Most Anticipated 2022 Releases | Pt. 1
Hey hi hello friends, and welcome back to my blog!
Today I thought I would take you through my most anticipated reads for 2022. This is part one since I'll only be going up to June. I'm super excited about all of these books, and I can't wait to get my hands on them! I will be going in order of publication date, but please keep in mind that these dates are subject to change, so if you see a book you're interested in on this list please double check the publishing date before going to look for it at the store.
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Jan. 4 - Where the Drowned Girls Go by Seanan McGuire
This is book 7 in the Wayward Children series, following directly after the events of book 5, Come Tumbling Down. Cora, a young girl who came to Eleanor West's home for Wayward Children, is having trouble adjusting to her life in this world. She transfers to Whitehorn Institute, another school built for children who've returned from their other worlds. But this school isn't as safe as Eleanor's, and some doors are not as welcoming as others...
I actually just bought this book today, so I'll definitely be reading it soon! This is a series of novellas, so each story is very short, but packed with so much detail and emotion. I can't wait to find out what's happened to Cora!
Jan. 11 - Daughter of the Moon Goddess by Sue Lynn Tan
This is a debut fantasy novel inspired by the Chinese moon goddess, Chang'e. This is also the first book in a duology. I've never read a book about Chinese mythology before, so I am very intrigued by its premise. We follow Xingyin, daughter of the goddess Chang'e, as she is forced to flee her home on the moon and seek refuge in the Celestial Kingdom, where her enemy - the Celestial Emperor - resides. This story feels enchanting and magical, and I'm very looking forward to reading it. I hope I can get my hands on a copy soon!
Jan. 25 - The Red Palace by June Hur
This is June Hur's third novel, and very high on my wishlist. I've read June Hur's two other novels, The Silence of Bones and The Forest of Stolen Girls, and I loved both of them. All of her books take place during the Joseon era in Korea, and all of them are mystery thrillers with unique plotlines. The Red Palace follows Hyeon, an orphan working in the palace as a nurse. When four women in the palace are murdered in a single night, Hyeon teams up with a police investigator to determine the killer before court politics ruin everyone with a link to the palace. This book sounds very similar to her debut, The Silence of Bones, but I have no doubt that it is it's own story.
Feb. 8 - Ophelia After All by Raquel Marie
It's always so exciting when a BookTuber gets a book deal, and Raquel Marie (from the channel Blonde with a Book) managed just that! Her debut novel, Ophelia Ever After, is a queer contemporary following Ophelia Rojas, a Cuban-American teenager in her final year of high school with an obsession for boys. However she begins to rethink everything about her life when her mind starts wandering to a girl, Talia Sanchez. This is a charming coming-of-age YA story about sexuality and self-acceptance, and I cannot wait to read it. I love me some queer YA, and I don't think that will ever change.
Feb. 22 - The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh
This is a Korean mythology retelling with inspiration from Studio Ghibli's Spirited Away, which happens to be one of my favorite movies, so naturally I'm excited about this book. Mina is a young girl in a village ravaged by water, believed to be cursed by the Sea God. When her brother's sweetheart is chosen to be sacrificed to the god to calm his ire, Mina throws herself into the sea instead. There, she discovers that the Sea God is in fact in an enchanted sleep, and now she must find a way to save him, before the spirit realm destroys her soul. This sounds absolutely incredible, and I can't wait to see how descriptive this book is. It just seems like a book with purple prose, doesn't it? And just look at that cover! Absolutely gorgeous.
Feb. 22 - League of Liars by Astrid Scholte
This is a paranormal mystery thriller from the same author as Four Dead Queens, a book I read last year and rather enjoyed. We follow Cayder, an apprentice to a public defender, who wants nothing more than to see all illegal magic users locked behind bars. But when he gets handed a case to defend three such illegal magic users, he realizes that the world isn't so black and white, as he thought. His defendants are all teenagers, like him, and they all have complicated stories. This seems like a very dark mystery, full of magic and villains, and I'm very excited for it.
Mar. 1 - Gallant by V.E. Schwab
Ahhhh, the queen V.E. Schwab is back with another book! This time, it's a Secret Garden retelling with a sci-fi twist. Olivia Prior has grown up in boarding school with nothing from her past except her mother's journal, until she receives a letter from her cousin inviting her to return home to Gallant. Once she arrives, she finds a manor house full of half-formed ghosts and secrets - so many secrets.
I'm not going to lie, I have no idea how this story is going to play out, but we all know that I'm going to buy it as soon as it comes out, and read it just as fast. V.E. Schwab is an auto-buy author for me, and I would read her freaking grocery lists if they were published. This might just be my number one most anticipated book of the year.
Mar. 8 - In Defense of Witches by Mona Chollet
This is a nonfiction book that is being translated from the original French (the French version came out in 2018) about the women who were accused of witchcraft in the witch trials from the 1700s, and the persecution that women are still facing today. Mona Chollet is an acclaimed feminist writer and journalist, and I'm interested to see what she has to say about the witch trials. This is 100% a feminist take on the subject and therefore my interest is spiked.
Mar. 15 - Unlock Your Storybook Heart by Amanda Lovelace
What can I say about this? It's Amanda Lovelace's latest poetry collection, and I'm naturally going to buy it on release day. I own and have read all of her poetry collections, so I'm very excited for her next installment. This is part of the "You Are Your Own Fairy Tale" series, which also includes Break Your Glass Slipper and Shine Your Icy Crown. Amanda Lovelace is definitely my favorite modern poet and I'll read anything she puts out.
