Reading the Top 12 Fantasy Books on Goodreads | 2020 TBR

I've slowly been sticking my toes into adult fantasy for the past few years, and lately, there have been a lot that I have wanted to read but just keep putting off for some reason or another. But mostly, because I'm intimidated by them.

Adult fantasy seems so inaccessible for me. And I think that's because I listen to a lot of audiobooks. Over half of the books I read are via audio. And like a lot of people, adult fantasy is very hard for me to grasp onto via audiobook. I'm not quite sure what it is. Something about all the fantasy names and locations and none of it seeming real I think is part of it.

But I really want to conquer my fear of adult fantasy in 2020. And I want to get back into the habit of physically reading books because it's something I really enjoy and have missed in the past year or so of mostly listening to audiobooks.

Enter, a Goodreads article. 

After a few years of consistent book buying, I have amassed a not-that-small collection of unread fantasy books. That results in me being kind of overwhelmed when I go to my shelves to pick out one that I'm interested in reading because I'm interested in all of them! So, when I logged onto Goodreads to see a list of adult fantasy that I'm very interested in reading (and I already own most of them), I figured that this would be as good a jumping-off point as any.

Now, I've already read two of these, The Hobbit and A Game of Thrones, so here are the ten adult fantasy books that I'm challenging myself to read throughout the year.

• NINTH HOUSE by Leigh Bardugo: Starting this list off with two women feels good. Adult fantasy is a genre historically dominated by men (as the rest of this list will show you) so it makes me a little happy that the two top trending fantasy books on Goodreads are ones written by women. Ninth House, in particular, I am a little hesitant about because I've heard mixed reviews. However, I do generally like Bardugo's work so I'm going in optimistic, even though I know the subject matter is dark.
• CIRCE by Madeline Miller: This one is a recommendation from a) Goodreads b) everyone on the internet and c) my sister. So this one is a definite must-read for me because once books (especially ones that aren't adaptations) go beyond the bookish internet and into mainstream culture, I know that I've got to read it, especially when it's got the older sister stamp of approval. 
• THE LAST WISH & BLOOD OF ELVES by Andrzej Sapkowski: I'm planning on starting The Last Wish in February because I just recently finished watching the show and have the bug to know more about this world and this story. If I like the first book, then I'll probably immediately jump into the second collection of short stories, Sword of Destiny.

• THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING by J.R.R. Tolkein: I knew there was going to be one classic fantasy on here that I was not excited to read, and here it is. I do own a very 80s book club edition of this series, so I was definitely planning on reading it at some point in my life. But I'm nervous to read this because I didn't grow up on any Tolkien. The movies came out when I was very young, and I remember being terrified of Gollum. And when I watched them through in college . . . I was really bored? I did start the first book years ago in high school (right after I finished reading The Hobbit) and got to the point where Frodo and Sam start their journey before I got tired of Tolkein's descriptions. Hopefully, I've matured a bit as a reader since then and can appreciate this series and its impact.
• GOOD OMENS by Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett: Probably the one on this list that I'm most excited to read? I started reading Terry Pratchett's Discworld series last year (and feel very comfortable in saying that reading through that series is a lifetime goal because it's so long) and I really loved what I read. Also, I read some Gaiman last year that I really loved, so I'm excited to read the collaboration between these two. I'm really confident that I'll enjoy it because I enjoy some humor in my fantasy and Pratchett does that incredibly well. 

• AMERICAN GODS by Neil Gaiman: I don't know a lot about this one. I did find a used copy of this for a couple bucks, so I do own it and am terrified of it because it's massive. 
• THE NAME OF THE WIND by Patrick Rothfuss: Speaking of terrified . . . this is one of the very first adult fantasy books I ever bought because I heard so much buzz about it. And it's sat on my TBR shelf for years because there's still no announcement for the third book in this trilogy and it's been something obscene like ten years since the second book was published? So part of me is terrified of reading a very large fantasy book that I might not enjoy, and then the other part of me preemptively scared of getting through books one and two and having to wait an indefinite amount of time for the third book. 
• THE PRINCESS BRIDE by William Goldman: The only book on this list that I a) have firmly DNF'd and b) do not own. I started reading this ages ago in high school because it was an almost-boyfriend's favorite book and I wanted to impress him. But, uh, I started it and did not enjoy it so I just kind of gave up on reading it. I'm going to try one more time to read this, but I will not beat myself up if I still don't enjoy it and just end up DNF'ing it again.
• THE FIFTH SEASON by N.K. Jemisin: Wow, am I glad this book is on here because this list is dominated, with the exception of Bardugo and Miller, by white men. And there is so much more to fantasy and so many more fantasy writers than just white people. Jemisin was the first black woman to win the Hugo award (I believe for this book, but it could be for one of her other series). This is a very highly acclaimed book, both in terms of awards and from people that have read it, so I'm excited to read it. 

