Tags:coming of age
A Deadly Education
The Sunday Times bestseller!FINALIST FOR THE LODESTAR AWARDIn the start of an all-new trilogy, the bestselling author of Uprooted and Spinning Silver introduces you to a dangerous school for the magically gifted where failure means certain death - until one girl begins to rewrite its rules.____________Enter a school of magic unlike any you have ever encountered.There are no teachers, no holidays, friendships are purely strategic, and the odds of survival are never equal. Once you're inside, there are only two ways out: you graduate or you die.El Higgins is uniquely prepared for the school's many dangers. She may be without allies, but she possesses a dark power strong enough to level mountains and wipe out untold millions - never mind easily destroy the countless monsters that prowl the school.Except, she might accidentally kill all the other students, too. So El is trying her hardest not to use it . . . that is, unless she has no other choice.With flawless mastery, Naomi Novik creates a heroine for the ages - a character so sharply realized and so richly nuanced that she will live on in hearts and minds for generations to come.____________'Hilarious and wild! Take any fictional magic school, make it as over-the-top dangerous as possible, and populate it with a bunch of snarky teenagers; the result is pure batshit fun.'N.K. Jemisin, three-time Hugo Award winner and author of The Fifth Season'Novik deliciously undoes expectations about magic schools, destined heroes, and family legacies. A gorgeous book about monsters and monstrousness, chockablock with action, cleverness, and wit.' Holly Black, #1 New York Times bestselling author'The Scholomance is the dark school of magic I've been waiting for, and its wise, witty, and monstrous heroine is one I'd happily follow anywhere-even into a school full of monsters.' Katherine Arden, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Bear and the Nightingale'The wonderful cast of characters will grab a hold of your heart and you'll never want to leave this deadly school ... a fantasy that delights on every level. I loved this brilliant book.'Stephanie Garber, #1 Sunday Times bestselling author of the Caraval series'Eyeball-meltingly brilliant. Novik is, quite simply, a genius.'Kiersten White, New York Times bestselling author of And I Darken'Sharp, witty, and darkly effervescent, A Deadly Education is Naomi Novik's fresh take on the concept of the magic school. One of my favorite reads of the year.'Rory Power, New York Times bestselling author of Wilder Girls'Fresh, smart, and delightfully unique. It's Hogwarts with higher stakes and sharper claws, and I absolutely loved it.'Alix E. Harrow'A nightmare from which I never wished to wake. Savage, inventive, and soulful, Novik grasps the totems of childhood that linger in your mind-schools of magic, curses, cutthroat classmates, monsters-only to twist them into a grand new tale that'll make you believe in magic again.' Pierce Brown, New York Times bestselling author of Dark AgeA Deadly Education, Sunday Times bestseller - October 2020
The Way of Kings
The groundbreaking first book of an epic series that has changed the face of fantasy. The Way of Kings begins The Stormlight Archive.Speak again the ancient oaths:Life before death.Strength before weakness.Journey before Destination.Return to men the Shards they once bore.The Knights Radiant must stand again.Roshar is a world of stone and storms. Uncanny tempests of incredible power sweep across the rocky terrain so frequently that they have shaped ecology and civilization alike. Animals hide in shells, trees pull in branches, and grass retracts into the soilless ground. Cities are built only where the topography offers shelter.It has been centuries since the fall of the ten consecrated orders known as the Knights Radiant, but their Shardblades and Shardplate remain: mystical swords and suits of armor that transform ordinary men into near-invincible warriors. Men trade kingdoms for Shardblades. Wars were fought for them, and won by them.One such war rages on a ruined landscape called the Shattered Plains. There, Kaladin, who traded his medical apprenticeship for a spear to protect his little brother, has been reduced to slavery. In a war that makes no sense, where ten armies fight separately against a single foe, he struggles to save his men and to fathom the leaders who consider them expendable.Brightlord Dalinar Kholin commands one of those other armies. Like his brother, the late king, he is fascinated by an ancient text called The Way of Kings. Troubled by over-powering visions of ancient times and the Knights Radiant, he has begun to doubt his own sanity.Across the ocean, an untried young woman named Shallan seeks to train under an eminent scholar and notorious heretic, Dalinar's niece, Jasnah. Though she genuinely loves learning, Shallan's motives are less than pure. As she plans a daring theft, her research for Jasnah hints at secrets of the Knights Radiant and the true cause of the war.Readers love The Way of Kings:'A masterpiece series in epic fantasy' Novel Notions'It's multi-POV, action-packed, heartfelt, exciting, thrilling' Goodreads reviewer, ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐'The story is mind-blowing' Goodreads Reviewer, ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐'[It's] elevated the art of storytelling to a different league' Goodreads reviewer, ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐'Introduces a series that will change the history of Fantasy' Goodreads reviewer, ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐'I really wish I could give The Way of Kings a sixth star' Goodreads reviewer, ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐Other books by Brandon SandersonThe CosmereThe Stormlight ArchiveThe Way of KingsWords of RadianceEdgedancer (Novella)OathbringerRhythm of WarWind and TruthThe Mistborn SagaMistbornThe Well of AscensionThe Hero of AgesThe Alloy of LawShadows of SelfThe Bands of MourningThe Lost Metal
The Rithmatist
