The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman
The first gear installment in Philip Pullman ’ randomness acclaimed fantasy trilogy His Dark Materials transports readers to a universe parallel to our own where each human being is born with an exteriorize soul that takes the form of a talking animal, or “ daemon. ” So begins the fib of eleven-year-old Lyra Belacqua, whose eavesdropping on a conversation about a mysterious atom known as “ Dust ” leads her on an epic venture to the far north. As Lyra attempts to rescue her best friend from a group of child-snatchers called the Gobblers, she discovers a unharmed new world—populated by armor-clad diametric bears and witch clans—outside of her shelter life in Oxford .
Buy now: The Golden compass
The Magicians by Lev Grossman
When Quentin Coldwater is unexpectedly accepted into a clandestine and elect college of charming, his longtime compulsion with a series of children ’ randomness fantasy novels no long seems thus absurd. But by the prison term he discovers the dark and dangerous accuracy behind the charming set of his beloved books, it may already be excessively late. Buy now: The Magicians
The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
Perseus “ Percy ” Jackson, a 12-year-old New Yorker with dyslexia and ADHD, has always felt like an outsider. But after his pre-algebra teacher transforms into an ancient greek spirit and attacks him, he discovers the truth about his inheritance : He is a demigod, the son of Poseidon. Set in a universe where Mt. Olympus is located on the 600th floor of the Empire State Building, the first ledger in Rick Riordan ’ s fantasy pentalogy sends Percy on an epic quest across the United States to recover Zeus ’ stolen overlord lightning rigidly and prevent a war of fabulous proportions. Buy now: The Lightning thief
Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman
average London businessman Richard Mayhew finds himself in a city both unnervingly similar and terrifyingly unfamiliar to his own after he stops to help a bleed daughter on the sidewalk and falls through the cracks to London Below. In this mysterious underworld, Richard must learn to survive among monsters, murderers and angels alike if he always hopes to return to his normal liveliness. Buy now: Neverwhere
Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo
“ What if dark was a place ? What if the monsters lurking there were veridical and more atrocious than anything you ’ vitamin d ever imagined beneath your bed or behind the water closet door ? ” It was with these questions in mind that Leigh Bardugo says she came astir with the estimate of the Shadow Fold, a nation of near impenetrable dark that serves as the bloodcurdling backdrop of the debut fresh in her best-selling Grisha trilogy. When orphan Alina Starkov and her best friend Mal are attacked on the Fold while serving in the army of the war-torn state of Ravka, it awakens a long-dormant might in Alina—the ability to summon light—that thrusts her into the ranks of her fatherland ’ s charming elect. Buy now: Shadow and Bone
The Queen of the Tearling by Erika Johansen
Set 300 years after an environmental disaster decimates modern society, Erika Johansen ’ s debut novel transports readers to a medieval-esque future in which Princess Kelsea Raleigh Glynn must return from exile to reclaim her dead mother ’ randomness throne, lead her kingdom and defeat the evil Red Queen. If that ’ s not adequate to hook you, Emma Watson—a.k.a. Hermione Granger—is both executive-producing and set to star in the movie adaptation of the book. Buy now: The Queen of the Tearling
The Alchemyst by Michael Scott
If your interest was peaked by the character of Nicolas Flamel in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer ’ s Stone, then Michael Scott ’ s six-book illusion series centered on adolescent twins Sophie and Josh Newman ’ s dealings with the immortal alchemist will keep your attention until the very last foliate. Book one opens with the Codex, a spellbook that contains the secret to the philosopher’s stone of liveliness, being stolen from Flamel by master necromancer Dr. John Dee. Buy now: The Alchemyst
City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
When 15-year-old Clary Fray is inducted into the world of the Shadowhunters—a secret regulate of demon-slaying warriors—she discovers that she excessively is a descendant of the knock-down production line of half-angel, half-human hybrids. After her mother is kidnapped by a herculean rogue Shadowhunter, Clary teams up with the snarky and smoldering Jace Wayland to rescue her. But as the two begin to develop feelings for each early, things get more complicate than either of them could ever have imagined. Buy now: City of Bones
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
“ The circus arrives without warning, ” opens Erin Morgenstern ’ s stunning debut novel. And then Le Cirque des Rêves—a nocturnal circus of charming attractions like a Wishing Tree and Pool of Tears—begins to materialize before readers ’ eyes. It ’ mho in this enchanting mount that star-crossed magicians Celia and Marco are pitted against each other in a antic duel of wills that only one can survive. Buy now: The Night Circus
A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness
After young historian Diana Bishop discovers an ancient charming manuscript in Oxford ’ s library, she is forced to reconcile with the witch heritage she has long denied. The compelling first installment in Deborah Harkness ’ bestselling All Souls trilogy throws her brainy heroine directly into the path of brooding vampire geneticist Matthew Clairmont and the heart of a supernatural war that threatens to consume them both. Buy now: A Discovery of Witches Write to Megan McCluskey at megan.mccluskey @ time.com. share THIS STORY
