Well, it's very much summer now. We've passed the solstice, the library reading programs have begun (and I'm delighted that there's an adult version as well as a kid version), and this year's crop of summer reads has started to appear! Realistically, it's anyone's guess how many of these I'll actually read this season (or even this year), but . . . I can be excited anyway? Right? Right.

 

Summer 2022 Reads

1. The Wolf's Daughter by Kendra E. Ardnek (June 15). This is the first in a new series of short stories Kendra's releasing: fairy tales turned on their heads, with heroes and villains switched. I've already read it, but I wanted to spotlight it because it really is a cool take on the story. I can't say much more about why I like the twist . . . but the title should give you a clue.

2. Blood and Moonlight by Erin Beaty (June 28). Fantasy mystery! I'll be honest, between the cover and the fact that the blurb is hinting at a love triangle, I'm kinda giving this one a little bit of a side-eye. But on the other hand, I can't resist a good fantasy mystery, so I'll be watching the reviews to see how things look.

3. The Dream Runners by Shveta Thakrar (June 28). I read an excerpt of this on the Tor blog, and it was entrancing, so I'm excited! We've got Indian fantasy, dream magic, an amnesia plotline . . . it definitely has potential to be awesome, and it's a standalone — no getting suckered into a series. (And, of course, the cover is super pretty.)

4. Her Dark Wings by Melinda Salisbury (July 7). It's a modern Hades and Persephone retelling! This particular myth is getting a lot of attention in the last few years, and I've seen some fabulous takes on the story, so this definitely has a lot of potential. It's not at the top of my reading list, but still, potential.

 

5. Castle and Key by W.R. Gingell (July 15). New Two Monarchies! About Susan! Who is Isabella's sister and is just as prone to mischief and poking her nose into things as Isabella herself, and therefore has all the makings of a new favorite character once I get five pages of her POV. Plus, this is a Bluebeard retelling, which promises a DELIGHTFULLY murdery mystery. I've already preordered the book, and there's very good odds I'll read it the day it comes out.

6. The Monsters We Defy by Leslye Penelope (August 9). It's a Jazz Age historical fantasy, y'all! Not only that, but it's a heist narrative! I don't know about the rest of y'all, but I love a good fantasy heist almost as much as I love a good fantasy mystery, and the particular setting of this one just makes it even better.

7. The Drowned Woods by Emily Lloyd-Jones (August 16). Speaking of heist stories . . . this one involves Welsh mythology, so of course I'm super excited for that. The main character apparently has water-based magic and is trying to bring down the evil prince she used to work for. The blurb hints at fae involvement and also promises, and I quote, "a corgi that may or may not be a spy," so . . . yeah. I'm definitely going to pick this one up!

8. Beguiled by Cyla Panin (August 23). This story is giving me Rumplestiltskin vibes, and that's not a fairy tale you see retold very often, so I'm interested simply because of that. But we've also got elements of Celtic folklore (yesssss), so that's two reasons to keep an eye on this release.

What book releases are you excited for this summer? Please tell me in the comments!
Thanks for reading!