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Fantasy and Science Fiction August 2025 |
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House of Blight: A Novel by Maxym M. MartineauEdira Brillwyn is a threadmender. She holds a rare, lifesaving power that can cure disease and heal injuries in the blink of an eye. But magic always comes with a cost, and saving anyone sacrifices a sliver of her own life. She’s always kept her abilities hidden…until the powerful Fernglove family discovers her secret.
The Ferngloves are charming and beautiful, possess powerful magic, and don’t take no for an answer—especially Orin, the head of these ruling elites. When Edira’s brothers unexpectedly contract blight—an incurable virus killing people throughout the town, and an illness too strong for her to heal them both—Orin offers to help. Together at his estate they’ll research a cure while Orin slows their sickness and Edira hones her magic. His kindness and honesty surprises Edira, as does her undeniable attraction to him.
But the other Ferngloves are suspicious of her power and may be more dangerous than the ever-present disease. The longer Edira stays within the confines of the Manor, the more the family’s pristine exterior begins to crack—until Edira discovers a terrifying secret and must choose who she can save and at what cost…
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A Drop of Corruption by Robert Jackson BennettIn the canton of Yarrowdale, at the very edge of the Empire’s reach, an impossible crime has occurred. A Treasury officer has disappeared into thin air—abducted from his quarters while the door and windows remained locked from the inside, in a building whose entrances and exits are all under constant guard.
To solve the case, the Empire calls on its most brilliant and mercurial investigator, the great Ana Dolabra. At her side, as always, is her bemused assistant Dinios Kol.
Before long, Ana’s discovered that they’re not investigating a disappearance, but a murder—and that the killing was just the first chess move by an adversary who seems to be able to pass through warded doors like a ghost, and who can predict every one of Ana’s moves as though they can see the future.
Worse still, the killer seems to be targeting the high-security compound known as the Shroud. Here, the Empire's greatest minds dissect fallen Titans to harness the volatile magic found in their blood. Should it fall, the destruction would be terrible indeed—and the Empire itself will grind to a halt, robbed of the magic that allows its wheels of power to turn.
Din has seen Ana solve impossible cases before. But this time, with the stakes higher than ever and Ana seemingly a step behind their adversary at every turn, he fears that his superior has finally met an enemy she can’t defeat.
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| Idolfire by Grace CurtisAn epic sapphic fantasy roadtrip inspired by the fall of Rome, from the Sunday Times bestselling author of Frontier and Floating Hotel
On one side of the world, Aleya Ana-Ulai is desperate for a chance. Her family have written her off as a mistake, but she's determined to prove every last one of them wrong.
On the other, Kirby of Wall's End is searching for redemption. An ancient curse tore her life apart, but to fix it, she'll have to leave everything behind.
Fate sets them both on the path to Nivela, a city once poised to conquer the world with the power of a thousand stolen gods. Now the gates are closed and the old magic slumbers. Dead — or waiting for a spark to light it anew…
A character-driven science-fantasy road trip book with sword fights and a slowburn romance, Idolfire delves into the vastness of history and the terrifying power of organized faith. For fans of: LGBTQIA+ fiction with in-depth worldbuilding and bittersweet romance such as Under the Whispering Door by TJ Klune. |
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Polybius by Collin ArmstrongOctober, 1982. Forced to move to the quiet seaside town of Tasker Bay by her mother, the only thing on high schooler Andi's mind is saving up enough money to return to her old stomping grounds in Silicon Valley. Her self-taught skills with all things electronic make her a perfect fit for a job at the dingy local arcade where she can tune out from life and bankroll her eventual escape. Pining over the distant and aloof Andi is Ro, the son of Tasker Bay's sheriff, who begins spending more time at the arcade. Despite promising herself she wouldn't get attached to anyone in town, Andi finds herself opening up to the thoughtful, like-minded Ro. When Polybius-a new bleeding-edge game of unknown origin arrives-the shop is suddenly overwhelmed with players fighting for time on the machine. Seemingly overnight, a virus-like epidemic grips Tasker Bay while a violent coastal storm rolls in, isolating it from the outside world. People begin experiencing fits of anger, paranoia, and hallucinations-no one can be trusted. After a grisly act of violence goes unsolved, the town descends into chaos. Is the arrival of this mysterious game and the disorder in Tasker Bay a coincidence? Convinced the dire situation is somehow linked to Polybius, Andi and Ro desperately search for clues that might stop the spread before they, too, begin experiencing side effects... |
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The Edge of Yesterday by Rita WoodsGreer Coffey is a principal dancer with a renowned Harlem company. Sebastian Coffey is an architect with a prestigious Midtown firm. The Coffey’s are the ultimate dream couple — until their world completely unravels. After Greer develops a career-ending neurologic disorder, she finds herself back in her hometown of Detroit. Angry, lonely, her marriage buckling under the strain, she takes to aimlessly wandering the city streets. One night, she stumbles through a vortex, a portal through time that transports her back into 1925 Detroit, where she meets a handsome, charming doctor.
