20 High Fantasy Books That'll Be Your Next Obsession

Highly prolific, Brandon Sanderson has established himself as a major author in the high fantasy subgenre. The Stormlight Archive, projected to be ten books, is his magnus opus in this category. Epic in scope, this first installment introduces us to a world ravaged by massive storms that have shaped both its ecosystem and society. 

Eons ago, a war was waged against humanity’s enemies and won. Left behind were mystical weapons capable of transforming men into invulnerable warriors. Of course, this leads to petty—and not so petty—squabbles over said weapons. Like many high fantasy tales, the series boasts an enormous cast but the ones to keep an eye on are a talented soldier betrayed into slavery, a royal advisor plagued by visions of a catastrophic past, and a young woman determined to save her family from ruin. 

This massive doorstopper, and the (soon-to-be) four novels that follow, are sure to keep even the most voracious reader occupied for a while.

When it comes to creating richly-realized, immersive fantasy worlds, Garth Nix is in a tier all his own. The Way of Kings author Brandon Sanderson even dubbed Nix "one of the best worldbuilders in fantasy.” Nix is perhaps best known for his award-winning Old Kingdom Chronicles, a dark young adult fantasy set in an alternate historical England called Ancelstierre. And now, Nix lends his creative vision to an adult standalone fantasy, Angel Mage, which features a brand-new world of celestial beings and manipulated mortals. 

Over one century ago, Liliath—an angel magic practitioner—took shelter in Saint Marguerite’s sarcophagus to survive the Ash Blood plague and violent Fall of Ystara. Now reawakened after one hundred years, Liliath is hungry to be reunited with her long-lost lover, the archangel Palleniel. But the world has changed during her slumber, and Liliath finds angel magic is more taboo than ever. Moved by her own desires, she uses her powers to coerce four young humans—a healer, a treasure-seeker, a fortune-teller, and a scholar—into being pawns in her secret game.

If you’ve never read Patricia A. McKillip, you’re in for a treat. Not only is her prose a lyrical delight, her writing evokes a type of wonder you don’t see as much in modern fantasy, which currently puts more emphasis on realism. It’s an approach that suits the high fantasy subgenre. 

The Riddle-Master trilogy has many things in common with The Lord of the Kings—a reluctant hero, perilous magic, and a quest to save the world. Set in a world where wizards have vanished and knowledge survives hidden in riddles, Morgon is the prince of a small island populated by simple farmers. But after winning a riddle-game against a ghost, he gains a crown and the right to marry the princess of another kingdom. 

However, the journey to meet his future bride ends in disaster and sends Morgon on a crash course with destiny.

Often hailed as Australia's answer to The Lord of the Rings, The Bitterbynde Trilogy follows the epic adventures of Imrhien—a reviled and physically scarred mute—as she travels across a world full of dangerous creatures, formidable warriors, and even more formidable villains. Her story begins in The Ill-Made Mute: Confined to a tower and with no memory of her past (or even that she’s a woman), she longs to explore Erith, cure her facial deformities, and find her true purpose in life. Imrhien gets her first taste of freedom after boldly stealing onto a flying Windship, which leads her to encounters with evil wights, a magical healer, friendship, and even romance. Imrhien returns in The Lady of Sorrows and The Battle of Everynight—this time with different names, a scar-free face and a returning memory, an enigmatic lover, and a desire to unlock the only remaining gate into the faerie realm.

Set in a world populated by humans, dragons, and weredragons who shift between human and dragon form, Linden is the titular last dragonlord, called such because he’s the only weredragon to be born in over 600 years. He also has the dubious honor of being the only dragonlord without a soultwin—someone who has the other half of his soul. Dragonlords watch over human kingdoms, serving as impartial judges over conflicts. The latest one involves the suspicious death of a queen. Because her heir is still a child, a civil war brews between two rival nobles who want the regency for themselves. 

Enter the dragonlords. Unfortunately, this puts Linden in the crosshairs of a secret organization that believes dragonlords have no business overseeing human affairs. Dragons, rival factions, and conspiracies against the established order? Sounds like high fantasy!

When 15-year-old Eragon discovers what appears to be a shining blue stone, he is shocked to discover that it is really a dragon egg. His humble life as a farmer's adopted son is flipped upside down when the egg hatches and the dragon inside bonds with him, making him the first new Dragon Rider in many years.

This makes Eragon the target of the evil King Galbatorix, who wants to either recruit Eragon or kill him before he can become a threat. In his quest to find safety and, in time, challenge Galbatorix, Eragon explores the vast world of Alagaësia, learns to control his burgeoning powers, and becomes a hero.

