I’ve really missed doing Friday Favorites, and since no one was currently hosting it, Cait @ Functionally Fictional decided to jump into the gap. Each week, she provides a prompt, and I get to talk about my favorite books that fit the topic. Feel free to join in – the more the merrier!

This week’s prompt is about some of my favorite fantasy authors, and this is the perfect topic for me, since I love reading fantasy! I’ve been reading a lot of really incredible books lately, and have discovered some really great new authors. Rather than focus on the usual popular authors (SJM, Leigh Bardugo) like I normally would, I want to highlight some different and more diverse voices that I don’t see as often, so here they are:

1. Fonda Lee — she completely won me over with her Green Bone Saga series, and I can’t wait to see what else she brings to the table!
2. Ayana Gray — while I’ve only read her debut Beasts of Prey, I fell in love with it and am really looking forward to the follow up that was just released.
3. Aden Polydoros — his Jewish and queer gothic fantasy books are so good and although I’ve only read The City Beautiful, I need more immediately.
4. Tasha Suri — After reading the first two books in the sapphic, Indian-inspired Burning Kingdoms series, I definitely need more.
5. A.J. Hackwith — one of the most creative series I’ve seen in a long time was the Hell’s Library books, which I fell in love with and hardly ever see hyped anywhere for some reason I cannot figure out.
6. Anna-Marie McLemore — there’s just something beautiful about their writing that I find irresistible, and the stories are just *chef’s kiss*.
7. Cait Marie — I can’t help but hype an indie author that I adore as a writer and a friend, and I have the honor of proofreading her books, which I look forward to every single time! 
8. Chelsea Abdullah — this is another debut author that I read but just fell in love with the way she writes, the story she told, and the characters that she created. The minute I finished this book I knew I needed the next one immediately.

What are some of your favorite fantasy authors?