Fantasy Books Releasing in September 2026 (Most Anticipated!)

The queen of gothic romantasy is back, and honestly, this is the sequel I have been quietly losing my mind over since the moment I closed The Knight and the Moth. The Knave and the Moon is the second and final book in the Stonewater Kingdom duology, and it picks up in the wreckage of everything we loved. Aisling Cathedral lies in ruins, half the cast is rumoured dead, and the king has taken Sybil Delling as his bride to flaunt his power across Traum. Captive and drugged, Sybil is still determined to bring him down, even if it means burning the kingdom’s faith to the ground in the process.

Then a nameless, memoryless knave starts climbing the king’s tournament lists, and he might just be Sybil’s way back to herself. Gillig writes the kind of dreamy, lavender soaked, melancholy prose that makes you want to read with the lights low, and if you loved book one, this is a non negotiable pre-order.

Tropes: gothic romantasy, amnesia, captive heroine, tournaments, slow burn, duology finale

If you love your fantasy epic, snowy, and dripping with prophecy, this is a gorgeous one to open the month on. White Raven is the first book in the Messengers of the Realm trilogy, and it is a sweeping, Norse inspired story about a fractured world waiting for a saviour. Long ago, Ravens could shift between human and bird form to carry messages for the god Odin, until one act of disobedience got them all cursed. Now the land is split into three, the Day Ravens confined to endless sun, the Night Ravens to endless dark, and the hated Leatherwings caught in between, and only the foretold White Raven can heal it.

Wrennlyn Stallard has lived a sheltered, privileged life as the king’s only daughter, right up until the night of her betrothal, when an enemy from the Night Realm murders her lady-in-waiting and drags her across the snow into captivity. Her captor Onyx fully expects to hate the spoiled White Raven, but she turns out to be far too clever and defiant to break. With captor and captive tension, a ruthless villain plotting to claim her power, and Stacey Marie Brown’s signature bite, this is dark fantasy with real teeth.

Tropes: dark fantasy, captor and captive, enemies to lovers, chosen one, prophecy, Norse mythology

For the why choose crowd, this one is calling your name. Crown of Crimson and Crows is the first book in the Blood Bound series, a brand new vampire romance and a spin off of Tessa Hale’s Wolves of Crescent Creek. Our heroine has no idea what she is, only that a single drop of her blood binds her to four warriors more merciless than her worst nightmares. They are supposed to be mortal enemies, but the moment she is in danger, it does not matter one bit, because they will burn the entire world down to keep her safe.

Add an ancient evil determined to destroy them all, that heady fated mates energy, and Hale’s addictive, fast paced style, and you have the recipe for a properly obsessive binge read. If you like your romantasy with high stakes, sharp fangs, and more than one love interest, this is a very easy pre-order.

Tropes: why choose, vampire romance, fated mates, enemies to lovers, blood bond, hidden powers

When you want your paranormal romance funny, spicy, and a little bit chaotic, Avery Flynn always delivers, and Hexy Beast is the third book in the Sherwood Witches series. Effie Sherwood is supposed to be the responsible eldest daughter of a powerful magical family, but she is, in her own words, chaos incarnate, and her latest impulsive decision is hopping on the back of Darius Aetos’ motorcycle. The problem is that Darius is not just grumpy, gruff, and annoyingly hot, he is also the head of the Aetos werewolf pack, and a pack elder is now convinced he is Effie’s fated mate.

A witch and a werewolf, stuck together, tangled up in tricky pack politics, and slowly realising the pull between them under a blue moon. It is a grumpy sunshine, opposites attract rom-com with real heart and plenty of heat, and the perfect palate cleanser between the month’s heavier reads.

