Lightbreakers by Aja Gabel (November 4) is science fiction. Maya, an artist, and Noah, a quantum physicist, have a happy marriage.
However, Noah’s heart cannot stop grieving the three-year-old daughter he had with his ex-wife. When Maya and Noah agree to participate in a clandestine project designed to unravel the secrets of time travel, an undertaking that may allow the physicist to see his dead child, neither of them expects Noah’s ex-wife Eileen to join them.
Lightbreakers has strong reviews online. Critics have praised Gabel’s poetic prose, as well as her ability to tackle dark and dreary subjects without making her story too bleak. She also explores quantum physics in a manner that does not confuse laypeople.
The Great Work (November 4) is Sheldon Costa’s debut novel. Categorized as Historical Fiction/ Western, The Great Work is set in the 1800s. The protagonist is Gentle Montgomery, who believes that his best friend, Liam, killed himself because a mythical creature, a giant Salamander, drove him to the edge of sanity.
When Montgomery’s nephew appears on his doorstep, the pair embark on a mission to resurrect Liam by capturing and collecting the Salamander’s blood. The Great Work is not your typical fantasy novel. Yes, it features otherworldly elements.
However, Costa grounds his story in reality, delivering complex characters with layered motivations. I, Medusa by Ayana Gray (November 18) reworks the origins of Medusa, the popular mythical Greek character.
In I, Medusa, Meddy is relatively ordinary, at least in comparison to her beautiful and immortal siblings and parents, each of whom is a minor deity. Meddy wants to leave the family’s island to carve out a new destiny for herself. Her big break comes when she joins the goddess Athena’s temple as a priestess-in-training.
Meddy is flourishing in her new role as Athena’s acolyte when a drunken encounter with Poseidon dashes her plans. For a crime she did not even commit, Meddy is forced to bear a punishment that turns her locs into snakes.
With her innocence stripped away, Medusa is reborn as a vigilante on a mission to rewrite her story. Like many YA novels, I, Medusa is quite short (336). However, reviewers have not stopped gushing about Ayana Gray’s beautiful prose, tragic narrative, and expertly developed characters.
As far as retellings of Greek mythology go, I, Medusa is one of the better ones. Cursed Daughters by Oyinkan Braithwaite (November 4) is African fantasy fiction. Eniiyi, the protagonist, thought her life had changed for the better when she saved a handsome boy from drowning.
Unfortunately, their burgeoning love is haunted by a family curse. Two things happened in Eniiyi’s past. First, she was born on the same day her cousin Monife died. Secondly, Eniiyi had a startling resemblance to the dead woman, leading her family to conclude that Monife had reincarnated as Eniiyi.
More importantly, they assumed that Eniiyi’s life would mirror Monife’s, ending in the same tragic way. Even more damning was a curse which decreed that no man would ever find peace or happiness in the arms of a woman from her family.
Now, Eniiyi is trying to navigate a path littered with superstition in her determination to escape her family’s chains. The strength of Cursed Daughters lies in the author’s decision to tell the story from Eniiyi, Ebun (Eniiyi’s mother), and Monife’s perspectives, presenting a more comprehensive picture of their lives.
We can end on Star Wars: Master of Evil by Adam Christopher (November 11), which takes place between Revenge of the Sith (the third prequel film) and A New Hope (the first movie in the original Star Wars series).
Palpatine has finally risen to power, and little is known about Darth Vader, his sinister enforcer. While the galaxy whispers about his true nature, Vader dedicates himself to a single task, the one promise Palpatine gave him when he lured Anakin to the dark side. V
ader wants to conquer death, and he thinks a Force-wielding shaman in the Diso system has the answers. Palpatine sends a cadre of soldiers to accompany Vader, led by a decorated Colonel with a vested interest in Vader’s mission. Happy Reading!
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