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Which brings me to revisiting this post from a few years ago. In Johnson's book, her fifteen-year-old self struggles with an eating disorder and enters a residential reader. 02 A Very Large Expanse of Sea by Tahereh Mafi In A Very Large Expanse of Sea , it's been a year since the events of 9/11, and Shirin, a sixteen-year-old Muslim girl who lives in the United States, It's hundreds of years after King Arthur's reign, and his descendant and namesake Arthur, a future lord

Alternative Arthurian legends twist through this first in a young adult fantasy series, but what hooked

Only a few Antari have been born in a generation, and they have long been the only ones with the power If you've read the Shades of Magic books, you'll already be acquainted with the fantastic characters Now Kosika, a young, impressionable, fervor-driven young Antari, is taking up the mantle of the deceased

I listened to the first installment in Shannon Chakraborty's Amina al-Sirafi fantasy series, The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi as an audiobook, narrated by the fantastic Lameece Issaq and Amin El Gamal. irresistible main protagonist in the feminist Muslim character of Amina; and the sea adventure with various fantastical

The Everlasting involves jaunts through multiple versions of the same story, as our fantastic main protagonists This is the type of romantic fantasy I adore.

But after raving about it for two years it seemed time to stop letting this second installment languish

the unthinkable yet again: they must find their way back into the school they fought desperately for years Novik is also the author of other fantasy novels featuring main protagonists I love: Uprooted and Spinning battles within the books' alternate history, and the human protagonists are wonderfully faulted and fantastic

Gwynne's epic, Norse-inspired saga tracks three fascinating main protagonists through battles, shifting alliances, strengthened resolve, and revenge journeys. I loved this. In John Gwynne's Norse-inspired saga The Shadow of the Gods , it's been a century since the gods battled themselves into extinction. Only their bones hold power now--for those brave enough to seek them out. There is talk of war's return, and three warriors will shape the future of the land of Vigrid: Elvar, a noblewoman searching for fame through battle; Orka, a huntress on a quest filled with danger; and Varg, a servant who joins the mercenaries called the Bloodsworn so that he may seek revenge. The three stories run along with plenty of steam, centered around violent battles, brutal revenge, extended searches for loved ones, and the carving out of new futures by our main protagonists. The story is always shifting--shaped by betrayals and the flipped script when fate and destiny aren't what the characters thought and they must come into their own. This is epic but never melodramatic, and I was hooked on the Viking-esque elements, the badass women who find their strength, and the perfect balance of resolution and cliffhanger to build anticipation for book two. Spoiler: a dragon appears at the very end of the book, laying the groundwork for more dragon page time in subsequent books. I loved this. I listened to The Shadow of the Gods  as an audiobook. More from John Gwynne: Gwynne is also the author of book two in this series, The Hunger of the Gods , the series Of Blood and Bone, and The Faithful and the Fallen series. Gwynne is also a Viking reenactor.

But she's been seeing and hearing visions for a year now, and she believes they're linked to the curse

The Bright Years tracks a family through years of life shaped by alcoholism, secrets, tragedy, and messy The Bright Years follows multiple generations through ups and downs, and tracks the messy mix of joy and sadness that make up the many days, months, and years in the characters' lives. After prolonged disappointment, hardened hearts, failed attempts, and years of heartbreak, coming back I received a prepublication edition of The Bright Years , which was published last spring, courtesy of

