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This thread is to be used for recommendation requests or simple questions that are small/general enough that they won’t spark a full thread of discussion.
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As usual, first have a look at the sidebar in case what you're after is there. The r/Fantasy wiki contains links to many community resources, including "best of" lists, flowcharts, the LGTBQ+ database, and more. If you need some help figuring out what you want, think about including some of the information below:
- Books you’ve liked or disliked
- Traits like prose, characters, or settings you most enjoy
- Series vs. standalone preference
- Tone preference (lighthearted, grimdark, etc)
- Complexity/depth level
Be sure to check out responses to other users' requests in the thread, as you may find plenty of ideas there as well. Happy reading, and may your TBR grow ever higher!
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Looking for some politics heavy novel recommendations with male Protagonist.
Something more grounded like Game of thrones.
Also I would like see some Romance dynamics like Protagonist taking one wife and multiple Concubines. Like Ancient times.
I’m new to fantasy and really enjoyed listening to the audiobook of the Fourth Wing series. I started reading the ACOTAR series but didn’t like the female main character. I thought she was whiny and always needed others to do her bidding. Then I started the Throne of Glass series, and I love it, but I’m still not fully convinced, mainly because she’s only 18 in the books. I need a good fantasy book with a well-written magic system, a badass fmc who can actually fight and stuff know how to take care of things, a badass mmc who also knows wtf hes doing, (maybe a bit villain ish. I like a teasing love interest or more like enemies to lovers, a bit of smut but nothing weird or freaky with tails or wings 😅. And a bit of humor.
Surely someone here has a good recommendation
There's no magic, but I personally love the Bridge Kingdom series by Danielle L. Jensen - ticks off your other boxes, very capable FMC and MMC, enemies to lovers, nothing weird or freaky, sense of humour.
You might be interested in /r/fantasyromance's official post Try This Thursday: If you liked Fourth Wing, then try... and they have lots of standalone topics on books similar to Fourth Wing as well.
Thanks! I will check it out!
Asked in yesterday's thread but posted a bit too late to get a definitive answer, would Dungeon Crawler Carl count for the Stranger in a Strange Land bingo square? I'm thinking Carl is more of a visitor instead of moving in as a minority.
I think the main distinction I'd draw, at least in the beginning books, that Carl doesn't really choose to be there. He's closer to a captive or a PoW than a visitor- he'd leave the Dungeon if he could. And I think the square is more about adapting to and learning about another pre-existing culture, of which the dungeon isn't really, being artificial.
It definitely doesn't feel like this is in the spirit of the square. He is still primarily interacting with other earth people.
I don't think it works, at least for the earlier books, as there's no actually moving in to a different culture. He's definitely learning about alien culture but not really living in one
ah yeah, that's why I said I was wondering if it would fit with Carl as a visitor. Seems the first book is hard to fit with the prompt though!
It fits other squares though, Impossible Places for example
I saw in the recommendations thread a quote in the fourth book(?) potentially discredits the Impossible Places one so I didn't want to risk it. I'll see where else it can go in my bingo.
You can use any Dungeon Crawler Carl book for Impossible Places as the inventory system breaks physics.
I think some of the later books may fit but its 50/50. The spirit of the square is about being in a foreign culture and I don't think you really see that part of it in the first couple of books, and even then the alien culture isn't really the focus I'd say.
Any recommendations for East Asian SFF authors? Need it for a bingo in another sub.
Now I'm intrigued by this other Bingo... would you mind sharing?
https://www.reddit.com/r/FemaleGazeSFF/comments/1nhpw60/reading_challenge_announcement_fallwinter_20252026/
Awesome, I'll have a look now!
So many good options! Without knowing more about your taste, maybe
If the prompt is East Asia specifically I typically wouldn't think of Sri Lanka as being part of that (it's South Asia).
Thank you !
The Factory by Hiroko Oyamada, The Cat Who Saved Books by Sosuke Natsukawa, The Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa, Cursed Bunny by Bora Chung, One Hundred Shadows by Hwang Jungeun, Terminal Boredom by Izumi Suzuki, If Cats Disappeared from the World by Genki Kawamura... just to name a few favorites.
Does the prompt specifically ask for authors living/writing in East Asia or would someone like Ken Liu (born in China, lives in the US and writes in English) count? If you have any specific preferences (horror, cozy, sci-fi...) I might be able to give you some more personal recommendations.
Thank you! The prompt is a little unclear, but I would say that born in East Asia is a must.
I like female protagonists, interesting and engaging plots, good prose, good character writing. I do not like horror, gore, cruelty/rape/misogyny, infodumps.
Strange Beasts of China by Yan Ge is a good one.
Thank you !
I've enjoyed books by Yoko Ogawa, Yasutaka Tsutsui, and Sayaka Murata. Han Kang is really good. Without knowing the prompt parameters, I'd also mention Violet Kupersmith.
Thank you !
