I love reading gothic fantasy / dark fantasy and would be interested in reading a book that is entirely written form the villains POV. It does not need to include romance, however if it does, please abstain from dark romance recs (i detest it).

Thank you so much!

I found atomic habits to be very comprehensive and helpful with being productive and I want books as useful .

Can someone please recommend to me 🙏🙏

I'm looking for books or book series centering a friend group where there is a main couple (mf or mm) but they still have chemistry with everyone in the friend group. I want it to be implied that they've all messed around with each other and/or that overtime it becomes a polyamorous relationship. Basically a book centering an "incestuous" friend group. It doesn't have to happen right away, for example, the first book could be about the main couple getting together. I just want to see obvious chemistry among the whole friend group. Some books I enjoyed but weren't what I was expecting are; The Boys of App 13 (l thought they all would've at least had a one night stand);
Hidden Scars (I don't know why | thought there would be a foursome); The Atlas Six (I was convinced something was gonna happen between Tristan and Callum); and Three Doors (I was so disappointed that there was ff scenes but no mm, sucking doesn't count).
(Side note, it's not a hard no but I'd prefer it if the girls) isn't submissive at all)
Also, I'll also take books in which there's a love triangle and they fight over the girl but eventually can't tell the difference between hate/love. It can be fmm or mm, ex: if the Twilight books ended the right way.

tl;dr Basically, I am looking for classic English language fantasy novels (or fantasy adjacent) with strong, young (or youngish) female protagonists aimed at older children or young adults (think 7-12, although ideally in the middle of that range) for an extremely precocious 5 year old girl.

I would also be grateful for recommendations to classic myths, folk tales, epic poems, etc. with strong female protagonists - pretty much any culture is potentially fine. Persian or Iranian or Jewish or Norse or British or Baltic would be especially cherished, however.

I have been getting my daughter into fantasy novels.

She loves all the ones I have read to her so far (Hobbit, Narnia septet, Peter Pan, a few others, and we are in the middle of Weirdstone of Brisangamen - we read her the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe when she was 3 and she was obsessed with it, and we had to read it a second time before we went on to the next book). My wife and I are really into fantasy and science-fiction (and we are obsessed with Lord of the Rings), and we have an extensive collection, but a lot of it (most of it) is probably not exactly appropriate for our daughter given her age (more on this below).

My daughter also likes history and poetry (she really likes Horatius at the Bridge, adores Shel Silverstein's Where the Sidewalk Ends, Tennyson's Idylls of the King, and some random Yeats).

My wife and I are planning to read her many more of the classics. However, a lot of them lack female protagonists (and some lack female characters of any meaningful importance).

Important context: Regarding age, my daughter is just over five (5) years old but highly intelligent and extremely precocious (her first words at 5 months old, talking in sentences by about 13 months, counting objects at 14 months and then making arguments about why they should become hers - she is and always has been extremely legalistic).

Talking to her is like talking to a much older child (think like a smart 10 year old, maybe 11) until she either has a meltdown about something or the subject is something that requires a level of life experience or maturity and then we are abruptly reminded of how old she actually is. Complexity of plot and language and ideas is less of an issue than the maturity of certain themes, or things which require life experience/real life exposure to understand.

Two Lord of the Rings based examples: My wife and I taught her to play "20 questions" on a road trip in August of this year, which she picked up almost instantly. When she correctly guessed the answer and it was her turn to make us guess, the answer that she made us guess was "the Silmarils" (the three gems wrought by Feanor containing the pure light of the Two Trees of Valinor) - which is pretty good considering that we have not yet read to her either Lord of the Rings or the Silmarillion (despite her repeated pleas - we do not think she is ready for either just yet, and the pacing may be a bit slow, although we might try Fellowship of the Ring early next year).

When she was 4 and I read her the Hobbit, she also guessed as soon as Bilbo found the ring in Riddles in the Dark, without hints or help from me, that the ring Bilbo was the One Ring (I was shocked, and initially tempted to deny it, but did not and asked her how she guessed it - it was based on the rhyme from LOTR that I had told her and my answers to her questions on the subject before we even read the Hobbit).

So books intended for 7-12 years old are probably fine and about the sweet spot.

