100 Best Dark Fantasy Books of All Time
Have you found the best dark fantasy books? It might be a challenge to define dark fantasy precisely. Although it’s not the same thing as horror, there may be some similarities.
Dark fantasy is frequently used to describe fantasy books published by horror writers.
Others prefer fantasy books that are a little deadlier and darker.
The finest fantasy novels provide readers the chance to completely transcend into a different universe.
Given the nebulous nature of the term “dark fantasy,” I have included a wide range of books on this list.
Even though there are a few well-known examples of this subgenre’s masterpieces featured here, I attempted to stray off the trodden road.
1. The Black Company by Glen Coo
Some believe that the Lady, having recently emerged from centuries of servitude, stands in the way of evil.
Many believe she is inherently malevolent. The Black Company’s tough guys accept their salary and execute what needs to be done, burying their misgivings with the dead.
A White Rose has been revived some place to once again represent goodness, according to the prophecy, until then.
The Black Company must have the means to track her down.
The Chronicles of the Black Company by Glen Cook, one of the finest fantasy epics of our time, starts off in this way.
2. Before they are Hanged by Joe Abercrombie
Superior Glokta is having a terrifying issue. What do you do when your friends cannot be relied upon, your predecessor vanished without a trace, and your city is surrounded by foes and filled with traitors, how can you protect it?
If a torturer could merely walk without a stick, it would be enough to make him want to flee.
Northmen have crossed the border into England and are wreaking havoc and killing across the freezing land.
Ladislav, the crown prince, is prepared to push them back and secure eternal glory.
There is only one issue: He is in charge of the world’s worst army in terms of equipment, training, and leadership.
3. The Way of Shadows by Brent Weeks
We also saw Brent Weeks as New York Times bestselling novelist.
Assassination is an art form for Durzo Blint, who also is the most skilled artist in the city.
Azoth’s chances of living are slim. Something you never take for granted.
He was raised in the slums as a guild rat, where he gained the ability to make snap judgments about individuals and take chances. Taking chances like being Durzo Blint’s apprentice.
Azoth must abandon his previous life, though, and adopt a new identity and name if he wants to be accepted.
As Kylar Stern, he must develop a taste for killing and learn to maneuver the assassins’ world of perilous politics and mysterious magics.
4. Preludes & Nocturnes (The Sandman)
By Neil Gaiman, Sam Kieth, Mike Dringenberg, Malcolm Jones III
I frequently considered the sublime SANDMAN series by New York Times bestselling author Neil Gaiman as the pinnacle of Vertigo literature and one of the greatest triumphs in visual storytelling.
By fusing historical mythology, folklore, and fairy tales with his own unique storytelling style, Gaiman crafted an extraordinary tale about the forces that exist beyond life and death.
In PRELUDES & NOCTURNES, an occultist who wants to barter with Death for perpetual life instead captures her younger brother’s Dream.
Dream, also known as Morpheus, sets out in search of his stolen items of power following his ultimate release from a 70-year jail sentence.
Morpheus meets Lucifer, John Constantine, and an all-powerful lunatic on his long voyage.
The novella “The Sound of Her Wings” from this book also introduces us to the practical and vivacious goth lady Death.
5. Tender Morsels by Margo Lanagan
Many dark fantasy books have major depictions of sexual assault.
Sometimes it is handled successfully, other times not so well. Tender Morsels belong to the first group.
In the same vein, fairy tales can be sinister. Like’s incredibly dark. Especially if you consider the original works rather than the Disney-produced, family-friendly tales.
Lanagan’s debut novel, a reimagining of the Snow White and Rose Red fairy tale, examines the greatest and worst aspects of human nature.
We take seriously the dark in dark fantasy in this novel, so be careful.
6. The Citadel of Fear by Gertrude Barrows
Stevens, one of the pioneering female writers of science fiction and fantasy, first used the pen name Francis Stevens to publish her works.
It would be remiss of this list to omit her as she is credited with creating dark fantasy.
Two explorers who discover a buried Aztec metropolis are the subject of the novel The Citadel of Fear.
Regrettably, the guy lets an evil deity return to civilization with him.
The Citadel of Fear, which was first published in 1918, is a fine illustration of the pulpy forms that were popular in the science fiction and fantasy genres.
7. Neverwhere (London Below) by Neil Gaiman
A location that most people might only dream about exists underneath the streets of London.
It is a city of monsters and saints, killers, and angels, armored knights, and fair women dressed in dark velvet. The folks who have gotten lost in the cracks live in this city.
Young business person Richard Mayhew will discover plenty of information about this other London.
I suddenly thrust him into a world that is both strangely familiar and completely weird after performing just one act of kindness.
And he will have a peculiar fate here, under his hometown: Neverwhere.
8. Daughter of the Blood by Anne Bishop
The Black Jewels series by Anne Bishop exposes readers to a dark world where the distribution of power between men and women has been skewed.
Perhaps, It also depicts a chosen group of people fervently hoping for the one person who will be able to finally put things right.
Until you learn that Saetan, Lucivar, and Daemon are the names of your heroes, that seems regular.
9. The Graveyard Book
By Neil Gaiman, Dave McKean, Margaret Atwood
A Graveyard Is Required to Raised a Child.
Nobody Owens, also referred to as Bod by his pals, is an ordinary young man.
He would be perfectly normal if he didn’t live in a sizable cemetery, where ghosts teach and rear him, and if he didn’t have a lone guardian who is neither from the living nor the dead.
For a youngster, the cemetery holds perils and adventures as an ancient indigo man, a doorway to an abandoned city of ghouls, and the odd and terrifying fleer.
But if Bod leaves the cemetery, he will be in danger from Jack, who has already murdered Bod’s family.
10. Last Argument of Kings by Joe Abercrombie
The end is near. Even though Logen Ninefingers may only have one more fight left in him, it will be a huge one.
There is only one man who can stop the King of the Northmen from continuing to maintain his ground while the battle rages throughout the North.
His oldest adversary and his oldest buddy. The Bloody Nine should have returned home by now.
Superior Glokta is waging a new type of battle because he has too many masters and not enough time.
No one is safe, and no one can be trusted in this covert conflict.
He has long since passed his sword-wielding days. It’s a good thing that torture, extortion, and threats still have some effectiveness.
Jezal dan Luthar has given up on fighting for greatness because it is too painful and has instead chosen to live a quiet life with the one he loves.
However, glory has a cruel knack for sneaking up on a man when he least expects it, and love can sometimes be awful.
The peasants rebel, and the nobility race to seize the Union’s King’s throne as he lies on his deathbed.
Nobody thinks that the Union’s very heart is under the shadow of war. As he usually does, the First of the Magi has a strategy to save the world.
Yet there are dangers. Breaking the First Law is the worst possible danger.
11. King of Thorns by Mark Lawrence
When he was nine years old, Prince Honorious Jorg Ancrath pledged to revenge the deaths of his mother and brother and to punish his father for not doing so.
He started carrying out his commitment when he was fifteen. Now that he is eighteen, he must cling tenaciously to the possessions he got via pain and betrayal.
King Jorg is a man who is plagued by several ghosts, including the spirit of a little kid, a mystery copper box, and his yearning for the woman who rides with his adversary.
He is angry because he keeps having dreams about the crimes he did and the crimes that were perpetrated against him when he was a youngster.
But he has discovered old, and long-lost relics in a room tucked away beneath the castle. Some could refer to them as magical.
Jorg is unsure; all he knows is that the information they possess can awful effect in the next conflict.
12. Unraveller by Frances Hardinge
Only one individual can break a life-ending curse in a world where everyone can do so.
Although Kellen is unaware of the full extent of his special talent, he assists the afflicted, such as his buddy Nettle who spent years imprisoned in a bird’s body.
She is now Kellen’s closest comrade and his frequent companion.
The Unraveller, however, contains a curse that him and Nettle must remove in order to stop Kellen from endangering everything and everyone in his vicinity.
13. American Gods by Neil Gaiman
American Gods, a 2001 book by the multi-award-winning maestro of inventive fiction Neil Gaiman, immediately rose to the status of a classic.
Now that American Gods has reached its tenth anniversary, learn more about its magic and mystery.
This commemorative collection is a real celebration of a contemporary masterpiece by the one and only Neil Gaiman, freshly revised and enlarged using the author’s preferred text.
14. A Clash of Kings by George R. R. Martin
A comet that has the hue of blood and flame pierces the sky.
Lord Eddard Stark and Robert Baratheon, two powerful figures who presided over an era of enforced peace, have died because of royal treachery.
Chaos now rules everywhere, from the ages-old stronghold of Dragon stone to the ominous beaches of Winterfell.
Six groups prepare to stake their claims via turbulence, conflict, and war as they contend for control of a divided nation and the Iron Throne of the Seven Kingdoms.
It is a story about how brothers conspire against one another and how the dead come to life at night.
A knight of the mind crafts a poison for a cunning sorceress here, a princess poses as an orphan boy, and wild men emerge from the Mountains of the Moon to terrorize the land.
The men and women with the coldest steel and the coldest hearts may prevail in a world of incest and fratricide, alchemy, and murder.
Because when monarchs fight, the entire country shudders.
The second book in George R.R. Martin’s amazing series of books, which also includes A Game of Thrones and A Storm of Swords, is available here.
This entire series is a remarkable work of modern fantasy, combining the very best elements of the subgenre.
These pages enchant us with magic, mystery, intrigue, romance, and adventure while escorting us to a world unlike any we have ever known.
George R.R. Martin’s breathtaking series is already acclaimed as a masterpiece and is likely to rank among the greatest works of visionary literature.
15. A Storm of Swords by George R. R. Martin
The wonderful trilogy by George R.R. Martin, which also contains A Game of Thrones and A Clash of Kings, now has a third installment.
Together, these books make up a true contemporary fantasy masterwork that will go down in history as one pinnacle of creative literature.
16. Coraline by Neil Gaiman, Dave McKean
Coraline shares a large old house with her busy parents, including the round, elderly former actors Miss Spink and Miss Forcible, their aging Highland terriers (“We trod the boards, luvvy”)
As well as the mustachioed old man under the roof (“The reason you cannot see the mouse circus is that the mice are not yet ready and rehearsed,” he said upstairs).
For weeks, Coraline is satisfied to wander about the expansive grounds and garden.
But after a little rain, she grows bored and starts counting the windows (21), doors(14), and objects that are blue (153).
Coraline enters a completely different universe through the 14th door, which is occasionally blocked by a brick wall.
Now, if you’re nostalgically recalling The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe or Alice in Wonderland, you’re off the mark.
Coraline by Neil Gaiman is far darker and weirder, preying on our worst anxieties. Like Roald Dahl’s writing, it is also delectable.
What is behind the door on the other side?
A world made of distorted mirrors, presumably containing everything Coraline has ever imagined: people who pronounce her name correctly (not “Caroline”).
The most unsettling aspect, though, is her mirror-image parents, her “other mother” and “other father” people who resemble her own parents exactly, but with large, gleaming, black button eyes, paper-white skin, and a strong desire to keep her on their side of the door.
British mixed-media artist and Sandman cover painter Dave McKean has expertly decorated Coraline in scratchy, frightful ink drawings, making it creepier and more frightening.
This hilarious, humorous, eerie, terrifying as all get-out fairy-tale novel is about as good as it gets.
17. The Drawing of the Three by Stephen King, Phil Hale
Stephen King’s epic work of fantasy, which he believes to be a single long novel and his magnum opus, has been published over the course of 25 years, starting with a short tale that appeared in “The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction” in 1978.
The “Dark Tower” series by Stephen King, a magical fusion of science fiction, fantasy, and horror that may very well be his greatest accomplishment, is King’s most visionary feat of storytelling.
It is set in a world of extraordinary circumstances, filled with stunning visual imagery and unforgettable characters.
The sixth book, “Wolves of the Calla,” will be released in November 2003 under Donald M.
Grant banner, with Scribner handling distribution and meaningful advertising.
Book VI of “Song of Susannah” and Book VII of “The Dark Tower” will be released in 2004 after each other.
With the release of these last three volumes, readers, including innumerable fans of Stephen King who have yet to read “The Dark Tower” and a plethora of both new and seasoned fantasy readers can now expect to finish the story to its breathtaking conclusion.
For the first time, “The Dark Tower” will be widely accessible in hardcover editions for this eager market thanks to Viking’s exquisite reprint of the first four volumes.
18. The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie
The notorious barbarian Logen Ninefingers has finally reached his breaking point.
He’s been involved in too many feuds, and he’s on the edge of dying a barbarian, leaving behind lousy music, dead pals, and a lot of content foes in his wake.
Nobleman Captain Jezal dan Luthar is a handsome officer and the epitome of avarice.
He has no plans other than to cheat his pals at cards and fantasize about winning at fencing.
However, a conflict is building, and on the icy North’s battlefields, the rules of engagement are far more brutal.
Nothing would please torturer-turned-inquisitor Glokta more than to see Jezal return home in a box.
Glokta, however, despises everyone since eliminating disloyalty from the Union one confession at a time leaves little opportunity for interpersonal relationships.
If he can remain alive long enough to follow his most recent trail of dead bodies, it could take him directly to the corrupt center of the government.
Bayaz, the wizard, enters. He may be the First of the Magi or he may be a fantastic scam, but whoever he is, he is going to make Logen, Jezal, and Glotka’s life much worse.
He is an elderly bald guy with a violent temper and a pitiful helper.
The boundary between good and evil is razor-sharp enough to draw blood, murderous machinations come to the surface, and old scores are ready to be settled.
19. The Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski
A unique collector’s edition of The Witcher, the internationally popular video game that was inspired by the New York Times bestselling book. Witcher Geralt of Rivia is a deft sorcerer.
His primary aim is to eliminate the demons that afflict the planet.
But not everything that appears monstrous is bad, and not everything that appears beautiful is good and there is a grain of truth in every fairy tale.
20. A Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin and Jeffrey Jones
The first book in George R. R. Martin’s epic series, which also includes A Clash of Kings and A Storm of Swords, is available here.
This collection, which collects the finest works in the genre, is a true masterpiece of contemporary fantasy.
These pages immerse us in a world unlike any we have ever known via magic, mystery, intrigue, romance, and adventure.
George R. R. Martin’s brilliant series, already recognized as a masterpiece, will go down in history as one pinnacle of visionary literature.
The seasons were out of balance long ago, at a time that has since passed.
Trouble is building in a place where summers may endure for decades and winters can last a lifetime.
The winter is coming again, and beyond the kingdom’s fortifying Wall in the icy wastes to the north of Winterfell, evil and magical forces are gathering.
The Starks of Winterfell, a family as cruel and unyielding as the country they were born in is at the epicenter of the war.
Here is a tale of lords and women, warriors, sorcerers, assassins, and bastards who come together during a period of gloomy omens, sweeping from a country of extreme cold to a far summer kingdom of epicurean wealth.
Here, a mysterious gang of warriors wields weapons made of a material other than human metal; a tribe of fearsome wildlings drives men insane; a cruel young dragon prince barters his sister to reclaim his kingdom, and a brave lady sets out on the perilous of trips.
The destiny of the Starks, their allies, and their foes hang precariously in the balance amid schemes and counterplots, tragedy and treachery, victory and fear, as each seeks to prevail in that most deadly of conflicts: the game of thrones.
21. Heir to the Shadows by Anne Bishop
The youthful Jaenelle, the heir to the mystical Darkness, has had enough time to heal from her physical injuries, while forgetfulness keeps her spooky memories away.
But Jaenelle will develop as long as she has Saetan, a Black-Jewelled Warlord Prince, and her foster father, to keep her safe. She will refine her magic.
Her recollections will surface. When Jenelle thinks back to Daemon, Saetan’s son, who helped her realize her fate.
22. The Gunslinger by Stephen King
The first book in Stephen King’s Dark Tower series introduces us to Roland, the last gunslinger on a quest to find The Man in Black, a character who will be well-known to fans of King’s horror books.
We can now see Idris Elba as Roland, despite the lackluster quality of the film adaptation. I’m happy to help.
23. Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice
This is Louis’ journey through mortal and everlasting existence, as he has told it in his own words.
The luminous and evil Lestat turned Louis into a vampire, and Louis describes how he was unwittingly brainwashed into the vampire way of life.
His tale ebbs and flows through the streets of New Orleans, marking key moments like his finding of the beautiful lost small kid Claudia, wishing not to hurt but to console her with the last breaths of humanity he has left within.
However, he transforms Claudia into a vampire by encasing her strong female will, intellect, and desire for a little child’s body.
In the affluent French Quarter, Louis and Claudia forge an unshakable connection and even “settle down” for a while.
Louis recalls Claudia’s battle with self-understanding and their shared loathing of Lestat, which drove them to go halfway across the globe in search of others who shared their ancestry.
They are yearnings to belong, to find people who understand them, and to find someone who understands who they are.
