Book Reviews by Genre: Fantasy

If you are looking forward to diving into the fascinating world of dwarves, wizards and elves and feel ready to fight evil wolves, man-eating trolls and a fire-breathing dragon Smaug, then The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien is definitely for you. A warm children’s fantasy novel, which, however, will captivate the hearts of many adults, takes you to the atmosphere of fairy tales that you were listening to by the fireplace as a kid.
The main character, hobbit Bilbo, at first reminds us of ourselves. He, as all the hobbits are supposed to do, loves eating good food, spending time at home and making their houses cute and cozy. However, his routine crashed as a dropped pot, when a wizard Gendalf knocked at his door. Welcoming him inside, Bilbo could not even imagine that soon he would go on a true adventure all the way to the Lonely Mountain and save an ancient treasure from the claws of a furious dragon. On his way he will meet many different creatures, make friends and enemies, defeat mountain trolls, get captured by giant spiders, get into another captivity right after that, outplay Gollum in the caves and get the magical ring. But what is more important, Bilbo will turn into a brave warrior (what a shame for the entire generations of hobbits!) and a loyal companion.
The author's writing style and original universe makes it impossible to stay indifferent to the story. Kind and soft narration wraps you as an old blanket and keeps you cozy even in the coldest evenings. Younger readers, as well as their parents, will find many life lessons on the pages of The Hobbit, such as why it is important to make smart choices, appreciate your friendships and be ready to help those who are in trouble. The book is an awesome pick for both family time and independent reading.

We Hunt the Flame is about a girl named Zafira who is forced to take on the role of breadwinner after her father died. She is a strong-willed, independent character who gets dragged into a quest to find a rare item with incomparable power. While she has noble intentions, the prince, Nasir, takes on a role of assassin as he fights to find the artifact before she does. I really liked the slow-burn romance throughout the book, and how Zafira's personality doesn't change as she falls in love. Nasir's character arc is a really important lesson too, as he struggles with a need for approval from his father, and the cost of that approval. The other characters were really interesting as well. The author did a wonderful job of describing each personality, so even though there were a lot of characters, I never got confused between them. Near the end, a lot of the action did muddle what I thought would be an epic conclusion to the book, and the plot twists at the end were interesting but not necessary. It was obvious that the author wanted to set up a plot for the second book, but it felt forced. However, the characters were likeable, not predictable, so you might catch me reading the sequel!
Grade 12

A Thousand Pieces of You by Claudia Gray is a science fiction and adventure novel that anybody would love. This easy read quickly starts off with our main character, Marguerite, jumping into an alternate reality chasing her friend who killed her father. She catches him, but before he slips out of her grasp, she is conflicted with the question if he really did it or not. This book mixes physics for any math lovers, adventure for any aspiring traveler, and just a little bit of romance that makes it difficult to grasp onto what is real or fake. I would recommend this book to anybody who is in a reading slump and needs a good pick me up.
Jaala 12

The Orphan's Tales: In the Cities of Coin & Spice is the second book in a two-book series, and the better of the pair by far. It's a deeply warm-feeling fantasy tale about a multitude of characters (which I'll discuss further in a moment), feeling 'adult' without being overly edgy or dark. In the style of 1001 Nights and similar fairytales, The Orphan's Tales is told through stories and anecdotes from almost every named character, something like a matryoshka doll in story form. This results in a cast where no one character feels sidelined or irrelevant, and in which every character is almost equally lovable-- my personal favorite is Oubliette, a huldra (which is described as being a sort of combination of a girl, a cow and a tree) who is seeking independence after being rejected and labeled wicked by her family.
As with most books, The Orphan's Tales: In the Cities of Coin & Spice is not free of problems; it uses some language that is now considered unacceptable, and there is one character who proceeds to go into a pages-long monologue largely concerning castration, but these are the only glaring issues. The prose and story structure may also confuse or overwhelm readers, but those who are prepared will likely find a great deal of enjoyment in it!

