I keep thinking I need to go through all the iterations of this thread and make a list of the books that have been recommended, along with their genre.
I've done that in the past, but if I saved it I don't know where.
I am re-reading between new reading. I devoured so many classics in my teens and I remember absolutely nothing about them. In truth I don't remember anything about something I read a couple years ago. Handy in many ways. So I started re-reading the Sherlock Holmes collection. I am fairly confident my 60 something self views the characters differently than my teen self.
Just finished Babylon's Ashes. I found it thematically eerily timely. Maybe it isn't eerie at all, that's just the zeitgeist, but I had to pause and not quite put it in the freezer but just kind of sit with it for a while a few times.
I recently finished this. I began reading it under the impression it was historical fiction about Dracula's daughter (no vampires, just political intrigue and the occasional assassination attempt) but it turns out the author wrote it as if the daughter grows up to be the Dracula we know and love. It was interesting ... not great, but how often do you read historical fiction set in the 15th Century Ottoman Empire?
I had a seventh-grade girl ask me today for what I'd recommend next since she just read and loved
Where'd You Go, Bernadette,
and figured I'd ask if anyone here has any suggestions. Anything come to mind? She's a pretty advanced reader and can obviously handle adult books, but I don't know that she's necessarily looking for mature content; she said what she liked best was the humor, the strong characterizations, and the adventure aspect.
Maybe Maggie Stiefvater's Raven Boys books? They're not outright comedy, but there is a lot of humor, there's a wonderful adventure/quest, and great, vivid characterizations.
For anyone looking for decent escapist fantasy, I just finished the Queen of the Tearling trilogy by Erika Johansen and really enjoyed it. I'm in for the next book when it comes out. Not at all what I'd expected it to be.
The GroVant books -- Tim Sandlin.
Good suggestions, thanks! Kat, I'm not familiar with those books. What are they about?
I just read the first of the Tearling books. I liked it, despite feeling that it's a bit rote: young woman raised in isolation becomes Queen of her fractious country the day she turns 19, and has to learn to govern despite the threat of revolt and invasion.
It has some predictable bits (like
the very annoying way she falls for the very first interesting youngish-man she meets
) but I thought the world-building was interesting and the characters fairly engaging. And I don't entirely know where it's going to go.
