If you love magic, quests, mythical beasts, sinister villains, alternate worlds and saving everyone from evil, then you will love these recent fantasy reads.

Rainbow Grey by Laura Ellen Anderson

Ten-year-old Ray Grey lives in the city of Celestia in the magical Weatherlands, high in the sky. Ray is surrounded by Weatherlings with astounding weather power at their fingertips … but she doesn’t have any magic! Then, after a trip to Earth, Ray’s life changes forever. She is transformed from Ray Grey into RAINBOW GREY! With the help of her best friends Snowden and Droplett (and farting cloud cat, Nim) now all Ray has to do is master her powers AND save the world from a mysterious, powerful enemy…

This illustrated junior fiction is a fun and gentle introduction to fantasy stories for beginner readers, with whimsical settings, exciting adventures and sweet friendships.

For ages 7 and up.

Little Gem by Anna Zobel

When her spell at Witchcraft School goes wrong, Gem lands in an unfamiliar, empty cottage, outside a strange, colourful town…one hundred years in the future! Everyone in Ellsworth Pining thinks Gem is their new village witch, even when Gem tries to correct them. And Little Gem’s new friends really do need her, because the local Weather Worker is missing and there are tales of a terrifying beast in the woods. Together with her new friends Renzo the postman and Ghost Henry, Gem does her best to solve the mystery.

Quirky and sweet, with a heroine who tries her best but doesn’t always get it right, this is a great fantasy adventures for younger readers.

For ages 7 and up.

Everdark by Abi Elphinstone

It is midnight in Crackledawn. Sea dragons stir in the depths of the ocean, silver whales surface beneath the moon and sand goblins line the shores. Everyone is waiting for the phoenix, the guardian of the kingdom’s magic, to rise up from the forests of Everdark. But something else surges up instead: a harpy bent on stealing Crackledawn’s magic. It is up to an eleven-year-old girl called Smudge and a grumpy monkey called Bartholomew to set sail beyond the legendary Northswirl and stop the harpy before it’s too late.

This fast-paced quest adventure is the prequel to Elphinstone’s The Unmapped Chronicles, and features a dyslexic heroine inspired by the author’s own experiences. With a friendly font and a shorter page length, this is a great fantasy choice for young dyslexic readers.

For ages 8 and up.

Wednesday Weeks and the Tower of Shadows (Book 1) by Denis Knight & Cristy Burne

Wednesday Weeks would rather study science than magic. But when her cloak-wearing, staff-wielding grandpa is captured by a power-hungry goblin king, Wednesday must find a way to embrace her magical heritage and rescue him from the dreaded Tower of Shadows. Luckily, she’s not alone. Her best friend Alfie is a prime-number fan and robotics expert who’s all-in on Wednesday’s epic plan involving parallel universes, swords of power, and a wise-cracking talking skull. But it’s going to take more than science, magic, and the world’s cutest robot to take down this bad guy.

Funny, full of banter, and uniquely combining science and fantasy elements, this is a wild and entertaining ride through unpredictable realms.

For ages 8 and up.

Dragon Mountain by Katie Tsang & Kevin Tsang

When 12-year-old Billy Chan finds out his parents are sending him to a summer camp in China he doesn’t know what to expect. There he meets fellow campers Dylan, Charlotte and Ling-Fei and together they stumble upon an age-old secret: four powerful warrior dragons, hidden deep within the mountain behind the camp. They need the children’s help to set them free before terrible evil is unleashed on the earth. Billy and his friends must set off on a dangerous adventure that will take them to the heart of the Dragon Realm. But can they save the dragon and human worlds from destruction?

Dragon lovers will adore this exciting adventure that give each of the four Dragons their own interesting personalities, and focusses on friendship, loyalty and playing to your strengths.

For ages 8 and up.

The World Between Blinks by Ryan Graudin & Amie Kaufman

Cousins Jake and Marisol gather with their family for one last summer together at their legendary Nana’s home. Following a map Nana left behind, Jake and Marisol accidentally slip into a magical place, where all kinds of lost things (and people and buildings and cities) end up. Everywhere they turn, the cousins find real mysteries from history or myth - a fair once held on the frozen-over Thames, the lost city of Atlantis, a Tasmanian tiger. But the man who holds the key to Jake and Marisol’s journey home doesn’t want to be found…

The World Between Blinks presents a richly-built world full of fascinating historical figures and curiosities. Jake and Marisol’s race to return home before losing their memories will keep readers engaged and entertained.

For ages 8 and up.

Amari and the Night Brothers by B.B. Alston

Amari Peters’ older brother Quinton has been missing for six months, and there are few clues about what happened to him. But then Amari receives a mysterious delivery - supposedly from Quinton himself - and she is persuaded to enter a summer program at a covert supernatural organisation, the Bureau of Supernatural Affairs. Amari tries to stay focused on finding out what happened to her brother, but soon gets swept up in the Bureau’s battle against an evil magician.

This exciting debut fantasy has highly competitive tests, magical specialities to discover, a very villainous villain, and a young heroine navigating prejudice and learning who to trust.

For ages 9 and up.

The Memory Thief by Leonie Agnew

Seth is a troll, trapped behind the iron bars of the public gardens for as long as he can remember. By day he’s frozen as a statue of a shepherd boy, but as soon as the sun sets he roams the park, hungry for human memories. Then he meets Stella. There’s something so different about her - Seth doesn’t want her memories. He simply wants to talk to her. But there’s someone else in the garden who sees Stella as a threat…and a meal.

This is a spine-tingling and beautifully mystery about a beautiful and unlikely friendship between a lonely troll and a fierce young human.

For ages 9 and up.

When Days Tilt by Karen Ginnane

It’s 1858, and there are two queens on the throne. Victoria reigns over London, and the time-bending Green Witch rules over London’s secret shadow city, Donlon. London is in turmoil and its people are disappearing into thin air. If they return, it is with empty eyes and torn souls, never to be the same again. Fourteen-year-old watchmaker’s apprentice, Ava, feels trapped by the limited life of a young Victorian woman in London. But when she goes in search of her real mother and her true identity, she is thrust into the dark world of Donlon…

This exciting historical fantasy debut is full of magic, politics and technological detail, and is the perfect book to challenge young readers looking for a complex and absorbing adventure.

For ages 11 and up.

Leanne Hall is the children’s specialist for Readings online. She also writes books for children and young adults.