I tend not to plan my monthly reading lists in advance as I am both a mood reader and am almost unable to stick to a schedule. However, in June I have some book reviews due at the beginning of the month as well as some content ideas I want to explore via the medium of books.
Therefore, without further ado, here’s everything I’m planning to read in June 2022.
This post contains PR – advanced reader copies which have been gifted in exchange for a review. These books will be indicated with a *
The Book of Azrael – Amber Nicole*
Enemies to lovers romances are my weakness, so Amber Nicole’s The Book of Azrael already has my vote.
Dianna is a debt to Kaden, a monster whom she gave her life in order to save her sisters. Samkiel (known now as Liam) is the World Ender who denied his crown and disappeared after the Gods War. When an attack shakes Liam’s core, the God is forced to return to a realm he once had tried to forget. And, when a foe he thought he’d imprisoned eons ago rears its head, all hell breaks loose.
Featuring a slow burn romance, epic world-building, and an emotional representation of PTSD/trauma, The Book of Azrael sounds too good to be true.
This Vicious Grace – Emily Thiede*
Release date: June 28 2022
I crowned This Vicious Grace by Emily Thiede as one of the women written novels I’m excited about this summer, and for good reason.
With an Italian-style setting, the story follows Alessa, a gods-blessed heroine in dire need of a partner. Without this partner, her island home will be devoured by demons. But it’s not like Alessa is avoiding finding her match… She just keeps killing them. When her home begins to rally troops against her, Alessa calls on Dante, a brooding, killing bodyguard to protect her. And cue the romance.
Described as a “riveting, passionate, and full of high stakes danger’ (Tamora Pierce) This Vicious Grace by Emily Thiede seems like the perfect YA romantic fantasy.
The Final Revival of Opal and Nev – Dawnie Walton
The Final Revival of Opal and Nev by Dawnie Walton is a Women’s Prize For Fiction longlisted novel about 1970s New York and speaking your truth. It’s a book that’s been on my to be read list forever and is finally getting its overdue moment in the spotlight!
Opal is Afro-punk before Afro-punk existed. She’s flamboyant and cool. She doesn’t want to find herself squished in a corporate box. She wants stardom. That’s when she meets Neville Charles.
Nev is an aspiring British singer/songwriter. He discovers Opal in a bar. They start making rock music together. The duo skyrocketed. But, when a band on their record label wave a Confederate flag at a promotional concert, Opal realises that with bold statements and violence comes lifelong trouble, especially for black women.
Fast forward to 2016, and Opal is considering reuniting the band with Nev. But when allegations begin to arise, music journalist S. Sunny Shelton realises this is deeper than she thought.
Half a Soul – Olivia Atwater*
Release date: 30 June 2022
A romantic romp described as ‘Bridgerton meets Howl’s Moving Castle’, Half a Soul by Olivia Atwater is Regency England with a sprinkle of magic.
Since being cursed by a faerie, Theodora Ettings has a habit of accidentally attracting scandal. When the mysterious and disliked Lord Sorcier catches her attention, her wallflower plans for the London Season go awry. Instead of remaining unseen, she becomes embroiled in a dangerous plot with the meddling fae.
Expect the perfect blend of whimsical fantasy and raucous romance in this historical fiction novel. Olivia Atwater’s Half a Soul sounds stunning.
Love Me, Love Me Not – Kirsty Capes*
Release date: 7 July 2022
Another women written novel I’ve previously gushed about is Love Me, Love Me Not by Kirsty Capes. The Women’s Prize For Fiction-nominated author returns with a story of secrets, self-discovery, and family dilemmas.
To know more about Love Me, Love Me Not, click here. I can’t wait to sink my teeth into this story.
The Daughter of Doctor Moreau – Silvia Moreno-Garcia*
Release date: July 19 2022
From Silvia Moreno-Garcia (Mexican Gothic, Gods of Jade and Shadow) comes The Daughter of Doctor Moreau. This story is a reimagining of the H.G. Wells classic set against a Mexican backdrop.
Set in nineteenth-century Mexico, Carlota Moreau is the only daughter of the mysterious Doctor Moreau. She lives on a remote, paradise island with her father, his melancholic assistant, Montgomery Laughton, and the hybrids. The hybrids are part-human, part-animal creations of the doctor, designed to unquestionably obey. This bizarre island home has been somewhat harmonious for the parties… That’s before Eduardo Lizalde arrives.
For fans of The Island of Doctor Moreau, delightful retellings and of course, Silvia Moreno-Garcia, The Daughter of Doctor Moreau is a must.
She Who Became the Sun – Shelley Parker-Chan
At birth, the Zhu family’s eighth born son, Zhu Chongba, is granted greatness while their second daughter is fated to fade into nothingness. After a bandit attack destroys their family, it is the girl who survives and Zhu Chongba who faces death and despair.
With her brother dead and her own fate weighing on her head, the girl assumes her brother’s identity and begins her crusade for what is right, what is owed, and what is great.
She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan is a modern-day Mulan woven with myth, rich history, and fantasy.
Face It – Debbie Harry
Debbie Harry: model, frontwoman, activist, force. The lead singer of Blondie documents her childhood, her rise to fame, her band’s demise, and 1970s New York in her autobiography, Face It. Containing secrets, and stories (“I don’t know if any of this is real or not”) Face It is the Debbie Harry guide to life. How did one of the world’s most beloved figures do it? Find out in Face It.
ELLA LOUISE SCOTT 