New Speculative Fiction
Check out all the new speculative fiction we’ve added since July—including science fiction, fantasy, horror, paranormal, magical realism, and more!
December 1, 2020
Check out all the new speculative fiction we’ve added since July!
In this list: dystopian and apocalyptic fiction, fantasy, horror, magical realism, paranormal, science fiction, and space operas.
Don’t miss out! Sign up for our Wowbrary newsletter and get a list of our newest books in your email inbox every Saturday.
Dystopian and Apocalyptic Fiction
Afterland
Lauren Beukes
Fleeing west to find a safe haven in a world vastly transformed by a pandemic that has killed nearly all men, a mother disguises her son as a girl to escape dangerous adversaries, including her own sister.
The Arrest
Jonathan Lethem
Working as an organic farmer in a post-apocalypse world devoid of technology, a former screenwriter unexpectedly reconnects with his once-famous partner, who has retrofitted a nuclear-powered digger to launch an unknown agenda.
The Bear
Andrew Krivak
Living close to the land in an Eden-like post-civilization world, a girl learns the secrets of hunting and star navigation before finding herself in an unknown landscape, where a bear imparts powerful natural-world lessons.
Blue Ticket
Sophie Mackintosh
A pregnant woman in a society where females are assigned their life stations through a lottery system contends with how the system will inevitably shape her child’s life. By the award-winning author of The Water Cure.
A Children’s Bible
Lydia Millet
Contemptuous of the equally neglectful and suffocating parents who would pass the summer in a stupor of drugs and sex, one dozen eerily mature children run away as a dangerous storm descends and subjects them to apocalyptic chaos.
The Constant Rabbit
Jasper Fforde
In an England filled with anthropomorphic rabbits and humans, one hare family moves into a cozy village that does not want them and are defended by two human neighbors who take a stand against prejudice.
Deal With the Devil
Kit Rocha
An information broker whose librarian team uses knowledge to protect a crumbling America and a battle-weary supersoldier who is fighting for survival after refusing to target innocents become rivals and then partners in a quest to save the world.
The Last Day
Andy Murray
An a near-future world where a solar catastrophe has stopped the planet’s rotation, a scientist on a frostbitten rig uncovers a secret that the government will go to any length to keep hidden.
The New Wilderness
Diane Cook
A desperate mother in a world ravaged by climate change joins a hunter-gatherer initiative to test humanity’s capacity to survive the wilderness without destroying it.
Red Pill
Hari Kunzru
Navigating an existential crisis in a haunted Berlin suburb after accepting a prestigious writing fellowship, an aspiring author becomes locked in a cosmic, Darwinian rivalry against the creator of a popular television series.
Road Out of Winter
Alison Stine
A poor girl from a marijuana farming family is forced by another summerless year to embark on a treacherous journey through the backroads of Appalachia to find missing relatives and a new way to survive.
The Silence
Don DeLillo
Five people gathered together in a Manhattan apartment in 2022 react to a mysterious, catastrophic event that severs all of modern life’s digital connections.
This Little Light
Lori Lansens
Taking place over the course of 48 hours in 2024, This Little Light draws readers into a universe of born-again Christians and celebrity worship where abortion is once again illegal and both religion and surveillance run amok.
Upright Women Wanted
Sarah Gailey
A near-future exploration of queer identity, written in the style of a pulp western, finds a woman stowing away to escape her arranged marriage to a man who was once engaged to the late best friend she secretly loved.
Fantasy
The Bard’s Blade
Brian D. Anderson
Mariyah enjoys a simple life in Vylari, a land magically sealed off from the outside world, where fear and hatred are all but unknown. There she’s a renowned wine maker and her betrothed, Lem, is a musician of rare talent. Their destiny has never been in question. Whatever life brings, they will face it together. Then a stranger crosses the wards into Vylari for the first time in centuries, bringing a dark prophecy that forces Lem and Mariyah down separate paths. How far will they have to go to stop a rising darkness and save their home? And how much of themselves will they have to give up along the way? The start of a new fantasy adventure from Brian D. Anderson, bestselling author of The Godling Chronicles and Dragonvein series.
The Burning God
R. F. Kuang
In the trilogy conclusion, Rin returns to her home village, where, with the Southern Army and millions of supporters, she prepares for an ultimate battle against the Dragon Republic and other anti-shamanic enemies.
A Deadly Education
Naomi Novik
An unwilling dark sorceress destined to rewrite the rules of magic clashes with a popular combat sorcerer while resolving to spare the lives of innocents.