A fast-paced fantasy adventure for readers of all ages by Brandon Sanderson, bestselling author of the Mistborn series and the Stormlight Archives.Here, in a school for the magically gifted, your talent could cost you your life . . .Joel is fascinated by the magic of Rithmatics, but few have the gift and he is not one of them. Undaunted, he persuades Professor Fitch to teach him magical theory. Joel can't infuse his protective lines and circles with power, or bring his chalk-drawn creatures to life, but he's quick to master the underlying geometric principles. His unique skills will soon face an extraordinary test when top Rithmatist students are kidnapped from his Academy.Since he's not a magic user, Joel appears to be safe – but he's desperate to investigate and prove himself. Then people start dying, but can Joel really stop a killer alone? As even more students disappear, he realizes he'll need the help of Rithmatist apprentice Melody. Together, they must race to find clues before the killer notices them – and takes them out too.The Rithmatist is a New York Times bestseller, enjoyed by adult and young adult readers alike. The book features illustrations by Ben McSweeney, which depict the magical elements of the novel with elegance and insight.'He's brilliant and has an imagination I've only seen in the likes of Stephen King and J.K. Rowling' – James Dashner, author of The Maze Runner
Empress in Hiding
She thought that the favor of the emperor would keep her safe. She was wrong.At the center of power and privilege, Daiyu is now in more danger than she ever imagined. No longer able to hide among the countless palace ladies, as empress, Daiyu cannot escape the jealousy and scheming of the other women who would do anything to take her place.But that is not the only danger Daiyu faces.Foreign enemies besiege Peking, sacking the city and forcing the imperial family to flee for their lives. War changes everything.With enemies lurking in every corner, Daiyu, the girl from the streets, must step into a role she was never born to play.All of China depends on it.
Empress in Disguise
To save her family, one girl will sacrifice her very identity.Living in poverty in the shadow of the Forbidden City, Daiyu never imagined that the life of the emperor would impact her own. But a chance meeting with a girl who looks exactly like her changes everything. Daiyu's family is offered enough money to support them for life if she only agrees to take the stranger's place at the emperor's selection for new consorts. In order to pull off the ruse, Daiyu must abandon everything she ever knew and become a completely different person, a person she despises. And if she fails, if she is discovered, she will be guilty of treason and put to death.Daiyu cannot allow her family to suffer if it is within her power to save them, so she strikes the deadly bargain. But living within the Forbidden City is even more dangerous than she imagined...In this incredible retelling of The Princess and the Pauper, based on true events, authors Zoey Gong and Amanda Roberts bring to life the opulent and dangerous world of imperial consorts trapped within the great red walls of the Forbidden City.
Empress in Danger
She thought that fate was finished with her. But it was only beginning…After being banished to a remote abbey, Daiyu thinks the machinations of the inner court can no longer hurt her. But she is wrong. A ghost from the past emerges and threatens everything Daiyu has worked so hard to build for herself.From the opulence of the inner court and the right hand of the emperor, Daiyu finds herself back at the beginning, back outside the imposing red walls of the Forbidden City. Daiyu discovers that she has the power to choose her future, but both futures carry a risk she is not sure she has the strength to face.But underneath it all is a love so powerful, Daiyu cannot walk away.The future of a dynasty rests with her…
Sing, Unburied, Sing
*Selected as One of the Best Books of the 21st Century by The New York Times * WINNER of the NATIONAL BOOK AWARD and A NEW YORK TIMES TOP 10 BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR A finalist for the Kirkus Prize, Andrew Carnegie Medal, Aspen Words Literary Prize, and a New York Times bestseller, this majestic, stirring, and widely praised novel from two-time National Book Award winner Jesmyn Ward, the story of a family on a journey through rural Mississippi, is a “tour de force” (O, The Oprah Magazine) and a timeless work of fiction that is destined to become a classic.Jesmyn Ward’s historic second National Book Award–winner is “perfectly poised for the moment” (The New York Times), an intimate portrait of three generations of a family and an epic tale of hope and struggle. “Ward’s writing throbs with life, grief, and love… this book is the kind that makes you ache to return to it” (Buzzfeed). Jojo is thirteen years old and trying to understand what it means to be a man. He doesn’t lack in fathers to study, chief among them his Black grandfather, Pop. But there are other men who complicate his understanding: his absent White father, Michael, who is being released from prison; his absent White grandfather, Big Joseph, who won’t acknowledge his existence; and the memories of his dead uncle, Given, who died as a teenager. His mother, Leonie, is an inconsistent presence in his and his toddler sister’s lives. She is an imperfect mother in constant conflict with herself and those around her. She is Black and her children’s father is White. She wants to be a better mother but can’t put her children above her own needs, especially her drug use. Simultaneously tormented and comforted by visions of her dead brother, which only come to her when she’s high, Leonie is embattled in ways that reflect the brutal reality of her circumstances. When the children’s father is released from prison, Leonie packs her kids and a friend into her car and drives north to the heart of Mississippi and Parchman Farm, the State Penitentiary. At Parchman, there is another thirteen-year-old boy, the ghost of a dead inmate who carries all of the ugly history of the South with him in his wandering. He too has something to teach Jojo about fathers and sons, about legacies, about violence, about love. Rich with Ward’s distinctive, lyrical language, Sing, Unburied, Sing is a majestic and unforgettable family story and “an odyssey through rural Mississippi’s past and present” (The Philadelphia Inquirer).
