"It has something to do with Rabbits." You will not be able to skim over the animal deaths as it *follows* Rabbits. I know this may be consversal in saying this outright But you said it yourself that you have a hard time reading deaths of animals, with very understandable reasons. And you going into that one blind will ruin your experience of the book due to that one factor alone. It's a hard read for animal lovers, and while it's a classic, it's not because it's a Sci-Fi or Dystopian (it's neither actually). It's more of the allegories and usage of the idea of a created Mythology behind the book. And I noticed no one mentioned this one factor because it's rather important for the enjoyment if you are an animal lover. Please Please PLEASE understand this one factor as you read this book because I don't want you going into it expecting one thing, only to realize it's completely different.
Very well stated, Merdragoon. Watership Down is one of my all-time favorite books because it is such a wonderful blend of joy and sorrow; of epic quests and daily mundanities ('silflay' and 'hraka'); and of allegory, mythos and the natural world. I first attempted to read it when I was 11, but I gave up after only a few chapters. It just didn't resonate with me. Ten years later I tried again and, wow, what a difference a decade made. I was more ready for the depth of its themes, and it made me cry both happy and sad tears. For those who love Watership Down as I do, I highly recommend Duncton Wood by William Horwood (it's amazing how engrossing a community of moles can be) and Tailchaser's Song by Tad Williams (this one's about cats and their mythologies).
Yeah, well said--I really appreciate Watership Down for what it is, but it is ROUGH. Probably one of the more rough stories I've read. I think it's a good one to read, but man this books is hard
@@thelibraryladder I'm an extremely emotional person and I'm vegan. I cried watching The Secret of NIMH. For those reasons I've avoided Watership Down. I know it's dearly loved but I don't think I could handle it.
@@TLBainter Why do people say this? Like, can you give me a hint what part is so devastating to you? I LOVED this book, don't get me wrong, and some parts were "sad". But maybe it's because I read it as an adult and others read it as children? Or maybe I don't have a heart. But I see this warning constantly and I don't agree with it...I wouldn't even classify it as a depressing story, really.
@@readbykyle3082 I share your puzzlement, and I wonder if you might be on to something with your suggestion that younger readers could have more intense reactions to it. I find the book to be deeply affecting across a wide range of emotions. It has joy, sadness, excitement, dread. I'm glad I read it as a young adult, because I think that extra life experience helped my mind process and appreciate the book without being scarred by it. Although the book has some tragic elements, it's really a very uplifting and life-affirming story at its heart. Also, as an aside, the 1978 animated film version has its merits, but is a pale shadow of the book and is definitely NOT suitable for younger children (the visualized blood and gore rivals that in Miyazaki's Princess Mononoke). My advice to others is to start with the book, not the film.
Agreed with everyone mentioning that Watership Down is spectacular but it is *hardcore.* What makes it so good is having terrific characters and mythology and plot all without *ever* making the rabbit protagonists seem like humans in critter clothing. So so good and unique, but it does not shy away from the brutal realities of nature.
YES!!!! THE MASK OF MIRRORS! One of my favorite reads this year. Actually about to kick off a reread since the second one drops in early December. I hope you love it!
Merphy, Watership Down doesn't have a single sci-fi drop in it, I'd love to hear how you've come to that conclusion because ngl, it's cracking me up (in a good way). Is it because you called it a dystopia? Not all dystopias are sci-fi. But I don't think it's a dystopia either, although you can get some dystopia *allegories* from it. Be careful because it is a very depressing book - I'm not saying this is a bad thing or to discourage you from reading it, just trying to give you a heads up because I got the vibes you may go in unprepared and I'd hate to see you tackle it with the wrong expectations. It's a deep book and gives you a lot to think about but you have to be in the right mood for it in my opinion. You mentioned you don't know if it's loved or hated and the truth is, the book became (in)famous because of the movie, which people watched also with the wrong expectations because they saw cute rabbits on the poster. To anyone reading this, if you have any animal-related triggers, better research some spoilers before deciding if reading it or not.
I think it’s classified as a sci fi in certain places. My husband got it for me for Christmas last year because he saw it on a “best of sci fi” list. I loved it but I was like.. yeah this isn’t sci fi at all lol
FYI Merph, Watership Down is not scifi. And rabbits are the main characters. See other comments that give more details about the type of book it is. Growing up before I read it I would tell people I was reading the Redwall series and describe it to them and they would go, "Oh like Watership Down?". So imagine my surprise when I finally read WD and it's NOTHING like Redwall.
