Most military fantasy, like most Adult fantasy in general, is written by cishet white men. And as a consequence, they bore me to death. Whether that's because there are zero female characters with depth, or because they just care more about tanks than emotions, the reasons vary. I'm super picky with my grimdark fantasy for similar reasons. While I LOVE the genre on paper, I'm often disappointed by the execution.
...Until I found these (diverse) incarnations!
Maybe it's because the protagonists and their storylines are more understandable to me. Maybe they're just super unique and fresh. Maybe the authors just know how to make you empathize and keep rooting for someone for 500 pages. Regardless, here are my favorite military fantasy novels.
Some rules for this list:
- The protagonist must be in the military, whether as a commander or a soldier
- There is focus on war tactics/strategy and not just random hack n' slashing
- There must be action and fighting.
THE POPPY WAR by RF Kuang
The Poppy War is what made me realize I actually love military fantasy. I didn't think I'd be losing my mind over 400+ pages of war strategies, naval battles, and guerilla tactics but there I was... Absolutely losing my mind.
If you still haven't heard of it, The Poppy War is a Chinese-inspired Adult fantasy that stars Rin, a poor girl from the south who makes her way into an elite military academy. There she fights tooth and nail amongst the young elite and learns to summon the gods, all as she deals with colorism, classism, and even misogyny. But when war breaks out in her final year, Rin and her classmates are plunged headfirst into destruction. Can she win this war? Or will she become something much, much worse?
Read this for the:
- Brilliant historical-inspired world
- Sexy, sexy military tactics
- Morally gray characters who will rip your heart right out of your chest and stomp on it (and you'll thank them)
THE WINNER'S CURSE by Marie Rutkoski
This is one of those OG YA fantasies that is leagues above the rest of the genre. Our heroine Kestrel is the general's daughter and uses her brains more than her brawn, which means playing mind games with both high society and the prince of an enemy nation. Like other YA fantasies, this is quite romance heavy, but it doesn't dumb itself down for its audience. Kestrel is a master chessmaster, and I'd shudder to imagine what would happen if she was evil rather than a good girl...
Read this for the:
- Ancient Rome-inspired world
- Enemies to lovers done right!
- So much polite snarking that would make Jane Austen herself proud
THE UNBROKEN by CL Clark
The Unbroken is my favorite Adult fantasy release of 2021 so far. Just like The Poppy War, it's heavily inspired by history... North African-history, that is. It dissects colonialism, imperialism, religion, and identity. What makes it unique is the fact that our heroine Touraine was abducted as a child and then raised as a soldier for the empire that colonized her people. As she's sucked into a political plot between her native country and the empire, she's also forced to re-examine her identity and her loyalties.
Read this for the:
- Brilliant insight into colonization and imperialism
- North African history and brilliant worldbuilding
- Queer-norm world and queer romance!
- Touraine who is all hard muscles on the outside but a huge softie on the inside
- Rebellions!
THE DEVIL LANCER by Astrid Amara
This is an underrated indie gem that needs way more love. While some might mistake it for a historical romance, it is first and foremost a military fantasy with an m/m romance subplot. It chronicles the brutality, uselessness, and tragedy of the Crimean War through the eyes of two men... Elliott who is a noble captain, and Ilyas who is a mysterious Russian-English soldier with a secret mission. As Elliott is tasked to watch over Ilyas, the two men grow closer, fall in love... and try to stop a supernatural evil on top of surviving a gruesome war.
Read this for the:
- Brutally honest depiction of the Crimean War with historical accuracy. No romanticizing events here!
- Heartwrenching m/m romance, which is really about two men finding a spot of hope in an otherwise bleary world
THE GILDED ONES by Namina Forna
The Gilded Ones is my favorite YA fantasy of 2021 so far! It takes old tropes and spins them in such a cool, new refreshing way. Don't take the YA category for granted. This novel is super dark, edgy, and gory... enough to warrant a place next to other Adult fantasy titles. On her sixteenth birthday, our heroine Deka discovers she's a demon. She's punished and brutally tortured by her puritan village, but she just cannot die. Eventually, an old woman saves her by bringing her to an academy for other demon girls. Here they can earn their survival by fighting for the empire. But as Deka and the girls fight these monsters called deathshrieks, they learn shocking truths that have been buried... about the deathshrieks, about themselves, about the throne they serve...
Who is the real hero, and who is the villain?
Read this for the:
- edgy grimdark goodness
- female friendships
- feminism and fighting the patriarchy
- military school scenes
THE BRIGHT AND BREAKING SEA by Chloe Neill
Okay, here's something a lot lighter on the list. The Bright and Breaking Sea is a super charming and straightforward naval fantasy set in an alternate Napoleonic era. Our heroine, Captain Kit Brightling, is noble, snarky, and badass enough to make anyone swoon. Her ship and crew are disguised as couriers, but in reality they undergo top secret missions for the queen. In this first installment, Kit is tasked to rescue a spy and team up with a prissy noble that she just cannot stand...
Read this for the:
- Fun sea adventures! the atmosphere!
- Interesting and diverse alt-historical world
- Kit, who is basically a more mature, more intelligent, and more badass Lila Bard WITHOUT the constant misogyny
SHE WHO BECAME THE SUN by Shelley Parker-Chan [Releases 20 July 2021]
Mulan meets The Song of Achilles in Shelley Parker-Chan's She Who Became the Sun, a bold, queer, and lyrical reimagining of the rise of the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty from an amazing new voice in literary fantasy.
To possess the Mandate of Heaven, the female monk Zhu will do anything
“I refuse to be nothing…”
In a famine-stricken village on a dusty yellow plain, two children are given two fates. A boy, greatness. A girl, nothingness…
In 1345, China lies under harsh Mongol rule. For the starving peasants of the Central Plains, greatness is something found only in stories. When the Zhu family’s eighth-born son, Zhu Chongba, is given a fate of greatness, everyone is mystified as to how it will come to pass. The fate of nothingness received by the family’s clever and capable second daughter, on the other hand, is only as expected.
When a bandit attack orphans the two children, though, it is Zhu Chongba who succumbs to despair and dies. Desperate to escape her own fated death, the girl uses her brother's identity to enter a monastery as a young male novice. There, propelled by her burning desire to survive, Zhu learns she is capable of doing whatever it takes, no matter how callous, to stay hidden from her fate.
After her sanctuary is destroyed for supporting the rebellion against Mongol rule, Zhu takes the chance to claim another future altogether: her brother's abandoned greatness.
🌙🌙🌙
What about you? What are your favorite military fantasy reads? Have you ever given this genre a shot?
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