Kvothe has many names—Kingkiller, the Bloodless, the Arcane—but right now, he’s keeping a low profile as an innkeeper. After saving the Chronicler, a traveling scribe besieged by creepy creatures, he's inspired to call upon his memories and tell his story over the course of three days. Just one-third of Kvothe’s tale—the timeframe of The Name of the Wind—is enough to fill a lifetime: The son of actor parents, he led a happy childhood full of performing and training under their friend, a magic-wielding scholar. Tragedy left Kvothe without his mother and father, forcing him to fend for himself in the dog-eat-dog world of the slums. But despite years of hardship, he eventually got the opportunity to study at the University, where his summoning of the wind—considered a demonic power—paved the way for the events he describes in the next two novels. 

A prequel to Miller’s Kingmaker, Kingbreaker duology, A Blight of Mages tells the tragic of story of two mages before they became legends. Essentially, it recounts the history that informs the present in a epic fantasy tale. Here, Barl is a young and talented mage who, unfortunately, is of low birth. This means she’s barred from attending a prestigious mage college. But Barl won’t take no for an answer and her attempts to gain admission result in her being unable to use magic without immense pain. 

Morgan, on the other hand, is a mage of noble birth. As a result, he’s able to enjoy every privilege and it’s in his best interest to uphold the status quo. Then, he meets Barl and falls in love at first sight. Magic brings them together and, alas, in the end, magic tears them apart as the darkness in Morgan drives him down a path of corruption and war. Now, Barl must do everything she can to stop her lover before it’s too late.

The Holy Church, monarchy, and feudal government of Katherine Kurtz’s Gwynedd may be modeled after historical Great Britain—but her universe has rules all its own. Normal humans and members of the magical Deryni race live side by side, though their strained relationship frequently incites major religious and political conflicts. One of the most famous Deryni is Camber MacRorie, whose bravery in the face of tyrannical rulers and Deryni-haters earns him as many admirers as it does foes. From usurping evil kings in Camber of Culdi to guarding the throne in Saint Camber and protecting Gwynedd itself in Camber of the Heretic, Kurtz’s hero is one every high fantasy reader ought to get to know.

Malazan Book of the Fallen is a fantasy lover's kind of series. Rich with world-building and compelling characters, the intricate nature of Steven Erikson's storytelling is apparent from the earliest pages of Gardens of the Moon. Twisting from one point of view to the next, Book 1 centers around Genabackis—an alliance of free cities that work against the overreach of the Malazan Empire. From Commander Dujek to the shapeshifting Anomander Rake, the cold-blooded killer called Sorry, and the mage Tattersail, Gardens of the Moon has no shortage of powers and personalities. 

In this British Fantasy Award winner, Poul Anderson reimagines the legend of a Viking king, drawing from Norse lore to create a biographical fantasy tale. Born into a royal family with a tumultuous history, Hrolf Kraki was a mighty ruler and fighter who earned the respect of his subjects. But while he was unbeatable on the battlefield, this ruthless warrior would one day meet an enemy he couldn't defeat: his own obsession with his father's murder. Anderson writes from the perspective of a female storyteller in a royal court, describing the events before Hrolf's birth, his rise to power, his fall from grace—and all the magic, monsters, and witches in between.

Robin Hobb’s fantasy universe features a two-part magic system—the Wit, a telepathic bond between humans and animals; and the Skill, which gives its wielders the ability to share their knowledge and strengths. FitzChivalry, the abandoned bastard of a prince and the hero of the Farseer Trilogy, eventually masters both. As a little boy, he forges a strong relationship with a dog named Nosy—his only friend, save for the gruff stableman who’s charged with his upbringing. And as a servant to his royal grandfather, King Shrewd, he comes to better understand the ways of the Skill. But Fitz is also fluent in the art of murder, having secretly trained under a notorious assassin at Buckkeep Castle. While these gifts help him during his dangerous missions on Shrewd’s behalf, they also earn him many enemies—including his power-hungry Uncle Regal.

Witch World is over four decades in the making and features a revolutionary blend of sci-fi, sword and sorcery, and high fantasy. The series is made up of three major “cycles”—including High Hallack, which refers to one of the six countries in Norton's parallel universe. Divided into Dales and bordered by the desolate land of the Waste, High Hallack is a place of heroes and heroines, magical artifacts, strange creatures, and animal companions. This particular collection contains five of the cycle’s 11 novels— following royal heirs, highborn ladies, determined lovers, and more as they fight evil throughout the land.

If you liked The Assassin's Apprentice, then the Night Angel Trilogy ought to be right up your alley. Durzo Blint is the city's most feared assassin. His new apprentice, a young boy called Kylar Stern, thought that his past as a guild rat, growing up in the slums, taught him what he needed to know about survival. But this new world of shadows presents more dangers than he could have imagined, and Kylar must learn to navigate the dangerous politics and strange magics of assassins. 

Originally written as a standalone, A Wizard of Earthsea would go on to launch Le Guin’s Earthsea series. 

