Riot Recommendation

26 Great Inclusive YA Fantasy Reads!

Jamie Canaves

Contributing Editor

Jamie Canavés is the Tailored Book Recommendations coordinator and Unusual Suspects mystery newsletter writer — in case you’re wondering what you do with a Liberal Arts degree. She’s never met a beach she didn’t like, always says yes to dessert, loves ‘80s nostalgia, all forms of entertainment, and can hold a conversation using only gifs. You can always talk books with her on Bluesky, Litsy, Goodreads, and her substack Multitudes Contained.

This Riot Recommendation listing great inclusive YA fantasy reads is sponsored by We Hunt the Flame by Hafsah Faizal and Fierce Reads. We Hunt the Flame cover imageSet in a richly detailed world inspired by ancient Arabia, Hafsah Faizal’s We Hunt the Flame—first in the Sands of Arawiya duology—is a gripping story of discovery, conquering fear, and taking identity into your own hands. // “We Hunt the Flame should be on every fantasy fan’s bookshelf.” —Kiersten White, bestselling author of And I Darken. // “Filled with rich worldbuilding with stakes that will keep you at the edge of your seat.” —BuzzFeed
Ahh, fantasy: the genre where we can have dragons flying around, but some will argue that it’s inaccurate to have people of color. We’re here for having it all and want all the great inclusive YA fantasy reads, because our TBR is always welcoming of more books. So many more books. Which is why we asked you to tell us your favorite inclusive YA fantasy reads for this amazing list. Our pet dragons are most pleased. Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan Shadowshaper by Daniel José Older Labyrinth Lost by Zoraida Córdova Princess of Dorsa by Eliza Andrews The Diviners by Libba Bray An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir The Great Library by Rachel Caine Inkheart trilogy by by Cornelia Funke Dreadnought by April Daniels Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyami Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake Serpentine by by Cindy Pon Forest of a Thousand Lanterns by Julie C. Dao In Other Lands by Sarah Rees Brennan Huntress by Melinda Lo Not Your Sidekick by C.B. Lee White Cat by Holly Black Timekeeper series by Tara Sim Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire The Disasters by M.K England The Song of the Lioness series by Tamora Pierce The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh The Star-Touched Queen by Roshani Chokshi The Belles by Dhonielle Clayton Seraphina and Dragon Scale by Rachel Hartman A Curse So Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer