What Our Community Writers Read In March 2025

For those who have read the core Hunger Games trilogy, a lot of background is provided about Haymitch's Hunger Games, particularly the second Quarter Quell, the 50th Hunger Games.

We already know there are double the usual number of contestants. We know Haymitch forms an alliance with Maysilee, a childhood friend of Katniss’s mother, Mrs. Everdeen. We also know the specifics of how Haymitch wins his Hunger Games and, tragically, loses everyone he loves. Furthermore, we see how Haymitch views himself in a way similar to Katniss, shaped by the brutal experiences of his own Games and the painful consequences of his victory.

However, what we don’t know going into Sunrise on the Reaping is the details of who plays a pivotal role in Haymitch’s life. The novel answers questions that have long been left unanswered, such as which characters will make cameos, how Panem destroys his family and his love, and what led to his eventual descent into alcoholism.

A retelling of the Grimm Brothers' Godfather Death, The Thirteenth Child follows the story of Hazel, the thirteenth child in her family, who is blessed by The Dreaded End, also known as the God of Death. Hazel is given the ability to see the cure to all injuries and illnesses and is tasked with being the greatest healer in the land.

However, her task comes with some heavy responsibility once she realizes that some cures aren’t meant to mend but to end. Due to her impressive talents, she is brought before the king and given the order to cure him of his mysterious affliction. Failure to do so may mean the destruction of the kingdom as she knows it, but success could cost her more than she may be willing to pay.

I was pleasantly surprised by the level of enjoyment I found in this read. I’m a big lover of fairy tale retellings, and The Thirteenth Child is no exception. While I’ve never read a retelling of this story, I found the characters endearing, the plot gripping, the settings atmospheric, and the end satisfying.

Putting it kindly, Belethea is a backwater planet full of violent storms. There may not be much to see, but the storms provide the perfect landscape for the Belethea Race Royale (BRR), attracting racers, spectators, and sponsors from all over the system.

Ezren Hart loves her planet and will give her all to take care of it and her family, despite her limited resources. Foster Sterling, racer for Belethea, is pretty jaded after his partner’s sudden death last year. When the research lab Ezren works at loses its funding, Ezren must decide how far she’s willing to go to provide for her family and save her planet.

This whole series is like candy to me. Into the Churn is a fast-paced young adult sci-fi story with a fierce underdog main character, a grumpy main character, a high-stakes competition, and some delightful supporting characters. And let’s not forget Waffle, the family capybog (half capybara, half dog). There’s wonderful world-building complete with in-world lingo and a great adventure to get caught up in.

This epistolary novel is set in the early 20th century and follows Celie, a young African American woman who writes letters to God, thinking he is the only person she can tell the truth to. Throughout the story, we see her deal with misogyny, domestic abuse, racism, and her feelings about God, the world, and herself.

We watch her grow as she becomes closer to the other women in her life and builds a sense of community with them. The story also touches on colonialism and was one of the books I read for my contemporary literature module at uni.

Out of all the books I've read so far, I enjoyed this one the most—it was wonderfully crafted! Celie was such an easy character to root for, and I love hearing her thoughts and opinions on everything around her. The way Walker uses language to convey character, setting, and culture is beautiful and makes the book a fast read despite the difficult topics it touches upon.

Peter Lake has lived life as a thief for years, when one night a white horse appears and helps him escape those in pursuit. When he decides to try and steal from a particular house, he discovers Beverly, a lovely young woman who is dying of consumption, and despite what he tried to do, her family accepts Peter readily. Following Beverly's death, Peter eventually finds himself in another time.

Winter’s Tale is a beautiful masterpiece of lyricism and whimsy. Reading this book felt like stepping into a beautiful dream, full of dynamic characters and descriptions that leave one feeling full of emotions. I loved that even in the sadder moments, the book leaves you full of hope.

Rebel Witch is the second book of The Crimson Moth duology, bringing Rune and Gideon’s story to its thrilling conclusion. Taking place soon after the events of Heartless Hunter, Rune is on the run from the Republic, but most especially from Gideon Sharpe—the boy she fell for and who wants her dead. This leaves Rune in the tenuous position of needing to ally herself with Cressida Roseblood, the witch who made Gideon’s life a living hell.

Gideon cannot let Cressida bring back the Reign of Witches and bring his worst nightmares to fruition. He cannot let everything he’s worked for crumble. Each fighting their own hearts, Rune and Gideon find themselves at an impasse. Together, they either have to find a solution or watch their worlds burn.

