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| Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created by The Broke and the Bookish. Every once in a while I participate in this one when I either 1) Like the theme, and/or 2) Have the time! |
This week's topic:
Ten Books That Celebrate Diversity/Diverse Characters!
I'm going to customize this theme!
I'm going to focus on Diversity in FANTASY, because there's so much less of it than there is in contemporary fiction. Fantasy books need some diverse love, too!!!
I actually blogged about this back in March during an open theme week, so I'm just going to dust it off for today.
Okay? Okay! ^.~
In No Particular Order...
~Diversity in Fantasy~
(Feat. MC in a series!)
(Feat. MC in a series!)
1) Kingdom of Xia Series by Cindy Pon
These books take place in Xia, a fictional world very reminiscent of Ancient China. And the Chinese mythology woven into the series is beautiful!
Review: FURY OF THE PHOENIX
Goodreads
These books take place in Xia, a fictional world very reminiscent of Ancient China. And the Chinese mythology woven into the series is beautiful!
Review: FURY OF THE PHOENIX
Goodreads
2) Fire and Thorns Trilogy by Rae Carson
Princess Lucero-Elisa de Riqueza of of Orovalle is married off to King Alejandro de Vega of Joya d'Arena. The books are peppered with Spanish and, I'm not really sure if the world is supposed to more closely resemble Spain and the Tabernas Desert or the Sonoran or Chihuahuan Desert in Mexico. This would change Elisa's ethnicity, but in my head, she's Hispanic, so...! This is one of the most unique YA fantasy series in recent years, about an overweight princess with a Godstone in her belly who has a special destiny. She also goes from being a weak creature that's easy to dislike to someone fierce and amazing that I love as a character!
Review: THE GIRL OF FIRE AND THORNS
Goodreads
3) The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer
Did you know that CINDER is set in Beijing, SCARLET in France, CRESS in the Sahara Desert, and WINTER on the Lunar Moon? There are multiple countries and cultures and ethnicities at play in these books, which makes them even more awesome. If you like fairy tales or sci-fi books that explore concepts such as space and cyborgs, you'll adore this series!
4) The Tiger Saga by Colleen Houck
This series is set in India, with an ancient curse. It has some interesting mythology and bespelled princes. My manager has been asking me to read this series forever, and I still have to get around to it. It's one of her all-time favorite YA series!
5) The Name of the Blade Trilogy by Zoë Marriott
This takes place in London, but it's about a girl named Mia Yamato who, upon sneaking her family's ancient Katana from its resting place in the attic, unleashes magic and mayhem. Um, and there's a kitsune demon fox spirit. WIN!
Goodreads
This takes place in London, but it's about a girl named Mia Yamato who, upon sneaking her family's ancient Katana from its resting place in the attic, unleashes magic and mayhem. Um, and there's a kitsune demon fox spirit. WIN!
Goodreads
6) Darkess Rising Trilogy by Kelley Armstrong
This
trilogy features a Native American girl named Maya and shape-shifting
mountain lions. I haven't read this series or even had it on my radar
because I thought it was about vampires or werewolves or something. But
now that I know it has Native American folklore, I want to find out more
about this series!
Goodreads
Goodreads
7) The Dragon Chronicles by Ellen Oh
I've been waiting to read this series forever. I didn't have time to read it until the second book was out...and then decided to wait one more year and read them all back-to-back despite my supreme WANT of this series. The final book came out earlier this year, and now I can finally dig in! Kira lives in Hansong and is the sole female in the king's army. She's also the prince's personal bodyguard. Yes, this series will be amazing! I love all the mythical creatures on each book, especially the kitsune (or, as they say in Korean, the kumiho!) on the cover of the second book, WARRIOR!
8) The Bhinian Empire Series by Miriam Forster
Nisa lives in the Bhinian Empire, a blend of historical South Asian and east Asian countries, especially China, India, and Japan. The series blends original fantasy with court politics and Asian mythology. At the moment, this series is a duology with two companion novels, but I could see a third book tying it all together!
9) The Magic Under Duology by Jaclyn Dolamore
Nimira is from the Far East that resembles China and India, but is an alternative Earth.and dances for a living, barely eeking by. Eventually, she moves up in the world, but after stumbling upon a forgotten curse, danger drops by to shake things up! Jackie has a beautiful, fairy tale-esque quality to her writing...and she's an awesome human being to boot!
10) The Killer Unicorns Series by Diana Peterfreund
The main character's boyfriend Giovanni is half-Italian and half African-American, which is a pretty cool mix if you ask me! The series features several POC and nationality, which is pretty awesome. PLUS there are killer unicorns. Mythology, romance, magic, adventure...this series has a bit of everything! It's also set in Rome, which is just really cool and intriguing and different.
11) Eon Duology by Alison Goodman
(I'm cheating...I somehow wound up with an extra!)
This duology is drenched in East Asian history and folklore. Girls are restricted from many things in life. There are DRAGONS. The fantasy and mythology in this series are beautiful, especially if you like court politics mixed in with magic!
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