Tag: May New releases

Here are some of the new books out this week:

Books for Older Kids/Teens/Young Adults

Braided – Book 4 in the Sisters Ever After series. Cinna is so happy to have her sister Rapunzel home after she was kidnapped, but Rapunzel is not what Cinna expected – and danger still lurks. This sounds great! You can read my review of book one in the series here. I can’t believe I missed the rest of this series. The set up is super clever, and I love “fractured fairy tales.”
Flawless Girls – Two sisters are sent to a finishing school. One comes home after a day, but the other stays and comes home acting like a completely different person. And then she disappears.
Twelfth Knight – Vi starts to fall for the jock who makes her crazy when they become friends in an online game. The only problem is that she’s pretending to be someone else in the game. This sounds fantastic!

Books for Adults

Dreadful (Trade Paperback) – An evil dark lord loses his memory and has to play along with the role while he waits to get his memory back.
The Fireborne Blade (Hardcover) – A female knight goes on a quest to take the Fireborne Blade from its dragon keeper. Look at that cover!!
Summer Fridays (Trade Paperback) – Two people build an online and offline relationship as they spend time together while trying to determine if their significant others are cheating on them.

Here are some of the new books out this week:

Books for Kids

Welcome to the Woofmore – First in a new chapter book series about a pet hotel.

Books for Older Kids/Teens/Young Adults

Liar’s Test – A young woman is in a contest for the next ruler, but she has no idea how much she’s been lied to.

Books for Adults

Better Left Unsent (Trade Paperback) – A reserved young woman manages her anger and frustration by drafting emails with her real feelings, never planning to send them. But when a server issue at work results in all of her emails getting sent, she’ll have to a huge mess to sort out.
The Bump (Trade Paperback, LGBTQ+) – Two fathers-to-be head out on a road trip to pick up the baby as a “babymoon” to reconnect before their family changes significantly.
The Charmed Friends of Trove Isle (Trade Paperback) – A charm bracelet ties together three high school friends who lost touch after a prom night tragedy.
Escape Velocity (Hardcover) – A luxury hotel in space plays host to a 25th reunion of the best and brightest from the elite Rochford Institute.
The Guncle Abroad – Sequel to The Guncle. When Patrick’s brother announces his remarriage, Patrick takes his niece and nephew on a tour of Europe leading up to the wedding to help them adjust.
Heavenbreaker (Hardcover) – With that cover, do you even care what the story is? (Revenge in space, something – I’m not quite sure, but I am intrigued.)
How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying (Trade Paperback) – A women trapped in a time loop decides to ditch the hero track that always seems to get her killed. This time, she’s going to be the villain. Yes, please!
The Last to Pie (Hardcover) – Book 3 in the amazing Pies Before Guys Mystery series. When Daisy’s latest special pie request feels like it could be a trap, she hesitates to respond. Then when the woman who requested help goes missing, she’s determined to find her. I adore this series! Can’t wait to read this new book.
Love Overboard (Trade Paperback) – A group of retirees living on a cruise ship try to play matchmaker with folks on the ship.
Road Trip Rewind (Trade Paperback) – A jilted young woman and the man who has somehow forgotten he jilted her find themselves back in time, at the moment of their initial meeting, charged with fixing their past.
Star Trek: The Next Generation: Pliable Truths (Trade Paperback) – Captain Jean-Luc Picard, still dealing with his time as a Cardassian prisoner, is sent to Terok Nor to help with the transition of power from the Cardassians to the Bajorans when Ro Laren is contacted by an old friend who was presumed dead who exposes old secrets that puts everyone in danger.

This is the last week of my review break, but we can still talk about new releases! Here are some of the new books out this week:

Books for Older Kids/Teens/Young Adults

Keep It Like a Secret – A week after his older sister ran away after a huge fight with their mom, she reaches out to Morgan so they can spend the day together. I’m eager to read this new story from John David Anderson.
Puzzleheart – Perigee convinces their father to go home where Perigee can experience the family Puzzle House. But the house – and Perigee’s grandmother – aren’t giving up their secrets willingly.
Summer Vamp (Graphic Novel) – While Maya is supposed to be going to culinary summer camp, instead she finds herself at a camp for vampires.
The Dangerous Ones – An alternate history/fantasy novel about fighting vampires during the Civil War.

