There’s often a wish-fulfillment aspect to fantasy worlds. We’ve all read the books and series that make us wish we could live in that world, that we could wield magic or ride dragons or just live a more fantastical life. Some fantasy books, though, go the other way. Some of these books feature the worst fantasy worlds to live in.
What makes for one of the worst fantasy worlds to live in? Rampant oppression and poverty are certainly on the list. Horrifying magical creatures like demons and dragons laying waste to humanity definitely doesn’t sound fun. War, natural disasters, and endless violence don’t make for places I’d want to live. They can make for utterly fascinating and engaging reads, but not somewhere I want to move to and lay down roots. Dragons really mess with the property values, after all.
These eight book series (yes, they’re all series) include these terrifying aspects and more. From manga to Western novels, classics to very new, these fantasy worlds are bloody, dangerous, destitute, and so much fun to read. After all, heroes don’t usually need giant swords or dragons to ride unless things are looking pretty dire. Here are eight of the worst fantasy worlds to live in.
The Broken Earth by N.K. Jemisin
I mean, the reason you don’t want to live in this fantasy world is pretty much right there in the title, right? The Earth is broken. Earthquakes abound. They’re so bad, in fact, that the topography of the world has dramatically changed several times. Oh, and if you manage to have magic, you’re enslaved.
Berserk by Kentaro Miura
Take a standard medieval-Europe setting and make it even darker. There’s a reason that Guts carries a giant sword and a giant, dark chip on his shoulder. Endless wars, rampant poverty, and demonic entities make the world of Berserk one of the worst. There’s a reason those manga pages are mostly black.
The Dark Star Trilogy by Marlon James
Marlon James’s in-progress trilogy is based on African mythology and folklore, playing up the most dangerous parts to great effect. Dangerous creatures of the magical and mundane variety populate this world, and the people are even worse. They’re ambitious, dangerous, and nobody is safe, even if you have the best possible skills.
The Empyrean by Rebecca Yarros
I mean, we’ve all read the first two (or even three) in this series at this point, right? The Empyrean series is huge right now, almost as huge as the terrifying dragons and griffins ridden to battle. There’s a war raging, governments lying to their people, and magic is a very dangerous proposition, indeed. Even training to be a dragon rider is practically a death sentence.
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The Locked Tomb by Tamsyn Muir
This brilliant series pretty much redefined what grimdark could look like. Set on nine remote planets, necromancy is the greatest power in the system. Yeah, magic over the undead. Good times. Every one of these planets sounds like a gothic nightmare, and even those in power are competing to control the dead. If you don’t have power, you’re just the next future undead.
The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang
The world of The Poppy War is East Asian, roughly based on the Second Sino-Japanese War (known in the West as the Asian Theatre of World War II). As a result, it’s a picture of a nation under siege and being subjected to horrors at every turn. Yes, there’s magic here, but the most brutal aspects are very human in nature and mostly based on actual historic brutalities. This is definitely one of the worst fantasy worlds to live in.
A Song of Ice and Fire by George R.R. Martin
Martin’s iconic series is mostly based on real-world European medieval times. Even if it were historical fiction, that would make it pretty bad for most people. Add in terrifying dragons, frozen zombies, and scary fire deities, and you get the picture. I mean, most of the main characters don’t even survive the series, let alone the peasants.
The Witcher by Andrzej Sapkowski
Much like a lot of classic epic fantasy novels, The Witcher is mostly based on medieval Europe. So again, not a great time to be alive unless you’re really wealthy. Oh, but add in monsters. So. Many. Monsters. And curses. And The Wild Hunt. Just becoming a witcher to fight monsters requires a process that kills most people, so it’s definitely not a nice world to live in.
Well, there are eight fantasy worlds you definitely don’t want to live in. Any others? If you’re looking for a gentler setting, here are the best fantasy worlds. We also have some wonderful fantasy worlds from short stories.