January 2026 Reading Roundup (Part 1)
Jan. 18th, 2026 12:46 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
metallic_sweetBooks I Finished
A Theory of Dreaming by Ava Reid
Theory is not as good as Dreaming, and it's obvious that it wasn't a planned sequel. This doesn't mean it's unreadable—anything but, and it does a good job of further developing Preston as a character. It also contains the welcome addition of family, peers, and friends of both Effy and Preston, moving them into the wider world from the atmospheric claustrophobia of Drowning. If you liked the first book, especially the main characters, Theory is likely enjoyable. As always, Ava Reid's unique magic systems and ideas shine, even if finer details aren't fleshed out; in this case, the characters themselves don't understand the magic, and there are in world explanations for that.
That said, the plot is less tightly written than Dreaming, and Preston's immersion in his own type of magic starts off confusing with its initially unexplained dreamscape. The descent of the main characters—Effy into deeper mental health crisis and Preston into magic—develops them as individuals, but the resolution of both of their journeys felt overly convenient and left a lot to be desired. The escalation of tensions between Llyr and Argant felt hamfisted and resolved far too easily, but this is not unusual in YA fiction and an issue I find indicative of the limitations of the genre.
Rating: ★★★☆☆
The Rose Bargain by Sasha Peyton Smith
Yet another entry into the crowded fantasy sub-genre of fae kingdoms and pseudo-regency settings, this is a solid YA story about Ivy Benton, an aristocratic girl whose family is down on its luck in a fae-ruled England. Ivy is brave, plucky, and focused on restoring her family's place in society while being haunted by the disgrace and mysterious illness of her sister. The two princes, affable fae Prince Bram and broody human Prince Emmett, are fully fleshed out, their qualities revealing themselves over the course of the story as they're revealed to Ivy. The supporting cast are also fleshed out with their own motivations and distinct personalities, which is refreshing.
The plot of Ivy gaining Prince Bram's hand in marriage through increasingly unhinged trials is a tired trope combination in conjunction with the evil fae Queen Mor, and the various revelations that arise can been seen a mile away. It's the characters' evolving relationships with each other that keeps the reader's interest, and the twists in the rising action and climax, while predictable, hit the right note. I particularly like the sibling relationships, which gives heart to the novel. Some of the villainy of Queen Mor felt honestly laughable as well as the twist towards the end regarding her, but this is the main cliche I felt was really very silly. Overall, I look forward to the sequel.
Rating: ★★★½☆
A Language of Dragons and A War of Wyverns by S.F. Williamson
Oh boy. These books. A Language of Dragons takes the question, "What if humans tried to learn to speak dragon?", and takes us to a 1923 world similar to our own where Bulgaria has evil(?) dragons, and Britain is divided into a three tier class system for humans. The main character, Viv, is a genius linguist of dragon languages, and, after a series of unfortunate events, she and a number of other young adults are pressed into secret service to learn the secret ultrasonic dragon language. The first book does a good job at developing the various characters, offering twists and turns on allegiances very akin to The Hunger Games and the Fourth Wing series, and a firm, refreshing, and increasingly infuriating narrative about growing from your own privilege and prejudice to redemption.
I picked up the second book directly off the back of the first because I had enjoyed the unique ideas of the first and was willing to give the author a chance to do something interesting. The second book finds Viv angry and reckless, even moreso than the first book on the latter, and introduces the wyverns who live isolated in the Hebrides. It's the latter addition that pushed me over the edge as the wyverns are treated by the narrative as both a major power and weird isolationist manic pixie dream dragons. It invokes the tired and cringe-worthy English racism of Scottish as the other while also plunging this fictional world into a bizarre version of World War II. Sometimes I think YA romantasy is a curse upon the earth when I read books like this, but it's also my own fault for reading this book.
A Language of Dragons rating: ★★☆☆☆
A War of Wyverns rating: ★☆☆☆☆
Fable at the End of the World by Ava Reid
Another YA dystopia reskinned from The Hunger Games and possibly Battle Angel Alita. It's hard to rate this one on its own, although I appreciate the queer doomed love between hunter and prey. The idea that the United States has descended into a society of haves, who can always lose their status, and have nots, who will never have at all, is not new but remains compelling in this day and age.
