Like most authors, my love for writing grew from a love for reading. In particular, I’ve always loved stories with captivating storyteller voices. There’s a huge variety of subgenres in fantasy—with endless combinations of imaginative worlds, magic, heroes, monsters, and villains—but at the end of the day, what draws me in are fantasy novels with bold voices that are clearly in control of the story and immediately take you to another place. Those are the types of novels I like to read, and always aim to write.
This fantasy adventure is a classic for good reason. From page one, Le Guin whisks you away to a faraway island in a storm-racked northern sea where we meet Ged, a soon-to-be wizard bound for greatness. Le Guin’s storyteller voice makes you feel like a kid again, hearing the first fairy tale that truly captured your imagination. Add to that the non-stop adventure and subtle philosophical undertones that set this novel apart from male-written fantasy classics, and A Wizard of Earthsea is a timeless story.
The first book of Earthsea in a beautiful hardback edition. Complete the collection with The Tombs of Atuan, The Furthest Shore and Tehanu
With illustrations from Charles Vess
'[This] trilogy made me look at the world in a new way, imbued everything with a magic that was so much deeper than the magic I'd encountered before then. This was a magic of words, a magic of true speaking' Neil Gaiman
'Drink this magic up. Drown in it. Dream it' David Mitchell
Ged, the greatest sorcerer in all Earthsea, was called Sparrowhawk in his reckless youth.
Maybe it’s because I’ve experienced Neil Gaiman read in person, but every time I read the opening pages of Stardust, I hear it in Gaiman’s rich voice. You don’t even have to wait for the first line. That quintessential British storyteller voice comes out in the title of the first chapter itself: “In Which We Learn of the Village Wall, and of the Curious Thing That Occurs There Every Nine Years.” While the other fantasy novels in this list all take place in secondary fantasy worlds, Stardust is set on Earth and has all the charm and wonder that perennially draws readers to fantasy lore set in the British Isles.
Now a major motion picture—this charming fairy tale by the #1 New York Times bestselling author, weaves a magical story set long ago in the tiny English village of Wall, a place where things are not quite what they seem.
Go and catch a falling star . . .
Tristran Thorn promises to bring back a fallen star for his beloved, the hauntingly beautiful Victoria Forester—and crosses the wall that divides his English country town from another, more dangerous world of lords and witches, all of them in search of the star. Rich with adventure and magic, Stardust is one…
I have to be honest, I was a little off-put when I first read the opening lines ofThe Fifth Season, which are written in second-person: “You are she. She is you. You are Essun.” One of the first things I learned in Creative Writing 101 was to avoid writing in second person, and I had to push past that bias. I’m so glad I did. Jemisin is a masterful storyteller, and the way she intertwines the primary storyline with the backstory by alternating between a present-tense second-person viewpoint and a more traditional past-tense third-person viewpoint is remarkable—giving life to a breathtaking adventure set in a wholly unique fantasy world.
At the end of the world, a woman must hide her secret power and find her kidnapped daughter in this "intricate and extraordinary" Hugo Award winning novel of power, oppression, and revolution. (The New York Times)
This is the way the world ends. . .for the last time.
It starts with the great red rift across the heart of the world's sole continent, spewing ash that blots out the sun. It starts with death, with a murdered son and a missing daughter. It starts with betrayal, and long dormant wounds rising up to fester.
Don’t get me wrong, I adore Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings trilogy, but where the writing in those latter books is often dense and slow, the voice in The Hobbit is light and bristling with energy. Tolkien brings the full power of an omniscient narrative to play here, unflinchingly jumping from one character’s inner thoughts to another’s, from one far-off place to another, often within the same chapter, giving The Hobbit an epic scope that’s truly remarkable seeing as how it’s only a couple hundred pages long.
Special collector's film tie-in hardback of the best-selling classic, featuring the complete story with a sumptuous cover design inspired by THE HOBBIT: AN UNEXPECTED JOURNEY and brand new reproductions of all the drawings and maps by J.R.R. Tolkien.
Bilbo Baggins is a hobbit who enjoys a comfortable, unambitious life, rarely travelling further than the pantry of his hobbit-hole in Bag End.
But his contentment is disturbed when the wizard, Gandalf, and a company of thirteen dwarves arrive on his doorstep one day to whisk him away on an unexpected journey 'there and back again'. They have a plot to raid…
Blaylock may be an unknown name to many traditional fantasy readers, and if that’s the case for you, considerThe Elfin Ship as your gateway drug to his work. This fantasy novel is very much in the vein of The Hobbit in that it has dwarves, elves, and a good bit of pipe smoking, but it does so with Blaylock’s one-of-a-kind voice that shines with understated American wit and humor. It also has airships! (Which crossover into Blaylock’s more well-known steampunk works.) The adventure is both action-filled and hilarious, never taking itself too seriously but at the same time embracing the traditional tropes that make fantasy so fun to read.
A trilogy sets sail with a novel that’s “charming, light-hearted and funny . . . Feels a little like The Hobbit or The Wind in the Willows” (Fantasy Literature).
James P. Blaylock’s debut novel The Elfin Ship has become a classic of whimsical fantasy. With echoes of Kenneth Graham and Mark Twain, it’s a gentle, eccentric, and hilarious novel that will delight readers of all ages.
Trading with the elves used to be so simple. Every year Master Cheeser Jonathan Bing would send his very best cheeses downriver to traders who would eventually return with Elfin wonders for the people…
In a world shrouded by soot and smoke, young Makarria has literally been forbidden to dream…
Legend has foretold that a young sorcerer will bring about Emperor Guderian’s demise. When Guderian’s minions discover the presence of a dreamwielder—Makarria—on a seaside farmstead, Makarria is forced to flee and embark on an epic journey. Dogging her every step is the part-wolf, part-raven sorcerer, Wulfram, but Makarria soon discovers she is not alone. With the help of her new friends—a dishonored prince, an underground sorcerer, and a nightflying airship captain—Makarria discovers the power growing within her and their only hope to defeat Guderian.
This book (and its sequels) are about overcoming the odds; about learning to improve the skills and abilities you have, rather than dwelling on what you can't do. Conflict, plague, and scheming politicians are all featured along the way–but none of the characters are human!
When a plague kills half the Drax population, and leaves the hatchlings of the survivors with a terrible deformity – no wings – suspicion and prejudice follow. Continuously harassed by raids from their traditional enemies, the Koth, the Drax are looking for someone, or something, to blame.
Zarda, an apprentice Fate-seer, is new to her role and unsure of her own abilities; but the death of her teacher sees her summoned by the Drax Prime, Kalis, when his heir, Dru, emerges from his shell without wings.
A vision that Dru will one day defeat the Koth is enough to keep…
