Mogsy’s Bookshelf Roundup: Stacking the Shelves & Recent Reads
Bookshelf Roundup is a feature I do every other weekend which fills the role of several blog memes, like Stacking the Shelves where I talk about the new books I’ve added to my library or received for review, as well as It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? where I round up what I’ve read since the last update and what I’m planning to read soon. Mostly it also serves as a recap post, so sometimes I’ll throw in stuff like reading challenge progress reports, book lists, and other random bookish thoughts or announcements.
Received for Review
The books are hitting my mailbox fast and hard again, so here are some from both this month and last month as I do my best to catch up. Big thanks to the publishers and authors for the following review copies received, and be sure to click the links to their Goodreads pages for more details and full descriptions!
My thanks to Viking for introducing me to The Winters by Lisa Gabriele, a psychological thriller marketed as a modern retelling of Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca. This is going straight to the top of my fall reading list!
With thanks also to Simon & Schuster for sending me Rabbit & Robot by Andrew Smith. The finished copy is even more vibrant and eye-popping than the ARC! Still planning on giving this one a look if I have some extra time this month.
From the kind folks at Ace/Roc/DAW, I received a surprise copy of Search Image by Julie E. Czerneda, the first book of a new series set in the world of the author’s Web Shifter series. Naturally I’m drawn to this one because I’ve always been curious about Czerneda’s work, but this being a spin-off has me a little concerned that it might be tougher for a newcomer like me to follow. Next up is a finished copy of The Way of the Shield by Marshall Ryan Maresca, the start of yet another series set in his Maradaine universe. I’m already juggling a couple of them, so only time will tell if I’ll be able to take on one more! And a tip of the hat to Kaye Publicity for hooking me up with an ARC of Lies Sleeping by Ben Aaronovitch, the next installment in his Peter Grant/Rivers of London series. I’ve already started this one, since I love these books so much; I should have my final review up in time for its release next month.
Also thanks to Del Rey for surprising me with a finished copy of Bright Ruin by Vic James, the third novel in the Dark Gifts trilogy. I wasn’t crazy for the first book so I never got around to the second, but depending on how this final volume is received, I might be convinced to finish the series one day.
My warmest thanks also goes to the amazing team at Pyr Books for sending me a finished copy of No Sleep Till Doomsday by Laurence MacNaughton. I reviewed this book earlier in the week, and in case you missed my final verdict, I had a great time with it.
A shout out as well to HarperCollins for introducing me to November Road by Lou Berney. When this showed up on my doorstep, my first instinct was to dismiss it as “not my thing”, but after some research, I learned some new details about the book that made me reevaluate. Set to the backdrop of the JFK assassination, this historical drama also has elements of suspense, crime thriller, and a love story between two people on the run.
With thanks also to HarperVoyager for sending me a review copy of Kill the Queen by Jennifer Estep. Would you believe I’ve never read this author before? She’s been pretty prolific in recent years, so I’m glad I’m finally getting the chance to read her work. I’m about halfway through this one right now, and I’m enjoying it a lot.
Last month I was also lucky enough to score an ARC of Four Dead Queen by Astrid Scholte from the Bookish First program. I’m usually wary about this type of YA fantasy, but I previewed an excerpt and found it to have a lot of promise, so I guess we’ll see. With thanks to Penguin Teen.
And a long overdue thanks to Tor Teen for sending me a finished copy of Dare You To Lie by Amber Lynn Natusch. The reviews coming out for this have been stellar, and for a YA mystery thriller, the average ratings have been impressive. This will be going onto my “must read” list.
Thanks to Tor Books, I also received a finished copy of Vengeful by V.E. Schwab, the long-awaited sequel to her first adult novel, Vicious. I wish she would write more adult books, because I think this has been her best work in years. My review of it should be up sometime next week, so stay tuned. And finally, I also received a hardcover of Legion: The Many Lives of Stephen Leeds by Brandon Sanderson. You just know anything by Sanderson is going to be solid, and this was no exception. My review went up earlier this week, so check it out if you haven’t already.
