10 Fantasy & Sci-Fi Books With Asexual Characters

Today I wanted to make a list of Fantasy and Sci-Fi books with asexual characters! The majority of these have an asexual main character, but if it’s a side character they’re relatively major and well-developed. I’m sure there’s a bunch of books I’ve missed, but I hope you find some new books here!

What We Devour by Linsey Miller

Young Adult Fantasy

Lorena Adler has a secret—she holds the power of the banished gods, the Noble and the Vile, inside her. She has spent her entire life hiding from the world and her past. She’s content to spend her days as an undertaker in a small town, marry her best friend, Julian, and live an unfulfilling life so long as no one uncovers her true nature.

But when the notoriously bloodthirsty and equally Vile crown prince comes to arrest Julian’s father, he immediately recognizes Lorena for what she is. So she makes a deal—a fair trial for her betrothed’s father in exchange for her service to the crown.

The prince is desperate for her help. He’s spent years trying to repair the weakening Door that holds back the Vile…and he’s losing the battle. As Lorena learns more about the Door and the horrifying price it takes to keep it closed, she’ll have to embrace both parts of herself to survive.

This book is a gorgeous dark fantasy which starts a bit slow, before transforming into something brilliant. The main character is asexual, and I love how there’s no true romantic relationship (there is plenty of tension though, Lorena truly knows how to use people’s desires against them).

Bloody Spade by Brittany M. Willows

Young Adult Fantasy

A girl full of heart
A thief touched by darkness
A boy with a fiery temper
An unwitting servant of evil

The era of magic was once thought to be a myth, but after the Reemergence ushered forces both dark and light into the mundane world, it has since become a harsh reality. Now those affected by this strange power—a specialized group of Empowered called Jokers, known collectively as Cardplay—must protect their world from the darkness that threatens to consume it, all the while fighting for equality in a society clinging to normalcy.

But the Reemergence was only the beginning.

When another influx occurs on the seventh anniversary of that fateful event, an unfortunate encounter at ground zero lands Iori Ryone, a teenage boy in possession of a corrupt and legendary magic, in the care of recent Joker graduate Ellen Amelia Jane. From him, she learns the Reemergence may not have been the inevitable natural disaster it first seemed.

Someone is trying to tear down the barrier that separates the magical realms from the mundane. The question is, can Cardplay stop them before it’s too late?

One of the main characters, Ellen, is grey-ace, and there are other asexual and aromantic characters! I loved the almost anime-feel to this book – it even has magical girl-type transformations! The relationship between the two main characters is so well developed and adoreable.

Beneath The Citadel by Destiny Soria

Young Adult Fantasy

In the city of Eldra, people are ruled by ancient prophecies. For centuries, the high council has stayed in power by virtue of the prophecies of the elder seers. After the last infallible prophecy came to pass, growing unrest led to murders and an eventual rebellion that raged for more than a decade. In

the present day, Cassa, the orphaned daughter of rebels, is determined to fight back against the high council, which governs Eldra from behind the walls of the citadel. Her only allies are no-nonsense Alys, easygoing Evander, and perpetually underestimated Newt, and Cassa struggles to come to terms with the legacy of rebellion her dead parents have left her — and the fear that she may be inadequate to shoulder the burden. But by the time Cassa and her friends uncover the mystery of the final infallible prophecy, it may be too late to save the city — or themselves.

One of the main characters in this book, Alys, is asexual! She’s also a fat PoC with anxiety! The worldbuilding in this book is so good! If you love the heist trope you need to read this.

Seven Devils by Laura Lam & Elizabeth May

Adult Sci-Fi

This first book in a feminist space opera duology follows seven resistance fighters who will free the galaxy from the ruthless Tholosian Empire — or die trying.

When Eris faked her death, she thought she had left her old life as the heir to the galaxy’s most ruthless empire behind. But her recruitment by the Novantaen Resistance, an organization opposed to the empire’s voracious expansion, throws her right back into the fray.

