Are you ready to be whisked away with a new fantasy or sci-fi read this year? We’ve rounded up 72 upcoming reads that will be hitting shelves between January and June this year, including new releases from Seanan McGuire, Nnedi Okorafor, Edward Ashton, Samantha Shannon, Natasha Pulley, M.R. Carey, Nghi Vo, Tochi Onyebuchi, V.E. Schwab, Tessa Gratton, and many more, along with some exciting debut releases!

Read on to discover new books hitting shelves in the first half of the year and be sure to check out our other 2025 round-ups too, including our Most Anticipated, Romance, Young Adult, and Fiction lists.

JANUARY 2025 SFF BOOK RELEASES

Immortal by Sue Lynn Tan

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A young ruler must forge a delicate alliance with the untrustworthy yet magnetic God of War to protect her kingdom in this stunning romantic fantasy filled with dangerous secrets, forbidden magic, and passion, from Sue Lynn Tan, bestselling author of Daughter of the Moon Goddess

North Is the Night by Emily Rath

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Two bold young women defy the gods and mortals, living and dead, in this darkly mythical, Finnish folklore-inspired fantasy duology for readers of T. Kingfisher’s Nettle & Bone, Danielle L. Jensen, Thea Guanzon, Jennifer L. Armentrout, and The Witch’s Heart by Genevieve Gornichec.

Lightfall by Ed Crocker

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A novel of vampires, werewolves and sorcerers, Lightfall is the stunning debut epic fantasy by Ed Crocker, for fans of Jay Kristoff’s Empire of the Vampire and Richard Swan’s The Justice of Kings

Water Moon by Samantha Sotto Yambao

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A woman inherits a pawnshop where you can sell your regrets, and then embarks on a magical journey when a charming young physicist wanders into the shop, in this dreamlike and enchanting fantasy novel.

Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros

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Get ready to fly or die in the breathtaking follow-up to Fourth Wing and Iron Flame from #1 New York Times bestselling author Rebecca Yarros.

A Language of Dragons by S.F. Williamson

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In an alternate London in 1923, one girl accidentally breaks the tenuous truce between dragons and humans in this sweeping debut and epic retelling of Bletchley Park steeped in language, class, and forbidden romance. Perfect for teen fans of Fourth Wing and Babel.

Adrift in Currents Clean and Clear by Seanan McGuire

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Giant turtles, impossible ships, and tidal rivers ridden by a Drowned girl in search of a family in the latest in the bestselling Hugo and Nebula Award-Winning Wayward Children series from Seanan McGuire.

The Outcast Mage by Annabel Campbell

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In this glittering debut fantasy, a mage bereft of her powers must find out if she is destined to save the world or destroy it. Perfect for fans of Andrea Stewart, James Islington, and Samantha Shannon.

The In-Between Bookstore by Edward Underhill

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A poignant and enchanting novel about a magical bookstore that transports a trans man through time and brings him face-to-face with his teenage self, offering him the chance of a lifetime to examine his life and identity to find a new beginning.

Death of the Author by Nnedi Okorafor

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In this exhilarating tale by New York Times bestselling and award-winning author Nnedi Okorafor, a disabled Nigerian American woman pens a wildly successful Sci-Fi novel, but as her fame rises, she loses control of the narrative—a surprisingly cutting, yet heartfelt drama about art and love, identity and connection, and, ultimately, what makes us human. This is a story unlike anything you’ve read before.

Daughter of Chaos by A.S. Webb

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Godkiller and The Priory of The Orange Tree meet Netflix’s Kaos in this epic fantasy series set in ancient Greece.

All the Water in the World by Eiren Caffall

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In the tradition of Station Eleven, a literary thriller set partly on the roof of New York’s Museum of Natural History in a flooded future.

FEBRUARY 2025 SFF BOOK RELEASES

Grave Empire by Richard Swan

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From critically acclaimed author Richard Swan, Grave Empire begins the epic tale of an empire on the verge of industrial revolution, where sorcery and arcane practices are outlawed – and where an ancient prophecy threatens the coming end of days.

