Okay, okay. So movies based on books can sometimes really…butcher them. Well, most of the time. But some books are so awesome we’d risk venturing into the theater–on opening night–to see them. Even if people throw popcorn and commit the mortal sin of texting during the movie. Okay, so we can’t forgive that, but those things aren’t the movie’s fault.
What YA fantasy books need to be made into movies right now? In our humble opinion:
1: The Red Queen and Crown of Lore. Rags to riches? Magic? Hate-to-love romance? And a dystopian society to boot? Sign me up! Okay, so there are rumors of a Red Queen movie coming out (yay!) but as royalty stories are hotter than the surface of the sun right now, we’re sure we’ll see more, like our upcoming title Crown of Lore.
2: Throne of Glass. Who doesn’t love the Hunger Games? Put that in a fantasy setting and you have Throne of Glass. An assassin must win a competition to gain her freedom. Something tells us there won’t be too many boring parts in a movie like that.
3: Shadow and Bone. A girl who can fight monsters by creating light? That’s cool! Just wondering how that works (how does it, anyway?) is enough to get us to the theater. And so is the fact that she has to deal with people who want to use her powers for themselves. Frankly, we’re wondering if there’s a scene where these monsters try to put on sunglasses.
4: A Clan’s Honor. In the future, all wars are fought inside an international fantasy game that the government has taken over. That, of course, won’t ruin the experience of the game (sarcasm) or divide a whole world. So a frustrated young man stumbles on a gang of players who fight against the system, and the government, being the government, tries to destroy them. The only way to survive? An epic quest!
5: The Selection. Well, this one’s partly hanging out under the dystopian umbrella, but the fairytale feel makes us include it here. Who doesn’t love seeing someone from the bottom of society rise to the top? Or haters becoming lovers? (Ah, if only life was like that more often.) Sure, there have been a couple of TV movies made around this concept, but we know how that typically goes. We want the movie on the big screen!
6: Children of Blood and Bone. Who doesn’t love seeing someone relatable–someone like us–taking down a whole cruel empire? We all wish we could be the one to do it (admit it.) And for a couple of hours, we can be. For those of us who want more Hunger Games-like action and strong heroines, this one sounds like one we don’t want to miss.
There’s no doubt we’ll be watching for any one of these to hit the big screen. Oh, and if you want to avoid the crowds, popcorn throwing, and the texting (for the most part) wait a day or two and go to a matinee. It’s way cheaper, too.
