Top Ten Most Anticipated Releases for the rest of 2015

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by the wonderful folks over at The Broke & The Bookish

There are so many fantastic books gracing our shelves this year that I've barely been able to contain my excitement. A brilliant mix of well loved authors and some stunning looking debut novels, these are the books that will be coming out during the remainder of the year that I cannot wait to get my hands on.

A Curious Beginning by Deanna Raybourn
Release Date: September 1st 2015London, 1887. As the city prepares to celebrate Queen Victoria’s golden jubilee, Veronica Speedwell is marking a milestone of her own. After burying her spinster aunt, the orphaned Veronica is free to resume her world travels in pursuit of scientific inquiry—and the occasional romantic dalliance. As familiar with hunting butterflies as she is fending off admirers, Veronica wields her butterfly net and a sharpened hatpin with equal aplomb, and with her last connection to England now gone, she intends to embark upon the journey of a lifetime.
But fate has other plans, as Veronica discovers when she thwarts her own abduction with the help of an enigmatic German baron with ties to her mysterious past. Promising to reveal in time what he knows of the plot against her, the baron offers her temporary sanctuary in the care of his friend Stoker—a reclusive natural historian as intriguing as he is bad-tempered. But before the baron can deliver on his tantalizing vow to reveal the secrets he has concealed for decades, he is found murdered. Suddenly Veronica and Stoker are forced to go on the run from an elusive assailant, wary partners in search of the villainous truth.

My love for Deanna's books has been well documented on here, and this latest novel is no exception. It's Deanna, so I'd pick this up without any further information, but add to that the gorgeous cover, the blurb and the fact that we're back to a Victorian setting and I am insanely excited. September cannot come fast enough.
You can pre-order this book on Amazon here

Queen of Shadows by Sarah J Maas
Release Date: September 1st 2015

Everyone Celaena Sardothien loves has been taken from her. Now she returns to the empire - to confront the shadows of her past...Bloodthirsty for revenge on the two men responsible for destroying her life, and desperate to find out if the prince and his captain are safe, Celaena returns to Rifthold, the seat of so much evil. She has accepted her identity as Aelin Galathynius, Queen of Terrasen. But before she can reclaim her throne, there are dark truths to learn and debts to be paid. Aelin must stay hidden beneath her assassin's hood and draw on her mortal strength as Celaena to prevent the King of Adarlan from tearing her world apart. Only then can she fight for her people.

I love this series. I was skeptical when I first picked it up, but within the first couple of chapters I was hooked and I've never looked back. My only gripe? That I can't have all the books now and have to instead wait a year between installments. But I suppose that makes the anticipation even greater...
You can pre-order this book on Amazon here

The Next Together by Lauren James
Release Date: September 3rd 2015
A powerful and epic debut novel about fate and the timelessness of first love. Katherine and Matthew are destined to be born again and again. Each time their presence changes history for the better, and each time, they fall hopelessly in love, only to be tragically separated. How many times can you lose the person you love? For Matthew and Katherine it is again and again, over and over, century after century. But why do they keep coming back? How many times must they die to save the world? What else must they achieve before they can be left to live and love in peace? Maybe the next together will be different.

This idea and cover have had me intrigued ever since I first stumbled across them, and every time I go back and have another look I want to read it even more. I just hope it lives up to all the anticipation now! You can pre-order this book on Amazon here

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo
Release Date: September 29th 2015

Ketterdam: a bustling hub of international trade where anything can be had for the right price - and no one knows that better than criminal prodigy, Kaz Brekker. Kaz is offered a chance at a deadly heist that could make him rich beyond his wildest dreams. But he can't pull it off alone.A convict with a thirst for revenge.A sharpshooter who can't walk away from a wager.A runaway with a privileged past.A spy known as the Wraith.A Heartrender using her magic to survive the slums.A thief with a gift for unlikely escapes.Six dangerous outcasts. One impossible heist. Kaz's crew is the only thing that might stand between the world and destruction - if they don't kill each other first.

I have a terrible confession to make... I have not yet read Leigh Bardugo's other books. I know, I know, stone me in the street. However, it is high on my to read pile and I'm determined to get to it well before this latest book hits the shelves because this one has me insanely excited, and I cannot wait to get on board the Bardugo bandwagon.
You can pre-order this book on Amazon here

The Weight of Feathers by Anna-Marie McLemore
Release Date: 15th September 2015
For twenty years, the Palomas and the Corbeaus have been rivals and enemies, locked in an escalating feud for over a generation. Both families make their living as traveling performers in competing shows—the Palomas swimming in mermaid exhibitions, the Corbeaus, former tightrope walkers, performing in the tallest trees they can find. 
Lace Paloma may be new to her family’s show, but she knows as well as anyone that the Corbeaus are pure magia negra, black magic from the devil himself. Simply touching one could mean death, and she's been taught from birth to keep away. But when disaster strikes the small town where both families are performing, it’s a Corbeau boy, Cluck, who saves Lace’s life. And his touch immerses her in the world of the Corbeaus, where falling for him could turn his own family against him, and one misstep can be just as dangerous on the ground as it is in the trees.

