Upcoming Book Releases to Ignite Your Imagination During the Heart of Summer - Part 2
- BirdieMama
- Jun 20
- 21 min read
Welcome back friends, today I have part two of the Upcoming Book Releases to Ignite Your Imagination During the Heart of Summer. Generally speaking, I believe most people find creating a TBR list to be a delightful experience as it allows you to curate a variety of reading options, and it allows you to set the stage for the literary experiences that you wish to to embark on. Each book added to your list represents a promise an escape, a promise of learning, or even an emotional encounter. As you contemplate your reading choices for the summer, think about the genres that excite you the most. Are you drawn to the whimsical realms of fantasy, gripping tension of thrillers, or maybe the heart-pounding found in romance? Each genre offers you its own unique and contrasting lens to view the world, and this summer's selections are up to par to cater to a wide array of tastes. As we finished up the first part of our exploration into upcoming book releases, let’s keep the conversation going by diving into part two. Happy hunting!
-Horror / Historical Fantasy-
The Unkillable Frank Lightning by Josh Rountree
Expected Release: July 5, 2025
Description
In this riveting historical horror novel, Frankenstein is vividly reimagined in the Wild West. With equal parts Cormac McCarthy, Mary Shelley, and Stephen Graham Jones, Rountree deftly navigates the terrible aftermath of love and death.
“What begins as The Searchers meets Frankenstein ends as Unforgiven meets The Magicians. A dark, brooding meditation on both what we’ll do for love, and the callous indifference of the hardened souls of the early West.”
—C. Robert Cargill, co-screenwriter of The Black Phone
Catherine Coldbridge is a complicated woman: A doctor, an occultist, and, briefly, a widow.
In 1879, Private Frank Humble, Catherine's husband, was killed in a Sioux attack. Consumed by grief, she used her formidable skills to resurrect him. But Frank lost his soul after the reanimation, and disappeared after a killing spree. Unable to face her failure and its murderous consequences, Catherine fled to grieve.
Twenty-five years later, Catherine has decided she must make things right. She travels back to Texas with a pair of hired killers ready to destroy Frank. But Frank has remade himself as the Unkillable Frank Lightning, traveling with the Wild West Show.
Reaching for a last chance at redemption, Frank and Catherine are at an impasse. As time runs out, their final choices may result in considerable bloodshed.
Source Citation:
Amazon.com 2025, The Unkillable Frank Lightning, Amazon website, Accessed 20 June 2025, <https://a.co/d/g8edJlR>.
-Dark Romantic Fantasy-
Sun Blessed by Daisy Florence
Expected Release: July 13, 2025
Description
Magic sealed their fate, but a one night stand changed everything.A century ago, Elody's kingdom was destroyed, leaving everything she loved in ash, either dead or waiting to be. Then, the sun exploded - sending new magic spiralling through her and her people's veins. With newfound hope on the horizon, they decide to finally set a course for their revenge.Christopher's life is flooded with mistakes, and despite doing all he can to keep his kingdom afloat, the shadows never tire of trying to pull him under. So when a stranger comes to claim his kingdom and avenge all she's lost, he must decide how far he's willing to go to keep his throne of darkness.Fate never promised to be kind, especially when grief and fairy wine crossed their paths too soon, ensuring a reunion that's as magical as it is shocking...
Explore a world teeming with betrayal, magic and a love that burns brighter than the sun.
This series is 18+ and contains violent, dark and mature themes. For further details, a full list of content warnings can be found at the start of each book, as well as on Daisy Florence's website.
Source Citation:
Amazon.com 2024, Sun Blessed: Sincere Shadows, Book 1, Amazon website, Accessed 20 June 2025, <https://a.co/d/7ZFT1WB>.
-Dark Urban Fantasy-
Something in the Water by Sandy Stuckless
Expected Release: July 14, 2025
Description
Homeless thief Jenna Whitney is determined to uncover her mother's murderer, but in the corrupt, overcrowded Fountain City, answers are hard to find. When a mysterious illness starts claiming lives, she seizes an unexpected opportunity.
With only her wits, a few allies, and a knack for mechanics, she navigates political intrigue and betrayal. As she unravels a web of secrets, Jenna learns her mother had hidden truths of her own—and the real killer is closer than she ever imagined.
This gritty urban fantasy is perfect for fans of Six of Crows and Nevernight.
