what books would you recommend for their bizarre dreamlike imagery?
By threadSleepy
That’s honestly the weirdest thing I can picture—thanks for the recommendations though!
Reader discussion: Phantastes: A Faerie Romance for Men and Women
Public reader discussion about Phantastes: A Faerie Romance for Men and Women in the WeRead Catalog by George MacDonald.
Other books like Fourth Wing?
By PageMist
I’ve finished ACOTAR, and I’ve read Fourth Wing (and Iron Flame), and now I’m about to start Red Rising. I’m still pretty new to fantasy though, so I’m not sure what other books are similar to Fourth Wing—any recommendations?
If you were to teach a fantasy literature class, which titles would be on the reading list?
By library_falcon
I’ve been thinking about this for a while. I’m a big fantasy fan, but a lot of what I read feels like straight-up entertainment—kind of “shut your brain off, get swept into another world, enjoy the cool places and characters.” My issue is that, for me at least, most of it doesn’t really stick with you after the fun part is over. Like, there’s not much to chew on afterward besides “I liked this.” So if you were building a fantasy reading list for a class, what books would you actually pick if you want them to land deeper than simple escapism—like with themes or life lessons or stuff that makes you question things? Also, side note: I expected at least a couple people to take offense at what I said about fantasy being escapism. I wasn’t trying to say all fantasy is just that. I just meant that most of the time it’s entertainment first. And that’s not a bad thing. It’s art. When I look at a painting, I notice how it makes me feel before I start hunting for “what the artist meant.” Fantasy feels similar to me. I wish people wouldn’t get so bent out of shape over the word “escapism.”
What George McDonald books inspired Narnia?
By Story_Ash
I remember reading somewhere that George MacDonald inspired parts of Narnia, and I was gonna point those books out to someone. But I honestly can’t remember which ones they were since I don’t have them myself. If anyone knows, I’d really appreciate the info—thanks!
Recommend your favorite books with Fae! (Megathread 🧶)
By MistCreek
Could someone recommend books that have fae/faerie/fairies and the whole fair folk vibe? Also, when you suggest stuff, it’d be really helpful if you say whether it’s more the old-school traditional type (like the folklore ones with the whole evil-trickster thing and weird rules) or more modern “sexy” fae that look the part but don’t really stick to the classic standards. Thanks!
Phantastes: A Faerie Romance for Men and Women (1858) by George MacDonald
By pineChapter
I was reading a fantasy book that basically has everything you’d expect from modern fantasy (maybe even more) than Tolkien’s stuff, and it came out the same year as The Fellowship of the Ring, which honestly made me feel kind of bad for the author. That whole situation just made me question whether these guys really came up with the same kind of thing at the exact same time, so I went digging through older fantasy. I ended up finding one from the mid-1800s where this guy gets thrown into this unknown magical world on his 21st birthday, and a lot of the story is him trying to track down some impossible beauty. It’s not an otome or a romance in the modern sense, but it apparently counts as a classic romance novel for that era. So yeah, I guess this is one of the grandfathers of otome isekai.
Name an obscure fantasy novel and lose a point for every person who says they’ve read it
By faintLynx
Hey everyone, Me and a little book club I’m in tried this game recently and it sounded like something the bigger fantasy crowd might enjoy too. Basically: pick a fantasy book you think most people here probably haven’t read, then you start losing points every time someone comments that they’ve actually read it. Try to end with the most points. How it works: everyone begins with 20. Post the title of a fantasy book you think is obscure enough that there’s a decent chance nobody else has read it. If someone replies saying they’ve read your pick, you drop a point for each person who confirms. Rules-wise: it has to be in English (or an English translation). It should be a real published book—trad or self-pub is fine as long as it wasn’t some super tiny/unknown thing. And when people reply, only “I’ve read this” if they genuinely have read it—if they’re not sure, leave it. My pick: *Myrren’s Gift* by Fiona McIntosh I read this a while back and I swear I haven’t seen a single person mention it, even though it looks like it might be more popular than I remember (like, Goodreads seems to have some stuff on it), so… maybe I’m about to get wrecked. Should be fun to see who can hang onto the most points. Edit: wow, some of these responses are wild—actual finds, or complete flops. Edit 2: also, please use the search function before posting your book, just in case it’s already been picked.