These Violent Delights by Chloe Gong is a teen fiction book but is a retelling of William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. The book follows Roma Montagov and Juliet Cai, the two heirs of the most fearsome gangs in 1926 Shanghai. It follows them in both the present and the past as the two struggle with their romantic relationship, as well as the threat of a monster lurking the streets. I personally loved this book; its plot, characters, and the world itself. It takes Romeo and Juliet’s main plot points and changes t
Ashes of Gold by J. Elle is teen fiction but heavily focused on fantasy with ties to our world. The book is a continuation of Rue’s journey to reclaim Ghizon from the Chancellor and give it back to the Ghizoni people. Not only does Rue struggle in the fight against the Chancellor, she also struggles to connect with her people and herself. I love the compelling plot and the character growth in this book.
Divergent, by Veronica Roth, is a young adult, science fiction novel. It is a perfect novel for people who love dystopian romance. It follows a young girl named Tris Prior who has grown up in an isolated city. In this city everyone in society is split up into different groups called factions. Everyone takes a test to determine which faction they belong to. When Tris takes the test her results are inconclusive and she gets a rare personality type called Divergent.
Mistborn: The Final Empire is the first book in the Mistborn series written by the acclaimed fantasy author, Brandon Sanderson. Set in a fresh and unique fantasy world without the usual fantasy tropes and overused creatures, it tells a tale that is part coming of age, part heist, and part fantasy.
The Alloy of Law by acclaimed fantasy author Brandon Sanderson is the first book in a trilogy known as the second era of Mistborn. Mistborn was a trilogy of books written by Brandon Sanderson, and The Alloy of Law is set in that same world, only three hundred years into the future.
Dune by Frank Herbert is perhaps one of the most popular science fiction novels of all time, and with the release of major box office smashing movie adaptations, now is as great time to start reading this classic science fiction story.
How the King of Elfhame Learned to Hate Stories is the latest addition to The Folk of the Air trilogy by Holly Black. This novella provides more insight into how and why Cardan wears his cruel facade. This novella is a series of interconnected stories that tell the tale of Cardan’s life, past, present, and future. My favorite parts of this book were the retellings of events that happened in The Folk of the Air trilogy told from Cardan’s perspective. Additionally, I loved the illustrations.
Khaled Hosseini's, The Kite Runner, is a historical fiction novel set between the 1960s and early 2000s in Afghanistan. Amir is wealthy and virtually untouchable in society, but the person closest to him, Hassan, is his servant's son. The two boys maintain a relationship resembling brotherhood, but they are divided by race, religion, social class, and courage. Hassan would do anything for Amir, but when Amir is given a choice to save Hassan, he runs.
The Lost Sisters is a novella in Holly Black’s The Folk of the Air trilogy. Set after The Cruel Prince, this novella is a kind of letter from Taryn to Jude quasi-apologizing for and explaining how Taryn fell for Locke. While I assume Black wrote this novella to garner some understanding for Taryn’s actions, Taryn’s attempts at justification only made me like her less.
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley is a futuristic dystopian novel. The World State is inhabited by genetically modified humans and runs on an intelligence-based social hierarchy. Bernard Marx doesn’t fit in with the rest of the World State’s population, so when he visits “the Savage Reservation” and sees the opportunity, he returns home with two imperfect individuals to gain attention. I felt sorry for Linda; there was no way she would have ever been accepted by the world in which she grew up.