I loved this book! I had already loved Heartless Hunter, but Rebel Witch blew it out of the water by upping the stakes and the tensions. I especially loved watching Gideon’s arc since he goes through so much stretching and growth as he battles to understand multiple truths about those around him. I also really appreciated watching Rune grow to truly see what Gideon has borne for the sake of something better, and I loved seeing their journey to accept that they needed each other.

Reading Gilded by Marissa Meyer felt like falling into a storybook that’s been dipped in moonlight and shadow. A retelling of Rumpelstiltskin with a deliciously dark twist, it follows Serilda, our charmingly cursed heroine, who lies so well her stories start to feel real… which becomes a problem when she crosses paths with the terrifying Erlking.

What follows is a haunting, slow-burn tale full of ancient curses, ghostly lore, and impossible choices. The world is gorgeously grim: haunted corridors full of ghosts that grieve, forests that breathe out secrets, and castles that remember.

Meyer’s writing felt like slipping into a dark dream, full of rusted keys, midnight bargains, and spinning wheels dripping with gold and dread. I loved how the book walked the line between fairy tale and horror and how Serilda, armed with nothing but stories, weaves these myths as both defense and defiance.

If you love dark and twisted fairytales and heroines who defy fate with their wit, this one’s for you.

Ali Hazelwood’s foray into sports romance follows Scarlett and Lukas as they learn, train, and fall in love while training for the Olympics. Scarlett is a diver who's trying to come back from an injury, and Lukas is a swimmer with his own obstacles.

Scarlett and Lukas have nothing in common until a secret is revealed, and they find out they have a deeper connection than they originally knew. As tensions rise, Scarlett and Lukas will both find that what they need most of all is each other.

I’m new to sports romance, especially books that don’t focus on hockey, so I found this book to be a nice change of pace. Scarlett and Lukas were great characters with personalities and fantastic backstories. The writing style in this book shows the ups and downs of student-athletes in a fun and engaging way. I loved the balance between training, meets, and time out of the pool as we explored Scarlett and Luka’s romance.

The River Has Roots is the new novel from Amal El-Mohtar, co-author of This is How You Lose The Time War. This beautiful story has its roots in the old Murder Ballads, fairy tales, and folklore.

The book follows two sisters, Ysabel and Esther Hawthorn, who share a deep bond of love and whose daily task is to sing to the willows that grow on their family’s land on the banks of the magical River Liss, flowing out of Faeryland and into the mortal realm. The river imbues the trees with magical properties, and their wood can then be used for many purposes once harvested. The Hawthorn girls sing to thank them for the magic in honor of an ancient pact.

The mortals of Thistleford are aware of faery-kind but wary of them, and this contributes to a lot of the tensions arising in the book. When one of the sisters falls in love with a faerie, favoring them over a human suitor, the consequences are dire, and a question is posed: Is love as strong as death?

Set in a Rome-inspired world, Firebird by Juliette Cross is a dragon shifter romantasy about a dancer turned slave and the man who helps save her.

Malina Bihari used to dance before her life was flipped upside down. One of her last performances was where she first met Julianus Dakkia, a centurion and enemy to her people. Three years after that fateful meeting, Julianus and Malina come together again in unexpected ways, and life is not the same as it once was.

Stealing Malina away from danger puts a target on her back, which is never a good thing in this vengeful empire. Forced proximity, “you’re mine”, a Master and Slave relationship (in more ways than one), and double-faced characters make this a wonderful read.

I read Firebird about 20 minutes after finishing Onyx Storm, and it was the perfect book that kept me out of a reading slump. I needed something with enemies-to-lovers, dragons, spice, and some heartache to cure me of this thing called a “book hangover,” and this bad boy did it.

They Both Die at the End is, in fact, the title of this series and not a spoiler. Death Cast has been around for a while now, an app created to give you a call on the day you’re going to die, but not how or when.

When two strangers get a call on the same day, Mateo Torrez and Rufus Emeterio actually meet through another app called the Last Friend, so they won’t be alone on what is known as their End Day. This slow-paced story takes place in less than a 24-hour time period, following two boys on a journey to live their last day to the fullest, together.

This has to be one of my favorite reads of all time. This book shows the depth of how we would view the world differently if we knew when we were going to die on our End Days.

As someone who worries about death all the time, I wasn’t sure it would be better if I knew. But after reading about how these characters change and blossom into someone they want to become within such a short period of time, I’ve been inspired to live my life a little more freely, even though Death Cast doesn’t actually exist in our world.