October is shaping up to be a very crowded month for fantasy books — in the best way! The best fantasy books of October 2024 include every kind of fantasy books you can imagine. Prefer cozy tales? We’ve got great titles by Stacy Sivinski, Mariana Costa, H. G. Parry, E. B. Asher, and others. If you’re more an epic-fantasy reader, you’ll love new titles by Sabaa Tahir, Nghi Vo, Ariel Kaplan, and plenty more.
Below, check out all our picks for the best fantasy books of October 2024!
The Crescent Moon Tearoom by Stacy Sivinski
Release date: October 1
Read it if: You love quirky, magical tales of sisterhood and fate. Three sisters are pulled in different directions after a sudden loss of magic strikes.
Publisher’s synopsis: Ever since the untimely death of their parents, Anne, Beatrix, and Violet Quigley have made a business of threading together the stories that rest in the swirls of ginger, cloves, and cardamon that lie at the bottom of their customers’ cups. Their days at the teashop are filled with talk of butterflies and good fortune intertwined with the sound of cinnamon shortbread being snapped by laced fingers.
That is, until the Council of Witches comes calling with news that the city Diviner has lost her powers, and the sisters suddenly find themselves being pulled in different directions. As Anne’s magic begins to develop beyond that of her sisters’, Beatrix’s writing attracts the attention of a publisher, and Violet is enchanted by the song of the circus—and perhaps a mischievous trapeze artist threatening to sweep her off her feet—it seems a family curse that threatens to separate the sisters is taking effect.
With dwindling time to rewrite their future and help three other witches challenge their own destinies, the Quigleys set out to bargain with Fate. But in focusing so closely on saving each other, will they lose sight of themselves?
Get it on Amazon or support your local bookstores through Bookshop.org.
Heir by Sabaa Tahir
Release date: October 1
Read it if: You adored An Ember in the Ashes. This spin-off series follows a prisoner, a tracker, and a prince on a new journey of power, magic, and romance.
Publisher’s synopsis: An orphan. An outcast. A prince. And a killer who will bring an empire to its knees.
Growing up in the Kegari slums, Aiz has seen her share of suffering. An old tragedy fuels her need for vengeance, but it is love of her people that propels her. Until one hotheaded mistake lands her in an inescapable prison, where the embers of her wrath ignite.
Banished from her people for an unforgivable crime, Sirsha is a down-on-her-luck tracker who uses magic to trace her marks. Destitute, she agrees to hunt down a killer who has murdered children across the Martial Empire. All she has to do is carry out the job and get paid. But when a chance encounter leads to an unexpected attraction, Sirsha learns her mission might cost her far more than she’s willing to give up.
Quil is the crown prince of the Empire and nephew of a venerated empress, but he’s loath to take the throne when his aunt steps down. As the son of a reviled emperor, he, better than anyone, understands that power corrupts. When a vicious new enemy threatens the survival of the Empire, Quil must ask himself if he can rise above his tragic lineage and be the heir his people need.
Get it on Amazon or support your local bookstores through Bookshop.org.
The Dagger and the Flame by Catherine Doyle
Release date: October 1
Read it if: You love morally-gray characters and steampunk/gaslamp fantasy. Rival assassins fall for each other amidst a war between underworld factions.
Publisher’s synopsis: In Fantome, a kingdom of cobbled streets, flickering lamplight, beautiful buildings, and secret catacombs, Shade-magic is a scarce and deadly commodity controlled by two enemy guilds: the Cloaks and the Daggers—the thieves and the assassins. On the night of her mother’s murder, eighteen-year-old Seraphine runs for her life. Seeking sanctuary with the Cloaks, Sera’s heart is set on revenge. But are her secret abilities a match for the dark-haired boy whose quicksilver eyes follow her around the city?
Nothing can prepare Sera for the moment she finally comes face-to-face with Ransom, heir to the Order of Daggers. And Ransom is shocked to discover that this unassuming farm girl wields a strange and blazing magic he has never seen before. As the Cloaks and the Daggers grapple for control of Fantome’s underworld, Sera and Ransom are consumed by the push and pull of their magic…and the deadly spark and terrible vengeance that keeps drawing them back together.
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The City in Glass by Nghi Vo
Release date: October 1
Read it if: You love fantasy tinged with divine mythology. After the fall of a city, its demon patroness grows fascinated by the angel who burned it.
Publisher’s synopsis: The demon Vitrine―immortal, powerful, and capricious―loves the dazzling city of Azril. She has mothered, married, and maddened the city and its people for generations, and built it into a place of joy and desire, revelry and riot.
