People have asked me quite a bit what I recommend for Christian fantasy and speculative fiction. Usually, it takes me forever to go through everything and help people figure out if those books fit their interests as well as their standards. That can, as you imagine, get a bit tedious. However, I do want to share the authors and stories I feel are God-honoring and wholesome, so this is my solution as it allows me to compile my suggestions all in one place and add to them as I go.
You may have noticed that quite a few of my reviews, as of now, anyway, are for Christian fantasy. That’s because I have quite a few fellow indie authors that I’m in touch with who are Christian authors, and I believe that those who have strong stories that are God-honoring ought to be held up as examples of good writing. It can be hard to find Christian authors who haven’t given in to our culture’s norms and have maintained a high level of integrity in their stories without being preachy and ruining the story. So, for those of you who are Christian parents or readers looking to know what I recommend and where each book falls on the spectrum for things like magic, deity systems, and Christian themes.
High On the Magic Spectrum
We’ll start off with the high-magic side of the spectrum since it’s the area that I know is one of the most controversial. For each book, I’ll also briefly cover the things I feel are important to know about the book for Christian readers or parents vetting the books. I will note that none of the stuff listed here is going to be on the high end of the magic spectrum in the sense that Harry Potter or similar books are. I don’t believe that spoken spells (at least ones where the words are actually given, since I know Lord of the Rings occasionally mentions wizards and magic with a spoken aspect but never gives the words to it) and witchcraft related elements have any place being shown as good in Christian fiction. If those are used, they should be clearly shown in use only by the side of evil and wrong, not good and right.
Jill Williamson’s Blood of Kings series:
I would say that, while Jill Williamson’s book series is clearly Christian in influence and seems allegorical in a lot of ways, the books are definitely high up on the magical scale. Magic is a pretty large part of the world in lots of areas, both good and bad. I didn’t notice any issues with spoken spells on either side, though there was plenty of magic turned to an evil use on the side of the antagonists and there may have been some use of spells that I just can’t recall. If there were, I can say with a fair amount of confidence that it was only on the side of the villains. This series is set in more of a medieval setting, so if that’s something you enjoy, this trilogy might be a good fit for you. I’d say this is appropriate for younger teens. You could safely give it to your 13 year-old as long as you don’t have an objection of conscience to the use of magic in the story. You can get all three books off Thriftbooks.
Karen Hancock’s Legends of the Guardian King series:
This one is certainly higher on the magic spectrum. To my recollection, there are no written spells, though there are mentions of the religious order’s monks chanting and using mantras in several scenes. However, Hancock is clear that the mainstream religious order is not from God. Her story is very, very openly allegorical. Honestly, I adored this series. It is hands down the most uplifting and encouraging Christian fantasy series I’ve ever read. She does a great job of weaving an enthralling story while maintaining obvious Christian elements and beliefs. The books do a phenomenal job of commenting on real-world situations and the differences between organized religion and true belief in Christ. Seriously, I can’t recommend enough.
However, I do not recommend this for young teens or children! It does deal with a few instances of rape, and there is one sex scene (to my recollection only one that’s in any depth?). Hancock included these to show, first of all, the depravity of evil in the world (when it came to the rape situations) and, second of all, to show how wrong decisions have consequences, even if those consequences are only guilt and regret for doing wrong, as is the case with the sex scene that comes to mind. I like, however, that Hancock keeps right and wrong clear, and she gives depth to the characters by showing their regrets over poor decision-making or sinful decisions prior to conversion. Great read, overall! You can get the whole series on Thriftbooks.
Middle of the Magic Scale
Frank E. Peretti’s This Present Darkness:
This one, I would say, is in the middle of the scale. Since Peretti’s book is set in the real world and focuses on spiritual darkness and strongholds, it can get very real on the influence Satan exerts on the world and the importance of spiritual warfare. So in the sense that the books do discuss demonic activity, I guess I’d put them in the middle. However, the main characters (protagonists) are always shown using prayer to overcome the spiritual darkness and strongholds in the end. These books may not be suitable for younger readers just because it could scare them. It’s definitely not for those who prefer not to even consider the darkness around us. Peretti’s work isn’t horror, from what I’ve seen and read, but it’s definitely not shy about the reality of spiritual warfare, and that’s a little nerve-wracking at times. You can find Peretti’s work on Thriftbooks.
Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings:
I wouldn’t put this one on the high end of the scale simply because for the most part, Tolkien doesn’t use magic to solve problems. He very rarely allows it to help solve problems. Usually, it makes things worse or is used by the villains to achieve their goals. However, I put it in the middle of the scale because it does involve magic as well as things like shades/ghosts (on the antagonist’s side) and a magic ring (also evil). This was a childhood favorite right along with Tolkien’s The Hobbit, and I do highly recommend it for fantasy lovers. Tolkien wasn’t aiming for allegorical, but you can definitely see the Christian influences in the book and the Christian moral code that drove Tolkien. You can find that on Thriftbooks too.