In my opinion, this is one of Ava Reid's weaker stories when it comes to set up but stronger stories in relation to both of the main characters being able to stand on their own as POV characters in one novel. Melinoë as the angel assassin is relatable and regrettable, just another cog in a system designed to chew up and spit out young people for entertainment. Inesa was never set up for success, and she and her brother were never given to tools to change their fate—it's the ultimate American dream of living and dying for the entertainment of others.
Despite the way this reads as a reskinned crossover fanfic, I enjoyed this book because the characters are very human: they're not just angry heroes; they go through denial and despair, and they love people in their lives even when they shouldn't. This is something Reid is particularly good at doing along with stringing together interesting and engaging action sequences that utilise genre tropes without feeling stale. Overall, if Reid decides to write another book in this universe, I would read it.
Rating: ★★½☆☆
Capitalists Must Starve by Park Seolyeon, translated by Anton Hur
This is a fictional account of Kang Juryong, a Korean independence and workers right activist in Japanese-occupied Korea. It follows her from her arranged marriage to the end of her life after multiple hunger strikes. As a narrator, her point of view is straight-forward, poignant, and footed in her own sense of self. She loves and feels furiously and, despite her own great suffering, eventually choses herself and her fight over the social pressures of society.
As others with much more knowledge of the Korean language have pointed out, there are limitations to the translation. I do feel the impact of the story stands on its own, and I felt a lot of sympathy and kinship with Juryong. The themes of feminism, personal choice, and hanging onto hope even under deep oppression is a worthwhile story in this moment, and the novel covers a lot within a relatively small amount of words because its main character is so stark and clear voiced. As the reader knows the ending of her story, the novel challenges the reader to think about themself through the intimacy of the narration and brisk pacing.
Rating: ★★★★☆
The Second Death of Locke by V.L. Bovalino
This book features is a unique fantasy world, which reminds me of the War of the Roses but with magic and a medieval Western European Atlantis. The main characters, Kier and Grey, form a mage-well pair and function as soldiers in an ongoing war that began when the isle of Locke sank into the sea. After rescuing a girl who claims to be the lost heir of Locke, they're tasked with a journey that will reveal both the girl and Grey's hidden identities and push the war—and magic—to a breaking point.
This book shines in its unique magic system and well-developed main characters. There's a lot of interesting and well-executed tropes like hidden identity, duty before love, and codependent relationships. The LGBTQ+ representation is a well-integrated part of the world, and the politics between nations is suitably complex. I really enjoyed the originality of the mage-well set up, with the mage being able to cast spells and the well providing the energy. The first half of the book is a combination of mystery, political intrigue, and your obligatory plodding fantasy journey from Point A to Point B, but it doesn't get boring as the situations in which the characters find themselves are action-packed and high-stakes.
Unfortunately, the second half of the book is not nearly as intriguing as the first half. Following the various identity reveals, there is also the addition of a mystical spirit realm of sorts, which I found overly convenient and eventually downright annoying. Grey's otherwise solid characterisation takes a hit to add this feature into the book, which I felt lessened the impact of her finally coming into her own and her relationship with Kier. I wish the author had stuck to the foundations from the first half of the book because there is more than enough to provide that rising tension to the final battle.
I'll probably pick up the next book as these are standalone, but I won't be rushing to it.
Rating: ★★★☆☆
Graceless Heart by Isabel Ibañez
This book... sure happened. Set during the Medici dynasty, one of my favourite historical periods for fiction, Ravenna is a talented sculptor and secret witch. Magic in this world is centred around different types of stones, each with their own unique properties. Ravenna enters a sculpture contest held by the immortal Luni family because the prize is a boon, which she intends to use to release her brother from prison and clear his charges.