One Click today to join Jenna's quest for the truth in corruption riddled Fountain City.
Source Citation:
Amazon.com 2025, Something in the Water, Amazon website, Accessed 20 June 2025, <https://a.co/d/22chAh1>.
-Poetry-
things you never got to hear by Christopher M. Tantillo
Expected Release: July 15, 2025
Description
A dark, unfiltered, and painful collection of poetry from the #1 Bestselling Author of The Night I Spent with Aubrey Fisher and Keep You.
It’s because deep down I don’t love me, so why would I expect you to?
Christopher M. Tantillo’s poetry collection, things you never got to hear, is the second book in a trilogy that weaves personal narratives with professions about how we find ourselves in the many varied stages of falling in and out of love with others and ourselves. It paints a loose narrative as we navigate love, loss, grief, heartbreak, hope, betrayal, death, what it means to be a man expressing emotions, how we romanticize people and places and memories, and ultimately, healing. Like life ebbs and flows, the poems bounce from dismay to infatuation with the turn of a page.
Tantillo pulls you into a darker experience that delves into the ugly, selfish, and toxic parts of ourselves while in love. The collection invites the reader to reflect on the things that the people they loved or lost never got to hear.
Source Citation:
Amazon.com 2025, things you never got to hear (things never said Book 2), Amazon website, Accessed 20 June 2025, <https://a.co/d/by2cOcR>.
-Metaphysical & Visionary Fiction / Mystery-
Whispers of the Witch by Kirsten Weiss
Expected Release: July 15, 2025
Description
How do we go on when our world has collapsed?
Mitzi’s lost her marriage, her home, and her career. Teaching photography on a Georgia barrier island might be the do-over this midlife influencer needs.
But her fresh start soon takes a dark turn. When she stumbles over the body of a supposed drowning victim, she realizes the idyllic island isn’t everything it seems.
Haunted by the dead woman and mysterious messages from a mystery school, Mitzi must solve the mystery of her own magic. Because a killer is on the island, and his work has just begun.
Whispers of the Witch is an interactive, metaphysical mystery from the Mystery School Series that will leave readers spellbound. If you were inspired by the quest in Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist, discover a path where women find their magic through connection and love.
Source Citation:
Amazon.com 2025, Whispers of the Witch: A Mystery (The Mystery School Book 3), Amazon website, Accessed 20 June 2025, <https://a.co/d/hWvTnke>.
-Southern Fiction / Literary Fiction-
Make Your Way Home by Carrie R. Moore
Expected Release: July 15, 2025
Description
A debut collection of stories set across the American South, featuring characters who struggle to find love and belonging in the wake of painful histories. How can you love where you come from, even when home doesn’t love you back?
In eleven stories that span Florida marshes, North Carolina mountains, and Southern metropolitan cities,Make Your Way Homefollows Black men and women who grapple with the homes that have eluded them. A preteen pregnant alongside her mother refuses to let convention dictate who she names as the father of her child. Centuries after slavery separated his ancestors, a native Texan tries to win over the love of his life, despite the grip of a family curse. A young deaconess, who falls for a new church member, wonders what it means when God stops speaking to her. And at the very end of the South as we know it, two sisters seek to escape North to freedom, to promises of a more stable climate.
Artfully and precisely drawn, and steeped in place and history as it explores themes of belonging, inheritance, and deep intimacy, Carrie R. Moore’s debut collection announces an extraordinary new talent in American fiction, inviting us all to examine how the past shapes our present—and how our present choices will echo for years to come.
Source Citation:
Amazon.com 2025, Make Your Way Home: Stories, Amazon website, Accessed 20 June 2025, <https://a.co/d/9ga3XbJ>.
-Epic Fantasy / Action & Adventure-
The Jasad Crown by Sara Hashem
Expected Release: July 15, 2025
Description
In the thrilling conclusion to the Egyptian-inspired Scorched Throne duology, a fugitive queen must risk everything and everyone she loves for the chance to restore her lost kingdom of Jasad.
Held deep in a mountain refuge, Sylvia has been captured by the Urabi, who believe the Jasad Heir can return their homeland to its former power. But after years of denying her legacy and a forbidden alliance with Jasad’s greatest enemy, Sylvia must win the Urabi’s trust while struggling to hide the dangerous side effects her magic is having on her mind.
