44 New Sci-Fi and Fantasy Books to Add to Your November Reading List

November is upon us, and it’s bringing exciting titles like a new Murderbot tale from Martha Wells, a return to the world of the Kingkiller Chronicle from Patrick Rothfuss, and Jim Butcher’s long-awaited next Cinder Spires novel—and more! Check out these 44 new sci-fi, fantasy, and horror releases coming to bookshelves this month.

Bradbury Weather by Caitlín R. Kiernan

Almost all of the author’s sci-fi short stories and novellas fill this collection of 28 tales charting “dystopian futures, first contacts gone horribly awry, the limits and dangers of technology, and encounters with the alien within us all.” (November 1)

The Senior Girls Bayonet Drill Team and Other Stories by Joe R. Lansdale

“The usual wicked potpourri of Lansdale tales and story notes.” (November 1)

Bookshops & Bonedust by Travis Baldree

“When an injury throws a young, battle-hungry orc off her chosen path, she may find that what we need isn’t always what we seek.” Set in the same world as the author’s Legends & Lattes. (November 7)

Chaos Terminal by Mur Lafferty

The Midsolar Murders series continues as Mallory finds herself pulled back into the amateur-detective game when more death—this time, a murdered passenger on an Earth shuttle bound for Station Eternity—enters into her life, along with a pair of fugitives and more potential disasters. (November 7)

A Curse of Krakens by Kevin Hearne

The Seven Kennings epic fantasy series concludes as Pen steps up to become a hero, Abhi is tasked with using his unique magic to communicate with krakens, and Koesha and her crew set out on one last perilous seafaring adventure. (November 7)

Do Your Worst by Rosie Danan

“Riley Rhodes finally has the chance to turn her family’s knack for the supernatural into a legitimate business when she’s hired to break the curse on an infamous Scottish castle.” Things get complicated when an alluring but annoying archaeologist gets in her way. (November 7)

The Future by Naomi Alderman

The latest from the author of The Power follows “a handful of friends [who] plot a daring heist to save the world from the tech giants whose greed threatens life as we know it.” (November 7)

Hunt on Dark Waters by Katee Robert

A new fantasy romance series begins as a chaotic witch falls through a portal while fleeing from her vampire ex—and is pressed into service at sea when she’s rescued by a telekinetic pirate captain. (November 7)

The Hunting Moon by Susan Dennard

In this sequel to The Luminaries, “as bodies and secrets pile up around town, Winnie finds herself questioning what it means to be a true Wednesday and a true Luminary—and also where her fierce-hearted loyalties might ultimately have to lie.” (November 7)

Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros

The Empyrean series continues as Violet continues her physically, mentally, and emotionally intense dragon-rider training at Basgiath War College. (November 7)

Murtagh: The World of Eragon by Christopher Paolini

“The world is no longer safe for the Dragon Rider Murtagh and his dragon, Thorn. An evil king has been toppled, and they are left to face the consequences of the reluctant role they played in his reign of terror. Now they are hated and alone, exiled to the outskirts of society.” (November 7)

The Olympian Affair by Jim Butcher

The Cinder Spires steampunk fantasy adventure series continues. War looms as the airship fleets of the Spires’ noble houses square off in the skies high above the dwindling human population on the ground below. Read an excerpt here. (November 7)

A Power Unbound by Freya Markse

The Last Binding trilogy concludes as Jack tries to put magic behind him after his twin sister’s death, but finds himself back in the fold (and fighting an inconvenient attraction) as he sets out to save Britain’s magicians from a ritual that could destroy them. (November 7)

The Princess of Thornwood Drive by Khalia Moreau

After a car accident kills her parents and leaves her younger sister paralyzed and unable to speak, a young woman struggles to keep up with life in the real world—while her sister lives out a vivid fairy-tale drama in her mind. (November 7)

Same Bed Different Dreams by Ed Park

“A wild, sweeping novel that imagines an alternate secret history of Korea and the traces it leaves on the present—loaded with assassins and mad poets, RPGs and slasher films, pop bands and the perils of social media.” (November 7)

Slay by Laurell K. Hamilton

The 30th novel in the Anita Blake series finds the vampire hunter facing obstacles both human and supernatural while preparing for her wedding to the vampire king of America. (November 7)

Spirit of the Wood by Kristen Britain

This short novel is “perfect for longtime Green Rider fans eager for more of the world or new readers discovering the realm of Sacoridia for the first time,” and is described as an “action-packed, feminist fantasy.” (November 7)

Swarm by Jennifer D. Lyle

The sudden appearance of what look like giant butterflies becomes alarming once it’s clear how aggressive they are. A young woman, her brother, and their friends do their best to survive the invasion—and must face a greater horror that follows. (November 7)

Tonight, I Burn by Katharine J. Adams

“A thorn witch with the power to walk between the realms of Life and Death finds herself at the center of a magical rebellion—and a dangerous romance—that could destroy her coven and her soul.” (November 7)

We Are the Crisis by Cadwell Turnbull

In this sequel to No Gods, No Monsters, “humans and monsters clash as civil rights collide with preternatural forces.” (November 7)

Where He Can’t Find You by Darcy Coates

A young woman fights to rescue her sister from the terrifying serial killer stalking her town—and starts to suspect the monster so fond of dismembering his victims may not be entirely human. (November 7)

