Category: Uncategorized

New Releases – September 14, 2021

It’s New Release Day and we have some great reads coming into The Haunted Bookshop!

Young Adult

Fantasy

In this gothic fantasy debut from Cyla Panin, Stalking Shadows follows two sisters, Marie and Ama. Marie mixes and sells perfumes; she hopes it will be enough to establish a dowry for Ama to marry well. Some of her potions are more than just pretty scents in bottles, though, and when things go awry Marie must venture to the mansion where Ama was cursed all those years ago. Come for the mystery, stay for the sisterly bonds!

Mystery/Suspense

Described as “The Haunting of Hill House meets Get Out,” White Smoke is psychological YA thriller from best-selling author Tiffany D. Jackson. Mari doesn’t want to move with her blended family to a new house in Cedarville, and it seems the house doesn’t want her there either. Creepy things begin happening in the house upon arrival. When Mari’s brother almost dies in a fire, she takes it upon herself to investigate the home and the town.

Fiction

Apples Never Fall is the latest from Big Little Lies author Liane Moriarty! The Delaneys are a picture-perfect family, staples in their community. After selling their famed tennis academy, parents Stan and Joy are looking towards retirement and future grandchildren. But underneath the sunny exterior, the two are miserable. When Joy disappears, the four Delaney siblings are split. Two believe Stan had something to do with it, two aren’t so sure. See what happens as the sides square off to solve the mystery.

Pulitzer Prize-winning author Colson Whitehead is back with Harlem Shuffle, a novel full of heists and shakedowns in 1960s Harlem. To most, Ray Carney is an upstanding citizen, a salesman making a nice life for himself and his family. But there are hidden secrets and the cracks begin to show Ray’s more shady past. As money gets tight, Ray finds himself in over his head. Fans new and old will surely enjoy Whitehead’s blend of family saga and crime novel!

Fantasy

Empire of the Vampire is the first volume in Jay Kristoff’s newest dark fantasy saga. Featuring pages of amazing illustrations, the story follows Gabriel de Leon, the last remaining silversaint, a holy brotherhood dedicated to defending their realm and church from creatures of the night. When Gabriel is imprisoned by these monsters, he realizes he must tell his story of battles, forbidden love, and faith and friendships lost.

Already popular in the U.K., Mordew is the first book in a new inventive and epic fantasy series from Alex Pheby. Nathan is a young boy of lowly station scraping together survival when his mother sells him to the Master of Mordew, a mysterious creature who derives his powers from the corpse of God buried in the catacombs beneath the town. But Nathan has his own strength, a strength greater than the Master’s and a threat to all he has built. As the Mordew begins to scheme against him, Nate must navigate betrayals, secrets, and more in this twisting adventure.

Published for the first time in hardcover, When Sorrows Come is the 15th novel in the award-winning October Daye urban fantasy series. October, better known as “Toby,” is supposed to get married. But the occasion keeps getting delayed as Toby finds herself needing to solve all the kingdom’s problems. When it eventually looks like the wedding will happen, Toby instead must help thwart a plot to overthrow the High Court. This version features an all-new novella from Seanan McGuire that fans are sure to enjoy!

Sci-Fi

Cixin Liu’s To Hold Up the Sky is a short-story collection that takes readers “from the coal mines of China to the final frontier.” The stories will transport readers through time, space, and imagination.

Mystery

Sophie Hannah continues the story of Agatha Christie’s famed detective Hercule Poirot in The Killings at Kingfisher Hill. Poirot receives a call from Richard Devonport, asking him to prove his wife, Helen, is innocent in the murder of his brother, Frank. As Poirot travels to the Kingfisher estate, he faces not only to save Helen from the gallows in a matter of days, but the mystery of another murder that followed a strange incident on the passenger coach. Will Poirot uncover all the secrets? Read to find out!

Romance

A Lot Like Adios is the latest romance from best-selling author Alexis Daria. Michelle may be a talented graphic designer but as a single girl, she’s the black sheep in her marriage-obsessed Puerto Rican-Italian family. When her former best friend and crush Gabe reluctantly comes back to town to open a New York City branch of his popular celebrity gym, Michelle is asked to work on the project. As she tries to keep Gabe at arms length, old feelings resurface. What happens next? Pick up the book and find out!

The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood brings together science and romance! Ph.D. candidate Olive Smith doesn’t believe in love but is desperate to get her best friend Anh off her back. In a panic, she kisses the first guy she sees. That guy happens to be Adam Carlsen, a young, hot-shot professor with an arrogant reputation. Olive is amazed when Adam agrees to keep up the dating charade. But of course, nothing goes to plan, even for a team of scientists.

Kids

Grumpy Monkey is bringing us a dose of Christmas in September with Grumpy Monkey: Oh No! Christmas! It’s Christmas time in the jungle but Jim Panzee just can’t get in the holiday spirit. So what is a Grumpy Monkey to do? With the help of his friend Norman, Jim tries to find a way to join the jungle in their joy.

Pete the Cat: Making New Friends by Kimberly and James Dean introduces early readers to the world of graphic novel storytelling and visual literacy! Secret Agent Meow, also known as Pete the Cat, meets a lonely squirrel looking for new friends. The two team up to solve the case in this fun adventure!

Ever wondered what to call a group of elephants or skunks? You’ll learn all that and more in A Troop of Kangaroos: A Book of Animal Group Names, written and illustrated by Lisa Mundorff! Curious kids will love learning fun animal facts accompanied by eye-catching illustrations. And in case you were wondering, it is a parade of elephants and a stench of skunks!

