upcoming releases – The Melody In Words

Happy New Year! Hope it’s a good one for everyone. After an interesting 2022, I am looking forward to seeing how 2023 goes. I will be taking an important exam in a few months, which I am oddly nervous about because it will be the first big exam I take in a language I don’t fluently speak. While the topics covered are things I have a good knowledge about, the language barrier could be a problem, so wish me luck.

I decided to start this year with a post mentioning a few upcoming releases that I want to read. As I said last year, I don’t really keep an eye on upcoming releases all that much, but I did hear of a couple that caught my attention for this year. While I am not sure I will definitely get to read them this year, I have added them to my To-Be-Read list.

Ascension by Nicholas Binge

An enormous snow-covered mountain has appeared in the Pacific Ocean. No one knows when exactly it showed up, precisely how big it might be, or how to explain its existence. When Harold Tunmore, a scientist of mysterious phenomena, is contacted by a shadowy organization to help investigate, he has no idea what he is getting into as he and his team set out for the mountain.
The higher Harold’s team ascends, the less things make sense. Time moves differently, turning minutes into hours, and hours into days. Amid the whipping cold of higher elevation, the climbers’ limbs numb and memories of their lives before the mountain begin to fade. Paranoia quickly turns to violence among the crew, and slithering, ancient creatures pursue them in the snow. Still, as the dangers increase, the mystery of the mountain compels them to its peak, where they are certain they will find their answers. Have they stumbled upon the greatest scientific discovery known to man or the seeds of their own demise?
Framed by the discovery of Harold Tunmore’s unsent letters to his family and the chilling and provocative story they tell, Ascension considers the limitations of science and faith and examines both the beautiful and the unsettling sides of human nature.

This science fiction mystery thriller caught my attention immediately. I don’t want to get too excited on advance, but it sounds like the type of book I will love. This one I am really looking forward to and it is highly likely I will get this one as soon as it’s released.

Release date: April 25th.

The Wager by David Grann

On January 28, 1742, a ramshackle vessel of patched-together wood and cloth washed up on the coast of Brazil. Inside were thirty emaciated men, barely alive, and they had an extraordinary tale to tell. They were survivors of His Majesty’s Ship the Wager, a British vessel that had left England in 1740 on a secret mission during an imperial war with Spain. While the Wager had been chasing a Spanish treasure-filled galleon known as “the prize of all the oceans,” it had wrecked on a desolate island off the coast of Patagonia. The men, after being marooned for months and facing starvation, built the flimsy craft and sailed for more than a hundred days, traversing nearly 3,000 miles of storm-wracked seas. They were greeted as heroes.
But then … six months later, another, even more decrepit craft landed on the coast of Chile. This boat contained just three castaways, and they told a very different story. The thirty sailors who landed in Brazil were not heroes – they were mutineers. The first group responded with countercharges of their own, of a tyrannical and murderous senior officer and his henchmen. It became clear that while stranded on the island the crew had fallen into anarchy, with warring factions fighting for dominion over the barren wilderness. As accusations of treachery and murder flew, the Admiralty convened a court martial to determine who was telling the truth. The stakes were life-and-death–for whomever the court found guilty could hang.
The Wager is a grand tale of human behavior at the extremes told by one of our greatest nonfiction writers. Grann’s recreation of the hidden world on a British warship rivals the work of Patrick O’Brian, his portrayal of the castaways’ desperate straits stands up to the classics of survival writing such as The Endurance, and his account of the court martial has the savvy of a Scott Turow thriller. As always with Grann’s work, the incredible twists of the narrative hold the reader spellbound.

Admittedly, this one caught my eye with its cover. I then read the description and was surprised, since I hadn’t ever heard of this story. I was immediately intrigued, so this lead to me going down the rabbit hole reading about what happened. I can’t imagine what it would be like surviving a ship wreck in those times when you’re stranded in the middle of nowhere and the crew turns on their captain. I can’t wait to read more about this.

Release date: April 18th.

You’re Not Supposed to Die Tonight by Kalynn Bayron

Charity Curtis has the summer job of her dreams, playing the “final girl” at Camp Mirror Lake. Guests pay to be scared in this full-contact terror game, as Charity and her summer crew recreate scenes from a classic slasher film, Curse of Camp Mirror Lake. The more realistic the fear, the better for business.
But the last weekend of the season, Charity’s co-workers begin disappearing. And when one ends up dead, Charity’s role as the final girl suddenly becomes all too real. If Charity and her girlfriend Bezi hope to survive the night, they’ll need figure out what this killer is after. Is there is more to the story of Mirror Lake and its dangerous past than Charity ever suspected?