They both visited Paris and the wildly popular Theatre des Vampires, a theater where vampires pretend to be humans pretending to be vampires, after traveling around Europe.
Here they encounter the alluring and ethereal Armand, who introduces them to the vampire community.
However, Louis and Claudia discover that meeting others who think similarly to them doesn’t lead to any simple solutions and, in fact, can be rather dangerous.
The novel, which was first intended to be a short narrative, quickly expanded as Anne wrote it, weaving the victorious and sad adventures of a soul.
The interview depicts the political and societal upheavals occurring on two continents besides the hardships of its protagonists.
24. The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss
The story of the young guy with magical talent who develops into the most infamous wizard his planet has ever seen is told here in Kvothe’s own words.
His personal account of his upbringing in a troupe of traveling actors, and his years as a nearly feral orphan in a city plagued by crime.
His brazen but successful attempt to enroll in a legendary school of magic and his life as a runaway after a king’s murder combine to create one of the most compelling coming-of-age tales in recent literature.
The Name of the Wind is a masterwork that will take readers into the body and mind of a wizard. It’s a high-action novel written with a poet’s touch.
25. Best Served Cold by Joe Abercrombie
Blood has been shed for 19 years. Between them, the wicked Grand Duke Orso and the quarreling League of Eight have bled the nation white.
Behind the scenes, bankers, priests, and other older, darker powers engage in a deadly game to determine who will rule while armies advance, bodies fall, and cities burn.
War may be horrible, but for Monza Murcatto, the Snake of Talins, the most infamous and dreaded mercenary working for Duke Orso, it’s also a pretty fine way to make money.
Her victories have made her well-liked, perhaps a little too well-liked for her employer’s liking.
Murcatto’s prize for being betrayed, being tossed down a mountain, and being left for dead is a damaged body and a raging need for retribution. Seven guys must perish at whatever cost.
Her supporters include a mass killer with an obsession with numbers, Styria’s least trustworthy alcoholic, Styria’s most cunning poisoner, and a Northman who only wants to do the right thing.
Most of the country is made up of her adversaries. And that’s all before the world’s most deadly man is sent to find her and complete the task Duke Orso began.
26. Wizard and Glass by Stephen King
After surviving Blaine the Mono’s final crash, Roland, Eddie, Susannah, Jake, and Jake’s pet bumbler discover themselves stuck in a different Topeka, Kansas that has been devastated by the superflu virus.
They hear the atonal squalling of a thinny, a place where the fabric of existence has almost fully torn away, as they travel the empty I-70 toward a distant glass palace.
While sleeping close to the thinny’s edge, Roland tells his ka-tet a tale of another thinny he came across when he was only a young lad.
One long magical night, Roland transports us to the Mid-World of the distant past and the seaside town of Hambry, where Roland fell in love with a woman named Susan Delgado.
This is also where he and his former tet comrades Alain and Cuthbert fought against the forces of John Farson, the harrier who, with a little help from a seeing sphere called Maerlyn’s Grapefruit, sparked Mid-world.
27. The Waste Lands by Stephen King
After a few months, Roland’s two new tet-mates had honed their gun playing skills.
Odetta’s two identities have combined to form the stronger, more centered personality of Susannah Dean now that Eddie Dean has quit using heroin.
However, when fighting The Pusher in 1977 New York, Roland changed ka by saving Jake Chambers, a young man who had already passed away in Rolands.
Currently, Roland and Jake live in separate universes but are connected by the same irrationality: the conundrum of multiple memories.
Jake must be drawn into Mid-World by Roland, Susannah, and Eddie, who must then travel the Path of the Beam to the Dark Tower. But in Mid-World, nothing is simple.
Our tet encounters the abandoned city of Lud along the road and becomes trapped between the Pubes and the Grays, two rival gangs.
Awakening Blaine the Mono, a crazy train with a penchant for riddles and self-destructive adventures, is the only way to escape Lud.
28. A Dance with Dragons by George R. R. Martin
After a titanic struggle, the Seven Kingdoms are facing several new dangers from all sides, and their future is in jeopardy.
The last member of House Targaryen, Daenerys Targaryen, reigns over a city made of dust and death in the east alongside her three dragons.
However, Daenerys has a large number of adversaries who are actively looking for her.
One of the young men sets off on his own search for the queen while they are assembling, but he has a completely other objective in mind.
Tyrion Lannister, who has a bounty on his head and is also evacuating Westeros, is traveling to Daenerys.
But his newest friends in this battle are not the haphazard bunch they first appear to be, and one of them has the power to permanently undermine Daenerys’ claim to Westeros.
The enormous Ice and Stone Wall is to the north; it is a barrier that is only as powerful as those who protect it.
There, Jon Snow, the Night’s Watch’s 998th Lord Commander, will encounter his toughest test.
Because he faces formidable opponents not just within the Watch but also beyond, in the realm of the ice monsters.
A large cast of characters, including outlaws and priests, soldiers, skin changers, lords, and slaves, will encounter what seem to be insurmountable challenges as ancient hostilities resurface and personal betrayals are committed.
Some will fall short, while others will gain in the dark’s might. However, amid a moment of mounting unrest, political and destiny currents will unavoidably bring about the greatest dance of all.
29. The Warded Man by Peter V. Brett
As dusk descends after sunset, the corelings, demons with superhuman abilities, and a burning enmity for people to rise.
The human herd has been steadily wiped off by the demons for hundreds of years as they have plagued the night, hiding behind magical wards whose origins are shrouded in lore and whose defense is dreadfully flimsy. This wasn’t always the case.
Previously, men and women engaged the corelings on an equal footing, but those times are long past.
The demons get stronger every night as the population of humans decreases because of their constant attacks.
Three young people who have survived brutal demon assaults are now risking all to recover the mysteries of the past as hope for the future is dwindling.
They will venture outside the collapsing protection of the wards. They will battle the darkness together.
29. Queen of the Darkness by Anne Bishop
As the current Queen-protector of the Shadow Realm, Jaenelle Angelline is in power.
The corrupt Blood will no longer massacre her citizens and pollute her territory.
However, when one story closes, another must be written, and Jaenelle must unleash the dreadful force known as Witch to vanquish her foes forever.
She still cannot standalone. Daemon, her name, is somewhere, long forgotten in madness.
30. The Red Tree by Caitlin R. Kiernan
You can’t go wrong with a Caitlin Kiernan book if you want a fantasy that reads almost exactly like horror.
This one is for you if you enjoy ghost stories, New England horror in the vein of H.P. Lovecraft without the bad overtones that Lovecraft’s works carry and narrative within story structures a la House of Leaves.
31. Shadow’s Edge by Brent Weeks
The fast-paced epic fantasy by New York Times bestselling author Brent Weeks, the second book in the Night Angel trilogy.
Kylar Stern turned down the opportunity to kill. Durzo, Kylar’s boss, and Logan, his best friend, are both dead as a result of the Godking’s successful takeover.
With a new city, new friends, and a new profession, he is starting afresh.
Kylar is forced to make a difficult decision when he discovers that Logan could possibly be alive and hiding.
Will he give up the life of the shadows forever and live in peace with his new family, or will he risk everything by carrying out the ultimate hit?
Enjoy this sensational novel of magic and assassination by Brent Weeks, which has charmed readers all around the world and has sold over one million copies.
32. Claymore by Norihiro Yagi
We are introduced to the Claymore, a troop of all-female warriors who dedicate their life to eradicating monsters that prey on the common public in this Japanese retelling of European sword-and-sorcery fiction.
These women, however, pay a price: they risk turning into the exact monsters they fight and derive their abilities from them.
A straightforward hack-and-slash adventure quickly turns into a vast narrative of retribution, mystery, and liberation.
33. Nevernight by Jay Kristoff
A budding murderer enrolls at an assassin school in a place where three suns almost never set in order to get revenge on the forces that killed her family.
Mia Corvere, the executed traitor’s daughter, barely manages to escape her father’s unsuccessful uprising.
She lives alone and without friends in a city made of a dead god’s bones while being pursued by the Senate and her father’s erstwhile allies.
However, her ability to communicate with the shadows brings her to the door of a former serial murderer and a future she never could have imagined.
Mia is currently an apprentice to the Red Church, the Republic’s fiercest gang of assassins.
She will be accepted as a Blade of the Lady of Blessed Murder, bringing her one step closer to the retribution she seeks, if she defeats her other pupils in tests of steel, poison, and subtle arts.
