Most of us tend to think of the summer heatwave as a slow time of year when almost nothing happens. It’s the month we’re all counting down the days until the oppressive heat dissipates, school starts again and fall arrives, with its cool breezes, pumpkin spice lattes and the promise of a spooky season to come. around the corner. but this August is a book fans will definitely want to savor.
A true embarrassment of riches for fantasy fans and the first month of several to close out the year when we’re treated to a bunch of exceptional stories, this August is, to put it mildly, ridiculous in terms of the scope and quality of its releases. From new stories from favorite authors to highly-anticipated sequels, creative re-imaginings of folklore, and dense fantasy hits, there’s an incredible array of titles, heroes, and sub-genres to choose from.
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These are our favorite fantasy releases of August.
a broken leaf by melissa blair
release date: August 2 from union square & co.
Why You’ll Love It: If you pay attention to BookTok or Book Twitter, you’ve probably heard of Melissa Blair, whose self-published saga of halves became something of a social media sensation. media. the author sent the book, published anonymously, to 25 booktok influencers, who fell in love with the story, as well as the mystery behind who wrote it. Thanks to this popularity, Blair’s lush fantasy about elves, dark goblins, and rebellion is getting a traditional editorial boost, and it looks like she’s going to get a ton of new fans in the process.
Editor’s description: Keera is an assassin. As the king’s sword, she is the most talented spy in the kingdom. and the king’s favorite assassin. When a mysterious figure moves against the crown, Keera is called to hunt down the so-called shadow.
She tracks her target to the magical lands of the fairies, but the fairies are not what they seem. . . and neither does the shadow. Ella Keera is shocked by what she discovers and can’t help but wonder who her enemy really is: the king who destroyed her people or the shadow that threatens the peace?
As she searches for answers, Keera is haunted by a promise she made long ago, one that will test her in every way. To keep her word, Ella Keera must not only save herself, but an entire kingdom.
sunyi dean’s book eaters
release date: August 2 from tor books
why you’ll love it?: a story in which a secret group of humanoid beings eat books to survive, and the specific genres have different flavors and remember all the information they consume? sign me up, this 100% is what fantasy is supposed to be.
Publisher’s description: On the yorkshire moors lives a secret line of people for whom books are food and who retain the entire contents of a book after eating it. for them, espionage novels are a spicy snack; romance novels are sweet and delicious. eating a map can help them remember destinations, and kids, when they misbehave, are forced to eat dry, moldy dictionary pages.
devon is part of the family, a reclusive old clan of book eaters. Her brothers grow up reveling in stories of courage and adventure, and Devon, like all other book-eating women, grows up on a carefully selected diet of fairy tales and cautionary tales.
But real life doesn’t always have happy endings, as Devon discovers when her son is born with a rare, darker kind of hunger, not for books, but for human minds.
the monsters we braved by leslye penelope
release date: August 9th from redhook
Why You’ll Love It: A fast-paced historical fantasy that intertwines history and African-American folk magic Set in an alternate version of 1925 America, The Monsters We Brave is a charming tale of a group magical ragtag group of misfits who come together to steal an antique ring from the richest woman in Washington, D.C. come for the spirit-filled mystery that unfolds, stay for the lovable family found at the center of the story.
Editor’s description: Clara Johnson speaks with spirits, a gift that saved her during her darkest moments in a Washington D. c. cell. now a curse that has left her in debt to the cunning spirit world. so when the empress, the powerful spirit who owes her, offers him the opportunity to win her freedom, a clearly desperate woman seizes her opportunity. the task: to steal a magic ring from the richest woman in the district.
Clara can’t pull off this daring heist alone. She’ll need the help of an unlikely team, from a jazz musician who can mesmerize with a tune to an aging vaudeville actor who can change his face to achieve the impossible. But as they encounter increasingly difficult obstacles, a dangerous spirit interferes at every turn. Conflict in the spirit world is seeping into the human, and along D.C.’s legendary Black Broadway, a mystery unfolds, one that has repercussions not only for Clara but for all of the city’s residents.
tasha suri’s oleander sword
launch date: August 16 from orbit
why you’ll love it: the highly anticipated second installment in tasha suri’s kingdoms in flames trilogy, the sword of oleander takes all the political intrigue and romantic longing you loved about jasmine’s throne and elevates it a bit, as would-be empress parijatdvipan malina goes to war in an attempt to reclaim her throne and old lady ahiranyan priya he works to understand the source and purpose of his magic, which only seems to be increasing in scope. Thanks to Suri’s meticulously detailed world-building work in the previous novel, the stakes and reach of the Oleander Sword practically jump off the page, as the tyrannical Emperor Chandra plots to defeat his sister, A strange magical rot continues to creep across the land, and magical beings known as yaksa walk the earth once more. a marvel, and precisely the kind of middle book in a trilogy that will leave you desperate for the ending.