So i have read a few and i really liked The dragon riders of Elentia , and a few others but i want the main character, the girl to be in like a school ore am academy but to have a boy dragon , i dont mind If there are girl dragons in the story/book but for the girl i want a boy dragon and i like IT more when the dragon îs an adult and he chooses her but any recomandations are welcomed . Please !!
My memory is hazy, but I'm 99% sure that the dragon in Dragoneer Academy by EE Knight is a male dragon
Obvious question but have you already read Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros?
Can anyone think of a book that has both 1) gods & pantheons or 2) fairies?
This is for Bingo, and the fairies must be either called fairies/fae or heavily coded as such (so books like The Bear & the Nightingale wouldn’t count as those are Russian spirits with a differently mythological origin).
It's been a long time since I've read either series, but I think Dresden Files and Iron Druid both have deities from various mythologies as well as fae. In Dresden they're definitely called that, not 100% sure about Iron Druid.
Under the Pendulum Sun features a Christian mission to the fae.
I haven't actually finished it, but I think it should be fine.
Coldfire trilogy by C.S. Friedman! Super cool setting with big emphasis on the fae
Recently I’ve hit a lot of classic fantasy, modern fantasy, and modern sci-fi. Next up I’m going for more classic sci-fi.
I have already read Frank Herbert, Gene Wolfe, William Gibson and Phillip K Dick.
Plan to read Asimov, Clarke, Heinlein, Bradbury and HG Wells. Any others you would consider essential?
Jules Verne is a good read if you want to go back to the 19th century.
For some classic pulp, EE "Doc" Smith's Lensmen series is some goofy fun.
For something both heavy and mindblowing, try Olaf Stapleton. Star Maker, Odd John, the Last and First Men ... A philosopher as well as a SciFi writer he explores what it means to be human over the vast expanse of time.
More recent but maybe old enough for classic now, Iain M Banks and his Culture books. One of the best explorations of what a post-need society might look like.
James Tiptree Jr. Was actually a woman named Alice Bradley and was a former CIA agent. She was able to keep her identity secret for 10 years(1967-1977). Everyone knew that Tiptree was the pseudonym of a former intelligence officer but everyone assumed it was a man. She also wrote and published under the name Racoona Sheldon but couldn't get published ... Until she wrote to publishers and editors' as Tiptree, recommending Sheldon. Anyway ... Her work is kind of dark and edgy.
Ursula LeGuin, Octavia Butler, Margaret Atwood (I liked her MadAddam trilogy best) & James Tiptree Jr
Ursula K Le Guin, James Tiptree Jr, Joanna Russ
Let me start by saying nothing is essential - read what you like and don't let anyone say "you have to read ______"
Okay, now that that is out of the way, some classic sci-fi authors to look at (no particular order):
Greg Bear Roger Zelazny Harlan Ellison David Brin Larry Niven
and don't forget Ursula Le Guin wrote sci-fi as well as fantasy, so check out her works in the genre
And if you are looking for classics that also happen to be sci-fi, you have Orwell (1984), Vonnegut (Slaughterhouse 5), Huxley (Brave New World)
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I have read this, though, admittedly a while ago. It's mostly set in the school which I wouldn't count. I don't really remember her doing much traveling to the parallel world and definitely not interacting with civilisation there so from what I remember I wouldn't count it.
I haven’t read the book but if the MC spends time in a parallel world I would count it
But I wouldn’t count a deaf person going to a new school
Just finished Anji kills a king for Bingo. Something I didn't understand, could someone who read it as well clarify it for me ?
Spoiler for chapter 44: In this chapter, Kit/The Hawk admits having killed Anji's parents and paying for her to join the castle. Did she kill them on Sun Warden's/Rolodrian's orders (as the Hawk) or because they had to be sacrificed for the Tide ? I have the feeling that she knew Anji's parents and might have killed them to throw the Wardens on a false path, especially since she paid for Anji to be taken to the castle, but still.
Everything is explained in this passage but it's not clear to me:
Anji picked up the coins, both pulsing with maxia.
“You took…” Anji squeezed the coins, the edges digging into her skin.
“All my fault,” Kit said, fresh tears spilling down her cheeks. She spat a thick glob of blood and mucus and sank lower on the bench. “I killed them. Stuffed the pages into their mouths. I took your coin before the Goat could guess what it was. Found you on the streets. Paid to have you taken to the castle.”
Anji stared, a buzzing filled her ears. Her vision tunneled, her hands shook.
“I thought you’d be safe,” said Kit, “and you were, for six years. Even when the castle bells began to ring, I knew you would be okay. Then, when I heard your description—when I heard about what you’d done—I cursed myself for putting you there. I cursed gods I don’t even believe in and thanked them when I found out you’d escaped.
“Then,” and now Kit’s voice was a croak, “I heard about your bounty. A million Rhoda. All that money … for the Tide. I told myself I had no choice. I had to track you down, to finish the horrible job we’d started with your parents all those years ago.” Kit whimpered and reached out a trembling hand. “I’m so sorry, Anji.”
