- Series I finished
The Daevabad Trilogy by S. A. Chakraborty
This is, at the time of writing, my favorite fantasy series of all time. I loved it start to finish and am actively trying to make as much people as possible pick it up.
The series revolves around Nahri and Ali. In the first book, City of Brass, we meet Nahri, an orphaned girl on the streets of Cairo who makes a living by scheming rich people. She is very cynical and dreams of becoming a doctor. One day during one of her schemes she summons a djinn who tells her she is a descendant of the erradicated royal family of Daevabad, city of Djinn, and takes her on a journey back to the court. Ali is the son of the current king of Daevabad. Confronted with the injustice rampant in the city he secretly tries to make a difference in the life of the most repressed people.
Mistborn (Era 1) by Brandon Sanderson
Finishing off Mistborn was a long time coming. I loved book one the most, mainly because it is actually a heist novel on its own, which I have come to realise is a trope I LOVE. I definitely like the series as a whole but the last book was a bit too abstract for me. Maybe I am still too new reading fantasy but it was a little ‘out there’ for me. I know the ending is actually very well loved so this could be a me-thing.
In the first book we follow a man named Kelsier who assembles a group of people around him to overthrow The Final Empire (also the name of book one), a thousand year old empire under the rule of the immortal Lord Ruler, that is very oppressive toward its working class, the skaa. One of the people he attracts is Vin, a street urchin, who discovers she is a Mistborn. In this world some people, Mistings, can ingest certain types of metals and then internally burn them to wield a certain type of power (pull/push things, become stronger/more sensitive, etc…). This power is in itself quite rare, but some of the Mistings can not just ingest one type but all of them. These people we call Mistborn.
Ready Player One by Enest Cline
The first book in this series is definitely one of my favorite books of all time. I am not a gamer at all and still very new to the sci-fi/dystopian genre, but this book totally GRIPPED me. It was definitely nice to be back in this world, but I think Ready Player One worked so well as a standalone, that the second book definitely feels like an afterthought.
In Ready Player One we see the world of the future and humanity definitely f*cked up: economic crises, climate change, extreme inequality and any other doom scenario we have been warned about. To escape this reality most people live their lives in the OASIS, a virtual reality with seemingly limitless possibilities. The creator of this game died five years ago and with no direct heir to inherit his company and wealth, he created an easter egg hunt within the game to determine who will be the next owner of the OASIS. Our main character Wade Watts discovers the first clue after five years and the race in on.
- Series I made progress in
The Plantagenet and Tudor Novels by Philippa Gregory
I read one of the novels (#6, The Constant Princess) two years ago for my book club. I really liked it and I love this era in history so I decided to start the series in chronological order. The first two (The Lady of the Rivers and The White Queen) definitely totally enamored me. I loved both main characters fiercely and I could definitely identify withe reality of being pregnant all the ‘damn’ time. The third book (The Red Queen) unfortunately was not a hit. The main charcter, Margaret Beaufort, is VERY unlikable and moreover the book follows the exact same time period as the second one. So I got very irritated and very bored. This is the reason I didn’t immediately move forward, especially since I knew the fourth book (The Kingmaker’s Daughter) follows the same events again from a third point of view. I needed a break.
The series follows the Plantagenet and Tudor period in Medieval and Early Modern political history in England through the eyes of the important female players at the time. Each novel has a different main protaganist. The novels are based on real events and real documentation but are fictional accounts.
Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan
I don’t know why I haven’t finished this series yet. I really like it and I only have one more to go. They have been solidly four stars for me. I really hope to add this one to the first list next year.
We follow Percy Jackson, a teenage boy living in New York, as he discovers he is the son of a Greek God and so a demi-god or Hero, according to Greek mythology. Because yes, the Greek gods are actually real. They just move location depending on the dominant culture in the world at the time. In our time Mount Olympos is on top of the Empire State Builing. All classical gods are accounted for: we have prophecies, quests, betrayal and a LOT of extramarital relations between god and humans.
Charlotte Holmes by Brittany Cavallero
I read the first book (A Study in Charlotte) in 2020 and now the second one (The Last of August) last year and I really hope it doesn’t continue to go downhill. I really like the premise of a teenage Sherlock and Watson and the first book was a hit for me. The sequel however left me thouroughly confused at the finale and I felt less engaged with the characters eventhough I have known them for longer. That can not be intentional, right?
As in the original we read the story through the eyes of Watson, Jamie Watson that is, the great grandchild of Doctor Watson, as he enrolls in an American boarding school. The same school Charlotte Holmes attends, great granddaughter to the legendary private detective. He immediately becomes fascinated by her and then… a corpse turns up.
A Twisted Tale by Various Authors
Last year I read #8 Straight on Till Morning (What if Wendy first traveled to Neverland with Captain Hook?) and #10 Unbirthday (What if Wonderland was in peril and Alice was very, very late?). The first one was kind of meh to me but the second one was my favorite out of all of them so far. I am a Disney’s child at heart and this series always takes me back to my favorite movies as a child. I am planning to read ALL of them.
This series takes a spin on classical Disney movies as it answers a ‘What if…’ question, sometimes to rewrite the entire story, other times to make the classical story have a sequel.
Little Women by Louisa Alcott
I had never read this beloved classic up until two years ago and I can definitely tell why it is such widely praised story. All four sisters are so endearing and their relationship is just #familygoals. Continuing on with the story (Good Wives is actually a part two, since the books were originally pubished as one) was loads of fun as you watch Meg, Beth, Jo and Amy grow from sweet children to adolescence and womanhood with all the career and love difficulties that entails. I definitely have a soft spot for neighbor Laurie and couldn’t wait the see what he made of himself. I will definitely continu on with Little Men, the sequel.
Nevermoor by Jessica Townsend
In 2020 my oldest son and I read the first two instalments in this series (Nevermoor and Wundersmith) and fell in love. For me the second one was definitely the better of the two, since I found that the first one dragged on a bit. The third one (Hollowpox) took a long time to get started and my son gave up. We started reading it together twice but in the end it was clear that I would have to read it on my own if I was ever going to finish it. I did like it and I think that the fact that beginning was less action packed bothered me less because I am not a ten year old.
We follow Morrigan Crow, a cursed child who is expected to die on her twelfth birthday. However the day of the dramatic events she gets whisked away by the excentric Jupiter North to Nevermoor, a magical world she never even knew existed. There she is given the chance to compete in the trials to enter the Wundrous Society, a prestigious organisation that has the potential to lift her from cursed to elite.
Books & Babies 