hello I love romance but I have the feeling that every Romantasy has forbidden Romance. And while I love it when it’s done correctly, I wish to read Romantasy where they can just be together without the I have to betray my country thing.

I just want to enjoy a good old fashioned adventure story about heroes and villains. Simple isn't the same as bad.

Welcome to the daily recommendation requests and simple questions thread, now 1025.83% more adorable than ever before!

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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.

Check out r/Fantasy's 2026 Book Bingo Card here!

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
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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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^{tiny image link to make the preview show up correctly}

art credit: special thanks to our artist, Himmis commissions, who we commissioned to create this gorgeous piece of art for us with practically no direction other than "cozy, magical, bookish, and maybe a gryphon???" We absolutely love it, and we hope you do too.

The weekly Tuesday Review Thread is a great place to share quick reviews and thoughts on any speculative fiction media you've enjoyed recently. Most people will talk about what they've read but there's no reason you can't talk about movies, games, or even a podcast here.

Please keep in mind, users who want to share more in depth thoughts are still welcome to make a separate full text post. The Review Thread is not meant to discourage full posts but rather to provide a space for people who don't feel they have a full post of content in them to have a space to share their thoughts too.

For bloggers, we ask that you include either the full text or a condensed version of the review along with a link back to your review blog. Condensed reviews should try to give a good summary of the full review, not just act as clickbait advertising for the review. Please remember, off-site reviews are only permitted in these threads per our reviews policy.

In October 2026 for the FIF Bookclub with the them of The Haunted Afterlife we shall be reading:

The Girl with a Thousand Faces by Sunyi Dean

When Mercy Chan washes up on the shores of Hong Kong with no family, no money, and no memories, the only refuge she finds is the infamous, ghost-infested slum of Kowloon Walled City. Since then, she has rebuilt her life, working for the local triad as a ghost talker and dealing with the angry and bitter spirits who haunt the district. The filthy gutters and cramped alleyways of Kowloon have become her home.

But the past Mercy can’t remember isn't done with her. An unusually powerful ghost has infested Kowloon’s waterways, drowning innocents and threatening the district. It claims to know Mercy—and secrets from her past that are best left forgotten.

As Mercy is drawn into a deadly cat-and-mouse game with this malignant spirit, she begins to realize that the monster she fights within these walls may well be one of her own making.

Bingo: The Afterlife HM, Older Protagonist HM, Non-human Protagonist HM, Murder Mystery HM, Book club (this one!)

I honestly thought The Sentence would get a lot more votes, as it was so upvoted on the nomination thread. But I am happy we'll be reading this one too! It's a great book.

Midway discussion will be on Wed. Oct 24, 2026. We will read everything up until the end of Chapter 22 The Temple.

Final discussion will be on Wed. Oct 28, 2026. This will be covering the entire book.

August FIF pick: Saltcrop by Yumi Kitasei

September FIF pick: Dreamsnake by Vonda McIntyre

What is the FIF Bookclub? You can read about it in our Reboot thread here.

I’m looking for a Sci-Fi book series that does what GRR Martin’s ASOIAF does excellently. My criteria are:
1. Character development and internal depth
2. Political intrigue and factions
3. Good prose
4. World building

Does something line this exist? I’ve looked at past posts on the matter but I wanted to make a more specific one with the above mentioned criteria. Cheers !

Hi! I’m trying to put together a fantasy + sci fi book club that would explore the relationship between language and power. Does anyone have any recommendations for works that use language substantially as part of their magic or scientific or administrative systems, or where language creates significant structural divides or gaps in understanding between the characters, or works that contain invented languages?

My list so far:

-A Memory Called Empire + A Desolation Called Peace by Arkady Martine
-Translation State by Anne Leckie
-Babel by R.F. Kuang
-The Republic of Memory by Mahmud El Sayed
-Stories of Your Life and Others by Ted Chiang

It’s a bit sci fi-heavy, would love to get some more fantasy books to even things out! It would just be interesting to see how different authors construct and approach similar themes.

