I decided that this year I would like to try my hand at participating in Top Ten Tuesday, a meme that was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

This week the topic is your most anticipated releases for the first half of 2021. I was excited by this prompt because I have a ton of books that I am excited to read this year! Here are just the ones I am the most excited about.

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Concrete Rose (The Hate U Give #0) by Angie Thomas (coming out January 12, 2021)

Goodreads Synopsis:

If there’s one thing seventeen-year-old Maverick Carter knows, it’s that a real man takes care of his family. As the son of a former gang legend, Mav does that the only way he knows how: dealing for the King Lords. With this money he can help his mom, who works two jobs while his dad’s in prison.

Life’s not perfect, but with a fly girlfriend and a cousin who always has his back, Mav’s got everything under control.

Until, that is, Maverick finds out he’s a father.

Suddenly he has a baby, Seven, who depends on him for everything. But it’s not so easy to sling dope, finish school, and raise a child. So when he’s offered the chance to go straight, he takes it. In a world where he’s expected to amount to nothing, maybe Mav can prove he’s different.

When King Lord blood runs through your veins, though, you can’t just walk away. Loyalty, revenge, and responsibility threaten to tear Mav apart, especially after the brutal murder of a loved one. He’ll have to figure out for himself what it really means to be a man.

I am so excited about this book! I absolutely loved The Hate U Give (read my review for it here!), and I cannot wait to read Maverick’s story 🙂

You Have a Match by Emma Lord (coming out January 12, 2021)

Goodreads Synopsis:

When Abby signs up for a DNA service, it’s mainly to give her friend and secret love interest, Leo, a nudge. After all, she knows who she is already: Avid photographer. Injury-prone tree climber. Best friend to Leo and Connie…although ever since the B.E.I. (Big Embarrassing Incident) with Leo, things have been awkward on that front.

But she didn’t know she’s a younger sister.

When the DNA service reveals Abby has a secret sister, shimmery-haired Instagram star Savannah Tully, it’s hard to believe they’re from the same planet, never mind the same parents—especially considering Savannah, queen of green smoothies, is only a year and a half older than Abby herself.

The logical course of action? Meet up at summer camp (obviously) and figure out why Abby’s parents gave Savvy up for adoption. But there are complications: Savvy is a rigid rule-follower and total narc. Leo is the camp’s co-chef, putting Abby’s growing feelings for him on blast. And her parents have a secret that threatens to unravel everything.

But part of life is showing up, leaning in, and learning to fit all your awkward pieces together. Because sometimes, the hardest things can also be the best ones.

I was a giant fan of Emma Lord’s debut novel, Tweet Cute (if you want to read my review click here!), so I was super jazzed when I got an ARC of You Have a Match! I’m currently reading it now, and it is a really fun read so far!

The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah (coming out February 2, 2021)

Goodreads Synopsis:

Texas, 1934. Millions are out of work and a drought has broken the Great Plains. Farmers are fighting to keep their land and their livelihoods as the crops are failing, the water is drying up, and dust threatens to bury them all. One of the darkest periods of the Great Depression, the Dust Bowl era, has arrived with a vengeance.

In this uncertain and dangerous time, Elsa Martinelli—like so many of her neighbors—must make an agonizing choice: fight for the land she loves or go west, to California, in search of a better life. The Four Winds is an indelible portrait of America and the American Dream, as seen through the eyes of one indomitable woman whose courage and sacrifice will come to define a generation.

I have been falling in love with Kristin Hannah’s writing slowly but surely over the past few years. Her books have consistently ended up on my end of the year favorites lists, so I am really looking forward to this one. I was lucky enough to receive an ARC of this book, so I will get to dive into it early!

A Court of Silver Flames (A Court of Thorns and Roses #4) by Sarah J. Maas (coming out February 16, 2021)

Goodreads Synopsis:

Nesta Archeron has always been prickly-proud, swift to anger, and slow to forgive. And ever since being forced into the Cauldron and becoming High Fae against her will, she’s struggled to find a place for herself within the strange, deadly world she inhabits. Worse, she can’t seem to move past the horrors of the war with Hybern and all she lost in it.

The one person who ignites her temper more than any other is Cassian, the battle-scarred warrior whose position in Rhysand and Feyre’s Night Court keeps him constantly in Nesta’s orbit. But her temper isn’t the only thing Cassian ignites. The fire between them is undeniable, and only burns hotter as they are forced into close quarters with each other.

Meanwhile, the treacherous human queens who returned to the Continent during the last war have forged a dangerous new alliance, threatening the fragile peace that has settled over the realms. And the key to halting them might very well rely on Cassian and Nesta facing their haunting pasts.

Against the sweeping backdrop of a world seared by war and plagued with uncertainty, Nesta and Cassian battle monsters from within and without as they search for acceptance-and healing-in each other’s arms.

I read and fell in love with the A Court of Thorns and Roses series last year! If you are interested in reading my love letter to the series, click here! I absolutely cannot wait to dive back into this amazing world again! I’m hoping this book will make me like Nesta more 😂

Chain of Iron (The Last Hours #2) by Cassandra Clare (coming out March 2, 2021)

Goodreads Synopsis:

Cordelia Carstairs seems to have everything she ever wanted. She’s engaged to marry James Herondale, the boy she has loved since childhood. She has a new life in London with her best friend Lucie Herondale and James’s charming companions, the Merry Thieves. She is about to be reunited with her beloved father. And she bears the sword Cortana, a legendary hero’s blade.

But the truth is far grimmer. James and Cordelia’s marriage is a lie, arranged to save Cordelia’s reputation. James is in love with the mysterious Grace Blackthorn whose brother, Jesse, died years ago in a terrible accident. Cortana burns Cordelia’s hand when she touches it, while her father has grown bitter and angry. And a serial murderer is targeting the Shadowhunters of London, killing under cover of darkness, then vanishing without a trace.

