Eldritch magic. Towering ruins. Melancholy rumination by the light of a dying fire. And of course, absolutely massive swords. These are the things that make a Soulsborne game a Soulsborne, and praise the sun for it! If you’ve slogged your way through the Dark Souls trilogy, rage quit and restarted Elden Ring, and risked your very sanity on Bloodborne and still want more – these 10 books will give it to you. Here are 10 fantasy books that feel like playing a game designed by FromSoftware, for the dark fantasy masochist in you.
The Malazan Book of the Fallen
The Malazan Book of the Fallen was doing grimdark fantasy before Demon’s Souls was a hellish glint in FromSoftware’s eye. A sprawling epic fantasy series that puts the average wizard’s reading list to shame, Malazan is a tome-like text that belongs in every arcane library. The stage is set in the Empire of Malazan, a continent spanning political entity that (like the best of mankind’s hopes) is slowly falling to ruin in the shadowy world. As imperial decay sets in across the land, dark gods arise to challenge the status quo. If you’re a fan of channeling eldritch magics, pledging allegiance to cryptic divinities, and slaying wave after endless wave of the undead, this series simply can’t be missed.
Berserk
Echoes of Kentaro Miura’s Berserk can be felt across FromSoftware’s video game oeuvre – because this manga inspired it in the first place! Arguably one of the most seminal works of dark fantasy ever penned, Berserk laid the foundations for numerous grimdark works to come. The manga tells the story of Guts, a wandering mercenary who runs a STR/DEX build – sporting a sedan-sized blade that could be found in the inventory of any self respecting Dark Souls greatsword wielder . After a brutal betrayal by a trusted comrade, Guts wanders a demon haunted world seeking revenge. Featuring some of the most horrifying hellspawn ever conceived, Berserk‘s many monsters look like they could have been found at the other side of the mist that marks the entrance to a Soulsborne boss’s lair. If only they would stay there, for Gut’s sake.
Between Two Fires
While Christopher Buehlman’s Between Two Fires is technically set in medieval France, it may as well take place in Blighttown due the sheer amount of toxic lethality around every turn. The land is dying under the smothering weight of the bubonic plague, and the recently escaped demons from Hell certainly aren’t helping the vibe. Wandering mercenary Tomas feels like your average sword-and-board Dark Souls protagonist, scavenging the land for scraps while battling man and beast alike. Like many Souls players, Tomas finds some semblance of divine purpose after stumbling across a little NPC girl who may or may not be blessed by God. In order to rid the land of demonkind, Tomas must escort the holy child across a realm that is anything but – and deliver her to church authorities who could use her power to thwart armageddon… possibly.
Gideon The Ninth
For those Soulsborne players who prefer to dabble in the darkest of magical arts, Gideon The Ninth is a necromantic must read. A dark fantasy/sci-fi hybrid much like Bloodborne, Tamsyn Muir’s novel is set in a gothic star system ruled by a Dune-esque emperor. Nine planet-controlling houses compete for The Emperor’s favor, and the young swordfighter Gideon finds herself reluctantly dragged into the fray after the Ninth House answers the imperial call. Gideon accompanies Ninth House necromancer Harrowhark Nonagesimus to a decaying planet in order to compete in a series of deadly trials against the other houses. The novel is essentially one massive PvP battle inside Dark Soul‘s Anor Londo, where competing warriors backstab one another with gothic flair. When victory means Bloodborne-style ascension to godhood, you do what you gotta.
The Raven Tower
Narrated by omnipotent rock (yes, really) Ann Leckie’s The Raven Tower is the story of a god haunted realm shaped by the shifting whims of deities This divine boulder is quite literally older than the hills, and has collected billions of years of lore – and it can’t wait to share what it knows with a lore-lover like you! The Strength and Patience of The Hill (yes, that’s ol’ rocky’s name) tells the tale of prehistory, the arrival of humans, and their ascent to the heights of high fantasy achievement while building mythic (and soon to crumble) empires. One such realm is country of Iraden, which is protected by a Raven god in exchange for continual human sacrifice – until a political betrayal totally rocks the nation (no pun intended), and Strength and Patience bears stoney witness to all.
