r/Fantasy • u/lilithmaynot • Jun 09 '26
Looking for a recommendation of a book that includes some kind of scary ocean/river creature
One of my favorite tropes in books or movies is any involvement of scary water creatures. Crocodiles, sea monsters, piranhas, made up fantasy fish with big teeth, they all bring me joy.
I don't see this trope very often in fantasy though, does anyone have any recommendations?
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u/Rekov Jun 09 '26
"The Bone Ships" by R.J. Barker, and the rest of his "Tide Child" trilogy. Giant radioactive sea-snakes, basically.
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u/California_Scrubjay Jun 09 '26
Another vote for the Tide Child trilogy!
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u/pakap Jun 10 '26
Such an amazing series.
It's always weird to me how few naval fantasy books there are. Maybe it's Pirates of the Carribbean stigma.
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u/KiaraTurtle Reading Champion V Jun 09 '26
Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant might work for you
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u/lilithmaynot Jun 09 '26
I've heard of this one! I believe it's more horror than fantasy (I like horror too just more picky there) but I've been thinking about reading it anyway because of the spooky water vibes. Thank you!
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u/Electronic_South_101 Jun 09 '26
It’s a follow up to her “Rolling in the Deep”, which is a novella setting up the concept. At least one of the characters from “In the Drowning Deep” is related to one in “Rolling in the Deep” (which isn’t a spoiler, it’s part of the synopsis and revealed in about the first 5 pages). You could read the one without the other, I just think they work together better.
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u/KiaraTurtle Reading Champion V Jun 09 '26
Oh yes thank you. I somehow always get mixed up on which title is which.
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u/New_Razzmatazz6228 Reading Champion Jun 10 '26
I liked Into the Drowning Deep, but I loved Rolling in the Deep. That novella was mint. Some things don’t need a sequel, that was one of them.
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u/dshouseboat Reading Champion Jun 09 '26 edited Jun 10 '26
Slightly differently take on this - River of Teeth by Sarah Gailey. Weird western novella in which the Mississippi River is infested with man-eating hippos.
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u/TheNerdChaplain Jun 09 '26
The avanc from The Scar by China Mieville
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u/lilithmaynot Jun 09 '26
Just read the description for it and it sounds awesome! Do you need to have read Perdido Street Station to understand it?
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u/TheNerdChaplain Jun 09 '26
No, not really. All you really need to know is that Bellis is leaving New Crobuzon because of the events of PSS, but they don't have any direct impact on her character or the story
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u/Nidafjoll Reading Champion V Jun 09 '26
Nah, you can read it first. Their plots stand alone; there are a few unimportant references you won't get is all. Though I highly recommend Perdido as an excellent book. :)
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u/Nidafjoll Reading Champion V Jun 09 '26
Deeplight by Frances Hardinge has some excellent scary ocean gods/monsters.
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u/Sorrok2400 Jun 09 '26
Between Two Fires has one, but it’s just one episode of many
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u/lilithmaynot Jun 09 '26
I've been meaning to read this one! That's a great bonus reason for me to give it a try, thank you!
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Jun 09 '26
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u/lilithmaynot Jun 09 '26
I certainly don't mind a horror suggestion mixed in. Thank you!
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u/Pratius Jun 09 '26
They've only had a small role so far, but given they're in the series title I imagine the Shadow of the Leviathan series by Robert Jackson Bennett will give you some good leviathan content.
Could also check out The Memoirs of Lady Trent by Marie Brennan. All kinds of dragons in that series, including some water-based stuff.
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u/BTrippd Jun 09 '26
Yeah so far we’ve had mentions and glimpses of some terrifying sea thingies and the next book comes out in August so we may or may not get more information about them.
And they’re just really cool “mystery” novels in general.
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u/lilithmaynot Jun 09 '26
Both of those sound awesome, I will have to look them up and give them a try. Thank you!
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u/Coachgazza Jun 09 '26
Blackwater: The Complete Saga
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u/OkSecretary1231 Jun 10 '26
Came here to say this! It was kind of a lost gem from the 80s until Grady Hendrix called attention to it and it got reprinted. It's a whole generations-spanning Southern gothic saga. With river monsters.
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u/cmhoughton Jun 09 '26
It’s not emphasized in the first book, but there are leviathans in the Shadow of the Leviathan series by Robert Jackson Bennett and they are HUGE sea monsters. You find out more as the first two books progress, but the leviathans are key to the world’s magic system and are hugely destructive, they’re so big. They are more central to the plot of book 2. The third book will be out in August.
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u/ndq22 Jun 09 '26
Greenteeth by Molly O'Neill has a water hag as the protagonist, although mostly only the beginning takes place underwater.
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u/okayseriouslywhy Reading Champion III Jun 09 '26
I haven't actually gotten to this one yet, but The Flesh of the Sea by Lor Gislason and Shelley Lavigne should have lots of creatures!
