Fantasy

I have been a fantasy girlie from day one. Fae, Dragons, Elves, Spellcasters, I want it all. I literally can not get enough of getting lost in a different world and the characters and stories that go along with it.

The Girl In The Tower

Katherine Arden

“Witch. The word drifted across his mind. We call such women so, because we have no other name.”

Katherine Arden- The Girl In The Tower

Content Warnings: Child Death, Misogyny, Violence, Sexual Assault, Fire/Fire Injury, Kidnapping, Slavery, Religious Bigotry

This is Adult Fantasy

This is the second book in The Winternight Trilogy. I read the first book, The Bear And The Nightingale, last year and I LOVED it. If you want to see my thoughts on that book specifically you can find it in my post about the books that stuck out to me in 2023. I’m going to try my hardest not to spoil anything for this book, so it may end up being shorting than my normal recommendations.

I loved this one as well. It builds upon the themes, plots, storylines, and characters we met in the first book beautifully. I loved getting to reconnect with Vasya and see what she’s been up against since the events of the first book. In the first book Vasya is really struggling with who she is in a world that is no longer accepting the gods, that she’s just realized actual exist and have an impact on the world they live in. These books are filled with Russian folklore and are set in a fantasy version of medieval Russia that really makes these books feel uniquely real and also fantastical.

For me these books really feel like classic fantasy, the kind of fantasy that makes you believe that these fantastical event could actually take place. I’m so excited to read the third book! I do highly recommend reading these in the winter, at least the first two! I read The Bear And The Nightingale in the summer and it just didn’t hit quite as hard as when I read The Girl In The Tower in January! I’m not a seasonal reader with a lot of things, but I am with really specific vibes in books and The Winternight Trilogy for me will always be a “need to read in winter vibe” The Winternight Trilogy has quickly become one of my favorite fantasy series! .

Happy Reading!

The Wolf and The Woodsman

Ava Reid

“Stories are supposed to live longer than people.”

Ava Reid- The Wolf and The Woodsman

Content Warnings: Violence, Gore, Religious Bigotry, Antisemitism, Animal Death, Death of Parent, Self Mutilation, Xenophobia, Genocide, Classism, Animal Cruelty, Animal Death

This is an Adult Dark Fantasy

I think this might be ANOTHER one of my brothers recommendations! He really has been recommending some great books for me recently! The Wolf and The Woodsman by Ava Reid is an Adult Dark Romance novel. This story in this book is interwoven with Hungarian History and Jewish Mythology which really just elevates this book to another level!

I LOVED this book! I did cringe at several moments of it for some of the more gruesome moments and for any scenes involving the mistreatment of animals. Luckily the scenes with the animals are not frequent!

This book follows Évike, a pagan wolf girl and the only woman in an isolated matriarchal village to not have powers, therefore making her a pariah. The story begins right when The Holy Order of The Woodsman come to claim a pagan woman from Évike’s village for the Kings blood sacrifice. When Évike is forced by her village to sacrifice herself, it marks the beginning of the end for life as Évike knows it.

The journey that Gaspar, the lead woodsman and also disgraced prince, and Évike is so entertaining and fascinating. It’s enemies to tentative/reluctant lovers. I was literally screaming for them to just kiss already the entire time. Their journey changes from Évike being taken back to the city for a sacrifice to Gaspar and Évike going on a fantastical quest to find a mythical creature as a last ditch effort to save the kingdom from Gaspar’s, tyrannical brother looking to usurp the throne.

Évike’s journey throughout this book was also very captivating for me. She goes from being a pariah in her village ashamed and bullied for her heritage, to a confident woman fully embracing her heritage and the person she is, and using that to help her in her quest to right the wrongs in her world. Her character development was one of my favorite parts of this book, along with Gaspars development. He starts off very devout and passionate about his beliefs and throughout the book he really starts to struggle with the reality of those beliefs shifting to be more accepting.

This is one of those books that you read and it sticks with you. I love when I’m able to find these books that I know will standout at the end of the year. I so happy that I was able to find it so early this year! I was enthralled by this book the entire time I was reading it. It really transported me out of my world and into Évike’s world. I was celebrating the wins and mourning the losses with her. I would recommend this book cautiously to most people, I say cautiously because there are a lot of dark themes so as always make sure you check trigger warnings before reading any book!

Happy Reading!


A Court Of Thorns And Roses

Sarah J. Maas

“I threw myself into that fire, threw myself into it, into him, and let myself burn.”

Sarah J. Maas - A Court Of Thorns And Roses

Content Warnings: Violence, Death, Sexual content, Torture

This is an Adult Fantasy/Romance

I know, I know. A Court of Thorns and Roses is probably overly talked about on “booktok” and “bookstagram”! Sarah J. Maas has a way of weaving stories that really pull you into the narrative and makes you fall in love with the characters.

I loved this book so much that I gave it to one of my best friends ( who's not a big fantasy reader for her birthday and now she's not only read all of the A Court of Thorns and Roses books but has also started working her way through Crescent City. I think one of the things that makes A Court of Thorns and Roses so great is that it's a gentle introduction to the Fantasy genre. The world building is great but its not as overwhelming as Crescent City can be. A Court of Thorns and Roses is a New Adult retelling of Beauty and the Beast. The story follows Feyre, who at 19 years old has become the sole provider for her elder sisters Nesta and Elain and their father, ensuring that they don't starve or freeze to death. She's had to take on this role after her Father loses all of their money due to bad business dealing.

A series of events leads to Feyre being taken to the Fae land of Prythian. While there she discovers that all the stories she's heard about the Fae her whole life aren't necessarily true. Soon after arriving in Prythian, Feyre discovers that something sinister is happening, and it may be down to her to save the Fae world from destruction. World building, including political structure, for me is one of the most important parts of a fantasy book series and I think Sarah J Maas really nails it with this series. Everything introduced in this book is built upon further in the following books. 

I resisted starting this series because of the hype on social media. I've been burned so many times by books that were all over Tiktok and Instagram that turned out to not be great. Eventually I gave in because the entire series (what's out currently anyway), was on sale on Kindle and I can't pass up a book deal. I left them sitting in my Kindle for MONTHS before actually starting A Court of Thorns and Roses. Once I started I instantly became engrossed in it and FLEW through the other books. It also started my obsession with Sarah J. Maas' other series all of which I highly recommend. My brother

Moral of the story is that while some books get overhyped and recommended on social media, it doesn't mean that you shouldn't give them a try because they might become your obsession for the next six months.

Happy Reading!