When you grow up believing in magic, you inevitably face a moment when the world invites you to stop. Books are the reason to keep believing. Fantasy novels specifically give their readers magic to dive into and savor. What makes these fantasy novels so important to me is that they don’t just tell stories about magic, they tell their stories with such verve, such daring, such commitment to achieving the impossible, that they make magic. Reading these books, you will hold your breath, unable to believe that what feels like it’s about to happen could possibly happen when you turn the page... but don’t worry. It will.
Guy Gavriel Kay is widely known and admired for his sweeping, epic fantasy novels, all set in fantastical version of real historical countries—but before he turned to that genre, he wrote the Fionavar Trilogy.
Think Lord of the Rings with critical differences: the characters all have a wry sense of humor and an appreciation of irony and many of those characters are women, strong, intelligent, fierce, complex women. Kay also goes for broke as a storyteller here; you can almost hear him wondering, “Can I pull this off?” And he does it every single time.
The first volume in Guy Gavriel Kay's stunning fantasy masterwork, now reissued with the beautiful original cover art by Martin Springett.
Five men and women find themselves flung into the magical land of Fionavar, First of all Worlds. They have been called there by the mage Loren Silvercloak, and quickly find themselves drawn into the complex tapestry of events. For Kim, Paul, Kevin, Jennifer and Dave all have their own part to play in the coming battle against the forces of evil led by the fallen god Rakoth Maugrim and his dark hordes.
Is this a nine-book series? Well, yes. Sort of. It’s also a four-book series, then a duology, then a trilogy. And the first four are set in the Pleistocene. Stay with me.
May commits to world-building that encompasses ESP—but taken to 11; time-travel; international, intergenerational, and intergalactic political intrigue; powerful familial and romantic relationships; gut-wrenching tragedy, and the transcendence that compassion can make possible.
To say there is a large cast of characters doesn’t begin to convey how many richly imagined, memorable creatures (not all human) populate these books; the main characters, in particular, are absolutely indelible, by turns terrifying, seductive, tortured, and quietly extraordinary.
Earth stands on the brink of acceptance into the Galactic Milieu, a benevolent political and telepathic alliance of alien races. But some are wary, as their new supervisors have introduced stringent new laws. Leading humanity is the powerful Remillard family, but a ruthless entity known only as the Fury has its own agenda for the Galactic Milieu. It starts to murder those with metapsychic talents, triggering a chaos that could delay Earth's inclusion.
At this delicate juncture, Teresa, wife of clan leader Paul Remillard, conceives a child who could represent humanity's future. But Jack's birth is illegal under Milieu law…
Bujold is rightly known as a master of Sci-fi thanks to her Vorkosigan saga, but this novel, the second in her World of the Five Gods series, won both the Hugo and Nebula Awards, and rightly so.
It tells the story of Ista, a middle-aged (yes, you read that right) woman recovering from unimaginable tragedy, betrayal, and what felt like madness (all explored in the previous book, The Curse of Chalion). Ista is certain that she’s been released from her past too late for her life to have meaning or joy, but a certain trickster god and two gallant, handsome brothers will prove her spectacularly wrong. Turning every page is a joy.
Lois McMaster Bujold has won the Hugo award four times, and the Nebula award twice. This is her second epic fantasy and the sequel to Curse of Chalion.
The Golden General's curse has been lifted from the royal family and Cazaril can now rest easy and enjoy his new life with his bride Betriz.
However, life for Ista, the Dowager Royina has not improved. With the death of her mother, the Provincara, and with her surviving child Iselle now ruling Chalion from the Capital Cardegross, she is left without purpose. Her brother's family still think she's mad and aim to…
Imagine Gaiman’s pitch for American Gods: I’m going to write a book about what happened to the gods that immigrants to this country brought with them then abandoned, the gods we’ve since created and begun to worship, and the gods who have been here all along.
