List of Christian Fantasy Novels

 The Bell Mountain Series by Lee Duigon (Excellent)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

God is at work in Obann.

A thousand years ago, King Ozias, the last king, placed a bell on top of Mount Yul. Scripture says that when someone rings that bell, God will hear it.

But no one ever has rung the bell. Until now.

Many people, from the head priest to a small-town teacher, have felt God stirring their heart to ring it, but the only ones obedient enough to answer that call are two children – Jack and Ellayne.

Jack is a poor boy, a child of misfortune; Ellayne is a rich girl, child of the town’s chief councilor. Together they will make it to the top of the mountain and fulfill their calling.

Bell Mountain is such a fun read for people of all ages. It’s interesting and moves at a quick pace with lots of action and adventure. As you read, you’ll meet new creatures, an expert assassin, Helki the Rod, Obst the Hermit, and Wytt the…? (Well, you’ll just have to read about Wytt.)

It’s a perfectly clean read with a ton of depth and good Christian messages. One of my favorite themes was the question of how we should treat Scripture. Is it to be taken at face-value and treated seriously, or is it just a collection of myths and metaphors?

I give Bell Mountain an enthusiastic recommendation of Excellent and will look forward to diving into the sequel, The Cellar Beneath the Cellar.

 

Faith & Fairies by C. S. Haviland (Excellent)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A hilarious, action-packed adventure!

Three very different orphan boys are on their way to a new Home in the small town of Haviland Hollow. Terry is a sixteen-year-old, overconfident, independent spirit. Scott is the fourteen-year-old worry wart with coke-bottom glasses, and Ronnie is…well, Ronnie is a nine-year-old boy, complete with an utter distaste for girl cooties and a love for all things exciting.

The adventure begins when Terry decides that he doesn’t want to go to a new orphanage and takes the other two boys, unknown to them, along on his escape. Terry’s plans are cut short, however, when they meet a group of magical, female, fairies. It seems that God plans to use these unlikely boys to help the fairies overcome their greatest peril.

With laugh-out-loud dialogue, deep characterization, original creatures and ideas, and non-stop action, Faith & Fairies is a definite win for readers of all ages.

The novel is definitely faith-based, but is not a hit-you-over-the-head treatment of spirituality and is appropriate for any reader.

I give Faith & Fairies a recommendation of Excellent and encourage anyone who’s looking for a fun, Christian, fantasy tale to pick this one up immediately. You’ll definitely enjoy it.

 

The Four Horsemen by M. E. Brines (Excellent)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tons of surprises!

A grizzled mercenary, a wizard’s apprentice, and a young prophet walk into a bar…

Sound like a joke? It’s anything but! This is one book that delivers action, thought-provoking dialogue, and a new lens for the Gospel.

Nothing is as it seems on this adventure. M. E. Brines, a prolific writer, takes events, people, and nations from real-life history and turns it all on its head, often using logic to point out the fallacies of many popular theologians, religions, and strands of Christianity. There are also a lot of recognizable elements from fantasy genre that serve to keep things interesting.

All of Brines’ characters are quite realistic and have great backstories that you won’t see coming, except for one…and even then you’ll have to keep guessing until the end to see whether you were right or not.

This is definitely a Christian book, but like I said, things are done a little differently in this book. Go with what the author is doing and I’m sure you’ll appreciate his approach. There are a few, and a mean a few, mild curse words in the book, but that’s the extent of anything offensive. The theology of the book is spot-on and the Gospel message is very clear.

 

Lady of Foxdale by Malcolm Cowen (Excellent)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The most realistic and sophisticated fantasy novel I’ve ever read!

Haunted by past mistakes, Mary suddenly finds herself in a new world and in the midst of a battle. What will she do? How did she get here? Will she be able to get home or is she stuck in this world for good?

Lady of Foxdale has it all: mystery, realistic and deep characters, a believable world, love, war, redemption, and the most exquisite form of storytelling you can imagine.

Lady of Foxdale is a clean read and should be completely inoffensive to Christian readers. It has a strong Christian ethic and a natural incorporation of Biblical and moral messages throughout.

I heartily recommend making Lady of Foxdale your next read. It is a truly Excellent choice. Also, look for my review of the sequel, Daughter of the King, coming soon.

 

Magnus Kir by Dean Hardy (Excellent)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Why does God make rules? And what makes us want to break them?

Twelve-year old Zack has never been outside his hometown of Magnus Kir. That’s because the people of Magnus Kir have built a wall around the entire town with no entrance and no exits. They are ‘trapped’ inside, protected from and unaffected by the outside world. In fact, the only way to leave town is by committing a crime so heinous that the king has no choice but to sentence you to exile.

But Zack has accidentally found another way out. Will he take it? What he will find on the outside? Will he be able to get back in once he’s left?

Magnus Kir is a wonderful Young Adult tale of sin and redemption. Dean’s writing is fluid, his world unique, and his message spot on. You’ll love reading about wise King Amethyst, the fantastic creatures of the Gedolah, and discovering all the poignant spiritual truths this multi-faceted allegory reveals.

I recommend Magnus Kir to readers of all ages and will look forward to any other tales Dean Hardy may have in the works.

