Fantasy books are some of the most popular books out there. The world-building and magical elements make them hard to put down! We decided to look at the 10 best selling fantasy books of all time to see which ones fans have loved the most over the years!
Many of the books on this list will be familiar names to most readers. Who hasn’t heard of The Lord of the Rings or The Song of Ice and Fire series? What will be surprising is where these books rank on the list and what books don’t make the top ten. You can see the full list below.
The 10 Best Selling Fantasy Books of All Time
- The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien (1954): Copies sold: +150 million
- A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin (1996): Copies sold: +90 million
- The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan (1990): Copies sold: +90 million
- Discworld by Terry Pratchett (1983): Copies sold: +80 million
- Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice: (1976): Copies sold: +80 million
- The Dark Tower by Stephen King (1982): Copies sold: +30 million
- Outlander by Diana Gabaldon (1991): Copies sold: +26 million
- Sword of Truth by Terry Goodkind (1994): Copies sold: +25 million
- Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson (2006): Copies sold: +10 million
- The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss (2007): Copies sold: +10m
The Fellowship of the Rings
These are the ten best-selling fantasy books of all time. The Fellowship of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien takes the top spot with over 150 million copies sold since it was published in 1954. Many fantasy novels have used Tolkien’s format to write fantasy books. And even decaded later, this classic still holds up well.
A Game of Thrones
A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin comes in second place with over 90 million copies sold. The drop-off from between the two books shows just how beloved Tolkien’s novel is. Even before the HBO TV show, Martin’s novels were selling like hotcakes. But it definitely helped having one of the biggest TV shows of all time.
The Eye of the World
Robert Jordan’s The Eye of the World comes in at third with also over 90 million copies sold. The Eye of the World book series has seen a rise in popularity since it made its debut in 1990. Brandon Sanderon helped finish the series after Jordan passed away.
Discworld
In Fourth place is Discworld by Terry Pratchett, a beloved series that has sold over 80 million copies. And while it may not be as well known as the first three fantasy series, Discworld has cemented itself as a favorite with fans of fantasy.
Interview with the Vampire
And coming in at fifth place is Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice. Some lists consider this a fantasy novel and I decided to include it too. I enjoyed reading Rice’s take on vampires and can see why it the series has sold over 80 million copies since published.
Conclusion
You may have noticed that the top eight books on the list were all published before 2000. Very few authors have seen the same amount of success but a few new names have also established themselves as amazing fantasy writers. Brandon Sanderson and Patrick Rothfuss round up the top ten with novels published after 2000.
What did you think of the 10 best selling fantasy books of all time list? How many of these books have you read? Let us know in the comments below!
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I must be the only person in the world who hasn’t read Terry Pratchett. I’ll have to remedy that.
You won’t be sorry.
Joe Abercrombie is missing and he is wonderful, darkly funny and brutally gory, think GRR Martin crossed with Prachett .