10 Female Fantasy Authors You Should Be Reading

Decided to give a shoutout to some of my favorite fantasy/sci fi queens! How many of these have you read? I hope that this list adds some fantastic new reads to your tbr.
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[@mythologypress9470]

Somehow I missed this when it came out. I agree with you on Fonda Lee and Janny Wurts. They are both masters in their own right, with very different prose styles. And of course my fave Robin Hobb. I need to check out KE Andrews. And yeah, Sword of Kaigen is the bomb. Thanks for highlighting Heliotrope. -Palmer

[@ToriTalks2]

Of course! There are so many amazing female SFF writers out there.

[@LiamsLyceum]

I’ve read some good female authors this year: Elaine Cunningham, Kate Novak, J. V. Jones, Nicola Griffith, Ellis Peters, Kate Elliott, Lynn Abbey, C. J. Cherryh, Vonda N. McIntyre, Diana L. Paxson, and Janet Morris. Hoping to start a book by Andre Norton, I’ve read one by her before (the first ever DnD novel, actually). When you say Grandame I think of C. L. Moore and Leigh Brackett. I need to read Wurts!

[@ToriTalks2]

I have several of those authors on my 2024 TBR! I’m loving my foray into classic female authors so far.

[@zachary37]

1000% agreed on Green Bone Saga's characters. Hilo's actions really caused me to hate his guts but I still rooted for him and thought he, and the rest of the Kaul family, were some of the most fascinating characters I've read in a long time.

[@ToriTalks2]

Fonda Lee does an incredible job with her characters, I'm glad you found them compelling too!

[@bosquedetinta]

Thank you for this video! There were so many authors I didn't know about 😍 Now I need to check them all.

[@ToriTalks2]

Yay! There are some incredible writers in this list 🤩 I hope you find some new favorites.

[@TBaggins96]

Two that really impacted me as a young reader were Erin Hunter and Cornelia Funke. By no means would I recommend their books to adults, but to young children they could catalyze a love for fantastic stories, just like they did for me.

[@ToriTalks2]

I loved The Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke!

[@MonicaNystrom]

Thanks for the recs! Got some new books on my radar. Really want to read Andre Norton.

[@ToriTalks2]

Awesome! Me too. I hope you enjoy them when you read her work for the first time!

[@billyalarie929]

Saved this to several playlists for remembering novelists I need to check out. Thanks Tori ❤

[@ToriTalks2]

Awesome! I hope you find some new favorites!

[@AnithaGadeReads]

Love the video, Tori! I read only Hobb and Fonda Lee from this list and rest are on my tbr.

[@ToriTalks2]

I hope you enjoy them all!

[@BrianBell7]

you've just added to TBR Mountain, so well done! Queen Hobb presently sits on top of my all-time favorite series list. Can't wait to start Janny Wurtz' novels this year!

[@ToriTalks2]

Heck yeah! I hope you love her books

[@stjepanvaresevaccobets]

I am currently reading To Ride Hell’s Chasm and your book. Several books from this video are on my TBR :)

[@ToriTalks2]

Thank you so much for picking it up! I hope you enjoy both reads. 🥰

[@madisongoodyear5040]

Yay!! Okay I’ve been wanting to try Janny Wurts, so I’ll start there with what you recommended!

[@ToriTalks2]

I think you'll like it, Mads! Hell's Chasm is a good standalone. She also told me that The Master of Whitestorm is a good place to start. :)

[@yanivrosenfeld-cohen7517]

I Absolutely love this video shoutout Tori, what a grand selection! Janny's on my tbr as well as a few others. Also, if you've enjoyed SOK, Wang has put out a new standalone a few months ago and imo it was even stronger!

[@ToriTalks2]

Thanks Yaniv! I'm really looking forward to reading Wang's new book, I hope I can get to it this year.

[@mariareadsssf]

Sad to see Octavia E. Butler missing from this list. She was the first black woman to write SF in USA. Her profetic works "Parable of the Sower" and especialy "Parable of the Talents" are so relevant in our present times. I recommend "Kindred" as a starting point and then the above works. Glad you got to read M. L. Wang.

[@ToriTalks2]

She’s only missing from this list because I haven’t read her yet, I am planning to for the first time this year. Parable of the Sower is on my shelf.