However, there is a murderer running amok in the church’s halls, Mia’s deadly secrets are coming back to haunt her, and a scheme to assassinate the whole congregation is being developed in the shadows she loves.
Will she be able to complete initiation, let alone exact her retribution?
34. the Stealer of Souls by Michael Moorcock
Elric of Melnibone, the drug-addicted albino sorcerer created by Moorcock, is one of the most well-known anti-heroes in fantasy.
Elric, the final emperor of a waning kingdom, must contend with invading armies, relatives who are fighting for his throne, and a kind of existential gloom.
And that’s not even mentioning the fact that everything he values would unavoidably perish because of his soul-stealing sword, Storm bringer.
35. The Heroes by Joe Abercrombie, Steven Pacey
They claim Black Dow has slain more people than winter and has climbed a mound of skulls to claim the reign of the North.
The King of the Union, who has always been an envious neighbor, is not about to sit back and smile as he pushes himself further higher.
The army are trudging through the northern muck after receiving orders.
On a minor hill, in an unimportant valley, thousands of men are assembling, and they have brought a great deal of sharpened metal with them.
36. Shadow’s Edge by Brent Weeks
The fast-paced epic fantasy by New York Times bestselling author Brent Weeks, is the second book in the Night Angel trilogy.
Kylar Stern turned down the opportunity to kill. Durzo, Kylar’s boss, and Logan, his best friend, are both dead because of Godking’s successful takeover.
With a new city, new friends, and a new profession, he is starting afresh.
Kylar is forced to make a difficult decision when he discovers Logan could be alive and hiding.
Will he give up the life of the shadows forever and live in peace with his new family, or will he risk everything by carrying out the ultimate hit?
37. Dreams Made Flesh by Anne Bishop
The most potent witch ever known is Jaenelle, the culmination of generations of aspirations and desires.
She has developed relationships with three of the most powerful Blood warriors in the realm: Saetan, the High Lord of Hell, who teaches Jaenelle magic and takes her in as his own daughter;
Lucivar, the warlord of the winged Eyriens, who serves as her protector; and Witch, the nearly immortal Daemon who was created to be her lover.
They have brought the worlds back to order and peace by Jaenelle taking her due place as Queen of the Darkness, but at a terrible price.
Discover the mysterious Jewels’ origins and the forbidden love between Lucivar and a homely hearth witch in Dreams Made Flesh.
Watch as Saetan and a Priestess collide in a scene that might alter reality forever.
Find out if Jaenelle and Daemon ever had any prospect of being happy before her power was sacrificed.
38. The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman
A middle-aged guy travels back to the place where he was raised to attend a funeral in SussexAlthough, England.
Despite the fact that the house he once called home has long since disappeared, he finds himself pulled to the farm at the end of the road, where, when he was seven, he met Lettie Hempstock and her mother and grandmother.
While sitting by the pond behind the dilapidated old farmhouse, which she had said was an ocean, he remembers things he hasn’t thought about in years.
And it’s a history that shouldn’t have occurred to anybody, much less a little child. It’s too bizarre, too terrifying, and too deadly.
At this property at the end of the road, a guy killed himself in a stolen automobile forty years ago. His death sparked a touchpaper and reverberated in unfathomable ways, like the fuse of a firecracker. A little child witnessed the unleashing of the darkness, which was terrifying and completely unfathomable.
And Lettie, who was wonderful, consoling, and knowledgeable beyond her years, vowed to always keep him safe.
The Ocean at the End of the Lane, a ground-breaking work from a master, demonstrates the power of stories to disclose and protect us from the darkness inside and out and is recounted with a profound awareness of all that makes us human.
It is a mesmerizing, horrifying, and elegiac tale that is both fragile and threatening, like the wing of a butterfly.
39. Wolves of the Calla by Stephen King, Bernie Wrightson
Just after turning back toward the Beam, Roland and his tet notice that several unskilled trackers are pursuing them.
The settlement of Calla Bryn Sturgis is home to the trackers, and they direly need gunslinger assistance.
Every generation, a gang of masked horsemen known as the Wolves come forth from the foreboding realm of Thunderclap to kidnap half of all twins born in the Callas.
The youngsters are roont or physically and emotionally damaged, when they are brought back.
The Wolves will raid once more in less than a month. Father Callahan, a priest who is originally from our planet, promises Roland his assistance for giving him access to a dangerous seeing sphere called Black Thirteen that he has concealed beneath the floorboards of his church.
Besides finding a means to destroy the unbeatable Wolves, Roland and his tet must also go back to New York in order to protect the Dark Tower in our world from the schemes of the nefarious Sombra Corporation.
40. The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lync
In the enigmatic island city of Camorr, an orphan’s existence is difficult and frequently brief.
But young Locke Lamora avoids being killed and sold into slavery by learning how to steal from a skilled con man.
Locke quickly gains notoriety as the leader of the group of light-fingered brothers known as the Gentleman Bastards, deceiving even the most feared figure in the underworld.
But someone even more dangerous and ambitious is hiding in the shadows.
Locke makes a promise to defeat the enemy at his own harsh game or die trying in the face of a murderous coup that threatens to ruin everyone and everything that has significance in his mercenary existence.
41. Prince of Fools by Mark Lawrence
The Broken Empire’s rulers loathe the Red Queen more than any other, despite her advanced age.
She has waged a protracted battle in secrecy against the forces that support countries during her whole reign, with larger stakes than simply territory or cash.
The Silent Sister, who goes unnoticed and unsaid by everybody, is her greatest weapon.
Prince Jalan Kendeth, a drinker, gambler, and women seducer, is the grandchild of The Red Queen and can view The Silent Sister.
He acts as if the repulsive crone is not there despite being tenth in line for the throne and satisfied in his position as a lesser royal.
But the battle is on its way. The Red Queen has asked her family to protect the kingdom after witnesses allege an undead army is on the move.
Jal believes it is all just a rumor and won’t impact him, but he is mistaken.
Jal discovers that his fate has been mysteriously linked to that of a fearsome Norse warrior after escaping a death trap set by the Silent Sister.
Jalan eventually realizes the truth: he and the Norseman are simply pieces in a game, movements in a lengthy battle, and the Red Queen controls the board as the two travel throughout the Empire to reverse the enchantment.
Along the way, they face severe threats, eager ladies, and an upstart prince named Jorg Ancrath.
42. Blood of Elves by Andrzej Sapkowski
The Broken Empire’s rulers loathe the Red Queen more than any other, despite her advanced age.
She has waged a protracted battle in secrecy against the forces that support countries during her whole reign, with larger stakes than simply territory or cash.
The Silent Sister, who goes unnoticed and unsaid by everybody, is her greatest weapon.
Prince Jalan Kendeth, a drinker, gambler, and women seducer, is the grandchild of The Red Queen and can view The Silent Sister.
He acts as if the repulsive crone is not there despite being tenth in line for the throne and satisfied in his position as a lesser royal. But the battle is on its way.
The Flame, a person with the ability to transform the world for good or for evil, is named in a prophesy as Ciri, the granddaughter of Queen Calanthe, the Lioness of Cintra.
She has odd talents and an even weirder fate. Ciri has been brought to the relatively secure Witchers’ Settlement by Geralt, the witcher of Rivia, but it quickly becomes apparent that Ciri isn’t like the other witchers.
Geralt looks for someone to develop Ciri’s special abilities as the political climate darkens and the prospect of war increases almost palpably.
The little girl is the target of another person, one who is aware of the prophecy’s meaning and the full extent of Ciri’s power. Geralt could have found his equal this time.
43. Song of Susannah by Stephen King, Darrel Anderson
Although the Wolves have been destroyed, our tet now confronts a new disaster.
A demon called Mia has taken over Susannah Dean’s body intending to use Susannah’s mortal form to give birth to a demon kid.
In order to give birth to her chap, a kid born of two mothers and two dads who will eventually become Roland’s adversary, Mia stole Black Thirteen and used the Unfound Door to go to 1999 New York.
While Father Callahan and Jake search for Calvin Tower, owner of the vacant property where a mystical rose grows, a rose that must be safeguarded at all costs.
Roland and Eddie intend to follow Susannah with the aid of the time-traveling Manni.
However, ka has its own ideas despite our ka-objectives. tet’s Eddie and Roland are thrown into East Stoneham, Maine, where they are met by Eddie’s former foe, the mobster Balazar.
Jake, Callahan, and Jake’s bumbling comrade are sent to New York to pursue Susannah.
Roland and Eddie must, however, brave more than just gunshots. In the shape of a young author named Stephen King, they will soon meet their creator.