The Empire of Gold
S. A. Chakraborty
In the final installment in the critically acclaimed trilogy, Nahri and Ali are determined to save both their city and their loved ones, but when Ali seeks support in his mother’s homeland, he makes a discovery that threatens not only his relationship with Nahri, but his very faith.
The Forgotten Kingdom
Signe Pike
Languoreth endures imprisonment while one of the most violent battles of early medieval Scottish history scatters her loved ones, including her young daughter, who pursues her destiny in the mystical land of the Picts.
The Girl and the Stars
Mark Lawrence
A series debut set in the world of Red Sister follows the experiences of a girl who discovers the power of her differences when she is irresistibly drawn from her family into an icy world of mystery and danger.
Into Darkness
Terry Goodkind
A latest novella-length entry in the highly anticipated series set after the events of the Sword of Truth novels continues the story of Richard and Kahlan’s children.
The Kingdom of Liars
Nick Martell
A story of secrets, rebellion, and murder are shattering the Hollows, where magic costs memory to use, and only the son of the kingdom’s despised traitor holds the truth.
The Last Druid
Terry Brooks
A conclusion to the Shannara saga is set in the war-torn Four Lands, where a group of heroes organizes to defend the region while one carries world-changing technology to the Skaar homeland and another becomes trapped in a deadly realm.
The Obsidian Tower
Melissa Caruso
When one impetuous decision leaves her with blood on her hands—and unleashes a threat unlike any she has ever encountered— Ryxander, a Warden, must save the entire continent or completely destroy it.
Quantum Shadows
L. E. Modesitt, Jr.
On a world called Heaven, Conwyn, known as the Shadow of the Raven, contains the collective memory of humanity’s Falls from Grace and discovers that another Fall may happen and if he doesn’t stop it, mankind will not survive.
The Secret Chapter
Genevieve Cogman
To stop the Library from descending into chaos, Irene must obtain a particular book and teams up with an unlikely band of misfits to pull off an amazing art heist in order to get the book and appease the dangerous villain who stands in her way.
Stormsong
C. L. Polk
After spinning an enthralling world in Witchmark, praised as “thoroughly charming and deftly paced” by the New York Times and as a “can’t-miss debut” by Booklist, C. L. Polk continues the story in Stormsong. Magical cabals, otherworldly avengers, and impossible love affairs conspire to create a book that refuses to be put down.
The Unspoken Name
A. K. Larkwood
Destined to become a sacrifice on behalf of her superstitious people, Csorwe accepts a powerful mage’s alternate offer to become his bodyguard and spy to help him reclaim his power in the land from where he was exiled.
Horror
The Anthill
Julianne Pachico
Sent away from Colombia to England after her mother’s death, Lina volunteers at a friend’s refuge for street youth before unsettling revelations about the community’s tragic history are complicated by sightings of a mysterious boy.
Empire of Wild
Cherie Dimaline
Inspired by the Canadian Métis legend of the Rogarou, a U.S. debut finds a woman reconnecting with her heritage when her missing husband reappears in the form of a charismatic preacher who does not recognize her.
Flyaway
Kathleen Jennings
A reserved young woman from a Western Queensland town receives a mysterious note from a long-missing brother that raises supernatural questions about other family disappearances.
The Hollow Places
T. Kingfisher
A young woman discovers a strange portal in her uncle’s house, leading to madness and terror in this gripping new novel from the author of The Twisted Ones.
A House at the Bottom of a Lake
Josh Malerman
Discovering an extraordinary house at the bottom of a lake in Michigan, two teens fall in love while struggling to choose between the property’s ethereal freedoms and the safety of the world above.
The Invention of Sound
Chuck Palahniuk
A father on the brink of uncovering his missing daughter’s fate and a talented Foley sound artist find themselves on a collision course with Hollywood’s violent underworld.
Malorie
Josh Malerman
A highly anticipated sequel to the best-selling Bird Box focuses on the story of main character, Malorie, as she confronts the dangers of her near-future apocalypse world head-on.
Mexican Gothic
Silvia Moreno-Garcia
A reimagining of the classic gothic suspense novel follows the experiences of a courageous socialite in 1950s Mexico who is drawn into the treacherous secrets of an isolated mansion.
The Only Good Indians
Stephen Graham Jones
A novel that blends classic horror and a dramatic narrative with sharp social commentary follows four American Indian men after a disturbing event from their youth puts them in a desperate struggle for their lives.
Out of Body
Jeffrey Ford
A small-town librarian witnesses a murder at his local deli, and what had been routine sleep paralysis begins to transform into something far more disturbing. The trauma of holding a dying girl in his arms drives him out of his own body. The town he knows so well is suddenly revealed to him from a whole new perspective. Secrets are everywhere and demons fester behind closed doors.
