Fantasy novels
Here’s an update to this list. It still only includes books I reviewed on my blog (ie. ones I’ve read in the last 10 years).
Best of the best
- Dragon and Phoenix by Joanne Bertin
- Replay by Ken Grimwood
- How to Stop Time by Matt Haig
- The Midnight Library by Matt Haig
- The Last Light of the Sun by Guy Gavriel Kay
- Lord of Emperors by Guy Gavriel Kay
- River of Stars by Guy Gavriel Kay
- Sailing to Sarantium by Guy Gavriel Kay
- Under Heaven by Guy Gavriel Kay
- The Clockmaker’s Daughter by Kate Morton
- The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August by Claire North
- Notes from the Burning Age by Claire North
- The Queen of the Damned by Anne Rice
- The Vampire Lestat by Anne Rice
- Lent by Jo Walton
- My Real Children by Jo Walton
- Tooth and Claw by Jo Walton
- A Sorcerer’s Treason by Sarah Zettel
Runner ups
- Foundryside by Robert Jackson Bennett
- Shorefall by Robert Jackson Bennett
- The Last Dragonlord by Joanne Bertin
- The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley
- A Natural History of Dragons by Marie Brennan
- The Defiant Heir by Melissa Caruso
- The Unbound Empire by Melissa Caruso
- The Tethered Mage by Melissa Caruso
- A Turn of Light by Julie E. Czerneda
- Black Wine by Candas Jane Dorsey
- The Second Summoning by Tanya Huff
- Summon the Keeper by Tanya Huff
- 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
- The Radleys by Matt Haig
- Ysabel by Guy Gavriel Kay
- The Raven Tower by Ann Leckie
- Lavinia by Ursula K. Le Guin
- The Gaslight Dogs by Karin Lowachee
- Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister by Gregory Maguire
- Egg & Spoon 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 End of the Day by Claire North
- The Gameshouse by Claire North
- The Pursuit of William Abbey by Claire North
- The Sudden Appearance of Hope by Claire North
- Touch by Claire North
- Mort by Terry Pratchett
- Interview With the Vampire by Anne Rice (*)
- Beneath the Vaulted Hills by Sean Russell
- The Compass of the Soul by Sean Russell
- Sea Without a Shore by Sean Russell
- World Without End by Sean Russell
- The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O. by Neal Stephenson and Nicole Galland
- Defiant by Karina-Sumner Smith
- Radiant by Karina Sumner-Smith
- Towers Fall by Karina Sumner-Smith
- The Dying Earth by Jack Vance
- After the Golden Age by Carrie Vaughn
- Among Others by Jo Walton
- The Just City by Jo Walton
- Necessity by Jo Walton
- Or What You Will by Jo Walton
- The Philosopher Kings by Jo Walton
- The Firebird’s Vengeance by Sarah Zettel
- Sword of the Deceiver by Sarah Zettel
- The Usurper’s Crown by Sarah Zettel
Honourable mentions
- Industrial Magic by Kelley Armstrong
- A Fine and Private Place by Peter S. Beagle
- Bard’s Oath by Joanne Bertin
- Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury
- The Black Unicorn by Terry Brooks (+)
- Magic Kingdom For Sale — Sold! 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
- A Hidden Place by Robert Charles Wilson