My Top 5 Reads from 2021!
My Top 5 Reads from 2021
1) A Realm of Stones and Whispers by Ginevra Mancinelli
Synopsis
A Realm of Stones and Whispers, the first installment in the epic fantasy series A Hallow of Talons and Tears, recommended for fans of George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series and Brandon Sanderson.
An Ambitious House.
Kings ruled the Silver Lands until a mysterious fog descended from the Heights and devoured the lives of everything it touched. Generations after the event, only a few ruling houses are in charge, with House Lionhelm aspiring to unify the realm again through the appointed governors of the Regency.
A World of Politics and Magic.
At the age of fourteen, Tecla Lionhelm should take the reins of her future, but between religion and research, she must also consider marriage. After accidentally killing a man, Tecla discovers there could be more to the faith she practices. Unbeknownst to her, her brother, Theliel, is uncovering disturbing truths about the Regency, the King, and a missing noble family, the Rosenfields.
In the capital, Surveillant Opherus Goldsnout comes across a young healer and the man she’s treating, Jascha, and suspects him to play a role in the disappearances of several girls. As Jascha looks for answers regarding his health, while Opherus investigates the Rosenfields, they both find out about occult societies reclaiming their stolen lands.
A Journey Down a Bloodied Path...
In a tale of ladies and lords, criminals and sentinels, maids and soldiers, followers and heretics, each must choose between duty and resentment, spirit and flesh, love and vengeance. The dream of a united land is fading, morality crumbles, and a war horn blows.
2) The Empress of Beasts and Mist by Ginevra Mancinelli
Synopsis
The Empress of Beasts and Mist, the prequel to Mancinelli's epic fantasy series A Hallow of Talons and Tears. A fantasy with horror undertones, LGBT+ representation, and French-inspired lore.
A House that once ruled over an empire.
The Rochelacs are famous for being ruthless, sanguinary, and tied to the blood of an ancient warrior. Centuries have passed and war ravaged the continent countless times, and now the family rules as the overlords of the Fog Lands. Under the guidance of a scryer, Zander Rochelac changes laws and reinstalls traditions for his only daughter, Loveleen, at the cost of sacrificing diplomatic relationships with the rest of the kingdom.
A woman loved by many.
Loveleen is seventeen when she is to marry the lord of another house. Bold and free, she sees the marriage as a simple duty that will not prevent her from living her life the way she wants and blurring the line between friendship and lust. But Larcel Silenteye wishes to become more than a simple consort and will prove to become her only ally when Loveleen's father's actions put her on the path to self-destruction.
A curse that could bring an entire kingdom to heel.
The Fog Lands are the lands of the Beast, a sentient creature with desires and goals. When Loveleen uncovers what it really wants and what her father has agreed to, it may be too late for her family and the entire kingdom. The scryer speaks of a prophecy, but Loveleen sees a curse, and the color of the fog is changing.
3) Dark and Shallow Lies by Ginny Myers Sain
Synopsis
A teen girl disappears from her small town deep in the bayou, where magic festers beneath the surface of the swamp like water rot, in this chilling debut supernatural thriller for fans of Natasha Preston, Karen McManus, and Rory Power.
La Cachette, Louisiana, is the worst place to be if you have something to hide.
This tiny town, where seventeen-year-old Grey spends her summers, is the self-proclaimed Psychic Capital of the World—and the place where Elora Pellerin, Grey's best friend, disappeared six months earlier.
Grey can't believe that Elora vanished into thin air any more than she can believe that nobody in a town full of psychics knows what happened. But as she digs into the night that Elora went missing, she begins to realize that everybody in town is hiding something—her grandmother Honey; her childhood crush Hart; and even her late mother, whose secrets continue to call to Grey from beyond the grave.
When a mysterious stranger emerges from the bayou—a stormy-eyed boy with links to Elora and the town's bloody history—Grey realizes that La Cachette's past is far more present and dangerous than she'd ever understood. Suddenly, she doesn't know who she can trust. In a town where secrets lurk just below the surface, and where a murderer is on the loose, nobody can be presumed innocent—and La Cachette's dark and shallow lies may just rip the town apart.
4) The Atlas Six by Olivie Blake
Synopsis
The Atlas Six by Olivie Blake is the runaway TikTok must-read fantasy novel of the year. If you loved Ninth House and A Deadly Education, you’ll love this.
Originally a self-published sensation, this edition has been fully edited and revised, including gorgeous new illustrations.
Secrets. Betrayal. Seduction.
Welcome to the Alexandrian Society.
When the world’s best magicians are offered an extraordinary opportunity, saying yes is easy. Each could join the secretive Alexandrian Society, whose custodians guard lost knowledge from ancient civilizations. Their members enjoy a lifetime of power and prestige. Yet each decade, only six practitioners are invited – to fill five places.
Contenders Libby Rhodes and Nico de Varona are inseparable enemies, cosmologists who can control matter with their minds. Parisa Kamali is a telepath, who sees the mind’s deepest secrets. Reina Mori is a naturalist who can perceive and understand the flow of life itself. And Callum Nova is an empath, who can manipulate the desires of others. Finally there’s Tristan Caine, whose powers mystify even himself.
Following recruitment by the mysterious Atlas Blakely, they travel to the Society’s London headquarters. Here, each must study and innovate within esoteric subject areas. And if they can prove themselves, over the course of a year, they’ll survive. Most of them.
5) Relics of Dawn by A.W. Davidson
Synopsis
NAMED BOOK OF THE YEAR • "Mind-blowing is an understatement! Captivates readers in a story that’s un-put-downable."—Seth Comire at I♥SCI-FI
Their dying world hides an ancient secret that could rewrite the past to save our future.
Kaia knows her civilization exists on the brink. In 2296, an unstoppable mass extinction leaves Climate Council scientists no choice but to unveil the Dawn Project. Their audacious plan will terraform the planet back to life… beginning with an exodus to the heavens.
She stays behind with a small team to monitor the project from orbit, until an anomaly in the data reveals a threatening conspiracy.
Can Kaia stop the Dawn Project's act of creation from becoming apocalyptic destruction?
Her search for answers leads to a mystery from 2034, when a discredited geologist named Alan Pearce claimed clues buried below ancient ruins reveal a shocking truth... that makes her question everything.
Separated by time but bound by courage, Kaia and Alan's stories intertwine as superstorms rage and cities crumble to dust. Their worlds are dying, but who can they trust?
“The mystery of Da Vinci Code meets the science of Interstellar!” Fans of Stargate, The Day After Tomorrow, and The Time Machine will love this gripping science fiction saga for our future.
Fourth Edition includes corrections and the full Relics of Dawn trilogy — Eruption, Impact, and Revelation — with prologue and epilogue.
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When I told my Barista, Jess, that I was looking for a long series to hold my attention, she was flabbergasted to discover I’d never read the Sookie Stackhouse novels, or seen the show True Blood, which is based off them. In between customers who had come in for their daily dose of Botany and Beans magic, she got up google and started showing me some of the ovary-busting hotness that is the male half of the True Blood cast. Colour me intrigued. I found myself downloading the first book there and then, right in the coffee shop. This is my review of the first instalment, Dead Until Dark.