I wished for more of a focus on the character of Tess and her personal story--and less on political strategies, power plays, and the many other broad issues Hartman explores over the course of this almost-500-page sequel to Tess of the Road. In Rachel Hartman's Tess of the Road, we followed irresistible, hardheaded, wonderfully faulted Tess as she broke from rigid medieval gender roles in favor of adventure and discovery. That book was captivating, sometimes weighty, and often playful. I loved it. In the Serpent's Wake picks up where Tess of the Road left off. We're reintroduced to the story with an introductory poem written in verse that is funny, poignant--and also extremely helpful in its recap. It's the perfect reentry to the wonderfully cheeky, strong, faulted character of Tess as she tries yet again to be a loyal friend, refrain from punching people in the nose, and save the world. But the scope of In the Serpent's Wake is far broader than that of the first book. This second installation departs from a focus on Tess and her personal growth. Instead, the almost 500 pages of In the Serpent's Wake explores enormous, broad issues: colonization, persecuted indigenous people, human rights, racism, fights for autonomy, misogyny, and more. I was more eager to read more about Tess as a character than the extensive political machinations in the book and the shifting loyalties related to control of lands and attempted control of peoples and creatures. The sharing of stories and folklore through generations and cultures was a small-scale highlight. Hartman's sabanewts are fascinating creatures--and they also demand of the book's characters a new understanding of ownership, freedom, resources, and more. I loved the feminism, the complicated but steadfast friendships, and the dogged independence that various characters exhibit against all odds. I also enjoyed Tess's recognizing shades of gray where she once saw black-and-white right and wrong. But I wanted far more of a focus on Tess and for her to play a more key role in the book's events, as she did in book one. The rest of this book felt like a distraction from the character I love, and ultimately I wasn't particularly engaged with the broader story. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Click here to check out my review of the first book in this series, Tess of the Road. Hartman is also the author of Seraphina and Shadow Scale.

loyal, lazy, creative, bright pink, mischievous hobgoblin by his side, Buck Foi ("Aye, that's what yer Paper & Blood is a quirky, lighthearted fantasy featuring copious Scottish lingo, magical creatures in Last year I really enjoyed Hearne's first book in this duology, Ink & Sigil, so much so that it made

In The Awakening, the first book in Nora Roberts's Dragon Heart Legacy series, she set up a romantic fantasy Why not take this fantasy all the way, after all?). the third and final book in the series, The Choice, is not set for publication until November of this year

A Restless Truth is the second in Freya Marske's queer fantasy mystery Last Binding trilogy that began Maud and each of her unlikely allies are fantastic characters.

I was captivated by Lim's fairy tale of a fantasy novel, particularly the vivid magical realism, Shiori's

In Nethercott's Thistlefoot, estranged siblings Bellatine and Isaac Yaga find their way back to each other within this odd, dark story that is steeped in Jewish folklore. "It's wild, isn't it...how there are all these stories that played out before we even existed. And their residue is all around us, all the time, but we don't even know it. Sometimes I wonder how much of me is my own, you know?" This recently published debut novel from Gennarose Nethercott is heavy on Eastern European folklore and feels like an immersive fairy tale with modern references (for example, cell phones). In Thistlefoot, estranged siblings Bellatine, a woodworker with mysterious powers, and Isaac, a con artist and street performer with his own magic, are reunited to claim a mysterious, bizarre inheritance: a sentient house on chicken legs. You're going to have to roll with that premise for Thistlefoot to work for you, and if you're up for it, there are a lot of delights here. Thistlefoot is a strange, epic, often dark adventure tale with roots in Jewish folklore, and puppets (which may or may not come to life at times) and the story they're used to tell are central to the plot. Bellatine and Isaac find their way back to each other, bonded by trying to untangle the dangerous, sentimental, mysterious circumstances surrounding the house's existence. They find unlikely allies who are also seeking the truth about the house--and who want to protect its legacy from those who would destroy it. This, as always, is only one version of the memory. Funny, how truth changes in the telling. How a person becomes a myth, how a myth becomes a hero. Do not mistake Baba Yaga for the hero of my stories. She is not. She is not the villain, either. She is only a woman. Sometimes, one cannot know until retelling what was right and what was wrong. Thistlefoot includes some scenes in which World War II atrocities are central; delves into the desperation and cruelties of those who have struggled to America, imagining their salvation; and explores the binds of family and history. I received a prepublication edition of this book courtesy of Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group and NetGalley. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? If you like magical realism and folklore, you might also like the books on my Greedy Reading List Six Magical Fairy Tales Grown-Ups Will Love.

