For example,
- The Tainted Cup: some hints of medieval setting, plus the biohacking/botanical alterations
- Will of the May: Some Greek elements and the magic system isn't too in-your-face
- Babel: I would say this is a "hard" victorian/colonial setting, but with the silver magic adding a bit of fantastical element to it
Books with "hard" medieval setting that I could not get into
- Engines of Empire
- Fireborne
- The Justice of Kings
Any suggestions? Thank you in advance!
by ablankcat
4 Comments
Belladonna by adalyn grace
If I remember correctly it has a medieval/gothic setting, magic, plus the protagonists are solving a murder mystery, there’s also a twist at the end. It leans more twds romance though
[The Watchmaker of Filigree Street](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22929563-the-watchmaker-of-filigree-street) by Natasha Pulley. Great book.
Sylvia Townsend Warner: Lolly Willowes
If you liked The Tainted Cup, read Foundryside by the same author. Also industrial fantasy. Great magic system and in-depth immersion into the Italian-flavored alt-Victorian city where it’s set.
Some other great books in this style:
A Marvellous Light, by Freya Marske: Edwardian romance, very unique magic system
The Goblin Emperor and Witness for the Dead, by Katherine Addison: these two are separate (Goblin Emperor comes first) but set in the same world. Come for the fantasy politics, stay for the beautiful writing and stubbornly kind characters
The Master of Djinn, by P. Djèlí Clark: murder mysteries in haunted, steampunk alt-Cairo!