Here are 78 books that Katabasis fans have personally recommended if you like
Katabasis.
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This was actually my first read of 2026 and I couldn't have asked for a better one! The fantasy vibes were immaculate, and the writing style really drew me in and kept me turning pages. The FMC's backstory (although gut-wrenching) gave her so much depth and relatability. This is a fantastic start to the series.
A former slave fighting for justice. A reclusive warrior who no longer believes it exists. And a dark magic that will entangle their fates.
Ripped from a forgotten homeland as a child, Tisaanah learned how to survive with nothing but a sharp wit and a touch of magic. But the night she tries to buy her freedom, she barely escapes with her life.
Desperate to save the best friend she left behind, Tisaanah journeys to the Orders, the most powerful organizations of magic Wielders in the world. But to join their ranks, she must complete an apprenticeship with Maxantarius Farlione,…
Millions watch on live stream as Brit battlemage Daxx and his teammates, Asian-American twin-blade sword-dancer Qrysta and heavily-armored Aussie Orc warrior Grell, triumph in the World Championship of Sword and Sorcery.
The next thing he knows, Daxx is in the middle of a wilderness he’s never seen before. And he’s…
I've told so many friends that this is the only book I've ever read during which I was crying so hard I could barely breathe and laughing at the same time. I loved, loved, loved the relationships among the characters. They felt clever and real and sassy in all the perfect proportions. My own book addresses dying, courage, the afterlife, so a book that bravely faces the pain and love and beauty of death, life, and love all while being uplifting was something I couldn't put down.
“Catherine Newman sees the heartbreak and comedy of life with wisdom and unflinching compassion. The way she finds the extraordinary in the everyday is nothing short of poetry. She’s a writer’s writer—and a human’s human.”—New York Times bestselling author Katherine Center
“A riotously funny and fiercely loyal love letter to female friendship. The story of Edi and Ash proves that a best friend is a gift from the gods. Newman turns her prodigious talents toward finding joy even in the friendship’s final days. I laughed while crying, and was left revived. Newman is a comic masterhand and a dazzling philosopher…
An engrossing, multifaceted story about a group of friends that learn to create a “found family” to help them rise above their hardscrabble lives. As the years pass and life gets in the way—fame, fortune, brushes with the law, death—the friends find their way back to one another in order to make room for an unexpected addition to their ride-or-die group.
As a writer, Backman is an alchemist; he has a way of taking prickly characters (angsty teenagers, grumpy old men, etc.) and transmuting them on the page into someone you look forward to spending time with and grieve to part from when the story ends. My Friends is a touching story of humanity and the power of friendship...with a generous dose of fart jokes thrown in to keep the “human” in humanity front and center.
A Most Anticipated Book of 2025: Goodreads •USA TODAY • Marie Claire • BookPage • Literary Lifestyle •Book Riot •Sunset Magazine • Totally Booked with Zibby Owens * A Fallon Book Club Pick
The #1 New York Times bestselling author of Anxious People returns with an unforgettably funny, deeply moving tale of four teenagers whose friendship creates a bond so powerful that it changes a complete stranger's life twenty-five years later.
Most people don't even notice them—three tiny figures sitting at the end of a long pier in the corner of one of…
Always Orchid is the moving, award-winning finale to the Goodbye Orchid series that Glamour Magazine called "a modern, important take on the power of love." With themes of identity, disability, and the redemptive power of love, Always Orchid is perfect for fans of Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle…
'S. A. Cosby's novels always hit the grand slam of crime fiction' MICHAEL CONNELLY 'Cosby sends a shiver down the spine' DAILY MAIL 'A pulsating saga of family secrets and double and triple-crossing' THE TIMES, THE BEST THRILLERS OF 2025
A son returning home. A dangerous debt. Secrets about to ignite . . . and a family consumed by flames.
Roman Carruthers left the smoke and fire of his family's crematory business behind in his hometown of Jefferson Run, Virginia. He is enjoying a life of shallow excess as a financial adviser in Atlanta until he gets a call from…
When I was six, I wrote an eleven-page epic about an adventurous otter named "Ottiga." The causality between that early effort and my career as a novelist is uncertain, but it did establish a pattern. I was the perpetual new kid on the block, and novels provided a pathway to escape the difficulties of being young and introverted. I learned that fiction is an antidote to loneliness; that it has the power to transport us to entirely new worlds, or to show us the familiar world in entirely new and unexpected ways. The speculative novels on this list did that for me, and I hope they do the same for you!
McEwan is one of my favorite writers, and as I was reading this, I was trying to figure out why I love his work so much.
There's just something so immersive about it: the way he uses language, the vividness of his characters, the descriptive and emotional accuracy and density of his moment-by-moment storytelling.
What We Can Know is a love story interwoven with a tense, high-stakes "thrillerish" plot powered by a heart-pounding narrative drive and sense of cold inevitability similar to those found in the author's other great novels, like Amsterdam and Atonement.
What sets this book apart from the others is its speculative, futuristic angle. To say more would be to spoil the fun, so I'll leave it there. Read this book, you won't regret it!