I want to review as many of these books as possible, too. Is there one that you're particularly interested in my thoughts on? Is there one on this list that I need to read first? Or if you want to read some of these, we can totally read them together. Let me know down in the comments!

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2020 Books I've Preordered | My 6 Most Anticipated Releases (+16 Bonus Books)

Happy belated new year! I'm not making any promises about blogging regularly (we all saw how that turned out last year, oop), but I just got the blogging bug again and wanted to chat about some of the books that I'm absolutely bursting at the seams to read. A few of these have already come out because this is getting posted late into January, but that doesn't mean they were any less anticipated by me!

I don't preorder a lot of books usually, but I feel like this year was kind of an outlier because most of these books are sequels in series that I love and adore (with a couple of exceptions).

Come Tumbling Down - 7 January

Even though this one has already been released and I already have it in my home and on my shelves, I haven't read this one yet. I like to save these books for a time when I'm feeling a little bit down and want a quick escape to a different world. This one also is more of a direct sequel to the second book in the series, Down Among the Sticks and Bones, which is my favorite out of the four books I've read so far, and I kind of want to reread that before jumping into this one.  

I've pretty much had this one on preorder since the cover was revealed.

Heartstopper: Volume Three - 6 February 

And it's a good thing that I did make this list late in January because otherwise, I wouldn't be able to gush about how much I love this series. I added this to my preorder list maybe a week or so ago because I impulse bought and immediately devoured the first volume of this in the first week of January. As soon as I finished it, I immediately bought the second book. 

It's been a long time since I've been this attached to a series and been this ravenous to read on with the story, so I had to preorder it. 

The Falling in Love Montage - 9 June

This one is a little bit of a gamble for me. But how could I not gamble on THAT COVER and this synopsis: 

Saoirse doesn’t believe in love at first sight or happy endings. If they were real, her mother would still be able to remember her name and not in a care home with early onset dementia. A condition that Saoirse may one day turn out to have inherited. So she’s not looking for a relationship. She doesn’t see the point in igniting any romantic sparks if she’s bound to burn out.

But after a chance encounter at an end-of-term house party, Saoirse is about to break her own rules. For a girl with one blue freckle, an irresistible sense of mischief, and a passion for rom-coms.

Unbothered by Saoirse’s no-relationships rulebook, Ruby proposes a loophole: They don’t need true love to have one summer of fun, complete with every cliché, rom-com montage-worthy date they can dream up—and a binding agreement to end their romance come fall. It would be the perfect plan, if they weren’t forgetting one thing about the Falling in Love Montage: when it’s over, the characters actually fall in love… for real.

A F/F rom-com where the hardened against love character falls in love with a soft romantic is everything that I didn't know I needed. Also, I just have a gut feeling that I'll really relate to Saoirse's character. I am not prepared.

A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor - 7 July

The sequel to one of my favorite reads of last year was another immediate add to this list. I really don't know what this will be about (I'm honestly worried that it won't be very good) other than it will obviously pick up after the events of the first. I really didn't need more.

Burn Our Bodies Down - 7 July

While Rory Power's debut book, Wilder Girls, was one of the most divisive releases of last year, I was firmly in the this-is-amazing camp. It gave me major Annihilation meets Lord of the Flies vibes, and that atmosphere totally made the book for me. 

All I really know is that Power refers to this as the "corn book" and that the cover is stunning. I really love her writing style, and that was all I needed to preorder this book because I knew for sure that I would want to read it as soon as it came out.

Hollowpox: The Hunt for Morrigan Crow - 18 August

The third book in the best current middle-grade series was an immediate pre-order for me. Like everyone else, I'm absolutely obsessed with this series. I can't believe we're finally getting the third book. I'm actually unbelievably excited, this is my most anticipated book of 2020.

The rest of these are some of my most intriguing releases of 2020. If you want all the releases for this year that are on my radar, here is my goodreads shelf. Most of these are ones that I will get from my library, see if they appear on scribd, or might buy for myself if I hear enough good buzz about them.

