Books like The Last Unicorn
30 fantasy books to read after The Last Unicorn, by Beagle, Peter S., the closest match first.
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1. American Gods
by Gaiman, Neil
- On the same lists
Neil Gaiman is an ever-popular writer who's branched into cinema, comics, and books. Quite a few people will argue that Neverwhere or Stardust is better than American Gods, but I...
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2. The Hobbit
by Tolkien, J.r.r.
- On the same lists
An unforgettable story and a tale that never gets old. It's not as broad in scope as Lord of the Rings which is not really a standalone, nor does it...
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3. Good Omens
by Gaiman, Neil
- On the same lists
Fantasy has never been so clever or funny as it is in the brilliant Good Omens.Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaimen form a super team and pen one of the funniest...
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4. 11/22/63
by King, Stephen
- On the same lists
The best Stephen King in a decade, and even a coin toss for his best work yet. King takes a well-known historical event, the Assassination of JFK, and does something...
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5. The Book Of Joby
by Ferrari, Mark J.
- On the same lists
Oh this is a clever one. The premise is that God and Satan make a bet, a bet they have made countless times. But this time, the cards are stacked...
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6. The Name Of The Wind
by Rothfuss, Patrick
- On the same lists
Kvothe is a legend, and the man who now runs a quiet inn under another name is not eager to talk about it. When a chronicler tracks him down, he...
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7. Lord Of The Flies
by Golding, William
- On the same lists
A plane carrying schoolboys crashes on an uninhabited Pacific island with no adults left alive. Ralph, who is elected leader after blowing a conch to gather the others, tries to...
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8. The Martian
by Weir, Andy
- On the same lists
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • “Brilliant . . . a celebration of human ingenuity [and] the purest example of real-science sci-fi for many years . . . utterly compelling.”—The...
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Chronicle Of The Fallers book 1 Start here
9. The Abyss Beyond Dreams
by Hamilton, Peter F.
- On the same lists
A self-proclaimed prophet is haunted by visions of a lost civilisation, and the Commonwealth's founder, Nigel Sheldon, goes to find out whether they come from the Void, the vast region...
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10. The Dark Defiles
by Morgan, Richard
- On the same lists
The Dark Defiles is best of the series. Morgan built a fascinating world, dirt and all, and populated it will heroes that were also real people. Morgan dissects the idea...
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11. The Rune Lords
by Farland, David
- On the same lists
From Publishers WeeklyThe breathless third installment of Farland's second Runelords quartet opens with the cliffhanger from 2007's Sons of the Oak: flameweaver wizard Fallion Orden, son of the Earth King,...
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12. The Aspect Emperor
by Bakker, R. Scott
- On the same lists
Exquisitely intelligent and beautifully written . . . this is fantasy with muscle and brains, rife with intrigue and admirable depth of character, set in a world laden with history...
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13. Butchers Bird
by Kadrey, Richard
- On the same lists
Wow, what a novel -- supremely rich of imagination. Kadrey is often compared to the likes of Neil Gaiman, but more of a blue color version of him. Kadrey tackles...
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14. God's Demon
by Barlowe, Wayne
- On the same lists
Heaven and Hell books are a semi-popular fantasy genre. My pick for one of the more exciting books is God's Demon by Wayne Barlowe. Lucifer, rather than being that despicable...
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15. The Terror
by Simmons, Dan
- On the same lists
Two Royal Navy ships trapped in the Arctic ice are stalked by something that is not the cold, a frightening historical novel.
Be prepared to be truly terrified with this book! If you've never read Dan Simmons before, you have sinned indeed. Simmons is one of the most talented writers on the...
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16. Deerskin
by Mckinley, Robin
- On the same lists
An author who writes mesmerizing fantasy stories with an almost lyrical, dreamlike style. Her prose is always outstanding, top notch and beautiful to read. Deerskin is perhaps her best, most...
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17. Swordspoint
by Kushner, Ellen
- On the same lists
A definitive example of the Fantasy of Manners sub-genre. This is a witty novel with plot twists, humor, and interesting characters.