Eris has been assigned a new mission: to infiltrate a spaceship ferrying deadly cargo and return the intelligence gathered to the Resistance. But her partner for the mission, mechanic and hotshot pilot Cloelia, bears an old grudge against Eris, making an already difficult infiltration even more complicated.

When they find the ship, they discover more than they bargained for: three fugitives with firsthand knowledge of the corrupt empire’s inner workings.

Together, these women possess the knowledge and capabilities to bring the empire to its knees. But the clock is ticking: the new heir to the empire plans to disrupt a peace summit with the only remaining alien empire, ensuring the empire’s continued expansion. If they can find a way to stop him, they will save the galaxy. If they can’t, millions may die.

I love the representation in this book. One of the side characters is asexual and neurodivergent and I love her so much. If you love Star Wars you need to pick this book up immediately, it’s got a woman-heavy cast and an evil empire that needs to be taken down.

The Sound of Stars by Alechia Dow

Young Adult Sci-Fi

Two years ago, a misunderstanding between the leaders of Earth and the invading Ilori resulted in the deaths of one-third of the world’s population.

Seventeen-year-old Janelle “Ellie” Baker survives in an Ilori-controlled center in New York City. With humans deemed dangerously volatile because of their initial reaction to the invasion, emotional expression can be grounds for execution. Music, art and books are illegal, but Ellie breaks the rules by keeping a secret library. When a book goes missing, Ellie is terrified that the Ilori will track it back to her and kill her.

Born in a lab, M0Rr1S was raised to be emotionless. When he finds Ellie’s illegal library, he’s duty-bound to deliver her for execution. The trouble is, he finds himself drawn to human music and in desperate need of more. They’re both breaking the rules for the love of art—and Ellie inspires the same feelings in him that music does.

Ellie’s—and humanity’s—fate rests in the hands of an alien she should fear. M0Rr1S has a lot of secrets, but also a potential solution—thousands of miles away. The two embark on a wild and dangerous road trip with a bag of books and their favorite albums, all the while creating a story and a song of their own that just might save them both.

You want a fat biracial, demisexual MC with anxiety? You’ve got one here! Even if sci-fi isn’t usually you’re thing, The Sound of Stars is such a fantastic book to pick up. This book is beautiful, soft, and emotional (even with an alien invasion!)

Firebreak by Nicole Kornher-Stace

Adult Sci-Fi

Like everyone else she knows, Mallory is an orphan of the corporate war. As a child, she lost her parents, her home, and her entire building in an airstrike. As an adult, she lives in a cramped hotel room with eight other people, all of them working multiple jobs to try to afford water and make ends meet. And the job she’s best at is streaming a popular VR war game. The best part of the game isn’t killing enemy combatants, though—it’s catching in-game glimpses of SpecOps operatives, celebrity supersoldiers grown and owned by Stellaxis, the corporation that runs the America she lives in.

Until a chance encounter with a SpecOps operative in the game leads Mal to a horrifying discovery: the real-life operatives weren’t created by Stellaxis. They were kids, just like her, who lost everything in the war, and were stolen and augmented and tortured into becoming supersoldiers. The world worships them, but the world believes a lie.

The company controls every part of their lives, and defying them puts everything at risk—her water ration, her livelihood, her connectivity, her friends, her life—but she can’t just sit on the knowledge. She has to do something—even if doing something will bring the wrath of the most powerful company in the world down upon her.

This is an anti-capitalist book with a huge virtual reality element! Firebreak has an aroace main character and it even features a M/F platonic crush!

Elatsoe by Darcie Little Badger

Young Adult Fantasy

Imagine an America very similar to our own. It’s got homework, best friends, and pistachio ice cream.

There are some differences. This America has been shaped dramatically by the magic, monsters, knowledge, and legends of its peoples, those Indigenous and those not. Some of these forces are charmingly everyday, like the ability to make an orb of light appear or travel across the world through rings of fungi. But other forces are less charming and should never see the light of day.

