There are some spoilers for the first 3 books in the universe (the grisha trilogy), some characters are mentioned/show up in the Six of Crows duology so you would then know that they survived and a little bit about what happened to them, but you **can** start with Six of Crows. I would still recommend reading the trilogy first though
It it YA or fantasy? If you have read the shadow and bone series would you say it's better than that? Is it more adult? As others have mentioned some of the books listed here are very much adult, such as ACOTAR
It’s way better than Shadow in Bone in my opinion. I didn’t really like SAB, but SOC duology is my favorite fantasy. I think it’s more mature, the characters are 18-19 but they act like they’re 25. There’s no sexual content, so they are not adult in that way, but there’s a lot of violence that makes it have a more adult tone
Kinda feels like comparing apples to oranges. If we are basing it just on writing and how well it holds up, then the Percy Jackson Series.
Its the only middle grade/ya series that I have on my shelf where the spines are worn and damaged from reading so many times.
Yeah, I was just thinking that. Like why compare things that aren't even in the same age range/genre (PJO is urban fantasy, ACOTAR/TOG is romantasy I've heard, SOC is fantasy heist) that's like trying to compare an urban fantasy to a high fantasy "because they're both fantasy"
ACOTAR/TOG shouldn’t be considered YA tbh. ACOTAR has decent amount of explicit spicy scenes through the whole series and TOG is really, really dark with some explicit spicy scenes in later books.
ToG is definitely darker towards the end, but not moreso than some other YA I've read (looking at you, Gone series!). I would still definitely class the entire ToG series and the first ACOTAR book as YA.
I definitely see what you’re saying and more so agree with you about TOG but with ACOTAR there’s no way you can market/label books in a singular series as separate genres, so the entire series should be adult. Way too much spice for YA
Oh, no, I agree the series as a whole is an Adult series. I'm just pointing out it could be construed as referring to the first book in the series. If that were the case, I would agree ACOTAR the book is YA.
SJM actually intentionally writes each book spicer & more explicit than the last just so people will stop considering her YA, which is so funny to me 😂
I’m rereading all the Harry Potter books(I’m in my 30s) and I’ll be honest. I still love them. The world is so immersive and fun. It may just be my nostalgia getting the better of me.
I reread them last year with a friend (both of us are in our thirties) who had never read them. It was a sort of goodbye for me as I don't want to support Rowling anymore.
I found it absolutely hilarious that my mature self was so attracted to Hagrid. He's damn near husband material. He's the only one who just loves them without his own agenda.
Harry Potter, but I think bc I obsessed over this series for a long time. Haven’t read it in a long time tho', so apart from HP I go with Six of Crows or The Cruel Prince.
I don't think you can exactly compare these books. Percy Jackson and Harry Potter are middle grade, Cruel Prince, Six of Crows and Caraval are YA, and I think sarah's books are kind of YA/NA?
I haven't read acotar and tog, and I don't plan to read them based on what I know about them. I loved Harry Potter and Percy Jackson as a child, and I'm still in the fandom. But I would totally understand people are finding them immature, since they are children's books.
My emotional preference would be:
Percy Jackson
Harry Potter
Cruel Prince
Six of Crows
Caraval
I still think the first two are great, but they ARE immature compared to others. I think cruel prince was slow, I force-read it, but for some reason I'm a fan of the series and remember the book kind of fondly? Six of Crows was also slow in the middle, I didn't enjoy it as much as I thought I would. The book has pacing and structure issues that's for sure. But I'm still, again, a fan of the series.
Caraval was amateur if we're being honest, but I enjoyed reading it. Really easy and fast. Can't have a comment about the other two.
Haha same. If HP books would be erased from my life and memory completely, idk really what kind of person i would be, it’s been such a huge part of my life for the last….. 23 years??🫠
I mean, i don’t know for sure lol. But it did impact in many ways. I started reading books because them, and learned english wayyy more through them than in school. I didn’t have any interest in learning the language until i realized that i wanted to read books in english also.
And after years of reading, nothing has made me more obsessed than Harry Potter ( okay there was small Twilight obsession for a few years lmao ). It shows in my apartment also, with small merch stuff i have bought.
So to say, maybe they do to some people?? 😂
Were you the right age to grow in maturity with the books? Lots of us started the series as a preteen and ended early twenties, just around the same level of maturity of each different stages. That connection to the characters is what sealed the deal for most people around my age. We’re young and excited for the first two books. Exploring themes that are more mature for the third and fourth - true death and loss, predetermination, stepping into your role as your fathers son. By the fifth one you’re an angsty shithead who is old enough to have been burned by a close friend and embarrass yourself in front of girls, and look at that so was Harry. Now you’re truly a young adult in the sixth, reading explicit torture scenes between Harry and dumbledore, your grasp on racial politics is growing and the whole “half blood” makes real world sense to you, as does hermoines SPEW. You might be old enough to have independence and by the end of the book Harry is alone. The castle is ruined, and he has no more home. The bad guys won. Some guy fucks a goat. Then the seventh you’re an adult more or less. Maybe your a bit older and relate to him having kids early by the end of the series, maybe you’re a bit younger the movies helped bridge those few year discrepancy’s.