The dashing young king, Nikolai Lantsov, has always had a gift for the impossible. No one knows what he endured in his country's bloody civil war -- and he intends to keep it that way. But some secrets aren't meant to stay buried -- and some wounds aren't meant to heal. This is not really a book of spills and thrills, but its biggest triumph lies in its deep undercurrents, in the attention and care that Leigh Bardugo pours into her characters -- into their failures and successes, and their responses to trauma, threats, and uncertainties. Bardugo breathes vivid life into each one of her characters, and lays their hearts open to the reader, which is easily perceived through the multiple different point-of-views. As a result, there is a devastating sense throughout that the characters are being stripped down to their essence, revealed in all of their glassy fragility and heartfelt vulnerability. Fantasy, politics, inner-demons, and romance -- all used to support this novel through character development and unexpected turns in the story. The King of Scars duology is my favorite out of the entire Grishaverse series -- combining storylines and characters from both the Shadow and Bone trilogy and the Six of Crows duology. I absolutely loved this book, and would definitely recommend the series.

The only thing keeping this book from a full 5 stars is the fact that I'm still upset about a choice Leigh Bardugo had made in writing the end of the book. I won't spoil anything, but I will say, I have never cried harder over anything. This book opens where we left off with Wylan wearing Kuwei Yul-Bo's face, and our gang must rescue Inej, get revenge, and defeat the bad guys. But that doesn't even begin to sum up all of the action, adventure, and craziness that this novel entails. And as well as being dark and compelling, the characters and relationships we love become even more fascinating and developed. Kaz and Inej, Jesper and Wylan, and Matthias and Nina have come quite far with each other, and draw me in more and more as time goes on. This found family has been and always will be my favorite group from any novel. The ending was devastating, but it was absolutely amazing. It was the kind of ending a story like this deserves -- the kind that leaves you wanting more, but knowing that it finished in exactly the right place.

After tricking Prince Cardan to not only be king, but also into obeying her every command for a year and a day, Jude steps up as the new king's seneschal. With nearly the entire kingdom of the High Court of Faerie, at her command, Jude conspires of how to keep the throne from her evil step-father, Madoc, and hold it until her step-brother, Oak, is old enough to rule. Kidnappings, murder, betrayal, scheming, plot-twists, unexpected and unspoken thoughts, The Wicked King was a book I never wanted to end. Holly Black uses such captivating diction, dialogue, and imagery, it constantly had me yearning for more. If I could read this story over and over again for the first time, I would. Holly Black has a way of combining politics, war, calculating and powerful Faerie, and sub-plots of romance; nothing too overbearing or confusing. It has everything I could ever wish for in a fantasy book. I definitely recommend reading this novel to anyone and everyone.

The first book in Stephanie Garber's trilogy is a fantasy story about two sisters and their adventure at a nighttime, carnivalesque game. Scarlett Dragna leaves the tiny island where her and her sister, Donatella, live with their cruel and powerful father. Their exigence for leaving was the long awaited invitation to the legendary Caraval. Only, as soon as Scarlett and her sister reach the island, her sister is kidnapped. In order to save her sister, Scarlett must win the game. Scarlett has been told that everything that happens during Caraval is a mere performance. Getting entangled in a game of magic, love, heartbreak, and manipulation, Scarlett must stay focused and find her sister within the five nights of the game, or Donatella will be lost forever. The less you know about the book, the better. The more confused you are, the more you will enjoy it. I sat down and read this book in a matter of a couple of hours. Plot-twist after plot-twist -- once you start to think you finally understand what is going on, Garber turns the story around and confuses you once again. This is a story I will never forget reading, and I definitely recommend it to anyone who enjoys fantasy with a bit of mystery.
Reviewer's Grade: 11th

The book is about a book loving kid named Ollie who after coming home from school sees a woman trying to throw a book into water. Ollie of course takes the book away from her and got a warning. The book Ollie got slowly connects to the farm she's visiting for a field trip. After the trip the bus breaks down and they find themselves listening to the bus driver and leaving into the fog. Which led them to a creepy place where scarecrows roam around at the night. Overall I loved to see the book slowly connect as the pieces began making sense. You get to see the characters grow emotionally and begin to understand each other. The eerie feeling of the book fits and the ending makes it feel like it's gone back to this small town and nothing ever happened.

I started reading this book in 2012, just a few years before the movie was released. This book is a personal favorite of mine that I have read over and over again. This dystopian story follows a boy who was placed in the center of a maze with several other boys and follows his journey as he uncovers dark truths and attempts to escape the maze. Personally, I love the attention to detail in this book and how it keeps you on your seat throughout the story all the way to the end. In no way was this book predictable. When I first read this book I wasn't aware that it was of a series, so I was delighted to find out there were more books because of how great of a story it was. I would recommend this book to tweens and up since there is some mature material such as fighting and dying (it doesn't go into gory detail). Overall, this is a great read that I would personally highly recommend!

