Once again, I have scoured the internet for speculative fiction books coming out this year and compiled a list of works I wanted to highlight. After looking through book descriptions, early reviews, and any available excerpts, I’ve put together a list of 17 fantasy and science fiction books coming out in 2025 that sound particularly compelling to me. (Of course, some of these are mainly here due to my having enjoyed other work by the same author!)

As always, this is not a comprehensive list of speculative fiction books being released this year. It’s not even all the books I’m curious about that are scheduled for release in 2025, but it is those that sound most intriguing to me personally. Almost all of these are fantasy since I didn’t find that many science fiction books coming this year that sounded as interesting to me as upcoming releases in that genre (other than the hardcover re-release of Arkady Martine’s Rose/House in March). Given my interests, this list includes epic fantasy, fantasy inspired by history and mythology, dark academia, and fantasy romance, as well as some works promising morally gray characters and political intrigue. I hope that those of you with similar taste find something here that appeals to you as well.

There are other books I’m hoping might end up being 2025 releases, like Laini Taylor’s first novel for adults, the next book in the False Goddess trilogy by Amy Leow, and The Road to Emberlain novellas by Scott Lynch (and, of course, I continue to hope for Winds of Winter, although I think that one’s a lot less likely!). Also, there are a couple of books that are supposed to be released this fall that I’m keeping an eye out for based on what little I know about them so far:

  • The Isle in the Silver Sea by Tasha Suri, a “standalone novel about a knight and a witch who must change the fate of magic and the world by altering the end of their story, pitched as Green Knight meets THE STARLESS SEA with reincarnation.”
  • An Arcane Inheritance by Kamilah Cole, “a modern-day dark academia speculative fantasy with a twist, perfect for fans of Babel and A Deadly Education.” The rest of the description so far says “Warren University has long stood amongst the ivy elite, built on the bones―and forbidden magic―of its most prized BIPOC students…hiding the rot of a secret society that will do anything to keep their own powers burning bright, no matter the cost to those lost along the way.”

The books I’m excited for that have 2025 release dates and book descriptions are listed below. They are ordered by scheduled publication date, and these are US release dates unless otherwise stated.

Due to the length of this blog post, I’m only showing the first 6 books on the main page. You can click the title of the post or the ‘more…’ link after the sixth book to read the entire article.

Cover images link to Bookshop. As a Bookshop affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Cover of The Desert Talon by Karin Lowachee
The Desert Talon (The Crowns of Ishia #2) by Karin Lowachee
Release Date: February 11

The Mountain Crown, the first book in The Crowns of Ishia trilogy, was one of my favorite 2024 book releases. Though very different from Karin Lowachee’s Warchild Mosaic (my favorite science fiction series), this novella shows the same thought and care that make her such an excellent writer. With its wonderful storytelling and characters that seemed alive, I felt like I was accompanying the latter on their journey, and I’m excited to actually meet Janan in the second book in this trilogy. And, of course, I’m looking forward to more dragons!

 

The exciting sequel to the gunslinging, dragon-riding world of The Mountain Crown

Sephihalé ele Janan sits in a prison cell in the southern island of Mazemoor, dreaming of escape. After months in a provisional prison for fighting for the imperial Kattakans, Janan is sponsored by another refugee who was once a part of his scattered family. Yearning to build a life on his sister’s land with the dragons their people revere, the peace Janan seeks is threatened by a ruthless dragon baron who covets both Janan’s connection to the earth and the battle dragon to which he is covenanted.

The conflict may drive Janan to acts of violence he hoped to leave behind in the war, and bring more death to the land Janan now calls home.

The Desert Talon is a story of two groups of people who, despite a common ancestry, have diverged so far in their beliefs that there appears to be little mutual ground—and the conflict may well start to unravel the burgeoning hopes of a country, and a man, still recovering from the ravages of war.


Cover of The Dream Hotel by Laila Lalami
The Dream Hotel by Laila Lalami
Release Date: March 4

This upcoming novel by Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award finalist Laila Lalami sounds both deeply disturbing and fascinating in its exploration of technology and surveillance. Set in the near future, it’s about a woman with young children who uses some new technology that is supposed to aid with sleep, resulting in her being detained for a crime she might commit based on an algorithm’s assessment of her dream data.

I’ve had a hard time finding 2025 science fiction releases that really pique my interest, but I’m eagerly anticipating The Dream Hotel after reading some early reviews.

 

From Laila Lalami—the Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award finalist and a “maestra of literary fiction” (NPR)—comes a riveting and utterly original novel about one woman’s fight for freedom, set in a near future where even dreams are under surveillance.

Sara has just landed at LAX, returning home from a conference abroad, when agents from the Risk Assessment Administration pull her aside and inform her that she will soon commit a crime. Using data from her dreams, the RAA’s algorithm has determined that she is at imminent risk of harming the person she loves most: her husband. For his safety, she must be kept under observation for twenty-one days.

The agents transfer Sara to a retention center, where she is held with other dreamers, all of them women trying to prove their innocence from different crimes. With every deviation from the strict and ever-shifting rules of the facility, their stay is extended. Months pass and Sara seems no closer to release. Then one day, a new resident arrives, disrupting the order of the facility and leading Sara on a collision course with the very companies that have deprived her of her freedom.

Eerie, urgent, and ceaselessly clear-eyed, The Dream Hotel artfully explores the seductive nature of technology, which puts us in shackles even as it makes our lives easier. Lalami asks how much of ourselves must remain private if we are to remain free, and whether even the most invasive forms of surveillance can ever capture who we really are.


Cover of A Song of Legends Lost by M. H. Ayinde
A Song of Legends Lost (Invoker Trilogy #1) by M. H. Ayinde
Release Date: April 8 (UK); June 3 (US/Canada)

This epic fantasy debut novel by M. H. Ayinde, winner of the 2021 Future Worlds Prize, sounds fantastic in every way. Set in a world inspired by Yoruba, Filipino, and other non-Western cultures, it features a commoner who may have accidentally discovered how to end a thousand-year war when she summons a spirit, an ability that was thought to be limited to the elites who could call forth their ancestors to fight for them.

 

An unforgettable tale of revenge and rebellion unfolds when an inexperienced king implements a doomed plan to end a thousand-year war in this relentlessly gripping epic fantasy debut from a “master storyteller” (Andrea Stewart, author of The Bone Shard Daughter).

“The exhilarating must-read fantasy debut of 2025.” —Tasha Suri, author of The Jasmine Throne

A SONG OF REBELLION. A SONG OF WAR. A SONG OF LEGENDS LOST.

In the Nine Lands, only those of noble blood can summon the spirits of their ancestors to fight in battle. But when Temi, a commoner from the slums, accidentally invokes a powerful spirit, she finds it could hold the key to ending a centuries-long war.

But not everything that can be invoked is an ancestor. And some of the spirits that can be drawn from the ancestral realm are more dangerous than anyone can imagine.

Drawing on multiple pre-colonial cultures, including Yoruba and Filipino, and set in a non-Western-inspired world, A Song of Legends Lost is not just a tale of vengeance but a stunning debut novel of identity and heritage.

“A whirlwind debut of ferocious talent and compulsive storytelling that lifts you up from the first page and never lets go.” —Lavie Tidhar, World Fantasy Award–winning author


Cover of The Raven Scholar by Antonia Hodgson
The Raven Scholar (Eternal Path Trilogy #1) by Antonia Hodgson
Release Date: April 15

I love epic fantasy with some good politics and scheming, and the description of The Raven Scholar had me at “imperial intrigue, cutthroat competition, and one scholar’s quest to uncover the truth.” Between hearing this is excellent and reading a bit of the beginning for myself, I’m not even daunted by the size of this chunky novel—just excited to dive into its pages!

 

From an electrifying new voice in epic fantasy comes The Raven Scholar, a masterfully woven and playfully inventive tale of imperial intrigue, cutthroat competition, and one scholar’s quest to uncover the truth.

Let us fly now to the empire of Orrun, where after twenty-four years of peace, Bersun the Brusque must end his reign. In the dizzying heat of mid-summer, seven contenders compete to replace him. They are exceptional warriors, thinkers, strategists—the best of the best.

Then one of them is murdered.

It falls to Neema Kraa, the emperor’s brilliant, idiosyncratic High Scholar, to find the killer before the trials end. To do so, she must untangle a web of deadly secrets that stretches back generations, all while competing against six warriors with their own dark histories and fierce ambitions. Neema believes she is alone. But we are here to help; all she has to do is let us in.

If she succeeds, she will win the throne. If she fails, death awaits her. But we won’t let that happen.

We are the Raven, and we are magnificent.


 

Review of The Floating World by Axie Oh
The Floating World (The Floating World #1) by Axie Oh
Release Date: April 29

I was utterly charmed by The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea, Axie Oh’s retelling of the Korean folktale “The Tale of Shim Cheong,” which was one of my favorite books of 2022. I was delighted to discover she has a new young adult fantasy novel that reimagines another Korean legend coming out this year.

The Floating World, which draws some inspiration from the myths of Celestial Maidens as in the folktale “The Woodcutter and the Heavenly Maiden,” will be followed by The Demon and the Light on October 21. Axie Oh described this duology as “if a Final Fantasy boy met a Ghibli heroine” in a post on Instagram.

 

From Axie Oh, the New York Times-bestselling author of The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea, Final Fantasy meets Shadow and Bone in this lighthearted romantic fantasy reimagining the Korean legend of Celestial Maidens.

Sunho lives in the Under World, a land of perpetual darkness. An ex-soldier, he can remember little of his life from before two years ago, when he woke up alone with only his name and his sword. Now he does odd-jobs to scrape by, until he comes across the score of a lifetime—a chest of coins for any mercenary who can hunt down a girl who wields silver light.

Meanwhile, far to the east, Ren is a cheerful and spirited acrobat traveling with her adoptive family and performing at villages. But everything changes during one of their festival performances when the village is attacked by a horrific humanlike demon. In a moment of fear and rage, Ren releases a blast of silver light—a power she has kept hidden since childhood—and kills the monster. But her efforts are not in time to prevent her adoptive family from suffering a devastating loss, or to save her beloved uncle from being grievously wounded.