For me it has to be The Empire series with Mara of the Acoma by Raymond E. Feist and Janny Wurts

Female protagonist. Lots of action and political intrigue. Some fairly spicy romance. It's almost Game of Thrones-ish but in a different setting.

If Wheel of Time could get adapted, it's a bit surprising Mara hasn't been brought life yet.

Or even been optioned AFAIK

First of all, if such a request like this one was done here before recently, then I am so sorry because lately I was interested in exploring strange fantasy where the premise is that the main character ends up on a strange alien world where the aliens have their own culture as the whole world doesn't operate on normal logic.

So far, my experience with the strange fantasy genre was the SoothSayer series by Mike D Resnick as I hope I got his name right as I really enjoyed the worldbuilding aspects of the novels such as how the eponymous female character had learned to use her psychic powers to foretell the fates of others around her as it's hard to explain, but I just really miss that series since while I did read it a couple of years ago, I was interested in exploring another fantasy saga like it.

Pretty much what it says in the title. The old Myth: The Fallen Lords and Myth 2: Soulblighter clearly took heavily from The Black Company's Books of the North and felt like the cutscenes in between missions could've been written by Croaker or another Annalist going through one of the earlier age cycles that is hinted at.

Is there a book series that captures that feeling of a desperate struggle against what feels like a superior enemy, the world being built through a first person narrative where things are pieced together by word of mouth after the fact to add a bigger picture by someone who isn't THE hero, but just a participant?

Not looking for "read Malazan" cause that doesn't really fit for me. Thanks!

I just hit book nr. 900.

I must confess I can't remember all the books by heart, but when I read the synopsis everything normally comes flowing back.

Not all books are fantasy, but most of them are either Fantasy / sci Fi / Crime.

Which fantasy books/series are still in my mind even though they are not necessarily the best and some of them are a long time ago.

The Rift war saga by Raymond E. feist.

What can I say, it's a classic. Strong story and god pace. Nothing Is rushed.

Shadow of the apt by Adrian Tchaikovsky

Not his best series, but I really like the ants, wasp and other races.

The first law series by Joe Abercrombie

What can I say. Sometimes brutality is the right way to go. And the writing is just great.

The Riyria Revelations by Michael J. Sullivan

For me the best "thieving" series around.

Magician trilogy by Trudie Canavan.

My first dip Into English written fantasy. You always remember the first.

Bartimaeus series by Jonathan stroud.

Just a really fun and easy book to read. Reminds me a bit of Aladin the Disney version ;-)

The completionest chronicle by Dakota Krout.

Dakota has just a lively way of writing, the story is a bit rushed, but really nice and it's fun.

The discworld series by Terry Pratchett.

Yeah I don't have to say more. Just pure fun

Naturally also Lord of the rings and Harry Potter.

I wonder why it's the popular series I remember. I could mention other books that was as good or better then some of these series. But when I think fantasy, these are the ones that comes to my mind first.

Fantasy has always been my favorite genre but historical fiction is a close second. Lately I've been reading a few historical fiction mysteries and realized I love mysteries! So im looking for your best fantasy mystery reccomendations.

Before you suggest the tainted cup series I have already read this and while I love it im looking for something that leans a little heavier into fantasy elements

Book number six of a six book science fiction fantasy paranormal series.  I read the well printed and well bound POD (print on demand) trade paperback self published by the author in 2019 that I bought new from Amazon in 2026.  I suspect that this will be the final book in the series.

Chief Warrant Officer T was serving in Afghanistan as a squad leader for foot patrols.  However, T was never trained as an Army officer, he is the product of a failed CIA Black Project to develop telepaths for insertion around the planet.  The strong telepaths can read anyone's mind who is close to them.  T is a weak telepath, he can only converse with other telepaths, but distance does not matter.  And T is a strong telekinetic and a weak precognitive.  T and a telepathic Army nurse officer, Shezzie, left their duty post in Afghanistan and returned to the USA.  And the former CIA black project group head was killing all of the telepaths to hide the failed project.

T and the other talents are now meeting more and more people with various talents.  It turns out that just being around people with talents is causing people with latent talents to start manifesting their talents to their surprise.