The story has a lot going for it: a smart, wily protagonist, an evil Pope, a mysterious immortal family, and intriguing magic systems. Ravenna's motivations are strong, but it's quickly revealed that her family probably aren't worth her time, and she is terminally attracted to the main male character, Saturnino of the Luni family, who is a self-demonstrated cold-hearted murderer with the most perfect face imaginable. Every character has a twist, and the book moves at the pace of a Ferrari on an open track, turning every character and bit of rising action on its head.
The kicker for me was when we learn the secret of the Luni family through Saturnino. It's been a long time since I've gotten to a twist, looked up from the book, and just quietly thought, "What the fuck." In the most unflattering way, I was reminded of Behooved by M Stevenson, with Graceless Heart found desperately wanting. I couldn't take the book seriously anymore, but I finished it as I was already more than two-thirds in. I don't think it was worth it, and I feel like I learned a lesson, but not the one the book wanted to give me. I can't believe there's supposed to be three more books in the series.
Rating: ★☆☆☆☆
Books I Did Not Finish
A Crown So Silver by Selene Lyra
The first book in this series (which I could swear was originally supposed to be a duology), A Feather So Black, featured a well-developed fae world and offered a very interesting and unique twist to the Twelve Dancing Princesses tale. I liked the twists and turns in the first book, and, in a very rare turn of events, I enjoyed the love triangle between Fia, Rogan, and Irian. I didn't have particularly high hopes after seeing that this was now a longer series, and, unfortunately, my hunch was correct.
The first quarter of book is full of smut, which is welcome, but also spends a great deal of time recapping the first book in a way that feels unnatural. I liked the addition of Irian's POV, but the shift of the series to yet another magical tournament precided over by a despotic magical king where Fia will fight to the death with her sister-antagonist joining the tournament with Rogan was just too much. The first book can stand on its own, and I would still recommend it for a light read, but the second book is not worth my time.
A Theory of Dreaming by Ava Reid
The second book in the series that started with A Study in Drowning
I had started to read the first book over a year ago, but due to the mental health content with Effy, the main character, I shelved it to return to when I was in a better headspace. I'm glad I did, as it was a good, creative read to close out 2025 while on vacation. I grabbed A Theory of Dreaming to read on the flight home, so it started my 2026 reading list. Theory is not as good as Dreaming, and it's obvious that it wasn't a planned sequel. This doesn't mean it's unreadable—anything but, and it does a good job of further developing Preston as a character. It also contains the welcome addition of family, peers, and friends of both Effy and Preston, moving them into the wider world from the atmospheric claustrophobia of Drowning. If you liked the first book, especially the main characters, Theory is likely enjoyable. As always, Ava Reid's unique magic systems and ideas shine, even if finer details aren't fleshed out; in this case, the characters themselves don't understand the magic, and there are in world explanations for that.
That said, the plot is less tightly written than Dreaming, and Preston's immersion in his own type of magic starts off confusing with its initially unexplained dreamscape. The descent of the main characters—Effy into deeper mental health crisis and Preston into magic—develops them as individuals, but the resolution of both of their journeys felt overly convenient and left a lot to be desired. The escalation of tensions between Llyr and Argant felt hamfisted and resolved far too easily, but this is not unusual in YA fiction and an issue I find indicative of the limitations of the genre.
Rating: ★★★☆☆
The Rose Bargain by Sasha Peyton Smith
A sequel, The Thorn Queen, is expected 14 April 2026.
Yet another entry into the crowded fantasy sub-genre of fae kingdoms and pseudo-regency settings, this is a solid YA story about Ivy Benton, an aristocratic girl whose family is down on its luck in a fae-ruled England. Ivy is brave, plucky, and focused on restoring her family's place in society while being haunted by the disgrace and mysterious illness of her sister. The two princes, affable fae Prince Bram and broody human Prince Emmett, are fully fleshed out, their qualities revealing themselves over the course of the story as they're revealed to Ivy. The supporting cast are also fleshed out with their own motivations and distinct personalities, which is refreshing.
