Here are a few of them:
A couple of notes before I proceed: On a different post, I highlighted The Promise by Mary Balogh. This book releases on May 1, 2012 and I'm obviously looking forward to reading it! Check out the summary here.
Also releasing on May 15, 2012 is The Heart's History by Lewis DeSimone. I already read and reviewed this book, and as it turned out this was a great read! Check out the review here.
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The Last Boyfriend (Inn BoonsBoro #2) by Nora Roberts
Release Date: May 1, 2012
Owen is the organizer of the Montgomery clan, running the family’s construction business with an iron fist—and an even less flexible spreadsheet. And though his brothers bust on his compulsive list-making, the Inn BoonsBoro is about to open right on schedule. The only thing Owen didn’t plan for was Avery McTavish...
Avery’s popular pizza place is right across the street from the inn, giving her a first-hand look at its amazing renovation—and a newfound appreciation for Owen. Since he was her first boyfriend when they were kids, Owen has never been far from Avery’s thoughts. But the attraction she’s feeling for him now is far from innocent.
As Avery and Owen cautiously take their relationship to another level, the opening of the inn gives the whole town of Boonsboro a reason to celebrate. But Owen’s hard work has only begun. Getting Avery to let down her guard is going to take longer than he expected—and so will getting her to realize that her first boyfriend is going to be her last…
The first book of this series wasn't an absolute winner for me, but this is a romance by Nora Roberts and there's no way I'm not reading the second book in this contemporary romance series. I always have high hopes. Besides, I just read and loved The Witness, so why not?
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The Weird: A Compendium of Strange and Dark Stories edited by Ann and Jeff VanderMeer
Release Date: May 8, 2012
From Lovecraft to Borges to Gaiman, a century of intrepid literary experimentation has created a corpus of dark and strange stories that transcend all known genre boundaries. Together these stories form The Weird, and its practitioners include some of the greatest names in twentieth and twenty-first century literature.Do I have to say anything about wanting to read this book? I love anything that has to do with the weird, and just look at that list of authors! So, what else is there to say? This is a must read for me. :D
Exotic and esoteric, The Weird plunges you into dark domains and brings you face to face with surreal monstrosities. You won’t find any elves or wizards here...but you will find the biggest, boldest, and downright most peculiar stories from the last hundred years bound together in the biggest Weird collection ever assembled.
The Weird features 110 stories by an all-star cast, from literary legends to international bestsellers to Booker Prize winners: including William Gibson, George R. R. Martin, Stephen King, Angela Carter, Kelly Link, Franz Kafka, China Miéville, Clive Barker, Haruki Murakami, M. R. James, Neil Gaiman, Mervyn Peake, and Michael Chabon.
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Release Date: May 15, 2012
On board the moletrain Medes, Sham Yes ap Soorap watches in awe as he witnesses his first moldywarpe hunt: the giant mole bursting from the earth, the harpoonists targeting their prey, the battle resulting in one’s death and the other’s glory. But no matter how spectacular it is, Sham can't shake the sense that there is more to life than traveling the endless rails of the railsea–even if his captain can think only of the hunt for the ivory-coloured mole she’s been chasing since it took her arm all those years ago. When they come across a wrecked train, at first it's a welcome distraction. But what Sham finds in the derelict—a series of pictures hinting at something, somewhere, that should be impossible—leads to considerably more than he'd bargained for. Soon he's hunted on all sides, by pirates, trainsfolk, monsters and salvage-scrabblers. And it might not be just Sham's life that's about to change. It could be the whole of the rail sea.Talking about the "weird," China Miéville excels at it. He has become a favorite writer after reading only a couple of his books (I still have a few of his earlier works in my TBR). The thing about this author is that both of the books I've read managed to make it to my "best of" lists, so why would I not pick up his latest release? This story sounds like an earthbound Moby Dick, Miéville style. Let's see what weird, fantastic characters this author creates in this story. I can't wait to find out. :D
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Silver Moon by Catherine Lundoff
Release Date: May 20, 2012
Becca Thornton, divorced, middle-aged, and barely out of the closet, discovers that life can still hold some strange surprises, when she discovers that her body is changing; menopause turns her into a werewolf. Apparently she is not the only one, as a number of women in her town of Wolf's Point seem to have had the same experience. As the newest member of the pack, Becca learns her nights are not spent only protecting the town and running through the woods howling at the moon. There are werewolf hunters in town and they've got Becca in their sights.This is Lundoff's first novel, however she has won various awards for her short stories, including the 2010 Gaylactic Spectrum Award Best Other Work. She's also the editor of various lesbian anthologies. I've never read Ms. Lundoff's work, but the blurb for this book had me at "menopause turns her into a werewolf." LOL! After reading that line, I KNEW this book was going on my list. Ohhh, I just need to know how the author handles this premise. [grin]
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A Night Like This (Smythe-Smith #2) by Julia Quinn
Release Date: May 29, 2012
Anne Wynter might not be who she says she is . . .I read but never reviewed the first book in this series although I enjoyed it. Actually I just noticed that I've never reviewed any of the books that I've read by Julia Quinn. I need to remedy that! I'm not missing this book. I love the infamous Smythe-Smith ladies. They're a hoot!
But she's managing quite well as a governess to three highborn young ladies. Her job can be a challenge—in a single week she finds herself hiding in a closet full of tubas, playing an evil queen in a play that might be a tragedy (or might be a comedy—no one is sure), and tending to the wounds of the oh-so-dashing Earl of Winstead. After years of dodging unwanted advances, he's the first man who has truly tempted her, and it's getting harder and harder to remind herself that a governess has no business flirting with a nobleman.
Daniel Smythe-Smith Might be in mortal danger . . .