There are 100—1000—ways that this unbelievably ambitious, complex, layered, and resonant story could have gone wrong, and it would be enough that it doesn’t. But Gaiman isn’t content just to successfully tell a huge story. He also nestles an intimate, deeply personal story of one man’s self-discovery at the heart of American Gods, and never lets his hero—Shadow—get lost in the cavernous spaces of history, belief, and power that he traverses.
Now a STARZ® Original Series – Season 3 premiere in January 2021
“Pointed, occasionally comic, often scary, consistently moving and provocative….American Gods is strewn with secrets and magical visions.”—USA Today
Newly updated and expanded with the author’s preferred text. A modern masterpiece from the multiple-award-winning master of innovative fiction, Neil Gaiman.
First published in 2001, American Gods became an instant classic, lauded for its brilliant synthesis of “mystery, satire, sex, horror, and poetic prose” (Washington Post) and as a modern phantasmagoria that “distills the essence of America” (Seattle Post-Intelligencer). It is the story of Shadow—released from prison just days after…
When I recommend this series (as I do regularly), I don’t go with the obvious description: “imagine Harry Potter meets Sherlock Holmes.”
I mean, sure, these books follow British police detective Peter Grant as he learns magic and pursues criminals both human and not. But they also throw our hero up against an insidious—and uniquely British—master villain and bring the landscape of London itself to life—literally.
And the real wonder is that Aaronovitch’s brilliant world-building would be nothing without the real magic that is Peter’s voice: smart, perceptive, observant, and often infused with wonder that he invites the reader to share.
Book 1 in the Rivers of London series, from Sunday Times Number One bestselling author Ben Aaronovitch.
My name is Peter Grant, and I used to be a probationary constable in that mighty army for justice known to all right-thinking people as the Metropolitan Police Service, and to everyone else as the Filth.
My story really begins when I tried to take a witness statement from a man who was already dead...
Probationary Constable Peter Grant dreams of being a detective in London's Metropolitan Police. After taking a statement from an eyewitness who happens to be a ghost, Peter comes…
Four women. Four enchantments. One man. But he is no handsome prince, and this is no sugar-sweet fairy tale. Jo, Abony, Ranjani, and Maia all have something in common: they have each been cursed by the CEO of their workplace after he assaulted them. He wants them silent and uses his sinister dark magic to keep them quiet. But Jo, Abony, Ranjani, and Maia are not fairy-tale princesses waiting to be rescued. They are fierce, angry women with a bond forged in pain, and they’re about to discover that they have power of their own. This is a #metoo fairy tale about seeking justice, not revenge, and a story that celebrates survivors’ strength.
As a child, I lived in a small valley sheltered from the night city lights. I could see the stars, and from that time, that is where my imagination dwelled. As a teenager, I read several of the books I have listed here, and from that point, I was inspired to read more and also to write myself. I sincerely believe that despite our current problems, humanity will outlive its troubled childhood and reach for the stars. We are destined for the stars, and only in the works of science fiction writers is that future explored. The books below helped me to become a successful author in my own right.
An alien starship appears in the Solar System! Humanity faces a glorious future, or total extinction, and only Joe Falcon can make the choice. Never would Joe have imagined it would fall to him to make the decision that would alter the destiny of two worlds, launching humanity towards a glorious future, or to extinction.
Falcon's Call is an action packed dive into the unknown, written in the style of the great, classic, science-fiction stories. If you like surprising plot twists, compelling characters and a hero who actually cares, you must read this new novel by Mike Waller.
Reader's Favorite Gold Medal winner 2019 B.R.A.G. Medallion Honoree 2019 Chill With A Book Premier Award 2019
In a heart-pounding battle for humanity's survival, one man holds the key to a glorious future or utter extinction.
In a race against time, Earth and Mars race to claim a derelict alien ship as it enters the Solar System, both aware that whichever planet succeeds might in so doing achieve technological advantage over the other. But who should they send? Joe Falcon, an unlikely candidate, never saw himself as the "right" person. Accompanied by a crew of misfits, each fleeing their own…
