Book picks similar to
Rebel Elements by Jasmine Giacomo


fantasy
magic
high-fantasy
low-likelihood-of-reading

City of Masks


Ashley Capes - 2014
    Yet the sentient bone mask, powerful enough to Compel those around her, will not speak, and Sofia, the first female Protector in a hundred years, is left defenceless.Hunted by the king, she is driven from the palace and must fight for survival, alone in the cold streets of Anaskar. There, she crosses paths with Notch, a bitter mercenary with problems of his own. Accused of murder, Notch is trying to clear his name while hunted by the city's robed assassins, the very people who are now searching for Sofia.To take back their city and cast down the tyrant on the throne, Sofia and Notch must face the blades of Anaskar's assassins, the rage of a mighty sea beast, and the mysterious Lupo, a man with a Greatmask of his own, who has masterminded vicious terrorist attacks on the city that spurned him.Their struggle threatens to tear the city – and the kingdom - into shreds.

A Guile of Dragons


James Enge - 2012
    Now the dragons have returned, allied with the dead kings of Cor and backed by the masked gods of Fate and Chaos. The dwarves are cut cut off from the Graith of Guardians in the south. Their defenders are taken prisoner or corrupted by dragonspells. The weight of guarding the Northhold now rests on the crooked shoulders of a traitor’s son, Morlock syr Theorn (also called Ambrosius). But his wounded mind has learned a dark secret in the hidden ways under the mountains. Regin and Fafnir were brothers, and the Longest War can never be over...

Battle Mage


Peter A. Flannery - 2017
    But the ancient bond with dragonkind is failing. Of those that answer a summoning too many are black. Black dragons are the enemy of humankind. Black dragons are mad.Falco Dante is a weakling in a world of warriors, but worse than this, he is the son of a madman. Driven by grief, Falco makes a decision that will drive him to the brink of despair. As he tries to come to terms with his actions Falco follows his friends to the Academy of War, an elite training school dedicated to martial excellence. But while his friends make progress he struggles to overcome his doubts and insecurity. Even Queen Catherine of Wrath has her doubts about Falco’s training.While the Queen tries to unite the Kingdoms against the Possessed, Falco struggles to overcome his fears. Will he unlock the power trapped inside him or will he succumb to madness and murder like his father?

The Orphan Queen


Jodi Meadows - 2015
    When the Indigo Kingdom conquered her homeland, Wilhelmina and other orphaned children of nobility were taken to Skyvale, the Indigo Kingdom’s capital. Ten years later, they are the Ospreys, experts at stealth and theft. With them, Wilhelmina means to take back her throne.She is a spy. Wil and her best friend, Melanie, infiltrate Skyvale Palace to study their foes. They assume the identities of nobles from a wraith-fallen kingdom, but enemies fill the palace, and Melanie’s behavior grows suspicious. With Osprey missions becoming increasingly dangerous and their leader more unstable, Wil can’t trust anyone.She is a threat. Wraith is the toxic by-product of magic, and for a century using magic has been forbidden. Still the wraith pours across the continent, reshaping the land and animals into fresh horrors. Soon it will reach the Indigo Kingdom. Wilhelmina’s magic might be the key to stopping the wraith, but if the vigilante Black Knife discovers Wil’s magic, she will vanish like all the others.Jodi Meadows introduces a vivid new fantasy full of intrigue, romance, dangerous magic, and one girl’s battle to reclaim her place in the world.

Firebolt


Adrienne Woods - 2013
    Right. Teenage girls don’t believe in fairy tales, and sixteen-year old Elena Watkins was no different.Until the night a fairy tale killed her father.Now Elena’s in a new world, and a new school. The cutest guy around may be an evil dragon, a Prince wants Elena’s heart, and a long dead sorcerer may be waking up to kill her. Oh. And the only way Elena’s going to graduate is on the back of a dragon of her own.Teenage girls don’t believe in fairy tales. Now it’s time for Elena to believe – in herself.

Schooled in Magic


Christopher G. Nuttall - 2014
    Rescued in the nick of time by an enigmatic sorcerer, she discovers that she possesses magical powers and must go to Whitehall School to learn how to master them. There, she learns the locals believe that she is a "Child of Destiny," someone whose choices might save or damn their world ... a title that earns her both friends and enemies. A stranger in a very strange land, she may never fit into her new world ... ...and the necromancer is still hunting her. If Emily can't stop him, he might bring about the end of days. Book I in the Schooled in Magic series.

Rebellion


Rachel Cotterill - 2010
    The Imperial system prides itself on unassailable perfection. In desperation she rejects her assignment and the quality of life she would have been guaranteed - and finds her imagination captured by legends which tell of a secret society of elite assassins.

Beasts of the Frozen Sun


Jill Criswell - 2019
    Love fiercely. For all else is dust.Every child of Glasnith learns the last words of Aillira, the god-gifted mortal whose doomed love affair sparked a war of gods and men, and Lira of clan Stone knows the story better than most. As a descendant of Aillira and god-gifted in her own right, she has the power to read people's souls, to see someone's true essence with only a touch of her hand.When a golden-haired warrior washes up on the shores of her homeland--one of the fearful marauders from the land of the Frozen Sun--Lira helps the wounded man instead of turning him in. After reading his soul, she realizes Reyker is different than his brethren who attack the coasts of Glasnith. He confides in her that he's been cursed with what his people call battle-madness, forced to fight for the warlord known as the Dragon, a powerful tyrant determined to reignite the ancient war that Aillira started.As Lira and Reyker form a bond forbidden by both their clans, the wrath of the Dragon falls upon them and all of Glasnith, and Lira finds herself facing the same tragic fate as her ancestor. The battle for Lira's life, for Reyker's soul, and for their peoples' freedom has only just begun.

