Contemporary fantasy, also known as modern fantasy, is a

subgenre Genre () is any form or type of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially-agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a Category of being, category of literature, ...

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving Magic (supernatural), magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy ...

, set in the present day or, more accurately, the time period of the maker. It is perhaps most popular for its subgenre,

urban fantasy Urban fantasy is a subgenre of fantasy which places imaginary and unreal elements in an approximation of a contemporary urban setting. The combination provides the writer with quixotic plot-drivers, unusual character traits, and a platform for cl ...

. Strictly,

supernatural fiction Supernatural fiction or supernaturalist fiction is a genre of speculative fiction that exploits or is centered on supernatural themes, often contradicting naturalist assumptions of the real world. Description In its broadest definition, supe ...

can be said to be part of contemporary fantasy since it has fantasy elements and is set in a contemporary setting. In practice, however, supernatural fiction is a well-established genre in its own right, with its own distinctive conventions.

Definition and overview

The Mealtime Prayer - Fritz von Uhde - Google Cultural Institute

These terms are used to describe stories set in the putative real world (often referred to as ''

consensus reality Consensus reality is that which is generally agreed to be reality, based on a consensus view. The appeal to consensus arises from the idea that humans do not fully understand or agree upon the nature of knowledge or ontology, often making it unce ...

'') in contemporary times, in which magic and magical creatures exist but are not commonly seen or understood as such, either living in the interstices of our world or leaking over from alternate worlds. It thus has much in common with, and sometimes overlaps with secret history; a work of fantasy in which the magic could not remain secret, or does not have any known relationship to known

history History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the History of writing#Inventions of writing, invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbr ...

, would not fit into this subgenre. Novels in which modern characters travel into alternative worlds, and all the magical action takes place there (except for the portal required to transport them), are not considered contemporary fantasy. Thus,

C.S. Lewis CS, C-S, C.S., Cs, cs, or cs. may refer to: Job titles * Chief Secretary (Hong Kong) * Chief superintendent, a rank in the British and several other police forces * Company secretary, a senior position in a private sector company or public se ...

's ''

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe ''The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe'' is a fantasy novel for children by C. S. Lewis, published by Geoffrey Bles in 1950. It is the first published and best known of seven novels in ''The Chronicles of Narnia'' (1950–1956). Among all the ...

'', where all fantasy events take place in the land of

Narnia ''The Chronicles of Narnia'' is a series of seven high fantasy novels by British author C. S. Lewis. Illustrated by Pauline Baynes and originally published between 1950 and 1956, ''The Chronicles of Narnia'' has been adapted for radio, telev ...

which is reached via a magic wardrobe, would not count as contemporary fantasy; on the other hand, the part of ''

The Magician's Nephew ''The Magician's Nephew'' is a fantasy children's novel by C. S. Lewis, published in 1955 by The Bodley Head. It is the sixth published of seven novels in ''The Chronicles of Narnia'' (1950–1956). In recent editions, which sequence the books ...

'', where the Empress Jadis gets to London, tries to take over the Earth and clashes with police and a crowd of cockneys, would qualify as such. Contemporary fantasy is generally distinguished from

horror fiction Horror is a genre of fiction which is intended to frighten, scare, or disgust. Horror is often divided into the sub-genres of psychological horror and supernatural horror, which is in the realm of speculative fiction. Literary historian J ...

– which also often has contemporary settings and fantastic elements – by the overall tone, emphasizing joy or wonder rather than fear or dread. In his preface to ''

That Hideous Strength ''That Hideous Strength: A Modern Fairy-Tale for Grown-Ups'' is a 1945 novel by C. S. Lewis, the final book in Lewis's theological science fiction Space Trilogy. The events of this novel follow those of '' Out of the Silent Planet'' and '' Pere ...

'', one of the earlier works falling within this subgenre,

explained why, when writing a tale about "''magicians, devils, pantomime animals and planetary angels''", he chose to start it with a detailed depiction of narrow-minded academic politics at a provincial English university and the schemes of crooked real estate developers: "''I am following the traditional fairy-tale. We do not always notice its method, because the cottages, castles, woodcutters and petty kings with which a fairy tale opens have become for us as remote as the witches and ogres to which it proceeds. But they were not remote at all to the men who first made and enjoyed the tales''". The same is true for many of the later works in the genre, which often begin with a seemingly normal scene of modern daily life to then disclose supernatural and magical beings and events hidden behind the scenes.

Subgenres

Contemporary fantasies often concern places dear to their authors, are full of local color and atmosphere, and attempt to lend a sense of magic to those places, particularly when the subgenre overlaps with ''

mythic fiction Mythic fiction is literature that is rooted in, inspired by, or that in some way draws from the tropes, themes, and symbolism of myth, legend, folklore, and fairy tales. The term is widely credited to Charles de Lint and Terri Windling. Mythic fic ...

''. When the story takes place in a city, the work is often called ''

''. The contemporary fantasy and low fantasy genres can overlap as both are defined as being set in the real world. There are differences, however. Low fantasies are set in the real world but not necessarily in the modern age, in which case they would not be contemporary fantasy. Contemporary fantasies are set in the real world but may also include distinct fantasy settings within it, such as the

Harry Potter ''Harry Potter'' is a series of seven fantasy literature, fantasy novels written by British author J. K. Rowling. The novels chronicle the lives of a young Magician (fantasy), wizard, Harry Potter (character), Harry Potter, and his friends ...

series, in which case they would be

high High may refer to: Science and technology * Height * High (atmospheric), a high-pressure area * High (computability), a quality of a Turing degree, in computability theory * High (tectonics), in geology an area where relative tectonic uplift ...

rather than low fantasy. Related to Contemporary fantasy are fantasies set in fictional worlds, with their own distinct history and culture, but in which magic coexists with modern technology - rather than being set in a quasi-medieval setting, as were most earlier Fantasy works. For example, at the climax of L.E. Modesitt's '' The Death of Chaos'', powerful magicians engage in a titanic battle and destroy a vast fleet of

WWI World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

-type Dreadnaughts, foiling the expansionist plans of a militarist Emperor loosely modeled on Kaiser Wilhelm of

Imperial Germany The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditary ...

