My Top 20 Favorite 2022 Reads

Today I’m excited to (finally) get around to sharing my top favorite books I read in 2022!

Top 5: Best of the Best

Dana Illwind and War’s Shadow (by Arthur Daigle) — Dana Illwind, #2

(Read my full review.)

My top-favorite read of last year! This series makes it onto a very select list of my top-favorite books of all time, and I enjoyed this one just as much as book one–maybe even more. More adventures with Jayden (my favorite!) and Dana and other characters. More fighting against both monsters and injustice. More character growth. More hilarious humor. More fantasy awesomeness. It’s marvelous in every way! (JAYDEN AND DANA FOREVERRRR!) I literally have no words to describe how much joy this book/series brings me. I love it so, so much!

(You can also check out my review for book 1.)

---

Illuminare (by Bryn Shutt)

Everything about this one is absolutely STUNNING! The writing, the themes, the delightful characters, the dry humor, the magnificent (and shadowy light-and-dark) Venice-esque setting . . . And it has Desmond, Artair, Kennet, and Luca. Which. I mean. What more do you need? 😉 I could just eat the gorgeous prose in this book. Ugh. It’s so good! I constantly want to re-read it and just bask in the glorious writing/world/story.

---

Greywolf’s Heart (by C. M. Banschbach) — Spirits’ Valley, #1

Brothers and giant wolves and sabertooth cats and war and feels and humor and banter and COMRAN! Comran forever. Etran forever toooo. This story of two half-brothers trying to protect their valley and finding out what it’s like to truly be brothers is just . . . ❤ It has my whole heart! The stabbiness, the snark, the feels, the comrades-in-arms . . . It’s everything I love!

(Book 2, Saber’s Pride, is coming soon . . . and, y’all, it’s AMAZING. ❤ Expect to see it in this year’s roundup of favorite books!)

---

In the Kingdom of All Tomorrows (by Stephen R. Lawhead) — Eirlandia, #3

(Audiobooked. Read my full review.)

This book firmly cemented this Celtic fantasy trilogy as one of my favorite series of all time. Ancient Ireland, heroic warriors, fey, justice, battles, humor, and beloved characters. What a soul-filling book and a coming home! A new favorite Lawhead series, for sure!

---

The Hare and the Hatter (by Kyle Robert Shultz) — Beaumont and Beasley, #6

The long-awaited next installment of Beaumont and Beasley did not disappoint! Being back in the Afterverse (that wonderful alternate-1920s setting with fairytales and mythology as history), this time with fan-favorites Crispin Beasley (time-travel and shenanigans) and Malcolm Blackfire (grumpy dragon extraordinaire) . . . WHAT IS NOT TO LOVE! Throw in some Wonderland and Peter Pan things, timey-wimey-ness, nonstop humor and banter, some truly astounding twists and reveals (WE LEARN THINGS, GUYS. :O), and a good dose of feels (in the best way), and you have a real winner. Plus, I mean, Crispin and Malcolm? As the narrators? How could it NOT be amazing! I love this book a lot.

---

Favorites after the top five! (So many good books this year!)

Silverblood (by Jamie Foley) — Katrosi Revolution, #2

(Read my full review.)

I was waiting for a book about Lysander and Brooke, ever since reading Emberhawk, and this did not disappoint! Lysander’s story is amazing, and there are other favorite characters, banter, and a griffin, and so many clever twists, plus a lush setting and — it’s just delightful!

---

Tattoo of Crimson (by Sarah Chislon) — Blood of the Fae, #1

A gaslamp fantasy/murder mystery, with perilous fae and a mystery-solving heroine with a magical cat? You guys. What is not to love! The setting and writing is just delicious and perfect for fans of Regency-esque fantasy. The characters were so well done and I was captivated by the setting and the fact that the fae were so Other!

(Book 2 coming October 2023!)

---

The Orb and the Airship (by Jenelle Leanne Schmidt) — Turrim Archive, #1

If you’re reading this post before 3/22/2023, would you consider dropping by the Kickstarter for this series? The Orb and the Airship is in my top ten reads of last year for a reason! It’s sooo good and you need it in your life!

I love epic fantasy quest stories, I love academy-type stories, and I love airships — and this combines all three in a stunning adventure full of peril, humor, twists, and an amazingly rich world. And don’t get me started on the characters and how much I love all of them and their banter and relationships! (Did I mention airships?)

This is kind of like Lord of the Rings meets Treasure Planet, with a side of Firefly if it was family-friendly. And I am HERE for it!

(Book one is releasing in June of this year — 2023 — with the following four books scheduled to release after that through the next year or so, and I am STOKED.)

---

A Most Irregular Prophecy (by Ness Kingsley)

(Read my full review.)

The uniqueness and hilarity of this Georgette Heyer meets Diana Wynne Jones meets Enchanted Forest Chronicles, on a fantasy planet, story . . . well, it positively bowled me over. Pegasus/unicorn creatures, prophecies, an Extremely Capable heroine, and a riot of humor told in a purely delightful voice utterly captivated and delighted me!

---

We Could Be Villains (by Megan McCullough) — The VIGIL and ANTE Files, #1

Avengers meets Heist Society in this cinematic superhero adventure about a normal girl who gets caught up in the schemes of a supervillain . . . and that’s before all the twists start! This was a delight and I had a blast getting lost in this superpowered world whose beating heart is the rich characters who tugged me completely into their story. ❤ Humor, feels, action, and so many things that aren’t as they seem! I loved Rosemary and Ironfall’s story, and all the side characters were amazing as well!

---

Into the Churn (by Hayley Reese Chow)

I hardly even read sci-fi but MY WORD. THIS BOOK. I nicknamed it “the Space Race book” because it features a dangerous race across a deadly planet. I was utterly enthralled by the heart-pounding story of feisty Ezren and enigmatic Foster and how their fates intertwined in this death-defying challenge filled with memorable characters who steal the spotlight. Just a stunningly satisfying tale!