The Barefoot Dreams of Petra Luna by Alda P. Dobbs takes place in 1913 during the Mexican Revolution. Twelve-year-old Petra is dealing with the death of her mother when her papa is dragged away by soldiers. Petra vows to care for her siblings, little sister Amelia and baby brother Luisito, and her abuelita until they can be reunited. As the family flees north, Petra holds onto her “barefoot dreams” – those dreams her abuelita says aren’t meant to go far. But Petra refuses to give up.

Last Kids on Earth and the Doomsday Race is the seventh book of the bestselling series from Max Brallier! Jack Sullivan and his gang are headed towards the Tower, a mysterious place where they must finally stop Rezzoch the Ancient, Destructor of Worlds, before he descends upon their dimension. First, though, they are sidetracked by the Mallusk, an enormous centipede monster who carries not only the world’s largest shopping mall on his back – he also carries Mallusk City, where old friends and foes await the gang. Action and adventure will surely abound!

Bear is a Bear by Jonathan Stutzman is a touching tale about the friendship between a young girl and Bear, a protector, dreamer, and fellow mischief-maker. With gorgeous illustrations by Dan Santat, readers will enjoy this tribute to all of our beloved childhood companions.

What’s in Your Pocket: Collecting Nature’s Treasures by Heather L. Montgomery introduces young readers to nine scientists who got their start as kids exploring the outdoors and collected “treasures” like fossils and seedpods in their pockets. Alongside illustrations by Maribel Lechuga, readers will love seeing how pockets full of treasures led to big dreams and big discoveries!

Non-Fiction

Science

Famed science writer Mary Roach is back with Fuzz: When Nature Breaks the Law, examining how wildlife and humans collide in a myriad of ways. Combining forensic science and conservation genetics, Roach uses research and observation to teach readers about human interaction with nature’s lawbreakers. Readers are sure to enjoy Roach’s signature humor while learning about the illegal, unethical, and sometimes murderous ways humans and wildlife collide.

History

When George Washington became president in 1789 he embarked on a journey across the thirteen original colonies to talk with citizens about the newly-formed government and to create the sense that everyone was, first and foremost, Americans. Nathaniel Philbrick took a similar journey in 2018 and documented it all in Travels with George: In Search of Washington and His Legacy. Through dual perspectives, readers learn about Washington’s 18th century journey alongside Philbrick’s 21st century one in this insightful chronicle of an adventure.

Essays

The creators of the popular website Black Nerd Problems, William Evans and Omar Holmon, bring their insights to the page in Black Nerd Problems: Essays! In this collection of essays, Evans and Holmon take on a number of topics, from pop culture touchstones like Mario Kart and The Wire, to more serious topics like representation and police brutality. This collection will surely enthrall anyone who loves a blend of social commentary and all things nerdy.

Visit our website for information on these titles and more! And don’t forget – if we don’t have a book in stock we are more than happy to order it for you, or you can visit our Bookshop page!

We hope to see you soon!

New Releases – September 7, 2021

New month, new releases!

Fiction

In Matrix, seventeen-year-old Marie de France, freshly cast aside from the royal court by Eleanor of Aquitaine, ventures to England as the designated new prioress of an impoverished abbey. As she tries to adjust to her new life, Marie resolves to use her tenacity and determination, cultivated from a long line of women warriors and crusaders, to forge a new path for the women she now leads and protects. Lauren Groff’s first novels since her best-selling Fates and Furies explores the power of female creativity in a corrupted world.

Romance

Witch Please by Ann Aguirre is a fun fall read! Danica Waterhouse is a witch dealing with the aftermath of a messy breakup when she makes a pact with her cousin: protect their hearts and have fun, away from the critical voices of Waterhouse women. The plan goes awry when Danica meets Titus Winnaker, a man trying to pick up the pieces after his own tragic loss amidst a curse of romantic doom. So what happens next? Find out in this rom-com perfect for fall weather and spooky season!

Portrait of a Scotsman by Evie Dunmore introduces Hattie Greenfield, a London banking heiress with ambitions – ambitions that seem all but destined to come to a halt when she meets her new husband, Lucien Blackstone. Lucien is a financier with a murky past and ruthless reputation with no room for Hattie’s ideas and apprehension. But a trip to Scotland brings the two a new perspective.

As the most successful producer in franchise history, Dev Deshpande spends his days crafting fairy tale moments for a popular reality dating show. When the show casts disgraced tech wunderkind Charlie Winshaw, Dev has his work cut out for him. Charlie only agreed to do the show as a way to rehabilitate his tarnished image. On-camera, he is stiff and anxious with contestants; off-camera he is still awkward, but with an icy touch. As Charlie begins to open up to Dev, it becomes apparent he has more of a connection with Dev than any of the other contestants. What happens when the on-camera story veers from the formula? I guess you’ll have to read The Charm Offensive by Alison Cochrun to find out!

Young Adult

If you read HBS’s own Candice’s book The Existence of Bea Pearl, (which you all should!) Candice calls Gray, the main character in Dark and Shallow Lies “Bea Pearl’s older, edgier cousin from Louisiana.” In this paranormal thriller from Ginny Myers Sain, seventeen-year-old Gray spends the summers in La Cachette, Louisiana, the self-proclaimed “Psychic Capital of the World.” Gray’s best friend Elora disappeared from town six months ago, and Gray doesn’t understand how in a town full of psychics no one knows what happened. As Gray begins digging into the mystery, she learns everyone in town is hiding something. When a stranger emerges from the bayou with links to Elora and the town’s history, Gray learns there is more to the town than she ever knew.

