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Iris

Book review: Starling House

Starling House by Alix E. Harrow Opal Gravely has spent her life obsessed with the mysterious Starling House – but when its reclusive heir offers her a job, she discovers there may be monsters lurking within. This is a sweeping, Gothic fairytale from Hugo, Nebula and Locus Award-shortlisted Alix E. [...]

2025-02-11T15:40:04+01:00Tags: , , , , , |

Legends & Lattes

High fantasy, low stakes - with a double-shot of coffee. After decades of adventuring, Viv the orc barbarian is finally hanging up her sword for good. Now she sets her sights on a new dream - for she plans to open the first coffee shop in the city of Thune. Even though no one there knows what coffee actually is. If Viv wants to put the past behind her, she can't go it alone. And help might arrive from unexpected quarters.

VI: ABC Top 5 2024: Klaartje, Jouke and IrisW

We are back with our 5(ish) favorite reads (and games) of 2024! We try very hard to keep it to five, but it’s simply not always possible. So, per staff member there may be more or less than five titles, but there can also be an A and a B list, [...]

The Mimicking of Known Successes

On a remote, gas-wreathed outpost of a human colony on Jupiter, a man goes missing. The enigmatic Investigator Mossa follows his trail to Valdegeld, home to the colony's erudite university -- and Mossa's former girlfriend, a scholar of Earth's pre-collapse ecosystems. Pleiti has dedicated her research and her career to aiding the larger effort towards a possible return to Earth. When Mossa unexpectedly arrives and requests Pleiti's assistance in her latest investigation, the two of them embark on a twisting path in which the future of life on Earth is at stake -- and, perhaps, their futures, together.

To Be Taught, If Fortunate

At the turn of the twenty-second century, scientists make a breakthrough in human spaceflight. Through a revolutionary method known as somaforming, astronauts can survive in hostile environments off Earth using synthetic biological supplementations. They can produce antifreeze in sub-zero temperatures, absorb radiation and convert it for food, and conveniently adjust to the pull of different gravitational forces. With the fragility of the body no longer a limiting factor, human beings are at last able to explore neighbouring exoplanets long suspected to harbour life.

Some Desperate Glory

The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet meets Ender's Game in this gripping science fiction debut from an award-winning voice in SFF. While we live, the enemy shall fear us. Since she was born, Kyr has trained for the day she can avenge the murder of planet Earth. Raised in the bowels of Gaea Station alongside the last scraps of humanity, she readies herself to face the Wisdom, the powerful, reality-shaping weapon that gave the majoda their victory over humanity.

Nothing But the Rain

A sleepy little town discovers its memories have become part of the water cycle in Naomi Salman's debut novella, Nothing but the Rain. The rain in Aloisville is never-ending, and no one can remember when it started. There’s not much they can remember. With every drop that hits their skin, a bit of memory is washed away. Stay too long in the wet, and you’ll lose everything you used to be.

Farewell ABC Staff Picks

By Lília All good things must come to an end. And so, we say goodbye to our ABC Staff Picks on YouTube. Thanks to everyone who watched us over the years. A big thanks to hosts Luke and Iris and all our expert booksellers who have given [...]

Loveless

Georgia has never been in love, never kissed anyone, never even had a crush -- but as a fanfic-obsessed romantic she's sure she'll find her person one day. As she starts university with her best friends, Pip and Jason, Georgia is ready to find romance, and with her outgoing roommate on her side and a place in the Shakespeare Society, her "teenage dream" is in sight. But when her romance plan wreaks havoc amongst her friends, Georgia ends up in her own comedy of errors, and she starts to question why love seems so easy for other people but not for her. With new terms thrown at her - asexual, aromantic - Georgia is more uncertain about her feelings than ever. Is she destined to remain loveless? Or has she been looking for the wrong thing all along?

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