Gateway Reviews

New month, new books for our TBRs! September brings a touch of #spooky on the air, but October begins spooky season for real. Don't worry, I have some properly spooky book reviews lined up for this month. But October also launches the Fall publishing season, and there are a lot of books to celebrate this month. Here are some of the less-than-spooky books I'll be adding to my TBR. The Butterfly's Sting Abbie Harlow From the Publisher: Never again. That’s what seventeen-year-old Bo Clark has promised her two younger siblings ever since they were put in separate foster homes―a situation that nearly turned deadly for her little brother, and that they have vowed never to repeat. Bo will do anything to keep that promise. Even if it means enduring the abuse of Uncle Jack, their new guardian. When Jack discovers that Bo has a talent for boxing, he signs her up for an underground fight club tournament, which co...

SPLIT THE SKY Lala Russell is tired. She's tired of fighting for justice. She's tired of rallies and hashtags. She's tired of the Confederate flag being flown at her elite private school. She's tired of the "debates" about where she belongs. She'd rather not think about any of this and focus instead on the musical talent that's going to launch her out of this town for good. But in a sundown town like Davey, Texas, nobody gets to rest. Especially not a girl like Lala, who has inherited the gift of foresight from her grandmother. Not a girl like Lala, who's just had a vision of another black boy being shot... and the wave of protests that break out afterwards. Lala didn't want to see this, and she definitely doesn't want it to come true. But some things are set in stone. And some visions aren't meant to be tampered with. THOUGHTS Marie Arnold ...

HAZELTHORN Sometimes Evander forgets he's actually alive and not just some other forgotten piece of furniture in the vast halls of Hazelthorn estate. He's been living here, tucked away in a dark and dusty wing, ever since he was taken in by his reclusive billionaire guardian Byron Lennox-Hall years ago. And by now, Evander knows the rules: He can't leave the estate, not while he's still healing from the near-fatal injury he suffered. He can't go into the gardens, where that injury happened. And he can't ever be left with Byron's charming grandson Laurie, not since Laurie was the one who tried to kill him. But when Byron suddenly dies, Evander's life is flipped upside down. Because Evander has inherited everything, the estate and the fortune and all it entails. And Laurie has received nothing. And with Lennox-Halls emerging from the woodwork looking for a slice of Evander's prize, Evander isn't sure who...

I KILLED THE KING After a decade of war, the kingdoms of Avendell and Istellia want peace. Everyone has flocked to Avendell Castle for the signing of the treaty. Nobody would miss the all-night masquerade to celebration. But as the partygoers gather, Avendell's King Costis summons a small group to his inner chamber: his son the crown prince, the Istellian treaty representative, a wild beast tamer, a questionable palace healer, and the king's own personal guard. And before he can tell them why he's brought them together, the room goes dark. When the mage lights come back, the king is dead. The princess's knife is in his side, in the weak spot only his guard knew of. The body is frothing at the mouth with venom from the beast tamer's monsters. An assassin tumbles out of the wardrobe, confused and dismayed with an invitation in the crown prince's handwriting in her pocket. And the healer is too drunk to make sense of any...

FOR THE REST OF US: 13 FESTIVE HOLIDAY STORIES TO CELEBRATE ALL SEASONS Lunar New Year to Winter Solstice, Juneteenth to Hannukah: not every American holiday is about Christmas cheer. This collection of thirteen festive stories weaves through a calendar brimming with all kinds of festivals and holy days, bringing family (and family conflict) together again and again. Joy and holiday warmth from a diverse array of authors help to bring these celebrations alive. THOUGHTS I really loved this anthology! I always go into an anthology with high hopes, but it can be so hard to find a collection by so many different authors where all of the stories work. And here they did! I loved every one of these stories so much. PROS Really Diverse This is an incredibly diverse selection of stories, of holidays, of authors and backgrounds. I loved learning ab...

New month, new books for our TBRs! I've got some great reads lined up this month at Gateway Reviews, but with only one review slot each week, I can't possibly cover all the books I'm excited about. Going forward, I want to feature books each month that I haven't had the time to read (and review) just yet. BAD IN THE BLOOD Matteo L. Cerilli From the Publisher: In the city of Puck’s Port, where motorized vehicles fill the streets and new technological marvels abound, something rotten is lurking under the surface. A violent murder at the docks seems to point to a fey killer, igniting a powder keg of distrust between the city’s humans and its fey inhabitants — folks who wield wonderful but often uncontrollable magical power. Gristle Senan Maxim Junior finds himself caught in the middle. Forced into the reluctant role of private investigator, like his late father, he’s working to solve the ...