May is right around the corner and that means it’s time for Wyrd & Wonder 2024!

I’ve participated for the past several years, and this year, I’m going all out. As I mentioned earlier this week, I’ve been reading mostly romance and contemporary fiction and have strayed from my favorite genre, fantasy. Oh, I’ve read a handful of fantasy over the past 12-18 months. But in previous years, my read pile has heavily skewed fantasy. That just hasn’t been true lately.

That will change in May!

What is Wyrd & Wonder?

Wyrd & Wonder is a month-long, online celebration of all things fantasy. And not just books, but all things—television shows, movies, art, tabletop games, video games—whatever has a fantasy element, you can celebrate it. I choose to focus on primarily on books.

This year, Wyrd & Wonder has 5 amazing hosts: Ariana (The Book Nook), Annemieke (A Dance With Books), Imyril (There’s Always Room for One More), Jorie (Jorie Loves A Story), and Lisa (Dear Geek Place). They’ll be posting on their blogs as well as Instagram and Bluesky. You can also officially sign-up, if you wish, by going to one of their blogs and clicking on the sign-up. Signing up is optional. Either way, go show them some love by giving them a follow.

(If you’re like me and hadn’t heard of Bluesky Social, it’s like Twitter when Twitter had tweets and was, well, Twitter—the little blue bird before the dark x times. You can find me on Bluesky @wanderinglynn.)

This year’s Wyrd & Wonder theme is Comfort Zone. My interpretation of the theme will be to go full out blanket fort with massive amounts of pillows and getting comfy with my TBR stack of fantasy novels.

What happens during Wyrd & Wonder?

Our fabulous 5 hosts have all sorts of things planned. First and foremost, we will all celebrate the fantastical—sharing recommendations, discussing upcoming releases, posting reviews, watching/reading/drawing/playing/writing, even creating memes. The sky’s the limit on this celebration.

There will also be 2 read-alongs. Anyone can take part, just check out the hosts’ blogs for details.

1. Lisa will be reading The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. I read this in 2016 and while I liked it, I’m not going to reread it because I already have a huge TBR stack.

2. Annemieke will be reading The Sunbolt Chronicles by Intisar Khanani, starting with the novella, Sunbolt, and immediately following with Memories of Ash. I might do this read along. I don’t own the books (yet), but Independent Bookstore Day is tomorrow and I really, really should support my local indies.

I’ll also be participating in the Fantastic 5s. Each Sunday, I’ll post a blog on 5 books for that week’s topic. So check back or follow my blog for updates.

• 5 May – Zone In on Comfort
• 12 May – Outside My Zone
• 19 May – Characters in Their Zone
• 26 May – Favorite Cozy Fantasies

But what Wyrd & Wonder would be complete without the daily prompt challenge? I’ll be posting pics on my Instagram, and at the end of the month, I’ll post a collage of my faves here. You can find the prompts on any of the hosts’ blogs.

Bonus, this year, Ariana upped the daily prompt fun by creating a map so each participant can roll their dice and journey how they wish.

What’s on My Wyrd & Wonder TBR?

What you’re really probably wondering is what is on my TBR. Well, like every reading challenge/readathon, I’ve picked out more books than I can possibly finish in one month.

Unless, of course, I quit my job and read full time. Then I could possibly read 20, or even more books, in May. Of course, I like having food in my fridge, a comfy place to sleep, and, well, money to buy more books. So it seems the quit-my-job-to-read-fulltime plan isn’t really feasible. Damn reality for always interfering with my fun.

Anyway, without further ado, my Wyrd & Wonder TBR. I have my Wyrd & Wonder TBR tracking page with the complete list of titles and authors.

Since I’m a mood reader, I wanted a variety. Honestly, this stack could have been double what it is. Trust me when I say this is the narrowed down list. And this is before Independent Bookstore Day.

This stack includes a first book in a duology, a second book in a different duology, a new(ish) release, a standalone, a book that was unfinished at the time of the author’s death, a reprint of a previously out-of-print book, a signed book, a book by a BIPOC author, an alternative history, an epic fantasy, a book written by a horror author, a special edition, a first book in a series, a book with the fair folk, a contemporary fantasy, a book gifted to me, a book that’s been on my shelf for years, a fairytale inspired book, a book based on mythology, a book I bought at an indie bookstore.

Which book should I start with? Which books have you read?

And stayed tuned for more Wyrd & Wonder fantastical fun starting May 1!

Art Credits

Orange dragon by Elena Zakharchuk
Black dragon by Ehtisham Sajid 
Wyrd & Wonder Map by Ariana