Tell Me Something Tuesday: Which Books Are You Looking Forward to Reading This Summer? (June-August)

Tell Me Something Tuesday is a weekly meme created by Heidi at Rainy Day Ramblings in order to discuss a wide range of topics from books to blogging (and some slightly more personal matters throw in for good measure). After Heidi stopped blogging (apparently for good), five of us took over as hosts while providing new questions. The current team is composed of Berls at Because Reading Is Better Than Real Life, Jen at That's What I'm Talking About, Karen at For What It's Worth, Linda at Book Girl of Mur-y-Castell and Roberta at Offbeat YA. This week's question is...

WHICH BOOKS ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO READING THIS SUMMER? (JUNE-AUGUST)

I don't know if I'll ever get around to buying all these books or when, since 1) early reviews and excerpts might cause me to change my mind in the future, and 2) given my current situation (see: unemployment status), book money is scarce...(BUT! this is a lucky season for me, since I got access to 7 out of 10 of these books! I was approved for The Infinite Miles by Hannah Fergesen, The Wonder State by Sara Flannery Murphy, The Museum of Human History by Rebekah Bergman, The Dark Place by Britney S. Lewis, The Girls from Hush Cabin by Marie Hoy Kenny, and A Second Chance for Yesterday by R.A. Sinn, while The Never-Ending End of the World by Ann Christy was free to download both on NG and EW). Anyhow, I wanted to give a bit of exposure to all the summer books that caught my eye, so here's my list (complete with pub dates)...

JUNE

20th. Hannah Fergesen: The Infinite Miles (Adult)

Three years after her best friend Peggy went missing, Harper Starling is lost. Lost in her dead-end job, lost in her grief. All she has are regrets and reruns of her favorite science fiction show, Infinite Voyage.

Then Peggy returns and demands to be taken to the Argonaut, the fictional main character of Infinite Voyage. But the Argonaut is just that … fictional. Until the TV hero himself appears and spirits Harper away from her former best friend. Traveling through time, he explains that Peggy used to travel with him but is now under the thrall of an alien enemy known as the Incarnate—one that has destroyed countless solar systems.

Then he leaves Harper in 1971.

Stranded in the past, Harper must find a way to end the Incarnate’s thrall … without the help of the Argonaut. But the cosmos are nothing like the technicolor stars of the TV show she loves, and if Harper can’t find it in herself to believe—in the Argonaut, in Peggy, and most of all, in herself—she’ll be the Incarnate’s next casualty, along with the rest of the universe.

Note: As you know, I've already read and reviewed an eARC of this one...and I plan on buying a physical copy!

 ***

27th. Krystal Sutherland: The Invocations (YA)

Zara Jones believes in magic because the alternative is too painful to bear—that her sister was murdered by a serial killer and there is precisely nothing she can do to change it. If there’s anything Zara cannot stand it's feeling powerless, so she decides she will do whatever it takes—even if that means partaking in the occult—to bring her sister back from the dead.

Jude Wolf might be the daughter of a billionaire, but she is also undeniably cursed. After a deal with a demon went horribly wrong, her soul is now slowly turning necrotic. Flowers and insects die in her wake and monstrous things come to taunt her at night. If Jude can’t find the right someone to fix her mistake, she fears she’ll die very soon.

Enter Emer Bryne: the solution to both Zara and Jude's predicaments. The daughter of a witch, Emer sells spells to women in desperate situations willing to sacrifice a part of their soul in exchange for a bit of power, a bit of magic to change their lives. But Emer has a dark past all her own—and as her former clients are murdered one-by-one, she knows it’s followed her all the way to London.

As Zara and Jude enter Emer's orbit, they'll have to team up to stop the killer—before they each end up next on his list.

Note: I loved Sutherland's House of Hollow (still have to write a full review for it, whoops), so I'm excited for this one (especially since it sounds like it's in the same vein somehow - magic, sisters, darkness...).

***

JULY

11th. Josh Winning: Burn the Negative (Adult)

Arriving in L.A. to visit the set of a new streaming horror series, journalist Laura Warren witnesses a man jumping from a bridge, landing right behind her car. Here we go, she thinks. It’s started. Because the series she’s reporting on is a remake of a ’90s horror flick. A cursed ’90s horror flick, which she starred in as a child—and has been running from her whole life.

In The Guesthouse, Laura played the little girl with the terrifying gift to tell people how the Needle Man would kill them. When eight of the cast and crew died in ways that eerily mirrored the movie’s on-screen deaths, the film became a cult classic—and ruined her life. Leaving it behind, Laura changed her name and her accent, dyed her hair, and moved across the Atlantic. But some scripts don’t want to stay buried.

