Most popular fantasy creatures and races speculative. The original creator, robert jordan, died in 2007 but left enough material for brandon sanderson to step in and round off the series with three further novels the gathering storm 2009, towers of midnight 2010. Lees trilogy is more recent and less well known than many of the others on this list, but its a massively deserving series that. Apr 06, 2016 jean rhys is most famous for her stunning wide sargasso sea, a blistering retelling of jane eyre from the perspective of the creole madwoman in the attic, but her penultimate novel, good. Fantasy tropes, like any other type of literary trope, are recurring images, themes, or devices that are used to the point of being common conventions amongst its genre. As of june 2017, the series has been translated into 80 languages, 10 placing harry potter among historys most translated literary works. In the 2000s, the harry potter novels became the rare series read by fantasy fans and non fantasy fans, book lovers and non book lovers, basically everyone on planet earth.
Andrew langs fairy books or andrew langs coloured fairy books. This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. Youve probably never heard of these little known books from british author j. Fantasy books top 10 fantasy fiction universes from george rr martins vast, warlike realms to neil gaimans london below, these paracosms are bound only. Heres a list of best fantasy books of all time arranged alphabetically. Dec 18, 2018 this years most superb fantasy offerings ran the gamut from fantasy books for adults, like tolkiens the fall of gondolin, to fantasy books for teens, like naomi noviks spinning silver. Top 10 fantasy fiction universes books the guardian. The first novel in the series, harry potter and the philosophers stone, has sold in excess of 120 million copies, making it one of the bestselling books of all time. The best books to read if you love harry potter time. True fantasy fans have known for decades that fantasy isnt just for kids, even though most of the world is just realizing thisbut true fantasy fans also know that. Oct 26, 2014 if there are any fantasy books you think should be on the list, share them in the comments below. Nov 19, 2018 fantasy is such an established genre, and one of the most popular on goodreads, so older books have a distinct advantage over newer books. Tales from the flat earth, arguably tanith lees most popular series, is based loosely.
Now were back to add a huge number of audiobooks to extend that list, but this time were were focusing on the best fantasy audiobooks and theres plenty to choose from just in the last few years. Tolkien, was an english writer, poet, philologist, and university professor who is best known as the author of the classic highfantasy works the hobbit, the lord of the rings, and the silmarillion a song of ice and fire, harry potter, the inheritance cycle, the wheel of time, and. The best fantasy novels of all time penguin random house. So, here is my list of the most popular book series you should read. It has been a favorite mythical legend included in books and movies, both in the past as well as now at present. The best fantasy novels ever written prowritingaid. The top ten greatest fantasy authors of all time j. From don quixote to american pastoral, take a look at the 100 greatest novels of all time the 100 greatest nonfiction books the 2015 version of the 100 best novels. Here are 21 of the most influential science fiction and fantasy books. This years most superb fantasy offerings ran the gamut from fantasy books for adults, like tolkiens the fall of gondolin, to fantasy books for teens, like naomi noviks spinning silver. Roleplay gaming and fantasy novels have gone handinhand for most of their existence, but its a.
In no particular order, here are the top 25 fantasy books of all time. Oct 12, 2003 from don quixote to american pastoral, take a look at the 100 greatest novels of all time the 100 greatest nonfiction books the 2015 version of the 100 best novels. In 2003 magician was voted the 89th most popular book of all time in the. No surprises here, given its initial and enduring popularity, its status as a fantasy classic. He uses the bow to be able to shoot enemies from a distance, the most common bow in the series is the heros bow. In narnia, some animals can talk, mythical beasts abound, and magic is common. From the golden compass to city of bones, heres times take on the 10 most magical books to read if you love harry potter. Amazons most sold charts rank books according to the number of copies sold and preordered through, amazon books stores, and books read through digital subscription programs once a customer has read a certain percentage roughly the length of a free reading sample. Tolkiens the hobbit introduces the reading world to the unforgettable hobbit bilbo baggins, gandalf the wizard, and smaug the dragon. Jun 15, 2016 the lord of the rings trilogy counted on the wikipedia list as one book rather than a series as it was written by tolkien as a single book comes out at the top of the bestselling single volumes list, with approximately 150 million books sold. Fantasy is such an established genre, and one of the most popular on goodreads, so older books have a distinct advantage over newer books. His knack for approaching the grittier, more downtoearth aspects of fantasy inspired the grimdark genre. This authors characters are some of the most positive, strong portrayals of women in modern fantasy. Rowling shelved 59080 times as fantasy avg rating 4.