Tropes: paranormal rom-com, witch heroine, werewolf hero, fated mates, grumpy x sunshine, forced proximity

If your soul is craving a mug of hot chocolate in book form, this one is for you. Disenchanted is the third cozy fantasy from the author of Rewitched and Uncharmed, and it is exactly the kind of warm, witchy, autumn scented comfort read I want to disappear into when the evenings get dark. Sage Hemlock wants nothing to do with her magic. It has hurt her before, so she has buried herself in her work running the local museum, keeping company with her library and her cat, and quietly plotting to shed her powers for good.

Of course, the universe has other plans. When a strange old book accidentally triggers a curse, her sleepy little town is suddenly overrun with magic, a beanstalk is growing in her garden, and her lovely coworker Casimir is starting to look an awful lot like a fairytale prince. It is fully Gilmore Girls with a spell book, and I cannot wait.
Tropes:

Tropes: cozy fantasy, reluctant witch, small town, fairytale twist, slow burn, friends to lovers

Brace yourselves, Diem girlies, because this is the one. Burn of the Everflame is the fourth and final book in The Kindred’s Curse Saga, and after the wait we have all endured, I genuinely do not know if I am ready. War has swallowed Emarion whole. In the north, Ophiucae and his army of bloodthirsty mortals want every Descended wiped from the continent, while in the south the Guardians of the Everflame are plotting a rebellion generations in the making. Caught in the middle, the Crowns gather in Lumnos and are forced into an alliance none of them wanted.

But there is a secret at the heart of it all, and a heart without its mate that just might burn the whole world down. This series is the gold standard for slow burn, angst, banter, and that delicious enemies to lovers tension, so clear your weekend, because Penn Cole is about to put us all through it one last time.

Tropes: epic romantasy, slow burn, enemies to lovers, fated mates, war, series finale

The Red Queen author is stepping into adult fantasy, and she described Tempest as her attempt to scratch the Pirates of the Caribbean itch, so I was sold before I even finished reading the synopsis. This is the first book in the Lyrian Sea duology, a sweeping, salt stained tale of love, betrayal, and a brutal war for the high seas. We follow Cat Rose across two timelines, before, when she was a noblewoman chained to a loathsome lord, and after, when she became the Widow Rose, queen of a pirate tavern and master of her own fate.

The Meridian Empire wants to crush the pirate republic for good, and they offer Cat a devastating choice: hunt down the legendary captain Valerian Kane, the only man she has ever loved, or hang. With cinematic worldbuilding, a dual timeline romance, and that wild pull of the open ocean, this is shaping up to be the adventure of the season.

Tropes: pirates, second chance romance, forbidden love, dual timeline, high seas adventure, slow burn

If you fell hard for The Silversmith the way BookTok did, you already know exactly how feral we are all going to be for this one. The Incendiary is the second book in The Selvaren series, and it is a searing, slow burn romantasy stuffed with yearning, heartbreak, non stop action, and the kind of plot twists that leave you staring at the wall. Everything Ary thought she knew was a lie. She has been caged, controlled, and betrayed by the people she trusted most, and now she is finally free, with untamed magic crackling in her veins.

They say she is destined to lead an army against a corrupted darkness, and that the man she loves is too dangerous to ever see again. But Ary is done letting other people write her story. With a morally grey, guarded MMC who softens for exactly one person, this is comfort food for the ACOTAR and Empyrean crowd.

Tropes: slow burn, morally grey MMC, touch her and die, forbidden love, chosen one, prophecy

From the deliciously unhinged mind behind Blood of Hercules comes a brand new dark romantasy duet, and I mean it when I say this sounds gloriously feral. The Emperor’s Enemy is the first book in the Unsurvivable Love Duet, set in a world of dangerous magic, rebellion, and vicious rivalry. Our heroine is Zora Ravenal, Knight Mage and Bear of the North, the only hope her people have against a ravenous empire. Hunting her is Aleksander the Sadistic, a divinely ordained emperor obsessed with capturing her once and for all, who will use everyone in his arsenal to do it, including Tarantula, the empire’s deadliest assassin.

