	2026 Hugo Award for Best Series (nominee) : Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries
	2026 Aurora Award for Best Novel (nominee) : Emily Wilde's Compendium of Lost Tales
	2024 Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Adult Literature (nominee) : Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries
	2024 Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel (nominee) : Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries

Heather Fawcett recommends

The Farewitch of Foxe Holler (2026)
Ellen Pauley Goff
"Equal parts charming and whimsical, The Farewitch of Foxe Holler will delight readers with its scrappy kitchen witch heroine, cranky yet charming love interest, and a setting that is its own equally compelling character. A cozy page-turner."

The Unicorn Hunters (2026)
Katherine Arden
"A glittering treasure chest of a novel, The Unicorn Hunters brought back all my childhood love of unicorns while offering a sophisticated, lyrical fantasy about a young woman navigating the impossible politics and gender dynamics of fifteenth-century Brittany. It's beautifully written and entirely delightful."

The Geomagician (2026)
(Geomagician Duology, book 1)
Jennifer Mandula
"The Geomagician is a delightful book, scholarly and clever but still full of heart. Jennifer Mandula has created a world so vivid and fully realized that it almost breathes, with a complex interweaving of politics, science, religion, and class. Full of wonder and magic, the story will hold on to your imagination even after you've turned the last page. Five baby pterodactyls out of five."

The Second Death of Locke (2025)
(Hand and the Heart, book 1)
V L Bovalino
"This is how you do chemistry! The Second Death of Locke is a masterful epic that combines classic fantasy worldbuilding with an endearing ragtag found family and an addictive love story. Alternately charming and hauntingly dark, this one will stay with you long after the last page."

Hemlock & Silver (2025)
T Kingfisher
"This is T. Kingfisher at her finest. Continuing in her tradition of horror-tinged, fairytale-inspired storytelling, Kingfisher pairs a wonderfully offbeat fantasy narrative with her signature wit, which compares favourably with the likes of Terry Pratchett. It's impossible not to root for our clever, unapologetically bumbling protagonist, Healer Anja. Hemlock & Silver is as delightful as it is impressive."

Practical Rules for Cursed Witches (2024)
Kayla Cottingham
"Part cozy romance, part coming-of-age adventure...A whimsical delight!."

Dragonfruit (2024)
Makiia Lucier
"Rich in worldbuilding, this gripping, warm-hearted fantasy is so vividly rendered you can almost feel the salt spray of the Nominomi Sea and hear the calls of sea dragons echoing through the pages. The lore is wonderfully unique and Hanalei and Sam are characters I couldn't help rooting for. A true delight."

The Bad Ones (2024)
Melissa Albert
"A deliciously dark and twisted labyrinth of a book from the master of YA horror. Peopled with some of the most believable teenage characters I've read, and full of the fervor and sharp edges of teen girl friendships, The Bad Ones had me hooked until the very last page."

Bookshops & Bonedust (2023)
(Legends & Lattes, book 2)
Travis Baldree
"With its immersive worldbuilding and charming characters, Bookshops & Bonedust is every bit as delightful as its predecessor. A spellbinding read that somehow manages to be both gripping and restful."

What the River Knows (2023)
(Secrets of the Nile, book 1)
Isabel Ibañez
"Fast-paced yet lyrical, with twists that keep you flying through the pages while Ibanez's evocative prose makes you want to savor every sun-drenched paragraph, What the River Knows is a truly enchanting work of storytelling. All the stars."

The Girl of Hawthorn and Glass (2020)
(Metamorphosis , book 1)
Adan Jerreat-Poole
"A moving, lyrical debut. Fantasy readers will fall in love with Jerreat-Poole's sharp-tongued assassin and diverse, vividly rendered magical world."

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