shop offers something else besides coffee–the chance to travel back in time. Over the course of one summer, four customers visit the café in the hopes of making that journey. But time travel isn’t so simple, and there are rules that must be followed. Most important, the trip can last only as long as it takes for the coffee to get cold. Heartwarming, wistful, mysterious and delightfully quirky, Toshikazu Kawaguchi’s internationally bestselling novel explores the age-old question: What would you change if you could travel back in time?

Super Fake Love Song by David Yoon

I’m a huge fan of David Yoon and Nicola Yoon. I call them “mom and dad” of contemporary YA romances. Today, David Yoon’s second book is out and it’s already on my TBR for this month! I’m actually going to read this one next, so seeing it out in the world makes me extremely happy.

From the bestselling author of Frankly in Love comes a contemporary YA rom-com where a case of mistaken identity kicks off a string of (fake) events that just may lead to (real) love.

When Sunny Dae–self-proclaimed total nerd–meets Cirrus Soh, he can’t believe how cool and confident she is. So when Cirrus mistakes Sunny’s older brother Gray’s bedroom–with its electric guitars and rock posters–for Sunny’s own, he sort of, kind of, accidentally winds up telling her he’s the front man of a rock band.

Before he knows it, Sunny is knee-deep in the lie: He ropes his best friends into his scheme, begging them to form a fake band with him, and starts wearing Gray’s rock-and-roll castoffs. But no way can he trick this amazing girl into thinking he’s cool, right? Just when Sunny is about to come clean, Cirrus asks to see them play sometime. Gulp.

Now there’s only one thing to do: Fake it till you make it. Sunny goes all in on the lie, and pretty soon, the strangest things start happening. People are noticing him in the hallways, and he’s going to football games and parties for the first time. He’s feeling more confident in every aspect of his life, and especially with Cirrus, who’s started to become not just his dream girl but also the real deal. Sunny is falling in love. He’s having fun. He’s even becoming a rocker, for real. But it’s only a matter of time before Sunny’s house of cards starts tumbling down. As his lies begin to catch up with him, Sunny Dae is forced to wonder whether it was all worth it–and if it’s possible to ever truly change.

From New York Times bestselling author David Yoon comes an inventive new romantic comedy about identity, perception, and how hard it can feel sometimes to simply be yourself.

Rebel Sisters by Tochi Onyebuchi

I’m a little surprised this series doesn’t get as much love as it deserves. It’s a Nigerian science fantasy about two young war sisters who’s country is in the middle of finding peace after this massive Civil War (inspired by the real Nigerian/Biafran War). One sister is captured by one side and the other starts a tirade of killings and drug addiction. It’s incredible and filled with tons of emotion and heart especially between the two sisters. Today, the sequel of the first book is out and I’m so ready to see the second half of this story come to life.

In the epic, action-packed sequel to the brilliant (Booklist, starred review) novel War Girls, the battles are over, but the fight for justice has just begun. It’s been five years since the Biafran War ended. Ify is now nineteen and living where she’s always dreamed–the Space Colonies. She is a respected, high-ranking medical officer and has dedicated her life to helping refugees like herself rebuild in the Colonies. Back in the still devastated Nigeria, Uzo, a young synth, is helping an aid worker, Xifeng, recover images and details of the war held in the technology of destroyed androids. Uzo, Xifeng, and the rest of their team are working to preserve memories of the many lives lost, despite the government’s best efforts to eradicate any signs that the war ever happened. Though they are working toward common goals of helping those who suffered, Ify and Uzo are worlds apart. But when a mysterious virus breaks out among the children in the Space Colonies, their paths collide. Ify makes it her mission to figure out what’s causing the deadly disease. And doing so means going back to the homeland she thought she’d left behind forever.

What are you excited is publishing today?

Descriptions of books were taken from Bookshop.org. All links are also affiliate links, so if you purchase something, you’ll also be helping me.