The catch, and the part that makes my heart race, is that Zora is hunting them right back. It is the most dangerous game wrapped in obsession and rivalry, the kind of story where everyone’s fixation might just become their downfall. If you like your romantasy dark, sharp, and unapologetically wild, Jasmine Mas has you covered.

Tropes: dark romantasy, enemies to lovers, hunter and prey, obsession, morally grey, captor and captive

Pitched as Grey’s Anatomy meets A Deadly Education, this dark academia fantasy has been living in my head rent free since the cover dropped. At the Academie of the Grand Duchy of Sieuxerr, every mage with the healer’s gift gets five years to master their power before facing the brutal Grand Exam, a five day trial that decides their entire future. The rules are simple. You perform five practical cases, your exam group is chosen at random, and you pass together or you fail together. What the rules do not mention is the dead body your group finds in the exam hall on the very first day.

Five scholars, five secrets, and a murdered classmate they all happen to be connected to. With Marske’s signature wit, lush worldbuilding, and slow burning queer romance, this medical dark academia is exactly the kind of clever, atmospheric, impossible to put down read I want for the season.

Tropes: dark academia, murder mystery, queer romance, found family, slow burn, magical school

Hell is empty, and all the devils are here. Dead Beat is the explosive, long awaited conclusion to the Alex Stern trilogy, and if you have been waiting since Hell Bent like I have, this is the September release. Alex has made it to hell and back more than once, but this time she left the door open behind her. Now demons are creeping through New Haven and the Yale campus, feeding on the souls of the living and terrifying the dead, and it is only a matter of time before the gates to the underworld swing wide.

To stop a war they cannot win, Alex and her allies will have to dig into the darkest secrets of Yale and its societies, and into the truth hidden in Alex’s own blood, all while dodging a corrupt Lethe Board and a vampire with his own ties to the societies. Bardugo’s blend of horror, dark academia, and morally grey brilliance is unmatched, and I am bracing for it to wreck me.

Tropes: dark academia, urban fantasy, demons, secret societies, morally grey heroine, series finale

For when you want your spooky season served warm and a little bit swoony, this is the one to reach for. Grim Tidings is the second book in the Ghosted series, a whimsical, haunting romance about a runaway grim reaper who decides she is done being the villain of the story. Darcy Moore is tired of death, which would be perfectly fine if she were not, you know, a Grim Reaper. So instead of dragging her next assignment to the underworld, she decides she is going to save him.

The complication is Gabriel Aetos, a Guardian Angel who does not take kindly to a reaper showing up at his bar, and who has a long standing grudge that his growing feelings keep getting in the way of. It is a simmering enemies to lovers tale with all the cozy, found family, golden hour warmth Borison does so beautifully, and the perfect read to keep you warm this autumn.

Tropes: paranormal romance, enemies to lovers, grim reaper, cozy autumn, found family, opposites attract

Pitched as The Secret History meets The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, this one grabbed me by the collar. Winterveil is the first book in a brand new dystopian duology from Ava Reid, and it is a sharp, atmospheric departure into an alternate future where the Cold War has raged on for nearly a century. There is no application process for Valeran Academy, only an invitation for the brightest and most precociously criminal students in the nation. We follow four of them, a disgraced political heir, a coldly brilliant strategist, a former pageant queen with a world changing talent, and a soldier with a dangerous secret, as they are thrown together for a mysterious mission that tests every loyalty they have.

With eerie war simulations, cutthroat competition, and Reid’s gorgeous prose, this is dark academia with a dystopian pulse. Do note it leans more sci-fi dystopian than magic, so adjust your expectations accordingly, but if you love morally grey teens, mind games, and a slow burning romance under pressure, this is a standout.

