The Leaning Pile of Books is a feature where I talk about books I got over the last week – old or new, bought or received for review consideration (often unsolicited). Since I hope you will find new books you’re interested in reading in these posts, I try to be as informative as possible. If I can find them, links to excerpts, author’s websites, and places where you can find more information on the book are included.

This week brought four books, one of which I’m particularly excited to read! I’ve already talked about one of these before, but in case you missed it, here’s where you can find more information on it:

Dreamer's Pool by Juliet Marillier

Dreamer’s Pool (Blackthorn & Grim #1) by Juliet Marillier

This first book in a new adult fantasy series is currently available in Australia and will be released in the US on November 4 (hardcover, ebook). The author’s website has an excerpt from Dreamer’s Pool.

I love the sound of this one and have been hearing it’s excellent. There is a giveaway for a copy of this book currently running on Goodreads, but it’s closing on October 28 so there’s not much time left to enter! This one is open in several countries.

 

Award-winning author Juliet Marillier “weaves magic, mythology, and folklore into every sentence on the page” (The Book Smugglers). Now she begins an all-new and enchanting series that will transport readers to a magical vision of ancient Ireland…

In exchange for help escaping her long and wrongful imprisonment, embittered magical healer Blackthorn has vowed to set aside her bid for vengeance against the man who destroyed all that she once held dear. Followed by a former prison mate, a silent hulk of a man named Grim, she travels north to Dalriada. There she’ll live on the fringe of a mysterious forest, duty bound for seven years to assist anyone who asks for her help.

Oran, crown prince of Dalriada, has waited anxiously for the arrival of his future bride, Lady Flidais. He knows her only from a portrait and sweetly poetic correspondence that have convinced him Flidais is his destined true love. But Oran discovers letters can lie. For although his intended exactly resembles her portrait, her brutality upon arrival proves she is nothing like the sensitive woman of the letters.

With the strategic marriage imminent, Oran sees no way out of his dilemma. Word has spread that Blackthorn possesses a remarkable gift for solving knotty problems, so the prince asks her for help. To save Oran from his treacherous nuptials, Blackthorn and Grim will need all their resources: courage, ingenuity, leaps of deduction, and more than a little magic.

The City Stained Red by Sam Sykes

The City Stained Red (Bring Down Heaven #1) by Sam Sykes

This thick fantasy novel will be available in the US on January 27, 2015 (trade paperback, ebook*, audiobook) and in the UK on October 30, 2014 (paperback, ebook). An excerpt from The City Stained Red is available on the author’s website.

* Edited on 11/13/14 to add: The ebook was released earlier than the print version and is now available!

 

The first book in a new trilogy from the acclaimed author of the Aeon’s Gate series.

A long-exiled living god arises.
A city begins to break apart at the seams.

Lenk and his battle-scarred companions have come to Cier’Djaal in search of Miron Evanhands, a wealthy priest who contracted them to eradicate demons — and then vanished before paying for the job.

But hunting Miron down might be tougher than even these weary adventurers can handle as two unstoppable religious armies move towards all-out war, tensions rise within the capital’s cultural melting pot, and demons begin to pour from the shadows…

And Khoth Kapira, the long-banished living god, has seen his chance to return and regain dominion over the world.

Now all that prevents the city from tearing itself apart in carnage are Lenk, Kataria, a savage human-hating warrior, Denaos, a dangerous rogue, Asper, a healer priestess, Dreadaeleon, a young wizard, and Gariath, one of the last of the dragonmen.

The Tree of Water by Elizabeth Haydon

The Tree of Water (The Lost Journals of Ven Polypheme #4) by Elizabeth Haydon

This fantasy novel for young readers will be released on October 28 (hardcover, ebook). An excerpt from The Tree of Water is available on Tor.com.

The previous books in the series are as follows:

  1. The Floating Island
  2. The Thief Queen’s Daughter
  3. The Dragon’s Lair
 

The epic voyages continue in The Tree of Water, the fourth adventure in bestselling author Elizabeth Haydon’s acclaimed fantasy series for young readers, The Lost Journals of Ven Polypheme.

As Royal Reporter of the land of Serendair, it is the duty of young Charles Magnus “Ven” Polypheme to travel the world and seek out magic hiding in plain sight. But Ven needs to escape the clutches of the nefarious Thief Queen, ruler of the Gated City, whose minions are hunting for him. His friend, the merrow Amariel, has the perfect solution to his dilemma: Ven and Char will join her to explore the world beneath the sea.

As they journey through the sea, Ven finds himself surrounded by wonders greater than he could have ever imagined. But the beauty of the ocean is more than matched by the dangers lurking within its depths, and Ven and his friends soon realize that in order to save thousands of innocent lives, they may have to sacrifice their own. For everything in the ocean needs to eat…

“A delightful epic fantasy that will attract a readership both older and younger than the target audience.” —Booklist (starred review) on The Floating Island