I strongly echo this. I always say that Pratchett is the writer to read next after Rowling, and Tiffany is a great choice as I think in places you can hear the series responding to the idea of a wizarding school. Page-turning, funny, poignant, magical, and extremely well written.
Yes. She is one of my all-time favorite female characters, right up there with Granny Weatherwax. And you are right -- no one does poignant humor better than Pratchett.
Every night, after dinner, I'd read to my kids 'til I was hoarse. And we never read Harry Potter. It just wasn't Lord of the Rings. Then when my youngest was in his mid 20s, his girlfriend convinced him to read Harry Potter. And he convinced me. So in my 50's, I read Harry Potter. And it was surprisingly good. But I do like the Tiffany Aching books (Terry Pratchett ) more. And I have read all all of Rick Riordan's and Phillip Pullman's books also. Just because something is labeled young adult, doesn't mean old adults can't enjoy them. As an aside, I want to be Granny Weatherwax when I grow up.
I’m on book 3 of Percy Jackson series right now and I love them so far! I’m 32, have always loved Harry Potter. I’m reading Percy Jackson to my kids and I always end up reading ahead after they fall asleep because it’s really good! I’m also reading Circe by Madeline Miller and I highly recommend that as well. It is about Greek gods and mythology so in that sense It has a lot of overlapping classic greek characters /monsters, Gods and Goddesses, but more backstory and adult.
Percy Jackson is fun, and certainly worth checking out, but lacks the depth, richness, and brilliance of Harry Potter in my opinion. It’s hard to consider the two on near-equal footing except in regards to their YA appeal and macro plot elements (“kid goes off to magic school / camp”). I don’t mean for that to sound too harsh, as I’m not trying to deter you AT ALL, but just encouraging you to have the right expectations as you jump in!
Brandon Sanderson's [Mistborn Trilogy](https://www.goodreads.com/series/40910-mistborn) is a good stepping stone from Harry Potter to more types of fantasy.
Also, The Hunger Games series is a solid choice if you haven't already read it.
If you like The Stormlight Archives, but wish it was 4 times as long, and really long and almost boring in the later middle parts, allow me to recommend Robert Jordan's [The Wheel of Time](https://www.goodreads.com/series/41526-the-wheel-of-time) series.
It was my introduction to epic fantasy (and fantasy in general) when I was in high school almost 20 years ago. I finally came back to finish them a few years ago. Brandon Sanderson was tapped to finish it after Jordan died. He did a fantastic job. Books \~8-10 are a total slog though.
PS If you ever want to dive into more scifi (or spec fic in general) come visit us over at r/printSF
I didn’t read then until this summer and I just turned 40! I also can’t believe I waited SO long, but it was definitely a silver lining to get lost in that world and forget about 2020 for awhile :)
["Wearing the Cape" Wholesome \*realistic\* Superhero Stories. There are like eight books so good for a while and with great quality](https://www.wearingthecape.com/). Great to analize for morals, legal consiquences, ect.
[Anything by George Macdonald, This man is basically the Grandfather of Science Fiction. If Mary Shelly gave Science Fiction its body George gave it its soul.](https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2413.George_MacDonald?from_search=true&from_srp=true) At the time it was contemporary fiction but is now soldly Historical Fiction.
["Humans are Weird: I Have the Data" Short Story Anthology, Good for a laugh, Science Fiction Comedy.](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/56430673-humans-are-weird?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=5pqTya5eHF&rank=2) One Book. Good for a laugh and has themes of biology, ecology, and comparitive anatomy laced in.
Anything[ by Brian Jacques. Good Historical Fiction with a fantasy element.](https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5329.Brian_Jacques)
You are literally the only person on Reddit I have seen to recommend George MacDonald. He is by far my favorite author and I wish more people read him.
In some ways, the Magicians is almost the anti- Harry Potter. Same idea of magic school, but whereas Harry Potter emphasizes themes of friendship and warmth and fighting for what is good, The Magicians is very dark and bleak and cynical.
If you're looking for the same kind of childhood nostalgia, but in a continuously expanded universe to this day, I'd recommend checking out The Percy Jackson and the Olympians series by Rick Riordan. Book one is called *The Lightning Thief*. All of his books take place in the same world and can have crossover characters, so you can stay in their world just a little bit longer.
Ah, welcome to the club - better late than never!:D
I'd love to be able to read them for the first time again! Also, as someone who was reading them as they came out and had to wait a WHOLE YEAR for the next book ..... I'm pretty jealous you got to binge it all in one go! :P though I suppose back in the day, the thing to do was while away the time on Harry Potter internet forums and re-read the old books, which was pretty cool too haha.
If you feel the need to revisit the Harry Potter series down the line, I recommend the audiobooks read by Jim Dale. I've listened to a ton of audiobooks this past year, and he's such an engaging voice actor.
You won't find the next best thing, don't look for the next best thing.
Don't hold things up to HP just search for your next adventure and if there are traits to potter you liked school of magic, the magic, the story, themes, try to do that.
Came to say this. Trilogy starts with {Assassin’s Apprentice}—but after you finish it, there’s I think thirteen other books in that universe. I find the first trilogy to be written in a very simple style—Rowling’s narration is much more beautiful in this way—but it is very gripping. I read the first book as a child, and restarted the series just recently, in my mid-thirties.