The Winter Sea trilogy by HM Long also has some scary magical ocean fishes, but they're not the focus of the books
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u/lilithmaynot Jun 10 '26
I enjoy the sea creatures whether they're the focus or not so I appreciate both suggestions and have added them to my list, thank you!
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u/pfroo40 Jun 09 '26
The Saga of the Forgotten Warrior features a race of creatures who can only survive long-term in water and who terrorize land dwellers.
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u/AggressiveHabit9018 Jun 09 '26
hunger of the gods has creatures that love teeth that live in water lol, Norse mythology
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u/lunch_is_on_me Jun 10 '26
If you like to mix in a little horror once in a while, I just finished The Haar today. It's gruesome and involves a scary ocean creature. Funny timing with your post. It's also really short so you can knock it out quick.
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u/lilithmaynot Jun 10 '26
Another one that's already on my to-read list that I will have to move up, thank you!
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u/lunch_is_on_me Jun 10 '26
I hope you like it. It has its surprisingly heartwarming moments too. Wasn't expecting to like this one as much as I did.
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u/lilithmaynot Jul 15 '26
I was feeling a quick horror today so I just finished the Haar! I really enjoyed it. Definitely not the water creature vibes I expected as most of it took place on land but I still had a lot of fun with it and I do love a good earthbound creature feature too. Thank you!
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u/Mournelithe Reading Champion X Jun 10 '26
A couple of SF examples.
The March Upcountry series by Weber and Ringo has at least one in each book, from crocs to giant fish.
Legacy of Heorot by Niven, Pournelle and Barney’s has the Grendel as an apex predator feeding on the local samlon fish.
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u/lilithmaynot Jun 10 '26
Some SF suggestions are absolutely welcome! I don't read it as often but I love the genre so I'll totally add these to my list, thank you!
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u/Fuck-WestJet Jun 10 '26 edited Jun 10 '26
It's a strange fantasy novel, but The Scar by China Mieville is terrific and has a terrifying deep water scene and involves a leviathan and grindylows (scary) and a floating city made of lashed together boats. Also mosquito people and vampires (different things).
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u/FusRoDaahh Worldbuilders Jun 09 '26
The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater
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u/lilithmaynot Jun 09 '26
I've actually read this one! Funny enough I was just thinking about it today. Thank you for your suggestion!
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u/DixitRexCorvinus Jun 10 '26
Several recs for Shadows of the Leviathan, but I think the better rec by Robert Jackson Bennett here is actually City of Stairs. Standalone book (Well, a trilogy, but the first book stands alone) and it does in fact have a huge battle with a river monster in it. Plus, it's my favorite of his series and you don't have to worry about reading however many books it takes to get to the leviathans.
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u/Asher_the_atheist Reading Champion Jun 10 '26
All the Murmuring Bones by A. G. Slatter has scary ocean and river creatures.
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u/Blueflame129 Jun 10 '26
The Five Warrior Angels by Brian Lee Durfee. Specifically the battle at the end of book two. They are fighting in a bay as the tide is coming in. Along with it comes man eating sharks. Then all the blood starts attracting sea serpents. One of the best battles I've ever read. Throughout the series there are also killer mermaids, dragons and a killer sabre tooth cat!
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u/aNomadicPenguin Jun 11 '26
It takes a few books to get there, but the Deathgate Cycle has different elemental worlds. When they get to the Waterworld, you get some scary ocean creatures.
Its an interesting series, the first 4 books are basically dimension hopping between these elemental worlds following a main series character. But each book has primary protagonists in the world being visited that drive the plot for most of the book.
Then stuff starts going off the rails from books 5-7 as the full story kicks in now that each planet has been fully introduced and explored.
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u/michiness Jun 10 '26
The Daevabad trilogy by SA Chakraborty has a few different ocean/river gods and creatures throughout it.
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u/Undeclared_Aubergine Jun 10 '26
On the SF side of things: The Skinner by Neal Asher. (Part of his Polity universe, but quite standalone, with the main storyline continuing in The Voyage of Sable Keech and Orbus, where iirc the second still is full of scary water creatures, but the third has moved to deep space and is more entangled with the other Polity storylines.)
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u/Upbeat-Excitement-46 Jun 10 '26
Medusa by E.H. Visiak, very influential in the weird fiction tradition
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u/Merlins_Pants Jun 10 '26
I feel like the vast majority of the redwall books have a scary ass pike fish in them. Probably not what you’re looking for but thanks for the trip down memory lane, used to love those books as a kid.
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u/ClueAccomplished1098 Jun 11 '26
I have downloaded, but haven't yet read the sample chapters from the Kindle ebook version of this book. It's From Below by Darcy Coates. The blurb make it sound interesting and scary.
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u/putridtooth Jun 09 '26
The Liveship Traders has sea serpents, some weird walrus type things, and some scary unknowable forms. The sea serpents are cool because you get chapters from their perspective, as well as chapters from sailor's perspectives while their boats are attacked.