List of fictional universes in literature
This is a list of fictional universes in literature.
| Universe | Origin | Creation date | Author | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1632-verse | 1632 | 2000 | Eric Flint | |
| The 5th Wave universe | The 5th Wave | 2013 | Rick Yancey | |
| Abeir-Toril | Forgotten Realms | 1985[1] | Ed Greenwood | Location of Forgotten Realms novels and games |
| Acorna universe | Acorna: The Unicorn Girl | 1997 | Anne McCaffrey, Margaret Ball, & Elizabeth Ann Scarborough | |
| Alagaësia | Eragon | 2002 | Christopher Paolini | The settings of the novels of the Inheritance Cycle: Eragon, Eldest, Brisingr and Inheritance |
| Agatha Christie's fictional universe | The Mysterious Affair at Styles | 1920 | Agatha Christie | |
| All-World | The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger | 1982 | Stephen King | The setting for the Dark Tower series of novels and derived works, which also ties into a number of King's other novels, such as The Stand and Eyes of the Dragon. Includes the towns of Derry, 'Salem's Lot and Castle Rock, and the recurring antagonist Randall Flagg. |
| Alliance-Union universe | Heavy Time | 1991 | C. J. Cherryh | The setting for an epic future history series extending from the 21st century out into the far future. It consists of 27 science fiction novels along with a series of seven short story anthologies and a few other miscellaneous works. |
| Amber multiverse | Nine Princes in Amber | 1970 | Roger Zelazny | Multiverse in which The Chronicles of Amber take place; two worlds of opposed chaos and order of which all others are merely "shadows" |
| Amtor | Pirates of Venus | 1934 | Edgar Rice Burroughs | A fictionalised version of the planet Venus as depicted in the Venus series of novels featuring the character Carson Napier |
| Anita Blake mythology | Guilty Pleasures | 1993 | Laurell K. Hamilton | Alternate history in which the contemporary United States is reinterpreted into a world in which vampires, necromancy, and fairies exist. Setting for the Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter series of novels |
| Anno Dracula universe | Anno Dracula | 1992 | Kim Newman | |
| Avonlea | Anne of Green Gables | 1908 | Lucy Maud Montgomery | Fictional location on Prince Edward Island, Canada, and setting for a series of novels featuring the character Anne Shirley. |
| Barsetshire | The Warden | 1855 | Anthony Trollope | Featured in the series of novels known as the "Chronicles of Barsetshire". The county town and cathedral town is Barchester. Other towns mentioned in the novels include Silverbridge, Hogglestock and Greshamsbury. |
| Barsoom | Under the Moons of Mars | 1912 | Edgar Rice Burroughs | A fictionalised version of the planet Mars in over 100 adventure stories featuring the character John Carter |
| Bas-Lag | Perdido Street Station | 2000 | China Miéville | Steampunk setting for a trilogy of novels. |
| BattleTech Universe | Battledroids | 1984 | Jordan Weisman, L. Ross Babcock III, & Patrick Larkin | Futuristic wargame setting created for the Battledroids/BattleTech boardgame, also detailed in more than 100 print novels by various authors (including Michael A. Stackpole, William H. Keith Jr., Robert N. Charrette, Blaine Lee Pardoe, Loren L. Coleman, and numerous others) plus print anthologies and additional novels and stories published in electronic format. |
| Beklan Empire | Shardik | 1974 | Richard Adams | Kingdom in which slavery is legal and setting for the novels Shardik and Maia |
| Bensalem | New Atlantis | 1624 | Sir Francis Bacon | Utopian community in the Pacific Ocean that focuses on scientific discovery |
| Blandings Castle | Something Fresh | 1915 | P. G. Wodehouse | An idealized English country estate (with nearby village) and seat of the Threepwood family |
| Bobiverse | We Are Legion | 2016 | Dennis E. Taylor | |
