If you were captivated by Vern’s profound transformation and struggle for selfhood in Sorrowland, you’ll find a similar depth in The Fifth Season. Essun’s journey through a fractured, apocalyptic landscape is marked by intense personal growth, as she grapples with trauma, motherhood, and her own extraordinary abilities. Jemisin crafts a world where survival demands change, and every choice shapes who her characters will become.

If Vern’s ambiguous choices and refusal to conform to simple ideas of right and wrong drew you into Sorrowland, you’ll be enthralled by Aster’s journey in An Unkindness of Ghosts. Aster is brilliant, stubborn, and often morally opaque as she uncovers dark truths aboard the generation ship Matilda. Both novels feature protagonists who defy easy categorization, willing to challenge systems and make difficult decisions to survive.

If you appreciated the intersectional identities and queer representation in Sorrowland, you’ll love The Prey of Gods, where South Africa teems with demigods, AI, and a cast as vibrant as it is diverse. Drayden’s novel celebrates characters of varied backgrounds, genders, and sexualities, all woven into a dazzling, genre-bending narrative.

If the bleak, shadowy tone and sense of menace in Sorrowland kept you turning pages, The Water Cure delivers a similarly immersive, haunting experience. The story’s three sisters are raised in isolation, their lives defined by mysterious dangers and violent rituals. Mackintosh crafts a chilling world where every moment feels dangerous and survival is fraught with uncertainty.

If you were moved by the way Sorrowland weaves supernatural transformation with spiritual and religious themes—Vern’s visions, the commune’s cult-like beliefs—you’ll find Parable of the Sower equally compelling. Butler’s Lauren Olamina is a visionary leader whose spiritual awakening sparks a new faith amid societal collapse, exploring belief, prophecy, and what it means to build community from ruin.