The Greatest High Fantasy Books of All Time

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This list represents a comprehensive and trusted collection of the greatest books. Developed through a specialized algorithm, it brings together 759 'best of' book lists to form a definitive guide to the world's most acclaimed books. For those interested in how these books are chosen, additional details can be found on the rankings page.

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Rank Book Authors Year Country Language Actions
17 The Lord Of The Rings J. R. R. Tolkien 1959 English English
146 The Hobbit J. R. R. Tolkien 1937 British English
234 The Chronicles of Narnia C. S. Lewis 1950 British English
236 Harry Potter And The Philosopher's Stone J. K. Rowling 1997 British English
278 A Wizard Of Earthsea Ursula K. Le Guin 1968 American English
286 The Once and Future King T. H. White 1958 British English
340 The Wonderful Wizard of Oz L. Frank Baum 1900 American English
381 The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe C. S. Lewis 1950 British English
399 His Dark Materials Philip Pullman 1995 British English
676 The Princess Bride William Goldman 1973 American English
1117 The Fifth Season N. K. Jemisin 2015 American English
1134 The Neverending Story Michael Ende 1979 German German
1289 A Game of Thrones George R. R. Martin 1996 American English
1380 The Sword in the Stone T. H. White 1938 British English
1585 Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell Susanna Clarke 2004 British English
1793 The Last Unicorn Peter S. Beagle 1968 American English
1842 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire J. K. Rowling 2000 British English
2087 Howl's Moving Castle Diana Wynne Jones 1986 British English
2137 Conan The Conqueror Robert E. Howard 1935 American English
2139 The Worm Ouroboros E. R. Eddison 1922 British English
2233 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows J. K. Rowling 2007 British English
2244 The Tombs Of Atuan Ursula K. Le Guin 1971 American English
2347 The Well Of The Unicorn Fletcher Pratt 1948 American English
2391 The Wheel of Time Series Robert Jordan 1990 American English
2477 The Last Battle C. S. Lewis 1956 British English
2488 The Golden Compass Philip Pullman 1995 British English
2530 The Weirdstone Of Brisingamen Alan Garner 1960 British English
2687 Prince Caspian C. S. Lewis 1951 British English
2701 Witch World Andre Norton 1963 American English
2804 Stormbringer Michael Moorcock 1965 British English
2824 The Horse and His Boy C. S. Lewis 1954 British English
2843 The Magician's Nephew C. S. Lewis 1955 British English
2890 Olvidado Rey Gudú Ana María Matute 1996 Spanish Spanish
2916 The Broken Sword Poul Anderson 1954 American English
2918 Legend David Gemmell 1984 British English
2926 The Castle Of Iron L. Sprague de Camp 1950 American English
2970 The Amber Spyglass Philip Pullman 2000 British English
2989 Eragon Christopher Paolini 2002 American English
3086 Dragonflight Anne McCaffrey 1968 American English
3159 Nine Princes In Amber Roger Zelazny 1970 American English
3166 Red Moon and Black Mountain Joy Chant 1970 British English
3215 The Forgotten Beasts Of Eld Patricia A. McKillip 1974 American English
3229 Phantastes George McDonald 1858 British English
3255 The Book Of Three Lloyd Alexander 1964 American English
3305 The Silmarillion J. R. R. Tolkien 1977 British English
3398 The Name Of The Wind Patrick Rothfuss 2007 American English
3443 The Summer Tree Guy Gavriel Kay 1984 Canadian English
3451 Mistborn Brandon Sanderson 2006 American English
3481 The King Of Elfland's Daughter Lord Dunsany 1924 British English
3492 The Claw Of The Conciliator Gene Wolfe 1981 American English
3543 The Dragon And The George Gordon R. Dickson 1976 American English
3558 Magician Raymond E. Feist 1982 American English
3617 The Farthest Shore Ursula K. Le Guin 1972 American English
3819 Weaveworld Clive Barker 1987 British English
3830 Lord Foul's Bane Stephen R. Donaldson 1977 American English
