I’ve seen this tag a lot just recently and wanted to take part – this is my first year and I’m a little late as July is almost over but here goes. The tag has been running for quite a few years and was created by Ely @ Earl Grey Books and Chami @ Read Like Wildfire.

Best Book I’ve Read So Far This Year:

The Children by Melissa Albert

Best Sequel I’ve Read So Far This Year:

A Drop of Corruption (Shadow of the Leviathan #2) by Robert Jackson Bennett. This is a great series that started with The Tainted Cup, if you haven’t read this yet I highly recommend it, particularly if you like fantasy and mystery combined.

New Release I Haven’t Read But Want To:

The Tapestry of Fate by Shannon Chakraborty I have a copy of this but I’m a little behind – I need to pick it up soon as I absolutely loved The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi.

Most Anticipated Releases for the Second Half of 2026:

Ooh, this is a tricky one because there are a lot of good books coming out soon. I’ve had to go for more than one but I have restrained myself to three:

Biggest Disappointment:

I don’t tend to have a lot of books that are disappointments to be honest because if I’m not enjoying it then I stop reading and I don’t love reviewing books I haven’t finished (which isn’t a judgement on others simply a personal thing). But, I did try a book earlier in the year called Loving a Vampire is Total Chaos by Aura Hayes and this book really didn’t work for me so I had to set it aside, but don’t take that to heart as it does seem to have a lot of reviews and a very decent rating so I think it was probably a case of wrong mood.

Biggest Surprise:

This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me by Ilona Andrews – I’ve read this author partnership before and really like their style so to say it was a surprise sounds a bit off – it’s more that I wasn’t sure how I was going to feel about the story itself. As it happens I absolutely loved this – way more than I ever expected. And I highly recommend it.

Favorite New Author:

This has to be Antonia Hodgson for the Raven Scholar. An excellent read that I still need to post my review for – spoiler alert – this one is highly recommended too.

New Favorite Character:

Anne of Brittany, from the The Unicorn Hunters by Katherine Arden. She is a fantastic character to read. This is a fascinating story beautifully combining history and speculative fiction and with absolutely lush writing.

A Book That Made Me Cry:

Well, it didn’t exactly make me cry but it is quite an emotional read and I think I needed to be in the right head space before I started. As it happens I really enjoyed We Burned So Bright by TJ Klune.

A Book That Made Me Happy:

The Calamity Club by Kathryn Stockett). This is a fantastic book, I absolutely loved it. It made me tense and, yes, it did make me happy.

Books I Need to Read By the End of the Year:

Yes, I have gone for more than one because I have so much excitement right now for so many books. Obviously I won’t repeat the three above but here are a few that I can’t wait to pick up: