New Edelweiss E-galleys (4/30/2024)

Hello e-galley readers! Check out some of the exciting e-galleys that were recently added to Edelweiss for your downloading pleasure:

GRAVEYARD SHIFT by M. L. Rio
9781250356796| 9/24/24

Every night, in the college’s ancient cemetery, five people cross paths as they work the late shift: a bartender, a rideshare driver, a hotel receptionist, the steward of the derelict church that looms over them, and the editor-in-chief of the college paper, always in search of a story.

One dark October evening in the defunct churchyard, they find a hole that wasn’t there before. A fresh, open grave where no grave should be. But who dug it, and for whom?

Before they go their separate ways, the gravedigger returns. As they trail him through the night, they realize he may be the key to a string of strange happenings around town that have made headlines for the last few weeks—and that they may be closer to the mystery than they thought.

Atmospheric and eerie, with the ensemble cast her fans love and a delightfully familiar academic backdrop, GRAVEYARD SHIFT is a modern Gothic tale in  IF WE WERE VILLAINS author M. L. Rio’s inimitable style.

PRIVATE RITES by Julia Armfield
9781250344311| 12/3/24

It’s been raining for a long time now, so long that the land has reshaped itself and arcane rituals and religions are creeping back into practice. Sisters Isla, Irene, and Agnes have not spoken in some time when their father dies. An architect as cruel as he was revered, his death offers an opportunity for the sisters to come together in a new way. In the grand glass house they grew up in, their father’s most famous creation, the sisters sort through the secrets and memories he left behind, until their fragile bond is shattered by a revelation in his will.

More estranged than ever, the sisters’ lives spin out of control: Irene’s relationship is straining at the seams; Isla’s ex-wife keeps calling; and cynical Agnes is falling in love for the first time. But something even more sinister might be unfolding, something related to their mother’s long-ago disappearance and the strangers who have always seemed unusually interested in the sisters’ lives. Soon, it becomes clear that the sisters have been chosen for a very particular purpose, one with shattering implications for their family and their imperiled world.

A KILLING COLD by Kate Alice Marshall
9781250343055| 2/4/25

Theo’s fiancé, Connor, has brought her to Idlewood, the idyllic Dalton family retreat. It’s a collection of cozy cabins and a grand lodge set high on a mountain, where only the wealthy, untouchable Daltons are welcome. To be invited into their world of privilege and abundance, Theo, an orphan with no recollection of her youngest years and no family to speak of, will need to impress Connor’s grandparents and win over his skeptical relatives.

Theo has ignored the anonymous texts that say: Stay away from Connor Dalton. She has brushed off the recurring nightmare, the dream that always ends the same way, with the same shadowy figure looming over her. But Idlewood starts to feel oddly familiar to her, and Theo can’t overlook the footprints in the snow outside their cabin’s window, her increasing flashes of memory, and, finally, solid proof that she knows this place. That she has been here before. That this could be where she lost her memories—and her mother.

And if that’s true, then someone here is hiding a terrible secret. One that they will do anything to keep Theo from exposing. Trapped by a blizzard, Theo realizes she is in terrible danger—because the Daltons do not lose, and discovering what happened at Idlewood may cost her everything.

In this twisty, exciting, upmarket thriller, Kate Alice Marshall has created an unforgettable character who will appeal to fans of Megan Miranda, Riley Sager, and Stacy Willingham.

HOW TO HELP A HUNGRY WEREWOLF by Charlotte Stein
9781250352330| 10/1/24

What We Do in the Shadows meets the small town feels of Gilmore Girls in this swoon-worthy romance that will leave readers delightfully cozy and hungry for more.

When Cassandra Camberwell returns to her hometown of Hollow Brook to sort out her late grandmother’s affairs, the last person she expects to turn up on her doorstep is Seth Brubaker—her once best friend turned high school nemesis.

