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BOOK LIST:

Playthings of the Gods: Fantasy

Updated: December 23, 2020

Be careful what you wish for - these fantasies show what happens when the Gods and/or the Powers That Be take a personal interest in someone.


Book cover for The anvil of the world
The anvil of the world
Baker, Kage.
Smith, a retired assassin turned caravan master, turns out to be much more than even he realized as he deals with a variety of eccentric passengers, a gross of glass butterflies, other assassins, and more than a few demons.

Book cover for The bird king
The bird king
Wilson, G. Willow, 1982-

In the sultan’s palace in Granada, Fatima is a concubine who yearns for freedom. Outside the palace gates the Inquisition lays siege to the city. When she recognizes the threat that the Inquisition poses to her friend Hassan, a mapmaker with magical gifts, the two of them escape into the night, risking the wrath of the Sultanate in a quest for freedom and survival. This is a historical fantasy with charming characters and lyrical writing. 


Book cover for The curse of Chalion
The curse of Chalion
Bujold, Lois McMaster.
Cazaril, a former soldier and courtier betrayed into slavery, returns to the noble family he once served to tutor the sister of Chalion's heir. But his willingness to sacrifice everything to save the young Royesse brings him to the attention of one of the Five Gods.

Book cover for Divine by mistake
Divine by mistake
Cast, P. C.
During her summer vacation, teacher Shannon Parker purchases a Celtic vase, and finds herself transported to the world of Partholon where she becomes the Goddess Incarnate of Epona. Now she must find a way to return to Oklahoma before war erupts - and she is married off to a centaur.

Book cover for The fairy godmother
The fairy godmother
Lackey, Mercedes.
In the mystical realm of the Five Hundred Kingdoms, the Tradition is the underlying force which tries to assign every inhabitant into their proper fairytale role. Denied her predestined Cinderella life, Elena becomes apprentice to the local Fairy Godmother, whose job it is to ensure that evil does not subvert Tradition.

Book cover for The golden compass
The golden compass
Pullman, Philip, 1946-
In a world something like ours in the late 19th century, a girl named Lyra and her daemon set off to save a kidnapped friend. What she doesn't know is that her recently discovered parents are caught up in a battle that will shake the very foundation of not only her world, but many others, and that she is destined to play an important role in that battle.

Book cover for The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms
The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms
Jemisin, N. K.

After a war in the distant past between rival gods, the losing deities were forced to become slaves to mortal humans. A young woman, named possible heir to the Hundred Thousand Kingdoms, finds her life increasingly complicated by these subjugated gods.


Book cover for The immortal prince
The immortal prince
Fallon, Jennifer.
Scholar Arkady Desean interviews Cayal, a murderer who cannot die, and discovers that the tales of immortal Tide Lords - who created hybrid slaves and almost destroyed the world in a deadly Cataclysm over a thousand years ago - just might be true.

Book cover for The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue
Schwab, Victoria

V.E. Schwab, plays with the idea of a “Faustian bargain.” The titular character makes a deal with one of the “old gods that answer after dark" to avoid an unwanted arranged marriage. Through her own cunning and strength of will, she molds the bargain into mostly what she wanted. This is a compelling story that covers not only the centuries, but the range of human experience, from jubilation to devastation and everything in between.


Book cover for Job, a comedy of justice
Job, a comedy of justice
Heinlein, Robert A. 1907-1988.
Call Number: SF
After he firewalked in Polynesia, the world wasn't the same for Alexander Hergensheimer, now called Alec Graham. His life is turned upside down and inside out when he becomes the plaything of Loki and Jehovah. And when Satan steps in, things get really crazy.

Book cover for Kushiel's dart
Kushiel's dart
Carey, Jacqueline, 1964-
In a culture where love of any kind is celebrated, Phedre is unusual. She is marked by the demigod Kushiel, whose path to ecstasy is one of pain and submission. Given an unorthodox education, she becomes a famous courtesan and spy, and sometimes much more.

Book cover for The long dark tea-time of the soul
The long dark tea-time of the soul
Adams, Douglas, 1952-2001.
When a passenger check-in desk at London's Heathrow Airport disappears in a ball of orange flame, the explosion is deemed an act of God. But which god, wonders holistic detective Dirk Gently? What god would be hanging around Heathrow trying to catch the 3:37 to Oslo?

Book cover for The riddle-master of Hed
The riddle-master of Hed
McKillip, Patricia A.
Morgon, Prince of Hed, a land of simple farmers, has proven himself adept at solving riddles. Now ancient, evil forces are threatening him, so he must seek the High One - who will hopefully explain the mysterious stars he wear on his head.

Book cover for Snow White Learns Witchcraft: Stories and Poems
Snow White Learns Witchcraft: Stories and Poems
Goss, Theodora

A fascinating, heart-warming and bone-chilling collection of stories, in prose or poetry, of how women survive and thrive, even in the most difficult circumstances. These tales will leave you breathless, whether from anticipation, shock, wonder, or laughing out loud, and are the result of a master writer applying her skills to material that she loves. It is a MUST read for those drawn to our ancient stories.


Book cover for The thief
The thief
Turner, Megan Whalen.
Call Number: x
Eugenides is informed that he will be freed from a certain death sentence if he steals a legendary gem guarded by the gods. Despite his refusal, he finds himself on a most uncomfortable road trip, accompanied by a gruff magus and two young lordlings.

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