Examples

19th and early 20th centuries

Erich Kästner Emil Erich Kästner (; 23 February 1899 – 29 July 1974) was a German writer, poet, screenwriter and satirist, known primarily for his humorous, socially astute poems and for children's books including '' Emil and the Detectives''. He received ...

The 35th of May, or Conrad's Ride to the South Seas ''The 35th of May, or Conrad's Ride to the South Seas'' (''Der 35. Mai oder Konrad reitet in die Südsee'' in German, its original language) is a novel by Erich Kästner, first published in 1931 in literature, 1931. Unlike most of Kästner's oth ...

'' *

Robert Louis Stevenson Robert Louis Stevenson (born Robert Lewis Balfour Stevenson; 13 November 1850 – 3 December 1894) was a Scottish novelist, essayist, poet and travel writer. He is best known for works such as ''Treasure Island'', ''Strange Case of Dr Jekyll a ...

: ''

The Bottle Imp "The Bottle Imp" is an 1891 short story by the Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson usually found in the short story collection ''Island Nights' Entertainments''. It was first published in the '' New York Herald'' (February–March 1891) and ...

'' *

Jack Williamson John Stewart Williamson (April 29, 1908 – November 10, 2006), who wrote as Jack Williamson, was an American list of science fiction authors, science fiction writer, often called the "Dean of Science Fiction". He is also credited with one of t ...

: '' Darker Than You Think'' * William T. Cox, ''

Fearsome Creatures of the Lumberwoods ''Fearsome Creatures of the Lumberwoods, With a Few Desert and Mountain Beasts'' is a 1910 fantasy field guide by William Thomas Cox (1878–1961), Minnesota’s first State Forester and Commissioner of Conservation, with illustrations by Coer ...

'' * Denis Wheatley's ''Gregory Sallust'' series, pitting the protagonist against supernatural forces on the background of

WWII World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

. *

Stella Benson Stella Benson (6 January 1892 – 7 December 1933) was an English feminist, novelist, poet, and travel writer. She was a recipient of the Benson Medal. Early life Benson was born to Ralph Beaumont Benson (1862–1911), a member of the landed ...

: ''Living Alone'

*

Edith Nesbit Edith Nesbit (married name Edith Bland; 15 August 1858 – 4 May 1924) was an English writer and poet, who published her children's literature, books for children as E. Nesbit. She wrote or collaborated on more than 60 such books. She was also ...

: '' The Magic City'', Psammead series, House of Arden series, ''

The Enchanted Castle ''The Enchanted Castle'' is a children's fantasy novel by Edith Nesbit first published in 1907. Plot summary The enchanted castle of the title is a country estate in the West Country seen through the eyes of three children, Jerry, Jimmy, and ...

'', ''

The Magic World ''The Magic World'' is a collection of twelve short stories by E. Nesbit. It was first published in book form in 1912 by Macmillan and Co. Ltd., with illustrations by H. R. Millar and Gerald Spencer Pryse. The stories, previously printed in ...

'' and other works * Stefan Grabiński: ''Salamandra'' (''Salamander'') *

Edward Eager Edward McMaken Eager (June 20, 1911 – October 23, 1964) was an American lyricist, dramatist, and writer of children's fiction. His children's novels feature the appearance of magic in the lives of ordinary children. Most of the ''Magic'' series ...

: ''The Magic Series'' *

Janusz Korczak Janusz Korczak, the pen name of Henryk Goldszmit (22 July 1878 or 1879 – 7 August 1942), was a Polish Jewish educator, children's author and pedagogue known as ''Pan Doktor'' ("Mr. Doctor") or ''Stary Doktor'' ("Old Doctor"). After spending ma ...

, '' Kaytek the Wizard'' ( pl, Kajtuś Czarodziej) *

P. L. Travers Pamela Lyndon Travers (; born Helen Lyndon Goff; 9 August 1899 – 23 April 1996) was an Australian-British writer who spent most of her career in England. She is best known for the ''Mary Poppins'' series of books, which feature the eponymous ...

: ''

Mary Poppins It may refer to: * ''Mary Poppins'' (book series), the original 1934–1988 children's fantasy novels that introduced the character. * Mary Poppins (character), the nanny with magical powers. * ''Mary Poppins'' (film), a 1964 Disney film sta ...

'' *

Mikhail Bulgakov Mikhail Afanasyevich Bulgakov ( rus, links=no, Михаил Афанасьевич Булгаков, p=mʲɪxɐˈil ɐfɐˈnasʲjɪvʲɪtɕ bʊlˈɡakəf; – 10 March 1940) was a Soviet writer, medical doctor, and playwright active in the fir ...

: ''

The Master and Margarita ''The Master and Margarita'' (russian: Мастер и Маргарита) is a novel by Soviet writer Mikhail Bulgakov Mikhail Afanasyevich Bulgakov ( rus, links=no, Михаил Афанасьевич Булгаков, p=mʲɪxɐˈil ɐf ...

