Unlike most fantasy novels, which are set in a world completely different from ours, urban fantasy novels are set in the real world with magical and paranormal elements. The genre has become quite popular, so I compiled this list featuring the best urban fantasy books!
Urban fantasy is a genre that blends the modern world with elements of magic, folklore, and mythical creatures. The most captivating urban fantasy books transport readers to enchanting urban landscapes where the ordinary and extraordinary coexist in mesmerizing harmony.
These stories show how everyday city life can be filled with supernatural surprises and mysteries. Whether uncovering hidden magical realms, solving ancient riddles in the city, or fighting secret societies thriving in the shadows, urban fantasy offers exciting and enchanting tales for everyone.
This genre includes mysteries, romance, and action-packed adventures. It explores the magical side of urban life and keeps readers entertained with fantastical worlds and thrilling plots.
So, in this article, you’ll find some of the best urban fantasy novels that you should start reading right now if you are a fan of the genre or find yourself intrigued with this subgenre of fantasy literature!
Best Urban Fantasy Books in 2025
1. Jade City by Fonda Lee
Jade is the lifeblood of the island of Kekon. It has been mined, traded, stolen, and killed for—and for centuries, honorable Green Bone warriors like the Kaul family have used it to enhance their magical abilities and defend the island from foreign invasion.
The war is over, and a new generation of Kauls vies to control Kekon’s bustling capital city. They care about protecting their own, cornering the jade market, and defending the districts under their protection. Ancient tradition has little place in this rapidly changing nation.
When a powerful new drug emerges that lets anyone—even foreigners—wield jade, the simmering tension between the Kauls and the rival Ayt family erupts into open violence. The outcome of this clan war will determine the fate of all Green Bones—and of Kekon itself.
2. Storm Front by Jim Butcher
Harry Dresden is the best at what he does. Well, technically, he’s the only one at what he does. So when the Chicago P.D. has a case that transcends mortal creativity or capability, they come to him for answers.
The “everyday” world is full of strange and magical things—and most don’t play well with humans. That’s where Harry comes in. It takes a wizard to catch a—well, whatever. There’s just one problem. Business, to put it mildly, stinks.
So when the police bring him in to consult on a grisly double murder committed with black magic, Harry sees dollar signs. But where there’s black magic, there’s a black mage behind it. And now that mage knows Harry’s name. And that’s when things start to get interesting!
3. American Gods by Neil Gaiman
Days before his release from prison, Shadow’s wife, Laura, dies in a mysterious car crash. Numbly, he makes his way back home.
On the plane, he encounters the enigmatic Mr Wednesday, who claims to be a refugee from a distant war, a former god, and the king of America.
Together, they embark on a profoundly strange journey across the heart of the USA while a storm of preternatural and epic proportions threatens to break out all around them.
4. City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
When fifteen-year-old Clary Fray heads out to the Pandemonium Club in New York City, she hardly expects to witness a murder―much less a murder committed by three teenagers covered with strange tattoos and brandishing bizarre weapons.
Then, the body disappears into thin air. It’s hard to call the police when the murderers are invisible to everyone else and when there is nothing―not even a smear of blood―to show that a boy has died. Or was he a boy?
This is Clary’s first meeting with the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the earth of demons. It’s also her first encounter with Jace, a Shadowhunter who looks a little like an angel and acts a lot like a jerk.
Within twenty-four hours, Clary is pulled into Jace’s world with a vengeance when her mother disappears and a demon attacks her. But why would demons be interested in ordinary mundanes like Clary and her mother?
5. Vicious by V.E. Schwab
Victor and Eli started as college roommates—brilliant, arrogant, lonely boys who recognized the same sharpness and ambition in each other.
In their senior year, a shared research interest in adrenaline, near-death experiences, and seemingly supernatural events reveals an intriguing possibility: that under the right conditions, someone could develop extraordinary abilities. However, things go horribly wrong when their thesis moves from academic to experimental.
Ten years later, Victor breaks out of prison, determined to catch up to his old friend (now foe), aided by a young girl whose reserved nature obscures a stunning ability.
Meanwhile, Eli is on a mission to eradicate every other super-powered person he can find—aside from his sidekick, an enigmatic woman with an unbreakable will. Armed with terrible power on both sides, driven by the memory of betrayal and loss, the archnemeses have set a course for revenge—but who will be left alive at the end?
6. The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
Percy Jackson is a good kid, but he can’t seem to focus on his schoolwork or control his temper. And lately, being away at boarding school is only getting worse—Percy could have sworn his pre-algebra teacher turned into a monster and tried to kill him.
When Percy’s mom finds out, she knows it’s time he knew the truth about where he came from and that he would go to the one place where he’d be safe. She sends Percy to Camp Half-Blood, a summer camp for demigods (on Long Island), where he learns that the father he never knew is Poseidon, the God of the Sea.
Soon, a mystery unfolds, and together with his friends—one a satyr and the other the demigod daughter of Athena—Percy sets out on a quest across the United States to reach the gates of the Underworld (located in a recording studio in Hollywood) and prevent a catastrophic war between the gods.
