I don’t know about you, but I am ready for some fall weather. We’ve just got to get Mother Nature to agree. I suppose if you turn your AC down far enough, it would be ok to get out a cozy sweater and maybe have a pumpkin spice latte. I mean, I’m not the biggest fan of the PSL, but I know some folks are and it’s getting to be that time of year. If you need some good reading material while you sip your PSL in 90 degree weather (hopefully without the sweater), check out some of these great fantasy reads. Good news - they’re long so you will probably need to get a refill or two in order to finish.

I think I saw this on BookTok, put it on hold, and completely forgot about it. When my hold came in a couple of weeks later, I thought it was something I’d requested for work, not a personal read. Turns out - nope. It was for me. Yay?!? I’ve been into these Fantasy/Romantasy books lately and I thought one called The Ballad of Falling Dragons sounded interesting. Turns out this book is book one in the Moonfall series and The Ballad is the sequel. Well, if you know anything about me, you know I MUST read books in order. So to the beginning we go. This was a good start to the world, but I’ll be honest, it took me a minute to get in it. Main character Raeve was  a little more stubborn than I usually like. Fantasy always takes a minute, though, because the author has to build the world. I’m really excited to see where this goes in book two, so jump in with this and get started because like all good Fantasy books, neither of these are short.

I have discovered a new fact about myself - I like books set in academies. Real world academies or fantasy academies, it doesn’t seem to matter to me. I enjoy them all. In my quest for more academy books, I found this one. We jump right in with Medra being pulled off a dead body after apparently teleporting in from somewhere. She is taken to the ruling family, pledged to their son, and enrolled in Bloodwing Academy. Quite a start, right? Overall, I liked this one, but it did take a little bit to get into it. I’m realizing that sometimes fantasy books like their exposition. As much as I want them to get on with the story, we do need to take some time to build the world. This is currently the first of four books. The fourth book is scheduled to come out in about a month, so if this is your first Bloodwing book, like it was mine, we’ve got a little work to do. Get your copy today and get going. 

This would be a good read if you like the Quidditch aspect of Harry Potter and the romance part of our recent Romantasy phase. So witches and warlocks play a game on various flying creatures (wyverns, pegasuse, stymphalians etc) called carriwicket. It’s very Quidditch-like and the main characters - Taissa and Kion - are, of course, mortal enemies. When Kion gets Tiassa kicked out for cheating, he thinks his team is locked for the World Cup. Instead, they find themselves at the bottom of the Minor League in danger of dissolution. The only person who can fix it, doesn’t want to acknowledge his existence. I enjoyed this one. It was a different take on Romantasy. I don’t know if this is going to be a series, but I would totally read more in this world. This one might be my fave of this bunch.

This is the fourth entry in the Assistant to the Villain series. Overall, this series has a lot of good things. A prince trapped as an actual frog. Magic dragons (guerves). Wanted posters. You know all the good things that it takes to be a villain. Evie started working as a secretary to The Villain. Eventually she came to know him as Trystan. And then they became friends. Then more. I’ve really enjoyed this series, however, I will admit that the first half of this one was a little choppy to get through. The back half made up for it though. And we got a big twist at the end that I am in no way going to spoil. The author has says that the next book in the series will be the last. So get your hold in now and get started. The first one in the series is Assistant to the Villain. Jump in and see how much fun it is to be bad.

I have been reading JR Ward for a long time. I think I’ve read almost every book she’s written. So when I saw that she was starting a new series and it was Romantasy - uh…yes please! I really enjoyed this one, but you have to trust the process in the beginning. There is a lot of exposition to get through - as it true for all good fantasy as we enter an entirely new world. Once we get settled and the adventure begins, this one pulls you in. Sorrel lives in a cupboard under the stairs (like someone else I know), and works as a barmaid in a small town. When things go sideways and she has to leave, luckily she has a mercenary (aka Merc) to help her on her way. I did audio with this one, but NPL has print as well. Be warned - this is not a typical JR Ward book. You can hear her voice in it, but she is very much entrenched in the Romantasy world. I kind of thought this would be more like Black Dagger Brotherhood than it was, which is fine. I can’t wait to see where this series goes next.

Ok friends. Those are my fantasy picks for fall. Did your book and your latte come out even? Did you finish both at the same time? No? Ok. Better get more of both!

Happy Fantasy-ing…
:) Amanda