Apparently, he’s still intent on making her life a living hell, as he’s mysteriously always around. That is, until Seth reveals why he keeps showing up at her house: he’s an honest-to-goodness werewolf. And Cassie’s grandmother? She was a witch, and the only person in Hollow Brook who was able to help him out with the being-a-werewolf thing. Seth desperately needs Cassie’s grandmother’s witchy medicine, or every full moon he’ll end up with some body part inside out.

So, Cassie strikes a deal: she’ll give him all the witchy brews he needs to help with his furry ailment, in exchange for Seth telling her everything her grandmother revealed to him about being a witch. Things are fine for while—Cassie turns out to be great at making potions, and Seth is way more like the old friend she once knew—until a pack of angry werewolves show up, demanding Cassie help them with their lycanthropy problem too. There’s also the tiny issue of the mating bond that’s developing between them, and neither of them know if it’s real or just magic woo-woo nonsense. And as an extra bonus, if they don’t consummate the bond, well, they’ll actually . . . die.

WHEN WE GROW UP by Angelica Baker
9781250345776| 2/25/25

For fans of Fleishman is in Trouble and SUCH A FUN AGE, an electrifying novel about six longtime friends whose tropical vacation is interrupted by an unexpected crisis, forcing them to ask how strong their bonds really are.

Clare is supposed to be the grown-up one. Married to the love of her life, with a major deal for her first novel, she has everything she thought she wanted. So then why does it all feel so wrong? When she agrees to a weeklong vacation in Hawai’i with five of her oldest friends, as they each approach thirty, she is hoping for an escape with the people who know her best. There is Jessie, who won’t stop talking about her new boyfriend; Mac, trying to pretend he hasn’t outgrown the group; Kyle, the eternal peacemaker; and Renzo, who brought them all together but keeps picking fights. And then, of course, there’s Liam, who Clare has barely seen since high school but somehow can’t get out of her head—or her bed.

But when a terrifying news alert shatters their peace, it becomes harder to ignore how much the world has changed since they were teenagers. As the resentments and tensions that have always simmered just beneath the surface begin to boil, Clare must ask if their shared history is enough to sustain their friendships, or if growing up might mean letting go.

With crackling wit and emotional fearlessness, WHEN WE GROW UP is a provocative portrait of friendship in a world that feels ever more unrecognizable and a searing exploration of what it means to be a good person.

THE INVITATION by Vi Keeland
9781250359803| 1/28/25

The first time I met Hudson Rothschild was at a wedding. I’d received an unexpected invitation to one of the swankiest venues in the city. Hudson was a groomsman and quite possibly the most gorgeous man I’d ever laid eyes on. He asked me to dance, and our chemistry was off the charts. I knew it wasn’t a good idea to get involved with him, considering the wedding I was at. But our connection was intense, and I was having a great time.

Though the fun came to a screeching halt when Hudson figured out I wasn’t who I’d said I was. You see, that unexpected invitation I received? Well, it hadn’t actually been addressed to me—it was sent to my ex-roommate who’d bounced a check for two months’ rent and moved out in the middle of the night. I figured she owed me an expensive night out, but I guess, technically, I was crashing the wedding.

Once caught, I couldn’t get out of there fast enough. As I bolted for the door, I might’ve plucked a few bottles of expensive champagne off the tables I passed, all while the gorgeous, angry groomsman was hot on my tail. Outside, I jumped into a taxi. My heart ricocheted against my ribs as we drove down the block—but at least I’d escaped unscathed. Or so I thought.

Until I realized I’d left my cell phone behind at the table. Take one guess who found it?

This is the crazy story of how Hudson Rothschild and I met. But trust me, it’s only the tip of the iceberg.

WILD DARK SHORE by Charlotte McConaghy
9781250827951| 3/4/25

Dominic Salt and his three children are caretakers of Shearwater, a tiny island not far from Antarctica. Home to the world’s largest seed bank, Shearwater was once full of researchers. But with sea levels rising, the Salts are now its final inhabitants, packing up the seeds before they are transported to safer ground. Despite the wild beauty of life here, isolation has taken its toll on the Salts. Raff, 18 and suffering his first heartbreak, can only find relief at his punching bag; Fen, 17, has started spending her nights on the beach among the seals; 9-year-old Orly, obsessed with botany, fears the loss of his beloved natural world; and Dominic can’t stop turning back toward the past, and the loss that drove the family to Shearwater in the first place.