The 10 best stephen king books your picks for the horror masters scariest, most suspenseful pageturners, from it to the dead zone. Tolkien, was an english writer, poet, philologist, and university professor who is best known as the author of the classic highfantasy works the hobbit, the lord of the rings, and the. True fantasy fans have known for decades that fantasy isnt just for kids, even though most of the world is just realizing thisbut true fantasy fans also know that some of the best fantasy. I only included one book per series usually the first book because i know my fantasy readers and i know how hard it is for us to read out of order, and i picked only. Best known as the author of four star wars novels, stover is also a favorite in diehard fantasy circles as the author of one of the most underrated series in the genre. Thats how it was compiled and how the order of books is determined and updated. If the dragon is the king of the fantastical creatures, the unicorn is not far behind. The best fantasy book series abebooks shop for books. Perdido street station, by china mieville anyone seeking an escape from the elvesandwizards of generic fantasy will find their way to mieville eventually. Magrathea from the hitchhikers guide to the galaxy, art by microbot 23 on deviant art. The four main books that make up the earthsea quartet follow the renowned wizard ged from his reckless youth childhood, when he was known as sparrowhawk.
This page provides lists of bestselling individual books and book series to date and in any language. Mar 08, 2017 fantasy books top 10 fantasy fiction universes from george rr martins vast, warlike realms to neil gaimans london below, these paracosms are bound only by their authors rules, not those. The world is so called after the country of narnia, in which much of the action of the chronicles takes place. Martins epic fantasy series takes place on the fictional continents of westeros and essos, and revolves around three central plotlines. Regardless, when we read fantasy, whether low or high fantasy, we expect to see fantastical creatures and races. Jean rhys is most famous for her stunning wide sargasso sea, a blistering retelling of jane eyre from the perspective of the creole madwoman in the attic, but her penultimate novel, good. One of the best known and best loved fantasy books, j.
We all need a little love in our lives, and one way to get it is in the pages of swoonworthy novels. Probably the most famous of the stories set in this world is the lion, the witch and the wardrobe which was the first in the series and helped to establish that narnia is a world of magic, talking animals, and evil witches. Blogspot 279 for any writer or reader, books are everything. What are the bestselling fantasy books and series of all. If there are any fantasy books you think should be on the list, share them in the comments below. Lessa, who most think of as an inconsequential kitchen girl, determines. The world of baslag and its citystate new crobuzon rely on almost zero standard fantasy tropes, instead inventing all new substitutes, most of which have very little relation to the traditions of tolkien, or even george r. There are many more terrific fantasy books out there for you to read, but. If you love the tv series, then youll love the novels more.
When adding books, please only list fantasy books that are suitable for children under the age of ten. With over 80 million copies sold so far, the wheel of time is one of the most popular collections of fantasy novels of all time. Ive read them a few times, and every new readthrough reveals more detailsmany of them humorousthat i had not teased from the text earlier. Just click on the book and look for the link in parenthesis to the right of the title. Jordan created an enormous and beautiful world with this series, and it should go down as one of the classics. Before the awardwinning hbo series game of thrones, there was a song of ice and fire. A song of fire and ice series or some people call it game of thrones series. Lewis as the primary location for his series of seven fantasy novels for children, the chronicles of narnia. Here are a few of the most frequently reread books in the literary canon, according to the popular to reread books shelf on goodreads. Barrie peter pan, or the boy who wouldnt grow up and peter and wendy are the stage play and novel respectively which tell the story of peter pan, a mischievous little boy who can fly, and his adventures on the island. The 10 best completed sf and fantasy series according to. The best fantasy books were recommended by readers from reddit, goodreads and amazon as the best fantasy books ever written. Glen cook is a lesser known name, but his mark on fantasy is everywhere. Most fantasy books ask for a serious commitment but good omens is a.
