Our 2024 picks: International science fiction, fantasy and speculative fiction
Love SF, fantasy and speculative fiction? We do too! Join us as we pick our favourite titles published in 2024...
Science fiction, fantasy and speculative fiction as genres are a broad church: these genres cover everything from dystopian futures to golden age mythic worlds, broadswords to bat'leths, enchanted bookshops to intergalactic space vehicles, mythic gods to rogue artificial intelligence, and all points in between. Have a browse of our picks across the range of books published this year -- these books are a feast for the imagination to devour, often exploring our present-day obsessions and concerns. Enjoy!
Our Top 20 are...
The city of stardust / Summers, Georgia
"For centuries, the Everlys have seen their best and brightest disappear, taken as punishment for a crime no one remembers, for a purpose no one understands. Their tormentor, a woman named Penelope, never ages, never grows sick - and never forgives a debt." (Catalogue)
The bright sword : a novel of King Arthur / Grossman, Lev
"Collum, a brilliantly gifted young knight from the provinces, arrives at Camelot two weeks after the Battle of Camlann, hoping to compete for a spot on the Round Table. But he finds the city empty, King Arthur dead, and the Table destroyed. It is up to the surviving knights, the rebellious sorceress Nimue, and young Collum to avenge Arthur's murder and save Camelot." (Catalogue)
The tainted cup / Bennett, Robert Jackson
An eccentric detective and her long-suffering assistant untangle a web of magic, deceit, and murder in fantasy reimagining of the classic crime novel. As the two close in on a mastermind and uncover a scheme that threatens the safety of the Empire itself, Din realizes he's barely begun to assemble the puzzle that is Ana Dolabra--and wonders how long he'll be able to keep his own secrets safe from her piercing intellect. (Catalogue)
A tide of black steel / Ryan, Anthony
"The land of Ascarlia, a fabled realm of bloodied steel and epic sagas, has been ruled by the Sister Queens for centuries. No one has dared question their rule. Until now. Thera of the Blackspear, favored servant of the Sister Queens, is ordered to uncover the truth. As Thera sails north, her reviled brother, Felnir, sets out on his own adventure. Both siblings, along with a brilliant young scribe and a prisoner with a terrifying, primal power will play a part in the coming storm." (Catalogue)
"Two fugitives, a man and a child, drive all night across a stony desert. As dawn breaks they roll into an abandoned mine site. From the vehicle they survey a forsaken place - middens of twisted iron, rusty wire, piles of sun-baked trash. They're exhausted, traumatised, desperate now. But as a refuge, this is the most promising place they've seen. Problem is, they're not alone." (Catalogue)
Three eight one / Whiteley, Aliya
"An astonishing literary crossover novel about the pressures of growing up and the nature of authorship. In January 2314, Rowena Savalas - a curator of the vast archive of the twenty-first century's primitive internet - stumbles upon a story posted in the summer of 2024. She's quickly drawn into the mystery of the text: Is it autobiography, fantasy or fraud? Rowena comes to question her own choices, and a predictable life of curation becomes one of exploration, adventure and love." (Catalogue)
The ministry of time / Bradley, Kaliane
"A time travel romance, a spy thriller, a workplace comedy, and an ingenious exploration of the nature of power and the potential for love to change it all: Welcome to The Ministry of Time, the exhilarating debut novel by Kaliane Bradley. An exquisitely original and feverishly fun fusion of genres and ideas, The Ministry of Time asks: What does it mean to defy history, when history is living in your house? Kaliane Bradley's answer is a blazing, unforgettable testament to what we owe each other in a changing world." (Catalogue)
The practice, the horizon, and the chain / Samatar, Sofia
"The boy was raised as one of the Chained, condemned to toil in the bowels of a mining ship out among the stars. His whole world changes--literally--when he is yanked "upstairs" and informed he has been given an opportunity to be educated at the ship's university alongside the elite. Overwhelmed and alone, the boy forms a bond with the woman he comes to know as "the professor," a weary idealist and descendant of the Chained who has spent her career striving for validation from her more senior colleagues, only to fall short at every turn." (Catalogue)
"Rochelle wakes from cryostasis to take up her role as engineer on the colony ark, Calypso. But she finds the ship has transformed into a forest, populated by the original crew's descendants, who revere her like a saint. She travels the ship with the Calypso's creator, the enigmatic Sigmund, and Catherine, a bioengineered marvel who can commune with the plants, uncovering a new history of humanity forged while she slept." (Catalogue)
Toward eternity : a novel / Hur, Anton
"In a near-future world, a new technological therapy is quickly eradicating cancer: The body's cells are entirely replaced with nanites--robot or android cells that not only cure those afflicted but leave them virtually immortal. As Yonghun and other nano humans thrive--and begin to replicate--their development will lead them to a crossroads and a choice with existential consequences." (Catalogue)
The book that broke the world / Lawrence, Mark
"The Library of Alexandria died in fire. Others fade away with less drama, ignored, forgotten, left to dust. To the athenaeum though, the great library of which all others are echoes, fires are merely a temporary inconvenience. The only true threat to the library's existence is a book--the one Livira wrote. Livira's book also brought her together with Evar, a young man who was raised in the library itself, and they discovered secrets that no one else had uncovered. But now they are separated--and something hunts them both." (Catalogue)
The Wood at Midwinter / Clarke, Susanna
"From the internationally bestselling and prize-winning author of Piranesi and Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, an enchanting, beautifully illustrated short story set in the world of Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell." (Catalogue)
Somewhere beyond the sea / Klune, TJ
"In the sequel to The House in the Cerulean Sea, Arthur Parnassus, headmaster of a strange orphanage, and the other inhabitants of Marsyas Island must fight to save the dangerous and magical children of the orphanage or risk the entire island falling apart." (Catalogue)