In Your Life Has Been Delayed by Michelle I. Mason, Jenny Waters faces a strange new world. She boarded a flight in 1995, but upon landing, she and the other passengers are told they disappeared 25 years earlier and were presumed dead. As Jenny adapts to a world of smartphones and social media as her story goes viral, she also must contend with family and friends, including a former best friend, a growing crush on a boy with an uncomfortable connection to her past, and a world of conspiracy theorists determined to discredit Jenny’s experience.

Little Women is one of my favorite books and So Many Beginnings: A Little Women Remix by Bethany C. Morrow takes the classic story of Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy and reimagines it as a story of four young Black women in 1863, coming of age during the Civil War on the North Carolina Freedman’s Colony of Roanoke Island.

When Bryn Roth receives a letter from her uncle Henrik on her eighteenth birthday, summoning her to return to Bastian, Bryn determines she will prove herself and finally take her place amongst her long-lost family. But Bryn soon finds that even though the family wields influence over Bastian, there are still remnants of the kinds of shady business that got her parents killed years ago. See how Bryn navigates personal and political influence in The Last Legacy by Adrienne Young.

Dahlia Adler brought together a team of writers to produce His Hideous Heart: A Collection of Edgar Allan Poe’s Most Unsettling Tales Reimagined. These new tales are featured alongside the original tales. Whether you know these stories by heart or are discovering them for the first time here, this collection is sure to amaze and inspire!

The Jessica Darling series by Megan McCafferty first came out when I was in middle and high school, so I feel like I grew up alongside Jessica. I am so excited that they are being re-released as part of the 20th anniversary of Sloppy Firsts (book one of the series), so a new generation can get to know Jessica. Charmed Thirds follows Jessica during her college years in New York City, years full of change, upheaval, and surprises. Told through journal entries, Jessica brings readers into her innermost thoughts as she navigates life.

Fazbear Frights: Friendly Face is Volume 10 in the Five Nights at Freddy’s series by Scott Cawthon. In three novella-length stories pulled from the series canon, Cawthon pulls out all the stops to scare even his hardiest series fans. Check this out if you want to be scared!

Kids

Another series I loved growing up, the Baby-Sitters Club, is reimagined as a series of graphic novels for a new generation! Kristy and the Snobs is the latest installment. After Kristy’s mom remarries and moves the family to the ritzy neighborhood across town, Kristy finds herself feeling out of place and unwelcome. The neighborhood kids make fun her clothes, the BSC, even Kristy’s old dog, Louie. Kristy leans on her friends as they try to find their footing in this new neighborhood.

This special edition of Dragonslayer (Wings of Fire: Legends) by Tui T. Sutherland takes readers back in time to view Pyrrhia with new eyes! Ivy does not trust the Dragonslayer, even if he is her father and beloved ruler of Valor. Leaf does not trust dragons – they killed his favorite sister, Wren, and now Leaf will do whatever it takes to slay them. But Wren survived. When the three cross paths with dragons, it shapes the destinies of both species.

Tiny T. Rex and the Tricks of Treating by Jonathan Stutzman and illustrated by Jay Fleck is another adorable book to get the kids excited for Halloween! Tiny and Pointy love Halloween and they want to share what they have learned so everyone can have the perfect treat-filled Halloween. But as Tiny and Pointy learn, sometimes the sweetest treat of Halloween isn’t the candy at all.

Willodeen by Katherine Applegate is about a little girl who wants to make a difference in the big world. Eleven-year-old Willodeen loves all creatures. She especially loves the strange, unlovable beasts called “Screechers” that inhabit her home village of Perchance. When Perchance faces a series of natural disasters, including the loss of the annual hummingbear migration, Willodeen, with the help of her new friend Connor, speaks up for the animals she loves.

When twin siblings Dani and Dorian miss the bus to magic school, they never imagined they would end up declared traitors and find themselves ensnared in a wild adventure to clear their names. Hooky by Miriam Bonastre Tur is based on the popular webcomic from WebToon and fans new and old will enjoy following Dani and Dorian on their wild mishaps and adventures.

Yusuf Azeem is Not a Hero is a timely and powerful read from Saadia Faruqi. Yusuf Azeem has spent his life in Frey, Texas and has dreamed of competing in the local robotics competition, which he knows he can win. But this year’s competition falls on the 20th anniversary of the September 11th attacks, which has his family on edge and has Yussuf facing challenges beyond robotics. As a group of townspeople protest the building of a new mosque in town, Yusuf must face anger and bullies with understanding and love.

Fairy Tale Science: Explore 25 Classic Tales Through Hands-On Experiments combines the stories we know with a STEM twist! Readers can explore the laws of physics, principles of chemistry, and the wonders of biology through the stories of Snow White, Chicken Little, and more.

The Who Would Win? series is pretty popular with kids who come into the shop, and Who Would Win?: Extreme Animal Rumble combines five of those books into one exciting volume! Learn about animal anatomy, behavior, and more alongside photos and illustrations as you explore these exciting animal showdowns

In Pete the Cat’s Groovy Imagination, the 12th book in the Pete the Cat series by Kimberly and James Dean, Pete learns he can use his “groovy” imagination (and a cardboard box) to chase the blues away!

Thrillers

Never Saw Me Coming, the debut thriller from Vera Kurian, follows a group of students diagnosed with psychopathy who are being hunted on campus. Chloe Sevre is one of those students. An honors freshman with a high IQ and diagnosed psychopathy, Chloe wears a smartwatch that tracks her movements and moods as part of a clinical study. This study inadvertently brought together some of the most dangerous minds who feel no guilt or fear. When one of the participants is found murdered, it becomes clear that everyone, including Chloe, is in danger. As they join forces to figure out who is after them, the group must learn to trust each other.

