Anticipated Books of January 2022

It’s almost the end of the year, crazy!  I’ve already brought you my overall most anticipated books of 2022, but now I will return to my regularly scheduled programming of each month bringing you my most anticipated reads of the following month  - so I can include even more books!

Usually my anticipated reads are a mix of books that I have ARCs of and those that I have to wait until publication, but this month I’m lucky enough that I have Netgalley ARCs of all of them.  However, I made a decision to save all of my 2022 books until 2022 to try to catch up a little on my backlist, so I haven’t read any yet!  The books are listed below in order of US publication date. 

Anticipated Books of 2022

I have always been someone who enjoys looking at what books are coming out and planning what to read almost as much as I love reading, so for the past several years since I started this blog, I always like to bring you a list of my most anticipated books of the next year.  (And I’m happy to report that I managed to read every single book on my Anticipated Books of 2021 list.)  

This past year, I have taken a different approach and also brought you monthly posts about my most anticipated books of the following month.  I will definitely continue doing that next year.  But there are just so many books I’m super-excited about coming out in 2022 that I thought I’d still give you a preview of some of the top books I’m looking forward to. It was so hard to narrow it down that these are all books by authors who I’ve already read and loved, though there are definitely some great sounding debuts coming next year too!  To narrow it down, I also only included a book if it had a set release date and a cover, which eliminated some potential books allegedly coming towards the end of the year. There are literally dozens of more books I’m already looking forward to besides those listed here, just another reason I’ll also continue my monthly posts about anticipated books.

But in the meantime, here are the 2022 releases that I’m most looking forward to, so you can go ahead and request from Netgalley/get on the library waitlist/pre-order them if they interest you too!  I am lucky enough to have ARCs of a few of these, but since I decided to hold all my 2022 advanced copies of books until 2022 to get through some of my backlog, I haven’t read any yet!

Here they are, listed in order of currently scheduled US publication date, which is listed in parentheses after the title and author of each book.

Anticipated books of November 2021

Hard to believe October is almost over already!  Here are the books being published in November that I’m most excited for. For my November reading, I’m planning to do both a No Buy November and a Netgalley November so luckily there aren’t too many and I have Netgalley ARCs of four of the six so I can read them this month within the challenge! (That is, I'm going to spend November reading books I already own, and primarily all books I got from Netgalley but haven't gotten around to reading yet).

Anticipated Books of October 2021

Hard to believe September is almost over!  It has been a busy month for me personally and October looks to be just as busy!  Anyway, since October is drawing near, here are the books I’m most looking forward to which are being published in October 2021 - US pub dates indicated in parentheses.  I’m actually thankful that the list of books I’m excited for is shorter this month, because I still have a lot of other books to catch up on!  I haven’t read any of them yet, though I do have ARCs of a few so hopefully will soon!  

Anticipated Books of September 2021

Since the month is almost over, here are the books I’m most looking forward to which are being published in September 2021 - US publication dates are indicated in parentheses.  I haven’t read any of them yet, though I do have ARCs of a few, so hopefully I will soon!

Friends Like These by Kimberly McCreight (9/7/21) - I have read and enjoyed all of Kimberly McCreight’s mystery/thrillers. This oneid about a group of college friends (minus one of their group who died back in school) who reunite at their ten  year reunion.  Yes, I have read other books with similar-ish sounding plots, but I’m in nonetheless!

The Night She Disappeared by Lisa Jewell (9/7/21) - I’m still catching up on Lisa Jewell’s backlist, but I’ve really enjoyed the four books by her that I have read.  And her latest, about a missing woman, sounds like another good one and has amazing reviews!

Apples Never Fall by Liane Moriarty (9/14/21) - I’ve read every single Liane Moriarty book - indeed, I’ve been a fan of hers even before she was famous.  So she’s a must read author for me regardless of book description - perhaps a good thing since the blurb for this one is quite dense!  . Plus I’m excited to read and discuss this with my virtual book club. 

Harlem Shuffle by Colson Whitehead (9/14/21) - I’ve only read Colson Whitehead’s  book Underground Railroad but it was great, so when I was offered this one on Netgalley I snagged it.  Sounds interesting though very different from that book, apparently a combination historical novel, mystery, and family drama. 

Under the Whispering Door by TJ Klune (9/21/21) - Like so many people, I loved TJ Klune’s book The House in the Cerulean Sea, so I’m looking forward to checking this one out, a fantasy about “a ghost that refuses to cross over and the ferryman he falls in love with.”

The Last Graduate by Naomi Novik (9/28/21) - I love Naomi Novik, and have actually read all thirteen of her prior books. And I loved A Deadly Education, the first book in this fantasy series, so I’m looking forward to the sequel.   I do have an early copy of this one but between other ARCs, book club books, etc. I somehow managed to hold off on reading it until now, but I don’t think I can take it much longer so I might just pick this one up next!

