16 Books Like RED QUEEN

The Cruel Prince is the first book in the suspenseful Folk of the Air series, which features a compelling imagining of the faerie realm. And because it’s Holly Black who wrote it, the characters are as well-drawn as the world. Jude and her sisters, all mortals, were stolen away to the High Court of Faerie. You might think Jude would wish to escape, but in fact, she wishes to belong; that’s where the power is. The Cruel Prince himself, named Cardan, hates mortals, but we all know that the line between love and hate can be rather fine.

If you’re waiting for the Peacock adaptation of Red Queen that has been promised, you’d do well to get into the Grishaverse, where there’s one season of television awaiting you on Netflix. As our Leigh Bardugo pathway suggests, start with Shadow and Bone. This series, set in a Russian-inflected fantasy world, tracks Alina, an orphan with enormous powers. She threatens the status quo in a world stricken with a terrible, monster-infested rift. The world of this book continues to get more and more interesting the more Bardugo explores the characters who inhabit it.

For those of us who became touch-starved during the pandemic, the idea of a person struggling in solitary confinement because her touch is fatal is perhaps a little too on-the-nose. Fortunately for Juliette, she meets Adam, immune to her power. He leads her to a resistance against the dystopian regime keeping her captive, and she learns she’s not a monster after all. The now-complete series is known for its unique prose stylings employing poetic similes and copious strike-throughs.

The Medio School for Girls prepares young women to either run husband’s households or raise their children. If that sounds a little The Handmaid’s Tale, it is. Daniela Varga, the school’s top student, has to decide between the comfortable life afforded to her by these narrowly-defined options, or whether she wants to engage in the resistance effort striving to bring equality to Medio. To up the tension, she has fallen for the other woman in the household she joins after graduation. Who can she trust?

The elevator pitch for this book is that it’s a sapphic fantasy Phantom of the Opera retelling. If that sounds like your jam, hello, you and I are friends now. Cadence uses her sung magic as a weapon. When she reunites with Remi, her childhood friend, she begins to question everything. Yes, you know where this goes: battle for justice, a romance that strengthens the fight. But with inventive writing about music magic and a blessedly standalone narrative, this book earns a standing ovation.

Sarah J. Maas has completed the Throne of Glass series, and her wildly popular Court of Thorns and Roses series is still in progress. (We have recommendations while you’re waiting for the books in the latter series.) Throne of Glass features an imprisoned assassin named Celaena, offered freedom if she joins the competition for a new royal assassin. Cue the triangle setup between her, Prince Dorian, and her gruff trainer Chaol Westfall. The worldbuilding can falter in Maas’s books, but the drama keeps the pages turning.

Readers interestested in action and romance in books like Red Queen are sure to enjoy An Ember in the Ashes, the debut from Sabaa Tahir and the first in the complete Ember quartet. With inspiration from ancient Rome, the story traces Laia’s adventurous attempts to free her captive brother. She gets embroiled in the resistance movement in which subjugated Scholars are rising up against the ruling Martials. She also gets entangled in a romance with a Martial soldier, both of whom are faced with impossible choices. Along with the fantasy and romance come thought-provoking explorations of the nature of power.

Incendiary is the first half of a completed duology full of fast-paced court intrigue. In it, Renata Convida’s ability to steal memories made her a valuable weapon at the luxurious palace of Andalucia. However, she is serving as a rebel spy. She attempts to liberate the other magical people, called Moria, from the kingdom, but the rescue of her love Dez goes awry. In turn, she has to take up Dez’s mission and then uncovers even more secrets. Those secrets affect not only her but the entire kingdom.

Remember how I said if you like the above pitch for Ruinsong, you’re my friend now? How about this one: Anastasia retelling…IN SPAAAACE! If that also gets you, let’s get a group chat going. While plenty of books like Red Queen use a hidden heritage trope, you have to respect the Anastasia myth as the blueprint. In Last of Her Name, a ship arrives in Stacia’s sleepy village claiming the townspeople are loyalists hiding the Princess Anya, lost in the revolution sixteen years ago. Two points if you can guess who Stacia is. What ensues is action-packed space operatic adventure.

So many books like Red Queen feature teenage girls coming into their power. It certainly makes sense as a metaphor for growing up and forging one’s identity. But what happens when that change you feel is one in a decidedly evil direction? Such is the case for Serpentine’s Skybright, who transforms into a serpent demon. Her process of discovering her role in the world flips that Chosen One narrative around. With inspiration from Chinese mythology, Serpentine is a very fresh entry in the YA fantasy canon. 

If you think the red blood/silver blood division in Red Queen is an inventive premise, get ready for a time traveling gene that skips generations! Until it doesn’t, of course. Gwen was not supposed to be the recipient of that particular gift, so her unexpected and uncontrollable jumps in time throw her for a loop. So does her dashing time traveling companion, Gideon. If you’re looking for a lighter, fast-paced fantasy that still has a chosen one narrative, the Precious Stone trilogy is a great pick.