The Last Olympian by Rick Riordan

The battle Percy has been dreading is about to begin. The cruise ship carrying Kronos and his minions approaches New York, while the titan Typhon is havocing his way across the continent to meet Kronos at the gates of Olympus. Percy, Annabeth, Grover, and all the other inhabitants of Camp Half-blood are on the alert and preparing to defend their divine parents. But there's a mole at the camp, someone giving the enemy critical information, and even worse (in Percy's opinion) is that the Great Prophecy is predicting a truly terrible 16th birthday. I mean, who wants their soul reaped the day they turn 16?

I've finally read it. The finale of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series by Rick Riordan has come and gone, and I remain. But seriously, it feels good to catch up with the story, since I'm already halfway through the next series, The Heroes of Olympus. In The Last Olympian, you have the culmination of several plotlines: the war between the Olympians and the Titans, the rivalry of Percy and Luke, the revelation of the Great Prophecy, and the resolution of the Annabeth-Percy-Rachel love triangle. It's a lot of threads to tie up, or cut, as the Fates decide, but Rick Riordan gets the job done.

Suggested Book for September 2013

Charmed Life
by Diana Wynne Jones

Cat Chant is downright depressed when he and his sister Gwendolyn are sent to live with the enchanter Chrestomanci. It's a much more comfortable life, of course; Chrestomanci is wealthy and lives on a beautiful estate, and Gwendolyn can study witchcraft with superior teachers, but it's a very different life from the one Cat is used to, and he's not happy about it. Gwendolyn, of course, has ideas of her own as to what their new life should be like. And if she doesn't get her way, things could get distinctly uncomfortable for everyone.

Charmed Life by Diana Wynne Jones is the first book in the Chrestomanci series. It introduces readers to a world like our own, but suffused with magic and strange creatures. It's a wonderfully silly and fun book, suitable for all ages. If you enjoyed the world of wizards and muggles in Harry Potter, you'll be sure to love the world of Chrestomanci.

View my suggested books by Diana Wynne Jones

Charmed Life

The Gunslinger by Stephen King

Driven by vengeance, Roland Deschain, the last Gunslinger, must catch the man in black. The pursuit leads the last gunslinger across the Mojave desert to the end of the known world, for he will allow nothing to deter him from discovering the secret of the Dark Tower. Or will he?

My synopsis will join the ranks of thousands of variations on "The man in black flees across the desert, and the last Gunslinger follows." And there's a reason we've all used that line to build from: you just can't say much of anything else about the story without giving things away. It's quite short. The Gunslinger is the first part of Stephen King's Dark Tower series, which he regards as a single long work, rather than a series. It is part Western, part fantasy, part horror. But don't think Cowboys and Aliens; I did say it was part horror.

Fire and Hemlock by Diana Wynne Jones

Polly's having trouble remembering. For some reason, she seems to have two conflicting sets of memories, memories which lead back to meeting Tom Lynn at Hunsdon House on Hallowe'en. Something strange happened to her as a teenager, something tied to the make-believe stories she and Tom created about Tan Coul and his assistant, Hero. Something about them coming true.

Diana Wynne Jones's books often straddle age groups. Much like the Harry Potter series, her Castle and Chrestomanci books are written for children or young adults, but can easily be enjoyed by adults. The same is true of Fire and Hemlock, which is a coming-of-age story. But Fire and Hemlock, on the other hand, is definitely not written for children. It's the story of a young adult for adults. And it's wonderful.

Suggested book for August 2013

The Lady of the Rivers by Philippa Gregory

Jacquetta has heard the story of Melusina, a river goddess who fell in love with a human man, many times as a child. It is said her family is descended from Melusina, and that the eldest girl of each generation is blessed with some of Melusina's power. In Jacquetta's case it seems to be true: sometimes she can foresee. And while Jacquetta is a beautiful young woman from a powerful family in English-controlled France, it is her power that attracts the most powerful man in France: John, Duke of Bedford. But not all are as accepting of Jacquetta's unique gifts, especially when her friendship with the unpopular queen thrusts her into a prominent place at the English court.