Ivy Gamble is a private detective who can't do magic. Her twin sister, who she hasn't spoken to in years, is magic. And Ivy Gamble definitely isn't bitter about this. When Ivy is hired to solve a horrific murder at The Osthorne Academy of Young Mages where her sister teaches, Ivy must face the losses in her past, the uncertainty of her future, and all the lies she's been telling herself.
Reading this book is like reading a short story. I mean that in the best possible way, in that the story is so tight and focused that it carries an emotional punch that usually comes best out of a short story. Some characters could be seen as one-sided, but for the most part every person in the book is given an opportunity to push beyond what they seem to be and surprise the audience in new and interesting ways. The two stars of the show would definitely be Ivy and her sister. Their relationship alone carries a depth and complexity I haven't seen in a while, and each on their own have a ton of layers to explore. I would also like to praise the worldbuilding of the book, mostly in that there isn't much of it. The book does enough to let us know what characters can and can't do, but it doesn't bother going to into a lot of unnecessary details. This is part of the reason the story is so tight and effective: the book trusts us all to have read books about magic schools, and doesn't bother trying to break the mold in a story that's about something completely different. I also like how the book is told through Ivy's point of view. It's well done in a lot of ways, mainly in the way it shows the twisty perceptions this book is about, and in how it shows Ivy herself. For example, Ivy spends much of the book obsessed with the fact that she could've been magic, but anyone reading can easily see that being a detective was the best path for her anyway. Its amazing how competent Ivy is, and how much that shines through despite her narration. I also like the plot twists this book does, how they're pretty predictable but are still so fun to watch unfold. The ending was surprisingly anticlimactic to me at first, but now I can see the way the book was trying to create a realistic ending, and let the audience hope for it to eventually be a happy one.
All in all, this was an amazing joyride of a book. I'd recommend it to anyone who loves magic, mysteries, complex characters, and stunning writing!
Reviewer Grade: 12

At first look, The School for Good & Evil may look like your classic and basic fantasy book with a little romance. Even though there is so much more, this book has so much depth to its plot, and just how the world is set up could be a whole book in itself. It starts in this little classic village that looks like any classic medieval village, maybe a bit more sophisticated. This village for the past 150 years has had two of their children aged around 16, boy or girl, taken from their village in the middle of the night and they are never seen again. The villagers try their hardest to stop this force that takes them, yet every year they fail. They go looking for them in the forest surrounding the village but every time someone has gone looking they go in on one side of the forest and appear out of the forest on the other side of the village. Then every year a book shows up full of stories, some including people who look like the children taken, the bookmaker then copies this book over and over to sell to everyone in the village. These stories are the classic fairy tales that everyone has heard of, as well as fairy tales we have never heard of. The village people have no clue where the children go or what happens to them except for the maybes in the books. Yet they know one thing, one child is good and one is evil.
The story starts with two girls, Sophie and Agatha, two best friends, yet opposites. Sophie is your classic-looking princess who has flawless skin, long golden blonde hair, beautiful clothes, almost the best house in the village, and is kind to everyone. While Agatha is your classic-looking witch who dresses in all black, doesn’t care about her appearance much, lives in a graveyard, has a cat that seemed to come from hell, and her mother is the witch doctor of the village. Both the same age, everyone knew they would be taken, knowing which is good and which is evil. Sophie wanted to leave desperately and did everything she possibly could to make sure she would be taken, Agatha wanted to stay in her quaint little life and not leave the village, her mom, and her cat. When the day came that the children would be taken everyone in the village worked to blockade every window door and make sure everyone stayed inside, while everyone older lined along the forest. Sophie prepared to be taken, and Agatha prepared to save her best friend from being taken. Night fell and as it turned out both Agatha and Sophie were taken, it was not a fun ride; they were pulled through the forest, the branches ripping their skin, then flying above in the claws of some bird. The two girls then saw the castles, the school for good and evil, one castle bright and shining and the other dark and gloomy. A fog came in and the girls couldn’t see anymore, they then were both dropped first Agatha and then Sophie. Yet Sophie woke up in the swamp of the evil castle and Agatha woke up in the shining clear blue lake of the good castle, something no one anticipated.
This book was something I never expected, I thought it would just be a bunch of fluff and would be a really short, easy, and bland read. NOT AT ALL. This book changed my expectations of how books should be written. This book was like something I have never read before. The twist on how we see fairytales is insane and shows what we never would have thought happened. There are so many twists and turns that even though you know the general idea of the book, you have no clue what is going to happen on every single page. This book would be great for anyone that loves reading fairy tales, fantasy, drama, and a little bit of a dark side twist in books.
Reviewer Grade: 12