The Man Who Died Twice by Richard Osman (9/28/21) - I loved The Thursday Night Murder Club, a funny and charming mystery about senior citizens at a retirement home who team up to solve a murder - not quite a cozy mystery but not too dark either.  So I was super-excited when I heard there was going to be a sequel.

As Good As Dead by Holly Jackson (9/28/21) -  I was a little late to the party, but read and loved the first two books in the charming Good Girl’s Guide to Murder YA mystery series over the last few months.  Looking forward to this third and final book in the series

Eight Perfect Hours by Lia Louis (9/28/21) - I really enjoyed Lia Louis’s debut book Dear Emmie Blue so I was happy to snag a copy of this one, which the publisher is comparing to One Day in December and Evvie Drake Starts Over, two books I loved. My only question is whether o read it now, or save it for winter since it’s about two people who meet cute during a blizzard. 

Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr (9/28/21) - I loved Doerr’s Pulitzer Prize Winning All the Light We Cannot See.  His new one sounds a bit different, as it takes place not just in the past (this time, 15th century Constantinople), but also in the present AND the future.  Indeed, the description reminds me of another book with “cloud” in the name - Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell.  I must admit I am a little intimidated by the 600+ page length.  But I’ll be reading this one for October with my virtual book club so I’ll have a little time.

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Are any of these on your to read list?  Any other books coming out in September that you’re excited for?

Anticipated Books of August 2021

 The end of the month always means it’s time for me to look ahead to books coming out the next month that I’m excited for.  And thank goodness there are slightly fewer books I’m dying to read coming out in August because I’m already having trouble keeping up with the books published so far this year - not to mention in the years before that!  

Indeed, I have ARCs of a few of these but haven’t managed to get to them yet.  So you’ll just have to wait for my actual reviews.  Without further ado, here are the books I’m most excited for which are coming out in August 2021:

Anticipated Books of July 2021

You know me - the end of one month means I’m already looking ahead to books being published the following month!  Not a TBR list necessarily, but books I’m keeping an eye out for and/or want to highlight for others.  I’ve only read one of these so far, Yoga Pant Nation, and you’ll see my review below.  (The other July book I was excited enough for that I already read it, Such a Quiet Place by Megan Miranda, was a bit of a disappointment and only 3 stars for me so I didn’t include it on this list.)  So without further ado, here are my anticipated books publishing in July 2021, in order by publication date - and a good mix of genres too. 

Anticipated books of June

 Another month drawing to a close means another month to look ahead to the books being published the following month, even if I haven't gotten yet to all the books from the current month and before!  Not surprisingly, with summer reading season upon us, June has a lot of good ones!  I usually try to limit my monthly posts to 10 books but June has so many (with a ton of them publishing on June 1st), it was really hard so I went with 11!  Note that while I have received free advanced copies of some of these books, that in no way affects my opinions or why I'm excited to read them.

Fun Mom-centric Novels

In honor of Mother's Day, I thought I'd suggest some fun Mom-lit books, with a focus on books that are entertaining and light, while insightful - nothing too heavy or depressing.  More the kind of books that will have you laughing while at the same time nodding at the relatable nuggets of wisdom.

Anticipated books of May 2021

As usual, I still haven't read all of my anticipated books from earlier in the year, but I'm already eagerly looking ahead to the books being published in May.  And there are SO MANY books being published in May which I want to read!  In fact, I was lucky enough to get advanced copies of some of them from Netgalley, so I've already read some of them!  (But I promise that did not in any way affect my opinions.)   Here are some of the ones I'm most looking forward to, in order of publication date.

5 Star Review: Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir

I’m very picky with my ratings, so I’m happy to say that Project Hail Mary was amazing and my first 5 star review of 2021.  When it starts, the narrator wakes up alone with no idea who he is, where he is, or why.  As he explores and his memories start to come back, with the book unfolding both in the present and his flashback returning memories, both he and the reader discover that he is alone on a spaceship on a very important mission.  There is SO much more to it than that, but because of the nature of the book, pretty much everything about it is a spoiler and it’s so much better to see it unfold yourself.  Just know that it is absolutely terrific.

For the vibe, think of the best of intellectual science fiction - books like The Sparrow and Children of Time, movies like Interstellar and Arrival, and of course both the book and movie of The Martian, Andy Weir’s first book.   Iit is both a little more science-y (which even though I couldn’t understand it, was interesting), and more science fiction-y than The Martian, but it’s funny and emotional as well. It was a long book but I read it quickly because I couldn’t put it down.  I was thrilled to get an advanced copy from Netgalley (it’s out 5/4), and I highly recommend reading it as soon as possible both because it is great, and to avoid spoilers.