| Boxen | Boxen: The Imaginary World of the Young C. S. Lewis | 1908 | C. S. Lewis & Warren Lewis | Animal-based kingdom (complete with its own politics, economics and government) created by CS Lewis and his brother when they were young; heavily influenced by Beatrix Potter |
| Carcosa | An Inhabitant of Carcosa | 1886 | Ambrose Bierce | Carcosa is a fictional ruined city in which the spirit of a man roamed and found he was dead, later borrowed by Robert W. Chambers for weird fantasy The King In Yellow |
| Catteni universe | Freedom's Landing | 1995 | Anne McCaffrey | |
| A Certain Magical Index Universe | To Aru Majutsu no Index Volume 1 | 2004 | Kazuma Kamachi | Consists mainly of Academy City, a futuristic city-state near Tokio, and its surroundings. Magic and science compete for supremacy while many heroes and villains from different factions fight to understand the true nature of the world. Setting for many storylines in the main books as well as the numerous spin offs the franchise has to offer. |
| City of the Sun | The City of the Sun | 1602 | Tommaso Campanella | Theocratic society in which goods, women and children are held in common. |
| CoDominium | A Spaceship for the King | 1973 | Jerry Pournelle | Interstellar empire controlled by a unified United States and Soviet Union. |
| Corona | The Demon Awakens | 1997 | R. A. Salvatore | Setting for The DemonWars Saga and The Highwayman. Bears a strong resemblance to eastern Canada |
| Cosmere | Elantris | 2005 | Brandon Sanderson | The Cosmere is the fictional universe in which the various worlds in most of Sanderson's adult fantasy works are set. |
| The Culture | Consider Phlebas | 1987 | Iain M. Banks | Interstellar anarchist, socialist, and utopian society created for a number of science fiction novels and works of short fiction collectively called the Culture series. |
| Dark Hunter Universe | Dark-Hunters (formerly Fantasy Lover) | 2002 | Sherrilyn Kenyon | |
| Darkover | The Planet Savers | 1958 | Marion Zimmer Bradley | Fictional planet in orbit around a red giant star and setting for the Darkover series of novels. |
| Deathstalker universe | Mistworld | 1992 | Simon R. Green | Setting for the Deathstalker series; a totalitarian, corrupt human galactic empire in which dissent is crushed and alien races are enslaved or exterminated |
| Derlavai | Into the Darkness | 1999 | Harry Turtledove | Fantasy land in which The Darkness Series, a retelling of World War II in a fantasy context, takes place |
| Deverry | Daggerspell | 1986 | Katharine Kerr | Celtic-inspired fantasy kingdom that is the setting for the Deverry Cycle |
| Dinotopia | Dinotopia: A Land Apart from Time | 1992 | James Gurney | Lost land in which humans coexist with sapient dinosaurs. |
| The Dire Earth Cycle | The Darwin Elevator | 2013 | Jason M. Hough | |
| The Discworld | The Colour of Magic | 1983 | Terry Pratchett | A flat world set on the backs of four elephants who in turn stand on the back of a giant turtle, the Discworld is the setting for 41 comedic fantasy novels. |
| Divergent | Divergent | 2011 | Veronica Roth | Set in a post-apocalyptic version of Chicago. |
| Dreamlands | Polaris | 1918 | H. P. Lovecraft | A vast, alternate dimension that can be entered via dreams. |
| Dune universe | Dune | 1965 | Frank Herbert | Interstellar empire governed by a feudal system dominated by Great Houses and dependent on the Spice that forms only on the planet Arrakis, or Dune. |
| Dying Earth | The Dying Earth | 1950 | Jack Vance | Far future world in which the Sun has almost exhausted its fuel and magic reasserted itself. Setting for the Dying Earth series |
| Earthsea | The Word of Unbinding | 1964 | Ursula K. Le Guin | Fantasy realm consisting of an archipelago of islands in a vast ocean that forms the setting for six books and seven short stories. |
| Earwa | The Darkness That Comes Before | 2004 | R. Scott Bakker | Fantasy realm that combines alien technology with magic |
