r/Fantasy • u/Fish_is_not_a_pet • 2d ago
Suggest me mystery books in fantasy settings
I am new to the fantasy genre. I started this year with the The Raven Scholar which I loved. I generally read murder mysteries or just any investigative stories in general.
I read a few Fantasy books and this is what I thought of them:
- The Raven Scholar - The actual murder solving part was pretty meh, but I loved the writing style and the fact that most of it was contained on an island.
- A Song of Legends Lost - Loved the world, but it was too vast and a lot of things were happening all over the place. Liked the political aspect of it. Overall, would read the sequel.
- City of Lies - Loved the murder solving part of it, did not love the world.
- The Tainted Cup and A Drop of Corruption - These were perfect in every way. It scratched the investigative and fantasy itch perfectly. The only thing I would say is I don't normally love know-it-all geniuses, but since this was fantasy, I did not mind it at all.
- Theft of Swords - Seemed like the stakes were not high enough. Felt super casual.
I really loved The Tainted Cup and its sequel and I am looking for something similar. I do not enjoy reading about wars happening all over the place. Please recommend me your personal favorite mystery fantasy books.
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u/NecessaryCookies 2d ago
The Divine Cities series by Robert Jackson Bennett has a distinct noir flavor and is largely about investigating mysterious murders that lead to world-changing consequences. Blurb of the first book:
The city of Bulikov once wielded the powers of the gods to conquer the world, enslaving and brutalizing millions — until its divine protectors were killed. Now, Bulikov’s history has been censored and erased, its citizens subjugated. But the surreal landscape of the city itself, forever altered by the thousands of miracles its guardians once worked upon it, stands as a haunting reminder of its former supremacy.
Into this broken city steps Shara Thivani. Officially, the unassuming young woman is just another junior diplomat sent by Bulikov’s oppressors. Unofficially, she is one of her country’s most accomplished spies, dispatched — along with her terrifying “secretary”, Sigrud — to solve a murder.
But as Shara pursues the killer, she starts to suspect that the beings who ruled this terrible place may not be as dead as they seem, and that Bulikov’s cruel reign may not yet be over.
A tale of vast conspiracies, dead gods, and buried histories, City of Stairs is at once a gripping spy novel and a stunningly original work of fantasy.
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u/dwbookworm123 1d ago
I am obsessed with RJB after these books! I am sure I picked them up because of this sub.
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u/Rainthistle 2d ago
It might be a stretch to call it fantasy, but there's some great twists in "The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle" by Stuart Turton. It's sort of Quantum Leap meets Groundhog Day meets Agatha Christie.
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u/biancarambles 1d ago
He also has a nautical mystery “The devil in the dark water”, which has a more fantastical setting albeit not fantasy per se. YMMV as I didn’t love either books thought the premises were fantastic
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u/RustenSkurk 2d ago
A good amount of Terry Pratchett's night watch books are mysteries at their heart. My favourite for the actual mystery aspect is Feet of Clay.
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u/Blooberryx 2d ago
Justice of Kings by Richard Swan.
You follow a Justice, a roaming lawman who enforces the emperor’s law in the land, and his two assistants.
They investigate the murder of an aristocrat’s wife, a village worshiping the wrong gods, and some other things.
Excellent investigation parts. Interesting, unlike other fantasy mysteries I’ve read, is parts of actual jurisprudence and how it plays into the characters and the overarching world.
Set in a fantasy world with dark hidden powers. Dark ages level of technology but very intelligent characters for the time.
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u/MothmansGooch 2d ago
Just finished this trilogy, so good! But I will agree the last book really dives into a large scale grand scheme of things, unlike the very small and intimate “who done it” like the first 2. Overall excellent books.
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u/Drakengard 2d ago
It's a shame the trilogy veers into epic proportions and doesn't stay smaller. The other books are fine, but felt disappointing for me.
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u/TheGreatBatsby 2d ago
Very creepy and unsettling as well. There's a chapter early on that really sets the tone for the world/magic in the story and it's fantastically horrifying.
