Top Ten Tuesday: Books on My Winter 2024-2025 To Read List


Hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

Winter is a time of year when I tend to get a lot of reading done due to how snowy and cold it can be outside.

Here are ten books coming out this winter that I’m looking forward to checking out. If no release date is included, that means that title is already available to buy or hopefully even borrow from your local library if you have one!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1. Cabin: Off the Grid Adventures with a Clueless Craftsman by Patrick Hutchinson

Why I’m Interested:  I’m too much of a city person to ever want to live off grid in the middle of nowhere, but I do enjoy reading about such things! (See also: that old fable about the city mouse and country mouse who take turns visiting each other and realize that not all mice like to live in the same sorts of places!)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2. A Witch’s Guide to Magical Innkeeping  by Sangu Mandanna 

Release Date: December 24

Why I’m Interested: The plot sounds cozy and sweet.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3. Heavenly Tyrant (Iron Widow, #2) by Xiran Jay Zhao

Release Date: December 24

Why I’m Interested: The first book in this series has been on my TBR list forever. Maybe the sequel coming out will convince me to finally read it?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4.  Witchcraft for Wayward Girls by Grady Hendrix

Release Date: January 14

Why I’m Interested: Mr. Hendrix writes such attention-grabbing books that I always keep an eye out for what he’s come up with next.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

5 .Something Like Fate: A Novel by Amy Lea

Release Date: February 4

Why I’m Interested: This looks like a cute romance.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

6. Raised By Ghosts by Briana Loewinsohn

Release Date: February 4

Why I’m Interested: The blurb made it sound like a thoughtful graphic novel about dealing with loneliness.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

7. Life Hacks for a Little Alien by Alice Franklin

Release Date: February 11

Why I’m Interested: The fabulous title. How could I not want to read something this playful?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

8. Emily Wilde’s Compendium of Lost Tales (Emily Wilde, #3) by Heather Fawcett

Release Date: February 11

Why I’m Interested: Just like with answer #3, this is a series I’ve been meaning to read for a while now and am hoping to find the time for soon.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

9. Three Days in June by Anne Tyler

Release Date: February 11

Why I’m Interested: We all go through hard times in life eventually. What interested me about this tale is how many different conflicts and difficulties the protagonist had to deal with at once. It’s difficult when that happens, but I have hope that she’ll get through all of them.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

10. I Got Abducted by Aliens and Now I’m Trapped in a Rom-Com (Cosmic Chaos, #1) by Kimberly Lemming (black

Release Date: February 18

Why I’m Interested: Cheeky, self-aware titles are the best, and this one looks like it will be great fun to read.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Top Ten Tuesday: Books on My Fall 2024 To-Read List


Hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

Some of the books on today’s list have already been released this month. I’ve included the release dates for the rest of them so that you will know when to look for them if they also appeal to you!

In lieu of sharing a stock photo in this post, I’ll let the covers speak for themselves. Aren’t they neat?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1. Compound Fracture by Andrew Joseph White

Why I’m Interested: It’s nice to see more books being published about people who live in rural places.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2. Luminous Beings

by David Arnold

Why I’m Interested: This sounds so good.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3. Somewhere Beyond the Sea (The House in the Cerulean Sea, #2)  by T.J. Klune

Why I’m Interested: I’ve been meaning to read this series since it was still a standalone novel. Someday I will read it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4. This World Is Not Yours by Kemi Ashing-Giwa 

Why I’m Interested: I love stories about the dangerous side of space travel.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

5. This Land Is Our Land: A Blue Beetle Story by Julio Anta 

Release Date: October 1

Why I’m Interested: The cover is eye-catching and already seems to tell a story.