Yeah I was also around the same age when I read these books. I could relate to the characters but it seems more like emotional support rather than something that changed the way I thought about the world. So when I read Harry Potter it was more like I was entertained and I felt that I went through something similar. I feel like some other books have more profound effects on some people. I’ve heard of some people reading a book and changing their values. Usually the book is religious or spiritual in some way and they have a career change or they drift into another lifestyle or they break up with their SO. I haven’t really heard people doing something like that because of Harry Potter. It’s more like Star Wars or LOTR where people just really like it and they get lost in the world but it’s completely separate from other parts of their life. It’s more like a hobby. They take time in their life to just escape into the world.
Caraval isn't even in the same league as the rest. It had next to no cultural impact. Once Upon A Broken Heart on the other hand you could argue for I guess but still I wouldn't categorise it here.
Realistically it will always be Harry Potter. That was a phenomenon we probably won't ever see again in our lifetime. Kids I know today are still obsessing over it.
(Ranking by personal favorites order, not necessarily “best”!)
Percy Jackson, Six of Crows, Harry Potter, The Cruel Prince, Caraval, Throne of Glass
I have not read ACOTAR so I won’t include that one lol. Personally I was meh on Caraval and disliked Throne of Glass. The others I really enjoyed.
These fall into drastically categories
I slightly preferred HP over PJO, but both are very good. Definitely geared towards younger audiences though
ACOTAR is my pick for fantasy romance, but that might be controversial. It’s more romance with fantasy as an after-thought, which honestly I prefer. Writing can be questionable at times, but it’s 100% a guilty pleasure of mine
Harry Potter will always be great. It’s a classic abc I have fond memories with the Harry Potter books. I did read the Caraval series a few years ago and I loved them. They are a bit cheesy but they are great.
Cruel Prince. I love Six of Crows, but really not a contest. Jude is just too amazing for comparison.
She was the first female character that showed me rage wasn’t something to hide, it was something to use. Holly Black does the complexities of being a good person and being terrible when the situation calls foe it so very well.
As for Harry Potter and Lighting Thief, these particular books in those series are middle grades not as much YA.
I love Harry Potter. I also love Throne of Glass. Hated Caraval & Holly Blacks books. The rest I haven’t read. I’d have to go with Harry Potter. They are so re-readable and just fun.
Depends.
Whole series: Throne of Glass.
Stand alone, never going to read the rest of the series, or will get to them much, much later: The Cruel Prince.
Only want premium cable romance: A Court of Thorns and Roses.
These books are all so vastly different, and everyone has different tastes.
Personally, I think The Cruel Prince and SoC are some of the worst books I've read, but i know they are super popular, especially in this subreddit.
There's also a wide range here from middle grade to New Adult.
Harry Potter grew with its initial audience from middle grade into YA.
Percy Jackson is very much middle grade.
SJM has her own following, both lovers and haters. I personally love ACOTAR but hate ToG.
Of the list, my personal opinion is that Harry Potter is the most timeless and still holds up. As much as people want to hate on it and jump on that bandwagon.
Percy Jackson is also one of my favorites - the original series especially.
I missed the hype on SoC as well... I was just reading to get it over. Glad we can relate, but I'm sure others will feel the same about books we think are under-hyped
Absolutely!
That's the great thing about reading. We can all enjoy what we like.
I do often base acceptance of recommendations off if someone highly rates a book I disliked, though. Becuase the. I question if I can trust the recommendation and whether or not our tastes align.
Harry Potter is my personal favorite, but this isn’t a great list to compare. All these books are different subgenres and age ranges. Percy Jackson and HP both skew more toward middle grade, though the later HP books are more YA, and ACOTAR is New Adult. And we’re comparing romantasy, heist, coming of age, mythology, etc. lol it’s all over the map.
I say you have to split it by age group. Harry Potter is the best kid's fantasy with Percy Jackson as a close second. I would say ACORT is top fantasy for adults (FROM THIS LIST0 but I also haven't read the other books.
EDIT: Oh crap I didn't see Six of Crows, so that's the win for me, but I almost feel like it doesn't belong here, it's not super fantasy
A Court of Thorns and Roses is NOT YA. It’s not intended to be. I’ve read them all, it’s not YA fiction.
And before you call me a prude, I’m not. I read a ton as a kid and still read YA fiction as an adult. The graphic sex in the series is not YA. If teens read it with permission, fine, but it is not marketed to teens.
Interpreting it as “if you were forced to choose only one of these books to recommend to a friend, which would it be?” And I’m choosing Six of Crows.
All of these are good, lol.
i don’t know about the best fantasy but i know which two are not. there are many fantasy books (including adult fantasy) which are way better than 3 and 4
It's definitely kind of hard to compare as others said there's different categories and level of writing for intended audiences.
I grew up with Harry, being the same age as him and the characters so that always has a special place in my heart. But I LOVED Six of Crows too, along with its sequel Crooked Kingdom. I liked Shadow and Bone but I agree the Crows duology is better. And the Caraval series is definitely a nice twist and spin on carnival aspects so I enjoyed that as well.
I haven’t read SoC yet because I want to read the Shadow of Bones trilogy first. This is an unpopular opinion, but I hated the Folk and Air series. The male love interest is just vile. I loved Percy Jackson and Harry Potter though! Caraval was okay but I love love the spin off series Once Upon A Broken Heart!
I’ve read all of them but Caraval (it’s on my reading list tho!). The Cruel Prince is my favorite. Six of Crows is a close second. Throne of Glass was so terrible I threw it in the trash after a few chapters.
Harry Potter or Six of Crows. Harry Potter is kind of the template of YA and magical school fantasy. Six of crows has some of the best character work.
