In Other Lands

Only a chosen few can cross over from our world into the Borderlands and, on first glance, Elliot Schafer is not who you’d expect to be one of those chosen. (Honestly, you wouldn’t expect it on the second or third glance either.) But here he is, in a land filled with elves, harpies, trolls, giants, and even mermaids. Unfortunately, it is also a land filled with humans who think the ultimate achievement is in who can beat each other up the most or catch a glass ball the best. Ugh. Luckily, Elliot finds a true friend in a fellow student in the Borderlands, the elf maiden Serene (full name: Serene-Heart-in-the-Chaos-of-Battle) and a grudging, no-longer-actively-hostile-to-each-other acquaintance in Luke Sunborn (of the SUNBORN Sunborns, of course). Over the next four years, the three of them grow, fight, fall in love, and take their first steps towards changing the future of the Borderlands for the better.

 

A combination of boarding school story, loving takedown of fantasy tropes, and inclusive coming-of-age tale featuring that rarest of protagonists, a bisexual male character, this book is one of the few that I’ve run out and bought the moment it hit the shelves. It’s definitely not for everyone (seriously. I love him, but Elliot is The WORST sometimes), but if you enjoy reading about snarky and unlikeable protagonists, give this one a shot.