Brilliant Fantasy (and fiction) Books
Discover the best brilliant fantasy and fiction books, featuring masterpieces by Patricia A. McKillip, Juliet Marillier, and Garth Nix. From magical young adult tales like The Changeling Sea to epic adventures in Ombria in Shadow and Lirael, this curated list highlights award-winning authors and unforgettable stories. Perfect for fans of rich world-building, lyrical prose, and captivating fiction—explore your next great read today.
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The Forgotten Beasts of Eld
by Patricia A. McKillip
A wizard, accustomed to the company only of great legendary beasts, is introduced to the human world with all its sorrows and delights when a baby comes into her care.
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Riddle-Master
by Patricia A. McKillip
For over twenty years, World Fantasy Award winner Patricia A. McKillip has captured the hearts and imaginations of thousands of readers. Now at last her renowned Riddle-Master trilogy–The Riddle-Master of Hed, Heir of Sea and Fire, and Harpist in the Wind–long out of print, is collected in one volume. It is considered her most enduring and beloved work. Now it is collected in one volume for the first time–the epic journeys of a young prince in a strange land, where wizards have long since vanished...but where magic is waiting to be reborn.
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The Book of Atrix Wolfe
by Patricia A. McKillip
In wolf shape, among the wolves, he had sensed danger sweepingtoward the mountains he loved. So begins The Book of Atrix Wolfe, the story of a man who lived amongwolves, hiding from the mistakes of his past -- and the woman who offered him one lastchance for redemption.
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The Tower at Stony Wood
by Patricia A. McKillip
She saw the knight in the mirror at sunset… During the wedding festivities of his king, Cyan Dag, a knight of Gloinmere, is sought out by a mysterious bard and told a terrifying tale: that the king has married a false queen—a lie cloaked in ancient and powerful sorcery. Spurred on by his steadfast honor and loyalty, Cyan departs on a dangerous quest to rescue the real queen from her tower prison, to prevent war, and to awaken magic in a land that has lost its way…
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Winter Rose
by Patricia A. McKillip
Sorrow and trouble and bitterness will hound you and yours and the children of yours… Some said the dying words of Nial Lynn, murdered by his own son, were a wicked curse. To others, it was a winter’s tale spun by firelight on cold, dark nights. But when Corbet Lynn came to rebuild his family estate, memories of his grandfather’s curse were rekindled by young and old--and rumors filled the heavy air of summer. In the woods that border Lynn Hall, free-spirited Rois Melior roams wild and barefooted. And as autumn gold fades, she is consumed with Corbet Lynn, obsessed with his secret past…
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The Changeling Sea
by Patricia A. McKillip
World Fantasy Award winner Patricia A. McKillip tells "an enchanting fantasy that is tinged with realism and romance." (School Library Journal) Since the day her father's fishing boat returned without him, Peri and her mother have mourned his loss. Her mother sinks into a deep depression and spends her days gazing out at the sea. Unable to control her anger and sadness any longer, Peri uses the small magic she knows to hex the sea. And suddenly into her drab life come the King's sons—changelings with strange ties to the underwater kingdom—a young magician, and, finally, love. "McKillip is a master storyteller; her tale rings true as if it were being told from memory."—Kirkus Reviews, pointer review
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Ombria in Shadow
by Patricia A. McKillip
The death of Ombria's prince leads to chaos as light and dark factions compete for control and the fate of the city rests in the hands of untried forces. By the author of The Tower at Stony Wood. Reprint.
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Lirael
by Garth Nix
Who is Lirael? Lirael has never felt like a true daughter of the Clayr. Abandoned by her mother, ignorant of her father's identity, Lirael resembles no one else in her large extended family living in the Clayr's Glacier. She doesn't even have the Sight -- the ability to See into the present and possible futures -- that is the very birthright of the Clayr. Nonetheless, it is Lirael in whose hands the fate of the Old Kingdom lies. She must undertake a desperate mission under the growing shadow of an ancient evil -- one that opposes the Royal Family, blocks the Sight of the Clay; and threatens to break the very boundary between Life and Death itself. With only her faithful companion, the Disreputable Dog, to help her, Lirael must find the courage to seek her own hidden destiny. In this sequel to the critically acclaimed Sabriel, Garth Nix draws readers deeper into the magical landscape of the Old Kingdom and weaves a spellbinding tale of discovery, destiny, and danger.