44. Kushiel’s Dart by Jacqueline Carey
Terre d’Ange is a land of elegance and beauty beyond compare. According to legend, angels discovered the area and judged it to be good.
The race that emerged from the union of angels and mortals adheres to a single, uncomplicated moral code: Love what thou wilt.
Young Phèdre nó Delaunay was born with a red birthmark in her left eye.
Her bond is acquired by Anafiel Delaunay, a nobleman with a very particular mission… and the first one to identify who and what she is: one pricked by Kushiel’s Dart, selected to experience agony and pleasure for all time as one.
She was sold into bonded slavery as a youngster.
Phèdre is skilled in both courtly arts and bedchamber abilities, although her observational, recollective, and analytical skills come first.
Phèdre, who is almost as skilled a spy as she is a prostitute, discovers a conspiracy that jeopardizes the very foundations of her country.
Treason puts her on her course; love and honor encourage her to continue. She will reach the brink of despair and beyond in the process.
In this universe, a person might be a cherished assassin, a hateful friend, or a loving adversary. Phèdre will only have one chance to rescue all she values.
45. The Dark Tower by Stephen King, Michael Whelan
Constant Reader, all good things must end, and not even Stephen King can create a work of fiction that never ends.
The author worries that people who have been reading the story of Roland Deschain’s continuous search for the Dark Tower have had their patience severely tested.
However, if it pleases you, give it a little more thought because this book is the final one and often the finest things come at the end.
Thus, the novel begins, opening like a door to Stephen King’s wildest fantasies. You have come a long way. Just a little more. Come in full force.
The door slamming behind you might be the source of the noise you hear. Greetings from The Dark Tower.
46. Weaveworld by Clive Barker
By revealing everything fantastical and magical in everyday life and exploring the ensuing profound and overpowering dread, Clive Barker has left his stamp on contemporary literature.
Weaveworld is an immense work of dark fantasy and horror and a tour de force from one of today’s most powerful and innovative artists, with its combustible combination of the fantastical and the present, the mundane and the otherworldly.
For this description of the Fugue, a magical region populated by descendants of supernatural entities that previously shared the earth with man kind, Barker departs from his normal horror and switches to epic-length fantasy.
The death of the Fugue’s guardian sparks A war between exceptionally loathsome evil powers and good forces for possession of the Fugue.
The Fugue has been woven into a carpet to protect it from those who would destroy it.
Weaveworld is filled with endearing people, intriguing circumstances, and spots of Barker’s signature terror.
47. Gardens of the Moon by Steven Erikson
Because of endless combat, savage internal strife, and terrible encounters with the powerful Anomander Rake and his Tiste Andii, ancient and vengeful sorcerers, the Malazan Empire is roiled in unrest.
Even the imperial legions, used to the killing for so long, wish for a break. However, Empress Laseen’s reign is still unwavering, and her terrifying Claw assassins uphold it.
The days after the siege of Pale ought to have been a time of mourning for Sergeant Whiskeyjack and his group of Bridgeburners as well as for Tattersail, the only surviving cadre mage of the Second Legion.
Darujhistan, the last of the Free Cities of Genabackis, is still standing. Laseen directs her rapacious eyes at this old castle.
48. The Vampire Lestat by Anne Rice
Lestat. The captivating new book by Anne Rice has a vampire hero who is a monster of the darkest and most vivid imagination.
He runs across the centuries in quest of others like him, searching for solutions to the enigma of his everlasting, horrific life.
He was once an aristocrat in the heady days of pre-revolutionary France, and now he is a rock star in the demonic, glittering 1980s. His tale is captivating passionate, intricate, and exciting.
49. Sword of Destiny by Andrzej Sapkowski
Geralt is a witcher, a man with magical abilities who has become a skilled warrior and a callous assassin thanks to years of training and a strange elixir.
However, he is not your typical murderer; instead, he hunts out the many monstrosities and evil beings who terrorize the countryside and prey on the defenseless.
As he travels the nation in search of work, he eventually realizes that while some of his prey is utterly repulsive, violent grotesques, others are the victims of sin, wickedness, or plain ignorance.
Join Geralt as he faces monsters, demons, and prejudices in this anthology of short stories that continue the adventures of the bestselling book The Last Wish.
50. Deadhouse Gates by Steven Erikson
The seer Sha’ik and her disciples are getting ready for the Whirlwind, a long-prophesied revolt that will take place in the enormous dominion of Seven Cities in the Holy Desert Raraku.
This fanatical and bloodlust-fueled tidal wave, unprecedented and ferocity, will plunge the Malazan Empire into one of its deadliest wars ever, forging futures and inspiring legends.
51. The Doll’s House by Neil Gaiman
Dream of the Endless, an entity that has been since the universe’s creation, is in charge of the world of dreams.
The Sandman has returned to The Doll’s House after spending decades imprisoned there and discovers that a few dreams and horrors have come true.
Morpheus travels to the human plane in search of his misplaced things but discovers that Rose Walker has unintentionally turned into a dream vortex that threatens to shatter his reality.
Now, as Morpheus battles the final escaped nightmare at a gathering for serial murderers, the Lord of Dreams must ruthlessly murder Rose or risk having his whole realm destroyed.
52. Sabriel by Garth Nix, Leo and Diane Dillon
As a young girl who was sent to a boarding school in Ancelstierre, Sabriel has had little contact with the Old Kingdom’s unpredictable usage of Free Magic or the living dead.
Sabriel knows she must travel to the Old Kingdom to find her father, the Abhorsen, who goes missing during her last semester.
With Sabriel, the first book in the Abhorsen series, Garth Nix burst onto the fantasy landscape as a rising star.
The book transports readers to a world where the distinction between the living and the dead isn’t always obvious and occasionally vanishes entirely.
53. The Black Jewels Trilogy by Anne Bishop
A Black Widow witch from seven hundred years ago witnessed the fulfillment of an old prophesy in her web of dreams and visions.
Currently, the Dark Kingdom is getting ready for the coming of its Queen, a Witch who will have more authority than even the High Lord of Hell.
Although she is still young and susceptible to manipulation and corruption.
Whoever has power over the Queen also has power over the shadows.
This is known by three individuals who are sworn rivals. They are aware of the strength concealed beneath the innocent little girl’s blue eyes.
And with that, a cunning game of politics, intrigue, magic, and treachery gets under way. Love and hatred are the tools of this game, and the stakes could not be worse.
54. Red Country by Joe Abercrombie, Steven Pacey
Her house was set on fire.
Her sister and brother were stolen.
But retribution is coming.
Shy South had wanted to put her violent past behind her and ride off happy, but she will need to brush up on some terrible old habits if she wants to win her family back, and she is not a lady to back down from a challenge.
Only a couple of oxen and her fearful old stepfather Lamb are with her as she embarks on the quest.
However, it turns out that Lamb has his own bloody history buried. Additionally, the past never truly dies in the lawless Far Country.
They will go through a quarrel, a duel, a massacre, up into the uncharted mountains, to a meeting with the Ghosts, through the desolate plains to a frontier town seized by gold fever.
Even worse, it will compel them to form an alliance with notorious soldier of fortune Nicomo Cosca and his bungling attorney Temple, two people no one should ever have to trust.
The First Law trilogy, Best Served Cold, and The Heroes all take place in the same universe as RED COUNTRY.
Additionally, one of Abercrombie’s most adored characters, Logen Ninefingers, makes a triumphant comeback in this book.
55. The Invisible Ring by Anne Bishop
The Ring of Obedience has a Red-Jeweled Warlord named Jared chained as a pleasure slave.
He killed his master after nine years of torture as a slave, then fled, only to be captured and sold back into servitude.
It’s possible that the infamous Gray Lady, the queen who bought him, is not who she seems to be. Jared will soon have to make a difficult decision about his freedom or his honor.
56. The Stand by Stephen King
The dystopian universe of Stephen King’s novel, which is plagued and embroiled in a fundamental conflict between good and evil, is still as gripping and unsettlingly believable as it was when it was originally released.
Unaware of the lethal weapon she was carrying a mutant strain of super-flu that will kill 99 percent of humanity within a few weeks a patient escapes from a biological research facility.
The people who are still there are terrified, perplexed, and in need of a leader.
Mother Abagail, the compassionate 108-year-old who exhorts them to create a peaceful society in Boulder, Colorado, and Randall Flagg, the pernicious “Dark Man,” who takes pleasure in disruption and bloodshed, emerge as the two.