[@katieandrews1960]

Thank you for including my books alongside this amazing lineup!

[@ToriTalks2]

As if I'd leave you out!!!

[@MadLove0815]

Awesome video ❤❤❤

[@AFictionalEscapist]

Frankenstein really shocked me with how deep it was. Such a fantastic read (and a beautiful edition). To Ride Hell’s Chasm still holds up as one of my favorite reads. Janny is such a powerhouse of a writer! A fantastic list Tori! I look forward to reading more of these.

[@ToriTalks2]

Thanks Kris! Hell’s Chasm was an incredible standalone.

[@thatsci-firogue]

I will be reading Daughter of the Forest soon-ish. I was hesitant at first as an Irish person myself, I was prepared for tired stereotypes but i read Chapter One and was pleasantly surprised. I would've read on but i became hooked on Liveship Traders. RE Frankenstein, true. I was shocked how little of the book corresponded to my pop culture understanding. I'm not keen on gangster stories but never say never. Love Wurts' prose, just have to be in the mood. I'm a 3rd of the way through the 3rd subseries of Realm of the Elderlings and I'm loving it. Great video, Tori. I'm actively trying to read more female authors this year and its been off to a phenomenal start with Hobb.

[@ToriTalks2]

I'm so glad you're enjoying Liveship! I'll be starting the first book this month too. I definitely get that about Wurts, I have to prepare for her level of prose when I'm reading as well.

[@thatsci-firogue]

@@ToriTalks2 You'd love Liveship, Tori! I've already finished it this month and couldn't help myself and dived straight to Tawny Man and it's been great being back with Fitz and Nighteyes.

[@mikesbookreviews]

Obviously I'm super interested in Janny Wurts books now.

[@ToriTalks2]

You should be! I hope you enjoy whatever you end up picking up first. 🔥 Maybe we can buddy read Master of Whitehall together later this year.

[@MAB9815]

Amazing video 🥰🥰🥰

[@naghamhossam556]

I only knew abt Fonda Lee and ML Wang but I'm happy to discover the rest! loved this!

[@ToriTalks2]

Yay! I’m glad to introduce some more. 🥰

[@safinan8008]

Thank you for the recommendation of authors 😊 I hope I reading great books??? Happy reading to you!! 😊

[@ToriTalks2]

I hope you enjoy them! Happy reading to you too!

[@ericF-17]

Sadly I haven't read any of these authors yet. But I'm about to start Frankenstein in English class, I'm going to start ROTE this year, and I really want to read Hills of Heather and Bone sometime. Sword of Kaigen has also been supposedly near the top of my TBR for about a year now.

[@ToriTalks2]

I hope you love Frankenstein! That TBR mountain can be daunting, but it sounds like you’ve got some good ones coming up!

[@johnmauro1230]

Amazing list!! I think you would also love reading books by Sarah Chorn.

[@ToriTalks2]

I’ve got a couple of hers on my Kindle!

[@dougsundseth6904]

I have no idea what the sex the author of about 30% of what I read. The name doesn't make it obvious and I've never had occasion to check. Of the authors who have chosen to write under female names or where I happen to know, I'll recommend: Lois McMaster Bujold - Absolutely brilliant character writer with a very strong command of plot. Both here SF and Fantasy stuff is amazing. Vorkosigan, Chalion, and Sharing Knife are all excellent Elizabeth Moon - The various Paksennarion books are excellent. I prefer the Paladin's Legacy series to Deed of Paksennarion, but opinions vary. I also strongly recommend Vatta's War. Katherine Kurtz - The Deryni series is a better look at religion in a fantasy setting than any other I can think of. It shows both the dark and light sides of a basically Catholic church and is well plotted. Mercedes Lackey - Valdemar has a huge amount to like. I'd probably start with either Arrows of the Queen or Foundation. The former is one of her best know, but the latter was written more recently and might be the better book. Anne McCaffrey - I prefer the Crystal Singer series to the Pern series, but both are good. Marion Zimmer Bradley - The Darkover series is very well done, fantasy feeling though in a nominally SF setting.

[@ToriTalks2]

Most of these authors are on my TBR, and I'm most excited to read Elizabeth Moon and Bujold!