For further clarity, she is ok with the concept of death (which, for a number of reasons, she unfortunately understood before she was 3 years old), as long as it does not occur to the protagonist. She had been very worried through the Hobbit as to whether Bilbo would die, despite repeated assurances that he would not. When Thorin, Fili, and Kili died in the Hobbit she was very upset, but was able to handle it.

Romance and kisses are fine, but her mother and I are not ok exposing her to more adult concepts at present through books (sex, let alone SA, even if only implied, is not ok). Also, I am not sure how best to express this, but basically, I do not want a repeat of when granddad showed her the 1954 Peter Pan film with Mary Martin (without running it by us first) and she was pretending to be Tiger Lily and singing some of the songs in public (which portray First Nations in a way that shows the film's age....).

This past weekend, I got her a book (sort of a graphic novel, but not really?) of 5 minute stories about Wonder Woman, which she loved and sleeps with (favourite stuffie under one arm, Wonder Woman book under the other).

She likes villains often, although my wife is not sure that we should encourage that - I suspect that this may also just be another example of her trying to get a rise out of people rather than actually admiring villains (my daughter looks like a Disney princess and has the personality of a hyper-extroverted internet troll).

So an anti-heroine might be ok, depending on the other themes in the book.

I would really appreciate book recommendations for fantasy novels (or science fiction, but I think she is more attuned to fantasy) in the English language that:

(1) Feature a strong, young (or youngish) female protagonist. She could be the sole or lead protagonist, or part of a group (but if part of a group, should be a critical part of the group).

(2) Are classic. By this, I mean works that have stood some sort of test of time - ideally at least 35 years old. Older is generally better.

(3) Are intended for ages 7-12 (maybe a bit older).

(4) The main protagonist (or at least the female one, if there is more than one) does not die.

(5) Is the equivalent of PG in most categories. In other words, mild mature themes are fine. Violence is ok, but should not be too graphic. Death is ok. Bad language should be infrequent or mild or both. No or minimal sexual references or innuendo. Romance and kissing is fine.

(6) Both my wife and I have a positive bias towards British authors.

Any tropes are fine, please give me recs!

My idea of "good prose" is Madeline Miller's Circe

It popped up as an advertisement on Pinterest and I usually ignore these especially when there is a potential AI cover, but I clicked it and found it has 0 customers. I tried looking at reviews none existed. It actually sounds really good, I’m hoping it’s not AI written but when I typed it in the search bar literally nothing came up…Like it didn’t exist at all. Not even Amazon popped up with it and I clicked a direct link from Pinterest that took me to an Amazon site. So idk. Maybe my phones just weird buuut has anyone else heard of this series or read it? I’d love to hear your take!

I have photos of it but can’t post those here unfortunately

so i'd like to find a stalker, watcher in the woods kind of book story but i'd like some recommendations with that vibe but from a woman's point of view? like the woman is the stalker, any questions please leave them! thank you!

I’m looking for any recent books that critique trumps presidency through fascist allegories similar to 1984 but written today explicitly to critique the current presidency. I don’t know if there are any yet or if there will be any but I hope so.

I just finished Everything I Never Told You

by Celeste Ng and I loved all the psychology, family dynamics, and family roles shown throughout the characters.

Im looking for more fictional book recs that are similar, please and thank you.

Bonus points for sibling rivalry, scapegoat mc, eldest daughter trope, and or complicated mother/daughter relationship. Open to dysfunctional family book recs in general—emotionally abusive or controlling.

maybe like one of those books where the man is either rich or some athlete or smth
and the woman is just normal (cliche ass ik)

NO SPICE/ LOW SPICE - really imp

im going to throw every spicy book out the window

slow slow burn

Okay, genuine question for all the readers here.
I've been working on a book-related app, and I'm curious about what readers actually want rather than just adding the same features every other app has.
What's something you wish Goodreads, StoryGraph, Fable, or other book apps did better? Or something that's completely missing?
Could be book discovery, recommendations, finding people with similar tastes, book clubs, tracking reads, or literally anything.
I'm especially interested in those tiny frustrations that make you think, "Why has nobody fixed this yet?"
Feel free to get oddly specific. I'd rather hear about real problems than another list of generic features.

Hey everyone! I’m looking for a fantasy romance with some spice, a good plot, and a MMC who falls HARD for the FMC. I want him completely gone for her while she might be plotting his murder.

I really loved A Touch of Darkness by Scarlett St. Clair, so I’m looking for something with a similar dark, addictive atmosphere.

