Uprooted

Uprooted by Naomi Novik, 438 pages

Every ten years, a powerful, mysterious wizard known only as the Dragon chooses a 17-year-old girl from one of the villages surrounding his tower, forcing them to stay with him for a decade. Agnieszka (and everyone else in their village) fully expects her friend Kasia to be chosen, but the Dragon instead chooses Agnieszka, for reasons that are unknown to everyone, including the Dragon. However, it soon becomes apparent that Agnieszka has been blessed with magic herself, and soon she and the Dragon are pulled into an age-old battle against the malevolent Wood that threatens to destroy first the valley where they live, and then the entire realm.

This book won the 2016 Nebula award for best novel, and it's well-deserved. Novik has created a fairy tale-esque story with excellent characters, a quick plot, and an intriguing conflict that makes us ponder motivations and consequences of emotions and actions alike.