Now, as the body count rises again, Laura finds herself on the run with her aspiring actress sister and a jaded psychic, hoping to end the curse once and for all—and to stay out of the Needle Man’s lethal reach.

Note: While I've beta-read for Josh in the past, for this book he sought help from a friend of his who's an expert on the horror genre - plus I didn't get the chance to read an eARC because the publisher didn't approve my request (this publisher isn't the same one that put out Josh's previous novel, and apparently, they have a different marketing strategy). But of course this isn't Josh's fault, and I'll continue to support his writing (not to mention, I know that more adventures in beta-reading are in the pipeline 😉). I'm looking forward to buying a copy of this one as soon as I can!

***

18th. Meriam Metoui: A Guide to the Dark (YA)

The room is watching. But Mira and Layla don't know this yet. When the two best friends are stranded on their spring break college tour road trip, they find themselves at the Wildwood Motel, located in the middle of nowhere, Indiana. Mira can't shake the feeling that there is something wrong and rotten about their room. Inside, she's haunted by nightmares of her dead brother. When she wakes up, he's still there.

Layla doesn't see him. Or notice anything suspicious about Room 9. The place may be a little run down, but it has a certain charm she can’t wait to capture on camera. If Layla is being honest, she’s too preoccupied with confusing feelings for Mira to see much else. But when they learn eight people died in that same room, they realize there must be a connection between the deaths and the unexplainable things that keep happening inside it. They just have to find the connection before Mira becomes the ninth.

Note: The vibes this one gives out are very "Supernatural meets Hotel California" LOL. Plus ghosts? or are they? Anyway, I'm sold!

***

18th. Sara Flannery Murphy: The Wonder State (YA/Adult)

Five friends arrive back in Eternal Springs, the small town they all fled after high-school graduation. Each of them is drawn home by a cryptic, scrawled two-word: You promised.

It has been fifteen years since that life-changing summer, and they're anxious to find out why Brandi called them back, especially when they vowed never to return.

But Brandi is missing. She'd been acting erratically for months, in and out of rehab, railing at whoever might listen about magic all around them. About a power they can't see. And strange houses that appear only when you need them ...

Note: I read an eARC of this one, and it's even better than the blurb makes it sound! Review to come in July, and I plan on buying a copy for my collection (and for reread, it goes without saying).

***

AUGUST

1st. Rebekah Bergman: The Museum of Human History (Adult)

After nearly drowning, eight-year-old Maeve Wilhelm falls into a strange comatose state. As years pass, it becomes clear that Maeve is not physically aging. A wide cast of characters finds themselves pulled toward Maeve, each believing that her mysterious “sleep” holds the answers to their life’s most pressing questions: Kevin Marks, a museum owner obsessed with preservation; Monique Gray, a refugee and performance artist; Lionel Wilhelm, an entomologist who dreamed of being an astrophysicist; and Evangeline Wilhelm, Maeve’s identical twin. As Maeve remains asleep, the characters grapple with a mysterious new technology and medical advances that promise to ease anxiety and end pain, but instead cause devastating side effects.

Note: I've read it, and it was good, if a bit different from what I had envisioned. Review scheduled for July 22nd.

***

8th. Ann Christy: The Never-Ending End of the World (YA/Adult)

Coco Wells hasn’t seen another living person since she was a teenager. All of Manhattan is reliving the same few seconds, minutes, or hours on a loop… and they have been for years. Everything looks normal from a distance, but up close it’s a nightmare.

Coco is a survivor. She scavenges for food, reads, and—most importantly—avoids loopers. They ignore her, but only as long as she’s silent. She’s learned the painful lesson that a broken loop can mean death.

After eight years of solitude, learning to survive and precisely timing the loops that weave around the city, Coco wonders what lies beyond New York and what has become of the rest of the world.

As she leaves home for the first time, one question haunts her above all:

“Am I the only one left?”

Note: This one is currently up for grabs on NetGalley and Edelweiss. I still have to start it (and here I downloaded it at the beginning of the month...gah. Life took over 🤷‍♀️), but I'm excited!

***

8th. Britney S. Lewis: The Dark Place (YA)

Seventeen-year-old Hylee Williams didn't ask to disappear. But she did disappear, and not only that, but when she vanished from our world, she materialized in a dark, twisted version of the night that changed her life forever: the night her older brother went missing.

