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[Katia11]

for funsies, here's mine for June!

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[Katia11]

also, it's apparently officially halfway through 2024 (don't think about THAT too hard) and I thought I would share some of my favorite reads of the year so far! (Pride and Prejudice is not included in this)

 

In no particular order.

 

Ink Blood Sister Scribe, by Emma Törzs (the second romance in this was a little forced, but I still had a very good time)

 

Mirrored Heavens, by Rebecca Roanhorse

 

The Magic Fish, by Trung Le Nguyen *Graphic Novel

 

Legends & Lattes, by Travis Baldree

 

A Letter to the Luminous Deep, by Sylvie Cathrall

Someone You Can Build a Nest In, by John Wiswell

 

Light from Uncommon Stars, by Ryka Aoki

 

Spin, by Rebecca Caprara

 

The Tea Dragon Tapestry, by K. O'Neill *Graphic novel

 

The Black Flamingo, by Dean Atta

 

Where the Dark Stands Still, by A.B. Poranek

 

Emma and the Love Spell, by Meredith Ireland (middle grade)

 

Emily Wilde's Map of the Otherlands, by Heather Fawcett

 

Ruthless Vows, by Rebecca Ross

 

*honoroble mentions:

 

Girls of Paper and Fire, by Natasha Ngan. This would have been a favorite save for the fact that they 

Spoiler

THEY GOT THE MC TO ASSINATE THE DEMON KING. I GET THAT SHE'S A PAPER GIRL AND HAS a little more "ACCESS," OR WHATEVER... BUT WHAT?! WHY HER?!

 

The Sunbearer Trials, by Aiden Thomas. The twist fell a little short for me, but I am hoping book two gives us more context for it! 

I fully expect this list to be somewhat different at the end of the year, and I shared it to see if that is true! 

 

[Katia11]

*sigh* I went into this year wanting to read more books I own. I read a few! But there are so many pretty books that catch my eye. Why are books so tempting?! 

[Katia11]

also, something i've noticed is how often people are like: "this reads like YA" to critique adult fantasies. Like, I totally agree that YA has a very specific flavor and tropes, but so does fantasy? I understand that adult fantasy has the reputation for having "more in- depth world building" etc....But sometimes it seems like critique shows up more for some books than others. Like a fantasy I read recently was quite YA sounding in many ways in my personal opinion, but it still got super popular. Like it could have just been me, but yeah. Am I making any sense? Lol

I haven't ventured a LOT into adult fantasy, but honestly, I feel like what I've read isn't all that different from YA. Other than maybe including more violence and more sex. But... Again, maybe that's just my perception of things.

other then the stormlight series, does anyone have solid adult fantasy recs that they have truly LOVED?

[SweeneyxxTodd]

Haha I can't recall any adult fantasy I've read that's not by Brandon Sanderson. I mostly read YA or Middle Grade fantasy.

 

Personally, I think the "this reads like YA" critique is mostly because there's a lot of crossover appeal in the fantasy genre, so some fantasy that straddles the line might be marketed towards one audience when it wasn't written for it. So if the publishers think a fantasy book might sell better if marketed towards adults, then they'll do that, even if it was supposed to be YA and reads like a YA book.

 

Also I feel like some people just use "it's like YA" when they don't know how to explain that they just didn't vibe with the writing style. Some adults think that books written for younger audiences are inherently inferior, and use that as a criticism for books they didn't like when they can't figure out what it was they actually disliked.

[Katia11]

Yeah, that’s fair.

Perhaps I just don’t understand what exactly a “good” adult fantasy is supposed to be other than things I have heard through other people. Simply because I have only read so much of it… Maybe I don’t recognize a good adult fantasy when I see one. lol

[Katia11]

got to 100 today unfortunately, 100 was quite a disappointment. Just gotta wipe that book out of my memory bank and head onto the next! 