Books for Adults

Honey Witch (Trade Paperback, LGBTQ+) – A young woman takes on the role of Honey Witch even though it means she will never find love.
I’m Afraid You’ve Got Dragons (Hardcover) – A man inherits his father’s role as a dragon catcher, but he doesn’t want the job because he actually likes dragons.
Love at First Book (Trade Paperback) – A librarian moves to Ireland to help a writer finish her series, but she quickly develops feelings for the author’s prickly son. I think Jenn McKinlay’s romance novels are even better than her mysteries. I’m looking forward to this one!
The Paradise Problem (Hardcover) – Something new from Christina Lauren.  College students who wed for housing benefits are still married after their divorce should have been finalized. It’s working out for West, who needs to have been married for 5 years before he can inherit his family fortune, but he has to introduce Anna to his family to keep up the ruse.

Happy May! Please remember I am taking a bit of a review break for the next couple of weeks, but I’ll be posting again soon. Here are some of the new books out this week:

Books for Kids

Have You Seen an Elephant? – First in the Alex’s Field Guides series. A girl is on the hunt for her favorite animal – an elephant. I’ll be reviewing this one when I wrap up my review break, so watch for this one!

Books for Older Kids/Teens/Young Adults

Always Anthony (Graphic Novel) – Book 8 in the Emmie & Friends series focuses on a popular athlete and a shy nerd.
Fortune Tellers – Three girls who lost their friendship over a fight start finding the fortune tellers they made in strange places where they offer sound advice.
The Minor Miracle – When a middle schooler discovers he has super powers his life gets super complicated.
The Secret Library – The map her late grandfather left her leads Dally to a secret library.
The Things We Miss – A middle schooler who feels out of step discovers a way to avoid all the bad and unpleasant things in life by skipping ahead 3 days into the future.
Unicorn Crush – Book 19 in this delightful series.
Beastly Beauty – A Beauty and the Beast retelling.
Blood at the Root – A teen who discovers he has magical powers attends a magical HBCU to discover things about his family and their history.
Burning Crowns – Book 3 in the Twin Crowns series.
This Book Won’t Burn – A girl in a new town for the last quarter of her senior year of high school debates if she should get involved when she discovers the school board has a new policy where books by BIPOC and LGBTQ+ authors are being removed from the library for being “obscene.”

Books for Adults

The Best Life Book Club (Trade Paperback) – Four women in difficult stages in life connect through a book club.
Bigtime Series, Volume 1 (ebook) – Check out the first two books plus a holiday novella from Jennifer Estep’s Bigtime series about superheroes and villains.
Chloe Baker’s Lost Date (Trade Paperback) – After an amazing blind date, Chloe’s date has disappeared. This sounds so fun!
Five Broken Blades (Hardcover) – Five liars are on the hunt to take down a cruel god king.
An Intrigue of Witches (Hardcover) – New from Esme Anderson. A history teacher on the hunt for a missing treasure finds herself in the middle of a conspiracy.
Lavash at First Sight (Trade Paperback, LGBTQ+) – Daughters of rival business owners meet at a convention, but the chemistry between them might not be enough to overcome the family drama.
Love, Lies, and Cherry Pie (Trade Paperback) – When her parents start pushing her toward the son of their friends. the two young adults decide to fake date to get their parents to leave them along.
Mistakes We Never Made (Hardcover) – A couple who were never really a couple after a string of near misses team up to find a missing bride and save their friends’ happily ever after.
Murder at Tanton Towers (Hardcover) – First in a new series. A café owner becomes an amateur sleuth when a friend and neighbor asks for help when she finds someone dead. This looks like a fun series!
Red Side Story (Hardcover) – A sequel to Fforde’s Shades of Grey.
The Silverblood Promise (Trade Paperback) – First in a new fantasy series about a gambler searching for who killed his estranged father.