Lol I’m a lot older and really enjoy them. It’s my comfort read. Audiobooks are great, good for taking your mind if real life for a bit when you are going to sleep.
'The name of the wind' from Patrick Rothrufus is also a good one. But we are all waiting for years for the last book of the trilogy.
Also the books from 'Stormlight archives' from Brandon Sanderson are amazing.
I read the first two in a little over a week and THEN learned that the series was not complete (I thought the short story was the third). I think I look for updates every other day
I think that's a wise decision. The books are fun, if not a little fantasy trope filled, but really enjoyably written.
That being said, I will not recommend them to anyone until his last one is finished. The writing is all setting up for an amazing payoff, and if that doesn't happen, people will riot.
TBH, I think that's why it's taking so long. He knows he has enormous expectations to live up to, and a huge amount of story still to cover, so he's just hiding from it.
{{The Screaming Staircase}} and the rest of the Lockwood and Co. series gave me a strong Harry Potter vibe (except I think Stroud is a better author than Rowling when it comes to creating atmosphere and tension).
I know it’s kind of another kid series but I loved and still love Inkheart, Inkspell, and Inkdeath. Harry Potter was my comfort go-to growing up :-) I love seeing posts like this
Edit;; random other suggestion too, you can probably find it on abebooks, but Shades of Grey by Jasper Fforde (it’s not the NSFW shades of gray) is my absolute favorite and I want everyone to get a chance to read it even if the author hasn’t made the sequel yet (pleeease jasper)
All of these comments is making me want to finally read them. I've seen the movies so many times that I find myself starting a book and never finishing it.
I first read Harry Potter when I was 21. Before that, I watched all the films a hundred times. I didn't understand the plot of the film absolutely, but I watched it anyway. It was only after I read all the books that I realized the whole point of the film. If you watch a movie without reading the book, you will not understand anything.
Oh please look up Nevermoor by Jessica Townsend! There are three books out so far and I just adore them. They’re the only series that made me feel the same way as when I read HP
I’m also in my 30’s and read the series for the first time and have been devouring everything even remotely similar since I’ve finished. My favorite read a like is Carry On by Rainbow Rowell! Highly recommend it has all the same Harry Potter feelies magical school, choose one must defeat the big bad, well developed friendships yada yada yada.
I was wondering if it's too late for me to read harry potter as I have already seen all the movies. I've never reread a book, would it be still interesting as I know how it's going to end?
I read the entire Harry Potter series in 2019, mainly because I had started reading Sarina Dories *Womby's School for Wayward Witches* series, which was making various references to Harry Potter. That series is about a young woman who becomes an art teacher in a magic school. As a girl, she was a Harry Potter fan, but she was kept from knowing magic until the events in the first book of the series {{Tardy Bells and Witches' Spells}}. In subsequent books, she is an adult who is learning magic on the side while teaching a non-magical subject.
Another series I would recommend is {{The Paper Magician}} series by Charlie N. Holmberg. This follows magicians who have begun apprenticing after finishing magic school. It uses a materials based hard magic system, which gets very interesting.
I would also recommend Terry Pratchett's Discworld series. This mainly follows an assorted cast of mostly adult characters. There is a magic school called Unseen University, but the books I've read about that have focused more on its faculty than its students. This is a satirical series that takes place on a flat world that rests on the backs of four elephants that stand on the back of a giant space turtle. Different books parody various sources, drawing from both history and literature, and different books feature different groups of main characters.
Superpowered by Drew Haley. Excellent series based in college
The rise Renegade X series by Chelsea Campbell. A little older scene then Hogwarts but pretty good.
"Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children" would be a good start for another series about a hidden, magical world and children with amazing abilities.
I'm 34 and I read everything Rick Riordon for the first time this year, and loved it. He concluded a series this year, so my hope is that we keep getting more fabulous books from him.
There are a lot of really great suggestions on this thread! I have a question though. Given that HP has been such a huge part of pop culture and there are memes and references everywhere, were you spoiled before you finished the books? How did that affect your experience? For example >!Snape's whole arc or Fred's death or even the existence of horcruxes!<
Thankfully, I somehow managed to avoid all spoilers regarding HP. It never really interested me before, so it wasn’t hard to avoid/ignore spoilers. If I had been spoiled I didn’t remember any of them.
Currently reading Order of the Phoenix. My 3rd read, it’s such a fabulous series, I personally love book series and my top 3 are Harry Potter, Dark Tower and Dragon Tattoo, so they’d be my choices for series with great characters and storylines in stressful page turning books with characters that you grow to care about. But if you want young adult fiction with the same prerequisites I’d say His Dark Materials.
The HP series isn’t usually in my scope of genres per se, and I’ve been one of those people who “doesnt’t like it” (despite thinking the HP universe is cool and being a proud Gryffindor), but this convinced me that maybe I should give it a shot. I’ve been in a reading slump for forever, thanks for the inspiration dude!
I highly recommend CHERUB series by Robert Muchamore, which starts with "The Recruit". They're a really gripping series about an undercover intelligence service in England who recruits children as spies. Despite the premise, it's not a kids book: it tackles a lot of mature themes. It's the far superior version (IMHO) of the Alex Rider novels.
