9 Fantasy Book Franchises That Are Better Than Harry Potter

HBO Published Sep 10, 2026, 6:53 AM EDT Eddie Possehl is a dynamic and driven writer/director with a passion for the written word and all things film, television, comics, and games. His passion for storytelling led him to establish his own production company in hopes of achieving his dreams. His dedication to his craft has attracted renowned talent like Yuri Lowenthal to collaborate with him on his projects. As he grows and improves, Eddie is a shining example of a self-starter. Sign in to your Collider account One of the most popular media genres of all time is, without a doubt, fantasy. What makes it so special is the fact that it can bring audiences to worlds completely unlike the one they live in, while still having stories that are abundantly resonant, relevant, and relatable. That of the Harry Potter franchise, written by she who shall not be named, is consistently known as one of the largest fantasy series of all time. The novels, which began being published in 1997, quickly grew to be one of the most popular franchises among young audiences all across the world. However, this isn't to say that it's the only good fantasy series — far from it, actually. There are plenty of iconic and popular fantasy book franchises that are adored by people all over the planet, and that objectively are better than Harry Potter (no shade, though). 1 The Witcher Image via Hachette Book Group While the video games are easily the most loved medium of this series, The Witcher franchise actually began in literature all the way back in 1990 when it was published in Polish (later to be translated in 2007). The reason the games and television show are so abundantly popular right now is because of how much readers adored these books. Author Andrzej Sapkowski began this long-running fictional universe when he entered a short story competition and published 1990's The Witcher (which is the only product of the series that has never been translated into English). The worldbuilding that's present here is so well-done, and the characterization within said world is excellent. Thankfully for fans, Sapkowski plans to continue the series after finishing the prequel novel he's currently working on. 2 The Chronicles of Narnia Image via C. S. Lewis / HarperCollins When it comes to series for young audiences, another of the most popular comes in the form of The Chronicles of Narnia. With some movies that began releasing in 2005, and a new one by Greta Gerwig — titled Narnia: The Magician's Nephew — coming soon, there's no question that this series is beloved, and for good reason. Author C.S. Lewis was once a scholar of medieval and ancient literature, so when it came to bringing The Chronicles of Narnia novels to life, the writer took that experience with themes and archetypes from classic mythologies. There are deep theological messages within it, and that truly sets it apart from the other fantasy reads for young audiences. Such deep themes and messages make for a truly thought-provoking read. Not to mention, it goes far beyond the reaches of a traditional school and is rather tied to stakes of cosmic proportions. 3 Percy Jackson and the Olympians Image via Rick Riordan / Disney-Hyperion The franchise that is often considered the most genuine competition to Harry Potter is none other than Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson and the Olympians. Now with a Disney+ series of their own, and old movies (that were less beloved, but with huge nostalgia), there's no denying that this series is wildly popular among the same demographic that reads Harry Potter. Percy Jackson and the Olympians is phenomenally well-written, with some vastly beloved characters — the main trio having a phenomenal dynamic and great character arcs — that are super entertaining to read. Not to forget, the use of Greek mythology as the world surrounding these ever-lovable demigods makes this worth getting invested in. Collider Exclusive · Game of Thrones Personality Quiz Which Game of Thrones House Do You Belong To? Stark · Lannister · Targaryen · Baratheon · Tyrell Five great houses. Five completely different answers to the same question: how do you hold power in a world that will take it from you the moment you stop paying attention? Eight questions will determine where your loyalties — and your nature — truly lie. 🐺Stark 🦁Lannister 🐉Targaryen 🦌Baratheon 🌹Tyrell FIND YOUR HOUSE → 01 Someone powerful is acting dishonourably and everyone knows it. What do you do? In Westeros, the answer to this question has ended more than one great house. ACall it out, openly and on the record. If honour means anything, it has to mean something when it's costly. BUse it. Information about someone else's dishonour is leverage — and leverage is power. CAct decisively to correct it — with or without the approval of those around me. DChallenge them directly. Strength settles disputes more honestly than courtroom manoeuvring. ENavigate carefully — build alliances, apply quiet pressure, and create a situation where the right outcome becomes inevitable. NEXT QUESTION → 02 What is the source of your power? Every house endures because of something. What is it for yours? AThe loyalty of people who trust me — earned over generations, not bought with gold. BWealth, intelligence, and the willingness to use both without sentiment. CA legacy so fearsome and a vision so total that opposition becomes unthinkable. DPhysical strength, military force, and the respect that comes from being the kind of person nobody wants to fight. ECharm, connection, and the ability to make powerful people feel that my success is also theirs. NEXT QUESTION → 03 Who do you truly fight for? Strip away the banners and the words. The honest answer tells you everything. AMy family and my people — those who depend on me and have kept faith with me through everything. BMy family — the ones who share my