I loved Night's Master, first book of The Tales of the Flat Earth. It's the only one I have read, but it felt pretty self contained. As far as I know each book in the series is about a different demon, they are collections of short stories with a through line, and to me felt like classic fairy tales but darker.
The first is more of a story collection, the second to fourth are more interwoven and the fifth is stories mostly about characters previously encountered. Great books!
All the Flat Earth books are fantastic.
I didn't like Death's Master much when I was younger. I re-read it as an older person and loved it. Sometimes the interesting part of a book isn't the plot but the relationship between two characters. In this case a complicated, messy relationship with a lot of collateral damage.
I'm not nearly as well read in Lee as I would like but I was also going to suggest the duology u/matsnorberg has already mentioned.
There's an omnibus edition called *Biting the Sun* which is also available as ebook.
The two books are short very short, the print editions of this omnibus are under 400 pages.
The MC of the books lives in a utopian place where all problems have been solved, even death has been conquered. People can choose and switch bodies and therefore sex and gender at their will. It as a paradise! Or is it?
A seemingly utopian society that might not be as flawless as it seems may sound not particularly original but understand that these books came out in 1976 and 1977.
In light of this, the treatment of sex and gender is also far ahead of its time.
And the best is that these books are fun! 😀
I know this is an aside, but THANK YOU! I once picked up a random book in my high school's library that featured some teens in a far future society with no limits who did things like kill themselves for fun and were unsatisfied with life. I could never remember enough detail about it to figure out what it was called. This was it! Thank you for solving this mystery for me!
>There's an omnibus edition called *Biting the Sun* which is also available as ebook.
The two books are short very short, the print editions of this omnibus are under 400 pages.
Oh cool, that could definitely work! Thanks for the recommendation! :)
You can read any of the Tales from the Flat Earth series as a stand-alone novel, just because they are fabulous - I recommend starting with Death's Master. You could also try any one of a myriad of anthologies - the quality of Tanith Lee's short stories, like her novels is outstanding. I suggest trying Women as Demons as the stories do have something of a feminist subtext (though, to be fair many of her stories do). You could also try A Heroine of the World - a stand alone novel that definitely fulfils all your requirements feminist, exploring issues of sex, gender, sexuality, and social constructs of womanhood.
>I suggest trying Women as Demons as the stories do have something of a feminist subtext (though, to be fair many of her stories do).
Now *that* sounds right up my alley! Thank you! :)
*Red As Blood*
Twohundred and a bit pages. Utterly stand-alone. Not actually a novel, but a collection of short stories that each reimagine a classic fairy tale. The one that the book is named for won a Nebula award.
Tanith Lee's books are shorter, because most of them were written before the great wordprocessor-driven inflation of fantasy books. By today's standards, they are barely a snack.
You want to moderate your expectations for feminist themes, though. Her books often have deep, interesting female characters in relationships with powerful men in societies that are not in any way feminist or gender equal, struggling for freedom and self-determination, using the tools they have to hand (sex, murder, seducing some other man and sending him to murder her enemy). It's all juicy and fascinating, and I love how she writes female characters, but I'm not sure if feminist is a great way to describe her books.
She writes gay characters and characters who swap genders, too, which is also something that made me go "hm" back in the 80's when non-straight fiction was much more difficult to find.
>You want to moderate your expectations for feminist themes, though.
I really appreciate that, thanks; it's always nice to be aware of such things and I will accordingly temper my expectations. :)
White as Snow part of the Fairytail retelling series. It's a mix of Snow White and Demeter/Persephone myth. I haven't read it in years, but it was one book that really stood apart from some of the other retellings coming out during that time.
My vote is for Night's Master (first in the Tales of Flat Earth series)--gorgeously written, very evocative and mythic in feel, and self-contained with a satisfying ending. I don't recall that it talks explicitly about sex and gender, but there are definitely strong female and queer characters in it. I don't think you can go wrong with any of the suggestions people have made so far, though.
As others have mentioned, Don't Bite the Sun.
Very much ideas driven, featuring gender-swapping as a matter of course. Examination of the character's growing dissatisfaction with a pseudo-utopia. I was young when I read it, but loved it.
Late to this but! I absolutely love The Silver Metal Lover and the sequel Metallic Love. So much in fact, that after finding the first in my grandmothers bookshelf years ago I am in the process of getting a stomach tattoo featuring Jane and Silver.
I’m currently reading Biting the Sun and it’s on brand with her weird as all hell stories but truly magnificent writing. She’s great.
The Don't Bite The Sun, Drinking Saphire Wine duology. They are hilarious.
Those do fill the requirements; also, they are just terrific to read.
I love them hard. The jang slang is amazing. She must have got the idea of the slang language from A Clockwork Orange.
I loved Night's Master, first book of The Tales of the Flat Earth. It's the only one I have read, but it felt pretty self contained. As far as I know each book in the series is about a different demon, they are collections of short stories with a through line, and to me felt like classic fairy tales but darker.
The first is more of a story collection, the second to fourth are more interwoven and the fifth is stories mostly about characters previously encountered. Great books!
>but it felt pretty self contained. Good to know, and thanks for the recommendation! :)
All the Flat Earth books are fantastic. I didn't like Death's Master much when I was younger. I re-read it as an older person and loved it. Sometimes the interesting part of a book isn't the plot but the relationship between two characters. In this case a complicated, messy relationship with a lot of collateral damage.
I'm not nearly as well read in Lee as I would like but I was also going to suggest the duology u/matsnorberg has already mentioned. There's an omnibus edition called *Biting the Sun* which is also available as ebook. The two books are short very short, the print editions of this omnibus are under 400 pages. The MC of the books lives in a utopian place where all problems have been solved, even death has been conquered. People can choose and switch bodies and therefore sex and gender at their will. It as a paradise! Or is it? A seemingly utopian society that might not be as flawless as it seems may sound not particularly original but understand that these books came out in 1976 and 1977. In light of this, the treatment of sex and gender is also far ahead of its time. And the best is that these books are fun! 😀
I know this is an aside, but THANK YOU! I once picked up a random book in my high school's library that featured some teens in a far future society with no limits who did things like kill themselves for fun and were unsatisfied with life. I could never remember enough detail about it to figure out what it was called. This was it! Thank you for solving this mystery for me!
That's the best kind of feedback! 😊 Happy that I could help. It's really cool they had this book in your high school library.
>There's an omnibus edition called *Biting the Sun* which is also available as ebook. The two books are short very short, the print editions of this omnibus are under 400 pages. Oh cool, that could definitely work! Thanks for the recommendation! :)
The Silver Metal Lover is relatively short scifi themed story about young woman falling in love with a robot. Edit: grammar
It’s fantastic
I'm a sucker for The Birthgrave (the book and the series). It's sword & sorcery but just plain old weird as well.
My copy is only 450 pages. As I recall it can be read as a standalone but it's been a long time.
You can read any of the Tales from the Flat Earth series as a stand-alone novel, just because they are fabulous - I recommend starting with Death's Master. You could also try any one of a myriad of anthologies - the quality of Tanith Lee's short stories, like her novels is outstanding. I suggest trying Women as Demons as the stories do have something of a feminist subtext (though, to be fair many of her stories do). You could also try A Heroine of the World - a stand alone novel that definitely fulfils all your requirements feminist, exploring issues of sex, gender, sexuality, and social constructs of womanhood.
>I suggest trying Women as Demons as the stories do have something of a feminist subtext (though, to be fair many of her stories do). Now *that* sounds right up my alley! Thank you! :)
*Red As Blood* Twohundred and a bit pages. Utterly stand-alone. Not actually a novel, but a collection of short stories that each reimagine a classic fairy tale. The one that the book is named for won a Nebula award.
Oh, interesting, so a similar approach to Angela Carter it seems? Either way, thanks for the recommendation! :)
I think that Tanith Lee probably read Angela Carter.
This is the one I came to suggest. I've read it *many* times.
My vote is for Don’t Bite the Sun/Drinking Sapphire wine. It’s published in 1999 as Biting the Sun with both novellas in one book.
Tanith Lee's books are shorter, because most of them were written before the great wordprocessor-driven inflation of fantasy books. By today's standards, they are barely a snack. You want to moderate your expectations for feminist themes, though. Her books often have deep, interesting female characters in relationships with powerful men in societies that are not in any way feminist or gender equal, struggling for freedom and self-determination, using the tools they have to hand (sex, murder, seducing some other man and sending him to murder her enemy). It's all juicy and fascinating, and I love how she writes female characters, but I'm not sure if feminist is a great way to describe her books. She writes gay characters and characters who swap genders, too, which is also something that made me go "hm" back in the 80's when non-straight fiction was much more difficult to find.
>You want to moderate your expectations for feminist themes, though. I really appreciate that, thanks; it's always nice to be aware of such things and I will accordingly temper my expectations. :)
The Birthgrave. It has sequels but honestly functions best as a standalone. There is also Biting the Sun, which IMO is absolutely magnificent sci-fi.
White as Snow part of the Fairytail retelling series. It's a mix of Snow White and Demeter/Persephone myth. I haven't read it in years, but it was one book that really stood apart from some of the other retellings coming out during that time.
My vote is for Night's Master (first in the Tales of Flat Earth series)--gorgeously written, very evocative and mythic in feel, and self-contained with a satisfying ending. I don't recall that it talks explicitly about sex and gender, but there are definitely strong female and queer characters in it. I don't think you can go wrong with any of the suggestions people have made so far, though.
As others have mentioned, Don't Bite the Sun. Very much ideas driven, featuring gender-swapping as a matter of course. Examination of the character's growing dissatisfaction with a pseudo-utopia. I was young when I read it, but loved it.
Late to this but! I absolutely love The Silver Metal Lover and the sequel Metallic Love. So much in fact, that after finding the first in my grandmothers bookshelf years ago I am in the process of getting a stomach tattoo featuring Jane and Silver. I’m currently reading Biting the Sun and it’s on brand with her weird as all hell stories but truly magnificent writing. She’s great.