Court of Lions by Somaiya Daud
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Court of Lions is the long-awaited second and final installment in the “smart, sexy, and devilishly clever” Mirage series by Somaiya Daud (Renée Ahdieh, New York Times bestselling author of The Beautiful)!

More Than Just a Pretty Face by Syed M. Masood
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For fans of Becky Albertalli and Jenny Han, a sweetly funny YA rom-com debut about falling in love, familial expectations, and being a Renaissance Man.

Bookish and the Beast by Ashley Poston
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A tale as old as time is made new in Ashley Poston’s fresh, geeky retelling of Beauty and the Beast.

The Erasure Initiative by Lili Wilkinson
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The acclaimed author of After the Lights Go Out returns with another compelling YA thriller – a timely novel about the intensity and unpredictability of human behaviour under pressure.

Sia Martinez and the Moonlit Beginning of Everything by Raquel Vasquez Gilliland
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Aristotle & Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe meets Roswell by way of Laurie Halse Anderson in this astonishing, genre-bending novel about a Mexican American teen who discovers profound connections between immigration, folklore, and alien life.

Now That I’ve Found You by Kristina Forest
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A YA novel about searching for answers, love, and your eccentric grandma in all the wrong places.

The Black Kids by Christina Hammonds Reed
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Perfect for fans of The Hate U Give, this unforgettable coming-of-age debut novel explores issues of race, class, and violence through the eyes of a wealthy black teenager whose family gets caught in the vortex of the 1992 Rodney King Riots.

Six Angry Girls by Adrienne Kisner
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Adrienne Kisner’s Six Angry Girls is a story of mock trial, feminism, and the inherent power found in a pair of knitting needles.

You Were Made For Me by Jenna Guillaume
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Katie didn’t mean to create a boy. A boy like a long-lost Hemsworth brother: six-foot tall with floppy hair and eyes like the sky on a clear summer’s day; whose lips taste like cookie dough and whose skin smells like springtime. A boy who is completely devoted to Katie. He was meant to be perfect.  But he was never meant to exist.

Every Little Piece of My Heart by Non Pratt
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When Sophie receives a parcel from her best friend, Freya, she expects it to contain the reason why Freya left town so suddenly, without goodbyes and without explanation. Instead, she finds a letter addressed to Win, a girl Freya barely knew – or did she? As more letters arrive for more people on the periphery of Freya’s life, Sophie and Win begin to piece together who Freya was and why she left. Sometimes it’s not about who’s gone, but about who they leave behind…

Skywatchers by Carrie Arcos
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From National Book Award Finalist Carrie Arcos comes a thrilling, genre-bending mystery about the history of the Cold War and the UFO phenomenon. Perfect for fans of In the Woods by Tana French and Netflix’s Stranger Things.

Heartbreak Boys by Simon James Green
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A hilarious story of heartbreaks and hijinks from award-winning author Simon James Green.

What August 2020 YA releases are you looking forward to? Tell us in the comments below!

The post August 2020 YA Book Releases appeared first on The Nerd Daily.

In the interview, we chat about the sequel, inspiration, food, and much more!

Somaiya, can you tell us about yourself, and about Court of Lions, the sequel to Mirage?

Hello! I am a recent PhD graduate and currently write and teach at a local university. Court of Lions takes up with the characters of Mirage a few weeks after the events of the first book, and follows both Amani and Maram as they try to navigate an increasingly volatile political atmosphere with the rebels on the rise, and the King’s expectation of absolute loyalty to the Vath. There’s romance and court politics and a poetry salon! All extremely fun!

I’ve seen some authors on Twitter or Instagram show notes on how they keep track of characters and relationships. Do you do something similar when you write, or how do you track characters within your books?

I always block out the relationships and character arcs at the outlining stage, and from there things just sort of develop naturally. Once I’ve nailed a character’s history and key motivations, there’s only so many ways they can react to plot things, and in that sense it’s pretty easy to keep track of everything. I’m also a writer who only writes in order so I’m never really compensating for that, which is nice. I do have character codices with family background, family crest, and how its tied to the world map—that sort of thing. Keeping whose house had what colors and what their crests were got difficult in Court of Lions because there are more of them and they play significant roles!

I loved the poetry found within both of your books. What were they inspired by?