Riley has crafted a middle-grade fantasy book with humor, adventure, characters to root for, and heart In James Riley's middle-grade fantasy book Story Thieves, young introvert Bethany and impulsive Owen I was surprised by the heart and depth in this fantasy book. and their allies, and loved the twists and turns and realizations--as well as the resolutions and the fantastic

Last year I read fascinating science fiction reads centering around artificial intelligence, extraterrestrials You might also like the Greedy Reading lists of past years' Bossy favorites: Six Four Star (And Up) Science Fiction and Fantasy Reads I Loved in the Past Year Six More Science Fiction and Fantasy Reads I Loved in the Past Year Six Four-Star (and Up) Science Fiction Reads I Loved Last Year Six More Science Fiction Did you read any other science fiction novels in the past year (or otherwise) that you loved?

If so, I'd love to hear what you thought. Do you have any favorite books set where you live? He has a precious old girl of a dog, a fascination with (and healthy fear of) coyotes, a love of reading When an important telegram arrives, they fear the worst. The Last Child appears in the Greedy Reading List The Six Best Mysteries I Read Last Year.

I listened to this romantic fantasy about a chosen one, a long-lost family, portals to a magical world She tracks down the truth behind the story of her father (who abandoned her years earlier so that she But possibly the most fantastical aspect of the story is the ease with which she secures an agent and

Six Favorite Contemporary Fiction Reads I love looking over my favorite reads from the past year and titles on My Very Favorite Bossy 2025 Reads to find out about my overall favorite reads from last year What are some of your favorite contemporary fiction reads, whether from the past year or beyond? her mother have run their farm in Coalfield, Tennessee, ever since Mad's father disappeared twenty years She's focused on extending her one year of sobriety--a fact that she doesn't share easily with others

When Zeus, fearful of what she might be capable of, banishes her to a deserted island, Circe perfects

Fifteen-year-old loyal Republic citizen June has been groomed her whole life for a military position Meanwhile, fifteen-year-old Day was born in a slum and is the Republic's most-wanted criminal. Check out this Bossy Greedy Reading List for Six Fantastic Dystopian and Postapocalyptic Novels I loved

Whet Your Appetite Six Powerful Memoirs about Facing Mortality Six of My Favorite Memoir Reads Last Year For my full review, please see All the Beauty in the World . 03 The Comfort of Crows: A Backyard Year of crows' senses of community and cleverness, which she hopes set a tone for the year to come; to a For my full review, check out The Comfort of Crows . 04 What I Ate in One Year (and Related Thoughts) I listened to What I Ate in One Year  as an audiobook.

The first book in Marske's duology is full of Edwardian England detail, gay love, mystery, magic, wonderful dialogue and banter, and plenty of heart. I adored it. A Marvellous Light, the first in Freya Marske's Last Binding duology, starts with a devastating ending (the demise of a character, caused by nefarious magicians) and a less-than-promising beginning (Robin Blyth's first day in his civil service job, for which he doesn't feel remotely qualified nor interested). Robin is trying to keep the household afloat after the deaths of his parents, to support his bright, ambitious younger sister, and to date some handsome men along the way. He soon realizes that (a) magic exists (!), (b) he's mistakenly been assigned the job of liaison to a secret magical society, (c) his office has been ransacked and a curse has been placed on him, (d) his curmudgeonly, book-smart coworker Edwin may be the key to saving them all, and (e) maybe he's falling for Edwin just the tiniest bit, despite himself. Marske offers immersive Edwardian England detail in this adorable, captivating, magical, queer book. Robin and Edwin's love is romantic and sweet and heartbreaking and sexy; the mystery at the heart of the book seems only to be solvable by the biggest book nerd in existence; and the story's magical details are fascinating and odd. I was completely hooked by A Marvellous Light, and I tried to slow down my reading to make it last. The amount of heart in this book was exquisite. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? I didn't see a mention anywhere in the book of a sequel, and some aspects felt tantalizingly unresolved, so I was relieved to find out that another book is coming. The second and final book in Marske's duology, A Restless Truth, is scheduled for publication in November.