And then the angels come, and the city falls.
Vitrine is left with nothing but memories and a book containing the names of those she has lost―and an angel, now bound by her mad, grief-stricken curse to haunt the city he burned.
She mourns her dead and rages against the angel she longs to destroy. Made to be each other’s devastation, angel and demon are destined for eternal battle. Instead, they find themselves locked in a devouring fascination that will change them both forever.
Together, they unearth the past of the lost city and begin to shape its future. But when war threatens Azril and everything they have built, Vitrine and her angel must decide whether they will let the city fall again.
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The Last Dragon of the East by Katrina Kwan
Release date: October 8
Read it if: You want to read fated-mates tropes and Chinese mythology in the best fantasy books of October 2024. A teahouse owner with a magical gift discovers a whole new life, thanks to a pair of dragon scales.
Publisher’s synopsis: At the spry young age of twenty-five, Sai has led a quiet life, keeping the family teahouse up and running—even if that means ignoring the past-due notices—and taking care of his ailing mother. But he has a not-so-secret gift that he’s parlayed into a side career: he was born with the ability to see the red threads of fate between soulmates, which lends itself nicely to matchmaking. Sai has thus far been content not to follow his own thread, the only one he’s ever seen that’s gray and fraying.
But Sai’s ordinary existence is about to be turned upside-down by a pair of shining dragon scales. When his mother’s doctor sells them to him, claiming them as a miracle cure, Sai is pretty sure he’s being scammed. When the medicine actually works—and the terrifying, ruthless emperor catches wind—Sai is thrust into the search for a dragon long thought extinct that will lead him into the throes of a brewing war and deep into foreign lands, facing down challenges both magical and mortal on an unexpected adventure. And for the very first time, as his own thread of fate begins to move, he may be able to solve the mystery of his Fated One at the other end of the line.
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The Stone Witch of Florence by Anna Rasche
Release date: October 8
Read it if: You love historical settings and stories of powerful women defying the odds. After being banished, a magical healer returns to Florence to solve a strange mystery during a plague.
Publisher’s synopsis: 1348. As the Black Plague ravages Italy, Ginevra di Gasparo is summoned to Florence after nearly a decade of lonely exile. Ginevra has a gift—harnessing the hidden powers of gemstones, she can heal the sick. But when word spread of her unusual abilities, she was condemned as a witch and banished. Now the same men who expelled Ginevra are begging for her return.
Ginevra obliges, assuming the city’s leaders are finally ready to accept her unorthodox cures amid a pandemic. But upon arrival, she is tasked with a much different mission. She must use her collection of jewels to track down a ruthless thief who is ransacking Florence’s churches for priceless relics—the city’s only hope for protection. If she succeeds, she’ll be a recognized physician and never accused of witchcraft again.
But as her investigation progresses, Ginevra discovers she’s merely a pawn in a much larger scheme than the one she’s been hired to solve. And the dangerous men behind this conspiracy won’t think twice about killing a stone witch to get what they want…
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Shoestring Theory by Mariana Costa
Release date: October 8
Read it if: You want some good time-travel shenanigans in the best fantasy books of October 2024. A grieving mage attempts to stop the downfall of a king — who is also his husband.
Publisher’s synopsis: The kingdom of Farsala is broken and black clouds hang heavy over the arid lands. Former grand-mage of the high court, Cyril Laverre, has spent the last decade hiding himself away in a ramshackle hut by the sea, trying to catch any remaining fish for his cat familiar, Shoestring, and suppressing his guilt over the kingdom’s ruin. For he played his part – for as the king, Eufrates Margrave, descended further and further into paranoia, violence and madness, his grand-mage – and husband – Cyril didn’t do a thing to stop him.
When Shoestring wanders away and dies one morning, Cyril knows his days are finally numbered. But are there enough left to have a last go at putting things right? With his remaining lifeblood, he casts a powerful spell that catapults him back in time to a happier period of Farsalan history – a time when it was Eufrates’s older sister Tig destined to ascend to the throne, before she died of a wasting disease, and a time when Cyril and Eufrates’s tentative romance had not yet bloomed. If he can just make sure Eufie never becomes king, then maybe he can prevent the kingdom’s tragic fate. But the magical oath he made to his husband at the altar, transcending both time and space, may prove to be his most enduring – and most dangerous – feat of magic to date…
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Swordcrossed by Freya Marske
Release date: October 8
Read it if: You want to combine the queer swashbuckling of Our Flag Means Death with the romance of Bridgerton. A conman/swordmaster falls for a noble who hires him for his arranged marriage.
