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magical realism

36 books.

The House of the Spirits

by: Isabel Allende
Ave. Rating: 4.25
Pages: 448
Year Published: 2005 (1982)
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To The Bright Edge of the World

by: Eowyn Ivey
Ave. Rating: 4.1
Pages: 417
Year Published: 2016
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"4.5. This is just beautifully written. I was engrossed in the setting - time and place. I loved the way it was a compilation of artifacts. That was such a fun and interesting way to paint a complete picture! I really grew to love all of the characters.

And as always, I LOVED the magical realism elements.

The only reason it was 4.5 instead of 5 was that weirdly...not a lot happened. The characters were certainly developed but the plot was fairly simple."
- katelynn
07/17/2019

The Last of the Moon Girls

by: Barbara Davis
Ave. Rating: 4.18
Pages: 397
Year Published: 2020
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The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender

by: Leslye Walton
Ave. Rating: 4.02
Pages: 301
Year Published: 2014
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The Sugar Queen

by: Sarah Addison Allen
Ave. Rating: 3.98
Pages: 290
Year Published: 2008
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The Thirteenth Tale

by: Diane Setterfield
Ave. Rating: 3.96
Pages: 406
Year Published: 2006
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"What a fantastic gothic mystery in the vein of Jane Eyre, The Woman in White, and anything at all by Kate Morton. The language was beautiful, causing me to think for a while that it was either written in the more distant past or else set in the past. But no! It’s just incredible writing weaving a thick atmosphere and crafting complex and really unique characters.

There was one moment, right in the middle of this serious, heavy novel, where the author makes a self-aware joke that made me laugh out loud!

Surprises: this was much darker than I expected. On a scale from 0-10 of how twisted a plot is, this was about a 2.5 where I usually read at 0-1. But it didn’t ruin it for me."
- katelynn
10/30/2019
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Practical Magic

by: Alice Hoffman
Ave. Rating: 3.76
Pages: 244
Year Published: 1995
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"3.5

I wish I read this book before I read Garden Spells because it’s clearly the inspiration. This book is just Garden Spells with less charm and more darkness, set in the Northeast instead of the Southeast.

That being said, I will always love this genre and the writing was lovely at times."
- katelynn
11/14/2020
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Becoming Leidah

by: Michelle Grierson
Ave. Rating: 3.52
Pages: 336
Year Published: 2021
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The Seas

by: Samantha Hunt
Ave. Rating: 4.04
Pages: 193
Year Published: 2005 (2004)
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The Cost of Knowing

by: Brittney Morris
Ave. Rating: 4.04
Pages: 336
Year Published: 2021
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The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake

by: Aimee Bender
Ave. Rating: 3.24
Pages: 292
Year Published: 2010
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The Dovekeepers

by: Alice Hoffman
Ave. Rating: 4.05
Pages: 504
Year Published: 2011
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The World That We Knew

by: Alice Hoffman
Ave. Rating: 4.19
Pages: 372
Year Published: 2019
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The Water Dancer

by: Ta-Nehisi Coates
Ave. Rating: 4.07
Pages: 416
Year Published: 2019
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Woven in Moonlight (Woven in Moonlight, #1)

by: Isabel Ibañez
Ave. Rating: 3.9
Pages: 384
Year Published: 2020
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What It Means When a Man Falls from the Sky

by: Lesley Nneka Arimah
Ave. Rating: 4.12
Pages: 232
Year Published: 2017
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The Peach Keeper

by: Sarah Addison Allen
Ave. Rating: 3.85
Pages: 273
Year Published: 2011
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"As with every other Allen book I've read, this was a delight from start to finish. It's thoroughly southern and magical. She writes romance so well!

