Cover Reveal News Round-Up, Including Books By Sebastien de Castell, Richard Osman, Anna Smith Spark, James Islington, John Grisham, Holly Black, And Agatha Christie

The heat is on in this new edition of Cover Reveal News Round-Up. As the weather goes hot up to 45°C, the titles in this set are raging and scorching as well. We have sequels from Sebastien de Castell, Richard Osman, Anna Smith Spark, James Islington, Holly Black; stand-alone novel from John Grisham; and a redesign of a beloved classic by Agatha Christie.

The Malevolent Eight by Sebastien de Castell

Synopsis

The stakes have never been higher.

The world is teetering on the brink of annihilation. The Lords Celestine and the Lords Devilish, celestial and infernal beings locked in an age-old enmity, have at last found the perfect battlefield for their apocalyptic Great Crusade: the mortal realm.

Cade Ombra, former Glorian Justiciar turned mercenary wonderist, leads a band of emotionally unstable mages in a desperate bid to prevent the impending clash of divine and diabolical titans. Failure will leave humanity to be conscripted into an eternal war, serving as foot soldiers doomed to oblivion.

The mission seems impossible, but Cade and the Malevolent Seven aren't exactly pacifists, so they're determined to bring peace no matter how many people they have to kill first. With wit as sharp as their blades and a moral compass that points only toward survival, they're ready to cut down anyone in their path to stop the war before it begins.

Prepare for a whirlwind of dark magic, irreverent humour and relentless action in The Malevolent Eight: The Bad, The Worse and The Wicked. The fate of the humanity hangs in the balance, and only the most malevolent can hope to save it.

The Malevolent Eight by Sebastien de Castell will be released on May 22, 2025.

The Impossible Fortune by Richard Osman

Synopsis

Who's got time to think about murder when there's a wedding to plan?

It’s been a quiet year for the Thursday Murder Club. Joyce is busy with table plans and first dances. Elizabeth is grieving. Ron is dealing with family troubles, and Ibrahim is still providing therapy to his favourite criminal.

But when Elizabeth meets a wedding guest who’s in trouble, kidnap and death are hot on their heels once more. A villain wants access to an uncrackable code, and will stop at nothing to get it. Plunged back into action once more, can the gang solve the puzzle and a murder in time?

The Impossible Fortune by Richard Osman will be released on September 25, 2025.

A Sword of Gold and Ruin by Anna Smith Spark

Synopsis

The sequel to the masterpiece folk horror high fantasy A Sword of Bronze and Ashes, a lyrical blend of epic myth and daily life.

Kanda and her family are on a quest to rebuild the glory that was Roven. Mother and daughters stand together as a light against the darkness. But mother and daughters both have hands that are stained red with blood. They walk a path that is stranger and more beautiful than even Kanda dared imagine, bright with joy, bitter with grief. Ghosts and monsters dog their footsteps - but the greatest monsters lie in their hearts.

A Sword of Gold and Ruin by Anna Smith Spark will be released on September 9, 2025.

The Strength of the Few by James Islington

Synopsis

This highly anticipated follow-up to The Will of the Many—one of 2023’s most lauded and bestselling fantasy novels—follows Vis as he grapples with a dangerous secret that could unravel history across alternate dimensions.

OMNE TRIUM PERFECTUM

The Hierarchy still call me Vis Telimus. Still hail me as Catenicus. They still, as one, believe they know who I am.

But with all that has happened—with what I fear is coming—I am not sure it matters anymore.

I am no longer one. I won the Iudicium, and lost everything—and now, impossibly, the ancient device beyond the Labyrinth has replicated me across three separate worlds. A different version of myself in each of Obiteum, Luceum, and Res. Three different bodies, three different lives. I have to hide; fight; play politics. I have to train; trust; lie. I have to kill; heal; prove myself again, and again, and again.

I am loved, and hated, and entirely alone.

Above all, though, I need to find answers before it’s too late. To understand the nature of what has happened to me, and why.

I need to find a way to stop the coming Cataclysm, because if all I have learned is true, I may be the only one who can.

The Strength of the Few by James Islington will be released on November 11, 2025.

The Widow by John Grisham

Synopsis

#1 New York Times bestselling author John Grisham is the acclaimed master of the legal thriller. Now, he’s back with his first-ever whodunit, even more suspenseful than his courtroom dramas, as a small-time lawyer accused of murder races to find the real killer to clear his name.

