book-reviews
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The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna
So What’s It About? As one of the few witches in Britain, Mika Moon knows she has to hide her magic, keep her head down, and stay away from other witches so their powers don’t mingle and draw attention. And as an orphan who lost her parents at a young age and was raised by Continue reading
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Glow by Raven Kennedy (The Plated Prisoner #4)
My reviews for this series just keep getting shorter and shorter. Some brief thoughts: -This is definitely the book where Kennedy is trying the hardest to incorporate elements of introspection, healing and growth. Props for that, for sure! Unfortunately, she’s taken a page from the Sarah J. Maas Book of Trauma Recovery because most of Continue reading
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An Ava Reid Essay
Ava Reid is a fantasy author who started publishing in 2021 and has since published four books, reaching huge audiences with TikTok virality and acquiring a reputation for writing dark, Gothic, atmospheric fantasy that focuses strongly on feminism and the stories of women who are trauma survivors. There are all things I adore in books Continue reading
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The Butcher of the Forest by Premee Mohamed
SummaryA world-weary woman races against the clock to rescue the children of a wrathful tyrant from a dangerous, otherworldly forest. At the northern edge of a land ruled by a monstrous, foreign tyrant lies the wild forest known as the Elmever. The villagers know better than to let their children go near—once someone goes in, Continue reading
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Blood Mercy by Vela Roth (Blood Grace, #1)
Year published: 2018 Category: Romantasy Summary: One human. One immortal. Will their alliance save the kingdom, or will their forbidden love be a death sentence? When Cassia seeks out a Hesperine, he could end her mortal life in a heartbeat. But she has no fear of his magic or his fangs. She knows the real monster is the Continue reading
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Her Body and Other Parties by Carmen Maria Machado
Year published: 2017 Category: Literary fantasy, short story collection Representation: wlw characters in several stories Summary: In Her Body and Other Parties, Carmen Maria Machado blithely demolishes the arbitrary borders between psychological realism and science fiction, comedy and horror, fantasy and fabulism. While her work has earned her comparisons to Karen Russell and Kelly Link, she has a voice Continue reading
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Chalice by Robin McKinley
Year published: 2008 Category: Fantasy Summary: As the newly appointed Chalice, Mirasol is the most important member of the Master’s Circle. It is her duty to bind the Circle, the land and its people together with their new Master. But the new Master of Willowlands is a Priest of Fire, only drawn back into the human world Continue reading
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Vespertine by Margaret Rogerson
Year published: 2021 Category: YA fantasy Summary: The dead of Loraille do not rest. Artemisia is training to be a Gray Sister, a nun who cleanses the bodies of the deceased so that their souls can pass on; otherwise, they will rise as spirits with a ravenous hunger for the living. She would rather deal with the Continue reading
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Mr. Fox by Helen Oyeyemi
Year published: 2011 Category: Litfic/magical realism Summary: It’s a bright afternoon in 1938 and Mary Foxe is in a confrontational mood. St John Fox, celebrated novelist, hasn’t seen her in six years. He’s unprepared for her afternoon visit, not least because she doesn’t exist. He’s infatuated with her. But he also made her up.“You’re a villain,” she Continue reading
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Sandry’s Book by Tamora Pierce (Circle of Magic #1)
Year published: 1997 Category: Children’s fiction Summary: With her gift of weaving silk thread and creating light, Sandry is brought to the Winding Circle community. There she meets Briar, a former thief who has a way with plants; Daja, an outcast gifted at metalcraft; and Tris, whose connection with the weather unsettles everyone, including herself. At Continue reading
Charlotte Kersten 