blood, even when they exhaust me, even when they disappoint me. CMy cause — a vision larger than any single person, including me. DMyself, and those few who've proven themselves worth fighting beside. EMy house — its name, its future, the position I intend to leave it in when I'm gone. NEXT QUESTION → 04 How do you deal with your enemies? A house's method reveals its character as clearly as its words ever could. AHonestly — I face them directly, and I give quarter when it's warranted. BThoroughly — I don't leave loose ends, and I don't make the same enemy twice. CDecisively — fire answers questions that diplomacy only delays. DHead-on — I'd rather meet a threat on the battlefield than behind closed doors. EElegantly — I prefer to make former enemies into allies, or at least into people who owe me something. NEXT QUESTION → 05 What kind of ruler do you believe in? Westeros is full of answers to this question. Most of them end badly. AA just one — someone who serves the realm rather than using it, who leads by example rather than fear. BA capable one — someone smart enough to navigate the game, ruthless enough to win it, and realistic about what winning costs. CA transformative one — someone who doesn't just rule what exists but reshapes what's possible. DA strong one — someone whose authority is beyond question because the alternative is obviously worse. EA wise one — someone who understands that the realm is fed by more than armies, and that a full stomach keeps more peace than a sharp sword. NEXT QUESTION → 06 You suffer a devastating loss. How does your house respond? How a house handles defeat tells you more about it than how it handles victory. AWe grieve, properly and together — and then we endure, because endurance is what we do. BWe adapt. We reassess. And we ensure that whoever caused this loss comes to regret it completely. CWe burn hotter. Setbacks don't soften us — they clarify what needs to happen next. DWe hit back. Grief and revenge are the same motion in our house. EWe regroup quietly, rebuild our position, and return when we're ready — on our terms, not theirs. NEXT QUESTION → 07 Which of these truths about Westeros do you most believe? Every house has a philosophy. This is yours. AThe lone wolf dies, but the pack survives. Nothing matters more than the people you protect. BA Lannister always pays their debts — in gold or in kind. Reputation is built on consistency. CI am the blood of the dragon. Some destinies are written before the person who carries them is born. DOurs is the fury. When we move, we move completely — and we don't stop until it's done. EGrowing strong means knowing when to bloom and when to wait. Patience is its own kind of power. NEXT QUESTION → 08 The Iron Throne is within reach. What do you do? The answer reveals not just your ambition — but your character. AClaim it only if the realm needs me to — and rule in a way that makes it worth having. BEnsure someone who owes us sits in it. The power behind the throne is safer than the throne itself. CTake it. It was always meant to be mine — I feel that in my bones and in my blood. DSeize it — with both hands, without hesitation. Opportunity in Westeros does not wait to be asked. EPosition my house to be indispensable to whoever sits there — influence outlasts any single reign. REVEAL MY HOUSE → The Maester Has Spoken Your House Is…Your answers point to the great house whose words, values, and way of surviving in Westeros match your own. Bend the knee — or don't. That's very much up to you. 🐺 House StarkWinter is Coming — and you have always known it. You prepare not out of fear but out of duty, because the people who depend on you deserve someone who takes the long view. You lead with honour even when it costs you, because you understand that a reputation built on integrity is the only one worth having. Your loyalty to family and people runs deep — not as sentiment but as a code that doesn't bend when things get difficult. The North endures because Starks endure — not by being the cleverest players in the game, but by being the kind of people others are willing to follow into the cold. You are that kind of person. The pack survives. The lone wolf dies. You already know which one you are. 🦁 House LannisterYou understand the game — its rules, its exceptions, and exactly when the rules become the exception. You play it without illusions and without apology. You are sharper than most people realise, and you have learned to use that gap to your advantage. A Lannister always pays their debts — and you always keep your word, because your word is an instrument of power, and instruments must be kept in working order. You love your family with a ferocity that sometimes blinds you, and you know it, and you do it anyway. The lion doesn't concern itself with the opinion of sheep. Neither, in the end, do you. 🐉 House TargaryenYou carry a sense of destiny that is difficult to explain and impossible to ignore — the feeling that you are not simply participating in the world but meant to reshape it. You are capable of extraordinary things, and you know it, and that knowledge is both your greatest strength and your most dangerous quality. Fire and blood are not just words to you — they are a philosophy about what change requires and what it costs. The Targaryens at their best were transformative rulers who broke chains and defied the limits of what anyone thought possible. At your best, so are you. The dragon has three heads. You are one of them. 🦌 House BaratheonYou are a force — direct, powerful, and difficult to ignore when you enter a room or a conflict. You do not negotiate with challenges. You meet them. Ours is the fury — and yours is a kind of intensity that commands attention, respect, and occasionally fear from those who underestimate what's behind it. You value strength and straight dealing. You'd rather know where you stand in a fight than navigate a web of courtly whispers. The Baratheons built their house on the back of one of the greatest military victories in Westerosi history — and then struggled with what came after. The lesson of your house is that winning is not the end of the story. Governing is. You are learning that too. 