Releases in April!

---

Dilseachd – A Stolen Crown (by Cheyenne van Langevelde) — Princess of the Highlands, #1

Castles and Scotland and rebels! I felt so at home in this lush Scottish fantasy, full of endearing characters, escapes and battles, and that feeling of coming home. The writing is delicious and the Scottish flavor and accents give me life. The story of a princess and the son of a chieftain (ANGUS FOREVER) who, along with fan-favorite Malcolm (the scamp!), twined their way around my heart and wouldn’t let go. Aching and lovely.

(Book 2, Urram – Rekindled Hope, is coming 2024, I believe!)

---

Watson and Holmes (by E. B. Dawson)

(Audiobooked; delicious. Read my full review.)

This was way too much fun and just made me super happy! Everything I could want in a Sherlock Holmes retelling, and a fascinating cyberpunk sci-fi setting, plus tons of friendship and banter and mystery, peril, and cool aliens. I was not prepared for how much FUN this would be, despite the dangerous turn to things, and the two heroines who take the place of the Holmes and Watson characters were simply a delight. Also, a plant robot. That is all. XD

---

Elf Prince + Shield Band + Peril (by Tara Grayce) — Elven Alliance series

I couldn’t pick, so these are all going on here together. XD More Farrendel and Essie (including Farrendel’s perspective on things from the first book!), Prince Julien and Vriska in a sort of series ending that was super satisfying, Prince Edmund and Jalissa in shorter spy adventures… These were delightful continuations of a series full of elves, humans, trolls, alliances, fantasy with a dash of steampunk, and beloved characters/great dialogue, and has become very much a comfort read series for me. ^_^

(Inventor and Elf King, final additions to the series, are coming this year, I believe!)

---

Rimewinter (by DJ Edwardson) — Swordspeaker Saga, #2

Truesilver was a favorite the other year, so I was so excited to check out this sequel and it did not disappoint! Talking weapons, a hero I adore, his sister who gets a bigger piece of the spotlight this time, and their hilarious and wise sidekick, plus a breathtaking fantasy world, and a quest across the land. Featuring peril and ice and a winter like you’ve never seen . . . plus an icy fox that stole my heart! It’s truly epic and perfect for fans of Prydain, Ranger’s Apprentice, or the Wingfeather saga. ❤

(Book 3, Grimbriar, is up for preorder! Check out my review for book 1, Truesilver.)

---

Wraithwood (by Alyssa Roat) — Wraithwood Trilogy, #1

(Audiobooked–so fun! Read my full review.)

This reminded me of some of my favorite books from when I was younger and I really enjoyed the magical maze, the mysterious mansion, the Merlin/Arthurian things, and just the fun of it. It made me happy! Still must read the sequel, but I recommend this one if you need a light summer read with modern fantasy and a dash of the whimsical.

(Final book in the trilogy releasing March 15, 2023!)

---

Imprint (by Madeline J. Rose) — Ink Press, #1

The concept of entering books/fairy tales, plus book-people, several amazing twists, and characters I became very attached to, all combined to make this a delightful book that makes me smile when I think of it! Some of my favorites involve spoilers but . . . just yes. 😀

(I hear book 2 is in the works!)

---

Going Postal (by Terry Pratchett) — (Audiobooked.) And I had to include this blast of a book about con-man-turned-post-master Moist von Lipwig and all the Ankh-Morpork city of Discworld shenanigans. XD It was just fun, and Moist was a blast, and him versus Lord Vetinari cracked me up.

---

FAVORITES IN OTHER CATEGORIES

Favorite short story — I have to give a shout-out to Of Leaves and Stars, a short story in the paperback edition of Into the Heartless Wood (which made last year’s top-favorite list) by Joanna Ruth Meyer. This is almost like an epilogue, set after Into the Heartless Wood, and I loved it SO MUCH.

Non-fiction — Practical Dreamer by Kalyn Brooke — This introduced me to six-week sprints, a way to chop up large goals into achievable sets of time. I owe it, big-time, for helping me finish my ARCs and my book reviews. Definitely recommend. 🙂

Picture Books

• Knight Owl (by Christopher Denise) — I cannot! So adorable! T_T
• When Your Dragon Is Too Big for a Bath (by C. E. White) — Made me smile!
• Nuts in Space (by Elys Donan) — UTTERLY HILARIOUS. XD
• Bilbo’s Last Song (by J.R.R. Tolkien, illustrated by Pauline Baynes) — Just beautiful. 🙂

Re-reads — I re-read quite a few books last year, but special shout-out to the Heist Society series by Ally Carter, and the Twinepathy series (Twinepathy and Lightporter) by C. B. Cook for filling my summer comfort-read needs (and satisfying the heist and superhero cravings I was having after reading We Could Be Villains several times as an editor. XD).

Have you read any of these? Do we share any favorites?

Let me know your thoughts in a comment!

Thanks for reading!

Advertisement

My Diana Wynne Jones Journey (Part 2)

My Diana Wynne Jones collection so far! (Not counting a few extra copies. ;))

Way back in 2016, I posted “My Diana Wynne Jones Journey (So Far)” during a previous March Magics, and I had a ton of fun listing each book by DWJ which I’d read and some thoughts about them. (It also amuses me how some of my thoughts/favorites have changed since then. XD)

I’d say a Part 2 of such a post is long overdue (I have sixteen books to talk about!), so here we are!

Here are the DWJ books I’ve read since that post. Those first few years definitely had most of my favorites, but I’ve read some more gems since. ^_^

(Also, last time, I mentioned rereads as well, but I’ve done a fair amount of rereading DWJ these last couple of years and I’m mostly only listing the ones that are new reads this time.)

All titles link to Goodreads, in case you want to read more about them.