The Fourth Consort by Edward Ashton

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Part first contact story, part dark comedy, and part bizarre love triangle, The Fourth Consort asks an important question: how far would you go to survive? And more importantly, how many drinks would you need to go there?

A Dragon of Black Glass by James Rollins

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The third and penultimate book in the New York Times bestselling Moonfall series from thriller-master James Rollins, A Dragon of Black Glass is a tale of relentless adventure and the struggle for survival in a harsh world that hangs by a thread.

Upon a Starlit Tide by Kell Woods

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Upon a Starlit Tide is a dark and enchanting historical fantasy combining elements of “The Little Mermaid” and “Cinderella” into a wholly original tale of love, power, and betrayal.

The Dark Mirror by Samantha Shannon

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The highly anticipated fifth novel in the New York Times bestselling Bone Season series-an epic and spellbinding fantasy from the author of The Priory of the Orange Tree.

The Bones Beneath My Skin by TJ Klune

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A spine-tingling standalone novel by bestselling author TJ Klune―a supernatural road-trip thriller featuring an extraordinary young girl and her two unlikely protectors on the run from cultists and the government.

Greenteeth by Molly O’Neill

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From an outstanding new voice in cozy fantasy comes Greenteeth, “a joyful, warm-hearted” (H. G. Parry) tale of fae, folklore, and found family, narrated by a charismatic lake-dwelling monster with a voice unlike any other, perfect for fans of T. Kingfisher.

Emily Wilde’s Compendium of Lost Tales by Heather Fawcett

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The third installment in the heartwarming and enchanting Emily Wilde series, about a curmudgeonly scholar of folklore and the fae prince she loves

Cursebound by Saara El-Arifi

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They’re no longer prisoners to the fae court, but now two elven sisters are each bound by shackles of the heart—the sequel to the national bestseller Faebound, hailed as “a devastatingly romantic and breathtaking fantasy” (Tasha Suri).

But Not Too Bold by Hache Pueyo

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The Shape of Water meets Mexican Gothic in this sapphic monster romance novella wrapped in gothic fantasy trappings

Ambessa: Chosen of the Wolf by C. L. Clark

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Set in the blockbuster and award-winning universe of League of Legends: Arcane and written by award-winning author C. L. Clark, discover a thrilling epic fantasy novel where Ambessa Medarda truly learns what it means to be a Chosen of the Wolf.

The Witch of Whispervale by R. A. Salvatore

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From the legendary author and creator of Drizzt Do’Urden comes the next installment in the New York Times bestselling DemonWars fantasy series, about the traitorous invasion by the Xoconai of the eastern realms of Corona. However, the heroes of the last war against their demon god may be forgotten, but they are not powerless.

MARCH 2025 SFF BOOK RELEASES

Murder By Memory by Olivia Waite

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Told through Dorothy’s delightfully shrewd POV, this novella is an ode to the cozy mystery taken to the stars with a fresh new sci-fi take. Perfect for fans of the plot-twisty narratives of Dorothy Sayers and Ann Leckie, this well-paced story will leave readers captivated and hungry for the series’s next installment.

Homegrown Magic by Jamie Pacton and Rebecca Podos

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A delightful queer romantic fantasy full of friends-to-lovers chemistry, found family, rival family drama, and cozy garden magic from two acclaimed YA authors making their debut in the adult space.

The Hymn to Dionysus Natasha Pulley

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A timely reimagining of the story of Dionysus-Greek god of ecstasy, revelry, and ruin-and a captivating queer love story for readers of The Song of Achilles and Elektra.

The Bane Witch by Ava Morgyn

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Practical Magic meets Gone Girl in Ava Morgyn’s next dark, spellbinding novel about a woman who is more than a witch―she’s a hunter.

The Serpent Called Mercy by Roanne Lau

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The Witcher meets Squid Game in this Malaysian Chinese-inspired epic fantasy novel where a debt-ridden slumdog joins an illegal monster-fighting arena for some fast coin, but quickly learns the most dangerous beasts are outside the ring

The Third Rule of Time Travel by Philip Fracassi

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In this riveting science fiction novel from acclaimed author Philip Fracassi, a scientist has unlocked the mysteries of time travel. This is not the story you think you know. And the rules are only the beginning.

