Future Fiction #282 – Cover Reveals & Newly Discovered SFF Books

Welcome to Future Fiction, my reimagining of the Waiting on Wednesday meme! There are so many amazing new books coming out, that I can no longer pick just one. My goal with Future Fiction is to share at least three new books each week, a combination of recent cover reveals and books that I’ve recently added to my TBR pile. I’m still going to be linking up with Wishful Endings/Can’t Wait Wednesday, and I also want to give a shout out to Jill at Breaking the Spine for starting the original Waiting on Wednesday meme. I hope you’ll find some new books to add to your TBR piles, and as always, I look forward to hearing what YOU’RE looking forward to:-D

Today is for fantasy fans, and I have three amazing covers to share, take a look:

In a Gaslamp-lit world where hags and ogres lurk in thick pine forests, three magical queens form an uneasy alliance to protect their lands from invasion…and love turns their world upside down.

Queen Saskia is the wicked sorceress everyone fears. After successfully wrestling the throne from her evil uncle, she only wants one thing: to keep her people safe from the empire next door. For that, she needs to spend more time in her laboratory experimenting with her spells. She definitely doesn’t have time to bring order to her chaotic library of magic.

When a mysterious dark wizard arrives at her castle, Saskia hires him as her new librarian on the spot. “Fabian” is sweet and a little nerdy, and his requests seem a little strange – what in the name of Divine Elva is a fountain pen? – but he’s getting the job done. And if he writes her flirtatious poetry and his innocent touch makes her skin singe, well…

Little does Saskia know that the “wizard” she’s falling for is actually an Imperial archduke in disguise, with no magical training whatsoever. On the run, with perilous secrets on his trail and a fast growing yearning for the wicked sorceress, he’s in danger from her enemies and her newfound allies, too. When his identity is finally revealed, will their love save or doom each other?

Wooing the Witch Queen (Queens of Villainy #1) by Stephanie Burgis. Releases in February 2025 from Bramble. Ooooh I’m so excited for a new Stephanie Burgis book! She’s been self publishing lately, and I love that her new series was snapped up by Bramble:-) The cover is stunning, and the story sounds amazing.

From a rising star author, a richly inventive, brutal and beautiful science-fantasy novella. A story of family, loss, oppression and rebellion for readers of Nghi Vo’s The Empress of Salt and Fortune, Neon Yang’s The Black Tides of Heaven and Kritika H. Rao’s The Surviving Sky

Sometimes called Wind Walkers for their ability to command the wind, unlike their human rulers, the Feng people have bark faces, carved limbs, arms of braided branches, and hair of needle threads. Bound by duty and tradition, Liu Lufeng, the eldest princess of the Feng royalty, is the next bride to the human king. The negotiation of bridewealth is the only way to stop the expansion of the humans so that the Feng can keep their lands, people, and culture intact. As the eldest, Lufeng should be the next in line to lead the people of Feng, and in the past, that made her sisters disposable. Thankful that her youngest sister, Chuiliu, is too young for a sacrificial marriage, she steps in with plans to kill the king to finally stop the marriages.

But when she starts to uncover the truth about her peoples’ origins and realizes Chuiliu will never be safe from the humans, she must learn to let go of duty and tradition, choose her allies carefully, and risk the unknown in order to free her family and shape her own fate.

A powerfully imaginative, compelling story of a young woman seeking to save her family and her home, as well as a devastating meditation on the destruction of the natural world for the sake of an industrial future.

A Palace Near the Wind by Ai Jiang. Releases in April 2025 from Titan Books. Ai Jiang has published a couple of wonderful small press books in different genres, and I’m thrilled to see she’s written a fantasy book! What do you think of this cover? 😉

A dark and enchanting fairy tale-inspired historical fantasy combining elements of “The Little Mermaid” and “Cinderella” into a wholly original tale of love, power, and betrayal.

Saint-Malo, Brittany, 1758.
For Lucinde Leon, the youngest daughter of one of Saint-Malo’s wealthiest ship-owners, the high walls of the city are more hindrance than haven. While her sisters are interested in securing advantageous marriages, Luce dreams of escaping her elegant but stifling home and joining a ship’s crew. Only Samuel—Luce’s best friend and an English smuggler—understands her longing for the sea, secretly teaching her to sail whenever she can sneak away. For Luce, the stolen time on the water with Samuel is precious.

One stormy morning, Luce’s plans are blown off course when she rescues Morgan de Chatelaine, the youngest son of the most powerful ship-owner in Saint-Malo, from the sea. Immediately drawn to his charm and sense of adventure, she longs to attend the glittering ball held in honor of his safe return and begins to contemplate a different kind of future for herself.

But it is not only Luce’s hopes at stake—the local fae are leaving Brittany and taking their magic with them, while the long-standing war with the English means Saint-Malo is always at risk of attack. As Luce is plunged into a world of magic, brutality, and seduction, secrets that have long been lost in the shadowy depths of the ocean begin to rise to the surface. The truth of her own power is growing brighter and brighter, shining like a sea-glass slipper.

Or the scales of a sea-maid’s tail.

Upon a Starlit Tide by Kell Woods. Releases in February 2025 from Tor Books. Wow, another gorgeous cover! The story sounds very good, and I love the idea of a Cinderella/Little Mermaid combo retelling with a historical setting. Fingers crossed this is good!

What do you think of this week’s Future Fiction picks? Let me know in the comments!

Posted June 5, 2024 by Tammy in Future Fiction / 34 Comments

Divider

34 responses to “Future Fiction #282 – Cover Reveals & Newly Discovered SFF Books”

  1. Charlotte

    Ooh three lovely covers and three books that I now really want to read. All three have gone straight onto my tbr. I’m not even entirely sure which intrigues me most as they all sound so different. I’m kind of leaning towards the last one as it’s a fairytale based story with the fae. Although if the second was full length I think that may well have been the one I was most intrigued by.

    Reply
  3. sjhigbee

    All three covers are stunning – and I’m delighted to hear there is more Stephanie Burgis goodness on the way as I’m a huge fan of her writing:)). I also love the sound of the other two books, which sound fabulous. As ever – the blogger with the coolest books, Tammy!

    Reply
  15. todd

    I do like that cover for A Palace Near the Wind. Interesting the fiery looking antlers on her hair piece.

    Reply
    • Tammy

      Me too, I’m very curious about A Palace Near the Wind, because the other books I’ve read by this author were horror and science fiction.

      Reply
  17. Susy's Cozy World

    Burgis’s book is the one I am the most curious about, because I really enjoyed the other books I have read by her, but the other two seem pretty unique! Thanks for sharing!!

    Reply

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.