Ahh summer is officially here in the UK now, I think I can safely say it? That means garden reading time with a nice cold drink with the children playing in the background! Chances are they’ll start fighting after 10 minutes but that’s enough for a few pages at least! I’m not one for seasonal reading, I don’t read beach based fiction in the summer or Christmas based fiction in the winter, I think it’s because I don’t read contemporary very often at all, but still there are books to be read and here are six that I definitely want to have read by the time the summer is out!

Queen of Ruin by Tracy Banghart

Grace and Fury was a top read for me last year and Queen of Ruin has been high on my most anticipated reads list for 2019! I was so lucky to snag one of the Fairyloot exclusive editions which matches in with the hardcover edition of Grace and Fury I got last year. Grace and Fury left me with probably the biggest cliffhanger since Empire of Storms and whilst my book hasn’t yet been dispatched it’s heading straight to the top of the tbr pile when it arrives!

Warcross by Marie Lu

I picked up Warcross a couple of months ago, but I didn’t get very far at all because reviewing commitments at the time led to me not being able to read for the sake of it. I have heard so many great things about this (and Wildcard which I thankfully also have) and it looks to tick plenty of boxes for things I love. I’m desperate to make time for it!

Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon

This is a weird one as I’m already halfway through but honestly I haven’t touched this books for 2 months now. It’s not a bad story but I just can’t put my finger on what it is about it which I find so difficult to come back to. When I’m reading, I do enjoy the world and the characters, maybe it’s just the weight of it? Every month I tell myself that this is the month that I will finally finish Priory, perhaps I will make summer the season that a finally finish Priory!

Nocturna by Maya Motayne

I’m so behind on my Fairyloot books, who knows one day I might catch up enough to actually take part in one of their readalongs! I have The Beholder to read this month, but with June’s book and also July’s to come I need to make sure at least one Fairyloot book is on my monthly TBR, as the oldest of those waiting, Nocturna will have to take priority this summer.

The Retreat by Sherri Smith

The Retreat isn’t my usual type of read but I’m all about broadening my literary horizons since I rebranded in March. I was very kindly gifted a copy of this book by Titan Books as it really stood out to me. Touted as a psychological crime thriller, a group of troubled women are attending a wellness retreat, however, by the end of the weekend only one is left standing! Sounds very reminiscent of the late 2000’s where there was a spate of films, like cabin in the woods, where characters were picked off one by one – I loved those movies, so I have high hopes for The Retreat!

The Stones of Resurrection by Tameri Etherton

With The Prince of Dragons dragging me out of my slump this month, I’m itching to start book 2 in the series, thing is though is that it’s about 3 times the size of book 1! That’s not a bad thing at all but it does mean I’m going to have to set aside a good chunk of time to read it. The ending of book 1 and the epilogue totally whetted my appetite for what comes next as it looks to jump forward in time, which means new characters!!!