Publisher’s synopsis: Mattinesh Jay, dutiful heir to his struggling family business, needs to hire an experienced swordsman to serve as best man for his arranged marriage. Sword-challenge at the ceremony could destroy all hope of restoring his family’s wealth, something that Matti has been trying―and failing―to do for the past ten years.
What he can afford, unfortunately, is part-time con artist and full-time charming menace Luca Piere.
Luca, for his part, is trying to reinvent himself in a new city. All he wants to do is make some easy money and try to forget the crime he committed in his hometown. He didn’t plan on being blackmailed into giving sword lessons to a chronically responsible―and inconveniently handsome―wool merchant like Matti.
However, neither Matti’s business troubles nor Luca himself are quite what they seem. As the days count down to Matti’s wedding, the two of them become entangled in the intrigue and sabotage that have brought Matti’s house to the brink of ruin. And when Luca’s secrets threaten to drive a blade through their growing alliance, both Matti and Luca will have to answer the question: how many lies are you prepared to strip away, when the truth could mean losing everything you want?
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The Witches of El Paso by Luis Jaramillo
Release date: October 8
Read it if: You’re interested in the history of witch lore and family secrets. A lawyer and her great-aunt tap into their magical powers in search of a long-lost child.
Publisher’s synopsis: If you call to the witches, they will come.
1943, El Paso, Texas: teenager Nena spends her days caring for the small children of her older sisters, while longing for a life of freedom and adventure. The premonitions and fainting spells she has endured since childhood are getting worse, and Nena worries she’ll end up like the scary old curandera down the street. Nena prays for help, and when the mysterious Sister Benedicta arrives late one night, Nena follows her across the borders of space and time. In colonial Mexico, Nena grows into her power, finding love and learning that magic always comes with a price.
In the present day, Nena’s grandniece, Marta, balances a struggling legal aid practice with motherhood and the care of the now ninety-three-year-old Nena. When Marta agrees to help search for a daughter Nena left in the past, the two forge a fierce connection. Marta’s own supernatural powers emerge, awakening her to new possibilities that threaten the life she has constructed.
Get it on Amazon or support your local bookstores through Bookshop.org.
Blood of the Old Kings by Sung-il Kim (translated by Anton Hur)
Release date: October 8
Read it if: You love sweeping, epic fantasy with more than a hint of darkness. In a world powered by necromantic magic, three strangers face their fates as rebellion brews.
Publisher’s synopsis: In an Empire run on necromancy, dead sorcerers are the lifeblood. Their corpses are wrapped in chains and drained of magic to feed the unquenchable hunger for imperial conquest.
Born with magic, Arienne has become resigned to her dark fate. But when the voice of a long-dead sorcerer begins to speak inside her head, she listens. There may be another future for her, if she’s willing to fight for it.
Miles away, beneath a volcano, a seven-eyed dragon also wears the Empire’s chains. Before the imperial fist closed around their lands, it was the people’s sacred guardian.
Loran, a widowed swordswoman, is the first to kneel before the dragon in decades. She comes with a desperate plea, and will leave with a sword of dragon-fang in hand and a great purpose before her.
In the heart of the Imperial capital, Cain is known as a man who gets things done. When his best friend and mentor is found murdered, he will leave no stone unturned to find those responsible, even if it means starting a war.
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Inferno’s Heir by Tiffany Wang
Release date: October 15
Read it if: You want fiercely rebellious heroines and morally murky characters in your best fantasy books of October 2024. A princess plans to betray rebels to her half-brother, then begins to change her perspective.
Publisher’s synopsis: Teia Carthan abandoned her morals long ago, and now there’s nothing she won’t do to stay alive. So far she has survived her parents’ deaths, the ire of the Council, and innumerable attempts on her life, orchestrated by Jura, her half brother and soon-to-be king of Erisia. Teia’s rare control over two elements marks her as both an outsider and a formidable opponent. But once Jura is crowned king, there will be no way to survive him. Not for Teia, not for anyone.
When Jura moves to crush the rebellion that seeks to overthrow the monarchy, Teia sees one last opportunity to ensure her own safety. She can infiltrate the rebels, locate their base . . . and betray them to Jura, trading their lives for her own.
Yet when Teia meets the rebels, she gets far more than she bargained for. And when she gains not only their trust but their friendship, she begins to have doubts. Perhaps the rebels are right. Perhaps the Golden Palace should be torn down and the monarchy destroyed.
