The fantasy genre is one of my absolute favorites. I love the intricate world-building, the unique plotting, and the fact that pretty much anything can happen. Luckily, there are tons of exciting new fantasy books coming this year! Below, I’m sharing my most-anticipated 2024 fantasy novels (including books by some of my favorite fantasy authors), many of which have been getting lots of positive buzz.
Best Fantasy Novels Coming in 2024
I am so excited about the lineup of new fantasy books this year! From new books by popular authors like Sarah J. Maas, Leigh Bardugo, and Robert Jackson Bennett to wonderful new debut authors, my fantasy TBR list is overflowing.
The books in this list range widely when it comes to genre, from magical realism to epic fantasy. Whether you’re a huge romantasy fan, love cozy fantasies, or obsess over stories with complex magic systems, there’s something in this list for you!
For more exciting new releases, check out my list of most-anticipated new 2024 books (all genres)! Also, historical fiction fans will love these highly-anticipated 2024 historical fiction books.
The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years by Shubnum Khan
Genre: Historical Fantasy/Gothic
Imagine a combination of Rebecca and The House of the Spirits, but set in a crumbling mansion on the coast of South Africa.
A woman named Sana and her father move into the mansion, looking for a new start after a tragedy.
But Sana can’t help but investigate the house’s multitude of strange curiosities – including the locked door in the East Wing, where a djinn waits in the shadows.
Publication date: January 9th, 2024
Emily Wilde’s Map of the Otherlands by Heather Fawcett (Emily Wilde #2)
Genre: Historical Fantasy/Romance
This is the highly-anticipated sequel to the popular cozy fantasy book, Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries!
Emily Wilde is a curmudgeonly professor studying the world of faeries.
After writing a comprehensive guide to faerie-kind, she’s now taken on the task of creating a map of the faerie realm – which proves to be more dangerous than she ever imagined.
Publication date: January 16th, 2024
Voyage of the Damned by Frances White
Genre: Fantasy/Mystery
I’m obsessed with genre-bending books, so whenever I come across a fantasy-mystery combination, it immediately gets added to my TBR list!
This locked-room murder mystery story is set on an enchanted ship in an empire called Concordia.
Twelve magical heirs to each of the empire’s provinces travel aboard the ship toward a sacred mountain. But soon, a body is found. It turns out a killer is on the loose, and everyone’s a suspect.
Publication date: January 18th, 2024
House of Flame and Shadow by Sarah J. Maas (Crescent City #3)
Genre: Fantasy/Romance
To avoid spoilers, I won’t add a synopsis here. But, fans of Sarah J. Maas and her urban romantasy series Crescent City are sure to devour this third installment!
(If you haven’t read Sarah J. Maas’ A Court of Thorns and Roses series yet, I recommend reading that series before you start this one).
Publication date: January 30th, 2024
The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett
Genre: Fantasy/Mystery
Here’s another fun fantasy/mystery mashup for fellow fans of genre-bending novels!
A brilliant, quirky investigator and her assistant – who’s been magically-altered to have a perfect memory – are called to an opulent mansion to investigate the murder of a powerful officer.
But in a world where magic exists, finding a murderer – and keeping your own secrets – is even more difficult and dangerous.
(I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher. My opinions are my own.)
Publication date: February 6th, 2024
Bride by Ali Hazelwood
Genre: Fantasy/Romance/Paranormal
Fans of paranormal romance and/or popular contemporary romance author Ali Hazelwood will be excited to hear about this new vampire-werewolf romantic fantasy!
Publication date: February 6th, 2024
The Warm Hands of Ghosts by Katherine Arden
Genre: Historical Fantasy
From the author of The Bear and the Nightingale comes a new historical fantasy about a combat nurse during World War I.
When Laura Iven returns home after serving as a combat nurse, she’s devastated to hear her brother Freddie was killed in the war.
But something isn’t adding up, so she returns to Belgium as a volunteer nurse to follow the strange, eerie rumors she’s heard.
(I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher. My opinions are my own.)
Publication date: February 13th, 2024
The Fox Wife by Yangsze Choo
Genre: Historical Fantasy/Mythology
Set in China in 1908, The Fox Wife explores the folk mythology of fox spirits who are believed to transform themselves into beautiful humans in order to lead people to their deaths.
When a woman’s body is found in the snow – her death swirling with rumors about the fox gods – a detective is called to investigate.
Meanwhile, a cursed family believes they are about to lose their eldest son, until a mysterious woman arrives. It seems her arrival may have turned their luck around – but can she be trusted?
Publication date: February 13th, 2024
The Book of Doors by Gareth Brown
Genre: Urban Fantasy/Magical Realism
In New York City, a bookseller named Cassie receives a magical book – the Book of Doors – that can transport her wherever she wants.
