The fantasy genre is rich with amazing novels. Choosing which ones to read can be difficult as a result. That is why we decided to list the ten must read fantasy novels of all time. Keep reading to see which novels made the list!
Choosing only ten means that lesser-known fantasy novels that deserve this honor will be left out. But that is a price we were willing to pay to make this list. When someone mentions the best fantasy novels that you should read, these are the ones that come to mind!
The Ten Must Read Fantasy Novels of All Time
- The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien
- A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin
- A Song of Ice and Fire by George R.R. Martin
- The Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan
- His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman
- Dune by Frank Herbert
- The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson
- The First Law series by Joe Abercrombie
- The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher
- Discworld by Terry Pratchett
Must Read Fantasy Novels
The Lord of the Rings
If you love fantasy novels, then you have to read The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien. Not only is it an amazing series but it is the formula that many fantasy authors have used to write their novels. If you have read a bunch of fantasy novels, then you have most likely come across troupes that were popularized by Tolkien.
A Wizard of Earthsea
When you are talking about the best fantasy novels of all time, you can’t forget Ursula K. Le Guin’s A Wizard of Earthsea. It is the novel that inspired Harry Potter, created a magic system many novels have adopted, and was one of the first to imagine a wizard as someone young and not someone who is old and wise. These are just some of the things that make this a must read and I loved every second of it.
A Song of Ice and Fire
When I think of high fantasy, a series that always comes to mind is George R. R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire. The world building is detailed and with so many characters, the series should not work. But Martin’s attention to every little thing makes this series one of the best works of fiction there is. And if you have only watched the show, then you are missing out because the novels are even better.
Mistborn
A surprise series on this list is Brandon Sanderson’s The Final Empire. It is a more recent series that pushes the genre forward. It has a multitude of characters and the novel has a time jump as well as in a change of protagonists.
Those are stuff you don’t see in many fantasy novels because it is a lot to juggle and fans aren’t always receptive to such changes. But Sanderson makes this work with ease as well as making the newer books feel fresh.
Dune
A novel that jumps out from the sci-fi genre has to be Dune by Frank Herbert. Whether or not you have read much sci-fi books, there is a good chance that you heard about this novel. It is a sci-fi novel that has amazing world building and has resonated with many readers. Many critics consider this the best sci-fi book ever written.
Conclusion
That wraps up our list the ten must read fantasy novels of all time. How many of these novels have you read? What novels should have made our list? Let us know in the comments below!
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It seems odd to list only the first book of the Mistborn series. You technically did the same with A Wizard of Earthsea and Dune, but it’s less noticeable with those as the name of the series is contained in the name of the first book. Not so with Mistborn and The Final Empire.
Read ” Jonathan Livingston Seagull” by Richard Bach. Excellent!
On the Top Ten Fantasy Books, I would have to include Nine Princes in Amber by Zelazny. There is fantastic world building in there and it sets up the rest of the series nicely.
Incarnations of immortality series by Piers Anthony
Castle Roogna series by Piers Anthony
The Shanara series
To name but a few
Weaveworld by Clive Barker
Great and Secret Show by Clive Barker
It’ll be the top 20 soon
The Dragonriders of Pern from Anna McCaffrey is definitely a good time.
Ummm… that photo is of the Mysterious Book Shop, which famously sells mystery and crime books, not fantasy. And none of those books are fantasy novels anyhow
Any current top ten must reads? Cause these have been posted many many times before
It’s an All Time list, it’s going to have selections from… All Time. 🙂
That being said, Books of Brilliance does have a lot of lists that are more current.
Really needs some Jack Vance and Gene Wolfe for both singular books and collected contributions to the genre.
A list of “must read novels” should probably try to stick to novels and not be a list of entire fantasy series.
I’m a massive fan and have read the entire list, but you are doing the genre no favours by totally misleading new readers who maybe want to pick up A book, not a series of books.
Dune is Science fiction not fantasy
Has anyone read the mistborn series? The author has interesting ideas but is a terrible writer. He needs a ghost writer or writer partner or something. It really bothers me that some people can’t see the difference between his writing and that of Martin or Herbert.
Terry Brooks Shannara series should be in this list.
Dune is science fiction not fantasy.
That’s a lot of books, only Discworld got like 50. Also, no Narnia?
I never see Modesitt listed in any of your lists. Both the Recluce and Imager series
are enjoyable reads.
I agree that while Dune is one of the best SF books ever written it is not dantasy
Modesitt’s Corean Chronicles is also very good.
Love the diversity of authors….not. recommend to educate Yourself more