Series

Books like The Realms: 9 series to read next

The Realms is set in secondary world. The 9 series below are ranked by how much of that they share — each card says which parts.

The Realms is 9 books, 2018–2025.

The The Realms page →Narrow this list →

Cosmere
Shannara
Tolkien's legendarium
Sword of Truth
The Riftwar
Forgotten Realms
Paksenarrion
Lord of the Isles
Earthsea

CosmereUniverse

universe54 books2005

Fantasy and epic fantasy, set in secondary world.

“Before the worlds, there was Adonalsium, and then there was not.”
from the catalogue description

Start with The Final Empire →

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

Reading order →

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

Reading order →

Sword of TruthUniverse

universe27 books1994

Fantasy and epic fantasy, set in secondary world.

“Truth is a blade, and it cuts the hand that grips it carelessly.”
from the catalogue description

Reading order →

The RiftwarUniverse

universe44 books1982

Fantasy and epic fantasy, set in secondary world.

“On the world of Midkemia a tear opens in the air itself, a rift hung between stars, and through it march the armies of an empire from another world entirely.”
from the catalogue description

Reading order →

Forgotten RealmsUniverse

universe526 books1987

Fantasy and epic fantasy, set in secondary world.

“Come in from the cold and mind the door — the wind off the Sword Coast has teeth.”
from the catalogue description

Reading order →

PaksenarrionUniverse

universe31 books1988

Epic fantasy, set in secondary world.

“A sheepfarmer's daughter refuses the marriage her father arranged, walks off the farm with nothing but a good knife, and signs her name to a mercenary company's roll.”
from the catalogue description

Reading order →

Lord of the IslesSeries

seriesDavid Drake10 books1997

Epic fantasy, adventurous in tone, about quests, set in secondary world.

“In 1997, Drake began his largest fantasy series, Lord of the Isles, using elements of Sumerian religion and medieval-era technology.”
from the catalogue description
Wikipedia CC BY-SA 4.0

Start with Lord of the Isles →

EarthseaUniverse

universe19 books1964

Reflective in tone, about wizards.

“There is a lesson every wizard of Earthsea learns young: to know a thing's true name is to hold its whole being, and to speak it is to move the balance of the world.”
from the catalogue description

Reading order →

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 Realms?: Cosmere — the closest match to The Realms on what it is about, not on what sells.
Where do I start with The Realms?: Barrow King. It is the entry the catalogue recommends for The Realms.
How big is The Realms?: The Realms is 9 books, 2018–2025.

Books like The Realms: 9 series to read next

Read next in The Realms

Why these

Questions readers ask

Other series like this one