Simon Latch is a lawyer in rural Virginia, making just enough to pay his bills while his marriage slowly falls apart. Then into his office walks Eleanor Barnett, an elderly widow in need of a new will. Apparently, her husband left her a small fortune, and no one knows about it.

Once he hooks the richest client of his career, Simon works quietly to keep her wealth under the radar. But soon her story begins to crack. When she is hospitalized after a car accident, Simon realizes that nothing is as it seems, and he finds himself on trial for a crime he swears he didn’t commit: murder.

Simon knows he’s innocent. But he also knows the circumstantial evidence is against him, and he could spend the rest of his life behind bars. To save himself, he must find the real killer….

The Widow by John Grisham will be released on October 21, 2025.

Thief of Night by Holly Black

Synopsis

The highly-anticipated sequel to the #1 New York Times bestselling author Holly Black's stunning adult debut, Book of Night.

There'd always been something wrong with Charlie Hall. Crooked from the day she was born. Never met a bad decision she wasn't willing to double down on. She may be good enough to steal a shadow from a tower, but will she be good enough to steal back a heart?

Thief of Night by Holly Black will be released on September 23, 2025.

Country Christie by Agatha Christie

Synopsis

Murder and mystery lurk in the hills and on the shores of Devon and Cornwall in this new Special Edition Hardback of Agatha Christie’s finest countryside stories.

Growing up in Torquay, Agatha Christie’s love of the West Country never left her and many of her finest stories are set on the moors and shores of Devon and Cornwall. This collection celebrates some of her finest countryside stories featuring a cast of Christie’s most iconic characters: Hercule Poirot, Miss Jane Marple, Tommy and Tuppence Beresford and Parker Pyne.

Also included in this story, published in its original form over a century after it first appeared in The Sketch magazine, join Poirot and Hastings as they solve a grizzly murder in The Adventure of the Dartmoor Bungalow.

Also included in this collection are:

• The Plymouth Express
• The Unbreakable Alibi
• The Case of the Missing Will
• Ingots of Gold
• Double Sin
• The Hound of Death
• The Cornish Mystery
• The Regatta Mystery
• The Flock of Geryon
• The Edge
• The Bloodstained Pavement
• The Adventure of the Dartmoor Bungalow

Country Christie by Agatha Christie will be released on September 11, 2025.

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Cover Reveal News Round-Up, Including Books By RJ Barker, Samantha Shannon, J.K. Rowling, Rick Riordan & Mark Oshiro, Jeff Kinney, And Agatha Christie

Gather up for this edition of the Cover Reveal News Round-Up! Sequels are abundant, namely books from RJ Barker, Samantha Shannon, Rick Riordan & Mark Oshiro, and Jeff Kinney. We also have the ever-ongoing redesign of Agatha Christie and J.K. Rowling's classics.

Heart of the Wyrdwood by RJ Barker

Synopsis

'That thing in Tiltspire, it keeps Cahan like a trophy. It says to us, here is your strongest and I have killed him.'

Cahan Du Nahare is lost, taken by a dark god whose tendrils reach throughout the world, intent on its destruction. Those who followed Cahan are spread across the land, desperate and lost now fate has turned against them. The Reborn warriors are toys for the enemy, the warrior Dassit, forestal Ania and monk Ont are drawn to the dangerous north but do not know why. Udinny is forced into the company of a woman who desires nothing more than her death and the Rai, Sorha, leads a dwindling band on a mission even she believes is doomed to failure. Only the trion Venn remains hopeful, slowly growing in power and trusting in the path of their god.

But maybe all is not lost, the great Wyrdwoods of Crua may be ancient and slow to act, but something in them is waking.

Wyrdwood is coming.

Heart of the Wyrdwood by RJ Barker will be released on June 24, 2025.

Among the Burning Flowers by Samantha Shannon

Synopsis

With the awakening of fire-breathing dragons, Among the Burning Flowers sees the first sparks of danger that threaten to consume the world in The Priory of the Orange Tree.

Take your first steps into the epic.
Yscalin, land of sunshine and lavender, will soon be ablaze.

It has been centuries since the Draconic Army took wing, almost extinguishing humankind.

