10 women writers currently KILLING it in the YA fantasy genre

Young adult fantasy is having something of a renaissance at the moment, with even Twilight making a return to bookshelves with Midnight Sun in 2020. And just like the last time the genre was this popular, it’s once again women who are at the forefront.

Some authors, like Cassandra Clare, have published throughout the rise, fall, and renaissance of the genre, with readers still queuing up on publication days to buy the latest installment of The Shadowhunter Chronicles. But there are also plenty of newbies who have quickly shot to success in recent years.

Whether it’s high fantasy, urban fantasy, or something else, here are just some of the women writers who have been at the apex of the genre.

Cassandra Clare

Best known for her Shadowhunters books — which includes the well-loved series The Mortal Instruments, The Infernal Devices and The Dark Artifices — Cassandra Clare has been something of an icon in the YA fantasy genre for years now. She began her work during the height of the YA vampire craze and continued right on through the faerie wave, and is still publishing books in the Shadowhunters universe. The final book in The Last Hours trilogy is due to be published next year before moving onto The Wicked Powers.

Shadowhunters has been adapted for the screen twice, once as a movie and again as a TV show. Outside of the Shadowhunters world, Clare has been writing the first novel in her upcoming Sword Catcher series, and previously co-authored The Magisterium Series with Holly Black. Speaking of…