Fantasy novels
Here’s a first draft of this list, including books I reviewed on my blog (ie. ones I’ve read in the last 7 years).
Best of the best
- Dragon and Phoenix by Joanne Bertin
- Replay by Ken Grimwood
- How to Stop Time by Matt Haig
- Sailing to Sarantium by Guy Gavriel Kay
- Lord of Emperors by Guy Gavriel Kay
- The Last Light of the Sun by Guy Gavriel Kay
- The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August by Claire North
- The Vampire Lestat by Anne Rice
- The Queen of the Damned by Anne Rice
- My Real Children by Jo Walton
- Tooth and Claw by Jo Walton
- A Sorcerer’s Treason by Sarah Zettel
Runner ups
- The Last Dragonlord by Joanne Bertin
- The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley
- A Natural History of Dragons by Marie Brennan
- A Turn of Light by Julie E. Czerneda
- Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman
- All Those Explosions Were Someone Else’s Fault by James Alan Gardner
- The Princess Bride by William Goldman (*)
- Little Sister by Barbara Gowdy
- Ysabel by Guy Gavriel Kay
- Lavinia by Ursula K. Le Guin
- Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister by Gregory Maguire
- Mirror Mirror by Gregory Maguire
- Wicked by Gregory Maguire
- Faller by Will McIntosh
- Hitchers by Will McIntosh
- The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
- Towing Jehovah by James Morrow
- The Sudden Appearance of Hope by Claire North
- Touch by Claire North
- Mort by Terry Pratchett
- Interview With the Vampire by Anne Rice (*)
- World Without End by Sean Russell
- Sea Without a Shore by Sean Russell
- The Dying Earth by Jack Vance
- After the Golden Age by Carrie Vaughn
- Among Others by Jo Walton
- The Usurper’s Crown by Sarah Zettel
- The Firebird’s Vengeance by Sarah Zettel
- Sword of the Deceiver by Sarah Zettel
Honourable mentions
- A Fine and Private Place by Peter S. Beagle
- Bard’s Oath by Joanne Bertin
- Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury
- Magic Kingdom For Sale — Sold! by Terry Brooks (+)
- The Black Unicorn by Terry Brooks (+)
- A Play of Shadow by Julie E. Czerneda
- The Neverending Story by Michael Ende
- Brightly Burning by Mercedes Lackey
- An Opening Act of Unspeakable Evil by Jim Munroe
- The Eyes of the Overworld by Jack Vance