Horror

The Haunting of Leigh Harker is the latest ghost story from Darcy Coates. Leigh Harker is certain her house is haunted – curtains open on their own, radios turn off and on, and a dark figure looms outside her window, waiting for her to let her guard down and fall asleep. Pushed to the brink but not wanting to abandon the home, Leigh searches for answers. But the more she digs, the more it seems the house may be the one keeping troubling secrets.

Certain Dark Things by Silvia Moreno-Garcia is back in print and, for the first time ever, available in paperback! Domingo is a garbage-collecting street kid just trying to survive the streets of Mexico City when he meets Atl, a jaded vampire on the run. Atl is smart, beautiful, and dangerous – she the descendent of Aztec blood drinkers – and Domingo is mesmerized. Atl needs to escape the city and though she didn’t plan on Domingo coming along, the two band together to survive.

New Releases – August 31, 2021

Let’s close out August with another batch of new releases coming to The Haunted Bookshop!

Kids

Superspy-in-training Ben Ripley returns in Spy School Revolution, the eighth book in the Spy School series by Stuart Gibbs. When the CIA conference room next door is bombed, Ben is surprised to learn Erica Hale, a well-respected fellow spy-in-training, is the prime suspect. To prove Erica is not a double-agent, Ben must face the Croatoan – an evil organization so mysterious, the only proof it exists dates back to the American Revolution. How will Ben solve the mystery? Pick up this book to find out!

Two Spy School books in one week?! How lucky are we! In Spy School at Sea, the action picks up with Ben finding his nemesis Murray Hill in Central America getting ready to board the world’s biggest cruise ship, The Emperor of the Seas, as it heads out on its maiden voyage around the world. Ben poses as part of a family with Erica and his best friend Mike to board the ship and track Murray. But of course, nothing goes to plan. Enjoy this ninth book in the Spy School series!

Check out Big Nate: Aloha! the latest book in the Big Nate series by Lincoln Peirce! Because Aloha can mean both hello and goodbye, it is the perfect word to describe Nate’s current state – he doesn’t know if he’s coming or going. All of your favorite characters return for new adventures with Nate, including Nate needing to tap into his superhero side to solve a crime he witnessed at Klassic Komix.

The Table 5 gang try to find a way to keep Molly’s family from moving away in Trouble at Table 5: Countdown to Disaster, the sixth book in this series by Tom Watson. Readers will enjoy this illustrated chapter book as they watch Molly, Rosie, and Simon create a scavenger hunt to show Molly’s family how much they love their neighborhood – all before the moving trucks are set to arrive.

Friends Forever is a follow-up to Real Friends and Best Friends, the previous best-selling graphic memoirs from Shannon Hale and LeUyen Pham. Shannon is in eighth grade and everything is changing. In the midst of all the chaos, Shannon struggles with insecurities, the fear of disappointing everyone, and her undiagnosed depression. Using humor, warmth, and insight, Hale and Pham give readers a reminder that we are all enough and need to love ourselves as we are.

Young Adult

In an extension of Cassandra Clare’s Shadowhunters novels, Chain of Gold is the first in a new triology that follows Shadowhunter Cordelia Carstairs. When Cordelia’s father is accused of a terrible crime, she travels with her brother to London in hopes of saving the family from impending ruin. While her mother wants to marry her off, Cordelia aspires to be a hero, not a bride. When she meets up with childhood friends James and Lucie Herondale, Cordelia creates a new life for herself while in search of answers. But when a series of demon attacks shock and devastate London, Cordelia and her friends are faced with a series of challenges they have never encountered before.

Bestselling author Marie Lu returns with Skyhunter, a new YA sci-fi novel about a world broken by war and inhabited by danger around every corner. Mara is the only free nation left after the Karensa Foundation conquered twelve other kingdoms. Talin and her mother escaped the Federation and sought asylum in Mara, where they are not necessarily welcomed with open arms. Even as Mara looks like it too may fall to the Federation, Talin is not ready to give up. Check out Book One before the sequel comes out in September!

Enola Holmes is back with the latest book in the series, Enola Holmes and the Black Barouche by Nancy Springer! In this latest installment, the younger sister of Sherlock and Mycroft Holmes steps in to help Letitia Glover, a distraught woman who showed up on Sherlock’s doorstep desperate for answers about her sister, Felicity. Armed with a vague note from her sister’s husband, the Earl of Dunhench, and a suspicious death certificate, Enola decides to go undercover to solve the mystery. Felicity may not be the first of the Earl’s wives to die under mysterious circumstances, and Enola feels the secret to unlocking the mystery lies with a black barouche that arrived at the Earl’s house in the middle of the night. As she digs deeper into the mystery, Enola enlists the help of a cast of characters, including her famous brother, to solve the case.

Fiction

Sci-Fi

Released in conjunction with the Apple TV+ series premiere, check out Foundation by Issac Asimov, the classic sci-fi epic that started it all. Hari Seldon is the creator of psychohistory, a revolutionary science that allows him to see into the future. As the Galactic Empire around him is dying, Hari must use his skills and gather the best minds in the Empire to preserve knowledge and save humankind. He calls this collective the Foundation. But as corrupt warlords encroach closer, the Foundation must figure out how to fight back, lest they be destroyed.

Fantasy

Master of Poisons by Andrea Hairston is an epic fantasy that brings together Hairston’s masterful prose with folklore and storytelling traditions. Djola, a spymaster of the Arkhysian Empire, is desperately trying to save his adopted homeland even though he is stuck in exile. Awa is a young woman in training to become a powerful grigot, is meanwhile discovering her powers and pushing the limits of what she can accomplish. New to this edition is a conversation between Hairston and fellow author Daniel Jose Older.

