#bookbday (08/01/17)

Happy #bookbday to:

The Bedlam Stacks by Natasha Pulley

An August 2017 Indie Next Selection!

“The imagination [Pulley] showed in her impressive debut was no fluke…Pulley understands her genre–swashbuckling costume fantasy–but she deals in surprises, not clichés…[A] meditation on love, trust, and the passage of time.”–Kirkus Reviews, starred review

“Fans of The Watchmaker of Filigree Street (who will be pleased that a character from that novel makes a cameo appearance) know that Pulley has a way with damaged characters who are looking for a new purpose in life. While there are steampunk elements, including clockwork lamps, there’s also a subtle inexplicable magic running throughout the unusual, remote setting.”–Library Journal

Gravel Heart by Abdulrazak Gurnah

“Short-listed for the Booker, Whitbread, Commonwealth, and Los Angeles Times Book prizes, Zanzibar-born, U.K.-based Gurnah here chronicles the life of a boy named Salim born after Zanzibar’s fight for independence and subsequent bloody revolution. Salim’s father is indifferent to him, eventually moving out of the house, and as his mother keeps company with a strange man, Salim draws close to his beloved diplomat uncle Amir. Amir offers the teenage Salim a chance to travel to London, which he finds a cold, crowded place, but there he wrestles with coming-of-age issues even as he faces his family’s dark secret.”–LJ, Pre-Pub Alert

One Summer Day in Rome by Mark Lamprell

“For romance fans of all ages with special appeal to those who devour the Italian romances of Elizabeth Adler.”–Library Journal

Safe by Ryan Gattis

“Gattis, who has written YA and adult fiction about teens, here delivers a gritty L.A. crime novel about two men seeking redemption. The criminal life is carefully rendered, the stakes are clear, and the characters’ humanity is rich and refreshing. …this is an emotionally rich page-turner whose devastating ending still offers a glimmer of hope.” — Booklist, starred review

The Grip of It by Jac Jemc

“The latest from Jemc is a haunted house tale that toys with the hallmarks of ghost stories—a young city couple moving to a small town, a curmudgeonly neighbor, a spooky legend—to create an exhilarating and unsettling literary page-turner.”–Publishers Weekly, starred review

“A psychological spook story in the best high literary tradition…Shivery and smart. A book that brings the legacy of Henry James into the modern world with great effect.”–Kirkus Reviews, starred review

“For connoisseurs of the “new weird” and literary/psychological horror à la Mark Z. ­Danielewski’s House of Leaves and ­Marisha Pessl’s Night Film.”–Library Journal, starred review

Beast by Paul Kingsnorth

An August 2017 Indie Next Selection!

“A tour de force, reminiscent of the best of John Fowles and David Mitchell.”–Kirkus Reviews, starred review

Dragonsworn by Sherrilyn Kenyon

“In this second book in the “Dragons Rising” trilogy, set in the Dark-Hunters universe that has pushed Kenyon to the top of the New York Times best sellers list many, many times, the dragon Falcyn hates Greeks for having destroyed all that he loved. Now the god Apollo is sending an army of demons to destroy the people of his granddaughter, Medea, who is not content to sit back idly. Testy Falcyn has a weapon that could save them all. With a one-day laydown on August 1.”–LJ, Pre-Pub Alert

Class Mom by Laurie Gelman

A clever debut novel about a year in the life of a kindergarten class mom—a brilliant send-up of the petty and surprisingly cutthroat terrain of parent politics. “Gelman pens an uproariously funny first novel with a relatable protagonist. Moms will clamor for this story, trying to hold back tears of laughter as Jen establishes her voice and place as the class mom.” — Library Journal, starred review