Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge discussion

Kelly wrote: "Nadine in NY wrote: "I've been struggling a bit on this because I was unclear on what, exactly, a "mythical creature" is.

So I googled it. "A mystical creature is a creature from mythology or fol..."

Ron wrote: "Nadine, thanks so much for the list!!!! I was having such a hard time with this prompt. I mean I have a book on mermaids, but they seem so basic even if some of them are strange.

I wanted to look ..."




I'm glad it's helpful to others!! And now that I have this list in my head, it's so easy to find books.


In fact, the book I'm reading right now features a mythical creature! (Although (a) I'm planning to use this book for "family" and (b) I don't really like this book much and I don't exactly recommend it.) In Bad Cree, the possibility of a "wheetigo" (aka wendigo) shows up. The wendigo is also mentioned in the far superior books The Sentence (it only gets a mention here and I don't think this book really works for this category) and Empire of Wild (this book is ALL ABOUT the wendigo, and would be perfect for this category, and I highly recommend everything Dimaline has written).


And Devolution: A Firsthand Account of the Rainier Sasquatch Massacre is (obviously) about the sasquatch, so it would work here, too!


And Skin of the Sea is about mermaids - I might read this one for this category. It gets mixed reviews, but that cover is so GORGEOUS I have to read it!!

I haven't memorized the list yet but I did write them down. I'll certainly be looking for some. There are a few that have caught my interest.

I ended up reading The Blood of Olympus by Rick Riordan for this prompt.

I read .

The story is based on a Korean myth and there are dragons, magical sea serpents, gods and goddesses.

The cover is so pretty, and in fact the strongest part of the book is the physical description of the undersea spirit world. The blurb and the author note both refer to anime like Spirited Away , and I could see the similarity. I think the book would work well in a Studio Ghibli- type animation.

I would have liked more world building at the beginning - why were spirits eating and drinking for example? - and the heroine seemed to have repeated similar adventures. This was written as an young adult book, and I think an adult version would allowed longer for character and background to develop.

Could also be used for: Book with girl in the title (obviously), book about a forbidden romance, a modern re-telling of a classic, a book with a love triangle (sort of), book about a family.

I would recommend Circe or Ariadne.

LeahS wrote: "I read .

... The blurb and the author note both refer to anime like Spirited Away , and I could see the similarity. I think the book would work well in a Studio Ghibli- type animation. ..."


SAY NO MORE I AM SOLD !!!!

Skin of the Sea is a retelling of the Little Mermaid story by Natasha Bowen. It is set in the 14th century Oyo Empire (modern day Nigeria) during the time of Portuguese slave ships and features black mermaids (Mami Wata), West African mythology, gods and goddesses and a gentle romance. The author is British, of Nigerian and Welsh background. ⭐⭐⭐⭐ here is my review

I am planning on reading The Last Werewolf

A Touch of Moonlight by Yaffa S Sabtos Following Dominican folklore, Larimar is a Ciguapa. Her family has a long history of this Mystical creature. Larimar is a likeable character and learning about a new to me folklore, was intriguing.

Call it fate, chance, coincidence, whatever. I was struggling with this topic, but then a friend dropped by and brought over some books because he knew that I would take them.

Turns out that a set in the books he gave me were the The Lightning Thief set of 5.

Guess these books would work here, right?

Ron wrote: "Call it fate, chance, coincidence, whatever. I was struggling with this topic, but then a friend dropped by and brought over some books because he knew that I would take them.

Turns out that a set..."



yes those will definitely work!

Ron wrote: "Call it fate, chance, coincidence, whatever. I was struggling with this topic, but then a friend dropped by and brought over some books because he knew that I would take them.

Turns out that a set..."

I enjoyed that series. Bonus is that you can use one of them for the Book Your Friend Recommended prompt since your friend dropped them off to you.

Thanks Diana. Unfortunately, I already read a book for that prompt but I'm thinking of switching the bought second-hand prompt to got second hand because technically they're not mine and I didn't buy them.

Ron wrote: "Thanks Diana. Unfortunately, I already read a book for that prompt but I'm thinking of switching the bought second-hand prompt to got second hand because technically they're not mine and I didn't b..."

I support that decision. I have no memory of which second-hand books I bought and which I got for free.

