Next SFF Author: Anselm Audley

Previous SFF Author: Frank Aubrey

Series: Audio

Speculative fiction in audiobook format.

Strange Love: Light-hearted alien romance

Strange Love by Ann Aguirre

“This whole alien abduction thing isn’t the worst thing that has ever happened to me.”

Ann Aguirre’s Strange Love (2019) isn’t the type of book I normally read, so keep that in mind. I picked it up because the publisher of the audiobook, Tantor Media, offered me a review copy of their recently released edition (April 2020) and I thought it would be nice to try something different.

The story is about an alien named Zylar who wants to marry but has been unsuccessful in the marriage challenges and is about to be relegated to a life of bachelorhood doing a menial job for his tribe if he doesn’t succeed in the next annual Choosing.

Providence: Feels meaningless and hopeless

Providence by Max Barry

Seven years ago, previously unknown aliens attacked and destroyed the crew of a human spaceship. The brutal event was recorded, so all of humanity has seen it. Ever since, Earth has been at war with these “Salamanders.”

The latest war ship to be developed and deployed against the salamanders is the Providence. It’s equipped with artificial intelligence that takes care of most of the shipboard tasks but is crewed by four humans who’ve been appointed after an arduous selection process. To keep the public support,

The City We Became: Hail the champions of New York City

The City We Became by N.K. Jemisin

Note: N.K. Jemisin’s short story “The City Born Great,” free at Tor.com, is the opening chapter of this novel.

New York City is in danger from eldritch horrors. We’ve seen these things before, originally, and most notably, in stories by H.P. Lovecraft. These beings come from outside our universe. They are ancient, powerful, and merciless, and there is no negotiating with them. They want our planet and they’re looking for a way into our world to destroy us.

The Last Human: I want to read Zack Jordan’s next book

The Last Human by Zack Jordan

This doesn’t happen very often, but when it does, it’s almost soul-crushing. I adored the first 25% of Zack Jordan’s The Last Human. It was on its way to being my favorite book so far this year. It was imaginative, clever, exciting, funny, and warm. I loved it. Then, it took a turn, and I struggled to finish it.

The Last Human (2020) is about a girl named Sarya who is being raised by a huge sentient black widow spider.

The Kingdom of Back: Nannerl Mozart will not be forgotten

The Kingdom of Back by Marie Lu

Marie Lu’s The Kingdom of Back (2020) is a historical fantasy based on the lives of Wolfgang Mozart and his beloved sister Marie Anna whose pet name was Nannerl. Nannerl was four years older than Wolfgang and a musical prodigy when she was a child. Tutored by her father, Leopold, she was much admired and praised as “the rare woman with a good ear” according to one of the characters in Lu’s novel.

As a child,

A Blight of Blackwings: Deploy the tactical moths

A Blight of Blackwings by Kevin Hearne

A Blight of Blackwings is the second novel in Kevin Hearne’s SEVEN KENNINGS series, following A Plague of Giants which you’ll need to read first because this novel jumps in right where the first one left off. Hearne uses the same structure and frame story, with Fintan the bard using a magical device to turn himself into the image of each point-of-view character.

At the end of A Plague of Giants,

A Plague of Giants: Epic fantasy with a modern sensibility

A Plague of Giants by Kevin Hearne

Displaying his versatility, Kevin Hearne turns his pen to epic fantasy in A Plague of Giants (2017), the first novel in his SEVEN KENNINGS series. It follows a large cast of characters who live in different kingdoms on a continent that has just been invaded by a race of strange-looking people who are tall, thin and white-skinned. These Bone Giants, as they come to be called, came from across the water in ships and landed in several seaside towns.

Stars Beyond: A better sequel

Stars Beyond by S.K. Dunstall

Stars Beyond (2020) is the sequel to sisterly writing duo S.K. Dunstall’s novel Stars Uncharted which Tadiana and I reviewed last year. We agreed that it was a Firefly-type story that was accessible and pleasant, but lacked originality. The good news, though, is that book two, Stars Beyond, is better.

Stars Beyond picks up where Stars Uncharted left off.

Riverland: A sad but sweet tale of resilience

Riverland by Fran Wilde

Sisters Eleanor and Mike have come to rely on each other for comfort and love. The space beneath Eleanor’s bed is a favorite hiding place where they can retreat from real life when their parents begin to fight almost every night.

One night, after their abusive father breaks the family heirloom they call the “witch ball,” the girls find a river running under Eleanor’s bed. After falling in, they discover that the river leads to a land of dreams and nightmares and that, according to strange creatures who live there,

Come the Revolution: Sasha makes a great protagonist

Come the Revolution by Frank Chadwick

Come the Revolution (2015) is the sequel to Frank Chadwick’s How Dark the World Becomes (which you’ll want to read first).

Sasha Naradnyo survived the events of the previous book, but just barely. One of our favorite characters, however, did not survive. Now it’s a few years later. Sasha is the head of security for Tweezaa, the Varoki girl he was protecting in How Dark the World Becomes.

Next SFF Author: Anselm Audley

Previous SFF Author: Frank Aubrey

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