2025 looks like an exciting year for fantasy readers, as many enticing new books are joining the genre over the next 12 months. On the heels of 2024’s impressive fantasy releases, it’s a pleasant surprise that the category is continuing its upward trajectory. While more books are likely to be announced as the year continues, there are already a lot of stories to look forward to in 2025.
Several great fantasy series are continuing or ending this year, and their newest installments are among the genre’s most-anticipated new releases. Onyx Storm is one book readers are waiting for with bated breath, but the conclusion to Tracy Deonn’s Legendborn Cycle and the follow-up to Robert Jackson Bennett’s The Tainted Cup are also high priorities for fantasy lovers. There are some exciting standalones hitting shelves as well, offering variety for those compiling their to-be-read piles for 2025.
20
Immortal By Sue Lynn Tan
Release Date: January 7, 2025
Daughter of the Moon Goddess author Sue Lynn Tan is publishing Immortal in January 2025, and her new standalone romantasy book seems destined to succeed. Immortal will task its heroine, Liyen, with striking an alliance in the Immortal Realm in the hopes of saving the people of her kingdom, Tianxia. The God of War promises to complicate the mortal queen’s goal, especially as their feelings for each other become increasingly complicated. Promising a tense enemies-to-lovers romance and plenty of political intrigue, Immortal sounds like a great way to kick off the year.
19
Adrift In Currents Clean And Clear By Seanan McGuire
Release Date: January 7, 2025
Seanan McGuire’s Wayward Children series continues in 2025, with Adrift in Currents Clean and Clear coming out on January 7. The 10th installment in the series will follow Nadya, a character introduced in Beneath the Sugar Sky. Readers will follow Nadya as her frustration with her adoptive family leads her through a doorway to Belyrreka, where she becomes a Drowned Girl. Nadya’s journey is one that readers are looking forward to, and its focus on finding and protecting one’s place and people promises another emotional addition to McGuire’s series.
18
Breath Of The Dragon By Shannon Lee & Fonda Lee
Release Date: January 7, 2025
Jade City author Fonda Lee is teaming up with Shannon Lee to bring readers Breath of the Dragon in January 2025. A young adult fantasy book drawing inspiration from Bruce Lee, Breath of the Dragon will kick off the Breathmarked duology. The book sees 16-year-old Jun defying his father’s wishes and joining the Guardian’s Tournament, a competition that determines who will protect the magical Scroll of Earth. What starts as a high-stakes mission to help his family soon places Jun at the center of something much bigger, promising to take him (and readers) on an action-packed and gripping ride.
17
Four Ruined Realms By Mai Corland
Release Date: January 7, 2025
The follow-up to 2024’s Five Broken Blades, Four Ruined Realms will bring readers back to Mai Corland’s fantasy world on the heels of book one’s jaw-dropping cliffhanger. The sequel will task the five blades with their real mission: to steal a ring from the God King Joon’s sister. However, the group finds it difficult to trust one another after Five Broken Blades, and it sounds like they’ll consider betraying the king as well. Four Ruined Realms promises another heist-like adventure full of deception, capturing everything that made book one a success and rendering it a must-read.
16
Lightfall By Ed Crocker
Release Date: January 14, 2025
Ed Crocker’s debut novel, Lightfall, promises an epic adventure blending supernatural creatures, like vampires and werewolves, with class conversations and political intrigue. The first book in The Everlands Trilogy, Lightfall follows a vampire maid named Sam, who uses a murder investigation as a means to climb the social hierarchy of her city. This gets her involved with a sorcerer and a werewolf assassin, among other eccentric beings. It also reveals a deeper plot among the ruling class of vampires. With a premise like this, Lightfall sounds like a rollicking good time that combines so many great elements of the genre.
15
Water Moon By Samantha Sotto Yambao
Release Date: January 14, 2025
One of the more unique fantasy books hitting shelves in 2025, Samantha Sotto Yambao’s Water Moon promises to be a charming and thoughtful addition to the genre. The novel centers on a pawnshop in Tokyo that masquerades as a ramen restaurant, only visible to those with deep regrets. They’re able to pawn their worst decisions off there, but things are thrown into chaos when one of its acquisitions disappears alongside its former owner. This sends Hana, the current owner, on a quest to track down both. This bonkers story has a lot of potential to be both fun and poignant.
