The most anticipated new book in the Locked Tomb series has emerged from the dark this month, along with Stephen Kings' pandemic preoccupation and reality plane-hopping. Here are our top picks for the best new fantasy books in September 2022.
Nona the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir
Publishers summary: Her city is under siege.
The zombies are making a comeback.
Nona's only desire is a birthday celebration.
Nona is like other people in many ways. She lives with her family, has a job at her local school, and loves going on walks on the beach and meeting new dogs. However, she is not like other people. Six months ago she woke up in a strangers body, and she is afraid she will have to give it back.
Nona wants to be the weapon that will save them from the Nine Houses. Pyrrha, Camilla, and Palamedes are all falling to pieces. A massive blue sphere looms on the horizon, ready to devour the planet. Cohort members await the Emperor Undying to arrive. Their leaders want Nona to be the weapon that will save them from the Nine Houses.
Nona dreams of a woman with a skull-painted face every night.
Fairy Tale by Stephen King
ScribnerRelease Date: September 6
According to Den of Geek, Stephen Kings' pandemic novel was based on the idea of a tall, abandoned city. The result: a haunting, grounded portal fantasy filter through the master of horrors' unique lens.
Charlie Reade is a regular high school kid, proficient in baseball and football, and a good student. He learned how to take care of himself and his dad. Howard Bowditch is a recluse in a big house on the top of a big hill, with a locked shed in the backyard. Sometimes strange sounds emerge from it. Then, when Bowditch passes away, he leaves Charlie a cassette tape telling a story no one would believe.
Notorious Sorcerer by Davinia Evans
Type: NovelPublisher: OrbitRelease date: September 13Den of Geek says: A complicated magic systems and characters deeply embedded in their world of rival gangs, glittering alchemy, and layers of existence.
Summary of the Publishers: Welcome to Bezim, where sword-slinging bravi race through the night and rich and idle alchemists create magic from mixing and measuring the four planes of reality.
Siyon Velo, a Dockside brat turned petty alchemist, earns a living by flying between the airplanes to harvest ingredients for the city's alchemists. But Siyon is pushed into the limelight, where he should not be when the planes start lurching out of alignment, threatening to arunc Bezim into the sea.
To save the city, it will take a miracle. It's good to know that Siyon has done the impossible previously. Now he's just have to master it.