Hello everyone,
Who doesn’t love the anticipation of new releases and things that they plan on doing? Every month there seems to be something new and exciting ready to hit the market for our consumption.
Being ready to embrace them with open arms is all we can really do.
To showcase this, I’ll be sharing my top 3 (or less) for each category of things that I look forward to this month right here, right now!
BOOK RELEASES.
Find a gateway to the underworld. Steal a soul out of hell. A simple plan, except people who make this particular journey rarely come back. But Galaxy “Alex” Stern is determined to break Darlington out of purgatory―even if it costs her a future at Lethe and at Yale.
Forbidden from attempting a rescue, Alex and Dawes can’t call on the Ninth House for help, so they assemble a team of dubious allies to save the gentleman of Lethe. Together, they will have to navigate a maze of arcane texts and bizarre artifacts to uncover the societies’ most closely guarded secrets, and break every rule doing it. But when faculty members begin to die off, Alex knows these aren’t just accidents. Something deadly is at work in New Haven, and if she is going to survive, she’ll have to reckon with the monsters of her past and a darkness built into the university’s very walls.
My thoughts: I didn’t read the first book, Ninth House, but have been impressed by Leigh Bardugo’s writing before. I don’t think I’ll get around to this sequel but it’s good to know that it’s coming out this month…
Welcome to the Shop Where the Lost Things Go.
If you ever lost a sock, you’ll find it here.
If you ever wondered about favorite toy from childhood… it’s probably sitting on a shelf in the back.
And the headphones that you swore that this time you’d keep safe? You guessed it….
Antoinette has lost her father. Metaphorically. He’s not in the shop, and she’ll never see him again. But when Antsy finds herself lost (literally, this time), she finds that however many doors open for her, leaving the Shop for good might not be as simple as it sounds.
And stepping through those doors exacts a price.
My thoughts: I feel like I’m always anticipating the next sequel in this series but have always failed to catch up. I do hope I’ll at least start this one this year and eventually catch up to this 8th installment.
COMIC BOOK RELEASES.
A PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE DESTROYED BY VENOM! Bane broke the Bat–he’s one of the only villains to ever truly vanquish the Dark Knight–but is that all he’s ever accomplished? Decades from now, Bane is a washed-up wrestler reliving his glory days in the ring, defeating someone dressed like Batman every day. But when he discovers that there’s a new source of Venom in the world, he’ll do everything he can to shut down the facility it’s coming from for good and make sure that no one takes the poison that ruined his life. An epic saga set throughout Bane’s life, expanding on the hopes, dreams, regrets, and failures of one of DC’s most legendary villains, brought to you by the iconic creative team of Joshua Williamson (Dark Crisis on Infinite Earths, The Flash) and Howard Porter (The Flash, Justice League).
My thoughts: I’m loving the idea behind these one-shot stories for these villains, written by different authors. I do plan on giving these a shot once they’re collected. For the time being, I’ll just appreciate the cover art on these beauties!
Fashion designer, businesswoman, founding Avenger—Janet Van Dyne has worn many hats over the course of her super heroic career. But when an old enemy threatens Janet and her fellow Wasp, Nadia, seemingly against his will, the Van Dynes will have to confront the ghosts in their shared history to get to the bottom of the mystery. Join fan-favorite creators Al Ewing (IMMORTAL HULK, X-MEN: RED) and Kasia Nie (MOCKINGBIRD; AGE OF CONAN: BELIT) as they celebrate sixty years of the Wasp!
My thoughts: While Wasp isn’t a character I tend to particularly look into, I’m most intrigued by the fact that Al Ewing is writing this. I had such a good time reading through his Immoral Hulk series that I can only imagine good things to come with this new series.
POWERS OF ESSEX! It’s the end of the world as we know it, and at least Sinister feels fine. For now. Can that last? Especially when we discover that he really is his own worst enemy… The universe-melting X-event begins here, in a horror timeline that makes Age of Apocalypse look like the X-Men Swimsuit Special. Join Kieron Gillen (IMMORTAL X-MEN, A.X.E.: JUDGMENT DAY) as he kicks off the X-Men crossover Sinister has been planning since the beginning…and is going to have to see through to the bitter end.
My thoughts: What a blurb! I’m curious to see this push some horror boundaries within the Marvel universe. I won’t lie the title is what really drew me in immediately. How poetic! Now, to see if the rest of the story holds up to the excellent title!
TV SHOW RELEASES.
