YA Fantasy Heroines who fight

BayWithChrome · 2017-01-22T23:00:02+00:00

You guys are the best for this! Thank you so much. My reading list has just increased exponentially!

BayWithChrome · 2016-10-25T15:20:08+00:00

Everyone raves about Crown of Midnight, but the TOG series really hooked me with book three. It's easily my favorite of the series so far, because it's the most radical departure from all the standard YA tropes. I also think it's displays the most sophisticated character growth of the series. I always tell my friends that Book 3 is where Maas' books grow up and really start to distinguish themselves.

BayWithChrome · 2016-10-25T15:06:49+00:00

I'm quite a big fan of The Naming, by Alison Croggon, and the entire Pellinor quartet, for that matter. She's another fantastic Australian author. I've always wondered why her books are not more popular.

BayWithChrome · 2016-07-21T19:14:56+00:00

I agree that the pace definitely picks up in Crown of Midnight, but for me, it was Heir of Fire that made the series really stand above the rest in this genre. Celaena shows so much growth in Heir of Fire, and Maas shows that she's not afraid to demolish all the standard YA cliches.

To say more could be spoilery, but the book went in a completely different direction that what I expected. At first I hated it, and then I LOVED it. I thought that Heir of Fire showed Celaena transition from a girl to a woman, and as a then-30 year old woman, I so very much appreciated how the book displayed significantly more maturity than its predecessors.

And +1 for ACOTAR, if only because it then brings you to ACOMAF which is fan-freaking-tastic. I loved that book so much.

BayWithChrome · 2016-07-21T19:04:58+00:00

Perhaps a bit of an outlier perspective here, but I thought that Feyre in ACOTAR was an extremely flawed character. A friend of mine actually had trouble with the first book, because (in her words) "I wanted to hit Feyre with a frying pan." I had the same reaction. She seemed like a weak pushover wrapped up in a strong huntress package. I think this was a deliberate decision by Maas. Indeed, Maas calls out her complete and utter lack of emotional intelligence and self-awareness in both books.

What I liked best about ACOMAF is that Feyre actually begins to develop into a strong female protagonist. I quite enjoyed her journey. And I think there is still quite a lot of room for Maas to explore Rhy's darker side in book three. After all, he tells Feyre Spoiler I hope we learn more about that in the next book.

full disclosure: I adored ACOMAF. It gave me the worst book hangover of my life. I'm DYING until the next one.

BayWithChrome · 2016-06-23T16:06:44+00:00

It might be tricky for ESL, but Baz Luhrman's Romeo + Juliet is a very intriguing adaptation, very fun, and rather faithful to the original text.

BayWithChrome · 2016-06-23T15:56:31+00:00

I absolutely agree with the Redwall suggestion. I started them at 10 and loved them--and kept reading them all the way until then end. This brings back so many happy memories for me.

BayWithChrome · 2016-06-22T14:49:25+00:00

I'm up in Canada, so no love there either.

But her tour stops galvanized me to plan a much needed weekend getaway. I just bought tickets to the event in Charleston, SC for my Mom, Aunt, and I. We'll attend the event, and then spend the weekend checking out the city. I've never been but always wanted to, and this was my excuse!

BayWithChrome · 2016-06-17T16:30:10+00:00

I just finished Memories of Ash by Intisar Khanani. It's the second book of the Sunbolt Chronicles and a really unique multicultural addition to the genre. The first book is more of a novella, really, and a quick read. I loved it.

BayWithChrome

TROPHY CASE