Can't Wait to Read Wednesday: Murder on Tour / Shards of Glass / Terminal Alliance

The New

Can't-Wait Wednesday is a weekly feature hosted by the marvelous Tressa at Wishful Endings to spotlight upcoming release we are excited about that we have yet to read.

Murder on Tour (Mystery Bookshop #9) by V.M. Burns

(Kensington Books, November 28, 2023; 336 pgs)

Bookstore owner and Michigander Samantha Washington is thrilled to see her debut historical mystery finally on the shelves, but a killer seems determined to steal away the spotlight . . .

While Sam wraps up her first whirlwind book tour, Nana Jo has kept Market Street Mysteries running smoothly. The last stop is a prestigious book festival in Sam’s hometown of North Harbor, Michigan. But not everyone thinks the guest of honor, bestselling author Judith Hunter, deserves stellar reviews. Sam witnesses nasty arguments between Judith and two different authors—who accuse her of plagiarism and sabotage . . .

When a publicist is poisoned during a cocktail reception, Sam wonders if the killer missed the intended target. It’s a twist that echoes the plot of Sam’s mystery, Murder at Wickfield Lodge. But fact can be stranger—and deadlier—than fiction. How much collateral damage is the killer willing to risk? With feisty Nana Jo and the girls from Shady Acres Retirement Village lending a hand, Sam tries to solve the case before the festival delivers another fatality . . . [Goodreads Summary]

I love a good bookstore themed cozy mystery and have been wanting to try this series for years now. Every new book that comes out in it is a reminder. It sounds perfect for me!  

 

Shards of Glass (Chronicles of Elantra) by Michelle Sagara
(Mira, November 28, 2023; 530 pgs)

The Academia, once an elite proving ground for the rulers of the world, has been frozen for centuries. Now its strange slumber has ended, and a new Chancellor, an orange-eyed dragon, has reopened its lecture halls and readied its dorms. In order to thrive once more, however, the Academia needs fresh blood—new students with a passion and talent for learning.

One such student, Robin, has the perfect recruit in his friend Raven, an orphan who lives in the dangerous Warrens. Robin grew up in the Warrens, and he wouldn't have made it if not for Raven. He knows she’ll be safe at the Academia, where her unusual gifts can be appreciated.

But when students start turning up dead, the campus threatens to collapse completely. Raven and Robin will not let that happen to their new home…if they can survive long enough to figure out who—or what—is trying to kill them. [Goodreads Summary]

This sounds so good! I love fantasy novels in school settings. And a mystery too! I glanced at some of the Goodreads reviews when I was pulling the blurb to share with you. This is a spinoff of the author's Chronicles of Elantra series, and so I was hoping a stand alone (or at least the beginning of a new series), but it looks like readers are recommending the original series be read first. I have a lot of reading ahead of me if I want to get caught up to read this one . . .

Do either of these books interest you? What upcoming releases are you looking forward to reading?

The Old(er) 

Carole of Carole's Random Life in Books has given me the perfect excuse to spotlight those unread books on my TBR in her Books from the Backlog feature, reminding me what great books I have waiting for me under my own roof still to read!

I remember being so excited about this one when it first came out (how many books do I say that about?). Alas, it still sits on my TBR shelf, waiting it's turn. I enjoy the Guardians of the Galaxy movies, a set of misfits who save the world, and this one gives off a similar vibe from the description. I love that the heroes of Terminal Alliance are janitors. I am bumping this up on my TBR pile. 

Terminal Alliance (Janitors of the Post-Apocalypse #1) by J.C. Hines 

(DAW, 2017; 352 pgs)

In his hilarious new sci-fi series, Jim C. Hines introduces the unlikely heroes that may just save the galaxy: a crew of space janitors.

The Krakau came to Earth to invite humanity into a growing alliance of sentient species. However, they happened to arrive after a mutated plague wiped out half the planet, turned the rest into shambling, near-unstoppable animals, and basically destroyed human civilization. You know—your standard apocalypse.

The Krakau’s first impulse was to turn around and go home. (After all, it’s hard to have diplomatic relations with mindless savages who eat your diplomats.) Their second impulse was to try to fix us. Now, a century later, human beings might not be what they once were, but at least they’re no longer trying to eat everyone. Mostly.

Marion “Mops” Adamopoulos is surprisingly bright (for a human). As a Lieutenant on the Earth Mercenary Corps Ship Pufferfish, she’s in charge of the Shipboard Hygiene and Sanitation team. When a bioweapon attack wipes out the Krakau command crew and reverts the rest of the humans to their feral state, only Mops and her team are left with their minds intact.

Escaping the attacking aliens—not to mention her shambling crewmates—is only the beginning. Sure, Mops and her team of space janitors and plumbers can clean the ship as well as anyone, but flying the damn thing is another matter.

As they struggle to keep the Pufferfish functioning and find a cure for their crew, they stumble onto a conspiracy that could threaten the entire alliance… a conspiracy born from the truth of what happened on Earth all those years ago. [Goodreads Summary]

Have you read Terminal Alliance?  Does this book sound like something you would like to read? 

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