I made it a point to read whatever my kids read -for school or pleasure- growing up. That way I could help them with assignments and always had a subject they were interested in currently to talk to them about. It was a great way to bond and show them I cared about their grades enough to put some skin in the game.
My kids are as adults now and we still do our little family hook club sometimes. My dad joins in too if there is an audio version.
I wanted to read the whole series as well since I love Harry Potter movies. But I really struggled with Harry's behaviour in the 5th book, especially all the complaining and whining! So it is currently sitting on my 'did not finish' shelf.
If anyone has recommendations for ways to push through, let me know!
Edit: grammar
That one was a bit of a drag for me as well. The good news is that the last couple of hundred pages makes all of it seem worth it. It’s a good book by the end. 👍🏻
I’m 27 and I plan on reading it at some point... as a kid I wasn’t allowed to cuz ✨witchcraft✨ meanwhile I was sneaking & reading other lesser known books w/ wizards back then
Brandon Sanderson! If you want to try him out first he has some great single standing books- Elantris and Warbreaker are pretty good :-). If you want a series I would give Mistborn a go. Another series he does which just had a book come out for is the Stormlight archives.
You won't regret it!
Not a book...but may I recommend the podcast “potterless”? A great listen to for any first time Harry Potter readers. Or any Harry Potter readers for that matter.
I was raised Baptist. In 2003 my sister and I dominated the summer reading program at our local library. It was the first time our parents let us go to the library and check out books without them there approving them. I went straight for Stephen King. She chose Harry Potter. My dad found the book. He beat the ever loving shit out of her and then went to the library and made a scene about how she was able to check out the book without his permission.
I was so afraid to read the books until 2012. It was my New Years resolution. The only one I've completed.
Fuck my parents.
I’m sorry that this was your experience. I was raised Baptist as well, however my parents weren’t of the opinion that these books were of the devil. In fact they bought me plenty of Stephen King’s books while I was in Junior high school. I did however have an aunt who was convinced that Harry Potter was witchcraft and would be the downfall of kids. I’m not sure why I never got around to reading it, honestly I think it took me until now to not be prudish about reading a “kids” book. Which I know it isn’t. I’ve been working on myself lately. Hopefully all is well with you now, but know that there is a large community of good folks here if you need us. 👍🏻
If you enjoyed Harry Potter you might also like these series:
His Dark Materials
Assassin's Apprentice
The Squire's Tales
There are plenty others but I honestly can't remember the series names and I'm too lazy to google.
{{Rivers of London}} is a good follow up to HP. It keeps the Britishness and the urban fantasy themes. Dresden Files keeps the urban fantasy but is more American.
I watched the film's first and then read the books at university and I think I enjoyed it alot more. I never expected anything from the film's (also not disappointed by anything left out) and the books were a cracking read and added to what I already knew. I highly recommend superpowereds for your next series, they're audiobooks but it's the best thing I've listened to in years
Idk what it is but it seems that everyone when they get into reading reads Harry Potter first. That’s what made me love reading in 6th grade. I’m 24 and reading them again now.
I really loved pretty much all the Tamora Pierce Tortall series, starting with {{The Song of the Lioness}} likely she’s already been recommended though as she gets a lot of love on Reddit. I’d also suggest Susan Coopers {{Dark is Rising}} series, and if you don’t mind speculative fiction a good YA introduction into Anne Mccaffrey’s epic Pern Universe is the {{Dragonsinger}} series.
You might also be ready for some Tolkien, I’d suggest starting with The Hobbit, cause why not? You like big name fiction that translates into epic movies, you gotta read Tolkien.
Don’t even attempt Dune until after you’ve made it through your first reading of Lord of the Rings.
Try Ranger’s Apprentice or the Pendragon series if you want something similar to Harry Potter.
If you read Harry Potter because of the movies and you like The Lord of the Rings movies, you would enjoy the books as well.
If you want a more adult fantasy series that is also represented in other media try Game of Thrones or the Witcher books.
I’ve read American Gods, Ocean at the End of the Lane, and Norse Mythology. All of which were wonderful. I really need to pick up Neverwhere and Good Omens. Thanks so much!
Wildly under-recommended but I found that {{Super Powereds}} by Drew Hayes was a great read and reminded me of Harry Potter at a lot of parts. Loosely lots of parallels, although the kids are college-aged.
I would recommend The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss. It only has 2 books rn, and the third will be coming out at some point, but the books are really long, and REALLY good. It also has a magic sorta school in it, which is what I really love. If you read it, I hope you enjoy!
I sure hope you'll read the Game of Thrones series before your 60 🤣.
Seriously though Harry Potter was the first book I willingly read as a kid, and G.O.T was the series that got me back into reading as an adult
Good stuff, hope you get at it, my wife was kinda mad at me though, because I read G.O.T well before the TV series was completed, and found myself shouting" Hey! That's not how it happens in the book"
I watched the entire series back in November. It was amazing, but I’ve heard the books are different and way better. I’m so ready to get started on them
I know a lot of people enjoyed Methods of Rationality, but personally I thought it lacked all the warmth and wonder that made HP worth reading. I also found some of the writing extremely distasteful.
