en-US Tue, 29 Oct 2024 19:01:21 -0700 60 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg 34497 228 Terry Pratchett 0060855924 Barb 5 adventure, fantasy, humor
I listened to this the second time I read it and I laughed even harder. It’s so original.]]> 4.04 1983
author: Terry Pratchett
name: Barb
average rating: 4.04
book published: 1983
rating: 5
read at: 2024/10/29
date added: 2024/10/29
shelves: adventure, fantasy, humor
review:
A quirky antihero who has to guide a naive but adventurous foreigner whose exploring Discworld, a fantastical place. Not sure about this at first I kept wondering what would happen next and before I knew it I was hooked on the characters and laughing at the absurdity of the adventures.

I listened to this the second time I read it and I laughed even harder. It’s so original.
]]> 61242426
The battle-weary orc aims to start fresh, opening the first ever coffee shop in the city of Thune. But old and new rivals stand in the way of success � not to mention the fact that no one has the faintest idea what coffee actually is.

If Viv wants to put the blade behind her and make her plans a reality, she won't be able to go it alone.

But the true rewards of the uncharted path are the travelers you meet along the way. And whether drawn together by ancient magic, flaky pastry, or a freshly brewed cup, they may become partners, family, and something deeper than she ever could have dreamed.]]> 296 Travis Baldree Barb 5 fantasy, friendship, lgbtq 4.04 2022
author: Travis Baldree
name: Barb
average rating: 4.04
book published: 2022
rating: 5
read at: 2024/03/24
date added: 2024/03/24
shelves: fantasy, friendship, lgbtq
review:
This fantasy novel plays with common tropes and turns them upside down. The protagonist that doesn’t take revenge and shirks her violent past, as well as looking at what’s after the quest versus the quest. I would have liked a bit more world building but it was refreshingly concise and I liked the pacing so take the suggestions for what it is worth from a non-author.
]]> 127464148 A New York Times Book Review Editor's Choice
Rebecca meets The House of Spirits in this sweeping, gorgeously atmospheric novel about a ruined mansion by the sea, the djinn that haunts it, and a curious girl who unearths the tragedy that happened there a hundred years previous

Akbar Manzil was once a grand estate off the coast of South Africa. Now, nearly a century since it was built, it stands in ruins: an isolated boardinghouse for misfits, seeking to forget their pasts and disappear into the mansions dark corridors.

Until Sana. She and her father are the latest of Akbar Manzil’s long list of tenants, seeking a new home after suffering painful loss. Unlike the others, who choose not to look too closely at the mansion’s unsettling qualities—the strange assortment of bones in the overgrown garden, the mysterious figure seen to move sometimes at night—she is curious and questioning and finds herself irresistibly drawn to the history of the mansion. To the eerie and forgotten East Wing, home to a clutter of broken and abandoned objects—and to the locked door at its end, unopened for decades.

Behind the door is a bedroom frozen in time, with faded photographs of a couple in love and a worn diary that whispers of a dark past: the long-forgotten story of a young woman named Meena, the original owner’s second wife, who died there tragically a hundred years ago. Watching Sana from the room’s shadows is a grieving djinn, an invisible spirit who once loved Meena and has haunted the mansion since her mysterious death. Obsessed with Meena’s story, and unaware of the creature that follows her, Sana digs into the past like fingers into a wound, awakening the memories of the house itself—and dredging up old and terrible secrets that will change the lives of everyone living and dead at Akbar Manzil.

Sublime, heart-wrenching, and lyrically stunning, The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years is a haunting, a love story, and a mystery, all twined beautifully into one young girl’s search for belonging.]]> 320 Shubnum Khan 0593653459 Barb 5 3.80 2024
author: Shubnum Khan
name: Barb
average rating: 3.80
book published: 2024
rating: 5
read at: 2024/03/23
date added: 2024/03/23
shelves: abuse, fantasy, ghost-story, grief, romance
review:
A tragic love story. The author does a great job showing different types of love through her characters giving this romance depth. Well written.
]]> 43663313 Mary Jekyll and the Athena Club race to save Alice—and foil a plot to unseat the Queen, in the electrifying conclusion to the trilogy that began with the Nebula Award finalist and Locus Award winner The Strange Case of the Alchemist’s Daughter.

Life’s always an adventure for the Athena Club...especially when one of their own has been kidnapped! After their thrilling European escapades rescuing Lucinda van Helsing, Mary Jekyll and her friends return home to discover that their friend and kitchen maid Alice has vanished� and so has their friend and employer Sherlock Holmes!

As they race to find Alice and bring her home safely, they discover that Alice and Sherlock’s kidnapping are only one small part of a plot that threatens Queen Victoria, and the very future of the British Empire. Can Mary, Diana, Beatrice, Catherine, and Justine save their friends—and save the Empire? Find out in the final installment of the fantastic and memorable Extraordinary Adventures of the Athena Club series.]]> 448 Theodora Goss 1534427872 Barb 4 fantasy 4.01 2019
author: Theodora Goss
name: Barb
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2019
rating: 4
read at: 2024/03/22
date added: 2024/03/22
shelves: fantasy
review:
A fun series that pulls from classic horror and mystery set in a Victorian world. The characters break the fourth wall and chat with the reader and each other about the writing process and social norms that don’t make sense to them such as what’s considered proper for a women. I didn’t think there was as much rambling between the characters in this book than book 2 but it was more focused.
]]> 9860837
It’s the only way to contain the fey curse that scars her cheek. The Great War is five years gone, but its scattered victims remain—the ironskin.

When a carefully worded listing appears for a governess to assist with a "delicate situation"—a child born during the Great War—Jane is certain the child is fey-cursed, and that she can help.

Teaching the unruly Dorie to suppress her curse is hard enough; she certainly didn’t expect to fall for the girl’s father, the enigmatic artist Edward Rochart. But her blossoming crush is stifled by her own scars, and by his parade of women. Ugly women, who enter his closed studio...and come out as beautiful as the fey.

Jane knows Rochart cannot love her, just as she knows that she must wear iron for the rest of her life. But what if neither of these things is true? Step by step Jane unlocks the secrets of her new life—and discovers just how far she will go to become whole again.]]> 304 Tina Connolly 0765330598 Barb 5 3.32 2012
author: Tina Connolly
name: Barb
average rating: 3.32
book published: 2012
rating: 5
read at: 2024/03/13
date added: 2024/03/13
shelves: disability, fairy-tale, fantasy
review:
A fantastical romance that pays homage to Jane Eyre and has good character development and plot twists. At first I thought this is a Helen Keller story with a gothic setting, then I thought this is a fairy tale with the scary forest, then I made the Jane Eyre connection as the the author is critical of people focusing on beauty and materialism similar to Brontë being critical of Victorian society for putting too much emphasis on beauty. The main characters are similar too in occupations, self-reliance, outspokenness, overcoming trauma and more. I appreciate the author challenging stereotypes and creating characters with depth.
]]> 34728925
But her hunt leads her to Hyde’s daughter, Diana, a feral child left to be raised by nuns. With the assistance of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, Mary continues her search for the elusive Hyde, and soon befriends more women, all of whom have been created through terrifying experimentation: Beatrice Rappaccini, Catherin Moreau, and Justine Frankenstein.

When their investigations lead them to the discovery of a secret society of immoral and power-crazed scientists, the horrors of their past return. Now it is up to the monsters to finally triumph over the monstrous.]]> 402 Theodora Goss 1534409637 Barb 5 fantasy, friendship, mystery 3.81 2017
author: Theodora Goss
name: Barb
average rating: 3.81
book published: 2017
rating: 5
read at: 2024/03/08
date added: 2024/03/08
shelves: fantasy, friendship, mystery
review:
What a terrific book! The author cleverly combines classic monster stories and makes them her own. She structures the book with characters who discuss the writing process in a clever way revealing decisions on plot and craft that is very funny. Diana steals the show over and over. The audio book read by Kate Reading was well done - she’s one of my favorite readers.
]]> 36896898 Spinning Silver draws readers deeper into a glittering realm of fantasy, where the boundary between wonder and terror is thinner than a breath, and safety can be stolen as quickly as a kiss.

Miryem is the daughter and granddaughter of moneylenders, but her father’s inability to collect his debts has left his family on the edge of poverty—until Miryem takes matters into her own hands. Hardening her heart, the young woman sets out to claim what is owed and soon gains a reputation for being able to turn silver into gold.

When an ill-advised boast draws the attention of the king of the Staryk—grim fey creatures who seem more ice than flesh—Miryem’s fate, and that of two kingdoms, will be forever altered. Set an impossible challenge by the nameless king, Miryem unwittingly spins a web that draws in a peasant girl, Wanda, and the unhappy daughter of a local lord who plots to wed his child to the dashing young tsar.

But Tsar Mirnatius is not what he seems. And the secret he hides threatens to consume the lands of humans and Staryk alike. Torn between deadly choices, Miryem and her two unlikely allies embark on a desperate quest that will take them to the limits of sacrifice, power, and love.

Channeling the vibrant heart of myth and fairy tale, Spinning Silver weaves a multilayered, magical tapestry that readers will want to return to again and again.]]> 465 Naomi Novik Barb 4 faeries, fairy-tale, fantasy 4.20 2018
author: Naomi Novik
name: Barb
average rating: 4.20
book published: 2018
rating: 4
read at: 2024/03/04
date added: 2024/03/04
shelves: faeries, fairy-tale, fantasy
review:
A fun fairy tale retold and morphed into its own story that made me think of Rumpelstiltskin. I listened to the audiobook and the author’s use of first person for the three characters in the book was confusing at times. The transitions weren’t always clear and I was frustrated a few times like I was swimming in air. A strong ending was satisfying.
]]> 50523477 Empire of Sand and Realm of Ash Tasha Suri's The Jasmine Throne, beginning a new trilogy set in a world inspired by the history and epics of India, in which a captive princess and a maidservant in possession of forbidden magic become unlikely allies on a dark journey to save their empire from the princess's traitor brother.

Imprisoned by her dictator brother, Malini spends her days in isolation in the Hirana: an ancient temple that was once the source of the powerful, magical deathless waters � but is now little more than a decaying ruin.

Priya is a maidservant, one among several who make the treacherous journey to the top of the Hirana every night to clean Malini’s chambers. She is happy to be an anonymous drudge, so long as it keeps anyone from guessing the dangerous secret she hides.

But when Malini accidentally bears witness to Priya’s true nature, their destinies become irrevocably tangled. One is a vengeful princess seeking to depose her brother from his throne. The other is a priestess seeking to find her family. Together, they will change the fate of an empire.]]> 533 Tasha Suri 0356515648 Barb 3 fantasy, lgbtq 4.12 2021
author: Tasha Suri
name: Barb
average rating: 4.12
book published: 2021
rating: 3
read at: 2024/03/03
date added: 2024/03/03
shelves: fantasy, lgbtq
review:
An entertaining book set in ancient India. The theme of power and its costs run through most of the plot. The two main male characters are similar in that they’re abusive and the escape plot got a bit dragged out, but there is plenty of action and character development with the women.
]]> 52504334 Nebula, Locus, and Alex Award-winner P. Djèlí Clark returns to his popular alternate Cairo universe for his fantasy novel debut, A Master of Djinn

Cairo, 1912: Though Fatma el-Sha’arawi is the youngest woman working for the Ministry of Alchemy, Enchantments and Supernatural Entities, she’s certainly not a rookie, especially after preventing the destruction of the universe last summer.

So when someone murders a secret brotherhood dedicated to one of the most famous men in history, al-Jahiz, Agent Fatma is called onto the case. Al-Jahiz transformed the world 50 years ago when he opened up the veil between the magical and mundane realms, before vanishing into the unknown. This murderer claims to be al-Jahiz, returned to condemn the modern age for its social oppressions. His dangerous magical abilities instigate unrest in the streets of Cairo that threaten to spill over onto the global stage.

Alongside her Ministry colleagues and her clever girlfriend Siti, Agent Fatma must unravel the mystery behind this imposter to restore peace to the city -or face the possibility he could be exactly who he seems…]]> 438 P. Djèlí Clark 1250267676 Barb 4 4.01 2021
author: P. Djèlí Clark
name: Barb
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2021
rating: 4
read at: 2024/02/26
date added: 2024/02/26
shelves: fantasy, lgbtq, mystery, mythology, racism
review:
A bit of a slow start but the mystery and action takes off. Entertaining and I enjoyed the Egyptian myths mixed into the plot line, especially Sobek.
]]> 54467051 9780316542753

Touraine is a soldier. Stolen as a child and raised to kill and die for the empire, her only loyalty is to her fellow conscripts. But now, her company has been sent back to her homeland to stop a rebellion, and the ties of blood may be stronger than she thought.

Luca needs a turncoat. Someone desperate enough to tiptoe the bayonet's edge between treason and orders. Someone who can sway the rebels toward peace, while Luca focuses on what really matters: getting her uncle off her throne.

Through assassinations and massacres, in bedrooms and war rooms, Touraine and Luca will haggle over the price of a nation. But some things aren't for sale.]]> 464 C.L. Clark Barb 3 fantasy, lgbtq, romance 3.82 2021
author: C.L. Clark
name: Barb
average rating: 3.82
book published: 2021
rating: 3
read at: 2024/02/21
date added: 2024/02/21
shelves: fantasy, lgbtq, romance
review:
Lots of action but the plot didn’t always make sense and the characters just betray each other. The villains are one dimensional. I kept waiting for more to happen.
]]> 56586445
And the plague birds� judgement is swift and deadly, as Crista discovered as a child when she watched one kill her mother.

In a world of gene-modded humans constantly watched over by benevolent AIs, everyone hates and fears the plague birds. But to save her father and home village, Crista becomes the very creature she fears the most. And her first task as a plague bird is hunting down an ancient group of murderers wielding magic-like powers.

As Crista and her AI symbiote travel farther from home than she ever imagined, they are plunged into a strange world where she judges wrongdoers, befriends other outcasts, and uncovers an extremely personal conspiracy that threatens the lives of millions.

Plague Birds is a genre-bending mix of science fiction and dark fantasy and the epic story of a young woman who becomes one of the future’s most hated creatures, with a killer AI bonded to her very blood.]]> 315 Jason Sanford Barb 5 fantasy, science-fiction 3.66 2021
author: Jason Sanford
name: Barb
average rating: 3.66
book published: 2021
rating: 5
read at: 2024/02/11
date added: 2024/02/11
shelves: fantasy, science-fiction
review:
I like it when authors unite their main character with an anthropomorphic object that acts as a foil. In this story it is an AI and the main character, Christa, that provide comic relief in an apocryphal plot. The AI is a bloodthirsty, knowledgeable curmudgeon and the girl likes to not kill everything on site and laughs a lot. The monk that tells bad jokes had me snickering too. I love a good sci-fi book that makes me laugh while the protagonist is saving the world against impossible odds. Lots of twists and turns with great world building.
]]> 49151031
In a stroke of luck, Beatrice finds a grimoire that contains the key to becoming a Magus, but before she can purchase it, a rival sorceress swindles the book right out of her hands. Beatrice summons a spirit to help her get it back, but her new ally exacts a price: Beatrice’s first kiss . . . with her adversary’s brother, the handsome, compassionate, and fabulously wealthy Ianthe Lavan.