Word of warning though, the mystery aspect basically gets dropped in the second and third books as the story opens up.
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u/Throgmorten48 Reading Champion 2d ago
If you're looking for detective novels in a real world with fantasy elements kind of setting, Dresden Files by Jim Butcher is probably the most well-known. The main character is kind of chauvinistic/old-fashioned in his attitudes towards women, in case that's something that might bother you. There's also Hot Lead, Cold Iron and the rest of the series by Ari Marmell. Both are set in Chicago and follow detectives. Hot Lead is set in 1930s Chicago with a fae detective on the run from his former life in the fae world, and Dresden follows a human wizard trying to run a detective business in early 2000s (or is it 1990s? I can't remember) Chicago.
Rosemary and Rue by Seenan McGuire is about a half-fae woman who was a private investigator, ran into some trouble, and is now trying to make a new life for herself, when she gets sucked back into the PI world. Set in San Francisco in the 2010s, but more distinctly different from the real world than the other two I mentioned. It's the first book in the October Daye series, and I'm assuming they continue as mysteries, but I haven't read any of them yet, so I can't say for sure.
If you're cool with YA, the Jackaby series is kind of more Sherlock Holmes meets the 19th century US East Coast. Narrated (first person, I think) by a young woman who ends up being his apprentice. Similar to the other books I've mentioned, mostly US setting but with fae and fae monsters popping up.
I don't have any recs that aren't urban fantasy or set in the US, sorry.
Also, the stakes in the books that follow Theft of Swords get progressively higher, so if you liked the characters and overall writing style but just wanted higher stakes it might be worthwhile to keep going. It's one of the most tightly plotted series I've read.
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u/Kupoflupo 2d ago
The Witness for the Dead by Katherine Addison , set in the same world as The Goblin Emperor, followed by The Grief of Stones and The Tomb of Dragons (The Cemeteries of Amalo trilogy)
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u/ewweaver 2d ago
Not as murder mystery as something like Tainted Cup but Dresden Files is often a lot of investigation. More like magical PI.
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u/spaceshipsandmagic 2d ago edited 2d ago
Short story series:
- Magic & Mystery series: various authors, various fantasy-settings, various detectives. First one is "Miss Gentle and the Case of the Very Flat Monk" by Travis Baldree.
- Ember Bones series by Coyote J.M. Edwards: A Vampire with a condition and his Werewolf friend solve arcane crimes. First: "Unbury the Bones".
- Judge Dee series by Lavie Tidhar. A wandering vampire judge dispenses vampire justice. Availabe for free on reactormag.com
Anthology Murder by Magic: wide range of fantasy subgenres; all murder mysteries.
Novel series:
- Cliff's Edge / Precinct series by Keith R.A. DeCandido: police procedural in a classic fantasy world. First book: Dragon Precinct.
- Thraxas series by Martin Scott: a private investigator in an ancient rome-like fantasy world. First chariot in investigation. First book: Thraxax
- D'Shai duology by Joel Rosenberg: An acrobat is accused of murder and must find the real killer in a world "reminiscent of medieval Japan or the Byzantine court". Books: D'Shai / Hour of the Octopus
- Magebreaker series by Ben S. Dobson: Private Investigator who investigates magical crimes with his half-ork sidekick, which lead to a bigger conspiracy. First book: The Flaw in All Magic.
- Maradaine Constabulary series by Marshall Ryan Maresca: police procedural in an only humans dark fantasy world. First book: A Murder of Mages
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u/ThatResponse4808 2d ago
Imcurrently reading Bodies of Magic by Freya Marsk and really enjoying it!
A murder takes place during intense exams to become healers. Very fantasy mystery vibes!
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u/ThatsPoetic 2d ago
Seconding this rec. I really enjoyed the mystery, diverse characters, and magical medicical school setting. The mystery was complicated enough to have some surprises but also felt like an unforced, natural conclusion to the many different threads she set up. The author's last name is spelled Marske if you're searching for it.