2016 (continued)

The Merlin Conspiracy

May 16, 2016

My original review consisted of this: “YES TO THIS BOOK!!!!!!!!!!! ❤ I need an elephant. AN ELEPHANT. Also Romanov. Yesssss. ACK DIANA WYNNE JONES BOOKS ARE LIFE I TELL YOU. (I may coherent a review someday.) ROMANOV.” So I must have liked it quite a lot, even if it’s a bit hazy in my memory due to how long it’s been since I read it. XD Definitely due for a reread! But it’s about Nick, who’s in Deep Secret, so that was fun. (Did you know he was slightly based on a teenaged Neil Gaiman? 😀 His not-coherent-until-breakfast-and-coffee parts, at least. XD) Also, I was reading it when I had a flu, which was appropriate, since one of the characters did too. XD

The Ogre Downstairs

August 6, 2016

This one was different but interesting, and a little more like a normal modern fantasy than I was used to reading by her. Many shenanigans and unreliable narration. XD But my favorite part was when two of the characters accidentally switched appearances and stuff ensued. XD A shorter read and kind of strange but fun!

Eight Days of Luke

December 28, 2016

Who likes Norse Myths? This fun little book by Diana Wynne Jones features some of that in some most unexpected ways! She was writing about Loki (and Thor etc.) in modern times back in 1975, before the Marvel movies were making this cool more recently. XD It’s been awhile since I read this one and I need to read it again, but I remember it being unique and really enjoying it. 😀 I liked David, and Loki is very much of a trickster! The mythology elements and characters are woven in so well, in surprising ways (DWJ is excellent at this), and there is much fire. XD Luke was just so much fun. XD

2017

Wild Robert

March 1, 2017

I wrote a review for this one awhile back but it was so much fun! It reminded me partially of The Boggart, and a little bit of Howl for some reason, and it was surprisingly short and I didn’t want it to end — it just stopped and I wanted more! Ack! But it was very cool and had so many shenanigans I loved the twists so much!

Aunt Maria

March 1, 2017

I reviewed this too, and it was really different. It built up and had some cool twists, and some of it was creepy, but it also had fun parts. And so many magical happenings and interesting characters! It’s told in first-person by Mig and it was sooo intriguing to read it as a journal of sorts. It also has one of my favorite quotes about happy endings. I love it so much and I had to make a quote graphic for it awhile back, which I’ve shared before but I have an excuse to share again. 😀

Hexwood

April 6, 2017

Another top-favorite one! And definitely requires more than one read-through. XD I re-read it for March Magics last year and it was even better the second time. It’s just a mind-blowing book, with soooo many different genres and complex twists all thrown together. I love it so much! And Mordion is my absolute favorite! Some of it’s a bit darker, and it’s terribly confusing at times until you piece together what’s happening (I kept a diagram of who was who while I read it!) but it’s just so unique and delightful. 😀 It also has out of order timey-wimey stuff, modern/sci-fi/fantasy, Arthurian elements, robots, dragons… ALL THE THINGS. Check out my review if you like. ^_^

Another of my favorite quotes. ❤

Puss in Boots

May 14, 2017

This is a rather short kid’s-book about Puss in Boots, which was fairly straightforward but a fun read. 🙂 I now consider it the ultimate version of this fairy tale. XD DWJ did a good job of making it make more sense and of course her cat character was fabulous. It was fun and had a few illustrations too. Not 100% necessary to read this one but I did really enjoy it. 🙂

Dogsbody

June 3, 2017

This one was sooo unique and I loved it being from the POV of a dog! And in Ireland. The mystery was really interesting. Also, the Wild Hunt! And sentient planets. *grinning* Yep, it has all sorts of things. XD Again, a bittersweet ending meant it wasn’t my faaaavorite, but there was a lot to love. But seriously, dog point of view! XD So much fun!

2018

The Game

March 6, 2018

The whole idea and the mythosphere and all the story bits were brilliant. I wish it had been longer than a novella because it was so fascinating. LOVED this one. I want to re-read it. I particularly love all the myth bits and the characters and all of it.

Yes Dear

March 18, 2018

This was a picture book! Which… again, I don’t remember that well, but I do remember reading it, on a special library trip to a library I hadn’t been to before, specifically because I knew this book was there and it was my birthday month and I wanted to read it. XD I know it was fun (people, pay attention if a child tells you something magical is happening. :P) and I was glad I read it!

The Homeward Bounders

March 12, 2018

EXTREMELY vivid and I loved parts of it, particularly the worldhopping stuff and a certain cool character! Actually, more than one… Just… bittersweet ending, and creepy parts, and I’m stark terrified of anchors now. O_O But a great narrator and WORLD HOPPINGGGG! Kinda mixed on it but there were definitely great things about it. Fascinating and intense and really interesting!

A Sudden Wild Magic

March 31, 2018

I enjoyed this one but I consider it one of her darker, stranger books. XD This one was written for adults so there was more content in this and just more disturbing, so… I figure you can give this one a miss unless you’re being thorough like I am and trying to read all her books. XD Feels a bit more scifi than some. I did enjoy parts of it though! I mostly remember the part with the guy who loved his car. XD And I think there were centaurs!

Dalemark Quartet Re-Read

Okay, I said I wasn’t going to post about re-reads in here, but it’s worth noting my epic re-read of the entire Dalemark Quartet in the second half of 2018. I loved it so much, and there were even plot threads I’d forgotten, so some of it was like discovering it the first time! DWJ is the only author who can do that to me. XD (We won’t discuss how many times I forgot and rediscovered the villain of Conrad’s Fate. XD)

2019

A Tale of Time City

January 6, 2019

Who loves timey-wimey stories? Meeee! A few of Diana Wynne Jones’s books have time stuff in them, most notably this one. The idea of Time City, a city outside time, was really cool. I read this one early last year and had a blast! A bit of sci-fi and WWII era for those who like that. (Even if I don’t usually; but I didn’t mind. XD) If you like Doctor Who you might enjoy this! Elio is the best and I NEED A BUTTER PIE!!!