But then again—what if there is another possibility? What if Teia were on the throne instead?
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Sorcery and Small Magics by Maiga Doocy
Release date: October 15
Read it if: You love nothing more than enemies-to-lovers… except forced proximity. Rival mages struggle to figure out how to break an unexpected curse binding them together.
Publisher’s synopsis: Leovander Loveage is a master of small magics. He can summon butterflies with a song or turn someone’s hair pink by snapping his fingers. Though such minor charms don’t earn him much respect, anything more elaborate always blows up in his face. So Leo vowed long ago never to use powerful magic again.
Until a mishap with a forbidden spell binds Leo to obey the commands of his longtime rival, Sebastian Grimm. Grimm is Leo’s complete opposite—respected, exceptionally talented, and absolutely insufferable. The only thing they can agree on is that revealing the curse between them would mean the end of their respective magical careers. They need a counterspell, and fast.
Chasing rumors of a powerful sorcerer with a knack for undoing curses, Leo and Grimm enter the Unquiet Wood, a forest infested with murderous monsters and dangerous outlaws alike. To break the curse, they will have to uncover the true depths of Leo’s magic, set aside their long-standing rivalry, and—much to their horror—work together.
Even as an odd spark of attraction flares between them.
Get it on Amazon or support your local bookstores through Bookshop.org.
The Republic of Salt by Ariel Kaplan
Release date: October 22
Read it if: You’re already in love with the complex Mirror Cycle universe. On either side of a magical gate between worlds, our heroes strike dangerous bargains in hopes of a greater win.
Publisher’s synopsis: After a near-disastrous confrontation with La Caceria, Toba and Asmel are trapped on the human side of the gate, pursued by the Courser and a possessed Inquisitor. In the Mazik world, Naftaly’s visions are getting worse, predicting the prosperous gate city of Zayit in flames and overrun by La Caceria. Zayit is notorious for its trade in salt, a substance toxic to the near-immortal Maziks. If the Cacador can control the salt, he will be nearly unstoppable. But the stolen killstone, the key to the Cacador’s destruction, could eliminate the threat. If only Barsilay could find and use it.
Deadly allies and even more dangerous bargains might be the only path to resist La Caceria’s ruthless conquest of both the mortal world and the Maziks’. But the cost is steep and the threat is near.
Get it on Amazon or support your local bookstores through Bookshop.org.
Exiled by Iron by Ehigbor Okosun
Release date: October 22
Read it if: You’re intrigued by Nigerian mythology, rich world-building, and romance. A woman hopes to free her magical people, but becoming a queen has its risks.
Publisher’s synopsis: The King is dead. The Oluso rebel. War is here.
With the end of Alistair Sorenson’s tyrannical reign, Dèmi has accepted Jonas’s proposal to rule as his Queen with hopes to finally free her people, the magical Oluso. Yet social prejudice, corrupt council members, and the continued distrust of the nonmagical Ajès throughout the kingdom prove seemingly implacable obstacles. To make matters worse, Dèmi struggles to control her newly awakened iron blood magic. As Ekwensi’s rebel army—led in part by Colin, her best friend and one-time lover—become more triumphant in their mission, war seems inevitable.
Before long, a new evil appears that hunts Oluso and Ajè alike, promising desolation on a larger level than ever before. When the failed assassination puts the life of Dèmi’s loved one in danger as well as the future of the Oluso into question, Dèmi embarks on a treacherous journey to find an ancestral spirit whose aid could tip the scales in her favor. Whether her new powers will destroy the kingdom or heal the blood-soaked rifts that have pulled it apart, she does not know.
Beyond the battles of swords and magic, there is the battle for Dèmi’s heart. Jonas—the former enemy prince—has divided loyalties despite his love for Dèmi. And Ekwensi and Colin have every intention of winning her to their side, while a past pledge hangs over Dèmi’s head. Dèmi is caught between the kingdom, her people, and the spirits. She must decide what sacrifices she is willing to make for peace, and whether she can outrun the greatest danger that constantly puts her in peril—her own heart. Only one thing is for certain…
There will be blood.
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Bloodguard by Cecy Robson
Release date: October 22
Read it if: You’re counting down the days until Gladiator II hits theaters. A battle-scarred warrior makes a deal with an elven princess so he can win a brutal tournament.
Publisher’s synopsis: Everything in the Kingdom of Arrow is a lie.