Elatsoe lives in this slightly stranger America. She can raise the ghosts of dead animals, a skill passed down through generations of her Lipan Apache family. Her beloved cousin has just been murdered in a town that wants no prying eyes. But she is going to do more than pry. The picture-perfect facade of Willowbee masks gruesome secrets, and she will rely on her wits, skills, and friends to tear off the mask and protect her family.

Elatsoe is a brilliant book featuring an Indigenous ace main character! This book has a slightly younger voice, but it still manages to be incredibly powerful.

Weapon Uwu Vol 1: Godkillers by S.J. Whitby

Young Adult Superhero

Weapon UwU – who’d expect us to be a team of deadly mutant assassins with a name like that?

The Team:
– a trans boy ready for his glow-up into a leading man
– an undead sweetheart with a bellyful of acid
– a furious firebreathing girl
– a hive mind of very polite spiders
– an over-it aroace woman who knows how scared you are of her
– a group of increasingly unhinged clones

The Misson:
To cross into a parallel universe and kill a mutant as powerful as a god, then clean up any mess

The Complications:
Okay so yikes this has spiralled out of control and now there may be some other terrifying new threats to deal with! We’re on it though, I promise. Weapon UwU!

Weapon Uwu is a spin off of SJ Whitby’s Cute Mutants Series (which also has a prominent asexual character)! If you love books with feral, messy characters this one is for you. There’s an aroace main character in this book, and it deals with queerplatonic relationships and the difficulties of someone you love wanting something you’re not able to give.

Dread Nation by Justina Ireland

Young Adult Historical Zombies

Trained at Miss Preston’s School of Combat for Negro Girls in both weaponry and etiquette, Jane McKeene is poised for a successful career protecting the wealthy from the encroaching plague of walking dead. But when families begin to go missing, Jane uncovers a conspiracy that pits her against some powerful enemies. Sent far from home, Jane will need all her resourcefulness, wit and strength of character to survive.

A powerful, compelling tale of a young girl’s journey through a hostile world, Jane McKeene is an unforgettable protagonist, and Dread Nation is an unforgettable book.

A major character in this book is a black, white-passing, asexual woman! (and the main character is black and bisexual)! Who knew zombies in the civil war era of the USA could be so interesting. I loved this book, from the characters to the setting, it was amazing.

City of Strife by Claudie Arseneault

Adult Fantasy

Isandor, City of Spires.

A hundred and thirty years have passed since Arathiel last set foot in his home city. Isandor hasn’t changed—bickering merchant families still vie for power through eccentric shows of wealth—but he has. His family is long dead, a magical trap has dulled his senses, and he returns seeking a sense of belonging now long lost.

Arathiel hides in the Lower City, piecing together a new life among in a shelter dedicated to the homeless and the poor, befriending an uncommon trio: the Shelter’s rageful owner, Larryn, his dark elven friend Hasryan, and Cal the cheese-loving halfling. When Hasryan is accused of Isandor’s most infamous assassination of the last decade, what little peace Arathiel has managed to find for himself is shattered. Hasryan is innocent… he thinks. In order to save him, Arathiel may have to shatter the shreds of home he’d managed to build for himself.

Arathiel could appeal to the Dathirii—a noble elven family who knew him before he disappeared—but he would have to stop hiding, and they have battles of their own to fight. The idealistic Lord Dathirii is waging a battle of honour and justice against the cruel Myrian Empire, objecting to their slavery, their magics, and inhumane treatment of their apprentices. One he could win, if only he could convince Isandor’s rulers to stop courting Myrian’s favours for profit.

In the ripples that follow Diel’s opposition, friendships shatter and alliances crumble. Arathiel, the Dathirii, and everyone in Isandor fights to preserve their homes, even if the struggle changes them irrevocably.

City of Strife is a political fantasy with an all queer cast! It also features multiple asexual and aromantic characters, including the main character! This book is compelling and easy to read, a great choice for people wanting to dip their toes into adult fantasy.