When we muse about monsters, we often reflect on ourselves. If you’re tired of re-reading Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and are looking for a literary read that features a monster or focuses on monstrousness, we have your summer reading set. The reads featured here use magical realism to create narratives that are layered, nuanced, and occasionally horrifying. In these books about monsters, fantasy and reality are wrapped so tightly that they become indistinguishable, creating alternate realities of their own.
The debut novel of critically acclaimed author Julia Armfield, Our Wives Under the Sea is a haunting examination of trauma, lost love, and the deep, deep sea. After a submarine accident, protagonist Miri must try to find her way back to her wife, deep-sea researcher Leah, as she undergoes a strange transformation. Armfield uses her main relationship and magical realism to explore a question at the core of the grieving process: do we grieve for ourselves or the person we lost?
For a feminist, heart-centered, page-turning plot, Kelly Barnhill’s novel will transport you to an alternate 1950s America, where thousands of women spontaneously transform into dragons. The novel follows Alex Green as she comes of age in the shadow of a society determined to erase the changing-into-dragons phenomenon from public memory. A meditation on female rage, repression, identity, and the cost of conformity, this novel uses monsters as a metaphor for women refusing to remain small, silent, or invisible.
We can’t get enough of this book. (Can there please be a sequel, Victor??) Victor LaValle has a career’s worth of incredible novels but this one is notable for its unique twists and turns, and its pastiche of magical figures, from baby snatchers to witches to monsters. The novel follows Apollo, a rare-book dealer and father to a young son, as he delves into his current and past family drama, uncovering long-buried secrets and facing terrifying creatures in the process. Instead of taking inspiration from traditional fairy tale tropes or choosing a young, female protagonist, LaValle explores the narrative through Scandinavian mythology and fatherhood.
Who said that magical realism had to stick to one genre? Lauren Beukes’s Broken Monsters absolutely refuses to do that. The novel combines a police procedural, a horror story, and a coming-of-age tale into one masterful narrative. Set in Detroit, Beukes perfectly balances the more fantastical (or sometimes horrific) elements of the novel with a grounded, modern city setting. The references to online culture clearly mark the book’s release date (2015), but that adds to the charm.
Based on Jenny Greenteeth, a character in English mythology, Molly O’Neill’s Greenteeth is a lush, beautifully-written novel about love and family. The elements of magical realism in the narrative are easily mistaken for cozy fantasy, but make no mistake, this book knows exactly what it’s doing. Without epic quests and battles, Greenteeth can focus on its characters, their relationships, and their survival in a world that’s determined to do away with myths and magic, for better or worse.
Some of the greatest monster stories in literary history were inspired by the grief of losing a child. Gerardo Sámano Córdova’s Monstrilio steals some of the best parts of classics like Frankenstein to bring a new novel to life. Monstrilio, the novel’s titular protagonist is a creature born from the lung of a lost son, and although he has a monstrous appetite, it was love that brought him into the world, and love that keeps him in it, no matter the cost.
Jessica Johns’ debut novel Bad Cree is a slow-burn, fantastical horror novel that explores themes of guilt, dreams, family and cultural loyalty. The novel’s protagonist, Mackenzie is a young, indigenous woman still haunted by her sister’s death through strange dreams and odd encounters. Johns balances character, story, and pacing perfectly to create a tense, emotionally charged narrative where absolutely nothing is exactly as it seems.
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Did we miss any of your favorite “magically realistic” monster books? These are only a few recent titles in a growing subgenre with many more stories to explore! Let us know your favorites in the comments or on social media to add to our list!
Claire van Doren holds degrees in English literature and journalism as well as a certificate in LGBTQ+ studies from Arizona State University. She is a volunteer reader for Uncharted magazine, a publisher of genre fiction. Her writing has been published by Inner Worlds, Zocalo Public Square, and ASU News.
Inglenook Lit is an online literary magazine for magic enthusiasts and enchantment seekers
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