Blind Date With A Fantasy Book

Posted February 14, 2023 by Sammie in book list, fantasy, recommendations, top ten tuesdays / 27 Comments

It’s that time of year! Today is Valentine’s Day, when love is in the air amongst all those hopeful singles and new couples who still have something to prove.

To translate that for all you old married couples like hubby and I, it’s time to argue over who has to take the offspring to her appointment (me) and who has to take the dog to hers (hubby, regardless of what he says). Because . . . romance? Basically, it’s just another day, like all the rest. You know, unless hubby doesn’t take the dog to her appointment. Then it might make headlines. *cough*

I’m obviously not a romance reader, and I’ve done plenty of romance posts before (like Fictional Romances That Remind Me of My Marriage, Stabby Romances for the Slytherin At Heart, and Why I Love Problematic Romances). So I was really struggling to find something related to romance that I hadn’t done already that would be fun. But, dear Bookwyrm, I’ve got five words for you: Blind Date With A Book.

Today’s Top Ten Tuesday is a Valentine’s Day freebie, so why not tempt fate a little and play Blind Date With A Fantasy Book? You never know, you might just find your one true bookish love!

This is a very popular concept in libraries around this time of year. I’ve done it in my library, too, and patrons absolutely love it. The basic concept is that you have to judge a book by its personality (what little bit of information you’re given) rather than its looks to decide if it’s the one for you. Admittedly a little harder to do on the blog, but I think we can make it happen.

Are you ready? Step right up, Bookwyrm, and see if any of these eligible bachelor(ette)s catch your fancy! If any of them click your eye, just click on the reveal and click the cover to check them out on Goodreads!

Dragon Divider

# 1 – YA High Fantasy

First Lines:
Once upon a time, on the coldest night of midwinter, in the darkest heart of the forest, Death and Fortune came to a crossroads.

They stood tall and unfathomable in the glass-smooth snow, Death in her shroud of pyre smoke and shadows, and Fortune in her gown of gold and bones. More than that cannot be said, for no two souls see Death and Fortune the same way; yet we all know when we meet them.
Positive Qualities:
  • The protagonist as a pawn in a twisted game between gods
  • Backstabbing and underhandedness
  • Plot twists you’ll never see coming (and a few that you will)
  • A cute almost-romance with an open ending
  • A dark world filled with darker magic
  • Enemies forced to work together
  • Many badass women to love
Book Reveal:
Click To Reveal The Book
Little Thieves

Once upon a time, there was a beautiful, kind princess who was betrothed to the prince of a faraway kingdom. When she set off for her new home, her mother gave her a maid for a companion on the journey.

But instead of serving the princess, the wicked maid stole her place.

For a year the true princess toiled away like a common goose girl, while the wicked maid lived high in the palace, fooling the kingdom. But the truth came out. The princess took back her name, her crown, and her husband, and the imposter died for her crimes.

Then one day, the wicked maid…

…told her own story.



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# 2 – YA High Fantasy

First Lines:
If I hadn’t come to the convent’s cemetery to be alone, I wouldn’t have noticed the silver gleam of the censor lying abandoned at the base of a tombstone.
Positive Qualities:
  • The dead are rising (but this time, they’re vengeful ghosts instead of zombies!)
  • New take on a (badass) religious order
  • Accidental bond with an ancient being that would almost rather the character died
  • Sinister mysteries and dark magic
  • A protagonist that has to become a villain in order to be a hero
Book Reveal:
Click To Reveal The Book
Vespertine

The dead of Loraille do not rest.

Artemisia is training to be a Gray Sister, a nun who cleanses the bodies of the deceased so that their souls can pass on; otherwise, they will rise as spirits with a ravenous hunger for the living. She would rather deal with the dead than the living, who trade whispers about her scarred hands and troubled past.

When her convent is attacked by possessed soldiers, Artemisia defends it by awakening an ancient spirit bound to a saint’s relic. It is a revenant, a malevolent being that threatens to possess her the moment she drops her guard. Wielding its extraordinary power almost consumes her—but death has come to Loraille, and only a vespertine, a priestess trained to wield a high relic, has any chance of stopping it. With all knowledge of vespertines lost to time, Artemisia turns to the last remaining expert for help: the revenant itself.

As she unravels a sinister mystery of saints, secrets, and dark magic, her bond with the revenant grows. And when a hidden evil begins to surface, she discovers that facing this enemy might require her to betray everything she has been taught to believe—if the revenant doesn’t betray her first.



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# 3 – Adult Sci-Fi/Fantasy

First Lines:
On second thoughts, throwing myself out the window of a skyscraper may not have been the best idea.