Earwig and the Witch

January 20, 2019

The illustrations were actually really distracting for me on this one and I feel like I would have liked it better if it hadn’t been illustrated? That’s… weird and probably just me. XD It mostly wasn’t a super favorite but I did enjoy some of it, of course. There’s always something fun about DWJ books! Also, the cat was great. XD

That’s all I got to last year of new ones. I did a lot of re-reading DWJ throughout the rest of 2019, though, and it was so fun!

2020 (so far)

Unexpected Magic

January 8, 2020

An anthology of sci-fi and fantasy short stories. I especially loved No One (genius robot plots. XD), Little Dot (wonderful story from a cat’s point of view), and Everard’s Ride (unique novella set in historical times with some interesting twists and not quite like anything I’d read! One of the author’s earlier works). Some stories were creepy or a bit too weird — short stories are always hit or miss for me, regardless of their author, but it was a quite interesting collection! So glad I finally read this one.

The Islands of Chaldea

March 12, 2020

The latest one, which I just read this month for the first time! It was so much fun! I loved Aileen and the sprawling cast of varied characters. I loved the different islands and getting to travel across them (rather like the British Isles but still with their own twists). I loved the creatures! What fun. And I love how it all wrapped up rather well —  I’m quite curious where Diana’s sister Ursula picked up the story’s threads, but they worked quite well! And the little romance threads were adorable, and the twists were delightful! (Also, how about that hot air balloon?? <3) So much fun! What a delightful final work from an incredible author.

---

And there’s my DWJ Journey, part 2! I’ve so loved getting to discover more of her works in the last few years.

I still have a small handful left to read. (The Time of the Ghost, Witch’s Business/Wilkin’s Tooth, Stopping for a Spell… I think that’s it? Not really counting Changover since it was before her main works and so hard to find. There might be a stray short story or few.) But I’ve read most of her books — 39? I think? — and a couple other short stories.

It’s been a beautiful journey (8 years so far, as March 14 this month, which marked the 8 year anniversary of the first time I read Howl’s Moving Castle!), and the best thing about it is that I get to wander back down this road and stop to enjoy the stories and places along the way all over again.

Hope you enjoyed and thanks for reading. ^_^

Mid-Year Top Reads + Roundup {2017}

Hi everyone!

We seem, impossibly, SOMEHOW, to be halfway through 2017? I… I don’t know quite what to do with this information. I’ll just be over here in a shock blanket next to Sherlock. Ahem.

MEANWHILE, this means I get to recap my top favorite reads of the year and… generally just list all the books I’ve read so far, because I want to, and in case you’re curious. XD

Favorite Books So Far This Year (More or Less)

Here’s a glimpse at my top-favorite most-wow books this year, although there have been many other AWESOME reads. It’s been a good half-year for reading. 😀

• Magician’s Ward was Regency Fantasy and the first awesome book I read this year.
• Hexwood blew my mind.
• Sentinel (and technically Arbiter too…) are awesome because JET.
• The Beast of Talesend is hilarious and perfect.
• The Fatal Tree concludes one of my new all-time favorite series.
• Moonblood was absolutely gorgeous fantasy.
• Where the Woods Grow Wild was excellent fantasy plus hilarious.
• Halayda‘s the last book I read and… I haven’t sorted all my thoughts on it because, like I said, it’s recent, so I dunno if it will stay on my top-list or not, but initial reaction was Fae and characters and snark = I loved.

Some runners-up are mooore awesome fantasy, namely:

• Spellsmith and Carver: Magicians’ Rivalry (buddy-story in Faerie, plus banter!)
• Masters and Beginners (so much awesome Faerie things and refreshing YA!)
• King’s Warrior and Second Son (feels-like-home epic fantasy, plus Brant!)

More on all these books below!

Stats

According to my Goodreads Reading Challenge, I’ve read 50 books out of my… 50 book goal! (So maybe I’ll be an overachiever this year. Maybe. Just a smidge.)

(And yes, some of these are re-reads, short stories, or an unpublished beta-read and a picture book, sooo… it’s not as much as it looks like, I promise. XD I think I read 35 new books?)

ALL THE BOOKS

And now, a liiiist of all the bookses, with quicky thoughts on them, ratings, and linkses to reviewses.

(I’m leaving out the short stories and putting the re-reads at the end, even though the pictures are just screenshots of my Goodreads Reading Challenge, which have all of those on, AND are in reverse-chronological order due to it showing up that way, because I’m lazy and consequently confusing. OH WELL! You’ll figure it out. XD)

If you’re curious about any of these, or want to add them to your to-read list, you can find them all listed on my Goodreads challenge, HERE. (So I don’t have to link to all of them, which would be exhausting. o.o)

• Magician’s Ward – Patricia C. Wrede — 5 stars — Regency Fantasy is a genre I must inhale more. This was hilarious/epic, like Georgette Heyer meets Diana Wynne Jones. Also, Mairelon the Magician! ❤ [REVIEW]
• Nyssa Glass and the House of Mirrors – H.L. Burke — 4 stars — Steampunk novella with great banter and lovable talking computer. Slightly scary but totally awesome. Must read rest of series soon! [Mini Review on Goodreads]
• The Faerie Ring – Kiki Hamilton — 3 stars — Annoyed me slightly, BUT scary fairies in alternate 1800s London, plus Rieker was awesome. [Mini Review on Goodreads]
• King’s Warrior – Jenelle Leanne Schmidt — 5 stars — Awesome medieval fantasy with dragons and great characters, including Brant and Kiernan Kane, two of my favorites ever! [REVIEW]
• The Firethorn Crown – Lea Doué — 4 stars — Twelve Dancing Princesses and dragons and great characters; torn about the villain; overall enjoyed. 🙂 [REVIEW]
• Suit and Suitability – Kelsey Bryant — 5 stars — Absolutely delightful retelling of Sense and Sensibility set in the 1930s; so historical-feeling but YA and sweet. ^_^ [REVIEW]
• Wild Robert – Diana Wynne Jones — 5 stars — Short but delightful, and stopped right where I wanted to learn more! XD But super enjoyable. [REVIEW]
• Aunt Maria – Diana Wynne Jones — 5 stars — Mind-blowing DWJ fantasy, which I loved. So, so good. [REVIEW]

