Top Ten Tuesday: Most Unique Magical Systems/Powers

A weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

SO today's prompt is about uniqueness. I love a weird and unique book, who doesn't. And originally I was just going to list some of the unique books I have read. But I wanted to narrow it down a little bit to unique fantasies. I read a lot of fantasies and they tend to feel really predictable. But then I decided that really what makes these books unique is their magical systems. So that's what I am going to give you. My favorite unique magical worlds and powers.

1.) Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson - My Review
Sanderson is the master of unique magic. Seriously this list could be all his books. Mistborn has three really unique ones because they all combine having an innate ability with using a physical object. Plus there are sixteen different branches within two of them.

2.) The Reckoners by Brandon Sanderson - My Review
Let's get my other favorite Sanderson power system out of the way. I freaking love the Reckoner powers. This is a series about people who have superpowers but it's more about how power corrupts so there is some fun stuff to it. Plus there is this whole thing about weaknesses and fears. It's good.

3.) The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon - My Review
I read The Song Rising recently and I seriously love the clairvoyant power systems. I think it's really cook because it goes beyond the basics of seeing the future and reading tarot cards. There are higher orders where you can control spirits and like Paige's where you can invade people's minds and control them.

4.) Carry On by Rainbow Rowell - My Review
This was Rainbow's first foray into writing fantasy and I loved that because it came from a place of respect and still was super unique. I love that in this world different objects could preform magic and that spells could be nursery rhymes or poems.

5.) The Magicians by Lev Grossman - My Review
Okay so the best part of this magical system is that it subverts the tropes by having this theme that magic doesn't solve problems, it creates them. Plus it's unique in the way that anyone could be a magician but not everyone is a magician. And the whole hand movements and chanting combination. It's all really unique.

6.) The Kingkiller Chronicles by Patrick Rothfuss - My Review
The cool thing about the magic here is that for the most part it's super scientific. It's all about like alchemy and energy manipulation. That in and of itself is unique. And then there is naming. I don't even fully understand it really but it's magical and it's fascinating.

7.) Truthwitch by Susan Dennard - My Review
This is one of those series that has some common magical systems, I mean it's basically a lot of elemental magic. But then it has other really unique powers like Safi who is a Truthwitch and can tell if people are lying. And then there are Threadwitches and Voidwitches which are very unique and interesting.

8.) A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab - My Review
Another series with some common magical systems like elemental magic. But then you have the blood magic that the Antari are able to do. That magic is fascinating and super unique. Not only can they travel through worlds but they can do lots of other really neat stuff.

9.) Nevernight by Jay Kristoff - My Review
There isn't a ton of magic in this series and there could be more, there should be more. But the little that you do get is super unique. The main character in this series Mia is able to control shadows and darkness. Plus the has a not a shadow cat that she made. It's very unique.

10.) The Young Elites by Marie Lu - My Review
This is a series where there are plenty of powers. Some of them are ones you see a lot but the main character has one of the most unique I have seen. Adelina is an illusionist, which in and of itself isn't super unique. But her power is rooted in fear. She taps into her own fear and those of the people around her, which I think is cool.

11.) Rocks Fall, Everyone Dies by Lindsay Ribar - My Review
This is another one of those books that shows how magic doesn't necessarily solve problems. It does a lot of exploration of the idea of whether magic is good. Plus there is a really unique power where you can see into people's pasts and steal things from them by touching an object they owned.

12.) The Girl from Everywhere by Heidi Heilig - My Review
So this is probably the only book on the list where it isn't actual people with powers. This one is instead about the power to travel through time. There is some fantasy to it but the real unique thing is that you mostly need a map and you go to what the map shows so it can be real, historical, or fictional.

There you have it. What are some of the most unique magical systems/powers you have read. Like I said, I love a good magical system especially if it's unique. So if you have recommendations, let me know. Thanks for stopping by and HAPPY READING!

Top Ten Tuesday: My Most Fascinating Magical Systems

A weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

This week is an open topic prompt. I usually hate those because I don't have many ideas. But after finishing a Young Adult Fantasy book I was thinking a lot about magical worlds and magical systems. I read a lot of fantasy and of course some of the magic is more entertaining than others for me and then the idea struck. So here you have my favorite magical systems.

