Pick of the Week: Carry On by Rainbow Rowell

Simon Snow is the chosen one. Baz is the bad guy. Except Simon is the worst chosen one, ever and Baz is the best bad guy – as in he is usually actually good. Rainbow Rowell’s new novel Carry On, picks up the fictional character Simon and Baz and their magical school Watford from her previous novel Fangirl to tell the story of Simon and Baz. In many ways, Carry On is a story we all know of the special magical chosen one and his nemesis – think Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, or Star Wars. Except the well-worn tropes are flipped on their heads in funny and heartrending ways.

When Simon returns to Watford for his final year, Baz doesn’t show up. Simon begins to worry about Baz, but no one including his family and the Mage seem to know where Baz is. Agatha, Simon’s girlfriend, seems distant, especially after he caught her in the forest with Baz at the end of last year. War between the wizards and the Insidious Hum Drum, and the old families continues to brew. Simon’s last year is shaping up to be quite the adventure with plenty of angst thrown in. Check it out today!