December's been a little hectic, both in real life and on the blog.  Now that the Christmas craziness is over, I'm working on getting everything ship-shape for the new year.  That includes trying to get all the books I read in 2015 reviewed before January 1st.  With *only* 29 to go, I'm not sure I'm going to make it.  Oh well, I'll do what I can ...

In the meantime, I thought today's Top Ten Tuesday topic sounded fun.  Last time I made a TTT list, back on December 1st, it had to do with 2016 debut books I was excited to read.  This week's prompt is similar: Top Ten Most Anticipated Releases For the First Half of 2016.  I'm still stoked about the debut novels I listed previously, but I'm also excited to see what these ten are all about:


1.  Passenger by Alexandra Bracken (January)—There's been a lot of buzz about this seafaring adventure.  I know I'm not the only one who's waiting anxiously for its release.


2.  Stars Above by Marissa Meyer (February)—The Lunar Chronicles is one of my favorite YA series.  Although I haven't read Fairest or Winter yet (shame on me!), I'm still looking forward to this collection of prequel stories set in the Lunar Chronicles world.


3.  Riders by Veronica Rossi (February)—I loved Rossi's Under the Never Sky series and can't wait to read the author's newest.  This one is about a boy who dies and wakes up with a new destiny and identity as War, one of the four horsemen of the apocalypse.


4.  Reign of Shadows by Sophie Jordan (February)—This Rapunzel retelling sounds like another fun YA read.


5.  Hanging Mary by Susan Higginbotham (March)—Stepping away from YA fantasy, this adult historical sounds intriguing.  The novel concerns Mary Surratt, a widow who went to the gallows after being suspected of helping with the plot to assassinate Abraham Lincoln.  Fascinating.


6.  Living Color by Jodi Picoult (2016)—I'm a big Picoult fan and always wait eagerly for a new novel from her.  This one, which is supposed to release in 2016, concerns a black nurse who intervenes on behalf of a white baby, even though the infant's Skinhead father has forbidden her to touch him.  When the child dies, the nurse finds herself on trial for murder.


7.  The Two-Family House by Lynda Cohen Loigman (March)—This novel about two sisters-in-law and their fractured relationship sounds intriguing to me.


8.  My Last Continent by Midge Raymond (June)—Set against a harsh Antarctic backdrop, this love and survival story concerns two scientists on two different ships—one of which is sinking.


9.  The Hunt by Megan Shepherd (May)—I read The Cage, the first book in Shepherd's series about human teenagers becoming exhibits in an alien zoo, earlier this year.  The sequel comes out in a few months—I'm interested to see where the story goes next.


10.  Rocks Fall, Everyone Dies by Lindsay Ribar (June)—I'm super excited about this supernatural YA novel, which has been described as Twin Peaks meets Stars Hollow.

There you go—ten 2016 releases I can't wait to read.  What do you think?  Do we have any picks in common?  What other great titles should I look for in the new year?  I love getting suggestions from you, so please leave me a comment on this post with a link to your TTT list and I'll happily stop by to look at it.  Happy TTT, everyone!