List: world-fantasy-award-nominees

This review is biased. Of course, all my reviews are biased, what else are they there for? But this one is more biased than most. My Real Children by Jo Walton came recommended by a friend who said “if you ever feel the need to bawl your eyes out”, when I mentioned that I had planned to read something by Jo Walton.

The Fifth Season

by N.K. Jemisin · published 2015 · read 2018-09-10

There was nothing about The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin that I didn't like. It's a bit short, but we have two more volumes to balance that.

The Obelisk Gate

by N.K. Jemisin · published 2016 · read 2018-10-28

The Obelisk Gate is the second part of N. K. Jemisin's Broken Earth trilogy, and it's brilliant. It continues the heavy character building we got in the first volume. Some characters grow, some change a lot, some change just in our eyes by virtue of being seen through different eyes, for example, our protagonist, Essun, is very different when seen by her daughter. Seeing the kid grow into her own character arc was beautifully done.

Coraline

by Neil Gaiman · published 2002 · read 2003-02-01

Coraline is a wonderful book. Terrifying, too. Coraline and her parents move to a new place, where there's nothing apart from the other (strange!) people living in the house. Her parents are busy all day, and she's just left to her own devices. So she wanders around and eventually finds a mirror world, where everything is duplicated, only uncanny and weird – and where she finds parents who love her and have time for her. Now if only they were human.

The Ocean at the End of the Lane

by Neil Gaiman · published 2013 · read 2015-05-01

The Ocean at the End of the Lane is most definitely a Neil Gaiman book. It's also like a Pratchett book - a bit less humor and a bit more beauty in its sentences.

American Gods

by Neil Gaiman · published 2001 · read 2012-02-01

American Gods is a polarising book, and I belong to the people enchanted by it. Gaiman does wonderfully dirty, touching things with language, and mythology, and just drew me in.

The Tea Master and the Detective

by Aliette de Bodard · published 2018 · read 2019-07-07

The Tea Master and the Detective by Aliette de Bodard is a nie short scifi novella in a world where different sorts of teas can have a profound impact on how the human brain works, there is deep space that behaves entirely different from normal space, and we have sentient ships.

The Emperor’s Soul

by Brandon Sanderson · published 2012 · read 2017-11-29

Wow. It's not only the soulstamp concept that drew me in, it's the mechanics of plausibly altering the past, and the basic assumption that everything has a soul, an understanding of self, and a dream. Love it. At the same time, it's very much a one-gimmick story, so if you can't get into the gimmick, you won't like it – but at under 200 pages, you also won't have lost much time. I'd recommend giving it a shot.

Perdido Street Station

by China Miéville · published 2000 · read 2018-06-19

Wow, this book was … a lot to take in. I liked it very much. Getting thrown into an Ankh-Morporkesque city, discovering alien races, and characters, and social structures was awesome. I noted with thanks that there was very little of a conventional story arch, so that the overall direction of the story only grew really clear when reaching 50-65% of the story. The very clear-cut and very different characters were relatable and realistic, and the final twists were all the better for the fact that they were not positive.

The Scar

by China Miéville · published 2002 · read 2018-07-24

The Scar is the second volume of Chine Miéville's Bas-Lag series, and it's as impressive as the first one. Only very loosely connected, we now explore the wider Bas-Lag world instead of New Crobuzon. Again, China Miéville excells with implicit worldbuilding, forcing the reader to think along and ahead (though there's less culture shock included than in Perdido Street Station).

Iron Council

by China Miéville · published 2004 · read 2018-09-02

I think The Iron Council was weaker than The Scar (which is the previous volume in the Bas-Lag/New Crobuzon trilogy), but I enjoyed it nearly as much, because I'm a sucker for revolutions. Also, it's noticeable just how skilled China Miéville is at talking about cities – each of the stories in the series describes at least one fundamentally foreign, weird city with a mix of cultures and races among the inhabitants, and thanks to the sublte worldbuilding and depth, I feel invested and interested in every one of them.

Silver in the Wood

by Emily Tesh · published 2019 · read 2020-02-20

Good forest fairytale. Heavier on the "hurt" side of hurt/comfort that I initially thought. Good characters, good writing, and only a bit low on substance.

Sailing to Sarantium

by Guy Gavriel Kay · published 1998 · read 2021-02-10

Sailing to Sarantium was my first Guy Gavriel Kay book, and it won't be my last. Not just that it didn't wrap up in one book (boo! … kidding), I also enjoyed the style a lot. Kay lets his story take place in Byzantium during Constantine's reign. It's not called Byzantium to allow for some creative freedoms and minor magic, but everything very clearly maps 1:1 to historic characters.

Among Others

by Jo Walton · published 2011 · read 2020-05-10

Among Others worked super well for me, especially considering that there is little-to-no plot and the whole book is a well-dressed bibliography. But the protagonist's (diary author) voice is super strong and realistic, and … okay, let's be honest here: I felt very pandered to in the best way. This book is in some way a modern equivalent to Gaudy Night, intellectual+atmospheric pandering to an in-group, and I'm in the in-group, and that's all there is to it.