After sixteen-year-old Bree's mother dies in an accident, she escapes the painful memories of her childhood

Six Great Bossy Historical Fiction Reads I loved so many historical fiction books last year. just six of my favorite reads--some of which cross genres into mystery, science fiction (time travel), fantasy Maisie Dobbs begins Winspear's series as a thirteen-year-old servant in a Belgravia mansion, but Maisie captivating story involves time travel, but it's primarily about deep human connections, complete with fantastic fiction--the cutthroat, sometimes deadly efforts of coal-company enforcers to subdue rebellion; the years

fiction lists I've put together as I've mined my recent-past reading for my favorite reads of the past year --you can find my first list of contemporary fiction favorite reads from last year here and my second titles on My Very Favorite Bossy 2025 Reads to find out about my overall favorite reads from last year What are some of your favorite contemporary fiction reads, whether from the past year or beyond? For one year when they're young adults, the sisters reach mindboggling heights of fame as the pop duo

Six Great Bossy Mystery Reads I didn't read as many mysteries last year as I typically do, but here are I'm hoping to up my mystery and suspense reading this year. Oddly, her brother Bear, beloved by all who knew him, disappeared fourteen years earlier. Chelsey is especially invested in the case because her own sister Lydia went missing years earlier--before Almost thirty years ago, Dennis, a young boy from a children's home, washed away in the rough waves of

for the best of the best--you can find my first list of contemporary fiction favorite reads from last year titles on My Very Favorite Bossy 2025 Reads to find out about my overall favorite reads from last year What are some of your favorite contemporary fiction reads, whether from the past year or beyond? happened years earlier. In 2014 Turkey, ten-year-old Narin is living near the Tigris and is affected by a disorder that will

titles on My Very Favorite Bossy 2025 Reads to find out about my overall favorite reads from last year , you can read about Six Four-Star Mysteries I Loved Reading Last Year here , and you can find Bossy What are some of your favorite mystery reads, whether from the past year or beyond? Truly Devious series, skilled amateur high school sleuth Stevie Bell is in denial about her senior-year Gaige's Heartwood  offers the story of Beverly, a dedicated Maine State Game Warden who has fought for years

My Oxford Year takes a light, romantic tone and within it, explores weighty issues like serious illness My Oxford Year is my favorite kind of romance; Whelan uses a light-fiction structure to take on seriously I listened to My Oxford Year  as an audiobook--narrated by Julia Whelan herself.

I adored the romantic setup and seemingly ill-fated attraction in Saft's young adult fantasy-mystery, I loved the setup of Saft's romantic young adult fantasy novel Down Comes the Night. The great young adult fantasy elements are all in place here: magic, healing, a defiant main protagonist Saft is also the author of another romantic young adult fantasy novel, A Far Wilder Magic. I loved her character-building, her balance with the young romance, her fantastic, detailed setting,

I hope you'll also check out the books on my first Greedy Reading List of Six Fantastic Dystopian and Except...Andra soon realizes she wasn't sleeping for 100 years. She was asleep for 1,000. The tone of Tamsyn Muir's Gideon the Ninth was unlike any fantasy novel I’ve read, and the friendships Can you fall in love with someone you’ve never met, never even spoken to--someone who is light years

He's a fantastic character I loved. This great book by C.A. I thought this was wonderful. 02 The Grace Year by Kim Liggett It feels like freedom, but we know it's The Grace Year is the type of book I could’ve stayed up all night reading. also want to read Carey's The Boy on the Bridge, which is a standalone book in the same series, is fantastic

The Books I'm Reading Now I'm reading Down Comes the Night, a young adult fantasy story featuring magical Sanctuary Moon. 03 Black Bottom Saints by Alice Randall My book club heard Alice Randall speak last year We like to include books by some of the authors we hear to our reading list for the coming year. --featured in the Greedy Reading List Six Great Stories about Brave Women During World War II--last year , and that's how we came to read Black Bottom Saints this year.)

