# YA fantasy recommendations please



## LucyAslan (Apr 13, 2014)

Hi everyone,

If you have a moment, I'd really love to hear about some high(er) fantasy in the young adult (teen) category. I prefer things not set in the real world. I loved Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo and I enjoyed Alanna: The First Adventure by Tamora Pierce, Crown of Midnight by Sarah J Maas and Poison Study by Maria V Snyder. I'm really looking for something with a female protagonist.

Thank you,
Lucy


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## Melody Simmons (Jul 8, 2012)

I loved the Seaforth Chronicles - a mismash of fantasy and magic and a bit of suspense - loved the author's style:

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Ddigital-text&field-keywords=seaforth+chronicles&rh=n%3A133140011%2Ck%3Aseaforth+chronicles


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## LucyAslan (Apr 13, 2014)

Melody Simmons said:


> I loved the Seaforth Chronicles - a mismash of fantasy and magic and a bit of suspense - loved the author's style:
> 
> http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Ddigital-text&field-keywords=seaforth+chronicles&rh=n%3A133140011%2Ck%3Aseaforth+chronicles


Thank you. I'll check them out.


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## Ros_Jackson (Jan 11, 2014)

How about The Poison Throne by Celine Kiernan? That's set in a medieval-style secondary world that's a lot like Europe. 

If you want something more exotic, I would recommend Rar Carson's Fire And Thorns. The main character has challenges with her weight, which gives it a fresh perspective.


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## TWErvin2 (Aug 7, 2010)

Jim Bernheimer's _Spirals of Destiny _ might be good. High Fantasy, female protagonist, intended for YA readers:

Spirals of Destiny 1 *Rider*
Spirals of Destiny 2 *Sorceress*


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## LucyAslan (Apr 13, 2014)

TWErvin2 said:


> Jim Bernheimer's _Spirals of Destiny _ might be good. High Fantasy, female protagonist, intended for YA readers:
> 
> Spirals of Destiny 1 *Rider*
> Spirals of Destiny 2 *Sorceress*


Thank you, I'll take a peek at them!



Ros_Jackson said:


> How about The Poison Throne by Celine Kiernan? That's set in a medieval-style secondary world that's a lot like Europe.
> 
> If you want something more exotic, I would recommend Rar Carson's Fire And Thorns. The main character has challenges with her weight, which gives it a fresh perspective.


Ohh, The Poison Throne looks good.

I'm actually reading Fire and Thorns right now. I'm about halfway through and really enjoying the fresh perspective.


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## CecilyKane (Mar 4, 2014)

I just finished Catherynne M. Valente's _The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making_ and it was delightful. It's YA secondary-world high fantasy that's brilliantly imaginative, and the protagonist is female. There's an ongoing series, too. Highly recommended.

ETA: This book won the Locus YA fantasy award.


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## hs (Feb 15, 2011)

I really liked Kristin Cashore's Graceling Realm books, especially _Graceling_ and _Fire_. The three books aren't a series in the traditional sense, but they take place in the same universe, with each book featuring a different protagonist.


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## AngryGames (Jul 28, 2013)

Hope I'm not breaking a taboo, but I saw Jim Bernheimer's name and wanted to comment that even though it isn't 'high fantasy,' there's a book he wrote called "Confessions of a D-List Supervillain" that is absolutely fantastic (keep in mind, I'm old and cranky and I hate 'comic book superhero' crap as much as I hate zombies and werewolves and vampires).

It's a fun, comic book (the good kind? heh) tale of a hapless supervillain who ends up... well, if you ever want something fun and a little different, give it a shot.

Guess I can not be lazy and do the link maker thing...



anyway, sorry for interrupting. Like I said, happened to see the name, and was telling another reader tonight to check it out.


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## Cat Amesbury (Jan 29, 2014)

Have you run into any Robin McKinley before?

I find that her high fantasy series are a nice complement to Tamora Pierce, particularly "The Hero and the Crown" (http://www.amazon.com/The-Hero-Crown-Robin-McKinley/dp/0141309814) and "The Blue Sword" (http://www.amazon.com/Blue-Sword-Newbery-Honor-Roll/dp/014130975X).

I'd also second the recommendation for "The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making". All of Cat Valente's stuff is brilliant and beautiful.


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## meh (Apr 18, 2013)

I keep meaning to read Robin McKinley. Good to hear some feedback about her. 

I also have Graceling on my Kindle Sample list.