In a rival kingdom, Arin must maneuver carefully between his father's desire to put down the brewing rebellion and the sacred edicts Arin is sworn to uphold. He is determined to find Sylvia before it's too late, but Arin's search unravels secrets that threaten the very core of his beliefs about his family and the destruction of Jasad.
War is inevitable, but Sylvia cannot abandon her people again. The Urabi plan to raise the Jasadi fortress, and it will either kill Sylvia or destroy the humanity she's fought so hard to protect. For the first time in her life Sylvia doesn’t just want to survive. She wants to win.
The fugitive queen is ready to reign.
Source Citation:
Amazon.com 2025, The Jasad Crown (The Scorched Throne), Amazon website, Accessed 20 June 2025, <https://a.co/d/dfVVoLl>.
-Romantic Comedy-
Only Lovers in the Building by Nadine Gonzalez
Expected Release: July 15, 2025
Description
Wanted—no, NEEDED: a summer escape with beach reads, cocktails…and a little romance on the side.
After her legal career comes to a sudden and humiliating end, Liliane Lyon books a restorative summer rental at The Icon, a quintessential Art Deco building in Miami Beach, where her only plan is to bask in the sun, read, and sip cocktails. But soon she’s enchanted by the colorful community, including university professor Benedicto Romero—resident tortured poet, whose sole intention for sabbatical is to indulge in brooding introspection.
When they discover a shared passion for romance novels, Lily and Ben are soon spending hours reading together by the pool, the spark between them unwittingly giving the other residents the impression that they’re experts in matters of the heart…no matter that IRL their disastrous love lives bear little resemblance to the stories they’re reading.
But while Ben and Lily can pinpoint a trope a mile away and give excellent advice to others, they can’t make sense of the sizzling chemistry between them, and the suggestion of a professional podcast suddenly forces them to consider the long-term. So what if it means working even closer together! So what if their banter makes Lily's head spin! It’s the summer of taking chances, but a word to the wise: Miami isn’t the place for growth and rebirth. It’s the place to get messy.
For fans of:
Slow Burn
Friends to Lovers
Close Proximity
Beachy Reads
Books About Books
Black Love
Eccentric and charming characters ala Only Murders in the Building
Source Citation:
Amazon.com 2025, Only Lovers in the Building: A Romantic Comedy of Friendship, Romance Book Clubs and Podcasting on a Retreat in Miami, Amazon website, Accessed 20 June 2025, <https://a.co/d/awwhkyM>.
-Sports Romance-
Wild for the Knight by Lindsey Saenz
Expected Release: July 22, 2025
Description
Being forced to plan a surprise bachelor/bachelorette trip with Abby Knight—the one person I can’t stand—is my version of hell. But my brother asked, and I can’t say no to him. So, I grit my teeth, make more than a few compromises, and spend an unhealthy amount of time pretending not to notice the way she drives me crazy.
Then I kiss her to get her out of a sticky situation—no big deal. Except it is. Because the more time we spend together, the more I realize there’s something behind that sharp tongue and tough girl exterior. Something real. Something I don’t want to walk away from just yet.
So, like any good frenemy, I strike up a deal: for one week, she lets go, and I let her in. As soon as we get back from our trip, everything returns to normal. We can’t stand each other, so there’s no risk of either of us falling for the other. At least that’s what I told myself, but then the texts come.
A stalker.
Threatening notes.
And when the danger turns deadly, I step in without thinking. I don’t care about the risks or what our friends think. I’d wreck myself before I let anyone touch her. Because she’s not just my brother’s fiancée’s best friend. She’s mine, and I’ll protect her, no matter what the cost.
Wild for the Knight is a fade-to-black contemporary romance.
Tropes found in Wild for the Knight:
grumpy x sunshine
hate to love you
pro soccer player
best friend's brother (in-law)
forced proximity
romantic suspense
steamy (fade to black) romance
MMCs who get tattoos for their woman
Source Citation:
Amazon.com 2025, Wild For The Knight (The Wilder Brothers Book 2), Amazon website, Accessed 20 June 2025, <https://a.co/d/8XNrCCe>.
-Dystopian / Science Fiction Romance-
Eden's Rise by Tristen Willis
Expected Release: July 22, 2025
Description
In New Eden where emotions are controlled and authenticity is forbidden, Ziva and Myall find themselves on the brink of defiance.
Ziva, a rebellious Technician, and Myall, a conflicted Compliance Monitor, stumble into a secret that ignites a longing neither knew they could feel.
