A shorter month packed with magic tea, a lion Jesus, Turkish delights, swashbuckling, and breaking the fourth wall...

I'm a Southern California-based writer on the Lifestyle team who likes to try and rank viral foods and read and recommend awesome books.

Not going to lie, this was my reading goal last year, but I didn't make it. Like, I was waaaaay far off (22 books) because, well, I was busy, which is why I'm trying again this year — and am even more determined to reach it.

(I also read a majority of my books on Kindle because I was in New York for a good chunk of February to visit my sister, nephews, and niece, and I didn't want to bring my physical books.)

Ning is a talented shénnóng-tu, aka a magic tea brewer apprentice who's been following in the footsteps of her mother, a shénnóng-shī (basically master status). But when Ning fails to detect a poison in the tea she brewed for her mother and sister, it leads to her mother's death, and her sister falling gravely ill.

When Ning finds out about a competition taking place at the Imperial Palace, where the winner becomes the royal shénnóng-shī and is promised a favor by the princess, she sets off from her hometown, determined to use the favor to save her sister. But political tension and danger lurks throughout the palace, and Ning has to rely on herself, her magic, her newfound friends, and a mysterious boy to survive through it all.

This is basically the origin story of Narnia and answers all the questions I have whenever I watch The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. To set the scene, we have Digory and Polly, two neighborhood kids who've become friends. While exploring, they end up in Digory's Uncle Andrew's study, where he basically spends all his time being obsessed with magic and his experiments, thinking he's found a way to travel to a different dimension/world (spoiler alert: he has). 

Well, Uncle Andrew forcibly sends Digory and Polly through space and time, and they eventually stumble into a new world that's literally being created right before their eyes by a majestic lion (and I think you know who I'm talking about). But when Aslan finds out that Jadis, a witch from another world, followed the kids into Narnia, he sends Digory on a task that tests his integrity, honesty, and character.

Again, I'm just going to assume everyone knows about The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, but if you don't, the tea is that during WWII, four siblings (Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy) are sent to live with Professor Digory (!!) in the English countryside. There, they stumble into a wardrobe that transports them into the world of Narnia, where the White Witch reigns in endless winter.

However, there's a prophecy connected to the kids that could lead to the White Witch's demise — and she does everything she can to stop it from coming true. With the help of some animal friends, really sharp swords, and Aslan the almighty, Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy begin an adventure of a literal lifetime.

After her father abandoned her on a dangerous island after her mother died in a shipwreck, Fable has been working for years as a talented dredger, trying to get enough coin to buy passage off the island with dreams to reunite with her dad and work on his crew. After finally saving up enough, she convinces West, the captain of a ship called the Marigold (and her main buyer), to take her on and bring her closer to her father.

But as the voyage continues, Fable notices there's a reason why the Marigold's crew is so small, why West was so hesitant to bring her with them, and why her father seemingly stopped looking for her all this time. In a world that's constantly underestimating her, Fable must navigate her loyalties, suspicious bargains, and her growing feelings toward West — all while trying to survive at sea.

God-like and powerful, the performers of the Playhouse, the Players, have made the people of Theatron fearful and afraid, or obsessed and fanatic — depending on which side of the Cut you're on. And ever since Riven was cursed as a child by a Player, she's been ostracized by the rest of the people in the North, where there are no stories, music, or mirrors.

Now, at 18, Riven is met with the opportunity of a lifetime: The Playhouse is hosting a competition to find their next Player, and whoever wins gets power and immortality. But to Riven, it's just a chance to get rid of her curse. Desperate, she finds herself in the Playhouse under the mentorship of Jude, the charming lead Player, and strikes a dangerous bargain to save her life. But everything isn't as it seems in the Playhouse, and Riven finds herself questioning who the real heroes and villains are.

(But honestly, sometimes I have to check myself and remember that I'm not supposed to read books through what I think I would do in the character's shoes. But still.)

Here are the five books I read in February:• A Magic Steeped in Poison by Judy I. Lin (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

• The Magician's Nephew by C.S. Lewis (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

• The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

• A Stage Set for Villains by Shannon J. Spann (⭐️⭐️⭐️.8)

What book genre should I read in March?• 👻 Horror• 💖 Rom-Com• 🛸 Sci-Fi• ⚔️ MORE fantasy• 📚 Historical Fiction• 🦁 Girl, go read Prince Caspian