The best fantasy books to defy the genre

Why am I passionate about this?

Since before I could write my name, I’ve felt the need to put pen to paper. As a child, I needed a cassette tape recorder to get my fiction out there. I am pretty sure I have a small universe swelling like a tumor in my brain, and if I don’t disseminate the words that make up that world, it’ll grow and grow until it kills me. But I most want to move people with words; that’s where the magic of storytelling lies. I want my readers to come away from the page feeling like they’ve had a genuine experience the way only a great story can offer. 


I wrote...

The Princess of Aenya

By Nick Alimonos,

Book cover of The Princess of Aenya

What is my book about?

Radia was born with a power she does not understand, an empathic connection to Nature that may lead to the destruction of all she holds dear, her life and her people.

Tyrnael once served as the capital of Aenya, but the kingdom declines over the ages and its advanced technology is lost to the pages of myth. Centuries pass when Radia's father dies and she inherits the throne of the once-fabled city. Innocent to the cruelties of the world beyond her ivory tower, she is helpless when her adopted brother, Zaibos, seizes control in a violent coup. While the suffering of her people ravages her soul, her lone protector, Demacharon, forces her to flee, knowing the new king will destroy her if she remains. 

Shepherd is reader supported. When you buy books, we may earn an affiliate commission.

The books I picked & why

Book cover of Watership Down

Nick Alimonos Why did I love this book?

I had a pet rabbit that died when I was a kid. Ever since then, I’ve had an affinity for small hopping mammals. So, when an animated film about rabbits popped on my TV screen, I was hooked. But the book the movie is based on, Watership Down, is so much deeper than your average children’s yarn. It’s one of those books that forces you to ask, “how did something like this get published?” While seemingly meant for children, Richard Adams tackles heavy-handed material like war, death, and love—and he does it all through the eyes of rabbits. I have to admit that the end of the book—this unassuming book about animals and their struggles—had me tearing up, and that’s a rare thing for me.

By Richard Adams,

Why should I read it?

12 authors picked Watership Down as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 8, 9, 10, and 11.

What is this book about?

One of the best-loved children's classics of all time, this is the complete, original story of Watership Down.

Something terrible is about to happen to the warren - Fiver feels sure of it. And Fiver's sixth sense is never wrong, according to his brother Hazel. They had to leave immediately, and they had to persuade the other rabbits to join them.

And so begins a long and perilous journey of a small band of rabbits in search of a safe home. Fiver's vision finally leads them to Watership Down, but here they face their most difficult challenge of all .…


Book cover of The Neverending Story

Nick Alimonos Why did I love this book?

On the surface, The Neverending Story is a fun adventure with a wonderfully unique and imaginative setting. But what truly makes this book stand apart is the depth of meaning buried in its prose. Michael Ende’s masterpiece is so much more than it first appears, offering the reader a lot more to think about and many more feels than the simplified movie adaptation. The Neverending Story is, in essence, a story about storytelling, demonstrating how and why it changes us and the world we live in.

By Michael Ende, Ralph Manheim (translator),

Why should I read it?

7 authors picked The Neverending Story as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 10, 11, 12, and 13.

What is this book about?

Read the book that inspired the classic coming-of-age film! From award-winning German author Michael Ende, The Neverending Story is a classic tale of one boy and the book that magically comes to life.

When Bastian happens upon an old book called The Neverending Story, he's swept into the magical world of Fantastica--so much that he finds he has actually become a character in the story! And when he realizes that this mysteriously enchanted world is in great danger, he also discovers that he is the one chosen to save it. Can Bastian overcome the barrier between reality and his imagination…


Book cover of Cloud Atlas

Nick Alimonos Why did I love this book?

Admittedly, Cloud Atlas isn’t for everyone. But for readers who appreciate the beauty of language, Mitchell’s epic is a literary marvel. Part historical fiction, part Sci-Fi, Cloud Atlas weaves a parable spanning generations of human history. Through the eyes of his varied protagonists, who may or may not be the same reincarnated soul, Mitchell demonstrates the failings and triumphs of humanity. It’s a book that’ll make you question everything you think you know, and it might just make you a better person. 

By David Mitchell,

Why should I read it?

11 authors picked Cloud Atlas as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Six lives. One amazing adventure. The audio publication of one of the most highly acclaimed novels of 2004. 'Souls cross ages like clouds cross skies...' A reluctant voyager crossing the Pacific in 1850; a disinherited composer blagging a precarious livelihood in between-the-wars Belgium; a high-minded journalist in Governor Reagan's California; a vanity publisher fleeing his gangland creditors; a genetically modified 'dinery server' on death-row; and Zachry, a young Pacific Islander witnessing the nightfall of science and civilisation - the narrators of CLOUD ATLAS hear each other's echoes down the corridor of history, and their destinies are changed in ways great…


Book cover of The Last Unicorn

Nick Alimonos Why did I love this book?