The survivors will have to make a decision between the two as the evil man and the compassionate lady gain power and ultimately, that decision will determine the fate of all mankind.
57. Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo
The freshmen class at Yale’s Galaxy “Alex” Stern is the most improbable.
Alex was raised by a hippy mother in the suburbs of Los Angeles and dropped out of school early.
He then entered a world filled with sketchy drug dealer boyfriends, hopeless jobs, and more, much worse.
She is, in reality, the only survivor of a horrifying, unsolved multiple homicide by the age of twenty.
Her life has allegedly been wasted, according to some. Alex, however, is given a second shot at one of the most prestigious colleges in the world with full funding while still in the hospital.
How does it work, and why her?
Alex, who is still looking for answers to these questions, is sent to New Haven to keep an eye on Yale’s secret organizations by her enigmatic sponsors.
The future rich and powerful are known to frequent these eight windowless “tombs,” from the top names in Wall Street and Hollywood to high-ranking politicians.
However, their occult practices are shown to be more terrible and fantastic than anything a paranoid mind could conjure up.
58. Emperor of Thorns by Mark Lawrence
The current king of seven countries, Jorg Ancrath, is twenty years old.
He still hasn’t achieved his aim of exacting revenge on his father, and the demons that plague him have only gotten more powerful.
No matter how difficult his journey, he still vows to take the next step in his ascent.
If Jorg were emperor, It’s a position that can be won through the ballot box rather than the sword.
And nobody has ever won a majority of the vote in recent memory, leaving the Broken Empire for a very long time without a ruler. Jorg wants to alter it.
He has found the ancient technology of the country, and he won’t think twice about using it.
59. Tangled Webs by Anne Bishop
Her family is invited to a special event she had planned for them. Former courtesan and assassin Surreal SaDiablo is the first to arrive.
The door vanishes, however, as she and her bodyguard approach the house. In a nightmare the Black Widow witches have spun, Surreal finds herself imprisoned; in this nightmare, the horrors are all too real.
Furthermore, if she uses Craft to protect herself, she runs the possibility of being imprisoned in the home permanently.
And now Jaenelle and her family must find out who built this wicked prison and why in addition to saving Surreal and the others within without being trapped themselves.
They all agree on one thing about this house: Only a Blood could have set the trap, regardless of who intended to use it to kill SaDiablo family members.
60. The Desert Spear by Peter V. Brett
Humanity is entering its last hours. Demons that prey on a shrinking populace and force them to hide behind long-forgotten emblems of power now rule the night.
Legends speak of a Deliverer, a commander who united all of humanity once to fight the demons as a single force. But is the Deliverer’s anticipated comeback only a myth? Maybe not.
Ahmann Jardir, who has transformed the desert tribes into a demon-killing army, rides out of the desert.
In support of his claim to be Shar’Dama Ka, the Deliverer, he is armed with two ancient objects: a spear and a crown.
However, the Warded Man, a gloomy and menacing figure, is the Deliverer that the Northerners claim to be.
The Warded Man and the Shar’Dama Ka were formerly close pals. These days, they are bitter rivals.
The emergence of a new breed of demon, more intelligent and deadly than those that have gone before, is nonetheless unknown to all as old allegiances are challenged and new alliances are formed.
61. The Darkest Minds Series Boxed Set by Alexandra Bracken
One exciting paperback boxed collection featuring all four of the New York Times bestselling Darkest Minds novels.
The Darkest Minds, Never Fade, In the Afterlight, and Through the Dark is now available.
This collection will delight devoted followers and new readers alike, just in time for the big-screen adaptation starring Amandla Stenberg and Mandy Moore.
It features gorgeous, contemporary designs and exclusive bonus short stories from the perspectives of fan-favorite characters Liam, Vida, and Clancy.
62. Memories of Ice by Steven Erikson
A frightening new kingdom called the Pannion Domin that devours everything has risen on the devasted continent of Genabackis.
Onearm’s army, Whiskeyjack’s Bridgeburners, warlord Caladan Brood’s forces, Anomander Rake and his Tiste Andii magicians, and the Rhivi people of the plains create an uneasy alliance that resists. And the Crippled God plans to exact justice.
63. The Shadow Queen by Anne Bishop
A land ravaged by its history is Dena Nehele. When the country was freed from polluted Blood, the corrupt Queens who had previously controlled it were eliminated.
Only 100 Warlord Princes remain, and they are without a commander and without hope.
Theran Grayhaven, the last of his kind, is searching frantically for the key that will unlock a treasure valuable enough to save Dena Nehele.
However, he must first track down a Queen who is conversant in protocol, is aware of the Blood’s code of honor, and adheres to the Old Ways.
Lady Cassidy is a castoff queen who resides in the Shadow Realm without a court. She is not attractive. She believes she lacks strength.
Lady Cassidy is a castoff queen who resides in the Shadow Realm without a court. She is not attractive.
She believes she lacks strength. She must persuade resentful soldiers to serve her once more when she is selected to rule Dena Nehele.
A warlord prince named Gray, a relative of Theran, was physically and mentally harmed by the cruel queens who formerly governed Dena Nehele.
However, there is something about Cassidy that inspires him to volunteer and gives him hope that he may once again be complete.
And only Cassidy can demonstrate to Gray—as well as to herself—that scars may mend and even the faintest promise can come true.
64. Shalador’s Lady by Anne Bishop
The Shalador people endured the cruelties of the despicable Queens who oppressed them for many years, outlawing their customs, punishing any who dared to rebel, and driving many more into hiding.
Dena Nehele has provided safety for the refugees, but it has never truly been their home.
Since Dena Nehele has been freed from contaminated Blood, Lady Cassidy, the Rose-Jeweled Queen, feels compelled to rebuild the country and establish her authority.
She is aware that completing this mission will demand all of her ferocity and bravery as she calls forth the untried power she possesses, a force that has the potential to consume her if she is unable to control it.
Even if Lady Cassidy makes it through her trial by fire, more dangers lie ahead.
Because the Black Widows have a glimpse of a future event that would forever alter the landscape and Lady Cassidy.
65. The Queen of the Damned by Anne Rice
The now-classic Interview with the Vampire, which was published in 1976, introduced us to the distinctively enticing world of vampires.
In 1985, The Vampire Lestat, which was published in 1986, was told in a wild and voluptuous voice.
The Queen of the Damned by Anne Rice is a chillingly hypnotic continuation of the legendary “Vampire Chronicles,” a work of mesmerizing narrative in which the most venerable and strong vampires battle it out.
66. The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson
Evil covers the earth and suffocates all life as ash falls from the sky and mist rules the night.
Another Mistborn, urchin Vin 16, learns Allomancy, the magic of metals, from criminal mastermind Kelsier. Elend, a wealthy Venture heir, diverts the unusual heroine’s attention.
Can Kelsier’s band of thieves defeat the despotic Lord Ruler and restore color to their world?
67. Monstress, Vol. 1 by Marjorie Liu, Sana Takeda
MONSTRESS tells the tale of a teenage girl who is fighting to survive the trauma of war and who shares a mysterious psychic link with a monster of incredible power.
This connection will transform them both and make them the target of both human and otherworldly powers.
It is set in an alternate matriarchal 1900s Asia in a richly imagined world of art deco-inflected steam punk.
68. Shadows Linger by Glen Cook
The Black Company, a band of mercenary troops working for the Lady, opposes the White Rose Rebellion.
They are strong, proud guys who carry through their agreements.
The Lady is terrible, but so are those who falsely claim to follow the White Rose, a centuries-dead heroine, as well.
However, some members of the Company have just learned that the silent girl they saved and took care of is indeed the White Rose resurrected.
For others like them, there may now be a way to the light. If they can make it through
69. Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury
Something Wicked This Way Comes, one of Ray Bradbury’s best-known and most widely read books, now has a new preface and information about its extensive cultural and genre impact.
Step inside for those who still have dreams and memories and for those who haven’t yet felt the captivating force of its dark poetry.
The program is about to start. Every life touched by Cooger & Dark’s Pandemonium Shadow Show will be destroyed when it arrives in Green Town, Illinois.
A little after midnight, the carnival arrives, bringing a week early Halloween.
70. Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardug
The Shadow Fold, a region of nearly impenetrable darkness filled with monsters that feed on human flesh, has split the once-great nation of Ravka in half, leaving it surrounded by adversaries.
One lone refugee’s future could now depend on him or her.
Never has Alina Starkov been excellent at anything. However, Alina discovers a hidden power that awakens in time to save the life of her closest friend when her regiment is assaulted on the Fold.
