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.
this week’s topic is Books on My Summer TBR. I’ve been trying not to request too many books this summer since my kids will be home, and we’ll be away for a couple of weeks. But, I still have a dozen or so books I want to get to, most of which are ARCs. Let’s check them out!
1. Not Another Love Song
Author: Julie Soto
Page Length: 384
Publication Date: July 16, 2024
Publisher: Forever
Synopsis: Two string players fight their attraction for each other as they compete for center stage in this spicy and emotional romance.
Gwen Jackson and Xander Thorne are both musical prodigies, but each has had very different paths to success. Xander was born into classical music royalty, while Gwen had a natural ear for music that was nurtured by a kind shop owner.
After Gwen performs at his friend’s wedding, she’s mortified when she realizes Xander has no clue who she is—despite having worked together for a year at the Pops Orchestra. But she’s more furious that he arrogantly critiques her performance.
When Gwen is offered the role of First Chair of the orchestra, something Xander had secretly coveted for years, their existing hostility goes up a notch. But their respect for each other’s music is undeniable, and their onstage chemistry off the scale. As they begin to explore their feelings for one another, suddenly they’re box office dynamite and the fragile romance that’s growing between them is in danger of being crushed beneath a publicity stunt…
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble
2. When the Viscount Seduces
Author: Darcy Burke
Series: Rogue Rules #3
Page Length: 316
Publication Date: July 9, 2024
Publisher: Zealous Quill Press
Synopsis: Rogue Rules When a young lady is ruined, her friends vow none of them will ever be ensnared by a scoundrel again. They will resist every gentleman’s charms even—and especially—if it means gaining a reputation for being impossible to woo. It will take extraordinary rogues to break their rules…From USA Today Bestselling Author Darcy Burke, author of The Untouchables and Phoenix Club series, comes your next Regency romance must-read.When the Viscount Seduces
After a disastrous Almack’s debut, bookish and clumsy Gwendolen Price is determined to improve her reputation and make her parents proud. The Viscount Somerton, her brother’s friend and one of Society’s most eligible bachelors, offers to help her, and she’s certain his attention will increase her standing—even though he’s exactly the kind of rake she has vowed to avoid. Lazarus Rowe, the eminently unserious and dashingly handsome Viscount Somerton, has spent a lifetime hiding his shameful he simply cannot read well. With a speech to Parliament looming, he’s desperate to remedy this deficiency. The chance to help his friend’s hopelessly bluestocking sister seems the perfect trade—his presence as her devoted escort in exchange for her help as his tutor. As sparks fly between them with every lesson, Gwen refuses to fall for a rogue while Lazarus, begins to reconsider his rakish ways. When a woman from his recent past makes a shocking revelation, Lazarus fears all is lost. Will Gwen retreat to the safety of her books, or do she and this almost-redeemed rake have a chance at a real life happily ever after?
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble
3. Castle of the Cursed
Author: Romina Garber
Page Length: 304
Publication Date: July 30, 2024
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Synopsis: THE HOUSE IS ALWAYS HUNGRY…
After a mysterious attack claims the lives of her parents, all Estela has left is her determination to solve the case. Suffering from survivor’s guilt so intense that she might be losing her grip on reality, she accepts an invitation to live overseas with an estranged aunt at their ancestral Spanish castle, la Sombra.
Beneath its gothic façade, la Sombra harbors a trove of family secrets, and Estela begins to suspect her parents’ deaths may be linked to their past. Her investigation takes a supernatural turn when she crosses paths with a silver-eyed boy only she can see. Estela worries Sebastián is a hallucination, but he claims he’s been trapped in the castle. They grudgingly team up to find answers and as their investigation ignites, so does a romance, mistrust twined with every caress.
As the mysteries pile up, it feels to Estela like everyone in the tiny town of Oscuro is lying and that whoever was behind the attack has followed her to Spain. The deeper she ventures into la Sombra’s secrets, the more certain she becomes that the suspect she’s chasing has already found her . . . and they’re closer than she ever realized.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble
4. How to Fall for a Scoundrel
Author: Kate Bateman
Series: Her Majesty’s Rebels #2
Page Length: 304
Publication Date: Aug. 20, 2024
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Synopsis: Two unlikely allies team up to solve a case in this novel filled with Kate Bateman’s signature sparkling voice, exciting adventures, and steamy chemistry.
As a founding member of King & Co., London’s most successful private investigation firm, studious Eleanor Law delights in secretly proving that women can solve crimes just as well as men. When a charming con man pretends to be her fictional boss, “Charles King,” Ellie knows he’s lying, but accepting the scoundrel’s offer of help might just be the key to cracking her new case and recovering a priceless manuscript.
