My Fantasy Book Recommendations List

Hey everyone,

So it’s been a little while since I posted on here [I’m sorry, uni work always seems to pile up when you least expect it] but today I wanted to upload something a friend actually requested I write… a list of recommendations. Most of these will obviously be YA since that’s my favourite age-category, but a few here and there will be adult-marketed fantasy or thrillers. Anyhow, I’m going to try and give you a thing or two about each book that I love too, so you know what might suit you from my huge list 😀

Actually, as a quick edit, I’ve decided to break this into several chunks, of which this will be part one: the fantasy edition. There were just too many books to list in one huge post and I wanted to go into a bit of detail which each to give it justice.

The Fantasy Essentials: Fantasy 101, Featuring some of the most popular YA/NA/Adult Fantasy titles] 

• The Raven Boys by Maggie Steifvater. Honestly, it wouldn’t be one of my lists without me trying to recommend this series. It’s about an awesome group of friends trying to find the remains of an old Welsh king in Virginia. Expect lots of beautiful descriptions, lovely language techniques, some brilliant characters, and spooky goings on.
• Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo. OMG, this series is just perfect from start to finish. It’s set against the backdrop of Ketterdam [basically Amsterdam] and follows six cunning criminals as they try and pull off an impossible con. Lots of sarcasm, a bit of grit, and unforgettable protagonists. Oh, and a dash of magic here and there. It is set in the same universe as Bardugo’s Shadow and Bone series, so if you think you might be a fan, I recommend picking that up first. I should also point out that although there is romance in this one, it is really on the sidelines, so fans who aren’t big on huge romantic sub-plots might like this book.
• A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab. By Schwab’s own arguments, this is actually an adult novel, marketed as a crossover to YA. The world she creates is gorgeous and wonderful and that alone would make it one of my favourite series. It is set across four different Londons: Grey London where magic doesn’t exist, Red London where it does, White London which has got a bit too much magic, and Black London which is destroyed. Choose this if you’re a fan of beautiful, sharp dialogue, quippy one liners, gorgeous magical world building, anti-heroes, and pirates. It’s also not massively big on the romance elements of the story, so it’s another good recommendation for those who get a bit sick of on page PDA.
• Nevernight by Jay Kristoff. The last book in the series has only just come out, and I am dying to read it. It follows a young woman called Mia who is hell-bent on revenge against the politicians and ruling elite who took down her father’s rebellion and killed her whole family. She’s a deadly assassin who has a strange power- a cat shadow called Mr. Kindly who eats her fear. It’s a brilliant series by one of my favourite authors. It’s not too heavy on romance, but definitely DEFINITELY NSFW since there’s some sexy times, lots of gore and a lot of cussing. If you like books about assassins, strange worlds, smut, and characters who are absolutely out to serve their own interests, this one is for you.
• Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare. The Infernal Devices series by Cassie Clare is my favourite series she’s written to date. There’s a great reader protagonist, a genuinely interesting love triangle [usually a trope I hate], and badass fight scenes set to a backdrop of Victorian London.
• A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J Maas. Another obvious hit on this list. It’s definitely NSFW as there are some steamy romance scenes in here, but it’s a retelling of Beauty and the Beast that has a lot of faerie mythology and folklore behind it. Pick this up if you like romance, you like twists in that romance, and if you like something that has a definite dark current running through it.