3878 The Hollow Hills Mary Stewart 1973 British English
3891 Ella Enchanted Gail Carson Levine 1997 American English
3903 The Blue Sword Robin McKinley 1982 American English
3951 The Phoenix And The Mirror Avram Davidson 1969 American English
4079 Children Of Blood And Bone Tomi Adeyemi 2018 Nigerian English
4306 A Court Of Thorns And Roses Sarah J. Maas 2015 American English
4402 The Sword Of Welleran Lord Dunsany 1908 Irish English
4451 The Eye Of The World Robert Jordan 1990 American English
4518 The Black Cauldron Lloyd Alexander 1965 American English
4577 Alanna Tamora Pierce 1983 American English
4606 Swords And Deviltry Fritz Leiber 1970 American English
4709 Six Of Crows Leigh Bardugo 2015 American English
4769 The Incomplete Enchanter L. Sprague de Camp 1940 American English
4836 The Water Of The Wondrous Isles William Morris 1897 British English
4997 Tigana Guy Gavriel Kay 1990 Canadian English
5046 The Charwoman's Shadow Lord Dunsany 1926 British English
5190 Mistress Of Mistresses E. R. Eddison 1935 British English
5190 A Fish Dinner In Memison E. R. Eddison 1941 British English
5240 Sorcerer's Son Phyllis Eisenstein 1979 American English
5276 The Stone Sky N. K. Jemisin 2017 American English
5379 A Midsummer Tempest Poul Anderson 1974 American English
5386 The Tritonian Ring L. Sprague de Camp 1953 American English
5447 The Way of Kings Brandon Sanderson 2010 American English
5651 The Last Enchantment Mary Stewart 1979 British English
5656 The Mezentian Gate E. R. Eddison 1958 British English
5777 The Serpent Jane Gaskell 1963 British English
5777 The Stealer Of Souls Michael Moorcock 1963 British English
5863 The Well At The World's End William Morris 1896 British English
5908 The Ring Of The Nibelung Richard Wagner 1876 German German
5935 A Promise Of Fire Amanda Bouchet 2016 American English
5949 The Wandering Fire Guy Gavriel Kay 1986 Canadian English
5964 Swords Against Wizardry Fritz Leiber 1968 American English
6078 The Darkest Road Guy Gavriel Kay 1986 Canadian English
6105 A Storm Of Swords George R. R. Martin 2000 American English
6123 The Lives Of Christopher Chant Diana Wynne Jones 1988 British English
6167 Atlan Jane Gaskell 1965 British English
6198 One Piece Eiichiro Oda 1997 Japanese Japanese
6208 The High King Lloyd Alexander 1968 American English
6376 The Priory Of The Orange Tree Samantha Shannon 2019 British English
6527 The Power That Preserves Stephen R. Donaldson 1977 American English
6571 The Illearth War Stephen R. Donaldson 1977 American English
6571 Silver On The Tree Susan Cooper 1977 British English
6692 Swords And Ice Magic Fritz Leiber 1977 American English
6868 The Cruel Prince Holly Black 2018 American English
6910 The Wounded Land Stephen R. Donaldson 1980 American English
6948 The King's Damosel Vera Chapman 1976 British English
6956 Some Summer Lands Jane Gaskell 1977 British English
6960 The Year's Best Fantasy Stories Lin Carter 1975 American English
7079 A Court Of Mist And Fury Sarah J. Maas 2016 American English
7156 The One Tree Stephen R. Donaldson 1982 American English
7216 Orlando Innamorato Matteo Maria Boiardo 1483 Italian Italian
7216 Early Romances William Morris 1890 British English
7562 Lord Valentine's Castle Robert Silverberg 1980 American English
7597 White Gold Wielder Stephen R. Donaldson 1983 American English
7672 Shadow And Bone Leigh Bardugo 2012 American English
7848 The Darkangel Meredith Ann Pierce 1982 American English
7923 Uprooted Naomi Novik 2015 American English
7943 The Chronicles Of Thomas Covenant The Unbeliever Stephen R. Donaldson 1977 American English
8009 Fire And Hemlock Diana Wynne Jones 1985 British English
8059 The Dragon Republic R. F. Kuang 2019 American English
8227 Unsouled Will Wight 2016 American English
8330 Wizard's First Rule Terry Goodkind 1994 American English
8401 Graceling Kristin Cashore 2008 American English
8425 The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms N. K. Jemisin 2010 American English
8535 Tehanu Ursula K. Le Guin 1990 American English