• Mort – Terry Pratchett — 4 stars — This and Guards! Guards! are my favorite Discworld books so far. 😀 Dark humor (not for everyone. XD) but overall I quite enjoyed. [Mini review on Goodreads]
• Mansfield Park – Jane Austen — 3 stars — Actually a really good book, trying to do really interesting things; I just couldn’t enjoy it because it was depressing. o.o But still good! [REVIEW]
• Reaper Man – Terry Pratchett — 3 stars — Tricky because I LOVED the Bill Door plot, but didn’t care for the other main plot, so half I disliked, and the other half were some favorite Discworld times. [Mini review on Goodreads]
• Soul Music – Terry Pratchett — 2 stars — I was sad about things, okay. Plus the rock references went over my head and didn’t do much for me. (Loved the motorcycle and the rat though; and some parts I quite enjoyed.) [Mini review on Goodreads]
• Hexwood – Diana Wynne Jones — 5 stars — MIND BLOWN. SO MANY THINGS. ALSO MORDION IS MY FAVE. ❤ AND IT’S FANTASY/SCI-FI/ARTHURIAN/MODERN/TIMEY-WIMEY. Just imagine if Aragorn was turned into the Winter Soldier and then thrown into a genre-defying time-travel thing that breaks your brain and is mindbogglingly plot-twisty, with ALL THE FEELS. Basically. Anyways, one of my fave DWJ books, just dark and might not be for everyone. XD [REVIEW]
• Viper – Jamie Foley — 4 stars — Thrilling novella mixing military thriller/fantasy, with characters I love. Great backstory! I want to re-read this for Jet… [REVIEW]
• Second Son – Jenelle Leanne Schmidt — 5 stars — Awesome epic fantasy, backstory for Brant from King’s Warrior, who’s one of my favorite characters. ❤ [REVIEW]
• Beggar Magic – H.L. Burke — 5 stars — Steampunk-feeling original fantasy with a twist of murder mystery and friendship and cute romance. So fun! [REVIEW]
• King’s Blood – Jill Williamson — 2 stars — Excellent author, I was just too devastated about a certain character death to look at this objectively; I’m sorry! D: (*goes quietly away to sob in a corner*) [REVIEW]
• Sentinel – Jamie Foley — 5 stars — Genre-defying fantasy/modern/apocalyptic/in-another-world/superpowers, with snark and humor and great dialog and characters, this was SO ORIGINAL and I loved it; plus Jet is one of my top-fave characters of ALL TIME. ❤ [REVIEW]

• Masters and Beginners – Daley Downing — 5 stars — Such an extremely enjoyable and refreshing contemporary YA fantasy, with SO many cool faerie-ish things; can’t wait for book two! [REVIEW]
• Puss in Boots – Diana Wynne Jones — 5 stars — Very brief retelling, which was interesting since I’d never read anything retold by DWJ! Mostly very like the original, but with enough humor and good explanations to make it super fun. Puss in Boots now makes sense to me and this is the definitive version for me. XD
• The Beast of Talesend – Kyle Robert Schultz — 5 stars — Hilarious and awesome fairytale-ish shenanigans and one of my top faves. JUST READ IT. [REVIEW]
• The Fatal Tree – Stephen R. Lawhead — 5 stars — An excellent conclusion to the Bright Empires series, I am STILL attempting to wrap my brain around it so I can review it. All I know is that even if I don’t understand everything and might still have some questions (be right back, must re-read series to find answers…), I love this series and these characters fiercely, and this was an tremendous final book. ❤ Just go read The Skin Map, people. Just do it. [REVIEW TO COME]
• Arbiter – Jamie Foley — 5 stars — SO INTENSE, plus more of Jet, plus hilarious memory loss and basically all the things. ❤ [REVIEW]
• Moonblood – Anne Elisabeth Stengl — 5 stars — Absolutely GORGEOUS and fabulous fantasy, so perilous and Fae and just so good. *collapses* Plus, Eanrin and Beana and Oeric. ❤ [Review-of-sorts on Goodreads]
• Adventures and Adversities – Sarah Holman — 4 stars — A super sweet medieval story with a Christian message; quite enjoyed. 🙂 [REVIEW]
• Where the Woods Grow Wild – Nate Philbrick — 5 stars — Classic-feeling yet utterly original fantasy, HILARIOUS, excellently-written, plus lovable characters. Instant classic! [REVIEW]
• Dogsbody – Diana Wynne Jones — 5 stars — Brilliant mind-blowing DWJ as usual, fantasy/sci-fi/modern/mythology. It’s bittersweet (she might not have figured out how to do happy endings yet…) but overall super good. Plus the main character is a former-star-being-turned-dog, and now I know ALL about dogs, which made it hilarious. XD
• Mythic Orbits 2016 (short story anthology) – edited by Travis Perry — 2 stars — Not totally fair, since there were 4-star, 3-star, 1-star, AND 2-star stories in this collection, but overall they were too weird or disturbing for me, and I just don’t usually get along with short stories. XD But others might enjoy more. [REVIEW TO COME]
• Brothers and Betrayal – Sarah Holman — 4 stars — Robin-Hood-ish and I really liked the story of John (the Robin Hood character) and Princess Brianna; also great Christian theme of forgiveness. [REVIEW]
• The Noble Servant – Melanie Dickerson — 5 stars — Extremely enjoyable Christian romantic Goose-Girl retelling, with a great hero and great wrapup to the Thornbeck Forest series. 🙂 [REVIEW]
• Spellsmith and Carver: Magicians’ Rivalry – H.L. Burke — 5 stars — Absolutely fabulous “buddy story” about rival magicians and magic and a scary Faerie realm, with a touch of Steampunk feel. I LOVED Jericho and Auric and their banter! ❤ So good. [REVIEW TO COME]
• Bellevere House – Sarah Scheele — 5 stars — Extremely enjoyable retelling of Mansfield Park, quite different than the original, but excellently written and funny, set in the 1930s with a Christian spin; sort of romantic-comedy-ish and so fun! 🙂 [REVIEW]
• Courage and Corruption – Sarah Holman — 4 stars — A strong character-growth novel about twin brother and sister and a kingdom teetering on the brink of war, looking for its rightful king. Enjoyable medieval Christian fiction in the fictional country of Taelis. 🙂 [REVIEW]

