 Hi everyone, a big welcome back to my channel. So today is going to be the second video I have filmed this year talking about anticipated releases. I filmed one earlier in the year talking about January to April releases, and this one is going to be about May to August releases. I don't have quite as many books to talk about in this video, but the quality is we have some literary fiction, some poetry, some translated fiction, some historical fiction. We have a ton of indie publishers and a couple of really big releases as well. I'm so excited about all of these books. I've already read like five of them. A big, big thank you to all of the publishers who have sent me advanced copies of these books. You absolutely make my life. Let's get into the books. Going in date order, the first book that came out on the 13th of May by Apollo is The Wolf Den by Elodie Harper. This is a historical novel set in ancient Pompeii following the story of a young woman named Amara and a few of her friends who are enslaved in a brothel. Now this is probably the least typically me book on this list, but for some reason the premise just got me. Every now and again I love reading something that is set in a totally different location or different time period to one used to. I fancy something a bit more plot driven, a bit more high stakes. That is exactly what this book is. I'm currently actually about halfway through this one and I'm really liking it. It's fun, it's vivid, it's weirdly feminist for the time period, you've got to love it. I'm really excited to see how much I end up enjoying this one in the end. Also released on the 13th of May by Fleet was Slug by Holly Mcnish. This is a kind of hybrid book. It is comprised of poetry and short stories and short essay collections all exploring Holly Mcnish's experiences with grief and family and sex and self-love and parenthood. Holly Mcnish isn't a poet that I had read works from before but she is a poet who I'd heard tons of good things about and really wanted to read. I have already read this one. I started reading it basically as soon as it came through the door and I was immediately hooked. I absolutely loved this. It was everything I wanted it to be. I was here primarily for the poetry but I loved the mix of other mediums as well. This is insightful and touching and kick-ass and just a really cool unique reading experience. I think so many people are going to adore this one. I will talk about it more in my next recent reads video. Next up coming on the 20th of May by Nine Archies Press is Boy in Various Poses by Lewis Buxton. This is a new poetry collection by one of my favourite poetry publishers ever. This one is a debut collection exploring all of the different types of boy you can be. It explores transgressing boundaries, bodies, sexuality, vulnerability and mental health. I adore Nine Archies Press. I am always up for reading their poetry but this one in particular caught my eye. I'm fascinated by gender and societal expectations and conformity and non-conformity. I have already read this one. It was really really great, funny and provocative and touching. I'm really excited to talk more about this one with you all soon. Next up coming on the 27th of May by New Ruins Press is Absorbed by Kylie Whitehead. This is a particularly exciting one because it is the first book coming from a new imprint named New Ruins Press which is the baby of dead ink books in Liverpool and Influx Press in London. The imprints aim, I believe, is to explore and push the boundaries between literary and genre fiction. This book in particular follows the story of a woman named Allison who when she feels her partner slipping away from her literally absorbs him. I was so up for this. I love experimental books, weird books especially when they're literary. This concept of literally absorbing the people you love is genius. I have, of course, already read this one and I'm very pleased to report it was really good. It's dark and comic and explores really cool themes like female insecurity and body horror. I think New Ruins is onto some really cool stuff here and of course you can hear my full thoughts on this one in my next recent reads video. Coming on the 3rd of June by Dead Ink Books is The Hierarchies by Roz Anderson set in the not too distant future. This is a literary dystopian novel exploring AIs and synthetic humans. I believe it follows the story of Sylvie, a fully sentient robot and her relationship with her husband and his wife and child. This is supposed to be dark and humorous, exploring humans talent for exploitation more so than technological advancement. This sounds really cool and very me. I am fascinated by A.I. and the philosophy behind it. What with the recent publication of Kazuo Ishiguro's new novel Clara and the Sun? I imagine this book is coming out at a pretty good time. Really excited to see what unique things this one has to offer. Coming on the 10th of June by Fourth Estate is Still Life by Sarah Winman. This is one of the big releases that I mentioned at the beginning of the video. This is a big release generally for Fourth Estate and just publishing generally but for me personally this is about as big as it gets. For those of you who don't know Sarah Winman is one of my favorite authors of all time. Her novel Tin Man is one of my favorite books ever. I could just live in her writing. When I heard that she was bringing out a new book I was beyond excited and I am so overjoyed to have received this proof copy and to have read this before publication. Opening in 1944 in Tuscany, Still Life follows a story of two strangers who meet Ulysses, a young British soldier, and Evelyn, an older female historian. The novel then follows these two characters' lives as well as the lives of the people around them over the next four decades in both London and Italy. Obviously I have already read this one. It was so beautiful, so masterfully crafted, so richly charactered. I just can't. Amazing book, so privileged to have read this early. I love it. Full thoughts on this one coming soon. Next up coming on the 18th of June by Fly on the Wall Press is Modern Medicine by Lucy Hurst. This is another new poetry collection, this one exploring the weirdness and discomfort of bodily suffering through experiences of illness and medicine and disability. Fly on the Wall Press are actually a new indie publisher to me. They seem to be working on some really cool stuff. This collection in particular had me as soon as I read the