Category Archives: Fantasy & Paranormal

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night.

But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway—a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them, this is a game in which only one can be left standing, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battle of imagination and will. Despite themselves, however, Celia and Marco tumble headfirst into love—a deep, magical love that makes the lights flicker and the room grow warm whenever they so much as brush hands… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Child abuse
  • Suicide
  • Blood depciton
  • Death of a parent
  • Animal death

Constant by Lexi Ander

Constant by Lexi Ander

Chief Warlord Sohm’lan has a job he loves protecting the family who claims him as one of their own. He has known the loss of a mate and believed he would walk alone for the rest of his life… that is until Prince Mestor demanded more from him than duty. Unable to fathom why Mestor would want a widowed older warrior, Sohm’lan maintains his distance believing Mestor will eventually choose an amor closer in age and experience, even though the thought causes him more pain than it should.

Prince Mestor is tired of pretending and his patience is eroding. He needs Sohm’lan to see past their respective ranks and duties to who Mestor is underneath it all. Worried Sohm’lan will be lost to him if he pushes too hard, Mestor and Sohm’lan are caught in a dance of denied desires and tangled obligations… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Child abuse
  • Graphic physical injury
  • Exile

Striker by Lexi Ander

Striker by Lexi Ander

The peaceful respite for which Zeus and his intended, Dargon and Alpha, had been hoping is shattered when Zeus is unexpectedly drawn to the Waters of Poseidon and told that the safety they’ve been promised is a trap. But the Fal’Amoric aren’t the only important cargo on the Oethra 7, and countless others are depending on the success of their mission. If Zeus hopes to break the silent siege on Valespia and protect those most precious to him, he will need not just powerful allies but the fortitude to survive overwhelming odds.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Abusive relationship recounted
  • Pregnancy & childbirth
  • Nonconsensual surgery on intersex child
  • Medical experimentation
  • Torture
  • Kidnapping

First Moon by Richard Amos

First Moon by Richard Amos

Need someone, or something, hunted down? Akira Murakami is your man! No target is too small for him to get his energy-sucking blades swinging, and all jobs are welcome at the right price. The bills have to be paid after all.

Living in a world where the apocalypse almost happened can be complicated, as is being the hybrid son of the High Werewolf of, well, everything. But Akira likes to live a relatively simpler life than dear old papa would like, shunning all the political crap, living by the sword and perfecting that recipe for dark chocolate and raspberry brownies. Killing is easy. Brownies are easy. Too easy. To hell with the simple life!

There’s a werewolf killer stalking the city, and Akira is about to be caught in the middle of everything.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Homomisia
  • Bullying mentioned

City of the Beasts by Isabel Allende

City of the Beasts by Isabel Allende

Fifteen-year-old Alexander Cold has the chance to take the trip of a lifetime. Parting from his family and ill mother, Alexander joins his fearless grandmother, a magazine reporter for International Geographic, on an expedition to the dangerous, remote world of the Amazon. Their mission, along with the others on their team—including a celebrated anthropologist, a local guide and his young daughter Nadia, and a doctor—is to document the legendary Yeti of the Amazon known as the Beast. Under the dense canopy of the jungle, Alexander is amazed to discover much… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Racism
  • Drug use including the use of psychedelics in indigenous religious rites and cigar smoking
  • Murder
  • Gun violence
  • Parent with cancer
  • Animal attack (snake)

The Girl and the Ghost by Hanna Alkaf 

The Girl and the Ghost by Hanna Alkaf

I am a dark spirit, the ghost announced grandly. I am your inheritance, your grandmother’s legacy. I am yours to command.

Suraya is delighted when her witch grandmother gifts her a pelesit. She names her ghostly companion Pink, and the two quickly become inseparable.

