This is Superman, Luke Skywalker, Harry Potter, Frodo. We have digested so many Chosen One stories. We are all, as eaters of pop culture, on the same page as we begin that book. Okay, we’ve got a very special orphan, the most magical orphan there is, and he’s on a train going to magic school. I was all of a sudden a full-time author, and I was writing this book for people like me. I also was at a place where I was a bit overwhelmed. When I sat down to write Carry On, I didn’t even realize how much Chosen One stuff I had inside of me. But with Wayward Son you really broke out beyond that original concept, specifically in your concept of a magical America. Whenever I introduce new readers to either Fangirl or Carry On, I feel like I have to carefully explain the nature of this quasi- Harry Potter fan fiction. best-seller list, follow the adventures of Simon Snow (a British boy with magical powers, which might sound familiar) and his wizarding-school roommate, rival, and eventual boyfriend, Baz.īut like the Harry Potter universe itself, Simon’s world has room for many more stories-and on Thursday, Rowell teased a third book in the series, titled Any Way the Wind Blows and coming “soon.” How soon is “soon”? As Rowell told Vanity Fair in a recent phone call, it at least won’t be a four-year wait again. Carry On, published in 2015, and now its long-awaited sequel, Wayward Son, currently at the top of the New York Times Y.A.
Fangirl, about a college freshman named Cath and her very popular Harry Potter-inspired fan fiction, not only struck a particularly resonant chord with her readers, but set the Nebraska-based Rowell on a surprising path to publishing some magical, J.K. She published two novels, Eleanor & Park and Fangirl, which cemented her reputation as a young adult fiction writer uniquely gifted at writing smart-yet-dreamy contemporary stories about sensitive young women and the very nice boys who like them. If any of thee topics or tropes are even remotely interesting to you, do yourself a favor and read CARRY ON because you will not regret it.In 2013, Rainbow Rowell had a year most authors dream of. She does all of this while still keeping a unique fanfiction feel. Rainbow Rowell is an amazing writer and does a fantastic job setting up the plot, creating believable and interesting conflicts, and developing characters.
This book has wizards, dragons, vampires, magic, other mythical creatures, and an LGBT romance that is written incredibly well. The magic system drives the plot, which although takes a back seat to the romance, is still a major hook for this novel. In addition to the romance, this book has a well-developed and interesting magic system that is based on commonly used phrases and songs in the English language. Simon’s ignorance, side-comments, and jokes along with Baz’s dastardly evil and running joke that he may-or-may-not be a vampire are delightful. It is a classic enemies-to-lovers romance that drives the entire book and makes the 500-plus pages feel like a short story. Simon and Baz have one of the best relationship dynamics in fantasy YA. The dialogue and banter is so entertaining that you’ll find yourself grinning as you flip through the pages. All of the characters in CARRY ON are overly-emotional, witty, and hysterical. This might annoy some readers, but it’s definitely a breath of fresh air if you often read serious-toned YA books released by major publishers. This means that this book is loaded with over-the-top fanfiction tropes that will make you feel plenty of second-hand embarrassment. One of the reasons CARRY ON is so creative is because it is written like it is supposed to be a fanfiction. He, along with his friend Penny, ex-girlfriend Agatha, and roommate/nemesis Baz, team up to investigate and defeat the insidious humdrum. Main character, Simon Snow, is a wizard and attends a wizarding school, just like Harry Potter, except he isn’t very good at magic. It’s actually supposed to be the fanfiction that Cath writes in Rainbow Rowell’s other book, FANGIRL. Rainbow Rowell’s CARRY ON is the ultimate young adult book for HARRY POTTER fans who shipped Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy.