New Additions to the TBR | Part 1

Image by Becca Tabert

Recently, since it's a part of my job, I've decided to look through new upcoming releases of books. And let me tell you, I wasn't aware of a good many. I was also looking to possibly host a Hispanic readathon or at least have one of my themes surrounding literature with Hispanic main characters. I know I have that whole goal of getting my tbr down to 100 books but sometimes you can't help but add some interesting books on to your tbr whether it's already out in the world or going to be released in a few months. I thought I would share the books I've recently added to my tbr since maybe we can talk about these books or I get to be the person who gets you to discover a good book.

Kira Bennett’s earliest memories are of living alone and wild in the woods. She has no idea how long she was on her own or what she had to do to survive, but she remembers the moment that Cady Bennett and one of her search-and-rescue dogs found her perfectly. Adopted into the Bennett family, Kira still struggles with human interaction years later, but she excels at the family business: search-and-rescue. Along with Cady’s son, Jude, and their neighbor, Free, Kira works alongside Cady to train the world’s most elite search-and-rescue dogs. Someday, all three teenagers hope to put their skills to use, finding the lost and bringing them home.

But when Cady’s estranged father, the enigmatic Bales Bennett, tracks his daughter down and asks for her help in locating a missing child—one of several visitors who has disappeared in the Sierra Glades National Park in the past twelve months—the teens find themselves on the frontlines sooner than they could have ever expected. As the search through 750,000 acres of unbridled wilderness intensifies, Kira becomes obsessed with finding the missing child. She knows all too well what it’s like to be lost in the wilderness, fighting for survival, alone.

But this case isn’t simple. There is more afoot than a single, missing girl, and Kira’s memories threaten to overwhelm her at every turn. As the danger mounts and long-held family secrets come to light, Kira is forced to question everything she thought she knew about her adopted family, her true nature, and her past.

The Lovely and the Lost was a book I had no idea about until Kay @ It's a Book Life wrote a review on it. I hardly ever think unique when I think of YA but this one is very different from the rest. The search and rescue as well as a mysterious past sounds like two things I could get lost in (no pun intended).

Sixteen-year-old Martha and her mother move constantly, never staying anywhere for long. So she knows better than to ask if they’ve been evicted again when her mom says they’re going on a “vacation” to meet the grandmother Martha didn’t know existed.

Laredo, Texas, is like no other city she has seen. Driving past businesses with Spanish names and colorfully painted houses with burnt lawns, Martha can’t imagine her mother living somewhere so … Mexican. At her grandmother’s pink house, she’s shocked and hurt when her mom abandons her, even though a part of her had been expecting it.

Suddenly Martha must deal with a way of life that is completely foreign. Her grandmother doesn’t speak English, so communication is difficult, and she’s not the typical, sweet grandma who dotes on her grandchildren. Even weirder, it turns out that her grandmother is revered as a healer, or curandera. And there are tons of cousins, aunts and uncles all ready to embrace her!

At her new school, Martha can’t be anonymous like before because everyone knows she’s Doña González’s granddaughter. Meanwhile, a girl who has it out for her makes things unpleasant. As Martha struggles to adjust to her new life, she can’t help but wonder why her mother left Laredo. No one is willing to discuss it, so she’ll have to unravel the secret herself.

I don't know what event it was but a tweet led me to the author of Secrets of the Casa Rosada. I didn't see her on any of the Latina/Hispanic lists on Goodreads (I added it afterwards) so this seems to be a relatively unknown teen book. It would be perfect for the theme read or Hispanic readathon. But, what I really like about it is that it has the same feel as Mexican Whiteboy where the character doesn't feel like she is part of her heritage (she doesn't know Spanish or traditions of Mexico). I loved Mexican Whiteboy and I tend to have that feeling that I'm not as Hispanic as I should be so it's nice to find a relatable book like this one.

Sierra Santiago was looking forward to a fun summer of making art, hanging out with her friends, and skating around Brooklyn. But then a weird zombie guy crashes the first party of the season. Sierra's near-comatose abuelo begins to say "Lo siento" over and over. And when the graffiti murals in Bed-Stuy start to weep.... Well, something stranger than the usual New York mayhem is going on.

Sierra soon discovers a supernatural order called the Shadowshapers, who connect with spirits via paintings, music, and stories. Her grandfather once shared the order's secrets with an anthropologist, Dr. Jonathan Wick, who turned the Caribbean magic to his own foul ends. Now Wick wants to become the ultimate Shadowshaper by killing all the others, one by one. With the help of her friends and the hot graffiti artist Robbie, Sierra must dodge Wick's supernatural creations, harness her own Shadowshaping abilities, and save her family's past, present, and future.

I was looking for books for teens and found Shadowshaper. Sierra is Afro-Latina or Afro-Boricua (according to Wikipedia) which means she has African and Puerto Rican in her. The summary caught my eye since spirits and art aren't two things I tend to read about. 

Meet the funny, fierce, and fearless Amy Wu, who is determined to make a perfect bao bun today. Can she rise to the occasion?

Amy loves to make bao with her family. But it takes skill to make the bao taste and look delicious. And her bao keep coming out all wrong.

Then she has an idea that may give her a second chance…Will Amy ever make the perfect bao?

