Saturday 4 May 2013

Why I Love Urban Fantasy



Hallo loves,

I bet you've all been wondering where I got to? Truth was, I just wasn't feeling blogging anymore. I thought maybe I'd quit for good, but I wasn't sure, so I just...left, for a while.

 Instead, I was hiding out and reading whatever the hell I wanted. And what I wanted to read, apparently, was urban fantasy.  I've said it before on the blog, but I used to love UF when I was younger, but I haven't read as much of it in recent years. Mostly because a lot of it is adult and I have been on a massive YA kick. I wish there were more YA urban fantasy series'. If anyone can recommend anything, seriously, do. (I've read Strange Angels, Sarah Rees Brennan's books, The Demon Trapper's Daughter books...prolly some others I can't think of off the top of my head...)

So anyway, I've been reading UF. I devoured the Kate Daniels series by Ilona Andrews which OMFG I adored. It's gonna be a long wait for book 6 (and they appaz are no longer published in the UK, sob) and I read the first 4 of the Hollows series by Kim Harrison, the first 6 Mercy Thompson books by Patricia Briggs and the first 2 Chicagoland Vampires books by Chloe Neil.

I figured that instead of reviewing allllll these books, I'd do a post about why I love UF so much instead:

1. Girls

Now this (probably) isn't true for all UF, but most of what I read is written by female authors with female protags. I like this. I'm female, I like reading about females. I like reading about males too, but female protags always have a special place in my heart.

2. Awesome girls

So not only does UF have girls in, it has awesome girls. Girls who can stand up for themselves, who do stand up for themselves and who are strong, independent and capable. They fight for themselves and what they believe in and who they love. They arent self-sacrificing; they want to live, but if they're going down, it ain't without a fight.

3. Plotlines

 UF have MUCH better plotlines IMO than their PNR counterparts. There's more mysteries to solve, evil to battle, obstacles to overcome. While I do like a bit of romance in my books, I am much more about the plot. 

4. The Obstacles

The best books are those where there's something for the characters to overcome...and you don't know how, or even IF, they will overcome it. This can be ANYTHING of course, but in UF it is *usually* a life or death kinda sitch. Then you have the whole planning, gearing up for battle and the tension of "OMG who is gonna die, someone is definitely dying, there is no way they're all making it out of here alive" which is both terrifying and exhilarating 

5. Personal Growth

Again, this happens in a lot of books, but I especially like the theme of it in UF. It usually starts off with a tough-as-nails heroine, who slowly comes to recognise that life is much better with people that you love and care about and can depend upon and builds herself a network of unusual but loyal friends. I like that. 

So there we have it...my five favourite things about UF. If you like UF, what do you like about it? What books and series' are your favourites? If you DON'T like it, has my post inspired you to maybe give it a go?

As I'm sure you're all aware, GFC will be vanishing in July. So I would appreciate it if you would:
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9 comments:

  1. I need to read more UF! There are awesome girls and I agree that the plot is usually better because although there is romance most of the time, the plot doesn't rely on it, so it gets to focus on lots of different interesting things! The only thing about UF is often you get a lot of cringey covers, I find...

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  2. I don't think I've read much Urban Fantasy before but I'm definitely going to try reading some now. Good to see you posting again! :)

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  3. I'm only just beginning to hear about it, but it's definitely something I'd be interested in. Like you, I much prefer plots to romances, so this type of book sounds right up my street! Any other recommendations?

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    1. Hi Kayleigh! I see that you recently reviewed City of Bones, that's YA UF!! I also really recommend Sarah Rees Brennan's Demon's Lexicon trilogy and Lili St. Crow's Strange Angels series for more YA UF. In terms of Adult UF; Kate Daniels series by Ilona Anndrews is my absolute favourite! The Mercy Thompson series by Patricia Briggs is also really good

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    2. Great, thank you - I'll definitely be checking those out!!

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  4. I don't know if True Blood (or Sookie Stackhouse as they also go by) is actually Urban Fantasy, but it's close. They have the same sort of feel to them as The Hollows and Mercy Thompsons books have .. There is also the Night Huntress series by Jeaniene Frost. They have some pretty mature content, but OMG they are SO good!
    I haven't read this myself, but Deborah Cooke has written an Urban Fantasy series about dragon shapeshifters called Dragonfire, and i heard really good things about that one.
    Anyway, i love urban fantasy too, for very much the same reasons you stated above. Also, they tend to be series rather than trilogies, and i really like that.

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    1. I LOVE the Night Huntress books and I used to really like the Sookie Stackhouse ones but they've gone a bit off the rails recently. I had heard of the Deborah Cooke series but haven't read it yet!

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  5. I absolutely love UF. It's my fist love in book genres and they are so much better than PNR. My fav is the Kate Daniels series and I'm a rabid fan. I've been more into YA lately as that's what is everywhere and a good UF that I haven't read is hard to find. Any suggestions?

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  6. I love UF too! I've just finished all of the Mortal Instruments books, and now waiting for the last one out next year. Don't know if you've read it, but they're pretty awesome, and v. popular at the moment thanks to the movie out this summer.
    Totally agree why you love urban fantasy so much, by the way!
    Also, it's great to see you blogging again. I used to read your reviews before you took a break :)

    - another YA blogger, Georgia x

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