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Dealing with Dragons
by Patricia C. Wrede
The first two volumes of Patricia C. Wrede's beloved, bestselling Enchanted Forest Chronicles!
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Mairelon the Magician
by Patricia Wrede
Kim, a streetwise girl disguised as a boy, and Mairelon, an itinerant magician dressed as a dandy, share adventures in a Regency England that is populated with sorcerers and riddled with magic.
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The Magician's Ward
by Patricia Wrede
Happy in her new life as an apprentice to the powerful magician Mairelon, 16-year-old Kim is horrified when a nosy relative determines to turn Kim - a former street urchin - into. . .a lady! But real trouble begins when several wizards of Kim's acquaintance disappear. Then Mairelon's magic disappears! It's up to Kim to unravel the mystery. And to do that she will have to return to her old life back in the dark and dirty streets of London.
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Caught in Crystal
by Patricia C. Wrede
Kayl, a widowed innkeeper, finds her past returning to haunt her, when she is asked by the Sisterhood of Stars to take up, once again, her sword to battle an evil force emanating from the Twisted Tower in the Windhome Mountains
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The Unicorn Dancer
by R. A. V. Salsitz
An ancient evil, the Corrupter, awakens to blight the land, and Lady Alorie, the sole hope of the world, must bring together the forces of the elves, dwarfs, and humans to reclaim control, while struggling to elude a powerful, black killer unicorn
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Breaking Rank
by Kristen D. Randle
When Casey Willardson is assigned to tutor Thomas Fairbarin -- also known as Baby -- she approaches her task with great trepidation. Baby is a member of the Clan, a mysterious group of young men who do not talk to outsiders or participate in school. Baby and Casey's relationship is awkward at first, but soon they turn to each other. As the Clan drifts from it's mooring, Baby grows distant from his brother and the rest of the group that he considers family. As as Casey takes a step away from her own secure world, everything she counted on is turned upside down. Kristen D. Randle has written a story that is absorbing and unusal, insightful and outspoken, about two teenagers whose lives become intertwined -- and a collision that forces them to make difficult choices. 00-01 Tayshas High School Reading List Books for the Teen Age 2001 (NYPL)
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The Only Alien on the Planet
by Kristen D. Randle
Ginny never thought she would fall for someone like Smitty. But the more she tries to understand his quiet pain, the more she falls deeply in love with him. Eventually, Smitty lets Ginny into his troubled, hidden world, and they begin the gradual process of healing--together. This is an intensse, emotionally powerful novel that deals with the issue of abuse. An ALA Best Book for Young Adults. An ALA Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Adult Readers.
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Juniper
by Monica Furlong
In this highly acclaimed prequel to the award-winning Wise Child young Princess Juniper returns to her Cornish palace and discovers that her power-mad aunt is using black magic to usurp the throne. And only Juniper can stop her. "A rich, deeply colored novel of a young girl's coming of age".--School Library Journal.
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Wise Child
by Monica Furlong
In a remote Scottish village, nine-year-old Wise Child is taken in by Juniper, a healer and sorceress. Then Wise Child’s mother, Maeve, a black witch, reappears. In choosing between Maeve and Juniper, Wise Child discovers the extent of her supernatural powers—and her true loyalties.
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Son of the Shadows
by Juliet Marillier
Beautiful Sorcha is the courageous young woman who risked all to save her family from a wicked curse and whose love shattered generations of hate and bridged two cultures. It is from her sacrifice that Sorcha's brothers were brought home to their ancestral fortress Sevenwaters, and her life has known much joy. But not all the brothers were able to fully escape the spell that transformed them into swans, and it is left to Sorcha's daughter Liadan to help fulfill the destiny of the Sevenwaters clan. Beloved child and dutiful daughter, Liadan embarks on a journey that shows her just how hard-won was the peace that she has known all her life. Liadan will need all of her courage to help save her family, for there are dark forces and ancient powers conspiring to destroy this family's peace--and their world. And she will need all of her strength to stand up to those she loves best, for in the finding of her own true love, Liadan's course may doom them all . . . or be their salvation.
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Garfield Beefs Up
by Jim Davis
America's favorite cartoon cat prepares to belly up to the bestseller list again with his newest collection of classic comic strips.