• Dreams and Devotion – Sarah Holman — 4 stars — Well-written medieval tale of a peasant girl and her brother as a new priest, separately facing adversity and growing stronger in their faith. It’s an extremely emotional and bitter-sweet book, focusing on the little things, but it kept me so absorbed and it was overall quite good. 🙂 [REVIEW TO COME NEXT WEEK, with blog tour and giveaway]
• For Love and Honor – Jody Hedlund — 3 stars — Mostly a just-okay read for me, but overall enjoyable medieval romance; I loved the bantering of the hero and heroine. 🙂 [Mini-review on Goodreads]
• Halayda – Sarah Delena White — 5 stars — This is truly EPIC fantasy, with a dash of steampunk, set mostly in Faerie in another world, with dashes of tweaked mythology, SO much great imagery and fantasy, characters I absolutely adored, breathtaking writing, and a dash of humor and hilarious snark and banter, with some great character dynamics and a side of sweet romance. It’s a little darker than some, but so epic. Faerie King Taylan and snarky shape-shifting Zad are definitely new favorites! ❤ [Review to come at some point, perhaps?]

RE-READS

Note: All re-reads are, nearly always, 5 stars. Why else would I re-read them? XD

• Sense and Sensibility – Jane Austen — Re-reading so I could read the retelling; enjoyable. 🙂
• The Magicians of Caprona – Diana Wynne Jones — SO FUN.
• The Dark Hills Divide – Patrick Carman — MY CHILDHOOD.
• Witch Week – Diana Wynne Jones — CHRESTOMANCIIII. ❤
• Mixed Magics – Diana Wynne Jones — And Chrestomanci short stories are so fun. XD
• The Pinhoe Egg – Diana Wynne Jones — MY FAVORITE CHRESTOMANCI BOOOOK. ❤ [REVIEW]
• Howl’s Moving Castle – Diana Wynne Jones — Yes, I read this for the 5th time. I REGRET NOTHING. ❤ Still my top-favorite-book-of-all-time-tied-with-The-Lord-of-the-Rings. 😀
• Year of the Griffin – Diana Wynne Jones — I loved this SO MUCH MORE on this re-read! :O So enjoyable, and griffiiiiins! ❤
• Blood Ties – Hazel B. West — Jumped on the chance to re-read this for a readalong! We’re about to start reading An Earthly King next, and I. can’t. wait. 😀 (But alternate-history modern Ireland with cars and swords and Faeries, though. <3) [REVIEW of Blood Ties from Last Year]

~ ~ ~

So there you are! I hope you enjoyed this glance at my reading year so far! What’s your favorite book you’ve read in 2017?

Thanks for reading! 🙂

Dream away in those pages . . .

~ The Page Dreamer

July Reading Roundup + Announcements

Before I get to the books I read in July, I have a quick announcement to make! A good friend and lovely blogger, Shantelle @ A Writer’s Heart, is kicking off an exciting blog event today, which will run till late-November, and I’m excited to tell y’all about it!

It’s called Hidden Gems: Authors You Need to Discover.

In this blog event, Shantelle will be posting every Monday from now till November 21st. Each week she will be spotlighting or interviewing an author and their books, and she’s got a pretty exciting line-up, let me tell you! There will also be a giveaway each week.

We’re also encouraged to blog about/review the books being spotlighted each week, if we happen to know them, so that can also be a fun part of it, if you like! I’ll hopefully be doing so at least once. 🙂

Anyhow, I for one am excited about this event. I think it’s going to be a lot of fun! 🙂 The first post is up already so dash on over there, do! And remember to keep watching (maybe follow her lovely blog? *nudges you that direction*) for the rest of them! 🙂 You won’t want to miss this! ^_^

On with the show . . .

I finally broke out of my 4-books-per-month streak — YAY! Only by a couple, but still. *cough* I planned to read WAY more but life happened. *shrug*

Anyway, here’s what I read in July . . . I’ve been reading really WEIRD books for me! O_O A historical fiction, 4 contemporary novels (1 alternate history modern fantasy, 1 superhero fantasy, 1 Diana Wynne Jones book which is its own category, and 1 spy contemporary), as well as a steampunk. Fascinating!

1. The Silent Blade – Jesseca Wheaton

I reviewed this one. Kidnappings and siblings and Ireland and AWESOME Irish names and all that good stuff. As I said in my review, I might have rated it 3.5… but I bumped it up to 4. I’d have enjoyed it more if I’d read it awhile back when I was younger and I had some problems with it storywise, but on the whole it kept me reading and made me happy in the end. ^_^

2. Twinepathy – C. B. Cook

I reviewed this one too! *huggles book* And, for a briefer review, here’s a little something I wrote up for “advance praise” to go in the paperback version. 😀 (I think it’s the first time I’ve been printed in a book? ANYWAY IT EXCITES ME.)

Gripping and fun, Twinepathy is an un-putdownable read that swept me off on a thrilling ride. Featuring an eclectic cast of characters who stole my heart, a mystery with a memory-thief which kept me guessing, and original superpowers that had me longing to enter the book myself, this is a fabulous read to lose yourself in. I loved it and can’t wait for more!