If you thought I wouldn't include a picture book then you must be new here. I think I was looking at new picture book releases or something like that and Amy Wu and the Perfect Bao came up. The cover is so cute, it has a cat, and is centered around food - perfect!

Kathrine Switzer changed the world of running. This narrative biography follows Kathrine from running laps as a girl in her backyard to becoming the first woman to run the Boston Marathon with official race numbers in 1967.

I love running and I happen to have been watching a lot of videos about the Boston marathon so this one caught my eye. I hardly read any running books so Her Fearless Run was a good find for me.

There was nothing in the world as magical and terrifying as a girl.

Princess Guinevere has come to Camelot to wed a stranger: the charismatic King Arthur. With magic clawing at the kingdom's borders, the great wizard Merlin conjured a solution--send in Guinevere to be Arthur's wife . . . and his protector from those who want to see the young king's idyllic city fail. The catch? Guinevere's real name--and her true identity--is a secret. She is a changeling, a girl who has given up everything to protect Camelot.

To keep Arthur safe, Guinevere must navigate a court in which the old--including Arthur's own family--demand things continue as they have been, and the new--those drawn by the dream of Camelot--fight for a better way to live. And always, in the green hearts of forests and the black depths of lakes, magic lies in wait to reclaim the land. Arthur's knights believe they are strong enough to face any threat, but Guinevere knows it will take more than swords to keep Camelot free.

Deadly jousts, duplicitous knights, and forbidden romances are nothing compared to the greatest threat of all: the girl with the long black hair, riding on horseback through the dark woods toward Arthur. Because when your whole existence is a lie, how can you trust even yourself?

This, The Guinevere Deception, is by far the prettiest cover that will ever come out in 2019. It's set during King Arthur, is perfect for my Royal Reading Challenge, and just look at that cover! I love that it's Guinevere's story instead of Arthur's this time around. It's also by an author whose work I've liked in the past, I hope she doesn't make the same mistakes with the romance though.

Bound as one to love, honor, or burn.

Two years ago, Louise le Blanc fled her coven and took shelter in the city of Cesarine, forsaking all magic and living off whatever she could steal. There, witches like Lou are hunted. They are feared. And they are burned.

Sworn to the Church as a Chasseur, Reid Diggory has lived his life by one principle: thou shalt not suffer a witch to live. His path was never meant to cross with Lou's, but a wicked stunt forces them into an impossible union—holy matrimony.

The war between witches and Church is an ancient one, and Lou's most dangerous enemies bring a fate worse than fire. Unable to ignore her growing feelings, yet powerless to change what she is, a choice must be made.

And love makes fools of us all.

A witch and a witch hunter falling in love? Excuse me? Where have you been all my life Serpent & Dove? I love stories centered around witches. I just love everything about this book. I'm hyped to read this as soon as it comes out.

Two sisters are torn apart by war and must fight their way back to each other in a futuristic, Black Panther–inspired Nigeria.

The year is 2172. Climate change and nuclear disasters have rendered much of earth unlivable. Only the lucky ones have escaped to space colonies in the sky.

In a war-torn Nigeria, battles are fought using flying, deadly mechs and soldiers are outfitted with bionic limbs and artificial organs meant to protect them from the harsh, radiation-heavy climate. Across the nation, as the years-long civil war wages on, survival becomes the only way of life.

Two sisters, Onyii and Ify, dream of more. Their lives have been marked by violence and political unrest. Still, they dream of peace, of hope, of a future together.

And they're willing to fight an entire war to get there.

I don't usually get excited about sci-fi. It's probably one of my least read genres but I instantly wanted to read War Girls as soon as I saw the cover. She looks so badass! There is a war going on and it is compared to a futuristic Black Panther inspired Nigeria which yes, please. The story also centers around two sisters which is kind of beautiful because have you noticed what is missing from the summary? No mention of a romance. When does that happen in YA? I'm so down for reading this book.

Being a teenager is hard enough, but it's even harder in a world you've never known ...

Eighteen months ago, 17-year-old Rose and 13-year-old Rudder escaped a strict religious sect with their mum. They are still trying to make sense of the world outside - no more rules about clothes and books, films and music, no more technology bans. But also no more friendship with the people they've known all their lives, no community and no certainty. It doesn't help that their mum has to work all hours to pay rent on their cramped, smelly, one-bed flat above a kebab shop in Hackney.

While Rudder gorges on once-taboo Harry Potter and dances to Simon and Garfunkel and show tunes, Rose swaps the ankle skirts and uncut hair of the Woodford Pilgrims for Japanese-cute fairy dress and her new boyfriend, Kye. Kye, who she wants with all her being. But there's loads of scary stuff about their new life that Rose and Rudder have no idea how to handle - it's normal for girls to let their boyfriends take naked pictures of them, right?

When Rudder accidentally sets a devastating chain of events into action, Rose must decide whether to sacrifice everything and go back to the life she hates, in order to save the people she loves.

I don't like reading about some topics that can happen in real life and cults are one of them. Rose, Interrupted is different because it's Rose's journey after she left a strict religious sect with her letting loose and finding herself. The added addition of a boyfriend taking naked pictures does worry me but I don't know. Maybe it's the possible sister bonding that has me wanting to go for this one.

What about you? What are some recent books you've added to your tbr?

Stay tuned for Part 2 coming soon!