Who are the best fantasy authors?

The best-known fantasy authors here, ranked by how widely they are read and written about, are J. R. R. Tolkien, J. K. Rowling, C. S. Lewis, Stephen King and Ray Bradbury.

What are the best fantasy series?

Harry Potter by J. K. Rowling, A Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin, A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas and The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins — each listed in reading order.

Can I read fantasy books for free?

Yes. 328 fantasy books by these authors are in the public domain in the US and free to read here.

Fantasy authors and series

The best-known fantasy authors are J. R. R. Tolkien, J. K. Rowling and C. S. Lewis. Below are all 205 fantasy writers in the directory, their best-known series in reading order, and 328 of their books free to read.

Authors: 205
Series: 372
Free to read: 328

Best-known fantasy authors

Fantasy series in reading order

All series

Harry Potter
J. K. Rowling · 8 books
A Song of Ice and Fire
George R. R. Martin · 10 books
A Court of Thorns and Roses
Sarah J. Maas · 7 books
The Hunger Games
Suzanne Collins · 5 books
Percy Jackson and the Olympians
Rick Riordan · 5 books
Discworld
Terry Pratchett · 49 books
Heroes of Olympus
Rick Riordan · 5 books
The Folk of the Air
Holly Black · 5 books
The Chronicles of Narnia
C. S. Lewis · 7 books
Throne of Glass
Sarah J. Maas · 8 books
Ender's Saga
Orson Scott Card · 20 books
Mistborn
Brandon Sanderson · 8 books

Free fantasy classics

All free classics

The call of Cthulhu
H. P. Lovecraft
At the mountains of madness
H. P. Lovecraft
Thuvia, maid of Mars
Edgar Rice Burroughs
A princess of Mars
Edgar Rice Burroughs
King Solomon's Mines
H. Rider Haggard
She
H. Rider Haggard
The House of the Wolfings
William Morris
The Well at the World's End
William Morris
Red Nails
Robert E. Howard
The Hour of the Dragon
Robert E. Howard
Four Arthurian Romances
Chrétien de Troyes
Cliges
Chrétien de Troyes
King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table
Thomas Malory
Le Morte d'Arthur
Thomas Malory

