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Fangirl Friday #5 – Favorite Literary World

So I probably won’t surprise anyone with these two choices but my favorite literary worlds are from The Grisha series and Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo and the Throne of Glass series by Sarah J. Maas. Also – I’ve included quotes that are semi spoilery but mainly the Queen of Shadows quote, it’s from the very end, so if you haven’t read it then skip over it!

 

Grishaverse

The Grisha series and Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

I loved the different countries/kingdoms.  I absolutely loved the echoes to Russia and European races and nations.  You meet characters from each country and they all have specific looks and traits and beliefs.  I absolutely love it. And it only get’s better in Six of Crows which is set in the island of Kerch.  I loved hearing how Alina and the gang moved across Ravka and the areas of terrain.  Fjerda comes into play in Six of Crows as well!  What’s lovely about this story is the heroes and villains both want to help their land – even if it’s bad (I’m looking at you, Darkling).  The characters are tied to the land in amazing ways especially the Grisha and the amplifiers which some from animals, and Bardugo does an incredible job at portraying it all.  If all of my other posts haven’t convinced you to read Bardugo’s books then after this one you probably should. They’re seriously amazing.

I had spared the stag’s life. The power of that life belonged to me as surely as it belonged to the man who had taken it. – Ruin and Rising

I love this quote because it shows a connection to the Earth and how man aims to possess things that are not always theirs.

Erelia

Throne of Glass series by Sarah J. Maas

I’m experiencing a lot of emotions thinking about Erilea and the Throne of Glass series. Erilea has magic, deserts, forests, mines, it basically has everything.  Throne of Glass and Crown of Midnight both take place in Adarlan and in Heir of Fire and Queen of Shadows the landscape expands.  To me what makes this literary world so special is the connection to the land that the characters have.  There are Fae characters, so they obviously have a connection to nature and the Earth, but it runs so much deeper than that. The land is a part of the characters.  Queen of Shadows tore me apart in places because the connection is so apparent.

 

And at long last, Aelin Ashryver Galathynius was home. – Queen of Shadows

I can’t explain the depth and meaning behind this quote without just gushing about the series. Y’all that last scene KILLED me. I was such a mess after reading it. The end was everything painful and lovely in the world.

I wasn’t expecting this post to be as important to me, honestly. But thinking more about it and writing about it has made me consider it in ways I hadn’t before. So once again, massive props to Bardugo and Maas for creating universes that make readers connect with them this way.

Next week’s prompt is Villain.