72 book recommendations for trickier Magical Readathon prompts (Autumn Equinox '23) 🪶

[@troncatch]

I love this readathon because I read so many books I probably wouldn't normally pick up. For instance, I just read Lily and the Octopus. I knew nothing about it, I just picked it to satisfy the lily prompt, and it was so good. If you are a pet owner and don't mind recreational crying, I highly recommend it.

[@margaretdyal1380]

Gerald Morris's middle grade knight series is excellent and most covers have shields.

[@leeanna2516]

This may be bending the intention for 'shield' but there are different types of 'shields' such as a windshield on a car or even a lamp/light shield that diffuses the light. Sunglasses, goggles, hats with brims on them, etc.

[@meljstephan]

A few quick recs: Different culture - If I Had Your Face by Frances Cha Royal book - The Empress of Salt and Fortune by Nghi Vo Black cover - Road Of Bones by Christopher Golden Shield on the cover - The Nest by Cynthia D'aprix Sweeney Book set in the future - the Last Cuentista by Donna Barba Higuera Also, a LOT of poetry gets self published

[@theblackenedphoenix]

Thank you for this! I needed help with the Lily prompt!

[@andra7481]

initially the shield prompt and the gemstone prompt felt hard but after some digging i realised there were more options than i thought and now i don’t know what to choose 😂

[@BookRoast]

🛡️ some sneaky beaky hidden ones

[@ConsoleHandheldGamer]

For a court theme, there's also The Song of the Lioness series, about a girl who hides as her brother and trains as a knight.

[@meljstephan]

I'm enjoying this readathon SO MUCH and getting back into reading fantasy for the first time in a long time

[@theforgottenstorytellers8763]

Another option for Shield on the Cover is Shield Maiden by Sharon Emmerichs which is a sort of a YA Beowulf retelling (specifically his last battle with the dragon). It's pretty good overall and is a quick read. For the Earth prompt, I also found Dark Earth by Rebecca Stott which seems to have a strong theme of sister relationships and might be the one I read for that prompt.

[@CaroLiaGrace]

Thanks as always! Super fun to see the uk covers of some of the books I own that the Canadian cover does not show the particular prompts (i.e: Juniper a d Thorn)

[@jasminu4971]

I just went to the library and got ten books to try for the readathon before I decide 😮

[@BeryllineBea]

I love all of these recommendations! I didn’t need help with my Orilium tbr, but I still found something to add to my general tbr. 😂 (Just a side note that Blue Lily, Lily Blue is book 3 of the Raven Cycle, not 2. It’s such a good series!)

[@danielleoliver1734]

I found chair on cover the hardest prompt, all I could think of was Neon Gods by Katee Roberts, but I’ve read that one

[@_daniela_s]

For snake I found Circe by Madeline Miller and the essex serpent by Sarah Perry, for chair 1984 by George Orwell in the penguin modern classics. In case that helps anyone 😅

[@biankatoth1786]

Oh shield on the cover. I thought you needed shield in the title. Ok, it's easier now but I still might need to cheat a little. I only have book with a helmet on the cover, which is actually a shield for the face :D But I try to look around I just don't want to buy a new book when I have so many unread on my shelves.

[@CoffeeQueen90]

Great Recs: I saw some that I might be reading for Autumn Equinox.

[@hayninwi_reads5959]

I've been too intimidated to participate in this readathon in the past, but decided now is the time. I'll be following prompts for character building and the novice path this time then attending the academy in April. Your imagination and organization are awe-inspiring!

[@Silverraine1]

Any book in translation including comics/manga will do for the different culture or place, I especially love those Japanese books with a cat on the cover even when there are no cats inside 😂 Several of T Kingfisher's books are self-published. If I had to do the Earth prompt I would read Snake Falls to Earth or fit in Warrior Girl UnEARTHEDed (companion to Firekeeper's Daughter) ❤

[@pilotpilotos4169]

Graceling was the first series that really got me into reading and fantasy, it was truly an amazing read and just as awesome of a re-read

[@BookRoast]

I’ve heard such great things about it

[@christine2931]

Have you read the 4th and 5th books?