[Katia11]

*sigh* two dnfs in the last week

[Katia11]

okay, I started Babel yesterday. And the topic of translation is by far my favorite part. I never really thought about all that goes into it and I regret this now because IT IS FASCINATING.

 

I LOVE it. 

[Katia11]

I feel like I can feel a book slump coming on. I made it through my last read, but my attention veered a little bit. I am doing a "daily" reading challenge on fable to see if I can overcome the hump. We'll see if it works.

[Sanjana R]

also, something i've noticed is how often people are like: "this reads like YA" to critique adult fantasies. Like, I totally agree that YA has a very specific flavor and tropes, but so does fantasy? I understand that adult fantasy has the reputation for having "more in- depth world building" etc....But sometimes it seems like critique shows up more for some books than others. Like a fantasy I read recently was quite YA sounding in many ways in my personal opinion, but it still got super popular. Like it could have just been me, but yeah. Am I making any sense? Lol

I haven't ventured a LOT into adult fantasy, but honestly, I feel like what I've read isn't all that different from YA. Other than maybe including more violence and more sex. But... Again, maybe that's just my perception of things.

other then the stormlight series, does anyone have solid adult fantasy recs that they have truly LOVED?

Idk if this counts as YA or adult fantasy but I think the themes and romance make it more adult IMO. You would LOVE The Winner's Trilogy by Marie Rutkoski. The writing is so poetic, and the romance between Arin and kestrel is to DIE for. 

[Katia11]

I read the first one and enjoyed it! 

[Katia11]

Lol I found and am using yet another reading app. Whoops.

Unfortunately, it is only an app. There isn't much of a website to speak of. But in case anyone wants to join me, its called fable lol I still think I prefer Storygraph simply because it DOES have a website which is nice. But the Fable app allows you to just click a button which says “I read today” and it is quite satisfying to see it keep track of my reading streaks

[Katia11]

So? I think I have discovered I've sort of outgrown the “snarky inner voice mc” phase. I mean, I like a little bit of that, don't get me wrong. Gimme sassy, gimme smart! but when it saturates the book it tends to lose a bit of its oomph. 

[Katia11]

I am still struggling with my book slump. November wasn't a great month. I mean... I finished a series that I love, and I read Rez Ball which was fantastic, but reading itself was a bit of a battle. It doesn't help that I didn't read for a bit at all. 

 

Hopefully I won't make it even worse by reading The Fury of the Gods. It's moving along pretty well at the moment. I just have read all the other books in this series and I want to finish it! 

[Mara=^.^=]

its called fable lol

 

Oh no! He got you!

 

~*Mara*~ = ^.^ =

[Katia11]

He did! LOL 

[Sanjana R]

I am still struggling with my book slump. November wasn't a great month. I mean... I finished a series that I love, and I read Rez Ball which was fantastic, but reading itself was a bit of a battle. It doesn't help that I didn't read for a bit at all. 

 

Hopefully I won't make it even worse by reading The Fury of the Gods. It's moving along pretty well at the moment. I just have read all the other books in this series and I want to finish it! 

I've been in a book slump pretty much all year if it makes you feel any better. Normally I average somewhere in the range of 40-60 books per year and this year...it's been 21. I haven't been able to finish a book in months really. More of a book buying year than reading year lol

[Sanjana R]

I also find that my graduate studies have made it hard to enjoy or concentrate on fiction. I get way more excited about reading non-fiction? Which is great and all but I'd love to have the capability to sit down and read a romance again for the first time in ages lol

[Katia11]

I've been in a book slump pretty much all year if it makes you feel any better. Normally I average somewhere in the range of 40-60 books per year and this year...it's been 21. I haven't been able to finish a book in months really. More of a book buying year than reading year lol

 

That's fair. I'm sorry though. Books slumps can be frustrating. But it's important to remember as long as you are reading for your enjoyment, it doesn't matter how much you read! (I am mostly talking to myself here LOL)