A Harvest of Hearts by Andrea Eames

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In the beloved tradition of Howl’s Moving Castle and The House in the Cerulean Sea, a whimsical and unforgettable cozy fantasy about adventure, common sense, and the power of love, as a cheeky butcher’s daughter, a befuddlingly handsome sorcerer, and his clever talking cat unlock magical secrets in the dark heart of their kingdom…

Tea You at the Altar by Rebecca Thorne

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The Princess Bride meets Bookshops and Bonedust in the third book of the Tomes & Tea series, where our favorite lesbian pirates must navigate the ultimate maelstrom–their own wedding!

The Anatomy of Magic by J.C. Cervantes

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A young woman learns to embrace all the messy imperfections of life and love with some help from her magical family in this next novel by New York Times bestselling author J.C. Cervantes.

Malinalli by Veronica Chapa

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An imaginative retelling of the triumphs and sorrows of one of the most controversial and misunderstood women in Mexico’s history and mythology, perfect for fans of Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s Gods of Jade and Shadow and Zoraida Córdova’s The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina.

Idolfire by Grace Curtis

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A character-driven science-fantasy road trip book with sword fights and a slowburn romance, Idolfire delves into the vastness of history and the terrifying power of organized faith.

Once Was Willem by M. R. Carey

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Presenting an enthrallingly dark medieval fantasy – a fable of twisted folklore, macabre magic and the strangest of found families –  from M. R. Carey, author of the million-copy bestseller, The Girl With All the Gifts.

APRIL 2025 SFF BOOK RELEASES

Where Shadows Meet by Patrice Caldwell

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Set in the aftermath of a war between vampires, humans, and the gods that created them, Patrice Caldwell’s devastatingly romantic fantasy debut, Where Shadows Meet, centers the heart-wrenching pain of loss and the struggle of self-discovery to ask: do we choose our fates, or do our fates choose us?

Don’t Sleep With The Dead by Nghi Vo

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From award-winning author Nghi Vo comes Don’t Sleep with the Dead, a standalone companion novella to The Chosen and the Beautiful, her acclaimed reimagining of The Great Gatsby.

Notes From A Regicide by Isaac Fellman

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Notes from a Regicide is a heartbreaking story of trans self-discovery with a rich relatability and a science-fictional twist from award-winning author Isaac Fellman.

City of All Seasons by Oliver K. Langmead and Aliya Whiteley

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A vibrant and emotional science fantasy about cousins trapped in mirrored worlds – the resplendent and verdant summer city and the ice-carved wastes of the winter city. For fans of Every Heart a Doorway and This is How You Lose the Time War.

A Drop of Corruption by Robert Jackson Bennett

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The eccentric detective Ana Dolabra matches wits with a seemingly omniscient adversary in this brilliant fantasy-mystery from the author of The Tainted Cup.

The Raven Scholar by Antonia Hodgson

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From an electrifying new voice in epic fantasy comes The Raven Scholar, a masterfully woven and playfully inventive tale of imperial intrigue, cutthroat competition, and one scholar’s quest to uncover the truth.

House of Blight by Maxym M. Martineau

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The first novel in an eerie, darkly creative, and romantic new gothic fantasy duology from Maxym M. Martineau, for readers of Sarah J. Maas and Rachel Gillig.

The Gods Time Forgot by Kelsie Sheridan Gonzalez

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Irish mythology collides with Gilded Age New York in this sweeping debut enemies-to-lovers historical romantasy, perfect for fans of Outlander and A Fate Inked in Blood.

Gifted & Talented by Olivie Blake

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From the New York Times bestselling author of The Atlas Six comes the story of three siblings who, upon the death of their father, are forced to reckon with their long-festering rivalries, dangerous abilities, and the crushing weight of all their unrealized adolescent potential.

