Science Fiction/Fantasy

Sophomore Bump: 5 Exciting Second Fantasy Novels Coming in 2025!

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A bazillion books are published every year (which is a number I just made up), and publishing really loves to talk about debut novels, the darlings of the book world. But having a debut release is a thing that can only happen for an author one time. Where’s all the love for the second novels (and third and fourth and…) that come out? There are waaaay more of those.

So today’s list contains five exciting upcoming fantasy books that are the authors’ second novels. There are three sequels and two standalones, and all five were on many big lists of extremely anticipated books coming in 2025. Are you ready for a helping of seconds?

cover of Four Ruined Realms (The Broken Blades Book 2) by Mai Corland; image of arrows over a gold map

Four Ruined Realms (The Broken Blades Book 2) by Mai Corland (out now)

In the follow-up to Five Broken Blades, the five blades must steal the Golden Ring of the Dragon Lord from Quilimar, the Queen of Khitan. If they are unsuccessful, they will have to answer to her brother, the King of Yusan. But the blades know they are being used to sow chaos, and they don’t really trust one another. Can they figure out a way to turn the tables on King Joon and make it home alive?

cover of The Wind on Her Tongue (Daughter of Three Waters Trilogy) by Anita Kopacz; image of Black woman's face with lightning over her eye

The Wind on Her Tongue (Daughter of Three Waters Trilogy) by Anita Kopacz (out now)

Anita Kopacz’s first novel was Shallow Waters, about Yemaya, the Yoruban deity of the sea. This companion novel is about Yemaya’s daughter, Oya, the Yoruban deity of the weather-made human. In the 1800s, Oya is born in Cuba and sent to New Orleans to be a student of Marie Laveau, the Queen of Voodoo. She will have to learn how to control her destructive storm-conjuring powers while grappling with the racism and sexism of the times.

A Letter from the Lonesome Shore (The Sunken Archive Book 2) by Sylvie Cathrall (May 6)

This is the second book in the captivating Sunken Archive duology, following A Letter to the Luminous Deep. It continues the story of E. and Henerey, who were writing back and forth as E. told Henerey about a mysterious underwater structure. When they disappeared, their sibling joined together to find them. Now they are getting closer to achieving their goal in the conclusion. But their search is not without its dangers.

cover of The Grimoire Grammar School Parent Teacher Association by Caitlin Rozakis; illustration of a stack of books featuring the title

The Grimoire Grammar School Parent Teacher Association by Caitlin Rozakis (May 27)

Dreadful, Caitlin Rozakis’s debut novel, was a rollicking good time, and this one sounds equally as fun! When Aria is bitten by a werewolf, she goes from being a regular kindergartner to a student at a secret magical school. But the hidden New England magical community life isn’t exactly welcoming for Aria and her parents, and they’ll have to put on a brave (furry) face to survive the literal trials headed Aria’s way.

placeholder for cover of When They Burned the Butterfly Wen-yi Lee

When They Burned the Butterfly by Wen-yi Lee (October 25)

This is Lee’s adult debut, after her YA debut, The Dark We Know. It’s about immigrants, gods, and gangs. In 1972 Singapore, Adeline Siow discovers that she is one of the last people to hold the magic of the gods. When her mother dies in a fire with a butterfly burned on her skin, Adeline learns her mother was secretly the leader of the Red Butterflies, a gang of girls who hunt bad men and punish them. Now Adeline is the last to carry the goddess’s power, and as she struggles with her heritage, she must find her mother’s killer before it is too late.

Okay, star bits, now take the knowledge you have learned here today and use it for good, not evil. If you want to know more about books, I talk about books pretty much nonstop (when I’m not reading them), and you can hear me say lots of adjectives about them on the Book Riot podcast All the Books! and on Bluesky and  Instagram.

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