I first read this book when I was much younger and have read it many times since then, yet not in recent years. I just finished reading it once again about a month ago. Just like when I read the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe for the very first time there was so much magic and wonder that engulfed me once more, and will again many times more.
It begins during the Blitz in 1940 with a family of four kids, Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy. They, like many other children during this time, go to the countryside of England to escape the war and be safe. Yet their time in the countryside will be much different than any of the other children’s. They arrive at this mansion owned by a professor, who has a housekeeper that doesn’t want children there and makes sure that they don’t touch anything. The four children don’t want to leave their family and their home in London, but the homesickness fades away quickly once they start to have fun in the house and find a world of magic and endless possibilities. Lucy, the youngest of the four, finds a wardrobe hidden away in a spare room in the house, in it are a bunch of fur coats. She makes her way through with her eyes closed as the soft fur rubs against her cheeks when she suddenly feels something prickly and cold. She finds herself in a wood in the middle of winter and a faint light in the distance, the light coming from a singular light post in the middle of nowhere and nothing to power it. Here she meets Mr. Tumnus, a faun, who invites her for tea and cakes. She spends hours with him and learns about the land she is in, Narnia which is in a 100-year winter, and that she is the first human in this strange land in a long time, as well as that there is a witch, the White Witch, who has enslaved all of Narnia. When she returned she had been gone for hours, yet to her siblings, it was mere seconds, they didn’t believe her and when they went to check the wardrobe there was no wood. Edmund was especially mean about it but followed her in the middle of the night and found himself in the middle of the same forest she described and Edmund met the White Witch. One day all four children were rushed into the wardrobe as the housekeeper gave tours of the house since it had many relics, and they found themselves all in Narnia, not at all ready for the adventure ahead of them.
This magical place and book always make me feel like I was there with Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy, as they had their adventures. The magic that C. S. Lewis was able to resonate with me every day as I too looked for a magical portal to a world unknown. This book is so enveloping as you read and finish it, it stays with you for years, making you think in ways you never thought of before. This book is an amazing book for anyone looking for an amazing fantasy book or a book that every time you read it you see something new.
Reviewer Grade: 12

I have always loved Greek mythology, so when I found this book I knew I would love it. I was right I loved it, it was amazing. The Lightning Thief centers around a pre-teen named Percy Jackson, who lives in New York and has trouble in school. He has been in and out of many schools, almost a different one each year. At twelve years old Percy always felt like an outcast, like he fit in somewhere just not anywhere. He struggled with dyslexia and ADHD. Every year at school he has had some strange occurrence that ends up getting him kicked out. He has a best friend, Grover, and an amazing mother, Sally. He also has a stepfather that is abusive and he has pushed his mother to leave him but she won’t. There is a reason though for all of what Percy has gone through in his life. After encounters with many horrible and terrifying events and things in which most try to kill him, he and Grover end up at Camp Half-Blood. At camp he learns many new things, his best friend isn’t human but a centaur, his father is the God of the sea, Poseidon, and there is a prophecy that he is destined for great things. At camp Percy meets Annabeth, a girl that is a child of Athena the goddess of wisdom and warcraft, she is crazy smart and very resourceful, yet also seems to be an amazing friend and person altogether. As the three of them go on a quest to find Zeus's missing lightning bolt and return it to him. Percy, Grover, and Annabeth set out across the country for a quest of a lifetime, all at the age of 12/13. Percy and his friends face monsters and things they never could have imagined.
This book was honestly one of the best books I have read ever, and I have read a LOT of books. Although it is for a bit younger age group it is still an amazing read for anyone who is looking for a lighthearted and funny fantasy and adventure book, combined with Greek mythology and overall great writing and plot structure.
Reviewer Grade: 12