'' *

Rudyard Kipling Joseph Rudyard Kipling ( ; 30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936)''The Times'', (London) 18 January 1936, p. 12. was an English novelist, short-story writer, poet, and journalist. He was born in British India, which inspired much of his work. ...

, ''

Puck of Pook's Hill ''Puck of Pook's Hill'' is a fantasy book by Rudyard Kipling, published in 1906, containing a series of short stories set in different periods of English history. It can count both as historical fantasy – since some of the stories told of ...

'' *

C.S.Lewis Clive Staples Lewis (29 November 1898 – 22 November 1963) was a British writer and Anglican lay theologian. He held academic positions in English literature at both Oxford University (Magdalen College, 1925–1954) and Cambridge Univers ...

: ''

'' *

Hendrik Willem van Loon Hendrik Willem van Loon (January 14, 1882 – March 11, 1944) was a Dutch-American historian, journalist, and children's book author. Life He was born in Rotterdam, Netherlands, the son of Hendrik Willem van Loon and Elisabeth Johanna Hanken. ...

: '' Van Loon's Lives'' *

Selma Lagerlöf Selma Ottilia Lovisa Lagerlöf (, , ; 20 November 1858 – 16 March 1940) was a Swedish author. She published her first novel, ''Gösta Berling's Saga'', at the age of 33. She was the first woman to win the 1909 Nobel Prize in Literature, Nobel Pr ...

: ''

The Wonderful Adventures of Nils ''The Wonderful Adventures of Nils'' ( sv, Nils Holgerssons underbara resa genom Sverige, literally ''Nils Holgersson's wonderful journey across Sweden'') is a work of fiction by the Swedish writer Selma Lagerlöf, the first woman to receive th ...

'' (orig. ''Nils Holgerssons underbara resa genom Sverige'') *

H. G. Wells Herbert George Wells"Wells, H. G."
Revised 18 May 2015. ''

The Wonderful Visit ''The Wonderful Visit'' is an 1895 novel by H. G. Wells. With an angel—a creature of fantasy unlike a religious angel—as protagonist and taking place in contemporary England, the book could be classified as contemporary fantasy, although t ...

'', ''

The Sea Lady ''The Sea Lady'' is a fantasy novel by British writer H. G. Wells, including some of the aspects of a fable. It was serialized from July to December 1901 in ''Pearson's Magazine'' before being published as a volume by Methuen. The inspiratio ...

'' and ''

The Man Who Could Work Miracles ''The Man Who Could Work Miracles'' is a 1937 London Films British fantasy-comedy film directed by Lothar Mendes and produced by Alexander Korda. The film stars Roland Young with a cast of supporting players including Sir Ralph Richardson. Pos ...

'' * Charles Williams: An early innovator of theology-oriented contemporary fantasy.

Later 20th and early 21st centuries

Freda Warrington Freda Warrington is a British author, known for her epic fantasy, vampire and supernatural novels. Four of her novels (''Dark Cathedral'', ''Pagan Moon'', ''Dracula the Undead (novel), Dracula the Undead'', and ''The Amber Citadel'') have been n ...

's ''Aetherial Tales'' series *

Benedict Jacka Benedict Jacka (born 25 September 1980) is a British author, best known for his ''Alex Verus'' series. Biography Jacka was born in England and attended the City of London School. He later attended Cambridge University, where he graduated with a ...

's ''Alex Verus'' series *

Eoin Colfer Eoin Colfer (; born 14 May 1965) is an Irish author of children's books. He worked as a primary school teacher before he became a full-time writer. He is best known for being the author of the Artemis Fowl (series), ''Artemis Fowl'' series. I ...

's ''

Artemis Fowl ''The Fowl Adventures'' is a series of eleven fantasy novels written by Irish people, Irish author Eoin Colfer revolving around various members of the Fowl family. The first cycle, ''Artemis Fowl'', follows Elf (Artemis Fowl), elf LEP Reconna ...

'' series * Ryohgo Narita's ''

Baccano! is a Japanese light novel series written by Ryohgo Narita and illustrated by Katsumi Enami. The series, often told from multiple points of view, is mostly set within a fictional United States during various time periods, most notably the ...

'' (in part) and ''

Durarara!! , often shortened to ''DRRR!!'', is a Japanese light novel series written by Ryohgo Narita, with illustrations by Suzuhito Yasuda. ''Durarara!!'' tells the story of a dullahan working as an underworld courier in Ikebukuro, an internet ...

'' *

Tite Kubo , known professionally as , is a Japanese manga artist and character designer. He is best known for his manga series '' Bleach'' (2001–2016), which had over 130 million copies in circulation as of 2022. Biography Kubo was born on June 26, 197 ...

's ''

Bleach Bleach is the generic name for any chemical product that is used industrially or domestically to remove color (whitening) from a fabric or fiber or to clean or to remove stains in a process called bleaching. It often refers specifically, to ...

'' * Mary Norton's ''

The Borrowers ''The Borrowers'' is a children's fantasy novel by the English author Mary Norton, published by Dent in 1952. It features a family of tiny people who live secretly in the walls and floors of an English house and "borrow" from the big people in ...

'' *

Joss Whedon Joseph Hill Whedon (; born June 23, 1964) is an American filmmaker, composer, and comic book writer. He is the founder of Mutant Enemy Productions, co-founder of Bellwether Pictures, and is best known as the creator of several television series: ...

