Welcome to my weekly segment, Waiting on Wednesday, where I look at upcoming books that I am planning to order and review in the next few months and which I think I will really enjoy.  I run this segment in conjunction with the Can’t-Wait Wednesday meme that is currently running at Wishful Endings. Stay tuned to see reviews of these books when I get a copy of them. For this week’s waiting on Wednesday, I check out the upcoming third instalment of one of my favourite current science fiction series, Demon in White by Christopher Ruocchio.

Demon in White is the third book in Ruocchio’s debut series, the Sun Eater series, which started back in 2018 with the author’s first novel, Empire of Silence. The Sun Eater series is set in humanity’s distant future and revolves around the character of Hadrian Marlowe. Hadrian is a legendary figure and a renowned warrior, scholar and adventurer who is destined to one day obtain great infamy by exploding a sun, a feat that not only destroys an entire alien species but also results in the death of the Emperor of humanity. The books in the Sun Eater series follow an autobiographical account of Hadrian’s life that chronicles all of his formative moments and adventures, as well as the events that led to him making the terrible decision to cause so much destruction and harm. Demon in White will apparently follow Hadrian at a point when he has just started to obtain his galaxy-wide fame and acclaim and will continue his exploration into the mysterious forces that seem to be affecting his destiny.

I am a huge fan of the Sun Eater series, having fallen in love with the first book, Empire of Silence, due to its enthralling story, amazing gothic style and intriguing new science fiction universe. Its sequel, 2019’s Howling Dark, was just as impressive, especially as it took its story in some interesting new directions and presented some amazing and captivating sequences. I ended up awarding both of these novels a full five-star rating when I read them, and I consider them to be amongst my favourite books of 2018 and 2019 respectively. As a result, I am very excited that a new addition to the series is coming out soon, especially as it has a very cool-sounding plot synopsis.

Goodreads Synopsis:

The third novel of the galaxy-spanning Sun Eater series merges the best of space opera and epic fantasy, as Hadrian Marlowe continues down a path that can only end in fire.

Will this mysterious lost planet have the answers?

Based on the above synopsis, Demon in White (which is a pretty awesome title, by the way) looks like it is going to be another fascinating and enjoyable read. Not only are we going to see a lot more of the internal politics of the Roman-inspired Sollan Empire, but Hadrian and his cohorts are going to explore yet another mysterious alien planet. Some of my favourite parts of Howling Dark were when the protagonists found themselves trapped in several strange locations with all manner of technological monstrosities, and I look forward to exploring more of this fascinating and enjoyable universe. I also have no doubt that we are going to see yet another vital step in the march towards Hadrian’s destructive destiny, and I am excited to learn what events or encounters in this novel will change the protagonist and help push him in this dangerous direction.

Honestly, I have been planning to grab this book since the moment I finished Howling Dark as I am deeply curious to see how this whole series unwinds. The first two entries in the Sun Eater series have been pretty damn spectacular, and I have exceedingly high hopes for this third novel, especially after reading its intriguing plot synopsis. Demon in White is currently set for release in early July 2020, and it is among my most anticipated releases for the second half of the year. I already love the two new amazing covers that have been produced for it (while the copy of Demon in White I’ll receive will have the cover above, I kind of prefer the cover below with the figure in white on the throne, very nice) and I am sure that they will have an awesome story to match. Mark my words, this will be a book to look out for!!