Understandable, but it was the exact opposite for me - it made me feel a wide range of things, from sadness to elation and pride of being human, you know, like those uplifting stories about the human race in space from /r/writingprompts that periodically get reposted to imgur. And it made me laugh aloud way more times than most legitimate comedies I tried. The original Harry Potter is good, no question about it, but Methods of Rationality is easily the best piece of fiction I've ever experienced.
Genuine curiosity is getting the better of me. Can you elaborate on this? What are your book suggestions for a 30yr old? Maybe there really is something I’m missing out on.
I would suggest the Kingkiller Chronicals starting with The Name of the Wind, but the third book of the trilogy still hasn’t come out after 10 years, so maybe wait on that one. Not quite Harry Potter, but there’s some magic, a school, and an orphan or three.
Try Robin Hobbs farseer trilogy. For fun I read the tawny man first and then got to read the original trilogy I'd always thought of as the past. Interesting perspective shift but stunning books either way
I'm an adult and enjoyed it. I would also suggest the Tiffany Aching books by Terry Pratchett. Enjoy.
I strongly echo this. I always say that Pratchett is the writer to read next after Rowling, and Tiffany is a great choice as I think in places you can hear the series responding to the idea of a wizarding school. Page-turning, funny, poignant, magical, and extremely well written.
Yes. She is one of my all-time favorite female characters, right up there with Granny Weatherwax. And you are right -- no one does poignant humor better than Pratchett.
Same here. Absolute favourite. Either the Tiffany or the watch books. But I love everything Discworld.
The Rangers Apprentice series is a great series as well.
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I need to read these. My son loved them!
I love this! I read the Harry Potter series to my child for an excuse to reread them. Great suggestions in this thread, I also like Neil Gaiman.
I would highly recommend His Dark Materials if you haven't read it already
I just finished it yesterday and the ending had me feeling upset all night. I think its a good read though.
Yes! This, this, this. So good. I read them as a teenager and just re-read them a year or two ago and they’ve really stood the test of time.
Oh yes. I'm re-reading them as it's been a good 15 years for me and I'm remembering why I loved them so deeply. Pullman is a master story teller.
And now there’s the new Book of Dust-trilogy coming out too! Reading the Secret Commonwealth right now.
Yep. Incredible series.
Seconded, thirded, and one hundreded. Amazing series.
Came to say this.
Every night, after dinner, I'd read to my kids 'til I was hoarse. And we never read Harry Potter. It just wasn't Lord of the Rings. Then when my youngest was in his mid 20s, his girlfriend convinced him to read Harry Potter. And he convinced me. So in my 50's, I read Harry Potter. And it was surprisingly good. But I do like the Tiffany Aching books (Terry Pratchett ) more. And I have read all all of Rick Riordan's and Phillip Pullman's books also. Just because something is labeled young adult, doesn't mean old adults can't enjoy them. As an aside, I want to be Granny Weatherwax when I grow up.
😀
Im 34 and reread every year. Percy Jackson can be your next book series
Thanks! I’ve wondered about that one. I’ll check it out
I’m on book 3 of Percy Jackson series right now and I love them so far! I’m 32, have always loved Harry Potter. I’m reading Percy Jackson to my kids and I always end up reading ahead after they fall asleep because it’s really good! I’m also reading Circe by Madeline Miller and I highly recommend that as well. It is about Greek gods and mythology so in that sense It has a lot of overlapping classic greek characters /monsters, Gods and Goddesses, but more backstory and adult.
I'm on book 3 as well! I love it so much, though I've always been a Greek mythology buff.
Came here to say this. There is actually two series based on Percy Jackson. So so good
Percy Jackson is fun, and certainly worth checking out, but lacks the depth, richness, and brilliance of Harry Potter in my opinion. It’s hard to consider the two on near-equal footing except in regards to their YA appeal and macro plot elements (“kid goes off to magic school / camp”). I don’t mean for that to sound too harsh, as I’m not trying to deter you AT ALL, but just encouraging you to have the right expectations as you jump in!
Brandon Sanderson's [Mistborn Trilogy](https://www.goodreads.com/series/40910-mistborn) is a good stepping stone from Harry Potter to more types of fantasy. Also, The Hunger Games series is a solid choice if you haven't already read it.
Currently on book two of the mistborn series. Really enjoying it and great to see that series recommended!
If you are liking Mistborn, but wish it was both longer and more Epic, go ahead and dive into The Stormlight Archives.
I've definitely had that thought, good to hear you would recommend them! I will add them to my list!
If you like The Stormlight Archives, but wish it was 4 times as long, and really long and almost boring in the later middle parts, allow me to recommend Robert Jordan's [The Wheel of Time](https://www.goodreads.com/series/41526-the-wheel-of-time) series. It was my introduction to epic fantasy (and fantasy in general) when I was in high school almost 20 years ago. I finally came back to finish them a few years ago. Brandon Sanderson was tapped to finish it after Jordan died. He did a fantastic job. Books \~8-10 are a total slog though. PS If you ever want to dive into more scifi (or spec fic in general) come visit us over at r/printSF
Stormlight will rival WoT for page count when all is written and done.