Some tropes and vibes I’m especially interested in:

Enemies to lovers

Arranged marriage or forced marriage, especially if she secretly wants to kill him

Assassin FMC who is sent to kill the MMC

A powerful, morally grey or morally black MMC

He falls first or falls way harder

Possessive, obsessed MMC with a soft spot only for her

Vampires, dark fantasy, gods, mythology or kingdoms at war

Political intrigue, betrayal, magic and dangerous court dynamics

Some spice and strong chemistry

Not an insanely long, dragged-out slow burn
I’m especially interested in stories where the FMC is dangerous in her own right, and the MMC either underestimates her or knows exactly how dangerous she is and falls for her anyway.

Vampire romances are also very welcome! I love the idea of a dangerous, powerful MMC and an FMC who isn’t easily intimidated by him.

I’m open to series, but I’d love something that hooks you quickly. Please tell me your recommendations and what makes them worth reading!

So I recently read 'Queen Of Faces' which has,, everything I look for in a story, strong characters and writing, a well built setting with a well explained magic system, slow burn romance that isn't concluded in the book. I am hoping anyone has recommendations similar to it?

My one like,, rule is I don't like smut and would prefer recommendations without that.

Hihi! Im really into folk horrors at the minute, i prefer the culty, witchy stuff. (Unfortunately i do love a bit of anti pagan propaganda dispite me being a pagan myself) i am also dyslexic so i do prefer things that are easier to read but i am definitely up for pushing myself. I haven't read any folk horrors yet but i do really like movies like The Wickerman, Pans Labyrinth and midsommar (i know Pans labyrinth isn't a folk horror i just adore the vibe and feel like it could fit in other ways) if anyone has recommendations id really appreciate it!!

Hello! As the title says, I'm looking for a book about falling in love / infatuated or feeling intense emotions / slow burn for the first time (fiction or non-fiction, I wouldn't mind), but not so much of 'love at first sight' kind of thing? Maybe if possible, friends to lovers. Thank you ^_^! (18+ is ok)

Recommend a sci-fi (or fantasy) book that is apocalyptic but with absolutely draw me in and be hard to put down. I have to travel for three days and need something that will distract me in a way that can help me forget how miserable I am.

I’ve read The Stand.

CanNOT have the mmc or fmc be head over heels for their love interest in the first hundred pages and or book…..also can’t be contemporary romance……or heavily “ dark fantasy romance “

haha does anyone have any recommendations?

( post got taken off of romance book sub Reddit for some reason 😔)

I am not a hardcore fantasy reader. I read all genres, and mainly read “popular” fantasy series.

Series I loved in high school:
Harry Potter
Twilight
Divergent
Hunger Games

Series I’ve read recently and loved as an adult
Fourth Wing
Throne of Glass
The Serpent and the Wings of the Night
Red Rising
The Will of the Many

Any suggestions for me based on what I’ve read and loved?

It's one I read as a kid but I don't remember the title and Google isn't helping.

As far as I can remember there were two main characters, a guy and girl who take some kind of drug called maze and then end up either on a Sci fi planet or some kind of weird trip. I remember them distinctly mentioning eating turkey sandwiches and chips, it was a recurring theme like that's all they ate or packed or something. I think it ends with her wanting him to stay together until he realizes that everything they've been through was a dream or just a drug trip, and that he had to leave because they weren't actually going anywhere but we're still hooked up to the drugs which are called maze or mase.

Any help would be appreciated.

I always feel like the villains are the best part of a story, so I was wondering if there was a good series of books about a villain, that still leaves room for some moments of levity.

My favourite genre is fantasy, but I would be fine with books outside of that.

Hi everyone! This is my first time posting. I want to get into reading more, and I recently started thinking about The Stranger by Albert Camus, which I read in high school. I don't think I fully appreciated it back then, so when I was asked what I wanted for my upcoming birthday, I asked for a copy. I've received it and started reading it again, and I'm really enjoying it this time around.

I've also read philosophical books like Meditations by Marcus Aurelius. I find philosophy interesting, but honestly, it never had the same effect on me as The Stranger does right now. I never ended up finishing Meditations.

I'm wondering what I should read next after The Stranger and what genre I might enjoy. I don't really know what kind of books I'm into yet, but I want to explore different things and start reading a lot more.

I'd appreciate any recommendations. Thanks!