[@elskabee]

just reread it earlier this year for the first time in a long time and it held up so well, truly one of my favourite fantasy series of all time

[@Caro_b]

The shield prompt was the hardest for me 🛡 I ended up picking Heroes by Stephen Fry as my book! I love his Great Myths retellings and Troy also has some shields (+ the audiobooks are amazing)!

[@JayGTheAwkwardBookworm]

I just finished spin the Dawn, it was such a fun read

[@PavlaH]

I’m reading Strange Sally Diamond for the Gemstone prompt and Empire of the Vampire for the Shield prompt.

[@BookRoast]

Nice I hope they’re good ones!

[@ImmortalBroken]

Thanks for this!! Just fyi for anyone considering, An Absolutely Remarkable Thing is classified as adult (though would still appeal to YA readers), and Blue Lily, Lily Blue is the 3rd book in the Raven Cycle.

[@ellie-elles.bookshelf]

So many great recommendations!

[@MilenaReads]

Omg yes, the shield prompt was so hard 😅

[@zephyr2266]

I'm totally debating if I can trick myself into reading The Martian for that... A visor is technically an eye shield.. No?

[@MilenaReads]

@@zephyr2266 i mean, that’s very creative. I’m reading The Adventures of Amira Al Sirafi for it, because I think it has a shield? It could be a compass, but I’m ignoring that option.

[@lazyhomebody1356]

@@zephyr2266 lol, no. Nooooooooo

[@firelight09]

I had ONE book on my TBR for gemstone (Amber Fang: Hunted) and two for shield (Abeni's Song (strapped to her back) and The Remarkable Retirement of Edna Fisher, which is about a senior citizen chosen one going on an adventure. I was SHOCKED how many books there were with characters with swords and/or armor but no shield!

[@RyeMiArt]

'there's a dog too' for Assassin's Apprentice made me laugh so hard 😂 These were all great recommendations! Some of them are going straight to my tbr.

[@Budget_The_Books]

Dart Earth by Rebecca Scott, story about 2 girls set in 500 A.D. in Rome. A historical fiction novel with a dash of mythology and folklore

[@MoJordanReads]

Ah, thank you for this! I have been struggling to find something that isn't sci-fi!

[@Cafe_Scribbles]

Am I allowed to “major” in one thing and “minor” in another? Kinda like American universities work… where some of the prompts cross but if I take a few extra classes, then I can minor in it? Lol I’m pretending I read 10 books a month…

[@laura93xxxx]

Definetly adding the fifth season to my TBR ☺️

[@iloveevrywn]

I'm going to try traitors blade. That shield prompt is so hard

[@kdreadsbooks4691]

I'm reading Good Morning, Midnight by Lily Brooks-Dalton for the lily prompt ❤

[@leftoclock]

So many book recommendations!! I included some of them to my general TBR list 😊. For debut author book I chose A long way to a small, angry planet 😜

[@Lorie336]

For the Vampires theme of course Anne Rice's books if you want to go old school and even start a series, but I chose House of Hunger because I haven't read it yet. Ibwas debating on Dowry of Blood, vut House of Hunger won. For the chair prompt since I haven't gotten to it yet is The Final Girl Support Group by Grady Hendrix. I know there's a horror or thriller book called The Returned that has a picture of a chair in the cover. By the way love Spy Family! Hope this helps, too! I am so excited for August!

[@samanthafinn2422]

😂"there's a dog too" NO DO NOT READ ASSASSINS APPRENTICE FOR THE DOG PLEASE 💔

[@BookRoast]

👹👹👹

[@ameliezonato7450]

Jokes aside, I wish this book came with a content warning for animal death because it made me spiral very badly. I barely made it past the first instance of it, then completely lost it and had a full-blown panic attack at the second instance. Obviously DNFed it at that point. I know this series is very popular and I want people to go into it with their eyes open.