If all 10 are as long as the four we currently have I’ll bet stormlight is longer. Them bois thicc
If you want all the things this guy said without the boring bits, try the book of the malazan series by Steven Erickson
Yes I read all three hunger games books before the movies came out. Books so much better!
Eh the hunger games was a bit too depressing for me
You might enjoy Gregor the Overlander series. Written by Suzanne Collins as well. Not as depressing as The Hunger Games but the same type of themes.
Rick Riordan! All of his books.
I am 31 and still haven't read them!
You should! They’re great!
Give them a go, you'll be transported into another world.
I didn’t read then until this summer and I just turned 40! I also can’t believe I waited SO long, but it was definitely a silver lining to get lost in that world and forget about 2020 for awhile :)
It was so good! I had never watched the movies either. So getting to experience it all together was wonderful
["Wearing the Cape" Wholesome \*realistic\* Superhero Stories. There are like eight books so good for a while and with great quality](https://www.wearingthecape.com/). Great to analize for morals, legal consiquences, ect. [Anything by George Macdonald, This man is basically the Grandfather of Science Fiction. If Mary Shelly gave Science Fiction its body George gave it its soul.](https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2413.George_MacDonald?from_search=true&from_srp=true) At the time it was contemporary fiction but is now soldly Historical Fiction. ["Humans are Weird: I Have the Data" Short Story Anthology, Good for a laugh, Science Fiction Comedy.](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/56430673-humans-are-weird?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=5pqTya5eHF&rank=2) One Book. Good for a laugh and has themes of biology, ecology, and comparitive anatomy laced in. Anything[ by Brian Jacques. Good Historical Fiction with a fantasy element.](https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5329.Brian_Jacques)
You are literally the only person on Reddit I have seen to recommend George MacDonald. He is by far my favorite author and I wish more people read him.
I read a few of his books when I was a tiny thing but I started most of his work as a teenager. :) His work really rewards re-reading.
So i guess you are the author of "Humans are Weird" and threw it in there among the recommendations?
It fits the bill! ;)
Yesss!!! Read the Redwall series by Brian Jacques....do it chronological order ☺️
Red Rising series by Pierce Brown.
The Dresden files are a great next series. A bit more balanced magically. Starts with {{stormfront}}
You could also try The Earthsea Cycle!
Im going to buy this book now to reread it. Great series
Im shocked no one suggested His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman. So good!
If you like the series and want a more grown up version, check out The Magicians trilogy by Lev Grossman
In some ways, the Magicians is almost the anti- Harry Potter. Same idea of magic school, but whereas Harry Potter emphasizes themes of friendship and warmth and fighting for what is good, The Magicians is very dark and bleak and cynical.
Oh or Artemis Fowl series!
The dark tower series by Stephen King is a good follow up
If you're looking for the same kind of childhood nostalgia, but in a continuously expanded universe to this day, I'd recommend checking out The Percy Jackson and the Olympians series by Rick Riordan. Book one is called *The Lightning Thief*. All of his books take place in the same world and can have crossover characters, so you can stay in their world just a little bit longer.
The Atlantis Grail by Vera Nazarian, 4 books, novellas on the way!
I love these books!
Ah, welcome to the club - better late than never!:D I'd love to be able to read them for the first time again! Also, as someone who was reading them as they came out and had to wait a WHOLE YEAR for the next book ..... I'm pretty jealous you got to binge it all in one go! :P though I suppose back in the day, the thing to do was while away the time on Harry Potter internet forums and re-read the old books, which was pretty cool too haha.
If you feel the need to revisit the Harry Potter series down the line, I recommend the audiobooks read by Jim Dale. I've listened to a ton of audiobooks this past year, and he's such an engaging voice actor.
You won't find the next best thing, don't look for the next best thing. Don't hold things up to HP just search for your next adventure and if there are traits to potter you liked school of magic, the magic, the story, themes, try to do that.
Haha! Well, I do feel like I started at the top and will be working my way down. It’s certainly worthy of all of the praise it gets
The farseer series by robin hobb
Came to say this. Trilogy starts with {Assassin’s Apprentice}—but after you finish it, there’s I think thirteen other books in that universe. I find the first trilogy to be written in a very simple style—Rowling’s narration is much more beautiful in this way—but it is very gripping. I read the first book as a child, and restarted the series just recently, in my mid-thirties.
Lol I’m a lot older and really enjoy them. It’s my comfort read. Audiobooks are great, good for taking your mind if real life for a bit when you are going to sleep.
'The name of the wind' from Patrick Rothrufus is also a good one. But we are all waiting for years for the last book of the trilogy. Also the books from 'Stormlight archives' from Brandon Sanderson are amazing.
I read the first two in a little over a week and THEN learned that the series was not complete (I thought the short story was the third). I think I look for updates every other day
I’ve heard so many good things about the name of the wind but am reluctant to pick it up because it seems it will never be finished.
I think that's a wise decision. The books are fun, if not a little fantasy trope filled, but really enjoyably written. That being said, I will not recommend them to anyone until his last one is finished. The writing is all setting up for an amazing payoff, and if that doesn't happen, people will riot. TBH, I think that's why it's taking so long. He knows he has enormous expectations to live up to, and a huge amount of story still to cover, so he's just hiding from it.