As a continuation of Percy Jackson and the Olympians series comes The Lost Hero. A novel continuing the world of Percy Jackson with all new faces and plots. Just like the original Percy Jackson series, I loved this first book of the Heroes of Olympus. The Lost Hero begins with Jason, a kid who can’t remember anything of his past waking up on a school bus with other students and two people talking to him. These two people are Piper and Leo, his apparent best friends and girlfriend. He doesn’t remember either of them at all. Even though they remember him and all the memories they shared. Piper is a kid from a famous father who does bad things to get his attention. Leo is the comedic relief of the group and makes everyone laugh, while also being a genius with mechanics. They are all in a school for delinquents and their actions sent them there. They are visiting the grand canyon when all of a sudden monsters attack causing everyone to panic. Jason starts to speak Latin randomly even though Piper and Leo had no clue he spoke it and never heard it, and Jason didn’t know that he could either. Jason also refers to the Gods with their roman names as the monsters talk to them. They are rescued by people from camp half blood and as expected there are some familiar faces. They get to camp and realize why they act the way they do and are eventually sorted into their cabins and Godly parents. They hear a prophecy and are instructed to save Hera and hear a new prophecy. They start on their quest and along the way, they learn more about each other and build a friendship from scratch again starting from the school bus. They encounter many new and different minor Gods and Goddesses as well as new creatures and people never seen before.
Just like Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, Rick Riordan can make new and exciting plots and characters. The amount of detail in this book was upped by a lot compared to his earlier works as they were much larger and could fit in much more story, allowing for a better and deeper story. I would suggest this book and the rest of Rick Riordan's books to anyone that loves Greek mythology, great writing, and as well as adventure, fantasy, comedy, friendship, mystery, and a little bit of romance all tied up into one great book.
Reviewer Grade: 12

Storm Break follows Harry Dresden, the only wizard-for-hire in the country, as he investigates a grisly murder that could only be done by dark magic. Along the way, he'll have to juggle the case of an abandoned wife, the demands of his only friend in the force, the pressures of a sentient skull, and the condemnation of a council that wants to end him once and for all.
I didn't give this book three stars because it's a decent book. I gave this book three stars because it does some things really, really well and some things really, really badly. Throughout my reading, my internal rating jumped between one and four stars, so I stuck with three because it was mostly a good book and two stars should be reserved for boring books. And this definitely wasn't boring.
On the good side, I enjoyed the world building. It remains typical enough to the urban fantasy realm to seem cozy without being boring. Every magical creature has the exciting things we're used to, with some extra thrown in for fun, and lots of personality to make up for any stereotypical writing. The creatures and world building sell the danger of the world, making the stakes very high in the first book, something I appreciate. I like the main character, Harry Dresden, because he's a funny guy. I mean funny in that he cracks actually funny jokes, as well as funny as in he doesn't ever think things through and the outcome is always hilarious. I also like how the Harry has a "sad hidden backstory", but its not really hidden or sad because he talks about it so matter-of-factly that you forget how messed up it is in context. I loved the mystery of the novel, even if some twists threw me for a loop. The writing could also be surprisingly emotional for whats meant to be a cynical cop novel, in a way that really makes you sympathize with the twisted situation the protagonist is in, as well as the innocent people wrapped up in it. The ending was very satisfying and climactic and well bought, and really kept me invested until the end. Basically, its a very good urban fantasy novel with a fascinating protagonist and a thrilling story!
Now for the really, really bad stuff. Or just one really, really bad thing. In short: the author of this story has no idea how to write women. Or, he knows how to write women, and he just chooses to do it in the worst way possible. Every single woman in this book is one of three things: desperate for help from the dashing protagonist, incredibly attractive for no reason and really into the protagonist, or a token "strong independent woman" who devolves into one of the other two types within chapters. And I cannot stress how jarring this was. The author can write witty dialogue and fantastical creatures and heart wrenching emotion, but he can't write a single female character without sexualizing or demeaning her in some way. It's like walking through a local art gallery full of beautiful landscapes and self portraits, and then out of the blue there's a two-year-old's finger painting. I could go on for hours about how bad it was, and I really want to, but basically: about half of the women in this book are prostitutes, about half of the women die horribly and helplessly, most of them hit on Dresden and he always assumes its to seduce him for nefarious purposes, and not a single one of them has more than a shred of autonomy, character, or soul. All of that had to go into the main character, who is amazing alone, but whenever he's around woman he feels like a gross power fantasy that I can't sympathize with until about ten pages after he shares a conversation with a female character.
All in all, this book is a frustration. I want to enjoy the world building and fun characters and funny moments and good plot, but every so often a woman is introduced and I have to resist the urge to track the author down and throw the book at his face. If you can suffer through that, there is some great writing to be found! If you can't, I don't blame you.
Reviewer Grade: 12

