Though juggling university responsibilities like classes, a fourth-year thesis, and extracurriculars often makes it difficult to carve out time for the things you love or want to love, doing so is indeed an attainable goal that simply requires some patience and perseverance. If reading more books (or, conversely, maintaining current reading habits) is in your list of New Year’s resolutions for 2019, then you and I are on the same page. Here is a condensed selection of just some of the books I’m most looking forward to being released in the upcoming year; hopefully there is something for everyone.
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1. 99 Percent Mine by Sally Thorne
Release date: January 29, 2019
The name “Sally Thorne’ is one that many in the reading community will recognize as being the author of The Hating Game—a contemporary romance novel published in 2016 that received an overwhelmingly positive response. Needless to say, 99 Percent Mine has been eagerly long-awaited. The novel follows a main character named Darcy Barrett and her twin brother Jamie, who inherit a cottage from their grandmother and are tasked with restoring and selling the property. The punchline is that their business partner is not only Jamie’s “forever” best friend, but Darcy’s childhood crush.
2. King of Scars by Leigh Bardugo
Release date: January 29, 2019
At this point, I’m fairly certain that I would read anything that Leigh Bardugo writes, even if it was her grocery shopping list—that’s how much I love her writing. Both the Grisha trilogy and the Six of Crows duology were absolute game-changers in the realm of YA fantasy, wherein the series take place in a world inspired by Tsarist Russia. King of Scars is a spin-off duology that centers around Nikolai Lantsov, who was a reoccurring and fan-favourite character in Bardugo’s previous books. The core themes are said to be civil war, political intrigue, and a dark magic system (which is not as corny as it sounds).
3. On the Come Up by Angie Thomas
Release date: February 5, 2019
Angie Thomas, an author of colour who has become an advocate for better racial representation in books, continues to bring her A-game with On the Come Up. It is about a teenager, Bri, whose ambition is to become a renowned rapper, allowing her to make it out of her neighbourhood. However, Bri is faced with the struggles of bills, shut-off notices, food banks, and impending homelessness. I imagine that this will ultimately be a story of passion, the pursuit of dreams, and the overcoming of obstacles despite unfairly stacked odds.
4. Miracle Creek by Angie Kim
Release date: April 16, 2019
Continuing on with authors of colour, Angie Kim is releasing a novel called Miracle Creek in 2019, which has been quipped as a ‘”iterary courtroom drama.” On the surface, it is about a Korean immigrant family and a single mother accused of murdering her young, autistic son; however, those who have had a chance to read advanced readers’ copies have praised the book for also covering topics related to immigration, inter-racial marriages and difficulties, fertility challenges, the parenting of those with special needs, and more.
5. The Beautiful by Renee Ahdieh
Release date: October 8, 2019
Vampires were a theme in mainstream literature that came as a double-edged sword—the fad resulted in a surge of reading interest, but also caused many to not be able to take such books seriously. That being said, all books should be given a fair chance, and people may be coming around to the idea of paranormal fiction again. Ahdieh has proven to be a strong storyteller with her previous works, and in The Beautiful, she paints the beginning of a new series set in 19th century New Orleans that is ruled by the dead.
Special Mention: Again, But Better by Christine Riccio
Release date: May 7, 2019
YouTube is a platform that has truly risen to prominence in the past decade, and a corner of that community is one called BookTube, where people sit down to discuss all things book- and reading-related. One of the most popular BookTubers out there is Christine Riccio who, as many other YouTubers do, acquired a book deal (probably in part due to her substantial online following). Though book releases by BookTubers and YouTubers in general have been received sourly in the past, many are eagerly anticipating Again, But Better, in which the main character struggles with the realities of college life.