The plot of Ivy gaining Prince Bram's hand in marriage through increasingly unhinged trials is a tired trope combination in conjunction with the evil fae Queen Mor, and the various revelations that arise can been seen a mile away. It's the characters' evolving relationships with each other that keeps the reader's interest, and the twists in the rising action and climax, while predictable, hit the right note. I particularly like the sibling relationships, which gives heart to the novel. Some of the villainy of Queen Mor felt honestly laughable as well as the twist towards the end regarding her, but this is the main cliche I felt was really very silly. Overall, I look forward to the sequel.
Rating: ★★★½☆
A Language of Dragons and A War of Wyverns by S.F. Williamson
First two books in a multi-part series
Oh boy. These books. A Language of Dragons takes the question, "What if humans tried to learn to speak dragon?", and takes us to a 1923 world similar to our own where Bulgaria has evil(?) dragons, and Britain is divided into a three tier class system for humans. The main character, Viv, is a genius linguist of dragon languages, and, after a series of unfortunate events, she and a number of other young adults are pressed into secret service to learn the secret ultrasonic dragon language. The first book does a good job at developing the various characters, offering twists and turns on allegiances very akin to The Hunger Games and the Fourth Wing series, and a firm, refreshing, and increasingly infuriating narrative about growing from your own privilege and prejudice to redemption.
I picked up the second book directly off the back of the first because I had enjoyed the unique ideas of the first and was willing to give the author a chance to do something interesting. The second book finds Viv angry and reckless, even moreso than the first book on the latter, and introduces the wyverns who live isolated in the Hebrides. It's the latter addition that pushed me over the edge as the wyverns are treated by the narrative as both a major power and weird isolationist manic pixie dream dragons. It invokes the tired and cringe-worthy English racism of Scottish as the other while also plunging this fictional world into a bizarre version of World War II. Sometimes I think YA romantasy is a curse upon the earth when I read books like this, but it's also my own fault for reading this book.
A Language of Dragons rating: ★★☆☆☆
A War of Wyverns rating: ★☆☆☆☆
Fable at the End of the World by Ava Reid
Another YA dystopia reskinned from The Hunger Games and possibly Battle Angel Alita. It's hard to rate this one on its own, although I appreciate the queer doomed love between hunter and prey. The idea that the United States has descended into a society of haves, who can always lose their status, and have nots, who will never have at all, is not new but remains compelling in this day and age.
In my opinion, this is one of Ava Reid's weaker stories when it comes to set up but stronger stories in relation to both of the main characters being able to stand on their own as POV characters in one novel. Melinoë as the angel assassin is relatable and regrettable, just another cog in a system designed to chew up and spit out young people for entertainment. Inesa was never set up for success, and she and her brother were never given to tools to change their fate—it's the ultimate American dream of living and dying for the entertainment of others.
Despite the way this reads as a reskinned crossover fanfic, I enjoyed this book because the characters are very human: they're not just angry heroes; they go through denial and despair, and they love people in their lives even when they shouldn't. This is something Reid is particularly good at doing along with stringing together interesting and engaging action sequences that utilise genre tropes without feeling stale. Overall, if Reid decides to write another book in this universe, I would read it.
Rating: ★★½☆☆
Capitalists Must Starve by Park Seolyeon, translated by Anton Hur
This is a fictional account of Kang Juryong, a Korean independence and workers right activist in Japanese-occupied Korea. It follows her from her arranged marriage to the end of her life after multiple hunger strikes. As a narrator, her point of view is straight-forward, poignant, and footed in her own sense of self. She loves and feels furiously and, despite her own great suffering, eventually choses herself and her fight over the social pressures of society.
As others with much more knowledge of the Korean language have pointed out, there are limitations to the translation. I do feel the impact of the story stands on its own, and I felt a lot of sympathy and kinship with Juryong. The themes of feminism, personal choice, and hanging onto hope even under deep oppression is a worthwhile story in this moment, and the novel covers a lot within a relatively small amount of words because its main character is so stark and clear voiced. As the reader knows the ending of her story, the novel challenges the reader to think about themself through the intimacy of the narration and brisk pacing.
