18 fantasy and science fiction books to read in November 2023
By Daniel Roman
THE NARROW ROAD BETWEEN DESIRES by Patrick Rothfuss (The Kingkiller Chronicle novellas #2) — November 14
Whew! We’ve finally made it past November 7, which apparently is the day when publishers mutually agreed to hammer our TBR lists with relentless force. And not a moment too soon, because the next book on our list a very exciting one.
Patrick Rothfuss is the widely acclaimed author of The Kingkiller Chronicle series, which consists of The Name of the Wind, The Wise Man’s Fear, and the novella The Slow Regard of Silent Things. You don’t need me to explain who Rothfuss is; the long wait for the third book in his trilogy, The Doors of Stone, is the stuff of literary legend, pretty much only comparable to the wait for The Winds of Winter by George R.R. Martin.
On November 14, Rothfuss is releasing his first new book set in the world of The Kingkiller Chronicle in nearly a decade. The Narrow Road Between Desires is a reimagining of his 2014 novella The Lightning Tree, which was part of the Rogues anthology from George R.R. Martin and Gardner Dozois. This new version of the story beautifully expands on the original and features a ton of gorgeous artwork from The Slow Regard of Silent Things illustrator Nate Taylor. If you’ve missed Temerant, it’s the perfect way to dip your toes back into this beloved fantasy world.
Bast knows how to bargain. The give-and-take of a negotiation is as familiar to him as the in-and-out of breathing; to watch him trade is to watch an artist at work. But even a master’s brush can slip. When he accepts a gift, taking something for nothing, Bast’s whole world is knocked askew, for he knows how to bargain—but not how to owe.
From dawn to midnight over the course of a single day, follow the Kingkiller Chronicle’s most charming fae as he schemes and sneaks, dancing into trouble and back out again with uncanny grace.
The Narrow Road Between Desires is Bast’s story. In it he traces the old ways of making and breaking, following his heart even when doing so goes against his better judgement.
After all, what good is caution if it keeps him from danger and delight?
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SYSTEM COLLAPSE by Martha Wells (Murderbot Diaries #7) — November 14
Murderbot is back this November! Martha Wells’ Hugo Award-winning sci-fi series continues to expand with System Collapse, the seventh volume to follow the lovable SecUnit known as Murderbot. Murderbot may tell itself that humans are annoying and that it would rather avoid them, but we all know that whenever Wells puts out a new story in this series, their resolve will be put to the test.
Like Network Effect, System Collapse is another full-length Murderbot novel. More pages for more Murderbot is never a bad thing!
Following the events in Network Effect, the Barish-Estranza corporation has sent rescue ships to a newly-colonized planet in peril, as well as additional SecUnits. But if there’s an ethical corporation out there, Murderbot has yet to find it, and if Barish-Estranza can’t have the planet, they’re sure as hell not leaving without something. If that something just happens to be an entire colony of humans, well, a free workforce is a decent runner-up prize.
But there’s something wrong with Murderbot; it isn’t running within normal operational parameters. ART’s crew and the humans from Preservation are doing everything they can to protect the colonists, but with Barish-Estranza’s SecUnit-heavy persuasion teams, they’re going to have to hope Murderbot figures out what’s wrong with itself, and fast!
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SHADOW BARON by Davinia Evans (The Burnished City #2) — October 14
Shadow Baron is most certainly going to be another fun book with some very dangerous stakes. This is the second novel in Davinia Evans The Burnished City series, which started with last year’s Notorious Sorcerer. In a city where alchemy is strictly regulated, a young street alchemist named Siyon Velo accidentally sets off a chain reaction of calamitous events after visiting another plane. The result was a complicated tangle of politics and magic, with characters stuck in the middle whose unpredictable chaos kept things very interesting.
Shadow Baron continues the story for Siyon, complete with djinn, angels, and other magical entities from the planes outside the bustling city of Bezim. What trouble will he get himself into next?
Strap in for a thrilling adventure in the sequel to Davinia Evans’s wickedly entertaining debut fantasy that follows our favorite irreverent alchemists, high society ladies, and swashbuckling street gangs as they wrestle with the nature of reality itself.
Siyon Velo might be acknowledged as the Alchemist. He may even have stabilized the planes and stopped Bezim from ever shaking into the sea again. But that doesn’t mean he has any idea what he’s doing—and it won’t be long before everyone knows it.
To make things worse, mythical creatures once confined to operas and myths are spotted around Bezim. A djinn invades Zagiri’s garden party, and whispers of a naga slither across Anahid’s Flower district card tables. Magic is waking up in the Mundane. It’s up to Siyon to figure out a way to stop it, or everything he’s worked so hard to save will come crashing down.