The Lady of the Rivers (Book 3 in the Cousins' War series) by Phillipa Gregory is a story of romance and intrigue at the English court at the beginning of the Wars of the Roses, known then as the Cousins' War. Pick it up for the history, enjoy it for the magic, and read it again for characters.

View my suggested books by Phillipa Gregory

Suggested book for July 2012

The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley

At Tintagel castle, Morgaine spends her days in the company of her mother and aunt, until the fateful day her mother is introduced to the new king, Uther Pendragon. Their meeting ignites a conflict between Uther and Morgaine's father, Gorlois, than culminates in Gorlois's death and the conception of Morgaine's half-brother, Arthur Pendragon. Follow Morgaine and the other women of Camelot, as they discover the wonders of Avalon, the intrigues of a Christian court, and the atrocities of war.

I first picked up The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley because it had the word Avalon on the cover, and a lovely picture of a woman holding a sword. When I started reading, I discovered a version of Arthurian legend told through the eyes of its women. It's difficult to adequately describe the feeling I get when I read this book: I feel transported. This story takes the reader to a world that most people consider male-dominated, and shows readers the important, even magnificent, roles that women might have played. Of course, this is a fictitious story, and I don't actually believe that the ladies of Avalon had any kind of mystical power, or that Avalon even existed. But this story has a way of grabbing you, and like Tehanu by Ursula K. Le Guin, forcing you to see the integrity and import of women's lives, even when they're doing such mundane activities as carding wool, spinning, or sewing.

View my suggested books by Marion Zimmer Bradley

The Mists of Avalon

Suggested Book for May 2012

Sabriel by Garth Nix

After finishing school in Northern Ancelstierre, Sabriel must leave the life she's known behind and enter the Old Kingdom to search for her missing father. The Old Kingdom may be the place of her birth, but it's strange and full of dangerous magic, and of course, the Dead. Charter magic-trained she may be, but Sabriel is unprepared for the trials that face a budding Abhorsen. Chased by powerful Dead creatures and armed only with the bells of a necromancer and the advice of a Free Magic cat, Sabriel journeys north to find her father and the source of a terrible new power that threatens Life.

Sabriel is the first book in the Abhorsen series by Garth Nix. It's high fantasy at its best, in my opinion. I always find myself immediately drawn into the enthralling world of Charter Magic, Free Magic, and Necromancy, unable to put the books down until I've finished the series (usually in a single weekend).

View my suggested books by Garth Nix

Sabriel

Suggested book for April 2012

 Alanna: 
The First Adventure 
by Tamora Pierce

Alanna of Trebond wants to be a knight. But, her father intends to send her to the convent to learn to be a lady and wife. With the help of the village healing woman and her man-at-arms, Alanna trades places with her twin brother: he will travel to the convent and study sorcery, while she will go the castle as "Alan" and train to be a knight. In the first book of Tamora Pierce's Song of the Lioness quartet, readers will discover a spellhinding adventure where mystery, magic, and chivalry meet.

Along with The Hero and the Crown by Robin McKinley, I can credit this book with setting me on the path to lifelong reading. Reading about Alanna not only captivated my interest, but helped me appreciate from a young age that the difference between men and women, both in their abilities and the activities they enjoy, is negligible. 

View my suggested books by Tamora Pierce

Against All Things Endingby Stephen R. Donaldson

Against All Things Ending opens as Linden Avery realizes that she's doomed the Land. At the close of the previous book, Fatal Revenant, she brings Thomas Covenant back to life and thereby awakens the Worm of World's End. Linden and her companions (giants, Ramen, a Stonedownor, Haruchai, and a madman) are forced to accept the aid of an Insequent named the Harrow, who takes them deep beneath Mount Thunder to save Linden's son Jeremiah, and thereby perhaps stop the Worm.

