Doorways to Diverse Worlds

Black Leopard, Red Wolf

“An ambitious read of epic proportions! African mythology, history and James' phenomenal imagination come together to make an adventure tale like no other. Engrossing! Daring! Beautifully strange!”

Zinna, A Great Good Place for Books

Black Sun

“A slow burn and long build up leads to a big pay off and leaves you wanting for more! I enjoyed this as an audiobook for the pronunciation of words and names as well as the multicast narration. It is perfect for those who love their fantasy based on mythology, enjoy Hero’s Journey and Chosen One story arcs, and like political intrigue and maneuvering. We are introduced to a full array of complex, morally gray characters whose lives are moving toward intersection on the day of Convergence. In particular, I liked the running theme showcasing how each main character faces loneliness and alienation based on their past, present place in the world, and the expectations placed upon them. The world building is detailed and imaginative without overtaking character development, and we are provided with a diverse cast of characters where queerness and being non-binary are matter of fact.”

Cori, Bright Side Bookshop

Before the Coffee Gets Cold

“If you had a chance to travel in time, would you? Even if there were multiple rules that must be followed, including you cannot change the present, and the cost of breaking the rules means losing your life. Would you do it? In Before the Coffee gets Cold, you follow four different customers who have come to a coffee shop, hidden in the alleys of Tokyo, for the chance to experience just one moment in time. What would be so important that you would be willing to take that chance? The opportunity to see your true love one more time, to find the answer to a question long forgotten, or to see a loved one taken too soon. If you are looking for a heartwarming tale about reflecting on the past and embracing the future, Before the Coffee gets Cold is your next read. So go grab a coffee, and remember to drink it before it gets cold.”

Gretchen, Fiction Addiction

A dazzling new fantasy from New York Times and indie bestselling author Joan He, Strike the Zither is a powerful, inventive, and sweeping fantasy that reimagines the Chinese classic tale of the Three Kingdoms.

The year is 414 of the Xin Dynasty, and chaos abounds. A puppet empress is on the throne. The realm has fractured into three factions... Read more »

Nnedi Okorafor's acclaimed first novel for middle grade children introduces a boy who can access super powers with the help of the magical Ikenga.

Nnamdi's father was a good chief of police, perhaps the best Kalaria had ever had. He was determined to root out the criminals that had invaded the town. But then he was murdered, and most people... Read more »

“An early contender for the best fantasy novel of 2023.”—The Washington Post
 
“A very entertaining and fun read, full of loveable characters and intricate, original worldbuilding.”—NPR

The remote island of Masquapaug has not seen a dragon in many generations—until fifteen-year-old Anequs finds a dragon’s egg and bonds with its hatchling. Her... Read more »

Half British Reaper, half Japanese Shinigami, Ren Scarborough has been collecting souls in the London streets for centuries. Expected to obey the harsh hierarchy of the Reapers who despise her, Ren conceals her emotions and avoids her tormentors as best she can. When her failure to control her Shinigami abilities drives Ren out of London, she... Read more »

Zachary Ying and the Dragon Emperor

“When the first emperor of China possesses Zachary's video game device and demands his help, he doesn't expect the whirlwind adventure through China that follows. For fans of Percy Jackson! ”

Miriasha, Phoenix Books

Iron Widow

“Bloodthirsty and tender, full of power, powerlessness, and determination, I could hear Wu Zetian roaring her vengeance call long after I finished this thrilling sci-fi masterpiece.”

Miriasha, Phoenix Books

If you enjoyed The Song of Achilles, then you’ll love She Who Became the Sun.

“Can you switch your fate with another’s? Can you seize the opportunity to become great when everything in the world is hell-bent on making you nothing? Zhu’s destiny was nothingness, a destiny that terrifies her. When her brother dies, she decides to take his destiny. Thus begins her journey through monasteries, cities, and wars. She encounters a Eunuch general who struggles with his identity and desire for revenge, a monk who bends the rules to survive, a woman whose strength is in her vulnerability, and a whole cast of amazing characters. This retelling of the establishment of the Ming Dynasty is exquisitely told. It has everything I love in a fantasy adventure: a trickster monk, a tortured warrior, fate, and lil’ bit of magic.”