A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK • NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From the Booker prize–winning, bestselling author of Atonement and Saturday, a genre-bending new novel full of secrets and surprises; an immersive exploration, across time and history, of what can ever be truly known.
ONE OF BARACK OBAMA'S FAVORITE BOOKS OF THE YEAR
"It gave me so much pleasure I sometimes felt like laughing. . . . It's a sophisticated entertainment of a high order." —The New York Times
"Brilliantly, and surprisingly, plotted."—The Washington Post • "A novelist of consummate skill."—The Wall Street Journal • "Elegantly structured and provocative."—Los…
It is a deeply researched look at what Josephine Baker actually did during WWII and how she dedicated her time to helping the Allies. The author takes you beyond the banana-skirted dancer into a person of convictions with the courage to act on them.
The full story of Josephine Baker's wartime and intelligence work in France and North Africa
Before the Second World War, Josephine Baker (1906-1975) was one of the most famous performers in the world. She made her name dancing on the Parisian stage, but when war broke out she decided not to return to America. Instead, Baker turned spy for the French Secret Services.
In this engaging, deeply researched study, Hanna Diamond tells the full story of Baker's actions for the French and Allied powers in World War Two. Drawing on previously unseen material, Diamond reveals the vital role…
Winter Journeys is a story of music, memory, and imagination.
At summer’s end, Ilona Miller loses her job. Instead of adjusting her attitude and sending out resumes, she retreats into grief and paranoid imaginings by day and wanders the streets at night. A long-dormant alter ego awakes and prompts a…
The question is whether there was a possibility that you could remove a person whom you feel endangers a human population without you killing them yourself- would you? A question of morality, beliefs, and faith. This theme fascinates me.
'A tour de force...King Sorrow is huge, sprawling - and absolutely fantastic' THE GUARDIAN 'Joe Hill gloriously resurrects the doorstop horror blockbuster for a startling new century' ALAN MOORE 'A soaring epic and painfully intimate. You won't be able to stop burning through the pages' PAUL TREMBLAY 'Epic, exhilarating and haunting in equal measures' DAILY EXPRESS 'A commanding, captivating read' FINANCIAL TIMES 'Epic...a multi-layered, rich response to the horrors and hopes of living today' DAILY MAIL
Bookish dreamer Arthur Oakes is a student at Rackham College, Maine,…
This book was such a fast and thrilling read! The premise of the hooked me from the very beginning with the slightly unhinged "Dear Debbie" letters. The plot twist was one I wasn't able to predict (which is always very much appreciated to be surprised as a reader), to the point where it had me thinking one thing and it ended up being something else. Highly recommend if you're looking for a fast-paced thriller!
Named one of the TIME100 Most Influential People of 2026
"I enjoy Freida McFadden...The books are engrossing and her sense of humour is sharp and dark. Vengeance comes with a twist and is satisfying" - STEPHEN KING
"McFadden is a writer at the top of her game-and the undisputed mistress of the psychological thriller." - E.L. James
"Take the propulsive darkness of Gone Girl, the prolific output of Colleen Hoover, and the addictive twists of Harlan Coben, and you have something close to Freida McFadden." - The Independent
I have always been obsessed with stories where underdogs must enter elite institutions carrying heavy secrets and impossible odds. Growing up, I devoured military academy fantasy because I loved watching flawed characters tested to their absolute limits, where survival demanded tactical cleverness rather than brute force. As an author, I am endlessly fascinated by morally grey antiheroes who must balance internal trauma against uncompromising goals. Sharing these five masterclasses in tension, magic, and academy trials is a joy because they represent the exact books that inspired me to pick up a pen and write.
I was deeply moved by Rin's relentless struggle to earn a spot at Sinegard, the elite military academy.
I loved how the story started with rigorous academic and martial testing before plunging into the grim realities of war. The shamanic magic system felt wild, dangerous, and atmospheric. I resonated with Rin's fierce determination as an outsider forced to prove herself among privilege and political intrigue.
R. F. Kuang created an uncompromising, emotionally heavy narrative that shows the true, brutal cost of power and vengeance.
Winner of the Reddit Fantasy Award for Best Debut 2018
'The best fantasy debut of 2018' - WIRED
A brilliantly imaginative epic fantasy debut, inspired by the bloody history of China's twentieth century and filled with treachery and magic.
When Rin aced the Keju - the test to find the most talented students in the Empire - it was a shock to everyone: to the test officials, who couldn't believe a war orphan from Rooster Province could pass without cheating; to Rin's guardians, who had hoped to get rich by marrying her off; and to Rin herself,…
The Gatepost is a new speculative novel that will appeal to readers of Susanna Clarke, Emily St. John Mandel, David Mitchell, Richard Powers, and R.F. Kuang.
Featuring a hidden cave, psilocybin mushrooms, and a mysterious ancient artifact that may act as a portal to the Mesoamerican underworld, The Gatepost blends…
I don’t read much science fiction these days, but this (if it really is SciFi) drew me in and hooked me almost immediately with its alternate universe and truly original storyline.