 

(This cover was too large to upload, but the link below contains it)

6. If I Stopped Haunting You by Colby Wilkens

Release Date: October 15

Why I’m Interested: It’s so fun to find books about writers going on writers’ retreats.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

7.  Januaries by Olivie Blake

Release Date: October 15

Why I’m Interested: This sounds like a wonderful hodgepodge of storylines.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

8. Don’t Let the Forest In by C.G. Drews

Release Date: October 29

Why I’m Interested: I can’t wait to be scared by it!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

9. She’s Always Hungry: Stories  by Eliza Clark

Release Date: November 12

Why I’m Interested: November is such a dark and dreary time of year due to the overcast skies, time change, and weak sunlight where I live. I might as well read a lot of horror then!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

10. The Serviceberry: Abundance and Reciprocity in the Natural World by Robin Wall Kimmerer

Release Date: November 19

Why I’m Interested: I recently reviewed a book for Long and Short Reviews about how to use wild plants as food as well as natural remedies. That experience makes me curious to learn more.

Top Ten Tuesday: Most Anticipated Books Releasing During the Second Half of 2024


Hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

All of my answers are from September and October. There don’t seem to be many releases scheduled for November yet, but I do look forward to seeing what shows up for that month later on!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1. Build a Girlfriend by Elba Luz

Release Date: September 1

Why I Want to Read It: This looks like a lighthearted read.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2. Compound Fracture  by Andrew Joseph White

Release Date: September 2

Why I Want to Read It: There aren’t a lot of books about LGBTQ+ people living in rural areas from what I’ve seen. What a refreshing change of scene.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3. Luminous Beings by David Arnold

Release Date: September 3

Why I Want to Read It: Three words  –  wild goose chase. What a fun thing to read about.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4. Somewhere Beyond the Sea (The House in the Cerulean Sea, #2)  by T.J. Klune

Release Date: September 10

Why I Want to Read It: T.J. Klune is a great storyteller and someone I always take note of when she releases a new book.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

5. This World Is Not Yours by Kemi Ashing-Giwa 

Release Date: September 10

Why I Want to Read It: Scary space travel is right up my alley.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

6. Graveyard Shift by M.L. Rio 

Release Date: Septmber 24

Why I Want to Read It: Night shift work is so interesting to me. The fact that this is set in a cemetery makes it even better!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

7.  This Land Is Our Land: A Blue Beetle Story by Julio Anta 

Release Date: October 1

Why I Want to Read It: The cover looks amazing. As the blurb wasn’t yet available when I wrote this post, that is all I have to go with at the moment. Isn’t it cool when a cover can do that for a reader?

 

(This cover is not available at the moment)

8.  If I Stopped Haunting You by Colby Wilkens

Release Date: October 15

Why I Want to Read It: The premise is delightfully silly. Sometimes you just want to read something that would never happen in real life (or at least I do!)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

9. Januaries by Olivie Blake

Release Date: October 17

Why I Want to Read It: I’ve built up a reputation on Long and Short Reviews as a reviewer who loves requesting anthologies. There’s nothing like reading short stories from a variety of writers. It’s such a great way to quickly get to know many authors in the same genre and see if you want to read more from them.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

10. Don’t Let the Forest In by C.G. Drews

Release Date: October 29

Why I Want to Read It: This is another horror tale I think might be perfect for Halloween. I love getting scared during spooky season.

Top Ten Tuesday: Books on My Summer 2024 To-Read List


Hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

Here are ten books I’m looking forward to checking out this summer. If a release date hasn’t been included, that title is already available to purchase or maybe even request from your local library if you have one!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1. It’s Only a Game by Kelsea Yu

Why I Want to Read It: I’m fascinated by stories about people who must assume new identities.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2.  Eruption by Michael Crichton

Why I Want to Read It: Crichton has a long history of writing exciting thrillers that make great vacation reads.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3.  The Ghost of Us by James L. Sutter

Why I Want to Read It: Would I ever go ghost hunting in real life? No, but it is fun to read about in fiction.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4. We Used to Live Here by Marcus Kliewer

Why I Want to Read It: Since this going to be turned into a Netflix film soon, I want to get to know the book’s version of events first.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

