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Penguin's Horoscope-inspired Reads!

Penguin's Horoscope-inspired Reads!

Browse our selection of Penguin Random House's Horoscope-inspired recommendations - The stars are definitely aligned this August!

ARIES: Bad Influence by Tamsin Winter - R 225

 A powerfully real and funny new story from the rising queen of teen, about first kisses, learning to be true to yourself and how one click can last for ever...

Amelia Bright wants to be the best at everything. But when it comes to popularity, she is dead last. No matter what she tries, she can't shake her reputation as a maggoty nobody.

When she meets cute new boy Evan, Amelia wonders if he can help her lose her loser status. And in a moment of hope, she agrees to something she quickly regrets - something that goes viral at school. Now she's not just called "maggot", she's a "bad influence" - and worse. But Amelia's determined not to let one mistake define her...she's so much more than the image everyone sees online.
 

TAURUS: Summer Switch-off by Beth Reekles - R235

Luna thought her first year at uni was perfect - until her relationship broke up, and she realised she's her old school friends might be ghosting her. She's never felt so lonely.

Rory's passion is art (and promoting it on her social media), but she wants to fit in with her sensible family, so she's signed up to study law. It sounds like the most boring thing on earth.

And as for Jodie - she's put her all into getting top marks at uni, but she can't remember the last time she had a night out - or a date. Her life is great on paper, but she's exhausted. Is this the right path for her after all?

In desperate need of an escape, the girls book themselves on a holiday that's meant to be perfect for solo travellers. But the idyllic resort of Casa Dorada is actually a digital detox retreat - which means NO PHONES! And that's not even the biggest disaster waiting for them. 

Will it be a summer the girls will never forget - or one they'd rather not remember?

 

GEMINI: DC Icons Harley Quinn 01: Reckoning by Rachael Allen - R250

Experience the origin story of a Super-Villain in this Harley Quinn backstory that fans have been waiting for—now available as a paperback.

When Harleen Quinzel scores an internship in a psych lab at Gotham University, she’s desperate to make a Big Scientific Discovery that will land her a full-ride college scholarship and get her away from her abusive father. But when Harleen witnesses the way women are treated across STEM departments—and experiences harassment herself—she decides that revenge and justice are more important than her own dreams.

Harleen finds her place in an intoxicating vigilante girl gang called the Reckoning, which creates chaos to inspire change. And when Harleen falls for another girl in the gang, it finally seems like she’s found her true passions. But what starts off as pranks and mischief quickly turns deadly as one of the gang members is found murdered—and a terrifying conspiracy is uncovered, putting the life Harleen has worked so hard for at stake. Will she choose her future—or will she choose revenge?

This refreshingly feminist spin on the story of our favorite villainess traces Harleen’s journey from precocious, revenge-obsessed teenage girl to a hardcore justice-seeker on her way to becoming the most captivating Super-Villain of all time.
Available for Pre-order, to be released 29 September 2023

CANCER: Buffy Next Generation 01: In Every Generation by Kendare Blake - R230

  Return to Sunnydale in a brand-new series by New York Times best-selling author Kendare Blake, set in the world of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

Frankie Rosenberg wasn't yet alive when her mom, Willow, her aunt Buffy, and the original Scooby Gang destroyed the Hellmouth and saved the world from the First Evil. These days, life in New Sunnydale is blissfully quiet. Frankie is just trying to survive her sophomore year at the rebuilt high school and use her budding magical powers to make the world a better place.

But that world is suddenly plunged into danger when the slayer community is the target of a deadly attack, leaving the future of the line uncertain. Then Frankie discovers she's sort of freakishly strong. Oh, and there's something Willow never told her about her true identity.

Cue the opening credits.

Quicker than she can carve a stake, Frankie discovers there's more to saving the world than witty one-liners and stupid hot demons. now everyone looks to her for answers, but speaking up has never been her strong suit. And it's hard to be taken seriously when your mom is such a powerful witch she almost ended the world once, while your greatest magic trick is recycling.

Despite the many challenges standing in her way, Frankie must assemble her own bumbling Scooby Gang, get dressed up in Buffy's (vintage '90s) clothes, and become a new slayer for a new generation―before whatever came for the rest of the slayers comes for her next.

LEO: Love Decoded by Jennifer Yen - R240

  A hilarious, heartfelt rom-com about the unexpected consequences of one teen's quest to help her friends find love, perfect for fans of Jenny Han and Jane Austen.

High school junior Gigi Wong strives to be the best. After all, that’s what everyone expects of her—her parents, friends, and even potential colleges. Thankfully, her best friend, Kyle, is always there to listen with a smile and a delicious bowl of ramen. Still, with her future—and her dreams—on the line, how is she to stand out when her classmates seem so perfect too?

Her answer comes in the form of an app writing contest. If Gigi can secure the nomination to represent her school, she has a chance at a prestigious tech internship. That’s sure to get her applications noticed . . . All she needs is a winning entry.

When transfer student and new friend Etta confides that she’s struggling to fit in, it gives Gigi an idea. What if she takes what she’s learned from shadowing her aunt Rose, a professional matchmaker, to create a fun friend-making app? Perfect!