Oathbringer is the third installation in the amazing Stormlight Archive. With their homeland overrun by "Voidbringers" (or is it...🤔), Dalinar Kholin and co must find a way to end this Desolation without being wiped from Roshar, and without the help of the Heralds of the Almighty, or the Almighty himself. Urithiru, the city of the Knights Radient, has a new, unwelcome occupant that is mimicking acts of violence that happen in the tower city. The city conceals more knowledge that no one knew, including an unpleasent fact about humanity's orgins on Roshar, their "homeworld".

The second book of The Magicians trilogy continues with Quentin, Julia, Eliot, and Janet as kings and queens of Fillory before a quest throws Quentin and Julia back to Earth, and that quest being a snippet of a bigger problem for all magicians.
I enjoyed this book better than the first one. The world is more fleshed out, the plot is more interesting, and characters are more fleshed out (Quentin remains more or less the same to me, though). The biggest aspect of the book to me is Julia. In the first book, she is rarely shown and when she is, there is zero context on what was going on with her. In this installment, we get to see her backstory and her current character as the book oscillates between the current conflict and Julia's story during the events of The Magicians. Seeing her change and how it affects her (especially at the end of the book) is such a pivotal point of her dynamic with Quentin, as well as a driving force for the plot and world building (remember hedge witches?).
Other characters from the first book make their reappearance, along with some new ones, which bring some new life into the story . However, one character is largely excluded: Janet. While she appears in the beginning, she is left off the majority of the story. While the story doesn't necessarily need her, being a key character in the first book and a queen of the setting of the story, it would have been nice to see her more within the pages.
This a definitely a good edition to the series, and with the ending and some loose ends, I wonder how the final book will tie everything together.
Reader's Grade: 11

I rate this book three stars. The book tells the story of Pi, a young boy who escapes a sinking ship full of animals onto an escape boat. The only problem is, he is stuck with a tiger on the escape boat. The book explains the journey Pi takes to tame and live with the tiger. I can relate to Pi in the sense that we will step up to incredible levels when necessary. I would recommend this book to anyone.

Dune is the first book in a series by Frank Herbert (something I didn't know until after I had started reading). This was a wonderfully imaginative book with interesting characters, conflict, and world building.
You follow Paul as he travels to the planet of Arrakis. You similarly follow those close to him, notably his mother, Jessica, as they all grow accustomed to the unfamiliar landscape and the politics that encompass it.
While the language of the characters originally threw me off, I grew accustomed to it and it helped immerse me in the story and characters. Seeing the dynamics and customs of not only the Atreides family, but also natives of Arrakis, was interesting and better as they intertwined with each other.
Also seeing the various themes of the story was also appealing (thanks English class!) as they intersect with each other in ways I've never seen before.
This is a great book and I recommend it, even if Sci-fi isn't your normal genre.
Reviewer's Grade: 11

The second book in the Red Rising trilogy, Golden Son continues Darrow's quest to tear apart the Society from within. After having succeeded at the Institute, Darrow is now serving as a lancer in the House of Augustus. A Peerless Scarred of the Academy, his goal is to kill off the Bellona family before they kill him, and overthrow ArchGovernor Augustus of Mars. However, when a mishap throws his plan into jeopardy, Darrow finds himself leading a civil war among the Golds. While he's one step closer to overthrowing the tyrannical rule of the Golds, is at worth it at the cost of losing his friends, love, and loyalty?

Just like the first book, I couldn't set this one down once I started reading it! It's action packed and kept me on my toes the entire time, and the sci-fi elements were fantastical and literally out of this world. I like reading about Darrow's growth and how he's come to trust and see friendship in the Golds, and that while he's still fighting for the same purpose, he's opened his heart to the possibility of reforming the Golds rather than destroying them. Overall, the book is a great reference to power struggles and the inequity of class divisions. I loved all the allusions to Greek mythology, and the philosophical quotes and pieces. I can't wait to read book three and see Darrow's dream finally come true!