Leith of Grey thought coming to this new land and volunteering to fight in the gladiator arena―vicious, bloodthirsty tournaments where only the strongest survive―would earn him enough gold to save his dying sister. He thought there was nothing left to lose.
He was wrong―and they took everything. His hope. His freedom. And his very humanity. All Leith has left is his battle-scarred body, fueled by rage and hardened from years of fighting for the right to live another day.
Then Leith meets Maeve, an elven royal who is everything he despises. Everything he should hate. Until the alluring princess offers him the one thing he needs most: a chance to win the coveted title of Bloodguard―and his freedom.
But in a kingdom built on secrets and lies, hope doesn’t come cheap. Nor will his ultimate revenge…
Get it on Amazon or support your local bookstores through Bookshop.org.
The Scholar and the Last Faerie Door by H. G. Parry
Release date: October 22
Read it if: You’re looking for of cozy, light-academia tales in the best fantasy books of October 2024. A group of former magical classmates must reunite when faerie seals break and threaten havoc.
Publisher’s synopsis: Camford, 1920. Gilded and glittering, England’s secret magical academy is no place for Clover, a commoner with neither connections nor magical blood. She tells herself she has fought her way there only to find a cure for her brother Matthew, one of the few survivors of a faerie attack on the battlefields of WWI which left the doors to faerie country sealed, the study of its magic banned, and its victims cursed.
But when Clover catches the eye of golden boy Alden Lennox-Fontaine and his friends, doors that were previously closed to her are flung wide open, and she soon finds herself enmeshed in the seductive world of the country’s magical aristocrats. The summer she spends in Alden’s orbit leaves a fateful mark: months of joyous friendship and mutual study come crashing down when experiments go awry, and old secrets are unearthed.
Years later, when the faerie seals break, Clover knows it’s because of what they did. And she knows that she must seek the help of people she once called friends—and now doesn’t quite know what to call—if there’s any hope of saving the world as they know it.
Get it on Amazon or support your local bookstores through Bookshop.org.
This Will Be Fun by E. B. Asher
Release date: October 29
Read it if: You prefer thoroughly quirky fantasy over dark and twisty tales. A decade later, famed questers reunite for a royal wedding, but they have some serious unresolved issues.
Publisher’s synopsis: Ten years ago, they saved the realm. It ruined their lives.
Everyone in Mythria knows the story of how best friends Beatrice and Elowen, handsome ex-bandit Clare, and valiant leader Galwell the Great defended the realm from darkness. It’s a tale beloved by all—except the heroes. They haven’t spoken in a decade, devastated by what their quest cost them.
But when they all receive an invitation to the queen of Mythria’s wedding, it’s a summons they can’t refuse . . . and a reunion for the ages—with Clare secretly not over his long-ago fling with Beatrice, Beatrice fighting the guilt she feels over how everything ended, Elowen unprepared for the return of her ex-love (the cunning Vandra), and all of them lost without Galwell. And if reuniting with former friends and lovers wasn’t perilous enough, dark forces from their past have also returned.
Dusting off old weapons and old instincts, Beatrice, Clare, and Elowen will face undead nemeses, crystal caves, enchanted swords, coffee shops, games of magical Truth or Dare. And, hardest of all, their past—rife with wounds never healed and romances never forgotten.
This time around, will their story end in happily ever after?
Get it on Amazon or support your local bookstores through Bookshop.org.
Blood Over Bright Haven by M. L. Wang
Release date: October 29
Read it if: You’re searching the best fantasy books of October 2024 for a Babel-esque epic. The first woman admitted to a secret magical order uncovers a conspiracy, thanks to a mysterious assistant.
Publisher’s synopsis: For twenty years, Sciona has devoted every waking moment to the study of magic, fueled by a mad desire to achieve the impossible: to be the first woman ever admitted to the High Magistry at the University of Magics and Industry.
When Sciona finally passes the qualifying exam and becomes a highmage, she finds her challenges have just begun. Her new colleagues are determined to make her feel unwelcome. And, instead of a qualified lab assistant, they give her a janitor.
What neither Sciona nor her peers realize is that her taciturn assistant was not always a janitor. Ten years ago, he was a nomadic hunter who lost his family on their perilous journey from the wild plains to the city. But now he sees the opportunity to understand the forces that decimated his tribe, drove him from his homeland, and keep the privileged in power.
At first, mage and outsider have a fractious relationship. But working together, they uncover an ancient secret that could change the course of magic forever. If it doesn’t get them killed first.
Get it on Amazon or support your local bookstores through Bookshop.org.