“Henri Bonheur”—or “Harry” as he asks to be called—claims his criminal past is behind him, but a man who steals and seduces with such consummate ease can never be trusted. As the investigation draws them deeper into danger and desire, Ellie’s infuriated to realize she’s developed feelings for her law-breaking accomplice. How can she love the scoundrel when she doesn’t even know his real name? And what will happen when Harry’s past finally catches up with him?
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble
5. The Design of Us
Author: Sajni Patel
Page Length: 368
Publication Date: July 16, 2024
Publisher: Berkley
Synopsis: One impulsive lie leads to a weeklong adventure of fake dating for two bickering coworkers in this swoony destination wedding rom-com by Sajni Patel, author of The Trouble with Hating You .
Sunshine incarnate Bhanu brings big UX energy to whatever she does, including going for the promotion where her only serious competition is her work nemesis, AKA Sunny, the grump with the Denzel voice. She expected to get a reprieve from him while visiting her family in Hawai’i, but the universe has other plans. When Bhanu runs into Sunny at the hotel and witnesses his ex criticizing him about being single, Bhanu does the first thing that comes to she impetuously claims to be Sunny’s girlfriend just to get some peace and quiet. Except Sunny is on island for a friend’s wedding and his ex has already texted the entire wedding party about this mysterious girlfriend.
Bhanu truly is the bane of Sunny’s existence. But the last thing he wants to do is cause tension during his friend’s wedding festivities, much less be the object of their pity. He has no choice except to play along, if only he and Bhanu can put aside their quarreling and act like a real couple.
Between Bhanu’s hilariously meddling family and Sunny’s ecstatic friends, the two are pushed closer together, even as stress mounts over the impending promotion.
They say what happens on island, stays on island. But as Sunny and Bhanu let their guards down, will either of them be able to resist this romantic getaway without crossing the line?
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble
6. A Shadow in the Ember
Author: Jennifer L. Armentrout
Series: Flash & Fire #1
Page Length: 647
Publication Date: Oct. 19, 2021
Publisher: Blue Box Press
Synopsis: Born shrouded in the veil of the Primals, a Maiden as the Fates promised, Seraphena Mierel’s future has never been hers. Chosen before birth to uphold the desperate deal her ancestor struck to save his people, Sera must leave behind her life and offer herself to the Primal of Death as his Consort.
However, Sera’s real destiny is the most closely guarded secret in all of Lasania—she’s not the well protected Maiden but an assassin with one mission—one target. Make the Primal of Death fall in love, become his weakness, and then…end him. If she fails, she dooms her kingdom to a slow demise at the hands of the Rot.
Sera has always known what she is. Chosen. Consort. Assassin. Weapon. A specter never fully formed yet drenched in blood. A monster. Until him. Until the Primal of Death’s unexpected words and deeds chase away the darkness gathering inside her. And his seductive touch ignites a passion she’s never allowed herself to feel and cannot feel for him. But Sera has never had a choice. Either way, her life is forfeit—it always has been, as she has been forever touched by Life and Death.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble
7. The Backtrack
Author: Erin La Rosa
Page Length: 304
Publication Date: July 16, 2024
Publisher: Canary Street Press
Synopsis: Life, rewound …
Nearly twenty years ago, Sam Leto left her small hometown of Tybee Island, Georgia, to pursue her dreams of becoming a pilot. While she’d prefer to keep flying away from her painful childhood memories, her beloved grandmother Pearl decides it’s time to sell the family home. Reluctantly, Sam is summoned back to pack up the house.
The 2000s nostalgia from Sam’s old bedroom hits Fall Out Boy posters, drawers of roll-on body glitter and even her favorite CD player with a mixtape from her best friend, Damon Rocha. Damon was always a safe place and Sam often wonders what if her teenage self admitted her feelings for him back then…
Mysteriously, the CD player still works all these years later. And somehow it has the power to show Sam an alternate version of her life.
Song by song, Sam receives flashbacks from her past—senior prom, graduation, leaving home. But the memories aren’t as she remembers them; they show what could have been. Suddenly, Sam knows exactly what would have happened if she’d taken a chance with Damon—and she can’t help feeling she made a terrible mistake leaving Tybee all those years ago.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble
8. The Phoenix Keeper
Author: S.A. Maclean
Page Length: 481
Publication Date: Aug. 13, 2024
Publisher: Orbit
Synopsis: A socially awkward but determined phoenix keeper must partner with her longtime rival to save her beloved exhibit from falling into obscurity in this charming, romantic fantasy debut.
