I LOVED Gardens of the Moon upon first reading it and it sold me on the whole Malazan series. It's got a fantastic plot, vivid prose, a high number of jaw-dropping moments, and some of the wildest worldbuilding you'll ever encounter in a series debut. That being said, I read it with the help of the Google Slides guide that some Redditor put together a few years back. The book drops you in with little explanation of events and having some help with that is imo a must-have in order to not feel lost. Unless you enjoy the puzzle, I wouldn't recommend the book without getting some additional background knowledge to help understand wtf you're reading.
Just finished valour and it was amazing. Getting the last 2 in the faithful and the fallen for my birthday so can’t wait to finish this series. John Gwynne is an amazing author. I love at the end of each book the chapters get short and short and more happens to each of these amazing characters and you just don’t know if that last page and a half you just read will be the last you see of them until you pick up the next book. Keeps me on the edge of my step every time. My birthday can’t come fast enough lol.
Faithful and the Fallen is absolutely fantastic. The later books have a cast of characters to keep you oriented. I also had zero enjoyment reading the blade itself but bought first law trilogy so will get around to it eventually. Way more excited for Grace of Kings
I have to say, I’m currently reading Ship of Magic and I’m absolutely loving it, it’s a slow burn but I’m almost halfway thru the book I can’t seem put to put it down. - I have wanted to read the Licanus trilogy hopefully this year 😊
I started with the 2nd Malazan book as my mum got me that for Christmas and then I went back. Glad I did. I read them so long ago so by the time I got to Midnight Tides I was reading them as they came out with 1 or 2 years between books. I totally couldn’t remember who everyone was or every plot point but it did not spoil the books if you just let that go and be in the. moment . I sort of think of them now as history books you can’t remember everyone and everything that happened in WW2 but you get the gist. Sometimes you will follow some characters and sometimes you won’t see them for books and books or ever again ( you need to read esselmont to tie up some characters plot lines). I don’t think they are grim dark as there is a lot of humour in them as well as tears. These stories are based on Eriksso ns and Esselmonts modded D&D campaigns so they do feel like that sometimes.
So many good and well-liked series, I hope you find some new favorites this year! I have already finished Gutter Prayer, the first book in The Black Iron Legacy series - it was an instant hit for me, so I'll be continuing with that series over the course of this year. Malazan is my big epic series I'm tackling in 2024. Last year was The Dark Tower, which I loved, so Malazan has some big shoes to fill. Hopefully I enjoy it enough to finish the series. A series I started in 2023 and want to finish in 2024 - The Winnowing Flame trilogy by Jen Williams. Absolutely loved The Ninth Rain, the worldbuilding and the all weirdness and I can't wait for more. One series I'm hesitant to read more of, but might in 2024, is The Goblin Emperor series by Katherine Addison. Maia, the new half-goblin King, was such a delight to read about. But the story felt complete by the end of the first book and it worked so well as a standalone, with the ending really tying everything together. I'm not sure what direction a new story would go in, or it if it can match the charm of the first.
I want to get started with Malazan? Wheel of Time? Patrick Rothfuss? It's so hard to decide. Might as well just push through with the Realm of the Elderlings until I've read all 16 volumes. This show is very dynamic and very entertaining, and there's not a dull moment. Thank you.
I caught up on red rising this year. My first re through of the trilogy was good and fun, but I did struggle with the writing style and tone. With my re read I listened to it and while the narrators change from book to book (such a pet peeve!!) I enjoyed the experience immensely! Tim Gerald Reynolds is a main narrator and he really brought Darrow’s voice to life. Some people dislike iron gold, book 4. All I will say is the characters age up and you get new perspectives which bothered some people. I liked the new perspectives and while I liked some POVs over others, it helps open the world more than I think it would have with the singular pov in the first arc. There’s incredible battles and the emotional hits definitely pack a punch. Happy reading!
Oooo, as it happens I am currently reading two of your series listed here: “Licanius” and “Liveship Traders”. I have both “The Mad Ship” (2) and “The Shadow of What Was Lost” (1) currently in-progress, as a sort of upstairs/downstairs combination. They are both fabulous books that I am loving to bits 🥰
Very ambitious TBR 😅 but mine for 2024 looks similar 😂 I started with Empire of Silence a few days ago and I understand absolutely why everyone is so hooked on it!
Really nice series. I only read the wheel of time and even though it is not perfect it’s still really really nice. I think everyone should give it a try. It’s my Fav series currently.