• The Cruel Prince by Holly Black. Admittedly, I wasn’t the biggest fan of this book when it first came out, but it has grown on me, and I feel like the second book in the series more than made up for some of the shortcomings of book one. This one is definitely dark and edgy, with a human protagonist living in the world of the Fae. Pick this up if you like anti-hero main characters, hate to love romances, faerie folklore and political plotting and scheming.
• Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi. This one is one of the biggest releases of the past few years, and it is easy to see why. Featuring an awesome and powerful POC protagonist and a brilliant magic system, it’s all about a girl trying to bring back magic to her country, against the wishes of the tyrannical monarchy. She’s also dealing with trying to control her own powers, an element I totally love. Pick up this if you like cool magic systems, rebellions and uprisings, adventure and a little bit of grit.
• The Gunslinger by Stephen King. The first book in the behemoth Dark Tower series is quite small and although the pacing is a bit plodding at times, I still recommend trying out this series [it is sooooo much better than the movie]. The world building in it is truly outstanding, there are a load of complicated characters and there are so many connections to a plethora of King’s other novels. There’s a reason this is called his magnum opus, and it is totally justified.
• The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss. This is another weighty fantasy series, but I recommend it to anyone who prefers slow, languid reads and granular worldbuilding to fast-paced fantasy. It’s basically an innkeeper, telling the tale of his legendary life over the course of three nights. Pick it up if you like slow, well constructed fantasy novels, lots of worldbuilding, and some amazing writing techniques.
• The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon. It took me a while to get into these books, but wow I loved them after a while. There’s a kind of complicated magic-type system in it, as well as some incredibly fleshed out characters and a group of gangs known collectively as the Mime Order [if I remember correctly]. Pick this up if you don’t mind being thrown in at the deep end, lots of political stuff, and some complicated magic.
• Truthwitch by Susan Dennard. I absolutely adored this series and the way it explores healthy female friendships. It’s basically a lot of political stuff and a fascinating magic system, and a bunch of awesome friends going on many adventures and trying to keep each other safe. Pick this up if you like seeing positive representations of female friendships, intriguing magic systems, and lots of character growth. It does throw you in the deep end a bit with the magic at the start, but it is worth keeping with it.
• Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor. This one is a chunky book, and the follow-up is not a small book either. It gets super-bizarre in book two, but I loved this one for its poetry-esque descriptions, and interesting cast of characters who defy many of the tropes of YA protagonists. It feels a bit like the writing style of The Raven Boys and has some truly amazing moments in it. Pick it up if you like star-crossed romances too [TW warning: the book mentions rape several times over the course of the narrative and includes characters who have experienced this trauma].
• A Curse so Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer. I was originally going to put this on the up and coming list, but this series has massively taken off in the past year. It’s another Beauty and the Beast retelling. This one includes some pretty dark scenes, and is partly set in New York City and partly set in a place called Emberfall, which is ruled over by a cursed man. The protagonist is one you can easily fall in love with, as she’s so kind and amazing, and the characters just bounce off each other so well. Pick up this if you like slow-burn romances and dark fairy tales.