Polybius by Collin Armstrong

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Stranger Things meets The Walking Dead in this chilling novel based on the terrifying urban legend about a video game created by the government for psychological warfare.

Where the Axe Is Buried by Ray Nayler

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A cybernetic novel of political intrigue, Where the Axe is Buried combines the story of a near-impossible revolutionary operation with a blistering indictment of the many forms of authoritarianism that suffocate human freedom.

A Palace Near the Wind by Ai Jiang

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From a rising-star author, winner of the both the Bram Stoker® and Nebula Awards, a richly inventive, brutal and beautiful science-fantasy novella. A story of family, loss, oppression and rebellion that will stay with you long after the final page. For readers of Nghi Vo’s The Empress of Salt and Fortune, Neon Yang’s The Black Tides of Heaven and Kritika H. Rao’s The Surviving Sky.

MAY 2025 SFF BOOK RELEASES

Silver Elite by Dani Francis

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In the first book of a sizzling dystopian romance series, psychic gifts are a death sentence and there are rules to survival: Trust no one. Lie to everyone. And whatever you do, don’t fall for your greatest enemy.

The Grimoire Grammar School Parent Teacher Association by Caitlin Rozakis

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Two parents and their recently-bitten-werewolf daughter try to fit into a privileged New England society of magic aristocracy. But deadly terrors await them – ancient prophecies, remorseless magical trials, hidden conspiracies and the PTA bake sale.

The Incandescent by Emily Tesh

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Naomi Novik’s Scholomance series meets Plain Bad Heroines in this sapphic dark academia fantasy by instant national and international bestselling author Emily Tesh, winner of the Hugo and World Fantasy Awards.

The Memory Collectors by Dete Meserve

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Four strangers time travel to the past and find themselves stuck on the day all their lives were changed in this stunning speculative mystery from award-winning film and television producer Dete Meserve, perfect for fans of Before the Coffee Gets Cold, Wrong Place Wrong Time and The Paradox Hotel.

Brighter than Scale, Swifter than Flame by Neon Yang

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With an armored, oath-bound hero reminiscent of The Mandalorian and the Asian-inspired epic fantasy of She Who Became the Sun, Neon Yang’s Brighter than Scale, Swifter than Flame is a stunning queer novella about a dragon hunter finding home with a dragon queen.

Esperance by Adam Oyebanji

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A whip-smart thriller in the vein of Blake Crouch, Andy Weir, and Neal Stephenson, Esperance plumbs the depths of a seemingly impossible crime rooted in racism, intergenerational trauma, and an inhuman concept of justice

A Spell for Change by Nicole Jarvis

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In this sumptuous, atmospheric historical fantasy set in post-World War One Appalachia, three outcasts with misunderstood magical gifts search for their place in the world while battling the dark forces that circle their community.

Anji Kills a King by Evan Leikam

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An unlikely assassin struggles to escape a legendary bounty hunter in this breakneck fantasy debut that will grab you by the throat―perfect for fans of Joe Abercrombie, R.F. Kuang, and Christopher Buehlman.

Written on the Dark by Guy Gavriel Kay

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From the internationally bestselling author of Tigana, All the Seas of the World, and A Brightness Long Ago comes a sweeping new novel of love and war that brilliantly evokes the drama and turbulence of medieval France.

Harmattan Season by Tochi Onyebuchi

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From the visionary author of Riot Baby and Goliath, Harmattan Season is a gripping fantasy noir in the tradition of Chandler, Hammond, and Christie that will have you by the throat―both dryly funny and unforgettably evocative.

A Letter From the Lonesome Shore by Sylvie Cathrall

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Dive into the charming conclusion to the Sunken Archive duology, a heart-warming magical academia fantasy filled with underwater cities, romance of manners and found family, perfect for fans of Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries.

Behooved by M. Stevenson

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A charming slow-burn romantasy featuring a duty-bound noblewoman with a chronic illness, a prince who would rather be in a library than on a throne, and a magical ride through a world of cozy enchantment

JUNE 2025 SFF BOOK RELEASES

Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil by Victoria E. Schwab

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From V. E. Schwab, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue: a new genre-defying novel about immortality and hunger.

A Far Better Thing by H.G. Parry

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Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell meets A Tale of Two Cities in H. G. Parry’s A Far Better Thing, a heart-rending fantasy of faery revenge set during the French Revolution.

House of Frost and Feathers by Lauren Wiesebron

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A touch of The Bear and the Nightingale, a bit of Juniper & Thorn, and a sense of wonder and adventure makes up this lyrical debut fantasy of a young woman in search of a home, and a home in search of people to make it feel lived in.

The Witch Roads by Kate Elliott

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The Witch Roads is an epic fantasy duology, with brutal palace intrigue, a ravenous fungal ghost-plague, an overland journey with a small group of sometimes bickering characters, mysterious magic, ancient echoes of a long-ago war now intruding on the present, and a central love story, set in a new universe.

The Shipwright and the Shroudweaver by Rafael Torrubia

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Scottish debut Rafael Torrubia fuses the folklore of JRR Tolkien with the fire of NK Jemisin in this sprawling epic fantasy duology set in a Napoleonic world on the brink of collapse after an ancient evil strips its people of their names…

The Lady, the Tiger and the Girl Who Loved Death by Helen Marshall

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A young woman is seduced by the glamour of the circus and drawn into a dangerous world of violence, cruelty and revenge. For readers of Erin Morgenstern’s The Night Circus and Helen Oyeyemi’s Mr Fox.

Six Wild Crowns by Holly Race

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From a major new voice in epic fantasy, Six Wild Crowns is a breathtaking epic fantasy of dragons, courtly intrigue, sapphic yearning, and the wives of Henry VIII as you’ve never seen them before. 

UnWorld by Jayson Greene

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From the author of Once More We Saw Stars, an electrifying debut novel about AI that calls to mind Never Let Me Go and The Candy House’s tantalizing vision of the future.

The Unmapping by Denise S. Robbins

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With themes of climate change, political unrest, and social justice, The Unmapping is a timely and captivating debut.

Wearing the Lion by John Wiswell

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This second novel from Nebula Award-winning John Wiswell brings a humanizing, redemptive touch to the Hercules story in this mythological fantasy for fans of Jennifer Saint and Elodie Harper.

The Mercy Makers by Tessa Gratton

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A talented heretic must decide between the pursuit of forbidden magic, or the ecstasy of forbidden love—either way, her choice will upend the world, in the start of a sweeping, romantic epic fantasy trilogy by New York Times bestselling author Tessa Gratton.

This Princess Kills Monsters by Ry Herman

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A princess with a mostly useless magical talent takes on horrible monsters, a dozen identical masked heroes, and a talking lion in a quest to save a kingdom—and herself—in this affectionate satire of the Grimm Brothers’ fairy tale The Twelve Huntsmen.

What fantasy and sci-fi book releases are you looking forward to this year? Tell us in the comments below!

The post Fantasy & Sci-Fi Book Releases To Devour In 2025 appeared first on The Nerd Daily.

The allure of Greek and Roman mythology has persisted for millennia, captivating audiences across generations and cultures. These ancient tales, with their larger-than-life characters and timeless themes, continue to resonate in our modern world. From the epic battles of the Trojan War to the cunning exploits of trickster gods, these myths offer a rich tapestry of human experience. They explore the heights of heroism and the depths of tragedy, serving as a mirror to our own hopes, fears, and desires. In an age of rapid technological advancement, these age-old stories still find their way into our books, movies, video games, and even internet memes. The Olympian gods may no longer be worshipped, but their influence on our collective imagination remains undiminished, proving that even in our digital era, the power of myth endures.

