28 Black Speculative Fiction Books For Black History Month

What is Black Speculative Fiction, anyway?

For me, speculative fiction has two definitions. One overarching definition includes texts that use unreal elements in a story. This includes fantasy, alternative histories, magical realism, science fiction, some mysteries, and some horror. The second definition is more genre-specific and involves texts that propose a “what-if” scenario. I typically think of it as a literary experiment in which the author poses a question to society and uses variables to conduct the experiment. Some books fall into both categories, while others fall into only one.

Black Speculative Fiction centers the Black experience in speculative fiction. Agreeing with Sami Schalk, it is a place where Black writers dream of better worlds and outcomes for marginalized people, or where they warn us of impending destruction if we continue on the same path.

For Black History Month, I’m creating 2 lists to highlight Black speculative fiction: one for books and one for comics! This first list is for books, so buckle up and take notes!

1. The Dead Withheld by L.D. Lewis

3. The Canopy Keepers, Book 1 by Veronica G. Henry

I went into this book not knowing what to expect and was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed the adventure! Witchmark is a queer fantasy mystery set in a version of Edwardian England that follows Miles, a man with remarkable magic, as he investigates who killed his patient with the help of his gorgeous love interest! I’m underplaying a lot here, but please check out the summary. You WILL NOT be disappointed!

This was one of my favorite series of 2025. The Canopy Keepers by Veronia Henry is a climate fiction (cli-fi) that is set in a future dystopian America where two siblings stand on opposing sides for the future of humanity. The environment is being neglected by everyone, and the underground protectors of the trees, the Rhiza, are at an impasse with the two siblings. One sibling wants to find a way to save humans and trees alike. The other wants to kill all humans to protect the trees. This beautifully written story teaches you about indigenous environmental practices, Black history, and the beauty of Earth, if we learned to care for it.

4. Bailey’s Cafe by Gloria Naylor

Inspired by the structure and narrative of Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales, this story with two narrators follows the comings and goings of the customers of a diner that sits everywhere and nowhere. Each chapter centers on a different customer and their reason for finding and needing Bailey’s Cafe. Naylor is brilliant in her storytelling and takes care to show the breadth of the Black woman’s experience.

5. Sistah Samurai: A Champloo Novella, Book 1 by Tatiana Obey

I made this anime-inspired novella my entire personality in 2024. Sistah Samurai is a love letter to Black women wrapped up in all the nerdy goddness that makes my heart happy. If you want to check out my interview with Tatiana Obey, click here. If you want to see the cover for book 2 which came out on Juneteenth 2025, click here!

6. Sky Full of Elephants by Cebo Campbell

I love recommending this book because folks either love it or hate it and are very vocal about where they stand. Personally, I loved it. It is the definition of speculative fiction. It proposes a ‘what if’ question (what if all white people walked into the nearest body of water and drowned?) and seeks to answer the question of a post-white supremacy world. It offers up various theories and tells the story through two frustrating characters with different viewpoints on the future. The story was intended to create conversation, and it does just that. For me, that is a job well done.

7. The Last Dreamwalker by Rita Woods

This book was a therapy session. I love speculative matrileneal generational stories, and this was no exception. Most of Rita Woods work centers on this topic, so yeah, grab your tissues and your mother wounds and do some healing.

8. Chain Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah

Do you want to see abolition in action? A gruesome tale of queer Black women fighting to the death in a prison system that uses their bodies as entertainment in death matches? Then look no further, your future masterpiece has been found. If you don’t change your outlook on the prison system, you read this book wrong.

9. This Cursed House by Del Sandeen

Del Sandeen writes her ass off in this one. A family in Louisiana is cursed, and outsider, Jemma Barker, is supposed to be the one to free them. But this family is still clinging onto old beliefs, family secrets, and the importance of their ability to pass for white. I was yelling at the book and the entire Duchon family!! What can I say? I love a story with generational healing. This is a must-read!!

10. Eve and The Faders, Book 1 by Berneta L. Haynes and Lornett B. Vestal

This story stays with me, even with the issues I have with the story. I’m making it my mission to dive back into the series this year. Eve and The Faders is like if Push (2009), and Netflix’s Raising Dion (2019) had a baby with a spy thriller. I have a full review here if you want to decide for yourself.

11. An Unkindness of Ghosts by Rivers Solomon

This story reimagines the Antebellum South on a spaceship in the distant future and is told from the perspective of a Black autistic protagonist who starts a revolution. Yeah, of course I’d love this story!!

12. Between Two Seas: A Collection of Short Stories by Cerece Rennie Murphy

Murphy flexes her writing skills in this quick read with some amazing fantastical and horrific stories! Truth, life, and death become the center of every story, with one of my favorites being “Blue Honey.”