More Fantasy Recommendations: Some of these are a bit more ‘off the beaten path’ but I thoroughly recommend them all:

• Viper by Bex Hogan. I read this one recently and instantly fell in love. It’s about a girl whose father is essentially a merciless ruler of the seas, with a terrifying crew who serve him. As his daughter, she is meant to be just as ruthless, but all she wants is a life without violence, a life where she can build rather than destroy. While they’re not technically pirates, pick this one up if you like that kind of thing and if you like a good dash of darkness in your fantasy.
• A Sorcery of Thorns by Margaret Rogerson. This is a book I never expected to like, but I actually went ahead and totally fell for it. It’s about a mischievous orphan girl who is training to handle grimoires, dangerous magical books. In a strange twist of fate, she encounters a magician who represents many of the things she’s been told to hate, and the book basically follows their amazing adventure together. Pick this up if you like strange magic systems, gorgeous descriptions, and slow-burn romances [the one in this reminded me strongly of Belle and Rumple in OUAT].
• Ash Princess by Laura Sebastian. This one is about a girl who is princess of a country which has been invaded and taken over by a cruel ruler. Imprisoned by him, she’s repeatedly humiliated while her people are enslaved, until she has a chance to fight back and reclaim what is hers. This is a good choice for people who like love triangles, rebellions, and badass main characters.
• Spellslinger by Sebastien de Castell. This one sort of comfortably fits between MG and YA. It follows a guy who is utterly incompetent at magic, in a society where magic is a part of daily life. He teams up with a cowboy-like woman and a bloodthirsty squirrel-cat on his adventures. Pick this up if you were a big fan of Rocket from Guardians of the Galaxy, and if you like a lot of humour, sarcasm and adventure. It also includes a male protagonist and there isn’t a huge amount of romance, so it’s a pretty interesting choice to read.
• White Cat by Holly Black. Ii hardly ever hear people talking about this one, but Holly’s Curseworkers series is probably my favourite thing she’s ever published to date. It’s set in New Jersey and is basically about our world where magic is real, but the people who use it are criminals. Everyone goes around wearing charms to protect from being ‘worked’ over by these magical criminals, and everyone has to wear gloves to prevent being touched by magical hands. The criminals who have magic have basically become crime families and the story follows a non-magical con-artist whose family are all workers. I recommend reading this if you like intricate world building, quick reads, political intrigue, reading about cons, and want to read something from a male POV.
• Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan. This is one of my favourite reads of last year. It’s about a girl who has no magic, so she belongs to a caste known as the Papers. She’s taken as a concubine for the Demon King. I won’t say too much more as I don’t want to spoil it, but pick it up if you want a book with LGBTQ romances, uprisings, political intrigue, assassins and badass female characters. I should note that there’s quite a few trigger warnings in place for this book [which have been helpfully included by the author, particularly in regards to sexual assault and rape].
• The Belles by Dhonielle Clayton. I wasn’t a massive fan of the follow-up book, but I really liked this first one. It’s set in a kind of French world where people are born grey and are then made beautiful by girls with special powers who have come to be known as Belles. It’s a totally unique world, and I liked how the theme concentrated so much on notions of conventional beauty standards. Pick it up if you like totally different worlds, interesting themes, and a touch of romance.
• The Dark Days Club by Alison Goodman. This one is a little bit like The Infernal Devices series. It’s set in Regency era London and is about a noble woman who is both trying to debut in society and fight demons, as well as fight her attraction to a gloriously attractive man who is teaching her things gentleladies shouldn’t know, such as how to wear trousers and how to use a sword. If you like Mr Darcy, slow-burn romances, and you liked Infernal Devices this one is for you.
• Ace of Shades by Amanda Foody. This one gets compared a lot to Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo. It’s about a rich and slightly naive girl called Enne, who winds up in an infamous city of sin as she tries to find out what happened to her missing mother. Along the way she meets Levi, a gang leader and con-man who is up to no good. Pick it up if you like morally grey characters, con-artist stories, slow-burn romances, and lots of diversity in your books.
• Furyborn by Claire Legrand. This one is a bit like Throne of Glass by SJM. There are two separate storylines, one about a girl who becomes queen and has to sacrifice a lot to keep her country safe, and another about a girl who is a bounty hunter for the empire. Somehow, they’re both connected. There’s also a prophecy about a queen of light and a queen of blood. The plot is a bit complicated in this one, and the pace is a touch slow in places, but I thoroughly recommend it if you don’t mind slow-paced chunky novels. The story is so intriguing and there’s a lot of awesome humour and characters in this one.
• Flame in the Mist by Renee Ahdieh. This is a Mulan retelling, set in Feudal Japan. It’s quite heavy with the historical world-building, and there’s a lot of political intrigue in here, but it’s a truly awesome book with a brilliant protagonist and the plot is superb. Pick it up if you like Japanese inspired fantasy, Mulan, badass female characters, hate to love romance and a lot of action and political plot.
• Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn Hamilton. This is a gorgeous trilogy that took me a bit of time to get into. Featuring djinn and lots of rebels, pick this up if you like reading about unconventional girls, rebellions and uprisings, adventure and don’t mind getting your heart broken a few times along the way.
• The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden. This one is heavily inspired by Russian mythology and although it is a bit slow at times, it is so gorgeously written. Pick it up if you like fairy-tale inspired writing, Russian worlds, lots of atmospheric descriptions, and totally unconventional protagonists.

How many of these books have you read/want to read? What fantasy novels do you strongly recommend? Let me know your thoughts and feelings in the comment section below ❤