| Eight Worlds | "Bagatelle" | 1974 | John Varley | |
| The Emberverse/Nantucket | Island in the Sea of Time | 1998 | S. M. Stirling | |
| Emelan | Sandry's Book | 1997 | Tamora Pierce | Pseudo-mediaeval magical setting for the Circle of Magic series |
| Empire duet | Empire | 2006 | Orson Scott Card | |
| Empire of Man | March Upcountry | 2001 | David Weber & John Ringo | |
| The Enderverse | Ender's Game | 1985 | Orson Scott Card | |
| Endworld | The Fox Run | 1986 | David L. Robbins | |
| Erewhon | Erewhon: or, Over the Range | 1872 | Samuel Butler | Satirical society that parodies Victorian conventions. |
| Everworld | Search for Senna | 1999 | Katherine Applegate and Michael Grant | |
| Fablehaven | Fablehaven | 2006 | Brandon Mull | |
| Familias Regnant universe | Hunting Party | 1993 | Elizabeth Moon | Feudal galactic society in the far future |
| Field of Arbol | Out of the Silent Planet | 1938 | C. S. Lewis | A fictionalised version of our Solar System, as depicted in the fictional theology of the Space Trilogy. |
| Finisterre universe | Rider at the Gate | 1995 | C. J. Cherryh | Hostile alien planet of telepathic flora and fauna |
| Friardale universe | The Magnet issue 1 | 1908 | Frank Richards | A world containing a number of private boys and girls schools. |
| Flatland | Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions | 1884 | Edwin Abbott Abbott | Authoritarian 2-dimensional world inhabited by sentient geometric shapes ignorant of the "higher dimensions" of up and down. |
| Foreigner universe | Foreigner | 1994 | C. J. Cherryh | Centres around the descendants of a ship lost in transit from Earth en route to found a new space station. |
| Foundation universe | "Strange Playfellow" | 1940 | Isaac Asimov | Future history of humanity's colonization of the galaxy, spanning nearly 25,000 years, created through the gradual fusion of the Robot, Foundation and Empire series'. |
| Foundationverse | SCP-173 | 2007 | An anonymous 4Chan user | A colloquial name for the multiversal setting of the internet collaborative writing project the SCP Foundation, where the titular organization is responsible for the containment and study of supernatural entities and objects. Also known as the SCP-verse, Skipverse or Scipverse. |
| The Four Lands | The Sword of Shannara | 1977 | Terry Brooks | A fantasy realm in which the Shannara series is set. Possibly a future post-apocalyptic Earth. |
| Future History | Life-Line | 1939 | Robert Heinlein | Future history of humanity from the mid 20th century to the 23rd, seen largely through the eyes of the immortal Howard families, in particular Lazarus Long. |
| Gaea universe | Titan | 1979 | John Varley | |
| Gaean Reach | Trullion: Alastor 2262 | 1973 | Jack Vance | |
| Galactic Center Saga | In the Ocean of Night | 1977 | Gregory Benford | |
| Galactic Marines universe | Semper Mars | 1998 | William H. Keith Jr. | |
| The Gap Cycle | The Gap into Conflict: The Real Story | 1991 | Stephen R. Donaldson | |
| Gene Wars Universe | Hammerfall | 2001 | C. J. Cherryh | Currently consists of two science fiction novels (Hammerfall and Forge of Heaven). |
| Gezeitenwelt | Der Wahrträumer | 2002 | Bernhard Hennen and others | Alternate world hit by a comet that forms the setting for a series of post-apocalyptic novels |
| Gor | Tarnsman of Gor | 1966 | John Norman | "Counter-Earth", sword and planet setting for 30 novels. Its depiction (and apparent endorsement) of aggressively subdued women has been widely criticised as sexist. |
| Gormenghast | Titus Groan | 1946 | Mervyn Peake | Grim castle and surroundings that is the setting for the Gormenghast series of gothic fantasy novels. |
| Green-Sky | Below the Root | 1975 | Zilpha Keatley Snyder | Low-gravity forest planet inhabited by an arboreal culture |
