The best books for gamers

Why am I passionate about this?

I've always been a gamer, even now that passion burns bright. My favourite genres being FPS, Horror, Fighting, and adventure games. There's nothing like delving into a new game and feeling the adrenaline that comes with slaying beasts and leveling up, or getting emotional during a cinematic movie-like horror game. I've been gaming since I was a child all the way up until today. Gaming has always had my heart, which has led to me writing books inspired by gaming as well as being a gaming content creator, posting reviews on my website and social media. I love the fast-paced feeling you get whilst gaming and wanted to echo that in my storytelling.


I wrote...

The Lightcasters

By Janelle McCurdy,

Book cover of The Lightcasters

What is my book about?

This is the first book in a trilogy middle-grade series about a young martial artist who embarks on a treacherous journey where she comes across magical shadow beasts, but will they help her to save her family—and the entire kingdom? Many secrets and challenges lie ahead.

It's Keeper of the Lost Cities meets The Golden Compass.
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The books I picked & why

Book cover of Inuyasha, Vol. 1

Janelle McCurdy Why did I love this book?

One of the first manga books I ever read and one of the reasons I fell in love with the fantasy genre as a whole which then spread into gaming.

Set in Feudal Japan, a school girl named Kagome one day falls in a well and finds herself in a completely different timezone, where there are demons, priestess, and a particular dog eared half demon named Inuyasha...

It's a rollercoaster ride of emotions and heart, and this one I actually wished had been turned into a game as it would have been so much fun.

By Rumiko Takahashi,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Inuyasha, Vol. 1 as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Rumiko Takahashi's manga epic in its original format - historical action and romance from one of Japan's most beloved creators.

Kagome is a modern Japanese high school girl. Never the type to believe in myths and legends, her world view dramatically changes when, one day, she's pulled out of her own time and into another! There, in Japan's ancient past, Kagome discovers more than a few of those dusty old legends are true, and that her destiny is linked to one legendary creature in particular - he dog like half-demon called Inuyasha! That same trick of fate also ties them…


Book cover of Spirited Away, Vol. 1

Janelle McCurdy Why did I love this book?

A Ghibli classic, one of my favourites, and getting to experience the magical and slightly eerily interesting new world that Chihiro discovers, it's a race against time to save her parents.

However, when Chihiro's name is taken and she is forced to stay in said strange world, only the help of a mysterious boy named Haku and a bunch of other magical characters can Chihiro maybe return home. Love love love this book and the film, so I highly recommend it.

By Hayao Miyazaki,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Spirited Away, Vol. 1 as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 8, 9, 10, and 11.

What is this book about?

Ten-year-old Chihiro and her family are on their way to their new home. Dad takes a wrong turn, though, and they become lost in a forest. Eventually they find their way to a strange abandoned amusement park. Chihiro wanders off. As night falls, Chihiro finds out she's in a world of ghosts, demons, and strange gods. A mysterious boy, Haku, tells her that to survive Chihiro must find work. She must go down to the boiler room and seek out an old man named Kamaji...


Book cover of Emmy Levels Up

Janelle McCurdy Why did I love this book?

Emmy Levels Up holds a special place in my heart because it's one of the few books that genuinely acknowledges the important role that gaming has for the current generation of children and sheds a positive light on it, which is something I talk about a lot in school visits, and by the end of the book felt empowered.

By Helen Harvey,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Emmy Levels Up as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Emmy is brilliant at the computer game, Illusory Isles. Her avatar is a powerful fire elemental with magma claws and flaming breath. When Emmy's gaming video gets a front-page feature, thousands of devoted fans flock to watch her battle the ultimate online baddie, the Mulch Queen herself.

Life at school is the exact opposite. Emmy is friendless and bullied by Vanessa AKA the Queen of Mean. To Vanessa and her gang, Emmy is a weirdo with bad handwriting, horrible fashion sense and no dad.

But if Emmy can take on the Mulch Queen online, perhaps she can also find a…


Book cover of SkyWake Invasion

Janelle McCurdy Why did I love this book?

It was effortlessly entertaining for me and had me gripped from the first chapter.

I'm very picky when it comes to books that are inspired by gaming because I want to feel that the author themselves are actual gamers too, and you can tell how much of a gamer Russell is, which made it extra special for me whilst reading. It was like watching the craziest esports match in book form! Fellow gamers you'll know what that means.

By Jamie Russell,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked SkyWake Invasion as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 10, 11, 12, and 13.

What is this book about?

An exciting and original debut sci-fi adventure trilogy for the gaming generation, from a screenwriter, film critic and gamer.

Fifteen-year-old girl gamer Casey Henderson is obsessed with smash-hit game SkyWake - and she's good at it, too. Little does she realize it's actually an alien training tool created by an evil extra-terrestrial race. When the aliens swoop down on a national gaming tournament, Casey and her teammates discover they're abducting the best gamers to fight in a distant alien war across the galaxy. And they've got her brother. Casey's gaming skills are her best hope of stopping the aliens -…


Book cover of Legendborn

Janelle McCurdy Why did I love this book?

One of my favourite YA books ever, and whilst not a gaming-inspired book, the action, love triangles, and twists and turns make it worthy to be added to the list.

After her mother dies in an accident, Bree just wants to get away from it all and ends up at a residential high school, which is far from normal. It's a modern-day twist on an Arthurian tale! Highly recommend.

By Tracy Deonn,

Why should I read it?

10 authors picked Legendborn as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

An Instant New York Times Bestseller!
Winner of the Coretta Scott King - John Steptoe for New Talent Author Award

Filled with mystery and an intriguingly rich magic system, Tracy Deonn’s YA contemporary fantasy reinvents the King Arthur legend and “braids together Southern folk traditions and Black Girl Magic into a searing modern tale of grief, power, and self-discovery” (Dhonielle Clayton, New York Times bestselling author of The Belles).

After her mother dies in an accident, sixteen-year-old Bree Matthews wants nothing to do with her family memories or childhood home. A residential program for bright high schoolers at UNC–Chapel Hill…


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Touching the Surface

By Kimberly Sabatini,

Book cover of Touching the Surface

Kimberly Sabatini Author Of Touching the Surface

New book alert!

Why am I passionate about this?

Author Reader Mom Coach Chocolate connoisseur HSP

Kimberly's 3 favorite reads in 2023

What is my book about?

When Elliot finds herself dead for the third time, she can't remember her past, is getting the cold shoulder from her best friend, and has no idea why she keeps repeating the same mistakes across her previous lives. Elliot just wants to move on, but first, she'll be forced to look at her past and delve into the painful memories she’d rather keep buried. She'll also have to face the person she’s killed.

As she pieces together the secrets and mistakes of her previous lives, Elliot must find a way to earn the forgiveness of the person she’s hurt most…

Touching the Surface

By Kimberly Sabatini,

What is this book about?

Experience the afterlife in this lyrical, paranormal debut novel that will send your heart soaring.

When Elliot finds herself dead for the third time, she knows she must have messed up, big-time. She doesn't remember how she landed in the afterlife again, but she knows this is her last chance to get things right.

Elliot just wants to move on, but first she will be forced to face her past and delve into the painful memories she'd rather keep buried. Memories of people she's hurt, people she's betrayed...and people she's killed.

As she pieces together the secrets and mistakes of…


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