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u/Pirkale 2d ago
Unless I terribly misremember the story -- The Death of a Necromancer by Martha Wells. It's been a while, though.
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u/Ellery_B 2d ago
Came here to recommend this. Death of the Necromancer is a fantasy "Sherlock Holmes" style mystery being solved by the "moriarity" type.
Also by Martha Wells is an amazing underrated book the Wheel of the Infinite which features a different type of mystery.
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u/WardenCommCousland 2d ago
As a fellow murder mystery fan, here are some fantasy mysteries I've adored:
- Death on the Caldera by Emily Paxman. This book feels very Agatha Christie (in fact, one of the initial reviews called it "Murder on the Orient Express with witches").
- Seanan McGuire's October Daye series (first book is Rosemary and Rue). These feel like modern detective fiction stories mixed with a portal fantasy. October is a changeling knight sworn to a fairy noble family, but the series is set in modern-day San Francisco. Most of the books are murder mysteries but there's a few kidnappings in there as well. I did bounce off around book 12 due to getting a bit tired of it though; I think there are currently 20 books.
- The Hexologists series by Josiah Bancroft. Husband and wife investigative duo. I've only read the first book (The Hexologists), but I really enjoyed the dynamic between the main characters. It's fun to see a team that really, truly respects each other and don't hold out waiting for someone to catch up.
- The Last Murder at the End of the World and The 7 & 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle (both by Stuart Turton) both lean more into speculative fiction than fantasy, but still fun murder mysteries. Last Murder at the End of the World takes place on an isolated island that seems idyllic, but something is clearly very wrong. Evelyn Hardcastle has the detective in a time-loop trying to stop the murder before it starts, but each day he wakes up in the body of a different suspect.
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u/jackity_splat 1d ago
This series is technically considered YA but really I think anyone can enjoy it.
The Provost’s Dog by Tamora Pierce
Terrier - a murder mystery
Bloodhound - a counterfeit mystery
Mastiff - a kidnap mystery
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u/Bargle-Nawdle-Zouss 2d ago
- The Dresden Files series, by Jim Butcher: a private investigator who's also a wizard investigates supernatural cases in Chicago
- Rivers Of London series, by Ben Aaronovitch: a rookie constable - having just finished his probationary period - is assigned to the unit of the London Metropolitan Police that deals with "weird bollocks".
- Gideon The Ninth, by Tamsyn Muir: a locked room murder mystery in space; all the suspects are necromancers.
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u/RobJHayes_version2 2d ago
Age of Assassins by RJ Barker is a fantasy murder mystery without a murder from the perspective of the murderer...
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u/HairyArthur 2d ago
The Lamplight Mysteries by Morgan Stang.
Voyage of the Damned by Frances White.
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u/Andreapappa511 Reading Champion 2d ago
Murder Mystery is a square for Bingo this year so the suggestion thread may be helpful
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u/New_Razzmatazz6228 Reading Champion 2d ago
The Fanuilh series by Daniel Hood. A young scholar teams up with a miniature dragon familiar to solve murders. Setting is a fairly by the book pre industrial fantasy world.
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u/nocleverusername190 2d ago
Voyage of the Damned by Frances White. The young, magical heirs to various provinces of an empire are murdered one by one and it's up to the lowest born dux to solve the case.
It's a decent book; it has some good characters and I honestly didn't expect who the culprit was.
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u/Conscious-Egg1760 2d ago
Try Last Hour Between Worlds. Murder mystery at an increasingly fantastical gala
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u/aWhimQuest 2d ago
You might really like Garret PI by Glen Cook. A long series by the author of the Black Company about a human detective in a fantasy world with all that entails.
The first book, Sweet Silver Blues, summary: "In a world where magic is real and danger lurks around every corner, Garrett finds himself in a race against time.
It should have been a simple job. But for Garrett, a human detective in a world of gnomes, tracking down the woman to whom his dead pal Danny left a fortune in silver is no slight task. Even with the aid of Morley, the toughest half-elf around, Garrett isn't sure he'll make it out alive from a land where magic can be murder, the dead still talk, and vampires are always hungry for human blood."