Izzy, Off the Beaten Path

Lin Chong is an expert arms instructor, training the Emperor's soldiers in sword and truncheon, battle axe and spear, lance and crossbow. Unlike bolder friends who flirt with challenging the unequal hierarchies and values of Imperial society, she believes in keeping her head down and doing her job. But then a powerful man with a vendetta rips... Read more »

Featured in the Netflix series Love, Death & Robots

Bestselling author Ken Liu selects his multiple award-winning stories for a groundbreaking collection—including a brand-new piece exclusive to this volume.

With his debut novel, The Grace of Kings, taking the literary world by storm, Ken Liu now shares his finest short fiction in The Paper... Read more »

Zero Sum Game

“A fun, fast-paced action thriller featuring a snarky math superhero who has some serious character flaws. Cas Russell is good at math, so good that she intuitively performs vector calculus at lightning speed, allowing her to dodge both incoming fists and bullets. She’s a mercenary “retrieval expert” with ambiguous morals, available for hire in Los Angeles, and her latest job is proving to be much more challenging and dangerous than she anticipated.”

Trey, Bookshop Santa Cruz

The epic Chinese classic and phenomenon published in the US for the first time!

Featured in iO9's 2019 Fall Preview.

A fantastical generational saga and kung fu epic, Jin Yong's A Hero Born is the classic novel of its time, stretching from the Song Empire (China 1200 AD) to the appearance of a warlord whose name will endure for eternity: Genghis... Read more »

Exhalation

“WOW. My first experience with Ted Chiang absolutely blew me out of the water. Each story left me with wide eyes and a racing mind, running to my husband to read a passage so we could both be knocked over with wonder. Exhalation filled me with so many questions about our collective past, present, and future, I’ll be coming back to this book again and again trying to find the answers.”

Kasey Kane, Country Bookshelf

Now optioned as a TV series for HBO, with executive producer George R. R. Martin!An award-winning literary author enters the world of magical realism with her World Fantasy Award-winning novel of a remarkable woman in post-apocalyptic Africa.In a post-apocalyptic Africa, the world has changed in many ways; yet in one region genocide between... Read more »

An Unkindness of Ghosts

“Aster is a misfit. A monster. And a frequent target for humiliation and punishment by the guards stationed on Matilda. Rivers Soloman’s debut novel, An Unkindness of Ghosts, is a fantastic allegorical analysis of the antebellum south via life aboard a spaceship, searching for a new place to live after Earth became uninhabitable. The narrator did a wonderful job bringing the story to life and all of the voices fit the characters perfectly. Trigger Warnings: suicide, self harm, sexual assault, racism, homophobia ”

Ryan, Page 1 Books

"The shapeless mass of darkness split apart. It sundered, and a pale spindle of light gleamed between his open arms. In the oval of light there moved a human shape: a tall woman . beautiful, and sorrowful, and full of fear."-from A Wizard of Earthsea A Wizard of Earthsea, first in a tetralogy that includes The Tombs of Atuan and The Farthest... Read more »

Jade City

“A slow burn with frequent bursts of action. For fans of mafia dramas and martial arts action. The Green Bone culture & mythology are unique & captivating. This book and its characters got better and better as the story progressed. Lee writes like a watchmaker, and this book ticks away like a finely-tuned machine.”

Elon, Left Bank Books

Three-time Hugo Award winner and NYT bestselling author N. K. Jemisin challenges and delights readers with thought-provoking narratives of destruction, rebirth, and redemption that sharply examine modern society in her first collection of short fiction, which includes never-before-seen stories.

"Marvelous and wide-ranging." -- Los Angeles... Read more »