Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links, including Amazon, and I may earn a small commission, at no cost to you, if you purchase through my links.
This week’s topic is:
Spring Cleanup
These are 10 ARCs I was approved for on NetGalley. Most are romance or ya fantasy, and I’m hoping to read them all this month because I have a few blog tours in April that I need to prepare for as well. I need to stop requesting NetGalley books, but I just can’t resist!! There are so many books that sound amazing, and it’s so easy to hit that “request” button!
Let’s take a look at some of the books I plan to read:
1. Like a Boss by Anne Harper
Series: Accidentally Viral #2
Publication Date: April 19, 2021
Publisher: Entangled: Amara
Synopsis: Antonella “Nell” Bennett is having the worst day of her life.
Long-term boyfriend broke up with her? Check.
Drove through the pouring rain to a small roadside restaurant, only to be told all the tables were reserved for “Couples Night”? Check.
Definitely no longer one half of a couple? Check.
So maybe she got a little heated with the restaurant’s host, and maybe her voice carried a bit as she lamented—loudly—that she’s never anyone’s “plus-one.” At least an attractive stranger comes to her rescue, inviting her to be seated with him, and when it turns out to be one of the best nights she’s had in a while, even ending in an innocent kiss that becomes anything but? Check please.
Fast forward a week, and Nell’s rant has gone viral. Sure, her tiny hometown of Arbor Bay is collectively buzzing over their latest Internet celebrity, but Nell’s no stranger to attention. Drama seems to follow her whether she likes it or not.
But even she never expected to show up to work only to discover her brand-new boss is a very familiar face…
2. How to Catch a Duke by Grace Burrowes
Series: Rogues to Riches #6
Page Length: 368
Publication Date: April 13, 2021
Publisher: Forever
Synopsis: “I have come to ask you to kill me, my lord.”
Miss Abigail Abbott desperately needs to disappear, and the only person she trusts to help her do that is Lord Stephen Wentworth, heir to the Duke of Walden. Stephen is brilliant, charming, and—when he needs to be—absolutely ruthless. So ruthless, that, he proposes marriage instead of a pretense of murder, to keep Abigail safe.
Stephen knows that Abigail has the dignity and determination of a duchess and the courage of a lioness. When she accepts his courtship of convenience, he also discovers she kisses like his most intimate wish come true. For Abigail, their arrangement is a sham to escape her dangerous enemies. For Stephen, it’s his last, best hope to share a lifetime with the lady of his dreams—if he can convince her his love is real.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository
3. Curse of the Specter Queen by Jenny Elder Moke
Page Length: 352
Publication Date: June 1, 2021
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Synopsis: MAY THE HAZEL BRING YOU WISDOM AND THE ASPEN GUIDE AND PROTECT YOU…
Samantha Knox put away her childish fantasies of archaeological adventure the day her father didn’t return home from the Great War, retreating to the safety of the antique bookshop where she works. But when a mysterious package arrives with a damaged diary inside, Sam’s peaceful life is obliterated. Ruthless men intent on reclaiming the diary are after Sam, setting her and her best friend, along with her childhood crush, on a high-stakes adventure that lands them in the green hills outside Dublin, Ireland. Here they discover an ancient order with a dark purpose – to perform an occult ritual that will raise the Specter Queen, the Celtic goddess of vengeance and death, to bring about a war unlike any the world has ever seen. To stop them, Sam must solve a deviously complex cipher – one that will lead her on a treasure hunt to discover the ancient relic at the heart of the ritual: a bowl carved from the tree of life. Will she find the bowl and stop the curse of the Specter Queen, or will the ancient order bring about the end of the world?
Indiana Jones gets a refresh with this female-driven mystery adventure, set in the 1920s, full of ciphers, ancient relics, and heart-stopping action – the first in a brand-new series!
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository
4. You’ve Got Plaid by Eliza Knight
Series: Prince Charlie’s Angels #3
Publication Date: May 25, 2021
Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca
Synopsis: This Highlander is determined to return the daughter of his enemy to the safety of her home, even if it means helping her…
Brogan Grant, a Jacobite soldier and bastard son of the Chief, fought savagely on the battlefield, and barely escaped capture. On the run for his life, Brogan comes across what he thinks is a spy—a very bonny lass disguised as a lad, who happens to be the daughter of his clan’s enemy. He admires her bravery, but he knows what can happen to a woman alone in a war-ravaged land.