Six Great Bossy Literary Fiction Reads I read so many read literary fiction books last year, I'll need another best-of-the-year list. If you've read any of these books, I'd love to hear what you think! allow feelings to grow, and all is shaped by the constancy of life-and-death danger and the deep-seated fear more dystopian stories, check out Six Fascinating Dystopian and Postapocalyptic Novels  and Six More Fantastic

Six Four-Star Bossy Mystery Reads We've reached the point in the year--the very beginning--when I obsess titles on My Very Favorite Bossy 2025 Reads to find out about my overall favorite reads from last year What are some of your favorite mystery reads, whether from the past year or beyond? Book two picks up when our main characters, having laid low  and lived their own lives for a year, are An Eastern European gangster has obtained the names of agents who have stood in his way over the years

Six Great Bossy Contemporary Fiction Reads I loved a range of great books last year, and these were six Rocky's family has been vacationing in Cape Cod for twenty years. She's built years of happy memories in their low-key beach house rental. This year, she's sandwiched between her half-grown children and her aging parents. Margo is a 19-year-old community college student having an affair with her married professor.

In Lynn Painter's rom-com Betting on You , rule-following seventeen-year-old Bailey and sarcastic, joking the client, NFL tight end Derek Pender, were college sweethearts, and Nora abruptly broke things off years It's hundreds of years after King Arthur's reign, and his descendant and namesake Arthur, a future lord She fell into the job years ago while trying to find herself--after a youth in which her father died, I think Emma's best friend Maddy probably needs her own book (a la Christina Lauren's fantastic True

Six More Great Bossy Literary Fiction Reads I read so many read literary fiction books last year, this is my second best-of-the-year list; you can find my first list here . But when Sam spots a grizzly bear swimming alongside the ferry--a bear that then shows up near their Over the course of the next year, each of those who had been closest to her and who are left behind struggles often she encounters it, the more difficult it becomes for Ada to check her temper, her opinions, her yearning

Favorite Rom-Com Reads This is my second favorites lists of rom-coms and romantic reads from the past year More Great Rom-Coms Perfect for Summer Reading Six of My Favorite Light Fictions Reads of the Past Year Six More of My Favorite Light Fiction Reads of the Past Year Six Great Light Fiction Stories Perfect Henry's Beach Read  was one of my favorite books the year I read it, and it made it onto the Greedy Reading Several years after saying goodbye, Anna is struggling to pay for her father's cancer treatment and has

My very favorite Bossy reads so far this year! I've had a wonderful start to 2024 reading, so here are the nine books I've most loved so far this year And I'd also love to hear: what are some of your favorite reads so far this year? It's hundreds of years after King Arthur's reign, and his descendant and namesake Arthur, a future lord A fifteen-year-old Indigenous Masquisit girl Anequs finds a dragon egg, and when it hatches, she befriends

Fiction Reads It's March, and I'm still spending Fridays obsessing over my favorite reads of the past year I loved so many historical fiction books last year, this is my second list of favorite reads. If you've read any of these books, I'd love to hear what you think! The six New York-set stories all take place around the year 2000, and they consider the impacts of chance Kate Quinn is the author of the fantastic titles The Diamond Eye , The Huntress , The Rose Code , and

Favorite Bossy Historical Fiction Reads of the Year I loved reading so many historical fiction books last year, this is my fourth list of favorites in that genre. fiction favorites here , and you'll find Six More of My Favorite Historical Fiction Reads of the past year And if you're interested in My Very Favorite Bossy Reads of Last Year across all genres, check out the In the seven years since, Belle's mother has reinvented herself as a society woman and has remarried,

