The Best Fantasy Books to Read Next

Fantasy is a big tent — cozy, found-family stories live on the same shelf as thousand-page political epics, and both count. The books below range across that whole spectrum, chosen because they're genuinely good entry points or genuinely good rewards for readers who already know what they like. No 200-book completionist list, just the ones we'd actually hand you.

🌌 Books to escape reality →15 Books Like Harry Potter for Adults →

Cover of Circe by Madeline Miller

Circe

Madeline Miller

Turns a footnote in mythology into the most compelling character in it.

Cover of The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

The Song of Achilles

Madeline Miller

You know how it ends from history class. It will still destroy you.

Cover of A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin

A Game of Thrones

George R.R. Martin

The book that redefined how brutal and political fantasy could be.

Cover of The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien

The Hobbit

J.R.R. Tolkien

The warmest, most fun entry point into fantasy as a genre.

Cover of The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien

The Fellowship of the Ring

J.R.R. Tolkien

The foundation nearly all modern fantasy is still built on.

Cover of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

J.K. Rowling

Still one of the best 'getting back into reading' books that exists.

Cover of The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune

The House in the Cerulean Sea

TJ Klune

About as warm and gentle as fantasy gets, with real heart underneath.

Cover of The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

The Night Circus

Erin Morgenstern

Reads like wandering through an impossibly beautiful dream.

Cover of Mistborn: The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson

Mistborn: The Final Empire

Brandon Sanderson

Fantasy's best-known 'magic as a system of rules' worldbuilding.

Cover of The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss

The Name of the Wind

Patrick Rothfuss

Some of the most quotable prose in modern fantasy.

Cover of The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson

The Way of Kings

Brandon Sanderson

For readers who want to disappear into a world for a very long time.

Cover of Good Omens by Terry Pratchett & Neil Gaiman

Good Omens

Terry Pratchett & Neil Gaiman

Genuinely one of the funniest fantasy novels ever written.

Cover of American Gods by Neil Gaiman

American Gods

Neil Gaiman

A uniquely American mythology, built from the ground up.

Cover of The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman

The Ocean at the End of the Lane

Neil Gaiman

A short book that hits like a much longer one.

Cover of Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree

Legends & Lattes

Travis Baldree

The definition of a cozy read — low stakes, high comfort.

Cover of Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami

Kafka on the Shore

Haruki Murakami

For when you want a book that refuses to fully explain itself.

Cover of Piranesi by Susanna Clarke

Piranesi

Susanna Clarke

Strange, beautiful, and unlike almost anything else you've read.

Looking for something more specific? Tell Next Read Club what you're in the mood for →