The more Beatrice is entangled with the Lavan siblings, the harder her decision becomes: If she casts the spell to become a Magus, she will devastate her family and lose the only man to ever see her for who she is; but if she marries—even for love—she will sacrifice her magic, her identity, and her dreams. But how can she choose just one, knowing she will forever regret the path not taken?]]> 375 C.L. Polk 1645660079 Barb 5 fantasy, prejudice 3.73 2020
author: C.L. Polk
name: Barb
average rating: 3.73
book published: 2020
rating: 5
read at: 2024/02/08
date added: 2024/02/08
shelves: fantasy, prejudice
review:
I have read two of these author’s books and I can’t put them down. I like the world building, suspense, characters, and themes explored. The book has a Victorian fantasy setting with a female protagonist that has the choice of being a sorceress and live in the mountains away from people alone or get married and wear a collar that means she can only do minor magic. The protagonist doesn’t like her choices in a patriarchal society and works with another woman trying to change societal norms. Very entertaining and I liked the end.
]]> 25064648 Inkheart and Shadow and Bone

Finalist for the Kirkus Prize and nominated for the Ĺ·±¦ÓéŔÖ Choice Award!

Sefia knows what it means to survive. After her father is brutally murdered, she flees into the wilderness with her aunt Nin, who teaches her to hunt, track, and steal. But when Nin is kidnapped, leaving Sefia completely alone, none of her survival skills can help her discover where Nin’s been taken, or if she’s even alive. The only clue to both her aunt’s disappearance and her father’s murder is the odd rectangular object her father left behind, an object she comes to realize is a book—a marvelous item unheard of in her otherwise illiterate society. With the help of this book, and the aid of a mysterious stranger with dark secrets of his own, Sefia sets out to rescue her aunt and find out what really happened the day her father was killed—and punish the people responsible.]]> 442 Traci Chee 0399176772 Barb 4 fantasy 3.81 2016
author: Traci Chee
name: Barb
average rating: 3.81
book published: 2016
rating: 4
read at: 2024/02/02
date added: 2024/02/02
shelves: fantasy
review:
An interesting fantasy that left me with some questions at the end. Some points of view don’t hold weight against the others.
]]> 62675031 A new all-ages adventure tale from Printz Medal Winner, Daniel Nayeri

This is the tale of an exciting journey along the Silk Road with a young Monk and his newfound guardian, Samir, a larger than life character and the so-called “Seller of Dreams�. The man is a scammer; his biggest skill being the ability to talk his way into getting what he wants. While that talking did save Monkey’s life, it has left a lot of people furious with Samir� furious enough to hire assassins. Monkey decides to try and save Samir from the attempts on his life—as a way to pay off his debt! If he can save Samir six times, he’ll be a free man...but will they all survive that long?

For fans of The Little Prince and Salman Rushdie's Haroun and the Sea of Stories.]]> 224 Daniel Nayeri 1646143035 Barb 4 diversity, fantasy 3.93 2023
author: Daniel Nayeri
name: Barb
average rating: 3.93
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2024/02/02
date added: 2024/02/02
shelves: diversity, fantasy
review:
The first line grabbed my attention but then it waned as the plot continued. Once the assassins are introduced I was absorbed into the plot again. The author has some great lines that make you think.
]]> 40024121
But on the day of the ceremony, her blood runs gold, the color of impurity–and Deka knows she will face a consequence worse than death.

Then a mysterious woman comes to her with a choice: stay in the village and submit to her fate, or leave to fight for the emperor in an army of girls just like her. They are called alaki--near-immortals with rare gifts. And they are the only ones who can stop the empire's greatest threat.


Knowing the dangers that lie ahead yet yearning for acceptance, Deka decides to leave the only life she’s ever known. But as she journeys to the capital to train for the biggest battle of her life, she will discover that the great walled city holds many surprises. Nothing and no one are quite what they seem to be–not even Deka herself.]]> 432 Namina Forna 1984848704 Barb 3 3.99 2020
author: Namina Forna
name: Barb
average rating: 3.99
book published: 2020
rating: 3
read at: 2024/01/28
date added: 2024/01/28
shelves: abuse, african-american, fantasy
review:
An entertaining YA book about women being oppressed and breaking free of their bondage.
]]> 45047384
Linus Baker leads a quiet, solitary life. At forty, he lives in a tiny house with a devious cat and his old records. As a Case Worker at the Department in Charge Of Magical Youth, he spends his days overseeing the well-being of children in government-sanctioned orphanages.

When Linus is unexpectedly summoned by Extremely Upper Management he's given a curious and highly classified assignment: travel to Marsyas Island Orphanage, where six dangerous children reside: a gnome, a sprite, a wyvern, an unidentifiable green blob, a were-Pomeranian, and the Antichrist. Linus must set aside his fears and determine whether or not they’re likely to bring about the end of days.

But the children aren’t the only secret the island keeps. Their caretaker is the charming and enigmatic Arthur Parnassus, who will do anything to keep his wards safe. As Arthur and Linus grow closer, long-held secrets are exposed, and Linus must make a choice: destroy a home or watch the world burn.

An enchanting story, masterfully told, The House in the Cerulean Sea is about the profound experience of discovering an unlikely family in an unexpected place—and realizing that family is yours.]]> 394 T.J. Klune Barb 4 fantasy, lgbtq 4.37 2020
author: T.J. Klune
name: Barb
average rating: 4.37
book published: 2020
rating: 4
read at: 2024/01/27
date added: 2024/01/27
shelves: fantasy, lgbtq
review:
There are some funny, unique voices in this book. Inclusion, identity, career choices, and more give the reader some themes to chew on.
]]> 22055262
Kell was raised in Arnes—Red London—and officially serves the Maresh Empire as an ambassador, traveling between the frequent bloody regime changes in White London and the court of George III in the dullest of Londons, the one without any magic left to see.

Unofficially, Kell is a smuggler, servicing people willing to pay for even the smallest glimpses of a world they'll never see. It's a defiant hobby with dangerous consequences, which Kell is now seeing firsthand.

After an exchange goes awry, Kell escapes to Grey London and runs into Delilah Bard, a cut-purse with lofty aspirations. She first robs him, then saves him from a deadly enemy, and finally forces Kell to spirit her to another world for a proper adventure.

Now perilous magic is afoot, and treachery lurks at every turn. To save all of the worlds, they'll first need to stay alive.]]> 400 Victoria E. Schwab 0765376458 Barb 4 fantasy 4.04 2015
author: Victoria E. Schwab
name: Barb
average rating: 4.04
book published: 2015
rating: 4
read at: 2024/01/26
date added: 2024/01/26
shelves: fantasy
review:
A slow start until Delilah enters the plot, then it’s delightful with a complex villain.
]]> 53217284
For fans of Georgette Heyer or Julia Quinn's Bridgerton, who'd like to welcome magic into their lives...

Young baronet Robin Blyth thought he was taking up a minor governmental post. However, he's actually been appointed parliamentary liaison to a secret magical society. If it weren’t for this administrative error, he’d never have discovered the incredible magic underlying his world.

Cursed by mysterious attackers and plagued by visions, Robin becomes determined to drag answers from his missing predecessor � but he’ll need the help of Edwin Courcey, his hostile magical-society counterpart. Unwillingly thrown together, Robin and Edwin will discover a plot that threatens every magician in the British Isles.]]> 377 Freya Marske 1250788897 Barb 3 fantasy, lgbtq, romance 3.94 2021
author: Freya Marske
name: Barb
average rating: 3.94
book published: 2021
rating: 3
read at: 2024/01/25
date added: 2024/01/25
shelves: fantasy, lgbtq, romance
review:
If you liked C.L. Polk’s book Witchmark then you might like this historical fantasy although it is more romance between two men than mystery.
]]> 58007996 The Hugo and Crawford Award-Winning Series!

The wandering Cleric Chih returns home to the Singing Hills Abbey for the first time in almost three years, to be met with both joy and sorrow. Their mentor, Cleric Thien, has died, and rests among the archivists and storytellers of the storied abbey. But not everyone is prepared to leave them to their rest.

Because Cleric Thien was once the patriarch of Coh clan of Northern Bell Pass--and now their granddaughters have arrived on the backs of royal mammoths, demanding their grandfather’s body for burial. Chih must somehow balance honoring their mentor’s chosen life while keeping the sisters from the north from storming the gates and destroying the history the clerics have worked so hard to preserve.

But as Chih and their neixin Almost Brilliant navigate the looming crisis, Myriad Virtues, Cleric Thien’s own beloved hoopoe companion, grieves her loss as only a being with perfect memory can, and her sorrow may be more powerful than anyone could anticipate. . .

The novellas of The Singing Hills Cycle are linked by the cleric Chih, but may be read in any order, with each story serving as an entrypoint.]]> 123 Nghi Vo 1250838002 Barb 3 fantasy 4.22 2023
author: Nghi Vo
name: Barb
average rating: 4.22
book published: 2023
rating: 3
read at: 2024/01/23
date added: 2024/01/23
shelves: fantasy
review:
This was slow. I didn’t realize this was book 4. I think I should have read the first one as I needed more background for understanding the plot better.
]]> 43606308 From the #1 New York Times bestselling author Brandon Sanderson comes the final book in an epic series about a girl who will travel beyond the stars to save the world she loves from destruction.

Spensa has made it out of the Nowhere, but what she saw in the space between the stars has changed her forever. She came face to face with the Delvers, and finally got answers to the questions she’s had about her own strange Cytonic gifts.

The Superiority didn’t stop in its fight for galactic dominance while she was gone, though. Spensa’s team, Skyward Flight, was able to hold Winzik off, and even collect allies to help with the cause, but it’s only a matter of time until humanity–and the rest of the galaxy–falls.

Defeating them will require all the knowledge Spensa gathered while in the Nowhere. But being Cytonic is more complicated than she ever could have imagined. Now, Spensa must ask herself: How far is she willing to go for victory, if it means losing herself–and her friends–in the process.

The final book in the Skyward series will free humanity, or see it fall forever.]]> 420 Brandon Sanderson 0593309715 Barb 5 abuse, fantasy 4.28 2023
author: Brandon Sanderson
name: Barb
average rating: 4.28
book published: 2023
rating: 5
read at: 2024/01/01
date added: 2024/01/22
shelves: abuse, fantasy
review:
A great conclusion to the Skyward series. The author has complex villains, plots, and strong character arcs. Spensa has PTSD or is depressed in the beginning of the story changing and growing as she works to save the world and herself. The plot shows how governments manipulate public opinion and the difference between inclusiveness and slavery.
]]> 62905136 Set in the beloved and New York Times world of Valdemar, this first book in a new trilogy returns to the tales of the majestic gryphons.

On the border between Valdemar and the deadly Pelagirs Forest, the gryphon hero Kelvren returns from a near-fatal self-sacrifice that won him the approval of Valdemar's ground troops, but caused a diplomatic crisis. Frustrated by his lack of a hero's welcome, Kelvren is talked into helping with an expedition by his old friend, Firesong.

Firesong struggles with his own age and mortality, and he intends to solve a vast mystery at the center of legendary Lake Evendim as his crowning achievement. Just getting the multicultural fleet underway is a challenge, but what awaits them is a situation none of them could expect.

Set in the beloved fantasy realm of Valdemar, Gryphon in Light is adventurous epic fantasy at its best.]]> 368 Mercedes Lackey 0756414482 Barb 3 fantasy 3.91 2023
author: Mercedes Lackey
name: Barb
average rating: 3.91
book published: 2023
rating: 3
read at: 2024/01/09
date added: 2024/01/09
shelves: fantasy
review:
A fast, entertaining start but then a third of the way through background information is dumped on the reader as the gryphon is told what happened to him. It slows down the plot too much.
]]> 195084755
It is an era of tainted technology and mysterious mysticism. A great change has happened all over the planet, and the laws of physics aren’t what they used to be.

Within all this, I introduce you to Ejii Ugabe, a child of the worst type of politician. Back when she was nine years old, she was there as her father met his end. Don’t waste your tears on him: this girl’s father would throw anyone under a bus to gain power. He was a cruel, cruel man, but even so, Ejii did not rejoice at his departure from the world. Children are still learning that some people don’t deserve their love.

Now 15 years old and manifesting the abilities given to her by the strange Earth, Ejii decides to go after the killer of her father. Is it for revenge or something else? You will have to find out by reading this book.

I am the Desert Magician, and this is a novel I have conjured for you, so I’m certainly not going to just tell you here.]]> 336 Nnedi Okorafor 0756418763 Barb 3 fantasy 3.83 2007
author: Nnedi Okorafor
name: Barb
average rating: 3.83
book published: 2007
rating: 3
read at: 2024/01/07
date added: 2024/01/07
shelves: fantasy
review:
Great character development and cultural setting but the world building and plot were confusing at times. Set in Nigeria and full of myth and mysticism.
]]> 56638626
One night, while lost in the nearby desert, Nathan finds something extraordinary. A Holy Being from the Navajo Creation Story—a Water Monster—in need of help.

Now Nathan must summon all his courage to save his new friend. With the help of other Navajo Holy Beings, Nathan is determined to save the Water Monster, and to help Uncle Jet heal from his own pain.]]> 368 Brian Young 0062990403 Barb 5 4.19 2021
author: Brian Young
name: Barb
average rating: 4.19
book published: 2021
rating: 5
read at: 2024/01/05
date added: 2024/01/05
shelves: alcoholism, divorce, fantasy, native-americans
review:
A book rich with Native American culture and mythology as a boy deals with his parents divorce, an alcoholic uncle, and depression through interactions with a fantastical world and beings.
]]> 60652997 Wealth. Power. Murder. Magic. Alex Stern is back and the Ivy League is going straight to hell.

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.

Thick with history and packed with Bardugo’s signature twists, Hell Bent brings to life an intricate world full of magic, violence, and all too real monsters.]]> 481 Leigh Bardugo 1250313104 Barb 5 abuse, adult, fantasy, horror 4.09 2023
author: Leigh Bardugo
name: Barb
average rating: 4.09
book published: 2023
rating: 5
read at: 2023/12/30
date added: 2023/12/30
shelves: abuse, adult, fantasy, horror
review:
I thought this was more focused than the first one which had a very ambitious plot with multiple flashbacks and subplots. The author explores some dark themes cloaked in fantasy. Entertaining.
]]> 43263680
Still searching for answers to this herself, Alex arrives in New Haven tasked by her mysterious benefactors with monitoring the activities of Yale’s secret societies. These eight windowless “tombs� are well-known to be haunts of the future rich and powerful, from high-ranking politicos to Wall Street and Hollywood’s biggest players. But their occult activities are revealed to be more sinister and more extraordinary than any paranoid imagination might conceive.]]> 461 Leigh Bardugo 1250313074 Barb 4 4.00 2019
author: Leigh Bardugo
name: Barb
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2019
rating: 4
read at: 2023/12/26
date added: 2023/12/26
shelves: abuse, fantasy, horror, mystery
review:
I had a hard time getting into this book and then halfway through I couldn’t put it down. The beginning has flashbacks and backstory that slowed the pacing for me. It might have been better to read it than listen to the audio book. Part mystery, fantasy, and horror the novel explores themes of trauma, abuse of power, and entitlement to name a few.
]]> 61937038
The remote island of Masquapaug has not seen a dragon in many generations—until fifteen-year-old Anequs finds a dragon’s egg and bonds with its hatchling. Her people are delighted, for all remember the tales of the days when dragons lived among them and danced away the storms of autumn, enabling the people to thrive. To them, Anequs is revered as Nampeshiweisit—a person in a unique relationship with a dragon.

Unfortunately for Anequs, the Anglish conquerors of her land have different opinions. They have a very specific idea of how a dragon should be raised, and who should be doing the raising—and Anequs does not meet any of their requirements. Only with great reluctance do they allow Anequs to enroll in a proper Anglish dragon school on the mainland. If she cannot succeed there, her dragon will be killed.

For a girl with no formal schooling, a non-Anglish upbringing, and a very different understanding of the history of her land, challenges abound—both socially and academically. But Anequs is smart, determined, and resolved to learn what she needs to help her dragon, even if it means teaching herself. The one thing she refuses to do, however, is become the meek Anglish miss that everyone expects.

Anequs and her dragon may be coming of age, but they’re also coming to power, and that brings an important realization: the world needs changing—and they might just be the ones to do it.]]> 511 Moniquill Blackgoose 0593498283 Barb 4 4.11 2023
author: Moniquill Blackgoose
name: Barb
average rating: 4.11
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2023/12/03
date added: 2023/12/03
shelves: fantasy, lgbtq, native-americans
review:
This story is about an indigenous 15 year old who’s life changes when a dragon imprints on her. She goes to an English school where racism is rampant but she makes friends with others on the fringe of school peers. The beginning shows characters as archetypes of colonialist thinking. I prefer being shown in actions of the character versus being told as that style gets preachy. It eases up in the last half of the book and shows the culture of the protagonist which strengthened the storyline.
]]> 27818782
If Muna is to save her sister, she must learn to navigate high society, and trick the English magicians into believing she is a magical prodigy. As she's drawn into their intrigues, she must uncover the secrets of her past, and journey into a world with more magic than she had ever dreamed.]]> 384 Zen Cho Barb 4 courage, fantasy, lgbtq 3.80 2019
author: Zen Cho
name: Barb
average rating: 3.80
book published: 2019
rating: 4
read at: 2023/11/29
date added: 2023/11/29
shelves: courage, fantasy, lgbtq
review:
While not as funny as the first book (such as Zacharias as a foil to Prunella), I did like the twists at the end of this one. The protagonist in this book is such a nice person; whereas Prunella is such a strong, march-to her-own-tune character. Nevertheless this is a fast-paced, enjoyable read.
]]> 23943137 Magic and mayhem collide with the British elite in this whimsical and sparkling debut.

At his wit’s end, Zacharias Wythe, freed slave, eminently proficient magician, and Sorcerer Royal of the Unnatural Philosophers—one of the most respected organizations throughout all of Britain—ventures to the border of Fairyland to discover why England’s magical stocks are drying up.

But when his adventure brings him in contact with a most unusual comrade, a woman with immense power and an unfathomable gift, he sets on a path which will alter the nature of sorcery in all of Britain—and the world at large…]]> 371 Zen Cho 0425283372 Barb 5 fantasy, prejudice 3.70 2015
author: Zen Cho
name: Barb
average rating: 3.70
book published: 2015
rating: 5
read at: 2023/11/13
date added: 2023/11/13
shelves: fantasy, prejudice
review:
This clever book pokes fun at English marriage conventions and power, fantasy, and more, while exploring oppression in gender and culture. The humor is sprinkled throughout and contrasted by the character development between Zacharias and Prunella who steals the show with gumption. The old bat character is hysterical too. The book remined me of Dr. Strange and Mr. Norrell but lighter. The twists at the end of the story are one after another. Highly recommended
]]> 60531416 #1 New York Times bestselling author Brandon Sanderson brings us a gripping story set in the Cosmere universe told by Hoid, where two people from incredibly different worlds must compromise and work together to save their worlds from ruin.

Yumi comes from a land of gardens, meditation, and spirits, while Painter lives in a world of darkness, technology, and nightmares. When their lives suddenly become intertwined in strange ways, can they put aside their differences and work together to uncover the mysteries of their situation and save each other’s communities from certain disaster?]]> 480 Brandon Sanderson 1938570375 Barb 5 4.45 2023
author: Brandon Sanderson
name: Barb
average rating: 4.45
book published: 2023
rating: 5
read at: 2023/10/31
date added: 2023/10/31
shelves: adventure, creativity, diversity, fantasy
review:
The world building is very creative and reminds me of other books he’s written with fantastical spirits although this has a Japanese feel to it and more romance. The exploration of what defines art was an interesting contrasts to The Picture of Dorian Gray which I just read and explores the same theme but in a different way.
]]> 60316971 A modern middle-grade graphic novel retelling of Beowulf, featuring a gang of troublemaking kids who must defend their tree house from a fun-hating adult who can instantly turn children into grown-ups.

Listen! Hear a tale of mallow-munchers and warriors who answer candy’s clarion call!

Somewhere in a generic suburb stands Treeheart, a kid-forged sanctuary where generations of tireless tykes have spent their youths making merry, spilling soda, and staving off the shadow of adulthood. One day, these brave warriors find their fun cut short by their nefarious neighbor Grindle, who can no longer tolerate the sounds of mirth seeping into his joyless adult life.

As the guardian of gloom lays siege to Treeheart, scores of kids suddenly find themselves transformed into pimply teenagers and sullen adults! The survivors of the onslaught cry out for a savior—a warrior whose will is unbreakable and whose appetite for mischief is unbounded.

They call for Bea Wolf.]]> 208 Zach Weinersmith 1250776295 Barb 5 4.36 2023
author: Zach Weinersmith
name: Barb
average rating: 4.36
book published: 2023
rating: 5
read at: 2023/10/12
date added: 2023/10/12
shelves: courage, fantasy, graphic-novel, hero
review:
A flat out, frenetically funny book with a ton of alliteration to create a tale that is similar to Old English in Beowulf (except this one’s understandable) with kennings, kid humor and terrific artwork. This isn’t gonna be for everyone and it has adult and kid laughs. The homage to Beowulf is hysterical and has a unique voice. I wanna read it again.
]]> 63028719 Demigods Nico di Angelo and Will Solace must endure the terrors of Tartarus to rescue an old friend in this thrilling adventure co-written by New York Times #1 best-selling author Rick Riordan and award-winning author Mark Oshiro.

As the son of Hades, Nico di Angelo has been through so much, from the premature deaths of his mother and sister, to being outed against his will, to losing his friend Jason during the trials of Apollo. But there is a ray of sunshine in his life–literally: his boyfriend, Will Solace, the son of Apollo. Together the two demigods can overcome any obstacle or foe. At least, that’s been the case so far...

Now Nico is being plagued by a voice calling out to him from Tartarus, the lowest part of the Underworld. He thinks he knows who it is: a reformed Titan named Bob whom Percy and Annabeth had to leave behind when they escaped Hades’s realm. Nico’s dreams and Rachel Dare’s latest prophecy leave little doubt in Nico’s mind that Bob is in some kind of trouble. Nico has to go on this quest, whether Mr. D and Chiron like it or not. And of course Will insists on coming with. But can a being made of light survive in the darkest part of the world? and what does the prophecy mean that Nico will have to “leave something of equal value behind?�

Nico will have to face demons both internal and external as his relationship with Will is tested to the core in this standalone adventure featuring two of the most popular characters in the Percy Jackson saga.]]> 480 Rick Riordan 1368081347 Barb 3 fantasy, lgbtq 4.21 2023
author: Rick Riordan
name: Barb
average rating: 4.21
book published: 2023
rating: 3
read at: 2023/10/11
date added: 2023/10/11
shelves: fantasy, lgbtq
review:
Explores sexuality, homophobia and fears as two fifteen year olds go on a quest. This wasn’t as funny as Riordan’s books and some of the emotional parts felt redundant slowing the pacing. The quest was similar to Riordan’s Titan book but had different plot elements. You need to be familiar with the Percy Jackson series.
]]> 34506 277 Terry Pratchett 0061020702 Barb 5 3.98 1986
author: Terry Pratchett
name: Barb
average rating: 3.98
book published: 1986
rating: 5
read at: 2023/10/04
date added: 2023/10/04
shelves: adult, adventure, fantasy, friendship
review:
I liked this one even more than book one. Cohen the Barbarian whose 88 years old and lost all his teeth steals the show over and over: “Yeah, shoop," said Cohen, miserably. "It'sh my teeths, you shee. No one takes you sheriously when you've got no teeths, they shay �Shit down by the fire, granddad, and have shome shoo-'" Cohen looked sharply at Rincewind. "That'sh a nashty cough you have there, boy." This spoof on fantasy books reminds me of Monty Python.
]]> 183272 288 M.T. Anderson 0439416612 Barb 3 adventure, fantasy 3.45 2004
author: M.T. Anderson
name: Barb
average rating: 3.45
book published: 2004
rating: 3
read at: 2023/09/26
date added: 2023/09/26
shelves: adventure, fantasy
review:
Lots of twists and turns. I would have liked more character development. I like this author’s sense of humor.
]]> 79088
Meanwhile Snatcher and his men are working tirelessly in secret on a fiendish and dastardly plan to take over—and destroy—the entire town. With the help of Willbury Nibble, QC; some friendly boxtrolls and cabbageheads; Marjorie the frustrated inventor; and the rats and pirates from the Ratbridge Nautical Laundry, can Arthur thwart Snatcher’s evil plans—and find his way home?
]]> 529 Alan Snow 0689870477 Barb 4 adventure, courage, fantasy 3.83 2005
author: Alan Snow
name: Barb
average rating: 3.83
book published: 2005
rating: 4
read at: 2023/09/25
date added: 2023/09/25
shelves: adventure, courage, fantasy
review:
An action filled, silly story for young readers about a boy caught up in a villains scheme to take over the town. Good for grades 2-3.
]]> 25689038
It's up to Goblin to save the day. But first he's going to have to leave the dungeon and find out how the rest of the world feels about goblins.]]> 40 Ben Hatke 1626720819 Barb 5 fantasy, good-read-aloud 4.34 2016
author: Ben Hatke
name: Barb
average rating: 4.34
book published: 2016
rating: 5
read at: 2023/09/23
date added: 2023/09/23
shelves: fantasy, good-read-aloud
review:
A humorous 40 page picture book about a scrappy goblin at the mercy of some adventurers. Who doesn’t love an underdog story! The pictures have another story hinted at…What’s going on with the kidnapped princess and the lookalike statue with the skeleton?
]]> 38526611
Uptight elfin historian Brangwain Spurge is on a mission: survive being catapulted across the mountains into goblin territory, deliver a priceless peace offering to their mysterious dark lord, and spy on the goblin kingdom � from which no elf has returned alive in more than a hundred years. Brangwain’s host, the goblin archivist Werfel, is delighted to show Brangwain around. They should be the best of friends, but a series of extraordinary double crosses, blunders, and cultural misunderstandings throws these two bumbling scholars into the middle of an international crisis that may spell death for them � and war for their nations. Witty mixed media illustrations show Brangwain’s furtive missives back to the elf kingdom, while Werfel’s determinedly unbiased narrative tells an entirely different story. A hilarious and biting social commentary that could only come from the likes of National Book Award winner M. T. Anderson and Newbery Honoree Eugene Yelchin, this tale is rife with thrilling action and visual humor . . . and a comic disparity that suggests the ultimate victor in a war is perhaps not who won the battles, but who gets to write the history.]]> 525 M.T. Anderson Barb 5 4.11 2018
author: M.T. Anderson
name: Barb
average rating: 4.11
book published: 2018
rating: 5
read at: 2023/09/07
date added: 2023/09/07
shelves: adventure, colonialism, fantasy
review:
What a unique quirky book. An elf and a goblin representing two different cultures have to work at friendship as they wade through propaganda and political intrigue. I laughed throughout but some might find the humor dark.
]]> 62711576 Open the door to a spellbinding world where the wilderness is alive and a deep magic rises from the earth itself . . .

Eleven-year-old Daisy Thistledown is on the run. Her mother has been keeping big, glittering secrets, and now she has vanished. Daisy knows it’s up to her to find Ma―but someone is hunting her across London. Someone determined to stop her from discovering the truth.

So when Daisy flees to safety through a mysterious hidden doorway, she can barely believe her eyes―she has stepped out of the city and into another world.

This is the Greenwild. Bursting with magic and full of amazing natural wonders, it seems too astonishing to be true. But not only is this land of green magic real, it holds the key to finding Daisy’s mother.

And someone wants to destroy it.

Daisy must band together with a botanical genius, a boy who can talk with animals, and a cat with an attitude to uncover the truth about who she really is. Only then can she channel the power that will change her whole world . . . and save the Greenwild itself.]]> 364 Pari Thomson 0374391378 Barb 5 environment, fantasy 4.14 2023
author: Pari Thomson
name: Barb
average rating: 4.14
book published: 2023
rating: 5
read at: 2023/08/29
date added: 2023/08/29
shelves: environment, fantasy
review:
Terrific world building in the fantasy that focuses on caring for nature, family, and friends. The villain is a bit one dimensional but the pacing was well done along with plot and character development.
]]> 61851518 From actor-author-broadcaster-comedian-filmmaker Richard Ayoade comes a book narrated by . . . a book. Quirky, smart, and genre-busting, this is the saga of a book that nobody wants to read—until the day it meets YOU.

The life of a book isn’t easy, especially when people judge you by your cover (not every book can be adorned with sparkly unicorns!). And this narrator should know—it’s the book itself, and it has a lot of opinions. It gets irritated when readers bend its pages back, and it finds authors quite annoying. But it does have a story to tell. Through witty direct address and charming illustrations, readers meet a book that has never been read, with a cover the boring color of a school lunch table and pages so dry they give bookworms indigestion. But what happens when this book meets you, a curious reader? Multitalented author Richard Ayoade and award-winning illustrator Tor Freeman bring to life a hilariously subversive take on the nature of books and reading, with a heartening theme of finding the courage to tell our own stories. Readers of all ages will be delighted by the myriad bookish references and laughs on every page.]]> 128 Richard Ayoade 153622216X Barb 5 fantasy, humor, metafiction 3.71 2022
author: Richard Ayoade
name: Barb
average rating: 3.71
book published: 2022
rating: 5
read at: 2023/08/25
date added: 2023/08/25
shelves: fantasy, humor, metafiction
review:
A humorous story written with an omniscient narrator and 2nd person point of view that playfully explores reading, imagination and writing. I will try it as a read aloud with kids. Well done.
]]> 59365584
The mission takes an immediate wrong turn when the First Emperor botches his attempt to possess Zack’s body and binds to Zack’s AR gaming headset instead, leading to a battle where Zack’s mom’s soul gets taken by demons. Now, with one of history’s most infamous tyrants yapping in his headset, Zack must journey across China to heist magical artifacts and defeat figures from history and myth, all while learning to wield the emperor’s incredible water dragon powers.

And if Zack can’t finish the mission in time, the spirits of the underworld will flood into the mortal realm, and he could lose his mom forever.]]> 340 Xiran Jay Zhao 1665900709 Barb 4 diversity, fantasy 4.07 2022
author: Xiran Jay Zhao
name: Barb
average rating: 4.07
book published: 2022
rating: 4
read at: 2023/08/22
date added: 2023/08/22
shelves: diversity, fantasy
review:
A fun fantasy book based in Chinese culture and myth. The protagonist struggles with being an immigrant in America.
]]> 61091533
Skandar Smith has achieved his dream to train as a unicorn rider.

But as Skandar and his friends enter their second year at the Eyrie, a new threat arises. Immortal wild unicorns are somehow being killed, a prophecy warns of terrible danger, and elemental destruction begins to ravage the Island.Ěý

Meanwhile, Skandar’s sister, Kenna, longs to join him â€� and Skandar is determined to help her, no matter what. As the storm gathers, can Skandar discover how to stop the Island tearing itself apart â€� before it’s too late for them all?Ěý]]> 320 A.F. Steadman 1398502936 Barb 3 fantasy 4.38 2023
author: A.F. Steadman
name: Barb
average rating: 4.38
book published: 2023
rating: 3
read at: 2023/08/21
date added: 2023/08/21
shelves: fantasy
review:
Plenty of action. I think my students that like Keepers if the Lost Cities might enjoy this but there’s no romantic subplot.
]]> 7800188
As the friends discover their heightened senses and animal-quick reflexes, they must combine their scientific curiosity with their newfound physical gifts to solve a cold-case murder that has suddenly become very hot--if they can stay alive long enough to catch the killer's scent.

Fortunately, they are now more than friends--they're a pack. They are Virals.]]> 454 Kathy Reichs 1595143424 Barb 2 fantasy, ya
The story is slow in parts and action-packed in others with a little mix of mystery, fantasy, and science fiction. The dialogue was not well written and I found the short. choppy. sentences. annoying. Also, the chapters didn’t flow into the next and the suspense got lost. The author is the writer for the Bones TV series and I think she wrote the chapters like scenes.

The characters swear throughout the book. Tory is interested in two boys and one kisses her on the cheek. The boy-girl relationships are not developed. There is some violence with people chasing the four kids and trying to kill them. A light read with little depth. More appropriate for middle school. I borrowed this from my public library and won’t purchase it for the lower school.
]]> 3.95 2010
author: Kathy Reichs
name: Barb
average rating: 3.95
book published: 2010
rating: 2
read at: 2011/05/17
date added: 2023/08/03
shelves: fantasy, ya
review:
Fourteen-year-old Tory and her three genius friends are investigating a decades old murder near a research facility where Tory’s dad works when they uncover some illegal testing on a dog. They decide to rescue the dog and become infected with a virus that changes their DNA and gives them superpowers. As they uncover the murderous plot they have to deal with peer pressures, an unwelcome debutante ball, animal cruelty, bone identification, and their newfound fantastic powers.

The story is slow in parts and action-packed in others with a little mix of mystery, fantasy, and science fiction. The dialogue was not well written and I found the short. choppy. sentences. annoying. Also, the chapters didn’t flow into the next and the suspense got lost. The author is the writer for the Bones TV series and I think she wrote the chapters like scenes.

The characters swear throughout the book. Tory is interested in two boys and one kisses her on the cheek. The boy-girl relationships are not developed. There is some violence with people chasing the four kids and trying to kill them. A light read with little depth. More appropriate for middle school. I borrowed this from my public library and won’t purchase it for the lower school.

]]> 16075147 The Fall of Arthur recounts in verse the last campaign of King Arthur, who, even as he stands at the threshold of Mirkwood, is summoned back to Britain by news of the treachery of Mordred. Already weakened in spirit by Guinevere’s infidelity with the now-exiled Lancelot, Arthur must rouse his knights to battle one last time against Mordred’s rebels and foreign mercenaries. Powerful, passionate, and filled with vivid imagery, this unfinished poem reveals Tolkien’s gift for storytelling at its brilliant best.

Christopher Tolkien, editor, contributes three illuminating essays that explore the literary world of King Arthur, reveal the deeper meaning of the verses and the painstaking work his father applied to bring the poem to a finished form, and investigate the intriguing links between The Fall of Arthur and Tolkien’s Middle-earth.]]> 233 J.R.R. Tolkien 0007489943 Barb 5 fantasy 3.82 2013
author: J.R.R. Tolkien
name: Barb
average rating: 3.82
book published: 2013
rating: 5
read at: 2023/07/19
date added: 2023/07/19
shelves: fantasy
review:
A fascinating glimpse into Tolkien writing an alliterative poem in meter about King Arthur at the end of his life. It helped that I’ve read Malory’s book on King Arthur; otherwise this would be confusing as it isn’t a finished piece. I loved the character Mordred and how Tolkien sketched him out. What a master of words. His son goes into depth on how the poem was written and ways his father intended to end it.
]]> 68527
The story is seen through the eyes of Uhtred, a dispossessed nobleman, who is captured as a child by the Danes and then raised by them so that, by the time the Northmen begin their assault on Wessex (Alfred’s kingdom and the last territory in English hands) Uhtred almost thinks of himself as a Dane. He certainly has no love for Alfred, whom he considers a pious weakling and no match for Viking savagery, yet when Alfred unexpectedly defeats the Danes and the Danes themselves turn on Uhtred, he is finally forced to choose sides. By now he is a young man, in love, trained to fight and ready to take his place in the dreaded shield wall. Above all, though, he wishes to recover his father’s land, the enchanting fort of Bebbanburg by the wild northern sea.

This thrilling adventure—based on existing records of Bernard Cornwell’s ancestors—depicts a time when law and order were ripped violently apart by a pagan assault on Christian England, an assault that came very close to destroying England.]]> 333 Bernard Cornwell 0060887184 Barb 4 fantasy 4.27 2004
author: Bernard Cornwell
name: Barb
average rating: 4.27
book published: 2004
rating: 4
read at: 2023/07/04
date added: 2023/07/04
shelves: fantasy
review:
A fun action driven story about an English boy who is raised by the famous Ragnar Lodbrok. Full of history intertwined with fiction. An entertaining read.
]]> 59365195
All Bree wanted was to uncover the truth behind her mother’s death. So she infiltrated the Legendborn Order, a secret society descended from King Arthur’s knights—only to discover her own ancestral power. Now, Bree has become someone new: A Medium. A Bloodcrafter. A Scion. But the ancient war between demons and the Order is rising to a deadly peak. And Nick, the Legendborn boy Bree fell in love with, has been kidnapped.

Bree wants to fight, but the Regents who rule the Order won’t let her. To them, she is an unknown girl with unheard-of power, and as the living anchor for the spell that preserves the Legendborn cycle, she must be protected. When the Regents reveal they will do whatever it takes to hide the war, Bree and her friends must go on the run to rescue Nick themselves. But enemies are everywhere, Bree’s powers are unpredictable and dangerous, and she can’t escape her growing attraction to Selwyn, the mage sworn to protect Nick until death.

If Bree has any hope of saving herself and the people she loves, she must learn to control her powers from the ancestors who wielded them first—without losing herself in the process.]]> 576 Tracy Deonn 1534441638 Barb 3 african-american, fantasy 4.31 2022
author: Tracy Deonn
name: Barb
average rating: 4.31
book published: 2022
rating: 3
read at: 2023/05/23
date added: 2023/05/23
shelves: african-american, fantasy
review:
I wrote a long review that just disappeared. Argh. I thought this story was fun but wordy. She never learns to use her powers so there is a repetitiveness of the powers bursting forth out of control. The love triangle seems to be imitating King Arthur’s story but with a modern twist. I found that slowed the action and seemed repetitive in parts. The themes on oppression and systemic violence are explored a bit more. I struggled with the character development and the plot seemed choppy.
]]> 58719197 400 Sayantani DasGupta 1338766813 Barb 3 diversity, fantasy 4.02 2022
author: Sayantani DasGupta
name: Barb
average rating: 4.02
book published: 2022
rating: 3
read at: 2023/05/21
date added: 2023/05/21
shelves: diversity, fantasy
review:
The villains are one dimensional in this story. While there’s plenty of humor the minor characters don’t progress much in development and the plot is weaker than book 1. Still fun with lots of action and a fiery main character.
]]> 54579625 224 Jasbinder Bilan 1913322173 Barb 4 3.88 2020
author: Jasbinder Bilan
name: Barb
average rating: 3.88
book published: 2020
rating: 4
read at: 2023/05/16
date added: 2023/05/16
shelves: coming-of-age, diversity, fantasy, grief
review:
A strong ending to this book. The beginning shows a naive girl where the adults won’t tell her what happened to her mother. Just when I was getting tired of the same plot (girl asks for answers and no one responds), it changes and has some beautiful symbolism of the tamarind tree as well as growth through friendship and grief. A nice story of a girl exploring her heritage by visiting family in India.
]]> 54776543
Then Sesha, the charming son of the Serpentine Governor, calls on Pinki for help in defeating the resistance, promising to give her what she most desires in return -- the ability to control her fire. First she'll have to protect the Moon Maiden, pretend to be a human (ick), and survive a family reunion. But it's all worth it for the control of her powers . . . right?]]> 368 Sayantani DasGupta 1338636642 Barb 5 4.08 2021
author: Sayantani DasGupta
name: Barb
average rating: 4.08
book published: 2021
rating: 5
read at: 2023/05/08
date added: 2023/05/08
shelves: blended-family, colonialism, coming-of-age, diversity, fantasy
review:
I really liked the author’s note that shows what she was trying to do with her story and it’s representation of history in India and the U.S.
]]> 57293343 Best-selling author Rick Riordan presents best-selling author Stacey Lee's modern reimagining of a classic Chinese folktale—replete with magic, boba, and lots of trash talking.

Twelve-year-old Winston Chu is supposed to learn impulse control at the cooking academy his mom enrolled him in. But learning to think before he acts won’t happen overnight.

While skateboarding home with a pie in hand, Winston inadvertently stops a robbery at Mr. Pang’s Whimsies, an oddities shop in Chinatown. As a reward, Mr. Pang invites Winston to choose any item in the store. But the strange old man warns Winston to browse carefully, for the first thing Winston touches will be the thing he gets. Before Winston can decide, a magpie flies under a shelf, and he impulsively grabs an old broom to sweep it out.

Mr. Pang hands him the broom, along with a dustpan. “Two for one. Congratulations.�

Deflated, Winston returns home, determined to put the broom incident behind him. Or at least in the closet. But when some of his most beloved possessions go missing, all Winston can think about are the broom and dustpan. Did they somehow take his stuff? And what—or who—will they dispose of next?

It’s time to break into Mr. Pang’s Whimsies, where clearly there’s more going on than meets the far-seeing eyeball. It’s time to fight magic with magic. And this time, Winston better have a plan.]]> 368 Stacey Lee 136807491X Barb 3 fantasy, mythology 3.74 2023
author: Stacey Lee
name: Barb
average rating: 3.74
book published: 2023
rating: 3
read at: 2023/04/28
date added: 2023/04/28
shelves: fantasy, mythology
review:
This is one of those books where everything goes wrong as the plot moves forward. I prefer more world building and mythology.
]]> 60420448 A queer immigrant fairytale about individual purpose, the fluid nature of identity, and the power of love to change and endure.

Uriel the angel and Little Ash (short for Ashmedai) are the only two supernatural creatures in their shtetl (which is so tiny, it doesn't have a name other than Shtetl). The angel and the demon have been studying together for centuries, but pogroms and the search for a new life have drawn all the young people from their village to America. When one of those young emigrants goes missing, Uriel and Little Ash set off to find her.

Along the way the angel and demon encounter humans in need of their help, including Rose Cohen, whose best friend (and the love of her life) has abandoned her to marry a man, and Malke Shulman, whose father died mysteriously on his way to America. But there are obstacles ahead of them as difficult as what they’ve left behind. Medical exams (and demons) at Ellis Island. Corrupt officials, cruel mob bosses, murderers, poverty. The streets are far from paved with gold.]]> 408 Sacha Lamb 1646141768 Barb 5 diversity, fantasy, ya 4.24 2022
author: Sacha Lamb
name: Barb
average rating: 4.24
book published: 2022
rating: 5
read at: 2023/04/26
date added: 2023/04/26
shelves: diversity, fantasy, ya
review:
A queer Jewish fantasy book that explores themes of immigrants, queerness, good and evil, etc. YA.
]]> 60021307
For most kids, catching fireflies is a fun summer activity. For twelve-year-old Serwa Boateng, it's a matter of life and death.

That's because Serwa knows that some fireflies are really adze, shapeshifting vampires from the forests of Southeastern Ghana. Adze prey on the blood of innocents, possessing their minds and turning them into hulking monsters, and for generations, slayers like Serwa and her parents have protected an unknowing public from their threats.

Serwa is the best adze slayer her age, and she knew how to use a crossbow before she could even ride a bike. But when an obayifo (witch) destroys her childhood home while searching for a drum, do Serwa's parents take her with them on their quest to defeat her? No. Instead, they dump Serwa with her hippie aunt and cryptic-obsessed cousin in the middle of Nowheresville, Maryland "for her own safety." Now, instead of crossbows and battle armor, she's dealing with mean girls and algebra, and for the first time in her life she doesn't have to carry a staff everywhere she goes, which is . . . kind of nice, actually.

Just as Serwa starts to get the hang of this whole normal girl who doesn't punch vampires every day thing, an adze infiltrates her school. It's up to her to whip some of her classmates into monster-fighting shape before all of them become firefly food. And when she uncovers a secret that upends everything she thought she knew about her family's role in the slayer vs. adze war, Serwa will have to decide which side of herself--normal girl or slayer--is the right one.

After all, seventh grade is hard enough without adding vampires to the mix.

Endorsed by Rick Riordan, author of Percy Jackson and the Olympians, soon to be a series on Disney+.

Complete your middle grade action-adventure collection with these titles:
Rick Riordan Presents: Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky by Kwame Mbalia
Rick Riordan Presents: The Storm Runner by J.C. Cervantes
Rick Riordan Presents: Race to the Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse
Rick Riordan Presents: Pahua and the Soul Stealer by Lori M. Lee
Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan]]> 400 Roseanne A. Brown 1368066364 Barb 5 4.20 2022
author: Roseanne A. Brown
name: Barb
average rating: 4.20
book published: 2022
rating: 5
read at: 2023/04/24
date added: 2023/04/24
shelves: african-american, diversity, fantasy, mythology
review:
This has quite the cliffhanger. The beginning seemed fine for middle grade but the darker ending seemed more YA.
]]> 57121666 A YA urban fantasy about two teens who discover each other while fighting for their diaspora community.

Almost sixteen years ago, Mateo Matisse's island homeland disappeared into the sea. Weary and hopeless, the survivors of San Madrigal's sinking escaped to New York.

While the rest of his tight-knit Brooklyn diaspora community dreams of someday finding a way back home, Mateo--now a high school junior and piano prodigy living with his two aunts (one who's alive, the other not so much)--is focused on one thing: getting the attention of locally-grown musical legend Gerval. Mateo finally gets his chance on the night of the Grand Fete, an annual party celebrating the blended culture of pirates, Cuban Santeros, and Sephardic Jews that created San Madrigal all those centuries ago.

But the evil that sank their island has finally caught up with them, and on the night of the celebration, Mateo's life is forever changed when he witnesses a brutal murder by a person he thought he knew.

Suddenly Mateo is thrust into an ancient battle that spans years and oceans. Deadly secrets are unraveled and Mateo awakens a power within himself--a power that not only links him to the killer but could also hold the key to unlocking the dark mystery behind his lost homeland.]]> 359 Daniel José Older 1368070868 Barb 3 3.78 2022
author: Daniel José Older
name: Barb
average rating: 3.78
book published: 2022
rating: 3
read at: 2023/04/22
date added: 2023/04/22
shelves: colonialism, diversity, fantasy
review:
Fun story but confusing in spots.
]]> 62194599 Internationally bestselling superstar author Angie Thomas makes her middle grade debut with the launch of an inventive, hilarious, and suspenseful new contemporary fantasy trilogy inspired by African American history and folklore.

It’s not easy being a Remarkable in the Unremarkable world. Some things are cool—like getting a pet hellhound for your twelfth birthday. Others, not so much—like not being trusted to learn magic because you might use it to take revenge on an annoying neighbor.

All Nic Blake wants is to be a powerful Manifestor like her dad. But before she has a chance to convince him to teach her the gift, a series of shocking revelations and terrifying events launch Nic and two friends on a hunt for a powerful magic tool she’s never heard of...to save her father from imprisonment for a crime she refuses to believe he committed.]]> 354 Angie Thomas 0063225131 Barb 4 4.16 2023
author: Angie Thomas
name: Barb
average rating: 4.16
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2023/04/21
date added: 2023/04/21
shelves: african-american, diversity, fantasy, friendship
review:
A fun book for Harry Potter lovers but infused with African lore.
]]> 61198133 A runaway queen. A reluctant prince. And a quest that may destroy them both.

Eight years have passed since the Battle of the Serpent. But in the icy north, Lady Nore of the Court of Teeth has reclaimed the Ice Needle Citadel. There, she is using an ancient relic to create monsters of stick and snow who will do her bidding and exact her revenge.

Suren, child queen of the Court of Teeth, and the one person with power over her mother, fled to the human world. There, she lives feral in the woods. Lonely, and still haunted by the merciless torments she endured in the Court of Teeth, she bides her time by releasing mortals from foolish bargains. She believes herself forgotten until the storm hag, Bogdana chases her through the night streets. Suren is saved by none other than Prince Oak, heir to Elfhame, to whom she was once promised in marriage and who she has resented for years.

Now seventeen, Oak is charming, beautiful, and manipulative. He’s on a mission that will lead him into the north, and he wants Suren’s help. But if she agrees, it will mean guarding her heart against the boy she once knew and a prince she cannot trust, as well as confronting all the horrors she thought she left behind.

#1ĚýNew York TimesĚýbestselling author Holly Black returns to the opulent world of Elfhame in the first book in a thrilling new duology, following Jude's brother Oak, and the changeling queen, Suren.]]> 356 Holly Black 0316592706 Barb 3 abuse, fantasy 3.92 2023
author: Holly Black
name: Barb
average rating: 3.92
book published: 2023
rating: 3
read at: 2023/03/30
date added: 2023/03/30
shelves: abuse, fantasy
review:
This was very dark as the protagonist is abused by faeries. I thought the journey was too long and slowed the pacing. Good character development even though it was depressing. A look at trauma.
]]> 60310739
In a world where anyone can create a life-destroying curse, only one person has the power to unravel them.

Kellen does not fully understand his talent, but helps those transformed maliciously—including Nettle. Recovered from entrapment in bird form, she is now his constant companion and closest ally.

But Kellen has also been cursed, and unless he and Nettle can remove his curse, Kellen is in danger of unravelling everything—and everyone—around him . . .]]> 432 Frances Hardinge 1419759310 Barb 5 adventure, fantasy 4.02 2022
author: Frances Hardinge
name: Barb
average rating: 4.02
book published: 2022
rating: 5
read at: 2023/02/16
date added: 2023/02/16
shelves: adventure, fantasy
review:
Hardinge’s books have so much depth and imagery. Here she explores two kids traumatized by curses. A bit mystery, monster story, and evil government and cults. Never a dull moment in this page turner.
]]> 39325105 Harrow the Ninth, the sequel to Gideon the Ninth, turns a galaxy inside out as one necromancer struggles to survive the wreckage of herself aboard the Emperor's haunted space station.

She answered the Emperor's call.

She arrived with her arts, her wits, and her only friend.

In victory, her world has turned to ash.

After rocking the cosmos with her deathly debut, Tamsyn Muir continues the story of the penumbral Ninth House in Harrow the Ninth, a mind-twisting puzzle box of mystery, murder, magic, and mayhem. Nothing is as it seems in the halls of the Emperor, and the fate of the galaxy rests on one woman's shoulders.

Harrowhark Nonagesimus, last necromancer of the Ninth House, has been drafted by her Emperor to fight an unwinnable war. Side-by-side with a detested rival, Harrow must perfect her skills and become an angel of undeath � but her health is failing, her sword makes her nauseous, and even her mind is threatening to betray her.

Sealed in the gothic gloom of the Emperor's Mithraeum with three unfriendly teachers, hunted by the mad ghost of a murdered planet, Harrow must confront two unwelcome questions: is somebody trying to kill her? And if they succeeded, would the universe be better off?]]> 512 Tamsyn Muir 1250313228 Barb 3 fantasy, horror 4.30 2020
author: Tamsyn Muir
name: Barb
average rating: 4.30
book published: 2020
rating: 3
read at: 2023/02/13
date added: 2023/02/13
shelves: fantasy, horror
review:
I found the confusing timelines and point of view made the story hard to get into and follow. This is more surreal and I think the ebook would have been better for me. The second point of view is jarring. It is chosen on purpose and alternates with 3rd person but the flow of the narrative suffers with all the shifts. Her complex plot is interesting.
]]> 42036538
The Ninth Necromancer needs a swordswoman.

Gideon has a sword, some dirty magazines, and no more time for undead bullshit.

Brought up by unfriendly, ossifying nuns, ancient retainers, and countless skeletons, Gideon is ready to abandon a life of servitude and an afterlife as a reanimated corpse. She packs up her sword, her shoes, and her dirty magazines, and prepares to launch her daring escape. But her childhood nemesis won't set her free without a service.

Harrowhark Nonagesimus, Reverend Daughter of the Ninth House and bone witch extraordinaire, has been summoned into action. The Emperor has invited the heirs to each of his loyal Houses to a deadly trial of wits and skill. If Harrowhark succeeds she will become an immortal, all-powerful servant of the Resurrection, but no necromancer can ascend without their cavalier. Without Gideon's sword, Harrow will fail, and the Ninth House will die.

Of course, some things are better left dead.]]> 448 Tamsyn Muir 1250313198 Barb 5 4.19 2019
author: Tamsyn Muir
name: Barb
average rating: 4.19
book published: 2019
rating: 5
read at: 2023/02/12
date added: 2023/02/12
shelves: lgbtq, horror, ghost-story, fantasy
review:
A nonstop action book with some fun twists and a mix of genres. YA
]]> 55858638 New York Times bestselling trilogy that began with A Deadly Education and The Last Graduate.

The one thing you never talk about while you're in the Scholomance is what you'll do when you get out. Not even the richest enclaver would tempt fate that way. But it's all we dream about, the hideously slim chance we'll survive to make it out the gates and improbably find ourselves with a life ahead of us, a life outside the Scholomance halls.

And now the impossible dream has come true. I'm out, we're all out--and I didn't even have to turn into a monstrous dark witch to make it happen. So much for my great-grandmother's prophecy of doom and destruction. I didn't kill enclavers, I saved them. Me, and Orion, and our allies. Our graduation plan worked to perfection: we saved everyone and made the world safe for all wizards and brought peace and harmony to all the enclaves of the world.

Ha, only joking! Actually it's gone all wrong. Someone else has picked up the project of destroying enclaves in my stead, and probably everyone we saved is about to get killed in the brewing enclave war on the horizon. And the first thing I've got to do now, having miraculously got out of the Scholomance, is turn straight around and find a way back in.]]> 407 Naomi Novik 0593158369 Barb 5 fantasy, ya 4.08 2022
author: Naomi Novik
name: Barb
average rating: 4.08
book published: 2022
rating: 5
read at: 2023/02/06
date added: 2023/02/06
shelves: fantasy, ya
review:
I enjoyed this trilogy and how the author developed the plot with more world building in each book and the protagonist. This explores power and how others are stepped on or sacrificed in its pursuit. That sometimes people mean well but are too ruthless and extreme in goals. The protagonist wants an idyllic world where we all take care of each other but realizes she can only carve out a niche to some extent; that relationships are more important and sharing more satisfying than selfish choices. Good YA series.
]]> 55559887 A budding dark sorceress determined not to use her formidable powers uncovers yet more secrets about the workings of her world in the stunning sequel to A Deadly Education, the start of Naomi Novik’s groundbreaking crossover series.

At the Scholomance, El, Orion, and the other students are faced with their final year—and the looming specter of graduation, a deadly ritual that leaves few students alive in its wake. El is determined that her chosen group will survive, but it is a prospect that is looking harder by the day as the savagery of the school ramps up. Until El realizes that sometimes winning the game means throwing out all the rules . . .]]> 388 Naomi Novik 0593128869 Barb 5 diversity, fantasy 4.20 2021
author: Naomi Novik
name: Barb
average rating: 4.20
book published: 2021
rating: 5
read at: 2023/02/05
date added: 2023/02/05
shelves: diversity, fantasy
review:
Some interesting twists in this sequel.
]]> 52459864
When 18-year-old Zetian offers herself up as a concubine-pilot, it's to assassinate the ace male pilot responsible for her sister's death. But she gets her vengeance in a way nobody expected—she kills him through the psychic link between pilots and emerges from the cockpit unscathed. She is labeled an Iron Widow, a much-feared and much-silenced kind of female pilot who can sacrifice boys to power up Chrysalises instead.�

To tame her unnerving yet invaluable mental strength, she is paired up with Li Shimin, the strongest and most controversial male pilot in Huaxia�. But now that Zetian has had a taste of power, she will not cower so easily. She will miss no opportunity to leverage their combined might and infamy to survive attempt after attempt on her life, until she can figure out exactly why the pilot system works in its misogynist way—and stop more girls from being sacrificed.]]> 394 Xiran Jay Zhao 0735269939 Barb 3 abuse, anger, fantasy, ya 4.03 2021
author: Xiran Jay Zhao
name: Barb
average rating: 4.03
book published: 2021
rating: 3
read at: 2023/02/03
date added: 2023/02/03
shelves: abuse, anger, fantasy, ya
review:
This has lots of action and is mainly a romance novel for YA. I liked the Focus on binding feet and how painful it was through a cultural lens. The book is mainly about revenge, female empowerment, and whoever is the most ruthless comes out on top. The revenge means killing those who’ve abused the protagonists. The message is somewhat shallow but the s story was entertaining.
]]> 55624056
Tarisai is determined to survive. Or at least, that's what she tells her increasingly distant circle of friends. Months into her shaky reign as empress, child spirits haunt her, demanding that she pay for past sins of the empire.

With the lives of her loved ones on the line, assassination attempts from unknown quarters, and a handsome new stranger she can't quite trust . . . Tarisai fears the pressure may consume her. But in this finale to the Raybearer duology, Tarisai must learn whether to die for justice . . . or to live for it.]]> 336 Jordan Ifueko 1683357205 Barb 5 african-american, fantasy, ya 4.25 2021
author: Jordan Ifueko
name: Barb
average rating: 4.25
book published: 2021
rating: 5
read at: 2023/01/31
date added: 2023/01/31
shelves: african-american, fantasy, ya
review:
A great sequel to book one with more world-building character development and exploration of power and leadership.
]]> 50158128 343 Jordan Ifueko 1419739824 Barb 4 4.32 2020
author: Jordan Ifueko
name: Barb
average rating: 4.32
book published: 2020
rating: 4
read at: 2023/01/29
date added: 2023/01/29
shelves: african-american, fantasy, prejudice
review:
A YA or upper middle grade fantasy that incorporates African culture with folk lore to show abuse of power and the desire for justice.
]]> 23947089 Return to #1 New York Times bestseller Brandon Sanderson's Mistborn world of Scadrial as its second era, which began with The Alloy of Law, comes to its earth-shattering conclusion in The Lost Metal.

For years, frontier lawman turned big-city senator Waxillium Ladrian has hunted the shadowy organization the Set—with his late uncle and his sister among their leaders—since they started kidnapping people with the power of Allomancy in their bloodlines. When Detective Marasi Colms and her partner, Wayne, find stockpiled weapons bound for the Outer City of Bilming, this opens a new lead. Conflict between the capital, Elendel, and the Outer Cities only favors the Set, and their tendrils now reach to the Elendel Senate—whose corruption Wax and his wife, Steris, have sought to expose—and Bilming is even more entangled.

After Wax discovers a new type of explosive that can unleash unprecedented destruction and realizes that the Set must already have it, an immortal kandra serving Scadrial's god, Harmony, reveals that Bilming has fallen under the influence of another god: Trell, worshipped by the Set. And Trell isn't the only factor at play from the larger Cosmere—Marasi is recruited by offworlders with strange abilities who claim their goal is to protect Scadrial . . . at any cost.

Wax must choose whether to set aside his rocky relationship with God and once again become the Sword that Harmony has groomed him to be. If no one steps forward to be the hero Scadrial needs, the planet and its millions of people will come to a sudden and calamitous ruin.]]> 507 Brandon Sanderson 0765391198 Barb 4 adventure, fantasy, hero 4.46 2022
author: Brandon Sanderson
name: Barb
average rating: 4.46
book published: 2022
rating: 4
read at: 2023/01/19
date added: 2023/01/19
shelves: adventure, fantasy, hero
review:
The parody on the redemption story was interesting. Usually it’s sad but the character in this book is not meant to be taken seriously. You need to be familiar with the mistborn series. The author seems to have fun writing this and the characters don’t have as much depth as others books he’s written. An entertaining read.
]]> 60097027 From the the winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature: Part detective story, part historical epic--a bold and brilliant novel that imagines a plague ravaging a fictional island in the Ottoman Empire.

It is April 1900, in the Levant, on the imaginary island of Mingheria--the twenty-ninth state of the Ottoman Empire--located in the eastern Mediterranean between Crete and Cyprus. Half the population is Muslim, the other half are Orthodox Greeks, and tension is high between the two. When a plague arrives--brought either by Muslim pilgrims returning from the Mecca or by merchant vessels coming from Alexandria--the island revolts.

To stop the epidemic, the Ottoman sultan Abdul Hamid II sends his most accomplished quarantine expert to the island--an Orthodox Christian. Some of the Muslims, including followers of a popular religious sect and its leader Sheikh Hamdullah, refuse to take precautions or respect the quarantine. And then a murder occurs.

As the plague continues its rapid spread, the Sultan sends a second doctor to the island, this time a Muslim, and strict quarantine measures are declared. But the incompetence of the island's governor and local administration and the people's refusal to respect the bans doom the quarantine to failure, and the death count continues to rise. Faced with the danger that the plague might spread to the West and to Istanbul, the Sultan bows to international pressure and allows foreign and Ottoman warships to blockade the island. Now the people of Mingheria are on their own, and they must find a way to defeat the plague themselves.