Just as Hylee realizes this moment could be the key to unraveling the truth about her brother, she's yanked away from the dark place back to our world. Craving a sense of normalcy, she goes to a party with her best friend--where she meets Eilam Roads. Tall, handsome, and undeniably, inexplicably familiar, Hylee can't help the pull she feels towards him. It's a classic teen girl-meets-boy situation, until it happens again. She disappears, right in front of him.

Together, Hylee and Eilam investigate the truth about time, space, and reality, with Hylee increasingly convinced her time travel holds the key to saving her brother. But the more they learn, the more Hylee begins to see darkness lurking in her world--and in herself.

Note: I usually stay away from girl-meets-(handsome)-boy books, but when I saw that this one involved sibling love and...alternate realities? time travel?, I HAD to put it on my list ("investigate the truth about time, space, and reality" sounded SO up my alley 😃). At first (that is, a while ago) I requested the book both on EW and NG (where I could only "Wish for it!", so of course I had zero chances to be approved - it's a Disney Hyperion title after all...)...then I found out that the author had a form on her blog for early reviewers to apply, filled it, and got access to an eARC (via NG) in a couple of days! Now that I've read it, well...it isn't bad by any means, but I have ISSUES...mini review to come in July.

***

15th. Marie Hoy-Kenny: The Girls from Hush Cabin (YA)

Calista, Zoe, Holly, and Denise were inseparable best friends when they spent their summers together at sleepaway camp. But after an unexplained tragedy forced the camp to close, the girls drifted apart.

Years later, reunited at their beloved camp counselor Violet's funeral, the four former best friends quickly realize how much they've changed over the years. But despite their differences, they agree on one thing--Violet's so-called accidental death was actually murder.

Unwilling to leave the case unsolved, they set off to uncover the truth--even if it means revealing the dark secrets of their pasts.

But someone wants them to stop investigating, and the anonymous threats keep coming, leaving them suspicious of everyone.

No one can be trusted, not even the girls from Hush Cabin.

Note: I got an eARC of this one. For some reason, teen thrillers can be hit or miss for me (mostly miss), but I keep looking for the one that will rock my socks off...and an all-girls camp mystery sounded promising. Alas, it turned into another DNF...

***

29th. R.A. Sinn: A Second Chance for Yesterday (Adult)

Nev Bourne is a hotshot programmer for the latest and greatest tech invention out SavePoint, the brain implant that rewinds the seconds of all our most embarrassing moments. She’s been working non-stop on the next rollout, even blowing off her boyfriend, her best friend and her family to make SavePoint 2.0. But when she hits go on the test-run, she wakes up the next day only to discover it's yesterday. She's falling backwards in time, one day at a time.

As things spiral out of control, a long-lost friend from college reappears in her life claiming they know how to save her. Airin is charming and mysterious, and somehow knows Nev intimately well. Desperate and intrigued, Nev takes a leap of faith. A friendship born of fear slowly becomes a bond of deepest trust, and possibly love. With time running out, and the whole world of SavePoint users at stake, Nev must learn what it will take to set things right, and what it will cost.

Note: Another eARC I was approved for a while ago but haven't opened yet (can you see a pattern here? I need to stop agonising over my reviews if I want to start my new books...that's the reason why I'm still behind with my eARCs. Well, that and my stupidly f*cked up life). Anyhow, you all know I'm a sucker for time travel, right? So I'm excited to start this one! Also, the epub is mine to keep!

***

Well, that's it for now. Did you enjoy this post? Would you like to participate in the meme on a regular or semi-regular basis, and get emailed the prompt list? Just head over here and fill in Jen's form! (Of course, you can jump in anytime you like - you are under no obligation to actually do all the posts, or even most of them, just because you signed up, and you can remove yourself from the list at any time). And if you're interested in participating in a more casual manner, or only in commenting, here is the TMST prompt list for the months of June and July (since I'll be on hiatus next month):

• June 6th: If you could invite 5 authors (dead or alive) to dinner, whom would you invite?
• June 13th: What's most important in a book for you: the plot, the characters, or the writing style? (a question I submitted)
• June 20st: How do you get out of a reading slump?
• June 27th: What are your least favorite tropes?
• July 4th: What's your favorite holiday and what do you do to celebrate?
• July 11th: What are some underrated books/series you wish got more recognition? (a question I submitted)
• July 18th: Have you found a way to cut back significantly on your TBR pile?
• July 25th: What's your favorite thing about summer?

You all know I have my hands full (that's why I'm on hiatus until the end of June), so I'll be back for the meme only on July 11th, but as for the July 4th holiday question...my favourite holiday is my birthday haha - and since I can't go places and have fun, I celebrate by buying myself books (pretend to be shocked LOL).

Now tell me something...which summer books are on your TBR list?