Book recommendations

I am using "epic" here to refer to more "typical" fantasy which takes place in fantastical worlds, often involves plots that have very broad ramifications for much of the world, and doesn't fit more closely into one of the other categories here.

N. K. Jemisin

N. K. Jemisin is one of my all-time favorite contemporary authors and I can recommend basicallly everything she has written. In the epic fantasy category, she has two series, the Inheritence Trilogy (starting with 100 Thousand Kingdoms) and the Broken Earth Trilogy (starting with The Fifth Season). She has also written a duology based on Egyptian mythology, an urban fantasy/sci-fi duology, and a short stories collection. Her work is certainly adult. There are very heavy themes throughout, and sex in most of her works.

The Inheritence Trilogy

These books should be read in publication order, but each one is fairly standalone (there is no trouble just stopping after the first or second). They are set within an empire built on the power of fallen and controlled gods, focusing on individuals navigating major theological and political shifts. If you are a lover of fantasy I really can't recommend this series enough, and I think it's a good introduction to her work. Each of the three main books follows a different incredibly interesting character and explores really wonderful corners of the word she built.

The Broken Earth Trilogy

N. K. Jemisin won the Hugo thrice in a row for each of the books in this series and it was well deserved. In contrast to the Inheritence Trilogy, these books really have to be read as a unit and there are some pretty major cliffhangers between the books. This series focuses on navigating a hostile planet and the slow unfolding of mysteries about the world and main characters. There's a lot of really heavy stuff about motherhood in particular. To me this series is exemplary in the perfect blend of sci-fi and fantasy elements and the worldbuilding in general. Bonus points also for some awesome queer characters (including trans!).

The Bloodmoon Duology

The Bloodmoon Duology has worldbuilding based on Egyptian mythology. You can stop after the first book of two if you want. I don't have an easy way to summarize this little series but I really really enjoyed it, especially the first book. There's a really fantastic magic system based on dreams and the four humors, and some wonderful angst about all sorts of relationship types.

Other

Her short stories collection "How Long 'Til Black Future Month" is full of bangers and is a great taste of a bunch fo her worlds in mini form as she tests them out. I wasn't a huge fan of her urban fantasy/eldritch duology (The City We Became/The World We Make) but it was still pretty good. Especially good if you happen to live in NYC (which I never have).

Realm of the Elderlings, Robin Hobb

Realm of the Elderings is the name for a set of series in the same world. The individual series involved are the Farseer Trilogy, The Liveship Traders, The Tawny Man Trilogy, The Rainwild Chronicles, The Fitz and the Fool Trilogy. The Farseer, Tawny Man, and Fitz and Fool books follow primarily the same character(s). I would definitely recommend reading all of the books in publication order though. There is so much going on throughout this series that I won't really try to provide an enticing spoiler-free summary of the concept, but I will list some of the things that make it truly exemplary.

1. The most insane relationships of all time. I cannot overstate how much you will be going crazy over the development.
2. Due to the epic scale and different settings within the world, there is fantastic development of the characters and the world over time, and really great payoffs seeing how the settings intersect.
3. Incredibly real and deep examinations of the way that societal misogyny and homophobia can deeply effect every part of a person's life. I think these books are a masterclass in demonstrating the real world effects of misogyny especially, though the setting is not actually our world.

One general caveat is that some of these books, especially in the Liveship Traders series, are so so deeply miserable for large parts of them, making them hard to get through. In general there are happy endings, but getting to them can be heart-wrenching work.

It's a big commitment to read all of these books, but the first trilogy in itself is really fantastic so a great place to start if you are interested. I bet it will hook you and you will need to keep reading on to get more content on the characters.

The Witcher, Andrzej Sapkowski

The Witcher books also I think don't need much introduction. I have never seen the show or played the game, so I can't compare the novels to those, but I can say I quite enjoyed them. They are a sort of medieval fantasy that is especially concerned with exploring the realities and horrors of war. The plot twists are pretty awesome and the characters super interesting. There is a lot of queerness but it is...interestingly handled some times. I would recommend reading them in publication order, something I failed to do initially because I did skip the short stories before diving into the novels. That did work fine but I really should have read those short stories first.

Martha Wells

Martha Wells writes both sci-fi and fantasy, but I put her here because I have only read her fantasy works. I enjoyed her Fall of Ile-Rien series quite a lot, as well as some of her more standalone books like City of Bones and Wheel of the Infinite. She really excels in having interesting female POV characters, especially ones with depression (sounds weird but it really works with her writing). One thing that detracts a bit for me is I felt after reading several of her books in a row they did get a little samey. I believe some of the standalones and the series are technically set in the same multiverse and often the resolution of the plot has to do with specific interactions across the multiverse that get a little repetitive. But her stuff is very solid and I will probably check out Murderbot and more of her other work at some point too.

Earthsea, Ursula K. Le Guin

Another series that hopefully needs very little introduction. Earthsea books are set in an archipelago world and are a sort of gentle fantasy that takes common tropes of its day and interrogates and subverts them. A lot of people recommend specifically the first book, A Wizard of Earthsea, also sometimes calling it like a Harry Potter precursor/alternative. I will say a) it is really absolutely nothing like Harry Potter. I think it actually has a lot in common with some of the Discworld wizard books in terms of world building (like Equal Rites), though not in terms of tone; b) I really think that people should read the entire series. The characterization of Ged and the world really evolve over time, and the whole thing is this remarkable piece of art, only a small glimpse of which emerges just through reading the first book. A foundational text truly for any fantasy reader.

I am using the label "silkpunk" since most of these authors do apply it to their own work and it's a generally productive way of sorting, even though a lot falls under it. I am using it roughly to mean speculative fiction set in a setting inspired by East Asia with a particular focus on technology or its aesthetics.

The Tensorate Series, Neon Yang

The Tensorate Series is a series of novellas, a format I had never read before but ended up really enjoying. It follows the power struggles between a rebellion and an imperial structure in a setting with conflicts between the magic practioners and an emerging group of machinists. There are very cool dragons and awesome queer and trans activity. Some very great treatment of issues of gender.

The Green Bone Saga, Fonda Lee

This series is yakuza inspired urban fantasy that revolves around a particular gang dynasty on an island with a society structured around magical jade stones used by gang members. This series reminds me a lot of Dandelion Dynasty below, as both span a huge stretch of time, allowing you to see the various characters grow up and change as society rapidly changes around them. This series definitely is more about the larger overarching moments, and so the prose is pretty simple and individual events can go by pretty quickly. It also means it's definitely a "nobody is safe" series, and I think it does a good job in having a lot of surprises and twists that still are handled very realistically. Great meditation on tradition and innovation and on the process of decolonization.

Dandelion Dynasty, Ken Liu

If anything is Silkpunk, this series is it. It follows one particular dynastic family in their rise to power and the vast societal changes that happen over decades, with a special focus on technological advancement. Like I said above for the Green Bone books, one of the real hits of this series is getting to see characters throughout their entire lives and the changes to the world that you can witness on that scale. The explanations of new technological advancements are also really fun if you enjoy that sort of technical description. The characters are all very wodnerful.

One thing about this series is that everything is described. So if you get a story from one POV and then shift to some other caharcter who has been doing other stuff in the meantime, the narrative will backtrack and fully explain everything that they did in the meantime. Mostly I did like this, but I think it happened maybe like 15% more than it needed to, and it does make the books quite heft.

She Who Became the Sun/He Who Drowned the World, Shelley Parker-Chan

This duology is historical fantasy set in 14th century China. It follows the struggles of various individuals as they try to claw their way to the top of the imperial structure. The second book especially felt to me like an exploration of supervillanhood, where three different characters/POVs explore three totally different reasons for people to ruthlessly pursue goals of world domination or destruction. Much of the book is caught up with examining gender and sexuality and how societal expectations and internal identities of gender deeply shape the lives of all people. This can be a bit of a tough read in terms of rooting for the amin characters, but I really enjoyed the full commitment to intense characterization, and if you start reading and worry that there will never be a reckoning just know that reckonings do come.

Baru Cormorant, Seth Dickinson

Baru Cormorant is fantasy in the sense that it is set in an entirely different world than our own, and later in the series that world does get populated with a few fantastical elements. However in terms of actual plot and themes, it's really focused on politics. It is the story of the struggles for decolonization and anti-colonial action in the face of an expansive capitalistic eugenicist empire. These books are incredibly heavy and difficult, and the atrocities of colonialism and imperialism are all taken right out real world history which contributes to how hard it is to read. That said, the series is incredibly well written. If you like The Locked Tomb there will also be some pretty striking similarities that you will probably enjoy.

There are three books of the series out right now, and unfortunately this is one of those situations where there is a promised final book but no clear sign of when it will come out. Still, there's actually quite a lot of closure in the third book, in my opinion, so I think you can read them without worrying too much about the eventual closing.

Peter S. Beagle

Peter S. Beagle is perhaps most famously known for writing The Last Unicorn but all of his work deserves great renown. He writes shorts stories and novels that often semi-humorously explore fantastical elements clashing with varieties of everyman figures. I might describe him as a modern fairytale creator. His work is funny, resonant, and creates tiny moments that you feel you coulf step into. Some of my favorites:

The Last Unicorn

A novel (and animated movie adaptation) about the last unicorn in a fantasy world seeking out others of her kind.

The Rhinoceros Who Quoted Nietzsche and Other Odd Acquaintances

A short story collection which offers a fantastic taste of the best of Peter S. Beagle. Several wonderful unicorn stories with different takes on the creatures, am urban werewolf, a Lady Death, and more. Also includes an essay at the back on the Poor People's Campaign from Beagle's time as a journalist.

Tamsin

A ghost story novel that will have you going "did he mean to make that so lesbian?" but in a fun way.

Summerlong

I know the Hades/Persephone retelling biz is played out, but this is not so much a retelling as a story that Hades/Persephone happen to be in, set in the modenr day. A really fantastic novel that creates the vibes of one strange summer perfectly.

Discworld, Terry Pratchett

I don't think I need to say much 'bout Discworld. I will say that during my time reading it I very much appreciated this reading order chart. I would pick a few books from different rows and then follow the rows through to completion mostly in order. This is not a hot take at all, but I really loved all of the Watch books, and the Moist books. I saved the Tiffany Aching series for basically last and I definitely recommend it. It does the best job of fleshing out the witch aspects of the setting, I think. Discworld books are a perfect little treat to read alongside meatier series if you like to have mutiple books/series going at once.

Matthew Swift, Kate Griffin

This is a series of relatively light urban fantasy novels set in London. They are urban fantasy in the most extreme sense of the word: the magic system is derived through the urban center itself. Despite not being from London or the UK at all, I found all of the engagement with the city that is core to the book still super fun and easy to follow and I didn't feel like I was missing much. If you are a fan of absolutely sopping wet male protagonists this is a series for you. The books are funny and charming and Griffin has a real way with words in creating prophecies, echoing lines, things like that. e.g.:

We be light, we be life, we be fire

we sing electric flame, we rumble underground wind

we dance heaven!

Come be we and be free!

We be blue electric angels

Pick up the first book, see if you enjoy it, and then read the rest if you do.

The Time Traveler's Alamanac

This is a massive short story collection of time travel fiction throughout time (heh). All of it is good and many of the stories are really really great. I don't read a lot of sci-fi, but I really enjoyed this sampler.