| Grishaverse | Shadow and Bone | 2012 | Leigh Bardugo | The fictional universe of Leigh Bardugo's fantasy novels, starting with Shadow and Bone trilogy, which includes Siege and Storm and Ruin and Rising. It is also the universe which includes the Six of Crows and King of Scars duologies. Named for the magical Grisha, a central group in the books. |
| Islands of Gulliver's Travels | Gulliver's Travels | 1726 | Jonathan Swift | Series of islands visited by Lemuel Gulliver in the satirical novel Gulliver's Travels, including Lilliput and Blefuscu, Brobdingnag, Laputa and the land of the Houyhnhnms (although Brobdingnag is not an island but a peninsula attached to North America). |
| Gwynedd | Deryni Rising | 1970 | Katherine Kurtz | Setting for the Deryni novels; an alternate-mediaeval kingdom in which certain people (Deryni) have magic powers |
| Hainish Cycle | Rocannon's World | 1966 | Ursula K. Le Guin | |
| Halla | The Merchant of Death | 2002 | D. J. MacHale | Setting for The Pendragon Adventure; the sum of all alternate realities. |
| Hammerverse | Hammer's Slammers | 1979 | David Drake | |
| Harry Potter universe | Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone | 1997 | J. K. Rowling | The fictional universe of J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter series of fantasy novels comprises two separate and distinct societies: a Muggle world (our own world) and a "wizarding world" (various magically hidden places throughout the world). |
| Heechee Saga | Gateway | 1977 | Frederik Pohl | |
| Heirs of Alexandria | The Shadow of the Lion | 2002 | Mercedes Lackey, Eric Flint, & Dave Freer | |
| His Dark Materials worlds | Northern Lights (aka The Golden Compass) | 1995 | Philip Pullman | Multiverse setting for the trilogy His Dark Materials. Northern Lights centres on a world in which every human has a companion animal, (a daemon) that represents their personality, books 2 and 3 are set in other worlds, including our own. |
| Honorverse | On Basilisk Station | 1992 | David Weber | Future interstellar setting in which humans have been genetically altered to cope with various alien environments. |
| Hundred Acre Wood | Winnie-the-Pooh | 1926 | A. A. Milne | Setting for the Winnie-the-Pooh series of children's books based on Ashdown Forest in Sussex |
| Hyborian Age and Thurian Age | The Shadow Kingdom | 1929 | Robert E. Howard | Supposedly mythical times during which the stories concerning Kull of Atlantis, Conan the Barbarian and Red Sonja are set. |
| Hyperion universe | Hyperion | 1989 | Dan Simmons | |
| Instrumentality of Mankind | The Planet Buyer | 1964 | Cordwainer Smith | Interstellar human empire 14,000 years in the future; setting for two novels and a series of short stories collected in The Rediscovery of Man |
| Isaac's Universe | The Diplomacy Guild | 1990 | Isaac Asimov | Invented by Asimov for other science fiction writers to use. |
| Jack Ryan Universe | The Hunt for Red October | 1984 | Tom Clancy | |
| Janissaries | Janissaries | 1979 | Jerry Pournelle, Roland J. Green, Phillip Pournelle & David Weber | |
| Jason Bourne Universe | The Bourne Identity | 1980 | Robert Ludlum | |
| Jeżycjada | Małomówny i rodzina | 1975 | Małgorzata Musierowicz | Setting of twenty two books. |
| Kelewan | Magician | 1982 | Raymond E. Feist | High fantasy setting for The Riftwar Saga. |
| Known Space | "The Coldest Place" | 1964 | Larry Niven | Interstellar region inhabited by a future humanity. Created by Niven for him and other writers to use. |
| The Meg/Loch | Meg: A Novel of Deep Terror | 1997 | Steve Alten | |
| Lake Wobegon | Lake Wobegon Days | 1985 | Garrison Keillor | Fictional Minnesota town characterized as the town where "all the women are strong, all the men are good looking, and all the children are above average." |
| The Land | Lord Foul's Bane | 1977 | Stephen R. Donaldson | Thomas Covenant is transported to a world simply called "the Land" by the Staff of Power and is enlisted by its inhabitants to stop Lord Foul from destroying it. |
| Landover | Magic Kingdom for Sale — SOLD! | 1986 | Terry Brooks | Rural high fantasy world and setting for six novels. |
