If you enjoy reading books by Charles de Lint then you might also like the following authors:
Emma Bull blends fantasy with modern everyday life in creative and relatable ways. Her novel, War for the Oaks, is a landmark in urban fantasy. She mixes music, magic, and city life to craft vibrant, believable stories.
Readers who appreciate how Charles de Lint brings myth and folklore into contemporary settings will find much to enjoy in Bull's work.
Terri Windling specializes in folklore-inspired fantasy and has a deep appreciation for myth and tradition. In The Wood Wife, she explores folklore in the American Southwest, giving the readers engaging characters tied to landscapes and legends.
Fans of De Lint's atmospheric and thoughtful style will connect with Windling's storytelling.
Neil Gaiman creates fantasy that feels fresh yet rooted deeply in myth and fairy tales, and his storytelling is vivid and imaginative. In the novel American Gods, he blends ancient mythology into a modern American landscape, exploring themes of belief, identity, and change.
His style and storytelling will definitely appeal to fans of Charles de Lint's myth-infused worlds.
Patricia A. McKillip writes beautifully lyrical fantasy, rich in symbolism, myth, and poetic imagery. Her novel, The Forgotten Beasts of Eld, showcases her talent for creating elegant prose and intricate plots filled with wonder and details drawn from myth and fairy tales.
Readers who enjoy Charles de Lint's poetic writing and love of myth will delight in McKillip's enchanting stories.
Holly Black excels at weaving contemporary fantasy with gritty urban realistic touches and glamorous yet dangerous magical worlds. In her novel Tithe: A Modern Faerie Tale, Black explores faerie folklore within an edgy modern setting.
Her engaging and vivid storytelling style, blending realism with magical effects, will appeal to fans of De Lint’s contemporary fantasy.
If you enjoy Charles de Lint's blend of contemporary settings and magic, check out Seanan McGuire. Her stories often center on richly drawn characters who move between our world and magical realms.
A great place to start is Rosemary and Rue, the first book in her October Daye series. It follows half-human, half-fae Toby Daye as she investigates magical mysteries in modern-day San Francisco.
Fans drawn to the lyrical storytelling and intricate cityscapes of Charles de Lint will likely enjoy Ellen Kushner. She creates vivid worlds that mix elements of fantasy with refined, elegant prose.
Her novel Swordspoint takes readers into a sophisticated city where politics, romance, and swordplay interweave into a captivating tale.
If you're into Charles de Lint's thoughtful approach to magic and characters that feel real and relatable, try reading Mercedes Lackey. She crafts stories that balance magical adventures with well-developed emotional connections.
A great introduction to her style is Magic's Pawn, a part of her Valdemar series, exploring themes of acceptance, responsibility, and personal growth within a richly imagined setting.
Jim Butcher Jim Butcher is perfect for fans of Charles de Lint who enjoy a more action-oriented take on urban fantasy. His Dresden Files series follows wizard and private investigator Harry Dresden as he tackles magical problems hidden within modern-day Chicago.
Storm Front, the first in the series, offers an entertaining, fast-paced story filled with clever humor, memorable characters, and thrilling magical action.
Readers who enjoy Charles de Lint's blend of modern fantasy and urban mythology will likely appreciate Jim Butcher's captivating storytelling style.
Butcher is best known for creating complex and relatable characters, weaving intricate plots that combine magical realism and contemporary urban life, similar in spirit to the works of de Lint.
His stories frequently explore themes of magic existing invisibly alongside the mundane, personal responsibility, and complex moral dilemmas, all laced with humor and suspenseful pacing.
One of Butcher's most notable series is Storm Front, the first installment of the acclaimed urban fantasy series The Dresden Files, which follows Chicago's only wizard private investigator, Harry Dresden, as he solves supernatural mysteries amidst the ordinary world.
Kevin Hearne writes urban fantasy that's filled with mythology and humor. His stories blend the modern world seamlessly with ancient myths, creating lively characters and fast-paced plots.
Fans of Charles de Lint will appreciate his creative storytelling and vivid world-building. A great place to start is Hounded, the first book in his Iron Druid Chronicles.
It follows a witty and ancient druid named Atticus O'Sullivan as he navigates modern-day challenges alongside mythic beings.
Peter S. Beagle is an author known for poetic storytelling and thoughtful fantasy. His imaginative and emotionally resonant stories combine whimsy with deeper reflections about life and loss.
Readers who enjoy the folklore elements and reflective tone of Charles de Lint will likely connect with Beagle's classic novel, The Last Unicorn, a tale about a unicorn journeying through a changing world to discover what happened to the rest of her kind.
Francesca Lia Block writes lyrical and dreamlike tales that explore themes of identity, belonging, and magical realism. Her stories have a distinctively poetic style and often focus on young adults coming of age amid magical elements in contemporary settings.
Charles de Lint's readers seeking stories about magic influencing ordinary lives will enjoy Block's Weetzie Bat, a vibrant novel that captures the vibrant spirit and magic of Los Angeles.
Writing as Megan Lindholm, Robin Hobb creates rich, character-driven fantasy stories filled with emotional depth and realism.
Her stories often feature strong characters dealing with magic subtly woven into everyday settings, making her work appealing for those who enjoy Charles de Lint's urban fantasy.
Consider starting with Wizard of the Pigeons, a novel set in urban Seattle that presents gentle magic through the eyes of a charismatic yet troubled protagonist.
Elizabeth Bear writes innovative fantasy and science fiction with strong characterization and thoughtful themes. Her stories frequently address complex relationships and human struggles set against richly imaginative worlds.
Readers who like Charles de Lint's blend of the magical and mundane might appreciate Blood and Iron, Bear's contemporary fantasy that re-imagines faerie myths and legends within a modern context.