Most of those are on my 'to read in 2024' list. Hoping to get to Dandelion Dynasty and Powder Mage trilogy at least :D There were also many I did not know about and will definitely check them out.
Cradle! Daevabad! Powder Mage! So many great reads and many of my favorites! I plan to read Malice in the first quarter of the year so I may catch up with you, and we can buddy-read the rest of the series if you want! Of the ones on the list, I'm most curious to see what you think about Malazan. I have the first eight books but it's not time to start them yet, but I've heard that one should give it until the third book to decide if the series is for them.
Hi there. How are you doing? Good luck with the Malazan series. Personally, I had to read and listen to the first 2 books about 2 to 3 times for each chapter before I got anything out of it. I actually had to Google a list of the character names, so that I could keep track of them better. I have only listened to it while reading the first 2 books and have never thought about any of the characters ever since. I hope you have a better time than I did. The only other series that I have read while listening to fully is the Wheel of Time series. It is a real journey with characters that are so vividly portrayed that you feel like you could reach out and touch them. I also wanted to let you know, that I am now 56% into listening to the Bands of Mourning by Brandon Sanderson. So far, I feel like the characters are validating between 2 different quests, one of which was left over from a previous book. I like being with these characters. All of the other series that you talked about are ones I have not read or listened to yet, but I want to badly now. This year may be the year that I start my journey going through the Secret Projects books as well as starting the Stormlight Archive. I will keep you posted. I also have 3 different Japanese light novel series that have been translated to English that I want to work on too.
Great list! Enjoy your reading year😊 I'm planning on reading/starting these: 1. 3 body trilogy 2. Faithfull & Fallen 3. Stormlight Archive incl novellas, Warbreaker etc 4. Saga of the isles or Bridei trilogy by Juliet Marillier 5. Beartown trilogy by F. Backman I also would like to read 2 big classics: The count of monte cristo and The brothers Karamazov..... Hopefully i'll manage to read them all! Apparently my year to read books of 1200 pages or at minimum 700 😅 I loved Gardens of the moons last year and started in book 2 but then life stuff happened and i did not have the time or mental capacity to continue. This year my focus will be Stormlight Archive but next year it will definitely be on Malazan and also John Gwynnes Bloodsworn saga, as book 3 is coming out in october 2024.
Wow! These look great, a lot of the same series I want to check out. I did want to share that I think the Age of Madness doesn’t really “make sense” without having read the original trilogy and stand-alones (excl. Sharp Ends). The book that works best on its own is probably Best Served Cold. Abercrombie is a tough read for me, but he has such a remarkable way with character and point of view that draws me in beyond my comfort zone.
Happy new year Isa! I'm so excited for you to read all these series, most of them are in my tbr I so look forward to reading them at a similar time than you. Also as a spanish speaking person (actually catalan), I would love your thoughts on whether is a good idea for me to read The Wheel of Time and Malazan in english. I'm a bit scared to read these huge series and don't get it all out of them because I'm not understanding some details due to the vocabulary. I know that you decided to read the Stormlight Archive in spanish (I read these books in english) so I really value your opinion on this topic
Empire of Silence was my top read for 2023. Illborn came in second. Regarding Malazian I will be finishing the series this year (well the main series that is). Try finish up to book 3 of the main series at least. To see if you really like it
Ahhh I was going for books 1 and 2 for Malazan before seeing if I like it! But maybe if I am on the fence I will aim for 3! Can’t wait to read Empire of Silence!
Wow, so many book goals 😅. Where are you starting? This week i started with the first Robin Hobb book and so far, 120 pages in, i really like it. I'm scared of book 3 though, as so many people didn't like it (too long and boring). However, I'm already now looking forward to the ship of magic trilogy 😊
Gardens of the Moon: I knew it was very involved, a ton of characters and you're dropped into the conflict. I just couldn't get past the transitions (2 or 3 on one page) and it was just names/places/lore in sentences. No time to take in various characters and happenings. It didn't work for me. Every time I watch Isa in a video I feel like I ran a mini-marathon. Great content.
After a few pages of the Gardens of the Moon, I was so confused that it didn't seem worth the bother. It will be interesting to see what you think. I think books 2 and 3 of the Licanius Trilogy have summaries of the previous books. If you like strong female characters, there are plenty in the Wheel of Time. Egwene's defense of the White Tower during the Seanchan attack, and leading the Green Ajah at Tarmon Gai'don, are some of the best scenes in the series. 😃
I've only read the Daevabad trilogy from this list and have never even heard of some of these, I think I live under a rock 😂 I'll start Dandelion Dynasty this year though!
