Reviews by Tag: fantasy

The Betrothed is a fantasy novel about a young lady named Hollis who is dating the king. As she gets a taste of life as queen, she realizes that being royal is harder than she thought. When she decides to flee the castle after the king explains that their children are his and not theirs, she finds peace in the country with a new lover. Soon a tragic event tears her from her family and she must decide if she will be alone or cling on to those, she never knew she needed. 

Vira, Ronak, Riya, and Kaleb, royal siblings, have different agendas, wishes, and secrets. Ashoka’s dying source of magic leads them to the Ivory Key, which can make each of their wishes come true. However, there is a perilous journey ahead of them and their strained relationship hinders them in their path. They band together to find the Ivory Key for their own agendas. They get closer together and decide how to use their newfound power.

When Call comes home from the Magisterium for Summer Vacation he thought that it
would be a normal one with him, his dad, and Havoc. However, what he didn’t know was that his
dad might have been secretly trying to destroy him and Havoc. Call runs off after learning this
and returns back to the Magisterium. However, he learns that a powerful magical weapon that
can destroy chaos magic users called the Alkahest has been stolen, and the key suspect is his own
father, Alastair Hunt. Tamara, Aaron, Call, and Jasper go on a mission to try and stop his father

The Republic of Thieves is an political and amazing fantasy novel by Scott Lynch. It follows
Locke and his best friend Jean as they meet Locke’s old flame Sabetha. What follows is a
faceoff as Lock and Sabetha must face off against each other through political maneuvering and
pranks to gain more votes in the Bondsmagi election after Locke was forced to when his life was
saved by one.

Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins, the bestselling author of the Hunger Games, is a children’s fantasy story about a young boy and his baby sister who fall from their New York City home into an underworld infested by massive bats, rats, and insects, as well as humans with nearly transparent skin.

Keeper of the Lost Cities by Shannon Messenger is the first book in this fantasy series. In this book, Sophie Foster is living with humans. However, she soon discovers that she is an elf instead. She must leave her human family and learn how to live with the elves. But, between her human upbringing and stronger abilities, she still does not have a normal life. While she settles into her new home, she makes new friends who help her along the way.

Victoria Aveyard's Red Queen, the first in a series, is a fantasy, dystopian novel which follows the story of a teenage girl, Mare, as she discovers that she, a "Red-blooded" person, has special powers similar to those of the elite "Silver-blooded" class. Mare's life is turned upside down when her power is revealed as the Silvers attempt to disguise the fact that she is a lowly Red by telling the public that she is the long-lost relative of a dead Silver general.

For me, the most compelling part of the book wasn't the existence and secrecy of magic itself, but the lack of acceptance around it. While normally the world of a book having magic isn't something too impressive. The way that this book had magic exist but villanized by the general public was a unique twist that I don't normally see and I was really intrigued to see how it turned out.

The Cup and The Prince was a largely enjoyable read that featured charming characters, an amazing world, and a strong plot. The idea of winning a competition under false pretense was really interesting.

A Wizard of Earthsea​ by Ursula K Le. Guin is the classic tale of how Ged, a young wizard, comes into his powers and repairs the mistakes of his youth, restoring balance to the land of Earthsea. Along the way he attends a school of magic, battles a dragon, and faces true evil. I really wanted to love this book. It’s high fantasy with a cult following and I wanted it to capture my heart the way that it has for so many people over the years.