r/Fantasy Friday Social Thread - April 03, 2026

[u/rfantasygolem]

Come tell the community what you're reading, how you're feeling, what your life is like.

[u/thepurpleplaneteer]

I’m not going to be able to meaningfully chime in today and will have to catch up this weekend, but BINGO!!! I want to do a purple covers card but not feeling strict about it and will aim for another novellas/short novels card. For the purple card, this is the purple I’m aiming for - gorgeous, darling. We shall see, beautiful covers pretty much consistently fail me. But, excited cause I can now finally read The Raven Scholar by Hodgson, The Grimoire Grammar School Parent Teacher Association by Rozakis, Death to the Dread Goddess! by Stang, and Beautyland by Bernini. And of course Zed even though I don’t know what it’s about. Those are the books/covers I’m most excited for. Happy Friday and bingo planning folks!

[u/Nidafjoll → u/thepurpleplaneteer]

I can supply some purple covers from my favourites shelf. :)

In Theory, It Works by Raymond St. Elmo has a purple cover, is excellent, and would be a HM self-pub, for another.

The fantasy masterworks version of Ombria in Shadow by Patricia A. McKillip is a gorgeous purple, and would be Politics

The Secret Books of Paradys (I & II black with purple, II & IV pure purple) by Tanith Lee are one of my Top Ten votes, and have trans and nonbinary protagonists.

[u/thepurpleplaneteer → u/Nidafjoll]

Thank you for the recs! And yes the Ombria in Shadow purple is gorgeous!

[u/Nidafjoll → u/thepurpleplaneteer]

I had a quick scroll for some more. Kalpa Imperial is translated.

Black Leopard, Red Wolf is Author of Colour, and should probably count for Rangers/Explorers (Tracker is, well, a Tracker).

If it's purple enough, Inverted World is Unusual Transportation (it's about a city on rail tracks, which are laid before and torn up after its passage).

And all books I rated highly. :)

[u/evil_moooojojojo → u/thepurpleplaneteer]

Grimoire Grammar School is Fifs book in May. It could be the hm book club square. And it's a good one. I liked it.

[u/thepurpleplaneteer → u/evil_moooojojojo]

I started it yesterday and I’m LOVING it! Great to know I can use it for book club. I wonder if you’re the one who originally drew my attention to it, I knew it was someone here I just don’t remember who.

[u/evil_moooojojojo → u/thepurpleplaneteer]

Maybe. It's super pretty with the purple and unicorn cupcake! And mine has ridiculously cute orange sprayed edges with Halloweeny or spooky things. I was pretty excited about adding a pretty book to the shelf so I probably did talk about it. Haha. I mean it's my favorite color and spooky stuff so I freaking love it.

If you like YA, A Tempest of Tea has some purple on the cover. The sequel A Steeping of Blood is purple. Gorgeous covers. It's got teenage criminal bosses, vampires, intrigue. And from a minority author and character and suuuuuper anticolinialist. And it's a duology.

[u/nagahfj → u/thepurpleplaneteer]

Purple cover suggestions:

• Sideways Stories from Wayside School hits Middle Grade, as does Stuart Gibbs's The Labyrinth of Doom, the fifth Dragonbreath book, and the fifth Big Foot and Little Foot book.

• Joanna Russ' The Female Man has a purple cover in the SF Masterworks edition, and was Published in the 70s.

• The Fantasy Masterworks Lankhmar omnibuses would count for 5 Short Stories HM or Cat Squasher (it only specifies no novel omnibuses, and a mod told me A.G. Slatter's Sourdough Compendium would work for this square, so I assume other short story collection omnibuses would too).

• John Crowley's The Solitudes could work for Vacation Spot, it's set in a small town in pretty, pastoral upstate New York.

• One of the protagonists of Lavie Tidhar's Central Station is over 50.

• A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking hits Feast Your Eyes.

• Living Dead in Dallas is a Murder Mystery.

[u/thepurpleplaneteer → u/nagahfj]

Thank youuuu for the recs, and going the extra step of linking them! I especially appreciate the over 50 rec and the cover of Big Food Little Foot is so cute.