Buffyverse The Buffyverse or Slayerverse is a Multimedia franchise, media franchise created by Joss Whedon. The term also refers to the shared fictional universe in which the TV series ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' and ''Angel (1999 TV series), Angel'' are ...

Kazuma Kamachi is the pen name of a Japanese author who has published over 100 light novel volumes. He is best known for the creation of the ''A Certain Magical Index'' franchise which, as of 2019, has sold over 30 million copies worldwide and has been license ...

's ''

A Certain Magical Index is a Japanese light novel series written by Kazuma Kamachi and illustrated by Kiyotaka Haimura, which has been published by ASCII Media Works under their Dengeki Bunko imprint since April 2004 in a total of three sepa ...

'' * Virtually the entire oeuvre of

Charles de Lint Charles de Lint (born December 22, 1951) is a Canadian writer of Dutch, Spanish, and Japanese ancestry. He is married to, and plays music with, MaryAnn Harris. Primarily a writer of fantasy fiction, he has composed works of urban fantasy, cont ...

* ''Dangerous Angels'' and other works by

Francesca Lia Block Francesca Lia Block (born December 3, 1962) is an American writer of adult and young-adult literature. She is known for the '' Weetzie Bat'' series, which she began while a student at UC Berkeley. Early life Block was born in Los Angeles to a ...

Constance M. Burge Constance M. Burge is an American television writer and producer. She is the creator of the television series '' Charmed'' (1998–2006) and the short-lived series ''Savannah'' (1996–1997). Burge was also a writer for '' Judging Amy'', '' Ally ...

's ''

Charmed ''Charmed'' is an American fantasy drama television series created by Constance M. Burge and produced by Aaron Spelling and his production company Spelling Television, with Brad Kern serving as showrunner. The series was originally broadcast ...

'' * ''Dark Cities Underground'' by

Lisa Goldstein Lisa Goldstein (born Elizabeth Joy Goldstein on November 21, 1953) is an American fantasy and science fiction writer whose work has been nominated for Nebula, Hugo, and World Fantasy Awards. Her 1982 novel '' The Red Magician'' won a Nation ...

Susan Cooper Susan Mary Cooper (born 23 May 1935) is an English author of children's books. She is best known for '' The Dark Is Rising'', a contemporary fantasy series set in England and Wales, which incorporates British mythology such as the Arthurian le ...

's ''

The Dark Is Rising Sequence ''The Dark Is Rising Sequence'' is a series of five contemporary fantasy novels for older children and young adults that were written by the British author Susan Cooper and published from 1965 to 1977. The first book in the series, ''Over Sea, ...

'' * Tom Deitz's ''The David Sullivan series'' * Hazel Butler's ''Deathly Insanity'' series. *

Jenna Black Jennifer Black is an American author of paranormal romance novels, urban fantasy, and young adult fantasy novels. She began writing under the pen name Jenna Black in 2006. She published one novel earlier under her other name, Jennifer Barlow, and ...

's '' The Devil Inside'', set in the United States with demons. * ''

The Dresden Files ''The Dresden Files'' is a series of contemporary fantasy/mystery novels written by American author Jim Butcher. The first novel, '' Storm Front''—which was also Butcher's writing debut—was published in 2000 by Roc Books. The books are wri ...

'' series by

Jim Butcher Jim Butcher (born October 26, 1971) is an American author., He has written the contemporary fantasy ''The Dresden Files'', ''Codex Alera'', and ''Cinder Spires'' book series. Personal life Butcher was born in Independence, Missouri, in 1971. He ...

Raymond E. Feist Raymond Elias Feist (; born Raymond Elias Gonzales III; December 21, 1945) is an American fantasy fiction author who wrote ''The Riftwar Cycle'', a series of novels and short stories. His books have been translated into multiple languages and ha ...

's ''

Faerie Tale ''Faerie Tale'' is a fantasy, supernatural thriller, falling within the subgenre of contemporary fantasy, by American writer Raymond E. Feist, first published in 1988. It was translated and published in Dutch language, Dutch as ''Een Boosaardi ...

'' * Type-Moon's ''

The Garden of Sinners ''The Garden of Sinners'', known in Japan as sometimes referred to as , is a Japanese light novel series, written by Kinoko Nasu and illustrated by Takashi Takeuchi. Originally released as a series of chapters released independently onl ...

'', ''

Tsukihime is a Japanese eroge, adult visual novel created by the doujin soft, dōjin circle Type-Moon, who first released it at the Comiket, Winter Comiket in December 2000. In 2003, it was adapted into both an anime television series, ''Lunar Leg ...

'', and ''

Fate Destiny, sometimes referred to as fate (from Latin ''fatum'' "decree, prediction, destiny, fate"), is a predetermined course of events. It may be conceived as a predetermined future, whether in general or of an individual. Fate Although often ...

'' series which takes place in a world where magic has all but vanished as technology has overtaken it and all the gods and magical creatures have either disappeared or simply left. * Peter S. Beagle's ''

A Fine and Private Place ''A Fine and Private Place'' is a fantasy novel by American writer Peter S. Beagle, the first of his major fantasies. It was first published in hardcover by Viking Press on May 23, 1960, followed by a trade paperback from Delta the same year. ...

'' and other works by him. *

Richelle Mead Richelle Mead (born November 12, 1976) is an American fantasy author. She is known for the '' Georgina Kincaid'' series, '' Vampire Academy'', '' Bloodlines'' and the '' Dark Swan'' series. Education and career Richelle Mead was born in Michigan, ...