The Whole Mess and Other Stories by Jack Skillingstead

“What does it mean to be human in a universe of shifting, sometimes terrifying realities? Eighteen stories from Jack Skillingstead’s second decade of publishing feature intense and surprising explorations of who we are, who we wish to be, and who we can’t be.” (November 7)

Before We Say Goodbye by Toshikazu Kawaguchi

The latest in the author’s Before the Coffee Gets Cold series asks, “Who would you visit if you could travel through time?” (November 14)

Calamity by Constance Fay

In this romance set in deep space, “the captain of a ragtag mercenary ship is given an offer she can’t refuse by the ruthless head of an intergalactic noble family. The only catch? She’ll have to team up with his son—an upsettingly competent hardbody with his own agenda—to get her reward.” (November 14)

Cold Curses by Chloe Neill

The Heirs of Chicagoland series continues as vampire Elisa Sullivan and her friends face down a new magical conflict that erupts in a city still trying to recover from its last supernatural battle. (November 14)

Hellweg’s Keep by Justin Holley

In this sci-fi mystery, “37 miners disappear without a trace within a Titanium mine deep within Zeta One, a moon orbiting the planet, Terra. When FBI agent Kendra Omen arrives via the spaceship Marietta, strange phenomenon begins to manifest.” (November 14)

The Lost Cause by Cory Doctorow

“It’s 30 years from now. We’re making progress, mitigating climate change, slowly but surely. But what about all the angry old people who can’t let go? … The Lost Cause asks: What do we do about people who cling to the belief that their own children are the enemy? When, in fact, they’re often the elders that we love?” (November 14)

Mind Burn by Rhett C. Bruno and T.E. Bakutis

“Minority Report meets Ready Player One as a new investigator hunts down a dangerous criminal capable of high-jacking and controlling cybernetic implants.” (November 14)

Mothtown by Caroline Hardaker

A young man who’s long had a feeling that something in his life is very wrong—a feeling that intensifies after his grandfather mysterious disappears—starts to understand the truth when he receives a mysterious package. (November 14)

The Narrow Road Between Desires by Patrick Rothfuss

The author returns to the world of his best-selling Kingkiller Chronicle with this reimagining and significant expansion of The Lightning Tree, an illustrated standalone story. (November 14)

Shadow Baron by Davinia Evans

The Burnished City series continues with a new tale of “ irreverent alchemists, high society ladies, and swashbuckling street gangs as they wrestle with the nature of reality itself.” (November 14)

Sister of Starlit Seas by Terry Brooks

“A rebellious young heroine begins a voyage of self-discovery in the third novel of an epic fantasy series set in the world of Viridian Deep, from the legendary author of the Shannara saga.” (November 14)

The Star and the Strange Moon by Constance Sayers

In 2007, a film student investigates the strange disappearance of a horror-film actress in 1968—and finds himself becoming entangled with the mystery in frightening ways. (November 14)

System Collapse by Martha Wells

The Murderbot Diaries series continues as Murderbot tries to figure out what’s wrong with itself… as the imperiled population of a newly colonized planet anxiously waits to be rescued. Read an interview with the author here. (November 14)

Temple of Fortuna by Elodie Harper

The Wolf Den Trilogy concludes as Amara settles into her new life as a Roman courtesan—but back home in Pompeii, her loved ones are in the line of fire of the soon-to-erupt Mount Vesuvius. (November 14)

Defiant by Brandon Sanderson

The Skyward series “about a girl who will travel beyond the stars to save the world she loves from destruction” comes to an end in this final volume. (November 21)

The Ghosts of Beatrice Bird by Louisa Morgan

Trying to escape the ghosts that relentlessly haunt her, a woman moves to a small island, where she finds the ability that’s tormented her might actually have a useful purpose—while also exposing her to great danger. (November 21)

 Saevus Corax Captures the Castle by K.J. Parker

“It’s important to look after your crew when you’re in the battlefield salvage business. It’s stressful work at the best of times, and although your employees are unlikely to be happy it makes sense to keep them alive. So when Saevus Corax finds himself having to capture a castle to stop his men from being killed, he has no choice but to give it a try.” (November 21)

Warrior of the Wind by Suyi Davies Okungbowa

“From city streets where secrets are bartered for gold to forests teeming with fabled beasts, Suyi Davies Okungbowa’s sweeping epic of forgotten magic and violent conquests continues in this richly drawn fantasy inspired by the pre-colonial empires of West Africa.” (November 21)

A Demon’s Guide to Wooing a Witch by Sarah Hawley

He’s a snarky demon with amensia, she’s a witch with a grudge against demons—but there’s an attraction between them that neither can deny, as much as they really, really want to. (November 28)

The Kingdom of Sweets by Erika Johansen

“This gloriously transportive reimagining of The Nutcracker tells the tale of twin sisters, divided by envy and magic, set against each another one fateful Christmas Eve.” (November 28)

Like Thunder by Nnedi Okorafor

The author’s Desert Magician’s Duology continues with this sequel to Shadow Speaker, an Africanfuturist tale set in a magical Niger, West Africa, in 2077. Read an excerpt here. (November 28)

Shards of Glass by Michelle Sagara

When students start dying at a newly reopened magic academy, two classmates join forces to try and figure out who’s imperiling their new home and found family. (November 28)

Uncanny Vows by Laura Anne Gilman

The sequel to Uncanny Times finds supernatural investigators Rosemary and Aaron Harker on a new case—but they soon begin to suspect their new hunt is a set-up, and they might be the targets of sinister forces trying to turn the tables on them. (November 28)

Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

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