Hello hello and welcome or welcome back to my little bookish corner of the internet. Today it’s time for another post in my Five Books With series, and after (way too much) some thought, I’ve picked “one word titles”.
Titles are always one of the first things that grab my attention, and while some words have become almost cliche to see on covers these days, it’s either the really long or really short ones that tend to stick in my mind. It’s for this reason that, when writing, I only ever named one of my novels; I can write a story, sure, but can I think of a catchy title? Nope.
Vespertine
This book absolutely ends up as one of my top reads of 2021 (blog post upcoming!), and it’s one I’ve been recommending to so many people, because it ticks so many different boxes. It’s incredibly clever, and had me hooked to the very last page. I also loved Sorcery of Thorns by the same author, and both are narrated by Caitlin Davies as well if you enjoy her on audio books.
Spellslinger
One of the things about this series that I enjoyed from the off was the catchy titles; they’re all one word titles, so I could have picked any of them. I went with the first to save on spoilers. Full of magic and mystery, these books truly do carve out a piece of your heart as you follow Kellen navigating the course life has put him on.
Hamnet
I wrote my review of this tragically beautiful historical fiction almost a blogging lifetime ago, but it’s still a book that has stuck in my mind. Based on the short life of Shakespeare’s son, it shows the impact of tough lives, tough loves, and tough luck in an era full of supistition and judgements. One of the things that really stayed with me is how the second part of the book is almost one constant stream, showing how utterly a life can be destroyed by death.
Caraval
The only book on this list that I haven’t read, I’ve been planning on reading this for a while, and am especially prompted to after really enjoying Once Upon A Broken Heart back in the summer. Here’s Caraval‘s synopsis:
Scarlett Dragna has never left the tiny island where she and her sister, Tella, live with their powerful, and cruel, father. Now Scarlett’s father has arranged a marriage for her, and Scarlett thinks her dreams of seeing Caraval—the faraway, once-a-year performance where the audience participates in the show—are over.
But this year, Scarlett’s long-dreamt-of invitation finally arrives. With the help of a mysterious sailor, Tella whisks Scarlett away to the show. Only, as soon as they arrive, Tella is kidnapped by Caraval’s mastermind organizer, Legend. It turns out that this season’s Caraval revolves around Tella, and whoever finds her first is the winner.
Scarlett has been told that everything that happens during Caraval is only an elaborate performance. Nevertheless she becomes enmeshed in a game of love, heartbreak, and magic. And whether Caraval is real or not, Scarlett must find Tella before the five nights of the game are over or a dangerous domino effect of consequences will be set off, and her beloved sister will disappear forever.
Sabriel
Another fantastical adventure series, Sabriel is one of the most immediately atmospheric books I’ve read. You find yourself swept away right from the first page, both in the sense of wonder and the sense of magic, and it just keeps building. I’m planning on finishing reading the series in 2022, and if the first book is anything to go by, I’m in for a real journey.
Thanks for stopping by today for this fun post. I had a real struggling picking out the books to include, as it turns out there’s so many I could think of once the ball started rolling. I’ll be back with another post tomorrow, and the day after, and the day after, and…
And On She Reads 