Classic fantasy authors

All fantasy authors

J. R. R. Tolkien 52 books
J. K. Rowling 32 books
C. S. Lewis 46 books
Stephen King 136 books
Ray Bradbury 79 books
H. P. Lovecraft 47 books
Edgar Rice Burroughs 77 books
George R. R. Martin 54 books
Roald Dahl 47 books
Terry Pratchett 97 books
Ursula K. Le Guin 72 books
Robert A. Heinlein 83 books
H. Rider Haggard 75 books
William Morris 38 books
Neil Gaiman 60 books
Robert E. Howard 59 books
Stephenie Meyer 23 books
Suzanne Collins 12 books
Anne Rice 40 books
Rick Riordan 54 books
Philip Pullman 45 books
Marion Zimmer Bradley 111 books
Clifford D. Simak 42 books
Chrétien de Troyes 4 books
Richard Matheson 33 books
Thomas Malory 2 books
Andre Norton 196 books
Fritz Leiber 45 books
Nora Roberts 296 books
Andrzej Sapkowski 26 books
Orson Scott Card 122 books
Christopher Paolini 12 books
Philip José Farmer 69 books
Akira Toriyama 27 books
Brandon Sanderson 69 books
Jack Vance 71 books
James Blish 52 books
Guillermo del Toro 10 books
Lord Dunsany 57 books
Octavia E. Butler 19 books
Robert Jordan 31 books
Roger Zelazny 72 books
Diana Wynne Jones 62 books
Ben Bova 95 books
Eiichiro Oda 120 books
Christopher Tolkien 20 books
Anne McCaffrey 113 books
James Branch Cabell 33 books
Chris Colfer 17 books
James Hilton 15 books
Sarah J. Maas 24 books
Dan Simmons 34 books
Cornelia Funke 33 books
Andy Weir 7 books
Lois McMaster Bujold 55 books
Holly Black 43 books
Masashi Kishimoto 29 books
Richard Adams 26 books
R. A. Salvatore 91 books
P. L. Travers 20 books
Leigh Bardugo 18 books
Diana Gabaldon 36 books
David Mitchell 9 books
Robin Hobb 35 books
Michael Moorcock 116 books
Clark Ashton Smith 22 books
N. K. Jemisin 19 books
Piers Anthony 198 books
Terry Goodkind 34 books
L. J. Smith 33 books
Jonathan Stroud 15 books
Joe Abercrombie 15 books
A. Merritt 11 books
C. J. Cherryh 96 books
China Miéville 21 books
Susanna Clarke 4 books
Charlaine Harris 59 books
Lloyd Alexander 45 books
Terry Brooks 73 books
T. H. White 23 books
Gene Wolfe 54 books
Naomi Novik 19 books
Raymond E. Feist 44 books
Jim Butcher 50 books
Marissa Meyer 21 books
Patrick Rothfuss 7 books
Kentaro Miura 46 books
Jeff VanderMeer 33 books
Richelle Mead 36 books
Steven Erikson 27 books
Margaret Weis 107 books
C. L. Moore 13 books
David Eddings 33 books
Brian Jacques 36 books
Kevin J. Anderson 103 books
R. F. Kuang 8 books
Stephanie Garber 9 books
Harry Turtledove 117 books
Ted Chiang 7 books
Mercedes Lackey 160 books
John Flanagan 46 books
Charles Stross 43 books
Nnedi Okorafor 30 books
Paolo Bacigalupi 10 books
Victoria Aveyard 11 books
Ann Leckie 10 books
P. C. Cast 56 books
Laurell K. Hamilton 56 books
Maggie Stiefvater 24 books
Garth Nix 48 books
Tanith Lee 103 books
Martha Wells 33 books
Tite Kubo 15 books
Tad Williams 34 books
Tracy Hickman 70 books
V. E. Schwab 27 books
Guy Gavriel Kay 21 books
David Weber 88 books
Susan Cooper 31 books
Tamora Pierce 38 books
Michael Dante DiMartino 13 books
Theodore Sturgeon 39 books
Tui T. Sutherland 39 books
Shannon Messenger 18 books
David Gemmell 39 books
Mark Z. Danielewski 7 books
Chris Van Allsburg 18 books
Penelope Lively 42 books
Jennifer L. Armentrout 68 books
Naoko Takeuchi 17 books
Adrian Tchaikovsky 54 books
Sherrilyn Kenyon 83 books
Peter S. Beagle 24 books
Stephen R. Donaldson 34 books
Richard K. Morgan 15 books
Glen Cook 64 books
Ken Liu 13 books
Tim Powers 26 books
Patricia A. McKillip 34 books
Lauren Roberts 8 books
Amber Benson 12 books
Lauren Oliver 20 books
Seanan McGuire 76 books
Elizabeth Moon 41 books
Gregory Maguire 38 books
Jennifer Rowe 72 books
Nancy Kress 36 books
Scott Lynch 9 books
Kelley Armstrong 76 books
Catherynne M. Valente 36 books
Soman Chainani 13 books
Jasper Fforde 19 books
Tomi Adeyemi 5 books
Brent Weeks 10 books
Brandon Mull 32 books
David Drake 86 books
Mary Norton 14 books
Shannon Hale 58 books
Patricia Briggs 37 books
Ursula Vernon 31 books
Robin McKinley 20 books
Takeshi Obata 13 books
Kazu Kibuishi 21 books
Gary Gygax 28 books
Felicia Day 5 books
Diane Duane 48 books
Graham Masterton 107 books
TJ Klune 31 books
Samantha Shannon 10 books
Robert Asprin 47 books
Elizabeth Bear 40 books
Tamsyn Muir 7 books
Charles de Lint 61 books
Jeanne DuPrau 11 books
Mark Lawrence 19 books
James Gurney 9 books
Jay Kristoff 18 books
L. E. Modesitt Jr. 91 books
Amal El-Mohtar 5 books
Mike Carey 41 books
Kelly Link 9 books
Patricia Wrede 33 books
Lisa McMann 37 books
Navessa Allen 7 books
Christie Golden 48 books
Kim Harrison 35 books
Sabaa Tahir 5 books
Ellen Datlow 42 books
Paul Kidby 8 books
Jin Yong 16 books
Max Gladstone 13 books
Roshani Chokshi 17 books
Alex Aster 11 books
Julie Kagawa 40 books
Adam Blade 99 books
Gena Showalter 87 books
John Barrowman 6 books
Mark Oshiro 8 books
Carrie Vaughn 30 books
Carissa Broadbent 8 books
James Stephens 0 books
Sergei Lukyanenko 20 books
Silvina Ocampo 3 books
Marc Simonetti 4 books
Joana Marcús 2 books

Fantasy FAQ

Who are the best fantasy authors?: The best-known fantasy authors here, ranked by how widely they are read and written about, are J. R. R. Tolkien, J. K. Rowling, C. S. Lewis, Stephen King and Ray Bradbury.
What are the best fantasy series?: Harry Potter by J. K. Rowling, A Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin, A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas and The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins — each listed in reading order.
Can I read fantasy books for free?: Yes. 328 fantasy books by these authors are in the public domain in the US and free to read here.

Best-known fantasy authors

J. R. R. Tolkien

J. K. Rowling

C. S. Lewis

Stephen King

Ray Bradbury

George R. R. Martin

Roald Dahl

Terry Pratchett

Ursula K. Le Guin

Robert A. Heinlein

Neil Gaiman

Stephenie Meyer

Suzanne Collins

Anne Rice

Rick Riordan

Philip Pullman

Marion Zimmer Bradley

Clifford D. Simak

Fantasy series in reading order

Free fantasy classics

Classic fantasy authors

H. P. Lovecraft

Edgar Rice Burroughs

H. Rider Haggard

William Morris

Robert E. Howard

Chrétien de Troyes

Thomas Malory

Lord Dunsany

James Branch Cabell

James Hilton

A. Merritt

James Stephens

All fantasy authors

Fantasy FAQ