[@lazyhomebody1356]

@@ameliezonato7450 Thank you!!

[@regitzexenia]

I was the most nervous about “chair on the cover” until I realised all of the Before the Coffee Gets Cold has either 1 or 2 chairs on the covers and book 4 gets released in English in late august, I think.

[@andra7481]

so many good options to add to my never ending tbr 👀 especially the self published books you’ve mentioned

[@minouschka76]

Thank you for making this list G. I made a list for the books I want to try out 😀the only thing is that you wrote Vapmires instead of Vampires ( probably typed fast ). 🤣

[@hellofromjojo]

For Astronomy Lunar Alignment, the prompt Read from a Finished Series, does it just mean I can read any book in a series that’s complete ie all books have been released. So could be any number in the series? Or have I got that wrong? x

[@brooklynvandenberg7677]

Yesss Project Hail Mary is amazinnng

[@BethWade]

No historical fiction, eh? ;) Wait....what's the gemstone in title for House of Hollow? Kings of the Wyld has a shield on the cover, too! I absolutely thought "clothing on the cover" meant just clothing, not a person who isn't naked. 🤣

[@witchymary5246]

The authors name is Krystal 😊

[@lifeinabook839]

If people are looking for a contemporary book with a shield, Well Matched by Jen DeLuca has a shield on it.

[@amacina]

The shield prompt has me stumped. I have lots of books with swords. Shields, not so much 😂

[@RooRooBecky]

Rising of the Shield Hero, there's a manga and a light novel

[@Eleneenie]

That one is the hardest one for me. Most likely I will read either Wonder woman by Leigh Bardugo or Squire by Tamora Pierce (if I manage to squeeze 2 previous books in the series).

[@justkiddingjustliving]

Vapmires got a giggle out of me, i have to admit 😂

[@shaunaXX]

how does house of hollow fit for gemstone? I don’t know that much about gems I’m genuinely curious?

[@BookRoast]

Authors name 😅

[@shaunaXX]

@@BookRoastI’m actually blind I stared at that book for like 5 mins like “is it a series?no? Is hollow a gem? No?? Is there a g on the cover?? That looks like flowers tho?” HOW DID I NOT READ THE AUTHORS NAME AT ANY POINT DURING THIS🤦🏻‍♀️😂😅

[@BookRoast]

@@shaunaXX it's very easy to overlook! 😅

[@MarinaUz]

Can't waaait! 😍😍😍

[@cristylee07]

Can I read house of sky and breath for earth in the title since it's the second book in house of earth and blood series

[@BookRoast]

Yes you can!

[@msellenandrea]

I hope you get to This Poison Heart soon! It's so good :D

[@BookRoast]

I want tooooo

[@nijinoshita3301]

hm... still don't know what to read for the Earth Prompt since I don't really want to start a space opera next month... gonna check out the links you mentioned for snake on the cover I am thinking of picking up Ink so thanks for reminding me that one exists xD since I haven't read it I can't really rec it but I thought I mention that I am going to read Silver under Nightfall for the Vampire prompt, now I don't remember anything about it but it is LGBT+

[@TinyNDangerous]

Sheild was so hard until I whined to my mom and she said to read something with Captain America. Now I'm reading a cutsie avengers comic on recommendation from someone in the discord.

[@cocovanhut8402]

For Adventure, One Piece it's a good choice.

[@hopenparker]

For earth in title can do a classic of journey to the center of the earth by Jules vern

[@pavlinazitkova]

😄👍🏻🥰

[@the_eerie_faerie_tales]

Maybe a bit spoilery for Evelyn Hugo.. ?

[@BookRoast]

I wouldn’t say so, the reporter raises the question as to why her from the very beginning and I obv didn’t say why that is - it’s the starting hook of the book

[@lazyhomebody1356]

No one is correcting the River Styx?? Pronounced like sticks. Natasha Preston's The Lost cover is just a chair