Book #71 of 2020: The Unspoken Name by A. K. Larkwood (The Serpent Gates #1) I love this science-fantasy setting and its radical diversity of race and sexuality with no bigotry in sight, but the actual plot here is dreadfully slow. And the protagonist who should be fascinating — a lesbian orc priestess who flees …
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Book #70 of 2020: The Magicians of Caprona by Diana Wynne Jones (Chrestomanci #4) Returning to a book from one’s childhood can sometimes be a letdown, but I’m pleased to report that this fourth Chrestomanci volume (in the author’s preferred reading order; actually the second to be published and roughly the fifth chronologically) is far …
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Book #65 of 2020: The Rage of Dragons by Evan Winter (The Burning #1) Ignore the generic title (and the fact that the book barely contains any dragons at all) — this is an incredible series and authorial debut, originally self-published in 2017 before gaining critical buzz and being acquired by Orbit for wider release. …
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Book #64 of 2020: Nine Princes in Amber by Roger Zelazny (The Chronicles of Amber #1) This 1970 series debut is a bit of a ride, but I’ve definitely enjoyed it. Opening on an earthly amnesiac gives the story both grounding and a distinctive flavor, and the fantasy worldbuilding is interesting once it does start …
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Book #63 of 2020: Highfire by Eoin Colfer This is a very weird story about the world’s last dragon — really more like a tall, strong humanoid reptile — living in the swamps of Louisiana. It’s very heavy on dialect and other local color, and with its madcap plot of drug dealers and corrupt cops …
Book #62 of 2020: A Darker Shade of Magic by V. E. Schwab (Shades of Magic #1) This fantasy novel improves as it goes along, but it’s literally over a quarter of the way through before there’s anything that could remotely be called a plot. I’m also not happy that the only significant female character …
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Book #60 of 2020: The Shadows Between Us by Tricia Levenseller This standalone fantasy novel has some definite issues with worldbuilding (like the generic medieval setting that then randomly has a semi-automatic handgun in one scene) and character motivation (like the protagonist who wants to seduce, marry, and kill the king for basically no reason). …
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Book #55 of 2020: The Poppy War by R. F. Kuang (The Poppy War #1) I really like the beginning of this novel, with its Ender’s Shadow plot — i.e. an orphan child acing the entrance exam for a prestigious military academy — set in a fantasy world inspired by modern Chinese history. But it …
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Book #50 of 2020: Akata Warrior by Nnedi Okorafor (Akata Witch #2) This second novel in the Akata Witch duology has a messier and more episodic plot than its predecessor, but it also feels more like a fully-formed fantasy vision rather than just an #ownvoices West African take on Harry Potter. (Although as with that …
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Book #48 of 2020: Witch Week by Diana Wynne Jones (Chrestomanci #3) This has always been my favorite Chrestomanci book, even though it’s a bit of a spin-off, with the multiverse-hopping enchanter only showing up in the last third or so of the text (and not requiring any prior reader knowledge to understand and appreciate …
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