@Mara recommendations, you say? ;D
I'm a hardcore anime/manga fan and I have watched everything under the sun. I mean.. everything. Things I think you'll like:
1. Akatsuki no Yona aka Yona of the Dawn
GORGEOUS story, fantastic animation, hilarious, but also has its serious parts. Akatsuki no Yona is about a princess named Yona, who was well-pampered and protected by a doting father. Politics are politics and the king is assassinated, leaving Yona and her snarky-yet-sexy-as-hell bodyguard, Hak, to flee the castle. They go on this wild adventure together, gathering up the legendary four dragons that is said to aid the red dragon king, aka Yona herself. 
The characters are wonderful, and Yona has such a complex relationship with the antagonist. It's fantasy, adventure, drama, and shoujo. You can watch the entire thing on FUNimation's YT page. Only subbed atm. Oh, and did I mention this series has a wonderful soundtrack?
2. Shinsekai Yori, aka From the New World
Listen.. this story is just.. phenomenal. I know for a fact you, Mara, will be SO into this. Being so into anthropology, this is RIGHT UP YOUR ALLEY. On top of that, it has supernatural elements, drama, and it's a thriller. HIGHLY recommend this one to you!! I just finished it a couple weeks ago, and it was amazing. One of the most underrated animes out there. I don't even think it has a manga tbh. I'm not sure, but it starts out with the protagonist's beginning life, right until her adulthood. It sets you up for this school life thing, and takes such a drastic turn, that you really have no idea how it even got to this point, but it did. So much psychology is involved with it, and the plot twists aren't big or revealing. They're very subtle, but there's a lot. It's wonderful! BASICALLY: it's about a race of humans who evolved to use more of their conscience, and their able to do amazing things like manipulate gravity, create, etc. It follows a girl who experiences the darkest aspect of life as these super humans. It follows her through pre-teens into puberty and then adulthood. She experiences a lot of trauma, but bounces back. That is her best feature, and one she is told is quite rare. Give this a look. There's so much more to this than meets the eye! Warning: it's uber depressing like 90% of the time lol.
3. No. 6
It's a shounen-ai, first off. ;P It won't seem that way at first, but toward the second half, as relationships develope.. yeah. It's totally a shounen-ai. Which is really great, all considering the genre doesn't have relaitonships like the one Nezumi and Shion (the protagonist) have. Basically, it's about a "utopia" (I use that term loosely here lol). The main character, Shion, is working this shitty 9-5 job, but things take a turn for the worst when Nezumi pops back up in his life and gets him in all sorts of trouble with the government. It seems like that at first, but things get complicated when there's a chance the government may actually be killing people off. Of course, there's more to that too. (: Basically, the plot is great, and the relationship between Shion and Nezumi alone makes this anime worth watching. It's not a manga per say, but actually a visual novel. And it's discontinued. Which is sad 'cause I love the story and it ISN'T FINISHED DKGBKRDFNGKTJfd.
4. Orenchi no Furo Jujou, aka This Boy Caught a Merman
"Tatsumi is a high school boy who lives by himself; however, a devastatingly handsome merman named Wakasa moves into the bathtub in Tatsumi's home. Wakasa is a bit self-centered but cute, while Tatsumi is cool but a busybody." Basically.. it is what it is. Want to kill some time for like, an hour? Watch this series. It's 4 minutes long per ep, with 13 episodes total. It's absolutely hilarious. I promise you'll laugh at loud nearly every episode. It's also SUPER cute. If you're having a rough day, watch this!
At the moment, I have myanimelist profile you guys can totally check out if you wanna check into any. I'm into pretty much everything. All you have to do is click on the name and it takes you to the anime's "profile" and all that jazz. Here she is: http://myanimelist.n...ecemberlongings
since I'm as otaku (and a fujoshi) as shit, I'll gladly recommend anything genre-specified for you! 
EDIT:
holy god I forgot to mention this beauty!!!!!!!!!!!!
Death Parade
cheez-its, man. I love this anime to BITS. The opening was what caught my eye (and for good reasons too), and one episode and I was hooked. Finished in one sitting. Basically, the concept revolves around the Buddhist beliefs of "heaven and hell" aka reincarnation and the avoid. It follows the story of Decim, an arbiter, or judge. He judges people based on their memory and how they react when they're told they must play a game to win their life back. At his side is a mysterious woman (whose name is actually a spoiler so I can't say, but she's the black haired one ;p) who assists him. Through trial and tribulation, these two form an amazing bond together, and learn about life in the process. Highly recommend!
Yona has such great character development, Soo-Won is a fascinating antagonist, and Hak is such a BABE omg I'm smitten