Not because I’m going to die or anything. I’ve totally got that under control.

It wasn’t smart because I had to bring Annie Cruz with me. And Annie, it turns out, is a screamer.
Positive Qualities:
  • Superpowers . . . but the slightly chaotic, uncontrollable sort
  • Reluctant heroes that would really rather be doing anything else. (Like, you know, sitting on the couch.)
  • Characters that are proficient in sarcasm (and swearing).
  • Non-stop action that’ll have you immediately hooked and wanting more.
  • A reluctant, barely functioning squad that has to figure out how to work together (without killing each other, preferably).
  • First of a longer series, where each book keeps upping the action/intensity factor.
Book Reveal:
Click To Reveal The Book
The Girl Who Could Move Sh*t With Her Mind

For Teagan Frost, sh*t just got real.

Teagan Frost is having a hard time keeping it together. Sure, she’s got telekinetic powers—a skill that the government is all too happy to make use of, sending her on secret break-in missions that no ordinary human could carry out. But all she really wants to do is kick back, have a beer, and pretend she’s normal for once.

But then a body turns up at the site of her last job—murdered in a way that only someone like Teagan could have pulled off. She’s got 24 hours to clear her name—and it’s not just her life at stake. If she can’t unravel the conspiracy in time, her hometown of Los Angeles will be in the crosshairs of an underground battle that’s on the brink of exploding…

Full of imagination, wit and random sh*t flying through the air, this insane adventure from an irreverent new voice will blow your tiny mind.



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# 4 – YA Adventure Fantasy

First Lines:
That morning, with the dawn hanging wet and pale over the marshes, Scarlett McCain woke beside four dead men. Four! She hadn’t realized it had been so many. No wonder she felt stiff.
Positive Qualities:
  • Action-packed from the first page
  • Every character has their secrets (and some are more dangerous than others)
  • Young protagonists who happen to find themselves on the wrong side of the law
  • A badass female lead paired with a cinnamon roll male lead
  • Tongue-in-cheek humorous narrative
Book Reveal:
Click To Reveal The Book
The Outlaws Scarlett and Browne

Scarlett McCain is an outlaw, a bank robber and a sharp shooter–a girl of formidable skills. Fueled by a tragic injustice in her past, she travels the broken kingdoms of England alone, carrying out daring heists in the surviving towns and fending off monstrous beasts in the wilds outside their fortified walls. Her life is dangerous, free, and simple–until she finds a wrecked bus on a lonely road. Albert Browne, the sole survivor of the accident, is a seemingly innocent and harmless youth. Against her better judgement, Scarlett agrees to escort him to safety.

This is a mistake. They are soon pursued by men with dogs and guns and explosives. Scarlett is used to running from the law, but these trackers are the most skilled she’s ever encountered–and they don’t seem to be after her. Just who is this Albert Browne Scarlett must uncover his shocking secrets if either of them are going to survive.



Dragon Divider

# 5 – YA Contemporary Low Fantasy

First Lines:
The police officer’s body goes blurry, then sharpens again.

I don’t stare at him directly. I can’t really focus on one thing in this room, but when I do, his face shimmers.
Positive Qualities:
  • A new take on an old classic (namely, Arthurian legend!)
  • An interesting, diverse cast that challenges previous tellings of the story
  • Love triangle with a handsome, charming character and mysterious, brooding one
  • Unique and interesting magic system
  • Secret societies (and just massive secrets in general!)
Book Reveal:
Click To Reveal The Book
Legendborn

After her mother dies in an accident, sixteen-year-old Bree Matthews wants nothing to do with her family memories or childhood home. A residential program for bright high schoolers at UNC–Chapel Hill seems like the perfect escape—until Bree witnesses a magical attack her very first night on campus.

A flying demon feeding on human energies.

A secret society of so called “Legendborn” students that hunt the creatures down.

And a mysterious teenage mage who calls himself a “Merlin” and who attempts—and fails—to wipe Bree’s memory of everything she saw.

The mage’s failure unlocks Bree’s own unique magic and a buried memory with a hidden connection: the night her mother died, another Merlin was at the hospital. Now that Bree knows there’s more to her mother’s death than what’s on the police report, she’ll do whatever it takes to find out the truth, even if that means infiltrating the Legendborn as one of their initiates.

She recruits Nick, a self-exiled Legendborn with his own grudge against the group, and their reluctant partnership pulls them deeper into the society’s secrets—and closer to each other. But when the Legendborn reveal themselves as the descendants of King Arthur’s knights and explain that a magical war is coming, Bree has to decide how far she’ll go for the truth and whether she should use her magic to take the society down—or join the fight.



