Fantasy isn’t just dragons and chosen ones anymore. If you’ve walked into a bookshop lately, you’ve probably noticed how many different flavours of fantasy are out there: epic doorstoppers, quiet standalones, spicy romantasy, even cozy stories about opening cafés with orcs. The question isn’t “Should I try fantasy?” but “Where do I even begin?”
That’s where this guide comes in. I’ve pulled together a wide mix of books and series, some classics, some newer hits, some you’ve probably seen all over TikTok. Think of it less like a ranking and more like a map of moods. Pick how you want to feel (swept away, comforted, unsettled, spellbound), and there’s a book waiting for you.
Start Here: Five Gateway Standalones
Not every fantasy reader wants to commit to a 10-book saga right away. Sometimes you just want to dip your toes in and see what the genre has to offer.
These standalone novels are perfect entry points, complete stories that showcase just how different fantasy can feel.
- Piranesi by Susanna Clarke – A haunting labyrinth of statues, tides, and mystery. It’s short, strange, and unforgettable.
- The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern – A lush duel between two young magicians, wrapped inside a romance. Pure atmosphere.
- Uprooted by Naomi Novik – A folkloric fairy tale with teeth, forests, and reluctant heroines.
- The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison – Court intrigue, but the main character is disarmingly kind. A balm for the grimdark-weary.
- Tigana by Guy Gavriel Kay – A sweeping tale of memory and resistance. Heartbreaking in the best way.
Epic & High Fantasy: Big Worlds, Long Arcs
If you love sprawling casts, intricate politics, and magic systems that take entire chapters to explain, epic fantasy is your playground. These books are the ultimate escape: you can lose yourself in them for weeks, sometimes years, and come out with a second home in another world.
- Robin Hobb’s Realm of the Elderlings – Deep character work and slow-burn heartbreak.
- Brandon Sanderson’s Stormlight Archive – Brimming with inventive magic systems and momentum.
- George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire – You know this one: dragons, thrones, betrayals.
- Samantha Shannon’s The Priory of the Orange Tree – A single-volume epic with dragons and queens.
- Steven Erikson’s Malazan Book of the Fallen – Infamously dense, endlessly rewarding if you like complexity.
Grimdark & Dark Fantasy: Moral Fog, Sharp Edges
Not every story ends happily ever after. Grimdark strips away the polish and gives you broken heroes, bleak worlds, and choices where no one comes out clean. If you like your fantasy served raw, sharp, and a little bit bloody, these are the books for you.
- Joe Abercrombie’s First Law trilogy – Brutal, brilliant, and very funny in a dark way.
- Mark Lawrence’s Broken Empire – A ruthless anti-hero’s rise and fall.
- Anna Smith Spark’s Empires of Dust – Poetic prose meets blood and chaos.
- Jay Kristoff’s Empire of the Vampire – Gothic, violent, and as bloody as it sounds.
Urban & Contemporary Fantasy: Magic Where You Live
Sometimes the most exciting fantasy doesn’t happen in faraway kingdoms—it happens in our own world, just hidden beneath the surface. Urban and contemporary fantasy bring the magic into city streets, police stations, and back alleys, making the ordinary feel extraordinary.
- Neil Gaiman’s Neverwhere or American Gods – London’s hidden tunnels or America’s roadside gods.
- Ben Aaronovitch’s Rivers of London – Police procedural meets wizard training.
- V.E. Schwab’s A Darker Shade of Magic – Four parallel Londons, each with its own rules.
- China Miéville’s The City & The City – A detective novel where two cities occupy the same space.
Literary & Experimental Fantasy
For some readers, fantasy works best when it blurs into literary fiction—rich in symbolism, unconventional in structure, and heavy with metaphor. These books challenge the genre’s boundaries while still giving you plenty of magic to chew on.
- Piranesi by Susanna Clarke (again, because it’s that good).
- Marlon James’s Black Leopard, Red Wolf – African myth meets experimental epic.
- Kazuo Ishiguro’s The Buried Giant – Memory, forgetting, and myth.
- Kelly Link’s short fiction – Surreal and playful, like fairy tales told sideways.
Historical, Mythic, and Retellings
Sometimes the best fantasy is born from stories we already half-know. Myths, legends, and history retold through new voices bring a fresh lens to old tales, often making them feel more relevant than ever.