7. The City We Became by N.K. Jemisin
Five New Yorkers must come together in order to defend their city.
Every city has a soul. Some are as ancient as myths, and others are as new and destructive as children. New York City? She’s got five.
But every city also has a dark side. A roiling, ancient evil stirs beneath the earth, threatening to destroy the city and her five protectors unless they can come together and stop it once and for all.
8. The Long Way Down by Craig Schaefer
Nobody knows the seedy underbelly of Las Vegas like Daniel Faust, a sorcerer for hire and ex-gangster who uses black magic and bullets to solve his clients’ problems. When an old man comes seeking vengeance for his murdered granddaughter, what looks like a simple job quickly spirals out of control.
Soon Daniel stands in the crossfire between a murderous porn director; a corrupt cop with a quick trigger finger; and his own former employer, a racket boss who isn’t entirely human. Then there’s Caitlin: brilliant, beautiful, and the lethal right hand of a demon prince.
Faust should know what happens when you rub shoulders with demons. Still, he can’t resist being drawn to Caitlin’s flame as they race to unlock the secret of the Etruscan Box, a relic that people all over town are dying—and killing—to get their hands on.
As the bodies drop and the double-crosses pile up, Daniel will need every shred of his wits, courage, and sheer ruthlessness to survive!
9. Tithe by Holly Black
Sixteen-year-old Kaye is a modern nomad. Fierce and independent, she drifts from place to place with her mother’s rock band until an ominous attack forces them back to Kaye’s childhood home. But Kaye’s life takes another turn when she stumbles upon an injured faerie knight in the woods.
Kaye has always been able to see faeries where others could not, and she chooses to save the strange young man instead of leaving him to die.
But this fateful choice will have more dire consequences than she could predict. Kaye soon finds herself the unwilling pawn in an ancient and violent power struggle between two rival faerie kingdoms—a struggle that could very well mean her death.
10. Moon Called by Patricia Briggs
Mercy Thompson is a shapeshifter, and while werewolves raised her, she can never be one of them, especially after the Pack ran her off for having a forbidden love affair. So she’s turned her talent for fixing cars into a business and now runs a one-woman mechanic shop in the Tri-Cities area of Washington State.
But Mercy’s two worlds are colliding. A half-starved teenage boy arrives at her shop looking for work, only to reveal that he’s a newly changed werewolf—on the run and desperately trying to control his animal instincts.
Mercy asks her neighbor, Adam Hauptman, the Alpha of the local werewolf pack, for assistance. But Mercy’s act of kindness has unexpected consequences that leave her no choice but to seek help from those she once considered family—the werewolves who abandoned her!
11. Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman
Under the streets of London, there’s a world most people could never dream of—a city of monsters and saints, murderers and angels, knights in armor, and pale girls in black velvet.
“Neverwhere” is the London of the people who have fallen between the cracks.
Strange destinies lie in wait in London below—a world that seems eerily familiar but is utterly bizarre, peopled by unearthly characters such as the Angel called Islington, the girl named Door, and the Earl who holds Court on a tube train.
Now, a single act of kindness has catapulted young businessman Richard Mayhew out of his safe and predictable life and into “Neverwhere.” Richard is about to find out more than he ever wanted to know about this other London, which is a pity because Richard just wants to go home!
12. This Savage Song by V.E. Schwab
There’s no such thing as safe in a city at war, a city overrun with monsters. Kate Harker and August Flynn are the heirs to a divided city—a city where the violence has begun to breed actual monsters.
All Kate wants is to be as ruthless as her father, who lets the monsters roam free and makes the humans pay for his protection. All August wants is to be human, as good-hearted as his own father, to play a bigger role in protecting the innocent—but he’s one of the monsters. One who can steal a soul with a simple strain of music.
When the chance arises to keep an eye on Kate, who’s just been kicked out of her sixth boarding school and returned home, August jumps at it. But Kate discovers August’s secret, and after a failed assassination attempt, the pair must flee for their lives.
13. Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire
Children have always disappeared under the right conditions, slipping through the shadows under a bed or at the back of a wardrobe, tumbling down rabbit holes and into old wells, and emerging somewhere… else.
But magical lands have little need for used-up miracle children.
Nancy tumbled once, but now she’s back. The things she’s experienced… they change a person. The children under Miss West’s care understand all too well. And each of them is seeking a way back to their own fantasy world.
But Nancy’s arrival marks a change at the Home. There’s a darkness around each corner, and when tragedy strikes, it’s up to Nancy and her new-found schoolmates to get to the heart of the matter. No matter the cost!
14. Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch
Probationary Constable Peter Grant dreams of being a detective in London’s Metropolitan Police. It is too bad that his superior plans to assign him to the Case Progression Unit, where the biggest threat he’ll face is a paper cut.
