Fantasy subgenres
73 ways into fantasy. Each guide explains what defines the subgenre, what sets it apart from its neighbours and which books to start with.
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- Allegorial Fantasy Books Allegory is a literary device in which characters, settings, and events are symbolic of something else outside the story. If we think of…
- Alternate History Books Traditionally set in some recognized period of history—such as the Dark Ages, the Victorian era, the Enlightenment, early Rome—these works…
- Alternate World Books “There's no place like home. There's no place like home.” Click your heels together and you're back in the sepia colored real world—but oh…
- Anthropomorphic Fantasy Books Animals! Animals! Animals everywhere! To be boring, anthropomorphism is the attribution of human characteristics, languages, behaviors, and…
- Arabian Fantasy Books Arabian Fantasy is an often romanticized sub-genre that many mediums, including literature, draw upon. For example, music, visual arts, and…
- Arcane Fantasy Books Magic and science exist in the world simultaneously—they are two separate fields, but complement each other and are used together. Magic is…
- Arthurian Fantasy Book Arthurian Fantasy is easily defined as any fantasy story incorporating the legends of King Arthur and his many companions.
- Assassin Fantasy Books The name of this sub-genre says it all—these are stories about assassins set within a fantasy world. Intrigue, secrecy, espionage, mystery,…
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- Celtic Fantasy Books Celtic Fantasy encompasses all fantasy stories that drawn on Celtic legends and lore. Usually these stories are from Ireland, but they can…
- Christian Fantasy Books Pretty simple definition: Fantasy written by and for Christians. It is a story that reflects some part of the Christian world-view. Some…
- Classical Fantasy Books Like Historical Fantasy, Classical Fantasy is focused on specific details and time periods and portrays them in a new and fantastic way.…
- Colonial Fantasy Books A small sub-genre that is not hugely popular and not widely advertised—Colonial Fantasy is a fantasy in which colonialism is a theme and a…
- Comedic Fantasy Book Probably the lightest of all fantasy sub-genres, Humorous or Comic Fantasy is fun first, fantasy second. Basically, it just presents a…
- Coming of Age Fantasy Books In the tradition of acknowledged classics like Candide, Jane Eyre, or even Tom Sawyer, this genre takes our protagonist along an arc that…
- Contemporary Fantasy Books Contemporary Fantasy is defined by its setting: real world, present day. It is our very recognizable world -- with some fantastical…
- Court Intrigue Fantasy Books Lawyers dueling in court rooms! Jury tampering! Okay, so not that kind of court. More like a royal court— think castles, thrones, and royal…
- Crossworlds Fantasy Book A common sub-genre, Crossworlds Fantasy is often used in conjunction with other sub-genres. The sub-genre features a protagonist from the…
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- Dark Fantasy Books You can substitute “horror” for “dark fantasy” if you like, but fans of this sub-genre would probably be able to create sharp divisions…
- Dragon Fantasy Books Dragons are the most well-known mythological creature. There exists myths and stories about dragons in almost every culture around the…
- Dying Earth Fantasy Books The Earth, it is dying—that pretty much sums up this sub-genre.
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- Epic Fantasy Books One of the most popular forms of fantasy fiction takes its basic formula from ancient epic storytelling, which combined legend and history…
- Erotic Fantasy Books The Erotic Fantasy sub-genre, as the name suggests, contains strong sexual elements. The overall story of an Erotic Fantasy book are often…
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- Fable Books We all know, and mostly love, fables. They are perfect for the fantasy genre because their very conception includes magic in the form of…
- Fantastic Poetry Books Fantastic Poetry is everything you love about fantasy, but supercharged and condensed into a literary gem. It is an imaginative and…
- Fantastic Romance Books No, it's not a list of "fantastically great romance reads" but a legitimate fantasy subgenre.