Determined to save him from succumbing to the poisoned wound, Ren sets off over the mountains, where the creature came from—and from where Ren herself fled ten years ago. Her path sets her on a collision course with Sunho, but he doesn’t realize she’s the girl that he—and a hundred other swords-for-hire—is looking for. As the two grow closer through their travels, they come to realize that their pasts—and destinies—are far more entwined than either of them could have imagined…


Cover of The Sun Blessed Prince by Lindsey Byrd
The Sun Blessed Prince (A Tale of Two Crowns Duology #1) by Lindsey Byrd
Release Date: April 29 (US); May 1 (UK/Canada)

This epic fantasy romance novel sounds like it contains some good drama: two men with opposing types of magic are thrown together when one of them fails to assassinate the other, all amidst plotting and war.

 

A battle-weary prince meets a reluctant assassin. But could their bond end their war?

SEPARATED BY WAR, UNITED BY FATE…

Prince Elician is a Giver. He can heal any wound and bring the dead back to life. He also can’t be killed, so is cursed to watch his country wage an endless war.

Reapers can kill with a single touch. And when one attacks Prince Elician by a hotly-contested battlefield, but fails, the Reaper expects a terrible punishment. Instead, Elician offers him a chance at a new life and a new name on enemy territory. The Reaper hadn’t realized he could ever find something, or someone, to make life worth living—until Elician. Yet the prince is unaware that his kindness is part of his enemy’s plan, until danger engulfs in turn.

As the pieces of a deadly plot come together, featuring abduction, treachery and forbidden magic, tensions escalate at court and on the battlefield. The fires of conflict burst into new flame—but can those who wield the powers of life and death find peace?

A POWERFUL AND RICHLY-IMAGINED TALE OF LOVE, WAR, MAGIC AND YEARNING.



(more…)

Happy (slightly belated) New Year! As usual, I took the opportunity to cover some highlights of 2024 and discuss my favorite stories from the last year.

Blog Highlights in 2024

One of the biggest highlights of 2024 on this blog was the thirteenth annual Women in SF&F Month, which contained wonderful essays by speculative fiction authors discussing their thoughts, experiences, influences, and work. It featured the following guest posts (which are eligible for nonfiction/related work awards):

I also wrote about some series I think deserve more recognition for last year’s Women in SF&F Month:

If you enjoy lists, I also shared about my Favorite Books & Media of 2023 and some Anticipated 2024 Speculative Fiction Releases.

 Favorite Books & Media of 2024

As always, I reflected on what I read over the last year and came up with a list that feels right for my experiences with the books I read during that time. The first half of the year was a bit rough since I read some new-to-me books that I liked well enough but only three that really stood out to me, but fortunately, I discovered more great books later in the year. I ended up with five 2024 releases and four older books/series that were highlights.

I did end up doing quite a bit of rereading this year, often because I wanted to refresh my memory before reading other related books. Any book I enjoyed enough to reread would be a highlight, but I am leaving those off the list since I’ve included many of them before. The related books that I read for the very first time do appear here, though, since those were also great.

These posts are usually limited to books, but I couldn’t resist gushing some more about my favorite game for the second year in a row, especially since I did spend quite a bit of 2024 playing it!

Favorite Books Released in 2024

I had five favorite books released in 2024, but I found myself at a bit of a loss when it came to choosing a Book of the Year. These are all books I’d rate around an 8/10 or 4/5 stars, and I don’t think there’s one I’d say is far better than the others. I went back and forth on how I’d rank them since I enjoyed them all for different reasons, so they are in the order I read them instead of which I liked best. These all get to be my 2024 Books of the Year!

One thing I found interesting about this year’s selection is that only one of them had a romantic arc, and none of them have a romance as defined by the genre. (My top two last year both had romances!)

Cover images link to Bookshop. As an affiliate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Cover of The Wings Upon Her Back by Samantha Mills

The Wings Upon Her Back by Samantha Mills
Read an Excerpt

There’s a line Samantha Mills wrote in the afterword of The Wings Upon Her Back that I feel summarizes so much of what it’s about:

“I was thinking about what it takes to choose a new path when you’ve spent your whole life walking someone else’s.”

This science fantasy novel is about a woman in a warrior-sect who makes one choice that upends her entire life and everything she’s worked toward. That one moment leads to her becoming an outcast, and after twenty-six years of service, she’s no longer accepted by her mentor and community. It’s about grappling with the fact that she’s been wrong and dedicated so much of her life to something she now knows she shouldn’t have, and it also shows how she came to be part of her order and explores the relationship she had with her mentor. It’s about choosing a new path and redemption and so many difficult subjects like disillusionment and fascism, and it also has some beautiful turns of phrase (and gods and winged warriors).

Cover of Goddess of the River by Vaishnavi Patel

Goddess of the River by Vaishnavi Patel
My Review

Vaishnavi Patel’s debut novel, Kaikeyi, was one of my favorite books of 2022, and I think her second novel is even better. Like her first novel, her latest book reimagines the life of a female character from an Indian epic who is often overlooked in studies and texts. This time, she tells the story of the river goddess Ganga from the Mahabharata, showing how her time as a mortal changed her. Goddess of the River largely focuses on Ganga’s relationship with her son, their influence on each other, and how this had an impact on the kingdom of Hastinapur.