Can't think of anything worse than having to use a guide to understand a fiction book I'm reading. Immediately feels like I'm studying/working rather than enjoying a story.
Ahhh so many amazing series!! If you get through all of these..you are going to have a fantastic but also really satisfying year. 🥳 Also loving the editing!
Bueeeeeeh... The Dandelion Dynasty (wink wink SUPERWINK) The Greenbone Saga The Farseer Trilogy (books 2 and 3) The Warrior Bards (books 2 and 3) and reread The Lord of The Rings if I can
![KSI - Thick Of It (feat. Trippie Redd) [Official Music Video]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/At8v_Yc044Y/mqdefault.jpg)
This year I am finally starting the Game of Thrones series - I know nothing about the books or the show. Cannot wait!
😯😯😯😯 That is cool!
I LOVED Gardens of the Moon upon first reading it and it sold me on the whole Malazan series. It's got a fantastic plot, vivid prose, a high number of jaw-dropping moments, and some of the wildest worldbuilding you'll ever encounter in a series debut.
That being said, I read it with the help of the Google Slides guide that some Redditor put together a few years back. The book drops you in with little explanation of events and having some help with that is imo a must-have in order to not feel lost. Unless you enjoy the puzzle, I wouldn't recommend the book without getting some additional background knowledge to help understand wtf you're reading.
Just finished valour and it was amazing. Getting the last 2 in the faithful and the fallen for my birthday so can’t wait to finish this series. John Gwynne is an amazing author. I love at the end of each book the chapters get short and short and more happens to each of these amazing characters and you just don’t know if that last page and a half you just read will be the last you see of them until you pick up the next book. Keeps me on the edge of my step every time. My birthday can’t come fast enough lol.
I'm in the 'Liveship is the best' camp lol. An audacious list of series!! I'm reading the Age of Madness, and Winternight trilogies this year!
Oh you have so many of my favourite series on here! 🤯🥰Dandelion, Daevabad, Winternight, Malice!
Faithful and the Fallen is absolutely fantastic. The later books have a cast of characters to keep you oriented. I also had zero enjoyment reading the blade itself but bought first law trilogy so will get around to it eventually. Way more excited for Grace of Kings
I recently read Ken Follet's Pillars of the Earth, and am looking forward to more from this series.
You will not be disappointed. I am waiting for my copy of the fourth book.
In some ways Follet makes fiction feel more real than history.@@heidinewman982
I have to say, I’m currently reading Ship of Magic and I’m absolutely loving it, it’s a slow burn but I’m almost halfway thru the book I can’t seem put to put it down. - I have wanted to read the Licanus trilogy hopefully this year 😊
Ship of Magic is so amazing! Slow but very complex to put it down! I am now living in fear tho for our characters 🫶🥲
@@FunFantasyBooks yes, I want to pick up other books but this one lives rent free in my brain. Yes, 🤞 I can’t loose them yet at least 😊
In Malazan Book 2 was hard maybe the best. But prepare for a lot of heartbreak reading the series
I started with the 2nd Malazan book as my mum got me that for Christmas and then I went back. Glad I did. I read them so long ago so by the time I got to Midnight Tides I was reading them as they came out with 1 or 2 years between books. I totally couldn’t remember who everyone was or every plot point but it did not spoil the books if you just let that go and be in the. moment . I sort of think of them now as history books you can’t remember everyone and everything that happened in WW2 but you get the gist. Sometimes you will follow some characters and sometimes you won’t see them for books and books or ever again ( you need to read esselmont to tie up some characters plot lines). I don’t think they are grim dark as there is a lot of humour in them as well as tears. These stories are based on Eriksso ns and Esselmonts modded D&D campaigns so they do feel like that sometimes.
I need to pick up the veiled throne asap 😅 can’t wait to hear which faithful and the fallen book ends up being your favorite!
I’ve started The Stormlight archive and just finished the first book The way of kings! Loved it
So many good and well-liked series, I hope you find some new favorites this year!
I have already finished Gutter Prayer, the first book in The Black Iron Legacy series - it was an instant hit for me, so I'll be continuing with that series over the course of this year.
Malazan is my big epic series I'm tackling in 2024. Last year was The Dark Tower, which I loved, so Malazan has some big shoes to fill. Hopefully I enjoy it enough to finish the series.