Loveboat, Taipei - 7 January | Dark and Deepest Red - 14 January

The Mystwick School of Musicraft - 21 January | Anna K.: A Love Story - 3 March

Eight Perfect Murders - 3 March | Wild at Heart - 3 March

Frozen Beauty - 17 March | The Glass Hotel - 24 March

The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires - 7 April 

Check, Please!: Book 2 - 7 April | The Prettiest - 14 April | Running - 5 May

The Life and (Medieval) Times of Kit Sweetly - 5 May

A Song Below Water - 2 June | Loveless - 9 July | Grown - 15 September

And that's it! I'm really excited about all of these books, and so many more! 2020 feels like it's going to be an incredible year for book releases. And if these stunning covers are anything to go by, I have high hopes.

What are some of your most anticipated releases of this year? Do we have any of the same books on our lists? Let me know!

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BOOK QUIZZES PICK MY TBR | Spring TBR 2019

Since I started my bullet journal at the beginning of the year, I've been following monthly TBRs. Almost entirely because they function well in a monthly bullet journal spread. But I wanted to go back to my roots, seasonal TBRs, but this time with a twist. 

I recently started following (and loving btw, you have to check out her channel) Starlah Reads. She recently did an excellent video where she took a Penguin Teen quiz that told her "Which YA Heroine Are You?" and then she read and reviewed the book it gave her. I thought this idea was basically brilliant, and then proceeded to take the quiz for myself.

And then I took some more. Because internet quizzes are my kryptonite. And made a TBR for myself. I also know it's impossible for me to read 13 books in one month, so I'm going to read these books for the next three months. (I'm also challenging myself to review these fully on my blog as well, but don't hold me to it.)

At the end of this, I'll wrap-up my overall thoughts on the books. And who knows, I might do it again.

FROM PENGUIN TEEN

goodreads | Which YA Heroine Are You?

You're Lady Helen!
You're an old soul. In fact, you were probably even born in the wrong era. As such, you stand out in a crowd and always seem to end up with way more responsibility than you ever wanted. You might even be living a double-life as a result. Or monster hunting. Who knows.
You're cutthroat and fearless when it comes to ~evils~, but you're not afraid to put on a pretty dress and smile either. You always have the upper hand and nerves of steel to back you up.

This was one that I had on my TBR years ago when it first released but then took off in a goodreads purge because I hadn't really heard anyone talk about it. To be fair, it still sounds really interesting, even though paranormal isn't my usual genre, and the quiz kind of did a good job selling this to me because Helen sounds like a fun protagonist.

goodreads | What You Should Read Based on Your Favorite Sci-Fi Show

If you love Orphan Black, chances are you're addicted to twists, turns, and maybe a conspiracy or two. Get your fix by reading a thriller like Nemesis, which features a girl who gets murdered every two years--then comes back hours later.

This was less a quiz and more a one question pick a TV show question. I haven't heard anything about this book, I haven't heard anyone talk about or review this, but if it's anything like Orphan Black (which I haven't thought about in ages, but adored) then I don't really want to know much.

FROM EPIC READS

goodreads | Go on a Trip and We'll Tell You What to Read Next!

Looks like you're ready for a spontaneous road trip to New Orleans! Make your escape and get away by page with Mariam Sharma Hits the Road.

I haven't heard the best reviews about this, what I've heard has been pretty middle of the road, but I really love Sheba Karim as a person. I've gotten to hear her speak a couple of times, and I've been meaning to read That Thing We Call a Heart for years so I'm hoping this will force me to actually pick up one of her novels.

goodreads | Which Book Cover Matches Your Personality?

You always present your best foot forward, and often, it's to cover up for the insecurities that plague you. You shouldn't have them, though, because you're often underestimated and never fail to prove yourself. You have a secret romantic side as well, but you'd rather die than admit it.

Another one that I took off of my TBR, this time because of negative reviews, and I'm not completely thrilled to read. I don't really have a lot to say here because I don't think I'll like this. But I'm going to give it a try.

goodreads | Choose Some Bestselling Books, and We'll Tell You What to Read Next!

We hope you're already consider Kheryn Callender's totally epic love story a must-read, because the story of Nathan and Oliver James will have you smiling to yourself a ridiculous amount. And that's exactly what you--well, let's be read, what we can all--use!

So, while Epic Reads by far had the best and most varied quizzes (thank you, I appreciate it), they don't really do the best job of selling me these books. I've only glanced at reviews, and the top ones from people I trust are fairly negative, but this looks like it's about two boys falling in love and one of them is really into film?

I've seen this cover around a lot, but I never actually added it to my TBR. Another one that I'm super skeptical about but will give my best shot.

goodreads | Build a CW Show and We'll Reveal Your YA Soulmate

Elias is a fighter--he would fight for you, for your future, and for a better world. You have a social justice streak and need someone who can keep up with you.

I feel like a lot of these responses have been very middle of the road, but I'm genuinely so excited for this one! I've been meaning to read it for ages, and I actually own my own copy so I'm prepared to jump into this world. The people that love this world are completely in love with it, so I hope I love it as much as they do.

FROM BOOK RIOT

goodreads | Which Romantic YA Book Should You Read Next?

Clara's taken her prankster life too far. After a bloody incident at her prom, she and her rival are sentenced to working her father's food truck for the summer. It's not all enemies and Korean-Brazilian fusion, though--there's the cute Hamlet, who spends his days vending coffee. Watch Clara fall in love--and maybe in friend--in The Way You Make Me Feel.

I've heard such good things about this! I know it has a food truck and a Korean-Brazilian main character and a great dad. This is another one that I actually own and genuinely very excited to jump into this one.

Also, I wanna say that of the three places I took quizzes, Book Riot by far gave the best results quality-wise.

goodreads | Which Romantic YA Book Should You Read Next?

Twinkle idolizes female filmmakers and wants to make it big herself. To do so, she sets herself to creating a film for an upcoming contest. But there's also her crush on Neil--is it him sending her emails? Or is it his sort-of dorky twin brother, Sahil? Find out in From Twinkle, With Love.

I haven't heard many reviews for From Twinkle, With Love but I adored Sandhya Menon's first YA book. A lot of people weren't big fans of that, but I got to hear her speak about how Dimple got published and the inspirations and that made me like it maybe more than some people. I am very excited that the main character in this one, Twinkle, is super interested in movies and film. That's something that I love and we don't get a lot of books where main characters have varied interests.

goodreads | Which Literary Cat Are You?

Lying Cat: You are fierce and loyal. And you can always tell when someone is lying.

I kind of just took this quiz for laughs, but when I got Lying Cat from Saga, I knew I had to add it to the list. I'm in the middle of the second volume right now, so I'll be reading the third volume for this challenge.

goodreads | Plan A Thanksgiving Dinner, and We'll Give You a Book to Read

You should read All the Lives We Never Lived by Anuradha Roy! While surrounded by your family, read about a man searching for his. In India during World War II, Myshkin was known as the boy whose mother ran off with an Englishman. Now, as an adult, he tries to find out where she went and why she left.

This book gets the special honor of being the only one on this list that I've never heard of before. But it's a pretty short post-WWII historical fiction. Hopefully, I'll enjoy it.

goodreads | Which Romantic Adventure Novel Should You Read Next?

You should read An Extraordinary Union by Alyssa Cole. Set during the American Civil War, this novel tells the story of Elle, a former slave who returns to the South to spy for the Union army. There she meets Malcolm who is also an undercover agent. When these two fall in love, they have to decide what's more important: their passion for their cause or their passion for each other.

I completely fell head over heels for Alyssa Cole's Reluctant Royals series. I'll be honest, though, historical romance is not my thing, and this doesn't sound particularly up my alley. But if I trust anyone to do it, I trust Alyssa Cole.

goodreads | Answer 5 Questions and We'll Give You 5 Book Recommendations!

Something Heartwarming and Romantic: The Proposal by Jasmine Guillory, Save the Date by Morgan Matson, A Princess in Theory by Alyssa Cole, The Prince and the Dressmaker by Jen Wang, The Upside of Unrequited by Becky Albertalli.

I think, depending on how this story goes and how much I enjoy it, this might be my last Morgan Matson? It's nothing against Matson or her writing, but I think I've just outgrown her stuff. I don't love cishet people falling in love over the summer. I just don't really read many of those books anymore.

goodreads | Answer 5 Questions and We'll Give You 5 Book Recommendations!

I was so pumped when this was on the list of books? I'd heard buzz about this for years and just never picked it up. I was never incredibly interested in it, but I thought it sounded intriguing enough. I'm excited to see what I think of this graphic novel.

It's a lot of books. It's ambitious, especially for me, but I'm looking forward to this project. Please tell me down in the comments if you've read any of these, and which ones you think I should prioritize.

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Favorite Reads (& Watches) of 2018

I'm not going to give too much of an introduction because we all know why you're here and what this list is. I will say that this is a long list because I've been reading a lot of really great things, and I've enjoyed most of them. I'm really starting to hone in on my reading tastes and what I do and don't enjoy when it comes to that. For your convenience and my sanity, this list is separated into fiction works (mostly novels), nonfiction, and comics. Not all categories are created equal, and a lot of my favorites are actually in the comics section, so, yay! Also, strap in, this is a long one.

