Best Fantasy Books of 2026 So Far

The Standout Fantasy Releases of 2026 So Far

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Which fantasy novels of 2026 are worth your time? This list follows the books that keep turning up on the year-so-far picks of Amazon's editors, Grimdark Magazine, Book Riot, Goodreads and book bloggers: from grimdark and epic fantasy to historical and cozy fantasy, plus the biggest romantasy releases.

It covers the year so far and will change as the 2026 awards and reader votes come in.

The ranking

1

The Poet Empress

The Poet Empress

In a famine-stricken empire where poetry is magic and women are forbidden to read, Yin Wei, a peasant girl, becomes the concubine of the cruel Prince Guan Terren to save her family. Drawn into palace intrigue and rebelli...

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2

Daughter of Crows

Daughter of Crows

by Lawrence, Mark

Set a thief to catch a thief. Set a monster to punish monsters.The Academy of Kindness exists to create agents of retribution, cast in the image of the Furies – The Kindly Ones – against whom even the gods hesitate to st...

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3

The Red Winter

The Red Winter

by Sullivan, Cameron

In 1785, Professor Sebastian Grave receives the news he fears most: the terrible Beast of Gévaudan has returned, and the French countryside runs red in its wake.Sebastian knows the Beast. A monster-slayer with centuries...

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4

The Astral Library

The Astral Library

Have you ever wished you could live inside a book? Welcome to the Astral Library, where books are not just objects, but doors to new worlds, new lives, and new futures.Alexandria “Alix” Watson has learned one lesson from...

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5

Isles of the Emberdark

Isles of the Emberdark

by Sanderson, Brandon

All his life, Sixth of the Dusk has been a traditional trapper of Aviar - the supernatural birds his people bond with - on the deadly island of Patji. Then one fateful night he propels his people into a race to modernize...

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6

The Girl with a Thousand Faces

The Girl with a Thousand Faces

Mercy Chan is a triad exorcist with a mysterious past. After washing up on the shores of Hong Kong with no memory during World War II, she found a home in Kowloon Walled City, an infamous, ghost-infested slum full of los...

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7

Seek the Traitor's Son

Seek the Traitor's Son

by Roth, Veronica

Elegy Ahn is a soldier who guards her small country against the Talusar, a stronger nation whose religion is built around a deadly Fever. When she and the Talusar general Rava Vidar are summoned to hear a prophecy that o...

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8

Agnes Aubert's Mystical Cat Shelter

Agnes Aubert's Mystical Cat Shelter

by Fawcett, Heather

A woman who runs a cat rescue in 1920s Montreal turns to a grouchy but charming wizard to help save the shelter in this heartwarming cozy fantasy from the New York Times bestselling author of the Emily Wilde series.Agnes...

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9

The Book Witch

The Book Witch

by Shaffer, Meg

Rainy March is a proud third-generation book witch, sworn to defend works of fiction from all foes real and imaginary. With her magical umbrella and feline familiar, she jumps into and out of novels to fix malicious alte...

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10

Victorious

Victorious

by Schwab, V. E.

The ExtraOrdinaries, people whose powers came from a brush with death, have been lying low since the last showdown. But when EON, the organisation whose relationship with them is about to change, falls under a new direct...

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11

Rites of the Starling

Rites of the Starling

by Perry, Devney

Calandra’s five kingdoms are on the verge of destruction. The crux migration is coming. And in the wake of a devastating attack, I’ve been separated from the man who owns my heart.I’m lost. Terrified. Homesick. Hunted by...

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12

This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me

This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me

by Andrews, Ilona

Outlander meets Game of Thrones in this blockbuster new epic fantasy series from the #1 New York Times bestselling author duo Ilona Andrews.\ \ When Maggie wakes up cold, filthy, and naked in a gutter, it doesn't take he...

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13

Our Lady of Blades

Our Lady of Blades

by Castell, Sebastien De

Blood Week has been banned in Rijou, but the streets still run red, and now murder is sanctioned by the courts. A mysterious duellist who calls herself Lady Consequence, a former noble whose family was killed and who was...

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14

A Trade of Blood

A Trade of Blood

by Bennett, Robert Jackson

The heir to a powerful family sits in jail, accused of murder. Unless the detective Ana Dolabra can clear him, a farming canton could erupt into war, and the case is only the latest thread in a subtler web of death woven...

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15

The Midnight Train

The Midnight Train

When your life flashes before your eyes, where would you stop?No one can change the past, but the Midnight Train can take you there. The chance to re-live the moments that meant most. To see what kind of person you reall...

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Trending Books in Best Fantasy Books of 2026 So Far

The Poet Empress

The Poet Empress

Buy on Amazon

Daughter of Crows

Daughter of Crows

Buy on Amazon

The Midnight Train

The Midnight Train

Buy on Amazon

Our Lady of Blades

Our Lady of Blades

Castell, Sebastien De

Buy on Amazon

Isles of the Emberdark

Isles of the Emberdark

Sanderson, Brandon

Buy on Amazon

The Girl with a Thousand Faces

The Girl with a Thousand Faces

Buy on Amazon

Seek the Traitor's Son

Seek the Traitor's Son

Buy on Amazon

Agnes Aubert's Mystical Cat Shelter

Agnes Aubert's Mystical Cat Shelter

Fawcett, Heather

Buy on Amazon

The Book Witch

The Book Witch

Buy on Amazon

Victorious

Victorious

Buy on Amazon

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Best Fantasy Books of 2026 So Far

The Standout Fantasy Releases of 2026 So Far