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Publisher’s description: The nameless god’s prophecy, the words that declared malini the rightful empress of parijatdvipa, have proven to be both a blessing and a curse. she is determined to reclaim the throne that her destiny offered her. But even with the force of anger in her heart and the army of loyal men at her side, overthrowing her brother will be a brutal and bloody fight.
The power of the immortal waters flows through Priya’s blood. thrice-born priestess, crone of ahiranya, priya’s dream is to see her country rid of the rot that afflicts it: both the poisonous rule of parijatdvipa and the flourishing disease that is slowly spreading among all living beings. her but she still doesn’t understand the truth of the magic she wields.
Their chosen paths once parted them. But Malini and Priya’s souls remain as intertwined as their destinies. and they soon realize that coming together is the only way to save their kingdom from those who would rather see it burn, even if it costs them.
the first link from r.r. virdi
release date: August 16 from tor books
Why You’ll Love It: An Asian-inspired epic fantasy with a rich mythology and a difficult hero at its core, The First Joining is an ode to the power of storytelling, mythmaking, and the way legends evolve over time. The plot follows Ari, the most famous storyteller along the Golden Road, as he tells his life story to a singer named Eloine, and the book deftly weaves together two narratives from the past and the present, interspersed with beautiful and, in occasions, harrowing stories of folklore.
Editor’s description: All legends are born from truths. and so many lies these are mine. Judge me for what you want. but you’ll hear my story first.
I buried the town of ampur under a mountain of ice and snow. so I killed their god. I have stolen old magics and been cursed for it. I started a war with those who walked before humanity and lost the princess I loved and wanted to save. I have called lightning and bound fire. I’m legend. and I’m a monster.
my name is ari. and this is the story of how i released the first evil.
the drowned forest by emily lloyd-jones
release date: August 16 little brown books for young readers
why you’ll love it: set in the same world as the houses of bones, but with an entirely new cast of characters, the drowned forest follows the story of the last living water fortune teller who finds himself embroiled in a complicated heist plan in a desperate attempt to secure his freedom. Packed with elements of Welsh folklore, it’s a slow-moving, intricate story with well-developed characters that explores surprisingly timely themes of power and responsibility.
Editor’s Wish: Once upon a time, the kingdoms of Wales were rife with magic and conflict, and eighteen-year-old merrid “mer” knows both well. She is the last living fortune teller of the water and has spent years on the run from the prince who put her in her service. Under the prince’s orders, she located the wells of her enemies, and he poisoned them without her knowledge, causing hundreds of deaths. After discovering what she had done, Mer did his best to get out of her reach. Then Mer’s former controller returns with a proposition: she uses her powers to bring down the very prince who abused them both.
The best way to do this is to destroy the magic well that keeps the prince’s lands safe. With a motley crew of allies, including a young boy cursed by the fairies, the lady thief, and a corgi who may or may not be a spy, mer she can finally steal precious freedom and peace for herself. after all, a person with a knife is one thing… but a person with a cause can topple kingdoms.
babel, or the necessity of violence: an arcane history of the oxford translators’ revolution by r.f. wow
release date: harper voyager august 23rd
Why You’ll Love It: A massive indie dark academy wrestling with the literal power of language and the evils of imperialism, Babel is truly like nothing else you’ll read this month. (or possibly this year.) Those who have read the author r.f. Kuang’s Poppy War trilogy won’t be surprised at this story’s willingness to grapple with difficult concepts and unsavory characters, and his deep dive into linguistics and etymology is deeply fascinating. a slow and slow story, it will take you a while, but the journey is half as much fun.
Publisher’s description: traduttore, traditore: an act of translation is always an act of treason.
1828. robin swift, orphaned by cholera in canton, is brought to london by the mysterious professor lovell. There, he trains for years in Latin, ancient Greek, and Chinese, all in preparation for the day he will enroll in Oxford University’s prestigious Royal Institute for Translation, also known as Babel.
babel is the world center for translation and, more importantly, for silverworking: the art of manifesting meaning lost in translation through enchanted silver bars, to magical effect. silver working has made the british empire unparalleled in power, and babel research in foreign languages serves the empire’s quest to colonize all it finds.
oxford, the city of dream towers, is a fairy tale for robin; a utopia dedicated to the search for knowledge. But knowledge serves power, and for Robin, a Chinese boy raised in Britain, serving Babel inevitably means betraying his homeland. As his studies progress, Robin finds himself caught between Babel and the shadowy Hermes Society, an organization dedicated to sabotaging silver working that supports Imperial expansion. When Britain wages an unjust war with China over silver and opium, Robin must decide: can powerful institutions be changed from within, or does revolution always require violence? What is he willing to sacrifice to bring down babel?
lark by alex aster
release date: amulet books august 23rd
Why You’ll Love It: Many reviewers will inevitably compare this book to previous titles like The Hunger Games or Divergent. and they are not entirely wrong in doing so. after all, the premise of the story, that every hundred years a group of rulers must essentially fight to the death in a magical competition to try to break the curse that is ending their kingdoms, feels quite familiar. but alex aster’s lightlark takes this formula and follows it, creating an addictive and propulsive story with great characters and plenty of funny, if occasionally predictable, twists. (spoiler alert: I accidentally stayed up until 2am one night to finish this, so consider this fair warning to be all I’m saying.)
