Fantasy (YA)

The books in this list are primarily about worlds that are imagined (or a slightly wonky reality) -- think magic, elves, faeries, and quests in a universe that's not quite our own!

If you're also interested in fantasy creatures inhabiting a real work, be sure to check out our Supernatural and Urban Fantasy list!

Updated June 19, 2024
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Wellington City LibrariesYouth team at Wellington City Libraries
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Half a king
Abercrombie, Joe
Paper Book
A classic coming-of-age tale set in a vivid and richly-imagined world from Sunday Times bestselling author Joe Abercrombie. 'A fast-paced tale of betrayal and revenge that grabbed me from page one and refused to let go' GEORGE R.R. MARTIN Prince Yarvi has...
Children of blood and bone
Adeyemi, Tomi
Paper Book
An Instant #1 New York Times Bestseller A TIME Top 100 Fantasy Books of All Time A New York Times Notable Children's BookA Kirkus Prize Finalist With five starred reviews, Tomi Adeyemi's West African-inspired fantasy debut, and...
Shadow and bone
Bardugo, Leigh.
Paper Book
See the Grishaverse come to life on screen with the Netflix series, Shadow and Bone -- Season 2 streaming now! Discover the adventure that started it all and meet Alina, Mal, and the Darkling in Shadow and Bone from #1 bestselling author, Leigh Bardugo.
The guns above
Bennis, Robyn
Paper Book
Robyn Bennis's THE GUNS ABOVE is an adventurous military fantasy debut about a nation's first female airship captain. They say it's not the fall that kills you. For Josette Dupre, the Corps' first female airship captain, it might just be a bullet in the back...
The cruel prince
Black, Holly
Paper Book
By #1 New York Times bestselling author Holly Black, the first book in a stunning new series about a mortal girl who finds herself caught in a web of royal faerie intrigue. Of course I want to be like them. They're beautiful as blades forged in some divine fire. They will...
The gilded wolves
Chokshi, Roshani
Paper Book
*AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER* First in a "wildly inventive and wildly representative" (The New York Times Book Review) historical fantasy series, Roshani Chokshi's The Gilded Wolves follows the exploits of a found family--six societal outcasts...
The Scapegracers
Clarke, Hannah Abigail
Paper Book
"As tender and intimate as it is ferocious and volatile, Scapegracers deserves to be this generation's go-to grimoire. May it launch a thousand covens of angry, loving, brilliant girls." -Amal El-Mohtarin The New York Times Book Review Holiday Books Guide The Craft<...
A wizard of Earthsea
Le Guin, Ursula K.
Paper Book
The first novel of Ursula K. Le Guin's must-read Earthsea Cycle. "The magic of Earthsea is primal; the lessons of Earthsea remain as potent, as wise, and as necessary as anyone could dream." (Neil Gaiman) Ged was the greatest sorcerer in Earthsea, but in his youth he was the reckless...
The assassin's apprentice
Hobb, Robin
Paper Book
'Fantasy as it ought to be written' George R.R. Martin The kingdom of the Six Duchies is on the brink of civil war when news breaks that the crown prince has fathered a bastard son and is shamed into abdication. The child's name is Fitz, and he is despised. ...
The fifth season
Jemisin, N. K
Paper Book
At the end of the world, a woman must hide her secret power and find her kidnapped daughter in this "intricate and extraordinary" Hugo Award winning novel of power, oppression, and revolution. (The New York Times) This is the way the world ends. . .for the last time. ...
The eye of the world
Jordan, Robert
Paper Book
The Wheel of Time is now an original series on Prime Video, starring Rosamund Pike as Moiraine! The Eye of the World, the first novel in Robert Jordan's #1 New York Times bestselling epic fantasy series, The Wheel of Time®, follows Moiraine Damodred as she...
Dreamhunter
Knox, Elizabeth.
Paper Book
'...amazing and unique ... like nothing else I've ever read. You will want to go there.' Stephenie Meyer - author of the Twilight Saga Suitable for ages 12+ Fast-paced and dazzlingly imaginative, Dreamhunter will draw the reader into an extraordinary fictional world in which dreams are...
Arrows of the queen
Lackey, Mercedes.
Paper Book
Follows the adventures of Talia as she trains to become a Herald of Valdemar in the first book in the classic epic fantasy Arrows trilogy Chosen by the Companion Rolan, a mystical horse-like being with powers beyond imagining, Talia, once a runaway, has now become a trainee...
Serpent & dove
Mahurin, Shelby
Paper Book
New York Times Bestseller * Indiebound Bestseller * An Amazon Best Book of 2019 * B&N's YA Book Club Pick "A brilliant debut, full of everything I love: a sparkling and fully realized heroine, an intricate and deadly system of magic, and a searing romance that kept me...
The magician of Hoad
Mahy, Margaret.
Paper Book
Forced from home, twelve-year old Heriot's unwilling steps lead him to Diamond, first city of the Hoadara. Forced to serve as the King's magician, Heriot is isolated within the walls of Diamond, until he finds Cayley, a wild, ambiguous rat-of-the-city. Two lonely souls forge an unlikely friendship...
Mask of shadows
Miller, Linsey
Paper Book
"I love every aspect of this amazing book--a genderfluid hero, a deadly contest, and vicious courtly intrigue. Get! Read! Now!" --Tamora Pierce, #1 New York Times bestselling author I needed to win. They needed to die. Sallot Leon is a thief, and a good one at that. But gender fluid...
The bright and breaking sea
Neill, Chloe
Paper Book
Kit Brightling, rescued as a foundling and raised in a home for talented girls, has worked hard to rise through the ranks and become one of the few female captains in Queen Charlotte's fleet. But the waters become perilous when the queen sends Kit on a special mission with a partner she never asked...
Unbroken : 13 stories starring disabled teens
Nijkamp, Marieke
Paper Book
This anthology explores disability in fictional tales told from the viewpoint of disabled characters, written by disabled creators. With stories in various genres about first loves, friendship, war, travel, and more, Unbroken will offer today's teen readers a glimpse into the lives of...
The left-handed booksellers of London
Nix, Garth
Paper Book
This ABIA award-winning fantasy set in 1980s London follows one girl's quest to find her father, leading her to a secret society of magical fighting booksellers who police the mythical Old World when it disastrously intrudes into the modern world. For anyone who likes light-hearted adventure and...
Sabriel
Nix, Garth
Paper Book
Garth Nix's fantasy masterwork is a compelling high fantasy, the gripping story of a young woman who must journey into Death to defeat a powerful necromancer. A tale of dark secrets, deep love and dangerous magic.
A deadly education : a novel
Novik, Naomi
Paper Book
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * From the author of Uprooted and Spinning Silver comes the first book of the Scholomance trilogy, the story of an unwilling dark sorceress who is destined to rewrite the rules of magic. FINALIST FOR THE LODESTAR AWARD * "The dark...
Dorothy must die
Paige, Danielle.
Paper Book
Somewhere over the rainbow...something has gone terribly wrong. A twister has hit Kansas again, and this time it whisks away a girl named Amy Gumm. At first, Amy is thrilled to have left her trailer park life behind. But instead of the magical land where...
Tempests and slaughter : a Tortall legend
Pierce, Tamora
Paper Book
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * This must-read fantasy from an author who is legend herself--TAMORA PIERCE--is one Bustle calls "the perfect book for die-hard Pierce fans and newcomers alike." "Tamora Pierce's books shaped me not only as a young writer but also as a...
The colour of magic
Pratchett, Terry
Paper Book
'His spectacular inventiveness makes the Discworld series one of the perennial joys of modern fiction' Mail on Sunday NAMED AS ONE OF THE BBC'S 100 MOST INSPIRING NOVELS The Discworld is very much like our own - if our own were to...
Carry on : the rise and fall of Simon Snow
Rowell, Rainbow
Paper Book
#1 New York Times best seller! Booklist Editors' Choice 2015 - Youth! Named a "Best Book of 2015" by Time Magazine, School Library Journal, Barnes & Noble, NPR, PopSugar, The Millions, and The News & Observer! Simon Snow is the worst Chosen One...
This savage song : a monsters of Verity novel
Schwab, Victoria
Paper Book
#1 New York Times Bestseller * An Amazon Best Book of the Year There's no such thing as safe in a city at war, a city overrun with monsters. In this dark urban fantasy from acclaimed author Victoria Schwab, a young woman and a young man must choose whether to become heroes or villains--and...
The alchemyst : the secrets of the immortal Nicholas Flamel
Scott, Michael
Paper Book
Nicholas Flamel appeared in J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter--but did you know he really lived? And his secrets aren't safe! Discover the truth in book one of the New York Times bestselling series the Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel.   The truth:<...
Iron cast
Soria, Destiny
Paper Book
It's Boston, 1919, and the Cast Iron club is packed. On stage, hemopaths--whose "afflicted" blood gives them the ability to create illusions through art--Corinne and Ada have been best friends ever since infamous gangster Johnny Dervish recruited them into his circle. By night they perform for...
The thief
Turner, Megan Whalen.
Paper Book
Discover and rediscover the world of the Queen's Thief, from the acclaimed novel The Thief to the thrilling, twenty-years-in-the-making conclusion, The Return of the Thief. The epic novels set in the world of the Queen's Thief can be read in any order. New York Times...
Leviathan
Westerfeld, Scott.
Paper Book
It is the cusp of World War I, and all the European powers are arming up. The Austro-Hungarians and Germans have their Clankers, steam-driven iron machines loaded with guns and ammunition. The British Darwinists employ fabricated animals as their weaponry. Their Leviathan is a whale airship,...

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