| Left Behind | Left Behind: A Novel of the Earth's Last Days | 1995 | Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins | |
| Legacy of the Aldenata | A Hymn Before Battle | 2000 | John Ringo, Tom Kratman, and Julie Cochrane | |
| Lensman | Triplanetary | 1948 | E. E. Smith | |
| L'Engle multiverse | Meet the Austins | 1962 | Madeleine L'Engle | Science fiction multiverse infused with Christian religious themes and featuring a number of recurring characters. |
| Leviathan universe | Leviathan | 2009 | Scott Westerfeld | |
| Liaden universe | Agent of Change | 1988 | Sharon Lee and Steve Miller | Setting for an ongoing series of science fiction stories. |
| Lord Darcy universe | Murder and Magic | 1979 | Randall Garrett | |
| Lovecraft Country | The Picture in the House | 1920 | H. P. Lovecraft | Fictional region of Massachusetts in which several stories by Lovecraft take place, as part of his wider Cthulhu Mythos. Areas within it include Arkham, Dunwich, Innsmouth, Kingsport and the Miskatonic River. |
| The Lunar Chronicles | Cinder | 2012 | Marissa Meyer | |
| World of Malazan Book of the Fallen | Gardens of the Moon | 1999 | Steven Erikson | Fictional world of many of Steven Erikson's and Ian Cameron Esslemont's novels and novellas. |
| Michael Vey universe | Michael Vey: The Prisoner of Cell 25 | 2011 | Richard Paul Evans | |
| Mars trilogy | Red Mars | 1992 | Kim Stanley Robinson | |
| Maximum Ride | Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment | 2005 | James Patterson | |
| The Maze Runner universe | The Maze Runner | 2009 | James Dashner | |
| Mecha Samurai Empire | United States of Japan | 2016 | Peter Tieryas | |
| Middle-earth | The Hobbit | 1936 | J. R. R. Tolkien | The setting of the majority of Tolkien's fantasy writings, including The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings and The Silmarillion. Middle-earth represents the Old World of our planet Earth (named Arda in the stories) in a fictional (pre)historic era. |
| Mistborn | The Final Empire | 2006 | Brandon Sanderson | |
| Misterland | Mr. Tickle | 1971 | Roger Hargreaves | Setting of Mr. Men and Little Miss series. |
| Mortal Engines Quartet | Mortal Engines | 2001 | Philip Reeve | |
| Monster Hunter universe | Monster Hunter International | 2007 | Larry Correia | |
| The Multiverse | Behold the Man | 1969 | Michael Moorcock | Concept that forms the basis for several of Moorcock's novels via the Eternal Champion and the struggle between Law and Chaos |
| MythAdventures | Another Fine Myth | 1978 | Robert Lynn Asprin | |
| Nancy Drewniverse | The Secret of the Old Clock | 1930 | Edward Stratemeyer | A fictional multiverse where the various Nancy Drew continuities all take place ranging from literature, comic books, films, live-action television series, tabletop games, and video games. It is also the setting for The Hardy Boys, Tom Swift, and The Dana Girls. |
| Narnia | The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe | 1950 | C. S. Lewis | setting for the 7-volume fantasy series The Chronicles of Narnia. It includes the world of Narnia, Earth of the 1940s and 1950s, and other possible worlds (such as Charn) suggested by The Magician's Nephew. |
| Nations of Nineteen Eighty-Four | Nineteen-Eighty Four | 1949 | George Orwell | A perpetually war-torn world ruled by super-states. |
| Nehwon | "The Jewels in the Forest" | 1939 | Fritz Leiber | Common setting for the series of fantastical short stories featuring the characters Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser. Its capital is Lankhmar. |
| Nemesis Saga | Project Nemesis | 2012 | Jeremy Robinson | |
| Neverland | Peter Pan, or The Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up | 1904 | Sir J. M. Barrie | An island representing the imagination of a child |
| Neverness Universe | Neverness | 1988 | David Zindell | |
| The Night's Dawn Trilogy | The Reality Dysfunction | 1996 | Peter F. Hamilton | |
| Noon Universe | Noon: 22nd Century | 1967 | Arkady and Boris Strugatsky | ("Мир Полудня" or "Мир Полдня" - "World of Noon") is a fictional future setting for a number of hard science fiction novels. |
| Northern Lights universe | Northern Lights | 1995 | Philip Pullman | |
| Nowhere | News From Nowhere | 1890 | William Morris | Utopian socialist society |
| Okal Rel Universe | Throne Price | 2003 | Lynda Williams | Sevolite super-pilots adept at Reality Skimming (FTL travel) work out cultural differences with technically sophisticated Reetions and associated canon by collaborators also set in the Okal Rel Universe.[2] |
| Old Man's War Universe | Old Man's War | 2005 | John Scalzi | |
| Opening of the World | Beyond the Gap | 2007 | Harry Turtledove | |
| Osten Ard | The Dragonbone Chair | 1988 | Tad Williams | Fantastical continent populated by humans, elf-like Sithi and troll-like Quanuc. Setting for the Memory, Sorrow and Thorn trilogy |
| Outlanders | Exile to Hell | 1997 | Mark Ellis | |
| Oz | The Wonderful Wizard of Oz | 1900 | L. Frank Baum | Fantasy land initially created by Baum and subsequently elaborated on by several other authors in 40 canonical novels. Baum set numerous other novels and short stories explicitly in the same universe, including The Magical Monarch of Mo, Dot and Tot of Merryland, The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus, Queen Zixi of Ix, John Dough and the Cherub, The Sea Fairies, Sky Island, "The Enchanted Types," "The Dummy that Lived," "A Kidnapped Santa Claus", "The Runaway Shadows", "The Ryl of the Lilies," "The Yellow Ryl," "Nelebel's Fairyland," and "The Littlest Giant". |
| Panem | The Hunger Games | 2008 | Suzanne Collins | Set in a totalitarian future of North America that is the setting for the Hunger Games trilogy. |
| Pegāna | The Gods of Pegāna | 1905 | Lord Dunsany | A realm, which is described as "The Middle of All", where a pantheon of fictional gods reside. |
| Pern | Dragonflight | 1968 | Anne McCaffrey | Fictional planet and setting for the Dragonriders of Pern novel series, in which genetically engineered dragons fight an alien menace called Thread. |
| Perry Rhodan | Enterprise Stardust | 1961 | Karl-Herbert Scheer & Clark Darlton | |
| Petaybee universe | Powers That Be | 1993 | Anne McCaffrey & Elizabeth Ann Scarborough | |
| Pointland | Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions | 1884 | Edwin Abbott Abbott | 0-Dimensional world occupied by a single sentient point called "The Monarch of Pointland" |
| Prydain | The Book of Three | 1964 | Lloyd Alexander | Fantasy Celtic Britain that forms the setting for the Chronicles of Prydain |
| Rafał Kosik's universe | Mars | 2003 | Rafał Kosik | Setting of Rafał Kosik's novels and short stories. |
| The Republic | The Republic | 380 BC | Plato | Idealised "perfect society" as depicted by Plato in his dialogues The Republic and Laws |
| Revelation Space universe | Revelation Space | 2000 | Alastair Reynolds | Used as the setting for a number of novels and stories which follow the fictional history of humans from roughly 2200 to 40,000 AD. |
| The Riftwar Cycle | Magician | 1982 | Raymond E. Feist | |
| Riordanverse | Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief | 2005 | Rick Riordan | Set in the modern world where gods from mythology exist; and consists of the series Percy Jackson & the Olympians, The Heroes of Olympus, The Trials of Apollo, The Kane Chronicles and Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard. |
| Riverworld | To Your Scattered Bodies Go | 1971 | Philip Jose Farmer | "Afterlife" in which every human who ever lived is continuously reincarnated beside a seemingly endless river. |
| Safehold universe | Off Armageddon Reef | 2007 | David Weber | |
| The Saga of Recluce | The Magic of Recluce | 1991 | L. E. Modesitt Jr. | |