's ''

Georgina Kincaid The ''Georgina Kincaid'' series is a collection of six urban fantasy novels written by Richelle Mead. The series is written in a first-person perspective following the main character, Georgina Kincaid, who is a succubus A succubus is a demon ...

'' series *

Midori Snyder Midori Snyder is an American writer of fantasy, mythic fiction, and nonfiction on myth and folklore. She has published eight novels for children and adults, winning the Mythopoeic Award for ''The Innamorati''. Her work has been translated into F ...

's ''Hannah's Garden'' *

J.K. Rowling Joanne Rowling ( "rolling"; born 31 July 1965), also known by her pen name J. K. Rowling, is a British author and philanthropist. She wrote ''Harry Potter'', a seven-volume children's fantasy series published from 1997 to 2007. The ser ...

's ''

'' series - set in the United Kingdom during the 1990s, with flashbacks to the 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, 1970s, and 1980s, and flash-forwards to the 2010s.

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child ''Harry Potter and the Cursed Child'' is a play written by Jack Thorne from an original story by J. K. Rowling, John Tiffany, and Thorne. Previews of the play began at the Palace Theatre, London, on 7 June 2016 as a two-part play, and it prem ...

is set during the 2020s, with flashbacks to the 1980s, 1990s, and 2010s. Alternately, J.K. Rowling's ''

Fantastic Beasts ''Fantastic Beasts'' is a film series directed by David Yates, and a spin-off prequel to the ''Harry Potter'' novel and film series. The series is distributed by Warner Bros. and consists of three fantasy films as of 2022, beginning with ...

'' series of screenplays, takes place in a number of global locations, throughout the 1920s, '30s, and ending in 1945. *

Kouta Hirano is a Japanese manga artist born in Adachi, Tokyo, Japan, most famous for his manga ''Hellsing'' and ''Drifters''. Career Hirano said he learned how to be a manga artist from reading Akira Toriyama and Akira Sakuma's '' Hetappi Manga Kenkyūjo' ...

's ''

Hellsing ''Hellsing'' (stylized in all caps) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Kouta Hirano. It was serialized in Shōnen Gahōsha's ''seinen'' manga magazine '' Young King OURs'' from May 1997 to September 2008, with its ch ...

'' *

Philip Pullman Sir Philip Nicholas Outram Pullman (born 19 October 1946) is an English writer. His books include the fantasy trilogy ''His Dark Materials'' and ''The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ'', a fictionalised biography of Jesus. In 2008, ''The ...

's ''

His Dark Materials ''His Dark Materials'' is a trilogy of fantasy novels by Philip Pullman consisting of '' Northern Lights'' (1995; published as ''The Golden Compass'' in North America), ''The Subtle Knife'' (1997), and ''The Amber Spyglass'' (2000). It follows ...

'' trilogy - The trilogy takes place across several universes including "ours". *

Hirohiko Araki is a Japanese manga artist. He is best known for his long-running series ''JoJo's Bizarre Adventure'', which began publication in ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' in 1987 and has over 120 million copies in circulation, making it one of the best-selling ...

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Hirohiko Araki. It was originally serialized in Shueisha's ''shōnen'' manga magazine ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' from 1987 to 2004, and was transferred to the monthly ''seinen'' manga ...

(

Stardust Crusaders is the third story arc of the manga series ''JoJo's Bizarre Adventure'' written and illustrated by Hirohiko Araki. The arc was serialized for a little over 3 years. It was serialized in Shueisha's ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' from April 3, 1989, ...

, Diamond Is Unbreakable, Golden Wind, Stone Ocean, and

JoJolion is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Hirohiko Araki, and is the eighth part of the larger ''JoJo's Bizarre Adventure'' series. Set in Japan in 2011, it follows Josuke Higashikata, a young man afflicted by retrograde amnesia, i ...

) - ''

Phantom Blood is a 1987 manga series created by Hirohiko Araki, and the first part of the larger ''JoJo's Bizarre Adventure'' series. The manga was originally serialized by Shueisha in ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' under the title and was collected in five ...

'' and ''

Steel Ball Run is the seventh story arc of the Japanese manga series ''JoJo's Bizarre Adventure'', written and illustrated by Hirohiko Araki. Set in the United States in 1890, it stars Johnny Joestar, a paraplegic former jockey who desires to regain the us ...

'' take place in the late 19th century, while ''

Battle Tendency is the second story arc of the manga series ''JoJo's Bizarre Adventure'' written and illustrated by Hirohiko Araki. It was serialized for around years in Shueisha's ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' from November 2, 1987, to March 27, 1989, for 69 c ...

'' takes place in the late 1930s; and with the exception of ''Stardust Crusaders'' and ''JoJolion'', each series takes place in a near future relative to its original publishing date. *

China Miéville China Tom Miéville ( ; born 6 September 1972) is a British speculative fiction writer and literary critic. He often describes his work as ''weird fiction'' and is allied to the loosely associated movement of writers called '' New Weird''. Mi ...

's '' King Rat'' * ''

Little, Big ''Little, Big: or, The Fairies' Parliament'' is a contemporary fantasy novel by John Crowley, published in 1981. It won the World Fantasy Award in 1982. Plot Turn-of-the-century American architect John Drinkwater begins to suspect that within ...

'' and other works by John Crowley *

Lev Grossman Lev Grossman (born June 26, 1969) is an American novelist and journalist who wrote ''The Magicians Trilogy'': '' The Magicians'' (2009), '' The Magician King'' (2011), and '' The Magician's Land'' (2014). He was the book critic and lead technolog ...

