This is simply a collection of books I have come to enjoy. The books I like tend to be in the fantasy genre, or have something to do with magic. Whether or not you like them is up to you, but it's always fun to give a new book a try!
- Six of Crows
- Wings of Fire
- Six Crimson Cranes
- Descendant of the Crane
- Strike the Zither
- The School for Good and Evil
Six of Crows is a heist story by Leigh Bardugo following Kaz Brekker, Inej, Jesper, Wylan, Nina, and Matthias. It is set in the same world as Bardugo's other series, Shadow and Bone, and is a duology, the second book being The Crooked Kingdom (which I also highly recommend after this one). All of the characters in this book have unique strengths, and they are always interesting to read about. One thing I particularly enjoyed about this book is that much of the romance didn't feel stifling to read about. The romance was built on their actual relationships, so it felt rewarding to read about.
Wings of Fire by Tui T. Sutherland isn't exactly young adult fiction and is considered middle grade, but personally, I have been reading these books for quite a while and have a bit of an attachment to them. As a series, Wings of Fire is made up of 3 arcs of books each. There are also side stories, such as Wings of Fire: Legends and Wings of Fire: Winglets. It follows dragons as they solve problems throughout the world. In the first arc, they end a war. In the second arc, they defeat an ancient evil. In the third arc, they... also defeat an ancient evil. I honestly really do love these books, and if you love fantasy and are okay with reading books aimed at a bit of a younger audience, I would not hesitate to recommend this series to you. I also really love the book covers.
Something I simply want to add, I really love this book's cover. It's absolutely beautiful. Anyway, Six Crimson Cranes by Elizabeth Lim follows a headstrong princess named Shiori who, along with her brothers, gets cursed by her stepmother. Her brothers get turned into cranes, and she cannot speak, for if she does, her brothers will die. But is her stepmother really evil, or is there more at stake here? This book was a fun read, and Shiori is quite the interesting character. Throughout the story, Shiori grows and becomes more mature, and, by the end, has a much greater understanding of the world than before. I particularly enjoyed watching her grow in regards to romance, learning that there is more to it than simply two people getting married. Six Crimson Cranes is also a duology, the second book being The Dragon's Promise. I also recommend you read this one.
Once again, I'd like to point out how beautiful this cover is. Descendant of the Crane by Joan He follows Princess Hesina of Yan after her father, the former ruler of the Kingdom of Yan, dies. She believes he has been murdered, but everyone else doesn't seem to think so. As she digs deep into her father's death, she finds out things about both her father and the kongdom's history that she could never imagine. Unfortunately, this book is open ended with no sequel, do the ending will leave you wanting more. However, throughout this book, I have come to admire Hesina's strong, ambitious character. Even after being betrayed by those she trusted the most, even after losing everything, she doesn't give up and plans to rise again. She has the ambition and strength of will fit for the ruler of a kingdom. Overall, an enjoyable read!
Strike the Zither, also by Joan He, follows the character Zephyr, a strategist for the warlordess Xin Ren. An obvious reference to the classic Chinese tale of The Three Kingdoms, Zephyr is clearly meant to be Zhuge Liang, the genius strategist. As the strategist loyal to Xin Ren, she does her best to make sure Ren succeeds. But why does Zephyr's sister say she isn't Zephyr? This book was a fun read. The reason for her sister not really recognizing her was quite the twist, though I suppose better readers may have already found out before me. It seems like this story isn't as fantasy-like as some of the other recommendations, but as you keep reading, the magic pops up in a way you might not expect. I think Joan He likes to have a little mystery in her books. This book, as of September 27, 2023, does not have a sequel, but one is coming out! It's called Sound the Gong and I am quite excited to read it!
The School for Good and Evil by Soman Chainini is probably a book you have heard before. It follows two girls, Agatha and Sophie, who go to the School for Good and Evil, but oh no, why is Sophie Evil and why is Agatha Good? Shouldn't it be the other way round? Well, no, actually, *cough* considering Sophie's character. Well Sophie doesn't seem to think so. Agatha doesn't really want to be evil, but she doesn't exactly see herself as good either. It was kind of interesting reading about Sophie's character. She's really narcissistic... Agatha is also interesting because she isn't stereotypical Good, but it's clear she definitely isn't Evil. The ending felt really nice and gave good closure, showing love does shine above all. It might not be the love you're thinking of though. The School for Good and Evil is a series, though in my opinion, the first book is far superior to all the other books. However, don't let that discourage you from checking out the other books, because they are still interesting reads!