Mar. 22 - Kiss & Tell by Adib Khorram
Another queer contemporary! This is by the same author as Darius the Great is Not Okay which I read last year and really enjoyed, as well as the sequel. This book is focusing more about being queer in the public eye, which isn't something I've read about too often so I'm really excited to see where this goes. We follow Hunter, the only gay member of the boy band Kiss & Tell, and his journey through his first breakup, all of which gets a very public airing. Now Hunter has to try and navigate being the poster boy for gay artists, and he's not sure he's up to the task, especially when he forms a new relationship. I fully trust Adib Khorram and his amazing characters to give me another five-star book!
Apr. 5 - Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel
From the author of Station Eleven comes a new novel about a plague in 1912 and a moon colony three hundred years later, and the threads that connect these two times together. It's a time travel novel focusing on humanity and love, and I can't wait for it! I haven't read The Glass Hotel by her yet, but I do own it. But this seems much more up my alley than The Glass Hotel does. I'm really hoping to love this book.
Apr. 19 - The Drowning Summer by Christine Lynn Herman
This is a paranormal fantasy from the author of The Devouring Gray, which was one of my favorite books of 2019. It has murder and ghosts and witches, as well as two lesbian girls trying to navigate their feelings for each other. What more could you want, honestly? Six years ago, three teenagers were murdered, their drowned bodies found with sand dollars over their eyes. Our main character, Evelyn, was able to keep her father out of prison when he was accused for the killings, but just barely. Now Evelyn and her friend Mina have to figure out who really was behind the drowning summer killings, before the ghosts of the town overrun the living. I mean really, how could you not want to pick this up?
Apr. 28 - Elektra by Jennifer Saint
We've got another mythology retelling, folks! This one is Greek, from the same author who wrote Ariadne last year. I haven't yet read that, but that's not going to stop me from keeping this book on my radar. For those who don't know, Elektra is the youngest daughter of Clytemnestra and Agamemnon, the king in charge of the army against Troy. There is a wonderful series of plays about Agamemnon and Elektra by Aeschylus called the Oresteia, you may have heard of it. It really is a fantastic story and if you're at all interested in ancient Greek plays, I highly recommend reading those three. Anyway, this book follows the house of Atreus and the violent curse that plagues it. Alongside Elektra, we're also following two other women: Clytemnestra, Elektra's mother, and Cassandra, a princess of Troy that Agamemnon enslaves and brings back with him after the war. I am expecting this book to be bloody and philosophical, just like the plays of ancient times.
May 3 - I Kissed Shara Wheeler by Casey McQuiston
This is Casey McQuiston's first YA novel, and it's just as queer as their last two books. We follow Chloe Green, an Alabama transplant from California who has one goal on her mind: valedictorian. Her only rival is prom queen Shara Wheeler, until Shara kisses her and then disappears from high school. Chloe teams up with two boys, both of whom also shared a kiss with the missing Shara, to try and find the girl before the school year ends. This seems messy and funny and exactly the kind of drama that Casey McQuiston is known for, and I have high hopes for this book.
May 10 - Siren Queen by Nghi Vo
Oh man, this seems like an amazing book in the making. A historical fantasy set amongst the backdrop of old Hollywood, with monsters lurking around every corner. Luli Wei is a Chinese-American Hollywood hopeful, in a time where there are only two roles for her - the help, or the villain. And she would much rather play a monster than a maid. But Hollywood is run by real monsters, ones that run on ancient magic and bargains made with desperate actors, their power satiated by the sacrifices of the starlets who came before her. Oh, and it's queer. I'm super excited for this book to come out.
May 31 - Tokyo Dreaming by Emiko Jean
This is the sequel to Tokyo Ever After, which came out last year and was one of my top books I read. I was obsessed with Izumi and her family and all the drama that came with being a princess. Plus, the romance? Chef's kiss, and I don't say that very often. This was everything I could have wanted from a YA contemporary, and I cannot wait for the sequel. I'm hoping that this isn't the last book in the series and that we get more of Izumi and her crazy royal family.
Jun. 21 - Locklands by Robert Jackson Bennett
This is the final book in the Founders Trilogy, the first two books being Foundryside and Shorefall. This magic system is one of the most unique I've read about in adult fantasy - think of it like magical coding. You write a certain code on an inanimate object, and then that object will believe itself to be following the orders of the code. So, if you code a wheel to believe that wind is blowing, it will move forward because it thinks that it's being pushed. That's a very poor explanation, but it's an incredible concept, and it's done very well in this series. In Foundryside we follow Sancia, a thief with the strange ability to sense codes, and a magical key she steals. It's a very complex plot with a lot more than that, but I can't say much else since this is the third and final book in this series. This is also queer with a lesbian couple at the forefront of the story.
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Okay, those are all of my most anticipated releases for the first half of the year! Of course there are a lot more books coming out that I'm interested in, but these are the ones that I want to buy and read right away (though some I'll be waiting for the paperback to come out - looking at you, Locklands). I hope you found some new books to add to your TBR on this list!
Which of these books are you most excited about? Let me know in the comments or tweet at me @AllyEmReads.
Until next time!
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