FICTION

• A Princess in Theory & A Duke by Default - Alyssa Cole: I normally cannot stand romance novels. At least that's what I thought before I found my new favorite, Alyssa Cole. Not only am I sucker for any kind of royal romance, I've finally found one that lives up to being a modern, feminist romance. Because I've tried to read the other "feminist" ones that still perpetuate gross and harmful behaviors. This series is a gift to us all, and the next in the series (a novella) is a F/F romance and the cover is two women looking in love. I'm gonna cry.
• The Language of Thorns - Leigh Bardugo: I don't know how to even begin to talk about how great this was? These are very good, amazing, magical short stories. Some of them give you hope and others are just horribly dark and cruel. If you like fairytales and Bardugo's writing and haven't read this, you should because it's amazing.
• An American Marriage - Tayari Jones: Probably the most acclaimed and buzzworthy book on this list. This is very good, top-tier writing and storytelling. It's one of Barack Obama's favorites for a reason. Because it's good. And amazingly written with complex characters and situations and it's really just remarkable. 
• The Refrigerator Monologues - Catherynne M. Valente: If you stick around towards the end of the list, you'll see how much I love and adore comics. They have been such a large part of my life for the past five years, and at this point, I can't imagine my life without them. And since I started reading comics later in the game, I've read a lot of really great representation of women, that's mostly written by women. But that's not the history of comics. This is one of the two books in this section that completely has my whole heart. This is told in series of short stories, each told by a different woman that has been fridged in their superhero's story. These are the women that are killed, raped, brainwashed, stripped of their powers in order to service the story of their male protagonist. This works best with some working knowledge of comics and the history of fridging (links here, here, and here), and I completely fell in love with it.

• Beartown - Fredrik Backman: This one wins the award for the book that made me cry the most on this list. This is such a strong story, and incredibly well written. People rave about Backman's stories and writing for a reason. It's amazing, and heart-wrenching and is another one that makes me love and hate the world all at the same time.
• If They Come For Us - Fatimah Asghar: The only poetry on this list, and of all the poetry I read this year, it's the one that I want everyone to read and is shamefully underrated and needs to be on more people's radars. It is the best poetry collection that I've ever read. This one has my heart.
• Children of Blood and Bone - Tomi Adeyemi: This book is phenomenal. And whether or not you think it follows certain fantasy tropes or adheres to YA cliches, it is phenomenal because it is a stunning YA fantasy written and starring a black woman. The family relationships far exceed regular YA and fantasy novels. This is a fantasy novel that has a really amazing character, especially for our main character Zelie, but really for all of our featured characters. Really a great story, and I'm incredibly excited to continue.
• The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo - Taylor Jenkins Reid: Because I don't want to go on for seven years, I'm going to encourage you to read my goodreads review (linked through the title). I have never read a book that I feel more personally about. This book is mine, and it is me on the page. I was laughing and crying and this book encompasses my whole soul. I love it with my whole heart, and it's a new all-time favorite. 

There are also two series that I started and finished in 2018 that I also absolutely loved, both for their individual stories and for their overall series arcs. And here they are: 

Crazy Rich Asians, series (I, II, III) - Kevin Kwan: These are the audiobook stars of the show for this year. (Also, one of the movie stars of the show: stay tuned.) Are these phenomenal literature? No. But are they a good old romp with characters that I love and adore? Yes, I would die for and marry Astrid. And due to the really gossipy, social nature of these books, the audiobooks really sold this series for me, because I felt like I was getting the inside scoop on these characters. It was an experience. 

Binti, series (I, II, III) - Nnedi Okorafor: Afrofuturism is a genre that I've only dipped my toes into, but is already one of my favorites. It combines my love of speculative, science-fiction and culturally-and-character-based stories. Home is my favorite of the series, closely followed by the first. I read all of these fairly close together, and that definitely helped me grasp the story and characters. I really recommend these (also as audiobooks because they really helped me with a lot of pronunciations).

NONFICTION

I'm still learning how to accurately talk about nonfiction books, so this section should be a nice reprieve from all my writing. Also, all of these are pretty popular and well-read, so most of you have probably already read or heard of them.

