Hello everyone! If you’ve been here a while you should already know I’m a big fan of fantasy and of asian representation and this post combines both of them! I love recommending books (especially when they’re underrated) so people can get new books to check out so I hope you can find a book in this list you think you might enjoy and go read it 🙂

the bone shard daughter
The Bone Shard Daughter is a beautiful and complex story that is full of unexpected twists and reveals, intriguing and fascinating characters and a different magic system which had me hooked right from the beginning. It tells us the story of an Empire whose Emperor is struggling to hold on to control, there is a growing unrest among the people and a rebellion is brewing and our main characters somehow find themselves in the centre of it all unknowingly.

jade city
Fonda Lee creates a thrilling atmosphere in Jade City as we explore the city of Janloon and read about the growing tension between the rival clans of No Peak and The Mountain. There is a lot of history and world building to be done and it’s sprinkled slowly through the book making sure we aren’t overloaded with information. Jade City is a riveting tale filled with politics, romance, family drama and fight for power. It tells a story that you will not be able to put down and I highly recommend it if you want an asian-inspired historical fantasy with political intrigue, a very different magic system and complex characters.

she who became the sun
She Who Became The Sun is a magnificent book which is a genderqueer retelling of the beginning of the Ming Dynasty. Beautifully written, this book captured me from the very beginning as it told us the story of two ambitious, determined and morally grey main characters who would do anything to achieve what they desired. If you’re looking for a high-stakes book with war, political intrigue, discussions of power, desire and gender with an exceptional plot and complex, morally grey characters that has you enraptured and turning the page, this is definitely the book for you!

the jasmine throne
The Jasmine Throne is an epic fantasy inspired by Indian history and epics, with powerful, morally grey lesbians and a horrifying disease which cannot be explained creating fear and horror among everyone.
This book is all about the yearning, powerful women and political intrigue – some of my favourite things and I enjoyed them all a lot. I loved the dynamic between Priya and Malini and how they would do anything to get what they wanted and yet somehow, the other worms their way into a special place in the other’s heart.

the sword of kaigen
The Sword of Kaigen is an east asian military inspired fantasy based on about war and the repercussions of it. It is definitely a hard read at times, dealing with a lot of intense moments involving complicated familial relationships, grief and betrayal. Each of the characters were written so well and their emotions were so vivid that they felt like they were leaping off of the page and embedding themselves in me. The loneliness, the insecurity, the grief, the loss, the uncertainty and the love all felt too real and honest and raw. It’s hard to fully explain why you should read this book except its wonderful and emotional and devastating and I loved it.


bonus:
the poppy war
I couldn’t not mention the poppy war but I decided not to make it a part of the main list considering how popular it already is! You’ve probably heard a lot of great things about this book and I’m here to tell you they are all true!
This book is so brutal and honest and tragic and a perfect and realistic portrayal of war and it’s affects and doesn’t shy away from the harsh realities, and as amazing as it is, it was also such a hard book to read at time. It’s brilliantly written and plotted and if you’re a fan of fantasy, you will surely love it!


I hope you are intrigued by these books and decide to check them out! If you do pick them up, feel free to share your thoughts with me (you can find my socials below!) and talk to me about them since I adore all of them so so much! What are some Asian Adult Fantasies you would recommend to me? Let me know in the comment!
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jade city and the poppy war have been on my tbr for far too long honestly! great list💜
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hope you enjoy them! ❤
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I’m trying to branch out into more adult fantasy and all of these are on my TBR! I’m very excited for all of them but currently, the Jade City books are probably the highest priority for me, they just seem so good!
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Hope you enjoy all of them!! Jade city is one of my all time favourites and I can not wait for you to pick it up!!
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Hahah I knew Jade city would be on here!! It has been on my tbr for the longest time and I am going to make a conscious effort to read it this month! Thank you so much for all the other suggestions! 🥰
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omg yes can’t wait for you to read it – my dms are always open to talk about it!!
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Jade City is one of the best books ever!! I’ve recently read The Jasmine Throne as well and loved it too. Malini has a place in my heart!! I am so excited to check out the other three books… the sword of kaigen sounds amazing!! 😍 Great list! 💚
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YESSS Jade city is truly one of the most spectacular books! Hope you enjoy the others as well!
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I’ve only read The Poppy War and She Who Became the Sun, but I loved them both! I plan to read Jade City and Sword of Kaigen this year- been hearing a lot of amazing things about these books!
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so glad to hear you loved taw and swats – two of my all time favourites for sure!! I hope you end up loving Jade City and Sword of Kaigen as well!
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this list is chef’s kiss!!!
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thank you!
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I LOVED swbts and I’m now beginning jade legacy, I must start all these other amazing titles as well!
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all the best with jade legacy and my dmg are open if you wanna scream about it!! and yes definitely check out the rest because they’re all really great in my opinion
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Great list! These books have all been on my tbr for a while so maybe I’ll finally just start reading em :p
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yess they’re all so amazing and I hope you enjoy them!
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These are ALL on my TBR. I really need to get to reading lol
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hope you enjoy them!!
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excellent recs! i’ve read all of this except for tsok (which i’m planning to read this year) so i’m feeling like we both have excellent taste 😎 and i’m so glad t see that the bone shard daughter has recently been gaining more traction! it was such a good book and i can’t wait to read the sequel ❤
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yay! hope you enjoy tsok as well! I really loved the sequel to the bone shard daughter and can’t wait to hear your thoughts on it!!
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Solid list! I’ve read each and every one of these books. YASS!
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so glad you think so!! hope you enjoyed them all ❤
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Great list! The only ones I’ve read on here are Jade City (the best series ever!) and Poppy War (and I need to finish this series) but the others are on my TBR and I’ve heard so many great things about them.
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