Marosa Vetalda is a prisoner in her own home, controlled by her cold father, King Sigoso. Over the mountains, her betrothed, Aubrecht Lievelyn, rules Mentendon in all but name. Together, they intend to usher in a better world.

A better world seems impossibly distant to Estina Melaugo, who hunts the Draconic beasts that have slept across the world for centuries.

And now the great wyrm Fýredel is stirring, and Yscalin will be the first to fall...

A story of human resilience in the face of dire circumstances, Among the Burning Flowers leads readers through the gripping and tragic events that pave the way for the opening of the million-copy bestseller The Priory of The Orange Tree.

Richly illustrated with magical artwork by Rovina Cai (@rovinacai).

Among the Burning Flowers by Samantha Shannon will be released on September 11, 2025.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling and Karl James Mountford

Synopsis

Get ready for adventure with this dazzling edition of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire! J.K. Rowling's complete and unabridged text is accompanied by stunning, full-colour illustrations throughout and eight paper-engineered interactive elements. Readers will love looking inside the Weasleys' magical tent at the Quidditch World Cup, watching the Dark Mark appear in the sky and following Harry into the lake during the Triwizard Tournament!

Beautifully made and visually breathtaking, this is a special gift for Harry Potter fans of all ages. A wonderful addition to any collector's bookshelf, it is also an enchanting way to share this beloved series with a new generation of readers.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling and Karl James Mountford will be released on October 14, 2025.

The Court of the Dead by Rick Riordan and Mark Oshiro

Synopsis

New York Times #1 best-selling authors Rick Riordan and Mark Oshiro collaborate again on a new adventure in which Nico di Angelo teams up with his half-sister Hazel Levesque to protect... monsters?

A few months after returning from the depths of Tartarus, demigods Nico di Angelo and Will Solace agree to join Nico's half-sister Hazel Levesque at Camp Jupiter on the West Coast. She needs their help in managing a situation that the boys inadvertentlybrought about: the demigods showed the monsters of the Underworld that they have options; they don’t have to be evil.

Now some of those monsters have taken up residence at Camp Jupiter to seek refuge. Nico and Will are on site assisting Hazel when one by one monsters start disappearing from camp. A mysterious dark force is at work, and its plan is to punish all monsters for their past crimes. Things only get worse when Nico, Will, and Hazel learn that they’re all connected to it

The Court of the Dead by Rick Riordan and Mark Oshiro will be released on September 23, 2025.

Partypooper by Jeff Kinney

Synopsis

International bestselling author Jeff Kinney serves up heaps of laughs in Partypooper, the 20th book in the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series.

You’re Invited—RSVP for Fun!

Over the years, Greg Heffley has chronicled his mishaps and misadventures in a series of diaries—make that journals—but book 20 of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series, Partypooper, really takes the cake!

Expect gobs of fun and over-the-top antics as Greg throws an epic birthday party for none other than himself. So come celebrate and laugh alongside Greg, his family, and the entire world of Wimpy Kid fans.

Partypooper by Jeff Kinney will be released on October 21, 2025.

The Seven Dials Mystery by Agatha Christie

Synopsis

A healthy young man dies in his sleep, despite the ringing of seven separate alarm clocks...

Gerry Wade had proved himself to be a champion sleeper; so the other house guests decided to play a practical joke on him. Eight alarm clocks were set to go off, one after the other, starting at 6.30 a.m. But when morning arrived, one clock was missing and the prank had backfired with tragic consequences.

For Jimmy Thesiger in particular, the words ‘Seven Dials’ were to take on a new and chilling significance...

The Seven Dials Mystery by Agatha Christie will be released on September 11, 2025.

The Sittaford Mystery by Agatha Christie

Synopsis

In a remote house in the middle of Dartmoor, six shadowy figures huddle around a table for a seance. Tension rises as the spirits spell out a chilling message: "Captain Trevelyan... dead... murder."

Is this black magic or simply a macabre joke? The only way to be certain is to locate Captain Trevelyan. Unfortunately, his home is six miles away and, with snowdrifts blocking the roads, someone will have to make the journey on foot...

The Sittaford Mystery by Agatha Christie will be released on November 6, 2025.