All of the poetry excepting the scripture and what Amani drafts in Mirage is actually real poetry written in the early modern and medieval eras by Arab poets. It felt really important when I was building out the world of Mirage to consider the literary culture and since I was basing Andala’s conquered court culture on medieval Arab court cultures it felt necessary for me not to default to the novel which is a Western literary form and instead on what would have been privileged in those spaces. I was writing Mirage while I was studying translation theory for my dissertation, and ended up reading a lot of books about the literary culture of the Arab middle ages—the Golden Age culturally—and it really helped to shape and inform both how poetry appeared as a world building tool, and my own translation practice.

I noticed that there has been a cover change between Mirage and Court of Lions. Will Mirage be getting its cover changed to match?

Yes! The Mirage paperback has gotten a similar look, with Amani’s face front and center. It released July 7 of this year.

I noticed that Amani is a bit of a cook, and wanted to know what your favorite food is? Is there a comfort food you reach for anytime you’re down?

This is a huge difference between Amani and I, haha. I hate cooking, even though I love to eat my mother’s food. But I always look forward to going home because my mom can make all the traditional and complicated Moroccan dishes. (the one time I attempted to make cous cous it looked like cream of wheat, whoops!) But my favorite is a very simple msemin bread—it’s a flaky flatbread, and I love it smeared in butter and honey.

What was your process like between writing Mirage and Court of Lions? Were there ways that the sequel was easier or harder while writing?

The sequel was definitely harder! For me the aim with fantasy is that the world should always grow from book to book. So in Mirage Amani’s world is really small—she sees Idris and Maram and Nadine, and interacts with Maram’s half-sister and her court only once. So when sitting down to write Court of Lions it was really important that the reader get to experience a wider and richer world, especially because that would help bring the rebellion to life and the epicentre of change would be similarly represented. That meant more locations, a bigger cast of characters with varied histories, and a lot more interpersonal strife. The first drafts of the book I could see the relationships taking shape, but I really needed help to flesh them out and to not get lost in the web of what I was trying to build, so my editor Kate Sullivan was a huge help on this. Amani has two primary relationships in Mirage and with Court of Lions I wanted the reader to watch her grow in an environment that in the ordinary course of her life she never would have expected to have been in, so that was fun, but again a challenge. Sometimes I felt like I was red yarning all the relationships and subplots, and then Kate would come in and help me simplify and streamline everything.

I’m obsessed with the descriptions of clothing in your book. Please tell me you have a Pinterest board with inspiration hidden somewhere!?

I do! And it’s not hidden, it’s on my pinterest page. I spend ages looking at pictures of jewelry and qaftans, and for a while I followed something like twenty Moroccan ateliers just to see both what the very traditional qaftans looked like and what more avante-garde designers were doing with silhouette and layers. I also, when I’m writing, basically forget every color, so looking at a wide range of fashion with really rich color palettes helped me a lot!

Are you currently working on any projects that you can share with our readers?

I’m always working on something, haha—I don’t really know how to be idle. I can’t really say much about what’s in the pipeline, but you can rely on me to keep writing space fantasy and court politics—those are my first and forever loves of writing!

Can you share a couple of things that have helped you get through this unprecedented time?

I’ve kept busy, which I know not everyone can do and is also not really helpful to everyone! I’ve taken up drawing as a hobby where I will let myself fail and feel good about successes, which is a really difficult thing for a type-A personality like mine but has been actually really therapeutic and soothing. I’ve always been an over achiever so the idea of failure makes me want to yeet myself into the sun. But the art is for no one but myself and in that way has been really nice—at the end of the day I put on Bob’s Burgers, and either pull out my sketchpad or an iPad and for the last couple hours of the day. I think anything that is engaging a part of your brain that isn’t work oriented and is just for you and is about you feeling good and satisfied is nice.

With so many authors having to go virtual for their book releases, what are some ways that we can support you when Court of Lions is released?

You can order Court of Lions from your local indie, or through bookshop.org! Pre-ordering is always really great, and if you check my Instagram and Twitter I’ll be announcing virtual events to celebrate its launch!

Will you be picking up Court of Lions? Tell us in the comments below!

The post Q&A: Somaiya Daud, Author of ‘Court of Lions’ appeared first on The Nerd Daily.