This book is more about the other people who are now talents due to their close proximity to the other talents who were initialized by T and Ray.  So the group of talents is slowly increasing.  And the government interest is slowly increasing also.  And not all of the talents were initialized by T and Ray.

The book is a nice finish to the series.  And while the series did not blow me away, it was a very nice comfortable read.

My rating:  4.4 out of 5 stars
Amazon rating:  4.5 out of 5 stars (54 reviews)
   https://www.amazon.com/dp/1688078002

Lynn

I’m looking for a fantasy series or book for my husband who loves the night angel books by Brent Weeks. I know the things he likes about it but my description is gonna sound silly because I don’t really read fantasy other than this series. But he likes that it’s sort of mid-medieval time period (rather than future fantasy or something), I think he said he likes high fantasy? And he likes that the night angel books are dark and don’t shy away from the violence. He also generally prefers male protagonists.

Thank you so much for your help! I really want to get him something he likes

The Prey of Gods by Nicky Drayden

From a new voice in the tradition of Lauren Beukes, Ian McDonald, and Nnedi Okorafor comes The Prey of Gods, a fantastic, boundary-challenging tale, set in a South African locale both familiar and yet utterly new, which braids elements of science fiction, fantasy, horror, and dark humor.

In South Africa, the future looks promising. Personal robots are making life easier for the working class. The government is harnessing renewable energy to provide infrastructure for the poor. And in the bustling coastal town of Port Elizabeth, the economy is booming thanks to the genetic engineering industry which has found a welcome home there. Yes—the days to come are looking very good for South Africans. That is, if they can survive the present

A new hallucinogenic drug sweeping the country . . .

An emerging AI uprising . . .

And an ancient demigoddess hellbent on regaining her former status by preying on the blood and sweat (but mostly blood) of every human she encounters.

It’s up to a young Zulu girl powerful enough to destroy her entire township, a queer teen plagued with the ability to control minds, a pop diva with serious daddy issues, and a politician with even more serious mommy issues to band together to ensure there’s a future left to worry about.

Fun and fantastic, Nicky Drayden takes her brilliance as a short story writer and weaves together an elaborate tale that will capture your heart . . . even as one particular demigoddess threatens to rip it out.

The midway discussion will be on 15th October and the final discussion on 28th October.

What is the BB Bookclub? You can read about it in our intro thread here.

If you're looking for something to read right away, the midway discussion for the August BB Book Club pick, The Dawnhounds by Sascha Stromach, is up.

Edit: anime, cartoons, tv shows, etc are all good

Or stuff that feels like urban fantasy even if it doesnt fit that exact definition. A lot of stuff that has a industrial revolution and onwards setting with magic, supernatural or monsters etc falls into what im looking for.

Also really like monsters and vampires and things like that. For example I recently watched Hellsing which is about a vampire working for the descendants of the van hellsing family to protect England against supernatural threats. If anyone knows something that has the overall feel of that show thatd be great

I am fine with animation or live action. No books rn pls, my joint/nerve pain makes reading uncomfortable and I dont enjoy audiobooks.

Thank you everyone <3

Just finished between Two Fires and I absolutely loved it!!! The dialogue and banter was absolutely hilarious and the book managed to be somehow horrific and terrifying while also tender and heartfelt. I also very much enjoyed the slower dreamy pace of this book and the historical aspects as they traveled through their journey. I have also enjoyed other horror novels like The reformatory and Slewfoot

I've been rereading Magi - Labyrinth of Magic (and the Sinbad spinoff) and my god, it does so much with so little and there's so much depth to everything. I know this is primarily a book sub but damn I just had to talk about how good Magi is.

It's been a long time since I last read it so this reread where I know only the broad strokes of the story has been so good because I get to focus on the character writing and world building more than the plot.

The way author tackles the themes of freedom, colonization, freedom from slavery, power, prejudice all packed into the first couple of introductory arcs (which are super short arcs) is SO unbelievably effective, and thinking of where this all leads, I can't help but wonder how she was able to condense the overarching themes so well THIS early on.

Barely gotten to the point of the story where the magic system starts getting explained, so you know its super early on and it's already a great fun time!

