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With the new year, booklovers around the world are looking forward to seeing what the year will bring with new books and authors to discover! So, we’ve rounded up 10 books that are currently the most anticipated science fiction and fantasy releases (excluding new instalments in a series) of 2021 according to Goodreads members!
Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro (March 2nd 2021)
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Klara and the Sun is a magnificent new novel from the Nobel laureate Kazuo Ishiguro–author of Never Let Me Go and the Booker Prize-winning The Remains of the Day.
Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir (May 4th 2021)
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A lone astronaut must save the earth from disaster in this incredible new science-based thriller from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Martian.
Hummingbird Salamander by Jeff VanderMeer (April 6th 2021)
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Hummingbird Salamander is Jeff VanderMeer at his brilliant, cinematic best, wrapping profound questions about climate change, identity, and the world we live in into a tightly plotted thriller full of unexpected twists and elaborate conspiracy.
The Chosen and the Beautiful by Nghi Vo (June 1st 2021)
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Nghi Vo’s debut novel reinvents this classic of the American canon as a coming-of-age story full of magic, mystery, and glittering excess, and introduces a major new literary voice.
For the Wolf by Hannah F. Whitten (June 5th 2021)
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For fans of Uprooted and The Bear and the Nightingale comes a dark, sweeping debut fantasy novel about a young woman who must be sacrificed to the legendary Wolf of the Wood to save her kingdom. But not all legends are true, and the Wolf isn’t the only danger lurking in the Wilderwood.
Under the Whispering Door by T.J. Klune (March 2nd 2021)
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Under the Whispering Door is a contemporary fantasy with TJ Klune’s signature “quirk and charm” (PW) about a ghost who refuses to cross over and the ferryman he falls in love with
She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan (July 20th 2021)
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Mulan meets The Song of Achilles in Shelley Parker-Chan’s She Who Became the Sun, a bold, queer, and lyrical reimagining of the rise of the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty from an amazing new voice in literary fantasy.
Empire of the Vampire by Jay Kristoff (September 7th 2021)
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From the New York Times bestselling author of the Nevernight Chronicle, Jay Kristoff, comes the first illustrated volume of an astonishing new dark fantasy saga.
The Last Watch by J.S. Dewes (April 20th 2021)
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The Expanse meets Game of Thrones in J. S. Dewes’ fast-paced, sf adventure The Last Watch, where a handful of soldiers stand between humanity and annihilation.
The Echo Wife by Sarah Gailey (February 16th 2021)
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The Echo Wife is a non-stop thrill ride, perfect for readers of Big Little Lies and enthusiasts of “Killing Eve” and “Westworld”
Jay Kristoff-yay!