Fictional Worlds in Literature

Here is a sweeping speculative fiction that’s set during the Antebellum South before the Civil War. An elderly woman named Saint has mysterious, ancestral powers that she uses to help Black people escape the plantations and terrors of the South. She eventually settles in an empty town near the city of St. Louis that she and others refer to as “Ours.” However, this town is unlike any other Black-founded town in history. This town can only be visible to those invited, as the magic Saint possesses makes it invisible to outsiders. But as Saint grows older, her magic and memory begin to slip, allowing evil to infiltrate. Readers will love the magical realism this world brings to life on every page.

Who doesn’t love a world with java-loving cats? Dive into a charming and heartfelt magical fantasy where cats are a divine symbol and everyone wants one. Set in Japan, it is understood that being kind to cats can bring good luck. However, if you are kind to a magical cat, you will get invited to a mysterious cafe where time or location doesn’t exist. This invitation is reserved for those who are at a crossroads in their lives. Inside this cafe, the baristas are all talking cats. Those who accept the offer get an opportunity to relax and unwind while they feast on delectable treats and sip teas.

Sometimes, a bizarre world that distorts reality makes for the perfect escapist getaway for reality TV fans. This slightly absurdist, yet daring sci-fi fantasy follows Leopold Berry, who is only a teen when he realizes that his reality mimics his favorite television show, Max’s Adventures in Sunderworld. Leopold, who lost his mother at the age of 12, unearthed a vintage VHS cassette set of one season of Max’s Adventures in Sunderworld. Since he found it, he has used the show as a way to grieve his mother. But those shows are now blurring his reality. In desperate need of help, he reaches out to his best friend Emmet. Together, they travel through a mesmerizing and lively Los Angeles to find ways to save this fantasy world.

This fictional world presents grief in the most enchanting way. This whimsical, cozy fantasy follows a pawn shop masquerading as a ramen restaurant – for a select few. For the chosen, the noodle shop becomes a haven for those who are guilt-ridden. When Hana, the daughter of the pawn shop, awakens, she is the new owner of this magical shop, but learns that it has been looted and her father is missing. As she tries to process her new reality, a delightful and charming stranger enters and offers his help, which takes Hana by surprise. Together, they travel to strange, yet vibrant worlds where the stars in the sky transform into friendly kites, transforming into an immersive world that’s perfect for Studio Ghibli fans.

This community – inspired by Jamaican culture – is a place where everyone has a bit of magic. With every detail immaculately described, this lush prose of a novel will leave you yearning for life on a remote archipelago surrounding the warm ocean. In a world where everyone is gifted, you can imagine the sort of politics the locals of this destination experience. You’ll follow four protagonists who will eventually cross paths with each other as the story unfolds. This novel is not for the faint of heart, either. Despite the beautiful and oftentimes eerie prose, this has moments that will make you want to read it twice.

You can’t have a list of fictional worlds in literature without a retelling. Taking creative liberties on the classic stories, such as Hansel & Gretel and the Gingerbread Man lore, Oyeyemi wows readers with a delightful fantasy centering on family, food, and the power of inheritance. Perdita and Harriet Lee, daughter and mother, live in London together. On the outside, they seem like a typical small family. But once they are in the comfort of their strange and peculiar home, Harriet is a master at baking gingerbread. But this isn’t just any baked treat, despite the locals not being the biggest fans of it. However, in a land, far, far, far away, there is a place called Druhástrana – a location where Hattie’s biggest gingerbread customer is her friend, Gretzel.

What’s a fictional world without a little bit of romance? Jetsetters and bookworms will enjoy this international journey set in South Korea about three women navigating love, family, and life after making a wish that changes their destiny. Perfect for readers who enjoy K-dramas and K-pop, this story unfolds when the women travel to Jeju Island. On this island, the three women, with separate points of view, stumble upon a serene waterfall under a full moon. Each makes a wish with hopes of turning their lives around. When they awaken in the morning, they discover all of their wishes came true, and they are tasked to live their best lives.

