Despite the stacks of books and boxes of books and shelves of books I have ALL OVER my house, my head still turns for the shiny and new.  I'm always excited about the latest and greatest, so I love today's TTT topic:  My Top Ten Most Anticipated Releases During the Second Half of 2019.

Before we dive into that, though, I want to encourage you to join in the TTT fun.  It's a great way to spread the comment/follow love around the book blogosphere.  You can revisit favorite blogs, discover new ones, and, as always, pad your TBR list with even more amazing-sounding reads.  What's not to love?  All you have to do is click on over to That Artsy Reader Girl for some brief instructions, make your own list, and start hopping around the book blogosphere.  Easy peasey.

My Top Ten Most Anticipated Releases During the Second Half of 2019 (in chronological order by release date):


1.  The Honeymoon by Rona Halsall (June 4, 2019):  When Chloe marries Dan, a man who's not only handsome but also fun and kind, she thinks she's finally hit the jackpot.  While on their honeymoon on a remote island, however, Chloe becomes alarmed when Dan insists they leave their lives behind and stay there.  Forever.  I love me a good psychological thriller and this one definitely sounds intriguing.  Bonus:  the Kindle version of this book is only 99 cents on Amazon right now.


2.  The Rest of the Story by Sarah Dessen (June 4, 2019):  I've enjoyed several of Sarah Dessen's YA novels and this us vs. them story sounds compelling.  It's about a young woman who goes to spend the summer with the family of her deceased mother and, in doing so, learns more about both her family and herself.


3.  The Birthday Girl by Melissa De la Cruz (August 6, 2019):  A woman who appears to have it all is throwing a glamorous party to celebrate her 40th birthday.  Much like her 16th birthday bash, this one will not go as planned.  In fact, it will reveal the truth behind the birthday girl's many convincing facades. 


4.  The Cold Way Home by Julia Keller (August 20, 2019):  This is the 8th volume in an Appalachian mystery series that I love.  In this installment, Bell Elkins makes a grisly discovery while searching for a missing teenager.  She finds a dead body with a wound that could only have come from murder on the grounds of an abandoned psychiatric hospital.  Bell vows to find out what happened.  Sounds like another compelling read in a series that keeps getting better and better!


5.  The Liars of Mariposa Island by Jennifer Matthieu (September 17, 2019):  This family drama, told from multiple points of view, sounds engrossing.


6.  The Bone Houses by Emily Lloyd-Jones (September 24, 2019):  This YA scare fest sounds fun.  It's about a teen gravedigger who's desperate to save both her family and their graveyard.  If only the dead would just stay dead!


7.  The Tenth Girl by Sara Faring (September 24, 2019):  This one had me at "gothic psychological thriller."  It concerns an Argentine finishing school in an isolated, mysterious place and a young teacher who goes there looking for a new start only to discover all the creepy rumors about the place are true.  Sounds like a great Halloween read.


8.  Now Entering Addamsville by Francesca Zappia (October 1, 2019):  Billed as Buffy the Vampire Slayer meets Stranger Things, the newest novel by the author of Eliza and Her Monsters (which I've yet to read) sounds super fun.  It's about a teen who's trying to clear her name after being accused of a crime she didn't commit.


9.  I Know You Remember by Jennifer Donaldson (October 8, 2019):  Set in Anchorage, Alaska, this novel centers around a missing woman.  As her childhood best friend searches for answers, she comes to realize that the girl she once knew has vanished in more ways than one.

 
10.  The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern (November 5, 2019):  I know I'm not the only one who's eagerly awaiting a new book by the author of The Night Circus.  Her latest concerns a man who finds a book filled with incredible stories—including, he's shocked to discover, one of his own.  His search for answers leads him into a strange, mysterious world.  Tantalizing premise, no?

How about you?  What new releases are you looking forward to?  I'd truly love to know.  Leave me a comment on this post and I'll gladly return the favor on your blog.

Happy TTT!

I've been so busy trying to catch up on reviews of books I read LAST year plus keeping up with those I'm scheduled to review THIS year that I haven't done Top Ten Tuesday in awhile.  I miss it!  This week's topic looks fun and easy, so I'm joining in.  You should, too.  All you have to do is click on over to The Broke and the Bookish, follow the directions, and you're in.  Easy cheesy.

Without further ado, here are the Top Ten Books on My Spring TBR List (ten I'm really looking forward to reading, anyway):


1.  Silence by Deborah Lytton—I'm hoping to get to this one really, really soon as I was supposed to have reviewed it a few days back.  It's about a girl with a golden voice whose greatest dream is to sing on Broadway.  Then, a tragic accident renders her deaf.  Sounds compelling, no?


2.  Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng—After a long wait, I've finally got this family drama/murder mystery out from the library.  I'm excited to see if it lives up to all the hype.


3.  Kiss Kill Vanish by Jessica Martinez—I'm intrigued by this YA novel about a girl trying to shed her old identity in a new country, only to have someone from her past show up to complicate things.


4.  Descent by Tim Johnston—I'm on the waiting list at the library for this one, which looks fantastic.  It's about a family vacationing in the Rocky Mountains when one of their children goes missing.


