I consider physical books to be merch, so I buy them when I already like the story, or want to support the author specifically. Otherwise, when I want to try a new book, I go to the library

Came here for this one. Perfect.

Have you considered Discworld? Light comedy might work where complex prose hasn’t

I track my reading with a bookmark

You’ll love the Stormlight Archives then. It’s very anime. Crazy magic powers and giant super swords. Most of the fandom thinks the best way to do a TV adaptation would be to animate it

Yumi and the Nightmare Painter is another one I think you’ll especially like. It’s inspired by Hikaru no Go, Your Name, and Final Fantasy 10

Skyward Flight is fantastic. As are the next two novels in the series. I just finished Defiant a couple weeks ago. Brandon did such a good job concluding the series, I’m so hyped for Stormlight 5’s conclusion. I’m also very excited to see how Janci continues in Skyward Legacy.

I just started Greencloak by Lyndsey Luther, which sounds like it’s going to be a fun high fantasy novel in a unique setting. She’s also the person Lyn in the Stormlight Archive is based on

Zoom was actually a word before 2011