Together with the Merry Thieves, Cordelia, James, and Lucie must follow the trail of the knife-wielding killer through the city’s most dangerous streets. All the while, each is keeping a shocking secret: Lucie, that she plans to raise Jesse from the dead; Cordelia, that she has sworn a dangerous oath of loyalty to a mysterious power; and James, that he is being drawn further each night into the dark web of his grandfather, the arch-demon Belial. And that he himself may be the killer they seek.

Chain of Gold was one of my favorite books of 2020 (you can read my review for it here!), and Cassandra Clare is one of my auto-buy authors. I loved the characters in this new series, as well as the time period. I am so excited to see where she takes the story next!

Phoenix Flame (Havenfall #2) by Sara Holland (coming out March 2, 2021)

Goodreads Synopsis:

Maddie thought her problems were over. She saved the Inn at Havenfall—a sanctuary between magical worlds—from the evil Silver Prince. Her uncle the Innkeeper is recovering from a mysterious spell that left him not quite human. And there are still a few weeks of summer left to spend with her more-than-friend Brekken.
But there’s more work to be done to protect the Inn—Maddie must put an end to the black-market trading of magical objects and open the Inn’s doors to the once feared land of shapeshifters.

As she tries to accomplish both seemingly impossible tasks, Maddie uncovers secrets that could change everything. What if saving everyone means destroying the only home she’s known?

The first book in this series, Havenfall, was a really fun read (check out my review for it here)! I’m anxious to see how the duology ends!

Bridge of Souls (Cassidy Blake #3) by Victoria Schwab (coming out March 2, 2021)

Goodreads Synopsis:

Where there are ghosts, Cassidy Blake follows…
Unless it’s the other way around?

Cass thinks she might have this ghost-hunting thing down. After all, she and her ghost best friend, Jacob, have survived two haunted cities while traveling for her parents’ TV show.

But nothing can prepare Cass for New Orleans, which wears all of its hauntings on its sleeve. In a city of ghost tours and tombs, raucous music and all kinds of magic, Cass could get lost in all the colorful, grisly local legends. And the city’s biggest surprise is a foe Cass never expected to face: a servant of Death itself.

I have really enjoyed the first two books in this series about a girl who can talk to ghosts and whose parents are “ghost hunters” (even though she’s the only one who can actually communicate with them). This is such a fun series and I can’t wait to see what happens next!

Namesake (Fable #2) by Adrienne Young (coming out March 16, 2021)

Goodreads Synopsis:

Trader. Fighter. Survivor.

With the Marigold ship free of her father, Fable and its crew were set to start over. That freedom is short-lived when she becomes a pawn in a notorious thug’s scheme. In order to get to her intended destination she must help him to secure a partnership with Holland, a powerful gem trader who is more than she seems.

As Fable descends deeper into a world of betrayal and deception she learns that her mother was keeping secrets, and those secrets are now putting the people Fable cares about in danger. If Fable is going to save them then she must risk everything, including the boy she loves and the home she has finally found.

Fable was one of my absolute favorite books of 2020 (you can read my review for it here!) I am so hyped to get to read Namesake!! And that cover though 😍

One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston (coming out June 1, 2021)

Goodreads Synopsis:

For cynical twenty-three-year-old August, moving to New York City is supposed to prove her right: that things like magic and cinematic love stories don’t exist, and the only smart way to go through life is alone. She can’t imagine how waiting tables at a 24-hour pancake diner and moving in with too many weird roommates could possibly change that. And there’s certainly no chance of her subway commute being anything more than a daily trudge through boredom and electrical failures.

But then, there’s this gorgeous girl on the train.

Jane. Dazzling, charming, mysterious, impossible Jane. Jane with her rough edges and swoopy hair and soft smile, showing up in a leather jacket to save August’s day when she needed it most. August’s subway crush becomes the best part of her day, but pretty soon, she discovers there’s one big problem: Jane doesn’t just look like an old school punk rocker. She’s literally displaced in time from the 1970s, and August is going to have to use everything she tried to leave in her own past to help her. Maybe it’s time to start believing in some things, after all.

I was very pleasantly surprised by Red, White and Royal Blue, so I am greatly looking forward to this book!

The Box in the Woods (Truly Devious #4) by Maureen Johnson (coming out June 15, 2021)

Goodreads Synopsis:

Stevie Bell did it. She solved the greatest unsolved mystery of the century. So, what now?

Figuring it all out—the truth behind Truly Devious and what exactly happened in the Ellingham Affair—has granted Stevie Bell a bit of celebrity in the true crime community. So she’s not surprised when she gets an email from the man who owns Camp Bounty Lake (now called Camp Wonder Falls), the site of the infamous “Box in the Woods” murders from the 1970s.

Weird things are happening at the camp again, although nothing as sinister as before. No murders, no bodies posed by the mysterious figure they called The Doll Collector. But there is a threatening message chalked across a wall. And a box has appeared, with three grisly dolls inside it.

Stevie accepts a job as a camp counselor so she can figure out what’s going on. She recruits her friends from Ellingham—Nate, Janelle, and Vi—to become counselors, too, and even Germaine Batt turns up. Not long after they arrive, the owner of the camp dies in a suspicious hiking accident.

Once again, Stevie will have to solve a cold case from the past before a killer catches up with her in the present.

I had absolutely no idea that Maureen Johnson was continuing on with this series! I was so excited when I found out 🙂 I can’t wait to see what she does with this book!!

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What books are you excited to read this year? Are you anticipating any of these as much as me? Do you like to read new releases as soon as they come out, or do you wait?

Let’s chat in the comments!

Love and happy reading,

Whitney