alullabytoleaveby:

So at the end of last year, I had a list of books that I read and really enjoyed.

Well, considering that it’s halfway through the year and I’ve officially read just as much as I did last year, I figured that it might be a good idea to do a rec list now, instead of lumping everything together in December.

So here’s my mid-year list of 10 fave books I read in 2018:

1. Let’s Talk About Love by Claire Kann (m/f, bi-rep, ace-rep, contemp romance, ya)
   The queer ace ya book of my dreams!!!!!!! Seriously, I cried through the whole thing just because it’s still super rare for me to find books where the characters are explicitly, on page like me. I cannot recommend this book highly enough. 

2. The Queen’s Thief series by Megan Whelan Turner (m/f, sff, historical, ya)
   I am eeeehhh about the first book in this series (it’s more of a prologue for the rest of the series than anything else) but THE QUEEN AND KING OF ATTOLIA YOU GUYS!!!! Both of those books are so fucking fantastic. Especially Queen of Attolia. Eugenides is my trashfire son (and I’ve loved him since the moment he was like ‘fuck this’, jumped off his horse, and fell asleep on the side of the road) and Irene is a rare and fantastic female character: ruthless, manipulative, and unapologetic. The rest of the ensemble of characters are wonderful as well (Eddis!!! Sophos, my sweet summer child!! The Magus! Kamet and Costis!). It’s been legit like 6 months and I’m still thinking about how much I loved this series to death. Run, don’t walk, and read it so that I have more people to get excited with about the new one that’s coming out next year. 

3. Circe by Madeline Miller (m/f, historical)
   Recc’ed to me by the wonderful @musingsdeme because Madeline Miller is amazing. I refuse to read Song of Achilles (look, I know it doesn’t end well and I don’t need to put myself through that. Big shout out to the Iliad for the spoilers!), so I was super excited to see that Miller had a book out that I could give a fair shot. Circe is such a wonderful, well rounded character and her journey through Greek mythology is fascinating. (CW for explicit sexual assault/rape)

4. Clockwork Boys/The Wonder Engine by T. Kingfisher (m/f, fantasy)
   This is essentially high fantasy, adult, Six of Crows. That’s it. I’ve got nothing else to add other than you’re missing out if you don’t read it.

5. After the Wedding by Courtney Milan (m/f, bi-rep, historical romance)
   Listen, my love for Courtney Milan knows no bounds. But this book, man. Just. Right in the heart. 

6. Witchmark by CL Polk (m/m, sff, historical romance, mystery)
   I waited eagerly for this book for MONTHS and once I got it, I devoured it in less than 48 hours. Miles is such a good boy who just wants to help people and Tristan just wants good things for him and I love them both so much???? I loved the world building in this, I loved the characters, and if you didn’t know how much I enjoy a side heaping of IR in my sff novels from past recs, well, now you do. 

7. The Summer of Jordi Perez by Amy Spalding (f/f, contemp romance, ya)
   This is an absolutely swoon worthy lesbian ya novel and I loved it to pieces. Exactly what I needed at the time that I read it. Fluffy, fun, and a perfect summer read.

8. Small Change by Roan Parrish (m/f, bi-rep, contemp romance)
   Roan Parrish writes some really great romance novels, but I love this one a little bit more than her others (except for maybe the Remaking of Corbin Wale, but I read that last year so it’s disqualified from this list). Ginger is so wonderful and Chris has the patience of a saint. Honestly, I really love romance novels where the only thing keeping the MCs from their happily ever after is themselves. There’s no big bad, no over the top plot that must be solved/stopped. Just two characters who really like each other and have to put effort into making it work and dealing with their own baggage. I’m so here for character growth. The sequel, Invitation to the Blues, is also good and a really great exploration of recovery from depression/mental illness (CW for attempted suicide in that one though).

9. The Bear and the Nightengale by Katherine Arden (historical, fantasy)
   Another rec by @musingsdeme but come on guys, it’s a fantasy novel set in historical Russia that draws largely on Russian fairy tales. It’s a no brainer that it was right up my alley.

10. Chic Manila series by Mina Esguerra (m/f, contemp romance)
    Particularly Better at Weddings Than You and Iris After The Incident, Esguerra’s series of novellas set in modern day Philippines are an absolute treat. They’re bite size, interesting, character driven stories. And what characters they are. Every single one of Esguerra’s heroines is a fantastically complex, flawed, interesting woman. I’ve still got a couple to go, but I can’t recommend this series enough.