The Fantasy Review’s list of 7 new epic fantasy books to read this winter, 2025!
#1 – No Life Forsaken by Steven Erikson (Book #2 in The Tales of Witness)
What to read first: Malazan Book of the Fallen series (10 books) and The God is Not Willing (Book #1 in The Tales of Witness).
Blurb:
A goddess awakens to a new world, only to find that some things never change.
Amidst the ashes of a failed rebellion in Seven Cities, new embers are flaring to life.
There are furrowed brows at the beleaguered Malazan Legion headquarters in G’danisban for it would appear that yet another bloody clash with the revived cult of the Apocalyptic is coming to a head.
Seeking to crush the uprising before it ignites the entire subcontinent, Fist Arenfall has only a few dozen squads of marines at his disposal, and many of those are already dispersed – endeavouring to stamp out multiple brush-fires of dissent. But his soldiers are exhausted, worn down by the grind of a simmering insurrection and the last thing Arenfall needs is the arrival of the new Adjunct, fresh from the capital and the Emperor’s side.
#2 – The Sovereign by C.L. Clark (Book #3 in Magic of the Lost)
What to read first: The Unbroken and The Faithless (books #1 and #2 in Magic of the Lost).
Blurb:
Luca is the new queen of Balladaire. Her empire is already splintering in her hands. Her uncle wasn’t the only traitor in the court, and the Withering will decimate her people if she can’t unearth Balladaire’s magic. The only person who can help her wants the only thing Luca won’t give—the end of the monarchy.
Touraine is Luca’s general. She has everything she ever wanted. While Luca looks within Balladaire’s borders, Touraine looks outward—the alliance with Qazal is brittle and Balladaire’s neighbors are ready to pounce on its new weakness. When the army comes, led by none other than Touraine’s old lover, Touraine must face the truth about herself—and the empire she once called home.
A storm is coming. Touraine and Luca will stand against it together, or it will tear them apart once and for all.
#3 – Falling in a Sea of Stars by Kristen Britain (Book #8 in Green Rider)
What to read first: The other 7 books in the Green Rider series, starting with book #1, Green Rider).
Blurb:
After Sacoridia’s victory over Second Empire, Karigan G’ladheon’s life as a Green Rider should have settled into an ordinary routine. But her father’s abrupt departure to rescue Laren Mapstone, leader of the Green Riders and the woman he loves, from the far distant land of Varos, has left Clan G’ladheon’s business in disarray and Karigan’s hands full.
Even as Karigan tries to sort out the clan’s mess, a darker, more perilous crisis casts its shadows over her: Mornhavon the Black has reawakened. Moreover, he has freed two undead wraiths from their imprisoning tombs to hunt Karigan down and bring her to him in Blackveil Forest…
#4 – Among the Burning Flowers by Samantha Shannon (Book #0.2 in The Roots of Chaos)
What to read first: I suggest the publication order, so there are two books to read: First, The Priory of the Orange Tree (2019), and then A Day of Fallen Night (2023).
Blurb:
With the awakening of fire-breathing dragons, Among the Burning Flowers sees the first sparks of danger that threaten to consume the world in The Priory of the Orange Tree.
Take your first steps into the epic.
Yscalin, land of sunshine and lavender, will soon be ablaze.
It has been centuries since the Draconic Army took wing, almost extinguishing humankind.
Marosa Vetalda is a prisoner in her own home, controlled by her cold father, King Sigoso. Over the mountains, her betrothed, Aubrecht Lievelyn, rules Mentendon in all but name. Together, they intend to usher in a better world….
#5 – The Isle in the Silver Sea by Tasha Suri
What to read first: This is a standalone, LGBT, adult romantacy, so you can dive right in!
Blurb:
In a Britain fuelled by stories, the knight and the witch are fated to fall in love and doom each other over and over, the same tale retold over hundreds of lifetimes.
Simran is a witch of the woods. Vina is a knight of the Queen’s court. When the two women begin to fall for each other, how can they surrender to their desires, when to give in is to destroy each other?
As they seek a way to break the cycle, a mysterious assassin begins targeting tales like theirs. To survive, the two will need to write a story stronger than the one that fate has given to them.
But what tale is stronger than The Knight and the Witch?
#6 – Queen Demon by Martha Wells (Book #2 in The Rising World)
What to read first: Witch King is book #1 inThe Rising World Series.
Blurb:
Dahin believes he has clues to the location of the Hierarchs’ Well, and the Witch King Kai, along with his companions Ziede and Tahren, knowing there’s something he isn’t telling them, travel with him to the rebuilt university of Ancartre, which may be dangerously close to finding the Well itself.
Can Kai stop the rise of a new Hierarch?
And can he trust his companions to do what’s right?
#7 – The Second Death of Locke by V.L. Bovalino (Book #1 in The Hand and the Heart)
What to read first: Finally on this list of 7 new epic fantasy books to read this winter we have The Second Death of Locke. You can dive right into this first book in an adult, fantasy romance series!
Blurb:
Love. Loyalty. Sacrifice.
Grey Flynn has dedicated her life to her mage, Kier.
She will be his blade on the battlefield, his healer and protector. The deep well of raw power inside her is Kier’s to use. Grey would do anything for Kier – be anything for him – if he would only ask.
When a quest to protect the child of an enemy kingdom pulls them into the dangerous heart of their nation’s war, Grey and Kier will need to decide what they are willing to sacrifice to protect their secret.
For Grey is no ordinary magical well, but heir to the lost island of Locke – the root of all power. If she dies, all magic dies with her.