Dragon Divider

# 6 – Adult Queer Novella

First Lines:
It was the middle of an autumn downpour when Tobias first met Henry Silver.
Positive Qualities:
  • Opposites attract in unexpected (and interesting) ways
  • Nature magic with a fairy-tale quality to it
  • Old secrets and old magic (both equally dangerous)
  • Utterly adorable flirtation between two equally hopeless men
  • Gorgeous, evocative writing
Book Reveal:
Click To Reveal The Book
Silver in the Wood

There is a Wild Man who lives in the deep quiet of Greenhollow, and he listens to the wood. Tobias, tethered to the forest, does not dwell on his past life, but he lives a perfectly unremarkable existence with his cottage, his cat, and his dryads.

When Greenhollow Hall acquires a handsome, intensely curious new owner in Henry Silver, everything changes. Old secrets better left buried are dug up, and Tobias is forced to reckon with his troubled past—both the green magic of the woods, and the dark things that rest in its heart.



Dragon Divider

# 7 – MG Comedic Fantasy

First Lines:
There was a dead girl in my aunt’s bakery.
Positive Qualities:
  • Written with a quippy, humorous tone (but still manages to sneak in emotionally charged, gut-wrenching scenes!)
  • Charming magic based on baking!
  • Young protagonists who are forced to be heroes but shouldn’t have needed to be
  • Shows that all magic can be meaningful, no matter how small
  • Murder mystery meets fantasy meets coming of age (but funny?)
Book Reveal:
Click To Reveal The Book
A Wizard's Guide to Defensive Baking

Fourteen-year-old Mona isn’t like the wizards charged with defending the city. She can’t control lightning or speak to water. Her familiar is a sourdough starter and her magic only works on bread. She has a comfortable life in her aunt’s bakery making gingerbread men dance.

But Mona’s life is turned upside down when she finds a dead body on the bakery floor. An assassin is stalking the streets of Mona’s city, preying on magic folk, and it appears that Mona is his next target. And in an embattled city suddenly bereft of wizards, the assassin may be the least of Mona’s worries…



Dragon Divider

# 8 – Adult Comedic Fantasy Mystery

First Lines:
The dominion of man is drawing to a close. The age of demons is upon us. This, I recognize, is largely my fault and let me take just a moment to apologize for my part in it. I am very sorry I doomed the world.
Positive Qualities:
  • One of the greatest detectives all time . . . except slightly less competent and with ancient magic
  • Absolutely hilarious (sometimes absurd) adventures
  • Mysteries that are solved by less-than-conventional means
  • A supernatural cast of characters that are always managing to get themselves into trouble
  • Broken up into six stories with different “cases”
Book Reveal:
Click To Reveal The Book
A Study in Brimstone

Sherlock Holmes is an unparalleled genius who uses the gift of deduction and reason to solve the most vexing of crimes.

Warlock Holmes, however, is an idiot. A good man, perhaps; a font of arcane power, certainly. But he’s brilliantly dim. Frankly, he couldn’t deduce his way out of a paper bag. The only thing he has really got going for him are the might of a thousand demons and his stalwart flatmate. Thankfully, Dr. Watson is always there to aid him through the treacherous shoals of Victorian propriety… and save him from a gruesome death every now and again.

An imaginative, irreverent and addictive reimagining of the world’s favourite detective, Warlock Holmes retains the charm, tone and feel of the original stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle while finally giving the flat at 221b Baker Street what it’s been missing for all these years: an alchemy table.

Reimagining six stories, this riotous mash-up is a glorious new take on the ever-popular Sherlock Holmes myth, featuring the vampire Inspector Vladislav Lestrade, the ogre Inspector Torg Grogsson, and Dr. Watson, the true detective at 221b. And Sherlock. A warlock.



Dragon Divider

# 9 – YA Horror Dystopian Fantasy

First Lines:
The gap between the blacksmith and Morgan’s Drink House was just wide enough for Azzy and her pickaxe to squeeze through. The soot-covered apprentices and hungover patrons paid little attention to the lone girl sneaking off between buildings. None of them would snitch on her—they hated the Elder as much as she did.
Positive Qualities:
  • A dark, dystopian world destroyed by magic, where humans are forced to live underground
  • The Above is a dangerous world ruled by creatures warped by magic
  • Dark, horrific world that few end up surviving
  • Sibling bonds and adventure
  • Lots of big, dark secrets
  • A world that somehow manages to be beautiful (despite its ugliness)
Book Reveal:
Click To Reveal The Book
Marrow Charm

Azure Brimvine lives in a world decimated by magic. One where humans have retreated underground from the overwhelming dangers of the surface. But Below is no safer than Above. Magic borne plagues continue to eat away at the remaining human cities. A sickness that doesn’t merely kill, but creates aberrations from the stricken: people twisted by magic into something dark, dangerous, and powerful.

