HBO’s House of the Dragon proved to be a major success, attracting the minds of viewers of George R. R. Martin’s world of fantasy with dragons, manipulative politicians, and disputes between families from beginning to finish of the season. The effort sets up the way for the return of fantasy book series, along with fantasy-themed television shows and films.
While fans wait for the upcoming third season of House of the Dragon, they may enjoy the time by reading a variety of different fantasy books. There may be dragons in some, but all offer rich political suspense and compelling familial tension to please even the most diehard House of the Dragon fans.
7. Fire & Blood
Why not start with the book that the show is based on? Fire and Blood is a historical fiction that depicts the Targaryen Dynasty’s golden reign. It has everything: dragons, large-scale battles, betrayal, and back stabbings. Though the book is sometimes harder to read than Martin’s other books, it is a fantastic tale of morally gray characters just like real-life people.
6. A Song of Ice and Fire Novels
The adaptation (Game of Thrones) of this set of five novels became the most-watched show in TV history so far. Even though the show left out major plots and character developments, we, the readers, can still find these in the novels. Non-fiction enjoyers will still love these books to heart, as these books are based on the real-life story ‘War of the Roses’.
5. Tales of Dunk and Egg
Do you care to learn more about Game of Thrones? Jump right back to the prequel novels that started it all. The story begins 100 years before the events of the TV show. The short stories offer a strong backstory to the House of Targaryens, Westeros, Bloodraven, and especially the Blackfyre revolution. HBO will soon adapt the first book A Hedge Knight into ‘A Knight of Seven Kingdoms’. Unlike ASOIAF novels, here three heroes are truly heroes, not morally gray protagonists.
4. The Witcher Novels
Andrzej Sapkowski wrote ‘The Witcher’, a set of six novels and some novellas. The book series features the complex, lore-filled character “witcher,” Geralt of Rivia, a hunter of monsters. He additionally gains magical abilities at a young age to fight dangerous creatures and demons. The book series was recently converted for TV and is now offered by Netflix.
3. The Dark Tower Novels
Stephen King is a horror writer, right? Well, he proved us all wrong; he released this magnum opus of a set of 7 books. Enter the world of Dark Tower, A tale of dark fantasy neo-western epic featuring a mysterious gunslinger trying to protect the titular tower.
2. His Dark Materials Novels
Philip Pullman’s captivating His Dark Materials series follows Lyra and Will, two average kids, on a harrowing trip through sparkling, frightening otherworlds. They’ll encounter witches, armored bears, fallen elves, and soul-eating spirits. In the end, their actions will determine the final fate of both those who live and the deceased. It will make us question anything we have learned about the universe and contemplate what is just out of our reach.
1. Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn Series
So you love George R. R. Martin’s books so much, but did you check out his recent interviews? He told us his primary and major inspiration came from Tad William’s 3 books of epic hero quests featuring sympathetic villain characters. Although it is a little slow-paced in the earliest of the first book, readers will grow to love the characters if given time.
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Writer
Sadi Reza,
Intern at Content Writing,
Youth School for Social Entrepreneurs.