Literary

The latest from author Richard Powers, Operation Wandering Soul takes place in the pediatrics ward of a Los Angeles hospital. Resident doctor Richard Kraft and therapist Linda Espera act as surrogate parents to the young patients, tasked with keeping them alive through stories of imagination and hope, even in a place where hope is in short supply. The two spin stories of restoration and escape, but as the inevitable ends draw near, Richard and Linda must face forgotten chapters of their own lives to brace themselves for what comes next.

Horror

Why is it so fun to scare ourselves? Darryl Jones explores this phenomenon alongside classic horror stories in Horror: A Very Short Introduction. Through his exploration of genre tropes like monsters, vampires, and ghosts, Jones address why the psychological thrills and macabre scenes disturb us and how society responds to the shock. This latest installment of the Very Short Introduction series would make a great accompaniment to any scary story as we head into the season of ghost stories and campfires!

Mystery/Thriller

Described as “Shirley Jackson meets Friday the 13th,” My Heart is a Chainsaw by Stephen Graham Jones follows Jade Daniels, a young girl with an abusive father, an absent mother trying to manage life in her small town. Jade loves horror movies and uses her knowledge of the genre to make sense of Proofrock’s history. But when the blood really starts running through the Indian River, Jade uses her wealth of knowledge to predict how the plot will unfold in town. And in the process lets readers into the world of a young woman angry and desperate for a home.

The latest book from The Girl on the Train‘s Paula Hawkins, A Slow Fire Burning is an equally twisting tale of murder and revenge. When the body of a young man is discovered on a London houseboat, the lives of three women are turned upside down in the search for answers. Each has a different connection to the victim and tensions simmer below the surface as the women seek answers and revenge.

Revisit Hercule Poirot with The Big Four by Agatha Christie. In this new edition that features exclusive content from Christie, Hercule Poirot finds himself embroiled in a global conspiracy as he tries to solve the mystery of the shadowy figure who appeared at his bedroom door one night.

Romance

The Heart Principle, the latest book by Helen Hoang, introduces readers to Anna Sun, a violinist who first went viral in a YouTube video who is now struggling to recapture the magic of that first hit. In the midst of struggling with burnout, her longtime boyfriend announces he wants an open relationship before making a final commitment. Fed up and angry, Anna decides to embark on a string of one-night stands. Enter Quan Diep, a motorcycle riding tattooed guy who upends Anna’s pursuit of reckless romantic abandon. When tragedy strikes Anna’s family, the expectations and stress threaten Anna’s and Quan’s budding relationship.

Body, Mind, and Spirit

Featuring recipes, spells, and guides for herbs and candle crafting, those interested in “the Lexicon of Witchcraft” will find Candlelight Spells by Gerina Dunwich their go-to source.

Visit our website for more information on these titles and more! And don’t forget – if we don’t have a book in stock we are more than happy to order it for you!

We hope to see you soon!

Pre-Order Roundup – Kids

New books come out every week and The Haunted Bookshop wants to highlight some upcoming kids books available for pre-order!

Pete the Cat’s Groovy Imagination by Kimberly & James Dean – out September 7, 2021

The 12th book in the Pete the Cat series, Pete learns he can use his “groovy” imagination (and a cardboard box) to chase the blues away!

The Last Kids on Earth and the Doomsday Race by Max Brallier – out September 14, 2021

In the seventh book of the bestselling series, Jack Sullivan and his gang are headed towards the Tower, a mysterious place where they must finally stop Rezzoch the Ancient, Destructor of Worlds, before he descends upon their dimension. First, though, they are sidetracked by the Mallusk, an enormous centipede monster who carries not only the world’s largest shopping mall on his back – he also carries Mallusk City, where old friends and foes await the gang. Action and adventure will surely abound!

Barefoot Dreams of Petra Luna by Alda P. Dobbs – out September 14, 2021

Taking place in 1913 during the Mexican Revolution, 12 year old Petra is dealing with the death of her mother when her papa is dragged away by soldiers. Petra vows to care for her siblings, little sister Amelia and baby brother Luisito, and her abuelita until they can be reunited. As the family flees north, Petra holds onto her “barefoot dreams” – those dreams her abuelita says aren’t meant to go far. But Petra refuses to give up.

Visit our pre-orders page to see more upcoming titles. And to see what all we might have in stock, visit our general website!

New Releases for August 24

Check out the new releases we have this week at The Haunted Bookshop!

Fantasy

HBS’s own Alex was so excited for this release he circled the date on our shop calendar and wrote an excellent blog post all about it! In A Heart Divided, the fourth and final installment of the Legends of the Condor Heroes series, Guo Jing must make a pivotal decision – remain loyal to his homeland or keep faith with surrogate father figure Genghis Khan? Affairs of the heart abound as well as Guo Jing grapples with the chance that his love’s father murdered someone close to him. What happens next? How will the series conclude? Read to find out! (P.S. you can find Books 1-3 here, here, and here)

Attention Game of Thrones fans! Fire & Blood tells the history of House Targaryen, set 300 years before the events of Game of Thrones. Fire & Blood begins with Aegon the Conqueror, creator of the Iron Throne, as House Targaryen establishes themselves on Dragonstone and Westeros. Get caught up before the prequel series House of the Dragons airs on HBO next year!

Kids

When main character JJ Jacobson convinced his mom to take an all-expenses-paid weekend at the Barclay Hotel, he expected a low-key weekend of ghost hunting at the legendarily haunted hotel. But when his mother is accused of the hotel owner’s death, JJ and new friends Penny and Emma must solve the mystery – and maybe encounter a ghost or two- in Midnight at the Barclay Hotel by Fleur Bradley.