The story was simple, but that didn't bother me. For this author, it's all about the setting and atmosphere and magic - with some great character growth thrown in for good measure. "
- katelynn
02/12/2020

The Girl Who Chased the Moon

by: Sarah Addison Allen
Ave. Rating: 3.97
Pages: 269
Year Published: 2010
Date Read: 12/12/2019
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The Terror

by: Dan Simmons
Ave. Rating: 4.02
Pages: 769
Year Published: 2007
Date Read: 01/06/2019
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The Snow Child

by: Eowyn Ivey
Ave. Rating: 3.97
Pages: 404
Year Published: 2012
Date Read: 02/27/2019
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The Keeper of Lost Things

by: Ruth Hogan
Ave. Rating: 3.81
Pages: 288
Year Published: 2017
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"I LOVE this. Heart and humor, whimsy and magic. This put me in mind of Sarah Addison Allen - with a British twist. It was charming, but not superficial, from beginning to end."
- katelynn
10/19/2020

The Bone People

by: Keri Hulme
Ave. Rating: 4.05
Pages: 450
Year Published: 1986 (1984)
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First Frost (Waverley Family, #2)

by: Sarah Addison Allen
Ave. Rating: 3.97
Pages: 296
Year Published: 2015
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"This story plunged me right back into that wonderful, magical Waverly world. Even the most simple plotlines (and this was a very simple story) are completely enchanting! I certainly don't think this followup novel was as riveting as the first, but I still loved it. Sweet characters, beautiful language, easy-to-relate-to issues handled in thoughtful ways, all wrapped up in a lovely package with just the littlest bit of magic."
- katelynn
11/03/2019

The Hummingbird's Daughter

by: Luis Alberto Urrea
Ave. Rating: 4.19
Pages: 528
Year Published: 2006 (2005)
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The Midnight Library

by: Matt Haig
Ave. Rating: 4.12
Pages: 304
Year Published: 2020
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Once Upon a River

by: Diane Setterfield
Ave. Rating: 3.95
Pages: 464
Year Published: 2018
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"This book was wonderful.
Just enough gothic, just enough fairy tale, just enough adult/complex relationships and struggle - this will be a favorite. I love the language, sense of place, and story-telling themes.

Now we need a movie, please and thank you."
- katelynn
03/05/2020

Augustown

by: Kei Miller
Ave. Rating: 4.31
Pages: 368
Year Published: 2016
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Island Beneath the Sea

by: Isabel Allende
Ave. Rating: 4.07
Pages: 457
Year Published: 2010 (2009)
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Midnight at the Blackbird Café

by: Heather Webber
Ave. Rating: 4.07
Pages: 336
Year Published: 2019
Date Read: 04/07/2021
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Harry's Trees

by: Jon Cohen
Ave. Rating: 4.19
Pages: 432
Year Published: 2018
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"This was a complex and modern fairy tale, with all of the magic and wonder and none of the young adult drama that "modern fairy tale" usually includes. It dealt with real, adult issues in a multi-faceted, thoughtful way. I absolutely loved the combination of fairy tale elements and the exploration of grief and the forms it takes. Somehow the magic makes the delivery of the message even more potent."
- katelynn
01/16/2019
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Garden Spells (Waverley Family, #1)

by: Sarah Addison Allen
Ave. Rating: 4.03
Pages: 290
Year Published: 2007
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"I wish I could give more stars! I devoured this book and was sad when it ended. It was so completely wonderful- I loved the setting, the garden and cooking themes, the growing relationships, and the MAGIC! Magical realism is a genre I am coming to really adore - it's just enough magic to make the novel sort of hazy and romantic. Everything about this novel was romantic, in the literal and the classical sense. I related to the main character's introversion and creativity expressed through food - watching her open up and grow as a sister, friend, and love interest was a joy. And the ensemble of characters in the family and the town made me think of Stars Hollow, so that was a win. Just read this book!!"
- katelynn
01/13/2019

Hell of a Book

by: Jason Mott
Ave. Rating: 3.85
Pages: 323
Year Published: 2021
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The Absolute Book

by: Elizabeth Knox
Ave. Rating: 3.39
Pages: 656
Year Published: 2019
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The Rules of Magic (Practical Magic, #0.2)

by: Alice Hoffman
Ave. Rating: 3.98
Pages: 369
Year Published: 2017
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