14
Onyx Storm By Rebecca Yarros
Release Date: January 21, 2025
The next Fourth Wing sequel, Onyx Storm is easily one of the most-anticipated fantasy releases of 2025. On the heels of Iron Flame‘s twist ending, readers are eager to learn what becomes of Violet Sorrengail and Xaden Riorson. Onyx Storm‘s blurb promises to ramp up the conflict between Navarre and the venin, so much so that Basgiath’s dragonriders no longer have time for school. With the next Empyrean Series book teasing more action and betrayal, Onyx Storm seems likely to break readers’ hearts when it debuts on January 21 — and leave them desperate for the next installment.
13
Emily Wilde’s Compendium of Lost Tales
Release Date: February 11, 2025
Heather Fawcett’s Emily Wilde series continues in 2025, with Emily Wilde’s Compendium of Lost Tales slated for a February 11 release. The third book vows to take Emily, Wendell, and those following them on their most daunting journey yet. In this installment, Emily continues her studies by claiming the throne of Faerie alongside Wendell. As the two adjust to their roles, they find themselves dealing with a curse, courtesy of Wendell’s stepmother. While the latest Emily Wilde book will undoubtedly be cozy and charming like the last two, its heightened stakes offer a compelling new reason to pick it up.
12
Oathbound By Tracy Deonn
Release Date: March 4, 2025
Tracy Deonn’s Legendborn Cycle is coming to a close in 2025, and Oathbound could be one of the biggest and best new releases of the year. This finale picks up with Bree disconnected from the Legendborn Order and forced to cooperate with the Shadow King instead. The stakes are higher than ever as Oathbound opens, and that’s before dead Merlins start cropping up. After everything set up in Legendborn and Bloodmarked, Oathbound promises an epic and satisfying conclusion to Bree’s story. It sounds like it could get dark, but that’s just more incentive to dive in.
11
The Ragpicker King By Cassandra Clare
Release Date: March 4, 2025
Cassandra Clare’s Sword Catcher marked a strong jump into the adult fantasy category, and the book’s sequel is coming out in March 2025. The Ragpicker King promises to present Lin and Kel with even more difficult obstacles and choices than its predecessor. Kel’s duty to protect Prince Conor is challenged as he investigates a massacre, while Lin must grapple with the consequences of claiming she’s the Goddess Reborn. Both characters can’t afford to fail, raising the personal stakes for Clare’s beloved heroes while turning up the larger tensions in what promises to be a satisfying degree.
10
Emberclaw By L.R. Lam
Release Date: March 4, 2025
Emberclaw, the conclusion to L.R. Lam’s Dragon Scales duology, will debut in March — and this chapter of Arcady and Everen’s story sounds even more thrilling than its predecessor. Emberclaw will task Arcady with participating in the University of Vatra’s trials of magic in the hopes of winning a scholarship, while Everen grapples with the consequences of everything he’s done. The two face personal challenges in this finale, but its synopsis also teases an “ancient danger” that will reunite them. Needless to say, there’s a lot to look forward to from this 2025 sequel.
9
The Tomb Of Dragons By Katherine Addison
Release Date: March 11, 2025
The Cemeteries of Amalo Trilogy concludes with The Tomb of Dragons in 2025, and Katherine Addison’s upcoming sequel will force Thara Celehar to consider who he is after losing the role of Witness for the Dead. This personal question is at the heart of his character arc, but The Tomb of Dragons will also present its characters with murder and political upheaval, ensuring grander stakes too. The Tomb of Dragons needs to wrap up these storylines and give its characters proper send-offs, so hopefully, it will prove up to the task.
8
A Drop Of Corruption: An Ana and Din Mystery By Robert Jackson Bennett
Release Date: April 1, 2025
The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett was one of 2024’s best fantasy books, and its sequel may manage to surpass it in 2025. A Drop of Corruption will task Ana Dolabra and Dinios Kol with solving yet another perplexing mystery, this time involving the disappearance of a Treasury officer. And the deeper Ana digs into the case, the more she realizes they aren’t dealing with an ordinary killer. With the synopsis claiming she’s “met her match” and teasing a grander plan, A Drop of Corruption seems certain to deliver a gripping and twisty ride on par with book one.
7
Fearless By Lauren Roberts
Release Date: April 8, 2025
Lauren Roberts’ Powerless trilogy is ending in 2025, and Fearless has a lot of ground to cover before bidding farewell to Paedyn, Kai, and Kitt. After spending most of its time on Paedyn and Kai’s journey back to Ilya, Reckless concluded on a shocking cliffhanger. Powerless will be tasked with explaining it, as well as resolving the conflict between the Elites and the Ordinaries. After Kai and Paedyn’s confessions in the previous book, Fearless has the potential to be the most devastating and compelling installment of the series. Hopefully, it delivers on everything it’s set up when it debuts.
6
The Devils By Joe Abercrombie
Release Date: May 13, 2025
Joe Abercrombie is a must-read fantasy author, and he’s kicking off a new series with 2025’s The Devils. A novel that promises to be as dark as his previous works, The Devils will follow Brother Diaz as he embarks on a mission that will force him to work with the worst allies imaginable. But as they’re up against flesh-eating Elves, it’s probably for the best that he’s got a team of killers and monsters on his side. With this setup, The Devils sounds like the perfect gritty fantasy novel, and Abercrombie’s proven track record makes it that much more exciting.
5
Bury Our Bones In The Midnight Soil By V.E. Schwab
Release Date: June 10, 2025
A new V.E. Schwab novel is always a cause for celebration, and Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil offers one of the author’s most intriguing premises to date. Connecting three young women across centuries, Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil centers on vampires and female rage, and it even works in an LGBTQ+ love story. Those ingredients would be enticing no matter who’s penning the book, but Schwab’s lyrical prose and nuanced approach to morally dubious characters make it even more compelling in their capable hands.
4
The Jasad Crown By Sara Hashem
Release Date: July 15, 2025
The Jasad Crown will wrap up Sara Hashem’s Scorched Throne duology, which began with The Jasad Heir in 2023. The Jasad Crown will force Sylvia to face the destiny she tried so hard to avoid, all while Arin attempts to reach her. Unfortunately, Sylvia’s undertaking may not leave room for a happy reunion — or even a proper future for her. The Jasad Crown sounds like it will be a nerve-wracking follow-up, which will no doubt make it a page-turner of a finale. With such great stakes, there’s little doubt it’ll be even better than book one. And that’s no easy feat.
3
A Theory Of Dreaming By Ava Reid
Release Date: August 5, 2025
A Study in Drowning by Ava Reid got a lot of attention in 2024, and A Theory in Dreaming promises to build on that excitement in 2025. This sequel will reunite readers with Effy and Preston, exploring the aftermath of the characters’ choices in book one. Although their initial enemy is defeated, the pair find themselves at odds with their university and nation — and eventually, wrapped up in a greater conflict. This book promises to answer pressing questions left by the previous one, all while taking its beloved main characters on one last gripping ride.
2
Hemlock & Silver By T. Kingfisher
Release Date: August 19, 2025
It feels like there’s always a new T. Kingfisher book to look forward to, and 2025 continues that trend with Hemlock & Silver. Set to debut on August 19, Hemlock & Silver follows a healer named Anja who is also a poison expert. She’s called upon to help a princess who has fallen ill, sending her down a rabbit hole to uncover who’s poisoning the girl. When she discovers a magic mirror, Anja gets more than she bargained for. This reimagining of Snow White sounds as atmospheric and intriguing as Kingfisher’s other works — and this one even features a “narcissistic cat.”
1
Katabasis By R.F. Kuang
Release Date: August 26, 2025
R.F. Kuang is another go-to fantasy author, so it’s no surprise that Katabasis is generating so much excitement ahead of its August 2025 release. Of course, the book’s premise alone is enough to turn heads. Katabasis will follow two magic students and rivals as they venture to the underworld to rescue their professor. The two draw on their knowledge of Orpheus and Dante to survive, confirming that this book is steeped in literary influences and mythology. Katabasis is likely to be another strong addition to Kuang’s lineup, though it’s hard to say if it can top Babel.