I deeply wish fantasy was a genre within YA I could read. It’s not that I dislike it; it’s that my brain simply cannot immerse in a world outside the realms of reality. Magical realism and science fiction work for me because of how they’re still tied to our world, but something about fantasy is just challenging. It’s a weak spot in my reading and writing life, but we all have those, right? The other thing that trips me a bit with fantasy, especially in YA, is how many in the genre are a series. I like reading one-and-done titles, as well as picking up series years after it’s concluded so I can blow through each book immediately after finishing the previous. Perhaps my answer to this — and the way I can best push myself to read more fantasy in YA — is by digging into duologies. Two books make a series, but it’s two books total. It feels super accessible and engaging without requiring significant buy in. I know many fantasy lovers dig these books, too, and it seemed like the right time as we begin winding down from an energetic summer to round up a handful of great, completed YA fantasy duologies. I’ve pulled just the first book in the duology to highlight, with the title of the second book included with the description so you can snap it up as well (without being spoiled by the description). All The Tides of Fate is book #2. Bloodsworn is book #2. Emanuela is a girl after my own heart in that she doesn’t play by the rules and doesn’t care what people think of her. That’s part of why she’s okay marrying her childhood best friend and heir to the wealthiest home in her kingdom. . . even though both of them are gay. She simply wants the power. But then, she accidentally kills the watercrea, the only source of her kingdom’s water. Now, people are dying of thirst and she must find a way to save them. Into The Midnight Void is book 2. Richly imaginative, it’s a near-future, submerged London setting. Book two is Journey To The Heart of the Abyss. Now, Amaya is out for revenge against the person who ruined her and her family’s life. Book two is Ravage The Dark. That princess, though, has her own goals and wants to resurrect her mother using ancient magic . . . and it might be Malik who helps her do just that. That is, if the two of them don’t catch feelings for each other first. Book two is A Psalm of Storms and Silence (the alliteration here is awesome, isn’t it?).