Rating: ★★★★☆
The Second Death of Locke by V.L. Bovalino
The first book in a three-part series of interconnected standalones
This book features is a unique fantasy world, which reminds me of the War of the Roses but with magic and a medieval Western European Atlantis. The main characters, Kier and Grey, form a mage-well pair and function as soldiers in an ongoing war that began when the isle of Locke sank into the sea. After rescuing a girl who claims to be the lost heir of Locke, they're tasked with a journey that will reveal both the girl and Grey's hidden identities and push the war—and magic—to a breaking point.
This book shines in its unique magic system and well-developed main characters. There's a lot of interesting and well-executed tropes like hidden identity, duty before love, and codependent relationships. The LGBTQ+ representation is a well-integrated part of the world, and the politics between nations is suitably complex. I really enjoyed the originality of the mage-well set up, with the mage being able to cast spells and the well providing the energy. The first half of the book is a combination of mystery, political intrigue, and your obligatory plodding fantasy journey from Point A to Point B, but it doesn't get boring as the situations in which the characters find themselves are action-packed and high-stakes.
Unfortunately, the second half of the book is not nearly as intriguing as the first half. Following the various identity reveals, there is also the addition of a mystical spirit realm of sorts, which I found overly convenient and eventually downright annoying. Grey's otherwise solid characterisation takes a hit to add this feature into the book, which I felt lessened the impact of her finally coming into her own and her relationship with Kier. I wish the author had stuck to the foundations from the first half of the book because there is more than enough to provide that rising tension to the final battle.
I'll probably pick up the next book as these are standalone, but I won't be rushing to it.
Rating: ★★★☆☆
Graceless Heart by Isabel Ibañez
The first in a four-book series
This book... sure happened. Set during the Medici dynasty, one of my favourite historical periods for fiction, Ravenna is a talented sculptor and secret witch. Magic in this world is centred around different types of stones, each with their own unique properties. Ravenna enters a sculpture contest held by the immortal Luni family because the prize is a boon, which she intends to use to release her brother from prison and clear his charges.
The story has a lot going for it: a smart, wily protagonist, an evil Pope, a mysterious immortal family, and intriguing magic systems. Ravenna's motivations are strong, but it's quickly revealed that her family probably aren't worth her time, and she is terminally attracted to the main male character, Saturnino of the Luni family, who is a self-demonstrated cold-hearted murderer with the most perfect face imaginable. Every character has a twist, and the book moves at the pace of a Ferrari on an open track, turning every character and bit of rising action on its head.
The kicker for me was when we learn the secret of the Luni family through Saturnino. It's been a long time since I've gotten to a twist, looked up from the book, and just quietly thought, "What the fuck." In the most unflattering way, I was reminded of Behooved by M Stevenson, with Graceless Heart found desperately wanting. I couldn't take the book seriously anymore, but I finished it as I was already more than two-thirds in. I don't think it was worth it, and I feel like I learned a lesson, but not the one the book wanted to give me. I can't believe there's supposed to be three more books in the series.
Rating: ★☆☆☆☆
Books I Did Not Finish
A Crown So Silver by Selene Lyra
The second book in the Fair Folk series
The first book in this series (which I could swear was originally supposed to be a duology), A Feather So Black, featured a well-developed fae world and offered a very interesting and unique twist to the Twelve Dancing Princesses tale. I liked the twists and turns in the first book, and, in a very rare turn of events, I enjoyed the love triangle between Fia, Rogan, and Irian. I didn't have particularly high hopes after seeing that this was now a longer series, and, unfortunately, my hunch was correct.
The first quarter of book is full of smut, which is welcome, but also spends a great deal of time recapping the first book in a way that feels unnatural. I liked the addition of Irian's POV, but the shift of the series to yet another magical tournament precided over by a despotic magical king where Fia will fight to the death with her sister-antagonist joining the tournament with Rogan was just too much. The first book can stand on its own, and I would still recommend it for a light read, but the second book is not worth my time.