Lady Fiona MacBean is determined to do her part to ensure there is a Scottish king. Disguised as a healer, she delivers coded messages to rebels throughout the Highlands. There’s only one thing impeding her mission—a striking Highlander who’s determined to send her home.
Unfortunately, Fiona will not be deterred. Left with little choice, Brogan agrees to join her mission if she agrees to return home after. Now the two must work together and risk everything to save the life of Bonnie Prince Charlie himself. If only their hearts weren’t at risk as well…
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository
5. The Soulmate Equation by Christina Laurens
Page Length: 368
Publication Date: May 18, 2021
Publisher: Gallery Books
Synopsis: Single mom Jess Davis is a data and statistics wizard, but no amount of number crunching can convince her to step back into the dating world. Raised by her grandparents—who now help raise her seven-year-old daughter, Juno—Jess has been left behind too often to feel comfortable letting anyone in. After all, her father’s never been around, her hard-partying mother disappeared when she was six, and her ex decided he wasn’t “father material” before Juno was even born. Jess holds her loved ones close, but working constantly to stay afloat is hard…and lonely.
But then Jess hears about GeneticAlly, a buzzy new DNA-based matchmaking company that’s predicted to change dating forever. Finding a soulmate through DNA? The reliability of numbers: this Jess understands.
At least she thought she did, until her test shows an unheard-of 98% compatibility with another subject in the database: GeneticAlly’s founder, Dr. River Pena. This is one number she can’t wrap her head around, because she already knows Dr. Pena. The stuck-up, stubborn man is without a doubt not her soulmate. But GeneticAlly has a proposition: Get to know him and we’ll pay you. Jess—who is barely making ends meet—is in no position to turn it down, despite her skepticism about the project and her dislike for River. As the pair are dragged from one event to the next as the “Diamond” pairing that could make GeneticAlly a mint in stock prices, Jess begins to realize that there might be more to the scientist—and the science behind a soulmate—than she thought.
Funny, warm, and full of heart, The Soulmate Equation proves that the delicate balance between fate and choice can never be calculated.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository
6. When a Duke Loves a Governess by Olivia Drake
Series: Unlikely Duchesses #3
Page Length: 320
Publication Date: July 27, 2021
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Synopsis: Tessa James has worked and planned tirelessly to open her own millinery shop. All she needs now is a loan from the lord who sired and abandoned her. The only problem is, she doesn’t even know his name. What’s a woman to do to find him but enter the aristocratic world by becoming a governess?
Guy Whitby, the new Duke of Carlin, has returned to London after years abroad to discover that his young daughter Sophy has become a wild-child known for scaring away every governess who’s crossed his doorstep. When Tessa James applies for the job, he hires her in desperation despite his misgivings that she’s too bold and beautiful–and that she might be fibbing about her qualifications.
Their blooming attraction leads them on a completely unexpected path to love that neither wants to deny. But when an old enemy threatens Guy’s family, their forbidden romance goes up in flames. Can they still learn to love and trust each other as forces try to tear them apart?
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository
7. A Dragonbird in the Fern by Laura Rueckert
Page Length: 352
Publication Date: Aug. 23, 2021
Publisher: Flux
Synopsis: When an assassin kills Princess Jiara’s older sister Scilla, her vengeful ghost is doomed to walk their city of glittering canals, tormenting loved ones until the murderer is brought to justice. While the entire kingdom mourns, Scilla’s betrothed arrives and requests that seventeen-year-old Jiara take her sister’s place as his bride to confirm the alliance between their countries.
Marrying the young king intended for her sister and traveling to his distant home is distressing enough, but with dyslexia and years of scholarly struggles, Jiara abandoned any hope of learning other languages long ago. She’s terrified of life in a foreign land where she’ll be unable to communicate.
Then Jiara discovers evidence that her sister’s assassin comes from the king’s own country. If she marries the king, Jiara can hunt the murderer and release her family from Scilla’s ghost, whose thirst for blood mounts every day. To save her family, Jiara must find her sister’s killer . . . before he murders her too.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository
8. The Newcomer by Mary Kay Andrews
Page Length: 448
Publication Date: May 4, 2021
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Synopsis: IN TROUBLE AND ON THE RUN . . .
