What is Low Fantasy? And Ten Examples.

A few people have asked me what exactly low fantasy is. I suppose as with any genre the definition isn’t exactly clear or perfect. It’s not really new, either. You might, for example, call greek mythology ‘low fantasy’. Or you might call it ‘magical realism’. But I digress.

Paraphrased, Wikipedia describes low fantasy thusly:

Low fantasy is fantasy fiction involving ‘nonrational happenings that occur in a rational world where such things are not supposed to occur.’

In other words, unless demonstrated otherwise by the author, you can assume the world works just as you’d expect it to—just like our own. It’s fictional, of course, and so the geography may be strange, the cultures made up. But in my world, for example, there are no orcs, or elves. There are only people acting as people do, with some few exceptions of ‘irrationality’, or ‘magic’. A superhero story could almost certainly be called low fantasy.

Lord of the Rings is basically the opposite, or what you might call ‘high’ fantasy. Middle Earth is full of magic and mythical things not to be expected in a rational world like our own. The dead walk, trees come to life, whole races of things like men walk the earth as immortals, wizards guide the actions of kings with sorcery, and no one is much surprised.

In Harry Potter, you might call the world of the muggles ‘low fantasy’, and the Wizarding world ‘high fantasy’. In the world of the muggles, or the ‘rational’ world , magic still exists and has power, it’s just that the vast majority of people have no idea. Like you and me, they have never witnessed ‘miracles’, and wouldn’t believe in magic even if you told them. But in the Wizarding world, magic infuses everything, even candy, and this surprises no one.

1. 1. A Game of Thrones (George R.R. Martin). I imagine you’ve heard of this. It’s the modern stick by which all low fantasy is judged, and popular for a reason.
   2. Prince/King/Emperor of Thorns (Mark Lawrence). Dark, poetic, and oddly done in the first person throughout. Lawrence is an incredible writer.
   3. The Blade Itself (Joe Abercrombie)—sometimes referred to as ‘grimdark’ fantasy, Abercrombie creates ‘heroes’ more akin to villains, and somehow makes you root for them.
   4. Conan the Barbarian (Robert E Howard)—By Crom, some fine reading. These books sort of walk the line between high and low fantasy, but I felt compelled to include them.
   5. American Gods (Neil Gaiman)—Set in the modern age, it combines mythology and modernity in a story one can only describe as bizarre, fascinating, but certainly entertaining. Soon to be a (no doubt) smash TV series. Read first, and impress your friends.
   6. The Lies of Locke Lamora (Scott Lynch)—a sort of con-man Robin Hood meets fantasy story. Not perfect, but very creative and a very good example from a younger author.
   7. The Night Angel Trilogy (Brent Weeks) – The story of an assassin on magical steroids. It isn’t exactly low fantasy, but close, and very much has the feel. I loved these books.
   8. The Green Mile (Stephen King)—I expect you’ve seen the movie. A big, simple convict with magical powers awaits execution, and changes the lives of all the prison guards.
   9. The Indian in the Cupboard (Lynne Reid Banks)—a children’s book and older example of magic brought to the ‘rational’ world. Classic for a reason. Probably easier to get at your local library.
   10. One Hundred Years of Solitude (Gabriel Garcia Marquez). If you’re feeling very adventurous, this literary work is a very good example of ‘magical realism’. I think it was even on Oprah’s reading list. The first line sets the tone: “Many years later, as he faced the firing squad, Colonel Aureliano Buendía was to remember that distant afternoon when his father took him to discover ice.” As a sidenote, if you can keep track of Jose Arcadio Buendia, I salute you.

   
   

Finally, and not on this list but extremely important and put forth utterly without bias, you might now include Kings of Paradise.

Happy reading…