January-June 2018 Releases That You Have to Check Out!

Hey, everyone! I hope you are doing well and reading a lot of wonderful and life-changing books. One of my goals for 2018 was to keep up with the ARCs that I receive from publishers because for the last couple of years, ARCs haven't been a priority, but I would request them like crazy. (I don't recommend doing that at all!) Suffice to say, I have intense ARC guilt and I'm trying to remedy that this year. It's been going really well! So far I have been accepted for 49 ARCs and have read 25 of those. I'm also currently reading two at the time that I'm writing this post. Surprisingly though I've read 29 new releases this year because audiobooks from my library allow me to check out newer titles as opposed for me waiting to stumble upon them at a cheaper price later on. Today, I'm going to list all the new releases that I've read this year and which ones I recommend reading in the latter half of this year! Asterisks (*) indicate which ones I recommend the most.

January 2018 Releases

*The Woman in the Window by A.J. Finn Released January 2nd by William Morrow 4.25 stars (audiobook)

Deadly Sweet by Lola Dodge Released January 16th by Inkmonster LLC 3 stars

Reign the Earth by Sarah Glenn Marsh Released January 23rd by Razorbill 3 stars

 The King of Bones and Ashes by J.D. Horn Released January 23rd by 47North DNF 1.5 stars

*Reign the Earth by A.C. Gaughen Released January 30th by Bloomsbury 5 stars

*A Devil in Scotland by Suzanne Enoch Released January 30th by St. Martin's Press 4.5 stars

The month of January has a wide array of releases. I read all the ARCs that I was provided with in exchange for a review in this month. 5 out of the 6 books were ARCs and one was an audiobook that I do recommend. I feel like I enjoyed the novel more because of the audio as opposed to if it I had read it. 3 out of 6 novels are favorites and books that I recommend highly. My favorites from the month were Reign the Earth, A Devil in Scotland, and The Woman in the Window. Reign the Earth was my favorite out of this month and is still one of my favorite fantasy reads of the year.

February 2018 Releases

 

*An American Marriage by Tayari Jones Released February 6th by Algonquin Books 4.5 stars (audiobook)

Starlings by Jo Walton Released February 13th by Tachyon Publications 3 stars

*You Know How the Story Goes by Thomas Olde Heuvelt Released February 21st by Tor Books 4 stars (free online)

 *Tess of the Road by Rachel Hartman Released February 27th by Random House Books for Young Readers 5 stars

*I'll Be Gone in the Dark: One Woman's Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer by Michelle McNamara 4.5 stars (audiobook)

The Sins of Lord Lockwood by Meredith Duran 3.75 stars

Some of the most famous and talked about best-sellers were released in February- An American Marriage (Opera Book Club pick) and I'll Be Gone in the Dark (it's everywhere + they caught the Golden State Killer!). I read all the ARCs that I was provided with in exchange for an honest review. 3 out of 6 books were ARCs, two were audiobooks, and one is a free online story. Out of the audiobooks I listened to I feel like both were fantastic and I highly recommend them, but I think that I would've benefited more from reading I'll Be Gone in the Dark as opposed to listening to it. 4 out of the 6 novels were favorites. My favorites from the month were An American Marriage, You Know How the Story Goes, Tess of the Road, and I'll Be Gone in the Dark. Tess of the Road was my favorite out of the month and is one of the emotionally impacting novels I've read this year. Plus Tess is an amazing and memorable character!

March 2018 Releases

the witch doesn't burn in this one by amanda lovelace Released March 6th by Andrews McMeel Publishing 3 stars

*The Price Guide to the Occult by Leslye Walton Released March 13th by Candlewick Press 4.25 stars

The Merry Spinster: Tales of Everyday Horror by Mallory Ortberg Released March 13th by Holt Paperbacks 3.75 stars

*I Have Lost My Way by Gayle Forman Released March 27th by Viking Books for Young Readers 4.5 stars

 The Queens of Innis Lear by Tessa Gratton Released March 27th by Tor DNF 3 stars

I feel like March was a huge month for publishing, but not so much for famous or well-known / acclaimed novels. I read five out of the ten ARCs I received for the month of March which is not good, but I will try to go back to those ARCs in the future. All of these books listed are ARCs that I received in exchange for an honest review. 2 out of the 5 novels were favorites. My favorites from the month were I Have Lost My Way and The Price Guide to the Occult. I Have Lost My Way was my favorite because I had forgotten how much I love Forman's books and I was blown away by the raw reality she depicts.

April 2018 Releases

School for Psychics by K.C. Archer Released April 3rd by Simon Schuster 1.75 stars
Love and Death in the Sunshine State: The Story of a Crime by Cutter Wood Released April 17th by Algonquin Books 1.25 stars
Wotakoi: Love is Hard for Otaku by Fujita Released April 17th by Kodansha Comics DNF 1 star
Dimension Drift Prequel by Christina Bauer Released April 24th by Monster House Books 2.5 stars
April wasn't big for publishing and the books that I checked out didn't impress me. As far ARCs go, this is a month of flops. I read all four ARCs that I received from publishers. I don't have a favorite from the month and I'm not rushing to recommend any of these novels, but if they sound interesting to you definitely give them a go!
May 2018 Releases

The Mars Room by Rachel Kushner Released May 1st by Scribner 4 stars
Song of Blood & Stone by L. Penelope Released May 1st by St. Martin's Press 3.25 stars
The Luck of the Bride by Janna MacGregor Released May 1st by St. Martin's Paperbacks 3 stars
Furyborn by Claire Legrand Released May 22nd by Sourcebooks Fire 4 stars
LIKEL1K3 by Jay Kristoff Released May 29th by Knopf Books for Young Readers 4.25 stars
It's All About the Duke by Amelia Grey Released May 29th by St. Martin's Paperback Currently Reading
May is a huge month for publishing. A lot of talked about and hyped novels were released. I've read five out of the seven ARCs that I received from publishers in exchange for a review (I'm currently reading one now). 3 out of the 5 novels were really fantastic and I'd say that Furyborn and LIFEL1K3 are favorites. LIFEL1K3 is my favorite from this month. It completely surprised me and I wasn't expecting to enjoy this one as much as I did. If you aren't a fan of sci-fi, I think that this will be a great starting point if you are interested in getting into the genre.
June Releases

Blood Will Out by Jo Treggiari Released June 5th by Penguin Teen 1.5 stars
The Mermaid by Christina Henry Released June 19th by Berkley 5 stars
The Game of Hope by Sandra Gulland Released June 26th by Viking Books for Young Readers DNF 2 stars
There are some really interesting releases in June. None that I think are getting a lot of hype, but I definitely see bloggers, BookTubers, and bookstagrammers talking about them. I've read three out of seven ARCs that I received from the publishers. I'm going to have to play catch up with some of these, but I'll get to them when I can! The Mermaid is hands down one of the best books I've read this year. It blew me away and I can't recommend it enough. This is one of the few novels that completely blow me away and I want more people to read it.

ARCS I Still Need to Read

Are you excited to read any of these books? What are some of your favorite new 2018 releases that I need to pick up in the second half of the year? Let me know down below in the comments!