Happy Memorial Day – Here are some of the books releasing this week!

Books for Older Kids/Teens/Young Adults

Falling Out of Time – Sequel to 1997’s Running Out of Time by Margaret Peterson Haddix. A girl in 2193 finds clues that her utopian world may not be all she thinks it is and that she might have a connection to Jessie Keyser (Main character in Running Out of Time).
The First Magnificent Summer (Older Middle Grade) – After a two year absence, Victoria is looking forward to some time with her father, hoping to impress him with her wit and maturity. But he shows up with his new family, the Replacements, and he treats Victoria in a way that makes her think he doesn’t like her because she’s a girl. This is on my list for this week!
The Night in Question – Sequel to one of my favorite books of 2022. You can read my full review here.
Time Out – When the local basketball star comes out to his community, he faces backlash he wasn’t expecting

Books for Adults

The Benevolent Society of Ill-Mannered Ladies (Trade Paperback) – Twins of a certain age look for excitement and distraction by helping a friend out of a bad relationship. But they encounter unexpected trials – and one has a chance at love. This sounds so fun. I have a review copy of this waiting for me.
Esme Cahill Fails Spectacularly (Trade Paperback) – In this new novel by Marie Bostwick, a newly unemployed and single woman returns to her childhood home and helps her estranged family try to save their lakeside retreat. While there, she discovers a chapter of her late-grandmother’s life she never knew before. This sounds lovely – and I thoroughly enjoyed The Restoration of Celia Fairchild. I’ll be checking this one out.
Even If the Sky Is Falling (Trade Paperback, collection) – When the world thinks an incoming meteor shower could mean the end of life as we know it, 6 couples decide to make the most of their “last” hours – except the world doesn’t actually end. This looks like it will be 6 interconnected short stories. What a clever set up! This is on my list.
The Gay Best Friend (Trade Paperback) – Dom feels torn trying to be the best friend to both the bride and the groom as they approach their big day – and he starts to realize how little attention he has paid to his own heart and what he wants for his own life. Yes, please!
Ink Blood Sister Scribe (Hardcover) – Half sisters charged with supervising and protecting a library of magical books discover centuries worth of secrets kept by their parents. Yep, sounds right up my alley!
Marrying Off Morgan McBride (Trade Paperback) – Book 2 in the McBrides of Montana series. A woman who always seems to be “too much” answers an ad for a mail order bride, but the husband-to-be isn’t the one who placed the ad – his younger sister placed it for him! I’m not much for westerns in general, but these two books sound fun!
Murder Off the Books (Mass Market Paperback) – Book 3 in the By the Book Mystery series. Right when Tess is trying to get back in the town’s good graces by having an extravagant book release/store opening event, her mother arrives in town with a notorious conman connected to the deaths of three elderly women. When the conman is found dead, and Tess’s mother becomes the prime murder suspect, Tess has to start sleuthing again. I adored book 1 in this series and cannot wait to dig into books 2 and now 3, hopefully this summer!
Once More with Feeling (Trade Paperback) – Once upon a time, she was a pop star with everything. Then a hook up with a member of a popular boyfriend – and not the one she was dating – destroyed everything. Now she’s content in a more quiet life – until the hook up shows up with a Broadway offer she can’t refuse. Yep, this one too! I told you there were a LOT of great books releasing this month!
Puzzled Pieces (ebook) – Book 5 in the PTO Murder Club Mystery series. Mustang and her friends investigate a string of murders of school bus drivers. This is the first I had heard of this series, but it sounds great! I’ve picked up the first book in the series to check it out.
Star Trek: Discovery: Somewhere to Belong (Trade Paperback) – The Discovery crew has gone 900 years into the future. After helping a world cut off from the Federation because of the Burn, the Discovery answers a distress call that seems to have connections to their old 23rd century lives.
The Wishing Game (Hardcover) – After a difficult childhood, Lucy is sensitive to the needs of one of her students who was recently orphaned. If only she had the resources to adopt Christopher and give him the love and home he deserves after such loss. Lucy gets her chance when she is chosen to participate in a contest where she can win the only copy of a new book written by her favorite author from her own childhood. This sounds like a not-to-be-missed story!

