The Quill & The Cross

BOOK

WINNER

Powerless by Lauren Roberts

Only the extraordinary belong in the kingdom of Ilya–the Elites, the ones with the powers gifted to them by the Plague. Though not all were fortunate enough to gain those gifts… Paedyn Gray, born Ordinary, is posing as a Psychic in the slums, blending in as best she can to stay alive. But when Paedyn unsuspectedly saves one of Ilya’s princes, she finds herself thrown into the Purging Trials, the brutal competition existing to showcase the Elites’ powers. If the Trials and her opponents don’t kill her, the prince she’s beginning to fall in love with will if he discovers what she is… completely Ordinary.

My Take: Powerless was epic, intense, dramatic, with a high-stakes fantasy plot and a well-written romance. I couldn’t put it down!

RUNNER-UP

Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell

A young Latin tutor—penniless and bullied by a violent father—falls in love with an extraordinary, eccentric young woman. Agnes is a wild creature who walks her family’s land with a falcon on her glove and is known throughout the countryside for her unusual gifts as a healer, understanding plants and potions better than she does people. Once she settles with her husband on Henley Street in Stratford-upon-Avon, she becomes a fiercely protective mother and a steadfast, centrifugal force in the life of her young husband, whose career on the London stage is just taking off when his beloved young son succumbs to sudden fever.

My Take: The book has a very similar vibe, written almost poetically in a way that makes you feel intimately for these characters. Overall it’s a beautiful, heartbreaking, ultimately hopeful read.

MOVIE

WINNER

Project Hail Mary (2026)

Scientist and schoolteacher Ryland Grace (played by Ryan Gosling) is sent into space with one mission: figure out how to stop the sun from dying. He must solve the mystery of the sun-eating parasite astrophage, but he may not have to do it alone. He teams up with an alien christened “Rocky” to save both their planets

Starring: Ryan Gosling, Sandra Huller, James Ortiz, Lionel Boyce, Milana Vayntrub, Ken Leung

My Take: This was undeniably one of the best movies I’ve ever seen. It was just one of those movies where they get everything right: the plot, the script, the cast, the intensity, the drama, the special effects… the list goes on.

RUNNER-UP

American boyhood friends Rafe McCawley and Danny Walker enter World War II as pilots. Rafe is so eager to take part in the war that he departs to fight in Europe alongside England’s Royal Air Force. When Rafe is reportedly killed in action, his girlfriend, Evelyn, finds comfort in Danny’s arms. The three of them reunite in Hawaii just before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor…

Starring: Ben Affleck, Josh Hartnett, Kate Beckinsale, Jennifer Garner, Alec Baldwin, Cuba Gooding Jr., Jon Voight

My Take: This movie combines epic, heroic scenes of the attack on Pearl Harbor and the realities of the war with a heart-breaking, sweeping romance that will have you smiling and sobbing at the same time.