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Editor’s description: welcome to the centenary. Every 100 years, the island of lightlark seems to host the centenary, a deadly game that only the rulers of six kingdoms can invite. to play. the invitation is a summons, a call to embrace victory and ruin, trinkets and blood. The centenary offers the six rulers one last chance to break the curses that have plagued their kingdoms for centuries. every ruler has something to hide. the curse of each kingdom is singularly wicked. to destroy curses, a ruler must die.
Crown Island is the young ruler of Wildling, a kingdom of temptresses cursed to kill anyone they fall in love with. they are feared and despised and have an island to end their suffering by triumphing on the centenary.
In order to survive, Isla must lie, cheat and betray…even when love complicates everything
megan bannen’s company of heart and mercy
launch date: August 23 from orbit
Why You’ll Love It: The adult debut from sword-and-bird author Megan Bannen, the company of hart and mercy is an effervescent fantasy rom-com that blends ghoulish whimsy with a good old story from enemies to lovers. the story of a lonely demigod, a moody undertaker, and the anonymous letters that end up being sent, will this one steal your heart?
Editor’s description: Hart is a Marshal tasked with patrolling the strange and magical wilderness of Tanria. It’s relentless work, and Hart has nothing but time to reflect on his loneliness.
mercy never gets a moment to herself. she alone has been taking care of birdsall & They’re afloat gravediggers braving cranky jerks like Hart, who seems to have a knack for showing up just when her patience is at a premium.
After another infuriating encounter with Mercy, Hart finds himself writing a letter addressed simply to “a friend.” To his surprise, he receives an anonymous letter in return, and a tentative friendship is born.
if only hart knew he’s been baring his soul to the one person who angers him the most: mercy. As the perils of Tanria draw closer, so do the unlikely correspondents. But can his burgeoning romance survive the fateful discovery that his pen pals are each other’s worst nightmares?
the promise of the dragon by elizabeth lim
release date: August 30 from knopf books for young readers
Why You’ll Love It: The long-awaited conclusion to Elizabeth Lim’s Six Crimson Cranes duology is filled with political intrigue and adventure, as Princess Shiori travels to the kingdom. of the dragons to fulfill a deathbed promise and return a magical pearl to its rightful owner. The effortless incorporation of the history of East Asian legends and folklore, along with its strong themes of family, both born and chosen, help this fantasy stand out from the rest.
Editor’s description: Princess Shiori made a deathbed promise to return the Dragon Pearl to its rightful owner, but keeping that promise is more dangerous than she ever imagined.
She must travel to the realm of dragons, navigate political intrigues between humans and dragons alike, fend off thieves who covet the pearl and will go to any lengths to get it, all while cultivating the appearance of a perfect princess to deter those who they wanted to see her burned at the stake for the magic that runs in her blood.
the pearl itself is no ordinary shipment; She vibrates with malevolent power, leaping to Shiori’s aid one minute and betraying her the next, threatening to tear her family apart and sever the thread of fate that binds her to her true love, Takkan. Shiori will need every ounce of strength she can muster to defend the life and love she has fought so hard to win.
the spear cuts the water by simon jimenez
Release date: August 30, Ray Books
Why You’ll Love It: A dense, layered fantasy about a dying goddess who enlists the help of two young warriors to slay her tyrannical sons and save her kingdom, the spear pierces through the water is a groundbreaking story that is part prose, part poem, and completely magical throughout. its complex world-building and constantly shifting perspective (the story moves fluidly in first, second and third person, as well as forwards and backwards in time) means that some readers will find it difficult to connect with this narrative, but there are great rewards. for those who stand firm.
Editor’s description: The people suffer under the centuries-long rule of the lunar throne. the royal family, the despotic emperor and his monstrous sons, the three terrors, dominate the field in their suffocating clutches. they bleed the land and oppress the citizens with the fearsome powers they inherited from the god locked up under his palace.
but that god cannot be contained forever.
With the help of Jun, a guard broken by his guilt-ridden past, and Keema, an outcast fighting for his future, the goddess escapes her royal captivity and flees from her own children, the triplet terrors that haunt her. they would drag back to their unholy prison. And so she embarks with her young companions on a five-day pilgrimage in search of freedom and a way to end the lunar throne forever. the journey ahead will be more dangerous than any of them could have imagined.
lacy baugher milas is the book editor for paste magazine, but she loves learning about all kinds of pop culture. you can find her on twitter @lacymb.
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