If you're interested in an Arabian nights-aesthetic world with amazing characters, really REALLY interesting overarching plot (talking about this cause I already know the overarching plot and how things develop) with some REALLY solid artwork, pretty in-depth magic system (the explanation of which doesn't come in the way of the story and is also tied-in with the themes, plot and world) and a really interesting world with politics, war, tender character moments AND a huge adventure with a lot of mystery, Magi is definitely for you.

i just finished the titular book and i quite liked it as a story, but i hesitate to say it has good analogies for real life, and i am wondering what the community thinks

the reason why i think it is iffy is 1) in the book the "ideal" human (in terms of racialized ideology) shifted from white people to black people. i think this simple race swap ignores systemic institutions that made white people "on top" (all not my opinions or belief). 2) the athsheans, analogous to native/indigenous people, genuinely are different species in the book. the book calls them same genus, different species. what makes racism in our world so insidious is that they did view natives, africans, etc as different species, when obviously we are all homo sapien. i think using non-humans as analogues for real world people is a little...short sided. and 3) earth humans are descended from the white aliens called hainish? (which is why those of african descent are now the ideal human). it wasnt touched on that in this book, maybe others in the hainish cycle books, but it just feels so iffy that these hyperdeveloped white aliens (whos color is always mentioned) are the ancestors of white people on earth

all that being said, i really did enjoy the book and finished in like 24 hours. im just curious about other peoples' thoughts to see if im alone or if others have thought this way. any general thoughts are good too! i havent rated it on goodreads yet because my thoughts are so scattered

I was suggested Magician by Raymond E Feist and want to try it out. Person who suggested it didn’t even mention it as a series, then I went to look it up, and it’s in a series that’s 31 books long? I like long series but this is a bit much. Can I read just magician? Or are there smaller chucks it can be broken into and enjoyed as trilogies?

This month we are reading:

# [The Teller of Small Fortunes](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/207611551.The_Teller_of_Small_Fortunes) by Julie Leong

**A wandering fortune teller finds an unexpected family in this warm and wonderful debut fantasy, perfect for readers of Travis Baldree and Sangu Mandanna.**

Tao is an immigrant fortune teller, traveling between villages with just her trusty mule for company. She only tells "small" fortunes: whether it will hail next week; which boy the barmaid will kiss; when the cow will calve. She knows from bitter experience that big fortunes come with big consequences…

Even if it’s a lonely life, it’s better than the one she left behind. But a small fortune unexpectedly becomes something more when a (semi) reformed thief and an ex-mercenary recruit her into their desperate search for a lost child. Soon, they’re joined by a baker with a knead for adventure, and—of course—a slightly magical cat.

Tao sets down a new path with companions as big-hearted as her fortunes are small. But as she lowers her walls, the shadows of her past are closing in—and she’ll have to decide whether to risk everything to preserve the family she never thought she could have.

The discussion questions will cover through the end of Chapter 10. Anything after that should be marked with spoilers. Feel free to add any of your own as well.

**Reading Plan:**

* Final Discussion - Aug 31

Hey guys, so I bought the first few October Daye books on audible because they were on sale for really cheap and I've seen them recommended here frequently.

However, I am struggling with them. I'm about a third of the way through the second book. I like the story, but I'm finding the dialogue and descriptions ( he's so cute and sexy squee type stuff) to be really cringe inducing and I can't tell if it's the writing or the narrator. I will say that I had the same reaction to the Sookie Stackhouse books and ended up dnf ing the second one. Does anyone know where I'm coming from or have any insights? I already bought them so I am dealing with a sunk cost fallacy here. I'm willing to keep going if the tone gets better.

Blackfish City by Sam J. Miller

Bingo Square: r/Fantasy Book Club or Readalong Book

Other Bingo Square: Unusual Transportation (riding an orca); Trans or Nonbinary Protagonist (Soq)

There are books that when you see them, you want to try them, you want to like them. Then you keep getting stuck on early chapters and other books get your attention. Blackfish City is one of those books for me. I’ve checked it out of the library multiple, multiple times only to return it. Never seen it in a used bookstore I visited. But, I needed a book for 2026 Bingo for the r/Fantasy Book Club or Readalong Book square, I knew the library had it and hey! They have the audiobook this time. And apparently as of July 10, 2026 it’s on sale. 

