Fantastically Well WrittenLike this list

20 items

• A Darker Shade of Magic

  Schwab, Victoria

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  There are three versions of London with various degrees of magic. The bleak Grey London of Dickens is just one. The others, Red London and White London, have magic and messengers that move back and forth between the worlds carrying messages from…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• A Discovery of Witches

  Harkness, Deborah, 1965-

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  The book is better. Ok, ok, the TV series is pretty great, too...

• Weyward

  a Novel

  Hart, Emilia,

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  Multi-generational story about women who find themselves in tough situations but not without power and strength passed on through first born daughters.

• Stardust

  Gaiman, Neil

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  Like a slightly darker, more grown-up version of the Princess Bride. Same dry humor, same tilted fairy tale sensibilities, and an epic (but not central) love story.

• Shadow and Bone

  Bardugo, Leigh

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  Now an addictive series on Netflix

• The Historian

  a Novel

  Kostova, Elizabeth

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  A young woman slowly unravels her father's history as a vampire hunter during his grad-school days.

• Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell

  Clarke, Susanna

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  England was once full of powerful magicians, but by the 1800s that is far in the past. Eccentric and rich Mr. Norrell is trying to revive the magical past and takes as his pupil Jonathan Strange.

• The Magicians

  a Novel

  Grossman, Lev

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  There is a school for magicians, but it is definitely not Hogwarts.

• The Thirteenth Tale

  a Novel

  Setterfield, Diane

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  "As Vida disinters the life she meant to bury for good, Margaret [her biographer] is mesmerized. It is a tale of gothic strangeness featuring the Angelfield family, including the beautiful and willful Isabelle, the feral twins Adeline and Emmeline,…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Children of Blood and Bone

  Adeyemi, Tomi,

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  Set in a mythical city in West Africa, Zelie a young woman works to bring back magic after the king banished it 12 years ago. First book in a series.

• Red Queen

  Aveyard, Victoria,

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  Killer cover. Engaging story. Great for fans of Hunger Games or Divergent.

• The Girl Who Drank the Moon

  Barnhill, Kelly Regan,

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  Technically a children's book, but it is dark - leaving babies in the woods as a sacrifice to an evil witch? - and it is intricate. There is also humor. I brought it home for my children, but my husband became the biggest fan.

• Six of Crows

  Bardugo, Leigh,

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  A diverse cast of characters come together to pull off a huge heist - that might just change their lives if they can get away with it.

• Boy's Life

  McCammon, Robert R.

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  Set in pre-Civil Rights Alabama, this story begins with a father and son investigating a murder they stumble across. Their investigation uncovers a whole lot more. A searing look at small town life in the sixties and a monster story woven together…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Sorcerer to the Crown

  Cho, Zen,

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  The Regency era head of the Royal Society of Unnatural Philosophers sets out to discover why all the magic is being drained out of England. Sequel: The True Queen

• An Ember in the Ashes

  Tahir, Sabaa,

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  Laia goes under cover as a slave at the empire's elite military academy in order to save her brother who was arrested for treason. Recommended for fans of the Red Rising series. First book in a 4 book series.

• Parable of the Sower

  Butler, Octavia E.

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  A classic for a reason.

• Annihilation

  VanderMeer, Jeff

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  First book in a trilogy, but can also stand alone. Sort of. Expedition 12 is preparing to head into the mysterious Area X - an unnamed coastal area in the United States - to try and find out what happed to the expeditions that went before them…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Ruins

  a Novel

  Smith, Scott, 1965 July 13-

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  A blend of the fantastic, horror and survival.

• The Witching Hour

  Rice, Anne, 1941-2021

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  Anne Rice is more famous for her vampires, but it is the witches that have stuck with me. This epic tale will haunt you, too.