But that's not going to stop the young earl from falling in love. And when he spies a mysterious woman at his family's annual musicale, he vows to pursue her, even if that means spending his days with a ten-year-old who thinks she's a unicorn. But Daniel has an enemy, one who has vowed to see him dead. And when Anne is thrown into peril, he will stop at nothing to ensure their happy ending . . .
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A PEEK AHEAD:
Here is a look ahead to some future releases I can't wait to read from favorite authors:
Redshirts: A Novel with Three Codas by John Scalzi - Release Date: June 5, 2012
Scandal Wears Satin (Dressmakers #2) by Loretta Chase - Release Date: June 26, 2012
You Will Meet A Stranger Far From Home by Alex Jeffers - Release Date: July 14, 2012
Gunmetal Magic by Ilona Andrews - Release Date: July 31, 2012
Captain Harding and His Men by Elliott Mackle - Release Date: August 1, 2012
Green Thumb by Tom Cardamone - Release Date: August 2, 2012
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There you are, some of the books I can't wait to read! As always I tried to include a little bit of this and a little bit of that since so many different genres and sub-genres interest me. In this case I only highlighted one contemporary romance, so now I'm asking you... what contemporary books are you looking forward to reading in May? What about the other genres, anything that caught your eye?
The Weird looks like an interesting anthology! I might have to check that one out.
ReplyDeleteI'm also excited about Gunmetal Magic! I can't wait to my hands on that book.
I don't think I have a huge lists of new release books I'm anticipating in May. Well, except for Tangle of Need by Nalini Singh.
Samantha, The Weird looks awesome! I definitely want that collection on my bookshelf. :)
ReplyDeleteAnd I absolutely want both Gunmental Magic and Tangle on Need! I will be reading both books as soon as they are released. :D
I really can't wait for Gunmetal Magic... and that cover is fantastic!
ReplyDeleteI know! It's going to be interesting to see how the Andrews team develops a whole book around Andrea. She has a lot of potential as a central figure and that's half the battle right there. :D
Delete*grins* so many cool releases! I'm most looking forward to A Night Like This and The Last Boyfriend, though I admit I haven't read the first book yet! I should ge to thtat!!
ReplyDeleteAnd the promise too, I'ven't read Balog in a while :D
Oh, you're looking forward to reading some good books, Alex. I know you're a Julia Quinn fan... I can't wait to read that book. Of course The Promise is first on my list. *g*
DeleteGreat list of books, Hilcia!
ReplyDeleteI recently read somewhere that Balogh's The Promise is the first in a series of SEVEN? Do you know if that's true? I might try to get on board with this one.
The Weird sounds REALLY fascinating. I'll keep my eye out for your thoughts on those stories.
"menopause turns her into a werewolf.." Are you sure that book is fiction?? ;)
I can't wait for Loretta Chase's next "dressmaker" book, too! Isn't that cover so lovely?
Hey Christine!
DeleteYes, The Promise by Balogh is the first of her new seven book "The Survivor's Club Series." You can read more about it here: http://marybalogh.com/proposal.html :D I can't tell you how excited I am that she's writing this book which is related to one of my favorite books by her, "A Summer to Remember." Everybody who has read that book remembers Gwen or Lady Muir!
The Weird... I can't wait to get my hands on that collection, even if it takes me forever to read the 100 short stories. LOL! And of course Loretta Chase's second book in the Dressmaker series is a "must" read for me.
LOL on your comment about Silver Moon! Is it really fiction? Creative isn't it? I thought so as soon as I saw that blurb. From personal experience I can tell you that there are a few people who at given any moment or any given day will agree with THAT line! LOLOL!
Hi Hilcia. I hope you're well.~I'm also looking for Julia Quinn's book, I already pre-ordered it! Ilona Andrews's too.
ReplyDeleteThe trilogy by Nora Roberts...I'm also going to read it but I'm only getting them when they're all out..so I can resist temptation!
Kisses
Hi Sonia, waiting for the last book in the NR's trilogy to release to read them all in a row is a good strategy. I used to do that all the time! ;P I still do that with some books in PNR. Hey! Did you read The Witness by NR yet? It's good! And, are you reading Tangle of Need by Nalini Singh? That one is coming out next month too. I can't wait to read it... the Ghost and all that. *g* Oh...
DeleteSilver Moon certainly gives a new take on werewolves! I'm with Christine - fiction? Maybe, maybe not...
ReplyDeleteLOL, Les! I agree. And well... some people *coughmy DHcough* might *cough do cough* agree with that line. LOLOL!
DeleteFunny how we don't have many books in common for May. And LOL, yes, there are tons of releases in May! I just finished putting the post together for Breezing through... Took me almost two hours copy/pasting everything I believe LOL.
ReplyDeleteYou did not mention Tangle of Need. I have two Kate Angell releases I'm looking forward and a few YA surprisingly :)
We don't? Well... as always I look forward to your new releases post at Breezing Through. I don't highlight ALL the books I'm looking forward to reading during the month... I pick and choose a few of them. I AM looking forward to reading Tangle of Need by Nalini Singh! I can't wait to get my hands on that book. :D I just didn't choose to highlight it this time.
DeleteAnd Kate Angell... I read that short story by her at Christmas time and enjoyed it, so I'll look forward to your post to see if I'm interested in her contemporary romance releases. Thanks for the recommendation. :D
Ah well in that case, Hils, how am I to know if we have books in common LOL.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you liked the Kate Angell entry in that anthology :) I still haven't read it. Perhaps for next Christmas? LOL
Nath my friend, if I listed all the books I want to read in any given month my posts would be huge! I pick a few and then read yours to see if we have any other upcoming reads in common, lolol!
DeleteReading that Angell anthology (novella) for next Xmas is a good idea at this point. *g*