The Locked Tomb,Tamsyn Muri

You're here on the internet, you probably don't need me to say much about The Locked Tomb. Do you like skeletons and swords and fucked up toxic relationships fo all kinds? Do you want to be so so confused? The prose and narrative techniques really make Muir stand out, as well as her commitment to strong characterization. The commentary on ecological and imperial issues are very current and relevant. The magic system is fun, the mysteries are fantastic, the memery works. Good shit, check it out, get obsessed, join the rest of us.

Wayfarers, Becky Chambers

The Wayfarers books are a series set in the same futuristic sci-fi universe, but each book is standalone. They focus on a variety of spacefaring adventurers, in settings ranging from space opera to solarpunk. These books I would say are mostly fuzzy and feelgood. They assume the best of humanity and of the broader universe and show you people coming together in adversity. They are still very interesting reads, some more plot driver and some more character driven, but definitely on the optimistic side of sci-fi overall. There are some super charming aliens and fantastic characters and very satisfying sort of heists, jobs, etc.

Another loaded generic term. I am just using this as a catch-all for novels that don't really fit into "genre fiction."

Dara Horn

I'm not sure what category she fits in to, but Dara Horn is one of my favorite authors of all time. She writes primarily what I would call Jewish magical realism, but some of her books are just realistic fiction without any of the magical elements. I have read basically all of her fiction books and just heavily recommend them. She is such a master at developing rich thematic resonances and tapping into the feeling of generational connection and longing that feels very Jewish to me. I would be interested to know how some of her fiction hits to a reader who is not Jewish, or not very familiar with Judaism.

The Last Samurai, Helen DeWitt

This novel follows an intellectually gifted single-mother and her even more intellectually gifted young son. Woven throughout it are lots of references and engagements with Classics (like Homer), and also Japanese media (especially the film Seven Samurai). This book is very hard to describe, but it has this slow build of meaning and thematic resonance with really surprising and wonderful payoff.

Paper Girls

Paper Girls is a sci-fi comic that follows a group of paper delivery girls from 1988 Ohio who get sucked into the midst of a generational time war. The coloring of this comic is absolutely striking and beautiful and is one of the best parts about it. It is fully completed which is a big plus for me, and you can get it in collected editions. Highly recommend. Bonus points for great Jewish and queer characters. They made 1 season of a TV show based on it, but I haven't watched it.

Sandman

I probably don't need to say much about Sandman, and it would be a very hard comic to summarize. It follows the figure of Dream, one member of a group of sort of anthropomrphized concepts. Every issue is quite different, but the overarching plot when it appears is grand and wonderful, The art can range, like most comics, from dreamy and fantastic, to "this comic artist has never seen a human body in their entire life." Still, highly recommend. The show is also good, but I think mostly not quite as good as the comic in a lot of little ways (and so far only covers a small fraction of the comic).

Unsounded

I really dislike the medium of webcomic. I do basically all of my reading in paper books, I like it when things are totally finished, and I don't like being drip-fed a story and having to remember to check for updates. So when I say that Unsounded in a must-read comic you can see that it really means a great deal.

Unsounded is a fantasy story set in the extremely well developed fantasy world of Kasslyne. It follows the adventures of Duane, a zombie wizard, and Sette, a curiously betailed criminal brat. But everything about both of them is much more than it seems...

Unsounded updates three times a week(!!!) with extremely dense and high0-quality full colored full pages. The entire story is planned out from start to finish, and the first book is reaching its close some time this year, so if you prefer to read a completed story it will be ready for that soon. That said, because the pages are so dense and frequent and the comic so stellar, there is a really active update community on discord, reddit, facebook, tumblr, and 4chan that are all super active in commenting on each new page, theorizing, etc.

There is a mostly hard magic system that is based in lareg part of computer programming. The story explores themes of death and immortality, religion, personal growth and change (and failure), and much more. The worldbuilding is deep and tight, politically fascinating, but serving the plot and characters. The art is good from the start, but only gets better and better and better. I could praise this comic forever. Go read it for free right now on your device!!