Staff Picks: Fantasy and Science Fiction

Every month, staff at our Downtown branch read books in a specific fiction genre or nonfiction subject, to familiarize themselves with titles they might not have discovered otherwise. For June, they read Fantasy, Science Fiction, and graphic novels. Here's what everyone read and what they had to say about it:

The Thinking Woman’s Guide to Real Magic, by Emily Barker
Big epic fantasy with some romance. Fans of Outlander and A Discovery of Witches should check this one out. 5 stars

The Name of the Wind, by Patrick Rothfuss
A big epic coming-of-age story about a young magician. A little bit like Harry Potter for adults. George R.R. Martin fans would love this book. 5 stars

Dark Witch, by Nora Roberts
Roberts' diehard fans hated this book, but I thought it was ok, decent writing, ok story line, typical romance novel. 3 ½ stars

Newsflesh trilogy, by Mira Grant
Fun Zombie series. 5 stars

Fables Vol. 1: Legends in Exile, by Bill Willingham
Once upon a time before Once Upon a Time came to television. Very fun. 5 stars

The Sparrow, by Mary Doria Russell
This book haunts you, it is beautifully written, very emotional. I've never read anything like it. 5 stars

Saga, by Brian Vaughan
A futuristic version of Romeo and Juliet but they live to have a child. 5 stars