Stacey Nerdin

The Everlasting, by Alix E. Harrow

10 pages into The Everlasting by Alix E. Harrow, I wondered to myself – as I have with each of her books – how does she do this? How does she manage to so effectively paint a scene with words that sometimes don’t seem to go together, but do, and so beautifully?

How does she strike a tone that is epic, yet intimate, humorous, yet heartbreaking?

The Everlasting is a gorgeous book that takes you apart and puts you back together, and not gently, but wonderfully enough that you would happily do it all over again.

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The Listeners, by Maggie Stiefvater

I’ve seen many fans of Maggie Stiefvater express hesitancy after reading the synopsis of her newest book, The Listeners. Not only is it her first book for adults, but the words “historical fiction” are being used in marketing, which doesn’t really “sound” like a Maggie Stiefvater book.

To those fans, I am here to say: FEAR NOT.

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The Knight and the Moth, by Rachel Gillig

Rachel Gillig’s The Knight and the Moth is so much bigger and better than the “romantasy” box it’s being marketed into. Yes, there is romance, but it’s a subplot that comes second to the complex, compelling fantasy world Gillig has built.

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A Sorceress Comes to Call, by T. Kingfisher

T. Kingfisher’s A Sorceress Comes to Call is billed as a “dark retelling” of the Grimm fairytale The Goose Girl, but while there are some shared elements (a false bride, a horse named Falada, and some geese), there are no straight parallels. This book is perhaps more “inspired by” The Goose Girl than anything, which is fine because it’s still something altogether wonderful.

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The Warm Hands of Ghosts, by Katherine Arden

Katherine Arden is a master of atmosphere, and she has spared no hellish, haunting detail in writing the realities of WWI in The Warm Hands of Ghosts. As a work of historical fiction, it is excellent. If readers are hesitant about the supernatural themes of the book, I would say those elements are subdued and only require a bit of imagination and basic suspension of disbelief, versus an investment in complicated world-building.

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