Top Ten Tuesday – My Fall TBR

So it’s kinda late here in the UK but it’s still Tuesday so this totally counts! It’s been a manic couple of weeks for me and the blog has suffered a little as a result, but I didn’t want to miss this week!

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme currently hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl

Books On My Fall 2019 TBR

For my autumn TBR I’m looking backwards and trying to catch up on some backlist reads, rather than concentrating on new releases. That’s not to say there’s not some new releases I’m very excited by… I’m very much looking forward to The Secret Commonwealth by Philip Pullman, The Great Brain Robbery by P. G. Bell and Over The Top by Jonathan Van Ness to name just a few

State of Sorrow by Melinda Salisbury

Published: 1st March 2018

Sorrow – for that is all she brings us.

A people laid low by grief and darkness.
A cut-throat race for power and victory.
A girl with everything and nothing to lose…

By day, Sorrow governs the Court of Tears, covering for her grief-maddened father, who has turned their once celebrated land into a living monument for the brother who died before she was born.

By night, she seeks solace in the arms of the boy she’s loved since childhood. But one ghost won’t stop haunting her, and when enemies old and new close ranks against her, Sorrow must decide how far she’s willing to go to win…

Be swept away by the dark and dangerous new world from Melinda Salisbury, bestselling author of The Sin Eater’s Daughter trilogy

This is my current read and I’m loving it! I’m looking forward to finishing this and moving onto the sequel!

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Broken Ground by Val McDermid

Published: 23rd August 2018

‘Somebody has been here before us. And he’s still here . . .’

When a body is discovered in the remote depths of the Highlands, DCI Karen Pirie finds herself in the right place at the right time. Unearthed with someone’s long-buried inheritance, the victim seems to belong to the distant past – until new evidence suggests otherwise, and Karen is called in to unravel a case where nothing is as it seems.

It’s not long before an overheard conversation draws Karen into the heart of a different case, however – a shocking crime she thought she’d already prevented. As she inches closer to the twisted truths at the centre of these murders, it becomes clear that she’s dealing with a version of justice terrifyingly different to her own . . .

Number one bestseller and queen of crime Val McDermid returns with her most breathtakingly atmospheric and exhilarating novel yet.

I actually prefer Val McDermid’s Karen Pirie series to the Wire In The Blood books. I’ve had this sitting on my shelf for far too long and I’m not sure why I’ve not read it yet…

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Cold As The Grave by James Oswald

Published: 7th February 2019

The ninth book in the Sunday Times-bestselling phenomenon that is the Inspector McLean series, from one of Scotland’s most celebrated crime writers .

Her lifeless body is hidden in the dark corner of a basement room, a room which seems to have been left untouched for decades. A room which feels as cold as the grave.

As a rowdy demonstration makes its slow and vocal way along Edinburgh’s Royal Mile, Detective Chief Inspector Tony McLean’s team are on stand-by for any trouble. The newly promoted McLean is distracted, inexplicably drawn to a dead-end mews street… and a door, slightly ajar, which leads to this poor girl’s final resting place.

But how long has she been there, in her sleep of death? The answers are far from what McLean or anyone else could expect. The truth far more chilling than a simple cold case…

I absolutely adore this series so I can’t really explain why I’ve still to read the latest novel which came out back in February. I was perhaps slightly distracted by James’s new series starring DC Constance Fairchild which I also love but I must catch up with Tony!

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Becoming by Michelle Obama

Published: 13th November 2018

An intimate, powerful, and inspiring memoir by the former First Lady of the United States.

In a life filled with meaning and accomplishment, Michelle Obama has emerged as one of the most iconic and compelling women of our era. As First Lady of the United States of America—the first African-American to serve in that role—she helped create the most welcoming and inclusive White House in history, while also establishing herself as a powerful advocate for women and girls in the U.S. and around the world, dramatically changing the ways that families pursue healthier and more active lives, and standing with her husband as he led America through some of its most harrowing moments. Along the way, she showed us a few dance moves, crushed Carpool Karaoke, and raised two down-to-earth daughters under an unforgiving media glare.

In her memoir, a work of deep reflection and mesmerizing storytelling, Michelle Obama invites readers into her world, chronicling the experiences that have shaped her—from her childhood on the South Side of Chicago to her years as an executive balancing the demands of motherhood and work, to her time spent at the world’s most famous address. With unerring honesty and lively wit, she describes her triumphs and her disappointments, both public and private, telling her full story as she has lived it—in her own words and on her own terms. Warm, wise, and revelatory, Becoming is the deeply personal reckoning of a woman of soul and substance who has steadily defied expectations—and whose story inspires us to do the same.

During her husband’s time as president I always really admired Michelle. My best friend brought me her memoir for Christmas last year and it really is about time I actually read it!

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The Fandom by Anna Day

Published: 4th January 2018

Violet’s in her element. Cosplay at the ready, she can’t wait to feel part of her favorite fandom: The Gallows Dance, a mega book and movie franchise that she and her friends know EVERY WORD of (canon and fanfic included).

But at Comic Con, a freak accident transports Violet and her friends into the story for real. And in just the first five minutes, they cause the death of the heroine, and get taken prisoner by the rebel group she was supposed to lead to victory.

