JR Lightfoot creates a fantastic world where God has given superpowers to monks, Fallen angels roam the earth and Demons in disguise rule kingdoms. A great twist of biblical and traditional monsters. Available on Amazon

The title really says it all. Modern setting, 'elves' and other sups have a hidden world from humans. It was a fun flick.

As the title says, I've just recently found out RR and I was wondering if there were any magical girl stories that would be considered good?

Hello all! Recently, I posted a new short story called "My Daughter's Weird Boyfriends." The genesis of this story was the old jokes about Charlie the "mustache dad" from Twilight. I thought "well, what would a paranormal romance look like from the protagonist's dad's perspective?" And so we ended up with this.

It's a simple, lighthearted story. Leans more toward the cozy end of the spectrum (which is something of a departure for me). It's really just a fun little fluff piece that I wanted to share.

So here it is: "My Daughter's Weird Boyfriends"

Give it a read!

Bloodshot is an urban fantasy by Cherie Priest. The first in a series that so far has 2 books.

It is told in the first person and is funny and fast paced. Similar tone to the 20 Sided Sorceress.

Raylene is a vampire and a thief. She avoids other vampires and basically acts like a minorly superpowered thief for hire.

There is a lot of sneaking around, spy and thief type adventure. Not much magic. The fantasy element is mostly her. She does interact with another vampire and there is a bit of vampire lore in the background. And a tiny bit of romance.

The second book in the series involves vampires and magic much more. But still focuses on the thieving aspect and the adventuring part.

I'm compiling some UF tropes, and my working theory is that popular UF always makes their setting an unofficial character, as in it informs the story in terms of providing specific locations, as well as a sort of vibe for the story. Dresden in Chicago, Kate Daniels in Atlanta, Iron Druid in Tempe, Anita Blake in St. Louis, etc.

But I'm also not nearly well read enough and was hoping y'all could add some meat to the bones of this idea.

Could you list off some other popular characters, where the story predominately takes place, and if the place is real or not?

I'm looking for books with a witch being a (amateur) detective solving crime or a mystery, or other paranormal/supernatural crime books.

Bonus points for having a romance subplot.

Tagged for spoiler because of a minor detail, but I don't talk much about anything important!

Okay, so, I just watched the 1994 adaption of the Crow, and I couldn't help but notice the uncanny similarities between that movie and the Sandman Slim series by Richard Kadrey. I've only read the first three books, but what really overlaps is the beginning: both protagonists return from "death" (yeah, not exactly so with Stark, but close enough) to avenge the death of a lover. I even felt like the flashbacks of him going into the apartment overlapped a lot with what I pictured with Stark and Alice. Alright, it's still pretty broad, but I just felt like the overall aesthetics as well as that jaded, emo energy from Eric was very similar to Sandman Slim. Wonder if Kadrey was influenced by the Crow? 🤔

I'm playing with the idea of making a UF protag generating cheat sheet to create the MOST UF protag ever, and first and foremost is the name. I've decided the convention is 1) a common name + 2) uncommon name/ characteristic/ profession.

As you'd expect, one name needs be a very common one (Harry, Kate) - although it doesn't need to be the first name.

The second is an uncommon name, OR what's called an occupational (Archer, Cooper) or characteristic surname (Strong, Gray).

Throw those together with a smattering of magic + sarcastic quips, and bam, you've got yourself a protag ready to go. And while it doesn't hold true for all of the most popular ones, it is batting around 50% IMO: Harry Dresden, Mercy Thompson, John Constantine, October Daye, Alex Verus, Felix Castor, Sookie Stackhouse, Howard Marsh, Cassie Palmer, Daniel Faust, Ethan Drake, Adam Binder, Mackenzie Bishop, etc.).

I figure this is a carry over from the pulp PI stories that influenced the genre, with names like Sam Spade, Mike Hammer, Nick Carter, etc.

So there you go. I'm now trying to come up with the most prototypical UF protag ever.

It's best if she's not human and not half human, but that's not a must. She should usually be stronger than her opponents and not be afraid of them

I fell off these with the Trickster Cycle alternate timeline books. Are these alternate timeline books necessary? I found them to be incredibly boring compared to the rest of the series, but would like to get back to the main timeline story now that it's been picked back up. Is that doable?

Hi everyone! I’ve been working on a series called The Nightside Chronicles, and I’m excited to share it with you.

https://youtube.com/@thenightsidechronicles?si=aGf109mbQWV9FYo4

Anyone know any?

Mine are Heather G Harris and Nander. If you include Shifter Romance, I’d add Alexis D Craig.

Who are your favorite self-published Urban Fantasy authors to read? Please no self-recs.

Hey there!

I'm a longtime follower of this subreddit, where I've gotten many a great reading rec.

Recently I finished writing my own Urban Fantasy novel for the first time. It's basically just a checklist of the stuff I like and want more of from our genre: (1) It's got a female MC but it's romance-free. (2) It's set in a city I don't see getting much UF love (Las Vegas!). (3) It's got a unique legal thriller angle. (4) It's a standalone story, just because I want there to be more standalones in our genre. (Why does every UF have to be, like, 10 books long?)