I have loved these myths since I was a kid when one of my most treasured books was The Golden Treasury of Myths and Legends by Anne Terry White. Published in 1957, it was a volume of various myths and ancient stories from several cultures that were a gateway into the ancient worlds for many children growing up in the sixties, seventies, and beyond. I read it cover to cover many times, taking in the drama of gods and men interspersed with all the fantastical creatures. It was a book that sparked my imagination and made me yearn to know these people from the past. They were simultaneously larger-than-life but also entirely relatable. Little did I know that these stories would end up being important to my future when I write about ancient Roman gods in Feast of Sorrow (Atria, 2017) and when I retell the myth of Hades and Persephone in my novel In The Garden of Monsters (Mira Books, 2024).

Myth retellings are hot these days, particularly those that give voice to overlooked female characters from antiquity. In In The Garden of Monsters, I’ve taken this concept further by reimagining the familiar Persephone myth. This isn’t the story you remember from childhood—Salvador Dalí certainly never faced off against Hades and Demeter in the original Greek tales. My goal was to present a fresh take on this oft-told narrative, offering readers a sense of familiarity tinged with surprise. The story feels almost known, yet distinctly different from the versions encountered in youth, challenging readers to reconsider what they thought they knew about these ancient myths.

I was curious about the motivations of other authors who chose to retell the myths. I asked the following six authors two questions: Why do they think that the Greek and Roman myths resonate so well with people centuries later? And what drew them to tell the stories they wrote about?

Margaret George, Helen of Troy, (Penguin, 2007)

For starters, the stories themselves can’t be beat—they are filled with unique characters and plot twists, action and tragedy—all the ingredients that appear in bestsellers today. But they also are shapeshifters, not confined to the islands of Greece or Mount Olympus, but are universal and can inhabit our modern world very easily. Hence the many adaptations of the myths, from the musical Hadestown to the Percy Jackson young adult book series to operas like Orfeo to the TV series Hercules: The Legendary Journeys. They range from the highest highbrow to the lowest camp romps. It’s amazing, but today the names of Zeus, Venus, Pluto, and others are known even to first graders.

I was fascinated by the subject of beauty, as in the Oscar Wilde quote “Beauty is a form of genius—is higher, indeed, than genius, as it needs no explanation…It cannot be questioned.  It has divine right of sovereignty.” In mythology, Helen of Troy was the most beautiful woman in the world, the mortal daughter of Zeus.  What would it be like to be the embodiment of beauty? I wrote in the first person so I could explore and experience it as nearly real as possible. It would be both a blessing and a curse, I think, because all people can see is the dazzling exterior, and there would be no way to overcome that blinding vision. She would turn people to stone, like Medusa. Only it would not be fatal—or would it? Thousands died in the Trojan War that came about because of Helen and her beauty.

Jennifer Saint, Ariadne, Hera (Flatiron Books, 2021/2024)

Part of the fascination that mythology has always held for me is its longevity. The image of mythology existing as an unbroken chain, linking us in the 21^st century to people living more than two thousand years ago feels as magical as anything that happens within the stories themselves. I love to think of women telling their children mythical stories by the light of their hearth-fire, and mothers telling those same stories to their children now in a world that would be almost entirely unrecognizable. Because while the world around us has changed so drastically, I believe that the endurance of mythology shows us that the human heart – in many ways – has not. We still thrill to the stories of adventure and heroism, weep at the losses and heartbreak, rage at injustice and burn with love. The stories survive because they are stories of humanity, and because they contain such complexity and nuance that we can always find a new layer to draw into the light. 

Every myth is full of hidden stories, unheard voices, and truths that resonate across the centuries. There is always more to discover about mythology and more that it shows us about ourselves, and for that reason, I think the popularity of these stories isn’t surprising at all.  

Hera is one of the most maligned women of Greek mythology – the queen of the gods, married to Zeus and famed for her petty spite and vindictive nature. Stories abound of ‘jealous Hera’ taking out her frustrations about her unfaithful husband on the innocent women he pursues and the illegitimate children that he fathers. We have always viewed Hera through this misogynistic lens; she always embodies the worst of female stereotypes. She occupies a space both tediously domestic as the goddess of wives but also flamboyantly cruel as an ever-present thorn in her husband’s side while she supposedly views all women, mortals, and goddesses alike, as rivals for his affection. To me, this feels like a manifestly wrong way to look at Hera, and indicative of the fact that we’ve always seen her framed in male narratives. 