As a forbidden connection grows between them, their hidden encounters become an exhilarating act of rebellion. But with danger closing in and the world around them unraveling, they must risk everything to break free from the chains of conformity and awaken a society lost to its own suppression.
Can Ziva and Myall’s forbidden love light the way to freedom, or will they be consumed by the very forces they seek to upend?
***
Eden's Rise is the first book in an interconnected trilogy. While each book is intended to be read as a standalone, with a different 'couple' featured in each book, the overarching dystopian storyline will continue across the trilogy.
Get ready to step into a world where emotions are dangerous, and love is the ultimate rebellion.
Source Citation:
Amazon.com 2025, Eden's Rise (Chains Of Conformity Book 1), Amazon website, Accessed 20 June 2025, <https://a.co/d/6kui2sf>.
-New Adult Fantasy-
Neverthorn by Shannon Mayer
Expected Release: July 22, 2025
Description
In a realm where magic reigns, a legendary Hero once stood against the encroaching darkness. But with his death, hope dwindled, and the best the world can muster is Harlow Daygon—a thief, magic school dropout, and notorious troublemaker.
At nearly thirty, Harlow can't even cast a simple rune without blundering it. So why does anyone think she can take up the mantle of Hero? Reluctantly, she’s dragged back to Neverthorn Academy with seven former classmates, tasked with training to confront and defeat the Villain of their world.
But the challenges are stacked against her:
Professor Hot-As-Sin makes it clear she’s a failure.
Professor Used-To-Be-A-Mean-Girl has a vendetta.
And lurking in her past is a secret so dark it could reveal she’s not the Hero the world needs—but the next Villain.
With fate hanging in the balance, can Harlow embrace her destiny before the shadows claim her?
Visit www.Neverthorn.com to read the first two chapters.
Source Citation:
Amazon.com 2025, Neverthorn: A Dark Academia Urban Fantasy (Of Quirks and Curses Book 1), Amazon website, Accessed 20 June 2025, <https://a.co/d/4UFD8qX>.
-Psychological / Suspense / Crime Thriller-
The Red Letter by Daniel G. Miller
Expected Release: July 22, 2025
Description
A spine-tingling new suspense-thriller from bestselling author Daniel G. Miller that will keep your heart racing to the last page.
A DEAD BODY. A MYSTERIOUS RED LETTER.
Hazel has everything she wants.
Business is booming at her boutique private investigation firm. She's dating the man of her dreams. Even her perpetually skeptical mother seems impressed. Then the NYPD finds a beloved neighborhood priest dead along with a mysterious red letter.
Hazel investigates the murder as a favor to an old friend and discovers that the priest wasn't the only recent murder victim to receive a red letter...and one victim has ties to a psychopath from a past life that Hazel thought she had buried. One by one, the red letters continue to appear, and with every letter, another killing, each more mysterious than the last.
As Hazel closes in on the killer, the killer closes in on her, and Hazel begins to question everything she thought she knew about herself and the people around her. Even worse, Hazel discovers that the only way to find the truth is to open one more...
RED LETTER
Fans of Freida McFadden's The Locked Door, Charlie Donlea's The Girl Who Was Taken, and Lisa Jewell's Then She Was Gone will love this suspense-filled thrill ride.
Source Citation:
Amazon.com 2025, The Red Letter (The Orphanage by the Lake, 2), Amazon website, Accessed 20 June 2025, <https://a.co/d/352dA8j>.
-Techno / Political / Psychological Thriller-
The Confessions by Paul Bradley Carr
Expected Release: July 22, 2025
Description
A high-octane and “hugely entertaining” (Chris Pavone, New York Times bestselling author) thriller about a supercomputer and the secrets we keep from one another—perfect for fans of Blake Crouch, Harlan Coben, and Gillian Flynn.
Millions of letters arrive in the mail.
Murders are uncovered, affairs revealed, family secrets exposed.
These are the first Confessions.
This is our last chance.
LLIAM is the world’s most powerful supercomputer, built to make the toughest decisions for its users. Where to work, who to marry, and even who should live or die. But when LLIAM suddenly goes offline with no explanation, the world is thrust into chaos, paralyzed by indecision. Stocks plummet, stores are shuttered, planes sit grounded on runways as humanity scrambles to re-adapt to an uncertain, analog world.
