Master of Poisons

by Andrea Hairston

A quest to heal the earth, reflected in the heroes’ quest to heal their hearts. It’s a big ol’ metaphor. It was a good book, although I often felt like the plot was missing important pieces.

Sorceror to the Crown

by Zen Cho

English magic is fading and it’s at least partly because of the patriarchy. If you liked Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, you’ll probably like this book even better. It’s set in the same era, but written more friendly to modern readers so it is more of a page-turner. Also the central heroine is a compelling character (if sometimes annoyingly dense, as most heroes apparently must be).