But wait! That’s not it from Tor. Earlier this year, the publisher launched a campaign called #FearlessWomen, showcasing a number of their new SFF releases written by female authors. The BiblioSanctum took part in this event and you have have seen some of the spotlights on these titles. As thanks for being a part of the campaign, Tor sent along a care package this week containing some books and swag, including a signed copy of The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal, its sequel The Fated Sky, the new and updated edition of Vicious by V.E. Schwab, and a beautiful finished copy of Death Doesn’t Bargain by Sherrilyn Kenyon. I also love the tote, pen, and sticker!
And in the digital pile, so much for the self-restraint I showed last week. From NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press approved my request for For the Killing of Kings by Howard Andrew Jones, the first book of a new epic fantasy trilogy described as a cross between Roger Zelazny’s Chronicles of Amber and The Three Musketeers. I’ve actually featured it before for Waiting on Wednesday, so you bet I’m looking forward to this one. From the wonderful publicity team at Entangled: Teen, I also received widget invites to a couple of their most highly-anticipated titles: Valiant by Merrie Destefano and Toxic by Lydia Kang. The publisher has been killing it lately with their YA fantasy titles, so I just couldn’t resist accepting.
From HarperVoyager via Edelweiss, I also picked up Slender Man, which I think will make for some perfect reading later on in the month.
Up next, a parade of audio listening copies: The Brilliant Death by Amy Rose Capetta from Listening Library; Street Freaks by Terry Brooks from Audible Studios; Shadow of the Fox by Julie Kagawa from HarperAudio; Phantom Wheel by Tracy Deebs from Hachette Audio; and Shadow of the Exile by Mitchell Hogan with special thanks to the author for providing me with a code to review the audiobook!
Reviews
A list of my reviews posted since the last update:
No Sleep Till Doomsday by Laurence MacNaughton (4 of 5 stars)
Legion: The Many Lives of Stephen Leeds by Brandon Sanderson (4 of 5 stars)
Rosewater by Tade Thompson (4 of 5 stars)
Murder on Millionaires’ Row by Erin Lindsey (4 of 5 stars)
Voyage of the Dogs by Greg Van Eekhout (4 of 5 stars)
Beyond the Sixth Extinction: A Post-Apocalyptic Pop-Up by Shawn Sheehy & Jordi Solano
Ravencry by Ed McDonald (3 of 5 stars)
Priest of Bones by Peter McLean (3 of 5 stars)
What I’ve Read Since the Last Update
Here’s what I’ve managed to “unstack” from the TBR since the last update. More reviews coming soon.
Have you heard of or read any of the books featured this week? What caught your eye? Any new discoveries? I hope you found something interesting for a future read! Let me know what you plan on checking out. Until next time, see you next Roundup!
The BiblioSanctum 
I am curious of your Estep review. I read that it was ya vibes with adults and I shied away
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It’ll be up Thursday, just scheduled it 😀
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Kill The Queen is one I think I want to get. Valiant looks super interesting as well. So much good stuff coming out! I need more time.
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Kill the Queen was so full of tropes! But I still had such a great time with it 🙂
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wow so many wonderful things for you there! Happy reading!
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Thank you! I hope you’re having a good week!
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I like the sound of Kill The Queen so I’ll probably try that when it comes out. Lady Astronaut does sound a bit different but I’m still not sure if it would be for me. Nice covers though!
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Kill the Queen was very enjoyable – such an easy and light read. Full of tropes, but fun!
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Oh what a wonderful haul of books! I’m turning ugly shades of green over Lies Sleeping and The Calculating Stars, but there are others I’d happily trample over you to get to – in a friendly, bookish way, of course!
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I won’t lie, I was so thrilled to get an ARC of Lies Sleeping – I love Peter Grant so much. I’m just sad I haven’t had much time to really dig into it, been plugging at it for more than a week because I’ve been so busy. Oh well, at least this way I get to savor it 🙂
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Yes – I would have been thrilled, too! I wished for it, but these days I frequently don’t get approved for the books I request:(. Oh well – I’m glad you have managed to get hold of a copy, and as you say – at least you are able to savour the writing when you are forced to go a bit more slowly…
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Great hauls! Looking forward to your thoughts on Rabbit & Robot if you get to it. Also, I’ve heard good things about Shadow of the Fox, so I’m excited for that one. Happy reading!