Here are some of the books releasing this week:

Books for Kids

Cranky Chicken: Crankosaurus – I fell in love with the Cranky Chicken books when I discovered them last year. I can’t wait to read the third book in the series!

Books for Older Kids/Teens/Young Adults

The Labors of Hercules Beal – A boy named for a mythical hero thinks he is nothing like his namesake, but a teacher challenges him to duplicate Hercules’ feats and see what he discovers. I can’t wait to read this one!
Picture-Perfect Boyfriend – When a girl’s made-up boyfriend shows up at the airport for her family’s vacation, she can’t very well call him out as a fraud without exposing her own lies. Yes, please!

Books for Adults

The Blighted Stars (Trade Paperback) – First in a new series. A woman hiding in plain sight as a bodyguard for the Mercator heir finds herself trapped with him on a dead planet. The two band together to survive and along the way uncover a plot neither of them bargained for. Sounds awesome!
The Front Porch Club (Mass Market Paperback) – Three women whose lives have turned upside down find friendship and community together.
Gone Rogue (e-book) – Book 3 in the Mia Murphy Mystery series. When a local bad girl turns back up and is later murdered, Mia starts investigating to keep a friend from being wrongly accused of the crime.
Mrs. Nash’s Ashes (Trade Paperback) – Millie agreed to transport her elderly neighbor’s ashes to symbolically reunite her with her lost love. But when she said yes, she didn’t count on having to make her delivery via road trip with an obnoxious acquaintance. This looks fun!
Rogue Justice (Hardcover) – Book 2 in the Avery Keene series by Stacey Abrams. Law clerk Avery Keene stumbles onto another conspiracy. This series sounds amazing. I have book 1 on my TBR.

Let’s take a look at some of the books out this week!

Books for Teens/Young Adults

Julieta and the Romeos – A young writer posts her work online and finds herself with an intriguing collaborator. Yes, please!
The DC Book of Pride (Nonfiction) – Highlights DC Comics’ characters in the LGBTQ+ community. The artwork on the sample pages I have seen is gorgeous. Will definitely be picking this one up!
You: The Story: A Writer’s Guide to Craft Through Memory (Nonfiction) – A writer’s guide that encourages young writers to use their own lives and experiences to help them grow as writers. This sounds amazing!

Books for Adults

The Late Mrs. Willoughby (Trade Paperback) – Book 2 in the Mr. Darcy and Miss Tilney Mystery series after The Murder of Mr. Wickham (which is on my TBR). When Jonathan Darcy and Juliet Tilney are once again together at the site of a murder, they team up to solve the crime. This series sounds so fantastic. I can’t wait to get some time to dig into the first book!
The Malevolent Seven (Hardcover) – I can’t do the summary of this justice – you’ll just have to read up on this one for yourself. I am fascinated to see what this one is like!
A Novel Disguise (Trade Paperback) – First in a new Lady Librarian Mystery series. A young woman takes her half-brother’s identity after his death so she can keep her home. But that seems to be only one of a dozen mysteries and secrets swirling around her. Sounds fun!
Seven Rules for Breaking Hearts (Trade Paperback) – When a podcaster breaks her own rules for hooking up without “catching feelings” by falling in love and getting married, her podcasting partner tries to save their reputations and their following by breaking all the rules herself to show what a terrible idea that is.  She is certain the best man is the perfect person to help her prove her point – until she actually starts to fall for him.
Summer Reading (Trade Paperback) – A incident on a ferry when a determined non-reader knocks a bookworm’s latest read into the ocean could lead to love. Yes, please! Can’t go wrong with Jenn McKinlay.