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## UnicornEmily (Jul 2, 2011)

I highly recommend Dark Lord of Derkholm, by Diana Wynne Jones.  Almost all of her books are loves for me.

Have you tried Patricia C. Wrede's Frontier Magic trilogy?  They're absolutely charming.

I highly recommend Brandon Sanderson.  Not all of his books are young adult, but about a third of them are.  For female protagonists, I particularly recommend Warbreaker (standalone) and Mistborn (trilogy), which both have fully-realized female protagonists who are extremely likeable.  Both are adult, but clean enough to be young adult, so I think they fit the bill.


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## MariaESchneider (Aug 1, 2009)

Stained Glass Monster by Andrea Host
The Hounds of Ardagh by Laura ...oh, what is her last name Underwood!


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## MariaESchneider (Aug 1, 2009)

And All the Paths of Shadow by Frank Tuttle.


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## cagnes (Oct 13, 2009)

I also recommend Kristin Cashore's Graceling Realm series!

I see that you're read Maria V. Snyder's Study series, but if you haven't read her Glass series, I highly recommend them. They're a spin off of the Study series.
  

Also love her Healer series!
  

I also enjoyed Shadowfell by Juliet Marillier. Book 3 isn't out yet in the US though, I believe only in Australia.


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## lmroth12 (Nov 15, 2012)

I suppose with a moniker like Lucy Aslan that you are already a fan of *The Chronicles of Narnia*, right?  I can suggest _Gail Carson Levine_, just about any book by _Gail Carson Levine_. Her heroines are all strong and unconventional and usually solve their problems on their own. They are pretty much set in medieval times but loaded with fairies, ogres, and enchantments. I would suggest you start with *Ella Enchanted * and *Fairest * and go from there.

Apart from her I can't think of any fantasy I've read lately where the main character is female. If you find something good let me know!


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## LucyAslan (Apr 13, 2014)

Thank you so much for all of your suggestions! I have picked up a couple to try them out.

I've read Graceling and I enjoyed it but didn't love it. A while back I tried Fire but really didn't enjoy what I read and recently I tried listening to the Bitterblue audiobook, but it rubbed me the wrong way. I was so disappointed. 



lmroth12 said:


> I suppose with a moniker like Lucy Aslan that you are already a fan of *The Chronicles of Narnia*, right?  I can suggest _Gail Carson Levine_, just about any book by _Gail Carson Levine_. Her heroines are all strong and unconventional and usually solve their problems on their own. They are pretty much set in medieval times but loaded with fairies, ogres, and enchantments. I would suggest you start with *Ella Enchanted * and *Fairest * and go from there.
> 
> Apart from her I can't think of any fantasy I've read lately where the main character is female. If you find something good let me know!


Haha, you guessed correctly! And I LOVE Ella Enchanted, I remember when I first read that, it must have been... oh boy I feel old... about fifteen years ago now.


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## Debbie Bennett (Mar 25, 2011)

Um - Katherine Roberts? Or what about Melissa Marr's Wicked Lovely series or even Julie Kagawa, if you like faery stuff?


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## MariaESchneider (Aug 1, 2009)

We're doing a buddy read of Nice Dragons Finish Last by Rachel Aaron at the blog.  It's set in a dystopian US environment, but it's an oddball enough place, I wouldn't call it contemporary.  There are multiple POV--the main POV is a guy, but there are plenty of POV to go around (IMO probably too many, but I'm not a fan of multiple POV).  That said, I REALLY enjoyed this book.    It might be up your alley!


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## NogDog (May 1, 2009)

Should you find yourself in the mood for YA fantasy with healthy doses of parody, satire, and plain old humor (along with some scary/serious stuff to keep you guessing), there's always Terry Pratchett's "Tiffany Aching" series -- and it appears you can get all four in one Kindle book now:



PS: not sure if they are all technically "YA", as the series follows Tiffany from early "tweens" to later teens.


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## derekailes2014 (Aug 4, 2014)

The Chronicles of Prydain by  Lloyd Alexander was a favorite series for me to read when I was in middle school.  There were five books in the series.
The Book of Three
The Black Cauldron
The Castle of Llyr
Taran Wanderer
The High King


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## PandorasParanormalBox (Aug 10, 2014)

Melody Simmons said:


> I loved the Seaforth Chronicles - a mismash of fantasy and magic and a bit of suspense - loved the author's style:
> 
> http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Ddigital-text&field-keywords=seaforth+chronicles&rh=n%3A133140011%2Ck%3Aseaforth+chronicles


THESE LOOK AWESOME!


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