READING IS THE BEST WASTE OF TIME

As I spent some of my time this summer reading, I thought I might as well pimp out some good series and authors. I used to be an avid reader, but I've taken quite the break. It was about time to get back into it. Here's a few examples of stories, that deserve your time and effort to read.

1. Mark Lawrence "The Broken Empire" trilogy. This series belongs to the dark fantasy genre. The novels in this trilogy are: "Prince of Thorns", "King of Thorns" and "Emperor of Thorns". I have always enjoyed fantasy more than any other genre. I mean I swallowed all the "Harry Potter and ..." books. Also C. Paolini's "Inheritence" cycle and T. Prattchett's Disc World novels. This was somewhat a new venture for me. I have never read this particular genre before, but I must say that I was very pleasantly surprised about how much I enjoyed myself. The main character is Jorg, a young prince, whose childhood would leave anyone damaged. I will not spoil the story for you, but I must say, that having a 14-year-old douche as the main protagonist, a young man, who does as he pleases, and he pleases to murder and rape, was somewhat disturbing and very compelling. The author writes with total confidence in his readers, that they are not idiots and I find that refreshing as so many best selling authors over simplify the language so that vocabulary wise we as readers learn very little. He taught me many new words and as someone who is not a native English speaker, I am thankful for that lesson. His other series "The Price of Fools" is on my bucket list, right after I finish my current reading assignment.

2. Anthony Ryan "Raven's Shadow" trilogy. Another fantasy series, with novels as follows: "Blood Song", "Tower Lord" and "Queen of Fire". It's a fascinating tale of one man's life as someone who is forced to enforce laws he might not even truly believe in. The first book takes us on journey through his childhood and how he becomes someone whose name is a household item. It's a story full of epic battles and relationships between people with many a sacrifice here and there. Honor is the key ingredient and also reading about characters who are selfless when it comes to the greater good, is good for anyone's morals. I just wish we had more people like that in real life. This might seem as the total opposite from my previous recommendation, but I find it refreshing. Forgive my sentimental comments, I really loved this series. I read it with amazing speed, even if the novels are considered thick and time consuming. Good stories are always more enjoyable when they take time to eat through. I am definitely going to read more from this author, as my first encounter with his writing was such a pleasant experience.

3. Sarah J. Maas "A Court of Thorns and Roses" series. More fantasy, novels included so far in this series: "A Court of Thorns and Roses", "A Court of Mist and Fury" and "A Court of Wings and Ruin". I am actually still reading the third one. I think I've mentioned this author before as I am strangely addicted to her other series: "Throne of Glass". Both of these series share one key ingredient: the main character is female. I am surely not a big feminist, I don't go around screaming about equal rights and how men holding doors open for me is sexist (I actually consider it very polite). But having such a strong main character is refreshing. Of course one should point out that romance is very much a key ingredient in these series and if that's not your thing, feel free to avoid them. I am still a girl and sometimes it's quite lovely to read about true love and discover how much someone is willing to sacrifice for that. Language wise, this is one of those literary pieces that doesn't teach the reader too many new things. Easy to read and to pass the time with.

4. Andy Weir "The Martian". I know I am like super late with this read, but I also watched the film only this year. And I found it very interesting and fun, therefore I needed to read the original source. And I was not disappointed. I must point out, that the film did a pretty good job translating the pages onto the silver screen. I know it's something a real fan of books cannot usually claim (for example "Eragon", which was more than a massive let down), but they managed it somehow. I get why they awarded this film the best comedy award, but there's just so much more about hope and human nature that gets discovered in this story. I cannot recommend this enough and unlike the rest of my recommendations, it's a one off. Therefore you get the payday much easier and faster. If you are not a big reader, this might very well be perfect for you, as the story progresses on a rather fast pace and leaves you on the edge of your seat. If you've read it, then maybe you can understand my wish for it to be a bit longer. Andy Weir's writing is very compelling. 

5. Kazue Kato "Blue Exorcist". I have a soft spot for manga and animes in general, so I decided to try something that doesn't get enough attention in my opinion. I have read through the first five mangas and I've already purchased the next five to speed read through. Manga is an incredible way to fill my Goodreads yearly reading challenge. But I should point out that it's also simply a good story. As Estonians in general are not that well accustomed with this genre, I had some trouble gathering the novels, but after months of trying, I got 1-10 in my book self. I need to point out, that every book I have recommended has claimed a prized location in my room. I buy books, which this day and age might seem like a waste, but I mostly buy my books as used from Amazon. Therefore I am saving them from the trash and one day I will have quite an impressive collection to pass onto someone else. But back to this manga series. Manga in general has characters who seem quite impulsive, in my opinion, and this one is no diferent. The main character Rin is very emotional and all sorts of fun and exciting adventures happen when he's around. Never mind the fact that he's the son of a demon named Satan. Being raised in a monastary whose main goal in this world is to destory demons, his life takes an interesting turn. If you can get your hands on this series, try it out. It's no worse than "Tokyo Ghoul" or even "Death Note". 

There are some other books I'm still going through that really deserve a try: "White Oleander" by Janet Fitch, the Dexter series by Jeff Lindsay and obviously George R.R. Martin's "A Song of Ice and Fire" series. I know I'm late to the party with the last two as the latter is maybe the most famous TV show as of date currently and the former is a completed show, but I should point out that I started watching "Game of Thrones" when it was on season 4 and the show "Dexter" is very different from the novels. 

A series I would have recommended until the last novel came out is C. Harris' "Sookie Stackhouse" series. You might have watched the show "True Blood", and the first novel was pretty mucha straight copy from the novel, with a few changes made, but the rest of it was so completely diferent, it didn't resemble the books at all in the end. Why I won't recommend this series to you, is simply due to the fact that the final novel, the conclusion to this massive series of books, pretty much made books from 2-13 unnecessary. I did not appreciate it one bit.

As for something else than fantasy, I will always recommend throwing in some old classics. Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's "Little Prince" is my favourite. Also I find Dostojevsky to be rather pleasant. 

And here's my little list of books to read. These are series and books I have read this year. I am a bit behind schedule, since I cannot knit and read at the same time, but I am trying to take a break from that and focus on educating myself with some good literary works of art. And before you bash my choices, claim these are not art, remind yourself that this world is huge and art is a general term that describes a lot of diferent things. For example, for me, personally, Picasso's master pieces are not pleasant to view. I am old school and I rather enjoy Monet or Renaissance artists. 

Let's all get reading glasses and seem sophisticated. With love,

Regina

Next week: I'm talking about my educational and career changes.