3. The Last Dragonslayer – Jasper Fforde

I… don’t know what to rate this because most of it was a 5 star but I didn’t like the ending, so… I’m currently compromising with a 3 star rating, but I’ll probably eventually end up giving it either a 2 or a 4, depending which emotion (enjoyment or disappointment) wins out in the long run. XD

I loved the first half and assumed it was an automatic 5 star read, but then it got scary… and then the ending was really sudden and not what I wanted. Apparently my problem is that I was really enjoying it and then it let me down. *shrug* Others might enjoy it though. And I did love the humor and it was quirky and fun and imaginative and well put together. But some of the ending upset me, and some of it I didn’t care about. I do want a Quarkbeast though . . .

(You can see the rest of my slightly longer, similarly rambly “review,” with some more hidden in spoiler tags, HERE on Goodreads.)

4. Archer’s Goon – Diana Wynne Jones (reread)

ALL THE STARS. (Please do NOT let the weird cover put you off!!! Artists notoriously really don’t know what to do with DWJ brilliance and tend to bungle it and make her books look unappetizing which is hugely unfortunate. -_-) I reread this aloud and . . . MY GOODNESS, THIS BOOOOK. ❤ ❤ ❤ I read it last year and it was one of my favorites, and it was even BETTER this time. *collapses* I JUST LOVE IT SO MUCH. It’s quirky and ridiculous and hilarious and mashes so many genres together beautifully and its about a couple of crazy families (including a family of power-hungry wizards who are a MESS) and it’s set in modern times but I don’t mind and has fantasy/sci-fi/time things and the characters are all precious beans, even the ones you don’t like, and it just had me laughing all the time, plus there’s a writer in the story, which is a bonus, and reading it aloud and doing all the voices was the most fun ever. I LOVE THIS BOOK SO MUUUUCH. It’s definitely one of my top favorite Diana Wynne Jones books. ❤

5. Ashburn – Julia Erickson

I keep reading secret agent books! In this case, a secret-agent, Christian/Romance/Spy/International Thriller/Mystery type of book. This one was quite fun and I rather enjoyed it. 🙂 I plan to write up a review for it… hopefully I’ll post it later this month. But the romance was sweet and the excitement was thrilling and the characters were fun, and it had a feature of interest namely that although it’s about a secret agent and a girl who gets swept up in all of that, they were both homeschooled originally. ‘Twas interesting. *nods* (Likely because the author was homeschooled. ;)) Anyhow I liked it and hopefully I’ll review it!

6. The Rose and the Balloon – Kirsten Fichter

This stoooory! *huggles it* This was a truly delightful Beauty and the Beast novella, and guess what — it just released TODAY! So go read the hilarious post (and the one before) on the author’s blog in which the twins Prince Nicolas and Princess Nicoline from the story take over the blog. It’s so fun. XD And get yourself a copy! Or wait for the ebook! Either way, you need this in your life. ❤ I will be posting an ACTUAL review for it on my other blog sometime this month, hopefully soon, so watch for that. And there’s a blogtour going on this week so that’s fun too! But Beauty and the Beast + steampunk + delightful characters + family + shenanigans = so much awesome! ❤

And that’s what I read this month…

So! Have you read anything good lately? Do you sometimes read outside your usual genre? What do you do when you love a book but don’t care for the ending? TELL ME ALL!

Also I will probably kind of be mostly on an internet hiatus for the majority of August… (I may post a review or two around here and also on my other blog — plus I need to get my Ishness post up there… But other than that I’ll likely be missing.) So I hope you have a FANTASTIC August and I will see you later! ^_^ Happy reading, all! ❤

Thanks for reading!

Dream away in those pages . . .

~ The Page Dreamer

June Reading Roundup {2016}

Reading Roundup #6: June 2016

Heeeere are the books I read in June!

Yes, I am seeing a 4 books per month trend lately… *cough*

Also, oddly, I read mostly historical fiction with a touch of modern this month. o.o Which is strange for this fantasy-addict. 😉 Buuut they were mostly also retellings, so apparently that’s close enough. 😛

(Titles all link to Goodreads.)

1. Lost Lake House – Elizabeth Grace Foley

Reviewed this. A cute, sweet, kind of elegant short read, which I enjoyed falling into for an afternoon. It kind of made me happy, so. ^_^ Also, Twelve Dancing Princesses (ish) — so there’s that. 😉 I wasn’t even going to review it, but I just started typing some thoughts out and then… there was a review. o.o

2. The Golden Braid – Melanie Dickerson

Really enjoyed this one! I wrote a review for it too… I don’t think I’ve read any other Rapunzel retellings, and while Tangled will probably always be the definitive version for me, this one was really cool too. 😀 I loved how it linked in with bits of the other Hagenheim books, especially The Princess Spy… AND THAT PLOT TWIST!!! 😀 *flails around in happiness*

3. Drover’s Secret Life – John R. Erickson

D’awww! *huggles book* Loved this! The Hank the Cowdog books are so much fun — especially the audio editions, narrated by the author. This one was really fun, narrated by Drover. Loved it! Getting to hear the history of Drover… It’s great. Not to mention hilarious. XD Listened to this on audio, read by the author, which is the best. So much fun! Nothing like a Hank the Cowdog book to make you laugh. These books… so fun to have an unreliable narrator, who’s a DOG… And having Drover narrate it this time instead of Hank was so fun. Hilarious. 😀 Just one more thing to say now, of course… “OH MY LEG!” XD

4. Defying Shadows (Rising Shadows, #3) – Ashley Townsend

WOW, this book. So many feeeels. It’s wrapping up the Rising Shadows trilogy and EVERYTHING happened in it! O_O JUST WOW. A couple bittersweet things and many feels, but overall so so good. Time travel and all of the mind-bendingness that involves? Check. Robin Hood retelling? Check. Adorable romance and loveable characters with enormous character-arcs? Check. ALL OF THE REVELATIONS AND PLOT TWISTS OF EVER? BIG CHECK. If this was a chess game, this book would have me in checkmate apparently… ANYWAY. I was privileged to beta-read it, and it’s coming out sometime this July I believe. It made me happy, and I’ll be doing an actual review of it at some point, likely on my other blog. But it was super fantastic! 😀 I don’t usually read such enormous books so I’m also proud of myself a little. XD

***

So those are my reads for June. I have SO MUCH I want to read this month but we’ll see how much I get to. 😉

How about you? What’s your favorite read of June? What are you reading next?

