Fantasy · Similar reads
Books like Vicious
The best books like Vicious are Homage to Catalonia, American Gods, and The Blade Itself. Vicious by V.E. Schwab is about moral ambiguity and villainy, obsession and rivalry, power and its costs. If that's what drew you in, here are 12 books that share its DNA — each summarized on Superbook, and ready to chat with in the app.
- Homage to Catalonia
01
George Orwell · Memoir
Homage to Catalonia is George Orwell's firsthand account of fighting in the Spanish Civil War, which he joined in late 1936 as a volunteer with the POUM militia — a Trotskyist revolutionary organization that was later suppressed by the Soviet-backed Stalinist wing of the Republican forces.
A kindred fantasy read.
Read the summary → - American Gods
02
Neil Gaiman · Fantasy
American Gods opens with Shadow Moon, a man released from prison days early because his wife has died in a car accident.
A kindred fantasy read.
Read the summary → - The Blade Itself
03
Joe Abercrombie · Fantasy
The Blade Itself is the first book of the First Law trilogy, a grimdark fantasy that opened with a deliberate challenge to the genre's conventions: the barbarian is not particularly heroic, the noble knight is not particularly noble, and the crippled torturer employed by the Inquisition is probably the most interesting person in the room.
A kindred fantasy read.
Read the summary → - The Power of Myth
04
Joseph Campbell · Philosophy
The Power of Myth is the transcript of six hours of conversations between Joseph Campbell and journalist Bill Moyers, filmed at George Lucas's Skywalker Ranch in 1985 and 1986 and broadcast on PBS in 1988, shortly after Campbell's death.
A kindred fantasy read.
Read the summary → - The Fifth Season
05
N.K. Jemisin · Fantasy
The Fifth Season takes place on a continent called the Stillness, which is anything but: a geologically unstable supercontinent regularly devastated by "fifth seasons" — catastrophic climate events triggered by seismic activity that can last decades and kill millions.
Both dig into power and its costs.
Read the summary → - A Court of Mist and Fury
06
Sarah J. Maas · Fantasy
A Court of Mist and Fury begins where A Court of Thorns and Roses ended: Feyre is back in the Spring Court with Tamlin, but she is not the same person who left.
A kindred fantasy read.
Read the summary → - A Court of Thorns and Roses
07
Sarah J. Maas · Fantasy
Feyre Archeron is nineteen, hunting in winter to feed her family, when she kills a wolf in the forest and is taken by a creature from Prythian — the land of the fae — as payment for a life.
A kindred fantasy read.
Read the summary → - A Darker Shade of Magic
08
V.E. Schwab · Fantasy
A Darker Shade of Magic is set across four parallel versions of London — Red, Grey, White, and the long-destroyed Black — each existing in the same location but separated by the barriers between worlds.
A kindred fantasy read.
Read the summary → - A Game of Thrones
09
George R.R. Martin · Fantasy
A Game of Thrones is the first volume of George R.R.
A kindred fantasy read.
Read the summary → - A Little Hatred
10
Joe Abercrombie · Fantasy
A Little Hatred is the first book in Abercrombie's The Age of Madness trilogy, set in the same world as his First Law trilogy but a generation later.
A kindred fantasy read.
Read the summary → - A Wizard of Earthsea
11
Ursula K. Le Guin · Fantasy
A Wizard of Earthsea is Ursula K.
A kindred fantasy read.
Read the summary → - A Wrinkle in Time
12
Madeleine L'Engle · Fantasy
A Wrinkle in Time follows Meg Murry, a prickly, self-doubting teenager whose father — a physicist working on a classified government project — has been missing for years.
A kindred fantasy read.
Read the summary →
Books like Vicious: quick answers
What are the best books like Vicious?
The best books like Vicious by V.E. Schwab are Homage to Catalonia by George Orwell, American Gods by Neil Gaiman, The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie, The Power of Myth by Joseph Campbell, The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin, plus 7 more below. Each was chosen for themes it shares with Vicious, such as moral ambiguity and villainy, obsession and rivalry, power and its costs.
What should I read after Vicious?
A natural next read after Vicious is Homage to Catalonia by George Orwell. A kindred fantasy read. Other strong choices are American Gods by Neil Gaiman, The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie, The Power of Myth by Joseph Campbell.
What books are similar to Vicious by V.E. Schwab?
Vicious centers on moral ambiguity and villainy, obsession and rivalry, power and its costs. Books with a similar feel include Homage to Catalonia by George Orwell, American Gods by Neil Gaiman, The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie, The Power of Myth by Joseph Campbell, The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin, A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas — all free to read and chat with on Superbook.