Here’s another heartfelt read that illustrates loss in beautiful, captivating prose. This translated work is the first of the Meals to Remember at the Chibineko Kitchen series. Set near Tokyo, there is a cozy restaurant known as the Chibineko Kitchen that sits near the seashore. Kotoko is hoping that the urban myths of the Chibineko Kitchen are true. She wants to speak and reunite with her departed loved ones, and the kitchen is her only hope at having one last meal with them. Once she arrives, she notices that the chef looks eerily like her brother. Once he introduces her to Chibi, the cat that lives in the restaurant, Kotoko is given the chance to get the closure she deserves.

For those who need a slightly darker read, travel to Trinidad, where two strangers welcome love as their destinies are tied to death. Yejide is of the St. Bernard lineage, and even though her relationship with her mother was complicated until her death, with her mother gone, Yejide isn’t sure how to fulfill her purpose of saving the souls of her hometown in the afterlife. On the other side of Trinidad, Darwin finds himself at a crossroads. He was raised as a devout religious person and has been taught to never entertain death. However, his mother finds herself growing ill, and now, with her inability to work, Derwin must pick up the slack as a grave digger, where he meets and begins a journey embracing death with Yejide.

For a more adventurous destination that involves multiple worlds and universes, this cross-dimensional saga will have you craving for more. Now that humans have access to multiverse traveling, everyone is ecstatic to use it. However, there is one rule everyone must follow: travelers are prohibited from visiting worlds where they are still alive. For Cara, that isn’t a big obstacle because she’s died in hundreds of worlds already. However, there is an alternate Earth where Cara’s doppelganger exists, which makes her the perfect candidate because she is deemed expendable. As she accepts her new life, she is removed from her community that is filled with poverty and despair and moves to Wiley City, an upscale area that operates as a gated community.

This queer cozy fantasy world features parallel timelines, star-crossed lovers, and a sprinkle of sapphic yearning. Tressa Fay Robeson is a rockstar hairstylist and social media influencer with enough clients and followers to leave her unique mark in the beauty industry. When Tressa May isn’t going viral, she spends her quiet evenings with her friends and cat. But when Tressa receives a text intended for someone else, she finds herself flirting with a sexy stranger. Not one to waste time, Tressa schedules a meetup, but the mysterious woman never shows up. But when the family of the stranger shows up, stating that she is missing, Tressa and her friends discover an active portal where multiple worlds exist.

Who doesn’t love a hopeful fictional world? Imagine you are down on your luck, but one letter can change your life. That is what happens in an abandoned house near a place called Rainbow Town. If you’re lucky, you’ll receive a special ticket that will grant you access to the Rainfall Market. At the Rainfall Market, you can change your entire life. When a visitor named Serin receives a ticket, she is relieved because she has no other options. Once Serin arrives at the magical market, she meets her tour guide: a cat named Issha. Together, they walk around, shop, and pamper themselves as Issha tries to get Serin to determine what her perfect life would look like.

Some fictional worlds are only accessible by those with special gifts. In this adult, dark academia, there is a world that can only be unlocked by those who possess supreme persuasive abilities. There are no mysterious mirrors or restaurants in this book. To access the secretive world, one must summon an antiquated elevator. Lennon is tired of living in the shadow of her fiancé, but as she experiences more mental breaks, she is finding herself torn between realities. When she gets accepted into a secretive academy to pursue her graduate degree, she discovers she possesses a dangerous skill that only a few have. Now, she’s surrounded by peers and professors who don’t believe she has what it takes to succeed while actively trying to sabotage her chances.

Sometimes, a fictional world can start as an alien abduction. Dorothy “Dory” Valentine is thrilled that she is close to finally finishing her wildlife biology doctorate program. One day, she finds herself being attacked by a lion! Luckily for her, her life is spared, but it’s because she’s been abducted by aliens from an unknown planet. Now, Dory and her now-feline jungle pal, Toto, are on a strange planet with dinosaurs. When the dinosaurs spot them and attack, Dory is saved again by an alien named Sol. Dory is immediately attracted to Sol, and when they run into another sexy alien named Lok, Dory finds herself being part of an intergalactic and hilarious throuple.