What was C.S. Lewis’s final published work of fiction?

C.S. Lewis’s final published work of fiction was Till We Have Faces.

The novel appeared in 1956 and presents a retelling of the Cupid and Psyche story through the voice of Orual, a queen who examines her life, her family, and her grievances against the gods. It was the last novel Lewis completed and published during his lifetime.

Unlike the children’s adventure style of The Chronicles of Narnia, Till We Have Faces uses an ancient setting and an introspective first-person structure. Its themes include envy, possessive love, religious doubt, and the painful recognition of one’s own motives.

Lewis considered the book one of his strongest literary achievements. The title points to the idea that genuine self-understanding requires people to confront the faces or identities hidden behind their public masks. The novel’s mythic source is usually connected with Apuleius’s account of Cupid and Psyche.