's '' The Magicians'' series * Various works by

Mercedes Lackey Mercedes Ritchie Lackey (born June 24, 1950) is an American writer of fantasy novels. Many of her novels and trilogies are interlinked and set in the world of Velgarth, mostly in and around the country of Valdemar. Her Valdemar novels include i ...

. * ''Minions of the Moon'' by

Richard Bowes Richard "Rick" Dirrane Bowes (born 1944) is an American author of science fiction and fantasy. Biography Bowes was born in 1944 in Boston, Massachusetts. He attended school both in Boston and on Long Island, New York. His brother is fine artis ...

Boris and Arkady Strugatsky The brothers Arkady Natanovich Strugatsky (russian: Аркадий Натанович Стругацкий; 28 August 1925 – 12 October 1991) and Boris Natanovich Strugatsky ( ru , Борис Натанович Стругацкий; 14 A ...

's "

Monday Begins on Saturday ''Monday Begins on Saturday'' (russian: Понедельник начинается в субботу) is a 1965 science fantasy novel by Soviet writers Boris and Arkady Strugatsky, with illustrations by Yevgeniy Migunov. Set in a fictional to ...

", where magic and characters from Russian myth exist in the Soviet Union of the time of writing. *

Nisio Isin , stylized as NISIOISIN to emphasize the palindrome, is a pseudonymous Japanese novelist, manga author, and screenplay writer. Nisio debuted in 2002 with the novel ''The Beheading Cycle'' (the first in his ''Zaregoto'' series), which earned him ...

Monogatari is a literary form in traditional Japanese literature – an extended prose narrative tale comparable to the epic novel. ''Monogatari'' is closely tied to aspects of the oral tradition, and almost always relates a fictional or fictionalized st ...

series. * A number of works by

Neil Gaiman Neil Richard MacKinnon GaimanBorn as Neil Richard Gaiman, with "MacKinnon" added on the occasion of his marriage to Amanda Palmer. ; ( Neil Richard Gaiman; born 10 November 1960) is an English author of short fiction, novels, comic books, gr ...

, among them ''

American Gods ''American Gods'' (2001) is a fantasy novel by British author Neil Gaiman. The novel is a blend of Americana, fantasy, and various strands of ancient and modern mythology, all centering on the mysterious and taciturn Shadow. The book was pub ...

'' and ''

Neverwhere ''Neverwhere'' is an urban fantasy television miniseries by Neil Gaiman that first aired in 1996 on BBC 2. The series is set in "London Below", a magical realm coexisting with the more familiar London, referred to as "London Above". It was d ...

'', set in a

secondary world A fictional universe, or fictional world, is a self-consistent setting with events, and often other elements, that differ from the real world. It may also be called an imagined, constructed, or fictional realm (or world). Fictional universes may ...

below London with links to the real world. *

Sergei Lukyanenko Sergei Vasilyevich Lukyanenko (russian: Серге́й Васи́льевич Лукья́ненко, ; born 11 April 1968) is a Russian science fiction and fantasy author, writing in Russian. His works often feature intense action-packed plots, ...

's '' Night Watch'', set in

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

. It has three sequels that form a

tetralogy A tetralogy (from Greek τετρα- ''tetra-'', "four" and -λογία ''-logia'', "discourse") is a compound work that is made up of four distinct works. The name comes from the Attic theater, in which a tetralogy was a group of three tragedies ...

; '' Day Watch'', '' Twilight Watch'' and '' Final Watch''. * Natasha Mostert's ''The Other Side of Silence'' and ''Season of the Witch'' *

Rick Riordan Richard Russell Riordan Junior (; born June 5, 1964) is an American author, best known for writing the ''Percy Jackson & the Olympians'' series. Riordan's books have been translated into forty-two languages and sold more than thirty million co ...

Percy Jackson & the Olympians ''Percy Jackson & the Olympians'' is a series of five fantasy novels written by American author Rick Riordan, and the first book series in the '' Camp Half-Blood Chronicles''. The novels are set in a world with the Greek gods in the 21st centu ...

Heroes of Olympus ''The Heroes of Olympus'' is a pentalogy of fantasy-adventure novels written by American author Rick Riordan. The novels detail a conflict between Greek demigods, Roman demigods, and Gaia (Roman name Terra). In the fourth book of the series, ...

The Kane Chronicles ''The Kane Chronicles'' is a trilogy of Adventure novel, adventure and Egyptian mythology, Egyptian Mythic fiction, mythological fiction books written by American author Rick Riordan. The series is set in the same universe as Riordan's other fra ...

Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard ''Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard'' is a trilogy of fantasy novels written by American author Rick Riordan with the subject of Norse mythology and published by Disney- Hyperion. It is based on Norse mythology and is set in the same unive ...

, and ''

The Trials of Apollo ''The Trials of Apollo'' is a pentalogy of fantasy adventure and mythological fiction novels written by American author Rick Riordan that collectively form a sequel to the ''Heroes of Olympus'' series. It is set in the same world as the Riordan ...

'' series. *

Richard Kadrey Richard Kadrey (born August 27, 1957) is a San Francisco-based novelist, freelance writer, and photographer. Kadrey was born in New York City, New York. Fiction Kadrey has written fifteen novels, including ''The New York Times'' Best Seller ...

's ''Sandman Slim'' series *

Derek Landy Derek Landy (born 23 October 1974) is an Irish author and screenwriter, best known for the ''Skulduggery Pleasant'' book series. Career Landy has written two screenplays that have been made into films, the IFTA award-winning '' Dead Bodies'' an ...