Tropes: dystopian, dark academia, secret academy, spies, enemies to lovers, multiple POV

From the bestselling author of the Legends of Thezmarr comes a brand new epic romantasy trilogy, and the early reactions for this one have been absolutely rapturous. Kiss of the Black Flame is the first book in The Bookbinder’s Bargain, and it follows Saige Grayson, the most gifted bookbinder in the capital, who has always believed stories can heal even when her own body refuses to. Working through chronic pain and crushing debt, she restores other people’s treasures while quietly trying to keep herself from falling apart.

Then the man she owes decides her talent is worth more than her payments, and Saige is traded to the Azkari, an immortal race forged by the gods for war, and imprisoned in their ancient stronghold. Her one chance of survival is Archer, a fallen Azkari general locked up beside her, cursed, dangerous, and impossible to ignore. With a dangerous bargain, found family, grumpy and sunshine energy, and genuine chronic pain representation, this is the kind of romantasy readers are already calling a new favourite.

Tropes: epic romantasy, dangerous bargain, captivity, grumpy x sunshine, reluctant allies to lovers, found family

Plated Prisoner girlies, our queen is back. The Sweetest Fiend is the first book in a brand new dark romantasy duology from Raven Kennedy, this time loosely inspired by the legend of the Pied Piper, and it sounds every bit as lush, atmospheric, and morally grey as we have come to expect from her. Our world cracked open like an egg, releasing nine monstrous Banes who left a Plague behind to punish what remained. Our heroine is half Bane, half fae, and wholly hated, surviving every cruel glare and cursed outbreak just to keep going.

Then a deadly Plague descends on her city, and the Piper arrives. He clears the Plague, but the cost is steep: one hundred and thirty people taken as payment, herself included. With Kennedy’s signature blend of strong but soft heroines, sexy morally grey love interests, high heat, and that gorgeous, ensnaring prose, this is dark fairytale romantasy at its most addictive. The exact September date is still firming up, so keep an eye on your favourite pre-order links.

Tropes: dark romantasy, captive romance, fae, morally grey love interest, fairytale retelling, high spice

For the readers who like their fantasy gorgeous, gothic, and genuinely unsettling, Florescentia is the one to watch. This is the first book in the Luminary duology from I.V. Ophelia, and it is a dark, atmospheric tale set in a world where the stars and the universe are divine. Our heroine is an inventor who has found a way to harvest luck itself, right up until she accidentally invites something malicious and cosmic through from the other side. She summoned him for luck, but he wants her for eternity, and the collision between an inventor and a star born beast is as dangerous as it is spellbinding.

A quick and important heads up, darlings: this one comes with serious content warnings and explores heavy themes including grief, self harm, and existential dread, so please check them before you dive in. If you love monster romance with a gothic, philosophical edge, this is unlike anything else on the list.

Tropes: gothic fantasy, cosmic horror, monster romance, dark themes, star-born beast, inventor heroine

Shatter Me fans, brace yourselves, because after that cliffhanger we all need this one just to survive. Escape Me is the third book in Shatter Me: The New Republic, Tahereh Mafi’s dystopian series set ten years after the fall of The Reestablishment, and it is told through the eyes of James, Rosabelle, and Aaron Warner. James is tired of being underestimated by his own family, and he is done waiting for permission to make his move against the threats closing in on their world.

Rosabelle, meanwhile, needs to stick to the plan, which means staying far away from James and the dangerous feelings he stirs up, because she needs absolute control to keep her cover intact.
Expect scorching tension, high stakes rebellion, and the kind of slow burn Mafi has perfected over the years. It leans YA dystopian rather than epic fantasy, but if you grew up in the Shatter Me universe, this is a non negotiable.

Tropes: dystopian, forbidden love, slow burn, rebellion, morally grey, multiple POV

Now for the most mysterious release of the month. Yes, Rebecca Yarros has a new Empyrean book dropping on September 29, and no, before you ask, it is not the long awaited book four.

Threshing Day is a collection of thirteen stories about some of the most popular Fourth Wing characters and their dragons!

Tropes: dragons, epic fantasy, military academy, romantasy, Empyrean world