Category Archives: Fantasy

Shiver by Maggie Steivater

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Romeo & Juliet meets Twilight in the woods of New England.
Grace was saved from a wolf attack by one of its own when she was a child. After watching each other from a distance for years, she and the wolf are reunited when a local teen is attacked. Grace’s wolf is injured and appears as a human on her doorstep. Grace’s alienation from her parents sets the stage for this romantic mystery that will have besotted readers carrying the book everywhere, hoping to sneak in just one more chapter.
Readers who enjoy a little paranormal enhancement in their narratives will love this gripping spin on doomed love as told from different characters viewpoints. The characters are complex and relatable and it seems appropriate to root for the wolves who somehow seem to normally live among us.
Shiver is still one of the first books I think of when someone asks me for a book recommendation with adventure and romance. My daughter and I raced through the series together and have since devoured the rest of Maggie Stiefvater’s offerings. Shiver is the first of its Trilogy but Stiefvater has another series, The Raven Cycle, and stand alone titles, The Scorpio Races and All the Crooked Saints. The different series and stand alones are quite distinct in subject matter from each other but I loved them all!

An Enchantment of Raven by Margaret Rogerson

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Have you ever read a book with such vivid imagery that when you close your eyes you can almost imagine you are inside its world? My favorite of those books is An Enchantment of Ravens by Margaret Rogerson. Enchantment is set in a lush world of magic and monsters that— in tandem with sweeping world building and compelling characters— makes for a brilliant book. I am not usually a fan of romance stories, but An Enchantment of Ravens drew me in and held on until the very last page.
At seventeen, Isobel is the best portrait artist in generations, and her reputation grows with every passing year. Since childhood, Isobel has painted for the Fair Folk, a powerful race that lusts after human craft.
Isobel is used to having creatures that could murder her in an instant sipping tea in her living room. But when she hears from one of her clients that the Autumn Prince— a powerful Fair One not seen in Whimsy for centuries— is coming to meet her, she’s shaken. But Rook (the Autumn Prince) is not what she expects from a Fair One, and certainly not what she’d expect from one of their princes. He’s nearly human. But just as they grows comfortable towards one another— fond, even, she makes a terrible mistake. Isobel paints human sorrow in his eyes, an unforgivable weakness among his kind. Furious, Rook spirits her off to the Autumn court to stand trial, setting off a whirlwind of adventures and a forbidden romance that will have you on the edge of your seat.

Caraval by Stephanie Garber

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Several months ago, a friend of mine sent me a book for my birthday: Caraval. In retrospect, I should have picked it up much sooner. Caraval has become one of my favorite YA books to date, and its sequel- Legendary is, if possible, even better. In her amazing debut Stephanie Garber redefined fantasy in this twisting tale seeped in dark magic and unexpected revelations.

Scarlet Dragna lives on the Isle of Trisda with her sister Tella and their cruel father. For years Scarlet has written letters to Legend, master of the magical circus-game of Caraval, begging him to come to Trisda. Now engaged and ready to escape Trisda with her sister, Scarlet finally recieves a reply from Legend- and three tickets. Now Scarlet must make a choice: marry the man her father chose for her, or run away to attend Caraval with Tella and the handsome young sailor who has offered his help in exchange for a ticket.

Exclusive Interview with Lisa Jensen!

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  1. Fairytale retellings have become very popular in recent years, particularly in YA literature; what do you think makes these stories so compelling?

    Like all folklore, fairy tales have been passed down between the generations for centuries. The details of each story may evolve in the telling over time, but the essence of each tale persists — a poor girl goes to the ball and wins a prince; a beauty falls in love with a scary beast. These tales are in our blood!

    But as readers, we also respond differently as we ourselves evolve out of childhood and into adulthood. There are infinite new ways to look at these classic stories, which is what writers find so irresistible. And fortunately, it seems like readers are just as eager to come along for the ride!

    You’ve written a couple adult books as well as having been a film critic and a columnist, what made you decide to make Beast a YA novel?

    Beast was originally written as an adult novel. But an editor at Candlewick, the fabulous Kaylan Adair, fell in love with the book and bought it for her YA line. We had some tweaking to do over the long editing process, but I think it’s a stronger book now. My original take on the story also had to evolve in subtle ways as I began to view it from a YA perspective.

    Your book tackles some important issues (e.g. sexual assault), what do you think the responsibility of authors (particularly of YA and children’s books) is to talk about these controversial topics?

