Series

Books like The Dark Tower: 9 series to read next

The Dark Tower is dark fantasy and fantasy, about quests, set in secondary world, dark in register. The 9 series below are ranked by how much of that they share — each card says which parts.

The Dark Tower is 21 books, 1978–2016.

“King substantially revised the novel in 2003; this version has remained in print ever since, with the subtitle RESUMPTION.”
from the catalogue description of The Gunslinger
Wikipedia CC BY-SA 4.0

The The Dark Tower page →Narrow this list →

Tolkien's legendarium
Narnia
Malazan
Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever
The Circle of the World
Grishaverse
World of Ice and Fire
His Dark Materials
Shannara

Tolkien's legendariumUniverse

universe163 books1923

Fantasy, set in secondary world.

“Before the seas were bent and the mountains raised, there was Music — and from that Music came Arda, and in the west of Middle-earth the long defeat and stubborn hope of those who dwell there.”
from the catalogue description

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NarniaUniverse

universe38 books1950

Portal fantasy.

“Once there is a wardrobe at the back of a spare room, and behind the fur coats the wood gives way to snow, and a lamp-post burns alone among the trees.”
from the catalogue description

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MalazanUniverse

universe36 books1999

About war.

“Pity the historian who tries to map this world; pity more the god who thinks he rules it.”
from the catalogue description

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Thomas Covenant the UnbelieverSeries

seriesStephen R. Donaldson11 books1977

Fantasy and epic fantasy, dark in tone, about quests, set in secondary world.

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The Circle of the WorldUniverse

universe29 books2006

Grimdark.

“What sets it apart is the honesty of its cynicism — close, sardonic points of view, gallows humour, and a flat refusal to let anyone stay clean.”
from the catalogue description

Start with The Blade Itself →

GrishaverseUniverse

universe19 books2012

Fantasy, set in secondary world.

“Saints are canonized here the way soldiers are buried elsewhere — quietly, and too often.”
from the catalogue description

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World of Ice and FireUniverse

universe19 books1980

About political intrigue and war.

“Winter is coming, and the men who forget it die first.”
from the catalogue description

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His Dark MaterialsUniverse

universe13 books1995

About coming of age.

“In a world like ours and unlike it, every human soul walks outside the body in the shape of an animal — a daemon, who speaks, who cannot be lied to, and who settles into one fixed form only when childhood ends.”
from the catalogue description

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ShannaraUniverse

universe50 books1977

Fantasy and epic fantasy, set in secondary world.

“Long after the world we know has burned itself to slag in the Great Wars, the Four Lands rise green over the bones of the old age.”
from the catalogue description

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Why these

No sales rank, no star ratings, no readers also bought.

Shared terms are not a promise that a book feels the same. Two series can be far-future political intrigue and read nothing alike — what the ranking can say is what they are about, and each card says which parts it shares.

Questions readers ask

What should I read after The Dark Tower?: Tolkien's legendarium — the closest match to The Dark Tower on what it is about, not on what sells.
Where do I start with The Dark Tower?: The Gunslinger. It is the entry the catalogue recommends for The Dark Tower.
How big is The Dark Tower?: The Dark Tower is 21 books, 1978–2016.

Books like The Dark Tower: 9 series to read next

Read next in The Dark Tower

Why these

Questions readers ask

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