She and her best friend are thrilled by the discovery. But soon, they come to find that there are other magical books in the world, and dangerous people are now hunting for hers.
Publication date: February 13th, 2024
A Fate Inked in Blood by Danielle L. Jensen
Genre: Fantasy/Romance/Mythology
The bestselling author of The Bridge Kingdom is back with a new fantasy series inspired by Norse mythology.
A woman named Freya – blessed by the gods as a shield maiden – is destined to unite a nation. But a powerful king-to-be forces her to bind herself to him and hone her magic in order to defeat his kingdom’s enemies.
As she faces down tests from the gods themselves – along with her own personal struggles – her destiny and the fate of the kingdom hangs in the balance.
Publication date: February 27th, 2024
A Short Walk Through a Wide World by Douglas Westerbeke
Genre: Fantasy/Historical Fiction/Magical Realism
Fans of The Invisible Life of Addie Larue, be sure to add this historical fantasy novel to your TBR list!
It follows a woman with a peculiar condition that requires her to constantly be on the move, unable to return to any place she’s been before.
As she travels across the globe, she starts to realize there might be something even more unusual about the world she inhabits.
Here are book club discussion questions (plus my thoughts) on A Short Walk Through a Wide World!
Publication date: April 2nd, 2024
The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo
Genre: Historical Fiction/Fantasy
Leigh Bardugo’s newest book is a historical fantasy novel set during the Spanish Golden Age (and the Inquisition).
A young servant woman working at a shabby house in Madrid is discovered to have magical powers – and is forced to use those powers to raise the family’s social status.
But soon, she attracts the attention of someone dangerous – and she’ll need the help of an immortal ‘familiar’ if she has any hope of surviving.
Here are all of Leigh Bardugo’s books in order!
Publication date: April 9th, 2024
Mirrored Heavens by Rebecca Roanhorse (Between Earth and Sky #3)
Genre: Fantasy
Rebecca Roanhorse is back with the third (and final) installment of her popular series, Between Earth and Sky!
This epic fantasy series is inspired by indigenous civilizations of the Pre-Columbian Americas, and is filled with magic and mythology.
Publication date: June 4th, 2024
The Lost Story by Meg Shaffer
Genre: Magical Realism/Fantasy/Contemporary Fiction
If you enjoyed Meg Shaffer’s popular debut novel The Wishing Game like I did, you won’t want to miss her newest book! It’s a magical realism story inspired by The Chronicles of Narnia.
Publication Date: July 4th, 2024
Strange Folk by Alli Dyer
Genre: Fantasy/Mystery/Paranormal
If you love Practical Magic (either the book by Alice Hoffman or the movie it inspired), check out this novel with similar vibes, set in Appalacia!
It’s about a woman named Lee who reluctantly returns to her family home with her children, after swearing she’d never return.
Lee’s family is swirling with secrets and magic, and Lee is afraid her grandmother’s magic may have dark ties – especially after a man is found dead in the woods.
Publication date: August 6th, 2024
A Sorceress Comes to Call by T. Kingfisher
Genre: Fantasy/Horror/Retellings
If you enjoy fairy tale retellings like I do, this dark retelling of The Goose Girl (a Brothers Grimm story) should definitely be on your radar!
It follows a dark sorceress and her daughter, who flee to a remote country manor to avoid detection.
The mother intends to seduce the man who lives there into marriage, but his sister notices how strangely the woman’s daughter acts, and realizes something isn’t right.
(From the award-winning author of Nettle & Bone).
Publication date: August 6th, 2024
A Witch’s Guide to Magical Innkeeping by Sangu Mandanna
Genre: Cozy Fantasy/Romance
From the bestselling author of The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches comes a new cozy fantasy novel about a previously-powerful witch who lost most of her magic and was exiled.
Now, she helps her great aunt run a cozy inn. But when she finds out about a spell book that could restore her power, she begrudgingly enlists the help of a man from her past in order to hopefully reclaim her future.
Publication date: September 10th, 2024
Somewhere Beyond the Sea by T.J. Klune (The House in the Cerulean Sea #2)
Genre: Contemporary Fantasy/Romance/LGBT
This sequel to the bestselling cozy fantasy novel The House in the Cerulean Sea returns to the remote Marsyas Island setting and takes place after the events of the previous novel.
But this time, the story is from Arthur Parnassus’ perspective (the headmaster of the magical orphanage). I personally cannot wait to revisit these wonderful characters!
Publication date: September 10th, 2024
What’s your most-anticipated 2024 fantasy book? Let me know in the comments!