Hello! Today I’m bringing you my 5-star predictions! I’m listing 5 books that I think I’ll be giving 5-stars to when I read them. I don't know if anyone else does this, but when I think I'm going to love a book, I tend to put off reading it until I'm in a mood where I'm desperate to read them. Hopefully, I can get to these in the next year or so though, because then I can do a wrap-up on whether I was right in my predictions.
1. Warbreaker by Brandon Sanderson
Warbreaker is the story of two sisters, who happen to be princesses, the God King one of them has to marry, the lesser god who doesn't like his job, and the immortal who's still trying to undo the mistakes he made hundreds of years ago. Their world is one in which those who die in glory return as gods to live confined to a pantheon in Hallandren's capital city and where a power known as BioChromatic magic is based on an essence known as breath that can only be collected one unit at a time from individual people. By using breath and drawing upon the color in everyday objects, all manner of miracles and mischief can be accomplished. It will take considerable quantities of each to resolve all the challenges facing Vivenna and Siri, princesses of Idris; Susebron the God King; Lightsong, reluctant god of bravery, and mysterious Vasher, the Warbreaker.
If you've been following me for a while, you'll know I love Brandon Sanderson's books. I've loved every series I've read by him, and this is one of the last books of his that I haven't read yet. This was originally a standalone fantasy, however, I know he's planning on writing a sequel at some point. I don't know a lot about this book, except that the magic system using colours (which sounds similar to The Black Prism series, and I loved the magic system in that book). Overall, this definitely feels like it's going to be a 5 star read for me as it ticks all my favourite boxes (Brandon Sanderson? Yes. Epic Fantasy? Yes. Unique magic system? Of course).
2. The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern
Zachary Ezra Rawlins is searching for his door, though he does not know it. He follows a silent siren song, an inexplicable knowledge that he is meant for another place. When he discovers a mysterious book in the stacks of his campus library he begins to read, entranced by tales of lovelorn prisoners, lost cities, and nameless acolytes. Suddenly a turn of the page brings Zachary to a story from his own childhood impossibly written in this book that is older than he is. A bee, a key, and a sword emblazoned on the book lead Zachary to two people who will change the course of his life.
To be honest, this one is a real guess as to whether it will be 5 stars or not. I adored Erin Morgenstern's first book, The Night Circus, and that got a 5 star from me. However, I've heard a lot of people haven't enjoyed this one as much. The main thing I know about this book though is that it features a story within a story, which is a trope I really like. I loved it in Ten Thousand Doors of January, and reading the synopsis of this book, it gives me the same kind of vibes.
3. Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky
The last remnants of the human race left a dying Earth, desperate to find a new home among the stars. Following in the footsteps of their ancestors, they discover the greatest treasure of the past age—a world terraformed and prepared for human life. But all is not right in this new Eden. In the long years since the planet was abandoned, the work of its architects has borne disastrous fruit. The planet is not waiting for them, pristine and unoccupied. New masters have turned it from a refuge into mankind's worst nightmare. Now two civilizations are on a collision course, both testing the boundaries of what they will do to survive. As the fate of humanity hangs in the balance, who are the true heirs of this new Earth?
I love a good, adult sci-fi, and it's been a long time since I found one that really stuck with me. I think the last ones I really loved were Speaker for the Dead by Orson Scott Card (but he's a very problematic author) and Semiosis by Sue Burke. As you can tell, I especially enjoy sci-fi's that follow humans finding other sentient species, and I've heard this is exactly that, but where the sentient species are spider-like creatures. I'm really looking forward to this series and I've heard fantastic things about this author.
4. Ruin of Kings by Jenn Lyons
Kihrin grew up on tales of long-lost princes and grand quests - despite being raised in a brothel, making money as a musician and street thief. One day he overreaches by targeting an absent noble's mansion, hunting for jewels. There he witnesses a prince performing a terrifying dark-magic ritual. Kihrin flees but he's marked by a demon and his life will never be the same again.
That night also leads to him being claimed as a lost son of that prince's royal house. But far from living the dream, Kihrin finds himself practically a prisoner, at the mercy of his new family's power plays and ambitions. He must also discover why his murderous father finds Kihrin more valuable alive than dead. Soon Kihrin attempts to escape his relative's dangerous schemes, but finds himself in far deeper waters.
He becomes tangled in a plot to kill the Emperor, rob the Imperial Vaults, claim a god-slaying sword and free bound demons to wreak havoc across the land. Kihrin also discovers the old tales lied about many things: dragons, demons, gods, prophecies, true love - and the hero always winning. But maybe Kihrin isn't fated to save the empire. He's destined to destroy it.
This is a high fantasy series that I've heard is very political and I am really looking forward to reading it. I adore a political fantasy, and the fact that this contains dragons has already solidified it as a potential 5 star read. I don't know too much about the series except that the books don't all follow the same characters/timeline, and the main character may be the person destined to save the world, but he also might be destined to destroy it. I'm really looking forward to reading this and finding out more about the world.
5. Anna K by Jenny Lee
Meet Anna K. At seventeen, she is at the top of Manhattan and Greenwich society (even if she prefers the company of her horses and Newfoundland dogs); she has the perfect (if perfectly boring) boyfriend, Alexander W.; and she has always made her Korean-American father proud (even if he can be a little controlling). Meanwhile, Anna's brother, Steven, and his girlfriend, Lolly, are trying to weather an sexting scandal; Lolly’s little sister, Kimmie, is struggling to recalibrate to normal life after an injury derails her ice dancing career; and Steven’s best friend, Dustin, is madly (and one-sidedly) in love with Kimmie.
As her friends struggle with the pitfalls of ordinary teenage life, Anna always seems to be able to sail gracefully above it all. That is…until the night she meets Alexia “Count” Vronsky at Grand Central. A notorious playboy who has bounced around boarding schools and who lives for his own pleasure, Alexia is everything Anna is not. But he has never been in love until he meets Anna, and maybe she hasn’t, either. As Alexia and Anna are pulled irresistibly together, she has to decide how much of her life she is willing to let go for the chance to be with him. And when a shocking revelation threatens to shatter their relationship, she is forced to question if she has ever known herself at all.
Now this is an unusual 5 star prediction from me. The majority of my 5 star predictions will always be sci-fi/fantasy books, as those are my go-to genres. However, I've heard a lot of good things about this Anna Karenina retelling. This is a YA contemporary, but I've heard it's very reminiscent of Gossip Girl, which I used to watch. I do enjoy reading about absurdly rich people and their lives because it just feels more like a fantasy to me. And, let's face it, sometimes you just need a good scandal book xoxo
So, those are my 5-star predictions for this year! Let me know if you've read any of these and if you think I'll enjoy them.
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