71. Guilty Pleasures by Laurell K. Hamilton
Anita Blake is petite, mysterious, and menacing. St. Louis is her home territory.
Her duties include reviving the dead and eliminating aggressive zombies.
Anita must face her biggest fear, her irresistible desire to master vampire Jean-Claude, one of the monsters she is vowed to eradicate, when the city’s most powerful vampire begs her to solve a string of terrible killings.
72. Written in Red by Anne Bishop
Meg Corbyn can predict the future when her skin is sliced because she is a cassandra sangue, or blood prophet—a talent that actually seems more like a burden.
Meg’s Controller keeps her under his control so he has access to all of her visions.
However, Meg’s sole option for safety when she flees is the Lakeside Courtyard, a commercial area run by the Others.
Simon Wolfgard, a shape-shifter, is hesitant to hire the stranger who asks about the Human Liaison position.
She doesn’t smell like human prey, which is why he first gets the impression that she’s hiding something. He decides to offer Meg the position, though, due to a stronger feeling.
He’ll also have to decide if Meg is worth the conflict between humans and the Others that will undoubtedly result after he finds out the truth about her and that the government is after her.
73. Red Sister by Mark Lawrence
Young ladies are raised in the Convent of Sweet Mercy to be murderers.
The old bloods manifest in a select few children, bestowing unusual skills that can be trained to lethal or magical effect.
When Nona Grey is taken into their halls, even the mistresses of blade and darkness do not fully comprehend what they have acquired.
Nona is taken from the shadow of the noose as a bloodied kid of nine, wrongfully convicted of murder but guilty of worse.
A Red Sister must spend 10 years learning how to use a blade and a fist, but under Abbess Glass’s guidance, there is much more to learn than just the ways of killing.
Nona discovers a new family—as well as new enemies—in her class.
Despite the safety and seclusion of the convent, Nona’s dark and brutal history comes to light, bringing with it the complicated intrigues of an imperial system in disarray.
When she shows there, ancient grudges are rekindled, the church is torn apart, and even the emperor himself is attracted.
Nona Grey must control her inner demons under a fading sun before unleashing them on those who stand in her way.
74. Daughter of Smoke & Bone by Laini Taylor
Black handprints are being left behind on entrances all around the world by visitors with wings who have entered via a little opening in the sky.
A devil’s stock of human teeth runs out quickly at a dusty, gloomy store.
A teenage art student is going to become involved in a vicious extraterrestrial conflict while wandering the congested streets of Prague.
Karou, please. She draws monsters in her sketchbooks that may or may not be real, she frequently vanishes on enigmatic “errands,” she knows many languages, not all of them human, and her vivid blue hair really sprouts from her head that hue. Who is she?
She keeps asking herself that, and she’s about to get an answer.
Blood and starlight, secrets revealed, and a star-crossed love with roots deep in a violent history result when troubled, handsome Akiva focuses blazing eyes on her in an alley in Marrakesh.
But would Karou regret discovering the truth about herself in the long run?
75. Storm Front by Jim Butcher
In his field, Harry Dresden excels. He is the only one who does what he does, in theory.
So when the Chicago P.D. encounters a situation that defies human imagination or competence, they turn to him for guidance.
Because the “ordinary” world is actually filled with unusual and mysterious creatures, many of whom do not get along well with people.
Harry can help with that. To catch a, well, anything, requires a magician. Just one issue exists. Business stinks, to put it kindly.
Harry thus recognizes a financial opportunity when the police call him in for advice over a gruesome double homicide committed using black magic.
However, a black magician is always responsible for dark magic. And the magician now recognizes Harry’s name. And that’s when things really pick up.
76. Season of Mists by Neil Gaiman
A lady who loved Morpheus was sent to Hell ten thousand years ago. The other Endless members of his eternal family have now persuaded the Dream King that this injustice occurred.
Morpheus must go back to Hell to recover his exiled love in order to put things right, but the ruler of Hell, the fallen angel Lucifer, has already sworn to kill him.
77. A Marvellous Light by Freya Marske
In order to invite enchantment into their life, Bridgerton enthusiasts.
With a murder mystery interwoven with magic and a hilarious gay romance from debut author Freya Marske, this comedy of manners, manor homes, and hedge mazes is set in an alternate Edwardian England.
Young baronet Robin Blyth believed he was accepting a small government position. He has, however, been chosen to serve as a secret magical society’s parliamentary liaison.
He would not have known the amazing magic that underlies his universe if it weren’t for this administrative oversight.
However, he will require Edwin Courcey’s assistance, his rival from the magical society.
Robin and Edwin, who were thrown together, will uncover a conspiracy that poses a threat to every magician in the British Isles.
78. Perdido Street Station by China Miéville
The metropolis of New Crobuzon, where the shady transaction is nothing new to anybody, is beneath the towering bleached ribs of a dead, ancient beast.
This includes Isaac, a bright and eccentric scientist who has secretly conducted his groundbreaking study for a lifetime.
But when a half-bird, half-human being known as the Garuda approaches him from a distance, Isaac faces difficulties he has never had to deal with.
His own curiosity and an odd veneration for this intriguing stranger motivated Isaac, although the Garuda’s request is scientifically challenging.
The entire city of New Crobuzon will soon undergo a spooky transformation, and not even the Ambassador of Hell will combat the vile horror it inspires.
79. The Wheel of Osheim by Mark Lawrence
A reluctant prince returns from the depths of Hell to engage in his biggest conflict yet—among the living and the dead—as Mark Lawrence’s “epic fantasy” (The Washington Post) continues.
Snorri Ver Snagason must endure all the horrors of Hell in order to save his family, assuming it is even possible to save the dead.
All that counts to Jalan Kendeth is escaping still alive and with Loki’s key.
The invention of Loki has the power to unlock any lock and any door, and it could also hold the secret to Jalan’s wealth in the living world.
80. Twilight’s Dawn by Anne Bishop
Readers and critics alike have been captivated by New York Times bestselling author Anne Bishop’s “darkly fascinating” Black Jewel novels because of their blend of fantasy, mystery, and romance.
Bishop is back in the Blood world with four brand-new, gripping novellas in Twilight’s Dawn.
Winsol Gifts
The Black Jeweled Warlord Prince of Dhemlan, Daemon, and his Witch Queen Jaenelle are settling into their first year of marriage.
However, as he hosts his powerful family, Daemon is pulled in too many directions as the thirteen-day Winsol celebration approaches.
Shades of Honor
Surreal returns to Ebon Rih on the instructions of Prince Lucivar when she is still healing from the incident that left her angry and hurt.
And when her ex-boyfriend Falonar brutally opposes the authority of her family, Surreal could finally give in to the evil consuming her.
The High Lord’s Daughter
Daemon has taken over his father Saetan’s position as High Lord of Hell and constructed a wall around his heart after losing the two people who mattered most to him.
Will the new connection he unintentionally makes liberate him from his lonely life, though?
81. The Wind Through the Keyhole by Stephen King and Simon & Schuster Audi
Stephen King revisits the lush setting of Mid-World, the breathtaking location of his most captivating work, the epic novel The Dark Tower.
On their trip to the Outer Baronies, Roland Deschain and his ka-tet—Jake, Susannah, Eddie, and Oy, the billy-bumbler—face a fierce storm immediately after crossing the River Whye.
Roland tells his pals two bizarre stories as they seek cover from the roaring wind, shedding new light on his own turbulent background.
Roland is dispatched by his father to look into reports of a deadly shape-shifter, a “skin-man,” preying on the locals in the Debaria area during the early years of his career as a gunslinger, in the guilt-ridden year after the death of his mother.
Bill Streeter, the single survivor of the beast’s most recent massacre, is under Roland’s care. Bill is a courageous but fearful youngster.
Roland, who is only a teenager, reads the youngster a story from the Magic Tales of the Eld that his mother frequently read to him before night to relax him and get him ready for the hardships of the next day. Roland tells Bill, “A person is never too old for stories.
Never too old for a man, a kid, a girl, or a woman. We are driven by them. And in fact, Roland’s story.
King started the Dark Tower series in 1974, it gained popularity in the 1980s, and when the last three novels were released in 2003 and 2004, he brought it to an exciting finish.
The Wind will undoubtedly captivate fans of the epic Dark Through the Keyhole.
However, this book also stands on its own for readers of many genres, offering an enthralling and eerie voyage into Roland’s universe and serving as proof of the magic of Stephen King’s narrative.
82. The Liar’s Key by Mark Lawrenc
On the board are the players chosen by the Red Queen. Winter is keeping Prince Jalan Kendeth away from the comforts of his southern castle, which he longs to enjoy.
