Anticipated May releases!

I’m so glad that May is my birthday month!! May is usually full of amazing new releases and I usually have the money to get them when they come out! I know that I’m missing a few from my list but I can’t think of a few at the moment, but here are a few of the books that I’ve been waiting for and will hopefully show up in my May book haul!

FLAME IN THE MIST by Renee Ahdieh – May 16

Happy birthday to me! This one is being released on my actual birthday – it’s a sign – it was meant for me! I absolutely fell in love with her other series (The Wrath and the Dawn) and vowed that I would read everything this woman wrote. I didn’t expect to love it, but the way she wrote her characters and the plot pulled me into the book.

The daughter of a prominent samurai, Mariko has long known her place—she may be an accomplished alchemist, whose cunning rivals that of her brother Kenshin, but because she is not a boy, her future has always been out of her hands. At just seventeen years old, Mariko is promised to Minamoto Raiden, the son of the emperor’s favorite consort—a political marriage that will elevate her family’s standing. But en route to the imperial city of Inako, Mariko narrowly escapes a bloody ambush by a dangerous gang of bandits known as the Black Clan, who she learns has been hired to kill her before she reaches the palace. Dressed as a peasant boy, Mariko sets out to infiltrate the ranks of the Black Clan, determined to track down the person responsible for the target on her back. But she’s quickly captured and taken to the Black Clan’s secret hideout, where she meets their leader, the rebel ronin Takeda Ranmaru, and his second-in-command, his best friend Okami. Still believing her to be a boy, Ranmaru and Okami eventually warm to Mariko, impressed by her intellect and ingenuity. As Mariko gets closer to the Black Clan, she uncovers a dark history of secrets, of betrayal and murder, which will force her to question everything she’s ever known. (Goodreads)

HOLD BACK THE STARS by Katie Khan – May 23

While visiting other blogs I kept seeing ARC reviews of this one popping up. I haven’t heard of it before then (See! ARC reviews really do create hype and make people buy books lol!) and every single review was 5 stars! I’ve been in a massive science fiction mood lately (you’ll see when I post my April book haul – it’s embarrassing!) so this one was perfect timing!!

A startling and evocative novel, harkening to both One Day and Gravity, a man and a woman revisit memories of their love affair on a utopian Earth while they are trapped in the vast void of space with only ninety minutes of oxygen left. After the catastrophic destruction of the Middle East and the United States, Europe has become a utopia and, every three years, the European population must rotate into different multicultural communities, living as individuals responsible for their own actions. While living in this paradise, Max meets Carys and immediately feels a spark of attraction. He quickly realizes, however, that Carys is someone he might want to stay with long-term, which is impossible in this new world. As their relationship plays out, the connections between their time on Earth and their present dilemma in space become clear. When their air ticks dangerously low, one is offered the chance of salvation—but who will take it? An original and daring exploration of the impact of first love and how the choices we make can change the fate of everyone around us, this is an unforgettable read. (Goodreads)

 

WHEN DIMPLE MET RISHI by Sandy Menon – May 30

I’m not generally the biggest fan of YA contemporary, but when it includes the Indian culture and arranged marriages in a modern setting – YES PLEASE! I feel like I’ve been waiting for this one for the longest time and it’s almost here!!

A laugh-out-loud, heartfelt YA romantic comedy, told in alternating perspectives, about two Indian-American teens whose parents have arranged for them to be married. Dimple Shah has it all figured out. With graduation behind her, she’s more than ready for a break from her family, from Mamma’s inexplicable obsession with her finding the “Ideal Indian Husband.” Ugh. Dimple knows they must respect her principles on some level, though. If they truly believed she needed a husband right now, they wouldn’t have paid for her to attend a summer program for aspiring web developers…right? Rishi Patel is a hopeless romantic. So when his parents tell him that his future wife will be attending the same summer program as him—wherein he’ll have to woo her—he’s totally on board. Because as silly as it sounds to most people in his life, Rishi wants to be arranged, believes in the power of tradition, stability, and being a part of something much bigger than himself. The Shahs and Patels didn’t mean to start turning the wheels on this “suggested arrangement” so early in their children’s lives, but when they noticed them both gravitate toward the same summer program, they figured, Why not? Dimple and Rishi may think they have each other figured out. But when opposites clash, love works hard to prove itself in the most unexpected ways. (Goodreads)

What books are you anticipating this month? Like I said above, I know I’m forgetting a few, but these are the ones on the top of my radar for this month!!

Until next time, happy reading!