| The Saga of Seven Suns | Hidden Empire | 2002 | Kevin J. Anderson | |
| Saga of the Skolian Empire | Primary Inversion | 1995 | Catherine Asaro | |
| Sentinels Universe | When Strikes the Warlord | 2006 | Van Allen Plexico | |
| Sime~Gen Universe | "Operation High Time" | 1969 | Jacqueline Lichtenberg | |
| Island of Sodor | The Three Railway Engines | 1945 | Rev. W. Awdry | Fictional island in the Irish Sea between Wales and the Isle of Man; home to the characters of the Railway Series of books, including sentient locomotives Thomas the Tank Engine, James the Red Engine and Gordon the Big Engine. |
| The Shadowhunter Chronicles | City of Bones | 2007 | Cassandra Clare | |
| Shaper/Mechanist universe | "Swarm" | 1982 | Bruce Sterling | |
| Southern Vampires universe | Dead Until Dark | 2001 | Charlaine Harris | Alternate history in which vampires, werewolves and other supernatural creatures coexist with humans. Setting for the Southern Vampire Mysteries |
| Southern Victory universe | How Few Remain | 1997 | Harry Turtledove | |
| The Sprawl | Fragments of a Hologram Rose | 1977 | William Gibson | Futuristic urban sprawl that forms the setting for the Sprawl trilogy of science fiction novels, as well as four short stories |
| Star Wars Expanded Universe | Star Wars: From the Adventures of Luke Skywalker | 1976 | George Lucas, Alan Dean Foster, among others | |
| StarFist Universe | First to Fight | 1997 | David Sherman & Dan Cragg | |
| The Strain universe | The Strain | 2009 | Guillermo del Toro & Chuck Hogan | |
| The Sword of Truth | Wizard's First Rule | 1994 | Terry Goodkind | |
| The Talents universe | To Ride Pegasus | 1973 | Anne McCaffrey | |
| TekWar Universe | TekWar | 1989 | William Shatner & Ron Goulart | |
| Temeraire | His Majesty's Dragon | 2006 | Naomi Novik | |
| Thieves' World universe | Thieves' World | 1978 | Robert Lynn Asprin | |
| The Threshold Universe | 14 | 2012 | Peter Clines | |
| Uglies universe | Uglies | 2005 | Scott Westerfeld | |
| Uplift Universe | Sundiver | 1980 | David Brin | A central feature in this universe is the process of biological uplift. |
| Utopia | Utopia | 1516 | Sir Thomas More | An idealised perfect society located somewhere in the New World |
| Vampire Academy universe | Vampire Academy | 2007 | Richelle Mead | |
| Vampire Earth | Way of the Wolf | 2003 | E. E. Knight | |
| Velgarth | Arrows of the Queen | 1987 | Mercedes Lackey | World infused with magic created for the 30+ volume Valdemar Saga |
| Videssos cycle | The Misplaced Legion | 1987 | Harry Turtledove | |
| Viriconium | The Pastel City | 1971 | M. John Harrison | City set in a wasteland dying Earth amid the ruins of civilisation. Setting for a number of stories. |
| Vorkosiverse | Shards of Honor | 1986 | Lois McMaster Bujold | Interstellar empire in humanity's far future that forms the setting for the Vorkosigan Saga |
| War Between the Provinces | Sentry Peak | 2000 | Harry Turtledove | |
| Warhammer Fantasy | Warhammer | 1983 | Bryan Ansell, Richard Halliwell, & Rick Priestley | Fantasy world populated by historical and phantastical cultures under threat from Chaos |
| Warstrider universe | Warstrider | 1993 | William H. Keith, Jr. | |
| Watches worldline | Night Watch | 1998 | Sergei Lukyanenko | Setting for the World of Watches series; a hidden realm in which magically empowered humans ("Others") have access to a deeper layer of reality called "The Gloom". |
| The Way universe | Eon | 1985 | Greg Bear | |
| Well World | Midnight at the Well of Souls | 1977 | Jack L. Chalker | World consisting of 1560 hexagonal regions, each with its own climate and ecosystem |
| Wessex | Under the Greenwood Tree | 1872 | Thomas Hardy | Setting of all of Hardy's major novels in the south and southwest of England. He named the area Wessex after the medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom that existed in this part of that country prior to the Norman Conquest. |
