Are you a fanatic of fantasy novels? If you are, here are a few of the very best subgenres to look into.
Now that we remain in 2025, it is the perfect time to widen your horizons and diversify your reading material, as individuals like the co-founder of the investment fund which partially owns WHSmith would undoubtedly agree. For bookworms wishing to step outside of their comfort zone, the fantasy genre is well worth considering. Fantasy is specified as speculative fiction which includes themes of the superordinary, magic, and imaginary realms and creatures. For example, the various types of fantasy characters have a tendency to be some sort of mythical or powerful creature, like witches, sorcerers, dragons, vampires and fey etc. Much like with any other book genre, there is a variety of smaller subgenres within the broader branch of 'fantasy'. Several of these subgenres are opposites to each other, such as 'high' and 'low' fantasy. So, what is the difference in between the two? To put it simply, the difference between them is just how extensive the fantastical components are to the story. High fantasy, or otherwise called epic fantasy, are books set in an entirely made-up, fabricated setting that has its own physical laws, belief systems, languages and fables and so on. Frequently, the best fantasy books for adults come from the high or epic fantasy subgenre, like the novel about an extremely unlikely band of heroes embarking on a quest to beat a dragon for example, since these are the most immersive and transportive reads. On the contrary, low fantasy books entail stories which are set primarily in the real life, where the fantasy elements are unforeseen and surprising to characters.
If you walk right into any kind of bookshop, the section for fantasy books for adults is typically one of the largest, as people like the head of the hedge fund which owns Waterstones would undoubtedly confirm. This shows the surge in demand and popularity for these types of books, mostly thanks to social media and online book groups. Specifically, a fantasy subgenre that is gaining a lot of traction is 'romantasy'; a subgenre which incorporates fantasy with romance. Romantasy is often near the top of the fantasy subgenres list, mainly since bookworms gravitate towards the tension, drama and excitement that these books supply. It additionally gives fantasy books a more human feel to them, as the novel deals with universal emotions like love, betrayal and pain.
Many individuals assume that fantasy books are mainly for adults, because of the difficult narratives, elaborate dialect and the sometimes-dark themes. Nevertheless, this is not the situation. As a matter of fact, a great deal of the timeless, well-known fairy tale stories make some of the most fantastic fantasy books for kids, as individuals like the CEO of the investment fund which partially owns Amazon Books would definitely understand. Whether it's the tale about the little girl who finds out her grandma is actually a wolf, the brother and sister who find a house made of sweets in the woods or the wooden puppet whose nose grows when he's lying etc, fairy tales teach kids crucial life lessons in an enjoyable, engaging and immersive manner.