The Iron Traitor (The Iron Fey, Book 6)
The internationally bestselling Iron Fey series continues with The Iron Traitor After his unexpected journey into the land of the fey, Ethan Chase just wants to get back to his normal life with his girlfriend Kenzie. But when your sister is one of the most powerful faeries in the Nevernever, ‘normal’ simply isn’t an option... Ethan’s nephew, Keirran, is missing and on the verge of doing something unthinkable in the name of saving his own love. Something that will fracture the human and faery worlds forever. Now, as Ethan’s and Keirran’s fates entwine and Keirran slips further into darkness, Ethan’s next choice will decide the fate of them all. ‘Katniss Everdeen better watch out.’ Huffington Post on The Immortal Rules 'Julie Kagawa is one killer storyteller.’ MTV Readers love Julie Kagawa ‘CAN I GIVE IT 10 STARS?? Well, I would if I could!’ ‘Damn, Julie Kagawa has done it yet again!’ ‘I still am overwhelmed by the emotion The Iron Traitor left in its aftermath.’ *** The Iron Fey Series Book #1: The Iron KingBook #2: The Iron DaughterBook #3: The Iron QueenBook #4: The Iron KnightBook #5: The Lost PrinceBook #6: The Iron TraitorBook #7: The Iron Warrior
Winter's Passage (The Iron Fey)
An eBook exclusive story from Julie Kagawa's amazing Iron Fey series! Meghan Chase used to be an ordinary girl... until she discovered that she is really a faery princess! After escaping from the clutches of the deadly Iron fey, Meghan must follow through on her promise to return to the equally dangerous Winter Court with her forbidden love, Prince Ash. But first, Meghan has one request: that they visit Puck – Meghan's best friend and servant of her father, King Oberon – who was gravely injured defending Meghan from the Iron Fey. Yet Meghan and Ash's detour does not go unnoticed. They have caught the attention of an ancient, powerful hunter – a foe that even Ash may not be able to defeat... Readers are whisked away by Winter’s Passage! ‘Julie Kagawa did not disappoint.’ ‘This is really an excellent bridge between the fabulous first two books in The Iron Fey series, both of which I absolutely adored.’ ‘A hot little book.’
The Setting Sun
This powerful novel of a nation in social and moral crisis was first published by New Directions in 1956. Set in the early postwar years, it probes the destructive effects of war and the transition from a feudal Japan to an industrial society. Ozamu Dazai died, a suicide, in 1948. But the influence of his book has made "people of the setting sun" a permanent part of the Japanese language, and his heroine, Kazuko, a young aristocrat who deliberately abandons her class, a symbol of the anomie which pervades so much of the modern world.
The Wildest Sun
Following her New York Times bestselling debut Fifty Words for Rain, Asha Lemmie's next sweeping and evocative novel introduces a determined young woman’s search for the larger-than-life literary figure she believes to be her father. When tragedy forces Delphine Auber, an aspiring writer on the cusp of adulthood, from her home in postwar Paris, she seizes the opportunity to embark on the journey she's long dreamed of: finding the father she has never known. But her quest—spanning from Paris to New York’s Harlem, to Havana and Key West—is complicated by the fact that she believes him to be famed luminary Ernest Hemingway, a man just as elusive as he is iconic. She desperately yearns for his approval, as both a daughter and a writer, convinced that he holds the key to who she's truly meant to be. But what will happen if she is wrong, or if her real story falls outside of the legend of her parentage that she’s revered all her life? The Wildest Sun is a dazzling, unexpected, and transportive story about coming into adulthood—from escaping our pasts, to the stories we tell ourselves, to the ambition that drives us—as we seek to find out who we are.
An Episode of Sparrows
By the author of Black Narcissus and The River'A masterpiece of construction and utterly realistically convincing' JACQUELINE WILSON'Godden here tries her deft writing hand at landscaping a child's heart' TIMESomeone has been digging up the private garden in the Square. Miss Angela Chesney of the Garden Committee is sure that a gang of local boys is to blame, but her sister, Olivia, isn't so sure. She wonders why the neighbourhood children - 'sparrows' she calls them - have to be locked out: don't they have a right to enjoy the garden too?Nobody has any idea what sends Lovejoy Mason and her few friends in search of 'good garden earth'. Still less do they imagine where their investigation will lead them - to a struggling restaurant, a bombed-out church, and, at the heart of it all, a hidden garden.'Only Rumer Godden could make a simple tale of a forbidden garden pulse with suspense' NEW YORK HERALD TRIBUNE BOOK REVIEW