Great for early readers who love the My Little Pony movie, Ponies Unite will introduce new characters while providing an opportunity to improve reading and vocabulary skills.

Fiction – Short Stories

Trigger Warning: Short Fictions and Disturbances by Neil Gaiman brings together some of the famed author’s short stories with beautiful watercolors by artist Henry Sene Yee to create this beautiful collection. Readers will enjoy ghost stories, fairy tales, and fables full of miracles, terror, and amusement in this celebration of Gaiman’s work.

Fiction – Romance

The first book in Sarah MacLean’s Hell’s Belles series, Bombshell introduces Lady Sesily Talbot, a woman choosing to embrace her scandal-prone reputation. Caleb Calhoun, her brother’s best friend, wishes he could get Sesily out of his head. Caleb tasks himself with keeping Sesily out of trouble during her late night escapades, but he realizes he may be in over his head. Read on to see how this series develops!

Fiction – Mystery

Chief Inspector Armand Gamache returns in Louise Penny’s latest mystery. The Madness of Crowds find Gamache trying to enjoy the winter season in Three Pines when he is asked to provide security for a visiting professor giving a lecture at a nearby university. But when Gamache learns about the professor, he implores the university to cancel. When they do not, citing academic freedom, Gamache finds himself fighting for truth and facts against delusion, alongside trying to solve a murder with his second-in-command Jean-Guy Beauvoir.

History

If you wanted to learn more about the man Hamilton called “America’s Favorite Fighting Frenchman,” this is the book for you. In Hero of Two Worlds, Mike Duncan takes readers through Marquis de Lafayette’s revolutionary career fighting on both sides of the Atlantic as a soldier, statesman, idealist, philanthropist, and abolitionist. From his teenage years, when he ran away from France to join the American Revolution, to helping launch the French Revolution and sparring with Napoleon, readers will enjoy learning more about the life and times of Lafayette.

Visit our website for more information on these titles and more! And don’t forget – if we don’t have a book in stock we are more than happy to order it for you!

We hope to see you soon!

Release Geek: A Heart Divided and Legend of the Condor Heroes

Alex here.

I’m exhausted.

It’s done.

It’s finally done.

On August 24th, A Heart Divided, the fourth and final part of Legend of the Condor Heroes will be released in the US. It’s been two years, give or take, and it has been one of my favorite rides in reading and one of the best random whims I ever had.

At last, completed!

See, waaay back in April 2019, we got an advance copy of a book called A Hero Born. I thought it looked interesting, so I had a read. It was a novel set in China in the early 1200s, Genghis Khan was a side character, and it had martial artists and princes and Taoist holy men in a setting where sufficiently trained martial artists are capable of feats of athleticism and control that are straight-up superhuman. See, it’s a genre of fiction we don’t really have here in the West called wuxia (pronounced woo-sha, or close enough to go with). The setting is historical, the plot is often historical, but the action is something closer to fantasy. So I read A Hero Born, and it ended abruptly. Not on a cliffhanger, but just…ended.

I investigated a little further, and found out that, like Lord of the Rings, Legend of the Condor Heroes is a long novel in its own right and split up for more convenient publication, and A Hero Born was just part one of four. It was written in China in the 1950s as a newspaper serial and it’s never gotten a proper US release until now because everyone always thought it was too Chinese to fly over here, but it’s a classic in China and it’s spawned many adaptations and imitators.

For illustration purposes, I’m going to use images from a 2017 TV adaptation.

Now, with the release of A Heart Divided, it’s done and thanks to the advance copy I got to read in time, I can finally give my thoughts on the series as a whole.

Legend of the Condor Heroes is Character Growth: The Novel. The main character, Guo Jing, is almost an archetypal good-hearted but thick-skulled hero, but in his case it works–I think it’s by dint of him being being such an early example of the type, it hadn’t reached the point of shorthand or parody. He’s also not so much unintelligent as he is uneducated and a slow learner. He grew up in Mongolia in Genghis Khan’s tribe, he didn’t exactly get a formal education in Chinese history, literature, or other cultural niceties.

Our hero, folks. Guo Jing as portrayed by Xuwen Yang in Legend of the Condor Heroes 2017.

Yes, this novel is set in the early 1200s. China is divided into north and south empires–the Jin and the Song respectively–and Temujin (he hasn’t yet achieved the unification of the Mongols and become Genghis Khan) is kicking around building his forces and he’s a major side character. Guo’s parents were Song citizens; his father’s even descended from a famous Song soldier and patriot. Their village was attacked by Jin forces and Guo’s pregnant mother, after some tribulations, ends up traveling north into Mongolia where she’s taken in by a tribe–who are decent people and can’t leave a poor pregnant woman on her own–and she delivers her son and raises him on Mongolian soil.

This is a feature I do really appreciate in the book: The politics and history of the setting matters and influences why the characters do what they do. It is a wuxia novel, and the weird parallel society that makes up the world of martial artists is a major focus, but it shares the spotlight with the more ordinary world of politics, government, and military power in a way that makes “1200s China” mean something more than window dressing.

Anyway, the martial arts comes in a little later: Some martial artists who were peripherally involved with Guo’s parents felt they’d failed to protect them. They make an agreement to find Guo and another child of the village (his parents were friends with Guo’s parents) and teach them martial arts as a way to ensure their safety in life.

When Guo’s 18, they send him on walkabout through China to meet up with his counterpart and see who’s better, and that’s when a lot of the trouble kicks off.

As a character, Guo is more or less a walking block of virtue. He’s selfless, loyal, kind, brave, and several other things besides. Over the course of the books, having to function on his own as an adult makes him think for himself, and he…well, he stays a good dude, but he gets wiser and more nuanced about it, having to find his own way to resolve conflicting desires and loyalties.