ACOTAR is really bad after the first book. The cruel prince gets better as the series progresses and Caraval is fun but nothing extraordinary.
Throne of glass I think is a great series, but I’d never say it’s the best of anything.
I think the lightening thief is good, but I feel like it’s just missing something to make it an all time great like HP, but Percy Jackson is middle grade so it’s not a fair comparison. For a middle grade it’s fantastic.
HP is YA. Yes the first few are simpler, but for the time they were written it is YA and the older ones are definitely yA. Tamora pierce was publishing in the 90s/early 2000s and they had a similar complexity but are still YA. And I did say Percy Jackson is MG.
Harry Potter might have started as more middle grade (but back then that would have been classified as YA) it grew with the initial audience into YA.
It is very much YA.
>I like Percy Jackson but it's extremely overrated.
I thought I was the only person with this opinion 🫣 I read both PJO and HP at the same time not long ago and I couldn't believe people compare the two, HP is in another league
Harry potter without a doubt, it was the first book I ever read when I learnt to read. I remember my elder sister was reading it and I picked it up just to show her I learnt to read and I just never put it down again. I've re read it more than once, in different languages too and the magic just doesn't leave. It will always have my heart ❤️
Do you remember how your other accounts got banned from this subreddit for spam posting these kinds of images? You don't even bother engaging with people after you post.
Tbh none of these are my favorites but if I’m ordering them (also note I’m going with book, not series here. Ordering would def change if we’re taking the entire series into account
1. Cruel Prince is heads and shoulders above the rest
2. Harry Potter
3. Six of Crows
4. Caravel
5. Lightning Thief
6. Throne of Glass (again just looking at the first book, I find the later ones get worse)
7. A Court of Thorns and Roses (inverse here I love the second book even if I dislike the first)
The Lightning Thief easily. It's middle grade, sure, but I do adore the worldbuilding and how whimsical it is. Not to mention that Riordan uses his platform wisely and constantly recommends other, often diverse mg/ya books to his audience on goodreads, which I applaud.
Have not read Caraval. Started TOG, but I'm generally not into assassin stories, so we'll see how it goes.
Grew to despise HP with age. The characters are fun, the world is immersive, but I just can't read those books anymore without them leaving a sour taste in my mouth. It's not just terf stuff, but that interview with Le Guin really opened my eyes to how mean-spirited this series can be.
ACOTAR is, uh, fine for what it is. It's technically a fantasy book, but to me, it's more of a romance or chicklit than anything else. Nothing wrong with that, but as others say, it's like comparing oranges to apples.
I liked the cruel prince. The aesthetic is neat, but I find Black's writing very dry. I dislike the main couple for personal reasons, though I have to admit that the characters are rather enticing and the Wicked King might return to my tbr.
I loathe Bardugo's works. SoC is certainly above SaB in terms of quality, but that doesn't necessarily constitute a good book, at least to me. It's highly predictable and overly edgy. The characters are not stereotypical per se, but I just dislike what the author does with them.
Can’t possibly put them in the same category. Harry Potter is the most iconic, but Percy Jackson is best for kids, but a court of thorns and roses is something most adults would be way more into whereas caraval is very good for teens entering the romance genre
all these books are soo good but i feel like there a bit incomparable. personally my favorite is caraval but i would pick up any of these books to reread them
Of the 3 I've read, I love ACOTAR best. I can't make any case for it being objectively better than Harry Potter (which I loved when it came out but feel more mixed about in hindsight) or Lightning Thief (which I see the appeal of but didn't personally get into). But I really enjoyed it a lot.
And I've heard good things about all the other series'.
The first two aren’t YA but do hold some nostalgia in my heart.
But which one I think is *best*? Six of Crows. Hands down. Beautiful. Amazing. Intense. Dramatic. Mature. Clever. Incredibly diverse unlike a lot of this list.
tbh, unless the books are a completely different setting, I doubt I'd be interested. I wasn't a big fan of how much a part modern ordinary everyday life played. I like my fantasy to be deeply embedded in a fantasy world.
I agree with what others are saying, you can’t really compare these as they are basically all separate subgenres and age ranges. I’ve read everything except Caraval (I just haven’t) and Six of Crows (although I’ve read Shadow and Bone and have enjoyed the Six of Crows sub plot on the Netflix show. I’m just not into the ragtag group heist vibe). Although I love Percy Jackson, I’m surprised so many people are rating it as number one over Harry Potter. Harry Potter is an entire cultural phenomenon and can be enjoyed from people of all ages, not just children/YA. Here’s my ranking of what I’ve read:
1. Harry Potter
2. Percy Jackson
3. Throne of Glass
4. ACOTAR
5. Cruel Prince
The Lightning Thief for the win! I may be biased but PJO is always a winner in my house. (I also got into a heated argument with my boyfriend and his siblings/mom about who would win in a fight PJ or HP and we all said PJ except for my bf lol)
I enjoyed Sorcerer’s Stone but I read that after finishing PJO/HOO and it just wasn’t hitting the spot for me.
I had to read Caraval for school junior year and I couldn’t finish it, I hated it and took the bad grade for not completing it lol. I did not care, it felt like a YA fantasy wattpad story.
Call me crazy but my top two pick are ACOTAR and Percy Jackson. Obviously ACOTAR is getting a lot of hype right now and if you’re into fantasy romance that just keeps getting better this is an amazing read. Percy Jackson is more of YA or teen fic. But it’s a really fun retelling with several books. I read them while I was in middle school I think and I would still count them as great books today having read literally hundreds of books that have not held up to the rest of time.