1.) All the magical systems in the Mistborn trilogy by Brandon Sanderson  (My review)
Let's be real here, Brandon Sanderson is this list for me. This series could be on the list four times. In each book we learn about a different magical system (Allomancy being my favorite) that is just as interesting and complex as the one before. There is seriously so much going on and it is the most creative magical system I have yet to come across.

2.) The Magicians trilogy by Lev Grossman (My review)
This is a polarizing series within the Fantasy community, and one of those reasons is probably the magical system. Not the actual system but what it represents. The system itself is interesting and rooted in science and logic but the part that I love is that magic doesn't solve all the problems in this series, it creates more.

3.) The Wizarding World in the Harry Potter series
This is the series that really hooked me on Fantasy. It has to make this list for me. Most magical system are either controlling the elements or performing spells, and the magic here is the latter. And yet it still feels so creative. It has clear rules and is rooted in logic but the best part is the virtually endless possibilities.

4.) EOs in Vicious by V.E. (Victoria) Schwab (My Review)
I'm absolutely obsessed with this magical system. It has a clear set of rules but what I like most about it is that it is 100% personal. The powers a person receives relates not only to their personality and but what they are thinking when they receive them. It's both fascinating and creative.

5.) Clairvoyance in The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon (My Review)
This is another magical system that is also rooted in logic with clear rules (are you noticing a trend?) but what I love most is the hierarchy and how vast the system is. There are so many different powers and they are both familiar and unique. In particular the main character's power is super badass!

6.) Epics in The Reckoners series by Brandon Sanderson
(My Review)
You knew Sanderson had to make this list more than once. He is just so brilliant at creating unique and amazing magical systems. It's another one about people with superpowers and is well-developed and visual. It's complicated with clear rules and endless possibilities. And the more learn about it the more amazing it becomes (amiright people who read Firefight!).

7.) Psi Powers in The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken
(My Review)
I don't particularly know why, it's not very complex or unique, but I seriously love the system in this series. It is another system about superpowers and it has a history and explanation why it exists. Maybe I like it so much because it's familiar. Or maybe it's because I'm biased, it features all my favorite superpowers.

8.) The Young Elites in The Young Elites by Marie Lu
(My Review)
Okay, so I like magical systems that are about "superpowers." It just does a lot for me because there is logic to it and there are so many possibilities. The Young Elites is another one that features a history and origin for where the magic came from and how it can be used. It also has a main character with one of the most badass powers ever!

9.) The Magic in the Throne of Glass series by Sarah J. Maas (My Review)
This is another series with really diverse magical systems. In each book we learn and explore a different part of the magic that exists within the world. But probably my favorite thing about the magic in this series is that it is only now coming back into the world and as magic grows the series is becoming more interesting for me.

10.) The Jinni of Exquisite Captive by Heather Demetrios
(My Review)
You may have noticed this is the only one on my list that is elemental magic. I'm not usually a fan of a magical system about controlling the elements because there isn't a lot of room for growth and it often feels tired. But here it actually seems different and interesting. Or maybe it just reminds me a lot of Avatar: The Last Airbender

Honorable Mentions 

- Grisha powers in The Grisha trilogy by Leigh Bardugo 
(My Review)
I think one of my favorite things about the magical system in this series is that it is subtle. It is another one with a hierarchy and very clear rules and confines. And usually I like when there are endless possibilities but with Grisha powers the simplicity is interesting and creative.

- The magic in The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss
As this is one of my current reads I don't entirely understand this magical system yet. It seems vaguely elemental but much more creative and complicated. It's also a magical system that is subtle and not a huge part of the book so it intrigues me even more.

I am always looking for a different and unique magical system so let me know if you have a favorite I didn't include and I will think about adding the book to my TBR. In particular you can see I like systems with superpowers but if you have a series with elemental magic I should check out let me know those as well.

There you have it my favorite magical systems. What are your favorites? Leave me a comment with your thoughts. Thanks for stopping by and HAPPY READING!