Steeped in history and rife with suspense, Nights of Plague is an epic story set more than one hundred years ago, with themes that feel remarkably contemporary.]]> 683 Orhan Pamuk 0525656898 Barb 4 adult, fantasy 3.48 2021
author: Orhan Pamuk
name: Barb
average rating: 3.48
book published: 2021
rating: 4
read at: 2023/01/16
date added: 2023/01/16
shelves: adult, fantasy
review:
The world building is amazing in this book and the examination of how a plague plays out politically and socially mirrors much of what happened in the Covid pandemic (this was written in 2017); however, it’s written like a history book that examines years of a made up culture on an island and there were no characters that really grabbed my attention. It has an epic feel but is sort of boring in spots.
]]> 16286 The Magus is Nicholas Urfe, a young Englishman who accepts a teaching position on a remote Greek island, where he befriends a local millionaire. The friendship soon evolves into a deadly game, in which reality and fantasy are deliberately manipulated, and Nicholas finds that he must fight not only for his sanity but for his very survival.]]> 656 John Fowles 0316296198 Barb 5 adult, fantasy 4.06 1965
author: John Fowles
name: Barb
average rating: 4.06
book published: 1965
rating: 5
read at: 2023/01/06
date added: 2023/01/06
shelves: adult, fantasy
review:
I can’t say I enjoyed this book. It’s like looking at Salvador Dalis Eccentric Genius painting -fascinating and horrifying. The story is about what’s real and what’s not or the wish of what’s real and not. Or the wish for more in life. Very weird and creative.
]]> 61887 423 Lois McMaster Bujold 0060574747 Barb 4 adult, fantasy, romance 3.83 2005
author: Lois McMaster Bujold
name: Barb
average rating: 3.83
book published: 2005
rating: 4
read at: 2022/12/25
date added: 2022/12/25
shelves: adult, fantasy, romance
review:
An entertaining fantasy that incorporates shamanism with warriors.
]]> 61904 470 Lois McMaster Bujold 0380818612 Barb 4 fantasy, romance 4.17 2003
author: Lois McMaster Bujold
name: Barb
average rating: 4.17
book published: 2003
rating: 4
read at: 2022/12/14
date added: 2022/12/14
shelves: fantasy, romance
review:
I enjoyed the world building and middle-aged female protagonist.
]]> 61886
It is an assignment Cazaril dreads, for it will ultimately lead him to the place he fears most, the royal court of Cardegoss, where the powerful enemies, who once placed him in chains, now occupy lofty positions. In addition to the traitorous intrigues of villains, Cazaril and the Royesse Iselle, are faced with a sinister curse that hangs like a sword over the entire blighted House of Chalion and all who stand in their circle. Only by employing the darkest, most forbidden of magics, can Cazaril hope to protect his royal charge—an act that will mark the loyal, damaged servant as a tool of the miraculous, and trap him, flesh and soul, in a maze of demonic paradox, damnation, and death.]]> 490 Lois McMaster Bujold 0007133618 Barb 3 adult, fantasy 4.14 2001
author: Lois McMaster Bujold
name: Barb
average rating: 4.14
book published: 2001
rating: 3
read at: 2022/12/06
date added: 2022/12/06
shelves: adult, fantasy
review:
I had a hard time staying interested in this plot or characters. A book about chivalry, honor, and kingdoms with political intrigue and dark magic. The woman rely on the protagonist to save them and he’s honorable or your classic hero. A happily ever after end�
]]> 52166786 The final chapter in the Daevabad Trilogy, in which a con-woman and an idealistic djinn prince join forces to save a magical kingdom from a devastating civil war.

Daevabad has fallen.

After a brutal conquest stripped the city of its magic, Nahid leader Banu Manizheh and her resurrected commander, Dara, must try to repair their fraying alliance and stabilize a fractious, warring people.

But the bloodletting and loss of his beloved Nahri have unleashed the worst demons of Dara’s dark past. To vanquish them, he must face some ugly truths about his history and put himself at the mercy of those he once considered enemies.

Having narrowly escaped their murderous families and Daevabad’s deadly politics, Nahri and Ali, now safe in Cairo, face difficult choices of their own. While Nahri finds peace in the old rhythms and familiar comforts of her human home, she is haunted by the knowledge that the loved ones she left behind and the people who considered her a savior are at the mercy of a new tyrant. Ali, too, cannot help but look back, and is determined to return to rescue his city and the family that remains. Seeking support in his mother’s homeland, he discovers that his connection to the marid goes far deeper than expected and threatens not only his relationship with Nahri, but his very faith.

As peace grows more elusive and old players return, Nahri, Ali, and Dara come to understand that in order to remake the world, they may need to fight those they once loved . . . and take a stand for those they once hurt.]]> 766 S.A. Chakraborty 0062678167 Barb 4 adult, fantasy 4.47 2020
author: S.A. Chakraborty
name: Barb
average rating: 4.47
book published: 2020
rating: 4
read at: 2022/11/27
date added: 2022/11/27
shelves: adult, fantasy
review:
Fun series. This one is more action, myth making, and political intrigue. I liked book 2 best.
]]> 39988431 Return to Daevabad in the spellbinding sequel to THE CITY OF BRASS.

Nahri’s life changed forever the moment she accidentally summoned Dara, a formidable, mysterious djinn, during one of her schemes. Whisked from her home in Cairo, she was thrust into the dazzling royal court of Daevabad and quickly discovered she would need all her grifter instincts to survive there.

Now, with Daevabad entrenched in the dark aftermath of the battle that saw Dara slain at Prince Ali’s hand, Nahri must forge a new path for herself, without the protection of the guardian who stole her heart or the counsel of the prince she considered a friend. But even as she embraces her heritage and the power it holds, she knows she’s been trapped in a gilded cage, watched by a king who rules from the throne that once belonged to her familyand one misstep will doom her tribe.

Meanwhile, Ali has been exiled for daring to defy his father. Hunted by assassins, adrift on the unforgiving copper sands of his ancestral land, he is forced to rely on the frightening abilities the marid, the unpredictable water spirits, have gifted him. But in doing so, he threatens to unearth a terrible secret his family has long kept buried.

And as a new century approaches and the djinn gather within Daevabad's towering brass walls for celebrations, a threat brews unseen in the desolate north. It’s a force that would bring a storm of fire straight to the city’s gates . . . and one that seeks the aid of a warrior trapped between worlds, torn between a violent duty he can never escape and a peace he fears he will never deserve.]]> 625 S.A. Chakraborty 0008239444 Barb 5 4.37 2019
author: S.A. Chakraborty
name: Barb
average rating: 4.37
book published: 2019
rating: 5
read at: 2022/11/24
date added: 2022/11/24
shelves: adult, fantasy, prejudice, racism
review:
It took me a bit to get into this as it seemed to follow the romance trope at first but it departs and gets into healing vs harm, power struggles, political intrigue, coups and genocide.
]]> 60931 The visionary author’s masterpiece pulls us—along with her Black female hero—through time to face the horrors of slavery and explore the impacts of racism, sexism, and white supremacy then and now.

Dana, a modern Black woman, is celebrating her 26th birthday with her new husband when she is snatched abruptly from her home in California and transported to the antebellum South. Rufus, the white son of a plantation owner, is drowning, and Dana has been summoned to save him. Dana is drawn back repeatedly through time to the slave quarters, and each time the stay grows longer, more arduous, and more dangerous until it is uncertain whether or not Dana’s life will end, long before it has a chance to begin.]]> 288 Octavia E. Butler 0807083690 Barb 5 african-american, fantasy 4.30 1979
author: Octavia E. Butler
name: Barb
average rating: 4.30
book published: 1979
rating: 5
read at: 2022/11/17
date added: 2022/11/17
shelves: african-american, fantasy
review:
What a gripping fantastic book a book about a black women pulled back through time to discover her ancestors. I couldn’t put this down! Highly recommended.
]]> 32718027
But when Nahri accidentally summons an equally sly, darkly mysterious djinn warrior to her side during one of her cons, she’s forced to accept that the magical world she thought only existed in childhood stories is real. For the warrior tells her a new tale: across hot, windswept sands teeming with creatures of fire, and rivers where the mythical marid sleep; past ruins of once-magnificent human metropolises, and mountains where the circling hawks are not what they seem, lies Daevabad, the legendary city of brass, a city to which Nahri is irrevocably bound.

In that city, behind gilded brass walls laced with enchantments, behind the six gates of the six djinn tribes, old resentments are simmering. And when Nahri decides to enter this world, she learns that true power is fierce and brutal. That magic cannot shield her from the dangerous web of court politics. That even the cleverest of schemes can have deadly consequences.

After all, there is a reason they say be careful what you wish for...]]> 532 S.A. Chakraborty 0062678108 Barb 3 fantasy 4.12 2017
author: S.A. Chakraborty
name: Barb
average rating: 4.12
book published: 2017
rating: 3
read at: 2022/11/12
date added: 2022/11/12
shelves: fantasy
review:
An entertaining djinn story. It ends on a cliffhanger
]]> 643792 Astounding. Editor John W. Campbell, Jr., discovered and promoted great new writers such as A.E. van Vogt, whose novel Slan was one of the works of the era.

Slan is the story of Jommy Cross, the orphan mutant outcast from a future society prejudiced against mutants, or slans. Throughout the forties and into the fifties, Slan was considered the single most important SF novel, the one great book that everyone had to read. Today it remains a monument to pulp SF adventure, filled with constant action and a cornucopia of ideas.

This edition has a new introduction by Kevin J. Anderson.]]> 272 A.E. van Vogt 0312852363 Barb 4 adult, fantasy 3.71 1940
author: A.E. van Vogt
name: Barb
average rating: 3.71
book published: 1940
rating: 4
read at: 2022/11/11
date added: 2022/11/11
shelves: adult, fantasy
review:
I enjoyed this futuristic story.
]]> 180617 A timeless classic to be read over and over.

This is the story of Pinocchio, filled with harrowing yet inspiring adventures. Carved by a poor man named Geppetto, Pinocchio is a wooden puppet that comes to life. He soon leaves his maker and commences a journey of misadventures.

Pinocchio has a good heart, but he is disobedient and lazy and often has poor judgment. And when he lies, Pinocchio's nose grows longer! Follow this mischievous puppet as he goes to the "Field of Miracles", where he plants gold coins to try to make his wealth grow. Thrill as he is pursued by assassins. And marvel as he becomes the unwitting star of a circus show and lives a life of ease in the "Land of Boobies," where boys can play all day and never have to go to school. Of course, Pinocchio gets into trouble along the way.

From the villainous Cat and Fox, who try to steal his gold coins, to the gigantic Dogfish, a terrifying sea monster that swallows him, Pinocchio encounters menacing characters who often lead him to trouble. But Pinocchio also befriends a good Fairy who loves him and wants to help him escape his misfortunes. She even promises the puppet that if he learns to be good, to study, and to work hard, he will become a real boy. Can Pinocchio turn his life around? And will he ever see his "papa," Geppetto again?

Carlo Collodi (1826�1890) was born Carlo Lorenzini on November 24, 1826, in Florence, Italy. In 1848 he enlisted to fight in the Italian War of Independence and founded the daily satirical newspaper 'Il Lampione'. Collodi continued to write political and humorous novels until 1876, when he began to write children's books. In 1881 'Pinocchio' was originally introduced as a newspaper serial in the children's section. Since its first full-length publication in 1883, 'Pinocchio' has been translated in over 260 languages and is one of the most popular children's stories ever told.]]> 262 Carlo Collodi 0140382623 Barb 5 classic, fantasy 3.87 1883
author: Carlo Collodi
name: Barb
average rating: 3.87
book published: 1883
rating: 5
read at: 2022/10/31
date added: 2022/11/06
shelves: classic, fantasy
review:
Written in the 1800s this book is didactic and influential toward children’s literature.
]]> 56036276
Oli is a cottonmouth kid, from the land of spirits and monsters. Like all cottonmouths, he's been cast from home. He's found a new one on the banks of the bottomless lake.

Nina and Oli have no idea the other exists. But a catastrophic event on Earth, and a strange sickness that befalls Oli's best friend, will drive their worlds together in ways they haven't been in centuries.

And there are some who will kill to keep them apart.

Darcie Little Badger introduced herself to the world with Elatsoe. In A Snake Falls to Earth, she draws on traditional Lipan Apache storytelling structure to weave another unforgettable tale of monsters, magic, and family. It is not to be missed.]]> 377 Darcie Little Badger Barb 5
The author ties the extinction storyline with the creation storyline at the end that reminded me of the Norse Ragnarok myth where the world is destroyed by the gods and new life comes from the ashes. This story too has new life emerging from extinction. Although this story doesn't destroy life, it nurtures and gives life with the main characters as responsible caretakers. It's very creative and original.

The author has unique characters in Dave, the swindler; the mockingbird, the prankster full of "chaotic energy"; the foxes, acrobats that take risks and push the snake out of its comfort zone; bird who has no gender and does the right thing; Snake, cautious and heroic in deeds. While the story has swearing and Nina is a teenager, it seems to be more young adult than adult. I'm not sure. I sure enjoyed the complex plot and creativeness. ]]> 3.90 2021
author: Darcie Little Badger
name: Barb
average rating: 3.90
book published: 2021
rating: 5
read at: 2022/11/06
date added: 2022/11/06
shelves: animal-narrator, fantasy, friendship, native-americans
review:
This folktale is wrapped in a fantasy plot that involves a quest, shape-changing animals, a creation story, a trickster, exploitation, explorations of community, family, friends, extinction of species, peoples, climate change, and more. I tried listening to this and switched to reading it. The chapters alternate between Nina, a Native American, and Cottonmouth, a shapeshifting snake that lives in an alternate world. The Cottonmouth is in 1st person narrative and Nina is written in 3rd person which helped me keep the two separate and made it easy envisioning two realities. Cottonmouth goes on a quest to save his friend's life from extinction. This metaphor can reflect the extinctions of all kinds: species, people, earth. It directly relates to an animal but can be tribe languages as Nina tries to translate her great-great grandma's words on her deathbed and who happens to be 150 years old. The author has some speculative fiction going on here that shows the loss of people, in this case tribes, and their language (close to extinction); yet, she gives hope in the continuation and richness of storytelling over a hundred years. The volatile weather that Nina is stuck in reflects the climate changes and the destructive nature of humans is sprinkled throughout the action.

The author ties the extinction storyline with the creation storyline at the end that reminded me of the Norse Ragnarok myth where the world is destroyed by the gods and new life comes from the ashes. This story too has new life emerging from extinction. Although this story doesn't destroy life, it nurtures and gives life with the main characters as responsible caretakers. It's very creative and original.

The author has unique characters in Dave, the swindler; the mockingbird, the prankster full of "chaotic energy"; the foxes, acrobats that take risks and push the snake out of its comfort zone; bird who has no gender and does the right thing; Snake, cautious and heroic in deeds. While the story has swearing and Nina is a teenager, it seems to be more young adult than adult. I'm not sure. I sure enjoyed the complex plot and creativeness.
]]> 29127 Alternate cover edition of ISBN 9780451450524

She was magical, beautiful beyond belief—and completely alone...

The unicorn had lived since before memory in a forest where death could touch nothing. Maidens who caught a glimpse of her glory were blessed by enchantment they would never forget. But outside her wondrous realm, dark whispers and rumours carried a message she could not ignore: "Unicorns are gone from the world."

Aided by a bumbling magician and an indomitable spinster, she set out to learn the truth. but she feared even her immortal wisdom meant nothing in a world where a mad king's curse and terror incarnate lived only to stalk the last unicorn to her doom...]]> 294 Peter S. Beagle Barb 5 adventure, fantasy 4.16 1968
author: Peter S. Beagle
name: Barb
average rating: 4.16
book published: 1968
rating: 5
read at: 2022/11/02
date added: 2022/11/02
shelves: adventure, fantasy
review:
This made me think of Circus Miranda and other tales that use the circus and magic. A quest story and rag to riches.
]]> 33 One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them, One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them

In ancient times the Rings of Power were crafted by the Elven-smiths, and Sauron, the Dark Lord, forged the One Ring, filling it with his own power so that he could rule all others. But the One Ring was taken from him, and though he sought it throughout Middle-earth, it remained lost to him. After many ages it fell by chance into the hands of the hobbit Bilbo Baggins.

