April releases

Looking back now, I realized that I only read Spellwright from the march releases. Not really a bad thing, only an observation. There was talk lately on the blogosphere about the reviewing of older books vs the new releases. As for myself, I think I'm going with a mix of both, but slightly more recent novels. I tend to listen more to older books than physically reading them but since it's kind of hard to find much older audiobooks... Anyway, back to the topic, next month spotlight:

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The Desert Spear
Peter V. Brett
April 1st

Brett's first novel, The Warded Man, was a very good debut although I was not impress as much as most of the reviewers. Still, I look forward to picking up this one since it will probably contain less "good old tales of farmer's wives (in a fantasy setting)" (as I put in my review). So far, I only read the review by Aidan (A Dribble of Ink). He liked the book but his hopes were crushed a little. Here's the blurb :

The Deliverer has returned, but who is he? Arlen Bales, formerly of the small hamlet of Tibbet's Brook, learnt harsh lessons about life as he grew up in a world where hungry demons stalk the night and humanity is trapped by its own fear. He chose a different path; chose to fight inherited apathy and the corelings, and eventually he became the Painted Man, a reluctant saviour. But the figure emerging from the desert, calling himself the Deliverer, is not Arlen. He is a friend and betrayer, and though he carries the spear from the Deliverer's tomb, he also heads a vast army intent on a holy war against the demon plague...and anyone else who stands in his way.

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Tome of the Undergates
Sam Sykes
April 15

If you're on Twitter and you don't follow Sam Sykes, you're missing something (and his blog too). The guys is funny and incisive. I hope his book reflects that. So far, I read mostly great things about this novel. Here you go :

Lenk can barely keep control of his mismatched adventurer band at the best of times (Gariath the dragon man sees humans as little more than prey, Kataria the Shict despises most humans, and the humans in the band are little better). When they're not insulting each other's religions they're arguing about pay and conditions. So when the ship they are travelling on is attacked by pirates things don't go very well. They go a whole lot worse when an invincible demon joins the fray. The demon steals the Tome of the Undergates - a manuscript that contains all you need to open the undergates. And whichever god you believe in you don't want the undergates open. On the other side are countless more invincible demons, the manifestation of all the evil of the gods, and they want out. Full of razor-sharp wit, characters who leap off the page (and into trouble) and plunging the reader into a vivid world of adventure this is a fantasy that kicks off a series that could dominate the second decade of the century.

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The Emerald Storm
Michael J. Sullivan
April 10

This is the fourth book of the Riyria Revelations. I read only the first one but this is a series I'm really looking for to complete. Since Michael comes up with a novel every 6 months, the wait will not be long. Not so many reviews so far but book 2 and 3 were very well received. What's this one about :


A MESSAGE IS INTERCEPTED. A SINISTER PLAN LAUNCHED. TWO THIEVES STAND IN THE WAY. Ex-mercenary Hadrian Blackwater sets course on a high seas adventure to find the lost Heir of Novron. His only hope lies in confronting the ruthless and cunning Merrick Marius. Fearing his friend is not up to the challenge, Royce Melborn joins his old partner for one last mission. Their journey finds them adrift amid treachery and betrayals forcing Hadrian to face a past he hoped never to see again.

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Shadow Prowler
Alexey Pehov
April 1st

I know that it was released in February in the UK but it will be out in April in Canada. I kept an eye on this book but the reviews kind of put it away from my reading list... well at least on hold. Here's the synopsis :

After centuries of calm, the Nameless One is stirring. An army is gathering: giants, ogres and other creatures joining forces from across the Desolate Lands, united for the first time in history under one black banner. By the spring, or perhaps sooner, the Nameless One and his forces will be at the walls of the great city of Avendoom. Unless Shadow Harold, master thief, can find some way to stop them. Epic fantasy at its best, Shadow Prowler is the first in a trilogy that follows professional thief Shadow Harold on his quest for a magic Horn that will restore peace to the kingdom of Siala. Accompanied by an elfin princess, ten Wild Hearts - the most experienced and dangerous royal fighters - and the King's court jester (who may be more than he seems ...or less), Harold must outwit angry demons, escape the clutches of a band of hired murderers, survive ten bloody skirmishes ...and reach the burial grounds before dark. Can he escape a fate worse than death?

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The King of the Crags
Stephen Deas
April 15 (UK)

Dragons! I liked what Stephen did with them in The Adamantine Palace. I hope he went ever farther with the follow-up :

Prince Jehal has murdered, poisoned and betrayed his way to the top. There is a new speaker for the realms, his opposition has been crushed, now he just has to enjoy the fruits of power. And yet ...He feels more for the wife he married for power than perhaps he should and his lover knows it. And out in the realms those loyal to the old regime are still plotting. and there are rumours that the Red Riders, heralds of revolution and doom are on the ride. And still no-one has found the famous white dragon. The dragon that, if it lived, will have long since recovered from the effects of the alchemical liquid fed to the dragons of the realms to keep them docile, to block their memories of a time when they ruled and the world burned.