It’s an excellent mythic tale that explores a lot of themes and questions, and both Ganga and her son are fascinating characters. Ganga has a unique perspective as a goddess who encompasses a river, and I particularly enjoyed experiencing mortality through her eyes: suddenly being reduced to a form that contains so much less yet has all these strange, overwhelming human senses, and being expected to abide by all these absurd human rules and customs. Though her son has the perspective of one of us mere mortals, I found his struggles with doing what’s right equally compelling, especially the examination of duty, honor, and justice that permeates his character arc.

Cover of The Mountain Crown by Karin Lowachee

The Mountain Crown (The Crowns of Ishia #1) by Karin Lowachee
Read an Excerpt

Karin Lowachee is the author of my favorite science fiction series, and though the first novella in her new fantasy trilogy is very different in style, it showcases the thought and care that make her such a wonderful storyteller. The Mountain Crown follows Méka as she returns to her colonized homeland to perform her people’s rite of gathering a king dragon. In the course of her quest, she collects a dragon from the fighting pits, the slave who cared for the dragon, and a traitor (who has history with the former and his boyfriend).

This is one of those books that feels like going on a journey with the characters. It doesn’t explain everything but lets readers experience what it’s like to live in this world and communicate with dragons, who have their own unique phrases and ways of conveying their thoughts and feelings. It’s just a lovely story with some beautiful writing, respect for life and nature, and a persistent protagonist (and, of course, fantastic dragons!).

Cover of The Scarlet Throne by Amy Leow

The Scarlet Throne (The False Goddess Trilogy #1) by Amy Leow
Read an Excerpt

The Scarlet Throne follows a teenager who casts judgment with the voice of a goddess—but instead of hosting a revered deity, she hosts a cat-like demon who can show her the truth. She’s sacrificed much to hold on to her position as long as she can and is older than most living goddesses ever get to be, but when the priests decide it’s time to replace her with a young girl, she decides to do even more to attempt to hold on to what power she has. I enjoyed reading about a protagonist who didn’t even try to be a good person but was selfish, ambitious, and driven, and I’m excited to see what Amy Leow does with the rest of the series.

Cover of Blood Over Bright Haven by M. L. Wang

Blood Over Bright Haven by M. L. Wang
Read/Listen to an Excerpt

Blood Over Bright Haven is not a subtle book, but it is a thoughtful, interesting, and memorable one. It follows two main characters: the first woman to become a highmage, and a janitor that the other mages decide to make her assistant despite (or, rather, because of) his lack of magical knowledge. M. L. Wang doesn’t hold back from exploring the worst parts of humanity, and this isn’t a feel-good book about breaking glass ceilings but one that shines a light on intersectional problems and resistance to tearing down an established structure. There are no easy answers or fixes, and her female protagonist can be smart and brave but also selfish and ignorant. It’s not a comforting story—although the ending does offer a glimmer of hope amidst the tragedy—but it’s one that feels true in so many ways.

Note: Blood Over Bright Haven was self-published in 2023, but I read the new edition that was traditionally published in 2024 so I included it here.

Favorite Books Published Before 2024

Cover of The Sunne in Splendour by Sharon Kay Penman

1. The Sunne in Splendour by Sharon Kay Penman
Read an Excerpt

This is the only book on my list that is not fantasy or science fiction (or a bit of both). I discovered Sharon Kay Penman in 2023 after hearing her historical fiction novels might appeal to readers looking for more like A Song of Ice and Fire. Her Welsh Princes trilogy (which I loved) did have the same sort of epic feel and large cast of characters with strengths and flaws. So did The Sunne in Splendour, which actually covers an inspiration for George R. R. Martin’s fantasy epic: the War of the Roses. I love how Penman writes characters since they’re all distinct and tend to have a complex mix of qualities instead of being clearly “good” or “bad.”

Cover of Lilith's Brood by Octavia E. Butler

2. Lilith’s Brood (Xenogenesis #1-3) by Octavia E. Butler
Read an Excerpt from Dawn (Xenogenesis #1)

Since I found myself wanting to read some older books last year, I caught up on some of Octavia E. Butler’s work I hadn’t read yet, including this series. Lilith’s Brood is an omnibus containing the three Xenogenesis novels, which tell the story of humanity’s transformation into a new species after most are destroyed in a worldwide war. The remaining survivors are rescued by aliens who travel the universe and incorporate the genetics of others into their own, meaning they keep evolving as a species. They also only allow humans to continue to have children if they join one of their families and let them use both human and alien genetic material to create them.

Dawn, the first book in the series, is the story of how one of these survivors, Lilith, came to be part of an alien family and an ambassador to other humans on the ship. The next two books in the series follow two of her children: Adulthood Rites is about her first son, and Imago is about a child who grows up to become the first alien/human hybrid of the third alien gender, neither male nor female. Dawn was my favorite in the series, followed by Adulthood Rites, but all three books were interesting with aliens that felt alien and humans that felt so very human. These novels are disturbing and unusual, and their themes and examination of changes in humanity over time reminded me a bit of Patternmaster, my favorite of Octavia E. Butler’s series. (But even so, these are both very different stories!)

