I have an addiction…to reading synopses of books. And whenever I read one that intrigues me, I add it to a note tab in my phone called, “Books I will buy and probably never read,” a never-ending chaos train of books.
Now that school is out and I actually have some time on my hands to read, I found my TBR list a bit daunting. I decided to go through it and narrow it down to 10 books that I’ll start off with this summer. These are those 10 books and why I chose them!
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My Top 10 TBR List!
1. Love on the Brain
This is Ali Hazelwood’s new book. It’s a contemporary romance about a woman who goes to lead a team at NASA and her workplace rivalry to romance. I LOVED The Love Hypothesis and loved that the main character is a woman in STEM, so I’m hoping this will have a similar vibe.
Buy it here
2. We Hunt the Flame
This book has been recommended to me so many times on BookTok so I’m finally giving in now that I have time to read. From what I understand, it’s a fantasy enemies to lovers set in an Arabian world.
Buy it here
3. Bluebird Bluebird
I’ve been wanting to get into the mystery/thriller genre and the synopsis of this book really stood out to me. It’s about a black Texas ranger investigating the murder of a black man and a white woman in a town where racial tensions are coming to a boil.
Buy it here
4. The Atlas Six
This is another one that I’ve been seeing on Booktok a ton. It’s dark academia novel about six magicians chosen as initiates for a secret society safeguarding the lost knowledge of ancient societies.
Buy it here
5. Birds of California
This book is brand new (like, came out at the end of April), but it happened across my Instagram and the synopsis really appealed to me. It’s a contemporary romance about a former child actor and her costar years after the original show. I’m a sucker for a sexy romcom, so I’m going to give it a try.
Buy it here
6. Portrait of a Thief
Did someone say heist story? With a big F U to colonizers? I’m in. This book centers around Will Chen, a Chinese American senior at Harvard who is commissioned to steal back priceless Chinese sculptures. He gathers his perfect team to pull off the heist and explore their Chinese American identities.
Buy it here
7. Tokyo Vice
So, this one is a shift from the others so far. It’s a memoir written by Jake Adelstein on his experience uncovering police corruption and yakuza activity while working the police beat for the Yomiuri Shimbun. It’s the inspiration for the new HBO drama by the same name, which is incredible and if you haven’t watched it, you absolutely should! Since I’m moving to Japan in July and loved the show so much, I decided to check it out.
Buy it here
8. The Nature of Witches
Along the same sort of climate changes lines is this novel. Essentially, in a world where witches control the weather, it’s about a witch who has the power to save the world. It’s a little fantasy with a sprinkle of romance and a dash of social commentary. Though I don’t love that it’s YA and centers around a “chosen one” trope, I’m still excited for the plot and world.
Buy it here
9. Book of Night
This is Holly Black’s debut into adult fantasy. The Folk of the Air series has been on my TBR forever, but I love an adult urban fantasy so I’m cutting to this one. From what I understand, it’s essentially shadow magic + mystery + morally grey characters. Sounds perfect.
Buy it here
10. It Ends With Us
Ok, I have a confession, I have never read a Colleen Hoover book…but I want to! I’m starting with this one because it’s been recommended to me the most. It’s about a woman choosing between the new “perfect” man in her life and her first love who just came back into her life.
Buy it here
Stay tuned in the next couple of months for my reviews of these books as I read them!