I thought she did it as The Hawk, on the Sun Warden's orders. She was beginning to have sympathies for the Tide, so took the coin and paid for Anji to help the little she could while keeping her own position safe and sympathies secret.
It's been a while since I finished it so hopefully someone with a more recent memory can answer as well but my understanding was Kit did it as part of her job as Tide murderer/enforcer
Thanks for replying. In that case, was a reason given for it ? I just assumed they had been caught as rebels.
Sorry this is where my memory is failing me, I thought they lived in the gang area at the time (?) so it made sense to me when I read it
Can I get recommendations for Hard mode High Fashion and Epistolary?
Books I have recently enjoyed include The Eternal Library Series by Cedar McCloud, Katabasis, A Drop of Corruption and Blood Over Bright Haven.
I generally prefer minimal romance in my books, and I'm already reading a few 500+ page books this month so wouldn't mind something shorter.
If any suggestions happen to be on Kobo+ that would be ideal.
Glitterati by Oliver K. Langmead is pretty short, not romance heavy at all (the character are already married, though in context that's half love and half a weird fashion performance), and definitely hard mode high fashion.
Tainaron: Mail from Another City by Leen Krohn is an excellent epistolary HM novella.
I read The Undertakers by Nicole Glover for the High Fashion square. One of the main characters is a dressmaker, the first book (The Conductors) also works.
For my other card I went with The Monstrous Misses Mai by Van Hoang, the protagonist is a fashion designer.
Purple and Black by KJ Parker is an epistolary novella.
I just read Od Magic by Patricia McKillip, which is just over 300 pages and works for High Fashion, I would say it is HM.
The Works of Vermin by Hiron Ennes is an excellent book that fits High Fashion HM. It's around 400 pages, although does have some romance.
If you want a book with no romance, then I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman also fits and is comparatively short. It is pretty dark
For epistolary, try The Moonday Letters by Emmi Itaranta.
For something short and HM epistolary you could go with Nothing but the Rain by Naomi Salman, a literary novella written as a diary of a woman in a town where the rain steals memories.
Howl's Moving Castle would be my first HM high fashion rec as well, though for something different and also relatively short you could do The Carpet Makers by Andreas Eschbach. It's a mosaic novel about a planet where men weave carpets from their wives' and daughters' hair, and then, well, a lot more later on.
I haven't read most of the books you mention, so cannot go off on that.
But here are my recommendations: * High Fashion: Spellcoats by Diana Wynne Jones. It is aimed at younger audiences, but not what you would call YA today - it's Diana Wynne Jones, that means high quality fantasy. The book is set in prehistoric times and the main character weaves spell coats. There are ancient gods, wild magic and an evil wizard. Definitely on the shorter side. No romance iirc. * Epistolary: Among Others by Jo Walton. This is in diary form and won an award. It's about a girl running from an evil witch mom, about being Welsh at an English boarding school, small magic, growing up and most of all about reading SFF classics. The MC does enter into a relationship at some point, but it never feels romantic. Also on the shorter side and imo a must read for SFF fans.
Spellcoats is such a good book. One of my favorites in any genre.
I've read Six Crimson Cranes for hard mode High Fashion, but I think Howl's Moving Castle could also work - it's shorter, the mc works as a hat maker and then has a few adventures with an enchanted jacket.
Sadly, I don't really have recommendations for Epistolary. I've read Dracula, but it's not a short book.
Been listening to Dungeon crawler Carl and I'm looking for some suggestions for similar type of books not necessarily LitRPGs but along the same type of Humour that DDC has
Or I'm interested in Dark Fantasy
I kind of bounced off book 3, possibly because of my mood, but Momo the Ripper was fun and silly in a similar way.
Take a look at r/ProgressionFantasy
I've recently read "How to defeat a demon lord in ten easy steps" and it's a very fun, light LitRPG, where the mc tries to exploit magic mechanics to defeat the enemy.
Thanks I'll check it out
Heading to New Zealand and need a good book to read the obvious choices are Lord of the rings or the Hobbit but fancy something new but with a similar vibe of adventure and going on a quest.
I'm a slow reading so something shorter would be ideal any suggestions?
The Unlikely Escape of Uriah Heep by H.G. Parry is set in Wellington - although it's around 400 pages.
Sasha Stronach is a Māori author and her book, The Dawnhounds, is a deeply weird, fun read. It isn't classic LotR-esque high fantasy (it's a strange mystery with competing divinities) but it is far more NZ-ish.
Earthsea. Short and adventurous.
Takes place in an archipelago, so islands and ocean like New Zealand.
The only NZ fantasy that comes to mind is Whale Rider (if that even counts as SFF), and it is not about a quest.
What about an Australian author? Iirc Garth Nix is Australian and his Sabriel should fit your request.