Cover of Parable of the Talents by Octavia E. Butler

3. Parable of the Talents (Earthseed #2) by Octavia E. Butler

It had been years since I read Parable of the Sower so I read it again, in part so I could read the complete Earthseed duology together in the year it began. This novel is about Lauren Olamina, whose story opens when she’s a girl living in a gated community in California, which has scarce resources and is becoming increasingly violent. The daughter of a Baptist minister, she comes up with her own religion and outlook on life in response to what she experiences and seeks to learn how to survive on her own, preparing for when the inevitable happens. Parable of the Talents covers her life as an adult and the challenges she faces in her continued struggle to survive after she’s created her small religious community.

I appreciated Parable of the Sower more this time than when I first read it, and I do think it’s more compulsively readable and engaging than Parable of the Talents. However, I also think the second book in the duology is a more mature, thoughtful, reflective book. I especially loved getting some perspectives other than Lauren’s, particularly that of her daughter, who was not enthusiastic about her mother’s teachings.

Cover of The Blue Sword by Robin McKinley

4. The Blue Sword by Robin McKinley

The Blue Sword has been on my bookshelf for a while, and I’m glad I finally read it. Like I wrote of The Mountain Crown, this is one of those books that feels like going on a journey with the characters. I suspect this would have been a childhood favorite if I’d read it at the time (like Robin McKinley’s Beauty, which I still love), but I enjoyed reading about a girl with a magic sword and cat and horse companions as an adult, too. This is just a well-told story with a great romance, and I actually think I preferred it to The Hero and the Crown (which I barely remembered and reread after finishing this one).

 

Favorite Media of 2024

It’s not new to 2024 unless you count the fact that there have been new additions through patches (like evil endings), but like last year, I had to give a shoutout to Baldur’s Gate 3. After all, I spent a lot of the year playing it given that I’ve now completed six full games. (That number was three at the end of 2023.) I’m also going into 2025 with a newly begun multiplayer game and another single-player game in mind, so I have no plans to stop playing—especially since I’m excited for all the new subclasses that will be introduced in patch 8!

As I wrote of Baldur’s Gate 3 last year:

It’s just fun with a lot of entertaining dialogue and scenes, and it also has some beautifully done scenes and storylines, excellent acting, and a story that I appreciate more each time I play it. But what stands out to me the most about Baldur’s Gate 3 is the character development and growth that can happen depending on how you interact with and treat your companions, paired with the aforementioned excellent acting that makes them all the better. I didn’t really remember much about the characters from the previous games, but this one has some memorable ones with fantastic lines and journeys, including one character from the older games who I appreciate far more in this one. There are also a lot of wonderful animals and non-main characters, and the narrator (Amelia Tyler) does an incredible job.

Visenya, high elf with red-streaked silver hair
Visenya, high elf rogue/bard, who spread chaos throughout the land

I also discussed how it’s made to replay in 2023, and that’s exactly why I’m still hooked. There are lots of different outcomes I have yet to see, and I’ve been having fun coming up with characters who have different classes and worldviews and seeing what happens. Although I do want to play a character who tries to everything right and one who revels in doing everything wrong at some point, it’s been interesting to create ones who make a mix of good-leaning and bad-leaning choices based on their particular struggles and personalities. (I also want to play a character who starts out well-intentioned but then turns to the dark side at some point.)

Last year, I played as the following Dark Urge characters:

  • Sansa, a high elf Oathbreaker paladin/sorcadin who cared about those around her but made bad choices because she valued them more than anyone and everything else—and wanted them to be able to protect themselves if necessary
  • Visenya, a high elf rogue/bard who loved causing chaos as she lied and persuaded her way through Faerûn (my favorite so far)
  • Nymeria, a half-elf beastmaster ranger with an affinity for ravens who cared more about practicality and competence than good or evil, though her major choices tended toward good most of the time
Nymeria, half-elf ranger with a bow at her back
Nymeria, half-elf ranger, admiring a portrait she defaced

Now my husband and I are playing our third multiplayer game with a party that will seek power. I’m playing as Cersei, a Lolth-sworn drow storm sorcerer Dark Urge who is becoming convinced she’s being personally protected by Lolth. (She has some delusions of grandeur.)

It’s not often I have this much fun with something, and I’m completely enamored of this game. Thank you, Larian and Baldur’s Gate 3 team!

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Book Description:

In this sweeping epic fantasy comes a story of magic, betrayal, love, and loyalty, where two sisters will clash on opposite sides of a war against the gods. 

A divine war shattered the world leaving humanity in ruins. Desperate for hope, they struck a deal with the devious god Kluehnn: He would restore the world to its former glory, but at a price so steep it would keep the mortals indebted to him for eternity. And as each land was transformed, so too were its people changed into strange new forms – if they survived at all.

Hakara is not willing to pay such a price. Desperate to protect herself and her sister, Rasha, she flees her homeland for the safety of a neighboring kingdom. But when tragedy separates them, Hakara is forced to abandon her beloved sister to an unknown fate.

Alone and desperate for answers on the wrong side of the world, Hakara discovers she can channel the magic from the mysterious gems they are forced to mine for Kluehnn. With that discovery comes another: her sister is alive, and the rebels plotting to destroy the God Pact can help rescue her.

But only if Hakara goes to war against a god.