The Goblin Emperor

by Katherine Addison · published 2014 · read 2020-02-22

Fun, well-written Fantasy with very strong characters and great character development. Bit predictable, and a large cast, but still a good read – and that's saying something for a novel that may be Fantasy, but has not the least bit adventure in it, instead going for ALL the politics.

The Paper Menagerie and Other Stories

by Ken Liu · published 2016 · read 2018-03-16

A heart-breaking short story about belonging, and families, and a tiny bit of magic. But mostly heartbreak.

Uprooted

by Naomi Novik · published 2015 · read 2018-07-21

Uprooted by Naomi Novik was a perfect fantasy story/fairytale. It's got all the right parts (dark magic, regular magic, unimpressed heroine, ambivalent wizard, etc), but isn't terribly predictable, and forms real characters instead of shadows of well-known archetypes. By following the easy-to-like first-person narrator Agnieszka, and seeing her relate to the Dragon, her best friend Kasia, and all the others, painted a vivid and realistic picture of the world. We even get a surprising amount of moral ambivalence, considering the genre. A very good book. I may start to read Naomi Novik's fantasy series if Uprooted is any indicator for that series' quality.

Odd and the Frost Giants

by Neil Gaiman · published 2008 · read 2016-06-11

It's a Gaiman fairytale, about a wonderful boy among the vikings and their gods, and that's all you need to know.

The Graveyard Book

by Neil Gaiman · published 2008 · read 2015-04-15

I would have loved this book as a child, and I still love it as a grownup (Gaiman tends to write like that). It is paced well, written wonderfully and rings true (in a very similar way American Gods does, but a bit toned-down to the way children see the world). Technically it is a coming-of-age story. I spent a long afternoon reading it and feel a lot better for the time spent.

City of Stairs

by Robert Jackson Bennett · published 2014 · read 2020-05-08

Extremely strong, vivid story. I'm left with a lot of impressions – because the worldbuilding was good, because the characters were strong, because the story was better than decent. A couple of minor points like a predictable staple plot twist or sudden relationship building dialogues while in a dangerous situation didn't detract from my enjoyment. The first book in a long time that led to me just devouring it.

The Lies of Locke Lamora

by Scott Lynch · published 2006 · read 2016-10-19

Gripping heist adventures in a unique and well-built world: Locke, Jean, Bug, the twins and Chains grew close to my heart really soon. There is a phase in the beginning where the book is going slowly and the characters don't mean anything to you, but it works well in hindsight, and it didn't feel like it was dragging on to me.

Every Heart a Doorway

by Seanan McGuire · published 2016 · read 2018-10-06

Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire is a nice little fantasy tale of the place where children go after going through a Door to Another Place (Fairylands, for example), and then coming back. It's short, and sweet, and sad, and gruesome. It's about real children, not a list of characters from other books, either. The gruesome part is the murder mystery half of the book, but that's really only window dressing for the exploration of the characters and worlds. It's short, and I'd have liked to see more exploration of both the children and their worlds – but that's what the sequel is there for.

Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch

by Terry Pratchett · published 1990 · read 2015-04-01

Good Omens is the result of a blessed (but not ineffably blessed) collaboration. And it produced a similarly blessed mini-series! Nothing's not to like here. The only thing that always surprises me when re-reading it is how rooted it is in the early 90s.

The Strange Case of the Alchemist’s Daughter

by Theodora Goss · published 2017 · read 2019-08-06

The Strange Case of the Alchemist's Daughter by Theodora Goss was an absolute delight. It takes place in Victorian London, and we see the daughters of Dr Jekyll, Mr Hyde, Dr Moreau, and other classics of Victorian literature trying to unravel the mystery of their creation (in absence of their creators, who mostly died gruesome deaths, perfectly appropriate). It's a lovely book, perfectly well-written, utterly charming and entertaining, featuring a lot of well-researched facts. References are abound. If this is not the age or type of literature you feel comfortable with, it might not be the book for you, but otherwise, it's the very best of books for a relaxing read.

The Other Wind

by Ursula K. Le Guin · published 2001 · read 2018-04-29

A good end to the series. The different roles and characters were great, and the explanations of humans vs dragons explained previous plots.

The Raven Tower

by Ann Leckie · published 2019 · read 2019-03-22

I'm not quite sure where I stand on The Raven Tower by Ann Leckie. On the plus side: a fantasy story told from the perspective of a god (and with a fascinating definition of 'god', to boot), in a consistent voice (good thing I was used to second person narration from Ms Jemisin), with a not-quite predictable plot. But while I'm a fan of unusual story arcs, I found myself wanting more. The story was good, but not enough! I think this is not just me being used to Sanderson-length epic fantasy. Raven Tower has great world building and narration (and a unique take on "gods speak the truth"!), but the plot seemed a bit underdeveloped.

The City & the City

by China Miéville · published 2009 · read 2018-11-14

The City & the City is a very impressive scifi book, but while I can appreciate its coolness and weirdness, and I can't point to a single flaw, somehow the story didn't quite grip me, although the concept of the two cities was introduced beautifully.

