Today’s my birthday (yay, 29) and I initially wanted to make a ’30 books to read before 30′ kind of list. But then I started adding more and more books and realised I am never going to be able to read these books in a year. So behold – my list of 50 books I want to try and read in my life. Now, there are a lot of series on here – ones I’ve started but never finished, ones I’ve not started at all. I decided to put each individual book on there instead of just adding these series (otherwise there’d just be way too many books).
Most of these books are books I already own and have owned for quite a long time, some are books I don’t own (yet) but will of course be acquired by the time I want to read them. So without further ado, let’s get into the list – the ones with a * behind it are books I already own.
THE MIDDLE EARTH BOOKS
I have of course read the Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings, but there are still so many more books in just the Middle-Earth realm that I haven’t read yet. There are even more of Tolkien’s other books, but for now, I just want to read the Middle-Earth books. The Silmarillion, Unfinished Tales of Númenor and Middle-Earth, Tales from the Perilous Realm, The Children of Húrin, Beren and Lúthien, The Fall of Gondolin.
THE INHERITANCE CYCLE
Years ago I read Eragon by Christopher Paolini and really enjoyed it. I have since picked up the rest of the series and have even gotten my hands on a copy of Christopher’s newest book (which has nothing to do with this series) but I haven’t read any of them. So I want to finish Eldest, Brisingr, Inheritance, The Fork, The Witch and the Worm.
THE OLD KINGDOM SERIES
Same as with Eragon, I read Sabriel a couple of years ago and really loved it. I also own the other five books in this series (though I believe there’s a sixth one coming later this year) and have yet to read any of them. Lireal, Abhorsen, Clariel, Goldenhand, Terciel and Elinor.
ARC OF A SCYTHE
A bit more of a ‘newer’ book series that I still haven’t read but own completely. Neal Shusterman’s Arc of a Scythe series. I loved the first book, but while I bought the second book the same day I bought Scythe, I still haven’t picked it up. I do think I’ll reread the first book and just read them back-to-back. Thunderhead, The Toll.
THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA
Confession time: I am not a fan of classics. However, classic fantasy usually goes a bit better, especially if they’re children’s books. Why have I not finished the Chronicles of Narnia then? Well, I guess I have no valid reason for it. I was thinking about picking up a bind-up of the whole series, so I guess I’ll have to check those out soon! The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, The Silver Chair, The Horse and His Boy, The Magician’s Nephew, The Last Battle.
ANDERSEN’S FAIRY TALES
I have owned a version of this book for a while and have read one or two stories out of it. I want to read the whole thing cover to cover just once so I can at least say I’ve read it! Goodreads Link.
GRIMM’S FAIRY TALES
Similar to Andersen’s book, though I have officially DNF-ed this one. I want to give it another go and again just read it cover to cover instead of reading the stories I know/like first. Goodreads Link.
N.K. JEMISIN’S BOOKS
The only full book I’ve read by this author was The City We Became, which I enjoyed immensely. I’ve been hearing great things especially about the Broken Earth books and I want to try those out as well as the Inheritance books. The Fifth Season, The Obelisk Gate, The Stone Sky, The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms, The Broken Kingdoms, The Kingdom of Gods.
DUTCH CLASSICS
Ok, these may not be true classics, but they are books I kind of grew up with. I don’t remember if I’ve read any of these properly when I was a kid, but I own a couple now and I really want to (re)read them. De Brief voor de Koning, Koning van Katoren, Kruistocht in Spijkerbroek.
THE BONE WITCH TRILOGY
Again I’ve read one book by Rin Chupeco, which I honestly didn’t love. But I’m willing to give them another chance by reading one of their earlier series which I’ve heard great things about! The Bone Witch, The Heart Forger, The Shadowglass.
THE POPPY WAR TRILOGY
I got my first book signed by the author but still have not picked it up. This is again a series I’ve heard nothing but praise for and have been wanting to read for such a long time. I think it’s time I finally picked them up! The Poppy War, The Dragon Republic, The Burning God.
THE WITCHER SERIES
I’ve read the first book (or the first short story collection) in this series and wasn’t a huge fan but I hope the proper series of this might be more enjoyable. I’m willing to give it another chance, at least! Season of Storms, Sword of Destiny, Blood of Elves, The Time of Contempt, Baptism of Fire, The Tower of the Swallow, Lady of the Lake.
HOWL’S MOVING CASTLE SERIES
I love the Ghibli movie inspired by the first book in this series and while I didn’t love the book as much, I still really enjoyed it and want to continue the series! Castle in the Air, House of Many Ways.
SONG OF THE LIONESS QUARTET
I know a friend of mine will be jumping with joy if she reads this, but I really want to continue this series! I liked the first one but never ended up picking up the rest of this quartet. I think soon it is finally time to finish off this series! In the Hand of the Goddess, The Woman Who Rides Like a Man, Lioness Rampant.
There are of course many more books I want to read than just these ones, but I think this is a very nice list! Now, tell me – which of these should I prioritize?
an ace reader 
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