Black Sun

Excellent worldbuilding, likeable characters - it actually pulls off the thing I've seen a few times where characters on opposing sides are all presented as likeable. Often, I end up not caring about any of them; here, I find myself wanting things to go well for all of them.

Selling points: South/meso-American-inspired setting; bi rep; nonbinary rep. (Also blind rep but I'm not sure I can recommend it on that basis - Rebecca Roanhorse obviously made an effort with the disability rep here, but he's also a reincarnated god, and as someone who's not blind on that level myself I don't think I can fairly judge whether or not she hit the balance well.)

Warnings: violence; child abuse; child neglect; ritual injury of a child by a parent; a sex scene, tasteful but fairly explicit; end on quite a sequel-hungry note.

Warnings:

First fantasy book I've enjoyed in years. The setting was so refreshing and new, but it also felt like a real place. Maybe it's a world I've visited in my dreams? It surely will be a world I dream visit in the future.