The side cast is also interesting: Hardly anyone is entirely black or white. Otherwise heroic or noble characters will have flaws or points of selfishness to them, and it matters–one character’s hotheaded impulsiveness leads to the whole plot!–and most of the villainous will have points of virtue or nobility to them that save them from not being complete caricatures of wickedness, and these points feel like organic parts of a character, not something tacked on and mentioned.

PIctured: Wanyan Honglie, a Prince of the Jin Empire (as played by Fengyan Zong in Condor Heroes 2017). He’s a conniving, manipulative schemer out to ensure the ascendancy of the Jin by hook or by crook, and he’s also a doting husband to his wife and a truly loving and supportive father to his adopted son–Guo’s counterpart. Wait ’til you hear how THAT happened.

This probably says more about me than anything else, but I was surprised that a novel written in China in the 1950s had a surprisingly sympathetic portrayal of the Mongolians, as well as several strong female characters. Guo Jing’s eventual romantic interest is a standout: Lotus Huang is the daughter of one of the world’s greatest martial artists, and he’s also a polymath, an obnoxiously talented master of several disciplines. She’s as intelligent as her father is and she’s received a standout education in music, art, history, cooking, and mathematics, as well her father teaching her to be a formidable martial artist in her own right. She’s a major player in the plot and events, her impish cunning and genius intelligence letting her keep herself and Guo out of trouble sometimes. Guo’s own even temperament mellows her out and makes her moderate her trouble-causing impulses.

She is small and pretty but contains great cunning. (Li Yitong playing ‘Lotus’ Huang in Condor Heroes 2017)

Since Legend of the Condor Heroes was originally written as a newspaper serial, high drama ensues and events go at a breakneck pace–Jin Yong had to keep readers interested and also make every chunk worth reading. A friend likened it to riding in a van going 20 miles over the speed limit, and it keeps making sharp turns, but it somehow never crashes.

It’s translated from Chinese, of course, and the translation is a bit stiff and gives a lot of characters a title or a translation of their name for people unused to Chinese names (f’rinstance, Lotus Huang is an adaptation of Huang Rong, and her father Apothecary Huang would be more accurately rendered as Huang Yaoshi), but it works and helps the tone. Likewise, many of the martial arts moves aren’t described in detail, you just get told someone performed a move called Push Back The Mountain and whatever imagery that name suggests to you is what it gets.

Legend of the Condor Heroes goes all over China, into Mongolia, and the historical setting–which pays its respects and casts its judgment on actual historical figures and events–gives it a rich texture that makes it a worthy backdrop of a madcap fantasy adventure.

If you’re looking for something different, I highly recommend it.

Now let’s see if they do the sequel, Return of the Condor Heroes.

More New Releases!

We had an abundance of new releases this week that we couldn’t fit them all in one post! Check out more new releases from this week below!

The latest graphic novel from horror mastermind Junji Ito, Sensor follows a mysterious young woman who follows an invitation from a stranger to join him in a nearby village. Upon arrival, countless unidentified flying objects begin raining down on the citizens – a prelude to more terror sure to come.

Lobizona, a young adult novel and the first in a series by Romina Garber, introduces us to Manuela, or as she is better known, Manu. Undocumented and on the run from her paternal Argentine crime family, Manu spends her time in a small Miami apartment. Following a series of devastating events that leave her with more questions than answers, Manu begins investigating her past using a mysterious “Z” emblem as a starting point. Combining social justice themes with Argentine folklore, follow along as Manu uncovers her story and traces her heritage back to Argentina.

The latest novel from Mexican Gothic‘s Silvia Moreno-Garcia, Velvet Was the Night centers on Maite, a secretary living in 1970s Mexico City. As student protests and political unrest upend the city, Maite’s neighbor, the mysterious art student Leonora, goes missing. Maite goes in search of Leonora, uncovering her secret life of student radicals and dissidents. She looks for Leonora alongside Elvis, a gangster hired to find Leonora at the behest of his shady boss. As they close in Leonora, Maite finds herself in the kinds of passion and danger she only read about in her favorite romance novels.

The Infinite and The Divine is a sci-fi adventure by Robert Rath and a companion to the popular Warhammer 40,000 tabletop game. In this novelization, necrons Trazyn the Infinite and Orikan the Divine were polar opposites. When an important artifact emerges that may hold the key to the necrons’ next evolution, the ensuing fight between Trazyn and Orikan sets off a multi-millennia chase to find the answers. The big question? Will their fight save the necrons, or destroy them?

Battle Royal by Lucy Parker is a romantic comedy set in the high-stakes world of baking. When Sylvie Fairchild first met Dominic De Vere, she was a contestant on “Operation Cake” where Dominic was a judge – and no fan of Sylvie’s. Now Sylvie runs her own popular bakery and “Operation Cake” has come calling – along with a royal once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Sylvie’s quirky confections caught Princess Rose’s attention, but the palace prefers reliable Dominic’s style. Who will come out on top? I guess you’ll have to read the book to find out!

Another romantic comedy! Farrah Rochon’s The Dating Playbook introduces readers to Taylor Powell, a personal trainer at the top of her game professionally but financially stuck in the minor leagues. Enter Jamar Dixon, a former footballer who wants Taylor to get him back in NFL shape – but she can’t tell anyone. When the two are accidentally outed as a couple, chaos ensues and Taylor’s game plan is turned upside down.

Me (Moth) by Amber McBride is a young adult novel told in verse. Part coming-of-age, part ghost story, main character Moth feels lost and alone until she meets Sani, a boy feeling similarly lost and uprooted. Together, they embark on a road trip to track down answers about their respective ancestral roots.