- Fantastique Books The story of "once upon a time" does not exist in the sub-genre of the Fantastique. Fantastique does not tell stories that end with neat…
- Fantasy of Manners Books Fantasy of Manners is a kind of hybrid sub-genre of traditional Fantasy and the Comedy of Manners form. A Fantasy of Manners story is not…
- Flintlock Fantasy Books Flintlock is a term applied to a firearm that uses a flintlock mechanism—that's the Wikipedia definition and it's pretty boring and not…
- Futuristic Fantasy Books The future is fantastic! Futuristic Fantasy is a story set in the future that incorporates elements of fantasy. Okay, so that was a really…
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- Gaslamp Fantasy Books Gaslamp Fantasy is a genre bending sub-genre that belongs to both Fantasy and Historical Fiction and borrows tropes, themes, and even…
- Gods and Demons Fantasy Books Gods and Demons Fantasy, also called Shenmo, pulls together the wonder of the ancient Chinese world of the gods (and demons) with the…
- Grimdark Books Grimdark Fantasy is an oft debated sub-genre both in its value and its definition. Joe Abercrombie argues in a blogpost on his website that…
- Gritty Fantasy Books Gritty fantasy is all the rage these days. One of the first authors to bring gritty fantasy to the table was Glen Cook with his Black…
- Gunpowder Fantasy Gunpowder Fantasy is part of the modern fantasy trend. It occupies a space that is neither medieval nor urban. Steampunk is Gunpowder…
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- Hard Fantasy Books Logic and reason rule the pages of Hard Fantasy and attention to detail is a writer's best gift. Hard Fantasy is the Fantasy version of…
- Heroic Fantasy Books Heroic Fantasy has been bypassed recently by other fantasy genres, but the affinity of young males for comic book-style heroes pretty much…
- High Fantasy Books A popular subgenre that's often used interchangebly with Epic Fantasy. We feel there is a distinction, however. High Fantasy tends to focus…
- High Historical Fantasy Books This is a subset of Historical Fantasy and so shares the defining feature of an historical setting. The difference is that it also shares…
- Historical Fantasy Books In the Historical Fantasy sub-genre a part of Earth's history is the setting, but with added fantastical elements. This setting may be set…
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- Legend Retelling Fantasy Books Some stories never get old. Some characters become legends. Sometimes these stories have a kernel of truth to them.These tales are…
- Literary Fantasy Books Judging something to be Literary Fantasy is a bit like defining pornography: you know it when you see it. The “Literary” label seems…
- Low Fantasy Books Low Fantasy has nothing to do with height or literary merit and everything to do with the low emphasis placed on traditional Fantasy…
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- Magic Realism Books Magic is a part of everyday life—magical life and mundane life coexist and are not in conflict. This sub-genre tends to be more literary…
- Magical Girl Fantasy Books Adorable girls, awesome costumes, the power of friendship, adventure, and of course magic. Magical Girl Fantasy is a multi-platform…
- Media Tie-in Fantasy Books An absolutely huge sub-genre that has its own professional organization, the International Association of Media Tie-in Writers (not a…
- Medieval Fantasy Books Medieval Fantasy is defined less by its characteristics and more by it setting: namely, the medieval historical period. This sub-genre has…
- Military Fantasy Books The Military Fantasy sub-genre has a descriptive name, but that does not mean all Fantasy stories with military elements are part of this…
- Mundane Fantasy Books Mundane Fantasy is a bit of an oxymoron: how can something mundane also be fantasy? In a very broad definition, Mundane Fantasy is a…
- Mythic Fantasy Books In a sense, all fantasy derives from the vast number of myths developed throughout human history. Nature's force and fury, death, disease…
- Mythopoeia Books To define Mythopoeia simply, it is a work (we're talking about books here, but it could take other forms) of artificial mythology. This…
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- Paranormal Fantasy Books This fantasy version of the classic adventure novel is currently very popular. It's contemporary, hip, snarky, funny...naturally, it…
- Political Fantasy Books “Politics” and “Fantasy” might at first seem an unlikely combination for a good read. But think about it: any fantasy world has one or more…
- Portal Fantasy Books There is a real world—the world that we all know and love (or hate, as the case may be)--and a fantasy world created by our illustrious…
- Prehistoric Fantasy Books Prehistoric Fantasy is a specific type of Historical Fantasy that takes places in prehistoric times and depicts the lives of the people…
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- Science Fantasy Books As fantasy fiction becomes more focused on contemporary environments, as opposed to medieval and ancient worlds, technology plays an…
- Series Fantasy Books Series Fantasy, also known as Shared World Fantasy, is a long series of stories in either novel or short story form. These series differ…
- Silk Road Fantasy Books There are fantastic worlds outside Europe. Wonderful, beautiful, mythic lands. Lands with djinns, dragons, caliphates, palaces, deserts,…
- Steampunk Fantasy Books Steampunk stories postulate an alternate history where Victorian-era technology, namely steam, and aesthetics took hold. The sub-genre came…
- Superhero Fantasy Books A genre in of itself, Superheros are hugely popular and have strong fan bases. Characters like Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Thor,…
- Swashbuckling Fantasy Books Ah the romance of men swinging from chandeliers brandishing a sword and cracking wise. Lots of energy and adventure make these stories…
- Sword and Planet Fantasy Books Sword and Planet Fantasy is another sub-genre of speculative fiction that has a bit of Fantasy and a bit of Science Fiction. The Sword and…
- Sword and Sorcery Books Is a canonical sub-genre of Fantasy—it spawns the action side of Fantasy. It is a sub-genre that has it all—magic, supernatural elements,…
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- Weird Fiction Books As humans we like to think we understand the world, but there are so many contraries and distances and illogical things. Weird Fiction…
- Weird West Fantasy Books Fantasy meets the Western with a dash of the supernatural. Weird West Fantasy is inherently genre crossing with bits of Fantasy, Western,…
- Wuxia Fantasy Books Originating in China, Wuxia is action, adventure, and fantasy all rolled into one. Succinctly described as a martial art adventure. The…