fantasy
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A Conjuring of Light by V. E. Schwab
A Conjuring of Light by V. E. Schwab is the third book in the Shades of Magic series. I have done a post on the first in the series, A Darker Shade of Magic, and the second, A Gathering of Shadows, and recommend reading these first so you are not spoiled in anyway for the series if you haven’t read them yet. The precarious balance that has been maintained between the four London’s is now at it’s breaking point. Power has been building in White London, while Red London has been quite distracted lately. Kell is struggling to find his place within his new responsibilities. Lila needs to gain control…
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The Girl Who Drank The Moon by Kelly Barnhill
The Girl Who Drank The Moon by Kelly Barnhill is a middle-grade fantasy novel. Every year, the youngest baby in the Protectorate is taken from their mother and left in the forest as sacrifice for the “evil” witch. Every year, the witch comes to rescue the baby that these horrible people from this village just left in the woods. Xan, the witch, nourishes these babies with starlight on her way across to forest making them healthy and strong. The people on the other side of the forest await her arrival every year, wishing to adopt the special child and give it a loving home. One year, Xan “accidentally” feeds a…
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Nevernight by Jay Kristoff
Nevernight by Jay Kristoff is the first book in an adult fantasy series. I’m going to keep this short and sweet because it’s all it took for me to run to my library, and I think it will do the same for you. We’re following Mia Corvere who seeks revenge for the murder of her father and ruin of he family name. She attends an assassin school. There is magic involved. Need I say more? The ONE major critique I have of this book is the dang footnotes. Some are telling you more about the setting, or history of the world, while some are just snarky remarks that you may…
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A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas is the first in a young adult fantasy series loosely a Beauty and the Beast retelling. Originally a trilogy, now being expanded into 6 core novels and 2 novellas. Feyre is responsible for keeping her family fed since her mother’s death, and father’s injury. She’s become an excellent hunter out of necessity, while her sister’s play the damsel’s in distress. On a hunt, in the desperate months on winter, Feyre finally spots a deer, an animal that could feed her family for weeks, or trade for other necessities. She then notices a large wolf stalking the prey as well. It’s…
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The Diviners by Libba Bray
The Diviners by Libba Bray is a young adult paranormal novel. Set in 1926 New York, we’re following Evie O’Neill who’s recently been sent off to live with her strange Uncle after misbehaving. Uncle Will is a professor, who runs a creepy museum, and is obsessed with the occult. Evie has been hiding an enormous secret, her supernatural abilities that only ever get her into more trouble. However, after strange crimes begin occurring across New York, Evie uses her powers to help solve them. This book is very character driven (aka slow paced…) with a super interesting underlying plot involving supernatural powers, ghosts, and crime which made me keep reading,…
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Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor
Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor is a whimsical young adult fantasy, the first in a duology. You’re following Lazlo Strange, an orphan raised by monks, now a junior librarian, with an obsession with the lost city of Weep. Weep is not the real name of the city, but a word which replaced the name in everyone’s minds when Lazlo was a child. It’s Lazlo’s life mission to rediscover this lost city; he learns all there is to know. One day, a caravan arrives from across the desert, recruiting experts in their field, such as alchemists and engineers, to help the citizens of Weep “solve a problem.” Lazlo, being the…
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A Gathering of Shadows by V. E. Schwab
A Gathering of Shadows by V. E. Schwab is the second book in the Shades of Magic series. I have done a post on the first in the series, A Darker Shade of Magic, and recommend reading that post first so you are not spoiled in anyway for the series if you haven’t read the first book yet. Four months have passed since the events in the first book; since Rhy was injured, the Dane twins defeated, and Holland sent to die in Black London with the obsidian stone. Kell is getting bored, having given up his smuggling habit following their catastrophic consequences. Red London is preparing to host the…
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A Darker Shade of Magic by V. E. Schwab
A Darker Shade of Magic by V. E. Schwab is the first in an adult fantasy trilogy. We follow two main characters: Kell, who is a blood magician and can travel between the four parallel London’s; Grey, Red, White and Black, as an ambassador to the Red Empire, and Lila, a common thief, with no home or family, who wants nothing more than to be a pirate. This was the first adult fantasy I have read, and fell quickly in love. This series has been compared to Harry Potter. I feel like probably because it’s set in London, and involves magic. I don’t really see a lot similarities between the…
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Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child by Jack Thorne is the eighth installment in the Harry Potter series, and the first to be done on stage. This play follows Harry Potter’s youngest son, Albus Potter, as he struggles to live in his father’s shadow. “As past and present fuse ominously, both father and son learn the uncomfortable truth: sometimes, darkness comes from unexpected places.” – Goodreads. Unpopular opinion? I actually quite liked it! I wish it was not in play format. I feel it should have been rewritten into a novel, which I don’t imagine would have been to difficult. I would have enjoyed it more that way. I don’t…
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Cinder by Marissa Meyer
Cinder by Marissa Meyer is a sci-fi retelling of the classic Cinderella. Cinder is a mechanic in New Beijing. She is also a cyborg. Hated by her step-mother, and soon blamed for the sickness killing her step-sister, Cinder becomes entwined with Prince Kai and messy intergalactic politics with the Moon. While I did enjoy this, it didn’t blow my socks off. As with most retellings, the plot is quite predictable. I loved the characters and the world building. Being set after World War IV in a rebuilt China? Super fascinating! I’m excited to continue the series. I give this 3.5 stars. ★★★☆☆