The fox wife : a novel / Choo, Yangsze
"Manchuria, 1908. In the last years of the dying Qing Empire, a courtesan is found frozen in a doorway. Her death is clouded by rumors of foxes, which are believed to lure people by transforming themselves into beautiful women and handsome men. Bao, a detective with an uncanny ability to sniff out the truth, is hired to uncover the dead woman's identity." (Catalogue)
The emperor and the endless palace / Huang, Justinian
"In the year 4 BCE, an ambitious courtier is called upon to seduce the young emperor--but quickly discovers they are both ruled by blood, sex and intrigue. In 1740, a lonely innkeeper agrees to help a mysterious visitor procure a rare medicine, only to unleash an otherworldly terror instead. And in present-day Los Angeles, a college student meets a beautiful stranger and cannot shake the feeling they've met before. Across these seemingly unrelated timelines woven together only by the twists and turns of fate, two men are reborn, lifetime after lifetime." (Catalogue)
The mercy of Gods / Corey, James S. A
"The Carryx - part empire, part hive - have waged wars of conquest for centuries, destroying or enslaving species across the galaxy. Now, they are facing a great and deathless enemy. The key to their survival may rest with the humans of Anjiin. Caught up in academic intrigue and affairs of the heart, Dafyd Alkhor is pleased just to be an assistant to a brilliant scientist and his celebrated research team. Then the Carryx ships descend, decimating the human population and taking the best and brightest of Anjiin society away to serve on the Carryx homeworld, and Dafyd is swept along with them." (Catalogue)
Annie Bot : a novel / Greer, Sierra
"Annie Bot was created to be the perfect girlfriend for her human owner Doug. Doug says he loves that Annie's AI makes her seem more like a real woman, so Annie explores human traits. But becoming more human also means becoming less perfect, and as Annie's relationship with Doug grows more intricate and difficult, she starts to wonder: Does Doug really desire what he says he wants? And in such an impossible paradox, what does Annie owe herself?" (Catalogue)
Alien clay / Tchaikovsky, Adrian
"The planet of Kiln is where the tyrannical Mandate keeps its prison colony, and for inmates the journey there is always a one-way trip. One such prisoner is Professor Arton Daghdev, xeno-ecologist and political dissident. Soon after arrival he discovers that Kiln has a secret. Humanity is not the first intelligent life to set foot there.If he can survive both the harsh rule of the camp commandant and the alien horrors of the world around him, then Arton has a chance at making a discovery that might just transform not only Kiln but distant Earth as well." (Catalogue)
In universes : a novel / North, Emet
"Raffi works in an observational cosmology lab, searching for dark matter. Every chance they get, they escape to see Britt, a queer sculptor who fascinates them for reasons they can't understand. As Raffi's carefully constructed life begins to collapse, they dream of a universe where they mean as much to Britt as Britt does to them. Touring parallel worlds, Raffi reaches for a life that feels authentically their own. But Raffi's divergent existences all lead back to the summer of Britt: the terrible thing Raffi did and the guilt that continues to chase them across realities." (Catalogue)
A view from the stars / Liu, Cixin
"A View from the Stars is a collection of short fiction and nonfiction pieces from Cixin Liu, the New York Times bestselling author of The Three-Body Problem. Included are essays and interviews that shed light on Liu's experiences as a reader, writer, and lover of science fiction throughout his life, as well as short fiction that gives glimpses into the evolution of his imaginative voice over the years" (Catalogue)
Honourable mentions
Here are just a few more guaranteed good reads that didn't make our Top 20, but that we think you should keep on your radar for library visits, and definitely snap up if you see them on the shelf...
Archangels of funk : episodes from the continuing drama of Cinnamon Jones: scientist, artiste, and hoodoo conjurer : a novel of what might be / Hairston, Andrea
"The Water Wars have scrambled the world. Flood refugees are on the run. Disrupters and the nostalgia militia roam the roads, wreaking havoc. As Cinnamon confronts threats from the Darknet Lords and the nostalgia militia, she must determine how best to honor her elders and her history while building a future for herself and her charges. It's not going to be easy" (Catalogue)
The book of elsewhere : a novel / Reeves, Keanu
"There have always been whispers. Legends. The warrior who cannot be killed. Who's seen a thousand civilizations rise and fall. He has had many names: Unute, Child of Lightning, Death himself. These days, he's known simply as "B." And he wants to be able to die. In the present day, a U.S. black-ops group has promised him they can help with that. And all he needs to do is help them in return. But when an all-too-mortal soldier comes back to life, the impossible event ultimately points toward a force even more mysterious than B himself. One at least as strong. And one with a plan all its own." (Catalogue)
The wings upon her back / Mills, Samantha
"Zenya was a teenager when she ran away from home to join the Mecha God's warrior sect. She was determined to earn her copper wings and protect the people and city she loved. Under the strict tutelage of a mercurial, charismatic leader, Zenya became Winged Zemolai. But after twenty-six years of service, Zemolai is disillusioned with her role as an enforcer in an increasingly fascist state. After one tragic act of mercy, she is cast out and loses everything she worked for. As Zemolai fights for her life, she begins to understand the true nature of her sect, her leader, and the gods themselves." (Catalogue)
Lost ark dreaming / Okungbowa, Suyi Davies
"Off the coast of West Africa, decades after the dangerous rise of the Atlantic Ocean, the region's survivors live inside five partially submerged, kilometers-high towers originally created as a playground for the wealthy. Now the towers' most affluent rule from their lofty perch at the top while the rest are crammed into the dark, fetid floors below sea level. There are also those who were left for dead in the Atlantic, only to be reawakened by an ancient power, and who seek vengeance on those who offered them up to the waves." (Catalogue)