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Quick answer: If you loved Deltora Quest, read John Flanagan's The Ruins of Gorlan, then Christopher Paolini's Eragon, then J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, and Brian Jacques's Redwall and Eoin Colfer's Artemis Fowl. All are classic and modern fantasy quests for young readers.
Emily Rodda's Deltora Quest follows a boy who must recover magic gems to save his kingdom. These picks offer similar quests and well-built worlds.
Table of Contents
Quick Picks at a Glance
| Book | Author | Ages | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Ruins of Gorlan | John Flanagan | Teen/Adult | the first book |
| Eragon | Christopher Paolini | 12+ | older readers ready for long epics |
| The Hobbit | J.R.R. Tolkien | 9-14 | a classic dragon story |
| The Lord of the Rings | J.R.R. Tolkien | All ages | readers who want the source |
| Redwall | Brian Jacques | 9-13 | readers who like old-fashioned adventure |
| Artemis Fowl | Eoin Colfer | 10-14 | readers who like clever heroes |
| Inkheart | Cornelia Funke | 10-14 | book lovers |
| Dragon Rider | Cornelia Funke | 8-12 | readers who love a quest |
| The Spiderwick Chronicles: The Field Guide | Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi | 7-11 | younger fantasy fans |
| The Book of Three | Lloyd Alexander | 9-13 | readers who want a quest |
| Gregor the Overlander | Suzanne Collins | 9-13 | readers who like adventure |
| The School for Good and Evil | Soman Chainani | 9–13 | fairy-tale school |
| The Land of Stories: The Wishing Spell | Chris Colfer | 8-12 | fairy-tale fans |
| The Girl Who Drank the Moon | Kelly Barnhill | Teen/Adult | readers who like fairy tales |
| A Tale Dark & Grimm | Adam Gidwitz | 8-12 | readers who like fairy tales |
1. The Ruins of Gorlan by John Flanagan
The first Ranger's Apprentice book. Will trains as a Ranger and faces dark forces. Start here if you are new.
Best for: the first book.
2. Eragon by Christopher Paolini
A farm boy finds a blue stone that hatches into the dragon Saphira and becomes a Dragon Rider in a war-torn land. It is longer and more serious, with a strong human-dragon bond.
Best for: older readers ready for long epics.
3. The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien
Bilbo Baggins leaves his comfortable hole to join thirteen dwarves and the wizard Gandalf in reclaiming treasure guarded by the dragon Smaug. The original dragon quest and a good read-aloud.
Best for: a classic dragon story.
4. The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien
The founding epic of modern fantasy. A quest to destroy the One Ring.
Best for: readers who want the source.
5. Redwall by Brian Jacques
Matthias, a young mouse at Redwall Abbey, searches for the lost sword of Martin the Warrior while the rat Cluny threatens the abbey. Feasts, riddles and epic battles in a classic animal saga.
Best for: readers who like old-fashioned adventure.
6. Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer
Twelve-year-old criminal genius Artemis Fowl kidnaps a fairy to steal its gold. Clever and high-tech.
Best for: readers who like clever heroes.
7. Inkheart by Cornelia Funke
A girl and her father can bring characters out of books by reading aloud. A love letter to stories.
Best for: book lovers.
8. Dragon Rider by Cornelia Funke
Firedrake the silver dragon, a brownie and a boy named Ben travel to find the legendary Rim of Heaven, a safe home for the last dragons. Funke builds a vivid world with real stakes.
Best for: readers who love a quest.
9. The Spiderwick Chronicles: The Field Guide by Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi
Three kids find a field guide to faeries in their attic. Short and richly illustrated.
Best for: younger fantasy fans.
10. The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander
Taran, a pig-keeper, becomes a hero in the land of Prydain. The first of a classic fantasy series.
Best for: readers who want a quest.
11. Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins
Gregor falls into the Underland beneath New York and finds giant rats and bats. The author of The Hunger Games writes a classic adventure.
Best for: readers who like adventure.
12. The School for Good and Evil by Soman Chainani
Two girls are taken to a school that trains fairy-tale heroes and villains, and each lands in the wrong place. Darker and bigger.
Best for: fairy-tale school.
13. The Land of Stories: The Wishing Spell by Chris Colfer
Twins fall into a fairy-tale world and meet Cinderella, Red Riding Hood and more. Funny and fast.
Best for: fairy-tale fans.
14. The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill
Luna, a girl accidentally fed moonlight by a kindly witch, grows up with magic. A story about love and memory.
Best for: readers who like fairy tales.
15. A Tale Dark & Grimm by Adam Gidwitz
Hansel and Gretel continue their story through other Grimm tales. Violent, witty and unusual.
Best for: readers who like fairy tales.
How We Chose These Books
Every pick is a real, widely available book that shares something specific with Deltora Quest: its tone, its themes, its pace or the kind of characters it puts at the center. We mixed well-known favorites with a few less obvious titles, and we noted who each book suits best so you can match it to the reader. Where a book belongs to a series, we list the first volume so you can start at the beginning.
If you are not sure where to begin, start with the first three picks in the table: they are the closest match to Deltora Quest. The rest of the list moves further out, so it works well once you know which part of the original you liked most.
How to Choose
For the closest match, read Redwall or The Ruins of Gorlan. For a classic quest, try The Hobbit. For bigger worlds, pick Eragon or Artemis Fowl.
Related: Printable List of Beast Quest Books · 12 Dystopian Books Like the Hunger Games | Best Books to Read Like Hunger Games
Frequently Asked Questions
Who wrote Deltora Quest?
Emily Rodda.
How many books are in the series?
The original series has eight books.
What age is it for?
About 8 to 12.