Urban Fantasy Suggestions

Hypnos164

Hypnos164

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I seem to be a bit short of material in the "Ubran Fantasy" line at the minute.

Suggestions welcome.

Looking for things with a bit more substance than the average vampire romance..

All time favourites:
  • Dresden - Jim Butcher
  • Felix Castor - Mike Carey
  • Joe Pitt - Charlie Huston
  • Night Watch / Day Watch
  • Laundry - Charles Stross
  • Garrett - Glen Cook (not sure this really count as UF)
I would guess that I'm looking for new authors and / or hidden gems as I've read most of the big names (this subgenre covers maybe 25% of my reading).
 
You might want to give some of Mark Chadbourn's books a look, particularly his Age of Misrule, Dark Age and Kingdom of the Serpent trilogies.

Whilst not quite wizards in Chicago, I think they fit the "urban fantasy" bill - they're mostly set in modern Britain and follow a group of people as the "Otherworld" (that of faeries and dragons etc) starts spilling creatures into this world, changing everything.
 
Definitely give John Levitt a look. One of my favorite series--great mysteries in an UF setting.

I also recently read Mike Carey. It was pretty good, although I might not continue the series.

Rob Thurman was pretty good.

Simon Green is pretty good, but a little zany--he has stand alones and a series that is Dresden-like.
 
Some new names to investigate, thanks

Simon Green - I had the first Nightside book on audio and wasn't amazed by it (but that may have been a narrator issue)

Rob Thurman - I like the Cal books, mostly for Cal's great narrative voice. Didn't like the first Trickster book as much.
 
Hypnos164 said:
Some new names to investigate, thanks

Simon Green - I had the first Nightside book on audio and wasn't amazed by it (but that may have been a narrator issue)

Rob Thurman - I like the Cal books, mostly for Cal's great narrative voice. Didn't like the first Trickster book as much.
Click to expand...

In all honesty the Simon Green books aren't my favorite, but I did think they fell within the rules you were asking about, so included them. I haven't read Trickster; I did like the Cal books.

Levitt is my favorite UF author along with Patricia Briggs' first couple in the Mercy Thompson series (but they are somewhat romance based) and Ilona Andrews (but again, by book 2 the romance is playing a role and it takes on more of a role in Book 3 and so on.)

I think you'll like Del Franco. There's also Strout...first name isn't coming to me...I thought the first book was pretty good, but the puns got to me on the second and I never finished it. Too slap-jack with the jokes.

Lisa Shearin is another name to look at--I liked the first book quite a bit, but was unwilling to tackle the "romance" aspects of the second book so I have it, but have not read it. It sounded too much like she was going to play the "choose between two guys" and that theme doesn't do a thing for me.

Maria
 
Here are some of my favorites:

Charles DeLint - EVERYTHING! In my opinion, Charles is the best author living today
Emma Bull - War for the Oaks
Raymond E. Feist - Faerie Tale
C. E. Murphy - Urban Shaman, Thunderbird Falls, Coyote Dreams, Walking Dead, Demon Hunts and Banshee Cries (a short story in the book called Winter Moon)
James A. Hetley - The Summer Country, The Winter Oak
Mercedes Lackey - Sacred Ground, Jinx High, Burning Water, Children of the Night
Holly Black - Tithe, Valiant, Ironside
Karen Marie Moning - Darkfever, Bloodfever, Faefever, Dreamfever
Kat Richardson - Grey Walker, Poltergeist, Underground, Vanished, Labyrinth
Caitlinn Kittredge - Street Magic, Demon Bound, Bone Gods
Melissa Marr - Wicked Lovely, Ink Exchange, Fragile Eternity
 
WizardofOwls said:
Here are some of my favorites:

Charles DeLint - EVERYTHING! In my opinion, Charles is the best author living today
Emma Bull - War for the Oaks
Raymond E. Feist - Faerie Tale
C. E. Murphy - Urban Shaman, Thunderbird Falls, Coyote Dreams, Walking Dead, Demon Hunts and Banshee Cries (a short story in the book called Winter Moon)
James A. Hetley - The Summer Country, The Winter Oak
Mercedes Lackey - Sacred Ground, Jinx High, Burning Water, Children of the Night
Holly Black - Tithe, Valiant, Ironside
Karen Marie Moning - Darkfever, Bloodfever, Faefever, Dreamfever
Kat Richardson - Grey Walker, Poltergeist, Underground, Vanished, Labyrinth
Caitlinn Kittredge - Street Magic, Demon Bound, Bone Gods
Melissa Marr - Wicked Lovely, Ink Exchange, Fragile Eternity
Click to expand...

Definitely second Emma Bull's War for the Oaks. I'm still looking for a brownie to rescue.

Lackey has a new book out with three stories in it, one is a new Diana Tregarde.

M.L.N. Hanover (aka Daniel Abraham) has a series too that is up to three books.

Kate Griffin starting with A Madness of Angels

And a brand new series starting by Ben Aaronovitch with Rivers of London in the UK and called Midnight Riot in the US. It's received pretty good reviews and looks interesting. I'm eagerly awaiting my copy to be delivered.
 
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Not actually read any of your examples. When I saw the title of the thread I instantly thought "Charles de Lint" and "CE Murphy" - which I see others have recommended, so hope that puts my other suggestion in the right ball park.
I'd suggest John Meaney for Bone Song and Dark Blood. They are an interesting mix of supernatural with an underlying scientific explanation. Not a typical vampire novel at all. (According to Fantastic Fiction they are technically SF, but I hadn't really picked up on that when reading them.) They are quite unsettling and memorable.
 
