this post was submitted on 01 Jan 2026
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I don't think I've heard of any of these except the Pratchett!
Do you fancy advertising any of the fantasy titles? I've not read any truly great fantasy for a while (but have read loads of excellent sci-fi)
If you're ok with it being a little YA the Graceling series was great, especially Bitterblue and Sea Sparrow.
I liked the Cruel Prince, very Fae focused fantasy. If you're down for an Arabian nights vibe the Wrath and the Dawn was good.
The House of Salt and Sorrow and it's sequel both caught me off guard with twists that had me yelling at my ereader when I found out that book three hadn't been published yet.
I didn't read it this year, but A Court of Thorns and Roses series is really popular. I enjoyed it a lot but the first book imo is the worst so you need a bit of an investment. Firmly 'romantasy', if you jive with that.
What's some of your favorite sci-fi? I love the genre but have a bad track record with actually liking the writing style of a lot of sci-fi I find (obviously Moonbound was an exception).
I might read ACoTaR, but need to dig a little deeper. I have no opposition to love and smut in my fiction, but the "romance" label makes me think of Barbara Cartland and extremely predictable comfort reads which is not my thing.
Yea I don't think ACoTaR is romance in that way, but if you're really willing to push your boundaries of predicability and comfort you might like the Bone Island series. Personally I hated how it made me feel, but it definitely made me feel something, especially the second book. My initial thought was jfc the author needs to seek therapy. Do you have any love/smut that you do like? I love love, but haven't enjoyed any romance books that come from the pastel covered romance section of the bookstore which is why most of my books lean fantasy romance.
[Edit] You might also like a study in drowning. The book has you questioning the reliability of the narrator in a fairly interesting way and I enjoyed the light romance.
Hmm, sounds like bone island might not be up my street... I read The Fifth Season and sequels but there was just a lot of suffering. Same with the Farseer series.
I liked Kushiel's Dart a lot, that's definitely the most obvious one!