I love reading and I love books that evoke a response whether it’s an ooey gooey feeling from a soppy love story, too scared to turn the bedtime light out because of the terrifying horror book or sniggering quietly at witty, humorous, and amusing storytelling. I never intended to write humorous books myself, my characters took me there with their individual idiosyncrasies and peculiar habits. I adore writing my Roshaven novels, it’s like sitting down with friends for coffee, cake, and a catch-up. I hope you enjoy my list, get in touch with the ones you’ve read and any others you think I’d like.
Thursday Next is the main character of this fantastically funny series from Jasper Fford. She is a literary detective, charged with keeping fictional characters inside their books. You can imagine the mayhem, the wit, and the puns! If you love literature, then you will thoroughly enjoy this jaunt through Fford’s inspired imagination.
Meet Thursday Next, literary detective without equal, fear or boyfriend
Jasper Fforde's beloved New York Times bestselling novel introduces literary detective Thursday Next and her alternate reality of literature-obsessed England-from the author of The Constant Rabbit
Fans of Douglas Adams and P. G. Wodehouse will love visiting Jasper Fforde's Great Britain, circa 1985, when time travel is routine, cloning is a reality (dodos are the resurrected pet of choice), and literature is taken very, very seriously: it's a bibliophile's dream. England is a virtual police state where an aunt can get lost (literally) in a Wordsworth poem and forging Byronic…
Set in London this humorous series of books follows the magical adventures of PC Peter Grant as he discovers magic is real. And he can do it. This isn’t necessarily laugh-out-loud humour but it’s the type of cleverness that will have you smirking and appreciating the twist on the norm to create the fantastical. If you know London at all, you will find yourself nodding along as you recall the places Grant takes you and it will definitely have you thinking differently about rivers.
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…
This is the first book in the Xanth magical series which began in the 70s so it has some legs for sure. Is it necessarily politically correct? Probably not but this was my first introduction to humorous fantasy, before dabbling in Discworld, and it has a fond place in my heart. It’s mischievous and zany and utterly mental in places. Everything you want in a humorous fantasy tale.
BEST NOVEL OF THE YEAR, BRITISH FANTASY SOCIETY • Discover the magical beginning of Piers Anthony’s enthralling Xanth series
Xanth was the enchanted land where magic ruled—where every citizen had a special spell only he could cast. It was a land of centaurs and dragons and basilisks.
For Bink of North Village, however, Xanth was no fairy tale. He alone had no magic. And unless he got some—and got some fast!—he would be exiled. Forever. But the Good Magician Humfrey was convinced that Bink did indeed have magic. In fact, both Beauregard the genie and the magic wall chart insisted…
I read Shannara by Brooks first then picked this up and it’s completely different and yet still filled with the same literary magic that makes you want to read it from cover to cover immediately. It’s funny and frustrating and sad and also the first in a series so you can read assured there’s more to follow.
Here in his first non-Shannara novel, Terry Brooks has written a gripping story of mystery, magic, and adventure—sure to delight fantasy readers everywhere.
Landover was a genuine magic kingdom, with fairy folk and wizardry, just as the advertisement has promised. But after he purchased it, Ben Holiday learned that there were a few details the ad had failed to mention.
The kingdom was in ruin. The Barons refused to recognize a king, and the peasants were without hope. A dragon was laying waste the countryside, while an evil witch plotted to destroy everything.
I stumbled on this series by accident and rapidly devoured the lot. Alexa Tarrabotti has no soul and can remove the effects of the supernatural with her touch. Imagine the possibilities in an 18th-century London filled with vampires, werewolves, and ghosts. Amusing through social observation and full of wit, definitely recommended.
Alexia Tarabotti is labouring under a great many social tribulations. First, she has no soul. Second, she's a spinster whose father is both Italian and dead. Third, she was rudely attacked by a vampire, breaking all standards of social etiquette.
Where to go from there? From bad to worse apparently, for Alexia accidentally kills the vampire - and then the appalling Lord Maccon (loud, messy, gorgeous, and werewolf) is sent by Queen Victoria to investigate.
With unexpected vampires appearing and expected vampires disappearing, everyone seems to believe Alexia responsible. Can she figure out what is actually happening to London's high…
Someone is stealing the Emperor's magical roses and all of love will be lost if Ned Spinks, Chief Thief-Catcher, can't catch them. He must go on a quest to defeat vampire mermaids, illusionists, estranged family members, and an evil sorcerer – what could possibly go wrong?
Kelly Simmons has been published in 12 countries by Simon & Schuster and Sourcebooks, and her widely praised novels are frequently compared to Big Little Lies.
Her new book, The Off Season, is set on the tranquil shores of the Chesapeake Bay, where headstrong thirteen-year-old Savannah bursts into the local police department, insisting her mother’s drowning was anything but an accident. She’s forced to tangle with the languid Bay police department as well as the year-rounder adults and teens who might be complicit not just in her mother’s death but a decades-old cold case.
For fans of Lisa Jewell and Liane Moriarty. Published in 12 countries by Simon & Schuster and Sourcebooks, Kelly's widely praised novels are frequently compared to BIG LITTLE LIES.
THE OFF SEASON explodes on the tranquil shores of the Chesapeake Bay. A headstrong thirteen-year-old girl insists her mother’s drowning was anything but an accident. She’s forced to tangle with the languid bay police department as well as the year-rounder adults and teens who might be complicit not just in her mother’s death, but a decades-old cold case. With echoes of GONE GIRL and STAND BY ME, it’s part crime, part…
