Well hello my dear nerds and dorks. Bored again, are we? Looking for a tier list to confirm our unshakeable biases, or a recommendation to quench our insatiable desire for (often violent) fairy tales? Your wish, my command and all that. I present to you: the objective list of fantasy series, ranked from least-best to bestest-best. An unquestionably correct list by every standard, against which all rankings are seen as amateur opinions.
Pretentious jokes aside, I hope you find something new today to inspire you to get out of that reading slum that got you to this article in the first place.
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6. Harry potter
The only reason this is not higher on the list is because I read it last a while ago, and frankly, it’s not quite my cup of coffee. I acknowledge Rowling’s unparalleled ability to keep a reader hooked and flipping the pages, and the sense of wonder is something fantasy rarely achieves at that level nowadays.
The main issue I have with it is the believability. You’re telling me that 0.5% of people have the power to do anything they want and they use trains and owls and never interfere in politics? And Voldemort is the first one to use the forbidden curses in how long now?
If you are especially sensitive to those details, stay away. Regardless, I think every self-respecting literature enjoyer should go through this series at least once.
A perfect gateway drug to the wonderous world of human imagination.
“Books! And cleverness! There are more important things — friendship and bravery.”
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This is one of those rare series that grabs you from the start, gives you a swift kick in the pants, and makes you invested in all characters it presents from page one. From Lord Grimdark himself, Joe Abercrombie, you will be hard pressed to find better written gore and action.
Despite the epic, large, cold, violent and indifferent world the characters find themselves in, they manage to be the most relatable and loveable fictional people I have ever had the pleasure of encountering. My personal favorite is the kind-hearted, brutally efficient barbarian - Logen Nine-fingers, called that for his sliced-off middle finger. For what reason, we can only guess.
In reading this trilogy you will find yourself empathizing with the most deplorable of creatures. Feel sorry for them, even. My piece of advice is to enjoy the journey, because cliche as it may be, it really is the case with this one.
“I have learned all kinds of things from my many mistakes. The one thing I never learn is to stop making them.”
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Strap up and brace yourselves. You’ll get flipped around like never before, in the record breaking, largest-by-far fantasy world of the Malazan books. No warnings, introductions, or explanations, these will have you scratching your head until you read them twice over.
It more than pays out, however, with its multiple-continent spanning, epic story of gods, ascendants, wars, empires, and little people caught in the middle of it all.
Also, home to one of my favorite fictional villains - Anomander Rake. A son of Darkness with a giant sword with the power to chain your soul and drag it to hell. If that edgy son of a gun doesn’t sell you on Steve Erikson’s creativity, nothing will.
“Tell me, Tool, what dominates your thoughts?'
The Imass shrugged before replying.
'I think of futility, Adjunct.'
'Do all Imass think about futility?'
'No. Few think at all.'
'Why is that?'
The Imass leaned his head to one side and regarded her.
'Because Adjunct, it is futile.”
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3. The Witcher
This series is a personal favorite because of its originality and cultural impact thereafter. Andrzej Sapkowski wrote blood, sex, gore and monsters before George Martin even started on A Song of Ice and Fire.
The series follows Geralt, a Witcher whose job it is to hunt pesky Slavic monsters that get in the way of everyday life. He is not to meddle in politics, just take the money and go. Despite his help, the people see him as a monster, just as the Strigas and Ghouls he is hired to slay. Difference is, he is a necessary evil to them. This type of setup is such fertile ground for conflict and wonder, and it is a genuine shock that more people have not read this masterpiece yet.
“Evil is Evil. Lesser, greater, middling, it's all the same. Proportions are negotiated, boundaries blurred. I'm not a pious hermit, I haven't done only good in my life. But if I'm to choose between one evil and another, then I prefer not to choose at all.”
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You saw this one from a mile away, didn’t you? Basic, perhaps, but for a reason. It blends all elements of wonder, politics, violence, giant worldbuilding, snarky sarcasm, hateful villains, inspiring heroes, and so much more. This is a series that can be thoroughly enjoyed at face value, and pays even more dividends the further into it you look. A tectonic game changer in the industry, and we would be remiss to place the series any lower than this. On top of all this, it is one of the most quotable series I’ve encountered in my life.
Winter is coming. Go read it, lest it haunts you for the rest of your days.
“Never forget what you are, for surely the world will not. Make it your strength. Then it can never be your weakness. Armour yourself in it, and it will never be used to hurt you.”
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1. Eragon
Just kidding, it’s the Lord of the Rings. Were you expecting something other than the godfather of fantasy? Go read it, dummy.
“It's a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don't keep your feet, there's no knowing where you might be swept off to.”