Then the first letters arrive…on every continent, in every language, mysterious envelopes arrive in the mail, exposing people’s darkest secrets, and most shocking crimes. All beginning with the same chilling words: “We must confess.”
With millions of people suddenly made to confront their past transgressions, and society fast unraveling, CEO Kaitlan Goss must track down the only person who can help undo the resulting violent chaos: Maud Brookes, an ex-nun who taught LLIAM what it means to be human. But when Maud receives a letter herself, revealing Kaitlan’s own unforgivable sin, the two women are forced into a deadly game of deceit as the world teeters on the brink.
“A timely, ticking clock thriller with unforgettable characters and psychological twists and turns you won’t see coming. Read it. You won’t regret it” (Sarah Pinborough, author of We Live Here Now).
Source Citation:
Amazon.com 2025, The Confessions: A Novel, Amazon website, Accessed 20 June 2025, <https://a.co/d/7HFwIqv>.
-YA Thriller-
Codebreaker by Jay Martel
Expected Release: July 22, 2025
Description
This original, interactive thriller from debut author Jay Martel follows a brilliant teenage girl as she races across D.C. to decode the clues her father left behind, which may just be the key to saving the country from a devastating tragedy.
Mia Hayes has peaceful plans for the summer―find a part-time job at a coffee shop and work on her college applications. Those plans are shattered one night when government agents arrive unannounced at her home seeking something they believe her father has taken. When the dust settles, her mother is dead and her father is gone, a fugitive on the run.
Three weeks later, and still reeling from her father’s betrayal, Mia spends her seventeenth birthday at a protest in the heart of D.C., where she meets Logan, a rebellious and charming hacker. Just as she’s enjoying her first happy moment since the night her world exploded, a voicemail from her father arrives to upend everything she believed about her family, her past, and what really happened that night three weeks ago. Even more, the voicemail hides another encoded message inside which, once Mia solves it, sets her and Logan off on a mission from her sleepy suburb straight into the heart of the federal government.
With the same agents now hot on their trail, Mia and Logan must navigate their way through American history’s most iconic sites and uncover its most well-hidden secrets to reveal the truth about her family and stop a deadly attack.
In this non-stop thrill ride, the reader has the chance to test their own codebreaking skills alongside Mia, lending an exciting interactive element to this page-turning thriller packed with action, romance, and life-changing revelations.
Source Citation:
Amazon.com 2025, Codebreaker, Amazon website, Accessed 20 June 2025, <https://a.co/d/8G4wZnZ>.
-Fantasy / Romance-
Of the Curse or the Crown by V.B. Lacey
Expected Release: July 24, 2025
Description
Princess Diaries 2 meets King Midas in this swoon-worthy forbidden romance fantasy standalone.
An heir. An Empress. A Queen.
As a former rebel leader, Clarissa Aris is no stranger to power. She’s ready to reclaim the throne of the Veridian Empire and is eager to guide her people out of a past of violence and into a better future.
But when a mysterious king unexpectedly asks for her hand in marriage to restore peace between their two lands, she chooses to accept. Clarissa travels to meet him in Mysthelm, a realm they had been cut off from for centuries, and is thrust into a foreign kingdom with secrets around every corner, a betrothed she isn’t sure she can trust, and brewing tension with his handsome best friend and advisor.
Clarissa’s search for answers uncovers the truth behind a deadly blight sweeping Mysthelm and a centuries-old curse threatening to destroy the people she’s come to care for. When she learns her magic may be the only cure, she’s determined to both rescue this kingdom from danger and keep the Veridian Empire safe from meddling forces.
Time is running out. Which will fall first: the curse or the crown?
Of the Curse or the Crown is the second book in a series of interconnected dark fantasy standalones. This book includes a summary of book one, In the Wake of the Wicked, for those who have not read it. While it is advised to read book one first, it’s not necessary. Of the Curse or the Crown follows a newly appointed Empress who chooses to unite with a feuding kingdom in a marriage of convenience. She finds herself thrown into a world of curses, secrets, and meddling Fates while battling feelings for her betrothed’s best friend. Perfect for lovers of Princess Diaries, Greek mythology, and The Plated Prisoner series, this book is full of plot twists, lovable side characters, unique magic, witty banter, and no spice forbidden love romance.
Source Citation:
Amazon.com 2025, Of the Curse or the Crown (The Veridian Empire Book 2) , Amazon website, Accessed 20 June 2025, <https://a.co/d/7YaKVSi>.
