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. Today, the topic is Most Anticipated Books Releasing During the Second Half of 2023!
Title: Foul Heart Huntsman
Author: Chloe Gong
Series: Foul Lady Fortune #2
Page Length: 560
Publication Date: Sept. 26, 2023
Synopsis: 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.
Title: A Curse for True Love
Author: Stephanie Garber
Series: Once Upon a Broken Heart #3
Page Length: 400
Publication Date: Oct. 24, 2023
Publisher: Flatiron Books
Synopsis: Blood will be shed, hearts will be stolen, and true love will be put to the test in A CURSE FOR TRUE LOVE, the breathtaking conclusion to Stephanie Garber’s #1 NEW YORK TIMES bestselling Once Upon A Broken Heart trilogy
Two villains, one girl, and a deadly battle for happily ever after.
Evangeline Fox ventured to the Magnificent North in search of her happy ending, and it seems as if she has it. She’s married to a handsome prince and lives in a legendary castle. But Evangeline has no idea of the devastating price she’s paid for this fairytale. She doesn’t know what she has lost, and her husband is determined to make sure she never finds out. . . . but first he must kill Jacks, the Prince of Hearts.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon
Title: Wreck the Halls
Author: Tessa Bailey
Page Length: 368
Publication Date: Oct. 3, 2023
Publisher: Avon
Synopsis: Melody Gallard may be the daughter of music royalty, but her world is far from glamorous. She spends her days restoring old books and avoiding the limelight (one awkward tabloid photo was enough, thanks). But when a producer offers her a lot of money to reunite her mother’s band on live tv, Mel begins to wonder if it’s time to rattle the cage, shake up her quiet life… and see him again. The only other person who could wrangle the rock and roll divas.
Beat Dawkins, the lead singer’s son, is Melody’s opposite–the camera loves him, he could charm the pants off anyone, and his mom is not a potential cult leader. Still, they might have been best friends if not for the legendary feud that broke up the band. When they met as teenagers, Mel felt an instant spark, but it’s nothing compared to the wild, intense attraction that builds as they embark on a madcap mission to convince their mothers to perform one last show.
While dealing with rock star shenanigans, a 24-hour film crew, brawling Santas, and mobs of adoring fans, Mel starts to step out of her comfort zone. With Beat by her side, cheering her on, she’s never felt so understood. But Christmas Eve is fast approaching, and a decades-old scandal is poised to wreck everything–the Steel Birds reunion, their relationships with their mothers, and their newfound love.
Title: The Phoenix King
Author: Aparna Verma
Series: The Ravence Trilogy #1
Page Length: 601
Publication Date: Aug. 31, 2023
Publisher: Orbit
Synopsis: In a kingdom where flames hold magic and the desert hides secrets, an ancient prophecy comes for an assassin, a princess, and a king. But none are ready to face destiny—and the choices they make could burn the world.
“If we carry the burdens of our fathers, we’ll never know what it means to be free.”
For Elena Aadya Ravence, fire is yearning. She longs to feel worthy of her Phoenix god, of her ancestors who transformed the barren dunes of Sayon into a thriving kingdom. But though she knows the ways and wiles of the desert better than she knows her own skin, the secrets of the Eternal Flame elude her. And without them, she’ll never be accepted as queen.
For Leo Malhari Ravence, fire is control. He is not ready to give up his crown—there’s still too much work to be done to ensure his legacy remains untarnished, his family protected. But power comes with a price, and he’ll wage war with the heavens themselves to keep from paying it.
For Yassen Knight, fire is redemption. He dreams of shedding his past as one of Sayon’s most deadly assassins, of laying to rest the ghosts of those he has lost. If joining the court of flame and serving the royal Ravence family—the very people he once swore to eliminate—will earn him that, he’ll do it no matter what they ask of him.
But the Phoenix watches over all and the fire has a will of its own. It will come for all three, will come for Sayon itself….and they must either find a way to withstand the blaze or burn to ash.