My thoughts: I’m intrigued by the concept behind this series. For everyone to have a different viewing experience based on what order they watch the episodes is something!
My thoughts: This is by far my most anticipated thing of the month. Based on the video game franchise that I love (at least Part 1), my expectations are super high for this and I hope that the high budget and the incredible creators behind this will give us fans everything we hope for!
MOVIE RELEASES.
My thoughts: Honestly, Nicolas Cage really is out there living every imaginable character out there. Here he is in a western and you can’t tell me this doesn’t look fun!
My thoughts: I hope the story is good. I just know Christian Bale will nail it in his role. It’s everything else that worries me.
My thoughts: The next movie by Florian Zeller. After how good The Father turned out to be (highly recommended if you want to see a formidable portrayal of dementia by Anthony Hopkins), I hope there are some solid performances in this movie.
VIDEO GAME RELEASES.
My thoughts: I remember how exciting it was when this was initially announced. My excitement did dim with each new bit of information on it. It looks gorgeous but I fear the world might not be as alive as I hope it will be. I’ll pick it up if critics give it love.
My thoughts: The remake of a beloved franchise is not too far away now. It looks amazing and I can see it succeed beautifully. I’ll also hold my money close as I wait for the reactions to it.
PERSONAL LIFE.
For our monthly random country project, last month was Gabon and we got around to looking up some fun facts about the country’s history and traditions. We couldn’t find a restaurant that did anything from that country and couldn’t find the right ingredients to do any of their common dishes. I did end up reading a novel by the first Gabonese women writer, The Fury and Cries of Women by Angèle Rawiri, which was an insightful read but nothing I’d rave about. This month, we ended up getting Zimbabwe! I wonder what new thing I’ll learn about this country.
For the upcoming month, I’m not putting on myself too much pressure for this new year and hope that the month of January will allow me to seek out a nice balance in all spheres of my life. In fact, I’m thinking that will be my ultimate resolution for the year, to continuously seek out a state of equilibrium. I just want to be able to do the things I enjoy and grow as a person, whether it’s just in the way I conceive the world or even just what I do with my life/career. For the time being, I’m going with the flow I’ve maintained throughout the end of 2022. I hope everyone else will find that little something that they want to strive towards this year!
Thank you all for checking out my monthly anticipation post!
Now tell me what you’re looking forward to this month! Any new releases? Anything exciting you plan on doing?
Yours truly,
Roars and Echoes 
Nicolas Cage in a western?! I’m definitely;y interested to see what you make of that Lashaan. Hope you have a great January and look forward to seeing your adventure into all things Zimbabwean!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Same! Quite the versatile actor he’s become over the year. I hope you have a fantastic month of January too, Nicki! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Happy New Year, Lashaan! Seems like there are a lot of things to discover this month! Finding balance in a busy life is definitely not easy, but it’s a great resolution to have for the new year! Have a great January!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yep, I think it’ll be a good resolution to aim for that this year, considering all the things I’ll probably want to achieve by the end of it hahah Happy New Year and I hope January will prove to be a good month for you too! 🙂
LikeLike
I hope you do find that equilibrium you seek. Just don’t bother with the movie Equilibrium and you should be ok 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hahahah now I just want to go watch it and see how bad it actually is. 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
I actually enjoy the movie quite a bit. However, right on the front of the dvd cover is a little blurb by some reviewer/paper that states “Watch out Matrix, a new game is in town” or something to that effect. It’s very offputting as the movie never made it past the first movie, and I have no idea how well/bad it did at the box office.
If you like guns and swords and dystopia, it’s worth a watch…
LikeLiked by 1 person
You and I seem to be at the same place with Seanan McGuire’s series, still wanting to try it while we see new chapter after new chapter be published. 🙂 I know how much you loved The Last of Us so I hope the movie does it justice. Can’t wait to see what you think of it. I wish you much success in finding that comfortable balance. I’ll be seeking my own version of that, as well. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hopefully this year we’ll finally crack open that first book! I do hope The Last of US TV series adaptation will be solid and allow non-gamers to enjoy the wonderful story it has to tell. I’ll be sure to share my thoughts on it as soon as I’ll have seen it all. I hope January will turn out to be a good month for you, Todd. Enjoy all the little things! 🙂
LikeLike
I’m so curious about The Last of Us too! And The Son looks like a tear jerker. Hope you have a fantastic month!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m convinced they’ll be good in their own ways! Have an awesome month as well, Tammy. 😀
LikeLike
I’m so looking forward to Hell Bent! I just reread Ninth House to get ready for the sequel, since it had been so long since I’d read it. A bunch of YA authors have made their adult debuts with urban fantasy novels, and so many of them have fallen flat, but I really felt like Bardugo nailed it with her alternate version of Yale.