When Gigi's app goes viral at school, she's the center of attention--and a major scandal. She never meant to hurt anyone, let alone Etta and Kyle. Can she save all she worked so hard for and the relationships that mean so much to her?

VIRGO: Lying in the Deep by Diana Urban - R230.00

  A juicy thriller of jealousy, love, and betrayal set on a Semester at Sea-inspired cruise ship, with a diverse cast of delightfully suspicious characters who’ll leave you guessing with every jaw-dropping twist.


After being jilted by her ex-boyfriend and best friend, Jade couldn't be more ready to embark on the adventure of a lifetime—11 countries in 4 months, all from the luxurious Campus on Board ship—and to wedge an entire globe between her and the people who broke her heart.

But when Jade discovers the backstabbing couple are also setting sail, her obsession with them grows and festers, leading to a shocking murder. And as their friends begin to drop like flies, Jade and her new crush must race to clear her name and find the killer they’re trapped at sea with….before anyone else winds up in body bags.

Available for Pre-order, to be released 29 September 2023

LIBRA: Threads That Bind by Kika Hatzopoulou - R235

 Io is the youngest of three sisters, descended from the Fates. She can see threads: shimmering silver lines connecting every person. When a new relationship is formed, a new thread appears. When a person's life-thread is cut, it's their time to die. Io uses her gifts as a private investigator, trying to make ends meet in a world which treats other-born people like her with suspicion and prejudice.

Then Io is witness to a murder - but this is no ordinary murder. Io can see that the killer's life-thread is severed. They should be long dead.

More complicated still, there is another witness: Edei, a member of the violent Rossi mob who rule Alante. And what Io can see immediately, although Edei cannot, is that there is a bright silver fate-thread connecting them. This boy is her destiny.

Io and Edei are thrown together to solve the case, and as Io grapples with the dark secrets lurking beneath Alante's surface, she must decide whether to embrace her fate and give in to the feelings growing between herself and Edei - or whether to cut the thread, and set him free.

 

SCORPIO: In Nightfall by Suzanne Young - R270

In the quaint town of Nightfall, Oregon, it isn't the dark you should be afraid of--it's the girls. The Lost Boys meets Buffy the Vampire Slayer in this propulsive novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The Treatment.


Theo and her brother, Marco, threw the biggest party of the year. And got caught. Their punishment? Leave Arizona to spend the summer with their grandmother in the rainy beachside town of Nightfall, Oregon--population 846 souls.

The small town is cute, when it's not raining, but their grandmother is superstitious and strangely antisocial. Upon their arrival she lays out the one house rule: always be home before dark. But Theo and Marco are determined to make the most of their summer, and on their first day they meet the enigmatic Minnow and her friends. Beautiful and charismatic, the girls have a magnetic pull that Theo and her brother can't resist.

But Minnow and her friends are far from what they appear. And that one rule? Theo quickly realizes she should have listened to her grandmother. Because after dark, something emerges in Nightfall. And it doesn't plan to let her leave.

SAGITTARIUS: Infinity Files 01 by S.M Wilson - R225

Escape into space with the star-spangled new series from the author of The Extinction Trials, perfect for fans of Doctor Who.

Get in. Get out.
Keep to the task.
Leave no trace.

Ash Yang dreamed of being a starfighter pilot. But when she crashes out of her final test - literally - she somehow lands the most powerful job in the universe. As Guardian of the Infinity Files she must secretly planet-hop through the galaxies, stealing or returning treasures that have the power to stop wars...or start them.

But when her home planet is the one at war, can she use her new skills to save it?

CAPRICORN: Snow & Poison by Melissa de la Cruz - R230

Known as Snow White, Lady Sophie has led a sheltered life in the mountains of Bavaria. Until now. Her father, the widowed Duke Maximilian, is at last remarrying, and on the day of his historic wedding, Sophie is making her high-society debut.

At the ball, Sophie charms the dashing Prince Philip, heir to the Spanish throne. But as Philip and Sophie start falling deeply in love, the king of Spain loses his temper. His wish is that Philip would marry a princess. And now, his command is Sophie's death.

In a quest for survival, Sophie seeks refuge in the home of seven orphans, the counsel of a witch, and the safety of her blade. With the looming threat of war upon her duchy, Sophie must ponder: Can she do right by her home and honor her heart's desire?

AQUARIUS: Stranded 01 by Sarah Daniels - R210

Welcome to the Arcadia.

Once a luxurious cruise ship, now it is home to the stranded. For forty years, they have lived, and died, on the water.

A place of extreme haves and have-nots, gangs and make-shift shelters, its people are tyrannized by a country they can see but can't get to. A country that says it doesn't want them.

Esther is a loyal citizen, working flat-out for a rare chance to live a life on land. Nik is a rebel, intent on liberating the Arcadia once and for all.

Together, they will change the future..

PISCES: Girls Like Girls by Hayley Kiyoko - R235

 It's summertime and 17-year-old Coley is alone, again. Forced to move to middle of nowhere Oregon after losing her mother, she is in no position to risk her already fragile heart. But when she meets Sonya, the attraction is immediate.

Coley worries she isn't worthy of love. Up until now, everyone she's loved has left her. And Sonya's never been with a girl before. What if by opening her heart, Coley's risking it all?
 
Was your read a good fit? Let us know in the comments below!
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