Captivating Fantasy Worlds to Explore Next

Captivating Fantasy Worlds to Explore Next

This article relates to Hotel Magnifique

A trip to Elsewhere in the young adult debut Hotel Magnifique is enough to give anyone the itch to travel. The question is, where to next? Here are some suggestions of fantasy worlds to explore once you've checked out of Emily J. Taylor's wondrous hotel.

Battle Magic (2013): Tamora Pierce's worldbuilding is famed, with fans returning to her two popular series Tortall and Circle of Magic for decades. Battle Magic is the third installment in The Circle Reforged, a trilogy that follows four young mage characters through their childhood, adolescence and adulthood. Battle Magic sees many of Pierce's beloved characters return as they engage with a different area of the Circle of Magic universe. Pierce's worlds are well-known for their depth, well-written characters and diversity, with especially strong heroines of all ages populating the pages. Readers looking for a fantasy world that will occupy their attention for a long time will find a veritable well of wonder within Pierce's oeuvre.

Raybearer (2020): Jordan Ifueko's Raybearer is the first volume of a duology that introduces readers to the empire of Aritsar, comprised of twelve realms united under the Raybearer, the emperor and his Council of Eleven. Tarisai, the main character, has been sent from Bekhina House in the Swana Grasslands to the capital of Aritsar to compete with other children from around the realms to become a member of the Crown Prince's future Council. But as she undertakes trials with the other children, her life and view of the world she thought she knew become more and more complicated. Exploring themes of colonialism, imperialism, gender and what it means to move towards a more equitable world, the land of Aritsar is a must for any lover of the fantasy genre. The second novel in the duology, Redemptor, was released in August 2021.

Cinderella Is Dead (2020): This debut novel fairy tale retelling by Kalynn Bayron takes readers to the land of Mersailles, a deeply patriarchal society that uses the "Cinderella" fairy tale to keep a tight hold on the lives of women. This country and its capital Lille are overdue for change, and protagonist Sophia follows the threads of the story of Cinderella to find the truth, and to liberate herself and her country. In Mersailles, Bayron unlocks the darkest potential of the fairy-tale worlds and enchanted forests so often taken for granted as the backdrop for some of our best known and most often retold stories.

The Night Circus (2011): Like the hotel in Hotel Magnifique, the Circus of Dreams in Erin Morgenstern's The Night Circus is a fantastical setting of wondrous events. The novel takes place in an alternative Victorian London, where two magicians pit their pupils against each other in a competition at the circus. They perform illusions that must continue until one pupil is dead, unbeknownst to the crowds who buy tickets each night to see the dazzling show. Though not a young adult fantasy like the rest of the entries on this list, The Night Circus does hold strong appeal for a young adult audience. Also not to be missed, Morgenstern's The Starless Sea (2019), a fantasy mystery novel centered around a book and its magical stories and characters.

Filed under Reading Lists

This "beyond the book article" relates to Hotel Magnifique. It originally ran in May 2022 and has been updated for the August 2023 paperback edition. Go to magazine.

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