A Dance with Dragons by George R. R. Martin

The ongoing battle of the many houses of Westeros to hold the Iron Throne continues in A Dance with Dragons. This book focusses on the stories of Jon Snow, Tyrion Lannister, and Daenerys Targaryen, with a smattering of other characters' storylines woven in towards the end. Jon Snow is busy mustering forces to defend the Wall against the white walkers. He's forced to balance the interests of the Night's Watch with those of Stannis Baratheon and the wildlings. Tyrion is in exile, caught up in mingled grief, guilt, and pleasure over the death of his father. He makes strange allies on his journey towards Daenarys Targaryen. She, meanwhile, is fighting to keep the peace in Meereen, as the Sons of the Harpy terrorize her freedmen. She's also faced with containing the growing strength and ferocity of her dragons.

House of Many Ways by Diana Wynne Jones

What does it mean to be respectable? In the world of Mr. and Mrs. Baker, it means bringing up your daughter to be a lazy, selfish girl who is unable to do the simplest tasks for herself. I'm talking about the protagonist of House of Many Ways, of course: Charmain Baker. She's assigned to house-sit for her great aunt's uncle while he's away being treated for a mysterious illness. Surviving in his house requres a knowledge of magic Charmain doesn't have; luckily, an apprentice magician arrives to help her with the day-to-day chores, and with unravelling the mystery she's been drawn into. Can Charmain get her nose out of a book in time to save the kingdom?

Castle in the Air by Diana Wynne Jones

Abdullah is caught up in a life of daydreams; they're the one upside to selling carpets in his stall at the market. He imagines that he's the son of a king, stolen away at birth by ruffians, and eventually found by his father, the carpet-seller. He imagines that he's betrothed to the most beautiful princess in the world, and that they will live in a grand palace. Then, a shifty man stops by the stall, wanting to sell his magic carpet, and all Abdullah's daydreams start to come true. Even the bad ones.

Suggested book for December, 2011

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone by J.K. Rowling

Genre: young adult fantasy

I tried to think of a Christmas-themed book that I've read which also happens to be sci-fi, fantasy, or YA, and I couldn't think of ANYTHING!

So, I decided to go with the series I usually end up re-reading around Christmastime, instead.

If you know of any Christmasey fantasy, sci-fi, or YA, please post the title and author in the comments, so I can check them out.

What can I say that hasn't already been said? The hidden world of wizards and witches that J.K. Rowling creates in this first book is incredibly appealing to readers of all ages. I first read this book at sixteen, and I was enthralled; I pulled my entire family into Harry Potter-fandom with me. While the Philosopher's Stone is slightly more juvenile than the later books, I don't find that it detracts from my enjoyment. After all, Harry is only eleven years old in this story. There's a reason this series has such a huge fan base; if you haven't already read this, give it a try. You'll be proud to call yourself a muggle.

View my suggested books by J.K. Rowling

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones

Everyone knows that the eldest of three daughters will never amount to much. Sophie Hatter is the eldest of three sisters in the town of Market Chipping, and being eldest finally takes its toll when she's cursed by the Witch of the Waste. Trapped in a ninety-year-old body and unable to tell anyone what's happened, Sophie leaves her life as a hatmaker behind as she sets out to break the curse.

Treespeaker by Katie W. Stewart

Jakan has a fulfilling life. He is a father and a husband, and more, he is Treespeaker to his people, the fifth tribe of Arrakesh. He interprets the will of Arrakesh, helping his people to thrive in their forest home. One day, a stranger named Beldror arrives from the outside. The villagers make him welcome, but Jakan senses that this visitor is hiding something dark. Jakan's worst fears are confirmed when Beldror uses his powers to turn the minds of the villagers against Jakan, even his own son, Dovan. Jakan is driven from the forest. It is up to Jakan to follow Arrakesh's last words of guidance in the hopes that he can wrest power back from Beldror before the Arrakeshi and their way of life are destroyed.