| The Wheel of Time | The Eye of the World | 1990 | Robert Jordan | Common setting for The Wheel of Time fantasy series, that covers thousands of years of fictional history |
| Wild Cards Universe | Wild Cards | 1987 | George R. R. Martin | |
| William Blake's mythology | All Religions are One | 1788 | William Blake | Complex fictional mythology blending gnosticism, kabbalism and various forms of pre-Christian paganism |
| Witch World | Witch World | 1963 | Andre Norton | High-fantasy setting ruled by magic-using women |
| Wold Newton Universe | Tarzan Alive | 1972 | Philip Jose Farmer | Universe connecting many fictional characters from several genres, including Tarzan, Doc Savage and Sherlock Holmes, who, according to the concept, were all created via genetic mutation caused by the fall of a radioactive meteorite in Wold Newton in 1795. |
| Wonderland and Looking-Glass Land | Alice's Adventures in Wonderland | 1865 | Lewis Carroll | Nonsensical fantasy lands visited by the character Alice in the novels Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There |
| World of A Song of Ice and Fire | A Game of Thrones | 1996 | George R. R. Martin | Medieval-like world with years-long seasons that is the setting of the series A Song of Ice and Fire |
| World of The Expanse | Leviathan Wakes | 2011 | James S. A. Corey | Fictional version of the Solar System that is the setting for The Expanse |
| World of The Kingkiller Chronicle | The Name of the Wind | 2007 | Patrick Rothfuss | The portion of the world where most of the events take place is called the Four Corners of Civilization in the books, and the whole world has been officially named "Temerant" by Patrick Rothfuss in his blog.[3] |
| World of Tiers | The Maker of Universes | 1965 | Philip Jose Farmer | Series of pocket universes created by an advanced, decadent humanoid race. |
| World of the Three Moons | Black Trillium | 1990 | Marion Zimmer Bradley, Julian May and Andre Norton | Fantasy world with three natural satellites that forms the setting for the Trillium series |
| World of The Worm Ouroboros | The Worm Ouroboros | 1922 | E. R. Eddison | A fictionalised version of the planet Mercury |
| The World State | Brave New World | 1932 | Aldous Huxley | Parodic utopian world in which individuality and passion are sacrificed in favor of drug-induced happiness and consumerism |
| World War Z universe | World War Z | 2006 | Max Brooks | |
| Worldwar universe | Worldwar: In the Balance | 1994 | Harry Turtledove | |
| The Witcher | Droga, z której się nie wraca | 1990 | Andrzej Sapkowski | Fantasy world. Setting of The Witcher novel series, game series and TV series. |
| Xanth | A Spell for Chameleon | 1977 | Piers Anthony | A fantasy world created for the Xanth series of novels, also known as The Magic of Xanth |
| Xeelee universe | Raft | 1991 | Stephen Baxter | Setting for the Xeelee Sequence of novels and short stories, featuring a far future galaxy colonised by the descendants of man engaged in a war with a hypertechnological race called the Xeelee. |
| Yoknapatawpha County | Sartoris | 1929 | William Faulkner | The setting for all but three of Faulkner's novels, based loosely on Lafayette County, Mississippi. |
| Young Wizards | So You Want to Be a Wizard | 1983 | Diane Duane | |
| Zimiamvia | Mistress of Mistresses | 1935 | E. R. Eddison | Shares a connection with the world of The Worm Ouroboros. |
| Zothique | Empire of the Necromancers | 1932 | Clark Ashton Smith | Mediaeval-level future continent of Earth that forms the setting for 16 short stories. |
See also
References
- ^ It was officially published in 1985, though Greenwood had begun developing it as early as 1967
- ^ The Canadian Fantastic in Focus: New Perspectives edited by Allan Weiss https://www.amazon.com/The-Canadian-Fantastic-Focus-Perspectives/dp/0786495928
- ^ Rothfuss, Patrick (July 16, 2014). "Our Triumphant Conclusion, Chocolate Malts, and the Name of the World".