Others: Negative From #1 New York Times bestselling author Chloe Gong comes the thrilling sequel to Immortal Longings, inspired by Shakespeare’s Antony & Cleopatra. Calla Tuoleimi has succeeded in the impossible. Despite the odds, she has won San-Er’s bloody games and eliminated King Kasa, her tyrant uncle and the former ruler of Talin. She serves now as royal advisor to Kasa’s adopted son, August Shenzhi, who has risen to the throne. Only Calla knows it isn’t really August. Anton Makusa is still furious about Calla’s betrayal in the final round of the games. In an impossible feat, he took over August’s body to survive, and has no intention of giving up this newfound power. But when his first love, the beautiful, explosive Otta Avia, awakens from a years-long coma and reveals a secret that threatens the monarchy’s authority over Talin, chaos erupts. As tensions come to a boiling point, Calla and Anton must set their conflicts aside and head to the kingdom’s far reaches to prevent anarchy… even if their empire might be better off burning.
Genres: fantasy, science fiction, romance, historical fiction
Lists: …
Chloe Gong
2023 · 384 pages · 5 reviews
Others: Leaning positiveChloe Gong’s adult epic fantasy debut, inspired by Shakespeare’s Antony and Cleopatra , is a “smart, imaginative, and brutal” (Wesley Chu, New York Times bestselling author of The War Arts Saga) collision of power plays, spilled blood, and romance amidst a set of deadly games. Every year, thousands in the kingdom of Talin flock to its capital twin cities, San-Er, where the palace hosts a set of games. For those confident enough in their ability to jump between bodies, competitors across San-Er fight to the death to win unimaginable riches. Princess Calla Tuoleimi lurks in hiding. Five years ago, a massacre killed her parents and left the palace of Er empty…and she was the one who did it. Before King Kasa’s forces in San can catch her, she plans to finish the job and bring down the monarchy. Her reclusive uncle always greets the victor of the games, so if she wins, she finally gets her opportunity to kill him. Enter Anton Makusa, an exiled aristocrat. His childhood love has lain in a coma since they were both ousted from the palace, and he’s deep in debt trying to keep her alive. Thankfully, he’s one of the best jumpers in the kingdom, flitting from body to body at will. His last chance at saving her is entering the games and winning. Calla finds both an unexpected alliance with Anton and help from King Kasa’s adopted son, August, who wants to mend Talin’s ills. But the three of them have very different goals, even as Calla and Anton’s partnership spirals into something all-consuming. Before the games close, Calla must decide what she’s playing for—her lover or her kingdom.
What made the match, strongest first
Bonnie Jo Stufflebeam
2024 · 1 review
Others: NegativeGRIM ROOT is a darkly humorous gothic horror novel pitched as THE BACHELOR meets THE HAUNTING OF HILL HOUSE, in which a group of women on a reality TV dating show must compete for the hand of an eligible bachelor by spending a week in a haunted house, but after the bachelor suddenly dies to the shock of everyone on set, the remaining contestants find themselves trapped in a dark and twisted new game only one of them still wants to play. Cover art by Dan Fris.
What made the match, strongest first
Danielle Allen
2024 · 14 reviews
Others: PositiveAfter a one-night stand with her clingy ex, Aaliyah James has an epiphany: this ain’t it. She knows what she wants, and she’s ready to move past casual hookups, flings, and situationships. But for her family, the clock is ticking—after all, she’s almost thirty. And when they imply that her personality (and her body) might be too big to land a man, she lets them know they’ve gone too far—and her (nonexistent) man loves her curves, thank you very much. Now, she has seven weeks to find the perfect boyfriend to rub in their faces at the big, fancy birthday celebration she’s been planning. After her first blind date goes wrong, charming local bartender Ahmad Williamson consoles her with a drink and some playful banter. Aaliyah takes him up on his suggestion to use a dating app—but the more she sees of his warm, funny, and easygoing nature, the less she wants to check her DMs. Will her next swipe bring her closer to true love—or is her real match closer than she thinks?
What made the match, strongest first
Andrea Stewart
2024 · 528 pages · 1 review
Others: MixedIn this sweeping epic fantasy comes a story of magic, betrayal, love, and loyalty, where two sisters will clash on opposite sides of a war against the gods. A divine war shattered the world leaving humanity in ruins. Desperate for hope, they struck a deal with the devious god Kluehnn: He would restore the world to its former glory, but at a price so steep it would keep the mortals indebted to him for eternity. And as each land was transformed, so too were its people changed into strange new forms – if they survived at all. Hakara is not willing to pay such a price. Desperate to protect herself and her sister, Rasha, she flees her homeland for the safety of a neighboring kingdom. But when tragedy separates them, Hakara is forced to abandon her beloved sister to an unknown fate. Alone and desperate for answers on the wrong side of the world, Hakara discovers she can channel the magic from the mysterious gems they are forced to mine for Kluehnn. With that discovery comes another: her sister is alive, and the rebels plotting to destroy the God Pact can help rescue her. But only if Hakara goes to war against a god.
What made the match, strongest first
Kiersten White
2024 · 464 pages · 2 reviews
Others: MixedHer name was written in the pages of someone else’s story: Lucy Westenra was one of Dracula’s first victims. But her death was only the beginning. Lucy rose from the grave a vampire and has spent her immortal life trying to escape from Dracula’s clutches—and trying to discover who she really is and what she truly wants. Her undead life takes an unexpected turn in twenty-first-century London, when she meets another woman, Iris, who is also yearning to break free from her past. Iris’s family has built a health empire based on a sinister secret, and they’ll do anything to stay in power. Lucy has long believed she would never love again. Yet she finds herself compelled by the charming Iris while Iris is equally mesmerized by the confident and glamorous Lucy. But their intense connection and blossoming love is threatened by outside forces. Iris’s mother won’t let go of her without a fight, and Lucy’s past still has fangs: Dracula is on the prowl once more. Lucy Westenra has been a tragically murdered teen, a lonesome adventurer, and a fearsome hunter, but happiness has always eluded her. Can she find the strength to destroy Dracula once and for all, or will her heart once again be her undoing?
What made the match, strongest first
Mark Lawrence
2024 · 380 pages · 4 reviews
Others: PositiveWe fight for the people we love. We fight for the ideas we want to be true. Evar and Livira stand side by side and yet far beyond each other's reach. Evar is forced to flee the library, driven before an implacable foe. Livira, trapped in a ghost world, has to recover her book if she's to return to her life. While Evar's journey leads him outside into the vastness of a world he's never seen, Livira's destination lies deep inside her own writing, where she must wrestle with her stories in order to reclaim the volume in which they were written. And all the while, the library quietly weaves thread to thread, bringing the scattered elements of Livira's old life – friends and foe alike – back together beneath new skies. Long ago, a lie was told, and with the passing years it has grown and spread, a small push leading to a chain of desperate consequences. Now, as one edifice topples into the next with ever-growing violence, it threatens to break the world. The secret war that defines the library has chosen its champions and set them on the board. The time has come when they must fight for what they believe, or lose everything. The Library Trilogy is about many things: adventure, discovery, and romance, but it's also a love letter to books and the places where they live. The focus is on one vast and timeless library, but the love expands to encompass smaller more personal collections, and bookshops of all shades too.
What made the match, strongest first
Not a fanviolist things by Khloe gong is a sequel to one of my favorite books Immortal longings and I just don't think that this lived up to its own potential everything was lesser than the first book the romance didn't feel as interesting the concept not as interesting the game not as interesting the magic not as interesting
