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Hot Honey Fried Chicken | Queenslee Appetit

1. The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin

Essun comes home one day to find her husband has killed their son and kidnapped their daughter. She must journey through a broken and war-torn world to find and save her daughter, all during the collapse of the all-powerful empire that has ruled over the world for a thousand years.

5-star review: “This book is spectacular — smart, clever, well crafted, well timed, full of great characters and great scenes. I love fantasy but it lets me down a lot. Sometimes I feel it’s the same plot rehashed, over and over. The Fifth Season is unlike anything else I have ever read.” —Jamieson

2. Riot Baby by Tochi Onyebuchi

Set in ’92 Los Angeles, Ella has what she calls a “Thing” — an ability to see things that haven’t yet happened. Her older brother Kev wants to protect Ella from herself — but after he ends up incarcerated, she struggles with her ability to confront the past and the future, knowing that a revolution might be the only way toward progress.

5-star review: “Onyebuchi’s writing is stunning. His evocation of American history, in all its messiness and filth, will blow you away. I don’t know what else to say about this book except that it sets a new standard for the subgenre of urban fantasy.” —Gin Jenna