The Leaning Pile of Books is a feature in which I highlight books I got over the last week that sound like they may be interesting—old or new, bought or received in the mail for review consideration. 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 […]

Today’s Women in SF&F Month guest is Vaishnavi Patel! She’s the author of “Logic Puzzles,” “The Sister Line,” and Kaikeyi—the latter of which comes out next week! Her debut novel, available on April 26, “reimagines the life of the infamous queen from the Indian epic the Ramayana, weaving a tale of fate, family, courage, and heartbreak—and an extraordinary woman determined to leave her mark in a world where gods and men dictate the shape of things to come.” (And on […]

Today’s guest is Mary McMyne. Her upcoming novel, The Book of Gothel, out July 26, 2022 in the U.S. and July 28, 2022 in the U.K., is described as a “lush, historical reimagining of the Rapunzel folktale from the perspective of the witch” for “fans of Wicked, Spinning Silver, and Hild.” You can connect with Mary on Twitter and Instagram, and learn more about her books on her website. Why are fairy tales told the way they are told? What […]

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Beasts and Beauty: Dangerous Tales is a collection of twelve reimagined fairy tales written by New York Times bestselling author Soman Chainani and illustrated by Julia Iredale. As stated in an interview, the author wanted these stories resonate with both younger readers and adults, and it’s published as being for ages 10+ in the US and adult readers in the UK. This book contains the following stories: Red Riding Hood Snow […]

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Gods of Jade and Shadow by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, a standalone Popol Vuh–inspired historical fantasy novel set during the 1920s, tells the story of a quest to reunite a formerly entrapped Mayan god of death with his missing eye, ear, and index finger—as the brother who separated him from his body parts and imprisoned him in the first place tries to thwart him in order to remain upon his throne. The journey begins […]

The Bear and the Nightingale, Katherine Arden’s debut novel and the first book in the Winternight Trilogy, is a beautifully written, atmospheric, Slavic-folklore-inspired book set in a fourteenth century Rus’ in which the old spirits are beginning to fade with the rise of Christianity in the region. This volume chronicles the childhood and young adulthood of Vasya, starting with her mother’s knowledge that her next child will be a daughter very much like her own mother, a woman resembling a […]