🌹 House TyrellYou understand that power does not always announce itself — that sometimes it arrives with flowers, good wine, and a smile that doesn't quite reach the eyes. Growing strong is your house's motto, and you live it: patiently, strategically, always investing in the relationships and resources that will matter most when it counts. You are charming by choice and calculating by nature — a combination that makes you one of the most effective players in any room you enter. The Tyrells fed King's Landing and shaped its politics without ever sitting on the Iron Throne — and they were arguably more powerful for it. You know that the person who controls the food controls the kingdom. And you always know where the food is. ↻ RETAKE THE QUIZ 4 The Dark Tower Image via Grant Pretty much everyone knows who Stephen King is. Known for seemingly countless hit novels, King has a plethora of projects worth getting into, with one of the most being his entire The Dark Tower franchise. Comprising eight books spanning from 1982 to 2004, this series is well worth getting into for anyone who loves fantasy. The Dark Tower franchise — starting with The Gunslinger — is what some would consider King's "magnum opus" of sorts. The way he balances genres from book to book is excellent. The Dark Tower is a whole mythology in and of itself, which makes it such an engaging read from book one to book eight. 5 The Poppy War Image via Goodreads R. F. Kuang's The Poppy War novel series is celebrated for reasons that Harry Potter is, and also for reasons that aren't present in the Harry Potter series whatsoever. While there is an academy present, featuring a classic underdog, The Poppy War series depicts war in an abundantly raw and brutal manner. It's honest about how horrific it can get. Being inspired by 20th-century Chinese history, the setting of The Poppy War is unique in comparison to other books like it. The political themes and conflicts at play are not just deep and thought-provoking — they are also interesting. Often, books like this can struggle to implement said ideas without feeling boring to the reader, who typically wants to see action and external conflict, but The Poppy War does not struggle with this. 6 Game of Thrones Image via George R. R. Martin / Bantam Books Most of the world knows Game of Thrones because of the hit television universe consisting of the likes of Game of Thrones, House of the Dragon, and A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms. However, the franchise was only popular enough to get a television adaptation because author George R. R. Martin wrote such a phenomenally executed series of books — that he is still working on — starting in 1996. With the last book released in 2011, and more planned, fans have been patiently waiting for the next entry, The Winds of Winter. Until it finally releases, now is the perfect time to get caught up on this great series. What makes the Game of Thrones series so enjoyable is that it is hugely unpredictable. Just when readers think they know what's going to happen, R. R. Martin tells them to screw off and changes the entire status quo. Not to mention, unlike Harry Potter, this series is profoundly grey in its morality, keeping the characters more complex and layered. 7 Mistborn Image via Tor Books Brandon Sanderson is one of the most prolific modern authors, especially in the fantasy genre. One of the major reasons for this is his work in the Mistborn franchise. It has one of the most unique and special magic systems out there, called Allomancy, utilizing different types of metals to bring out different kinds of powers in characters. Aside from its excellent magic system, the characters featured in the Mistborn series are phenomenally well-written. The protagonist of the first era of the series, Vin, is an excellently executed female protagonist written by a male writer. She is iconic in almost every way, and Sanderson does a great job giving each character — no matter how small — a strong identity and arc. Lastly, the action, thanks to the magic system, is fun and inventive. 8 The Stormlight Archive Image via Tor Books Another massive success from Brandon Sanderson is none other than his series, The Stormlight Archive. Beginning with The Way of Kings, this franchise is widely beloved as Sanderson's best work, and for very good reason. Following many different characters, Sanderson manages to juggle multiple plot lines at once, eventually bringing them all into one, much like a movie like Avengers: Infinity War did. The Stormlight Archive is a journey unlike any other. While the worldbuilding is incredible — borderline comparable to that of The Lord of the Rings — it's the characters and their excellent arcs that make this such an incredible read. Every single character is compelling in some way or another and is a fan favorite to someone. 9 Lord of the Rings Image via George Allen & Unwin Across all media — books, movies, television, games — The Lord of the Rings universe is one of the most, if not the most, popular fantasy franchises of all time. The worldbuilding done by J.R.R. Tolkien in these novels is genuinely unmatched. Many consider The Lord of the Rings series to have the best worldbuilding out there. The way Tolkien creates entire languages, civilizations, cultures, and more is unbelievable. This isn't the only reason that The Lord of the Rings outweighs the rest, though. The thematic messages of hope and undying friendship are beyond heartwarming and give this series a feeling for readers that is iconic. Truly, The Lord of the Rings is a story that thrives on "the power of friendship" but actually makes it work in almost every way.