Dear Reader,
I have a confession to make, and it is this: I, an author of urban fantasy, did not know urban fantasy existed until well into college.
College feels like it happened a lifetime ago, but regardless, I don’t know how I went two decades without having a clue urban fantasy was a thing. I went to Borders (RIP) and independent bookstores all the time. I would like to blame my course load, but it feels like a lie to even suggest it. I really think I was that oblivious.
I have always loved fantasy, but I tended to go for things recommended to me by my peers, and those books were typically epic in nature, or sword and sorcery. However, since I discovered the subgenre, I’ve buried myself in urban fantasy books, and I will share five of those series starters with you today. Who knows? Maybe you’re like College Me and have never encountered a UF book in the wild, and this post will encourage you to explore the internet for your next read.
#1 Dead Until Dark (Sookie Stackhouse series) by Charlaine Harris
Do y’all remember the show True Blood that came out in 2008 on HBO? Well, this is the book series that inspired it!
It follows a telepath named Sookie Stackhouse in Louisiana after vampires revealed themselves to the public. The show True Blood is actually the thing that got me into urban fantasy books. When I started watching True Blood, I figured out it was based on a book, thanks to the opening credits. So one day, I went to Borders to find it, and I discovered other books like it—and there were a lot. Little did I know that day would have a huge impact on my life, as I now spend a lot of time writing in urban fantasy worlds.
If you like main characters that are learning about the supernatural world with you, mysteries, murders, and romance, you might want to check out Dead Until Dark.
#2 Cinders of Yesterday (Legacy of Shadows series) by Jen Karner
So this book was sold to me as Supernatural (the show), but make it female-led and F/F, and y’all—it’s exactly that.
This book is told in dual-POV 3rd person (my favorite). The reader follows paranormal monster hunter Dani Black and the mysterious Emilie Lockgrove as they work together to destroy a necromancer named Spectre and uncover the cause of strange things happening in a small town called Dawson.
If you like beautiful prose, incredible atmosphere, knife-wives, slow-burn romance, and mysteries, look no further than Cinders of Yesterday!
#3 Moon Called (Mercy Thompson series) by Patricia Briggs
There I was—working as a library assistant, surrounded by books, and on my lunch break. I was actually reading one of the Sookie Stackhouse books at the time, and my boss saw me reading it. She then recommended this book with a big grin, saying I would love it and would devour the rest of them in short order. Reader, she was not wrong.
This series follows mechanic Mercy Thompson, a walker who can shift into a coyote at will. When the story starts, she’s just living her life, doing stereotypically human things, occasionally with other supernaturals around her, like her neighbor, the werewolf and the vampire that owns the bus she’s working on. However, her calm life abruptly becomes less calm with the introduction of Mac, a newly turned teenage werewolf, and then we’re thrown into the mystery.
Moon Called is less romance and heavier on the worldbuilding and mystery elements. It also utilizes a supernatural kitchen sink, meaning that there are all kinds of creatures in this world, and they all have to coexist on the same turf.
#4 White Trash Warlock (Adam Binder series) by David Slayton
This book is actually a more recent read for me, and I’m so glad I picked it up! In a review of the book by the Scottsdale Public Library, White Trash Warlock is described as “If Sam and Dean Winchester from Supernatural had a book baby with Harry Dresden from Jim Butcher's series, this would be the little bundle of joy.” Honestly, I can’t think of a way to describe it any better. That description nailed it.
In this book, the reader follows Adam Binder, a man with magical gifts that caused his own brother to have him committed to a psych ward before the book begins. Understandably, Adam has wanted little to do with his brother since that happened. Still, one day his brother comes knocking because he needs help—his wife has been possessed by an evil spirit, and the life he built away from Oklahoma is in danger of falling apart. While Adam doesn’t want to help his brother for the sake of helping him (I mean, who would?), Adam ultimately agrees, only to find all the local magicians dead when he gets to Denver, and he becomes the evil entity’s next mark.
White Trash Warlock has it all—a M/M romance, gripping backstories for complex characters, cool lore, and a plot that has you quickly flipping pages.
#5 Darkfever (Fever series) by Karen Marie Moning
If you’re looking for something about the Fae with a hilarious heroine, look no further! A friend recommended this book to me, and I was sure, I’ll give it a try, thinking I would enjoy it, but not be obsessed. I did not expect for it to completely overwhelm my thoughts until I finished the series.
In Darkfever, we follow Mackayla “Mac” Lane, a perfectly ordinary woman living a pretty good life, until she receives terrible news—her sister was killed while she was in Ireland. The only clue Mac has about the whole thing is a cryptic message left on her cell phone, and she wants answers. The quest to discover the truth behind her sister’s murder leads her into the magical (and dark) world of the Fae, and she learns pretty quickly that nothing about her sister’s murder is as it seems.
Darkfever is the book for you if you like fast-paced books, anything to do with the Fae, a hilarious heroine, and books with a strong undercurrent of romance (although I would not consider this series to be a spicy series).
That’s it for my list today! While this list doesn’t even begin to scratch the surface of the urban fantasy subgenre, hopefully there is at least one new series for you to look into if it’s your thing.
Until next time, friends!
Announcements
AMONG THIEVES author and newsletter contributor M.J. Kuhn will be speaking at this year’s National Book Festival in Washington, D.C.! The event is free to the public and takes place on September 3rd, 2022 at the Washington Convention Center.