premise. The idea of pain, especially female pain, and how we view it and react to it and treat it absolutely fascinates me. It's something that I really want to read more about. This just seems like a really cool and unique idea for a poetry collection. I'm really excited to dive into it soon. Coming on the 24th of June by Arrow is, oh this way up, The Mismatch by Sarah Jaffari. This is a new literary novel following a British Iranian new graduate named Soria, I believe. She wants to get her first kiss out of the way. She then meets a quintessentially British rugby playing lad, perhaps some romance blooms. This just sounds delightful, very character focused and literary, which is totally my thing. Lighthearted and entertaining, but also with more serious themes, I'm guessing. I think this could be a really fun read. There is some hype around this one on Twitter at the moment as well, so I'm excited to give it a go. Also coming on the 24th of June by Bloomsbury Circus is, Animal by Lisa Tadeo. Another big release and one that I am particularly excited for. This is the first novel from Lisa Tadeo, the author of Three Women that came out a couple of years ago. I loved Three Women when I read it. I thought it was insightful and intelligent and really well written. Naturally I was very excited when I heard that she was bringing out her first novel. I believe this one follows the story of a young woman who witnesses some violent act by a man. She then flees New York and ends up unraveling some horrific event that happened to her while she was a child. I don't know much more about this one. I think they are keeping the premise purposefully vague, which I am here for. I imagine it's going to be dark and raw. I've heard that it is filled with female rage. Very intrigued. I'm going to be starting this one really soon. Also coming on the 24th of June by Influx Press is The Service by Frankie Mirren. This is another literary novel following three different women whose lives converge when brothels in London start being rated. We have Laurie who has a young daughter and who works illegally in a rented flat. We have Freya who is a student who makes money through being an escort, and we also have Paula, a journalist who has a lifelong campaign against prostitution. I hear that this one has dystopian vibes despite the fact that it isn't actually a dystopian. It is said to be shocking and deeply humane, challenging conceptions of sex and women's bodies and entitlement and power. Everything about this one sounds fab. I cannot wait. Coming on the 8th of July by Zafra is Recutation by Lex Croucher. This is a historical regency era romcom following the story of a middle class young woman named Georgiana who goes to live with her dreary aunt and uncle. There she meets the wealthy and enigmatic Francis and falls into the upper echelons of debauched regency society. Again, this one is not my typical kind of read, but it just sounds so fun. It's being marked as for fans of Bridgerton, which is genius. Obviously, I also absolutely adore Jane Austen, which this is boldly comparing itself to as well. I'm going to be picking this one up really, really soon. I'm hoping for an entertaining wild ride. Coming on the 5th of August by Viking is The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak. This is a new novel by the fab author Elif Shafak. I believe it is a contemporary Romeo and Juliet style story between a Greek Cypriot teenager and a Turkish Cypriot teenager. That is all I know. It is all I need to know. I first read Elif Shafak a couple of years ago when my friend Laura recommended me Three Daughters of Eve. I absolutely adored that book. I've wanted to read more by her ever since, so I was super excited to hear she was bringing out another new book. I just love her characters and her writing and her themes. She's so fab. I think this is going to be illuminating and rich and beautiful. I can't wait. Also coming on the 5th of August by Faber and Faber is In the Country of Others by Lila Slamani. As with other Lila Slamani novels, I believe this one is translated from French, but for the life of me, I cannot find out who the translator is. I can't find that information anywhere, which is bizarre. Perhaps this one isn't translated, perhaps it's written in English, or perhaps it's translated by Sam Taylor, the translator for her other two novels. If anyone has any insight about this, please do let me know down below. So this is described as an interracial love story between a Moroccan soldier who fought for France in the Second World War and a spirited young French woman. I believe the novel is set over 10 years, leading up to Morocco's independence in 1956. So you may or may not know that I am such a fan of Lila Slamani. She is one of my favourite translated authors. I didn't actually know that this one was coming out until, like last week, I somehow almost missed it. I just adore Lila Slamani's delicious writing and the dark psychological tint to her novels. This one sounds a bit different to Adele and Lullaby, a bit of a foray into historical fiction. I'm here for it, I am very excited to give this one a go. And the final book coming on the 24th of August by double day is The Women of Troy by Pat Barker. This is probably the biggest release on this list. This is the sequel to the incredibly popular Iliad retelling The Silence of the Girls that Pat Barker brought out a couple of years ago. Still focusing on the same main character, this one takes place. After Troy has fallen, the Greeks are trying to travel home victorious, but the gods have been offended, people. This is a very exciting one. I am so happy to have received this proof. It is absolutely gorgeous as well. I loved The Silence of the Girls, didn't we all? Pat Barker is such a fab writer and this type of feminist Greek myth retelling is so delicious, so on trend. I'm intrigued to see where this one goes, I'm intrigued to see how much I like it compared to the first book. I will be reading this one very soon indeed. So there we have all of the books that I am most excited about coming in May to August. Please let me know what you think of any of these books. Do they sound good to you? Also let me know if there are any other exciting books coming that I haven't included on this list that I need to know about. I hope you're all doing really, really well. As always, I very much look forward to hearing from you in the comments and I will see you all soon in another video. Bye everyone.