Alright, let’s start by stating that this is an upcoming book with a pending cover reveal and I couldn’t find a lot of information about it, but that description was enough to draw me in. I am getting some Friday the 13th vibes mixed with some One By One by Ruth Ware. I haven’t read any other books by Kalynn Bayron, but this one sounds different to her previous works. I don’t know if this book will be anything like what I imagine based on that description, but it definitely has my attention.

Release date: June 20th.

This might not be a big list of upcoming releases, but I am happy with it. Since it’s just three books, I might be able to actually buy them and read them throughout this year. At this point I am also not planning to read more than one book a month, so keeping the number of new releases low improves the chances I will actually get to read these books rather sooner than later and they won’t be sitting on my TBR pile for years.

Have you heard of any upcoming releases that you can’t wait to read? How many books are you planning to read this year?

Admittedly I don’t really keep an eye on upcoming releases. I have enough books to read as it is, so I tend to not look for what’s being published next unless it’s a series I’ve already started. That said, I figured I’d take a look and limit myself to add less than 7 upcoming releases to my To-Be-Read list. That is half the number of books I am planning to read during the year. Fortunately I ended up including less than that. At least for now.

Adding a book to the list doesn’t necessarily mean I will buy it as soon as it’s released and/or read it this year. It just means I am interested in it and will read it at some point in the future. In some cases I might just read it as soon as I can get my hands on a copy, in others I’ll wait a bit. So, without any further ado, let’s take a look at some of the upcoming releases that have caught my attention.

The Fervor by Alma Katsu

“A supernatural twist on the horrors of the Japanese American internment camps in World War II.
1944: As World War II rages on, the threat has come to the home front. In a remote corner of Idaho, Meiko Briggs and her daughter, Aiko, are desperate to return home. Following Meiko’s husband’s enlistment as an air force pilot in the Pacific months prior, Meiko and Aiko were taken from their home in Seattle and sent to one of the internment camps in the Midwest. It didn’t matter that Aiko was American-born: They were Japanese, and therefore considered a threat by the American government.
Mother and daughter attempt to hold on to elements of their old life in the camp when a mysterious disease begins to spread among those interned. What starts as a minor cold quickly becomes spontaneous fits of violence and aggression, even death. And when a disconcerting team of doctors arrive, nearly more threatening than the illness itself, Meiko and her daughter team up with a newspaper reporter and widowed missionary to investigate, and it becomes clear to them that something more sinister is afoot, a demon from the stories of Meiko’s childhood, hell-bent on infiltrating their already strange world.”

I haven’t finished The Deep yet, but I am already an Alma Katsu fan. Historical fiction isn’t a genre that I have lots of experience with, but Alma makes it so appealing. This one is high up on my list.

Release date: April 26th

Siren Queen by Nghi Vo

“‘No maids, no funny talking, no fainting flowers.’ Luli Wei is beautiful, talented, and desperate to be a star. Coming of age in pre-Code Hollywood, she knows how dangerous the movie business is and how limited the roles are for a Chinese American girl from Hungarian Hill—but she doesn’t care. She’d rather play a monster than a maid.
But in Luli’s world, the worst monsters in Hollywood are not the ones on screen. The studios want to own everything from her face to her name to the women she loves, and they run on a system of bargains made in blood and ancient magic, powered by the endless sacrifice of unlucky starlets like her. For those who do survive to earn their fame, success comes with a steep price. Luli is willing to do whatever it takes—even if that means becoming the monster herself.”

This book sounds extremely interesting to me. It doesn’t seem to be the kind of story I usually read. It seems to be another mix of historical fiction and fantasy and I’m not sure what to expect from it, but there’s an air of mystery from the description alone that draws me to it.

Release date: May 10th

City of Orange by David Yoon

“A man who can not remember his own name wakes up in an apocalyptic landscape, injured and alone. He has vague memories of life before, but he can’t see it clearly and can’t grasp how his current situation came to be. He must learn to survive by finding sources of water and foraging for food. Then he encounters a boy–and he realizes nothing is what he thought it was, neither the past nor the present.”

Early reviews say this is a highly descriptive, character driven story, which could be a hit or miss. However it also sounds like it’s a very immersive story, so it could work. The premise sounds interesting enough for me to give it a try and I have a feeling it will be worth it.

