FDS Approved Fictional Book Recommendations

Aloe_You_Vera_Much · 2021-11-28T22:16:19+00:00

I recommend the Mercy Thompson series and the spin off series, Alpha and Omega. They are urban fantasy set in modern day USA where in the 80s the Fae “came out” to society and in the first few books the werewolves do the same.

The relationships portrayed are so realistic. The main women are strong and smart. They go through periods where they realize certain relationships aren’t right (for FDS reasons! Like dimming their light) and can be in relationships with men who support them, add to their lives, and are kind and protecting of the people around them (without the stereotypical domineering act from fantasy books).

All characters, men and woman, grow throughout the books and resolve trauma and issues throughout their lives. Great plots, but I love these series for the character development the most.

It’s a woman author and I think that makes a lot of difference. I recommend this series to everyone I can, but I didn’t realize until your comment that one of the reasons I must like it so much is that it is the ONLY urban fantasy I love because the men aren’t those typical asshole, domineering, on and off again relationship sort of people.

whiskey_and_oreos · 2021-11-28T20:39:49+00:00

Circe by Madeline Miller might fit the bill. It's an adaptation of various Greek myths including the Odyssey but told from the perspective of the witch Circe. It's definitely a level up journey. Content warning and spoiler there is a brief r.pe scene with instant justice.

samedinuitmort · 2021-11-28T20:15:41+00:00

There was another thread like this recently, you might find some good stuff there!

My suggestion is Terry Pratchett always! He has like over 30 books. Any book about witches is amazing. It’s comedy/parody fantasy, good plots good characters and amazing humor.

These books will have you laughing for real!

23eggz · 2021-11-29T06:49:55+00:00

Kim jiyoung, born 1982

Its more sad I guess, but not like baul your eyes out sad, but rather it sheds light as to how persavive cultural misogyny is at every point in a woman's life.

LateDiagnosedAutie · 2021-11-29T07:24:06+00:00

Frances Hardinge.

Her books have all have a 'creepy fairytale' vibe to them, but they're also eerily beautiful!

I'd recommend 'The Lie Tree' to begin with. It's a coming of age of a young woman in Victorian times who learns that she DOESN'T need her brilliant scientist father's approval or validation to pursue science (or magic) herself.

ugh. I checked the blurb on amazon and GoodReads. There are SO MANY SPOILERS. Just, WHY?!?! If possible, please don't read the summary blurb about the book. I did however find a review on GoodReads that I'll just copy and paste here:

How do I describe The Lie Tree? As a Victorian murder mystery? As a book about lies and truths and the things that are obvious and the things that are not?As a tale about filial loyalty? As a revenge story? As a look at the ways that women have been made invisible throughout history? As a feminist triumph?

These are all truths. But they are partial truths because this book is not one thing or another. Just like all of Frances Hardinge’s books before this, The Lie Tree is a complex narrative of subtle interwoven storylines that are surprising, dark, sad and incredibly beautiful. In fact, I’d say this is Hardinge’s most beautiful book to date. That sort of beauty that comes from things that are so real they feel make you like your heart has been pierced. But in the nicest way possible.

Softrito · 2021-11-29T02:46:23+00:00

I read a book called Christy right after I graduated from highschool. I finished 400 pages in two days and kept opening it to read parts. The romance is mediocre but it hardly causes a ripple as the focus is on Christy and her interaction with mountain folk.

machiavella_89 · 2021-11-29T21:24:43+00:00

I would recommend the Mistress of the Art of Death series by Ariana Franklin, but TW for violence and sexual assault. The series is set in medieval England and does not pull any punches in describing how women and minorities were treated.

The protagonist, Adelia, is a female physician and the medieval equivalent of a forensic examiner. I find her to be extremely well written and inspiring as she demonstrates courage, cleverness, and general bad-assery while dealing with sexism, racism, and prejudice. I love this series for a lot of reasons, but I really like that it develops strong, complex characters who struggle with the culture and inequalities of their time period in a realistic way. A lot of authors get heavy handed with this kind of subject matter to the point that the characters themselves (especially the women) get lost in wooden tropes and stereotypes, and that kind of writing is refreshingly absent in this series imo.

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