Sorrowland
While Rivers Solomon’s Sorrowland is technically science fiction, its mutated gothic horror thrills are sure to charm the maddened hearts of Bloodborne players far and wide. The story revolves around Vern Riley, who recently escaped the Blessed Gardens of Cain – a separatist cult that makes The Healing Church look like Sunday school. Vern realizes that the cult serves as an experimental playground for U.S. government agents, who are using the congregation as guinea pigs to test the mutagenic power of a bizarre fungus. If watching Healing Church fanatics sew eyes into their brains in order to see the world beyond tickled your fancy, you’re gonna love the research that Blessed Gardens of Cain is getting into – deliciously mad.
The Forgotten Beasts of Eld
The Forgotten Beasts of Eld sounds like a group of creatures that wait beyond the boss mist with a shared healthbar, and the reality of Patricia A. McKillip’s novel isn’t that far off. The story concerns a young sorceress named Sybel who lives in the wilderness – tending to a menagerie of magical beasts. Her world is turned on its ear after a wandering soldier introduces a new animal to her collection: a human baby! Sybel raises the child as her own, and soon becomes wrapped up in the political machinations of a nearby kingdom that seeks to reclaim the kid decades later. In order to protect her surrogate son, Sybil seeks out a mythical beast capable of bringing ruin upon those who stand against it – much like any number of ghastly monsters that lurk in a Soulsborne game’s dungeons. If you’ve ever wanted to tame the monsters that tormented you on your last playthrough, this novel is your fantasy come true.
The Buried Giant
Set in a mist haunted world that feels straight out of The Shaded Woods section of Dark Souls 2, Kazuo Ishiguro’s The Buried Giant is a mysterious tale of realm that is slowly forgetting itself. Set in a post-Aruthrian England where no one is able to remember past what they had for breakfast, an elderly couple sets out on a quest to reclaim their lost past. As they journey throughout the dementia afflicted land, they slowly begin to uncover the realm’s bloody history – just like any Dark Souls player would while piecing together the lore found in item descriptions. In this realm, an ancient dragon slumbers somewhere beyond the mountains, and with it lies the equally elder secrets of the kingdom’s shattered past. I’m sure these two old people can handle it all!
The Broken Empire Trilogy
Ever wonder how the ruined kingdoms of Dark Souls got so… well, ruined? Usually it’s because of the over-reaching ambitions of the realm’s regent, which often leads to total political collapse the end of a hero-to-villain arc. Mark Lawrence’s The Broken Empire trilogy is the story of one such tragic villain. Prince Jorg Ancrath has had a hard life. He watched his mother get murdered in a political upheaval when he was a child, and was leading a band of murderous band of outlaws as a young teen. Now the little sovereign turned sociopath is plotting to retake his lost throne… by any means necessary. If you prefer to slay your way through Soulslike games, killing monsters and NPCs alike, I’m certain you’ll find a kindred spirit in young Jorg. Just watch your back, he might stick a knife in it.
The Drowning Girl
When it comes to explaining the byzantine lore of Bloodborne and Dark Souls, unreliable narrators are the best in-game help that you’re gonna get. Maddened NPCs shed a dim, non-knowledgable light upon the dark twists and turns of your quest, often adding to the mysteries of your playthrough rather than untangling them. Caitlín R. Kiernan’s The Drowning Girl is narrated by one such character. India Morgan Phelps struggles with schizophrenia, and is attempting to write a memoir about a series of strange happenings she experienced years before. After a traumatic breakup with a lover, India begins having visions of a ghostly woman that haunts a seashore, one who calls her to walk into the depths. It’s essentially what would happen if you stumbled upon the Orphan of Kos on the beach at night… except if the Orphan of Kos was trying to seduce you instead of beat you to death.
(Featured Image: FromSoftware)
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