A series I started in 2023 and want to finish in 2024 - The Winnowing Flame trilogy by Jen Williams. Absolutely loved The Ninth Rain, the worldbuilding and the all weirdness and I can't wait for more.
One series I'm hesitant to read more of, but might in 2024, is The Goblin Emperor series by Katherine Addison. Maia, the new half-goblin King, was such a delight to read about. But the story felt complete by the end of the first book and it worked so well as a standalone, with the ending really tying everything together. I'm not sure what direction a new story would go in, or it if it can match the charm of the first.
Some great books here and some I have on my radar for this year too ❤
I want to get started with Malazan? Wheel of Time? Patrick Rothfuss? It's so hard to decide. Might as well just push through with the Realm of the Elderlings until I've read all 16 volumes. This show is very dynamic and very entertaining, and there's not a dull moment. Thank you.
I caught up on red rising this year. My first re through of the trilogy was good and fun, but I did struggle with the writing style and tone. With my re read I listened to it and while the narrators change from book to book (such a pet peeve!!) I enjoyed the experience immensely! Tim Gerald Reynolds is a main narrator and he really brought Darrow’s voice to life. Some people dislike iron gold, book 4. All I will say is the characters age up and you get new perspectives which bothered some people. I liked the new perspectives and while I liked some POVs over others, it helps open the world more than I think it would have with the singular pov in the first arc. There’s incredible battles and the emotional hits definitely pack a punch. Happy reading!
Oooo, as it happens I am currently reading two of your series listed here: “Licanius” and “Liveship Traders”. I have both “The Mad Ship” (2) and “The Shadow of What Was Lost” (1) currently in-progress, as a sort of upstairs/downstairs combination. They are both fabulous books that I am loving to bits 🥰
Very ambitious TBR 😅 but mine for 2024 looks similar 😂 I started with Empire of Silence a few days ago and I understand absolutely why everyone is so hooked on it!
Really nice series. I only read the wheel of time and even though it is not perfect it’s still really really nice. I think everyone should give it a try. It’s my Fav series currently.
I'm starting Wheel of Time this year, and Robin Hobb's Farseer trilogy. will also continue The Dresden files.
New fantasy series called Sanctuary of the Shadow by Aurora Ascher
Most of those are on my 'to read in 2024' list. Hoping to get to Dandelion Dynasty and Powder Mage trilogy at least :D There were also many I did not know about and will definitely check them out.
This is a wonderful list. I would recommend the audio books for black tongue thief. The narrator pulls you in with thier accent.
So many books that i have in my 2024 tbr❤❤❤❤
Cradle! Daevabad! Powder Mage! So many great reads and many of my favorites!
I plan to read Malice in the first quarter of the year so I may catch up with you, and we can buddy-read the rest of the series if you want!
Of the ones on the list, I'm most curious to see what you think about Malazan. I have the first eight books but it's not time to start them yet, but I've heard that one should give it until the third book to decide if the series is for them.
Hi there. How are you doing? Good luck with the Malazan series. Personally, I had to read and listen to the first 2 books about 2 to 3 times for each chapter before I got anything out of it. I actually had to Google a list of the character names, so that I could keep track of them better. I have only listened to it while reading the first 2 books and have never thought about any of the characters ever since. I hope you have a better time than I did. The only other series that I have read while listening to fully is the Wheel of Time series. It is a real journey with characters that are so vividly portrayed that you feel like you could reach out and touch them. I also wanted to let you know, that I am now 56% into listening to the Bands of Mourning by Brandon Sanderson. So far, I feel like the characters are validating between 2 different quests, one of which was left over from a previous book. I like being with these characters. All of the other series that you talked about are ones I have not read or listened to yet, but I want to badly now. This year may be the year that I start my journey going through the Secret Projects books as well as starting the Stormlight Archive. I will keep you posted. I also have 3 different Japanese light novel series that have been translated to English that I want to work on too.
I have most of those series on my list to read. I have read live ship traders and dandelion dynasty. Both are amazing 😊
Great list! Enjoy your reading year😊
I'm planning on reading/starting these:
1. 3 body trilogy
2. Faithfull & Fallen
3. Stormlight Archive incl novellas, Warbreaker etc
4. Saga of the isles or Bridei trilogy by Juliet Marillier
5. Beartown trilogy by F. Backman
I also would like to read 2 big classics: The count of monte cristo and The brothers Karamazov.....
