Books like The Magicians' Guild — picked by fans

Vampire stories are out there–plenty of them. So many, in fact, that they are starting to bore me. What I find refreshing about these books is that the vampire part takes a back seat–it’s merely a circumstance that reveals the protagonist’s character when suddenly confronted with entirely different circumstances in her life, i.e., becoming a Vampire unplanned.

The protagonist remains true to her ironic and sarcastic self and is still insecure as a person even though she is now super-strong and fast. She learns over time to outgrow some of her less productive behavioral patterns, just as she likely would have as a human. 

This chart-topping writing duo can do no wrong in my eyes. Their Innkeeper Chronicles series ranks amongst my all-time favorites, but when it comes to fierce female protagonists, their Kate Daniels series truly takes the cake.

I find Kate fascinating. She has a complex backstory (no spoilers here!), and she is a masterful fighter, excelling in both physical combat and magical prowess. She consistently stands up for others, often putting herself in peril to protect those around her. 

I love how her wit and humor shine through, striking the perfect balance between light and shade. 

I will always remember the way she greeted a particular deadly lion shifter with a cheeky “Here, kitty, kitty, kitty.” For me, Kate Daniels embodies everything a fierce female protagonist should be.

How often have I heard, “Oh, Q. W. Aardvark’s fantasy is awesome, but you really need to read all 8,326 books in the series to get it”! How about no? Fortunately, I learned the secret of Pratchett’s Discworld series: each novel is freestanding.

I like this book because it’s like a cynical, bitter uncle who secretly has a teddy bear—despite the outward grime and gloom of the setting, there’s a hilarious wit, punning, and barrage of pop references underlying the story that gives it a heart. It’s fantasy for those who don’t think they like it.

As a person with strong ties to biology, I love that in this book, vampires and werewolves are no more magical or supernatural (and therefore also no more immortal) than any human; they just came from different branches down the evolutionary tree.

What I really liked were the dialogues–the sarcasm, verbal power games, and dry humor. And the character development, where an isolated person learns that opening up and accepting friendship and the feeling of belonging requires courage because it also makes one more vulnerable.

You want epic—you got epic! Belgarath becomes the disciple of the god, Aldur, and struggles to learn not only magic, but humility. Belgarath the Sorcerer is a late book in Eddings’ epic series, and if I recall correctly, it should be read after The Belgariad and The Mallorean (both of which are 5-book sequences). I’m pretty sure that reading about these hugely powerful gods and their disciples seeped into the developing inspiration for Kiranis, with its gods and prophets and grand schemes. There’s something deeply welcoming about this book, which is in 1st person as Belgarath tells his tale, especially following everything that happened in the preceding 10-book cycle. This is my favourite Eddings character, and he is more alive than those you might think were the central ones. From this book, I learned that true character development is an evolutionary process, and you just have to be patient… show more.

Like many fantasy novels, The Paper Magician revolves around a character who feels small, lost, and powerless.

Although Ceony Twill desperately wants metal magic, she gets assigned to paper and decides to make the most of it. Since I’m half-Japanese, I immediately thought “origami!” when I read about the folding magic. It is the first book in a trilogy and I found the story to be a light, fast read.

Holmberg’s Victorian, gas-lamp world feels familiar, and though I found the characters a little thin (paper joke intended!), I enjoyed Ceony’s adventure. My favorite characters were two of the paper creatures, Fennel and Jonto, and I dare you not to adore them too!

I found so much to love in this story of found family and hidden magic—an enchanted isle, a guardian wizard and his rabbit familiar, and a young woman with a concealed past, all devoted to one another.

The bonds between the wizard, his adopted daughter, and their rabbit familiar were simply lovely, and the sacrifices they made in their quest to save what magic remains in their world were compelling. Despite trials the characters endure, the story still captured a cozy feel which would make it a fantastic winter read.

Though The Magician’s Daughter stands alone, I’d love a sequel—I didn’t want to leave these enchanting characters behind!

Reading this was like drinking tea with a ghost in a dusty library—charming, eerie, and wonderfully slow.

Clarke's ability to mix historical fiction with brooding, folkloric magic was inspiring. I admired how it builds tension not with battles, but with manners, contracts, and impossible choices. It taught me patience in worldbuilding and in life.

This was my first, but not last, novel by Steven James.

The protagonist, Special Agent Patrick Bowers, goes to North Carolina to seek out and capture a serial killer who calls himself the Illusionist. I enjoyed the suspense factor from the very beginning, which kept me continuing from one chapter to the next. I was on the edge from the beginning to the last page and was pleased to know this was the first of several in the Patrick Bowers Files. 

Clever, with rich worldbuilding and a cast of flawed, fleshed-out characters, this book is a definite page-turner. Nora Fisher’s life is in a slump: her dissertation is stalled, and her love life is in tatters. While attending a friend’s wedding, she slips off for a hike and accidentally winds up in another world, one far more beautiful than her own but where nothing is as it seems. Escaping her gilded prison is one matter, but to find her way home again, Nora will need to discover her talent for magic. I thoroughly enjoyed both this book and its recent sequel, How to Talk to a Goddess and Other Lessons in Real Magic.