What a marvelous start to my reading year that was January. I haven’t felt so on top of my reading goals, well, ever! 2024 is the year I buckle in and buckle down to consume and cherish as much literature as possible and the year I begin my journey into content creation. In the past few days, I started up an official bookstagram and am currently planning on launching a booktube, both of which are extremely far out of my comfort zone. It’s just that I feel a stronger need than ever to share anything and everything about all the delicious stories I read. I’ll be posting at least once a week on this blog.
The first book on this list is the insanely popular “Six of Crows” by Leigh Bardugo. Now, technically, I read and finished this first part of the duology after Christmas and before January, but it surprised me so much that I just had to mark the reading year of 2024 with my first real dive into young adult fantasy. That being said, “Six of Crows” was such a pleasantly thrilling read. At first, I chuckled heartily at certain similes and aspects of her writing style, but Bardugo has a way of pulling you in as you’re oblivious. Her characters are each so unique, multidimensional, and interesting to follow, and the overarching plot throughout the duology keeps building and building in very exciting ways. It’s a great book to start with in young adult fiction for actual young adults/teenagers because it’s got a bit of everything.
The next book I read was long long overdue, but looking back, I feel there was no other way. This beast of a book is, of course, Mervyn Peake’s unmatched “Gormenghast,” the second installment in the Gormenghast trilogy, which are all one of a kind. Well, what is there to say! Even as I write this, specters, stones, and storms drift in and out of my mind. The way his writing leaves such a profound imprint on the mind is absolutely unmatched. Objectively, this book was so much darker, heavier, and tragic than Titus Groan was. There are numerous depictions of insanity, violence, defiance, and hatred as all of Gormenghast stoops to Steerpike’s ominous bidding. This was my most exhausting yet extremely rewarding read of this year, and I’m looking forward to the “final” book in the trilogy.
I couldn’t stay away from Bardugo for too long, lest the magic fade into memory. Immediately after concluding Gormenghast, I picked up another 500-pager, “Crooked Kingdom.” Blew Six of Crows out of the water, in my opinion. She is so so good at crafting characters over time through flashbacks, dialogues, and inner monologues. Every loose end and half-baked arc in Six of Crows was seen through to its extremely satisfying end. The continued worldbuilding in this second half of the duology was also impeccable. I, along with millions, am now praying for and eagerly awaiting a third Six of Crows book.
The final, chilling read of January was a true test to my close reading abilities and patience. “The Left Hand of Darkness” by science fiction queen Ursula Le Guin speaks volumes on gender under an otherwise frigid narrative. I wouldn’t say it was particularly enjoyable as a story, and many important themes and notes slipped through the sieve of an unexciting narrative. Her discussions around gender could have gone so much farther in concept and in plot. The story itself felt so unimportant in the grand scheme of Gethen’s assimilation into the Ekumen. But for all the criticisms I have, this story deserves its place in the science fiction hall of classics. I can see myself rereading this at some point in the future once I’ve gained different perspectives on the varoius issues and theories tackled by Le Guin.