This is my 10th year of the Goodreads Reading Challenge. I’ve been challenging myself to read more books for the last ten years. After getting interested in the Wheel of Time series, I decided to spend the year reading the entire series mixed with a bunch of random books I come across.
Usually, I would have a separate post for each category, but this year was dominated by Fantasy Fiction interspersed with some short stories and suspense thrillers. So here goes!
Having watched the first season of the Wheel of Time series on Amazon Prime, my interest was piqued enough to read the books. So, at the beginning of this year, I dove right in.
I read the whole series on Audible. The series contains a prequel and 14 books. I will not review each book separately but here’s an overall review of the series.
Short stories in the Hush Collection ranges from political mysteries to psychological thrillers, in which deception can be a matter of life and death
The Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter (I don’t remember which I read first) were the first books that got me hooked onto the fantasy fiction genre. The next was the Discworld series by Terry Pratchett. Since then, it has become one of my favourite genres, and I am so glad to discover a new series with exciting adventures in fantasy lands.
Here are the fantasy fiction books I read in 2021
I came upon The Gilded Wolves series by Roshani Chokshi by pure coincidence. The series includes three books, namely The Gilded Wolves, The Silvered Serpents, and The Bronzed Beasts.
It is a series that mixes fantasy and history in a way that had me hooked right from the first page. It is set in Paris during the late 19th century, which in itself evokes a kind of romance that’s hard to parallel. It follows the story of a group of pariahs led by Séverin Montagnet-Alarie as they get thrown into a world of magic, myth, and political conspiracy.
“They say a witch used to live in these woods, a long, long time ago…And there, she bore the wolves who chase the sun and moon. They say she went to Asgard and was burned three times upon a pyre and three times she was reborn before she fled. They say she loved a man with scarred lips and a sharp tongue; a man who gave her back her heart and more. They say she loved a woman too, a sword-wielding bride of the Gods; as bold as any man and fiercer still. They say she wandered, giving aid to those who needed it most, healing them with potions and spells. They say she stood her ground against the fires of Ragnarok until the very end until she was burned a final time. All but her heart reduce to ashes once more. But others say she lives yet.” The Witch’s Heart by Genevieve Gornichec is a reimagining of Norse mythology’s end of the world, Ragnarok, and how it came to pass. It is told from …
I love the fantasy genre. I’ve loved the fantasy book series since I read the Lord of the Rings, Terry Pratchett, and then Harry Potter. A good fantasy book takes you to a whole new world that seems strange yet so familiar. For a long time after that, I couldn’t find anything else in the genre that I could obsess about as much as I had been consumed by those three series of books. But I’m so glad for some brilliant fantasy book recommendations from other readers. Here are some great ones I read this year. Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo: I loved the concept and the telling of it. A very many twists and turns makes this an exciting duology.The main protagonist is a (white) male but is surrounded by POC and the women characters are strongly written. I would still love to see more women leaders in books though. Can’t be that hard to just reverse roles. Has me convinced to pick up more books from the Grishaverse series. …
Fiction has been the first type of books I enjoyed reading. Sweeping me into another world, full of possibilities. There are many types of fiction – suspense, science, historical, pulp, fantasy, to name a few – and I love them all. As I’ve grown older and read more of these books, I am amazed at how similar we all are in all corners of the world; wanting similar things, dreaming similar dreams. These are just some of the books in this category I read in 2018 that stood out among the rest. For a full list, do visit my Goodreads profile. The House of Clay and Water by Faiqa Mansab: Everything from the covers to the words in between them are beautifully expressed. It was a breeze to read through although there were times when you need to stop and face the harsh realities she talks about. The status of women, the unsafe children, the segregation, and the claim for the moral high ground. It is all relatable and is our thoughts put into words …
I finally am getting back to my stride and making time to read more. This year I jumped to 41 books. There were a few hits and a few misses as with every year. So without further delay let’s dive in. Small Great Things by Jodi Picoult: It is a more holistic approach to racism than I’ve read before and tries to approach the story from different angles. The neat way it’s all wrapped up in the end seems far fetched but it’s known to happen. The courtroom drama is not as dramatic as novels of the genre and there’s not much of it. It’s basically a book on the racial divide in the US and feelings that it brings up in different people A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman: Beautifully written. Reminded me of the movie Up in some ways. Makes you smile through the grumpiness. A simple feel good book especially in these troubling times. When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi, M.D.: It is a story of living life when death …
16 books in 2016. Before I get dejected by that low number, I remind myself I just had a baby and I’m glad I could read even one. Fans of physical books will scoff at me but the Kindle got me through the long breast-feeding and rocking-to sleep sessions this year. I could hold it in one hand and read without disturbing my sleeping baby. I love technology. I do miss the feel of paper, using bookmarks, and finding leaves and flowers between pages long forgotten; I don’t miss the wrist pain after reading large books, carrying a large book while waiting in a waiting room, or reading in uncomfortable places because everywhere else people need the lights off to sleep apparently. Kindle ebooks are readily available for almost all titles, you can carry a bunch of them wherever you go, and read without hurting your wrist and neck. I have the Kindle Paperwhite which lets me adjust the screen brightness and it doesn’t strain your eyes like a tablet or phone does. I freely …
Love, Life, & Beyond 