Anyway, I'm looking for ARC readers, if anybody's interested. You can get an ARC copy on booksprout or on booksirens — or if that's too tricky to figure out, you can DM me and I'll get you a copy personally. Due date for a review's December 6.

Here's the blurb of the book (and you can see the cover at that booksprouts link):

I dropped out of law school to help Dad survive his gambling addiction. But his demons caught up with him. Literally.

Last night he had a heart attack in front of a slot machine. Now there's a demon sitting by his hospital bed, claiming it won his soul at poker.

I'm shocked that demons are even real, but I didn't promise my dying mom I'd take care of the old man just to let him go to hell. I'm not the kind of girl to accept that.

Fortunately, I can challenge the demon in court—if I can prove the heart attack was no accident. I'll have to sleuth my way across the supernatural underbelly of Las Vegas, where souls are table stakes and losing my case could mean losing my life.

Too bad I dropped out of law school.

Ace of Demons is a high-stakes, standalone urban fantasy novel featuring demons, fae, and shifters, a seedy noir setting, and a smart heroine struggling against the odds.

Thanks guys!

EDIT: preferably novels set in the real world, 1970’s to present (prefer current era/our mundane world and not futuristic/apocalyptic settings)

Hi! First time poster. Always loved UF and November through March is when I read it the period I devour it the most (the other 7 months I gravitate mostly toward horror and thriller).

I prefer stuff that has:

-American South, Midwest, or North West setting

-female protagonist(s)

-mystery elements

-small town feel, but extra points for NOLA or Savannah

-adults as target audience (real picky about my YA)

-folklore creatures (vamps, weres, fae, witches etc) and not alien/intergalactic creatures

-PLOT BEFORE ROMANCE

-don’t mind spice that isn’t at Laurel K. Hamilton’s level, but honestly prefer minimal spice

Series I’ve LOVED:

•Charlaine Harris novels; Midnight, Sookie, Harper, Gunnie Rose

•Anne Rice novels; Vampire Chronicles, Mayfair Witches, Wolf Gift

•Ilona Andrews novels; Clean Sweep, Magic Bites

•Faith Hunter novels; Jane Yellowrock, Soulwood

•Patricia Briggs novels; Mercy Thompson, Alpha and Omega

•Seanan McGuire novels; October Daye, Ghost Roads

•Maggie Steifvater novels; Raven Cycle, Wolves of Mercy Falls

•Holly Black; Modern Faerie Tales

The website where this short story is supposed to be available (according to the author's official website) doesn't seem to have been updated for years and any direct links I've been able to find are dead now.

If anybody happens to have a working link or has this short story archived, please let me know. Thank you.

I am looking for some UF book series recommendations! Here are some of my favorites:

• Dresden Files
• Iron Druid Chronicles
• Eric Carter Series
• Sandman Slim
• Prof Croft
• Junkyard Druid
• Demon Accords
• Daniel Faust
• Harmony Black

I do also read traditional fantasy books as well, but my ‘to read’ list is pretty full on that genre.

A short fantasy piece on the importance of neighbors:

Oshana meant friendship. Until it didn't. Then we fixed it.

Apple | Spotify | Red Circle | Author's Page

I originally envisioned this as a F.E.A.R sequel so you’d be playing as a government agent with lethal drop kicks. Have the setting be inside of and in the forest around a mid size town in like West Virginia. Like you could have reanimated skeletons chained to an illegally converted machine gun. Make a boss section a necromancer militia group with a bunch of surplus tactical gear. Give slow zombies improvised explosives and Molotov’s, you could have them silhouetted against a full moon between the trees for a good visual sequence. A good miniboss could be a reanimated bear. I’m not sure what would be a good common undead gun wielding enemy that would fit with this theme so I’d love to hear any recommendations. Possibly have half the town taken over by the necromancers trying to take the other half with some towns people joining them and fighting along side the undead and the other half could be helping you fight them. Drones piloted by necromancers with lights to spot the player at night during an infiltration and call zombies could be a fun sequence or used in normal gameplay as like a commander for zombies where destroying it would sever the direct feed and make the zombies way less coordinated. The local police department could join the necromancers and they could be a comparatively elite infantry force or transporting small zombie hordes around in the back of MRAPs.

My vote is "The Longest Notes"

A relatively new Urban Fantasy novel worth a read. If you like Percy Jackson, Artemis Fowl, or the Inheritance Cycle, check out Shade and the Dual Hatchets of Darkness.

Shade, a young Relicant in the mystical realm of Knarrmir, wields the Dual Hatchets of Darkness, relics passed down through his family since the reign of King Aristotle the Enchanter. In a world where ancient powers are all but forgotten, Shade's life takes a dramatic turn when he encounters Vali, a mysterious man who shares his quest to reunite the descendants of the Council of Eight.