10 Lengthy Fantasy Book Series & Sagas That Are Totally Worth Committing To

Most lengthy fantasy book series are a significant commitment if one plans to read it all the way through, but many are completely worth the investment. Several highly anticipated fantasy book series coming out in 2024 demonstrate that the taste for epic sci-fi and fantasy sagas has endured. Very few series will reach the level of success of the biggest fantasy franchises that defined the genre. However, the slim odds of massive success have not stopped talented writers from creating riveting new worlds in which to tell extensive stories.

The best long-running fantasy novel series convey a sense that the author had a plan for the full story from the beginning. This results in a satisfying and organic narrative that never feels like it is being drawn out past its expiration date. However, some other book series, such as the Riordanverse and the Shadowhunters universe, are well set up to produce endless new tales that will doubtlessly draw in fans committed to reading them all.

10 The Wheel Of Time

By Robert Jordan & Brandon Sanderson

Before it was adapted into a hit Amazon Prime TV show, The Wheel of Time was (and still is) regarded as a classic series, falling between the Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter eras in the evolution of fantasy literature. Originally planned to be a series of six novels, The Wheel of Time eventually expanded to include 15 novels. While original author Robert Jordan passed away while working on the 12th book, he left his notes for the rest of the series to Brandon Sanderson, who completed the subsequent three novels.

The Wheel of Time’s extensive world-building rivals Tolkien’s creation — Jordan’s dedication to detail is a burden at times. There are many, many characters whose different perspectives eventually branch out to cover several storylines in one ongoing saga. The Wheel of Time show makes some good and bad changes from the books regarding how developed the characters are, but it is up to readers to decide which one they personally prefer.

9 The Shadowhunters Chronicles

By Cassandra Clare

Cassandra Clare’s Shadowhunters Chronicles started with a single series, then expanded to include a prequel trilogy, then a sequel, a spinoff, and so on. Every story focusing on a new generation of Shadowhunters is equally enthralling. Such a long-running franchise of interconnected series gives readers the chance to see the characters grow over many years, exploring different times and scenarios within this hidden magical world. Readers can pick out which historical aesthetic they prefer, with the Victorian, Edwardian, and modern eras all featured.

Almost every individual series — The Mortal Instruments, The Infernal Devices, The Dark Artifices, The Last Hours, etc. — can be read on its own. However, missing out on any of them is risking learning something new about the world. Each series introduces more instantly likable characters, but few are as iconic as the warlock Magnus Bane. Clare must know that Magnus is her best character, as he makes an appearance in most of the books in the series due to his immortality.

8 From Blood And Ash

By Jennifer L. Armentrout

The Blood and Ash series will comprise seven books in the main narrative — six of which will be released as of 2024 — as well as a prequel/spinoff series of four additional books. Beginning with From Blood and Ash, seasoned fantasy writer Jennifer L. Armentrout won over the fanbases of Sarah J. Maas’ Throne of Glass and Leigh Bardugo’s Shadow and Bone. It is unsurprising that From Blood and Ash would be liked by fans of these previous series when it also focuses on a strong female lead, a sexy forbidden romance, and a revolution against a corrupted government.

As the series continues, the lore only gets deeper while Poppy and Hawke’s romance gets more complicated. The only caveat is that readers will be forced to wait for the seventh book once they have finished the currently published ones. However, that is still 10 books, which will keep even the most dedicated readers busy for a while.

7 A Song Of Ice And Fire

By George R. R. Martin

For all of Game of Thrones’ compelling storylines and world-building, some things from George R. R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire series didn’t make it into the show. These books are incredibly dense and take years to write, yielding stunning results in a rich medievalist world. Game of Thrones makes some of the characters more conventionally heroic, but those who are inclined to an even darker story can find it in the books.

Additionally, characters such as the Martell family are far more developed; only readers know them as they were intended to be. At the time of writing, Martin still faces pressure to complete the series, especially in the wake of Game of Thrones’ controversial finale. However, even if the final books are never published, the A Song of Ice and Fire books may offer fans some closure. Perhaps they can come to their own conclusion about how things would have ended with additional information about all the characters.

6 The Grishaverse

By Leigh Bardugo

Those who are still upset about the Shadow and Bone storylines that will never be resolved due to the show’s cancellation can turn to the source material for answers. The original Shadow and Bone trilogy is a bestselling series that introduces the fantastical world of Ravka and the countries surrounding it, with fan-favorite characters including Alina, Nikolai, and Zoya. However, these first three books pale in comparison to Bardugo’s first spinoff in the Grishaverse.