Here are some of the new books out this week!

Books for Older Kids/Teens/ Young Adults

The Greatest Kid in the World – When Zeke is chosen to compete in a competition to be named Greatest Kid in the World, he’s not sure how he even got into the contest. But his family needs the prize money so he will do what he can to win. I don’t think you can go wrong with a book by John David Anderson!
Loki: A Bad God’s Guide to Taking the Blame – Book 2 in the series. Loki is trying to prove to Odin that he can be good enough for Asgard, but it’s tough to be good when his only friend now has a new friend and when he’s accused of stealing Mjolnir.
Breaking In – A film student wants to make a tribute movie about her dad, but her school gets shut down and the big-time director who ran it steals her idea and makes his own movie. *adds to cart* Need it!
Cursed Crowns – Sequel to Twin Crowns (which I have on my TBR shelves – I hate when I get “lapped” and a sequel is released before I get to read the first book.) The twin queens are pulled in different directions by their rival goals and ideas of what they should do next for their kingdom.
The Princess and the Grilled Cheese Sandwich (Graphic Novel) – A young woman disguises herself as a Count in order to keep her inheritance, but when she starts to fall for Princess Brie, her secret is in danger.
The Truth About the Spy (ebook) – A teen spy’s secret life – and her best friend – are in danger when one of her missions goes awry.

Books for Adults

The Boyfriend Candidate (Trade Paperback) – A shy school librarian trying to become more bold ends up in the middle of a political scandal when  her one night stand turns out to be running for governor and pictures of the two of them go viral. He proposes they fake date until after the election. You all know how I feel about fake dating stories!! This is on my list.
The Comeback Summer (Trade Paperback) – In order to hook a new client for their struggling business, two sisters agree to complete individual challenges for the client. This is one I couldn’t buy fast enough. Sounds perfect!

It’s the first week of May – and readers are in for a month FULL of great books. Let’s see some of the new releases for this week:

Books for Kids

Pluto!: Not a Planet? Not a Problem! – Book 7 in Stacy McAnulty’s Our Universe series focuses on Pluto.
Real to Me – What do you do when your imaginary friend disappears?
Weather Together – Part of the Not Quite Narwhal and Friends series. Nimbus and Kelp are best friends, but what happens when Nimbus’ cloudy moods turn into a storm because she tries to hide them from her friend?
The Adventures of Sophie Mouse: Under the Weather – Book 20 in the Sophie Mouse series. Sophie feels jealous when she sees the attention her brother gets because he is sick.
Owl Diaries: The Nature Club  – When Eva’s class starts working on a Nature Day party, she’s put in a different planning group from her friends.

Books for Older Kids/Teens/Young Adults

The Firefly Summer – Ryanna spends the summer with her late-mother’s extended family, people she’s never met before who can help her learn about her mother. This sounds like my kind of middle grade story!
The Lion of Lark-Hayes Manor – Will a young girl feeling out of place end up trading her beloved books and stories for a chance to experience real magic?
The Sun and the Star (Older Middle Grade) – Nico and Will (from the Percy Jackson novels) travel to Tartarus to try to save an old friend. I have had this pre-ordered since last October. It’s finally time!!!
A Work in Progress (Older Middle Grade, Graphic Novel) – A “round” boy at a school full of “string beans” tries to change his appearance to fit in. I have been waiting for this one for months, too. I hope to review this one soon. There is a trigger warning with this one, so be sure to check that out before reading.
Imogen Obviously – A fervent ally to her queer friends, Imogen starts to wonder if maybe she’s more part of the LGBTQ+ community than she realized. I hope to review this one soon as well!
Liar’s Beach – A prep school outsider and his childhood best friend try to solve the mystery of an “accident” at a Martha’s Vineyard house party.  Sounds fantastic!
Lying in the Deep – A girl looking to escape her ex and his new girlfriend – her ex-best friend – signs on for a semester on a cruise ship traveling the world. As if it wasn’t surprising enough to find her ex on board, there’s also a murderer.
Might as Well Be Dead (May 5) – A teen still reeling from his mother’s abrupt departure and trying to help his dad through at the same time, starts to see a ghost who wants to help him – but who also has a favor to ask.
The Unstoppable Bridget Bloom – A standout performer is challenged to develop some humility by not singing at her new boarding school. I’m intrigued by this one!
Your Plantation Prom Is Not Okay – Harriet and her father run an enslaved persons museum on the site of an old plantation. When an influencer and her mother move in next door with plans to turn that plantation into an antebellum showplace for a prestigious Hollywood couple’s wedding – and the site is also chosen for their high school’s prom – Harriet is fed up with the whole racist mess. I have this one on my list for May!

