The next in my series of great quotations from great speculative fiction is from Shigidi and the Brass Head of Obalufon, by Wole Talabi (2023), a prize-winning and delightful Afro-centric fantasy novel.
And here is the quotation:
The winner of the best fantasy novel for 2025 is Robert Jackson Bennett’s The Tainted Cup (Del Rey; Hodderscape). This fascinating fantasy novel also won the 2025 Hugo Award and was short-listed for the Locus Award.
Bennett’s novel is a sort of Sherlock Holmes in Fantasyland, and the first of a projected series of three novels. Take a look at my review HERE. You can already order the second, A Drop of Corruption, subtitled “An Ana and Din Mystery.” If you are a mystery fan AND a fantasy fan, this is the series for you. Here’s an interesting interview with the author. There’s another interview on YouTube that you might enjoy. I have trouble with those things–I got about a minute in, the whole thing paused for some lengthy ad, and I clicked away. If these ad-ridden platforms don’t bother you, you can enter Bennett’s name and “interview” into your favorite search engine and watch it.
Congratulations to Bennett, and to all the winners. I only have time to review the novels, but everyone on the short-list and winners’ list in every category has my heartfelt congratulations and my awe at giving the reading world so much pleasure through their hard work and creativity. Locus Magazine has published a handy list of all the winners. See it HERE.
Next up: I’m working on a series of blog posts about alien communications, so watch for those!
Who will walk away with this amazing and evocative piece of sculpture? Read about the history of the World Fantasy Award trophy HERE.
By now, I have read all the novels short-listed for the 2025 World Fantasy Awards, and I have reviewed them too, in this space. If you missed them, see the list of nominated novels below to be directed to the reviews. The awards will be announced at the World Fantasy Convention, to be held soon in Brighton UK on Oct. 30-Nov. 2, 2025.
As we await the judges’ decision, here are the short-listed novels:
The Tainted Cup, Robert Jackson Bennett (Del Rey; Hodderscape)–This novel won the 2025 Hugo Award and was short-listed for the Locus Award. Find my review HERE.
The Fox Wife, Yangsze Choo (Holt; Quercus UK)–a wonderful overlay of Chinese folklore on the early 20th century historical conflict between China and Japan. Find my review HERE.
The Bog Wife, Kay Chronister (Counterpoint; Titan UK)–what IS this thing? Southern/Appalachian Gothic? Magical Realism? Fascinating read. Find my review HERE.
The Bright Sword, Lev Grossman (Viking; Del Rey UK)–combined Monty Pythonesque and Malory Morte-D’Arthur-esque massive novel about the Arthurian world in decline. Find my review HERE.
The Wings Upon Her Back, Samantha Mills (Tachyon)–What if profound disillusionment causes you to lose your wings? What would you do to get them back? Winner of the 2025 Compton Crook Award. Find my review HERE.
So if I were one of the judges, where would I cast my vote? I’m not, of course. But anyone anticipating an award like this usually roots for a favorite. I have two favorites, actually–both of the novels with the word “wife” in the title. And they couldn’t be more different. The Fox Wife and The Bog Wife–superb novels in completely different ways, each with its own take on what “fantasy” means. I would cheer if either of these two novels wins the award.
There’s not a clunker in the bunch, though, so I don’t envy the judges after all. I truly enjoyed reading each one of the five novels on this list. I will cheer whatever the judges decide. Great list! I only wish I had the time to read the nominated works in all the other categories. But I stick mostly to novels in this blog.
Fantastes 
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