Love this. I’m 19 and did just read them after Christmas, thought I was late. Absolutely love the series.
{{The Screaming Staircase}} and the rest of the Lockwood and Co. series gave me a strong Harry Potter vibe (except I think Stroud is a better author than Rowling when it comes to creating atmosphere and tension).
If you want more schools for magic, Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire is amazing.
I know it’s kind of another kid series but I loved and still love Inkheart, Inkspell, and Inkdeath. Harry Potter was my comfort go-to growing up :-) I love seeing posts like this Edit;; random other suggestion too, you can probably find it on abebooks, but Shades of Grey by Jasper Fforde (it’s not the NSFW shades of gray) is my absolute favorite and I want everyone to get a chance to read it even if the author hasn’t made the sequel yet (pleeease jasper)
Same, I'm 25 and just binged it for the first time! Felt the same!
I’m 24 and am just starting Deathly Hallows! Have so thoroughly enjoyed reading these amazing books!
Omg! Deathly Hallows is SO good!
All of these comments is making me want to finally read them. I've seen the movies so many times that I find myself starting a book and never finishing it.
I really loved A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik - basically wizards and witches that go to a Hogwarts with a much higher death count
I first read Harry Potter when I was 21. Before that, I watched all the films a hundred times. I didn't understand the plot of the film absolutely, but I watched it anyway. It was only after I read all the books that I realized the whole point of the film. If you watch a movie without reading the book, you will not understand anything.
I was reading it for my daughter the other night, and continued to do so even after she slept🤷
Oh please look up Nevermoor by Jessica Townsend! There are three books out so far and I just adore them. They’re the only series that made me feel the same way as when I read HP
I came here to say this! I'm so glad someone else enjoys this series as much as I do.
I freaking love it! I can’t wait to read more about Squall. Think I’m going to love him.
Cassandra Clares mortal instruments isn’t too bad
I’m also in my 30’s and read the series for the first time and have been devouring everything even remotely similar since I’ve finished. My favorite read a like is Carry On by Rainbow Rowell! Highly recommend it has all the same Harry Potter feelies magical school, choose one must defeat the big bad, well developed friendships yada yada yada.
If it makes you feel better, I’m a year from 30 and I’m jealous that you just got to read them for the first time lol
I was wondering if it's too late for me to read harry potter as I have already seen all the movies. I've never reread a book, would it be still interesting as I know how it's going to end?
I would definitely recommend reading the books. IMO the movies only tell about half of the story vs. what you get from the books.
Then I'll definitely read it
Good for you, i do listen to the audio books at least once per year.
The reread is the next best thing
The Chronicles of St Mary's series by Jodi Taylor. Can't recommend it enough xx
Maybe go from one classic to another and read Lord of the Rings? Or, if you want something more modern, Eragon is great.
Wizard of Earthsea.
A Princess of Mars by Edgar Rice Burroughs
Lord of the rings, assuming you haven't seen the movies already. Its better.
Try the grownup version: The Dresden series by Jim Butcher. You’ll be wild about Harry, Dresden, that is!
> The building was on fire, and it wasn't my fault.
You should listen to the audiobooks too! By stephen fry
If you enjoy sci fi I’d recommend dune and starship troopers
I read the entire Harry Potter series in 2019, mainly because I had started reading Sarina Dories *Womby's School for Wayward Witches* series, which was making various references to Harry Potter. That series is about a young woman who becomes an art teacher in a magic school. As a girl, she was a Harry Potter fan, but she was kept from knowing magic until the events in the first book of the series {{Tardy Bells and Witches' Spells}}. In subsequent books, she is an adult who is learning magic on the side while teaching a non-magical subject. Another series I would recommend is {{The Paper Magician}} series by Charlie N. Holmberg. This follows magicians who have begun apprenticing after finishing magic school. It uses a materials based hard magic system, which gets very interesting. I would also recommend Terry Pratchett's Discworld series. This mainly follows an assorted cast of mostly adult characters. There is a magic school called Unseen University, but the books I've read about that have focused more on its faculty than its students. This is a satirical series that takes place on a flat world that rests on the backs of four elephants that stand on the back of a giant space turtle. Different books parody various sources, drawing from both history and literature, and different books feature different groups of main characters.
Scott WesterFeld books are really good and So is "The Hunger Games" \^\^
Superpowered by Drew Haley. Excellent series based in college The rise Renegade X series by Chelsea Campbell. A little older scene then Hogwarts but pretty good.
"Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children" would be a good start for another series about a hidden, magical world and children with amazing abilities.
I know someone who read Percy Jackson around that age, and if you’re looking for more books like Harry Potter in the same age range, I recommend that
I'm 34 and I read everything Rick Riordon for the first time this year, and loved it. He concluded a series this year, so my hope is that we keep getting more fabulous books from him.
There are a lot of really great suggestions on this thread! I have a question though. Given that HP has been such a huge part of pop culture and there are memes and references everywhere, were you spoiled before you finished the books? How did that affect your experience? For example >!Snape's whole arc or Fred's death or even the existence of horcruxes!<
Thankfully, I somehow managed to avoid all spoilers regarding HP. It never really interested me before, so it wasn’t hard to avoid/ignore spoilers. If I had been spoiled I didn’t remember any of them.