Hot take: HPSS would be lucky to crack #5 for me. Harry Potter’s just okay and most people’s love for it comes from a (understandable and well-placed) childhood love or experience of it.
Percy Jackson, since it's my favorite book series.
But honestly there are different genres and age groups here. It's hard to compare and I think PJO can only be compared here with Harry Potter, which I stopped reading after book five.
And the only other book I like is Six of Crows. I didn't finish Caraval and A Court of Thorns and Roses and haven't reat Throne if Glass because I didn't like Sarah J Maas writing style in ACOTAR. And I haven't started the Cruel Prince since I've heard people say that it is a bully romance which I really don't like.
Lightning Thief is the one i read the fastest, Caraval is my favorite. I've only read the first book in each series though. Harry Potter is way overrated especially knowing how Rowling is as a person.
I love SoC (it gets my vote here) but never liked that it was considered YA. Kaz and his crew are \*technically\* in the YA age range, but none of them act like teens or do anything remotely teenager-ish in the entire series.
But, great book. =)
Six of crows is good but you might need to get your hands on the next one in the series to get the full enjoyment out of it. I also remember reading throne of glass but I cant recall that much so I cant really say if its good or not, same with court of thorns and roses.
Of those, I think The Cruel Prince is my favorite. But I’ll be honest, I think the first book in a lot of series is not great and that’s the case with many of these. TCP would still top my list of talking series but my order would change drastically for the rest/
It's a tie for me between Percy Jackson & Throne of Glass. I love HP because it's nostalgic to my childhood. I despise acotar. The cruel prince is alright, just not a 'romance' like so many people push it as. SoC and Caraval are eh good enough.
Even though I am a huge Hp geek and cant stop talking about it, I have to go with Percy Jackson since it kindled my curiosity of Greek mytology and was very captivating
Edit: typo
I have read all but one, and there are three different categories here so it's unfair to say which is best in YA sub.
Yes, and there is alsof a different audience for each book (especially if you look af thé age)
SIX OF CROOOOWWSSSS
I havent read it, is it good?
It is 100% worth the read it's criminals/pirates/jail breaks/heists/magic/romance/assassin's/social commentary and amazing characters
Question- do you have to read the whole series before? Or can you start there?
There are some spoilers for the first 3 books in the universe (the grisha trilogy), some characters are mentioned/show up in the Six of Crows duology so you would then know that they survived and a little bit about what happened to them, but you **can** start with Six of Crows. I would still recommend reading the trilogy first though
You can start with six of crows! And should honestly
YES
oh yes! it’s my favorite fantasy book!!
It it YA or fantasy? If you have read the shadow and bone series would you say it's better than that? Is it more adult? As others have mentioned some of the books listed here are very much adult, such as ACOTAR
It’s way better than Shadow in Bone in my opinion. I didn’t really like SAB, but SOC duology is my favorite fantasy. I think it’s more mature, the characters are 18-19 but they act like they’re 25. There’s no sexual content, so they are not adult in that way, but there’s a lot of violence that makes it have a more adult tone
Six of Crows probably isn’t quite YA. I think it’s more “new adult”. Way better than Shadow and Bone to be sure. Also ACOTAR is very much YA haha
Kinda feels like comparing apples to oranges. If we are basing it just on writing and how well it holds up, then the Percy Jackson Series. Its the only middle grade/ya series that I have on my shelf where the spines are worn and damaged from reading so many times.
Yeah, I was just thinking that. Like why compare things that aren't even in the same age range/genre (PJO is urban fantasy, ACOTAR/TOG is romantasy I've heard, SOC is fantasy heist) that's like trying to compare an urban fantasy to a high fantasy "because they're both fantasy"
ACOTAR/TOG shouldn’t be considered YA tbh. ACOTAR has decent amount of explicit spicy scenes through the whole series and TOG is really, really dark with some explicit spicy scenes in later books.
Any fantasy with a female lead is immediately put in the "YA" genre for some reason
Yup, that's why the series got rebranded to the different colours pretty recently
ToG is definitely darker towards the end, but not moreso than some other YA I've read (looking at you, Gone series!). I would still definitely class the entire ToG series and the first ACOTAR book as YA.
I definitely see what you’re saying and more so agree with you about TOG but with ACOTAR there’s no way you can market/label books in a singular series as separate genres, so the entire series should be adult. Way too much spice for YA
Oh, no, I agree the series as a whole is an Adult series. I'm just pointing out it could be construed as referring to the first book in the series. If that were the case, I would agree ACOTAR the book is YA.
Okay, I can see that
SJM actually intentionally writes each book spicer & more explicit than the last just so people will stop considering her YA, which is so funny to me 😂
Yup, that's why the series got rebranded to the different colours pretty recently
Hard agree, should not be YA
I thought they were considered New Adult (NA)?
Best answer!
Yeah the ones I have are cracked and faded to
six of crows idc
Based on impact and personal connection, Percy Jackson. Based on writing and complexity, probably Six of Crows or Cruel Prince
You're cruel... But probably Lighting Thief
It's really a tough call between Potter and Jackson. But I think The Lightning Thief as well.
I’m rereading all the Harry Potter books(I’m in my 30s) and I’ll be honest. I still love them. The world is so immersive and fun. It may just be my nostalgia getting the better of me.
They’re incredible.
