The Fantasy 101 › Books Like

Books Like She

Haggard, 1887 · #46 on the Epic Fantasy 101 Booklist · 81/120 · adapted for screen

A Cambridge scholar and his young ward follow an ancient potsherd into Africa. They find Ayesha, an immortal queen who has waited two thousand years.

Its strongest scores: mood and genre standard. The five books below have the closest scores across all eleven criteria.

If you liked She, read:

1. Harold Shea

   de Camp & Pratt, 1941 · #47 on the list · 81/120

   A psychologist uses symbolic logic to travel into the worlds of Norse myth, The Faerie Queene and other legends, where magic runs on rules he can learn.

   Close on structure, further reading, creative details, real-world blend.

2. Phantastes

   MacDonald, 1858 · #64 on the list · 76/120

   A young man wakes to find his bedroom turning into a forest. He wanders through Fairy Land in search of an ideal of beauty.

   Close on mood, theme, further reading, creative details.

3. The Magicians

   Grossman, 2009 · #38 on the list · 85/120

   A brilliant, unhappy Brooklyn teenager is admitted to a secret college of magic. He then finds that the land from his favorite childhood books is real.

   Close on mood, theme, structure, further reading.

4. The Once and Future King

   White, 1958 · #19 on the list · 92/120

   Arthur grows from the boy Merlyn tutors into the king who founds the Round Table. He then watches the dream break apart.

   Close on mood, structure, creative details, real-world blend.

5. The Magic Goes Away

   Niven, 1978 · #78 on the list · 71/120

   Magic is a finite natural resource and it is running out. An aging sorcerer and his companions set out to steal power from the moon.

   Close on theme, structure, creative details, divine influence.

How the scores work: each book is rated 1 to 10 on eleven criteria; real-world blend and climax and fights count double, for a maximum of 120. See the full Fantasy 101.