August 2025
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    Hi everyone,

    I hope some of you can give me some nice recommendations :).

    I’ve recently DEVOURED and LOVED Babel by RF Kuang, the broken earth trilogy by NK Jemisin, and I’ve always adored Ursula K. Le Guin.

    Some of the stuff I loved was:
    – political & social criticism (colonialism, empire, inequality, feminism, language, etc.)
    – immersion & emotional depth (I want to FEEL while reading, not just admire the ideas)
    – strong female protagonists (romance can be present but should not be the main feature).
    – beautiful and thoughtful prose that’s evocative, not just functional (adore margaret Atwoods prose specifically)

    Books that didn’t work for me: Parable of the Sower (I found the prose flat, and I disliked the relationship dynamics), and The Poppy War feels a bit too grimdark/bleak for what I want right now, also the writing really fell flat for me

    What I’m looking for is something thats somewhere in the vein of Le Guin + Jemisin + Babel, so immersive, feminist, socially critical, happily also queer angles! And definitely with a strong woman at the center.
    And don’t be afraid to recommend something that’s intellectual or philosophical

    Thanks for any suggestion you can throw my way 🙂

    by Acceptable-Coyote123

    5 Comments

    1. Since you mentioned her – have you tried “always coming home” by le guin? It’s very much focussed on female peotagonists.

    2. liskamariella on

      The sword of kaigen and blood over bright heaven might be for you, they are both political and have as one of the protagonists a strong woman. I also enjoyed shadow of god’s (has a very strong female protagonist) but it’s not that political as the other books.

    3. bioluminary101 on

      Circe by Madeleine Miller (this one especially)

      City of Brass by S.A. Chakraborty

      The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

      The River Has Roots by Amal El-Mohtar

      The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo

    4. Ancillary Justice and sequels by Ann Leckie

      The Forgotten Beasts of Eld by Patricia McKillip

      A Deadly Education and sequels by Naomi Novik

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