Hera is an angry woman—and patriarchy hates angry women. It teaches us all to stifle that emotion and choke it down—which we see in the stories of Hera as a goddess consumed with bilious rage, an acidic and corrosive substance that churns inside her all the time. Could this anger really come from jealousy? It seems odd to ascribe it that way, given that Hera is forced into her marriage with Zeus and that all depictions of their relationship show it as deeply dysfunctional and toxic. Zeus in the Iliad behaves like an abuser – threatening Hera with violence, controlling her behavior and humiliating her in front of the other Olympians. Hera’s anger, in my opinion, comes not from possessiveness over Zeus but rather from the fact that she is a powerful goddess in her own right and that, as the goddess of marriage, her status is continually undermined by Zeus’ infidelity. It isn’t jealousy, or rivalry with other women, that drives Hera’s behavior. It’s fury at Zeus—the god who is the emblem of the patriarchy—and I had a feeling that her story would look very different if she had the chance to tell it herself. 

Luna McNamara, Psyche & Eros (William Morrow, 2023)

I think one reason these stories still resonate today is because we need comfort in these unprecedented times. We are all facing so much uncertainty from the lingering effects of the pandemic, climate change, inflation, and war. The structures of the Greco-Roman myths are instinctively familiar to many, and they remind us that we’re not the first to endure such uncertainty. Ancient myths have a gravity that draws us in – we know how these stories end, even when we’re not sure what will become of our own.

A.D. Rhine (the pseudonym of Ashlee Cowles and Danielle Stinson), Horses of Fire and Daughters of Bronze (Dutton, 2023/2024)

Myths are how we make sense of our world and seek to understand what it means to be human. They are the seeds at the core of every story ever told, which is why we’re not surprised that they still resonate with modern readers thousands of years later. Just take Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey, the myths that formed our Trojan War duology, Horses of Fire and Daughters of Bronze. These ancient epics have already inspired several reimaginings but countless more stories could still grow from their rich soil because the thing about myths is they are deceptively complex. Every reader will resonate with specific elements and every writer who retells the story will be drawn to some moments and not others. For example, as the daughters of soldiers, the two of us met as teens while living on a U.S. military base in Europe. 

When we read the Iliad and the Odyssey as young women, it was never the Greek gods and goddesses that spoke to us–it was the people like Hector and Andromache, who were stand-ins for our fathers and mothers. The warriors defending their homes. The women fighting more hidden battles behind the city walls. The unseen children who grew up surrounded by the drums of war. We cared less about the scheming gods than we did the human actors striving to shape history even when the odds, and fate, seemed stacked against them. That’s why our duology focuses on the epic love story between Hector and Andromache, along with characters who haven’t received as much screentime–Cassandra, Ajax the Great, Sarpedon, and other Trojan allies who came from across ancient Anatolia to fight for a city that wasn’t even theirs. What was their story? Why does the complex geopolitical landscape of the Late Bronze Age–a world on the brink of climate crisis and a coming apocalypse–feel so relevant to us today? These many layers are why we keep coming back to the ancient stories–each new generation brings its unique questions and lived experiences.

We’ve read some beautiful Troy retellings, but we were driven to write Horses of Fire and Daughters of Bronze by the elements we had not yet seen. To start, we wanted to tell the story of Troy from the perspective of the vanquished, not the victors. We’ve heard the Greek side for thousands of years, but what of the Trojans? These mythological characters were likely based on the historical peoples of Anatolia whose culture and identity were all but erased by those who came across the sea. We wanted to bring the distinctive world of the Trojans to life for readers in a way we hadn’t seen before. The history behind the myth was what interested us most, so we dug in deep and discovered that ancient Anatolia was rich with a culture unlike anything seen before. A land that was likely the birthplace of agriculture and that gave us the oldest religious temple/megalith in the world (6 or 7 thousand years before Stonehenge!). It was also exciting to discover that some women in this part of the world may have had a startling degree of autonomy and political influence compared to those in ancient Greece. We wanted to tell the story of the Trojan women in their own words—a story not only of tragedy but of agency and hope.