Pew
Catherine Lacey
Offered shelter in a series of homes upon being discovered genderless, racially ambiguous and nonverbal in a Southern church, Pew hears the secrets and confessions of locals before the community’s fear overtakes its generosity.
Plain Bad Heroines
Emily M. Danforth
A highly anticipated adult debut follows the release of a best-selling book about an early 20th-century New England boarding school where gender-diverse students died under suspicious circumstances.
Wonderland
Zoje Stage
Moving to a rural farmhouse in far upstate New York, Orla, a retired dancer, must protect her family from an unknown entity that is calling to them from the land, in the earth, beneath the trees — and in their minds.
Magical Realism
Boys of Alabama
Genevieve Hudson
Thriving in his new Alabama home, a sensitive German teen pursues a relationship with a pangender classmate before the realities of the postwar South challenge their perspectives on identity. A first novel by the author of Pretend We Live Here.
Hench
Natalie Zina Walschots
Temping for people on the wrong side of the law, Anna becomes unfairly unemployed before using her talents for manipulating data to expose how the heroes of her world do more harm than good.
Here We Are
Graham Swift
Magic and reality share the stage in this masterly and devastating story that pulls back the curtain on the power of love, family, and the touchstones of our memories.
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue
V. E. Schwab
A woman from early 18th-century France who has made a Faustian bargain to live forever but never be remembered endures centuries before meeting a man who remembers her name.
The Midnight Library
Matt Haig
Between life and death there is a library. Every book provides a chance to try another life you could have lived. To see how things would be if you had made other choices… Would you have done anything different, if you had the chance to undo your regrets?
Parakeet
Marie-Helene Bertino
Visited by a bird she believes to be the spirit of her late grandmother days before her wedding, a bride receives a warning not to get married and embarks on a frantic search for her long-lost brother.
Piranesi
Susanna Clarke
Living in a labyrinthine house of endless corridors, flooded staircases and thousands of statues, Piranesi assists the dreamlike dwelling’s only other resident throughout a mysterious research project before evidence emerges of an astonishing alternate world.
Sharks in the Time of Saviors
Kawai Strong Washburn
When a child falls overboard and is returned safely to his mother by a shark, his miraculous rescue is hailed as a sign from ancient Hawaiian gods, complicating his family’s troubles amid a collapsing sugarcane industry.
Things in Jars
Jess Kidd
Woman detective Bridie Devine investigates the kidnapping of a nobleman’s illegitimate daughter, whose reputed supernatural powers have captured the attention of sinister collectors in the underworld’s curiosities trade. By the author of Himself.
Vanessa Yu’s Magical Paris Tea Shop
Roselle Lim
Vanessa Yu never wanted to see people’s fortunes-or misfortunes-in tea leaves. Ever since she can remember, Vanessa has been able to see people’s fortunes at the bottoms of their teacups.To avoid blurting out their fortunes, she converts to coffee, but somehow fortunes escape and find a way to complicate her life and the ones of those around her. To add to this plight, her romance life is so nonexistent that her parents enlist the services of a matchmaking expert from Shanghai.
Paranormal
Alpha Night
Nalini Singh
Alpha wolf Selenka doesn’t believe in mating bonds at first sight until she meets a broken Arrow, Ethan, as violence erupts at unprecedented symposium. By the author of Wolf Rain.
The Angel of the Crows
Katherine Addison
In an alternate-world 1880s London populated by supernatural and human beings, an angel triggers chaos by falling in his resolve to end the murder spree of Jack the Ripper. By the award-winning author of The Goblin Emperor.
Dark Song
Christine Feehan
Stolen from her home as a child and tormented for centuries, a woman too traumatized to answer the call of her lifemate is pursued by an ancient warrior whose first experiences with emotions compel him to heal her fragile heart.
Dracula’s Child
Jonathan Barnes
Years ago, Jonathan and Mina Harker survived vanquishing Count Dracula and returned to England to try to live ordinary lives. But as their son Quincey gets older, shadows grow at the heart of the Harker family. Elsewhere, something forgotten begins to stir.
Hex Life: Wicked New Tales of Witchery
Christopher Golden and Rachel Autumn Deering
Eighteen tales of witchcraft from the mistresses of magic! Featuring brand-new stories written by popular female fantasy authors, including Kelley Armstrong, Rachel Caine and Sherrilyn Kenyon. These are tales of witches, wickedness, evil and cunning. Stories of disruption and subversion by today’s women you should fear. These witches might be monstrous, or they might be heroes, depending on their own definitions!
