“He was an easy mark.”
First line in City of Brass by S. A. Chakraborty
This post is inspired by a Top Ten Tuesday prompt I did last year that I figured needed to be a reoccurring one. I read books from 19 different authors in 2021, and in this post, I’m going to be judging whether or not they are worth more of my time. To avoid making this a very text-heavy post, I decided to share my feelings towards these authors in GIF-format with just a tiny translation of what I mean by each GIF. To be fair, I actually read more than 19 new authors last year, but I decided to exclude authors of classics, non-fiction and anthologies, just to narrow it down a little. But 19 is still a lot, so let’s get started!
K. Ancrum
Read: The Wicker King
Will I read more books by K. Ancrum?
Translation: Sure, but only with the right synopsis
Malorie Blackman
Read: Noughts and Crosses, Knife Edge
Will I read more books by Malorie Blackman?
Translation: Gave up on her one series so no
Marie Brennan
Read: The Onyx Court series
Will I read more books by Marie Brennan?
Translation: YES
S. A. Chakraborty
Read: The Daevabad Trilogy
Will I read more books by S. A. Chakraborty?
Translation: Yes and very intrigued to see what she writes next
Susanna Clarke
Read: Piranesi
Will I read more books by Susanna Clarke?
Translation: Me reading Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell could happen
Alix E. Harrow
Read: The Ten Thousand Doors of January
Will I read more books by Alix E. Harrow?
Translation: Nope. Never. Absolutely not.
Christina Henry
Read: Lost Boy
Will I read more books by Christina Henry?
Translation: I wasn’t blown away so probably not
Robin Hobb
Read: The Farseer Trilogy, Liveship Traders
Will I read more books by Robin Hobb?
Translation: I don’t think I’ve hidden my obsession very well
Gail Honeyman
Read: Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine
Translation: No strong feelings of any kind but I don’t think it’ll happen
Rebecca Makkai
Read: The Great Believers
Translation: First experience wasn’t bad so I’m willing to try again
Everina Maxwell
Read: Winter’s Orbit
Will I read more books by Everina Maxwell?
Translation: Not in a hurry but also not completely opposed to it
Lisa Maxwell
Read: The Last Magician
Will I read more books by Lisa Maxwell?
Translation:…No.
Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Read: Gods of Jade and Shadow
Will I read more books by Silvia Moreno-Garcia?
Translation: There are authors I’m more excited about
Garth Nix
Read: The Left-Handed Booksellers of London
Will I read more books by Garth Nix?
Translation: Knowing he’s a popular author doesn’t give me more faith in him
Tamora Pierce
Read: Song of the Lioness
Will I read more books by Tamora Pierce?
Translation: I wasn’t blown away but maybe
Andy Weir
Read: The Martian
Will I read more books by Andy Weir?
Translation: Not saying I’m being forced to read Project Hail Mary but I’m being forced to read Project Hail Mary
Martha Wells
Read: All Systems Red
Will I read more books by Martha Wells?
Translation: A little overrated but I’m trying again
Jen Williams
Read: The Winnowing Flame Trilogy
Will I read more books by Jen Williams?
Translation: I think I’ll spare myself the frustration
G. Willow Wilson
Read: The Bird King
Will I read more books by G. Willow Wilson?
Translation: Not putting myself through that again
I need to read more books by authors I already know because this was a lot. And there weren’t a whole lot of successes in there either, although I’m very happy with the ones I found. Quite a few I was undecided about though, so I’m open to peer pressure in the comments on those. Also, let me know if you discovered a new favorite author in 2021.
First Line Reader 
So many!
I also read fromAndy Weir for the first time last year, and I´m excited to read more from him! Also very curious to what SA Chakraborty will write next!
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I really don’t know what to expect from Andy Weir while I don’t think Chakraborty can disappoint me.
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😂😂😂😂😂 This format is ingenious!!! I absolutely loved it and am grinning like anything, especially at your entries for Marie Brennan (I swear I will get back to her soon! 😅), S.A. Chakraborty (Color me curious, too! 🧐), Alix E. Harrow (I don’t know what was more priceless, the GIF or its translation 🤣), Robin Hobb (If you’ve considered her worthy of a Spider-Man GIF, I suppose you can’t have found the Liveship ending that bad after all 😜), Lisa Maxwell (Yes, I second that no!! 🙄), and Andy Weir (Who is this mystery person forcing you to read this? How rude! But also, I have no regrets 😁 ).
And my favorite newly discovered author this year? I’m pretty sure you know, seeing that you are entirely responsible for introducing me to her 🥰
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I’m glad you liked it 😁 I think the Alix E. Harrow one is the one that most accurately represents my feelings and I just knew the moment I saw it 😂 And yes, Hobb still wrote the Farseer trilogy so that makes her worthy of a Spider-Man GIF. I specifically looked for one that could fit 😁
Is it representative of your 2021 that I just had to take a second to remember which author you could be referring to as a new favorite? 😅 I feel like I introduced you to more than one but I’m assuming you mean Bridget Collins 😄
On a totally different note, I feel like I need to tell you this: I finished Spinning Silver… and I hated it *runs and hides*. I’ve just written a rather long rant for my wrap-up and I just need you to be prepared for that 😬
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I definitely meant Bridget Collins 🥰 After all, two of her books managed to make it into my 2021 favorites, and apart from her and Brandon Sanderson (who is already an old favorite 😄) no other author achieved that!
And NOOOOOOOOO 😭😭😭 Why would you hate it?? It’s so good!! I feel like I’ve permanently jinxed something by loving The House in the Cerulean Sea because since then, we can’t seem to agree on anything… 🤣 (This might also be a good time to confess that I finished The Shamer’s Signet a few days ago and was not particularly impressed, either 😅)
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I’m sorry but it was SO boring! I had to start rooting for the villain just to feel something.
And well, we do agree on something because I also don’t think The Shamer’s Signet is very impressive 😅 But I’m also not opposed to putting some blame on The House in the Cerulean Sea 😂
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Pffff… You obviously just didn’t get it, then 😇 Otherwise, you would have been engrossed by Miryem’s determination to make money in spite of the prejudices she faced, Wanda’s desperation to escape her family, and Irina’s conniving to outwit her husband – there was so much suspense!!! Especially once the Staryk got involved!
But it’s fine 😭 At least we agree on something and I don’t have to worry about you hating me too much when you read my Shamer’s Signet rant 😂 And maybe we can at least both like the Tawny Man trilogy this year? 🙃
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Well, I understand that I need more complex characters to feel the suspense then 😅
And no, The Shamer’s Signet deserves a rant. I’m just not able to give it myself lol. And Tawny Man involves a lot of Fitz (and hopefully, very little Starling), so I should love that. I’m just hoping Hobb didn’t get a taste for multi-POV stories.
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The Spinning Silver characters were complex! And if multi-POV means more Paragon, Brashen, and Althea (whom Amber/Fool) did send north, after all, I actually wouldn’t mind 😜
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