• The Glass Castle - Jeanette Walls: The most popular book that I read in 2018, and I know why. Jeannette Walls had a truly fascinating childhood. The common thread with all these nonfiction books is that they kept me engaged during the reading process. 
• Brain on Fire: My Month of Madness - Susannah Cahalan: This is a terrifying but fascinating recollection of a month of Susannah Cahalan's life. I could not put this down. It's so well-written and always kept me engaged.
• Between the World and Me - Ta-Nehisi Coates: This is the one that blew me away out of this section. It is so profound and amazing. Definitely recommend listening to the audiobook, as it's read by Coates himself. This book covered a lot of ground, and is one that I will think about for a long time.

• In Order to Live: A North Korean Girl's Journey to Freedom - Yeonmi Park: This book really took the world by storm a few years ago, and I finally got around to reading it. It still feels so relevant. It was endearing and heartbreaking and horrifying. If you've gone without reading this like I had, I definitely recommend it.
• Smoke Gets in Your Eyes - Caitlin Doughty: I found Caitlin's YouTube channel earlier in 2018, and I bought this soon after. This is part memoir, part facts about death and dying and different options for what happens to you after death. This is really, very good, and is the one that I will reference and revisit as I need to.

COMICS

• Goldie Vance, vol. 3 & 4 - Hope Larson: I love a queer Nancy Drew. I'm not sure if we're getting more of this series, and that makes my heart hurt a little bit. This is a precious story with so much heart, and I adore it.
• Aquicorn Cove & The Tea Dragon Society - Katie O'Neill: These are the cutest, most adorable short children's stories. They are compassionate and educational and I love the art. Everyone loves these for a reason.
• Bitch Planet - Kelly Sue DeConnick: Standout comic writer of the year for me is Kelly Sue DeConnick. I am a true stan now. I love her so much. This comic is set in near-ish future where the men in charge send the women they deem "non-compliant" (those who aren't content to simply comply to their patriarchal overlords) are exiled to a different planet. I'd been meaning to read this for years, and I really enjoyed the story and the feminist nature of it. It's great, please read it.

• Giant Days, vol. 8 - John Allison: If there's ever a year where this comic doesn't make my favorites list, it will be a truly sad day. This is the only series I've ever followed from the beginning for this long. Allison always keeps me interested in these characters and their day-to-day adventures. I love this series so much.
• The Life of Captain Marvel - Margaret Stohl: Okay, okay, so after you read the 2012 run of Captain Marvel (see: next entry), you have to read this. The collected volume doesn't come out until later this month, but I read the single issues of this as they released towards the end of 2018, and I've got to applaud this story. As a bit of a *nerd, there were some story issues that I wasn't immediately a fan of, but this story has sat with me since I finished it. I think what this story does is very important and a vital change that Carol's story needed. Please just read it, this is a truly spectacular series.
• Captain Marvel (2012) - Kelly Sue DeConnick: I love Captain Marvel's story. And this is the arc where she was promoted from Ms. Marvel to Captain Marvel. This first volume isn't my favorite, but the overall arc of this series (1: In Pursuit of Flight & 2: Down & 3: Avengers: The Enemy Within) is so good. And though I'm partial to the 2015 run of Carol's story because that's how I was introduced to her, this is really spectacular writing, and it really established DeConnick as one of my favorite comic writers of all time and Carol as my favorite superhero.

MOVIES

So, if you haven't heard of letterboxd, and you watch a lot of movies like I do, it's basically a goodreads (but better!) for movies. The full list of 20 movies is here for you to peruse, but just quickly here are my top favorites from that list (ordered roughly with my absolute favorites at the top):

The Shape of Water

Paddington

Sorry to Bother You

Annihilation

Carol

Widows

Inside Llewyn Davis

Won’t You Be My Neighbor?

And that's it. It was a long one, but I had a whole lot of favorite things this past year and I wanted to share all of them with you. I've been reading less bad things and more things that I know I'll enjoy, which is why this post has been seven years long.

Please tell me down in the comments any of the favorite things you've read or watched this year, if you've read any of my favorites, or if you have any favorites you'd think I'd enjoy please let me know! I'll see you all soon(er than I have been). 

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One Year of Favorites | Tomes Project

I've been gone for a while (almost exactly a year, in fact) and that's been for a lot of reasons: school was far too stressful, issues with medications, and just general gloominess. But in the time I was gone, I still read quite a lot (over 50 things just this year, in fact) and most of them I really loved because I've mostly stopped reading things just because everyone else is reading it. If I finish it, I've got to love it.

