Fantasy
Crumbs
Stirling, Danie, author, artist.
GRAPHIC NOVEL Stirling
Graphic Novels, Fantasy
"Falling in love just got sweeter in this charming, romantic YA graphic novel. Ray, a young seer struggling with her powers, discovers first love and friendship in her town's magic bakery."--Amazon.com
When you trap a tiger
Keller, Tae, author.
jFICTION Keller Tae
Fantasy, Fiction
When Lily, her sister Sam, and their mother move in with her sick grandmother, Lily traps a tiger and makes a deal with him to heal Halmoni.
I tried to get into this one as an audio book a year or so ago and it wasn't sticking. I'm going to give it another go with the physical format this time. -Casey
Juniper & Thorn
Reid, Ava, author.
SCIENCE FICTION Reid Ava
Fiction, Fantasy
"Marlinchen and her two sisters live with their wizard father in a city shifting from magic to industry. As Oblya's last true witches, she and her sisters are little more than a tourist trap as they treat their clients with archaic remedies and beguile them with nostalgic charm. And while Oblya flourishes with culture and bustles with enterprise, a monster lurks in its midst, borne of intolerance and resentment and suffused with old-world power. Caught between history and progress and blood and desire, Marlinchen must draw upon her own magic to keep her city safe and find her place within it"--Dust jacket flap.
Added by Casey
The song of Achilles
Miller, Madeline.
FICTION Miller Madeline
Fiction, Fantasy
Circe is one of my favorite books--I've reread it a few times now. Yet I have not read Madeline Miller's other title, Song of Achilles. -Casey
Hell bent
Leigh Bardugo
SCIENCE FICTION Bardugo, Leigh
Fantasy, Horror
"Alex Stern returns in #1 New York Times bestselling author Leigh Bardugo's Hell Bent, another tale of murder and dark magic set among the Ivy League elite."
Hell Bent was worth the wait! If you enjoyed Ninth House or the Grishaverse series I highly recommend Hell Bent. -Casey
Every heart a doorway
McGuire, Seanan, author.
SCIENCE FICTION Mcguire Seanan
Fantasy
Eleanor West's Home is a refuge for kids who have gone and returned from fantasy worlds. When Nancy arrives at the Home, changes are stirring and as tragedy strikes, Nancy and her friends may break Eleanor's rule of "no quests."
This portal fantasy series is perfect for an afternoon reading--whether that's outside on a bench or under a blanket during a rainstorm. This series is dark yet whimsical, and feels like fairy tales written for adults. -Bailey
The empress of salt and fortune
Vo, Nghi, author.
SCIENCE FICTION Vo Nghi
Fantasy
"A young royal from the far north, is sent south for a political marriage in an empire reminiscent of imperial China. Her brothers are dead, her armies and their war mammoths long defeated and caged behind their borders. Alone and sometimes reviled, she must choose her allies carefully. Rabbit, a handmaiden, sold by her parents to the palace for the lack of five baskets of dye, befriends the emperor's lonely new wife and gets more than she bargained for."--Provided by publisher.
This fantasy novella series is so charming and whimsical, with each volume following a cleric as they travel across the lands, collecting stories that would otherwise become forgotten to time. -Bailey
Pet
Emezi, Akwaeke, author.
YOUNG ADULT FICTION Emezi Akwaeke
Diverse Characters, LGBTQ+, Dystopian, Fantasy
There are no monsters anymore. In the city of Lucille, Jam and her best friend, Redemption, have grown up with this lesson all their life. Then Jam meets Pet, a creature made of horns and colors and claws, who emerges from one of her mother's paintings and a drop of Jam's blood. Pet has come to hunt a monster-- and the shadow of something grim lurks in Redemption's house. How do you save the world from monsters if no one will admit they exist? -- adapted from jacket
This book features a non-verbal teen who lives in a world where there are no more monsters--until her mother's painting comes alive and tells her that's a lie. This is fast-paced, whimsical, and emotional, with a healthy of balance of some dark themes alongside radical depictions of trans joy and autistic joy. -Bailey
Legends & lattes : a novel of high fantasy and low stakes
Travis Baldree
SCIENCE FICTION Baldree Travis
Fantasy
"The much-beloved BookTok sensation from Travis Baldree, Legends & Lattes is a novel of high fantasy and low stakes. *The new paperback edition will include a very special, never-before-seen bonus story, 'Pages to Fill.'* Come take a load off at Viv's cafe, the first & only coffee shop in Thune. Grand opening! Worn out after decades of packing steel and raising hell, Viv, the orc barbarian, cashes out of the warrior's life with one final score. A forgotten legend, a fabled artifact, and an unreasonable amount of hope lead her to the streets of Thune, where she plans to open the first coffee shop the city has ever seen. However, her dreams of a fresh start filling mugs instead of swinging swords are hardly a sure bet. Old frenemies and Thune's shady underbelly may just upset her plans. To finally build something that will last, Viv will need some new partners, and a different kind of resolve. "Take a break from epic battles and saving the world. Legends & Lattes is a wholesome, cozy novel that feels like a warm hug. This is my new comfort read."-Genevieve Gornichec, author of The Witch's Heart"--
It has been a while since I've read anything that was so delightful. "Legends & Lattes" is a cozy fantasy novel, and it reads like a side-story of someone's pet D&D character. I repeat--it is delightful! Fantasy fans will eat it up, but I think it will also appeal to those who enjoy a gentle, romantic read. -Brian
The City We Became
N. K. Jemisin
SCIENCE FICTION/Jemisin, N. K.
Fantasy
Five New Yorkers must come together in order to defend their city. Every city has a soul. Some are as ancient as myths, and others are as new and destructive as children. New York City? She's got five. But every city also has a dark side. A roiling, ancient evil stirs beneath the earth, threatening to destroy the city and her five protectors unless they can come together and stop it once and for all.
Released right as the COVID Pandemic was just beginning, I think this book emphasized community in a way that was necessary for everyone during that time. Perhaps that's why the book became so popular. I found it to be a wonderful representation of queer life, while being thoughtful and critical of privilege and oppression. This book is said to be for those who love New York, but as someone who visited the city many times while growing up, and who never had a care for it, I think it can be for anyone who finds community to be one of their values. -Zach
Added by Casey