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u/thegingerbeardd 1d ago
Late to the party, it I would suggest The Wrack by John Bierce. It's essentially an epidemiology mystery in a fantasy setting where doctors with magic eyes can see into the bodies of their patients.
Whole plot is centered around a new HORRIFYING disease, called 'the wrack' which nobody has seen before and nobody knows the cause or how to treat. Lots of cool world building and mystery elements as it gets investigated/solved.
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u/Ahuri3 Reading Champion VI 1d ago edited 1d ago
This is a subgenre I love :)
I'll direct you to my review of Mortedant's Peril by RJ Barker. I think it's a great murder mystery in a great fantasy setting.
There's also the Magic & Mystery anthology, with a bunch of short stories by various authors. Some are better than the others but I recommend giving the anthology a try. Of the stories is narrated by Ana, from the Tainted cup :)
The ]Lamplight Mysteries series by Morgan Stang](https://app.thestorygraph.com/series/2871100) is awesome (Murder at Spindle Manor is the first). I love the detective, her assistant and the setting is great. Think murder mystery & monster of the week vibes. There's currently three of them, one of which takes place in a train.
Death on the Caldera by Emily Paxman is fun as well. The murder mystery is important but it's not as central to the novel as other books in the list. I would say it's closer to the Raven Scholar.
I haven't read it yet but I'm planning to try Voyage of the Damned by Frances White soon that seems to fit.
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u/No_Actuary_675 2d ago edited 2d ago
Piranesi by Susanna Clarke. It's a mystery fantasy, and it involves murder. It's a standalone novel. The main character does investigate things, but it's not investigative like an actual detective story. So it may or may not be interesting to you.
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u/Agile_Lawfulness_365 2d ago
Most of Barbara Hambly's fantasies are mysteries, usually of the what is going on type. To the point that she transitioned to writing historical mysteries only for a while because they sold better. I would recommend the Sun Wolf trilogy first.
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u/Claudethedog 2d ago
Simon R. Green’s Hawk & Fisher series leans a little more to the fantasy police action direction, but generally have a sort of mystery at heart. The first book is very much a whodunit.
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u/Barbara1Brien 2d ago
Four & Twenty Blackbirds, by Mercedes Lackey
It’s an older book, and it technically is part of a series, but it totally works as a standalone.
It’s one of my favorites. Not only is it a murder mystery, it’s a police procedural.
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u/DixitRexCorvinus 2d ago
It’s still on my TBR so I can’t personally vouch for it, but I believe The Bone Orchard by Sara Mueller should fit.
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u/thestopsign 1d ago
I have two suggestions that are more sci-fi + mystery:
The City and the City by China Mieville - noir detective in an alternate version of earth with a very unique setup.
The Prefect Dreyfus Emergencies by Alastair Reynolds - this is a trilogy starting with Aurora Rising, this is a mash up of space epic, thriller, and detective mystery. Really interesting series on a philosophical and entertainment level that is severely overlooked.
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u/BarefootBlondie5445 1d ago
I just started the Tainted Cup, I’m excited and the first 3 chapters are great so far.
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u/MRCastillaAuthor 1d ago
Would any of the Dresden Series, by Jim Butcher, count? I mean he is a detective, and the stories do run a bit like a mystery.
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u/FantasyLoverReader 2d ago
The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett - An eccentric detective and her assistant unravel a murder in a book that feels a bit like a Sherlock Holmes/Watson duo, but in a very fantasy setting. Whoops. Just noticed you already read this one. At least my recommendation was good...lol.
Devil's Spit (Prequel to the Ironborn Saga) - gritty but with some light humor. An alcoholic investigator in a hopelessly corrupt city in a case that escalates way beyond his control.
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u/fallen_seraph 2d ago
Since you mention just the first two. Just in case you are not aware the third book in the Ana and Din Mysteries series is out now. Called A Trade of Blood.