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
2086 Howl's Moving Castle Diana Wynne Jones 1986 British English
2136 Conan The Conqueror Robert E. Howard 1935 American English
2138 The Worm Ouroboros E. R. Eddison 1922 British English
2232 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows J. K. Rowling 2007 British English
2243 The Tombs Of Atuan Ursula K. Le Guin 1971 American English
2345 The Well Of The Unicorn Fletcher Pratt 1948 American English
2389 The Wheel of Time Series Robert Jordan 1990 American English
2475 The Last Battle C. S. Lewis 1956 British English
2486 The Golden Compass Philip Pullman 1995 British English
2528 The Weirdstone Of Brisingamen Alan Garner 1960 British English
2686 Prince Caspian C. S. Lewis 1951 British English
2700 Witch World Andre Norton 1963 American English
2802 Stormbringer Michael Moorcock 1965 British English
2822 The Horse and His Boy C. S. Lewis 1954 British English
2840 The Magician's Nephew C. S. Lewis 1955 British English
2888 Olvidado Rey Gudú Ana María Matute 1996 Spanish Spanish
2914 The Broken Sword Poul Anderson 1954 American English
2916 Legend David Gemmell 1984 British English
2924 The Castle Of Iron L. Sprague de Camp 1950 American English
2968 The Amber Spyglass Philip Pullman 2000 British English
2987 Eragon Christopher Paolini 2002 American English
3084 Dragonflight Anne McCaffrey 1968 American English
3158 Nine Princes In Amber Roger Zelazny 1970 American English
3165 Red Moon and Black Mountain Joy Chant 1970 British English
3214 The Forgotten Beasts Of Eld Patricia A. McKillip 1974 American English
3228 Phantastes George McDonald 1858 British English
3254 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
3442 The Summer Tree Guy Gavriel Kay 1984 Canadian English
3450 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
3820 Weaveworld Clive Barker 1987 British English
3831 Lord Foul's Bane Stephen R. Donaldson 1977 American English
3879 The Hollow Hills Mary Stewart 1973 British English
3892 Ella Enchanted Gail Carson Levine 1997 American English
3904 The Blue Sword Robin McKinley 1982 American English
3950 The Phoenix And The Mirror Avram Davidson 1969 American English
4078 Children Of Blood And Bone Tomi Adeyemi 2018 Nigerian English
4305 A Court Of Thorns And Roses Sarah J. Maas 2015 American English
4401 The Sword Of Welleran Lord Dunsany 1908 Irish English
4450 The Eye Of The World Robert Jordan 1990 American English
4517 The Black Cauldron Lloyd Alexander 1965 American English
4576 Alanna Tamora Pierce 1983 American English
4605 Swords And Deviltry Fritz Leiber 1970 American English
4708 Six Of Crows Leigh Bardugo 2015 American English
4768 The Incomplete Enchanter L. Sprague de Camp 1940 American English
4835 The Water Of The Wondrous Isles William Morris 1897 British English
4994 Tigana Guy Gavriel Kay 1990 Canadian English
5043 The Charwoman's Shadow Lord Dunsany 1926 British English
5188 Mistress Of Mistresses E. R. Eddison 1935 British English
5188 A Fish Dinner In Memison E. R. Eddison 1941 British English
5239 Sorcerer's Son Phyllis Eisenstein 1979 American English
5275 The Stone Sky N. K. Jemisin 2017 American English
5378 A Midsummer Tempest Poul Anderson 1974 American English
5384 The Tritonian Ring L. Sprague de Camp 1953 American English
5445 The Way of Kings Brandon Sanderson 2010 American English
5648 The Last Enchantment Mary Stewart 1979 British English
5653 The Mezentian Gate E. R. Eddison 1958 British English
5774 The Serpent Jane Gaskell 1963 British English
5774 The Stealer Of Souls Michael Moorcock 1963 British English
5860 The Well At The World's End William Morris 1896 British English
5908 The Ring Of The Nibelung Richard Wagner 1876 German German
5931 A Promise Of Fire Amanda Bouchet 2016 American English
5945 The Wandering Fire Guy Gavriel Kay 1986 Canadian English
5960 Swords Against Wizardry Fritz Leiber 1968 American English
6075 The Darkest Road Guy Gavriel Kay 1986 Canadian English
6102 A Storm Of Swords George R. R. Martin 2000 American English
6120 The Lives Of Christopher Chant Diana Wynne Jones 1988 British English
6164 Atlan Jane Gaskell 1965 British English
6194 One Piece Eiichiro Oda 1997 Japanese Japanese
6204 The High King Lloyd Alexander 1968 American English
6373 The Priory Of The Orange Tree Samantha Shannon 2019 British English
6525 The Power That Preserves Stephen R. Donaldson 1977 American English
6569 The Illearth War Stephen R. Donaldson 1977 American English
6569 Silver On The Tree Susan Cooper 1977 British English
6691 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
7215 Orlando Innamorato Matteo Maria Boiardo 1483 Italian Italian
7215 Early Romances William Morris 1890 British English
7561 Lord Valentine's Castle Robert Silverberg 1980 American English
7596 White Gold Wielder Stephen R. Donaldson 1983 American English
7670 Shadow And Bone Leigh Bardugo 2012 American English
7847 The Darkangel Meredith Ann Pierce 1982 American English
7922 Uprooted Naomi Novik 2015 American English
7942 The Chronicles Of Thomas Covenant The Unbeliever Stephen R. Donaldson 1977 American English
8008 Fire And Hemlock Diana Wynne Jones 1985 British English
8058 The Dragon Republic R. F. Kuang 2019 American English
8225 Unsouled Will Wight 2016 American English
8328 Wizard's First Rule Terry Goodkind 1994 American English
8398 Graceling Kristin Cashore 2008 American English
8422 The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms N. K. Jemisin 2010 American English
8532 Tehanu Ursula K. Le Guin 1990 American English