The Knight of Inner Light: The Phoenix Empire - Book 1


Josh Hilp - 2018
    This power leaves him with newfound responsibilities, and problems, as he struggles to keep important promises to those around him and those long gone as the world around him begins a slow, painful descent into chaos and darkness as demons begin roaming the lands for the first time in an Age. Wes's power might just be able to make the difference and save everyone, but he's just one boy. Beyond demons and darkness, Wes has to come to terms with the fear that magic, especially his own immense new power invokes in the people of the Kingdom of Strata, as well as the class system that leaves the nobility towering over those they deem beneath themselves. Even if he manages to save the Kingdom, and those around him, will he still be a good person when all is said and done?

SunRider


Rafael Hohmann - 2017
    These individuals have been dubbed the Star-Children, and their magical suits of armor can reshape land, nations, and the future of man. Each of them wield a seemingly random and distinctive power: thecapability to create clouds of gems, the skill to bend lightning by command, the means to suck the air out of one’s lungs. They are marked by the bracers they wear: a single piece donning their arm, a piece which shifts and slides, forming their unique armored suits of might.No one knows why these bracers have fallen from Lenova’s skies, picking seemingly random individuals to hold such power. In the absence of knowledge and with superior beings now in existence, chaos reigns. The few Star-Children with morals wield their powers with honor, those with darker intentions...seek blood and conquest.In the midst of this emerging chaos, teenager Finn SunRider only cares for escaping the mines within the burning desert of the Crust and exploring the world he lives in. When an ancient bracer different from those which have fallen from the sky grafts onto Finn’s arm and the last of a dead racewarns that albeit no future is certain, he will be thrust in the middle of godly battles and mystery, Finn’s plans of freedom take a different turn.

Daughter of Shades


Sylvia Mercedes - 2019
    A rival with a secret.A kingdom’s fate hangs in the balance . . . Ayleth and her shade move as one, ever hungry for the hunt. Under her mentor’s tight control, she fears her memories are being stolen. Now nineteen, apprenticed for as long as she can remember to the mysterious Holy Order, she longs to rise in the ranks and banish untamed spirits for the prophesied Golden Prince.When shadowy threats descend on the crown, Ayleth seizes a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to prove her worth in open competition. Seeking to win the prince’s favor and escape her scheming mentor, she resolves to hold her own against Terryn, a handsome, arrogant opponent who may be more than a match for her untested powers. But as the two rivals follow a trail beyond the Great Barrier and confront legendary evil, the stolen secrets of Ayleth’s past may return to haunt her . . .Can Ayleth win the trial and reclaim her true self? Can she even survive her first day?Daughter of Shades is the first breathtaking book in The Venatrix Chronicles YA fantasy series. If you like kick-butt heroines, intriguing worlds of magic, and slow-burn romance then you’ll love Sylvia Mercedes’s action-packed story.

The Cleansing Flame


J.A. Hutson - 2019
    A key that opens passages between the worlds. The nameless warrior has nothing else. No allies, no armor, not even the memory of how he came to be trapped within this dying land, pursued across a red waste by the monstrous Shriven. But all hope is not lost. There are other survivors amidst the desolation, holding clues as to where he has come from and what he must do: Amara, the Red Sword of her tribe, a beautiful and fiery swordswoman obsessed with destroying the demons that plague her people, and Valyra, a young sorceress who can weave the broken threads of this reality into something whole once more. Together they will try to resist the evil that stalks the wastes. But this world is only one among many, and in order to unravel his mysteries the warrior must find the doorways which will allow him to stride between the stars and pass into even stranger lands . . . The Cleansing Flame is for readers over the age of 18. It contains a harem and explicit situations.

Initializing


K.T. Hanna - 2018
    Determined to overcome the unexpected setback, she assembles her guild, intent on the coveted #1 spot. Twelve keys stand between her and victory, but finding them is only part of the puzzle.Armed with telepathic abilities, Murmur rises to the challenge. However, old rivals have followed her to Somnia Online desperate for revenge. Intricate quest lines become more dangerous as NPCs absorb powerful artifacts, and Murmur begins to wonder just what sort of AI controls the world. Murmur questions her sanity as the real and virtual worlds mesh together. Everyone is keeping secrets from her, even the AI, and Murmur’s determined to uncover them.

The Burning Sky


Sherry Thomas - 2013
    The one prophesied for years to be the savior of The Realm. It is her duty and destiny to face and defeat the Bane, the most powerful tyrant and mage the world has ever known. This would be a suicide task for anyone, let alone a reluctant sixteen-year-old girl with no training.Guided by his mother's visions and committed to avenging his family, Prince Titus has sworn to protect Iolanthe even as he prepares her for their battle with the Bane. But he makes the terrifying mistake of falling in love with the girl who should have been only a means to an end. Now, with the servants of the tyrant closing in, Titus must choose between his mission—and her life.The Burning Sky—the first book in the Elemental Trilogy—is an electrifying and unforgettable novel of intrigue and adventure.

Child of the Ghosts


Jonathan Moeller - 2011
    She learns the secrets of disguise and stealth, of assassination and infiltration.But even that might not be enough to save her.For the evil that destroyed her family seeks to devour the entire world...