Dune is a sci-fi series written by Frank Herbert depicting detailed politics with twists and turns. The first one begins with the story of a boy called Paul, the son of a duke. His journey begins on Arrakis, a desert planet filled with a valuable resource called spice. When the duke’s palace is attacked, Paul must flee and find refuge in the desert. This book was entertaining for me, but it goes a little heavy into politics and there are a lot of things you need to pay attention to in order to understand the story. I lost interest in the overall series after the first 4 books as it just gets so weird with mystical stuff in the world. The genre it fits into is not scifi, but a mix between fantasy and scifi.

I was completely enthralled with this book from start to finish. Not only is Schwab's writing style elegant, making it easy to disappear in the book and forget that time exists, but the story: Addie LaRue selling her soul for immortality with the price of forced to be forgotten by everyone who meets her, was every bit as enticing as any other action-packed fantasy novel. And although she is cursed to be forgotten, her life changes when she walks into a ragged bookstore, only to be surprised when a young bookkeeper remembers her. With romance, dark magic, and heartbreaking twists, this book was impossible to put down.

I initially picked this book after seeing all the clout it was getting, as I'm sure many have noticed, it's popularity is unmatched. I walked into reading the story with a raised eyebrow, unsure if it would live up to its hype. It did. The story closely follows the Greek invasion of Troy after Helen is swept away by Paris, and if you have read the Iliad, then I am sure you already understand the plot. What differs from the work of Homer, however, is the pace at which Miller writes and the story she pushes. It is a beautiful rendition of war, love, and heartbreak. Between fighting battles and training with Chiron, Miller shows the sides of these famous heroes we all guessed at but never saw-- from running along a sun-warmed beach to tearing out hair, you will never be as deeply connected to characters as you will while reading this. My favorite part about this book was how beautiful Miller's incredible prose and the scenes that are forever engraved in my head: Thetis touching the chin of Achilles, Patroclus's hands on the gold of well-known armor, and a stone memorial built on the greatest hill, two figures standing side by side nearby it. This is not only one of the top book's I've read this year, but nearly the best book I've read in my entire life.

Junior-11

This is a beautiful story that has been waiting years to be told. It is the story of three sisters who are broken apart by an abusive father. They are pulled back together as if by magic. The sisters are so different and the way they experience the story is told so amazingly well. It is not a light read, but it is almost a profound experience when you do sit down to read it. Enjoy!

Neil Gaiman has written a lot of different books. His writing has been hit-or-miss for me, but nothing that's truly middle-of-the-road average. That was until I listened to Neverwhere. I appreciate how Gaiman narrates most of the audiobooks of his works that I've listened to so far, and Neverwhere was in line with the narration quality I expect from him. However, the content felt so mediocre that I honestly wouldn't have been surprised if it came from any other different British authors like Terry Pratchett or Douglas Adams (both of which are talented writers, mind you).

There's a distinct flavor of British comedy that comes through in the absurdist naming of characters and places in Neverwhere. Perhaps it's why I felt this book was so generic. It's your classic "Institutionalized" story where a man has (what seems to him) a stable life, only to have this life upended by a fantastical parallel world introduced by a character he eventually ends up falling in love with. While his interaction with this "London Below" made the main character invisible to his old life, he takes far too long to realize that the status quo he seeks is no longer desirable to him.

Maybe it's that I don't connect with these kinds of stories. They just seem so "meh" with bland characters trying to go back to their bland lives that it's always so obvious to the reader their life would be so much better in this new reality. Of course, I probably wouldn't pursue this fantastical new reality given the choice in my own life, but that's beside the point. Neverwhere contains all the trappings of this type of story, which is certainly entertaining for a bit but gets annoying the longer the main character refuses to change into their new selves.

An average institutionalized story with average British humor, I give Neverwhere 3.5 stars out of 5.

I'm glad Ender Wiggin's crewmates had this side series to explore their identities. While most of these characters were in the background of the Shadow series until now, Shadow of the Giant finally gives them time to shine on their own. After all, after three books focusing on Bean, it's nice to see the geopolitical drama unfold between these young tactical geniuses. I can definitely appreciate the storytelling that fills in the gaps between Ender's Game and Speaker for the Dead .