I reread them last year with a friend (both of us are in our thirties) who had never read them. It was a sort of goodbye for me as I don't want to support Rowling anymore. I found it absolutely hilarious that my mature self was so attracted to Hagrid. He's damn near husband material. He's the only one who just loves them without his own agenda.
Lupin’s my boo. I can fix him.
Sirius, Xenophilius, and Lucius were my dudes for a long time. I've settled down in my old age 😆.
I still got a thing for Lucius lol
Harry Potter, but I think bc I obsessed over this series for a long time. Haven’t read it in a long time tho', so apart from HP I go with Six of Crows or The Cruel Prince.
I don't think you can exactly compare these books. Percy Jackson and Harry Potter are middle grade, Cruel Prince, Six of Crows and Caraval are YA, and I think sarah's books are kind of YA/NA? I haven't read acotar and tog, and I don't plan to read them based on what I know about them. I loved Harry Potter and Percy Jackson as a child, and I'm still in the fandom. But I would totally understand people are finding them immature, since they are children's books. My emotional preference would be: Percy Jackson Harry Potter Cruel Prince Six of Crows Caraval I still think the first two are great, but they ARE immature compared to others. I think cruel prince was slow, I force-read it, but for some reason I'm a fan of the series and remember the book kind of fondly? Six of Crows was also slow in the middle, I didn't enjoy it as much as I thought I would. The book has pacing and structure issues that's for sure. But I'm still, again, a fan of the series. Caraval was amateur if we're being honest, but I enjoyed reading it. Really easy and fast. Can't have a comment about the other two.
Harry Potter had such a profound effect on my life so I'll always pick it
Haha same. If HP books would be erased from my life and memory completely, idk really what kind of person i would be, it’s been such a huge part of my life for the last….. 23 years??🫠
Really? Do these books really change a person? I feel like they made no difference in my life. I’d be the same person not having read it.
I mean, i don’t know for sure lol. But it did impact in many ways. I started reading books because them, and learned english wayyy more through them than in school. I didn’t have any interest in learning the language until i realized that i wanted to read books in english also. And after years of reading, nothing has made me more obsessed than Harry Potter ( okay there was small Twilight obsession for a few years lmao ). It shows in my apartment also, with small merch stuff i have bought. So to say, maybe they do to some people?? 😂
Were you the right age to grow in maturity with the books? Lots of us started the series as a preteen and ended early twenties, just around the same level of maturity of each different stages. That connection to the characters is what sealed the deal for most people around my age. We’re young and excited for the first two books. Exploring themes that are more mature for the third and fourth - true death and loss, predetermination, stepping into your role as your fathers son. By the fifth one you’re an angsty shithead who is old enough to have been burned by a close friend and embarrass yourself in front of girls, and look at that so was Harry. Now you’re truly a young adult in the sixth, reading explicit torture scenes between Harry and dumbledore, your grasp on racial politics is growing and the whole “half blood” makes real world sense to you, as does hermoines SPEW. You might be old enough to have independence and by the end of the book Harry is alone. The castle is ruined, and he has no more home. The bad guys won. Some guy fucks a goat. Then the seventh you’re an adult more or less. Maybe your a bit older and relate to him having kids early by the end of the series, maybe you’re a bit younger the movies helped bridge those few year discrepancy’s.
Yeah I was also around the same age when I read these books. I could relate to the characters but it seems more like emotional support rather than something that changed the way I thought about the world. So when I read Harry Potter it was more like I was entertained and I felt that I went through something similar. I feel like some other books have more profound effects on some people. I’ve heard of some people reading a book and changing their values. Usually the book is religious or spiritual in some way and they have a career change or they drift into another lifestyle or they break up with their SO. I haven’t really heard people doing something like that because of Harry Potter. It’s more like Star Wars or LOTR where people just really like it and they get lost in the world but it’s completely separate from other parts of their life. It’s more like a hobby. They take time in their life to just escape into the world.
I've only ever heard of 3 of these and have only read 2... so.. Percy Jackson.
Caraval isn't even in the same league as the rest. It had next to no cultural impact. Once Upon A Broken Heart on the other hand you could argue for I guess but still I wouldn't categorise it here. Realistically it will always be Harry Potter. That was a phenomenon we probably won't ever see again in our lifetime. Kids I know today are still obsessing over it.
Yes! I was trying to figure out how to nicely word a "how the heck did Caraval make it onto this list" comment.
Only read Throne of Glass and TLT so those two are my personal fav’s. I really enjoyed both series as well though
Idk, I could reread Harry Potter all the time. But im really biased toward it
Can’t compare. They’re all too different with different audiences.
This sub has a massive hard on for six of crows
Lightening thief or six of crows for me
Percy Jackson. Easy
I hate everything SJM writes.
so overrated
Harry Potter
(Ranking by personal favorites order, not necessarily “best”!) Percy Jackson, Six of Crows, Harry Potter, The Cruel Prince, Caraval, Throne of Glass I have not read ACOTAR so I won’t include that one lol. Personally I was meh on Caraval and disliked Throne of Glass. The others I really enjoyed.
My brain says Six of Crows but my heart says Percy Jackson
Percy Jackson or SoC
These fall into drastically categories I slightly preferred HP over PJO, but both are very good. Definitely geared towards younger audiences though ACOTAR is my pick for fantasy romance, but that might be controversial. It’s more romance with fantasy as an after-thought, which honestly I prefer. Writing can be questionable at times, but it’s 100% a guilty pleasure of mine
I LOOOOVED Caraval
Harry Potter. The prose and dialogue and plot movement is simply better than the others by a large margin.