In Court of Lions, Amani (serving as the Maram’s body double) has been put in isolation. The half-Vathek princess discovered Amani’s connections to the rebellion and has forced her silence, with the threat of her betrayal and identity being revealed if she should cross Maram again. However, Amani is still desperate to help fight for her people. Unfortunately, she’ll have to make choices that could put her family and people in danger, and separate her from the man she’s come to love.

I’ll definitely say that I’m glad that I decided to re-read Mirage before I started into Court of Lions, because I needed a bit of refresher! Getting into this story felt like it picked up right where readers were left at the end of the book, with a little bit of drama to get the readers going. Just like in Mirage, I was immediately drawn into the story, and curious where this was all headed. There was some information at the beginning of the ARC that I had that I’m curious if it will be in the finished copy, and I will say that that was definitely interesting, and had a tidbit of information that I was immediately curious about.

A majority of this book is Amani amassing allies, so be prepared for a lot of names to be thrown your way. I sometimes had a hard time with this, but it was only because I was trying to make sure I hadn’t already seen the character in another part of the book. What I will say is that each character that is introduced feels unique and makes their presence known within the book. Idris’ family I definitely enjoyed reading, especially their interactions with Amani masquerading as Maram.

The sequel added Maram’s perspective into the mix, and I truly appreciated seeing her side of things. There were hints in Mirage that Maram had a lot more going on than simply being a princess, but now she’s having to deal with things on a much bigger scale, and Maram is finding out that maybe what she wanted wasn’t all that it was rumoured to be. Also, there is a stunning love interest. Their interactions are fantastic, and I think they deserved each other. I was curious what would happen with Maram, and I was definitely satisfied with her character arc.

We can’t talk about romance without also talking about Amani and Idris. I loved seeing these two interact with each other in this story because there’s a lot of tension. In Mirage, there’s a lot of budding and building of this beautiful romance, but there’s not as much drama to it. Their circumstances are dramatic enough already. In Court of Lions, this gets ramped up, but I would argue in a good way. Plus you start seeing that these two aren’t always thinking on the same page, which also creates some conflicts between them. Side note though, I absolutely adored some of the work that the servants went to in support of their favourite love interests.

Sometimes the pacing of this story felt a little off, because I felt like I would fly through some parts of the story, and others would take me a little longer to get through. Despite all that, I finished this story in a couple of hours. I’m going to rate this story an 9/10. It’s a great story, and I can’t wait to see where Somaiya Daud takes her readers next.

Court of Lion is available from Amazon, Book Depository, and other good book retailers, like your local bookstore, as of August 6th 2020.

Will you be picking up Court of Lions? Tell us in the comments below!

Synopsis | Goodreads

Two identical girls, one a princess, the other a rebel. Who will rule the empire?

After being swept up into the brutal Vathek court, Amani, the ordinary girl forced to serve as the half-Vathek princess’s body double, has been forced into complete isolation. The cruel but complex princess, Maram, with whom Amani had cultivated a tenuous friendship, discovered Amani’s connection to the rebellion and has forced her into silence, and if Amani crosses Maram once more, her identity – and her betrayal – will be revealed to everyone in the court.

Amani is desperate to continue helping the rebellion, to fight for her people’s freedom. But she must make a devastating decision: will she step aside, and watch her people suffer, or continue to aid them, and put herself and her family in mortal danger? And whatever she chooses, can she bear to remain separated, forever, from Maram’s fiancé, Idris?

The post Review: Court of Lions by Somaiya Daud appeared first on The Nerd Daily.

Providence by Max Barry
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From the ingenious author of Jennifer Government and Lexicon: a brilliant work of science fiction that tells the intimate tale of four people facing their most desperate hour–alone, together, at the edge of the universe.

The City We Became by N.K. Jemisin
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Five New Yorkers must come together in order to defend their city in the first book of a stunning new series by Hugo award-winning and NYT bestselling author N. K. Jemisin.

Anthropocene Rag by Alex Irvine
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Anthropocene Rag is “a rare distillation of nanotech, apocalypse, and mythic Americana into a heady psychedelic brew.”—Nebula and World Fantasy award-winning author Jeffrey Ford

Witches of Ash and Ruin by E. Latimer
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Modern witchcraft blends with ancient Celtic mythology in an epic clash of witches and gods, perfect for fans of V.E. Schwab’s Shades of Magic trilogy and A Discovery of Witches.