From Sauron's fastness in the Dark Tower of Mordor, his power spread far and wide. Sauron gathered all the Great Rings to him, but always he searched for the One Ring that would complete his dominion.

When Bilbo reached his eleventy-first birthday he disappeared, bequeathing to his young cousin Frodo the Ruling Ring and a perilous quest: to journey across Middle-earth, deep into the shadow of the Dark Lord, and destroy the Ring by casting it into the Cracks of Doom.

The Lord of the Rings tells of the great quest undertaken by Frodo and the Fellowship of the Ring: Gandalf the Wizard; the hobbits Merry, Pippin, and Sam; Gimli the Dwarf; Legolas the Elf; Boromir of Gondor; and a tall, mysterious stranger called Strider.]]> 1216 J.R.R. Tolkien 0618640150 Barb 5 adventure, fantasy One of my favorites. 4.52 1955
author: J.R.R. Tolkien
name: Barb
average rating: 4.52
book published: 1955
rating: 5
read at: 2022/10/31
date added: 2022/10/31
shelves: adventure, fantasy
review:
One of my favorites.
]]> 55535618
Sancia, Clef, and Berenice have gone up against plenty of long odds in the past. But the war they’re fighting now is one even they can’t win.

This time, they’re not facing robber-baron elites, or even an immortal hierophant, but an entity whose intelligence is spread over half the globe—a ghost in the machine that uses the magic of scriving to possess and control not just objects, but human minds.

To fight it, they’ve used scriving technology to transform themselves and their allies into an army—a society—that’s like nothing humanity has seen before. With its strength at their backs, they’ve freed a handful of their enemy’s hosts from servitude, even brought down some of its fearsome, reality-altering dreadnaughts. Yet despite their efforts, their enemy marches on—implacable. Unstoppable.

Now, as their opponent closes in on its true prize—an ancient doorway, long buried, that leads to the chambers at the center of creation itself—Sancia and her friends glimpse a chance at reaching it first, and with it, a last desperate opportunity to stop this unbeatable foe. But to do so, they’ll have to unlock the centuries-old mystery of scriving’s origins, embark on a desperate mission into the heart of their enemy’s power, and pull off the most daring heist they’ve ever attempted.

And as if that weren’t enough, their adversary might just have a spy in their ranks—and a last trick up its sleeve.]]> 544 Robert Jackson Bennett Barb 4 4.03 2022
author: Robert Jackson Bennett
name: Barb
average rating: 4.03
book published: 2022
rating: 4
read at: 2022/10/28
date added: 2022/10/28
shelves: dystopia, fantasy, grief, hero
review:
What an ambitious story and the difficult magic system the author built and tried to expand on. It didn’t always make sense but was interesting. The villains are fleshed out really well and not flat.
]]> 138959 E.B. White's classic novel tells the story of one small mouse on a very big adventure!

Stuart Little is no ordinary mouse. Born into a family of humans, he lives in New York City with his parents, his older brother George, and Snowbell the cat. Though Stuart is shy and thoughtful, he's also a true lover of adventure.

Stuart's greatest journey begins when his best friend, a beautiful little bird named Margalo, suddenly disappears from her nest. Determined to find her, Stuart sets off on an adventure away from home for the very first time in his life. Along the way, he encounters plenty of excitement—but will he be able to find his friend?]]> 131 E.B. White 0064400565 Barb 5 early-reader, fantasy 3.90 1945
author: E.B. White
name: Barb
average rating: 3.90
book published: 1945
rating: 5
read at: 2022/10/19
date added: 2022/10/19
shelves: early-reader, fantasy
review:
This is for early readers with episodic chapters about the adventure of a small mouse that the family treats as human. This author is one of my favorites and I love how he ends the book with the mouse turning north seeking independence. I had a person say they liked the phrasing for they thought it was a good description of retirement. Another said they liked how Stuart was so different that he had to adjust to his surroundings all the time and they made a connection with their disability. A quick read.
]]> 57468730 A magical adventure for fans of Amari and the Night Brothers and Nevermoor, about three witchlings who must work together to do the impossible if they have any hope of earning their full powers.

Every year, in the magical town of Ravenskill, Witchlings who participate in the Black Moon Ceremony are placed into covens and come into their powers as full-fledged witches.

And twelve-year-old Seven Salazar can't wait to be placed in the most powerful coven with her best friend! But on the night of the ceremony, in front of the entire town, Seven isn't placed in one of the five covens. She's a Spare!

Spare covens have fewer witches, are less powerful, and are looked down on by everyone. Even worse, when Seven and the other two Spares perform the magic circle to seal their coven and cement themselves as sisters, it doesn't work! They're stuck as Witchlings—and will never be able to perform powerful magic.

Seven invokes her only option: the impossible task. The three Spares will be assigned an impossible task: If they work together and succeed at it, their coven will be sealed and they'll gain their full powers. If they fail... Well, the last coven to make the attempt ended up being turned into toads. Forever.

But maybe friendship can be the most powerful magic of all�

With action-packed adventure, a coven of quirky witchlings, Claribel A. Ortega's signature humor and girl-power vibes, this middle grade Latine witch story is truly a modern classic.]]> 334 Claribel A. Ortega 1338745522 Barb 4 4.13 2022
author: Claribel A. Ortega
name: Barb
average rating: 4.13
book published: 2022
rating: 4
read at: 2022/10/13
date added: 2022/10/13
shelves: abuse, adventure, bully, coming-of-age, fantasy, prejudice
review:
Explore different themes in this book for Harry Potter lovers. A bully or misunderstanding? Outcasts or heroes? Things are not what they seem in this action-packed book.
]]> 34213608
Sometimes, when a person dies, their spirit goes looking for somewhere to hide.
Some people have space within them, perfect for hiding.

Twelve-year-old Makepeace has learned to defend herself from the ghosts which try to possess her in the night, desperate for refuge, but one day a dreadful event causes her to drop her guard.

And now there's a spirit inside her.

The spirit is wild, brutish and strong, and it may be her only defence when she is sent to live with her father's rich and powerful ancestors. There is talk of civil war, and they need people like her to protect their dark and terrible family secret.

But as she plans her escape and heads out into a country torn apart by war, Makepeace must decide which is worse: possession � or death.]]> 416 Frances Hardinge 1419725726 Barb 5 anger, fantasy 3.98 2017
author: Frances Hardinge
name: Barb
average rating: 3.98
book published: 2017
rating: 5
read at: 2022/10/09
date added: 2022/10/09
shelves: anger, fantasy
review:
I can’t read this author’s books without becoming so immersed the world is left behind. This premise and execution was so interesting as it made me think of mental illness as the characters learn to live with different voices in their head. The themes of betrayal, truth and lies crisscross through the plot. Very creative.
]]> 44647479 The gods of The Myriad were as real as the coastlines and currents, and as merciless as the winds and whirlpools. Now the gods are dead, but their remains are stirring beneath the waves . . .

On the streets of the Island of Lady's Crave live 14-year-old street urchins Hark and his best friend Jelt. They are scavengers: diving for relics of the gods, desperate for anything they can sell. But there is something dangerous in the deep waters of the undersea, calling to someone brave enough to retrieve it.

When the waves try to claim Jelt, Hark will do anything to save him. Even if it means compromising not just who Jelt is, but what he is . . .]]> 416 Frances Hardinge 1509836950 Barb 5 adventure, fantasy 4.08 2019
author: Frances Hardinge
name: Barb
average rating: 4.08
book published: 2019
rating: 5
read at: 2022/10/08
date added: 2022/10/08
shelves: adventure, fantasy
review:
I really like how this author develops characters and layers her plots with many themes keeping up a pace that makes it so hard for me to put down. This story is about friendship based on fear, communities controlled by fears, storytelling, myths and more. The interweaving of religion in the society she creates was well done too. A bit of Frankenstein meets 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea; yet the author’s own unique creation.
]]> 53023305 Artemis Fowl meets Men in Black in this magical second book in the New York Times and Indie bestselling Supernatural Investigations trilogy—perfect for fans of Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky, the Percy Jackson series, and Nevermoor.

After finding her brother and saving the entire supernatural world, Amari Peters is convinced her first full summer as a Junior Agent will be a breeze.

But between the fearsome new Head Minister’s strict anti-magician agenda, fierce Junior Agent rivalries, and her brother Quinton’s curse steadily worsening, Amari’s plate is full. So when the secretive League of Magicians offers her a chance to stand up for magiciankind as its new leader, she declines. She’s got enough to worry about!

But her refusal allows someone else to step forward, a magician with dangerous plans for the League. This challenge sparks the start of the Great Game, a competition to decide who will become the Night Brothers� successor and determine the future of magiciankind.

The Great Game is both mysterious and deadly, but among the winner’s magical rewards is Quinton’s last hope—so how can Amari refuse?]]> 400 B.B. Alston Barb 5 4.30 2022
author: B.B. Alston
name: Barb
average rating: 4.30
book published: 2022
rating: 5
read at: 2022/09/21
date added: 2022/09/21
shelves: african-american, bully, coming-of-age, diversity, fantasy, friendship
review:
Some fun plot twists and themes of feeling outcast or unwanted and oppressed. I thought the author pushed the idea of racism and prejudice even more in this sequel.
]]> 45309582 As a magical revolution remakes a city, an ancient evil is awakened in a brilliant new novel from the Hugo-nominated author ofĚýFoundryside and the Divine Cities trilogy
Ěý
Having narrowly saved the metropolis of Tevanne from destruction, Sancia Grado and her allies have turned to their next task: sowing the seeds of a full-on magical-industrial revolution. If they succeed, the secrets behind scriving—the art of imbuing everyday objects with sentience—will be accessible to all of Tevanne’s citizens, much to the displeasure of the robber-barons who’ve hoarded this knowledge for themselves. Ěý
Ěý
But one of Sancia’s enemies has embarked on a desperate gambit, an attempt to resurrect a figure straight out of legend—an immortal being known as a heirophant. Long ago, the heirophant was an ordinary man, but he’s used scriving to transform himself into something closer to a god. Once awakened, he’ll stop at nothing to remake the world in his horrifying image.
Ěý
And if Sancia can’t stop this ancient power from returning? Well, the only way to fight a god…is with another god.]]> 493 Robert Jackson Bennett 1524760390 Barb 5 4.02 2020
author: Robert Jackson Bennett
name: Barb
average rating: 4.02
book published: 2020
rating: 5
read at: 2022/09/20
date added: 2022/09/20
shelves: adult, courage, fantasy, friendship
review:
Well written with lots of action and plot twists. Read book one as this is book 2 and the magic system is explained in book one.
]]> 43587154 JADE CITY is a gripping Godfather-esque saga of intergenerational blood feuds, vicious politics, magic, and kungfu.

The Kaul family is one of two crime syndicates that control the island of Kekon. It's the only place in the world that produces rare magical jade, which grants those with the right training and heritage superhuman abilities.

The Green Bone clans of honorable jade-wearing warriors once protected the island from foreign invasion--but nowadays, in a bustling post-war metropolis full of fast cars and foreign money, Green Bone families like the Kauls are primarily involved in commerce, construction, and the everyday upkeep of the districts under their protection.

When the simmering tension between the Kauls and their greatest rivals erupts into open violence in the streets, the outcome of this clan war will determine the fate of all Green Bones and the future of Kekon itself.]]> 540 Fonda Lee 0316440884 Barb 4 fantasy 4.06 2017
author: Fonda Lee
name: Barb
average rating: 4.06
book published: 2017
rating: 4
read at: 2022/09/12
date added: 2022/09/12
shelves: fantasy
review:
Great world-building and political intrigue. I had a hard time getting into the characters. Whenever two characters started to have an interesting conversation it switched to someone else. Obviously most readers didn’t have a problem with the pacing. I’m not a fan of warring gangs but I liked the Hong Kong type backdrop and culture.
]]> 56896065
Eleven-year-old Ella Durand is the first Conjuror to attend the Arcanum Training Institute, where Marvellers from all around the world come together to practice their cultural arts like brewing Indian spice elixirs, practicing Caribbean steel drum hypnosis, and bartering with fussy Irish faeries. Ella knows some people mistrust her Conjuror magic, often deemed "bad and unnatural," but she's eager to make a good impression—and, hopefully, some friends.

But Ella discovers that being the first isn't easy, and not all of the Marvellers are welcoming. Still, she connects with fellow misfits Brigit, a girl who hates magic, and Jason, who is never found without a magical creature or two. Just as Ella begins to find her way at the A.T.I., a notorious criminal escapes from prison, supposedly with Conjurors� help. Worse, her favorite teacher Masterji Thakur never returns from a research trip, and only Ella seems concerned about his disappearance.

As tensions grow in the Marvellian world, Ella finds herself the target of vicious rumors and growing suspicions. With the help of her new friends, Ella must find a way to clear her family's name and track down her beloved mentor Masterji Thakur . . . before she loses her place at the A.T.I. forever.]]> 416 Dhonielle Clayton 1250174945 Barb 3 3.97 2022
author: Dhonielle Clayton
name: Barb
average rating: 3.97
book published: 2022
rating: 3
read at: 2022/08/26
date added: 2022/08/26
shelves: african-american, fantasy, prejudice, racism
review:
Similar to Harry Potter this story has a plot with a school setting where students learn their magical powers except the made up cultural groups reveal racism that parallels the African American experience in the US. I like how the author changes the narrative giving voice to those oppressed and silenced historically. Add this to your diverse book list.
]]> 53448205 For fans of Nevermoor and Howl's Moving Castle comes an epic middle grade fantasy about a girl with the ability to unlock anything—including the empire's darkest secrets.

Melanie Gate is a foundling with a peculiar talent for opening the unopenable—any lock releases at the touch of her hand. One night, her orphanage is visited by Traveler, a gearling automaton there on behalf of his magical mistress, who needs an apprentice pronto. When Melanie is selected because of her gift, her life changes in a flash, and in more ways than she knows—because Traveler is not at all what he seems. But then, neither is Melanie Gate.

So begins an epic adventure sparkling with magic, humor, secret identities, stinky cats, fierce orphan girls, impostor boys, and a foundling and gearling hotly pursued by the most powerful and dangerous wizard in the land.

Action-packed yet layered, The Lock-Eater is a mix of lush world-building, high stakes, humor, and emotional heft—a page-turner and so much more.

"Will have readers tumbling through the pages...Deeply immersive." —Soman Chainani,Ěýauthor of The School for Good and Evil series
"Perfect for fans of Ursula LeGuin and Diana Wynne Jones." —Eliot Schrefer, author of The Lost Rainforest series
"A thrill...Charming." �Kirkus]]> Zack Loran Clark Barb 5 fantasy, lgbtq 3.89 2022
author: Zack Loran Clark
name: Barb
average rating: 3.89
book published: 2022
rating: 5
read at: 2022/08/23
date added: 2022/08/23
shelves: fantasy, lgbtq
review:
A terrific book as a girl learns how to recognize boundaries that can make a person feel trapped, what it means to have family and be loved unconditionally, and embrace yourself.
]]> 44063292 The Frame-Up. Ali has always acted like a copycat to make friends, but when she unexpectedly inherits the ability to change her appearance at will, fitting in seems impossible! Luckily, with the help of her family, new friends, and a touch of magic, Ali might just survive middle school after all. A great pick for fans of Dan Gemeinhart, Erin Entrada Kelly, and Diana Wynne Jones.