The Gods Below is the first book in The Hollow Covenant, a new fantasy series by Andrea Stewart. I was interested in reading it because the deal with the god and clash between sisters mentioned in the description sounded compelling, plus I rather enjoyed the first two books in the author’s other series, The Drowning Empire (The Bone Shard Daughter, The Bone Shard Emperor, The Bone Shard War). Given that the final book in the previously published trilogy had some problems with execution and pacing, I also had some reservations about reading The Gods Below when there are so many books out there waiting to be read—but, obviously, my curiosity about the new book prevailed.

Unfortunately, I felt that The Gods Below had execution problems similar to those of The Bone Shard War without having the advantage of concluding a story with characters I was already invested in. Although it did have a strong start and a fascinating world with intriguing mysteries, I doubt I’ll be continuing The Hollow Covenant series due to its uneven pacing and lack of memorable characters.

As with her previous series, Andrea Stewart developed a creative secondary fantasy world (although I didn’t think it was as unique or interesting as the introduction to The Drowning Empire’s bone shard magic and sinking islands). Other than some flashback chapters, The Gods Below is set nearly 600 years after humans had damaged the ecosystem of their world beyond repair, prompting one mortal to descend into the earth seeking a boon from the gods. One god agreed to help, but restoring the world would be a slow process with a cost: half of each land’s inhabitants would disappear, as their matter would be used to recreate the land, and those who remained would be transformed to better be able to survive. The desperate mortal agreed to the bargain, and the world was split into realms separated by magical barriers, which are still in the process of being restored one by one when the main story opens centuries later.

The panic and devastation caused by this cost are shown early in the book with the two primary main characters, Hakara and Rasha, facing the imminent restoration of their land in the first couple chapters. The two sisters are children when we meet them, and Hakara, the older sibling, is doing her best to ensure their survival since they are on their own. When Hakara realizes their land is about to be remade, she attempts to get herself and her sister across the barrier, but the two are separated. Hakara is brought across the barrier to a neighboring land that has not yet gone through restoration, but Rasha is left behind, altered to be taller and stronger with sharp teeth, claws, fangs, and horns.

This is an excellent start that intrigued me, but I found it less compelling when it skipped ahead ten years about 30 pages into the novel instead of spending time on the aftermath and how it affected who the characters became. When it picks up again, Hakara is trying to save enough money to return home to search for her sister by working in the mines, where she accidentally discovers the power of the valuable gems she unearths. Rasha, who was taken under the wing of a priestess of the god restoring their world, is beginning the arduous training to become a godkiller: one of their order who removes the remaining gods who threaten the supremacy of the One True God.

From here, their stories seemed to simultaneously move too quickly and too slowly. There are both parts I found dull and relationships that develop far too suddenly, keeping them from having emotional depth. Though this is a problem with both sisters’ romances, the underdevelopment of the sibling relationship bothered me most. Their circumstances are tragic: Hakara feels she failed her younger sister, and Rasha feels abandoned and betrayed since she doesn’t know her older sibling did not willingly leave her behind. However, this heartbreaking situation didn’t hit as hard as it should have since we barely see the two of them together.

All five storylines had similar issues with pacing. Although the two sisters and their first-person narratives are the biggest part of the novel, there are three additional main characters with third-person perspectives. One of these storylines is about a manipulative observer whose search for the truth behind her family’s disgrace takes her across the barrier, where she attempts to uncover some mysteries about restored lands (and ends up in a romantic entanglement with one of the sisters). Another focuses on her cousin, an inventor trying to find the exact spot where the mortal found the gods centuries ago to ask for a boon, hoping he can save his dying friend. The third follows one of the older gods, starting before the bargain was made with the god restoring the world.

These individuals and their arcs are compelling in theory, but I didn’t think their stories quite lived up to their promise. Although the overall plot for each was interesting, there were a lot of parts that seemed to drag between the major points. In the end, it felt like their stories were trying to hit some main beats to get them all in position for the rest of the series. (Despite not always finding her chapters engaging and feeling all the characters could have had more dimension, I did have some special fondness for Rasha as a soft person who had to try to harden herself to survive the cutthroat order that took her in.)

The worldbuilding was easily the highlight of The Gods Below. Like the author’s previous trilogy, it doesn’t go into a lot of depth on the social aspects of living in this world but is conceptually interesting. I enjoyed all the brief lore drops at the start of new chapters, everything related to the mysteries of what really happened in the past, and all the questions raised about what happens in a realm after its restoration. However, I did find the magic system involving the gems, which imbued powers based on their color, a bit rote and uninteresting to read about—especially given how fascinating I found the rest of the world with its gods and secrets waiting to be unraveled.

The Gods Below excels at setting and has a strong opening, but its pacing issues and thin character development prevent it from meeting its full potential. I am curious enough about the world that I might read the next book if I hear that it improved upon some of the problems I had with this one, but it’s unlikely I’ll continue the series.

My Rating: 6/10

Where I got my reading copy: ARC from the publisher.

Read an Excerpt from The Gods Below

The Leaning Pile of Books is a feature in which I highlight books I got over the last week that sound interesting—old or new, bought or received in the mail for review consideration. Since I hope you will find new books you’re interested in reading in these posts, I try to be as informative as possible. If I can find them, links to excerpts, author’s websites, and places where you can find more information on the book are included, along with series information and the publisher’s book description.

Disclosure: I am an affiliate of Bookshop.org, and I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.