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Cover Reveal News Round-Up, Including Books By Ben Aaronovitch, Sarah Dass, Tahereh Mafi, Dan Brown, Hisashi Kashiwai, R. F Kuang, Karin Smirnoff, And Susan Dennard

This edition of the Cover Reveal News Round-Up is a heterogenous mix of genres and sub-genres! We have sequels from Ben Aaronovitch, Hisashi Kashiwai, Karin Smirnoff, Dan Brown, and Susan Dennard. We also have standalone novels or possibly searies openers from Sarah Dass, Tahereh Mafi, and R. F. Kuang.

Stone and Sky by Ben Aaronovitch

Synopsis

'This isn't London. The rules are different up here, and so are the allegiances.'

Detective Sergeant Peter Grant takes a much-needed holiday up in Scotland. And he'll need one when this is over...

If more's the merrier, then it's ecstatic as his partner Beverley, their young twins, his mum, dad, his dad's band and their dodgy manager all tag along. Even his boss, DCI Thomas Nightingale, takes in the coastal airs as he trains Peter's cousin Abigail in the arcane arts.

And they'll need them too, because Scotland's Granite City has more than its fair share of history and mystery, myth ... and murder.

Stone and Sky by Ben Aaronovitch will be released on July 3, 2025.

The Secret of Secrets by Dan Brown

Synopsis

The world’s most celebrated thriller writer returns with his most stunning novel yet—a propulsive, twisty, thought-provoking masterpiece that will entertain readers as only Dan Brown can do.

Robert Langdon, esteemed professor of symbology, travels to Prague to attend a groundbreaking lecture by Katherine Solomon—a prominent noetic scientist with whom he has recently begun a relationship. Katherine is on the verge of publishing an explosive book that contains startling discoveries about the nature of human consciousness and threatens to disrupt centuries of established belief. But a brutal murder catapults the trip into chaos, and Katherine suddenly disappears along with her manuscript. Langdon finds himself targeted by a powerful organization and hunted by a chilling assailant sprung from Prague’s most ancient mythology. As the plot expands into London and New York, Langdon desperately searches for Katherine... and for answers. In a thrilling race through the dual worlds of futuristic science and mystical lore, he uncovers a shocking truth about a secret project that will forever change the way we think about the human mind.

The Secret of Secrets by Dan Brown will be released on September 9, 2025.

The Menu of Happiness by Hisashi Kashiwai

Synopsis

A beloved Japanese bestseller, The Menu of Happiness is for fans of Before the Coffee Gets Cold and asks the question: What’s the one dish you’d do anything to taste just one more time?

Every memory has a flavor. A very special restaurant in Kyoto helps find them...

Tucked away down a Kyoto backstreet lies the extraordinary Kamogawa Diner, run by Chef Nagare and his daughter, Koishi. The father-daughter duo have reinvented themselves as “food detectives,” offering a service that goes beyond cooking mouth-watering meals. Through their culinary sleuthing, they harness the power of taste to rekindle forgotten memories.

From the yakisoba holding the memories of precious first love to the dumplings shared between sworn enemies, each client will be forever changed by what they find on the menu, because the Kamogawa Diner doesn’t just serve meals—it’s a door to the past.

The Menu of Happiness by Hisashi Kashiwai will be released on October 14, 2025.

The Girl with Ice in Her Veins by Karin Smirnoff

Synopsis

Lisbeth Salander returns in this chilling new installment of the multi-million-copy bestselling Millennium series.

Sweden’s far north is growing colder; even in springtime, the town of Gasskas is buried under a relentless snow. As temperatures drop, tensions rise between a global corporation shamelessly exploiting the area's natural resources and wary locals who have scores to settle. A bomb blasts apart a crucial bridge. Soon after, a young journalist is found murdered.

The Girl with Ice in Her Veins by Karin Smirnoff will be released on September 2, 2025.

Witchlight by Susan Dennard

Synopsis

The highly-anticipated finale to Susan Dennard's New York Times bestselling Witchlands series

Paths converge and prophecies unfold as Safi and Iseult―the legendary Cahr Awen―fight their way across the Witchlands to heal the final Origin Well. With ancient figures rising from the past, the Raider King’s armies gathering for war, and the magic at the heart of everything dying too fast, the entire world is now on the brink of collapse.

But when Safi and Iseult reach the Air Well with the Bloodwitch Aeduan at their side, they discover too late that Eridysi's Lament is not the prophecy they thought it was―and their journeys are only just beginning.

Witchlight by Susan Dennard will be released on November 4, 2025.

