The 50 Best Fantasy Books of All Time

This is one of the 743 lists we use to generate our main The Greatest Books list.

About this list

Esquire Magazine, 50 Books

This curated list of the 50 greatest fantasy books of all time showcases the most innovative and influential works in the genre. Spanning classic epics to modern masterpieces, these books transport readers to richly imagined worlds filled with magic, mythical creatures, and unforgettable characters. Each selection has shaped the fantasy landscape, offering groundbreaking storytelling, immersive world-building, and timeless themes of heroism, adventure, and transformation. Whether you're a lifelong fantasy fan or new to the genre, this collection highlights essential reads that continue to inspire and captivate readers around the world.

This list was originally published in 2022 and was added to this site over 1 year ago.

View: List Grid Table
Rank Book Authors Year Country Language Actions
1115 The Fifth Season N. K. Jemisin 2015 American English
17 The Lord Of The Rings J. R. R. Tolkien 1959 English English
277 A Wizard Of Earthsea Ursula K. Le Guin 1968 American English
9237 The Grace Of Kings Ken Liu 2015 American English
4925 Who Fears Death Nnedi Okorafor 2010 Nigerian English
1804 A Hero Born Jin Yong 1957 Chinese Chinese
1621 Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell Susanna Clarke 2004 British English
6520 A Stranger In Olondria Sofia Samatar 2013 American English
2646 Circe Madeline Miller 2018 American English
17008 Myst Rand Miller, Robyn Miller, David Wingrove 1996 American English
4072 Children Of Blood And Bone Tomi Adeyemi 2018 Nigerian English
513 Kindred Octavia E. Butler 1979 American English
2097 The Bloody Chamber And Other Stories Angela Carter 1979 British English
17008 Latro In The Mist Gene Wolfe 2003 American English
859 The Palm-Wine Drinkard Amos Tutola 1952 Nigerian English
1832 The Voyage of the Dawn Treader C. S. Lewis 1952 British English
17008 Once And Forever Kenji Miyazawa 1994 Japanese Japanese
4808 Ozma Of Oz L. Frank Baum 1907 American English
14901 The Shadow Rising Robert Jordan 1992 American English
5437 The Way of Kings Brandon Sanderson 2010 American English
7037 The Changeling Victor LaValle 2017 American English
12696 The Bird King G. Willow Wilson 2019 American English
7907 Uprooted Naomi Novik 2015 American English
17008 The Drowned Life Jeffrey Ford 2008 American English
14901 Moon Witch, Spider King Marlon James 2022 Jamaican English
14165 Foundryside Robert Jackson Bennett 2018 American English
14901 Redemption in Indigo Karen Lord 2010 Barbadian English
7090 Get In Trouble Kelly Link 2015 American English
6906 Where the Mountain Meets the Moon Grace Lin, Janet Song 2009 Chinese English
14901 The Blue Fox Sjón 2003 Icelandic Icelandic
8941 Stardust Neil Gaiman 1999 British English
17008 Kalpa Imperial Angélica Gorodischer 1983 Argentinian Spanish
8923 Queen Of The Conquered Kacen Callender 2019 American English
3820 The Subtle Knife Philip Pullman 1997 British English
1289 A Game of Thrones George R. R. Martin 1996 American English
9680 The Black Tides Of Heaven Neon Yang 2017 Singaporean English
4985 Tigana Guy Gavriel Kay 1990 Canadian English
14901 The Vorrh Brian Catling 2012 British English
10737 A Darker Shade Of Magic V. E. Schwab 2015 American English
17008 What Should Be Wild Julia Fine 2018 American English
17008 Tales Of Falling And Flying Ben Loory 2017 American English
8560 Witchmark C. L. Polk 2018 Canadian English
17008 The Unfinished World Amber Sparks 2016 American English
17008 The Sorcerer Of The Wildeeps Kai Ashante Wilson 2015 American English
17008 The Other City Michal Ajvaz 1993 Czech Czech
17008 Ring Shout P. Djèlí Clark 2020 American English
14901 The Library At Mount Char Scott Hawkins 2015 American English
4934 The Buried Giant Kazuo Ishiguro 2015 British English
3184 The Night Circus Erin Morgenstern 2011 American English
10927 The City Of Brass S. A. Chakraborty 2017 Egyptian English