5 Great Australian Fantasy and Sci Fi Authors
There seems to be a weird misconception out there that there isn’t much of a market for fantasy and Sci Fi books in Australia and (therefore) aren’t any good genre writers from here either. This short article is aimed and blowing that Deathstar out of the sky. Here are 5 great Australian Fantasy and Sci Fi authors doing amazing things in their home country and around the world.
Amie Kaufman - An Epic Aussie Sci Fi Author
Did someone say New York Times Bestselling author? Amy Kaufman is a bad ass Aussie writer, that has tackled high concept Sci Fi, YA Fantasy, Middle Grade Fantasy and more. Her Illuminae Files trilogy collaboration with Jay Kristoff in particular has been a runaway hit around the world. Amie and Jay have just launched a new YA Sci Fi trilogy as well - The Aurora Cycle, so there’s another stack of books to add to your must read pile. You can find Amy’s latest books on Amazon here.
Jay Kristoff - Top Australian Dark Fantasy Author
#stabstabstab
It makes sense following Amie Kaufman to talk about Melbourne metal head writer Jay Kristoff. He also stands tall when it comes to writing across genres. Apparently Mister Kristoff stands tall in general too, at 6’7’’. Jay’s recent Nevernight Chronicles exploded onto the dark fantasy scene in a shower of blood and has been praised by fellow NY Times Bestsellers like VE Schwab for it’s originality and trope smashing prowess. Read Schwab’s classic review on Goodreads for a giggle. As a side note, the cover art on the Nevernight series is up there with the best I’ve seen recently as well. His latest vampire series, starting with Empire of the Damned is amazing too!
Fiona McIntosh - One of Australia’s most successful novelists
Book nerd readers might be thinking right now, huh, doesn’t Fiona McIntosh write historical romance novels? True. But she also writes a mean high fantasy story too. Both the Quickening and Trinity trilogies are amazing reads. If you want to talk cross genre she also does crime novels and children’s fantasy. No biggie. Get onto McIntosh’s writing and you won’t be disappointed. Find here work on Amazon Oz here.
#1 Hottest Australian Fantasy Author Right Now - James Islington
At the time of writing, Islington’s latest fantasy book, The Strength of the Few, is at #1 on Amazon’s best selling Historical Fiction list. He’s #3 on Epic Fantasy behind Rebecca Yarros’s mega smash Fourth Wing and Onyx Storm. He’s sold over 2 million books and counting for great reason - they grab you by the throat and never let go. Do yourself a favour and start with The Will of the Many. It’s has an average 4.6 star rating on Goodreads from 160,000+ reviews. Yup, it’s good.
Sara Douglas - Australian Fantasy Writing Great
I can’t write a list about great Australian Fantasy authors without mentioning one of Aussie speculative fiction’s founding foremothers, Sara Douglas. Her Crucible series had me enthralled as teenager, being the first historical fantasy books I’d read at the time. Sara also won the Aurealis Award for Best Fantasy Novel in 1996 and 2001 . She now has an Aurealis Award named in her memory after dying of cancer in 2011. Just one other reason I wish that disease would piss right off.
These are just 5 of the many, many amazing Australian Fantasy and Sci Fi writers out there right now.