I've also been watching a lot of movies, and I've been tracking them on letterboxd, which is a goodreads-esk equivalent (with half stars!) for movies. (You can follow me, if you'd like.) And I may end up incorporating more movies/tv type content here as well, so if you're interested in that, let me know.

Either way, here are the 21 books, two complete series, and a handful of comics that I've been loving in my time away from blogging (ordered by read date).

END OF 2017

• JANE, UNLIMITED - Kristin Cashore: 4/5 - Oh my gosh, I loved this so much. It's the most unique book I've ever read; it's multiple universes plus a 'choose your own adventure' story that bends genre. So lively and fun.
• DOWN AMONG THE STICKS AND BONES - Seanan McGuire: 5/5 - Probably one of the ones on the list that I continue to think about the most. This was everything that I wanted from this series--a dark, portal fantasy fairytale. The even numbered books of this series are the ones that show the students from Eleanor's school finding their doors. I love those stories, and McGuire writes them so well. In addition, this has some really powerful writing and messages about gender norms and the restrictions and expectations that we put on children that I think about on a regular basis.  
• THE PRINCESS DIARIST - Carrie Fisher: 4/5 - I didn't grow up on the classic Star Wars trilogy. I never really cared, to be honest, but one of my earliest memories is seeing Episode II in theaters. I only got into the series when the new trilogy premiered in 2015. And, this provided a lot of context to those movies and that fandom that I hadn't known. When I started reading this, I was the same age as Carrie's diary entries from the first movie, and there was a particular connecting power in that for me. 

• MARCH, BOOK THREE - John Lewis: 5/5 - An absolute must-read non-fiction graphic memoir series that takes place during the civil rights period, with flashes of the "current time" of 2009 on the day of Barak Obama's inauguration. 
• THE POWER - Naomi Alderman: 4/5 - This is another one that I continue to think about on a near-daily basis. While not my favorite book or the most well-written book for me, this has fundamentally altered the way that I not only interact with the world but also with my own ideas and beliefs. 
• LONG WAY DOWN - Jason Reynolds: 5/5 - Actually the only one on this list so far that I've reread. I read this both in print and on audio, and while both great, I would definitely recommend the print version because this is a book in verse, and Reynolds' poetry is very visual in nature.

SO FAR IN 2018

• ALL AMERICAN BOYS - Jason Reynolds, Brendan Kiely: 5/5 - Jason Reynolds is a fantastic author, and I love his work. This is a complex look on police brutality against black people in America. It was written a few years ago now, but it's still very relevant and taught me a lot of things. 
• THE SEVEN HUSBANDS OF EVELYN HUGO - Taylor Jenkins Reid: 5/5 - I literally cannot talk about this book without going on for about three hours about it, so I'll keep it short. This is my book, I've never connected to anything like I've connected to this. I've never felt that type of ownership over anything before, so much so that I cannot listen or read people talking about how much they love this book because it's just such a personal story for me. I absolutely loved this, and it's my favorite book of probably ever.
• THE REFRIGERATOR MONOLOGUES - Catherynne M. Valente: 5/5 - Another book that has fundamentally changed my outlook on things. In this case, comics and superhero movies, of which I consume a lot. This is a series of short stories parodying the "Women in Refrigerators" trope. Here are some resources for you to look deeper into the topic (Vox article on Gail Simone, wikipedia page, WiR website) but basically, this is the plot device where, disproportionately, women are killed, injured, driven insane, or depowered for the advancement of the men in the story. It's a thing that happens a lot in comics, and *cough cough* especially recently in big superhero movies.
• THE LANGUAGE OF THORNS - Leigh Bardugo: 5/5 - Bardugo is a queen. I love her. These are the dark fairytales that I've always wanted and never got until this.
• WE ARE OKAY - Nina LaCour: 4/5 - I read this when I was in an especially dark period, and Marin was so incredibly relatable to me, and the arc that she goes on in this book really helped me.

• Crazy Rich Asians trilogy (I - II - III) - Kevin Kwan: 4/5 - *screams for seven years about how much I love Astrid Leong*

• Binti Trilogy (I, II, III) - Nnedi Okorafor: 4/5, 4.5/5, 3.5/5 - Such a phenomenal series of sci-fi novellas that stars a young girl, Binti, who is the first in her family to leave their village, their planet in order to go to university. I consumed these, and they're so great.