But Peter’s prospects change in the aftermath of a puzzling murder when he gains exclusive information from an eyewitness who happens to be a ghost. Peter’s ability to speak with the lingering dead brings him to the attention of Detective Chief Inspector Thomas Nightingale, who investigates crimes involving magic and other uncanny manifestations.
Now, as a wave of brutal and bizarre murders engulfs the city, Peter is plunged into a world where gods and goddesses mingle with mortals, and a long-dead evil is making a comeback on a rising tide of magic.
15. Fated by Benedict Jacka
Alex is part of a world hidden in plain sight, running a magic shop in London that caters to clientele who can do much more than pull rabbits out of hats.
And while Alex’s own powers aren’t as showy as some mages, he does have the advantage of foreseeing the possible future—allowing him to pull off operations that have a million-to-one chance of success.
But when Alex is approached by multiple factions seeking his skills to crack open a relic from a long-ago mage war, he knows that whatever’s inside must be beyond powerful. And thanks to his abilities, Alex can predict that by taking the job, his odds of survival are about to go from slim to none!
16. Not Even Bones by Rebecca Schaeffer
Nita doesn’t murder supernatural beings and sell their body parts on the internet—her mother does that. Nita just dissects the bodies after they’ve been “acquired.” But when her mom brings home a live specimen, Nita decides she wants out—dissecting living people is a step too far.
But when she tries to save her mother’s victim, she ends up sold on the black market in his place—because Nita herself is a supernatural being. Now Nita is on the other side of the bars, and there is no line she won’t cross to escape and make sure no one can ever capture her again.
Nita did a good deed, and it cost her everything. Now, she’s going to do a lot of bad deeds to get it all back!
17. A Madness of Angels by Kate Griffin
For Matthew Swift, today is not like any other day. It is the day on which he returns to life. Two years after his untimely death, Matthew Swift finds himself breathing once again, lying in bed in his London home.
Except that it’s no longer his bed or his home. And the last time this sorcerer was seen alive, an unknown assailant had gouged a hole so deep in his chest that his death was irrefutable… despite his body never being found.
He doesn’t have long to mull over his resurrection, though, or the changes that have been wrought upon him. His only concern now is vengeance—vengeance against his monstrous killer and vengeance against the one who brought him back.
18. Written in Red by Anne Bishop
As a cassandra sangue, or blood prophet, Meg Corbyn can see the future when her skin is cut—a gift that feels more like a curse. Meg’s Controller keeps her enslaved so he can have full access to her visions. But when she escapes, the only safe place Meg can hide is at the Lakeside Courtyard—a business district operated by the Others.
Shape-shifter Simon Wolfgard is reluctant to hire the stranger who inquires about the Human Liaison job. First, he senses she’s keeping a secret, and second, she doesn’t smell like human prey. Yet a stronger instinct propels him to give Meg the job.
When he learns the truth about Meg and that she’s wanted by the government, he’ll have to decide if she’s worth the fight between humans and the Others that will surely follow.
19. Gods of Jade and Shadow by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
The Jazz Age is in full swing, but Casiopea Tun is too busy cleaning the floors of her wealthy grandfather’s house to listen to any fast tunes. Nevertheless, she dreams of a life far from her dusty small town in southern Mexico. A life she can call her own.
Yet this new life seems as distant as the stars until the day she finds a curious wooden box in her grandfather’s room. She opens it—and accidentally frees the spirit of the Mayan god of death, who requests her help recovering his throne from his treacherous brother. Failure will mean Casiopea’s demise, but success could make her dreams come true.
In the company of the strangely alluring god and armed with her wits, Casiopea begins an adventure that will take her on a cross-country odyssey from the jungles of Yucatán to the bright lights of Mexico City—and deep into the darkness of the Mayan underworld.
20. Magic Bites by Ilona Andrews
When the magic is up, rogue mages cast their spells and monsters appear, while guns refuse to fire and cars fail to start. But then technology returns and the magic recedes as unpredictably as it arose, leaving all kinds of paranormal problems in its wake.
Kate Daniels is a down-on-her-luck mercenary who makes her living cleaning up these magical problems. But when Kate’s guardian is murdered, her quest for justice draws her into a power struggle between two strong factions within Atlanta’s magic circles.
The Masters of the Dead, necromancers who can control vampires, and the Pack, a paramilitary clan of shapechangers, blame each other for a series of bizarre killings—and the death of Kate’s guardian may be part of the same mystery. Pressured by both sides to find the killer, Kate realizes she’s way out of her league—but she wouldn’t have it any other way!
Conclusion
Urban fantasy books offer a unique blend of magic and modern life, captivating readers with enchanting and thrilling narratives.
With diverse stories set in cities and featuring extraordinary adventures, urban fantasy continues to delight readers of all ages. Its enduring appeal lies in its ability to transport us to captivating worlds where the ordinary is infused with the extraordinary, making it a beloved genre for fans of fantastical storytelling.
So, what are you waiting for? Pick up one of the best urban fantasy books from the ones listed above and discover why people love reading novels in this genre!
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