Sarah Gailey

Sarah Gailey is an American author of fantasy, science fiction, and mystery novels, short stories, and comics.

As a comics writer, they have published Eat the Rich (2021); an arc in the Buffy the Vampire Slayer universe, The Vampire Slayer (2022–2023); and another original, Know Your Station (2022–2023).

Perhaps best known for their American Hippo duology, the alternate history novella River of Teeth (2017) was a finalist for the 2017 Nebula Award for Best Novella, the 2018 Hugo Award for Best Novella, and the 2018 Locus Award for Best Novella. A follow-up, Taste of Marrow, was shortly released thereafter, with an omnibus published the year next.

Their full-length novels include award-nominated Magic for Liars (2019), The Echo Wife (2021) and Just Like Home (2022).

Career

Gailey's fiction has been published in The Atlantic, Tor.com, and Fireside Magazine. Their non-fiction writing has appeared on Tor.com, Mashable, The Boston Globe and Uncanny Magazine.

According to Gailey's website, their work has been translated into seven different languages.

Novels and other work Gailey first became well known for their 2017 American Hippo duology, consisting of the novellas River of Teeth and Taste of Marrow. The pair of alternate history novellas center upon the hypothetical import of hippos into southern US bayou country as food stock and as a counteractive measure against invasive water hyacinth, inspired by the real House Resolution 23261 (1910). The "alternate" in these alt-history novellas rests upon the idea that Louisiana Congressman Robert F. Broussard's bill did not fail, but was instead passed by Congress and signed into law by President Buchanan during his lame duck period in 1861. Years later, an extermination group is hired to eliminate feral hippos that have killed locals. Multiple main characters are LGBTQ, including non-binary individuals, and reviewers have discussed the complexity of their interactions. Well-received for its characters, creative worldbuilding, and fast-paced action by critics, the duology received minor criticism for its novella format, structural length, transitions, and missed opportunities for accurate depiction of indigenous populations.

Upright Woman Wanted, a standalone novella published in February 2020, depicts a future American Southwest where queer librarians travel on horseback, spying on a fascist state on behalf of a resistance group.

Their first full-length novel, Magic for Liars, was published by Tor Books in June 2019. Magic for Liars adds crime and mystery to Gailey's fantasy writing; the novel notably contains a non-exposited magic system, unusual in the genre. BuzzFeed News called it "one of the best fantasies of 2019."

Their debut young adult novel, When We Were Magic, was published by Simon Pulse in March 2020. When a boy ends up dead after a magical accident happens on prom night, the main character, Alexis, and her group of close-knit friends try to right the terrible wrong. However, they fail and must find a way to live with themselves afterwards.

Gailey's second novel for adults, The Echo Wife, is a science fiction thriller about an award-winning geneticist, Dr. Evelyn Caldwell, whose husband, Nathan, leaves her for her clone. It was published in February 2021 by Tor Books.

In July 2022, Gailey released their third novel for adults, Just Like Home. Published by Tor Books, Just Like Home is a gothic thriller about monsters, secrets, and children's love for their parents.

Gailey's most recent novella, Spread Me, was published in September 2025 by Tor Books on its Nightfire imprint. It was notable for its depictions of body horror and explorations of transgressive sexuality.

Comics In August 2021, their five-issue original comics series Eat the Rich premiered. They continued their work in comics with a 12-issue Buffy the Vampire Slayer comics arc titled The Vampire Slayer (2022–2023) and an original science fiction series titled Know Your Station (2022–2023), co-created with artist Liana Kangas.

They've also done work with Marvel Comics with stories published in Crypt of Shadows #1 (2023) , Werewolf by Night: Unholy Alliance (2024) , and Predator Black, White & Blood #1 (2025) and full runs on both White Widow (2023) and Avengers United #54–63 (2024) .

Personal life Gailey grew up in Fremont, California and lives in Northern California.

Gailey is non-binary.

Awards and nominations Year Work Award Category Result . 2017 — John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer — "The Women of Harry Potter" posts British Fantasy Award Non-fiction Hugo Award Related Work 2019 "STET" Hugo Award Short Story Locus Award Short Story 2019American HippoGaylactic Spectrum AwardsNovelNominated 2020 "Away With the Wolves" Hugo Award Novelette Magic for Liars Locus Award First Novel 2021 Upright Women Wanted Hugo Award Novella Locus Award Novella 2022 Ignotus Award Foreign Novella Locus Award Novel 2026 Spread Me Locus Award Horror Novel