I haven't read much in the way of Urban Fantasy, though one series which I think fits is the Word/Void trilogy by Terry Brooks. The first two books, "Running With the Demon" and "A Knight of the Word" can be read as stand-alone pieces (even though they feature the same protagonists), and are rather enjoyable, though KotW is the better in my opinion. The third book, "Angel Fire East" is also rather good, but be warned that the ending leads into "Armaggedon's Children", which is the earliest point of his Shannara series and also where things begin to go from Urban to more traditional fantasy, though it takes place 80 years later, so you could probably read AFE and never go any further. Unless, of course, you're like me and have to see how it pieces together. :)

That's really the only one I could recommend, so I apologize if you've already taken that journey!
 
WizardofOwls said:
Here are some of my favorites:

Charles DeLint - EVERYTHING! In my opinion, Charles is the best author living today
Emma Bull - War for the Oaks
Raymond E. Feist - Faerie Tale
C. E. Murphy - Urban Shaman, Thunderbird Falls, Coyote Dreams, Walking Dead, Demon Hunts and Banshee Cries (a short story in the book called Winter Moon)
James A. Hetley - The Summer Country, The Winter Oak
Mercedes Lackey - Sacred Ground, Jinx High, Burning Water, Children of the Night
Holly Black - Tithe, Valiant, Ironside
Karen Marie Moning - Darkfever, Bloodfever, Faefever, Dreamfever
Kat Richardson - Grey Walker, Poltergeist, Underground, Vanished, Labyrinth
Caitlinn Kittredge - Street Magic, Demon Bound, Bone Gods
Melissa Marr - Wicked Lovely, Ink Exchange, Fragile Eternity
Click to expand...

I've read quite a bit of Charles De Lint - I like his work, though perhaps not quite as much as you :)

I think Faerie Tale is one of Feist's best works

Kat Richardson's Grey Walker didn't really capture me

I'll look up some reviews and blurbs on the others.


Montero said:
I'd suggest John Meaney for Bone Song and Dark Blood. They are an interesting mix of supernatural with an underlying scientific explanation. Not a typical vampire novel at all. (According to Fantastic Fiction they are technically SF, but I hadn't really picked up on that when reading them.) They are quite unsettling and memorable.
Click to expand...

I have read both of those (and most of Meaney's other work) and I'd agree with your "unsettling and memorable" - hopefully he will return to this world at some future point.
 
I haven't read a lot of Urban Fantasy but seem to be heading towards it as I age :)

Twilight was meh but i love Dresden. I also love the Charlaine Harris books, Kelley Armstrong's Women of the Otherworld series that starts with Bitten is great if you want a fun read and I enjoyed the Word and the Void by Terry Brooks

I read Feist's Faerie Tale a long time ago but remember loving it

I guess you could class Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson and the Deepgate trilogy by Alan Campbell as Urban Fantasy

I would definitely recommended Perdido Street Station by China Mieville.. or anything by him tbh
 
I would recommend the "Fault Line" series by Tim Powers consisting of:

Last Call, Expiration Date and Earthquake Weather. Tales set in contemporary L.A. with amazing concatenations of supernatural events and characters.
 
Yet again depends what sort of one you're out for:
Justin Gustainis - Fairly similiar to the Dresden Fils type of title and even visits a certain 13 themed bar in Chicago.

Charles Huston - Joe Pitt Casebooks. Basically a vamp who manages to get on everyones last nerve and starts bouncing until they snap as he does favours to be left alone.

Tom Holt - His Portable Door series was quite good fun however be aware that its humour so might not be to everyones cup of tea.

Christopher Moore - Can be a bit hit or miss but some have been pretty descent - Practical Demonkeeping might be the place to start.

Kelley Armstrong - Women of the Otherworld

Patricia Briggs - Mercy Thompson series (I'm not a fan of the Alpha/Omega Series)

Oooohhhh and if you want someone brand new you might want to try Ben Aaronovitch's Rivers of London.
 
Since most of my favorites have already been suggested here are some other possibles:
Marjorie Liu, The Iron Hunt
Devon Monk, Allie Beckstrom series
um, my mind is strangely blank now...sheesh! This getting old stuff is getting old! I'll see if I can think of others and add.
Oh, P.N Elrod has a noir detective who happens to be a vampire - have only read shorts in anthologies but you might like those.
 
Not entirely sure exactly what urban Fantasy is, I thought there was 'High' and other fantasy!

China Meiville - Kraken,
Not his best book by any means but still something I enjoyed. Being fantastical in an urban setting I presume it qualifies.
Also The City and The City by the same author. Very urban, not so much fantasy but still a good read IMHO although, possibly not exactly what you're looking for.
 
Urban Fantasy is fantasy that takes place in a modern setting. Books that begin in our world, but then cross over into a completely fantasy world dont really qualify. For instance, Donaldson's Thomas Covenant books would not qualify as Urban Fantasy. While the series actually does begin in our world, the bulk of the story takes place in another world. Ditto for Guy Gavriel Kay's Fionavar Tapestry.

I have a new book to add to my list of favorite Urban Fantasy novels: The Wood Wife by Terri Windling. EXCELLENT book. I highly recommend it. It is in the style of De Lint's books.
 
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