Mine will be Chain of Thorns for sure.

I read Blood of Elves by Andrzej Sapkowski. This is the third chronological/first published book in The Witcher series.

I wasn't sure if I wanted to read the series in chronological or publishing order. I'm glad I picked chronological. I felt like I got a lot more out of this book knowing the events the characters reference already. I like this fantasy world a lot. This is a deeper dive into the mythology and culture than the first two books.

If you're looking for something completely different, try
Hoard It All Before: A humorous cozy mystery with a dragon detective

From goodreads.com: "Note: While this cozy mystery is mostly clean, it does have a lusty, chain-smoking unicorn who makes more than a few naughty innuendos, a dragon that drinks heavily, a tiny bit of swearing, and (obviously) there's a murder along the way."

Set in 1930's Oregon ( :) ), this was a fun read with great quirky characters. First in a series.

I READ Witches Peculiar Thriller Night

I picked up The Unnaturalists by Tiffany Trent blindly, but have since discovered it is basically a book centred around mythical creatures!

It's a steampunk fantasy book and I am very much enjoying it! It's not well known, so I thought I'd draw people's attention to it!

Thinking of going with the classics on these.

Either The Lord of the Rings

or

The Wheel of Time Series 1-15 Books Collection Set Pack (Book 1-14) By Robert Jordan

I just finished The Mermaid of Black Conch by Monique Roffey. It was pretty good!

Although I read A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas for this prompt, I recently read The Devourers by Indra Das, which would also fit (werewolves, weretigers, beings in between human and werewolves).

Okay keeping things classic with Eclipse . Can't go wrong with vampires and werewolves.

Ron wrote: "Okay keeping things classic with Eclipse . Can't go wrong with vampires and werewolves."

If you are looking for a non-fiction book, Mermaids: Nymphs of the Sea by Theodore Gachot is perfect. It's a compendium of cross-cultural stories and symbolism of mermaids. It's also easily the most gorgeous book I own. I got it at a small indie bookstore in Maine, so I'm thinking of that prompt.

If you can get a hold of it, it's a beautiful read.

I read The Tea Dragon Festival, but I may count this too, as I have other choices for the indie bookstore prompt.

Lilith wrote: If you are looking for a non-fiction book, Mermaids: Nymphs of the Sea by Theodore Gachot is perfect. It's a compendium of cross-cultural stories and symbolism of mermaids. It's also easily the most gorgeous book I own. I got it at a small indie bookstore in Maine, so I'm thinking of that prompt.

If you can get a hold of it, it's a beautiful read.

Checked into it. Certainly sounds like a lovely book. I do have a book on mermaids, but I can certainly add that one to my list. I appreciate it.

The Stardust Thief is the first book in a YA fantasy trilogy by Kuwaiti author Chelsea Abdullah. Loulie al-Nazari, the Midnight Merchant is swept up in a grand adventures of Princes, Sultans, jinn and magical relicts. ⭐⭐⭐⭐ my review

I read Stone Blind and it is filled with mythical creatures. The book was great. a must read for anyone who loves mythology.

I'm reading forbidden by bijou, its about werewolves and its only just been released by a first time author so could be used for that category too, I'm halfway through it and its great so far

I have a ton of books that can fit this prompt! I think I'm going to go with Midnight Crossroad since it will help with another challenge I am doing to "clear the shelves" of older books and this is my oldest book, that I own, on my TBR list.

Song of Achilles for this one

I suggest "The Book of Imaginary Beings" bu Jorges Luis Borges

For short and classical — A Midsummer Night's Dream by William Shakespeare, which has fairies in it. My copy is only 66 pages.

I was going to read The Minotaur Takes a Cigarette Break but I really didn't like it about 40 pages in, so instead I'm going to read The Subtle Knife (book 2 in His Dark Materials) which has angels and I think witches.

I read The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

Highly highly recommend Crown of Roses (first book of the Faeven Saga) by Hillary Raymer. Adult fantasy romance with fairies, amazing side characters, and enemies to lovers.

Finished and LOVED Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros

My Review:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Britany wrote: "Finished and LOVED Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros

My Review:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show..."



Now you can read the sequel in January for "dragons"!

YAAAAAAAAAAAASSSSSSSSSSSSSS