It’s up to Violet to take her place, and play out the plot the way it was written. But stories have a life of their own, and when you change the script in one place, the rest gets revised too… 

I have a very dead friend who sings this book (and Anna’s) praises and that alone is a reason I should have picked this off my shelf and actually read it some time ago!

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The Mystery Of The Jewelled Moth by Katherine Woodfine

Published: 25th February 2016

The honour of your company is requested at lord beaucastle’s fancy dress ball. Wonder at the puzzling disappearance of the Jewelled Moth! Marvel as our heroines, Sophie and Lil, don cunning disguises, mingle in high society and munch many cucumber sandwiches to solve this curious case! Applaud their bravery as they follow a trail of terrible secrets that leads straight to London’s most dangerous criminal mastermind, and could put their own lives at risk…It will be the most thrilling event of the season! This is a fast-paced and compelling mystery adventure with gorgeous Edwardian period detail, this is Mr Selfridge meets Nancy Drew!

In my quest to read more middle grade this year I picked up the first in Katherine’s Sinclair’s Mysteries series and loved it, I downloaded the second so I must read it, I’ve some catching up to do!

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The Sentence Is Death by Anthony Horowitz

Publisher: 1st November 2018

Death, deception, and a detective with quite a lot to hide stalk the pages of Anthony Horowitz’s brilliant murder mystery, the second in the bestselling series starring Private Investigator Daniel Hawthorne.

“You shouldn’t be here. It’s too late . . . “

These, heard over the phone, were the last recorded words of successful celebrity-divorce lawyer Richard Pryce, found bludgeoned to death in his bachelor pad with a bottle of wine—a 1982 Chateau Lafite worth £3,000, to be precise.

Odd, considering he didn’t drink. Why this bottle? And why those words? And why was a three-digit number painted on the wall by the killer? And, most importantly, which of the man’s many, many enemies did the deed?

Baffled, the police are forced to bring in Private Investigator Daniel Hawthorne and his sidekick, the author Anthony, who’s really getting rather good at this murder investigation business.

But as Hawthorne takes on the case with characteristic relish, it becomes clear that he, too, has secrets to hide. As our reluctant narrator becomes ever more embroiled in the case, he realizes that these secrets must be exposed—even at the risk of death . . .

The Word Is Murder is the first book in this series and I loved the fact it was so different, with the author himself a character in the story. I pre-ordered this one and yet it’s sat unread on my shelf since it arrived on release day. I need to catch up with Daniel Hawthorne sooner rather than later!

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A Study In Charlotte by Brittany Cavallaro

Published: 1st March 2016

The last thing Jamie Watson wants is a rugby scholarship to Sherringford, a Connecticut prep school just an hour away from his estranged father. But that’s not the only complication: Sherringford is also home to Charlotte Holmes, the famous detective’s great-great-great-granddaughter, who has inherited not only Sherlock’s genius but also his volatile temperament. From everything Jamie has heard about Charlotte, it seems safer to admire her from afar.

From the moment they meet, there’s a tense energy between them, and they seem more destined to be rivals than anything else. But when a Sherringford student dies under suspicious circumstances, ripped straight from the most terrifying of the Sherlock Holmes stories, Jamie can no longer afford to keep his distance. Jamie and Charlotte are being framed for murder, and only Charlotte can clear their names. But danger is mounting and nowhere is safe—and the only people they can trust are each other.

If you’re a regular reader of SWB you’ll know I’m a crime fan, with a love of Sherlock Holmes. I’m so intrigued by this twist on the tales following Sherlock’s great-great-great granddaughter I had to buy it! I’ve just not actually read it yet and now there’s another three in the series…

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Princess In Practice by Connie Glynn

Published: 20th September 2018

Lottie and Ellie are back!

Head back to Rosewood Hall with your two favourite princesses in the sequel to Undercover Princess!

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As they return to Rosewood after the dramatic events of their first year, Lottie and Ellie are hoping for a peaceful term.

But strange things are happening at Rosewood. Pupils are being poisoned.

Is the threat of secret organisation Leviathan growing closer?

Lottie and Ellie are determined to find the culprit; but danger could be closer than they think…

I’ll be honest I didn’t love Undercover Princess quite as much as I wanted to but I enjoyed it enough to buy this follow up… Now the third novel in the series has been released I really need to read this one and see if it’s a series I want to carry on with…

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Theatrical by Maggie Harcourt

Published: 28th June 2018

Hope dreams of working backstage in a theatre, and she’s determined to make it without the help of her famous costume designer mum. So when she lands an internship on a major production, she tells no one. But with a stroppy Hollywood star and his hot young understudy upstaging Hope’s focus, she’s soon struggling to keep her cool… and her secret.

Gorgeously fresh, funny and commercial YA romance from the author of Unconventional, and The Last Summer of Us.

I absolutely adored Unconventional when I read it and I’m not sure why I’ve not actually read Theatrical yet… But having read the sampler for Maggie’s 2020 release I really need to get to this one before I get stuck into The Pieces Of Ourselves next year.

Have you already read any of these? Which should I be prioritising? Let me know in the comments!