The Empress of Salt and Fortune by Nghi Vo
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With the heart of an Atwood tale and the visuals of a classic Asian period drama The Empress of Salt and Fortune is a tightly and lushly written narrative about empire, storytelling, and the anger of women.

Cries from the Lost Island by Kathleen O’Neal Gear
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This standalone fantasy brings an ancient Egyptian mystery to life against a modern background, in a tale expertly crafted by a seasoned anthropologist.

The Companions by Katie M. Flynn
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Station Eleven meets Never Let Me Go in this debut novel set in an unsettling near future where the dead can be uploaded to machines and kept in service by the living.

Bone ​Crier’s Moon by Kathryn Purdie
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From #1 New York Times bestselling author Kathryn Purdie comes a high-stakes fantasy duology flush with doomed romance and macabre magic, perfect for fans of Stephanie Garber and Roshani Chokshi.

The Killing Fog by Jeff Wheeler
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The Wall Street Journal bestselling author of the Kingfountain series conjures an epic, adventurous world of ancient myth and magic as a young woman’s battle with infinite evil begins.

A Phoenix First Must Burn by Patrice Caldwell
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Sixteen tales by bestselling and award-winning authors that explore the Black experience through fantasy, science fiction, and magic. Authors include Elizabeth Acevedo, Amerie, Dhonielle Clayton, Jalissa Corrie, Somaiya Daud, Charlotte Davis, Alaya Dawn Johnson, Justina Ireland, Danny Lore, L.L. McKinney, Danielle Paige, Rebecca Roanhorse, Karen Strong, Ashley Woodfolk, and Ibi Zoboi.

The Last Human by Zack Jordan
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The last human in the universe must battle unfathomable alien intelligences—and confront the truth about humanity—in this ambitious, galaxy-spanning debut

Hearts of Oak by Eddie Robson
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Hearts of Oak is a delightful science fiction adventure from Eddie Robson, the creator of the acclaimed Welcome to Our Village, Please Invade Carefully.

What fantasy and sci-fi release are you looking forward to? Tell us in the comments below!

The post March 2020 Book Releases: Fantasy + Sci-Fi appeared first on The Nerd Daily.

Everyone loves a good ol’ cliffhanger and you’ll get just that in this debut YA fantasy! Somaiya Daud’s Mirage follows Amani, a young girl growing up in a poverty-stricken village on a planet called Cadiz, the daughter planet of Andala. Post “purge”, a coup staged to conquer the Andalan government and territory, inflicted by the barbarous Vathek authority. Since the invasion, Amani and her family have been living in fear for their lives. There has been the ever looming threat of rebellion as well as death, or if they’re lucky, brutal beatings by Vathek drones.

The day of Amani’s Majority Night, a spiritual blessing into the life of adulthood, she is kidnapped by Vathek drones and taken to the palace of King Mathis, the Vathek conqueror of the neighbouring planets. Amani is quickly forced into living as a body double for the Princess of Vath and heir to the throne, Maram vak Mathis. Living under constant threat of assassination, the physical and emotional abuse from the royals, along with studying the Vathek, history, ancestry, and customs, Amani is in way over her head. She risks her life every day for a brutal princess and is forced to fool all of the Vathek royalty into thinking that she is in fact Maram.

Somaiya Daud’s debut novel is a story of rebellion, empathy, and love in a time of warfare. Amani is a likeable character who rationalises all of her actions and can see the better in her fellow characters despite their cultural and political differences. She genuinely is a good protagonist and narrator for the story. She is sassy, unapologetic but understanding of her situation in the palace and does not unnecessarily risk her life to do something stupidly heroic as most YA female protagonists do (*hem hem Allegiant hem*).

However, I was not fully invested with the love interest in this book. It was pretty flat and “unship able” due to his involvement with Maram. It was insta-love as per usual, but we have grown, as YA readers, to expect that in most of our books. The love story will most likely become more fleshed out as the series continues. I really appreciate how it did not take away from the political intrigue and danger at the forefront of the story, not undermining the plot and actual point of the rebellion. It was not a bad love story, but also not the best.