's Skulduggery Pleasant (series) *

Josepha Sherman Josepha Sherman (December 12, 1946 – August 23, 2012) was an American author, folklorist, and anthologist. In 1990 she won the Compton Crook Award for the novel ''The Shining Falcon''. Works Series Buffyverse *'' Visitors'' (1999) (wit ...

's ''Son of Darkness'' *

Charlaine Harris Charlaine Harris Schulz (born November 25, 1951) is an American author who specializes in Mystery fiction, mysteries. She is best known for her book series ''The Southern Vampire Mysteries'', which was adapted as the TV series ''True Blood''. The ...

The Southern Vampire Mysteries ''The Southern Vampire Mysteries'', also known as ''The True Blood Novels'' and ''The Sookie Stackhouse Novels'', is a series of books written by bestselling author Charlaine Harris. The first installment, ''Dead Until Dark'' (2001), won the Ant ...

and its television adaption,

True Blood ''True Blood'' is an American fantasy horror drama television series produced and created by Alan Ball. It is based on ''The Southern Vampire Mysteries'', a series of novels by Charlaine Harris. A reboot is currently in development. The serie ...

Eric Kripke Eric Kripke (born 1974) is an American writer and television producer. He came to prominence as the creator of the fantasy drama series ''Supernatural'' (2005–2020) which aired on The CW. He served as the showrunner during the first five seasons ...

Supernatural Supernatural refers to phenomena or entities that are beyond the laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin (above, beyond, or outside of) + (nature) Though the corollary term "nature", has had multiple meanings si ...

* Various works by

Tanya Huff Tanya Sue Huff (born 1957) is a Canadian fantasy author. Her stories have been published since the late 1980s, including five fantasy series and one science fiction series. One of these, her '' Blood Books'' series, featuring detective Vicki Ne ...

. * Most of the novels of

Tim Powers Timothy Thomas Powers (born February 29, 1952) is an American science fiction and fantasy fiction, fantasy author. Powers has won the World Fantasy Award twice for his critically acclaimed novels ''Last Call (novel), Last Call'' and ''Declare''. ...

* Tithe: A Modern Faerie Tale and a number of other works by

Holly Black Holly Black (''née'' Riggenbach; born November 10, 1971) is an American writer and editor best known for her children's and young adult fiction. Her most recent work is the ''New York Times'' bestselling young adult ''Folk of the Air'' series. ...

Sui Ishida is a Japanese manga artist. He is best known for his dark fantasy manga series ''Tokyo Ghoul'' and '' Choujin X''. Career history Sui Ishida is best known for his dark fantasy series ''Tokyo Ghoul'', a story about a young man named Ken Kaneki w ...

's ''

Tokyo Ghoul is a Japanese dark fantasy manga series written and illustrated by Sui Ishida. It was serialized in Shueisha's ''seinen'' manga magazine ''Weekly Young Jump'' between September 2011 and September 2014, and was collected in four ...

'' *

Stephenie Meyer Stephenie Meyer (; née Morgan; born December 24, 1973) is an American novelist and film producer. She is best known for writing the vampire literature, vampire romance series ''Twilight (novel series), Twilight'', which has sold over 100 mill ...

's Twilight Saga *

Isaac Asimov yi, יצחק אזימאװ , birth_date = , birth_place = Petrovichi, Russian SFSR , spouse = , relatives = , children = 2 , death_date = , death_place = Manhattan, New York City, U.S. , nationality = Russian (1920–1922)Soviet (192 ...

's "The Two-Centimeter Demon" and other stories involving the tiny demon

Azazel In the Bible, the name Azazel (; he, עֲזָאזֵל ''ʿAzāʾzēl''; ar, عزازيل, ʿAzāzīl) appears in association with the scapegoat rite; the name represents a desolate place where a scapegoat bearing the sins of the Jews during Y ...

. *

L. J. Smith John Smith III (born May 13, 1980), commonly known as L. J., which stands for "Little John", is a former American football tight end in the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in the second round of the 2003 ...

The Vampire Diaries (novel series) ''The Vampire Diaries'' is a young adult vampire fiction series of novels created by American author L. J. Smith. The story centers on Elena Gilbert, a young high school girl who finds her heart eventually torn between two vampire brothers, S ...

and its television adaption * P.N. Elrod's Vampire Files series following Jack Fleming a vampire P.I. *

Emma Bull Emma Bull (born December 13, 1954) is an American science fiction and fantasy author. Her novels include the Hugo- and Nebula-nominated ''Bone Dance'' and the urban fantasy ''War for the Oaks''. She is also known for a series of anthologies se ...

's ''

War for the Oaks ''War for the Oaks'' (1987) is a fantasy novel by American writer Emma Bull. The book tells the story of Eddi McCandry, a rock musician who finds herself unwillingly pulled into the supernatural faerie conflict between good and evil. ''War fo ...

'' *

Clive Barker Clive Barker (born 5 October 1952) is an English novelist, playwright, author, film director, and visual artist who came to prominence in the mid-1980s with a series of short stories, the ''Books of Blood'', which established him as a leading h ...

's ''

Weaveworld ''Weaveworld'' is a 1987 dark fantasy novel by English writer Clive Barker. It is about a magical world that is hidden inside a tapestry, known as the Fugue, to safeguard it from both inquisitive humans and hostile supernatural foes. Two norm ...

'' and ''

Imajica ''Imajica'' is a fantasy novel by British author Clive Barker. Barker, in 1997, named it as his favourite of all his writings up to that point. The work, 824 pages at its first printing in 1991, chronicles the events surrounding the reconciliati ...