Dream away in those pages . . .

~ The Page Dreamer

Reading Roundup #5: May 2016

I know I’ve been really sporadic around here, but you can blame my internet being dead. Thank goodness for libraries with wifi so I can post this. 😛

So I didn’t read a lot this month again… but what I did read was a lot of gloriously hilarious whimsical fantasy and it was simply fabulous! 🙂

1. Howl’s Moving Castle – Diana Wynne Jones

…Um, I don’t think this even needs to be elaborated on, since everyone should know by now that it’s like my favorite book ever. (Ties with LotR but I admittedly read Howl more often because it’s small.) IT IS MY FAAAAVORITE. *dances in happiness* Howl is the absolute best and I love the whole book and it’s hilarious and perfect. ❤ I take any excuse to reread it, and this time my excuse was reading it aloud to my younger siblings. So I got to do all the voices. It. Was. Stupendous. (THIS BOOOOK. <3)

2. Of Mice and Magic – Ursula Vernon

Well, THAT was fun and hilarious. XD Twelve dancing mouse princesses and a warrior-princess hamster — what could be more fun? For a younger audience, but funny enough I didn’t mind. Great retelling, cute illustrations, very fun quick read. 🙂 Much humor. I approve. *nod* (Also, funny story about how I happened to read this: I had been recommended it by a Goodreads friend because of the twelve dancing princesses aspect… and then I happened to be waiting around at a Barnes & Noble all day one day, so when I found it I actually sat down and read the whole thing while I was there. XD It was kind of great.)

3. Paper Crowns – Mirriam Neal

ASLKDJFSLKDJFLSDKLSKDJF THIS BOOOOOOOOOOOK!!! Okay, so I beta read this when it was being written a couple years back and ADORED it so I was super super super ecstatic when it got published this year! I’ve literally been waiting for this to be published since I read the first chapter. IT’S A DREAM COME TRUE. Hopefully you can understand how good it is when I say I love it nearly as much as Howl’s Moving Castle which I just squealed about. I just devoured my signed copy and loved it all over again and everyone in the world must read it because I love it and the characters (who are a mess but glorious) SO SO MUCH. ❤ (Seriously though, Hal and Azrael and all the others. THEY ARE THE MOST WONDERFUL OF EVER.) Also the snark and banter and humor and character interactions are absolutely MARVELOUS. Plus it’s a lovely fantasy adventure. Basically what is not to love?? Answer: nothing. (Except some typos. But I hear those are being fixed, so.) It’s one of my favorite books of EVER. YOU NEED THIS IN YOUR LIFE, EVERYONE! I CANNOT RECOMMEND IT HIGHLY ENOUGH. ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤

4. The Merlin Conspiracy – Diana Wynne Jones

This was the “review” I posted on Goodreads: “YES TO THIS BOOK! ❤ I need an elephant. AN ELEPHANT. Also Romanov. Yesssss. ACK DIANA WYNNE JONES BOOKS ARE LIFE I TELL YOU. (I may coherent a review someday.) ROMANOV.” Um… so, that was incoherent. XD But in my defense it was very enjoyable despite my having the flu when I read it. I also very much want to find somebody who’s read it to flail with because like nobody’s read it and a lot of Goodreads reviews seem to think it’s just “okay” so I’m wondering WHERE ARE THE FANS OF THIS BOOK?? I NEED YOU. WE MUST TALK. Anyways, it’s the sequel to Deep Secret, and it was totally weird but I enjoyed it a lot. It’s actually not super Arthurian, despite the title. There’s a hint or two, but that’s it. But it’s largely set in an alternate Britain (I wanna go to Wales please and thank you) and it has this elephant (not in Britain) who is named Mini and is so sweeeeet (I NEED AN ELEPHANT I TELL YOU) and a character named Romanov who is amazing. Also it was the perfect thing to read when I had the flu because one of the characters had it too. XD …Actually, I’m almost starting to wonder if I hallucinated the whole thing because it WAS rather a weird book and it went back to the library so I have no proof it happened… >.> I should write a review for it just because. *adds to long list of things to review when I have time/inspiration/internet which is a difficult combination to find these days*

***

So, not very many, but I was also busy, and I have been beta-reading parts of lovely books by lovely friends. I also beta-read all of The Dead Boy and the Paper Cut by Cait @ Paper Fury (which is up on Wattpad.com) and oh my goodness, the FEEEEEEELS. *collapses* It was also humorous and snarky but also scary and dark AND I DIDN’T NEED MY HEART ANYWAY. *cough* Anyways, in case it was a question (which it wasn’t) Cait is a genius writer who needs to be published, since she can make me love a book I would normally never read (i.e., a YA contemporary paranormal story about a ghost, which mangled my feels… and I don’t even mind. This is rare.).

***

But yeah, two Diana Wynne Jones books including a reread of my fave, plus a Diana-Wynne-Jones-esque whimsical fantasy tale with my FAVORITE characters/humor/banter/snark by one of my favorite authors of EVER (a.k.a. Mirriam the Neal herself) and then a small fun retelling of my favorite fairytale (plus a snarky ghost who should totally be published. Ahem.). How about an awesome month of reading, folks?? Yessss. I’m a happy reader. ^_^

So how about you, readers all? Have you read any of these? (I HIGHLY recommend you read Howl’s Moving Castle and Paper Crowns if you haven’t because they’re some of my SUPER top favorites! <3) What’s your favorite thing you read in May?

Dream away in those pages . . .

~ The Page Dreamer