Monthly Recommendations | 1 Year Celebration

So Monthly Recommendations group is 1 year old and for celebration the topic for this month is to recap all the past topics and recommend one book for each. Obviously I have only done this for a couple of months so most of these are totally new to me, which is fun. I skipped the few topics I've already posted recommendations for, because this post is long enough even without them. Here are the topics and my recommendations:

An underrated book
The Man in the High Castle by Philip K. Dick is a book that even underrates itself. It has the potential to be much more but it's way too short and all the things are just starting when it ends. In short, the book takes place in an alternative reality where Nazi Germany and Japan won the WWII and rule the world. America has been split in half between the winners. Luckily, Amazon has made it into an incredible tv show that hopefully tells the whole story, not just the beginning. The first season at least fulfilled all my hopes and expectations and the wait for the season 2 has already been too long.

A book set in school
I'm going to cheat here a bit and recommend a series which has not so much focus on school setting but learning to be a magician, and that is Chrestomanci series by Diana Wynne Jones, the first book being The Lives of Christopher Chant. If you liked her book Howl's Moving Castle, you should definitely read the Chrestomanci books as well. The main character is Christopher, who has nine lives and is discovered by the great magician who holds the position of Chrestomanci and takes Christopher as a sort of apprentice to learn to use his talent and preserve his lives, which is something he is not very good at.

A creepy book
I'm in the middle of the Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman and though it's supposed to be this childhood fairytale, it's seriously creeping me out. The main character is a 7-year old boy whose neighbours are somewhat mystical and he accidentally releases this evil spirit at their farm that starts to torment the neighbourhood. As said I haven't finished this book yet so I don't know the whole story but I have a bad feeling about it.

A trilogy
I feel like Brent Weeks doesn't get enough recognision so I'm going to recommend his Night Angel trilogy. The story is about an orphan boy Azoth who wants to become a wetboy (like an assassin, but better) and is trained by Durzo Blint, the best wetboy there is. As the story progresses, Azoth meets people from his past and gets in very lethal situations and finds out what makes Durzo Blint so legendary. Azoth becomes best friends with the heir to the throne, Logan, who is my favorite character of the series as he is the total opposite of Azoth, little naive but learns how the world works and grows to be a leader.

A book you think others should read ASAP/before the end of the year
This is my other cheat since I have not read either of the books I'm recommending for this topic. Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs is becoming a movie by the end of this year so I really need to read it before that happens. Similarly Starz is making a tv series out of Neil Gaiman's American Gods and I must also get to that but luckily the show will start airing in 2017, so I still have time.

A fantasy book
There are many great middle grade fantasy series, Harry Potter being the crown jewel for me. Very close to Harry Potter in my books is Septimus Heap series by Angie Sage. The series has seven books and all of them have the feel of the Philosopher's Stone which I love. The world is fascinating and every single character is lovely. More people should read this series.

A book with little to no romance
I feel like all young adult or adult books have romance so I have to make a cop out and recommend middle grade book, that is How to Train Your Dragon by Cressida Cowell. The movie is based on this but the plot is totally different, in the book the vikings have this rite that when they are at a certain age they capture their own dragon to train.

A standalone & survival story
I will combine the last two topics and recommend Airman by Eoin Colfer, the writer of the Artemis Fowl series. Airman tells the story of Conor Broekhart, a young inventor who dreams of flying like a bird in 1880s but is wrongfully imprisoned and must adapt to prison life at horrible prison island while planning his escape. This is another character driven book that I love and that would deserve to be read more and made into movie.