Release date: May 24th

Acts of Violet by Margarita Montimore

“Nearly a decade ago, iconic magician Violet Volk performed her greatest trick yet: vanishing mid-act. Though she hasn’t been seen since, her hold on the public imagination is stronger than ever. While Violet sought out the spotlight, her sister Sasha always had to be the responsible one, taking over their mother’s hair salon and building a quiet life for her beloved daughter, Quinn. But Sasha can never seem to escape her sister’s orbit or her memories of their unresolved, tumultuous relationship. Then there’s Cameron Frank, tapped to host a podcast devoted to all things Violet, who is determined to finally get his big break–even if he promised to land an exclusive interview with Sasha, the one person who definitely doesn’t want to talk to him.
As the ten-year anniversary approaches, the podcast picks up steam, and Cameron’s pursuit of Sasha becomes increasingly intrusive. He isn’t the only one wondering what secrets she might be keeping: Quinn, loyal to the aunt she always idolized, is doing her own investigating. Meanwhile, Sasha begins to experience an unsettling series of sleepwalking episodes and coincidences, which all seem to lead back to Violet. Pushed to her emotional limits, Sasha must finally confront the most painful truths about her sister, and herself, even at the risk of losing everything.”

Acts of Violet sounds like it will be a fun read. I don’t know why it seems like portrayal of podcasts and their hosts in media is always done terribly, is it just me? I hope that part is done better in this book because I like the premise and I already can’t wait to know what happened.

Release date: July 5th

Stay Awake by Megan Goldin

“Liv Reese wakes up in the back of a taxi with no idea where she is or how she got there. When she’s dropped off at the door of her brownstone, a stranger answers—a stranger who now lives in her apartment and forces her out in the cold. She reaches for her phone to call for help, only to discover it’s missing, and in its place is a bloodstained knife. That’s when she sees that her hands are covered in black pen, scribbled messages like graffiti on her skin: STAY AWAKE.
Two years ago, Liv was living with her best friend, dating a new man, and thriving as a successful writer for a trendy magazine. Now, she’s lost and disoriented in a New York City that looks nothing like what she remembers. Catching a glimpse of the local news, she’s horrified to see reports of a crime scene where the victim’s blood has been used to scrawl a message across a window, the same message that’s inked on her hands. What did she do last night? And why does she remember nothing from the past two years? Liv finds herself on the run for a crime she doesn’t remember committing as she tries to piece together the fragments of her life. But there’s someone who does know exactly what she did, and they’ll do anything to make her forget—permanently.”

Stay Awake sounds like one of those thrillers that keep you guessing, questioning everyone and everything you’re told. Early reviews are very positive and while the whole person-with-amnesia-is-maybe-a-criminal-maybe-a-victim has been done to death, it usually works. It’s a type of story that I tend to enjoy, but I’m drawn to this one in particular because I must know what the whole “Stay Awake” thing is about.

Release date: August 9th

What If? 2: Additional Serious Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions by Randall Munroe

“The millions of people around the world who read and loved ‘What If?‘ still have questions, and those questions are getting stranger. Thank goodness xkcd creator Randall Munroe is here to help. Planning to ride a fire pole from the moon back to Earth? The hardest part is sticking the landing. Hoping to cool the atmosphere by opening everyone’s freezer door at the same time? Maybe it’s time for a brief introduction to thermodynamics. Want to know what would happen if you rode a helicopter blade, built a billion-story building, made a lava lamp out of lava, or jumped on a geyser as it erupted? Okay, if you insist.
Before you go on a cosmic road trip, feed the residents of New York City to a T. rex, or fill every church with bananas, be sure to consult this practical guide for impractical ideas. Unfazed by absurdity, Randall consults the latest research on everything from swing-set physics to airplane-catapult design to clearly and concisely answer his readers’ questions. As he consistently demonstrates, you can learn a lot from examining how the world might work in very specific extreme circumstances.”

I just heard that this book is happening a few days ago and I immediately added it to my TBR list. No, I haven’t had the chance to read the first one yet, but I’m already way too excited to hear there will be a part two. I can’t explain it, I just have to read these ones.

Release date: September 13th

There a lots of potentially great books being released this year, but these are the ones that spoke to me and caught my attention enough to add them to my TBR list. Since it’s not that many, I might actually read them as they’re released, but that depends on whether I have time to read them and more importantly, the fund to get them.

Did any of these books catch you eye too? Do you have any other upcoming releases you’re planning to read this year?

Tag: upcoming releases

2023 Upcoming Releases on my TBR