[@esmayrosalyne]

Couldn't agree more with all of these! Only ones I'd add are Krystle Matar and this amazing woman named Tori Tecken ;))) All the love for these powerhouses 🥰

[@ToriTalks2]

I should’ve added Krystle 🥲 Tori is mid.

[@esmayrosalyne]

@@ToriTalks2 lies lies lies

[@wassr1956]

Janny Wurts also illustrates her own books. And her husband is artist Don Maitz

[@ToriTalks2]

Yes she does! She’s an incredibly talented artist.

[@gryftkin]

I read a lot of female authors, but I keep seeing Janny Wurts all over booktube so I she's going to have to get read this year. No more putting her off.

[@ToriTalks2]

I hope you have an awesome time with her books!

[@MagusMarquillin]

Nice. Read Frankenstein decades ago and it blew me away - I need to return to it with the original 1818 edition which many say is the better one, and I would love to find something else she wrote to try, like the Last Man which is her 21st century pandemic apocalypse story - somehow most of her non-frankenstein work is so unknown. Have a great likeing about Juliet Marillier now from this first Daughter of the Forest taste - tremendously compelling characters and good prose. My other favorite female authors are Margaret Weis (Dragonlance, Death Gate), Ursula Le Guin (Earthsea), Susan Cooper (the Dark is Rising) and Susanna Clarke (Piranesi) but there's so much more I need to read from them, it's not funny. Oh and Christina Rossetti was a Victorian fantasy author - her poem "the Goblin Market" was really good. And I'm much excited to try out Janny Wurts (her interviews are amazing), Martha Welles, Mercedes Lackey, Erin Morgenstern, N.K.Jemisin and Dianna Wynne Jones - there's so many more woman besides who I want to give a chance to - main reason I wish we had longer lifespans LOL!

[@ToriTalks2]

Great list! And totally agree, there are way too many amazing stories to read!

[@heidi6281]

Manda Scott, Shauna Lawless & Katharine Kerr… maybe if you do another list of 10!!

[@ToriTalks2]

I haven’t read any of them! They’re all on my TBR though

[@Montie-Adkins]

This is the 2nd vid in a week talking about female authors and as I looked over my shelves it is mostly dudes. But there's a few women: Carol Berg (Song of the Beast), Lilith Saintcrow (Dante Valentine), Naomi Novik (the Scholomance), Anne Rice, and this one obscure author, you may not have heard of her, way out there in the world of authors...TORI TECKEN (The Blood Stones). I uh, DNF Jade City. I just spotted Melissa Scott (Trouble and her Friends) and Samantha Shannon (Priory of the Orange Tree).

[@ToriTalks2]

Hey, we like the books we like. You’ve got some big names on that shelf! I’m sorry Jade City wasn’t for you, but there are so many other great ones. Thank you for your kind shoutout of Blood Stones! 🥰

[@AuthorJohnADouglas]

Soon…very soon…I’ll have a name that should be in this list

[@vetmoreno6100]

Also, S.A. Chakraborty and Devin Madson are fantastic

[@ToriTalks2]

👌🏻👌🏻

[@reflectiverambling1148]

wel hello just stumbling here. but if you don't mind me peaking in my head for a moment... I would be a terrible fan if I didn't attempt to draw people to Elizabeth Bear (both fantasy and scifi) at every given chance if these parameters of this vid interest people.

[@ToriTalks2]

I have her Deed of Paksenarrion on my shelf, and I’ve heard amazing things. Definitely looking forward to trying her work!

[@reflectiverambling1148]

@@ToriTalks2 this does not ring a bell but i will always do a happy dance for this! I hope it doesn't disappoint!

[@Talking_Story]

Great List! I would throw out James Tipptree Jr. don't let the James throw you it is a woman using a pseudonym to get attention in a man's world and of course Octavia Butler.

[@ToriTalks2]

Both authors I have on my TBR! Thanks for the recs, John!

[@Freakgirl1985]

OMG. I was not aware Robin Hobb wrote under a different name as well 🫣 Thx for the info. Ordered 5 Megan Lindholm books now 😄

[@ToriTalks2]

Woohoo! Yep, a whole new canon of work to explore! I hope you have a great time with them. :)