I loved this book so much, I pay homage to it in my own book, adopting the unicorn character, Amalthea, that Radia rides in the story.

Like Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings, Peter S. Beagle conjures a myth that seems to have originated from deep within our subconscious memories. But this is no plodding pseudo-history, no world-building treatise like so many fantasy writers strive to write these days. Thankfully, Beagle delivers fairy-tale storytelling in its purest form. The Last Unicorn brims with magic and adventure and heroics, but it’s also a kind of meta-fiction. Like The Princess Bride and The Neverending Story, the characters are aware of their fictional roles. Yet, The Last Unicorn is much more subtle in breaking the fourth wall. Powerfully moving and bitter-sweet, Beagle’s fable shows us why unicorns, and other mythic icons, resonate with us so profoundly.

By Peter S. Beagle,

Why should I read it?

6 authors picked The Last Unicorn as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

INCLUDES A NEW INTRODUCTION BY PATRICK ROTHFUSS

Experience one of the most enduring classics of the twentieth century and the book that The Atlantic has called “one of the best fantasy novels ever.”

The unicorn lived in a lilac wood, and she lived all alone...

...so she ventured out from the safety of the enchanted forest on a quest for others of her kind. Joined along the way by the bumbling magician Schmendrick and the indomitable Molly Grue, the unicorn learns all about the joys and sorrows of life and love before meeting her destiny in the castle of a…


Book cover of Mythago Wood

Nick Alimonos Why did I love this book?

Like other books on my list, Robert Holdstock’s Mythago Wood suggests there’s a hidden reality to our dreams, that folk and fairy tales hold meaning for us because they call to mind a shared storytelling history. Goblins and ghosts and dragons reflect our fears. Heroes mirror our greater aspirations. Writing has always meant more to me than entertainment; a great story, told well, gives our lives a sense of place and purpose, and Mythago Wood taps into that mythmaking power in a beautiful way.    

By Robert Holdstock,

Why should I read it?

3 authors picked Mythago Wood as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Deep within the wildwood lies a place of myth and mystery, from which few return, and of those few, none remain unchanged.

Ryhope Wood may look like a three-mile-square fenced-in wood in rural Herefordshire on the outside, but inside, it is a primeval, intricate labyrinth of trees, impossibly huge, unforgettable ... and stronger than time itself.

Stephen Huxley has already lost his father to the mysteries of Ryhope Wood. On his return from the Second World War, he finds his brother, Christopher, is also in thrall to the mysterious wood, wherein lies a realm where mythic archetypes grow flesh and…


You might also like...

The Good Woman's Guide to Making Better Choices

By Liz Foster,

Book cover of The Good Woman's Guide to Making Better Choices

Liz Foster Author Of The Good Woman's Guide to Making Better Choices

New book alert!

Why am I passionate about this?

I have always loved reading and its ability to take you far away to a distant time and place and lift you up. As a kid, I never left the house without a book, and the ones that made me laugh were my go-to's. I believe the ability to make people laugh is a truly special talent, especially while making the text relatable, so the reader’s always asking, wow, what would I do in that situation? My readers often tell me that my writing sounds just like me, which is wonderful because there’s no need to pretend. You will always know what you’ll get with me!

Liz's book list on make you laugh and leave you smiling

What is my book about?

A heart-warming and hilarious novel about the highs and lows of marriage, fraud, and goat’s cheese.

Libby Popovic is a country girl who’s now living a golden life in Bondi with her confident financier husband Ludo, and their two children. When Ludo is jailed for financial fraud, and Libby’s friends and family lose tens of thousands of dollars as a result, she feels agonisingly complicit.

Matters go from atrocious to worse when her possessions and home are repossessed, Libby is sacked, and a priceless family heirloom is wrecked. While camping out at the family goat farm, Libby must re-evaluate her life choices. How will she crawl out of financial ruin? Can she make amends? And can she save her family from falling apart?

The Good Woman's Guide to Making Better Choices

By Liz Foster,


5 book lists we think you will like!

Interested in reincarnation, Carl Jung, and unicorns?

10,000+ authors have recommended their favorite books and what they love about them. Browse their picks for the best books about reincarnation, Carl Jung, and unicorns.

Reincarnation Explore 63 books about reincarnation
Carl Jung Explore 24 books about Carl Jung
Unicorns Explore 42 books about unicorns