Hopefully i'll manage to read them all! Apparently my year to read books of 1200 pages or at minimum 700 😅
I loved Gardens of the moons last year and started in book 2 but then life stuff happened and i did not have the time or mental capacity to continue. This year my focus will be Stormlight Archive but next year it will definitely be on Malazan and also John Gwynnes Bloodsworn saga, as book 3 is coming out in october 2024.
This is so exciting, I see a few here I want to read or continue on Yes to 2024 being the year we get thru these 😊
Yay!! I am so glad you find these exciting reads!
Darkwater is so friggin good. Ember Blade blew my mind. Shadow Casket was pretty damn solid too.
Wow! These look great, a lot of the same series I want to check out. I did want to share that I think the Age of Madness doesn’t really “make sense” without having read the original trilogy and stand-alones (excl. Sharp Ends). The book that works best on its own is probably Best Served Cold. Abercrombie is a tough read for me, but he has such a remarkable way with character and point of view that draws me in beyond my comfort zone.
Happy new year Isa! I'm so excited for you to read all these series, most of them are in my tbr I so look forward to reading them at a similar time than you. Also as a spanish speaking person (actually catalan), I would love your thoughts on whether is a good idea for me to read The Wheel of Time and Malazan in english. I'm a bit scared to read these huge series and don't get it all out of them because I'm not understanding some details due to the vocabulary. I know that you decided to read the Stormlight Archive in spanish (I read these books in english) so I really value your opinion on this topic
Empire of Silence was my top read for 2023. Illborn came in second. Regarding Malazian I will be finishing the series this year (well the main series that is). Try finish up to book 3 of the main series at least. To see if you really like it
Ahhh I was going for books 1 and 2 for Malazan before seeing if I like it! But maybe if I am on the fence I will aim for 3! Can’t wait to read Empire of Silence!
I've got the john gwynne series and james islington series on my to read list this year as well. That'll be after I finish Wheel of Time.
I have read all, but a touch of light and a master of djinn, but both are on my TBR😂🎉
Wow, so many book goals 😅. Where are you starting? This week i started with the first Robin Hobb book and so far, 120 pages in, i really like it. I'm scared of book 3 though, as so many people didn't like it (too long and boring). However, I'm already now looking forward to the ship of magic trilogy 😊
Gardens of the Moon: I knew it was very involved, a ton of characters and you're dropped into the conflict. I just couldn't get past the transitions (2 or 3 on one page) and it was just names/places/lore in sentences. No time to take in various characters and happenings.
It didn't work for me.
Every time I watch Isa in a video I feel like I ran a mini-marathon. Great content.
After a few pages of the Gardens of the Moon, I was so confused that it didn't seem worth the bother. It will be interesting to see what you think. I think books 2 and 3 of the Licanius Trilogy have summaries of the previous books. If you like strong female characters, there are plenty in the Wheel of Time. Egwene's defense of the White Tower during the Seanchan attack, and leading the Green Ajah at Tarmon Gai'don, are some of the best scenes in the series. 😃
Our lists look very similar heading into 24!
Happy new year!! 🥳
Happy new year Ela!!
I've only read the Daevabad trilogy from this list and have never even heard of some of these, I think I live under a rock 😂 I'll start Dandelion Dynasty this year though!
Hahaha you don’t live under a rock!! But can’t wait to continue with Daevabad!!
Tip: follow your Malazan reading with the companion guide that is available free on the internet. It is a life saver tool. Trust me!
Can't think of anything worse than having to use a guide to understand a fiction book I'm reading. Immediately feels like I'm studying/working rather than enjoying a story.
Hahah that’s one of my main fears!! Will it be too much of a “homework” to truly enjoy Malazan?
However! Thank you for the tip! I will use it!
@@FunFantasyBooks that's how it felt to me over the 10 books🙈hopefully it works for you and you enjoy it!
Well... yes hahaha. But it totally pays off in the end of book 1.
@@RLX5201i think this deserves a new category…literary fantasy
Ahhh so many amazing series!! If you get through all of these..you are going to have a fantastic but also really satisfying year. 🥳 Also loving the editing!
Bueeeeeeh...
The Dandelion Dynasty (wink wink SUPERWINK)
The Greenbone Saga
The Farseer Trilogy (books 2 and 3)
The Warrior Bards (books 2 and 3)
and reread The Lord of The Rings if I can
Djinns are real , not to be messed with. In Islam djinn are created from fire, angels from light, man from clay. Satan is a djinn.