LIST: most anticipated 2024 releases (pt. 1)

With the dawn of a new year means more books to look forward to! This list is a bit later than usual (admittedly, I got a bit lazy) and somehow even shorter than last year, but hopefully that means that I’ll get to read everything on this list for once. Here are my most anticipated releases for the first half of 2024!

*** This list has redacted titles from St. Martin’s Press and its associated imprints in solidarity with the readers’ strike against SMP.
Visit Readers for Accountability for more. ***

LIST: my top ten favorite reads of 2023 (final)

2023 has simultaneously flown by and been the longest year ever. While I’ve had a lot of mediocre reads, I’ve also read some new favorites. With the end of the year, it’s also time to update the list of my favorite reads from earlier this year. Here are my top ten favorite reads of 2023 (final)!

LIST: 5 2024 debuts i’m unbelievably excited for

In the past couple weeks, I’ve been going through catalogues and scanning people’s TBRs to find more releases for next year because I just keep finding new ones that sound so good. This list is no different; there are so many great-sounding debuts coming out soon. Here are 5 2024 debuts that I’m unbelievably excited for!

This list is a mix of young adult and adult novels, releasing throughout the year. I’ll try to update one of these with buy links and more information when we get more updates! Hope you add these debuts to your TBR list as well, if they’re not already there <3.

REVIEW: Foul Heart Huntsman by Chloe Gong

**I received an ARC from the publisher (thank you, Simon Teen!). These are my honest opinions, and in no way was I compensated for this review.**

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Book: Foul Heart Huntsman (Foul Lady Fortune #2) by Chloe Gong

Release Date: September 26, 2023

My Rating: 4.5 stars

Rep: demisexual Chinese protagonist, bisexual Chinese protagonist, bisexual Chinese main character, trans Chinese main character, queer Chinese side character, aromantic asexual side character, Chinese side characters; (Chinese-Kiwi author)

CW: violence, blood, mentions of human experimentation

Summary: From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of These Violent Delights and Our Violent Ends comes the second book in the captivating Foul Lady Fortune duology following an immortal assassin in 1930s Shanghai as she races to save her country and her love.

Winter is drawing thick in 1932 Shanghai, as is the ever-nearing threat of a Japanese invasion.

Rosalind Lang has suffered the worst possible fate for a national spy: she’s been exposed. With the media storm camped outside her apartment for the infamous Lady Fortune, she’s barely left her bedroom in weeks, plotting her next course of action after Orion was taken and his memories of Rosalind wiped. Though their marriage might have been a sham, his absence hurts her more than any physical wound. She won’t rest until she gets him back.

But with her identity in the open, the task is near impossible. The only way to leave the city and rescue Orion is under the guise of a national tour. It’s easy to convince her superiors that the countryside needs unity more than ever, and who better than an immortal girl to stir pride and strength into the people?

When the tour goes wrong, however, everything Rosalind once knew is thrown up in the air. Taking refuge outside Shanghai, old ghosts come into the open and adversaries turn to allies. To save Orion, they must find a cure to his mother’s traitorous invention and take this dangerous chemical weapon away from impending foreign invasion—but the clock is ticking, and if Rosalind fails, it’s not only Orion she loses, but her nation itself.

LIST: my top ten favorite reads of 2023 (so far)

2023 has been yet another interesting year of reading for me…with even more lackluster reads than last year. But! As always, I did read a lot of new favorites, which gives me hope for the rest of the year. Here are my top ten favorite reads of 2023 (so far)!

LIST: most anticipated 2023 releases (pt. 2)

It’s been a whirlwind half of the year, where I’ve been drowning in ARCs and new releases. And guess what! We’re reaching the second half, which means even more books to look forward to. There are so many great releases in the next few months that I absolutely can’t wait to read, so without further ado, here are my most anticipated releases for the second half of 2023!

You can check out my anticipated releases for the first half of 2023 here.

#waitingonwednesday: foul heart huntsman

At this point, you must know that I am a big fan of Chloe Gong and have had multiple breakdowns over her books, Foul Lady Fortune most of all. So of course, I was literally kicking crying screaming when I got an ARC. Now if only my reading motivation could come back from the war…Anyways, I, along with many others, am desperately counting down the days till September 26, when Foul Heart Huntsman releases!

Spoilers below for Foul Lady Fortune, the first book in the series.

REVIEW: Infamous by Lex Croucher

**I received an ARC from the publisher through Netgalley. These are my honest opinions, and in no way was I compensated for this review.**

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Book: Infamous by Lex Croucher

Release Date: March 21, 2023

My Rating: 4.25 stars

Rep: bisexual protagonist, lesbian British-Chinese love interest, gay side character, Black side character, agender side character

CW: implied sexual assault, sexual harrassment

Summary: 22-year-old aspiring writer Edith ‘Eddie’ Miller and her best friend Rose have always done everything together-climbing trees, throwing grapes at boys, sneaking bottles of wine, practicing kissing . . .

But following their debutante ball Rose is suddenly talking about marriage, and Eddie is horrified.

When Eddie meets charming, renowned poet Nash Nicholson, he invites her to his crumbling Gothic estate in the countryside. The entourage of eccentric artists indulging in pure hedonism is exactly what Eddie needs in order to forget Rose and finish her novel.

But Eddie might discover the world of famous literary icons isn’t all poems and pleasure . . .

#waitingonwednesday: banyan moon

I am striving to read more adult fiction this year, as well as always trying to read and support more Vietnamese authors, so this book made its way to my TBR list immediately. The premise is also so intriguing, and I can’t wait to read it. Banyan Moon by Thao Thai comes out June 13; find out more about it below!

LIST: pick an emoji and i’ll rec you a 2023 release (pt. 1)

Happy new year! It’s become tradition for me to ring in the new year with a new “pick an emoji” post, so here we are. I had a lot of fun with this set of emojis, and I hope you enjoy them too! So without further ado, pick an emoji and I’ll recommend you a 2023 release (from January through March)!

You can see all of the previous year’s set of posts here. Also, as always, the emojis aren’t spoiler-y (as far as I know) and are more or less corresponding to the cover/vibe of the book. This year, I included both the age range and genre details with each title, as well.