Cosy books for the cosy months. We picked out our top four favourite fantasy novels.
Kindred
Sometimes fantasy novels help us escape the world around us, carving out a little nook from which we can forget the issues that blight our everyday lives. But equally, some of the best do the opposite, placing us face to face with the social problems that we can so easily turn a blind eye to. One such book is Kindred. Technically more speculative fiction than fantasy, it uses the magical element of time travel to tell a gruesome and touching story about slavery in the antebellum era. A topic that is introduced when black protagonist Dana finds herself being shunted in time and space between her present in 1976 California and a pre-Civil War Plantation in Maryland. A unique study into racism both past and present and the female quest for emancipation - Octavia Butler is at her best in this genre bending novel. Lizzy O’Riordan
Six of Crows
Is there anything better than a heist novel? Yeah, as it turns out - a heist novel set in Leigh Bardugo’s deeply immersive Shadow and Bone universe. Anyone who’s seen the Netflix series of the same name will have met the likes of Kaz Brekker, Inej Ghafa and Jesper Fahet, but, as enjoyable as that show is, it really fails to lay a glove on Bardugo’s work in Six of Crows. By taking this group of eclectic loners and banding them together for a high-octane adventure, the author creates a book that is thoroughly engaging and truly unpredictable.
Yet for all the entertainment value it offers, it is the exploration of each character, of their struggles and desires, that makes this title so gripping - and for a story set in a world of crime and sorcery and magic, that’s one hell of a feat. George White
The Name of the Wind
A travelling historian arrives at the Waystone Inn, chasing a rumour that its humble landlord is really the renowned magician Kvothe. He is not disappointed. The Kingkiller, as Kvothe is known to many, is in hiding, and though he won’t say why, he will tell his story. Whenever I recommend The Name of the Wind, I mention how refreshing it is to read a fantasy novel that isn’t about someone important. There are no princes or chosen ones here. In this first instalment of the Kingkiller chronicle, we learn of Kvothe’s humble beginnings in a troupe of travelling performers, the many struggles of his childhood, and his education in the many schools of magic. But the real triumph of this novel is the balance it achieves between extremes of the fantasy genre. The world is rich in lore and history, but readers aren’t overwhelmed with irrelevant detail. Magic works in a logical, tangible way, but it still adds vibrancy and wonder to the setting and story. Rothfuss’ prose is beautiful, but not at all dense or florid. It’s rare that I truly cannot put a book down, but this one kept my nose in its pages right until the end. Sam Marshall
The Hobbit
Cosy, wholesome, and full of beautifully drawn maps, The Hobbit is one of my favourite fantasy novels. Created by J.R.R. Tolkien, it’s one of the most classic fantasy novels, written for both children and adults in 1937. Set in the same fictional universe as Lord of The Rings, it’s here we meet Bilbo Baggins (the titular Hobbit) and accompany him on his quest alongside Gandolf and thirteen dwarves, all of whom are aiming to win a share of treasure guarded by the dragon Smaug. Overall, a story about adventure, self-discovery and friendship - the book has never been out of print for a reason! Alice Moon
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