Visit our website for more information on these titles and more! And don’t forget – if we don’t have a book in stock we are more than happy to order it for you!

We hope to see you soon!

New Releases for August 17, 2021

Check out the new releases we have this week at The Haunted Bookshop!

A young adult novel written in verse, Call Me Athena: Girl from Detroit is loosely based on author Colby Cedar Smith’s paternal grandmother. Mary is the American-born daughter of Greek and French immigrants living in Detroit in the 1930s. As readers follow Mary’s story we also see flashbacks to her parents’ childhoods. The three perspectives come together as they navigate the push and pull of tradition and independence.

Released in celebration of his centennial, Killer, Come Back to Me: The Crime Stories of Ray Bradbury takes some of Bradbury’s lesser-known crime tales and compiled them into this collector’s edition. Complete with vivid illustrations of classic stories and rare pieces, fans of Bradbury will surely enjoy this celebration of the legend’s work.

Norse Myths: Meet the Gods, Monsters, and Heroes of the Vikings is an illustrated collection of more than 30 ancient Norse myths for children. Kids will enjoy the exciting stories of characters like Thor, God of Thunder alongside gorgeous illustrations and sections that provide context and allow curious readers to dive deeper into the stories.

It may still be summer but we can already get in the Halloween spirit with Trick or Treat, Crankenstein, written by Samantha Berger and illustrated by Dan Santat! A companion to previous books Crankenstein and A Crankenstein Valentine, this edition follows Crankenstein on his favorite day of the year – Halloween! But this year, the day is spoiled by costume disasters, pumpkin-carving mishaps, and more. Can Crankenstein save the day? Read with the kids and find out!

If you’re looking to get into the Halloween spirit but want something a little scarier than Crankenstein, you might enjoy The Classic Gothic Horror Collection. Bringing together legendary works by such landmark gothic writers as Edgar Allan Poe (“The Fall of the House of Usher”) and Mary Shelley (“The Invisible Girl”), horror fans will love the eerie settings, supernatural sites, and creepy characters found in this hardcover collection.

Visit our website for more information on these titles and more! And don’t forget – if we don’t have a book in stock we are more than happy to order it for you!

We hope to see you soon!

New Releases for August 10, 2021

Check out the new releases we have this week at The Haunted Bookshop!

Ally Malinenko’s middle-grade debut Ghost Girl is full of spooky twists and turns ready to enthrall readers. After a storm, things seem a little off in Zee’s town. Along with her best friend Elijah, Zee sets out to solve the mystery surrounding the sudden disappearance of people, the appearance of a creepy new sheriff, and the emergence of ghosts. The Haunted Bookshop’s Candice loved how Zee embraces her role as a storyteller after initially being teased for it. Her friendship with Elijah was also a highlight, as were the themes of inclusivity and embracing what makes us different.

Paper & Bone is the second book in the Ink & Sigil series by Kevin Hearne. A spin-off of Hearne’s popular Iron Druid Chronicles, Paper & Blood continues the story of Al MacBharrais, master of ink and sigil magic in whose hands materials become spells. When a fellow agent disappears under mysterious circumstances, Al heads to Dandenong Ranges in Victoria with his accountant and pit fighter Nadia to solve the mystery.

Where I Come From: Stories from the Deep South takes some of bestselling author Rick Bragg’s best stories and columns from Southern Living and Garden & Gun magazine and put them all together for this special collection. Brimming with memorable characters, humor, and affection, fans of Bragg’s will love reminiscing over these stories, and new fans will come to love his unique brand of storytelling.

Visit our website for more information on these titles and more! We hope to see you soon!

COVID Exposure Alert – We’ll be temporarily closing to in-store browsing

Hello my bookstore family,

I feel like it’s my duty as a responsible shop owner, as a responsible employer, and as a responsible friend to all of you to let you know that one of our beloved employees went to get a rapid test today for COVID and it’s come back positive. We’ve been following protocols and wearing masks, so I’m hopeful (of course I’m hopeful!) that this helped mitigate risk to any of you who shopped with us recently, but I would be remiss in not alerting you.

I was able to get an appointment in the morning to be tested, but regardless, I’ve made the difficult decision to close the store to in-store browsing for at least a week but my gut tells me to just close for the rest of the month (which is only two weeks) due to the increasing spikes. I was already toying with that last week, but settled on just cancelling our participation in artwalk Friday night.

I’m  not going to lie, this will affect my business. Of course it will. But, BUT, BUT I would much rather err on the side of caution and do the right thing for the community. The store will weather through this. We weathered through April, which was the worst month–we only made a quarter of what we normally would have made. By July we’d crept back up to 50% of normal and this Fall we’ve been just on par with last year at this time. If we can make it through April, we can do it again.

I’ll still be here to do contactless delivery and curbside pickup and will be wearing gloves when I pull books, but if you’d rather not take a chance, I totally understand. If you still want to support my store, I can ship most books to you by having them go to your home straight from my distributor–how that works is you order a book for shipping and I log into my distributor’s website and instead of having the book delivered here, I select Home Delivery and it just goes straight from the warehouse in Tennessee to you. If you want to save the step of ordering from me, you can just go to our Bookshop.org page and they’ll fulfill the order and ship it to you (and we’d still get a cut).

This is such an uncertain time and my heart goes out to all of you. I’m extremely encouraged, however, by the results I’m hearing about the Pfizer vaccine.

Together we can get through this. Thank you for your continued support. Stay safe. Stay healthy.

Love,
Angela Trigg
Owner, The Haunted Book Shop