The Dragon Waiting

by John M. Ford · published 1983 · read 2020-07-25

Sometimes I'm reading a book and won't be very into it – only to discover that it grows on me after I've finished reading it, like some wines only really develop in the aftertaste. Dune was one such book for me, as was The Dragon Waiting.

The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms

by N.K. Jemisin · published 2010 · read 2019-11-15

The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N.K.Jemisin is solid Fantasy, with cool mythology, a decent protagonist and good other characters, and absolutely nothing wrong with it – it just didn't really come to life for me. Huge bonus points for a very cool ending, though! Not sure I'll continue the series, though, to be honest.

Harpist in the Wind

by Patricia A. McKillip · published 1979 · read 2021-04-23

Concluding this series, the established power couple tackles the remaining big riddles in the world, and finally figure out what's going on. Some parts of it were obvious, at least the direction – but the conclusion surprised me and was impressive. I can't say more because it'd be impossible to do without heavy spoilers.

The Innkeeper’s Song

by Peter S. Beagle · published 1993 · read 2021-06-14

Peter S. Beagle is always interesting and never quite conventional. This book starts out with the titular Innkeeper's Song, providing us with the entire plot condensed into a folk song, and then proceeds to elaborate in first-person chapters from different viewpoints. It does so beautifully, and it's never predictable, and yet, I never felt really close to the plot. I've felt this way about all books by Beagle so far, though, and I still like them.

Trail of Lightning

by Rebecca Roanhorse · published 2018 · read 2021-06-17

Urban fantasy needn't take place in a city, and this is a prime example: it may be a supernatural mystery story taking place in post-collapse North America on a reservation after the collapse of the USA, but it's still very much urban fantasy.

Beneath the Sugar Sky

by Seanan McGuire · published 2018 · read 2019-05-10

While Beneath the Sugar Sky by Seanan McGuire was yet another pleasant entry in the Wayward Children series, it didn't grab me nearly as much as the previous novellas. I'm not into Candyland in the first place, or that of the troupe of children on the rescue mission I only really liked half (and felt for those two or three). The whole story just felt flat, and I felt that the main character was more told than shown, and due to this and her tendency to inaction, she felt rather pale.

For He Can Creep

by Siobhan Carroll · published 2019 · read 2020-02-12

Cat-lovers, take note: This short story lovingly combines cat stereotypes, and then goes two steps further. Very enjoyable.

11/22/63

by Stephen King · published 2011 · read 2018-10-09

I found 11/22/63 a good time travel story (Would you give five years of your life to stop the JFK assassination, given the chance?). Stephen King, as always, excells at the depiction of real, gritty human life with all its ups and downs. I really think he can write about anything, natural or supernatural, as long as it has at least a tenuous connection to Maine. The story had internal consistency, a bit of character development (with a not all that clever protagonist, which I appreciated – not all protagonists need to be the cleverererest), and a satisfying conclusion. Readers of It will appreciate the tie-ins, and I caught whiffs of the Dark Tower aesthetic and resonating themes. The quality of writing is, as always with King, good: believable characters, mostly even with more than one dimension, tight writing, the usual brilliant use of foreshadowing and -telling.

Gideon the Ninth

by Tamsyn Muir · published 2019 · read 2020-02-15

Gideon the Ninth is popular, but didn't work for me – the first third (or so) felt very muddled and I was wondering why everybody seemed to love this book so much. It got better, but the world it played in never felt quite solid to me, and I'd have liked it much more with just a bit less flippancy? Grimdark with aggressively flippant protagonist has been done to death. Quality of writing and worldbuilding increased throughout the book, apart from the final battle, and I enjoyed how the characters were fleshed out (for most of them, at least).

The Ten Thousand Doors of January

by Alix E. Harrow · published 2019 · read 2021-05-13

Coming-of-age stories are possibly just not for me anymore. The book-driven portal fantasy is nice enough, and the helping of "remember how bad turn-of-the-century racism is" is not bad if a bit forced, but … I just didn't care about the predictable story. If only there had been a bigger focus on the portals, or the portal writing, or the portal worlds … I can appreciate why this book is popular, but it felt more generic than it should have to me.

The Black Tides of Heaven

by J.Y. Yang · published 2017 · read 2021-06-10

Asian-inspired genderfun fantasy. Didn't compel me at all: the plot wasn't as focused as the short length warranted, and the characters didn't stand out to me at all. The plot was compressed and considering the high odds and tragedy, didn't make me care at all.

The Curse of Chalion

by Lois McMaster Bujold · published 2001 · read 2021-04-25

Bujold has a type. The type here being "adult physically broken but very clever reluctant hero, who meddles with aristocracy without being a ruler himself". It's not like they are the same person: there are differences between Miles Vorkosigan and Cazaril. Caz had a much worse life and less privileges, and is also less (over-)confident. But the parallels are very much there.

The City of Brass

by S.A. Chakraborty · published 2017 · read 2021-09-04