(Our Authors Chose Their Favorites!)
By Sarah Azman
Summer is upon us, and we’ve collected a list of the most compulsively readable fantasy and sci-fi summer books!
Each of these books earned a Kirkus Star, which is awarded to roughly 10 percent of books assigned to each Kirkus book reviewer. Stars are awarded for exceptional writing, illustrations, and topics. We asked each of the Alex Parker Publishing authors to choose their favorites.
Read on to discover which books Alex Parker Publishing authors are itching to read! Look for the ⭐ next to our author picks.
Note: Most of these books have a May 2026 release date, but a few published last year were included in case you want to hit the library.
Seek the Traitor's Son
By Veronica Roth
Release Date: May 12, 2026
Categories: Dystopian Fiction | General Fantasy | Epic Fantasy
Veronica Roth, the author of the popular Divergent series, delivers a dystopian fantasy with a seamlessly blended romantic arc. The Fever is an illness that kills all and resurrects some, who are then gifted with magical powers. Beliefs around the Fever, including a mysterious prophecy, cause political tensions that pit Soldier Elegy Ahn and General Rava Vidar against one another.
All Hail Chaos
By Sarah Rees Brennan
Release Date: May 12, 2026
Categories: Fantasy | General Fantasy | General Science Fiction & Fantasy
Rae becomes trapped inside her favorite fantasy storyworld, assuming the role of the alluring villain Rahela. She must navigate the politics of this new world to protect herself and her associates, and to find a way back home.
Radiant Star
By Ann Leckie
Release Date: May 12, 2026
Categories: Science Fiction | Space | General Science Fiction & Fantasy
Radchaai ruler Anaander Mianaai has cut off access to the remote planet Aaa by destroying transport gates. Politics and religion clash as wealthy Serque Tais attempts to rise to sainthood—a title that many do not think he deserves—in a world torn from civilization.
Palaces of the Crow
By Ray Nayler
Release Date: May 19, 2026
Categories: Literary Fiction | Historical Fiction | General Science Fiction & Fantasy
This historical fantasy begins in Eastern Europe in June of 1941, two months before Hitler’s armies mow through Neriya Abramovna Kantorova’s Lithuanian hometown. Kantorova relies on the help of a crow she befriended to lead her to safety deep in the forest. The story follows a growing band of forest dwellers, including one who infiltrates the KGB to destroy it from the inside.
Babylon, South Dakota
By Tom Lin
Release Date: May 26, 2026
Categories: Literary Fiction | Science Fiction | General Science Fiction
In this blend of sci-fi and fantasy set in the American West, a Chinese couple, Saul Keng Hsiu and his wife, Mei Lee, immigrate from Mao-era China to South Dakota. As they settle into their new life on the homestead, they welcome their first child, Mara. After the US purchases part of the Hsiu’s property to build a military silo, the family begins to acquire strange powers.
⭐Author Pick: E.S. Raye, author of Gas Giant Gambit
Verity Guild
By Mai Corland
Release Date: May 5, 2026
Categories: General Fantasy | Epic Fantasy | Fantasy
High Priestess Kerasea (Kera) Vestal must hide the truth that she is the last surviving member of a magical bloodline eradicated by the Republic. When Senator Verhardt turns up dead, Senior Investigator Torren Morvane arrives at the scene. Torren and Kera, at odds due to Torren’s belief that Kera destroyed his family name, are both members of the Verity Guild and must remain sequestered for a week-long tribunal. As the seclusion wears on, the line between political and sexual tension begins to blur.
Gas Giant Gambit
By E.S. Raye
Release Date: Sept. 16, 2025
Categories: Science Fiction | Space | Action & Adventure Sci-Fi
In this exciting sci-fi and Western mash-up, a spacefaring, queer bounty hunter finds herself stranded on a deserted mining station orbiting the gas giant Aeolus. She is pursued by law enforcement following a mission gone awry. After being rescued by a kind robot, she is given temporary asylum with the Vega ranching family. She is soon drawn into a political struggle between the “haves” and “have-nots.” Read more about the book here.
⭐Author Pick: Christian Chiakulas, author of Seed of the Black Oak (“Looks pulpy in all the right ways to hit my buttons.” -Christian)
⭐Author Pick: Katie Hallee, author of Give 'Em Hell (Coming in 2027)
The Isle in the Silver Sea
By Tasha Suri
Release Date: Oct. 21, 2025
Categories: Fantasy | Historical Fantasy | General Science Fiction & Fantasy
In the Isle, people are born to play a specific role in a fairy tale. If they refuse, the Isle disappears. Sir Lavinia and Simran, cast by birth into the roles of Knight and Witch, must stop an immortal villain from killing the actors.
⭐Author Pick: Julia Rylen, author of Once, Now, and Forevermore (Coming Fall 2026)
⭐Author Pick: Jenee Dutary, author of Fire and Death (Coming Fall 2026)
Katabasis
By R.F. Kuang
Release Date: Aug. 26, 2025
Categories: Fantasy | Historical Fantasy | General Science Fiction & Fantasy
Alice Law is pursuing a Ph.D. in Analytical Magick when tragedy strikes: her advisor, Jacob Grimes, dies and Alice fears she may be responsible.
Consumed by guilt, she throws herself into research, determined to find a way into Hell and bring him back. Reluctantly joining forces with fellow graduate student Peter Murdoch, Alice embarks on a perilous journey through the underworld. But as they search for Grimes, they uncover dark secrets from his past that threaten to derail their mission and may prove more dangerous than Hell itself.
⭐Author Pick: Julia Rylen, author of Once, Now, and Forevermore (Coming February 2027)
Engines of War
By R.S. Ford
Release Date: June 17, 2025
Categories: Fantasy | General Fantasy | Epic Fantasy
The Draconate Ministry has wrested control of Torwyn from the six major guilds in this fast-paced conclusion of the Age of Uprising trilogy. The guilds must unite to overthrow Sanctan Egelrath, the dangerous Archlegate of the Draconate Ministry.
Let us know your favorite in the comments!
For more summer book picks, check out our bookshop here. All Products – Alex Parker Publishing.