Title: Check & Mate
Author: Ali Hazelwood
Page Length: 368
Publication Date: Nov. 7, 2023
Publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers
Synopsis: Mallory Greenleaf is done with chess. Every move counts nowadays; after the sport led to the destruction of her family four years earlier, Mallory’s focus is on her mom, her sisters, and the dead-end job that keeps the lights on. That is, until she begrudgingly agrees to play in one last charity tournament and inadvertently wipes the board with notorious “Kingkiller” Nolan Sawyer: current world champion and reigning Bad Boy of chess.
Nolan’s loss to an unknown rook-ie shocks everyone. What’s even more confusing? His desire to cross pawns again. What kind of gambit is Nolan playing? The smart move would be to walk away. Resign. Game over. But Mallory’s victory opens the door to sorely needed cash-prizes and despite everything, she can’t help feeling drawn to the enigmatic strategist….
As she rockets up the ranks, Mallory struggles to keep her family safely separated from the game that wrecked it in the first place. And as her love for the sport she so desperately wanted to hate begins to rekindle, Mallory quickly realizes that the games aren’t only on the board, the spotlight is brighter than she imagined, and the competition can be fierce (-ly attractive. And intelligent…and infuriating…)
Title: Sinner’s Isle
Author: Angela Montoya
Page Length: 304
Publication Date: Oct. 31, 2023
Publisher: Random House
Synopsis: The fiery tale of a powerful witch who will do anything to escape the remote island she’s being held captive on, including blackmail an infamous, charming pirate who washes up on shore, from debut author Angela Montoya.
Rosalinda is trapped on Sinner’s Isle under the watchful eye of a power-hungry headmistress. And thanks to her vicious phantoms, Rosa is the most favored at this year’s Offering, where Majestics’ powers will be on full display so the wealthy may choose one to serve them for life.
For years, she has been kept under the watchful, calculating eye of Doña Lucia. Now eighteen, Rosa will be the prized commodity at this year’s Offering, a fiesta for the wealthy to engage in drink, damsels, and debauchery. That is why she must flee—before someone forces the vicious phantoms within her to destroy everything she touches.
Handsome, swashbuckling Mariano has long sailed the high seas as the Prince of Pirates. Then the king’s fleet attacks his father’s infamous ship, leaving him marooned on Sinner’s Isle with only an enchanted chain meant to lead him to his heart’s desire. Instead, he falls into the hands of a brazen (although) bewitching headache—Rosa.
Together they must outwit each other and their enemies before the Offering ends and it’s too late to escape the perils of Sinner’s Isle.
Title: Bright Lights, Big Christmas
Author: Mary Kay Andrews
Page Length: 288
Publication Date: Sept. 26, 2023
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Synopsis: It’s a long way from a Christmas tree farm in the mountains of North Carolina to a certain street corner in Greenwich Village, but Kerry Tolliver, newly unemployed and romantically unattached, reluctantly agrees to make the trek, and live in a tiny vintage camper with her gruff older brother (and his dog Queenie) out of family loyalty. Selling Christmas trees at the family’s stand in on the sidewalks of New York, Kerry is startled to find herself beginning to feel at home in this quirky little corner of the city, and succumbing to the charms of Patrick, a single dad and his adorable, dragon-loving son Austin. When a secretive elderly neighbor goes missing with the holidays fast approaching, Kerry discovers her new friends have become family . . . and maybe more . . .
Surrounded by warm childhood memories, sparkling possibility, and the magic of
Christmas, will this small-town girl surrender her heart to the bright lights of the big city?
Title: What the River Knows
Author: Isabel Ibañez
Page Length: 416
Publication Date: Nov. 14, 2023
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Synopsis: Bolivian-Argentinian Inez Olivera belongs to the glittering upper society of nineteenth century Buenos Aires, and like the rest of the world, the town is steeped in old world magic that’s been largely left behind or forgotten. Inez has everything a girl might want, except for the one thing she yearns the most: her globetrotting parents—who frequently leave her behind.
When she receives word of their tragic deaths, Inez inherits their massive fortune and a mysterious guardian, an archeologist in partnership with his Egyptian brother-in-law. Yearning for answers, Inez sails to Cairo, bringing her sketch pads and an ancient golden ring her father sent to her for safekeeping before he died. But upon her arrival, the old world magic tethered to the ring pulls her down a path where she soon discovers there’s more to her parent’s disappearance than what her guardian led her to believe.