Merphy, given your love of fantasy novels, you might try easing yourself into historical fiction through works that bridge the two genres in various ways. For example, Guy Gavriel Kay writes phenomenal historical fiction novels disguised as fantasy--most of his books adapt real historical events into fictional worlds with a slight smattering of magic and other fantastical elements. Neal Stephenson's incredible Baroque Cycle is difficult to categorize, because it combines the author's love of history, science, intrigue and a dash of fantasy (a la Michael Moorcock), and is an amazingly rewarding read (although it's long and dense). You might also try the Grail Quest trilogy by Bernard Cornwell--it's pure historical fiction, but set during the medieval period of the Hundred Years' War in the 14th Century, and thus might feel familiar to readers of traditional medieval fantasy settings. Cornwell is among the very best writers of historical fiction.
😹😹 You've forgotten an S there, right at the end, though - I think(?). 😘😋 ((she has 'tastes', not 'taste'.))🤭 I think she was going more for pointing out the fact that she just has certain or particular tastes personally which historical fiction has not been satisfying for her; not really that she was trying to say her pallette is too refined for its "rubbish" / "junk-food-esque"[ or whatever] quality genre/self in general, or such, per se. Lol
Merphy describing how she dislikes historical fiction and needs to get over the loss of never being able to happily read it reminds me of the same feelings I hold when it comes to hard sci-fi. I love Star Trek and that's about it. Star Gate, Star Wars and Doctor Who are all sci-fantasy and I have enjoyed more fantastical sci-fi literature, even a couple of harder sci-fi stories by Chelsea Quinn Yarbro.. But without exception if the story is fantastical I'm hooked far sooner. I realised this disdain when I read the book of 2001 Space Odyssey, the very beginning and ending are fantastical whilst the middle sections are all hard sci-fi and I dreaded every second reading those latter sections. I can't tell you what happens with Hal-9000 or whatever the AI is called. But the end and beginning I could sing songs about. It's just the way things are.
I highly recommend the Watership Down audio book. The narrator does such a good job to differentiate between the characters and does such a good job at encapsulating how the characters would sound!
Thanks for the heads-up!!! I might have to give this a try then! I haven't read Watership Down in ssooo long, I should definitely revisit it-and I've been trying to give audiobooks a chance lately. Lol ^-^
@@jaginaiaelectrizs6341 no problem! The writer actually came up with the story on a whim on a long car ride with his daughters and they loved it so much they forced him to publish it!
Watership Down was one of my favourite books when I was a kid. In school we had 30-minutes of 'reading time' every morning (which I loved and a lot of my classmates hated 😅) and I re-read it over and over. I can't remember the book being too scary but the movie adaptation terrified me 😳
I recall going to a slumber party in the nineties where we wound up watching Watership Down instead of Nightmare Before Christmas, because rabbits. By which I mean, that was the mom's reasoning at the rental store.
I was talking about why I'm so attracted to reading Classics to my husband, and what you said about feeling like you're learning a new language really resonated with the way I see it, but more than that it gives me a general idea of what a specific place and time looked like and what was important for a society within its own value system and political regime. It just helps me better understand what human beings have in common despite the different contexts in which they evolved. It fascinates me to no end!
The Mask of Mirrors is my favorite release of 2021, I hope you love it. Although I only gave lies of Locke Lamora 4 stars and never continued on, so not sure if the marketing comparison will be a good or bad thing for you lol like it is con artist Venetian setting but very different writing style and characters. I am SO excited for the sequel this December!!
I LOVED Mask of Mirrors, it definitely has a Locke Lamora Setting. Semi Italian Mediterranean, with some middle eastern influence. It has a lot of really interesting magic systems I need to know more about, and the intrigue and character dynamics are phenomenal. 10/10 for me. Enjoy your time with it!
Agreed. Although the new book by the same author, while having similar components, really didn't hit me. Between 3 and 4 stars personally, even though I really love "House in the Cerulean Sea".
Listening to you describe Watership Down while clearly not knowing anything at all about it nearly gave me a heart attach. You are not ready. Please mentally prepare yourself for the violence against poor, poor rabbits. It's not Sci-Fi. It's not dystopian. It's just sad. The closest it has to anything fantastic is some magical realism elements. Look out for yourself, Merph. I know a lot of people like this book and it is well loved, so you might love it too. By the way, this book literally follows talking rabbits the whole time. With your talking animals thing, I don't think this is for you. Edit: I feel I should clarify that I love this book. I just don’t think people should go into it not knowing what this book is.