But when Azzy’s brother, Armin, is infected and cast out into the Above, she sets out after him, determined to be there for him no matter what he becomes. The world Above is full of monsters, both wild and cunning, some more human than Azzy was led to believe.

Her search for Armin leads her to Avergard, a ruthless city of inhuman lords and twisted creatures. Azzy must find allies and forge new bonds in this broken world, brave the perils of the Above, and reach Armin before his new power is used to open the Gate once more.



Dragon Divider

# 10 – MG Comedic Adventure Fantasy

First Lines:
Dear Diary,
Today I died.
Sincerely,
Ben


If I kept a diary, that would’ve been my entry for the day.

Super dark, right?

It’s kinda hard not to be when you’re standing on a burning building, staring into the gigantic eyeballs of a Godzilla-size, evil version of yourself that wants to squash you like a bug.

Not my best day ever.
Positive Qualities:
  • Superpowers (but not the ones you might expect!)
  • Mix between a graphic novel and a traditional text-based novel
  • Hilarious squad with lots of funny scenes that subvert expectations
  • Large stakes, end-of-the-world type action
  • Coming of age about how superpowers aren’t what makes someone super
Book Reveal:
Click To Reveal The Book
The Super Life of Ben Braver

Ben Braver is an ordinary kid. All he wants to do is finish his summer watching awesome TV shows and eating his favorite candy. But when some kid screams for help, Ben, like his favorite comic book heroes, tries to save the day. Let’s just say it ends badly. But it does lead him to a secret school where kids with super abilities learn to control their powers. Ben’s never had any powers—and never thought he could be special. So when he’s offered a spot at the school, Ben realizes this is his chance to become the superhero he’s always dreamed of.

Packed with black-and-white art and comic strips throughout, The Super Life of Ben Braver is the first book in a hilarious adventure series about the greatness that lies within any middle schooler who dreams big.



Dragon Divider

# 11 – Adult High Fantasy Retelling

First Lines:
The schooner glided through the air as its wooden hull pierced thick clouds of fog. Delicate wisps of mist crept silently upward, dissolved by the brightly shining sun as they rose. Thicker blankets of fog sank back into the endless whiteness that completely enveloped the small vessel.
Positive Qualities:
  • Retelling of Herman Melville’s classic whaling book . . . but with dragons!
  • Vast, luscious world that a reader can get lost in
  • Dark, complex characters with something to prove (and lose)
  • Action and danger balanced with character and world-building
Book Reveal:
Click To Reveal The Book
Black Leviathan

Beware! A shadow will cover you, larger than that cast by any other dragon of this world. Black as the lightless chasm from whence it was born at the beginning of time.

In the coastal city Skargakar, residents make a living from hunting dragons and use them for everything from clothing to food, while airborne ships hunt them in the white expanse of a cloud sea, the Cloudmere.

Lian does his part carving the kyrillian crystals that power the ships through the Cloudmere, but when he makes an enemy of a dangerous man, Lian ships out on the next vessel available as a drachenjager, or dragon hunter.

He chooses the wrong ship. A fanatic captain, hunts more than just any dragon. His goal is the Firstborn Gargantuan—and Adaron is prepared to sacrifice everything for revenge.



Dragon Divider

# 12 – Adult Dark Fantasy

First Lines:
Victor readjusted the shovels on his shoulder and stepped gingerly over an old, half-sunken grave. His trench billowed faintly, brushing the tops of tombstones as he made his way through Merit Cemetery, humming as he went.
Positive Qualities:
  • Characters that put the super in superheroes (but, you know, also maybe take out the ‘heroes’ part)
  • Grey characters where everyone’s a hero and everyone’s a villain, depending on your perspective
  • Dual timeline that unravels its mysteries little by little
  • Archnemesis and hardcore grudges
  • A comic-book-style story . . . but words!
Book Reveal:
Click To Reveal The Book
Vicious

Victor and Eli started out as college roommates—brilliant, arrogant, lonely boys who recognized the same sharpness and ambition in each other. In their senior year, a shared research interest in adrenaline, near-death experiences, and seemingly supernatural events reveals an intriguing possibility: that under the right conditions, someone could develop extraordinary abilities. But when their thesis moves from the academic to the experimental, things go horribly wrong.