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I hope I get a chance to tackle Rabbit & Robot! Shadow of the Fox might be next though, after I finish my current audio 🙂
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Well, Rebecca being one of my all time favourite books, The Winters has a lot to live up to doesn’t it. I’ll definitely read that one whether or not I receive a review copy – I have to check it out.
Lynn 😀
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I’m reading The Winters now, and I don’t really know what I make of it yet. Of course, I haven’t read Rebecca, so I don’t have anything to compare it to, but right now it’s making me ask lots of questions – in the good way 😀
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Ooh very nice! Some new to me reads here! I really enjoyed Kill the Queen! Phantom Wheels is still on my TBR pile and isn’t going to get read before its release date sadly. I love Tracy’s books though so I am excited for it! Hope you enjoy all your new reads!
My STS will be up tomorrow, so stop by then if you can!
Have a GREAT day!
Old Follower 🙂
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I had a great time with Kill the Queen too! And I’ve never read anything by Tracy Deebs, hopefully I’ll like Phantom Wheel!
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Following the GoodReads link to Kill the Queen, I was struck by the first sentence: “Gladiator meets Game of Thrones” – and I needed nothing more, as in ‘hook, line and sinker’… 🙂
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Haha yeah, that was a great blurb and it hooked me in too. It turned out to be pretty tropey, as expected, but a lot of fun nonetheless.
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Nice haul, Mogsy!
I’m liking Shadow of the Fox. I wasn’t sure if I would, but the plot is intriguing.
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I’m excited to get to it! I’ve been seeing a lot of great reviews 🙂
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I’m so happy you loved Vengeful! I haven’t been able to get to it, but I need to set aside some other review books and just read it already!
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I think you will enjoy it 🙂 I liked it a lot, but then I’ve always been more partial to Vicious than her YA works!
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I’m looking forward to hearing your thoughts on vengeful and ravencry!
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Both reviews are up now! Thanks for stopping by 🙂
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Aw man. You get all the good stuff from Tor! I didn’t get so much as a squeak for participating in the Fearless Women campaign. Ah well! Hope you enjoy! 😀
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Ah, that sucks. I think they might have only sent swag to US bloggers, probably because of shipping costs.
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With all those books I don’t know how you get the time to eat and sleep
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Honestly, I wish I was able to read every book that looks interesting to me! Alas, there’s never enough time and the TBR keeps growing. I prioritize my musts and sadly only get to the rest if I can fit them in.
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I need to know about the new Sanderson so I’m off to check out your review. 🙂
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It was awesome! Not a novel, but a collection – still worth checking out 🙂
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I’m reading Toxic right now. It seems okay.
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Yay, “okay” is promising! I guess, lol! Hope it stays that way or gets better! 😀
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Can’t wait to read your review of Vengeful! I finished it about a week ago… and it kind of gave me a book hangover. XD But it also felt like the right book to be reading at the time, too.
I don’t remember what I posted as my newest book acquisitions the last time you shared yours, so hopefully this list won’t be too repetitive:
Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman
Imaginary Girls by Nova Ren Suma
Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
Sky in the Deep by Adrienne Young
Isle of Blood and Stone by Makiia Lucier
For a Muse of Fire by Heidi Heilig
The Art of Escaping by Erin Callahan (not SFF, but the idea of a teen escape artist as an MC intrigued me)
Muse of Nightmare by Laini Taylor
Blanca & Roja by Anna-Marie McLemore
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I really liked Vengeful. Probably my favorite book by Schwab in a long time. I’ve always taken issue with her YA and her female characters, but somehow, her over-the-top villainous just worked really well for me lol!
And nice, of your new acquisitions, I’ve only read Sky int he Deep – but it was really good! Trope-y, but super enjoyable.
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Another awesome haul. I really am curious about The Winters and and I got a copy of Slender Man I’m super curious about as well. Some great looking titles here!
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Slender Man looks so good. I love epistolary novels like that, and I hear it’s a quick read and it’s like a puzzle where you put all the pieces of the story together. I am very intrigued…
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