LikeLiked by 1 person
It’s refreshing to know that some YA authors are also able to do excellent adult tales. Having only read and loved Six of Crows, I’ve been curious about giving Ninth House a shot someday but I never could tell if I’d dig it or not. Hope you enjoy Hell Bent! 😀
LikeLike
Hell Bent is on my list as well and I’ll keep in mind Pale Blue Eyes and The Last of Us because that’s something my husband and son would also enjoy watching with me!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I hope you enjoy the books, shows, and movies you’ll check out this month, Sophie! 😀
LikeLike
I’ve watched the first episode of Kaleidoscope and I’m quite intrigued: it looks like a very promising, very engaging series 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
A seal of approval by Maddalena is a great way to motivate me to try it out! I hope the rest of the series works out for you too. 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m starting Rules of Wolves next week and will have to get more books by Leigh Bardugo after that. I love Leigh’s writing and her characters. Not all her books are Six of Crows but they all have something amazing in them. I don’t know anything about Gabon, I googled it to see where it is. 😳
LikeLiked by 1 person
I hope you enjoy Rules of Wolves! I hope my next Bardugo, especially with Six of Crows being the only one I ever read by her, will be as good though. Hahahaha glad to make you check out where Gabon was!! 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yea man, that Pale Blue Eye got me interested too.
Hope you find the balance you seek this month.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Zezee! I hope this month will turn out to be a good one for you too. 🙂
LikeLike
I am very much looking forward to The Last of Us. The game already did such a fantastic job with the story, it’s going to be hard to top!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I do hope they don’t make some huge disappointing changes to the original game’s story! 🙂
LikeLike
I can identify with trying to find balance in the New Year, Lashaan. I need to do that with regard to blogging. My history over a dozen years of so would reveal I get burned out trying to both read posts and also write my own, and eventually depart the scene for a while. I also have so many entertainment and sports interests, so there is a limited amount of time I can devote to it. In any case, I am so glad I found your site and appreciate all the great comments left on mine. Sins of Sinister looks very intriguing. I’ve just started to dip my toe into the comic book world and you’ve helped steer me towards ones I might like with your upcoming release info. Here’s looking towards equilibrium in the New Year!
LikeLiked by 1 person
It’s no easy feat to balance blog hopping and writing posts. It can get quite time-consuming too and you definitely don’t want to fall into that pit where you end up not wanting to do either of those. I too am glad that we crossed paths this year and hope we’ll continue to interact throughout 2023. Your own posts are a joy to get through, always making me smile for various reasons! Stay awesome, Bruce! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Back at ya, Lashaan!😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
Happy New Year, Lashaan! I hope you’ll enjoy all the things that you are anticipating in January.
I don’t know why, but the upcoming release of Hell Bent completely passed me by. I only learned about it from a friend two days ago, which is odd for me, because I’m usually very much on top of Leigh Bardugo’s book releases.
While I’m also looking forward to The Last of Us, I’m personally super excited of the release of the TV show for Mayfair Witches. As it’s part of the Immortals universe and with The Interview of the Vampire being so phenomenal last year, I have high hopes!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Happy New Year to you too, Kat! Hey, now, you get to look forward to reading it! Even though I’ve been aware of it, having not read the first book, I can’t tell how excited fans should be about the sequel. I hope you enjoy it when you get around to it! 😀
There’s so much vampire content this year, it’s crazy! I hope you enjoy the shows you’ll be checking out this month! 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
January’s looking good, Lashaan!! I’m intrigued by this Sinister comic, Gillen can write a reasonably entertaining fantasy/horror, and Bane story looks cool too!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I hope you have a solid month of January, Ola! Maybe pick up a comic book or two along the way!!! Stay safe! 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
The Last of Us tv show? Hmmm… Interesting…
I’ve been told about Kaleidoscope, too. I’m curious what you thought, if you tried it out.
LikeLiked by 1 person
While I don’t plan to check out Kaleidoscope soon, I’ll definitely share my thoughts on the Last of Us show once everything is out and I’ll have watched them. 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
What is making you wait for Kaleidoscope?
LikeLiked by 1 person
Time and priorities hahah I barely watch TV shows and if I do, I prioritize those that I really want to check out, on top of all those superhero-related ones that are relevant to check out hahah
LikeLiked by 1 person