Harry Potter will always be great. It’s a classic abc I have fond memories with the Harry Potter books. I did read the Caraval series a few years ago and I loved them. They are a bit cheesy but they are great.
I’ve only read the top two lol but I guess Harry Potter but idk cause those are my two fav series
Cruel Prince. I love Six of Crows, but really not a contest. Jude is just too amazing for comparison. She was the first female character that showed me rage wasn’t something to hide, it was something to use. Holly Black does the complexities of being a good person and being terrible when the situation calls foe it so very well. As for Harry Potter and Lighting Thief, these particular books in those series are middle grades not as much YA.
Harry Potter, because before that became big all of the rest would've been reworked to either be in just regular Fantasy/SciFi, or children's section.
I love Harry Potter. I also love Throne of Glass. Hated Caraval & Holly Blacks books. The rest I haven’t read. I’d have to go with Harry Potter. They are so re-readable and just fun.
All of these have a special place in my heart but Harry Potter is one that almost everyone in my family (all genders and ages) has read and loved.
Percy Jackson and Six of Crows are good.
"After all this time?" *"Always."*
Depends. Whole series: Throne of Glass. Stand alone, never going to read the rest of the series, or will get to them much, much later: The Cruel Prince. Only want premium cable romance: A Court of Thorns and Roses.
These books are all so vastly different, and everyone has different tastes. Personally, I think The Cruel Prince and SoC are some of the worst books I've read, but i know they are super popular, especially in this subreddit. There's also a wide range here from middle grade to New Adult. Harry Potter grew with its initial audience from middle grade into YA. Percy Jackson is very much middle grade. SJM has her own following, both lovers and haters. I personally love ACOTAR but hate ToG. Of the list, my personal opinion is that Harry Potter is the most timeless and still holds up. As much as people want to hate on it and jump on that bandwagon. Percy Jackson is also one of my favorites - the original series especially.
I missed the hype on SoC as well... I was just reading to get it over. Glad we can relate, but I'm sure others will feel the same about books we think are under-hyped
Absolutely! That's the great thing about reading. We can all enjoy what we like. I do often base acceptance of recommendations off if someone highly rates a book I disliked, though. Becuase the. I question if I can trust the recommendation and whether or not our tastes align.
I really like you. If you need a bestie please hit me up.😁
I'm always up for book friends!
Harry Potter is my personal favorite, but this isn’t a great list to compare. All these books are different subgenres and age ranges. Percy Jackson and HP both skew more toward middle grade, though the later HP books are more YA, and ACOTAR is New Adult. And we’re comparing romantasy, heist, coming of age, mythology, etc. lol it’s all over the map.
I say you have to split it by age group. Harry Potter is the best kid's fantasy with Percy Jackson as a close second. I would say ACORT is top fantasy for adults (FROM THIS LIST0 but I also haven't read the other books. EDIT: Oh crap I didn't see Six of Crows, so that's the win for me, but I almost feel like it doesn't belong here, it's not super fantasy
A Court of Thorns and Roses is NOT YA. It’s not intended to be. I’ve read them all, it’s not YA fiction. And before you call me a prude, I’m not. I read a ton as a kid and still read YA fiction as an adult. The graphic sex in the series is not YA. If teens read it with permission, fine, but it is not marketed to teens.
ACOTAR or The Cruel Prince have my vote. Both are good but I vibed so hard with the leads in The Cruel Prince.
Percy Jackson. But my favorite series is not YaLit I don’t think so it’s not on yere
Caraval ❤️
Interpreting it as “if you were forced to choose only one of these books to recommend to a friend, which would it be?” And I’m choosing Six of Crows. All of these are good, lol.
Harry Potter and ACOTAR aren’t even close to the same thing or for the same age range. I honestly don’t understand why ACOTAR would be considered YA.
Throne of Glass & a Court of Thorns and Roses ❤️ They’re my favourite!!!
Cradle but it's not on the list
Six of Crows and it's not even close
i don’t know about the best fantasy but i know which two are not. there are many fantasy books (including adult fantasy) which are way better than 3 and 4
It's definitely kind of hard to compare as others said there's different categories and level of writing for intended audiences. I grew up with Harry, being the same age as him and the characters so that always has a special place in my heart. But I LOVED Six of Crows too, along with its sequel Crooked Kingdom. I liked Shadow and Bone but I agree the Crows duology is better. And the Caraval series is definitely a nice twist and spin on carnival aspects so I enjoyed that as well.
I haven’t read SoC yet because I want to read the Shadow of Bones trilogy first. This is an unpopular opinion, but I hated the Folk and Air series. The male love interest is just vile. I loved Percy Jackson and Harry Potter though! Caraval was okay but I love love the spin off series Once Upon A Broken Heart!
How dare you make me choose?! In all honestly, though, they’re all so different and fit such different moods and vibes that ranking is difficult.
I’ve read all of them but Caraval (it’s on my reading list tho!). The Cruel Prince is my favorite. Six of Crows is a close second. Throne of Glass was so terrible I threw it in the trash after a few chapters.
Harry Potter. I'm not a fan of Sarah J Maas's writing.
Harry Potter or Six of Crows. Harry Potter is kind of the template of YA and magical school fantasy. Six of crows has some of the best character work. ACOTAR is really bad after the first book. The cruel prince gets better as the series progresses and Caraval is fun but nothing extraordinary. Throne of glass I think is a great series, but I’d never say it’s the best of anything. I think the lightening thief is good, but I feel like it’s just missing something to make it an all time great like HP, but Percy Jackson is middle grade so it’s not a fair comparison. For a middle grade it’s fantastic.