The warrior Snorri ver Snagason, who is his friend, may live in the North, but he is just as desperate to go.
Because the Viking is prepared to take on all of Hell to bring his wife and kids back to life. He already has Loki’s key; all he needs to do is locate the door.
The Dead King schemes to get what was so nearly his—the key to the underworld—so that his dead people might rise and reign while everyone waits for the ice to open its jaws.
83. The Black Prism by Brent Weeks
The Prism, also known as Guile, is the most powerful man on earth.
He is both high priest and emperor, a man whose strength, cunning, and charm are all that keep a shaky peace in place.
Prisms, however, never endure, and Guile is well aware of his remaining life expectancy.
When Guile learns that he has a son who was born in a distant country during the conflict that put him in power, he must choose the price he is ready to pay to keep a secret that might destroy his whole realm.
84. Dream Country by Neil Gaiman, Kelley Jones, Charles Vess
There are four brief comic book stories in the third edition of the Sandman collection. Morpheus has a modest role in each of these apparently unconnected tales.
Here, we learn what cats dream about, meet the mother of Morpheus’s offspring, and learn the real story behind Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night Dream.
The latter was the first comic book to get the World Fantasy Award for best short tale. collecting A Sandman.
85. The Steel Remains by Richard Morgan
A gloomy lord will emerge. Ringil Eskiath, also known as Gil, is a disgraced mercenary and former battle hero the quickness of his blade only equaled whose cynicism.
Although Gil is alienated from his aristocratic family, he sets out to see his mother after she asks for his help in liberating a relative who has been sold into slavery.
But it soon becomes clear that there is more at stake than just one young woman’s fate. Grim sorceries are emerging throughout the nation.
A few murmur of the return of the Aldrain, a race of horrifyingly vicious but gorgeous monsters.
Gil and two former allies are currently the only ones standing between an entire city being drowned by fulfilling a prophecy.
86. Tokyo Ghoul by Sui Ishida
By having his main character, Ken Kaneki, change into a half-ghoul after a bad first date, Ishida, who has been influenced by the writings of Franz Kafka, investigates the thin boundary between humanity and the hideous.
This dark fantasy series’ core is built around Kaneki’s fight to maintain his humanity in the face of his ghoul side’s insatiable hunger.
Buckle up if you decide to do this. A chaotic and unexpected adventure, Tokyo Ghoul and its sequel Tokyo Ghou.
87. Claymore by Norihiro Yagi
The Claymore, a team of all-female warriors who dedicate their life to eradicating monsters that prey on the common public, are introduced to us in this Japanese retelling of a classic European sword-and-sorcery story.
However, these women pay a price: they risk becoming monsters themselves in exchange for their powers, which they get from the very creatures they fight.
What begins as a straightforward hack-and-slash adventure develops into a lengthy narrative of retribution, intrigue, and escape.
88. Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris
Sookie Stackhouse works as a part-time cocktail waitress in a Louisianan small town.
Until one of her employees leaves and the vampire of her fantasies enters her life.
Perhaps it isn’t such a good idea to date a vampire.
89. The White Rose by Glen Cook
In the struggle against the Lady, an evil witch, she represents the final bastion of good.
The Black Company, who were previously in the Lady’s service, now strives to bring victory to the White Rose from a covert base on the Plains of Fear, where even the Lady is hesitant to venture.
But the planet is now in danger from an even greater evil. When the Dominator returns from the dead, all previous major conflicts will appear like skirmishes.
90. Monstress Vol 1, Awakening by Marjorie Liu, Sana Takeda
MONSTRESS tells the tale of a teenage girl who is fighting to survive the trauma of war and who shares a mysterious psychic link with a monster of great power.
This connection will transform them both and make them the target of both human and supernatural powers.
It is set in an alternate matriarchal 1900s Asia in a richly imagined world of steam punk with art déco influences.
91. Shadows Linger by Glen Cook
The Black Company, mercenary troops fighting for the Lady, opposes the White Rose insurrectionists.
They are strong guys who take pride in keeping their word. The Lady is terrible, but so are people who falsely claim to follow the White Rose, a heroine who has been dead for generations.
The silent child they rescued and housed is actually the White Rose reborn, some of the Company have now learned.
Now, even for those who are they, there could be a way to the light. If they can live.
92. The Cruel Prince by Holly Blac
I want to be just like them, of course. They are as exquisite as swords created by a celestial fire. They will live indefinitely.
Cardan is even more stunning than the others. I despise him more than anyone else.
I despise him so much that I occasionally find it difficult to breathe when I see him.
93. Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury
Something Wicked This Way Comes, one of Ray Bradbury’s best-known and most widely read books, now has a new preface and information about its extensive cultural and genre impact.
Step inside for those who still have dreams and memories and for those who haven’t yet felt the captivating force of its dark poetry.
The program is about to start. Every life touched by Cooger & Dark’s Pandemonium Shadow Show will be destroyed when it arrives in Green Town, Illinois.
Around midnight, the carnival arrives, bringing Halloween one week early.
94. The Women Could Fly by Megan Giddings
The Women Could Fly is a remarkable book that relates to our times. It is a hybrid of fantasy and dystopia.
Josephine Thomas is twenty-eight, uncertain about marriage, and on the verge of losing control over her own life in a world where witches are real and unmarried women over the age of thirty are required to be watched by the state.
After fourteen years have passed since her mother vanished, Jo thinks she now understands her mother better than ever.
She has heard every theory there is, from kidnapping to murder to witchcraft. So when the chance arises to carry out one more directive from her mother’s will, she seizes it.
95. The Discord of Gods by Jenn Lyons
The epic climax to Jenn Lyons’ A Chorus of Dragons trilogy, which features the decisive conflict between gods, devils, and dragons, is not to be missed.
Relos Var and the demon Xaltorath are still at war, and Kihrin is trying to find a last-minute solution for the universe as his body is on the verge of betraying him.
He was reeling from the consequences of a ceremony that was tainted and turned both him and the last dragons.
That he is now attached to the star’s avatar, which is rapidly degrading, makes matters worse. All of those shows that he is out of time. One slur. one man single destiny.
96. Sabriel by Garth Nix
The Old Kingdoms trilogy by Nix immerses readers in a terrifying magical and undead-filled realm.
The title character in the first book must assume her family’s role as the necromancer who bury the dead.
97. A Game of You by Neil Gaiman
Combine an apartment building with a drag queen, a lesbian couple, some talking animals, a talking severed head, a perplexed heroine, and the deadly Cuckoo.
This sixth novel in the Sandman series results from rigorous mixing with a hurricane and Morpheus.
Barbie, who first appears in The Doll’s House, is the main character of this tale and finds herself a princess in a fascinating dreamworld.
98. Our Lady of Mysterious Ailments by T. L. Huchu
In the beloved The Library of the Dead sequel by T. L. Huchu, Ropa Mayo becomes involved in yet another supernatural problem.
When Ropa in modern-day Edinburgh came into an underground occult library, she believed her life would change irrevocably.
But until her friend Priya offers her a job at the highly specialized hospital Our Lady of Mysterious Maladies, she is still unsuccessfully pursuing a desirable magical employment with the city’s hidden organizations.
Here, a deadly new disease defies both magical and conventional medical treatment. Ropa could win Sir Callander over if she can solve this case.
99. The Empire’s Ruin by Brian Staveley
The vast Annurian Empire is on its last legs in the first book of Brian Staveley’s epic fantasy trilogy, Ashes of the Unhewn, and its finest troops, the Kettral, are shrinking.
Gwenna Sharpe, a Kettral soldier, is assigned a task to revive the hawk-riding brigade.
She needs to get to the location of the huge war hawks’ nests, which is outside of the known world.
Along the route, she will encounter challenges including poisoned terrain, a conman monk, and evil forces assembling against the empire.
Although Gwedna’s mission to rescue it is dangerous, it also holds great promise for healing and rejuvenation.
100. Sistersong by Lucy Holland
This folklore-inspired story of murder, magic, and treachery is predicted to rank among the year’s top fantasy books.
Children of King Cador inherit a region split by warring tribes and left over from the Romans.
Riva can heal other people, but her own wounds remain unhealed. Keyne, who was born a girl, fights to be recognized as the king’s son.
And Sinne yearns for adventure and dreams of love. All three of them dread living in the hold, safe from Saxon attackers.
But when Myrdhin, a meddler and magician, shows around, the siblings learn they can change both the earth and themselves.
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