We discussed High Fantasy vs. Low Fantasy recently, and there seems to be some confusion about Low Fantasy versus Grimdark Fantasy. High and Low Fantasy refer to a type of setting.

High Fantasy takes place in a world in which the supernatural is natural and magic is normalized (i.e. The Wheel of Time, Mistborn, The Witcher). Low Fantasy is set in a world where the supernatural is invading an otherwise normal world (i.e. A Song of Ice and Fire, Outlander, Harry Potter).

Books that fall into Grimdark Fantasy are gritty, nihilistic, and—you guessed it—grim and dark. These stories grapple heavily with topics of injustice, corruption, vice, and hypocrisy, especially among people in power. They can be High Fantasy (The Witcher) or Low Fantasy (A Song of Ice and Fire).

Grimdark is the backlash to the idealistic, Disney fairytale-type Fantasy story and seeks to shed light on the seedy underbelly of human nature.

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