@@merphynapier42 Read it. An excellent, excellent book: Fiver stars (not a typo; that's an in-joke). And I have a hard time with violence against animals too, and I especially love rabbits (I've had two for pets, as an adult). The book does have scary bits, and sad bits, but it has humor and triumphs too. Another thing you perhaps should know: these are not cute innocent fluffy guileless helpless little bunnies. They can be tough and brave and principled and clever--and loyal. I think you'd appreciate their loyalty and friendships. Typing this I've had several scenes from the book running through my head and right now one of the rabbits is defying a bad guy. I feel like jumping up and yelling "YES!" It's that kind of book. You should read it. I almost never tell people what to do, but you should read this book.
@@SDYoungren Couldn't agree more. I usually can't stand any animal violence, but this book is an exception. For me, part of the issue of violence against animals stems from a feeling that animals are vulnerable and should be protected. In Watership Down, we are in the heads of the rabbits. We can identify WITH them, instead of feeling protective OF them. For me, at least, this meant that the violence made me feel the way that ALL violence makes me feel- I don't love it but recognize it's place in a story.
@@OronoDiane Yes, I think it's important that the rabbits are not just hopping around being victimized. They are full characters who feel real and fully alive, and we experience their battles as we would a human character's. And yes, they can defend themselves, and they do.
I can't remember the animals ever talking to any humans though? Do they? ...and does[ or would] it count as talking animals [to Merphy] even if they aren't actually speaking English to humans or anything, and we're just being given a way we mere humans can ourselves understand them in fiction that doesn't rely exclusively on body-language and such alone, even though in reality they would theoretically be speaking in bunny-communication to each other or such instead of talking English? 🤔🤔 (if that question makes any sense😅 😶 Lolll)
Try Mary Renault. Her novels set in Ancient Greece are some of the best historical fiction ever written. They're worth reading whether you're generally a fan of the genre or not. The King Must Die is arguably a fantasy or speculative fiction novel, as it's based on a period with scarce archaeological evidence and rather tenuous anthropological theories. The perspective of the characters also ambiguates the degree to which supernatural elements may/may not be involved. It would make a for a great introduction if you like a good adventure/coming of age story, with a morally ambiguous protagonist. Her books may seem to assume a certain amount of knowledge about the culture and major historical events of Ancient Greece, but I would argue this only supplements one's enjoyment; I started reading these books when I was about 10, and they were my introduction to the subject. Her characters are the real draw, as she brings her subjects to life in a way I've not really seen from any other author, in any genre. My only recommendation would be not to start with The Persian Boy. It gets pretty grim within the first chapter, and deals with facts of history most people will likely find unpleasant. The rest of the series tends to deal with these subjects more obliquely, by implying rather than describing. My favourite of these is The Last of the Wine. The Praise Singer is a close second.
The Watership Down movie based on the book that came out in 1978 was my favorite movie as a child (though in hindsight I'm shocked my parents let me watch it... Disney it ain't). I read and loved the book when grown but the movie will always have an extra special place in my heart. I still love the art/animation and music in it. (Still haven't brought myself to watch the Netflix remake).
Ooof, that's a burn on the past predictions. Fair play on putting down books you did not finish. Nice to see you trying an old classic (Watership Down). The 1978 animated movie was terrifying, scary and totally disturbing. Thanks for my traumatic childhood, kids filmmakers!!
I've read the first four Realm of the Elderlings series and pretty much agree with you. Live Ship was my favorite of the bunch, but even that didn't wow me.
