Upcoming Releases: Winter 2021-22

Most of the new books I’ve been really hyped for this year were packed into autumn, so winter’s looking a little sparse… but there are still a few gems coming up! (Most notably, for a lot of people, the new Crescent City book, though I won’t be picking that one up myself…) So here are my most exciting picks for December, January & February:

[All dates are taken from Goodreads unless stated otherwise, and are correct as of 23/11/2021.]

The Coldest Touch by Isabel Sterling (7th December)

A YA sapphic romance between a girl with the unsettling ability to see the deaths of anyone she touches, and a vampire who’s been sent to help her learn to control her power. There’s a murder mystery in there, too, I believe, though naturally I’m not sure whether the mystery or the romance will be the book’s greater focus. I’m no longer as desperate for vampire romances as I was a couple of months ago, but this one looks promising (and is giving me slight Mediator vibes, which would be fun! 😁). Excitement level: 7/10

A Marvellous Light by Freya Marske (9th December)

The first in a new fantasy series set in an alternative Edwardian England, following a man who’s appointed as the non-magical liaison to a hidden magical society. Again, I’m not sure what this book is really about, but I’ve been hearing glowing reviews from early readers, and apparently the magic system is based on Cat’s Cradle (which I always sucked at)! Also, this is another queer romance, which is nice to see. ☺️ Excitement level: 7/10

The Twyford Code by Janice Hallett (13th January)

The second novel from the author of The Appeal, an unusual, multi-media murder mystery… and from the sound of things, The Twyford Code will be much the same – though this time the mystery will be centred around an old book that supposedly contains a hidden code. I struggle a lot with mysteries, however original, and however interesting they sound, so I won’t be picking this one up myself, but if I hear even half as much praise for it as I have for The Appeal, I expect I’ll be buying it for all my more criminally-inclined relatives in 2022! 😅 Excitement level: 5/10

Honourable Mentions:

• Munro by Kresley Cole (25th January) – a new entry in the Immortals After Dark series.
• A Desolation Called Peace by Arkady Martine (8th February, in paperback) – the sequel to A Memory Called Empire, for which I’ve been patiently waiting for the paperback.

Upcoming Releases: Spring 2021

The sun is shining ☀️, flowers are beginning to poke out 🌷… and a ton of exciting new books are on the horizon! It must be spring! 😉 This was a pretty challenging list to narrow down (and I’ve removed a lot of sequels-to-books-I-only-wish-I’d-read, lest the honourable mentions take up a whole post by themselves), but here are my most anticipated releases for March, April & May:

[All dates are taken from Goodreads unless stated otherwise, and are correct as of 27/2/2021.]

Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro (2nd March)

The tale of Klara, an Artificial Friend, as she watches the humans who come in and out of the shop where she’s for sale, and waits for one of them to buy her. The humantity (or not) of AI is a subject that’s always really interested me, and I’m excited to see what Ishiguro’s take on the topic will be; I’ve only read one of his other books (Never Let Me Go), but I was really impressed by its impactful and insightful storyline – crossed fingers that this one will follow suit! 🤞 Excitement level: 7/10

A Desolation Called Peace by Arkady Martine (2nd March)

The sequel to A Memory Called Empire, and final (I think) book in the Teixcalaan series, this will presumably follow the continuing adventures of Mahit and Three Seagrass, which I am very eager to see. (Along with a more prominent romance, perhaps? If there’s room for one alongside all the plot that’s bound to happen.) The world and characters that Martine has developed in this series are fantastic, and the last book left off on a really dramatic note… so bring on the sequel! Excitement level: 8/10

World Book Day books! (4th March)

This year, World Book Day will be taking place on 4th March, and their selection of £1 books are actually already available for purchase, though I haven’t had a chance to pick any up yet. The one’s I’m most interested in are The River Whale by Sita Brahmachari and Kill Joy by Holly Jackson (a prequel to A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder), though I may also pick up Skysteppers by Katherine Rundell, which is set in the same world as Rooftoppers. Excitement level: 6/10

Ariadne by Jennifer Saint (29th April)

A retelling of the myth of Theseus and the Minotaur, with a focus on the character of Ariadne, princess of Crete and Theseus’ lover. I’m really loving this recent trend of telling the stories of the women of Greek mythology, and Ariadne’s story is a particularly tragic one, so I’m hoping that this book will be appropriately affecting… and I don’t have much more to say about this one… except that I believe that this is Jennifer Saint’s debut novel, and I’m looking forward to seeing what she’ll do with this story. Excitement level: 7/10

Honourable Mentions:

• Rule of Wolves by Leigh Bardugo (30th March) – the final book in the Nikolai Duology, and sequel to King of Scars.
• The Shadow of the Gods by John Gwynne (6th May) – the first in a new, Norse-inspired series… with dragons!
• Heartstopper volume 4 by Alice Oseman (13th May) – the next installment in Oseman’s cute comic series.