It Lurks in the Night by Sarah Dass

Synopsis

From the author of It Waits in the Forest comes Sarah Dass’s next stand-alone supernatural thriller—a lush and evocative tale of the rot that grows at the heart of even the most beautiful places. Perfect for fans of Angeline Boulley and Tiffany D. Jackson!

All Maya Woods wants is to reunite her three best friends, Pearl, Erica, and Lystra, for one last epic boat trip to the islands around their Caribbean home before they all graduate from high school. But the girls are forced to make an emergency landing on Annatto—an island avoided by locals and tourists alike because of the rumors of monsters and shadows that lurk in its depths—and their yearly tradition descends into darkness as Erica turns up dead and the girls are forced to leave her body behind.

Their tight-knit community is sent into a spiral of grief and suspicion, and Maya and her friends are at a loss to understand what happened: was it simply an accident or is there truth to the rumors about Annatto?

And while the community rejoices when Erica mysteriously returns alive and well a week later, Maya can’t seem to let go of her questions. What did they see that night? And who—or what—has Erica returned as? As old arguments and new betrayals rise to the surface, Maya and her friends can feel the shadows closing in on them. Something is lurking in the night, and they must be ready to face it.

Drawing from the darkest corners of Caribbean mythology, acclaimed author Sarah Dass delivers a supernatural thriller blends cultural nuance with monsters that go bump in the night, giving long-time Rick Riordan Presents fans the kind of story that will root into their hearts and awaken never their deepest fears.

Endorsed by Rick Riordan, author of the Disney+ hit series Percy Jackson and the Olympians.

It Lurks in the Night by Sarah Dass will be released on November 4, 2025.

Watch Me by Tahereh Mafi

Synopsis

James Anderson had a plan. Or half of one. All that matters is that he managed to do what his older brother, the famous Aaron Warner Anderson, never did: infiltrate Ark Island, the last refuge of The Reestablishment. In the past decade no outsider has breached the stronghold of the authoritarian regime, but James is in. In a prison cell, sure, but as far as James is concerned, a win is a win.

It’s been ten years since the fall of The Reestablishment. Ten years since the notorious duo—Juliette Ferrars and Aaron Warner Anderson—led a worldwide rebellion and established the New Republic of the West. But after a decade of unsettling quiet, The Reestablishment is ready to make a devastating move, and they have the perfect person for the job.

Rosabelle Wolff had a plan. She always has a plan. On Ark Island, where constant surveillance is packaged as security, even emotions must be experienced with caution. A trained assassin, her every movement is monitored by synthetic intelligence—and when she’s given an order to kill, she never hesitates.

Brimming with pulse-pounding action and torturous romance, Watch Me is an explosive journey through a dystopian landscape where enemies-to-lovers has never felt more impossible. Step into a beloved and breathtaking world that demands an answer to a desperate question—

Who are we when no one is watching?

Watch Me by Tahereh Mafi will be released on April 15, 2025.

Katabasis by R. F. Kuang

Synopsis

Dante’s Inferno meets Susanna Clarke’s Piranesi in this all-new dark academia fantasy from R. F. Kuang, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Babel and Yellowface, in which two graduate students must put aside their rivalry and journey to Hell to save their professor’s soul—perhaps at the cost of their own.

Katabasis, noun, Ancient Greek:

The story of a hero’s descent to the underworld

Alice Law has only ever had one goal: to become one of the brightest minds in the field of Magick. She has sacrificed everything to make that a reality: her pride, her health, her love life, and most definitely her sanity. All to work with Professor Jacob Grimes at Cambridge, the greatest magician in the world.

That is, until he dies in a magical accident that could possibly be her fault.

Grimes is now in Hell, and she’s going in after him. Because his recommendation could hold her very future in his now incorporeal hands and even death is not going to stop the pursuit of her dreams....

Nor will the fact that her rival, Peter Murdoch, has come to the very same conclusion.

With nothing but the tales of Orpheus and Dante to guide them, enough chalk to draw the Pentagrams necessary for their spells, and the burning desire to make all the academic trauma mean anything, they set off across Hell to save a man they don’t even like.

But Hell is not like the storybooks say, Magick isn’t always the answer, and there’s something in Alice and Peter’s past that could forge them into the perfect allies... or lead to their doom.

Katabasis by R. F. Kuang will be released on August 26, 2025.

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