Books for Adults

Best Men (Trade Paperback) – Two best men in a wedding party start to fall for each other. Yes, please!
Fourth Wing (Hardcover) – Book one of The Empyrean series. Instead of following her plans to become a scribe and enjoy a quiet, bookish life, Violet is forced to compete with those who want to be DRAGON riders in the war! The dragons have become choosy about who they will bond with, so Violet becomes a target for those who want to thin the ranks, doing whatever it takes in order to have their chance. Dragons! And this book has decorative page edges – I couldn’t hit the buy button fast enough! I hope the story lives up to the gorgeous packaging.
Jana Goes Wild (Trade Paperback) – Jana wants nothing to do with her ex, but he’s hard to avoid when they are both attending the same destination wedding. But her friends come to the rescue with a “Go Wild” list of things for Jana to do to keep her busy and way from Anil.
Love Buzz (Trade Paperback) – A chance-meeting at a destination bachelorette party leaves Serena tossing away the facets of her carefully crafted life as she searches for a man she knows only by his first name in one of the largest cities in America.
Practice Makes Perfect (Trade Paperback) – When Annie starts to think she might be too boring to find love, she convinces her brother’s fiancée’s bodyguard to help her learn to be more flirty and fun.
Star Trek: Lower Decks (Graphic Novel) – A new mission for the crew of the Ceritos
Sugar Spice and Can’t Play Nice (Trade Paperback) – Two young people agree to an arranged marriage to avoid family drama and to achieve their personal agendas, but along they way they start to wonder if there’s more to this engagement than just a means to an end.
Super Bloom (Trade Paperback) – Joan agrees to funnel gossip to a romance author at the spa where she works so the author can use the tidbits in her next book. But then Joan takes up writing as well, crafting an imagined future she would never get with her late boyfriend. When the author tries to steal Joan’s novel and pass it off as her own, Joan’s quirky group of friends pitch in to help her get it back. Yes, please!

Happy Memorial Day to those of you in the US. Here are some of the books releasing this week!

Books for Older Kids/Teens

Small Town Pride – Jake has found his family and friends to be supportive since he came out as gay, but his community isn’t there yet. So when Jake and his friends want to have a Pride festival in town, they have to convince the town council, and the mayor, to get on board.

Books for Adults

The Messy Lives of Book People (Trade Paperback) – A house cleaner is surprised to discover her deceased client wanted her to finish the recluse’s final novel.
Renovated to Death (Trade Paperback) – First in a new Domestic Partners in Crime Mystery series. Peter and JP, domestic partners with a renovation show, take on new clients – and a murder mystery. I pre-ordered this weeks ago – I can’t wait to dig in!
You’re My I.T. (Trade Paperback) – Book 1 in the Nerds of Happy Valley series. After a two-year crush on the hilarious IT guy at work, Blaine decides she is going to tell him how she feels, first chance she gets. But when Lysander returns after a family health scare, he’s gone through some personal changes and returns with a girl on his arm, leaving Blaine to wonder if she missed her chance.
Wild Life (Hardcover, gift book) – I adore Charley Harper’s work, so this is at the top of my May wish list! 336 pages.