Perhaps the quintessential definition of the 'fantasy of manners' subgenre (sometimes referred to as 'mannerpunk'). It's a book that brilliantly combines elements of court intrigue, unbridled human emotion, and sword...
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18. To Ride Hell's Chasm
by Wurts, Janny
- On the same lists
Wurts is one of the more underrated fantasy authors in the genre; she's written many book, but perhaps her most fun, most thrilling book is her stand alone To Ride...
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The Last Unicorn book 1 Start here
19. The Last Unicorn
by Beagle, Peter S.
- Same author
The short sequel to The Last Unicorn and is the quest of a young girl who seeks to make her village safe from a mean griffon.
Told from the perspective of the unicorn herself, this novel is as much satire as it is fairytale. The journey begins when she overhears a conversation insinuating that the unicorns...
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20. The Folding Knife
by Parker, K. J.
- On the same lists
One of the more complex fantasy works on this list, The Folding Knife is another one of those epics that don't initially made the standard epic fantasy criteria until you...
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21. Foundation
by Asimov, Isaac
- On the same lists
Some softer elements, like FTL and antigrav cars, but otherwise a rational series.
Book Flap Description One of the great masterworks of science fiction, the Foundation novels of Isaac Asimov are unsurpassed for their unique blend of nonstop action, daring ideas, and extensive...
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22. The War Of The Flowers
by Williams, Tad
- On the same lists
For a Fair Tale well done, look no further than Tad Williams' The War of Flowers. It makes the classic 'man-goes-into-the-fairy-realm' tale proud. Williams is really a talented writer, having...
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23. Lord Of Light
by Zelazny, Roger
- On the same lists
Clones and transfer technology make the doctrine of reincarnation a literal truth.
Zelazny may be famous in the fantasy world for his Amber series, but his best work may just be his stand alone novel, Lord of Light. It's a work that's...
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24. Imajica
by Barker, Clive
- On the same lists
Barker's vast, strange epic of rival worlds and a sorcerer's quest, horror on the scale of high fantasy.
You might also call this one The Lord of the Rings of horror books -- a somewhat apt description that describes what this is. It's not a book that will...
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Ready Player One book 1 Start here
25. Ready Player One: A Novel
by Cline, Ernest
- On the same lists
Not 'strictly' a LitRPG novel, but Ready Player One has a lot of elements that make up an LITRPG book, those being the in-game sequences. This is not only a...
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Ringworld book 1 Start here
26. Ringworld (1971)
by Niven, Larry
- On the same lists
One of the most famous books of the genre, that follows the pros and cons of living on a spinning ring instead of a round planet. The fact that makes this book so famous is that after the author’s ideas were proven impracticable, he wrote a sequel explaining the inadequacies.
In the year 2850, Louis Wu turns 200 and is bored with life. Then a two-headed alien Puppeteer called Nessus offers him a job: join a small expedition to a...
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27. The Iron Dragon's Daughter
by Swanwick, Michael
- On the same lists
This is a dark story about a girl who slaves in a dragon factory, building monsters that are part magical and part cybernetic.
Not a standard fantasy. This is one of those books that puts the onus on the readers to understand the story, characters, and setting. But if you put in the...
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28. Ocean At The End Of The Lane
by Gaiman, Neil
- On the same lists
A nameless protagonist had a magical childhood where he became part of a battle between the supernatural forces of good and evil. This book does not necessarily reveal the wonder within our mundane world. But, it is a kind of fairy tale.
A powerful story that deals with themes of childhood, innocence, and growing up. What's particularly powerful is Gaiman's ability to harness feelings that most of us, as children, have experienced...
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29. The Goblin Emperor
by Addison, Katherine
- On the same lists
A powerful coming of age tale about a rejected half-goblin, half-elven prince who comes unexpectedly to power when an accident kills his father, the emperor, and half brothers. It's a...
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30. The Golden Key
by Rawn, Melanie
- On the same lists
The Golden Key is the only book on this list with multiple authors (and three of them at that), perhaps because such works have a tendency to be disjointed, a...
Matches come from series and authors, from the lists the books share, and from the books readers open together. They are rebuilt every night. Back to The Last Unicorn.
The shortlist
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