 | Summers at Castle Auburn by Sharon Shinn
Buy new: $7.99 / Used from: $0.71 Corie travels to Castle Auburn every summer, where she lives with her half-sister, experiencing a very different life for three months. At the start of the story, Corie is 14, and slightly silly. As it progresses, however, you see Corie change and mature. Shinn characterizes so well, and the mix of court intrigue, romance and a pinch of magic is wonderful. Love it to bits!
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 | The Safe-Keeper's Secret by Sharon Shinn
Buy new: $6.99 / Used from: $2.90 Gentle and sweet, with a nice twist near the end. There are three books in this series, but they can all be read as stand-alones.
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 | The Truth-Teller's Tale by Sharon Shinn
Buy new: $7.99 / Used from: $2.99 My favourite of the three, as it has the best romance!
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 | The Dream-Maker's Magic by Sharon Shinn
Buy new: $7.99 / Used from: $2.60 Third in the series.
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 | The Thief (The Queen's Thief, Book 1) by Megan Whalen Turner
Buy new: $6.99 / Used from: $0.50 So technically this book isn't 'female-oriented', but the thief Gen is the most charismatic, devil-may-care, witty and clever character you'll meet in a long time! The next two books introduce two great female characters, and Gen grows up, fast.
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 | The Queen of Attolia (The Queen's Thief, Book 2) by Megan Whalen Turner
Buy new: $6.99 / Used from: $1.89 Possibly my favourite, these books are so clever and twisty, and GOOD!
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 | The King of Attolia (The Queen's Thief, Book 3) by Megan Whalen Turner
Buy new: $7.99 / Used from: $4.82 The third book (with a promise of more to come!), still brilliant, still love Gen!
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 | Book of a Thousand Days by Shannon Hale
Buy new: $12.21 / Used from: $5.99 An obscure fairy tale retold in diary form. Loved it!
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 | The Goose Girl (Books of Bayern) by Shannon Hale
Buy new: $8.99 / Used from: $2.29 A wonderful re-telling of the fairy tale. There are two (with a third coming) after this, involving other characters, and although they're not as good, they're still worth reading - Shannon Hale is a great writer.
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 | Princess Academy by Shannon Hale
Buy new: $7.95 / Used from: $0.57 Aimed at a bit younger audience, but still very enjoyable, and highly original in setting and world-building.
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 | Wildwood Dancing by Juliet Marillier
Buy new: $9.99 / Used from: $0.01 A re-telling of the fairy-tale of the twelve dancing princesses. Marillier incorporates great romances into her stories; my favourite book of hers is Daughter of the Forest, another fairy tale re-telling aimed more at adults.
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 | Cybele's Secret by Juliet Marillier
Buy new: $11.55 / Used from: $5.25 Sequel of sorts to Wildwood Dancing, telling another of the sisters' story. Great love triangle in this one, but I secretly was a bit disappointed with the heroine's final choice!
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 | The Sherwood Ring by Elizabeth Marie Pope
Buy new: $6.99 / Used from: $0.49 A little-known gem. This book is clever, witty and romantic. Three romances in one book and the drool-worthy Peacable Sherwood...what more could you want from a book?!
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 | The Perilous Gard by Elizabeth Marie Pope
Buy new: $6.99 / Used from: $0.01 A re-telling of Tam-lin. I just wish Elizabeth Marie Pope had written more than two books in her lifetime!
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 | A Great and Terrible Beauty (The Gemma Doyle Trilogy) by Libba Bray
Buy new: $9.99 / Used from: $0.48 First in a trilogy about Gemma Doyle, who, after her mother's sudden death in India, is sent to an English finishing school where she discovers old secrets and an even more ancient power. Shivery and Gothic, but with a very modern voice.
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 | The Hollow Kingdom: Book I -- The Hollow Kingdom Trilogy by Clare B. Dunkle
Buy new: $6.95 / Used from: $3.08 First in a trilogy, but I've yet to read the next two. Great story involving disappearances and goblins and an unusual romance!
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 | Sorcery and Cecelia or The Enchanted Chocolate Pot by Patricia C. Wrede
Buy new: $6.95 / Used from: $0.21 Set in an alternative regency England, where magic is real and (mostly) everyday. The story is told by letters exchanged between Kate and Cecelia. Fun and original!
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 | Wolf Tower: The Claidi Journals I (Claidi Journals, 1) by Tanith Lee
Buy new: $6.99 / Used from: $0.01 Weird, but wonderful! I love Claidi's voice, and her individual brand of humour. There are three books after this one, too.
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 | Elske: A Novel of the Kingdom by Cynthia Voigt
Buy new: $5.99 / Used from: $0.42 A great little story.
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 | On Fortune's Wheel by Cynthia Voigt
Buy new: $6.99 / Used from: $0.01 Set in the same world as 'Elske', with adventure, danger and romance!
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 | Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones
Buy new: $6.99 / Used from: $3.77 Fun read, Howl is a great character. The anime is great too, but very different to the book.
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 | Hawksong: The Kiesha'ra: Volume One by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes
Buy new: $7.99 / Used from: $4.44 I'm a sucker for the sort of romance in this book, but it has interesting world-building and cultures too.
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 | Mara, Daughter of the Nile (Puffin Story Books) by Eloise Jarvis McGraw
Buy new: $6.99 / Used from: $0.01 Alright, so these last three aren't fantasy, but they're brilliant anyway. Mara is an Egyptian slave girl who escapes an abusive master, only to find herself blackmailed into being a spy - for two opposing sides! It doesn't help that one of her new masters is young, attractive, clever...and suspicious of Mara. A great historical romance.
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 | I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
Buy new: $10.19 / Used from: $1.97 This is the diary of Cassandra Mortmain. Her and her eccentric family live in a crumbling castle that becomes leakier and emptier as they sell off furniture in order to make money. Things change when two rich, American brothers move into nearby Scoatney Hall... This book is refreshingly honest, and by the bittersweet end, Cassandra feels like a real friend.
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 | The Only Alien on the Planet by Kristen Randle
Buy new: $8.99 / Used from: $3.99 Superbly interesting and absorbing, as one girl reaches out to 'Smitty', a boy who hasn't spoken or touched anyone in years.
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