Just because February is the shortest month doesn’t mean it’s pulling any punches! This month is loaded with amazing new science fiction and fantasy books. It’s a great way to spend 28 days, and way better than being chased by zombies. Below, you’ll find an awesome selection of exciting new sci-fi and fantasy reads out in February that will keep you busy!
There’s a sci-fi medical thriller; a now-mortal goddess of death looking to undo her curse; a colonized planet trying to keep from being destroyed by Earth gamers; a queer fantasy about a timid knight who must rely on the enemy for safety; a game of life and death between humans and immortals; a monster-hunting professor in eighteenth-century with a heart-eating demon inside him; a young woman who must help restore the dragon gods to save her kingdom; and much more.
Now buckle your safety belt, put on your goggles, and prepare for blast off!
Obsessed with Audiobooks? Win 12 Credits to Libro.fm and upgrade your 2026 commute!
All Access members, read on for the best sci-fi and fantasy books out in February 2026.
The Best New Science Fiction and Fantasy Books Out in February 2026
The Hospital at the End of the World by Justin C. Key (Harper, February 3)
In this sci-fi medical thriller, a man at the last human-run medical school in the world must figure out how a strange disease is tied to a world-dominating AI system and the mysterious death of his father. Can Pok discover what is making the patients at the New Orleans school sick before it is too late?
Nightshade and Oak by Molly O’Neill (Orbit, February 3)
Molly O’Neill’s debut, Greenteeth, was one of my favorite SFF novels of last year, so I am doubly excited to read her new novel, about the goddess of death and her perilous journey back to the underworld after she is accidentally made mortal.
Apparently, Sir Cameron Needs to Die by Greer Stothers (Titan Books, February 3)
In this funny debut fantasy, Sir Cameron is a knight who dislikes confrontation, and has done a good job avoiding it…until now. The Church has decided that in order to beat mad sorcerer Merulo, Sir Cameron—wait for it—needs to die. And in order to keep this from happening, he runs to the one person he should be afraid of: mad sorcerer Merulo. (Also it deserves a “Subtitle of the Year” award for “In Which Many Homosexual Things Happen.”)
The Universe Box by Michael Swanwick (Tachyon Publications, February 3)
Michael Swanick might not be a household name, but he is one of the most highly lauded writers in SFF, having won a Hugo award four times in five years. This new collection contains stories that blend the fantastical and science, like a thief who must battle trolls, an AI scientist on the run from assassins, and a Trickster looking to subvert every genre in fiction.
Operation Bounce House by Matt Dinniman (Ace, February 10)
As Dungeon Crawler Carl mania continues to ramp up as readers wait for A Parade of Horribles, the eighth book in the series, fans are being treated to a new adventure. In Operation Bounce House, colonists on a faraway planet must fight back when Earth decides to remove its inhabitants by way of a game.
The Legend of the Nine-Tailed Fox by Katrina Kwan (S&S/Saga Press, February 24)
Demon hunters are hot right now, and this Asian-inspired fantasy has got one! When Yue, a nine-tailed fox, is captured by Sonam, she gets her revenge by pulling him and two of his subordinates down to Hell with her. Now, in order for the demon hunters to get out of the underworld, they’ll have to work with the demon who put them there.
The Red Winter by Cameron Sullivan (Tor Books, February 24)
And more demons! This time, it’s a monster hunter in eighteenth-century France who needs help. Hunting the Beast of Gévaudan nearly cost Professor Sebastian Grave his life the first time he attempted it. Two decades later, he’s going to try again, with the help of the heart-eating demon that resides inside him. This was pitched to me as “Venom in historical France,” and I am here for it.
Weavingshaw by Heba Al-Wasity (Del Rey, February 24) AOC
Another exciting debut, this one about a woman who can see the dead. In order to save her dying brother, Leena Al-Sayer reveals her secret ability to the Saint of Silence, who trades in confessions. In return for the money to buy her brother’s medicine, Leena must find the ghost of the last lord of Weavingshaw. But Weavingshaw proves to be a treacherous place, and Leena might lose her own life before she can get back.
The Best New Children’s and YA Science Fiction and Fantasy Books Out in February 2026
Until the Clock Strikes Midnight by Alechia Dow (Feiwel & Friends, February 3)
This is a Cinderella-inspired cozy YA romantic fantasy, about a Guardian and a Misfortune who are competing for spots on their respective councils. But they have both somehow been assigned to the same mortal, Lucy, and must battle to see which of them will affect her life’s outcome. The best way to do this? Pose as a couple. It’s a fantastical fake-dating scheme that just might lead to real love!
Queen of Faces by Petra Lord (Henry Holt and Co. (BYR), February 3)
In the world of this YA dark academia, human bodies can be replaced, if you have the money. Anabelle Gage is trapped in a decaying male body and desperate to get out of it, so she attempts to steal one from the Paragon Academy, where students are automatically given new ones. But caught by the school’s headmaster, Anabelle is blackmailed into being his personal mercenary instead.
A Stage Set for Villains by Shannon J. Spann (Entangled: Mayhem Books, February 3)
In this dark fantasy, long have the immortal Players resided in the Playhouse, and heavens help the mortal who crosses one. Like Riven Hesper, whose own encounter with a Player is now killing her. When the Playhouse announces a surprising competition in which the winner gets to steal a Player’s immortality, Riven will stop at nothing to make sure she is the winner, even if that means she’s the villain of the story.
Call of the Dragon by Natasha Bowen (Random House Books for Young Readers, February 10)
And last, but not least, in this African mythology-inspired fantasy about dragon gods, a young woman must save her kingdom of Kwa after the king tries to steal the power of the dragon gods for himself, plunging their world into chaos and darkness.
Bonus New Science Fiction and Fantasy Books Out in February 2026
Because I can’t just stop at 12 books: in February, be sure to also watch for Isles of the Emberdark by Brandon Sanderson, To the Death by Andrea Tang, Agnes Aubert’s Mystical Cat Shelter by Heather Fawcett, The Obake Code by Makana Yamamoto, Boy, with Accidental Dinosaur by Ian McDonald, and After The Fall by Edward Ashton.
There are also a bunch of excellent sci-fi and fantasy titles out in paperback this month, including Kindling by Traci Chee, When the Moon Hits Your Eye by John Scalzi, Upon a Starlit Tide by Kell Woods, Malinalli by Veronica Chapa, Immortal by Sue Lynn Tan, Notes from a Regicide by Isaac Fellman, and The Scorpion and the Night Blossom by Amélie Wen Zhao.
Don’t forget the sequels! Amazing continuations of great stories are hitting the shelves, like The Daughter Who Remains by Nnedi Okorafor, The Cursed Queen’s Daughter by Elly Blake, Kid X by Tracey Baptiste, and Time for a Change by Questlove and S. A. Cosby.
Get access to exclusive content and features with an All Access subscription on Book Riot.Join All Access to read this article
If you want to learn about more sci-fi and fantasy books, check out 6 Sci-Fi and Fantasy Short Stories You Can Read Online For Free, 5 Great SFF Books About Time, and The Best Fantasy Books of the Century So Far. Also, be sure to sign up for our SFF newsletter, Swords and Spaceships!
Finally, you can also find a full list of new releases in the magical New Release Index, carefully curated by your favorite Book Riot editors, organized by genre and release date.
English (US) · 