Ten years later, Victor breaks out of prison, determined to catch up to his old friend (now foe), aided by a young girl whose reserved nature obscures a stunning ability. Meanwhile, Eli is on a mission to eradicate every other super-powered person that he can find—aside from his sidekick, an enigmatic woman with an unbreakable will. Armed with terrible power on both sides, driven by the memory of betrayal and loss, the archnemeses have set a course for revenge—but who will be left alive at the end?

In Vicious, V. E. Schwab brings to life a gritty comic-book-style world in vivid prose: a world where gaining superpowers doesn’t automatically lead to heroism, and a time when allegiances are called into question.



Dragon Divider

# 13 – YA Dark Adventure Fantasy

First Lines:
I outlined a fresh grave for the cemetery as bells rang from the isle’s tower, signifying the start of the celebrations. The soil reeked of ammonia and rot, but the crisp morning breeze washed the scent away, dispersing it over the ocean.
Positive Qualities:
  • Pokémon with pirates . . . but darker and for an older crowd
  • Murder, mystery, and mayhem
  • Creatures with powers that are super fun and interesting to discover
  • An unexpected squad that’s forced to work together to save the day
  • The first book in a long, ongoing series
Book Reveal:
Click To Reveal The Book
Knightmare Arcanist

Magic. Sailing. A murderer among heroes.

Gravedigger Volke Savan wants nothing more than to be like his hero, the legendary magical swashbuckler, Gregory Ruma. First he needs to become an arcanist, someone capable of wielding magic, which requires bonding with a mythical creature. And he’ll take anything—a pegasus, a griffin, a ravenous hydra—maybe even a leviathan, like Ruma.

So when Volke stumbles across a knightmare, a creature made of shadow and terror, he has no reservations. But the knightmare knows a terrible secret: Ruma is a murderer out to spread corrupted magic throughout their island nation. He’s already killed a population of phoenixes and he intends to kill even more.

In order to protect his home, his adopted sister, and the girl he admires from afar, Volke will need to confront his hero, the Master Arcanist Gregory Ruma.



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Stay Fierce, Sammie

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27 responses to “Blind Date With A Fantasy Book

    • I think I’ve read exactly one book from this type of program? But to be fair, the only time I’ve encountered it is at my library . . . and I’m the one that set it up . . . so it kind of ruins the surprise. xD

  1. I got a potted plant for Valentines which is very on par with my boyfriend’s views on bouquets but strange since we usually don’t really “celebrate” Valentines since our anniversary is soon anyway. But hey, look at me oversharing.

    I’m surprised that I did recognise some of the books on your list. I’m still on the fence if I should read Scarlet and Browne since I don’t have a good track record with Strouts books. I mean, I’m curious and even more so now but still…
    I hope you are well, dear Sammie. 🙂 I didn’t read anything, so I guess the dog situation worked itself out?

    • Hey, a potted plant is fantastic! Even more so if you can keep it alive. (I somehow manage to kill all of mine, even the ones deemed “unkillable.” Surprise! xD)

      I haven’t read any of Stroud’s other books, so I can’t say on that one. I did love Scarlett and Brown, though, and the people I’ve recommended it to at the library have enjoyed it. Maybe try the first couple chapters and decide from there?

      I am well! Been ridiculously busy. We need to catch up on Twitter. I miss you!

  2. I’m one of those old married folks where Valentine’s Day is just another day. We do have some fun traditions that we participate in, mostly for the kids. Other than having more chocolate around than usual, it’s not too big a deal around here.

    This post is super fun! I’m too picky about what I read to do blind dates with books, but the concept is definitely fun.

    Happy TTT (on a Wednesday)!

    Susan
    http://www.blogginboutbooks.com

  3. I’m proud of myself because I figured out Legendborn and the Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking. And I added The Girl Who Could Move Sh*t With Her Mind to my TBR.

    And I totally agree with you; after you’ve been in a relationship for a while, Valentine’s Day becomes another day. That’s not to say that hubby, and I didn’t go on a date Sunday to celebrate, but also to catch up with each other without the distraction of the house and kids.

    Pam @ Read! Bake! Create!
    https://readbakecreate.com/my-ten-favorite-fictional-families/
    Pam @ Read! Bake! Create! recently posted…My Ten Favorite Fictional Families!My Profile

    • I hope you enjoy the Frost Files! It’s one of my favorite series!

      Yeah, but date nights are fun whenever. Sometimes Valentine’s Day is a good reminder to do it, though.

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