    In Beast, I wanted to focus on the profound effect of assault on my heroine, as she grapples with feelings of shame, despair, and finally, rage. (That’s the “Revenge” part of the story.) She has to learn that she’s not responsible for what was done to her, and that it also lies within her power to seize control of her own life again and grow stronger. That’s the journey she is on, just as Beast is on a journey to find his place in a human world. They both must tap into their inner humanity.

    What advice would you give to aspiring authors about writing and publishing their stories?

    Read everything you can! Especially by authors you love! (Although, back when I was an occasional book reviewer for the SF Chronicle, I found it was almost as useful to learn what not to do from books that I didn’t think worked!) Write all the time, even if it’s just in your own private journal that no one will ever see, to teach yourself to shape language. Then write the story that’s in your heart — nobody else can tell that story in the same way as you. And Never. Ever. Give. Up!

    Some authors have said that they write the books they needed when they were kids, do you feel this is true of yours?

    No, I wrote this book for the person I am now — someone who loves Beauty and the Beast, but thinks the noble Beast deserves to be the hero of the story, not the prince!

    Do you have any plans for future books?

    Always!

Beast: A Tale of Love and Revenge by Lisa Jensen

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When Lucie came to Château Beaumont she was looking for a job that would get her away from home. She wasn’t prepared for the cruel and handsome Chevalier de Beaumont, and the strange tale born from her own hatred of him. But when an old witch curses the Chevalier to become a fearsome beast and Lucie a candlestick to watch him, everything changes.
As Beast, the Chevalier is quiet and kind, even to Lucie, only wanting to keep to himself and tend his garden. All too soon, Lucie finds herself drawn to- even befriending, the lonely beast. But with the arrival of Rose, a beautiful young merchant’s daughter, their fragile peace threatens to break. For if Rose offers to marry Beast, the Chevalier will return, and only Lucie knows how terrible that would be. And only Lucie has a chance of stopping it from happening.

Beast: A Tale of Love and Revenge

A Reaper at the Gates by Sabaa Tahir

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In a thrilling sequel to A Torch Against the Night, Sabaa Tahir returns to the world of Laia, Helene and Elias with A Reaper at the Gates. In Reaper, the stakes have been raised for all our favorite characters as the Nightbringer draws closer to his goal.
In the Waiting Place, Elias struggles to take control of his growing powers as Shaeva and Mauth force him and Laia farther apart. At the heart of the Empire Helene has taken control of the Black Guard— and with Harper at her side begins to wrest control from the Commandant. Far away, Laia works with the Tribes and Scholar Rebels to free enslaved Scholars.
But even as the Blood Strike grows in power and Laia gains allies and experience, the Nightbringer too grows closer to freeing the other Jinn. Under his orders Keris Veturia schemes and kills as she works to undermine the new regime.

Reaper at the Gates is probably my favorite book of the series yet. The POV characters have gained a new maturity since the events of A Torch Against the Night, and many of the supporting characters also gain a backstory that helps to enrich the world of Reaper comsiderably.

Neverworld Wake by Marisha Pessl

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Neverworld Wake, by Marisha Pessl, is a stunningly put together story. It tells of a girl named Beatrice who recently lost her boyfriend, Jim, at the end of her senior year of high school. Jim’s death reveals a bounty of unanswered questions, and Beatrice needs to get to the bottom of them. She returns to Wincroft, the mansion belonging to her old best friend. Beatrice and all her friends were separated after Jim’s death. While searching for answers, Beatrice gets swept up into the craziness of the night, and can’t escape. They become trapped, stuck in time. Beatrice and her “friends” are introduced to a confusing place called Neverworld Wake, where they live a century inside a second.
Neverworld Wake is thrilling. It’s impossible to put down. Once you get sucked into the wake yourself, there’s no coming out until the story is finished. It’s hypnotizing; the mere idea of this wake is captivating. There is drama, sadness, adventure, edge-of-your-seat anticipation, and plot twists you could never imagine. This book is bound to become popular among YA readers. It is one of a kind, and I urge everyone to read it. Neverworld Wake is one of the best books I have ever read, and a great addition to the YA genre.