This first installment serves as a coming-of-age story about Ged, a powerful sorcerer, and the shadow creature that haunts his steps. Born with immense potential, Ged was first introduced to magic by his aunt. When raiders attack his village, he uses his powers to help protect his home. This attracts the attention of a powerful mage named Ogion, who takes Ged as his apprentice. But frustrated by his master’s slow teaching style, he eventually chooses to attend a magic college. 

There, Ged meets allies and enemies and, in an event that will change his life forever, summons that shadow creature that injures him. And though the shadow creature is driven off and Ged recovers from the assault, they remain inextricably linked.

This high fantasy series from Dave Duncan is a mix of action, adventure, magic, and romance. Consisting of four spellbinding novels, the series follows Inos and Rap, two childhood friends who fall for each other as they mature. Despite the inseparable bond these two share, Inos is a princess whose life is already planned out for her by members of the royal family. Meanwhile Rap, a simple stable boy, is left yearning for Inos and awaiting the day she casts everything aside to be with him. But when Inos is abducted through a magic casement, she ends up in the strange land of Zark, while Rap is stuck in Faerie searching for a way to save her. Inos, however, isn’t your stereotypical damsel in distress. Rather than wait for Rap to rescue her, she tries to utilize the magic she knows as a means of freeing herself, and reclaiming her kingdom and rightful place on the throne.

This first novel in Jo Clayton’s Duel of Sorcery trilogy is truly high fantasy at its finest. The novel centers around Serroi, a green-skinned “misborn” who was treated as an outcast in her own world. Despite her small-frame, Serroi is brought up to become a meie warrior, a cold, calculating, and fearless soldier who will protect her realm. Although Serroi exhibits incredible talent in fighting, she finds herself constantly plagued by dark memories surrounding the wizards of Nor who specialize in evil magic. Early on in the novel, Serroi has an encounter with one of these foes who forces her to abandon her shieldmate Tayan.

As she’s fleeing the fight, Serroi experiences a vision that shows her the birth of a terrifying force that threatens her world. The monster plans on plaguing Serroi’s land during the night of the Moongather, an evening where demons roam free and unleash whatever chaos they can. Being the only person who knows of this prophecy, it’s up to Serroi to figure out a way to stop this creature before it can destroy everything and everyone she knows. 

As the series title “The Wheel of Time” implies, history always repeats itself in Robert Jordan’s high fantasy world. The crux of his series is a rivalry between the Dark One and the Dragon—a rare male magic-wielder who is continually reborn—that, as a result of time’s cyclical nature, occurs again and again. When The Eye of the World opens, a consequence borne from one of their battles can still be felt: Only women can practice the powers of the Aes Sedai, leaving any male practitioners at the mercy of violent persecutors...

When Trollocs attack the village of Emond’s Field, friends Rand, Mat, and Perrin must accept the fact that the stories of the Dark One may be true after all. The subsequent arrival of a woman of the Aes Sedai, and the protector to whom she’s magically bonded, further opens their eyes to their true destinies. So begins an adventure that continues in 13 other very long novels—so you'll have at least a year's worth of reading material.

If you’re looking for a high fantasy series that’s full of adventure, settings you’ll long to step into, and romance, then you might become obsessed with Sarah J. Maas’ A Court of Thorns and Roses. 

The first book in the series, also titled A Court of Thorns and Roses, introduces Feyre, a 19-year-old mortal forced to hunt in the woods to feed her sister and father. When Feyre accidentally kills a male faerie while hunting, she's taken across the wall and imprisoned in the faerie realm of Prythian. A loose adaptation of Beauty and the Beast, A Court of Thorns and Roses follows Feyre as she learns that Tamlin, the bestial faerie High Lord holding her captive, is more complex than he first seemed. 

Although the first book in the series is addictive, the world only becomes more rich in its subsequent novels, as Feyre subverts reader’s expectations for her and the relationship between faeries and mortals grows more complex. Currently, there are three books in the series and one novella with more on the way.

This dystopian, high-fantasy hybrid novel follows Eva, a girl who carries on her twin brother’s legacy after he falls to his death. In life, Eamon trained to become a Testor, a warrior who searches for powerful magical relics in the frozen, post-apocalyptic world outside of the kingdom of Aerie. When Eva—a maiden destined for embroidery classes and marriage—steps in to take over his position, she undergoes rigorous training that pushes her body to its absolute limits. Eva succeeds in becoming a Testor, and is immediately sent off into the icy Boundary Lands in search of relics. When she is out in the wilderness, Eva puts her training to the test, but its not without a few setbacks. Despite a handful of obstacles in her path, Eva overcomes the trials and discovers a powerful relic that will affect the future of Aerie, and the rest of the world. 

It's hardly an under-the-radar series, but no list of high fantasy would be complete without George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire. From unlikely heroes to world-threatening forces like The Others, detailed histories and fictional lands, A Song of Ice and Fire has everything you look for in high fantasy.