- Madeline Miller’s Circe – Greek myth from a witch’s point of view.
- Naomi Novik’s Spinning Silver – A clever take on Rumpelstiltskin.
- S.A. Chakraborty’s Daevabad trilogy – Djinn politics and epic stakes.
- Katherine Arden’s Winternight trilogy – Slavic folklore with frost and fire.
Cozy Fantasy: Comfort Food for the Imagination
If grimdark is all about despair, cozy fantasy is about hope. These stories are slower, gentler, and focus on characters building community rather than saving kingdoms. Think of them as a warm drink in book form.
- Travis Baldree’s Legends & Lattes – An orc opens a coffee shop. That’s it, that’s the charm.
- TJ Klune’s The House in the Cerulean Sea – Found family with magical kids.
- Sangu Mandanna’s The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches – Warm, witchy, and sweet.
Romantasy: Love First, Magic Second
Fantasy readers used to joke about skipping the battle scenes to get back to the romance. Romantasy says, “Why not make the romance the whole point?” These books deliver magic and high stakes, but the heart of the story is love.
- Sarah J. Maas’s A Court of Thorns and Roses (ACOTAR) series – The gateway for many romantasy readers.
- Rebecca Yarros’s Empyrean series (Fourth Wing) – Dragons, flight school, forbidden love.
- Carissa Broadbent’s The Serpent & the Wings of Night – Vampires and romance in a deadly tournament.
- Olivia Atwater’s Regency romances with magic – Charming and witty.
Progression Fantasy & LitRPG: Level Up Adventures
What if reading a fantasy novel felt like playing an RPG? Progression fantasy and LitRPG are exactly that: characters levelling up skills, gaining new powers, and climbing the ranks. It’s addictive, especially for readers who love steady growth and payoff.
- Will Wight’s Cradle series – The standard-bearer for progression fantasy.
- Andrew Rowe’s Arcane Ascension – RPG-style levelling woven into the plot.
- Dungeon Crawler Carl – A cult-favourite LitRPG with humour and chaos.
- The Wandering Inn (web serial) – Expansive, addictive, and very community-driven.
Global Voices & Non-Western Worlds
Fantasy is richer when it pulls from traditions outside Western Europe. These authors bring fresh mythologies, landscapes, and storytelling styles that expand what the genre can be.
- Fonda Lee’s Green Bone Saga – Family, crime, and jade magic in a modern city.
- Ken Liu’s Dandelion Dynasty – Epic “silkpunk” inspired by East Asia.
- R.F. Kuang’s The Poppy War – Military fantasy drawing from Chinese history.
- Tasha Suri’s Burning Kingdoms series – Lush, Indian-inspired worlds.
- Nnedi Okorafor’s Who Fears Death – Afrofuturism with powerful mythmaking.
A Few Award Magnets
If you want books that critics and prize panels couldn’t stop talking about, here are the ones that often show up on “best of all time” lists. These are the heavyweights of modern fantasy.
- N.K. Jemisin’s Broken Earth trilogy – Won the Hugo three years in a row.
- Susanna Clarke’s Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell – Dense, witty, and very English.
- Anything on TIME’s 100 Best Fantasy Novels list—instant canon.
How to Pick Your Next Fantasy Book
Think about what you’re in the mood for:
- Want comfort? Try cozy fantasy.
- Want scale? Dive into epics.
- Want spice? Romantasy is booming.
- Want to be unsettled? Grimdark or experimental weird.
- Want myths re-told? Go historical or folkloric.
Where Fantasy Is Heading
Right now, cozy and romantasy are bringing new readers into the genre, while indie serials like progression fantasy are changing how we binge. At the same time, prize-winning books like Piranesi and Black Leopard, Red Wolf are showing that fantasy can be as “literary” as anything on a Booker list.
In other words, fantasy for adults has never been richer, or more fun to explore.
Over to you: What’s the best fantasy book you’ve read recently, and which mood do you usually reach for?
D.P. Martinez is a contemporary fantasy author specialising in urban fantasy and magical realism. He holds an M.A. in English Literature from the University of Greenwich, where he focused on Literary London. His research explored metaphorical representations of London in urban fantasy. He has written hundreds of articles and several books across both fiction and non-fiction.