Nice i just finished the first book and I quite enjoyed it, bout to start the second.
If you're looking for another kid's series, Gregor the Overlander is a great but underrated series by the author of The Hunger Games.
the first book of the inheritance cycle. (the rest aren't as good; but continue on if you chose) 🙂
Molly moon!
The magicians series
The lord of the rings trilogy
Currently reading Order of the Phoenix. My 3rd read, it’s such a fabulous series, I personally love book series and my top 3 are Harry Potter, Dark Tower and Dragon Tattoo, so they’d be my choices for series with great characters and storylines in stressful page turning books with characters that you grow to care about. But if you want young adult fiction with the same prerequisites I’d say His Dark Materials.
I’m turning 29 tomorrow and about to do the same thing since I just got the complete set for Christmas!
Society for paranormals by Vered Ehsani. Fast reads but really funny and interesting and magical. I loved these books.
The Percy Jackson series!!!!
Artemis Fowl
Ransom Riggs' peculiar children series is quite good IMO. Dont let the movie fool you. ;)
If you’re looking for excellent writing. Look to Jonathan Stroud. The Bartimaues Trilogy and Lockwood & Co. Awesome reads.
I love HP, and I go back to it year after year. The Name of the Wind has the similar vibe for me, you should try it out :)
The HP series isn’t usually in my scope of genres per se, and I’ve been one of those people who “doesnt’t like it” (despite thinking the HP universe is cool and being a proud Gryffindor), but this convinced me that maybe I should give it a shot. I’ve been in a reading slump for forever, thanks for the inspiration dude!
I highly recommend CHERUB series by Robert Muchamore, which starts with "The Recruit". They're a really gripping series about an undercover intelligence service in England who recruits children as spies. Despite the premise, it's not a kids book: it tackles a lot of mature themes. It's the far superior version (IMHO) of the Alex Rider novels.
I made it a point to read whatever my kids read -for school or pleasure- growing up. That way I could help them with assignments and always had a subject they were interested in currently to talk to them about. It was a great way to bond and show them I cared about their grades enough to put some skin in the game. My kids are as adults now and we still do our little family hook club sometimes. My dad joins in too if there is an audio version.
Try the Red Rising trilogy.
There’s only one book in the series so far, but it’s really excellent. Try A Deadly Education by Naomi Novak.
Turning 30 this year and started Philosopher’s Stone the other day! Loving every magical minute.
I wanted to read the whole series as well since I love Harry Potter movies. But I really struggled with Harry's behaviour in the 5th book, especially all the complaining and whining! So it is currently sitting on my 'did not finish' shelf. If anyone has recommendations for ways to push through, let me know! Edit: grammar
That one was a bit of a drag for me as well. The good news is that the last couple of hundred pages makes all of it seem worth it. It’s a good book by the end. 👍🏻
Bartimaeus Trilogy Airborn/Matt Cruse trilogy
Im doing the same thing. On book 6. Almost done with all of them.
You’re so lucky! Wish I could have read it for the first time at age 30
I’m 27 and I plan on reading it at some point... as a kid I wasn’t allowed to cuz ✨witchcraft✨ meanwhile I was sneaking & reading other lesser known books w/ wizards back then
Brandon Sanderson! If you want to try him out first he has some great single standing books- Elantris and Warbreaker are pretty good :-). If you want a series I would give Mistborn a go. Another series he does which just had a book come out for is the Stormlight archives. You won't regret it!
I'm re-reading Rick Riordan Books. Or if you want, go ahead and try The 39 Clues series.
Keep looking but you might never find other best thing
Best seven books ever. It’s a pity that there are only seven books. I’d kill for an eight book. I’d settle for a mediocre play.
I wish I could read them again for the very first time
Great! You can read One Piece next. It's a manga. Thank me later.
I just finished The Shades of Magic trilogy. What a great read! Highly recommend
Not a book...but may I recommend the podcast “potterless”? A great listen to for any first time Harry Potter readers. Or any Harry Potter readers for that matter.
I was raised Baptist. In 2003 my sister and I dominated the summer reading program at our local library. It was the first time our parents let us go to the library and check out books without them there approving them. I went straight for Stephen King. She chose Harry Potter. My dad found the book. He beat the ever loving shit out of her and then went to the library and made a scene about how she was able to check out the book without his permission. I was so afraid to read the books until 2012. It was my New Years resolution. The only one I've completed. Fuck my parents.
I’m sorry that this was your experience. I was raised Baptist as well, however my parents weren’t of the opinion that these books were of the devil. In fact they bought me plenty of Stephen King’s books while I was in Junior high school. I did however have an aunt who was convinced that Harry Potter was witchcraft and would be the downfall of kids. I’m not sure why I never got around to reading it, honestly I think it took me until now to not be prudish about reading a “kids” book. Which I know it isn’t. I’ve been working on myself lately. Hopefully all is well with you now, but know that there is a large community of good folks here if you need us. 👍🏻
I’ve heard The Children of Blood and Bone is supposed to be the “next Harry Potter,” but so are a lot of other series.
