Hello and welcome to this Track of Words guest post where today I’m joined by the brilliant Eliza Chan, author of the upcoming Fathomfolk (coming early 2024 from Orbit), who’s here to share her excitement about a whole host of great fantasy books! I’m delighted to have Eliza on the site – I’ve been a fan ever since reading her short story Knowing Your Type (creepy teddy bears…really creepy teddy bears) in 2019, and I’m really looking forward to her debut novel. If you’re on the lookout for some new additions to your TBR, whether recent releases or upcoming titles, you’ve come to the right place. I know I’m going to be picking some of these up based on Eliza’s recommendations!
Without further ado though, over to Eliza.
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Eliza Chan: This time of year many of us reflect on the ups and downs of the last twelve months. Not me! I’m mostly clock-watching for February 2024 to arrive as my debut fantasy novel, Fathomfolk, will finally be out in the world. People outside the industry often don’t realise how painfully slow things move in traditional publishing but as they say, good things come to those who wait. And between a gobsmackingly stunning cover, the shiniest proofs replete with swag, and getting to meet some absolute ICONS of the British fantasy scene over the last year, I can only hope things will get even better! So before I jump forward in my time machine to shout about all things mythical and mutinous, here are some of my favourite reads from 2023, and some I’m looking forward to in 2024. Eight of each because eight is a homophone for wealth and prosperity in Chinese and we could all do with a bit of that next year.
Not all the books I read in 2023 were published this year but they were new to me, even if they might be a bit older. I’ve stuck to standalones or the first book in a series because if you are in the middle of a series, you probably don’t need my encouragement to keep reading. Hoping something in this list will spark your interest.
2023 Favourite Reads
The Jasad Heir – Sara Hashem
You may have seen it on social media as the enemies-to-lovers Egyptian-inspired fantasy in which a fugitive heir must work with her sworn enemy to stay alive. And I’ll admit, the knife to the throat interaction between the main couple was expertly executed. But let me sell this book a different way: it’s about a people who have been wiped out, left only as a minority refugee group. Some of them are angry, forming radical splinter groups with extreme ideas about their future. It is about a young woman who wrestles with her identity and allegiances to the nation she was born into, and the one she was raised in. It is about finding out the narratives your family and your country tell you, are not entirely true. If that feels too close to the news right now, you can see why I’m frustrated that this book is reduced to a (very good) love story in most reviews. This book asked so many big questions and destroyed my diaspora heart.
The Water Outlaws – S.L. Huang
Oh my days. The Water Margin is a Chinese classic about a brotherhood of bandits. It’s known for being very violent, morally grey and, to be frank, a sausage-fest. So when Huang decided to gender-switch the bandits to women and non-binary characters I was intrigued. What I was not expecting was their lyrical prose which retained this folkloric period quality amidst a simmering rebellion against an unjust corrupt patriarchy. The queer and feminist retelling is artfully done not because every bandit is a Robin Hood-style born leader with impeccable morals; but because their hand is forced. It reminded me of Star Wars’ Andor where a complex range of characters reach a breaking point where revolution is the only choice remaining. Outstanding.
Babel – R.F. Kuang
Does Yellowface count as a fantasy? Probably not. But whilst the fast-paced thriller had all of us talking in summer, Babel is its more introspective and academic but no less angry cousin. In an alternative Victorian Oxford, bilingual students are taught to use the gap between languages to make magic to benefit the British empire. This novel is both a reflection on the discomfort and guilt of being diaspora as well as a treatise for action against the status quo. Kuang, as always, is a force to be reckoned with.
Perilous Times – Thomas D. Lee
If Terry Pratchett wrote Arthurian knights – is how they are marketing this, but it’s so much more. This debut fantasy novel is British humour at its finest with hints of Black Books, Good Omens and Greta Thunberg. At heart it’s a book about taking climate change seriously whilst not taking itself seriously. I absolutely loved the nazi-punching Sir Kay, but what we need in today’s world is Mariam, the angry young activist, who learns you can’t wait for a knight in shining armour to come save the day.
Kaikeyi – Vaishnavi Patel
Kaikeyi follows the recent trend of feminist retellings but rather than Greek, Patel has taken an antagonist from the Hindu epic Ramayana. It really is epic in scale, a door-stopper tome which starts in Kaikeyi’s childhood with her many brothers. Kaikeyi is one of those books that takes a while to start going, but this feels appropriate for the epics it pays homage to. It paints a picture of a woman who, had she been born a man, would have risen to the top. For a while her skills and advice are listened to, but she is constantly frustrated by not having all the information, power or respect she deserves. I loved the portrayal of asexuality, and female friendship and the questions it raised about free will.
The Bone Season – Samantha Shannon
Dystopia meets high fantasy in this tenth anniversary revised edition of The Bone Season. Shannon’s writing is superbly confident and whilst it’s a whirlwind of terms at the beginning, the magic system based in clairvoyance is really well thought through. Revealing Paige’s history in well-timed flashbacks is cleverly done to make the reader understand exactly how broken she is and makes her journey of self-discovery and leadership believable. I loved the complexities of power in play in this novel and that prejudice and privilege are more complex than simply the haves and have-nots.
Library of the Dead – TL Huchu
This was a brilliant romp of a YA novel set in a post-apocalyptic Edinburgh with magic. Ropa is a streetwise ghosttalker struggling to make ends meet who gets in too deep investigating a missing child case. The mash-up of Zimbabwean magic in Auld Reekie was brilliant and I think this would work on TV so well. It was such a refreshingly different book and I enjoyed just going along for the ride.