After she discovers her sister Tanya dead on the floor of her fashionable New York City townhouse, Letty Carnahan is certain she knows who did it: Tanya’s ex; sleazy real estate entrepreneur Evan Wingfield. Even in the grip of grief and panic Letty heeds her late sister’s warnings: “If anything bad happens to me–it’s Evan. Promise me you’ll take Maya and run. Promise me.” So Letty grabs her sister’s Mercedes and hits the road . . .
WITH A TRUNKFUL OF EMOTIONAL BAGGAGE . . .
. . . and her wailing four-year-old niece Maya. Letty is determined to out-run Evan and the law, but run to where? Tanya, a woman with a past shrouded in secrets, left behind a “go-bag” of cash and a big honking diamond ring–but only one clue: a faded magazine story about a sleepy mom-and-pop motel in a Florida beach town with the improbable name of Treasure Island. She sheds her old life and checks into an uncertain future at The Murmuring Surf Motel.
THE NO VACANCY SIGN IS FLASHING, & THE SHARKS ARE CIRCLING . . .
And that’s the good news. Because The Surf, as the regulars call it, is the winter home of a
close-knit flock of retirees and snowbirds who regard this odd-duck newcomer with suspicion and down-right hostility. As Letty settles into the motel’s former storage room, she tries to heal Maya’s heartache and unravel the key to her sister’s shady past, all while dodging the attention of the owner’s dangerously attractive son Joe, who just happens to be a local police detective. Can Letty find romance as well as a room at the inn–or will Joe betray her secrets and put her behind bars? With danger closing in, it’s a race to find the truth and and right the wrongs of the past.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository
9. Capture the Crown by Jennifer Estep
Series: A Gargoyle Queen – Book 1
Page Length:
Publication Date: July 6, 2021
Publisher:
Synopsis: Gemma Ripley has a reputation for being a pampered princess who is more interested in pretty gowns, sparkling jewelry, and other frivolous things than learning how to rule the kingdom of Andvari. But her carefully crafted persona is just an act to hide the fact that Gemma is a powerful mind magier—and a spy.
Gemma is undercover, trying to figure out who is stealing large amounts of tearstone from one of the Ripley royal mines when she encounters Prince Leonidas Morricone of Morta—her mortal enemy. Gemma tries to steer clear of the handsome prince, but when she finds herself behind enemy lines, she reluctantly joins forces with Leo. Also coming to Gemma’s aid is Grimley, her beloved gargoyle.
Despite the fact that Andvari and Morta are old, bitter enemies, a dangerous attraction sparks between Gemma and Leo. Further complicating matters is Leo’s murderous family, especially Queen Maeven Morricone, the mastermind behind the infamous Seven Spire massacre.
The closer Gemma gets to the stolen tearstone, the more deadly plots she uncovers. Everyone is trying to capture the crown, but only one queen can sit on the throne…
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository
10. The Endless Skies by Shannon Price
Page Length: 354
Publication Date: Aug. 17, 2021
Publisher: Tor Teen
Synopsis: Seventeen-year-old Rowan is about to become one of the famed Leonodai Warriors—the elite magical fighters who protect the floating city Heliana from the world of humans. Until disaster strikes the city’s children.
Against orders from the king, Rowan sets out on her own and tracks down one of the Warrior teams—only to find herself face to face with both the man she loves and the one who holds the dark secrets of their past. With time running out and humans on their tail, Rowan must risk everything to save her beloved city.
A breakout standalone epic fantasy about shapeshifting warriors perfect for fans of Adrienne Young and Wonder Woman.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Book Depository
ooo these sound good! Looking forward to reading your thoughts!
Thanks! 🙂
So many amazing books on here. Go you!!! I also got an ARC to Christina Lauren and I’m planning on picking that one up next month!!
Thanks! lol I hope you enjoy the book. It sounds so good!
Thank you!
Great list! I will be curious to see what you think of Like a Boss. I saw it but didn’t request it. I do have The Endless Skies to read!
Thanks! I’m in the middle of Like a Boss now – so far I’m enjoying it. The Endless Skies sounds really good! I hope we both love it! 🙂
I read The Soulmate Equation and really enjoyed it. Then I was talking to my friends and they pointed out that dating through DNA matches would be a form of eugenics. It left me with a lot to think about.
Hmmm, interesting….
I totally get it, NG can easily become an addiction. These all look and sound good. Quite an eclectic mix. Enjoy them all.
Thanks so much! 🙂