58 new eBooks and audiobooks coming out February 6 - 12, 2024

By Kobo • February 06, 2024New eBooks and Audiobooks

The books we’re most looking forward to this week

Congratulations, pessimists: the universe does indeed have it in for you. Mathematician Chris Ferrie, author of Quantum Bullsh*t: How to Ruin Your Life with Advice from Quantum Physics, reunites with high school teachers Wade David Fairclough and Byrne LaGinestra to explain why we’ve all got 42 reasons to hate the universe. Among the most notable: “literally everything is poisonous,” “invisible rays are melting our genetic code,” and “we’re all aging mutants.” Honestly, the last 2 sound like they should only count for 1 ½, but we know better than to argue with high school teachers. This trio previously collaborated on Prank Lab: Practical Science Pranks You and Your Victim Can Learn From, which is one of the most optimistic books ever written with the intention of instructing its reader to annoy somebody. And perhaps that optimism is why in addition to the 42 reasons for reflecting the universe’s apparent ire right back out into the cosmos, they offer one reason to give the universe a pass.

One of the thrilling things about the Nobel Prize for Literature is how, being an award for an author’s entire body of work, it can set a certain kind of reader on a path of discovery lasting years. Such was the case when Peter Handke, the Austrian writer known for thoughtful and provocative novellas, won the prize in 2019 after writing for over half a century and publishing seventeen books (as well as several screenplays and works for the stage), most of which were already available in translation. The first works from Handke since then, The Second Sword: A Tale from the Merry Month of May and My Day in the Other Land: A Tale of Demons, are collected in a single volume out now. We won’t be providing a plot summary here, as these are brief works best encountered with the freshest eyes—and there’s plenty of time to read both before the Swedish Academy reveals the 2024 winner in December.

Tia Williams’ 2021 breakout hit romance novel, the steamy literary love story Seven Days in June, primed audiences for the Netflix adaptation of an earlier book, The Perfect Find—but it’s another book that readers wanted most. Williams’ new book is A Love Song for Ricki Wilde, a slow-burn love story with twists and a dual timeline. Like her previous book, this is another story about artists, but that’s all we’re going to reveal here.

With The Trials of Empire, British novelist Richard Swan concludes his Empire of the Wolf legal-thriller / epic fantasy trilogy. Sir Konrad Vonvalt, in his role as Emperor’s Justice—an investigator, judge, and executioner—makes one last desperate attempt to save the empire, even if it means forming costly alliances. Over the three volumes, Vonvalt has developed into a layered anti-hero, whose resolute adherence to the letter of the law (including magical incantations) has led him into the greyest of grey areas. The remaining question is whether he’ll ever find his way out.

Sue Lynn Tan’s Celestial Kingdom fantasy romance duology wrapped up in 2022—but in Tales of the Celestial Kingdom readers can return to the “Immortal Realm” through nine stories. And to make that visit extra-vivid, this collection is illustrated by the acclaimed artist Kelly Chong.