Two new books were added to the TBR last week, both of which are by authors who have written work I love.

Cover of The Desert Talon by Karin Lowachee

The Desert Talon (The Crowns of Ishia #2) by Karin Lowachee

The second novella in The Crowns of Ishia trilogy will be released on February 11 (trade paperback, ebook, audiobook). The conclusion to the series, A Covenant of Ice, will also be released in 2025: on June 17.

Karin Lowachee wrote my favorite science fiction series (The Warchild Mosaic), and The Mountain Crown, the first book in her new fantasy series featuring dragons, is one of my favorite 2024 releases. It’s one of those books that feels incredibly immersive with lovely writing that brings everything to life, and the dragons and the way they communicate is really interesting. Needless to say, I’m excited for both The Desert Talon and A Covenant of Ice!

 

The exciting sequel to the gunslinging, dragon-riding world of The Mountain Crown

Sephihalé ele Janan sits in a prison cell in the southern island of Mazemoor, dreaming of escape. After months in a provisional prison for fighting for the imperial Kattakans, Janan is sponsored by another refugee who was once a part of his scattered family. Yearning to build a life on his sister’s land with the dragons their people revere, the peace Janan seeks is threatened by a ruthless dragon baron who covets both Janan’s connection to the earth and the battle dragon to which he is covenanted.

The conflict may drive Janan to acts of violence he hoped to leave behind in the war, and bring more death to the land Janan now calls home.

The Desert Talon is a story of two groups of people who, despite a common ancestry, have diverged so far in their beliefs that there appears to be little mutual ground—and the conflict may well start to unravel the burgeoning hopes of a country, and a man, still recovering from the ravages of war.

Cover of The Lotus Empire by Tasha Suri

The Lotus Empire (The Burning Kingdoms #3) by Tasha Suri

The final book in this trilogy was released last month (hardcover library edition, trade paperback, ebook, audiobook).

The Jasmine Throne, the first book in this series inspired in part by the Mahabharata and the history of the Mughal Empire, is amazing. I especially loved the main heroines and how it explored the different ways they navigated their patriarchal culture.

Although I wasn’t quite as enamored of the second book in the series, I had to purchase a copy to find out how the trilogy ends—especially considering how much I love Tasha Suri’s other series, The Books of Ambha.

 

This sweeping epic fantasy brings the acclaimed Burning Kingdoms trilogy to a heart–stopping close, as an ancient magic returns to Ahiranya and threatens its very foundations, Empress Malini and priestess Priya will stop at nothing to save their kingdoms—even if it means they must destroy each other.

Malini has claimed her rightful throne as the empress of Parijatdvipa, just as the nameless gods prophesied. Now, in order to gain the support of the priesthood who remain loyal to the fallen emperor, she must consider a terrible bargain: Claim her throne and burn in order to seal her legacy—or find another willing to take her place on the pyre.

Priya has survived the deathless waters and now their magic runs in her veins. But a mysterious yaksa with flowering eyes and a mouth of thorns lies beneath the waters. The yaksa promises protection for Ahiranya. But in exchange, she needs a sacrifice. And she’s chosen Priya as the one to offer it.

Two women once entwined by fate now stand against each other. But when an ancient enemy rises to threaten their world, Priya and Malini will find themselves fighting together once more – to prevent their kingdoms, and their futures, from burning to ash.

The Leaning Pile of Books is a feature in which I highlight books I got over the last week that sound interesting—old or new, bought or received in the mail for review consideration. Since I hope you will find new books you’re interested in reading in these posts, I try to be as informative as possible. If I can find them, links to excerpts, author’s websites, and places where you can find more information on the book are included, along with series information and the publisher’s book description.

Disclosure: I am an affiliate of Bookshop.org and an Amazon Associate, and I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.

Last week brought an unexpected surprise in the mail and an unexpected ebook purchase due to a snowstorm and power outage. But first, here’s the latest book review in case you missed it:

  • The Teller of Small Fortunes by Julie Leong This cozy fantasy novel about a traveling seer and found family was a perfectly decent book with some charm, but it didn’t have the sort of depth or characterization that makes a book stick with me.

On to the latest books!

Cover of The Tomb of Dragons by Katherine Addison

The Tomb of Dragons (The Cemeteries of Amalo #3) by Katherine Addison

The final book in this trilogy set in the same world as The Goblin Emperor will be released on March 11, 2025 (hardcover, ebook, audiobook).

This series focuses on Celehar, the Witness for the Dead, and the first two books are as follows:

  1. The Witness for the Dead
  2. The Grief of Stones

The links to the publisher’s pages above contain links to read excerpts from each.

Getting this in the mail was a pleasant surprise. I loved The Goblin Emperor (as well as Katherine Addison’s series published as Sarah Monette, The Doctrine of Labyrinths), but I still need to read the first book in this series and procure the second. It might be a good idea to do a reread soon, before starting the newer trilogy.

 

In The Tomb of Dragons, Katherine Addison returns to the award-winning world of The Goblin Emperor, deftly wrapping up The Cemeteries of Amalo trilogy.

Thara Celehar has lost his ability to speak with the dead. When that title of Witness for the Dead is gone, what defines him?

