Cozy fantasy · 1991
A Bad Spell in Yurt
A delightfully gentle fantasy mystery. It earns its place by being so very good at being such an easy, enjoyable read.
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Hall of Fame.
A very short list of books I keep thinking about, keep recommending, or keep measuring other books against.
The one to beat · Complete series The Seven
The Seven
Citadels
Geraldine Harris
Four short fantasy novels that have stayed with me for years. There’s a brutality and emotional honesty beneath the adventure that most epic fantasy never quite manages. Still the best thing I've read for ForFemFan.
03 The Dead Kingdom Not reviewed
SEVEN CITADELS The Dead Kingdom Part Three
One place in the Hall of Fame. Four books on the shelf.
An old favorite
War for the Oaks
This is one of the books that started it all. Languid, lyrical, and as interested in everyday life as it is in faerie warfare. The kind of story that makes a place feel magical without making it feel any less real.
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7 more worth keeping 
Science fiction · 1988
An Alien Light
The biggest page-turner of the bunch. It takes its time setting the pieces in place, then becomes almost impossible to put down.
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Middle-grade · Dystopian
Found
Its strange balance of harshness and hope held up even after nearly twenty years. A childhood favorite that deserved to stay one.
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Science fantasy · 1989
The Gate of Ivory
Smart, wildly readable, and genuinely interested in women supporting women. Perhaps the most straightforwardly fun book on this entire list.
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The Hero and the Crown
Aerin, the ostracized daughter of Damar's king, must forge a place for herself in a world that doubts her worth. An intimate, fiercely feminist coming-of-age fantasy about persistence, compassion, and finding strength without losing yourself—and a book that helped shape who I became.
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Fantasy · 1960s
The Serpent
Not an easy or comfortable read. Its portrayal of misogyny and the compromises women make to survive is difficult to shake.
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Middle-grade fantasy · 1955
The Wicked Enchantment
An exuberant, deeply feminist little book with an absurd number of animals and a surprisingly sharp eye for power.
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