5. How to Make a Horror Movie and Survive by Craig DiLouie

Why I Want to Read It: Fellow horror fans, don’t you wish you could give advice to some horror film characters? I feel like more of them would survive if they were aware of this genre in advance and took some basic safety precautions.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

6.  Saints of Storm and Sorrow by Gabriella Buba

Release Date: June 25

Why I Want to Read It: This sounds like such a playful and lighthearted read. Sometimes one needs a little of that in my opinion!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

7. Hombrecito by Santiago Jose Sanchez

Release Date: June 25

Why I Want to Read It: The main character sounds like such an interesting person. It’s not easy to come out of the closet or to feel torn between two different cultures.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

8. Someone Like Us by Dinaw Mengestu

Release Date: July 30

Why I Want to Read It: This sounds like an exquisite novel full of strong character development and thoughtful commentary on life.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

9. Dance of the Starlit Sea by Kiana Krystle

Release Date: August 6

Why I Want to Read It: A Greek myth retelling is right up my alley.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

10. A Sorceress Comes to Call by T. Kingfisher

Release Date: August 6

Why I Want to Read It: Kingfisher is one of those authors I always check out when they release something new. Also, I love fairy tale retellings even more than Greek mythology ones!

Top Ten Tuesday: Unread Books on My Shelves I Want to Read Soon


Hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

I love my local libraries and they’re such a great resource for so many things.  Plus, there’s this beautiful thing called a holds list.  Trouble is, I work full-time and have a family, so I don’t always get through books as fast as I’d like sometimes.  This, in turn, leads me to play this game I like to call hold list roulette.  I keep clicking ‘deliver later’ because I’m either not in the mood for that particular book or because I’m buried in ARCs, group reads, or other things.

Too bad there’s not a payout for finally borrowing that book you’ve pushed back fifteen times.

Here’s a list of the oldest books on my holds list.

Insurgency by Jeremy W. Peters.  April 3, 2022

Four Aunties and a Wedding by Jesse Q. Sutano.  August 31, 2022

Cultish by Amanda Montell.  September 11, 2022

Up to No Gouda by Linda Reilly.  January 22, 2023

The Friend Zone by Abby Jimenez.  November 18, 2022

It’s One of Us by J.T. Ellison.  February 16, 2023

Thief in the Night by KJ Charles.  June 28, 2023

The Only Purple House in Town by Ann Aguirre.  July 18, 2023

Forget the Alamo by Bryan Burrough.  November 9, 2023

And There He Kept Her by Joshua Moehling.  May 10, 2023.

What’s been lingering on your TBR, just begging to be read?

Top Ten Tuesday: Books on my Spring 2024 TBR


Hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

I hope all of these books will be great reads!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1. Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenez

Release Date: April 2

Why I’m Interested: I have not seen many books talk about Reddit. This could be really good.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2. The Titanic Survivors’ Book Club by Timothy Schaffert

Release Date: April 2

Why I’m Interested: The Titanic was such an interesting and tragic chapter of history. I’ve often wondered how the survivors coped with their memories from that time.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3. The Black Girl Survives in This One by Desiree S. Evans (Editor)

Release Date: April 2

Why I’m Interested: The title. Isn’t it fabulous and refreshing?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4.Late Bloomer by Mazey Eddings

Release Date: April 16

Why I’m Interested: Spring is a great time to read romance novels.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

5. Indian Burial Ground by Nick Medina

Release Date: April 16

Why I’m Interested: The horror and mystery genres work well together, and this sounds like it could be quite the adventure.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

6.Home Is Where the Bodies Are  by Jeneva Rose

Release Date: April 30

Why I’m Interested: I like watching old home videos of myself and my loved ones. The thought of discovering an old while watching something like this is a cool twist on the mystery genre!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

7. Lavash at First Sight by Taleen Voskuni

 

(The file for this cover was too large to upload for this book, but the link below will show it.)