Dr. Montgomery Gray is a member of Detroit’s Black Aristocracy, wealthy and connected to some of the most powerful Black families in the country. Detroit in 1925 is the beating heart of an industrial nation, but it is also a tinderbox of poor immigrants, Prohibition-driven gang wars, and the Klan. As a member of the Talented Tenth, Monty is expected to be the tip of the spear in the fight for the Race, no matter the cost. Exhausted, frustrated, and longing to break free of expectations, he is stunned to find a woman from the future roaming Detroit’s Black Bottom.
Initially cautious, Monty and Greer slowly grow increasingly exhilarated with the visits. For Greer, 1925 offers an escape from the sorrow of her "real life," and for Monty, the future that Greer lays before him is irresistible. But 2025 becomes gradually less and less recognizable, as each visit back through time causes increasing rips in the timeline. Ultimately, Greer finds herself trapped in 1925 and Monty is forced into a deadly confrontation that changes the trajectory of his life. |
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Holy work sometimes requires unholy deeds.
Brother Diaz has been summoned to the Sacred City, where he is certain a commendation and grand holy assignment awaits him. But his new flock is made up of unrepentant murderers, practitioners of ghastly magic, and outright monsters. The mission he is tasked with will require bloody measures from them all in order to achieve its righteous ends.
Elves lurk at our borders and hunger for our flesh, while greedy princes care for nothing but their own ambitions and comfort. With a hellish journey before him, it's a good thing Brother Diaz has the devils on his side.
A brand-new epic fantasy from a New York Times bestselling author features a notorious band of anti-heroes on a delightfully bloody and raucous journey.
Also Available in Sound Recording. |
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A Letter from the Lonesome Shore by Sylvie CathrallThe charming conclusion to the Sunken Archive duology, a heart-warming magical academia fantasy filled with underwater cities, romance of manners and found family, perfect for fans of Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries.
Former correspondents E. and Henerey, accustomed to loving each other from afar, did not anticipate continuing their courtship in an enigmatic underwater city. When their journey through the Structure in E.'s garden strands them in a peculiar society preoccupied with the pleasures and perils of knowledge, E. and Henerey come to accept - and, more surprisingly still, embrace - the fact that they may never return home.
A year and a half later, Sophy and Vyerin finally discover one of the elusive Entries that will help them seek their siblings. As the group's efforts bring them closer to E. and Henerey, an ancient, cosmic threat also draws near. . .
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| El Fuego by David RubínArchitect Alexander Yorba takes on the exorbitant task of designing lunar colonies to ensure the wealthiest of humanity's survival with a meteor en route to destroy Earth. When he is diagnosed with terminal cancer, he must reconcile with his life, his family, and his position among the elite who turned against him. With grit and authentic struggles, this visually stunning graphic novel "will resonate with any reader who has fallen short of their grand ambitions." |
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Harmattan Season: A Novel by Tochi OnyebuchiAward-winning author Tochi Onyebuchi's new standalone novel is hard-boiled fantasy noir: Raymond Chandler meets P. Djáelâi Clark in a postcolonial West Africa Fortune always left whatever room I walked into, which is why I don't leave my place much these days... 00Veteran and private eye Boubacar doesn't need much-least of all trouble-but trouble always seems to find him. Work has dried up, and he'd rather be left alone to deal with his bills as the Harmattan rolls in to coat the city in dust, but Bouba is a down on his luck deux fois, suspended between two cultures and two worlds. When a bleeding woman stumbles onto his doorway, only to vanish just as quickly, Bouba reluctantly finds himself enmeshed in the secrets of a city boiling on the brink of violence. The French occupiers are keen to keep the peace at any cost, and the indigenous dugulen have long been shattered into restless factions vying for a chance to reclaim their lost heritage and abilities. As each hard won clue reveals horrifying new truths, Bouba may have to carve out parts of himself he's long kept hidden, and decide what he's willing to offer next. From the visionary author of Riot Baby and Goliath, Harmattan Season is a gripping fantasy noir in the tradition of Chandler, Hammond, and Christie that will have you by the throat-both dryly funny and unforgettably evocative. eBook and Sound Recording, Available through Boundless |
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| The Incandescent by Emily Tesh"Look at you, eating magic like you're one of us."
Doctor Walden is the Director of Magic at Chetwood Academy and one of the most powerful magicians in England. Her days consist of meetings, teaching A-Level Invocation to four talented, chaotic sixth formers, more meetings, and securing the school's boundaries from demonic incursions.
Walden is good at her job―no, Walden is great at her job. But demons are masters of manipulation. It’s her responsibility to keep her school with its six hundred students and centuries-old legacy safe. And it’s possible the entity Walden most needs to keep her school safe from―is herself. |
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Contact your librarian for more great books!
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Michigan City Public Library
100 E. 4th Street
Michigan City, Indiana 46360
219-873-3044mclib.org/ |
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