• IF THEY COME FOR US - Fatimah Asghar: 5/5 - Absolutely beautiful and stunning and incredibly eye-opening and relevant poetry. I actually bought my own copy recently so that I could go through and mark it up. The best poetry I've read in the past year.
• THE HATE U GIVE - Angie Thomas: 5/5 - You've all heard of this, you all love it, and the only reason it took me so long to read was that I specifically wanted to listen to the audiobook, and the waitlist from my library was ridiculously long.
• SMOKE GETS IN YOUR EYES - Caitlin Doughty: 4/5 - My family was low-key concerned about me when I was reading this, but this is a really good book for anyone looking to know more about the death industry and what happens when you die. This is something I know that I will go back and reference as I need, and it's another that I continue to think about.
• IN ORDER TO LIVE - Yeonmi Park with Maryanne Vollers: 5/5 - Another that I'd been meaning to read for years, but felt that I needed to due to current events. This is a terrifying recount of Yeonmi's life and her escape from North Korea. An absolutely necessary read, especially now.
• THE GIRL FROM EVERYWHERE - Heidi Heilig: 4/5 - At the time, I really needed something to lift my spirits. I'd been reading a lot of really heavy material at the time (see: above) and this was a really fun YA romp with pirates, time-travel, and myths. Oooh, I loved it, and I'm hoping to read the sequel soon.

• UNDEAD GIRL GANG - Lily Anderson: 4/5 - It was a girl gang with witches. I couldn't not enjoy this.
• AQUICORN COVE & THE TEA DRAGON SOCIETY - Katie O'Neill: 4/5, 5/5 - CUTE
• BRAIN ON FIRE - Susannah Cahalan: 4/5 - Another memoir that was terrifying and gripping. This was Susannah's recount of the medical mystery that surrounded her at 24. A really amazing story that's incredibly well-written.
• CHILDREN OF BLOOD AND BONE - Tomi Adeyemi: 5/5 - Speaking of well-written, I'm low-key shook after this book. So, so amazing, and another one that only took me so long to read because I was waiting for the audiobook from my library. (Sidenote: Bahni Turpin is now one of my favorite audiobook narrators of all time, she always does an amazing job.)

COMICS OF NOTE

• MISFIT CITY, VOL. 1 - Kirsten Smith: 4/5 - Kind of a female Goonies written by one of the writers of Legally Blonde. It's a fun time.
• SPELL ON WHEELS - Kate Leth: 4/5 - Gay! Witches! Roadtrip! I didn't fall in love with this as much as I wanted to, but this was so much fun and I'll keep an eye on anything Kate Leth does in the future.
• GIANT DAYS, VOL. 8 - John Allison: 4/5 - I LOVE GIANT DAYS. 
• WONDER WOMAN, VOL. 2 & 3 - Brian Azzarello: It took me forever to continue on with this series, but if you loved the Wonder Woman movie, you would be a great fit for this series. It's wild and fun and kind of reminds me of Percy Jackson?

• BINGO LOVE - Tee Franklin: 4.5/5 - This is one I'm gonna recommend my goodreads review for because this was a really important and beautiful story, but I had some issues with it that I go into there.
• BITCH PLANET - Kelly Sue DeConnick: 4/5 - KSD is a phenomenal writer. I love her so much, and when I heard we were getting more of this comic soon, I picked up the first volume of this. It's definitely more mature than the others on this list, so maybe don't pick this up if you're not keen on nudity (purposeful, not excessive or super sexualized) and violence.
• CAPTAIN MARVEL (2012) - Kelly Sue DeConnick: I'm like crazy excited for the new movie, and I loved the 2015 run of Captain Marvel, so I've been making my way through Carol's backlist. It's been so much fun, and if you're looking for a place to start with Carol before the new movie comes out, this is a good place to start.
• GOLDIE VANCE, VOL. 3 - Hope Larson: 4.5/5 - Queer Nancy Drew. Fight me, it's so much fun.

• THE LIFE OF CAPTAIN MARVEL #1-2 - Margaret Stohl: Have I mentioned that I'm excited about the Captain Marvel movie? (The trailer drops today, and I literally can't handle the excitement.) This is exceptionally well-written, and issue #3 comes out this week. *can't handle the excitement*
• BY NIGHT #1-2 - John Allison: When I was picking up the previous comic from my local comic book shop, I saw this and John Allison's (see: GIANT DAYS) name and immediately bought the first two issues. It's a wild, supernatural ride, and I'm really enjoying it.

That was a lot, and if you've stuck around in my absence then I really appreciate you. If you're new, welcome! I hope you stick around. I'm dipping my toe back into blogging for now but I'm looking forward to coming back to this world. I've missed it a lot. 

(I am working retail right now, so I'm a little dead inside but we're all good.)

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