71 books like The Elements of the Crown

I’ve been hooked on fantasy since my early teens. I’ve devoured all the classics, from Tolkien to classical classics (think ancient Grecian myths). Elemental magic might not be new, but it has ancient roots and multiple ways of imagining the powers that I love. As for adventure…I’m a sucker for travel, especially in a whole new land. Combine elemental magic with adventure across a new world, and I’ll happily tag along! If the group includes some awesome new and snarky friends, well, you probably won’t be able to get me out of the book. 

I’ve been hooked on fantasy since my early teens. I’ve devoured all the classics, from Tolkien to classical classics (think ancient Grecian myths). Elemental magic might not be new, but it has ancient roots and multiple ways of imagining the powers that I love. As for adventure…I’m a sucker for travel, especially in a whole new land. Combine elemental magic with adventure across a new world, and I’ll happily tag along! If the group includes some awesome new and snarky friends, well, you probably won’t be able to get me out of the book. 

I’ve been hooked on fantasy since my early teens. I’ve devoured all the classics, from Tolkien to classical classics (think ancient Grecian myths). Elemental magic might not be new, but it has ancient roots and multiple ways of imagining the powers that I love. As for adventure…I’m a sucker for travel, especially in a whole new land. Combine elemental magic with adventure across a new world, and I’ll happily tag along! If the group includes some awesome new and snarky friends, well, you probably won’t be able to get me out of the book. 

I’ve been hooked on fantasy since my early teens. I’ve devoured all the classics, from Tolkien to classical classics (think ancient Grecian myths). Elemental magic might not be new, but it has ancient roots and multiple ways of imagining the powers that I love. As for adventure…I’m a sucker for travel, especially in a whole new land. Combine elemental magic with adventure across a new world, and I’ll happily tag along! If the group includes some awesome new and snarky friends, well, you probably won’t be able to get me out of the book. 

I’m a writer by day and martial arts instructor by night, so when not spending time with my wife and kids, I love nothing more than to read, write, and fight. My favourite books are the ones filled with irreverent characters, who can smirk and joke at any grim situation, laughing the light of entertainment through the darkest of ordeals. These are the type of books I’m always drawn to, both in writing and in reading, where I can imagine taking any standout character and dropping them into a completely different book, then sitting back to watch the chaos they could make.

One might read for many reasons, but one of the main reasons for me is to connect and relate to the character. Female voices are very underheard, and I feel incredibly passionate about changing that and creating and reading stories where the female protagonists have strong voices and are not afraid to be heard. I think it’s important that we continue to create female characters that are raw and real and that portray subjects and feelings that need to be heard more.

My fascination with dragons began at a young age and has intensified over the years. I think I’ve watched every movie with a dragon in it and read many of the books. I've tried to incorporate as much as I can, plus my own little twists, into each species of dragon in my world. The most excited I've been about dragons was while watching a special documentary on Discovery Channel. They explained how dragons could fly, the mechanics behind them breathing fire, and what their diet consisted of. It was a great speculative show but had enough science to make you wonder! I hope you enjoy the books on my list!

I write YA fantasy novels with my sister, Liz. A Throne of Swans (our fourth book) is the first in a duology which features two fierce, shape-shifting queens. Since we both studied history at university, we’re particularly drawn to fantasy settings with a historical element, whether that’s a royal court or tall ships from the age of sail. In real history, queens wielding power tend to be rare or at least overlooked; Catherine of Aragon’s divorce is common knowledge, her wartime regency of England less so. Writing about and reading about powerful queens in fantasy novels is, I think, one small way of redressing the balance.  

Books have been with me all my life as my father was a librarian and fed me books from an early age; I cannot remember being taught to read, I just could. Adventure and detective were my favourites. Then I found my local library and the horizons expanded; when I worked in a library there was the joy of being able to ‘stop’ a book I wanted to read but couldn't find. I graduated as a Biochemist and then got into computer programming. I completed my first novel in 1980 but put it away for thirty years before rewriting and publishing it. I got the writing bug and four more books followed as a series.

A big motivation for writing Cursed was what I saw as a dearth of authentic disability and chronic illness rep in books for kids. Where were the characters who were angry, messy, scared? Where were the kids in real pain—physically, emotionally, socially—who maybe weren’t surrounded by supportive friends and family and maybe didn’t handle their diagnoses with grace? When I was first diagnosed with juvenile arthritis at thirteen, I was all of the above—and then some. I’ve identified as disabled for 30+ years and am active in various disability groups and spaces. It’s my pleasure to champion kids’ books with authentic disability and chronic illness representation.