-YA Fantasy-
The Queen's Box by Celeste Sutton
Expected Release: July 25, 2025
Description
Some boxes should never be opened. Some truths aren’t meant for mortal hearts. And not everyone is who they say they are.
Willow Braselton has always believed in fairy tales. As a child, she glimpsed a magical world no one else could see. At thirteen, she dreamed of a fae prince. At nineteen, those dreams crystallized into certainty: her prince was real—and he needed her just as much as she needed him.
But no one believed her.
Not when she spoke of the other world.
Not when she told the truth about what happened her senior year, the night she was alone with her adored drama teacher.
Not her sisters. Not her father. Not the polished world that told her to smile, look pretty, and stay quiet.
So when a renowned folklorist hints that the Old Blood might run in her veins, Willow bolts—trading pearls and parties in Atlanta for the watchful mountain town of Hemridge, North Carolina. There, she meets Cole, a quiet, sharp-eyed local who carries grief like a second skin. With his help, Willow uncovers a fabled relic: a coffin-shaped box said to open only for the right ones.
It opens for her.
And then it slams shut—locking her into the unseen seams between worlds, the cracks where lost things wait.
When the Box releases her, it’s into the spun-sugar realm of Eryth, where Queen Severine welcomes her like kin. The queen’s son, Serrin—the prince from Willow’s dreams—is dying. Only Willow can save him.
Or so she’s told.
But Eryth is built on secrets. Stolen children. Stunted dragons. Curdled blood rites. And all of it, somehow, leads back to Hemridge…To Cole.To Willow herself.
Because the Queen’s Box isn’t just a portal.It’s a test.And it doesn’t just rewrite destiny—It rewrites you.
Source Citation:
Amazon.com 2025, The Queen's Box (Her Dark Inheritance Book 1) , Amazon website, Accessed 20 June 2025, <https://a.co/d/aWwUAPR>.
-Romantic Fantasy-
The Golden Palace by T. M. Kirk
Expected Release: July 26, 2025
Description
In the heart of Rivella, where magic and danger intertwine, Rain Solis stands at the crossroads of fate and forgiveness.
◆ ◆ ♥ ◆ ◆
It all felt like a fantastical dream to Rain, that day she discovered she was not an orphan from Jersey but was instead the lost princess of a world ripe with magic and mystery. Now the dream has turned into a nightmare, and she faces the painful decision of whether to stand up for her people or surrender to her grief.
No longer safe in the Diamond Palace, she sets off on a journey to cross Rivella in the hopes that the answers she craves may be waiting for her at the Golden Palace. Along the way, she finds herself facing dangers that neither her head, nor her heart, were prepared for, and her resilience will be tested in ways that may just destroy her in the end.
As she plows headfirst into the fate that awaits her, Rain must decide if she can still trust the people around her, even as she fights to reclaim her rightful place in a world where nothing is ever what it seems.
This is a spicy romance novel recommended only for readers 18+.
Source Citation:
Amazon.com 2025, The Golden Palace (The Onyx Palace Series Book 2), Amazon website, Accessed 20 June 2025, <https://a.co/d/7FkSdbN>.
-YA Fantasy ROmance-
Potion of Deception by Ann Sorstone
Expected Release: July 27, 2025
Description
Hope can be blinding. One decision – chains of mistakes.
Bargaining with a stranger is never a good idea – Violette Effontesorts knows it well, but the desperation and hopelessness to get her father out of his illness seems too blinding. Her common sense gives in to a plea of her heart when she accepts an offer of a mysterious but captivating young man Dante, who promises her elixir for a simple favor – to help to take the odd enchanted mask off his face.
Their way lies through a birthplace of magic and great tales, set on alluring lands beyond the ocean, where they must to find the spellbook once belonging to the Old Witch, which holds the key to Dante’s freedom.
Strange signs and oddities follows Violette’s companion throughout their journey, planting seeds of mistrust in her heart, although only in the face of danger, she realizes that he is not a human but much scarier beast than the ones hiding in the darkness of eerie forests they are wading through, a mythical thing believed to be extinct – a vampire.
And despite her reluctance to help a terrible night-being, there’s no way back as they sealed a bargain with a binding spell so they have to keep their promises. No matter what.Will Violette reach her desired goal to save her father, despite all the lurking danger in the nights spent hand in hand with a bloodsucking monster or – will it leave her among ruins with a scarred heart?