But Suraya doesn’t know that pelesits have a dark side—and when Pink’s shadows threaten to consume them both, they must find enough light to survive . . . before they are both lost to the darkness.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Death of a child
  • Bullying

Squire by Sara Alfageeh and Nadia Shammas

Squire by Sara Alfageeh and Nadia Shammas

Born a second-class citizen, Aiza has always dreamt of becoming a Knight. It’s the highest military honor in the once-great Bayt-Sajji Empire, and as a member of the Ornu people, her only path to full citizenship. Now, ravaged by famine, Bayt-Sajji finds itself on the brink of war once again. This means Aiza can finally enlist to the competitive Squire training program.

The camp is nothing like she imagined. Hiding her Ornu status in order to blend in, Aiza must navigate friendships, rivalries, and rigorous training under the merciless General Hende. As the pressure mounts, Aiza realizes that the “greater good” Bayt-Sajji’s military promises might not include her, and that the recruits might be in more danger than she ever imagined.”

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Racism
  • Amputation (arm)
  • Knife & sword violence
  • Military violence

The Blacksmith Queen by GA Aiken

The Blacksmith Queen by G.A. Aiken

With the demise of the Old King, there’s a prophesy that a queen will ascend to the throne of the Black Hills. Bad news for the king’s sons, who are prepared to defend their birthright against all comers. But for blacksmith Keeley Smythe, war is great for business. Until it looks like the chosen queen will be Beatrix, her younger sister. Now it’s all Keeley can do to protect her family from the enraged royals. 
 
Luckily, Keeley doesn’t have to fight alone. Because thundering to her aid comes a clan of kilt-wearing mountain warriors called the Amichai. Not the most socially adept group, but soldiers have never bothered Keeley, and rough, gruff Caid, actually seems to respect her. A good thing because the fierce warrior will be by her side for a much longer ride than any prophecy ever envisioned …

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Misogyny
  • Ableism & ableist language
  • Fatmisia & body shaming
  • Sexual harassment mentioned
  • Graphic blood & gore depiction
  • Graphic decapitation
  • Dead bodies & body parts
  • Death of a cousin, on-page
  • Death of a brother, off-page
  • Death of a child, off-page
  • Graphic murder & attempted murder
  • Genocide & mass murder
  • Graphic sword, hammer & knife violence
  • Fire & arson
  • Attempted hanging, on-page
  • Poisoning
  • Regicide mentioned
  • War themes & battle scenes
  • Volcanic eruption
  • Animal abuse
  • Death from an animal attack
  • Graphic animal death

Abbott: 1973 by Saladin Ahmed

Abbott: 1973 by Saladin Ahmed and illustrated by Sami Kivelä

Danica Waterhouse is a fully modern witch—daughter, a war for the soul of Detroit. Elena Abbott is one of Detroit’s toughest reporters—and after defeating the dark forces that murdered her husband, she’s focused on the most important election in the city’s history. But when someone uses dark magic to sabotage the campaign of the prospective first Black mayor of Detroit, it becomes clear to Abbott that the supernatural conspiracy in her city is even greater than she ever imagined. Now Abbott must exhaust all her abilities as a reporter and a supernatural saviour to rescue Detroit—but at what cost to her own life? 

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Racism
  • Sexism
  • Homomisia
  • Kidnapping

Witch Please by Ann Aguirre

Witch Please by Ann Aguirre

Danica Waterhouse is a fully modern witch—daughter, granddaughter, cousin, and co-owner of the Fix-It Witches, a magical tech repair shop. After a messy breakup that included way too much family “feedback,” Danica made a pact with her cousin: they’ll keep their hearts protected and have fun, without involving any of the overly opinionated Waterhouse matriarchs. Danica is more than a little exhausted navigating a long-standing family feud where Gram thinks the only good mundane is a dead one and Danica’s mother weaves floral crowns for anyone who crosses her path.

Three blocks down from the Fix-It Witches, Titus Winnaker, owner of Sugar Daddy’s bakery, has family trouble of his own. After a tragic loss, all he’s got left is his sister… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger & Content Warnings:

  • Fatmisia
  • Bimisia
  • Alchol consumption mentioned
  • Emesis
  • Grief & loss depiction
  • Death of a mother from illness recounted
  • Blackmail