Game of thrones quickly became one of the most popular tv shows. Gaimans most famous and influential novel, american gods, combines elements of an original cultural analysis of americas identity and an urban fantasy. She is not worlds only lake monster, she is also the most famous creature that inhibit in the loch ness, a lake in scottish. Amazons most read charts rank titles by the average.
Jun 30, 2018 in 2016, we brought you a list of ten great science fiction and fantasy audiobooks. Luckily, there are tons more books coming out all the time. This is a list of fantasy authors, authors known for writing works of fantasy, fantasy literature, or related genres of magic realism, horror fiction, science fantasy. Over 300,000 authors trust the professionals on reedsy, come meet them. Tolkien is likely the most well known fantasy author having almost singlehandedly launched the genre in novel format.
The 50 best fantasy books of the 21st century so far paste. Greatest fantasy authors of all time top ten list thetoptens. I think the only reason its not higher is because the publics attention spans have dissolved. The best fantasy books were recommended by readers from reddit, goodreads and amazon as the. It gives readers a deep insight into how the beliefs of the americans have changed, both because of the immigration process. When writing a genre such as fantasy with such well known. Genres have tropes attained through years in the case of fantasy, centuries. A book that can be enjoyed by children and adults alike it is a tale full of adventure, heroism, song and laughter. The other day i came across this wikipedia article listing bestselling books, and as i scrolled through the list which is based on estimated number of copies sold, it struck me that many of the titles listed including the top 4 are fantasy novels. At number one in our list of popular mythical creatures is the loch ness monster.
Aug 03, 2018 here are a few of the most frequently reread books in the literary canon, according to the popular to reread books shelf on goodreads. Link is the main character from the well known legend of zelda series of games and even though he is often pictured with a sword, the bow does make an appearance in most of the games. Comics and textbooks are not included in this list. Lewis chronicles of narnia are based in one of the most well known fantasy universes. But this wellkept secret is actually a wonderful series of. The 21 best science fiction and fantasy book series ever. Sep 03, 2018 find the perfect editor for your book. Many of the authors are known for work outside the fantasy genres. The 15 most popular reread books, according to goodreads. Based on historical events, the poppy war, brilliantly written, shows you how this war orphan aced the keju, a test that finds the most talented youth, entered the most elite military school, and discovered her unknown power. From a fairly standard horror premise a house is revealed to be slightly larger on the inside than is strictly possible danielewski spins out a dizzying tale involving multiple unreliable narrators, typographic mysteries, and looping footnotes that manage to drag the reader. Gandalf the grey, as he is known through most of the hobbit and the lord of the rings trilogy, is the epitome of a wizened old wizard possibly owing to merlins influence and possibly influencing elminsters.
Best selling refers to the estimated number of copies sold of each book, rather than the number of books printed or currently owned. And im not just talking about harry potter or lord of the ringsthese two series undoubtedly dominate the top of the lists, but there. Most of the other stuff on this list is not even proper fantasy. The 25 best romance authors and their most swoonworthy reads romance is one of the most popular genres in literature today, both for readers and writers of romance novels. Kuang, you will find a military fantasy with an orphan girl at the center of it all. Most popular fantasy creatures and races speculative tertulia. Tolkien john ronald reuel tolkien 3 january 1892 2 september 1973, known by his pen name j. Anne mccaffreys dragonflight is a wonderful, wonderful read, and is a scifi book disguised as a fantasy, not a fantasy book, harry potter and the sorcerers stone is placed too low on this list, the fellowship of the ring is placed too high, eragon and the golden compass deserve no mention on any list that calls itself best fantasy novels of. The 14 most popular fantasy book series a list of the most popular fantasy books, with something for most age groups.
The books are listed according to the highest sales estimate as reported in reliable, independent sources. Danielewski put simply, house of leaves is one of the most frightening books ever written. Some of these books are childhood favorites that get read. Some fantasy creatures are so popular, they are featured in other media, like video games, cartoons, anime and manga, comic books and tv shows today i want to look at those who are still relevant.