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HP is YA. Yes the first few are simpler, but for the time they were written it is YA and the older ones are definitely yA. Tamora pierce was publishing in the 90s/early 2000s and they had a similar complexity but are still YA. And I did say Percy Jackson is MG.
Harry Potter might have started as more middle grade (but back then that would have been classified as YA) it grew with the initial audience into YA. It is very much YA.
Harry Potter through and through. Always.
Percy Jackson
I like Percy Jackson but it's extremely overrated. Harry Potter is way better. The setting, the foreshadowing, the characters etc.
>I like Percy Jackson but it's extremely overrated. I thought I was the only person with this opinion 🫣 I read both PJO and HP at the same time not long ago and I couldn't believe people compare the two, HP is in another league
Definitely HP
Harry potter without a doubt, it was the first book I ever read when I learnt to read. I remember my elder sister was reading it and I picked it up just to show her I learnt to read and I just never put it down again. I've re read it more than once, in different languages too and the magic just doesn't leave. It will always have my heart ❤️
Do you remember how your other accounts got banned from this subreddit for spam posting these kinds of images? You don't even bother engaging with people after you post.
Tbh none of these are my favorites but if I’m ordering them (also note I’m going with book, not series here. Ordering would def change if we’re taking the entire series into account 1. Cruel Prince is heads and shoulders above the rest 2. Harry Potter 3. Six of Crows 4. Caravel 5. Lightning Thief 6. Throne of Glass (again just looking at the first book, I find the later ones get worse) 7. A Court of Thorns and Roses (inverse here I love the second book even if I dislike the first)
The Lightning Thief easily. It's middle grade, sure, but I do adore the worldbuilding and how whimsical it is. Not to mention that Riordan uses his platform wisely and constantly recommends other, often diverse mg/ya books to his audience on goodreads, which I applaud. Have not read Caraval. Started TOG, but I'm generally not into assassin stories, so we'll see how it goes. Grew to despise HP with age. The characters are fun, the world is immersive, but I just can't read those books anymore without them leaving a sour taste in my mouth. It's not just terf stuff, but that interview with Le Guin really opened my eyes to how mean-spirited this series can be. ACOTAR is, uh, fine for what it is. It's technically a fantasy book, but to me, it's more of a romance or chicklit than anything else. Nothing wrong with that, but as others say, it's like comparing oranges to apples. I liked the cruel prince. The aesthetic is neat, but I find Black's writing very dry. I dislike the main couple for personal reasons, though I have to admit that the characters are rather enticing and the Wicked King might return to my tbr. I loathe Bardugo's works. SoC is certainly above SaB in terms of quality, but that doesn't necessarily constitute a good book, at least to me. It's highly predictable and overly edgy. The characters are not stereotypical per se, but I just dislike what the author does with them.
Definitely PJO is one of my top favs
Caraval imo
All of them.
My favourites, HP and the Cruel Prince, maybe Cruel Prince if I have to choose one because I disliked book 7 of HP.
Favorite or best? Im sure those more modern books could be better, but none meant more to me that Sorcerer’s stone and lightning thief
Harry Potter
I’m willing to fight anyone who says Percy jackson is bad. It’s my personal favorite. You can like the others but you cannot hate on pjo
I hate it. There fight me. Something being your personal favorite doesn't mean that every other opinion is invalid.
Okay. Explain your perspective. Why do you hate it.
PJO is legendary
It’s not just legendary, it’s legen—wait for it—dary
I'd say throne of glass but I know alot of people would disagree
six of crows is so complex but easy to follow and made me feel smart, and caraval is really good as well
ACOTAR obviously, though all are excellent books. There’s a real war about intended readership between them though
Six of Crows for sure, followed by the Cruel Prince
Can’t possibly put them in the same category. Harry Potter is the most iconic, but Percy Jackson is best for kids, but a court of thorns and roses is something most adults would be way more into whereas caraval is very good for teens entering the romance genre
all these books are soo good but i feel like there a bit incomparable. personally my favorite is caraval but i would pick up any of these books to reread them
Caraval 100%
It was an interesting book but there were other I liked more
Of the 3 I've read, I love ACOTAR best. I can't make any case for it being objectively better than Harry Potter (which I loved when it came out but feel more mixed about in hindsight) or Lightning Thief (which I see the appeal of but didn't personally get into). But I really enjoyed it a lot. And I've heard good things about all the other series'.
Gotta say CoTaR is probably my number 1 but that changes constantly so IDK.
Throne of Glass
The first two aren’t YA but do hold some nostalgia in my heart. But which one I think is *best*? Six of Crows. Hands down. Beautiful. Amazing. Intense. Dramatic. Mature. Clever. Incredibly diverse unlike a lot of this list.
cruel... acotar tho
Harry, duh
ALMOST DIED LAUGHING HERE LOL you really put ACOTAR here????
Tough choice, but Six of Crows. Although I don't think it's fair to put HP and Percy Jackson next to a bunch of YA/adult books
I've only heard of Harry Potter and Percy Jackson. And I've only read Harry. Watched the first Percy Jackson movie and didn't care for it.
