Sci-Fi/Fantasy Books with Disabled Characters

As someone with a chronic illness, I love reading books that include disabled characters, particularly when the story isn’t about the disability; it’s nice to see disabled characters just existing and going on adventures. Any representation, much less positive representation that isn’t full of harmful tropes, can be difficult to find in science fiction and fantasy, so I’ve noted down books I’ve read and enjoyed here! Click on the cover to go to the book’s Goodreads page.

A = Adult | YA = Young Adult | MG = Middle Grade | GN = Graphic Novel

Shadow and Bone

Author: Leigh Bardugo
Series: Shadow and Bone Trilogy #1
Genre: Fantasy / YA
Release: 2012
Condition: chronic illness

Six of Crows

Author: Leigh Bardugo
Series: Six of Crows #1
Genre: Fantasy / YA
Release: 2015
Condition: limp / cane usage

The Iron Trial

Authors: Holly Black / Cassandra Clare
Series: Magisterium #1
Genre: Fantasy / MG
Release: 2014
Condition: limp

Mockingjay

Author: Suzanne Collins
Series: The Hunger Games #3
Genre: Fantasy / YA
Release: 2010
Condition: PTSD, memory alteration

Magonia

Author: Maria Dahvana Headley
Series: Magonia #1
Genre: Fantasy / YA
Release: 2015
Condition: chronic illness / lung issues

The Outside

Author: Ada Hoffman
Series: The Outside #1
Genre: Sci-Fi / A
Release: 2019
Condition: autism

A Curse so Dark and Lonely

Author: Brigid Kemmerer
Series: Cursebreakers #1
Genre: Fantasy / YA
Release: 2019
Condition: cerebral palsy

Unravel

Authors: Amelia Loken
Series: Standalone
Genre: Fantasy / YA
Release: 2022
Condition: deafness

A Game of Thrones

Author: George R.R. Martin
Series: A Song of Ice and Fire #1
Genre: Fantasy / A
Release: 1996
Condition: dwarfism, amputation, paraplegia

Cinder

Author: Marissa Meyer
Series: The Lunar Chronicles #1
Genre: Sci-Fi / YA
Release: 2012
Condition: amputation

Akata Witch

Author: Nnedi Okorafor
Series: The Nsibidi Scripts #1
Genre: Fantasy / YA
Release: 2011
Condition: albinism

Vespertine

Author: Margaret Rogerson
Series: Standalone
Genre: Fantasy / YA
Release: 2021
Condition: disabled hand

Carve the Mark

Authors: Veronica Roth
Series: Carve the Mark #1
Genre: Sci-Fi / YA
Release: 2017
Condition: chronic pain

Chosen Ones

Author: Veronica Roth
Series: Standalone
Genre: Fantasy / A
Release: 2020
Condition: PTSD

Thrud

Author: Zach Schuster
Series: Standalone
Genre: Fantasy / GN
Release: 2021
Condition: muteness

Nimona

Author: Noelle Stevenson
Series: Standalone
Genre: Fantasy / GN
Release: 2015
Condition: amputation

Escaping Peril

Author: Tui T. Sutherland
Series: Wings of Fire #8
Genre:
Fantasy / MG
Release: 2016
Condition: fire scales / burns others

The Fellowship of the Ring

Author: J.R.R. Tolkien
Series: The Lord of the Rings #1
Genre: Fantasy / A
Release: 1954
Condition: pain from Nazgul blade wound

Dragons of Autumn Twilight

Author: Margaret Weis / Tracy Hickman
Series: Dragonlance #1
Genre: Fantasy / Adult
Release: 1984
Condition: weak constitution / coughing

All Systems Red

Author: Martha Wells
Series: Murderbot Diaries #1
Genre: Sci-Fi / A
Release: 2017
Condition: anxiety

Iron Widow

Author: Xiran Jay Zhao
Series: Iron Widow #1
Genre:
 Sci-Fi / A
Release: 2021
Condition: lotus feet / PTSD

The Tea Dragon Society

Author: K. O’Neill
Series: Tea Dragon #1
Genre:
 Fantasy / GN
Release: 2017
Condition: wheelchair use, memory loss

Deeplight

Author: Frances Hardinge
Series: Standalone
Genre:
 Fantasy
Release: 2019
Condition: deafness

Perception Check

Author: Astrid Knight
Series: The Mages of Velmyra #1
Genre:
 Fantasy
Release: 2022
Condition: anxiety