With her guardian’s infuriatingly handsome assistant thwarting her at every turn, Inez must rely on ancient magic to uncover the truth about her parent’s disappearance—or risk becoming a pawn in a larger game that will kill her.
Author: Dylan Newton
Page Length: 368
Publication Date: Aug. 1, 2023
Publisher: Forever
Synopsis: When disaster strikes and chef Bryce Weatherford is given guardianship of her three young nieces, her life goes from cooking with fire…to controlling a dumpster fire. Five‑year‑old Addison refuses to remove her fairy wings, eight‑year‑old Cecily won’t bathe, and tween June is majoring in belligerence. With all this chaos, Bryce jettisons hope for a life outside of managing her family and her new job.
It’s been years since Ryker Matthews had his below‑the‑knee amputation, yet the phantom pain for his lost limb and Marine career haunts him. To cope, he focuses on his vehicle restoration business. He knows he’s lucky to be alive. Yet, “lucky” feels more like “cursed” to his lonely heart.
When Ryker literally sweeps Bryce off her feet in the grocery store’s baby aisle, they both feel sparks. But falling in love would be one more curveball neither is ready to deal with… or is it exactly the change of plans they need?
Title: A Multitude of Dreams
Author: Mara Rutherford
Page Length: 384
Publication Date: Sept. 26, 2023
Publisher: Inkyard Press
Synopsis: The bloody plague is finally past, but what fresh horror lies in its wake?
Princess Imogen of Goslind has lived a sheltered life for three years at the boarded-up castle—she and the rest of its inhabitants safe from the bloody mori roja plague that’s ravaged the kingdom. But Princess Imogen has a secret, and as King Stuart descends further into madness, it’s at great risk of being revealed. Rations dwindle each day, and unhappy murmurings threaten to crack the facade of the years-long charade being played within the castle walls.
Nico Mott once enjoyed a comfortable life of status, but the plague took everyone and everything from him. If not for the generosity of a nearby lord, Nico may not have survived the mori roja’s aftermath. But does owing Lord Crane his life mean he owes him his silence?
When Lord Crane sends Nico to search for more plague survivors in the castle, Nico collides with a princess who wants to break out. They will each have to navigate the web of lies they’ve woven if they’re going to survive the nightmares that lie ahead.
Are you looking forward to any of these? Which other books are you excited for? Comment below!
A lot of these are on my tbr! The one I am most excited for is A Curse for True Love.
YES! I can’t wait! I already preordered it and submitted my receipt to get the special book jacket. lol
Me too! I need to finish my collection. 😂
I have a feeling you will love Check & Mate.
I think so too. I love all her other books.
Change of Plans looks so cute!
It does! Can’t wait to pick it up!
I’m looking forward to quite a few of these myself! Excellent picks!
Thanks, Tessa! I hope you enjoy the ones you’re looking forward to!
You already know what I’m looking forward to, and which ones we have in common (because we compare pretty regularly to find buddy reads). And thank god for that, because you keep me going through the rough ones, and help me keep it together during the really good ones! And I cannot believe that I didn’t put the Stephanie Garber one on my list! Awesome list this week.
I’m glad we had each other for our recent read. That was ROUGH! lol
So rough! The gifs got me through it!
These all sound really good, Julie. I have requested a couple of them, so we shall see if I get approved. I hope you enjoy them all.
Thanks, Carla! I hope you are approved. 🙂
WHAT THE RIVER KNOWS sounds like a really good one. I hadn’t heard of it before yesterday. I’m definitely putting it on my TBR list. I hope you enjoy all these!
Happy TTT!
Susan
http://www.blogginboutbooks.com
Thanks, Susan. I read another by the author, and it was really good, so I have high hopes for this one too. 🙂
A Curse For True Love was on my list this week too. I hope you enjoy all these!
Thanks! And I hope you love a Curse for True Love 🙂
Thank you 🙂