Source Citation:
Amazon.com 2025, Potion of Deception, Amazon website, Accessed 20 June 2025, <https://a.co/d/9xyoYxn>.
-Historical Fiction-
Until the Red Leaves Fall by Alli Parker
Expected Release: July 29, 2025
Description
Author of the bestselling and much-loved At the Foot of the Cherry Tree, Alli Parker, returns with another engrossing and moving novel of courage and conviction, Until the Red Leaves Fall.
Emmy Darling has a secret. She has a few. Her lemon meringue pie is a recipe from a women's magazine, she's always wanted to be a playwright, and the best parts of her husband Sebastian's plays are the scenes she's written during edits. But when charismatic theatre impresario and leading lady, Virginia van Belle, insists Emmy write about her wartime experiences as the lead play in her 1957 season, Emmy is faced with every writer's dilemma.
Because Emmy's biggest secret is that her name is actually Emiko Tanaka. She and her Japanese-Australian family were arrested, brutally split up and held in internment camps by the Australian government after the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. And it's this secret that Virginia wants to bring to the masses.
As Emmy struggles to determine where the edges of truth and fiction blur, Virginia's vision of the story morphs into something more sensationalised. Emmy can't ask for Sebastian's help - he has his own history with Virginia - but she confides in Isadora Westlake, a dancer at a nearby coffee lounge, who knows a thing or two about keeping secrets.
As opening night looms and rewrites threaten to transform Emmy's personal history into something unrecognisable, wounds of the past are torn open, jeopardising everything Emmy holds dear. As the cast take their places and the curtain goes up, Emmy must decide which is right: tell the story or tell the truth.
From barbed-wire fences to the lush velvet seats of the Belleview Theatre, Until the Red Leaves Fall is a stunning tale of secrets and betrayal in the aftermath of war that asks: what happens when you let the truth get in the way of a good story?
Source Citation:
Amazon.com 2025, Until the Red Leaves Fall, Amazon website, Accessed 20 June 2025, <https://a.co/d/7jopL4y>.
-Dark Paranormal Romance-
Once Upon a Demon's Heart by K. M. Moronova
Expected Release: July 31, 2025
Description
Not Available.
Source Citation:
Amazon.com 2025, Once Upon a Demon's Heart, Amazon website, Accessed 20 June 2025, <https://a.co/d/53H8QrJ>.
-Romance-
The Moon Prince by Emilia Mondragón
Expected Release: July 31, 2025
Description
He knows better than to mess with fire.
She wants to see what’s under the surface when she burns him open.
Nina Calloway is chaos, trouble, bite. She’s been his sister’s ride-or-die and the thorn in JD Tucker’s side for over twenty years.
But when his nanny suddenly bails, leaving JD solo with a five-year-old, it’s Nina who steps in.
…Mostly because her apartment just split in half like the goddamn apocalypse.
Now she’s living in JD’s guest house, helping with his kid, and trying really hard not to notice her best friend’s brother got hot.
JD Tucker is still an ass. He’s always been an ass. And she’s pretty sure he has the emotional depth of a shot glass.
Until she sees the cracks.
A panic attack behind closed doors.
The man who still believes the worst things his ex ever said about him.
Twenty-five years of avoiding the flames—now it’s time to play with fire.
The Blooming Tide is a steamy childhood frenemies-to-lovers, coastal small town romance with sizzling spice and achy angst, with a sweet HEA to heal you after.
This book contains explicit content and potentially triggering material, including past domestic abuse, on page panic attacks, and ignorance about neurodivergence. Trigger warnings are detailed within, and are also available on the author’s website.
Source Citation:
Amazon.com 2025, The Blooming Tide: A Spicy opposites attract, coastal small town romance (Edgewater Romance Book 2), Amazon website, Accessed 20 June 2025, <https://a.co/d/cKziEdc>.
So, what say you friends? Was there anything in my lists that caught your eye, maybe captivating cover art, a compelling description, or possibly a familiar author? Or, was there anything that made the list that you've considered adding to your TBR (To Be Read) list prior to checking out this list? I'd love to hear what you are excited to read this summer. In closing, if you're interested in purchasing any of these books for yourself, simply click on any of the links provided and you'll be brought directly to the book named. Thanks again for reading!
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