Furyborn by Claire Legrand

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A fantasy novel packed with magic,
elemental powers, prophecies, and two furiously headstrong, stubborn, badass female characters. The book alternates between the perspectives of Rielle and Eliana, who have been born with powers – power that could mean they are one of the prophesied Queens-
the Queen of light and salvation or the Queen of blood and destruction.
Rielle Dardenne has kept her power
hidden since she was a kid, but when an assassination attempt is made on Prince Audric – her best friend and her first and only love – she unleashes her power, in order to save him, revealing everything she has tried so hard to conceal. Hoping to prove her
allegiance to the kingdom, she has to go through various magic trials or be executed. She has to convince everyone, especially herself, that she is the ‘Sun Queen’. All while trying to keep Corien, an angel who has certain plans of his own, from poisoning
her mind.
Eliana Ferracora – an assassin for
the king – has a connection to Rielle, despite being born a thousand years later, when the story of Queen Rielle is nothing but an age-old legend. However, in a world where magic has long been eradicated, she possesses certain powers that she herself hasn’t
yet discovered fully. When females of all ages start vanishing from her kingdom, including her mother, Eliana teams up with her enemy, Simon (aka the Wolf), who seems to know a lot about who she is, and sets off on a journey to save her mother, and possibly
her empire, while discovering who she is and what she is capable of doing.
Furyborn is nothing short of an adventure,
especially the untangling of the connection between the two characters, that will have you hooked to the last page!

 

Ash Princess by Laura Sebastian

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When Princess Theodosia of Astrea was six, her life was ripped apart. Her peaceful island nation was invaded by the fearsome Kalovaxians, her mother slaughtered, and her people enslaved. Over a decade later, Theodosia is still imprisoned in the palace she once called home. Theodosia is forced to watch as the Keiser runs her country into the ground, and slaughters her people, as each small act of rebellion is etched onto her back with the Theyn’s whip. But with the reappearance of a childhood friend, everything changes. Theodosia has been the Keiser’s pawn for too long, and for better or worse, she soon finds herself a Queen in a perilous game of deception and betrayals. One wrong move means death, and if she wants to win, Theodosia will have to be cunning, brave, and ruthless in order to save her people— and herself.
Theodosia is by far the smartest— and possibly the most ruthless protagonist I have ever read. She’s cunning, manipulative, brave, and unlike most heroes, has excellent survival instincts. But she’s also human, and even as she gets closer to her goal, she finds herself inexorably drawn to the crown prince that she swore to kill. Theodosia soon finds herself trapped, caught between her people, and the boy she may be growing to love.

Ash Princess is a beautiful and heartbreaking story of a girl who has lost everything, and is willing to do anything in order to survive. The writing is beautiful and compelling, the characters diverse and colorful, and the plot a masterpiece of twisting, interlocking tales. Ash Princess is undoubtedly one of the best fantasy novels that can be found on the YA shelf.

The Bone Witch by Rin Chupeco

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From monstrous Daeva to beautiful, fierce Asha, the world of the Bone Witch teems with myth and magic. Tea is a Dark Asha, a Bone Witch, the rarest and most reviled of all the witch-women known as Asha. Born in the village of Knightcross to a family with two low-level witch daughters, Tea was expected to follow in her sister’s footsteps and spend her life helping the village with whatever power she inherited. But when her brother Fox is killed by a monster called a Daeva, everything changed. At his funeral, Tea accidentally raised her brother from the dead, almost killing herself in the process.
Labeled as a Bone Witch, Tea (and Fox) are taken by the Lady Mykaela, one of the last Dark Asha, to the city of Ankyo to begin her training. In Ankyo, Tea will learn to control and use her gift, to sing and dance, and most importantly, how to fight and draw the runes that give an Asha her power. But while the life of an Asha is one filled with beautiful parties, powerful people, and amazing magic, danger lurks in the dark corners of the kingdom. A faction of powerful magic-wielders known as the Faceless hide amongst the normal people, waiting to tear the kingdoms apart; and Daeva rise from their graves only to be slain again by the Dark Asha. But the numbers of the Bone Witches dwindle, and soon Tea must find a way to change the way Dark Asha have lived for thousands of years, lest she lose her own life to it— and drag everyone else down with her.
In this dark and bewitching book, Rin Chupeco weaves a masterful tale of magic and monsters, friendship and betrayal, love and loss. Split between two times and places, Tea’s story is broken at intervals by short glimpses into her future, moments when we see not only who she was, but what she will become. The Bone Witch will draw you deeper into the story with every page, and leave you eager for the sequel.