8. Snowblooded by Emma Sterner-Radley

Release Date: May 9

Why I’m Interested: Some stories excel when they mix a lot of different genres and ideas together. I hope this is one of them as the assassin’s guild alone sounds like it would have plenty of plot twists to keep the characters busy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

9. My Darling Dreadful Thing by Johanna van Veen

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

10. You Like It Darker by Stephen King

Release Date: May 21

Why I’m Interested: I try to check out everything Stephen King writes. Getting scared is fun!

Top Ten Tuesday: Books I Meant to Read in 2023 but Didn’t Get To


Hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

There are a lot of them this week!

 

The Love Match by Priyanka Taslim

 

Organizing for the Rest of Us by Dana K. White

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Holly by Stephen King

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bookshops & Bonedust by Travis Baldreee

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Only One Left  by Riley Sager

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Family Lore by Elizabeth Acevedo

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tom Lake by Ann Patchett

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dust Child by Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nigeria Jones  by Ibi Zoboi

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Secret Book of Flora Lea by Patti Callahan Henry

 

If you’ve read any of these books, would you recommend them?

Top Ten Tuesday: Most Anticipated Books Releasing in the First Half of 2024


Hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

I do not have any witty commentary for you all today. I’m simply feeling grateful for how many different options we all have when deciding what to read next.

Here are ten books I’m looking forward to checking out over the next several months.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1. Four Eids and a Funeral by Faridah ÀbíkéÍyímídé 

Why I’m Interested: I like romances that include a lot of other plot lines, too. This one sounds like it has plenty going on with the story!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2. In Utero by Chris Gooch

Release Date: January 23

Why I’m Interested: One word – aliens.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3. The Unquiet Bones by Loreth Anne White

Release Date: March 5

Why I’m Interested: There’s something to be said for digging up bones buried in the wrong place and hopefully solving the mystery of how that person died.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4. Canto Contigo by Jonny Garza Villa

Release Date: April 9

Why I’m Interested: High school romances can be so much fun to read about.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

5.Pretty Furious by E.K. Johnston

Release Date: April 16

Why I’m Interested: Do I advocate seeking revenge in real life? Of course not! Reading about fictional characters getting revenge sounds awesome, though.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

6. Supplication by Nour Abi-Nakhou

Release Date: May 7

Why I’m Interested: This sounds really scary, and maybe too scary for me to actually read. If I do find my courage, it will be interesting to see how the main character escapes from the house where she is trapped.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

7. The Honey Witch  by Sydney J. Shields

Release Date: May 14

Why I’m Interested: The fairytale aesthetic. Imagine being cursed to never fall in love again! I mean, I know some people never fall in love even once in their lives and are perfectly happy that way, but it’s quite a different thought for those of us who have had that experience.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

8. The Last Murder at the End of the World by Stuart Turton

Release Date: May 21

Why I’m Interested: The attention-grabbing title. A society without murder sounds appealing, but I’ll bet the catch to living there is going to be a big one.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

9.Lies and Weddings by Kevin Kwan

Release Date: May 21

Why I’m Interested: This could be a nice refresher after some of the horror and other darker works on this list.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

10.Becoming Who We Are: Real Stories About Growing Up Trans by Sammy Lisel

Release Date: May 28

Why I’m Interested: It sounds interesting.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Top Ten Tuesday: Books On My Winter 2023-2024 To-Read List


Hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

Here are ten books coming out this winter that I’m curious about. The first two have already been released, and I’ve included publication dates for the rest.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1. Yours for the Taking by Gabrielle Korn

Why I’m Interested: It’s cool to see what science fiction authors predict life could be like a few decades from now.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2.  Where the Dead Wait by Ally Wilkes

Why I’m Interested: The story sounds incredibly scary.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3. Fallen Thorns by Harvey Oliver Baxter

Publication Date: January 1

Why I’m Interested: Honestly, the amazing cover won me over before I even read the blurb. Doesn’t it look nice annd eerie?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4. Somewhere in the Deep by Tanvi Berwah

Publication Date: January 9

Why I’m Interested: It’s been far too long since I’ve read a good monster book. Now is a good time to change that.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

