8 Best Science Fantasy Books of the 21st Century

Break genre barriers with spacefaring necromancers and aliens employing goblins

The legendary science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke once said, “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” The lines between sci-fi and fantasy blur in some of the most popular entertainment franchises like Star Wars, Warhammer 40,000, and the Marvel Cinematic Universe, along with classic book series like Dune and Dragonriders of Pern. If you’re looking for a new world to explore and can’t decide if you want it filled with spaceships or dragons, you don’t necessarily have to choose. Just pick something from this list of the best science fantasy books of the 21st century.

Cinder by Marissa Meyer (2012)

Marissa Meyer’s debut novel puts a science fiction spin on the tale of Cinderella. A cyborg mechanic living in New Beijing, Cinder discovers a royal conspiracy involving the denizens of the Moon, who have the ability to manipulate people by controlling their bioelectricity. Cinder kicked off Meyer’s long-running The Lunar Chronicles series, which is being adapted into an animated TV show. Other books continue to add satellites, genetic engineering, and spaceships to fairy tales like Rapunzel, Little Red Riding Hood, and Snow White.

The Fifth Season by N. K. Jemisin (2015)

N. K. Jemisin’s Hugo Award-winning novel is extremely bleak, beginning with the world being destroyed and following three women dealing with the aftermath. The first book in the Broken Earth series explores the devastating effects of climate change and intolerance, as people with the same sort of power that shattered the world have to hide their abilities for fear of being killed by angry mobs or their own families. In classic Clarke fashion, what seems to be magic turns out to be tied to forgotten technology.

All the Birds in the Sky by Charlie Jane Anders (2016)

Charlie Jane Anders' Nebula Award-winning book celebrates all sorts of weird kids by following the relationship between Patricia, a young witch, and Laurence, a boy genius who invents his own time machine. Fantasy and science fiction stories regularly deal with apocalyptic threats, but this world is unraveling slowly due to war and devastating storms. Patricia and Laurence come together and grow apart several times over the course of their lives, but their love might hold the key to bringing magic and science together and saving humanity.

Ninefox Gambit by Yoon Ha Lee (2016)

The first book in the Machineries of Empire trilogy follows Kel Cheris, a soldier tasked with retaking a fortress captured by heretical enemies of the galactic government. That means combining her consciousness with the mind of one of the greatest tacticians of all time. General Shuos Jedao was executed after killing a million people, including his own forces, using a devastating weapon. Cheris has to figure out how much she can trust Jedao and her own superiors to complete the mission and stay alive. The space opera is infused with Korean folklore, blending science and magic through the concept of calendrical workings, where ritual observances fuel mind control powers and technologies that break the laws of physics.

Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir (2019)

Gideon has spent her whole life trying to escape the Ninth House, a planet that serves as the prison of the godlike Emperor’s greatest foe. She gets her chance when she is tasked with protecting the necromancer Harrow as the heirs of the empire’s great houses complete challenges to prove they are worthy of immortality. Gideon and Harrow start off hating each other but have to learn to work together to survive and figure out who is killing their competition in this claustrophobic, funny murder mystery. The genre-bending saga continues with Harrow the Ninth and Nona the Ninth, and a fourth book is in the works.

Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman (2020)

Matt Dinniman popularized LitRPGs with his self-published Dungeon Crawler Carl series, which got a commercial printing in 2024. The series follows Carl, a Coast Guard veteran who winds up competing in an alien reality TV show along with his ex-girlfriend’s prized show cat. The dynamic between the unlikely party members is hilarious as they have to fight monsters to level up, impress a twisted AI, and build a following among viewers from across the galaxy. Seth MacFarlane is working on an adaptation of the series for Peacock.

Elder Race by Adrian Tchaikovsky (2021)

Genre is just a matter of perspective in Adrian Tchaikovsky’s novella. Princess Lynesse Fourth-Daughter goes on a quest to enlist the help of Nyrgoth Elder, an ancient sorcerer who she believes might be able to save her people from a rampaging demon. Nyr is actually an anthropologist from Earth sent to monitor an abandoned colony, and he isn’t supposed to get involved in local problems. But given he’s been abandoned by his homeworld, Nyr joins Lynesse and tries to find a rational explanation for the monster she’s facing.

Light from Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki (2021)

Aliens and demons collide in this sweet, queer love story about three women whose lives become entangled. Shizuka Satomi is known as the world’s best violin teacher, but her star pupils are doomed to hell because of an infernal contract. Satomi is training her final student, a talented runaway, when she’s distracted from her mission by flirting with a doughnut shop owner who happens to be a former starship captain. Everyone’s got their own secrets, but together they might be able to change their fates.