Favorite Books You're Less Likely to Have Heard Of

If you look at enough book recommendations, sometimes you start to feel like you’re just seeing the same books over and over again.  No surprise, and there’s nothing wrong with that - plenty of popular books are absolutely terrific and among my all time favorite reads!  But sometimes you want a recommendation that is a little more off the beaten path - whether because you’re a voracious reader that has already read the usual suspects, or maybe you’re looking for a book that might actually be on the library shelf instead of having a miles-long waiting list.  So today I thought I’d share with you some of my favorite books that are a little more obscure, books you don’t see people talking about much.  If you have read these before, it might be because you have similar taste to me - or if you’re someone who has been following me for a long time, it might just be because you saw this book on one of my top 10 lists of old!  These are all books that I rated either 4.5 or 5 stars, and mostly books that were on one of my top 10 lists in the past, and as a criteria for “less popular,” I chose only books that had less than 5,000 ratings on Goodreads.

Anticipated books of April 2021

I’ll admit, I’m still not done reading my anticipated books of March.   (Though I've read 6 out of 10 and am in the middle of the 7th, not bad!) But March was heavy on historical fiction for me and still waiting on the library for some, so I couldn’t just read them all straight through.  Luckily April seems to be bringing a wave of lighter books!  So here are some of the books I’m most excited for publishing in April 2021.

Mysteries/Thrillers, Part 2

 Mysteries and thrillers are two popular genres, so I'm often asked for my recommendations for mystery and thriller books.  I’ve previously written about some of my favorite mysteries and thrillers, but it’s been a few years, and it’s definitely a genre I get asked about a lot, so it seemed like it was high time for an update!  Some of the authors I had just discovered in 2018 when I wrote those entries have become favorites, and I’ve discovered some new authors and books since then as well.  

Anticipated books of March 2021

Since people seem to enjoy my posts about anticipated books, I thought I’d start doing them more regularly - which also allows me to tell you about even more books.  Speaking of which, how am I ever supposed to catch up on the books I want to read when more books keep getting published that sound so good?  Here’s a round up of some of the books coming out in March that I’m excited about.

Contemporary women's fiction/chick lit, part 2

Although I read a lot of different genres, overall I probably read the most contemporary women’s fiction/chick lit.  I’ve previously written about my all time favorite authors in both genres, to the extent they ever are separate genres as it is hard to distinguish them sometimes!   Anyway, if you like these types of books, please go check out these posts on contemporary women's fiction and chick lit from 2018 as those authors continue to be some of my favorites whose new releases I eagerly anticipate.  But since it’s been a few years since I wrote those, it seemed like a good time for an update on some additional authors I've either discovered or read more of since then.  Since I have so many to recommend, I’m going to stick with authors who have written or from who I’ve read at least two books.

GCBC - Hello Sunshine Book Club Books - Part 2 - 2019 selections

In case you missed our previous post about Hello Sunshine, it’s the name of Reese Witherspoon’s book club.  My friend Sarah and I are in a 2 person book club composed just of us which we call GCBC (short for Grand Central Book Club, since that's where we used to meet for lunch to discuss our picks).  Among the books we read together, we generally like to read Reese's picks (one of us more obsessively than the other).  In that first blog, we discussed the Hello Sunshine picks through 2018; today we’ll tackle the 2019 picks. 

Jen's Top 10 Books of 2020

So excited to share my top 10 favorite books I read in 2020 with all of you!  Once again I read a ton of books, which means this is really the cream of the crop - basically the top 5-6% of what I read - and was super, super hard to narrow down to 10.  This year there were 4 books which I gave a 5 star rating to, and 17 books which I gave 4.5 stars to.  And that doesn't even include the tremendous amount of books which I gave 4 stars to and would still heartily recommend to you.

For anyone who isn't already familiar with my lists, I've been creating top 10 lists of books I read at year's end all the way back to 1999, long before I had a blog, and sharing them with my friends.  These are books I read in a particular year, not necessarily books published that year, though most of these books were in fact published in 2020.

Here's my list for 2020, in alphabetical order by author's last name.

Hope and Other Punchlines by Julie Buxbaum

Everyone Brave Is Forgiven by Chris Cleave

American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins

A Good Neighborhood by Therese Anne Fowler

The Searcher by Tana French

The Happy Ever After Playlist by Abby Jimenez

Dear Edward by Ann Napolitano

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab

Cleo McDougal Regrets Nothing by Allison Winn Scotch

Rodham by Curtis Sittenfeld

Read on for more about these books!