While his title may be gone, his duties are not. Celehar contends with a municipal cemetery with fifty years of secrets, the damage of a revethavar he’s terrified to remember, and a group of miners who are more than willing to trade Celehar’s life for a chance at what they feel they’re owed.

Celehar does not have to face these impossible tasks alone. Joining him are his mentee Velhiro Tomasaran, still finding her footing with the investigative nature of their job; Iäna Pel-Thenhior, his beloved opera director friend and avid supporter; Anora Chanavar, his stalwart friend and fellow prelate of Ulis; and the valiant guard captain Hanu Olgarezh.

Amidst the backdrop of a murder and a brewing political uprising, Celehar must seek justice for those who cannot find it themselves under a tense political system. The repercussions of his quest are never as simple they seem, and Celehar’s own life and happiness hang in the balance.

Cover of The Winter Prince by Elizabeth Wein

The Winter Prince (The Lion Hunters #1) by Elizabeth Wein

This is the first book in a YA fantasy series inspired by Arthurian legend. The publisher’s website has an excerpt from The Winter Prince, as well as the rest of the books in the series:

I’ve had this on my wish list for a while since I’ve seen it recommended for fans of The Queen’s Thief series by Megan Whalen Turner. When we had a power outage the other day, I wanted to make sure I had something to read on my Kindle in case it was out for a while. When I saw this was only $1.99 at the time, I snatched it up!

 

Brave Medraut is a fitting heir to the throne—but he can never be king—in this fantasy retelling of the legend of Mordred from the author of Code Name Verity.

Medraut is the eldest son of High King Artos, and would-be heir to the British throne—if not for an unfortunate circumstance of birth. Instead, his weak and unskilled half-brother, Lleu, is chosen as successor. Medraut cannot bear the thought of being ruled by the boy who has taken what he believes is rightfully his.

Consumed by jealousy, he turns to Morgause, the high king’s treacherous sister, who exploits Medraut’s shame and plots to take over the throne. But when Medraut discovers Lleu’s inner strength and goodness, he finds his battle is not just with the kingdom, but with the demons inside himself. Now he must choose where his allegiances truly lie.

Perfect for readers of Robin McKinley and Jane Yolen, The Winter Prince is an “engrossing” novel that “fantasy lovers and devotees of Arthurian legends will enjoy,” from an author who has won honors ranging from the Carnegie Medal to the Edgar Award (Booklist).

This ebook features an illustrated biography of Elizabeth Wein including rare images from the author’s personal collection.

The Teller of Small Fortunes
by Julie Leong
336pp (Trade Paperback)
My Rating: 6/10
Amazon Rating: 4.5/5
LibraryThing Rating: 4.25/5
Goodreads Rating: 4.05/5
 

As an Amazon Associate and Bookshop affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

The Teller of Small Fortunes, Julie Leong’s debut novel, is a standalone cozy fantasy book following a traveling seer who tells of small events that will come to pass rather than dramatic, life-changing ones. It’s a warm, feel-good story about creating found family and doing as much good as one possibly can, and it may be a great book for readers looking for hope and happiness right now. As for my experience, I thought it was a decent book with some charm, but it was also a bit too light to be a novel that stuck with me.

It’s told from the third-person perspective of Tao, a wandering fortune teller who has learned firsthand that it’s best to avoid seeing the big truths about what will happen in the future—and to avoid staying in one place for too long, given people tend to be suspicious of her Shinn heritage and sightseeing ability. She travels the land with the company of her mule, earning coin by telling people’s “small” fortunes, like how they’ll soon catch a large tuna or burn their hand working with candles.

Tao is used to solitude, but she has to get used to company after she meets two men who help her clear a blocked roadway: a warrior who composes poetry and a thief who would like to leave his roguish ways in the past. After she tells the former’s fortune where she sees him with the missing daughter he’s been in search of for months, the two decide to accompany her on her journey. Soon, the small group is joined by a baker who makes delicious but ugly concoctions and a cat (who, like all such creatures, is slightly magical). As they continue the search for the missing child, Tao also tries to avoid being found by the mage’s guild, who would like her to use her sight for the bigger events she’d prefer to leave unseen.

The Teller of Small Fortunes has a great premise, and there are some fun sequences such as a quest to find treasure and an encounter with a philosophizing troll. But I found I was ready to move onto another book as I got further into it, despite the delightful beginning and some charming parts. It just didn’t have much dimension, and I especially would have liked more from the main characters. The warrior and thief had some entertaining banter and a bit of personality, and I did enjoy how Tao’s friendship with the former developed as she came to realize how soft he was underneath all the armor. However, there’s not much more to the main characters a few primary traits, and the baker in particular was thinly characterized: she can be summed up as having a good heart, a desire to see the world, and a love of experimenting with food.

This novel may not have the type of depth or nuance that suits me as a reader, but it may suit you if you’re seeking a story that’s about putting as much good into the world as one possibly can, main characters who are basically decent people doing their best, and a focus on platonic relationships rather than romance. Though Tao encounters racism in her travels and has an arc involving past trauma that negatively affected her relationship with her mother, The Teller of Small Fortunes is ultimately a lighthearted, optimistic story where goodness and happiness prevail.

My Rating: 6/10

Where I got my reading copy: Finished copy from the publisher.

Read an Excerpt from The Teller of Small Fortunes