Then, during the worst storm the island has ever seen, a woman washes up on shore. As the Salts nurse the woman, Rowan, back to life, their suspicion gives way to affection, and they finally begin to feel like a family again. Rowan, long accustomed to protecting her heart, begins to fall for the Salts, too. But Rowan isn’t telling the whole truth about why she set out for Shearwater. And when she discovers the sabotaged radios and a freshly dug grave, she realizes Dominic is keeping his own dark secrets. As the storms on Shearwater gather force, the characters must decide if they can trust each other enough to protect the precious seeds in their care before it’s too late—and if they can finally put the tragedies of the past behind them to create something new, together.

A novel of heartstopping twists, dizzying beauty, and ferocious love, WILD DARK SHORE is about the impossible choices we make to protect the people we love, even as the world around us is ending.

FIVE BROKEN BLADES by Mai Corland
9781649376909| 5/7/24

The five most dangerous liars in the land have been mysteriously summoned to work together for a single objective: to kill the God King Joon.

He has it coming. Under his merciless immortal hand, the nobles flourish, while the poor and innocent are imprisoned, ruined . . . or sold.

And now each of the five blades will come for him. Each has tasted bitterness—from the hired hitman seeking atonement, a lovely assassin who seeks freedom, or even the prince banished for his cruel crimes. None can resist the sweet, icy lure of vengeance.

They can agree on murder. They can agree on treachery. But for these five killers—each versed in deception, lies, and betrayal—it’s not enough to forge an alliance. To survive, they’ll have to find a way to trust each other . . . but only one can take the crown.

HEAVENBREAKER by Sara Wolf
9781649375704| 5/21/24

In Synali von Hauteclare’s world, blood is all that matters.

In a massive space station that houses the last of humanity, the king rules. Nobles dance. Commoners starve. And when they aren’t starving, they watch the riding tournaments between the giant robots called “steeds”—once used in the war against the enemy, now repurposed for honorable lance-to-lance high-speed combat with a gravity generator. Only nobles may have the honor of riding. Only nobles may have the glory. Only nobles have the blood.

In Synali von Hauteclare’s world, she’s a bastard; her mother a commoner, her father a duke. And she’s just killed him.

But he killed first.

Seven people in House Hauteclare helped her father hire an assassin to kill her and her mother. Synali survived. Her mother did not. And now Synali will do anything to make them pay, even ally with a noble, her sworn enemy. Now she’s made a deal: for every win she scores in the upcoming Supernova Cup, this enigmatic nobleman will kill one of the seven. She’s never ridden, and the steed her new ally gives her—Heavenbreaker—sings strange lullabies in its hangar. And, increasingly, in her mind.

With her half sibling, Mirele von Hauteclare on her trail, and hotshot pilot Rax who’s trying to get in her bed, Synali has her hands full.

But blood is all that matters. And she will ensure they see much of it.

THE WREN IN THE HOLY LIBRARY by K.A. Linde
9781649374073| 6/4/24

Some things aren’t supposed to exist outside of our imagination.

Thirteen years ago, monsters emerged from the shadows and plunged Kierse’s world into a cataclysmic war of near-total destruction. The New York City she knew so well collapsed practically overnight.

In the wake of that carnage, the Monster Treaty was created. A truce . . . of sorts.

But tonight, Kierse—a gifted and fearless thief—will break that treaty. She’ll enter the Holly Library . . . not knowing it’s the home of a monster.

He’s charming. Quietly alluring. Terrifying. But he knows talent when he sees it; it’s just a matter of finding her price.

Now she’s locked into a dangerous bargain with a creature unlike any other. She’ll sacrifice her freedom. She’ll offer her skills. Together, they’ll put their own futures at risk.

But he’s been playing a game across centuries—and once she joins in, there will be
no escape.