5. The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years by Shubnum Khan

Publication Date: January 9

Why I’m Interested: Winter is a great time to read ghost stories in my opinion, and this one looks like it could be excellent.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

6. Voyage of the Damned by Frances White

Publication Date: January 18

Why I’m Interested: Many of the books on this list are horror or dark speculative fiction. A light fantasy might help even things out!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

7. Your Utopia: Stories by Bora Chung

Publication Date: February 13

Why I’m Interested: Much like I just said for #6, I’m balancing out scary stories with more hopeful ones this winter.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

8. Island Witch by Amanda Jayatissa

Publication Date: February 20

Why I’m Interested: The tropical island setting will be a nice contrast to how chilly it is where I live at this time of year. I’m also interested in the gothic horror themes of this one.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

9. Ours by Phillip B. Williams

Publication Date: February 20

Why I’m Interested: The surrealism in this one sounds very interesting, especially given the 1830s through 1870s setting.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

10. Hope Ablaze by Sarah Mughal Rana

Publication Date: February 27

Why I’m Interested: I, too, know what it’s like to suffer from writer’s block after a traumatic event. My hope is that this will end on a high note with the main character recovering what she has lost.

 

Top Ten Tuesday: Most Anticipated Books Releasing During the Second Half of 2023


Hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

All of my summer picks were included in last week’s Top Ten Tuesday posts, so this week I’m going to focus on books that are coming out in the autumn.

There is going to be more horror than usual on this list because I enjoy being scared and because Halloween is a time of year when publishers like to release their scariest novels.

I did choose titles from other genres as well, though. Jumping around from one genre to the next is something I quite like doing.

Yes, I once again added a bonus book to my list. Sometimes 10 answers just quite isn’t enough.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1. Hemlock Island by Kelley Armstrong

Release Date: September 12

Why I’m Interested: It sounds deliciously scary.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2. The Meadows by Stephanie Oakes

Release Date: September 12

Why I’m Interested: Books that claim to be like The Handmaid’s Tale intrigue me. That’s a big role to fill, but I do silently cheer on every book that attempts to do it. Hopefully, this one will add an excellent sapphic twist to those themes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3. Cleat Cute by Meryl Wilsner

Release Date: September 19

Why I’m Interested: It looks adorable.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4. All the Fighting Parts by Hannah V. Sawyerr

Release Date: September 19

Why I’m Interested: I know someone who has studied the problem of sexual abuse in religious communities for many years. My fingers are crossed that this will be a good representation of that issue and, more importantly, a well-written story in general.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

5. All You Have to Do Is Call by Kerri Maher

Release Date: September 19

Why I’m Interested: This wasn’t a part of history that was ever covered in the history classes I took. I know almost nothing about it and am looking forward to changing that.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

6. Black River Orchard by Chuck Wendig

Release Date: September 26

Why I’m Interested: Mr. Wendig’s books scare me so much I’ve never been able to finish one of them. Maybe this one will be different? I love his writing style…I’m just a little too scared of the spooky things he comes up with.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

7. Family Meal by Bryan Washington

Release Date: October 10

Why I’m Interested: There aren’t a lot of books out there that talk about the difficulties of ending a friendship. It sounds like this one might leave space for a reconciliation which is yet another reason to read it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

8. The Hive and the Honey by Paul Yoon

Release Date: October 10

Why I’m Interested: I need more short story collections in my life.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

9. The Unmaking of June Farrow by Adrienne Young

Release Date: October 17

Why I’m Interested: I like books about curses and how curses might be broken.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

10. Starling House by Alix E. Harrow

Why I’m Interested: A gothic fairy tale sounds like the perfect way to celebrate Halloween. I’m getting strong whiffs of horror from it, too.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

11. Love in a Winter Wonderland by Abiola Bello

Release Date: November 10

Why I’m Interested: I’m fascinated by how much some folks love Christmas. It’s a holiday that stirs up mixed emotions for me, but I do enjoy reading about characters who have much simpler reactions to that time of year.