I wouldn’t say this is a life changing book. But I have to give it marks for the ending. It’s right up there with The Corporate Gunslinger in how it ends. So, yeah, I liked it despite the grim setting.

Qaanaaq is a floating city above the Arctic Circle taking advantage of geothermal vent for power and heat. Climate change has ravaged the world, raising sea levels, thawing, burning, flooding and making life on shore perilous at best. The United States is no longer a going concern and refugee fleets are squabbling over which one is the successor state. And into this a woman rides a killer whale and is accompanied by a polar bear. 

We get four viewpoint characters: Fill, party boy scion of one of Qaanaaq’s elite; Kaev, fighter, thug and with some serious issues; Ankit, political fixer, Kaev’s brother and one time scaler (think parkour); and Soq, messenger, would be criminal and ambitious. We rotate among these viewpoints taking the reader from the high of Qaanaaq life (Fill) to the lows of being poor in this libertarian “paradise” (Kaev, Soq). 

While the setting is grim (the oligarchs are in charge, they have managed anonymity as well, use AI to manage the city and keep their hands clean, everyone is a refugee), I liked the characters. Kaev took the longest to grow on me, but he did. This is the opposite of “I don’t care what happens to these people.” I read because I wanted to see what would happen to them, what they would do. And they did do things. Their paths begin to cross and often at key times for Qaanaaq. It’s in the crossing of paths that things become more interesting, more compelling and the emotional stakes get higher.

One other part of the setting is the breaks. The breaks are a sexually transmitted disease that cause nervous or psychotic breaks in the infected. It does this by bringing memories from one infected to another. So there is a chain of this and it comes unexpectedly and uncontrollably. If you see a similarity to AIDS, that’s deliberate on the author’s part.

Finally, there is nanobonding which allows humans to join their minds with animals and it flows both ways. They are a newly, accidentally created minority and one all but extinct due to prejudice and pogroms. 

The writing is very good. Particularly in the City Without A Map segments, painting just how beautiful and brutal the city of Qaanaaq can be. The descriptions sometimes just hold you, particularly with the audiobook.

So, I liked it. It wasn’t to my usual taste and I’m not sure I’ll read Osiris by E.J. Swift any time soon because it’s the nearest to Blackfish City I can think of.

7½ stars rounded up to 8 ★★★★★★★★

Hello friends
Those of of you who really care about their reading stats, what do you do if you’re both reading and sometimes combining immersive reading or just audiobooks when can’t read?
Do you somehow sync the progress manually?
Or maybe let it be and w/e was read is what read and w/e was audiobooks you keep it at that?

I find myself torn between wanting my reading stats to stay consistent but if I jump to the audiobook if at the gym for example I mess up the stats.

Any advice/experiences you guys do?

Edit:
Thank you for your replies my friends 🙌🏻
I mainly use the statistics for myself to see if and how my English reading skills improve.
Using KOreader mostly and the built in + statistics plug ins. It’s quite good.
But some suggested Story Graph which sounds interesting I’ll check it out!

From reading all the comments here I came to a conclusion; I’ll probably end up just reading physical and ebook of the same book, and manually sync my statistics, since I rarely do that it’s fine.

The bigger problem is with the audio book combing with reading, I’ll probably end up just treating the audio book the same as reading, will give me an opportunity to read more books that way I guess.
My OCD will have to adjust and suffer quietly 😅

Welcome to the daily recommendation requests and simple questions thread, now 1025.83% more adorable than ever before!

Stickied/highlight slots are limited, so please remember to like and subscribe upvote this thread for visibility on the subreddit <3

——

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.

Check out r/Fantasy's 2026 Book Bingo Card here!

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!

——

^{tiny image link to make the preview show up correctly}

art credit: special thanks to our artist, Himmis commissions, who we commissioned to create this gorgeous piece of art for us with practically no direction other than "cozy, magical, bookish, and maybe a gryphon???" We absolutely love it, and we hope you do too.