Oml, The Mask of Mirrors!! Ooooh, I hope you like that book, that's one of my favorite books of the year! 😍 But... its kinda like The Lies of Lock Lamora? Kinda. It'd similar in the putting on different personas and selling them well, and keeping court intrigue on their toes. It's as complicated, and I recommend you get used to flipping to the back of the book to keep track of names, Houses, places, and culture aspects, because it's easy to get lost. But! It's a really really fun ride - in my opinion. I'm going to be so sad if you don't like it, lol
Watership Down is a top ten all-time book for me…though as people have said, please consider realigning your current expectations! It’s a beautiful story, a sad story, a story-lover’s story. Fiver and Hazel and Bigwig forever ❤️☀️
totally agree with you about lore ): plus mask of mirrors is also on my tbr because of locke lamora :D honestly locke lamora has ruined my reading standards because i loved it so much
Recommendation in historical fiction! Fantasy is my favorite genre too, and I ADORED this: The Bloody Jack series by L A Meyer. If you like pirates, nautical adventures, swashbuckling action, and world travel at the turn of the 19th century you’ll love this. Main character is an orphaned girl from London who dresses as a boy to get a job as a ships boy aboard a Royal Navy ship. She is resourceful, fun-loving, charismatic, brave, and flawed. The author was in the navy and really understands military culture as well as the workings of ships. Jacky ends up going all over the world so you get to see snapshots of what was going on in different countries during and after the napoleonic wars. it’s so so good.
Merph: "Watership Down...as my sci-fi." Me: *Hol up* Hey, Merphy! New sub here. I'm really enjoying your content but PLEASE just...prepare yourself. Watership Down is 0% sci-fi and 100% nightmare fuel (at least that was the effect it had on me as a kid...because there's a animated movie adaptation that I watched WAY too young). Anyway, proceed with caution...I am curious to hear your thoughts on it though.
Here's my advice regaring Robin Hobb: if you didn't like Assassin's Apprentice and Royal Assassin then chances are pretty slim that you'll like Assassin's Quest... BUT you should still try the Liveship Trader's series! And I'll explain why: the Liveship trilogy takes place in a separate part of the world to the Farseer books, and involves a completely separate cast of characters, and is told through a third person limited, multiple POV narration style. Those things alone set it apart from the Farseer trilogy quite distinctly, but from a more subjective standpoint I also think her writing improved drastically between the two trilogies, especially in the plotting and pacing department, but also the worldbuilding and magic get more depth and intrigue. Plus it has pirates! And sea monsters! And talking ships! It's great! Please try it!
I am excited for Mask of Mirrors. Ever since I discovered this RU-vid channel and after reading Mask of Mirrors in March, I thought this would be a good fit. There's cons, there's political machinations, there's mystery and a lot of dense lore... From a personal standpoint, I loved the book and can't wait for the sequel.
Same with wanting to love every genre...you may like "The Mad Womans Ball" by Victoria Mas, its Wintery France in the 1800's when women were being sent to sanitoriums for all sorts of reasons from legit mental health to not wearing the fashionable thing.
I'm looking forward to your opinion on Watership Down! I have it on my "Want to Read" list for years, but whenever I think of buying it, I think of the cartoon and how it traumatised me as a child. 😅
I feel like between shades of grey is a better display of Ruta Sepetys talents as an author than fountains of silence. Fountains of silence was a lot slower paced and lower stakes. I finished it and enjoyed it but if historical fiction want one of my favorite genres I don't know if I would have
Merphy is confused by the rabbits in Watership Down, and people who've read or watched Watership Down are confused by the sci-fi XD But I guess it is science fiction since the author did a lot of research into the biology, ecology and ethology and all that of rabbits but made it fiction? So............................. it fits???? XD The book is really good, and I recommend the animated movie too! But not if you're squeamish with blood and animal deaths/injury.
I love Watership Down! It’s definitely a little hard to read at times though so just know that going into it. Also, I’m not sure why some places classify it as sci fi… it really isn’t. (My husband bought it for me because he saw it on a list of best sci fi novels & I finally realized midway through the book that it just isn’t that at all).
I also struggle with not liking certain genres, but I have come to a different conclusion I think. I feel like I still shouldn't give up on picking up a book from that genre, if only to keep myself from narrowing my reading horizons too much. Besides there are books that may be cateogrized as one genre or another regardless of whether they fit that category or not...and i don't really wanna write off books because of that (idk if that makes sense). But lol this is coming from someone who almost never picks up romance. I think the last romance I read (if you can call it that) was cerulean sea
Classic video and your making me happy and I really need it so thank you from the bottom of my heart please stay safe and enjoy your reading love your channel love your number one Australia fan John xxx
Historical fiction as a genre is a favourite of mine but I admit its hard to find good books at times in the genre. The key thing towards it's success with me is the world building, the author should really show not only that they know their stuff but with that research they can craft a world with rich settings and characters - almost as if they are writing a high fantasy - if the author doesn't do that then the story falls flat on its face.
Since manga (One Piece) made you like absurdist fantasy, manga might like you like historical fiction, I recommend Vinland Saga for that, it's a story about Vikings during Danish conquest of England and will end with Viking settlement of Vinland (aka North America). It's one of those manga up there with One Piece and Berserk when it comes to its reputation.
Hey Merphy! I finished an audiobook today and I think you'd love the story: All rise for the honorable Perry T. Cook. It's THE book for the found family trope and the main character is super sweet and kind, and I think you'd love it 😊
Assassin's quest is really good, and gives the much-needed catharsis for the many pains Fitz suffers. I love the liveship traders, but to me, book 3 of the farseer is need-to-read if only a) to understand the state of the world and b) to actually have resolution for Fitz.
I would add that to me, The Tawny Man trilogy is the best of the whole 16-books Realms, and you can't read it without Assassin's Quest... even if Assassin's Quest drags on and on.
I’m sorry Fountains of Silence didn’t work for you, but I’m glad you didn’t force yourself through it. Hopefully one of these upcoming ones will hit the spot! I’m doing a lot of rereading right now, but the final book in the Aurora Cycle trilogy comes out next month...and books 1&2 ranked among my favorites each of their respective years I read them. (They’re next in my planned rereads!) So...don’t want to get my hopes too high, but I’m excited!
Historical Fiction Recommendation: True Grit, by Charles Portis. Yes, it's a Western, which may not sound that appealing, but the narrator is a sassy 14-year old girl and the dialogue is brilliant.
I hope you enjoy Watership Down! I read it for a class in high school and it has been my favorite book ever since! It is not a lighthearted story though, but I think you will love the characters. I need to reread it this year! 🙂
I must admit I found The house in the cerulean sea average at best although having said that I do plan on reading Under the whispering door soon on my kindle.
Watership Down is not Sci Fi or Dystopian at all. It is literally all about the rabbits. The rabbits don't talk as in they don't talk to humans but the entire book is told from the rabbits point of view. Beautifully written and sad as fuck!
A witch in Time by Constance Sayers is a good book but she wrote another one called the Ladies of the Secret Circus which is better. I think you would like both of them.
A bit late to the party but I just picked up the Mistborn books and have almost finished the first one. It’s so good. It’s a really addictive read, Allomancy is such a fun magic system, the world is so interesting and I love the characters. Vin is precious. So far a definite 5 star from me and if the next books are as good as this one- a potential new favourite series.
@@JohnKaess This is an absolutely fair point; just because something is about animals absolutely doesn't necessarily make it for children! ... but just because a book contains serious themes handled in a way that may not be for all people also does not necessarily mean that it is not still a children's book, either.😅
I actually read Watership Down when I was a child... and I loved it; I loved seeing animals treated like people with intelligent thoughts and emotions who have actual lives and homes and families and all, which is in my experience actually not at all as untrue to reality as many people seem to think it is. (I just mean that they were fully realized characters, versus being mere caricatures or gimmicks or whatever-not that they were actually portrayed exactly like humans, but we called them bunnies, or such. If that even makes any more sense?😅😅 🤔🤷♀️Lolll Just felt suddenly like I needed to clarify that.^-^) I only read it once, maybe twice, and yet I have never forgotten it. It was part of what inspired me to want to become a writer myself. I wanted to write stories like most people made about human people, except about animals; because animals were what I loved most in the whole world. And I most enjoyed reading stories that did more than just teach easily digestible lessons or make silly rhymes and such. ((Now, I love writing and linguistics and psychology and body-language/behavioral-studies and history and world-culture and J-music and movies & TV and a few other things just as as much as I love animals. Lol)) In particular, I had started planning out a story about cats when I was young, although this endeavor eventually ended up abandoned in favor of other things and then a few years later on the first 'Warriors' book would come out; which I always thought was personally coincidentally awesome timing(Although I know that was also not the first or only book ever to be released about fictional cats). 🤣🤣 But I also grew up on something just shy of a small farm out in the middle of the woodlands with animal pets & livestock & literal wildlife alike and only one or two human neighbors anywhere remotely within walking distance from us and the nearest town 15-minutes away by car, in a not-impoverished but not at all wealthy family, and we only went shopping for food items that were necessary for a properly nutritionally balanced diet which we weren't[ for whichever reasons] able to produce for ourselves(like fruits and veggies..which would never grow for us..possibly because there were just too many trees around); so I was well acquainted with animals dying or being in danger(as well as the dangers of the wild), and with both the concept of some things[ or people] sometimes needing to kill other things in order to eat/survive AND the concept of not killing anything unnecessarily(and the fact that human people tragically often do...often even indirectly), even before reading Watership Down. 😅 Not that I'm referencing anything that does or doesn't happen in the book here though, I'm just referencing things that I saw or knew about in life anyway, so I was pretty much pre-prepared even as a kid for anything happening or not to animals that a book could throw at me. (But I have never had delicate sensibilities, myself....not even when it came to sensitive or difficult topics that really pull at my heartstrings. So I'm aware that I may or may not be more of an exception than a rule - that's all I'm saying here. I guess? Idk🙃 ..🤷♀️🤷♀️) So, I can still see how it might not be a book for every child...nor even for every person, almost regardless of their age. .. Even though I personally was not a child who was traumatized by it at all, despite also being a _huge_ animal lover who gets exceptionally invested in animal characters too.
@@jaginaiaelectrizs6341 I too first read it as a child, and loved it from the start. (I grew up in the suburbs, by the way.) And I agree that it's not really a kids' book.
@@JohnKaess It was a story the author told to his kids, and it won the Carnegie Medal. You are welcome to see it as you want, but it was definitely published as a children's novel. Being intended for children doesn't make it any less valid or important.
I spy a little book called Dune behind Merph on her current bookshelf 👀 I'm currently reading Dune (sort of(I paused it to read two thrillers for the month of Halloween))
If youre interested in getting into historical fiction i recomend vinland saga, its a manga but it is a really amazing viking story of revenge and forgivness
If I were to try describing Watership Down to a avid fantasy reader, um... THIS WILL BE NOTHING LIKE REDWALL. It was amusing though to find out that bunnies have stand-up comedians. And the jokes were even kinda funny... The hardest thing about reading it the first time was having to look up a bajillion localized English terms. I seriously had never heard of the word stoat before. Mastering the language of Bunnese (Rabbitese?) was much easier.
There are very opposite opinions on Watership Down here. I suppose I fall under the I Absolutely Love The Book. It's the characters that do it for me. I agree it's not at all like Redwall, but reading Brian Jacques first helped me transition to a story with talking rabbits. I hope you love Watership Down.
Watership Down is brilliant, but it's also the most depressing book I have ever read. Those poor rabbits :( Not sure how it's been classified as sci fi, that's very odd.
I am really not understanding all of the comments about Watership Down being depressing or traumatizing. Unless you're referring to the movie, which I havent seen so cant comment. I found the book to be wonderful. I listened to the audiobook as an adult and loved it. Highly recommend the audiobook narrated by Ralph Cosham.
If you want a truly amazing historical fiction series, read the Temeraire novels. Bare bones description is there are dragons during the real Napoleonic wars between Britain and France. The series started to drag on towards the end but the first book is called “His Majesties Dragon” I think and it is Seminole classic of historical fiction fiction imho. Fwiw Watership Down was a dnf for me. I spent the first part of the book wondering if I was just missing something the whole time or if this really was “it”, then when I realized that, yes, this is what the whole book is about, I dropped it.
I read "A Witch in Time". It's a good story but I doubt you'll think it's worth 5 stories. It's got a similar vibe to "The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue" but not as well done. I would suggest the latter instead.
Watership Down is great, hope you enjoy it. It does have animal death for sure though. It is NOT sci-fi though, lmao. Definitely just straight up fantasy. Also regarding historical fiction, I don't know what the actual category is but have you tried historical fiction that isn't just like, "women in distress" historical fiction? I'm not knocking that subgenre, there are books I've really enjoyed in it. But there's much better historical fiction out there...Conn Iggulden's Conqueror series about Genghis Khan, or Gates of Fire by Steven Pressfield, about the battle of Thermapolye...I've also heard great things about David Gemmel's Troy trilogy. Might be worth giving a shot? Most of these books are similar to fantasy books except they're not entirely made up haha
Merphy, going back to historical fiction, have you tried Life after Life by Kate Atkinson, haven't seen it on your Goodreads? I don't have a feel for your tastes overall (but I agree about The Great Alone being half of a terrific book), you might appreciate the surreal elements of Life and the whole section on the London bombings is some of the best fiction I've read generally. Just a thought ;) No spoiler, The King's General had me sobbing when I read it, admittedly as a teenager though. Looking forward to your take.