5.  The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty—I loved Big Little Lies and I've heard that Moriarty's other books are even better.  Can't wait to read this one.


6.  On Such a Full Sea by Chang-rae Lee—This dystopian sounds different, therefore I must check it out!


7.  The Hollow Ground by Natalie S. Harnett—I'm actually in the middle of this family drama/murder mystery set in Pennsylvania's coal mining country.  It's about a girl who finds a body in an abandoned monkey hole, a find that uncovers family secrets long buried.  So far, it's excellent.


8.  Saint Anything by Sarah Dessen—I've only read a couple of Dessen's books.  This one looks like a bit of a departure for her, so I'm interested to see what it's all about.


9.  Dead Wake by Erik Larson—I don't read a lot of non-fiction (a problem I need to remedy), but this book about the Lusitania sounds fascinating.


10.  Chestnut Street by Maeve Binchy—Several of my favorite authors, including Binchy, have died in the last few years, which makes me super sad.  I love Binchy's novels about everyday families in Ireland.  At the time of her death, she was working on a collection of stories about people living on an ordinary Dublin street.  Although I'm not big on short stories, I'll read anything by Binchy.

So, there you have it.  Kind of an eclectic list, but all ten are books I'm excited about.  Hopefully, I'll get to them this Spring.  How about you?  What's on your list?

Happy St. Patrick's Day!  And, as always, happy reading :)

So, this week's Top Ten Tuesday topic is all about book covers.  We're supposed to pick ten favorites from among books we've actually read.  Now, pretty cover art makes me swoon just as much as the next bibliophile, but, I'm drawing a total blank here.  I seriously cannot come up with ONE.  Pathetic.  Therefore, I'm going to twist the topic just a little and highlight the Top Ten Books I've Received in the Mail Recently That I Can't Wait to Read (the title's a little unwieldly, but whatever).  It's going to be kind of like an In My Mailbox/Waiting on Wednesday/Top Ten Tuesday hybrid thingie.  What can I say?  I'm a multi-tasking master like that.  I wish.  

Even though I'm not going to be gushing over book covers this week, I'd love to see the ones that caught your eye.  So, please, hop on over to our hostess' blog, The Broke and the Bookish, and join in the TTT fun.  You won't regret it!

Okay, here goes.  In no particular order, these are the books I've received lately that I cannot wait to dive into (note the swimming pun—it's in the 90s here in Arizona and my kids get out of school on Thursday, so it's officially summer around here):


1.  Al Capone Does My Homework by Gennifer Choldenko—If you're a fan of this middle grade series set on Alcatraz during the 1930s, you know it's been WAY too long since a new installment came out.  I'm thrilled to have an ARC of this one, which doesn't come out until late August.


2.  The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey—Pegged as the next big dystopian YA hit, this one's a sci fi alien thriller.  Something like that, anyway.  I loaned my ARC to a friend, knowing I wouldn't be able to get to it until later in the summer, but I'm still super excited to see what The 5th Wave is all about.


3.  Tumble & Fall by Alexandra (neé Bullen) Coutts—This YA novel, which releases in September, is the pre-apocalyptic tale about a group of teens coming to grips with the end of the world.  Sounds like an original take on a familiar theme.  Can't wait!


4.  The Rithmatist by Brandon Sanderson—I'm a big Sanderson fan, so I was stoked when a copy of his debut YA novel showed up in my mailbox (thanks, Tor/Forge!).  Sounds like another excellent fantasy from the amazingly talented Sanderson.


5.  Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson—Yep, another Sanderson.  This one's about a world overrun by power-hungry superhumans and the boy who's determined to avenge his father by killing the strongest of the lot.


6.  The Moon and More by Sarah Dessen—Although I've yet to read anything by Dessen, I think this one sounds like a perfect summer read.  It's about a girl who's being pulled in all kinds of directions as she tries to decide what she wants for her future.


7.  The Keeper of Secrets by Julie Thomas—I'm reading this one soon for a blog tour and I'm totally stoked about it.  According to Amazon, it "follows a priceless violin across generations—from WWII to Stalinist Russia to the gilded international concert halls of today—and reveals the loss, love, and secrets of the families who owned it."  Sounds intriguing, doesn't it?


8.  The Circle by Sara B. Elfgren and Mats Strandberg—The premise of this one sounds a little tired (six teens discover they have magical powers and are the ones chosen to battle an ancient evil), but I like the eerie feel of it.  


9.  Instructions for a Heatwave by Maggie O'Farrell—I haven't read anything by O'Farrell yet, but I've heard great things about her.  I'm excited to try her out with this family drama about a husband who vanishes while out getting the newspaper and all the secrets that come to light in the wake of his disappearance.


10.  Find Me by Romily Bernard—This techie teen thriller, which comes out at the end of September, is about a hacker on the hunt for a dead classmate's killer.  Sounds like an exciting read.       

What do you think?  Any of these sound like winners to you?  Which new books are you dying to get your hands on this summer?  And which book covers have you been digging lately?