13. Caul Baby by Morgan Jenkins

I dont watch TV soap operas and my anxiety runs too high to introduce drama into my life…but i love messiness in my stories. And Caul Baby has it in spades. This story follows a family of women who use the caul of their youngest daughter, Hallow, to restore their family’s status. But family secrets surround Hallow that eventually comes to a head in this heartbreaking yet wonderful story….oh my goodness, I have a type 😱

14. Those Beyond The Wall, Book 2 by Micaiah Johnson

Imagine a place where people can travel across the multiverse but only to places where you have already died. Unfortunately, in this book, the only folks that can take on this dangerous task are those who are marginalized and poor because their dopplegangers are killed off in some way by oppressive systems. This duology is everything: multiverse, sapphic love, technocrats, and badass women. Read my full review here and prep yourself for a wild ride!

15. That Self-Same Metal, Book 1 by Brittany N. Williams

I’d go through time to give this historical fantasy book to teenage me. It takes my passion for Shakespeare and adds the perfect amount of Blackness and fantasy that would have put me on this writer’s path even sooner! Check out my interview with Brittany here!

16. On Sundays She Picked Flowers by Yah Yah Scholfield

I’m trying to get everyone and their mother to read this hauntingly beautiful story. I just posted a review of this speculative literary horror, which I am quite proud of. Read the review and talk to me about this book. Please, I’m begging you🙏🏾

17. Of One Blood by Pauline Hopkins

This proto-Black scifi story is a required reading for those diving deep into Black speculative fiction. Written in 1902, this story is among the first Black science fiction/fantasy stories to be published. With high-society drama, a brush with death, and an unnamed supernatural power, this story follows a Black man as he discovers himself during an archaeological expedition in Ethiopia.

18. The Brothers Jetstream Leviathan, Book 1 by Zig Zag Claybourne

It’s the slap heard round the world and many other fantastical shenanigans. I had a TIME with this one, and I urge you to do the same! I wouldn’t label it definitively as genre-bending Blaxploitation, but… it gets pretty damn close.

19. Stone and Steel by Eboni Dunbar

I ALWAYS recommend this book! Stone and Steel by Ebony Dunbar has an amazingly horrifying villain and a wonderful queer-inclusive cast and support system. And it has element benders. What more could a girl ask for?

20. Empire of the Feast by Bendi Barret

A reincarnated emperor and a non-stop orgy are the only two things stopping a tentacled monster imprisoned on a sun from destroying a massive intergalactic empire. I don’t need much else to convince you.

21. Monstrous by Jessica Lewis

Jessica Lewis knows how to write a group of infuriating adults! I left this book rooting for the monster! This queer YA horror will have you on the edge of your seat and invested!! Check out my interview with Lewis, here!

22. Rust in the Root by Justina Ireland

I am on a mission to get more people to read this masterpiece. Humorous with a magical twist on American history, this story shines a light on how Black bodies were used to build the foundation of this country. The main character makes googly eyes at every woman she encounters, and you will be amazed by Ireland’s writing. Everyone walks away happy lol.

23. Daughters of Jubilation by Kara Corthron

I read this YA historical fantasy novel with @ConjuringLiteracy a few years ago, and I have maintained my love for it!! Daughters of Jubilation is a matrilineal generational story that follows a daughter, mother, and grandmother on their journey to heal from trauma and come to terms with their supernatural power. With strong Sankofa themes, this one is sure to spark conversation!!

24. No Gods, No Monsters by Cadwell Turnbull

Cooperative Economics, Community, and some genuinely weird shit happens in this book. You will need notes to remember all subplots. But it’s truly a fun ride if you’re willing to trust the author.

26. Lone Woman by Victor LaValle

I love how LaValle writes about family dynamics, and Lone Woman is no different. The main character’s journey for independence is so relatable. But it gets dark. You will feel the cold. And those boys from the train will piss you off.

27. Trouble the Saints by Ayala Dawn Johnson

I don’t talk about this one a lot, but I should because going in with no expectations, I loved it. I’m completely biased when it’s a book set in New York, but the magic, history, and compelling main character make this one a story to remember.

28. Babel-17 by Samuel R. Delany

Easily one of the best stories I have ever read. Top 3 if I’m being honest. Language is everything, and Delany wholeheartedly agrees.

Okay, I’m tired. Remember, nerds, this is a non-exhaustive list and only includes *some* of what I have read. I do plan to make a list of books out in the wild that I haven’t read yet. So keep reading, keep dreaming, keep growing, and we’ll talk soon.