Spring Cleaning Book Haul 👀 Refreshing the TBR Pile 💐

She was magical, beautiful beyond belief—and completely alone…The unicorn had lived since before memory in a forest where death could touch nothing. Maidens who caught a glimpse of her glory were blessed by enchantment they would never forget. But outside her wondrous realm, dark whispers and rumours carried a message she could not “Unicorns are gone from the world.” Aided by a bumbling magician and an indomitable spinster, she set out to learn the truth. but she feared even her immortal wisdom meant nothing in a world where a mad king’s curse and terror incarnate lived only to stalk the last unicorn to her doom…

Mill Valley, Marin County, California.

Dr Miles Bennell has lived there all his life. But one day Miles sees a patient who claims her Uncle isn’t himself. He’s a different person, despite being identical in every way except one: he is only pretending to have emotions.
Miles dismisses this as delusions and refers her to a psychiatrist.
Then he finds the pods. Giant seed pods, filled with a strange, grey substance. A strange grey substance that can slowly, slowly, become a perfect replica of a person.

But what has happened to the people being replicated?

As head phoenix keeper at a world-renowned zoo for magical creatures, Aila’s childhood dream of conserving critically endangered firebirds seems closer than ever. There’s just one glaring caveat: her zoo’s breeding program hasn’t functioned for a decade. When a tragic phoenix heist sabotages the flagship initiative at a neighbouring zoo, Aila must prove her derelict facilities are fit to take the reins.

But saving an entire species from extinction requires more than stellar animal handling skills. Carnivorous water horses, tempestuous thunderhawks, mischievous dragons… Aila has no problem wrangling beasts. Inspiring zoo patrons? That’s another story. Mustering the courage to ask for help from the hotshot griffin keeper at the zoo’s most popular exhibit? Virtually impossible.

Especially when the hotshot griffin keeper in question just so happens to be her arch-rival from college: Luciana, an annoyingly brooding and even more annoyingly insufferable know-it-all with the grace of a goblin and the face of a goddess who’s convinced that Aila’s beloved phoenix would serve their cause better as an active performer rather than as a passive conservation exhibit.

With the world watching and the threat of poachers looming, Aila’s success is no longer merely a matter of keeping her job…

She is the keeper of the phoenix, and the future of a species now rests on her shoulders.

There’s just one thing she has to remember: she is also not alone.

Discover STAGED, a limited collection of Shakespeare’s unabridged plays that celebrates the genius of the Bard and the tropes that continue to delight YA readers to this day.

Explore the the STAGED collection:

As You Like It – With a foreword by Talia Hibbert

Hamlet – With a foreword by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé

Macbeth – With a foreword by Kat Delacorte

A Midsummer Night’s Dream – With a foreword by Becky Albertalli

Much Ado About Nothing – With a foreword by Holly Bourne

Romeo and Juliet – With a foreword by Jennifer Niven

Fenn’s first and only memory is finding himself in the middle of a forest, face to face with a dragon spirit mocking him, all knowledge gone apart from his own name.

Lost and confused, his only hope for answers is Calidra—a woman living on the edge of the world with her partner. Forced to return home when her father dies, Calidra has put off facing her estranged mother for seven years, and she begrudgingly helps Fenn, forging papers for him so he can avoid the Queen’s Inquisitors.

But her mother is the least of her worries when they discover an ancient enemy is rising again. It should be impossible with the Iron Crown in power—and Fenn is terrified he might unwittingly be playing a part in the war’s resurgence.

Surrounded by vengeful spirits and powerful magic, Fenn’s desperate attempt to find his way home might well alter the fate of Tassar, and every power in it.

The Slow Regard of Silent Things is set at The University, where the brightest minds work to unravel the mysteries of enlightened sciences, such as artificing and alchemy. Auri, a former student (and a secondary but influential character from Rothfuss’s earlier novels) now lives alone beneath the sprawling campus in a maze of ancient and abandoned passageways. There in The Underthing, she feels her powers and learns to see the truths that science—and her former classmates—have overlooked

Gollancz

Those who see the dead soon join them.

From the author of the critically-acclaimed Blackwing trilogy comes Ed McDonald’s Daughter of Redwinter, the first of a brilliant fantasy series about how one choice can change a universe.

Raine can see–and more importantly, speak–to the dead. It’s a wretched gift with a death sentence that has her doing many dubious things to save her skin. Seeking refuge with a deluded cult is her latest bad, survival-related decision. But her rare act of kindness–rescuing an injured woman in the snow–is even worse.

Because the woman has escaped from Redwinter, the fortress-monastery of the Draoihn, warrior magicians who answer to no king and who will stop at nothing to retrieve what she’s stolen. A battle, a betrayal, and a horrific revelation forces Raine to enter Redwinter. It becomes clear that her ability might save an entire nation.

Pity she might have to die for that to happen…

Popular artist Gretel Lusky welcomes readers into her fantastical world in this high-quality art book.

This is an artist who loves fantasy and all things magical: fairies, mermaids, mythical creatures, knights, and more. She creates characters that are colorful yet mysterious and places that feel otherworldly, always pretty yet sometimes bordering on unsettling. Gretel fans will love delving into the story of her creative early years, discovering why she chose art as a career, and following her development timeline. She presents two exclusive galleries of art – one with a fantasy focus, based around maritime creatures and witches, and another that celebrates the beauty of sketchbooking. 

The artist has written chapters on her creative process, which aspiring and established artists will equally enjoy, and created a section on “Embracing The Mess,” discussing the techniques of letting go of perfectionism, listening to your body, and staying motivated as an artist. With tools and materials covered in detail too, plus in-depth tutorials for readers to follow along with, this Art Of title is packed with incredible insight and joyous art, appealing to existing fans of Gretel as well as newcomers to her work.