Joanna White’s Valiant Series:
So, Joanna is an indie author that I have the pleasure of being good friends with. I met her through Wattpad during some different writing competitions we both joined and later helped her run some of her own games. Each of the Valiant novels focuses on some Biblical story, with my favorite, Hunter, focusing on the story of Moses as well as on presenting the Gospel. I loved how Joanna made the presentation of the Gospel and the Biblical themes included feel as if they were meant to be part of the story instead of just a rant or a sermon from the author. You can find her books’ buy links and my review of both Hunter and Shifter here and here.
On Twilight’s Wings (The Eclesian Chronicles):
This is one of mine. Since I’m making a list for Christian fiction, I felt this would be a great place to include a good informational bit about the book for interested readers and parents. On Twilight’s Wings itself does not focus on any particular Bible story or a presentation of the Gospel, though the two books to follow will as the characters gradually learn about God and come to see Him through the person of His Son. On Twilight’s Wings instead follows the pattern much of my work has where I focus on presenting some principle or theme from Christianity. For On Twilight’s Wings, the themes would be those of self-sacrifice, leaving revenge and bitterness behind before they destroy you as a person, and loyalty/responsibility for those under our care.
The book is in the middle for the magic scale. It doesn’t feature any spells or a magic system that allows for them, at least in this system, but each character from the fantasy race I created for the book series does have one to two abilities they can innately use. What they can do depends on the person. The magic system, then, is one based on innate talents, not spells or some outside source. If it weren’t for other elements in the book, this might be considered more superhero fiction than anything if only for the use of powers.
I personally recommend this for thirteen and up. It does deal with some sensitive topics such as rape, but I have avoided showing anything explicit and it is always portrayed as a bad thing.
If you’re interested in a copy, you can get it on Kindle or as a paperback via Amazon.
C.S. Lewis’s Chronicles of Narnia:
Okay, most of us know about this one, kind of like most of us know about Tolkien’s work. I feel that C.S. Lewis’s work generally has fewer objections to it even from stricter parents, but it still has magic involved as much of fantasy does. However, the piece is obviously allegorical, as opposed to Tolkien’s work, which he himself said many times was not meant to be and wasn’t allegory. You can pick this one up on Thriftbooks as well along with many other works by him that aren’t as well-known but are still good reads.
T.N. Traynor’s Idi & The Oracle’s Quest:
This one is mid-level in a similar way to Tolkien’s work. While magic is used (and in this case isn’t always bad), it isn’t really the main point of the book, and no actual spells are given for anything. The magic system is based, at least for the forces of good, on the idea that the person using the magic must draw on the Light for their strength and their power, much like the disciples drew their strength and their power from God and their faith in Him. The book is in many ways allegorical and is very obviously Christian-based. The book is in need of a good edit for punctuation, grammar, and style, but if you’re okay with mistakes being sprinkled through the manuscript and will still enjoy the story, then this is a quick, fun read. It’s one I feel would be suitable for the whole family as long as parents read with the children. Right and wrong are fairly clear, but there’s some content at the very beginning that individual parents may not want their young readers under thirteen or fourteen to read. I don’t view this as majorly objectionable (I’ll explain why in a moment), but the story does start off with the Princess of the main realm sleeping with a guy she wasn’t married to and ending up pregnant. I don’t recall details being shown and there were very, very clear consequences for the sinful choice she made, which is why I say it isn’t majorly objectionable (not because the action itself was right, because it wasn’t). However, because of this, I get that some parents may not want their younger child to read it unsupervised if at all.
You can pick up your copy here or read my review here.
Low on the Magic Scale
Karen Hancock’s Enclave:
Okay, so this one was a little bit less problematic for younger audiences. I’d say this one is more appropriate for a wider audience. From my end, I’d be okay with giving this stand-alone to a thirteen or fourteen year old. It’s more of a sci-fi novel than her other series, and it’s based in the real world instead of a fantasy world. Instead of being allegorical, this is a realistic, speculative fiction novel about a young woman’s journey from generally religious but practically atheist to a believer. There’s not much in terms of magic really in this one, so if you dislike that aspect of speculative fiction, you’ll probably be more okay with this one.
Allen Steadham’s Mindfire:
If you like superhero novels that don’t feature magic and avoid any kind of deity system besides Christianity, Steadham’s book Mindfire is a great choice. I know Allen through Facebook, and he’s become one of the few Christian indie authors that I know well enough to recommend his work without reserve. Mindfire is the only one I’ve read so far, but he’s also got a sci-fi/fantasy series called Jordan of Algoran that I’ve got on my to-read list. Once I’ve read it, I’ll be able to add it to the list so you all have a better idea of where it falls. You can find the buy links for Mindfire and my review here.