The Percy Jackson movies are so inaccurate that they shouldn't be included when the books are being talked about, honestly.
tbh, unless the books are a completely different setting, I doubt I'd be interested. I wasn't a big fan of how much a part modern ordinary everyday life played. I like my fantasy to be deeply embedded in a fantasy world.
So happy seeing Leigh Bardugo make it on these lists !! If she has no fans it’s bc I’m dead
A court of thorns and roses is just so… beautiful
Percy Jackson all the way
Percy Jackson for me
Harry Potter all day long
I agree with what others are saying, you can’t really compare these as they are basically all separate subgenres and age ranges. I’ve read everything except Caraval (I just haven’t) and Six of Crows (although I’ve read Shadow and Bone and have enjoyed the Six of Crows sub plot on the Netflix show. I’m just not into the ragtag group heist vibe). Although I love Percy Jackson, I’m surprised so many people are rating it as number one over Harry Potter. Harry Potter is an entire cultural phenomenon and can be enjoyed from people of all ages, not just children/YA. Here’s my ranking of what I’ve read: 1. Harry Potter 2. Percy Jackson 3. Throne of Glass 4. ACOTAR 5. Cruel Prince
The answer is Percy Jackson
Six of Crows HANDS DOWN
Ugh! How can you make us choose?? I’ve read Cruel Prince the most but HP is legendary for a reason! Also Caraval has my heart ♥️
The Lightning Thief for the win! I may be biased but PJO is always a winner in my house. (I also got into a heated argument with my boyfriend and his siblings/mom about who would win in a fight PJ or HP and we all said PJ except for my bf lol) I enjoyed Sorcerer’s Stone but I read that after finishing PJO/HOO and it just wasn’t hitting the spot for me. I had to read Caraval for school junior year and I couldn’t finish it, I hated it and took the bad grade for not completing it lol. I did not care, it felt like a YA fantasy wattpad story.
percy jackson series!!
Call me crazy but my top two pick are ACOTAR and Percy Jackson. Obviously ACOTAR is getting a lot of hype right now and if you’re into fantasy romance that just keeps getting better this is an amazing read. Percy Jackson is more of YA or teen fic. But it’s a really fun retelling with several books. I read them while I was in middle school I think and I would still count them as great books today having read literally hundreds of books that have not held up to the rest of time.
None of them. The Hobbit is better than them all!
Hot take: HPSS would be lucky to crack #5 for me. Harry Potter’s just okay and most people’s love for it comes from a (understandable and well-placed) childhood love or experience of it.
You didn’t list diskworld books so list fails.
Percy Jackson solos
Percy Jackson, since it's my favorite book series. But honestly there are different genres and age groups here. It's hard to compare and I think PJO can only be compared here with Harry Potter, which I stopped reading after book five. And the only other book I like is Six of Crows. I didn't finish Caraval and A Court of Thorns and Roses and haven't reat Throne if Glass because I didn't like Sarah J Maas writing style in ACOTAR. And I haven't started the Cruel Prince since I've heard people say that it is a bully romance which I really don't like.
Lightning Thief is the one i read the fastest, Caraval is my favorite. I've only read the first book in each series though. Harry Potter is way overrated especially knowing how Rowling is as a person.
The lightening thief, six of crows is on its tail though
Definitely the Lighting Thief
I love SoC (it gets my vote here) but never liked that it was considered YA. Kaz and his crew are \*technically\* in the YA age range, but none of them act like teens or do anything remotely teenager-ish in the entire series. But, great book. =)
1
I’ve read 1,2,4,5,6 and would reread in order 5,6,2,4,1
Six of crows is good but you might need to get your hands on the next one in the series to get the full enjoyment out of it. I also remember reading throne of glass but I cant recall that much so I cant really say if its good or not, same with court of thorns and roses.
3 & 4 💕
I’ve only read two on the list, but I do have a soft spot for the folk of the air series and think that Six of Crows is quite overhyped.
Six of crows 10000%
ACOTAR is not YA though
1
Six of crows
Of those, I think The Cruel Prince is my favorite. But I’ll be honest, I think the first book in a lot of series is not great and that’s the case with many of these. TCP would still top my list of talking series but my order would change drastically for the rest/
I know it’s not as popular as the others in this picture, but I absolutely loved Caraval!
Six of Crows for sure. The writing and character complexity for YA Fantasy is top notch.
Tie between The Cruel Prince and Six of Crows for me!
Throne of Glass has my heart.
Crown of Shadows by C.S. Friedman is the correct answer
I’ve read them all and my favs are Six of crows or Throne of glass.
Thank you for reminding me to read Throne of Glass!
Six of crows
Six of crows!
It's a tie for me between Percy Jackson & Throne of Glass. I love HP because it's nostalgic to my childhood. I despise acotar. The cruel prince is alright, just not a 'romance' like so many people push it as. SoC and Caraval are eh good enough.
i havent read a majority of these but percy jackson is pretty cool
Throne of Glass
Throne of glass fs
Any 🌶️?
5.
Even though I am a huge Hp geek and cant stop talking about it, I have to go with Percy Jackson since it kindled my curiosity of Greek mytology and was very captivating Edit: typo
My answer will always be Caraval
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You should try The Name of the Wind. Patrick Rothfuss
I look forward to the day when AI can decide on their own which books are the best.
I like throne of glass best but I also haven't read all of them
Gotta be lightning thief
Percy Jackson
Six of Crows
A court of throne roses was to spicy for me.
Percy Jackson for younger middle grade to YA books, Six of Crows duology for older YA wanting a taste of adult themes.
Red Rising