Mirage is an intriguing book. However, it is not non-stop action or keep you on the edge of your toes writing, but, I believe it was a good first book for a series that will keep getting better and better with every instalment. For comparisons sake, this is the Three Dark Thrones to the rest of its series. Setting up the political discourse, the spite within the character arcs, and the plot that will grow more and more with every book.

Overall, I really enjoyed it and anticipating the next instalment. Daud has announced that Mirage will have at least three books in the series, the second remaining untitled, but is to be released in 2019.

Mirage is now available from Amazon, Book Depository, and other good book retailers.

Have you read Mirage? Or will you be checking it out? Tell us in the comments below!

Synopsis | Goodreads

In a star system dominated by the brutal Vathek empire, eighteen-year-old Amani is a dreamer. She dreams of what life was like before the occupation; she dreams of writing poetry like the old-world poems she adores; she dreams of receiving a sign from Dihya that one day, she, too, will have adventure, and travel beyond her isolated moon.

But when adventure comes for Amani, it is not what she expects: she is kidnapped by the regime and taken in secret to the royal palace, where she discovers that she is nearly identical to the cruel half-Vathek Princess Maram. The princess is so hated by her conquered people that she requires a body double, someone to appear in public as Maram, ready to die in her place.

As Amani is forced into her new role, she can’t help but enjoy the palace’s beauty—and her time with the princess’ fiancé, Idris. But the glitter of the royal court belies a world of violence and fear. If Amani ever wishes to see her family again, she must play the princess to perfection…because one wrong move could lead to her death.

The post Review: Mirage by Somaiya Daud appeared first on The Nerd Daily.

Read on to discover our picks and tell us if you will be checking any of these books out in the comments below!

Catwoman: Soulstealer by Sarah J Maas
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Two years after escaping Gotham City’s slums, Selina Kyle returns as the mysterious and wealthy Holly Vanderhees. She quickly discovers that with Batman off on a vital mission, Batwing is left to hold back the tide of notorious criminals. Gotham City is ripe for the taking. Meanwhile, Luke Fox wants to prove he has what it takes to help people in his role as Batwing. He targets a new thief on the prowl who seems cleverer than most. She has teamed up with Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn, and together they are wreaking havoc. This Catwoman may be Batwing’s undoing.

Mirage by Somaiya Daud
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

In a star system dominated by the brutal Vathek empire, eighteen-year-old Amani is a dreamer. When adventure comes for Amani, it is not what she expects: she is kidnapped by the regime and taken in secret to the royal palace, where she discovers that she is nearly identical to the cruel half-Vathek Princess Maram. The princess is so hated by her conquered people that she requires a body double, someone to appear in public as Maram, ready to die in her place. As Amani is forced into her new role, she can’t help but enjoy the palace’s beauty—and her time with the princess’ fiancé, Idris.

The Black God’s Drums by P. Djèlí Clark
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Creeper, a scrappy young teen, is done living on the streets of New Orleans. Instead, she wants to soar, and her sights are set on securing passage aboard the smuggler airship Midnight Robber. Her ticket: earning Captain Ann-Marie’s trust using a secret about a kidnapped Haitian scientist and a mysterious weapon he calls The Black God’s Drums. But Creeper keeps another secret close to heart–Oya, the African orisha of the wind and storms, who speaks inside her head and grants her divine powers. And Oya has her own priorities concerning Creeper and Ann-Marie…

Whisper Me This by Kerry Anne King
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Single mother Maisey Addington has always fallen short of her own mother’s expectations. A phone call blows apart the precarious balance of their lives with Maisey’s mother is in a coma, and her aging father faces charges of abuse and neglect. Back at her childhood home, Maisey must make a heartrending life-or-death decision. Her confused father has destroyed family records, including her mother’s final wishes. Searching for answers, Maisey uncovers one unspeakable secret after another when she stumbles upon a shattering truth: a twin sister named Marley.

These Rebel Waves by Sara Raasch
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

Lu is a soldier. Five years ago, she helped the magic-rich island of Grace Loray overthrow its oppressor, Argrid, a country ruled by religion. When an Argridian delegate vanishes during peace talks with Grace Loray’s new Council, Argrid demands brutal justice—but Lu suspects something more dangerous is at work. Devereux is a pirate. After Argrid accuses raiders of the diplomat’s abduction, he becomes a target. An expert navigator, he agrees to help Lu find the Argridian—but the truth they uncover could be deadlier than any war. Benat is a heretic. The crown prince of Argrid, he harbours a secret obsession with Grace Loray’s forbidden magic. When Ben’s father, the king, gives him the shocking task of reversing Argrid’s fear of magic, Ben has to decide if one prince can change a devout country—or if he’s building his own pyre.

