Top 10 Best Standalone Fiction Books to Step into the Fantasy world

If you are here, you would finally like to find out what the fictional world has in store for you. In order to take it slow and steady, you can begin your fantasy journey through these ten standalone books that are the best you will find.

Let’s begin our journey!!

Without further ado, let’s get right into it!!

The Ten Thousand Doors of January, by Alix E. Harrow

Our protagonist, January Scaller, is a curious kid who lives in what looks like a private mansion for the privileged. But her guardian imposed so many restrictions on her that she feels like she’s trapped in prison.

One day, when she finds a special book, The Ten Thousand Books, her interest is piqued. The book happens to describe something very similar to what has recently occurred in her daily life. What happens when the girl finds out that the work she thought was just fiction and a figment of her imagination running wild turns out to be quite real?

Join January’s trio of friends as they embark on an adventurous yet severely dangerous journey to find out what has happened to her father. This remarkable tale explores themes like class, privilege, racism, fear, and hope with a diverse caste of characters as well as a strong woman as the lead.

This book is an epic story that tells us that every door has its own destination, and every step you take changes the course you want to follow.

Buy The Ten Thousand Doors of January here

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

A circus that only exists at night? Nobody knows when or where it appears. Acts that seem impossible to pull off for spectators? Count me in!!

Real magic powers Le Cirque des Reves (the Circus of Dreams), which serves as a training ground for the apprentices of two ancient and skilled magicians as well as a stage for the greatest talent in entertainment.

Enter grownups Celia and Marco; the apprentices return as talented magicians to work at the circus of dreams without knowing earlier that the other works at the same circus too. In a competition where the stakes are so high that only one can emerge victorious, the night circus is an enchanting, magical world in itself that allows you to dive into a world of mesmerizing beauty.

Join these protégés as they go from rivals to lovers and find out how their relationship has severe complications for everyone involved in creating the circus in a captivating, illustrated tale of magic told in a breathtaking manner.

Buy The Night Circus here

Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett

This is one of those books with mixed reviews across the internet. But if you are not too fixated on its religious accuracies and would love to look at things from a different yet satirical, witty, and humorous point of view, you would love this book.

Point to note: A satire.

A devil and an archangel join hands to prevent the apocalypse that is about to destroy the Earth. Not because they love it so much, but because they are so accustomed to the earthly comforts that they simply don’t want it to end.

A baby-swap that literally turns their world upside down.

If you have a bit of expertise in reading British humor, you will instantly love the way this is written. If you are not, well, let’s just say this will be a bit complicated to read.

This book has so many quotes, starting from religion all the way up to relationships. The characters are very well written and relatable, each with their own charm, and the humans have their own subtle similarities.

Events told from the perspective of two ancient and powerful beings make you wonder how tiny we are in the world of the cosmos.

Buy Good Omens here

Tigana by Guy Gavriel Kay

Once a strong and autonomous country, the land of Tigana has had its name stripped away and erased from the minds of all of its people. In this context, a band of rebels fights political intrigue, supernatural forces (two powerful sorcerers), and the burden of a common past in their quest to retake their homeland and restore its name.

GGK does a fantastic job of creating a world with a resemblance to ours (Italy during the Renaissance), where multiple parts are at each other’s necks.

An interesting read filled with it’s own set of scenes that feel a bit forced and unnecessary. Well, there are very few books in the world that we can say have no scenes irrelevant to the context or situation.

Buy Tigana here

The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle

The Last Unicorn, as the name implies, is the story of a unicorn who assumes she is the last of her kind and sets out on a journey to find out what happened to the others. The characters might make it look like a children’s fantasy, but the way the story’s mood is depicted and how death is talked about clearly and openly makes this as much an adult read as it is a children’s read.

A children’s fiction? Yes. But if you think this is only for kids, you are in for a rude awakening!

There is a brilliantly humorous tone depicted in the way the characters help the unicorn on her journey converse with each other, which makes the book much more entertaining.

A book for all ages that is easy to read but not so easy to ignore the satirical yet serious quotes that are too deep for children.

Buy The Last Unicorn here

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

One of the very few books on my entire reading list I cannot recommend enough. This is a fictional tale of history told through the eyes of two characters: Leisel, a little girl, and Death.Yes, the death.

I laughed at the silliness of the kids. I felt fear for the people. I loved the mother and cherished the father, and every character had a certain depth to them that they felt too real to remove from my mind. This book literally touched my soul in ways I never thought possible. A simple read, mind you? But it was a haunting tale nonetheless.

I wish I could forget the ending, the beginning, and everything in between, just so I could read this best and most beautiful story all over again.

Buy The Book Thief here

The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon

Strong and powerful women?? Yay!!

When an evil dragon banished long ago is set to make its return, our protagonists Ead, Tané, Loth, and Niclays (four different POVs)?? Okayy..let’s go! They have to set aside their conflicts for the greater good. They have to fight together if they even think they have a chance against the flying monstrosity.

It is a bit slow-paced and not a short book (if you are used to reading thousands of pages, then this 800-page one might be short for you). If you are looking for a story with women at the top, not just as toys but with power, politics, magic, and dragons (Khaleesi anyone?), you can give this book a try.

Why do I say try? Because readers who have read this book as beginners to fiction or women-centered stories loved it, whereas veterans in these categories did not like it as much. So read it without searching or looking for reviews, and let me know how you feel about it.

Buy The Priory of The Orange Tree here

Babel, by R.F. Kuang

A book that deals with so many important topics like racism, communism, and colonialism during the 19th century is set in an alternate reality during Britain’s global supremacy through magical silver bars.

In an academic setting where a student named Robin joins the prestigious Translation Institute Babel of Oxford, Robin has spent his childhood in China and now has to help Britain create weapons against his own country.

Will he be able to do it without any second thoughts? or will he rebel against colonial rule? Find out for yourself.

Despite being set in an academic atmosphere, things are not jovial in this book; the footnotes might feel overwhelming at times as they are not required to understand the context.

It would allow you to look at things from an underdog perspective. Babel does a great job when it comes to world-building and how quickly your situation can go from alright to worse in a matter of seconds. Overall, a great read.

Buy Babel here

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

They love each other so much that they are ready to kill or die for one another.

It is a story of love, war, pride, and sacrifice that captivates the hearts of everyone who reads it. The Song of Achilles is a love story between the naive Greek young man Patroclus, exiled by his father, a king, and Achilles, son of King Peleus.

Even though I say it’s a love story, it’s more than that. It’s a story about prophecy, regret, power, gods, and their rage.

Although it’s a romance between two men, the writing makes the protagonists’ innocence in their childhood and their bond so beautiful. I definitely recommend this.

Buy The Song of Achilles here

The Forgotten Beasts of Eld by Patricia A. McKillip

Nobody in this world is free. Except for our protagonist, Sybel, a young wizard, who lives alone with the magical creatures her father summoned to keep her company, away from the influence of men and their corruptive nature.

All of which changes when two men enter her gate: a warrior with a child in his arms.

The world as she knew it, her being and living in it without knowing what love, hate, power, and revenge mean, all of a sudden change as the child grows up.

Join an innocent woman as she gains more power as she goes on her journey, only to find herself more shackled to her own strength. A fear she had never felt causes her to change the way she sees things.

A powerful being is never free until it lets go of the power to truly understand freedom.

An amazing read with a wonderful female protagonist.

Buy The Forgotten Beasts of Eld here

Conclusion

Here it is!! A list of the 10 best standalone fiction books to help you step into the fantasy world. If you want to check out the Best Fictional Book series, do not worry; I got you. Click here.