Aila is a little obsessed with phoenixes. As head phoenix keeper at a world-renowned zoo for magical creatures, her childhood dream of conserving critically endangered firebirds seems closer than ever. There’s just one glaring her zoo’s breeding program hasn’t functioned for a decade. When a tragic phoenix-nabbing cripples the flagship program at a neighbouring zoo, Aila must prove her derelict facilities are fit to take the reins. But saving a species takes more than stellar animal handling skills. Carnivorous water horses, tempestuous thunderhawks — Aila has no problem wrangling beasts. Inspiring zoo patrons? That’s another story. Finding the courage to ask for help from the hot dragon keeper at a neighbouring exhibit? Virtually impossible. And don’t get Aila started on her arch-rival from the glamorous leader of the zoo’s wildly popular griffin show, who’s convinced that Aila’s beloved phoenix would serve better as a performer than a conservation exhibit. Aided by both friends and enemies, Aila must conquer her social anxiety if she is to restore her breeding programme. With the world watching and the threat of poachers looming, Aila’s success isn’t only a matter of keeping her the future of a species depends on her.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble
9. A Magic Fierce and Bright
Author: Hemant Nayak
Page Length: 384
Publication Date: July 9, 2024
Publisher:
Synopsis: A young technomancer teams up with a handsome thief to save her sister in this propulsive, magic-filled young adult fantasy that is perfect for fans of Gearbreakers and Iron Widow .
Adya wants nothing more than to be left alone. Content to be loyal to no one but herself in the isolated jungles of South India, she dreams only of finding her lost sister, Priya, and making enough money to take care of their family. It’s too bad that her rare ability to wake electric machines—using the magic that wiped them out five centuries ago—also makes her a coveted political pawn. Everyone seems to believe that her technomancy can help them win the endless war for control over the magic’s supernatural source.
These senseless power struggles mean little to Adya. But when her enemies dangle news of her sister before her, she’s all too quick to leap at the chance to bring Priya home—even if it means teaming up with a rakish, disreputable thief in order to do it. With the threat of invasion looming ever larger on the horizon, Adya must reconcile the kind of person she is with the kind of person she wants to be and untangle the web of intrigue, conspiracy, and deceit that threatens to take all of India down with it.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble
10. Black Tide Son
Author: H.M. Long
Series: The Winter Sea #2
Page Length: 448
Publication Date: July 9, 2024
Publisher: Titan Books
Synopsis: Swashbuckling adventure on the high-seas, full of magic, betrayal, redemption and fearsome women, in the second book of the Winter Sea series, for readers of Adrienne Young and Naomi Novik.
A captured pirate reveals shocking news to Mary and Samuel that sends them in urgent pursuit of Samuel’s twin brother, Benedict, but their search uncovers much more than they bargained for. While evading a cunning new foe, Mary and Samuel must navigate the complexities of their own growing bond as they launch a rescue mission within one of the most secure fortresses on the Mereish Coast.
LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble
What’s on your summer TBR? Do we have any of the same books? Comment below!
I hope you’ll like A Shadow in the Ember, I was too busy comparing Seraphena to Poppy.
My TTT: https://laurieisreading.com/2024/06/18/top-ten-tuesday-books-on-my-summer-2024-tbr/
Thank you! I’m loving it so far. 🙂
I hope you enjoy all of these!
Thanks, Joanna!
Great list! I hope you enjoy them! I haven’t really planned a summer tbr because I’ve been in a bit of a slump. I’m just hoping to read in general haha.
lol I know the feeling. I hope you get your reading mojo back. 🙂
I’m so psyched for black tide son, got the ARC and very grateful but I wish they’d do an early audio release!
Oooooh, I hope you enjoy it! 🙂
So many good books!! Do you want to start Not Another Love Song soon? Maybe next week??
YESSSSSS!!!!!! lol
I’ll message you!
I loved A Shadow in the Ember, I still need to read the third book in that series. I hope you enjoy the series too!
Thanks, Kyla! I’m about halfway through and am loving it!!
That’s one great list of books! I also have The Phoenix Keeper coming up, so fingers crossed we both love it 😊
Ooooh, it sounds soooooo good! Can’t wait to hear your thoughts. 🙂
Nope
As of right now, my Summer TBR is just a trilogy (Sea of Trolls)- really depends on how slow or fast you are reading books
I hope you enjoy your trilogy! 🙂
One of my goals I usually have each year is to start a series
Looks like a great list! I hope you enjoy them all!
Thanks so much, Yolanda!
I’m debating on whether or not to pick up Black Tide Son. I enjoyed the first book, but I’m not sure I’m invested enough to continue the series – looking forward to your thoughts on that one!
Thanks, Rebecca! Fingers crossed it’s a good one!
Looks like you’ve got a good bunch of books lined up for the summer! I can’t lie, I’m really looking forward to our buddy read of Castle of the Cursed. The Phoenix Keeper is another one on my shelf, and The Design of Us is going directly onto my TBR – fake dating is irresistible to me! I hope you enjoy all these when you get to them.
Thanks, Leah. And if you want to buddy read The Phoenix Keeper, let me know! I’m plan to read it later this week or early next.
YES!!! I WANT TO!
Yay!!!!!