Emily Hauser, For the Most Beautiful  and Mythica (Penguin, 2016/2025)

There are so many layers to this answer, so I’ll just focus on a couple of standout features here. First off, I think it’s because reworking is intrinsic to myth: the lifeblood and the essence of myth is in the re-creation and re-telling. There’s no such thing as a canonical myth (even if the myth’s power is to make you think that there is!). And this brings me to my second point: because myth has the double—and paradoxical—capacity to be used to enforce canonical/patriarchal values, but at the same time to keep space for variant versions, variant voices, it’s such a powerful tool for retelling – from all different kinds of angles, through all different kinds of experiences and perspectives. 

I’m particularly interested in retelling the voices/versions of women: Greek myth has such a powerful combination of strong, vibrant female characters who intersect with patriarchal power and challenge it in all kinds of fascinating ways – and yet their stories are also so full of holes, and gaps, that they’re just begging to be re-told in a way that puts their voices back in the picture and validates their experiences.

And that’s what drew me to the Greek myth in the first place, with my first novel For the Most Beautiful in 2016: I thought, “Why has no one ever told the story of Briseis and Chryseis in the Iliad? Why have the women’s tales always been sidelined in the androcentric version of the myth that has been handed down to us—and how can we change that? How can we make sure their voices get recalled from the margins?” It’s been a brilliant journey—and I’m still as fascinated as ever by the power of myth to reclaim women from the margins: in fact, my next non-fiction book (coming out in April 2025 in the US and UK) is called Mythica and does a thrilling deep-dive into how we might go about recovering the real, historical women who lived behind the Greek myths.

Angie Paxton, Seeds, (Rising Action, 2025)

Although Greek and Roman myths are mostly tales of gods and monsters and half-mortals, I think the reason these stories continue to reverberate thousands of years later is because of the stark humanity that’s on display in almost every single one. Take, for example, The Homeric Hymn to Demeter.  What mother who has lost, or even contemplated the pain of losing a child, can’t relate to Demeter’s deep grief when Persephone is abducted? And everyone who isolated during the pandemic, can, perhaps, grasp a bit of the deep loneliness that drove Hades to wheel his chariot into a field of summer flowers and snatch up the beautiful young woman he found there. Persephone’s humanity is a little harder to pin down because, ironically, so little is said about the maiden-goddess whose loss is at the heart of this particular story. The Hymn tells us only that Persephone picked flowers with nymphs, was taken to the Underworld against her will, and was happy to be reunited with her mother. Despite that, she ate a pomegranate which sealed her fate as Hades’s consort. The eating of the pomegranate spoke to me of a hungry girl, a girl who wanted. 

I wrote my book to figure out what it was that Persephone wanted and what happened to her below ground to make her believe the pomegranate Hades offered would satiate her. In doing so, I found reflections of my humanity, my struggles to be better flickering at me out of almost every character. That, I think, is the true power of these ancient stories and why they have such a hold on us. They help us see, through the lens of the gods, the deep truths of our own human experiences.

A.S. Webb, Daughter of Chaos, MIRA Books (January 14, 2025)

I think the Greek and Roman myths still resonate thousands of years later because of their timeless humanity. While they are often fantastical, including tales of all-powerful gods, physical transformations and death-defying heroics, the heart of these stories beats with our own emotions; love, hope, desire, jealousy, the urge to gain power over one’s fate, to protect one’s family, to live a full and rich life. They hold a mirror to our nature, in all its intricacies, while capturing our imagination with their magic.

I have been obsessed with Greek mythology from an early age and more recently loved the wave of feminist retellings spotlighting the women in these tales. However, I found myself craving the stories I’d grown up with, like the adventures of Heracles, Jason, or Perseus, but with a woman at the helm. I wanted to interact with these myths in a fresh, new way, through the lens of a fierce heroine who creates a myth of her own alongside the heroes of legend. 

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