With Achilles being killed off in the previous book, Shadow Puppets , the principal antagonist of the series left a vacuum on the world stage that was inevitably going to be filled by Ender's Jeesh. And while these individuals had aged to the point of young adulthood, I can't deny the clever game they played with entire nations so they could position themselves in stations of power. It's entertaining to read about these military and political maneuvers in a fictional context, mostly because things would probably play out similarly in the real world if the situations presented themselves.

Still, Shadow of the Giant needs to include a side-plot with Bean. There's not much to say here other than it was an adequate stringing along that left room to conclude the series in the next two books. That being said, everything else about this series was so well wrapped up by the end of this volume that I'm sure Shadows in Flight won't have the same feel as the previous entries in this series without including Ender's Jeesh and Peter Wiggin's rule as Hegemon. If you want to stop reading the series here, I wouldn't blame you.

A great wrap-up of global affairs with room to continue Bean's story, I give Shadow of the Giant 4.0 stars out of 5.

In a world where Titans and Olympians exist, Circe is born. Daughter of the sun god Helios and ocean nymph Perse, Circe is not as beautiful as her sister, or as powerful as her brothers. And having an unusual fascination for mortals, Circe is shunned and ignored by her family. After learning she is a witch, Circe is exiled to an unknown island where she will be a prisoner forever. There, Circe learns to hone her witchcraft, finds love, and learns that her divinity doesn't come from her immortality, but her will to live.

This author also wrote The Song of Achilles, and both books are so good! I loved all the references to Greek mythology and Circe's powerful perspective. Circe, of course, is my favorite character, and her growth from a meek push-over to a fiercely independent and resolute person was such a relief. If you like Greek mythology, romance, and coming-of-age, this book is perfect for you!

To start off, I would recommend this book to anyone who loves fantasy and feels like they need something harder than Shadow and Bone, or Legend. (both are great books btw there's reviews for those elsewhere) Slight disclaimer: it is more of a mature book than the two mentioned before. Still great. One of the reasons this book is so highly recommended by me is because I am a hardcore fantasy lover, and Brandon Sanderson has a way of creating fantasy universes in his books and making them intricate and complicated enough to make a good trilogy out of them... one of the best trilogies I have ever read. But enough ranting, onto the review.

The world where Mistborn takes place is known as Luthadel, and the whole realm is controlled by a mysterious figure known as the Lord Ruler. The social rankings are basic. Skaa (slaves, basically), peasants, and Noblemen. The only other possible social group is the Mistborn, who have magical powers... and only occur in noblemen. Mostly. Vin is a skaa who escaped from her plantation and was taken into one of the rebellions. Her brother was an influential character in her life- taught her not to trust anyone by betraying her himself. The one thing keeping her in this band of misfits is her "Luck", and the band leader realizes that things go better when she's around. But when her rebellion gets overthrown and she gets taken in to be trained as a Mistborn, that one rule she lived is becoming harder and harder to follow.

Kelsier's only goal is to overthrow Lord Ruler. He's the strongest Mistborn around... and maybe ever. He's the only known skaa Mistborn, and the entire crew depends on him. He leads his crew around, preaching his vision of freedom to skaa plantations, trying to get them to form his task force to make his dream come true. His crew of Mistings is slowly growing. One day, he runs into a girl who calls herself VIn, who seems to have Mistborn powers as well... without even realizing. Despite her reserved and untrustful exterior, she could, if trained properly, change his life... forever.

As you can see, the story of Mistborn is detailed and complicated, with social classes, characters, powers and so much more. I would highly encourage and recommend this book to any fantasy lover who is willing to embrace a challenge... and fall in love with it.
Reviewer Grade: 8

After unknowingly betraying her new homeland of Ithicana to her father, Lara has been thrown into exile by Aren, the king of Ithicana, and her husband. When she hears that Aren has been captured and imprisoned by her father, Lara knows that she has to get him back. Both because Ithicana is doomed to fall without Aren in command, and because she needs his forgiveness, even if that means he won't take her back. Rallying her sisters together, Lara sets out to free Aren and ultimately kill her tyrannical father. She will die a hundred times over if it means protecting Ithicana and Aren.

I was so excited to read this sequel to The Bridge Kingdom, and it didn't disappoint! I was hooked from the very beginning and kept on edge with every page. I especially enjoyed the development of Lara and Aren's relationship, and the important lesson it taught about forgiveness and focusing on the future rather than the past. Although the third and final book of the trilogy shifts away from Lara and Aren, I'm still very excited to read it!