61 Books Like The Red Knight

I love this book because it’s basically The Blues Brothers combined with Dungeons and Dragons. How did Nicholas Eames ever come up with that concept, and make it work so well?

In this breakneck madcap quest, retired hero Clay Cooper sets out to get his original adventuring ‘band’ back together one by one in order to go on one last mission to save his daughter. The jokes had me guffawing, the action had me riveted, and the structuring left me open-mouthed.

It reminds me of Final Fantasy because once again we have an eccentric ensemble cast going on an adventure quest with magic and monsters galore…but not only that: Eames is also on record as a Final Fantasy fan and names some of his characters after Final Fantasy characters, along with sticking in some other Easter eggs related to the franchise. 

Chel isn’t a man cut out to be a hard-nosed mercenary, but he falls in with a badass crew and the resulting exploits and squabbling prove highly entertaining for the rest of us even if he’s miserable throughout much of it! It’s a simple tale of being chased across the country by assassins, all told with foul-mouthed and engaging aplomb, so what’s not to love?

The Raven is your classic band of mercs, a found-family of warriors caught up in world-ending levels of chaos. This is much more 90s style fantasy and unashamedly so – serious, sword-swinging, spell-casting stuff. As a result, you have to buy into that a bit given how the genre has changed, but at the same time, the series is all about the consequences of actions rather than any pretence about happily ever after so there’s real meat to it.

The oldest book on the list and easily the most influential I’d suggest, the Black Company’s effect on fantasy goes way beyond books about mercenaries. The prose style isn’t for everyone (including me, I do find his style off-putting at times) but this is fantasy without dreamy illusions written by a man who knew first-hand what soldiers were really like. It’s grim and it’s dark, but he’s not playing for cheap or lurid shocks any more than he’s idealising anything.

Cameron’s Chivalry series of which this is the first, takes the reader on a thrilling journey across Europe during the Hundred Years War, chronicling the life of a mercenary who comes to serve the great Sir John Hawkwood and eventually is knighted himself.

Cameron is a master of prose description, scene-setting, and dialogue that rings true to the ear. His historical research is impeccable and like me, he has for many years donned full armour in reenactments and tournaments and so truly understands the challenges of medieval combat. A great read.

One of my all-time favorite fantasy novels, and the one that got me hooked on fantasy as a girl – Alanna is the ultimate scrappy heroine and I dreamed of being her when I was growing up.

Alanna has a black cat companion, which may or may not have influenced me to adopt a black cat as an adult.

At the time I read it, I’d never heard of a woman wanting to be a knight before – Alanna helped me realize that all glass ceilings can be shattered, and this remains one of the most re-read novels on my shelf. 

Though this book is historical fiction rather than fantasy, and I generally am a fantasy fan, K. M. Grant does wonders in this book. It takes place in King Richard’s crusades and, though the book spans several years, you never feel rushed or disconnected from the characters. It does not pick sides but rather has characters on both sides who come together, not in war, but in their love for a small blood-red stallion. As a huge history fan and an equestrian, this book combines medieval times and a knowledge of horses with a talent of weaving stories. It is superb! I cannot say enough about it.

Ever since I was a boy, I’ve loved stories of the Arthurian mythos. Camelot, the Round Table, the Grail Quest, I couldn’t get enough of it. I also love seeing classic stories gender-flipped to reveal new perspectives on the original narrative.

This novel, which reimagines the Grail Quest by making Percival a woman named Peretur, also infuses the classic myths with Welsh and Celtic lore, the effects of Roman colonization, and insightful explorations of queerness and disability in a fantasy setting, all delivered in truly beautiful prose.

This is a book that helped me see some of my favorite tales in a new and more enlightened way.

If I had to pick a perfect writer, Chadwick would be it. Her prose, her dialogue, her historical detail, and her characters are all pitch-perfect—it’s like she was reborn from the Middle Ages and is just reporting what she saw. This book is the first in a series about William Marshall, and if you don’t know who he is, you need to. Not only was he the greatest tournament champion ever, but an all-around exemplary soldier and statesman who saved the English crown at least a dozen times. Best of all, he lived during the most intriguing time of English history, the reign of Henry II, when the indomitable Eleanor was queen, and their four sons, Henry, Richard, Geoffrey, and John, were wrestling for the throne. (Two of my favorite movies, A Lion in Winter and Becket, also take place during this fascinating period.) William’s story has gotten lost… show more.

Getting to become a knight? Yes, please!

Childhood me, adult me, mommy me, writer me, all version of me wanted adventure—and swords. Her books were treasured enough in my home that my (now-adult) daughter and I both had to buy replacement copies over the years.

I read Tammy Pierce’s books with my daughter in the years before I was published, never knowing that years later, I’d be teaching sword fighting and chatting with Tammy herself about swords and books.

This recommendation is listing the one book, but it’s part of a whole set of connected series books.

This was our entry into a world of strong adventurous women, and honestly, I’m not sure I’d have ended up a writer if not for her writing.