Ali and her parents have moved at least once a year for as long as Ali can remember. She’s attended six different schools, lived in dozens of apartments, and never really felt at home anywhere. But Ali’s parents say living in Saint John, New Brunswick, will be different. They’ve moved in with Ali’s great-grandmother—a spunky 99-year-old with a quirky old house that has room for all of them. Ali wants to believe this will be their last move, but everything seems too perfect to be true.

To Ali’s surprise, things are different this time, but not in the way she hoped. She’s finally inherited the Sloane family powers—the ability to change her appearance into any living thing. Ali is a Copycat. Literally. And being the new kid at school is hard enough without worrying about losing control of your powers and turning into your teacher. Luckily, Ali’s new friends are eager to help her use her newfound power. But as Ali soon learns, being a Copycat is no substitute for being yourself.

Wendy McLeod MacKnight’s The Copycat is an imaginative and surprising middle-school story about friendship, family, and self-confidence that is perfect for fans of John David Anderson’s Posted and Katherine Applegate’s Wishtree.]]> 427 Wendy McLeod MacKnight 0062668358 Barb 4 courage, fantasy 4.11 2020
author: Wendy McLeod MacKnight
name: Barb
average rating: 4.11
book published: 2020
rating: 4
read at: 2022/08/17
date added: 2022/08/17
shelves: courage, fantasy
review:
A clever twist on accepting yourself.
]]> 9532
Growing up is never easy. But try living on the mean streets as a child begging for food and fighting like a dog with ruthless gangs of starving kids who wouldn't hesitate to pound your skull into pulp for a scrap of apple. If Bean has learned anything on the streets, it's how to survive. And not with fists. He is way too small for that. But with brains.

Bean is a genius with a magician's ability to zero in on his enemy and exploit his weakness.

What better quality for a future general to lead the Earth in a final climactic battle against a hostile alien race, known as Buggers. At Battleschool Bean meets and befriends another future commander - Ender Wiggins - perhaps his only true rival.

Only one problem: for Bean and Ender, the future is now.

Ender's Shadow is the book that launched The Shadow Series, and the parallel novel to Orson Scott Card's science fiction classic, Ender's Game.]]> 469 Orson Scott Card 0765342405 Barb 5 adult, fantasy 4.32 1999
author: Orson Scott Card
name: Barb
average rating: 4.32
book published: 1999
rating: 5
read at: 2022/08/14
date added: 2022/08/14
shelves: adult, fantasy
review:
Ender’s Game is one of my favorite books and this spin off on another character was a great read.
]]> 37173847
But unbeknownst to her, Sancia’s been sent to steal an artifact of unimaginable power, an object that could revolutionize the magical technology known as scriving. The Merchant Houses who control this magic--the art of using coded commands to imbue everyday objects with sentience--have already used it to transform Tevanne into a vast, remorseless capitalist machine. But if they can unlock the artifact’s secrets, they will rewrite the world itself to suit their aims.

Now someone in those Houses wants Sancia dead, and the artifact for themselves. And in the city of Tevanne, there’s nobody with the power to stop them.

To have a chance at surviving—and at stopping the deadly transformation that’s under way—Sancia will have to marshal unlikely allies, learn to harness the artifact’s power for herself, and undergo her own transformation, one that will turn her into something she could never have imagined.]]> 501 Robert Jackson Bennett 1524760374 Barb 5 4.16 2018
author: Robert Jackson Bennett
name: Barb
average rating: 4.16
book published: 2018
rating: 5
read at: 2022/07/26
date added: 2022/07/26
shelves: adult, fantasy, lgbtq, prejudice
review:
Nonstop action, great plot twists, interesting themes, and funny.
]]> 33395234
Taj is the most talented of the aki, young sin-eaters indentured by the mages to slay the sin-beasts. But Taj’s livelihood comes at a terrible cost. When he kills a sin-beast, a tattoo of the beast appears on his skin while the guilt of committing the sin appears on his mind. Most aki are driven mad by the process, but 17-year-old Taj is cocky and desperate to provide for his family.

When Taj is called to eat a sin of a royal, he’s suddenly thrust into the center of a dark conspiracy to destroy Kos. Now Taj must fight to save the princess that he loves � and his own life.

A gritty Nigerian-influenced fantasy.]]> 304 Tochi Onyebuchi 044849390X Barb 3 fantasy 3.27 2017
author: Tochi Onyebuchi
name: Barb
average rating: 3.27
book published: 2017
rating: 3
read at: 2022/07/24
date added: 2022/07/24
shelves: fantasy
review:

]]> 33099588 The Black Tides of Heaven is one of a pair of standalone introductions to Neon Yang's Tensorate Series. For more of the story you can read its twin novella The Red Threads of Fortune

Mokoya and Akeha, the twin children of the Protector, were sold to the Grand Monastery as children. While Mokoya developed her strange prophetic gift, Akeha was always the one who could see the strings that moved adults to action. While his sister received visions of what would be, Akeha realized what could be. What's more, he saw the sickness at the heart of his mother's Protectorate.

A rebellion is growing. The Machinists discover new levers to move the world every day, while the Tensors fight to put them down and preserve the power of the state. Unwilling to continue to play a pawn in his mother's twisted schemes, Akeha leaves the Tensorate behind and falls in with the rebels. But every step Akeha takes towards the Machinists is a step away from his sister Mokoya. Can Akeha find peace without shattering the bond he shares with his twin sister?]]> 236 Neon Yang 076539541X Barb 3 adult, fantasy, lgbtq 3.70 2017
author: Neon Yang
name: Barb
average rating: 3.70
book published: 2017
rating: 3
read at: 2022/07/20
date added: 2022/07/20
shelves: adult, fantasy, lgbtq
review:
Well-written but I wanted it more fleshed out. The ending felt abrupt.
]]> 22299763
Kaz Brekker and his crew of deadly outcasts have just pulled off a heist so daring even they didn't think they'd survive. But instead of divvying up a fat reward, they're right back to fighting for their lives.

Double-crossed and badly weakened, the crew is low on resources, allies, and hope. As powerful forces from around the world descend on Ketterdam to root out the secrets of the dangerous drug known as jurda parem, old rivals and new enemies emerge to challenge Kaz's cunning and test the team's fragile loyalties.

A war will be waged on the city's dark and twisting streets - a battle for revenge and redemption that will decide the fate of the Grisha world.]]> 561 Leigh Bardugo Barb 3 fantasy 4.58 2016
author: Leigh Bardugo
name: Barb
average rating: 4.58
book published: 2016
rating: 3
read at: 2022/07/18
date added: 2022/07/18
shelves: fantasy
review:
A rags to riches story. Lots of action if unbelievable in spots. The love stories seemed similar and repetitive. I thought it slowed down. A twisty plot but too many impossibilities than the first one. Still fun.
]]> 58293924 Book of Night, a modern dark fantasy of shadowy thieves and secret societies.

In Charlie Hall’s world, shadows can be altered, for entertainment and cosmetic preferences—but also to increase power and influence. You can alter someone’s feelings—and memories—but manipulating shadows has a cost, with the potential to take hours or days from your life. Your shadow holds all the parts of you that you want to keep hidden—a second self, standing just to your left, walking behind you into lit rooms. And sometimes, it has a life of its own.

Charlie is a low-level con artist, working as a bartender while trying to distance herself from the powerful and dangerous underground world of shadow trading. She gets by doing odd jobs for her patrons and the naive new money in her town at the edge of the Berkshires. But when a terrible figure from her past returns, Charlie’s present life is thrown into chaos, and her future seems at best, unclear—and at worst, non-existent. Determined to survive, Charlie throws herself into a maelstrom of secrets and murder, setting her against a cast of doppelgängers, mercurial billionaires, shadow thieves, and her own sister—all desperate to control the magic of the shadows.]]> 304 Holly Black 1250812194 Barb 3 adult, fantasy 3.51 2022
author: Holly Black
name: Barb
average rating: 3.51
book published: 2022
rating: 3
read at: 2022/07/15
date added: 2022/07/15
shelves: adult, fantasy
review:
This read more like a mystery with fairy tale elements. I enjoyed the fast pace and plot twists but didn’t like the flashbacks to their relationship. The two main characters relationship isn’t fleshed out in the beginning leading to me having little interest in the guy. Great cliffhanger ending as she wrapped up all the pieces.
]]> 25372801 316 Charlie Jane Anders 0765379945 Barb 4 3.57 2016
author: Charlie Jane Anders
name: Barb
average rating: 3.57
book published: 2016
rating: 4
read at: 2022/07/13
date added: 2022/07/13
shelves: adult, bully, dystopia, fantasy
review:
A strange book where the apocalyptic end to the world is avoided. I liked how the author uses the ancient wise tree in a unique way that reminds of creation stories and misunderstood witches and how societies persecute them. The start is a bit long with the bullying but it comes together at the end.
]]> 22295304
Sierra soon discovers a supernatural order called the Shadowshapers, who connect with spirits via paintings, music, and stories. Her grandfather once shared the order's secrets with an anthropologist, Dr. Jonathan Wick, who turned the Caribbean magic to his own foul ends. Now Wick wants to become the ultimate Shadowshaper by killing all the others, one by one. With the help of her friends and the hot graffiti artist Robbie, Sierra must dodge Wick's supernatural creations, harness her own Shadowshaping abilities, and save her family's past, present, and future.]]> 297 Daniel José Older 0545591619 Barb 4 african-american, fantasy, ya A fun young adult fantasy. 3.74 2015
author: Daniel José Older
name: Barb
average rating: 3.74
book published: 2015
rating: 4
read at: 2022/07/12
date added: 2022/07/12
shelves: african-american, fantasy, ya
review:
A fun young adult fantasy.
]]> 59004680
Onyeka has a lot of hair­—the kind that makes strangers stop in the street and her peers whisper behind her back. At least she has Cheyenne, her best friend, who couldn’t care less what other people think. Still, Onyeka has always felt insecure about her vibrant curls…until the day Cheyenne almost drowns and Onyeka’s hair takes on a life of its own, inexplicably pulling Cheyenne from the water.

At home, Onyeka’s mother tells her the shocking Onyeka’s psychokinetic powers make her a Solari, one of a secret group of people with superpowers unique to Nigeria. Her mother quickly whisks her off to the Academy of the Sun, a school in Nigeria where Solari are trained. But Onyeka and her new friends at the academy soon have to put their powers to the test as they find themselves embroiled in a momentous battle between truth and lies…]]> 310 Tọlá Okogwu 1665912618 Barb 3 fantasy 4.07 2022
author: Tọlá Okogwu
name: Barb
average rating: 4.07
book published: 2022
rating: 3
read at: 2022/07/11
date added: 2022/07/11
shelves: fantasy
review:
A fun read about a Nigerian girl with super powers. Follows the fantasy-school trope where she learns to manage her superpowers while making friends. There’s a contest at school as students compete with each other. The ending is a cliffhanger.
]]> 56620847
Suddenly, day turns to night, everyone around Amira and Hamza falls under a sleep spell, and a chunk of the moon breaks off, hurtling toward them at lightning speed, as they come face-to-face with two otherworldly creatures: jinn.

The jinn reveal that the siblings have a role to play in an ancient prophecy. Together, they must journey to the mystical land of Qaf, battle a great evil, and end a civil war to prevent the moon—the stopper between realms—from breaking apart and unleashing terrifying jinn, devs, and ghuls onto earth. Or they might have to say goodbye to their parents and life as they know it, forever.…]]> 368 Samira Ahmed 0316540463 Barb 4 diversity, fantasy, muslim 3.67 2021
author: Samira Ahmed
name: Barb
average rating: 3.67
book published: 2021
rating: 4
read at: 2022/06/22
date added: 2022/06/22
shelves: diversity, fantasy, muslim
review:
This was funny and good for fans of Percy Jackson or Aruh Shah series.
]]> 57698605 Packed with superheroes, supervillains, and epic showdowns between good and evil, The Unforgettable Logan Foster from debut author Shawn Peter shows that sometimes being a hero is just about being yourself.

Logan Foster has pretty much given up on the idea of ever being adopted. It could have something to with his awkward manner, his photographic memory, or his affection for reciting curious facts, but whatever the cause, Logan and his "PP's" (prospective parents) have never clicked.

Then everything changes when Gil and Margie arrive. Although they aren't exactly perfect themselves--Gil has the punniest sense of humor and Margie's cooking would have anyone running for the hills--they genuinely seem to care.

But it doesn't take Logan long to notice some very odd things about them. They are out at all hours, they never seem to eat, and there's a part of the house that is protected by some pretty elaborate security.

No matter what Logan could have imagined, nothing prepared him for the truth: His PP's are actually superheroes, and they're being hunted down by dastardly forces. Logan's found himself caught in the middle in a massive battle and the very fate of the world may hang in the balance. Will Logan be able to find a way to save the day and his new family?]]> 272 Shawn Peters 0063047675 Barb 4 3.97 2022
author: Shawn Peters
name: Barb
average rating: 3.97
book published: 2022
rating: 4
read at: 2022/06/12
date added: 2022/06/12
shelves: disability, divorce, fantasy, hero
review:
Funny, with good character development and plot. A humorous kids version of Marvels Agents of Steel with an autistic, orphaned main character finding an adoptive family.
]]> 4835 Haroun and the Sea of Stories inhabits the same imaginative space as Gulliver's Travels, Alice in Wonderland, and The Wizard of Oz. In this captivating novel, Haroun sets out on an adventure to restore the poisoned source of the sea of stories. On the way, he encounters many foes, all intent on draining the sea of all its storytelling powers.]]> 224 Salman Rushdie 0670886580 Barb 5 fantasy, magical-realism 3.99 1990
author: Salman Rushdie
name: Barb
average rating: 3.99
book published: 1990
rating: 5
read at: 2022/06/07
date added: 2022/06/07
shelves: fantasy, magical-realism
review:
This felt like Alice in Wonderland meets The Phantom Tollbooth - great writing, silly, an allegory,and plenty of themes.
]]> 7767021 An award-winning literary author presents her first foray into supernatural fantasy with a novel of post-apocalyptic Africa.

In a far future, post-nuclear-holocaust Africa, genocide plagues one region. The aggressors, the Nuru, have decided to follow the Great Book and exterminate the Okeke. But when the only surviving member of a slain Okeke village is brutally raped, she manages to escape, wandering farther into the desert. She gives birth to a baby girl with hair and skin the color of sand and instinctively knows that her daughter is different. She names her daughter Onyesonwu, which means "Who Fears Death?" in an ancient African tongue.

Reared under the tutelage of a mysterious and traditional shaman, Onyesonwu discovers her magical destiny � to end the genocide of her people. The journey to fulfill her destiny will force her to grapple with nature, tradition, history, true love, the spiritual mysteries of her culture � and eventually death itself.]]> 386 Nnedi Okorafor 075640617X Barb 4 3.92 2010
author: Nnedi Okorafor
name: Barb
average rating: 3.92
book published: 2010
rating: 4
read at: 2022/06/05
date added: 2022/06/05
shelves: abuse, anger, diversity, fantasy
review:
What a dark, mystical book. I’m not sure what I think of it. The violence is disturbing but it is meant to be. It’s based on weaponized rape during the Darfur genocide in Sudan.
]]>