In the last week or two I’ve started binge reading again, because I have a ton of time on my hands and I miss it. These are my favorite books I’ve read in my journey thus far that are definitely worth at least a cover judgment.
- A Darker Side of London by V.E. Schwab
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Schwab has been one of my favorites for a while now- I read her other series Vicious in maybe 6 hours because I was so obsessed with it. A Darker Side of London is definitely my favorite out of the bunch though. It follows a magician named Kell and an almost-pirate named Lila who both have issues trusting people. In this universe, the world is broken into 4 realms- each varying in its magical properties on a scale from “magic is a part of everyday life” to “magic is just a fairytale”. Kell is one of the last two remaining wizards who can travel between these worlds and carry messages between them. The fact that there are so many storylines crisscrossing might seem like it would be confusing, but Schwab does a fantastic job of smoothing out the wrinkles in throwaway lines or less.
- Emergency Contact by Mary H.K. Choi
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This book made all of my coffeshop!AU loving 6th grade self incredibly happy. The characters are interesting enough and have just enough of a cringe factor to make you remember reading all that fanfiction back when it was easier to find time to read, but not enough time to go out and buy a book. Choi does do a great job at expressing relationships in interesting ways (all of the characters have interesting dynamics, no matter how small a part they play in the main character’s life). Her writing style is unique and interesting and definitely worth a read if you love the idea of modernized romance novels.
- Artemis by Andy Weir
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I’ll admit, this book is full of a lot of scientific language that can be frustrating at times. I had to abandon it sometimes to let my poor brain rest, but the story was very interesting. The idea of crime in a lunar colony seems like it would be difficult, if not impossible, but the explanatory nature of Weir’s PhD self makes it happen. Also, there is a ton of diverse and deep characters involved in the story and it brings to light a serious problem with white-collar crime in a traditionally interesting way. Plus, Jazz blows up a lot of stuff. Which is VERY fun.
- Literally anything by Rick Riordan
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If you’ve read any of my 5 other articles on Riordan, you’ll know I love him with all of my heart. He recently came out with a new series, Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard. Putting aside my love of Uncle Rick, this book breaks a lot of walls in talking about queer and diverse characters. Alex Fierro is a gender-fluid shapeshifter who embodies the questions that a lot of people have about how nonbinary and gender fluid people understand their identity. At least for me, it did. All of the relationships are astoundingly healthy and deal with problems in a realistic way (Sam and her fiancé are proof enough of this) that give his young audience the understanding they need.