This one just has me thoroughly intrigued. The blurb reminds me just enough of The Night Circus whilst staying fresh and original. The closer we get to September the more excited I become to finally read this gorgeous looking book!
You can pre-order this book on Amazon here

A Study in Death by Anna Lee Huber
Release Date: July 7th 2015
Scotland, 1831. After a tumultuous courtship complicated by three deadly inquiries, Lady Kiera Darby is thrilled to have found both an investigative partner and a fiancé in Sebastian Gage. But with her well-meaning—and very pregnant—sister planning on making their wedding the event of the season, Kiera could use a respite from the impending madness.
Commissioned to paint the portrait of Lady Drummond, Kiera is saddened when she recognizes the pain in the baroness’s eyes. Lord Drummond is a brute, and his brusque treatment of his wife forces Kiera to think of the torment caused by her own late husband.
Kiera isn’t sure how to help, but when she finds Lady Drummond prostrate on the floor, things take a fatal turn. The physician called to the house and Lord Drummond appear satisfied to rule her death natural, but Kiera is convinced that poison is the real culprit.
Now, armed only with her knowledge of the macabre and her convictions, Kiera intends to discover the truth behind the baroness’s death—no matter what, or who, stands in her way…

I read Anna's first novel 'The Anatomist's Wife' at the start of the year based on this review by Angie. It got my reading year off to a truly fantastic start, and gave me a new series filled with all of the things I discovered I loved after reading Deanna Raybourn's 'Lady Julia' series. Kiera was such a wonderful heroine, the writing was quiet and raw and terrifying at points. I adored that book and have been in love with the series ever since. So with the fourth book gracing our shelves this year, it is of course one of my most anticipated. You can pre-order this book on Amazon here

The Invasion of the Tearling by Erika Johansen
Release Date: July 16th 2015

With each passing day, Kelsea Glynn is growing into her new responsibilities as Queen of the Tearling. By stopping the shipments of slaves to the neighbouring kingdom of Mortmesne, she crossed the Red Queen, a brutal ruler whose power derives from dark magic, who is sending her fearsome army into the Tearling to take what is hers. And nothing can stop the invasion.
But as the Mort army draws ever closer, Kelsea develops a mysterious connection to a time before the Crossing, and she finds herself relying on a strange and possibly dangerous ally: a woman named Lily, fighting for her life in a world where being female can feel like a crime. The fate of the Tearling – and that of Kelsea’s own soul – may rest with Lily and her story, but Kelsea may not have enough time to find out.

I absolutely adored 'The Queen of the Tearling' last year and I have been desperate to get my hands on the sequel ever since. It was an engrossing and fresh fantasy with a fantastic heroine at its heart, and exactly what I needed at the time. Now I'm just hoping the sequel lives up to my very high expectations! You can pre-order this book on Amazon here

One by Sarah Crossan
Release Date: August 27th 2015Grace and Tippi are twins – conjoined twins.
And their lives are about to change.
No longer able to afford home-schooling, they must venture into the world – a world of stares, sneers and cruelty. Will they find more than that at school? Can they find real friends? And what about love?
But what neither Grace or Tippi realises is that a heart-wrenching decision lies ahead. A decision that could tear them apart. One that will change their lives even more than they ever imagined…
From Carnegie Medal shortlisted author Sarah Crossan, this moving and beautifully crafted novel about identity, sisterhood and love ultimately asks one question: what does it mean to want and have a soulmate?

This one is slightly cheating because I have actually read it already, but it isn't due out until August and was such a stunningly beautiful book that I just want to get everyone reading it. I cannot wait for it to hit the shelves so I can talk about it properly, which is why it still makes it onto my list for most anticipated books.
You can pre-order this book on Amazon here

Legacy of Kings by Eleanor HermanRelease Date: 25th August 2015
Imagine a time when the gods turn a blind eye to the agony of men, when the last of the hellions roam the plains and evil stirs beyond the edges of the map. A time when cities burn, and in their ashes, empires rise.
Alexander, Macedonia’s sixteen-year-old heir, is on the brink of discovering his fated role in conquering the known world but finds himself drawn to newcomer Katerina, who must navigate the dark secrets of court life while hiding her own mission: kill the Queen. But Kat’s first love, Jacob, will go to unthinkable lengths to win her, even if it means competing for her heart with Hephaestion, a murderer sheltered by the prince. And far across the sea, Zofia, a Persian princess and Alexander’s unmet fiancée, wants to alter her destiny by seeking the famed and deadly Spirit Eaters.
Weaving fantasy with the salacious and fascinating details of real history, New York Times bestselling author Eleanor Herman reimagines the greatest emperor the world has ever known: Alexander the Great, in the first book of the Blood of Gods and Royals series.

This is one that I have been insanely excited about ever since it cropped up on Goodreads. Everything about this blurb has me intrigued - fantasy, politics, intrigue! - and I cannot wait to get my hands on it!
You can pre-order this book on Amazon here

Walk on Earth a Stranger by Rae Carson
Release Date: September 22nd 2015
Lee Westfall has a secret. She can sense the presence of gold in the world around her. Veins deep beneath the earth, pebbles in the river, nuggets dug up from the forest floor. The buzz of gold means warmth and life and home—until everything is ripped away by a man who wants to control her. Left with nothing, Lee disguises herself as a boy and takes to the trail across the country. Gold was discovered in California, and where else could such a magical girl find herself, find safety? Rae Carson, author of the acclaimed Girl of Fire and Thorns trilogy, dazzles with this new fantasy that subverts both our own history and familiar fantasy tropes.

I absolutely adored Rae Carson's Girl of Fire and Thorns trilogy. It was such an incredible story and that automatically puts anything Rae writers onto my must read list. Add to that the blurb and I am thoroughly intrigued! September cannot come soon enough!
You can pre-order this book on Amazon here

So those are my top ten books that I cannot wait to be released over the rest of the year. It looks like September is going to be a very busy (and expensive) month!
So have any of these made it onto your to read list for the year? And are there any that you think I've missed and need to get onto asap? Let me know in the comments below!