Shanghai Immortal – A.Y. Chao
Talking about refreshingly different, the main character in Shanghai Immortal talks about her ass and boobs a lot more than you’d expect from that cover. Or for fantasy full stop. But once you get over the initial discombobulation and settle in for the voicey ride, it’s a very fun one indeed. Lady Jing is an irreverent sasshole, hiding her insecurities behind insults and impulse decisions, but what the half-fox spirit, half-vampire really wants, is to find her place. The slow burn romance is cute but what I really appreciated was the friendships she made along the way. The novel flips between the Chinese underworld replete with gods, water dragons, hopping vampires and fox spirits; and the human world of 1930s Shanghai with free flowing cocktails and swanky hotels. Both are described in lush prose that really brings them to life.
Most anticipated books of 2024
Road to Ruin – Hana Lee (May 2024)
A queer Mad Max: Fury Road about a magebike courier delivering love letters between a prince and an imprisoned princess in a post-apocalyptic world but oops, she falls for them both? And now they ride for freedom? Heck yeah, that’ll do it. Furiosa was an icon back in 2015 and I was desperate for more desert wastelands at the time (and still am). Is post-apocalyptic back in trend again because I do love it.
Lost Ark Dreaming – Suyi Davies Okungbowa (May 2024)
When looking for comps for my book, there was a dearth of rising water level books. I am very pleased therefore that Okungbowa has a novella with that premise next year. A West African post-climate disaster hopepunk novella set in semi-submerged skyscrapers with the rich at the top and the impoverished at the bottom. Okungbowa’s work has always proven to be incredibly thoughtful and I am excited to see how he tackles this.
Voyage of the Damned – Frances White (January 2024)
I am intrigued to see the Knives Out vibes in this gay murder cruise novel where the misfit of 12 heirs must find out who is the murderer as they are slowly picked off one by one. It’s one of those premises I didn’t think of as a gap in the market, but now I’ve heard about it, I’m just so intrigued by the whole thing! White is a cosplayer and avid anime fan so I’m hoping for some One Piece vibes along the way.
Foul Days – Genoveva Dimova (June 2024)
There’s only one thing I love more than mythology retellings: modern mythology retellings. Foul Days is set in a walled city with magic and monsters inspired by Slavic folklore. A witch needs to team up with a detective to reclaim her magic in a race against time. Comped to The Witcher, this book is giving me hope that modern fantasy will have its moment again.
Unbound – Christy Healy (January 2024)
I’ve cheated with this one as I’ve already read an early proof. Unbound is described as a gender-flipped Beauty and the Beast retelling with Irish folklore. But more than that, it’s a love story about the love of stories. It has a dual point of view and dual timeline and stories within stories like a set of nesting dolls. I learnt so much about Irish folklore from this book but also how to write whip-smart banter.
Daughter of Calamity – Rosalie Lin (June 2024)
We are back in 1930s Shanghai but this time there’s face stealing abound. Yes, stealing faces. The premise fascinates and terrifies me in equal measures but I am all for dipping into East Asia for a bit of dark fantasy with showgirls, gangsters and gods.
Song of the Huntress – Lucy Holland (March 2024)
I am really surprised that there isn’t an absolute flurry of British mythology retelling the way Greek feminist retellings have taken off, but Holland is certainly doing her best to fill that gap. Sistersong was a brilliant read, both modern and historical in the same breath. Song of the Huntress looks to be in the same vein: a feminist sapphic retelling of The Wild Hunt. The cover alone sells it for me.
Fathomfolk – Eliza Chan (February 2024)
Oh look at that, how unexpected, my debut adult fantasy novel is on this list? Well, if we must! Fathomfolk is what if the little mermaid was a pissed off immigrant in a semi-submerged East and South-East Asian city. And it was never about the love of a man, but the love of her home. It’s the first in a duology following a water dragon, half-siren and seawitch as they navigate identity, privilege and prejudice as part of the underclass in a modern city where humans are at the top. (So nothing like the little mermaid at all, but it makes for a snappy pitch) If you like Jade City, American Gods or The Fables comics, this one is for you. If you like pretty covers, this one is for you also.
There we have it. On compiling this list, I realise my tastes run towards books about identity, about change and revolution and about the cost of all of the above. Hope you picked up a few new books to add to your to be read pile. Happy reading and wishing everyone a brilliant 2024.
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Photo credit: Sandi Hodkinson
Eliza Chan is a Scottish-born speculative fiction author who writes about East Asian mythology, British folklore and reclaiming the dragon lady. Her short fiction has been published in The Dark, Podcastle, Fantasy Magazine and The Best of British Fantasy. Her debut novel Fathomfolk — inspired by mythology, ESEAN cities and diaspora feels — will be published by Orbit in Spring 2024.
She has been a medical school drop-out, a kilt shop assistant, an English teacher and a speech and language therapist, but currently she spends her time tabletop gaming, cosplaying, crafting and toddler wrangling. She lives in Manchester with her family and a sizeable collection of dragons, Totoros and weapons (but only if you count an inflatable cutlass and plushie swords).
Find her on Twitter and instagram @elizachanwrites or on her website www.elizachan.co.uk. She is represented by Alex Cochran of C&W Agency.
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I’m sure you’ll join me in saying a massive thanks to Eliza for taking the time to tell us about all these great-sounding books! My TBR was already groaning under the weight of books I’m desperate to read, but now it’s just getting silly…in the best possible way.
Eliza’s novel Fathomfolk is available to pre-order now, ahead of its release in February 2024. Check out the links below if you’d like to pre-order a copy:
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