Trust Me by Hank Phillippi Ryan
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An accused killer insists she’s innocent of a heinous murder. A grieving journalist surfaces from the wreckage of her shattered life. Their unlikely alliance leads to a dangerous cat and mouse game that will leave you breathless. Trust Me is the chilling standalone novel of psychological suspense and manipulation that award-winning author and renowned investigative reporter Hank Phillippi Ryan was born to write.

Dance of Thieves by Mary E. Pearson
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When the patriarch of the Ballenger empire dies, his son, Jase, becomes its new leader. Even nearby kingdoms bow to the strength of this outlaw family, who have always governed by their own rules. But a new era looms on the horizon, set in motion by a young queen, which makes her the target of the dynasty’s resentment and anger. At the same time, Kazi, a legendary former street thief, is sent by the queen to investigate transgressions against the new settlements. When Kazi arrives in the forbidding land of the Ballengers, she learns that there is more to Jase than she thought.

The Psychology of Time Travel by Kate Mascarenhas
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In 1967, four female scientists invent a time-travel machine. They are on the cusp of fame, but then one of them suffers a breakdown and puts the whole project in peril. In 2017, Ruby knows her beloved Granny Bee was a pioneer, but they never talk about the past. Though time travel is now big business, Bee has never been part of it. Then they receive a message from the future – a newspaper clipping reporting the mysterious death of an elderly lady… In 2018, Odette went into shock when she discovered the body. Who is this dead woman that haunts her dreams? And why is everyone determined to cover up her murder?

The King Tides by James Swain
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Nicki Pearl is the perfect daughter and that of strangers, too. Wherever she goes, she’s being watched. Each stalker is different from the last, except for one thing—their alarming obsession with Nicki. Desperate times call for desperate measures, and Nicki’s father is turning to someone who can protect her: retired private detective and ex–Navy SEAL Jon Lancaster. Teaming up with FBI agent and former abduction victim Beth Daniels, Lancaster can help—his way. But this case is unusual. Why so many men? Why this one girl? Does Nicki have something to hide? Or do her parents?

Foundryside by Robert Jackson Bennett
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Sancia Grado is a thief and her latest target is a heavily guarded warehouse, but unbeknownst to her, Sancia’s been sent to steal an artifact of unimaginable power, an object that could revolutionize the magical technology known as scriving. The Merchant Houses who control this magic–the art of using coded commands to imbue everyday objects with sentience. If they can unlock the artifact’s secrets, they will rewrite the world itself to suit their aims. Now someone in those Houses wants Sancia dead, and the artifact for themselves.

Heretics Anonymous by Katie Henry
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Michael is an atheist. So as he walks through the doors at St. Clare’s—a strict Catholic school—things can’t get much worse. When a girl challenges their teacher in class, Michael thinks he might have found a friend and nonbeliever. Only this girl, Lucy, is not just Catholic . . . she wants to be a priest. But Lucy introduces Michael to other St. Clare’s outcasts, and he officially joins Heretics Anonymous, where he can be an atheist, Lucy can be an outspoken feminist, Avi can be Jewish and gay, Max can wear whatever he wants, and Eden can practice paganism. After an incident in theology class, Michael encourages the Heretics to go from secret society to rebels intent on exposing the school’s hypocrisies.

Pieces of Her by Karin Slaughter
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Andrea Cooper knows everything about her mother Laura. She knows she’s spent her whole life in the small town of Gullaway Island; she knows she’s never had any more ambition than to live a quiet life as a pillar of the community; she knows she’s never kept a secret in her life. But one day, a trip to the mall explodes into violence and Andrea suddenly sees a completely different side to Laura. Twenty-four hours later, Laura is in hospital, shot by an intruder who’s spent thirty years trying to track her down. Now, Andrea must go on a desperate journey to follow the breadcrumbs of her mother’s past. If she can’t uncover the secrets hidden there, there may be no future for either of them.

Check out our other August book picks on our Goodreads list!