Renkl's beautiful, striking observations range from a New Year's Day sighting of a crow and her exploration of crows' senses of community and cleverness, which she hopes set a tone for the year to come; to a

Rachel Hartman's young adult story follows irresistible, hardheaded, wonderfully faulted Tess as she breaks from rigid medieval gender roles in favor of adventure and discovery. It's captivating, sometimes weighty, and often playful, but never silly. She felt like she was seeing with two different eyes: an eye full of stars that still saw the romance, and a new eye, one she'd acquired while walking, an eye full of... It was full of fire, she decided. Her second eye saw the flesh of this story burned away, held the bones up to her own story, and saw the injustice. In Hartman's Tess of the Road, Tess doesn't fit the mold of an obedient, quiet young woman in her medieval kingdom of Goredd, where men rule the land and each household within it. Without airing out all of the family's dirty laundry, let's just say that this time Tess has really taken things too far for fine society, and she's not a young lady who can be subdued. So Tess's family decides to send her to a nunnery. But Tess has other plans. On the day she's scheduled to report for the beginning of her cloistered life, she cuts her hair, pulls on walking boots, and runs away, determined to craft a life for herself outside of the narrow parameters set upon her. Tess's long-held ability to get into trouble leads her on an adventure of a lifetime. Tess is irresistibly faulted and headstrong; she is full of wonder and desperate for adventure; she is pushing at the edge of the disappointingly limited possibilities for young women; and she finds herself increasingly frustrated, then furious, about the double standards, injustices, and power inequality between men and women. There are various complex serpent- and dragon-like creatures within the story, and the longtime, unorthodox friendship between Tess and a dragon-adjacent creature (called a quigutl) helps root the story. Yet the heart of this book is based upon timeless issues, a search for justice, and pushing traditional boundaries. There's a "woman dresses as a man to escape gender limitations" trope; the story emphasizes loyalty, duty, and bravery; and there's some dabbling in faith issues as well as feelings of disillusionment related to certain religious conventions. Tess experiences unexpected, touching, and never-cheesy romance. We witness some of Tess's sobering realizations about the dark truths in the world--as well as her sometimes overly simplified, bull-headed, endearing insistence on interjecting herself to try to help others...or advance her own interests. Hartman's 521-page story is immensely satisfying. Tess of the Road is playful yet never silly. The story zigzags in an appealing way through phases of Tess's young explorations. The tale is full of captivating discoveries of all kinds while also addressing deep issues about gender, power, and possibility. It addresses female empowerment within the frustrating constraints of the time, laying out some hopeful, plausible baby steps toward progress. I'm excited to read the sequel. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? Rachel Hartman is also the author of the Seraphina series. The second book in the Tess of the Road series, In the Serpent's Wake, was published last month. I can't wait to read this one!

Six More Bossy Favorite Reads I've been posting lists of some of my favorite reads of last year by genre If you've read any of these titles, I'd love to hear what you think! I'd also love to hear: what are some of your favorite reads, whether you loved them last year or more story collection Antarctica and the novel Foster, which was one of my all-around favorite reads last year

harried book publicist who falls in love with her temporary roommate...then discovers he's living seven years I loved that The Seven Year Slip was about the publishing world and also the restaurant world, and how

If you've read any of these books, I'd love to hear what you think! of favorite nonfiction and memoir roundups here: Six of My Favorite Nonfiction Reads from the Past Year Zamora keeps us in his nine-year-old perspective, which also serves to keep us focused on moment-by-moment , concern, disconnectedness), and yearning (he is desperate for trust, for assurances, for safety and these cold cases, from Laci Peterson to Jaycee Dugard to the Pittsburgh homicides to, yes, my twenty-year-long