Welcome to my first Fantastic 5 post for Wyrd & Wonder 2024.

Not sure what Wyrd & Wonder is? Start with this post.

When I think of fantasy comfort reads, I think of the books that I return to again and again. Books that I have in multiple formats and versions. Books that hold a special place in my library.

For this post, I didn’t even have to think about which 5 books I’d select. These books jumped off my shelves. And they’re easy to find, because they each have their special place in my library.

In fact, these books (and their mates) are all in the same “these-are-very-special-books” bookcase. The bookcase of absolute favoritist faves because I’ll never risk lending these books, much less give them away.

So without further ado, my Fantastic 5 Fantasy Comfort Reads!

Pawn of the Prophecy

I received Pawn of the Prophecy and the other 4 books in the Belgariad series when I was about ten or eleven years old. This series was my first true foray into fantasy and I absolutely fell in love with this world and its characters.

The series, written by David and Leigh Eddings*, is an epic adventure fantasy. With a chosen one trope, this series leads Garion, Belgarath, Polgara, and their companions on a journey first to recover a sacred stone, and later to use it against the antagonist.

Has it got any sports in it?

Are you kidding? Fencing, fighting, torture, revenge, giants, monsters, chases, escapes, true love, miracles . . .

I sadly gave away my original copies. <flinches> Hey, I was young, in college, and thought I was too sophisticated for these books. I mean, at that time, I was reading Camus, Le Guin, Heinlein, and thought I was beyond the books of my childhood. I later realized the error of my ways and bought a new set.

A few years ago, I even got the audiobooks, which are narrated by Cameron Beirele, who does a magnificent job.

Sadly, since this series came out in the early 1980s (Pawn was released in 1982), it’s getting harder to find copies. I just checked and this book is no longer available on either Libro.fm or Audible. It makes me sad, especially since there is a fan base. Someone needs to make this into the next streaming platform series, which would revitalize this series. In the meantime, I encourage you to check your library and the Libby app (a great way to check out e-books and audiobooks from libraries).

* Although the book only shows David Eddings’s name on the cover, Eddings later acknowledged that his wife, Leigh Eddings, was an “unindicted collaborator.” His later books include her name on the cover.

Moon Called

I will gush all sorts of fangirl over this series and the amazing Patricia Briggs. If Patty writes it, I’ve pre-ordered it. I don’t even need to know the title or see the cover. I picked Moon Called for this list because it’s Book 1 in the Mercy-verse. It’s also the book that helped me learn to listen to audiobooks (more on that in a minute).

In this series, Mercedes “Mercy” Thompson is a kickass auto-mechanic (Volkswagons and other German cars to be specific) who is also a half-Blackfeet coyote shifter.

I mean, do you really need any more reason to read this book?

The series also features werewolves, fae, vampires, gods, witches (both good and evil), and so many more creatures from all kinds of mythologies. Patty has created an incredible urban fantasy world, set in the Tri-Cities, Washington. I love that she weaves Native culture and lore into the story along with all the fantastical elements.

Now, what does Moon Called have to do with me and audiobooks? Well, I had tried audiobooks on and off over the years. Remember when they came on cassette tapes? But I never got into them. I found my mind would wander and I’d completely lose the story.

In 2019, I moved cross-country from Virginia to Washington state. If you’ve ever driven long distance, then you know that even satellite radio, with its million channels, gets boring after a while. I checked out Moon Called from my library via the Libby App. I figured it didn’t matter if my mind wandered a bit because I had read the book so many times, I knew it by heart.

It turns out, a favorite book combined with an incredible narrator, Lorelei King, was the magic formula for me. Listening to Lorelei bring this story to life was fascinating. Even though I nearly had the book memorized, I found Lorelei (or any good narrator) can bring out parts of the story I might have, not missed, but maybe didn’t appreciate. It was an amazing experience and now my Libro.fm app is packed full of audiobooks.

Magic Bites

Ilona Andrews, the wife-husband writing team behind the Kate Daniels series, is another auto-buy author for me. I fell in love with the Kate Daniels series the first time I picked up Magic Bites.

Set in post-apocalyptic Atlanta, Georgia, the world didn’t explode from nuclear bombs or even war (like my fave video game Fallout). No, the world changed because magic came roaring back. The magic waves destroy technology and anything build by modern tech. Add to that, magic also brought around all flavors of shifters, mages, mercenaries, wizards, beasts, and even knights.

Not an easy world to live in.

Our hero, Kate Daniels is a badass, snarky, master-level sword-wielding mercenary, who also has some magic. She is all sorts of trouble with a capital T and never backs down from a fight, especially when she faces the Beast Lord.

Diplomacy was never my strong suit and my patience had run dry. I crouched and called out, “Here kitty, kitty, kitty.”
. . .
“What kind of a woman greets the Beast Lord with ‘here, kitty, kitty’?” he asked.
“One of a kind,” I murmured the obvious reply.

Assassin’s Apprentice

Now I could have picked any of Robin Hobb’s books. I chose Assassin’s Apprentice, the first book in the Farseer Trilogy, because it was the first one of her books I ever read.

I was immediately hooked and proceeded to get everything else she’s ever written.

The Farseer Trilogy is an epic fantasy that follows the life of Fitz, the bastard son of Prince Chivalry. Fitz was raised in the shadow of the royal court by his father’s gruff stableman and treated as an outcast by all the royalty except the devious King Shrewd, who has him secretly tutored in the arts of the assassin.

Assassins, royalty, magic, political struggles—this book epitomizes all the best things about high fantasy. Robin Hobb is a master writer.

Her Realm of the Elderlings, of which Fitz is a part of, includes four trilogies and a tetralogy. If you want to start at the beginning, this is the book to pick up. If you’d rather, you can start with the pirates or start with dragons. That’s right—in addition to assassins, Robin has written pirates, and dragons.

There’s a great article on Tor.com about where to start depending on your preference.

Neverwhere

No list of mine is complete with a Neil Gaiman book. Another tough choice but I went with Neverwhere because I absolutely love London Below.

The story follows Richard Mayhew, an average, nice guy living a fairly ordinary life until he stops to help a girl he finds bleeding on a London sidewalk. His small act of kindness propels him into a world he never dreamed existed with people who’ve fallen through the cracks.

The night before he went to London, Richard Mayhew was not enjoying himself.

Gaiman has created an exceptional world with an incredible cast of characters. The world of London Below is a rigidly stratified mock-feudal society and the cast of characters includes Door, the Marquis de Carabas, the Angel Islington, the assassins Mr. Croup and Mr. Vandemar, Hunter, the rat-speakers, and Jessica.

I have two physical copies of this book. The paperback (in the photo above) and the Chris Riddle illustrated hardcover edition. I love Chris Riddle’s illustrations and will buy anything he’s illustrated. I also have the audiobook, which Gaiman himself narrates. I highly recommend and strongly encourage you to try the audiobook because Gaiman is a master storyteller. He just brings the novel to life, as if he’s really walking through London Below and simply describing what he sees.

That wraps my Fantastic 5: Fantasy Comfort Reads. See you next Sunday for Fantastic 5: Reads Outside My Comfort Zone

Art Credit – Orange dragon by Elena Zakharchuk
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