Six of Crows is doubtlessly one of the best fantasy duologies to read, with a plot conceptualized as a fantasy Ocean’s Eleven and a crew of underdog criminals ready to make everyone who underestimated them dreadfully sorry. Kaz and his Crows are at the center of the story, with some appearances by characters from the Shadow and Bone books. Bardugo then leads into the King of Scars duology — the books that finally give Zoya’s character her due — with the possibility of more adventures to come.

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5 Discworld

By Terry Pratchett

Fantasy legend Terry Pratchett demonstrates his razor-sharp sense of humor and incomparable knowledge of his favored genre in the Discworld novels. The fact that the Discworld is a flat planet balanced on the backs of four giant elephants who stand on the back of a gargantuan turtle gives readers some indication of what they are in for. The Discworld series comprises 41 books published over more than 30 years; however, starting with the first book published is not necessary.

There are multiple starting points and several storylines focusing on specific characters to follow. The books focusing on Pratchett’s amicable personification of death and his family feature intriguing musings on humanity and mortality. Guards! Guards! and the other novels focusing on the City Watch’s reformation offer some fantastically parodical moments regarding the long-lost heir trope. Pratchett’s ability to take apart the tropes and rebuild them makes the Discworld novels a vital contribution to the fantasy genre.

4 The Earthsea Cycle

By Ursula K. Le Guin

The genre-defining fantasy author Ursula K. Le Guin wrote several standalone sci-fi novels within her Hainish universe, while The Earthsea Cycle is her primary contribution to the fantasy genre and her only major novel series, in the traditional sense of the descriptor. Consisting of six books, The Earthsea Cycle does not follow the typical linear book-to-book narrative readers have come to expect with today’s many fantasy series that are heavily derivative of each other. Rather, the series jumps between characters’ perspectives at different times in their lives.

Earthsea introduced a magic system focusing on a true language that was later adapted by Christopher Paolini in The Inheritance Cycle, with subplots exploring improper uses of magic. Earthsea also represents a major jump forward in the inclusion of people of color in fantasy literature, while later books also constitute impactful stories about gender power politics as they relate to gendered interpretations of magic in Le Guin’s world. Earthsea is one of the most complex fantasy series of the past century, with its publication stretching over 30 years.

3 The Riordanverse

By Rick Riordan

Rick Riordan’s expansive literary universe is characterized by sarcastic humor and clever takes on mythological figures. The modernized versions of characters from various mythologies are hilarious, encompassing everything from the Sphinx hosting a game show to Hades complaining about paying his employees overtime. Over the years, Riordan gradually expanded the world from his initial premise of modern Greek gods to include their Roman iterations, as well as the Egyptian and Norse pantheons. It started with the smallest hints that they were all happening in the same setting, before showing direct interactions between the characters of different series.

The sheer number of books with different series of books focusing on different characters allows Riordan to fully develop everyone. At this point, Percy’s story is no more complete than Nico di Angelo’s or Magnus Chase’s (a character named after Cassandra Clare’s Magnus, as noted in Sword of Summer’s dedication). There is a myriad of individual storylines to get invested in, new facets of different mythologies to learn about, and endless hysterical jokes in the Riordanverse, for readers of all ages.

2 Mistborn

By Brandon Sanderson

Brandon Sanderson’s Mistborn movie has been stuck in development hell for years, to the endless frustration of readers who know it to be one of the best fantasy novel series out there. The first three books published form a trilogy while the latter four are another series set in the same world centuries later. The Wheel of Time co-writer kicked things off in The Final Empire with a fugitive protagonist planning to destroy his world’s corrupt empire, coming across another young criminal who has the same supernatural gifts as him.

The “Mistborn” have some supernatural powers, but the magic system expands in unexpected ways, especially in the later books. However, in general, people who love outlaw protagonists and fantasy revolutions will enjoy the Mistborn series. Readers will also experience two different aesthetics, with the first trilogy resembling a classic medievalist fantasy, while the latter four books take place in a setting closer to the 20th century, with magic mixed in.

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1 The Bone Season

By Samantha Shannon

At the time of writing, Samantha Shannon’s The Bone Season series includes four books in the main timeline, an in-between novella, a prequel book, and a companion piece that is supposed to be a pamphlet that exists within the series’ setting. It has taken Shannon 10 years to write and publish these books, with three more planned installments in the series. With the recent release of revised editions, now is the perfect time to start The Bone Season before the next three books are released.

Another must-read for fans of criminal escapades, The Bone Season follows the life and times of Paige Mahoney, a fugitive dreamwalker and clairvoyant trying to survive in dystopian London. This is before she is kidnapped and brought to the enigmatic city of Oxford, where new dangers await. The amount of time it has taken to write this series is illustrative of how it is not just long but dense, making it an arduous read — yet like its contemporary series, it is undoubtedly worth readers’ time.