Fall Into Fantasy Readathon: End Result
As I could have predicted, I didn’t manage to read 4 books in the 8-day Fall Into Fantasy Readathon organised by Penguin Teen. I did manage to finish half as many books and I loved them both.
The first book I finished is Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan. This is what it’s about:
Each year, eight beautiful girls are chosen as Paper Girls to serve the king. It’s the highest honor they could hope for…and the most cruel.
But this year, there’s a ninth girl. And instead of paper, she’s made of fire.
In this lush fantasy, Lei is a member of the Paper caste, the lowest and most oppressed class in Ikhara. She lives in a remote village with her father, where the decade-old trauma of watching her mother snatched by royal guards still haunts her. Now, the guards are back, and this time it’s Lei they’re after–the girl whose golden eyes have piqued the king’s interest.
Over weeks of training in the opulent but stifling palace, Lei and eight other girls learn the skills and charm that befit being a king’s consort. But Lei isn’t content to watch her fate consume her. Instead, she does the unthinkable–she falls in love. Her forbidden romance becomes enmeshed with an explosive plot that threatens the very foundation of Ikhara, and Lei, still the wide-eyed country girl at heart, must decide just how far she’s willing to go for justice and revenge.
It’s a raw and emotional story, threaded through with sparkles of hope and love. I was a bit sceptical when I first started the book, but I soon grew engrossed and finished the book feeling like I’d read something powerful. There is a violence and sexual abuse warning on this book and with good reason, so please take note of that.
The second book I finished is The Light Between Worlds by Laura Weymouth. This is what it’s about:
Five years ago, Evelyn and Philippa Hapwell cowered from air strikes in a London bomb shelter. But that night took a turn when the sisters were transported to another realm called the Woodlands. In a forest kingdom populated by creatures out of myth and legend, they found temporary refuge.
When they finally returned to London, nothing had changed at all—nothing, except themselves.
Now, Ev spends her days sneaking into the woods outside her boarding school, wishing for the Woodlands. Overcome with longing, she is desperate to return no matter what it takes.
Philippa, on the other hand, is determined to find a place in this world. She shields herself behind a flawless exterior and countless friends, and moves to America to escape the memory of what was.
But when Evelyn goes missing, Philippa must confront the depth of her sister’s despair and the painful truths they’ve been running from. As the weeks unfold, Philippa wonders if Ev truly did find a way home, or if the weight of their worlds pulled her under.
Yet again I seemed to have chosen for a raw and emotional story. The reviews I’ve read sometimes call it a Narnia rip off and that’s definitely the main inspiration for this book. The theme is very different though. It’s about mental health and depression, about feeling lost. It’s told from two different perspectives and both are heartbreaking. I absolutley loved this one.
Check back later for full reviews of both these books!