Any other releases you’re excited to read this month? Tell us in the comments below!

The post August Book Releases appeared first on The Nerd Daily.

There is absolutely no denying that 2018 has been a fantastic book year thus far. Whether you read Romance, YA, or Adult Fantasy, there are a ton of great new releases to satiate even the most insatiable bookworm. What has really made 2018 a great book year though is the number of debut authors coming out of the woodwork. The best thing about these debut authors? Their novels aren’t reading like the works of first time authors.

Read on to discover some of our favourites and tell us in the comments if you agree!

Alexandra Christo – To Kill A Kingdom
Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository

Who doesn’t love a dark retelling of The Little Mermaid? To Kill A Kingdom was dark, fast-paced, and exceeded all expectations. With a heart stealing siren as one main character, and a siren killing prince as the other, it was bound to be an interesting adventure. Christo’s writing flowed smoothly and made the book a quick and enjoyable read.

Tomi Adeyemi – Children of Blood and Bone
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A tale of revenge, lost magic, and forbidden love, Children of Blood and Bone is an enchanting YA Fantasy that has left readers begging for more. At over five-hundred pages, it’s definitely an investment of time, but a worthwhile one. It also happens to have one of the most gorgeous covers of the year with a stunning book spine.

Helen Hoang – The Kiss Quotient
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The cover of this book may be a little bit deceiving, I certainly didn’t expect for The Kiss Quotient to be such a steamy read. When Stella decides that she needs relationship practice, she hires a male escort, Michael to teach her the ins and outs of dating. Stella and Michael’s chemistry jumped off the page and their romantic development felt so genuine. Hoang is releasing another book with an autistic main character next year and we can’t wait to read it.

Laura Sebastian – Ash Princess
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Years after her parents  were murdered, her kingdom is stolen from under her, and her people are enslaved. Now, Theo decides it’s time to fight back. There is nothing quite like a strong female lead, and Ash Princess certainly has one. Theo is tough as nails and sharp as a tack. The sequel comes out next year, and after the way this one ended, readers are clamouring for it.

KD Elizabeth – Miss InstaPrincess
Goodreads | Amazon

Those of you familiar with the Bookstagram community and the variety of Etsy shops featured on it, may know KD Elizabeth as the owner of the shop Bookified. She’s been enchanting bookworms with letters from their favourite book boyfriends, and decided to put her talent into writing a novel. Miss InstaPrincess is a laugh out loud hilarious romance with a clever premise and fantastic chemistry. This debut indie is the perfect light summer romance.

Jasmine Guillory – The Wedding Date
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Fake date: one of the most entertaining tropes in the romance industry. When done right, it can be a ton of fun to read about. Fortunately for readers, Guillory did a fantastic job with this beloved trope. When Drew needs a last-minute date to his ex-girlfriend’s wedding, he does the unthinkable and invites a total stranger. Alexa and Drew’s relationship seems doomed from the start, but their journey is full of laughs and yes, quite a few steamy moments as well.

Adrienne Young – Sky in the Deep
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Sky in the Deep has an incredible message, one that readers can really connect with, particularly in this day and age. It is a wonderfully deep novel about hate and the negative impacts it can have on a culture. With Vikings, betrayal and a strong family presence, it is a powerful read and a stunning debut for Young.

Emily X. R. Pan – The Astonishing Color of After
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When Leigh travels to Taiwan to meet her maternal grandparents for the first time, she learns more about herself than she expected to. With a gorgeous cover and an exceptional message, The Astonishing Color of After is a debut novel that readers can really connect with. It’s a story about love, family ties, and overcoming grief that is genuinely touching.

Annie Sullivan – A Touch of Gold
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A Touch of Gold is a gender-swapped King Midas retelling. Yes, that’s right a King Midas retelling. Need I really say more? Annie Sullivan really chose a fantastic story for her breakout debut, one that is well written and creative. The world she builds in this novel is immersive and rich, easily sucking readers in to the narrative.

Somaiya Daud – Mirage
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With its stunning cover and captivating synopsis, Mirage has quickly become one of the most anticipated releases of 2018. The main character, Amani is kidnapped and taken to the palace to be her body double. The novel is filled with intrigue, court politics and the constant threat of death. Definitely one to add to your TBR!

Any other 2018 debut authors you would add? Tell us in the comments below!

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