'' *

Tony Vilgotsky Anton "Tony" Vilgotsky (Russian: Антон Вильгоцкий) is a Russian musician, composer, horror and fantasy writer, playwright, and musical columnist. He is mostly known for his fantasy and horror novels (''Chosen by the Pentacle'', '' ...

's ''Chronicles of Skharn'' and ''Shepherd of the Dead'' *

W.I.T.C.H. ''W.I.T.C.H.'' (stylised as ''W.i.t.c.h.'') is an Italian fantasy Disney comics series created by Elisabetta Gnone, Alessandro Barbucci, and Barbara Canepa. The series features a group of five teenage girls who become the guardians of the classi ...

a comic series by Elisabetta Gnone, Alessandro Barbucci, and Barbara Canepa. *

Kelley Armstrong Kelley Armstrong (born 14 December 1968)Bio for school projects Terri Windling Terri Windling (born December 3, 1958 in Fort Dix, New Jersey) is an American editor, artist, essayist, and the author of books for both children and adults. She has won nine World Fantasy Awards, the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award, and the Bram Stoke ...

's ''

The Wood Wife ''The Wood Wife'' is a novel by American writer Terri Windling, published by Tor Books in 1996. It won the Mythopoeic Award for Novel of the Year. It is Windling's first novel; she is better known as a longtime editor of fantasy and speculative f ...

'' *

Terry Brooks Terence Dean Brooks (born January 8, 1944) is an American writer of fantasy fiction. He writes mainly epic fantasy, and has also written two film novelizations. He has written 23 ''New York Times'' bestsellers during his writing career, and has ...

' Word/Void novels *

Diane Duane Diane Duane (born May 18, 1952) is an American science fiction and fantasy author, long based in Ireland. Her works include the ''Young Wizards'' young adult fantasy series and the '' Rihannsu'' Star Trek novels. Biography Born in New York ...

Young Wizards ''Young Wizards'' is a series of novels by Diane Duane. The Young Wizards series presently consists of eleven books, focusing on the adventures of two young wizards named Nita and Kit. Each novel pits Nita and Kit against the "Lone Power", an e ...

- the protagonists live in Manhattan, New York, but each book in the series has a different setting; settings include various planets within and outside of the Solar System and various alternative universes. *

Ysabel ''Ysabel'' is a fantasy novel by Canadian author Guy Gavriel Kay. It was first published in January 2007 by Viking Canada. It is Kay's first urban fantasy and his first book set outside his fantasied Europe milieux since the publication of his f ...

Guy Gavriel Kay Guy Gavriel Kay (born November 7, 1954) is a Canadian writer of fantasy fiction. The majority of his novels take place in fictional settings that resemble real places during real historical periods, such as Constantinople during the reign of Jus ...

mostly set in 21st-century Aix-en-Provence *

Yoshihiro Togashi is a Japanese manga artist. He began drawing manga at an early age, before being recognized for his talent by publishing company Shueisha while attending college. Togashi has authored several manga series in different genres during the past thr ...

Yu Yu Hakusho is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Yoshihiro Togashi. The series tells the story of Yusuke Urameshi, a teenage delinquent who is struck and killed by a car while attempting to save a child's life. After a number of te ...

* P. B. Kerr'

Children of the Lamp ''Children of the Lamp'' is a series of contemporary fantasy novels written by the British author Philip Kerr, P. B. Kerr. It tells the story of twins John and Philippa as they discover how to act in the world of Jinn, djinn (genies). The story h ...

* Oh Seong-dae's Tales of the Unusual

Overlap with other genres

Contemporary fantasy can also be found marketed as mainstream or

literary fiction Literary fiction, mainstream fiction, non-genre fiction or serious fiction is a label that, in the book trade, refers to market novels that do not fit neatly into an established genre (see genre fiction); or, otherwise, refers to novels that are ch ...

and frequently marketed as

magical realism Magical is the adjective for magic. It may also refer to: * Magical (horse) (foaled 2015), Irish Thoroughbred racehorse * "Magical" (song), released in 1985 by John Parr * '' Magical: Disney's New Nighttime Spectacular of Magical Celebrations'', ...

, itself arguably a fantasy genre. Examples include ''

Practical Magic ''Practical Magic'' is a 1998 American fantasy romantic drama film based on the 1995 novel of the same name by Alice Hoffman. The film was directed by Griffin Dunne and stars Sandra Bullock, Nicole Kidman, Stockard Channing, Dianne Wiest, Aid ...

'' by

Alice Hoffman Alice Hoffman (born March 16, 1952) is an American novelist and young-adult and children's writer, best known for her 1995 novel ''Practical Magic'', which was adapted for a 1998 film of the same name. Many of her works fall into the genre of ...

, '' The Antelope Wife'' by

Louise Erdrich Louise Erdrich ( ; born Karen Louise Erdrich, June 7, 1954) is an American author of novels, poetry, and children's books featuring Native American characters and settings. She is an enrolled member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indian ...

, and '' Mistress of Spices'' by Chitra Bannerjee Divakaruni.

References

* Martin Horstkotte, ''The postmodern fantastic in contemporary British fiction''. WVT, Trier 2004, * Lance Olsen, ''Ellipse of uncertainty : an introduction to postmodern fantasy''. Greenwood Press, Westport 1987,

External links

* {{Film genres Fantasy genres

Definition and overview

Subgenres

Examples

19th and early 20th centuries

Later 20th and early 21st centuries

Overlap with other genres

See also

References

External links