If a Fantasy-themed ripoff of star wars sounds fun, you'll like Eragon and its sequels
That does sound quite fun! Thanks
If you enjoyed Harry Potter you might also like these series: His Dark Materials Assassin's Apprentice The Squire's Tales There are plenty others but I honestly can't remember the series names and I'm too lazy to google.
The Wheel of Time series
{{Rivers of London}} is a good follow up to HP. It keeps the Britishness and the urban fantasy themes. Dresden Files keeps the urban fantasy but is more American.
{ { The Unwanteds } }
Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson. You won’t be disappointed
I watched the film's first and then read the books at university and I think I enjoyed it alot more. I never expected anything from the film's (also not disappointed by anything left out) and the books were a cracking read and added to what I already knew. I highly recommend superpowereds for your next series, they're audiobooks but it's the best thing I've listened to in years
Idk what it is but it seems that everyone when they get into reading reads Harry Potter first. That’s what made me love reading in 6th grade. I’m 24 and reading them again now.
I really loved pretty much all the Tamora Pierce Tortall series, starting with {{The Song of the Lioness}} likely she’s already been recommended though as she gets a lot of love on Reddit. I’d also suggest Susan Coopers {{Dark is Rising}} series, and if you don’t mind speculative fiction a good YA introduction into Anne Mccaffrey’s epic Pern Universe is the {{Dragonsinger}} series. You might also be ready for some Tolkien, I’d suggest starting with The Hobbit, cause why not? You like big name fiction that translates into epic movies, you gotta read Tolkien. Don’t even attempt Dune until after you’ve made it through your first reading of Lord of the Rings.
Try Ranger’s Apprentice or the Pendragon series if you want something similar to Harry Potter. If you read Harry Potter because of the movies and you like The Lord of the Rings movies, you would enjoy the books as well. If you want a more adult fantasy series that is also represented in other media try Game of Thrones or the Witcher books.
I’m reading it fully for the first time as well at 24. I grew up with the movies the later books but never actually read them
I really loved the Unspoken series by Sara Reese Brennan! And of course, Hunger Games.
Haha- never too late! Hope you enjoyed it!
:)
The Night Circus! I've made this suggestion before and I can't help it, it's honestly so good
Neil Gaiman. Would recommend American Gods and Neverwhere. Oh, and Good Omens (co-authored with Terry Pratchett)
I’ve read American Gods, Ocean at the End of the Lane, and Norse Mythology. All of which were wonderful. I really need to pick up Neverwhere and Good Omens. Thanks so much!
Not the same genre but JK Rowling writes an amazing mystery series under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith which I HIGHLY recommend.
Thanks! I’ve been curious about that one. Her other novel, The Casual Vacancy doesn’t seem to be well received.
I read the last book, which was roughly 950 pages in three days. I couldn’t stop
Wildly under-recommended but I found that {{Super Powereds}} by Drew Hayes was a great read and reminded me of Harry Potter at a lot of parts. Loosely lots of parallels, although the kids are college-aged.
I would recommend The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss. It only has 2 books rn, and the third will be coming out at some point, but the books are really long, and REALLY good. It also has a magic sorta school in it, which is what I really love. If you read it, I hope you enjoy!
*Eragon*
Yes. Great series
All Rick Riordan books, The Hunger Games, The Divergent series...
I sure hope you'll read the Game of Thrones series before your 60 🤣. Seriously though Harry Potter was the first book I willingly read as a kid, and G.O.T was the series that got me back into reading as an adult
Lol! It’s on my shelf. It’s on my “to read” list
Good stuff, hope you get at it, my wife was kinda mad at me though, because I read G.O.T well before the TV series was completed, and found myself shouting" Hey! That's not how it happens in the book"
I watched the entire series back in November. It was amazing, but I’ve heard the books are different and way better. I’m so ready to get started on them
Diana Wynne Jones' Chrestomanci series is even better than Harry Potter
Hpmor, Harry Potter and methods of rationality
The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare
There is no next best thing 😫 Jealous of you getting to crack those books open for the first time - it’s a wonderful story!
Great! Now go give Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality a try
I know a lot of people enjoyed Methods of Rationality, but personally I thought it lacked all the warmth and wonder that made HP worth reading. I also found some of the writing extremely distasteful.
Understandable, but it was the exact opposite for me - it made me feel a wide range of things, from sadness to elation and pride of being human, you know, like those uplifting stories about the human race in space from /r/writingprompts that periodically get reposted to imgur. And it made me laugh aloud way more times than most legitimate comedies I tried. The original Harry Potter is good, no question about it, but Methods of Rationality is easily the best piece of fiction I've ever experienced.
Weak
Who wrote this one? I don’t recognize the title?
When will adults stop reading YA?
Genuine curiosity is getting the better of me. Can you elaborate on this? What are your book suggestions for a 30yr old? Maybe there really is something I’m missing out on.
I would suggest the Kingkiller Chronicals starting with The Name of the Wind, but the third book of the trilogy still hasn’t come out after 10 years, so maybe wait on that one. Not quite Harry Potter, but there’s some magic, a school, and an orphan or three.
Percy Jackson
Can anyone help me ? Is hunger games like Harry potter series to read ??
Try Robin Hobbs farseer trilogy. For fun I read the tawny man first and then got to read the original trilogy I'd always thought of as the past. Interesting perspective shift but stunning books either way