For magical-world fans: 6 fantasy books better than Harry Potter, from Percy Jackson to Ged

Schemes, Trials and Belonging

In Eoin Colfer’s Artemis Fowl, twelve-year-old Artemis kidnaps Holly Short, a fairy officer, and demands ransom to restore his family’s fortune. He expects to control the situation, but the fairies arrive as an organized, technologically advanced force.

The standoff challenges Artemis’s belief that everything can be managed. Butler’s loyalty and Holly’s courage make him confront the human cost of his schemes and recognize a mind he cannot simply buy.

Jessica Townsend’s Nevermoor follows Morrigan Crow, who expects to die on her eleventh birthday after being blamed for misfortunes. Jupiter North takes her to Nevermoor, where she competes for a place in the Wundrous Society despite believing she has no special talent. Her trials also test whether Jupiter will continue to believe in her.

Quests Against Greater Dangers

Greek mythology becomes part of Percy’s immediate world, where myths offer rules for surviving monsters, gods and betrayal. His friendship with Annabeth grows through shared danger, while Luke’s choice leaves a lasting sting.

Philip Pullman’s The Golden Compass follows Lyra Belacqua and her dæmon, Pantalaimon, who can change shape. When children disappear, including Lyra’s friend Roger, she travels north and discovers that the Gobblers are cutting children away from their dæmons.

Loss, Power and Consequences

Lyra’s courage does not spare her from making choices with incomplete knowledge. At the end, Lord Asriel uses Roger’s death to open a passage between worlds, and Lyra follows him through it with Pan; the outcome combines victory with profound loss.

In Ursula K. Le Guin’s A Wizard of Earthsea, Ged’s trouble begins when he tries to prove his power at the school of wizardry on Roke. A forbidden spell brings a shadow-creature into the world, changing the course of his education.

The stories described here place their young characters in dangerous situations, but their central concerns reach beyond adventure. Friendship, difficult choices and the consequences of power shape what these characters learn about themselves.