The Jackal
J.R. Ward
The award-winning author of the Fallen Angels series presents a debut entry in a new Black Dagger Brotherhood spin-off set in an underground prison that is populated by thieving and murderous beings.
The Once and Future Witches
Alix E. Harrow
In the late 1800s, three sisters use witchcraft to change the course of history in a Hugo award-winning author’s novel of magic amid the suffragette movement.
Peace Talks
Jim Butcher
When the Supernatural nations of the world meet up to negotiate an end to ongoing hostilities, Harry Dresden, Chicago’s only professional wizard, joins the White Council’s security team to make sure the talks stay civil. But can he succeed, when dark political manipulations threaten the very existence of Chicago–and all he holds dear?
Shadow Flight
Christine Feehan
To protect Nicoletta Gomez—the woman destined to be his—from a dangerous man, Taviano Ferraro must break all of his family’s rules to keep her safe.
Stake
Kevin J. Anderson
After an experience she still can’t explain, Lexi Tarada wants to believe in the existence of vampires and is drawn into the bizarre world of Simon Helsing, who, leaving a trail of bodies in Colorado Springs, believes he was put on this Earth to kill vampires.
Sucker Punch
Laurell K. Hamilton
When a young wereleopard is scheduled for execution for the brutal murder of his uncle, Anita Blake navigates escalating pressure from the local authorities and family in the face of evidence that does not quite add up.
The Year of the Witching
Alexis Henderson
Observing a life of strict submission to minimize discrimination for her mixed heritage, Immanuelle discovers dark truths about her community’s church and her late mother’s secret relationship with the spirits of four witches.
Science Fiction
Attack Surface
Cory Doctorow
Working for a transnational cybersecurity firm while secretly helping high-paying troublemakers evade detection, a counterterrorism hacker is forced to acknowledge the consequences of her actions when one of her hacks puts loved ones in danger.
Axiom’s End
Lindsay Ellis
An alternate-history tale of a woman who becomes an interpreter for an unknown being when her estranged whistleblower father launches a media frenzy about a first-contact cover-up.
A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor
Hank Green
A sequel to An Absolutely Remarkable Thing finds Andy assuming a late April speaking tour in the aftermath of the Carls’s departure, while Miranda infiltrates a new scientific operation that poses consequences beyond her comprehension.
Little Eyes
Samanta Schweblin
A metaphorical tale depicts a complex and relatable world where connections with people from all walks of life engage in internet encounters that lead to unexpected love, transformative adventure and unimaginable terror. By the award-winning author of Fever Dream.
Ready Player Two
Ernest Cline
A 1980s cultural assessment of the fantastical future of online behavior continues the story that began in the internationally best-selling futuristic novel, Ready Player One, that inspired a blockbuster Steven Spielberg film.
Repo Virtual
Corey J. White
Julius Dax, online repo man and real-life thief, has been hired for a special job: stealing an unknown object from a reclusive tech billionaire; but when he finds out he’s stolen the first sentient AI, his payday gets a lot more complicated.
The Space Between Worlds
Micaiah Johnson
A cross-dimensional examination of identity, privilege and belonging follows the adventures of a rare survivor whose counterparts in other realities have died and who stumbles on a dangerous secret threatening her new home and fragile place in it.
Space Station Down
Ben Bova
A lone survivor becomes the world’s only defender when a millionaire space tourist lands aboard the International Space Station, murders her colleagues and sets the station to crash into New York City.
Space Opera
Star Wars: Alphabet Squadron
Alexander Freed
A debut entry in a crossover trilogy companion to the simultaneous Tie Fighter series is set after the events of Return of the Jedi and traces the experiences of five unlikely New Republic hero pilots.
Star Wars: Chaos Rising
Timothy Zahn
The first book in a new Star Wars trilogy is set before Thrawn traveled to the Empire and became a Grand Admiral.
Star Wars: Shadow Fall
Alexander Freed
Continuing the search for Shadow Wing, Yrica Quell of the Alphabet Squadron teams up with the New Republic Intelligence’s Caern and the legendary General Hera Syndulla to set a high-risk trap for her former Imperial mentor.
To Sleep in a Sea of Stars
Christopher Paolini
A space voyager living her dream of exploring new worlds lands on a distant planet ripe for colonization before her discovery of a mysterious relic transforms her life and threatens the entire human race.
Uranus
Ben Bova
A first entry in a planned trilogy by the Hugo Award-winning author of Earth finds a religious idealist, a billionaire financier and a prestigious scientist battling for control over a space mission to search for life on Uranus.