 

Narentan Tumults by Sherry Thompson (Excellent)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A new epic fantasy series in the same vein as the Chronicles of Narnia and the Lord of the Rings!

Cara’s life changes forever when she suddenly finds herself in Narenta, a world full of brave knights, noble enchanters, evil sorcerers, and scholarly seabirds. The teenaged Cara is one of the prophesied saviors of this world, but she has no idea what she’s supposed to do! Can she find enough faith to carry out her mission before Narenta falls to the armies of the legendary three evil sorcerers?

With humor, realistic characters, a vivid history, tons of surprises, and great pacing, this book can’t fail to please any fantasy lover. I especially appreciated the strong and loving manner in which Thompson portrayed the God character, Alphesis.

The only slightly negative thing I can say about this book is that the proofreading could have been a little better. As you read, you will undoubtedly come across a few misspelled or missing words here and there. Still, these little mistakes are not enough to cause a problem, so don’t let them distract you too much from the story.

Overall, I’m giving Seabird a solid recommendation of Excellent and will look forward to reading the next volume in the Narentan Tumults, Earthbow.

 

The Reality Chronicles by R. L. Copple (Excellent)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What would you do if you could perform any miracle? What temptations would that bring? How would it change you? R. L. Copple explores these questions and more in Reality's Dawn, the first in his Reality series.

Written as an allegory, it is told in the very simple first-person narrative of the main character, Sisko. Having walked into the local steam house, where everyone is supernaturally given exactly what they deserve, young Sisko emerges with the ability to perform any miracle he wishes, but with a very important catch. Each chapter, separated by months or years from the last, shows Sisko at different stages in his journey to use the gift he’s been given. He will gain a companion, a love, and popularity, but will he be able to maintain his devotion to God in the midst of it all? 

The one fault I found with this book was its length. I wanted more! With such a short first installment to the series, the reader is left wanting for details.

Infinite Realities is definitely a Christian novel and has a lot of Biblical references and quotations with no morally objectionable material whatsoever. It is a clean, thought-provoking read.

There is also an Interesting, short essay at the end, written by the author, on why it is appropriate (or at least not inappropriate) for Christians to read and write in the fantasy genre.

I recommend this novella and will certainly look forward to reading the next book in the series, Reality's Ascent.

 

The Relics of Nanthara Series by Nick G. Giannaras (Good)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A thoroughly enjoyable read!

Imagine J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle Earth, but with more humor. That’s as close as I can come to describing Nick Giannara’s Nanthara. Nick takes full advantage of almost every classic fantasy element and makes it his own. From dwarves (Dwergens), mages, elves (Alkani}, and crusading knights; to riddles, magical items, quests, split personalities, holy water, and budding love; to traitors, assassins, Opanocs (Orcs), and zombie Dark Heralds (Ringwraiths), this book has it all! And it is humorous. Some of the scenes and turns of phrase had me laughing out loud.

But don’t get me wrong, it’s not all laughs. The fate of the world is at stake and our party of heroes is playing for keeps. Some of them may not even make it to the end. Long ago, the God, Sovereign, created four royal items of immense power – the Crown of Sovereign, the Scepter of the Elders, The Cloak of the Alkani, and the Ring of Life – to bless His people. But being too powerful to risk them falling into the wrong hands, these items have wisely been hidden. Until now. The Dark One is rising and has found clues to each of the items’ locations. Now our heroes must race to search for and recover the relics before the Dark One’s forces. Will they be successful? And at what cost?

Secrets Revealed is a great kick-off novel to the epic tale that Relics of Nanthara promises to be.

Nick’s world is rich, his characters colorful, and his writing a combination of magical story-telling and natural humor.

If you’re a fan of classic fantasy with a twist, I encourage to pick this one up. I’m giving it a recommendation of Good and will look forward to reading the next chapter in the story, Relics of Nanthara: Book 2: Sacrifice of Heroes.

 

Undercurrent by Michelle Griep (Excellent)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A fantastic Viking romance!

When Cassie, a snobby, lonely, middle-aged, career-driven professor magically time-travels to the era of the Viking, more than just her comfort level changes.

Undercurrent is a time-travel story, a love story, a murder mystery, a story of betrayal, and a story of sacrifice. Michelle Griep pulls all of these elements together in one truly engaging volume.

Besides Cassie, the other main characters are two Viking warriors, Alarik and Ragnar. Alarik is accused of murdering his brother in a drunken rage and is forced to flee his village. Ragnar, his cousin and friend, believes in his innocence and goes to find him. Meanwhile, an outside force threatens the village and will stop at nothing until it is completely under his power. Can the two cousins prove Alarik’s innocence? Will they able to rescue the village from this oppressive power?

Undercurrent is a very openly Christian novel and you will not find anything offensive therein. Ragnar is the only believer in Jesus in his entire village. He has suffered for betraying his father’s gods and is ostracized from any position of influence he would normally have. Yet he continues to believe and to witness and to yearn for the salvation of those who despise him. Will his perseverance in Christ be rewarded?

I thoroughly enjoyed Undercurrent. There were a lot of places where the story could have become cliché, but Ms. Griep did a wonderful job of keeping the story fresh and moving forward. I highly recommend it as being an Excellent read.